Chapter 9 of the Laozi

Chinese Text

持chí而ér盈yíng之zhī， 不bù如rú其qí已yǐ。
揣chuǎi而ér锐ruì之zhī， 不bù可kě长cháng保bǎo。
金jīn玉yù满mǎn堂táng， 莫mò之zhī能néng守shǒu。
富fù贵guì而ér骄jiāo， 自zì遗yí其qí咎jiù。
功gōng成chéng名míng遂suì身shēn退tuì， 天tiān之zhī道dào也yě。
 

Translation

It is better not to fill a vessel than to try to hold it when it is full.
If one sharpens a blade and tests it with the hand, it cannot be kept constantly sharp.
If a hall is filled with gold and jade, no one can keep them.
If one is wealthy and honored but becomes arrogant, one will bring misfortune upon oneself.
When one has accomplished great deeds and gained fame, it is best to withdraw.
Such is the way of Heaven.

Notes

Lit. "Holding both sides and filling it: it is better to refrain"; that is, it is better not to fill a vessel than to try to hold it with both hands when it is full. This construction is recommended by G, who adds that ancient books offer many such phrases where the word order is reversed. Ibid.: This refers to the action of holding a full vessel on both sides for fear it might overflow.

蘇子由 Sū Zǐyóu: If one knows that a vessel filled to the brim is bound to overflow and tries to hold it from both sides, the safest course is not to fill it at all.

B: This entire chapter should be taken figuratively. H: 老子 Lǎozǐ wants to show the danger one faces by always advancing without knowing when to stop. To better illustrate this truth, E uses comparisons drawn from easily observable objects.

Lit. "Feeling with the hand and sharpening it." The word order must be reversed (G), as in the previous sentence, and translated literally as: "sharpening and feeling it," meaning to test a blade with one's finger after sharpening it.

G: The word 揣 chuǎi means "to test the blade with the hand to adjust the sharpness for fear it might become dull."

劉思遠 Liú Sīyuǎn: When one sharpens a weapon, it is bound to become dull. It is better (says 蘇子由 Sū Zǐyóu) not to rely on the precaution of testing the edge with one's finger; it is better (says 劉季甫 Liú Jìfǔ) not to sharpen the weapon at all. E: If you keep increasing the sharpness of the blade, it will become too thin and break easily.

Commentator B interprets the words 常保 cháng bǎo "to keep constantly" differently. According to him, this passage means that even if one takes the precaution of testing a sharpened blade with one's hand, one cannot constantly avoid cuts and injuries; it is better to be careful not to use it. Then, he says, one will not be exposed to such danger.

B: There will come a time when it will be exhausted. Is it possible to keep such wealth constantly and not lose it?

E: The author means that one cannot keep one's wealth and honors. I follow commentator B, who explains 自貽 zì yí as 自取 zì qǔ "to bring something upon oneself."

B: When a hero has accomplished great feats and gained fame, he must realize that life is like a fleeting dream, and that wealth and honors are like clouds floating in the air. He must, when the time comes, cut the ties of affection that bind him, escape his earthly prison, and soar beyond all creatures to identify with the 道 Dào.

A: All things decline and wither when they reach their peak. Extreme joy turns to sorrow, and one often falls from the height of glory into disgrace. Ibid.: When the sun reaches its zenith, it descends toward the west; when the moon is full, it wanes.