The Tao Te Ching is a small book of wisdom by Lao Tzu, written over 2,000 years ago. It contains 81 short chapters, offering guidance on balance, humility, leadership, and living in harmony with nature.
Below are selected verses — a beginning for reflection and inner stillness.
Let’s start with 10 foundational chapters:
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Chapter 1 – The Mystery
The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the origin of heaven and earth.
The named is the mother of ten thousand things.
Ever desireless, one sees the mystery.
Ever desiring, one sees the manifestations.
These two emerge from the same source
But differ in name.
This source is called darkness.
Darkness within darkness,
The gateway to all understanding.
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Chapter 2 – The Opposites
When people see beauty as beauty,
Ugliness is born.
When they see good as good,
Evil arises.
Being and non-being create each other.
Difficult and easy support each other.
High and low depend on each other.
Before and after follow each other.
Therefore, the wise do not force.
They act without striving,
Teach without words,
And let things unfold.
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Chapter 8 – Be Like Water
The highest goodness is like water.
Water benefits all things and does not compete.
It flows in places that others avoid.
In dwelling — live close to the land.
In heart — stay deep.
In giving — be generous.
In words — be truthful.
In governance — be fair.
In action — be capable.
In timing — be present.
Because it does not compete,
It encounters no resistance.
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Chapter 9 – Let Go
Better to stop pouring than to fill a cup to the brim.
Better to let go than to sharpen a blade too much.
Amass too much and you cannot protect it.
Riches and pride invite disaster.
Retire when the work is done.
This is the Way of Heaven.
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Chapter 11 – The Use of Emptiness
Thirty spokes share a wheel’s hub.
It is the empty space that makes it useful.
Clay is shaped into a bowl,
But the hollow makes it hold.
Doors and windows form a house,
But the open space gives it purpose.
Therefore, value comes from what is not.
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Chapter 15 – The Ancient Masters
The ancient masters were subtle and wise.
Deep beyond knowing.
Careful, like someone crossing a frozen stream.
Alert, like a warrior in danger.
Courteous, like a guest.
Yielding, like melting ice.
Simple, like uncarved wood.
Open, like a valley.
Mysterious, like muddy water.
Who can settle the mud and wait for clarity?
Who can remain still until action arises?
They do not seek fullness.
Because they are content, they are complete.
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Chapter 22 – Yield and Remain Whole
If you want to be whole, let yourself be partial.
If you want to be straight, allow yourself to bend.
If you want to be filled, be empty.
If you want to be reborn, let yourself die.
If you want everything, give everything up.
The soft overcomes the hard.
The humble is lifted.
This is the Tao.
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Chapter 33 – Knowing
Knowing others is intelligence.
Knowing yourself is wisdom.
Conquering others takes force.
Conquering yourself takes strength.
Being content is wealth.
Perseverance is power.
To live long, live simply.
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Chapter 37 – Without Force
The Tao never acts,
Yet nothing is left undone.
If rulers followed the Way,
The world would shape itself.
Desire would fall away.
Stillness would return.
All things would find their natural rhythm.
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Chapter 48 – Letting Go
In learning, we accumulate daily.
In the Tao, we let go daily.
Less and less we hold,
Until we act without effort.
By not interfering,
Everything gets done.
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📎 These are only glimpses into the Tao. Each verse invites quiet reflection — not analysis, but awareness. Let the words soften in you, like water finding its own path.