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Laozi, Stephen Mitchell: The Tao Te Ching (Hardcover, 1999, HarperCollins) 5 stars

A short but lasting document

4 stars

I had an enjoyable week listening to the Tao Te Ching (道德經 in Traditional Chinese, lit. "Way Virtue Scripture"), Stephen Mitchell's 1989 audiobook version. Like many ancient writings, it has changed drastically since it was first "compiled" into 81 short chapters, around 250 BCE. I'll be researching more about the textual history of the book, particularly since the oldest version was found in 1993, after Mitchell's version was published.

As for the subject matter, "The tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao." - Chapter 1, line 1. #TaoTeChing #DaoDeJing