The Revolution of Heaven

The Revolution of Heaven

"Does heaven revolve? Does the earth stand still? Do the sun and moon struggle for their positions? Who directs all this? Who holds it together? Who, doing nothing, sets it in motion? Is there some mechanism that makes it unavoidable? Or does it turn and turn and cannot stop itself? Do the clouds make the rain, or does the rain make the clouds? Who sends them forth and causes them to pour? Who, doing nothing, takes such wanton delight in bringing this about? The wind rises in the north—now west, now east—wandering above. Who breathes it out and makes it blow? Who, doing nothing, stirs it to flutter? I venture to ask the reason."

Wu Xian Chao said, "Come! I will tell you. Heaven has the six extremes and the five constants. If emperors and kings follow them, there is order; if there oppose them, there is calamity. When the affairs of the nine Luo are carried through, order is achieved and virtue is complete, shining down upon all below, and the world bears them up. This is called the Supreme Sovereign."

The Grand Minister of Shang, Dang, asked Zhuangzi about benevolence. Zhuangzi said, "The tiger and the wolf—they have benevolence." Dang said, "What do you mean?" Zhuangzi said, "When father and son are affectionate toward each other, how can that be called lacking in benevolence?" Dang said, "May I ask about Perfect Benevolence?" Zhuangzi said, "Perfect Benevolence is without partial affection." The Grand Minister said, "I have heard it said: 'Without partial affection, there is no love; without love, there is no filial piety.' Can you say that Perfect Benevolence is unfilial?" Zhuangzi said, "No. Perfect Benevolence is the highest thing. Filial piety is hardly adequate to describe it. This is not a statement that goes beyond filial piety—it is one that fails to reach it. A man traveling south reaches Ying, yet when he turns north he cannot see Mount Ming. Why is this? Because he has gone far away from it. Therefore it is said: To practice filial piety through respect is easy; to practice it through love is difficult. To practice it through love is easy; to forget one's parents is difficult. To forget one's parents is easy; to make one's parents forget oneself is difficult. To make one's parents forget oneself is easy; to forget the whole world is difficult. To forget the whole world is easy; to make the whole world forget oneself is difficult. Virtue leaves Yao and Shu behind, yet they did nothing about it. Benefits and blessings extend to ten thousand generations, yet the world does not know it. How could one simply sigh and talk of benevolence and filial piety? Filial piety, brotherly duty, benevolence, righteousness, loyalty, good faith, fidelity, and integrity—these are all means by which one forces oneself and labors one's virtue. They are not worth much. Therefore it is said: The most precious thing—the state's titles are all cast away in it. The richest thing—the state's wealth is all cast away in it. The most satisfying thing—the state's fame is all cast away in it. For this reason, the Way does not change."

