Line by Line - Verse 59, Line 6

Of this subjugation we know not what shall be the limit;
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

If nothing is impossible, then there are no limits.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

When there is nothing that one cannot overcome
One's limits are unknown
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

If you get right with Tao,
there's no limit to what you can do.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

In many ways, we live our lives as if we lived inside of a cardboard box. We can move and explore this way and that until we reach one of the sides. At that point, we turn around to repeat the process until we encounter another side of the box. We possess the freedom to go and do what we please as long as we stay in this cardboard container.

And what is the box? It is the laws and mores of society. More than that, it is the acceptable ways of thinking and imagining. The box is constructed by our political, economic, religious and social institutions -- we unwittingly help to build the boxes we each are confined in!

But what if we are able to free our heart-minds so that we no longer see the dimensions of the box? No top, bottom or sides. Our potential would be limitless.

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