《淮南鴻烈解》Vol. 1

Huainan Honglie Jie, Volume One (Selected Vernacular Interpretation)

Huainan Honglie Jie, Volume One

Compiled by Xu Shen, Libationer to the Grand Commandant (Part One)

Yuan Dao Xun, Part One

“Yuan” refers to the root; “Yuan Dao” means to speak of the Dao from its root—since the Dao as root encompasses Heaven and Earth and governs the myriad things, “Yuan Dao” is used as the chapter title.

As for the Dao, it covers Heaven and supports Earth (the Dao is formless and vast, like Heaven covering all and Earth bearing the myriad things); it expands the four directions and opens up the limits of the eight directions (“kuo” means to open out; “tuo” originally refers to the night-watch drum, but here takes the sense of “opening”; the eight limits are the ends of the eight directions, describing how the Dao reaches the farthest extremes); it is so high that its summit cannot be measured, and so deep that its bottom cannot be fathomed (“ji” means limit or end; “ce” means to gauge depth).

The Dao wraps around Heaven and Earth and grants vitality to the myriad things before they take form (before the myriad things were formed, all received and were endowed by the Dao, hence “endowment and conferral in formlessness”). It is like a spring surging forth: at first empty, it slowly fills; rolling and gurgling, at first turbid, it gradually clears (when a spring first emerges it is empty and slowly becomes full, illustrating how the Dao moves from emptiness to fullness; the character “gu” is pronounced close to “gu” and describes the force of water).

Therefore: set upright, it can fill Heaven and Earth; stretched horizontally, it can permeate the four seas; when applied, it is inexhaustible and does not become parched or depleted with morning or evening (“morning and evening” symbolize rise and decline, waxing and waning). Spread out, it can cover the six directions; rolled up, it does not fill a single handful (the six directions refer to Heaven, Earth, and the four quarters, above and below, or the correspondences of the four seasons; the minuteness of a single handful illustrates the Dao’s subtlety, which is difficult to measure).

The Dao can contract and expand, can be hidden and manifest (can be small or large, concealed or visible); it can be weak and strong, soft and hard (this is the inherent nature of the Dao). It traverses the four dimensions and embraces Yin-Yang (here “heng” is read like the “guang” of a chariot-canopy crossbar; the four dimensions are like the four cords of a small chariot canopy); it sets the cosmic order as a main cord does and makes manifest the three lights of sun, moon, and stars (“hong” is the main cord, like the cords that fasten a chariot canopy; “yu” denotes the four directions, “zhou” denotes above and below).

Vernacular Interpretation of the Huainan Honglie Jie

Here “zhou” is used to discourse on heaven and earth as a whole, and to identify the “Three Luminaries” as the sun, moon, and stars.

The Dao (the Way) is both extremely soft and moist and extremely refined and subtle. The characters “nao” and “ge,” and others like them, are often compared by commentators to thick congee or ballads, the intent being to describe its soft and fine condition.

Mountains are high because of it, abysses deep because of it; beasts run because of it, birds fly because of it; the sun and moon shine because of it, and the stars and calendrical motions proceed because of it. The qilin roam because of it, and the phoenixes soar because of it. (“Yi” means to use; “you” means to go out roaming; “xiang” means flying without moving.)

In remote antiquity, the two sage kings Fuxi and Shennong obtained the handle of the Dao and stood at the center of heaven and earth. Shen (spirit) and transformation roamed together, thereby pacifying the four quarters. (“Fu” means to stabilize; “the four quarters” means all under heaven.)

Therefore heaven moves without ceasing and earth keeps its stillness, like a wheel turning without stopping. (“Yun” means movement; “zhi” means stopping; “fei” means ceasing.) Water flows without cease, sharing beginning and end with the ten thousand things; wind and clouds rise steaming, and the myriad affairs all respond. (“Ying” means corresponding, mutually resonating.) Thunder sounds and rain falls in unison, without end. (“Qiong” means exhaustion, cessation.) Ghosts appear and disappear without trace; lightning swiftly enters concealment; dragons rise and luan birds gather. (“Ghosts appearing” means without form or trace; “lightning entering” means its extreme speed.) Like a potter’s wheel spinning or a chariot hub revolving, it returns again and again. (“Jun” is the potter’s wheel, an ancient tool for making tiles, which turns below and revolves; one account says “jun” is Heaven.) Having been carved and polished, it still returns to plain simplicity; acting through wuwei (non-action), one accords with the Dao; speaking through wuwei, one penetrates De (Virtue/Power). (The transformations of the two or three sage kings above all consisted in acting through wuwei; what they said also accorded with the Dao, and speaking through wuwei naturally penetrates De.)

