0
    • Elementary Secondary Higher Ed Common Reads
    0 0
    Download high-resolution image

    Tao Te Ching

    Author Lao Tzu
    Introduction by Burton Watson
    Translated by Stephen Addiss, Stanley Lombardo
    Hardcover
    $24.95 US
    Shambhala
    On sale Dec 11, 2007 | 160 Pages | 9781590305461
    Add to cart Add to list Exam Copies

    See Additional Formats
    Written more than two thousand years ago, the Tao Te Ching, or “The Classic of the Way and Its Virtue,” is one of the true classics of the world of spiritual literature. Traditionally attributed to the near-legendary “Old Master,” Lao Tzu, the Tao Te Ching teaches that the qualities of the enlightened sage or ideal ruler are identical with those of the perfected individual. Today, Lao Tzu’s words are as useful in mastering the arts of leadership in business and politics as they are in developing a sense of balance and harmony in everyday life. To follow the Tao or Way of all things and realize their true nature is to embody humility, spontaneity, and generosity.
    Thomas Cleary holds a Ph.D in East Asian Languages and Civilizations from Harvard University. He is the translator of more than fifty volumes of Buddhist, Taoist, Confucian, and Islamic texts from Sanskrit, Chinese, Japanese, Pali, and Arabic.
    Lao Tzu View titles by Lao Tzu
    “This crystalline translation of the Tao Te Ching is accurate down to the nuance and is as concisely poetic as the original. Of the many translations I have read in English, this is unquestionably the best.”—Gary Snyder

    “This is by far the best translation on the market today.”—Livia Kohn, Professor of Religion, Boston University

    About

    Written more than two thousand years ago, the Tao Te Ching, or “The Classic of the Way and Its Virtue,” is one of the true classics of the world of spiritual literature. Traditionally attributed to the near-legendary “Old Master,” Lao Tzu, the Tao Te Ching teaches that the qualities of the enlightened sage or ideal ruler are identical with those of the perfected individual. Today, Lao Tzu’s words are as useful in mastering the arts of leadership in business and politics as they are in developing a sense of balance and harmony in everyday life. To follow the Tao or Way of all things and realize their true nature is to embody humility, spontaneity, and generosity.

    Author

    Thomas Cleary holds a Ph.D in East Asian Languages and Civilizations from Harvard University. He is the translator of more than fifty volumes of Buddhist, Taoist, Confucian, and Islamic texts from Sanskrit, Chinese, Japanese, Pali, and Arabic.
    Lao Tzu View titles by Lao Tzu

    Praise

    “This crystalline translation of the Tao Te Ching is accurate down to the nuance and is as concisely poetic as the original. Of the many translations I have read in English, this is unquestionably the best.”—Gary Snyder

    “This is by far the best translation on the market today.”—Livia Kohn, Professor of Religion, Boston University

    Additional formats

    Other Books by this Author

    Related Articles

    Subscribe

    Penguin Random House Higher Education

    © 2026 Penguin Random House

    Back to Top
    0
    Wish List (0)