Chinese Text Project Dictionary

Daoism -> Dao De Jing -> 31

	(Stilling war)
夫佳兵者，	Now arms, however beautiful,
不祥之器，	are instruments of evil omen,
物或惡之，	hateful, it may be said, to all creatures.
故有道者不處。	Therefore they who have the Dao do not like to employ them.
君子居則貴左，	The superior man ordinarily considers the left hand the most honourable place,
用兵則貴右。	but in time of war the right hand.
兵者不祥之器，	Those sharp weapons are instruments of evil omen,
非君子之器，	and not the instruments of the superior man;
不得已而用之，	- he uses them only on the compulsion of necessity.
恬淡為上。	Calm and repose are what he prizes;
勝而不美，	victory (by force of arms) is to him undesirable.
而美之者，	To consider this desirable
是樂殺人。	would be to delight in the slaughter of men;
夫樂殺人者，	and he who delights in the slaughter of men
則不可以得志於天下矣。	cannot get his will in the kingdom.
吉事尚左，	On occasions of festivity to be on the left hand is the prized position;
凶事尚右。	on occasions of mourning, the right hand.
偏將軍居左，	The second in command of the army has his place on the left;
上將軍居右，	the general commanding in chief has his on the right;
言以喪禮處之。	- his place, that is, is assigned to him as in the rites of mourning.
殺人之衆，	He who has killed multitudes of men
以哀悲泣之，	should weep for them with the bitterest grief;
戰勝以喪禮處之。	and the victor in battle has his place (rightly) according to those rites.

Character	Composition	Variants	Reading	Meaning	Hanyu	Kangxi	Cihai
夫	大+1		fū ㄈㄨ	General term for adult men. / Adult labourers in particular. / Soldier. / Respectful term for a man. / Husband. / Unit of area equal to one hundred mu.	v1,p0521#01	p.248#11	p.367r2c01
			fú ㄈㄨˊ	Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Modal particle used at the start of a sentence for emphasis or to indicate an assertion. / Modal particle used in the middle of a sentence to soften the tone. / Modal particle used at the end of a sentence to express exclamation.
佳	人+6		jiā jia ㄐㄧㄚㄐㄧㄚ·	good, auspicious; beautiful; delightful	v1,p0143#16	p.100#18	p.100r5c03
兵	八+5	𠈯𠡿	bīng ㄅㄧㄥ	soldier, troops	v1,p0244#04	p.127#10	p.162r1c02
者	老+4		zhě ㄓㄜˇ	Pronoun used after verbs, adjectives, etc. in place of a person or thing. / Pronoun used after numbers in place of a thing. / Pronoun used after time or negation to express "when" or "if". / Expressive particle used in a declarative sentence after the subject. / Expressive particle used in a sentence after the subject to express cause or explanation.	v4,p2780#05	p.961#01	p.1080r1c01
			zhuó ㄓㄨㄛˊ	In, located in.
不	一+3	不𠀚𠙐	bù ㄅㄨˋ	Not have. / To not be. / Negational adverb, used before verbs, adjectives, etc. to indicate negation. / Negational adverb expressing prohibition: do not. / Negational adverb expressing rhetorical question: is not...?	v1,p0011#06	p.76#15	p.30r1c01
			fǒu ㄈㄡˇ	Same as 「否(1.2)」 fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used together with an affirmative word, expressing its negative or opposite. / Same as 「否(1.3)」 fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used at the end of a question to form a yes-no question.
			fū ㄈㄨ	Sepal of a flower.
			pī ㄆㄧ	Same as 「丕(1)」 pī ㄆㄧ: Large.
			bǐ ㄅㄧˇ	Show disdain for.
