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Tao Te Ching

by Lao Tzu, Gia-Fu Feng (Translator), Jane English (Translator)

4.32 of 5 stars 4.32 · rating details · 37,669 ratings · 1,581 reviews

The Tao Te Ching has served as a personal road map for
millions of people. It is said that its words reveal the underlying principles that govern the world in which we live. Holding to the laws of nature, drawing from the essence of what all things are, it offers both a moral compass and an internal balance.
A fundamental book of the Taoist, the Tao Te Ching is regarded as a

...more

Paperback, 25th anniversary , 184 pages

Published March 4th 1997 by Vintage (first published November 23rd 1988)

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Nov 19, 2012 Eddie Watkins rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

There are many translations of the Taoteching, nearly every one of which is probably worth reading, but this is my favorite version. I can’t attest to the accuracy of the translation, but having read so many different translations of the same text I feel like in some strange way I have a grasp of the original; as if a blank space (the Chinese original) has been given shape and definition by all the English versions surrounding it. But anyway... while I like the spare sensitivity of the language...more There are many translations of the Taoteching, nearly every one of which is probably worth reading, but this is my favorite version. I can’t attest to the accuracy of the translation, but having read so many different translations of the same text I feel like in some strange way I have a grasp of the original; as if a blank space (the Chinese original) has been given shape and definition by all the English versions surrounding it. But anyway... while I like the spare sensitivity of the language in this version, what makes this version extra special are the added bonuses: an engagingly detailed introduction exploring the life of Lao Tzu, what amounts to an original thesis on the very meaning of “tao”, and commentaries (on specific lines, even specific words) appended to each of the 81 entries that have been culled from centuries upon centuries of critical commentary, by scholars and eccentric mystics alike.

There is recent scholarship that is making the argument that instead of meaning “way” or “path”, which is usually taken to mean how we as people conduct ourselves in accordance with a mysterious spiritual principle, that “tao” actually refers to the Moon and its various phases and paths in space, with particular emphasis on the darkness of the new moon and its significance as potential in darkness. The new moon “hides” its fullness. The fullness is there in potential, unspent. I like this. There’s something pleasingly primitive about it (gimme that old-time religion!), i.e. something real and tangibly mysterious, but also something practical and spiritual – a connector between eye and heart that through some subtle gravity guides our feet along a path.

The commentaries that follow each poem or entry are fascinating and just scratch the surface of what I understand is a vast accumulation of scholarship on this text. The commentaries are often wildly contradictory and tangential, obsessive to an anal nth degree, but also at times wise in their own right. These commentaries have been written by official scholars, by mendicant monks, and even one or two extreme eccentrics living on the fringes of society unaffiliated with any institution. At the back of the book are short biographies of each commentator, which is fascinating reading in itself. It all adds up to evidence that this is a living book, with enough clear and direct meaning to be perpetually valid, and enough obscurity to be endlessly pondered.

The translator is an American who goes by the name Red Pine. He’s almost 70 now and has been a practicing Buddhist for years, but more in the wandering independent scholar Gary Snyder type style. He’s also translated the Diamond Sutra, poems of Han Shan (Cold Mountain) and Stonehouse, and some other Buddhist texts. In every work of his I’ve read there’s serious scholarship in evidence, but also a free spirit and independent thinker with a unique store of fresh air.
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Mar 13, 2010 Monk rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Philosophers, Followers of Eastern Thought

Shelves: philosophy, required_reading

This is, by far, my favorite translation of the Tao Te Ching. I own a few others and they're all well and good, but this one is the one I continually read from and refer to when people ask me about the Tao.

The translation is well done, it captures the nature of the text well, and it flows fairly evenly. It's not overly flowery or ornate, it gives you the basics of what you need to understand the various entries and assist in understanding what Tao is (i.e. the the Tao named Tao is not the great,...more

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Jan 28, 2012 Kat Lowe rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: being-human

I first read this some time during the 80's, and found its eastern view of the world delightfully different. I particularly recall reading a passage that admonished against war:

"Even the best weapon
is an unhappy tool,
hateful to living things.
So the follower of the Way
stays away from it."

