Line by Line - Verse 6, Line 3

Its gate, from which at first they issued forth, Is called the root from which grew heaven and earth.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Her gateway is the root of heaven and Earth.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

The gate of the Mystic Female Is called the root of Heaven and Earth
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

(No corresponding line)
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

I sometimes worry that some people may be put off by the seemingly stereotypical gender roles characterized through yin (female) and yang (male). As we have discussed before on this blog, every one of us has both forces in our general make-up, regardless of which gender we consider ourselves.

In terms of this line, Derek Lin writes,

The Mystic Female is the ultimate source of all living things. The ancient Chinese noted that women were responsible for the miracle of life, and therefore had to possess a measure of divine power. They respected this power and regarded it as the basis of existence (the root of Heaven and Earth).

Anytime any of us gives birth to a child OR an idea, we are utilizing our yin. This is as true for a man as it is for a woman.

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