Huangdi Yinfu Jing Jizhu — attributed to Yi Yin, Taigong, Fan Li, Guiguzi, Zhuge Liang, Zhang Liang, and Li Quan

The Classic of the Hidden Accordance (Yinfu jing 陰符經), traditionally ascribed to the legendary Yellow Emperor but probably composed no later than the sixth or seventh century CE, is one of the most compressed and cryptic scriptures in the Daoist Canon — read at once as cosmology, statecraft, military theory, and instruction for inner cultivation. This text is not the bare scripture but a "collected commentary" (集註) edition, in which the scripture's short lines are threaded through with glosses attributed to seven voices — the ancient ministers Yi Yin, Taigong (Jiang Ziya), Fan Li, and the shadowy strategist Guiguzi, alongside the Han strategist Zhang Liang, the Three Kingdoms statesman Zhuge Liang, and the Tang commentator Li Quan — with occasional further voices (Laozi, Sunzi, Wu Qi, Heguanzi, Guangchengzi) drawn in as the glosses require. The compilation itself is usually dated to the Tang dynasty; the attributions to figures many centuries apart are traditional rather than historical.

The scripture proper alternates short, riddling lines — on the "five thieves" that steal through the workings of Heaven, on the "killing pivot" by which calamity and revolution turn, on the eye and the heart-mind as the seat of all timing — with commentary in a plainer, explanatory prose that argues, illustrates, and sometimes disagrees with itself from one voice to the next. This translation keeps that alternation visible: the base scripture's lines stand alone, and each commentator's remarks follow under their name.

A note on the key word: ji 機, rendered here as "pivot," is the hinge or trigger-point at which a hidden mechanism turns into visible motion — the moment when concealed causes become manifest events. The text calls this same word by many names (the killing pivot, the pivot of theft, the pivot in the eye) because it is, in the text's own logic, always the same pivot seen from different angles.

Translated for the Good Works Library directly from the classical Chinese of the Daoist Canon, which is printed in full below the translation. The base scripture (Yinfu jing) has been rendered into English independently several times since the nineteenth century (Balfour, Legge, and others since); to our knowledge, however, this seven-commentator collected-commentary edition, with its interwoven glosses, has not itself been published complete in English before, and no such translation was consulted in making this one.

Translation

Preface to the Commentary on the Yellow Emperor's Classic of the Hidden Accordance

Composed by Zhuge Liang, Chancellor of Shu

What is called destiny is nature. When nature is able to reach through to destiny, the sage therefore honors it — using Heaven's mandate to keep the common man foolish while making the sagely wise. Hence it is said: when Heaven's pivot is drawn taut, there is no death; when Earth's pivot goes slack, there is no life. Look into the Hidden Accordance: creation and transformation lie in the hand, life and death lie with man. Therefore the sage hides it in his heart-mind — the means by which he shapes Heaven and Earth as a potter shapes clay, gathers and scatters all under heaven, and leaves no trace: this is Heaven's pivot. Thus the Yellow Emperor obtained it and ascended to the cloud-borne heavens; Tang and Wu obtained it and ruled all under heaven as kings; the Five Hegemons obtained it and governed the feudal lords. To serve is easy, to rule is hard — it may not be used lightly. Taigong at ninety years was not without opportunity; he was simply discerning about his lord. If a wise man grasped and used it, he could set up a stone as his lord and carve wood into a ruler, and still hold all under heaven. When a minister exhausts his heart-mind and the ruler grows fearful in return — having this pivot, is it not hard indeed?

Alas — without a worthy ruler, the righteous man dies by his own hand rather than serve; better to scatter one's ambitions among the cliffs and rocks, nourishing one's life, and wait for it to rise upon the Stairway of Great Peace. The men of the age take the Master, Confucius, for one who met no fitting time, and take Yi of Qin for one who found his season. But it is not so: his ambition lay in establishing the cosmos itself — how could he have raced his heart-mind about like a lowly runner? This the cultivated man counts as shame.

Alas — in later ages, heroes and sages examined this and put it to use: Fan Li treated it with weight, and so lived long; Wen Zhong treated it lightly, and so perished. Is this not because Heaven's pivot was leaked? For one who leaks Heaven's pivot, to sink through three kalpas is only fitting. Therefore the sage hides it away in famous mountains, transmits it only to like-minded companions, and conceals it in a golden coffer — fearing that petty men might steal it and toy with it.

The Collected Commentaries

Commentary by Yi Yin, Taigong, Fan Li, Guiguzi, Zhuge Liang, Zhang Liang, and Li Quan

Observing the way of Heaven and holding fast to Heaven's motion — this is all there is to it. (Here begins the preface.) Therefore Heaven has five thieves; whoever perceives them prospers.

Taigong says: The first thief steals destiny, the next steals things, the next steals timing, the next steals achievement, the next steals spirit. The thief of destiny works by a single dissolving, and all under heaven tastes it as flavor. The thief of things works by a single urgency, and all under heaven uses it as profit. The thief of timing works by a single trustworthiness, and all under heaven uses it as reversal. The thief of achievement works by a single kindness, and all under heaven uses it as resentment. The thief of spirit works by a single proof, and all under heaven uses it as small and great.

Guiguzi says: Of Heaven's five thieves, none surpasses the thief of spirit. This one is great and that one small; by the small one, the great is seized. Even Heaven and Earth cannot fathom its working — how then could it sink into human hands alone?

Li Quan says: The Yellow Emperor grasped the pivot of the thief of destiny, and ascended to the heavens in broad daylight. The founders of Yin and Zhou grasped the proof of the thief of spirit, and with the small destroyed the great. Guan Zhong grasped the trustworthiness of the thief of timing, and nine times united the feudal lords. Fan Li grasped the urgency of the thief of things, and became hegemon over the southern Yue. Zhang Liang grasped the kindness of the thief of achievement, and defeated mighty Chu.

