Tao Te Ching, Plainly
All 81 chapters of the Tao Te Ching, line by line: original, literal, plain.
- Category
- Classics
- Platforms
- Web
- Pricing
- Free to read
Overview
Tao Te Ching, Plainly is a free reading site for the Tao Te Ching, the short classic traditionally attributed to Laozi. It covers all 81 chapters, and every chapter is broken down line by line. For each line you see three layers side by side: the Chinese original, a literal translation that stays close to the wording, and a plain reading that explains what the line is getting at in everyday language.
We built it because most people meet the Tao Te Ching through a single translation, and translations of this text differ enormously. A translator has to make choices about grammar, about which manuscript to follow, and about how much interpretation to add. Seeing the original next to a literal gloss makes those choices visible. The plain reading then gives you a starting point for thinking about the line without pretending to be the final word.
The site is deliberately quiet: no account, no feed, no gamification. You open the catalog, pick a chapter, and read. Previous and Next links let you move through the book in order, and a language switcher lets you read the same chapter in English, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or German.
An honest note: the literal and plain layers are our own reading aids, not a scholarly critical edition. Where the received text and excavated manuscripts disagree, or where a line is genuinely ambiguous, any single rendering is a choice. We recommend using the site alongside at least one published translation if you are studying the text seriously.
Key features
Three layers for every line
Each line of each chapter shows the Original Chinese, a Literal translation, and a Plain reading. You can follow the exact wording, then see what it means in modern terms, without flipping between books.
Complete 81-chapter catalog
The Catalog lists all 81 chapters, each with a short title that hints at its theme, such as Name, Desire, Water virtue, or Leave blank. It is easy to jump straight to a chapter someone has quoted to you.
Pinyin on hover
In the original text, hovering over a Chinese character shows its pinyin pronunciation in a small tooltip. This helps learners sound out lines and recognize recurring characters without leaving the page.
Six interface languages
The reading is available in English, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and German. Each language has its own chapter URLs, so you can share a link to a specific chapter in a specific language.
Linked to the I Ching companion
The site links to I Ching, Plainly, our companion reader for the Book of Changes, which uses the same original, literal, and plain approach for all 64 hexagrams.
How to use Tao Te Ching, Plainly
- Open taoist.pomodiary.com/en/ (or choose your language from the Language menu).
- Browse the Catalog of all 81 chapters and pick one. If you are new to the text, chapters 1, 8, 11, and 33 are good first stops.
- Read the Original line first, even if you do not read Chinese; hover over characters to see their pinyin.
- Read the Literal translation to see what the words themselves say, then read the Plain reading for the explanation.
- Pause on any line where the literal and plain readings feel far apart. That gap is usually where interpretation is happening, and it is worth comparing with another translation.
- Use Previous and Next to continue through the book, ideally one chapter per day.
Who it’s for
- First-time readers who want to understand the Tao Te Ching rather than just collect quotations from it.
- Students of Chinese who want a classical text with literal glosses and pinyin support.
- Readers who already own a translation and want to check how closely it follows the original wording.
- Anyone who prefers a calm, distraction-free reading page for a short daily reading habit.
FAQ
- Is the site free?
- Yes. All 81 chapters can be read in the browser without creating an account.
- Which version of the Chinese text does it use?
- The site presents a standard received text of the 81 chapters. Excavated manuscripts such as the Mawangdui silk texts differ in places, so treat any single version, including ours, as one witness among several.
- Do I need to read Chinese?
- No. The literal and plain layers are in your chosen language. The original is there so you can see the structure of each line, and the pinyin tooltips help if you want to start recognizing characters.
- Is the plain reading an authoritative interpretation?
- No. It is a careful, readable explanation meant to help you get started. The Tao Te Ching has been interpreted in many ways for over two thousand years, and we encourage comparing several translations and commentaries.
- Can I link to a specific chapter?
- Yes. Every chapter has its own URL, for example /en/chapter/08/ for chapter 8, and each language version has its own path.
Guides and articles
- A Beginner's Guide to Reading the Tao Te Ching
What the Tao Te Ching is, how its 81 chapters are organized, what the excavated manuscripts changed, and a practical way to start reading it well.
- Wu Wei Explained: What "Non-Action" Really Means in the Tao Te Ching
Wu wei is not "doing nothing". We read the key lines of the Tao Te Ching in Chinese, translate them closely, and show what the idea means in practice.
More from POMODIARY
- FlowType.AILearn Japanese by typing it: kana, vocabulary and full sentences with instant feedback.
- FlowType Grammar LensTurn posts on X/Twitter into compact grammar notes in your own language.
- Capital.Open-source bookkeeping you can talk to: tell your AI assistant "lunch 30" and the entry lands in your own ledger.
- BitbeadTurn a photo into a fuse bead pattern with real colour codes and an exact bead count.
- Folk Game HallTraditional board and playground games, playable in the browser against a local AI or a friend.
- I Ching, PlainlyAll 64 hexagrams of the Book of Changes, with original text, literal translation, and plain reading.
Questions about Tao Te Ching, Plainly? Email hi@pomodiary.com or visit our contact page.