故曰:君無見其所欲,君見其所欲,臣自將雕琢;君無見其意,君見其意,臣將自表異。 故曰:去好去惡,臣乃見素;去(舊)〔智〕去(智)〔舊〕,臣乃自備。故有智而不以慮,使萬物 知其處; 有(行)〔賢〕而不以(賢)〔行〕,觀臣下之所因;有勇而不以怒,使群臣盡其武。是故去智而有 明, 去賢而有功,去勇而有強。群臣守職,百官有常,因能而使之,是謂習常。
故曰:寂乎其無位而處,漻乎莫得其所。明君無為於上,群臣竦懼乎下。 明君之道,使智者盡其慮,而君因以斷事,故君不窮於智;賢者勑其材,君因而任之,故君不窮於能 ; 有功則君有其賢,有過則臣任其罪,故君(子)不窮於名。是故不賢而為賢者師,不智而為(上)智 者正。 臣有其勞,君有其成功,此之謂賢主之經也。
道在不可見,用在不可知。虛靜無事,以闇見疵。見而不見,聞而不聞, 知而不知。知其言以往,勿變勿更,以參合閱焉。官有一人,勿令通言,則萬物皆盡。函掩其跡, 匿其端,下不能原。去其智,絕其能,下不能意。
Hence the saying: "The ruler must not reveal his wants. For, if he reveals his wants, the ministers will polish their manners accordingly. The ruler must not reveal his views. For, if he reveals his views, the ministers will display their hues differently." Hence another saying: "If the like and hate of the ruler be concealed, the true hearts of the ministers will be revealed. If the experience and wisdom of the ruler be discarded, the ministers will take precautions." Accordingly, the ruler, wise as he is, should not bother but let everything find its proper place; worthy as he is, should not be self-assumed but observe closely the ministers' motivating factors of conduct; and, courageous as he is, should not be enraged but let every minister display his prowess. So, leave the ruler's wisdom, then you will find the ministers' intelligence; leave the ruler's worthiness, then you will find the ministers' merits; and leave the ruler's courage, then you will find the ministers' strength. In such cases, ministers will attend to their duties, magistrates will have definite work routine, and everybody will be employed according to his special ability. Such a course of government is called "constant and immutable".
Hence the saying: "So quiet, it rests without footing; so vacant, it cannot be located." Thus, the intelligent ruler does nothing, but his ministers tremble all the more. It is the Tao of the intelligent ruler that he makes the wise men exhaust their mental energy and makes his decisions thereby without being himself at his wits' end; that he makes the worthy men exert their talents and appoints them to office accordingly without being himself at the end of his ability; and that in case of merits the ruler gains the renown and in case of demerit the ministers face the blame so that the ruler is never at the end of his reputation. Therefore, the ruler, even though not worthy, becomes the master of the worthies; and, even though not wise, becomes the corrector of the wise men. It is the ministers who do the toil; it is the ruler who gets the spoil. This is the everlasting principle of the worthy sovereign. 4
Tao exists in invisibility; its function, in unintelligibility. Be empty and reposed and have nothing to do-Then from the dark see defects in the light. See but never be seen. Hear but never be heard. Know but never be known. If you hear any word uttered, do not change it nor move it but compare it with the deed and see if word and deed coincide with each other. Place every official with a censor. Do not let them speak to each other. Then everything will be exerted to the utmost. Cover tracks and conceal sources. Then the ministers cannot trace origins. Leave your wisdom and cease your ability. Then your subordinates cannot guess at your limitations.