道德經

Tao Te Ching 57 · 57

Pure Customs

以正治國，以奇用兵，以無事取天下。吾何以知其然哉？以此。天下多忌諱，而民彌貧；民多利器，國家滋昏；人多伎巧，奇物滋起；法物滋彰，盜賊多有。故聖人云：我無為而民自化，我好靜而民自正，我無事而民自富，我無欲而民自樸。

The upright come to govern the state; the crafty come to wage war; those who do not meddle come to take the world. How do I know it is so? By this. When the ruler has many taboos, the people grow ever poorer; when the people have many sharp tools, the state grows more and more confused. When rulers have much cunning skill, strange things spring up more and more; when fine goods are displayed more and more, there are many thieves and robbers. So the sage says: I do nothing, and the people change by themselves; I love stillness, and the people become upright by themselves; I do not meddle, and the people grow rich by themselves; I have no desires, and the people become simple by themselves.

Word by word

以yǐcome to正zhèngThe upright治zhìgovern國guóthe state，以yǐcome to奇qíthe crafty用yòngwage兵bīngwar，以yǐcome to無事wú shìthose who do not meddle取qǔtake天下tiān xiàthe world。do吾wúI何héHow以yǐby what知zhīknow其qíit然ránis so哉zāi(?)？以yǐBy此cǐthis。When天下tiān xiàthe ruler多duōhas many忌諱jì huìtaboos，而ér(then)民mínthe people彌mígrow ever貧pínpoorer；when民mínthe people多duōhave many利器lì qìsharp tools，國家guó jiāthe state滋zīgrows more and more昏hūnconfused；When人rénrulers多duōhave much伎巧jì qiǎocunning skill，奇qístrange物wùthings滋zīmore and more起qǐspring up；when法fǎfine物wùgoods滋zīmore and more彰zhāngare displayed，盜賊dào zéithieves and robbers多duōmany有yǒuthere are。故gùSo聖人shèng rénthe sage云yúnsays：我wǒI無為wú wéido nothing而érand民mínthe people自zìby themselves化huàchange，我wǒI好hàolove靜jìngstillness而érand民mínthe people自zìby themselves正zhèngbecome upright，我wǒI無事wú shìdo not meddle而érand民mínthe people自zìby themselves富fùgrow rich，我wǒI無欲wú yùhave no desires而érand民mínthe people自zìby themselves樸pǔbecome simple。；；。？。，；，。，；，。：，；，；，；，。

The setting

Rule by not-doing: less meddling and fewer cravings from above leave the people to find their own order.

A note on this passage

Heshang Gong reads the opening as a statement about whom Heaven lets come to power. The “this” by which Laozi knows it is, in his gloss, today (此今也): what can be seen all around. The sage’s answer to the whole diagnosis is rule by subtraction.

This chapter holds one of the most famous mismatches between editions. Later texts, Wang Bi’s among them, read “the more laws are made clear, the more thieves there are”, a sharp line against legalism. Heshang Gong’s text reads “the more precious goods multiply”: the temptation to crime is visible wealth, not the law.

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