• Southern Ch’u & Taoism
• Taoism from the south
• Chuang Tzu (350-275 BCE)
• A typical Taoist history
• Chuang Tzu, the man
• Chuang Tzu, the book
• Dispelling some Myths
• An example of Chuang Tzu Humor
• Holding fast to the source
• Chuang Tzu model for The Journey
• Mirrors & Chuang Tzu

Chapter 41: Chuang Tzu

Southern Ch’u & Taoism

Back to our talk about boundaries. The power of the state emanated from the center. Because of this the boundaries were not fixed. The rulers were more concerned with exerting an influence than in protecting borders. They were more interested in their sphere of influence than in establishing boundaries. Thus as the Chou political influence splintered its cultural influence still spread.

Typical Bronze Age culture spreads where there is agriculture

The Chou culture was a typical Bronze Age Culture with a military aristocracy atop an agricultural peasantry. Hence its cultural influence could only spread where there was an agricultural population to dominate. Thus the dominant military political technology spread easily into the Yangtze River Valley of Central China. Indeed wherever agriculture existed, the Chou political technology spread whether or not ruled by the Chou, Thus the splintering diminished the centralized power of the Chou while simultaneously spreading the dominant Chinese culture of the Central Kingdom throughout agricultural China.

While the ‘semi-barbarous’ Ch’in was swallowing up states in northern China, the partially sinicized state of Ch’u was exerting an increasing control upon Central China to the south.

“A huge area of Central China was under the domination of the southward-looking and only partly sinicized state of Ch'u.”[1]

While the state of Ch’u had cultural roots further south, they were still Chinese because their rulers participated in the dominant military aristocracy of the Middle Kingdom, which included the literacy and culture of the powerful Chinese ideograms, which included the I Ching and the Chinese Classics with their pervasive Confucian influence.

Indeed the only times that boundaries were drawn were for defense. Hence boundaries are perceived as a limitation of vision rather than as a definition of territory. Thus while the Chinese culture based upon the military aristocracy easily spread into agricultural areas because of the sedentary nature of agriculture, it did not easily spread into areas dominated by nomadic cultures. Because agriculture was virtually impossible in the arid steppes to the north of China, the sinofication of the north did not occur in the same way it occurred to the south. Thus as always the sedentary agricultural peasantry was easy to subdue and assimilate, while the nomads of the steppes were difficult to subdue and hence difficult to assimilate.

While the Ch’in learned the new military technology from the nomads, the nomads did not learn Chinese culture from the Ch’in. As Ch’in began dominating the states of the Yellow River, the Ch’u state began absorbing the south. The centralized structure of the Ch’in allowed them to irrigate the plains of the Yellow River, which yielded great prosperity. Before the rising menace of the Ch’in, Ch’u had been the cultural center of China, in terms of the arts, including poetry and the visual arts.

“Until Ch’in rose menacing in the west, Ch’u had been secure, and in the lush valleys of the Yangtze and its tributaries had developed a rich culture in which poetry and visual art flourished exceedingly. So vigorous indeed, was Ch’u culture that even after Ch’in sacked the last Ch’u capital, in 223 BC, it survived to become a significant element of Chinese civilization during the Han dynasty.”[2]

Indeed the famous Chinese medium of lacquer probably originated in the south.

“The lacquer medium and the techniques of working it were other great innovations of the Late Chou Period. Its seems probable that the origins of this work are to be found in the South.”[3]

The Ch’u people of the Yangtze River basin probably developed pictorial art at an earlier stage than did the peoples of the Yellow River basin in the north of China. Both their painting on silk and on domestic items preceded that of the north. Favorite motifs were tigers, phoenixes and dragons, popular Taoist symbols.[4]

Taoism from the south

Indeed just as the philosophy of Confucius and the ju class is associated with northern China and the Yellow River basin, the philosophy of Taoism is associated with the south and central China and the Yangtze River Basin.

As we’ve pointed out throughout this paper central China from the Yangtze River south is connected culturally with the peaceful craft-oriented peoples of southeast Asia.

“The gong-stand found in a tomb in the Ch’u city of Hsin-yang in Honan reflects the contacts of Ch’u with the south.”[5]

Remember that rice-growing, bronze casting technology, and the symbol of the dragon, probably all came from the cultures of Southeast Asia. It is not surprising then that China south of the Yellow River would be the center of Chinese artistic culture as well as home of Taoist philosophy.

“It was, in fact, through Taoism, with its intuitive awareness of things that cannot be measured or learned out of books, that the Chinese poets and painters were to rise to the highest imaginative flights. The state of Ch’u was the heart of this new liberating movement. … It is perhaps no accident that not only the finest poetry of this period, but also the earliest surviving paintings on silk, should have been produced within its boundaries.”[6]

The Warring States Era saw the increasing centralization of political power in China. The Yellow River Basin of northern China came to be dominated by the state of Ch’in with connections to the military nomads of the north, while the south came to be dominated by the state of Ch’u with connections to peaceful and artistic cultures of the south. It is no surprise that the military Ch’in of the north ended up on top.

