5 ms·

Where do you hear that? Got a link?

by dood 19y ago

Alex3917 19y ago
My asian religions prof. spent a bunch of years of her life studying the text and she was telling us this. Apparently some people still think it's an esoteric text, but they are in the minority. Unfortunately I don't have any references to back it up, and none of the translations I have sitting in front of me mention it in the forward. And of course it's impossible to find anything via Google only because there are so many parodies of the Tao Te Ching itself. There must be academic journals on the study of taoism, but I am having trouble finding any just searching online. I can try emailing her and asking for a cite if you'd like though.
- dood 19y ago
  If it isn't too much trouble, I'd be very interested to hear more about that. I'm no scholar, but I find Taoism and the Tao Te Ching fascinating. I would understand it being partly satirical of prevailing thought, whilst being esoteric, but it being a simple satire would be quite amazing to me. Perhaps the esoterism is an artifact of translation/interpolation ;)
  - Alex3917 19y ago
    I sent her an email, I'll let you know if I get a reply. Failing that this might involve, god forbid, going to a library.
    - dood 19y ago
      Cool, thanks for taking the time. Please also convey my thanks to her if you get a reply.
  - rms 18y ago
    http://74.125.95.104/search?q=cache:Hgq_0fuBJMkJ:https://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/dspace/bitstream/1794/3777/1/taoist_vision.pdf+tao+satire+site:.edu&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us&client=firefox-a http://74.125.95.104/search?q=cache:Hgq_0fuBJMkJ:https://sch... mentions that "others claim" that it was a political satire
    - dood 18y ago
      Thanks for that, but my understanding of the passage you refer to is that it is discussing T'ao Yuan-ming's poem "Peach Blossom Spring", not the Tao Te Ching. I've recently been reading Ellen Chen's new translation and commentaries [http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Te-Ching-Translation-Commentary/dp/1557782385/ http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Te-Ching-Translation-Commentary/dp...]. It includes an interesting discussion of academic attitudes to the history and origins of the Tao Te Ching, and as I recall the notion of it being satire is not mentioned.

Where do you hear that? Got a link?

by dood 19y ago

Where do you hear that? Got a link?

My asian religions prof. spent a bunch of years of her life studying the text and she was telling us this. Apparently some people still think it's an esoteric text, but they are in the minority. Unfortunately I don't have any references to back it up, and none of the translations I have sitting in front of me mention it in the forward. And of course it's impossible to find anything via Google only because there are so many parodies of the Tao Te Ching itself. There must be academic journals on the study of taoism, but I am having trouble finding any just searching online. I can try emailing her and asking for a cite if you'd like though.

dood 19y ago
If it isn't too much trouble, I'd be very interested to hear more about that. I'm no scholar, but I find Taoism and the Tao Te Ching fascinating. I would understand it being partly satirical of prevailing thought, whilst being esoteric, but it being a simple satire would be quite amazing to me. Perhaps the esoterism is an artifact of translation/interpolation ;)
- Alex3917 19y ago
  I sent her an email, I'll let you know if I get a reply. Failing that this might involve, god forbid, going to a library.
  - dood 19y ago
    Cool, thanks for taking the time. Please also convey my thanks to her if you get a reply.
- rms 18y ago
  http://74.125.95.104/search?q=cache:Hgq_0fuBJMkJ:https://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/dspace/bitstream/1794/3777/1/taoist_vision.pdf+tao+satire+site:.edu&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us&client=firefox-a http://74.125.95.104/search?q=cache:Hgq_0fuBJMkJ:https://sch... mentions that "others claim" that it was a political satire
  - dood 18y ago
    Thanks for that, but my understanding of the passage you refer to is that it is discussing T'ao Yuan-ming's poem "Peach Blossom Spring", not the Tao Te Ching. I've recently been reading Ellen Chen's new translation and commentaries [http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Te-Ching-Translation-Commentary/dp/1557782385/ http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Te-Ching-Translation-Commentary/dp...]. It includes an interesting discussion of academic attitudes to the history and origins of the Tao Te Ching, and as I recall the notion of it being satire is not mentioned.