则阳游于楚，夷节言之于王，王未之见，夷节归。彭阳见于王果，曰：「夫子何不谭我于王？」王果曰：「我不若公阅休。」彭阳曰：「公阅休何为者邪？」曰：「冬则擉鳖于江，夏则休乎山樊。有过而问者，曰『此吾宅也。』──夫夷节不能，而况我乎？吾又不若夷节。夫夷节之为人也，无德而有知，不自许，以之神其交，固颠冥乎富贵之地；非相助以德，相助以消。夫冻者假衣于春，暍者反冬乎冷风。夫楚王之为人也，形尊而严，其于罪也，无赦，如虎。非夫佞人正德，其孰能挠焉？故圣人，其穷也，使家人忘其贫，其达也，使王公忘爵禄而化卑；其于物也，与之为娱矣；其于人也，乐物之道，而保己焉。故或不言，而饮人以和；与人并立，而使人化，父子之宜；彼其乎归居，而一闲其所施，其于人心者，若是其远也。故曰：待公阅休。」
圣人达绸缪，周尽一体矣，尚不知其所以然，性也。复命摇作，而以天为师，人则从而命之也。忧乎知，而与之鉴；不告，则不知其美于人也。若知之，若不知之，若闻之，若不闻之，其可喜也，终无已；人之好之，亦无已；性也。
圣人之爱人也，人与之名；不告，则不知其爱人也。若知之，若不知之；若闻之，若不闻之；其爱人也，终无已；人之安之，亦无已；性也。
旧国旧都，望之畅然；虽使丘陵、草木之缗，入之者十九，犹之畅然，况见见闻闻者也？以十仞之台县众间者也？
冉相氏得其环中，以随成兴物，无终无始，无几无时。日与物化者，一不化者也。阖尝舍之？夫师天而不得师天，与物皆殉，其以为事也若之何？夫圣人未始有天，未始有人，未始有始，未始有物，与世偕行而不替，所行之备而不洫，其合之也，若之何？
汤得其司御，门尹登恒为之傅之。从师而不囿，得其随成。为之，其名；之名，嬴法，得其两见。仲尼之尽虑，为之傅之。容成氏曰：「除日无岁，无内无外。」
魏莹与田侯约，田侯牟之。魏莹怒，将使人刺之。犀首公孙衍闻而耻之，曰：「君为万乘之君也，而以匹夫从雠！衍请受甲二十万，为君攻之，虏其人民，系其牛马，使其君内热发于背。然后拔其国。忌也出走，然后抶其背，折其脊。」季子闻而耻之，曰：「筑十仞之城，城者既十仞矣，则又坏之，此胥靡之所苦也。今兵不起七年矣，此王之基也。衍乱人，不可听也。」华子闻而丑之，曰：「善言伐齐者，乱人也；善言勿伐者，亦乱人也；谓伐之与不伐乱人也者，又乱人也。」君曰：「然则若何？」曰：「君求其道而已矣！」惠子闻之，而见戴晋人。戴晋人曰：「有所谓蜗者，君知之乎？」曰：「然。」「有国于蜗之左角者曰触氏，有国于蜗之右角者曰蛮氏，时相与争地而战，伏尸数万，逐北旬有五日而后反。」君曰：「噫！其虚言与？」曰：「臣请为君实之。君以意在四方上下有穷乎？」君曰：「无穷。」曰：「知游心于无穷，而反在通达之国，若存若亡乎？」君曰：「然。」曰：「通达之中有魏，于魏中有梁，于梁中有王。王与蛮氏，有辩乎？」君曰：「无辩。」客出而君惝然若有亡也。客出，惠子见。君曰：「客，大人也，圣人不足以当之。」惠子曰：「夫吹管也，犹有嗃也；吹剑首者，吷而已矣。尧舜，人之所誉也；道尧舜于戴晋人之前，譬犹一吷也！」
孔子之楚，舍于蚁丘之浆。其邻有夫妻臣妾登极者，子路曰：「是稯稯何为者邪？」仲尼曰：「是圣人仆也。是自埋于民，自藏于畔。其声销，其志无穷；其口虽言，其心未尝言；方且与世违，而心不屑与之俱：是陆沉者也。是其市南宜僚邪？」子路请往召之。孔子曰：「已矣！彼知丘之着于己也，知丘之适楚也，以丘为必使楚王之召己也；彼且以丘为佞人也。夫若然者，其于佞人也，羞闻其言，而况亲见其身乎？而何以为存？」子路往视之，其室虚矣。
长梧封人问子牢曰：「君为政焉勿卤莽，治民焉勿灭裂。昔予为禾，耕而卤莽之，则其实亦卤莽而报予；芸而灭裂之，其实亦灭裂而报予。予来年变齐，深其耕而熟耰之，其禾蘩以滋，予终年厌飧。」庄子闻之，曰：「今人之治其形，理其心，多有似封人之所谓。遁其天，离其性，灭其情，亡其神，以众为。故卤莽其性者，欲恶之孽，为性萑苇蒹葭，始萌以扶吾形，寻擢吾性；并溃漏发，不择所出，漂疽疥痈，内热溲膏是也。
柏矩学于老聃，曰：「请之天下游。」老聃曰：「已矣！天下犹是也。」又请之，老聃曰：「汝将何始？」曰：「始于齐。」至齐，见辜人焉，推而强之，解朝服而幕之，号天而哭之，曰：「子乎！子乎！天下有大灾，子独先离之！莫为盗？莫为杀人？荣辱立，然后睹所病；货财聚，然后睹所争。今立人之所病，聚人之所争，穷困人之身，使无休时，欲无至此，得乎？古之君人者，以得为在民，以失为在己；以正为在民，以枉为在己。故一形有失其形者，退而自责。今则不然。匿为物，而愚不识；大为难，而罪不敢；重为任，而罚不胜；远其涂，而诛不至。民知力竭，则以伪继之。日出多伪，士民安取不伪？夫力不足则伪，知不足则欺，财不足则盗。盗窃之行，于谁责而可乎？」
