Liezi
Encyclopedia
The Liezi is a Daoist text attributed to Lie Yukou
, a circa 5th century BCE Hundred Schools of Thought
philosopher, but Chinese and Western scholars believe it was compiled around the 4th century CE.
. The editor Liu Xiang
notes he eliminated repetitions in Liezi and rearranged it into eight chapters (pian 篇). The Book of Han
bibliography section (藝文志) says it has eight chapters (篇) and concludes that since the Zhuangzi quotes Liezi, he must have lived before Zhuangzi. There is a three-century historical gap until the next evidence of the Liezi: the Jin Dynasty
commentary by Zhang Zhan 張湛 (fl. ca. 370 CE). Zhang's preface claims his Liezi copy was transmitted down from his grandfather. All received Liezi texts derive from Zhang's version, which is divided into eight chapters (juan 巻).
During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang
, the Liezi was designated a Daoist classic, completing the trilogy with the more famous Daodejing and Zhuangzi
, and it was honorifically entitled the Chongxu zhenjing (沖虛真經; "True Classic of Simplicity and Vacuity", a.k.a. Classic of the Perfect Emptiness). This "Simplicity and Vacuity" is Wing-tsit Chan
's translation; chongxu (literally "soar/young/simple empty/skies/modest") usually means "soar aloft, rise high; carefree, unburdened with ambition". During the reign of Emperor Zhenzong of Song
, the Liezi was further honored as the Chongxu zhide zhenjing (沖虛至德真經; “True Classic of Simplicity and Vacuity and Perfect Virtue”).
Most Liezi chapters are named after famous figures in Chinese mythology
and history. Either sage rulers like the Yellow Emperor
(supposedly r. 2698?-2599? BCE), King Tang of Shang
(r. 1617?-1588? BCE), and King Mu of Zhou
(r. 1023?-983? BCE); or philosophers like Confucius
(551-479 BCE) and Yang Zhu (fl. ca. 350 BCE).
The Liezi is generally considered to be the most practical of the major Daoist works, compared to the philosophical writings of Laozi and the poetic narrative of Zhuangzi. Although the Liezi has not been extensively published in the West, some passages are well known. For example, Gengsangzi (庚桑子; cf. Zhuangzi chap. 23) gives this description of Daoist pure experience:
Compare the Zhuangzi saying, "The Perfect Man uses his mind like a mirror — going after nothing, welcoming nothing, responding but not storing. Therefore he can win out over things and not hurt himself." (chap. 7, tr. Watsonhttp://web.archive.org/web/20041010011419/users.compaqnet.be/cn111132/chuang-tzu/7.htm)
. Barrett (1993:298) says opinion is "divided as to whether it is an ancient work with later interpolations or a forgery confected from ancient sources." On the one hand, the Liezi could contain a core of circa 400 BCE authentic writings of Lie Yukou; on the other hand, it could be a circa 400 CE compilation forged by Zhang Zhan.
The Liezi is most similar with the Zhuangzi
. They share many characters and stories; Graham (1990:12) lists sixteen complete episodes plus sections from others. The Zhuangzi also mentions Liezi in four chapters and Lie Yukou in three. For example, this famous passage:
The final two chapters have heterogeneous contents that differ from the Daoism elsewhere in the book. Chapter 7 records the Hedonist philosophy of "Yang Zhu" (Yangzi), infamous for the criticism of Mencius
that he, "believed in 'every man for himself.' If he could have helped the whole world by plucking out a single hair, he would not have done it." (chap. 7A, tr. Muller) Zhang Zhan speculates that this chapter, focusing on indulgence in physical and temporary pleasures, was from Lie Yuko's earlier years as a hedonist, before he became a Daoist. The well-known scholar of Chinese philosophy, Wing-Tsit Chan
(1963:309) calls the "Yang Zhu" chapter "negative Daoism" in contrast with the Daoism of Laozi, Zhuangzi, and Huainanzi that were "all positive in that each represents something new." Chapter 8, "Explaining Conjunctions," is primarily taken from other early sources, not only Daoist but Confucian and Mohist texts, two philosophies that opposed the philosophical Daoism this book expounds.
Angus C. Graham, Professor Emeritus of the School of Oriental and African Studies
, illuminated the textual provenance. After translating Liezi (1960), which Barrett (1993:307) calls undoubtedly "the best translation into a Western language to date", Graham (1961) linguistically analyzed internal evidence and textual parallels. He discovered many cases where the Liezi is clearly secondary to other texts, but none where it is the primary source for a passage. The Preface to the revised Liezi translation (1990:xi-xv) explains his significant change in attitude.
Owing to occasional Liezi textual misunderstandings in Zhang Zhan's commentary, Graham concludes that the "guiding hand" probably belonged to Zhang's father or grandfather, which would mean circa 300 CE.
