无用 · 无之以为用
Wú Yòng
Classical Chinese Text
三十辐共一毂，当其无，有车之用。埏埴以为器，当其无，有器之用。凿户牖以为室，当其无，有室之用。 故有之以为利，无之以为用。
Translation & Meaning
三十根辐条汇集到一个车毂上，正因为车毂中心留有虚空，才发挥了车轮运转的作用。 揉和陶土烧制成器皿，正因为器皿内部留有虚空，才具备了盛载物品的作用。 开凿门窗建造房屋，正因为室内与门窗留有空间，才成就了居住通明的作用。 所以，“有”提供了具体的形质条件，而“无”才真正成就了万物灵动的功能。
Linguistic & Character Analysis
- 三 (sān): classical character (sān)
- 十 (shí): classical character (shí)
- 辐 (fú): classical character (fú)
- 共 (gòng): classical character (gòng)
- 一 (yī): classical character (yī)
- 毂 (gū): classical character (gū)
- 当 (dāng): classical character (dāng)
- 其 (qí): its / their / his / her
- 无 (wú): formless void / non-being / without
- 有 (yǒu): manifest being / cosmos / to possess
- 车 (chē): classical character (chē)
- 之 (zhī): particle: of / possessive / it
- 用 (yòng): use / function / apply
- 埏 (shān): classical character (shān)
- 埴 (zhí): classical character (zhí)
- 以 (yǐ): in order to / by means of
- 为 (wèi): act / deem / become
- 器 (qì): classical character (qì)
- 凿 (záo): classical character (záo)
- 户 (hù): classical character (hù)
- 牖 (yǒu): classical character (yǒu)
- 室 (shì): classical character (shì)
- 故 (gù): therefore / thus / consequence
- 利 (lì): benefits / nourishes
Commentary
青禾散人评注：世人皆追逐有形之填满，却忽略无形之留白。杯不空则无法盛茶，心不空则无法纳道。生命真正的创造力，恰恰诞生于不被日程与杂念填满的虚静空间。