Zhuangzi (With Active Table of Contents)

The Taoist book Zhuangzi was named after its purported author Zhuangzi, the philosopher. Since 742 CE, when Emperor Xuanzong of Tang mandated honorific titles for Taoist texts, it has also been known as the Nánhuá Zhenjing, literally meaning "True Classic of Southern (Cultural) Florescence," alluding to the tradition that Zhuangzi came from South China. Another explanation is that the place that Zhuangzi was born was placed within the administrative unit Nanhua County during the Tang dynasty.
The text is a composite of writings from various sources. The traditional view is that Zhuangzi himself wrote the first seven chapters (the "inner chapters") and his students and related thinkers were responsible for the other parts (the "outer" and "miscellaneous" chapters). Strong proof of direct authorship by Zhuangzi of any of the text is difficult. The recension by Guo Xiang (circa 300 CE) is the basis for practically all extant editions of the Zhuangzi.
The inner chapters have great grammatical and conceptual coherence and are believed to have been primarily written by one hand, even if not by Zhuangzi himself. Zhuangzi has been categorized as a "Taoist" by the Chinese tradition, but especially in the inner chapters, he stands out from the rest. He also writes comparatively little about Tao in the inner chapters of the work, even less than Mencius and other prominent Confucians, prompting scholar A. C. Graham to note, "Zhuangzi never knew he was a Taoist".This book is an excerpt from James Legge's legendary translation "The Writings of Chuang Tzu", found in volumes thirty-nine and forty of the spiritual masterpiece "The Sacred Books of the East" series.