"Zhi" is the name of a person, and "North Tour" refers to traveling in the north. In the traditional philosophical system, the north is called "Xuan", and "Xuan" means dim and remote, so the north is the so-called unknowable place. The text argues that the Tao is unknowable, and thus foreshadows the theme at the beginning. This article mainly discusses the "Tao", on the one hand, it points out the origin and nature of the universe, and on the other hand, it also discusses the understanding and attitude that human beings should take towards the universe and external things.

The whole text is naturally divided into 11 parts, the first part to "take the Yellow Emperor as the Knowledge", mainly to explain that the Great Dao is unknowable, "those who know do not speak, and those who speak do not know", because all things in the universe are originally "qi", "qi" gathers and is born, and "qi" disperses and dies, and all things are a mixed whole in the final analysis. Based on the understanding of the first part, it further puts forward the proposition that "until man does nothing, the great sage does not do", and everything "looks at heaven and earth", that is, everything goes with nature. In the third part, to "Who is he?", he writes that he asks the question, and describes the method of keeping God's body through the mouth of the quilt. The fourth part, to "Evil and Evil", writes the dialogue between Shun and Cheng, pointing out that life and children do not belong to themselves, and everything is a change in the qi of nature. The fifth part, "This is the Great Thing", describes the unique way of the existence of the Great Dao through the conversation between Lao Dan and Confucius, so as to illustrate the characteristics of the Great Dao. This part occupies an important place in the whole text. The sixth part, "He is scattered and not dispersed", explains that the Tao is unknowable but "omnipresent", and further discusses the nature of the Tao. In the seventh part, "not wandering too much", through the words of the allegorical characters, it further points out the characteristics of "inaudible", "invisible", and "speakable". Since the avenue is not imaged, of course, it is "not famous" and cannot be spoken. In the eighth part, the relationship between "being" and "nothing" is written, and the relativity of "being" and "nothing" is still based on "being", and only "nothing" is really based on "nothing". In the ninth part, to "things are not qualified", the old man who writes about hammering with a hook is single-minded. The tenth part to "also take from the other", through the mouth of the Taoist Confucius, discusses the beginning of the universe, and puts forward the view that "there is no past, no present, no beginning and no end". The remaining part is the eleventh part, which writes about Confucius's conversation with Yan Yuan, discussing change and being content with change, pointing out the need to be "ignorant", "incompetent", "to speak" and "to act".

"Zhibei Tour" has an important position in the "outer chapter", and it is also important for understanding the philosophical thought system of "Zhuangzi". The "Tao" mentioned in this article refers to the basic understanding of the origin and nature of all things in the universe. The article believes that all things in the universe originate from "qi", including human life and death, which is also derived from the gathering and dispersion of qi. The article also argues that the Tao is holistic, ubiquitous but without a specific image, and runs through the whole process of change. The passage sees life and death, longevity and shortness, light and darkness...... All of them are relative, they are not only opposites, but also mutually dependent and mutually transformative, which undoubtedly has a simple materialist dialectical view. However, based on the understanding of the wholeness and identity of all things in the universe, the article also believes that the "Tao" is unknowable, and that "knowledge" does not become the "Tao", so it slides into agnosticism, advocating that nothing is done, go with the flow, and everything has its own laws, which cannot be changed, and there is no need to change them, which is obviously idealistic again.

Zhi traveled north to the shore of Xuanshui and climbed a hill called Yinyi, where he happened to encounter Wuwei. "I would like to ask you some questions: How do you think, how do you think about it? How do you live and how do you behave in accordance with the Tao? What to follow and what methods to attain the Tao? "I asked several times and didn't answer, not because I didn't answer, but because I didn't know how to answer. Knowing that he could not find an answer from Wuwei, he returned to the south bank of the white water, climbed the hill called the fox and met the madman. Zhi asked him about the previous question, and he said, "Well, I know how to answer these questions, and I will tell you, but I want to speak but I forget what I want to say." Zhicong did not get an answer from the arrogant Qu, so he turned back to the residence of the Yellow Emperor and saw the Yellow Emperor asking him again. The Yellow Emperor said: "Only without thinking and considering can we understand the Tao, without a place and without action, we can conform to the Tao, and we can only attain the Tao without obedience and method." ”

