8 1. Virtue (de) here seems to mean inner power or vital force; see p. 58, n. 10. This and the following three sections are much closer in thought to the Daodejing of Laozi than the preceding sections, and the use of the word de seems to accord with its use in the Daodejing. Also, here we encounter for the first time in Zhuangzi the term xing or “inborn nature,” which is so important to Confucian thought. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 2. The five vital organs— liver, lungs, heart, kidneys, and spleen—were related to the five elements and later to the five Confucian virtues—benevolence, propriety, good faith, righteousness, wisdom. 3. Also called Li Lou; noted for his exceptionally keen eyesight. 4. Famous musician mentioned on p. 12. With this passage, compare Daodejing XII: “The five colors confuse the eye, the five sounds dull the ear.” 5. Zeng Shen, a disciple of Confucius, and Shih Yu, historiographer of the state of Wei, paragons of benevolence and righteousness, respectively. W EB B ED TO E S Two toes webbed together, a sixth finger forking off— these come from the inborn nature but are excretions as far as Virtue is concerned.1 Swelling tumors and protruding wens—these come from the body but are excretions as far as the inborn nature is concerned. Men overnice in the ways of benevolence and righteousness try to put these into practice, even to line them up with the five vital organs!2 This is not the right approach to the Way and its Virtue. Therefore he who has two toes webbed together has grown a flap of useless flesh; he who has a sixth finger forking out of his hand has sprouted a useless digit; and he who imposes overnice ways, webs, and forked fingers on the original form of the five vital organs will become deluded and perverse in the practice of benevolence and righteousness, and overnice in the use of his hearing and sight. Thus he who is web toed in eyesight will be confused by the five colors, bewitched by patterns and designs, by the dazzling hues of blue and yellow, of embroidery and brocade—am I wrong? So we have Li Zhu.3 He who is overnice in hearing will be confused by the five notes, bewitched by the six tones, by the sounds of metal and stone, strings and woodwinds, the huangzhong and dalü pitch pipes—am I wrong? So we have Music Master Kuang. 4 He who is fork fingered with benevolence will tear out the Virtue given him and stifle his inborn nature in order to seize fame and reputation, leading the world on with pipe and drum in the service of an unattainable ideal—am I wrong? So we have Zeng and Shih.5 He who is web toed in argumenta- Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:03:45. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. WEBBED TOES 61 tion will pile up bricks, knot the plumb line, apply the curve,6 letting his mind wander in the realm of “hard” and “white,” “likeness” and “difference,” huffing and puffing away, lauding his useless words—am I wrong? So we have Yang and Mo.7 All these men walk a way that is overnice, web toed, wide of the mark, fork fingered, not that which is the True Rightness of the world. He who holds to True Rightness8 does not lose the original form of his inborn nature. So for him, joined things are not webbed toes; things forking off are not superfluous fingers; the long is never too much; the short is never too little.9 The duck’s legs are short, but to stretch them out would worry him; the crane’s legs are long, but to cut them down would make him sad. What is long by nature needs no cutting off; what is short by nature needs no stretching. That would be no way to get rid of worry. I wonder, then, whether benevolence and righteousness are part of man’s true form? Those benevolent men— how much worrying they do! The man with two toes webbed together would weep if he tried to tear them apart; the man with a sixth finger on his hand would howl if he tried to gnaw it off. Of these two, one has more than the usual number; the other has less; but in worrying about it, they are identical. Nowadays the benevolent men of the age lift up weary eyes,10 worrying over the ills of the world, while the men of no benevolence tear apart the original form of their inborn nature in their greed for eminence and wealth. Therefore I wonder whether benevolence and righteousness are really part of man’s true form? From the Three Dynasties on down,11 what a lot of fuss and hubbub they have made in the world! If we must use curve and plumb line, compass and square, to make something right, this means cutting away its inborn nature; if we must use cords and knots, glue and lacquer, to make something firm, this means violating its natural Virtue. So the crouchings and bendings of rights Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:03:45. 6. All seem to be building metaphors, though the meaning of the last is doubtful. I read gou instead of ju. 7. The hedonist philosopher Yang Zhu and the advocate of universal love Mo Di. We would expect a reference to the logicians, however, since they were the ones who argued about “hard,” “white,” etc.; see p. 12, n. 9. 8. Reading zhizheng as in the preceding sentence. 9. At this point, the meaning of the symbolism seems to shift (with some violence to the logic of the argument). The webbed toes and extra fingers, which earlier represented the forced and unnatural morality of Confucianism, now become natural deformities such as we have seen in the earlier chapters, which it would be wrong to try to correct. 10. Following Ma Xulun’s interpretation. 11. The Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties. 62 12. Following Fukunaga, I read tong with the man radical. A similar phrase, tonghu, appears in sec. 9, and tongran in sec. 23. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 13. The sage ruler Shun, idol of the Confucian philosophers. WEBBED TOES and music, the smiles and beaming looks of benevolence and righteousness, which are intended to comfort the hearts of the world, in fact destroy their constant naturalness. For in the world, there can be constant naturalness. Where there is constant naturalness, things are arced not by the use of the curve, straightened not by the use of the plumb line, rounded not by the compasses, squared not by T squares, joined not by glue and lacquer, bound not by ropes and lines. Then all things in the world, simple and compliant, live and never know how they happen to live; all things, rude and unwitting,12 get what they need and never know how they happen to get it. Past and present, it has been the same; nothing can do injury to this [principle]. Why, then, come with benevolence and righteousness, that tangle and train of glue and lacquer, ropes and lines, and try to wander in the realm of the Way and its Virtue? You will only confuse the world! A little confusion can alter the sense of direction; a great confusion can alter the inborn nature. How do I know this is so? Ever since that man of the Yu clan13 began preaching benevolence and righteousness and stirring up the world, all the men in the world have dashed headlong for benevolence and righteousness. This is because benevolence and righteousness have altered their inborn nature, is it not? Let me try explaining what I mean. From the Three Dynasties on down, everyone in the world has altered his inborn nature because of some [external] thing. The petty man?—he will risk death for the sake of profit. The knight?—he will risk it for the sake of fame. The high official?—he will risk it for family; the sage?—he will risk it for the world. All these various men go about the business in a different way and are tagged differently when it comes to fame and reputation; but in blighting their inborn nature and risking their lives for something, they are the same. Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:03:45. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. WEBBED TOES 63 The slave boy and the slave girl were out together herding their sheep, and both of them lost their flocks. Ask the slave boy how it happened: well, he had a bundle of writing slips and was reading a book.14 Ask the slave girl how it happened: well, she was playing a game of tossand-wait-your-turn. They went about the business in different ways, but in losing their sheep, they were equal. Bo Yi died for reputation at the foot of Shouyang Mountain; Robber Zhi died for gain on top of Eastern Mound.15 The two of them died different deaths, but in destroying their lives and blighting their inborn nature, they were equal. Why, then, must we say that Bo Yi was right and Robber Zhi wrong? Everyone in the world risks his life for something. If he risks it for benevolence and righteousness, then custom names him a gentleman; if he risks it for goods and wealth, then custom names him a petty man. The risking is the same, and yet we have a gentleman here, a petty man there. In destroying their lives and blighting their inborn nature, Robber Zhi and Bo Yi were two of a kind. How then can we pick out the gentleman from the petty man in such a case? He who applies his nature to benevolence and righteousness may go as far with it as Zeng and Shi, but I would not call him an expert. He who applies his nature to the five flavors may go as far with it as Yu Er,16 but I would not call him an expert. He who applies his nature to the five notes may go as far with it as Music Master Kuang, but I would not call this good hearing. He who applies his nature to the five colors may go as far with it as Li Zhu, but I would not call this good eyesight. My definition of expertness has nothing to do with benevolence and righteousness; it means being expert in regard to your Virtue, that is all. My definition of expertness has nothing to do with benevolence or righteousness;17 it means following the true form of your inborn nature, that is all. When I speak of good hearing, I do not mean listening to others; I mean simply listening to yourself. When I speak Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:03:45. 14. An unusual slave boy who, in true Confucian fashion, was attempting to improve his mind. 15. On Bo Yi, the model of righteousness; see p. 126, n. 3; Robber Zhi, who appears later as the subject of sec. 29, represents the ultimate in greed and violence. 16. Apparently a famous chef and connoisseur of flavor. 17. This clause is excessively wordy and merely repeats what was said earlier. I suspect that it is corrupt and that in its original form it contained some reference to the five flavors. 