Category Archives: Taoism

BOOKS: 孙子兵法 [Sunzi’s Art of War] by Sunzi

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孙子兵法白话全译孙子兵法白话全译 by 史哲 文
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Available online – YellowBridge

In thirteen short chapters, Sunzi lays out a masterclass in strategy. One sees in Sunzi’s work the mark of a Taoist mindset, seeing it in the book’s emphasis on engaging in warfare only when necessary, doing things the easy way whenever possible, and never letting one’s ego write checks one isn’t able to cash in lives.

There is good reason that this is one of the world’s most well-known (if not the most well-known) treatise on warfare. Far from being complicated and technical, this guide is full of pithy teachings such as: “War is the way of deception.” “No country ever benefited from a long war.” “Defeating the enemy without fighting is supreme excellence.” “To be undefeated lies in oneself, to be victorious lies in the enemy.” “Know the enemy and yourself and victory is assured; know heaven and earth and victory is complete.” (And these teachings are even more concise in the original Chinese.)

In addition to basics like leadership, maneuver, and terrain, the book devotes chapters to both the use of fire and spies in warfare. (One’s level of understanding is central to strategic victory throughout Sunzi’s teachings.)

I’d highly recommend this book for anyone interested in strategy, martial arts, or other strategic pursuits. The book may be ancient, but it’s not obsolete by any means.

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BOOKS: 道德经 by 老子 [a.k.a. Daodejing by Laozi]

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老子道德经校释（简体中文版）: 中华传世珍藏古典文库 (Chinese Edition)老子道德经校释（简体中文版）: 中华传世珍藏古典文库 by 王弼
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Available in Traditional & Simplified Chinese [w/ multiple translations] at YellowBridge

Packed into the 81 brief chapters of this book is the core Taoist philosophy on life, human relationships, governance, and war. Most often, it offers a wisdom that turns conventional wisdom on its head, advocating for inaction over action, less over more, simplicity over complication, and for recognizing the usefulness of what isn’t.

Some of the book’s central ideas are captured in these quotes:

上善若水。水善利万物而不争. “The greatest good is like water. It benefits all without fighting.” [Ch. 8]
金玉满堂，莫之能守 “A house full of jade and gold cannot be guarded.” [Ch. 9]
知人者智，自知者明。胜人者有力，自胜者强。“He who knows others is smart; he who knows himself is enlightened. He who conquers others has power; he who conquers himself is mighty.” [Ch. 33]
柔胜刚，弱胜强。“Softness overcomes hardness; weakness overcomes strength.” [Ch. 36]
道常无为而无不为。“The Dao is constant inaction, yet nothing is left undone.” [Ch. 37]
善者，吾善之；不善者，吾亦善之；德善。“The good, I treat well; the bad, I also treat well. Yeah Virtue!” [Ch. 49]
知者不言，言者不知。“He who knows does not speak; he who speaks does not know.” [Ch. 56]
千里之行，始于足下。“The journey of a thousand li (“miles”) begins with a single step.” [Ch. 64]
天之道，不争而善胜 “The way of heaven is to win without fighting.” [Ch. 73]
信言不美，美言不信。“True words aren’t pleasing; pleasing words aren’t true.” [Ch. 81]

I think this is one of those works that should be read and reread. It may help rewire your brain in useful ways.

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DAILY PHOTO: Bukit Cina [Chinese Hill — 三宝山]

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World War II Resistance Memorial
One (communal) grave/memorial is at the highest point of the hill.
Poh San Teng Temple [a.k.a. Bǎo Shān Tíng]

BOOKS: “Tranquil Sitting” by Yin Shi Zi

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Tranquil Sitting: A Taoist Journal on Meditation and Chinese Medical QigongTranquil Sitting: A Taoist Journal on Meditation and Chinese Medical Qigong by Yin Shih Tzu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Publisher’s Site

This manual is an English translation of a work earlier published in Chinese. It is nominally on Taoist meditation and is written by a Taoist author, but it does include discussion of Buddhist practices as well (specifically Mahamudra.) Also, part of the author’s declared intent with this text is to write in a manner approachable to a wider audience, and because of this sect is rendered less important. So, for example, the book employs more scientific and physiological modes of explanation as opposed to meridians and other conceptual approaches from Traditional Chinese Medicine.

The book is presented in two parts. I found the first part much more beneficial and productive. Said first part is a general guide to meditation. It discusses fundamentals, theory, physiology, and how to align one’s living with a meditative practice (i.e. how diet, breathwork, sleep, etc. influence one’s practice.)

The second part consists of long and fairly detailed descriptions of the author’s experiences with both Taoist and Mahamudra meditation. I didn’t find this part useful, and I believe it may be counterproductive. Discussion of the author’s subjective experience may lead readers to get hung up on chasing identical experiences to the detriment of just practicing. It may give false ideas about “correct” and “incorrect” experiences of the meditation.

Overall, it’s a fine guide to meditation, particularly the first (i.e. larger) part. I can’t say that it breaks a lot of ground. A reader well-versed in meditation may not gain much insight from this book, but it’s as good as any to get started.

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DAILY PHOTO: Scenes from Melaka’s Chinese Temples

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“Monkey God Temple” [Properly, 齊天府]
Cheng Hoon Teng (Temple of the Green Cloud) is the oldest Chinese temple in Malacca. It is a syncretistic temple (combining Taoist, Buddhist, Confucian, and Chinese Folk Religion elements.)

FIVE WISE LINES [November 2024]

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Inspiration enters at the border between hard work and laziness.

