Zhuangzi

　　Talking about Zhuangzi， people feels some kind of mysterious. According some historic works， we can know something about him. His first name was Zhou， second name was Zhuang. He was born in 369 B.C.， died in 286 B.C…… He was Meng citizen in Warring State periods. Zhuangzhi was poor in his whole life， selling shoes ever for his living. And also ever became an little office in a lacquer tree garden.

　　Fortunately， his students recorded some of his thoughts and his deeds in the book of Zhuang Zi. From those fragments information， a special image of Zhuangzhi left in the next generations and generations till today. "Dao" was the highest category in the Chinese ancient philosophy， it was brought out by Laozi firstly， Zhuangzi inherited and develop it， make it become the main current of the Taoistic teaching， his book also become the most important literature of Taoism.

　　Just like his master Laozi， Zhuangzi present the important conceptions of Taoism， that is "Dao" is in the world， it is everywhere， it is the whole. Taoists always say that "Dao" is nothing， yet this nothing is not zero， since it is the total spontaneity of all things.

　　In the way to life， Zhuangzi held the theory of Let things takes its nature. This letting-alone theory ins not only a political philosophy but also be an art of living. In dealing with the men and the things， Zhuangzi consider we should let them alone without interfering with them； in dealing with ourselves， we should also let the different bodily functions alone with out interfering with them. What by nature is good.

　　About the life and death. In life we assure one form of existence， death simply means another that we have to give up this form of existence. Zhuangzi said：" Life is the composition of matter， death is the decomposition of it." There is no immortality in the ordinary sense of the world. He borrowed the conception of the matter， put the life and death in a harmony.

　　In the state of pure experience， the perfect man responds， but without knowledge. The perfect man， who is in identity with the universe and "goes up and down with evolution" is absolutely free. He identifies himself with the universe， and follows the nature of things.

　　中国历史上的春秋战国时期（公元前770—前256年），是一个大动乱、大变革的时期，是中国社会由奴隶制到封建制的大转折时期，是各种政治主张、哲学观点、学术思想异常活跃的时期，形成了儒、道、法、墨、名、兵等诸子百家争鸣的局面。

　　庄子（约前369—前286年），名周，宋国蒙（今河南省商丘县东北）人，是继老子之后，战国时期道家学派的代表人物。他曾做过宋国蒙地方的漆园吏，与梁惠王、齐宣王同时。相传，庄子自幼聪明好学，与惠施为同学、挚友，曾南游楚越，探访古风，一生率性任真，崇尚自然，非毁礼法，傲视王侯。楚威王曾以厚礼聘其为相，被他拒绝， 从此终身不仕，退隐江湖，以编草鞋为生，寓言传道，著书十余万言。

　　庄子在哲学上，继承发展了老子的思想，认为“道”是客观真实的存在，把“道” 视为宇宙万物的本源。他说：“道之真以修身，其绪余以为国家，其土苴以为天下。” （《庄子·让王篇》）意思是，大道的真髓、精华用以修身，它的余绪用以治理国家，它的糟粕用以教化天下。又说：“无以人灭天，无以故灭命，无以得殉名，谨守而勿失， 是谓友其真。”（《庄子·秋水篇》）意思是，不要为了人工而毁灭天然，不要为了世故去毁灭性命，不要为了贪得去身殉名利，谨守天道而不离失，这就是返朴归真。

　　总之，他继承了老子《道德经》中“人法地，地法天，天法道，道法自然”的精髓， 在政治上主张无为而治，在人类生存方式上主张返朴归真。为此，他对世俗社会的礼、法、权、势进行了尖锐的批判，提出了“圣人不死，大盗不止”，“窃钩者诛，窃国者为诸侯”的精辟见解。在人类生存方式上，他崇尚自然，提倡“天地与我并生，万物与我为一”的精神境界，并且认为，人生的最高境界是逍遥自得，是绝对的精神自由，而不是物质享受与虚伪的名誉。庄子这些思想和主张，对后世影响深远，是人类思想史上 一笔宝贵的精神财富。

　　庄子对后世的影响，不仅表现在他独特的哲学思想上，而且表现在文学上。他的政治主张、哲学思想不是干巴巴的说教，相反，都是通过一个个生动形象、幽默机智的寓言故事，通过汪洋恣肆、仪态万方的语言文字，巧妙活泼、引人入胜地表达出来，具有石破天惊、振聋发聩的艺术感染力。如果说，屈原的离骚是中国浪漫主义诗歌的鼻祖，那么，庄子的文章，无疑是中国浪漫主义散文的先河。