Line by Line - Verse 34, Line 3

When its work is accomplished, it does not claim the name of having done it.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

It fulfills its purpose silently and makes no claim.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

It achieves its work, but does not take credit
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

Everything needs Tao,
so Tao provides,
and never takes credit for its work.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

Unlike the Abrahamic religions -- in which the deity continually puffs out his chest and demands, "Look at me! Look at me!" -- the Taoist view is that whatever it is that sustains existence is anonymous. It has operated throughout the cosmos as long as there has been a cosmos.

We can't put our finger on what it is. We can neither define nor describe it. We don't even know if "it" IS an it. All [we think] we do know is that we are here surrounded by other beings and forms in this web we call life.

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