Wednesday, May 01, 2024

Simpkins & Simpkins, Taoism for Beginners (2020)

C. Alexander Simpkins and Annellen Simpkins.
Taoism for Beginners: A Guide to Balanced Living.
Tokyo; Rutland, Vermont; and Singapore: Tuttle Publishing, 2020.

Book Information: Publisher; Google Books; Amazon.com.

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Wikipedia Articles:
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Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy:
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In Our Time:
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This is the first book on Taoism I have read (aside from the Tao Te Ching) so I can't compare it to other notable introductions such as those by Alan Watts and Hans-Georg Moeller. I was prompted to seek out an introductory book on Taoism because I found the Tao Te Ching somewhat baffling on first reading (see my forthcoming post on Tao Te Ching for various editions; the version I first read is very terse and without any explanatory notes or commentary, which I think is not appropriate for beginners; other translations of Tao Te Ching contain more commentary and interpretative renditions).

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