Zhi then asked the Yellow Emperor: "You and I know these truths, but inaction and arrogance don't know these truths, so who is right?" The Yellow Emperor said: "That inaction is really correct, and the recklessness is close to the right; You and I have never been able to get close to the Tao. Those who know do not speak, and those who speak do not know, so the saints practice education that does not need to be passed on by words. Tao cannot be obtained by words, and virtue cannot be achieved by talking. No preference can make a difference, morality can be lost, and the implementation of etiquette is only mutual hypocrisy and fraud. Therefore, it is said, 'If you lose the Tao, you can gain virtue, if you lose virtue, you can gain benevolence, if you lose benevolence, you can gain righteousness, and if you lose righteousness, you can gain courtesy.' Propriety is the disguise of the Tao and the culprit of chaos.'" So, 'The one who perceives the Tao has to remove the disguise every day, and then remove and remove again and again, until he reaches the state of non-action, and when he reaches the state of inaction, there is nothing to do.' Now that you have done something for external things, isn't it very difficult to return to the roots! If it is easy to change and return to the roots, I am afraid that only those who have attained the Tao will be enlightened!

"Life is the same kind of death, death is the beginning of life, who can know their end! The birth of man is the aggregation of qi, the aggregation of qi forms life, and the dispersion of qi is death. If death and life belong to the same kind, then what do I worry about death? So, all things are the same in the end. In this way, those so-called good things are regarded as magical, and those so-called nasty things are regarded as stinking rot, and the stinking things can be transformed into magic, and the magical things can be transformed into stinking rot. Therefore, 'the whole world is just the same qi'. Therefore, the saint also valued the identity of all things. ”

Zhi and said to the Yellow Emperor: "I ask for nothing, and I don't answer me for nothing, it's not that I don't answer me, it's that I don't know how to answer me." I asked the madman, and the madness wanted to tell me but didn't tell me, not that he didn't tell me, but that he wanted to tell me and forgot how to tell me. Now I want to ask you again, you understand the question I asked, why do you say that if you answer me, I am not close to the Tao? The Yellow Emperor said: "Wu Wei means that he really understands the Great Dao, because he does not know anything; He is close to the Word, because he has forgotten; After all, you and I can't get close to the Tao, because we know everything. ”

When he heard about it, he thought that the words of the Yellow Emperor were the most knowledgeable talk.

Heaven and earth have great beauty but cannot be expressed in words, the movement of the four seasons has obvious laws but cannot be evaluated, and the changes of all things have ready-made rules but need not be discussed. The sages and sages explored the great beauty of heaven and earth and understood the truth of the growth of all things, so the "supreme man" did nothing according to nature, and the "great sage" would not act arbitrarily, which means that he made a deep and detailed observation of heaven and earth.

The gods of the Great Dao are subtle and participate in the various changes of all things in the universe; Ten thousand properties have died, or lived, or square, or round, but no one knows the root of change, everything has naturally existed since ancient times. The "Liuhe" is very huge, but it can never go beyond the scope of the Tao; Autumn hairs are the smallest, and they have to rely on the Tao to achieve their small shapes. Everything in the universe is changing all the time, always maintaining a new posture of change, yin and yang and the four seasons are constantly running, each with its own sequence. The avenue is so chaotic and dark, as if it does not exist but is everywhere, vigorous and unpredictable, but it does not leave a concrete image, and all things are nurtured by it but are not aware of it at all. This is called the root, and you can use it to observe the way of nature.

Yu Que asked the quilt for advice, and the quilt said: "You have to correct your body, concentrate your eyesight, and natural harmony will come; Gather your mind, concentrate your thoughts, and the spirit will come and stay with you. Xuande will appear beautiful for you, the Great Dao will dwell in your heart, and your round-eyed childish appearance is like a newborn calf and will not explore external things! ”

Before the quilt finished speaking, Yu Que had already fallen asleep. The quilt was very happy to see it, and left singing a song, saying: "The body is like a dead corpse, and the heart is like dead ashes, and the simple mind returns to its true nature, and it is not reserved because of this, it is muddy, dim, and there is no scheming to conspire with it." What kind of person would that be! ”

Shun asked Cheng for advice, "Can the Tao be obtained and possessed?" He said, "Your body is not your possession, so how can you gain and possess the Great Dao?" Shun said, "My body is not owned by me, so who will own my body?" He said, "This is the form that heaven and earth have entrusted to you; The birth of the world is not your possession, this is the condensation of the harmonious qi given by heaven and earth, and the life is not owned by you, which is also the condensation of the harmonious qi of heaven and earth in you; Even your offspring are not your possession, this is the form of transformation that Heaven and Earth have given you. Therefore, I don't know where to go, I don't know what to hold in my dwelling, and I don't know what to eat and drink. Walking, dwelling, and eating are nothing but the movement of qi between heaven and earth, so how can they be obtained and possessed? ”

Confucius said to Lao Dan: "Today I live in peace and leisure, and I take the liberty to ask you for advice. The old man said, "You must first fast and meditate, and then dredge your mind, cleanse your spirit, and destroy your intelligence!" The avenue is really profound and indescribable! But I'll give you an idea.

