The Writings of Kwang-tze — Sacred Books of China Part II, SBE Vol. 40 (trans. James Legge, 1891)
English·1879–1910·trans. James Legge·245 passages
The text · part 10 of 12
1). Therefore he who would embody the T4o can only employ the names of ‘Do Nothing’ and ‘ Returning to the Root, and then go forward to the region of the Unknown and the Indescribable.
Now the T4o originally was a Unity. The collection of the breath, constituting life, and its dispersion, which we call death, proceed naturally. The denominations of the former as ‘spirit-like and wonderful’ and of the latter as ‘foetor and putridity’ are the work of man. But those of ‘Non-action’ and ‘ Returning to the Root’ are intended to do honour to the Unity. Knowledge, Heedless Bluster, and Hwang-Ti, all perceived this, but they also went on to reason about it, showing how not to know is better than to know, and not to talk better than to talk.
As it is said in par. 2, ‘the beautiful operations of Heaven and Earth, and the distinctive constitutions of all things,’ from the oldest time to the present day, go on and continue without any difference. But who is it that makes them to be what they are? And what expression of doubt or speculation on the point has ever been heard from them ? It is plain that the doctrine of the T4o originated with man.
When Phei-i (par. 3) told Nieh K‘iieh, ‘Keep your body as it should be; look only at the One thing; call in your knowledge; make your measures uniform:’—all this was saying to him that we are to do nothing, and turn to (the Tao as) our Root.. When he further says to him, ‘You should have the simple look of a new-born calf; and not ask about the cause of your being what you are :’—this is in effect saying that knowledge is in not knowing, and that speech does not require the use of words. .
If you suddenly (like Shun in par. 4) think that the Tao
U2
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is yours to hold, not only do you not know what the Téo is, but you do not know yourself. How is this? You are but a thing in the Tao. If your life came to you without its being produced by the Tao, you would yourself be a life-producer. But whether one lives to old age or dies prematurely he comes equally to an end. Your life properly was not from yourself, nor is your death your own act. You did not resist (the coming of your life) ; you do not keep it (against the coming of death); you are about to return to your original source. This simply is what is meant by the Sage’s ‘Do nothing, and return to your Root.’ As to ‘the bodily frame coming from incorporeity and its returning to the same (par. 5), that certainly is a subject beyond the reach of our seeing and hearing ; and how can any one say that the T4o is his to hold?
This simply is what is meant by the Sage’s ‘Do nothing, and return to your Root.’ As to ‘the bodily frame coming from incorporeity and its returning to the same (par. 5), that certainly is a subject beyond the reach of our seeing and hearing ; and how can any one say that the T4o is his to hold?
What L4o-jze (says to Confucius in par. 5), and what Khang tells Shun (in par. 4), have not two meanings; but notwithstanding, it should not be said that the TAo is not to be found anywhere (par. 6). Speaking broadly, we may say that its presence is to be seen in an ant, a stalk of panic grass, an earthenware tile, and in excrement. Seeking for it in what is more delicate and recondite, let us take the ideas of fulness and emptiness, of withering and decay; of beginning and end, of accumulation and dispersion. These are all ideas, and not the names of things; and (the T4o) which makes things what they are has not the limit which belongs to things. No wonder that Tung-kwo 3ze should have been so perplexed as he was!
Those who think that the T4o has no positive existence (par. 7), speak of it as ‘The Mysterious and Obscure,’ and then it would seem to be equivalent to the name ‘Mystery,’ which cannot be rightly applied to it. And those who think that it has a positive existence speak of it as being considered now noble and now mean, now bound and compressed, now dispersed and diffused, and what is One is divided into the noble and the mean, the compressed and the dispersed ;—a mode of dealing with it, of which the Tao will not admit. Better is it to say with Nop. 293beginning, ‘ There should be no asking about the T4o; any question about it should not be replied to. The opposite of this would imply a knowledge of what is not known, and the use of words which should not be spoken. In accordance with this, when Star-light puts his question to Non-entity, and it is added, ‘To conceive the ideas of Existence and Non-existence is not so difficult as to conceive of a Non-existing non-existence,’ this is an advance on speaking of (the Tao) as Non-existent; and when the forger of Swords says to the Minister of War that by long practice he came to the exercise of his art as if he took no thought about it (par. 9), this is an advance on speaking of (the T4o) as existent.
9), this is an advance on speaking of (the T4o) as existent.
The substance of what we know is to this effect :— The TAo was produced before heaven and earth. It made things what they are and is not itself a thing. It cannot be considered as of ancient origin or of recent, standing as it does in no relation to time. It had no beginning and will have no end. Life and death, death and life equally proceed from It. To speak of It as existing or as non-existing is a one-sided presentation of It. Those who have embodied It, amid all external changes, do not change internally, They welcome and meet all men and things, and none can do them any injury (par. 11). Whatever they do not know and are unequal to, they simply let alone. This is the meaning of ‘Doing nothing, and turning in everything to the Root.’ Where the want of knowledge and of language is the most complete, Zan Khid (par. 10) and Yen-jze (par. 11) apply to Kung-ni for his judgment in the case, and the consideration of it comes to an end.
In this Book the mysteries of the T4o are brought to light; one slight turn of expression after another reveals their successive depths, beyond the reach of Reasoning. Ld Fang-hd says, ‘Master this Book, and the Mahayana of the Tripizaka will open to you at the first application of your knife.’ —Well does he express himself !
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Book XXVI.
Those who practise the T4o know that what is external to themselves cannot be relied on, and that what is internal and belonging to themselves, does not receive any injury (par. 1). They are therefore able to enjoy themselves in the world, emptying their minds of all which would interfere with their pursuing their natural course.
What men can themselves control are their minds; external things are all subject to the requirements and commands of the world. Good and evil cannot be prevented from both coming to men, and loyalty and filial duty may find it hard to obtain their proper recompense. From of old it has been so; and the men of the world are often startled to incessant activity with their minds between the thoughts of profit and injury, and are not able to overcome them (par. 1). But do they know that among the enemies (of their serenity) there are none greater than the Yin and Yang? The water and fire of men’s minds produce irregularity in their action, and then again overcome it; but after the harmony of the mind has been consumed, there remains in them no more trace of the action of the Tao.
The water and fire of men’s minds produce irregularity in their action, and then again overcome it; but after the harmony of the mind has been consumed, there remains in them no more trace of the action of the Tao.
On this account, when Kung-ni was obstinately regardless of a myriad generations (in the future), Lao Léi-3ze still warned him to have done with his self-conceit (par. 5). His reason for doing so was that wisdom had its perils, and even spirit-like intelligence does not reach to everything (par. 6). It was so with the marvellous tortoise, and not with it only. The sage is full of anxiety and indecision (par. 5), and thereby is successful in his undertakings ; the man of the greatest knowledge puts away (the idea of) skill, and without any effort shows his skill:—they can both look on what seems to have no use and pronounce it useful, and allow their nature while it is able to enjoy itself to take its course without being anxious about its issue in advantage or injury (par. 1).
