Once upon a time, there was a chef who was very skilled at butchering cows. He moved as nimbly as a dancer, and he could easily separate a cow’s bones, meat and skin. When King Hui of the State of Liang saw this, he praised the chef and said, “I have never seen this skill before! You’re amazing! ”

The chef put down his knife and replied, “Your Majesty, the most important thing about cutting meat is understanding the principle. When I first started learning, I only looked at the outside of the cow. After three years of practice, I could see more than just its outer shape. Now, I can just rely on  feeling, without needing to use my eyes. 

For each joint, I put my knife into the gap between the bones, and slide it along the bones to separate the meat. Knives should not be used to cut flesh and skin, and certainly not to hack at large bones. Skilled chefs must change their knife every year, because they use it to cut meat directly. Ordinary chefs need to change their knife every month, because they use it to hack at the bones directly. I have been using this knife for 19 years, cutting up thousands of cows, and it still cuts as though it was freshly sharpened. 

When I slide my thin knife into the gap between the bones, the bones, meat and skin are easily separated. If I find a tough spot, I just need to be careful with my knife and make a gentle cut.  The bones, meat and skin will fall away like a pile of dirt on the ground. Then, I stand up with my knife, and look at my work, before sheathing my knife in satisfaction. ” 

King Hui replied, “Well said! The ideas you talked about can also be applied to taking care of oneself. ”

古時候有一個廚師非常會宰牛，靈活的動作好像在跳舞一樣，輕輕鬆鬆地就把牛的骨、肉和皮分解完畢。梁惠王看到了，忍不住讚美他：｢我從沒看過這種技術，你真了不起！｣

廚師放下刀子回答：｢大王，因為宰牛的原理比技術更重要。我剛開始學習宰牛的時候，眼睛看到的是牛的樣子； 練習三年之後，看到的不只是牛的外形；現在的話，只需要憑感覺宰牛就夠了，不用再靠眼睛去看。

我是按照牛骨的位置，用刀從骨頭之間的空隙割開，再沿著骨頭把肉分出來。刀子不是用來切割皮肉，更不是用來砍大骨頭的。好的廚師每年必須換一把刀，是因為拿刀子直接割肉；普通的廚師每個月就得換一把刀，是因為拿刀子直接砍骨頭。我的這把刀已經用了十九年了，宰牛好幾千頭，刀子還是像剛磨好的一樣。

骨頭之間的空隙，用薄薄的刀子伸進去，一下子就能分開骨、肉和皮。如果碰到不容易割開的地方，我只要小心地使用刀子，輕輕地動一下，骨、肉和皮就會像一堆泥土掉在地上了。我拿著刀子站起來，看看四周，才會滿意地把刀收起來。｣

梁惠王說：｢說得好！你說的這些事情，也能夠用在保養自己身上啊。｣