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天之道，其猶張弓與？高者抑之，下者舉之；有餘者損之，不足者補之。天之道，損有餘而補不足。人之道，則不然，損不足以奉有餘。孰能有餘以奉天下，唯有道者。是以聖人為而不恃，功成而不處，其不欲見賢。

Glossary

下

low

功

achievement

唯

only

奉

to offer up to

孰

who?

弓

bow

張

stretching (a bow)

恃

to claim (credit)

成

to complete

抑

to press down

損

to reduce

欲

to wish to

為

to act

然

not so

舉

to lift

處

to dwell on

補

to supplement

見

to show (oneself)

賢

worthiness

道

the Way

高

high

不足

insufficiency

有餘

surplus

聖人

the Sage-Ruler

有道者

one possessing the Way

Translation Notes

1. "The Way of Heaven—is it not like stretching a bow?" (天之道，其猶張弓與？) — Alternatives considered: The Way of Heaven—what else is it like than drawing a bow? · The Way of Heaven: is it like a bow stretched tight? · Chose present rendering because “Stretching” more directly supports the leveling mechanics of the bow metaphor, where high and low are corrected against a balanced tension; “drawing” can suggest pulling the string rather than the re-leveling implied by 抑/舉.
2. "Where there is surplus it reduces; where there is insufficiency it replenishes." (高者抑之，下者舉之；有餘者損之，不足者補之。) — Alternatives considered: The Way of Heaven presses down what is high and lifts up what is low; it takes from surplus and repairs insufficiency. · It lowers the high and raises the low; it diminishes excess and supplements lack. · Chose present rendering because The chosen rendering foregrounds the antithetical rhythm and the analogy’s concrete verbs, minimizing additional abstraction.
3. "Where there is insufficiency it replenishes. The Way of Heaven reduces surplus and replenishes insufficiency." (天之道，損有餘而補不足。) — Alternatives considered: Heaven diminishes the surplus and makes up the deficiency. · The Way of Heaven reduces excess and repairs lack. · Chose present rendering because “Replenish” is less technical than “repair” and better captures the distributive, provisioning-like sense that English readers can immediately grasp.
4. "The Way of Man is not so: it takes from those who have too little in order to offer it up to those who have surplus." (人之道，則不然，損不足以奉有餘。) — Alternatives considered: Human ways are different: they take from what is insufficient in order to support what is already surplus. · It harms insufficiency to provide for surplus. · Chose present rendering because “Offer it up to” aims to preserve the concrete asymmetry encoded in 奉, rather than leaving the action abstract as “support” or “provide.”
5. "Who can have surplus so as to offer it to All Under Heaven? Only one who possesses the Way." (孰能有餘以奉天下，唯有道者。) — Alternatives considered: Who could have surplus to benefit the world? Only one who has the Way. · Who is able to bring excess to the benefit of the realm? Only the one with Dao. · Chose present rendering because “All Under Heaven” reflects established classical political usage and helps differentiate 天下 from modern “world.” “Possesses the Way” retains the grammar of 有道者 (one who has the Way).
6. "Therefore the Sage-Ruler acts yet does not rely on it, accomplishes his work yet does not dwell in it; he does not wish to be seen as worthy." (是以聖人為而不恃，功成而不處，其不欲見賢。) — Alternatives considered: …does not lean on it… does not settle into it… · …does not want to appear virtuous. · …does not seek recognition for merit. · Chose present rendering because The chosen phrasing matches the well-known Laozi antithetical motif 為而不恃，功成而不處, and keeps the coda focused on display and self-positioning (見) rather than on the existence of virtue (賢).

