Way – Page 3

Zhuangzi Chapter 19: The Secret of Life

The book Zhuangzi is an essential text in Daoism. Chapter Nineteen, The Secret of Life, focuses on how to live in the world.

Acceptance

The sage accepts life for what it is. They do not worry about what they can not change.

“Those who understand the conditions of life devote no attention to things which life cannot accomplish. Those who understand the conditions of destiny devote no attention to things over which knowledge has no control.”

They accept their lack of control. They accept that they did not choose when they were born or predict when they will die.

“Life comes, and cannot be declined. It goes, and cannot be stopped.”

They are grateful for their health and any positive things in their life.

“Whereas, that you have a whole body in a whole skin, and have not perished in mid career, dumb, blind, or halt, but actually hold a place among men, — this ought to be enough for you.”

Happiness

The sage rejects what is normally valuable to humanity. They do not pursue money, power, or fame. Instead they live a simple life and pursue what nourishes them.

“Of old, when a bird alighted outside the capital of Lu, the prince was delighted, and killed an ox to feed it and had the Chiu Shao played to entertain it. The bird, however, was timid and dazed and dared not to eat or drink. This was treating the bird like oneself.”

The sage realizes that possessions don’t bring happiness.

“For the due nourishment of our physical frames, certain things are needful. Yet where such things abound, the physical frame is not always nourished.”

Separatness

The sage sets themselves apart from the world which conserves their strength.

“If you abandon the affairs of the world, your body will be without toil. If you forget life, your vitality will be unimpaired.”

This also gets them closer to the Way.

“By renouncing the world, one gets rid of the cares of the world. The result is a natural level, which is equivalent to a re-birth. And he who is re-born is near.”

Harmony

The sage finds a balance between separating themselves from the world and being a part of it.

“In the State of Lu,’ said Tian, ‘there was a man named Shan Bao. He lived on the mountains and drank water. All worldly interests he had put aside. And at the age of seventy, his complexion was like that of a child. Unluckily, he one day fell in with a hungry tiger who killed and ate him. There was also a man named Zhang Yi, who frequented the houses of rich and poor alike. At the age of forty he was attacked by some internal disease and died. Shan Bao took care of his inner self, and a tiger ate his external man. Zhang Yi took care of himself externally, but disease attacked him internally. These two individuals both omitted to whip up the laggards.’”

Harm

Nothing harms the sage if they don’t perceive events as negative. They simply accept the flow of life as it comes.

“A drunken man who falls out of a cart, though he may suffer, does not die. His bones are the same as other people’s; but he meets his accident in a different way. His spirit is in a condition of security. He is not conscious of riding in the cart; neither is he conscious of falling out of it...It is in God that the Sage seeks his refuge, and so he is free from harm.”

Present Moment

The sage gets the most out of the present moment by focusing on what is in front of them.

“When Confucius was on his way to the Chu State, he came to a forest where he saw a hunchback catching cicadas as though with his hand...Heaven and earth and all creation may be around me, but I am conscious only of my cicada’s wings. How should I not succeed?”

By being in the moment, one can complete challenging tasks and physical feats.

“’Kindly tell me, is there any way to deal thus with water?’ ‘No,’ replied the old man; ‘I have no way. There was my original condition to begin with; then habit growing into nature; and lastly acquiescence in destiny. Plunging in with the whirl, I come out with the swirl. I accommodate myself to the water, not the water to me. And so I am able to deal with it after this fashion.’”

They do not allow stress to affect them even when the stakes are high.

“A man who plays for counters will play well. If he stakes his girdle, he will be nervous; if yellow gold, he will lose his wits. His skill is the same in each case, but he is distracted by the value of his stake. And every one who attaches importance to the external, becomes internally without resource.”

The sage focuses their concentration on the task at hand.

“My skill becomes concentrated, and all disturbing elements from without are gone. I enter some mountain forest. I search for a suitable tree. It contains the form required, which is afterwards elaborated. I see the stand in my mind’s eye, and then set to work. Otherwise, there is nothing. I bring my own natural capacity into relation with that of the wood.”

