游刃有余

Origin and story

In Zhuangzi (莊子), Yangsheng Zhu, Cook Ding cuts up an ox for Lord Wenhui with movements that seem as coordinated as music and dance. Asked about his skill, he explains that years of practice have taught him to follow the animal's natural structure, guiding the blade through spaces rather than forcing it against solid bone. His knife has lasted nineteen years because there is room for its edge to move.

He is not careless: at a difficult joint he grows alert, slows down, and moves the knife very slightly. The fable turns skilled practice into a lesson about living in accord with things. The idiom now describes handling a task with mastery and ample ease.