Learning to Read Spanish

 

Learning to Read in Spanish
I am studying and learning each day to improve my ability to READ text in Spanish in 2021.  This is a self-study program of learning.  

We 75 year old men need to challenge our brains, train our eyes and memory, and challenge ourselves to learn and think more.  I used $500 of our U.S. stimulus check to fund this educational opportunity and challenge.  Hopefully, authors, publishers, and retail bookstores (e.g., Barnes and Noble in Vancouver, Powell's in Portland) and online booksellers (e.g., Amazon, Barnes and Noble) will all benefit from these purchases.   

I have been Using Spanish in translating chapters from the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu.  List of Spanish language translations, notes on translating, my project on indexing the Daodejing, and some of the books and links I use to learn to read in Spanish.  
 

Here are the resources that I am using for learning to read Spanish in 2021: 

 

Better Reading Spanish, Second Edition.  By Jean Yates.  McGraw Hill, 2011, 272 pages, $16.00. 

Easy Spanish Reader:  Three Part Text for Beginning Students.  Text in Spanish, questions, vocabulary, notes. By William T. Tardy.  McGraw Hill, 2006, 218 pages, $16.00. 

Easy Spanish Step-by-Step: Master High Frequency Grammar.  By Barbara Bregstein.  1st Edition, Kindle.  Mcgraw-Hill, 2005, 448 pages, $10.00 Kindle. 

English and Spanish: The Similarities and Differences.  By Scott Paulson.  Kindle, $4.00, 2019, 51 pages. 

501 Spanish Verbs.  By Christopher Kendris and Theodore Kendris.  Baron's, 2020, $16.00

Great Spanish and Latin American Short Stories of the 20th Century.  A Spanish and English, Dual-Language Book.  Edited by Anna Hiller.  Dover, 2013, 288 pages, $16.00. 

Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish: A Creative and Proven Approach.  By Margarita Madrigal.  Crown, 1989, 512 pages, Book $12.00, Kindle $11.00. 

Merriam-Webster's Easy Learning Complete Spanish: Grammar + Verbs + Vocabulary.  Second Edition, 2016, 703 pages, $19.00. 

Mastering Spanish Vocabulary: A Thematic Approach.  Barron's Foreign Language Guides.  By Jose Maria Navarro and Axel J. Navarro Ramil.  Barrons, 2010, 490 pages, $20.00. Includes an audio CD. 

The Oxford-Duden Pictorial Spanish-English Dictionary.  Oxford University Press, 1989, 888 pages, $15.00.

Random House Webster's Spanish-English and English-Spanish Dictionary, Second Edition, 1995, 694 pages, $18.00.

Rosetta Stone, Software, Lifetime, Spanish  $200    

Short Stories in Spanish for Beginners.  Edited by Olly Richards.  Teach Yourself Books, 2018, 238 pages, $15.00. 

Spanish-English Bilingual Visual Dictionary.  By DK Publisher, 360 pages, 2017, Kindle, $8.00.

Spanish Flashcards: 800 Important Spanish-English and English-Spanish Flash Cards.  By Phinhok Languages.  Kindle Edition.  $11.00

Spanish Short Stories for Beginners.  Kindle.  $4.50

Spanish Short Stories 1, Parallel Text, Spanish and English Edition. Edited by Jean Franco.  Penguin, 1966, 203 pages, $19.00.

201 Spanish Words You Need to Know Flashcards.  Barron's Foreign Language Guides.  By Theodore Kendris.  2019, $10.00

Webster's Spanish-English Dictionary for Students.  Merriam-Webster, 2014, Second Edition, 365 pages, $6.00.  Light and handy. 

 

Total Cost:  $479.00 as of 2/22/2021.  Budget in 2021 for Spanish language learning resources, classes, lessons, books, materials, software: $500.00. 

 

Supplementary Reading Materials in Spanish

Wikipedia in Spanish

Children's Books in Spanish

Online Newspapers in Spanish

Children's Books in Spanish from Amazon

 

Dào Dé Jing en Español

Tao Te Ching en Español

Dao De Jing (Tao Te Ching) in Spanish 

Daodejing 81 Website

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
Dao De Jing by Laozi
Concordance, Selected Translations, Bibliography, Commentaries

Compilation and Indexing by Michael P. Garofalo

For Each of the 81 Chapters:

25 English Translations
5 Spanish Translations
Chinese Characters
Pinyin & Wade-Giles
Concordance
Bibliography & Links
Directory
Commentary
Chapter Indexes
 

Daodejing 81 Website

Concordance to the Tao Te Ching

Daodejing 81 Website

English Language Versions of the Tao Te Ching - Translator's Index

Spanish Language Versions of the Dao De Jing

Chapter Index to the Tao Te Ching

Thematic Index to the Tao Te Ching

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Bibliography

An Old Philosopher's Notebooks

Cloud Hands Blog Posts About the Daodejing

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise Persons

Tao Te Ching  Chapter Number Index Standard Traditional Chapter Arrangement of the Tao Te ChingChapter Order in Wang Bi's Daodejing Commentary in 246 CE Chart by Mike Garofalo Subject Index
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40
41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50
51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60
61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69	70
71	72	73	74	75	76	77	78	79	80
81

Daodejing 81 Website 

A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes 25 or more different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 or more Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter.

Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, and terms for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization. 

An electronic Concordance for all 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching is provided.

Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, a Google Translate drop down menu, and other resources for that Chapter. 


Chapter 7, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Concordance for the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Daodejing 81 Website

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise Persons

Índice de Español para el Tao Te Ching

Índice de Español para el Tao Te Ching de Lao Tzu

Concordancia Española para la Daodejing por Laozi

Las Traducciones en Español del Tao Te Ching

Español Índice de Traductores de Idiomas para el Tao Te Ching
 


Chapter and Thematic Index (Concordance) to the Tao Te Ching

English Language Translators' Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices


Taoism: A Selected Reading List

Spanish Language Translator's Index

 

A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes 20 different English translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 3 Spanish translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, and the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin Romanization of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter.  Each webpage for one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words and terms in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization.  Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, and other resources for that Chapter.   

After each quoted version for a Chapter, I use the expression "Translated by ..."  The version of the Chapter could be a strict or free or loose "translation" of the Chapter by a qualified bilingual, Chinese-English, scholar (e.g., Ellen Chen, Thomas Cleary, Livia Kohn, Michael LaFargue, Victor Mair, Red Pine, Lin Yutang, Arthur Waley, etc.), teacher, Taoist, or expert.  It could also be an "interpolation" by a qualified or unqualified non-bilingual author who compared a dozen true translations into English and then created their own English version of the Chapter, e.g., Aleistar Crowley, Wayne Dyer, Ursula Le Guin, etc.  It could be an "interpretation" of the Chapter to suit their specific tastes, ideas, or beliefs, e.g., Mabry's Christian interpretation, John Bright-Fey's esoteric Daoist interpretation.  I just call them all "translations," because I am not often sure as to the background, qualifications, and intentions of the author.  
 

Daodejing  Chapter Number Index Standard Traditional Chapter Arrangement of the Daodejing Chapter Order in Wang Bi's Daodejing Commentary in 246 CE Chart by Mike Garofalo Index
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40
41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50
51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60
61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69	70
71	72	73	74	75	76	77	78	79	80
81

Here are some examples of "translations" of Chapter (Verse) 11 of the Daodejing:

"Treinta radios convergen en el centro de una rueda,
pero es su vacío
lo que hace útil al carro.
Se moldea la arcilla para hacer la vasija,
pero de su vacío
depende el uso de la vasija.
Se abren puertas y ventanas
en los muros de una casa,
y es el vacío
lo que permite habitarla.
En el Ser centramos nuestro interés,
pero del No-Ser depende la utilidad."
-  Translation from Wiki Source, 2013, Tao Te Ching, Capítulo 11

 

 

"Treinta radios se unen en el centro;
Gracias al agujero podemos usar la rueda.
El barro se modela en forma de vasija;
Gracias al hueco puede usarse la copa.
Se levantan muros en toda la tierra;
Gracias a la puertas se puede usar la casa.
Así pues, la riqueza proviene de lo que existe,
Pero lo valioso proviene de lo que no existe."
-  Translated by Antonio Rivas Gonzálvez, 2004, Tao Te Ching, Capítulo 11 

 

 

"Treinta rayos convergen hacia el centro de una rueda,
Pero es el vacío del centro el que hace útil a la rueda.
Con arcilla se moldea un recipiente,
Pero es precisamente el espacio que no contiene arcilla el que utilizamos como recipiente.
Abrimos puertas y ventanas en una casa,
Pero es por sus espacios vacíos que podemos utilizarla. 
Así, de la existencia provienen las cosas y de la no existencia su utilidad."
-  Translation from Logia Medio Dia, 2015, Daodejing, Capítulo 11

 

 

"Treinta rayos convergen en el medio,
pero el vacío mediano
hace andar al carro.
 

Se modela la arcilla para hacer jarrones
     con ella,
pero de su vacío interno
depende su utilización.

Una casa está abierta con puertas y ventanas,
otra vez el vacío
permite que se habite en ella.

