Want a NOOK? Explore Now
The most accessible and authoritative English translation of the ancient Chinese classic. Offers the essence of each word and makes Lao Tzu's teaching alive.
Tao Te Ching (pronounced, more or less, Dow Deh Jing) can be translated as The Book of the Immanence of the Way or The Book of the Way and of How It Manifests Itself in the World or, simply, The Book of the Way. Since it is already well known by its Chinese title, I have let that stand.
About Lao-tzu, its author, there is practically nothing to be said. He may have been an older contemporary of Confucius (551-479 B.C.E.) and may have held the position of archive-keeper in one of the petty kingdoms of the time. But all the information that has come down to us is highly suspect. Even the meaning of his name is uncertain (the most likely interpretations: "the Old Master" or, more picturesquely, "the Old Boy"). Like an Iroquois woodsman, he left no traces. All he left us is his book: the classic manual on the art of living, written in style of gemlike lucidity, radiant with humor and grace and largeheartedness and deep wisdom: one of the wonders of the world.
People usually think of Lao-tzu as a hermit, a dropout from society, dwelling serenely in some mountain hut, unvisited except perhaps by the occasional traveler arriving from a '60s joke to ask, "What is the meaning of life?" But it's clear from his teachings that he deeply cared about society, if society means the welfare of one's fellow human beings; his book is, among other things, a treatise on the art of government, whether of a country or of a child. The misperception may arise from his insistence on wei wu wei, literally "doing not-doing," which has been seen as passivity. Nothing could be further from the truth.
A good athlete can enter a state of body-awareness inwhich the right stroke or the right movement happens by itself, effortlessly, without any interference of the conscious will. This is a paradigm for non-action: the purest and most effective form of action. The game plays the game; the poem writes the poem; we can't tell the dancer from the dance.
Less and less do you need to force things,
until finally you arrive at non-action.
When nothing is done,
nothing is left undone.
Nothing is done because the doer has wholeheartedly vanished into the deed; the fuel has been completely transformed into flame. This "nothing" is, in fact, everything. It happens when we trust the intelligence of the universe in the same way that an athlete or a dancer trusts the superior intelligence of the body. Hence Lao-tzu's emphasis on softness. Softness means the opposite of rigidity, and is synonymous with suppleness, adaptability, endurance. Anyone who has seen a t'ai chi or aikido master doing not-doing will know how powerful this softness is.
Lao-tzu's central figure is a man or woman whose life is in perfect harmony with the way things are. This is not an idea; it is a reality; I have seen it. The Master has mastered Nature; not in the sense of conquering it, but of becoming it. In surrendering to the Tao, in giving up all concepts, judgments, and desires, her mind has grown naturally compassionate. She finds deep in her own experience the central truths of the art of living, which are paradoxical only on the surface: that the more truly solitary we are, the more compassionate we can be; the more we let go of what we love, the more present our love becomes; the clearer our insight into what is beyond good and evil, the more we can embody the good. Until finally she is able to say, in all humility, "I am the Tao, the Truth, the Life."
The teaching of the Tao Te Ching is moral in the deepest sense. Unencumbered by any concept of sin, the Master doesn't see evil as a force to resist, but simply as an opaqueness, a state of self-absorption which is in disharmony with the universal process, so that, as with a dirty window, the light can't shine through. This freedom from moral categories allows him his great compassion for the wicked and the selfish.
Thus the Master is available to all people
and doesn't reject anyone.
He is ready to use all situations
and doesn't waste anything.
This is called embodying the light.
What is a good man but a bad man's teacher?
What is a bad man but a good man's job?
If you don't understand this, you will get lost,
however intelligent you are.
It is the great secret.
The reader will notice that in the many passages where Lao-tzu describes the Master, I have used the pronoun "she" at least as often as "he." The Chinese language doesn't make this kind of distinction; in English we have to choose. But since we are all, potentially, the Master (since the Master is, essentially, us), I felt it would be untrue to present a male archetype, as other versions have, ironically, done. Ironically, because of all the great world religions the teaching of Lao-tzu is by far the most female. Of course, you should feel free, throughout the book, to substitute "he" for "she" or vice versa.
As to method: I worked from Paul Carus's literal version, which provides English equivalents (often very quaint ones) alongside each of the Chinese ideograms. I also consulted dozens of translations into English, German, and French. But the most essential preparation for my work was a fourteen-year-long course of Zen training, which brought me face to face with Lao-tzu and his true disciples and heirs, the early Chinese Zen Masters.
