22. Bending to Become Whole
Text
English translation
Original Chinese text
曲则全,枉则直,洼则盈,弊则新,少则得,多则惑。
English translation
Bend, and you remain whole; yield, and you become straight; stay low, and you are filled; wear out, and you are renewed; have little, and you gain; pursue too much, and you become confused.
These reversals suggest that accepting limits and leaving room can preserve and renew us, while grasping at excess clouds judgment.
Original Chinese text
是以圣人抱一为天下式。
English translation
Therefore, the sage holds to the one and becomes a model for the world.
To “hold to the one” is to stay grounded in an undivided guiding principle instead of being scattered by competing desires and opinions.
Original Chinese text
不自见,故明;不自是,故彰;不自伐,故有功;不自矜,故长。
English translation
Not putting himself on display, he is clearly seen; not insisting that he is right, he stands out; not boasting of himself, he has real achievement; not exalting himself, he endures.
Ability and accomplishment do not need constant self-promotion. When self-importance recedes, genuine worth becomes easier for others to recognize.
Original Chinese text
夫唯不争,故天下莫能与之争。
English translation
Precisely because he does not contend, no one in the world can contend with him.
A person who does not make defeating others the goal is not trapped in endless rivalry and cannot be overcome on rivalry’s own terms.
Original Chinese text
古之所谓曲则全者,岂虚言哉!
English translation
Was the ancient saying “bend and remain whole” ever an empty phrase?
The chapter returns to its opening claim: flexibility and yielding are not weakness, but practical ways to remain intact amid change.
Original Chinese text
诚全而归之。
English translation
Truly, one remains whole, and all things return to such a person.
By remaining flexible and free from contention, one preserves oneself and earns a trust that draws others naturally.