Hua Hu Ching: The Unknown Teachings of Lao Tzu

On the heel of The Way of Zen, this little read was easy to get through but provided a lot of good for thought. It's a great book to have at home and open on a random page for some inspiration from time to time, but I would not recommend it for those uninitiated in the realms of Taoism.

I certainly liked this translation better than [b:The Complete Works of Lao Tzu: Tao Teh Ching & Hua Hu Ching 147310 The Complete Works of Lao Tzu Tao Teh Ching & Hua Hu Ching Hua-Ching Ni https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348090343s/147310.jpg 142168]. Unfortunately, like Ni with his translation, Walker does not give much of an introduction making clear his translation choices, so it is not possible to take what I read here and compare it to what I have read in other texts translated by other people. And like Ni, he does not deal with the history of the Hua Hu Ching. I think the possibility of fraud in the origin of a text is important. I know that the Hua Hu Ching would not be invalidated as a taoist text even if it were not what it claims to be (the writing of Lao Tzu); even if it had been written in Pacoima last week, within the logic of Taoism it would still be valid if it were a valuable source of insight. But when presenting a largely unknown text to the English-speaking world, I think a little explication and forthrightness is in order. The translation is pleasant to read and easy to follow.