"Bright things arise from darkness, things with form arise from formlessness, spirit arises from Tao, and form arises from subtle qi. All things are born by the body, so an animal with nine orifices is viviparous, and an animal with eight orifices is oviparous. There is no trace of its coming, no boundaries of its departure, no one knows where to enter and exit, where to stay, leading to the vastness of all directions. People who follow this situation have strong limbs, are thoughtful, have quick ears and eyes, use their minds without fatigue, and conform to external objects without formal rules. The heavens will not be lofty unless they get anything from it, the earth will not be vast unless they get anything from there, the sun and the moon will not move if they cannot gain anything from there, and all things will not prosper if they cannot gain anything from there.

Besides, those who read the scriptures do not necessarily understand the truth, and those who are good at debate are not necessarily extremely wise, so the saints categorically rejected these practices. As for the increase but not like it is increasing, and the decrease is not like decreasing, that is what the saints are to keep. It is as deep as the sea, tall and magical, it has no end and no beginning, the movement of all things is within its bounds, and nothing is missing. Then, the avenues that secular gentlemen talk about are probably all superficial! All things receive the support of life from it, and there is never want, and this is probably the Way!

"The Central Plains is inhabited, neither yin nor yang, in the middle of the earth, but with the form of a man, and man will eventually return to his origin. From the Tao's point of view, the birth of man is the aggregation of qi, and although there is a long life and a short life, how much difference is there between it? It's just a matter of Russia, where is the use of distinguishing between Tang Yao and Xia Wei! Fruit trees and melons are different but have a common growth pattern, and even if it is difficult to divide people's order of rank, they can still be ordered by age. The saint never disobeys these things, and he will not stay even if he has passed in person. Harmony and conformity, this is virtue; Adapting without a heart is the Way; And virtue and Taoism are the basis for the prosperity of the emperor and the law of the rise of princes.

"Being between heaven and earth is like a horse passing through a narrow passage, passing by in an instant. Naturally, all flourished; Naturally, they all die in response to the change. What has changed and grows in the world, and then changes and dies, and the living things lament and people have compassion for it. However, the death of a person is only a liberation from the shackles of nature, destroying the restraints of nature, and circling the ground one after another, and the soul will surely disappear, and then the body will also go with it, which is the final return to the sect! It is a common understanding of people, and it is by no means the principle pursued by those who perceive the avenue, and it is also a topic that people talk about. Those who have realized the Great Dao will not discuss, and those who have discussed will not truly understand the Great Dao. Searching for it in the open will not really be noticed, and it is better to keep silent than to be clever in rhetoric. It is impossible to hear the Tao through rumors, and it is better to hope for rumors than to listen to them, which is called truly understanding the subtle way. ”

Dong Guozi asked Zhuangzi for advice: "Where does the Tao that people talk about exist? Zhuangzi said, "The avenue is everywhere." Dong Guo Zi said: "You must point out the specific place of existence." Zhuangzi said, "Among the ants." Dong Guozi said: "How can you be in such a low and humble place? Zhuangzi said, "In the barnyard grass of the rice field." Dong Guozi said: "Why is it getting lower and lower? Zhuangzi said, "In the bricks and tiles." Dong Guozi said: "Why is it getting lower and lower? Zhuangzi said, "In the urine." Dong Guozi stopped saying nothing after hearing this.

Zhuangzi said: "The gentleman's question did not touch the essence of the Tao in the first place, and an official named Hou asked the butcher about the fat and thinness of the pig, and the further down the part of the pig's leg was trampled, the more the real situation of the fat and thin could be discovered. You don't just look for the Tao in something, nothing can escape from it. This is true of the Highest Word, and so it is with the greatest speeches. All things, words, and avenues are everywhere, they have different names but the same substance, and their purpose is the same. Let's travel together to a place where there is nothing, and discuss it from the point of view of unity and unity, there is no end to the changes in the universe! Let's adapt to the changes and do nothing! Tranquil and silent! The desert is vast and empty! Tune in and relax! My mind has long been empty and quiet, I don't know where I want to go, I don't know where I should go, I don't know where I want to stay when I come and go after I leave, I have come and gone in the world but I don't know where the final destination is; Indulge my mind in the empty realm, and the wise man blends with the Great Dao and never understands its ultimate. There is no boundary between the Tao that makes all things and all things themselves, and the boundary between things is the so-called difference between concrete things. There is no difference, that is, there is a difference on the surface but there is no difference in substance. What people call fullness, emptiness, recession, and diminishing is to think of fullness or emptiness and not really fullness or emptiness, to think of it as declining or diminishing but not really to decline or detract, to think of it as the essence or the end but not really as the essence or the end, as the accumulation or dispersion but not really the accumulation or discreteness. ”

