Original text:
It is better to persist than to have it; If you are sharp, you can't keep it for long.
Happy from now on, can't keep it; Being rich and arrogant is to blame.
When retiring, heaven is also.
Translation:
Instead of holding excess, it is better to stop loss in time; It's hard to stay sharp for a long time when you show your edge.
Since then, I have been happy and can't stay in Tibet; If wealth is arrogant,
I left that. If a thing is done satisfactorily, it must be tolerant and convergent.
This conforms to the laws of nature.
The income of the Enlightenment:
Laozi said, "It is better to stick to it than to be yourself". It means "it is better to stop at the right time than to hold on to the surplus." Here, Lao Tzu wants to warn the world not to be complacent and conceited about the power position he has gained, but to be able to control his heart and not to lose his heart because of these external things.
"If you are sharp, you can't keep it for long." If you are too sharp, you will only lose everything you got earlier. Just like "happily ever after", showing off your wealth to others will inevitably attract thieves or people with a heart to steal it, and eventually "can't keep it".
If you are too proud of your wealth and feel superior, such behavior will only disgust the world, and eventually you will not only lose what you have, but also be abandoned by the world. These are the bane of your arrogance.
When you have reached the height of success and enjoyed the fruits of success, you should consider how to retreat instead of being greedy. This is in line with the laws of nature.
Ancient and modern, Chinese and foreign:
How many people can live forever? The final result depends on how you look at fame and fortune. People who are greedy for fame and fortune often push their luck. There is a proverb called "the heart is willing, but the strength is weak, and the snake swallows the elephant." It is precisely for this reason that people who rely on their own talents and pride are always sharp-edged, showing off everywhere, and eventually bringing disaster.
In this chapter, Lao Tzu constantly reminds the world to be indifferent to the fame and fortune in the world, to succeed without pretending to be lofty, to gallop away, and to "retire after success." Just as Ouyang Xiu, a writer in the Song Dynasty, wrote in The Fisherman's Passion, "Retire after success, resign after honor and disgrace, and sing for a hundred years", which embodies the truth of "Retire after success, stay for a long time and never stop".