上善如水 水利萬物而有爭居眾人之所惡 故幾於道矣
[shang4] [shan4] [ru2] [shui3] [shui3] [li4] [wan4] [wu4] [er2] [you3] [zheng1] [ju1] [zhong4] [ren2] [zhi1] [suo3] [wu4] [gu4] [ji1] [yu2] [dao4] [yi3]
The higher good is like water, water benefits the Ten Thousand Things and struggles to reside near the place the people [the masses] despise, thus, it is close to the Dao
上善若水。水善利萬物而不爭。處眾人之所惡，故幾於道。
[shang4] [shan4] [ruo4] [shui3]。 [shui3] [shan4] [li4] [wan4] [wu4] [er2] [bu4] [zheng1]。 [chu3] [zhong4] [ren2] [zhi1] [suo3] [wu4]， [gu4] [ji1] [yu2] [dao4]。
The higher good is like water. Water benefits the Ten Thousand Things and does not struggle. It resides near the place the people [the masses] despise, thus, it is close to the Dao.
Water flows naturally and nourishes virtually all life. The two sections take a bit of a different approach with the first emphasizing that water struggles to reach the places the people despise and the second stating that it does not struggle, it merely ends up doing so. Water can become putrid and stagnant, but it can be cleansing as well. It merely exists and follows the natural order.
居善地 心善潚 予善信 正善治 事善能 蹱善時
[ju1] [shan4] [di4] [xin1] [shan4] [xiao1] [yu3] [shan4] [xin4] [zheng4] [shan4] [zhi4] [shi4] [shan4] [neng2] [zhong1] [shan4] [shi2]
Reside in a good [natural] place, [place one’s] heart in a deep and clear [place], give in a believable way, govern in a controlled way, work in an able way, act in a timely fashion
居善地，心善淵，與善仁，言善信，政善治，事善能，動善時。
[ju1] [shan4] [di4]， [xin1] [shan4] [yuan1]， [yu3] [shan4] [ren2]， [yan2] [shan4] [xin4]， [zheng4] [shan4] [zhi4]， [shi4] [shan4] [neng2]， [dong4] [shan4] [shi2]。
Reside in a [lit. good] place [naturally], [place one’s] heart in a deep pool, give in a benevolent way, speak in a believable way, govern in a controlled way, work in an able way, act in a timely fashion
The verse in this section does not lend itself well to translation while retaining the structure of the original. The very first section tells to “reside in a natural place” or to “reside in a place naturally”. This does not necessarily mean to go commune with nature. What constitutes a good place to reside or to reside naturally will depend on one’s circumstances, but ultimately, the goal is to act in accordance with the Dao and reside where one should. If you’re not a fighter, don’t go live near a war zone, and if you’re agoraphobic, don’t go live in a city.
To “place one’s heart in a deep pool” or “place one’s heart in a deep and clear place” is to make one’s heart placid. A deep pool is unperturbed by the surface struggles, and deep and clear water is indicative of calmness. Keep calm and do not let the petty struggles of life disturb the calmness of one’s heart.
The two translations vary at this point, but the first effectively compresses the two sayings together with “give in a believable way”. This phrasing is not the best, but the goal is that one gives wholeheartedly and believably, be it words or actions. The second version says to “give in a benevolent way”, so actions or things should be giving by benevolence rather than for personal gain. The next section says to “speak in a believable fashion” which is pretty self-explanatory.
“Govern in a controlled way” is a bit of an odd construction in English. The specific phrasing here is not to say “maintain control” in the sense of be controlling of the people, but to be controlling of the situation. Govern, lead, or rule a situation in a way which maintains control of the situation. To control a situation, one must be aware of the environment and all of the factors leading to the situation. Be aware of what is going on, what has changed, what could change, and the overall landscape as any good leader should.
The next section to “work in an able way” can also be stated as “work at what one is good at” as well. This isn’t to say “don’t try new things”, but don’t volunteer to be a leader if you can’t handle stress and don’t aim to be a musician if you get stage fright (and won’t fix it). Work in accordance with what you are good at and what you know, but this doesn’t mean to not work towards being better.
To “act in a timely fashion” is to act in accordance with opportunity and within deadlines. Don’t plant your crops at night and expect them to grow, and don’t water in the heat of the day if water is scarce. Take advantage of time rather than letting time take advantage of you. If you act in accordance with the Dao and in accordance with nature, this will lead to the same amount of effort leading to far higher yields and better results than trying to fight the current.
潚~瀟
夫唯不爭 故无尤
[fu1] [wei2] [bu4] [zheng1] [gu4] [wu2] [you2]
If one only aims to not struggle, then one will be without fault
夫唯不爭，故無尤。
[fu1] [wei2] [bu4] [zheng1]， [gu4] [wu2] [you2]。
If one only aims to not struggle, then one will be without fault
When a mistake happens, doubling down and trying to struggle does nothing but make one look bad. Luck may guide you out of the situation, but accepting the issue and moving with it, like water flowing when redirected, will yield far better results overall. You aren’t necessarily wrong if something bad happens, but if you fight it the wrong way, you will be. This isn’t to say just let bad things happen, but do not struggle against fate, adjust to it.