Hollow Orchid: A Visit to Contemporary Chinese Hermits (Part 8)

When Liu Bei heard that Zhuge Liang might be such a candidate, he decided to visit him in person. However, as sometimes happens, even as a great figure visiting a hermit, Liu Bei still had to visit the thatched cottage three times before he was granted an audience with Zhuge Liang. When the two finally met, Liu Bei was so impressed by Zhuge Liang's grand strategy and talent that he begged Zhuge Liang to end his life of seclusion and help him stabilize the country. Zhuge Liang agreed.  
 In the years that followed, Zhuge Liang's actions proved him to be undoubtedly the most unprecedented and greatest strategist in Chinese history. Once, he commanded a force of only 2,000 troops to drive away an army of 200,000. Among Chinese people, few have not read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," and few do not know of Zhuge Liang's great achievements. In 234 AD, Zhuge Liang died of illness during a campaign in the hilly area at the foot of Zhongnan Mountain, west of Xi'an. On the day of his death, a meteor fell near his military camp. This meteorite was later embedded in the wall of the Wuhou Shrine, which still overlooks Zhuge Liang and the valley where the meteor fell.  

 Regarding how to handle the contradiction between living in seclusion and serving in government, Zhuge Liang left a letter titled "Admonitions to My Son" before his death:  

 The conduct of a gentleman is to cultivate himself through tranquility and nurture virtue through frugality. Without detachment, one cannot clarify one's aspirations; without inner peace, one cannot achieve far-reaching goals. Learning requires tranquility, and talent requires learning. Without learning, one cannot broaden one's talents; without ambition, one cannot complete one's studies. Indulgence and laziness prevent the sharpening of spirit, while rashness and impetuousness prevent the regulation of character. Years fly by, and intentions fade with the days, leading to decay and withering, with little connection to the world, ending in sorrow in poor huts, and it will be too late!  

 The main difference among cultivators lies in this point: whether to serve in government or not, whether to bide one's time or shine brightly -- assuming, as Matthew Arnold said, that "man is made of light." This difference is less a philosophical issue than one of character and personal feeling. The goal always remains unchanged: to apply moral principles to human affairs. Confucius, Qu Yuan, Boyi and Shuqi, the Four Whiteheads of Mount Shang, Zhang Liang, and Zhuge Liang all did this. To understand these moral principles, a period of seclusion is considered necessary. But sometimes seclusion lasts a lifetime, though its goal remains to establish harmony in the world and expand that harmony.  

 Seclusion and government service are seen as the dark and light sides of the moon, inseparable yet complementary. Hermits and officials are often the same person, just at different stages of life, sometimes a hermit, sometimes an official. In China, officials who have never experienced spiritual tranquility and focus but are solely devoted to fame and profit are not respected. Chinese people have always regarded hermits as one of the most important benefactors of society, so no matter how unusual and passive their cultivation pursuits may seem, Chinese people encourage them rather than dampen their spirits. Whether hermits leave seclusion to serve in government or not, they have a huge impact on the entire culture. They are sources of "pure thought" and "pure life," which will eventually find suitable channels to flow into the cities.  

 When China's first great poet was exiled from the court, he drowned himself and was buried in the fish's belly; China's second great poet, Tao Yuanming, retired to the countryside before his term ended. In China, hermits have a spirit of liberation and ease, which is to keep the mind, rather than the body, away from the noise of the city. This spirit is glimpsed by Tao Yuanming in his series of poems "Drinking Wine" No. 5:  

 Building a hut in the realm of men,  

 Yet there is no noise of carriages and horses.  

 Ask you how you can do this,  

 When the heart is far, the place naturally becomes remote.  

 Picking chrysanthemums under the eastern fence,  

 Leisurely, I see the Southern Mountain.  

 The mountain air is beautiful at dusk,  

 Flying birds return together.  

 There is true meaning in this,  

 I wish to explain it, but have forgotten the words.  

 Hermits are one of the best-kept secrets in China, symbolizing many of the country's most mysterious things. Their wisdom of turning craftiness into spontaneity and returning to simplicity is no clearer than recorded in the opening part of "Biographies of Noble Scholars," the earliest biographical record of hermits in China:  

 Yao's teacher was Xu You, Xu You's teacher was Nie Que, Nie Que's teacher was Wang Ni, and Wang Ni's teacher was Bei Yi. Nie Que asked the Way from Bei Yi, and Bei Yi said: "Rectify your form, unify your gaze, and the harmony of nature will arrive. Gather your knowledge, unify your measure, and the spirit will come to dwell. Virtue will beautify you, and the Way will be your dwelling. You will be like a newborn calf, with no desires in your heart." Before he finished speaking, Nie Que fell asleep. Bei Yi was greatly pleased, sang as he walked away, saying:  

 The body like a withered skeleton,  

 The heart like dead ashes,  

 True and real knowledge,  

 Not holding on to old ways.  

 Dark and obscure,  

 Without mind, cannot be plotted with,  

 Who is this person!