Chinese Text Project |
(Guarding the minute) | |
其安易持, | That which is at rest is easily kept hold of; |
其未兆易謀。 | before a thing has given indications of its presence, it is easy to take measures against it; |
其脆易泮, | that which is brittle is easily broken; |
其微易散。 | that which is very small is easily dispersed. |
為之於未有, | Action should be taken before a thing has made its appearance; |
治之於未亂。 | order should be secured before disorder has begun. |
合抱之木, | The tree which fills the arms |
生於毫末; | grew from the tiniest sprout; |
九層之臺, | the tower of nine storeys |
起於累土; | rose from a (small) heap of earth; |
千里之行, | the journey of a thousand li |
始於足下。 | commenced with a single step. |
為者敗之, | He who acts (with an ulterior purpose) does harm; |
執者失之。 | he who takes hold of a thing (in the same way) loses his hold. |
是以聖人無為故無敗; | The sage does not act (so), and therefore does no harm; |
無執故無失。 | he does not lay hold (so), and therefore does not lose his bold. |
民之從事, | (But) people in their conduct of affairs |
常於幾成而敗之。 | are constantly ruining them when they are on the eve of success. |
慎終如始, | If they were careful at the end, as (they should be) at the beginning, |
則無敗事, | they would not so ruin them. |
是以聖人欲不欲, | Therefore the sage desires what (other men) do not desire, |
不貴難得之貨; | and does not prize things difficult to get; |
學不學, | he learns what (other men) do not learn, |
復衆人之所過, | and turns back to what the multitude of men have passed by. |
以輔萬物之自然, | Thus he helps the natural development of all things, |
而不敢為。 | and does not dare to act (with an ulterior purpose of his own). |
Character | Composition | Variants | Reading | Meaning | Hanyu | Kangxi | Cihai |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
其 | 八+6 | 丌 亓 | qí ㄑㄧˊ | Third-person possessive pronoun: his, her, its, their. / Demonstrative pronoun: that, those. / Adverb expressing estimation or guess. / Adverb expressing imperative. / Adverb expressing rhetorical question. / Adverb expressing future tense. / Connective expressing hypothesis: if, supposing. / Connective expressing choice: or. / Connective expressing concession: even if. / Particle used after an adjective. / Particle: of. / Particle used for emphasis after single-character adjectives or onomatopoeia. / Particle used in the middle of a sentence to alter the tempo. | v1,p0245#01 | p.127#18 | p.162r5c01 |
jì ㄐㄧˋ | Particle used after bi and he. | ||||||
jī ㄐㄧ | Modal particle expressing interrogative tone. / A year. | ||||||
安 | 宀+3 | ān ㄢ | (1.1) 安穩,穩定。 Stable, steady. | v2,p0913#09 | p.282#08 | p.406r2c01 | |
易 | 日+4 | 易 | yì ㄧˋ | change; easy | v2,p1494#01 | p.492#03 | p.633r6c01 |
持 | 手+6 | chí ㄔˊ | sustain, support; hold, grasp | v3,p1866#02 | p.429#05 | p.573r1c01 | |
未 | 木+1 | wèi ㄨㄟˋ | not yet; 8th terrestrial branch | v2,p1150#01 | p.509#05 | p.665r4c01 | |
兆 | 儿+4 | zhào ㄓㄠˋ | omen; million; mega; also trillion. China = million; Japan and Taiwan = trillion | v1,p0268#02 | p.124#03 | p.134r2c03 | |
