In Reading Tao Te Ching, Chapter 33, I referenced
Derek Lin’s A Note on the Translation from his book and, also, his Approach
and Guiding Principals which can be found on the internet. With Wayne Dyer,
I cross-referenced his translation with the original translators listed in his Acknowledgements
section. For the first time, I include Stephen Hodge’s translation and
commentary of the selected reading. My comparison section includes the rather
sticky first two lines which seem to interchange the English language words
intelligent, knowledge, clever, enlightened, wisdom and insight. Also, I look
at Derek Lin’s translation versus that of ancient Taoist scholar Wang Bi’s
Commentary, which though not overtly mentioned (by Lin), was surely referenced
as a basis for ancient Chinese grounding of the text.
Derek Lin’s
translation of 33 is structured in four sections[PS1] [i].
Section 1 consists of lines 1 through 4
and distinguishes intellect from enlightenment; and strength from power.
Section 2 consists of lines 5 and 6. Line 5 equates contentment with wealth.
Line 6 identifies vigor as an attribute of willpower. Section 3 is merely line
7 which tells us that in keeping our faith in the Tao, we may live long. Section
4, line 8, tells us that through leaving a legacy, we can live on after
physical death in our works preserve and in memories deserved.
Lin’s book
translation invokes the Greek maxim Know Thyself. He illustrates this,
in part, by reminding us that you are your own worst enemy. Though
unstated, practice makes perfect might best describe his summation of physical
cultivation. A strong spiritual foundation sustains us in the tests of our will
over time. Derek closes by telling us that we can live on in the hearts and minds
of others by bringing meaning and joy to all others while we live. Helping
them. Cherishing them. Sounding very Confucian.
Derek Lin’s internet commentary of TTC 33, to some
extent, gives an opinionated interpretation of each line with a summary
accompanying each section. The explanations resemble the types of opinionated
translations which he rejects from other translators. This observation (of
mine) kind of justifies the extended language used by western translators to
balance (their) precision to the (laconic) concision of the original ancient
Chinese text.
Wayne Dyer never disappoints.
Each of his translations is a strict plagiarizing of the hard work of another
scholar. Pick an “Acknowledged” author. Grab a few lines. Omit other lines. Voila!
Translation a la Wayne Walter Dyer – Self Help Guru. With no attempt to alter
even a particle of translation, it is no wonder our poor departed humorous self-help
guru gets sued posthumously. I have to admit, I stumbled on Wayne’s verse-clipping
fetish by accident when the incongruity of one of his pasted together
confections stunned me then sent me into a laborious investigation.
Nevertheless, Mr. Dyer’s works in general have helped vastly more souls than
his plagiarism has hurt. Who among us can say as much as to our petty
transgressions?
Wayne’s Verse 33 commentary
inspired almost no curiosity or criticism in me. The mention of A Course in
Miracles caught my eye. In short, his 1000+ word gloss, at length, sat uncharacteristically
understated, error free and sorely minimally without quotations.
My inclusion of Stephen Hodge originated with his
mention in Dyer’s Acknowledgements.
I acquired Hodge’s book used for $1.80. I didn’t know that it would turn
out to be a deep dive into the Mawangdui slips and Guodian strips. With a
terrific historical introduction of the subject and a rather awkward
presentation of the Tao Te Ching, I fell in love, for a moment, you might say.
[i]
THE
STRUCTURE OF LAOZI 33
Laozi 33 has the
formal signals associated with IPS[i].
The two pairs in texts 1 and 2 are parallel with a minor difference, you
li 有(yǒu) 力(lì) being two characters but 智(zhì) only one.
Texts 3 and 4
again are parallel with a similar minor difference. Texts 5 and 6 have the same
number of characters and closely related terms at their ends, jiu 久(jiǔ) and shou 壽(shòu), but their grammar greatly differs, particularly in Wang
Bi’s reading. The only clear indicator linking the first two texts with the
second pair is the term powerful, 强(qiáng) in text 4, which links up with the same term in text 2.
However, neither
text nor commentary give a clear indication linking text 1 with text 3. The
term qiang is not commented upon in the commentary to text 2 and is defined
through the quotation from Laozi 41 in the commentary to text 4 as meaning qin
neng 勤(qín) 能(néng), “to the utmost of one’s capacities,” and
provided with a supplement, “to practice the Way. There are two possible
strategies here, either to read the definition in text 4 as fundamentally
different from that suggested in text 2 and abandon the attempts at discovering
more than a serial structure, or to transfer the content of qiang from
text 4 to text 2.
I opt for the
second strategy because of text 5. The commentary to this text directly takes
up the terminology of texts 1 and 2 in a parallel manner, indicating that it is
a general statement referring to previous chains begun by them. Text 6 also
comes in as a general statement. Text 5 refers to the stability of position
that a Sage Ruler enjoys, and text 6 to his personal survival.
[PS1]Lines
1 & 2 are paired (P1) with minor differences, as lines 3 & 4, are also
paired. Pair 1 (P1) links to Pair 2 (P1) via the word strong.
Lines 5 &6 are paired (P3) with
the same number of characters and closely related terms (Long & ) at the ends, but differing
grammar.
Phrases belonging to one chain (e.g., a) explicitly refer to each other by using the same vocabulary. In the closed form, no such explicit reference exists; the link is by implication. Given the possibility of the variant ab ba, this often leads to problems of attribution of individual phrases to one of the two chains.
Why do I find it so important to investigate and
analyze this and other chapters of the Tao Te Ching?
First, the Tao Te Ching guided
me through the rough seas of life for decades past and I pay homage to the
wisdom that cloaked me then. To stop and wait. To imagine an improved version
of myself. To attempt to speak wisdom to another for whom I care. TTC is not
just a book, it can be a sort of bible. It is not just poetry to soothe but
just profound enough to make one stop and think. Thinking in times of peril may
be good enough.
The excruciating detail (sometimes
😉 involved in each chapter analysis, for me, alludes back to the Bible.
The Christian works, old and especially new, underwent revision and selection
and insertion of ideas and assertions which Jesus surely never intended. By examining the evidence (commentaries),
literature (other Taoist books, e.g. I Ching, Chuang Tzu, etc.) and history
(both Chinese and Shamanism), inaccuracies and even a type of “heresy” might be
discovered and avoided.
An example of minor “heresy” might
be Derek Lin’s conflicting goals of providing a true translation and
resolving the gender issue. Laozi wrote Tao Te Ching, according to
Wang Bi and others, for THE RULER. The ruler was always a man. Gender neutral
pronouns are not true translations. Additionally, Derek Lin only partially
resolved the issue of the translator inserting their parochial understanding
directly into the piece. For, by writing a virtual line by line commentary
alongside his translation, Derek has de facto committed the same “sin”.
The inclusion of the comparison
of Derek Lin’s translation with that of Wang Bi via Rudolf Wagner evidences
another emerging pursuit. Wagner’s A Chinese Reading of the Daodejing is
only one of three tomes written on the subject. Each of his works include
Chinese characters and over-my-head explanations of subject matter. I have to
admit that one the things I have learned, so far, is how to copy and paste
multiple languages from images of pages photographed in Mr. Wagner’s fine publication.
In summary, this granulating of
the rock that is Tao Te Ching may result in a sandcastle that dissolves at high
tide, much as our Tuesday together scatters us at eventide. But I hope to make
my documents more substantive and still practical in future renditions. My
process of comparing and resolving certain specifics in the TTC text yields
satisfying knowledge within TTC (for me anyway) and an array of investigative
and compositional skills without (for other and future research). A warning: my
intensity on the subject will likely wax further before it wanes at all.