An art historian characterizes the Ch’in people as ‘savages from the western marches’ and refers to the people of Ch’u as ‘sophisticated and enlightened’. He speculates that a cultural golden age might have been emerged had the Ch’u ended up victorious instead of the state of Ch’i.[7] The reality is that military cultures usually dominate artistic cultures. Historically the north has ended up as the center of political culture with a Confucian orientation, while the south has emerged as the center of artistic culture with a Taoist orientation. These trends crystallized in the Warring States Era in the northern state of Ch’in and southern state of Ch’u.

Chuang Tzu (350-275 BCE)

The major Taoist personality of the Warring States Era was Chuang Tzu (approx. 350-275 BCE), While Lao Tzu, the Old Master, had more importance as a mythological personage than he did as a historical being, Chuang Tzu, i.e. Master Chuang, had more importance as a book, although he was most likely historical. He was probably the primary author of the writings bearing his name, the Chuang Tzu.

The Chuang Tzu compared to the Lao Tzu

Just as the Lao Tzu was possibly an accumulation of writings and saying under the name of Lao Tzu, the Chuang Tzu was also an accumulation of writings under the name of Chuang Tzu. While the Lao Tzu was an accumulation of sayings and popular wisdom, the Chuang Tzu was an accumulation of stories and events. While the ‘authentic’ thoughts of Lao Tzu are not distinguished in the Tao Te Ching, the ‘inner chapters’ of the Chuang Tzu are thought to be his writings. Although much other material has been appended to the writings that bear his name[8], the central core seems to be written by one author.

Just as the Tao Te Ching acquired an importance independent of Lao Tzu, the Chuang Tzu acquired an importance independent of the author. This is to be contrasted with the importance of Jesus, Buddha, and Confucius as historical beings with a historical impact, independent of any writings that may or may not be associated with them.

One of the major themes of the Chuang Tzu is the poking fun at authority in any form, whether it be political or philosophical. The Chuang Tzu is fun loving, playful, and not that serious. Its wisdom is that of laughter and smiles rather than that of serious thinking. While neither the Analects of Confucius, the Tao Te Ching of Lao Tzu, the Four Gospels of Jesus, the Bible, nor the traditional Buddhist wisdom contain anything to make one laugh, the Chuang Tzu is filled with funny situations and many chuckles.

In its nature of poking fun at dogmatism and authority, it takes nothing seriously, including itself. One of its thrusts is to break the mindset of the reader. While in one story Lao Tzu is wise, in another he might appear foolish. The Chuang Tzu is filled with paradox and contradiction. It shows wise men acting foolishly and foolish men acting wisely. Everything is topsy-turvy in the Chuang Tzu. While the Lao Tzu is philosophically paradoxical, it is not playful. The future playfulness of Chan Buddhism, commonly called Zen, is more rooted in the Chuang Tzu, not in the Lao Tzu.

One of the common techniques of the Chuang Tzu is to show historical and mythological personages interacting. Some of his dialogues show the interaction of Confucius and Lao Tzu. Although there is little evidence that they ever interacted, even if Lao Tzu really did exist, later writers took this as historical evidence that Confucius was a younger contemporary of Lao Tzu. It seems sure that Chuang Tzu is laughing from his Immortal grave. Although many of his stories had to do with the relative nature of truth in the face of the reality of humor, later writers took his words as historical truth. He would be proud of himself that his words created a non-existent reality. When this veil of illusion if removed it further exposes the relative nature of truth.

A typical Taoist history

Nearly everything about the history of Taoism flies against the facts of common knowledge. As mentioned earlier the traditional history of Taoism begins with Lao Tzu and the Tao Te Ching in about 500 BC. Then a few hundred years later, another great Taoist emerges named Chuang Tzu, who writes a lot of stories about Taoism, linking Lao Tzu and Confucius. He’s the funny one.

To give an example of this typical abbreviation, let me present a brief history of Taoism conveyed by the great modern translator of Chinese texts, Thomas Cleary.

“The Tao Te Ching is an anthology of ancient sayings, poems, and proverbs; its compilation is attributed to the prototypical Lao-tzu, “The Old Master.” who is regarded as one of the greatest ancestors of Taoism. Chuang-tzu, traditionally said to have been written by a Taoist named Chuang Chou, is a collection of stories and monologues illustrating and expounding the teachings of the Tao Te Ching. Together they present the philosophical and practical core of classical Taoism.

The Tao Te Ching is commonly believed to have been compiled around 500 BC, near the end of the Spring and Autumn era, when the social and political order of China was disintegrating rapidly. The Chuang-tzu was written about 300 BC, during the era of the Warring States, when the classical civilization of China was all but destroyed by civil wars.”[9]

This history is included in Cleary’s book which he calls The Essential Tao; an Initiation into the Heart of Taoism through the Authentic Tao Te Ching and the Inner Teachings of Chuang Tzu.

