Ursula K. Le Guin's Translation of Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching - Chapter 1
By
andsoitis
Kettled twice. Extra chewy, extra trustworthy.
Summary
This is Ursula K. Le Guin's English translation and interpretation of Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching, specifically the first chapter. The content presents philosophical verses about the Tao (the Way) and the limitations of naming and conceptualization. Le Guin includes a translator's note acknowledging the difficulty of translating this foundational chapter, which she believes contains the essence of the entire book.
Key quotes
· 5 pulledThe way you can go isn't the real way. The name you can say isn't the real name.
Heaven and earth begin in the unnamed: name's the mother of the ten thousand things.
So the unwanting soul sees what's hidden, and the ever-wanting soul sees only what it wants.
Two things, one origin, but different in name, whose identity is mystery. Mystery of all mysteries! The door to the hidden.
A satisfactory translation of this chapter is, I believe, perfectly impossible. It contains the book.
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