Lu juren in “Poets’ jade splinters” [Trans. by Barnstone and Ping in The ART Of Writing]

I will not own anything that will one day be a valuable antique.

Miyamoto musashi in “My way of walking alone” [Dokkōdō] (Trans. by Teruo machida)

A house full of gold and jade can’t be guarded.

Laozi in the DAo De jing [Ch. 9]

Writing is a struggle between presence and absence.

Lu ji in The ART of Writing [Trans. by Barnstone and ping]

The best leaders remain unknown; the next best are praised; the next best are feared, and the worst are mocked.

Laozi in dAo de Jing [Ch.17]

BOOKS: “Tai-Chi Chuan in Theory and Practice” by Kuo Lien-Ying [ed. Simmone Kuo]

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Tai-Chi Chuan in Theory and PracticeTai-Chi Chuan in Theory and Practice by Kuo Lien-Ying
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Publisher Site

This brief book discusses Taijiquan primarily from a philosophical perspective. Though a significant amount of the book’s page-count consists of full-page pictures of various taijiquan movements, it isn’t so much a how-to book. Readers who enjoy an eclectic book that’s short and sweet but also kind of all over the place have a good chance of liking this book and gaining from its varied tidbits of wisdom. Readers who favor books with a clear organization and internal logic will probably find this to be an odd stew of short writings (essays, guides, poems, scriptural excerpts, etc.) It should be noted that not all of the writings are from Kuo Lien-Ying, himself. It includes a translation of a manual by Wang Tsung-Yue (13th Century) as well as an appendix consisting of writings from the Daodejing, Tang Dynasty poetry, and quotes from Mencius and Confucius. It also features a chapter on the I-Ching and Taiji philosophy by Kuo’s wife, Simmone Kuo. Besides the Wang manual, which is right up the alley of Kuo’s writings, it’s not clear why the other pieces were selected (not that they aren’t beneficial, but that they seem random.)

One thing I really liked about this book is that a lot of it is presented in bilingual format. For someone learning Chinese, this is quite beneficial. (Especially, given that it consists of short pieces that can be more easily consumed by a new reader.) That said, those who don’t read Chinese may see the translations as further indication of padding a pamphlet up to book scale. The monochrome photos are well-done and could definitely be of use to someone who practices taijiquan (though would not be of much use to someone new to it.)

This book is an insightful mess, make of that what you will.

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BOOKS: “Taoism: An Essential Guide” by Eva Wong

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Taoism: An Essential GuideTaoism: An Essential Guide by Eva Wong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Publisher Site

This book offers the reader clarity about the scope of Taoism, a daunting challenge given Taoism’s long history and how it overlaps with other schools of philosophy as well as with Traditional Chinese Religion, more broadly. The book is divided into three parts: history, specialties (magic, divination, ceremony, inward training, and karma yoga,) and practices (meditation, somatic practices [e.g. qi gong and taijiquan,] and rituals and ceremonies.) The history section covers a period from pre-Taoist shamanic practices of 5,000 years ago, practices that would inform early Taoism, to a period during which Taoism became entwined with Buddhism and Confucianism. The specialties and practices sections attempt to give the reader a broad overview while avoiding discussion of “how-to.”

I found this book to be informative and interesting. It did feel more effectively geared toward someone with an interest in Taoism as religion rather than Taoism as a philosophy. The discussion does sometimes get into the weeds on issues like ceremonies and talismans (again, not in a how-to fashion, but with some arcane detail nevertheless,) but — at the same time — besides some discussion of the teachings of the Tao Te Jing and some exploration of Taoist metaphysics in the Divinational Taoism chapter, there’s not a lot of insight into Taoism as philosophy. That said, it does end each chapter with a “Further Reading” section that can point readers interested in a specific topic elsewhere.

If you’ve ever been overwhelmed at one of those bright and complicated Chinese temples and would like some insight into what Taoists do and how it’s different (or not different) from what Confucianists, Traditional Chinese Religion practitioners, and Zen Buddhists do, this is a good book to check out. If you’re solely interested in Taoism as a school of philosophy or otherwise have a specific focus such as qi gong and breathwork practices, you can probably find books that are better tailored to your needs.

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BOOKS: “The Art of Writing” Trans. / Ed. by Tony Barnstone and Chou Ping

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The Art of Writing: Teachings of the Chinese MastersThe Art of Writing: Teachings of the Chinese Masters by Tony Barnstone
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Publisher Website

This thin volume is packed with insights on writing — especially, but not exclusively, poetry. It consists of four chapters. The first two are the ars poetica of Lu Ji and Sikong Tu, respectively (i.e. The Art of Writing and The Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry.) The second half of the book consists of two chapters of collected sayings and poetry commentary excerpts.

I haven’t read a book so dense with quotable lines in a while. Some of the advice offered is universal and timeless (e.g. avoid cliches and read voraciously,) but some of it reflects a uniquely Chinese perspective rooted in Taoist and Zen sentiments (e.g. how to use wu wei [effortlessness] in one’s writing and so forth.)

There is a preface and each of the sections has its own editorial opening, but these never feel like padding (which often happens with books that come out to less than a hundred pages of content.) Instead, this ancillary material is concise and helps to offer historic and cultural context.

I’d highly recommend this book for writers and those interested in Eastern aesthetics and literature. That said, you don’t necessarily have to be interested in both. Any writer could pick up some beneficial tips while reading this book, and it’s compact, highly readable, and even humorous in places.

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Fēnggān [Senryū]

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the monk rode in
 on a bright-eyed tiger, and
  started hulling rice.