謀 | 言+9 | 𠰔 𧦥 谋 | móu ㄇㄡˊ | plan, scheme; strategem | v6,p3993#19 | p.1173#07 | p.1251r5c01 |
脆 | 肉+6 | 脃 | cuì ㄘㄨㄟˋ | crisp; fragile, frail; brittle | v3,p2069#04 | p.982#03 | p.1097r3c07 |
泮 | 水+5 | 沜 | pàn ㄆㄢˋ | Zhou dynasty school; disperse; fall apart | v3,p1593#04 | p.618#12 | p.784r3c04 |
微 | 彳+10 | wēi wéi ㄨㄟ ㄨㄟˊ | small, prefix micro-, trifling | v2,p0837#10 | p.370#12 | p.517r2c04 | |
散 | 攴+8 | 枚 | sàn sǎn ㄙㄢˋ ㄙㄢˇ | scatter, disperse, break up | v2,p1465#15 | p.472#34 | p.605r4c03 |
為 | 火+5 | 爲 为 | wéi ㄨㄟˊ | Create, make. / Build, construct. / Do. / Plant, grow. / Govern. / Research, study. / Serve as. / Change into, become. / As, in the role of. / Count as, be considered as. / Called, named. / Expresses judgement: is. / Make, cause (to). / Have. / Take part in. / Write, author. / Connective: if. / Particle used in the middle of a sentence to move forward the object. / Modal particle used at the end of a sentence to express a rhetorical question. | v3,p2198#11 | p.669#10 | p.844r4c03 |
wèi ㄨㄟˋ | Help, assist. / Preposition: for, on behalf of. / Preposition: by (passive). / Preposition: because of, due to. / Preposition: with, together with. / Connective: because. / Say. / False, fake. | ||||||
之 | 丿+3 | 㞢 | zhī ㄓ | Towards; go to. / Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Third person pronoun: him, her, it. / Auxiliary word: of. / Auxiliary word: used between subject and predicate, cancels independence of a clause. / Auxiliary word: used in a sentence for aesthetic purpose only, no meaning. | v1,p0043#01 | p.82#04 | p.47r2c02 |
於 | 方+4 | 烏 𣱏 𤕘 于 亏 扵 | yú ㄩˊ | Be (copula). / Be, exist. / Preposition: in. / Preposition: from or to. / Preposition: compared to. / Preposition: to, for, towards. / Preposition: by (indicating passive tense). / Preposition: with, using. / Preposition: due to, because of. / Preposition: by, according to. / Connective: just as. / Auxiliary word, no meaning. | v3,p2175#02 | p.481#11 | p.622r2c03 |
有 | 月+2 | | yǒu ㄧㄡˇ | Have, possess. / Store, collect. / Occupy. / Hold on to, retain. / Have in abundance. / Good harvest. / Obtain. / Only. / Be, exist. / Occur, happen. / Make. / Particle used before a noun with no meaning. / Particle used before a monosyllabic adjective with no meaning. / Particle used before a verb with no meaning. / Still, yet. / Some people. / Region. | v3,p2041#05 | p.504#20 | p.656r5c01 |
yòu ㄧㄡˋ | Help, assist. / Same as 「又(3)」 yòu ㄧㄡˋ: Moreover. | ||||||
治 | 水+5 | 乿 | zhì ㄓˋ | Rule, administer. / Well ruled, peaceful and orderly. / Punish, execute. / Cure, treat (an illness). / Prepare. / Construct. / Research, study. | v3,p1599#06 | p.614#07 | p.776r5c02 |
亂 | 乙+12 | 𠧎 𠧏 𠮗 乱 | luàn ㄌㄨㄢˋ | Chaos, disorder. / Confusion, confused state of mind. / Turmoil, unrest, revolt. / Rebellion, uprising. / Disturb, corrupt. / Lecherous, wicked. / Confuse, mix up. / Rule, administer. / Traverse, cross. / Reach, pass. / Last section of a piece of music. / Last words of a piece of writing. / Complete, finish. | v1,p0057#10 | p.84#33 | p.57r5c01 |
