The Writings of Chuang Tzu (Inner Chapters) · 31 of 57 · tr. James Legge

Book 126 (part 9)

All men know the advantage of being useful, but no one knows the advantage of being useless.' Footnotes 203:1 See pp.

131, 132.

2 The favourite disciple of Confucius, styled also Dze-yüan.

3 Of course, Confucius;--his designation or married name.

4 A feudal state, embracing portions of the present provinces of Ho-nan, Kih-lî, and Shan-tung.

There was another state, which we must also call Wei in English, though the Chinese characters of them are different;--one of the fragments of the great state of Zin, more to the west.

5 At this time the marquis Yüan, known to us by his posthumous title of duke Ling;--see Book XXV, 9.

6 Adopting Lin's reading of instead of the common .

1 Compare in the Analects, VIII, xiii, 2, where a different lesson is given; but Confucius may at another time have spoken as Hui says.

1 The tyrant with whom the dynasty of Hsiâ ended.

2 A worthy minister of Kieh.

3 The tyrant with whom the dynasty of Shang or Yin ended.

4 A half-brother of Kâu, the tyrant of the Yin dynasty.

1 See in par.

7, Book II, where Hsü-âo is mentioned, though not Zhung-kih.

See the Shû, III, ii.

2 I take here as = ;--a meaning given in the Khang-hsî dictionary.

1 Entirely unsophisticated, governed by the Tâo.

2 See the Lî Kî, XI, ii, 16, 11.

1 The term is emphatic, as Confucius goes on to explain.

2 Such as onions and garlic, with horse, dog, cow, goose, and pigeon.

1 The character in the text for 'spirit' here is , 'the breath.' 209:2 The Tâo.

3 'Said;' probably, after having made trial of this fasting.

1 Often spoken of as Fo-hî, the founder of the Chinese kingdom.

His place in chronology should be assigned to him more than B.C.

rather than under that date.

2 A predecessor of Fû-hsî, a sovereign of the ancient paradisiacal time.

3 The name of Sheh remains in Sheh-hsien, a district of the department Nan-yang, Ho-nan.

Its governor, who is the subject of this narrative, was a Shän Kû-liang, styled dze-kâo.

He was p.

not a duke, but as the counts of Khû had usurped the name of king, they gave high-sounding names to all their ministers and officers.

1 Or, 'according to the Tâo.' 211:2 As a criminal; punished by his sovereign.

3 Anxiety 'night and day,' or 'cold and hot' fits of trouble;--a peculiar usage of Yin Yang.

1 The Ming of the text here is that in the first sentence of the Kung Yung.

1 Probably a Collection of Directions current at the time; and which led to the name of Yang Hsiung's Treatise with the same name in our first century.

2 See the Shih, II, vii, 6.

1 See above, on preceding page.

Related passages · 1 parallel

◆buddhism|Vajrakkhedika (Diamond Cutter)|Section 1p

“If, O Subhûti, there existed a stock of merit, the Tathâgata would not have preached: "A stock of merit, a stock of merit indeed!"'(19) XX. 'What do you think then, O Subhûti, is a Tathâgata to be seen (known) by the shape of his visible b…”

Both passages explore the concept of transcending conventional understanding and the limitations of language and perception in describing ultimate reality or the Tao/Buddha nature. They emphasize the idea that what is taught is not to be taken literally but as a means to understand a deeper, more profound truth.