"The sage's heart-mind in stillness is the mirror of Heaven and earth, the glass of the ten thousand things."
— Zhuangzi (4th century BC)
Author
Work Title
Date
c. 300 B.C.
Metaphor
"The sage's heart-mind in stillness is the mirror of Heaven and earth, the glass of the ten thousand things."
Metaphor in Context
Water that is still [jing] gives back a clear [ming] image of beard and eyebrows; reposing in the water level, it offers a measure to the great carpenter. And if water in stillness possesses such clarity, how much more must pure spirit [jing shen]? The sage's heart-mind in stillness is the mirror of Heaven and earth, the glass of the ten thousand things.
(Chapter 13)
Categories
Provenance
Reading Erin M. Cline. "Mirrors, Minds, and Metaphors," Philosophy East and West 58:3 (2008): 337-357.
Citation
Translation by Eric Cline. Compare Burton Watson, The Complete Works of Chuang Tzu (New York: Columbia University Press, 1968), p. 142.
Date of Entry
08/19/2013