蘧伯玉行年六十而六十化，未尝不始于是之，而卒诎之以非也；未知今之所谓是之非五十九非也。
万物有乎生而莫见其根，有乎出而莫见其门。人皆尊其知之所知，而莫知恃其知之所不知而后知，可不谓大疑乎？已乎！已乎！且无所逃此所谓『然与然』乎？
仲尼问于太史大弢、伯常骞、
狶韦曰：「夫卫灵公饮酒湛乐，不听国家之政；田猎毕弋，不应诸侯之际；其所以为『灵公』者何邪？」大弢曰：「是因是也。」伯常骞曰：「夫灵公有妻三人，同滥而浴。史鳅奉御而进所，搏币而扶翼。──其慢若彼之甚也，见贤人若此其肃也，是其所以为『灵公』也。」狶韦曰：「夫灵公也死，卜葬于故墓，不吉；卜葬于沙丘，而吉。掘之数仞，得石椁焉；洗而视之，有铭焉，曰：『不冯其子，灵公夺而埋之。』夫灵公之为『灵』也久矣。之二人何足以识之？」
少知问于大公调曰：「何谓丘里之言？」大公调曰：「丘里者，合十姓百名而以为风俗也。合异以为同，散同以为异。今指马之百体，而不得马；而马系于前者，立其百体，而谓之马也。是故，丘山积卑而为高，江河合小以为大，大人合并而为公。是以，自外入者，有主而不执；由中出者，有正而不距。四时殊气，天不赐，故岁成；五官殊职，君不私，故国治；文武殊材，大人不赐，故德备；万物殊理，道不私，故无名。无名故无为，无为而无不为。时有终始，世有变化。祸福淳淳，至有所拂者，而有所宜；自殉殊面，有所正者，有所差。比于大泽，百材皆度；观于大山，木石同坛。此之谓丘里之言。」少知曰：「然则，谓之道，足乎？」大公调曰：「不然。今计物之数，不止于『万』，而期曰『万物』者，以数之多者号而读之也。是故天地者，形之大者也；阴阳者，气之大者也；道者为之公。因其大以号而读之，则可也。已有之矣，乃将得比哉？则若以斯辩，譬犹狗马，其不及远矣。」少知曰：「四方之内，六合之里，万物之所生，恶起？」大公调曰：「阴阳，相照，相盖，相治；四时，相代，相生，相杀。欲恶去就，于是桥起；雌雄片合，于是庸有。安危相易，祸福相生，缓急相争，聚散相成。此名实之可纪，精微之可志也。随序之相理，桥运之相使；穷则反，终则始。此物之所有，言之所尽，知之所至，极物而已。睹道之人，不随其所废，不原其所起。此议之所止。」少知曰：「季真之『莫为』，接子之『或使』，二家之议，孰正于其情？孰偏于其理？」大公调曰：「鸡鸣狗吠，是人之所知；虽有大知，不能以言其所自化，又不能以意其所将为。斯而析之，精至于无伦，大至于不可围。或之使，莫之为，未免于物，而终以为过。或使，则实；莫为，则虚。有名有实，是物之居；无名无实，在物之虚。可言可意，言而愈疏。未生不可忌，已死不可徂。死生，非远也，理不可睹。或之使，莫之为，疑之所假。吾观之本，其往无穷；吾求之末，其来无止。无穷无止，言之无也，与物同理；或使莫为，言之本也，与物终始。，道不可有，有不可无。道之为名，所假而行。或使，莫为，在物一曲，夫胡为于大方？言而足，则终日言而尽道；言而不足，则终日言而尽物。道，物之极，言、默不足以载；非言非默，议其有极。」

Then Yang Youyu went to Chu, and Yi Jie reported this to the king. The king did not see him, so Yi Jie returned. Peng Yang saw the king and said, “Why didn't you recommend me to the king?” The king said, “I'm not as good as Gong Yuexiu.” Peng Yang said, “What does Gong Yuexiu do?” He said, “In winter, he hunts turtles on the river, and in summer, he rests in the mountains. If someone asks him, he says, 'This is my home. —If a man of integrity cannot do it, how much less can I? I am not as good as a man of integrity. The man of integrity is one who, without virtue, is knowledgeable, does