An Anthology of Chinese Literature: Beginnings to 1911 0393038238, 9780393038231
Moving roughly chronologically, An Anthology of Chinese Literature gathers texts according to genres, themes, forms, and
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An Anthology of
Chinese Literature BEGINNINGS TO 1911
Edited and Translated by
Stephen Owen
W. W. N O R T O N & C O M P AN Y NE W Y O R K
.
L O ND O N
Planning and Copyright © 1996 by Stephen Owen and The Council for Cultural Development of the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China Jacket art: "The Nymph of the Lo River" by Wei Chiu-ting is reproduced with the permission of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, Taiwan,Republic of China. notices, pages 1165-66 Since this page cannot legibly accommodate all the copyright page. copyright the of constitute an extension All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America First Edition
The text of this book is composed in Sabon with the display set in Optima Composition by Com Com Manufacturing by Haddon Craftsmen Book design by Joan "Greenfield
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data An anthology of Chinese literature: beginnings to 1911 I edited and translated by Stephen Owen. p.
cm.
Translations from Chinese. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-393-03823-8 1. Chinese literature-Translations into English.
I. Owen,
Stephen. P12658.El A814
1996
895.1 '08--dc20
95-11409
W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 500 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10110 http://web.wwnorton.com W. W. Norton & Company Ltd., 10 Coptic Street, London WCl A 1PU
Contents
Timeline
xxxv
Introduction
xxxix
A Note on Translation
xliii
Early China EARLY CHIN A: IN TRODUCTION
The
3
Classic of Poetry: Beginnings
10
Classic of Poetry CCLXXII "We Have in Hand" Classic of Poetry CCXC " Mowing Grasses" The Zhou Fou n d i n g
'
H uma n Sacri fi ce: Maki n g Exchan ges Classic of Poetry CXXXI " Yellow Bird" The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 6th year of Duke Wen (620 B.C.) The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 19th year of Duke Xi (640 B.C.) from Mencius I A, 7
Classic of Poetry: "Airs" Classic of Poetry I " Fishhawk" Classic of Poetry IX "The Han So Wide"
11 11
Classic of Poetry CCXLV " She Bore the Folk" Historical Records, " Chronicles of Zhou" Classic of Poetry CCL " Liu the Duke" Classic of Poetry CCXXXVII " Spreading" The Zhuang-zi, " Renouncing Kingship" Classic of Poetry CCXXXVI "The Greater Brightness" Classic of Poetry CCLV " Overbearing" Classic of Poetry CCLXII " Yangzi and Han" Classic of Poetry CLXVIII " Bringing Forth the Chariots" Classic of Poetry CLXXVII " Sixth Month"
The
10
12 14 15 16 18 18 20 22 23 24 26 26 27 27 28
30 30 31
Contents Other Voices in the Tradition RuanJi (A.D. 210-263), Songs of My Cares II
33
Meng Hao-ran (ca. 690-ca. 740), Written at Wan Mountain Pool
33
Correspondences
.
Classic of Poetry VI " Peach Tree Soft and Tender" Classic of Poetry X " Bluffs of the Ru" Classic of Poetry XLI " North Wind" Classic of Poetry X I I " Magpie's Nest" Classic of Poetry XX " Plums Are Falling " Classic of Poetry XXIII " Dead Roe Deer" Classic of Poetry XXX "First the Winds" Classic of Poetry XXXV " Valley Winds" Classic of Poetry XC " Wind a nd Rain" Classic of Poetry XL VI " Thorn-Vine on the Wall " Classic of Poetry LI " Rainbow" Classic of Poetry LXIII " Fox" Classic of Poetry XCIV " Creepers on the Moorland" Classic of Poetry CXL " Willows by the Eastern Gate" Classic of Poetry CLXXXIV " Crane Cries Out" Classic of Poetry V " Grasshoppers' Wing s" Classic of Poetry CLXVII " Gather the Fiddleheads" Classic of Poetry IV " Trees with Bending Boughs " Classic of Poetry VII " Rabbit Snare" Classic of P oetry LIX " Bamboo Pole"
34 34 34 35 35 36 36 36 37 38 39 39 39 40 40 40 41 41 43 43 43
U n dersta n di n g a n d Mi sunderstandi ng: The N eed to Explai n Classic of Poetry XLII " Gentle Girl " Classic of Poetry LXI " The River Is Broad " Classic of Poetry LXIV " Quince " Classic of Poetry LXV " Millet Lush " Classic of Poetry LXXVI " Zhong- zi, Please" Classic of Poetry XXVI " Boat of Cypress " Classic of Poetry XLV " Boat of Cypress "
44
Other Poems
48
Classic of Poetry XCV " Zhen and Wei " Classic of Poetry CXXXVII " Eastern Gate's White Elms " Classic of Poetry CXI " Within Ten Acres " Classic of Poetry XVII " Dew on the Way" Classic of Poetry XXXIV " Dry Leaves on the Gourd" c.Iassic of Poetry LVI "We Had O ur D elight" Classic of Poetry LXXXI "I Went Along the Broad Road " Classic of Poetry LXXXII " Rooster Crows " Classic of Poetry CXXXIII " No Clothes " Classic of Poetry CXIII " Huge Rat" Classic of Poetry CVII " Sandals of Straw" vi
33
44 44 45 45 46 47 47
48 49 49 49 50 50 51 51 52 52 53
Contents Cou rtship, Marriage, a n d Love
Classic of Poetry CXXXVIII " Barred Gate " Classic of Poetry XXIV "Ah, How Splendid" Classic of Poetry CLVIII " Cutting the Haft" Classic of Poetry XXII " The River Has Its Forkings" Classic of Poetry XLVIII " In the Mulberries " Classic of Poetry LXVI " My Prince Has Taken the Field" Classic of Poetry LXXIII " Great Cart" Classic of Poetry LXXVII " Shu Is on a Field Hunt" Classic of Poetry LXXXVII " Lift Your Kilts "
Using the Poems and Early Interpretation Analects XVII.9 Analects II.2 Analects 1.15 The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 31st year of D uke Xiang (542 B.C.) The Zhuang-zi, " Outer Things " Mencius II A, 2.xi, xvii Mencius V A, 4 .ii Mencius V B, 8.ii Classic of Documents (Shu jing), " Canon of Shun" The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 25th Year of Duke Xiang (548 B.C.) Classic of Changes, "Appended Discourses" Wang B i , " Elucidation of the Images" (Classic of Changes) from the Zhuang-zi, " The Way of Heaven" The " Great Preface" to the Cla ssic of Poetry Se lections from the " Record of Music" (Yue ji) (3 sections)
53 53 54 54 54 55 55 56 56 57 58 58 58 59 59 60 61 61 62 63 63 63 63 64 64 67
Other Voices in the Tradition
71
Tang Xian-zu, Peony Pavilion (159 8 )
71
from Scene VII: The Schoolroom for Women from Scene IX: Getting the Garden in Order
Early Narrative Two Sad Stori es of G ood Behavior
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 12th year of D uke Xuan (597 B.C.) The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 22nd year of D uke Xi (638 B.C.) An Exegetical L iteratu re Analects II.I0 The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 14th year of D uke Zhuang (680 B.C.)
71 74 77 77 78 78 79 79 79 Vll
Contents The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 3rd year of Duke D ing (507 B.C.) The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 3rd year of Duke Xuan (606 B.C.) Heroes of the Will from the Schemes of the Warring States (Zhan-guo ce) Swi ndles and Bad Exchanges: The Problems Su rrou ndi ng B i an H e's Jade "He's Jade , " (or " Bian He's Jade ") from the Han Fe i-zi Historical Records (Shi-ji), from the "Biograph ies of Lian Bo and Lin Xiang-ru " The Story of Wu Z i -xu Historical Records, " Biography of Wu Zi-xu " The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 20th year of Duke Zhao (522 B.C.) The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 4th year of Duke Ding (506 B.C.) The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 11th year of Duke Ai (484 B.C.) Other Voices in the Tradition
Yuan Zhen (779-8 31), A Winter "White Linen Song" Wu Wen-ying (ca. 1200-1260), to "Eight-Note Gan-zhou," Visiting the Magic Cliff with Various Gentlemen of the Transport Office
Early Literary Prose: The Delight of Words The Wind (Western Han ?) " Of Swords" (Zhuang-zi) from the Zhuang- zi, " He aven's Motions" (Tian-yun ) Jia Yi, The Poetic Exposition on the Owl The Zhuang-zi
"D iscourse on Thinkin g of Things as Being on the Same Level"
(Qi-wu fun ) Coda
Li Bo (701-762), The Old Airs IX
Early Political Oratory Classic of D ocument s, "Tang's Vow" The Zuo Traditio n, an entry for the 26th year of Duke Zhao (516 B.C.) from the Schemes of the Warring States Mei Sheng (d. 140 B.C.), Letter of Protest to the Prince of Wu from the Zhuang-zi, " Attaining Life " (Da-sheng) viii
80 80 81 82
83 84 84 87 88 97 98 99 99 100 101 102 102 104 108 110 113 113 122 122 124 124 1 25 128 1 30 133
Contents
Si-ma Qian (ca. 145-ca. 85
R.C.)
