The Crime of Bo Le
A horse’s hooves can trample frost and snow; its coat can ward off wind and cold. It grazes on grass and drinks water; it rears up and leaps – this is the horse’s true nature. Even if you offered it grand terraces and lofty chambers, it would have no use for them.
Then along came Bo Le, saying, “I am skilled at managing horses.” He branded them, clipped them, trimmed their hooves, and marked them with hot irons. He bound them with halters and tethered them in stables – and two or three out of ten horses died. He starved them and parched them, galloped them and raced them, aligned them and disciplined them. In front, there was the torment of the bit and ornaments; behind, there was the threat of the whip and crop – and more than half the horses were dead.
The potter says, “I am skilled at shaping clay.” He makes the round ones fit the compass, the square ones fit the square. The carpenter says, “I am skilled at working wood.” He bends the curved to fit the hook, straightens the straight to fit the line. But did the clay or the wood ever desire to conform to compass, square, hook, and line? Yet generation after generation, people praise them: “Bo Le is skilled at managing horses; the potter and carpenter are skilled at shaping clay and wood.” This, too, is the fault of those who govern the world.
The Age of Perfect Virtue
In my view, those who are truly skilled at governing the world are not like this. The people have a constant nature: they weave to clothe themselves, they plow to feed themselves – this is called shared virtue. They are united without faction, and this is called Heaven’s liberation.
Therefore, in the Age of Perfect Virtue, people walked with a heavy, unhurried gait, and gazed with a simple, unfocused look. In that age, there were no paths or tunnels through the mountains, no boats or bridges across the marshes. All things grew together in abundance, their habitats connected; birds and beasts gathered in flocks and herds; grass and trees flourished freely. Thus, one could lead wild animals by a string and wander with them; one could climb up and peer into the nests of magpies and crows.
In the Age of Perfect Virtue, people dwelled together with birds and beasts, living side by side with all creatures. How could they know the difference between gentleman and petty man? All shared the same unknowing, and their virtue did not depart. All shared the same desirelessness, and this was called plain simplicity. When there is plain simplicity, the nature of the people is fulfilled.
The Sages’ Crime
Then came the “sages,” stumbling and straining to practice benevolence, tiptoeing and reaching to uphold righteousness – and the world began to doubt. They sprawled out music for pleasure, picked apart rituals for propriety – and the world began to fracture.
If plain wood were not mutilated, who would make sacrificial vessels? If white jade were not shattered, who would carve jade tablets? If the Way and its Virtue were not destroyed, where would benevolence and righteousness come from? If human nature and feeling were not torn apart, what use would rites and music be? If the five colors were not confused, who would create patterns? If the five tones were not jumbled, who would match the six pitch-pipes?
To mutilate raw material in order to make vessels – this is the crime of the craftsman. To destroy the Way and Virtue in order to create benevolence and righteousness – this is the crime of the sage.
From Innocence to Cunning
A horse, living on the land, eats grass and drinks water. When happy, it intertwines necks and rubs against its companion; when angry, it turns its back and kicks. A horse’s knowledge extends only to this. But once you place the yoke across its neck and the frontlet on its brow, the horse learns to twist out of the halter, duck under the yoke, bite through the bit, and secretly slip the reins. That a horse’s cunning should descend to thievery – this is the crime of Bo Le.
In the time of He Xu Shi, the people lived without knowing what to do, walked without knowing where they were going. They chewed their food and played; they drummed their bellies and wandered. The people’s knowledge extended only to this.
Then came the “sages,” contorting human nature with rites and music to straighten the world’s behavior, dangling benevolence and righteousness on tiptoe to comfort the world’s hearts – and the people began to stand on tiptoe and scheme, competing to seize profit, and no one could stop them. This, too, is the crime of the sages.
Note
This Zhuangzi ‑ Mati excerpt uses Bo Le’s horse‑taming fable. It blames sages’ imposed rituals and virtues for ruining innate nature, and praises the ancient Age of Perfect Virtue of plain, unconstrained simplicity.
Bo Le (伯乐):
Bo Le was a legendary horse-tamer in ancient China, celebrated as the greatest expert in judging and training horses. In this chapter, Zhuangzi uses him as a symbol of those who “improve” nature by force – breaking the horse’s spirit through branding, clipping, binding, and whipping. Bo Le represents the Confucian “sage-rulers” who impose order on humanity through laws, rites, and moral codes.
