shīrén: lǎo zǐ Lao-Tzu
shì zhī bù jiàn， míng yuē yí；
tīng zhī bù wén， míng yuē xī；
bó zhī bù dé， míng yuē wēi。
cǐ sān zhě bù kě zhì jié， gù hùn 'ér wéi yī。
qí shàng bù jiǎo， qí xià bù mèi。
shéng shéng bù kě míng， fù guī yú wú wù。
shì wèi wú zhuàng zhī zhuàng， wú wù zhī xiàng， shì wèi hū huǎng。
yíng zhī bù jiàn qí shǒu，
suí zhī bù jiàn qí hòu。
zhí gǔ zhī dào yǐ yù jīn zhī yòu。
néng zhī gǔ shǐ， shì wèi dào jì。
We look at it, and we do not see it, and we name it 'the Equable.'
We listen to it, and we do not hear it, and we name it 'the Inaudible.'
We try to grasp it, and do not get hold of it, and we name it 'the Subtle.'
With these three qualities, it cannot be made the subject of description;
and hence we blend them together and obtain The One.
Its upper part is not bright, and its lower part is not obscure.
Ceaseless in its action, it yet cannot be named, and then it again returns and becomes nothing.
This is called the Form of the Formless, and the Semblance of the Invisible; this is called the Fleeting and Indeterminable.
We meet it and do not see its Front;
we follow it, and do not see its Back.
When we can lay hold of the Tao of old to direct the things of the present day,
and are able to know it as it was of old in the beginning, this is called (unwinding) the clue of Tao. |