El Ser da posibilidades,
sólo se utilizan a través del no-ser."
-  Translated by Alba, 1998, Tao Te Ching, Capítulo 11 

 

"Thirty spokes share one hub.
It is just the space (the Nothingness) between them
That makes a cart function as a cart.
Knead clay to make a vessel
And you find within it the space
That makes a vessel as a vessel.
To build a house with doors and windows
And you find within them the space
That makes a house function as a house.
Hence the Being (substance) can provide a condition
Under which usefulness is found,
But the Nothingness (space) is the usefulness itself."
-  Translated by Gu Zengkun, Chapter 11

"Thirty spokes are made one by holes in a hub,
By vacancies joining them for a wheel's use;
The use of clay in moulding pitchers
Comes from the hollow of its absence;
Doors, windows, in a house,
Are used for their emptiness:
Thus we are helped by what is not
To use what is."
-  Translated by Witter Bynner, 1944, Chapter 11


"Although the wheel has thirty spokes its utility lies in the emptiness of the hub.
The jar is made by kneading clay, but its usefulness consists in its capacity.
A room is made by cutting out windows and doors through the walls, but the space the walls contain measures the room's value.
In the same way matter is necessary to form, but the value of reality lies in its immateriality.
Or thus: a material body is necessary to existence, but the value of a life is measured by its immaterial soul."
-  Translated by Dwight Goddard and Henri Borel, 1919, Chapter 11


"Thirty spokes, uniting in a nave, were employed in olden times before the invention of carriages. Clay made into utensils was employed before the time of palaces and dwellings when there were no sacrificial vases, goblets, or bowls.
A door and a window, hewn in a hill-side, did duty for a residence before the erection of houses. Wherefore, the possession of these things may be regarded as beneficial, while their former absence may be said to have been useful in that it led to the necessity of their being made."
-  Translated by Frederic Henry Balfour, 1884, Chapter 11 


三十輻共一轂.
當其無, 有車之用.
埏埴以為器.
當其無有器之用.
鑿戶牖以為室.
當其無, 有室之用.
故有之以為利.
無之以為用.
-  Chinese characters, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 11   


san shih fu kung yi ku.
tang ch'i wu, yu ch'ê chih yung.
yen ch'ih yi wei ch'i.
tang ch'i wu yu ch'i chih yung.
tso hu yu yi wei shih.
tang ch'i wu, yu shih chih yung.
ku yu chih yi wei li.
wu chih yi wei yung.
-  Wade-Giles Romanization, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 11  

 

"Thirty spokes unite around the nave;
From their not-being (loss of their individuality)
Arises the utility of the wheel.
Mold clay into a vessel;
From its not-being (in the vessel's hollow)
Arises the utility of the vessel.
Cut out doors and windows in the house (-wall),
From their not-being (empty space) arises the utility of the house.
Therefore by the existence of things we profit.
And by the non-existence of things we are served."
-  Translated by Lin Yutang, 1955, Chapter 11 

"Thirty spokes unite in a nave, but the nothingness in the hub

Gives to the wheel its usefulness, for thereupon it goes round;

The potter kneads the clay as he works, with many a twist and rub,

But in the nothingness within, the vessel's use is found;

Doors and windows cut in the walls thereby a room will make,

But in its nothingness is found the room' s utility;

So the profit of existences is only for the sake

Of non-existences, where all the use is found to be."
-  Translated by Isaac Winter Heysinger, 1903, Chapter 11 

"Dreißig Speichen umgeben eine Nabe:
In ihrem Nichts besteht des Wagens Werk.
Man höhlet Ton und bildet ihn zu Töpfen:
In ihrem Nichts besteht des Töpfe Werk.
Man gräbt Türen und Fenster, damit die Kammer werde:
In ihrem Nichts besteht der Kammer Werk.
Darum: Was ist, dient zum Besitz.
Was nicht ist, dient zum Werk."
-  Translated by Richard Wilhelm, 1911, Chapter 11

 

Índice de Español para el Tao Te Ching

Índice de Español para el Tao Te Ching de Lao Tzu

Concordancia Española para la Daodejing por Laozi

Las Traducciones en Español del Tao Te Ching

Español Índice de Traductores de Idiomas para el Tao Te Ching


Chapter and Thematic Index (Concordance) to the Tao Te Ching

English Language Translators' Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices


Taoism: A Selected Reading List

Spanish Language Translator's Index

 A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo on a Chapter of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes at least 16 different translations or interpolations of the Chapter in English, two Spanish translations, the Chinese characters for the Chapter, a Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin Romanization of the Mandarin Chinese words for the Chapter, recommended reading lists, a detailed bibliography, indexing by key words and terms for the Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization, and other resources for the Chapter.  

