Line by Line - Verse 51, Lines 6-7

This honoring of the Tao and exalting of its operation is not the result of any ordination, but always a spontaneous tribute.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Respect of Tao and honor of Virtue are not demanded,
But they are in the nature of things.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

The respect for Tao, the value of virtue
Not due to command but to constant nature
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

That's just the way it is.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

As Ron Hogan puts it, we have to respect the unfathomable mysteries of existence because...well...what other choice do we have? If a person wants the possibility to keep on living, then you can't really thumb your nose at the nature of life. If you do, the chances are great that you won't go on living much longer!

Of course, we each die in our own time. It doesn't really matter if a person chooses to believe in death or not. There will come a point -- regardless of our beliefs -- in which the physical organism we each call "me" stops functioning altogether. There is nothing we can do to alter this outcome.

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