Robber Zhi

王曰：「天子之劍何如？」

The king said: "What is the sword of the Son of Heaven like?"

曰：「天子之劍，以燕谿石城為鋒，齊岱為鍔，晉衞為脊，周宋為鐔，韓魏為夾；包以四夷，裹以四時；繞以渤海，帶以常山；制以五行，論以刑德；開以陰陽，持以春夏，行以秋冬。此劍，直之無前，舉之無上，案之無下，運之無旁，上決浮云，下絕地紀。此劍一用，匡諸侯，天下服矣。此天子之劍也。」

(Zhuangzi) said: "The sword of the Son of Heaven has the Yanxi Stone City as its point, Mount Dai of Qi as its edge, Jin and Wei as its spine, Zhou and Song as its guard, and Han and Wei as its hilt; it is wrapped in the four barbarian peoples and sheathed in the four seasons; encircled by the Bohai Sea and belted with Mount Chang; governed by the Five Phases, discussed in terms of punishment and virtue; opened by yin and yang, held by spring and summer, and moved by autumn and winter. This sword, thrust straight, has nothing before it; raised, nothing above; pressed down, nothing below; swung, nothing to the side; above it cuts the floating clouds and below it severs the earth's cords. Once this sword is used, it sets the feudal lords right and the world submits. This is the sword of the Son of Heaven."

文王芒然自失，曰：「諸侯之劍何如？」

King Wen was dazed and lost, and said: "What is the sword of the feudal lords like?"

曰：「諸侯之劍，以知勇士為鋒，以清廉士為鍔，以賢良士為脊，以忠聖士為鐔，以豪桀士為夾。此劍，直之亦無前，舉之亦無上，案之亦無下，運之亦無旁；上法圓天以順三光，下法方地以順四時，中和民意，以安四鄉。此劍一用，如雷霆之震也，四封之內，無不賓服而聽從君命者矣。此諸侯之劍也。」

(Zhuangzi) said: "The sword of the feudal lords has wise and brave gentlemen as its point, pure and honest gentlemen as its edge, worthy and good gentlemen as its spine, loyal and sage gentlemen as its guard, and heroic gentlemen as its hilt. This sword, thrust straight, also has nothing before it; raised, nothing above; pressed down, nothing below; swung, nothing to the side; above it models round heaven to accord with the three lights, below it models square earth to accord with the four seasons, and in the middle it harmonizes the people's will to bring peace to the four quarters. Once this sword is used, it is like the quaking of thunder, and within the four borders none fails to submit and obey the ruler's command. This is the sword of the feudal lords."

王曰：「庶人之劍何如？」

The king said: "What is the sword of the commoners like?"

曰：「庶人之劍，蓬頭突鬢垂冠，曼胡之纓，短後之衣，瞋目而語難。相擊於前，上斬頸領，下決肝肺。此庶人之劍，無異於鬬雞，一旦命已絕矣，無所用於國事。今大王有天子之位而好庶人之劍，臣竊為大王薄之。」

(Zhuangzi) said: "The sword of the commoners has tangled hair, bristling temples, low-hanging caps, coarse cap strings, and short-backed clothes, and they speak with glaring eyes and difficulty. They strike each other in your presence, cutting necks above and splitting livers and lungs below. This sword of the commoners is no different from cockfighting, and once their lives are cut off they are of no use in affairs of state. Now Your Majesty holds the throne of the Son of Heaven yet loves the sword of commoners; I privately think it beneath you."

王乃牽而上殿。宰人上食，王三環之。莊子曰：「大王安坐定氣，劍事已畢奏矣。」

The king then led him up to the hall by the hand. The cook brought food, and the king circled it three times. Zhuangzi said: "Great King, sit calmly and settle your breath; the matter of swords is finished."

於是文王不出宮三月，劍士皆服斃其處也。

After this King Wen did not leave his palace for three months, and the swordsmen all killed themselves in their quarters.

孔子遊乎緇帷之林，休坐乎杏壇之上。弟子讀書，孔子絃歌鼓琴，奏曲未半。

Confucius wandered in the Black Curtain Forest and rested sitting on the Apricot Altar. His disciples were reading, and Confucius was singing and playing the zither; the piece was not yet half played.

