What is Zhuangzi’s Tao?
Let’s start with this ancient poem to explore Zhuangzi’s philosophy! "Zhuang Sheng's dream of dawn is fascinated by butterflies, and he looks forward to the Emperor's spring heart with cuckoos" comes from Li Shangyin's "Jin Se". The whole poem conveys a sad mood. Later generations have made many guesses about the feelings expressed by the author, and there have always been many disagreements about the theme.
"Zhuang Sheng was fascinated by butterflies in his dawn dream, and looked forward to the emperor's spring heart with cuckoos." In the two couplets, recalling the past, the poet lamented that his talent was abandoned, and he hurt himself and suffered a lifetime of hardships. Li Shangyin's use of allusions has his own characteristics. Sometimes he uses its original meaning, and sometimes he uses the allusion as a special image and extends it creatively. "Xiao Meng" and "Chun Xin" are the latter allusions. The allusion of Zhuang Zhou's dream of a butterfly was originally intended to illustrate the Taoist philosophy of "all things are equal to each other, and their appearance is the same". However, Li Shangyin used the image of "Butterfly Dream" for his own use, expressing his pursuit of an official career and the failure of this dream. Endless emotion after failure. Zhuangzi, later known as "The True Man of Nanhua", was born in Meng, Song Dynasty (now Mengcheng County, Anhui Province, also in Minquan County, northeast of Shangqiu County, Henan Province) during the Warring States Period. Zhuangzi is the founder of the pre-Qin Zhuangzi school. Zhuangzi's philosophy is the inheritance and development of Laozi's philosophy. Laozi is Zhuangzi's teacher. Zhuangzi's teachings covered all aspects of social life at that time, and its fundamental spirit was derived from Laozi's philosophy. Later generations also called him "Laozi and Zhuangzi" together with Laozi, and their philosophy was called "Laozi and Zhuangzi philosophy". Laozi also talks about "Tao". In Laozi's teachings, "Tao" mainly represents the law of the operation of all things in the world. Lao Tzu has always wanted to find or even create such a law that is applicable to all things. Lao Tzu stated clearly in the Tao Te Ching: "Tao can be Tao, but not Tao; name can be named, but not name." In the sentence "dao can dao", the former "dao" refers to "law", while the latter "dao" refers to "argument" and "explanation". Therefore, the correct understanding of this sentence is: a law that can be explained and proved through the method of "things (or "enlightenment") is not a general law, but a specific law. What I want to find is the law that conforms to all things in the world! The overall idea of ??Laozi's philosophy is the result of the concrete and abstract understanding of "Tao". During this period, the three levels and three forms of existence of "Tao" were clarified, thus Laozi gave fundamental philosophical significance to "Tao". Its three levels are "the king's way", "the way of heaven and earth" and "the way of nature". The three are unified in "There are four majors in the domain, and the king occupies one of them. Man follows the earth, the earth follows the sky, heaven follows the way, and the way The law is natural”. Among them, the "King's Way" refers to the way of being a king, that is, the way to govern and manage the country; the "Heaven and Earth's Way" refers to the development and survival of man and nature and all things; the "Natural Way" refers to the origin of all things and is also the highest level of Tao. Everything boils down to one "yang" and one "yin". The essence of Zhuangzi's "Tao" is also Laozi's "Tao", and what it specifically represents is the objective "law" of the operation of all things. It's just that Zhuangzi's thoughts tend to be subjective idealism, believing that people should conform to everything objective and emphasize "inaction". Zhuangzi believes that "Tao" is the infinite ontology that transcends time and space. It is born in all things in the world, and is all-encompassing and omnipresent, manifesting in all things. However, it is naturally inactive and essentially nothingness. In his philosophy, "Heaven" is two concepts that are opposite to "Human". "Heaven" represents nature, while "Human" refers to everything "man-made" and everything that deviates from nature. The two words "artificial" combined together are the word "pseudo". He advocated obeying the way of heaven and abandoning "man-made" and those "pseudo" impurities in human nature. Obeying the "way of heaven" and thus communicating with heaven and earth is the "virtue" advocated by Zhuangzi. In his view, real life is natural, so there is no need to teach or stipulate anything, but to get rid of something, forget something, and forget about intentionality, scheming, and discrimination. In this case, is there any need for political propaganda, ritual and music education, and persuasion of benevolence and righteousness? Zhuangzi believes that these propaganda, education, and persuasion are all "hypocrisy" in human nature, so he must abandon them. In addition, Zhuangzi believed that the relationship between the universe and human beings is "the unity of heaven and man" and forgetting both things and myself, so he has a comprehensive view of life and death; Zhuangzi believes that Tao gives us shape, and heaven gives us body. What we have to do is not to damage our own nature because of our likes and dislikes. He takes the complete life of a person as the starting point to think about what kind of life journey a person should live. His philosophy is a philosophy of life, and his thinking also has ultimate significance. And there are many ideas that are very advanced. For example, "A pound of a foot will cut half of it in a day, and it will last for eternity." This is the ultimate idea in mathematics. Reference: Laozi's philosophy, Zhuangzi...