祥	示+6	祥	xiáng ㄒㄧㄤˊ	Omen, fateful sign. / Good omen, lucky sign. / Bad omen, unlucky sign. / Belief in omens. / Good fortune. / Good. / Name of a memorial ritual held for ones parents. / Detailed. / Cautious.	v4,p2398#01	p.842#16
之	丿+3	㞢	zhī ㄓ	Towards; go to. / Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Third person pronoun: him, her, it. / Auxiliary word: of. / Auxiliary word: used between subject and predicate, cancels independence of a clause. / Auxiliary word: used in a sentence for aesthetic purpose only, no meaning.	v1,p0043#01	p.82#04	p.47r2c02
器	口+13	噐𡄛	qì ㄑㄧˋ	receptacle, vessel; instrument	v1,p0690#07	p.210#02	p.291r3c03
物	牛+4		wù ㄨˋ	thing, substance, creature	v3,p1805#03	p.699#09	p.869r5c01
或	戈+4	𢈿	huò ㄏㄨㄛˋ	Pronoun: some, someone, something. / Have. / Sometimes. / Again. / Either, perhaps. / Expressive particle. / Confuse, be at a loss.	v2,p1402#08	p.412#18	p.552r5c01
惡	心+8	惡亞僫恶	è ㄜˋ	Evil. / Bad, not good. / Bad person. / Harm. / Vicious. / Turgid, fierce. / Ugly. / A poor harvest. / Disease, illness. / Uncomfortable, unhappy. / Dirt. / Excrement.	v4,p2307#12	p.391#25	p.535r4c01
			wù ㄨˋ	Hate. / Shame. / Avoid. / Slander, attack.
			wū ㄨ	Interrogative pronoun: how, what. / Exclamation.
故	攴+5		gù ㄍㄨˋ	Cause. / State of affairs. / Event, incident. / Plot. / Old. / Past, original. / Death. / On purpose. / Originally. / Hence, thus.	v2,p1453#05	p.469#25	p.601r5c01
有	月+2		yǒu ㄧㄡˇ	Have, possess. / Store, collect. / Occupy. / Hold on to, retain. / Have in abundance. / Good harvest. / Obtain. / Only. / Be, exist. / Occur, happen. / Make. / Particle used before a noun with no meaning. / Particle used before a monosyllabic adjective with no meaning. / Particle used before a verb with no meaning. / Still, yet. / Some people. / Region.	v3,p2041#05	p.504#20	p.656r5c01
			yòu ㄧㄡˋ	Help, assist. / Same as 「又(3)」 yòu ㄧㄡˋ: Moreover.
道	辵+9	𨕥衟𡬹	dào ㄉㄠˋ	Road, path. / Journey. / Method. / Law, reason. / Doctrine, claim. / Skill, technique. / Principle, right way. / The Dao, the origin of all things in Daoism. / Speak, talk. / Take a course of action. / Take a course of action. / Rites paid to the spirit of roads. / Ancient administrative unit. / Daoism.	v6,p3864#01	p.1262#06	p.1326r3c02
			dǎo ㄉㄠˇ	Lead. / Flow smoothly.
處	虍+5	処䖏处	chǔ ㄔㄨˇ	Stay, reside. / Settle. / Be in, located in. / Retire. / Appoint, serve in office. / Stop, rest. / Remain, stay. / Implement, carry out. / Handle, process. / Judge, form a judgement. / Decide, fix. / Distinguish, separate. / Standard, rule.	v4,p2822#12	p.1073#25	p.1183r5c02
			chù ㄔㄨˋ	Place, location. / Position, role.
