Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.

The saying contrasts two complementary effects of love. To be loved “deeply” can steady a person—providing reassurance, resilience, and a sense of support that translates into strength. To love “deeply,” by contrast, asks for vulnerability and commitment; it can impel action despite fear, which is framed as courage. Although widely attributed to Laozi, the sentiment aligns only loosely with themes associated with Daoist thought (softness, receptivity, and the power of yielding). In modern circulation it functions more as a reflective aphorism about relational reciprocity than as a doctrinal Daoist teaching.