Tao: The Watercourse Way

GOOD

Yes

This was a great introduction to Tao for someone who is an American with nearly no exposure to the topic. I really enjoy Mr. Watts way of presenting information and some of his ideas were way ahead of their time. He basically predicts the rise of emojiis in this book - decades before their wider use on mobile technology.

Overall condition as stated. However, MUCH more underlining than I usually find at this stated condiiton ("very good"). I understand some people like to buy underlined books. I don't. It interrupts the flow of the writing for me. But in the spirit of Alan Watts, I'll laugh it off and try to not trip too badly stepping through these underlinings. I have not read this book yet, but I have read several other books Watts put out... and I really enjoyed listening to him on the radio every week those many years ago, so I look forward to this one. (Always En-Lightening....or as Watts would say,"Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly".

Our anxiety is nothing more than our own inability to align with the watercourse way

Although I enjoyed Watts' scholarly analysis and excellent writing, he went a little too far in his vindication of 'Eastern' values and indictment of 'Western' values. I would give the reader two points on which I disagree with Watts. First, it's ill-advised to conceive of an 'Eastern' philosophy. It's nothing more than a category to put things in. The same is true of 'Western' philosophy. To see this, read a few verses attributed to the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus or the Yankee mystic Emerson, especially his essays titled 'Circles' and 'The Over-Soul'. You'll find that these 'Western' philosophers have some very 'Eastern' ideas. I expected Watts to explain this to the reader so that they understood that 'Eastern' and 'Western' are just arbitrary, albeit useful categories that shouldn't be taken too seriously.Second, Eastern and Western civilization are not as different as he suggests. For example, although some Chinese characters seem more natural than the Latin alphabet, the Chinese written language has become nearly as abstract as the Latin alphabet. Watts' insinuation that Chinese language more accurately conveys reality is a bit of a stretch, as is his idea that Eastern civilization is less neurotic than Western civilization. A quick reading of Chinese history reveals that Chinese encountered the same tendency to 'order the world' as their European and Ottoman counterparts.Those two points aside, Watts delivers an excellent introduction to Taoism. I should mention the caveat that 'Taoism' is not really a system of thought like Confucianism, but a useful category to put related ideas into. Chuang Tzu did not think of himself as a disciple of Lao Tzu; Han historians falsely (or accurately?) envisioned them as belonging to a single stream of thought like Legalism or Confucianism. On a related note, Watts gives a well-thought description of the Tao on pg. 55:"But if, as is the case, the Tao is simply inconceivable, what is the use of having the word and of saying anything at all about it? Simply because we know intuitively that there is a dimension of ourselves and of nature which eludes us because it is too close, too general, and too all-embracing to be singled out as a particular object."This is the essence of the philosophy, and he goes on in the long paragraph to further explain it. Not unlike the scientific concept of electricity, the Tao is not a thing at all, but a certain dimension that we cannot quite explain (the word 'dimension' doesn't do it justice). In that way, the Tao is no more mystical than science. Watts includes a passage from a scientist writing about electricity and correctly calls it 'pure metaphysics'. Empirical experiments only give us snippets of observed reality, which is different from reality itself, for the very observation of a thing changes it. The Tao underlies this reality, and is not observable. But it doesn't matter if we have an incomplete and inaccurate view of the cosmos since we need only 'go with the flow' and understand that the nature of reality is unknowable. This leads to a more tolerant, less anxious existence in the modern world.Watts does an incredible job explaining difficult concepts to his readers. Watts will give you an intuitive understanding of the concepts of action through inaction and te (virtue/virtuality). I may disagree with how he views Eastern and Western society (or societies, as he would put it), but he has achieved something with this small volume that few others could hope to match. At the end of the book I was left curious and wanting more, knowing that this unfinished book was his last; could you ask for more?

A little out of date, but worth the read if you're interested in Taoism.

If you've ever cracked open the Tao Te Ching, it can be baffling at times. Most frustratingly, the central idea of the Tao is described somewhat ambiguously. It is also clear that there are many unexplained background assumptions at work. I enjoy the reflective quality of the text, but wanted to know more.TTWW is not only a competent introduction to Taoism, but also an accessible bridge between Taoist Chinese ideas and the more compartmental western mindset. The book begins on a note that feels a bit misplaced (a discourse on the Chinese language), but then moves smoothly into the subject matter. The ways of thinking presented in the book did a great job at challenging my conceptual intuitions about the universe and the beings within it.And while there are some strange conclusions here and there (this is mostly by Watts!), on balance the reasoning is solid and the text is a beautiful testament to Taoism.