Tao Te Ching

Rating:
Summary: "true words seem contradictory"
Review: Compulsively readable yet highly questionable, completely enthralling yet totally objectionable, the Tao Te Ching is the ultimate summation of Chinese religious thought. The small book, the pinnacle of East Asian mysticism, is one of the most printed in world history. Pronounced "dow-duh-jeeng," the words can be translated as "way," "integrity," and "classic." The full title is approximated in this translation by Chinese Language scholar Victor H. Mair as "The Classic Book of Integrity and the Way."

Mair's version is based on the recent (1970's) discovery of the Ma-Wang-Tui manuscripts in Central China, five centuries older than extent versions of the Tao. Thus, this version is closer to the time of the original text, which is lost. Mair makes the case that the text here presented is more accurate, as prior editions of the Tao use later, more modified, endlessly recopied language, inserting layers of abstraction between the old master's themes as the copiers struggled with the semantics. Mair also asserts his view that the Tao was essentially an oral tradition, its tenets not written down until the environment for its reactionary message-- a challenge to Confucianism-- was primed. The book therefore has both one author and many. It is a single coherent worldview endlessly illuminated and adjusted by multiple viewpoints.

Predating Christianity and referencing Indian and Buddhist thought, the Tao is more than a reactionary text for a ruler. It is an effort to live life contently and fully, dropping efforts at logical understanding and ethical rigidity and going for a more inclusive, deeper, and speckled organ of thought. There is no attempt at system or dogma, but rather a focus on "The Way" and personal "Integrity." Its main efforts are at acheiving harmony with the outer world-- the "myriad creatures"-- that spring directly from the Tao, which is mysterious, nameless, one, and non-existent. The closer we get to the clear grasping of a single concept or idea, the more it will writhe and resist and flutter away, the text argues. Instead, we are better off flowing along with the Way, embodying our own unique Integrity and thereby forsaking confusion for wisdom. The Way is not an allowance for one option over another, for a single path instead of its opposite; nor does it preach a synthesis of both. The text seems to approve of a middle ground, a median.

The text does have some contradictions. Some sections advocate a yogic breath control to prolong life, while others concede the attempted prolonging of existence a futility. Some sections advocate the ruler to keep the masses stultified so as to be easily governed, yet the text encourages a respect for the individual. Mair addresses some of these paradoxes and blames a corrupt text for others, but it seems the ultimate solution, if there is one, is to resolve them ourselves-- if we choose to resolve them at all.

The Tao bothered me in some places, where it seemed to prefer an anti-learning or anti-knowledge stance over erudition. However, interpreted in the light of its view that erudition is simply yet another trap, this stance makes more sense. The book's encouragment of a contemplative, meditative mindset is its hallmark. The many parables and aphorisms in the text resonate strongly, despite the drawback of occasional obscurity. Mair's translation avoids agenda and ditches protocol at an attempt to get at the Old Master's original meaning and expression: the 60 pages of notes and commentary are more than sufficient to the 105 pages of text. Although I can see myself turning to other translations and commentaries for additional insight, this single, slim, unassuming volume will provide anyone interested in The Way a good introduction or corollary to other studies.

Rating:
Summary: "true words seem contradictory"
Review: Compulsively readable yet highly questionable, completely enthralling yet totally objectionable, the Tao Te Ching is the ultimate summation of Chinese religious thought. The small book, the pinnacle of East Asian mysticism, is one of the most printed in world history. Pronounced "dow-duh-jeeng," the words can be translated as "way," "integrity," and "classic." The full title is approximated in this translation by Chinese Language scholar Victor H. Mair as "The Classic Book of Integrity and the Way."

Mair's version is based on the recent (1970's) discovery of the Ma-Wang-Tui manuscripts in Central China, five centuries older than extent versions of the Tao. Thus, this version is closer to the time of the original text, which is lost. Mair makes the case that the text here presented is more accurate, as prior editions of the Tao use later, more modified, endlessly recopied language, inserting layers of abstraction between the old master's themes as the copiers struggled with the semantics. Mair also asserts his view that the Tao was essentially an oral tradition, its tenets not written down until the environment for its reactionary message-- a challenge to Confucianism-- was primed. The book therefore has both one author and many. It is a single coherent worldview endlessly illuminated and adjusted by multiple viewpoints.

