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道德经英文版（二） |
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22
If you accept all things by refusing to distinguish
good and bad,
you overcome the confusion of the physical
reality
and live in harmony with the Infinite
manifestations.
If you bend as you are impacted by manifestations,
your path of peace and harmony
will remain straight and true.
If you empty your mind of knowledge,
you will fill with the experience
of oneness with the Infinite.
All manifestations constantly disintegrate and
remanifest.
As your body wears out, your spirit is
reborn.
Possess little in goods and thoughts and
maintain your vision of oneness with
Infinity.
Possess much and become lost in the confusion
that the physical reality is the true reality.
Therefore, remain focused on the oneness of
Infinity
and become a beacon for all beings.
Do not distinguish the self
and manifest the oneness of Infinity for all
to see.
Do not assert the self and others will follow.
Do not bolster the self and other will give their
respect.
Do not allow the self to brag
and others will bestow their praise.
Do not allow the self to be quarrelsome
and experience peace with all beings.
Is not it true that if you accept all things
by refusing to distinguish good and bad,
you overcome the confusion of the physical
reality and live in harmony with
the Infinite manifestations?
Flow with the peace and harmony of the oneness
of Infinity and experience immortality.
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23
To seldom speak is the essence of simplicity.
The winds do not last all morning.
The rain does not last all day.
The earth that manifests the winds and the rain
is itself a manifestation of change.
All things change, nothing is eternal but change.
All the manifestations of humanity are fleeting
as is the entire physical universe.
Keep your focus on the oneness of Infinity,
manifesting the potential of all things
and disintegrating all the manifestations.
Flow in the peace and harmony of eternal
change.
Focus on goodness and virtue and you lose
sight of the oneness of all people.
Focus on failure and your life becomes failure.
Focus on peace and harmony, the essence of
Infinity, and experience peace and harmony.
Embrace change and live in peace.
Embrace the experience of the moment,
refuse to distinguish good and bad,
happy and sad, difficult and easy.
What you distinguish comes to you for a time.
When it comes embrace it
and when it leaves let it go.
This is living within the oneness of the Infinite.
This is the key to peace and harmony.
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24
Stand on your toes and you will not maintain your
balance.
Run and you will have to rest.
Keep a harmonious pace
and you can circumnavigate the earth.
Draw attention to yourself and others may
consider you a fool.
Become self-righteous and others will avoid you.
Boasting impresses no one.
Brag and you may be put to the test.
Within the oneness of Infinity,
all these are delusions of the physical
world.
They do not bring peace and harmony.
Be at one with Infinity and keep these in
perspective.
They are transient excesses in a transient
universe.
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25
Before the physical universe existed,
the potential of all things
permeated time and space.
It was silent and empty, loud and pregnant.
Solitary in its oneness, crowded in its potential,
static and dynamic, hot and cold, light and
dark.
The potential of all things,
for lack of another name,
I call it Infinity.
It permeates all things and non-things.
It manifests realities and disintegrates those
realities.
All things are birthed from it
and all things return to it.
Infinity is marvelous.
The physical universe is marvelous.
The earth is marvelous.
Human beings are marvelous.
These are the four realities.
Human beings are a manifestation of the
earth;
the earth, a manifestation of the physical
universe;
the physical universe, a manifestation of
Infinity;
Infinity, the potential of all things.
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26
Infinity is the source of all physical
manifestations.
The Infinite stillness is the creator of the
churning
universe.
The sage travels all day over the land and sea
but does not lose sight of Infinity.
Though the manifestations of the earth are
wondrous and beautiful,
she remains indifferent because she remains
centered
in the Infinite oneness.
The leader of multitudes cannot afford to
lose her perspective.
Indulging in the physical manifestations
results in a loss of focus on the
Infinite.
To be caught up in distinguishing things,
narrows the leader''s perspective
to that of her followers.
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27
A proficient traveler leaves no evidence of his
journey.
A proficient speaker is impeccable in his
presentation.
A proficient accountant needs no tally sheet.
A functional door has no lock
but can only opened by the owner.
A perfect binding has no knots
yet only the binder can loosen it.
The sage is the light of all human beings
and rejects no one.
She efficiently uses all things
and discards nothing.
This is called manifesting Infinity.
What is a sage but a guide to peace and harmony?
