Life#
"The Shallow Explanation of Zhuangzi" is divided into three parts: Life, Life and Death, and Thoughts, with a total of 18 sections.
In the Life section, Zhuangzi came from a poor background and lived in an era where the wicked prospered. Through the fable of the "Strange Magpie," he informs people that seeking other things with single-mindedness will inevitably lead to the destruction of everything, commonly known as "the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind." Zhuangzi advocates a natural attitude towards life, believing that intentionally seeking other things will only attract harm, and only by eliminating calculations can one break free from this cycle of struggle. Nowadays, it is also an era where the wicked prosper and everything is in conflict, and people are living with some vigilance.
When the King of Chu sent officials to invite Zhuangzi to come out of seclusion and assist in governance, Zhuangzi replied, "I have heard that Chu has a divine turtle that has been dead for three thousand years. The king keeps its bones in a box and places it on the altar. Would the turtle rather be dead and have its bones preserved, or be alive and dragging its tail in the mud?" Regardless of high-ranking officials, the bones have no meaning after death. Zhuangzi believes that the meaning of life lies not in official positions, but in the value left behind. There are many people who forget everything in order to seek official positions, but those who can truly worry about the people while occupying high positions are few and far between. Even if Zhuangzi were to assist in governance, he might not be able to achieve these ideals, so he chose to never serve in office.
Zhuangzi also had a close friend named Huizi. They always looked at problems from different perspectives, but they could still have enjoyable conversations. Zhuangzi empathized with things and had a sense of unity with them, emphasizing that "Heaven and earth and I were born together, and all things and I are one." Huizi, on the other hand, always analyzed things rationally based on their practical significance.
"Zhuangzi said, 'The minnows are darting about so freely. This is the pleasure of the fish.' Huizi said, 'You are not a fish, so whence do you know the pleasure of the fish?' Zhuangzi said, 'You are not I, so whence do you know I do not know the pleasure of the fish?' Huizi said, 'I am not you, so of course I do not know about you. But you obviously do not know about fish!' Zhuangzi said, 'Please, let us go back to the beginning. You said, "How do you know the pleasure of fish?" From your own words, I realized that I knew it from the bridge above the Hao River.'""
When Zhuangzi's wife passed away, he drummed on a basin and sang. He believed that everything is just air, and air turns into form, form turns into destiny, and destiny turns into death. It is like the changing of the seasons, following the natural order. Compared to the fake mourning performed according to rituals, Zhuangzi's expression of grief was actually more sincere.
Why was Zhuangzi sad when his friend died, but drummed on a basin and sang when his wife died? The death of Huizi brought Zhuangzi back to a state of loneliness, with one less friend who shared deep friendship and understanding. It was painful for him. As for his wife's departure, Zhuangzi must have also felt pain, but upon further thought, it was just a change in form, continuing to exist in a different way, like Lin Yun in "The Three-Body Problem: Ball Lightning."
Thoughts#
When I saw the phrase "In the Northern Ocean there is a fish, the name of which is Kun," it felt like I was back in high school. At that time, I resisted Chinese class. I only had a superficial understanding of many texts I studied, and I owed a lot of knowledge...
Kunpeng and Sparrows#
Zhuangzi's ideal person is someone with the character of Kunpeng. Deep and profound like Kun, soaring high like Peng. This also indicates that the cultivation of talent requires a superior environment and self-preparation. Who would have thought that eighteen years of hard study would only keep us sitting at our desks, waiting for opportunities...
When Peng flew to the south, it was mocked by sparrows, who said, "Why do you need to fly so far?" With a higher perspective, seeing farther, the lofty aspirations of the great Peng were beyond the small thoughts of sparrows.
The Way of Dealing with the World#
When we were in school, we learned about Pao Ding Jie Niu, where as long as you master the skills well enough and study hard, you will always do your best. But in this book, it talks about some different interpretations.
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Resolving the cow by following its natural grain. Although affairs may be complex, as long as you can plan and find methods to deal with them, they can be resolved easily.