Letter in Reply to Ren An The Biography of Bo Yi and Shu Qi The Prince of Wei from " Biographies of the Assassins " : Nie Zheng
The Chu-ci: "lyrics ofChu" liThe N i ne Songs"
The Sovereign of the East: The One (Dong-huang Tai- yi) Lord in the Clouds (Yun-zhong jun ) The Lady of the Xiang River (Xiang jun ) The Senior Master of Lifespans (Da si-m ing) The Junior Master of Lifespans (Shao- si-m ing), " Lord Iris " The Lord of the East (Dong-jun ) The Yellow River's Earl (He -bo) The Hill Wraith (Shan gui) The Kingdom's Dead (Guo-shang) Rites for Souls (Li hun) The Li Sao
The Chu-ci Tradition J o u rneys H eave nly and Earthly
Far Roaming Si-ma Xiang-ru (179-117 B.C.), The Great One Ruan Ji (A.D. 210-263), Songs of My Cares LXVIII Sun Chuo (314-371), Wandering to the Tian-tai Mountains The Enco u n ter w i th the Goddess Song Yu (attributed), The Poetic Exposition on Gao-tang (opening) The Goddess Cao Zhi (192-232), The Goddess of the Luo
135 1 36 142 145 152
155 156 156 156 157 158 158 159 160 1 60 1 61 1 62 162
1 76 1 76 1 76 182 184 185 189 189 190 194
Other Voices in the Tradition
198
Pei Xing (825- 8 8 0) , "Accounts of Marvels" (Chuan-qi): Xiao Kuang (opening section)
198
Wang Wei (ca. 699-761), Songs for the Goddess' Shrine on Fish Mountain Song Welcoming the Goddess Song Sending the Goddess on Her Way Li He (790-8 1 6), String Music for the Gods Wen Ting-yun (d. 8 6 6) , Written on the Temple of Mount Xiao Guan-xiu (832-912), Shrine by the River Su Shi (1037- 1101) , Wu Mountain
1 99 1 99 199
199 200 200 201 IX
Contents 204
Calling Back the Soul
204
"Calling Back the Soul" (Zhao hun) "Calling Back the Recluse " (Zhao yin-shi)
211
Other Voices in the Tradition
212
Ruan Yu (d. 212), Seven Sorrows Tao Qian (365-427), Pall Bearer's Song II
212 21 2 213
Li Bo (701-762), Hard Ways to Shu
Interlude Between the "Lyrics of Chuff and Yue-fu: "The Biography of Lady Li" Ban Gu (A.D. 32-92) , The Han History, from " The Biographies of the Imperial In-Laws "
215
215
The Chinese uMiddle Ages" THE CHIN ESE "MIDDLE AGES": IN TRODUCTION
221
227
Yue-fu Heaven Above (Western Han yue-f u) The One I Love (Western Han yue-fu) South of the Walls We Fought (Western Han yue-fu) East of Ping-ling (Eastern Han ?) Prelude: White Swans in Pairs (Eastern Han ?) Cocks Crow (Eastern Han ?) Meeting (Eastern Han ?) Chang-an Has Narrow Alleys (Eastern Han ?)
\
227 228 229 230 230 231 232
Other Voices in the Tradition
243
Shen Yue (441-513), The Sensual Charms of the Three Wives
233
Song of White Hair (Eastern Han ?) Mulberr ies by the Path (Eastern Han ?) Xin Yan-nia n, Officer of the Guard (Eastern Han) Chen Lin (d. 217), I Watered My Horse at a Spring by the Wall
Yue-fu of the South Zi-ye Songs I-II XII XV! XIX-XX XXIII-XXIV XXXIII XXXVI The Zi-ye Songs of the Four Seasons x
227
233 234 235 236 237 238 238 238 238 238 238 239 239 239
Contents Spring Songs VI IX-X Winter Songs XIII Little Su, "I Ride the Coach with Polished Sides" Yang Pan-er (also Du-qu Song) Yue-fu of the N o rthern Dynasties
Qi-yu S ongs (Northern Dynastie s yue-fu), I, IV Song of the Prince of Lang-ya (Norther n Dynastie s yue-fu) The Ballad of Mu-Ian (Northern Dynastie s yue-fu, 4th-6th century) Breaking the Branches of Willows (Northern Dynastie s yue-fu), I-III Other Voices in the Tradition: The Later Lineages ofYue-fu Li Bo, South of the Walls We Fought Wang Shi-zhen (1526-15 90), South of the Wall We Fought Li Ye-si (1622-168 0), South of the Walls We Fought Li Bo, Yang P an-er
Anonymous song lyric to "Boddhisattva Barbarian" (9th-10th century)
The Beginnings of Classical Poetry (Shi) Part i n g and G o i n g Off
East Gate (EasternHan ? yue-fu) Anonymous Old Poem (attributed to Su Wu) Anonymous Old Poem (attributed to Su Wu) Wang Can (177-217), Seven S orrows I Ruan Ji (210-263) , Songs of My Cares III
239 239 239 239 239 240 240 240 240 241 241 243 243 244 245 246 247 247
249 250
250 251 251 252 253
Long i ng on the Road Nineteen Old Poems I Qin Jia (2nd century) , To His Wife (first of three) (attributed)
254
Corn i n g to the C i ty
255
Nineteen O ld P oems III Nineteen Old Poems IV Alo n e at N i ght
Nineteen Old Poems XIX Wang Can, Seven Sorrows II Ruan Ji, Songs of My Cares I Nineteen Old Poems X Qin Guan (1049-1100), to " Gods on the Magpie Bridge "
253
253
255 255 256
256
256 256 257 257 Xl
Contents The Message a n d G i ft
258
Watering My Horse b y the Great Wall (Eastern Han?
