Book: Tao Te Ching
Lao Tzu, trans. by James Legge
The life of Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu (Old Master) is shrouded in legend and myth. Believed to have lived between 600 and 300 BCE., he served as an official at the court of the Zhou Dynasty (1046–256 BCE). Lao Tzu wanted his philosophy,Taoism, to serve as guide to a natural way to live life with goodness, serenity, and respect. His only book, the eighty-one chapter Tao Te Ching (tao—the way of all life; te—the fit use of life by men; and, ching—text or classic), was written at the end of his life as, saddened by the evils of men, he left civilization behind and fled into the western desert on the back of a water buffalo. This sacred Chinese text is the world’s most translated book after the Bible.
This edition of the Tao Te Ching is a handmade book, limited to an edition of fifty. The translation is by James Legge, originally published in 1891. Set in Centaur, with titles in Kuenstler 165, the book is printed on Mohawk Superfine Text, with a hand-sewn linen binding, endpapers and page ornaments printed with a traditional Chinese Phoenix (yin) and Dragon (yang) pattern, silk ribbon bookmark, and a grey silk-over-boards cover.
5.5 x 6.5 in, 96 pages
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