36 將欲歙之 必固張之

老子道德經第三十六章

將欲歙之　必固張之
將欲弱之　必固強之
將欲廢之　必固舉之
將欲取之　必固與之

是謂微明　柔弱勝剛強
魚不可脫於淵
國之利器　不可以示人

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THIRTY-SIX

That which shrinks
Must first expand.
That which fails
Must first be strong.
That which is cast down
Must first be raised.
Before receiving
There must be giving.

This is called perception of the nature of things.
Soft and weak overcome hard and strong.

Fish cannot leave deep waters,
And a country's weapons should not be displayed.

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36.
(this one seems quite pointless to me. it might has something to do with military strategies. the recent few tao verses i am reading are about war and weapons, but these days i am learning about st. augustine and love. maybe it's time to quit tao for a while. or, to gain insight of tao, quit it first....)

To close something, open it first.
To weaken something, strengthen it first.
To abandon something, proclaim it first.
To claim something, give it away first.

This is the highest wisdom:
Weak and soft overcome strong and hard.
Fish cannot leave water.
Don't show your weapon to others.