Tranquil and joyful, neither self-praising nor self-vaunting, one thereby attains the harmony of harmony. (“Tianyu” means without likes or dislikes, hate or love; “wujin” means not exaggerating oneself.) The ten thousand things differ in form, yet each finds ease in its own nature. (The myriad affairs are not the same; being able to find ease in nature is because nature fundamentally has no partial fixation.) Shen lodges at the tip of an autumn hair, yet can encompass and govern heaven, earth, and the cosmos. (“Cosmos” is a metaphor for heaven and earth; “zong” means to gather together.) Its De softens and moistens heaven and earth, harmonizes Yin-Yang (“you” means soft compliance; “he” means harmonizing), regulates the four seasons, orders the Five Phases (metal, wood, water, fire, earth), and gently instructs the ten thousand things.

Huainan Honglie Jie: A Vernacular Interpretation

Sheltering and nurturing the myriad things and all living beings: The great Dao (the Way) covers and nurtures all things and all living beings. (Xuyu: warm consolation; yu: to nourish and cause to grow.)

Moistening the grasses and trees, soaking the metal and stone: It moistens grasses and trees and permeates metal and stone.

Birds and beasts are large and robust, their fine hairs glossy, their wings strong (fen: robust); their horns grow (jiao: deer horns; ge: the horns of the mi-deer, here “ge” is pronounced close to “ge”). Beast fetuses do not du, and bird eggs do not duan (a fetus not yet formed into a beast is called du; an egg that does not form a bird is called duan; this means there is no premature death and they can take form successfully).

Fathers have no grief of losing sons, elder brothers no sorrow of weeping for younger brothers (meaning no premature death): fathers need not endure the pain of burying a son, and elder brothers need not weep bitterly for a younger brother’s death.

Children are not orphaned, women are not widowed (without a father is called orphaned; a widow is called shuang): children do not lose their fathers, and women need not remain widows.

Rainbows do not appear, baleful stars do not move (zeixing: uncanny stars, inauspicious stars): inauspicious omens are not displayed, and anomalous stars do not appear.

This is what is brought about by containing De (Virtue/Power) (han: to harbor, to hold within): All this is the scene manifested by harboring De within and being in accord with the great Dao.

Now, the Supreme Dao: The highest Dao gives birth to the myriad things but does not possess them (it does not regard them as its own)—it transforms and gives birth to the myriad things, yet does not take the myriad things as its private possession; completes transformative forms but does not dominate (zai: to dominate, to act arbitrarily)—it accomplishes nurturing transformation and reveals forms, yet does not set itself up as lord and master.

Things that walk on legs, breathe through beaks, fly as insects, or wriggle as worms (creatures that walk, breathe through beaks, insects that fly, things that wriggle): all life that walks on feet, breathes through a beak, flies on wings, or wriggles with a body waits for it and only then is born—it waits for the great Dao and only then can live, and none know its De (they do not attribute it to De)—they do not know whose grace this is; they wait for it and only then die, and none can resent it (they do not resent cruelty)—they also die in dependence on the Dao, and no one can resent or accuse it.

Those who obtain it and benefit cannot praise it fully, those who use it and fail cannot blame it: Those who obtain the Dao and gain profit still cannot exhaust its wonder in words; those who use it and fail also cannot shift the fault onto the Dao.

Gathering and storing do not increase wealth (gathering and storing: the state has regular taxes; the reason it does not increase wealth is that the common people do not regard it as their own): The state gathers and stores wealth yet does not thereby privately add to its wealth—because this is the public regular tax, and it does not take the people’s goods as its own.

Dispensing and granting do not make the poor poorer (dispensing and granting relieve the distressed and give to the insufficient; because it uses public resources, it does not increase poverty): It distributes and grants to those in want, yet does not make the poor poorer because of public expenditure—it uses public resources, not robbing the people to fatten itself.

