Line by Line - Verse 61, Line 11

in the other case to procuring favor.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

And those who conquer do so because they yield.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

The other uses the lower position to be taken
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

[No corresponding line]
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

Here's Derek Lin's explanation of this line in reference, of course, of the whole verse to this juncture.

"Lower position" means humility. The large country is more powerful and has a lot more resources than small countries do, but if it does not understand or practice the virtue of humility, it will quickly devolve from a well-respected world leader into a despised empire.

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