Chapter 24 How to embitter kindness.
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(Ch'u Ta-Kao Version)

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24. 1  
A man on tiptoe cannot stand firm; A man astride cannot walk on;
A man who displays himself cannot shine; A man who approves himself cannot be noted;
A man who praises himself cannot have merit; A man who glories in himself cannot excel:
These, when compared with Tao, are-called; 'Excess in food and overdoing action.' Even in other things, mostly, they are rejected; Therefore the man of Tao does not stay with them.
- Chinese :

《道德經》: 企者不立；跨者不行；自見者不明；自是者不彰；自伐者無功；自矜者不長。其在道也，曰：餘食贅行。物或惡之，故有道者不處。

《老子河上公章句·苦恩》: 企者不立，跨者不行，自見者不明，自是者不彰，自伐者無功，自矜者不長。其在道也，曰：餘食贅行。物或惡之。故有道者不處。

《馬王堆·老子甲道經》: 炊者不立；自視不章；□見者不明；自伐者無功；自矜者不長。其在道曰：𥺌食贅行。物或惡之。故有欲者□居。

《馬王堆·老子乙道經》: 炊者不立；自視者不章；自見者不明；自伐者無功；自矜者不長。其在道也，曰：𥺌食贅行。物或亞之，故有欲者弗居。 (Ⅰ)
- He Shanggong (English) :

Who advances has no firm stand.

企 = 進to advance. This means: Who covets power, loves glory and advances towards merit and fame, cannot for long give a firm stand to the body and walk in Tao.

Who straddles does not walk.

Who glorifies himself and enlarges himself before others, everybody will block up his way so that he cannot walk.

Who regards himself is not enlightened.

If somebody regards his own appearance, he thinks well of it. If somebody regards his own behaviour, he thinks it conforming to Tao. But he is ignorant of the vulgarity of his appearance and of his behaviour.

Who exists for himself is not clear.

Who thinks of himself as positive and of others as negative, is impeded by all the others and thereby unable to reach clearness.

Who praises himself accomplishes nothing.

Who inconsiderately boasts of his own merit as being perfect, loses his merit in regard to others.

Who boasts of himself is not enduring.

Who likes to vaunt and to magnify himself, is unable to endure long.

This in its relation to Tao is called greediness for extra food.

贅 = 貪to be greedy. If such a man who praises and vaunts himself is allowed to conduct the government of a country, he will daily impose taxes and be greedy for extra profit and food. Thereby he behaves greedily.

The creatures all hate him.

If such a man sits upon the throne, this incites his desire to be hurtful. Therefore there is no creature that does not dread and hate him.

Therefore who possesses Tao does not stay there.

This means: A man who possesses Tao does not stay in such a country.

 (Ⅱ)
- He Shanggong (Chinese) :

企者不立，企，進也。謂貪權慕名，進取功榮，則不可久立身行道也。跨者不行，自以為貴而跨於人，眾共蔽之，使不得行。自見者不明，人自見其形容以為好，自見其所行以為應道，殊不知其形醜，操行之鄙。自是者不彰，自以為是而非人，眾共蔽之，使不得彰明。自伐者無功，所謂輒自伐取其功美，即失有功於人也。自矜者不長。好自矜大者，不可以長久。其在道也，曰：餘食贅行。贅，貪也。使此自矜伐之人，在治國之道，日賦歛餘祿食以為貪行。物或惡之。此人在位，動欲傷害，故物無有不畏惡之者。故有道者不處。言有道之人不居其國也。 (Ⅲ)
- Wing-Tsit Chan (1963) :

He who stands on tiptoe is not steady. He who strides forward does not go.
He who shows himself is not luminous. He who justifies himself is not prominent.
He who boasts of himself is not given credit. He who brags does not endure for long.
From the point of view of Tao, these are like remnants of food and tumours of action, Which all creatures detest. Therefore those who possess Tao turn away from them. (Ⅳ)
- Ellen Marie Chen (1989) :

