Mair 20:1

[Marblehead]

Master Chuang was walking in the mountains when he saw a great tree with thick branches and luxuriant foliage.  A lumberjack had stopped by its side but did not attempt to fell it.  When Master Chuang asked him the reason, he said, "There's nothing that it can be used for."

"This tree has been able to live out the years allotted to it by heaven because it is worthless," said Master Chuang.

After he left the mountain, Master Chuang lodged in the home of an old friend.  Delighted, the old friend ordered a boy to kill a goose and cook it.  The boy asked for further instructions, saying, "One of the geese can cackle and the other cannot.  Which should I kill?"

"Kill the one that cannot cackle," said the host.

The next day, Master Chuang's disciples inquired of him, saying, "The tree we saw in the mountains yesterday was able to live out the years allotted to it by heaven because it is worthless, but today our host's goose will die because it is worthless.  Which of these conditions would you rather be in, master?"

Master Chuang laughed and said, "I suppose I'd rather find myself somewhere between worthlessness and worthiness.  But even finding oneself somewhere between worthlessness and worthiness, though it might seem like the right place to be, really isn't because it can't keep you out of trouble.  That's not so, however, for someone who, mounted on the Way and integrity, drifts and wanders freely.

Being neither praised nor rebuked,
One moment a dragon and the next moment a serpent,
He evolves together with the times
And is unwilling to act for his own sake.
One moment rising and the next moment descending,
Taking harmony as his measure.

He drifts and wanders with the ancestor of the myriad things.  He treats things as things but doesn't let them treat him as a thing.  How, then, can he get in trouble?  This was the method of the Divine Farmer and the Yellow Emperor.  That's not so, however, for those who are concerned with the circumstances of the myriad things and the teachings on human relationships.

No sooner do they join than they are sundered;
No sooner do they succeed than they are ruined.
If they are sharp, they are ground down;
If they are honored, they are criticized.
Those who are active come up short;
Those who are wise are schemed against;
Those who are unworthy are cheated.

How can they be certain of what will happen to them?  Alas! my disciples, remember this:  abide only in the Way and integrity."

[wandelaar]

Now did Master Chuang actually give an answer that could be applied in practical circumstances?

[Marblehead]

12 minutes ago, wandelaar said:

Now did Master Chuang actually give an answer that could be applied in practical circumstances?

Nope.  In another translation he simply says (paraphrase) "Things are different for man than they are for geese."  (Not much help.)

 

 

[OldDog]

The only lesson thst I can see in this story is thst events occur and circumstances change, largely directed by what we do and how we live our lives. The best advice the master can give is to try to move with the times and be in harmony your surroundings ... and in doing so not invite any misfortune unnecessarily.

 

In this regard the master seems no better off than the rest of us. 

[Marblehead]

Yep.  The Master has a body so (s)he  has the same challenges the rest of us have.

 

[wandelaar]

So the following part actually describes an ideal that is beyond the reach of mere mortals?

 

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That's not so, however, for someone who, mounted on the Way and integrity, drifts and wanders freely.

Being neither praised nor rebuked,
One moment a dragon and the next moment a serpent,
He evolves together with the times
And is unwilling to act for his own sake.
One moment rising and the next moment descending,
Taking harmony as his measure.

He drifts and wanders with the ancestor of the myriad things.  He treats things as things but doesn't let them treat him as a thing.  How, then, can he get in trouble?  This was the method of the Divine Farmer and the Yellow Emperor. 

 

[OldDog]

2 hours ago, wandelaar said:

... beyond the reach of mere mortals?

 

Not necessarily. The key phrases from the passage may be ...

 

... mounted on the Way and integrity.

 

He evolves together with the times.

 

Taking harmony as his measure.

 

This seems to be the Daoist approach to life in a nutshell.

 

As I read this and contrasted it with the passage refering to ... those concerned with circumstances ... human relationships , what came to mind were the people that I have known ... some I care very much about ... who seem to be in constant contention with circumstances ... cannot let something pass ... take things too personally and seriously. Now, we all tend to do that to some degree or another but for some it is obsessive. How much better off ... happier ... would they be if could learn to evolve with the times and learn to harmonize with circumstances.

 

Just a thought.

[wandelaar]

I agree with that, but would that approach guarantee that we would always stay out of trouble?

 

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He treats things as things but doesn't let them treat him as a thing.  How, then, can he get in trouble?  This was the method of the Divine Farmer and the Yellow Emperor. 

 

Can a mere mortal be like that?

[OldDog]

Ain't no guarantees ... not in this life. You pays your money and you takes your chances.

[Marblehead]

And if you do the crime you gotta do the time.

 

[wandelaar]

 

[Marblehead]

I always did like that series.

 

[wandelaar]

We also watched it in the Netherlands, and the single was one of the first I bought.