君子	口+4 子+0	𠱩𠱭㜽𢀈𢀉𡐫𣕓只	jūnzǐ ㄐㄩㄣㄗˇ	(2) 有道德的人。 A moral man.	v1,p0595#06 v2,p1006#06	p.177#07 p.277#01	p.256r6c08 p.395r1c01
居	尸+5	㞐㝒	jū ㄐㄩ	(5) 平居，平時。 Usually, normally.	v2,p0968#04	p.300#30	p.448r1c02
則	刀+7	𠟻𠟭𠞋𠟔则	zé ㄗㄜˊ	Method, rule. / Mimic, emulate. / Level, grade. / Adverb used to emphasize an assertion. / Adverb used to express scope: only. / Connective expressing continuation: then, and then. / Connective emphasizing comparison. / Connective expressing contrast. / Connective expressing allowance: yet, even so. / Connective expressing unexpected turn of events. / Connective expressing suppostion: if.	v1,p0340#06	p.139#31	p.183r5c05
貴	貝+5	𡭙𧸋贵	guì ㄍㄨㄟˋ	expensive, costly, valuable	v6,p3632#09	p.1206#15	p.1271r6c01
左	工+2		zuǒ ㄗㄨㄛˇ	left; east; unorthodox, improper	v1,p0411#05	p.325#08	p.464r2c01
用	用+0	𤰆𠛁	yòng ㄩㄥˋ	use, employ, apply, operate; use	v1,p0097#05	p.755#24	p.908r6c02
右	口+2		yòu ㄧㄡˋ	right; west; right-wing	v1,p0569#01	p.173#05	p.245r6c01
非	非+0		fēi ㄈㄟ	Violate, go against (a rule). / Wrong, bad. / Not real, untrue. / Oppose, object to. / Slander, condemn. / Sarcasm, irony. / Absence of, not have. / Adverb: not, is not.	v6,p4086#01	p.1382#11	p.1463r6c02
			fěi ㄈㄟˇ	Same as 「誹(2)」 fěi ㄈㄟˇ: Slander.
得	彳+8	𢔶䙷𢔨	dé ㄉㄜˊ	Get, obtain. / Plunder. / Covet. / Success. / Fitting, appropriate. / Compatible. / Satisfied, pleased. / Possible, can. / Same as 「德(1)」 dé ㄉㄜˊ: Morals, morality. / Same as 「德(3)」 dé ㄉㄜˊ: Reward kindness, thank.	v2,p0828#03	p.367#31	p.513r6c02
已	己+0		yǐ ㄧˇ	Stop, discontinue. / Complete / The past. / Recover, be cured. / Leave [a post], retire. / Value and carry out. / Adverb: shortly, before long. / Adverb: already. / Adverb: extremely. / Modal particle used at the end of a sentence. / Interjection. / Same as 「以(1)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Use. / Same as 「以(9)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Particle: used together with some words expressing direction and time.	v2,p0984#01	p.326#11	p.467r3c01
而	而+0		ér ㄦˊ	Whiskers. / Like, similar to. / Pronoun: you. / Pronoun: this, like this. / Connective: and, with. / Connective: and, then. / Connective: if, supposing. / Connective: yet, however. / Connective: therefore, hence. / Connective: expresses method or state. / Particle: of. / Expressive particle.	v4,p2810#01	p.961#18	p.1080r2c03
			néng ㄋㄥˊ	Same as 「能(3)」 néng ㄋㄥˊ: Able to, competent. / Same as 「能(2.1)」 néng ㄋㄥˊ: Ability, talent.
恬	心+6		tián ㄊㄧㄢˊ	quiet, calm, tranquil, peaceful	v4,p2296#05	p.385#14	p.530r4c01
淡	水+8	澹	dàn tán yǎn yàn ㄉㄢˋ ㄊㄢˊ ㄧㄢˇ ㄧㄢˋ	weak, watery; insipid, tasteless	v3,p1660#08	p.630#18	p.804r6c01
為	火+5	爲为	wéi ㄨㄟˊ	Create, make. / Build, construct. / Do. / Plant, grow. / Govern. / Research, study. / Serve as. / Change into, become. / As, in the role of. / Count as, be considered as. / Called, named. / Expresses judgement: is. / Make, cause (to). / Have. / Take part in. / Write, author. / Connective: if. / Particle used in the middle of a sentence to move forward the object. / Modal particle used at the end of a sentence to express a rhetorical question.	v3,p2198#11	p.669#10	p.844r4c03
			wèi ㄨㄟˋ	Help, assist. / Preposition: for, on behalf of. / Preposition: by (passive). / Preposition: because of, due to. / Preposition: with, together with. / Connective: because. / Say. / False, fake.
