It may help to consider Taoism and the Tao Te Ching as similar in name only. You could say that Taoist thought is too subtle, even inexplicable, to be pinned down in an âismâ. The first line of the Tao Te Ching exemplifies this: The way possible to think, runs counter to the constant way. The ‘possible to thinkâ characteristic of belief itself forms the foundation of every âismâ.
It will also help to realize that the Tao Te Ching isnât about conveying truth per se. As Chuang Tzu said in his story, Duke and the Wheelwright, âBut these ancients, and what it was not possible for them to convey, are dead and gone: so then what you, my Ruler, are reading is but their dregs and sediments!â. The truth we seek only blossoms through personal experience â not through analytical and intellectual nit picking. Thus, the Tao Te Ching does not teach us anything. In reading it, we simply see our own mindâs intuitive edge. This edge lies at the borders of the âbig pictureâ â a âbig pictureâ that is often too subtle for us to express on our own.
A case in point: Chapter 65âs, Of ancients adept in the way, none ever use it to enlighten people, They will use it in order to fool them has puzzled me for years⌠forty some to be exact. Recently my puzzlement lifted as I noticed a subtle âsomethingâ. Is this âsomethingâ truly something, or will it turn into nothing tomorrow as I discover holes in it? If I reveal this âsomethingâ to you⌠and you believe it⌠yet it turns into nothing, then Iâd have âfooledâ you. However, even if my âsomethingâ is real, revealing it (if I could) could not teach you. Why?
First, âThe way possible to think, runs counter to the constant wayâ implies that teaching anything is inherently limited â period!
Second, realization evolves within. We canât hurry the process, and others canât teach us what we donât know intuitively already (see We only understand what we already know). While you can teach me to learn procedure (mimic), you canât teach me to learn the underlying essence. That knowing germinates within, more epiphany like, as it were. So, be puzzled and ponder in wonder. There is no other way to know ourselves. Happily, the Tao Te Ching provides abundant grist for our mindâs mulling mill.
Another case in point: Chapter 29 says, With desire choosing anything, of doing I see no satisfied end. All under heaven is divine capacity; nothing must be done either. The Tao Te Ching refers to All under heaven often. What does it mean? You can interpret this literally to mean an external All⌠âout thereâ. You can also see this as an internal All⌠âin hereâ. What is the distinction?
What and how you see life frames your understanding. Looking for and seeing sharp distinctions convey sharp understanding. Looking for and seeing what is called the without of shape form, the without of matter shape, conveys the opposite. The latter smoothes over distinctions to a point where youâll feel your perceptions of âout thereâ are merely reflections of your internal âin hereâ reality. This is called profound sameness, as chapter 56 puts it⌠or at least an aspect of that. Chapter 40 hints at this âout thereâ is âin hereâ viewpoint too, In the opposite direction, of the way moves.
Finally: Knowing the past informs the present. Having a broader sense of the past puts the Tao Te Ching in context. See The Tradeoff for a succinct and comprehensive overview of human pre-history and history.
Translations of the Tao Te Ching
A number of popular âtranslationsâ out there are actually interpretations of other original translations. Of original and authoritative translations, D.C. Lauâs is one of the most faithful to the original Chinese, except for the more literal Tao Te Ching, Word for Word .
D.C. Lauâs, published in 1963 by Penguin, is the one we used primarily until the Tao Te Ching, Word for Word was finished. The value of D.C. Lauâs translation may lie in the fact that he does not seem to be a âtrue believerâ. After all, there is nothing like a true believerâs interpretative zeal to muck up the possibilities for a broader, possibly less biased view. I donât know whether he would even call himself a Taoist. Likewise, I too am neither a âtrue believerâ nor like calling myself a Taoist, although Iâll admit to being a Small âtâ Taoist.
âReceivedâ texts of the Tao Te Ching are copies of the Chinese original copied many times over the centuries from the third or fourth century AD to the present. Until recently, all translations of the Tao Te Ching relied on these âreceivedâ texts. In 1973, two original copies of the Tao Te Ching were unearthed from a tomb in China. These silk manuscripts, the so-called Ma-Wang-Tui texts, dated to 168 BC, or about 500 years earlier than any previous manuscripts. Excellent translations which draw from the 1973 discovery are shown below.