The five thieves lie in the heart-mind; their working is carried out through Heaven. The cosmos lies within the hand; the ten thousand transformations are born from the body.

Taigong says: The sage calls them the five thieves; all under heaven calls them the five virtues. Man lives by eating the five flavors and dies by eating the five flavors, yet none resents them and casts them away. So too with what the heart-mind savors.

Guiguzi says: The thief of destiny can bring long life without death. The Yellow Emperor stirred it through the essence-breath of young women; the thief of timing and the thief of things are the same. Consider: grass that endures the winter does not die if it is covered, but is injured as soon as it is exposed. If the fixed nature of grass and tree is already so, how much more man, spirit of the ten thousand things — his pivot lies in young women, taken at the proper time.

Guangchengzi says: It is held that by accumulating fire one burns away the five poisons — the five poisons being the five flavors. When the five flavors are exhausted, one may attain long life.

Li Quan says: Man lives by the five flavors and dies by the five flavors. Each of the five flavors has what it governs: followed in accord, they generate one another; followed against the grain, they overcome one another. Practiced too long, accumulated breath steams and smokes, rots a man's five viscera, and brings him near ruin. The reason men of this age cannot complete their allotted span of Heaven is that they nourish life too lavishly. Therefore the utmost Way is bland and plain; embryonic breathing is without flavor. The arts of the spirit-immortals number in the hundreds; their essential point lies in embracing the One and guarding the center. The arts of young women number in the hundreds; their essential point lies in returning the essence and gathering the breath. The arts of the golden elixir number in the hundreds; their essential point lies in the sacred water and the flowery pool. The arts of governing the state number in the hundreds; their essential point lies in clarity, stillness, and self-transformation. The arts of employing troops number in the hundreds; their essential point lies in the orthodox and the unorthodox, in stratagem and authority. These five affairs, rolled up, are stored in the heart-mind and hidden in the spirit; unfurled, they fill the heavens and net the earth. The cosmos, in an instant, can lie within a man's hand; the flourishing and withering of the ten thousand things can be born within a man's body. The Yellow Emperor obtained this: he first secured the Three Palaces, then governed the myriad states, and when his cauldron was complete he mounted a dragon and ascended to the heavens.

Heaven's nature is man. Man's heart-mind is the pivot. Establishing the way of Heaven is what fixes man.

Zhuge Liang says: It is held that establishing Heaven and fixing man both lie in the five thieves.

When Heaven releases its killing pivot, dragons and serpents rise upon the land. When man releases his killing pivot, Heaven and Earth are overturned.

Fan Li says: Long ago Yi Yin assisted the house of Yin, releasing Heaven's killing pivot; he overcame the Xia when its mandate was exhausted, and events answered accordingly. Hence when he campaigned east, the western tribes resented it; when he campaigned south, the northern tribes resented it.

Taigong says: If the fields are not tilled, in three years there is great drought. If one takes no warning, in ten years the earth is ruined. When the slain exceed ten thousand, a great wind rises in violence.

Zhuge Liang says: Consider: when Chu slew several tens of thousands of Han troops, a great wind darkened the sky and turned day to night, as though Heaven and Earth had overturned.

When Heaven and man release together, the foundation of the ten thousand transformations is fixed.

Zhang Liang says: From this one trust, the ten thousand trusts are born; hence it fixes the foundation of the ten thousand transformations.

Li Quan says: Great famine and great chaos, war, flood, drought, and locusts — these are Heaven's killing pivot. Yu Shun shaping pottery, Yu of Xia rescuing bones from the flood, Yin fettered at the Xia Tower, Zhou imprisoned at Youli, the founder of Han as a mere station-chief, Wei Wu as a beggar — none of these held a king's position, yet they rode Heaven's killing pivot and rose from the ground to become sovereigns. When gentlemen are out in the wilds and petty men occupy office, when powerful ministers usurp authority and the common people yearn for disorder — this is man's killing pivot. Cheng Tang banishing Jie, King Wu of Zhou attacking the tyrant Zhou, Xiang Ji beheading the weakling Ying of Qin, Wei deposing Liu Xie — these rode man's killing pivot. To overturn the noble into the base and reverse the base into the noble is as though Heaven and Earth had overturned. When the pivots of Heaven and man release together, the principle of success and failure follows accordingly. Through ten thousand changes and a thousand transformations, the sage relies on this to fix his foundation and his undertaking.

Nature has its cleverness and its clumsiness; these can be hidden away.

Zhang Liang says: The sage perceives cleverness and clumsiness. Where neither side profits, his scheme stays within the heart-mind; where both sides profit, sages, worthies, and heroes speak of it openly. How much more so in the business of employing troops?

Li Quan says: When inward desires do not go out, this is called "opening." When outward evils do not come in, this is called "closing." Closed without and open within — this is its pivot. Hard to know as the shadowed yin, unmoving as a mountain: the nature of cleverness and clumsiness leaves no gap through which another may spy.

The evils of the nine openings lie in the three essentials; through these one may set them in motion or stillness.

Taigong says: The three essentials are the ear, the eye, and the mouth. The ear can be bored through and stopped up; the eye can be pierced and made to dazzle; the mouth can be sharpened or dulled to silence. When troops are raised and multitudes set in motion, ten thousand men cannot debate the strategy — it lies in these three, which may be set moving or set still.

Li Quan says: Two leaves covering the eyes, and Mount Tai is not seen; two beans stopping the ears, and thunder is not heard; a single peppercorn on the tongue, and words cannot be formed. When all nine openings are given to evil, one cannot discern the workings of the pivot. What truly lies in the three are spirit, heart-mind, and will. When the pivot stirs but has not yet shown itself, the spirit follows it; when the sign of the pivot is about to form, the heart-mind schemes over it; when the pivot fires and affairs proceed, the will decides it. In motion, this pivot shares its waves with the yang: the Five Sacred Peaks cannot pin down its corner, the Four Rivers cannot bound its compass. In stillness, it shares its virtue with the yin: the clever cannot set its glory in motion, the deeply learned cannot pierce its scheme, Heaven and Earth cannot seize its timing — how much less could man?