Spinning and encircling, it cannot be fathomed (xian is like “small”—here it refers to a vast, encircling expanse); minute and subtle, it cannot be exhausted (qin means to exhaust): Vast and all-encompassing, it cannot be fully investigated; subtle and profoundly hidden, it cannot be exhausted.

Pile it up and it does not become higher; cast it down and it does not become lower; increase it and it is not more numerous; decrease it and it is not less; carve it and it is not thinner; strike it and it is not more damaged; bore it and it is not deeper; fill it and it is not shallower: Pile it up and it will not be higher; drop it and it will not be lower; add to it and it does not appear more; reduce it and it does not appear less; cut it and it does not appear thinner; wound it and it does not appear more broken; bore into it and it does not appear deeper; fill it in and it does not appear shallower—this describes how the Dao cannot be fixed, measured, increased, decreased, or destroyed.

Sudden and blurred, it cannot be made into an image (sudden and blurred has no form or appearance, therefore it is said it cannot be made into an image); blurred and sudden, its use is inexhaustible (qu: to exhaust; “huang” is pronounced close to the “kong” in “renkong”; “qu” is pronounced close to the “qu” in “qiuji wuwei,” meaning an autumn chicken without a tail): Blurred and formless, it cannot be molded into a concrete image; blurred and sudden, its function is never exhausted.

Dark and obscure, it responds without fixed form; far-reaching...: Deep and dark, it responds to things without fixed traces; remote and boundless...

Note: The interlinear notes in the original (such as “xuyu: warm consolation,” etc.) are ancient exegetical glosses; the translation above has incorporated them into the meaning of the sentences.

Huainan Honglie Jie: A Vernacular Interpretation

Penetrating and unobstructed yet not empty; when it moves, there is invariably a response—the Dao responds to things in this way, and so it is called not empty and not recklessly moving. It also bends and stretches together with the hard and the soft, and rises and descends, bows and lifts, together with Yin-Yang.

In ancient times Feng Yi and Da Bing (one version gives them as Chi and Bai; both were ancients who attained the Dao and could drive Yin-Yang) drove a carriage: they took clouds as their carriage and cloud-rainbows as their horses, threading through thin mist. They raced swiftly and indistinctly, traversed distant roads, surmounted high places, and went straight to the very limit. They passed through frost and snow without leaving traces, and beneath the blaze of the sun they cast no shadow (zhu: shadow-pillar).

With the force of fuyao (climbing and shaking), twisting (zhen, pronounced as in the Zuo Zhuan phrase “han er neng zhen,” meaning to turn) and enfolding (bao, pronounced as in the Shijing phrase “ke qi ke yi,” meaning to coil around), they spiraled like a ram’s horn, winding upward. They passed through mountains and rivers, trod and soared over Kunlun, pushed open Changhe (the gate of the first rising of the heavenly realm), and slipped into Tianmen (the gate of the Ziwei Palace where the Heavenly Emperor dwells). Such was the carriage-driving skill of Feng Yi and Da Bing.

As for the carriage drivers of a declining age, even with light carriages, fine horses, strong goads, and sharp whips, they could not vie with them for the lead (the word here is pronounced like the bing in “bing zhu,” meaning a whip). Therefore the great man is tranquil and without thought, placid and without care; he takes Heaven as his carriage canopy and Earth as his carriage box, the four seasons as his horses, and Yin-Yang as his driver (zouyu means driving). He mounts the clouds and soars into the sky, traveling together with Zaohua (Heaven and Earth; one account says it is the Dao). He gives his will free rein and stretches out his pace, galloping through the Great Region (the dwelling; the Great Dwelling refers to Heaven): when he can walk, he walks; when he can gallop, he gallops.

A Vernacular Interpretation of the Huainan Honglie Jie

He commanded the Rain Master (Yushi) to sweep the roads and the Wind Earl (Fengbo) to sweep away the dust. The Rain Master corresponds to the star of the Bi lodge (Bixiu); the Odes say, “When the moon travels through Bi, great rains pour down.” The Wind Earl corresponds to the star of the Ji lodge (Jixiu); there is also the image, “When the moon travels through Ji, strong winds raise sand.”

He used the surging Qi of lightning as his whip and the rolling Qi of thunder as his wheels. Above, he roamed in the high, distant wilds of the empyrean; below, he emerged through the formless, shapeless gate of the boundless.

