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Revision as of 00:32, 18 April 2012
Zhuangzi, aka Chuang Tzu
• Born through the span of 370 to 301 BC from the town of Meng, in the state of Song during the reign of King Hiu of Liang and King Xuan of Qi
• The validity of my existence has been questioned by some, including myself
• I Wrote a book bearing my own name, known as the Zhuangzi. It consists of 33 chapters and is traditionally divided into three parts. The first is the inner chapters, the second is known as the outer chapters, and the last is known as the mixed chapters. The inner chapters were written by me, the outer chapters were written by my disciples, and the mixed chapters were written by other hands.
• I am known for my brilliant wordplay and use of parables to convey messages
• I have also been known to critique confusion society and historical figures, which others find to be humorous and at times ironic.
• My style has been known for having a humorous miscommunication between a mystic and a logician.
• I have been known to be the first anarchist, since I believe that the world does not need governing, because I think good order results spontaneously when things are left alone
• Here are a few of my famous thoughts
King Wei of Chou, having heard of the ability of myself, sent messengers with large gifts to bring me to his court, and promising also that he would make me his chief minister. I, however, only laughed and said to them: "A thousand ounces of silver are a great gain to me, and to be a high noble and minister is a most honorable position. But have you not seen the victim-ox for the border sacrifice? It is carefully fed for several years, and robed with rich embroidery that it may be fit to enter the Grand Temple. When the time comes for it to do so, it would prefer to be a little pig, but it cannot get to be so. Go away quickly, and do not soil me with your presence.
I had rather amuse and enjoy myself in the midst of a filthy ditch than be subject to the rules and restrictions in the court of a sovereign. I have determined never to take office, but prefer the enjoyment of my own free will.
One of my continuing interests was the issue of the interchangeability of appearance and reality. I sometimes ask, 'How can we be sure of what we are seeing? To touch on this I will explain one of my other famous thoughts…
"Those who dream of the banquet may weep the next morning, and those who dream of weeping may go out to hunt after dawn. When we dream we do not know that we are dreaming. In our dreams we may even interpret our dreams. Only after we are awake do we know that we have dreamed. But there comes a great awakening, and then we know that life is a great dream. But the stupid think they are awake all the time and believe they know it distinctly.
"Once I, Chuang Tzu, dreamed I was a butterfly and was happy as a butterfly. I was conscious that I was quite pleased with myself, but I did not know that I was Tzu. Suddenly I awoke, and there was I, visibly Tzu. I do not know whether it was Tzu dreaming that he was a butterfly or the butterfly dreaming that he was Tzu. Between Tzu and the butterfly there must be some distinction. [But one may be the other.] This is called the transformation of things."
By exploring such paradoxes I reveal that much of the meaning of the world is bound up in apparent contradictions