beck

Love Peace
States are governed by justice.
Wars are waged by violations.
The world is mastered by nonintervention.
How do I know this? By this:
The more restrictions there are, the poorer the people.
The more sharp weapons, the more trouble in the state.
The more clever cunning, the more contrivances.
The more rules and regulations, the more thieves and robbers.

Therefore the wise say,
"Do not interfere, and people transform themselves.
Love peace, and people do what is right.
Do not intervene, and people prosper.
Have no desires, and people live simply."

blakney

The world is won by refaining ...

"Govern the realm by the right,
And battles by stratagem."

The world is won by refaining.
How do I know this is so?
By this:

As taboos increase, people grow poorer;
When weapons abound, the state grows chaotic;
Where skills multiply, novelties flourish;
As statutes increase, more criminals start.

So the Wise Man will say:

As I refrain, the people will reform:
Since I like quiet, they will keep order;
When I forebear, the people will prosper;
When I want nothing, they will be honest.

byrn

Kingdoms can only be governed if rules are kept; rule a kingdom by some normal standards and with utmost discretion.
Battles, on the other hand, can be won if rules are aptly broken. Operate the army and fight some battles by (unusual) tactics of surprise and attack.
Yet administer the kingdom by engaging in no activity. Win the world by doing next to nothing, for major adherence can only be won by letting well alone.
How do I know this will be so? By this:
The more prohibitions, ritual avoidances, and taboos there are, the poorer the people will end.
The more 'sharp weapons' there are, the more troubled and chaotic the state will be, and the more benighted the whole land will grow.
The more cunning craftsmen there are, the more skills of technique, the more vicious things will appear: the more pernicious contrivances will be invented.
The more laws are promulgated, the more thieves and bandits there will be. So: The greater the number of statutes, the greater the number of thieves in the end.
So a wise man decreed:
So long as I "do nothing" the people get transformed of themselves.
So long as I love quietude, the people will of themselves go straight.
So long as I act only by proper inactivity the people will of themselves grow rich.
I have no desires, and the people of themselves become simple as the mythological raw block'.

feng

Rule a nation with justice.
Wage war with surprise moves.
Become master of the universe without striving.
How do I know that this is so?
Because of this!

The more laws and restrictions there are,
The poorer people become.
The sharper men's weapons,
The more trouble in the land.
The more ingenious and clever men are,
The more strange things happen.
The more rules and regulations,
The more thieves and robbers.

Therefore the sage says:
I take no action and people are reformed.
I enjoy peace and people become honest.
I do nothing and people become rich.
I have no desires and people return to the good and simple life.

ganson

Be Lawful, Not Full of Laws

Rule by what is right.
Wage war by clever strategy.
Win the world by being passive.
How do I know? By this:

More restrictions mean weaker people.
More weapons mean a troubled state.
More cunning means many surprises.
More laws mean more violators.

Be passive and the people will be reformed.
Be serene and the people will be righteous.
Be peaceable and the people will be wealthy.
Be selfless and the people will be simple and serene.

gnl

Conquer with Inaction
Do not control the people with laws,
Nor violence nor espionage,
But conquer them with inaction.

For:
The more morals and taboos there are,
The more cruelty afflicts people;
The more guns and knives there are,
The more factions divide people;
The more arts and skills there are,
The more change obsoletes people;
The more laws and taxes there are,
The more theft corrupts people.

Yet take no action, and the people nurture eachother;
Make no laws, and the people deal fairly with eachother;
Own no interest, and the people cooperate with eachother;
Express no desire, and the people harmonize with eachother.

hansen

Laissez Faire Politics
Use correcting to order the state.
Use shock in deploying military force.
Use absence of social matters to take charge of the social world.
How do I know these are so?
With this.
The more the social world has to elude,
the more the people are impoverished.
The more the people have beneficial artifacts,
the more the state and society are befuddled.
The more humans are skilled and clever
the more strange natural kinds crop up.
The more standards of behavior and commands are promulgated,
the more thieves and robbers there are.
Hence sages say:
I lack deeming-action and the people self-transform.
I remain calm and the people self-correct.
I avoid social matters and the people self-enrich.
I lack desires and the people self-simplify (become like uncarved wood).

legge

A state may be ruled by (measures of) correction; weapons of
war may be used with crafty dexterity; (but) the kingdom is made one's
own (only) by freedom from action and purpose.

How do I know that it is so? By these facts:--In the kingdom the
multiplication of prohibitive enactments increases the poverty of the
people; the more implements to add to their profit that the people
have, the greater disorder is there in the state and clan; the more
acts of crafty dexterity that men possess, the more do strange
contrivances appear; the more display there is of legislation, the
more thieves and robbers there are.