(The “liu” in “Liu lan” is read like the “liu” in “liulian,” meaning “lingering,” not the Liu of the Liu clan.) Surveying the four directions while still keeping the whole intact: he ordered the four corners and again returned to the original pivot. With Heaven as the canopy, there is nothing not covered; with Earth as the carriage body, there is nothing not carried; with the four seasons as horses, there is nothing not employed; with Yin-Yang as driver, there is nothing not complete—Yin-Yang orders the myriad things in due sequence, and so it is said that nothing is incomplete.

Thus he moves swiftly without swaying, reaches far without laboring; his four limbs do not move, yet his keen hearing and clear sight do not diminish, and still he can know the boundaries of the Eight Cords (Bahong, the eight dimensions of Heaven) and the Nine Fields (Jiuye, the eight directions plus the center). Why? Because he grasps the essential handle of the Great Dao and roams in the land of the infinite.

Therefore the affairs of the world cannot be forced into action (wei here means artificial fabrication or forceful twisting); one should follow their naturalness in order to investigate and employ them. The transformations of the myriad things cannot be exhaustively investigated; one should grasp their essentials and return to their tendency (qu also means return).

A mirror and water receive forms without deploying clever contrivance (adornment or calculating mind), and so square, round, curved, and straight cannot escape their forms. A person’s beautiful or ugly appearance is met according to reality, and so it is said that square, round, curved, and straight have nowhere to escape. Thus the echo does not respond wantonly, and the shadow does not set up a single fixed image; when one calls out, there is a semblance, and silently it is self-attained (what is attained is the sound and form that resemble the call).

People are born quiet: this is the nature of Heaven. To be moved only after being stimulated: this is a harm to that nature. When things arrive and the Shen (spirit) responds: this is the movement of knowing (things here refers to external affairs).

When one comes into contact with the myriad things, likes and dislikes arise. (“Jie” means interaction; “hao zeng” means desires and emotions.) Once likes and dislikes take shape in one’s appearance and consciousness, and one is enticed by external things, one cannot return to oneself; the heavenly principle (the pure and tranquil nature originally received from Heaven) then perishes, as if withering away.

Therefore, one who comprehends the Dao (the Way) does not alter his innate nature through human affairs. (One interpretation: he does not change himself through the profit-and-desire affairs of the human world.) Outwardly he becomes one with things, but inwardly he does not lose his original, true nature. (This means that although the person who comprehends the Dao becomes outwardly one with things, inwardly he still maintains the pure, desireless source.) He attains Wuwei (non-action) yet can satisfy what is needed; he moves in accord with the times and matches the place of his destined return. (This refers to Heaven moving by itself according to time, and the Dao according with its destined convergence.) The great and small, the long and short, each have their complete provision. When the myriad things arrive, bustling and disordered, he does not lose their measure and number; each responds to its own measure.

Thus, when he occupies a high position, the people do not feel weighed down; when he stands in the forefront, the multitude do not feel hindered. (This means the people revere and love him.) All under Heaven attach themselves to him, and the treacherous and wicked fear him, because he does not contend with the myriad things; therefore no one dares to contend with him.

As for fishing by the river, one may spend the whole day and not fill the net (fishnet); even with hooks, needles (fishing needles), awns (fishing lines), and spurs (lead sinkers), fine silk lines, fragrant bait, and the fishing skills of Zhan He and Juan Huan (ancients skilled at fishing), one still cannot compare in catch with nets (fishing nets).

An archer draws the Wuhao bow (made of zhe mulberry; when birds perch on it its branches must bend, and cutting the branches to make a bow is how it got its name), and draws Qi and Wei arrows. (“Han” means to draw [the bow], “wan” means to pull the bow; Qi is the name of a place that produced fine arrows, and Wei [arrows] were sharp.)

(Legend has it that Yi embraced his bow and wailed, and for this reason his bow was called the “Wuhao Bow.”) Even if one values the clever skill of Yi and Feng Meng (skilled archers of antiquity) in hitting the mark with every shot, when hunting flying birds they still could not match the numbers caught by people using nets. Why is this? Because what they relied on was merely that set of “small skills” in an individual’s hands.

