Victor H. Mair (Translator)
220322: have decided to read various translations i have of this text, not that the renderings are necessarily much different but to read accompanying texts, in this case notes, commentary, afterword, appendix... primary note is that this is 32yrs old, so i do not know how currently accurate it is, but it is derived from then-recently found silk <I>ma-wang-tui</I> manuscripts, about 500 years older than other texts, he has deliberately ignored previous versions as they are often distorted by politics, philosophy, simple desire to make work more coherent...
the translation is similar to what i remember reading (get to rereading and see if this is true) but in afterwards he makes strong argument for similarity and primacy of hindu text [book:The Bhagavad Gita|99944] with [book:Tao Te Ching|136370], not direct transcription but strong influence, though he views this as more political treatise with mystical overtones and that as theistic with political applications- but it is more philosophical i like, probably why i prefer buddhist work like [book:The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way: Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā|1048288] or [book:The Vimalakirti Sutra|868424]... though i do enjoy reading this and will read other translations in this project: it is not a book to rush through...