One of the implications of the above quote is that Lao Tzu with his book the Tao Te Ching, was followed historically by Chuang Tzu and his book, and that together these books represent ‘An Initiation into the Heart of Taoism.’ Second he states that the Chuang Tzu illustrates and expounds the teachings of the Tao Te Ching. The neat little image one gets is that Lao Tzu with his Tao Te Ching got the Taoist ball rolling, while Chuang Tzu continued his work by writing another book which furthered the teachings of Lao Tzu and Taoism. Further we get the idea that if we read and understand these books that we will be initiated into the Heart of Taoism. This is the common understanding, but is only one of the many veils of illusion that must be removed.[10]

One of his themes that Cleary develops convincingly, which we will see repeated in Chinese history, is that the emergence and ascendancy of Taoism is linked with the disintegration of Chinese social order. It as if Taoism is most suited to deal with chaotic systems because of its immense flexibility. The more rigid systems are shaken apart when the Turbulence begins to appear, while Taoism rides the crest of these waves in its formlessness. These concepts are part of Social Chaos Theory.

Chuang Tzu, the man

Let it be pointed out that Chuang Tzu, Master Chuang, is just only a bit more historical than Lao Tzu. There are only a few brief references to a historical Chuang Tzu by Ssu ma Chien, China premier historian writing nearly 200 years after Chuang Tzu lived. Nothing contradicts the tidbit that Chuang Tzu lived in the state of Sung, a remnant of the Shang dynasty and one of the most violent and treacherous states in a violent time. This type of capricious government could have easily inspired the extreme rejection of authority that we find in Chuang Tzu. However, just as in Lao Tzu’s case, the historical importance of the book far transcends the historical individual.

While Lao Tzu is turned into a mythological character, a Taoist Immortal, Chuang Tzu remains an obscure Taoist, who minded his business staying out of trouble. Chuang Tzu never becomes mythological.

Chuang Tzu, the book

It seems that the Chuang Tzu, the book, circulated close to its present form, as did the Lao Tzu, early in the Han dynasty (≈ 200 BCE).[11] This is hardly mysterious considering that the First Emperor who preceded the Han dynasty had burned and banned all but a few books. Some books survived but many were memorized and written down in the early Han dynasty after the overthrow of the Ch’in. The point here is that the Chuang Tzu, like the Lao Tzu reached its final form centuries after its purported author died. Furthermore there are many stories from the Chuang Tzu, which, from literary analysis, seem to have been authored in the early Han. Whether an original author began the accumulation is secondary to the fact that there is an accumulation of stories added on to the Chuang Tzu.

An earlier 52 section Chuang Tzu was condensed into a 33-section version in the beginning of the 4th century. The 33-section version was organized into 7 inner chapters, 15 outer chapters and 11 miscellaneous chapters. Many scholars feel that the outer and miscellaneous chapters are an inferior accretion of a later date. It seems that a single inspired author wrote the 7 inner chapters at an early date. This author gave the 7 inner chapters titles, while the titles of the rest are merely the first lines of the sections.

“It is generally agreed that the seven ‘inner chapters’ … constitute the heart of the Chuang Tzu. They contain all the important ideas, are written in a brilliant and distinctive –though difficult–style, and are probably the earliest in date, though so far no way has been found to prove this last assumption.”[12]

While the entirety of the Lao Tzu is revered like a sacred work, although it accrued over centuries, the Chuang Tzu is of uneven quality, with translators omitting more and more of the outer and miscellaneous sections. Burton Watson includes four other sections in addition to the 7 inner chapters in his translation of the Chuang Tzu, while Thomas Clearly only includes the 7 inner chapters in his translation. While it seems certain that the Lao Tzu was the work of many authors over multiple centuries, it seems that the primary Chuang Tzu, the 7 inner chapters, was written by one man.

Dispelling some Myths

To reiterate, while those who know a little about Taoism consider Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu, the founders of Taoism, with their respective books as bibles of Taoism, that the term Taoism was only applied to the Mystery cults associated with Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu hundreds of years after their deaths. And then the term was used as a general catchall applying to many different types of shamanistic practices. These practices were not transmitted verbally. Thus although containing some of the key beliefs and concepts of Taoism Chuang Tzu’s writings do not contain their practices. And for Taoism the practices are more important than the words. Hence although the writings of Chuang Tzu have proved nearly as influential as the Tao Te Ching in the ideational history of Taoism both are separated by ideas from the Source.

Without belaboring the point, let it be emphasized that learning Taoism from the Tao Te Ching and the Chuang Tzu without physical practices would be like learning to ride a bike through a manual written by a great bicyclist popularizing biking without having a bike; learning about wine from a book written by a great wine connoisseur without tasting any wine; learning from a book written by a master violinist about how to play the violin without a violin. The wayless Way, the taoless Tao, is certainly not going to be trapped by the Tao Te Ching or the Chuang Tzu.

Further the Lao Tzu and the Chuang Tzu differ significantly. Although there is concurrence, one is composed of ideas while the other of stories. Chuang Tzu’s stories attempt to shatter one’s verbal reality, while the Lao Tzu establishes a verbal reality. As mentioned Chuang Tzu is funny, poking fun at everyone including himself, while the Lao Tzu is serious. Both contain passages that are a reaction to the Confucian school. The two books could easily have evolved concurrently.

