SuaveG – The Gentle Path

Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature

Yuanchu

  • The Owl and the Phoenix

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    This interprets the owl and phoenix parable from Zhuangzi ‑ Autumn Floods. Huizi, fearing Zhuangzi will seize his ministerial post, is compared to an owl guarding a rotten rat, blind to the noble bird’s disdain for worldly power.

  • Zhuangzi

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    Zhuangzi (c. 369–286 BCE) was a major philosopher of the Warring States period. His given name was Zhou, and he was a native of Meng in the state of Song—traditionally identified either as northeast of modern Shangqiu, Henan, or near Dingyuan, Anhui.

  • Zhuangzi and Yuanchu – the noble Phoenix [Warring States]

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    This article recounts the famous parable of the Yuanchu (Noble Phoenix) told by Zhuangzi to his friend Hui Zi, the Chancellor of Wei. When Hui Zi, fearing a rival, launched a manhunt to find Zhuangzi, the philosopher arrived calmly and delivered a stinging rebuke. He compared himself to the sacred Yuanchu, which only feeds…