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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
I gravitate toward intellectual works that emphasize wholeness and existentialism because there is so little of it around these days. And it makes the most sense to me. As with any religious text, there are positive takeaways, whether or not you are a part of that faith. Many teachings from this book would do this whole country some good.
Here is one:
The phrasing of theses passages is odd at times, but remember this is a translation. Also, the man who wrote the original text has a higher plane of thinking than I do, so it's more my fault for being dumb.
Here is one:
"When you are content to be simply yourself and don't compare or compete, everyone will respect you."
The phrasing of theses passages is odd at times, but remember this is a translation. Also, the man who wrote the original text has a higher plane of thinking than I do, so it's more my fault for being dumb.
informative
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
Silly book
reflective
fast-paced
informative
reflective
fast-paced
It was pretty cool and he said some good stuff but I'm not willing to shed my entire life to become a lesser version of myself in order to bring about the greater good. Sorry.
medium-paced
medium-paced
It’s lasted for a reason. You understand and follow the way, or you do not. Either way you’re following the way. 😉
It definitely needs a second reading together with a thorough read of the introduction; otherwise quite the poetic, profound text - just like the rumors hint.
"Truthful words are not beautiful; beautiful words are not truthful. Good words are not persuasive; persuasive words are not good."
Tao Te Ching is a collection of the main principles of Taoism which, even if you're not an advocate of religion or philosophy, contains a multitude of useful and essential knowledge regarding humility, meditation, and discipline. Tao Te Ching is a sort of pre-Stoic philosophy book that doubles as a self-help book, containing so much colorful and naturalistic figurative language that it reads almost as a mix between Marcus Aurelius, Machiavelli, and even Heraclitus. Though a short volume, it contains all the knowledge a person needs to live a successful and enjoyable life, as well as how to maintain a healthy self-discipline and self-appreciation. Extremely profound and simple yet powerful, highly recommended from Nietzsche fanatics to Seneca enthusiasts alike.
Tao Te Ching is a collection of the main principles of Taoism which, even if you're not an advocate of religion or philosophy, contains a multitude of useful and essential knowledge regarding humility, meditation, and discipline. Tao Te Ching is a sort of pre-Stoic philosophy book that doubles as a self-help book, containing so much colorful and naturalistic figurative language that it reads almost as a mix between Marcus Aurelius, Machiavelli, and even Heraclitus. Though a short volume, it contains all the knowledge a person needs to live a successful and enjoyable life, as well as how to maintain a healthy self-discipline and self-appreciation. Extremely profound and simple yet powerful, highly recommended from Nietzsche fanatics to Seneca enthusiasts alike.
informative
reflective
fast-paced
I give Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu 3 stars for now as I found it to be quite a difficult read even though it was short. The inherent meaning of the book was not always clear to me. There was a lot of additional information given in footnotes as well and perhaps that confused me a bit too. The duration I took to finish this book definitely added to the difficulty of understanding each prose.
All in all, I am open and will reread Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu some time in the future again. Perhaps then, I will have a better understanding of the philosophies and am able to apply them to my daily life.
Nevertheless, for now, although the philosophies seemed interesting, I was not able to fully comprehend them.