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Men do not mirror themselves in running water – they mirror themselves in still water. Only what is still can still the stillness of other things.

Zhuangzi

The knowledge of the ancients reached the highest point-the time before anything existed. This is the highest point. It is exhaustive. There is no adding to it.
ZHUANGZI

Ancient Existence Knowledge Point Reach Time
Heaven does without doing through its purity, Earth does without doing through its calmness.
ZHUANGZI

Calm Earth Heaven Purity
Words exist because of meaning; once you’ve gotten the meaning, you can forget the words.
ZHUANGZI

Deep Existence Forget Literature Meaning Poet Word Yourself
We are born from a quiet sleep, and we die to a calm awakening
ZHUANGZI

Awake Born Calm Death Quiet Sleep
Good order results spontaneously when things are let alone.
ZHUANGZI

Alone Goodness Result
The World is Large – Its beauty indescrible.
ZHUANGZI

Beautiful Description Nature World
The space under the sky is occupied by all things in their unity.
ZHUANGZI

Occupy Sky Space Unity
But you now, you wear your soul on your sleeve, exhausting your energy, propping yourself up on a tree, mumbling, or bent over your desk, asleep. Heaven gives you a form and you wear it out by pointless argument.
ZHUANGZI

Argument Energy Exhaust Form Heaven Point Soul Tree
When the shoe fits, the foot is forgotten. When the belt fits, the belly is forgotten. When the heart is right, “for” and “against” are forgotten. No drives, no compulsions, no needs, no attractions: Then your affairs are under control. You are a free man.
ZHUANGZI

Affair Attraction Control Drive Forget Freedom Heart Man Philosophy Shoe Spirituality Yourself
Birth is not the beginning, Death is not the end.
ZHUANGZI

Beginning Born Death End
To regard the fundamental as the essence, to regard things as coarse, to regard accumulation as deficiency, and to dwell quietly alone with the spiritual and the intelligent – herein lie the techniques of Tao of the ancients.
ZHUANGZI

Alone Ancient Essence Fundamental Intelligence Quiet Spiritual Technique
The eyes envy the mind.
ZHUANGZI

Eyes Jealous Mindset
The perfect man uses his mind as a mirror. It grasps nothing. It regrets nothing. It receives but does not keep.
ZHUANGZI

Himself Mindset Mirror Perfection Regret
There may be difficulty at the moment, but I will not lose the Virtue that I possess. It is when the ice and snow are on them that we see the strength of the cypress and the pine. I am grateful for this trouble around me, because it gives me an opportunity to realize how fortunate I am.
ZHUANGZI

Difficult Fortunate Gratitude Lose Moments Myself Opportunity Possession Realize Snow Strength Trouble Virtue
Transmit the established facts; do not transmit words of exaggeration. If you do that, you will probably come out all right.
ZHUANGZI

Establishment Fact Right Word Yourself
The effect of life in society is to complicate and confuse our existence, making us forget who we really are by causing us to become obsessed with what we are not.
ZHUANGZI

Complication Confusion Effect Existence Forget Life Obsession Ourselves Society

Men do not mirror themselves in running water – they mirror themselves in still water. Only what is still can still the stillness of other things.

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Men do not mirror themselves in running water – they mirror themselves in still water. Only what is still can still the stillness of other things.

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Popular Authors

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