Author Description

The Tao Te Ching (or Dao De Jing) whose authorship has been attributed to Laozi is a Chinese classic text. Its name comes from the opening words of its two sections: dao "way," Chapter 1, and de "virtue," Chapter 38, plus jing "classic." According to tradition, it was written around the 6th century BC by the sage Laozi (or Lao Tzu, "Old Master"), a record-keeper at the Zhou dynasty court, by whose name the text is known in China. The text's true author-ship and date of composition or compilation are still debated.