If one spreads out the whole world as a cage and takes the rivers, lakes, and seas as a fishnet, where then could fish escape or birds be lost? Therefore, an arrow is not as good as the silk cord tied to the arrow, and the silk cord is not as good as the formless and imageless great Dao (the Way). To abandon the great Dao and rely on small techniques is like making crabs catch rats or toads catch fleas: it is simply insufficient to prohibit treachery and wickedness or to block disaster and disorder; on the contrary, it makes the disorder ever more severe.

In former times, Gun of the Xia dynasty (father of Yu the Great) built city walls three ren high, and the feudal lords then turned their backs on the court, while beyond the seas deceitful hearts also arose. Yu the Great knew that the hearts of the realm had already turned rebellious, so he tore down the walls, filled in the moats, distributed goods and wealth, burned weapons, and governed by De (Virtue/Power). Thereupon the regions beyond the seas submitted, and the Four Yi came to present tribute. At Mount Tu (traditionally said to be in present-day Dangtu, Anhui), he assembled the feudal lords, and those who came to court holding jade and silk numbered as many as ten thousand states.

Thus it can be seen that when cunning, deceitful, and false thoughts are hidden in the breast, the Dao of pure simplicity is no longer pure, and the De of concentrating on unity and guarding the Shen (spirit) is no longer complete. If such a scheming mind is present within, then no matter how strong the body, it cannot ward off the arrival of distant calamity. Therefore, when leather is made tough, the weapons for attacking cities become sharper; when city walls are built high, the battering rams for breaking cities arise in response—the more complete the preparations for war, the more complete the instruments of conflict become.

Vernacular Interpretation of the Huainan Honglie Jie

If one pours boiling water onto something already boiling and churning, it will only become more chaotic. Thus, to whip a dog that bites, to drive a horse on with a goad, and still hope to transform them by such means—even a worthy minister like Yi Yin or a charioteer like Zaofu could not change their basic nature.

(Yi Yin’s personal name was Zhi; he was a worthy minister in the time of Tang of Shang. Zaofu was a minister of King Mu of Zhou and skilled at driving chariots and handling horses. Even with these two men, one could not “educate” dogs and horses into something else.)

If within one’s heart there is no sincere sense of reverence and caution, one would dare to touch even the tail of a starving tiger, let alone creatures such as dogs and horses. Therefore, one who realizes the Great Dao is at ease and not reduced to straits; one who relies only on political technique and calculation toils without practical effect.

Harsh and severe punishments and frequent executions are not the way to achieve a hegemonic or royal enterprise; using the whip and goad too much is not the way to travel far or accomplish great matters. (“Fan” means frequent or excessive.)

Li Zhu’s eyesight was so sharp that he could see the point of a needle a hundred paces away (Li Zhu was a minister of the Yellow Emperor, famed for the clarity of his vision), yet he could not see the fish in a deep pool. Shi Kuang’s hearing surpassed others, and he could harmonize the sounds of the eight winds (Shi Kuang was music master to Duke Ping of Jin; Ziyie was his sobriquet; the eight winds are the sounds of the winds corresponding to the Bagua (Eight Trigrams)), yet he could not hear sounds ten li away.

Therefore, relying on one person’s ability alone is not enough to govern even a small three-mu homestead. Cultivating the Dao should follow heavenly principle and employ constant norms; complying with the inherent nature of heaven and earth, one may then oversee the six directions without necessarily feeling laborious. (“Jun” carries the senses of leveling/governing and of thoroughness/completeness.)

Thus Yu the Great dredged the river channels by modeling himself on water’s nature of flowing downward; Shennong, in sowing the Five Grains, established his teachings in accordance with the growth of seedlings. (Yu was the son of Gun, named Wenming; he received the abdication and became emperor. Because water’s nature is to flow downward, he guided it eastward, setting a model for later generations. Shennong was the son of Shaodian and the Yan Emperor; he planted fine grains and transformed the people by a divine way, hence he was called Shennong. “Bo” means to spread seed; relying on the seedlings’ growth to cultivate them became a constant method for later generations.)

Duckweed roots itself in water, and trees root themselves in soil; birds fly by displacing the air, and beasts run by treading on solid earth; flood dragons (jiaolong) dwell in water, and tigers and leopards dwell in mountains—all these are the innate nature bestowed by heaven and earth. (The jiao is a water creature with pearls on its skin; the ancients often used them to decorate swords. The character jiao here is read like the jiao in human social intercourse; when read slowly, the sound qi is obtained.)

