Neiye - Section 10 - Physical Perfection

[dawei]

Section 10: Physical Perfection

 

Eno

 

When a man is able to attain balanced tranquility,
his skin is sleek, his flesh full, his eyes sharp, his ears keen,
his muscles taut, his bones sturdy.
And so he is able to carry the great circle of heaven on his head
and tread upon the great square of earth.
He finds his reflection in the great purity and sees by the great light.
Attentive and cautious, he never errs,
and every day renews the force of his virtue.
Knowing everything in the world and exhausting the four poles of the earth,
he attentively nurtures his plenitude:
this is called: grasping within.
To be so and never to revert
is life without error.

Linnell:

 

人 能 正 靜 When people can be properly aligned and still :
皮 膚 裕 寬 Their hair and skin are abundant and smooth,
耳 目 聰 明 Their ears and eyes are acute and clear,
筋 伸 而 骨 強 Their muscles are supple and their bones are strong.
乃 能 戴 大 圜 Then they can support the great circle of heaven,
而 履 大 方 And walk on the great square of earth.
鑒 於 大 清 They are a reflection of great purity,
視 於 大 明 They see with great clarity.
敬 慎 無 忒 Respectful and cautious, they are without error;
日 新 其 德 Each day they renew their De.
遍 知 天 下 They understand the whole world
窮 於 四 極 Thoroughly out to the four extremes.
敬 發 其 充 They respectfully* develop their fullness;
是 謂 內 得 This is called inner attainment.
然 而 不 反 However, if they do not return [to their original nature],
此 生 之 忒 This creates errors.

Roth:

-- Section 16 --
1. If people can be aligned and tranquil,
2. Their skin will be ample and smooth,
3. Their eas and ears will be acute and clear,
4. Their muscles will be supple and their bones will be strong,
5. They will then be able to hold up the Great Circle [of the heavens]
6. And tread firmly over the Great Square [of the earth].
7. They will mirror things with great purity.
8. And they will perceive things with great clarity.
9. Reverently be aware [of the Way] and do not waver,
10. And you will daily renew your inner power,
11. Thoroughly understand all under the heavens,
12. And exhaust everything within the Four Directions.
13. To reverently bring forth the effulgence [of the Way]:
14. This is called "inward attainment."
15. If you do this but fail to return to it,
16. This will cause a wavering in your vitality.

Shazi Daoren: Inner Virtue

-- Section 16 --
If you are able to be aligned and tranquil,
your skin will be supple and smooth,
your ears and eyes will be acute and clear,
your muscles will flex and your bones strong.
You will then be able to bear the Great Circle of heaven,
and tread over the Great Square of earth.
You will abase yourself with great purity,
perceiving with great clarity.
Be reverently aware without wavering,
and you will daily renew your Virtue.
Completely comprehending the world,
drawing from the Four Directions,
reverently developing your wholeness,
this is called Inner Virtue.
However, should you not return to practice,
this will increase your instability.

Yueya:

-- Section 16 --
If people are able to be aligned and tranquil,
Their skin will be ample and smooth,
Their ears and eyes will be acute and bright,
Their sinews will be supple, and their bones will be strong.
Then they will be able to hold up the Great Circle [of the Heavens],
And they will tread firmly on the Great Square [of the Earth].
They will mirror all [reality] with great clarity;
They will perceive through great luminosity.
Be reverent and careful and do not waiver.
Daily replenish your inner power.
Thoroughly come to know all under the heavens,
And investigate everything within the four directions.
To reverently manifest this effulgence.
This is called “internal attainment.”
If you do this but fail in its reversal，
This will cause a disruption in vitality.

Reid:

192 人能正靜 ,
When people can align and quiet themselves,{23}
193 皮膚裕寬,
Their skin’s surface is rich and full;
194 耳目聰明,
Their ears and eyes are acute and perceptive;
195 筋信而骨強,
Their muscles and tendons are strong and flexible; their bones are strong and firm.
196 乃能戴大圜,
They can wear the great circle (Heaven) as their head covering,
197 而履大方。
And the great square (Earth) as their shoes.
198 鑒於大清,
In the great clarity, they are reflected;
199 視於大明。
With the great illumination, they observe.
200 敬慎無忒,
Being respectful and careful, they are without error;
201 日新其德;
Daily refreshing their virtue,
202 徧知天下,
They know every place under Heaven.
203 窮於四極,
Wherever there is deficiency in the four directions,
204 敬發其充,
They reverently supply.
205 是謂內得。
This is called “internal attainment.”
206 然而不反,
From this, they do not depart,
207 此生之忒。
For doing so would give rise to error.

 

{23} Lines 192-204 of the Nei Ye reflect lines 70-79 of the Xin Shu Xia
 

[Taoist Texts]

A reasonably adequate translation with no gross errors except this part

 

On 7/26/2019 at 7:35 PM, dawei said:

鑒 於 大 清 They are a reflection of great purity,
視 於 大 明 They see with great clarity.

 

[dawei]

On 7/28/2019 at 9:02 AM, Taoist Texts said:

A reasonably adequate translation with no gross errors except this part

 

Ok, I'll bite... I might try to find a comparison between a mirror (鑒) and actually looking/seeing (視).   Nobody seems to go there. 

[Taoist Texts]

31 minutes ago, dawei said:

mirror (鑒) and actually looking/seeing (視).   

exactly. they are synonyms. what is meant here is

 

鑒 於 大 清 They SEE the great purity,
視 於 大 明 They see the great clarity.

 

with the objects of their vision being the spiritual realms the "Great Purity" and "Great Clarity"

[Bindi]

On 28/07/2019 at 9:02 PM, Taoist Texts said:

A reasonably adequate translation with no gross errors except this part

 

 

 

What is the problem with ‘they are a reflection of great purity’, couldn’t it be understood as being clear in their qi channels and reflecting/mirroring this to the world? 

[Taoist Texts]

32 minutes ago, Bindi said:

What is the problem with ‘they are a reflection of great purity’,

the grammar does not support that

33 minutes ago, Bindi said:

couldn’t it be understood as being clear in their qi channels and reflecting/mirroring this to the world? 

may be. i am not sure