Therefore a sage has said, 'I will do nothing (of purpose), and the
people will be transformed of themselves; I will be fond of keeping
still, and the people will of themselves become correct. I will take
no trouble about it, and the people will of themselves become rich; I
will manifest no ambition, and the people will of themselves attain to
the primitive simplicity.'

mccarroll

Govern the country by being straightforward.
Wage war by being crafty.
Win all under heaven by not meddling.

How do I know that this is so?
By what is within me.

The more restrictions there are,
the poorer are the people.
The more pointed the people's weapons,
the more disorder there is in the country.
The more ingenious and clever the people,
the more strange the contrivances that appear.
The more laws and edicts that are posted,
the more thieves and robbers that arise.

Hence an Old One has said:
I act without striving and the
people transform themselvey.
I love stillness and the
people straighten themselves.
I do not meddle and the
people prosper by themselves.
I am free from desires and the
people themselves return to the simplicily
of the Uncarved Block.

mcdonald

Govern your country with integrity,
Weapons of war can be used with great cunning,
but loyalty is only won by not-doing.
How do I know the way things are?
By these:

The more prohibitions you make,
the poorer people will be.
The more weapons you posses,
the greater the chaos in your country.
The more knowledge that is acquired,
the stranger the world will become.
The more laws that you make,
the greater the number of criminals.

Therefore the Master says:
I do nothing,
and people become good by themselves.
I seek peace,
and people take care of their own problems.
I do not meddle in their personal lives,
and the people become prosperous.
I let go of all my desires,
and the people return to the Uncarved Block.

merel

Government


A nation is best governed by innocence;
A war is best waged by treachery;
The World is best controlled by inaction;
Why?

Because:
The more property and taxes there are,
The more poverty prevails;
The more guns and knives there are,
The more chaos prevails;
The more arts and sciences there are,
The more deceit prevails;
The more rules and regulations there are,
The more theft prevails.

Therefore the sage says:
I take no action, and the people become civilized;
I wage no war, and the people become just;
I transact no business, and the people become wealthy;
I have no desire, and the people become innocent.

merel2

Conquer with Inaction
Do not control the people with laws,
Nor violence nor espionage,
But conquer them with inaction.
For:
The more morals and taboos there are,
The more cruelty afflicts people;
The more guns and knives there are,
The more factions divide people;
The more arts and skills there are,
The more change obsoletes people;
The more laws and taxes there are,
The more theft corrupts people.
Yet take no action, and the people nurture each other;
Make no laws, and the people deal fairly with each other;
Own no interest, and the people cooperate with each other;
Express no desire, and the people harmonize with each other.

mitchell

If you want to be a great leader,
you must learn to follow the Tao.
Stop trying to control.
Let go of fixed plans and concepts,
and the world will govern itself.

The more prohibitions you have,
the less virtuous people will be.
The more weapons you have,
the less secure people will be.
The more subsidies you have,
the less self-reliant people will be.

Therefore the Master says:
I let go of the law,
and people become honest.
I let go of economics,
and people become prosperous.
I let go of religion,
and people become serene.
I let go of all desire for the common good,
and the good becomes common as grass.

muller

*** Use fairness in governing the state.
Use surprise tactics in war.
Be unconcerned and you will have the world.
How do I know it is like this?
Because:
The more regulations there are,
The poorer people become.
The more people own lethal weapons,
The more darkened are the country and clans.
The more clever the people are,
The more extraordinary actions they take.
The more picky the laws are,
The more thieves and gangsters there are.

Therefore the sages say:
"I do not force my way and the people transform themselves.
I enjoy my serenity and the people correct themselves.
I do not interfere and the people enrich themselves.

I have no desires

And the people find their original mind.

rosenthal

SIMPLIFICATION
With natural justice, people must be ruled,
and if war be waged, strategy and tactics used.
To master one's self,
one must act without cunning.

The greater the number of laws and restrictions,
the poorer the people who inhabit the land.
The sharper the weapons of battle and war,
the greater the troubles besetting the land.
The greater the cunning with which people are ruled,
the stranger the things which occur in the land.
The harder the rules and regulations,
the greater the number of those who will steal.

The sage therefore does not contrive,
in order to bring about reform,
but teaches the people peace of mind,
in order that they might enjoy their lives.
Having no desires, all he does is natural.
Since he teaches self-sufficiency,
the people who follow him return
to a good, uncomplicated life.