Daodejing Translation: Chapter 56 — Chapter 60
Here is my new English translation of Chapter 51 to Chapter 55 of the Daodejing together with links to commentaries and breakdowns of each chapter.
Daodejing Chapter 56
《老子道德經》第五十六章
Those who know do not speak.
Those who speak do not know.
Block the hole.
Close the gate.
Smooth the sharpness.
Unravel the tangles.
Soften the glare.
Blend with the dust.
This is called primal union.
Anyone who attains this,
Is neither loved nor rejected,
Is neither favoured nor disgraced,
Is neither esteemed nor disdained.
But is greatly valued by all-under-heaven.
「知者不言，言者不知，塞其兌，閉其門，挫其銳，解其紛，和其光，同其塵。是謂玄同。故不可得而親，不可得而疏，不可得而利，不可得而害，不可得而貴，不可得而賤，故為天下貴！」
Daodejing Chapter 56: primal union
Daodejing Chapter 56 breakdown: valued by all-under-heaven
Daodejing Chapter 57
《老子道德經》第五十七章
Rule a state with uprightness.
Wage war with cunning.
Win over all-under-heaven
Through non-interference.
How do I know this to be true?
Through the following:
The more restrictions and prohibitions
There are in all-under-heaven,
The poorer people are.
The more sharpened weapons people possess,
The more troubled the state is.
The more clever and cunning people are,
The more fripperies proliferate.
The more laws and decrees there are,
The more thieves and robbers appear.
The sage says:
I practice effortless action,
And the people are transformed
Of their own accord.
I cherish stillness,
And the people do what is right
Of their own accord.
I do not interfere,
And the people prosper
Of their own accord.
I am free of desire,
And the people return
To the uncarved block
Of their own accord.
「以正治國，以奇用兵，以無事取天下；吾何以知其然哉，以此！天下多忌諱，而民彌貧；人多利器，國家滋昏；人多伎巧，奇物滋起；法令溢彰，盜賊多有；故聖人云：我無為而民自化，我好靜而民自正，我無事而民自富，我無欲而民自樸！」
Daodejing Chapter 57: win over the world through non-interference
Daodejing Chapter 57 breakdown: non-interference
Daodejing Chapter 58
《老子道德經》第五十八章
When the ruler is dull and vague,
The people are honest and simple.
When the ruler is repressive and intrusive,
The people are crafty and cunning.
Fortune is rooted in misfortune.
Misfortune lurks beneath fortune.
Who knows the boundary?
There is no fixed standard.
Right can turn into wrong.
Good can turn into evil.
Man has been puzzled
For a very long time.
The sage is:
Pointed but does not pierce,
Sharp but does not hurt,
Direct but does not offend,
Brilliant but does not dazzle.
「其政悶悶，其民淳淳；其政察察，其民缺缺；禍兮福之所倚，福兮禍之所伏；孰知其極，其無正。正復為奇，善復為妖。人之迷，其日固久，是以聖人方而不割，廉而不劌，直而不肆，光而不耀。」
Daodejing Chapter 58: fortune and misfortune
Daodejing Chapter 58 breakdown: the sage is pointed but does not pierce
Daodejing Chapter 59
《老子道德經》第五十九章
In ruling the people
And serving heaven,
Nothing beats prudence.
Only with prudence
Can you be ready early.
To be ready early brings
Abundant inner power.
Abundant inner power means
You can overcome any difficulty.
Once you can overcome any difficulty,
You know no limits.
Once you know no limits,
You possess the state.
Once you possess
The mother of the state,
You endure.
This is called a deep root
And a firm stalk,
The way of long life
And enduring clarity.
「治人事天莫若嗇，夫唯嗇是謂早服；早服謂之重積德，重積德則無不克；無不克則莫知其極，莫知其極可以有國；有國之母可以長久，是謂深根固柢，長生久視之道。」
Daodejing Chapter 59: nothing beats prudence
Daodejing Chapter 59 breakdown: a deep root and firm stalk
Daodejing Chapter 60: like cooking a small fish
《老子道德經》第六十章
Governing a large state
Is like cooking a small fish.
When the Dao prevails
Over all-under-heaven,
Demons lose
Their spiritual powers.
What powers
The demons still possess,
No longer harm the people.
Not only do the demons
No longer harm the people,
But the ruler also
Does not harm the people.
Since these two
Do not harm each other,
Their inner powers converge
And return to the source.
「治大國，若烹小鮮；以道蒞天下，其鬼不神；非其鬼不神，其神不傷人；非其神不傷人，聖人亦不傷人；夫兩不相傷，故德交歸焉！」
Daodejing Chapter 60: like cooking a small fish
Daodejing Chapter 60 breakdown: when the Dao prevails