Bei Men Cheng asked the Yellow Emperor, "When you performed the Xianchi music on the wilds of Dongting, at first I heard it and was alarmed, then I heard it and grew weary, and at the end I heard it and was bewildered. I was lost in confusion and silence and could not find myself." The Yellow Emperor said, "You are very nearly right! I performed it through human means, brought it into accord with Heaven, conducted it through ritual and righteousness, and established it through Supreme Purity. [The perfect music first responds to human affairs, follows the principles of Heaven, accords with what is natural, then harmonizes the four seasons and brings the great harmony to the ten thousand things.] The four seasons arise in succession, the ten thousand things follow one another in birth, now flourishing, now declining, in civil and martial patterns, now clear, now turbid, the yin and yang in harmony, their flowing radiance in the sound. The hibernating insects begin to stir. I startled them with thunder and lightning, yet it had no ending and no beginning, now dying, now living, now falling, now rising, constant in its inexhaustibility, yet never to be grasped as one. That is why you were alarmed. Then I performed it through the harmony of yin and yang, illumined it with the brightness of the sun and moon. The sound could be short or long, soft or hard. Its transformations were unified, not clinging to the old and familiar. In the valleys it filled the valleys, in the pits it filled the pits. It guarded the spirit and filled every crevice, measuring itself to each thing. The sound was free and expansive, its name lofty and bright. Therefore ghosts and spirits kept to their darkness, the sun, moon, and stars followed their courses. I stopped it where it had an end and let it flow where it had no stopping. You wished to ponder it but could not understand it, wished to gaze upon it but could not see it, wished to pursue it but could not overtake it. You stood helplessly at the crossroads of the four directions, leaning on a withered tree trunk and murmuring: 'My eyes failed to see all I wished to see, my strength failed to reach all I wished to pursue—I have already failed, that is all!' Your body filled empty space, and at last you gave yourself up to yielding. That yielding—that is why you grew weary. Then I performed it with a sound free from weariness, tuned it to the mandate of what is natural. So it was like a wild rush of growth, like the music of the forests yet without form, spreading and waving yet without dragging, dark and silent yet without sound. It moved from no fixed direction, dwelt in the dim and the obscure. Some called it death, some called it life, some called it substance, some called it glory. It flowed and scattered and wandered, never keeping to a constant sound. The world doubted it and referred it to the sage. The sage is one who penetrates the true nature of things and fulfills his destiny. When the mechanism of Heaven is not set in motion, yet all the five faculties are complete—this is called Heaven's Music: the heart rejoiced without words. Therefore the You Yan Shi made a hymn for it: 'Listen for it and you do not hear its sound; look for it and you do not see its form; it fills all of heaven and earth and wraps up the six extremes.' You wished to listen for it but had nothing to catch hold of—that is why you were bewildered. The music began with alarm, and because of alarm it seemed uncanny. Then I followed it with weariness, and because of weariness it seemed to slip away. At last it ended in bewilderment, and because of bewilderment it seemed like foolishness. Foolishness is the Way. The Way can be carried within you and you can join it."

# Confucius Travels West

Confucius traveled west to Wei. Yan Yuan asked Shi Jin, "What do you think of the Master's conduct?" Shi Jin said, "Alas! Your Master is headed for trouble!" Yan Yuan asked, "Why?" Shi Jin said, "Before the straw dogs are set out for the sacrifice, they are stored in a casket, wrapped in embroidered cloth, and the priest fasts and purifies himself in order to present them. After they have been presented, passersby trample their heads and backs, and grass-gatherers pick them up and take them home to burn for cooking. If they were to be taken back and stored in a casket, wrapped in embroidered cloth, and people were to stroll and sleep beneath them, those people would not only fail to have good dreams but would certainly suffer nightmares. Now your Master is taking the straw dogs of the former kings and gathering his disciples to stroll and sleep beneath them. That is why he was attacked and had his tree cut down in Song, why his tracks were erased in Wei, and why he found himself trapped in Shang and Zhou — was this not his nightmare? Surrounded between Chen and Cai, seven days without cooked food, with death and life pressing close — was this not his nightmare?

"For traveling on water, nothing is better than a boat; for traveling on land, nothing is better than a cart. If you try to push a boat on land because it moves well in water, it will never move an inch in all the days of the world. Are not past and present like water and land? Are not Zhou and Lu like boat and cart? Now if you try to make Zhou's ways work in Lu, this is just like pushing a boat on land — exhausting labor with nothing to show for it, and certain disaster for the person himself. He does not understand the transmission of the boundless, which responds to things and never reaches an impasse.

"Have you never seen a well-sweep? Pull it down and it goes down; let it go and it goes up. The well-sweep is pulled by a person; it does not pull a person. So it goes up and down without offending anyone. Therefore, the rituals, laws, and standards of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors did not prize sameness but prized good government. So the rituals, laws, and standards of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors may be compared to pears, citrus, oranges, and grapefruits — their flavors are all different, but all are pleasing to the palate. Therefore, rituals and laws should change with the times. Now if you dress a monkey in the robes of the Duke of Zhou, it will bite and tear them, ripping everything off until it is satisfied. Looking at the difference between past and present is just like the difference between a monkey and the Duke of Zhou.