合 | 口+3 | 閤 | hé gě ㄏㄜˊ ㄍㄜˇ | combine, unite, join; gather | v1,p0581#01 | p.174#24 | p.249r1c02 |
抱 | 手+5 | 抔 | bào ㄅㄠˋ | embrace, hold in arms, enfold | v3,p1856#04 | p.423#08 | p.565r4c03 |
木 | 木+0 | mù ㄇㄨˋ | tree; wood, lumber; wooden | v2,p1149#06 | p.509#01 | p.662r5c05 | |
生 | 生+0 | 𤯓 | shēng ㄕㄥ | life, living, lifetime; birth | v4,p2575#01 | p.754#26 | p.906r5c03 |
毫 | 毛+7 | 𡨉 | háo ㄏㄠˊ | fine hair; measure of length | v3,p1999#02 | p.593#10 | p.749r2c07 |
末 | 木+1 | mò ㄇㄛˋ | final, last, end; insignificant | v2,p1150#02 | p.509#06 | p.665r6c01 | |
九 | 乙+1 | 玖 | jiǔ ㄐㄧㄡˇ | nine | v1,p0048#05 | p.83#19 | p.48r6c01 |
層 | 尸+12 | 层 | céng ㄘㄥˊ | storey, layer, floor, stratum | v2,p0981#03 | p.303#40 | p.450r6c01 |
臺 | 至+8 | 台 䑓 𡌫 㙵 | tái yí tāi ㄊㄞˊ ㄧˊ ㄊㄞ | tower, lookout; stage, platform | v4,p2817#06 | p.1002#05 | p.1112r2c02 |
起 | 走+3 | 𨑓 𡆡 𨑔 | qǐ ㄑㄧˇ | rise, stand up; go up; begin | v5,p3476#02 | p.1215#15 | p.1284r2c03 |
於 | 方+4 | 烏 𣱏 𤕘 于 亏 扵 | yú ㄩˊ | (3.2) 介詞,相當於「從」、「到」。 Preposition: from or to. | v3,p2175#02 | p.481#11 | p.622r2c03 |
累 | 糸+5 | 纍 | lèi lěi léi lǜ liè ㄌㄟˋ ㄌㄟˇ ㄌㄟˊ ㄌㄩˋ ㄌㄧㄝˋ | tired; implicate, involve; bother | v5,p3381#04 | p.919#35 | p.1038r2c01 |
土 | 土+0 | tǔ ㄊㄨˇ | soil, earth; items made of earth | v1,p0415#01 | p.223#01 | p.309r5c03 | |
千 | 十+1 | 仟 | qiān ㄑㄧㄢ | thousand; many, numerous; very; (Cant.) a cheater, swindler | v1,p0059#01 | p.155#19 | p.212r5c01 |
里 | 里+0 | 裏 裡 | lǐ ㄌㄧˇ | unit of distance; village; lane | v6,p3680#01 | p.1291#02 | p.1357r4c01 |
行 | 行+0 | 行 | xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ | Walk, move (on foot). / Advance, move forward. / Leave, exit. / Patrol, go on inspection. / Inspection of the realm by the Son of Heaven. / Be married off. / Flow, circulate. / Channel, guide. / Revolution, circular motion. / Experience. / Luggage, belongings taken on a journey. / Do, carry out. / Actions. / Accomplishments. / Use, utilize. / Take over (an official duty). / Offer, present. / Moral conduct, behaviour. / A type of classical poem. / A piece of music. / Semi-cursive script. / Adverb: will, about to. / Adverb: again, once more. / Adverb: by chance, luckily. / Ambassador (official title). / Measure word for number of pourings of drinks. | v2,p0811#06 | p.1108#31 | p.1203r5c05 |
háng ㄏㄤˊ | Road. / Track, pattern. / Row, line. / Row of soldiers in battle. / Unit of 25 soldiers. / Shaft of a feather (and by extension, wings). / Measure word for things which form rows. / Rank, position. | ||||||
始 | 女+5 | 𠃭 乨 兘 𠙉 | shǐ ㄕˇ | begin, start; then, only then | v2,p1041#12 | p.258#16 | p.381r1c02 |
足 | 足+0 | 疋 𤴕 | zú jù ㄗㄨˊ ㄐㄩˋ | foot; attain, satisfy, enough | v6,p3686#01 | p.1221#17 | p.1287r6c03 |
下 | 一+2 | 丅 厥 𠄟 | xià ㄒㄧㄚˋ | under, underneath, below; down; inferior; bring down | v1,p0007#01 | p.76#10 | p.28r1c01 |
