At the outset of the Tao Te Ching - Line by Line series, I shared with you a list of books that I planned to utilize to help me wend my way through Lao Tzu's main work. Since that time, I've been on a bit of a used book buying craze from a number of online booksellers. I've added 5 more books on the TTC to my reference library and I recently received another as a review copy from the publisher.
Because philosophical Taoism has no orthodox positions on any of the ancient documents, I believe it's important to view this classic text from as many perspectives as possible. While neither you nor I probably will agree with every translation or interpretation (rendition) available, one can never know when one person's perspective might contain a kernel of wisdom. So, in this instance, me thinks more perspectives are better than less.
As it stands right now -- I may pick up a few more along the way -- here is a list of the additional books I will utilize as we slowly make our way through the Tao Te Ching line by line.
Translations
Because philosophical Taoism has no orthodox positions on any of the ancient documents, I believe it's important to view this classic text from as many perspectives as possible. While neither you nor I probably will agree with every translation or interpretation (rendition) available, one can never know when one person's perspective might contain a kernel of wisdom. So, in this instance, me thinks more perspectives are better than less.
As it stands right now -- I may pick up a few more along the way -- here is a list of the additional books I will utilize as we slowly make our way through the Tao Te Ching line by line.
Translations
- The Way of Lao Tzu: Tao-te Ching by Wing-Tsit Chan (1963).
- The Essential Tao
by Thomas Cleary (1992)
- Lao-Tzu: Tao te Ching
by D.C. Lau (1963)
Translation/Interpretation
- The Tao of Peace: Lessons from Ancient China on the Dynamics of Conflict by Wang Chen & Ralph Sawyer (1999)
Interpretations (Renditions)
- The Tao of Leadership: Leadership Strategies for a New Age by John Heider (1985)
- The Sage's Tao Te Ching: Ancient Advice for the Second Half of Life by William Martin (2010) - Review Copy
That William Martin book is quite charming, and I have been thinking of ordering a few for gifts for friends of a certain age (who know nothing of Taoism) but I would be leery of using it in any way to "interpret" the TTC as you are doing. Did you ever get the Jonathan Star book? It truly breaks it down, line by line, character by character. (Like going back to Hebrew or Greek for Biblical analysis.)
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