Chapter 16 · Ancient Myth: The Cosmic Narrative of Fullness and Collapse

I. Gong Gong Furiously Butts Mount Buzhou: The Cosmic Archetype of Collapse at Fullness's Extreme

Among the myths of high antiquity, there is a narrative rich with the meaning of "collapse at fullness's extreme"—Gong Gong furiously butting his head against Mount Buzhou.

This myth appears in the "Treatise on Astronomy" (Tianwen Xun) of the Huainanzi and other texts: "In ancient times, Gong Gong and Zhuanxu contended to be sovereign. In his fury, Gong Gong butted against Mount Buzhou; the pillar of Heaven snapped, and the cord of Earth broke. Heaven tilted toward the northwest, and so the sun, moon, and stars shifted in that direction; Earth sank short in the southeast, and so the waters and floods, dust and silt, gathered there" (昔者共工与颛顼争为帝，怒而触不周之山，天柱折，地维绝。天倾西北，故日月星辰移焉；地不满东南，故水潦尘埃归焉). Gong Gong and Zhuanxu contended for the throne, and in his fury, Gong Gong butted against Mount Buzhou; as a result, the pillar supporting Heaven snapped, and the cord binding Earth broke as well. Heaven tilted toward the northwest, and so the sun, moon, and stars all shifted in that direction; Earth sank, falling short in the southeast, and so rivers, floodwaters, dust, and silt all flowed in that direction.

Note the deeply meaningful detail within this myth—"Earth sank short in the southeast" (地不满东南). After this cataclysmic upheaval, Heaven and Earth turned out to be "not full"—Heaven tilted in the northwest, Earth sank in the southeast, and the entire cosmos took on a configuration of "incompleteness, not full."

This myth of "Earth sinking short in the southeast" is precisely the cosmological archetype of the philosophy of "great accomplishment seems flawed," "small fullness with no great fullness"! In the imagination of our ancestors, even Heaven and Earth themselves were not "complete," but "not full" (incomplete). The sun, moon, and stars flow and shift because Heaven has tilted; the rivers and streams flow eastward because Earth has sunk—it is precisely this "not-fullness" (incompleteness) that gives rise to the flow, change, and ceaseless generation of the myriad things in the cosmos. Were Heaven and Earth absolutely "complete" (great fullness), this would instead be lifeless, stagnant, devoid of vitality. Only through "not-fullness" (an incompleteness resembling small fullness) does flow arise, does change arise, does this ceaselessly generating great world arise.

This resonates to the utmost degree with the Laozi's "great accomplishment seems flawed, yet its function never fails"—Heaven and Earth, this greatest of all "accomplishments," is precisely "as if flawed" (not full in the southeast), and it is precisely because of this "flaw" that its "function never fails" (the sun and moon ever turning, the rivers ever flowing, never ceasing). The myth of Gong Gong butting the mountain, in a tragic and magnificent manner, provides a soul-stirring cosmogonic narrative for the philosophy of "small fullness with no great fullness."

II. Nüwa Mends the Sky: Rebuilding Amid Incompleteness, Without Seeking Perfection

Connected to the myth of Gong Gong butting the mountain is the myth of Nüwa mending the sky. The "Treatise on Surveying the Obscure" (Lanming Xun) of the Huainanzi records: "In ancient times, the four pillars of Heaven collapsed, and the nine provinces split apart; Heaven could not entirely cover the earth, and Earth could not entirely support Heaven... Thereupon Nüwa smelted stones of the five colors to mend the azure sky, and cut off the legs of a giant turtle to set up the four pillars... The azure sky was mended, and the four pillars were set right..." (往古之时，四极废，九州裂，天不兼覆，地不周载……于是女娲炼五色石以补苍天，断鳌足以立四极……苍天补，四极正……). In ancient times, Heaven and Earth collapsed into ruin; Nüwa smelted stones of the five colors to mend the sky, and severed the legs of a giant turtle to re-erect the four pillars, at last mending the azure sky and setting the four pillars right once more.

Nüwa's mending of the sky was a reconstruction of cosmic order, following the "incompleteness" (Heaven tilted, Earth sunk) caused by Gong Gong. But what is most fascinating is this—after Nüwa mended the sky, Heaven and Earth were restored to basic order (the sky mended, the four pillars set right), yet were not restored to that state of absolute "completeness." The configuration of "Earth sinking short in the southeast" still remained, and the rivers still flowed eastward. What Nüwa accomplished was repair (making Heaven and Earth once again functional), not "filling to the brim" (making Heaven and Earth absolutely complete).

This, too, is a profound metaphor. Nüwa's wisdom (which is also the wisdom of our ancestors) lies in this: she repaired the collapse, yet preserved that "not-fullness" (incompleteness). She did not force Heaven and Earth into an absolute completeness, but accepted and preserved the configuration of "Earth sinking short in the southeast"—because she (our ancestors) understood well that it was precisely this "not-fullness" that was the very foundation on which Heaven and Earth could function, and all things could live and multiply. A Heaven and Earth "mended" into absolute completeness (great fullness) would, instead, lose its flow and vitality.