有漁父者，下船而來，須眉交白，被髮揄袂，行原以上，距陸而止，左手據膝，右手持頤以聽。曲終而招子貢子路，二人俱對。

There was a fisherman who got off his boat and came, his beard and brows both white, his hair loose and his sleeves flapping; he walked up the bank, stopped when he reached the dry land, rested his left hand on his knee and propped his chin on his right hand to listen. When the piece ended, he beckoned to Zigong and Zilu, and the two of them answered him together.

客指孔子曰：「彼何為者也？」

The guest pointed at Confucius and said: "What does that man do?"

子路對曰：「魯之君子也。」

Zilu answered: "He is a gentleman of Lu."

客問其族。子路對曰：「族孔氏。」

The guest asked about his clan. Zilu answered: "His clan is the Kong clan."

客曰：「孔氏者何治也？」

The guest said: "What does the Kong clan govern?"

子路未應，子貢對曰：「孔氏者，性服忠信，身行仁義，飾禮樂，選人倫，上以忠於世主，下以化於齊民，將以利天下，此孔氏之所治也。」

Zilu did not reply, and Zigong answered: "Master Kong is by nature faithful and sincere, in person practices benevolence and righteousness, adorns ritual and music, selects among human relations, above is loyal to the rulers of the age and below transforms the common people, and intends to benefit the world; this is what the Kong clan governs."

又問曰：「有土之君與？」

He asked again: "Is he a ruler with land?"

子貢曰：「非也。」

Zigong said: "No."

「侯王之佐與？」

"Is he an assistant to a lord or king?"

子貢曰：「非也。」

Zigong said: "No."

客乃笑而還，行言曰：「仁則仁矣，恐不免其身；苦心勞形以危其真。嗚呼！遠哉其分於道也！」

The guest then laughed and turned back, saying as he went: "Benevolent he may be, but I fear he cannot escape harm to his person; he toils his mind and fatigues his body, endangering his truth. Alas! How far he is from the Way!"

子貢還，報孔子。孔子推琴而起，曰：「其聖人與！」乃下求之，至於澤畔，方將杖拏而引其船，顧見孔子，還鄉而立。孔子反走，再拜而進。

Zigong returned and reported to Confucius. Confucius pushed away his zither and rose, saying: "That must be a sage!" He went down to seek him, and when he reached the shore, the man was just about to take up his pole and pull his boat; looking back he saw Confucius, turned around and stood facing him. Confucius turned and hurried back, bowed twice, and came forward.

客曰：「子將何求？」

The guest said: "What do you seek?"

孔子曰：「曩者先生有緒言而去，丘不肖，未知所謂，竊待於下風，幸聞咳唾之音以卒相丘也。」

Confucius said: "Just now, sir, you left some words and departed; Qiu is unworthy and does not understand what you meant, and I privately wait downwind, hoping to hear the sound of your cough and spit and so finally be helped."

客曰：「嘻！甚矣，子之好學也！」

The guest said: "Ah! How excessive your love of learning is!"

孔子再拜而起曰：「丘少而脩學，以至於今，六十九歲矣，無所得聞至教，敢不虛心！」

Confucius bowed twice and rose, saying: "Qiu has cultivated learning since youth, and to this day, at sixty-nine, has had no chance to hear the highest teaching; how dare I not empty my mind!"

客曰：「同類相從，同聲相應，固天之理也。吾請釋吾之所有而經子之所以。子之所以者，人事也。天子諸侯大夫庶人，此四者自正，治之美也，四者離位而亂莫大焉。官治其職，人憂其事，乃無所陵。故田荒室露，衣食不足，徵賦不屬，妻妾不和，長少無序，庶人之憂也；能不勝任，官事不治，行不清白，群下荒怠，功美不有，爵祿不持，大夫之憂也；廷無忠臣，國家昏亂，工技不巧，貢職不美，春秋後倫，不順天子，諸侯之憂也；陰陽不和，寒暑不時，以傷庶物，諸侯暴亂，擅相攘伐，以殘民人，禮樂不節，財用窮匱，人倫不飭，百姓淫亂，天子有司之憂也。今子既上無君侯有司之勢而下無大臣職事之官，而擅飾禮樂，選人倫，以化齊民，不泰多事乎！

