#34*

DAO (Great Way) everywhere.
Left or right, all around.

On It, the 10,000 entities† relying
nurturing, never rejecting.
Achieving completion
without needing recognition.

Feeding the 10,000
without being the master.

Forever without desire:
It can be called small.

The 10,000 returning to it
and never is it their master:
It can be called great.

Never, ever considering itself great,
It is great.

10,000 entities is often translated as 10,000 things or objects. Think of this as someone today saying “the trillion things” or the infinite myriad of stuff that makes up the world. 

*Translation by LU Wenlong & Keith Wayne Brown, ©2013.

Keith "Maggie" Brown Avatar

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