not flatter himself, and is so devoted to his friends that he is oblivious to his wealth and position. He does not help others with virtue, but with his own virtue. The man who is cold borrows clothes in spring, and the one who is hot goes out in winter to escape the cold. The king of Chu was a stern and dignified man, and he was unforgiving of his subjects' crimes, like a tiger. If not for the virtuous flatterers, who could have kept him in check? Therefore, when the sage was poor, he made his family forget their poverty; when he was rich, he made the nobles forget their rank and become humble. He took pleasure in all things, and in dealing with people, he followed the way of things and protected himself. Therefore, without saying a word, he can make people at ease; when standing together with others, he can make people change, so that they become like father and son. When he returns home, he can make the most of his leisure time. He is so far removed from people's hearts. Therefore, it is said, “Wait until the public is at rest.”
The sage is so well-connected that he is one with the world, and yet he does not know why. This is just the way it is. He follows his destiny, and takes the heavens as his teacher. People follow his lead. He is concerned about knowledge, and shares his insights with others. If he does not tell people, they will not know how good he is. If people know, if they don't know, if they hear, if they don't hear, they will be happy, and there will be no end to it. People like it, and there is no end to it either. This is just the way it is.
The sage loves people, and people call it by name. If you don't tell them, they won't know that you love them. If you know it, if you don't know it; if you hear it, if you don't hear it; their love for you will never end; people's comfort in you will also never end; it's just the nature of things.