yue-fu)
258
Nineteen Old Poem s IX The Stranger a n d the Wom an Prelu de (East ern Han? yue-f u) Nine teen Old Poem s I I Nine teen O l d Poem s V
�
Imperman ence and Disi" u i o n Nine teen Old Poem s XIII Nine teen Old Poems XIV Nineteen Old Poem s XV The Return
Anonymous Old Poem Cao Zhi (192-232) , Sending Off Mr. Ying (first of two) Coda: Reencounter
Old Poem The Poets
Cao Cao (155-220), The Bitter Cold Wang Can (177-217) , With the Army V Liu Zhen (d. 217) , Unclassified Poem Cao Zhi, Unclassified Poem I Xu Gan (171-218) , Chamber Thoughts III Yan Shi-bo (5th century), Wang Rong (467-493) , and Chen Shu-bao (553-604) , Three versions of " Since You Have Gone Away" Cao Zh i (192-232)
Presented to Cao Biao, Prince of B ai-ma Song of a Brown Wren in Wild Fields (yue-fu) Unclassified Poem II R u an Ji (210-263)
Songs of My Cares XVI Songs of My Cares VI Songs of My Cares XXXIII Turning Away
Lu Ji (261-303), Calling to the Recluse Zuo Si (ca. 253-ca. 307), Calling to the Recluse I
Feast
258
259 259 259 260
260 260 261 261
261 262 262
262 262
263 264 265 265 266
266 267
267 270 270 270
271 271 271 272
272 273 274
Classic of Poetry CXV " Hawthorn on the Mountain" Classic of Poetry CXIV " Cricket" xii
258
274 275
Contents Classic of Poetry CLXI " Deer Cry"
275
from " Calling Back the S oul "
276
S ong of the Autumn Wind Chen Lin (d . 217), [no title] Dew on the Onion Grass (Han funeral song) The Graveyard (Han funeral song) West Gate (anonymous yue-fu, Eastern Han ?) Grand (anonymous yue-fu, Eastern Han ?) Cao Cao (155-220) , Short Song Cao Pi (187-226), Grand (yue-fu) Cao Zhi (192-232), Public Banquet Wang Xi-zhi (321-379), Preface to the " Orchid Pavilion Poems" Li Bo, Bring In the Wine Du Fu (712-770) , Having Fallen Off My Horse Drunk, Various Gentlemen Come to Visit Me Bringing Wine Han Yu (768-824) , Drunk, to Zhang Shu of the Imperial Library Meng Jiao (751-814), Inviting Writers to Drink Li He (790-816) , Bring In the Wine Bo Ju-yi (772-846) , An Invitation for Mr. Liu Feng Yan-si (903-960), to " The Pleasures of Kicking �Fooiliill " Yan Shu (991-1055) , to " Washing Creek Sands " (Huan
277
xi sha) to " Reaching Golden Gates " (Ye jin -men ) Zhou Bang-yan (1056-1121) , to " Fragrance Fills the Yard " (Man ting fang). Written on a summer day at Wu-xiang Mountain in Li-shui Su Shi (1037-1101) , The Poetic Exposition on Red Cliff
Anecdotes, Parables, and Profound Jokes
from the Zhuang-zi from the Han Fei -zi (3rd century B.C.) from Discourses of the D omains (Guo-yu) (3rd century B.C.) from the Huai-nan-zi (2nd century B.C.) from The Park of Stories (Shuo-yuan) (1st century B.C.) from the Lie-zi (?-A.D. 300) from The Forest of Jokes (Xiao-lin) (3rd century A.D.) from The Forest of Tales (Yi-lin) (362) from Sundry Accounts of the Western Capital (Xi-jing za-ji) (3rd century) Liu Yi-qing (403-444) , from New Stories and Tales of the Times (Shi-shuo xin -yu) Tao Qian (365-427) , An Account of Peach Blossom Spring
278 278 278 279 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 287 288 289 289 2� 290 290
291 292
295 295 299 300 301 301 302 305 305 306 307 309
xiii
Contents
The Poetry of the Southern Dynasties Tao Q i an (Tao Yuan-ming, 365-427)
Confucius, Analects XI.26 Seasons Shift Biography of Master Five Willows Dwelling in Peace on the Double Ninth Drinking Wine V Returning to Dwell in Gardens and Fields I Moving My Dwelling I The Sixth Month of 408: We Had a Fire Begging Reading the Classic of Moun tain s an d Seas I Xie L ing-yun (385-433)
Fu-chun Isle Written on the Lake, Returning f rom the Chapel at Stone Cliff Climb ing an Upper Story by the Pool Visiting the Southern Pavilion Bao Zhao(ca. 414-466)
Hard Traveling IV Hard Traveling II Hard Traveling VI Song of the Bright Moon The Southern Courts
He Xun (d. ca. 518) , Performers on the Terrace of the Bronze Sparrow Xie Tiao (464-499), A Companion Piece for Xie Jing's "Terrace of the Bronze Sparrow" Xiao Gang (503-551) , Song of Yong-zhou: II North Isle Source of Pain I I Song: Every Night Roaming in the North Park by Night Sending a Palace Lady Back by Night to the Rear Boat On a Lone Duck New Swa llow s The Reflection of a High Building in the Water Liu Yan (Emperor Wu of the Liang, 464-549) , Zi-ye Song Shen Yue (441-513) , Going Out Early and Meeting an Old Love, I Give This to Her in Her Carriage Madam Shen (early 6th century) , Song on Reflections in Water Wu Jun (469-520) , Quatrains on Various Topics I Wang Seng-ru (465-522) , Spring Longings Liu Xiao-chuo (481-539) , On a Woman Unwilling to Come Forth XIV
31 1 312 312 31 3 314 315 316 31 6 31 7 31 7 31 8 31 8 319 31 9 320 321 322 323 323 323 324 324 325 326 326 327 327 327 327 327 327 328 328 328 328 328 328 329 329
Contents Yu Xin (513-581), Respectfully Answering " Drifting on �R�� Study in the Hills A Companion Piece for Grand Master Yan's " Newly Cleared Skies " The Image of the Southern Dynasties
3� 330 330 330
Zhang Ji (ca. 767-ca. 830), A Ballad of the Yong-j ia Wen Ting-yun (ca . 812-866) , A Song of Lord Xie's Villa Song for the Bank Where the Cock Crowed Qian Qian-yi (1582-1664) , In Jin-ling: A Second Series on Watching a Chess Game (one of six) (1647)
Traditional Literary Theory
331 332 333 334 335
Lu Ji (261-303) , The Poetic Exposition on Literature (Wen fu) Liu Xie (ca. 465-522), Wen-xin dia o-long ( " The Literary Mind Carves Dragons " ) Its Source in the Way: Chapter 1 Spirit Thought: Chapter 26 Nature and Form: Chapter 27 Continuity and Variation: Chapter 29 Determination of Momentum: Chapter 30 (selection) Hidden and Out-standing: Chapter 40 The Sensuous Colors of Physical Things: Chapter 46 The One Who Knows the Tone : Chapter 48 (selection) Cao Pi (187-226), A Discourse on Literature (Lun -wen)
336 343 344 346 349 351 353 354 355 358 359
The Tang Dynasty THE TANG DYNASTY: INTRODUCTION
365
Tang Poetry: General Introduction Occasions: "Sorry to H ave Mi ssed You" Wang Wei (ca. 699-761), Answering the Poem Left by Mr. Su, Nominally of the Bureau of Forestry, When He Stopped by My Villa at Lan-tian Wei Ying-wu (737-ca. 792), Going to Visit Censor Wang on My Day Off and Not Finding Him Home Qiu Wei (f1. 743) Walking in the Hills and Looking for the Recluse, But Finding Him Not In Jia Dao (779-845) , Looking for the Recluse and Not Finding Him Home Meng Hao-ran (ca. 689-740), Spending the Night in Reverend Ye's Mountain Chamber. I was expecting the senior Mr. Ding, but he did not come
371 371
371 372 372
373
373 xv
Contents Pei Di (fl. 720-750), I Chanced on Rain at Wang-kou and Recalled Mount Zhong-na n: Thus I Offered the Following Quatrain Wang Wei, Answerin g Pei Di
374 374 374
Parti ng
Wang Wei, Sending Mr. Yuan on His Way on a Mission to An-xi Parting Meng Hao-ran, Parting from Mr. Xue at Guang-lin g Li Bo (701-762), Sending a Friend on His Way A Song of Ming-gao : Sending Off Mr. Cen, a Gentleman in Retiremen t Who Was Summoned to Court
375 375 375 376 376
Other Poem Types Geng Wei (latter part of 8th century) , On the Set Topic: "Wild Goose on the Sands" Du Fu (712-770), Lone Wild Goose Du Mu (803-852), Early Migrating Geese
378
Character Types and Vi gnettes Wang Jian (751-ca. 830), Palace Lyrics XCV Yu Hu (early 9th century), Song of the Southland Li Bo, Lotus-Picking Song Lyrics for the Girls of Yue I-V Bo Ju-yi (772-846), Lotus-Picking Song
380
An Example of Verse Form Wang Wei, Stopping by the Temple of Incense Massed
383
High Tang Poetry Wang Wei (ca. 699-761)
379 380
381 381 381 382 383
384 385 385
PERSPECTIVE, MOTION, AND ATTENTION
386
Written Crossing the Yellow River to Qing-he Watching a Hunt Sight-Seeing in the Moors Outside of Liang-zhou
386
THE IMAGE OF THE FARMER
387
Farming Homes by Wei River
387
386 387
Other Voices in the Tradition
388
Classic of Poetry XXXVI "Hard Straits" Tao Qian, Returning to Dwell in Gardens and Fields III Meng Hao-ran, Stopping by the Manor of an Old Friend
388
Gazing into the Wilds Under Newly Cleared Skies To Pei Di
XVI
379
388 389 389 389
Contents 390
THE QUIET LIFE
When Living Quietly at Wang-chuan I Gave This to Pei Di Villa on Zhong-nan Mountain Answering Magistrate Zhang
I
390 390
Other Voices in the Tradition
391
The Fisherman (Chu-ci, author unknown, 3 rd century B.C.?)
