Dao De Jing – De la Voie et de la Vertu

La voie du ciel (c'est-à-dire le ciel) est comme l'ouvrier en arcs, qui abaisse ce qui est élevé, et élève ce qui est bas ; qui ôte le superflu, et supplée à ce qui manque.
Le ciel ôte à ceux qui ont du superflu pour aider ceux qui n'ont pas assez.
Il n'en est pas ainsi de l'homme : il ôte à ceux qui n'ont pas assez pour donner à ceux qui ont du superflu.
Quel est celui qui est capable de donner son superflu aux hommes de l'empire. Celui-là seul qui possède le Tao.
C'est pourquoi le Saint fait (le bien) et ne s'en prévaut point.
Il accomplit de grandes choses et ne s'y attache point.
Il ne veut pas laisser voir sa sagesse.

Julien 77

Heaven's way is like the bending of a bow. When a bow is bent the top comes down and the bottom-end comes up.

So too does Heaven take away from those who have too much, and give to those that have not enough. But if it is Heaven's way to take from those who have too much and give to those who have not enough, this is far from being man's way. He takes away from those that have not-enough in order to make offering to those who already have too much. One there is and one only, so rich that he the possessor of Tao. (If, then, the Sage “though he controls does not lean, and when he has achieved his aim does not linger”, it is because he does not wish to reveal himself as better than others.)

Waley 77

自然规律犹如射箭, 弓位高了就往下压一压; 弓位低了就往上抬一抬;
它是用多余去补不足。人的规律就不是这样, 它是榨不足去奉多余。
什么人才能用多余去奉天下呢? 只有有道者。
因此圣人为而不恃, 功成而不处, 是不想在众人面前立贤名, 以均天下。

白话翻译

Des Himmels SINN, wie gleicht er dem Bogenspanner !
Das Hohe drückt er nieder,
das Tiefe erhöht er.
Was zuviel hat, verringert er,
Was nicht genug hat, ergänzt er.
Des Himmels SINN ist es,
was zuviel hat, zu verringern, was nicht genug hat, zu ergänzen.
Des Menschen Sinn ist nicht also.
Er verringert, was nicht genug hat,
um es darzubringen dem, das zuviel hat.
Wer aber ist imstande, das,
was er zuviel hat, der Welt darzubringen?
Nur der, so den SINN hat.
Also auch des Berufene:
Er wirkt und behält nicht.
Ist das Werk vollbracht, so verharrt er nicht dabei.
Er wünscht nicht, seine Bedeutung vor andern zu zeigen.

Wilhelm 77

Is not the way of heaven like the stretching of a bow?
The high it presses down,
The low it lifts up;
The excessive it takes from,
The deficient it gives to.

It is the way of heaven to take from what has in excess in order tomake good what is deficient.
The way of man is otherwise: it takes from those who are in want inorder to offer this to those who already have more than enough.
Who is there that can take what he himself has in excess and offerthis to the empire?
Only he who has the way.

Therefore the sage benefits them yet exacts no gratitude,
Accomplishes his task yet lays claim to no merit.

Is this not because he does not wish to be considered a better man thanothers?

Lau 77