Chapter 5

1. Heaven and earth do not act from (the impulse of) any wish to be benevolent¹; they deal with all things as the dogs of grass are dealt with. The sages² do not act from (any wish to be) benevolent; they deal with the people as the dogs of grass are dealt with.

2. May not the space between heaven and earth be compared to a bellows³?

'Tis emptied, yet it loses not its power;
'Tis moved again, and sends forth⁴ air the more.
Much speech to swift exhaustion⁵ lead we see;
Your inner being guard, and keep it free.

　　天地不仁，以万物為芻狗；圣人不仁，以百姓為芻狗。
　　天地之間，其猶橐龠乎？虛而不屈，動而愈出。
　　多言數窮，不如守中。

【译文】
       天地无所谓仁爱之心，把万物都当作"刍狗"来看待；圣人也不执求仁爱之心，把百姓也当作"刍狗"来看待。天地之间，不正像是气囊或空管那样的大空泡吗？它虽空虚但却不会塌缩，运行之中生化不息。孜孜于仗名立言往往行不通，不如持守空虚而顺任自然。

1 benevolent   

adj.仁慈的，乐善好施的

参考例句：

• His benevolent nature prevented him from refusing any beggar who accosted him.他乐善好施的本性使他不会拒绝走上前向他行乞的任何一个乞丐。
• He was a benevolent old man and he wouldn't hurt a fly.他是一个仁慈的老人，连只苍蝇都不愿伤害。

2 sages   

n.圣人( sage的名词复数 )；智者；哲人；鼠尾草（可用作调料）

参考例句：

• Homage was paid to the great sages buried in the city. 向安葬在此城市的圣哲们表示敬意。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Confucius is considered the greatest of the ancient Chinese sages. 孔子被认为是古代中国最伟大的圣人。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 bellows   

n.风箱；发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的名词复数 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫v.发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的第三人称单数 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫

参考例句：

• His job is to blow the bellows for the blacksmith. 他的工作是给铁匠拉风箱。 来自辞典例句
• You could, I suppose, compare me to a blacksmith's bellows. 我想，你可能把我比作铁匠的风箱。 来自辞典例句

4 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

5 exhaustion   

n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述

参考例句：

• She slept the sleep of exhaustion.她因疲劳而酣睡。
• His exhaustion was obvious when he fell asleep standing.他站着睡着了，显然是太累了。