batch.motif.daoist-zhuangzi-giles-gutenberg-l10936-l11068
---
record_id: batch.motif.daoist-zhuangzi-giles-gutenberg-l10936-l11068
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
passage_locator:
label: CHAPTER XXII. / KNOWLEDGE TRAVELS NORTH. / CHAPTER XXIII. / CHAPTER XXIV.;
lines 10936-11068
start: '10936'
end: '11068'
translation: 'Chuang Tzu: Mystic, Moralist, and Social Reformer'
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The passage criticizes limited learning, parasitic attachment, crowds,
and forced artificial action. It uses analogies of lice on a pig, ants drawn to
mutton, natural animal proportions, a river fed from its source, and the dependence
of knowledge on the unknown. It praises the divine or spiritual person who follows
natural development, nourishes harmony, and investigates the unknowable source
described as the great ONE, the great Negative, the great Space, the great Truth,
the great Law, God, the hidden spring, and the great Guide.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: A man who learns from one teacher and is satisfied with his acquirements is
called a nincompoop.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Parasites are compared to lice living on a pig and not knowing that the butcher
may apply fire and destroy them.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Shun is presented as an example of an enthusiast who attracted people as ants
are attracted to mutton.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: Yao appointed Shun to a barren region, and Shun continued working despite
old age and failing intellect.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: The spiritual or divine man dislikes a crowd, clings to virtue, and nourishes
harmony in order to accord with fellow-men.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: The passage advises leaving wisdom to ants, striving for what fishes desire,
and being left alone in the water.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:7
text: The divine man trusts the natural development of events and does not introduce
the artificial into the natural.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:8
text: Poisonous drugs can become remedies depending on circumstances.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:9
text: The owl’s eyes and the crane’s leg are described as adapted to their use,
with shortening the crane’s leg called disastrous.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:10
text: The river is said not really to suffer from wind and sun because it is fed
from its source and continues to flow.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:11
text: Relations between eye and vision, ear and hearing, mind and object, and capacities
and the inner self are called baneful if not corrected.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:12
text: The passage states that a man’s knowledge is limited and depends on what he
does not know to extend knowledge to the apprehension of God.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:13
text: The passage names the great ONE, great Negative, great Nomenclature, great
Uniformity, great Space, great Truth, and great Law as perfection.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:14
text: The ultimate end is called God, manifested in the laws of nature, the hidden
spring, unknowable, and the great Guide.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: single-teacher learner
description: A person who learns from one teacher and is satisfied with his acquirements.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: parasites or lice
description: Lice on a pig’s back that choose comfortable places and do not know
the pig may be singed.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: pig
description: The animal on whose body the lice live and which may be singed by the
butcher.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: butcher
description: A butcher who tucks up his sleeves, spreads straw, applies fire, and
thereby destroys the lice.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Shun
description: An enthusiast whose presence attracts many people and who continues
official work in old age.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Yao
description: The ruler who hears of Shun’s goodness and appoints him to a barren
region.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: ants
description: Creatures attracted to mutton and named in the advice to leave wisdom
to ants.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: mutton
description: The object whose smell attracts ants and is used in comparison with
Shun’s attractiveness.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: spiritual or divine man
description: A person who dislikes crowds, clings to virtue, nourishes harmony,
and trusts natural development.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: fishes
description: Creatures whose desire is described as being left alone in the water.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: owl
description: A bird whose eyes are described as adapted to their use.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: crane
description: A bird whose leg is described as the length required.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: fig:13
name_or_label: river
description: A river related to wind and sun, fed from its source, and continuing
to flow.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
roles:
- id: role:1
label: limited learner
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The learner is satisfied after learning from one teacher and is called a
nincompoop.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: unaware parasite
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The lice occupy the pig’s body and do not know they will perish if the pig
is singed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: host animal
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The pig’s body provides the places where the lice live.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: destroying agent
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The butcher applies fire, causing the parasites to perish.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:5
label: enthusiast
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Shun is explicitly named as an example of an enthusiast.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:6
label: appointing ruler
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Yao hears of Shun’s goodness and appoints him to a barren region.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:7
label: divine or spiritual man
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: The passage describes this figure as avoiding crowds, nourishing harmony,
and trusting natural development.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: fire of destruction
literal_form: fire applied by the butcher in singeing the pig
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: water as desired solitude
literal_form: water in which fishes are left alone
associated_figures:
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:3
label: flowing river fed from source
literal_form: river continuing to flow because it is fed from its source
associated_figures:
- fig:13
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: sym:4
label: hidden spring
literal_form: the hidden spring named in relation to God and the laws of nature
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Critique of narrow learning
summary: A learner who studies under one teacher and is satisfied with his acquisition
is criticized as ignorant of a time when nothing existed.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Parasites on the pig
summary: Lice living comfortably on a pig are unaware that the butcher may apply
fire and destroy them when singeing the pig.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Shun as enthusiast
summary: Shun attracts many families like mutton attracts ants; Yao appoints him
to a barren region, and Shun continues working despite old age.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Conduct of the divine man
summary: The divine or spiritual man avoids crowds, maintains a balanced relation
to others, nourishes harmony, and follows natural development rather than artificial
interference.
