#Click on a sentence 1 2 3 4 5 6 Chapter 63 Chapter 65 Back to index #

Ch. 64	Sentence 2
Beck	Handle things before they appear. Organize things before there is confusion.
Blackney	The time to take care is before it is done. Establish order defore confusion sets in.
Bynner	You can deal with what has not happened, can foresee Harmful events and not allow them to be.
Byrn	Prevent problems before they arise. Take action before things get out of hand.
Chan	Deal with things before they appear. Put things in order before disorder arises.
Cleary	Do it before it exists; govern it before there's disorder.
Crowley	Act against things before the become visible; attend to order before disorder arises.
Hansen	Deem-act on it in its not-yet-exist phase; order it in its not-yet-disordered phase.
LaFargue	Work on it when it isn't yet put it in order when it is not yet disordered.
Legge	Action should be taken before a thing has made its appearance; order should be secured before disorder has begun.
Lindauer	Acting relates to the not yet present Governing relates to the not yet confused.
LinYutan	Deal with a thing before it is there; Check disorder before it is rife.
Mabry	Correct problems before they occur. Intervene before chaos erupts.
McDonald	[All the same, reach up to] deal with things in their state of not-yet-being; deal with things well before they appear. Just put things well in shape before disorder and confusion. Put all very well in order before disorder, and next go on to check loss or disorder well.
Merel	Therefore deal with things before they happen; Create order before there is confusion.
Mitchell	Prevent trouble before it arises. Put things in order before they exist.
Muller	Handle things before they arise. Manage affairs before they are in a mess.
Red Pine	act before it exists govern before it rebels
Ta-Kao	Deal with a thing before it comes into existence; Regulate a thing before it gets into confusion.
Walker	Deal with things before they arise. Cultivate order before confusion sets in.
Wieger	One should take one's measures before something happens, and protect order before disorder bursts out.
World	Flow in peace and harmony and problems do not manifest. Focus on the oneness of all things and avoid confusion.
Wu	Tackle things before they have appeared. Cultivate peace and order before confusion and disorder have set in.

Ch. 64	Sentence 3
Beck	A tree as big as a person's embrace grows from a tiny shoot. A tower nine stories high begins with a mound of earth. A journey of a thousand miles begins under one's feet.
Blackney	Tree trunks around which you can reach with your arms were at first only minuscule sprouts. A nine-storied terrace began with a clod. A thousand-mile journey began with a foot put down.
Bynner	Thought - as naturally as a seed becomes a tree of arm-wide girth -/ There can rise a nine-tiered tower from a man's handful of earth Or here at your feet a thousand-mile journey have birth,
Byrn	The tallest tree begins as a tiny sprout. The tallest building starts with one shovel of dirt. A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single footstep.
Chan	A tree as big as a man's embrace grows from a tiny shoot. A tower of nine stories begins with a heap of earth. The journey of a thousand li starts from where one stands.
Cleary	The most massive tree grows from a sprout; the highest building rises froma pile of earth; a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
Crowley	The tree which fills the embrace grew from a small shoot; the tower nine-storied rose from a low foundation; the ten day journey began with a single step.
Hansen	An armful of wood arises from small sprouts; nine story towers start from a pile of earth. A thousand league walk starts with putting the foot down.
LaFargue	A tree you can barely get your arms around, grows from a tiny shoot a nine-story tower begins as a heap of earth a thousand-mile journey begins under your feet.
Legge	The tree which fills the arms grew from the tiniest sprout; the tower of nine storeys rose from a (small) heap of earth; the journey of a thousand li commenced with a single step.
Lindauer	A tree as big as the embrace of a man is born relating to very tiny shoots A nine story tower is raised relating to a pile of earth A journey of a thousand li begins in relating to where you stand.
LinYutan	A tree with a full span's girth begins from a tiny sprout; A nine-storied terrace begins with a clod of earth. A journey of a thousand li beings at one's feet.
Mabry	A tree too big around to hug is produced from a tiny sprout. A nine-story tower begins with a mound of dirt. A thousand-mile journey begins with your own two feet.
McDonald	A tree as big as a man's hug grows from a tiny sprout. A tower nine storeys high begins with a clod of earth. Further, the journey of three hundred miles began with ... the feet. A journey of a thousand li begins right where one stands, even with the very first step.
