Once, there was a man who claimed to possess the art of immortality, so the ruler of the State of Yan sent an envoy to learn it from him. However, before the envoy had even reached him, the man had already died. The ruler of Yan flew into a rage and was about to have the envoy executed. A courtier at the ruler’s side advised him against it, saying: “What people fear most is death, and what they cherish most is life. That man who claimed to have the art of immortality has died himself—how then could he have kept you from dying?” Thus, the ruler decided not to kill the envoy.
There was a man in the State of Qi who also wished to learn the art of immortality. Upon hearing of this man’s death, he beat his chest and stamped his feet in regret, lamenting that he had not had the chance to find him before his death. A man surnamed Fu, having heard of this, mocked him, saying: ‘You wished to learn the art of immortality, yet that man himself has died; this proves that he did not truly know the art of immortality.’
A man surnamed Hu, upon hearing this, said: ‘The words of the man surnamed Fu are wrong. There are many who know the method but cannot put it into practice, and there are also those who can practise it but do not know the method. In the State of Wei, there was a man skilled in mathematics who, on his deathbed, explained the secret to his son. The son committed his father’s words to memory but was unable to put them into practice. When someone came to seek his advice, he simply relayed his father’s words to him. That person who followed the instructions achieved results just as good as his father’s. If this is the case, why could the deceased not have passed on the art of immortality?”
Origin: “Liezi: Shuo Fu”
#52 不死之道
从前有个人说他有长生不死的法术，燕国的国君便派人去跟他学习。但是，派去的人还没有走到，那个人已死掉了。燕国的国君对派去的人大发脾气，并准备把他杀掉。燕君身边的侍臣劝阻他说：“人最担心的莫过于死，而最珍惜的莫过于生。那个人说他有长生不死之术的人自己竟然死去了，又怎么能使您不死呢？”于是，国君决定不杀那个使者了。
齐国有一个人，也想学长生不老之道,听说这个人死了,捶胸顿足，恨自己没有机会在他死以前找到他。有一个姓富的人听说了，嘲笑他说：“你本来想学的是不死之术，可那个人自己都死了，证明这个人不是真知道不死之术。”
有一个姓胡的人听到后说：“姓富的人的话不对。知道理论方法却不能实行的人很多，能做到却不知道理论方法的人也有。卫国有个擅长数理的人，临死时把诀窍讲给儿子听。儿子记住了他的话，却不能实际操作。别人来请教，他就把父亲的话转告给那人。那人按照这些话去运算，结果和他父亲做得一样好。既然如此，那死者为什么就不能传授长生之术呢？”
出自《列子·说符》