Line by Line - Verse 37, Lines 5-6

If this transformation became to me an object of desire, I would express the desire by the nameless simplicity.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

If they still desired to act,
They would return to the simplicity of formless substance.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Transformed, yet wishing to achieve
I shall restrain them with the simplicity of the nameless
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

Even if they wanted to make their own changes,
they'd be drawn back to Tao's nameless simplicity.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

In yesterday's Line by Line post, I asked how would life be different if we each decided to live our lives by our internal nature? I think the only honest answer is that we don't know. We are so far removed from the possibility that it is hard to envision.

While it may indeed be hard to imagine, that does provide us with an excuse NOT to move that direction. If only one person could accomplish this feat, imagine the kind of role model they would be!

To view the Index page for this series to see what you may have missed or would like to read again, go here.