391
THE
"
WANG STREAM COLLECTION
"
The Hollow by Meng's Walls Hua-zi Hill Fine-Grained Apricot Wood Lodge Jin Bamboo Ridge Deer Fence Magnolia Fence Dogwood Strand The Lane of Palace Ash Trees Pavilion Overlooking the Lake South Cottage Lake Qi Willow Waves Rapids by the Luan Trees Gold Dust Spring White Stone Rapids North Cottage Lodge in the Bamboo Magnolia Dell Lacquer Tree Garden Pepper Tree Garden Meng H ao-ran (ca. 689-740) Going from Luo-yang to Yue Gazing from a Boat in the Early Morning Early Cold on the River: Something on My Mind
I
390
392 392 392 392 393 393 393 393 393 393 394 394 394 394 394 394 395 395 395 395 395 395 396 396 396
Other Voices in the Tradition
397
Confucius, Analects XVIII.6
397
Li Bo (701-762)
397
LEGENDS AND CHARACTERS OF THE YUE-FU
398
Parted by Great Distances The Crows Cry by Night
398
I
Other Voices in the Tradition
399
Anonymous, "Songs of the West," The Crows Cry by Night IV
400
Reproach
399
400
Contents THE UNDYING
400
The Old Airs V The Old Airs VII A Song on Visiting Heaven' s Crone Mountain in a Dream: On Parting Dialogue in the Mountains
400
POEMS ALMOST OF THIS WORLD
403
Drinking Alone by Moonlight Summer D ay in the Mountains Rising Drunk on a Spring D ay, Telling My Intent Getting Out What I Feel A Lament for Old Mr. Ji, the Finest Brewer in Xuan-cheng
403
H an-shan: The Master of Cold Mounta in
III XVI XXXII CCXXXII CCXXXIII The H i gh Tang Q u atra in
XVlll
401 401 403
404 404 404 404 404 405 405 405 406 406 406
Zhang Xu, Peach Blossom Creek Wang Han, Song of Liang-zhou Wang Zhi-huan (688-742), Song of Liang-zhou Parting Climbing Stork Tower
406
I
Other Voices in the Tradition
408
Zhang Rang (444-497), Parting
408
407 407 408 408
Cui Guo-fu, Song of Xiang-yang Midcurrent Song A Little Chang-gan Song Wang Chang-ling (ca. 690-ca. 756), Army Song Song of the Spring Palace Reproach in the Women's Chambers Chu Guang-xi (707-760), The Roads of Luo-yang: Presented to the Director La Xiang (one offive) Song of the Southland (one of four) Jing-yun (monk), Painting of a Pine Cen Shen (715-770), On the Terrace of Cang Jie's Invention of Characters at the San-hui Temple
408
AN OUTING ON LAKE DONG-TING
411
Li Bo, Accompanied by My Kinsman Li Ye, Formerly Vice Director of the Ministry of Justice, and by Jia Zhi, Formerly Drafter in the Secretariat, I Go on an Excursion on Lake Dong-ting (four of five poems)
411
409 409 409 409 410 410 410 410 411
Contents
Du Fu
Jia Zhi (718-772), On First Arriving in Ba-ling, Joining Li Bo and Pei, We Go Boating on Lake Dong-ting (two of three)
412
(712-770)
413
Early D u Fu
Another Poem on Mr. Zheng' s Eastern Pavilion A Mei-pi Lake Song Boating on the Reservoir West of the City Giving Acco u nt of Oneself A Song of My Cares When Going from the Capital to Feng-xian
413 414 414 416 416 41 7
The Poetry of the Rebellion The View in Spring Lament for Chen-tao Lament for Greenslope Lament by the River Jiang Village (two of three) Bending River (first of two) The Officer at Tong Pass
425
Qin-zhou and Cheng-du
425
Taking Down a Trellis I Stand Alone The River Flooded River Village Enj oying Rain on a Spring Night On Painting Painted Hawk Ballad of the Painted Eagle Song of a Painting Kui-zhou and Du Fu's Final Years The Diagram of Eight Formations Ballad of an Old Cypress Autumn Stirrings (eight poems) Quatrain Where Yangzi Meets the Han End of Spring: On My Newly Rented Thatched Cottage at Rang-xi III Night's Midpoint Sunlight Cast Back
Interlude: Xuan-zong and Yang the Prized Consort Bo Ju-yi (772-846), Song of Lasting Pain Chen Hong (early 9th century), An Account to Go with the "Song of Lasting Pain"
420 420 421 421 422 423 424
426 426 427 427 427 428 428 428 429 431 432 432 434 439 439 439 439 440 441 442 448
Contents Du Mu (803-852) , On Passing by Hua-qing Palace (three quatrains) Wang Jian (ca . 767-ca. 830) , Gazing on Hua-qing Palace �D�bre� Li Shang-yin (ca. 813-ca. 858) , Dragon Pool Stirred by Something at Mount Li Wang Jian (ca. 767-ca. 830), Ballad of the Former Palace Passing by Lace-Crest Palace Addendum: "The Whi rl"
Yuan Zhen (779-831) , The Girl Who D anced the Whirl Bo Ju-yi, The Girl Who D anced the Whirl
Tang Literature of the Frontier Zhang Zheng-jian (mid-6th century) , Crossing the Barrier Mountains Yu Shi-nan (early 7th century) , I Watered My Horse at a Spring by the Wall: Imitating the Old Ballad Lu Zhao-lin (ca . 635-689) , Falling Snow: A Song Luo Bin-wang (b. ca. 640), With the Army: A Ballad
4D 454 454 454 455 455 455 457
459
460 460 461 461
The H i gh Tang Frontier Poem Wang Chang-ling (ca. 690-ca. 756), Out the Passes Wang Wei, With the Army: A Ballad Long-xi: A Ballad Li Bo (701-762) , The Old Airs XIV Moon Over the Mountain Passes The Turks Are Gone ! Wang Chang-ling, Variation on " Hard Traveling" By the Passes: A Song (second of a set) Cen Shen (ca. 715-770), Song of White Snow: Sending Off Assistant Wu on His Return to the Capital The Ballad of Running Horse River: Sending Off the Army on a Western Campaign Du Fu, The Army Wagons: A Ballad
462
M i d- and Late Tang Front i er Poetry
469
Lu Lun (ca. 748-ca. 798) , By the Passes Wang Jian (ca. 767-ca. 830), With the Army: A Ballad Zhang Ji (776-ca. 829) , Long-tou Ballad Li He (790-816) , Song for the Governor of Wild Goose Barrier By the Passes: A Song Guan Xiu (late 9th-early 10th century) , By the Passes: Songs
(second of four)
Du Fu: The Formati on of a Soldi er Out to the Frontier (first series) I-IX xx
452
462 462 463 463 464 465 465 466 466 467 468
470 470 470 471 471 472 472 473
Contents Aftermath
Li Hua (ca. 715-ca. 774), A Lamentation at an Ancient Battlefield Coda
475 475 477
Lu Lun, Encountering a Wounded Soldier
Mid- and Late Tang Poetry
477 478
Meng Jiao (751-814) Tormented Lying Sick What Was in My Heart on a Spring D ay Informal Composition What Came to Me in a Mood Plagiarizing Poems Old Man's Bitterness Something Touched Me One Night and IT ry to Get It Out Autumn Cares II A Visit to the South Mountains A Ballad of Mount Jing Seeing Off Reverend Dan XII Answering a Friend's Gift of Charcoal I tried to climb Zhao-cheng tower . ..
