Line by Line - Verse 47, Line 5

gave their (right) names to things without seeing them;
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

He sees without looking;
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Names without seeing
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

They don't just look.
They understand.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

When we look with the eyes, all we see are forms -- the outward manifestation of things. If we make our judgments based only on what we observe at the surface, it's the same thing as judging a book by its cover!

When we look with the heart, we can see the foundations of the outward manifestations. It is the difference between looking at an outline of form or looking at the depths of being.

To view the Index page for this series to see what you may have missed or would like to read again, go here.