This allows them to be in a state of effortless action. Things get done easily and without planning.

“Chui the artisan could draw circles with his hand better than with compasses. His fingers seemed to accommodate themselves so naturally to the thing he was working at, that it was unnecessary to fix his attention. His mental faculties thus remained ONE, and suffered no hindrance. To be unconscious of one’s feet implies that the shoes are easy. To be unconscious of a waist implies that the girdle is easy. The intelligence being unconscious of positive and negative implies that the heart is at ease.”

The key is to not get overwhelmed. Instead act as if it is perfectly normal.

“’It means,’ answered Confucius, ‘that such a man is oblivious of the water around him. He regards the rapid as though dry land. He looks upon an upset as an ordinary cart accident. And if a man can but be impervious to capsizings and accidents in general, whither should he not be able comfortably to go?’”

Summary

The sage accepts life for what it is and accept their lack of control. They are grateful for the positive aspects of their life and rejects money, possessions, power, and fame. They live a simple life and pursue what nourishes them.

The sage finds balance between separating themselves from the world and being a part of it. They get the most out of the present moment by focusing on the task at hand. This allows them to be in a state of effortless action.

Resource

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

Next: Zhuangzi Chapter 26

Zhuangzi Chapter 18: Perfect Happiness

The book Zhuangzi is an essential text in Daoism. Chapter Eighteen, Perfect Happiness, centers on the question of what do humans value? Can money buy happiness? What must a person do to be happy?

Happiness

This chapter begins with the essential question, “Can one be happy in life?”

“Is perfect happiness to be found on earth, or not? Are there those who can enjoy life, or not? If so, what do they do, what do they affect, what do they avoid, what do they rest in, accept, reject, like, and dislike?”

Human Values

Humanity values wealth, reputation, power, and long life. Many find happiness in fashionable clothes, rich food, leisure activities, music, and beauty. Humanity doesn’t value poverty, a short life, or a hectic lifestyle.

“What the world esteems comprises wealth, rank, old age, and goodness of heart. What it enjoys comprises comfort, rich food, fine clothes, beauty, and music. What it does not esteem comprises poverty, want of position, early death, and evil behavior. What it does not enjoy comprises lack of comfort for the body, lack of rich food for the palate, lack of fine clothes for the back, lack of beauty for the eye, and lack of music for the ear.”

Wealthy

The wealthy rush around all day accumulating wealth. They engage in complex business dealings, long term planning, and questionable schemes. They accumulate more wealth than they could possibly use in their lifetime. They worry if they are making the right decisions.

“Wealthy people who toil and moil, putting together more money than they can possibly use, — from the point of view of our physical frame, is not this going beyond the mark? Officials of rank who turn night into day in their endeavors to compass the best ends; — from the point of view of our physical frame, is not this a divergence?”

Wealth does not bring one true happiness. The rich are too rushed and can’t slow down to enjoy the moment. They are constantly worrying about protecting their possessions. They convince themselves that money will make them happy.

“As to what the world does and the way in which people are happy now, I know not whether such happiness be real happiness or not. The happiness of ordinary persons seems to me to consist in slavishly following the majority, as if they could not help it. Yet they all say they are happy.”

True Happiness

The sage does not accumulate possessions. They find true happiness in the state of effortless action. They follow the natural contours of life and do not force anything. They only take action after much reflection and when it seems natural in the moment. This state of “inaction” brings peace and clarity and helps determine what is right and wrong. It feels as if things get done all by themselves and everything that needs to gets done gets done.

“I make true pleasure to consist in inaction, which the world regards as great pain. Thus it has been said, ‘Perfect happiness is the absence of happiness; perfect renown is the absence of renown’. Now in this sublunary world of ours it is impossible to assign positive and negative absolutely. Nevertheless, in inaction they can be so assigned. Perfect happiness and preservation of life are to be sought for only in inaction. Let us consider. Heaven does nothing; yet it is clear. Earth does nothing; yet it enjoys repose. From the inaction of these two proceed all the modifications of things...Therefore it has been said, ‘Heaven and earth do nothing, yet there is nothing which they do not accomplish.’”

