Line by Line - Verse 2, Line 8

and that being before and behind give the idea of one following another.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Front and back follow one another.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Front and back follow each other
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

And something else came first, so this must be next.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

Of these several lines of comparison and contrast, this is my favorite. For me, it best describes a circle, one line continually flowing.

There is no start point. There is no end point. There is only constant movement that flows unto itself.

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