Footnotes

1. "stretching a bow" (張弓／弓) — The bow (弓) image (張弓) is a concrete model for how balance is restored: the “high” (高者) must be pressed down (抑之) and the “low” (下者) lifted up (舉之). This metaphor is widely taken as an analogy for Heaven’s impartial re-leveling of conditions. For a related reading that treats the clauses as an allegory of correction/adjustment rather than literal archery instruction, see Yang Bojun (楊伯峻) ad loc., who emphasizes the antithetical leveling between high and low.
2. "The Way of Heaven" (天之道) — 天之道 (“Way of Heaven”) is not merely a theological claim about “Heaven,” but a normative description of cosmic regularity understood as impartial and self-correcting. In this passage it is explicitly contrasted with 人之道 (“Way of Man”), which works inversely and therefore becomes a critique of human governance and social arrangements.
3. "What is high it presses down; what is low it lifts up" (抑／舉) — The antithetical structure 高者抑之／下者舉之 uses impersonal antithesis (the implicit subject is 天) and vivid physical verbs: 抑 (“to press down, restrain”) and 舉 (“to lift up, elevate”). English should ideally preserve the parallel syntax to keep the rhetorical balance that the image enacts.
4. "Where there is surplus it reduces; where there is insufficiency it replenishes" (有餘而／不足) — 有餘 and 不足 are paired technical terms in Daoist moral-political reasoning: excess is not condemned in itself, but the cosmic pattern is that surplus is reduced to remedy deficiency. Conversely, in “the Way of Man” the human pattern is inverted: it reduces the insufficient in order to increase the surplus. Many commentators treat the pair as primarily distributive-economic in implication (resources, rank, and provision), while also allowing philosophical breadth.
5. "offer it up to those who have surplus" (奉) — 奉 (fèng) in 損不足以奉有餘 is crucial: it does not simply mean “serve” in the abstract. Rather, it denotes an act of “offering up,” “presenting,” or “supplying” in the direction of the surplus-holder—i.e., the deficient are drained so that the surplus may be supported/maintained at a higher level. In other words, the “Way of Man” is unjust because its transfer mechanism goes the wrong way relative to Heaven.
6. "All Under Heaven" (天下) — 天下 is a classical political cosmogram meaning “all under Heaven,” i.e., the entire jurisdictional order beneath Heaven’s norm. It does not refer to the modern global sense of “world.” In Laozi, 天下 frequently functions as the scope of governance: the beneficiaries of the Sage-Ruler’s actions are the totality of those who fall within Heaven’s ordered domain.
7. "Only one who possesses the Way" (有道者) — 唯有道者 (literally “only those who have the Way”) identifies the unique kind of agent capable of effecting the correct distributive rebalancing for 天下. The expression “possesses the Way” should be understood as alignment with the Dao’s normative method, not merely holding an ethical label. English “possesses” is therefore used to keep the predicate structure “has the Way” (有道) rather than turning it into an abstract “is wise.”
8. "Sage-Ruler" (聖人) — 聖人 here refers to the ideal enlightened ruler (in Daoist political usage), not simply a generic “saint.” Many modern translations standardize this figure as “Sage-Ruler” to preserve the governance implications of the term within the Laozi’s chapters. In this passage the Sage-Ruler’s conduct is explicitly described through action/efficacy combined with non-possession and non-display.
9. "acts yet does not rely on it, accomplishes his work yet does not dwell in it" (為而不恃，功成而不處) — This is an explicit internal reference to the well-known Laozi formulation 為而不恃，功成而不處, where 為 (“to act/do”) is paired with 不恃 (“not to rely on / not to presume upon”) and 功成 (“work accomplished”) with 不處 (“not to dwell/occupy/claim a place in” the accomplishment). The point is that efficacy is not followed by self-crediting, self-importance, or entitlement to status. The intertextual link with Laozi chapter 2 means the translation should maintain consistent wording across both occurrences.
10. "does not wish to be seen as worthy" (見賢) — 不欲見賢 uses 見 in the sense of “appear/show” (often correlated with 現, xiàn, in interpretive practice). The clause is not a blanket denial of moral worthiness (賢/賢能), but a refusal of conspicuous moral self-advertisement and competitive prominence. Thus “worthy” is best framed as “presenting oneself as worthy” rather than simply “virtue does not exist.”

Glossary References

天之道

the Way of Heaven · Heaven’s normative cosmic pattern, presented as impartial and rebalancing.

人之道

the Way of Man · Human practices and institutions, characterized here as inverse to Heaven’s rebalancing.

有餘

surplus · Paired with 不足; denotes abundance/excess that is not used justly unless it offsets deficiency.

不足

insufficiency · Paired with 有餘; denotes lack/deficit that should be remedied by reduction of surplus.

奉

offer up · In 損不足以奉有餘, denotes directionally offering/supplying surplus-benefit to surplus-holders, encoding an injustice.

天下

All Under Heaven · Classical political cosmogram for the realm under Heaven’s order.

聖人

Sage-Ruler · Ideal enlightened ruler in Daoist political discourse (not merely a generic sage).

見賢

be seen as worthy · 見 as ‘appear/show/manifest’; the coda rejects conspicuous moral self-display. ---

Context

This passage is from chapter 77 of the received Laozi (Daodejing), a foundational text of early Daoist thought. The text likely took shape during the late Spring and Autumn to Warring States period, with layers of compilation and redaction before stabilization in the early imperial era. The chapter belongs to a section of the Laozi concerned with governance, cosmic patterning, and the paradoxical virtue of non-contention. It contrasts the impartial balancing tendency of the Way of Heaven with exploitative social and political arrangements among human beings, then concludes with the ethical-political model of the Sage-Ruler who acts without possessiveness or self-display.

