In this section, Zhuangzi argues that the rules of benevolence and righteousness and the paths of right and wrong all are hopelessly snarled and jumbled; and people do not really know what is profitable or harmful.
The following is the text of Chapter 2 Section 11 from the book "Zhuangzi, Basic Writings" translated by Burton Watson (1925-2017), with some minor changes.Chapter 2, Section 11
Nie Que asked Wang Ni, “Do you know what all things agree in calling right?”
“How would I know that?” said Wang Ni.
“Do you know that you don’t know it?”
“How would I know that?”
“Then do things know nothing?”
“How would I know that? However, suppose I try saying something. What way do I have of knowing that if I say I know something I don’t really not know it? Or what way do I have of knowing that if I say I don’t know something I don’t really in fact know it? Now let me ask you some questions. If a man sleeps in a damp place, his back aches and he ends up half paralyzed, but is this true of a loach? If he lives in a tree, he is terrified and shakes with fright, but is this true of a monkey? Of these three creatures, then, which one knows the proper place to live? Men eat the flesh of grass-fed and grain-fed animals, deer eat grass, centipedes find snakes tasty, and hawks and falcons relish mice. Of these four, which knows how food ought to taste? Monkeys pair with monkeys, deer go out with deer, and fish play around with fish. Men claim that Maoqiang and Lady Li were beautiful; but if fish saw them, they would dive to the bottom of the stream; if birds saw them, they would fly away; and if deer saw them, they would break into a run. Of these four, which knows how to fix the standard of beauty for the world? The way I see it, the rules of benevolence and righteousness and the paths of right and wrong all are hopelessly snarled and jumbled. How could I know anything about such discriminations?”
Nie Que said, “If you don’t know what is profitable or harmful, then does the Perfect Man likewise know nothing of such things?”
Wang Ni replied, “The Perfect Man is godlike. Though the great swamps blaze, they cannot burn him; though the great rivers freeze, they cannot chill him; though swift lightning splits the hills and howling gales shake the sea, they cannot frighten him. A man like this rides the clouds and mist, straddles the sun and moon, and wanders beyond the four seas. Even life and death have no effect on him, much less the rules of profit and loss!”[1]
Notes
- Possibly Zhuangzi wishes to challenge readers to imagine the Perfect Man to be someone who is at one with Dao and so is very different from the ordinary humans. This is similar to the big bird and big fish in chapter 1 - Free and Easy Wandering.
Please find the Chinese text and English translation by James Legge below:
No comments:
Post a Comment