Life and Death

The sage keeps life and death in proper perspective. They mourn the loss of a loved one, but also realize that life and death are part of nature. There was a time before birth and having a body or spirit. One is born, grows, and finally dies. This is the progression of things.

“’Not at all,’ replied Zhuangzi. ‘When she died, I could not help being affected by her death. Soon, however, I remembered that she had already existed in a previous state before birth, without form, or even substance; that while in that unconditioned condition, substance was added to spirit; that this substance then assumed form; and that the next stage was birth. And now, by virtue of a further change, she is dead, passing from one phase to another like the sequence of spring, summer, autumn, and winter. And while she is thus lying asleep in Eternity, for me to go about weeping and wailing would be to proclaim myself ignorant of these natural laws. Therefore I refrain.’”

In fact the dead would not choose to be alive again because they wouldn’t give up the peacefulness of death for the troubles of life.

“’Were I to prevail upon God to allow your body to be born again, and your bones and flesh to be renewed, so that you could return to your parents, to your wife, and to the friends of your youth,—would you be willing?’ At this, the skull opened its eyes wide and knitted its brows and said, ‘How should I cast aside happiness greater than that of a king, and mingle once again in the toils and troubles of mortality?’”

People have different Needs

A sage knows that people have different needs. A bird travels in a flock, likes the forest, eats fish, and hates human noise. Fish swim in the water and eat insects. Humans aren’t birds or fish so they have different needs than them.

“Water, which is life to fishes, is death to man. Being differently constituted, their likes and dislikes are different. Therefore the Sages of the past favored not uniformity of skill or of occupation.”

Individuals have different needs due to their biology, environment, and life experiences. A seed grows differently in water, on the bank of a stream, or on the side of a slope.

“Certain germs, falling upon water, become duckweed. When they reach the junction of the land and the water, they become lichen. Spreading up the bank, they become the dog-tooth violet.”

Interconnectedness

The sage knows that all living things are connected. Roots of a plant need rich soil to grow. Worms eat its roots while butterflies eat its leaves. Birds eat butterflies and animals eat plants. Humans eat all of these but eventually pass away and return to the soil.

“The roots of Crow’s Feet turn into maggots, and their leaves turn into butterflies. Before long, the butterflies are transformed and turn into insects…Jiuyou bugs are born from Mourui bugs, and Mourui bugs are born from Rot Grubs, and Rot Grubs are born from Sheep’s Groom. Sheep’s Groom couples with bamboo that has not sprouted for a long while and produces Green Peace plants. Green Peace plants produce leopards, and leopards produce horses, and horses produce men. Men in time return again to the mysterious workings. So all creatures come out of the mysterious workings and go back into them again.”

Summary

What is happiness? Humanity values wealth, reputation, and power. However, these things do not guarantee happiness and can actually prevent it. Wealth brings a hectic life and worry about protecting possessions. The sage finds happiness in the state of effortless action. They only take action after much reflection when it seems natural in the moment. The sage keeps life and death in proper perspective and realize that they are part of nature. Individuals have different needs due to their biology, but are still connected as part of nature.

Resource

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

Next: Zhuangzi Chapter 19

Zhuangzi Chapter 17: Autumn Floods

The book Zhuangzi is an essential text in Daoism. Chapter Seventeen, Autumn Floods, describes having an expansive perspective on life and seeing the unity of all things. The sage seeks emptiness and sees that there is truly no division between life and death, right and wrong, or past and present. This chapter differs significantly from the inner chapters because it focuses on one long conversation between the Spirits of the River and the Ocean.

Pride

During the Autumn floods, streams poured into the river making it overflow its banks. The Spirit of the River was full of pride at how powerful he had become. However, when he made it to the ocean he became humbled by its vastness.

“It was the time of autumn floods. Every stream poured into the river, which swelled in its turbid course. The banks receded so far from one another that it was impossible to tell a cow from a horse. Then the Spirit of the River laughed for joy that all the beauty of the earth was gathered to himself. Down with the stream he journeyed east, until he reached the ocean. There, looking eastwards and seeing no limit to its waves, his countenance changed.”

