The Daode Jing

Abstract

Abstract The Daode jing (Book of the Dao and Its Virtue) is an essential work in both traditional Chinese culture and world philosophy. The oldest text of philosophical Daoism, and also widely venerated among religious Daoist practitioners, it was around the fourth century bce, ascribed to a thinker contemporaneous to Confucius (551–479 bce) named Laozi. Written in aphoristic verse, the book survives in several manuscripts, and its standard version consists of eighty-one chapters and two parts, one on Dao (chs. 1–37), and one on De (chs. 38–81), in approximately five thousand characters. Today, the Daode jing is still actively used in Daoist practice but, more importantly, serves as an inspirational guide to people in China and throughout the world. Its key concepts include cosmological notions, such as Dao, the underlying power of all life and the way the world functions; virtue or inner power, the manifestation of Dao within individual and society; heaven, the representative of nature and the patterns of stars, seasons, and more; as well as yin and yang, the alternating waves of universal development. In addition, it also presents key personal values, such as individual authenticity in so-being (aka naturalness or spontaneity), an ease and flow of life in nonaction, as well as integrity, humility, frugality, softness, simplicity, sufficiency, and more. Guides to Sacred Texts: The Daode jing by Livia Kohn presents a comprehensive overview of information regarding the Daode jing, from its origins and history through its content, commentaries, and ritual activation to its impact in the modern world, including self-help guides, leadership manuals, and poetic, even outlandish renditions.