觀徼章第二

天下皆知美之為美，斯惡已。皆知善之為善，斯不善已。故有無相生，難易相成，長短相形，高下相傾，音聲相和，前後相隨。是以聖人處無為之事，行不言之教；萬物作焉而不辭，生而不有，為而不恃，功成而不居。夫唯弗居，是以不去。
 

2. Abstraction 

When beauty is abstracted. Then ugliness has been implied; When good is abstracted Then evil has been implied.

So alive and dead are abstracted from nature, Difficult and easy abstracted from progress, Long and short abstracted from contrast, High and low abstracted from depth, Song and speech abstracted from melody, After and before abstracted from sequence.

The sage experiences without abstraction, And accomplishes without action; He accepts the ebb and flow of things, Nurtures them, but does not own them, And lives, but does not dwell.

天下都知道美之所以為美，但美的分別一出就有了惡。都知道善之所以為善，但善的分別一出就有了不善。所以有和無彼此相生，困難和容易相互成就，長與短彼此互相形容，高與下相互依靠，音與聲彼此相應和，前與後彼此相互跟隨。