The passage draws on an everyday martial image: the bending or stretching of a bow to create proper tension and level alignment. That concrete image underwrites the larger claim that cosmic order works by reducing excess and making up deficiency. The contrast between 天之道 and 人之道 reflects a classical Chinese habit of evaluating human institutions against larger patterns of Heaven, not merely in a theological sense but as a normative cosmological standard. The final reference to 聖人 evokes the idealized wise ruler or exemplary realized person of early Chinese philosophy; in a governance context, translators often render it as Sage-Ruler to preserve the political dimension. The critique of taking from the poor to feed the rich would have resonated in the Warring States world of fiscal extraction, social stratification, and debates over how a ruler should align policy with the larger order.

Themes

1. Cosmic rebalancing The Way of Heaven is presented as a self-correcting pattern that lowers what is high and raises what is low, reducing surplus and replenishing lack.
2. Critique of social injustice Human arrangements are said to do the opposite of Heaven's pattern: they take from those who have too little and offer it up to those who already possess surplus.
3. Possessionless action The concluding portrait of the Sage-Ruler emphasizes acting and accomplishing without clinging to results, credit, or status.
4. Non-display and humility The final line links genuine attainment with refusal to appear conspicuously worthy or superior, a recurring Daoist suspicion of self-advertised excellence.
5. Governance in accord with the Dao Political legitimacy is grounded not in forceful acquisition but in imitating the balancing, non-appropriative operation of the Dao and Heaven.

Idioms

1. 天之道 "The Way of Heaven." A major classical formula denoting the normative pattern of the cosmos. In this passage it serves as the benchmark against which human conduct and institutions are judged.
2. 損有餘而補不足 "Reduce surplus and replenish deficiency." One of the most famous summaries of Daoist distributive balance. It has often been cited in later philosophical, political, and ethical discussions.
3. 損不足以奉有餘 "Take from those with too little in order to offer it up to those with surplus." This sharply phrased inversion defines the injustice of ordinary human systems. 奉 should be understood concretely as offering up, ministering to, or feeding, not as a vague "serving."
4. 有餘以奉天下 "Having surplus so as to offer it to the world." The phrase reverses exploitative accumulation: true excess is justified only when it is used for the benefit of all under Heaven.
5. 為而不恃 "Act yet do not rely on it / do not presume upon it." A concise Daoist formula for efficacious action without possessiveness, self-importance, or dependence on one's own merit.
6. 功成而不處 "When the work is accomplished, do not dwell in it." This is a signature Laozi motif: achievement should not become a basis for self-claiming or self-enthronement.
7. 不欲見賢 Literally, "does not wish to be seen as worthy/virtuous." The point is not hostility to virtue but refusal of ostentatious self-display and competitive moral prominence.

Literary Devices

1. Extended analogy The chapter opens with the image of bending or stretching a bow. The physical adjustment of high and low, excess and deficiency, provides a concrete analogue for cosmic and political rebalancing.
2. Antithetical parallelism The paired clauses 高者抑之，下者舉之 and 有餘者損之，不足者補之 create a tightly balanced rhythm of opposites that enacts the very principle of re-equilibration.
3. Cosmic-human contrast The juxtaposition of 天之道 and 人之道 is the argument's structural core. Meaning arises from stark contrast: Heaven reduces surplus to aid lack, whereas humans deprive the lacking to enrich surplus.
4. Rhetorical question 孰能有餘以奉天下 invites reflection rather than information. It heightens the rarity of the ideal before answering: only one who has the Dao can do this.
5. Paradox The Sage-Ruler acts, achieves, and yet does not possess or abide in achievement. The apparent contradiction is a hallmark of Laozi's style, designed to unsettle ordinary assumptions about agency and merit.
6. Ring-like thematic closure The final portrait of the Sage-Ruler returns the chapter from social critique to normative model: the one aligned with Dao embodies the same non-appropriative balancing pattern attributed at the start to Heaven.

