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子列子问关尹曰：“至人潜行不窒，蹈火不热，行乎万物之上而不栗。请问何以至于此？”关尹曰：“是纯气之守也，非知巧果敢之列。居！吾语女。凡有貌象声色者，皆物也，物与物何以相远？夫奚足以至乎先？是色而已。则物之造乎不形，而止乎无所化，夫得是而穷之者，物焉得而止焉！彼将处乎不淫之度，而藏乎无端之纪，游乎万物之所终始，壹其性，养其气，合其德，以通乎物之所造。夫若是者，其天守全，其神无郤，物奚自入焉！夫醉者之坠车，虽疾不死。骨节与人同，而犯害与人异，其神全也，乘亦不知也，坠亦不知也，死生惊惧不入乎其胷中，是故遻物而不慑。彼得全于酒而犹若是，而况得全于天乎！圣人藏于天，故莫之能伤也。”复雠者不折镆、干，虽有忮心者不怨飘瓦，是以天下平均。故无攻战之乱，无杀戮之刑者，由此道也。不开人之天，而开天之天，开天者德生，开人者贼生。不厌其天，不忽于人，民几乎以其真。 |
| 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.' |
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田开之见周威公。威公曰：“吾闻祝肾学生。吾子与祝肾游，亦何闻焉？”田开之曰：“开之操拔篲以倚门庭，亦何闻于夫子！”威公曰：“田子无让！寡人愿闻之。”开之曰：“闻之夫子曰：‘善养生者，若牧羊然，视其后者而鞭之。’”威公曰：“何谓也？”田开之曰：“鲁有单豹者，岩居而水饮，不与民共利，行年七十而犹有婴儿之色，不幸遇饿虎，饿虎杀而食之。有张毅者，高门、悬薄，无不走也，行年四十而有内热之病以死。豹养其内而虎食其外，毅养其外而病攻其内，此二子者，皆不鞭其后者也。” |
| 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.' |
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有孙休者，踵门而诧子扁庆子曰：“休居乡不见谓不修，临难不见谓不勇，然而田原不遇岁，事君不遇世，宾于乡里，逐于州部，则胡罪乎天哉？休恶遇此命也？”扁子曰：“子独不闻夫至人之自行邪？忘其肝胆，遗其耳目，芒然彷徨乎尘垢之外，逍遥乎无事之业，是谓‘为而不恃，长而不宰’。今汝饰知以惊愚，修身以明污，昭昭乎若揭日月而行也。汝得全而形躯，具而九窍，无中道夭于聋盲跛蹇而比于人数，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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孙子出。扁子入坐，有间，仰天而叹。弟子问曰：“先生何为叹乎？”扁子曰：“向者休来，吾告之以至人之德，吾恐其惊而遂至于惑也。”弟子曰：“不然。孙子之所言是邪，先生之所言非邪，非固不能惑是。孙子所言非邪，先生所言是邪，彼固惑而来矣，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。昔者有鸟止于鲁郊，鲁君说之，为具太牢以飨之，奏九韶以乐之，鸟乃始忧悲眩视，不敢饮食。此之谓以己养养鸟也。若夫以鸟养养鸟者，宜栖之深林，浮之江湖，食之以委蛇，则平陆而已矣。今休，款启寡闻之民也，吾告以至人之德，譬之若载鼷以车马，乐鴳以钟鼓也。彼又奚能无惊乎哉？” |
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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?' |