Daodejing  Chapter Number Index Standard Traditional Chapter Arrangement of the Daodejing Chapter Order in Wang Bi's Daodejing Commentary in 246 CE Chart by Mike Garofalo Index
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40
41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50
51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60
61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69	70
71	72	73	74	75	76	77	78	79	80
81

 

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu, Chapter 80

Daodejing, Laozi
Chapter 80

"Supposing here is a small state with few people.
Though there are various vessels I will not have them put in use.
I will make the people regard death as a grave matter and not go far away.
Though they have boats and carraiges they will not travel in them.
Though they have armour and weapons they will not show them.
I will let them restore the use of knotted cords (instead of writing).
They will be satisfied with their food.
Delighted in their dress;
Comfortable in their dwellings;
Happy with their customs.
Though the neighbouring states are within sight
And their cocks' crowing and dogs' barking within hearing;
The people (of the small state) will not go there their whole lives."
-  Translated by Ch'u Ta-Kao, 1904, Chapter 80 

"With a small State, sparsely populated, supposing that I had weapons for a thousand men, I would not use them.
I would rather teach my subjects to think seriously of death, and not to emigrate to a distance.
Then, though they might have ships and chariots, nobody would mount them; though they might have armour and weapons, nobody would set them in array.
I would make them return to the use of the quipu, render their food toothsome, beautify their clothes by cultivating the silkworm, live tranquilly at home, be happy in their domestic usages, keep watch with neighbouring states for their mutual safety, and let the crowing of cocks and barking of dogs be heard by one another from their numbers and proximity.
Thus the people would die of old age without ever coming into hostile collision with each other."
-  Translated by Frederic Henry Balfour, 1884, Chapter 80

"Suppose I had a country small,

With people few, and I had there

Some officers of ten,

Or of a hundred men,

I'd not employ those men at all;

Though death were feared, unfrightened then,

My people would not emigrate elsewhere.

 

They might have carriages and boats,

But not in them to ride away,

They might have warlike arms,

But never war s alarms

Would call them with their hateful notes;

They d even forget how writing charms,

And knotted cords again they would display.

 

Then would they relish homely food,

Their plain clothes would seem elegant,

Though dwellings might be poor,

Content would guard the door,

And simple habits, plain and good, Far better than they knew before,

 

A sense of fresh enjoyment would implant.

A neighboring state might be in sight,

The voice of fowls and dogs be heard,

But life like that would make

My people such joy take

In their own state, that till the night
Of age should their enjoyment slake,

And they should die, they'd not exchange a word."
-  Translated by Isaac Winter Heysinger, 1903, Chapter 80  

"In a little state with a small population, I would so order it, that, though there were individuals with the abilities of ten or a hundred men, there should be no employment of them; I would make the
people, while looking on death as a grievous thing, yet not remove elsewhere to avoid it.
Though they had boats and carriages, they should have no occasion to ride in them; though they had buff coats and sharp weapons, they should have no occasion to don or use them.
I would make the people return to the use of knotted cords instead of the written characters.
They should think their coarse food sweet; their plain clothes beautiful; their poor dwellings places of rest; and their common simple ways sources of enjoyment.
There should be a neighboring state within sight, and the voices of the fowls and dogs should be heard all the way from it to us, but I would make the people to old age, even to death, not have any
intercourse with it."
-  Translated by James Legge, 1891, Chapter 80 

"Sobre la estructura del Estado, yo pienso lo siguiente:
Es major cuando el país es pequeño y la población es poca.
Aun cuando haya muchas armas, no deben usarse. Tampoco deben usarse los barcos y los carros de guerra.
     Para los guerreros es mejor no batallar.
La vida en el país debe ser tal que las personas no quieran dejarlo. 
Es bueno si todos tienen comida sabrosa, ropa bonita, casas cómodas y una vida alegre.
Es bueno mirar el país vecino con amor y escuchar como allí los gallos cantan y los perros ladran.
Es bueno que las personas, al llegar a la vejez en este país,
     alcancen la Perfección y se vayan de alli para no volver más."
-  Translated by Anton Teplyy, 2008, Capitulo 80

"The ideal land is small
Its people very few,
Where tools abound
Ten times or yet
A hundred-fold
Beyond their use;
Where people die
And die again
But never emigrate;
Have boats and carts
Which no one rides.
Weapons have they
And armor too,
But none displayed.
The folk returns
To use again
The knotted chords.
Their meat is sweet;
Their clothes adorned,
Their homes at peace,
Their customs charm.
And neighbor lands
Are juxtaposed
So each may hear
The barking dogs,
The crowing cocks
Across the way;
Where folks grow old
And folks will die
And never once
Exchange a call."
-  Translated by Raymond B. Blakney, 1955, Chapter 80 

Chapter 80 of the Dao De Jing by Laozi: Text and Commentaries
 

Index of English Language Translators of the Tao Te Ching

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices
 
Chapter and Thematic Index to the Tao Te Ching