Cook Ding laid down his knife and replied: 'What your servant loves is the Way, which goes beyond mere skill. When I first began cutting up oxen, all I could see was the ox itself. After three years, I no longer saw the whole ox. Now I meet it with my spirit rather than look at it with my eyes. My senses stop but my spirit moves freely. I follow the natural structure, strike in the big gaps, guide the knife through the large openings, following things as they naturally are.'