Laozi describes water as nourishing all living things without complaint; if humans could only learn water's virtue, they would not be far from finding the Way. Laozi believed that all things spring from the "Way," but also that the Way is present within all things. When the Way is expressed in human life and fulfills its role, it is "power" or "virtue" (de).
老子認為萬物是由「道」產生、但又內在於萬物，當「道」落在個人生命、發揮功能時也就是「德」。