Suggestions of Buddhist influences in Liezi chapters 3 and 6 are potentially corroborating evidence for a late date of composition; see Buddhism in China
. "King Mu of Zhou" discusses sense perceptions as illusions; "Endeavor and Destiny" takes a fatalistic (if not karmic) view of destiny, which goes against the traditional Daoist concept of Wuwei
.
(1912) translated chapters 1-6 and 8, while Anton Forke (1912) covered chapter 7 ("Yang Zhu"). As mentioned above, A.C. Graham (1960, 1990) wrote a definitive scholarly translation. The most recent Liezi rendition is by Eva Wong (2001).
Lie Yukou
Lie Yukou is considered the author of the Daoist book Liezi, which uses his honorific name Liezi . The second Chinese character in Yukou is written kou 寇 "bandit; enemy"; the first is written yu 圄 "imprison", yu 禦 "resist; ward off", or occasionally yu 御 "drive ; ride ; control" Lie Yukou is...
, a circa 5th century BCE Hundred Schools of Thought
Hundred Schools of Thought
The Hundred Schools of Thought were philosophers and schools that flourished from 770 to 221 BC during the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period , an era of great cultural and intellectual expansion in China...
philosopher, but Chinese and Western scholars believe it was compiled around the 4th century CE.
Textual history
The first two references to the Liezi book are from the Former Han DynastyHan Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
. The editor Liu Xiang
Liu Xiang (author)
Liu Xiang , born Liu Gengsheng , courtesy name Zizheng , was a famous Confucian scholar of the Han Dynasty. He was born in Xuzhou and related to Liu Bang, the founder of the Han dynasty...
notes he eliminated repetitions in Liezi and rearranged it into eight chapters (pian 篇). The Book of Han
Book of Han
The Book of Han, Hanshu or History of the Former Han Dynasty |Fan Ye]] . Various scholars have estimated that the earliest material covered in the book dates back to between 206 and 202 BCE...
bibliography section (藝文志) says it has eight chapters (篇) and concludes that since the Zhuangzi quotes Liezi, he must have lived before Zhuangzi. There is a three-century historical gap until the next evidence of the Liezi: the Jin Dynasty
Jìn Dynasty (265-420)
The Jìn Dynasty , was a dynasty in Chinese history, lasting between the years 265 and 420 AD. There are two main divisions in the history of the Dynasty, the first being Western Jin and the second Eastern Jin...
commentary by Zhang Zhan 張湛 (fl. ca. 370 CE). Zhang's preface claims his Liezi copy was transmitted down from his grandfather. All received Liezi texts derive from Zhang's version, which is divided into eight chapters (juan 巻).
During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang , also commonly known as Emperor Ming of Tang , personal name Li Longji , known as Wu Longji from 690 to 705, was the seventh emperor of the Tang dynasty in China, reigning from 712 to 756. His reign of 43 years was the longest during the Tang Dynasty...
, the Liezi was designated a Daoist classic, completing the trilogy with the more famous Daodejing and Zhuangzi
Zhuangzi
Zhuangzi was an influential Chinese philosopher who lived around the 4th century BCE during the Warring States Period, a period corresponding to the philosophical summit of Chinese thought — the Hundred Schools of Thought, and is credited with writing—in part or in whole—a work known by his name,...
, and it was honorifically entitled the Chongxu zhenjing (沖虛真經; "True Classic of Simplicity and Vacuity", a.k.a. Classic of the Perfect Emptiness). This "Simplicity and Vacuity" is Wing-tsit Chan
Wing-tsit Chan
Professor Wing-tsit Chan was one of the world's leading scholars of Chinese philosophy and religion, active in the United States....
's translation; chongxu (literally "soar/young/simple empty/skies/modest") usually means "soar aloft, rise high; carefree, unburdened with ambition". During the reign of Emperor Zhenzong of Song
Emperor Zhenzong of Song
Emperor Zhenzong was the third emperor of the Song Dynasty of China. He reigned from 997 to 1022. Zhenzong was the third son of Emperor Taizong. His personal name was Zhao Heng and his temple name Zhenzong means "True Ancestor".Zhenzong's reign was noted for the consolidation of power and the...
, the Liezi was further honored as the Chongxu zhide zhenjing (沖虛至德真經; “True Classic of Simplicity and Vacuity and Perfect Virtue”).
