Chinese text
小国寡人，使有什伯之器而不用，使人重死而不远徙。
虽有舟舆，无所乘之；虽有甲兵，无所陈之。
使民复结绳而用之。
甘其食，美其服，安其居，乐其俗，邻国相望，鸡狗之声相闻，民至老死，不相往来。
Translation
(If I were to govern) a small kingdom and a small people, even if it had weapons for ten or a hundred men, I would prevent it from using them.
I would teach the people to fear death and not to emigrate far away.
When it had boats and chariots, it would not board them.
When it had armor and spears, it would not wear them.
I would make it return to the use of knotted cords.
It would savor its food, find elegance in its clothing, delight in its dwelling, and love its simple customs.
If another kingdom were facing mine, and the cries of roosters and dogs could be heard from one to the other, my people would grow old and die without having visited the neighboring people.
Notes
苏辙 : Laozi lived in the era of the decline of the 周 . External displays (the trappings of studied politeness) dominated, that is, they had replaced the sincerity of the heart, and morals were increasingly corrupted. Laozi wanted to save men through non-action; this is why, at the end of his work, he says what his wishes would have been. He would have desired to govern a small kingdom to apply his doctrine there, but he could not succeed.
苏辙 : The word 什 means "ten men" (as its composition indicates). The word 伯 means "a hundred men." H: Same meaning.
However, as no dictionary gives this meaning to the word 伯 (commonly "elder brother of the father"), I preferred the reading 百 from edition C, which carries its definition with it. Indeed, the word 百 means "a troop of a hundred men," because it is composed of the characters 人 "man" and 白 "hundred."
B: The word 器 means "weapons of war" 兵器 .
Ibid. Here it refers to a small kingdom of a hundred 里 (ten leagues).
B: The people would not be burdened with taxes or forced labor; (E) they would love their existence, be attached to life, and fear death.
A: My administration not being bothersome to the common people, they would quietly practice their profession; they would not emigrate far nor abandon their homeland to seek happiness elsewhere.
A: It would remain in a state of absolute purity and tranquility; it would not find happiness in traveling far.
H: The word 陈 properly means "to arrange, to set in order."
B: I would have no reason to attack others or wage war against them; I (A) would not provoke the hatred and resentment of neighboring kingdoms, and would not need to defend myself against their attacks.
In high antiquity, when writing had not yet been invented, men used knotted cords to communicate their thoughts. (See 通鉴纲目 , part I, book I, fol. 2.) At that time, morals were pure and simple, and, according to Laozi's ideas, they had not yet been corrupted by the progress of enlightenment.
In the author's thought, the words "I would bring the people back to the use of knotted cords" mean: "I would bring the people back to their primitive simplicity."
H: The people would be content with their lot; they would desire nothing outside themselves. They would not concern themselves with food or body; they would love their rough clothing, and their coarse food would seem delicious to them.
E: In this case, the two countries would be extremely close.
He would reach old age without having thought to visit the neighboring people, because he (A) would be free from desires, and (E) would seek nothing beyond what he possesses.
H: Laozi expressed himself thus in this chapter because he detested the princes of his time, whom he saw engaging in action (the opposite of non-action) and using prudence and force, who loved to wage war to sate their greed, who appropriated the wealth of their subjects to satisfy their passions, and who took no care of the people. This is why their kingdom was in disorder, the people were rapidly impoverished, and became increasingly difficult to govern day by day.