The guest said: "Those of the same kind follow one another, and those of the same sound answer one another; this is the principle of Heaven. Let me release what I have to put in order what you do. What you do is human affairs. Of the Son of Heaven, the feudal lords, the grandees, and the commoners, when these four are each upright themselves, this is the beauty of order, and when the four leave their positions there is no greater disorder. When officials govern their duties and people worry about their affairs, then there is no encroachment. So fields wasted and houses exposed, clothing and food insufficient, taxes and levies not met, wife and concubines not in harmony, old and young without order, these are the worries of commoners; ability not equal to the task, official affairs not in order, conduct not clean, the subordinates idle and negligent, no achievement or praise, rank and salary not kept, these are the worries of grandees; no loyal ministers in the court, the state in confusion, craftsmen not skilled, tribute not fine, spring and autumn audiences behind the order, not following the Son of Heaven, these are the worries of the feudal lords; yin and yang not in harmony, cold and heat not in season, injuring the myriad things, the feudal lords violent and disorderly, arbitrarily attacking each other and harming the people, ritual and music without restraint, resources exhausted, human relations not set in order, the people lewd and disorderly, these are the worries of the officials of the Son of Heaven. Now you above have no power of a lord or official and below have no office of a great minister, yet you take it upon yourself to adorn ritual and music and select among human relations in order to transform the common people; is that not meddling too much!

且人有八疵，事有四患，不可不察也。非其事而事之，謂之摠；莫之顧而進之，謂之佞；希意道言，謂之諂；不擇是非而言，謂之諛；好言人之惡，謂之讒；析交離親，謂之賊；稱譽詐偽以敗惡人，謂之慝；不擇善否，兩容頰適，偷拔其所欲，謂之險。此八疵者，外以亂人，內以傷身，君子不友，明君不臣。所謂四患者：好經大事，變更易常，以掛功名，謂之叨；專知擅事，侵人自用，謂之貪；見過不更，聞諫愈甚，謂之很；人同於己則可，不同於己，雖善不善，謂之矜。此四患也。能去八疵，無行四患，而始可教已。」

(The fisherman continued:) Moreover people have eight flaws and affairs have four troubles, which one must examine. To do what is not one's own business is called meddling; to press forward when no one looks to you is called flattery; to anticipate another's wishes and speak in agreement is called fawning; to speak without choosing right or wrong is called sycophancy; to love to speak of others' faults is called slander; to split friendships and sever kin is called villainy; to praise the false and deceitful in order to ruin others is called wickedness; to not distinguish good from bad, accommodating both sides and stealthily taking what they want, is called treachery. These eight flaws, outwardly disorder others and inwardly harm oneself; the gentleman does not befriend such people and the enlightened ruler does not employ them. The so-called four troubles: loving to manage great affairs, changing and altering the constants to hang on to fame and merit, is called grasping; being the only one who knows and taking charge, encroaching on others and using one's own way, is called greed; seeing one's faults and not correcting them, and growing worse on hearing remonstrance, is called obstinacy; thinking it fine if others agree with oneself, and not good even if good if they differ from oneself, is called self-righteousness. These are the four troubles. Only one who can get rid of the eight flaws and not practice the four troubles can then be taught."

孔子愀然而歎，再拜而起曰：「丘再逐於魯，削跡於衞，伐樹於宋，圍於陳蔡。丘不知所失，而離此四謗者何也？」

Confucius was moved and sighed, bowed twice and rose, saying, "I have been driven out of Lu twice, had my tracks erased in Wei, had a tree cut down over me in Song, and was surrounded between Chen and Cai. I do not know what I have done wrong, yet I meet these four slanders; why is that?"

