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This edition of the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu features both English and Chinese side by side for easy reference and bilingual support. The Tao Te Ching is one of the most influential and profound Chinese texts in the world. Many scholars have attempted to translate the work. Lionel Giles’ translation of the book, titled The Sayings of Lao Tzu , is one of the most clear English translations in the world. However, he organized Lao Tzu’s sayings by category, thus losing the original order and flow of the book. Because of this, many editions utilize other translators, even though Giles translation is often more accurate and vastly superior in our opinion. We have attempted to place Giles’ translation into the traditional order and flow of the 81 chapters comprising the Tao Te Ching. Because the work is very difficult and profound, and Giles’ translation was completely rearranged, this was quite the feat. The Chinese and English are placed together in the 81 chapters for direct reference and study. We have noted places where the translation does not match the text. After reading many editions of the Tao Te Ching that were poorly translated, we felt that matching Giles’ translation to the text would benefit others. Much of the matching works perfectly, though there are some errors you will discover. Enjoy. Review: Great translation - I'm native chinese. Tao Te Ching is in ancient chinese so even chinese people need translation into modern chinese, and this translation is much better and accurate than many Chinese translations, in my opinion. Review: The best translation I found!! I'm Chinese American and I approve this - Lionel Giles the translator was a British sinologist, writer, and philosopher. I think he really capture the essence and translated really well! as I saw many other versions thats out there, are more like translating word by word. many does not translate well and capture the essence of the Tao Te ching.
| Best Sellers Rank | #333,114 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #96 in Tao Te Ching (Books) #185 in Taoism (Books) #193 in Taoist Philosophy |
| Customer Reviews | 4.1 out of 5 stars 35 Reviews |
S**L
Great translation
I'm native chinese. Tao Te Ching is in ancient chinese so even chinese people need translation into modern chinese, and this translation is much better and accurate than many Chinese translations, in my opinion.
K**O
The best translation I found!! I'm Chinese American and I approve this
Lionel Giles the translator was a British sinologist, writer, and philosopher. I think he really capture the essence and translated really well! as I saw many other versions thats out there, are more like translating word by word. many does not translate well and capture the essence of the Tao Te ching.
A**R
The translation is good, too
I don't read chinese, but it is interesting to see the chinese characters along side the english translation. The translation is good, too. I read the Tao Te Ching in several translations and this one fits in well.
S**D
Some errors
Verse 6 has some badly copy pasted content from another verse. Some errors in preparation.
M**M
beware of various typos...
Beware of various typos. For instance, the word 美 or "beauty" is omitted in second line of Chapter 20. Also, in some places the English doesn't match the Chinese above it or is missing for a line or two. Overall the translation is simple and clear, though, and I agree with it most of the time over Ellen Chen's 1989 version, though using both sheds light into harder to understand parts. Would use as a quick guide because its searchable offline and tabulated by chapters, but be sure to cross-check due to typos!!
E**N
Five Stars
bilingual good is - Yoda.
A**N
Five Stars
enjoyed it
L**.
One Star
really poor translation. lots of Chinese paragraphs remain untranslated. Don't waste your money
A**L
Great writing
It’s really a great classic Chinese book. It’s contents cover a variety of areas in our lives such as philosophy, business management, military and health care ....However, it’s not that easy to fully understand all of it by the first glance. It’s recommended to read it from time to time so as to master the essence of it.
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