『道德經 第十六章 』（知常容，容乃公）

 道德經上篇：《道經》

 

 第十六章

 

【原文】

致虛極，守靜篤（dǔ）①。萬物並作，吾以觀複。夫物芸芸③，各複歸其根。歸根曰靜③，靜曰複命。複命曰常④，知常曰明。不知常，妄作凶。知常容⑤，容乃公，公乃全，全乃天⑥，天乃道，乃久，沒身不殆⑦。

 

【注釋】　　

①篤（dǔ）：極度、頂點。

②芸芸：紛雜茂盛，常用來形容草木的繁盛。

③根：即事物的根本。

④常：萬物運動與變化中的不變的律則。

⑤容：包容、寬容。

⑥天：自然界的天。

⑦沒身：終身。

 

【譯文】

使心靈空明虛寂到極點，使生活的清靜達到極致。在萬物都蓬勃生長的時候，我從中仔細觀察它們生死循環的道理。天下萬物雖然紛紛芸芸，但最終都將回複到它們的本根。返回本根就叫“靜”，靜叫作複歸本性。複歸本性是萬物運動與變化中不變的律則，認識和了解萬物運動與變化都依循著循環往複的律則，叫作“明”。不了解這個不變的律則，輕舉妄動就會有凶險。了解了這個不變的律則的人，就能做到寬容，做到了寬容就能坦然大公，坦然大公才能無不周遍，無不周遍才符合自然，符合自然才能符合於“道”，得道而行才能長久，終身可免於危殆。

 

English Translation

Version 1：by Daniel Baida Su and Shangyu Chen

 

Humble to the utmost and completely tranquil,
I can see the coming and the going of all that grows.
Flourishing things of a million kinds,
All return to their roots.
Such a return is called tranquility;
Such tranquility is called return to life;
Such a return is eternity. 
To know eternity is enlightenment;
Not to know eternity is waywardness,
Which results in calamity.
To know eternity is to embrace whatever comes;
To embrace whatever comes is to be just;
To be just is to be complete;
To be complete is to be like Heaven;
To be like Heaven is to return to Tao;
To return to Tao is to live long.
Your body falls away, yet you live on.
 

Version 2：by John C. H. Wu