All key terms

Xuan (玄, Mystery) in the Dao De Jing: Meaning and Occurrences

In the Dao De Jing, xuan (玄) means dark and mysterious: it marks what cannot be seen into, from the "mystery within mystery" of chapter 1 to the mysterious virtue of chapters 10, 51 and 65.

玄 (xuán) first names a color, a deep black with a tinge of red, and from there came to mean dark, deep and hard to see into. This site translates it "mystery" or "mysterious".

Chapter 1 ends with it: the two that come out together are both called mystery, "mysteries within mysteries", the gateway to all marvels. Chapter 6 says the spirit of the valley does not die and calls it "the mystic female" (玄牝).

Most other uses are set phrases. 玄德, "mysterious virtue", ends chapters 10 and 51 and returns in chapter 65; 玄同, "mysterious oneness", is in chapter 56. Chapter 10 also has 玄览, and chapter 15 describes the ancient masters as subtle, marvelous and mysteriously penetrating (玄通).

Every occurrence of 玄

Chapter 1

  1. Line 8

    同tóng谓wèi之zhī玄xuán,玄xuán之zhī又yòu玄xuán,

    Both are considered mysteries, mysteries within mysteries,

Chapter 6

  1. Line 2

    是shì谓wèi玄xuán牝pìn,

    It is called the mystic female,

  2. Line 3

    玄xuán牝pìn之zhī门mén,

    The opening of the mystic female,

Chapter 10

  1. Line 5

    涤dí除chú玄xuán览lǎn,

    Cleanse your dark thoughts,

  2. Line 17

    是shì谓wèi玄xuán德dé。

    This is called the mysterious virtue.

Chapter 15

  1. Line 1

    古gǔ之zhī善shàn为wéi士shì者zhě,微wēi妙miào玄xuán通tōng,深shēn不bù可kě识shí。

    The ancient masters of the Way had subtle marvelous mystic penetration; a depth that cannot be known.

Chapter 51

  1. Line 11

    是shì谓wèi玄xuán德dé。

    This is called mysterious virtue.

Chapter 56

  1. Line 4

    是shì谓wèi玄xuán同tóng。

    this is called mysterious oneness.

Chapter 65

  1. Line 7

    常cháng知zhī稽jī式shì,是shì谓wèi玄xuán德dé。

    Always knowing the pattern is called mysterious virtue.

  2. Line 8

    玄xuán德dé深shēn矣yǐ,远yuǎn矣yǐ,

    Mysterious virtue is deep, is far-reaching,

All key terms

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