Fire is born from wood; once disaster breaks out, it must overcome its own source. Treachery is born within the state; once the moment stirs, it must bring collapse. To know this and to cultivate and refine oneself accordingly — this is called the sage.

Li Quan says: Fire is born from wood; once fire breaks out, the wood is consumed. Treachery is born within the state; once treachery is accomplished, the state perishes. Within wood, fire lies hidden — fire begins in formlessness. Within the state, treachery lies hidden — treachery begins without image. None but the utmost sage can cultivate the body and refine his conduct so that the fire of treachery never breaks out. Thus a state may have soldiers without an army, and calamity without disaster — as when Jizi fled and bound himself as a fur-clad shepherd, and Shang Rong was imprisoned while Jian Shu wept.

Heaven gives birth, Heaven kills — this is the principle of the Way.

Zhang Liang says: The pivot issues from the heart-mind. When it is like Heaven's giving birth and like Heaven's killing, then those who live consider that they have obtained their own life, and those who die consider that they have obtained their own death.

Heaven and Earth are the thief of the ten thousand things; the ten thousand things are the thief of man; man is the thief of the ten thousand things. When the three thieves each find their proper measure, the Three Powers find their peace.

Guiguzi says: As for these three thieves, neither side is aware of the other — this alone is called spirit-like. Once one understands these three, then as for carriages and horses, gold and silk — cast them away, and one can overturn rivers and fill seas, move mountains and overturn the earth; act not from fixed decree, and only afterward respond.

Li Quan says: Heaven and Earth give birth to and complete the ten thousand things, yet steal from them through decline and old age. The ten thousand things serve and are ridden by man, yet steal from him through pride and extravagance. Man, the foremost vessel among the ten thousand things, steals from them through ruin and destruction. All proceeds of itself, naturally; the three thieves each attain their proper due, and the Three Powers take turns finding peace in their office. Hence it is said: eat at the proper time, and the hundred bones are ordered; move the pivot at the proper time, and the ten thousand transformations find peace.

Guiguzi says: It is not wished that rulers of later ages broadly hoard treasures and pile up gold and silk. If they can cast these away, then even overturning rivers and filling seas is not too difficult. Eating governs the hundred bones; lose its proper time, and the hundred illnesses arise. Movement sets the ten thousand things at peace; lose its pivot, and the ten thousand things are harmed. Hence it is said: the interval when the moment arrives allows not even the space of a breath — anticipate it, and one goes too far; lag behind it, and one falls short. For this reason the worthy hold fast to timing, while the unworthy merely hold fast to fate.

People know that spirit is spirit-like, but do not know why spirit is spirit-like.

Li Quan says: Every man possesses the sagacity of the sage, yet does not value the seeming folly of the sage. Having seen his sagacity, one must also observe his folly; having seen his folly, one sees again his sagacity. Hence the Documents say: rely wholly on intelligence, and affairs will not succeed; rely wholly on obscurity, and affairs will all founder. One brightness, one dimness — this is what the multitude carries. Yi Yin was a wine-seller, Taigong butchered cattle, Guan Zhong worked leather, Baili Xi sold gruel; in an age of decline and disorder, all called them without spirit-power. But when they met Cheng Tang, encountered King Wen, came upon Duke Huan of Qi, or found Duke Mu of Qin, their Way brought relief to living beings and their achievement measured the cosmos — and then all called them the height of spirit-power.

Sun and moon have their reckonings; the great and small have their fixed measures. From these the sage's achievement is born, and spirit-brightness comes forth.

Guiguzi says: Let later ages ponder this deeply: even bright Heaven and Earth are not, in themselves, worthy of prizing — how much less man?

Li Quan says: A year has three hundred sixty-five days — the sun has its reckoning. The months proceed eleven or twelve at a time, with intercalations accumulated great and small, and the remainder has its fixed measure — all endowed by essence-breath of its own accord, not born for the sake of the sage's achievement or spirit-brightness. The sage's achievement and spirit-brightness likewise are endowed by essence-breath of their own accord, not born for the sake of sun and moon. Therefore in success one owes no honor to Heaven and Earth, and in failure one bears no resentment against yin and yang.

As for the pivot of theft, none under heaven can know it. The noble man, obtaining it, secures his own person; the petty man, obtaining it, makes light of his life.

Zhuge Liang says: Was Taigong not more worthy than Sun Wu, Wu Qi, Han Xin, or Bai Qi? This is how the noble man and the petty man differ in their use of it. The valor of these four led even to the destruction of their own persons — indeed, it was because they did not find their proper lord that they were put to death.

Li Quan says: When the ruling house of an age declines, all under heaven fails to see the pivot of that decline, still less to know its source. When a hegemon-king founds a state, all under heaven fails to know the source of that founding pivot. The noble man, obtaining this pivot, answers to Heaven and follows man, and thereby secures his own person. The petty man, obtaining this pivot, wearies his troops and abuses arms, and thereby makes light of his own life. The Changes say: "The noble man, seeing the incipient pivot, acts — he does not wait out the day." And again: "To know the pivot — is this not spirit-like?" The pivot is easy to see yet hard to know; seeing what is near, one knows what is far.

The blind excel at hearing; the deaf excel at seeing. Cut off benefit at its single source, and the effectiveness of one's forces is tenfold. Turn it over three times, by day and by night, and the effectiveness of one's forces is ten-thousandfold.

Yi Yin says: Refine one's thought — this is how one exhausts its subtlety.

Zhang Liang says: Let later ages ponder this deeply: the benefit of ear and eye — cut it off at its single source.

