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Any study of Dàoism is a paradox.
The first line of the Dàodé Jīng declares:
"The way that can be spoken of is not the constant way."
This inherent contradiction-attempting to define the indefinable-lies at the heart of the tradition. Yet it is precisely this tension that makes Dàoism so rich and enduring. Born in the tumultuous Warring States Period, Dàoism emerged as the mystical counterpart to Confucianism, looking beyond social convention to the unnameable principle of the cosmos.
We begin with the three philosophical pillars: the Dàodé Jīng ot Tao te Ching (presented in two translations by Legge and Giles), the allegorical Zhuāngzǐ or Chuang Tsu, and the practical Lièzǐ or Lieh Tzu (including the radical "Yáng Zhū's Garden of Pleasure").
From these roots, the canon expands to include works of Huáng-Lǎo thought synthesizing cosmology with statecraft in the Sūnzǐ Bīngfǎ, (Art Of War), Yì Jīng (I Ching), Sù Shū, Hóng Liè Zhuàn, Yīnfú Jīng, and the Dàtóng Jīng. The medieval period gives us revealed scriptures as Dàoism evolves into a comprehensive religion through temple inscriptions, talismanic texts like the Chìwén Dòng, liturgical works such as the Yùshū Jīng, and Lǎozǐ Miào Bēi.
The Sòng dynasty saw a turn toward internal alchemy and meditative practice in the Tāixí Jīng, Xīnyìn Jīng, and Qīngjìng Jīng, and towards moral guidance through morality books in the Tàishàng Gǎnyìng Piān, Yīnzhì Wén, and Dàtóng Jīng. Aside from the texts themselves, this volume includes two essays by James Legge explore Dàoism's origins and core beliefs, a glossary of terms, and extensive introductions to Dàoism, the works, and the translators (Giles, Legge, Balfour, Morgan, and Forke), creating an indispensable resource for anyone seeking to understand the depth and wisdom of the Dào.
Includes 孙子兵法，老子庙碑，庄子，素書，列子，道德經，皇烈傳，胎息經，赤文洞，清静经，心印經，玉枢经，日用经，阴骘文，大同經，易经，太上感应篇
James Legge
Translated by
James Legge was a Scottish linguist, missionary, sinologist, and translator, born on 20 December 1815 in Huntly, Aberdeenshire. He enrolled at Aberdeen Grammar School at age 13 and then King's College, Aberdeen at 15. After studying at Highbury Theological College in London, he went in 1839 as a missionary to the Chinese, but as China was not yet open to Europeans, he remained at Malacca for three years, in charge of the Anglo-Chinese College there. The College was subsequently moved to Hong Kong, where Legge lived for thirty years. Impressed with the necessity of missionaries being able to comprehend the ideas and culture of the Chinese, he began in 1841 a translation of the Chinese classics - a monumental task he completed a few years before his death. He later became the first Professor of Chinese at Oxford University and is regarded as probably the most important sinologist of the nineteenth century. He was the first recipient of the prestigious Julien Prize for sinology in 1875, and in 1894 became the first person other than a member of the British royal family to be depicted on a Hong Kong postage stamp. University of EdinburghAnyone who has glanced at Legge's translations and commentaries will be immediately struck by his vast learning, his meticulous attention to detail, his commitment to faithfulness to the original, and his critical acumen. Despite his Christian convictions, he strove with all his might to represent to Western readers the meaning of the ancient Chinese writers as accurately and fairly as possible. He died in Oxford on 29 November 1897, aged 81.
Lionel Giles
Translated by
Lionel Giles (1875–1958) was a British scholar and translator best known for his translations of The Art of War and The Analects of Confucius.
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