I will begin here with the most useful books that have helped me learn the Tao.
Wayne W. Dyer, Change Your Thoughts – Change Your Life: Living the Wisdom of the Tao (Hay House, 2007).
This was my first real introduction to the Tao, given to me by my friend Sue Laugesen. It is so very practical.
Amazon… In this book, Dr. Wayne W. Dyer has reviewed hundreds of translations of the Tao Te Ching and has written 81 distinct essays on how to apply the ancient wisdom of Lao-tzu to today’s modern world. This work contains the entire 81 verses of the Tao, compiled from Wayne’s researching of 12 of the most well-respected translations of text that have survived for more than 25 centuries. Each chapter is designed for actually living the Tao or the Great Way today. Some of the chapter titles are “Living with Flexibility,” “Living Without Enemies,” and “Living by Letting Go.” Each of the 81 brief chapters focuses on living the Tao and concludes with a section called “Doing the Tao Now.” Wayne spent one entire year reading, researching, and meditating on Lao-tzu’s messages, practicing them each day and ultimately writing down these essays as he felt Lao-tzu wanted you to know them. This is a work to be read slowly, one essay a day. As Wayne says, “This is a book that will forever change the way you look at your life, and the result will be that you’ll live in a new world aligned with nature. Writing this book changed me forever, too. I now live in accord with the natural world and feel the greatest sense of peace I’ve ever experienced. I’m so proud to present this interpretation of the Tao Te Ching, and offer the same opportunity for change that it has brought me.”
Derek Lin, The Tao of Daily Life: The Mysteries of the Orient Revealed, The Joys of Inner Harmony Found, The Path to Enlightenment Illuminated (Jeremy P. Tarcher / Penguin, 2007).
Why do I love this book? It is because stories are the best way to convey truth.
Amazon… “The Tao of Daily Life combines ancient Eastern wisdom with practical application-perfect for busy Western readers! Derek Lin, Taoist master and expert in Eastern philosophy, brings his deep knowledge of this time-honored Chinese spiritual thought system into the twenty-first century. “There is one simple reason for the Tao to have survived through the ages intact: it works,” writes Lin. “The principles of the Tao are extremely effective when applied to life. The philosophy as a whole is nothing less than a practical, useful guide to living life in a way that is smooth, peaceful, and full of energy.” Using the powerful medium of stories and short dharma talks, Lin illuminates the Taoist secrets and engages the reader in their inherent wisdom.”
Alan Watts, The Watercourse Way (Souvenir Press, 1977).
Amazon… Drawing on ancient and modern sources, “a lucid discussion of Taoism and the Chinese language [that’s] profound, reflective, and enlightening.” -Boston Globe. According to Deepak Chopra, “Watts was a spiritual polymatch, the first and possibly greatest.” Watts treats the Chinese philosophy of Tao in much the same way as he did Zen Buddhism in his classic The Way of Zen. Critics agree that this last work stands as a perfect monument to the life and literature of Alan Watts. “Perhaps the foremost interpreter of Eastern disciplines for the contemporary West,… Watts begins with scholarship and intellect and proceeds with art and eloquence to the frontiers of the spirit.”–Los Angeles Times
Alan Watts, Tao for Now: Wisdom of the Watercourse (Waterside Productions, 2023). Edited by Mark Watts and Brian Wheeler.
Amazon… Curated from the prophetic and playful lectures of Alan Watts, Tao for Now: Wisdom of the Watercourse outlines a path of least resistance for contemporary culture, presenting a guide to living the principles and practicalities of the “Watercourse Way.” In this collection of edited talks, recorded between 1966 and 1973, Alan Watts explores the essence of Taoism with his charismatic style, sage insight, and a playful brilliance that is vitally needed in today’s world. Through juxtaposing Taoist principles with many of the bedrock assumptions of Western philosophy and culture, Tao for Now shines a much-needed light on important limitations and imbalances of modern civilization. Inviting you to break free from societal constructs and egoic conventions, Alan Watts’ timeless wisdom offers a transformative entry point into the cosmic depths, inner freedom, and natural flow of who you truly are. Picking up where his final written work – Tao: The Watercourse Way – left off, Tao for Now features Watts’ most comprehensive teachings on Taoism to date, some made publicly available here for the first time.