figure_refs:
- fig:9
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: scene:5
label: Desire of fishes
summary: The passage advises striving for what fishes desire, glossed as being left
alone in the water.
figure_refs:
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:6
label: Natural adaptation and source
summary: The owl’s eyes and crane’s leg are described as naturally suited, while
the river continues to flow because it is fed from its source despite wind and
sun.
figure_refs:
- fig:11
- fig:12
- fig:13
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: scene:7
label: Limited knowledge and the unknowable guide
summary: The passage states that knowledge depends on the unknown and culminates
in terms such as the great ONE, great Negative, great Space, great Truth, great
Law, God, hidden spring, and great Guide.
figure_refs: []
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: wisdom through recognition of limited knowledge
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The passage criticizes narrow learning and states that limited knowledge
depends on what is not known in order to apprehend God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
- ev:10
confidence: high
cautions: The passage is philosophical and didactic rather than narrative myth.
- id: motif:2
label: following natural development rather than artificial interference
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The divine man is described as trusting natural development and not introducing
the artificial into the natural; animal proportions and the river’s source illustrate
natural sufficiency.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: This is an ethical-natural analogy, not a discrete mythic episode.
- id: motif:3
label: quest toward the unknowable source
taxonomy_refs:
- mystical_quest
- wisdom
basis: The passage urges investigation of the unknowable actuality and names the
ultimate end as God, the hidden spring, and the great Guide.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
confidence: medium
cautions: No journey narrative is present; the quest is intellectual or contemplative.
- id: motif:4
label: destruction of unaware dependents
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The lice live on the pig without knowing that the butcher’s fire will destroy
them when the pig is singed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: medium
cautions: The image functions as an analogy for parasitism and may not correspond
to an available motif family.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: 10936-10939
quote_or_summary: A person who learns from one teacher, is exultant and satisfied,
and is ignorant that there was a time when nothing existed is called a nincompoop.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: 10940-10949
quote_or_summary: Parasites are likened to lice on a pig’s back; they occupy comfortable
places and do not know the butcher may spread straw, apply fire, and destroy them
in the pig’s singeing.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: 10950-10963
quote_or_summary: Shun is called an enthusiast; as ants care for mutton, people
are attracted to Shun. Yao appoints Shun to a barren region, and Shun continues
official work in old age.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: 10964-10971
quote_or_summary: The spiritual or divine man dislikes crowds, is neither very intimate
nor very distant, clings to virtue, and nourishes harmony to accord with fellow-men.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: quote
locator: 10972-10978
quote_or_summary: "“Leave wisdom to ants. Strive for what fishes desire. To be left
alone in the water.”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: 10979-10995
quote_or_summary: The divine man trusts natural development and does not introduce
the artificial into the natural; life and death may be gain or loss according
to circumstances, as poisonous drugs may become remedies.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: 10996-11024
quote_or_summary: The passage says an owl’s eyes and a crane’s leg are adapted to
their use; wind and sun are related to the river, but the river continues to flow
because it is fed from its source.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: 11025-11039
quote_or_summary: Relations between eye and vision, ear and hearing, mind and object,
and capacities and the inner self are called baneful; uncorrected banefulness
leads to disasters, and destruction of states and slaughter result from inability
to examine this.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: 11040-11045
quote_or_summary: The foot depends on untrodden ground for a good walk, and limited
human knowledge depends on what is not known to extend knowledge to the apprehension
of God.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: 11046-11068
quote_or_summary: The passage names knowledge of the great ONE, Negative, Nomenclature,
Uniformity, Space, Truth, and Law as perfection; the ultimate end is God, the
hidden spring, unknowable, an actuality in vague undefinedness, and the great
Guide; doubt is to be investigated and dispelled.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal extraction is well supported by the supplied passage. Motif labels
are cautious because the passage is philosophical and analogical rather than a
narrative myth. No comparison claims were made because the passage itself does
not explicitly compare traditions or motif families.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Only supplied passage text and metadata were used. Available taxonomy references were applied only where directly supported.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:daoist-zhuangzi-giles-gutenberg__l10936-l11068
passage_sha256=c52121e26e3e777055f5f1f048b7a3b11dc1bb2fcd5503308b999b2bd693e2be