The old country and old capital are full of charm. Even if you climb over the hills and through the tangle of trees, you will still feel the same sense of wonder. How much more so for those who have seen and heard it all? It is as if you were standing on a ten-yard high platform among a crowd of people.
Ranzi got his ring in the middle and followed it to create things. There is no beginning and no end, no time and no space. Those who are in harmony with things are the ones who are not. What is the point of trying? He who follows the ways of the world and does not follow the ways of heaven, and who dies with all things, what is the point of his actions? The sage has never had a beginning, never had a middle, never had an end, never had a thing. He walks with the world without changing, his actions are complete without being excessive. What is the point of this?
Tang got his driver, and the doorman Yumin Deng Heng became his tutor. He learned from his teacher without being confined to his teachings, and he got the most out of it. His name is the name of his actions, and his actions are the result of his learning. Zhongni's thorough consideration became the basis of his teachings. Rongcheng said, “There is no age, no inside, no outside.”
Wei Ying made an appointment with Tian Hou, but Tian Hou betrayed him. Wei Ying was furious and wanted to have him assassinated. Xishou Gongsun Yan heard about this and was ashamed, saying, “You are a king of a country with a population of 10,000, and you are fighting a private war! I will ask for 200,000 suits of armour and attack for you, capture your people, tie up your cattle and horses, and make your king's internal heat erupt on his back. Then I will pull out his country. The enemy will flee, and then we will beat him on the back and break his backbone.” Ji Zi heard this and was ashamed, saying, ”Building a city ten li high and then destroying it when it is already ten li high is what the common people suffer. Now the army has not been mobilized for seven years, and this is the foundation of the king's power. Yan is a troublemaker and should not be listened to.” Hua Zi heard this and said, “The person who speaks well of attacking Qi is a troublemaker; the person who speaks well of not attacking is also a troublemaker; the person who says that both those who attack and those who do not are troublemakers is also a troublemaker.” The master said, “What then?” Hua Zi said, “The master is just seeking the way!” Hui Zi heard this and met Dai Jinren. Dai Jinren said, “Do you know about the snail?” He said, “Yes.” “There is a country at the left corner of the snail called the state of Chu, and there is a country at the right corner of the snail called the state of Man. They are constantly fighting each other over territory, with tens of thousands of dead, and it takes five days to flee north before they can turn back.” The king said, “Oh, is that just empty talk?” He said, “I will tell you the truth. Do you think there is an end to the world in all directions?” The king said, “No.” The guest said, “Knowing that the mind roams in the infinite, but returning to a country of understanding, is it like existing or perishing?” The master said, “Yes.” The guest said, “In the midst of understanding there is Wei, in Wei there is Liang, and in Liang there is the king. Is there any difference between the king and the barbarians?” The master said, “No difference.” The guest went out, and the master was lost in thought, as if he had lost something. After the guest had left, Hui Zi came in. The master said, “That guest is a great man, and a sage is not enough to match him.” Huizi said, “Even if someone plays the flute, there is still a sound; but if someone blows on the tip of a sword, there is only a hiss. Yao and Shun were praised by everyone, but to praise them before the people of Daijin is like a mere hiss!”
When Confucius was in Chu, he stayed at the Ant Hill. His neighbor had a husband and wife, servants and concubines, and they were all very important people. Zilu said, “What are they doing?” Zhongni said, “They are the servants of the sage. They hide themselves from the people and keep themselves to themselves. Their voices are quiet, but their aspirations are endless; they speak, but their hearts do not speak; they are detached from the world, and their hearts do not care to be with it. Is he a fool or a genius?” Zilu asked to go and summon him. Confucius said, ”No, he knows that I am attached to him and that I am going to Chu, and he thinks that I will make the king of Chu summon me. He also thinks that I am a flatterer. If that is the case, he will be ashamed to hear a flatterer speak, let alone see one in person. Why do you think he is still alive?” Zilu went to check, and his room was empty.