The Potter and the Carpenter:
Used as parallel examples to Bo Le. The potter shapes clay to fit his compass and square; the carpenter bends wood to fit his hook and line. Neither asks whether the clay or wood wants to be shaped this way. They represent all artisans of civilization who impose artificial form on raw nature.
The “Sages” as Culprits:
In Confucian thought, the “sages” (Yao, Shun, the Duke of Zhou, etc.) are the highest moral exemplars. Zhuangzi radically inverts this: he argues that it was precisely these “sages” who, by inventing benevolence, righteousness, rites, and music, destroyed humanity’s original innocence. This is one of Zhuangzi’s most provocative critiques of Confucianism.
He Xu Shi (赫胥氏):
A mythical primordial ruler from the earliest age of humanity, before civilization. Under his reign, people lived in complete natural simplicity – eating, wandering, and playing without knowledge of schemes or desires. He represents the ideal “Age of Perfect Virtue” that Zhuangzi longs for.
“Sacrificial Vessels” (牺尊) and “Jade Tablets” (珪璋):
Xi Zun refers to ornately carved sacrificial wine vessels; Gui Zhang refers to ceremonial jade tablets used in court rituals. Zhuangzi uses them as metaphors: just as raw wood must be mutilated to become a vessel, and raw jade must be carved to become a tablet, so too must human nature be damaged to produce “benevolence and righteousness.”
“Heaven’s Liberation” (天放):
A key Zhuangzian concept meaning the natural freedom granted by Heaven – the state in which all beings live according to their innate nature, without external constraint or moral coercion.
“Plain Simplicity” (素朴):
One of Zhuangzi’s most important values – the uncarved block, the unshaped raw material. It represents human nature before it is corrupted by civilization, knowledge, desire, and moral codes. This concept later deeply influenced Chan (Zen) Buddhism.
马蹄第九
马，蹄可以践霜雪，毛可以御风寒。龁草饮水，翘足而陆，此马之 真性也。虽有义台路寝，无所用之。及至伯乐，曰：“我善治马。” 烧之，剔之，刻之，雒之。连之以羁絷，编之以皁栈，马之死者十二 三矣！饥之渴之，驰之骤之，整之齐之，前有橛饰之患，而后有鞭筴之威，而马之死者已过半矣！陶者曰：“我善治埴。”圆者中规， 方者中矩。匠人曰：“我善治木。”曲者中钩，直者应绳。夫埴木之 性，岂欲中规矩钩绳哉！然且世世称之曰：“伯乐善治马，而陶匠善 治埴木。”此亦治天下者之过也。
吾意善治天下者不然。彼民有常性，织而衣，耕而食，是谓同德。 一而不党，命曰天放。故至德之世，其行填填，其视颠颠。当是时也 ，山无蹊隧，泽无舟梁；万物群生，连属其乡；禽兽成群，草木遂长 。是故禽兽可系羁而游，鸟鹊之巢可攀援而闚。夫至德之世，同与禽 兽居，族与万物并。恶乎知君子小人哉！同乎无知，其德不离；同乎 无欲，是谓素朴。素朴而民性得矣。及至圣人，蹩躠为仁，踶跂为义， 而天下始疑矣。澶漫为乐，摘僻为礼，而天下始分矣。故纯朴不残， 孰为牺尊！白玉不毁，孰为珪璋！道德不废，安取仁义！性情不离， 安用礼乐！五色不乱，孰为文采！五声不乱，孰应六律！
夫残朴以为器，工匠之罪也；毁道德以为仁义，圣人之过也。夫马 陆居则食草饮水，喜则交颈相靡，怒则分背相踶。马知已此矣！夫加 之以衡扼，齐之以月题，而马知介倪闉扼鸷曼诡衔窃辔。故马之知而 能至盗者，伯乐之罪也。夫赫胥氏之时，民居不知所为，行不知所之， 含哺而熙，鼓腹而游。民能已此矣！及至圣人，屈折礼乐以匡天下之 形，县跂仁义以慰天下之心，而民乃始踶跂好知，争归于利，不可止 也。此亦圣人之过也。
Leave a Reply