Zhuangzi (about 369 BC-about 286 BC), a famous Zhou, was born in the middle of the Warring States Period (now the northeast of Shangqiu City, Henan Province), about 369 BC. Zhuangzi was unknown all his life, but he wrote a lot. As a master of Taoist thought, he had a great influence on China's history of philosophy, literature and various artistic fields. The isomorphism of Laozi, Zhuangzi and Confucius and Mencius became the source of national spirit. Zhuangzi, as a hermit thinker who does not seek fame, has basically not participated in any major historical events, so it is impossible for us to write a biography with clear lines for him with confidence, which needs to be declared in advance.

(1) Born in a noble family, he lived in 387 BC during the Song and Meng Dynasties. An important historical event happened in the State of Chu, the Seven Heroes of the Warring States Period: Wuqi Reform. This matter is of great significance to understanding Zhuang Zhou, so our story must start from here. In the six centuries from the Zhou Dynasty to the mid-Warring States period, with the appearance of ironware, the productivity developed greatly, and the so-called patriarchal natural and economic production mode of "men plowing and women weaving" and "a family of five with a hundred acres of land" was gradually formed; At the same time, an increasingly large leisure class appeared in various vassal States, with "fewer people living and more people eating", and the social class contradictions became increasingly acute and complicated. In this situation, people of insight in various countries began to advocate political reform in succession, trying to tear down the barrier of "no punishment for doctors, no courtesy for Shu Ren"; Some shrewd rulers are also willing to use these talents to enrich Qiang Bing and rule the Central Plains. Wuqi is one of the most famous. During the Warring States Period, there were three reformers: Li Kui of Wei, Wuqi of Chu and Shang Yang of Qin. As a talented historical figure, Wu Qi is handsome, heroic and shrewd: in order to unite the army in Lu against Qi, he can kill his wife himself in Qi; When Wei leads his troops, he can suck sores for the soldiers himself. But as a generation of heroes, he did make a life-class contribution to the prosperity of Chu. At the beginning of Chu, it was originally a backward and wild land. Due to superior natural conditions, warm and humid climate and beautiful mountains and rivers, Chu people developed rapidly with primitive romance and enthusiasm. By the time of the political reform in Wuqi, Chu had a large number of clansmen, was short of finance, was overwhelmed by "poor countries and weak soldiers", and social contradictions were about to intensify. When Chu was bereaved, Wu Qi came to Chu from Wei and advocated political reform. He was entrusted with an important task by the king of Chu. He advocated "donating officials who are not in a hurry, abolishing those who are alienated from the people, in order to support the land of contention." Specifically, it is necessary to lay off a group of idle and unattended officials and implement "reducing government." All the idle descendants under three generations of nobles were demoted to Shu Ren and left to fend for themselves. Then use the saved fiscal revenue to raise elite soldiers to compete with the vassal States of the Central Plains. In order to prevent the descendants of nobles who were demoted to Shu Ren from joining the rebellion, Wuqi ordered "letting the nobles go to a vast and empty land", that is, evacuating to the frontier, allowing them to reclaim land and live a self-reliant civilian life. Zhuang's family is "taking history as the surname". Chu Zhuangwang ascended the throne in 6 13 BC and died in 59 1 year BC. It has been more than 200 years since 59 1 to 387, with 30 years as a generation and three generations from Qing Zi's father to grandparents, so it is undoubtedly the object of relegation. When the King of Chu mourned in 3 18 BC, Wu Qi lost the protection of the kingship and became lonely and helpless. The dignitaries he attacked immediately joined forces and entered the palace to kill Wuqi. Wuqi hugged the body of Ai Wang and was shot dead by disorderly arrows. However, those dignitaries who participated in the insurrection committed the great crime of "Zong Yi", and the king of Chu, Su, who succeeded to the throne, destroyed "more than 70 families". It was about this time that Zhuangzi's parents and grandparents crossed the border and moved to the Mongolian land in the Song Dynasty in order to avoid the disaster of "Zong Yi". "It is generally believed that Zhuang Zhou was born in 369 BC, twelve years after the rebellion of the King of Chu. It must be a difficult process for a privileged aristocratic family to suddenly become a civilian, go into exile in a foreign country and stand on its own feet. As you can imagine, the doctor's childhood lived in a turbulent environment. Regardless of the lack of material life, there is no doubt that Zhuang Zhou's young mind suffered too much pressure prematurely. For Zhuang Zhou, it is completely natural for such a childhood life experience to form an introverted personality. Young Zhuang Zhou must have thought a lot of questions since he was a child. Because his family is highly educated, he must have read a lot of books in his ears. This is the most fundamental reason why Zhuangzi became a thinker, an irrational thinker who opposed tradition and alienation and emphasized inner spiritual cultivation.

