The Preservation of Life (2)

1 Someday when Prince of Wenhui made his rounds of inspection in kitchen, he saw a cook cutting up a bullock.

2 He detected the cook’s particular action of cutting. His hands were wielding; shoulders were moving; steps and knees were rising up and lowering down. The actions were of the harmonious rhythm of Jing Shou, something like the dance of the Mulberry Grove.

3 Prince of Wenhui was amazed at his actions. He never saw so graceful motions of cutting meat. Applauding, he praised, “Your skill of cutting meat is so wonderful.”

4 Putting down his knife, the cook said, “Thank you for your praising. However, my cutting up the bullock depends not only on my skill but also on Tao.”

5 When I was an entrant, what I saw was a whole bullock.

6 After continual practice for three years, my attention is more focusing than before that I see only a given part of bullock at a time.

7 My cutting up the bullock depends on heart, not on eyes. The operation of heart is out of the control of consciousness, as somebody praises me, I can do it with closing eyes.

8 The feat like shooting ball, shooting an arrow, the hands of craftsman, senior master appraising music, as well as my art of cutting meat is wholly from proficiency. Reaching this degree, you would not need to remember the principles.

9 What I am doing is in light of the bullock's natural structure; I slip my knife between and along the gaps of the bones, without slight touch of the muscle’s tendon, not to mention the bones.

10 A common skillful cook wears out one knife every year. The worse one wears out it every month. The reason is that their skill of cutting is bad.

11 Almost nineteen years I have used this knife. In the years I cut up thousands of bullock but it is still as a new one.

12 The reason for keeping the edge of knife sharp is that I found the gaps between bones are broader than the edge of my knife. So it can pierce into the gaps. My knife has been kept new for nineteen years because my knife never touches bones and only goes around in the gaps.

13 Not all parts of bullock are so easy to cut. I have to focus my attentions on the parts where have many entangled bones. My hands stably hold the handle of knife and turn the blade slightly until all are being cut off.

14 Now the meat is loose like mud and goes apart from bone to fall down.

15 Every time I accomplish the hard work like this, I would lay down my knife and look around; at that time my heart is full of accomplishment. After work, I must clean and pack away my knife for next use.

16 Listening to the cook, Prince of Wenhui praised him very much and said, “It is wonderful! I have learned the way of regimen and the way of how to associate with people.”