天地不仁，以万物為芻狗；圣人不仁，以百姓為芻狗。 天地之間，其猶橐龠（tuoyue)乎？虛而不屈，動而愈出。 多言數窮，不如守中。
任万物自生自灭；任百姓自作自息；持守空虚而顺任 自然。
天地无所谓仁爱之心，把万物都当作”刍狗”来看待；圣人也不执求仁爱之心，把百姓 也当作”刍狗”来看待。天地之间，不正像是气囊或空管那样的大空泡吗？它虽空虚但 却不会塌缩，运行之中生化不息。孜孜于仗名立言往往行不通，不如持守空虚而顺任 自然。
The Tao doesn’t take sides;
it gives birth to both good and evil.
The Master doesn’t take sides;
she welcomes both saints and sinners.
The Tao is like a bellows;
it is empty yet infinitely capable.
The more you use it, the more it produces;
the more you talk of it, the less you understand.
Hold on to the center.
It is us humans, with our out of control desires, who make those distinctions. “This, right here, is beautiful; and that, over there is ugly. And, this here, is good; while that is bad.” The Tao doesn’t differentiate between things in this way. Making subjective judgments. There is no playing favorites with nature. It is always an objective observer. Now, just think about that for a moment: the Tao doesn’t make those distinctions. Whatever we call beautiful and good, or ugly and bad, each have their origin in the Tao. So, how dare we make those distinctions? The Master, anyone wise and virtuous enough to know better, welcomes both saints and sinners. Rejecting no one and no thing. Accepting and welcoming every thing that comes our way, whether we deem it good or evil.