Merel	Yet a tree broader than a man can embrace is born of a tiny shoot; A dam greater than a river can overflow starts with a clod of earth; A journey of a thousand miles begins at the spot under one's feet.
Mitchell	The giant pine tree grows from a tiny sprout. The journey of a thousand miles starts from beneath your feet.
Muller	A thick tree grows from a tiny seed. A tall building arises from a mound of earth. A journey of a thousand miles starts with one step.
Red Pine	as giant tree grows from the tiniest shoot a great tower rises from a basket of dirt a thousand mile journey begins at your feet
Ta-Kao	The tree that fills a man's arms arises from a tender shoot; The nine-storeyed tower is raised from a heap of earth; A thousand miles' journey begins from the spot under one's feet.
Walker	The tallest tree springs from a tiny shoot. The tallest tower is built from a pile of dirt. A journey of a thousand miles begins at your feet.
Wieger	A tree which one's arms can barely embrace comes from a shoot as fine as a hair; a nine-storey tower begins with a pile of earth; a long journey begins with a single step.
World	The greatest tree manifests from an unremarkable shoot. A multilevel building begins with the laying of a single brick. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
Wu	A tree as big as a man's embrace springs from a tiny sprout. A tower nine stories high begins with a heap of earth. A journey of a thousand leagues starts from where your feet stand.

Ch. 64	Sentence 4
Beck	To act is to fail. To grab is to lose. Therefore the wise do not act and do not fail. They do not grab and do not lose.
Blackney	Doing spoils it, grabbing misses it; So the Wise Man refrains from doing and doesn't spoil anything; He grabs at nothing and so never misses.
Bynner	Quick action bruises, Quick grasping loses. Therefore a sane man's care is not to exert One move that can miss, one move that can hurt.
Byrn	If you rush into action, you will fail. If you hold on too tight, you will lose your grip.
Chan	He who takes action fails. He who grasps things loses them. For this reason the sage takes no action and therefore does not fail. He grasps nothing and therefore does not lose anything;
Cleary	Those who contrive spoil it; those who cling lose it. Thus sages contrive nothing, and so spoil nothing. They cling to nothing, and so lose noting.
Crowley	He who acts works harm; he who grasps finds it a slip. The wise man acts not, so works no harm; he does not grasp, and so does not let go.
Hansen	Those who deem-act wreck it; those who grasp lose it. Using this: Sages lack deeming action, hence they lack wrecking, lack grasping hence lack losing.
LaFargue	Working ruins, grasping loses. And so the Wise Person: Does not work, so does not ruin does not grasp, so does not lose.
Legge	He who acts (with an ulterior purpose) does harm; he who takes hold of a thing (in the same way) loses his hold. The sage does not act (so), and therefore does no harm; he does not lay hold (so), and therefore does not lose his bold.
Lindauer	Those who act are spoiling Those who take hold of are losing Appropriately it happens that sages are absent of action So there is an absence of spoiling Are absent of taking hold of So there is an absence of losing.
LinYutan	He who acts, spoils; He who grasps, lets slip. Because the Sage does not act, he does not spoil, Because he does not grasp, he does not let slip.
Mabry	Whoever tries will fail. Whoever clutches, loses. Therefore the Sage, not rying, cannot fail Not clutching, she cannot lose.
McDonald	Still, he who takes a [visible forestalling] action fails. Who acts, harms; he who grabs, lets slip. And therefore the wise man doesn't act in the open, and so doesn't spoil or harm; yes, he takes seemingly no action and therefore hardly fails. And why is this? It's due to: He who grasps things [often] loses them. He doesn't grasp a lot, he doesn't let slip a lot. Does hardly grab in the open, and so doesn't let slip a lot. He grasps nothing visibly to others, and therefore he doesn't lose much. Whereas people in their handling of affairs often fail when they're about to succeed at their tasks. Such people constantly spoil things when within an ace of completing them. Be as careful at the end as at the start to avert failures at hand. Then there will be no such failures. Heed the end no less than the start, so that your valuable work will not be spoiled and ruined.
Merel	He who acts, spoils; He who grasps, loses.
Mitchell	Rushing into action, you fail. Trying to grasp things, you lose them. Forcing a project to completion, you ruin what was almost ripe. Therefore the Master takes action by letting things take their course.
Muller	Contriving, you are defeated; Grasping, you lose. The sage doesn't contrive, so she isn't beaten. Not grasping, she doesn't lose.
