第四十一章  道隐无名

上士闻道，勤而行之；中士闻道，若存若亡；下士闻道，大笑之。不笑不足以为道。故建言有之：明道若昧, 进道若退, 夷道若颣, 上德若谷, 大白若辱, 广德若不足，建德若偷, 质真若渝, 大方无隅,大器晚成, 大音希声, 大象无形, 道隐无名。夫唯道，善贷且成。

The Nameless and the Formless

When a superior person hears of the Tao, She diligently puts it intopractice. When an average person hears of the Tao, he believes half of it, anddoubts the other half.

Whenthe foolish hear of the Way, they laugh out loud. If it were not laughed at, itwould not be the Way.

Therefore it is said, "The enlightenment of the Way seems likedullness; progression in the Way seem like regression; the even path of the Wayseems to go up and down."

Great virtue appears like a valley (hollow). Great purity appears likedisgrace. Far-reaching virtue appears as if insufficient.

true Power appears weak,

true purity appears tarnished,

extensive Power appears to beinsufficient,

true steadfastness appearschangeable.

true clarity appears obscure,

the greatest space has nocorners,

the greatest talents are slowlymastered,

the greatest music has no therarest sound,

the great image has no form.

The Tao is hidden and nameless,

Yet it is the Tao that skillfully supportsand completes all things.

[译文]

慧根深的人听了道，辛勤地践行；中等慧根的人，听了道，半信半疑；下等慧根的人，听了道，便哈哈的讥笑。不被嘲笑，便称不上真正的道。古贤立言：光明的道看上去似乎暗昧，前进的道好似后退，平坦的道好似崎岖。纯宇宙意识能量本源的大德，如深谷一般深不见底，纯洁清晰的天道却隐没在人的贪欲之中。浩瀚天德能量处于不断的循环之间，积阴德是默默地进行的，不需要到处张扬，质朴纯真的德应变无常。纯宇宙意识能量化生的宇宙无边无角，物质的显现也是大者晚成，宇宙之音是人类耳朵听不到的，道之形象人类无法描绘，