客悽然變容曰：「甚矣子之難悟也！人有畏影惡跡而去之走者，舉足愈數而跡愈多，走愈疾而影不離身，自以為尚遲，疾走不休，絕力而死。不知處陰以休影，處靜以息跡，愚亦甚矣！子審仁義之間，察同異之際，觀動靜之變，適受與之度，理好惡之情，和喜怒之節，而幾於不免矣。謹脩而身，慎守其真，還以物與人，則無所累矣。今不脩身而求之人，不亦外乎！」

The stranger changed his expression sadly and said, "How hard you are to enlighten! There was a man who feared his shadow and hated his footprints and ran away from them; the more often he lifted his feet the more footprints there were, and the faster he ran the more his shadow did not leave his body. He thought he was still too slow, ran without rest, and died of exhausted strength. He did not know that by staying in the shade he could rest his shadow, and by staying still he could stop his footprints; how very foolish! You are careful about the space between benevolence and righteousness, examine the boundary between sameness and difference, observe the changes of movement and rest, set the measure of giving and receiving, order the feelings of like and dislike, and harmonize the measures of joy and anger, and yet you scarcely escape trouble. Carefully cultivate your person, carefully guard your truth, and return things and people to themselves, and you will have no burdens. Now you do not cultivate yourself but seek it from others; is that not external!"

孔子愀然曰：「請問何謂真？」

Confucius was moved and said, "May I ask what is called the truth?"

客曰：「真者，精誠之至也。不精不誠，不能動人。故強哭者雖悲不哀，強怒者雖嚴不威，強親者雖笑不和。真悲無聲而哀，真怒未發而威，真親未笑而和。真在內者，神動於外，是所以貴真也。其用於人理也，事親則慈孝，事君則忠貞，飲酒則歡樂，處喪則悲哀。忠貞以功為主，飲酒以樂為主，處喪以哀為主，事親以適為主，功成之美，無一其跡矣。事親以適，不論所以矣；飲酒以樂，不選其具矣；處喪以哀，無問其禮矣。禮者，世俗之所為也；真者，所以受於天也，自然不可易也。故聖人法天貴真，不拘於俗。愚者反此。不能法天而恤於人，不知貴真，祿祿而受變於俗，故不足。惜哉，子之蚤湛於人偽而晚聞大道也！」

The stranger said, "Truth is the utmost of refinement and sincerity. Without refinement and sincerity one cannot move people. So one who forces himself to cry, though he may grieve, does not truly mourn; one who forces himself to be angry, though stern, does not inspire awe; one who forces himself to be friendly, though he smiles, is not harmonious. True sorrow has no sound yet is mournful; true anger has not been expressed yet inspires awe; true friendliness has not smiled yet is harmonious. When truth is within, spirit moves without, and this is why truth is valued. When applied to human relations, serving parents is kindness and filial piety, serving a ruler is loyalty and constancy, drinking wine is joy, and mourning is grief. Loyalty and constancy take merit as their aim, drinking takes joy as its aim, mourning takes grief as its aim, and serving parents takes comfort as its aim; in the beauty of success, there is no trace of the self. Serving parents for their comfort, one does not ask how it is so; drinking for joy, one does not choose the vessels; mourning for grief, one does not ask about the rites. Ritual is what the world does; truth is what is received from Heaven and cannot be changed. So the sage models himself on Heaven, values truth, and is not bound by custom. The foolish do the opposite. Not able to model themselves on Heaven yet concerned about people, not knowing to value truth, they drudge and are changed by custom, and so are never sufficient. What a pity, that you sank early into human falseness and heard the great Way late!"

孔子又再拜而起曰：「今者丘得遇也，若天幸然。先生不羞而比之服役，而身教之。敢問舍所在，請因受業而卒學大道。」

Confucius bowed twice again and rose, saying, "Now that I have met you, it is like a heavenly fortune. You, Master, are not ashamed to compare me to a servant and personally teach me. May I ask where you dwell, so that I may receive instruction and finish by studying the great Way?"

客曰：「吾聞之，可與往者與之，至於妙道；不可與往者，不知其道，慎勿與之，身乃無咎。子勉之！吾去子矣，吾去子矣！」乃剌船而去，延緣葦間。

The stranger said, "I have heard that one who can be accompanied should be accompanied to reach the wondrous Way; one who cannot be accompanied does not know that Way, and you should be careful not to go with him, so that you will be without fault. Do your best! I leave you now, I leave you now!" He then pushed his boat away and went off, drifting among the reeds.

顏淵還車，子路授綏，孔子不顧，待水波定，不聞拏音而後敢乘。

Yan Yuan turned the carriage around and Zilu handed up the mounting strap, but Confucius did not look back; he waited until the ripples settled and he could no longer hear the sound of the oar before daring to get in.

