This book introduces to the philosophy of the Daodejing. It explores the recurring images and ideas that shape the work and offers a variety of approaches to understanding and appreciating this canonical text. It expounds on the core philosophical issues addressed in the Daodejing, clarifying such crucial concepts as Yin and Yang and Dao and De. It explains its teachings on a variety of subjects, including sexuality, ethics, desire, cosmology, human nature, the emotions, time, death, and the death penalty. The Daodejing offers a distinctive ideal of social order and political leadership and presents a philosophy of war and peace.