A Chinese Reading of the Daodejing

<p><b>Presenting the commentary of the third-century sage Wang Bi this book provides a Chinese way of reading the Daodejing one which will surprise Western readers.</b></p><p>Many of the brightest Chinese minds have used the form of the commentary to open the terse and poetic chapters of the Laozi to their readers and also to develop a philosophy of their own. None has been more sophisticated philosophically probing and influential in the endeavor than a young genius of the third century C.E. Wang Bi (226-249). In this book Rudolf G. Wagner provides a full translation of the Laozi that extracts from Wang Bi's Commentary the manner in which he read the text as well as a full translation of Wang Bi's Commentary and his essay on the subtle pointers of the Laozi. The result is a Chinese reading of the Laozi that will surprise and delight Western readers familiar with some of the many translations of the work.</p><p>A Chinese Reading of the Daodejing is part of Rudolf Wagner's trilogy on Wang Bi's philosophy and classical studies which also includes The Craft of a Chinese Commentator: Wang Bi on the Laozi and Language Ontology and Political Philosophy in China: Wang Bi's Scholarly Exploration of the Dark (Xuanxue) both published by SUNY Press.</p>