Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.s10.t1: Lao Zi

Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.s10.t1

Language: English

Lao Zi

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The Book of Lao Zi is the principal classic of Taoism, also known as The Book of Dao De Jing. The currently circulated edition is divided into 81 chapters, totaling 5,056 Chinese characters.

The authorship and year of Book final completion have always been subject to controversy. Master Han Fei thought its author was Lao Zi (namely, Lao Dan) while historian Sima Qian suspiciously alleged the author was court historian Dan of the Warring States Period. Moreover, there's someone believes that the classic is actually the wills and teachings of from Lao Zi recorded and written down by Huan Yuan, a thinker in the Warring States Period, and someone even deduced that the classic might had been completed during the period between Qin and Han dynasties. However, this argument of the Book completion at the early Han Dynasty was refuted by the silk manuscript edition of The Book of Lao Zi unearthed from Tomb at Mawangdui of Changsha city, Hu'nan province in 1972. The prevalent view of majority scholars at the present tend to believe the Book might be completed in the Warring States Period, might not be later than the publication of Mencius and Zhuangzi, as it is evident by Lao Dan’s thought in the late Spring and Autumn Period contained in The Book of Laozi, with diction with literary style of the Warring States Period.

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*Dao De Jing, Hindi edition (front cover)*

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The current version of The Book of Lao Zi consists of part one and part two, or the Book of Dao and the Book of De, respectively. In He Shang Gong annotated version, Wang Bi annotated version and Fu Yi final edited and revised version, the part one and part two are all referred to, respectively, as the Book of Dao and Book of De. However, in the silk manuscript version of the Book, the Book of De is placed ahead of the Book of Dao, which is the most ancient transcript version that could be found so far. The currently circulated version is divided into 81 chapters, even though some currently circulated editions consist of 72 or 68 chapters. But the unearthed silk manuscript version is not divided into chapters.

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Contents expounded in *The Book of Lao Zi* is quite extensive, involving multiple of fields such as nature, society, human anecdotes, philosophy, politics, ethic, military affairs and culture. It contains rich philosophical thoughts, ie apart from the abstract subject like probing of ontology and unitarity of the universe, it also includes various exposition, argumentation and original thesis in the fields of epistemology, conception of history, outlook on life, cultural perspective, etc. The Confucianists and legalists all have assimilated to varying degrees Lao Zi’s thoughts; even phenomenology of modern Western world has also been influenced to some extent by its thoughts. Taoism reveres The Book of Lao Zi as the principal canon. There have been circulated many editions of the book throughout history, such as 14 stone inscription editions among which Yu Shinan’ edited and scribal edition in Tang Dynasty under the reign of Emperor Taizong is the oldest, and the next ancient edition is seen on the stone tablet of Dao De Jing erected in Long Xing Temple in Yi Prefecture in the second year of Jing Long reign of Tang Emperor Zhongzong. Besides, considerably huge numbers of remnant paper of hand-copied editions are widely scattered among Dunhuang Scripture. As for the wood engraving edition, the earliest appeared is Lao Zi’s Dao De Jing Begun with Sentence of He Shang Gong that was published in the Song Dynasty, now available in photocopy edition among the first compiled Imperial Collection of Four published by the Commercial Press. The Orthodox Collected Taoist Scriptures collected the text of the Book of Dao-De-Jing and annotated editions, respectively, published in dynasties of Han, Wei, Tang, Song, Jin, Yuan and Ming, totaling forty one. Experts to eliminate doubt and explain Lao Zi’s text in past dynasties are no less than a thousand, among them the most famous are as follows: Master Han fei’s Uncoiling Lao Zi and Explaining Lao Zi in the late Warring States Period, the Han Dynasty He Shang Gong’s Lao Zi’ Chapters, Wang Bi’s Annotation of the Book of Lao Zi in Wei and Jin dynasties, He Yan’s Discussion of Lao Zi’ Dao and De, Qiang Siqi’s Compilation of Quintessence of Lao Zi’s Classic, Song Dynasty Taoist Cheng Jingyuan’s Profound Explanation of Lao Zi’ Cannon, Song Dynasty Wang Anshi’s Annotation of the Book of Lao Zi (has been lost), Ming Dynasty Jiao Hong’s Annotation of The Book of Lao Zi, Qing Dynasty Bi Yuan’s Editing and Proofreading of The Book of Lao

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Dao De Jing, Laozi

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Zi; in modern and contemporary times, what are prominent are Collation and Annotation of The Book of Lao Zi by Zhu Qianzhi, Authentic Expounding of The Book of Lao Zi by Gao Heng, Unraveling The Book of Lao Zi by Ren Jiyu (attached with English translated version), Lao Zi at Ancient and Modern Times by Liao Xiaogan, etc. Internationally, The Book of Lao Zi has been translated into many languages both in the Western and Eastern Worlds.

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Among the multitude of foreign language translated versions, the so-called Sanskrit version reputedly translated by the most famous monk Xuanzang calls widespread attention. In accordance with the record contained in the third volume of Dao Xuan’s Collection of Debate between Buddhism and Taoism, it is quoted to the effect that on his return from the trip of India and was given interview by Emperor Taizong in the 21st year of Zhenguan Reign of Tang Dynasty (647 CE), Li Yibiao returned after a visit to India, reporting that he had given introduction of The Book of Lao Zi to King Kumàra in the State of Kàmaråpa in ancient India (now the west regions in Assam, India). The Emperor Taizong then gave edict to Monk Xuanzang to translate Lao Zi’s cannon into Sanskrit, and “Xuanzang begins to translate Lao Zi’s classic only after thoroughly comprehending the delicate and hidden connotation of the classic by analysing the text sentence by sentence and classifying the text in term of meaning”. There all along exists a great controversy on plausibility and availability of such a Sanskrit version. However, modern people supported Dao Xuan’s Record with two arguments. One is Lao Zi’ original name, according to legend, is Li Er, whom Emperor Taizhong treated as ancient wise man of his own clan. The second evidence can be found in Introduction of India-New Historical Book of Tang, which has it to say, “The State of Kàmaråpa offers exotic gifts and its atlas, but requests to be given a Portrait of Lao Zi as return gift.” And Monk Xuangzang once visited that country and used to be on good term with King Kumàra. The assumption of real existence of the Xuan Zang’s Sanskrit version should not be discarded, instead, should be kept as one of the versions waiting to be certified by any evidence either on the ground or underground. Hindi translated version of Tao Upanishad has appeared for a long time, and its influence is gradually gaining momentum.