And moreover, it is not necessary that they should leave
BK. XXvI. ANALYSES OF BOOKS OF KWANG-8ZE. 295 the world in order to enjoy themselves. There are the distinctions of antiquity and the present day indelibly exhibited in the course of time (par. 8). The way in which the Perfect man enjoys himself is by his passing through the world of men without leaving any trace of himself. His way is free and encounters no obstruction (par.9); his mind has its spontaneous and enjoyable movements, and so his spirit is sure to overcome all external obstructions. Very different is this from the way of him who is bent on concealing himself, and on extinguishing all traces of his course (par. 8). He will seek his enjoyment in the great forest with its heights and hills, and not be able to endure the trouble of desiring fame, having recourse also to violence, laying plans, seeking to discharge the duties of office so as to secure general approval.
Thus the Perfect man obtains the harmony of his Heaven (-given nature), and his satisfactions spring up, he knows not how, as when the growing grain in spring has been laid by the rains (par. 9). As to the arts of curing illness, giving rest to old age, and restraining hasty measures to remedy the effects of errors, he can put them on one side, and not discuss them; thus playing the part of one who has apprehended the ideas and then forgets the words in which they were conveyed (par.11). Let him who occupies himself with the T4o beware of ‘seeking the fish-baskets and hare-snares,’ and falling into such mistakes as are instanced in the cases of emaciation to death, or suicide by drowning.
Let him who occupies himself with the T4o beware of ‘seeking the fish-baskets and hare-snares,’ and falling into such mistakes as are instanced in the cases of emaciation to death, or suicide by drowning.
This Book points out the true form of substances, and gave rise to the talk in subsequent ages about the Khan and Li hexagrams, and about the lead and quicksilver. Nearly the whole of it has been called in question, and the second, third, and fourth paragraphs are so marked by the shallowness of their style, and the eccentricity of their sentiments, that it may be doubted if they are genuine. I suspect they were written and introduced by some imitator of Kwang-jze, and therefore call attention to them and cast them out of my analysis.
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Book XXXII.
Lin Hsi-Zung omits Books XXVIII, XXIX, XXX, and XXXI from his edition of Kwang-jze’s Writings. Our Book XXXII, the Lieh Yii-kh4u, is with him Book XXVIII. He explains and comments on its various paragraphs as he does in the case of all the previous Books. Instead of subjoining an Analysis and Summary of the Contents in his usual way, he contents himself with the following note :—
In the Notice given by SQ 3ze-kan! of the Sacrificial Hall to Kwang-jze, he says that after reading the last paragraph of Book XXVII (the Yii Yen, or ‘ Metaphorical Words’), about Yang 3ze-Aii, and how (when he left the inn) the other visitors would have striven with him about the places for their mats, he forthwith discarded the four Books that followed,—_the Zang Wang, the Tao Xih, the Yiieh Kien, and the Yii-ff; making the Lieh Yii-khau immediately follow that paragraph. Having done so, he fully saw the wisdom of what he had done, and said with a laugh, ‘ Yes, they do indeed belong to one chapter !’
So did the old scholar see what other eyes for a thousand years had failed to see. No subsequent editor and commentator, however, ventured to take it on him to change the order of the several Books which had been established, following therein the Critical Canon laid down by Confucius about putting aside subjects concerning which doubts are entertained?; but we ought not to pass the question by without remark.
The subject of the last paragraph of the Lieh Yii-khau is Kwang-jze, ‘when he was about to die.’ It clearly
1 SQ Shih €53 ix). styled 9ze-Zan (-F- He) and also, and more frequently, Tung-pho (He Yt), one of the most celebrated statesmen and scholars of the eleventh century (1036-1101), The notice of the Sacrificial Hall of Awang-3ze was written in 1078. See Appendix viii.
? See the Confucian Analects II, xviii:—‘ Learn much and put aside the points of which you stand in doubt, while you speak cautiously at the same time of the others.’
BK, XxXx1I, ANALYSES OF BOOKS OF KWANG-8ZE. 297
See Appendix viii.
? See the Confucian Analects II, xviii:—‘ Learn much and put aside the points of which you stand in doubt, while you speak cautiously at the same time of the others.’
BK, XxXx1I, ANALYSES OF BOOKS OF KWANG-8ZE. 297 intimates how he, the man of X/i-yiian, from that time ceased to use his pencil, just as the appearance of the Lin (in the 30-Awan) did in the case of Confucius. Nota single character therefore should appear as from him after this. We have no occasion therefore to enter into any argument about the Thien Hsia (Book XXXIII). We ‘may be sure that it was made, not by Awang-jze, but by some editor of his writings. Later writers, indeed, contend vehemently for AKwang-3ze’s own authorship of it. We can only say, Great is the difficulty in treating of the different views of Scholars?! ,
1 The arguments both of Sa Shih and Lin Hsi-dung as set forth in this note are far from conclusive.
APPENDIX VI.
List of Narratives, Apologues, and Stories of various kinds in the Writings of Awang-jze.
Book I.
Paragraph 1. The enjoyment of the Tdo by such vast creatures as the Khw4n and the Phang.
2. The enjoyment and foolish judgments of smaller creatures. Big trees and Phang 30. .
3. Questions put by Thang to Ki. The T4o in different men :—Yung-jze; Lieh-jze; and an ideal T4oist. The Perfect man, the Spirit-like man, and the Sagely-minded man.
4. Y4o wishing to resign the throne to Hsii Ya.
5. Kien Wa and Lien Shf on the ideal T4oist.
6. A cap-seller of Sung. Y4Ao after visiting the four Perfect ones.
7. Hui-s3ze and Kwang-3ze :—the great calabashes; the hand-protecting salve; and the great Ailantus tree.
Book II.
Par. 1. Nan-kwo 3ze-kfi in a trance, and his disciple. The notes of heaven, earth, and man.
4. ‘In the morning three:’—the monkeys and their acorns.
7. Yao and Shun,—on the wish of the former to smite some small states.
g. Lt Ki before and after her marriage.
10. The penumbra and the shadow. Awang-3ze’s dream that he was a butterfly.
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Book III.
Par. 2. King Wan-hui and his cook ;—how the latter cut up his oxen.
3. Kung-wan Hsien and the Master of the Left who had only one foot.
4. The death of Lao-3ze; and adverse judgment on his life.
Book IV.
Pars. 1, 2. Yen Hui and Confucius ;—on the proposal of the former to go and convert the ruler of Wei.
3, 4. 3ze-kAo and Confucius ;—on the mission of the former from Kd to Ki.
