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Zhuangzi Chapter 17 ~ The Autumn Floods |
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At the time of the autumn floods, hundreds of streams poured into the Yellow River. The water surged and flowed so much that it filled up the valleys between the cliffs, and you couldn't distinguish whether it was a horse or ox standing on the opposite bank. The river god was very pleased at this and delighted with himself, believing that he now contained everything beautiful in the world within himself. He flowed on in an easterly direction until he reached the North Sea. He looked out to the east and couldn't see where the expanse of water ended. At that point the river god began rolling his eyes, looking to the ocean for what might be a sea god, and sighed: "There's a saying among the villagers: 'Someone who's repeatedly heard and read about Dao thinks that no one could compare with them.' That's a description of me. I once heard some people say that Zhong Ni's (Confucius) words were petty, and they also made light of Bo Yi's sense of righteousness. At first I didn't agree with that, but now that I've come to see how huge you are, I realize that if I'd never come to your gate I would have been in danger. Those who are actually practitioners of the great method would have had a long laugh at me." The god of the North Sea said: "You can't tell a frog in a well about the sea since it's restricted by its own confines. You can't tell a summer insect about ice since it only survives for one season. You can't tell a biased scholar about Dao since he's so tied up in his own theories. Now you, who came from your riverbanks and cliffs to observe the great ocean, have found out how insignificant you really are. Now you're ready to join in conversations about the Great Principle. "Of all the water in the world, there's none as large as the ocean. All the many rivers ceaselessly pour into it, but it never gets filled up. It's constantly draining off the extreme edges, but is never emptied. (Note: The ancient Chinese believed the world was flat, and that the water of the sea flowed out through huge gates at the edges of the earth.) "It doesn't vary during spring or autumn, and knows nothing about floods or drought. It spreads so much further than the Yangtze and Yellow rivers that it can't possibly be measured. However, I've never once used these facts to think higher of myself, since my shape is comparable to the heavens and the earth and my vital energy is received from Yin and Yang. I rest between the heavens and the earth like a small rock or tiny tree would rest on a huge mountain. Since my existence in the scheme of things is so small, how could I think any higher of myself! Can't we calculate the existence of the four seas lying between the heavens and the earth as being the same as the existence of a few pebbles in a huge marsh? Can't we calculate the existence of the Middle Kingdom (China) within the four seas as being the same as a few grains of rice in a very large warehouse? We have tens of thousands of names for things, and a person is merely one of them. In Jiu Zhou (aka the Nine Regions, a poetic name for China) there are many foods that can be eaten to sustain life and many boats and carts that can be used for transportation. A human being is merely one of those things. When compared to the tens of thousands of things, isn't a person similar to one of the tiny hairs on a horse's back? That the Five Emperors made decisions about how to pass on their thrones, that the Three Kings chose to get involved in wars, that people shrouding themselves in benevolence spend a lot of time worrying, and that appointed officials overwork themselves - all those things end up being nothing more than this (no more significant than a hair on a horse's back). Bo Yi ran off in order to gain reputation for his cause. Zhong Ni (Confucius) lectured in order to promote his cause. Both of them did so because they thought highly of themselves. Isn't that similar to you thinking highly of yourself because of your flooding waters?" The river god said: "If that's so, can I take the heavens and the earth to represent what is large, and the tip of a thin hair as being small?" The North Sea god said: "No. As for things, their capacity can't be measured, their progression can't be stopped, their differences don't remain constant, and their beginnings and endings can't be calculated. Therefore, to have great knowledge is to be able to observe both far and near, to see the small as not being lacking and the large as not being abundant - knowing their capacity can't be measured. It's being able to look at what happened in the past and what's happening in the present without feeling stifled by what might eventually happen and to not struggle forward to grasp at something - knowing that progression can't be stopped. It's being able to observe fullness and emptiness without delighting in what's been received nor grieving over what's been lost - knowing that those differences don't remain constant. It's having a clear understanding that the path has already been smoothed out without making schemes in life nor having anxiety about death - knowing that beginnings and endings can't be calculated. If you try to gauge what a person knows, it wouldn't help you figure out what they don't know. If you try to gauge how long a person is alive, it wouldn't help you figure out how long they weren't alive. If you try to determine what's lacking in what's small by comparing it to the immensity of what's large, you'd get completely bewildered and wouldn't be able to see how you fit in the mix. From