Tao te ching

[Brightonian]

Not exactly SF maybe, but I've been listening to UKL's reading of her own version of this Chinese classic. Not a translation exactly as she has never learned the original language, but composed with the aid of existing translations and Pauls Carus's literal gloss of the Chinese text. I just wonder, given how important this book has been to her in the course of her life, if she now regrets not having made the investment of studying Ancient Chinese? As a linguist, I'm well aware that translations can sometimes be a barrier to understanding rather than an aid.

[admin]

I've read three different translations of the Tao, but thanks for telling me about Ursula LeGuin's "translation". I'll almost certainly give it a try, though I prefer her fiction to her poetry.

"The way that can be traveled is not the true way. The word that can be spoken is not the true word."