The Value Set on Life, Value Life, Esteem Life, Become Invulnerable, Followers
of Life,
Accept Death, Esteem Life, Out of Harms Way, 貴生
"Exiting life, we enter death.
The followers of life are three out of ten, the followers of death are three out
of ten; in the lives of the people, the dying grounds on which they are agitated
are also three out of ten.
What is the reason?
Because of the seriousness with which they take life as life.
It has been said that those who maintain life well do not meet rhinos or tigers
on land and do not arm themselves in war.
There is no way for rhinos to gore them; there is no way for tigers to claw
them; there is no way for weapons to get at them.
Why?
Because they have no dying ground."
- Translated by
Thomas Cleary,
Chapter 50
"Life is a going forth; death is a returning home.
Of ten, three are seeking life, three are seeking death, and three are dying.
What is the reason?
Because they live in life's experience. (Only one is immortal.)
I hear it said that the sage when he travels is never attacked by rhinoceros or
tiger, and when coming among soldiers does not fear their weapons.
The rhinoceros would find no place to horn him, nor the tiger a place for his
claws, nor could soldiers wound him.
What is the reason?
Because he is invulnerable."
- Translated by
Dwight Goddard,
Chapter 50
By Hu Xuzehi
Annotated translation by Victor Mair 
By Ha Poong Kim
By Hans-Georg Moeller 
By Roger T. Ames and David T. Hall
By Wes Burgess
By Arthur Waley
"From coming out to life to going back to death:
Those companions (t'u) of life,
They are one-third (shih-yu-san);
Those companions of death,
They are one-third;
Those living but moving toward the place of death,
They are also one-third.
Why?
Because of the intense (hou) life-producing activity.
I have heard that one who knows how to nourish life,
On land meets no tigers or wild buffaloes,
In battle needs to wear no armors or weapons,
A wild buffalo has nowhere to butt its horns,
A tiger has nowhere to sink its claws,
A weapon has nowhere to enter its blade.
Why?
Because such a one has no place of death."
- Translated by
Ellen M. Chen,
Chapter 50
"People are born on the Earth and die.
Out of ten about three continue then paradisiacal existence; three go to hell by
the path of death; and three yet are those who have not succeeded in the
development of soul due to attachments to worldly affairs.
He who mastered the true life when living on the Earth is not afraid of
rhinoceros or tigers; in the battle he is not afraid of armed soldiers.
A rhinoceros has no place to plunge its horn into him, a tiger has no place to
fasten its claws onto him, soldiers have no place to stab him with swords.
It is so, because to him there is no death."
- Translated by
Vladimir Antonov,
Chapter 50
Translated by Eva Wong 
Translated by Philip Ivahoe
By James Miller
Translated by Stephen Bokencamp
By Alexander and Annellen Simpkins
Translated by Thomas Cleary
By Livia Kohn
"The Source gives life and penetrates death.
Life is a companion to the four directions that exist within Heaven, Humanity
and Earth.
Death is a companion to the four directions that exist within Heaven, Humanity
and Earth.
People are born, live, and die, on earth, also as companions to the four
directions that exist within Heaven, Humanity and Earth.
What is the purpose?
To give life.
To give life abundantly.
Indeed, we have heard of people who are good at sustaining life.
On land they travel and do not encounter rhinoceroses.
Tigers enter the battlefield and they do not need to wear armor or carry
weapons.
Rhinoceroses have no place to butt with their horns.
Tigers have no place to put their claws.
Soldiers have no place to thrust their blades.
How can this be so?
Because of the not-dying Earth."
- Translated by
Alan Sheets,
Chapter 50
"Men go forth into life, And return in death.
Out of ten men, three prolong their life (through cleanliness), three hasten
their death (through their excesses), three compromise their life by the
attachment they have to it, (And only one stays alive until his term, because he
is not attached to it).
He who is not attached to his life, does not turn aside to avoid an encounter
with a rhinoceros or a tiger; he throws himself into the fray without armour or
weapons;
And he comes to no harm because he is proof against the rhinoceros horn, the
tiger's claws, And weapons of combat.
Why is this? ...
Because, exteriorized through his indifference, death cannot take a hold on
him."
- Translated by
Derek Bryce,
Chapter 50
Translation and elucidation by Hua Ching Ni
Translated by Brian Walker
Translated by Arthur Waley
Translated by Lionel and and Herbert Giles
By Eva Wong
"People born into life enter death.
Constant companion in life
and in death,
this body is the kill-site animating their lives.
And isn't that because
they think life is the fullness of life?
I've heard those who encompass the whole of life
could walk on and on without meeting rhinoceros or tiger,
could charge into armies without feeling shield or sword.
A rhinoceros would find nowhere to gore them,
a tiger nowhere to claw them,
a sword nowhere to slice them.
And isn't that because
for them there's no kill-site?"
- Translated by
David Hinton,
Chapter 50
"Anyone who is born dies.
If 13 people are born
All 13 people will eventually die.
From birth to life,
From life to death,
The great earth will afford the places to live and to die
for exactly 13.
Why is this so?
It is because the mind cherishes the belief
that living is a privilege and not a natural right.
I have heard that those who are good at conserving and preserving life
Seldom meet tigers and horned animals when they move around.
If they should join the military forces,
They would not have the need to combat.
Horned animals will have no way to cast their horns on their bodies,
Nor will tigers find a place to lay their claws.
Even soldiers' swords will not hurt them.
Why is this so?
Because such people will never die."
- Translated by
Lok Sang Ho,
Chapter 50
By Alexander Simkins. 
By Derek Lin.
By Ming-Dao Deng.
By Benjamin Hoff.
By Ming-Dao Deng.
Translated by Thomas Cleary.
Tao Te Ching
Commentary, Interpretations, Research Tools, Resources
Chapter 50
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 50 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
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 50 in the
Rambling
Taoist Commentaries by Trey Smith. The
Rambling Taoists are Trey Smith and Scott Bradley.
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
Reading Lao Tzu: A Companion to the Tao Te Ching with a New Translation
Dao De Jing: A Philosophical Translation
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)
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.
Cloud Hands Blog
Mike Garofalo writes about Taoism, Gardening, Taijiquan, Walking, Mysticism,
Qigong, and the Eight Ways.
Tao Te
Ching: A New Translation and Commentary. By Ellen Chen. Paragon
House, 1998. 274 pages.
The Tao
and Method: A Reasoned Approach to the Tao Te Ching. By Michael
Lafargue. New York, SUNY Press, 1994. 660 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.
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Gushen Grove Notebooks for the Tao Te Ching
Green Way Research, Valley Spirit Grove, Gushen Grove Notebooks, Red Bluff, California
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Brief Biography of Michael P. Garofalo, M.S.
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Ripening Peaches: Daoist Studies and Practices
Taoist Perspectives: My Reading List
One Old Druid's Final Journey: Notebooks of the Librarian of Gushen Grove
Index to Translators of the Tao Te Ching
The Tao Te Ching (Dao De Jing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) circa 500 BCE
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