Li Quan says: The ear and eye both branch out from the heart-mind and compete with the spirit. When the heart-mind is divided, the pivot is not refined; when the spirit is in competition, the pivot is not subtle. This is why Music-Master Kuang blinded his own eyes to sharpen his hearing, and Li Zhu stopped up his ears to brighten his sight — entrusting benefit to a single source, and instead deploying their forces through the heart-mind, they raised affairs and released the pivot with tenfold, complete success. Withdrawing to reflect, turning it over three times, passing through day and night, thinking before acting — thus they raised affairs and released the pivot with ten-thousandfold, complete success.

Taigong says: The eye moves and the heart-mind answers it: seeing that something may be done, one acts; seeing that it may not, one stops.

The heart-mind is born from things and dies through things; the pivot lies in the eye.

Li Quan says: Of all that governs the pivot under heaven, none is closer than the heart-mind and the eye. The heart-mind can send forth the eye; the eye can perceive the pivot. When the First Emperor of Qin journeyed east to Kuaiji, Xiang Yu's eye perceived the pivot and his heart-mind was born from the thing he saw; he said to Xiang Liang: "That one may be seized, and I may take his place." When the armies of Jin arrived in full force at the Huai and the Fei, Fu Jian's eye perceived the pivot and his heart-mind died through the thing he saw; he said to Fu Rong: "That is a formidable enemy — how can it be called few?" From this one knows: the heart-mind of life and death lies in the thing seen, and the pivot of success and failure shows itself in the eye.

Heaven has no kindness, and yet great kindness is born from it. Sudden thunder and violent wind — nothing fails to stir in response.

Zhang Liang says: How thriving it all is!

Taigong says: Vigilance and awe bring about good fortune.

Li Quan says: Heaven's heart-mind has no kindness; the ten thousand things, having heart-minds of their own, attribute kindness to Heaven.

Laozi says: Heaven and Earth are not benevolent; they treat the ten thousand things as straw dogs. The sage is not benevolent; he treats the common people as straw dogs. Hence they give without seeking recompense, and bring things to life without claiming the achievement. When it comes to sudden thunder and violent wind, their awesome power reaches far and inspires dread near at hand. The ten thousand things stir and hold themselves in dread; Heaven has no awesome power of its own, yet the ten thousand things dread it — holding dread, they attribute awesome power to Heaven. When the sage bestows reward, he claims no kindness for the deed that earned it; when he carries out punishment, he claims no awesome power over the one who is guilty. Thus reward and punishment establish themselves above, while awe and kindness proceed of themselves below.

Utmost joy makes the nature overflow; utmost stillness makes the nature spare.

Zhang Liang says: It is precisely here that the pivot lies.

Li Quan says: Joy brings extravagant overflow; stillness brings upright constancy. When the nature overflows, the spirit is turbid; when the nature is spare, the spirit is clear. Spirit is the spring of wisdom — when spirit is clear, wisdom is bright. Wisdom is the storehouse of the heart-mind — when wisdom is impartial, the heart-mind is level. No one takes flowing water as a mirror; one takes still, settled water as a mirror, because it is clear and level. When spirit is clear and intent is level, one can then give form to the true condition of things. The sage, then, is neither indulgent in utmost joy nor settled in utmost stillness — he can lodge his spirit between purity and joy; this is called guarding the center. Being thus, offered profit cannot lure him, sound and color cannot dissolve him, clever talkers cannot persuade him, the wise cannot move him, the bold cannot frighten him. He sees disaster beyond layers of concealment and takes thought for trouble within the deep and dark; even Heaven does not go against him — how much less the deceptive paths of warfare?

Heaven's utmost privacy —

Yi Yin says: governs at the extreme of subtlety.

— its use is utmost impartiality.

Zhang Liang says: This pivot is good: though it does not command all under heaven, all under heaven follows it; all under heaven cannot know it, and all under heaven cannot go against it.

Li Quan says: Heaven's way winds through and completes the ten thousand things, leaving nothing out. The great chun tree and the morning mushroom, the giant peng bird and the small quail, the vast and the minute, the long-lived and the short-lived — each obtains its own place: this is utmost privacy. Clouds moving, rain falling, thunder, lightning, frost, and rainbow, the even measure of birth and killing: this is utmost impartiality. The sage takes Heaven as his pattern and Earth as his model; he nourishes the myriad people and attends to their toil and hardship: this is utmost privacy. He carries out upright commands and sets forth models and images: this is utmost impartiality.

Sunzi says: Look upon the soldiers as beloved sons, and they may be brought to die together with you. Look upon the soldiers as infants, and they may be led with you into deep ravines. But if you love them and cannot command them, they become like spoiled children. Therefore command them with civil gentleness, and bring them into order with martial firmness.

The mastery over creatures lies in the breath.

Taigong says: How could it be a matter of the large mastering the small?

Yi Yin says: Breath is Heaven's pivot.

Li Quan says: The dark tortoise devours pythons; the sparrowhawk and falcon strike down swans. The yellow-waisted creature devours tigers; the flying squirrel severs gibbons; the toad and the leech gnaw at fish; the wolf-like creature bites cranes. Yugan fruit softens metal; the "river cart," taken without cease, transforms without end into jade; realgar transforms into iron; there is wood that does not turn to ash, and stone that floats upon water. Now if birds, beasts, wood, and stone can obtain their breath and thereby, though small, master the great, how could a hero, obtaining his breath, fail to purify the seas within the four directions and govern the whole cosmos?

The living is the root of the dead; the dead is the root of the living. Kindness is born from harm; harm is born from kindness.

Taigong says: One who diminishes himself is loved by all things; one who enriches himself is scorned by all things.

Li Quan says: One who schemes for life must first die and only then live. One who practices for death must first live and only then die.

Heguanzi says: Without dying, there is no living; without cutting off, there is no completing.

Sunzi says: Cast them into a place of death, and only then do they live; drive them into a place of ruin, and only then do they survive.