With great poetry, the freest translation is sometimes the most faithful. "We must try its effect as an English poem," Dr. Johnson said; "that is the way to judge of the merit of a translation." I have often been fairly literal -- or as literal as one can be with such a subtle, kaleidoscopic book as the Tao Te Ching. But I have also paraphrased, expanded, contracted, interpreted, worked with the text, played with it, until it became embodied in a language that felt genuine to me. If I haven't always translated Lao-tzu's words, my intention has always been to translate his mind.
| Introduction | 1 | |
| Tao Te Ching - Translation | 13 | |
| Verbatim Translation | 95 | |
| Notes on the Verbatim Translation | 256 | |
| Commentary on Verse I | 271 | |
| Definitions, Concordance, and Wade-Pinyin Conversion | 295 | |
| List of Radicals | 337 | |
| Appendix | Some of the Earliest English Translations of Verse One | 341 |
| Sources | 345 |
Anonymous
Posted July 8, 2006
I was very disappointed after bringing this book home. Not only does the author provide you with a pre-packaged understandings and assumptions ripe for today's 'spiritualist' culture, but the translation itself is troublesome. It is clear that this author's own interpretation of the 'tao' comes ringing all too clear through the translation. Moreover, I found the change of pronouns to 'she' and 'her' as suspect, suggesting to me that other non-PC aspects of this work might also be edited out. Just give me the translation as acurately as possible. I rated this 'disappointing' though not a complete loss.
18 out of 22 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted April 23, 2005
This was the first time I ever studied the classic of philosophy, the 'Tao Te Ching.' The notes by Yi-Ping Ong are exceedingly helpful, especially considering that I am a silly Westerner that is positively ignorant about Chinese history and culture. Her introduction was also extremely enlightening and allowed even a novice to grasp the major principles of Lao Tzu's philosophy. The translation by Charles Muller was easy to understand (but I cannot compare it to other translations). An excellent book and a truly wondrous philosophy! I wish I could give it an infinite number of stars! To paraphrase the Master: the perfect book that can be reviewed is not the perfect book! This book is simply TOO good for a mere five stars!!!
9 out of 11 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.If you are only going to read one version, this should be it. A very easy to read translation.
Ideally, you should read this along with a more traditional translation - you'll get the most out of the text that way. When you read more than one translation, you really start to form your own unique conclusions, and that is the most important part.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted April 18, 2008
I truly believe that this is a suberb source of wisdom on the Tao. It is such an interesting method of thinking and can be applied quite easily to any other religous background. I enjoyed reading it and sharing in the words of Lao Tzu. To compare with other translations, I thought that this one was rather well done. It is indeed worth reading.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted August 5, 2006
A great book on wisdom from the Tao. Even though the true author of this book is unknown (and even if its more than one person who wrote it) it still provides useful solutions to some of our spiritual and ethical problems.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 4, 2011
this is a feel good, slap your forehead and go "duh, of course" listen....seriously, very calming and something I've been listening to daily and thoroughly enjoying.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I am a Chinese. I like Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching or Tao Te Sutra very much. I searched and read many English translations, but I was always not very satisfied with their translations comparing the original Chinese meanings. After I read this book, I think it is the most faithful and satisfying English version. The translator understood Lao Tzu completely and never gave excess transcendental meanings. I am wondering who is translator of this book, why there is no introduction and the biography of the translator'? I really appreciate if who can tell me the translator with his biography.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted June 20, 2009
I Also Recommend:
This is my favorite translation of the Tao Te Ching. It is easy to read and a joy to learn.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 29, 2012
Once I pick this book up I can't put it down. It was to me recommended by a friend. The author explains the text well.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 20, 2010
Tao is like water. Water is soft but outlasts the hard, finds a lower place and benefits everything.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 15, 2007
I think a lot more people should read this book because it helps people see clearer. Young people should really read this not as a required book but as a book that can help them into their journey into adulthood.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 4, 2000
This book is a fun and happy presentation of the Tao Te Ching with good translations. I would definately recommend it as both a piece of literature and art. It's the kind of book that sparks conversation on a coffee table. Peace.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted February 5, 2013
I was going to use this as a demigod camp, but........ nevermind
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted October 10, 2012
You are wrong. Just stop. Major issues
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted October 9, 2012
He thr.usts into her harder, his dik hitting her g-spot. He starts kissing her and groping her huge b.oobs, his dik growing inside of her
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted October 9, 2012
She gasps she can feel his dik grow and she feels close to getting pregn.ant.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted July 25, 2012
This is a veru interesting book, but a reread (or three) may be needed to fully understand it.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.This book is really great. Made me think about a lot of things that I really hadn't considered before. I would recommend this book to anyone who feels a little confused about their life, and anyone who just wants to better themselves.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.GPW
Posted February 24, 2009
Nice pictures. Nice chinese characters. One section provides the chinese
with english translation with a picture background. Another section provides the english translation with commentary. It is easy to flip
back and forth between the sections.
Anonymous
Posted February 5, 2005
I just finished this book I may have rushed it but I could not put it down. I did go out for a snack and returned to the reading. It is a short book so I hope to read it a few times till I feel comfortable with it. The illustrations are great: dragons, mountains, frogs, goldfish, etc.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.
Overview