"The gentleman should be among the wood geese, and the saint should have the change of the dragon and snake. "It's what Zhuangzi said, telling people what rules of life they need to learn to live in the world in order to be handy?
In fact, the two sentences "the gentleman should be between the wood and the goose" and "the sage should have the change of the dragon and snake" are from Zhuangzi's "Mountains and Trees", and the article mainly writes many stories about the difficulties and troubles of the world, advocating self-emptiness and inaction. Today is a key analysis of what was written in the first part.
Let's look at the original text first, as follows:
Zhuangzi walked in the mountains, and saw that the branches and leaves of the big trees were luxuriant, and the loggers stopped beside them and did not take them. When asked why, he said, "Nothing." Zhuangzi said: "This wood is not good for all its days." "The Master came out of the mountain, and gave up to the house of the deceased. The old man was happy, and ordered the erector to kill the goose and cook it. The erector asked: "One of them can sing, and the other can't, please taunt it?"The master said, "Kill those who can't speak." ”
Tomorrow, ** asked Zhuangzi and said: "Yesterday's wood in the mountains will end its days without material, and now the master's goose will die without wood;."Where will the sir be?”
Zhuangzi smiled and said: "Zhou will be between material and non-material." Between the material and the non-material, it seems to be not also, so it is inevitably tiring. If the husband floats by morality, it is not, there is no reputation, a dragon and a snake, keeping pace with the times, and there is no willingness;One up and down, with the sum as the quantity, floating in the ancestor of all things, things but not things, then Hu Ke and tired!This Shennong and the Yellow Emperor's law is also. If the love of all things is passed on, it is not. If you merge, you will separate, and if you succeed, you will destroy;If you are honest, you will be frustrated, if you are respectful, if you are promising, if you are virtuous, if you are not good, you will be bullied, and you will get it!Sad husband!**Zhizhi, its only moral hometown!”
Looking at the modern translation, it is as follows:
As Zhuangzi walked through the mountains, he saw a large tree with lush branches and leaves, and the loggers stayed by the tree but did not cut it down. Ask them what the reason is, and say, "It's useless." Zhuangzi said, "This tree can enjoy its longevity because it does not become a tree!"Zhuangzi went out of the mountains and stayed at a friend's house. His friend was glad and told the boy servant to kill the goose and entertain him. The boy servant asked his master, "One can only scream, but the other can't, which one will you kill?"The master said, "Kill the one who can't scream." ”
The next day, ** asked Zhuangzi: "Yesterday I met the big tree in the mountain, because it did not become a tree and could enjoy the whole life, and now the owner's goose was killed because it did not become a tree;What will you do about it, sir??”
Zhuangzi smiled: "I will be in the middle of becoming a finished product and not being a finished product. Between the finished and the ungrown, it seems to be in harmony with the avenue but not really in harmony with the avenue, so this cannot be free from restraint and fatigue. This is not the case if you can play freely in accordance with nature. There is no praise and no denigration, sometimes soaring like a dragon and sometimes stinging like a snake, changing with the passage of time, and not wanting to be stuck in one aspect;Sometimes enterprising and sometimes retreating, everything is measured by conformity, living in the initial state of all things contentedly, enslaving external things, but not being enslaved by external things, so how can you be bound and tired by external things?This is the principle of Shennong and the Yellow Emperor. As for the true feelings of all things, human Xi is not like this. There is aggregation and segregation, and there is success and destructionSharp edges and corners will be frustrated, Zun Xian will be overturned, promising will be lost, virtuous will be calculated, and incompetent will also be bullied, how can you be stuck in a certain aspect!Pathetic!**Remember, I'm afraid you can only return to nature!”
This part mainly tells the stories of the different situations of wood and geese (geese), as well as the transformation of dragons and snakes, to warn people about the rules of life and workplace, so that people can understand the complexity and helplessness of the world, and tell us that we must recognize people with a discerning eye and respond flexibly in order to survive the fittest.
From the above short stories of the situation, it shows that Zhuangzi's education method is very natural, it is an instant generation of teaching, and the material is very vivid and effective. "The gentleman should be among the wood geese, and the saint should have the change of the dragon and snake. A metaphor is used to describe how to deal with emergencies in society.
Among them, "between wood geese" refers to finding a balance between hard and soft, persistence and compromise. Wood represents hardness and perseverance, while geese represent softness and adaptation to the times. In society, people need to be both firm in their principles and flexible in responding to change. If it's too hard, it's easy to break, and if it's too soft, it's easy to break. Therefore, a gentleman should learn to be able to adapt to changes in the environment and live in harmony with others while sticking to his own values and principles.
The "change of the dragon and snake" means that the saint should be like the dragon and the snake, able to adapt and change endlessly. The dragon represents majesty, strength, and nobility, and the snake represents flexibility, alertness, and humility. In society, a saint should be able to be as majestic and inviolable as a dragon and adhere to moral principles;At the same time, they should be as agile as a snake and be able to cope with complex situations and challenges.
These short stories teach people that in society they need to learn how to balance and change in order to be handy. It is necessary to adhere to one's principles and values, but also to adapt to changes in the environment and live in harmony with others;It is necessary to maintain majesty and strength, but also to respond flexibly and tactfully to various challenges.
Doing nothing is a natural way of living. "Doing nothing" is a philosophical idea that emphasizes that human behavior should conform to nature, not forcibly interfere, and not deliberately pursue results. This idea holds that human behavior should flow naturally like water, rather than being forcibly blocked like a stone.
In the idea of "doing nothing", human behavior should conform to the laws of nature and the essence of life, rather than go against them. For example, one should follow the terrain like water, rather than forcibly changing the direction of a river. In the same way, one should grow naturally like a tree, rather than forcibly distorting one's own growth direction.
This kind of thinking emphasizes the natural way of life, that is, human behavior should conform to the essence of life and the laws of nature. It believes that true freedom and happiness can only be achieved when human behavior conforms to the laws of nature.
However, "doing nothing" is not a passive, inactive attitude. Rather, it is a positive attitude that emphasizes the need to actively pursue one's goals and ideals while conforming to nature. It believes that only when human behavior conforms to the laws of nature can one truly realize one's own value and meaning.
In short, "doing nothing" is a philosophical idea that emphasizes that human behavior should conform to nature, not forcibly interfere, and not deliberately pursue results. This idea holds that true freedom and happiness can only be achieved when human behavior conforms to the laws of nature.