A new, contemporary translation of one of the world’s classic books.
When the philosopher Lao Tzu retired he decided to leave China and head west, into the unknown. As he left he was urged by the gatekeeper to write down his famous philosophy of tao and te, the way and its power.
This he did, the result being the book now known as the Tao Te Ching. It is treasured throughout the world for its rich personal philosophy: subtly down-to-earth, elegantly simple, sophisticatedly innocent, firmly yielding, passionately ascetic.
John Patterson’s new English language version of the Tao Te Ching penetrates beyond a cryptic, ambiguous and exotic Chinese text to achieve a clear and elegant expression of a deceptively simple philosophy of life.
About the Author
John Patterson is a retired philosophy lecturer, and has produced books on Maori philosophy, logic, environmental philosophy and Chinese philosophy, along with a novel and a book of verse. He also tries to paint.