外篇·骈拇 Outer Chapters-Webbed Toes
骈拇枝指出乎性哉，而侈于德；附赘县疣出乎形哉，而侈于性；Webbed toes and extra fingers are part of one's natural endowment, yet they are excessive in terms of virtue. Moles and warts are part of one's physical form, yet they are excessive in terms of one's natural disposition.
多方乎仁义而用之者，列于五藏哉，而非道德之正也。Those who apply the various aspects of benevolence and righteousness in multiple ways and list them among the five internal organs are not in line with the true essence of the Tao and virtue.
是故骈于足者，连无用之肉也；枝于手者，树无用之指也；Therefore, those with webbed feet have useless flesh connected; those with extra fingers on the hands have useless digits growing.
多方骈枝于五藏之情者，淫僻于仁义之行，而多方于聪明之用也。Those who have various excessive and branching aspects related to the emotions of the five internal organs are indulging in improper and devious behaviors in the practice of benevolence and righteousness and are misusing their intelligence in multiple ways.
是故骈于明者，乱五色，淫文章，青黄黼黻之煌煌非乎？而离朱是已！Therefore, those with excessive eyesight disrupt the five colors, are indulgent in the patterns and designs. Isn't the dazzling display of blue, yellow, black, and white in embroidered garments an example? And Li Zhu is such a person!
多于聪者，乱五声，淫六律，金石丝竹黄钟大吕之声非乎？而师旷是已！For those with excessive hearing, don't they disrupt the five musical notes, overindulge in the six musical scales, and muddle up the sounds of metal, stone, silk, bamboo, and the pitches of Huang Zhong and Da Lü? And Shi Kuang is exactly such a person!
枝于仁者，擢德塞性以收名声，使天下簧鼓以奉不及之法非乎？而曾、史是已！Those who overemphasize benevolence promote virtue while suppressing nature in order to gain a reputation, making the whole world be influenced by and follow laws that are beyond reach. Aren't Zeng and Shi such people?
骈于辩者，累瓦结绳窜句，游心于坚白同异之间，而敝跬誉无用之言非乎？而杨、墨是已！Those who are excessive in argumentation pile up words like stacking tiles and tying ropes, and they twist and distort sentences. Their minds wander among the concepts of "hardness and whiteness" and "sameness and difference," and they exhaust themselves seeking petty reputations with useless words. Aren't Yang Zhu and Mo Di exactly such people?
故此皆多骈旁枝之道，非天下之至正也。Therefore, all these are ways of having excessive and branching aspects, and they are not the ultimate and correct way in the world.
彼正正者，不失其性命之情。The truly correct way is to not lose the true nature of one's life and disposition.
故合者不为骈，而枝者不为跂；长者不为有余，短者不为不足。Therefore, those that are joined together are not considered webbed, and those that are branched are not considered abnormal; those that are long are not considered excessive, and those that are short are not considered insufficient.
是故凫胫虽短，续之则忧；鹤胫虽长，断之则悲。For this reason, although the legs of a duck are short, if you try to lengthen them, it will cause distress; although the legs of a crane are long, if you try to shorten them, it will cause grief.
故性长非所断，性短非所续，无所去忧也。Therefore, what is long by nature should not be shortened, and what is short by nature should not be lengthened, and there will be no cause for distress.
意仁义其非人情乎！彼仁人何其多忧也。Could it be that benevolence and righteousness are not in line with human nature? How worried those benevolent people are!
且夫骈于拇者，决之则泣；枝于手者，齕之则啼。二者或有余于数，或不足于数，其于忧一也。Moreover, for those with webbed toes, if you cut them apart, they will cry; for those with extra fingers on the hands, if you bite them off, they will cry. These two cases may have an excess or a deficiency in number, but the distress is the same.
今世之仁人，蒿目而忧世之患；不仁之人，决性命之情而饕贵富。In the present age, benevolent people are worried about the ills of the world with their eyes wide open; unbenevolent people sacrifice the true nature of their lives to pursue wealth and status.
故意仁义其非人情乎！自三代以下者，天下何其嚣嚣也。Therefore, could it be that benevolence and righteousness are not in line with human nature? Since the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, how noisy and chaotic the world has been!
且夫待钩绳规矩而正者，是削其性者也；Moreover, those that need to be straightened by hooks, ropes, compasses, and squares are having their nature trimmed away;
待绳约胶漆而固者，是侵其德者也；Those that need to be fixed by ropes, cords, glue, and lacquer are having their virtue invaded;
屈折礼乐，呴俞仁义，以慰天下之心者，此失其常然也。Those who distort the rites and music and force the application of benevolence and righteousness to comfort the hearts of the people are losing their natural state.
天下有常然。常然者，曲者不以钩，直者不以绳；The world has a natural state. The natural state means that what is curved does not need a hook to be judged as such, what is straight does not need a rope to be judged as such;
圆者不以规，方者不以矩，附离不以胶漆，约束不以纆索。What is round does not need a compass to be judged as such, what is square does not need a square to be judged as such, what is attached does not need glue or lacquer to be judged as such, and what is bound does not need cords to be judged as such.
故天下诱然皆生，而不知其所以生；同焉皆得，而不知其所以得。Therefore, the world is spontaneously alive, and people don't know why they are alive; they all obtain something in the same way, and they don't know why they obtain it.