478
Han Yu (768-824) Autumn Thoughts (eighth of eleven) Visiting the Temple of Mount Heng, Then Spending the Night at the Buddhist Monastery: I Wrote This on the Gate Tower Written Playfully to Zhang Ji Mountain Stones
484
Li He (791-817) Song of an Arrowhead from the Battlefield of Chang-ping Little Su's Tomb Dream of Heaven Song of a Young Nobleman at the End of Night Release from Melancholy: Song (written under the flowers)
489
I
479 479 480 480 480 481 481 481 482 482 482 482 483 483
484 485 487 488
489 490 491 491 491
Other Voices in the Tradition
492
from History of the Eastern Han
492
Long Songs Following Short Songs The King of Qin D rinking Don't Go Out the Gate! Don't Plant Trees Bo J u-yi (772-846) On My Portrait What Came to Mind When Chanting My Poems
493 493 495 496 496 496 497 xxi
Contents Reciting Aloud, Alone in the Mountains On My Laziness Choosing a Dwelling Place i n Luo-yang Eating B amboo Shoots Winter Night , Salt Merchant's Wife (in hatred of profiteers) Du Mu (803-852)
498 499 500 500 501 502
Pouring Wine Alone Written on the Kai-yuan Temple at Xuan-zhou I Wrote This on the Tower . . . Spring in the Southland Three Poems Thinking on Past Travels
I
4 98
503 503 504 504 505
Other Voices in the Tradition
505
Liu Yu-xi, Quitting My Post at He-zhou and Visiting Jian-kang
505
,
Going Out on the Le-you Plain Late Autumn in the Qi-an District A Quatrain on the Pool Behind the District Office in Qi-an Egrets At the Yangzi and Han Sent to Judge Han Chuo in Yang-zhou The Yellow River at Bian-zhou Blocked by Ice A Quatrain Written on the Road
I
506 507 507 507 507 508 508
Other Voices in the Tradition
508
Si-kong Tu, The Pavilion of Revising History
508
Yu Xua n-ji (mid-9th century)
Selling Tattered Peonies Visiting the Southern Tower of Chong-zhen Temple: Seeing Where the Recent Graduates of the Examination Have Written Their Names On Yin-wu Pavilion Li Shan g-yi n (813-858)
Left Untitled (second of two) Left Untitled (one of four) Again Passing the Shrine of the Goddess Citadel of Sapphire Walls (first of three) Midnight Sunbeams Shoot Frost and Moon ChangE Written During the Rain One Night and Sent Back North The Sui Palace (2 versions) xxii
506
509 509
510 510 510 51 1 511 512 513 514 514 514 515 515 516
Contents
Tang Tales (chuan-qi)
518
Two Tales of Keeping Faith
518
Shen Ji-ji (f1. ca. 800) , " Ren's Story" Li Jing-liang (fl. 794) , " Li Zhang-wu's Story"
51 8 526
Two Tales of Faith Broken
531
Jiang Fang (f1. early 9th century) , " Huo Xiao-yu's Story " Yuan Zhen (779-831) , " Ying-ying's Story "
531 540
The Song Dynasty THE SON G DYN ASTY: IN TRODUCTION
553
Traditions of Song Lyric (Tang and Song Dynasties) Bowing to the New Moon (late 8th century, attributed to Li Duan or Geng Wei) Anonymous (Dun-huang) , to " Bowing to the New Moon" (Bai xin yue ) (before 850) Anonymous (Dun-huang) , to "The Magpie Steps on the Branch " (Que ta zhi ) Anonymous (Dun-huang) , to "Washing Creek Sands"
(Huan xi sha) Treatment of a Motif: The Dru nken H usband's Return Anonymous (8th century?), to "The Drunken Lord " (Zui
gong -zi) Anonymous (Dun-huang) , to " Fisherman's Lyrics " (Yu ge ci) Wei Zhuang (834?-910) , to " Immortal in Heaven" (Tian xian zi ) Xue Zhao-yun (early 10th century) , to "The Drunken Lord "
(Zui gong -zi)
559
560 560 561 562 562 562 5 63 563 563
Yin E (early 10th century) , to "The D runken Lord"
(Zui gong-zi ) Anonymous (collected early 17th century) , " Hanging Branch Song" Tang and Five D ynasties Lyrics
Huang-fu Song (early 9th century) , to "Dream of the Southland " (Meng Jiang-nan ) Wen Ting-yun (d . 870) , to "Boddhisattva Barbarian"
(Pu-sa man ) He Ning (898-955) , to " Mo untain Flower" (Shan -hua-zi) Wei Zhuang (ca. 836-910) , to " Boddhisattva Barbarian"
(Pu-sa man)
564 564 565 565 565 566 566
Ou-yang Jiong (896-971) , to "The South Country "
(Nan xiang zi) to "Washing Creek Sands " (Huan xi sha)
567 567 xxiii
Contents Li Yu (937-978), to " B oddhisattva Barbarian" (Pu-sa man ) to " Pleasure in the Lovely Woman " (Yu mei-ren ) (attributed), to "The Pleasures of Meeting"
(Xiang-jian huan) The Pa rty Songs of the Eleventh Century
568 568 569 569
Yan Shu (991-1055) , to " Breaking Through the Ranks "
(Po zhen-zi) to " Washing Creek Sands " (Huan xi shaY Ou-yang Xiu (1007-1072) (or Feng Yan-si) , to " Butterflies Love Flowers " (Die lian hua) to " Immortal by the River " (Lin-jiang xian )
569 5 70 5 70 5 70
The S o n gs of Romance Yan Ji-dao (mid-lIth-early 12th century) , to "B utterflies Love Flowers " (Die lian hua ) to "Partridge Weather" (Zhe-gu tian ) (2 versions) to "The Springtime of Marble Halls " (Yu-lou chun) to " Young Ruan Returns " (Ruan lang gui) Liu Yong (987-1053) , to "Turning Back After Seeing the Flowers " (Kan -hua hui) to "Joy at Midnight" (Ye -ban Ie) Zho u Bang-yan (1056-1121) , to " Gallant " (Feng-liu-zi) to " Spring in the Mansion of Jade " (Yu-lou chun )
571
Su Shi (1037-1101)
5 77
to to to to
" Song for the River Tune " (Shui-diao ge-(ou) " Immortal by the River" (Lin-jiang xian ) " Settling Wind and Waves " (Ding (eng-bo) "The Charms of Nian-nu " (Nian-n ii jiao) : Meditation on the Past at Red Cliff
Li Qing-zhao (1084-ca. 1151)
Like a Dream (Ru meng ling) to " Note After Note " (Sheng-sheng man ) to " Southern Song" (Nan-ge-zi) to " Free-Spirited Fisherman" (Yu- jia a o)
5 72 5 72 573 5 73 5 74 575 5 76 577
577 578 5 78 5 79 580 580 581 581 582
The Ea rly Southern Song Lu You (1125-1210), to "Partridge Weather " (Zhe-gu tian ) Xin Qi-ji (1140-1207), to " Clear and Even Music " (Qing-ping yue ) . An account on the Censer Mountain Road to " West River Moon" (Xi jiang yue). Expressing what was on my mind to " Ugly Slave " (Chou n u-er)
583
The Master Craftsmen Jiang Kui (ca. 1155-1221) , to " Red Filling the River "
585
(Man jiang hong) to " Fragrance from Somewhere Unseen" (An xiang) XXIV
583 584 584 584
585 586
Contents Shi Da-zu (fl. 1200), to " Scent of Lace " (Ji luo xiang). On spring rain Wu Wen-ying (ca. 1200-ca. 1260), to " Wind Enters Pine s "
(Feng ru song) to "Night-Closing Flowers " (Ye he hua). Going along the Crane River on my way to the capital, I moored at Feng Gate and was moved to write this to "Treading the Sedge " (Ta suo xing)
Interlude: U Qing-zhao's Epilogue to Records on Metal and Stone
587 5 88
589 589
591
Classical Prose
597
Memorial
597
Han Yu (768-824), Memorial Discussing the Buddha's Bone Essay
Liu Zong-yuan (773-819), A Theory of Heaven Letters
Bo Ju-yi (772-846), Letter to Yuan Zhen (Yuan Wei-zhi) Prefaces
Anonymous (member of Hui-yuan's circle), A Preface for the Poems Written on an Excursion to Stonegate Han Yu, A Preface on Sending Li Yuan Back to Winding Valley Ou-yang Xiu (1007-1072), Preface on Sending Xu Wu-tang Off on His Way Home S outh Accou nts of Visits (you-ji)
Liu Zong-yuan, An Account of the Small Hill West of Gu-mu Pond (from the " Eight Accounts of Yong-zhou") An Account of Little Rock Rampart Mountain (from the "Eight Accounts of Yong-zhou ") Ou-yang Xiu, An Account of the Pavilion of the Drunken Old Man
598 601 601 603 603 605 605 607 609 61 0 61 1 61 2 61 3
Fu nera ry Genres Cao Zhi (192-232), A Lament for Golden Gourd, Jin-hu Tao Qian, A Sacrificial Prayer for the Dead on My Own Behalf
614
Parables Liu Zong-yuan, "Three Cautionary Tales " : The Fawn of Lin-j iang The Story of the Fuban, or Pack Beetle
61 7
Informal Prose Su Shi (1037-1101), Written After Seeing the Paintings of Wu Dao-zi
61 8
61 4 61 5
61 7 61 7
61 8
xxv
Contents Fu Shan (1609-1684), Colophon on the " Account of the Scarlet Maple Tower "
Place
619 620
The Master of Cold Mountain (Tang) Su Shi, Account of a Visit to Lu Mountain (from The Forest
of Records)
Account of Stone Bell Mountain
Thrills
Chao Bu-zhi (1053-1110), An Account of a Visit to North Mountain at Xin-cheng Cheng Min-zheng (ca. 1446-ca. 1500), Night Passage Over Two Passes People and Places
Wen Zheng-ming (1470-1559), Preface to the "Joint Collection of Poems on Seeking Plums on Xuan-mu Mountain " Ou-yang Xiu (1007-1072), An Account of the Pavilion on Mount Xian A City: Yang-zhou Du Mu, Getting Something Off My Mind Presented to Someone on Parting Yang-zhou (first of three) Written on Chan-zhi Temple in Yang-zhou Zhang Hu (9th century), Roaming Free in Huai-nan Jiang Kui (1155-1221), to "Yang-zhou Andante " Su Shi, to " Moon Over West River " : on Level Mountain Hall Wei Xi (1624-1680), An Account of the Reconstruction of Level Mountain Hall
The Ornaments of "literati" Culture Co n noisseu rship
620 621 622 624 624 625 627
62 7 629 630 631 631 631 632 632 632 633 634
637 637
638 Ou-yang Xiu; Seal Script in Stone (1045) 640 Su Shi, Shi Cang-shu's "Hall of Drunken Ink " (1068) On the Paintings of Bamboo by Wen Tong in the 642 Collection of Chao Bu-zhi (first of three) from " An Account of Wen Tong's Paintings of the Slanted Bamboo of Yun-dang Valley " 642 On the Painting of Tiered Bluffs and the Misty River in the 643 Collection of Wang Ding-guo (1088) Wang An-shi (1021-1086), My Brother Wang Chun-fu Brings Out a Painting by the Monk Hui-chong and Engages Me to Write a Poem on It 644
xxvi
Contents
from Ou-yang Xiu, Remarks on Poetry (Shi-hua )
646
Su Shi, " S ome Time Ago in Chen Han-qing's House in Chang-an...."