64 WEBBED TOES Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. of good eyesight, I do not mean looking at others; I mean simply looking at yourself. He who does not look at himself but looks at others, who does not get hold of himself but gets hold of others, is getting what other men have got and failing to get what he himself has got. He finds joy in what brings joy to other men but finds no joy in what would bring joy to himself. And if he finds joy in what brings joy to other men but finds no joy in what brings joy to himself, then whether he is a Robber Zhi or a Bo Yi, he is equally deluded and perverse. I have a sense of shame before the Way and its Virtue, and for that reason I do not venture to raise myself up in deeds of benevolence and righteousness or to lower myself in deluded and perverse practices. Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:03:45. 9 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. H O RSE S’ H O O F S Horses’ hoofs are made for treading frost and snow, their coats for keeping out wind and cold. To munch grass, drink from the stream, lift up their feet and gallop—this is the true nature of horses. Though they might possess great terraces and fine halls, they would have no use for them. Then along comes Bo Luo.1 “I’m good at handling horses!” he announces and proceeds to singe them, shave them, pare them, brand them, bind them with martingale and crupper, tie them up in stable and stall. By this time, two or three out of ten horses have died. He goes on to starve them, make them go thirsty, race them, prance them, pull them into line, and force them to run side by side, in front of them the worry of bit and rein, behind them the terror of whip and crop. By this time, more than half the horses have died. The potter says, “I’m good at handling clay! To round it, I apply the compass; to square it, I apply the T square.” The carpenter says, “I’m good at handling wood! To arc it, I apply the curve; to make it straight, I apply the plumb line.” But as far as inborn nature is concerned, the clay and the wood surely have no wish to be subjected to compass and square, curve and plumb line. Yet generation after generation sings out in praise, saying, “Bo Luo is good at handling horses! The potter and the carpenter are good at handling clay and wood!” And the same fault is committed by the men who handle the affairs of the world! In my opinion, someone who was really good at handling the affairs of the world would not go about it like this. The people have their constant inborn nature. To Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:42. 1. Frequently mentioned in early texts as an expert judge of horses. 66 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 2. Reading tong with the man radical; see p. 62, n. 12. 3. The terms su and pu (uncarved simplicity), appear frequently in the Daodejing, for example, ch. XIX. Waley translates them as “Simplicity” and “the Uncarved Block,” respectively. HORSES’ HOOFS weave for their clothing, to till for their food—this is the Virtue they share. They are one in it and not partisan, and it is called the Emancipation of Heaven. Therefore, in a time of Perfect Virtue, the gait of men is slow and ambling; their gaze is steady and mild. In such an age, mountains have no paths or trails, lakes no boats or bridges. The ten thousand things live species by species, one group settled close to another. Birds and beasts form their flocks and herds; grass and trees grow to fullest height. So it happens that you can tie a cord to the birds and beasts and lead them about or bend down the limb and peer into the nest of the crow and the magpie. In this age of Perfect Virtue, men live the same as birds and beasts, group themselves side by side with the ten thousand things. Who then knows anything about “gentleman” or “petty man”? Dull and unwitting,2 men have no wisdom; thus their Virtue does not depart from them. Dull and unwitting, they have no desire; this is called uncarved simplicity. In uncarved simplicity, the people attain their true nature.3 Then along comes the sage, huffing and puffing after benevolence, reaching on tiptoe for righteousness, and the world for the first time has doubts; mooning and mouthing over his music, snipping and stitching away at his rites, and the world for the first time is divided. Thus, if the plain unwrought substance had not been blighted, how would there be any sacrificial goblets? If the white jade had not been shattered, how would there be any scepters and batons? If the Way and its Virtue had not been cast aside, how would there be any call for benevolence and righteousness? If the true form of the inborn nature had not been abandoned, how would there be any use for rights and music? If the five colors had not confused men, who would fashion patterns and hues? If the five notes had not confused them, who would try to tune things by the six tones? That the unwrought substance was blighted in order to fashion implements— this was the crime of the artisan. That the Way and its Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:42. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. HORSES’ HOOFS 67 Virtue were destroyed in order to create benevolence and righteousness—this was the fault of the sage. When horses live on the plain, they eat grass and drink from the streams. Pleased, they twine their necks together and rub; angry, they turn back to back and kick. This all horses know how to do. But if you pile poles and yokes on them and line them up in crossbars and shafts, then they will learn to snap the crossbars, break the yoke, rip the carriage top, champ the bit, and chew the reins.4 Thus horses learn how to commit the worst kinds of mischief.5 This is the crime of Bo Luo. In the days of He Xu,6 people stayed home but didn’t know what they were doing, walked around but didn’t know where they were going. Their mouths crammed with food, they were merry; drumming on their bellies, they passed the time. This was as much as they were able to do. Then the sage came along with the crouchings and bendings of rites and music, which were intended to reform the bodies of the world; with the reaching-for-adangled-prize of benevolence and righteousness, which was intended to comfort the hearts of the world. Then for the first time, people learned to stand on tiptoe and covet knowledge, to fight to the death over profit, and there was no stopping them. This, in the end, was the fault of the sage. Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:42. 4. There are many different interpretations of the terms in this sentence. I follow Ma Xulun’s emendations and interpretations. 5. Following texts that read neng rather than tai. 6. Legendary ruler of high antiquity. 10 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. RIFLIN G TRUNKS 1. That is, it was rich and fertile and had no wastelands. If one is to guard and take precautions against thieves who rifle trunks, ransack bags, and break open boxes, then he must bind with cords and ropes and make fast with locks and hasps. This the ordinary world calls wisdom. But if a great thief comes along, he will shoulder the boxes, hoist up the trunks, sling the bags over his back, and dash off, only worrying that the cords and ropes, the locks and hasps, are not fastened tightly enough. In that case, the man who earlier was called wise was in fact only piling up goods for the benefit of a great thief. Let me try explaining what I mean. What the ordinary world calls a wise man is in fact someone who piles things up for the benefit of a great thief, is he not? And what it calls a sage is in fact someone who stands guard for the benefit of a great thief, is he not? How do I know this is so? In times past there was the state of Qi, its neighboring towns within sight of one another, the cries of their dogs and chickens within hearing of one another. The area where its nets and seines were spread, where its plows and spades dug the earth, measured more than two thousand li square, filling all the space within its four borders.1 And in the way its ancestral temples and its altars of the soil and grain were set up, its towns and villages and hamlets were governed, was there anything that did not accord with the laws of the sages? Yet one morning Viscount Tian Cheng murdered the ruler of Qi and stole his state. And was it only the state he stole? Along with it, he also stole the laws that the wisdom of the sages had devised. Thus, although Viscount Tian Cheng gained the name of thief and bandit, he was able to rest as peacefully as a Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:55. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. RIFLING TRUNKS 69 Yao or a Shun. The smaller states did not dare condemn him; the larger states did not dare attack; and for twelve generations, his family held possession of the state of Qi.2 Is this not a case in which a man, stealing the state of Qi, along with it stole the laws of the sages’ wisdom and used them to guard the person of a thief and a bandit? Let me try explaining it. What that ordinary world calls a man of perfect wisdom is in fact someone who piles things up for the benefit of a great thief; what the ordinary world calls a perfect sage is in fact someone who stands guard for the benefit of a great thief. How do I know this is so? In times past, Guan Longfeng was cut down; Bi Gan was disemboweled; Chang Hong was torn apart; and Wu Zixu was left to rot. All four were worthy men, and yet they could not escape destruction.3 One of Robber Zhi’s followers once asked Zhi, “Does the thief, too, have a Way?” Zhi replied, “How could he get anywhere if he didn’t have a Way? Making shrewd guesses as to how much booty is stashed away in the room is sageliness; being the first one in is bravery; being the last one out is righteousness; knowing whether or not the job can be pulled off is wisdom; dividing up the loot fairly is benevolence. No one in the world ever succeeded in becoming a great thief if he didn’t have all five!” From this, we can see that the good man must acquire the Way of the sage before he can distinguish himself, and Robber Zhi must acquire the Way of the sage before he can practice his profession. But good men in the world are few, and bad men many, so in fact the sage brings little benefit to the world but much harm. Thus it is said, “When the lips are gone, the teeth are cold; when the wine of Lu is thin, Handan is besieged.” 4 And when the sage is born, the great thief appears. Cudgel and cane the sages, and let the thieves and bandits go their way; then the world will at last be well ordered! If the stream dries up, the valley will be empty; Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:55. 