Tao Te Ching

About Tao Te Ching

The most accessible and authoritative modern English translation of this esoteric but infinitely practical bestselling book. 

“No one has done better in conveying Lao Tsu’s simple and laconic style of writing, so as to produce an English version almost as suggestive of the many meanings intended.” —Alan Watts

For nearly two generations, Gia-fu Feng and Jane English’s bestselling translation of the Tao Te Ching has been the standard for those seeking access to the wisdom of Taoist thought. Now Jane English and her long-time editor, Toinette Lippe, have revised and refreshed the translation so that it more faithfully reflects the Classical Chinese in which it was first written, taking into account changes in our own language and eliminating any lingering infelicities. They have retained the simple clarity of the original rendering of a sometimes seemingly obtuse spiritual text, a clarity that has made this version a classic in itself, selling over a million copies. 

Written most probably in the sixth century B.C. by Lao Tsu, this esoteric but infintely practical book has been translated into English more frequently than any other work except the Bible. Gia-fu Feng and Jane English’s superb translation offers the essence of each word and makes Lao Tsu’s teaching immediate and alive. This edition includes an introduction and notes by the well-known writer and scholar of philosophy and comparative religion, Jacob Needleman.

About Tao Te Ching

Traducido al español del chino clásico por Alejandro Bárcenas

Una guía para vivir en armonía con nosotros mismos y la naturaleza. Esta nueva traducción al español aspira a presentar el Tao Te Ching como una experiencia de lectura lenta y meditativa.

 “El Tao Te Ching es sin duda alguna uno de los libros que mayor influencia ha tenido en la historia de la humanidad. A través de su longeva existencia ha servido de inspiración a un sinnúmero de artistas, pensadores, santos, guerreros, líderes políticos, y a muchos otros por igual, en el mundo entero. Su contenido toca una amplia gama de temas de naturaleza universal, los cuales pueden ser caracterizados de manera general como religiosos, filosóficos, místicos, cosmológicos, éticos y políticos. Dicha universalidad ha hecho que su legado se haya podido extender mucho más allá de ser el texto fundacional de un grupo religioso de China, al que con frecuencia se lo conoce como Taoísmo, lo cual ya de por sí le otorgaría un gran honor y le daría intrínsecamente un puesto de notoriedad histórica.

Quizás sorprenda el alcance de su fama dado que en realidad se trata de un tratado bastante breve —conocido también como el “clásico de los cinco mil caracteres”— y notoriamente complejo. Pero esa complejidad, transmitida por un lenguaje de gran belleza poética, es quizás una de sus grandes virtudes, ya que permite un universo de interpretaciones que transforman a todo aquel que se sumerja en su lectura”. —De la introducción de Alejandro Bárcenas

ENGLISH DESCRIPTION

The Path to Peace

The Tao Te Ching is a series of meditations on the mysterious nature of the Tao–the Way, the guiding light, the very source of all existence. According to Lao Tzu (a name meaning “the old master”), the Tao is found where we would least expect it–not in the strong but in the weak; not in speech but in silence; not in doing but in “not-doing.”

Wise yet worldly, spiritual yet practical, the Tao Te Ching is beloved by seekers all the world over. This edition from Ancient Renewal is based on the beautiful 1919 translation by Dwight Goddard, significantly revised by Sam Torode to make this ancient work more accessible to contemporary readers.

“This is the gift that ancient humans would give us if they saw us today. The best gift you could ever give anyone: Wisdom.” –Jimmy of the Bright Insight YouTube channel, reviewing the Ancient Renewal edition of the Tao Te Ching.

About Tao Te Ching

For nearly two generations, this translation of the Tao Te Ching has been the standard for those seeking access to the wisdom of Taoist thought. Now Jane English and her long-time editor, Toinette Lippe, have refreshed and revised the translation, so that it more faithfully reflects the Classical Chinese in which it was first written, while taking into account changes in our own language and eliminating any lingering infelicities.
 
Lao Tsu’s philosophy is simple: Accept what is in front of you without wanting the situation to be other than it is. Study the natural order of things and work with it rather than against it, for to try to change what is only sets up resistance. Nature provides everything without requiring payment or thanks. It does so without discrimination. So let us present the same face to everyone and treat them all as equals, however they may behave. If we watch carefully, we will see that work proceeds more quickly and easily if we stop “trying,” if we stop putting in so much extra effort, if we stop looking for results. In the clarity of a still and open mind, truth will be reflected. Te—which may be translated as “virtue” or “strength”—lies always in Tao meaning “the way” or “natural law.” In other words: Simply be.