Perspective

The Spirit of the Ocean was so vast that it gave the River a more expansive perspective. He realized that he had been so vain. This is a common occurrence with many not seeing the big picture. A frog in the well can’t understand the ocean. An insect in the summer has no conception of winter. A scholar locked into their own beliefs can’t understand the Way.

“To which the Spirit of the Ocean replied, “You cannot speak of ocean to a well-frog, — the creature of a narrower sphere. You cannot speak of ice to a summer insect, — the creature of a season. You cannot speak of Dao to a pedagogue: his scope is too restricted. But now that you have emerged from your narrow sphere and have seen the great ocean, you know your own insignificance, and I can speak to you of great principles.”

Large v. Small

This expanded perspective also means that size doesn’t matter. A small amount of time is just as important as a large. A near place as important as a far place. Short as meaningful as long.

“Thus, the wise man looks into space, and does not regard the small as too little, nor the great as too much; for he knows that there is no limit to dimension.”

Past v. Present

With this expanded perspective, one realizes that there is no division between past and present. Time is connected and flows on unceasingly.

“He looks back into the past, and does not grieve over what is far off, nor rejoice over what is near; for he knows that time is without end.”

Life and Death

Because time always continues, death need not be feared. The time a person is alive does not compare to the time before they were born.

“The span of his existence is not to be compared with the span of his non-existence. With the small to strive to, exhaust the great, necessarily lands him in confusion, and he does not attain his object.”

Life has a natural rhythm in which all things progress. They are born, grow, decay, and finally die.

“Dao is without beginning, without end. Other things are born and die. They are impermanent; and now for better, now for worse, they are ceaselessly changing form. Past years cannot be recalled: time cannot be arrested. The succession of states is endless; and every end is followed by a new beginning. Thus it may be said that man’s duty to his neighbor is embodied in the eternal principles of the universe.”

Right v. Wrong

One with proper perspective realizes that both right and wrong are subjective and vary from society to society. What is considered right in one culture is wrong in another.

“He knows that positive and negative cannot be distinguished, that great and small cannot be defined...If we say that anything is good or evil because it is either good or evil in our eyes, then there is nothing which is not good, nothing which is not evil.”

Usefulness

Expanding perspective helps the sage understand that nothing is truly useless. Usefulness depends on the point of view of the individual.

“If we say that something exists or does not exist, in deference to the function it fulfills or does not fulfill, then there is nothing which does not exist, nothing which does exist.”

Usefulness also depends on the specific circumstances of the situation. Somethings will work in certain situations but not others. A beam can be used to break a wooden door, but not to plug up a small hole.

“A battering-ram can knock down a wall, but it cannot repair the breach. Qiji and Hualiu could travel 1,000 li in one day, but for catching rats they were not equal to a wild cat. Different animals possess different aptitudes. An owl can catch fleas at night, and see the tip of a hair, but if it comes out in the daytime its eyes are so dazzled it cannot see a mountain. Different creatures are differently constituted.”

All beings have different needs. The frog is happy in a small well while the great turtle is happiest in the wide sea.

“Happy indeed am I! I hop on to the rail around the well. I rest in the hollow of some broken brick. Swimming, I gather the water under my arms and shut my mouth. I plunge into the mud, burying my feet and toes; and not one of the cockles, crabs, or tadpoles I see around me are my match. [Fancy pitting the happiness of an old well against all the water of Ocean!] Why do you not come, Sir, and pay me a visit?’…Now the turtle of the eastern sea had not got its left leg down ere its right had already stuck fast, so it shrank back and begged to be excused. It then described the sea, saying, ‘A thousand li would not measure its breadth, nor a thousand fathoms its depth.”

The sage realizes that all act according to their nature. The centipede moves with hundreds of legs while the snake moves using its backbone. The wind moves without any physical form.

