Zhuangzi (Zhuang Zhou)

Zhuangzi, also known as Zhuang Zhou, was a native of Meng in the state of Song during the Warring States period and a leading figure of Daoism, ranked alongside Laozi as the two pillars of the tradition. His exact birth and death years are difficult to verify, and public information is limited; he is generally believed to have lived from roughly the mid-fourth century to the early third century BCE. He once served as a keeper of the lacquer garden and is said to have declined the offer of high office from King Wei of Chu. He advocated quietness and non-action, the unity of heaven and humanity, and a life close to nature and spiritual freedom. The book Zhuangzi is a Daoist classic known for its fantastical imagination, abundant fables, and unrestrained prose, and it has deeply influenced later philosophy and literature. This site holds eleven of his works, spanning categories such as culture, Eastern philosophy, and literature, among which the Nanhua Zhenjing and various editions of Zhuangzi are especially widespread.