Philosophy
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The Dream of the Yellow Millet is a famous Chinese fable from the novel “The Story of the Pillow’ by the Tang Dynasty writer Shen Jiji. A poor scholar surnamed Lu chanced upon an old Taoist priest surnamed Lü at an inn in Handan, whilst on his way to sit the imperial examinations. Lu lamented…
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King Xuan of Qi asked Mencius, “Is it true that (Zhou dynasty) King Wen’s park was thirty five kilometre in circumference?” Mencius replied, “It is so written in the historical records.” The king asked, “Was it really that large?” Mencius said, “And yet the people still found it too small.” The king said, “My park…
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“He who knows others is learned; He who knows himself is wise.” – Lao Zi During the reign of Emperor Dezong of Tang dynasty, there was a court academician named Pan Yan who enjoyed immense favour from the emperor. Once, mayor of the capital wished to see Pan Yan but failed to gain an audience…
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“Life is a temporary sojourn, death a return.” – Yu the Great Zhuangzi’s wife had died. His close friend Huizi went to console him, only to find him sitting idly on the ground, pounding a pottery basin like a drum, and singing. Huizi said to him: “When someone has lived with you, raised children, grown…
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One wrong word, five hundred lifetimes as a wild fox. In the Buddhist context, “severing someone’s wisdom life” refers to cutting off another person’s opportunity to attain enlightenment through wisdom by misleading, destroying the Buddha’s teachings, or hindering practice. During the height of Tang Dynasty, Zen Buddhism flourished. When Zen Master Baizhang (749-814AD) gave dharma…
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There was a woodcutter in the State of Zheng who was chopping wood in the wilderness when he encountered a startled deer. He killed the deer and hid it in a ditch, covering it with some banana leaves, intending to take it home after he finished his work. But later, he forgot where he had…