Zhuangzi

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Zhuāngzǐ (pinyin), Chuang Tzŭ (Wade-Giles), Chuang Tsu, Zhuang Tze, or Chuang Tse (Traditional Chinese characters: 莊子; Simplified Chinese characters: 庄子, literally meaning "Master Zhuang") was a famous philosopher in ancient China who lived around the 4th century BCE during the Warring States Period, corresponding to the Hundred Schools of Thought philosophical summit of Chinese thought.

Zhuangzi allegedly lived during the reign of King Hui of Liang and King Xuan of Qi, in the span from 370 to 301 BCE. (See Chinese martial arts.) Zhuangzi was from the Town of Meng (蒙城 Méng Chéng) in the State of Song (now Shāngqiū 商邱, Henan). His given name was 周 Zhōu. He was also known as 蒙吏, Méng Official, 蒙莊 Méng Zhuāng and 蒙叟 Méng Elder.

Contents

[edit] The book

The Daoist book Zhuangzi (莊子) was named after the author. Since 742 CE, when Emperor Xuanzong of Tang mandated honorific titles for Daoist texts, it has also been known as the Nan hua zhen jing (南華真經), literally meaning "True Classic of Southern (Cultural) Florescence," alluding to the tradition that Zhuangzi came from South China.

The text is a composite of writings from various sources. The traditional view is that Zhuangzi himself wrote the first seven chapters (the "inner chapters") and his students and related thinkers were responsible for the other parts (the "outer" and "miscellaneous" chapters). Strong proof of direct authorship by Zhuangzi of any of the text is difficult. The recension by Guo Xiang is the basis for practically all extant editions of the Zhuangzi.

Nevertheless, the inner chapters have great grammatical and conceptual coherence. We can be fairly sure that they were primarily written by one hand, even if not by Zhuangzi himself. It should also be noted that Zhuangzi has been categorized as a "Daoist" by the Chinese tradition, but especially in the inner chapters, he stands out from the rest. He also writes comparatively little about Dao in the inner chapters of the work, even less than Mencius and other prominent Confucians. As A. C. Graham noted, "Zhuangzi never knew he was a Daoist".

[edit] The beliefs

In general, Zhuangzi's philosophy is mildly skeptical, arguing that our life is limited and things to know are unlimited. To use the limited to pursue the unlimited, he said, was foolish. Our language and cognition in general presuppose a dao to which each of us is committed by our separate past—our paths. Consequently, we should be aware that our most carefully considered conclusions might seem misguided had we experienced a different past. "Our heart-minds are completed along with our bodies." Natural dispositions to behavior combine with acquired ones--including dispositions to use names of things, to approve/disapprove based on those names and to act in accordance to the embodied standards. Thinking about and choosing our next step down our dao or path is conditioned by this unique set of natural acquisitions.

Zhuangzi's thought can also be considered a precursor of multiculturalism and pluralism of systems of value. His pluralism even leads him to doubt the basis of pragmatic arguments (that a course of action preserves our lives) since this presupposes that life is good and death bad. In the fourth section of "The Great Happiness" (至樂 zhìlè, the eighteenth chapter of the book), Zhuangzi expresses pity to a skull he sees lying at the side of the road. Zhuangzi laments that the skull is now dead, but the skull retorts, "How do you know it's bad to be dead?"

Another example points out that there is no universal standard of beauty. This is taken from the chapter "On Arranging Things", also called "Discussion of Setting Things Right" or, in Burton Watson's translation, "Discussion on Making All Things Equal" (齊物論 qí wù lùn, the second chapter of the book):

Mao Qiang and Li Ji [two beautiful courtesans] are what people consider beautiful, but if fish see them they will swim into the depths; if birds see them, they will fly away into the air; if deer see them, they will gallop away. Among these four, who knows what is rightly beautiful in the world?

However, this subjectivism is balanced by a kind of sensitive holism in the conclusion of the section called "What Fish Enjoy" (魚之樂, yúzhīlè). The names have been changed to pinyin romanization for consistency:

Zhuangzi and Huizi were strolling along the dam of the Hao Waterfall when Zhuangzi said, "See how the minnows come out and dart around where they please! That's what fish really enjoy!"
Huizi said, "You're not a fish — how do you know what fish enjoy?"
Zhuangzi said, "You're not I, so how do you know I don't know what fish enjoy?"
Huizi said, "I'm not you, so I certainly don't know what you know. On the other hand, you're certainly not a fish — so that still proves you don't know what fish enjoy!"
Zhuangzi said, "Let's go back to your original question, please. You asked me how I know what fish enjoy — so you already knew I knew it when you asked the question. I know it by standing here beside the Hao."

