Tao Te Ching Chapter 7
第7章
天長地久。天地所以能長且久者，以其不自生，故能長生。是以聖人後其身而身先；外其身而身存。非以其無私邪，故能成其私。
Heaven is long-enduring and earth continues long. The reason why heaven and earth are able to endure and continue thus long is because they do not live of, or for, themselves. This is how they are able to continue and endure.
Therefore the sage puts his own person last, and yet it is found in the foremost place; he treats his person as if it were foreign to him, and yet that person is preserved. Is it not because he has no personal and private ends, that therefore such ends are realised?
English: James Legge (1891), The Tâo Teh King, Sacred Books of the East vol. 39 (1891) — public domain. Chinese: Wang Bi recension (王弼本), commentary removed.
Character glossary
- 天tiānsky, heaven; god, celestial
- 長zhǎnglong, lasting; to excel in
- 地deearth, ground, soil; land, region; struc
- 久jiǔlong ago; a long time
- 所suǒplace, location; "that which", a particl
- 以yǐaccording to; so as to; because of; then
- 能néngcan, may; capable, full of energy
- 且qiěmoreover, also (post-subject); about to,
- 者zhěthat which; they who; those who
- 其qíhis, her, its, their; that
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 自zìself; private, personal; from
- 生shēnglife, lifetime; birth; growth
- 故gùreason, cause; happening, instance
- 是shìto be; indeed, right, yes; okay
- 聖shèngholy, sacred; sage, saint
- 人rénman, person; people
- 後hòuafter; behind, rear; descendants
- 身shēnbody, torso; person; pregnancy
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 先xiānfirst, former, previous
- 外wàiout, outside, external; foreign; in addi
- 存cúnto exist; to survive, to maintain; to ke
- 非fēinot, negative, non-; to oppose
- 無wúno, not; lacking, -less
- 私sīpersonal, private, secret; selfish
- 邪xiéwrong, evil, demonic; perverse, depraved
- 成chéngto accomplish; to become; to complete, t
Similar passages
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Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0); Chinese Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.