Contents
The eight Liezi chapters are shown below (with the titles translations adapted from Graham 1960).| Chapter | Chinese | Pinyin Pinyin Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into... | Translation |
| 1 | 天瑞 | Tian Rui | Heaven's Gifts |
| 2 | 黃帝 | Huang Di | The Yellow Emperor |
| 3 | 周穆王 | Zhou Mu Wang | King Mu of Zhou |
| 4 | 仲尼 | Zhong Ni | Confucius |
| 5 | 湯問 | Tang Wen | The Questions of Tang |
| 6 | 力命 | Li Ming | Endeavor and Destiny |
| 7 | 楊朱 | Yang Zhu | Yang Zhu |
| 8 | 說符 | Shuo Fu | Explaining Conjunctions |
Most Liezi chapters are named after famous figures in Chinese mythology
Chinese mythology
Chinese mythology is a collection of cultural history, folktales, and religions that have been passed down in oral or written tradition. These include creation myths and legends and myths concerning the founding of Chinese culture and the Chinese state...
and history. Either sage rulers like the Yellow Emperor
Yellow Emperor
The Yellow Emperor or Huangdi1 is a legendary Chinese sovereign and culture hero, included among the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. Tradition holds that he reigned from 2697–2597 or 2696–2598 BC...
(supposedly r. 2698?-2599? BCE), King Tang of Shang
Tang of Shang
King Cheng Tang of Shang was the first ruling king of the Shang dynasty in Chinese history. He overthrew Jie, the last ruler of the Xia dynasty.-Early life:...
(r. 1617?-1588? BCE), and King Mu of Zhou
King Mu of Zhou
King Mu of Zhou or King Mu of Chou or Mu Wang or Mu Wang was the fifth sovereign of the Chinese Zhou Dynasty. The dates of his reign are 976-922 BC or 956-918 BC.-Life:...
(r. 1023?-983? BCE); or philosophers like Confucius
Confucius
Confucius , literally "Master Kong", was a Chinese thinker and social philosopher of the Spring and Autumn Period....
(551-479 BCE) and Yang Zhu (fl. ca. 350 BCE).
The Liezi is generally considered to be the most practical of the major Daoist works, compared to the philosophical writings of Laozi and the poetic narrative of Zhuangzi. Although the Liezi has not been extensively published in the West, some passages are well known. For example, Gengsangzi (庚桑子; cf. Zhuangzi chap. 23) gives this description of Daoist pure experience:
My body is in accord with my mind, my mind with my energies, my energies with my spirit, my spirit with Nothing. Whenever the minutest existing thing or the faintest sound affects me, whether it is far away beyond the eight borderlands, or close at hand between my eyebrows and eyelashes, I am bound to know it. However, I do not know whether I perceived it with the seven holes in my head and my four limbs, or knew it through my heart and belly and internal organs. It is simply self-knowledge. (chap. 4, tr. Graham 1990:77-78)
Compare the Zhuangzi saying, "The Perfect Man uses his mind like a mirror — going after nothing, welcoming nothing, responding but not storing. Therefore he can win out over things and not hurt himself." (chap. 7, tr. Watsonhttp://web.archive.org/web/20041010011419/users.compaqnet.be/cn111132/chuang-tzu/7.htm)
Authenticity
Liezi scholars have long recognized that it shares many passages with other pre-Han texts like the Zhuangzi, Daodejing, and Lüshi ChunqiuLüshi Chunqiu
The Lüshi Chunqiu is an encyclopedic Chinese classic text compiled around 239 BCE under the patronage of the Qin Dynasty Chancellor Lü Buwei...
. Barrett (1993:298) says opinion is "divided as to whether it is an ancient work with later interpolations or a forgery confected from ancient sources." On the one hand, the Liezi could contain a core of circa 400 BCE authentic writings of Lie Yukou; on the other hand, it could be a circa 400 CE compilation forged by Zhang Zhan.
The Liezi is most similar with the Zhuangzi
Zhuangzi
Zhuangzi was an influential Chinese philosopher who lived around the 4th century BCE during the Warring States Period, a period corresponding to the philosophical summit of Chinese thought — the Hundred Schools of Thought, and is credited with writing—in part or in whole—a work known by his name,...
. They share many characters and stories; Graham (1990:12) lists sixteen complete episodes plus sections from others. The Zhuangzi also mentions Liezi in four chapters and Lie Yukou in three. For example, this famous passage:
[Liezi] could ride the wind and go soaring around with cool and breezy skill, but after fifteen days he came back to earth. As far as the search for good fortune went, he didn't fret and worry. He escaped the trouble of walking, but he still had to depend on something to get around. If he had only mounted on the truth of Heaven and Earth, ridden the changes of the six breaths, and thus wandered through the boundless, then what would he have had to depend on? Therefore I say, the Perfect Man has no self; the Holy Man has no merit; the Sage has no fame. (chap. 1, tr. Watson)
The final two chapters have heterogeneous contents that differ from the Daoism elsewhere in the book. Chapter 7 records the Hedonist philosophy of "Yang Zhu" (Yangzi), infamous for the criticism of Mencius
Mencius
Mencius was a Chinese philosopher who was arguably the most famous Confucian after Confucius himself.-Life:Mencius, also known by his birth name Meng Ke or Ko, was born in the State of Zou, now forming the territory of the county-level city of Zoucheng , Shandong province, only thirty kilometres ...
