Line by Line - Verse 22, Lines 15-16

from self-complacency, and therefore he acquires superiority.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Not bragging,
They never falter.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Without boasting about themselves – and so are lasting
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

She hasn't got an agenda
but people know what she can do.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

How often do we place ourselves in a hole by trying to live up to our own self-advertised expectations? It is when we allow our over-stuffed egos to sit in the driver's seat that we oversell our abilities and knowledge.

Life can be difficult enough as it is. There always are new mountains to climb and raging rivers to ford. When we engage in self-aggrandizement we make those mountains higher and those rivers wider than they need be.

When we accept the lay of the land as is, we are able to tackle whatever needs tackling without expending undue amounts of time and energy attempting to overcome our own hubris. The person who doesn't brag on themselves doesn't need to climb over their own carcass to get the job done.

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