Wu Qi says: The field of battle is the ground where corpses are raised: those resolved to die live, those who merely hope to survive die. Kindness is the source of harm; harm is the source of kindness. Wu planted kindness toward Yue, and harm was born from it; Zhou established harm against Yin, and kindness was born from it. Death and life, kindness and harm — each is entangled with its opposite.

The foolish man takes the patterned principle of Heaven and Earth as sagely; I take the patterned principle of the times and of things as wise.

Taigong says: Observe the seasons of birds and beasts; examine the transformations of the ten thousand things.

Li Quan says: An auspicious star appears, a yellow dragon descends, a soaring phoenix arrives, a sweet spring wells up, fine grain is born, the river does not overflow, the sea does not raise its waves, sun and moon are not eclipsed, the five planets do not lose their courses, the four seasons do not fall into disorder, day does not darken nor night grow light, mountains do not collapse nor rivers dry up, thunder does not sound in winter nor frost fall in summer — the foolish man takes these patterns of Heaven and Earth as the pivot of order and disorder. When a ruler's thought is calm and settled and his brightness reaches to the four directions, when he makes manifest his fine virtue and thereby brings the nine kindred branches into affection, when the six treasuries and three affairs of state do not lose their proper order, so that the hundred grains ripen and the multitude of people find ease and health — this is order. But when a benighted ruler and depraved ministers apply the laws inconsistently, when heavy taxes and harsh government prevail, when high and low deceive one another, when favored relatives and noble officials grow proud, extravagant, and dissolute, drunk on wine and addicted to music, building towering halls and carved walls, so that the common people scatter in flight and think of rebellion and resent their superiors — this is disorder. I take these patterns of the times and of things as the pivot of order and disorder.

Others take precaution against folly; I take no precaution against folly. Others expect sagehood in themselves; I expect no sagehood in myself.

Li Quan says: The heart-mind of the worthy and wise is deep and subtle, hard to fathom. The traces left by the hermits You and Chao, others may still spy out. But as for responding to change without fixed pattern, and the wisdom that turns with its own pivot inexhaustibly — how could others take precaution against that? To measure the heart-mind by its outward traces is to be a fool.

Hence it is said: to sink into water or walk into fire is to bring destruction on oneself.

Zhang Liang says: To govern men harshly, they die of themselves; to govern an army harshly, its soldiers are lost. Where there is no fixed idea of dying, there is nothing that does not die; where there is no fixed idea of living, there is nothing that does not live. Hence one who knows life and death brings peace and stability to the state.

The way of what-is-so-of-itself is stillness; therefore Heaven, Earth, and the ten thousand things are born.

Yi Yin says: At the utmost of stillness, one does not even know how things come to be born.

The way of Heaven and Earth is a gradual seeping; therefore yin and yang overcome one another.

Zhang Liang says: The way of Heaven and Earth advances by subtle seeping, and pushes forward to overcome.

Yin and yang push against each other, and transformation follows accordingly.

Zhang Liang says: Yin and yang push and stir against each other, and their transformation shows itself to the eye.

Therefore the sage, knowing that the way of what-is-so-of-itself cannot be gone against, follows it and thereby regulates it.

Zhang Liang says: The great man sees it as what-is-so-of-itself; the heroic and wise see it as regulation; the fool sees it merely as transformation.

Yi Yin says: One who knows the way of what-is-so-of-itself — the ten thousand things cannot go against him. Therefore he acts to their benefit.

The way of utmost purity — the pitch-pipes and the calendar cannot match it.

Zhang Liang says: Observe the seasons of birds and beasts, examine the transformations of the ten thousand things — birds and beasts, at their utmost purity, cannot be matched by the pitch-pipes and calendar; one follows and takes the pivot from this.

And so there is a marvelous instrument, from which the ten thousand images are born. The eight trigrams and the sexagenary cycle — the ten thousand and the one are decided by it. The pivot of spirits, the hiding-place of ghosts.

Zhang Liang says: The six gui days form Heaven's storehouse, through which one can lie hidden.

The art by which yin and yang overcome one another — how brilliantly it advances into image!

Zhuge Liang says: The marvelous instrument is sagely wisdom. Heaven hangs down its images, and the sage takes them as his model. He calculates the sexagenary cycle, draws the eight trigrams, examines the yarrow stalks and tortoise shell, and investigates the pitch-pipes and calendar; and so the true condition of ghosts and spirits, and the principle of yin and yang, become brilliantly manifest in image, leaving nothing unexhausted.

Zhuge Liang says: The images of the eight trigrams are extended and put to use; the sixty sexagenary signs are turned and put to use. Spirits go forth and ghosts enter in — the ten thousand things are made clear as one.

Zhang Liang says: That which gives birth to the ten thousand images is the heart-mind. The art of combining and storing yin and yang, the reckoning of sun and moon — all lie brilliantly clear within the human heart-mind.

Guangchengzi says: The sexagenary cycle accords with the numbers of the nine yang. The images of the trigrams give forth the methods for marshaling armies; one marshals armies according to the pitch-pipes, moves in accordance with ghosts and spirits, follows Heaven and answers to the season — and so employs the way of ghosts and spirits.

Colophon

This Good Works Translation was prepared for the Daoist shelf of the Good Works Library. The English was translated independently from the classical Chinese text printed below. The scripture alternates short base-text lines with commentary attributed to named voices; this translation keeps that structure — base-text lines stand alone as short paragraphs, and each commentator's remarks follow, set as a labeled paragraph beginning with that speaker's name in bold, exactly as the source marks them. The Zhuge Liang preface, itself continuous prose, is kept as prose.