Red Pine	but to act is to fail to control is to lose therefore the sage doesn't act he thus doesn't fail he doesn't control he thus doesn't lose
Ta-Kao
Walker	Interfere with things, and you'll be defeated by them. Hold on to things, and you'll lose them. The sage doesn't interfere, so he doesn't fail; doesn't hold on, so he doesn't lose.
Wieger	Those who make too much of things, spoil their affairs. Those who grip too strongly, end up by letting go. The Sage who does not act, does not spoil any affair. Since he holds on to nothing, nothing escapes him.
World	He who attempts to control his life becomes confused. Attempt to grasp a thing and it disappears. The sage flows in peace and harmony and so is not confused. She attaches herself to nothing and consequently her vision remains clear.
Wu	He who fusses over anything spoils it. He who grasps anything loses it. The Sage fusses over nothing and therefore spoils nothing. He grips at nothing and therefore loses nothing.

Ch. 64	Sentence 5
Beck	In handling things people usually fail when they are about to succeed. Be as careful at the end as at the beginning, and there will be no failure.
Blackney	People are constantly spoiling a project when it lacks only a step to completion. To avoid making a mess of it, be as careful of the end as you were of the beginning.
Bynner	Most people who miss, after almost winning, Should have 'known the end from the beginning.'
Byrn	Therefore the Master lets things take their course and thus never fails. She doesn't hold on to things and never loses them. By pursing your goals too relentlessly, you let them slip away. If you are as concerned about the outcome as you are about the beginning, then it is hard to do things wrong.
Chan	A sane man is sane in knowing what things he can spare, In not wishing what most people wish, In not reaching for things that seem rare.
Cleary	Therefore people's works are always spoiled on the verge of completion. Be as careful of the end as of the beginning, and nothing will be spoiled.
Crowley	People in their handling of affairs often fail when they are about to succeed. If one remains as careful at the end as he was at the beginning, there will be no failure.
Hansen	The people in pursuing social affairs take the phase of nearly completed as constant and then wreck it. If you are as careful at the end as in the beginning then you will lack wrecking things.
LaFargue	Men often ruin their affairs on the eve of success, because they are not as prudent at the end as in the beginning. The wise man wills what others do not will, and values not things rare. He learns what others learn not, and gathers up what they despise.
Legge	"When the people are engaged in some task, they are always on the point of finishing when they ruin it. Careful at the end just as at the beginning then there will be no ruining of the work.
Lindauer	The following of people of effort in the entire Relates to perfecting part yet spoiling Following care throughout as if just beginning
LinYutan	The affairs of men are often spoiled within an ace of completion. By being careful at the end as at the beginning Failure is averted.
Mabry	When people try, they usually fail just on the brink of success. If one is as cautious at the outset as at the end, One cannot fail.
McDonald	Therefore the wise man learns to seem unlearned, wants only things that are unwanted. Yes, the wise man publicly desires to have no desire.
Merel	(But) people in their conduct of affairs are constantly ruining them when they are on the eve of success. If they were careful at the end, as (they should be) at the beginning, they would not so ruin them.
Mitchell	People often fail on the verge of success; Take care at the end as at the beginning, So that you may avoid failure.
Muller	When people are carrying out their projects They usually blow it at the end. If you are as careful at the end As you were at the beginning, You won't be disappointed.
Red Pine	when people pursue a task they always fail near the end care at the end as well as the start means an end to failure
Ta-Kao	The common people in their business often fail on the verge of succeeding. Take care with the end as you do with the beginning, And you will have no failure.
Walker	Because projects often come to ruin just before completion, he takes as much care at the end as he did at the beginning, and thereby succeeds.
Wieger	When the common people have affairs, they often fail at the moment when they should have succeeded, (nervousness at the beginning of success making them lose propriety and make clumsy mistakes). For success, the circumspection of the beginning should last until the final achievement.
World	Confused people usually quit just short of success. Therefore, see experiences asthe oneness of life from beginning to end and it will be impossible to fail.
Wu	In handling affairs, people often spoil them just at the point of success. With heedfulness in the beginning and patience at the end, nothing will be spoiled.

Ch. 64	Sentence 6
Beck	Therefore the wise desire to have no desires. They do not value rare treasures. They learn what is unknown, returning to what many have missed so that all things may be natural without interference.
