Chapter 2 of the Laozi

Chinese Text

天tiān下xià皆jiē知zhī美měi之zhī为wéi美měi, 斯sī恶è已yǐ; 皆jiē知zhī善shàn之zhī为wéi善shàn, 斯sī不bù善shàn已yǐ.
故gù有yǒu无wú相xiāng生shēng, 难nán易yì相xiāng成chéng, 长cháng短duǎn相xiāng形xíng, 高gāo下xià相xiāng倾qīng, 音yīn声shēng相xiāng和hè, 前qián後hòu相xiāng随suí.
是shì以yǐ圣shèng人rén处chǔ无wú为wéi之zhī事shì, 行xíng不bù言yán之zhī教jiào, 万wàn物wù作zuò焉yān而ér不bù辞cí, 生shēng而ér不bù有yǒu, 为wéi而ér不bù恃shì, 功gōng成chéng而ér弗fú居jū.
夫fú惟wéi弗fú居jū, 是shì以yǐ不bù去qù.

Translation

In the world, when all people know beauty as beauty, ugliness arises.
When all people know goodness as goodness, evil arises.
Therefore, being and non-being give rise to each other.
Difficult and easy complement each other.
Long and short define each other.
High and low depend on each other.
Tone and voice harmonize with each other.
Before and after follow each other.
Therefore, the Sage acts through non-action.
He teaches without speaking.
All things arise, and he does not refuse them.
He creates but does not possess.
He acts but does not expect.
When his work is accomplished, he does not dwell on it.
It is precisely because he does not dwell on it that it never leaves him.

Notes

E: In ancient times, all people were upright, and they did not know they practiced 义yì "righteousness." They loved one another and did not know they practiced 仁rén "humanity." They were sincere and did not know they practiced 信xìn "honesty." They kept their promises and did not know they practiced faithfulness in words. Here is the reason: all people were equally good and virtuous; therefore, they did not know how to distinguish the nuances of virtues (literally, "they did not know that moral beauty and goodness, τό καλόν, τό αγαθόν, were different"). But in later centuries, the appearance of vice taught them for the first time to recognize moral beauty; the appearance of evil taught them for the first time to recognize goodness. When the age became more depraved, beauty and goodness shone even more brightly.

E: The following comparisons aim to show that moral beauty and vice, good and evil, highlight each other through their opposition (literally, "give each other form") and show their inequality and difference.

老子Lǎozǐ means that as soon as one sees moral beauty, one recognizes the existence of vice (literally, "丑chǒu"). As soon as one notices goodness, one recognizes the existence of evil. Man must keep his heart in obscurity and renew his nature; forget moral beauty and vice, good and evil. If he no longer thinks of moral beauty, there will no longer be vicious actions for him; if he no longer thinks of goodness, there will no longer be evil actions for him.

A: By seeing 有yǒu "being," one gets an idea of 无wú "non-being."

B: 无wú "non-being" produces 有yǒu "being"; 有yǒu "being" produces 无wú "non-being." Beings, unable to subsist eternally, eventually return to 无wú.

B: If there were no difficult things (难nán), one could not do easy things (易yì); if there were no easy things (易yì), how could one do difficult things (难nán)? The easy results from the difficult; the difficult results from the easy.

B: One recognizes that something is short (短duǎn) by comparing it to something long (长cháng), and vice versa. 刘戬夫Liú Jiǎnfū: When one has seen the length of a crane's (鹤hè) leg, one recognizes how short a duck's (鸭yā) leg is, and vice versa.

B: If I climb to a height (高gāo) and look below me, I notice how low the ground (低dī) is. If I am in a plain and look up, I am struck by the height (高gāo) of a mountain.

B: Without knowledge of tones (音yīn), one could not harmonize voices (声shēng); without voice, one could not form tones.

According to C, this passage would apply to the voice (声shēng) and the echo (响xiǎng) that responds from the depths of a valley.

B: By seeing that this man walks before me (前qián), I recognize that he precedes me and that I follow; by seeing him behind me (后hòu), I recognize that I precede him and that he follows. The posterior position results from the anterior position; the anterior position results from the posterior position.

E: The Sage (圣人shèngrén) uses the 道Dào to convert the world. He makes his occupation consist of 无为wúwéi "non-action"; his instructions consist of 不言bùyán "non-speaking, silence" (that is, (C) he instructs by example and not by words). He cultivates the essential and does not rely on the accessory. The world converts and imitates him. Those who are not virtuous reform their habits, and eminent virtue passes into customs.

A: Each of them moves (to be born); he refuses them nothing and does not stop their development. E: All beings are born invoking the support of the Sage (圣人shèngrén). He can provide them with everything they need and does not reject them.

E: He can make them be born (生shēng) and does not regard them as his property.

E: He can make them what they are, but he never relies on them for profit.

E: When his merits are accomplished, until the end of his life, he considers them as if they were foreign to him and does not cling to them. — A: He does not boast of his ability.

E: He does not cling to his merit (功gōng); that is why he has merit. If he clung to his merit, if he boasted about it, he would lose it entirely.

Aliter A: Happiness (福fú) and virtue (德dé) constantly endure; they never leave him.