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道德經
Tao Te Ching
二章
chapter 2
天下皆知美
Under Heaven, everyone knows beauty

Under Heaven, everyone knows beauty well enough to create it, only through ugliness. Everyone knows good well enough to do it, only through evil. So, being and non-being are born with each other. Difficult and easy succeed with each other. Long and short contrast each other. High and low support each other. Music and voice harmonize with each other. Front and back follow each other. Therefore the Sage lives without action, and teaches without words. The ten thousand things are made by it and it does not deny them. It gives them life but does not own them. It works for them but does not claim credit. It finishes the job but does not get stuck on it. Truly, exactly because it does not get stuck on things — that's how it never dies.

Notes

Translation Table
Index Chinese Pinyin Literal Idiomatic
1 天 tian Heaven Heaven
2 下 xia under Under Heaven,
3 皆 jie everyone everyone
4 知 zhi know knows
5 美 mei beauty beauty
6 之 zhi 's
7 為 wei make well enough to create
8 美 mei beauty it,
9 斯 si because of through
10 惡 wu ugliness ugliness
11 已 yi only only through ugliness.
12 皆 jie everyone Everyone
13 知 zhi know knows
14 善 shan good good
15 之 zhi 's
16 為 wei make well enough to do
17 善 shan good it,
18 斯 si because of through
19 不 bu not
20 善 shan good evil
21 已 yi only only through evil.
22 故 gu thus So,
23 有 you being being
24 無 wu non-being and non-being
25 相 xiang together with each other
26 生 sheng birth are born with each other.
27 難 nan difficult Difficult
28 易 yi easy and easy
29 相 xiang together with each other
30 成 cheng succeed succeed with each other.
31 長 chang long Long
32 短 duan short and short
33 相 xiang together each other
34 較 jiao contrast contrast each other.
35 高 gao high High
36 下 xia below and low
37 相 xiang together each other
38 傾 qing support support each other.
39 音 yin music Music
40 聲 sheng voice and voice
41 相 xiang together with each other
42 和 he harmony harmonize with each other.
43 前 qian front Front
44 後 hou back and back
45 相 xiang together each other
46 隨 sui follow follow each other.
47 是 shi thus
48 以 yi thus Therefore
49 聖 sheng holy
50 人 ren person the Sage
51 處 chu live by lives
52 無 wu without without
53 為 wei act action,
54 之 zhi he/she
55 事 shi work and teaches
56 行 xing act
57 不 bu not without
58 言 yan words words.
59 之 zhi his/hers
60 教 jiao lesson teaches
61 萬 wan the thousand The ten thousand
62 物 wu things things
63 作 zuo make are made
64 焉 yan there by it
65 而 er and and
66 不 bu not not
67 辭 ci deny it does not deny them.
68 生 sheng give life It gives them life
69 而 er but but
70 不 bu does not does not
71 有 you own own them.
72 為 wei work It works for them
73 而 er but but
74 不 bu does not does not
75 恃 shi claim claim
76 功 gong credit credit.
77 成 cheng finish It finishes the job
78 而 er but but
79 弗 fu does not does not
80 居 ju dwell get stuck on it.
81 夫 fu truly Truly,
82 唯 wei exactly because exactly because
83 弗 fu does not it does not
84 處 chu dwell get stuck on things —
85 是 shi this that's
86 以 yi (When it precedes a verb, it marks manner, result, or intention) how
87 不 bu does not it never
88 去 qu die dies.