42: Violence Meets a Violent End

42

The Way gave birth to one.
One gave birth to two.
Two gave birth to three.
Three gave birth to all things.
All things carry yin and embrace yang.
They reach harmony by blending with the vital breath.
What people loathe the most
Is to be orphaned, desolate, unworthy.
But this is what princes and kings call themselves.
Sometimes gain comes from losing,
And sometimes loss comes from gaining.
What others have taught, I also teach:
The forceful and violent will not die from natural causes.
This will be my chief doctrine.

Violence Meets a Violent End

This chapter consists of two parts, which have so little to do with one another that they were surely not originally intended to be combined...

Here is my full commentary on this Tao Te Ching chapter:
Tao Te Ching Chapter 42 Translation and Commentary