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Laozi

Daodejing, Book of the Way and Virtue Chapter 37

Chapter 37 of 81

Canonical reference 37

Classical Chinese

Wang Bi received recension, base text without commentary

道常無為 而無不為。 侯王若能守之,萬物將自化。化而欲作,吾將鎮之以無名之樸。 無名之樸,夫亦將無欲。 不欲以靜,天下將自定。

English

James Legge · The Sacred Books of China, volume 39

The Tao in its regular course does nothing (for the sake of doing it), and so there is nothing which it does not do. If princes and kings were able to maintain it, all things would of themselves be transformed by them. If this transformation became to me an object of desire, I would express the desire by the nameless simplicity. Simplicity without a name Is free from all external aim. With no desire, at rest and still, All things go right as of their will.

French

Stanislas Julien · Imprimerie royale, Paris

Le Tao pratique constamment le non-agir et (pourtant) il n’y a rien qu’il ne fasse. Si les rois et les vassaux peuvent le conserver, tous les êtres se convertiront. Si, une fois convertis, ils veulent encore se mettre en mouvement, je les contiendrai à l’aide de l’être simple qui n’a pas de nom (c’est-à-dire par le Tao). L’être simple qui n’a pas de nom, il ne faut pas même le désirer. L’absence de désirs procure la quiétude. Alors l’empire se rectifie de lui-même.

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