第二十八章   守根于朴
知其雄，守其雌，为天下溪。为天下溪，常德不离，复归于婴儿。
知其白，守其黑，为天下式。为天下式，常德不忒，复归于无极。知其荣，守其辱，为天下谷。为天下谷，常德乃足，复归于朴。朴散则为器，圣人用之，则为官长，故大智不割。

Holding onto the Root of the eternal power

He who knows the male and keeps to the female Becomes the womb drawing all the world towards it. Being the womb of the world, He will never depart from eternal virtue, But returns to a state of infancy.

Knowing the obvious and holding the mysterious,

Is to trace back to the world’s pattern of manifested and the unmanifested.

By tracing back to the world’s pattern, paradigm?

the eternal virtue will never falter.

This is returning to the state of Oneness.

Know glory and keep to humility. Trace back to the root of all, By tracing abck to the root of all, He has the eternal power which always suffices, This is to return to the natural integrity as uncarved wood.

When the natural integrity is broken up, it is turned into rules and instruments .

Evolved Individuals who know how employ them,

are made into leaders.

In this way the harmony of human life and the eternal power are in fact one in different states.

[译文]

虽知成就显耀，却能甘守柔弱，效仿天下的溪流。甘为天下的溪流，利万物的天德不离身，个人的修行就回归到婴儿般的先天柔弱与无私。虽知身处物质显现之阳态，又能体验道本源意识能量状态，就符合道的循环模式。符合道的循环模式，与天德没偏差，个人之修行必然回到先天朴素状态。虽知荣耀悦人，又安居卑辱，效仿天下川谷，甘愿做天下川谷，天德充沛，回归本源能量的淳朴。

淳朴的道本源能量按其内在的规律和法则化生万物， 悟道的人将道德内在的规律和法则用在社会治理上，他就成为百姓的领袖， 因此天下大治和尊道奉德是分不开的。