| | 達生: |
子列子問關尹曰：「至人潛行不窒，蹈火不熱，行乎萬物之上而不慄。請問何以至於此？」關尹曰：「是純氣之守也，非知巧果敢之列。居！吾語女。凡有貌象聲色者，皆物也，物與物何以相遠？夫奚足以至乎先？是色而已。則物之造乎不形，而止乎無所化，夫得是而窮之者，物焉得而止焉！彼將處乎不淫之度，而藏乎無端之紀，遊乎萬物之所終始，壹其性，養其氣，合其德，以通乎物之所造。夫若是者，其天守全，其神無郤，物奚自入焉！夫醉者之墜車，雖疾不死。骨節與人同，而犯害與人異，其神全也，乘亦不知也，墜亦不知也，死生驚懼不入乎其胷中，是故遻物而不慴。彼得全於酒而猶若是，而況得全於天乎！聖人藏於天，故莫之能傷也。」復讎者不折鏌、干，雖有忮心者不怨飄瓦，是以天下平均。故無攻戰之亂，無殺戮之刑者，由此道也。不開人之天，而開天之天，開天者德生，開人者賊生。不厭其天，不忽於人，民幾乎以其真。 |
| The Full Understanding of...: |
My master Liezi asked Yin, (the warden) of the gate, saying, 'The perfect man walks under water without encountering any obstruction, treads on fire without being burned, and walks on high above all things without any fear; let me ask how he attains to do this?' The warden Yin replied, 'It is by his keeping of the pure breath (of life); it is not to be described as an achievement of his skill or daring. Sit down, and I will explain it to you. Whatever has form, semblance, sound, and colour is a thing; how can one thing come to be different from another? But it is not competent for any of these things to reach to what preceded them all - they are but (form and) visibility. But (the perfect man) attains to be (as it were) without form, and beyond the capability of being transformed. Now when one attains to this and carries it out to the highest degree, how can other things come into his way to stop him? He will occupy the place assigned to him without going beyond it, and lie concealed in the clue which has no end. He will study with delight the process which gives their beginning and ending to all things. By gathering his nature into a unity, by nourishing his vital power, by concentrating his virtue, he will penetrate to the making of things. In this condition, with his heavenly constitution kept entire, and with no crevice in his spirit, how can things enter (and disturb his serenity)?
'Take the case of a drunken man falling from his carriage - though he may suffer injury, he will not die. His bones and joints are the same as those of other men, but the injury which he receives is different: his spirit is entire. He knew nothing about his getting into the carriage, and knew nothing about his falling from it. The thought of death or life, or of any alarm or affright, does not enter his breast; and therefore he encounters danger without any shrinking from it. Completely under the influence of the liquor he has drunk, it is thus with him - how much more would it be so, if he were under the influence of his Heavenly constitution! The sagely man is kept hid in his Heavenly constitution, and therefore nothing can injure him.
'A man in the pursuit of vengeance would not break the (sword) Mo-yu or Gan-jiang (which had done the deed); nor would one, however easily made wrathful, wreak his resentment on the fallen brick. In this way all under heaven there would be peace, without the disorder of assaults and fighting, without the punishments of death and slaughter: such would be the issue of the course (which I have described). If the disposition that is of human origin be not developed, but that which is the gift of Heaven, the development of the latter will produce goodness, while that of the former would produce hurt. If the latter were not wearied of, and the former not slighted, the people would be brought nearly to their True nature.' |
| | 達生: |
田開之見周威公。威公曰：「吾聞祝腎學生。吾子與祝腎游，亦何聞焉？」田開之曰：「開之操拔篲以倚門庭，亦何聞於夫子！」威公曰：「田子無讓！寡人願聞之。」開之曰：「聞之夫子曰：『善養生者，若牧羊然，視其後者而鞭之。』」威公曰：「何謂也？」田開之曰：「魯有單豹者，巖居而水飲，不與民共利，行年七十而猶有嬰兒之色，不幸遇餓虎，餓虎殺而食之。有張毅者，高門、懸薄，無不走也，行年四十而有內熱之病以死。豹養其內而虎食其外，毅養其外而病攻其內，此二子者，皆不鞭其後者也。」 |
| The Full Understanding of...: |
Tian Kai-zhi was having an interview with duke Wei Of Zhou, who said to him, 'I have heard that (your master) Zhu Shen has studied the subject of Life. What have you, good Sir, heard from him about it in your intercourse with him?' Tian Kai-zhi replied, 'In my waiting on him in the courtyard with my broom, what should I have heard from my master?' Duke Wei said, 'Do not put the question off, Mr. Tian; I wish to hear what you have to say.' Kai-zhi then replied, 'I have heard my master say that they who skilfully nourish their life are like shepherds, who whip up the sheep that they see lagging behind.' 'What did he mean?' asked the duke. The reply was, 'In Lu there was a Shan Bao, who lived among the rocks, and drank only water. He would not share with the people in their toils and the benefits springing from them; and though he was now in his seventieth year, he had still the complexion of a child. Unfortunately he encountered a hungry tiger, which killed and ate him. There was also a Zhang Yi, who hung up a screen at his lofty door, and to whom all the people hurried (to pay their respects). In his fortieth year, he fell ill of a fever and died. (Of these two men), Bao nourished his inner man, and a tiger ate his outer; while Yi nourished his outer man, and disease attacked his inner. Both of them neglected whipping up their lagging sheep.' |