5. Yen Ho and KXii Po-yii ;—on the former’s undertaking to be tutor to the wayward son of duke Ling of Wei.
6. The master-mechanic and the great tree ;—so large and old through its uselessness.
7. Nan-po 3ze-k/i and the great tree, preserved by its uselessness. Trees of Sung cut down because of their good timber. Peculiarities exempting from death as sacrificial victims.
8. The deformed object Shad and his worth.
9. Rencontre between Confucius and the madman of Kha. ,
Book V.
7. Nan-po 3ze-k/i and the great tree, preserved by its uselessness. Trees of Sung cut down because of their good timber. Peculiarities exempting from death as sacrificial victims.
8. The deformed object Shad and his worth.
9. Rencontre between Confucius and the madman of Kha. ,
Book V.
Par. 1. Confucius explains the influence of the cripple Wang Thii over the people of La.
2. The fellow-students 3ze-£44n and the cripple Shantha Kia.
3. Confucius and Toeless of Shf-shan. Judgment of Toeless and Lao-jze on Confucius.
4. Duke Ai of Lt and Confucius ;—on the ugly but most able and fascinating man, Ai-thai Tho. Admiration for Confucius of duke Ai.
5. The deformed favourites of duke Ling of Wei and duke Hwan of K#i. Argument between Kwang-jze and Hui-3ze, growing out of the former’s account of them.
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_Book VI.
Par. 8. Nan-po 3ze-khwei and the long-lived Ni Yii. How Pa-liang f learned the T4o.
g. Four TAoists, and the submission of 3ze-yii, one of them, a poor deformed hunchback, to his lot, when he was very ill.
10, The submission of 3ze-l4i, another of the four, as his life was ebbing away.
11. Three T4oists, and the ways of two of them on the death of the third. Conversation on the subject between Confucius and 3ze-kung.
12. Confucius and Yen Hui on the mourning of Mangsun 3hai.
13. t-r 3ze and Hsii Ya. How the Tao will remove the injuries of error, and regenerate the mind.
14. Confucius and Yen Hui. The growth of the latter in T4oism.
15. 3ze-yii and 3ze-sang. The penury of the latter and submission to his fate.
Book VII.
Par. 1. Nieh Khiieh, Wang f, and Phd-i-3ze. That Shun was inferior in his TAoistic attainments to the more ancient sovereign, Thai.
2. Kien Wd and the recluse KAieh-yii ;— on the ideal of government.
3. Thien Kan and a nameless man ;—that non-action is the way to govern the world.
4. Yang 3ze-Aii and Lao Tan on the nameless government of the Intelligent Kings.
5. Lieh-jze and his master Hf-jze. How the latter defeated the wizard of Kang. ‘
6. The end of Chaos, wrought by the gods of the southern and northern seas.
Book VIII. Par. 4. How two shepherd slaves lose their sheep in
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different ways. The corresponding cases of the righteous Po-i and the robber ‘ih. ‘
Book X.
Par. 1. Murder of the ruler of Ki by Thien KZing-3ze, and his usurpation of the State.
2. How the best and ablest of men, such as Lung-fang, Pi-kan, Khang Hung, and 3ze-hsii, may come to a disastrous end, and only seem to have served the purposes of such men as the robber Kih.
3. Evils resulting from such able men as 34ng Shan, Shih Khid, Yang Kd, Mo Ti, Shih Khwang, Kui, and Li Ka.
4. Character of the age of Perfect Virtue, and sovereigns who flourished in it in contrast with the time of Kwanggze.
Book XI.
3. Evils resulting from such able men as 34ng Shan, Shih Khid, Yang Kd, Mo Ti, Shih Khwang, Kui, and Li Ka.
4. Character of the age of Perfect Virtue, and sovereigns who flourished in it in contrast with the time of Kwanggze.
Book XI.
Par. 3. 3hui K#ii and Lao-jze. The latter denounces the meddling with the mind which began with Hwang-Ti, and the spread of knowledge, as productive of all evil.
4. Hwang-Ti and Kwang K/dng-jze, his master, who discourses on the mystery of the T 40, and how it promotes long life.
5. Yiin Kiang and Hung Mung, or the Leader of the Clouds and the Great Ether ;—the wish of the former to nourish all things, and how they would be transformed by his doing nothing.
Book XII.
Par. 4. The loss and recovery by Y4o of his darkcoloured Pearl ;—the T4o.
5. Hsii Yd’s reply to Yao on the character of Nieh Khiieh and his unfitness to take the place of Sovereign.
6. Yao rejects the good wishes for him of the Borderwarden of Hwa.
7. Yii and Po-kang 3ze-kao. The latter vindicates his resignation of dignity and taking to farming.
9. Confucius and Lao-3ze ;—on the attitude to the T4o of a great sage and ruler.
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10. Kiang-lii Mien and Xi Kéh ;—on the counsel which the former had given to the ruler of La.
11. 3ze-kung and the old gardener ;—argument of the latter in favour of the primitive simplicity, and remarks thereon by Confucius.
12. Kun M4ng and Yiian Fung ;—on the government of the sage; of the virtuous and kindly man; and of the spirit-like man.
13. Man Wa-kwei and Khih-kang Man-£Ai ;—that there had been confusion and disorder before the time of Shun; and the character of the age of Perfect Virtue.
Book XIII.
Par. 6. Yao and Shun;—on the former’s method of government.
7. Confucius, wishing to deposit some writings in the royal Library, is repulsed by L4o-3ze. Argument between them on Benevolence and Righteousness in relation to the nature of man.
8. Shih-£4ang KAi and Lao-3ze ;—the strange conferences between them, and the charges brought. by the one against the other.
10. Duke Hwan and the wheelwright Phien ;—that the knack of an art. cannot be conveyed to another, and the spirit of thought cannot be fully expressed in writing.
Book XIV.
Par. 2. Tang, a minister of Shang, and Awang-jze on the nature of Benevolence.
3. Pei-man Khaing and Hwang-Ti ;—a description of Hwang-Ti’s music, the Hsien-&/ih.
4. Yen Yiian and Xin, the music-master of Ld, on the course of Confucius ;—the opinion of the latter that it had been unsuccessful and was verging to entire failure.
5. Confucius and L4o-jze. The former has not yet got the Tao, and LAo-jze explains the reason.
6. Confucius and Léo-jze. Confucius talks of Benevolencep. 303 and Righteousness; and how the tables are turned on him. He is deeply impressed by the other.
5. Confucius and L4o-jze. The former has not yet got the Tao, and LAo-jze explains the reason.
6. Confucius and Léo-jze. Confucius talks of Benevolencep. 303 and Righteousness; and how the tables are turned on him. He is deeply impressed by the other.
7. 3ze-kung, in consequence of the Master’s report of his interview, goes also to see L4o-jze; and is nonplussed and lectured by him.
8. Confucius sees L4o-3ze again, and tells him how he has profited from his instructions. The other expresses his satisfaction with him.
Book XVI.