Predating Christianity and referencing Indian and Buddhist thought, the Tao is more than a reactionary text for a ruler. It is an effort to live life contently and fully, dropping efforts at logical understanding and ethical rigidity and going for a more inclusive, deeper, and speckled organ of thought. There is no attempt at system or dogma, but rather a focus on "The Way" and personal "Integrity." Its main efforts are at acheiving harmony with the outer world-- the "myriad creatures"-- that spring directly from the Tao, which is mysterious, nameless, one, and non-existent. The closer we get to the clear grasping of a single concept or idea, the more it will writhe and resist and flutter away, the text argues. Instead, we are better off flowing along with the Way, embodying our own unique Integrity and thereby forsaking confusion for wisdom. The Way is not an allowance for one option over another, for a single path instead of its opposite; nor does it preach a synthesis of both. The text seems to approve of a middle ground, a median.

The text does have some contradictions. Some sections advocate a yogic breath control to prolong life, while others concede the attempted prolonging of existence a futility. Some sections advocate the ruler to keep the masses stultified so as to be easily governed, yet the text encourages a respect for the individual. Mair addresses some of these paradoxes and blames a corrupt text for others, but it seems the ultimate solution, if there is one, is to resolve them ourselves-- if we choose to resolve them at all.

The Tao bothered me in some places, where it seemed to prefer an anti-learning or anti-knowledge stance over erudition. However, interpreted in the light of its view that erudition is simply yet another trap, this stance makes more sense. The book's encouragment of a contemplative, meditative mindset is its hallmark. The many parables and aphorisms in the text resonate strongly, despite the drawback of occasional obscurity. Mair's translation avoids agenda and ditches protocol at an attempt to get at the Old Master's original meaning and expression: the 60 pages of notes and commentary are more than sufficient to the 105 pages of text. Although I can see myself turning to other translations and commentaries for additional insight, this single, slim, unassuming volume will provide anyone interested in The Way a good introduction or corollary to other studies.

Rating:
Summary: beautiful
Review: I loved all the wonderful advice and teachings that this book has given me,i am not practice Taoism but this still is a wonderful book for anyone to read.

Rating:
Summary: Very readable translation of timeless wisdom
Review: I read this translation of the Tao while traveling through India and Nepal. Lao Tzu's wisdom hits home; Mair's translation is very readable. Even as a Christian, I benefited alot from reading the Tao. I highly recommend this translation.

Rating:
Summary: I really didn't like this one at first...
Review: It has, however, grown on me. Victor Mair is obviously a scholar of the highest order when it comes to this particular text. He is well versed in scholarly areas that are literally foreign to me. Over time, they have begun to make sense a bit more but I was quite put off by this in the beginning. The other thing that was off-putting was his frequent use of 'I' in terms of his studies of Taoism. His reference also to 'new' and 'never before considered' avenues of comparison between Taoism and Hinduism gave me the impression of braggadocio that was quite disconcerting. I couldn't get passed what seemed to me to be scholarly arrogance, a bit too puffed up on knowledge (which, for readers of the Tao, can lead one astray...).

I've since gotten beyond that and have begun to learn from what he has to say. I believe what he has to say is valuable and needs to be considered (albeit with some salt). He does know his stuff. As a scholar, and as one who has obviously put a great deal of thought into dissecting the nuances of translating ancient Chinese terms into more modern English, he has done an exquisite job in helping to really understand what the terms literally mean.

The drawback with this, however, is that it tends to be a bit dry and overly scholastic in nature. But on the same note this is also important in trying to really get to what the terms mean rather than what we may read into them (though this is not so cut and dry as it may sound).

So I have begun to really appreciate his unequalled journey into the meanings of the terms and their context (though his journeys into comparing them to Hindu/Buddhist equivalents gets a bit tedious...) really helps me in drawing out deeper meanings when balanced with other translations.

So kudos to his effort. It is really beginning to grow on me. I suppose my issue is not with him, per se, but the havoc that pure academia can wreak. Moving beyond this, however, it becomes clear that he is merely trying to rattle those of us who have become quite comfortable in our views on the Tao Te Ching. A must for anyone's collection of translations (and a big help, I would imagine, if you know Chinese and are more aware of the difficulties in its translation into English).

Rating:
Summary: I really didn't like this one at first...
Review: It has, however, grown on me. Victor Mair is obviously a scholar of the highest order when it comes to this particular text. He is well versed in scholarly areas that are literally foreign to me. Over time, they have begun to make sense a bit more but I was quite put off by this in the beginning. The other thing that was off-putting was his frequent use of 'I' in terms of his studies of Taoism. His reference also to 'new' and 'never before considered' avenues of comparison between Taoism and Hinduism gave me the impression of braggadocio that was quite disconcerting. I couldn't get passed what seemed to me to be scholarly arrogance, a bit too puffed up on knowledge (which, for readers of the Tao, can lead one astray...).