子路旁車而問曰：「由得為役久矣，未嘗見夫子遇人如此其威也。萬乘之主，千乘之君，見夫子未嘗不分庭伉禮，夫子猶有倨敖之容。今漁父杖拏逆立，而夫子曲要磬折，言拜而應，得無太甚乎？門人皆怪夫子矣，漁人何以得此乎？」

Zilu, leaning on the carriage, asked, "I have served as your attendant for a long time and have never seen the Master treat someone with such awe. Rulers of ten thousand chariots and lords of a thousand chariots, when they see the Master, never fail to meet him as equals in the courtyard, and still the Master has a proud look. Now this fisherman stood opposite you leaning on his oar, and the Master bent his waist like a chime, spoke bowing and answered bowing; is that not going too far? Your disciples are all puzzled, so what has this fisherman done to deserve it?"

孔子伏軾而歎曰：「甚矣，由之難化也！湛於禮儀間矣，而樸鄙之心至今未去。進，吾語汝！夫遇長不敬，失禮也；見賢不尊，不仁也。彼非至人，不能下人，下人不精，不得其真，故長傷身。惜哉！不仁之於人也，禍莫大焉，而由獨擅之。且道者，萬物之所由也，庶物失之者死，得之者生，為事逆之則敗，順之則成。故道之所在，聖人尊之。今之漁父之於道，可謂有矣，吾敢不敬乎！」

Confucius leaned on the carriage rail and sighed, saying, "How hard you are to transform, You! You are sunk in ritual and etiquette, and your rustic, narrow mind has still not gone away. Come forward, and I will tell you! To meet an elder without respect is a breach of ritual; to see a worthy and not honor him is not benevolent. If he were not a perfect person, he could not humble people; if one humbles people without refinement, one does not obtain truth, and so one always injures oneself. What a pity! Unkindness to people brings the greatest misfortune, and You alone monopolize it. Moreover the Way is that from which all things come; when things lose it they die, and when they obtain it they live; in affairs, going against it brings failure and following it brings success. So wherever the Way is, the sage honors it. Now that fisherman can be said to have the Way; dare I not respect him!"

列禦寇之齊，中道而反，遇伯昏瞀人。伯昏瞀人曰：「奚方而反？」

Lie Yukou went to Qi but turned back halfway and met Bohun Wuren. Bohun Wuren said, "Why have you turned back?"

曰：「吾驚焉。」

(Lie Yukou) said, "I was startled."

曰：「惡乎驚？」

(Bohun Wuren) said, "At what?"

曰：「吾嘗食於十漿，而五漿先饋。」

(Lie Yukou) said, "I once ate at ten drink shops, and at five of them they served me first."

伯昏瞀人曰：「若是，則汝何為驚已？」

Bohun Wuren said, "If so, why were you startled?"

曰：「夫內誠不解，形諜成光，以外鎮人心，使人輕乎貴老，而齏其所患。夫漿特為食羹之貨，多餘之贏，其為利也薄，其為權也輕，而猶若是，而況於萬乘之主乎！身勞於國而知盡於事，彼將任我以事而效我以功。吾是以驚。」

(Lie Yukou) said, "When inner sincerity is not released, the body gives off light and spies on others; using outward things to overawe people's hearts makes people treat you more lightly than they honor their elders, and then they bring harm upon themselves. A drink shop only sells soup and drinks, with little surplus profit; its gain is thin and its power light, and still it is like this, so what of a ruler of ten thousand chariots! He wears himself out for the state and exhausts his wisdom on its affairs; he will assign me tasks and demand results from me. That is why I was startled."

伯昏瞀人曰：「善哉觀乎！女處已，人將保女矣！」

Bohun Wuren said, "Good observation! If you just stay at home, people will protect you!"

無幾何而往，則戶外之屨滿矣。伯昏瞀人北面而立，敦杖蹙之乎頤，立有間，不言而出。

Not long after he left, the shoes outside his door were full. Bohun Wuren stood facing north, his staff pressed against his chin, and after standing a while left without a word.

賓者以告列子，列子提屨，跣而走，暨乎門，曰：「先生既來，曾不發藥乎？」

The guest reported to Liezi, and Liezi, carrying his shoes, ran barefoot to the door and said, "Since you have come, Master, will you not give any medicine?"