上	一+2	丄𠄞	shàng ㄕㄤˋ	top; superior, highest; go up, send up	v1,p0005#04	p.76#07	p.24r2c01
勝	力+10	𠢧𠅫𢾶胜	shèng shēng ㄕㄥˋ ㄕㄥ	victory; excel, be better than	v3,p2090#13	p.148#31	p.197r6c02
美	羊+3	羙	měi ㄇㄟˇ	beautiful, pretty; pleasing	v5,p3126#05	p.951#10	p.1069r5c01
是	日+5	昰𣆞	shì ㄕˋ	Straight. / Right, correct. / Believe accurate, affirm. / Demonstrative pronoun: this. / Be (copula). / Auxiliary word, used after moving forward the object.	v2,p1497#05	p.493#26	p.639r1c01
樂	木+11	樂乐	yuè ㄩㄝˋ	Music. / Perform, play music. / Musical instrument. / The (now lost) classic of music. / Musician. / Yue, a surname.	v2,p1280#16	p.548#20	p.715r4c03
			lè ㄌㄜˋ	Happiness. / Make happy. / Fondness for, liking of. / Happy to, willing to. / Tranquil, contented. / Music and debauchery. / Le, a surname.
殺	殳+7	殺煞𢁛𢽅𢿹𢽆𢼡𢿔𧤿杀	shā ㄕㄚ	Kill. / Corrupt, ruin. / Die. / Fight, kill each other.	v3,p2157#01	p.585#11	p.743r4c02
			shài ㄕㄞˋ	Wither, decline. / Decrease, reduce us of. / Decline, fall.
			sà ㄙㄚˋ	Dim, gloomy appearance.
人	人+0	𠔽亻	rén ㄖㄣˊ	Man, person. / Others, other people. / The people, ordinary men. / Talent, material. / [A man's] character. / Affairs of men, world of man. / Benevolence.	v1,p0101#10	p.91#01	p.80r2c01
不	一+3	不𠀚𠙐	bù ㄅㄨˋ	(3.1) 否定副詞：用於動詞、形容詞等前面，表示否定。 Negational adverb, used before verbs, adjectives, etc. to indicate negation.	v1,p0011#06	p.76#15	p.30r1c01
可	口+2	歌厥	kě kè ㄎㄜˇ ㄎㄜˋ	may, can, -able; possibly	v1,p0567#07	p.172#12	p.244r1c02
以	人+3	㠯	yǐ ㄧˇ	Use. / Believe. / Command. / Lead. / Connect, implicate. / Have. / Cause, reason. / Preposition: because. / Preposition: from, in. / Preposition: at [some time]. / Preposition: using. / Preposition: in accordance with. / Preposition: relying upon. / Preposition: in the capacity of. / Preposition: with, together with. / Connective: indicates the following action is the objective of the preceding one. / Connective: used between adverbial clause and verb to express modification. / Connective: and. / Connective: but. / Connective: and so, thus. / Particle: used together with some words expressing direction and time. / Modal particle. / Same as 「已(1)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Stop, discontinue. / Same as 「已(7.2)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: already. / Same as 「已(7.3)」 yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: extremely.	v1,p0105#07	p.94#01	p.87r6c01
志	心+3	誌𢗍志	zhì ㄓˋ	purpose, will, determination; annals	v4,p2269#04	p.376#21	p.523r3c03
於	方+4	烏𣱏𤕘于亏扵	yú ㄩˊ	Be (copula). / Be, exist. / Preposition: in. / Preposition: from or to. / Preposition: compared to. / Preposition: to, for, towards. / Preposition: by (indicating passive tense). / Preposition: with, using. / Preposition: due to, because of. / Preposition: by, according to. / Connective: just as. / Auxiliary word, no meaning.	v3,p2175#02	p.481#11	p.622r2c03
天下	大+1 一+2	𠀡𠀘𦴞兲靝𠕹丅厥𠄟	tiān xià ㄊㄧㄢㄒㄧㄚˋ	世界。 "All under heaven", the world.	v1,p0522#01 v1,p0007#01	p.248#04 p.76#10	p.358r4c01 p.28r1c01
