The true man of the past waited upon Heaven when dealing with people and did not wait upon people when dealing with Heaven.

Zhuangzi

Categorized in : Past People Men

If the Way is made clear, it is not the Way. by Zhuangzi

If the Way is made clear, it is not the Way.

clear made way

Those who realise their folly are not true fools. by Zhuangzi

Those who realise their folly are not true fools.

folly fool stupidity

Sound intelligence promises victory in every battle. by Zhuangzi

Sound intelligence promises victory in every battle.

victory mind promise

True depth of understanding is wide and steady, by Zhuangzi

True depth of understanding is wide and steady,

lazy understanding wisdom

To have attained to the human form is a source of joy... What an incomparable bliss it is to undergo these countless transitions.

transition joy life

People value that part of knowledge which is known. They do not know how to avail themselves of the Unknown in order to reach knowledge. Is this not misguided?

misguided order people

Running around accusing others is not as good as laughing. And enjoying a good laugh is not as good as going along with things.

accusing running laughing

During our dreams we do not know we are dreaming. We may even dream of interpreting a dream. Only on waking do we know it was a dream. Only after the great awakening will we realize that this is the great dream.

dream may inspirational

I know the joy of fishes in the river through my own joy, as I go... by Zhuangzi

I know the joy of fishes in the river through my own joy, as I go walking along the same river.

walking-away passion journey

I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly dreaming I am a man.

wisdom dream inspirational

Who knows when the end is reached? Death may be the beginning of life. How do I know that love of life is not a delusion after all? How do I know that he who dreads to die is as a child who has lost the way and cannot find his way home? How do I know that the dead repent of having previously clung to life?

prayer death children

Men of the world who value the Way all turn to books. But books are nothing more than words. Words have value; what is of value in words is meaning. Meaning has something it is pursuing, but the thing that it is pursuing cannot be put into words and handed down. The world values words and hands down books but, though the world values them, I do not think them worth valuing. What the world takes to be values is not real value.

real men book

There is no bandit so powerful as Nature. by Zhuangzi

There is no bandit so powerful as Nature.

powerful nature science

The fish trap exists because of the fish: once you have gotten the meanings, you can forget the words.

fishes traps forget

The little child learns to speak, though it has no learned teachers - because it lives with those who know how to speak.

littles teacher children

If a man is crossing the river and an empty boat collides with his skiff, even though he is a bad tempered man he will not become very angry. But if he sees a man in the other boat he will scream and shout and curse at the man to steer clear. If you can empty your own boat crossing the river of the world, no one will oppose you, no one will seek to harm you. Thus is the perfect man - his boat is empty.

perfect rivers men

If there is existence, there must be non-existence. And if there was a time when nothing existed, there must have been a time before that - when even nothing did not exist. Suddenly, when nothing came into existence, could one really say whether it belonged to the category of existence or non-existence?

categories existence spiritual

Although things seem to be sometimes going up and sometimes descending, sometimes slipping away, nevertheless there is a reality, the same today as in the past. It does not change, for nothing can affect it. Could we not say it is one great harmony? So why shouldn't we ask about it.

doe reality past

When the heart is right, "for" and "against" are forgotten. by Zhuangzi

When the heart is right, "for" and "against" are forgotten.

forgotten heart

Horses have hoofs to carry them over frost and snow; hair, to protect them from wind and cold. They eat grass and drink water, and fling up their heels.... Such is the real nature of horses.

horse real wind