Chapter 42 Tao Te Ching (Dao De Jing)
Classic of the Way and Virtue
道德經

By Lao Tzu (Laozi)

Chapter 42 Tao Te Ching (Dao De Jing) by Lao Tzu

Transformations of the Tao, Reason's Modifications, Avoid Violence, Unnatural Death,
One Produces Many, 道化

"The Dao produced One; One produced Two;
Two produced Three; Three produced All things.
All things leave behind them the Obscurity (out of which they have come), and go forward to embrace the Brightness (into which they have emerged), while they are harmonised by the Breath of Vacancy.
What men dislike is to be orphans, to have little virtue, to be as carriages without naves; and yet these are the designations which kings and princes use for themselves.
So it is that some things are increased by being diminished, and others are diminished by being increased.
What other men (thus) teach, I also teach.
The violent and strong do not die their natural death.
I will make this the basis of my teaching."
- Translated by James Legge, 1891, Chapter 42

"The Way gave birth to unity,
Unity gave birth to duality,
Duality gave birth to trinity,
Trinity gave birth to the myriad creatures.
The myriad creatures bear yin on their backs and embrace yang in their bosoms.
They neutralize these vapors
and thereby achieve harmony.
That which all under heaven hate most
Is to be orphaned, destitute, and hapless.
Yet kings and dukes call themselves thus.
Things may be diminished by being increased, increased by being diminished.
Therefore,
That which people teach,
After deliberation, I also teach people.
Therefore,
"The tyrant does not die a natural death."
I take this as my mentor."
- Translated by Victor Mair, Chapter 42

The Complete Works of Lao Tzu: Tao Teh Ching & Hua Hu Ching Translation and elucidation by Hua Ching Ni

The Tao Te Ching of Lao Tzu Translated by Brian Walker

Tao Te Ching Translated by Arthur Waley

Tao - The Way Translated by Lionel and and Herbert Giles

Taoism: An Essential Guide By Eva Wong

"Dao sprouted as one.
One sprouted into two.
Two sprouted into three.
Three sprouted into all the living things in the universe.

All living things suffer through darkness and embrace the light.
In the middle, life's energy finds a way to act from the harmony of both.

A person's stance might be to really hate being "alone, isolated and One Without Grain".
Yet the nobility choose to call themselves by that title.

A living thing may be damaged by increase; or may profit by decrease.
Therefore, if a person realizes that their attitude can teach others,
In the evening they will consider and discuss things, teaching each other.

Therefore those who are aggressive and violent will die incomplete.
I'll take these lessons as though they came from my father."
- Translated by Nina Correa, 2005, Chapter 42

"The way begets the one
The one begets the two
The two beget the three
The three beget the myriad beings
The myriad beings carry the shadow and embrace the light
Mixing the breaths with harmonious action
People have their reasons to truly dislike being
“Orphaned & friendless, without worth”
Yet sovereign & duke take (these) as titles
Since beings may sometimes lose something, and yet benefit
May sometimes gain something, and yet be diminished
What someone else has taught
I too come to teach:
Those who are forceful & hostile
do not meet their (natural) ends
I will regard (this) as a premise of the teaching."
- Translated by Bradford Hatcher, 2005, Chapter 42

Simple Taoism: A Guide to Living in Balance By Alexander Simkins.

The Tao of Daily Life: The Mysteries of the Orient Revealed By Derek Lin.

Everyday Tao: Living with Balance and Harmony By Ming-Dao Deng.

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

The Tao of Pooh By Benjamin Hoff.

Scholar Warrior: An Introduction to the Tao in Everyday Life By Ming-Dao Deng.

Vitality, Energy, Spirit: A Taoist Sourcebook Translated by Thomas Cleary.

"The Tao gives birth to the One.
The One gives birth to two.
Two gives birth to three.
And three gives birth to the ten thousand things.

The ten thousand things have their backs in the shadow
while they embrace the light.
Harmony is achieved by blending
the breaths of these two forces.

