Description
Book SynopsisThe Hsu-Tang Library presents authoritative and eminently readable translations of classical Chinese literature, in bilingual editions, ranging across three millennia and the entire Sinitic world.Master Incapable (Wunengzi) is an important but relatively little-known Daoist work written in 887, as the Tang dynasty (618-907) was breathing its last. The unknown author, a former government official now living as a recluse, witnesses internecine warfare, widespread poverty, and rampant social injustice, and attempts to explain why humanity seems to be plunging into a state of utter chaos. The nucleus of Master Incapable''s analysis is his view of the separation of humanity from the natural world, caused by an abnormal growth of the intellect. His critique is as radical as that in the so-called primitivist chapters of the Daoist classic Zhuangzi, in which civilization is considered a disease spread by an intellectual and societal elite, those who are called sages. The way out of mankind''s
Trade ReviewWith its useful supporting material and annotations, as well as the original text, this volume presents an interesting-and quite entertaining-text very well. It is certainly scholarly-thorough, but is also readily accessible to interested readers. * The Complete Review *
Table of ContentsIntroduction Preface to Master Incapable Master Incapable, Book I The Fault of the Sages Illuminating the Foundation Analyzing the Delusion Being Free of Worries Offering Proof of Fraudulence (I, II) True Cultivation (I, II, III, IV) Master Incapable, Book II Discourse on King Wen Discourse on the Masters of Shouyang Discourse on Lord Lao Discourses on Confucius (I, II) Discourse on Fan Li Discourse on Song Yu Discourse on the Hermits of Shang Discourse on Yan Ling Discourse on Sun Deng Master Incapable, Book III Reply to Tong's Question Reply to Huayangzi's Question Reply to Yuzhongzi's Question Discourse on Fish Discourse on the Poison Bird Reply to Lu's Questions (I, II) Records of Things Witnessed (I, II, III) Consolidating the Foundation (I, II, III, IV) Bibliography