2. The assassination of the king of Qi took place in 481 bce; the actual usurpation of the state by the Tian family, in 386 bce. No one has satisfactorily explained the “twelve generations”; Yu Yue suggests that it is a copyist’s error for shishi (generation after generation). 3. All four men attempted to give good advice to their erring sovereigns and ended by being put to death or forced to commit suicide. On Guan Longfeng and Bi Gan, see p. 23; on Chang Hong and Wu Zixu, see p. 227, n. 2. I suppose this is meant to illustrate how the rulers “stole” the wisdom of their counselors, though it is hardly apt, since all the rulers came to violent ends as a result of their wickedness. 4. At a gathering of the feudal lords at the court of Chu, the ruler of Lu presented a gift of thin wine, while the ruler of Zhao presented rich wine. But the wine steward of Chu, having failed to receive a bribe from the ruler of Zhao, switched the gifts, and the ruler of Chu, angered, attacked Zhao and laid siege to its capital, Handan. Another version of the story asserts that the ruler of Chu, angered at Lu’s thin wine, attacked Lu; and a third state, which had (continued ) 70 hitherto been intimidated by Chu’s power, took advantage of the opportunity to attack Chu’s ally, Zhao. In both versions, the saying is meant to illustrate the existence of a causal connection between apparently unrelated phenomena. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 5. Tian Chang, Viscount Cheng of Qi, who appeared as the “stealer” of the state of Qi, was said to have won the support of the people of Qi by using a larger-thanstandard measure in doling out grain to the people, but the standard measure when collecting taxes in grain. See Zuozhuan, Duke Zhao, third year. The writer probably has this fact in mind. 6. An old saying, also found in Daodejing XXXVI. 7. If he is not to be a danger to the world, he must, like the true Daoist sage, remain unknown and unrecognized. RIFLING TRUNKS if the hills wash away, the deep pools will be filled up. And if the sage is dead and gone, then no more great thieves will arise. The world will then be peaceful and free of fuss. But until the sage is dead, great thieves will never cease to appear, and if you pile on more sages in hopes of bringing the world to order, you will only be piling up more profit for Robber Zhi. Fashion pecks and bushels for people to measure by, and they will steal by peck and bushel.5 Fashion scales and balances for people to weigh by, and they will steal by scale and balance. Fashion tallies and seals to ensure trustworthiness, and people will steal with tallies and seals. Fashion benevolence and righteousness to reform people, and they will steal with benevolence and righteousness. How do I know this is so? He who steals a belt buckle pays with his life; he who steals a state gets to be a feudal lord—and we all know that benevolence and righteousness are to be found at the gates of the feudal lords. Is this not a case of stealing benevolence and righteousness and the wisdom of the sages? So men go racing in the footsteps of the great thieves, aiming for the rank of feudal lord, stealing benevolence and righteousness and taking for themselves all the profits of peck and bushel, scale and balance, tally and seal. Though you try to lure them aside with rewards of official carriages and caps of state, you cannot move them; though you threaten them with the executioner’s ax, you cannot deter them. This piling up of profits for Robber Zhi to the point where nothing can deter him—this is all the fault of the sage! The saying goes, “The fish should not be taken from the deep pool; the sharp weapons of the state should not be shown to men.” 6 The sage is the sharp weapon of the world, and therefore he should not be where the world can see him.7 Cut off sageliness, cast away wisdom, and then the great thieves will cease. Break the jades, crush the pearls, and petty thieves will no longer rise up. Burn the tallies, Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:55. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. RIFLING TRUNKS 71 shatter the seals, and the people will be simple and guileless. Hack up the bushels, snap the balances in two, and the people will no longer wrangle. Destroy and wipe out the laws that the sage has made for the world, and at last you will find that you can reason with the people. Discard and confuse the six tones; smash and unstring the pipes and lutes; stop up the ears of the blind musician Kuang; and for the first time; the people of the world will be able to hold on to their hearing. Wipe out patterns and designs; scatter the five colors; glue up the eyes of Li Zhu; and for the first time, the people of the world will be able to hold on to their eyesight. Destroy and cut to pieces the curve and plumb line; throw away the compass and square; shackle the fingers of Artisan Chui;8 and for the first time; the people of the world will possess real skill. Thus it is said, “Great skill is like clumsiness.”9 Put a stop to the ways of Zeng and Shi; gag the mouths of Yang and Mo; wipe out and reject benevolence and righteousness; and for the first time, the Virtue of the world will reach the state of Mysterious Leveling.10 When men hold on to their eyesight, the world will no longer be dazzled. When men hold on to their hearing, the world will no longer be wearied. When men hold on to their wisdom, the world will no longer be confused. When men hold on to their Virtue, the world will no longer go awry. Men like Zeng, Shi, Yang, Mo, Musician Kuang, Artisan Chui, or Li Zhu all displayed their Virtue on the outside and thereby blinded and misled the world. As methods go, this one is worthless! Have you alone never heard of that age of Perfect Virtue? Long ago, in the time of Yong Cheng, Da Ting, Bo Huang, Zhong Yang, Li Lu, Li Xu, Xian Yuan, He Xu, Zun Lu, Zhu Rong, Fu Xi, and Shen Nong, the people knotted cords and used them.11 They relished their food, admired their clothing, enjoyed their customs, and were content with their houses. Though neighboring states were within sight of one another and could hear the cries of one another’s dogs and chickens, the people grew old Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:55. 8. A skilled artisan of ancient times; see p. 153. 9. The same saying appears in Daodejing XLV. But here it does not seem to fit the context, and I suspect that as Wang Maohong suggested, it is an interpolation, probably by someone who wished to establish a connection between this passage and the Daodejing. 10. Xuantong, a term also found in Daodejing LVI. Waley explains it there as a state “in which there is a general perception not effected through particular senses.” 11. As a means of reminding themselves of things; they had no use for writing. The men mentioned in this sentence appear to be mythical rulers of antiquity, some mentioned in other early texts, some appearing only here. The passage from this point on to the next to last sentence is all but identical with a passage in Daodejing LXXX. 72 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 12. In late Zhou times, the feudal lords competed to attract men of unusual intelligence and ability to their courts. The state of Qi, which, as we have seen, was ruled at the time by the Tian family, was particularly famous for the inducements that it offered to draw philosophers from all over China to its statesponsored academy. 13. I follow Fukunaga in the interpretation of the terms in this sentence. 14. That is, to discard the concept of good; I read yi as identical with the yi in the earlier parallel sentence. RIFLING TRUNKS and died without ever traveling beyond their own borders. At a time such as this, there was nothing but the most perfect order. But now something has happened to make people crane their necks and stand on tiptoe. “There’s a worthy man in such and such a place!” they cry, and bundling up their provisions, they dash off. At home, they abandon their parents; abroad, they shirk the service of their ruler. Their footprints form an unending trail to the borders of the other feudal lords; their carriage tracks weave back and forth a thousand li and more. This is the fault of men in high places who covet knowledge.12 As long as men in high places covet knowledge and are without the Way, the world will be in great confusion. How do I know this is so? Knowledge enables men to fashion bows, crossbows, nets, stringed arrows, and like contraptions; but when this happens, the birds flee in confusion to the sky. Knowledge enables men to fashion fishhooks, lures, seines, dragnets, trawls, and weirs; but when this happens, the fish flee in confusion to the depths of the water. Knowledge enables men to fashion pitfalls, snares, cages, traps, and gins; but when this happens, the beasts flee in confusion to the swamps. And the flood of rhetoric that enables men to invent wily schemes and poisonous slanders, the glib gabble of “hard” and “white,” the foul fustian of “same” and “different,” bewilder the understanding of common men.13 So the world is dulled and darkened by great confusion. The blame lies in this coveting of knowledge. In the world, everyone knows enough to pursue what he does not know, but no one knows enough to pursue what he already knows. Everyone knows enough to condemn what he takes to be no good, but no one knows enough to condemn what he has already taken to be good.14 This is how the great confusion comes about, searing the vigor of hills and streams below, overturning the round of the four seasons in between. There is no insect that creeps and crawls, no creature that flutters and flies, that has not lost Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:55. RIFLING TRUNKS 73 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. its inborn nature. So great is the confusion of the world that comes from coveting knowledge! From the Three Dynasties on down, it has been this and nothing else—shoving aside the pure and artless people and delighting in busy, bustling flatterers; abandoning the limpidity and calm of inaction and delighting in jumbled and jangling ideas. And this jumble and jangle has for long confused the world. Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:04:55. 