This is from the Yang Zhu chapter of the Liezi. Yang Zhu is considered by some to be a “left-handed Daoist” and a hedonist. Zichan was chief minister in Zheng. Within three years of his taking sole charge of the government, the good had submitted to his reforms and the wicked dreaded his prohibitions; the state of Zheng was in good order and the other states were afraid of it. But he had an elder brother called Gongsun Zhao who was fond of wine, and a younger brother called Gongsun Mu who was fond of women. Zhao had collected in his house a thousand jars of wine and a whole hillock of yeast for brewing; and for a hundred paces outside his door the smell of the dregs came to meet men’s nostrils. When he was carried away by wine, he did not know whether there was peace or war in the world, he did not notice mistakes which he had time to repent, he forgot the possessions in his own house, the degrees of affinity of his kinsmen, and that it is better to live than to die. Even if he had stood in water or fire with sword blades slashing before him, he would not have known it. In the back courtyard of Mu’s house there was a row of several dozen rooms, and he picked young and lovely girls to fill them. When he was excited by lust, he shut the door on his kinsmen and stopped meeting and going out with his friends; he fled into his harem, where the nights were too short to satisfy him, and felt thwarted if he had to come out once in three months. Any beautiful virgin in the district he was sure to tempt with gifts and invite through go-betweens, giving up only if he could not catch her. Zichan, who worried about them night and day, went privately to consult Deng Xi. “I have heard,” Zichan said, “that a man should influence his family by setting his own life in order influence the state by setting his own family in order; meaning that the example you set to those nearest to you extends to those further away. My administration has set the state in order yet my family is in anarchy. Have I been doing things the wrong way around? Tell me a method of helping these two men.” “I have long marveled at it,” said Deng Xi, “but did not wish to be the first to raise the question. Why not look out for an opportunity to set their lives in order, make them understand the importance of keeping their health, appeal to their respect for propriety and duty?” Zichan took his advice. He found an opportunity to visit his brothers and told them: “It is knowledge and foresight which make man nobler than the beasts and birds. Knowledge and foresight lead us to propriety and duty. Learn to live properly and dutifully and reputation and office will be yours. But if you act on the promptings of your passions and excite yourselves with pleasure and lust, you will endanger health and life. Should you listen to what I say you can repent in a morning and draw your salaries by the evening.” Zhao and Mu answered: “We have long known it, and long since made our choice. Why should we need your advice to make us see it? Always life is precious and death comes too soon. We must never forget that we are living this precious life waiting for death which comes too soon; and wish to impress others with your respect for propriety and duty, distorting your natural passions to call up a good name, in our judgment is worse than death. We wish to enjoy this single life to the full, draining the utmost pleasure from its best years. For us the only misfortune is a belly too weak to drink without restraint, potency which fails before our lust is satisfied. We have no time to worry that our reputation is ugly and our health in danger. “Besides is it not mean and pitiable that you, whom success in ruling the state has made proud should wish to disturb our hearts with sophistries and flatter our thoughts with hopes of glory and salary? We in our turn would like to dispute the issue with you. The man who is good at ordering the lives of others does not necessarily succeed but overworks himself trying. The man who is good at ordering his own life gives scope to his nature without needing to disorder the lives of others. Your method of ruling others may be realized temporarily in a single state but it is out of accord with men’s hearts. Our method of ruling ourselves may be extended to the whole world until the Way of ruler and subject is brought to an end. We have long wanted to make you understand our way of life, but on the contrary it is you who come to teach us yours!” Zichan was bewildered and had no answer to give. On another day he told Deng Xi, who said, “You have been living with Men Who Understand without knowing it. Who says you are a wise man? The good government of the state of Zheng is mere chance you cannot take the credit for it.”
Posted on: Tue, 29 Jul 2014 21:29:49 +0000
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