Line by Line - Verse 22, Line 3

the empty, full;
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Empty and be full;
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Be low and become filled
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

If you want wisdom, empty your mind.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

While Lao Tzu's comparisons often utilize the paradox, I don't consider this line to fall into that category. For me, this image is very rational and straightforward. Simply put, if you fill something that already is full, it generally won't become full-er. No, you merely end up spilling the excess and/or destroying the object.

Take, for example, a birthday balloon. You can only fill it with so much air. If you blow in a bit too much air, it will pop in your face. Now, there is no balloon at all. Repeat this process enough times and the birthday boy or girl will be none too happy. :-(

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