Ratmachines.com

In the whole world, nothing is softer and weaker than water.
And yet for attacking the hard and strong, nothing can beat it,
Because there is nothing you can use to replace it.
That water can defeat the unyielding –
That the weak can defeat the strong –
There is no one in the whole world who doesn't know it,
And yet there is no one who can put it into practice.
For this reason, the words of the Sage say:
To take on yourself the disgrace of the state –
This is called being the lord of the altars of earth and grain;
To assume responsibility for all ill-omened events in the state –
This is called being the king of the world.
Correct words seem to say the reverse of what you expect them to say.