There was once a bird called the roc, whose back was as vast as Mount Tai and whose wings were like clouds that overspread the heavens. When it wheeled up into the air a whirlwind arose, and in each flight it covered ninety thousand Ii, soaring above the misty vapours under the azure sky. Once it was flying southwards to the Southern Ocean.
”Where can it be going?” wondered a sparrow with a laugh. “I leap up scores of feet, then come down to enjoy myself among the bushes. That’s good enough for me. Where else does it want to go?”
Here we see the difference in outlook between great and small.
Allegorical Meaning
This ancient Chinese parable contrasts the legendary Peng bird (Roc) with a small sparrow to illustrate three philosophical layers:
Relativity of Ambition
The Roc’s 90,000-li flight to the Southern Darkness represents transcendent ambition, while the sparrow’s contentment with hopping among weeds symbolizes limited perspective. This mirrors Zhuangzi’s core idea that “great” and “small” are subjective judgments.
Epistemological Humility
The sparrow’s mocking question (“Where is that one going?”) reveals how limited experiences create cognitive blinders. The closing line “This distinguishes small from great” suggests true wisdom requires recognizing these perceptual boundaries.
Non-Dualistic Thinking
Rather than condemning either creature, the text implies both perspectives are contextually valid — the Roc’s journey isn’t inherently superior to the sparrow’s joy in mundane flight. This reflects Daoist rejection of binary hierarchies.
Modern application:
The fable critiques both arrogant overreach and complacent small-mindedness, advocating for self-awareness within one’s own developmental stage while respecting others’ paths — an antidote to today’s polarized discourses where differing “flights” are often judged as morally deficient.
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