“Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power”: did Laozi say it?
Genuine: chapter 33
Yes: “Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power” is Stephen Mitchell's version of the second line of chapter 33 of the Dao De Jing, 胜人者有力，自胜者强.
Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.
What the Dao De Jing says
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胜人者有力，自胜者强。
Overcoming others takes force; overcoming yourself is strength.
What the Chinese says
胜人者有力: “one who overcomes people has force”. 自胜者强: “one who overcomes oneself is strong”. 力 is physical force, muscle; 强 is strength that holds. Our translation: “Overcoming others takes force; overcoming yourself is strength.” James Legge (1891): “He who overcomes others is strong; he who overcomes himself is mighty.”
How translations differ
胜 is to win, to overcome, as in a battle. “Mastering” is Mitchell's word, and it is a fair one. The ranking is the same as in the line before: the first half is not wrong, only lesser. Mitchell again adds “true” to the second half to show it. A looser version, “He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still”, also circulates; Stefan Stenudd traces it to Archie J. Bahm's interpretation (1958).
The line in its chapter
It follows “Knowing others is wisdom; knowing yourself is clarity” and comes before “Knowing what is enough is wealth”. Chapter 33 is a list of such pairs, each turning from what one does to others to what one does with oneself.