Par. 2. The state of Perfect Unity, and its gradual Decay. Book XVII.
Pars. 1-7. The Spirit-earl of the Ho and Zo of the Northern Sea ;—on various metaphysical questions growing out of the doctrine of the Tao.
8. The khwei, the millipede, the serpent, the wind, the eye, and the mind ;—how they had their several powers, but did not know how.
g. Confucius in peril in Khwang is yet serene and hopeful.
io: Kung-sun Lung and Mau of Wei. The Frog of the dilapidated well, and the Turtle of the Eastern Sea. The greatness of A wang-3ze’s teachings.
11. Kwang-jze refuses the invitation of the king of Kha to take office. The wonderful tortoise-shell of the king.
12. Hui-3ze and Awang-jze. The young phoenix and the owl. _
13. Hui-3ze and K wang-3ze;—how K wang-3ze understood the enjoyment of fishes.
Book XVIII.
Par. 2. Hui-3ze and Kwang-3ze ;—vindication by the latter of his behaviour on the death of his wife.
3. Mr. Deformed and Mr. One-foot ;—their submission under pain and in prospect of death.
4. Kwang-jze and the skull ;—-what he said to it, and its appearance to him at night in a dream.
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5. The sadness of Confucius on the departure of Yen Hui for Ki; and his defence of it to 3ze-kung. The appearance of a strange bird in LQ, and his moralizings on it.
6. Lieh-3ze and the skull. The transmutations of things.
Book XIX.
Par. 2. Lieh-3ze and Kwan Yin ;—on the capabilities of the Perfect man.
3. Confucius and the hunchback, who was skilful at catching cicadas with his rod.
4. The boatman on the gulf of X/ang-shan, and his skill.
5. Thien Khai-4ih and duke Wei of K4u ;—on the best way to nourish the higher life. How it was illustrated by Thien’s master, and how enforced by Confucius.
6. The officer of sacrifice and his pigs to be sacrificed.
7. Duke Hwan gets ill from seeing a ghostly sprite, and how he was cured.
8. The training of a fighting-cock.
9. Confucius and the swimmer in the gorge of Lii.
10. Khing, the worker in rottlera wood, and the bellframe ;—how he succeeded in making it as he did.
11. Tung-yé KX? and his chariot-driving ;—how his horses broke down.
12. The skill of the artisan Shui.
14. The weakling Sun Hsifi and the Master 3ze-pien Khing-3ze, with his disciples.
Book XX.
Par. 1. Kwang-jze and his disciples ;—the great tree that was of no use, and the goose that could not cackle.
and his chariot-driving ;—how his horses broke down.
12. The skill of the artisan Shui.
14. The weakling Sun Hsifi and the Master 3ze-pien Khing-3ze, with his disciples.
Book XX.
Par. 1. Kwang-jze and his disciples ;—the great tree that was of no use, and the goose that could not cackle.
2. 1-lido of Shih-nan and the marquis of Lf ;—how the former presses it on the marquis to go to an Utopia of Taoism in the south, to escape from his trouble and sorrow.
3. Pei-kung Shé and prince Khing-#i ;—how the former collected taxes and made a peal of bells.
4- How the Thai-kung Zan condoled with Confucius on his distresses, and tried to convert him to Tdoism.
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5. Confucius and 3ze-sang Hf. The TAoistic effect of their conversation on the former. The dying charge of Shun to Yi.
6. Kwang-jze in rags before the king of Wei. The apologue of the climbing monkey.
7. Confucius and Yen Hui;—on occasion of the perilous situation between Ahan and 3h4i. Confucius expounds the principles that supported him.
8. Kwang-3ze’s experiences in the park of Tido-ling ;— has the character of an apologue.
g. The Innkeeper’s two concubines ;—the beauty disliked and the ugly one honoured.
Book XXI.
Par. 1. Thien 3ze-fang and the marquis Wan of Wei.
2. Wan-po Hsiieh-3ze and the scholars of the Middle States.
3. Confucius and Yen Hui ;—on the incomprehensibleness to the latter of the Master’s course.
4. Conversation between Confucius and L4o-3ze on the beginning of things.
5. Kwang-jze and duke Ai of Li;—on the dress of the scholar.
6. Pai-li Hsi.
9. The duke of Sung and his map-drawers.
8. King W4n and the old fisherman of 3ang. Confucius and Yen Hui on king W4n’s dream about the fisherman.
g. The archery of Lieh-3ze and Po-hwan Wi-zan.
10. Kien Wa, and Sun Shf-do, the True man. Confucius’s account of the True man. The king of X26 and the ruler of Fan.
Book XXII.
Par. 1. Knowledge, Dumb Inaction, Head-strong Stammerer, and Hwang-Ti on the T4o.
3. Nieh Khiieh questioning Phei-t about the T4o.
4. Shun and his minister King ;—that man is not his own.
[40] x
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5. Confucius and L4o Tan ;—on the Perfect Tao.
6. Tung-kwo 3ze’s question to Kwang-3ze about where the T4o was to be found, and the reply.
7. A-ho Kan, Shin Nang, Lao-lung Ki, Yen Kang ;— Grand Purity, Infinitude, Do-nothing, and No-beginning: —on what the T4o is.
8. Star-light and Non-entity.
g. The Minister of War and his forger of swords.
10. Zan Kid and Confucius ;—how it was before heaven and earth.
11. Confucius and Yen Hui:—No demonstration to welcome, no movement to meet.
Book XXIII.
Par. 1. Kang-sang AAt and the people about Wei-léi hill.
2. Kang-sang Kh and his disciples. He repudiates being likened by them to Y4o and Shun.
3. Kang-sang Kd and the disciple Nan-yung XK. ho.
4-12. Lao-jze lessoning Nan-yung XA on the principles of Taoism.
Book XXIV.
Book XXIII.
Par. 1. Kang-sang AAt and the people about Wei-léi hill.
2. Kang-sang Kh and his disciples. He repudiates being likened by them to Y4o and Shun.
3. Kang-sang Kd and the disciple Nan-yung XK. ho.
4-12. Lao-jze lessoning Nan-yung XA on the principles of Taoism.
Book XXIV.
Pars. 1,2. Hsii Wa-kwei, Nii Shang, and the marquis WA of Wei :—Hsii’s discourses to the marquis.
3. Hwang-Ti, with six attending sages, in quest of the Tao, meets with a wise boy herding horses.
5. Debate between Kwang-3ze and Hui-jze, illustrating the sophistry of the latter.
6. The artisan Shih cleans the nose of a statue with the wind of his axe; but declines to try his ability on a living subject.
7. Advice of Kwan Kung on his death-bed to duke Hwan of Ki about his choice of a successor to himself.
8. The king of WQ and the crafty monkey. His lesson from its death to Yen Pd-i.
g. Nan-po 3ze-kAi and his attendant Yen KAang-jze.