Before the claim above was written, a translation-status check was performed: Komjathy's standard bibliography of Daoist texts in English translation and the 2023 update to Kroll and Pregadio's survey of Daoist texts in Western languages were both checked by title, and two bounded web searches were run for the Chinese title, its component names, and its English equivalents. The base scripture, the Yinfu jing itself (DZ 31 in its bare form), has been translated into English independently several times since Frederic Balfour's 1884 rendering, including by James Legge, and — in modern scholarship — by other hands; those are translations of the eighty-some or four-hundred-odd characters of scripture alone. This is a different and larger work: a seven-commentator collected-commentary edition (集註) in which that short scripture is threaded through with prose glosses many times its own length. To our knowledge, no complete English translation of this specific collected-commentary compilation has been published, and none was consulted in making this one; we state this as the limit of our search, not as a certainty, since a text this closely tied to a widely translated scripture could easily have been rendered somewhere we did not find.

A note on terms. Ji 機, the text's central word, names the hidden hinge or trigger-point at which concealed cause turns into visible event; it is rendered "pivot" throughout, including in the compounds "killing pivot" (殺機) and the "pivot" in the eye or heart-mind. Zei 賊, "thief," is kept literal rather than softened to "force" or "agent," since the text's argument — that Heaven, things, and man each steal from one another in a closed cycle — depends on the word's edge. Some allusions in the commentary (to Jizi, Shang Rong, Xiang Yu, Fu Jian, and others) are compressed historical references that the commentators expected their readers to recognize without gloss; they are translated as literally as the Chinese allows, without added explanation, in keeping with the rule against inserting commentary of our own into the translated text.

Prepared for the Good Work Library by the Tianmu Anglican Church with AI-assisted translation and editorial work.

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Source Text: 黃帝陰符經集註

Classical Chinese text of the Daoist Canon, in the Chinese Wikisource transcription. Presented complete for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above. 〔 〕 marks small-type commentary notes as formatted in the transcription.

黃帝陰符經集註。原題伊尹等七家註

約成書於唐代。一卷。

黃帝陰符經註序

蜀相諸葛亮撰
所謂命者，性也。性能命通，故聖人尊之，以天命愚其人而智其聖。故曰天機張而不死，地機弛而不生。觀乎《陰符》，造化在乎手，生死在乎人。故聖人藏之於心，所以陶甄天地，聚散天下而不見其跡者，天機也。故黃帝得之以登雲天，湯武得之以王天下，五霸得之以統諸侯。夫臣易而主難，不可以輕用。太公九十非不遇，蓋審其主焉。若使哲士執而用之，立石為主，刻木為君，亦可以享天下。夫臣盡其心而主反怖，有之不亦難乎？嗚呼，无賢君則義士自死而不仕，莫若散志巖石以養其命，待生於泰階。世人以夫子為不遇，以秦儀為得時，不然，志在立宇宙，安能馳心下走哉？文夫所恥。嗚呼，後世英哲審而用之，范蠡重而長，文種輕而亡，豈不為泄天機？天機泄者，沉三劫宜然。故聖人藏諸名山，傳之同好，隱之金匱，恐小人竊而弄之。