What does Zhuangzi mainly say?
"Zhuangzi", also known as "Nanhua Sutra" [1], is a Taoist scripture. It was written by Zhuangzi and his followers in the early Warring States Period. After the Han Dynasty, it was revered as the "Nanhua Sutra" and Zhuangzi was named the True Master of Nanhua. His book, "Laozi" and "Book of Changes" are collectively called the "Three Mysteries".
Zhuangzi’s articles are full of fantasy, ingenious conception, colorful ideological world and literary artistic conception, unbridled writing style, romantic artistic style, magnificent and strange, and unexpected. They are the masterpieces of the articles of the pre-Qin scholars. An exemplary work. Zhuangzi's words may seem like exaggerations and boundless imagination, but they all have a foundation and are more important than historical materials and arguments. Mr. Lu Xun said: "His writings are as vast as the ocean, and his manners are infinite. The works of all the scholars in the late Zhou Dynasty are unparalleled."
Zhuangzi was the first to put forward the "idea of ??inner sages and outer kings" which had a profound influence on Confucianism; Zhuangzi had an insight into the theory of changes and profoundly pointed out that "the book of changes uses yin and yang"; Zhuangzi's "three sounds" thought and the three talents of the book of changes The way is consistent. [2-3]
"Zhuangzi·Shanmu" was the first to put forward the proposition that "heaven and man are one".
"Zhuangzi", "The Book of Changes", "The Four Classics of the Yellow Emperor", "Laozi", and "The Analects of Confucius" are regarded as the source classics of the Chinese nation. They are not only moral and cultural It is an important carrier, and it is the crystallization of the wisdom of ancient sages who cultivated their moral integrity, realized Taoism, and united nature and man.
Title of the work
Zhuangzi
Foreign name
zhuang zi
Alias ??of the work
Nam Hwa Sutra, Nam Hwa Sutra
Creation period
Warring States period
Literary genre
Sutra
Author
Zhuang Zhou
Number of chapters
Originally 52, now 33
Number of chapters
Inner chapters, outer chapters Chapters, Miscellaneous Chapters
What does Zhuangzi’s “Tao” mean?
Zhuangzi’s “Tao” has similarities and differences with Laozi’s “Tao”. First of all, Zhuangzi believes that Tao is born innately and will be passed on continuously. This is consistent with the Tao in Laozi’s thought. part. There is this passage at the end of "Zhuangzi: The Master of Health Preservation": It means being poor for salary, and the fire is spreading, and you don't know how to use it up. Candles and firewood have a time to burn out, but fire continues and has no end. This is what we often call "passing on fire". Zhuangzi used vivid metaphors to describe the transmission of Tao. There is also this passage in "Zhuangzi: The Great Master": The Tao of husbands has feelings and faith, and is intangible; it can be transmitted but not received, and it can be obtained but not seen; it is from its own origin, there is no heaven and earth, it has been fixed since ancient times; gods, ghosts and gods The emperor is born from the innate earth; he is above the Tai Chi but not high; he is below the six poles but not deep; he is born from the heaven and earth but not long; he is older than the ancient times but not old. The Tao is like this. It has feelings and faith, and is intangible. It can be taught by heart but not by mouth. It can be obtained but cannot be seen. It is its own foundation and its own root. It has existed since ancient times before heaven and earth existed. It has produced gods, ghosts and gods. The emperor created heaven and earth; it is above the Tai Chi but not too high; it is below the six extremes but not too deep; it is not too old to be born before the heaven and earth; it is not too old to be older than ancient times. This passage is very important and is the key to our understanding of the Tao expounded by Zhuangzi. In this paragraph, the "Tao" we see seems somewhat paradoxical to Laozi's "Tao". Zhuangzi's "Tao" is consistent with Laozi's "Tao" in that "Tao" is born from heaven and earth. But other than that, the rest of it doesn't look like much. Let’s look at the first part first: “There is emotion and faith, and inaction is intangible.” The Tao has faith, and the Tao is also inaction. But is Tao sentient? This is indeed worthy of discussion. Reading through "Laozi", we can't find any description of whether Tao is sentient; looking back at the humanistic implications of the absolute speed of light cosmology, we can't find any evidence that Tao is sentient. Is Tao invisible? In Chapter 21 of "Laozi", "Tao is a thing, but it is trance. It is trance, and there are images in it; it is trance, and there are things in it." As the expression of Tao, "trance", it is not only There are virtual images and real objects. It converts its image between virtual and real objects, such as the wave-particle duality of light. Therefore, it is not invisible. Therefore, only half of the first part of "having feelings and having faith, doing nothing and having no form" is consistent with Laozi's thoughts.
