A sage steers by the bright light of confusion and doubt. Zhuangzi More Quotes by Zhuangzi More Quotes From Zhuangzi The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish, and when the fish are caught the trap is forgotten. The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits. When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten. The purpose of the word is to convey ideas. When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten. Where can I find a man who has forgotten words? He is the one I would like to talk to. Zhuangzi rabbits men ideas All existing things are really one. We regard those that are beautiful and rare as valuable, and those that are ugly as foul and rotten. The foul and rotten may come to be transformed into what is rare and valuable, and the rare and valuable into what is foul and rotten. Zhuangzi rotten beautiful beauty The Way is to man as rivers and lakes are to fish, the natural condition of life. Zhuangzi lakes rivers men Love of colors bewilders the eye and it fails to see right. Love of harmonies bewitches the ear, and it loses its true hearing. Love of perfumes fills the head with dizziness. Love of flavors ruins the taste. Desires unsettle the heart until the original nature runs amok. These five are enemies of true life. Yet these are what men of discernment claim to live for. They are not what I live for. If this is life, then pigeons in a cage have found happiness! Zhuangzi eye heart running Listening stops with the ears, the mind stops with recognition, but spirit is empty and waits on all things. Zhuangzi waiting listening mind The hundred parts of the body are all complete in their places. Which should one prefer? Do you like them all equally? Are they all servants? Are they unable to control one another and need a ruler? Or do they become rulers and servants in turn? Is there any true ruler other than themselves? Zhuangzi hundred body needs Tao is the source of both fullness and emptiness. But it is itself neither fullness nor emptiness. Zhuangzi tao emptiness source When deeds and words are in accord, the whole world is transformed. Zhuangzi deeds-and-words transformation world Men honor what lies within the sphere of their knowledge, but do not realize how dependent they are on what lies beyond it. Zhuangzi honor men lying The fact is that those who do not see themselves but who see others, who fail to grasp of themselves but who grasp others, take possession of what others have but fail to possess themselves. they are attracted to what others enjoy but fail to find enjoyment in themselves. Zhuangzi enjoy failing facts Each one's destiny cannot be altered. Zhuangzi altered destiny The non-action of the wise man is not inaction. It is not studied. It is not shaken by anything. The sage is quiet because he is not moved, not because he wills to be quiet. . . . Joy does all things without concern. For emptiness, stillness, tranquillity, tastelessness, silence, and non-action are the root of all things. Zhuangzi roots wise men To regard the fundamental as the essence, to regard things as coarse, to regard accumulation as deficiency, and to dwell quietly alone with the spiritual and the intelligent - herein lie the techniques of Tao of the ancients. Zhuangzi intelligent spiritual lying Once Zhuangzi dreamt he was a butterfly... Zhuangzi butterfly Heaven does without doing through its purity, Earth does without doing through its calmness. Zhuangzi earth doe heaven The sage has the sun and moon by his side and the universe under his arm. He blends everything into a harmonious whole. . . . He blends the disparities of ten thousand years into one complete purity. All things are blended like this and mutually involve each other. Zhuangzi sage moon years The perfect man employs his mind as a mirror. Zhuangzi mirrors perfect men The baby looks at things all day without winking; that is because his eyes are not focused on any particular object. He goes without knowing where he is going, and stops without knowing what he is doing. He merges himself within the surroundings and moves along with it. These are the principles of mental hygiene. Zhuangzi eye baby moving To have a human form is a joyful thing. Zhuangzi form humans joy There may be difficulty at the moment, but I will not lose the Virtue that I possess. It is when the ice and snow are on them that we see the strength of the cypress and the pine. I am grateful for this trouble around me, because it gives me an opportunity to realize how fortunate I am. Zhuangzi ice grateful opportunity