It reminded me of a scene in Dune where young Paul has just survived a grown man's challenge to a duel to the death, and Paul's mother (Jessica) compressed ultimate scorn into her voice and manner, to say: "Well-...more

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Jun 28, 2007 Gerry rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm an unbeliever and have been since the first time I played hooky from Sunday services and the Eye in the Sky didn’t say boo. So it may seem strange that I’m reviewing the Tao Te Ching, the widely known and influential Taoist text, written by Lao-Tzu and poetically translated in this edition by Stephen Mitchell. For me, the Tao Te Ching is more folk wisdom than religious treatise and is more useful than a million sermons.

Where the Tao Te Ching parts company with religious attempts at morality...more

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Dec 15, 2011 Reham Mohssen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

عاش معلم الزن ريوكان فى كوخ متواضع عند سفح الجبل ,فى إحدى الأمسيات دخل الكوخ لص فوجد المكان خاليا ً من أى شئ له قيمة, وبينما وهو خارج من الباب أمسك به ريوكان الذى وصل لتوه من الخارج وقال له :- لقد أتعبت نفسك فى الوصول غلى هذا المكان النائى لتجده فارغاً , وإنه ليعز على أن أتركك تذهب خالِ الوفاض , إليك ثوبى هدية , تسمر اللص مكانه ذاهلا بينما كان ريوكان يخلع ثوبه ويقدمه إليه , وفى غمرة إرتباكه أخذ الثوب وولى هارباً , جلس ريوكان عارياً تقريباً قبالة النافذة يرقب القمر الذى توسطها , ثم هز رأسه قائلاً...more

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Oct 13, 2012 Bettie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: philosophy, lifestyles-deathstyles, fraudio, re-read, autumn-2012, translation, paper-read, china, nonfiction

Dover Pub translation and commentary by James Legg

The Tâo that can br trodden on is not the enduring and unchanging Tâo

Bling is not a Tâo thing
War the Tâo does abhor

---------------------------------------------------
Fraudio: translated by Gia-fu Feng and Jane English

narrated by Jacob Needleman

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Jun 07, 2007 trivialchemy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: philosophy, antiquity

The book that can be reviewed is not the constant book.

The review which reviews can be neither full of review nor lacking.

But as the river changes course over seasons must the reviewer neither review nor not review, but follow the constant review.

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Apr 15, 2010 Bruce rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm always reading this little book containing the essence of wisdom. For years I've read it again and again, one chapter every morning.

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Feb 13, 2010 Alex rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: achievers, lost souls, curious

To a Westerner, the Tao Te Ching presents another perspective for understanding meaning and effectiveness. For example, the Tao Te Ching shows how movement towards progress creates movement against progress, "Do not exalt the worthy, and the people will not compete... Do not display objects of desire, and the people's minds will not be disturbed. Therefore the ordering of the sage empties their minds, fills their bellies... and causes the wise ones not to dare to act. He does nothing, and there...more

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Dec 08, 2011 Jeremy added it · review of another edition

Shelves: philosophy

This has got to be one of the most perennially beguiling, elliptical things ever written. And it seems all the more mysterious to me because so much of it is couched as this extremely practical, almost Machiavellian political advice. Having been schooled entirely in the western intellectual tradition, with its notions of hierarchy, dualism and progression (historical, socio/cultural or otherwise), this was a complete mind-fuck to me. It sort of reminds me of Heidegger, with those really crazy, c...more

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Jul 24, 2010 soheila rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

حواست را نادیده بگیر
زندگی ات را فراموش کن
گره هایت راباز کن
نگاهت را نرم و لطیف کن
و گرد و خاکت را بتکان
این هویت اصلی توست
چون تائو باش

فرزانه هنگام غم آرام باقی می ماند
بدی به دل او راهی ندارد
چون کمک کردن را ترک کرده
بزرگترین کمک کننده است

