- Hardcover: 160 pages
- Publisher: St. Martin's Press (Sep 9 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0312264283
- ISBN-13: 978-0312264284
- Product Dimensions: 23.9 x 19.3 x 2.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 726 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,573,403 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Book Description
At the heart of the I Ching is China's fundamental spiritual text, Ta Chuan, "The Great Treatise." Originating in the Warring States period in China (c. 500-221 BCE) as a series of oral instruction on how to use the I Ching for personal divination, in time, it became incorporated into the I Ching. But when read as a separate book something special occurs. We can see how it changed Chinese civilization by giving people an inner life or way, created out of the myths and symbols of an old culture that was falling apart. It turned what was an Imperial court oracle into a spiritual way that everyone can use. Ta Chuan explains each part of the oracle and tells you how to use it to effect a profound transformation in your life.
Intelligently illustrated to bring out the authentic meaning and spirit of the text, this lyrical and scrupulously faithful Taoist translation and commentary will become the standard work of reference for years to come.
About the Author
Stephen Karcher, PhD author, lecturer and consulting diviner, has worked with divinatory texts for thirty years as both scholar and consultant. He supervised the Eranos Foundation's I Ching Project, where he pioneered a depth-psychological approach to divination and its sense of spirit.
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Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Great Treatise for Coffee Tables,
By A Customer
This review is from: TA CHUAN (Hardcover)
The Dazhuan or great treatise is the most important of the commentaries on the I Ching which make up the so-called Ten Wings,attributed to Confucius but written centuries after him. This is a beautiful and poetic text, almost as powerful at the Tao Te Ching.I had eagerly awaited this publication but found it disappointing. It cannot compare to the two presently existing ones which are in the standard Wilhelm/Baynes edition and in a newer one by Richard Rutt. Not only are these better, they are included with their versions of the I Ching itself. Karcher's tends to be flat: "If you want to be benevolent, call it benevolence." Karcher's commentary ranges from the trite to the New Age: "You become a Realizing Person, someone who is becoming who they are meant to be." This sounds more like an army recruiting ad than ancient China. (We can overlook the incorrect grammar in which a single subject "who" becomes plural "they" rather than "whom". The text of the Dazhuan itself is hard to read in this edition because each line centered rather than left-justified, giving an arty appearance. Likely the purpose was to make the rather flat translation seem poetic. The volume is produced by a book packager and is filled with attractive but unrelated stock illustrations.Considering the nearly infinite quantity of gorgeous visual art produced by the Chinese, selection of these bland photographs is inexcusable. Many pages bear the Chinese characters for Dazhuan but in stiff, child-like calligraphy.
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Great Treatise for Coffee Tables,
By Fu Xi (Anyang, China) - See all my reviews
This review is from: TA CHUAN (Hardcover)
The Dazhuan or great treatise is the most important of the commentaries on the I Ching which make up the so-called Ten Wings,attributed to Confucius but written centuries after him. This is a beautiful and poetic text, almost as powerful at the Tao Te Ching.I had eagerly awaited this publication but found it disappointing. It cannot compare to the two presently existing ones which are in the standard Wilhelm/Baynes edition and in a newer one by Richard Rutt. Not only are these better, they are included with their versions of the I Ching itself. Karcher's tends to be flat: "If you want to be benevolent, call it benevolence." Karcher's commentary ranges from the trite to the New Age: "You become a Realizing Person, someone who is becoming who they are meant to be." This sounds more like an army recruiting ad than ancient China. (We can overlook the incorrect grammar in which a single subject "who" becomes plural "they" rather than "whom". The text of the Dazhuan itself is hard to read in this edition because each line centered rather than left-justified, giving an arty appearance. Likely the purpose was to make the rather flat translation seem poetic. The volume is produced by a book packager and is filled with attractive but unrelated stock illustrations.Considering the nearly infinite quantity of gorgeous visual art produced by the Chinese, selection of these bland photographs is inexcusable. Many pages bear the Chinese characters for Dazhuan but in stiff, child-like calligraphy.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ancient Chinese Wisdom made clear,
By
This review is from: TA CHUAN (Hardcover)
First, consider the wisdom of the following two quotes, taken out of context. (1) "Change is a teacher without peer." (p. 71)(2) "It is an unspoken trust that carries and supports us as we strive for the power and virtue to become who we are meant to be." (p. 110) Those two may give you a sense of the profound wisdom made available in this text. Much of the original text is somewhat hard to understand, at least on a first reading, although Karcher's translation & commentaries are radiant with clarity. The text, in its discussion of the Way (Tao) and Change, explains the spiritual/metaphysical mechanisms underlying the *I Ching*; familiarity with the *I Ching* makes this text much more accessible, although the wisdom of this text may entice some readers to work more closely with the *I Ching*. Karcher (who, with Ritsema, did one of the most brilliant English translations of the *I Ching* ever) is deeply familiar with that work, and thus is able to bring those insights to this work. This is a book one could read again and again over the years, learning more on each reading. As if the merits of the text were not enough to recommend this book on its own, the design of the book (with small photos & Chinese characters in the margins) is stunningly beautiful. This book would be particularly wonderful for the aesthetically sensitive spiritual aspirant.
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