One who tiptoes cannot stand.
One who straddles cannot walk.
One who sees himself is not enlightened (ming).
One who justifies himself is not outstanding.
One who shows off (fa) his deeds is not meritorious.
One who boasts (ching) of himself does not lead (chang).
These to a Taoist are called:
Excess nature (yü te) and superfluous actions (shui hsing),
Avoided (o) even by things.
Therefore the Taoist does not indulge (ch'u) in them. (Ⅴ)
- World by world translation :

Traditional // simplified // pinyin // definition // dictionary
企 // 企 // qǐ // ① planifier un projet ② se tenir debout sur la pointe des pieds ③ entreprise ④ société // Chinese-French
企 // 企 // qǐ // ① to plan a project ② to stand on tiptoe ③ Taiwan pr. [qi4] ④ abbr. for 企業|企业[qi3 ye4] // CC-CEDICT
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (placé après un adjectif ou un verbe est utilisé comme substantif pour désigner une personne ou une chose) // Chinese-French
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ... ② (after a noun) person involved in ... ③ -er ④ -ist ⑤ (used after a number or 後|后[hou4] or 前[qian2] to refer to sth mentioned previously) ⑥ (used after a term, to mark a pause before defining the term) ⑦ (old) (used at the end of a command) ⑧ (old) this // CC-CEDICT
不 // 不 // bù // ① ne... pas ② non ③ (pour former une question placé à la fin d'une phrase, pour indiquer l'indifférence avec shen me ④ pour indiquer une alternative avec jiu) // Chinese-French
不 // 不 // bù // ① (negative prefix) ② not ③ no // CC-CEDICT
立 // 立 // lì // ① s'efforcer de ② se tenir debout ③ dresser ④ fonder ⑤ vertical ⑥ droit ⑦ tout de suite ⑧ immédiatement // Chinese-French
立 // 立 // lì // ① surname Li // CC-CEDICT
立 // 立 // lì // ① to stand ② to set up ③ to establish ④ to lay down ⑤ to draw up ⑥ at once ⑦ immediately // CC-CEDICT
跨 // 跨 // kuà // ① enjamber ② franchir ③ enfourcher ④ traverser // Chinese-French
跨 // 跨 // kuà // ① to step across ② to stride over ③ to straddle ④ to span // CC-CEDICT
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (placé après un adjectif ou un verbe est utilisé comme substantif pour désigner une personne ou une chose) // Chinese-French
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ... ② (after a noun) person involved in ... ③ -er ④ -ist ⑤ (used after a number or 後|后[hou4] or 前[qian2] to refer to sth mentioned previously) ⑥ (used after a term, to mark a pause before defining the term) ⑦ (old) (used at the end of a command) ⑧ (old) this // CC-CEDICT
不行 // 不行 // bù xíng // ① incapable ② incompétent ③ ça ne va pas ④ ce n'est pas possible // Chinese-French
不行 // 不行 // bù xíng // ① won't do ② be out of the question ③ be no good ④ not work ⑤ not be capable // CC-CEDICT
自 // 自 // zì // ① depuis ② à partir de ③ soi-même ④ naturellement // Chinese-French
自 // 自 // zì // ① self ② oneself ③ from ④ since ⑤ naturally ⑥ surely // CC-CEDICT
見 // 见 // jiàn // ① voir ② apercevoir ③ rencontrer ④ être au contact de ⑤ être exposé à ⑥ se référer à // Chinese-French
見 // 见 // jiàn // ① to see ② to meet ③ to appear (to be sth) ④ to interview // CC-CEDICT
見 // 见 // xiàn // ① apparaître ② se montrer // Chinese-French
見 // 见 // xiàn // ① to appear ② also written 現|现[xian4] // CC-CEDICT
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (placé après un adjectif ou un verbe est utilisé comme substantif pour désigner une personne ou une chose) // Chinese-French
