El camino del Tao

Overview

Beginning with an eloquent discourse on the Chinese language, renowned advocate of Eastern philosophy Alan Watts goes on to describe the origins and essence of Taoist philosophy, as well as the concepts of wu wei—a natural or effortless action—and Te, the power that results thereof. Drawing on ancient and modern sources, this treatise gives the same careful attention to Tao that Zen Buddhism received in Watts’s classic The Way of Zen. His sources include writings by Chinese philosophers Laozi and Zhuang Zi, as well as the I Ching and modern studies by scientist Joseph Needham, writer and inventor Lin Yutang, and sinologist Arthur Waley. Comenzando con un discurso elocuente sobre el lenguaje chino, el respetado partidario de la filosofía oriental Alan Watts procede a describir los orígenes y la esencia de la filosofía taoísta, así como los conceptos del wu wei—la acción natural o sin esfuerzo—y del te, el poder que emana de ello. Empleando fuentes antiguas y modernas, este tratado le presta la misma atención cuidadosa al Taoísmo que el Budismo Zen recibió en la obra clásica de Watts El espíritu del Zen. Sus fuentes incluyen escritos por los filósofos chinos Lao-Tsé y Zhuangzi, además del I Ching y estudios modernos por el científico Joseph Needman, el escritor e inventor Lin Yutang y el sinologista Arthur Waley.

Reviews

"A gem to remember Watts by. . . . There is a flamboyant and fascinating display of learning and complex indications of a personality that seems to have resisted inner pacification." —Kirkus Reviews, on the English-language edition

"Watts begins with scholarship and intellect and proceeds with art and eloquence to the frontiers of the spirit. . . . This is a profound and worthy work, left by a teacher to echo and re-echo." —Los Angeles Times, on the English-language edition

"Watts's last book is in the category of his finest work, a lucid discussion of Taoism and the Chinese language . . . profound, reflective, and enlightening. Moreover, the text supplies a sense of his ebullient spirit behind the revelation of Tao." —Boston Globe, on the English-language edition

Author Biography

Alan Watts was a British philosopher, writer, and speaker best known as an interpreter and advocate of Eastern philosophy for a Western audience. He is the author of Become What You Are, The Way of Zen, and The Wisdom of Insecurity. Al Chung-liang Huang is a philosopher, a performer, and an internationally acclaimed Taiji master and educator. He is the founder and director of the Living Tao Foundation and the coauthor of several books on Tao and Taiji.