We spent 10 years comparing D.C. Lauâs 1963 translation with Victor H. Mairâs translation of the Ma-Wang-Tui texts and then again with D.C. Lauâs 1989 translation of the Ma-Wang-Tui texts. We found no substantive differences between them, though occasionally Mairâs book will put an idea across more smoothly than the Lauâs, in our view. Both, taken together, go as far as one can go in getting âitâ across using proper English. Alas, the beauty of proper English unavoidably skews the truth at times. As chapter 81 cautions, True speech isnât beautiful, Beautiful speech isnât true. In any case, the âitâ lies in the mindâs eye of the beholder in the endâŚ
Itâs in the Eye of the Beholder
Many folks make much ado about the merits of one translation over others. Nevertheless, the most significant factor in âunderstandingâ scripture lies in the eye of the beholder â the reader. The cultural lens through which you see the world will determine what a scripture says to you. Much of the modern world, East and West, has adopted an activist and humanist world view which places the individual, ego and all, at the forefront of life meaning.
This cultural bias affects our interpretation of the Tao Te Ching. Simply said, the Taoist view is just about 180° opposite from âcommonâ views and practices; although, truth be told, it has always been an outlier. Chapter 40 puts it well,
The Taoist view runs counter to the instinctive and emotion based viewpoint we form from childhood onward. The mainstream perspective is rooted in biology and directed through evolution to motivate us to see and react in certain ways that promote survival, or at least did so until 100,000 years ago! Now, these âbio-logicâ based views are playing themselves out in complex technology based civilization. This results in wasted energy and unnecessary suffering. Note: Taoist views parallel the principle teachings of Jesus and Buddha. These arenât adhered to any better today than when they were first espoused. Obviously because they also, In the opposite direction, of the way moves.
Praise âthe Taoâ?
âThe way possible to think, runs counter to the constant wayâ is a completely unparalleled way to introduce a line of thought! I call this a disclaimer, which is crucial considering the message the Tao Te Ching attempts to convey. Frankly, to be useful, it is a line of thought â a worldview â that one must test personally and prove through life experience.
Note that the Tao Te Ching doesnât define or praise âthe Taoâ. It simply describes the effects on us of following, or not following, the way of nature. However, some folks show a tendency to âpraise the Taoâ⌠not unlike the familiar, âpraise the Lordâ. It appears that the word âTaoâ easily becomes a substitute word for âGodâ⌠a kind of god without baggage, so to speak. Naturally, this way of thinking about the way possible to think, runs counter to the constant way is okay, but it does miss the point⌠by a mile. âThe Taoâ means nothing. This is symptomatic of the common need to align with something concrete yet greater than ourselves. The word âTaoâ â especially with its capitol âTâ â nails the way down so we can âhave a name possible to express â. On the other hand, if you focus on the fruit (symptoms, effects) instead, you will come to know the tree (tao).
Other Thoughts
Another problem we find with recent translations is that they are often by folks who are obviously âhumanistâ in temperament. Others seem to bring a large dose of âpolitically correctnessâ into play. The problem with both of these situations is that they are not tested in time, but rise out of a modern industrial wealth based society, which in large measure meddles with and seeks to âconquerâ nature, not conform to it. Now, more that ever before, we tend to see nature as being separate from us, somehow outside of us⌠something to be tamed, or to be saved and revered. (Note: Word for Word takes extra care to avoid such contemporary biases. This makes it useful for cross-referencing your favorite translation.)
