Line by Line - Verse 33, Line 2

he who knows himself is intelligent.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Knowing the self is enlightenment.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Those who understand themselves are enlightened
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

but knowing yourself makes you wise.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

While coming to understand what makes other people tick is a definite skill, me thinks it is impossible to accomplish until a person truly understands their own self.

One of the key concepts of philosophical Taoism is that each of us represents a microcosm of the world. If we aren't able to understand what makes us tick, how in the heck can we genuinely understand what motivates other people?

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