The Changwu seal-carver asked Ziliao, ”When you govern, don't be rash, and when you rule the people, don't be cruel. Once I grew rice, and if I cultivated it rashly, the crop would be rash; if I weeded it, the crop would be destroyed. The following year, I changed the method, plowing deeply and cultivating thoroughly, and the crop grew luxuriantly. I was full all year round.” Zhuangzi heard this and said, ”The way people nowadays govern their form and reason their minds is very similar to what the Feng people do. They hide from their nature, separate themselves from their essence, extinguish their feelings, lose their spirit, and rely on the crowd. Therefore, those who recklessly abandon their nature, and who want to eradicate the evils of desire, make their nature weak and feeble, and begin to nurture their form in order to support it, and then cultivate their nature; they let their hair grow unkempt, without regard for its appearance, and they allow boils, sores, and ulcers to fester inside, without seeking treatment.
Bo Jue studied under Laozi and said, “Please let me travel the world.” Laozi said, “That's enough! The world is still the same.” He asked again, and Laozi said, “Where will you start?” He said, “I'll start in Qi.” When he arrived in Qi, he saw a man being wronged, so he pushed him, took off his morning clothes and wrapped them around the man, cried to the heavens, and said, “My son! There is great calamity in the world, and you are the first to leave it! Are you not a thief? Are you not a murderer? Honor and disgrace are established, and then you see what is wrong; goods and wealth are gathered, and then you see what is being fought over. Now you establish what people are sick of, gather what people are fighting over, and impoverish people's bodies so that there is no rest, and you want to prevent this from happening, can you? The ancient rulers considered that success was in the people and failure was in themselves; that righteousness was in the people and injustice was in themselves. Therefore, when one's form loses its shape, one withdraws and reproves oneself. Nowadays, this is not the case. They hide their faults, but the people are ignorant and do not recognize them; they are afraid of the consequences, but dare not admit their faults; they place heavy responsibilities on others, but are unwilling to punish them; they avoid the consequences, but do not punish those who avoid them. When the people know that their strength is exhausted, they resort to hypocrisy. As there is so much hypocrisy in the world, how can the people not be hypocritical? If one's strength is insufficient, one resorts to hypocrisy; if one's knowledge is insufficient, one resorts to deceit; if one's wealth is insufficient, one resorts to theft. Who should be blamed for the practice of theft?”
Qiu Boyu was sixty years old and changing with the times at the age of sixty. He never started with what was right, but ended up rejecting it as wrong. I wonder if what is called right now is not wrong. Fifty-nine is not right.
Everything has a beginning but no one can see the root; everything has an end but no one can see the door. Everyone respects what they know, but no one knows that what they don't know is what they know. Isn't this a big problem? Enough! There is nowhere to hide from this so-called “yes and yes”.
Zhongni asked the great historian Tai Tao, Bo Changqian,
Wei said, “The Duke of Wei, Ling-gong, drank and reveled, and did not attend to the affairs of state; he hunted and fished, and did not respond to the needs of the feudal lords. What was the reason for his being called ‘Duke of Wei, Ling-gong’?” Da-tao said, “That was the reason.” Bo-chang-qian said, “The Duke of Wei, Ling-gong, had three wives, and they bathed together. The official historian, Shu-chuan, served him and brought him offerings, and —His arrogance was as great as that, and his respect for the wise as solemn as that. That was why he was called 'Lord Ling'. “Zhu Wei said, ‘Lord Ling died, and the divination for his burial indicated that it was inauspicious to bury him in his old tomb, but auspicious to bury him in the sand dunes. A few shens (Chinese units of measurement) down, they found a stone coffin. When they washed it and looked at it, there was an inscription on it that said, ’Lord Ling did not trust his son, so he took him and buried him. The Duke Ling had been called “Ling” for a long time. How could two ordinary people like you and me possibly understand?”