正文

黃帝陰符經集註
伊尹、太公、范蠡、鬼谷子、諸葛亮、張良、李筌註
觀天之道，執天之行，盡矣。序首故天有五賊，見之者昌。
〔太公曰：〕
〔其一賊命，其次賊物，其次賊時，其次賊功，其次賊神。賊命以一消，天下用之以味。賊物以一急，天下用之以利。賊時以一信，天下用之以反。賊功以一恩，天下用之以怨，賊神以一驗，天下用之以小大。〕
〔鬼谷子曰：〕
〔天之五賊，莫若賊神，此大而彼小，以小而取大，天地莫之能神，而沉於人乎？〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔黃帝得賊命之機，白日上昇；殷周得賊神之驗，以小滅大；管仲得賊時之信，九合諸侯；范蠡得賊物之急，而霸南越；張良得賊功之恩，而敗強楚。〕
五賊在乎心，施行乎天。宇宙在乎手，萬化生乎身。
〔太公曰：〕
〔聖人謂之五賊，天下謂之五德。人食五味而生，食五味而死，无有怨而棄之者也。心之所味也亦然。〕
〔鬼谷子曰：〕
〔賊命可以長生不死，黃帝以少女精炁感之，時物亦然。且經冬之草，覆之而不死，露之即見傷，草木植性，尚猶如此，況人萬物之靈，其機則少女以時。〕
〔廣成子曰：〕
〔以為積火焚五毒，五毒即五味，五味盡，可以長生也。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔人因五味而生，五味而死，五味各有所主，順之則相生，逆之則相勝，久之則積炁薰蒸，人腐五臟，殆至滅亡。代人所以不能終其天年者，以其生生之厚矣。是以至道淡然，胎息无味。神仙之術百數，其要在抱一守中；少女之術百數，其要在還精採炁；金丹之術百數，其要在神水華池；治國之術百數，其要清浄自化；用兵之術百數，其要在奇正權謀。此五事者，卷之，藏於心，隱於神；施之，彌於天，絡於地。宇宙瞬息，可在人之手；萬物榮枯，可生人之身；黃帝得之，先固三宮，後治萬國，鼎成而馭龍上昇於天也。〕
天性，人也。人心，機也。立天之道，以定人也。
〔亮曰：〕
〔以為立天定人，其在於五賊。〕
天發殺機，龍蛇起陸。人發殺機，天地反覆。
〔范曰：〕
〔昔伊尹佐殷，發天殺之機，克夏之命盡而事應之。故有東征西夷怨，南征北狄怨。〕
〔太公曰：〕
〔不耕，三年大旱；不鑒，十年地壞。殺人過萬，大風暴起。〕
〔亮曰：〕
〔按楚殺漢兵數萬，大風杳冥晝晦，有若天地反覆。〕
天人合發，萬變定基。
〔良曰：〕
〔從此一信而萬信生，故為萬變定基矣。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔大荒大亂，兵水旱蝗，是天殺機也。虞舜陶甄，夏禹拯骸，殷繫夏臺，周囚羑里，漢祖亭長，魏武乞丐，俱非王者之位，乘天殺之機也。起陸而帝，君子在野，小人在位，權臣擅威，百姓思亂，人殺機也。成湯放桀，周武伐紂，項籍斬羸嬰，魏廢劉協，是乘人殺之機也。覆貴為賤，反賤為貴，有若天地反覆，天人之機合發，成敗之理宜然。萬變千化，聖人因之而定基業也。〕
性有巧拙，可以伏藏 。
〔良曰：〕
〔聖人見其巧拙，彼此不利者，其計在心；彼此利者，聖哲英雄道焉。況用兵之務哉？〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔中慾不出謂之啟，外邪不入謂之閉。外閉內啟，是其機也。難知如陰，不動如山，巧拙之性，使人无間而得窺也。〕
九竅之邪，在乎三要，可以動靜。
〔太公曰：〕
〔三要者，耳、目、口也。耳可鑿而塞，目可穿而眩，口可利而訥。興師動眾，萬夫莫議其奇。在三者，或可動或可靜之。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔兩葉掩目，不見泰山；雙豆塞耳，不聞雷霆；一椒掠舌，不能立言；九竅皆邪，不足以察機變。其在三者，神、心、志也。機動未映，神以隨之；機兆將成，心以圖之；機發事行，志以斷之。其機動也，與陽同其波，五嶽不能鎮其隅，四瀆不能界其維；其機靜也，與陰同其德，智士不能運其榮，深聞不能竅其謀，天地不能奪其時，而況於人乎？〕
火生於木，禍發必尅。奸生於國，時動必潰。知之修鍊，謂之聖人。
〔筌曰：〕
〔火生於木，火發而木焚。奸生於國，奸成而國滅。木中藏火，火始於无形。國中藏奸，奸始於无象。非至聖不能修身鍊行，使奸火之不發。夫國有无軍之兵，无灾之禍矣。以箕子逃而縛裘牧，商容囚而蹇叔哭。〕
天生天殺，道之理也。
〔良曰：〕
〔機出乎心，如天之生，如天之殺，則生者自謂得其生，死者自謂得其死。〕
天地，萬物之盜；萬物，人之盜；人，萬物之盜。三盜既宜，三才既安。
〔鬼谷子曰：〕
〔三盜者，彼此不覺知，但謂之神。明此三者，況車馬金帛，棄之，可以傾河填海，移山覆地，非命而動，然後應之。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔天地與萬物生成，盜萬物以衰老。萬物與人之服御，盜人以驕奢。人與萬物之上器，盜萬物以毀敗，皆自然而往，三盜各得其宜，三才遞安其任。故曰：食其時，百骸理。動其機，萬化安。〕
〔鬼谷子曰：〕
〔不欲今後代人君，廣斂珍寶，委積金帛，若能棄之，雖傾河填海，未足難也。食者所以治百骸，失其時而生百病。動者所以安萬物，失其機而傷萬物。故曰時之至間，不容瞬息，先之則太過，後之則不及，是以賢者守時，不肖者守命也。〕
人知其神而神，不知其神所以神也。
〔筌曰：〕
〔人皆有聖人之聖，不貴聖人之愚。既睹其聖，又察其愚。既睹其愚，復睹其聖、故《書》曰：專用聰明，則事不成，專用晦昧，則事皆勃。一明一晦，眾之所載。伊尹酒保，太公屠牛，管仲作革，百里奚賣粥，當衰亂之時，人皆謂之不神及乎逢成湯，遭文王，遇齊桓，值秦穆，道濟生靈，功格宇宙，人皆謂之至神。〕
日月有數，大小有定。聖功生焉，神明出焉。
〔鬼谷子曰：〕
〔後代伏思之，則明天地不足貴，而況於人乎？〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔一歲一三百六十五日，日之有數，月次十一二，以積閏大小，餘分有定，皆稟精炁自有，不為聖功神明而生。聖功神明，亦稟精炁自有，不為日月而生。是故成不貴乎天地，敗不怨乎陰陽。〕
其盜機也，天下莫能知。君子得之固躬，小人得之輕命。
〔諸葛亮曰：〕
〔天子太公，豈不賢於孫、吴、韓、白？所以君子小人異之。四子之勇，至於殺身，固不得其主而見殺矣。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔季主凌夷，天下莫見凌夷之機，而莫能知凌夷之源。霸王開國之機，而莫能知開國之源。君子得其機，應天順人，乃固其躬。小人得其機，煩兵黷武，乃輕其命。《易》曰：君子見機而作，不俟終日。又曰，知機其神乎？機者易見而難知，見近知遠。〕
瞽者善聽，聾者善視。絕利一源，用師十倍；
三反晝夜，用師萬倍。
〔尹曰：〕
〔思之精，所以盡其微。〕
〔良曰：〕
