Chapter 40
IndexWhen the highest type of people hear the Dao, they diligently practice it. When average people hear the Dao, they half believe it, half doubt it. When the lowest type of people hear the Dao, they laugh loudly at it.
If it is not laughed at, it is not worthy of being the Dao.
Therefore, there is a saying: The bright Dao seems dim; the advancing Dao seems to retreat; the smooth Dao seems rough; the highest virtue seems like a valley; great whiteness seems soiled; vast virtue seems insufficient; established virtue seems stolen; solid truth seems to change; the great square has no corners; the great vessel is late in completion; the great sound is silent; the great image has no form; the Dao is hidden and nameless.
Only the Dao excels in bestowing and completing.