An example of Chuang Tzu Humor

As an example of the humor of Chuang Tzu:

When Bearing Self asks Crazy Chariot-Grabber if the people will follow a ruler who rules by good example and justice only, Crazy Chariot-Grabber responds,

“This is bogus virtue. It is about as feasible for governing the world as it would be to walk across an ocean, dig out a river, or have a mosquito carry a mountain on its back. Is the government of sages government of externals? It is simply a matter of acting only when correct, making certain of the ability to do one’s work; that is all. Furthermore, birds fly high to avoid being hit by arrows. Rats burrow deep under shrines to avoid being smoked out or dug out. Are you more ignorant than these two creatures?”[13]

The names and the analogies are both funny. Furthermore the abruptness of the response is especially startling for the gracious Chinese, who normally couch nearly any response in self-depreciating terms. Tripitaka is a master of this type of response. ‘Although your humble disciple knows nothing, you might consider this alternative.’ This is a typical court response designed to avoid the wrath of the emperor or a higher-ranking superior. The Chuang Tzu deliberately expresses disrespect for authority of any kind.

In this particular case this dialogue expresses disrespect for the ideas of Confucius who felt that if the rulers set a good example that the people would follow suit. Confucius was looking at the Chou Kung and Wen Wang as examples of rulers who led by example. In the Spring and Autumn Era the leaders were self-serving and corrupt according to Confucius, neglecting the needs of their citizens. From the ruling ju class, Confucius offered his suggestions to the rulers. Get your act together and the people will follow your good example.

In this dialogue Chuang Tzu expresses the idea that this is not enough. It is like asking a mosquito to carry a mountain on its back. In other words, the behavior of the ruler is insufficient to carry the mountain of popular behavior with it. By extension the correct behavior of the sage will also come up short. Leading by good example is ‘bogus virtue’, insufficient for the task.

The reality is that the behavior must be responsive rather than automatic. As the Crazy Chariot-Grabber said, “Is the government of sages government of externals? It is simply a matter of acting only when correct, making certain of the ability to do one’s work; that is all.” Or [In another translation] “When the sage governs, does he govern what is on the outside? He makes sure of himself first, and then he acts. He makes absolutely certain that things can do what they are supposed to do, that is all.” [14] (Because of the inadequacies of the English language in translating Chinese, it is always nice to have several translations at hand to better hone in on the meaning of the passage.)

Because this passage connects to so many themes in this work, we are going to study it a little more closely. The statement behind the rhetorical question, ‘When the sage governs, does he govern what is on the outside?’ is that sages don’t seek to control the externals of the world because the externals in turn are controlled by the internals. Or restating the question in more obtuse terms: ‘Idiot, you think sages seek only to govern the outside?’ The idea is that emulating superficial behavior is worthless in the long run. We see and experience this phenomenon frequently in Taiji practice. The student who copies the teacher’s superficial hand and feet movements without emulating the internal actions can practice for a lifetime without developing any power.

‘He makes sure of himself first, and then he acts.’ Or ‘It is simply a matter of acting only when correct.’’

Chuang Tzu is saying that one needs to first right oneself before acting. In most of the world including Confucian China, righting oneself has to do with learning about the morals of one’s culture. Align oneself with your culture before acting. However this is not the Taoist approach. As pointed out earlier, species survival has been programmed in genetically to be more important than individual survival. However species and culture, while a ‘hairbreadths apart’, are distinctly different. Thus the Taoists align themselves with Heaven first before acting. Sometimes Heaven and culture are in congruence, sometimes not. The Confucians would say that the two tend to be connected, while the Taoists, especially Chuang Tzu, disconnect Heaven and Culture.

But how is one to align oneself with the Will of Heaven? How does one ‘make sure of himself first’? How does one know when one is correct in order to begin acting – i.e. ‘acting only when correct’’? These answers, while crucial, are not explicitly answered in either the Lao Tzu or the Chuang Tzu. Most Taoists however know from the private transmission of Taoist masters that ‘making sure of oneself’ has to do with methods of meditation designed to distinguish conditioned from real behavior. This point is only reached at the point of extreme quietude. We have examined this concept in other parts of this paper.

This crucial teaching, while implicit in both the teachings of Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu, is never explicitly spelled out. Furthermore without the self-rectification of meditative techniques, all action is futile because it is rooted in the falseness of conditioned behavior, the Sea of Sand. Hence no matter how many times one reads the Chuang Tzu or the Lao Tzu, without self- purification, it is meaningless.

Thus knowing that one should act only when correct is different from acting from a point of correctness. All the knowledge in the world is useless unless it is coupled with the knowledge and practice of self-rectification, i.e. the separation of the false from the real. Hence the incomplete knowledge of the Lao Tzu and the Chuang Tzu is an empty illusion without the real knowledge of purification techniques, while these purification techniques are useless unless practiced. Thus proper practice comes first, hopefully with the guidance of a master. Thus thinking that one knows Taoism from reading the Taoist classics without physical practices is like saying that one knows what is going on inside the building, after seeing the outside. Or it is like saying that one understands a violin after seeing one. As pointed out earlier purification must accompany integration for actualization to occur.

