When reading a text some 2000 or so years old written in another language, we are at a disadvantage. We have to depend on the knowledge, wisdom and artistry of the translators. It can be a bit of a shock to read different translations of the same text.
Take for instance the opening chapter of the Tao Te Ching:
The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth.
The named is the mother of ten thousand things.
Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English translation
The Way you can go
Isn’t the real way.
The name you can say
isn’t the real name.
Heaven and earth
Begin in the unnamed:
Name’s the mother
Of the ten thousand things.
Ursula K. Le Guin version
The Tao that can be told of is not the eternal Tao;
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The Nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth;
The Named is the mother of all things.
Wing-Tsit Chan translation
If you can talk about it,
it ain't Tao.
If it has a name,
it's just another thing.
Tao doesn't have a name.
Names are for ordinary things.
A modern interpretation by Ron Hogan
A couple of these versions are created by people who don’t speak Chinese. But do they speak to us any less than the possibly more technically faithful translation? Sometimes a looser, more poetic translation will offer more meaning than a tighter translation.
The easy way to approach a scripture is to decide that one translation is the ultimate authority and to read it literally. The hard way is to learn the original language and study the oldest text you can find. A middle way would be to examine more than one version and see what you can extract from the similarities and variations.
Whether you read the Tao Te Ching, The Bible, The Koran, or Hindu and Buddhist scriptures, or some other ancient text, consider taking the time and effort to find different translations or interpretations and immerse yourself in them. Take the words without grasping at the truth, but let them wash over you. Hold them lightly, knowing that words are imperfect communicators of essence.
Links of interest:
Free PDF Version of Ron Hogan’s modern take on the Tao Te Ching
At print version is in Getting Right with Tao: A Contemporary Spin on the Tao Te Ching by Ron Hogan
Lao Tzu Tao Te Ching: A Book About The Way And The Power Of the Way A New English Version by Ursula K. Le Guin
Tao Te Ching, Lao Tsu, A New Transtation by Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English
The Way of Loa Tzu (Tao-te ching) translated by Wing-Tsit Chan
Prayers of the Cosmos:Meditations on the Aramaic Words of Jesus by Neil Douglas-Klotz
Bibles Online
The Internet Sacred Text Archive
© 2010 Tom Barrett