Line by Line - Verse 31, Line 11

On occasions of festivity to be on the left hand is the prized position;
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

On happy occasions precedence is given to the left,
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Auspicious events favor the left
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

(No corresponding line)
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

According to Derek Lin,

The ancient Chinese observed that it was usually the right hand that wielded weapons, so they associated the right side with violence and the left with peace.

Since "auspicious events" are those that we describe as favorable and/or happy, it should not be surprising that these are the ones allied with peace.

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