Guodian Bundle C Inventory¶
Archaeological data from Guodian bamboo slips (~300 BCE) Source: daoisopen.com C_bundle images
Summary¶
Bundle C contains 5 slips (C:1-5) covering: - Chapter 17 (complete) - Leadership gradations - Chapter 18 (partial) - Great pattern abandoned - Chapter 35 (substantial) - Great image - Chapter 31 (substantial) - Weapons as inauspicious - Chapter 64 (substantial) - Non-interference principle
Detailed Slip Analysis¶
C:1 (Chapter 17) - Leadership Hierarchy¶
Complete chapter preserved
Key sequence (leadership gradations):
太上 → 下知有之
其即 → 親譽之
其即 → 畏之
其即 → 侮之
Structural reading: - 太上 (tai shang) = "highest/supreme" - optimal configuration - Four levels: 下知有之 → 親譽之 → 畏之 → 侮之 - Best: below merely knows it exists - Next: they love and praise it - Next: they fear it - Worst: they insult it
Key validation: - 信不足焉 = "信 not sufficient, thereupon..." - 百姓曰我自然也 = "common people say 'we are self-so'"
Critical finding: The 自然 (ziran - "self-so/naturally") principle confirmed ancient. This is the destination state: people don't perceive intervention, say "we did it ourselves."
C:1b-2a (Chapter 17 end + Chapter 18 start)¶
Chapter 17 continuation: - 言也 = words/speech (pause marker) - 成事遂功 = accomplish affairs, fulfill work - 百姓曰我自然也 = people say "we are self-so"
Chapter 18 begins (characters 1-7, 14-26):
故大道廢焉有仁義
六親不和焉有孝慈
國家昏亂焉有正臣
Structural formula: - 大道廢 → 焉有仁義 (great pattern abandoned → thereupon there's benevolence/righteousness) - 六親不和 → 焉有孝慈 (six relations disharmonious → thereupon there's filial piety/kindness) - 國家昏亂 → 焉有正臣 (nation confused → thereupon there's loyal ministers)
Critical insight: This is the famous "inverse indicators" passage. The presence of emphasized virtues indicates the pattern has degraded. 仁義, 孝慈, 正臣 are symptoms of breakdown, not signs of health.
C:3 (Chapter 35) - Great Image¶
設大象
天下往往而不害
安平大
樂與餌
過客止
Key concepts: - 大象 (da xiang) = "great image" - pattern-level phenomenon - 天下往往而不害 = "all-under-heaven comes and goes without harm" - 安平大 = "peaceful, level, great" - 樂與餌 = "music and bait" (what attracts at surface level) - 過客止 = "passing travelers stop"
Continuation:
道之出言
淡乎其無味也
視之不足見
聽之不足聞
聞而不可既也
The "imperceptibility" formula: - 淡乎其無味 = "bland, without flavor" - 視之不足見 = "look at it, not enough to see" - 聽之不足聞 = "listen for it, not enough to hear" - 用之不可既 = "use it, cannot exhaust"
Connects to Chapter 14 (夷希微) - the three imperceptibles. Same principle: pattern is below perception threshold but inexhaustible in function.
C:4 (Chapter 31) - Weapons as Inauspicious Instruments¶
Substantial preservation (characters 18-26, 35-104)
Military positioning doctrine:
君子居則貴左
用兵則貴右
故曰兵者不祥之器也
- 君子居則貴左 = "noble person residing values left"
- 用兵則貴右 = "using weapons values right"
- 兵者不祥之器 = "weapons are inauspicious instruments"
The left/right positional code: - 左 (left) = inferior position = peaceful residence - 右 (right) = honor position = military action - 喪禮 (funeral) positioning: 將軍居左, 上將軍居右
Key passage:
不得已而用之
恬淡為上
弗美也
美之者是樂殺人
- 不得已而用之 = "having no alternative, then use them"
- 恬淡為上 = "indifference/dispassion is superior"
- 弗美也 = "do not beautify/celebrate"
- 美之者是樂殺人 = "those who beautify this are those who enjoy killing"
Funeral protocol: - 吉事上左 = auspicious affairs, honor left - 喪事上右 = funeral affairs, honor right - 戰勝則以喪禮居之 = "victory in battle, then dwell in it with funeral rites"
Structural insight: Victory requires mourning protocol because killing, even when necessary, represents pattern-violation. The ritual positioning encodes this - military victory is categorized with death, not celebration.
