19.
Abandon knowledge, morality, and profit—
people will thrive.
Yet one more item is crucial:
hold to the unhewn—
self erodes, desires fade.
20.
What’s the difference between good and bad?
People conform—they’re all so full!
I’m homeless and useless with the mind of a fool.
I nurture on the Mother.
21.
Tao alone is truth.
Formless—it holds an image.
Indistinct—it shelters fact.
Hidden—it embraces essence.
How do I know? It tells me.
22.
Yield—
and be whole.
As hollow—
so filled.
Thus the sage embraces unity.
Not self-absorbed—
self-evident.
Not empty talk—
the way to the whole.
23.
Speak sparingly as nature—
wind and rain doesn’t storm all day.
To follow Tao is to be Tao.
In gain be gain, in loss, loss.
In Tao trust.
24.
On tiptoes, one can’t stand.
Showing off, one doesn’t shine.
For one on the Way, it’s called
excess food and a tiring pace.
Never indulge.
25.
Before all—
there was something silent,
empty.
Name?
Call it Tao.
Humans follow earth
follows heaven
follows Tao.
Tao follows itself.
26.
Firm—root of light.
Still—lord of the wilderness.
Sages walk with resources near—
calm amid lookouts.
Lightly—lose footing.
Wildly—lose direction.
27.
Perfect action is not undone.
Students are enshrouded light.
Teachers employ that fact
or lack all resources—
simply confusion!
So a sage sees subtly
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