We want nature on our terms. We struggle to protect ourselves from any acts of nature that threaten our comfort or security â our standard of living, as it were. The unintended consequence of this process is that we feel more isolated than ever before from nature. Weâve so sanitized the âwild and rawâ aspects of nature that we cease to realize â feel â that we are nature. The Taoist view helps to reverse this tendency. Chapter 16 puts it wellâŚ
In the Taoist view, the cognitive certainty in how we approach living is our Achilles heel, as chapter 71 so frankly puts it, Realizing I donâtâ know is better; not knowing this knowing is disease. Such certainty and the ensuing pre-intention in our approach to life tends to end poorly, as chapter 64 alludes, Of doing we fail, Of holding on we lose. This departure from âcommon senseâ has always made the Taoist point of view a hard pill to swallow for civilized people. Conversely, our uncivilized ancestors experienced enough of natureâs âwild and rawâ side to feel sufficiently at one with nature. For more on how our ancestors lived, see the following series of Who are you? posts.
| Who are you? | Who are you? (Part II) | Who are you? (Part III) |
| Who are you? (Part IV) | Who are you? (Part V) | We All Know We Donât Know |
Note: This is not to say it is unwise to pursue comfort and security! Or that we shouldnât pursue these any more. Indeed, we will always pursue comfort and security, for this drive arises entirely and naturally out of instinct. Our problem lies in the fact that we are too clever at doing this, and so become unbalanced as a result. âToo much of a good thingâ, as they say. It would simply help a lot to honestly realize what is happening. Real solutions require brave self-honesty. That gets the ball rolling⌠after that, everything else takes care of itself. See The Tradeoff for more depth on this issue.
Chuang Tzu online
From Stephen R. McIntyreâs site, all 33 chapters of James Leggeâs version (1891) of The Writings of Chuang Tzu (or download this PDF, The Writings of Chuang Tzu). He has also made these other Chinese Classics available: The Analects of Confucius; The Great Learning of Confucius; The Doctrine of the Mean of Tsze-sze; The Works of Mencius; The Tâo Te Ching.
Not to Pick on âThe Idiots Guide to Taoismâ, ButâŚ
The book misses the point a little by taking Tao to mean method. Of course, thatâs one of its various meanings⌠dĂ o (é) = road, way, path; channel, course; way, path; doctrine, principle; Taoism, Taoist; say, talk, speak; think, suppose.
Their idea is that no one method or path is the âconstantâ way, or Tao. What they fail to point out is the common thread running through human spirituality, as chapter 14 suggests, The ability to know the ancient beginning; this is called the wayâs discipline. Regardless of the particulars unique to any one way, there is the common denominator they all share. This essence that can be tested. It is that which all paths share, but because all paths manifest differently, cannot be expressed⌠and yet we do. Taoist thought is somewhat different. Well, at least it begins with a serious and sincere disclaimer as noted previously, The way possible to think, runs counter to the constant way, The name possible to express runs counter to the constant name.
Nevertheless, you can know âitâ, test âitâ, and use âitâ. âItâ is that common profound sameness that connects all ways.
The constant, referred in chapter 1 and throughout the Tao Te Ching, lies in the similarities â the profound sameness â not in the differences. This book gives a fine overview of Taoism, if not Taoist thought. So, after that, simply go to the source scripture to poke into Taoist âsecretsâ. As chapter 1 says,
CenterTao Recommends
Tao Te ChingA favorite translation, used by the Center for decades. However, we mostly use the more literal Word for Word Translation now because we find that it offers more grist for our mind’s mill.
This translation offers ways to cross check your favorite translation with either (1) a translation more literal, or (2) actually word for word to the original Chinese.
Tao Te ChingAn integration of the newly discovered Ma-wang-tui texts with the traditional Wang Pi text. Personally, I find no significant difference between the two. Still, the differences are interesting to ponder.
Tao Te ChingAudio Cassettes. For many people, hearing is better than reading. Just think: the complete unabridged version of D.C. Lau’s Tao Te Ching, recited in 60 minutes. Listen to a sample.
Tao Te ChingAn excellent translation of the Ma-Wang-Tui text. Comparing it, chapter by chapter, with D.C.Lauâs translation(s) helps resolve misunderstandings which arise with each!
Tao Te Ching
The Book of Chuang TzuThis presents the Taoist world view a little looser and with some humor here and there to boot.
The Complete Idiot’s GuideThis “Idiot” book gives a comprehensive overview of Taoism with lots of quotes from various folks. It should satisfy all your âanswerableâ questions, yet it will mislead you on the unanswerable ones. To get beyond the inevitable âspiritual hypeâ, go to the source.