People dislike the words "alone," "helpless," "worthless,"
yet this is how Princes describe them selves.

So it is that sometimes a thing is increased
by being diminished and
diminished by being increased.

What others teach I also teach:
"A violent person will not die a natural death."
I shall make this the basis of my teaching."
- Translated by Tolbert McCarroll, 1982, Chapter 42

"When the Principle has emitted its virtue, the latter begins to evolve according to two alternating modalities.
This evolution produces (or condenses) the median air (tenuous matter).
From tenuous matter, under the influence of the two modalities yin and yang, all sentient beings are produced.
Coming out from the yin (from strength) they pass to the yang (to the act), through the influence of the two modalities on matter.
What men dislike is being alone, unique, incapable, (in obscurity and abasement), and yet emperors and princes are designated by these terms, (which imply humility without debasement).
Beings diminish themselves by wanting to augment themselves, and they are augmented through diminishing themselves."
- Translated by Derek Bryce, 1999, Chapter 42

"Nature first begets one thing.
The one thing begets another.
The two produce a third.
In this way, all things are begotten.
Why? Because all things are impregnated by two alternating tendencies, the tendency towards completion and the tendency towards initiation, which acting together, complement each other.
Most men dislike to be considered of no account, lowly, unworthy.
Yet intelligent leaders call themselves thus.
For people are admired for their humility and despised for their pride.
There are many other ways of illustrating what I am teaching: "Extremists reach untimely ends."
This saying may be taken as a good example."
- Translated by Archie J. Bahm, Chapter 42

Revealing the Tao Te Ching: In-Depth Commentaries on an Ancient Classic By Hu Xuzehi

Tao Te Ching Annotated translation by Victor Mair

Reading Lao Tzu: A Companion to the Tao Te Ching with a New Translation By Ha Poong Kim

The Philosophy of the Daodejing By Hans-Georg Moeller

Dao De Jing: A Philosophical Translation By Roger T. Ames and David T. Hall

Be Enlightened! A Guidebook to the Tao Te Ching and Taoist Meditation: Your Six-Month Journey to Spiritual Enlightenment By Wes Burgess

The Way and Its Power: Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching and Its Place in Chinese Thought By Arthur Waley

"The principle is not a thing. Call it zero.
The principle in action is the unity of creation. This unity is a single whole. Call it one.
Creation consists of pairs of opposites or polarities. Call these polarities two.
These polarities become creative when they interact. Their interaction is the third element. Call it three.
For example, a man and a woman are two. Their interaction, or intercourse, the third element makes babies. That is creative. That is how all creativity occurs.
The wise leader knows about pairs of opposites and their interactions. The leader knows how to be creative.
In order to lead, the leader learns to follow. In order to prosper, the leader learns to live simply. In both cases, it is the interaction that is creative.
Leading without following is sterile. Trying to become rich by accumulating more and more is a full-time career and not free at all.
Being one-sided always produces unexpected and paradoxical results. Being well-defended will not protect you; it will diminish your life and eventually kill you.
Exceptions to these examples of traditional wisdom are very hard to find."
- Translated by John Heider, 1985, Chapter 42

"The Way begot one,
And the one, two;
Then the two begot three
And three, all else.

All things bear the shade on their backs
And the sun in their arms;
By the blending of breath
From the sun and the shade,
Equilibrium comes to the world.

Orphaned, or needy, or desolate, these
Are conditions much feared and disliked;
Yet in public address, the king
And the nobles account themselves thus.
So a loss sometimes benefits one
Or a benefit proves to be loss.