者 | 老+4 | zhě ㄓㄜˇ | Pronoun used after verbs, adjectives, etc. in place of a person or thing. / Pronoun used after numbers in place of a thing. / Pronoun used after time or negation to express "when" or "if". / Expressive particle used in a declarative sentence after the subject. / Expressive particle used in a sentence after the subject to express cause or explanation. | v4,p2780#05 | p.961#01 | p.1080r1c01 | |
zhuó ㄓㄨㄛˊ | In, located in. | ||||||
敗 | 攴+7 | 贁 貝 𤖐 䢙 败 | bài ㄅㄞˋ | be defeated, decline, fail | v2,p1462#02 | p.471#15 | p.604r6c01 |
執 | 土+8 | 执 𠌷 | zhí ㄓˊ | hold in hand; keep; carry out | v1,p0457#05 | p.231#09 | p.321r1c02 |
失 | 大+2 | shī ㄕ | lose; make mistake, neglect | v1,p0525#01 | p.249#09 | p.368r3c01 | |
是 | 日+5 | 昰 𣆞 | shì ㄕˋ | Straight. / Right, correct. / Believe accurate, affirm. / Demonstrative pronoun: this. / Be (copula). / Auxiliary word, used after moving forward the object. | v2,p1497#05 | p.493#26 | p.639r1c01 |
以 | 人+3 | 㠯 | yǐ ㄧˇ | Use. / Believe. / Command. / Lead. / Connect, implicate. / Have. / Cause, reason. / Preposition: because. / Preposition: from, in. / Preposition: at [some time]. / Preposition: using. / Preposition: in accordance with. / Preposition: relying upon. / Preposition: in the capacity of. / Preposition: with, together with. / Connective: indicates the following action is the objective of the preceding one. / Connective: used between adverbial clause and verb to express modification. / Connective: and. / Connective: but. / Connective: and so, thus. / Particle: used together with some words expressing direction and time. / Modal particle. / Same as 「已(1)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Stop, discontinue. / Same as 「已(7.2)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: already. / Same as 「已(7.3)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: extremely. | v1,p0105#07 | p.94#01 | p.87r6c01 |
聖人 | 耳+7 人+0 | 堊 𦕡 𠄵 圣 𠔽 亻 | shèng rén ㄕㄥˋ ㄖㄣˊ | 出類拔萃的人。 Sage, outstanding person. | v4,p2789#06 v1,p0101#10 | p.967#22 p.91#01 | p.1082r6c06 p.80r2c01 |
無 | 火+8 | 𣟒 𣚨 𠘩 无 橆 | wú ㄨˊ | Not have. / Philosophical category referring to absence, non-existence, or vacuity. / Adverb expressing negation: not. / Adverb expressing questioning: or not. / Connective: regardless of. / Connective: even if. / Particle used at the beginning of a sentence, no meaning. / Do not. / Barren, uncultivated. | v3,p2211#15 | p.673#26 | p.848r2c04 |
故 | 攴+5 | gù ㄍㄨˋ | Cause. / State of affairs. / Event, incident. / Plot. / Old. / Past, original. / Death. / On purpose. / Originally. / Hence, thus. | v2,p1453#05 | p.469#25 | p.601r5c01 | |
民 | 氏+1 | 𠘽 | mín ㄇㄧㄣˊ | people, subjects, citizens | v3,p2131#01 | p.598#01 | p.750r3c01 |
從 | 彳+8 | 従 从 | cóng ㄘㄨㄥˊ | Follow, accompany. / Cause to follow, make go along with. / Pursue, chase after. / Die with, bury along with the dead. / Listen to, do as required. / Eloquent. / Obedient, submissive. / Route to peaceful society, correct order. / Perform, participate in. / Blood relation through the male line. / Secondary, sub- (of official titles). / Preposition: from. / Preposition: towards. / Preposition: because of, due to. / Addition, also. | v2,p0829#12 | p.368#18 | p.514r5c01 |