矣	矢+2	𠤘	yǐ ㄧˇ	Modal particle used to express declaration. / Modal particle used to express exclamation. / Modal particle used to express an order or request.	v4,p2580#04	p.823#37	p.955r5c01
吉	口+3		jí ㄐㄧˊ	lucky, propitious, good	v1,p0576#06	p.175#02	p.250r6c01
事	亅+7	亊叓𠭏	shì ㄕˋ	Office, duty. / Job, career. / Things, affairs. / Accident, incident. / Engage (in), pursue. / Serve.	v1,p0023#03	p.85#24	p.58r3c02
尚	小+5	尙	shàng cháng ㄕㄤˋ ㄔㄤˊ	still, yet; even; fairly, rather	v1,p0563#05	p.297#11
凶	凵+2	兇㐫𣧑	xiōng ㄒㄩㄥ	culprit; murder; bad, sad	v1,p0306#19	p.135#02	p.171r3c05
偏	人+9		piān ㄆㄧㄢ	inclined one side; slanting	v1,p0195#10	p.110#16	p.117r4c03
將	寸+8	𤕭𢪇将畺	jiāng ㄐㄧㄤ	Take. / Use. / Push forward. / Drive. / Help, support. / Help financially. / Advance, go forward. / Carry out, execute. / Follow. / Comply, submit. / Do, carry out. / Accompany, see off. / Transmit. / Express. / Offer (as a sacrifice). / Look after, raise. / Protect. / Strong, robust. / Long time. / Carry, lead. / Side, beside. / Will, about to. / Close to, almost. / How? / Preposition: with. / Connective: and, with. / Connective: or, otherwise. / Connective: if, supposing. / Particle used after a verb. / A kind of insect.	v4,p2375#10	p.294#16	p.434r1c03
			jiàng ㄐㄧㄤˋ	Command troops. / Military commander. / Appoint as military commander.
			qiāng ㄑㄧㄤ	Please, humbly request. / [Onomatopoeia]
			zāng ㄗㄤ	Female sheep.
軍	車+2	𡗽军	jūn ㄐㄩㄣ	army, military; soldiers, troops	v5,p3513#02	p.1239#11	p.1297r3c01
居	尸+5	㞐㝒	jū ㄐㄩ	Sit down. / Wait. / Live, dwell. / Dwelling, residence. / Tomb. / Rank, position occupied. / Person occupying the rank of ruler. / Live peacefully. / Usually, normally. / Located in. / Defend (a post), guard (a region). / Remain behind to handle matters. / Have, possess. / Employ, implement. / Stop, rest, remain. / Store, stockpile. / Raise, rear (livestock). / Used before times expressing time elapsed: after.	v2,p0968#04	p.300#30	p.448r1c02
			jǔ ㄐㄩˇ	Movement, action.
			jù ㄐㄩˋ	Arrogant. / Straight. / Saw.
			jī ㄐㄧ	Modal particle expressing exclamation or questioning.
言	言+0	訁𢍗𢍬	yán ㄧㄢˊ	Speak, say. / Discuss, debate. / Tell. / Doctrine, theory, words. / One word. / Sentence. / Particle, no meaning.	v6,p3936#01	p.1146#01	p.1236r5c03
喪	口+9	𡂤𡴧𡂧𦦦𡚏丧	sàng ㄙㄤˋ	Lose, cease to have. / Die. / Destroy, lose.	v1,p0650#03	p.200#12	p.286r5c02
			sāng ㄙㄤ	Funeral rites, mourning. / Dismayed, dispirited. / Remains, body in a coffin.
禮	示+13	禮礼𠃞𤔑礼	lǐ ㄌㄧˇ	social custom; manners; courtesy; rites	v4,p2409#14	p.847#07	p.985r2c04
衆	血+6	眾𠍸𠂝众	zhòng ㄓㄨㄥˋ	multitude, crowd; masses, public	v5,p3051#14	p.1107#16	p.1203r4c08
哀	口+6		āi ㄞ	sad, mournful, pitiful; pity	v1,p0620#10	p.188#11	p.270r4c01
悲	心+8		bēi ㄅㄟ	sorrow, grief; sorry, sad	v4,p2310#04	p.388#37	p.533r1c03
泣	水+5		qì lì sè ㄑㄧˋ ㄌㄧˋ ㄙㄜˋ	cry, sob, weep	v3,p1593#02	p.617#09	p.783r3c01
戰	戈+12	戦战	zhàn ㄓㄢˋ	war, fighting, battle	v2,p1412#12	p.414#11	p.553r5c01

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