One day a learned scholar was buying a donkey on the market. A deed had to be filled out recording the transaction.
The man who had sold the donkey watched the scholar writing sheet after sheet till three sheets were finished, but could not see the word “donkey.” He urged the scholar to complete the deed.
”You only have to make it clear in the deed that the donkey has been paid for and that the liability is involved by either party. Why are you writing so much?” asked the seller in wonder.
”Don’t be impatient, I’ll soon come to the donkey,” was the reply.
Allegorical Meaning
This is a story recorded in Family Instructions of the Yan Clan (Yan’s Family Instructions). This brief, satirical tale of a learned scholar drafting an absurdly long, ornate contract that omits the essential detail—the donkey itself—serves as a scathing critique of pedantry, bureaucratic obscurantism, and the dangerous disconnect between scholarly formality and practical reality.
The Tyranny of Empty Formalism
The form of the contract (its length, literary flourishes, historical references) completely overshadows its substance and purpose (recording the purchase of a donkey). The story vividly illustrates how obsession with form can render communication meaningless and action impossible.
A Satire on Bureaucratic Inefficiency
The story functions as a direct parody of excessive bureaucracy and official documentation. It mirrors situations where procedures, paperwork, and jargon become so convoluted that they fail to address the core issue or enable basic transactions.
Yan Zhitui’s lesson remains vital: True wisdom combines knowledge with pragmatic application. The scholar’s failure isn’t lack of learning, but misapplication of learning.
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