Chinese Text Project Dictionary

Daoism -> Zhuangzi -> Outer Chapters -> The Way of Heaven -> 4.1

是故古之明大道者，	Therefore the ancients who clearly understood the great Dao
先明天而道德次之，	first sought to apprehend what was meant by Heaven, and the Dao and its characteristics came next.
道德已明而仁義次之，	When this was apprehended, then came Benevolence and Righteousness.
仁義已明而分守次之，	When these were apprehended, then came the Distinction of duties and the observance of them.
分守已明而形名次之，	This accomplished, there came objects and their names.
形名已明而因任次之，	After objects and their names, came the employment of men according to their qualities:
因任已明而原省次之，	on this there followed the examination of the men and of their work.
原省已明而是非次之，	This led to the approval or disapproval of them,
是非已明而賞罰次之。	which again was succeeded by the apportioning of rewards and penalties.
賞罰已明而愚知處宜，	After this the stupid and the intelligent understood what was required of them,
貴賤履位，	and the honourable and the mean occupied their several positions.
仁賢不肖襲情，	The good and the able, and those inferior to them, sincerely did their best.
必分其能，	Their ability was distributed;
必由其名。	the duties implied in their official names were fulfilled.
以此事上，	In this way did they serve their superiors,
以此畜下，	nourish their inferiors,
以此治物，	regulate things,
以此修身，	and cultivate their persons.
知謀不用，	They did not call their knowledge and schemes into requisition;
必歸其天，	they were required to fall back upon (the method of) Heaven:
此之謂太平，治之至也。	this was what is called the Perfection of the Rule of Great Peace.

Character	Composition	Variants	Reading	Meaning	Hanyu	Kangxi	Cihai
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
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
古	口+2	𠖠𡇣	gǔ ㄍㄨˇ	old, classic, ancient	v1,p0568#03	p.171#08	p.240r1c02
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
明	日+4	朙	míng ㄇㄧㄥˊ	Bright, brilliant. / Daytime. / Clear, obvious. / Clarify, make clear. / Understand. / Straightforwardly, clearly. / Clear, clean. / Wise. / Make wise. / Spirit, god. / Respect. / Eyesight. / Good eyesight. / See clearly. / The following (day, month, year, etc.).	v2,p1491#08	p.491#12	p.631r3c01
大	大+0	𠘲	dà ㄉㄚˋ	Large, great. / Exceed, be greater than. / Venerate, treat as being great. / Many. / Thick, coarse. / Elder. / Respectful term of address. / Adverb expressing high level or broad range.	v1,p0520#01	p.248#01	p.342r3c03
			tài ㄊㄞˋ	Most (superlative). / Too much. / Peaceful, tranquil.
道	辵+9	𨕥衟𡬹	dào ㄉㄠˋ	Road, path. / Journey. / Method. / Law, reason. / Doctrine, claim. / Skill, technique. / Principle, right way. / The Dao, the origin of all things in Daoism. / Speak, talk. / Take a course of action. / Take a course of action. / Rites paid to the spirit of roads. / Ancient administrative unit. / Daoism.	v6,p3864#01	p.1262#06	p.1326r3c02
			dǎo ㄉㄠˇ	Lead. / Flow smoothly.
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.
先	儿+4		xiān ㄒㄧㄢ	first, former, previous	v1,p0267#02	p.124#05	p.134r3c02
天	大+1	𠀡𠀘𦴞兲靝𠕹	tiān ㄊㄧㄢ	sky, heaven; god, celestial	v1,p0522#01	p.248#04	p.358r4c01
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.
德	彳+12	惪悳	dé ㄉㄜˊ	Morals, morality. / Good deeds. / Good fortune. / Reward kindness, thank. / Heart, feelings. / Same as 「得(1.1)」 dé ㄉㄜˊ: Get, obtain.	v2,p0841#17	p.371#08	p.518r3c01
次	欠+2	𦮏𠕞𠤣	cì ㄘˋ	order, sequence; next	v3,p2133#02	p.565#03	p.728r5c04
已	己+0		yǐ ㄧˇ	Stop, discontinue. / Complete / The past. / Recover, be cured. / Leave [a post], retire. / Value and carry out. / Adverb: shortly, before long. / Adverb: already. / Adverb: extremely. / Modal particle used at the end of a sentence. / Interjection. / Same as 「以(1)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Use. / Same as 「以(9)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Particle: used together with some words expressing direction and time.	v2,p0984#01	p.326#11	p.467r3c01
仁	人+2	忈忎𡰥	rén ㄖㄣˊ	humaneness, benevolence, kindness	v1,p0107#01	p.91#07
義	羊+7	义	yì ㄧˋ	right conduct, righteousness	v5,p3133#02	p.952#32	p.1071r3c01
分	刀+2	份	fēn ㄈㄣ	Separate, split. / Distribute, divide among. / Distinguish, tell apart. / Difference. / Clear, evident. / Share. / Half. / Gist, general point. / Equinox (in the Chinese unisolar calendar). / Measure word: unit of length equivalent to a tenth of one cun. / Measure word: unit of area equivalent to a tenth of one mu. / Measure word: unit of weight equivalent to a tenth of one qian.	v1,p0321#03	p.136#04	p.174r1c04
			fèn ㄈㄣˋ	Rank, position occupied. / Work, office. / Guess, speculate. / Happy, content.