zòng ㄗㄨㄥˋ | North-south. / Alliance of states opposed to the Qin alliance. / Straight, upright. / Indulge, allow to. / Connective: even if. | ||||||
zōng ㄗㄨㄥ | Trace, vestige. | ||||||
sǒng ㄙㄨㄥˇ | See 從容。 | ||||||
事 | 亅+7 | 亊 叓 𠭏 | shì ㄕˋ | Office, duty. / Job, career. / Things, affairs. / Accident, incident. / Engage (in), pursue. / Serve. | v1,p0023#03 | p.85#24 | p.58r3c02 |
常 | 巾+8 | cháng ㄔㄤˊ | common, normal, frequent, regular | v1,p0744#01 | p.333#12 | p.477r2c01 | |
幾 | 幺+9 | 𢆻 𢆼 几 | jǐ jī ㄐㄧˇ ㄐㄧ | how many? how much?; a few, some | v2,p1095#08 | p.342#14 | p.486r2c02 |
成 | 戈+2 | 𢦩 | chéng ㄔㄥˊ | completed, finished, fixed | v2,p1399#01 | p.411#11 | |
而 | 而+0 | ér ㄦˊ | Whiskers. / Like, similar to. / Pronoun: you. / Pronoun: this, like this. / Connective: and, with. / Connective: and, then. / Connective: if, supposing. / Connective: yet, however. / Connective: therefore, hence. / Connective: expresses method or state. / Particle: of. / Expressive particle. | v4,p2810#01 | p.961#18 | p.1080r2c03 | |
néng ㄋㄥˊ | Same as 「能(3)」 néng ㄋㄥˊ: Able to, competent. / Same as 「能(2.1)」 néng ㄋㄥˊ: Ability, talent. | ||||||
慎 | 心+10 | 愼 | shèn ㄕㄣˋ | act with care, be cautious | v4,p2336#02 | p.398#26 | |
終 | 糸+5 | 𣊂 𤽘 𣧩 𠔾 𡦿 𢍐 𣈩 𤽬 夊 终 | zhōng ㄓㄨㄥ | end; finally, in the end | v5,p3384#05 | p.921#01 | p.1039r4c06 |
如 | 女+3 | rú ㄖㄨˊ | Go to. / According to, in accordance with. / Like, similar to. / As good as, comparable to. / Should. / Or, alternatively. / If, should it be the case. / As for, as regards. / Adjectival suffix. | v2,p1025#09 | p.255#21 | p.378r5c02 | |
則 | 刀+7 | 𠟻 𠟭 𠞋 𠟔 则 | zé ㄗㄜˊ | Method, rule. / Mimic, emulate. / Level, grade. / Adverb used to emphasize an assertion. / Adverb used to express scope: only. / Connective expressing continuation: then, and then. / Connective emphasizing comparison. / Connective expressing contrast. / Connective expressing allowance: yet, even so. / Connective expressing unexpected turn of events. / Connective expressing suppostion: if. | v1,p0340#06 | p.139#31 | p.183r5c05 |
欲 | 欠+7 | 慾 | yù ㄩˋ | desire, want, long for; intend | v3,p2140#07 | p.567#36 | p.729r4c02 |
不 | 一+3 | 不 𠀚 𠙐 | bù ㄅㄨˋ | Not have. / To not be. / Negational adverb, used before verbs, adjectives, etc. to indicate negation. / Negational adverb expressing prohibition: do not. / Negational adverb expressing rhetorical question: is not...? | v1,p0011#06 | p.76#15 | p.30r1c01 |
fǒu ㄈㄡˇ | Same as 「否(1.2)」 fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used together with an affirmative word, expressing its negative or opposite. / Same as 「否(1.3)」 fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used at the end of a question to form a yes-no question. | ||||||
fū ㄈㄨ | Sepal of a flower. | ||||||
pī ㄆㄧ | Same as 「丕(1)」 pī ㄆㄧ: Large. | ||||||
bǐ ㄅㄧˇ | Show disdain for. | ||||||
貴 | 貝+5 | 𡭙 𧸋 贵 | guì ㄍㄨㄟˋ | expensive, costly, valuable | v6,p3632#09 | p.1206#15 | p.1271r6c01 |