What is Zhuangzi’s main idea?
1. Philosophical Thought
(1) Its cosmology and epistemology. Zhuangzi has no articles dedicated to cosmology, and only touches on it in two articles, "The Great Master" and "Equality of Things". It is said in "The Great Master": "The Tao of husbands has feelings and faith, and is intangible. It can be taught but not taught, and it can be obtained but not seen. It is from its own roots. There is no heaven and earth. It has been fixed since ancient times. Gods, ghosts and emperors are born. "Earth; it precedes the Tai Chi but does not become high; it precedes the Great Chi but does not become deep; it is born in the innate world but does not become permanent; it outlasts the ancient times but does not become old." Zhuangzi's explanation of Tao inherits Laozi's theory that "Tao follows nature." He clearly elaborated on the essential role of Tao: "Tao" is "a sentient being and a person of faith", but it is "intangible, can be taught but not taught, can be obtained but not visible". "Tao" is the ontology of the universe and the source of all things. The root, Tao, is the absolute that transcends time and space. "It is born in heaven and earth but does not last forever, and it lasts longer than ancient times but does not become old." Tao has a particularly powerful role. It is omnipresent, omnipotent, and can dominate everything. He believed that the essence of Tao is material and is "qi" in a turbid state, and this "qi" has no fixed form and is called "nothing". This material Tao is the root of the world. Zhuang Zhou's Tao actually refers to the cosmic spirit outside subjective consciousness and not controlled by any force.
"Zhuangzi" also said that "Tao" can give birth to all things, and explored the formation of the universe. In the chapter "Tianyun", natural phenomena such as the movement of the heaven and the earth, the struggle between the sun and the moon, and the transformation of clouds and rain were cited, and a large number of questions about the movement of objects were raised, but in the end it was explained that the creation of objects was attributed to Tao. Finally, the object becomes a spiritual thing. What is spiritual and what is material can sometimes be merged into one without any difference. Zhuang Zhou also believed that "things" can be differentiated, differentiation is generation, and generation is destruction. "Its division means success; its success means destruction. All things are not made or destroyed, they are reunited and become one.
"He integrated "things are divided" and "all life and death" into one, which illustrates the consistency of his point of view.
"Zhuangzi" is in "Chasing You", "Autumn Waters", "Zaiyou" "", "Heaven and Earth" and other chapters also elaborate on the concepts of "no self", "no merit" and "no name". "No self" means to regard oneself as illusory and forget all external things in the mind. Forget about one's own appearance. "No merit" and "no name" are against people's pursuit of fame and fortune.
In addition, another important concept in his philosophy is "inaction", specifically, the monarch. There is no better way to govern the world than to govern by doing nothing. The monarch must follow the movement of things and follow the heavens. Wealth is sufficient. Only by using the way of inaction can the world be governed. It is said in "The Way of Heaven": "With this, the emperor and the emperor are virtuous; with this, the Xuan Sheng Su Wang (not in the position of emperor) is The moral character admired by people all over the world) is also the way. If you retreat and wander around leisurely, become a hermit among the people in the rivers, seas, mountains and forests, and if you advance to become an official (official) and bring order to the world (ruling the people), then your achievements will be prominent and the world will be unified (unified). "This passage shows that we are not absolutely opposed to fame. We regard "inaction" as the greatest fame.