守	宀+3	𡬮𡬴	shǒu shòu ㄕㄡˇ ㄕㄡˋ	defend, protect, guard, conserve	v2,p0912#03	p.282#05	p.405r4c01
形	彡+4		xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ	Body, thing with form. / Human body. / Form, appearance. / Lay of the land. / Circumstances. / Condition, situation. / Form, create. / Exhibit, show. / Compare. / Mould, die. / Same as 「刑(4.1)」 xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ: Law, rules of punishment. / Same as 「鉶」 xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ: Porcelain soup bowl.	v2,p0852#10	p.363#06	p.507r4c01
名	口+3		míng ㄇㄧㄥˊ	Name. / Writing. / To name, give a name to. / Call, refer to as. / Title, name of. / Title, status. / Fame, recognition. / Famous, well-known. / Large. / Between the eyebrows and eyelashes. / The School of Names.	v1,p0582#06	p.175#09	p.254r2c01
因	囗+3	囙𤇀	yīn ㄧㄣ	cause, reason; by; because (of)	v1,p0711#09	p.217#02
任	人+4	仼	rèn rén ㄖㄣˋ ㄖㄣˊ	trust to, rely on, appoint; to bear, duty, office; allow	v1,p0122#06	p.94#24	p.88r6c05
原	厂+8	𠪥𨘡𠪰亰	yuán yuàn ㄩㄢˊ ㄩㄢˋ	source, origin, beginning	v1,p0074#09	p.162#03	p.229r4c03
省	目+4	省𡮀䁞	shěng xiǎn xǐng ㄕㄥˇ ㄒㄧㄢˇ ㄒㄧㄥˇ	province; save, economize	v4,p2473#01	p.802#05	p.946r6c01
非	非+0		fēi ㄈㄟ	Violate, go against (a rule). / Wrong, bad. / Not real, untrue. / Oppose, object to. / Slander, condemn. / Sarcasm, irony. / Absence of, not have. / Adverb: not, is not.	v6,p4086#01	p.1382#11	p.1463r6c02
			fěi ㄈㄟˇ	Same as 「誹(2)」 fěi ㄈㄟˇ: Slander.
賞	貝+8	赏	shǎng ㄕㄤˇ	reward, grant, bestow; appreciate	v6,p3647#07	p.1209#19	p.1276r4c01
罰	网+9	罸罚	fá ㄈㄚˊ	penalty, fine; punish, penalize	v4,p2923#03	p.948#33	p.1065r5c04
愚	心+9		yú ㄩˊ	stupid, doltish, foolish	v4,p2321#07	p.395#12	p.537r6c06
知	矢+3	𢇻𥎿	zhī ㄓ	Know, understand. / Perception. / Recognize. / Knowledge. / Know about, make sense of. / Be friendly with. / Control, get on top of.	v4,p2581#02	p.824#01	p.955r5c02
			zhì ㄓˋ	Wisdom.
處	虍+5	処䖏处	chǔ ㄔㄨˇ	Stay, reside. / Settle. / Be in, located in. / Retire. / Appoint, serve in office. / Stop, rest. / Remain, stay. / Implement, carry out. / Handle, process. / Judge, form a judgement. / Decide, fix. / Distinguish, separate. / Standard, rule.	v4,p2822#12	p.1073#25	p.1183r5c02
			chù ㄔㄨˋ	Place, location. / Position, role.
宜	宀+5	冝𡪀𡨆𠣨宐	yí ㄧˊ	suitable, right, fitting, proper	v2,p0920#06	p.284#03	p.416r1c01
貴	貝+5	𡭙𧸋贵	guì ㄍㄨㄟˋ	expensive, costly, valuable	v6,p3632#09	p.1206#15	p.1271r6c01
賤	貝+8	𧶤贱	jiàn ㄐㄧㄢˋ	mean, low; cheap, worthless	v6,p3647#05	p.1209#35	p.1277r3c03
履	尸+12	履𡲟𩕎	lǚ ㄌㄩˇ	footwear, shoes; walk on, tread	v2,p0980#03	p.303#41	p.450r6c02
位	人+5		wèi ㄨㄟˋ	throne; position, post; rank, status; seat	v1,p0138#03	p.98#07	p.96r1c04
賢	貝+8	臤贒贤	xián ㄒㄧㄢˊ	virtuous, worthy, good; able	v6,p3646#06	p.1209#28	p.1276r5c02
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.