this point of view, how could we determine that the tip of a hair is adequate to describe what's extremely small, or that the heavens and the earth are adequate to describe what's immensely large?" The river god said: "Those who give their opinions about what's going on in the world today all say: 'The smallest molecule is without a shape, and the largest thing can't be enclosed.' Do you agree with that?" The North Sea god said: "From the viewpoint of what's small, what's large seems incomplete (as its boundaries can't be found). From the viewpoint of what's large, what's small can't be made out clearly (as it gets lost in the background). As for what's microscopic, it's the smallest of the small. As for what's immense, it's the largest of the large. In some circumstances it's appropriate to distinguish between them. What's infinitely small and what's grossly large both have a shape. However, no one can make out the borders of what has no shape, and no one can find anything lacking in what can't be enclosed. What can be sorted out with words can be likened to what's grossly large, and what remains conveyed through thoughts can be likened to what's infinitely small. However, what can't be sorted out with words nor be thought out in the mind can't be restricted to being either grossly large or infinitely small. "To behave like a great person means not intentionally doing anything that might be harmful to others, but not going to the extreme of setting up mandates for benevolence and kindness. It means taking action without a sense of personal gain, but not looking down on those who jump at the opportunity to fleece others. It means not fighting over possessions or wealth, but not refusing to accept them in order to feel like you're better than others. It means not depending on others to make things run more smoothly in life, but not giving yourself pats on the back for working hard to earn an income nor try to humiliate those who are greedy. It means taking a different route than most of society, but not feeling arrogant for going against authority. It means acting openly toward others, but not looking down on the flatterers and sycophants. It means neither allowing rank and prestige in society to encourage you, nor allowing punishments and threats to discourage you. It means understanding that right and wrong can't be distinguished from one another, and that thin and thick can't be separated from one another. It's been said: 'A person of Dao is not well known. Achieving virtue isn't an accomplishment. A great person is without a sense of self.' By not looking to create differences, you thus become whole." The river god said: "Whether you're looking at things that are outside or inside of yourself, how can you arrive at a conclusion as to whether they're noble or lowly? Or if they're small or large?" The North Sea god said: "From the viewpoint of Dao, things are neither high nor lowly. From the viewpoint of things, they think of themselves as high and of others as lowly. From the viewpoint of conventional society, it isn't up to individuals themselves to determine whether they're high or lowly. From the viewpoint of observing differences, if something is considered to be large because it's larger than something else then there's nothing that isn't large, and if something is considered to be small because it's smaller than something else then there's nothing that isn't small. Seeing that the heavens and the earth can be perceived like grains of rice and that the tip of a hair can be perceived like a mountain, that shows more clearly how many different perceptions there can actually be. From the viewpoint of what's effective, if something is considered to be so because it's more so than others then there's nothing that isn't so; and if something is considered not to be so because it's less so than others then there's nothing that is so. Seeing that the east and west, although they're opposites, can't exist without each other, then it can be determined how to divide up effectiveness. Using the viewpoint of preference, if something is considered to be right because it's more right than something else, then there's nothing that isn't right, and if something is considered to be wrong because it's more wrong than something else, then there's nothing that isn't wrong. Seeing that Yao (the sage) and Jie (the tyrant) each considered themselves to be right and the other to be wrong, then it can be observed how preferences can affect one's behavior. "In ancient times when Shun was given the throne by Yao he became emperor. However, when Zhi was given the throne by Kuai he was cut down. Tang and Wu fought for their positions and became kings. However, when Bai Gong fought for position he was destroyed. (Note: When Yao gave the throne to Shun, the state was strong and in order. When Kuai gave the throne to Zhi in an effort to imitate Yao, Yan was weak and on the verge of being attacked by the other states. Tang [founder of the Shang Dynasty] and Wu [founder of the Zhou Dynasty] both contended with family members for their positions and succeeded, but when Bai Gong tried to do the same thing yet failed to seize the throne of the state of Chu, he then committed suicide.) "From the viewpoint of what was stated above, we can see that the rituals used for contention or abdication, and the paths chosen by Yao and Jie, can sometimes be considered high and sometimes be considered lowly, but they don't always produce the same effects. An elaborate beam of wood can be used to strengthen a city wall, but it can't be used to plug up a hole. Each tool can be said to have it's specific use. Qi Ji and Hua Liu (thoroughbred race