11 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. LE T IT B E , LE AV E IT A LO NE 1. The words “restless and aspiring” represent four characters in the original whose meaning is very doubtful. I have heard of letting the world be, of leaving it alone; I have never heard of governing the world. You let it be for fear of corrupting the inborn nature of the world; you leave it alone for fear of distracting the Virtue of the world. If the nature of the world is not corrupted, if the Virtue of the world is not distracted, why should there be any governing of the world? Long ago, when the sage Yao governed the world, he made the world bright and gleeful; men delighted in their nature, and there was no calmness anywhere. When the tyrant Jie governed the world, he made the world weary and vexed; men found bitterness in their nature, and there was no contentment anywhere. To lack calmness, to lack contentment, is to go against Virtue, and there has never been anyone in the world who could go against Virtue and survive for long. Are men exceedingly joyful?—they will do damage to the yang element. Are men exceedingly angry?—they will do damage to the yin. And when both yang and yin are damaged, the four seasons will not come as they should; heat and cold will fail to achieve their proper harmony; and this in turn will do harm to the bodies of men. It will make men lose a proper sense of joy and anger, to be constantly shifting from place to place, to think up schemes that gain nothing, to set out on roads that reach no glorious conclusion. Then for the first time, the world will grow restless and aspiring,1 and soon afterward will appear the ways of Robber Zhi, Zeng, and Shi. Then, although the whole world joins in rewarding good men, there will never be enough reward; though the Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE 75 whole world joins in punishing evil men, there will never be enough punishment. Huge as the world is, it cannot supply sufficient reward or punishment. From the Three Dynasties on down, there has been nothing but bustle and fuss, all over this matter of rewards and punishments. How could people have any leisure to rest in the true form of their inborn nature and fate! Do men delight in what they see?—they are corrupted by colors. Do they delight in what they hear?—they are corrupted by sounds. Do they delight in benevolence?— they bring confusion to Virtue. Do they delight in righteousness?—they turn their backs on reason. Do they delight in rites?—they are aiding artificiality. Do they delight in music?—they are aiding dissolution. Do they delight in sageness?—they are assisting artifice. Do they delight in knowledge?—they are assisting the fault finders. As long as the world rests in the true form of its inborn nature and fate, it makes no difference whether or not these eight delights exist. But if the world does not rest in the true form of its nature and fate, then these eight delights will begin to grow warped and crooked, jumbled and deranged, and will bring confusion to the world. And if on top of that, the world begins to honor them and cherish them, then the delusion of the world will be great indeed! You say these are only a fancy that will pass in time? Yet men prepare themselves with fasts and austerities when they come to describe them, kneel solemnly on their mats when they recommend them, beat drums and sing to set them forth in dance. What’s to be done about it, I’m sure I don’t know! If the gentleman finds he has no other choice than to direct and look after the world, then the best course for him is inaction. As long as there is inaction, he may rest in the true form of his nature and fate. If he values his own body more than the management of the world, then he can be entrusted with the world. If he is more careful of his own body than of the management of the world, then the world can be handed over to him.2 If the gentleman can in Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. 2. A similar saying is found in Daodejing XIII, though the wording is somewhat different. 76 LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. truth keep from rending apart his five vital organs, from tearing out his eyesight and hearing, then he will command corpse-like stillness and dragon vision, the silence of deep pools, and the voice of thunder. His spirit will move in the train of Heaven, gentle and easy in inaction, and the ten thousand things will be dust on the wind. “What leisure have I now for governing the world?” he will say. 3. Daoist writers ordinarily have only praise for the Yellow Emperor, and in Han times Daoism was known as Huanglao, the teaching of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi. It is surprising, therefore, to find him cited here as the prime meddler, though this is typical of the shifting roles assigned to the figures who appear in the Zhuangzi. It is unclear whether the following section should be taken as a continuation of Laozi’s speech or as the words of the writer; I have taken it as the latter. 4. These banishments of evil and insubordinate men are mentioned in the Book of Documents, “Canon of Shun,” in which their presence has long raised the troubling question of why there should have been any unsubmissive men during the rule of a sage. Cui Zhu was questioning Lao Dan. “If you do not govern the world, then how can you improve men’s minds?” Lao Dan said, “Be careful—don’t meddle with men’s minds! Men’s minds can be forced down or boosted up, but this downing and upping imprisons and brings death to the mind. Gentle and shy, the mind can bend the hard and strong; it can chisel and cut away, carve and polish. Its heat is that of burning fire, its coldness that of solid ice, its swiftness such that, in the time it takes to lift and lower the head, it has twice swept over the four seas and beyond. At rest, it is deep fathomed and still; in movement, it is far-flung as the heavens, racing and galloping out of reach of all bonds. This indeed is the mind of man!” In ancient times the Yellow Emperor first used benevolence and righteousness to meddle with the minds of men.3 Yao and Shun followed him and worked till there was no more down on their thighs, no more hair on their shins, trying to nourish the bodies of the men of the world. They grieved their five vital organs in the practice of benevolence and righteousness, taxed their blood and breath in the establishment of laws and standards. But still some men would not submit to their rule, and so they had to exile Huan Dou to Mount Chung, drive away the Sanmiao tribes to the region of Sanwei, and banish Gong to the Dark City.4 This shows that they could not make the world submit. By the time the kings of the Three Dynasties appeared, the world was in great consternation indeed. On the lowest Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE 77 level, there were men like the tyrant Jie and Robber Zhi, on the highest, men like Zeng and Shi, and the Confucianists and Mohists rose up all around. Then joy and anger eyed each other with suspicion; stupidity and wisdom duped each other; good and bad called one another names; falsehood and truth slandered each other; and the world sank into a decline. There was no more unity to the Great Virtue, and the inborn nature and fate shattered and fell apart. The world coveted knowledge, and the hundred clans were thrown into turmoil.5 Then there were axes and saws to shape things; ink and plumb lines to trim them; mallets and gouges to poke holes in them; and the world, muddled and deranged, was in great confusion. The crime lay in this meddling with men’s minds. So it was that worthy men crouched in hiding below the great mountains and yawning cliffs, and the lords of ten thousand chariots fretted and trembled above in their ancestral halls. In the world today, the victims of the death penalty lie heaped together; the bearers of cangues tread on one another’s heels; the sufferers of punishment are never out of one another’s sight. And now come the Confucianists and Mohists, waving their arms, striding into the very midst of the fettered and manacled men. Ah, that they should go this far, that they should be so brazen, so lacking in any sense of shame! Who can convince me that sagely wisdom is not in fact the wedge that fastens the cangue, that benevolence and righteousness are not in fact the loop and lock of these fetters and manacles? How do I know that Zeng and Shi are not the whistling arrows that signal the approach of Jie and Zhi? Therefore I say, cut off sageness, cast away wisdom, and the world will be in perfect order. The Yellow Emperor had ruled as Son of Heaven for nineteen years, and his commands were heeded throughout the world, when he heard that Master Guang Cheng was living on top of the Mountain of Emptiness and Identity. He therefore went to visit him. “I have heard that you, sir, Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. 5. Following Zhang Binglin’s interpretation. 78 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 6. That is, the yin and yang, being two, already represent a departure from the primal unity of the Way. What Master Guang Cheng is objecting to, of course, is the fact that the Yellow Emperor wishes to “control” them. 7. The Chinese ruler, when acting as sovereign, faces south. Master Guang Cheng, by assuming the same position, indicates his spiritual supremacy. LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE have mastered the Perfect Way. May I venture to ask about the essence of the Perfect Way?” he said. “I would like to get hold of the essence of Heaven and earth and use it to aid the five grains and to nourish the common people. I would also like to control the yin and yang in order to ensure the growth of all living things. How may this be done?” Master Guang Cheng said, “What you say you want to learn about pertains to the true substance of things, but what you say you want to control pertains to things in their divided state.6 Ever since you began to govern the world, rain falls before the cloud vapors have even gathered; the plants and trees shed their leaves before they have even turned yellow; and the light of the sun and moon grows more and more sickly. Shallow and vapid, with the mind of a prattling knave—what good would it do to tell you about the Perfect Way!” The Yellow Emperor withdrew, gave up his throne, built a solitary hut, spread a mat of white rushes, and lived for three months in retirement. Then he went once more to request an interview. Master Guang Cheng was lying with his face to the south.7 The Yellow Emperor, approaching in a humble manner, crept forward on his knees, bowed his head twice, and said, “I have heard that you, sir, have mastered the Perfect Way. I venture to ask about the governing of the body. What should I do in order to live a long life?” Master Guang