〖道德经〗 第 25 章
有物混成
先天地生。
寂兮寥兮独立不改,
周行而不殆,
可以为天下母。
吾不知其名,
强字之曰道。
强为之名曰大。
大曰逝,
逝曰远,
远曰反。
故道大、
天大、
地大、
人亦大。
域中有四大,
而人居其一焉。
人法地,
地法天,
天法道,
道法自然。
The Greatness of Dào
There was something, coming out of the chaos, perfect, before Heaven and Earth came into being. Silent and void, independent and unalterable, universally active, yet inexhaustibe, one can call it the origin of the world.
I do not know its name; to denominate it, I call it Dào – the way; anxious to give it a name, I call it great.
To be great means vanishing, vanishing means far-reaching, far-reaching means returning.
Therefore: Dào is great, Heaven is great, Earth is great, and true leadership is also great. Thus, there are altogether four meaningful splendours and true leadership is one of them.
People follow the laws of Earth, Earth follows the laws of Heaven, Heaven follows the laws of Dào, and Dào follows its own way.