Confucius went to call on Lao Tan. Lao Tan had just finished washing his hair and had spread it over his shoulders to dry. Utterly motionless, he did not even seem to be human.Go here to read the introductory post to the chapters of the Book of Chuang Tzu.
Confucius, hidden from sight, stood waiting, and then after some time presented himself and exclaimed, "Did my eves play tricks on me, or was that really true? A moment ago, Sir, your form and body seemed stiff as an old dead tree, as though you had forgotten things, taken leave of men, and were standing in solitude itself!"
Lao Tan said, "I was letting my mind wander in the Beginning of things."
"What does that mean?" asked Confucius.
"The mind may wear itself out but can never understand it; the mouth may gape but can never describe it. Nevertheless, I will try explaining it to you in rough outline.
"Perfect Yin is stern and frigid; Perfect Yang is bright and glittering. The sternness and frigidity come forth from heaven, the brightness and glitter emerge from the earth; the two mingle, penetrate, come together, harmonize, and all things are born therefrom. Perhaps someone manipulates the cords that draw it all together, but no one has ever seen his form.
"Decay, growth, fullness, emptiness, now murky, now bright, the sun shifting, the moon changing phase - day after day these things proceed, yet no one has seen him bringing them about. Life has its sproutings, death its destination, end and beginning tail one another in unbroken round, and no one has ever heard of their coming to a stop. If it is not as I have described it, then who else could the Ancestor of all this be?"
~ Burton Watson translation via Terebess Asia Online ~
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Chapter 21, Part 4A - Chuang Tzu
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
This confused me:
ReplyDelete"Perfect Yin is stern and frigid; Perfect Yang is bright and glittering. The sternness and frigidity come forth from heaven, the brightness and glitter emerge from the earth..."
It seemed backward...Martin Palmer translates as:
"Perfect Yin is harsh and cold, perfect yang is awesome and fiery. Harshness and coldness emanate from EARTH; awesomeness and fieriness emanate from HEAVEN."
Perhaps the Watson translation was mis-entered at its source. Minor point, but should be noted.
And even more confusing...
ReplyDeleteLegge translates:
"When the state of Yin was perfect, all was cold and severe; when the state of Yang was perfect, all was turbulent and agitated. The coldness and severity came forth from Heaven; the turbulence and agitation issued from Earth."
And my own teacher's workbook reads:
"Perfect Yin is killing and of coldness;Perfect Yang is lifeful and of warmness. That is killing and of coldness comes forth from heaven, that is lifeful and of warmness emerges from the earth."
I'm not sure I understand this "perfect yin, perfect yang" description. The development of the yin in the yang, the yang in the yin, in the beginning of things?
What do you think? Something to ask my teacher about next month.
Yet one more interpretation:
ReplyDelete'I was wandering', replied Lao Tzu, 'in the unborn.'
'What does that mean?' asked Confucius.
'My mind is trammelled', replied Lao Tzu, 'and I cannot know. My mouth is closed and I cannot speak. But I will try to tell you what is probably the truth.
'The perfect Negative principle is majestically passive. The perfect Positive principle is powerfully active. Passivity emanates from heaven above; activity proceeds from earth beneath. The interaction of the two results in that harmony by which all things are produced.