What is a materialistic traveler but the
sage''s focus?
For the student not to ＆#118alue the teacher
or the teacher not to love the student
or for the followers not to acknowledge the
leader
or the leader not to care for the
followers,
is the cause of great confusion.
This is a key to peace and harmony,
teachers and leaders remind others of who
they are
and their oneness with Infinity.
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28
Integrate the male and the female
and travel the peaceful path of oneness.
Be at one with Infinity.
Being at one with Infinity,
do not become confused
in distinctions of male and female.
Experience the oneness
as an undistinguishing child.
See the white and the black as one.
Be a guiding light to the world.
As a guiding light to the world,
standing firm in the truth of oneness,
mirror Infinity for all to see.
Remember that honor and humility are one.
Be a vessel of Infinity.
As a vessel of Infinity,
be a resource to all beings.
Become as a piece of uncarved wood;
available for any purpose.
When a piece of wood is carved, it becomes useful.
When the sage flows in oneness, he becomes useful
as king.
Therefore, the sage is careful in using what he
needs
but avoiding kingship.
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29
Do you think you can control the world?
I do not believe it can be done.
The world is a manifestation of change
and cannot be controlled.
If you try to control it, you will end up deceiving
yourself.
If you treat it like an object, it will overwhelm
you.
The world is a manifestation of change;
sometimes ahead, sometimes behind,
sometimes dynamic, sometimes static,
sometimes vigorous, sometimes feeble,
sometimes manifesting, sometimes
disintegrating.
Therefore, refuse to distinguish excesses and
extremes.
See only oneness.
Flow with Infinity
and exist in peace and harmony.
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30
Whenever you have an opportunity to advise a
leader
regarding Infinity, advise her not to use
force
to try to gain control of the world.
Why?
Because force attracts resistance
and the greater the force
the greater the resistance.
Briars grow where armies have been
and hard times are the legacy of a great war.
Conclude hostilities as soon as possible
and do not continue to use excessive force
after victory.
Fulfill your purpose but never glory in inhumane
acts.
Fulfill your purpose but never boast of
bloodletting.
Fulfill your purpose but never take pride in
killing.
Fulfill your purpose but avoid violence.
Fulfill your purpose by flowing within
the oneness of Infinity.
The use of force dissipates life.
Force is not the way of peace and harmony.
That which goes against peace and harmony
is short lived.
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31
Weapons of war are instruments of death.
All people fear them.
Therefore, all men of peace avoid them.
The sage prefers Infinity.
The man of war prefers the earth.
Weapons are instruments of death
and the tools of a warrior.
The sage avoids them at all cost;
and sometimes prefers death rather
than touching them.
Peace and harmony are the sage''s reality.
She considers victory to be the bastard
child of war.
If you revel in victory,
then you sanction war and the killing of
human beings.
If you accept killing,
you have forgotten your oneness with all
beings.
In time of celebration the left is the dominant
position;
In times of grief the right.
During wartime the general always stands on the
left
and the king on the right.
If even one person is killed in war,
it is cause for great grief and mourning.
Victory is simply the maker of widows and orphans.
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32
Infinity can never be defined in words.
Smaller than an atom, greater than forever,
it can never be comprehended.
If kings would stay centered in the Infinite,
they would not try to control the
uncontrollable;
Heaven and earth would be seen as a manifestation
of the oneness of Infinity,
as harmonious as dew accumulating on the
ground.
The people would recognize Infinity manifesting
in their king and all things would be
in harmony.
When the whole is distinguished into parts,
and parts into more parts
and more parts into even more parts
a myriad names are required.
There are already too many distinctions and
names.
The naming of things focuses on the manifestations
of Infinity
and too much distinguishing can result in one
becoming confused in the manifestations and
oblivious to
the oneness of all things.
Refuse to distinguish the components of the whole.
See the oneness of Infinity,
and see the earth as a manifestation
disintegrating back into Infinity.
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33
Knowing others is impossible.
Knowing one''s self requires only a remembering
of one''s unity with all things.
Conquering others requires force.
Conquering one''s self requires letting go.
He who understands his oneness with Infinity
resides in peace.
Living one day at a time is the essence of harmony.
One who lives in harmony endures.
Passing through death''s door is immortality.
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34
Infinity permeates everything in every direction;
to the left as well as to the right.