Yu Hegan and Shennong studied together at Lao Longji. Shennong slept with a few cases closed in the daytime, and at noon, Yu Hegan pushed the door in and said, "Old Longji is dead!" Shennong stood up with his crutches, dropped his crutches and laughed, saying, "Old Longji knew that I was short-sighted and inattentive, so he left me and died." It's over, my sir! If I didn't use the words of the Tao to inspire and teach, I would die! ”

When he learned about this, he said, "Those who have realized the Great Dao, all those who have moral cultivation in the world will be attached to him." Now that Lao Longji has not even obtained one ten-thousandth of the end of the Tao, he still knows how to hide his conversation and die, not to mention the people who truly understand the Dao! The Tao looks disembodied and sounds soundless, and the Tao that people talk about is called obscure and obscure, and the Tao that can be used to talk about it is not actually the real Tao. ”

So, Taiqing asked Infinity for advice: "Do you know the Tao?" Infinity replied, "I don't know." He asked again about inaction. Wu Wei replied, "I know the Tao." Taiqing asked again: "Do you know the Tao, and the Tao also has a name?" Wu Wei said, "Yes." Taiqing said, "What is the name of the Tao?" Wu Wei said, "I know that the Tao can be in honor or in lowliness, in aggregation or in dispersion, and this is the number of the Tao that I know." ”

Taiqing used the above conversation to consult Wushi, saying: "Like this, then the infinite ignorance and non-action knowing, who is right and who is wrong? The beginningless said: "Not knowing is profound and mysterious, and knowing is superficial and shallow; I don't know that I am within the scope of the profound and mysterious way, but I know that it is just contrary to the way. So Taiqing Banzhong woke up and sighed, saying, "If you don't know, you really know!" To know is to really not know! Who knows what is not known? ”

The beginningless said, "It is impossible to hear the Word, and it is not the Word that is heard; The Word cannot be seen, and if it is seen, it is not the Word; The word cannot be preached, and what is preached is not the word. Understand that tangible things have a form precisely because they arise from the invisible Tao! Therefore the avenue cannot be described. ”

He also said, "Whoever asks about the Tao and answers casually does not know the Tao." Even those who inquire about the Tao have never understood the Tao. There is nothing to ask, and there is no way to answer if you ask. There is nothing to ask but you must ask, this is asking about the empty and intangible; I can't answer but I can't answer reluctantly, which means that I don't know much about the avenue. People like this cannot observe the vast universe externally, and cannot understand their own origin internally, so they cannot cross the lofty Kunlun, nor can they wander in the realm of pure emptiness and tranquility. ”

Although the person who forged the hook in the Great Sima family was already eighty years old, there would be no mistakes at all. Da Sima said: "Are you particularly dexterous, or do you have some way?" The old man with the hook said, "I follow the way." When I was twenty years old, I liked to forge a hook, and I couldn't see anything else in the outside world, and if it wasn't a hook, it wouldn't have aroused my concentration. Forging a hook is a matter of dedication, with the help of this work will no longer distract their own intentions, and the forged hook can be used for a long time, not to mention for those things that have no heart! If this is the case, what will not be financed by foreign objects? ”

Ran Qiu asked Confucius: "Can we know the situation before the creation of heaven and earth?" Confucius said, "Yes, in ancient times it was like today." Ran Qiu withdrew from the house without receiving a satisfactory answer, and the next day he saw Confucius again and said, "Yesterday I asked, 'Can we know the situation before the creation of heaven and earth?' He replied: 'Yes, in old times it was like today.' 'Yesterday I knew very well in my heart, but today I am confused, may I ask what you mean? Confucius said, "Yesterday you understood in your heart because your mind first understood; Today you are confused, because you are stuck in a specific image and have doubts, right? There is no present without the past, and there is no end without the beginning. Is it okay for there to be children without having children? Ran Qiu couldn't answer.