肖	肉+3		xiào xiāo ㄒㄧㄠˋ ㄒㄧㄠ	look like, resemble, be like	v3,p2045#06	p.973#25	p.1088r5c05
襲	衣+16	㦻𧟛褶袭	xí ㄒㄧˊ	raid, attack; inherit	v5,p3121#02	p.1127#06	p.1221r3c04
情	心+8	𢚏啨	qíng ㄑㄧㄥˊ	feeling, sentiment, emotion	v4,p2312#13	p.389#31	p.533r4c03
必	心+1		bì ㄅㄧˋ	surely, most certainly; must	v4,p2267#02	p.375#02	p.522r5c01
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.
能	肉+6		néng ㄋㄥˊ	A type of bear. / Ability, talent. / Man of ability, man of talent. / Able to, competent. / Comply with, be friendly towards. / Encompass, obtain. / To, arrive at. / Then, thus. / Same as 「而(4.3)」 ér ㄦˊ: Connective: if, supposing. / Only, merely. / Even if. / Thus, in this way. / Three-legged turtle.	v3,p2074#01	p.981#16	p.1095r5c02
			nài ㄋㄞˋ	Withstand, endure.
			tái ㄊㄞˊ	Same as 「台(1.1)」 tái ㄊㄞˊ: Name of a celestial body.
			tài ㄊㄞˋ	State, form.
由	田+0		yóu ㄧㄡˊ	Do, carry out. / Cause to happen. / Unite. / Complete, realize. / Go through, pass. / Carry out orders, do as asked. / Follow. / Accord with. / Cause. / Preposition: due to, because of. / Preposition: from. / Preposition: to, with. / Appoint, employ. / Rely on, make use of. / Evidence, proof. / Go along with, listen to. / New growth of a tree around dead wood. / Recovery, revival. / Like, similar to. / Still, yet. / Naturally, by itself.	v4,p2524#02	p.757#01	p.910r2c01
			dí ㄉㄧˊ	Road. / Method, way.
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
此	止+2		cǐ ㄘˇ	This. / Like this. / Here. / Adverb: then.	v2,p1438#03	p.574#10	p.735r4c01
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
上	一+2	丄𠄞	shàng ㄕㄤˋ	top; superior, highest; go up, send up	v1,p0005#04	p.76#07	p.24r2c01
畜	田+5	嘼𠬀	chù ㄔㄨˋ	Domestic animals.	v4,p2538#04	p.761#12	p.913r3c03
			xù ㄒㄩˋ	Raise (livestock). / Raise, look after (a family). / Cultivate. / Contain, accommodate. / Love.
下	一+2	丅厥𠄟	xià ㄒㄧㄚˋ	under, underneath, below; down; inferior; bring down	v1,p0007#01	p.76#10	p.28r1c01
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
物	牛+4		wù ㄨˋ	thing, substance, creature	v3,p1805#03	p.699#09	p.869r5c01
修	人+8		xiū ㄒㄧㄡ	study; repair; cultivate	v1,p0159#02	p.106#05	p.110r3c01
身	身+0		shēn ㄕㄣ	Pregnant. / The body (of a person or animal). / Itself. / I, myself. / Personally, directly. / Personally experience or carry out. / Life. / One's own moral character, ability, etc. / A world in buddhist doctrine.	v6,p3807#01	p.1237#01	p.1295r6c01
			yuān ㄩㄢ	Same as 「身毒」 yuān dú ㄩㄢㄉㄨˊ: India.
謀	言+9	𠰔𧦥谋	móu ㄇㄡˊ	plan, scheme; strategem	v6,p3993#19	p.1173#07	p.1251r5c01
用	用+0	𤰆𠛁	yòng ㄩㄥˋ	use, employ, apply, operate; use	v1,p0097#05	p.755#24	p.908r6c02
歸	止+14	帰归𤾤	guī kuì ㄍㄨㄟㄎㄨㄟˋ	return; return to, revert to	v2,p1446#15	p.578#07	p.739r6c01
謂	言+9	谓	wèi ㄨㄟˋ	To (when speaking to someone). / Say, speak. / Call, name. / Meaning, what is meant. / Discuss, comment on (a person). / How? / Same as 「為(21.3)」 wèi ㄨㄟˋ: Preposition: because of, due to.	v6,p3997#06	p.1173#12	p.1251r6c01
			wéi ㄨㄟˊ	Same as 「為(10)」 wéi ㄨㄟˊ: Count as, be considered as.
太	大+1		tài ㄊㄞˋ	very, too, much; big; extreme	v1,p0524#01	p.248#10	p.354r5c01
平	干+2	𤔁𠀭	píng ㄆㄧㄥˊ	flat, level, even; peaceful	v1,p0407#01	p.339#03	p.480r4c02
至	至+0	𦤳𦤴𦤵𡊏	zhì dié ㄓˋ ㄉㄧㄝˊ	reach, arrive; extremely, very	v4,p2814#01	p.1001#11	p.1111r3c04
也	乙+2	𠃟匜	yě ㄧㄝˇ	Modal particle used at the end of a sentence, expressing assertion and affirmation. / Modal particle used at the end of a question for emphasis. / Modal particle used at the end of a cause-effect sentence to express explanation. / Modal particle used in the middle of a sentence to express a pause.	v1,p0050#05	p.84#04	p.55r1c01

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