horses) in one day can gallop for over three hundred miles, but they can't equal a fox or a weasel in catching a mouse. Each of their skills can be said to have a specific use. An owl can see well enough at night to pick off a flea or see the tip of a hair, but if it comes out in the daytime it just stares blankly and couldn't make out a mountain. Each of its natures can be said to have a specific use. Therefore, when it's said: 'Take to imitating what's right, and wrong will vanish; imitate order, and chaos will vanish!' it shows that there's no clear understanding of the principles of the heavens and the earth nor of the essence of living things. In that case, by imitating the heavens, then the earth would vanish, and by imitating Yin, then Yang would vanish? That can't show any clear understanding at all. Yet there are those who still keep talking like this and won't give it up - if not foolishly then because they're being deceptive. The emperors and kings had their own specific methods for abdicating, and the Three Dynasties had their own specific methods for succession. (Note: At certain points in history it was considered proper for a king to abdicate his throne to one of his high officials. During other times the throne had to be passed down to the king's eldest son or another family member.) "Those who ignored what was appropriate to the times or went contrary to the customs were called usurpers. Those who were in accord with the times and conformed to the customs were called followers of righteousness. "You'd better keep very silent, river god! How could you know how to classify what's high and what's lowly, or to know which school of thought is small and which is large?" The river god said: "If that's so, then how can I know what to do and what not to do? If I refuse to accept anything and abandon my own preferences, what would end up being my alternative?" The North Sea god said: "From the point of view of Dao: "To consider anything to be high or lowly can be called going against natural development. Without having restraint and simply following your own aspirations, your connection with Dao will be greatly obstructed. "To consider anything to be too few or too many can be called declining natural gifts. Without feeling unity and simply going on your own way, your connection with Dao will be erratic. "Be stern! As though you were the entrusted ruler of a country who wasn't selfish with virtue. "Be obedient! As though you were the one entrusted with regulating the sacrifices made to the land who wasn't selfish with their blessings. "Be extensive! As though you were one who didn't lack the ability to go in all four directions and who couldn't find a place to set boundaries. "If you're able to embrace all living things, which one would you not find a place for under your wings? This would be called being without borders. If all living things are united simultaneously, which of them could be considered to be short or long? Dao is without a beginning or an end, but things are born and die, and outcomes can't be depended upon. In one moment empty and in another moment full, without stability of form. The progression of the years can't be altered, nor can time be stopped. Decay and growth, fullness and emptiness - with an ending there is a new beginning. In that way we can discuss the methods used by the greatest form of righteousness and the theories that create the patterns for all living things. After things are born it seems as if they gallop at a fast pace. Without movement there would be no change, and without the passing of time there would be no transformations. What can you do and what can you not do? Sit back and watch things change of themselves!" The river god said: "If that's true, then what's the big deal about Dao?" The North Sea god said: "One who understands Dao must reach some sort of principles. One who has reached principles must have a clear understanding of how to deal with things. One who has a clear understanding of how to deal with things doesn't engage with things that can be harmful to them. Once one has connected with virtue, fire can find no way to burn him, floods can find no way to drown him, hot and cold can find no way to injure him, and vicious beasts can find no way to tear him limb from limb. That's not to say he's impervious to those things, but that he makes a careful inspection of what's safe and what's dangerous, doesn't allow himself to be influenced by misfortune or good luck, and is cautious when approaching and retreating, so he doesn't allow an opportunity for anything to be able to harm him. Therefore, it's been said: 'The heavens exist inside. People exist outside. Virtue exists with the heavens.' Understand the movements of the heavens and people while staying rooted in the heavens, and proper reactions to circumstances can be achieved. Being flexible enough to sway in either direction, to bend or stretch, and to let go of longings - that's pretty much the extent of it." The river god said: "What do you mean by the heavens, and what do you mean by people?" The North Sea god said: "Oxen and horses have four hooves - that's what's meant by the heavens. Putting a bridle on a horse's head or putting a ring in the nose of an ox - that's what's meant by people. Therefore it's been said: 'Don't allow people to mess with the heavens. Don't allow events to mess with fate. Don't allow achievements to cause you to die for a title.' Cautiously guard this and DO NOT lose it! This is referred to as viewing the other side of the truth." Kui (a legendary monster like a dragon with one foot) pities the centipede. The centipede pities the snake. The snake pities