Zhuangzi — "Once I, Zhuang Zhou, dreamt I was a butterfly, fluttering hither and thither, to…"

Once I, Zhuang Zhou, dreamt I was a butterfly, fluttering hither and thither, to all intents and purposes a butterfly. I was conscious only of my happiness as a butterfly, unaware that I was Zhuang Zhou. Soon I awoke, and there I was, veritably Zhuang Zhou. Now I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly dreaming I am a man. Between a man and a butterfly there is necessarily a distinction. The transition is called the transformation of things.
Zhuangzi — Zhuangzi Ancient · Daoist philosopher

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Zhuangzi, Chapter 2, 'On the Equality of Things'

Date: c. 4th century BCE

Inspirational

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