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The trance is the highest result of the Tao. Practical lesson to be drawn from it.
10. Confucius at the court of Kd along with Sun Shd-4o and f-lido.
11. 3ze-khi, and his eight sons, with the physiognomist Kit-fang Yan.
12. Nieh Xhiieh meets Hsii YQ fleeing from the court of Yao.
Book XXV.
Par. 1. 3eh-yang seeking an introduction to the king of Kht. { Kieh, Wang Kwo, and the recluse Kung-yiieh Hsia.
3. The ancient sovereign Zdan-hsiang; Thang, the founder of the Shang dynasty; Confucius; and Yungkhang 3ze.
4. King Yung of Wei and his counsellors :—on his desire and schemes to be revenged on Thien Mau of Kft. Tai 3in-zin and his apologue about the horns of a snail.
5. Confucius and the Recluse at Ant-hill in KZ4.
6. The Border-warden of Khang-w0’s lessons to 3ze-ldo. Kwang-3ze’s enforcement of them.
7. Lao-jze and his disciple Po Kii:—that the prohibitions of Law provoke to transgression.
8. The conversion to T4oism of Kii Po-yii.
g. Confucius and the historiographers ;— about the honorary title of duke Ling of Wei.
10. Little Knowledge and the Correct Harmonizer :— on the Talk of the Hamlets and Villages.
11. On the namelessness of the T4o; and that T4o is but a borrowed or metaphorical name.
Book XXVI.
Par. 2. Against delaying to do good when it is in one’s power to do it. The apologue of Kwang-jze meeting with a goby on the road.
3. The big fish caught by the son of the duke of Zan.
4. The Resurrectionist Students.
xX 2
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5. How L&o LAi-3ze admonished Confucius.
6. The dream of the ruler Yiian of Sung about a tortoise.
». Hui-3ze and Kwang-3ze ;—on the use of being useless.
11. Illustrations of the evil accruing from going to excess in action, or too suddenly taking action.
Book XXVII.
Par. 2. Kwang-jze and Hui-jze on Confucius ;—did he change his views in his sixtieth year?
3. Confucius and his other disciples :—on 34ng-jze and his twice taking office with different moods of mind.
Book XXVII.
Par. 2. Kwang-jze and Hui-jze on Confucius ;—did he change his views in his sixtieth year?
3. Confucius and his other disciples :—on 34ng-jze and his twice taking office with different moods of mind.
4. Yen KAang 3ze-yd tells his Master Tung-kwo 3zeki of his gradual attainments.
5. The penumbrae and the shadows.
6. Léo-jze’s lessoning of Yang 3ze-Aii, and its effects on him.
Book XXVIII.
Par. 1. Y4o’s proffers of the throne to Hsii Yd and 3ze-k4u Kih-f. Shun’s proffers of it to 3ze-k4u Kih-po, to Shan Xiian, and to the farmer of Shih-hQ. Thai-wang Than-fd and the northern tribes. Prince Sau of Yiieh.
2. Counsel of 3ze-hwA 3ze to the marquis Ko of Han.
3. The ruler of LQ and the T4oist Yen Ho, who hides himself from the advances of the other.
4. Lieh-3ze and his wife, on his declining a gift from the ruler of Kang. .
5. The high-minded and resolute sheep-butcher Yiieh, and king K4o of Kha.
6. The poor Yiian Hsien and the wealthy 3ze-kung. 3ang-jze, in extreme poverty, maintaining his high and independent spirit. The satisfaction of Confucius in Yen Hui refusing, though poor, to take any official post.
7. Prince M4u of Kung-shan, living in retirement, was not far from the Tao.
8. Confucius and the disciples Yen Hui, 3ze-lf, and 3ze-kung, during the perilous time between Kan and 3hai.
BK. XXxul. LIST OF NARRATIVES OF KWANG-8ZE, . 309 g. Shun and the northerner W0-44i who refuses the throne. Thang, and Pien Sui and Wa Kwang, who both refused it.
10, The case of the brothers Po-i and Shi-£4i, who refused the proffers of king Wa.
Book XXIX.
Par. 1. The visit of Confucius to the robber Xih, and interview between them.
2. 3ze-kang and Man Kau-teh (Mr. Full of Gain-recklessly-got) on the pursuit of wealth. ,
3. Mr. Dissatisfied and Mr. Know-the-Mean ;— on the pursuit and effect of riches,
Book XXX.
How KAwang-3ze dealt with the king of Kao and his swordsmen, curing the king of his love of the sword-fight. The three Swords.
Book XXXI.
Confucius and the Old Fisherman ;—including the story of the man who tried to run away from his shadow.
Book XXXII.
Par. 1. Lieh-3ze and the effect of his over-manifestation of his attractive qualities. Failure of the warnings of his master.
2. The sad fate of Hwan of Kang, a Confucianist, who resented his father’s taking part with his Mohist brother.
5. Kf Phing-man and his slaughtering the dragon.
8. Kwang-jze’s rebuke of 3h4o Shang for pandering to the king of Sung, and thereby getting gifts from him.
g. Description to duke Ai of La of Confucius by Yen Ho as unfit to be entrusted with the government.
11. Khao-fa the Correct, and his humility.
12. Kwang-jze’s rebuke of the man who boasted of having received chariots from the king of Sung, and comparison of him to the boy who stole a pearl from under the chin of the Black Dragon when he was asleep.
310. THE TEXTS OF TAOISM. APP, VI.
13. Kwang-3ze declines the offer of official dignity. The apologue of the sacrificial ox.
310. THE TEXTS OF TAOISM. APP, VI.
13. Kwang-3ze declines the offer of official dignity. The apologue of the sacrificial ox.
14. Kwang-3ze, about to die, opposes the wish of his disciples to give him a grand burial. His own description of what his burial should be.
Book XXXIII.
Par. 1. The method of the Tao down to the time of Confucius.
2. The method of Mo Ti and his immediate followers.
3, 4. The method of Mo’s later followers.
5. The method of Kwan Yin and Léo-jze.
6. The method of Kwang-jze.
7. The ways of Hui Shih, Kung-sun Lung, and other sophists.
APPENDIX VII.
I.
THE STONE TABLET IN THE TEMPLE OF LAO-3ZE. By HsiEH TAO-HANG OF THE SUI DYNASTY}.
1. After the Thai Xi (or Primal Ether) commenced its action, the earliest period of time began to be unfolded.
* Hsich Tao-hing QE SEq #7, called also Hotian-thing (ZF Ja), was one of the most famous scholars and able ministers of the Sui dynasty (581-618), and also an eloquent writer. His biography is given at considerable length in the fifty-seventh chapter of the Books of Sui.
