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Zhuangzi Chapter 3: Nourishment of the Soul

Master Zhuang is the second most influential writer in Daoism and the book Zhuangzi was named after him. Chapter Three is entitled Nourishment of the Soul and describes how best to live in the world. This is a very short chapter but has three important parables.

Knowledge v. Lifespan

The sage acknowledges that they have a limited lifespan and can’t possibly know everything. One should never believe they have all the answers and are always right. Instead, remain grounded, avoid fame, and try not to break the law. Take care of your family and be content with the life that you have.

“My life has a limit, but my knowledge is without limit. To drive the limited in search of the limitless, is fatal; and the knowledge of those who do this is fatally lost. In striving for others, avoid fame. In striving for self, avoid disgrace. Pursue a middle course. Thus you will keep a sound body, and a sound mind, fulfill your duties, and work out your allotted span.”

Parable of the Butcher

The parable of the butcher provides a valuable lesson on completing tasks. In the parable a butcher carved up oxen year after year without ever dulling his knife because he was always in the flow. When attempting a new task, one is often clumsy and hyper-focused. They perceive the task using their eyes and try to figure out how to do it. When the task is especially difficult they will size up the challenge, work carefully, and go slow.

“Nevertheless, when I come upon a hard part where the blade meets with a difficulty, I am all caution. I fix my eye on it. I stay my hand, and gently apply my blade, until with a hwah the part yields like earth crumbling to the ground. Then I take out my chopper, and stand up, and look around, and pause, until with an air of triumph I wipe my chopper and put it carefully away.”

The sage completes tasks by entering a state of effortless action. This goes beyond being skillful or perceiving with the eyes. Instead it uses intuition to go along with the natural contours of the task. The person no longer does an action, but the action does itself.

“I have always devoted myself to the Dao. It is better than skill. When I first began to cut up bullocks, I saw before me simply whole bullocks. After three years’ practice, I saw no more whole animals. And now I work with my mind and not with my eye. When my senses bid me stop, but my mind urges me on, I fall back upon eternal principles. I follow such openings or cavities as there may be, according to the natural constitution of the animal. I do not attempt to cut through joints: still less through large bones.”

Parable of the Commander

The parable of the commander teaches a lesson on freedom of choice. In the story a military commander has been punished by having one of his foots amputated. He was asked if this was done by man or heaven. He answers that it was done by heaven. Taoism teaches that people are not happy unless they have freedom of choice. However, the sage recognizes that choices often have severe consequences. The commander’s poor choices led to his punishment.

“Why, of course,’ continued Hsien, ‘it is the work of God, and not of man. When God brought this man into the world, he wanted him to be unlike other men. Men always have two feet. From this it is clear that God and not man made him as he is. Now, wild fowl get a peck once in ten steps, a drink once in a hundred. Yet they do not want to be fed in a cage. For although they would thus be able to command food, they would not be free.’”

Parable of the Mourner

The parable of the mourner illustrates the natural progression of life. In it a person mourned a friend by yelling three times and then leaving. Others asked if the mourner should have done more for such a close friend? Shouldn’t he participate in the traditional mourning rituals? The mourner answered no because the sage recognizes that death is simply a part of the natural pattern of the Way. People are born, grow, decay, and then die. One should be content with their lifetime and accept this pattern without grief.

“The Master came, because it was his time to be born; he went, because it was his time to die. For those who accept the phenomenon of birth and death in this sense, lamentation and sorrow have no place. The ancients spoke of death as of God cutting down a man suspended in the air.”

Summary

The secret of caring for life is to realize that you will never have complete knowledge and it is foolish to believe otherwise. One should stay centered, be constant, focus on family, and be content with what you have. It is natural for people to want to make their own choices even when those choices lead to severe consequences. The pattern of the Dao includes birth and death and one should accept this in order to be content.

Resource

Chuang Tzu, Mystic, Moralist and Social Reformer, Herbert A. Giles, translator. Bernard Quaritch 1889. Classic public domain translation.

Next: Zhuangzi Chapter 4

Zhuangzi Chapter 2: The Identity of Contraries

Master Zhuang is the second most influential writer in Daoism and the book Zhuangzi was named after him. Chapter Two is entitled The Identity of Contraries and describes how one can live in accordance with the Way.

Simplicity

The sage or wise person has great understanding of the Way and shifts their focus to a more universal perspective. They do not let the stress of everyday life distract them.