難 | 隹+11 | 𩁢 𩁬 𩀙 𩁣 𩁲 𩁩 𩀏 𩁤 难 | nán ㄋㄢˊ | Difficult, not easy. / Make difficult, think difficult. | v6,p4108#05 | p.1370#05 | p.1446r3c01 |
nàn ㄋㄢˋ | Disaster. / Blame. / Censure, reject. / Resent. / Hate. / Doctrine, thesis. | ||||||
nǎn ㄋㄢˇ | Fear. | ||||||
nuó ㄋㄨㄛˊ | Luxuriant. / Ceremony to banish sprits thought responsible for contagion. / How, why. | ||||||
得 | 彳+8 | 𢔶 䙷 𢔨 | dé ㄉㄜˊ | Get, obtain. / Plunder. / Covet. / Success. / Fitting, appropriate. / Compatible. / Satisfied, pleased. / Possible, can. / Same as 「德(1)」 dé ㄉㄜˊ: Morals, morality. / Same as 「德(3)」 dé ㄉㄜˊ: Reward kindness, thank. | v2,p0828#03 | p.367#31 | p.513r6c02 |
貨 | 貝+4 | 䞈 𣱷 货 | huò ㄏㄨㄛˋ | goods, commodities, products | v6,p3627#01 | p.1205#12 | p.1270r4c01 |
學 | 子+13 | 𢻯 斈 学 | xué ㄒㄩㄝˊ | Study, learn. / Doctrine, teaching. / School of thought. / School, place of learning. / Account, state. | v2,p1019#11 | p.280#28 | p.403r3c05 |
xiào ㄒㄧㄠˋ | Instruct, teach. | ||||||
復 | 彳+9 | 覆 𢕛 𠣸 复 | fù fòu ㄈㄨˋ ㄈㄡˋ | return; repeat; repeatedly | v2,p0834#02 | p.369#22 | p.516r2c04 |
衆 | 血+6 | 眾 𠍸 𠂝 众 | zhòng ㄓㄨㄥˋ | multitude, crowd; masses, public | v5,p3051#14 | p.1107#16 | p.1203r4c08 |
人 | 人+0 | 𠔽 亻 | rén ㄖㄣˊ | Man, person. / Others, other people. / The people, ordinary men. / Talent, material. / [A man's] character. / Affairs of men, world of man. / Benevolence. | v1,p0101#10 | p.91#01 | p.80r2c01 |
所 | 戶+4 | 𢨷 | suǒ ㄙㄨㄛˇ | Place. / Location. / A suitable place or location. / Measure word, used for counting buldings. / Used before a verb, creates a noun-like phrase. / If. Mainly used in oaths and curses. / Used together with 為 to indicate the passive tense. / Indicates an approximate number. / Number, number of times. / Meaning. | v3,p2259#01 | p.415#16 | p.556r1c01 |
過 | 辵+9 | 过 𨓺 | guò ㄍㄨㄛˋ | Pass by, go by. / Exceed, go beyond. / Too much, excess. / Mistake, make a mistake. / Crime, commit a crime. / Lose. / Visit. | v6,p3849#08 | p.1261#22 | p.1325r2c01 |
guō ㄍㄨㄛ | Name of a state in pre-Qin China. | ||||||
輔 | 車+7 | 辅 | fǔ ㄈㄨˇ | cheek bone; protective; assist | v5,p3533#03 | p.1244#05 | p.1301r4c01 |
萬 | 禸+8 | 万 卍 㸘 𤍚 𢁭 | wàn ㄨㄢˋ | ten thousand; innumerable | v5,p3247#08 | p.1042#33 | p.1149r4c02 |
物 | 牛+4 | wù ㄨˋ | thing, substance, creature | v3,p1805#03 | p.699#09 | p.869r5c01 | |
自 | 自+0 | 𦣹 鼻 | zì ㄗˋ | Oneself. / Begin, beginning. / From. / Originally. / Natural, naturally. / Supposing, if. / Even, even if. | v5,p3046#01 | p.1000#07 | p.1108r3c01 |
然 | 火+8 | 燃 𤓉 | rán ㄖㄢˊ | Burn. / Demonstrative pronoun: like this, like that. / Expresses affirmation: true, indeed so. / Believe correct, affirm. / Adverb: actually, thus. / Connective: but, however, yet. / Particle used at the end of a sentence to express comparison. Like, as if. / Particle used after an adjective or adverb to express state. / Particle used at the end of a sentence to express affirmative mode. | v3,p2213#05 | p.675#12 | p.852r5c01 |
敢 | 攴+8 | 𠭖 𢽤 𣪏 | gǎn ㄍㄢˇ | to dare, venture; bold, brave | v2,p1463#09 | p.472#26 | p.605r4c02 |
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