Extensive interpretation of Tao Te Ching (45)
道德經演義（四十五）
The highest perfection is like
imperfection, and its use is never impaired.
大成若缺，其用不弊；
The greatest abundance seems meager,
and its use will never fail.
大盈若沖，其用不窮。
What is most straight appears devious,
the greatest skell appears like clumsiness; the
greatest eloquence seems like stuttering.
大直若屈，大巧若拙，大辯若訥。
Movement overcomes cold, but keeping
still overcomes heat.
靜勝躁，寒勝熱，
Who is calm and quiet becomes the guide
for the universe.
清靜為天下正。
Xianchi’s interpretation of Tao Te Ching (45) a。45
咸池評述道德經演義（四十五）a。45
1 The five attitudes, such as
imperfection, emptiness, crookedness, clumsiness, and stuttering have a common
character. They are modest, self-effacement, self-restraint and following-up.
缺、沖、屈、拙、訥這五種態度都有一個共同的特徵，那就是謙虛、不出風頭、不強出頭、不敢為天下先。
2 The modest man often
says that he cannot do. He keeps a flexible leeway. He doesn’t take the
shortcut and make no speculation. Being steady and clear-minded, he knows a thing
or two.
一個謙虛的人，他會經常的說自己不行，以便於隨時保持一些彈性，讓自己獲得一些迴旋的空間。其他如不走捷徑、不取巧，踏踏實實的做人等; 這樣的人不但思慮清晰，同時也明白事理。
3 He uses some simple
sentences to state issue to the point, never being gibberish. Since he speaks
less, does no tricks, steals no show and does comity, he is peaceful and
composed among peoples.
在討論問題上一針見血，不多言、不瞎扯，簡簡單單幾句話就說到問題的中心; 因為話少、沒有花招、不搶風頭、維持禮讓，所以在人群中就格外顯得安祥、冷靜。
4 Standing by and
aloof, he knows well real situations around him, so he takes it easy to deal
with them. Man of practice receives fifteen standards from Buddha, among which
reducing desires for content and staying in tranquility are the two most
important qualifications.
平時冷眼旁觀，充分的瞭解到四周環境的真實情況，因而遇事應付裕如、輕鬆自在。針對修行的人，世尊有十五項評分的標準，其中少欲知足、樂閒靜處是最重要的兩項要素。
5 A man who
reducing desires for content, he calms down naturally. He has difficulty in
calming down if he dreams of making fortune and thinks a lot, teeming with
desires, which might cause his impulsion.
當少欲知足時，心自然就靜下來了; 一個整天做著發財夢，想東想西，心中充滿著因慾念而興起的衝動、計劃、夢想、與決策的人，他的一顆心是很難靜下來的。
6 Tranquility actually
is the index of quantity of idea and thought. It means the stability of six
organs. The six organs don’t surrender to acceptation. When form, feeling,
perception, impulse and consciousness become less, he calms down.
靜其實就是思維、思想、念頭多寡的指標。靜表示六根穩固，在受上面已經是不放逸。色受想行識的活動都少了，人自然就能靜下來。
7 Man of practice
seeks for self-nature, Buddha-nature, Qi, Tao and Kuntalini
but the premise is that they become less, slow and weak, such as five
experiential consciousnesses, five skandhas, form
feeling' perception impulse' consciousness. Even all of them become perished,
extinct and broken.
修行的人所求的無非是自性、佛性、氣、道、挫火的提昇，而這些提昇工作的前提也就是五受陰、五蘊、色受想行識的變弱、變輕、變少，甚至於到達滅、絕、斷的境界。
8 Buddhism thinks
that the five experiential consciousnesses are incompatible with
self-nature and Buddha nature. Since five skandhas
exists, self-nature reposes. When five skandhas is
held down, great wisdom, such as self-nature and Buddha nature possibly arises.
佛家認為五受陰與自性、佛性等是相互排斥的。有五蘊時，自性就會回去睡覺，惟有將五蘊控制住、靜止下來、沉下去，自性、佛性等大智慧才能得以升起。
9 Thus, they are
important, such as sitting in silence, sitting in Zen, meditation and yoga. If
his heart is like the monkey who always jumping up and down, he is a common
people. If he wants to do yoga or practice the bodhisattva, he should firstly
fix the monkey—his heart.
正因如此，靜坐、禪坐、默想、瑜伽才會顯得這麼重要。一顆心像個猴子似的亂蹦亂跳，那就只能做個凡夫俗子; 若想要修菩薩行、做瑜伽行者，首先就得將 “心” 這隻猴子栓好。
10 There are
countless dharmas in many Buddhism sutras. Nobody can
remember all of them whereas they have a common gist: teaching us how to become
tranquility and how to eliminate obstruct of tranquility. In the sutras of
heart have that a man his five skandhas are empty,
there is no obstruct in his heart, there is no hampering reason, and fear;
dream and unreality are kept far away from him, at that time he is possible
getting into Nirvana. The way how to be tranquility covers such as no-self and
being flexibility in Diamond Sutra; and suffering, origination, cessation and
path in other sutras.
佛經裡千頭萬緒，法多的叫人記不清、背不完。然而，總的一個原則，就是在教導我們如何將心靜下來，如何將所有妨礙我們靜下來的障礙因素都一一排除掉。心經裡說五蘊皆空，心無罜礙，無罣礙故，無有恐怖，遠離顛倒夢想，究竟涅槃。金剛經裡的無相、無住，其他經文中的苦集滅道等等都是屬於靜的法門。
11 When he becomes
tranquil, it is possibly to practice. He is hitting the road of practice.
人心一旦靜下來，修行就成為了可能，修行也就算是上了路了。
12 The man of
practice should not only keep tranquil in sitting and mediation but also when
work in daily life. As a monk said, when we wash dishes, we do it intently and
don’t think reading. When we walk and drive, we don’t think business and just
do it intently. Let’s think, each morning, when brushing teeth, how many times
we have focus on brushing each tooth and not think about other things? If you
do, congratulation! You are eligible to practice. If not, you have to remind
yourself at once: being work intently in daily life.
我們這些修行中人，在打坐、默想時固然要靜，平時在做事時也要保持專心一致。有一位出家人說的好。他說，我們洗碗的時候就要專心洗碗，不要想看書的事。當我們走路、開車時就專心走路、開車，不要分神想著辦公室裡的事。且讓我們自我反省一下，每天清晨，在刷牙的時候，有幾次是真正專注在每顆牙齒上，專心地想將牙齒刷得乾乾淨淨? 如果答案是 “是”，那就恭喜你了，你有資格修行。如果答案是“否”，那你可就得要時時提醒自己要專心了。