My words are easy to know, quite easy to act. But all that is under he

知難 · Zhī Nán

Classical Chinese Text

吾言甚易知，甚易行。天下莫能知，莫能行。言有宗，事有君，夫唯无知，是以不我知。知我者希，则我者贵。是以圣人被褐而怀玉。

Translation & Meaning

My words are easy to know, quite easy to act. But all that is under heaven do not know, nor do they act. Words follow principles, things follow masters, because (people) don’t know them, (they) don't know my words. Ones know me are rare, ones follow me are precious. This is why a sage wears coarse garments and bosoms jade .

Linguistic & Character Analysis

  • 吾 (wú): I / myself
  • 言 (yán): words / speech
  • 甚 (shèn): classical character (shèn)
  • 易 (yì): easy / simple / change
  • 知 (zhī): know / distinguish / recognize
  • 行 (xíng): practice / teach / walk
  • 天 (tiān): heaven / nature / cosmos
  • 下 (xià): under / earthly realm / humble
  • 莫 (mò): classical character (mò)
  • 能 (néng): fruitful / capacity / ability
  • 有 (yǒu): manifest being / cosmos / to possess
  • 宗 (zōng): ancestor / origin / head
  • 事 (shì): affairs / deeds
  • 君 (jūn): classical character (jūn)
  • 夫 (fū): for / indeed / now
  • 唯 (wéi): only / precisely because
  • 无 (wú): formless void / non-being / without
  • 是 (shì): this / therefore
  • 以 (yǐ): in order to / by means of
  • 不 (bù): not / un- / without
  • 我 (wǒ): classical character (wǒ)
  • 者 (zhě): aspects / those who / things
  • 希 (xī): classical character (xī)
  • 则 (zé): classical character (zé)
  • 贵 (guì): prize / cherish / valuable
  • 圣 (shèng): sage / enlightened one
  • 人 (rén): person / human
  • 被 (bèi): classical character (bèi)
  • 褐 (hè): classical character (hè)
  • 而 (ér): yet / and / but
  • 怀 (huái): classical character (huái)
  • 玉 (yù): classical character (yù)