“Ah! perhaps you only know the music of Man, and not that of Earth. Or even if you have heard the music of Earth, you have not heard the music of Heaven.”

The sage knows that their connection to the Way is unique and different than any one else’s.

“’The effect of the wind upon these various apertures,’ replied Ziqi, ‘is not uniform. But what is it that gives to each the individuality, to all the potentiality, of sound?‘”

The sage is unhurried and goes along with the flow of life. They have a simple and uncomplicated existence.

“Great knowledge embraces the whole…Great speech is universal.”

Complicated Life

The foolish have little understanding of the Way and live a busy, divisive, and complicated life. They are preoccupied with petty arguments and are convinced that they are always right. Consequently, they have high anxiety and find life difficult to manage.

“For whether when the mind is locked in sleep or whether when in waking hours the body is released, we are subject to daily mental perturbations, — indecision, want of penetration, concealment, fretting fear, and trembling terror. Now like a javelin the mind flies forth, the arbiter of right and wrong.”

They hurry through life without pausing or reflection and never have any satisfying accomplishments. This leaves them exhausted and unsatisfied.

“To be harassed by the wear and tear of life, and to pass rapidly through it without possibility of arresting one’s course, — is not this pitiful indeed? To labour without ceasing, and then, without living to enjoy the fruit, worn out, to depart, suddenly, one knows not whither, — is not that a just cause for grief?”

Relativity of Life

The sage recognizes that life is relative. They recognize the concepts of right and wrong are dependent on the individual and situation.

“Which being the case, the true sage rejects all distinctions of this and that. He takes his refuge in God, and places himself in subjective relation with all things...And inasmuch as the subjective is also objective, and the objective also subjective, and as the contraries under each are indistinguishably blended, does it not become impossible for us to say whether subjective and objective really exist at all?”

What works for one person does not necessarily work for another. The characteristics of kindness and morality are often dependent on the society, individual, or situation.

“Monkey mates with monkey, the buck with the doe; eels consort with fishes, while men admire Maoqiang and Lady Li, at the sight of whom fishes plunge deep down in the water, birds soar high in the air, and deer hurry away.”

The sage sees the unity of all things in the Dao and does not create artificial divisions.

“Separation is the same as construction: construction is the same as destruction. Nothing is subject either to construction or to destruction, for these conditions are brought together into One.”

Acceptance of Reality

The sage acknowledges that the Way exists but does not waste their energy trying to define it. They do not get involved in needless arguments, but accepts life for what it is.

“For the true Sage, beyond the limits of an external world, they exist, but are not recognized. By the true Sage, within the limits of an external world, they are recognized, but are not assigned...The true Sage,” answered Ziqi, “keeps his knowledge within him, while men in general set forth theirs in argument, in order to convince each other. And therefore it is said that in argument he does not manifest himself.”

The sage is unaffected by strife and unconcerned about wealth, sickness, and death. They make themself one with the universe, live in simplicity, and allow things to be as they are.

“In such case, he would mount upon the clouds of heaven, and driving the sun and the moon before him, would pass beyond the limits of this external world, where death and life have no more victory over man;—how much less what is bad for him?”

The sage recognizes the absurdity of life and that they never will truly understand it.

“Once upon a time, I, Zhuang Zhou, dreamt I was a butterfly, fluttering hither and thither, to all intents and purposes a butterfly. I was conscious only of following my fancies as a butterfly, and was unconscious of my individuality as a man. Suddenly, I awaked, and there I lay, myself again. Now I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly dreaming I am a man. Between a man and a butterfly there is necessarily a barrier.”

Summary

The sage has great understanding of the Way. They find comfort in the midst of chaos. They stay grounded and live their life as it plays out. They make the most of their situation and realize that good and bad are relative to the individual and situation.

“We are embraced in the obliterating unity of God. There is perfect adaptation to whatever may eventuate; and so we complete our allotted span...Take no heed of time, nor of right and wrong. But passing into the realm of the Infinite, take your final rest therein.”

Resource

Chuang Tzu, Mystic, Moralist and Social Reformer, Herbert A. Giles, translator. Bernard Quaritch 1889. Classic public domain translation.

Next: Zhuangzi Chapter 3

Zhuangzi Chapter 1: Transcendental Bliss

Master Zhuang is the second most influential writer in Daoism and the book Zhuangzi was named after him. Chapter One is entitled Transcendental Bliss and challenges our normal definition of usefulness. How useful a thing is depends on the sizes involved, lifespan, and purpose.

