Reddit reviews Tao Te Ching: The Definitive Edition

This one is my favorite (by Johnathan Star):

http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Ching-Definitive-Lao-Tzu/dp/158542269X

This is not a pocket edition, and in fact is quite large, because it has a verbatim translation in the back as well as a fairly sizable introduction, which explains some of the difficulties when translating such a text. The gist of his style is to leave the mystery in the words. So he tries to leave the same level of ambiguity from the original Chinese in the translation of each passage.
For a smaller version by Johnathan Star:

http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Ching-Translation-Definitive-Cornerstone/dp/1585426180

Although this one is pretty much just the text.

Verse 60, Line 1, the Tao Te Ching reads:

>Chih ta kuo jo p'eng hsiaao hsien.

Jonathan Star translates this as:

> Govern a nation as you would fry a small fish.

Do you know the Jonathan Star translation that's in his book alongside the translation for each character in the original text -- sort of a make-your-own translation? Very cool.

My favorite translation of the Tao Te Ching is Jonathan Star's Tao Te Ching

and my favorite book would be
The Tao of Daily Life by Derek Lin
which is full of short stories that encompass the ideals of the Tao Te Ching.

Some of the stuff from Taoism, the religion, is definitely not for me. For instance, the health books tell you to retain your semen at all costs to live a long life. Also, as with most religions, it promises immortal life as a being of nature if you follow the practices provided. I would recommend staying away from books about Taoist "Alchemy" if you are Agnostic/Atheist.

oh yes, a must read for the wise and zen-like Ent :)

a close friend gifted this to me on my b-day last year, and i foolishly set it aside hoping to read it later on. when my calendar rolled over to 2011, i did the usual re-alignment of priorites...and this book ended up high on the list.

i spent a week or so, reading a few 'chapters' per night (usually around a [5], relaxing in a hot bath). it's hard to sum up how many times i felt overcome with the beautiful simplicity in the way the verses make you think. there are several editions and translations out there, this is the one i happened to have:

http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Ching-Definitive-Lao-Tzu/dp/158542269X/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1300900646&sr=8-8

Check this site, which contains a lot of different translations. Compare them and see what you like! Personally I enjoy reading this translation by Gia-fu Feng and Jane English; I find that it has a nice flow to it.

This translation by Jonathan Star has a slightly different tone to it, but some of the analogies may be easier to grasp. The physical version of the book contains the original Chinese text, with translations of individuals words, if one finds that appealing.

I have this one by Jonathan Star and thought he did a great job at translating. Though it's the only one I've read so I guess I have no basis of comparison. But still. I enjoy every page of that book...