What others have taught
I also shall teach:
If a violent man does not come
To a violent death,
I shall choose him to teach me."
- Translated by Raymond B. Blakney, 1955, Chapter 42

"Tao gives birth to One,
One gives birth to Two,
The Two gives birth to Three,
The Three gives birth to all universal things.
All universal things shoulder the Yin and embrace the Yang.
The Yin and Yang mingle and mix with each other to beget the harmony.
People distain the orphaned, widowed and worthless,
Yet they are the name by which rulers called themselves.
Therefore all things may increase when diminished,
And they may diminish when increased.
What people teach is "get rid of weakness and become strong,"
But what I teach is "get rid of the strong to become weak.
The violent and forceful do not die a natural death,"
I will begin my teaching just from this saying."
Translated by He Xuezhi, Chapter 42

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Practical Taoism Translated by Thomas Cleary

Daoism and Chinese Culture By Livia Kohn

Tao Te Ching
Commentary, Interpretations, Research Tools, Resources
Chapter 42

Tao Te Ching: The Definitive Edition By Jonathan Star. Translation, commentary and research tools. New York, Jeremy P. Tarcher, Penguin, 2001. Concordance, tables, appendices, 349 pages. A new rendition of the Tao Te Ching is provided, then a verbatim translation with extensive notes. Detailed tables for each verse provide line number, all the Chinese characters, Wade-Giles romanization, and a list of meanings for each character. An excellent reference tool!

Yellow Bridge Dao De Jing Comparison Table, Chapter 42 Provides side by side comparisons of translations of the Tao Te Ching by James Legge, D. T. Suzuki, and Dwight Goddard. Chinese characters for each paragraph in the Chapter are on the left; place your cursor over the Chinese characters to see the Pinyin romanization of the Chinese character and a list of meanings.

Center Tao. Includes a commentary on each Chapter.

The Complete Works of Lao Tzu: Tao Teh Ching & Hua Hu Ching Translation and elucidation by Hua Ching Ni.

Tao Te Ching Commentaries - Google Search

Translators' Index, Tao Te Ching Translators Sorted Alphabetically by Translator, Links to Books and Online Versions

Tao Te Ching: A Bibliography and Index of Translations on the Web

Chapter 42 in the Rambling Taoist Commentaries by Trey Smith. The Rambling Taoists are Trey Smith and Scott Bradley.

The Philosophy of the Daodejing By Hans-Georg Moeller. Columbia University Press, 2006, 176 pages.

Valley Spirit, Gu Shen, Concept, Chapter 6

Das Tao Te King von Lao Tse The largest collection of very nicely formatted complete versions of the Tao Te Ching. The collection includes 209 complete versions in 27 languages, plus 28 Chinese versions. There are 112 English language versions of the Tao Te Ching available at this website. A variety of search methods and comparison methods are provided, as well a a detailed index.

Lao-tzu's Taoteching Translated by Red Pine (Bill Porter). Includes many brief selected commentaries for each Chapter draw from commentaries in the past 2,000 years. Provides a verbatim translation and shows the text in Chinese characters. San Francisco, Mercury House, 1996, Second Edition, 184 pages. An invaluable resource for commentaries.

Reading Lao Tzu: A Companion to the Tao Te Ching with a New Translation By Ha Poong Kim. Xlibris, 2003, 198 pages.

Chapter 42, Line by Line Comparisons of 27 Translations of the Tao Te Ching Compiled by the St. Xenophon Wayist Seminary

Dao De Jing: A Philosophical Translation By Roger T. Ames and David T. Hall. Ballantine, 2003, 256 pages.

Thematic Index to the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching

Lao Tzu: Te-Tao Ching - A New Translation Based on the Recently Discovered Ma-wang-tui Texts (Classics of Ancient China) Translated with and introduction and detailed exposition and commentary by Professor Robert G. Henricks. New York, Ballantine Books, 1992. Includes Chinese characters for each chapter. Bibliography, detailed notes, 282 pages.

Revealing the Tao Te Ching: In Depth Commentaries on an Ancient Classic. By Hu Huezhi. Edited by Jesse Lee Parker. Seven Star Communications, 2006. 240 pages.

Tao Te Ching: A New Translation and Commentary. By Ellen Chen. Paragon House, 1998. 274 pages.

The Whole Heart of Tao: The Complete Teachings from the Oral Tradition of Lao-Tzu. By John Bright-Fey. Crane Hill Publishers, 2006. 376 pages.