陶德庆 = Tao Deqing. It is translated into English as Tao Te Ching. It is phonetically pronounced “Dahō Deh Jing“.  The author is Laozi, more commonly pronounced “Lao Tzu”. There are many ways to translate the book’s title, because each Chinese word has a few meanings: Dào/Tao 道 means “way”, “road”, “path”, or “route,” but was given the extra meaning “path ahead”, “way forward”, “method”, “principle”, or simply “the Way”.

“The Tao Te Ching is the philosophical counterpart –the rival and the complement– to the Analects of Confucius. These two classics are the foundational works of their respective traditions, Taoism and Confucianism, which may be said to constitute the yin and yang of Chinese culture. The Tao Te Ching is primarily reflective in nature, while the Analects is more activist. Both works consist of lines mixed in with longer passages, but the Analects is rooted in concrete historical settings and deals with specific persons and problems. In contrast, the Tao Te Ching is without obvious historical markers and gives the impression of timeless universality. Beyond saying that these works have been traditionally associated with Confucius and Laozi, and that both works address central themes of a dramatic period of Chinese history (ca. 500-350 b.c.), there has been no scholarly consensus on how to date or even define either one. You can learn more of the history here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tao_Te_Ching

Regardless of the controversy over the author’s intent, this beautiful book is simply 81 versus of philosophy that are a way for us each to live so that we can make this world a more peaceful and beautiful place to live.

You can listen to an English version of this audiobook here: https://youtu.be/tCVvZ62gh7Y

You can also purchase the book at your local bookstore or on the web.

There is much wisdom in these pages and I highly recommend the read.

Namaste.