Confucius said, "Forget it, there is no need to answer anymore!" The dead will not be resurrected for the sake of life, nor will the living die for the sake of death. Are human beings dependent on each other for their death and life? In fact, it all exists in a whole. Are there any things that came into being before heaven and earth? It is not the things that make all things have different forms. The creation of all things cannot precede the emergence of concrete objects, but the aggregation of qi to produce all things. After the aggregation of qi forms all things, it continues to multiply. The saint's love for human beings has never ended, that is, the continuum of birth and birth of all things. ”

Yan Yuan asked Confucius: "I have heard my husband say: 'Don't give something and don't welcome something.'" 'Excuse me, sir, how should a man live and wander around?' ”

Confucius said: "In ancient times, people could not adapt to the changes in the environment but kept silent in the inner world, and now people cannot be silent in the inner world and cannot adapt to the changes in the environment on the outside." A person who changes with external objects must be pure and silent in his heart and not wander apart. We can be comfortable with change and non-change, and we can adapt to the external environment at ease, and we will definitely change with external objects without deviation. Wei's garden, the Yellow Emperor's fruit forest, Yu Shun's palace, Shang Tang, and King Wu of Zhou's houses are all the benefits of their heart-raising. Those who call themselves gentlemen, like Confucianism and Mohistism, slander each other with good and bad, let alone the people of today! The saint gets along with external objects without harming them. He who does not harm foreign objects, foreign objects do not harm him. It is precisely because there is no harm that they can naturally send or welcome others. What about the mountains or the wilderness? It makes me feel so happy! But the joy had not yet faded, and sorrow had come. I can't stop the arrival of sorrow and joy, and I can't stop the departure of sorrow and joy. Sadly, the people of the world are nothing more than temporary hostels for foreign objects. People know what they encounter but don't know what they can't, and they can do what they can but can't do what they can't. Not knowing and not being able is something that people can't avoid, and it's not sad that we must avoid things that we can't avoid! The best rhetoric says nothing, the best action does nothing. It would be shallow to equate all the understandings that everyone knows. ”

Moreover, do you like to see clearly, this is indulging in colorful; Do you like to be deaf, this is to indulge in vocal music; Loving charity, this is the natural normal state that disturbs man; Preference for morality, this is contrary to the common sense of things; Prefer etiquette, which fuels cumbersome tricks; Do you like music, which fuels lewd pleasures; Favor the sage, which fuels the skill; Do you like to be clever or not, which fuels the argument over trivial differences. People in the world want to stabilize the true feelings and nature given by nature, and these eight practices can be kept or discarded; People in the world do not want to settle down the true feelings and nature given by nature, and these eight practices will become factors that will not stretch out their fists and disturb disputes and confuse the world. However, the people of the world will respect it and cherish it, and the people of the world will be so confused by it! Isn't this phenomenon just passed down from generation to generation? What will I be able to do about it when people talk about it reverently, praise it respectfully, and worship it with joy!

Therefore, if a gentleman has no choice but to occupy the position of ruling the world, it is better to let everything go naturally. Only by following nature can people in the world retain the natural nature and true feelings of human beings. Because of this, he who values himself more than he rules the world can give the world to him; He who loves himself more than he who governs the world can entrust the world to him. It is precisely because of this that if a gentleman does not reveal the aura in his heart, does not show his talent and ingenuity, then he will be unmoved and his spirit will soar, silently deep and shocking, his spiritual activities will be in line with heavenly principles, he will calmly conform to nature, and everything will be as free as cooking smoke and dust. Why should I devote my mind to ruling the world!

Cui Quzi asked Lao Dan for advice: "If you don't govern the world, how can you make people's hearts good?" He replied, "Be careful not to disturb people's hearts." People are always depressed and depressed, and they are proud of their ambitions, but they are depressed and depressed or arrogant, as if they were detained and hurt, and only weakness and compliance can soften and be strong. Shape-edged and angular are vulnerable to frustration and injury, like a raging fire when emotionally intense, and like cold ice when emotionally depressed. The inner change is extraordinarily rapid, and in the blink of an eye, he travels beyond the four seas again, deep and quiet when he is quiet, and soars high in the sky when he is active. What is arrogant and unrestrained is probably just the inner activity of people! When the Yellow Emperor began to disturb people's hearts with benevolence and righteousness, Yao and Shun were tired of running around and had no flesh on their legs and bald hair on their shins, so they used to nurture the many bodies in the world, and they were full of anxiety to promote benevolence and righteousness, and spent their efforts to formulate laws. However, he still failed to rule the world well. After that, Yao banished Huandou to Chongshan in the south, Sanmiao to Sanjiao in the northwest, and Gonggong to the secluded capital in the north, which is a clear proof that he failed to govern the world. Continued to the Xia, Shang, and Third dynasties even disturbed the people of the world in many ways. and the debate between Confucianism and Mohism is in full swing. In this way, joy or anger is suspicious of each other, or foolishness or wisdom deceives each other, good or evil condemns each other, or delusion or faith ridicule each other, and the world gradually decays. The basic concepts and attitudes to life are so different, the natural nature of human beings is scattered, the world is pursuing wisdom, and there are many disputes among the people. So they punished them with instruments of torture such as axes and saws, regulated them with laws such as ropes and inks, and punished them with corporal punishments such as chiselings. The world trampled on each other and was in chaos, and sin was disturbing people's hearts. Therefore, the virtuous people lived in seclusion under the high mountains and deep valleys, while the emperors and princes were worried and trembling above the court. In today's world, the corpses of those who have been killed are pressed one by one, those who are shackled and handcuffed in prison are one by one, and the people who have been injured by torture instruments are all the same. Alas, it's too much! They don't know how to be ashamed, they don't know how to be ashamed! I don't know that the so-called sage is not a wooden insert used to connect the left and right parts on the shackles, and I don't understand that the so-called benevolence and righteousness are not holes and wooden chains used as reinforcement on the shackles. The likes are not the forerunners of Xia Ji and the thieves! Therefore, 'cut off the saints, abandon wisdom, and the world will be governed and peaceful.'" ”