the wind. The wind pities the eye. The eye pities the heart. Kui remarked to the centipede: "I can jump and travel around on one foot without having to make it work in conjunction with anything else. Now, you have to make lots of feet work together. Are you the only thing that's like that?" The centipede said: "Nope. Haven't you ever seen someone spit? As it spurts out of their mouth the large globules can be as big as pearls while the smaller particles look like a fine mist. They're all mixed up together, and when they fall to the ground you can't possibly count them all. Now, how I move is just a circumstance of the heavens, and I don't have a clue how it's done." The centipede remarked to the snake: "I use many feet to move but I don't seem to be as agile as you are without any feet. Why is that?" The snake said: "It's up to the heavens to make me move in the way I do. What can I do about it? Besides, I can move very quietly on one foot!" The snake remarked to the wind: "When I move I rely on my backbone to make me go. At least, that's the way it seems. Now you rise up like great gusts from the North Sea, and those gusts can go as far as to enter the area of the South Sea, even though you don't have the apparatus I do. Why is that?" The wind said: "That's just the way it is. My gusts might rise in the North Sea and blow all the way to the South Sea, but it's also true that if someone raises a finger it would divert my path and so would a wind sock. Even so, I could topple a huge tree and smash down a large house. I'm the only one who can do those things, so no matter how many small things came up against me they'd never overcome me. Only a sage has the ability to match me in that way." Kong Zi (Confucius) was traveling through Kuang when he and his disciples were surrounded and outnumbered by some Song troops (Song was the ruling empire in which Kuang was located). Undaunted, he merely sat down and started singing while playing his lute. Zi Lu (one of his disciples) approached him and said: "Why are you so unconcerned, Master?' Kong Zi said: "Come sit with me, and I'll tell you. I was poor and in hiding for a long time, as that was an unavoidable aspect of my fate. I've been seeking to make a political connection for a long time, but I haven't been allowed to do that. It was merely a reflection of the times. When Yao and Shun were in power there wasn't a needy person in the whole world, and they didn't know what they'd gained. When Jie and Zhou were in control, no one in the world felt a connection to each other, and they didn't know what they'd lost. That was simply what the times and circumstances demanded. "One who travels on the water can't avoid flood dragons, as that's the courage of a fisherman. One who travels on the land can't avoid rhinoceroses and tigers, as that's the courage of the hunter. One who has unsheathed swords aiming at him, yet doesn't regard death as different from life, has the courage of a sacrificing soldier. To realize that misfortunes are a result of destiny, to know that advancement is a result of the times, and to be able to overlook great calamities and not be apprehensive about them is to have the courage of a sage. Let's see how things pan out as leave it up to destiny to work it all out." Within a few moments the commander of the troops approached them with these dismissive words: "I mistakenly thought you were Dark Tiger (a notorious criminal), so I had my troops surround you. Now that I can see you're not him, please feel free to leave and continue on your way." Gong Sun Long inquired of Prince Mou of Wei: "When I was young I learned about the Dao of the former kings. As I grew up I had a clear understanding of the proper conduct of benevolence and righteousness. I integrated sameness and difference, separated the black and the white, made so what was not so, and made allowable what was not allowable. I frustrated the cleverness of all the various philosophical schools and wore out the mouths of many debaters. I considered myself to have already reached perfection. Now that I've heard the words of Zhuangzi, I'm bewildered and surprised by them. I don't know if that's because my views are inferior to his or if they're just different from his. Now I no longer feel comfortable enough to open my mouth. May I ask you to give me your opinion?" Prince Mou settled back comfortably in his chair, looked up at the sky and laughed, then said: "Haven't you heard about the frog who lived in a broken down well? It said to the turtle of the East Sea: 'I'm really enjoying myself. I can jump up to the wooden beam on top of the well and hang out there for a while, then I can drop down and rest on the edge of one of the old broken tiles. When I flop into the water it sloshes on my arms and holds up my chin. As I slip and slide through the mud, it covers my feet up to my ankles. Of all the earthworms, crabs and tadpoles, none of them can do what I do. And to top that off, I'm the one in authority over the water in this huge hole and I can do whatever I please in here. This is really perfect! Why don't you come on down and take a look any time you like?' Before the turtle of the East Sea could get his left foot into the opening, his right knee had already gotten stuck on something. So he pulled back to assess his situation and took a few steps back. Then he started speaking about the sea: 'The measurements of a thousand football fields aren't sufficient to describe its size. The depth of eight thousand feet couldn't reach its deepest parts. During the time of Yu there were heavy rains that flooded the land nine years out of ten, but all that water wasn't able to overfill