شکست یک فرصت است
اگر دیگری را مقصر بدانی
پایانی برای مقصر دانستن دیگران وجود نخواهد داشت
فرزانه به وظایفش عمل می کند
و اشتباهاتش را اصلاح می نماید
او آنچه ضروری است را به انجام می رساند
و از دیگران چیزی طلب نمی کند

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Aug 29, 2007 Evan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The description of this book is wrong:

"Like Stephen Mitchell, acclaimed author and poet Ursula K. Le Guin has attempted a nonliteral, poetic rendition of the Tao Te Ching"

It's nothing like Mitchell's pretty but totally opaque translation. LeGuin gives you readable ideas, arguments in poetry, a philosophy to ponder. Of all the translations I have encountered, this is the only one that gives you a point of entry into the rich treasury of ideas in the Tao Te Ching.

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Nov 15, 2011 Heidi Parton rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This version irritates me a lot, largely because of Stephen Mitchell's arrogance in writing it (I'll go into that in a bit). This is not a translation (which Mitchell was at least gracious enough to make clear in the back of the book); it's a translation of various translations. The problem with this is that a translation of a translation turns out the same way that a copy of a copy does: while some of the original words and phrases are identifiable, there's a lot that's lost or skewed.

For examp...more This version irritates me a lot, largely because of Stephen Mitchell's arrogance in writing it (I'll go into that in a bit). This is not a translation (which Mitchell was at least gracious enough to make clear in the back of the book); it's a translation of various translations. The problem with this is that a translation of a translation turns out the same way that a copy of a copy does: while some of the original words and phrases are identifiable, there's a lot that's lost or skewed.

For example, here is a good translation of the first line of Ch. 3 by D.C. Lau: "Not to honor men of worth will keep the people from contention."

Stephen Mitchell's translation of the same line is: "If you overesteem great men, / people become powerless."

The original Wang Bi character in question is 爭, or zhēng, which means "dispute," "strive," "contend," "fight," etc. It does not mean "powerless." By free-handing the translation, Mitchell alters the meaning of the text. While it doesn't damage the understanding of someone already familiar with Taoism and its literature, it does mislead those new to Taoism who seek an authentic introductory text to understand the philosophy.

As I mentioned above, what really irritates me is Mitchell's arrogance regarding his version of the text versus the original Chinese versions and the translations that more closely adhere to their meaning. In the question-and-answer section located in the back of the book, the querent says: "But it's one thing to translate Rilke and the Book of Job when you read German and Hebrew; it's quite another to translate books like the Tao Te Ching, the Bhagavad Gita, or Gilgamesh without any knowledge of the original languages." Mitchell's response is: "Yes, it's a different kind of venture, but not so different as you might think. Of course, I wouldn't dare work with a text that I didn't feel deeply connected to--I used to speak of my 'umbilical connection' to Lao-tzu. I had discovered the Tao Te Ching shortly before I began Zen training in 1973." Later, the querent asks: "You knew what Lao-tzu was talking about, through direct experience [in Zen meditation] of your own?" And Mitchell replies: "That's where my confidence came from." Essentially, Mitchell is claiming that his text is authentic because of his felt spiritual connection to its author, rather than it being an accurate translation of the text. But isn't the best translation one that is authentic on multiple levels, emotionally and literally? However, if I had to choose, I'd rather read a translation that is accurate and discover the emotional resonance on my own. Also, FYI: Zen is a school of Buddhism, not Taoist, though it was influenced by Taoism. They share some similar values and qualities, but they are distinct.

Mitchell continues: "There was also the excitement of the aesthetic challenge. Some calculated that by 1986 there were 102 translations of the Tao Te Ching into English alone. I had read six or seven of them, and although I loved the content, the language was mediocre at best: not much poetry in it, not much sparkle. This may sound arrogant too, and irrational. How can you fall in love with a book whose actual words bore you? But that's what happened." This sentiment, I think, is the source of all the problems I have with the text. It's completely non-Taoist. If Mitchell had paid attention to even his version of the last chapter, 81, which reads: "True words aren't eloquent; / eloquent words aren't true," he would have seen the folly of his approach. Instead, he decided that he'd rather cut entire paragraphs, rearrange the remaining words, and even alter the meaning to better suit his aesthetic values. His disregard for accuracy and his preference for his concept of beauty over truth not only shows a complete lack of respect for the text, the tradition and its culture of origin; it's also just not scholarly.

