My version of the Daodejing is a different translation than the text many used in class, and this led me to become curious on how the translation has changed over time. Some of the classes favorite poems have an entirely different version when comparing different texts. #67 changes from translation to translation which can be seen in the difference between Gia-Fu Feng’s translation created in 1972 and Agnieska Solska’s version in 2005. Feng says, “I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion,” while Solska says, “I have three treasures which I hold and keep safe. The first is compassion. The second economy. The third not daring to take the lead.” Each of these versions completely change the meaning of these ideals. Solska moves the first lesson to compassion giving it greater emphasis and changes simplicity to economy which has a very different meaning. Economy transforms the meaning from something that could be applied to many aspects of life such as relationships, but economy’s meaning refers to resources. She also changes patience to not daring to take the lead. This once again changes the meaning and creates the idea that someone who follows the way must always follow and never lead while patience can mean many other things. Two other versions by J. H. McDonald in 1988 and Jim Clatfelter in 1996 also give different meanings to these verses. McDonald states, “There are three jewels that I cherish: compassion, moderation, and humility,” while Clatfelter says, “I have three treasures that I keep. The first is friendliness. The second is to stay behind. The third is wanting less.” These translations show how the message of the Daodejing can change over time and be molded to fit different applications. However, with all of these translations it is difficult to tell the true meaning of the text, and how it should be translated. This is a very interesting exercise that has taught me to look further into books with translations and be sure to see which liberties the translator has taken that might change the original meaning.
Categories