that he, "believed in 'every man for himself.' If he could have helped the whole world by plucking out a single hair, he would not have done it." (chap. 7A, tr. Muller) Zhang Zhan speculates that this chapter, focusing on indulgence in physical and temporary pleasures, was from Lie Yuko's earlier years as a hedonist, before he became a Daoist. The well-known scholar of Chinese philosophy, Wing-Tsit Chan
Wing-tsit Chan
Professor Wing-tsit Chan was one of the world's leading scholars of Chinese philosophy and religion, active in the United States....
(1963:309) calls the "Yang Zhu" chapter "negative Daoism" in contrast with the Daoism of Laozi, Zhuangzi, and Huainanzi that were "all positive in that each represents something new." Chapter 8, "Explaining Conjunctions," is primarily taken from other early sources, not only Daoist but Confucian and Mohist texts, two philosophies that opposed the philosophical Daoism this book expounds.
Angus C. Graham, Professor Emeritus of the School of Oriental and African Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
The School of Oriental and African Studies is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London...
, illuminated the textual provenance. After translating Liezi (1960), which Barrett (1993:307) calls undoubtedly "the best translation into a Western language to date", Graham (1961) linguistically analyzed internal evidence and textual parallels. He discovered many cases where the Liezi is clearly secondary to other texts, but none where it is the primary source for a passage. The Preface to the revised Liezi translation (1990:xi-xv) explains his significant change in attitude.
Although in 1960 most scholars in China already recognized the late date of [Liezi], most Westerners were still disinclined to question its antiquity. My own textual studies, not yet completed when this translation first appeared, supported the Chinese dating, which by now prevails also in the West. … One result of the textual investigation came as a surprise to me. The present book describes the hedonist 'Yang [Zhu]' chapter as 'so unlike the rest of [Liezi] that it must be from another hand … The thought is certainly very different, and it does show the signs of editing and interpolation by the Taoist author … But although close scrutiny generally reveals marked differences in style between the body of the book and passages borrowed from earlier sources, I could find none to distinguish the hedonist chapter from the rest. (1990:xiii)
Owing to occasional Liezi textual misunderstandings in Zhang Zhan's commentary, Graham concludes that the "guiding hand" probably belonged to Zhang's father or grandfather, which would mean circa 300 CE.
Suggestions of Buddhist influences in Liezi chapters 3 and 6 are potentially corroborating evidence for a late date of composition; see Buddhism in China
Buddhism in China
Chinese Buddhism refers collectively to the various schools of Buddhism that have flourished in China since ancient times. Buddhism has played an enormous role in shaping the mindset of the Chinese people, affecting their aesthetics, politics, literature, philosophy and medicine.At the peak of the...
. "King Mu of Zhou" discusses sense perceptions as illusions; "Endeavor and Destiny" takes a fatalistic (if not karmic) view of destiny, which goes against the traditional Daoist concept of Wuwei
Wu wei
Wu wei is an important concept of Taoism , that involves knowing when to act and when not to act. Another perspective to this is that "Wu Wei" means...
.
Translations
There are fewer English translations of the Liezi than other Daoist texts. The first were partial versions; Lionel GilesLionel Giles
Lionel Giles was a Victorian scholar, translator and the son of British diplomat and sinologist, Herbert Giles. Lionel Giles served as assistant curator at the British Museum and Keeper of the Department of Oriental Manuscripts and Printed Books...
(1912) translated chapters 1-6 and 8, while Anton Forke (1912) covered chapter 7 ("Yang Zhu"). As mentioned above, A.C. Graham (1960, 1990) wrote a definitive scholarly translation. The most recent Liezi rendition is by Eva Wong (2001).
External links
- Liezi, Taoist Culture & Information Centre
- Lieh Tzu, Overview of World Religions
- Lieh Tzu, Ancient Landmarks
- Taoist Teachings Translated from the Book of Lieh-Tzu, Giles' translation, Internet Sacred Text Archive; also available in more formats on archive.org
- Yang Chu's Garden of Pleasure, Forke's translation, Internet Sacred Text Archive
- Liezi 列子, Chinese Text ProjectChinese Text ProjectThe Chinese Text Project is a digital library project that assembles collections of early Chinese texts. The name of the project in Chinese literally means "The Digitization Project of Chinese Philosophy Books", showing its focus on books related to Chinese philosophy...
(in Chinese) - The Liezi from Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
(in Chinese)
- The Liezi Chapter 7, Yang Chu from Dalriada Books (in English)