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Skillfully handling things without revealing one's abilities. This mainly reflects two points: in chaotic times, the most important thing is to be mentally alert and behave with restraint.
For the wise, in times of chaos, they must be cautious and not boast about their abilities. Revealing one's abilities will invite jealousy from others, and this is the beginning of conflict.
The Uselessness of Use#
Waste is actually defined by society and others. People and things that do not conform to the "mainstream" will eventually be accepted. Li Si, when he served as the prime minister of the Qin Dynasty, achieved wealth, fame, and power, but in the end, he fell in political struggles.
Ideal Characters#
Here, five types of people are mentioned, in simple terms:
- The disillusioned person who is talented but unrecognized.
- The person who practices benevolence, righteousness, loyalty, and trust in a well-governed society.
- The person who discusses great achievements and upholds the relationship between ruler and subject in the court.
- The person who lives in seclusion in the mountains and is ignorant of worldly affairs.
- The person who pursues extreme self-cultivation and cherishes life.
Based on these five types of people, Zhuangzi introduces another type of person - the celestial being/divine being.
Without a sense of gain or loss, without regret for missed opportunities, not overly pleased with smooth progress. Climbing high without trembling, entering water without feeling wet, entering fire without feeling hot. Not dreaming while sleeping, not worrying while awake.
Being able to not be delighted by external things and not be saddened by oneself is rare. The divine being mentioned here is also an idealized concept.
Criticizing Benevolence and Affirming True Knowledge#
Benevolence and righteousness, which bind human nature, will always be criticized. It is said that great benevolence is not benevolence, and ultimate benevolence has no partiality.
Zhuangzi mentions that for things beyond our control, we should be content with not knowing. His rejection of knowledge is also a rejection of limited knowledge.
To pursue infinite knowledge with limited life will only lead to exhaustion.
Natural Inaction and the Beauty of Nature#
Taoist philosophy believes in "the naturalness of all things" and "governing without action." The Tao is natural. Zhuangzi witnessed the chaos of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, where the country was in ruins and people perished, all due to the disturbing policies of the ruling class. Contemporary society contradicts Taoist philosophy. Throughout history, Confucianism has been highly respected in each dynasty. The long-lasting influence of Confucian culture eventually led to the downfall of the Southern Song Dynasty, and it was precisely because of the downfall of the Southern Song Dynasty that the Yuan Dynasty emerged, the largest dynasty in Chinese history.
The beauty of nature mainly contrasts the views of different periods and regions on natural philosophy. The content involves philosophy and history, and I am still learning and have limited knowledge. I will end with two quotes from the book.
The British philosopher Bertrand Russell once pointed out that humans are always immersed in three basic conflicts: the conflict between humans and nature, the conflict between humans and others, and the conflict within oneself. The West focuses on natural issues, China focuses on social issues, and India focuses on personal issues.
Liang Shuming divided human culture into three types: Western culture, Chinese culture, and Indian culture. Westerners value material life, Chinese value social life, and Indians value spiritual life.
The Paradox of Debate and the Paradox of the Dao#
In the early Warring States period, the Hundred Schools of Thought contended with each other, which now seems like a good phenomenon, but Zhuangzi saw it as a "confusion of chaos" in debates. Both sides accused each other, excluded each other, and got involved in disputes. This led to the theory of "debate without victory" that "the winner is not necessarily right, and the loser is not necessarily wrong." So how can we establish an objective standard? "The Dao."
(To be continued)
Dealing with and Unity#
Dealing with refers to the flexibility and diversity in dealing with things; unity refers to seeing everything as a whole, emphasizing the interconnection and interdependence of things.
In summary, there are three main points:
- Embrace diversity.
- Deal with things with an open-minded and flexible attitude.
- Unify the whole.
Conclusion#
I have been writing this article intermittently for several days, simply summarizing the main ideas without adding too much personal subjectivity. The end of the year has been busy, and my mind has become increasingly restless. But often, the more anxious we are, the more likely we are to encounter the wrong people and go astray.