For about 200 years after the end of the Qin dynasty, the empire had been in a very divided and distracted state. The period is known as the epoch of ‘The Southern and Northern Dynasties,’ no fewer than nine or ten of which co-existed, none of them able to assert a universal sway till the rise of Sui. The most powerful of them towards the end of the time was ‘The Northern X4u,’
in connexion with the W(-é4ang (x WX) reign of which (558-561) the name of our Hsieh first appears. In the WA-phing (ek >) reign of
‘The Northern KAt (570-576),’ we find him member of a committee for revising the rules of ‘The Five Classes of Ceremonial Observances,’ and gaining distinction as a poet.
When the emperor Wan (30 ip), by name Yang Kien (3 &), a scion of the ruling House of Sui, a small principality in the present HA-pei, and founder of the dynasty so called, had succeeded in putting down the various conflicting dynasties, and claimed the sovereignty of the empire in 581, Hsieh freely yielded his allegiance to him, and was employed in the conduct of various affairs. The important paper, of the translation of the greater part of which a translation is here attempted, was the outcome of one of them. WaAn Ti regularly observed the Confucian worship of God, but also kept up the ceremonies of Buddhism and Taoism. Having repaired the dilapidated temple of Lao-3ze at his birth-place, he required from Hsieh an inscription for the commemorative tablet in it, the composition of which is referred to the year 586, ‘the sixth year of Sui’s rule over all beneath the sky.’
Hsieh appears to have been a favourite with the emperor Wan, but when Wan was succeeded in 605 by his son, known as Yang Tt (Ke if), his relations with
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APP, VII.
The curtain of the sky was displayed, and the sun and moon were suspended in it; the four-cornered earth was established, and the mountains and streams found their places in it. Then the subtle influences (of the Ether) operated like the heaving of the breath, now subsiding and again expanding; the work of production went on in its seasons above and below; all things were formed as from materials, and were matured and maintained. There were the (multitudes of the) people; there were their rulers and superiors.
2. As to the august sovereigns of the highest antiquity, living as in nests on trees in summer, and in caves in winter, silently and spirit-like they exercised their wisdom. Dwelling like quails, and drinking (the rain and dew) like newly-hatched birds, they had their great ceremonies like the great terms of heaven and earth, not requiring to be regulated by the dishes and stands; and (also) their great music corresponding to the common harmonies of heaven and earth, not needing the guidance of bells and drums.
3. By and by there came the loss of the T4o, when its Characteristics took its place. They in their turn were lost, and then came Benevolence. Under the Sovereigns and Kings that followed, now more slowly and anon more rapidly, the manners of the people, from being good and simple, became bad and mean. Thereupon came the Literati and the Mohists with their confused contentions; names and the throne became less happy. Offended bya memorial which Hsieh presented, and the ground of offence in which we entirely fail to perceive, the emperor ordered him to put an end to himself. Hsieh was surprised by the sentence, and hesitated to comply with it, on which an executioner was sent to strangle him. Thus ended the life of Hsieh Tao-hang in his seventieth year. His death was regretted and resented, we are told, by the people generally. A collection of his writings was made in seventy chapters, and was widely read. I do not know to what extent these have been preserved ; if many of them have been lost, and the paper, here in part submitted to the reader, were a fair specimen of the others, the loss must be pronounced to be great. Of this paper I have had two copies before me in translating it. One of them is in 3ido Hung’s ‘Wings to Lao-3ze;’ the other is in ‘The Complete Works of the Ten Philosophers.’ Errors of the Text occur now in the one copy, now in the other. From the two combined a Text, which must be exactly correct or nearly so, is made out. ;
4. The Master Léo was conceived under the influence of a star. Whence he received the breath (of life) we cannot fathom, but he pointed to the (plum-) tree (under which he was born), and adopted it as his surname?; we do not understand ? whence came the musical sounds (that were heard), but he kept his marvellous powers concealed in the womb for more than seventy years. When he was born, the hair on his head was already white, and he took the designation of ‘The Old Boy’ (or L4o-jze). In his person, three gateways and two (bony) pillars formed the distinctive marks of his ears and eyes; two of the symbols for five, and ten brilliant marks were left by the wonderful tread of his feet and the grasp of his hands. From the time of Fa-hst down to that of the Kau dynasty, in uninterrupted succession, dynasty after dynasty, his person appeared, but with changed names. In the times of kings Wan and Wa he discharged the duties, (first), of Curator of the Royal Library®, and (next), of the Recorder under the Pillar’. Later on in that dynasty he filled different offices, but did
1 Compare vol. xxviii, p. 323, par. 38. 7 Li (45), a plum-tree. For this and many of the other prodigies mentioned by Hsieh, see what Julien calls ‘The Fabulous Legend of Lao-3ze,’ and has translated in the Introduction to his version of the Tao Teh Xing. Others of them are found in the Historical, or rather Legendary, Introduction in the ‘Collection of Taoist Treatises,’ edited by Lf Yii in 1877.
3 The meaning of the former of these offices may be considered as settled ;— see the note in Wang K4an-Aai’s edition of the ‘ Historical Records (1870),’ under the Biography of Lao-gze. The nature of the second office is not so clearly ascertained. It was, I apprehend, more of a literary character than the curatorship.
p. 314
The nature of the second office is not so clearly ascertained. It was, I apprehend, more of a literary character than the curatorship.
p. 314
not change his appearance. As soon as Hsiian Ni! saw him, he sighed over him as ‘the Dragon,’ whose powers are difficult to be known?. Yin (Hst), keeper of the (frontier) gate, keeping his eyes directed to every quarter, recognised ‘the True Man’ as he was hastening into retirement. (By Yin Hsi he was prevailed on) to put forth his extraordinary ability, and write his Book in two Parts °,—to lead the nature (of man) back to the T4o, and celebrating the usefulness of ‘doing nothing.’ The style of it is very condensed, and its reasoning deep and far-reaching. The hexagram which is made up of the ‘dragons on the wing *’ is not to be compared with it in exquisite subtlety. (The 30 Awan) which ends with the capture of the Lin, does not match it in its brightness and obscurity. If employed to regulate the person, the spirit becomes clear and the will is still. If employed to govern the state, the people return to simplicity, and become sincere and good. When one goes on to refine his body in accordance with it, the traces of material things are rolled away from it; in rainbow-hued robes and mounted on a stork he goes forwards and backwards to the purple palace; on its juice of gold and wine of jade®> he feasts in the beautiful and pure capital. He is lustrous as the sun and moon; his ending and beginning are those of heaven and earth. He who crosses its stream, drives away the dust and noise of the world; he who finds its gate, mounts prancing up on the misty clouds. It is not for the ephemeral fly to know the fading and luxuriance of the T4-£un®, or for a Fang-i? to fathom the depth of an Arm of the sea. Vast indeed (is the T4o)! words are not sufficient to describe its excellence and powers!