The Yellow Emperor has been the Son of Heaven for 19 years, and the edict is passed through the world, and he heard that Guangchengzi lives on Kongtong Mountain, so he specially went to meet him, saying: "I heard that Mr. has already learned the Tao, and I took the liberty to ask for the essence of the Tao." I want to obtain the aura of heaven and earth, to help the grain grow, to nourish the people. What will I do if I want to dominate yin and yang, so that many living beings can grow with their hearts? Guang Chengzi replied, "What you want to ask is the root of all things; What you want to dominate is the remnants of all things. Ever since you ruled the world, the clouds in the sky began to rain before they gathered, and the plants and trees on the earth fell and withered before they withered, and the light of the sun and the moon gradually dimmed. However, the slanderous villain is so narrow-minded and bad-hearted, how can he talk about the Great Dao! When the Yellow Emperor heard this, he retreated, abandoned the government, built a quiet room with a pure heart and a quiet mind, covered with white thatch, refused to live alone for three months, and went to seek advice again.

Guangchengzi was lying with his head facing south, while the Yellow Emperor was lying down the ground, prostrate forward on his knees, kowtow to the ground and asked, "I heard that Mr. has already understood the Tao, so I took the liberty to ask for advice, how can I cultivate myself and live a long life?" Guang Chengzi quickly stood up and said, "Good question! Come, and I will tell you the Word. The essence of the Tao is deep and far-reaching; The extreme of the way, dark and silent. Don't look at anything and don't listen to anything, keep your spirit and keep quiet, and your body will naturally follow the right path. We must keep quiet and quiet, do not make our bodies tired and tired, and do not make our minds turbulent and trance-like, so that we can live forever. Your eyes see nothing, your ears hear nothing, your heart knows nothing, so that your spirit will hold on to your form, and your body will live forever. Carefully and cautiously discarding all thoughts and closing all external senses, wisdom and ingenuity will surely lead to defeat. I help you reach the brightest state, to the origin of the yang energy. I will help you enter the deep and distant gates, and go straight to the origin of the yin energy. Heaven and earth have their own masters, yin and yang have their own treasures, carefully guard your body, and all things will grow naturally. I am holding the Great Dao of Harmony and am in the realm of yin and yang in harmony, so I have been cultivating for 1,200 years, and my body has never aged. The Yellow Emperor bowed again and said, "Sir can really be said to be one with nature!" ”

Guang Chengzi said again: "Come, I will tell you." There is no end to things in the universe, but people think that there is an end; Things in the universe are impossible to detect, but people think there is a limit. He who has mastered the word of which I speak can become an emperor at the top, and a prince at the bottom; Those who do not grasp the word of which I speak can only see the light of the sun and the moon above, and can only turn into clods of earth below. Now all things are prosperous and can be born in the land and return to the land, so I will leave you and enter the endless gate, so that I can roam the wilderness without limits. I will be with the sun and the moon, and I will coexist with heaven and earth. Coming towards me, I don't notice it! Carry me away, I don't care! I'm afraid people are going to die, and I'm left alone? ”

The clouds will go to the east to parade, and they happen to meet Hongmeng by passing by the branches of the sacred tree. Hongmeng is patting his thighs and jumping and playing like a finch. Seeing Hongmeng's appearance, Yun Jiang stopped in surprise, stood still at all, and said, "What kind of person is the old gentleman!" Why did your old man act like this? Hongmeng patted his thighs and kept jumping, and said to Yun Jiang: "Play freely!" Yun Jiang said, "I want to ask you for advice." Hongmeng raised his head and looked at Yun Jiang and said, "Hey! Yun Jiang said: "The qi of heaven is not harmonious, the qi of earth is stagnant, the six qi of yin, yang, wind, rain, obscurity, and light are not in harmony, and the four seasons are not in season." Now that I want to tune the essence of the six qi to nourish all living beings, what will I do about it? Hongmeng patted his thigh and turned his head and said, "I don't know!" I do not know! "The cloud will not get an answer.

