Flapping Our Wings in Analect 10.27 (NK)

 "Startled by their arrival, a bird arose and circled several times before alighting on a branch.  [The Master] said, 'This pheasant upon the mountain bridge- how timely it is!  How timely it is!'  Zilu saluted the bird, and it cried out three times before flying away."                                    

                                                                            10.27. trans. Slingerland

    It seems as though the commentaries on this particular analects are unanimous in their assessment of its "difficulty".  Slingerland even cites one critic who says, "the obscurity of this entire passage has acted as a dangerous stimulant upon the imaginations of many commentators".  Now, I don't know about you but I am not one to shy away from "dangerous stimulants", at least not ones that work upon my imagination, so let's give this one a try shall we?

First off, I find it curious that all these baffled commentators, cited in both the Slingerland and Chin translations, though they recognize the bird'c connection to Kongzi (via its "timeliness"), they don't seem to have noticed or think its interesting that this strange and beautiful scene marks the conclusion of a book in which Kongzi's movements have TWICE been compared to that of birds!  That is, in 10.3 and 10.4 when The Master's effortless ease at performing ritual has him moving about as though he were "gliding upon wings".  That the bird though "startled" into action is nonetheless able to spontaneously perform a kind of mock ritual in the air before returning to a state of serene composure should remind us of the description of Kongzi's ritual style of behavior in the immediately preceding analects.  In every ritual and social context The Master is able to effortlessly adapt and conform appropriately (one might be tempted to say 'aesthetically') to the circumstances.  Is this not in part what the bird does?  Kongzi and Zilu have come into the bird's sphere of action and the bird responds to their presence in it. Kongzi's sudden awareness of this simple event is what seems to have made such an impression on him.  We may also recall that in "The Great Learning" that he quotes the Book of Odes saying, "When the bird rests, it knows where to rest.  Should a human being be unequal to a bird?".  I also seem to recall Mr. Venkatesh saying something about how the character for "learning" is also "to flap one's wings".  But, now I am flapping my own wings trying to remember that correctly...




Comments

  1. Krishnan VenkateshApril 5, 2022 at 9:51 AM

    I don't remember which character we were talking about then, but it's not the usual one for "learn/study," xue. The other characteristic of wild birds is that they tend to be aware of everything going on around them.

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