March 28, 2009

Not translating dé (德)

is often translated as virtue or power[1]. David Hinton translates as nobility[2]. Like dào, the purpose of the Lǎo Zǐ is to explain , so the word is not translated in this commentary. Chad Hansen translates as virtuosity in that "may be the result of innate skill or of careful cultivation and training"[3]. As one of the Lǎo Zǐ's messages is that following the Dào takes practice and total commitment of one's soul, Hansen's interpretation is very appealing as he says " links dào", or, maybe, rather Dào, "with correct performance" and that "the 'powerful' performance achieves the dào's goal in real time"[4].

FOOTNOTES

[1] Hansen, Chad, "Taoism", Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2008 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (editor).

[2] Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, translated by David Hinton, Counterpoint, Berkeley, CA, 2000, 97pp.

[3] Hansen, Chad, "Taoism", Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2008 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (editor).

[4] Ibid.