第45章 · 原文
现代白话译文
最完满的东西好像有残缺，但它的作用不会衰竭。最充盈的东西好像空虚，但它的作用无穷无尽。最直的东西好像弯曲，最灵巧的东西好像笨拙，最雄辩的人好像口吃。运动能战胜寒冷，安静能战胜炎热。只有清静无为才能做天下的典范。
英文译本 / English Translations
D.C. Lau
Great perfection seems chipped, Yet use will not wear it out; Great fullness seems empty, Yet use will not drain it; Great straightness seems bent; Great skill seems awkward; Great eloquence seems tongue-tied. Restlessness overcomes cold; Stillness overcomes heat. Limpid and still, One can be a leader in the empire.
Robert Henricks
1. Great completion seems incomplete; 2. Yet its usefulness is never exhausted. 3. Great fullness seems to be empty; 4. Yet its usefulness is never used up. 5. Great straightness seems to be bent. 6. Great skill seems to be clumsy. 7. Great surplus seems to stammer. 8. Activity overcomes cold; 9. Tranquility overcomes heat. 10. If you're quiet and tranquil you can become the ruler of the world.
Addiss & Lombardo
Great perfection seems incomplete, but its use is not exhausted. Great fullness seems empty, but its use is not depleted. Great straightness seems crooked. Great skill seems clumsy. Great eloquence seems stuttering. Movement overcomes cold. Stillness overcomes heat. Clear stillness is the standard of the world.
Arthur Waley
What is most perfect seems to have something missing; Yet its use is unimpaired. What is most full seems empty; Yet its use will never fail. What is most straight seems crooked; The greatest skill seems like clumsiness, The greatest eloquence like stuttering. Movement overcomes cold; But staying still overcomes heat. So he by his limpid calm Puts right everything under heaven.
林语堂
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Stephen Mitchell
True perfection seems imperfect, yet it is perfectly itself. True fullness seems empty, yet it is fully present. True straightness seems crooked. True wisdom seems foolish. True art seems artless. The Master allows things to happen. She shapes events as they come. She steps out of the way and lets the Tao speak for itself.