Sacred Text · The Tao Te Ching
Tao Te Ching, chapter 78
Chapter 78 of 81
“There is nothing in the world more soft and weak than water, and yet for attacking things that are firm and strong there is nothing that can take precedence of it;--for there is nothing (so effectual) for which it can be changed. Every one in the world knows that the soft overcomes the hard, and the weak the strong, but no one is able to carry it out in practice. Therefore a sage has said, 'He who accepts his state's reproach, Is hailed therefore its altars' lord; To him who bears men's direful woes They all the name of King accord.' Words that are strictly true seem to be paradoxical.”
Tao Te Ching 78 · Legge
Translation: James Legge (1891), The Tâo Teh King, Sacred Books of the East vol. XXXIX, public domain, via Project Gutenberg (ebook 216). Reproduced in full and in context; chapter 1 and the chapter count (81 chapters) validated against the source before publishing. Legge’s round brackets are his own clarifying insertions.
Christian comparison
How this connects to Jesus
There is nothing in the world more soft and weak than water, and yet for attacking the hard and strong there is nothing that surpasses it. Paul wrote that God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong (1 Corinthians 1:27), and Christians see the ultimate example at the cross, where apparent defeat became the victory that overcame the world.
Explore: Weakness overcomes strengthWhy Jesus?Read the Gospel