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ... ② (after a noun) person involved in ... ③ -er ④ -ist ⑤ (used after a number or 後|后[hou4] or 前[qian2] to refer to sth mentioned previously) ⑥ (used after a term, to mark a pause before defining the term) ⑦ (old) (used at the end of a command) ⑧ (old) this // CC-CEDICT
不明 // 不明 // bù míng // ① obscurité // Chinese-French
不明 // 不明 // bù míng // ① not clear ② unknown ③ to fail to understand // CC-CEDICT
自 // 自 // zì // ① depuis ② à partir de ③ soi-même ④ naturellement // Chinese-French
自 // 自 // zì // ① self ② oneself ③ from ④ since ⑤ naturally ⑥ surely // CC-CEDICT
是 // 是 // shì // ① être ② oui ③ correct // Chinese-French
是 // 是 // shì // ① is ② are ③ am ④ yes ⑤ to be // CC-CEDICT
昰 // 是 // shì // ① variant of 是[shi4] ② (used in given names) // CC-CEDICT
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (placé après un adjectif ou un verbe est utilisé comme substantif pour désigner une personne ou une chose) // Chinese-French
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ... ② (after a noun) person involved in ... ③ -er ④ -ist ⑤ (used after a number or 後|后[hou4] or 前[qian2] to refer to sth mentioned previously) ⑥ (used after a term, to mark a pause before defining the term) ⑦ (old) (used at the end of a command) ⑧ (old) this // CC-CEDICT
不 // 不 // bù // ① ne... pas ② non ③ (pour former une question placé à la fin d'une phrase, pour indiquer l'indifférence avec shen me ④ pour indiquer une alternative avec jiu) // Chinese-French
不 // 不 // bù // ① (negative prefix) ② not ③ no // CC-CEDICT
彰 // 彰 // zhāng // ① clair ② évident // Chinese-French
彰 // 彰 // zhāng // ① clear ② conspicuous ③ manifest // CC-CEDICT
自 // 自 // zì // ① depuis ② à partir de ③ soi-même ④ naturellement // Chinese-French
自 // 自 // zì // ① self ② oneself ③ from ④ since ⑤ naturally ⑥ surely // CC-CEDICT
伐 // 伐 // fá // ① couper ② abattre ③ attaquer // Chinese-French
伐 // 伐 // fá // ① to cut down ② to fell ③ to dispatch an expedition against ④ to attack ⑤ to boast ⑥ Taiwan pr. [fa1] // CC-CEDICT
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (placé après un adjectif ou un verbe est utilisé comme substantif pour désigner une personne ou une chose) // Chinese-French
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ... ② (after a noun) person involved in ... ③ -er ④ -ist ⑤ (used after a number or 後|后[hou4] or 前[qian2] to refer to sth mentioned previously) ⑥ (used after a term, to mark a pause before defining the term) ⑦ (old) (used at the end of a command) ⑧ (old) this // CC-CEDICT
無 // 无 // wú // ① non ② 71e radical // Chinese-French
無 // 无 // wú // ① not to have ② no ③ none ④ not ⑤ to lack ⑥ un- ⑦ -less // CC-CEDICT
功 // 功 // gōng // ① mérite, services ② effort, travail // Chinese-French
功 // 功 // gōng // ① meritorious deed or service ② achievement ③ result ④ service ⑤ accomplishment ⑥ work (physics) // CC-CEDICT
自矜 // 自矜 // zì jīn // ① to boast ② to blow one's own horn // CC-CEDICT
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (placé après un adjectif ou un verbe est utilisé comme substantif pour désigner une personne ou une chose) // Chinese-French
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ... ② (after a noun) person involved in ... ③ -er ④ -ist ⑤ (used after a number or 後|后[hou4] or 前[qian2] to refer to sth mentioned previously) ⑥ (used after a term, to mark a pause before defining the term) ⑦ (old) (used at the end of a command) ⑧ (old) this // CC-CEDICT
不 // 不 // bù // ① ne... pas ② non ③ (pour former une question placé à la fin d'une phrase, pour indiquer l'indifférence avec shen me ④ pour indiquer une alternative avec jiu) // Chinese-French