Another interesting admission made by Mitchell is that he spent only four months writing this version. "By contrast," he says, "it had taken me seventeen years to finish my translation of the Book of Job. So, obviously, I was getting more focused, or more efficient..." I disagree with him there--it's not obvious to me that he was any more focused or more efficient. The vast difference in time spent translating Job and rewriting the Tao Te Ching instead tells me that he worked very hard to faithfully render the former and just cobbled together the latter. Mitchell actually reads and understands Hebrew, so it's likely that he was aware of the nuances of the language and therefore understood the importance of accurately rendering the text into English. Mitchell doesn't read any Chinese. If the language is incomprehensible to him, how can he possibly grasp the nuances of the characters in order to accurately translate them for others?

This isn't to say that his version is completely wrong. Many sections are fairly accurate (like the line in Ch. 81 that I mentioned above). But there are also many places in his text that are inaccurate to the point of misconstruing the core concepts of the belief system.

So if you're new to Taoism and are looking for a translation that accurately communicates Taoist beliefs and sensibilities, I suggest that you go somewhere else. There are many other translations that more accurately render the Tao Te Ching in English. Each has its own particular "flavor" and may contain slightly different words or rhythms, but most aim to faithfully present an accurate translation of the text that, while not serving every culture's aesthetic requirements, is very beautiful in its own way and has a lot of wisdom to offer, regardless of cultural and generational differences in taste. Here's a good website to get you started: http://wengu.tartarie.com/wg/wengu.ph... The site provides not only several different translations, but also the original Wang Bi text with translations of each character.

If, however, you're already familiar with the Tao Te Ching and other Taoist literature, Mitchell's book at least serves as a good example of Taoism's effect on contemporary American culture.(less)

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Mar 08, 2009 James rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: philosophy, spiritual, study-group

The Tao Te Ching is a book that cannot be read directly. Unfortunately, I have little experience reading books indirectly, so I found this a difficult book to read, end even more difficult to discern what was being said by the author.
A friend told me that he thought Heraclitus, the Greek pre-Socratic philosopher, was somewhat like Lao Tzu. Heraclitus said "you can't step in the same river twice". He believed that reality was a flux composed of a unity of opposites. I suppose it is possible to c...more The Tao Te Ching is a book that cannot be read directly. Unfortunately, I have little experience reading books indirectly, so I found this a difficult book to read, end even more difficult to discern what was being said by the author.
A friend told me that he thought Heraclitus, the Greek pre-Socratic philosopher, was somewhat like Lao Tzu. Heraclitus said "you can't step in the same river twice". He believed that reality was a flux composed of a unity of opposites. I suppose it is possible to consider Lao Tzu's "the way" in this manner and see it as a unifying force. I liken it to the ancient Greek notion of substance that underlies all things but does not have a separate existence.

The Tao te Ching seems to suggest action is good, except when inaction is required; that it is good to experience things with an open mind, but do not become too attached to one way of looking at reality for it may suddenly be going in the other direction. In other words, it is difficult to determine exactly what this book is saying, especially when it suggests that words cannot describe the way; thus the way is not that which is called by that name (don't worry - I don't know what that means either).

The best thing about the Tao te Ching is that the act of reading it stirs your mind, gets you thinking about deep questions and others. That alone makes it worth the effort, even though it may take a lifetime to make some progress toward answers.

Perhaps it is appropriate to turn to a twentieth century poet and thinker for some Tao-like advice. Here is a stanza from "Burnt Norton"

At the still point of the turning world. Neither flesh nor fleshless;
Neither from nor towards; at the still point, there the dance is,
But neither arrest nor movement. And do not call it fixity,
Where past and future are gathered. Neither movement from nor towards,
Neither ascent nor decline. Except for the point, the still point,
There would be no dance, and there is only the dance.
I can only say, there we have been: but I cannot say where.
And I cannot say, how long, for that is to place it in time.