(2) Zhuang Zhou, devoted to the painting garden, grew up in depression and unhappiness, and was deeply puzzled by the ancient problems faced by human beings such as human survival, social norms and natural mysteries. This is a philosopher's anxiety, a desire to explore the truth, and an impulse to study scientifically by deciphering the mysteries of nature. However, people cannot live by truth. After reading and writing, he must find a job that can support his family. An exiled aristocratic descendant had no property to inherit, so Zhuangzi had to make a living by handicraft industry. Zhuang is a clever man. He can weave very fine sandals and make first-class lacquerware at that time, and he is very proficient in almost all handicrafts such as carpentry, potter, slaughtering, washing and dyeing. Sima Qian recorded that "Zhou Chang was an official in the lacquer garden", which proved that Zhuangzi had been a small official in the management of lacquer workshops because of his exquisite skills. Science originates from technology. Zhuangzi must have a profound understanding and experience of the nature of various substances in his handicraft labor practice. Through this experience, Jing entered the spiritual and philosophical realm of "understanding" and "Tao can't be said". In "Zhuangzi", Zhuangzi recorded many craftsmen's feelings and philosophical conclusions after hard thinking. For example, Qi Huangong is studying in class, and a carpenter is making wheels after class. The carpenter stopped his work and asked Huan Gong, "What are you looking at?" Duke Huan casually said, "the words of saints." "Is the saint still alive?" Duke Huan said, "It's dead". "So you only read the dross left by the ancients!" Huan Gong was furious and said, "I am studying here. Who are you to make irresponsible remarks? Today, if you say something ugly, you will be put to death. " The craftsman came to the classroom unhurriedly and said to Qi Huangong, "I learned this from making wheels. The mortise is loose and labor-saving, but it is not firm. If it's tight, it won't knock in for a long time. I can make the mortise a little looser and tighter, and then I can knock it in unhurriedly, get it in my hand and have a response in my heart. Although I can't say the size of this boring, my heart is countless. This number in my heart cannot be passed on to my son, nor can my son inherit it from me. So I'm sixty years old, and I'm still making wheels for you here. When the sage died, the most profound truth he realized disappeared with his death. What can be expressed in words can only be simple truth. So I said that the book you read is the dross left by the ancients. " In addition, "Zhuangzi" wrote: A Tu Dawei was slaughtered by Wen, touching his hands, leaning on his shoulders, stepping on his feet, pushing his knees, bayoneting, cutting his blade, cutting his roots and hitting the back of his knife. It has a sense of rhythm, as if he were dancing on the movement of Sanglin, and it seemed to be accompanied by the melody of scene blindness. Wen Huijun said, "Wow! That's great. Skills can be so high! " The butcher put down his knife and replied, "I like pottery, which has gone beyond the level of skill." Began to learn to slaughter cattle, cattle are comprehensive; Three years later, you can see the internal structure of bones, muscles and meridians of cattle at a glance. Now I don't have to look with my eyes. It seems that I am not trying to kill the cow, but completely immersed in the natural texture of the cow, cutting meat and bones, and cutting down along the natural structure of the cow without any big obstacles. I can even easily break down the joints of meridians. ..... I used this knife for nineteen years and killed thousands of cows, but the blade is as sharp as ever. Because there are gaps between bones, and the blade end has no thickness, it should be easy for a blade without thickness to enter the gap joint. Therefore, I have used this knife for 19 years, and it is as good as new. It's easy to say, but I still have to concentrate on my bones and muscles when I kill cattle. After I determined the key point, the knife moved gently and the cow crashed with a clash, as if it were scattered on the ground. At this time, I stood there with a knife and looked around, feeling comfortable and satisfied, so I put away the cleaning knife. Wen said: "Good! After listening to these words, I even understood the truth of keeping in good health. "Zhuangzi" also recorded many exquisite skills like this, such as "hooking the horse" and "cutting the purple and blue ring" (bow, musical instrument. Ancient musical instruments, such as chimes, "Tianjin people operate boats" and so on. Most of them are works that express Zhuangzi's feelings in the name of others, including a lot of perceptual experience, intuitive imagination and logical reasoning. This meticulous experience in skills has become an inexhaustible source for the development of Zhuangzi's philosophical logic. He may not have been in charge of the lacquer workshop for long. Cao Shang went to the State of Qin to receive a reward, and then went to see Zhuangzi. He is playing straw sandals, and he probably plays straw sandals for a living again. So Zhuangzi spent his whole life in poverty. It is reported that he borrowed food from Jianhe Hou, and when he met the King of Wei, he was also in rags. Although this may also be to set off the lofty heart and highlight a theory of poverty tolerance, there is no doubt that Zhuangzi has lived an indifferent life in poverty all his life.