曰：「已矣，吾固告汝曰人將保汝，果保汝矣。非汝能使人保汝，而汝不能使人無保汝也，而焉用之感豫出異也！必且有感，搖而本才，又無謂也。與汝遊者，又莫汝告也。彼所小言，盡人毒也。莫覺莫悟，何相孰也！巧者勞而知者憂，無能者無所求，飽食而遨遊，汎若不繫之舟，虛而遨遊者也。」

(Bohun Wuren) said, "Enough. I told you that people would protect you, and sure enough they have. It is not that you can make people protect you but that you cannot keep people from protecting you; why would you need to be moved and show differences! You are surely moved by something, shaking your original substance, and it is pointless. Those who associate with you have nothing to tell you; their little talk is all poison to the person. Without awareness or awakening, how can there be familiarity! The clever toil and the wise worry; the incompetent seek nothing, eat their fill and wander, drifting like an unmoored boat; they are empty and wander freely."

鄭人緩也呻吟裘氏之地。祗三年而緩為儒，河潤九里，澤及三族，使其弟墨。儒墨相與辯，其父助翟。十年而緩自殺。其父夢之曰：「使而子為墨者，予也，闔胡嘗視其良，既為秋柏之實矣？」

Huan of Zheng was chanting in the land of Qiu. In only three years Huan became a Confucian, the river moistened nine li and the benefit reached three clans, and he made his younger brother a Mohist. The Confucian and Mohist argued with each other, and their father helped Di. After ten years Huan killed himself. His father dreamed of him and he said, "The one who made your son a Mohist was I; why have you never looked at his goodness, which has already become the fruit of the autumn cypress?"

夫造物者之報人也，不報其人而報其人之天，彼故使彼。夫人以己為有以異於人以賤其親，齊人之井飲者相捽也。故曰今之世皆緩也。自是，有德者以不知也，而況有道者乎！古者謂之遁天之刑。

The Creator repays people, not repaying the person but the person's Heaven; that is how he makes them do what they do. That man thought he differed from others and so despised his parent, like men of Qi at a well fighting over the water. So it is said that in the present age all are like Huan. They think themselves right, and those with virtue do so out of not knowing; how much more those with the Way! In ancient times this was called the penalty of fleeing Heaven.

聖人安其所安，不安其所不安；眾人安其所不安，不安其所安。

The sage rests in what is restful and does not rest in what is not restful; ordinary people rest in what is not restful and do not rest in what is restful.

莊子曰：「知道易，勿言難。知而不言，所以之天也。知而言之，所以之人也。古之人，天而不人。」

Zhuangzi said, "Knowing is easy; not speaking is hard. To know and not speak is how one goes toward Heaven. To know and speak is how one goes toward people. The ancients followed Heaven and not people."

朱泙漫學屠龍於支離益，單千金之家，三年技成而無所用其巧。

Zhu Pingman studied dragon-slaying from Zhili Yi, exhausting a family fortune of a thousand pieces of gold; after three years the skill was complete, but he had nowhere to use his skill.

聖人以必不必，故無兵；眾人以不必必之，故多兵。順於兵，故行有求。兵，恃之則亡。

The sage takes what is necessary as not necessary, and so has no weapons; ordinary people take what is not necessary as necessary, and so have many weapons. Following weapons is how action comes to have demands. One who relies on weapons perishes.

小夫之知，不離苞苴竿牘，敝精神乎蹇淺，而欲兼濟道物，太一形虛。若是者，迷惑於宇宙，形累不知太初。彼至人者，歸精神乎無始而甘冥乎無何有之鄉。水流乎無形，發洩乎太清。悲哉乎！汝為知在毫毛而不知大寧。

The knowledge of petty people does not go beyond gifts, bamboo slips and letters, wearing out their spirit on shallow and trivial matters, yet wanting to benefit both the Way and things, and the Great One's form is empty. People like this are confused about the universe, burdened by form and do not know the Great Beginning. The perfect person returns spirit to the beginningless and sleeps sweetly in the land of nothing at all. Water flows into formlessness and spreads in the Great Purity. How sad! You are knowledgeable about the tip of a hair and do not know great peace.

