Two Little Boys Arguing About the Sun
Author: Lie Zi; Translator: Adam Lam
Confucius was touring in the east. He saw two little boys arguing and asked what it was all about.
One boy said: “I think when the sun first comes out, it’s closer to the people. Then at noon, it’s further away.”
The other boy said: “I think when the sun first comes out, it’s further away from the people. At noon, it gets closer.”
The one boy said: “When the sun first comes out, it’s as big as the top of a coach. At noon, then it becomes the size of a platter. Isn’t it true that a faraway object looks small and a close object looks big?”
The other boy said: “When the sun first comes out, it feels cool. At noon, it feels boiling hot. Isn’t it true that at close distance, it is hot, and at faraway distance, it is cool?”
Confucius couldn’t decide who was correct.
The two little boys laughed and said: “Who says your knowledge is profound?”
Excerpt from Liezi, a Taoist text
Author: Lie Yukou - Wikipedia
Translator: Adam Lam
Further Readings
Liezi: World of Delusions: A complete translation and analysis of Liezi (列子) by Yeow Kok - Lau
Liezi: Bilingual Edition, English and Chinese: 列子: 沖虛至德真經 Taoist teachings from the book of Lieh Tzŭ by Lionel Giles (Translator)
Below is the original Chinese text in case of need.
两小儿辩日
列子〔先秦〕
孔子东游，见两小儿辩斗，问其故。(辩斗 一作：辩日)
一儿曰：“我以日始出时去人近，而日中时远也。”
一儿曰：“我以日初出远，而日中时近也。”
一儿曰：“日初出大如车盖，及日中则如盘盂，此不为远者小而近者大乎？”
一儿曰：“日初出沧沧凉凉，及其日中如探汤，此不为近者热而远者凉乎？”
孔子不能决也。
两小儿笑曰：“孰为汝多知乎？”