Line by Line - Verse 36, Lines 7-8

when he is going to despoil another, he will first have made gifts to him:
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Before receiving
There must be giving.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

If one wishes to seize it
One must first give it
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

To take something,
you must give it up entirely.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

In the Christian Bible, this same sentiment is expressed as "it's better to give than to receive." I would bet that a similar message can be found in the texts of all of the world's great religions and philosophies.

When we give, our efforts are focused outward. When we give in the way Lao Tzu suggests, we give without any expectations of getting something back in return.

Giving also helps us to remember the connections that exist between ourselves and others.

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