《道經》第三十二節

道常無名。

樸雖小，1天下莫能臣也。

侯王若能守之，萬物將自賓。

天地相合，以降甘露，民莫之令而自均。

始制有名，名亦既有，夫亦將知止，知止所以不殆。

譬道之在天下，猶川谷之與江海。

1. 樸雖小， : Inserted. 本章王弼注多言「樸」，據河上公《注》本、馬王堆《老子乙》增。

“The Dào remains unnamed

simple and though small

no one can command it

if a lord upheld it

the world would be his guest

when Heaven joins with Earth

they bestow sweet dew

no one gives the order

it comes down to all

the first distinction gives us names

once we have a name

we should know restraint

who knows restraint avoids trouble

to picture the Dào in the world

imagine a stream and the sea”

老子（《道經》第三十二節，紅松譯）

(Taoteching, verse 32, translation by Red Pine)

王龐 says, “The Tao has no body. How could it have a name?”

王龐說：“道無身。怎麼會有名字？”

河上公, héshàng gōng says, “We call it ‘simple’ because it hasn’t been cut or polished. We call it ‘small’ because it’s faint and infinitesimal. Those who can see what is small and hold on to it are rare indeed.”

焦竑, Jiāo Hóng says, “‘Simple means the natural state. When it expands, it’s everywhere. When it contracts, it isn’t as big as the tip of a hair. Hence, even though it’s small, it’s beyond anyone’s command.”

王弼 Wang Bi says, “If people embrace the simple and work without effort and don’t burden their true nature with material goods or injure their spirit with desires, all things will come to them on their own, and they will discover the Tao by themselves. To discover the Tao, nothing is better than embracing simplicity.”

牛頭法融 Niutou Farong says, “In terms of practice if people can be serene and natural, free themselves from desire, and put their minds at rest, their yin and yang breaths will come together on their own and penetrate every artery and organ. Inside their mouths, the saliva of sweet dew will appear spontaneously and nourish their whole body.”

盧惠清, Lu Hui-Ching says, “When a ruler acts, the first thing he does is institute names.”

荀子, Xúnzǐ says, “Now that the sages are gone, names and reality have become confused” (Hsuntzu:2).

德清, Déqīng says, “What is simple has no name. Once we make something, we give it a name. But name gives rise to name. Where does it end? Hence, Lao-tzu tells us to stop chasing names.”

李榮, Lǐ Róng says, “The child who depends on its mother suffers no harm. Those who depend on the Tao encounter no trouble.”

吳澄, Wú Chéng says, “The Tao has no name, but as Virtue it does. Thus, from nothing we get something. But Virtue is not far from the Tao. If we stop there, we can still go from something back to nothing and return to the Tao. Thus, the Tao is like the sea, and Virtue is like a stream, flowing back into the Tao.”

李衎, 息齋道人, Lǐ Kàn, Lǐ Xi Zhai says, “Although Heaven and Earth are high and low, they join together and send down sweet dew. No one makes them do so. And there is no one who does not benefit. Although the Tao separates into things, and each thing has a name, the Tao never abandons anything. Thus, the breath of rivers eventually reaches the sea, and the breath of the sea eventually reaches rivers.”

老子 says, “The reason the sea can govern a hundred rivers / is that it has mastered being lower” (Daodejing: 66).