Chapter 52 — Returning to the source歸元
1All under heaven has a beginning
天下有始，以為天下母。
All under heaven has a beginning, and it is taken as the mother of all under heaven.
note 4
善始之則善養畜之矣，故天下有始則可以為天下母矣。(按此段注文原脫，據樓宇烈補。)
Make a good beginning of it and you will rear and feed it well. So where all under heaven has a beginning, it can be taken as the mother of all under heaven. (The commentary on this passage was missing in the original; the supplement by Lou Yulie (樓宇烈) has been followed.)
始有道也。
At the beginning there is the Dao.
道為天下萬物之母。
The Dao becomes the mother of all the things under heaven.
子，一也。既知道己，當復知一也。
The child (子) is the One. Once one has come to know the Dao, one ought to go on and know the One.
2Keep to the mother, and to the end of your days there is no danger
既得其母，以知其子，既知其子，復守其母，沒身不殆。
Once you have the mother, you know her children. Once you know the children, keep again to the mother, and to the end of your days there is no danger.
note 3
母，本也，子，末也。得本以知末，不舍本以逐末也。
The mother is the base, the children are the tips. Gain the base and thereby know the tips; do not cast off the base to chase the tips.
己知一，當復守道反無為也。
Once one has come to know the One, one ought to keep again to the Dao and turn back to doing nothing.
不危殆也。
It means that he is in no danger.
3Block the opening and shut the gate
塞其兌，閉其門，
Block the opening, shut the gate,
note 3
兌，事欲之所由生；門，事欲之所由從也。
The opening (兌) is that from which affairs and desires are born; the gate (門) is that by which affairs and desires come forth.
兌，目也。目不妄視也。
The opening is the eyes: it is for the eyes not to look rashly.
門，口也。使口不妄言。
The gate is the mouth: it is to keep the mouth from speaking rashly.
4To the end of your days there is no toil
終身不勤。
and to the end of your days there is no toil.
note 2
無事永逸，故終身不勤也。
With no affairs there is lasting ease, and so to the end of your days there is no toil.
人當塞目不妄視，閉口不妄言，則終生不勤苦。
If a person blocks the eyes so as not to look rashly and shuts the mouth so as not to speak rashly, then to the end of his life he has no toil and no distress.
5To the end of your days there is no saving you
開其兌，濟其事，終身不救。
Open the opening, try to push your affairs through, and to the end of your days there is no saving you.
note 4
不閉其原而濟其事，故雖終身不救。
He does not shut off the source but tries to push his affairs through, and so to the end of his days there is no saving him.
開目視情欲也。
It is to open the eyes and look upon feeling and desire.
濟，益也。益情欲之事。
Ji (濟) means to increase: it is to increase the affairs of feeling and desire.
禍亂成也。
Disaster and disorder come to completion.
6Seeing the small is called clarity
見小曰明，守柔曰強。
Seeing the small is called clarity. Keeping to the soft is called strength.
note 3
為治之功不在大，見大不明，見小乃明。守强不强，守柔乃强也。
The merit of governing does not lie in what is great. Seeing the great is not clarity; only seeing the small is clarity. Keeping to the hard is not strength; only keeping to the soft is strength.
萌芽未動，禍亂未見為小，昭然獨見為明。
When the sprout has not yet stirred and disaster and disorder have not yet appeared, that is called small; and to see it clearly and alone is called clarity.
守柔弱，日以強大也。
Keep to what is soft and weak, and day by day one grows strong and great.
7Use its light
用其光，
Use its light,
note 2
顯道以去民迷。
He makes the Dao manifest and so does away with the people's straying.
用其目光於外，視時世之利害。
He uses the light of his eyes outwardly, to see what benefits and what harms his age.
8Return again to its clarity
復歸其明，
and return again to its clarity,
note 2
不明察也。
He does not examine with bright scrutiny.
復當返其光明於內，無使精神洩也。
He should turn that light back inward, so that the spirit is not let leak away.
9This is called practicing the constant
無遺身殃，是為習常。
and you leave no disaster upon yourself. This is called practicing the constant.
note 3
道之常也。
This is the constancy of the Dao.
內視存神，不為漏失。
He looks inward and keeps his spirit, so that it is not leaked away and lost.
人能行此，是謂修習常道。
If a person can do this, it is called cultivating and practicing the constant Dao.