Translation Challenges

1. 其猶張弓與 — 張弓 can be rendered as "drawing a bow," but the image may more precisely be "stretching" or "bending" a bow, which better matches the subsequent high-low leveling. The translator must decide which English phrasing best preserves the physical image and its relation to the antithetical clauses. 與 here is sentence-final and rhetorical, roughly "is it not like...?" The translator must choose whether to make the rhetorical flavor explicit or to smooth it into an assertion.
2. 高者抑之，下者舉之；有餘者損之，不足者補之 — The syntax is compact and impersonal; the omitted subject is the Way of Heaven. English usually requires some repetition or restructuring. The translator should preserve the parallelism and rhythmic balance without making the English wooden. 抑 and 舉 are physical verbs that should remain vivid: lowering/suppressing and raising/lifting.
3. 天之道，損有餘而補不足 — 有餘 and 不足 can describe quantity, wealth, power, status, or any form of excess and deficiency. Over-specifying one domain may narrow the philosophical scope. The line is lapidary and aphoristic; explanatory expansion should be minimized in the main translation.
4. 人之道，則不然，損不足以奉有餘 — 則不然 is a sharp pivot: "is not so," "is not like this," or "works otherwise." The contrast should be marked clearly. 奉 is crucial. It is more concrete than a vague "serve"; it suggests offering up to, ministering to, or feeding those who already have surplus. A translation such as "takes from those who have too little in order to offer it up to those who have surplus" captures the force better than opaque wording. 不足 and 有餘 here may refer to the disadvantaged and the already advantaged, not merely abstract deficiency and surplus. The translator must decide how concrete to make them.
5. 孰能有餘以奉天下，唯有道者 — 有餘 may mean having surplus resources, having abundance of virtue, or possessing more than enough in the sense needed to benefit all under Heaven. The translator should preserve some productive ambiguity if possible. 天下 is literally "all under Heaven," not merely "the world" in a modern global sense. Depending on house style, it may merit a capitalized, culturally marked rendering. 唯有道者 can mean "only one who has the Dao" or "only one who is possessed of the Way." The phrase identifies the ideal agent without overpersonalizing him.
6. 是以聖人為而不恃，功成而不處 — 聖人 should be rendered consistently as "Sage-Ruler" in this context, not simply "the Sage," because the chapter has explicit political implications and established terminology requires that form. 恃 can mean rely on, presume upon, lean on, or be possessively confident in. The translator must capture the idea of not resting self-worth on one's action or merit. 處 literally means dwell, abide, remain, or claim a place in. The phrase warns against occupying one's accomplishment as personal property or status.
7. 其不欲見賢 — 見賢 here is difficult: it can mean "to appear worthy," "to display excellence," or "to make a show of being virtuous." The reflexive or passive nuance must be decided in English. The line should connect with the preceding anti-possessive ethos; it is not a blanket rejection of virtue but a rejection of conspicuous merit-display.

Allusions

1. 為而不恃，功成而不處 — Daodejing (道德經) Chapter 2

Technical Terms

1. 天之道 (Taoist philosophy): The natural order/method of the cosmos; impartial, balancing force - Translation: Must be distinguished from 人之道. Always rendered 'Way of Heaven' or 'Tao of Heaven'.
2. 人之道 (Taoist philosophy): The self-serving way of humankind; exploitative and imbalancing - Translation: Contrast term to 天之道. Render as 'Way of Man' or 'Human Way'.
3. 有餘 (Taoist economic philosophy): That which is in surplus, beyond what is sufficient - Translation: Pair with 不足 for antithesis: 'surplus and deficit'. Always noun.
4. 不足 (Taoist economic philosophy): That which is lacking, insufficient - Translation: Pair with 有餘: 'deficit and surplus'. Noun phrase.
5. 聖人 (Taoist philosophy): The ideal ruler embodying the Way; specifically a political sage - Translation: MUST be rendered 'Sage-Ruler' to meet established terminology (reviewer mandate). Capitalize in translation.

Ambiguous Terms

1. 奉 — 95% confidence - Possible meanings: `to offer` · `to serve` · `to support` · `to present to a superior` - Resolution: In the context of transferring resources from the deficient to the surplus, 'offer up to' or 'feed' captures the concrete image best.
2. 張 — 90% confidence - Possible meanings: `to stretch (a bow)` · `to open (e.g., a curtain)` · `to draw (e.g., a bowstring)` · `to extend` - Resolution: The bow metaphor describes leveling by adjusting curvature (pressing high, lifting low). 'Stretching' or 'bending' better captures the physical act of preparing the bow than 'drawing' (which usually implies pulling the string).
3. 見 — 90% confidence - Possible meanings: `to see` · `to appear (also written as 現)` - Resolution: The Sage deliberately avoids displaying worthiness. Here 見 functions as 現 (xiàn) meaning 'to show, to manifest', consistent with Taoist modesty.

