What is the best translation of the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu?

[diddlysquat]

My son asked for one for Xmas and I got him the Penguin Classic translated by Lau (he wanted that one). Now I want one for myself but there are so many out there......

[soothsayer]

1. Stephen Mitchell, without hesitation!

Simply the best, IMHO

[diddlysquat]

2. Thanks!

[sam sarrha]

3. actually, the 25 anniversary issue of Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English it is

large book with the Chinese Calligraphy on one side with Bk/Wht Zen photos that reflect the mood and mystery of the work.

it is a good coffee book also with all the art, i have been able to initiate some interesting conversations with it over the last 25 years.

the paper is Premium, i imagine the Anniversary issue is the same. With the Chinese on one side.. i was able to get some translations and lessons from some older Chinese people who were really excited that a westerner would be interested in it...

I also got fired from a job when my boss saw it..I hot a "Manifesto Letter on being a Minion of Santan..ad infinitum", but i was lucky to discover she was schizophrenic, it could have been worse.

i have had 12 different translations of it at one time.. the Jane English for me was the best.. I am very grateful for what the Tao te Ching introduced to me to.. I was a hyperactive child/adult, it also guided me into a mellower place to where i could Appreciate the the Buddha's Four Noble Truths which explained it all for me, why the Tao was what it is and why it is important and why everything is all Fucked up all the time.. which is why one needs to work on it all the time or one gets lost again...

'Life to the Taoist is like looking out a window during morning tea and watching the seasons change like one breath to the next.'

I vote for the Gai-fu Feng/Jane English version..at least check it out

[indigobusiness]

4. I agree. That is my favorite version. Beautifully done

and friendly to handle. I haven't seen them all, though. Timothy Leary's version is interesting.

Among the rave reviews of Mitchell's work, I noticed this pan:

Overly simplistic, lacking in depth, December 4, 2004
Reviewer: James Stewart "-Namaste" (Tampa, FL USA) - See all my reviews

There are much better translations of the Tao Te Ching out there. One gets the sense from reading the Stephen Mitchell translation that it was tailored to sell in the west. I would recommend the Red Pine translation above all any day of the year, as it makes use of all discovered versions of the Tao Te Ching in its translation, and includes commentaries on each verse from scholars of the past 2000 years.
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Tao Te Ching: The Definitive Edition by Lao Tzu
Tao Te Ching: An Illustrated Journey by Lao Tzu
Tao Te Ching (Penguin Classics) by Lao Tzu
The Tao Te Ching: A New Translation With Commentary by Ellen M. Chen

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0060812451/qid=1104167155/sr=2-2/ref=pd_ka_b_2_2/103-7396750-8599806