When two pieces of wood are rubbed together, fire is kindled; when metal and fire are kept together, metal melts and flows. (“Liu” here carries the sense of melting and dispersing.)

This scriptural passage is about all things complying with the natural momentum, and about how people likewise need not recklessly interfere; it also uses local customs and environments to explain the principle of adapting to local conditions.

Floating Movement and the Principle of “Kuan” (Hollow)

The “kuan” that can turn constantly—the hollow space such as the empty hub of a wheel or the empty interior of a boat—relies precisely on floating upon the natural momentum. Round wheels, round balls, and boats all depend on “hollow” and the configuration of circumstances to move upon the water. Thus what is being discussed is the natural momentum. The graph “kuan” is pronounced like the ke in ketiao, and refers to hollows and apertures.

Spring: No One Sees the Acting, Yet the Work Is Complete

When the spring wind arrives and sweet rain falls, the myriad things are born and nurtured (what the Mingtang Yueling calls “when the clear wind arrives, grain rain follows” means this; “nurture” means to grow and nourish). Feathered birds brood over eggs and hatch them; furred beasts carry fetuses and give birth; plants flourish and flower, and birds and beasts reproduce either by egg or by fetus—no one sees who exerts the force, yet the work of transformation and nurture is already complete.

Autumn: No One Sees the Acting, Yet Form Has Already Perished

When the autumn wind rises and frost descends, plants emerge from the earth (“dao sheng”), then are checked and withered (branches and leaves fall). Eagles and hawks strike fierce birds (“zhi” is pronounced like the shi in shiwu), insects go into hibernation; plants return to their roots, fish and turtles gather in deep pools—again, no one sees who exerts the force, yet decline and concealment have quietly been completed.

Each Attains Its Proper Fit: Cold and Heat, Dryness and Dampness

Beasts dwell in hazel thickets and make nests; people dwell in caves and pits as rooms. On land it is fitting to raise cattle and horses; on water it is fitting to have many boats and oars. The Xiongnu (Xianyun, northern barbarians) produce fur and leather garments; Gan-Yue (the land of Wu and Yue) produces fine ko-hemp cloth, “chi.” Each takes what is urgently needed to prepare against dryness and dampness; each relies on its place to withstand cold and heat—things obtain their convenience, and people obtain their proper fit. From this we see that the myriad things are naturally so of themselves; why, then, should the sage multiply affairs to “govern” them? (“Shi” means to govern, to act by force.)

South of Jiuyi: Many Water Affairs, Forms Imitate Scaled Creatures

South of Mount Jiuyi (Jiuyi is in Cangwu, traditionally said to be the burial place of Yu Shun), land affairs are few and water affairs many. Therefore the people wear their hair loose and tattoo their bodies, carving patterns on their skin like scaled creatures and dragons, so as to enter the water conveniently and keep dragons from harming them—hence it is said, “to imitate scaled creatures.” They wear short kù (short garments) rather than long trousers (“kù”), making wading and swimming convenient; short sleeves and rolled-up sleeves (“rang juan”) make handling boats convenient—all of this is done because it suits the water.

North of Yanmen: Di Customs Value the Strong

North of Yanmen, the Di people do not take the five grains as their staple food; they despise the old and value the strong—their customs esteem courage and strength. Compared with the southern water towns and the agriculture and sericulture of the Central Plains, this is yet another way of living formed by circumstances.

Overall Meaning

Spring birth and autumn killing, water and land, cold and heat, northern furs and Yue fine cloth, tattooed bodies and short garments, valuing the strong and despising elders—all are driven by momentum and circumstance, not something any one person or one matter can forcibly change. Through the names of things and local customs in the commentary, the scriptural text repeatedly points out that following the natural momentum and letting each be at peace in its proper fit is precisely the unfolding, in customs and livelihood, of what the Huainan lineage often calls “the sage transforms through Wuwei (non-action).”

This passage from the Huainanzi elucidates the principle of conforming to natural dispositions. The nomadic tribes of the north (Di, Xianbei) are accustomed to mounted archery, just as when Yu the Great visited the naked tribes of the south, he followed local custom by removing his garments—both exemplify adapting to regional practices.