(3) Make friends with disciples at sea and learn from them. Zhuangzi, who grew up in adversity, is extremely savvy. In his observation of nature and experience of technical skills, he found the universal existence in the philosophical sense, which is "Tao". Where do people come from? Where are you going? The answers to these eternal questions in Zhuangzi are: People come from Tao and return to Tao. Zhuangzi's Tao provides the most China-specific, thorough and profound explanation for the origin of the world, which can only be compared with western ontology. As long as the theory is thorough, people can be conquered. Therefore, although Zhuangzi's theory was contrary to the popular Confucianism at that time and advocated that people should be indifferent to fame and fortune, it won many people's curiosity and admiration because of its novelty and profound self-testimony. Therefore, a set of theories originally belonging to Youshan forest helped its creator to show his reputation. So Zhuangzi also has some younger brothers, even high-level friends. The contact between Zhuangzi and Keiko constitutes the most touching scene in Zhuangzi's career. Hui Shi was a first-class politician and diplomat at that time, and was also a representative of the famous "Appointment School". He has been the prime minister of Wei for twelve years, in fact, he will be in power for nearly twenty years, helping "good law ... for all people". He advocated "respecting" and "restraining soldiers", and the reform was strong; It is the actual organizer of the "integration" policy of Shandong six countries to start the "six countries are kings" game. Such a man of the hour is the only person to whom Zhuangzi, a hermit, confides. Hui Shi was older than Zhuangzi and died between 365,438+04 BC and 365,438+00 BC. When Zhuangzi passed by Hui Shi's tomb, he once said to his followers, "There are two people, Chu. One man drew a small plaster the size of a fly's wing on the tip of his nose, and the other man swung an axe and cut it. The axe ran like the wind and cut it down, and his eyes closed. " They took their time and kept their faces straight. When Song heard about it, he called the craftsman who wielded the axe to give him a performance. The craftsman said,' I used to have such a unique skill, but my partner died long ago'. Since the death of Mr. Hui Lao, I lost my opponent in the debate like a craftsman. I'm afraid I'll never find someone who can understand me to talk to. A kind of sadness of "children don't play in whose house" and the loss of bosom friends fully shows that the relationship between Zhuang and Hui is extraordinary. The issues discussed by Zhuangzi and Keiko are extensive and profound, the most interesting of which is the so-called "Debate on Fish and Music in Trench". They are in the upper reaches of Haoshui River in spring. Zhuangzi said, "How happy the fish are!" Keiko said, "You are not a fish. How do you know that fish is happy? " Zhuangzi said, "You are not me. How do you know that I don't know the happiness of fish? " Keiko said, "I'm not you. Of course I don't know what you're thinking, and you're not a fish. Of course, the happiness of fish is impossible to know, so it's over! " Zhuangzi said, "Hi! Let's think back. You ask me how I know the happiness of fish, which is assuming that I know the happiness of fish. You asked me how I knew. Now I tell you: "I will know it on Haoshui Bridge." "In addition, they also made a very profound exposition on axiology, human nature and ontology, such as" too big and useless "and" heartless ",and some important philosophical questions that even modern people can't answer. There's nobody here. When Zhuangzi's wife died, Hui Shi personally participated in the condolence activities as a retired prime minister, which is another example of their unusual relationship. With such a high-level friend, he will still have a high reputation even if he does not compete with others for profits and retire from the mountains without contending with the world. Therefore, private schools prevailed in the middle of the Warring States Period. There must be many students and admirers in Zhuangzi, and his students may also go to Hui Shi to be officials. Therefore, Zhuangzi is still not a hermit, but leads an indifferent, self-restrained, thoughtful and endless academic research life under the guidance of the theory of seclusion.

