Customer Reviews

Embarking on the Way: A Guide to Western Taoism

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

It's been a couple years since I read this book so maybe I shouldn't even comment. My memory's not brilliant. But I was surfing around on Amazon and I noticed that some of the reviews here seemed a little angry. And in my experience, if someone is angry about a book like this, they probably have a very rigid set of expectations. And people are funny about Taoism. Some people view it as a religion and some as a philosophy. (And never the twain shall meet.) If you look at Taoism as a religion then this book is more of Unitarian work than a Fundamentalist one. It's about learning to live a balanced, healthy life, which, in my limited experience, is what Taoism is all about. Most of the negative reviews refer to this as a "New-Age" sort of book but I don't think that's necessarily an awful thing. My only problem with "New-Age" philosophy is it's seemingly inherent lack of discipline (Which I occasionally embrace.), which I don't think this book promotes. (It's not "The Secret".) I remember it as being both interesting and helpful and I think that if you're interested in exploring Eastern philosophy you'll find it helpful too.

This author quotes most of the "Taoist Masters" whom write articles is his Empty Vessel Mag. Most of the so called "Taoist Masters" he quotes through his book are professional authors selling a lot of New-Age type of Taoist ideas, with the exception of Ding ming Dao... This book has more to do with "New-Ager Taoism than the real thing.

I'm sorry, but I feel bad for the trees that had to give their lives for this! The author has no credentials as a Taoism expert, except for having interviewed other people with similarly shaky credentials about a topic that neither understands to any great degree. If anyone wants to understand Taoism, buy Henricks Dao De Jing and Saso's Taoist Master Chuang. Leave this poor doggy alone!

There's Daoism, and then there's a bunch of mushy New Age tripe which masquerades as "Taoism". This book is NOT about the transmission/spread of authentic Daoism in the West; at best it's a vapid re-hashing of New Age ideas couched in a vaugely Daoist terminology. Not recomended for anyone, certainly not for beginners looking to see what Daoism is actually all about.

This book could have saved me a lot of time had I bought it a long time ago. The author has done is research.

I found this book to be a clear exploration of Taoist thoughts and philosophy (as it merges here in the West vs. ancient schooling). Since the Tao is ever flowing and never set in a particular ritual (unless it becomes "religionized")this book is an example of the many ideas of the Taoist thought. Whether traditional questioning, traditional chinese medicine, sex, qi gong, etc.
It's a smattering of info that allows the reader to continue to choose where to go next (with recommended readings) and sparks curiosity re: taoist thought.
In this sense it is light reading, not a scholarly dissertation. None of the thoughts should be taken as "law" when it comes to Taoism - how could it? - that goes against the Tao. However, it's interesting to see Taoist thoughts evolve and involve as it interacts with us in the west.

I highly recommend Embarking On The Way for anyone wanting to enter into Eastern Philosophy but find it hard to begin somewhere that is contempory for the Western Mind. I recommend it to all my clients who want to get a flavor of the many cultural aspects there are to Taoism and how it affects the day to day life of ordinary folks. Each chapter is a gem!

This author has nothing to say, yet is possessed of a tremendous desire to say something. There is nothing in this book to reward the diligent reader who slogs through the author's turgid prose. I can't think of anything positive to say, so I'll stop here.

Solala has perhaps the most unique perspective on the Tao of any westerner, as he is the publisher of The Empty Vessel, A Journal of Contemporary Taoism. He interviews them all, sees them all, has a chance to compare them all. So his viewpoint is extemely valuable to westerners trying to figure out where to go in a rather vast and diverse field. I am not surprised that a chinese reader didn't like the book, because it isn't aimed at someone who grew up witih ideas about taoism. It is a great book for westerners, and I use it in my introductory courses on Taoism as essential background reading (I am a professor of Tao Arts and Sciences at Great Western University).

I do not recommend this book as a first introduction to Taoism. Instead, read Hoff's The Tao of Pooh, the Tao Te Ching or the writings of Chuang Tzu (or the comics by Tsai Chih Chung illustrating the teachings of the different Taoist philosophers).

I would recommend reading this book after you read some or all of those and need to find out the different ways/traditions that rely on Taoism and where to go to begin implementing those traditions. Accordingly, think of this book as a primer of the different facets of the Taoist world.

Because it is a primer, it does not cover fully each subject. However, it will let you know of some other traditions that are not explicitly taught in the major Taoist works. It will also let you know where to go next if you're interested in studying those traditions.

I must agree that the book is sometimes too New Agey. However, this is a guide to Western Taoism, not pure traditional Eastern Taoism (which may not exist anymore). You should have no problem recognizing what's New Age and what's pure Taoism if you have read some of the books I listed above.