故古今不二，不可亏也。则仁义又奚连连如胶漆纆索而游乎道德之间为哉！使天下惑也！Therefore, it has been the same throughout history and cannot be diminished. Then why should benevolence and righteousness be continuously linked like glue, lacquer, and cords and wander between the Tao and virtue, causing confusion in the world!
夫小惑易方，大惑易性。何以知其然邪？A small confusion can change one's direction, and a large confusion can change one's nature. How do we know this is the case?
自虞氏招仁义以挠天下也，天下莫不奔命于仁义。是非以仁义易其性与？Since the Youyu clan promoted benevolence and righteousness to disrupt the world, everyone in the world has been running around for the sake of benevolence and righteousness. Isn't this changing people's perception of nature with benevolence and righteousness?
故尝试论之：自三代以下者，天下莫不以物易其性矣！Therefore, let's try to discuss this: Since the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, everyone in the world has been changing their nature with things!
小人则以身殉利；士则以身殉名；大夫则以身殉家；圣人则以身殉天下。Petty people sacrifice their lives for profit; scholars sacrifice their lives for fame; high-ranking officials sacrifice their lives for their family; sages sacrifice their lives for the world.
故此数子者，事业不同，名声异号，其于伤性以身为殉，一也。Therefore, although these people have different careers and different reputations, when it comes to harming their nature by sacrificing their lives, it is the same.
臧与谷，二人相与牧羊而俱亡其羊。Zang and Gu, two people were herding sheep together and both lost their sheep.
问臧奚事，则挟策读书；问谷奚事，则博塞以游。二人者，事业不同，其于亡羊均也。When asked what Zang was doing, he was reading books with a scroll in his hand; when asked what Gu was doing, he was playing games of chance. These two people had different activities, but when it comes to losing the sheep, it is the same.
伯夷死名于首阳之下，盗跖死利于东陵之上。二人者，所死不同，其于残生伤性均也。奚必伯夷之是而盗跖之非乎？Bo Yi died for fame at the foot of Mount Shouyang, while Dao Zhi died for profit on the Dongling. These two people died for different reasons, but when it comes to damaging their lives and harming their nature, it is the same. Why must we consider Bo Yi right and Dao Zhi wrong?
天下尽殉也：彼其所殉仁义也，则俗谓之君子；其所殉货财也，则俗谓之小人。The whole world is sacrificing their lives: If they sacrifice their lives for benevolence and righteousness, the common people call them gentlemen; if they sacrifice their lives for wealth and goods, the common people call them petty people.
其殉一也，则有君子焉，有小人焉。若其残生损性，则盗跖亦伯夷已，又恶取君子小人于其间哉！The sacrifice is the same, so there are gentlemen and petty people. If it comes to damaging their lives and harming their nature, then Dao Zhi is the same as Bo Yi. Why should we distinguish between gentlemen and petty people among them?
且夫属其性乎仁义者，虽通如曾、史，非吾所谓臧也；属其性于五味，虽通如俞儿，非吾所谓臧也；Moreover, those who attribute their nature to benevolence and righteousness, even if they are as proficient as Zeng and Shi, are not what I consider good; those who attribute their nature to the five flavors, even if they are as proficient as Yu'er, are not what I consider good;
属其性乎五声，虽通如师旷，非吾所谓聪也；属其性乎五色，虽通如离朱，非吾所谓明也。Those who attribute their nature to the five musical sounds, even if they are as proficient as Shi Kuang, are not what I consider to be truly discerning in hearing. Those who attribute their nature to the five colors, even if they are as proficient as Li Zhu, are not what I consider to be truly perceptive in vision.
吾所谓臧者，非所谓仁义之谓也，臧于其德而已矣；What I consider to be good does not refer to what is commonly called benevolence and righteousness. It simply means being good in terms of one's inborn virtue;
吾所谓臧者，非所谓仁义之谓也，任其性命之情而已矣；What I consider to be good does not refer to what is commonly called benevolence and righteousness. It is just about allowing the true nature of one's life and disposition to take its natural course.
吾所谓聪者，非谓其闻彼也，自闻而已矣；吾所谓明者，非谓其见彼也，自见而已矣。What I consider to be discerning in hearing does not mean being able to hear external things. It means being able to listen to oneself; what I consider to be perceptive in vision does not mean being able to see external things. It means being able to see oneself.
夫不自见而见彼，不自得而得彼者，是得人之得而不自得其得者也，适人之适而不自适其适者也。Those who are unable to see themselves but only focus on seeing others, and those who are unable to obtain fulfillment for themselves but only seek what others obtain, are the ones who obtain what others have but fail to obtain what they themselves should have. They are also the ones who adapt to what others find comfortable but fail to adapt to what is comfortable for themselves.
夫适人之适而不自适其适，虽盗跖与伯夷，是同为淫僻也。Those who adapt to what others find comfortable but fail to adapt to what is comfortable for themselves, whether it is Dao Zhi or Bo Yi, are both engaged in improper and devious behaviors.
余愧乎道德，是以上不敢为仁义之操，而下不敢为淫僻之行也。I feel ashamed in the face of the Tao and virtue. Therefore, on the one hand, I dare not practice the deeds of benevolence and righteousness, and on the other hand, I dare not engage in improper and devious behaviors.
