Tao Te Ching

Chapter 4
[Original text]

Not honoring the virtuous[1] will keep the people from fighting; not valuing[2] hard-to-find goods will keep the people from stealing; not seeing[3] desirable things will keep the people's hearts from being disturbed.

It is the rule of the sage to empty his heart[4], strengthen his belly, weaken his will[5] and strengthen his bones.It often makes the people ignorant and desireless, and makes the wise dare not do it.If you do nothing, everything will be cured [6].

【Note】

[1] Appreciate the virtuous: praise the talented and virtuous.Exalt, admire, admire.Xian, a person of noble character and talent.

[2] Expensive: Precious.Here is the verb, regard it as precious, value it.

[3] See: pass "now", appear.Here it means to show off, to show off.

[4] Empty one's mind: to make one's mind empty, free from cunning or unreasonable thoughts.Emptiness, emptiness, the extension means cleanliness.Heart, heart, mind, spirit.

[5] Weak: weakened.

[6] Governance: Governance, extended to rule the world, the meaning of peace in the world.

【Analysis】

Don't praise people with high moral character, so that the people will not fight for fame and fortune; don't regard rare treasures as extremely precious, so that people won't become thieves just because they want to possess them; don't use things that can induce greed Things are displayed for the people to see, so that the minds of the people will not be disturbed.

It can be seen from this that the best principles for a sage to govern a country are: to make the hearts of the people pure, to help the people to fill their stomachs, to weaken the bad desires of the people, and to strengthen the bones of the people.In short, let the people be in a state of diluting their thinking and desires, so that talented people dare not wantonly create troubles.Follow the principle of "doing nothing" and there will be no bad governance.

【Explanation by Famous Artists】

Mr. He Shang:
A sage is a sage of the world, who argues clearly and clearly, deviates from the Tao and exercises power, and removes quality for writing.Those who are not respected will be rewarded with salary if they are not valued, and they will be officials if they are not respected.If you don't fight for fame, you will return to nature.The person who speaks is not good at treasures, gold is abandoned in the mountains, and pearls and jade are donated in the abyss.The upper part is quiet, and the lower part is free from greedy people.Let the sound of Zheng be far away from sycophants.No adultery, no confusion.

It is said that the sage governing the country is the same as governing the body.In addition to addiction, to upset.Embracing the Tao, guarding the five gods.Gentle and humble, not in power.Essence of love is repeated, and the marrow is full of bones.Return to Park Shouchun.Think deeply, don't speak lightly.Don't be pretentious, follow the action.Virtue is thick, and the people are safe.

(End of this chapter)