Beating the basin and singing, without beginning or end, there is life and death outside

The chapter "Zhi Yue" records such an event: When Zhuangzi's wife passed away, his friend Hui Zi came to pay his respects. Seeing Zhuangzi squatting there, beating a basin and singing, Hui Zi was indignant and astonished: "You have lived with your wife for many years. She has given birth to children for you. Now that she is old and dead, it would be enough if you didn't cry for her. But why do you beat the basin and sing? Isn't that too much?" Zhuangzi said, "It's not like that." How could I not be sad when she just died? However, upon examination, she was originally lifeless. Not only was she lifeless, but she also had no form. Not only does it have no form, but also no breath. Between existence and non-existence, it transforms into qi, qi transforms into shape, deformation into life, and now it transforms into death. This cycle of birth and death is just like the movement of the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter. While others rest quietly between heaven and earth, I am still crying and wailing. This is not understanding the principles of life, which is why I do not cry. In "The Grand Master", Zhuangzi also made a discussion on a similar matter, pretending to be a conversation between Confucius and Zigong: Zi Sanghu, Mencius Fan and Zi Qin Zhang talked to each other, saying, "Whoever can associate with others without any intention, help each other without any trace, and be transcendent from material things, break free from the circle of the universe, forget about life and death, and have no ultimate, can be friends." The three of them smiled at each other, understanding each other's hearts, and thus became friends together. Not long after, Zi Sanghu died but was not buried. Confucius then sent Zi Gong to pay his respects and asked him to help with the funeral arrangements. After Zigong arrived, he saw Mencius Fan and Ziqin Zhang both nonchalantly, one composing a song and the other playing the zither, and they sang in a carefree manner, "Oh, Sanghu!" "Oh, Sanghu! You have returned to your original self, but we are still living in this world!" " Zigong was very puzzled and asked, "When a friend passes away, you don't weep but play the zither and sing beside the corpse. Is this in line with propriety?" The two sneered contemptuously and said, "How do you understand the meaning of propriety?" " Zigong went back and told Confucius, "Who are they all?" They do not cultivate their moral conduct, disregard their own bodies, sing to their friends' corpses with composure, as if they have no idea about life and death. What kind of people are they? Confucius said, "Their spirit roamed beyond the universe, traveling between heaven and earth with the Creator as a companion. They regarded life as the condensation of qi, like a tumor on the body, and death as the dissipation of qi, like a ruptured abscess." So, how could one know the distinction between life and death, or between a master? They forget themselves and life, allowing themselves to cycle and change with nature, without beginning or end, without boundaries. They wander freely and unencumbered beyond the mundane world, enjoying themselves in it. How could they be bound by the rituals of the world? The two stories mentioned above are about Zhuangzi expounding his views on life and death. Zhuangzi's theory of "external birth and death" and "no beginning or end" in the cycle of birth and death, although inherited by later Taoists, is a negative and superstitious thing. However, from the perspective of health preservation, it is not without positive significance to correctly deal with the issue of birth and death. It is true that life and death are the most significant matters in one's life, but those who worry about life and death often live longer. If one can have no desires, forget oneself, not regard life and death as worries, understand the natural laws of life, and actively seek ways to maintain health and live a long life, one will naturally enjoy a long life. This is also the significance of Zhuangzi's exposition of his view on life and death.