Thus Chuang Tzu was saying that righting oneself comes before correct action. This self-rectification is the difficult step. The Confucians bypass this step instead focusing upon idealized behavior. The knowledge of correct behavior comes first. As pointed out in the section on Confucius, one of his goals was to have universal moral instruction. They intellectualize belief systems and modes of behavior ignoring the foundation. This is common with most belief systems. It is much easier to rely on moral absolutes than it is to make decisions in the midst of moral relativity. Buddhism, the Biblical religions of the West, and Confucianism all begin with absolute standards of moral behavior dictated by God, the Buddha, or Confucius. Taoism along with Zen, a derivative of Taoism, starts not with ideas but with the non-verbal mysteries of the body, those passed on non-verbally by Mother Li.

After setting oneself right, then one can act. But again the action does not exist in a vacuum but is in response to an exterior situation. In this dialogue, Chuang Tzu was counseling that it is necessary to rectify oneself and then act in awareness of the potentials of the environment. In the larger context, this has to do setting the foundation before acting. Then the action must be based upon the surrounding environment, i.e. what is possible. In response to arrows, the bird flies high. The bird doesn’t just maintain perfect birdlike behavior hoping that its perfection will allow it to avoid the arrows.

Thus in this simple dialogue, Chuang Tzu points out that first comes self-rectification, making oneself right, followed by true action which is attuned to environmental necessity not to cultural mores except as applicable. This is an extremely adaptive approach to life. It is not based upon a belief system but upon quietude. It is in no ways escapist except as the situation might demand.

Interestingly this dichotomy between idealized and pragmatic response has plagued Chinese politics for thousands of years and actually led to the construction of the Great Wall. Through the Ming dynasty of the 16th century, over 2 millennia since Confucius, the literati, the ju class, were still counseling that the emperor govern the nomads of the northern steppes through good example. The good example of the emperor had to do with leadership of a sedentary agricultural population and had nothing to do with the pastoral cultures in the arid steppes to the north.

In this particular case the nomads because of the aridity of the environment couldn’t have adopted an agricultural lifestyle even if they had wanted to. Hence the nomadic cultures couldn’t have emulated the culture of the Chinese, even if the Chinese had given them a perfect example. Because of the ineffectiveness of the moral example and the inability to transcend this idealized concept of politics combined with the very real threat of the nomadic cultures, the paralyzed Chinese government built the Great Wall to keep the nomads out. It didn’t work. Within less than a century of its completion, the nomadic Manchus from the northeast conquered China, making the Great Wall obsolete.

Thus in this small dialogue, Chuang Tzu hit upon some crucial points. First the passage suggests that sages govern by influencing the internal rather than the external. Further it suggests that right behavior is dependent upon righting oneself. Finally one’s actions must be responsive to the environment. Chuang Tzu doesn’t describe how to right one’s behavior; this is left to the non-verbal teachings of a Master, originally Mother Li. The dialogue further exposed the human, especially Chinese, dichotomy between idealized and internalized behavior. Real people infrequently behave like idealized people. Further external behavior is forced and therefore transitory, while internalized behavior is self-motivated and thereby self-propelling.

Holding fast to the source

Just to make it clear, here is one more example of where Chuang Tzu points at where you want to be without telling you how to get there.

In the fifth inner chapter, named The Sign of Virtue Complete, there is a man Wang T’ai, a criminal because his foot has been cut off, who has as many followers as does Confucius. When a disciple of Confucius mentions this to him, Confucius says, in paraphrase, “I have been remiss. I must go see him, too, and I will take the whole world with me to become his followers.” His disciple is amazed and asks Confucius what it is about this one-footed man that draws everyone to him.

Disciple: “He doesn’t stand up and teach, he doesn’t sit down and discuss, yet they go to him empty and come home full. Does he really have some wordless teaching, some sort of formless way of bringing the mind to completion? What sort of man is he?” …

Confucius: “Life and death are great affairs, and yet they are no change to him. Though heaven and earth flop over and fall down, it is no loss to him. He sees clearly into what has no falsehood and does not shift with things. He takes it as fate that things should change, and he holds fast to the source.”[15]

First this is an example of playing with historical personalities. No one really thinks that Confucius said any of these words or had an experience anything like the one portrayed above. It is merely an illustrative example of a man with virtue that is complete. The story indicates that the virtue of Confucius is not complete because even he could learn from this whole man.

Also a contrast is drawn between the wordless teachings of this ex-criminal with the verbose style of most philosophies, especially Confucius and including me. Traditional Buddhism, the Biblical religions, and our educational system are all based upon verbal teachers and preachers who speak to crowds. Even though this sage, called so by Confucius himself, doesn’t ‘talk’ or ‘discuss’, people ‘go to him empty and come home full’. The implication is that this ‘wordless teaching’ has ‘some sort of formless way of bringing the mind to completion.’

Chuang Tzu is pointing to the Taoist teaching style, which is not based upon words. Many successful teaching styles are based upon non-verbal techniques including Suzuki violin and Montessori education. In fact words are the secondary source. The primary source, as it is with Yoga, is a variety of physical practices. This is another reason why the words of the Lao Tzu and the Chuang Tzu are not an ‘initiation into the heart of Taoism’, but are just skimming the surface. This is sometimes called ‘reading the manual without having the tool’.