T. S. Eliot, FOUR QUARTETS

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May 27, 2008 Poo1987 Roykaew rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: imaginative patient book worms

Ancient poems contain numerous interesting things, pleasure of silent air; coolness of still water; beauty of trees; perfume of blossom; riches of emotion; and the most important thing, brightness of wisdom. What does appear to the readers depends on their ways of interpretation. It is, in my opinion, the law of philosophy.

Tao Te Ching is not good for ones impatient and unimaginative. Short and complex, but sound-like-mad poems might bore you easily. I don't advise you using it for studying in c...more Ancient poems contain numerous interesting things, pleasure of silent air; coolness of still water; beauty of trees; perfume of blossom; riches of emotion; and the most important thing, brightness of wisdom. What does appear to the readers depends on their ways of interpretation. It is, in my opinion, the law of philosophy.

Tao Te Ching is not good for ones impatient and unimaginative. Short and complex, but sound-like-mad poems might bore you easily. I don't advise you using it for studying in classes, excepting in the university's, which causes a limitation and boredom. It might be good to read in a day relieved, alone and undisturbed by noise, floating along with words, rhythms and images.

What a core, if it has, idea of Tao is, from my perspective, a nothingness, not an emptiness, of things. World moves, men move, creatures move, everthing is a mixture of each other. Essence is not certain and fixed, movable and unending. Tao is things, in things, but in none. Tao appears everywhere, but appears nowhere. Quite puzzled?!? HA-HA

Anyway, What I said I did not want to confuse you. Reading Tao Te Ching is eye-and-mind opening. You have an opportunity to think something different you never do in your daily life (my friend once said he thought Lao Tzu had been mad, it is very humourous interesting view, you know, it is not wrong that you think he was mad, why was he not able a mad man?). Pleasure you get is telling that life does not simple, it is hard to freeze an explaination in one way. Different aspects of observation evaluate values of democracy and diversity. It also strenghtens mind not being sensitive of difference, such as different clothes, life styles and religions. There is nothing ought to be killed, whether it is bacause for nations, political ideologies, or 'holy guys'. One depends on others. Nothing is simply torn apart. There is black, also is white. Without black, white is impossible. No death. No life. They indentify each others, no one survives without the Other. Two parts in one coin. Nothing except, including kings and monks. It is the law.(less)

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Feb 06, 2008 Rob rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: aspiring sages

Shelves: non-fiction-for-humans

highlights:
3 - not collecting treasures prevents stealing.
13- accept disgrace willingly
23- he who does not trust will not be trusted
46- he who knows that enough is enough will always have enough
57- the more rules and regulations, the more thieves and robbers there will be

lowlights: eh, pretty much the whole translation. i guess this version is popular because it has nice calligraphy of the original chinese and BW photos of nature accompanying the english translation. but despite not having read...more

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Sep 20, 2007 Anne rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone

Shelves: non-fiction, religion

First, a disclaimer. I do not read the Tao To Ching as a Taoist, a student of Chinese philosophy, or a secularist. I don't read it within its own proper social context. I read it as a Wiccan, and I look to it to inform my practice of my own, separate religion. But that being said, I think the Tao has principles which are applicable to everyone, and which provide a valuable counterweight to the baffling complexity of modern society.

As a Wiccan, I've found that the tao provides a necessary elemen...more

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Jan 24, 2008 Charles rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've literally read 10 different translations of the Tao Te Ching. If I was going to recommend just one to a friend, this would be it.