“’How do you manage all these legs you have? I don’t manage them,’ replied the centipede. Have you never seen saliva? When it is ejected, the big drops are the size of pearls, the small ones like mist. They fall promiscuously on the ground and cannot be counted. And so it is that my mechanism works naturally, without my being conscious of the fact’...’One’s natural mechanism,’ replied the snake, is not a thing to be changed. What need have I for legs?’…The snake said to the wind, ‘I can manage to wriggle along, but I have a form. Now you come blustering down from the north sea to bluster away to the south sea, and you seem to be without form.’”

Harmony

If one has an expansive perspective they see the connection of all things. The sage seeks harmony and balance. They do not harm others, yet don’t flaunt their pacifism. They do not seek profit but don’t condemn others for doing so. They do not accumulate possessions, yet don’t brag about their un-attachment. They do not ask for help, but don’t tout their self sufficiency. They do not seek fame, but do not judge others that do. They live simply with what has been given to them.

“Therefore, the truly great man, although he does not injure others, does not credit himself with charity and mercy. He seeks not gain, but does not despise his followers who do. He struggles not for wealth, but does not take credit for letting it alone. He asks help from no man, but takes no credit for his self-reliance, neither does he despise those who seek preferment through friends. He acts differently from the vulgar crowd, but takes no credit for his exceptionality; nor because others act with the majority does he despise them as hypocrites.”

In a state of harmony one can tell the difference between safety and danger. One can accept both fortune and misfortune. In this way the sage does not allow negative circumstances to harm them because they don’t see them as negative. They are simply part of the up and downs of life.

“’Those who understand Dao,’ answered the Spirit of the Ocean, ‘must necessarily apprehend the eternal principles above mentioned and be clear as to their application. Consequently, they do not suffer any injury from without. The man of perfect virtue cannot be burnt by fire, nor drowned in water, nor hurt by frost or sun, nor torn by wild bird or beast. Not that he makes light of these; but that he discriminates between safety and danger. Happy under prosperous and adverse circumstances alike, cautious as to what he discards and what he accepts; — nothing can harm him.”

Nature v. Humanity

The sage follows the way of nature and not the way of humanity. Nature gives us life, physical form, and a set of skills and limitations. Humanity gives us culture and rules.

“What do you mean,” enquired the Spirit of the River, “by the natural and the artificial?” “Horses and oxen,” answered the Spirit of the Ocean, “have four feet. That is the natural. Put a halter on a horse’s head, a string through a bullock’s nose, — that is the artificial.”

The sage does not allow human values such as fame and desire to keep one away from following their own nature.

“So I say: do not let what is human wipe out what is Heavenly; do not let what is purposeful wipe out what is fated; do not let [the desire for] gain lead you after fame. Be cautious, guard it, and do not lose it—this is what I mean by returning to the True.”

Success Depends on Circumstances

The sage recognizes that circumstances play an oversized role in success or failure. Often one has to be at the right time and place to be successful.

“Therefore it has been said, do not let the artificial obliterate the natural; do not let will obliterate destiny; do not let virtue be sacrificed to fame. Diligently observe these precepts without fail, and thus you will revert to the divine...My destiny is cut out for me.”

Refuse Responsibility

The sage is not interested in power or leadership. They refuse such roles and stick to the way of nature.

“Zhuangzi was fishing in the Pu when the prince of Chu sent two high officials to ask him to take charge of the administration of the Chu State. Zhuangzi went on fishing, and without turning his head said, ‘I have heard that in Chu there is a sacred tortoise which has been dead now some three thousand years. And that the prince keeps this tortoise carefully enclosed in a chest on the altar of his ancestral temple. Now would this tortoise rather be dead and have its remains venerated, or be alive and wagging its tail in the mud?’ ‘It would rather be alive,’ replied the two officials, ‘and wagging its tail in the mud.’ ‘Begone!’ cried Zhuangzi. ‘I too will wag my tail in the mud.’”

Summary

The sage seeks an expanded perspective viewing the unity of all things. There is no real division between large and small, past and present, right and wrong, or life and death. Life simply follows the rhythm of birth, aging, and death. Nothing is truly useless. All beings have different needs according to their nature. The sage seeks harmony and follows the way of nature and not the way of humanity which includes power, pride, and fame.

Resource

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

Next: Zhuangzi Chapter 18