不 // 不 // bù // ① (negative prefix) ② not ③ no // CC-CEDICT
長 // 长 // cháng // ① long ② durable // Chinese-French
長 // 长 // cháng // ① length ② long ③ forever ④ always ⑤ constantly // CC-CEDICT
長 // 长 // zhǎng // ① chef ② tête ③ aîné ④ grandir ⑤ développer ⑥ accroître ⑦ renforcer // Chinese-French
長 // 长 // zhǎng // ① chief ② head ③ elder ④ to grow ⑤ to develop ⑥ to increase ⑦ to enhance // CC-CEDICT
其 // 其 // qí // ① son ② sa ③ ses ④ leur ⑤ leurs ⑥ il(s) ⑦ elle(s) ⑧ ceci ⑨ cela // Chinese-French
其 // 其 // qí // ① his ② her ③ its ④ their ⑤ that ⑥ such ⑦ it (refers to sth preceding it) // CC-CEDICT
在 // 在 // zài // ① en train de ② à ③ dans ④ en ⑤ exister ⑥ vivre // Chinese-French
在 // 在 // zài // ① (located) at ② (to be) in ③ to exist ④ in the middle of doing sth ⑤ (indicating an action in progress) // CC-CEDICT
道 // 道 // dào // ① doctrine, raison ② voie ③ dire ④ circuit, intendance // Chinese-French
道 // 道 // dào // ① road ② path ③ CL:條|条[tiao2],股[gu3] ④ principle ⑤ truth ⑥ morality ⑦ reason ⑧ skill ⑨ method ⑩ Dao (of Daoism) ⑪ to say ⑫ to speak ⑬ to talk ⑭ classifier for long thin things (rivers, cracks etc), barriers (walls, doors etc), questions (in an exam etc), commands, courses in a meal, steps in a process ⑮ (old) administrative division (similar to province in Tang times) // CC-CEDICT
也 // 也 // yě // ① également ② aussi ③ à la fois ④ même ⑤ voire // Chinese-French
也 // 也 // yě // ① surname Ye // CC-CEDICT
也 // 也 // yě // ① also ② too ③ (in Classical Chinese) final particle implying affirmation // CC-CEDICT
曰 // 曰 // yuē // ① dire ② appeler // Chinese-French
曰 // 曰 // yuē // ① to speak ② to say // CC-CEDICT
餘 // 余 // yú // ① en surplus ② en trop // Chinese-French
餘 // 余 // yú // ① extra ② surplus ③ remaining ④ remainder after division ⑤ (following numerical value) or more ⑥ in excess of (some number) ⑦ residue (math.) ⑧ after ⑨ I ⑩ me // CC-CEDICT
餘 // 馀 // yú // ① moi ② mon ③ surplus ④ (nom de famille) // Chinese-French
餘 // 馀 // yú // ① surname Yu // CC-CEDICT
餘 // 馀 // yú // ① variant of 餘|余[yu2], remainder // CC-CEDICT
食 // 食 // shí // ① manger ② nourriture ③ aliments pour animaux ④ éclipse // Chinese-French
食 // 食 // shí // ① to eat ② food ③ animal feed ④ eclipse // CC-CEDICT
食 // 食 // sì // ① nourrir // Chinese-French
食 // 食 // sì // ① to feed // CC-CEDICT
贅 // 赘 // zhuì // ① répéter ② joindre ③ excroissance ④ parasite ⑤ superflu // Chinese-French
贅 // 赘 // zhuì // ① superfluous ② redundant ③ cumbersome ④ refers to a son-in-law living with wife's family // CC-CEDICT
行 // 行 // xíng // ① marcher ② agir ③ faire ④ pratiquer ⑤ appliquer ⑥ d'accord ⑦ c'est bon ! ⑧ chacun des éléments : l’eau, le feu, le bois, le métal, la terre ⑨ bagages ⑩ quitter la maison ⑪ se marier (pour une fille) ⑫ ballade // Chinese-French
行 // 行 // xíng // ① to walk ② to go ③ to travel ④ a visit ⑤ temporary ⑥ makeshift ⑦ current ⑧ in circulation ⑨ to do ⑩ to perform ⑪ capable ⑫ competent ⑬ effective ⑭ all right ⑮ OK! ⑯ will do ⑰ behavior ⑱ conduct ⑲ Taiwan pr. [xing4] for the behavior-conduct sense // CC-CEDICT
行 // 行 // háng // ① classe ② sorte ③ rang ④ maison de commerce // Chinese-French
行 // 行 // háng // ① a row ② series ③ age order (of brothers) ④ profession ⑤ professional ⑥ relating to company // CC-CEDICT
行 // 行 // xìng // ① action // Chinese-French
物 // 物 // wù // ① objet ② chose ③ être, matière // Chinese-French
物 // 物 // wù // ① thing ② object ③ matter ④ abbr. for physics 物理 // CC-CEDICT
