Horses, when they live wild, eat grass and drink water; when they are content, they entwine their necks and rub each other. When angry, they turn their backs on each other and kick out. This is what horses know. But if harnessed together and lined up under constraints, they know to look sideways and to arch their necks, to career around and try to spit out the bit and rid themselves of the reins. The knowledge thus gained by the horse, and its wicked behaviour, is in fact the fault of Po Lo.
At the time of Ho Hsu,42 people stayed where they were, not knowing anything else; they walked but did not know where they were going; filled themselves with food and were happy slapping their bellies to show their contentment. This was what the people had. Then came the sage. He brought the cringing and grovelling of the rituals and music and infected all under Heaven with his offer of benevolence and righteousness, which he said would comfort the hearts of all.
As a result the people desired and longed for knowledge, and warred against each other to gain the advantage. Nothing could stop them. All this was the fault of the sage.
CHAPTER 10
Broken Suitcases
To guard yourself against thieves who slash open suitcases, rifle through bags and smash open boxes, one should strap the bags and lock them. The world at large knows that this shows wisdom. However, when a master thief comes, he simply picks up the suitcase, lifts the bag, carries off the box and runs away with them, his only concern being whether the straps and locks will hold! In such an instance, what seemed like wisdom on the part of the owner surely turns out to have been of use only to the master thief!
I will try to explain what I am saying. What the world at large calls a wise man, is he not really just someone who stores things up for the master thief? Likewise, isn’t the one they call a sage just a guardian of the master thief’s interests?
How do I know all this?
Long ago in the state of Chi, all the little towns could see each other and the cockerels and dogs called to each other. Nets were cast and the land ploughed over an area of two thousand square miles. Within its four borders, ancestral temples were built and maintained and shrines to the land and the crops were built. Its villages and towns were well governed and everything was under the guidance of the sage. However, one morning Lord Tien Cheng killed the ruler and took his country. But was it just his country he took? He also took the wisdom of the laws of the state, created by the sages. So Lord Tien Cheng earned the title of thief and robber, but he was able to live out his days as secure as Yao or Shun had done. The smaller states dared not criticize him and the larger states did not dare attack. So for twelve generations his family ruled the state of Chi. Is this not an example of someone stealing the state of Chi and also taking the laws arising from the wisdom of the sages and using them to protect himself, although he was both robber and thief?
I will try to explain this. What the world at large calls someone of perfect knowledge, is this not in fact the person who stores up things for a great thief? Those commonly called sages, are they not responsible for securing things for the great thief?
How do I know all this?
Long ago Lung Feng was executed, Pi Kan was torn apart, Chang Hung was ripped open, and Tzu Hsu was smashed to pieces.43 Good men though these four were, they could not escape their terrible ends. A member of Robber Chih’s gang asked him, ‘Is there a Tao for the thief?’ Chih replied, ‘What profession is there without its Tao? The robber works out what is worth stealing: this shows he is a sage; his courage is shown by being the first to break in; his righteousness is shown by being last to leave; his understanding is shown by deciding whether the raid is possible; his benevolence is shown by his dividing the spoils equally. Without these five attributes, no one in the world could become such a great thief.’ Considering all this, it is clear that good men do not arise without following the Tao of the sages and therefore that Robber Chih had to also follow the sages’ Tao, or he could not have succeeded. But in this world, the good men are few and far between, while the bad are numerous. So it is that the sage brings little to the world but inflicts much harm. It is said, ‘When the lips have gone, the teeth get cold; the bad wine of Lu brought warfare to Han Tan.’44 When the sage is born, the great thief arises. Beat the sages and let the thieves and robbers go, then the world will be all right. When the rivers dry up, the valley is empty. When the hill is levelled, the pool is filled.
If the sage does not die, then great thieves will continue to arise. The more sages are brought forth to rule the world, the more this helps people like Robber Chih. Create weights and measures to judge by and people will steal by
