Zhuangzi

His work, known as the Zhuangzi, is brilliantly argued, using anecdotes to elucidate his points.

b. Zhuangzi (c. 369-c. 286 B.C.E.)

Chapters 28-31 of the received recension of the Zhuangzi were the first to be perceived as so different from the philosophy of the renowned ˜Inner Chapters™ that they were thought to be the work of an entirely different intellectual lineage.

Zhuangzi

˜Zhuangzi™ is the name of the second foundational text of the Daoist philosophical and religious tradition and the name of the putative author of this text, who early historical sources say flourished between about 350 and 300 B.C.E. As one of the two most popular Daoist texts in the Chinese tradition, the Zhuangzi has been the subject of more than sixty major E.st Asian commentaries since the third century C.E., some of which contain philosophically significant interpretations of the text.

Zhuangzi

The most dramatic message of the Zhuangzi is a theme that links Daoism to Zen (Chan ” the distinctively Daoist influenced branch of Buddhism) ” the “mysticism” of losing oneself in activity, particularly the absorption in skilled execution of a highly cultivated way.

Taoism

While Csikszentmihalyi draws attention to the strength and control that is achieved within flow, or its Yang aspect, Zhuangzi points to the effortlessness of the state, its Yin aspect.

Lance P. Hickey, Ph.D.: ‘Flow’ Experiences: The Secret To Ultimate Happiness?

While Zhuangzi can legitimately be taken to be a precursor of the modern concept of flow, it is equally important to note some of the differences.

Lance P. Hickey, Ph.D.: ‘Flow’ Experiences: The Secret To Ultimate Happiness?

Zhuangzi uses the metaphor of the "mirror" to explain this: by removing the interference of the self, your mind becomes a perfect reflection of the concrete situation you are in.

Lance P. Hickey, Ph.D.: ‘Flow’ Experiences: The Secret To Ultimate Happiness?

While Zhuangzi can legitimately be taken to be a precursor of the modern concept of flow, it is equally important to note some of the differences.

Lance P. Hickey, Ph.D.: ‘Flow’ Experiences: The Secret To Ultimate Happiness?

While Csikszentmihalyi draws attention to the strength and control that is achieved within flow, or its Yang aspect, Zhuangzi points to the effortlessness of the state, its Yin aspect.

Lance P. Hickey, Ph.D.: ‘Flow’ Experiences: The Secret To Ultimate Happiness?

Zhuangzi uses the metaphor of the "mirror" to explain this: by removing the interference of the self, your mind becomes a perfect reflection of the concrete situation you are in.

Lance P. Hickey, Ph.D.: ‘Flow’ Experiences: The Secret To Ultimate Happiness?