“Health is the greatest possession”: did Laozi say it?
Not in the Dao De Jing
No: “Health is the greatest possession” is not in the Dao De Jing; it is verse 204 of the Buddhist Dhammapada, with “non-being” put in place of nirvana.
Health is the greatest possession.
The nearest lines in the Dao De Jing
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知足者富，强行者有志，
Knowing what is enough is wealth; persevering is having will.
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名与身孰亲？
Fame or your life: which is dearer?
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身与货孰多？
Your life or your goods: which is worth more?
Where it comes from
The four lines are Buddhist, not Taoist: they are verse 204 of the Dhammapada, a collection of the Buddha's sayings. Max Müller's translation in The Sacred Books of the East (1881) reads: “Health is the greatest of gifts, contentedness the best riches; trust is the best of relationships, Nirvana the highest happiness.” Stefan Stenudd, who keeps a list of sayings wrongly credited to Laozi, found the circulating wording in Juan Mascaró's Dhammapada (1973), with “nirvana” where the Laozi version has “non-being”, and found it first credited to Laozi in Matthew Reilly's novel The 6 Sacred Stones (2008). The change of one word makes the verse sound Taoist; the Dao De Jing says nothing about health.
What the Dao De Jing says instead
Contentment is the one idea the two books share. Chapter 33: 知足者富, “Knowing what is enough is wealth.” Chapter 44 weighs one's own person against fame and goods: “Fame or your life: which is dearer? Your life or your goods: which is worth more?”