64 7
Ordinary Things
649
Mei Yao-chen (1002-1060), A Companion Piece to Xie Jing-chu's " Spending the Night in My Wife's Study, Hearing Mice, and Being Greatly Troubled " In the Rain, Spending the Night in the Library of Messrs. Xie, Xu, and Pei At a Party Given by Fan Zhong-yan the Guests Spoke of Eating " River-Hog, " or the Blowfish Yang Wan-Ii (1127-1206), A Child Playing with Ice Watching Ants Su Shi, Thirteen Companion Pieces for Wen Tong's " Garden Pool in Yang-zhou " : Bridge Over the Lake Yang Wan-Ii, June 10, 1177, Traveling by Boat to Take Up My Post at Pi-ling . . Su Shi, East Slope Lu You (1125-1210), Snowy Night Drawing Water from the Well and Making Tea Zhou Mi (1232-1298), "Sunning Oneself" (from .
Qi-dong ye-yu) Chao Duan-you (11th century), Spending the Night at an Inn Outside the West Gate of Ji-zhou Huang Ting-jian (1045-1105), August 17, Sleeping in Daytime Pasto ral Scenes
He Zhu (1063-1120) , A Walk in the Wilds Kong Ping-zhong (d. after 1101), The Grain Is Ripe Ou-yang Xiu, Ox Fan Cheng-da (1126-1191), A Description of Walking in the Meadows on Cold Food Festival (first of two) Lu You, Visiting West-of-the-Mountain Village Walking in the Wilds Fan Cheng-da, Various Occasions of Interest in the Fields and Gardens Through the Four Seasons XV XXXI XXXIII XL XLIV LII Wit
649 650 650 651 651 652 652 652 653 653 654 656 656 656 65 7 65 7 65 7 65 7 658 658 659 659 659 659 659 659 660
660
Yang Wan-li, Strolling Along a Juniper Path in the Morning (second of two)
660 XXVll
Contents Lu You, On the Three Peaks of Magic Stone Mountain Plum Blossoms III (1202) Yang Wan-Ii, For Play Coda: Self-Conscio usness
Su Shi
660 661 661 661
Lu You, Meeting a Gentle Rain on the Sword-Gate Pass Road (1172) In Moonlight
662
(1037-1101)
663
Account of the Hall of Precious Artworks to " Fragrance Fills the Yard" (Man-ting fang) Account of the Terrace "Passing Beyond" Getting Up at Night in a Boat (1079) Visiting White Waters. Written for my son Su Mai (from The
Forest of Notes)
661
663 665 665 667 668
Account of a Visit One Night to Cheng-tian Temple (from The
Forest of Notes) On the Winter Festival I Visited Lone Mountain and the Two Monks Hui-jin and Hui-si (1071) Account of a Visit to Pine River (from The Forest of Notes) The Ocean Mirage at D eng-zhou (1085) Companion Pieces to Chen Xiang's " Peonies on a Winter Day" (1073) (first of four) from " Eight Poems on Eastern Slope " (1081) The Second P oetic Exposition on Red Cliff to " D own and Out Drunk" (Zui luo-po), Written on Leaving Jing-kou Tong-chao Tower at Zheng-mai Station (1100) Crossing the Sea, June 20, 1100 Relatio nships A Companion Piece to Su Che's "Thoughts of Former Times at Mian-chi " lOu-yang Xiu], On the Carved Stone Screen of Wu Kui, the Han-lin Academician (1056) Ou-yang Xiu Asks Me to Write a Poem on a Stone Screen That He Owns (1071) An Account of the Pavilion for Setting the Cranes Free
Song Classical Poetry Ou-ya n g Xiu (1007-1072) On the Pavilion of the Drunken Old Man in Chu-zhou A Companion Piece to Liu Chang's " Clear Heart Paper " Boating on West Lake: to Zhang Shan, Academician and Fiscal Commissioner White Egret XXVlll
668 669 670 672 673 674 675 676 677 677 678 678 679 680 681 684 684 685 686 687 688
Contents Mei Yao-chen (1002-1060)
A Lone Hawk Over the Buddha Tower of the Monastery of Univers al Purity Writing of My Sorrow Listenin g to a Neighbo r Singing at Night On March 26, 1048, I Had a Dream Crescent Moon Wang An-shi (1021-1086) The Temple of Shooting Stars Meditation on the Past at Jin-ling III Climbing Baa-gong Pagoda . Wu-zhen Monastery One Day Coming Home : Ballad (on the death of his wife) H u ang Ting-jian (1045-1105)
Following the Rhymes of Huang Da-lin's " Sent to Su Che " To Huang Ji-fu Asking for a Cat
688
688 690 690 690 691 691 691 692 692 693 693 693 694 694 695
Lu You (1125-1210) Small Garden Gazing in the Evening North of My Cottage End of Spring (1197) Lonely Cloud Song of Draft Cursive For My Sons
695
Yang Wan-Ii (1127-1206) Yan Ji-sheng, Chancellor of Education, Invited His Junior Colleagues to Visit the Pei Garden .. . During an Intercalary August After the " Arrival of Autumn" It Was Hot in Evening and I Went to Be Cool in the Prefectural Garden (first of two) One Day Before New Year's Eve, While Returning by Boat, We Moored at Qu-wo Market, and I Spent the Night in Zhi-ping Temple Just Before the Mid-March 1164 Festival, I Heard That My Father Was not Feeling Well . .. (first of two) Two Companion Pieces for Li Tian-lin (first of two) Ten Stanzas on the Autumn Rain (one of ten) March 5, 1180. In early morning crossing on the Great Marsh ferry (first of two) Going to the Palace Library Early in the Morning with the Crescent Moon Just Rising A Child Crying for Food
698
695 696 696 697 697 698
698
699
699 700 700 700 701 701 702 XXlX
Contents Coda
702
Wang Yuan-liang, Songs of Hu-zhou (third of ninety-eight) to " Leaves of a Thousand Lotuses" (Qiau-he ye)
Interlude: Wen Tian-xiang the Song
702 703
(1236-1282) and the Fall of 704
from The Account of the Compass (Zhi-nan Zu)
705
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties THE Y UAN AN D MIN G DYN ASTIES: IN TRODUCTION
723
Yuan Vernacular Song Guan Han-qing (late 13th-early 14th century) , to "A Spray of Flowers" (Not Giving In to Old Age) Zhong Si-cheng (14th century) , from a song sequence to "A . Spray of Flowers" (A Word About Ugly Studio) Xu Zai-si (14th century) , to " Dead Drunk in the East Wind "
(Chen -zui dong-feng) Bo Pu (1226-after 1306) , to "Victory Music " (De sheng yue) Qiao Ji (d. 1345) , to Lii-yao-bian, Of Myself Wang He-qing (late 13th century) , to "Heaven Drunk" (Zui-zhong Tian), Big Butterfly to "Helped Home Drunk " (Zui fu gui) Lan Chu-fang (14th century? ) , to "Four Pieces of Jade " (Si-kuai yu), Passion Guan Han-qing, to "A Half" (Yi-ban-er) Xu Zai-si, to " Moon Palace" (Chan -gong qu), Spring Passion Zhang Ke-jiu (ca. 1280-after 1348) , to " Someone Leaning on the Balustrade" (Ping-Zan ren), By the Lake Guan Yun-shi (1286-1324) , to " Clear River" (Qing-jiang yin ) Zhang Yang-hao (1270-1329) , to " Sheep on the Hillside" (Shan-po yang), Thoughts on the Past at Tong Pass Anon., to "Drunk in an Age of Peace" (Zui tai-ping) Ma Zhi-yuan (1260-1325) to "Heaven Pure Sand" (Tian jing sha ), Autumn Thoughts to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu), Clearing Haze at a Market in the Hills to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu), A Sail Returns to the D istant Shore to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu), Evening Bells in a Misty Temple to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu), Evening Sunshine in a Fishing Village xxx
