Daode Jing [Paperback]

Laozi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2005

Poetry. Translated from the Chinese by Thomas Meyer. In an unbroken flow of couplets, Thomas Meyer's translation of the DAODE JING (or Tao-Te Ching) captures the supple thought of this ancient Chinese text: "best to be like water / always useful / never difficult / settling in low-lying places..." Here, the insights of Laozi are rendered as conversational rather than scholarly, intimate rather than formal. As Meyer explains in his afterword, "The DAODE JING is table talk. An old man, not holding forth really, but just telling someone what he knows. After dinner, the dishes pushed aside, a glass of whiskey, a cigarette. Or a pub and a pint of beer, even." Conceived as such, this DAODE JING offers a vibrant mixture of paradox and plain sense,humor and compassion.

Product Details

• Paperback: 111 pages
• Publisher: Flood Editions; First Edition edition (January 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0974690279
• ISBN-13: 978-0974690278
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,440,382 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars clear and light, July 1, 2007

By 

Andrew Campbell "windinpine" (Louisville, KY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Daode Jing (Paperback)

With the daode jing, i hear, a translator can only try. Thomas Meyer has shaped a wonderful version of this work that helps readers get closer to its insights and wisdoms. He shapes lines--"despite the splendid vistas / to remain completely at ease . . . too easygoing and you lose track / too much intention and lose control"--with a sure skill and gives one food for the journey.
Nine bows!