it. During the time of Tang there was a devastating drought that parched the land seven years out of eight, but all that evaporation didn't decrease it. It can't be made to be transformed by any sudden occurrence nor by things that happen over longer periods of time. Neither abundance nor lack in the world can make it advance or retreat. This is also a great enjoyment - that of the East Sea.' As the frog in the broken down well was listening to this, he became more and more startled, and from his demeanor he seemed to have lost himself in bewilderment. "You don't even have the sense to know to give up on ideas of right and wrong, and yet you want to contemplate the words of Zhuangzi. That would be like a mosquito expecting to be able to carry a mountain on its back, or an inchworm hoping to move as fast as the Yellow River - there's no way they're capable of doing that. You don't even have the sense to understand mysteriously poignant words that deal with ideas, yet you're smug about gaining the upper hand occasionally with your words. Are you so very different from the frog in the broken down well? That guy (Zhuangzi) can stroll through the Yellow Springs (nadir of the earth) and then climb effortlessly to the highest heights. He's without a sense of south or north, so he can lightly sail in all directions or sink into immeasurable depths. He's without a sense of east or west, so he can begin from dark obscurity, turn it upside down and find great illumination. On the other hand, you only regulate and divide everything while seeking to ridicule. That's like trying to use a tube to peer at the whole sky or trying to use an awl to point at the whole earth. Such small sightedness! You might as well take off! Haven't you heard about the man from Shou Ling who was left in Han Dan to learn about proper behavior? When that country wasn't able to be captured, he lost sight of his whole reason for going there, and had to crawl all the way back home while keeping his ears on the alert. (Note: Shou Ling was a city in the state of Yan and Han Dan was the capital of Zhao. Yan and Zhao were situated next to each other, separated only by a mountainous border in the west. During the Warring States period, Yan and Zhao wavered between being friendly and going to war with each other. People were sent as emissaries from Yan to Zhao in order to try to promote friendly discussions, but if a war broke out the Yan citizens in Zhao would try to return home before being persecuted.) "If you don't go away now, you'll forget your reason for coming in the first place, and you might lose what it is you consider to be your greatest talent." Gong Sun Long's mouth fell open and he couldn't close it. His tongue was stuck to the top of his mouth, and he suddenly sprinted away like a scared rabbit. Zhuangzi was fishing in the waters of the Pu River. The king of Chu had sent two high ranking officials to find him, and they approached saying: "It is wished that you'll come and become a Minister within the borders of our country." Zhuangzi kept holding his pole and without turning around said: "I've heard there's a sacred tortoise in Chu that's been dead for three thousand years. The king has it stashed away in a basket hidden beneath the imperial courthouse. As for this tortoise, would it rather be dead and turn into a skeleton and be considered valuable? Or would it rather be alive and dragging its tail through the mud?" The two officials said: "It'd rather be alive and dragging its tail through the mud." Zhuangzi said: "Go away! I'd rather be dragging my tail through the mud." When Hui Zi was serving as minister in Liang, Zhuangzi decided to go pay him a visit. Somebody told Hui Zi: "Zhuangzi is on his way here, and he wants to take over your position as minister." That frightened Hui Zi, so he searched for him throughout the country for three days and three nights. When Zhuangzi arrived, he said to him (Hui Zi): "In the south there's a bird called a Yuan Chu (a legendary phoenix-like bird). Have you heard of it? It takes off from the South Sea and flies to the North Sea. It won't stop to perch on anything but a parasol tree (Chinese parasol tree: 30 to 40 feet tall, 20 feet across, leaves 10 to 24 inches wide), won't eat anything but pure white blanched seeds, and won't drink anything but sweet spring water. As the Yuan Chu was passing overhead, a hawk below had gotten hold of a putrid rat. The hawk raised his head and looked up at him and screeched threateningly. Now because you want to hold on to your position in this country, you're going to screech at me?" Zhuangzi and Hui Zi were strolling on a bridge spanning the Hao River when they stopped for a moment. Zhuangzi said: "The fish come up and swim so leisurely. That's how fish enjoy themselves." Hui Zi said: "You're not a fish. How do you know how fish enjoy themselves?" Zhuangzi said: "You're not me. How do you know that I don't know how fish enjoy themselves?" Hui Zi said: "I'm not you so I certainly don't know what you do. You're certainly not a fish, so you can't possibly know what a fish enjoys!" Zhuangzi said: "Please think back to the beginning of this conversation. You asked me how I knew the fish were enjoying themselves. You're the one who asked the question. You already knew I knew that, but you asked me anyway. I knew that when we stopped here." | Zhuangzi Translation | Glossary/Index A to N | Glossary/Index P to Z | ZZ Links | | Return Home | Laozi's Dao De Jing | Your Dao De Jing | Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu) | Links | Meditation | Dao (Tao) is Open Forum | Book List | Other Stuff | |
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