One who embodies virtue
is like a newborn child.

Wasps, scorpions, and snakes do not sting it;
wild beasts do not seize it;
birds of prey do not strike it.

Its bones are weak, its muscles tender,
yet its grasp is firm.
It does not know of man and woman joining,
yet its vitality is whole.
Such is the perfection of its essence.
It may cry all day without growing hoarse;
such is the perfection of its harmony.

To know harmony is to know the eternal;
to know the eternal is clarity;
to extend life unnaturally is ominous;
to drive the vital breath with the mind is to force.

What is forced to its peak will age;
this is contrary to the Way.
What is contrary to the Way comes to an early end.