Cheng sat up with a start. “Excellent, this question of yours! Come, I will tell you about the Perfect Way. The essence of the Perfect Way is deep and darkly shrouded; the extreme of the Perfect Way is mysterious and hushed in silence. Let there be no seeing, no hearing; enfold the spirit in quietude, and the body will right itself. Be still, be pure, do not labor your body, do not churn up your essence, and then you can live a long life. When the eye does not see, the ear does not hear, and the mind does not know, then your spirit will protect the body, and the body will enjoy long life. Be wary of what is Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE 79 within you; block off what is outside you, for much knowledge will do you harm. Then I will lead you up above the Great Brilliance to the source of the Perfect Yang; I will guide you through the Dark and Mysterious Gate to the source of the Perfect Yin. Heaven and earth have their controllers, the yin and yang their storehouses. You have only to take care and guard your own body; these other things will of themselves grow sturdy. As for myself, I guard this unity, abide in this harmony, and therefore I have kept myself alive for twelve hundred years, and never has my body suffered any decay.” The Yellow Emperor bowed twice and said, “Master Guang Cheng, you have been as a Heaven to me!” Master Guang Cheng said, “Come, I will explain to you. This Thing I have been talking about is inexhaustible, and yet men all suppose that it has an end. This Thing I have been talking about is unfathomable, and yet men all suppose that it has a limit. He who attains my Way will be a Bright One on high,8 and a king in the world below. But he who fails to attain my Way, though he may see the light above him, will remain below as dust. All the hundred creatures that flourish are born out of dust and return to dust. So I will take leave of you, to enter the gate of the inexhaustible and wander in the limitless fields, to form a triad with the light of the sun and moon, to partake in the constancy of Heaven and earth. What stands before me I mingle with, what is far from me I leave in darkness.9 All other men may die; I alone will survive!” Cloud Chief was traveling east and had passed the branches of the Fuyao when he suddenly came upon Big Concealment.10 Big Concealment at the moment was amusing himself by slapping his thighs and hopping around like a sparrow. When Cloud Chief saw this, he stopped in bewilderment, stood dead still in his tracks, and said, “Old gentleman, who are you? What is this you’re doing?” Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. 8. The term “Bright One” (huang) was originally an epithet for Heaven or a being commanding respect and awe, such as the sage rulers of antiquity. 9. The meaning is doubtful. 10. Cloud Chief and Big Concealment are inventions of the writer, the latter apparently representing the Daoist sage. Fuyao appeared in sec. 1 as a name for the whirlwind; here perhaps it is an error for Fusang, a huge mythical tree in the eastern sea from whose branches the sun rises. 80 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 11. Traditionally defined as the breaths of the yin, yang, wind, rain, darkness, and light. LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE Big Concealment, without interrupting his thigh slapping and sparrow hopping, replied to Cloud Chief, “Amusing myself.” “I would like to ask a question,” said Cloud Chief. “Oh dear!” said Big Concealment, for the first time raising his head and looking at Cloud Chief. “The breath of heaven is out of harmony; the breath of earth tangles and snarls,” said Cloud Chief. “The six breaths do not blend properly;11 the four seasons do not stay in order. Now I would like to harmonize the essences of the six breaths in order to bring nourishment to all living creatures. How should I go about it?” Big Concealment, still thigh slapping and sparrow hopping, shook his head. “I have no idea! I have no idea!” So Cloud Chief got no answer. Three years later he was again traveling east and, as he passed the fields of Song, happened on Big Concealment once more. Cloud Chief, overjoyed, dashed forward and presented himself, saying, “Heavenly Master, have you forgotten me? Have you forgotten me?” Then he bowed his head twice and begged for some instruction from Big Concealment. Big Concealment said, “Aimless wandering does not know what it seeks; demented drifting does not know where it goes. A wanderer, idle, unbound, I view the sights of Undeception. What more do I know?” Cloud Chief said, “I, too, consider myself a demented drifter, but the people follow me wherever I go, and I have no choice but to think of them. It is for their sake now that I beg one word of instruction!” Big Concealment said, “If you confuse the constant strands of Heaven and violate the true form of things, then Dark Heaven will reach no fulfillment. Instead, the beasts will scatter from their herds; the birds will cry all night; disaster will come to the grass and trees; misfortune will reach even to the insects. Ah, this is the fault of men who ‘govern’!” “Then what should I do?” said Cloud Chief. “Ah,” said Big Concealment, “you are too far gone! Up, up, stir yourself and be off!” Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE 81 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. Cloud Chief said, “Heavenly Master, it has been hard indeed for me to meet with you—I beg one word of instruction!” “Well, then—mind-nourishment!” said Big Concealment.12 “You have only to rest in inaction, and things will transform themselves. Smash your form and body, spit out hearing and eyesight, forget you are a thing among other things, and you may join in great unity with the deep and boundless. Undo the mind, slough off spirit, be blank and soulless, and the ten thousand things one by one will return to the root—return to the root and not know why. Dark and undifferentiated chaos—to the end of life, none will depart from it. But if you try to know it, you have already departed from it. Do not ask what its name is; do not try to observe its form. Things will live naturally and of themselves.” Cloud Chief said, “The Heavenly Master has favored me with this Virtue, instructed me in this Silence. All my life I have been looking for it, and now at last I have it!” He bowed his head twice, stood up, took his leave, and went away. The common run of men all welcome those who are like themselves and scorn those who differ from themselves. The reason they favor those who are like themselves and do not favor those who are different is that their minds are set on distinguishing themselves from the crowd. But if their minds are set on distinguishing themselves from the crowd, how is this ever going to distinguish them from the crowd? It is better to follow the crowd and be content, for no matter how much you may know, it can never match the many talents of the crowd combined. Here is a man who wants to take over the management of another man’s state.13 He thinks thereby to seize all the profits enjoyed by the kings of the Three Dynasties but fails to take note of their worries. This is to gamble with another man’s state, and how long can you expect to gamble with his state and not lose it? Fewer than one man in ten thousand will succeed in holding on to the state; the Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. 12. “Mind-nourishment” may seem an odd thing to recommend, particularly as the whole anecdote is directed against purposeful “governing” or “nourishing.” But this is typical of Daoist paradox. As we soon see, it does not in fact mean what it seems to mean. 13. Probably a reference to the itinerant statesmenadvisers of late Zhou times who wandered about offering their services to the various feudal lords. 82 14. I follow Fukunaga in punctuating after the first wu. 15. Following Yu Yue’s interpretation. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 16. Following Zhang Binglin’s interpretation. 17. The remainder of the chapter, with its recognition of the necessity for benevolence, righteousness, law, ritual, etc., seems to clash violently with what has gone before. Some commentators interpret it as a description of the kind of compromise that even the perfect Daoist ruler must make if he is to rule effectively. Others regard it as an interpolation or a passage misplaced from some other section. See the similar passage on p. 79. 18. Following Ma Xulun’s interpretation. LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE odds in favor of losing it are more than ten thousand to one. It is sad indeed that the possessors of states do not realize this! Now the possessor of a state possesses a great thing. Because he possesses a great thing, he cannot be regarded as a mere thing himself.14 He is a thing, and yet he is not a mere thing; therefore he can treat other things as mere things. He who clearly understands that in treating other things as mere things, he himself is no longer a mere thing—how could he be content only to govern the hundred clans of the world and do nothing more? He will move in and out of the Six Realms, wander over the Nine Continents, going alone, coming alone. He may be called a Sole Possessor, and a man who is a Sole Possessor may be said to have reached the peak of eminence. The Great Man in his teaching is like the shadow that follows a form, the echo that follows a sound. Only when questioned does he answer, and then he pours out all his thoughts, making himself the companion of the world. He dwells in the echoless, moves in the directionless, takes by the hand you who are rushing and bustling back and forth15 and proceeds to wander in the beginningless. He passes in and out of the boundless and is ageless as the sun. His face and form16 blend with the Great Unity, the Great Unity that is selfless. Being selfless, how then can he look on possession as possession? He who fixed his eyes on possession—he was the “gentleman” of ancient times. He who fixes his eyes on nothingness—he is the true friend of Heaven and earth. What is lowly and yet must be used—things.17 What is humble and yet must be relied on—the people. What is irksome18 and yet must be attended to—affairs. What is sketchy and yet must be proclaimed—laws. What seems to apply only to distant relationships and yet must be observed— righteousness. What seems to apply only to intimate relationships and yet must be broadened—benevolence. Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. LET IT BE, LEAVE IT ALONE 83 What is confining and yet must be repeatedly practiced— ritual. What is already apt and yet must be heightened— Virtue. What is One and yet must be adapted—the Way. What is spiritual and yet must be put into action—Heaven. Therefore the sage contemplates Heaven but does not assist it. He finds completion in Virtue but piles on nothing more. He goes forth in the Way but does not scheme. He accords with benevolence but does not set great store by it. He draws close to righteousness but does not labor over it. He responds to the demands of ritual and does not shun them. He disposes of affairs and makes no excuses. He brings all to order with laws and allows no confusion. He depends on the people and does not make light of them. He relies on things and does not throw them aside. Among things, there are none that are worth using, and yet they must be used. He who does not clearly understand Heaven will not be pure in Virtue. He who has not mastered the Way will find himself without any acceptable path of approach. He who does not clearly understand the Way is pitiable indeed! What is this thing called the Way? There is the Way of Heaven and the way of man. To rest in inaction, and command respect—this is the Way of Heaven. To engage in action and become entangled in it—this is the way of man. The ruler is the Way of Heaven; his subjects are the way of man. The Way of Heaven and the way of man are far apart. This is something to consider carefully! Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:10. 12 HE AV EN A ND E A R TH Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 1. Perhaps a reference to the Confucian doctrine of the rectification of names, that is, the necessity to make certain that the one who is called “ruler” is in fact a true ruler, etc. The writer of this chapter seems to be attempting to effect a compromise between Daoist and Confucian ideals of government. 2. Yi, elsewhere translated as “righteousness.” 3. As pointed out by commentators, the position of the de and that of the dao in the next sentence should be reversed to match the order of the sorites that follows. But the text is probably faulty. 4. It is not known what “Record” the writer is quoting. 5. The Master has been variously identified as Laozi, Zhuangzi, or Confucius. Heaven and earth are huge, but they are alike in their transformations. The ten thousand things are numerous, but they are one in their good order. Human beings are many, but they all are subjects of the sovereign. The sovereign finds his source in Virtue, his completion in Heaven. Therefore it is said that the sovereign of dark antiquity ruled the world through inaction, through Heavenly Virtue and nothing more. Look at words in the light of the Way—then the sovereign of the world will be upright.1 Look at distinctions in the light of the Way—then the duty2 of sovereign and subject will be clear. Look at abilities in the light of the Way—then the officials of the world will be well ordered. Look everywhere in the light of the Way—then the response of the ten thousand things will be complete. Pervading Heaven and earth: that is the Way.3 Moving among the ten thousand things: that is Virtue. Superiors governing the men below them: that is called administration. Ability finding trained expression: that is called skill. Skill is subsumed in administration, administration in duty, duty in Virtue, Virtue in the Way, and the Way in Heaven. Therefore it is said, those who shepherded the world in ancient times were without desire, and the world was satisfied, without action, and the ten thousand things were transformed. They were deep and silent, and the hundred clans were at rest. The Record says: “Stick to the One, and the ten thousand tasks will be accomplished; achieve mindlessness, and the gods and spirits will bow down.” 4 The Master said:5 The Way covers and bears up the ten thousand things—vast, vast is its greatness! The gentle- Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. HEAVEN AND EARTH 85 man must pluck out his mind! To act through inaction is called Heaven. To speak through inaction is called Virtue. To love men and bring profit to things is called benevolence. To make the unlike alike is called magnitude. To move beyond barrier and distinction is called liberality. To possess the ten thousand unlikes is called wealth. To hold fast to Virtue is called enrootment. To mature in Virtue is called establishment. To follow the Way is called completion. To see that external things do not blunt the will is called perfection. When the gentleman clearly comprehends these ten things, then how huge will be the greatness of his mind setting forth, how endless his ramblings with the ten thousand things! Such a man will leave the gold hidden in the mountains, the pearls hidden in the depths. He will see no profit in money and goods, no enticement in eminence and wealth, no joy in long life, no grief in early death, no honor in affluence, no shame in poverty. He will not snatch the profits of a whole generation and make them his private hoard; he will not lord it over the world and think that he dwells in glory. His glory is enlightenment, [for he knows that] the ten thousand things belong to one storehouse, that life and death share the same body. The Master said: The Way—how deep its dwelling, how pure its clearness! Without it, the bells and chiming stones will not sound. The bells and stones have voices, but unless they are struck, they will not sound. The ten thousand things—who can make them be still? The man of kingly Virtue moves in simplicity and is ashamed to be a master of facts. He takes his stand in the original source, and his understanding extends to the spirits. Therefore his Virtue is far-reaching. His mind moves forth only when some external thing has roused it. Without the Way, the body can have no life, and without Virtue, life can have no clarity. To preserve the body and live out life, to establish Virtue and make clear the Way—is this not kingly Virtue? Broad and boundless, suddenly he emerges, abruptly he moves, and the ten thousand things Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. 86 6. Compare Daodejing XXI: “shadowy and indistinct, within it is a thing; dim and dark, within it is an essence.” Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 7. That is, he accommodates himself to external phenomena as a traveler accommodates himself to the conditions of the journey. In the main, I follow Fukunaga’s interpretation, though the sentence is very obscure. HEAVEN AND EARTH follow him—this is what is called the man of kingly Virtue! He sees in the darkest dark, hears where there is no sound. In the midst of darkness, he alone sees the dawn; in the midst of the soundless, he alone hears harmony. Therefore, in depth piled upon depth, he can spy out the thing; in spirituality piled upon spirituality, he can discover the essence.6 So in his dealings with the ten thousand things, he supplies all their wants out of total nothingness. Racing with the hour, he seeks lodging for a night, in the great, the small, the long, the short, the near, the far.7 The Yellow Emperor went wandering north of the Red Water, ascended the slopes of Kunlun, and gazed south. When he got home, he discovered he had lost his Dark Pearl. He sent Knowledge to look for it, but Knowledge couldn’t find it. He sent the keen-eyed Li Zhu to look for it, but Li Zhu couldn’t find it. He sent Wrangling Debate to look for it, but Wrangling Debate couldn’t find it. At last he tried employing Shapeless, and Shapeless found it. The Yellow Emperor said, “How odd!—in the end it was Shapeless who was able to find it!” Yao’s teacher was Xu You; Xu You’s teacher was Nie Que; Nie Que’s teacher was Wang Ni; and Wang Ni’s teacher was Piyi. Yao asked Xu You, “Would Nie Que do as the counterpart of Heaven? I could get Wang Ni to ask him to take over the throne from me.” Xu You said, “Watch out! You’ll put the world in danger! Nie Que is a man of keen intelligence and superb understanding, nimble-witted and sharp. His inborn nature surpasses that of other men, and he knows how to exploit what Heaven has given him through human devices. He would do his best to prevent error, but he doesn’t understand the source from which error arises. Make him the counterpart of Heaven? Watch—he will start leaning on men and forget about Heaven. He will put himself first Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. HEAVEN AND EARTH 87 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. and relegate others to a class apart. He will worship knowledge and chase after it with the speed of fire. He will become the servant of causes, the victim of things, looking in all four directions to see how things are faring, trying to attend to all wants, changing along with things, and possessing no trace of any constancy of his own. How could he possibly do as counterpart of Heaven? However, there are clans, and there are clan heads. He might do as the father of one branch, though he would never do as the father of the father of the branch. His kind are the forerunners of disorder, a disaster to the ministers facing north, a peril to the sovereign facing south!” Yao was seeing the sights at Hua when the border guard of Hua said, “Aha—a sage! I beg to offer up prayers for the sage. They will bring the sage long life!” Yao said, “No, thanks.” “They will bring the sage riches!” Yao said, “No, thanks.” “They will bring the sage many sons!” Yao said, “No, thanks.” “Long life, riches, many sons—these are what all men desire!” said the border guard. “How is it that you alone do not desire them?” Yao said, “Many sons mean many fears. Riches mean many troubles. Long life means many shames. These three are of no use in nourishing Virtue—therefore I decline them.” The border guard said, “At first I took you for a sage. Now I see you are a mere gentleman. When Heaven gives birth to the ten thousand people, it is certain to have jobs to assign to them. If you have many sons and their jobs are assigned to them, what is there to fear? If you share your riches with other men, what troubles will you have? The true sage is a quail at rest, a little fledgling at its meal, a bird in flight that leaves no trail behind. When the world has the Way, he joins in the chorus with all other things. When the world is without the Way, he nurses his Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. 