First Command Book Club

The Secret of the Golden Flower (translated) by Thomas Cleary This Daoist work on meditation became well-known in the west as a psychological manual, due to a translation by Richard Wilhelm with a commentary by his friend, Carl Jung. However, this effort was hampered by fundamental mistakes in translation and cultural context, making the product rather inaccurate to the Chinese original. As a result, Dr. Cleary translated the work in order to correct the misconceptions that surround it.

An Essay on Man (translated) by Alexander Pope
In this didactic poem, the great poet and translator Alexander Pope lays out a philosophy of mankind’s place in the natural order in relation to the world and under the ultimate authority of God. It made an immediate and lasting impact, both in Britain and in the Commonwealth, with thoughtful admirers and critics alike. Today, it provides an excellent opportunity to delve into Pope’s verse–not nearly as widely studied today as it used to be–and to reflect on the philosophical themes therein.