Line by Line - Verse 61, Lines 6-7

Thus it is that a great state, by condescending to small states, gains them for itself;
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Therefore if a great country gives way to a smaller country,
It will conquer the smaller country.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Thus if the large country is lower than the small country
Then it can take the small country
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

If you yield to someone
less powerful than yourself,
you will be in a position
to influence them.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

In all candor, were it not for Ron Hogan's rendition, these two lines have puzzled me for some time. They certainly do not describe the way modern conquest plays out. For example, the US doesn't lower itself, it overwhelms the opposition with numbers and force!

But Hogan's way of viewing these lines makes a lot of sense to me.

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