I've since gotten beyond that and have begun to learn from what he has to say. I believe what he has to say is valuable and needs to be considered (albeit with some salt). He does know his stuff. As a scholar, and as one who has obviously put a great deal of thought into dissecting the nuances of translating ancient Chinese terms into more modern English, he has done an exquisite job in helping to really understand what the terms literally mean.

The drawback with this, however, is that it tends to be a bit dry and overly scholastic in nature. But on the same note this is also important in trying to really get to what the terms mean rather than what we may read into them (though this is not so cut and dry as it may sound).

So I have begun to really appreciate his unequalled journey into the meanings of the terms and their context (though his journeys into comparing them to Hindu/Buddhist equivalents gets a bit tedious...) really helps me in drawing out deeper meanings when balanced with other translations.

So kudos to his effort. It is really beginning to grow on me. I suppose my issue is not with him, per se, but the havoc that pure academia can wreak. Moving beyond this, however, it becomes clear that he is merely trying to rattle those of us who have become quite comfortable in our views on the Tao Te Ching. A must for anyone's collection of translations (and a big help, I would imagine, if you know Chinese and are more aware of the difficulties in its translation into English).

Rating:
Summary: The Taoist religion's bible.
Review: This book is THE source if one is studying the dynamics of the Taoist religion. This translation by Victor Mair is as good as any out there and maybe even better since it used the oldest known manuscripts for its translation. In comparison to other religions, this one has the most in common with the Hindu faith. However, to understand the tenets of this faith, you may have to reread this a few times since the language does not flow extremely well with the English language. Even then, depending on your background religion, you may have to rely heavily on a commentary. In my opinion this text is full of double talk and borrowed wisdom that left me guessing how it has become popular and even survived. However, if you want to be well rounded in religious affairs, I suppose that this book may suffice for your study of Taoism.

Rating:
Summary: The Taoist religion's bible.
Review: This book is THE source if one is studying the dynamics of the Taoist religion. This translation by Victor Mair is as good as any out there and maybe even better since it used the oldest known manuscripts for its translation. In comparison to other religions, this one has the most in common with the Hindu faith. However, to understand the tenets of this faith, you may have to reread this a few times since the language does not flow extremely well with the English language. Even then, depending on your background religion, you may have to rely heavily on a commentary. In my opinion this text is full of double talk and borrowed wisdom that left me guessing how it has become popular and even survived. However, if you want to be well rounded in religious affairs, I suppose that this book may suffice for your study of Taoism.

Rating:
Summary: An early version of the *Tao Te Ching*
Review: This translation of the *Tao Te Ching* is based on the 1973 discovery of ancient silk manuscripts of the text at Ma-wang-tui in central China. For those familiar with the *Tao Te Ching*, this translation will be surprising. The chapters are not in the original order, and a few chapters, familiar from later versions, did not exist in this early version. Unlike most translations of this text, the first half of this translation focuses on TE (which Mair translates as "integrity"), and the second half focuses on TAO. Thus, the famous opening line (here translated as "The ways that can be walked are not the eternal Way") is found here as the first line of chapter 45. Mair provided extensive introduction, annotations, and "Afterword". Clearly, his primary concerns are philological in nature. While I would not recommend this to someone reading the *Tao Te Ching* for the first time, this translation could be quite helpful for someone comparing translations and trying to come to a deeper understanding of the text.

Rating:
Summary: A Refreshing, Scholarly translation of the Tao Te Ching!
Review: Victor Mair is a well-known scholar of Classical Chinese, and I feel that of the many translations of the Tao Te Ching, his is the best by far! Thanks in part due to the discovery of the Ma Wang Tui scrolls, this book provides a refreshing change to the cookie-cutter translations I have seen in the past, and in the back of the book goes into great deal on why he translated thing the way he did.

As a amateur in Classical Chinese myself, I feel that Mr. Mair's translation is definitely the most accurate in relation to the general mood of the time in China, when many other such classics were being written (Confucius's Analects for example). Many of these classics drew upon the same pool of ideas, and this particular translation shows the mood of that time better than any other I have seen. Most translations tend to interpret words and phrases in a modern light, but Mair's is true to philosophy of the time.

I also like the detailed analysis that Mair does in comparing the Tao with other religions in Asia (in particular Judaism and Hinduism) and how they also drew upon a common pool of ideas prevalent at the time. I believe he makes a very strong case for this.

For those who are not interested in the historical aspect of Taoism, I feel they will still enjoy this book very much because this translation preserves the spiritual mystery of the Tao Te Ching (another aspect most translations lack), and lets the reader interpret the meaning as he/she sees fit.

Anyhow, in closing, a fanstatic translation, that stands above the rest. I strongly recommend this for both scholars and enthusiasts alike.