5. Kwang K4u tells us, that, ‘when Lao Tan died,
1 Confucius, who was styled after the beginning of our era for several centuries ‘ Duke Nf, the Illustrious.’
2 See vol. xxxix, pp. 34, 35. 5 See vol. xxxix, p. 35.
* The Khien or first of all the hexagrams of the Yt Xing; but the sentence is to be understood of all the hexagrams,—of the Yf as a whole.
5 Compare Pope's line, ‘ The juice nectareous, and the balmy dew.’
Khin Shih went to condole (with his son), but after crying out three times, immediately left the house!.’ This was what is called the punishment for his neglecting his Heaven (-implanted nature), and although it appears as one of the metaphorical illustrations of the supercilious officer, yet there is some little indication in the passage of the reappearance of the snake after casting its exuviae?.
[At this point the author leaves the subject of the Tao and its prophet, and enters on a long panegyric of the founder of the Sui dynasty and his achievements. This sovereign was the emperor Wan (a0 ifr)» the founder of Sui
(5 BI iH), originally Yang Kien, a scion of the House of Sui, a principality whose name remains in Sui-24u, of the department Teh-an in Hf Pei. He was certainly the ablest man in the China of his day, and deserves a portion of the praise with which Mr. Hsieh celebrates him after his extravagant fashion. He claimed the throne from the year 581. While doing honour to Confucianism, he did not neglect the other two religions in the empire, Taoism and Buddhism ; and having caused the old temple of Léogze to be repaired in grand style in 586, he commissioned Hsieh T4o-hang to superintend the setting up in it a commemorative Tablet of stone.
I pass over all this, which is related at great length, and proceed to give the inscription. It occupies no fewer than 352 characters in 88 lines, each consisting of four characters. The lines are arranged in what we may call eleven stanzas of equal length, the second, fourth, sixth, and eighth lines of each rhyming together. There is a good deal of art in the metrical composition. In the first six stanzas the rhyming finals are in the even tone and one of the deflected tones alternately. In the last five stanzas this arrangement is reversed. The rhymes in 7, 9, and 11 are deflected, and in 8 and 10 even. The measure of four characters is the most common in the Shih King or Ancient Book of Poetry.
1 Vol. xxxix, p. 201. 3 Referring, I suppose, to the illustration of the fire and the faggots,
p. 316
It continued to be a favourite down to the Thang dynasty, after which it fell very much into disuse. Through the many assonances of the Chinese characters, and the attention paid to the tones, we have in Chinese composition much of the art of rhyming, but comparatively little of the genius of poetry. ]
II.
THE INSCRIPTION.
St. 1. Back in the depths of ancient time; Remote, before the Tis began; Four equal sides defined the earth, And pillars eight the heaven sustained. All living things in classes came, The valleys wide, and mighty streams. The Perfect T4o, with movement wise, Unseen, Its work did naturally.
St. 2. Its power the elements? all felt ; The incipient germs of things? appeared. Shepherd and Lord established were, And in their hands the ivory bonds?. The Tis must blush before the Hwangs‘; The Wangs must blush before the Tis‘. More distant grew T4o’s highest gifts, And simple ways more rare became.
St. 3. The still placidity was gone, And all the old harmonious ways. Men talents prized, and varnished wit ; The laws displayed proved but a net.
1 ¢The five essences ;’ meaning, I think, the subtle power and operation of the five elements.
7 So Williams, under Wei (44): See also the Khang-hst Thesaurus under the phrase —— TH.
Men talents prized, and varnished wit ; The laws displayed proved but a net.
1 ¢The five essences ;’ meaning, I think, the subtle power and operation of the five elements.
7 So Williams, under Wei (44): See also the Khang-hst Thesaurus under the phrase —— TH.
5 ‘Bonds’ with written characters on them superseded the ‘knotted cords’ of the primitive age. That the material of the bonds should be, as here represented, slips of ivory, would seem to anticipate the progress of society.
* The Hwangs (3) preceded the Tfs in the Taoistic genesis of history ;
and as being more simple were TAoistically superior to them; so it was with the Tis and the Wangs or Kings.
p. 317
Wine-cups and stands the board adorned, And shields and spears the country filled. The close-meshed nets the fishes scared: And numerous bows the birds alarmed.
St. 4. Then did the True Man! get his birth, As neath the Bear the star shone down?. All dragon gifts his person graced ; Like the stork’s plumage was his hair. The complicated he resolved °, the sharp made blunt’, The mean rejected, and the generous chose ; In brightness like the sun and moon, And lasting as the heaven and earth®*.
St. 5. Small to him seemed the mountains five‘, And narrow seemed the regions nine‘; About he went with lofty tread,
And in short time he rambled far.
In carriage by black oxen drawn §,
Around the purple air was bright. Grottoes then oped to him their sombre gates, And thence, unseen, his spirit power flowed forth.
St. 6. The village near the stream of Ko® ‘Traces of him will still retain ®; But now, as in the days of old, With changéd times the world is changed.
1 This of course was Lao-3ze. ? See above, p. 313, par. 4. 5 In the Tao Teh Xing, p. 50, par. 2, and p. §2, par. 1. The reading of
line 7 is different in my two authorities: — in the one H <4 Al <4 ; in the other 74 By Al FR. I suppose the correct reading should be—
H BY A $j , and have given what I think is the meaning.
* Two well-known numerical categories. See Mayers’s Manual, pp. 320, 321, and p. 340.
5 So it was, according to the story, that Lao-3ze drew near to the barrier gate, when he wished to leave China.
° The Ko is a river flowing from Ho-nan into An-hui, and falling into the Hwéi, not far from the district city of Hwai-yiian. It enters the one province
—. from the other in the small department of Po (Ss +H), in which, according to a Chinese map in my possession, Lao-3ze was born. The Khang-hst Thesaurus also gives a passage to the effect that the temple of his mother was hereabouts, at a bend in the Ko.
p. 318
His stately temple fell to ruin ; His altar empty was and still; By the nine wells dryandras grew}, And the twin tablets were but heaps of stone.
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His stately temple fell to ruin ; His altar empty was and still; By the nine wells dryandras grew}, And the twin tablets were but heaps of stone.
St. 7. But when our emperor was called to rule, All spirit-like and sage was he. Earth’s bells reverberated loud, And light fell on the heavenly mirror down. The universe in brightness shone, And portents all were swept away ; (All souls), or bright or dark?, revered,
And spirits came to take from him their law.
St. 8. From desert sands * and where the great trees grow®,
From phoenix caves, and from the dragon woods, All different creatures came sincere ; Men of all regions gave their hearts to him. Their largest vessels brought their gifts, And kings their rarest things described ;
Black clouds a thousand notes sent forth ;
And in the fragrant winds were citherns heard ¢.
St. 9. Through his transforming power, the tripods were made sure; And families became polite and courteous.
1 The nine wells, or bubbling springs, near the village where Lao was born, are mentioned by various writers; but I fail to see how the growth of the trees about them indicated the ruin of his temple.
