Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Line by Line - Verse 76, Line 10

and that of what is soft and weak is above.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

The soft and weak will overcome.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

While the soft and pliant occupy a higher place
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

Here's another:
The meek shall inherit the earth.

~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~
Hold a block of cement and a cup of water, one in each hand. The block of cement feels heavy and strong; the water is light and fluid. The cement can hold back the water...for a time. In the end though, the water will win. It slowly will eat away at the strength of the concrete and, in time, the cement will give out.

If cement in the form of a dam is not consistently refortified, the river will one day breach it.

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

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