It is the potential of all things,
and the manifestation of all things.
Its total essence resides in all things.
It has no purpose.
It is complete in its indifference.
It manifests and disintegrates all things forever.
It sustains all things,
yet it is the god of no thing.
It has no purpose.
It is Infinitely insignificant.
All manifestations after a time disintegrate back
into It,
yet It is the god of no thing.
It permeates everything
and so there is nothing outside its realm.
It cannot appear great
because it is at one with everything.
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35
All beings are drawn to those who stay centered
in their oneness with Infinity
because they flow in peace and
harmony.
The manifestations of music and delicious food
catch the attention of those passing by.
But the essence of Infinity goes unnoticed.
It makes no sound and has no flavor
and yet It is the inexhaustible source
of the manifestations of all sounds
and all flavors.
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36
All manifestations that expand will eventually
shrink.
All manifestations that strengthen will eventually
weaken.
All manifestations that are lifted up will
eventually be
cast down.
Nothing can be received unless it is given.
This is called distinguishing the oneness of
Infinity.
Soft and weak forever disintegrate the hard and
strong.
Hard and strong forever disintegrate the soft and
weak.
This is called the nature of Infinity.
Fish are at one with water;
undistinguished by Infinity.
A nation and its weapons
cannot be distinguished.
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37
Infinity is the essence of all things.
Without intention, It manifests all things.
If leaders and kings
remain focused on the oneness of Infinity,
nations will flow in peace and harmony.
If leaders and kings are compelled to act,
they should focus on Infinity
and refuse to manifest desire.
If there is no desire for action,
the world would flow in the peace and harmony
of the oneness of Infinity.
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38
A good person is not focused on her goodness
because she is centered in oneness.
A confused person is focused on goodness
and consequently has difficulty obtaining it.
A person centered in oneness
flows with life and appears to do nothing;
yet because she is in harmony
with the oneness of Infinity
she leaves nothing undone.
A confused person is focused on achievements
and consequently never truly achieves
anything.
A caring person is caring all the time
and therefore leaves nothing unnurtured.
When the righteous person does something,
he leaves things in turmoil.
When a person of great discipline does something
and others do not follow,
he attempts to force them to conform to his
perception of reality.
When the oneness of humanity is forgotten,
a distinction is made between good and evil.
Focusing on goodness leads one down the
path of self-righteousness which
separates a person from others.
Self-righteousness leads to justice
and since justice is as arbitrary as
goodness
and righteousness, it degenerates into
a facade of justice or ritual.
Ritual is the backbone of religion
and religion is the harbinger of
judgment
and judgment is the backbone of
conflict.
Therefore, a centered person dwells upon the
oneness of Infinity and not on
distinguishing which leads to confusion;
on the plant and not on the flower.
A centered person embraces oneness
and rejects distinctions.
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39
All things are at one with Infinity.
When humanity is centered in this oneness:
the sky remains clear and beautiful,
the earth remains pure and sustains life,
the spirit of humanity is in harmony,
the valley is the source of abundance,
all creatures reproduce, regenerate and
replenish the earth,
leaders and kings are in harmony
and nations are at peace.
When humanity focuses on the manifestations of
Infinity,
distinguishes and judges all things
and thereby forgets the oneness of Infinity:
the sky becomes cloudy with pollution,
the earth becomes a cesspool
unable to easily neutralize the many
poisons,
the spirit of humanity becomes confused
and accepts conflict as the nature of
humanity,
the valley no longer produces abundance
and what it does produce is tainted.
Leaders and kings take their nations to war
in order to control the untainted
lands,
creatures no longer reproduce, species die
out
and parts of the earth, unattended by
the myriad creatures, no longer
regenerate or replenish themselves,
the people of all nations live in conflict,
fear, hunger and depression.
Therefore, never forget that oneness is the
essence of harmony; the simple is the way of
peace.
Leaders and kings consider themselves, alone,
ridiculed
and misunderstood when they forget their
oneness with Infinity.
In confusion, they inevitably lead their nations to
war.
In order to maintain peace and harmony in the land,
they must flow in the peace and harmony
of the oneness of all things.
Too much success is a sign that one has
begun to focus on manifestations and
not on Infinity, the essence of all
manifestations.
Do not distinguish precious jade.
Remain centered in the peace and harmony
of the oneness of all things.
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