Follow us on Facebook to receive important updates Follow us on Twitter to receive important updates Follow us on sina.com's microblogging site to receive important updates Follow us on Douban to receive important updates
Chinese Text Project
Back Forward
Daoism -> Zhuangzi -> Miscellaneous Chapters -> Kings who have wished to resign the Throne -> 7

列子Zi Liezi was reduced to extreme poverty, and his person had a hungry look.
鄭子陽A visitor mentioned the case to Zi-yang, (the premier) of Kang, saying,
列御寇 'Lie Yu-kou,
I believe, is a scholar who has attained to the Dao.
?」Is it because our ruler does not love (such) scholars, that he should be living in his state in such poverty?'
鄭子陽Zi-yang immediately ordered an officer to send to him a supply of grain.
列子使 When Liezi saw the messenger,
he bowed to him twice, and declined the gift,
使 on which the messenger went away.
列子 On Liezi's going into the house,
his wife looked to him and beat her breast, saying,
'I have heard that the wife and children of a possessor of the Dao
all enjoy plenty and ease,
but now we look starved.
先生The ruler has seen his error, and sent you a present of food,
先生 but you would not receive it
!」- is it appointed (for us to suffer thus)?'
列子 Zi Liezi laughed and said to her,
'The ruler does not himself know me.
Because of what some one said to him, he sent me the grain;
but if another speak (differently) of me to him,
he may look on me as a criminal.
This was why I did not receive the grain!
In the end it did come about, that the people, on an occasion of trouble and disorder, put Zi-yang to death.


Enjoy this site? Please help.Site design and content copyright 2006-2024. When quoting or citing information from this site, please link to the corresponding page or to https://ctext.org. Please note that the use of automatic download software on this site is strictly prohibited, and that users of such software are automatically banned without warning to save bandwidth. 沪ICP备09015720号-3Comments? Suggestions? Please raise them here.