Sound And Fury*
Life is lived in the shadow of language. Language conceals and reveals. Your opinion serves to define my opinion. Would there be any point to my opinion without you, without your opinion?
Still there’s the nagging sense that something is missing. What if anything makes your view or my view true? Shall we seek the anchor chain of truth, a true Governor? The hunch is persistent such a guarantee we cannot do without… Now follow, enjoy the reasoning of Zhuang Zhou as he explores the complexity of the body seeking a true Ruler. What harm can there be in seeking?
If there were not (the views of) another,
I should not have mine;
if there were not I (with my views), his would be uncalled for:
— this is nearly a true statement of the case,
but we do not know what it is that makes it be so.
It might seem as if there would be a true Governor concerned in it,
but we do not find any trace (of his presence and acting).
That such an One could act so I believe;
but we do not see His form.
He has affections,
but He has no form.
Given the body, with its hundred parts,
its nine openings, and its six viscera, all complete in their places,
which do I love the most?
Do you love them all equally?
or do you love some more than others?
Is it not the case
that they all perform the part
of your servants and waiting women?
All of them being such, are they not incompetent to rule one another?
or do they take it in turns to be now ruler and now servants?
There must be a true Ruler (among them)
whether by searching you can find out His character or not,
there is neither advantage nor hurt, so far as the truth of His operation is concerned.
When once we have received the bodily form complete,
its parts do not fail to perform their functions till the end comes.
In conflict with things or in harmony with them,
they pursue their course to the end,
with the speed of a galloping horse
which cannot be stopped;
— is it not sad?
To be constantly toiling all one’s lifetime,
without seeing the fruit of one’s labor,
and to be weary and worn out with his labor,
without knowing where he is going to:
— is it not a deplorable case?
Men may say, ‘But it is not death;’
yet of what advantage is this?
When the body is decomposed,
the mind will be the same along with it:
— must not the case be pronounced very deplorable?
Is the life of man indeed enveloped in such darkness?
Is it I alone to whom it appears so?
And does it not appear to be so to other men?
Zhuangzi by Zhuang Zhou chapt. Adjustment of Controversies
* Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more: it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.
— Macbeth Act V, Scene V by William Shakespeare
3 thoughts on “Sound And Fury*”
As has been noted many, many times, the yin does not exist without the yang. They may be opposites but that’s the point. The yin is reliant on the yang to define itself and vice versa. It is only when one side believes it can exist on its own that destructive conflict ensues. When the yang sees itself as superior and feels that the yin is superfluous then neither of them can survive. This is a lesson taught over and over but never learned. And this is the root of my cynicism and despair.
And yet, examples can be found of yin and yang processing for a season in a productive tension. What would we do without the feedback of those who see differently and are gracious to offer a challenge? As with everything time bound, permanence is due to the seduction of language. We are seduced (or suckered) to think that a paradise on earth is achievable, that we have a divine mandate to bring our version of paradise to pass.
To me there is a very large difference in working towards a sustainable and civil society where differences can be discussed and solutions can be found as compared to a “paradise” on earth. I agree that a utopian society is not in the cards nor do I think we would want that. That would mean a disassembling of human nature and creating a lopsided culture where the yin and yang no longer existed. Not interested.