Customer Reviews

Tao Te Ching

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is the second best translation of the Tao Te Ching that I have ever read,
followed only by Red Pine's 'Lao-tzu's Taoteching'.

Stephen Addiss and Stanley Lombardo have done an exceptional job in translating
this small volume.

There is also a really fine Introduction here by Burton Watson, proving once
again, that great things can sometimes come in small packages.

There is also a glossary of all the Chinese words used in this translation of
the Tao Te Ching in the back, and a Translator's Preface in the front of this
awesome translation of the Tao Te Ching, as well.

Also, the reader will be delighted to find lovely Chinese calligraphy scattered
throughout this small volume, which I believe is known as "the grass stroke".

This put me in mind of the Chinese calligraphy found in Alan Watts book;
'Tao, The Watercourse Way', it's not only lovely for the eye to look at, but
intriguing to the mind, as well.

We currently have 23 different printed versions of the Tao Te Ching (and I have
read many other translations of the Tao Te Ching on the internet as well), and I can honestly
say that you will not go wrong in purchasing this translation.

We purchased this translation of the Tao Te Ching based on only one reader's review,
here at Amazon.com

I don't know why this little edition of the TTC has not become more wide spread among
Daoist's, since it's been around since 1993.

But if you find Red Pine's translation of the TTC well done, you'll love this
translation as well.

Do yourself a long lasting favor, buy this book!

The *Tao Te Ching*, the central Taoist scripture, is a terse text in the original ancient Mandarin, but its subtle implications and ambiguities lend it to verbose translations in English. This wonderful translation is faithful to the brevity and concision of the original. In each chapter, the translators have selected one crucial line to represent in the original Chinese characters down the side of the page. That in and of itself would be no more than quaint decoration for those of us who don't read classical Mandarin; however, they also transliterate that line and place it side by side with the English translation in the text. Furthermore, the end of the book contains a glossary of all these Chinese characters, showing the various meanings of each one. For example, at the beginning of chapter 15, we find: "The ancients who followed TAO:/ Dark, wondrous, profound, penetrating, / *Wei*, *miao*, *hsüan*, *t'ung*." Those four Chinese characters are drawn on the side of the page. Alternate meaning are given in the glossary: for example, *wei* can mean "small, obscure, subtle, dark". Rather than translate those four characters into a flowery sentence in an attempt to capture all the subtleties in English, these translators empower the reader to do that work. This book is a wonderful translation for anyone who wants to do the work of really understanding what this profound and insightful text has to say.

I wouldn't recommend this book as your first translation of the Tao Te Ching, hence the 4 stars, but I absolutely would recommend it as a second copy if you finish reading a translation and are craving more Tao, more depth.

The authors do an excellent job of describing their approach to this translation - a more literal and less interpretive approach than most. It allows someone familiar with the Tao Te Ching a more flexible look at what Lao Tzu had to say. A glossary includes the direct translation of several of the characters, and the authors have left in one line of the original Chinese characters in each section.

Because the translation is so literal, the intrinsic underlying points of the Tao Te Ching seem more obscured to me, rather than less, and if I did not already have some history with the Tao Te Ching, I would lose interest in this before I found my way through this book.

As stated above this is my first reading of the Tao Te Ching and by no means a expert on whether or not it is a accurate translation or not. But what I can say is that this is a easy-to-read text that flows with poetic beauty and ancient wisdom. The art on the pages only adds to the great atmosphere this text brings when reading it. If this is your first reading of the Tao Te Ching, I think you can have no worries in buying this version, the way the words move in this scripture gives me a idea that the translators knew what they were doing when translating this text. Recommended.

For readers who want an accurate yet readable sense of what the Chinese text actually means, and not a "version" that is modified, distorted, slanted, suburbanized, and massaged in subtle (and some not so subtle) ways for contemporary American readers, I suggest D.C. Lau's translation (available in Penguin paperback) or either translation by Robert Henricks (he has two that incorporate recently discovered ancient manuscripts).

I am a professor and scholar in the field of Chinese religions, and I have carefully read the Chinese text and compared it to available translations.

Don't be misled... and above all, beware of "translations" by people (such as Stephen Mitchell) who don't even read Chinese!!!

