Master Zhuang is the second most influential writer in Daoism and the book Zhuangzi was named after him. Chapter Six is The Great Supreme and describes how the sage becomes one with the Dao. Other terms for the sage are the perfect man, holy man, and true man.
Description of the Way
The Dao is the way of the universe. It is formless, invisible, and the root of all things. It was from before creation and gave form to creation. It has always been here but is not considered old.
“Before heaven and earth were, Dao was. It has existed without change from all time. Spiritual beings drew their spirituality therefrom, while the universe became what we can see it now. To Tao, “the zenith is not high, nor the nadir low; no point in time is long ago, nor by lapse of ages has it grown old.”
Emptiness
The sage becomes one with the Dao when they achieve an empty state. In this state, they are part of the world but also withdrawn.
“They seemed to be of the world around them, while proudly treading beyond its limits. They seemed to desire silence, while in truth they had dispensed with language.”
To reach emptiness, one must be willing to let go of the cares of the world, possessions, and life itself.
“I imparted as though withholding; and in three days, for him, this sublunary state had ceased to exist. With all its paltry distinctions of sovereign and subject, high and low, good and bad, etc. When he had attained to this, I withheld again; and in seven days more, for him, the external world had ceased to be. And so again for another nine days, when he became unconscious of his own existence.”
When the sage reaches this state, past and future fade away. They are in the present moment and are unconcerned about life or death. They are simply living in the moment.
“He became first etherealized, next possessed of perfect wisdom, then without past or present, and finally able to enter there where life and death are no more,—where killing does not take away life, nor does prolongation of life add to the duration of existence.”
The Only Constancy is Change
The sage accepts that change is the only constancy of life. Major changes include birth, growth, aging, and death.
“But if you conceal the whole universe in the whole universe, there will be no place left wherein it may be lost. The laws of matter make this to be so. To have attained to the human form must be always a source of joy. And then, to undergo countless transitions, with only the infinite to look forward to,—what incomparable bliss is that!”
“Passing into life as a man, he quietly awaits his passage into the unknown. What should the dead know of the living, or the living know of the dead?”
The sage is willing to accept any change including an early death or a long life.
“For if we can accept early death, old age, a beginning, and an end, why not that which informs all creation and is of all phenomena the Ultimate Cause?”
The sage makes no plans. They accept gain or loss, and live with no regrets. They find contentment in small things and do not let loss affect them.
“But what is a pure man?—The pure men of old acted without calculation, not seeking to secure results. They laid no plans. Therefore, failing, they had no cause for regret; succeeding, no cause for congratulation.”
The Sage is unconcerned with success or failure and sees them both as fate.
“I was trying to think who could have brought me to this extreme,” replied Master Sang, “but I could not guess. My father and mother would hardly wish me to be poor. Heaven covers all equally. Earth supports all equally. How can they make me in particular poor? I was seeking to know who it was, but without success. Surely then I am brought to this extreme by Destiny.”
Life and Death
The sage doesn’t waste energy on trying to figure out why they are alive or when they will die. They remain calm in the face of adversity.
“Mengsun knows not whence we come nor whither we go. He knows not whether the end will come early or late.”
When Master Yu suffered illness he held no resentment. He knew that his life would eventually end and he would return to the Dao.
“What have I to fear? Ere long I shall be decomposed. My left shoulder will become a cock, and I shall herald the approach of morn. My right shoulder will become a cross-bow, and I shall be able to get broiled duck. My buttocks will become wheels; and with my soul for a horse, I shall be able to ride in my own chariot.”
The sage is content with the time they have to live. By being content emotions such as happiness and joy can not affect you.
“I obtained life because it was my time: I am now parting with it in accordance with the same law. Content with the natural sequence of these states, joy and sorrow touch me not.”
“They look on life as a huge tumor from which death sets them free. All the same they know not where they were before birth, nor where they will be after death…How should such men trouble themselves with the conventionalities of this world, or care what people may think of them?”
The Non-Sage
It is helpful to contrast the sage with the non-sage. The non-sage gets lost in the passion of their daily life. They strive to succeed, become wealthy, or get fame. They are always busy and plan out their days to ensure success.
“If men’s passions are deep, their divinity is shallow.”
“He who delights in man, is himself not a perfect man. His affection is not true charity. Depending upon opportunity, he has not true worth. He who is not conversant with both good and evil is not a superior man. He who disregards his reputation is not what a man should be. He who is not absolutely oblivious of his own existence can never be a ruler of men.”
Summary
A person can be compared to a piece of metal being cast by a smith. The metal can not demand to be made into a sword or other object but must accept their fate according to the wishes of the smith. In the same way, the sage accepts the changes in their life. They do not allow events such as success, failure, illness, health, a long life, or a short life to affect them.
“Suppose that the boiling metal in a smelting-pot were to bubble up and say, ‘Make of me an Excalibur;’ I think the caster would reject that metal as uncanny. And if a sinner like myselfwere to say to God, ‘Make of me a man, make of me a man;’ I think he too would reject me as uncanny. The universe is the smelting-pot, and God is the caster. I shall go whithersoever I am sent, to wake unconscious of the past, as a man wakes from a dreamless sleep.”
Resource
Chuang Tzu, Mystic, Moralist and Social Reformer, Herbert A. Giles, translator. Bernard Quaritch 1889. Classic public domain translation.