There are more careful and scholarly translations (such as Robert G. Henricks'), but Le Guin's translations is highly readable and poetic. She takes poetic liberties with the language (favoring the pithy), but - unlike most of the translations that take liberties - she stays close to the spirit of the original. It rarely feels like she is projecting her own inter...more

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May 06, 2008 Nick rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I collect translations of the Tao Te Ching because I figure that if I read enough different ones I may finally understand this beautiful but elusive work. Ursala K. LeGuin did one (not bad; not as good as I hoped). Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English did one that is still my favorite, because it's clear and simple. But recently I stumbled on this one by Stephen Mitchell from 1988, and it's wonderful. The language is straightforward and colloquial and puts some of the more opaque chapters in a new light...more

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Aug 02, 2008 Matt rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is my favorite presentation of the dao de jing; the best one i've seen semantically (by which I mean not just accurate but also creative fullness) is by a guy named Bradford Hatcher. The translation on this one is a native Chinese speaker, but the composition of the book is what makes this really special. The book is a physical object, you can't forget it, because like a glyph, it takes your attention in and expands it in a microcosm....heh...The photos are stunning, full-page black and whi...more

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Dec 25, 2012 Tom rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Lao-Tzu, translated by Stephen Mitchell (1992), Tao Te Ching, Pocket Edition, Harper & Row, NY, NY. The Tao, also known as the book of the way, was written by a Chinese wise man around the fifth century before Christ. This book is the most widely translated book in the world except the Bible. It consists of 81 one-page chapters, each of which is a subtle lesson in how to live happily and peacefully. Many of the ideas are counter-intuitive to Western and Judeo-Christian belief systems. All of...more

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Apr 29, 2013 Stacy Piper rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: inspirational

I heard about this from Author Wayne Dyer. Written so many years ago & tons of thought leaders have endorsed this philosophies in this incredible book. It's great to read the entries over and over again. Have it by your bed.

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Feb 21, 2009 Sidhartha rated it 5 of 5 stars

the tao that can be told is not the eternal tao...

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Jul 03, 2012 joycesu rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Tao Te Ching is always a great re-read, and I think for most of us, it deserves a revisit every so often. I found This translation really perfect. Mitchell doesn't translate the text literally, but rather lets the text flow into English in a context that makes sense. I think he's done a wonderful job of marrying eastern philosophy into western language. If you want to read the Tao Te Ching and you aren't fluent in Chinese, I recommend starting here. Do not skip his notes- wonderful insights here...more

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Jun 26, 2012 Carter rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: great

As Mitchell isn't fluent in Chinese, this is not an actual translation, it is an interpretation. He consulted scholars, laid out many translations of the Tao Te Ching and strove to make the text understandable in a modern context. I might add that being a Zen Buddhist scholar, he applies that filter to the text, which seemed fitting to me, given the spirit of the Tao philosophy. I loved it. I have read four translations and this "version" while not a pure translation, comes alive and inspires me...more

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Apr 26, 2012 Larry is currently reading it · review of another edition

This book is only 81 verses long and there are many translations; some of which hardly resemble each other on particular verses.
I'm reading 4 translations and a companion narrative by Wayne Dyer.
The Tao Te Ching is full of paradoxes and quite enlightening.

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Apr 09, 2009 Leah rated it 5 of 5 stars

I own this, but have never sat down and read it. I thought putting it on my shelf would make me seem more cultured.

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Feb 11, 2009 Peter rock added it · review of another edition

hello to whom it may concern
my name is
Peter rock "the maze" treacy campbell
dear reader whomever ya are
the "lighter game" is not a game
the lighter game is a book.....an epitaph
taoism is a process of thought, meditation, and action....in the bible it would be the same as "faith without works is dead" again think,meditate,action, contemplation,repeat,refine,breath,teach,learn,observe,
practice,practice,practice.action.meditate smile think.rest and stay situationally aware...at all times know wh...more

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Apr 30, 2013 Anuar rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: filosofia, pensamiento-oriental, tao

"El retorno es la esencia del movimiento en el Tao. / El Tao obra mediante la suavidad. / Todas las cosas surgen de la existencia, / y la existencia de la no-existencia"
"El Tao es perdurable y por eso / carece de nombre. / Su nombre proviene / de la necesidad de nombrarlo"