After three years, Yunjiang traveled to the east again, and happened to meet Hongmeng again after passing through the wilderness of the Song Kingdom. Yun Jiang was overjoyed, and quickly came to the front and said, "Has your old gentleman forgotten me?" Has your old gentleman forgotten me? He bowed to the ground and bowed, hoping to get Hongmeng's advice. Hongmeng said: "Wander freely, not knowing what to pursue; Wandering casually and casually, not knowing where to go. Pleasure seekers crowded to see the scene that was never false; What can I know? Yun Jiang said, "I think I can move as I please, and the people will follow me; I had to be close to the people, and now I am being emulated by them. I would love to hear from you. Hongmeng said: "Disrupting the conventions of nature, contrary to the true feelings of things, the changes of the whole nature cannot conform to the formation." Scattered wild beasts and flying birds are singing at night, and disasters affect plants and trees, and disasters affect insects. Alas, this is all the fault of governing the world! The cloud will ask, "So, what will I do?" Hongmeng said, "Alas, you have been poisoned too deeply! You'd better just go back. Yun Jiang said: "It is not easy for me to meet you, and I sincerely hope to hear your advice." ”

Hongmeng said: "Alas! Self-cultivation. You just have to be in the state of inaction, and things will change naturally. Forget your form, abandon your wisdom, and let ethics and all things be forgotten. Mixed with the vast natural qi, it relieves thoughts and releases spirits, and there is no soul like dead ashes. All things are complicated and varied, all of them return to their own nature, but their return to their nature is out of unintentionality, ignorance to maintain the truth, and they must not be violated for life; If you perceive it, you are deviating from what you are. Don't ask for their names, don't peek into their truth, everything grows naturally. Yun Jiang said, "You have taught me the essentials of dealing with external objects and treating yourself, and you have taught me the method of purifying your heart and remaining spiritual; I have personally explored the avenue, and now I have realized it. He bowed to the ground again, got up and said goodbye.

People in the world like others to be the same as themselves and hate others to be different from themselves. People who want others to be the same as themselves, and don't want others to be different from themselves, always regard getting ahead as their main inner pursuit. Those who only want to get ahead can really surpass everyone else! Of course, you can get peace by following the will of everyone, but what you hear is not as good as the skill and intelligence of others. Those who want to govern the state must be those who covet the benefits of the emperors of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties and do not see the consequences of doing so. In doing so, they are greedy for personal luck by virtue of the power to rule the state, and how many people covet personal luck without losing the power to rule the state! Less than one in 10,000 of them will be able to preserve the country, and those who lose it will achieve nothing and will leave many calamities behind. Sadly, how unwise are land-owning rulers!

The king who owns the land must have a large number of goods. Possessing a large number of things but not being enslaved by external things, and using foreign things without being enslaved by external things, they can dominate all things in the world. Understand that a person who has and can dominate foreign things is not a thing in itself, but only governs the people of the world! Such a person is already able to travel to and from the four corners of heaven and earth, to enjoy the whole world, to go alone and unrestrained, and to come freely, such a person is called to have all things and transcend all things. A person who possesses all things and is detached from all things is called a supreme nobleman.

The teachings of the noblest are like the body to the figure, and the voice to the echo. If there is a question, there will be an answer, and we will do our best to answer the questions of people all over the world. In the realm of no sound, the activity is in a place of flux, leading people to and from the chaotic world, so as to wander in the vast realm of no beginning and no end, no need to rely on it to go out or enter, like following the sun again and again without end; The face, speech, and body shape are the same as everyone else, and everyone is the same, so it doesn't matter to themselves. It doesn't matter what it is, where is it used to possess all kinds of objects! Seeing the existence of oneself and various objects, this is the gentleman of the past; If you can't see the existence of various objects in yourself, you will become friends with the eternal heaven and earth.

It is all things that are lowly but must not be resigned; It is the people who are lowly but must not be disobedient; What is inconspicuous but must be done is a thing; What is incomplete, but not unstated, is a statement that can be emulated; What is far away but must be adhered to is morality; What is close but not expandable is charity; What must not accumulate in the smallest subsections is etiquette; It is virtue that is obedient to its nature but must not be honored; What is born in one breath but cannot change is the Tao; What is unpredictable but indispensable is nature. Therefore, the saints observe the wonders of nature without helping, achieve immaculate cultivation without restraint, act out of the Tao without prior consideration, conform to the requirements of benevolence without relying on it, approach morality without accumulating it, conform to etiquette but do not avoid it, contact trivial matters without postponing it, follow the law without acting recklessly, rely on the people and do not arbitrarily serve them, follow the law of change without rash abandonment. Nothing can be forced, but it must not be done. If we do not understand the evolution and laws of nature, we will not have pure cultivation; Those who do not know the Tao can accomplish nothing. Woe to those who do not know the Tao!

