|
Liezi
Origin of Liezi
Liezi, or Lie Yukou, is one of the major representatives of
early Daoist philosophy. According to the Comprehensive
Mirror of the Perfect Immortals Who Embodied the Dao1,
Liezi was a man of the state of Zheng, who lived there unknown
for forty years. The author of the History of the Han Dynasty
held that Liezi lived earlier than Zhuangzi, because Zhuangzi
recorded many legends about Liezi.
Cultivation of Dao
Liezi inherited the philosophy of the Yellow Emperor and of
Laozi. Legend says that his teachers and friends were such
Daoist figures as Guangyinzi, Huqiuzi, Laoshangshi and Zhibogaozi,
from whom Liezi received the true transmission of Dao. After
nine years of cultivation, Liezi was able to fly by riding
on wind. According to the Tales of the Marvelous2,
Liezi often travelled by wind to the eight extremes of the
world on the day of the summer solstice, and returned to the
grotto of wind on the day of the winter solstice. Grass and
woods flourished when the wind came and withered when the
wind left. According to  's
Spring and Autumn Annals3,
Liezi cherished Emptiness4.
Liezi held that "the mind of the Perfect Man5
is like a mirror. It does not move with things, nor does it
anticipate them. It responds to things without retaining them.
Therefore, it is able to deal successfully with things, but
is not affected by them." Liezi was poor and his face looked
hungry, but he refused a gift of grain from Ziyang, the cruel
ruler of the state of Zheng. His disciple Yanhui asked: "Do
the followers of Dao make a fortune?" He answered: "Jie and
Zhou lost their thrones and lives just because they cherished
material possessions and despised Dao!" Liezi advocated obeying
and cultivating Dao purely and quietly, freeing oneself from
the rein of fame and fortune.
Work and immortalization
The old version of the Liezi, with many fables, had
twenty chapters, among which only eight chapters were left
after Liu Xiang edited the book, omitting repetitions. It
was classified into the school of Daoist philosophy, which
grasped the fundamental root and advocated humility in self-cultivation.
This agrees with the Six Confucian Classics6.
The book of Liezi was respected and given the title " Perfect
Book of the Higher Virtue of Emptiness")7
in the Kaiyuan era of the Tang dynasty. Liezi was honoured
with the title " Perfect Man of Emptiness"8
in the Tianbao era of the Tang Emperor Xuanzong, and the title
" Perfect Sovereign of Emptiness and Sublime Contemplation"9
in the Xuanhe era of the Song Dynasty.
Author:
Jiang Sheng
Translator: Luo Tongbing
Copy Editor: David Palmer
|