(4) Laughing at princes, attacking reality and quiet academic career have brought Zhuangzi infinite pleasure. He is extremely happy because he can understand life, society and nature so deeply, but he is arrogant and even indifferent to power and money. When Hui Shi was prime minister, Zhuangzi came to Wei. Some people think that he came to compete with Hui Shi for the position of prime minister. Hui Shi is well aware of Zhuangzi's ambition and totally disappoints it; But he was afraid that Zhuangzi would go directly to see Wei Huiwang and make a scene, leading to death. So let people look for Zhuangzi everywhere. Zhuangzi also heard rumors that Hui Shi is looking for Zhuangzi in order not to let Zhuangzi compete with himself. After they met, Zhuangzi turned around and said, "There is a phoenix in the south that doesn't eat neem trees, except at school and doesn't drink neem trees, except in Ganquan. When the bird flew to the north, it saw an eagle on the ground catching a dead mouse to eat. When the eagle saw the Phoenix bird coming, it was scared and shouted, "Alas! "Then quickly hide the dead mouse under its body for fear of being snatched away. Are you trying to scare me with your phase, too? "When Zhuangzi saw Wei Huiwang, he was wearing a big patched shirt with a rag tied to his feet. Wei Huiwang saw it and said, "Why is your husband so tired?" Zhuangzi said, "This is not fatigue, but poverty. Intellectuals have their own ideas of managing the world, which cannot be implemented. That's fatigue. The clothes are a little torn. That's not fatigue, it's poverty I was just born at the wrong time. Haven't you seen those apes? They are jumping in the forest, carefree, and even the sharpshooter can't do anything about it. Once the apes enter the bushes, they will look around in fear and tremble all over; This is not that there is something wrong with its skeletal muscles, but that the environment is unfavorable and it is impossible to display their climbing skills. Nowadays, in this society, the bad king is above and the chaotic minister is below. People like me get tired? Haven't you heard that Bi Gan, a loyal minister, was arrested by Yin because of his loyalty? " There was a man named Cao Shang in Song State. He was an envoy from the Song State to the Qin State. He took several cars with him on a business trip. Because the king of Qin liked him, he gave him 100 cars. When Cao Shang came back, Zhuangzi said, "If you want to play straw sandals in poor alleys and broken houses. I've made myself pale and emaciated all day, but if I see the king's face, I can make him appreciate it very much and give him a hundred rides. This is my strength. " Zhuangzi said, "I heard that the King of Qin was ill. Please ask the doctor to cure a sore and give him one car and five cars for the King of Qin to lick hemorrhoids. The meaner the means, the more he gets paid. You probably licked hemorrhoids for the king of Qin! Why else would there be so many cars? Go your way! " This kind of funny banter and sharp sarcasm strongly and sharply attacked the secular fame and wealth, glorious outlook on life, and showed the transcendent pursuit of value and lofty, detached and unrestrained personality. As a potential spiritual force, this kind of personality had a great psychological impact on the psychology of later feudal literati, and even became a national psychological accumulation. In Zhuangzi's view, there is no absolute truth and justice in social life. Kings and princes who are above themselves lack "legitimacy" in current terms. Zhuangzi advocated that those who steal hooks should be punished, and those who steal countries should be vassals. For example, Tian Chengzi of Qi usurped the regime of Qi under the style of Chiang Kai-shek, but because of his military and financial backing, small countries dare not talk nonsense and big countries dare not send troops to crusade. If the courtiers should be loyal to the king, then King Wu, as the courtiers of Yin, should not be destroyed; Shang Tang should not destroy Xia Jie. Confucian political ethics is a set of deceptive tricks, which have not been rationally investigated and have no verifiable basis. Politics and ethics, as social norms, have only relative significance. Everyone is a product of nature, with equal personality, and everyone should be completely free. No one, including the king himself, has the right to restrict the freedom of others. In Zhuangzi's ideal of "a country with a capital" and "a world of supreme virtue", "inaction" is the basic principle of life. From top to bottom, everyone lives a quiet and happy life. However, in today's society, the rulers use coercive methods to govern the people for their own selfish desires, which makes the society in a mess and drives the people hungry and cold. This is entirely the fault of the rulers. However, people who are driven to take risks have to pay the price of blood and life for their actions; The so-called "Five Revolutions in the Tang Dynasty" also seized the political power by force, not only without any condemnation, but also claimed the title of king in the south and enjoyed the honor of mankind. The so-called winner princes and losers thieves are completely robber logic. This is the absurdity of historical rationality in law. Confucianism, on the other hand, strongly demonstrates the historical rationality, which is nothing more than ulterior motives. "Saints never die, thieves never stop." In Zhuangzi's view, legal rule does not need legal proof, and once it needs to be demonstrated by the words of "saints", this rule must be illegal. The political argument that "saints" regard it as illegal has actually become an accomplice of "country thieves". This is despised by Zhuangzi.