728
729 731 734 735 735 736 736 736 737 737 738 738 738 739 739 740 740 740 740 741
Contents to " Shou-yang Melody " (Shou-yang qu), Autumn Moonlight on Lake Dong-ting A Suite on Autumn Thoughts I. to "A Boat Going by Night" (Ye xing chuan) II. to " Tall Trees Far Away " (Qiao-m u yao) III. to " Celebrating the Xu an-he Reign " (Qing Xuan -he) IV. to " The Wind That Brings D own Plum Blossoms "
(Luo-mei-feng) V. to "Wind Enters Pines" (Feng ru song) VI. to "Keep Stirring Things Up " (Bo-bu-duan) VII. to "Feast at the Pavilion of Parting" (Li-ting yan shay
741 741 741 742 742 742 742 742 743
Variety Plays: Guan Han-qing, Rescuing One of the Girls
(jiu feng-chen)
744
from The Romance of the Gods (Feng-shen yan-yi): Ne-zha and His Father Episode XII : Ne-zha Is Born into the World at Chen-tang Pass Episode XIII : The High Immortal Unity Catches Rock-in-the-Stream Episode XIV : The Reincarnation of Ne-zha from a Lotus Blossom
late Ming Informal Prose Li Zhi (1527-1602) , " On the Child-Mind " Yuan Hong-dao (1568-1610) , O n Chen Zheng-fu's Collected Works, Intuitive Grasp Spider-Fighting Letter to Li Zi-ran Letter to Qiu Chang-ru Tu Long (1542-1605) , From the capital, to a Friend Chen Ji-ru (1558-1639) , A Colophon for " The History ofFlowers " Zhang Dai (1597-1679) , Night Theater on Gold Mountain ( " The Dream Recollections of Tao-an") Mid-September on West Lake ( " The Dream Recollections of Tao-an ") Viewing the Snow from " Heart of the Lake Pavilion" ( " The Dream Recollections of Tao-an") The Performance of Peng Tian-xi ( " The Dream Recollections of Tao-an") Preface t o " Tracing West Lake i n a Dream" Belatedness Yuan Zhong-dao (1570-1623) , A Preface to " Poetry of the Song and Yuan "
771 772 784 794 807 808 81 1 81 2 81 3 81 4 81 4 81 5 81 5 81 6 81 8 81 8 81 9
820 821 XXXI
Contents D i a ry Yuan Zhong- dao, from " Accoun t of My Travels in Fei" Wang Xiu-chu , from "Ten D ays of Yang-zhou "
Vernacular Stories: Feng Meng-Iong and lang-xian Feng Meng-long (1574-1646), "Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger " (from Common Words to Warn the World, translated by Robert Ashmore) Lang-xian, " Censor Xue Finds Immortality in the Guise of a Fish" (from Constant Words to Awaken the World, translated by Robert Ashmore)
823 824 826 834
835
856 880
Tang Xian-zu, Peony Pavilion: Selected Acts An Introductory Comme nt on Peon y Pavil ion Wakin g Suddenly from Dream (X) Looking Over the Portrait (XXVI)
881 882 892 896
Secret Union (XXVIII)
The Qing Dynasty TH E Q I N G DYN ASTY : I N TRODUCTION
909
li Yu, Silent Operas ( Wu-sheng xi): "An Actress Scorns Wealth and Honor to Preserve Her Chastity" (translated by Patrick Hanan)
91 5
Kong Shang-ren, Peach Blossom Fan: Selected Acts
942
Prologue (I), October 1684 Teaching the Song (II), April 1643 Refusing the Trousseau (VII), May 1643 Sending the Fan (XXIII), January 1645 from " Accepting the Way" (XL), September 1645
g Life: Hong Sheng (1605 -1704 ), The Palace of Lastin Selected Acts Prologue and Argument (I) D eclaration of Love (II) Bribe (III) Outing on a Spring Holiday (V) Omen (X) The Music (XI) Melody-Theft (XIV) Bringing Her Fruit (XV) The Circle for D ance (XVI) xxxii
943 946 953 960 968
973 975 976 983 988 995 1 002 1 008 1 01 4 1 020
Contents Peeking at the Bathers (XXI) Secret Pledge (XXII) Jade Burial (XXV) Gift of a Meal (XXVI) Denouncing the Rebel (XXVIII) Bells (XXIX) Stocking-Viewing (XXXVI) The Corpse Released (XXXVII) Ballad (XXXVIII) The Immortal's Recollections (XL) Reunion (L)
Pu Song-ling
(1 640-1 715), Liao-zhai's Record of Wonders
Lian-xiang Xiao-cui Blue Maid
Qing Classical Poetry and Song lyric Gu Yan-wu (1613-1682)
Autumn Hills (first of two) Wu We i-ye (1609-1671)
Escaping the Fighting (fifth of six) Escaping the Fighting (last of six) A Lament for My D aughter (first of three) West Fields (first of four) Mooring in the Evening from Thoughts Stirred on Meeting the Gardener of the Royal Academy in Nanjing Wa ng S h i -z h e n (1634-1711)
Crossing the Ancient Barrier Pass in the Rain (1672) O n the Ba River Bridge: Sent Home t o My Wife (second of two) Farm Home by Cu-lai Mountain On the Qing-yang Road What I Saw on the Northern O utskirts of Zhen-zhou At Daybreak I Crossed the Ping-j iang River and Climbed on Foot to the Summit of Crossing-Above-Clouds Mountain N ara S i n gde (1655-1685) to "Like a Dream " (Ru meng ling) to " Clear and Even Music " (Qing -ping yue ) to " Seeking Fragrant Plants " (Xun fang-cao), Account of a Dream in Xiao Temple to " Golden Threads" (Jin -lu qu), Thoughts on the Anniversary of My Wife's D eath
1 028 1 033 1041 1 048 1 054 1059 1 063 1067 1076 1 087 1091 1 1 03 1 1 03 111 3 1 1 20 1 1 28 1129 1 1 30 1 1 30 1 1 31 1 1 31 1 1 32 1 1 33 1 1 33 1 1 34 1 1 35 1 1 35 1 1 35 1 1 36 1 1 36 1 1 36 11 36 1 1 37 1 1 37 1 1 37 1 1 38 1 1 38 xxxiii
Contents to " Like a Dream" (Ru meng ling) to "Butterflies Love Flowers " (Die lian hua ), On the Frontier
1 1 39 1 1 39
Zhao Yi (1727-1814) Poems on My Dwelling in the Rear Park (second of nine) Poems on My Dwelling in the Rear Park (third of nine) Returning on Yang Lake Local Song In Bed Livelihood On Poetry (two of five)
1140
H uang J i n g-ren (1749-1783) Written at Night at an Inn in the Hills (second and third of three) [title lost 1 Visiting Ju-fa-yuan Temple with Wang Qiu-cheng and Zhang He-chai A Companion Piece to a Poem by Qian Bai-quan Dreaming of a Friend One Night Offhand Compositions: New Year's Eve 1774
1144
G o n g Z i -zhen (1792-1841) Poems of the Year Ji-hai, 1 8 3 9 V LXXXVI CXXV CLXX Another Repentance From Spring to Autumn of 1827 Some Things Came to Me Which I Wrote D own Haphazardly (last of fifteen)
1146
H uang Zu n-xian (1848-1905) On Reaching Hong Kong Various Responses on an Ocean Voyage (one of fourteen)
1 1 49
Q i u J i n (1879-1907) Mr. Ishii of Japan Seeks a Matching Verse (using his rhymes) On the Yellow Sea: A Man from Japan Sought Some Verses and Also Showed Me a Map of the Russo-Japanese War
1150
Wang G u o-wei (1877-1927) to "Putting on Lipstick " (Dian jiang chun) to "Washing Creek Sands " (Huan xi shaY
1151
Selected Further Readings
1153
Acknowledgments
1 1 65
Index
1 1 67
XXXIV
1140 1140 1141 1141 1 1 42 1143 1143
1144 1 1 44 1 1 45 1145 1 1 45 1146
1147 1147 1147 1147 1148 1 1 48 1148
1149 1150
1150 1151
1 1 52 1152
Ti mel i ne
H I ST O R Y Fou n d i n g of t h e Z h o u Dynasty 1 020 B . C . Wesi ern Zhou
L I T E R AT U R E the "Temple Hymns " o f the Classic o fPoetry (Shi-jing) and the earliest sections of the Classic of Documents (Shu-jing)
Zhou capital moved east, beg i n n i n g of the Eastern Zhou and the period of The Springs and Autumns of Lu (Chun-qiu) 770 B . C .