88 HEAVEN AND EARTH Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. Virtue and retires in leisure. And after a thousand years, should he tire of the world, he will leave it and ascend to the immortals, riding on those white clouds all the way up to the village of God. The three worries you have cited never touch him; his body is forever free of peril. How can he suffer any shame?” The border guard turned and left. Yao followed him, saying, “Please—I would like to ask you . . .” “Go away!” said the border guard. When Yao ruled the world, Bocheng Zigao was enfeoffed as one of his noblemen. But when Yao passed the throne to Shun, and Shun passed it to Yu, Bocheng Zigao relinquished his title and took up farming. Yu went to see him and found him working in the fields. Yu scurried forward in the humblest manner, came to a halt, and said, “In former times when Yao ruled the world, sir, you served as one of his noblemen. But when Yao passed the throne to Shun, and Shun passed it to me, you relinquished your title and took up farming. May I be so bold as to ask why?” Zigao said, “In former times when Yao ruled the world, he handed out no rewards, and yet the people worked hard; he handed out no punishments, and yet the people were cautious. Now you reward and punish, and still the people fail to do good. From now on, Virtue will decay; from now on, penalties will prevail. The disorder of future ages will have its beginning here! You had better be on your way now—don’t interrupt my work!” Busily, busily he proceeded with his farm work, never turning to look back. In the Great Beginning, there was nonbeing; there was no being, no name. Out of it arose One; there was One, but it had no form. Things got hold of it and it came to life, and it was called Virtue. Before things had forms, they had their allotments; these were of many kinds but not cut off from one another, and they were called fates. Out of the flow and flux, things were born, and as they grew, they Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. HEAVEN AND EARTH 89 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. developed distinctive shapes; these were called forms. The forms and bodies held within them spirits, each with its own characteristics and limitations, and this was called the inborn nature. If the nature is trained, you may return to Virtue, and Virtue at its highest peak is identical with the Beginning. Being identical, you will be empty; being empty, you will be great. You may join in the cheeping and chirping, and when you have joined in the cheeping and chirping, you may join with Heaven and earth. Your joining is wild and confused, as though you were stupid, as though you were demented. This is called Dark Virtue. Rude and unwitting, you take part in the Great Submission. Confucius said to Lao Dan, “Here’s a man who works to master the Way as though he were trying to talk down an opponent,8 making the unacceptable acceptable, the not so, so. As the rhetoricians say, he can separate ‘hard’ from ‘white’ as clearly as though they were dangling from the eaves there. Can a man like this be called a sage?” Lao Dan said, “A man like this is a drudging slave, a craftsman bound to his calling, wearing out his body, grieving his mind. Because the dog can catch rats, he ends up on a leash.9 Because of his nimbleness, the monkey is dragged down from the mountain forest. Qiu,10 I’m going to tell you something—something you could never hear for yourself and something you would never know how to speak of. People who have heads and feet but no minds and no ears—there are mobs of them. To think that beings with bodies can all go on existing along with that which is bodiless and formless—it can never happen! A man’s stops and starts, his life and death, his rises and falls—none of these can he do anything about. Yet he thinks that the mastery of them lies with man! Forget things, forget Heaven, and be called a forgetter of self. The man who has forgotten self may be said to have entered Heaven.” * * * Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. 8. Following Ma Xulun, I read bang (slander) in place of fang. 9. Following Sun Yirang, I read lei in place of si; compare the parallel passage on p. 56. 10. Confucius’s familiar name. In using it to address Confucius face to face, Laozi is expressing great familiarity and/or contempt. 90 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 11. Following texts that read ju (agitated) in place of chu. HEAVEN AND EARTH Jianglü Mian went to see Ji Che and said, “The ruler of Lu begged me to give him some instruction. I declined, but he wouldn’t let me go, and so I had no choice but to tell him something. I don’t know whether or not what I said was right, but I would like to try repeating it to you. I said to the ruler of Lu, ‘You must be courteous and temperate! Pick out and promote those who are loyal and publicspirited, allow no flattery or favoritism, and then who of your people will venture to be unruly?’” Ji Che heehawed with laughter. “As far as the Virtue of emperors and kings is concerned,” he said, “your advice is like the praying mantis that waved its arms angrily in front of an approaching carriage—it just isn’t up to the job. If the ruler of Lu went about it in that way, he would simply get himself all stirred up,11 place himself on a tower or a terrace. Then things would flock around him, and the crowd would turn its steps in his direction!” Jianglü Mian’s eyes bugged out in amazement. “I am dumbfounded by your words,” he said. “Nevertheless, I would like to hear how the Master would speak on this subject.” Ji Che said, “When a great sage rules the world, he makes the minds of his people free and far wandering. On this basis, he fashions teachings and simplifies customs, wiping out all treason from their minds and allowing each to pursue his own will. All is done in accordance with the inborn nature, and yet the people do not know why it is like this. Proceeding in this way, what need has he either to revere the way in which Yao and Shun taught their people or to look down on it in lofty contempt? His only desire is for unity with Virtue and the repose of the mind.” Zigong traveled south to Chu, and on his way back through Jin, as he passed along the south bank of the Han, he saw an old man preparing his fields for planting. He had hollowed out an opening by which he entered the well and from Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. HEAVEN AND EARTH 91 which he emerged, lugging a pitcher, which he carried out to water the fields. Grunting and puffing, he used up a great deal of energy and produced very little result. “There is a machine for this sort of thing,” said Zigong. “In one day it can water a hundred fields, demanding very little effort and producing excellent results. Wouldn’t you like one?” The gardener raised his head and looked at Zigong. “How does it work?” “It’s a contraption made by shaping a piece of wood. The back end is heavy and the front end light and it raises the water as though it were pouring it out, so fast that it seems to boil right over! It’s called a well sweep.” The gardener flushed with anger and then said with a laugh, “I’ve heard my teacher say, where there are machines, there are bound to be machine worries; where there are machine worries, there are bound to be machine hearts. With a machine heart in your breast, you’ve spoiled what was pure and simple, and without the pure and simple, the life of the spirit knows no rest. Where the life of the spirit knows no rest, the Way will cease to buoy you up. It’s not that I don’t know about your machine—I would be ashamed to use it!” Zigong blushed with chagrin, looked down, and made no reply. After a while, the gardener said, “Who are you, anyway?” “A disciple of Kong Qiu.”12 “Oh—then you must be one of those who broaden their learning in order to ape the sages, heaping absurd nonsense on the crowd, plucking the strings and singing sad songs all by yourself in hopes of buying fame in the world! You would do best to forget your spirit and breath, break up your body and limbs—then you might be able to get somewhere. You don’t even know how to look after your own body—how do you have any time to think about looking after the world! On your way now! Don’t interfere with my work!” Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. 12. Confucius. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 92 13. On Mr. Chaos (Hundun), see p. 59. HEAVEN AND EARTH Zigong frowned, and the color drained from his face. Dazed and rattled, he couldn’t seem to pull himself together, and it was only after he had walked on for some thirty li that he began to recover. One of his disciples said, “Who was that man just now? Why did you change your expression and lose your color like that, Master, so that it took you all day to get back to normal?” “I used to think there was only one real man in the world,” said Zigong. “I didn’t know that there was this other one. I have heard Confucius say that in affairs you aim for what is right, and in undertakings you aim for success. To spend little effort and achieve big results—that is the Way of the sage. Now it seems that this isn’t so. He who holds fast to the Way is complete in Virtue; being complete in Virtue, he is complete in body; being complete in body, he is complete in spirit; and to be complete in spirit is the Way of the sage. He is content to live among the people, to walk by their side, and never know where he is going. Witless, his purity is complete. Achievement, profit, machines, skill—they have no place in this man’s mind! A man like this will not go where he has no will to go, will not do what he has no mind to do. Though the world might praise him and say he had really found something, he would look unconcerned and never turn his head; though the world might condemn him and say he had lost something, he would look serene and pay no heed. The praise and blame of the world are no loss or gain to him. He may be called a man of Complete Virtue. I—I am a man of the wind-blown waves.” When Zigong got back to Lu, he reported the incident to Confucius. Confucius said, “He is one of those bogus practitioners of the arts of Mr. Chaos.13 He knows the first thing but doesn’t understand the second. He looks after what is on the inside but doesn’t look after what is on the outside. A man of true brightness and purity who can enter into simplicity, who can return to the primitive Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. HEAVEN AND EARTH 93 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. through inaction, give body to his inborn nature, and embrace his spirit, and in this way wander through the everyday world—if you had met one like that, you would have had real cause for astonishment.14 As for the arts of Mr. Chaos, you and I need not bother to find out about them.” Zhun Mang was on his way east to the Great Valley of the sea when he happened to meet Yuan Feng by the shore of the eastern ocean.15 Yuan Feng said, “Where are you going?” “I’m going to the Great Valley.” “What will you do there?” “The Great Valley is the sort of thing you can pour into and it never gets full, dip from and it never runs dry. I’m going to wander there.” Yuan Feng said, “Don’t you care about what happens to ordinary men? Please, won’t you tell me about the government of the sage?” “The government of the sage?” said Zhun Mang. “Assign offices so that no abilities are overlooked; promote men so that no talents are neglected. Always know the true facts, and let men do what they are best at. When actions and words proceed properly and the world is transformed, then at a wave of the hand or a tilt of the chin, all the people of the four directions will come flocking to you. This is called the government of the sage.” “May I ask about the man of Virtue?” “The man of Virtue rests without thought, moves without plan. He has no use for right and wrong, beautiful and ugly. To share profit with all things within the four seas is his happiness, to look after their needs is his peace. Sad faced, he’s like a little child who has lost his mother. Bewildered, he’s like a traveler who has lost his way. He has more than enough wealth and goods, but he doesn’t know where they come from. He gets all he needs to eat and drink, but he doesn’t know how he gets it. This is called the manner of the man of Virtue.” Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. 14. That is, the true man of the Way does not retire from the world or reject society and its inventions. 15. The names of the persons in the anecdote are allegorical, Zhun Mang meaning something like “Artless and Forgetful” and Yuan Feng meaning “Little Wind.” 94 HEAVEN AND EARTH “May I ask about the man of spirit?” “He lets his spirit ascend and mount on the light; with his bodily form, he dissolves and is gone. This is called the Illumination of Vastness. He lives out his fate, follows to the end his true form, and rests in the joy of Heaven and earth while the ten thousand cares melt away. So all things return to their true form. This is called Muddled Darkness.” Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 16. If they were viewing the actual troops, the episode must be set in the eleventh century bce, when King Wu of the Zhou attacked and overthrew the last ruler of the Shang dynasty. But perhaps they were watching the court dances performed in later ages that reenacted the campaign. The “man of the Yu clan” in the following sentence is the sage ruler who did not have to launch any military expeditions. Men Wugui and Chizhang Manqui were watching the troops of King Wu.16 Chizhang Manqui said, “He is no match for the man of the Yu clan. That’s why he runs into all this trouble!” Men Wugui said, “Was the world already in good order when the man of the Yu clan came along to order it? Or was it in disorder, and later he brought it in order?” Chizhang Manqui said, “Everybody wants to see the world well ordered. If it had been so already, what point would there have been in calling on the man of the Yu clan? The man of the Yu clan was medicine to a sore. But to wait until you go bald and then buy a wig, to wait until you get sick and then call for a doctor, to prepare the medicine like a true filial son and present it to your loving father, wearing a grim and haggard look—this the true sage would be ashamed to do. In an age of Perfect Virtue, the worthy are not honored; the talented are not employed. Rulers are like the high branches of a tree; the people, like the deer of the fields. They do what is right, but they do not know that this is righteousness. They love one another, but they do not know that this is benevolence. They are truehearted but do not know that this is loyalty. They are trustworthy but do not know that this is good faith. They wriggle around like insects, performing services for one another, but do not know that they are being kind. Therefore they move without leaving any trail behind, act without leaving any memory of their deeds.” When a filial son does not fawn on his parents, when a loyal minister does not flatter his lord, they are the finest Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. HEAVEN AND EARTH 95 of sons and ministers. He who agrees with everything his parents say and approves of everything they do is regarded by popular opinion as an unworthy son; he who agrees with everything his lord says and approves of everything his lord does is regarded by popular opinion as an unworthy minister.17 But in other cases, men do not realize that the same principle should apply. If a man agrees with everything that popular opinion says and regards as good everything that popular opinion regards as good, he is not, as you might expect, called a sycophant and a flatterer. Are we to assume, then, that popular opinion commands more authority than one’s parents or is more to be honored than one’s lord? Call a man a sycophant, and he flushes with anger; call him a flatterer, and he turns crimson with rage. Yet all his life, he will continue to be a sycophant; all his life, he will continue to be a flatterer. See him set forth his analogies and polish his fine phrases to draw a crowd, until the beginning and end, the root and branches of his argument no longer match!18 See him spread out his robes, display his bright colors, put on a solemn face in hopes of currying favor with the age—and yet he does not recognize himself as a sycophant or a flatterer. See him with his followers laying down the law on right and wrong, and yet he does not recognize himself as one of the mob. This is the height of foolishness! He who knows he is a fool is not the biggest fool; he who knows he is confused is not in the worst confusion. The man in the worst confusion will end his life without ever getting straightened out; the biggest fool will end his life without ever seeing the light. If three men are traveling along and one is confused, they will still get where they are going—because confusion is in the minority. But if two of them are confused, then they can walk until they are exhausted and never get anywhere—because confusion is in the majority. And with all the confusion in the world these days, no matter how often I point the way, it does no good. Sad, is it not? Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. 17. Because it is the duty of the son and minister to reprimand his parents and lord, respectively, when they are clearly in the wrong. 18. Following texts that omit the zui and adopting Chu Boxiu’s interpretation; the reference is apparently to the rhetoricians. 96 19. Following Lu Deming’s emendations. Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. 20. Is this sentence intended to belong with what precedes it or with what follows it? I am unable to tell. 21. On Yangzi and Mozi, see p. 61, n. 7. They preached acceptance and rejection, repectively, of sensual pleasure. HEAVEN AND EARTH Great music is lost on the ears of the villagers, but play them “The Breaking of the Willow” or “Bright Flowers,” and they grin from ear to ear. In the same way, lofty words make no impression on the minds of the mob. Superior words gain no hearing because vulgar words are in the majority. It is like the case of the two travelers tramping along in confusion and never getting where they are going.19 With all the confusion in the world these days, no matter how often I point the way, what good does it do? And if I know it does no good and still make myself do it, this too is a kind of confusion. So it is best to leave things alone and not force them. If I don’t force things, at least I won’t cause anyone any worry. When the leper woman gives birth to a child in the dead of the night, she rushes to fetch a torch and examine it, trembling with terror lest it look like herself.20 The hundred-year-old tree is hacked up to make bowls for the sacrificial wine, blue and yellow with patterns on them, and the chips are thrown into the ditch. Compare the sacrificial bowls with the chips in the ditch, and you will find them far apart in beauty and ugliness; yet they are alike in having lost their inborn nature. Robber Zhi, Zeng, and Shi are far apart in deeds and righteousness, and yet they are the same in having lost their inborn nature. There are five conditions under which the inborn nature is lost. One: when the five colors confuse the eye and cause the eyesight to be unclear. Two: when the five notes confuse the ear and cause the hearing to be unclear. Three: when the five odors stimulate the nose and produce weariness and congestion in the forehead. Four: when the five flavors dull the mouth, causing the sense of taste to be impaired and lifeless. Five: when likes and dislikes unsettle the mind and cause the inborn nature to become volatile and flighty. These five all are a danger to life. And yet the followers of Yangzi and Mozi go striding around, thinking they have really gotten hold of something.21 This is not what I call getting hold of something. Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. HEAVEN AND EARTH 97 Copyright © 2013. Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. If what you have gotten has gotten you into trouble, then can you really be said to have gotten something? If so, then the pigeons and doves in their cage have also gotten hold of something. With likes and dislikes, sounds and colors, you cripple what is on the inside; with leather caps and snipe-feathered bonnets, batons stuck in belts and sashes trailing, you cramp what is on the outside. The inside hemmed in by pickets and pegs, the outside heaped with wraps and swathes, and still you stand in this tangle of wraps and swathes and declare that you have gotten hold of something? If so, then the condemned men with their chained wrists and manacled fingers, the tiger and the leopard in their pens and prisons, have also gotten hold of something!22 Burton. The Complete Works of Zhuangzi, Columbia University Press, 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/washington/detail.action?docID=1192023. Created from washington on 2018-03-02 21:05:23. 22. These last two paragraphs, with their mention of Robber Zhi, Zeng, and Shi, and discussion of the five notes, flavors, etc., are close in thought and terminology to the preceding sections. Speculation is that they originally belonged to either sec. 9 or sec. 11.
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