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"One who desires to take the world and act (wei) upon it, I see that it cannot be done. The world (t'ien hsia) is a spirit vessel (shen ch'i), Which cannot be acted (wei) upon. One who acts (wei) on it fails, One who holds on to it loses (shih). Therefore things either move forward or follow behind; They blow hot or blow cold; They are strong (ch'iang) or weak; They get on or they get off. Therefore the sage gets rid of over-doing, Gets rid of extravagances, Gets rid of excesses."