The description of the wordless teaching of the one-footed man is identical to that of Master Ni, our modern Tai Chi teacher. He rarely talks or discusses and yet we come home full after being empty. His ‘wordless teaching’, i.e. Taiji Quan, has some sort of formless way of bringing our minds to completion. This is but one indication that he is a Taoist Taiji Quan teacher and that Taiji Quan can be employed as a Taoist practice, i.e. a ‘formless way of bringing the mind to completion.’

Thus Chuang Tzu points to a non-verbal teaching model as the superior way to bring the mind to completion, but in no way does he tell us what non-verbal techniques that he has in mind. He does however tell us about the one-footed man.

Chuang Tzu through Confucius points out that the man is unattached to events. Neither the affairs of life and death or heaven and earth concern him because he ‘takes it as fate that things should change’. Thus once again Chuang Tzu tells us where we want to be but not how to get there. He is very clear that we must not be attached to events, but how to achieve this state is unclear from his dialogues.

In The Journey it was made quite clear that understanding is not enough. Tripitaka repeats a sutra dealing with the unreality of existence regularly, believes he understands it, but is always scared until he is weeping when the unreality of existence threatens him.

One other characteristic of this footless sage is that ‘he holds fast to the source.’ This is even more ambiguous. Chuang Tzu is not clear as to what the source is or how to hold fast to it, but he makes it very clear that it is an essential ingredient in the wholeness of the one-footed sage. It was not until much later, maybe up to a half a millennium later that the techniques reached book form and then they were introduced in arcane symbolism. This was the introduction of the terminology of Alchemical Taoism. A greater clarification was made another 1000 years after this, but it was not until the last few hundred years that a final clarification was made by Liu I Ming, which could be understood by the non-Initiate and applied to a broader context.

So what does he mean by holding fast to the source? First, what is the source? According to our reading[16] Heaven is the source. Remember that underlying this whole discussion is the assumption that we live in a cosmos not chaos. There is meaning, which by definition comes from Heaven, while Earth, as the polar balance supports us in our endeavors. Thus holding fast to the source is the continuous alignment with the Will of Heaven. We must constantly rectify our Heavenly Path so that we don’t drift off – fulfilling the Will of Man. Holding fast to the Will of Heaven is not easy. The Will of Humans regularly interferes with the Will of Heaven. Indeed in many ways the Confucian way is to align oneself with the Will of Man, while the Taoist way is to align with Heaven, the source.

How is the will of Heaven determined? We have mentioned two techniques, the first being the I Ching and the second being quietude. Seeing how the I Ching is based upon the theory that Heaven reflects her Will in the seemingly random events that regularly occur about us, sensitivity to our environment provides us with a moment to moment reading of our alignment with Heaven. This is the theory behind omenology, the study of omens. The idea is that Heaven cares. Because she cares, she sends us messages. Because she can’t talk, she communicates through omens. The I Ching, astrology, and Tarot cards are all formalized approaches for interpreting omens. As mentioned these omens can be interpreted passively turning the Querent into a victim of fate, or they can be interpreted proactively putting the Querent in charge of their own destiny. Of course then one chooses whether to align oneself with the Will of Heaven, the Will of Man, Family, or Self. Many would argue that ultimately these are all the same, however they come in many false disguises.

The way to determine truth from falsehood is through quietude, the more dependable source. The theory of quietude is that if we are quiet enough that the noise of conditioning won’t be able to have an effect upon us. Hence our footless man ‘sees clearly into what has no falsehood and does not shift with things.’ Achieving the necessary quietude to be environmentally sensitive as well as to duck under conditioned response so that it does not have an effect is a life-long process. Simply understanding that quietude is the key is not enough. It is must be continually practiced.

Thus our footless sage has undoubtedly spent a great deal of time practicing internal quietude in order to achieve the state where he would not be effected by externals and could simultaneously hold fast to the source. No Taoist would even consider the possibility that he achieved this state through insight or understanding. They would all realize that he reached this state through constant physical practices, which were probably transmitted in a non-verbal fashion.

Let it also be stated that becoming footless probably helped tremendously. As long as the distractions of the world are a possibility it is hard to forget them, while if all possibility of external reward are eliminated then the internal work can begin in earnest. Thus it is no accident in this story that the sage is one-footed. His foot has been chopped off because he was a criminal. He is a marked man, scorned by society, stripped of external face. He is forced to look inward for salvation or become bitter. ‘It is harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of Heaven than it is for a camel to fit through the eye of a needle.’

Thus the one-footed man probably achieved his state of sagehood through the combination of physical practices and life experience. The physical practices only put one in the position to benefit from life’s experiences. In and of themselves they are nothing. Each of the members of the Journey had practiced the internal arts before they even began on the path. In fact their internal powers, while elevating them above normal mortals had also got them into trouble. It was the trouble that they were rectifying by taking The Journey. Hence Life Experience is a necessary complement to internal practices.

