What are you reading?

[wub]

Went to start this last night;


Realised I was too wired and need something to get me in the mood so re-reading this;



I hate it here.

[cosmic_surgeon]

[Samuel_L_Damnson]

Trainspotting, its brilliant so far, if not a little gritty.

[Kochari]

b2b



Cosmic Surgeon, let me know how you get on with Chuang Tzu, I absolutely love the Tao Te Ching and from what I've heard Chuang Tzu is the next logical step

[cosmic_surgeon]

I'm reading them both simultaneously and open-endedly at the moment. Chuang-Tzu himself is a really enjoyable/hilarious character, and I find his work a lot more straightforward than that which you find in the Tao Te Ching. Though the Tao Te Ching feels a little more like the genuine article, as its so terse and so perhaps reflects the practice of "Taoism" more so than the Chuang-Tzu, I find the poetry and prose in the Chuang-Tzu makes things clearer and actually sheds a lot of light on what is mentioned in the Tao Te Ching itself. Perhaps it lends itself better to a Western readership because it's a lot "wordier", though it's still every bit as simple and as graceful as you'd expect from a classic of its nature.

I'm also reading a book which was recommended to me by one of the leaders in the field of comparative philosophy (Graham Parkes, absolutely phenomenal philosopher/translator) with respect to getting to grips with this stuff - the book's called "Disputers of the Tao" by A.C. Graham. Personally I think it's a little too "academic" than is perhaps appropriate for grasping Chinese philosophy on its own terms, but the historical context it lends is (for me anyway) indispensable to learning. It's a fascinating and very readable book.

[minifletch]

Just started on this

[kay]

I'm reading them both simultaneously and open-endedly at the moment. Chuang-Tzu himself is a really enjoyable/hilarious character, and I find his work a lot more straightforward than that which you find in the Tao Te Ching. Though the Tao Te Ching feels a little more like the genuine article, as its so terse and so perhaps reflects the practice of "Taoism" more so than the Chuang-Tzu, I find the poetry and prose in the Chuang-Tzu makes things clearer and actually sheds a lot of light on what is mentioned in the Tao Te Ching itself. Perhaps it lends itself better to a Western readership because it's a lot "wordier", though it's still every bit as simple and as graceful as you'd expect from a classic of its nature.

I'm also reading a book which was recommended to me by one of the leaders in the field of comparative philosophy (Graham Parkes, absolutely phenomenal philosopher/translator) with respect to getting to grips with this stuff - the book's called "Disputers of the Tao" by A.C. Graham. Personally I think it's a little too "academic" than is perhaps appropriate for grasping Chinese philosophy on its own terms, but the historical context it lends is (for me anyway) indispensable to learning. It's a fascinating and very readable book.

Are there any books/studies that compare the contextual meanings of the original chinese versions of these texts to the translated versions? In the sense that certain concepts are not easy (and in some cases, impossible) to translate from one language to another. Just curious whether anything has been lost in translation (although in the impossible-to-translate case, it'd be interesting to see how they explain that!). I can only speak one of the dialects, not read/write so I can't look into it myself.

[Johoosh]

Got to read 2/3rds of the fucking Odyssey by 2pm tomorrow afternoon, my fault for leaving it this late and dicking about all weekend but jesus tomorrow will be stale.

[cosmic_surgeon]

I'm reading them both simultaneously and open-endedly at the moment. Chuang-Tzu himself is a really enjoyable/hilarious character, and I find his work a lot more straightforward than that which you find in the Tao Te Ching. Though the Tao Te Ching feels a little more like the genuine article, as its so terse and so perhaps reflects the practice of "Taoism" more so than the Chuang-Tzu, I find the poetry and prose in the Chuang-Tzu makes things clearer and actually sheds a lot of light on what is mentioned in the Tao Te Ching itself. Perhaps it lends itself better to a Western readership because it's a lot "wordier", though it's still every bit as simple and as graceful as you'd expect from a classic of its nature.

I'm also reading a book which was recommended to me by one of the leaders in the field of comparative philosophy (Graham Parkes, absolutely phenomenal philosopher/translator) with respect to getting to grips with this stuff - the book's called "Disputers of the Tao" by A.C. Graham. Personally I think it's a little too "academic" than is perhaps appropriate for grasping Chinese philosophy on its own terms, but the historical context it lends is (for me anyway) indispensable to learning. It's a fascinating and very readable book.