When transplanting trees against their natural growth patterns (their Yin-Yang nature), they wither, much like how orange trees turn into trifoliate oranges when moved north of the Yangtze, how mynah birds cannot fly beyond the Ji River, or how raccoon dogs perish upon crossing the Wen River. The physical nature (xingxing) and habitat (shiju) of all things are immutable.

Those who truly comprehend the Dao return to pristine purity (fan yu qingjing), while those who investigate the essence of phenomena ultimately realize the principle of Wuwei (non-action). By nurturing the heart-mind through serenity and settling the Shen (spirit) through detachment, one attains the state of unity between heaven and humanity (entering the "heavenly gate").

"Heaven" represents the pure, unadorned state of original nature; "human" refers to clever manipulations and opportunistic behaviors. Just as oxen naturally have cloven hooves and long horns while horses naturally grow manes and complete hooves—these follow heavenly patterns, whereas putting bridles on horses or nose rings on oxen are human impositions. Those who follow heavenly patterns roam with the Dao (yu dao you), while those who drift with trends become entangled in worldly affairs.

A frog at the bottom of a well cannot comprehend the ocean (constrained by narrowness), summer insects cannot discourse on ice and snow (bound by temporal limits), and those with shallow understanding (qushi) cannot grasp the supreme Dao. Therefore, sages do not let human artifice disrupt heavenly nature (bu yi ren hua tian), nor let desires disturb innate dispositions (bu yi yu luan qing). Without deliberate planning, they act appropriately; without words, they inspire trust; without striving, they achieve naturally. As the Book of Odes states: "Unconsciously conforming to the celestial order" (shun di zhi ze).

A Vernacular Interpretation of the Huainan Honglie Jie

Part One

To walk with the Fashioner of Transformations in the depths of one’s heart-mind—this is the way of being human. Those skilled at swimming often drown; those skilled at riding often fall from the horse—people often bring harm upon themselves through what they excel at and are partial to. Thus those fond of meddling in others’ affairs never escape injury on that account; those who contend for fame and profit never fail to end in distress.

Part Two

In former times, Gonggong, whose strength was unmatched, struck Mount Buzhou and caused the earth to tilt toward the southeast. (Gonggong rose to dominance in the era of Fuxi and Shennong by the De (Virtue/Power) of Water; he was not the Gonggong of Yao’s time. Mount Buzhou lies northwest of Kunlun; “tilting southeast” means sinking downward. Astronomical writings say that Heaven tilts northwest and Earth tilts southeast; where “tilting” is mentioned first, it refers to the high place. Here “southeast” is mentioned first and “tilting” afterward, in order to show that the lay of the land became lower.) He contended with the Gao Xin clan for the imperial throne. (Gao Xin is Diku, who bore the title of sovereign of the world and was the great-grandson of the Yellow Emperor.) In the end he sank into the deep abyss, his clan was wiped out, no successor remained, and his sacrifices were cut off. (This refers to Gonggong.) King Yi of Yue fled into a mountain cave; the people of Yue smoked him out with fire, and only then was he forced to come forth. (Yi was the crown prince of Yue, virtuous and unwilling to become king, and hid in a mountain cave. The Yue people smoked him out and only then installed him as king, hence “he could not but.” This occurred after the Spring and Autumn period, so it is not recorded in the classics.)

Part Three

From this we see: the accomplishment of affairs lies in timing, not in forcible contention; great order in the world lies in the Dao, not in relying on sages alone. (Governance here means the way of governing; even a sage, if he does not obtain this Dao, cannot accomplish affairs, hence “lies in the Dao.” Confucius was such a person.) Earth stays in the lower position and does not contend for the high, so it is stable and not endangered; water flows toward the low and does not contend to arrive first, so it is unimpeded and not stagnant.