The younger man asked the elder, “What do you mean by the words of the people of Qiu?” The elder said, “The people of Qiu combine a hundred surnames and ten family names to form a custom. They combine differences to create unity, and they scatter unity to create differences. Now, if you were to point to the hundred forms of a horse and not get the horse, and if the horse were tied to the front, you would stand the hundred forms and call them the horse. Therefore, mountains and hills accumulate small parts to become high, rivers and streams combine small parts to become large, and adults combine to become public figures. Therefore, those who enter from the outside have a master but do not hold on to it; those who come from the inside have a proper attitude but do not reject it. The four seasons have different atmospheres, which heaven does not bestow, but which result in a good year; the five organs have different duties, which the ruler does not keep for himself, but which result in a stable country; the civil and military officials have different talents, which adults do not bestow, but which result in complete virtue; all things have different principles, which the Dao does not keep for itself, but which result in no name. There is no name, so there is no action; there is no action, but there is no inaction. There is a beginning and an end, and the world changes. There is good fortune and misfortune, and there are those who are offended, and those who are appropriate; there are those who are self-sacrificing and exceptional, and those who are correct, and those who are different. Compared to the great lake, all materials are measured; looking at the great mountain, wood and stone are on the same altar. This is called the language of the country. “Shao Zhi said, ”Then, is the way enough? Dagong Diao said, “No. Nowadays, when counting the number of things, it is not just ‘ten thousand’, but ‘all things’. This is because the number is so large. Therefore, heaven and earth are the great shapes; yin and yang are the great energies; and the Dao is the great commonality. It is fine to call them by their greatness and read them. They already exist, so how can they be compared? If we argue like this, it is like comparing a dog to a horse, and it is not going to get far.” Shaozhi said, “Within the four directions and the six directions, within the world, where does everything come from?” Daguang said, “Yin and yang, they illuminate each other, cover each other, and govern each other. The four seasons, they succeed each other, give birth to each other, and destroy each other. The will to do good and the will to do evil are the bridge that connects them; the union of male and female is what makes them possible. Safety and danger alternate, fortune and misfortune are born of each other, urgency and leisure compete with each other, gathering and dispersing complement each other. This is what can be recorded in terms of names and realities, what can be recorded in terms of subtleties. The order of the sequence is the reason for the bridge's operation; when there is no more to be had, there is the beginning. All that this world has, all that words can say, all that knowledge can reach, is the ultimate. The man who has seen the way does not follow where it ends, nor does he trace where it begins. This is where discussion ends.” Shaozi said, ‘Ji Zhen's ’don't do it‘ and Jie Zi's ’maybe it will' – which of these two schools of thought is more accurate? Which is more biased?” Dagong Diao said, “The crowing of the cock and the barking of the dog are known to all. Even someone with great knowledge cannot explain where it comes from or what it will do. If you analyze it, it becomes so refined that it has no comparison, so great that it cannot be contained. Using the word ‘or’ and saying ‘don't do it’ are not free from things, but they are ultimately considered mistakes. Using the word ‘or’ is real; saying ‘don't do it’ is false. Things that have a name and a reality are things that exist; things that have no name and no reality are things that are not real. It can be expressed and understood, but the more it is expressed, the more distant it becomes. The unborn should not be feared, and the dead should not be visited. Birth and death are not far away; the truth cannot be seen. Or, if you make it, do not do it; it is doubtful where it is borrowed from. My view of the beginning is that it goes on forever; my search for the end has no end. There is no end, so there is no end to the words; it is the same as the things. Or, if you make it, do not do it; the words are the beginning, and they are the end with the things. There cannot be a way, but there cannot be no way. The name “Tao” is used for something that is only temporarily true. If you try to do nothing, you will end up doing everything. If you speak, you will run out of things to say; if you don't speak, you will run out of things to talk about. Tao is the ultimate in all things, and cannot be expressed in words or silence. It is beyond words.”