"Once, Xi Shi had a heart ailment and frowned in her village. An ugly woman in the village saw this and thought it beautiful. Returning home, she too held her heart and frowned. When the wealthy men of the village saw it, they firmly shut their doors and would not come out. When the poor men saw it, they took their wives and children and ran away. She knew that frowning was beautiful, but she did not understand why it was beautiful. Alas! Your Master is headed for trouble!"

# Confucius Visits Laozi

Confucius, in his fifty-first year, had still not heard the Way. He went south to Pei and visited Laozi. Laozi said, "You have come! I have heard that you are a worthy man from the north. Have you attained the Way?" Confucius said, "I have not." Laozi said, "How did you seek it?" Confucius said, "I sought it in the numerical standards and laws, and after five years I had not attained it." Laozi said, "How else did you seek it?" Confucius said, "I sought it in yin and yang, and after twelve years I still had not attained it." Laozi said, "Just so. If the Way could be offered as a gift, then everyone would offer it to their ruler. If the Way could be presented, then everyone would present it to their parents. If the Way could be told to others, then everyone would tell it to their brothers. If the Way could be given to others, then everyone would give it to their children and grandchildren. But it cannot be done — and there is no other reason for this: if there is no inner master, the Way will not stay; if there is no outer confirmation, the Way will not proceed. What comes from within and is not received from without — the sage does not let it go out. What comes from without and has no master within — the sage does not let it stay hidden. Name is a public vessel and cannot be appropriated in excess. Benevolence and righteousness are like the temporary shelters of the former kings — one may stay a single night but not dwell long; to be seen there brings heavy reproach.

"The men of ancient times who had attained the Way borrowed the path of benevolence, lodged temporarily in righteousness, and wandered in the realm of free and easy roaming. They fed themselves from fields of careless simplicity and stood in the garden of non-lending. Free and easy roaming means doing nothing. Careless simplicity means being easy to nourish. Non-lending means giving nothing out. The ancients called this the roaming of gathering genuineness.

"Those who take wealth as their goal cannot yield emolument. Those who take prominence as their goal cannot yield fame. Those who are intimate with power cannot hand over authority. Grasping it brings anxiety; letting it go brings sorrow. And yet they have no insight into what they cannot stop pursuing — these are the punished people of Heaven. Resentment, gratitude, taking, giving, remonstrance, instruction, giving life, and taking life — these eight are the instruments of proper governance. Only one who follows the great transformations and lets none of them stagnate can use them well. Therefore it is said: 'To govern is to set things right.' But if one's heart does not believe this, the gate of Heaven will not open."

# Confucius Speaks of Benevolence and Righteousness

Confucius visited Laozi and spoke of benevolence and righteousness. Laozi said, "When chaff dust gets in your eyes, heaven and earth and the four directions seem to change places. When mosquitoes and gnats bite your skin, you cannot sleep all night. The harshness of benevolence and righteousness startles my heart — there is nothing more disorderly than that! If you would keep the world from losing its original simplicity, you too could move with the wind and stand firm in virtue. Why must you make such a show of yourself, beating a drum and searching for a lost child? The swan does not bathe every day and yet is white; the crow does not blacken itself every day and yet is black. The original simplicity of black and white is not worth disputing; the display of fame and reputation is not worth expanding. When a spring dries up, the fish are left stranded on land. They moisten each other with breath and wet each other with saliva — but it would be far better for them to forget each other in the rivers and lakes."

When Confucius returned from visiting Laozi, he did not speak for three days. His disciples asked, "Master, when you visited Laozi, what did you offer him by way of correction?" Confucius said, "Only now have I seen the dragon! The dragon coalesces into a body and disperses into patterns. It rides upon the clouds and nourishes itself on yin and yang. My mouth gaped open and could not close. How could I presume to offer Laozi correction?"