What is the Tao? There is heaven and humanity. Those who do nothing but are in a high position are in a high position, this is the way of heaven, and those who must do something and accumulate hard work and hardship are humanitarian. The king is the way of heaven, and the subordinates are humane. Compared with humanity, the difference between the way of heaven and humanity is too far to be carefully examined.

In the Zhuangzi philosophical system, "heaven" and "earth" are born of vitality and the ancestor of all things. The main purpose of this article is still to expound the idea of ruling by doing nothing, which is basically the same as the main idea of "Zaiyou", which expresses the political thought of Zhuangzi.

The full text can be roughly divided into fourteen parts. The first part, to "Demons and Spirits Without Experience", expounds that the idea of ruling by doing nothing is based on the "Tao". Things are the same, and the development and change of things are natural, so governing the world should be inaction. This section is the center of the whole story. The second part, "Size, Length, and Distance", clarifies the profound and mysterious meaning of the Great Dao through the mouth of the "Master", and points out that those in a dominant position must understand the Great Dao if they want to rule by doing nothing. In the third part, "Elephant recklessness can be obtained", write a fable and short story, explaining that only by doing nothing can we find the way. The fourth part, "The Thief of the South", through the mouth of the hermit Xu You, explains that intelligence and intelligence and all man-made methods are not enough to rule the world, and directly points out that the harm of "curing" is the precursor of chaos. The fifth part, "retreat", shows that the ruler should also be at peace with the situation and leave no trace. In the sixth part, "I just plough and ignore it", comparing inaction and doing, it shows that doing and curing will inevitably leave disaster. The seventh part, "Same as the Great Shun", discusses the generation of all things in the universe, implying that the rule of inaction is to return to the truth. The eighth part goes to "Yes is to enter into heaven", which states that those who rule the world must "forget themselves." The ninth part goes to "want to live with virtue and heart", pointing out that the key to engaging in politics is to indulge the people's will and promote self-education, and the rule of doing things is just to block the car with a mantis arm and put oneself in high danger. The tenth part to "give and you how to know", through the mouth of the old man who grows vegetables, opposes ingenuity and ingenuity, rejects social progress, and advocates simplicity and returning to the truth. The eleventh part, "This is called the Confusion of the Underworld," describes the "Holy Rule," the "Virtuous Man," and the "Divine Man," respectively. The twelfth part goes to "Nothing to Do", which further praises the so-called inaction rule of the Shengde era. In the thirteenth part, he lamented the ignorance and confusion of the world by using "loyal ministers" and "filial sons" as examples. The rest is the fourteenth part, pointing out that the pursuit of fame and fortune and lust seems to have gained, but in fact it has set a rope for oneself, and both "gains" and "losses" have lost their true nature.

Heaven and earth are large, but their movements and changes are balanced; Although all things are complex, they all have their own place, but in the final analysis, they are the same; Though the people were numerous, their rulers were all kings. The monarch should govern the world in accordance with things and do things in nature, so it is said that the ancient monarchs of the distant times ruled the world, and everything came from inaction, that is, let nature and go with the flow.

From the point of view of the Tao, then all the kings of the world are rightful rulers; If we look at the office from the point of view of the Tao, then the morality of the king and the minister will be clear; If you look at talent with the concept of the Tao, then all the officials in the world will do their best; Broadly observed from the concept of the Tao, everything is self-sufficient and self-sufficient. Therefore, what runs through heaven and earth is the "virtue" that conforms to self-satisfaction; What prevails through all things is the "way" that is left to nature; Those who are good at governing the world are those who do their best to do their own things; What makes the most of your abilities and talents is your skills. Skill is attributed to affairs, affairs are attributed to righteousness, righteousness is attributed to the "virtue" of conforming to one's self-satisfaction, "virtue" is attributed to the "Tao" of resignation to nature, and the "Tao" of resignation to nature is attributed to the natural nature of things. Therefore, in ancient times, the rulers who raised the people of the world were rich in the world without pursuit, and all things changed and developed by themselves without doing anything, and they were deep and quiet and the hearts of the people were stable. The book "Records" says: "Knowing the avenue and thus everything is naturally complete and successful, and having no intention of obtaining it is therefore admired and admired by the ghosts and gods." ”

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