Tao te ching : an all-new translation

Bibliographic Information

Tao te ching : an all-new translation

Lao Tzu ; translated by William Scott Wilson

Kodansha International, 2010

1st ed

Other Title

Dao de jing

道徳经

タオ (英文版)

Available at  / 5 libraries

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Note

Includes bibliographical references

Description and Table of Contents

Volume

ISBN 9784770030917

Table of Contents

  • TAO TE CHING—THE TEXT(The Book of the Way;The Book of Virtue)
  • FURTHER EXPLORATIONS(Taoism and Zen;The Tao Te Ching and the Martial Arts)

by "BOOK database"

Description and Table of Contents

Volume

ISBN 9784770030917

Description

In this deluxe, quality volume, renowned translator William Scott Wilson offers a fresh version of this Chinese classic, with an approachable and inspiring translation that will fascinate the modern reader. While most translators rely on the 'new' text of 200 B.C., Wilson plunged back 300 years to 500 B.C. to translate from the original characters of the time in which author Lao Tzu lived. As the original text was lost, this required detective work on Wilson's part to reassemble, in puzzlelike fashion, as much of the original text as possible. With the use of the newer characters 300 years later, the nuance of the original text shifted in a number of places, and Wilson, where he can, offers fresh and revealing nuances of this classic work unexplored to this point. Also for the modern reader, Wilson penned two revealing essays, "Zen and Taoism" and "Zen and the Martial Arts" that link the spiritual aspects for avid followers of Zen and martial practices of both China and Japan. The Tao Te Ching itself is the seminal text of Taoism-a study of the inner world. It emphasises simplicity, spontaneity, tranquility, and non-action. It claims that explanations and analysis miss the True Source, and only confuse a person with words and games of the mind. To act with perfect freedom, we must unload the mental baggage that ordinarily weighs us down. When we sweep away concepts and ideas, we begin to see clearly. With its 81 memorable passages, the Tao Te Ching is one of humanity's touchstones. As Wilson notes, "We read this book because it takes us away from the busy world of business and politics, and provides an entry to a Way. But we also read it for the rhythm and beauty of its phrasing and vocabulary, which often give us an astonishing satisfaction. And this is perhaps the secret of why the book has consistently been on people's bookshelves and bed-stands for nearly twenty-five centuries.

by "Nielsen BookData"

Details

  • NCID
    BB0188490X
  • ISBN
    • 9784770030917
  • LCCN
    2009048384
  • Country Code
    us
  • Title Language Code
    eng
  • Text Language Code
    eng
  • Original Language Code
    chi
  • Place of Publication
    New York
  • Pages/Volumes
    255 p.
  • Size
    20 cm
  • Classification
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