"Zhuangzi" starts from the argument of "nothing" and then denies right and wrong, big and small, nobility and inferiority. , the difference between useful and useless. Therefore, there is no distinction between right and wrong in the world, and there is no objective standard to judge right and wrong. "This is also the same, and the other is also the same." That is also right and wrong, and this is also right and wrong. "This is a typical relativistic view. From the above, it can be seen that "Tao" in "Zhuangzi" can give birth to all things, and all things will eventually disappear. From the incomprehensible Tao, all things in the world that cannot be understood are produced, and finally reach "no waiting", reaching the goal of Absolute "nothing".
The philosophical subject of "Zhuangzi" is "governing by doing nothing", which is a negative thought of governing the world. However, in the era where Zhuang Zhou lived, facing ugliness. and filthy social phenomena, resentful of the world, and unable to find a way out of reality, so they have to rely on fate.
(2) The dialectical thinking in "Zhuangzi" is extremely profound, which is also its philosophical thought. One of the essences of it. First of all, it is believed that the change of things lies in their own movement. In the chapter "The Way of Heaven", it is said: "The way of heaven moves (moves) without accumulation (stagnation), so everything becomes (generates); the way of the emperor moves but has nothing. There is accumulation, so the world returns (subjects); the holy way is transported but there is no accumulation, so the sea is surrendered. "It points out that the movement of the heavenly way and the movement of the king's way are constant. And the driving force of the movement is in itself. In the chapter "Autumn Water", it is said: "The life of things is as sudden as galloping, without moving but unchanged, and from time to time. shift. ""Zhuangzi" deeply realizes that heaven and earth, kings, people, and things are changing all the time.
The view of the unity of opposites in "Zhuangzi" believes that there is a contradictory unity of opposites in things. In "Zai" "You", "Autumn Water", "...
What is Zhuangzi's Tao?
Zhuangzi's Tao is more inaction and more unrestrained than Laozi's Tao
What is the difference between Laozi’s Tao and Zhuangzi’s Tao?
The differences between Laozi and Zhuangzi’s thoughts
(1) The relationship between Tao and people
"Laozi ·Chapter 25" declares: "There are four major ones in the domain, and humans live in one of them. Man follows the earth, earth follows heaven, heaven follows Tao, and Tao follows nature. "This view of Laozi shows that although human beings cannot be compared with heaven, earth, and Tao, they are different from all things and have incomparable superiority among all things. Zhuangzi's thoughts show the consistency between human beings and all things, equating human beings with things. . Human beings have no special characteristics and have the same origin and status as all things in the world.
(2) Philosophy of life
Although Laozi and Zhuangzi both admire Tao, they have the same origin and status as the world. There are many similarities in Taoism. However, the two people's different ways of doing things are far apart. Specifically, Laozi claims that Tao "always does nothing but does everything" and advocates governing the country in accordance with the laws of nature. At the same time, Laozi emphasized the need to follow Tao and follow nature, advocating non-controversy and humility. Zhuangzi advocated the theory of equality of things. In Zhuangzi's vision, all differences in the world are relative, so namelessness and futility become the content of life in this world. .
(3) The different spiritual desires of Laozi and Zhuangzi
The "Tao realm" of Taoism is the realm of freedom, and the Tao of Laozi and Zhuangzi is the highest freedom. Consciousness, regarding ignorance as the fundamental characteristic of Tao, is precisely due to the pursuit of freedom. Starting from Laozi's thoughts such as "all things in the world are born from existence, and existence is born from nothingness", we can know that life and everything can be freely transformed. The unity of Tao is what Laozi and Zhuangzi believe is the highest realm of life - the realm of freedom. However, Laozi and Zhuangzi have some differences in their understanding of this realm. Laozi's Tao refers to the realization of pure and simple nature; It is a high degree of absolute freedom. Therefore, Laozi's philosophy of life is extremely realistic, while Zhuangzi pursues individual spiritual freedom and detachment.