Line by Line - Verse 13, Lines 7-9

And what is meant by saying that honour and great calamity are to be (similarly) regarded as personal conditions? What makes me liable to great calamity is my having the body (which I call myself); if I had not the body, what great calamity could come to me?
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

What do you mean by "Accept misfortune as the human condition"? Misfortune comes from having a body. Without a body, how could there be misfortune?
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

What does "the greatest misfortune is the self" mean? The reason I have great misfortune Is that I have the self If I have no self What misfortune do I have?
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

What does "confidence can mess you up just as much as fear" mean? Fear can keep you from getting the job done, but confidence can get you in over your head. Walk tall, but don't get cocky.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

Whether one views this line from the standpoint of a body or a self, I think most of us would agree that what Lao Tzu is thinking of is a form (being). It is because of this form that we go through the stages of birth, life, death and whatever, if anything, comes after that.

If we were formless, then what could befall us? If we were desireless, what could tempt us? If we were emotionless, what could stir us?

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