Blackney	So the Wise Man wants the unwanted; he sets no high value on anything because it is hard to get. He studies what others neglect and restores to the world what multitudes have passed by. His object is to restore everything in its natural course, but he dares take no steps to that end.
Bynner	The cultured might call him heathenish, This man of few words, because his one care Is not to interfere but to let nature renew The sense of direction men undo.
Byrn	The master seeks no possessions. She learns by unlearning, thus she is able to understand all things. This gives her the ability to help all of creation.
Chan	Therefore the sage desires to have no desire, He does not value rare treasures. He learns to be unlearned, and returns to what the multitude missed -Tao. Thus he supports all things in their natural state but does not take any action.
Cleary	Thus sages want to have no wants; they do not value goods hard to get. They learn not learning to recover from people's excesses, thereby to assist the naturalness of all beings, without daring to contrive.
Crowley	Thus he is in accord with the natural course of events, and he is not overbold in action.
Hansen	Using this: Sages treat not-desiring as a desire and don't value goods difficult to obtain. Study not-studying and restore what the crowd of humanity has passed by. Use restoring the self-so nature of the ten-thousand natural kinds and don't recklessly deem-act.
LaFargue	And so the Wise Person: Desires to be desireless does not prize goods hard to come by learns to be un-leaned turns back to the place all others have gone on from. So as to help along the naturalness of the thousands of things with out presuming to be a Worker.
Legge	Therefore the sage desires what (other men) do not desire, and does not prize things difficult to get; he learns what (other men) do not learn, and turns back to what the multitude of men have passed by. Thus he helps the natural development of all things, and does not dare to act (with an ulterior purpose of his own).
Lindauer	Comes an absence of spoiling effort.Appropriately it happens that sages Desire without desiring Are without treasuring goods difficult to obtain Learn without learning Return to the place where the collective mind passes And come to support the self-nature of the 10000 things Yet without venturing to act.
LinYutan	Therefore the Sage desires to have no desire, And values not objects difficult to obtain. Learns that which is unlearned, And restores what the multitude have lost. That he may assist in the course of Nature And not presume to interfere.
Mabry	Therefore the Sage desires nothing so much as to be desireless. She does not value rare and expensive goods. She unlearns what was once taught And helps the people regain what they have lost; To help every being assume its natural way of being, And not dare to force anything.
McDonald	Therefore the wise man desires no desire - and desires all the same. He doesn't often value rare treasures publicly. He hardly values objects hard to get or find - in public. He says he learns that which is unlearned. He claims he sets no store by products difficult to get, and so teaches things untaught. [It's a trap.] But he also turns all beings back to the very thing they have left behind, so that he can assist in the course of nature somehow. And if so, "the ten thousand creatures" can be restored to their self-sameness, the self-so which is of [some] dao. Yes, he supports all things in some of their natural states. This he does; but hardly presume to interfere all right. He hardly dares to act in the open. So he denies to take any visible action.
Merel	The sage desires no-desire, Values no-value, Learns no-learning, And returns to the places that people have forgotten; He would help all people to become natural, But then he would not be natural.
Mitchell	He remains as calm at the end as at the beginning. He has nothing, thus has nothing to lose. What he desires is non-desire; what he learns is to unlearn. He simply reminds people of who they have always been. He cares about nothing but the Tao. Thus he can care for all things.
Muller	Therefore the sage desires non-desire, Does not value rare goods, Studies the unlearnable So that she can correct the mistakes of average people And aid all things in manifesting their true nature Without presuming to take the initiative.
Red Pine	the sage thus seeks what no one seeks he doesn't prize hard to-get-goods he studies what no one studies he turns to what others pass by to help all things be natural he thus dares not act
Ta-Kao
Walker	His only desire is to be free of desire. Fancying nothing, learning not to know, electing not to interfere, he helps all beings become themselves.
Wieger	The Sage desires nothing. He does not prize any object because it is rare. He does not attach himself to any system, but instructs himself by the faults of others. In order to co-operate with universal evolution, he does not act, but lets things go.
World	The sage is indifferent to desire: she does not accumulate possessions, she is unemotional regarding ideas, she focuses people on their oneness, she, by example, illuminates the path to peace and harmony but does not impose her will or foist her views on others.
Wu	Therefore, the Sage desires to be desireless, Sets no value on rare goods, Learns to unlearn his learning, And induces the masses to return from where they have overpassed. He only helps all creatures to find their own nature, But does not venture to lead them by the nose.