C:5 (Chapter 64) - Non-interference and Pattern-Alignment¶
Most significant preservation in Bundle C (Characters 61-133)
Core 無為 (wu wei) formula:
為之者敗之
執之者失之
聖人無為故無敗也
無執故無失也
- 為之者敗之 = "those who act on it, ruin it"
- 執之者失之 = "those who grasp it, lose it"
- 聖人無為 → 故無敗 = "sage non-interferes → therefore no ruin"
- 無執 → 故無失 = "no grasping → therefore no loss"
The "慎終若始" formula:
慎終若始
則無敗事矣
Completion paradox:
人之敗也
恆於其且成也
敗之
The sage's learning model:
聖人欲不欲
不貴難得之貨
學不學
復眾之所過
- 欲不欲 = "desires non-desire" (meta-level)
- 不貴難得之貨 = "doesn't prize hard-to-get goods"
- 學不學 = "learns non-learning" (meta-level)
- 復眾之所過 = "returns to what multitudes pass by"
Final formula:
是以能輔萬物之自然
而弗敢為
- 輔萬物之自然 = "assists the ten-thousand things' self-so-ness"
- 弗敢為 = "doesn't dare to act/interfere"
Critical validation: The 自然 (ziran) + 無為 (wu wei) complex is fully present in ~300 BCE. This is the core operating principle: assist natural process, don't impose external pattern.
Structural Findings¶
1. Inverse Indicator Principle (Ch 18)¶
The passage 大道廢焉有仁義 establishes that emphasized virtues are symptoms of pattern-departure. When you need to name and enforce benevolence, the natural pattern has already broken down.
2. Great Image Below Perception (Ch 35)¶
大象 operates below sensory threshold (淡, 無味, 不足見, 不足聞) but is inexhaustible in application (用之不可既). This parallels Ch 14's 夷希微 formulation.
3. Victory = Funeral (Ch 31)¶
Military success requires mourning protocol. The left/right positioning code categorizes killing with death ceremonies. This isn't pacifism - it's precise structural accounting.
4. Wu Wei as Non-Interference (Ch 64)¶
無為 isn't inaction but non-imposition: - 輔萬物之自然 = assist natural process - 弗敢為 = don't dare impose
5. Completion Vulnerability (Ch 64)¶
恆於其且成也敗之 = "constantly at completion-point, ruin it" Failure clusters at near-success due to relaxed vigilance. The prescription: 慎終若始 (careful-end as careful-beginning)
Chapters Covered¶
| Chapter | Slip | Status | Key Concept |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | C:1, C:1b-2a | Complete | Leadership gradations, 自然 |
| 18 | C:2 | Partial (1-7, 14-26) | Inverse indicators (大道廢) |
| 35 | C:3 | Substantial | Great image, imperceptibility |
| 31 | C:4 | Substantial (18-26, 35-104) | Weapons/funeral positioning |
| 64 | C:5 | Substantial (61-133) | 無為, 慎終若始, 輔自然 |
Cross-Reference to Translations¶
Bundle C chapters that overlap with our corpus:
| Chapter | Our Translation | Guodian Validation |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | Not yet translated | Full text available |
| 18 | Not yet translated | Inverse indicator formula confirmed |
| 35 | Not yet translated | 大象 + imperceptibility formula |
| 31 | Not yet translated | Military/funeral positioning |
| 64 | Not yet translated | 無為/自然 core formula |
Priority: Chapter 64 should be high-priority for translation. It contains the clearest articulation of 無為 as "assisting self-so-ness" (輔萬物之自然) and the completion-vulnerability principle.
Key Variants from Received Text¶
- Chapter 17: 自然 spelling consistent with received
- Chapter 18: 六親 (six relations) vs. some versions with 六親
- Chapter 31: 恬淡 preserved (indifference/dispassion)
- Chapter 64: 恆 instead of later 常 (taboo avoidance in Han)
Inventory created: 2025-11-26 Source: Guodian bamboo slips, daoisopen.com transcriptions