Are there any books/studies that compare the contextual meanings of the original chinese versions of these texts to the translated versions? In the sense that certain concepts are not easy (and in some cases, impossible) to translate from one language to another. Just curious whether anything has been lost in translation (although in the impossible-to-translate case, it'd be interesting to see how they explain that!). I can only speak one of the dialects, not read/write so I can't look into it myself.

I've never come across anything like that specifically, however A.C. Graham is a distinguished translator and where necessary discusses issues regarding how certain words have been translated. He also makes some fairly profitable analogies with Western thought too, though they don't always hit the mark imo.

[Doozle]

I recently read Down and Out In Paris and London after my mum suggested it, alongside this book. Although I haven't read it yet. Currently reading The Ragged Trousered Philantropists by Robert Tressell which is meant to be of a similar vein, really enjoying it, would deffo recommend it.

[Kochari]

^ Interesting, I gave my brother Road To Wigan Pier after I'd finished and he immediately recommended both Down and Out and Ragged Trousered Philanthropists....

[kay]

I'm reading them both simultaneously and open-endedly at the moment. Chuang-Tzu himself is a really enjoyable/hilarious character, and I find his work a lot more straightforward than that which you find in the Tao Te Ching. Though the Tao Te Ching feels a little more like the genuine article, as its so terse and so perhaps reflects the practice of "Taoism" more so than the Chuang-Tzu, I find the poetry and prose in the Chuang-Tzu makes things clearer and actually sheds a lot of light on what is mentioned in the Tao Te Ching itself. Perhaps it lends itself better to a Western readership because it's a lot "wordier", though it's still every bit as simple and as graceful as you'd expect from a classic of its nature.

I'm also reading a book which was recommended to me by one of the leaders in the field of comparative philosophy (Graham Parkes, absolutely phenomenal philosopher/translator) with respect to getting to grips with this stuff - the book's called "Disputers of the Tao" by A.C. Graham. Personally I think it's a little too "academic" than is perhaps appropriate for grasping Chinese philosophy on its own terms, but the historical context it lends is (for me anyway) indispensable to learning. It's a fascinating and very readable book.

Are there any books/studies that compare the contextual meanings of the original chinese versions of these texts to the translated versions? In the sense that certain concepts are not easy (and in some cases, impossible) to translate from one language to another. Just curious whether anything has been lost in translation (although in the impossible-to-translate case, it'd be interesting to see how they explain that!). I can only speak one of the dialects, not read/write so I can't look into it myself.

I've never come across anything like that specifically, however A.C. Graham is a distinguished translator and where necessary discusses issues regarding how certain words have been translated. He also makes some fairly profitable analogies with Western thought too, though they don't always hit the mark imo.

Cool, might look that up at some point.

[Laszlo]

Guys, if you want to understand the Tao Teh Ching this is all you need.




The way is very, very simple. (Not trying to be a dick, btw)

[Kochari]

Alan Watts - This Is It and Other Essays on Zen and Spiritual Experience

Particularly love "The NEw Alchemy", about psychedelics and the mystical experience...It's like everything I've ever wanted to say about the subject.

in every experiment with LSD one of the first effects I have noticed is a profound relaxation combined with an abandonment of purposes and goals, reminding me of the Taoist saying that "when purpose has been used to achieve purposelessness, the thing has been grasped." I have felt, in other words, endowed with all the time in the world, free to look about me as if I were living in eternity without a single problem to be solved. It is just for this reason that the busy and purposeful actions of other people seem at this time to be so comic, for it becomes obvious that by setting themselves goals which are always in the future, in the "tomorrow which never comes," they are missing entirely the point of being alive.

[Electric_Head]

http://www.grahamhancock.com/library/supernatural.php

[kingldub]

http://www.grahamhancock.com/library/supernatural.php

LOVE this one

[SCope13]

Just bought Malcom X's autobiography, Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, and Kaddish and Other Poems by Ginsberg. 50 bucks out the window.

[Shum]

Andy Martin - The Boxer and the Goalkeeper

Bought it on a whim a week or two back, went largely over my head though it had it's moments. Thinking of giving this one away if anyone's interested.



David Byrne - How Music Works

One word: AMAZING.



Various - Erewhon Calling: Experimental Sound in New Zealand

Title says it all. They could have looked a little wider for submissions, off the top of my head there is plenty of good academic noisy music-ish stuff about that didn't get a look in. Still an interesting and important book.

[pdomino]

Just borrowed 'Mr.Nice' off a friend

[Devry_Kaneda]

Just bought Malcom X's autobiography, Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, and Kaddish and Other Poems by Ginsberg. 50 bucks out the window.

amazon bro. you will never spend more than a dollar on a book again.