3 J have introduced the ‘all souls’ in this line, because of the yi in the second character. Williams defines the first character, yao (2), as ‘the effulgence of the sun,’ and of ‘heavenly bodies generally ;’ the second (BSB) ig well known as meaning ‘the animal soul,’ and ‘the dark disk of the moon,’ The Thesaurus, however, explains the two characters together as a name for the pole star ( | Fe; see Analects I, i); and perhaps I had better have followed this meaning.
* The ‘desert sands’ were, no doubt, what we call ‘the desert of Gobi.’ The trees referred to were ‘in the extreme East.’ The combination phan-m( is not described more particularly.
* This and the three preceding lines are not a little dark.
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Ever kept he in mind (the sage) beneath the Pillar’, Still emulous of the sovereigns most ancient?.
So has he built this pure temple,
And planned its stately structure ;
Pleasant, with hills and meadows around,
And lofty pavilion with its distant prospect.
St. 10. Its beams are of plum-tree, its ridge-pole of cassia ; A balustrade winds round it; many are its pillars ; About them spreads and rolls the fragrant smoke ; Cool and pure are the breezes and mists.
The Immortal officers come to their places * ; The Plumaged guests are found in its court‘, Numerous and at their ease,
They send down blessing, bright and efficacious.
St. 11. Most spirit-like, unfathomable,
(T4o’s) principles abide, with their symbolism attached >.
Loud is Its note, but never sound emits °,
Yet always it awakes the highest echoes.
From far and near men praise It ;
In the shades, and in the realms of light, they look up for Its aid ;
Reverently have we graven and gilt this stone
And made our lasting proclamation thereby to heaven and earth.
From far and near men praise It ;
In the shades, and in the realms of light, they look up for Its aid ;
Reverently have we graven and gilt this stone
And made our lasting proclamation thereby to heaven and earth.
' «The (sage) beneath the Pillar’ must be Lao-gze. See above in the Introductory notice, p. 313.
2 See the note on the meaning of the epithet Ik k, vol. xxxix, p. 40. 3 ‘The smoke,’ I suppose, ‘ of the incense, and from the offerings.’ * Taoist monks are called ‘Plumaged or Feathered Scholars (A -f),’
from the idea that by their discipline and pills, they can emancipate themselves from the trammels of the material body, and ascend (fly up) to heaven.
Arrived there, as Immortals or Hsien (filj). it further appears they were constituted into a hierarchy or society, of which some of them were ‘ officers,’ higher in rank than others.
5 An allusion to the text of the hexagrams of the Yi Xing, where the explanations of them by king Wan,—his th wan, are followed by the symbolism of their different lines by the duke of au,—his hsiang.
6 See the Téo Teh Xing, ch. xli, par. 2.
APPENDIX VIII.
RECORD FOR THE SACRIFICIAL HALL OF KWANG-8ZE. By SO SHIH}.
1. Kwang-3ze was a native (of the territory) of Mang and an officer in (the city of) K4#i-yiian. He had been dead for more than a thousand years, and no one had up to this time sacrificed to him in Mang. It was Wang King, the assistant Secretary of the Prefect, who superintended the erection of a Sacrificial Hall (to Kwang-3ze), and (when the building was finished) he applied to me for
1 The elder of two brothers, both famous as scholars, poets, and administrators in the history of their country, and sons of a father hardly less distinguished. The father (A. D. 1009-1066) was named Sf Hsiin 53 YA); with the designation of Ming-yun (BA He): and the two names of locality,
Lao-2hwan (x FR) and Mei-shan ( =] ily). Of the two brothers the elder (1036-1101), author of the notice here adduced, was the more celebrated. His name was Shih (ix). and his designation 9ze-dn (-F- 2) ; but he is more frequently styled Tung-pho (HE yp), from the situation of a house which he occupied at one time. His life was marked by several vicissitudes of the imperial favour which was shown to him and of the disgrace to which he was repeatedly subjected. He was versed in all Chinese literature, but the sincerity of his Confucianism has not been called in question.
His brother (1039-1112), by name Xeh (8), by designation 9ze-yi
-F- Hy): and by locality Ying-pin (8 We): has left us a commentary on the Tao Teh Xing, nearly the whole of which is given by 3ido Hung, under the several chapters. It seems to have been Xeh’s object to find a substantial unity under the different forms of Confucian, Buddhistic, and Taoist thought.
The short essay, for it is more an essay than ‘a record,’ which is here translated is appended by Sido Hung to his ‘Wings to Awang-3ze. It is hardly worthy of Shih’s reputation,
The short essay, for it is more an essay than ‘a record,’ which is here translated is appended by Sido Hung to his ‘Wings to Awang-3ze. It is hardly worthy of Shih’s reputation,
p. 321
‘a composition which might serve as a record of the event; (which I made as follows) :—
2. According to the Historical Records (of Sze-m4 Kien), Kwang-3ze lived in the time of the kings Hui of Liang (B. C. 370-333 [?])? and Hsiian of Ki (B.C. 332-314). There was no subject of study to which he did not direct his attention, but his preference was for the views of Lao-3ze ; and thus it was that of the books which he wrote, containing in all more than ten myriad characters, the greater part are metaphorical illustrations of those views. He made ‘The Old Fisherman, ‘The Robber Xih, and ‘The Cutting Open Satchels,’ to deride the followers of Confucius, and to set forth the principles of LAo-jze. (So writes Sze-ma Khien, but) his view is that of one who had only a superficial knowledge of Kwang-3ze. My idea is that Kwang wished to support the principles of Khung-jze, though we must not imitate him in the method which he took to do so. (I will illustrate my meaning by a case of a different kind):—A prince of XQ? was once hurrying away from the city in disguise?, when the gate-keeper refused to let him pass through. On this his servant threatened the prince with a switch, and reviled him, saying, ‘Slave, you have no strength!’ On seeing this, the gate-keeper allowed them to go out. The thing certainly took place in an irregular way, and the prince escaped by an inversion of what was right ;—he seemed openly to put himself in opposition, while he was secretly maintaining and supporting. If we think that his servant did not love the prince, our judgment will be wrong; if we think that his action was a model for imitation in serving a prince, in that also we shall be wrong. In the same way the words of Kwang-3ze are thrown out in a contradictory manner, with which the tenor of his writing does not agree. The correct interpre-
’ Compare vol. xxxix, pp. 36, 37, 39. Sze-m& zien enters king Hui’s death in this year. The ‘Bamboo Books’ place it sixteen years later, see ‘ The General Mirror of History,’ under the thirty-fifth year of king Hsien of KAu.
2 I suppose this incident is an invention of S@ Shih’s own. I have not met with it anywhere else. In 3ido’s text for the ‘in disguise’ of the translation, however, there is an error. He gives tie Ak instead of Tk AR. [40] Yp. 322 tation of them shows them to be far from any wish to defame Khung-jze.