The Will of Heaven is not kind or compassionate. Holding fast to the source does not guarantee happiness or peace of mind. At a certain point it is the only thing to do. Monkey stuck under the Five Phases Mountain for 500 years with nothing to do. Kuan Yin offers the Monkey freedom from this boredom by giving him the Meaning of the Journey. He is not promised happiness or peace of mind and neither does he get them. He is promised a Heavenly Ordeal where he can achieve immortality through deeds. Hence holding fast to the source is scary leading to all sorts of fears. However when weighed against the Oblivion of a mindless, unconscious, life, it is really the only choice.

Monkey stuck under the Five Phases Mountain. What does this mean? It is time to examine the five-phase theory, wu-hsing.

Chuang Tzu model for The Journey

Before proceeding on, let it be pointed out that the Chuang Tzu has more features in common with The Journey than does the Lao Tzu. Both the Chuang Tzu and The Journey contain extensive humor and irony, while the Lao Tzu has no humor. Both the Chuang Tzu and The Journey rely upon the dialectic of storytelling to get the truth across, while the Lao Tzu contains no dialogue. Both the Chuang Tzu and The Journey poke fun at authority, showing the many frailties of humankind. While to say that the Chuang Tzu inspired The Journey would be overstating the issue, it could be said that the authors of both of these works see the limitations of philosophical words in conveying the truth. The story of the Journey itself far outweighs the words of philosophical truth contained therein. Similarly the Chuang Tzu is short on explanation and long on example.

The idea behind the story as a superior method of transmitting truth is not in any way unique to the Chinese. Jesus taught in parables; Aesop had his fables; the Greeks and Romans had their mythology, while the Western world has its Bible. Philosophy tends to be what it is. Either one understands it or doesn’t. Stories, however, can be interpreted on many levels. While philosophies tend to tell us what to believe, Stories give us the possibly of personal interpretation. Thus with philosophy we must react somewhat passively to the information, digesting it into our lives, while stories reverberate throughout our soul, evoking personal meaning. While philosophy tends to be specific, stories are more ambiguous, more prone to misinterpretation. Both sides are told in a story while philosophy normally only states one side.

How to best communicate the wordless truth, has always been an issue. Non-verbal truths, by definition, resist definition. Hence the best we can do is point at it with words. The I Ching takes a multi-leveled approach to the issue of transmission.

In the Ta Chuan, the Great Treatise: Chapter XII, Section 2:

“2. The Master said: Writing cannot express words completely. Words cannot express thoughts completely.

Are we then unable to see the thoughts of the holy sages?

The Master said: The holy sages set up the images in order to express their thoughts completely; they devised the hexagrams in order to express the true and false completely. They then appended judgments and so could express their words completely.”[17]

In this passage the Master, whoever he is, acknowledges the inability of writing to express words completely or for words to communicate thoughts completely. The question is then posed. “If this is true, are we then never able to understand the wisdom of a wise man?” The Master responds that the combination of hexagrams, images, and judgments in the I Ching allows for the transmission of the non-verbal reality of the sage.

Thus writing by itself is inadequate to the task of communication from the sage. Writing must be used in two ways in combination with abstract diagram to communicate the whole truth of the sages. In the I Ching writing is employed in both a lyrical and analytical fashion, as represented in the above by the image and the appended judgment. The image is the poetry – lyrical, ambiguous, proactive. The appended judgment is the philosophy – analytical, straightforward, reactive. The two types of word uses balance each other to harmonize the truth.

But the wordiness of this combination is still incomplete. Thus a diagram is added to hone in on the truth. Of course the context of the comment is the I Ching with its song-poems combined with analysis and hexagrams, but the analysis could be extended to include communication of a multitude of varieties. Lecturers weave story, analysis, and diagrams to communicate most effectively. Textbooks attempt to combine pictures with text in varied formats to evoke the truth. In Taiji, we have the abstract forms and physical experience combined with analytical study and interpersonal communication. The point here is that truth is not one-sided and hence must be approached from a variety of perspectives in order to come closer to it.

Thus while the Tao Te Ching attempts to hone in on the truth analytically, the Chuang Tzu was needed to balance the analysis with a lyrical interpretation. However by themselves these two books are incomplete and out of balance – too mental. The mental truths of these books must be balanced by physical practices[18]. The body is needed to balance the mind. Inherent to Taoism is the tendency to focus upon body over the mind. Hence many Taoists focus heavily on the body possibly to the neglect of the mind. Because it is easiest to communicate to the non-Initiate in incomplete words, the non-Initiate tends to focus upon the words rather than the body focus of Taoism.

For the sake of completion, it must be mentioned that there is a crucial fourth element, the field of action, the world. Without the field of action, there is nothing left. The I Ching is neither descriptive not predictive, but instead suggestive. Thus the Querent must use it as a tool in dealing with life experience, rather than using it just as a source of enlightenment. Similarly in The Journey, while the members of the Quest have cultivated both their mental and physical sides, this is not enough. They must employ their mental understanding and physical conditioning to surmount the obstacles thrown upon them on the Journey. Thus balance and wisdom is not enough by itself; it must be applied to the ‘field of action’, life experience.

The author of the Journey to the West focuses upon the lyrical side of words to communicate his truths. However like the Chuang Tzu, the Lao Tzu, the I Ching, this book, the Bible, the Koran, etc., the Journey can only act as part of the package. To complete the package one must also combine physical practices with life experience to really get anywhere.

