Q0166
“When the springs dry up and fish are stranded together on land,…” — Zhuangzi (Zhuangzi, The Great Ancestral Teacher)
Verified English quotation. Primary source: Zhuangzi, The Great Ancestral Teacher. Theme: nature.
English
When the springs dry up and fish are stranded together on land, they moisten one another with dampness and wet one another with foam — but better to forget one another in the rivers and lakes.
Source and attribution
The archive attributes this English wording to Zhuangzi, The Great Ancestral Teacher and files it under Daoism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
About Zhuangzi
Zhuangzi (Zhuang Zhou, c. 369–c.
How to read this passage
Nature may mean physical cosmos, living world, human nature, or a normative standard of what ought to be. Presocratics, Daoists, Stoics, and modern environmental thinkers share the word while disagreeing about its force. This passage enters that discussion through nature, self, freedom.
Concepts in this quote
- Nature
- Philosophy quotes about nature ask what the cosmos is, how humans belong in it, and whether “natural” can guide ethics or politics.
- Self
- Philosophy quotes about self explore identity, responsibility, and the examined life—from Socrates’ unexamined life to modern phenomenology and existential authenticity.
- Freedom
- Freedom is among the most searched and most contested themes in philosophy: what it is to choose, to be responsible, and to live without illegitimate constraint.
How to cite this quotation
APA: Zhuangzi. (n.d.). When the springs dry up and fish are stranded together on land, they moisten one another with dampness and wet one another with foam — but better to forget one another in the rivers and lakes. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0166
MLA: Zhuangzi. “When the springs dry up and fish are….” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0166.
Chicago: Zhuangzi. “When the springs dry up and fish are….” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0166.
Frequently asked questions
What is the source of the quotation “When the springs dry up and fish are…”?
The passage is attributed to Zhuangzi, Zhuangzi, The Great Ancestral Teacher. The archive attributes this English wording to Zhuangzi, The Great Ancestral Teacher and files it under Daoism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
What does Zhuangzi mean by nature?
Nature may mean physical cosmos, living world, human nature, or a normative standard of what ought to be. Presocratics, Daoists, Stoics, and modern environmental thinkers share the word while disagreeing about its force. This passage enters that discussion through nature, self, freedom.