Zigong said, "Then are there indeed people who sit still like a corpse yet manifest like a dragon, who are silent like the deep yet resound like thunder, whose movements resemble heaven and earth? Might I, Zigong, be permitted to see such a one?" He then went to visit Laozi, using Confucius's name as introduction. Laozi was just sitting in a dignified posture in the upper hall and responded in a faint voice, "The years have passed me by, and I have grown old. What admonition would you offer me?"

Zigong said, "The Three Kings and the Five Emperors governed the world in different ways, yet they were equal in the fame they earned. And yet, Sir, you alone refuse to regard them as sages. How can this be?"

Laozi said, "Come a little closer, young man! Why do you say they governed differently?"

Zigong replied, "Yao passed the throne to Shun, and Shun passed it to Yu. Yu used physical force, while Tang used military conquest. King Wen submitted to Zhou and dared not oppose him, while King Wu defied Zhou and refused to submit. Therefore I say they governed differently."

Laozi said, "Come a little closer, and I will tell you about the Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors and how they governed the world. The Yellow Emperor governed the world by making the people's hearts unified. When a person's parents died and they did not weep, the people did not condemn it. Yao governed the world by making the people's hearts devoted to kinship. When people showed partiality toward their own parents, the people did not condemn it. Shun governed the world by making the people's hearts competitive. Women carried their pregnancies for ten months and gave birth, and the children could speak at five months—before they could even smile, they were already distinguishing one person from another. And so people began to die young. Yu governed the world by making the people's hearts changeable. People developed private intentions, and military force came to be seen as justified. Killing a bandit was not seen to be killing a man. Each person formed his own faction and set himself apart from the rest of the world. As a result, the whole world was thrown into great alarm, and the schools of the Ru and the Mo arose. What began with some principle has come to this—women and children! What can I say? Let me tell you: the Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors, in what they called governing, brought about nothing but the greatest disorder! The wisdom of the Three Sovereigns obscured the brightness of the sun and moon above, severed the essence of the mountains and rivers below, and disrupted the operation of the four seasons in between. Their knowledge was more venomous than the sting of a scorpion or the bite of a fierce beast. Those who could not find peace in the true nature of their lives—and yet they still presumed to call themselves sages! Are they not shameful? They are utterly shameless!"

Zigong stood uneasily, unable to find rest on his feet.

Confucius said to Laozi, "I, Qiu, have studied the six classics—the *Odes*, the *Documents*, the *Rites*, the *Music*, the *Changes*, and the *Spring and Autumn Annals*. I have long considered myself thoroughly acquainted with them and have understood their principles. I have presented them to seventy-two rulers, expounding the ways of the former kings and illuminating the achievements of the Duke of Zhou and the Duke of Shao. And yet not a single ruler has found anything to adopt. How very difficult it is to persuade people! Or is it that the Way is difficult to make clear?"

Laozi said, "It is fortunate that you have not met a ruler who could govern an age! The six classics are the worn-out traces of the former kings—how could they be that by which the traces were made? What you speak of now are traces. Traces are what the foot leaves behind—but traces are not the foot itself! When white herons gaze upon each other, their eyes are still and transformation takes place. Among insects, the male calls from upwind and the female answers from downwind, and transformation takes place. There are beings that are both male and female in themselves, and so transformation occurs. Nature cannot be altered; fate cannot be changed; the seasons cannot be stopped; the Way cannot be blocked. If one attains the Way, there is nothing that cannot be done. If one loses it, there is nothing that can be done."

Confucius did not go out. After three months he visited again and said, "I, Qiu, have understood it. Crows and magpies are hatched by being brooded upon; fish conceive by the transmission of mites; the slender-waisted wasp transforms its grub. When there is a younger brother, the elder brother cries. For a long time, I, Qiu, have not been one who transforms with others! If one does not transform with others, how can one transform them?"

Laozi said, "Well done, Qiu! You have understood it!"