Mirrors & Chuang Tzu

Mirrors have always been special to the Chinese and especially to the Taoists.

Mirrors reached a high point in the Warring States Period in the state of Ch’u. The mirror was thought of reflecting not only the exterior, but also the interior of the individual. In a book written in 656 BC, it mentions that ‘Heaven has robbed him of his mirror’[19], meaning that he is blind to his faults.

In the Chuang Tzu, it states that:

‘The heart of the sage is quiet. It is a mirror of Heaven and Earth, a mirror of all things.”[20]

Restating: The heart of the sage is quiet, acting as a mirror of Heaven and Earth. The implication is that if the heart of the sage is not quiet enough, that it will have a hard time reflecting Heaven and Earth. Too much internal activity and noise will prevent the individual from hearing the Will of Heaven. Thus the greater the personal quietude the easier it will be to act as the mirror, being sensitive to the environment of Heaven and Earth. Notice he says nothing about Man. In other words, the sage does not act as a mirror for humans, but only for Heaven and Earth – the world about.

Chuang Tzu expresses a Taoist sentiment towards mirrors that Master Ni, Ni Tzu, expresses over 2 thousand years later. Master Ni also says we should be like a mirror. While he probably intended the universal aspect mentioned above, his comment also had a Push Hands context. One should be like a mirror of the opponent, reflecting their energy rather than expending your own. This is why Taiji Push Hands tends to be defensive rather than aggressive. This is the reactive interpretation.

The proactive interpretation is still founded upon the mirror but leans on it rather than waiting. In other words, being a mirror means reflecting emptiness, which can manifest in an apparently aggressive fashion. However it is only the techniques of following holes to the centerline of the body. One still reflects the energy of the opponent by matching their ward off energy.

While moving one opens and closes. This is one type of energy. A second type of energy has to do with touch. This is called Ting Jing energy. This energy should always exactly reflect the ward off energy of the opponent, while simultaneously seeking holes and protuberances to exploit. Hence one actively mirrors the opponent’s energy in the direction while simultaneously seeking the curve.

Testing always testing.

Looking for the centerline.

Lightly pushing against it.

If your opponent mirrors your hint of force, follow another direction, which is softer, more yielding.

However watch out!

Trapped by your own excess aggression.

Thrown off balance.

Too hard. Next round.

Uh! Oh! Too cautious.

Your opponent follows your excessive yielding,

Gently pushing you off balance.

OK now. The proper balance.

Mirroring ward off energy.

Don’t let your opponent inside your exterior wall of defense, which has to do with your limbs, especially the arms. And then your arms also maintain a secondary area of activity, the space between your arms and body. This is an especially crucial sector. When this emptiness ceases to exist your arm is trapped on your body, making it easier for your opponent to find your center. If the emptiness is not guarded then your opponent can sneak through your defenses to reach your body. Still when your opponent has reached your body, all is not lost yet. However it is your torso alone that must defend against the enemy, spinning them off, not letting them find your center, squirming and vibrating them off.

Your hands and forearms must touch and interact with the enemy to mirror their energy. Simultaneously the arms must maintain the empty space between body and arms. Simultaneously the arms must guard and create this space. The larger the space the larger the field of action upon which to play. Once the opponent has reached your body, things are in more desperate shape. Hence it is most important to guard the emptiness rather than the body. Once the energy has reached the body it almost too late. Thus the arms must ward off and follow the opponent’s energy simultaneously maintaining and guarding the emptiness. The greater the emptiness, the buffer zone, the safer you are, the greater the leeway for operation.

Many times the emptiness is not created. Many times there are cracks in its walls. Many times it is not well defended. Any time there is an attack the wall opens briefly and is undefended. Of course this is an ideal time to attack if you can simultaneously ward off the attack. Mirroring your opponent is the way to maintain the emptiness.

Sometimes in the process of maintaining one’s own emptiness, one finds the holes in your opponent’s emptiness and breaks through. This is a case of being attacked by emptiness. This is the chariot guarding the charioteer as they plunge into battle, seeking the centerline in an attempt to unseat the rigid Ego from his place up on high. Pushing against hardness based upon mental rigidity and hard thoughts. Attempting to bite through the iron ball to the hollowness in the center. Strengthening the firmness of the foundations simultaneously increasing the suppleness of the top. A tree with deep roots and supple limbs will not be toppled by the high wind, while a tree with shallow roots and rigid limbs are the first to go.

Thus the mirroring of your opponent has to do with attacking their holes with your emptiness, filling up the void, as it were, as well as warding off your opponent’s emptiness with your own. Thus the push has less to do force and much more to do with emptiness following the void to its logical conclusion. Mirroring the void is very active indeed. Leading Alice to Wonderland.

In summary Chuang Tzu, the book, has played a very important role in the history of Taoism. An individual, while historically unimportant, probably wrote the core of the book, the inner chapters. This is contrasted with the Tao Te Ching, which was probably compiled over centuries by a variety of authors. The Chuang Tzu however like the Tao Te Ching started at a very high level, giving very few insights into how one was supposed to reach this peak. It told where one would like to be without telling how to get there. Describing a beautiful location with no map.