宋人有曹商者，為宋王使秦。其往也，得車數乘。王說之，益車百乘。反於宋，見莊子，曰：「夫處窮閭阨巷，困窘織屨，槁項黃馘者，商之所短也；一悟萬乘之主而從車百乘者，商之所長也。」

There was a man of Song named Cao Shang, who went to Qin as envoy for the King of Song. When he went he got several carriages. The king of Qin liked him and added a hundred carriages. Returning to Song, he saw Zhuangzi and said, "Living in a poor alley and narrow lane, scraping a living weaving sandals, with a withered neck and yellow face, is what Shang does badly; but being understood by a ruler of ten thousand chariots and having a hundred carriages follow him is what Shang does well."

莊子曰：「秦王有病召醫。破癕潰痤者得車一乘，舐痔者得車五乘，所治癒下，得車愈多。子豈治其痔邪？何得車之多也？子行矣！」

Zhuangzi said, "When the King of Qin is ill he summons doctors. One who lances boils and drains abscesses gets one carriage; one who licks hemorrhoids gets five carriages; the lower the part treated, the more carriages are gained. Did you treat his hemorrhoids? Why did you get so many carriages? Be gone!"

魯哀公問乎顏闔曰：「吾以仲尼為貞幹，國其有瘳乎？」

Duke Ai of Lu asked Yan He, "I take Zhongni as my backbone (here 'gan' means backbone, not 'interfere'); can the state perhaps be saved?"

曰：「殆哉圾乎仲尼！方且飾羽而畫，從事華辭。以支為旨，忍性以視民而不知不信。受乎心，宰乎神，夫何足以上民！彼宜女與？予頤與？誤而可矣！今使民離實學偽，非所以視民也。為後世慮，不若休之。難治也！」

(Yan He) said, "Zhongni is in precarious danger! He is just decorating feathers and painting them, engaged in flowery words. He takes branching as his principle and holds back his nature to face the people, but does not know that it is not believed. Accepted by the heart and governed by the spirit, how could he be fit to dwell above the people! Is he suited to you? Will he nourish you? You might as well be misled! Now to make people leave reality and learn falsehood is not how to govern people. Think for the sake of later ages; better to stop. He is hard to manage!"

施於人而不忘，非天布也，商賈不齒。雖以事齒之，神者弗齒。

To give to others and not forget it is not Heaven's giving, and merchants are not respected. Even if he is respected for his affairs, the divine ones do not respect him.

為外刑者，金與木也；為內刑者，動與過也。宵人之離外刑者，金木訊之；離內刑者，陰陽食之。夫免乎外內之刑者，唯真人能之。

The outer punishments are metal and wood; the inner punishments are movement and fault. When ordinary people meet the outer punishments, metal and wood interrogate them; when they meet the inner punishments, yin and yang devour them. Only the true person can avoid both the outer and inner punishments.

孔子曰：「凡人心險於山川，難於知天。天猶有春秋冬夏旦暮之期，人者厚貌深情。故有貌願而益，有長若不肖，有順懁而達，有堅而縵，有緩而釬。故其就義若渴者，其去義若熱。故君子遠使之而觀其忠，近使之而觀其敬，煩使之而觀其能，卒然問焉而觀其知，急與之期而觀其信，委之以財而觀其仁，告之以危而觀其節，醉之以酒而觀其側，雜之以處而觀其色。九徵至，不肖人得矣。」

Confucius said, "A person's heart is more treacherous than mountains and rivers and harder to know than Heaven. Heaven at least has the periods of spring, autumn, winter and summer, morning and evening, but people have thick appearances and deep feelings. So some look honest but are arrogant, some seem grown-up but are unworthy, some are pliant but succeed, some are firm but lax, some are slow but sharp. So they approach righteousness as if thirsty and leave righteousness as if hot. So the gentleman sends someone far away and observes his loyalty, sends him near and observes his respect, makes him busy and observes his ability, asks him suddenly and observes his knowledge, sets an urgent deadline and observes his good faith, entrusts him with wealth and observes his benevolence, tells him of danger and observes his integrity, gets him drunk and observes his lapses, mixes him with others and observes his expression. When the nine tests are complete, the unworthy person is found."