The Liezi is considered the third most important text in Daoism (Taoism) after the Dao De Jing and Zhuangzi. Chapter seven is named Yang Zhu and focuses on living in the moment.
Reputation, fame, and status
The sage does not worry about external factors such as reputation, fame, or status.
“Those who are detached from reputation have no worries.”
They know that reputation does not reflect reality. One may live generously but only have a good reputation after they die. One may live indulgently, but have a bad reputation after they die.
“In sum, those four sages never had a day’s enjoyment all their lives, but after they died they’ve been famous for myriad generations. So reputation is not obtained by reality.”
“These two villains had the pleasure of indulging their desires while alive, but after death they were saddled with reputations for ignorance and brutality. So the reality is not given by the reputation.”
Fame and status are also artificial and have no lasting benefit.
“Reality has no fame, fame has no reality. Fame is entirely artificial.”
“If you don’t care about respect, why wish for fame? If you don’t want power, why wish for status?”
Wealth
The sage knows that striving for wealth makes one unfulfilled.
“They strive for fine food and clothing, for music and beauties, but they cannot always be sated with fine food and clothing, and they cannot always be dallying with music and beauties. They compete restlessly for empty fame in their time, counting on continuing glory after death.”
The physical body is also a possession which one should not become attached.
“To be possessive about your body, to be possessive about your things, is to arbitrarily be selfish about a body that belongs to the world, to arbitrarily privatize things that belong to the world.”
It doesn’t matter if one values life, they will still die at their natural time. There is no point in worrying about death.
“Suppose someone values life and takes care of his body; can he hope to avoid death that way?”
“In principle, there is no one who does not die.”
Worrying about a long life, fame, status, or wealth causes unneeded stress.
“The reasons people cannot rest are four: striving for longevity, striving for fame, striving for status, and striving for money.”
The future
The sage does not concern themselves with the future.
“When you’re going to die, let go and let it be; go with it all the way, to release in extinction. Letting go of everything, letting it all be, in the meantime why be anxious about what happens sooner or later?”
They don’t concern themselves with what happens after death.
“Once a body’s dead, how could it retain a self? You may burn it, or sink it, or bury it. You can cover it with brushwood and leave it in a ditch, or you can dress it in formal wear and inter it in a crypt. It’s all a matter of circumstance.”
Emptiness
The sage focuses on the internal by seeking a state of emptiness. This allows one to be a peace with the world.
“Those who skillfully govern the internal do not necessarily let others run wild, but are naturally at ease with them.”
They cultivate humility, generosity, and compassion.
“The way of compassion is not merely emotion; those who toil can be put at ease, the starving can be fed, those suffering from the cold can be kept warm, those in straits can be fulfilled. ”
Present moment
The sage finds contentment in the present moment.
“So go for the present life— where is the leisure to consider what happens after death?”
“Missing out on the supreme happiness of the present, they cannot be free for even an hour. How is that different from being imprisoned and shackled?“
The sage knows that the present moment is precious and fleeting.
“The general limit of life span is a hundred years, but hardly one in a thousand actually lives a hundred years. Even if there is one who does, nearly half of that is taken up by infancy and senility. What is spent in sleep at night or overlooked while awake by day also takes nearly half of what’s left. Pain and sickness, sorrow and suffering, loss, worry, and fear also take up nearly half of what’s left.“
The best way to live is to do what you enjoy in the moment. Listen to good music, walk in beautiful environments, smell pleasant fragrances, speak freely, and make yourself comfortable.
“In high antiquity people knew life is a temporary visit, and they knew death is a temporary journey; so they acted as they wished, not avoiding natural inclinations. They didn’t reject personal pleasures, so they weren’t motivated by reputation.
““Just do as you like, without inhibition or restraint.”
“Go ahead and listen to what your ears want to hear, look at what your eyes want to see, smell what your nose wants to smell, say what you want to say, make your body comfortable, and do as you will.”
Conclusion
The sage does not worry about the external. Reputation, status, fame and wealth are all artificial and leaves one unfulfilled. They do not concern themselves with the future because it creates unneeded anxiety.
Instead the sage focuses on the internal and seeks a state of emptiness. They are humble, generous, and compassionate and find contentment in savoring the present moment. One should surround themselves with pleasant sounds, environments, smells, and express themselves freely.
Resource
The Book of Master Lie, Thomas Cleary, translator. 2011. A nice translation of Liezi.
Daoism 