(5) Being an official all one's life, starting from the value of the way of nature, led to Zhuangzi's basic negative tendency towards social reality. In this way, it is difficult for him to participate in any political activities or even social life. Chu Weiwang heard that Zhuangzi was very talented, so he sent an envoy to visit Zhuangzi with a heavy gift. The messenger said to Keiko, "If you are willing to go out as a director, Chu is ready to make you a prime minister." Zhuangzi smiled and said, "You brought 1200 gold, which is a heavy gift; Promise me to be the prime minister of Chu, which is also a very noble position. However, haven't you ever seen the monarch sacrifice cows in the suburbs? Good grass and good materials will keep it for several years, and it will be covered with colorful splendid silk when offering sacrifices, and then taken to the altar of the ancestral temple. At this time, the cow wanted to go to the wild and chew hay alone to avoid the punishment of the knife. Can it still be done? Please go back early and don't disturb my quiet life. I would rather play freely in the mud like a loach, and I am happy physically and mentally, and I will never be used by the princes, so that they can restrain me with the shackles of the prime minister. " With such an academic attitude and life ambition of quietism, Zhuangzi took care of a never-ending cultural undertaking. In the philosophy of life, Zhuangzi provided a set of cultivation methods to alleviate people's spiritual crisis, showing a strong yearning and pursuit of spiritual freedom; In natural philosophy, his insight surprised contemporary theoretical physicists; Time and space are relative, and the material world is not composed of inseparable atoms and nothingness as westerners imagine. It is probably formed in a way similar to Zhuangzi's "Qi" ocean, which is a kind of "muddy" that human beings can never fully understand. Epistemologically, Zhuangzi's views and modernist thoughts, especially existential syllables, which have been popular in the western world for a century, played a key role in digesting Buddhist theory in the history of China's thoughts, once constituted the main theme of metaphysics in Wei and Jin Dynasties, and directly influenced the whole traditional literature and art. Ye Shi, a thinker in the Song Dynasty, commented on Zhuangzi Tao: "There are four people who make the world happy and good: those who are good at writing have their words, those who seek Taoism have their own wonderful meanings, and those who are ignorant." Mr. Lu Xun said that Zhuangzi's style of writing was unrestrained and graceful, and the pre-Qin philosophers pioneered it. Mr Wen Yiduo said that since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, China culture has always left the influence of Zhuangzi. Jin, a contemporary philosopher, highly praised Zhuangzi's thoughts. He wrote: "Perhaps Zhuangzi should be regarded as a great poet, not a great philosopher. His philosophy is written in poetic prose, full of pleasant fables and praises a lofty ideal of life, which is comparable to any western philosophy. This is whimsical and bold, but it is not arbitrary. It is full of vitality and logic, which makes people read with emotion and reason. " In Zhuangzi's skepticism, it can be said that the clarity of Greece penetrated into the beauty of Hebrew, and the beauty of Hebrew softened the clarity of Greece. People lucky enough to be close to this ideal will be full of fun. Doubt doesn't make him mean, and beauty doesn't make him rush forward. Cui Dahua commented on the historical role of Zhuangzi Thought in the national culture in the preface of the book Zhuangzi Studies-A Historical Investigation of the Origin of China's Philosophical Ideas, saying: "Zhuangzi Thought is the most active and lasting conceptual factor in the development and evolution of China's traditional thought, and it is also the most powerful and positive theoretical factor for China's traditional thought to understand and digest different ideological cultures. "These comments show that we cannot move from tradition to modernity without paying attention to Zhuangzi Thought. (6) The understanding of life and death, romantic and philosophical death and the natural limit of life constitute the root of human tragedy consciousness. Cahill believes that the fear of death is undoubtedly