| | 達生: |
有孫休者，踵門而詫子扁慶子曰：「休居鄉不見謂不修，臨難不見謂不勇，然而田原不遇歲，事君不遇世，賓於鄉里，逐於州部，則胡罪乎天哉？休惡遇此命也？」扁子曰：「子獨不聞夫至人之自行邪？忘其肝膽，遺其耳目，芒然彷徨乎塵垢之外，逍遙乎無事之業，是謂『為而不恃，長而不宰』。今汝飾知以驚愚，修身以明汙，昭昭乎若揭日月而行也。汝得全而形軀，具而九竅，無中道夭於聾盲跛蹇而比於人數，亦幸矣，又何暇乎天之怨哉！子往矣！」 |
| The Full Understanding of...: |
There was a Sun Xiu who went to the door of Zi-bian Qing-zi, and said to him in a strange perturbed way, 'When I lived in my village, no one took notice of me, but all said that I did not cultivate (my fields); in a time of trouble and attack, no one took notice of me, but all said that I had no courage. But that I did not cultivate my fields, was really because I never met with a good year; and that I did not do service for our ruler, was because I did not meet with the suitable opportunity to do so. I have been sent about my business by the villagers, and am driven away by the registrars of the district - what is my crime? 0 Heaven! how is it that I have met with such a fate?' Bian-zi said to him, 'Have you not heard how the perfect man deals with himself? He forgets that he has a liver and gall. He takes no thought of his ears and eyes. He seems lost and aimless beyond the dust and dirt of the world, and enjoys himself at ease in occupations untroubled by the affairs of business. He may be described as acting and yet not relying on what he does, as being superior and yet not using his superiority to exercise any control. But now you would make a display of your wisdom to astonish the ignorant; you would cultivate your person to make the inferiority of others more apparent; you seek to shine as if you were carrying the sun and moon in your hands. That you are complete in your bodily frame, and possess all its nine openings; that you have not met with any calamity in the middle of your course, such as deafness, blindness, or lameness, and can still take your place as a man among other men - in all this you are fortunate. What leisure have you to murmur against Heaven? Go away, Sir.' |
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孫子出。扁子入坐，有間，仰天而歎。弟子問曰：「先生何為歎乎？」扁子曰：「向者休來，吾告之以至人之德，吾恐其驚而遂至於惑也。」弟子曰：「不然。孫子之所言是邪，先生之所言非邪，非固不能惑是。孫子所言非邪，先生所言是邪，彼固惑而來矣，又奚罪焉？」 |
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Sun-zi on this went out, and Bian-zi went inside. Having sitten down, after a little time he looked up to heaven, and sighed. His disciples asked him why he sighed, and he said to them, 'Xiu came to me a little while ago, and I told him the characteristics of the perfect man. I am afraid he will be frightened, and get into a state of perplexity.' His disciples said, 'Not so. If what he said was right, and what you said was wrong, the wrong will certainly not be able to perplex the right. If what he said was wrong, and what you said was right, it was just because he was perplexed that he came to you. What was your fault in dealing with him as you did?' |
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扁子曰：「不然。昔者有鳥止於魯郊，魯君說之，為具太牢以饗之，奏九韶以樂之，鳥乃始憂悲眩視，不敢飲食。此之謂以己養養鳥也。若夫以鳥養養鳥者，宜棲之深林，浮之江湖，食之以委蛇，則平陸而已矣。今休，款啟寡聞之民也，吾告以至人之德，譬之若載鼷以車馬，樂鴳以鐘鼓也。彼又奚能無驚乎哉？」 |
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Bian-zi said, 'Not so. Formerly a bird came, and took up its seat in the suburbs of Lu. The ruler of Lu was pleased with it, and provided an ox, a sheep, and a pig to feast it, causing also the Jiu-shao to be performed to delight it. But the bird began to be sad, looked dazed, and did not venture to eat or drink. This was what is called "Nourishing a bird, as you would nourish yourself." He who would nourish a bird as a bird should be nourished should let it perch in a deep forest, or let it float on a river or lake, or let it find its food naturally and undisturbed on the level dry ground. Now Xiu (came to me), a man of slender intelligence, and slight information, and I told him of the characteristics of the perfect man, it was like using a carriage and horses to convey a mouse, or trying to delight a quail with the music of bells and drums - could the creatures help being frightened?' |
