Tao Te Ching Chapter 81
第81章
信言不美，美言不信。善者不辯，辯者不善。
知者不博，博者不知。
聖人不積，既以為人己愈有，既以與人己愈多。天之道，利而不害；聖人之道，為而不爭。
Sincere words are not fine; fine words are not sincere. Those who are skilled (in the Tao) do not dispute (about it); the disputatious are not skilled in it. Those who know (the Tao) are not extensively learned; the extensively learned do not know it.
The sage does not accumulate (for himself). The more that he expends for others, the more does he possess of his own; the more that he gives to others, the more does he have himself.
With all the sharpness of the Way of Heaven, it injures not; with all the doing in the way of the sage he does not strive.
{{Translation license | original =
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
- 信xìnto trust, to believe; letter, sign
- 言yánwords, speech; to speak, to say
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 美měibeautiful, pretty; pleasing
- 善shàngood, virtuous, charitable, kind
- 者zhěthat which; they who; those who
- 辯biànto argue, to dispute; to discuss, to deb
- 知zhīto know, to perceive, to comprehend
- 博bóto gamble, to play games; to win; rich,
- 聖shèngholy, sacred; sage, saint
- 人rénman, person; people
- 積jīto store up, to amass, to accumulate
- 既jìalready, since, then; both; de facto
- 以yǐaccording to; so as to; because of; then
- 為wèito do, to act; to handle, to govern; to
- 己jǐself, oneself; personal, private; 6th he
- 愈yùto recover, to heal; more and more
- 有yǒuto have, to own, to possess; to exist
- 與yǔand; with; to; for; to give, to grant
- 多duōmuch, many, multi-; more than, over
- 天tiānsky, heaven; god, celestial
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
- 道dàomethod, way; path, road
- 利lìgains, advantage, profit, merit
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 害hàito injure, to harm; to destroy, to kill
- 爭zhēngto dispute, to fight, to contend, to str
Similar passages
- Zhuangzi Tien Tzŭ Fang
- Zhuangzi On Letting Alone
- Zhuangzi The Old Fisherman
- Tao Te Ching Chapter 62
- Mencius 7B.32
- The Great Learning Passage 1
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.
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