The Taoist Body [Hardcover]

Kristofer Schipper (Author), Karen C. Duval (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1993

An introduction to the traditions of Taoism, which traces the religious way of life that led from Chinese shamanism and traditional village life to the mysticism of Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu. The author describes the fundamental unity underlying all aspects of the religion.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Schipper is one of the best-known scholars on the Taoist religion and the only one in the West who has been ordained as a Taoist priest. . . . This book is thought-provoking."--"Journal of Asian and African Studies --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 273 pages
• Publisher: Univ of California Pr (November 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520054881
• ISBN-13: 978-0520054882
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,574,329 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good scholarly overview of Taoism..., June 17, 2002

By 

Yuri Kuzyk (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Taoist Body (Paperback)

Schipper is one of the few of European descent to ever become an ordained Taoist priest. This gives him a unique view on some of the history and practices of Taoism but there are some caveats to be noted.

The book provides a good contextual overview of many facets of the culture that gave rise to Taoism. Schipper makes a number of interesting points regarding the general culture and Taoist practices including the so-called 'bedroom manuals'. Also included are some good points about gender issues and Taoism as well as his take on some of the Taoist legends and past masters. There are short chapters outlining Qigong and the practice of cultivation which include some very good (although short) translations of some of the more famous Taoist canons. There is also a great overview of the whole cereal abstinence debate as well as some thoughts on Taoist external alchemy that I found quite interesting. There is a good (although too short, IMHO) overview on Taoist hermits and why the took to the mountains.

All of this is presented in quite a scholarly manner, more in line with a true reference book than many others available right now. This is both good and bad, in my opinion. That is, we should remember that "the Tao that is spoken of is not the true Tao". Schipper needs to be taken with a large 'grain of salt' since obviously his 'version' of the Tao is dependent on his master's lineage. There is a reason there are so many 'flavours' of Taoism and that has to do with the fact that, ultimately, cultivation is an extremely personal past time!

So there are many aspects that are missing and possibly misleading here. Bigu (or even fasting) is not really mentioned, probably because it is not part of his sect's way. His overview on 'bedroom manuals' is interesting but that is not to say it is the 'truth' - answering something like that is ultimately a personal journey and all the spoken and written material is ultimately just a finger pointing at the moon. The same goes for everything else in the book - just one man's opinion. If he is truly practising the Way and cultivating daily then I suspect he will need to rewrite this book every year (or few months).

Anyway, definitely worth reading and some good ideas. As always, your focus on practice will ultimately determine your path.

2 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Religion not Philosophy, May 18, 2010

By 

John S. Lands "Maya Entheogen Project" (Belmopan, Belize) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Taoist Body (Paperback)

A Euro academic style treatment of RELIGIOUS Taoism. Written by a Dutchman, educated in Paris, studying a folk religion in Taiwan in the 60's. That should say it all. Unless you have an interest a Chinese folk religion for illiterates that emphasizes talismans and ghosts, this is not for you. Were it an academic exercise it would be understandable. However, Prof Schipper apparently believes in his adopted religion. There is little worse than a converted zealot.