Zhuangzi dreamed of being a butterfly, forgetting the self and the object to nourish the body
#Health-preserving
·2022-08-20 23:32:13
In Zhuangzi's "Qi Wu Lun", there is such an incident: One night, Zhuang Zhou dreamed that he turned into a butterfly. The butterfly was fluttering and flying around, looking happy and comfortable, and had no idea that it was Zhuang Zhou at all. After waking up, I couldn't tell whether I was a butterfly or Zhuang Zhou. I just touched my upright lying body. It was clearly Zhuang Zhou! This made him very puzzled and he thought to himself: Could it be that I, Zhuang Zhou, dreamed of turning into a butterfly? Or is it the butterfly that dreams of transforming into me, Zhuang Zhou? This matter seems absurd, but in fact it is not. As the saying goes, "What you think about during the day, you dream about at night." Because Zhuangzi spent his days pondering over how to be free from desires and actions in order to maintain his true nature, this subconscious effect of his mind would unexpectedly surface in his dreams. In his dreams, he forgot that he was Zhuangzhou but a free, happy and self-satisfied butterfly. This greatly enlightened him, making him realize that to have no desires, one must forget oneself; to forget oneself, one must do nothing; and to do nothing, one must have a peaceful state of mind. Only in this way can one live a long life. In "The Grandmaster", he uses the story of Nan Bozi kui visiting the female 偊 longevity to prove the argument that one can achieve longevity by forgetting the self and the object. Female 偊 is a long-lived old man, but looks like a child. When Nan Bozi kui asked him the reason, the girl 偊 said, "I have the way." Then what is the dao that the female 偊 is speaking of? He then told Nan Bozi Kui about his experience of preaching to Bu Liangyi, which led to his longevity. He said, "For the first three days, I made Bu Liangyi forget the ways of the world. After seven days, he forgot all things in the world. After nine days, he forgot his own existence. In this way, he achieved enlightenment." Self-forgetfulness - no desire - no action - a peaceful mind - this is Zhuangzi's thought on health preservation. Therefore, in the "Heavenly Way" chapter, he repeatedly emphasized: "Complete your form, embrace your life, and do not let your thoughts and worries wander." And it was pointed out: "Stillness leads to non-action, and non-action leads to a cheerful appearance." "Yu Yu, who cannot handle worries and troubles, will live a long life." " The chapter "Deliberate" also states: "Therefore, it is said that tian 惔, stillness, nothingness, and non-action are the origin of heaven and earth and the essence of the dao. That is why the sage rested his mind in these." When the heart is calm, it is peaceful; when it is peaceful, it is serene. When it is serene and serene, worries cannot enter and evil spirits cannot invade. Thus, one's virtue is complete and the spirit is not deficient. The Inner Classic of the Yellow Emperor states: "When one is calm and free from desires, the true qi follows." When qi is abundant, essence is sufficient; when essence is abundant, the spirit is vigorous; when the spirit is vigorous, the body is healthy; and when the body is healthy, there will be no premature death. This treatise in the Inner Classic should have originated from the teachings of Laozi and Zhuangzi.