〔後代伏思之，耳目之利，絕其一源。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔人之耳目，皆分於心，而竟於神。心分則機不精，神竟則機不微，是以師曠薰目而聰耳，離朱漆耳而明目、任一源之利，而反用師於心，舉事發機，十全成也。退思三反，經晝歷夜，思而後行。舉事發機，萬全成也。〕
〔太公曰：〕
〔目動而心應之，見可則行，見否則止。〕
心生於物，死於物，機在於目。
〔筌曰：〕
〔為天下機者，莫近乎心目。心能發目，目能見機。秦始皇東遊會稽，項羽目見其機，心生於物，謂項良曰：彼可取而代之。晋師畢至於淮淝，符堅目見其機，心死於物，謂符融曰：彼勍敵也，胡為少耶？則知生死之心在乎物，成敗之機見於目焉。〕
天之无恩而大恩生。迅雷烈風，莫不蠢然。
〔良曰：〕
〔熙熙哉。〕
〔太公曰：〕
〔誡懼致福。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔天心无恩，萬物有心，歸恩於天。〕
〔老子曰：〕
〔天地不仁，以萬物為芻狗。聖人不仁，以百姓為芻狗。是以施而不求其報，生而不有其功。及至迅雷烈風，威遠而懼邇。萬物蠢然而懷懼，天无威而懼萬物，萬物有懼而歸威於天。聖人行賞也，无恩於有功。行伐也，无威於有罪。故賞罰自立於上，威恩自行於下也。〕
至樂性餘，至靜性廉。
〔良曰：〕
〔夫機在於是也。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔樂則奢餘，靜則貞康。性餘則神濁，性亷則神清。神者智之泉，神清則智明。智者心之府，智公則心平。人莫鑒於流水，而鑒於澄水，以其清且平。神清意平，乃能形物之情。夫聖人者，不淫於至樂，不安於至靜，能棲神淨樂之間，謂之守中。如此，施利不能誘，聲色不能蕩，辯士不能說，智者不能動，勇者不能懼。見禍於重開之外，慮患於杳冥之內，天且不違，而況於兵之詭道者哉。〕
天之至私，
〔尹曰：〕
〔治極微。〕
用之至公。
〔良曰：〕
〔其機善，雖不令天下而行之。天下所不能知，天下所不能違。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔天道曲成萬物而不遺。椿菌鵬鷃，臣細脩短，各得其所，至私也。雲行雨施，雷電霜霓，生殺之均，至公也。聖人則天法地，養萬民，察勞苦，至私也。行正令，施法象，至公也。〕
〔孫武曰：〕
〔視卒如愛子，可以俱死。視卒如嬰兒，可與之赴深溪。愛而不能令，譬若驕子，是故令之以文，齊之以武。〕
禽之制在炁。
〔太公曰：〕
〔豈以小大而相制哉？〕
〔尹曰：〕
〔炁者天之機。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔玄龜食蟒，鸇隼擊鵠。黃腰啖虎，飛鼠斷猿，蜍蛭嚌魚，狼犿嚙鶴。餘甘柔金，河車服之无窮化玉，雄黃變鐵，有不灰之木，浮水之石。夫禽獸木石得其炁，尚能以小制大，況英雄得其炁，而不能淨寰海而御宇宙也？〕
生者，死之根；死者，生之根。恩生於害，害生於恩。
〔太公曰：〕
〔損己者物愛之，厚己者物薄之。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔謀生者，必先死而後生。習死者，必先生而後死。〕
〔鶡冠子曰：〕
〔不死不生，不斷不成。〕
〔孫武曰：〕
〔投之死地而後生，致之亡地而後存。〕
〔吴起曰：〕
〔兵戰之場，立屍之地，必死則生，幸生則死。恩者害之源，害者恩之源。吴樹恩於越而害生，周立害於殷而恩生。死之與生也，恩之與害相反糺纏也。〕
愚人以天地文理聖，我以時物文理哲 。
〔太公曰：〕
〔觀鳥獸之時，察萬物之變。〕
〔筌曰：〕
〔景星見，黃龍下，翔鳳至，醴泉出，嘉穀生，河不滿溢，海不揚波，日月薄蝕，五星失行，四時相錯，晝冥宵光，山崩川涸，冬雷夏霜，愚人以此天地文理，為理亂之機。文思安安，光被四表，克明俊德，以親九族。六府三事无相奪倫，百穀用成，兆民甩康；昏主邪臣，法令不一，重賦苛政，上下相蒙，懿戚貴臣驕奢淫縱，酣酒嗜音，峻宇雕牆，百姓流亡，思亂怨上。我以此時物文理，為理亂之機也。〕
人以虞愚，我以不虞愚，人以期其聖，我以不期其聖。
〔筌曰：〕
〔賢哲之心，深妙難測。由巢之跡，人或窺之。至於應變无方，自機轉而不窮之智，人豈虞之？以跡度心，乃為愚者也。〕
〔故曰：〕
〔沉水入火，自取滅亡。〕
〔良曰：〕
〔理人自死，理軍亡兵。无死則无不死、无生則無不生，故知乎死生，國家安寧。〕
自然之道靜，故天地萬物生。
〔尹曰：〕
〔靜之至，不知所以生。〕
天地之道浸，故陰陽勝。
〔良曰：〕
〔天地之道，浸微而推勝之。〕
陰陽相推變化順矣。
〔良曰：〕
〔陰陽相推激，至於變化在於目。〕
是故聖人知自然之道不可違之，因而制之。
〔良曰：〕
〔大人見之為自然，英哲見之為制，愚者見之為化。〕
〔尹曰：〕
〔知自然之道，萬物不能違。故利而行之。〕
至净之道，律曆所不能契。
〔良曰：〕
〔觀鳥獸之時，察萬物之變，鳥獸至浄，律曆所不能契，從而機之。〕
爰有奇器，是生萬象。八卦甲子， 萬一决也。 神機鬼藏。
〔良曰：〕
〔六癸為天藏，可以伏藏也。〕
陰陽相勝之術，昭昭乎進乎象矣。
〔亮曰：〕
〔奇器者，聖智也。天垂象，聖人則之。推甲子，畫八卦，考蓍龜，稽律曆，則鬼神之情，陰陽之理，昭著乎象，无不盡矣。〕
〔亮曰：〕
〔八卦之象，申而用之；六十甲子，轉而用之。神出鬼入，萬明一矣。〕
〔良曰：〕
〔萬生萬象者，心也。合藏陰陽之術，日月之數，昭昭乎在人心矣。〕
〔廣成子曰：〕
〔甲子合陽九之數也。卦象出師眾之法，出師以律，動合鬼神，順天應時，而用鬼神之道也。〕

Source Colophon

The Chinese text follows the Chinese Wikisource transcription of the Daoist Canon edition of this text (article 黃帝陰符經集註, revision of 14 August 2019), inspected from a witness copy captured on 8 August 2026. Chinese Wikisource transcriptions are published under CC BY-SA 4.0 and the GFDL; the text itself is ancient and in the public domain. The wiki header and license templates have been removed; the text is otherwise complete and unaltered.

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