one of the most common and deep-rooted instincts of human beings. All superstitious activities, myths and even religions are related to human consciousness of death. Zhuangzi Thought provides a unique way for human beings to transcend the fear of death consciousness. On the way to Chu State, Zhuangzi met an empty shell (single-family building with unique voice). The skull of the dead), Zhuangzi knocked on the skull with a whip and asked, "Did you die because you violated the laws of nature? The country was destroyed by knives and axes. Was it killed? Did you die because you did something evil and were ashamed of your parents and wife? Did you die of poverty and hunger, or of natural causes? "After that, Zhuangzi slept with a skull on his pillow. In the middle of the night, Lou said to Zhuangzi in a dream, "You sound like an eloquent man, but what you say is the heart of the living. After death, these problems do not exist. Do you want to hear the truth about the dead? " Zhuangzi said, "Yes." "After death, there is no king in the world, no minister in the world, and there is no four-hour rush for life. It is easy to take heaven and earth as the spring and autumn period, and the fun is incomparable, even the monarch who is king in the south is afraid! Zhuangzi said, "I will let the ghost in charge of life and death restore your appearance, your bones and muscles, your parents, your wife, your friends and your folks. What are you willing to do? "When Calvary heard this, he frowned and said," How can I give up something happier than being king in the south and run into the world to suffer from those troubles? " Here, Zhuangzi described death as a supreme happiness. Since death is happier than life, the fear of death naturally disappears. This statement cannot be confirmed, but no one can falsify it. But Zhuangzi's basic idea is not to enjoy death, but to live and die together. When Zhuangzi's wife died, Hui Shi went to attend the condolence activities. I saw Zhuangzi sitting on the ground with her legs crossed, knocking on the pottery bowl and singing. Hui Shi couldn't stand it anymore, so he said, "Your wife has been with you all her life, bearing children for you, and she is over 70 years old. Now that she's dead, you just don't cry, but you have to sing to the basin. It's too much! "When Zhuangzi saw Hui Shi coming, he replied," She just died. How can I not be emotional? However, you have to serve a body, not only without a body, but also to see the physical element of the body' Qi'. Qi was originally mixed in the dark, turned into qi, then formed and then transformed into life. Now she has changed from life to death. Isn't this the same as the changes in the four seasons? Her body was still lying between heaven and earth, but I cried beside her, thinking that this was not a real understanding of life, so I stopped crying. "In Zhuangzi's view, everything in the world is made up of Qi. People are no exception. "When people are born, they gather together. "If you gather, you will live, and if you disperse, you will die." It is precisely because he is obsessed with such a concept of "connecting the whole world" that he naturally holds a very romantic and philosophical attitude towards death. When Zhuangzi died, his disciples were going to give his teacher a good burial. Zhuangzi said humorously, "After my death, the earth is my coffin, the sun and the moon are my walls, the stars are my jewels and jades, and everything in the world is my funerary objects. Isn't my funeral apparatus very rich? " ! What can you add? "The students shouted with a smile. He said, "Teacher! In that case, aren't we afraid that the crow eagle will eat the teacher? "Zhuangzi said," Are you afraid that crows and eagles will eat me when you leave it in the wild? If you bury it underground, aren't you afraid that ants will eat me? "You took me away from the crow eagle and gave it to the ants. Why are you so eccentric? " A philosopher with profound and keen thoughts and a master of elegant prose, with a romantic and philosophical attitude and fearless mood, calmly walked towards death and the infinite nothingness that ordinary people were so afraid of. This is Zhuangzi. According to academic research, Zhuangzi died around 286 BC at the age of 83. At present, there are Zhuangzi's tomb and other Zhuangzi relics in Minquan County, Shangqiu.