Entre la tautología y la paradoja, entre el aforismo y el poema, en esa zona indecible entre no comprender la yuxtaposición de opuestos o aceptarla como quien acepta la imposición de lo que vive, transcurre la lectura del Tao...more

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Feb 22, 2013 Joe Millin rated it 5 of 5 stars

I've read this book in several different translations which differed widely in character. The translation by Gia Fu Feng and Jane English is by far the most poetic and esoteric reading and far and away my immediate favorite. It has remained so throughout the 25-year ongoing love affair it ignited in me with Eastern thought. Tao Te Ching was my introduction to serious mysticism outside of the Christian Church, found by chance in the basement of a rented century home for transient, affluent studen...more I've read this book in several different translations which differed widely in character. The translation by Gia Fu Feng and Jane English is by far the most poetic and esoteric reading and far and away my immediate favorite. It has remained so throughout the 25-year ongoing love affair it ignited in me with Eastern thought. Tao Te Ching was my introduction to serious mysticism outside of the Christian Church, found by chance in the basement of a rented century home for transient, affluent students in Oxford, Ohio near Miami University where my girlfriend was a student. I was immediately enraptured with the sublime language, austere photography and superficially simple yet astonishingly profound philosophy. For a beginning reader of Eastern thought, Tao Te Ching requires a real paradigm shift in thinking to properly assimilate and fully comprehend. As such, it is one of the truly formative pieces of literature fundamental to my way of apprehending the reality of all things visible and invisible. It sits in a place of honor along with other masterworks such as The Bible, Newton's Mechanics, Euclid's Geometry, Einstein's Relativity, Darwin's "Origin", Heidegger's "Being & Time", Plato's Republic, Aristotle's Ethics, Hegel's Dialectic, Persig's "Zen," The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and a handful of other seminal works which penetrate the fabric of reality to such an extent I could scarcely recognize my current self in their absence. It cannot be fully appreciated in a single reading by an individual of Western persuasion and will continue to reveal more and more fundamental observations into the nature of reality for anyone who seriously undertakes a study of its contents. It is filled with useful pedagogical methods and linguistic devices such as the statement of a precise meaning by the use of contradiction or a jarring into awareness through the juxtaposition of thesis and antithesis. Even after 25 years of studying both ancient and modern Buddhist texts, the simple, rustic, pastoral Buddhism that is Lao Tsu's Taoism resonates with me more than any other single work of mysticism in the Cannon of human thought. "Tao" will lend insights into the works of the great philosophers from Cartesian Rationalism and the Continental Philosophy of Heidegger through the Process Philosophers and Contemporary thought, even at times seeming to point to some of the mysteries and logical "impossibilities" at the base of Quantum Mechanics or the Cosmology of Black Holes. The work of a decidedly "enlightened" primitive and a must-read for any lover of the universe in all its complexity.(less)

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About Lao Tzu

Lao Tzu (Chinese: 老子; pinyin: Lǎozǐ; Wade-Giles: Laosi; also Lao Tse, Lao Tu, Laozi, Lao-Tsu, Laotze, Laosi, Lao Zi, Laocius, and other variations) was a mystic philosopher of ancient China, best known as the author of the Tao Te Ching (often simply referred to as Laozi). His association with the Tao Te Ching has led him to be traditionally considered the founder of Taoism (pronounced as "Daoism")...more

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Books by Lao Tzu

The Way and Its Power: Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching and Its Place in Chinese Thought

Wisdom Of The Daoist Masters: The Works Of Lao Zi (Lao Tzu), Lie Zi (Lieh Tzu), Zhuang Zi (Chuang Tzu)

Thoughts for the Free Life: Lao Tsu to the Present

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Quotes from Tao Te Ching

“Simplicity, patience, compassion.
These three are your greatest treasures.
Simple in actions and thoughts, you return to the source of being.
Patient with both friends and enemies,
you accord with the way things are.
Compassionate toward yourself,
you reconcile all beings in the world.” — 2,477 people liked it

“Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power. If you realize that you have enough, you are truly rich.” — 2,264 people liked it

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Tao Te Ching

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