The Flying (Original text by Zhuang Zi, Chapter 1)(逍遙遊)Translated by Leechard, Cheng Wing Lim

1 There was a fish in the Nothern Unknown. The name of the fish was Kun. Kun was very big, with a length of thousands of miles. Kun had turned into a bird. The name of the bird was Peng. Peng was very long, with a body length of thousands of miles. When the bird had gained enough momentum, it flew. The wings of the bird were very long, like cloud spreading around the sky. The bird flew across the sea into the Southern Unknown.


2 The Qi Tidbit was a record book for curious matters. According to the Tidbit: When Peng was moving to the Southern Unknown, He had been taxiing for three thousand miles, then held on the wind to the heights of ninety thousand miles. He was flying by the June wind.


3 Oh, those were wild horses. Oh, those was dust. Oh, creatures were relying on each other like wind. (It was just like small seeds floating on water. It was just like the big bird floating on wind.) The sky was dark blue when you looked up. But is this the real color of the sky?
The color could well be the same if you look down from above. (It seemed that the color itself was relying on something else.)


4  Water needs a certain depth to carry a big ship. If you pour a little water on the floor, a small seed could sail on it. However, the water could not float a cup. If you put a cup on top of the same water, the cup could not float, but stick on the floor. Shallow water could not support a big ship.


5 The small cicada and pigeon mocked on the big bird: “When I had decided (gained enough mental power) to fly, I could fly among the elm trees and the sandalwoods. When I felt tired, I could stay on the ground. For what should one fly ninety thousand miles to the South?”


6 People going to the suburb need to bring only three meals. They were still full when came back. People going a hundred miles must prepare enough food to stay longer. People going a thousand miles will need to prepare provisions for threes months. How could the two small creatures know this?


7 The unlearned is never able to compare with the learned. The short-lived is never able to compare with the long-lived. Why? It is like the small insects that could only live one day. They could never know what is a day or a month. The other insect cicada or cricket, could never know what is a year. Those were the short-lived. There were an old turtle in the South of Chu, who measured his life with the units of five hundred years. In the ancient times there were a big mahogany who measured his life with the units of eight thousand years. Those were the long-lived. As for the so-called long living Peng-zu, (who had lived for only eight hundred years) and people were admiring him so mush, it was only funny.


8 Those were the small officers with some knowledge, those were the village chiefs with some achievement, those were the kings with some abilities, they had won the trust of the people, but their self esteem, could not have been as mush as the small creatures. And Song Rong Zi found it interesting. He could have only smile on it. He knew that if you were praised by the whole world, you will not be too happy and if you were blamed by the whole world, you will not be too unhappy. He knew the difference of the internal and the external, and he knew what is honor and what is humiliation. He had not been too eager on the worldly matters.


9 Lie zi had been flying on the wind. It is pretty fine with this ability. He had been flying for fifteen days to come back. Though he could fly, but he was still relying on something. As for those who could sail on the positive spirit of the universe, and handle(balance) the six mystery element, they can fly to the boundless limit of the universe. What else do they need to rely on? (They rely on nothing.).