Comments on eclectic / eccentric: Book Review: Tao Te Ching

J.T. - I will definitely re-read this one day...wi...

2010-03-05T11:49:12.618-06:00

J.T. - I will definitely re-read this one day...with a bunch of other books close by to help me understand it.

I read this in one of my religion classes in colle...

2010-03-05T11:14:24.964-06:00

I read this in one of my religion classes in college, and going through it with my professors, it was still tough. Though your review makes me want to go back and reread it!

Jenners - I would need a whole lot more study to f...

2010-01-31T09:33:26.824-06:00

Jenners - I would need a whole lot more study to figure out the Taoist philosophy with any sort of depth. And I don't think I'm ready for that yet... :)

Well, you certainly bit off a lot with this one!! ...

2010-01-30T20:51:14.868-06:00

Well, you certainly bit off a lot with this one!!

I do think us Westerners are limited in how we can understand Eastern religions but I think you can do it with enough time and practice. But I don't think anyone reading a religious text would be able to walk away with immediate and concrete understanding.

Wonderful review ... and give yourself some credit for giving this a go. It isn't a book for idiots of any kind!

Michelle - You should write a post about all of th...

2010-01-10T09:32:18.172-06:00

Michelle - You should write a post about all of this! I'd love to hear more.

I haven't actually read the whole thing yet, b...

2010-01-10T04:49:35.130-06:00

I haven't actually read the whole thing yet, but I find your review of it interesting, and it's making me want to go look for that book again.

I think the thing about ancient Chinese philosophy is that a lot of it is purposely kept ambiguous to allow for different interpretations by different people. It's like, it allows for the differences that all of us have - maybe in our standard of living, or family situations - so that the essence of the principle is still adhered to, without anyone feeling like they're being forced to do something out of their means. (I hope I make sense..)

The Tao Te Ching is actually just a very old classic Chinese text, and is fundamental to a lot of the Chinese beliefs, not just Taoism. In fact, Tao Te (written 道德) is basically translated as 'morals' or 'morality'.

And yes. Ancient Chinese people used to speak in poems and rhymes. Very difficult to understand. =)

Stephanie - I agree. The idea of emptiness/void/a...

2010-01-09T19:57:37.005-06:00

Stephanie - I agree. The idea of emptiness/void/absence/etc. is rather fascinating to me as I see our culture as one that likes to fill up all the empty spaces.

Sandy - I really like The Beatles so it shames me that I didn't know this.

softdrink - The PMS - Poetry Moron Society.

Rebecca - I agree that re-reading poems really helps comprehension...then again, when something is so open to interpretation, it's difficult to ever achieve comprehension.

Michelle - I do love to try understanding other cultures. I just have doubts that a deep understanding is possible.

Fiona - Very cool. Tai Chi is awesome.

I practice Tai Chi, which is based on the concept ...

2010-01-09T18:30:46.547-06:00

I practice Tai Chi, which is based on the concept of Tao and Yin and Yang. My teacher often quotes from this at the end of our practice. I agree with you wholeheartedly that we must bring our own interpretation to it :)

Interesting book. I applaud your courage in readi...

2010-01-09T17:28:29.259-06:00

Interesting book. I applaud your courage in reading it; I'm not big on poetry or philosophy. Your question is an thought-provoking one though.

Can we ever understand the Eastern philosophy? Why not? I think if we truly choose to do so, then we can at least try. And trying is half the battle, in my opinion because it allows us to develop empathy and to be able to place ourselves in their shoes.

I read and reviewed this book last January. I rea...

2010-01-09T17:13:00.820-06:00

I read and reviewed this book last January. I really enjoyed the philosophy and poetry. I don't think I would call me an idiot about poetry but I would not call me an expert by any means either. I think the more times you read a poem the more levels of meaning you can get out of it. Maybe that can help you. If you want to read my review (be gentle it was like my 2nd review ever!) you can read it here. :)

I'm with Sandy...maybe we could start a club f...

2010-01-09T14:33:07.998-06:00

I'm with Sandy...maybe we could start a club for poetry morons.

If you are an idiot, then what am I? I'm not ...

2010-01-09T13:39:06.236-06:00

If you are an idiot, then what am I? I'm not even sure if I would have the courage to read this, let alone know that it inspired Beatles lyrics!

I really love these quotes on voids! There is plen...

2010-01-09T11:28:48.309-06:00

I really love these quotes on voids! There is plenty of food for thought there.