This chapter is a laid out a bit different than the others due to the fact that even though this chapter says almost exactly the same thing, it is organized differently. I kept the main section breaks per the second version, but the wording for the first major section is in a completely different order. Ultimately, both say the exact same thing and this is one of the few parts where I feel the second version (which is the more common) is more correct with the order.
五色使人目盲 馳騁田臘 使人心發狂 難得之貨 使人之行妨 五味使人之口爽 五音使人之耳聾
[wu3] [se4] [shi3] [ren2] [mu4] [mang2] [chi2] [cheng3] [tian2] [lie4] [shi3] [ren2] [xin1] [fa1] [kuang2] [nan2] [de2] [zhi1] [huo4] [shi3] [ren2] [zhi1] [xing2] [fang2] [wu3] [wei4] [shi3] [ren2] [zhi1] [kou3] [shuang3] [wu3] [yin1] [shi3] [ren2] [zhi1] [er3] [long2]
The five colors cause a person to go blind, horse riding and hunting, causes a person to go mad, hard to acquire goods, cause a person to commit crimes, the five tastes [flavors] cause a person to lose their palette [lit. the mouth to be damaged], the five tones [sounds] cause a person to go deaf
五色令人目盲﹔五音令人耳聾﹔五味令人口爽﹔馳騁畋獵，令人心發狂﹔難得之貨，令人行妨。
[wu3] [se4] [|ling4] [ren2] [mu4] [mang2]﹔ [wu3] [yin1] [ling4] [ren2] [er3] [long2]﹔ [wu3] [wei4] [ling4] [ren2] [kou3] [shuang3]﹔ [chi2] [cheng3] [tian2] [lie4]， [ling4] [ren2] [xin1] [fa1] [kuang2]﹔ [nan2] [de2] [zhi1] [huo4]， [ling4] [ren2] [xing2] [fang2]。
The five colors cause a person to go blind, the five tones [sounds] cause a person to go deaf, the five tastes [flavors] cause a person to lose their palette [lit. the mouth to be damaged], horse riding and hunting, causes a person to go mad, hard to acquire goods, cause a person to commit crimes
Excess leads to self-harm. If we keep in mind when the Laozi or DaoDeJing was written, we can say that many things were more limited than present day. Colors in clothing and other goods we take for granted were at one point extremely scarce or even reserved for the aristocracy. Constant exposure to something most do not experience does not necessarily make one treasure it, but on the other hand makes one take it for granted. To the average person, a sunset is just an event, but to someone not completely used to it, like a small child, it is an event in itself which is different every single time it happens.
This entire section focuses on the various things which would somewhat rare to the masses. Going out and riding horses and hunting would be reserved to those who either absolutely had to in order to survive (and those barely scraping by hunting probably would be living out in the wild), or those who could afford to for fun. The five tones can be taken as the notes of the pentatonic scale which was most common at one point. Constant exposure to all of the various flavors make the tongue almost go numb like trying to eat plain fruit after drinking a soda. Chapter 9 expounds on this, that is, one should seek balance, excess leads to spoilage.
Being exposed to that which one cannot have, like in Chapter 3, illustrates that this lack of balance between the haves and the have-nots leads to this type of issue. By flaunting one’s wealth, one welcomes thieves to one’s presence. This is not trying to blame the victim, but more showing that the act of being in possession of what other’s want creates a gradient which some may be less than virtuous in trying to cross. If there weren’t valuables and society were harmonious, why would people steal?
臘~獵
是以聖人之治也 爲腹不爲目 故去疲取此
[shi4] [yi3] [sheng4] [ren2] [zhi1] [zhi4] [ye3] [wei2] [fu4] [bu4] [wei2] [mu4] [gu4] [qu4] [pi2] [qu3] [ci3]
This is how the wise govern, [they govern] from their gut [insides] and not from their eyes, thus [they] leave weakness [and] seek this
是以聖人為腹不為目，故去彼取此。
[shi4] [yi3] [sheng4] [ren2] [wei2] [fu4] [bu4] [wei2] [mu4]， [gu4] [qu4] [bi3] [qu3] [ci3]。
This is how the wise govern from their gut [insides] and not from their eyes, thus [they] leave that, [but] seek this
One note I would make is that the clause: 故去疲取此 may be a mistranscribed version of: 故去彼取此. This affects the translation to some degree, but ultimately isn’t a massive difference. One is a bit more heavy handed in its message than the other, but both effectively end up saying similar.
The wise lead from their instinct and from basic needs rather than off of eyes which see into the distance. This also builds on Chapter 3 where: 是以聖人之治也 虛其心 實其腹 弱其志 強其骨 – “It is because of this that the wise govern this way, they empty their [the peoples’] hearts, and fill their stomachs, weaken their aspirations, and strengthen their bones”. I mentioned before that this is based on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, but this section is similar but also adds a bit of a twist. Those with the wealth or resources to indulge tend to do so, and those with the means to be able to, seek to indulge.
The wise govern from their “guts” rather than their eyes. This is a nice way of saying that the wise govern with a focus on the present rather than the future. This isn’t to say that the wise do not consider the future, but that they focus on the present. The future is murky and as the saying goes, “The path to hell is paved with good intentions.” By focusing on the immediate needs and present, the wise prevent themselves from being able to indulge in flights of fancy for an indeterminate future which may or may not lead to terrible decisions.
This can also be thought of as a form of mindfulness. Focus on the current situation and adjust for making it work best long term, but do not focus on ephemeral futures. By focusing on the result, the process tends to be lost. Allowing an indeterminate future to dictate one’s present actions, causes one to be able to make present sacrifices with the excuse of it being “for the future”. Focusing on what is relevant at this exact moment to best satisfy the people allows one to also act in a more natural way which benefits the future as well. Don’t let ambition rule your choices, let trying to solve problems do so.