Line by Line - Verse 21, Line 7

Now it is so; 'twas so of old.
Its name -- what passes not away;
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

From the very beginning until now its name has never been forgotten.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

From ancient times to the present
Its name never departs
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

That's the way it's been, ever since the world began.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

At the root of all philosophy and religion is mystery: life, death and everything in between.

As Derek Lin states:

One of the mysteries of the Tao is the essence of life. How exactly does life arise from inorganic -- lifeless -- material? This is something we still do not understand. How exactly did we -- life forms not so different from others on this planet -- become self-aware? This is another mystery that seems forever to remain just one step beyond comprehension.

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