Saturday, March 23, 2013

Bit by Bit - Chapter 11, Part 19

Trey Smith

Now the possessor of a state possesses a great thing. Because he possesses a great thing, he cannot be regarded as a mere thing himself. He is a thing, and yet he is not a mere thing; therefore he can treat other things as mere things. He who clearly understands that, in treating other things as mere things, he himself is no longer a mere thing, how could he be content only to govern the hundred clans of the world and do nothing more? He will move in and out of the Six Realms, wander over the Nine Continents, going alone, coming alone. He may be called a Sole Possessor, and a man who is a Sole Possessor may be said to have reached the peak of eminence.
~ Burton Watson translation ~
In this instance, I don't have the foggiest idea what the author's point is! I was lost be the fourth mention of the word, thing.

To view the Index page for this series, go here.

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