Where the ancient Way

meets the living flame within you

The sixth-century Tao-te Ching is the most translated book in the world after the Bible. Yet for many, its paradoxical verses are beautiful but frustratingly out of reach. Mysteries of the Tao solves that. Elizabeth Clare Prophet draws back the veil on Taoism and reveals its deep connections to the mystic’s path in all religions. Understanding the ultimate Reality, the Great Mother and inexhaustible Source to which our souls long to return is no longer an inscrutable journey.

Discover how the central mysteries of Taoism—the nature of Te (virtue as living power) and the path of Wu Wei (effortless action in harmony with the universe)—are the same truths that Jesus taught, that Saint Paul described in his letters, and that the great Christian, Sufi, and Hindu mystics discovered in the depths of their own hearts.

This book is both a scholarly exploration and a living spiritual guide. As you read the Tao-te Ching set alongside the words of Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila, Meister Eckhart, Rumi, Ramakrishna, and Gautama Buddha, discover the astonishing unity beneath the surface of the world’s great traditions. Far more than a book to be read and set aside, Mysteries of the Tao is a companion for daily contemplation, a mirror in which your soul can finally recognize herself.

For devoted students of Taoism, Christian mystics searching for deeper roots, students of Eastern philosophy, and the lonely ones—seekers looking for the boundless and loving truth beyond all religion and in the heart of all existence, Mysteries of the Tao meets you exactly where you are.

Integrate with the Tao, which is closer to you than your own breath and has been waiting without judgment for your return.

Chapter 1   The Goal of Taoist Immortality

Chapter 2  The Highest Virtue

Chapter 3   Blessed Are the Meek

Chapter 4   The Return to the Tao

Chapter 5    Weakness as the Essence of Strength

Chapter 6    The Mystery of Non-Being

Chapter 7    To Be Empty Is to Be Full

Chapter 8    The Perfect Man and the Perfect Woman

Chapter 9    Cultivating a Tie to the Source

Chapter 10    Wu Wei—Spontaneous Action