Daodejing Chapter 24: like leftover food and excess fat

You cannot keep
Standing on tiptoe.
You cannot keep
Walking in strides.
Anyone who shows off
Does not stand out.
Anyone who flaunts self
Does not shine.
Anyone who boasts
Achieves nothing.
Anyone who brags
Does not last.
In the view of the Dao,
They are like leftover food
And excess fat.
They are to be abhorred.
Followers of the Dao avoid them.

「企者不立，跨者不行。自見者不明，自是者不彰；自伐者無功，自誇者不長。其於道也，曰：餘食贅行。物或惡之，故有道者不處。」

Chapter 24 of the Daodejing expresses very similar sentiments to those in Chapter 22, though with an even more acerbic sting in the tail in which serial self-promoters are likened to “leftover food and excess fat.” No wonder it concludes by saying: “They are to be abhorred. Followers of the Dao avoid them.”

Beneath the caustic criticism, Laozi is warning of the unintended consequences of egotistical behavior. Instead of wowing others with your self-proclaimed brilliance, you risk alienating them with your insufferable arrogance. Just like the hare that ended up losing to the tortoise, you end up snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Better to remain humble and calm and let your actions do the talking.

Laozi must have seen more than his fair share of such posers in his position as head librarian for the Eastern Zhou Dynasty court. Let’s hope that he is right in suggesting that moderation has its own rewards.

Note
I took this image at Longhu (Dragon Tiger) Mountain, a famous Daoist site about ten miles south of Yingtan in Jiangxi Province. A great place to visit!