Part Four

In former times, Shun plowed at Mount Li. After one year, when the farmers contended over land, they all yielded the thin, marginal fields to him and gave the fertile, level fields to others. (Mount Li is in Chengyang in Jiyin; one account places it in Licheng in Jinan. Qiaojue is pronounced like the qiao in the phrase “people contend for qiaochuan”; it denotes barren, thin soil.) Shun fished by the riverbank. After one year, when the fishermen contended over spots, they all yielded the rushing, shallow places with few fish to him and gave the winding banks and deep pools rich in fish to others. (Yu is pronounced as in gaoyu, “to tell.” Tuanlai are places where the water is shallow and the current swift, with few fish; quwei are winding places along cliffs and banks; deep pools are where waters converge from all sides and fish are abundant. Tan is pronounced as in the title Ge Tan and is equivalent to yu, meaning “to yield” or “to give.”) At that very time, Shun’s virtue had already become manifest.

Note: The interlinear annotations in the text (for example, “wei zhi / ye” and “huo hai / ye”) are later commentaries; in this vernacular rendering they have been absorbed into the meaning of the sentences.

The mouth does not set forth words, the hands do not point and command

In the mouth there are no words that make people distrustful, and in the hands there is no random gesturing or random commanding—one does not rely on talk to show off ability, nor rashly fix plans or recklessly act on ideas.

Holding Mysterious De (xuande) in the heart, one transforms and speeds along as if divine

Keep “Mysterious De” (the profound virtue in accord with the Dao, the Way, of Heaven) firmly in the heart; when influencing others, one’s actions are natural and one’s changes are like those of a spirit, as if a god were truly impelling them.

Suppose Shun lacked his resolve: even if he were eloquent and went from door to door persuading, he could not transform a single person

If Shun (a sage king of high antiquity) did not have in his heart the resolve to rule all under Heaven and transform the people into good customs, then even if his eloquence were excellent and he went from house to house to persuade, he still could not move a single person.

(One account also takes “resolve” zhi to mean the fundamental aspiration in a person’s heart; without that sincerity, clever words are in vain.)

Therefore, the Dao that is not spoken—vast and great indeed

So it is said that the “Dao that cannot be spoken” (the Dao cannot be fully exhausted by names and forms) is vast and boundless.

Now, to be able to order the Sanmiao and make the Yumin come to court

Someone can govern the Sanmiao well (a force in the place of exile during Yao’s time) and make the Yumin (people of the southern Feather Kingdom) come to court;

and can also bring Hundun, Qiongqi, Taotie, and other fierce and obstinate sorts under control (“order” li means to rectify and guide).

To cause the Luoguo to submit and the Sushen to bring tribute, and to change customs before issuing orders—could this not be solely through the practice of the heart?

And can also make the Luoguo (legend says it was in the south, where Yu once went) come to submit and the Sushen (a distant northern state, often said in ancient books to be north of Yan and Bo) come to present tribute—

before formally issuing orders and commands, customs had already changed; this, I am afraid, can be done only by “practice of the heart” (influencing through the heart and carrying out through De), can it not?

Laws and punishments—how could they be sufficient to bring this about?

How could laws, regulations, and punishments alone be sufficient to achieve this?

This shows that wisdom and legal institutions are not as fundamental and vast as the transforming power of a benevolent heart.

Therefore the sage inwardly cultivates his root and does not outwardly adorn the branch; he preserves his Jing and Shen and lays low his cleverness and contrivance

Therefore the sage cultivates inwardly the root (heart-nature and virtuous nature) and does not embellish the outer branches;

he preserves his Jing (essence) and Shen (spirit), and withdraws his cunning and cleverness; thus he appears indifferent and Wuwei (non-action), yet there is nothing he does not accomplish;

he is tranquil as if not governing, yet there is nothing he does not govern.

What is called Wuwei is not acting before things

What is called “Wuwei” is not doing nothing at all; it is not rushing ahead of the nature of things and insisting on acting first according to one’s own ideas.

What is called not acting is following what things do

What is called “not acting” is to complete things according to their original conditions and patterns, without recklessly interfering.

What is called not governing is not altering the natural

What is called “not governing” is not recklessly changing the natural, original state.

What is called governing all is following how things are mutually suitable

What is called “governing all” is to guide according to the way each of the myriad things is “mutually suitable,” so that each attains its proper place (“ran” has the sense of suitability and original nature).

Source note: The above comes from Huainan Honglie Jie, volume 1, an interpretive exposition of the scripture text of the Huainanzi. Its core is to explain: the sage transforms distant people through De and through the heart, emphasizing Wuwei, following things, and according with nature, rather than relying on laws, decrees, and clever argument.