Autumn Floods section XVII, translated Burton Watson

Another well-known part of the book is also found in the chapter "On Arranging Things". This section, which is usually called "Zhuangzi dreamed he was a butterfly" (莊周夢蝶 Zhuāng Zhōu mèng dié), relates that one night Zhuangzi dreamed that he was a carefree butterfly flying happily. After he woke up, he wondered how he could determine whether he was Zhuangzi who had just finished dreaming he was a butterfly, or a butterfly who had just started dreaming he was Zhuangzi. It hints at many questions in the philosophy of mind, philosophy of language, and epistemology. The name of the passage has become a common Chinese idiom, and has spread into Western languages as well, appearing, inter alia, as an illustration in a famous essay by Jorge Luis Borges entitled "A New Refutation of Time." Zhuangzi's philosophy was very influential in the development of Chinese Buddhism, especially Chan, and Zen which evolved out of Chan. Zhuangzi's points about the limitations of language and the importance of being spontaneous, in particular, were strongly influential in the development of Chan.

[edit] Anarchism

To put it lightly, Zhuang zi didn't want people to affiliate themselves with government. According to Murray Rothbard, Zhuangzi was "perhaps the world's first anarchist"; Zhuangzi said, the world "does not need governing; in fact it should not be governed," and, "Good order results spontaneously when things are let alone." Rothbard says Zhuangzi was the first to work out the idea of spontaneous order, before Proudhon and Hayek.[1]

[edit] Translations

The Zhuangzi text is widely regarded as both deeply insightful in thought and as an achievement of the Chinese poetical essay form. It uses the Chinese language in complex, multi-layered, and often playful ways, and is notoriously difficult to translate. Nevertheless, some sinologists have tried. There are complete English translations of all thirty-three chapters by Frederic Balfour, James Legge, Herbert Giles, James Ware, Burton Watson, Martin Palmer, Victor H. Mair, and Wang Rongpei. There are selected translations of the seven "inner chapters" by Fung Yu-lan, Burton Watson, Gia-Fu Feng, A. C. Graham, Thomas Cleary, and David Hinton. There are interpretations of selected Zhuangzi passages by Thomas Merton and Brian Bruya. Graham's is, to date, the most academically thorough, but Watson's is highly praised for its poetic style. Mair's translation also has its highlights, including his decision to translate the poetic parts of the text into English poetry.

[edit] References

  • Balfour, Frederic Henry (translator). (1881). The Divine Classic of Nan-Hua; Being the Works of Chuang Tsze, Taoist Philosopher. Shanghai: Kelly & Walsh.
  • Bruya, Brian (translator). (1992). Zhuangzi Speaks: The Music of Nature. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-00882-5.
  • Cleary, Thomas (translator). (1992). The Essential Tao: An Initiation into the Heart of Taoism Through the Authentic Tao Te Ching and the Inner Teachings of Chuang-Tzu. HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN 0-06-250177-1 (one of several)
  • Feng, Gia-Fu and English, Jane (translators). (1974). Chuang Tsu: Inner Chapters. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 394719905.
  • Fung, Yu-lan (translator). (1933). Chuang-tzǔ: a new selected translation with an exposition of the philosophy of Kuo Hsiang. Shanghai: The Commercial Press. Reprint: 1964. A Taoist Classic: Chuang-Tzu. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press. ISBN 7-119-00104-3.
  • Giles, Herbert Allen (translator). (1926). Chuang Tzǔ: Mystic, Moralist, and Social Reformer. Shanghai: Kelly & Walsh. Reprint: 1974. New York: AMS Press. ISBN 404569153.
  • Graham, A. C. (translator). (1981). Chuang-tzǔ: The Seven Inner Chapters and other writings from the book Chuang-tzǔ. London: George Allen & Unwin. ISBN 0-04-299010-6. Reprint: 2001. Chuang-tzǔ: The Inner Chapters. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc. ISBN 0-87220-582-7; ISBN 0-87220-581-9 (paper).
  • Hinton, David. (1997). Chuang Tzu: the Inner Chapters. New York: Counterpoint. ISBN 1-887178-34-1.
  • Legge, James (translator). (1891). The Sacred Books of China: The Texts of Taoism, Part I. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Reprint: 1962. New York: Dover Publications. ISBN 486209903. Reprint: 1971. Waltham, Clae (editor). Chuang Tzu: Genius of the Absurd. New York: Ace Books.
  • Mair, Victor H. (translator). (1994). Wandering on the Way: Early Taoist Tales and Parables of Chuang Tzu. New York: Bantam Books. ISBN 0-553-37406-0.
  • Merton, Thomas. (1969). The Way of Chuang Tzu. New York: New Directions.
  • Palmer, Martin et al. (translators). (1996). The Book of Chuang Tzu. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-019488-6.
  • Wang Rongpei (translator). (1999). Zhuangzi (Library of Chinese Classics: Chinese-English edition). Beijing: Foreign Languages Press. ISBN 7-5438-2087-0.
  • Ware, James R. (translator). (1963). The Sayings of Chuang Chou. New York: Mentor Classics.
  • Watson, Burton (translator). (1964). Chuang Tzu: Basic Writings. New York: Columbia University Press. Reprint: 1996. ISBN 0-231-08606-7; ISBN 0-231-10595-9 (paper).
  • Watson, Burton (translator). (1968). The Complete Works of Chuang Tzu. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 231031475.

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Rothbard, Murray. Concepts of the Role of Intellectuals in Social Change Toward Laissez Faire, The Journal of Libertarian Studies, Vol IX No. 2 (Fall 1990)

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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