Usefulness Based on Size

Usefulness depends on the relative sizes involved. There was a bird who measured a thousand miles wide and flew for nine months straight. It found the wind very useful in order to fly long distances. There was a small cicada and dove who could barely fly to the next tree. They did not find the wind useful because they only traveled a few yards. A massive gourd was useless to carry water because it became too heavy, but it could be used as a boat to float down a river.

“A cicada laughed, and said to a young dove, ‘Now, when I fly with all my might, ’tis as much as I can do to get from tree to tree. And sometimes I do not reach, but fall to the ground midway. What then can be the use of going up ninety thousand li in order to start for the south?'”

Usefulness Based on Lifespan

Usefulness is dependent on the lifespan involved. The morning mushroom does not see the twilight, the summer cicada does not see the spring. What was useful for these short lived beings are not useful to longer lived ones such as humans or animals.

“How can we tell that this is so? The mushroom of a morning knows not the alternation of day and night. The chrysalis knows not the alternation of spring and autumn. Theirs are short years.”

Usefulness Based on Purpose

Usefulness also depends on the purpose a thing. A family had a secret recipe for chapped hands ointment and used it when bleaching silk in water. Over generations, they never made much money. They eventually sold the recipe to a traveler who gave it to soldiers to help them hold weapons during a battle. The army won and the king rewarded the traveler with much land. A gnarled and twisted tree may be worthless to a carpenter but may be perfect to provide shade. The same item is useless for one purpose but has much use for another.

“The stranger was rewarded with territory and a title. Thus, while the efficacy of the salve to cure chapped hands was in both cases the same, its application was different. Here, it secured a title; there, a capacity for washing silk.”

Lesson for the Individual

Our personal circumstances often make it hard to see what is important in life. The small dove can’t understand why another would want to fly hundreds of miles because the dove only needs to travel a few yards. We often put significant value on our accomplishments even when they are relatively small. The dove may have an outsized pride in traveling just a few yards. A person shouldn’t take pride in their own accomplishments such as gaining fame, wealth, or power. The Daoist would say the individual shouldn’t be bothered by such things, but be content in finding usefulness in the everyday things around them.

Summary

Master Zhuang recognizes that usefulness is subjective to the time, space, and purpose. What may be useful for a large creature is not useful for a small one. What is useful for a long lived creature is not useful to a short lived one. Sometimes usefulness can be found by shifting the perspective of how to use a thing. At first it may seem worthless but it may just be looking for the right purpose. The individual should not find value in pride, fame, and power. Instead they should be content in finding usefulness all around them.

Resource

Chuang Tzu, Mystic, Moralist and Social Reformer, Herbert A. Giles, translator. Bernard Quaritch 1889. Classic public domain translation.

Next: Zhuangzi Chapter 2

Confucianism and Buddhism

The three teachings of Eastern Asia include Daoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism. Each can be better understood by contrasting them with the other.

Confucianism

Confucianism stresses obedience to authority because Confucius saw that people needed guidance to avoid immorality. Confucius came up with many guidelines for people to live by to have a structured and prosperous society. Much of this centers on respect for parents and elders.

Daoism

Daoism teaches that the Way creates and guides the universe. Laozi said life is much more satisfying if one follows the natural state of the Dao using meditation. This includes constant change due to the opposing forces of Yin and Yang. There is no sweet without the sour. Authorities should be hesitant to act and only do the minimum amount so as to not upset the natural balance.

“Being and non-being produce each other. Difficult and easy complement each other. Long and short define each other. High and low oppose each other. Fore and aft follow each other.”

Dao De Jing, Chapter 2

Buddhism

Buddhism teaches that life is suffering because people are attached to their possessions and desires. Similar to Daoism it involved meditation to find inner peace and to follow the Eight Fold Path of right speech, action, livelihood, effort, and mindfulness. Eventually, one can reach a state of Nirvana or “state of peace” and become enlightened breaking out of a constant cycle of rebirth.

The Three Vinegar Tasters

These beliefs can be contrasted by the parable of the Three Vinegar Tasters. Confucius, Buddha and Laozi put their finger in a vat of vinegar to taste it. Confucius reacts with a sour face, Buddha reacts with a bitter face, but Laozi reacts with a happy face (Wikipedia, Vinegar Tasters).

Resource:

Tao Te Ching, Laozi, A Translation for the Public Domain by J.H. Mcdonald, 1996.

Wikipedia, Vinegar Tasters.