Glossing Notes

Critical philological issues: 1. 張弓 must be rendered as "stretching a bow" not "drawing" to capture the leveling action (高者抑之，下者舉之). 2. 損不足以奉有餘 requires concrete transfer: "takes from those lacking to offer up to those with surplus". 3. 聖人 non-negotiable as "Sage-Ruler" (reviewer mandate). 4. Allusion to Chapter 2 demands parallel phrasing for 為而不恃，功成而不處. 5. 見=xian4 (manifest) in coda: "does not wish to manifest worthiness". Final note: This text's rhetorical structure requires maintaining balance in parallel clauses (高者...下者; 有餘者...不足者; 天之道...人之道).

Translation Principles

1. Preserve the structural contrast between 天之道 and 人之道 as the passage's argumentative spine; do not flatten the cosmic-human opposition.
2. Keep the bow image concrete and functional. Consider "stretching" or "bending" a bow if that better supports the ensuing high-low leveling, though "drawing" is defensible if handled carefully.
3. Render 損不足以奉有餘 concretely, not opaquely: the sense is taking from those who have too little in order to offer it up to, minister to, or feed those who already have surplus.
4. Maintain the antithetical parallelism of the clauses with balanced English syntax wherever possible.
5. Translate 聖人 consistently as "Sage-Ruler" in this passage to preserve established terminology and the political dimension of the ideal figure.
6. Do not over-explain key abstractions such as 有餘, 不足, and 有道 in the main line; preserve their philosophical breadth unless context requires slight clarification.
7. Retain the terse, non-possessive cadence of 為而不恃，功成而不處; the English should sound aphoristic rather than discursive.
8. Render the final clause so that it rejects self-display rather than virtue itself: the Sage-Ruler does not seek to be seen as worthy or to advertise excellence.

Segmentation

1. 天之道，其猶張弓與？ `sentence`
2. 高者抑之，下者舉之； `clause`
3. 有餘者損之，不足者補之。 `sentence`
4. 天之道，損有餘而補不足。 `sentence`
5. 人之道，則不然，損不足以奉有餘。 `sentence`
6. 孰能有餘以奉天下，唯有道者。 `sentence`
7. 是以聖人為而不恃，功成而不處，其不欲見賢。 `sentence`

Segmentation Notes

Segmentation is guided by explicit grammatical connectors: 與 (rhetorical question/analogy), 者 (nominalization), 而 (clausal coordination), 則 (contrast), 以 (purpose/means), 唯 (exclusivity), 是以 (result/reason), and 其 (topic/agent tracking). The only potentially tricky boundary is within the final sentence where multiple 而-coordinated clauses and 其-prefaced content are kept distinct; overall, the grammatical cues make the structure fairly clear.

Tone & Style

The tone is aphoristic, incisive, and quietly severe. It begins with an almost matter-of-fact analogical observation, turns sharply critical in its judgment of ordinary human practice, and ends in a restrained but authoritative statement of the Sage-Ruler's mode of action. The movement is from cosmological calm to social indictment, then back to exemplary composure.

Classic Laozi prose: compressed, rhythmic, and maxim-like, with strong antithesis, parataxis, and paradox. The register is elevated but not ornate, relying on concrete images and tightly balanced clauses rather than extended exposition. Its brevity invites interpretive depth, so translation should retain lapidary force and structural symmetry.

None

Terminology

聖人

Sage-Ruler

不足

deficit

有餘

surplus

損

to take from

奉

to feed

張

stretching (a bow)

見

to manifest

人之道

Way of Man

天之道

Way of Heaven

Terminography Notes

For this chunk, register the high-stakes technical/economic and agent-related terms that are likely to drift: (1) 聖人 must be fixed as “Sage-Ruler” (reviewer mandate). (2) Keep the imbalance economy metaphor concrete via consistent “deficit / surplus” and explicitly transfer-oriented verbs (“take from…to feed”). (3) In the bow metaphor, standardize 張 as “stretching (a bow)” to preserve the leveling/bending image (高者抑之，下者舉之). (4) Maintain Heaven vs Man antithesis with consistent capitalization: 天之道 = “Way of Heaven,” 人之道 = “Way of Man.” (5) 見 should be treated as 現(xiàn)-sense “manifest/show (oneself),” since the coda is about not displaying worthiness.

Entities

帝

Supreme Deity

萬乘之主

Ruler of ten thousand chariots

代大匠斲

Master Carpenter who takes the place of the Chief Master Carpenter

大匠斲

Chief Master Carpenter

太上

The highest ruler

柔弱勝剛強

Softness conquers hardness

大丈夫

Great man

司殺

execution overseer

微明

Subtle clarity