One of the best translations on the market. An attempt has been made to preserve some of the crystalline terseness of the original which is beyond deep. Also one key line from each section is given in Chinese along with a glossary so that you can make your own translation. For example the third line from Section 29 they translate as "The world is a spiritual vessel", the Chinese being T'ien hsia shen ch'i. On using the glossary it becomes revealed that T'ien hsia means "under heaven" or "lower heaven" - much richer than "world". It would be possible to quibble with any translation, & ideally it would be best to study two or three different translations. However this one comes closest to the spirit of the original.
This book is remarkable & indispensible though for it's presentation & the stunning ink paintings/calligraphy which perfectly compliment the text. You'd be hard pressed to find a more beautiful book anywhere. Recommended!

I read this book because other reviewers touted it highly. I ordered a copy and it had a minor printing error in Chapter 76 but nothing so bad that I had to return it, so you may want to check your copy for printing errors.

As for the translation itself it is very lucid. The translators use very few words so that the text reads much like the original Chinese which is almost like a telegram. I have read several versions of the TTC and most are creative interpretations of the words. This is a much more literal translation. There is no commentary in the book like Derek Lin's TTC Tao Te Ching (Skylight Illuminations) but it is very easy to understand most of the book at face value. However there are a few chapters that one has to have a gentle approach with. Chapter 71 especially, at first, seemed very cryptic. But with the help of the Chinese characters written on the side of the page I was able to find what it meant with the help of an online Chinese translator. Most of the book is very smooth and I tend to read the Tao Te Ching in a meditative sort of way. I don't try to penetrate the text with my reason, rather, I read it very lightly so that when I face a new situation in my life the words pop up in my head and I can instantly relate to what Lao Tzu was saying.

If you're looking for a good translation without a lot of the interpretations of the translator pick up this volume. Prof. Watson's introduction is also worth reading, though it was written 17 years ago so there is a lot more accurate understanding of ancient China now which might contradict some of his ideas. The calligraphy by Prof. Addiss was also appealing. I think the best parts of the book were the characters in Chinese for the more difficult or important lines in the text. They helped flesh out some of the more cryptic passages. Since I am not proficient in Chinese I relied on these snippets for extra understanding. The interpreters also used gender neutral language which helped make it a more universal text.

I am a huge fan of Taoism and I think it's important to read many of the translations of this book as well as the Chuang Tzu to get a feel for the ideas behind the Taoist worldview. Ultimately though these books should lead one away from reading and out into the world (the woods, the city or wherever) with a subtle understanding of how to approach life. Books can only do so much before one needs to learn about the Tao in action.

I also recommend this version of the Chuang Tzu because it is the most recent, has a good introduction and is the full work which I have reviewed elsewhere: Zhuangzi (Longman Library of Primary Sources in Philosophy)

Happy Reading!!!

Addiss & Lombardo do a fantastic job with this text. They start with four goals, explained in detail, and do their best to work from there to create one of the most enjoyable Tao Te Ching reads there is. Here's a very brief list of the goals;
1. "First, we wanted to translate rather than explain the text"
2. "Second, we found that earlier translations, because they often paraphrased the text, tend to be verbose, extending the concise text into much longe sentance patterns"
3. "Third, we have completely avoided gender specific pronouns"
4. Fourth, they have one carefully selected line of transliteration to each section to allow the user to interpret the meaning on their own.

The goals themselves are basic, but it shows what spirit went into the translation. By being concise and direct, book holds much of the mystery and nearly poetic form I can only assume the original texts held. Its just a delight to read. The intro in the beginning is also fantastic, as are the minimalist graphics and format. Maybe not for the scholars, but for anyone who wants to enjoy the Tao Te Ching, you cant go wrong with Addriss & Lombardo.

Addiss and Lombardo's translation is simply the best translation of the standard (Wang Bi edition) of the Daode jing. It's also one of the cheapest, and is beautifully illustrated. The translation is terse, crisp and rhythmic, like the original Classical Chinese. This doesn't make it easy for you to understand but instead you have to do the work to make sense out of it yourself. I use it in all my classes.

Stephen Addiss and Stanley Lombardo have gone to great lengths to bring this ancient text to modern eyes and ears. Each word has been carefully chosen and the translators have also provided a very helpful glossary at the end of the book to allow the reader even deeper insight into this text. The paintings by Stephen Addis add a visual component to the text as one experiences TAO through this simple, yet beautiful art. The work of the translator is never an easy task, especially when one is translating from ancient texts such as Greek or Mandarin to a language as ambiguous as English. Stanley Lombardo has accomplished this very difficult task in an insightful and heartfelt way. This is a moving translation of the Tao Te Ching and anyone who is interested in learning how this text is shaped and formed would greatly benefit from reading this translation.