The myth of Nüwa mending the sky can therefore be read as yet another parable of the wisdom of "Xiaoman"—it tells us: in the face of incompleteness, one should repair it (making it functional), but need not, and should not, force it into absolute completeness (great fullness). To preserve a measure of "not-fullness" is, precisely, the highest wisdom. This resonates deeply with the Chinese spirit of "not seeking perfection, but seeking sufficiency, leaving room to spare."

III. Hou Yi Shoots Down the Suns: Restraining Excess, Returning to Balance

We have already touched, in discussing Lixia, on the myth of Hou Yi shooting down the suns. Here we shall elaborate further, from the angle of "restraining excess, guarding against great fullness," because this myth is especially crucial to understanding the spirit of "Xiaoman"—guarding against fullness.

The "Fundamental Warp" (Ben Jing Xun) of the Huainanzi records: "In the time of Yao, ten suns rose together, scorching the grain crops, killing the plants and trees, so that the people had nothing to eat... Yao therefore sent Yi... to shoot down the suns above" (逮至尧之时，十日并出，焦禾稼，杀草木，而民无所食……尧乃使羿……上射十日). In the time of Yao, ten suns rose together in the sky, scorching the crops and killing the plants and trees, leaving the people with nothing to eat... Yao therefore sent Hou Yi to shoot down the suns. Hou Yi shot down nine of the suns, leaving only one, and Heaven and Earth were restored to normal.

The core of this myth is precisely "restraining excess." Ten suns rising together represents the power of "Fire" (yang, the sun) flourishing to its very extreme (great fullness)—and the result of this "great fullness" is not abundance, but destruction (scorching the crops, killing the plants and trees). Hou Yi shooting down the suns, shooting down nine of them, is precisely restraining that "excessive" (great fullness) fiery force back to a "proper" (small fullness) degree—a single sun, just sufficient to warm the earth and nourish all things, without incinerating everything.

Consider carefully the relationship between this myth and "Xiaoman." Ten suns rising together (great fullness) → the destruction of everything; a single sun shining alone (small fullness) → the nourishment of all things. The very same "Fire" (the sun)—flourishing to "great fullness" (ten suns) brings calamity, while returning to "small fullness" (one sun) brings blessing. Is this not the most soul-stirring mythological demonstration of "small fullness with no great fullness"$11 Through the story of Hou Yi shooting down the suns, our ancestors proclaimed to the entire civilization an iron law—any force (even the fire of the sun that grants life itself), once it becomes "greatly full" (excessive), turns from blessing into calamity; only by restraining its excess and returning it to "small fullness" (moderation) can it fulfill its function of nourishing all things.

The wisdom embodied in Hou Yi shooting down the suns—"restraining excess, returning to balance"—is the same wisdom of the Dao of Heaven expressed differently through the Confucian "grasping the two extremes and applying the mean," the Daoist "knowing when to stop brings no danger," the Book of Changes' "the arrogant dragon has cause for regret," and, indeed, the very naming choice of "small fullness with no great fullness." With a single divine arrow, our ancestors shot down nine "excessive" suns, and, in doing so, also shot forth an entire civilization's eternal conviction—guarding against fullness, prizing the mean, esteeming harmony.

IV. The Revelation of Myth: The Cosmos, in Its Essence, Is "Not Full," and Thereby Ceaselessly Generative

Surveying together these three myths of high antiquity—Gong Gong butting the mountain, Nüwa mending the sky, and Hou Yi shooting down the suns—we can distill a profound conviction running through all three: the cosmos, in its essence, is "not full," and it is precisely this "not-fullness" that accomplishes ceaseless generation.

Gong Gong's butting of the mountain brought about "Earth sinking short in the southeast"—and thus Heaven and Earth gained flow (the sun and moon turning, the rivers flowing east). Nüwa's mending of the sky repaired the collapse while preserving "not-fullness"—and thus Heaven and Earth were able to function while remaining full of vitality. Hou Yi's shooting down of the suns restrained the "excessive" (great fullness) sun—and thus all things were able to flourish and multiply beneath a sun of "proper measure" (small fullness).

These three myths, from three different angles, jointly proclaim one and the same Dao of Heaven—absolute "completeness" (great fullness) is dangerous, destructive, and lifeless; while "not-fullness" (an incompleteness and moderation resembling small fullness) is the very root of vitality, flow, and ceaseless generation.

This is precisely the deepest cosmological foundation of "small fullness with no great fullness." Why did our ancestors alone refrain from establishing a "great fullness"$12 Because, in their mythological cosmos, "great fullness" (the excess of ten suns rising together, the lifelessness of absolute completeness) was never a state worth pursuing, but a calamity to be guarded against, restrained, and avoided. That our ancestors let all things pause at "small fullness," letting Heaven and Earth remain "not full," was precisely an accordance with this fundamental cosmic law that "only through not-fullness can there be ceaseless generation." That a civilization should quietly seal so profound a cosmic insight within the name of a single solar term is a cultural creation of the most remarkable lightness of touch, and of the most profound and expansive depth!