或 // 或 // huò // ① ou ② soit...soit... ③ probablement ④ peut-être // Chinese-French
或 // 或 // huò // ① maybe ② perhaps ③ might ④ possibly ⑤ or // CC-CEDICT
惡 // 恶 // è // ① mauvais ② méchant ③ vicieux // Chinese-French
惡 // 恶 // è // ① evil ② fierce ③ vicious ④ ugly ⑤ coarse ⑥ to harm // CC-CEDICT
惡 // 恶 // ě // ① mal // Chinese-French
惡 // 恶 // ě // ① see 惡心|恶心[e3 xin1] // CC-CEDICT
惡 // 恶 // wù // ① haïr ② détestable // Chinese-French
惡 // 恶 // wù // ① to hate ② to loathe ③ ashamed ④ to fear ⑤ to slander // CC-CEDICT
之 // 之 // zhī // ① (remplaçant une personne ou une chose comme complément) ② (particule possessive dans différentes expressions) // Chinese-French
之 // 之 // zhī // ① (possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的[de5]) ② him ③ her ④ it // CC-CEDICT
故 // 故 // gù // ① incident ② cause ③ à dessein ④ exprès ⑤ raison ⑥ ancien ⑦ mourir // Chinese-French
故 // 故 // gù // ① happening ② instance ③ reason ④ cause ⑤ intentional ⑥ former ⑦ old ⑧ friend ⑨ therefore ⑩ hence ⑪ (of people) to die, dead // CC-CEDICT
有道 // 有道 // yǒu dào // ① to have attained the Way ② (of a government or a ruler) enlightened ③ wise and just // CC-CEDICT
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (placé après un adjectif ou un verbe est utilisé comme substantif pour désigner une personne ou une chose) // Chinese-French
者 // 者 // zhě // ① (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ... ② (after a noun) person involved in ... ③ -er ④ -ist ⑤ (used after a number or 後|后[hou4] or 前[qian2] to refer to sth mentioned previously) ⑥ (used after a term, to mark a pause before defining the term) ⑦ (old) (used at the end of a command) ⑧ (old) this // CC-CEDICT
不 // 不 // bù // ① ne... pas ② non ③ (pour former une question placé à la fin d'une phrase, pour indiquer l'indifférence avec shen me ④ pour indiquer une alternative avec jiu) // Chinese-French
不 // 不 // bù // ① (negative prefix) ② not ③ no // CC-CEDICT
處 // 处 // chù // ① lieu ② endroit ③ département ④ service // Chinese-French
處 // 处 // chù // ① place ② location ③ spot ④ point ⑤ office ⑥ department ⑦ bureau ⑧ respect ⑨ classifier for locations or items of damage: spot, point // CC-CEDICT
處 // 处 // chǔ // ① s'entendre (bien ou mal) ② se trouver ③ punir ④ habiter // Chinese-French
處 // 处 // chǔ // ① to reside ② to live ③ to dwell ④ to be in ⑤ to be situated at ⑥ to stay ⑦ to get along with ⑧ to be in a position of ⑨ to deal with ⑩ to discipline ⑪ to punish // CC-CEDICT (Ⅵ)
- Yi Wu (1989) :

A long stander would not stand on tiptoe.
A far walker would not walk with long strides.
A wise observer would not observe self-preoccupations.
A true celebrity would not brag about self.
A successful doer would not show off his/her deeds.
A good ruler would not look superior to others.
It is the Way that is enabling and disabling.
Eating too much will result in obesity in form,
Which is avoided even by the public,
And is therefore not preferred by Way servers. (Ⅶ)
- Lynn (2004) :

One up on tiptoes does not stand firm.
One who takes big strides does not move.
One who flaunts himself does not shine.
One who insists that he is right is not commended.
One who boasts about himself has no acknowledged merit.
One filled with self-importance does not last long.
In respect to the Dao, we can say about such behavior, too much food is an excrescence making the rounds.
The people always hate this, so one who has the Dao has nothing to do with it. (Ⅷ)


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