Classic of Poetry reaches its final form ca. 600 B.C. Confu c i u s ca. 552-479 B . C . Begi n n i n g of the Warri ng States p e r i o d 4 03 B .C. Period of the " H u nd red Schoo l s " of C h i nese thought
Qin u n ification 221 B.C. Fall of Qin 206 B . C . Beg i n n i ng o f Western H a n
R e i g n o f Em peror W u o f H a n 1 40-86 B . C . Esta b l i s h ment o f the M u s i c B u reau (yue-fu) 1 20 B.C.
C h i nese expansion i n to Central Asia U s u rpation of Wang Mang 8 B . C . Restoration of H a n a n d begi n n i ng of the Eastern Han A . D . 25 B u d d h i s m i ntrod u ced i nto C h i n a 1 st century J i an-an re ign (1 96-220). Power in North C h i n a i n t h e h a n d s o f C a o Cao Formal end of the Han and beg i n n i ng of the Th ree K i ngdoms (220-265)
J i n Dyn asty reu n ifies C h i n a 280 North C h i n a fa l l s to non-Chi nese i nvaders 31 6 ; the Jin c o u rt i s reestabl i s h e d south of the Yangz i . B eg i n n i n g of the Southern Dynasties 31 7-589
The Zuo Tradition Zhuang Zhou and the early chapters of the Zhuang-zi Qu Yuan (ca. 340-299 B.C. ) and the traditional date of the " Lyrics of Chu" (Chu-ci) Schemes of the Warring States (Zhan-guo ce) " Mao Commentary" to the Classic of Poetry Jia Yi (200-1 6 8 B . C . ) , poetic expositions and essays Mei Sheng (d. 140 B . C . ) ? poetic expositions attributed to Song Yu poetic expositions (fu) of Si-ma Xian-ru ( 1 791 1 7 B.C. ) Historical Records of Si-ma Qian (ca. 1 5 4-87 B.C. ) final form of the " Great Preface" to the Classic of Poetry Ban Gu (A.D. 32-9 2 ) , The Han History period of anonymous yue-jU and " old poems " ? Wang Can ( 1 77-2 1 7) , poet Cao Cao ( 1 55-22 0 ) , ruler and poet Cao Zhi ( 1 92-2 3 2 ) , poet and Cao Cao's son Ruan Ji ( 2 1 0-26 3 ) , poet and recluse Lu Ji (261-3 0 3 ) . " The Poetic Exposition on Literature" Wang Xi-zhi, Preface to the " Orchid Pavilion Poems " 3 5 3
xxxv
Timeline Rise of the i nfl u e nce of B u d d h i s m and major p rojects of sutra tra n s l at i o n
Tao Qian ( 3 65-427), poet and recluse Xie Lingyun ( 3 8 5-43 3 ) , landscape poet Bao Zhao (ca. 4 1 4-466 ) , poet Liu Xie (ca. 465-522 ) , critic and author of Wen-xin diao-Iong the 'poetry of the Southern courts Yu Xin ( 5 13-5 8 1 ) , poet
S u i conq uers C h e n a n d reu n ifies C hi na 589 Tang Dyn asty fou nded 61 8 Reign of X u an-zong (71 2-756), the " H i g h Tang" Tang wars i n Central As i a An L u - s h a n Rebe l l i o n 755 The " M i d-Tang"
Meng Hao-ran (ca. 6 8 9-74 0 ) , poet Wang Wei (ca. 699-76 1 ) , poet Li Bo ( 70 1-762 ) , poet Du Fu ( 7 12'-770 ) , poet Tang tales (chuan-qi) Meng Jiao (751-8 1 4 ) , poet Li He ( 79 1 -8 1 7) , poet Liu Zong-yuan ( 773-8 1 9 ) , essayist , Han )Tu ( 768-824 ) , poet and essayist Yuan Zhen (779-8 3 1 ) , poet and author of "Ying-ying's Story "
The " L ate Tang"
F a l l of the Tang 906 ; begi n n i ng of the " F ive Dynasties" Song Dynasty reu n ifies C h i n a 960
I n it i a l development of Neo-Confu c i a n i s m En actment o f W a n g An-s h i ' s "New Laws" pol i cy 1 069 Commerc i a l a n d state-sponsored p r i n t i n g
J i n i nvaders capture the two Song em perors and the Song i s reestab l i shed in the South 1 1 27 Z h u Xi (1 1 3 0-1 200), Neo-Confu c i a n p h i l osopher a n d commentator on the C l assics H a n g-zhou, the Southern Song capita l , flou r i s hes w i t h major d eve lopment of commerc i a l p r i n t i n g
xxxvi
Bo Ju-yi ( 772-846) poet, " S ong of Lasting Pain" Du Mu ( 8 03-8 5 2 ) , poet Li Shang-yin ( 8 1 3-8 5 8 ) , poet Yu Xuan-ji, poet Wen Ting-yun (d. 870), poet and early lyricist Wei Zhuang (ca. 8 3 6-9 1 0 ) , poet and lyricist Li Yu ( 9 3 7-97 8 ) , last emperor of the Southern Tang, lyricist Liu Yong ( 9 8 7-1 053 ) , popular lyricist Yan Shu ( 9 9 1 - 1 0 5 5 ) , lyricist Mei Yao-chen ( 1 002-1 060), poet Ou-yang Xiu ( 1 007-1072), poet, lyricist, and essayist Wang An-shi ( 1 021-1 0 8 6 ) , poet and statesman Su Shi ( 1 0 3 7-1 1 0 1 ) , poet, lyricist, essayist, painter, calligrapher Yan Ji-dao, lyricist Huang Ting-jian ( 1 045-1 1 0 5 ) , poet Zhou Bang-yan ( 1 056-1 1 2 1 ) , lyricist Li Qing-zhao ( 1 0 84--ca. 1 1 5 1 ) , lyricist, Epilogue to Records on Metal and Stone Fan Cheng-da ( 1 1 26-1 1 9 1 ) , poet Yang Wan-Ii ( 1 127-1 2 0 6 ) , poet Xin Qi-ji ( 1 140-1207), lyricist Lu You ( 1 125-1 2 1 0 ) , poet and lyricist Jiang Kui ( 1 1 55-1 22 1 ) , .lyricist Wu Wen-ying (ca. 1200--ca. 1260 ) , lyricist
Timeline F a l l of the Southern Song; the Y u a n reu n ifies C h i n a 1 279
Wen Tian-xiang ( 12 3 6-12 8 2 ) , The Accoun t of the Compa ss Yuan vernacular song Guan Han-qin g's variety. play, Rescuing One of the Girls
F a l l of the Y u a n ; fou n d i ng of the M i ng 1 368 Archaists, advocat i n g im itat ion of earl ier models, dom i n ate c l a s s i c a l l iterature, p rovo k i n g reaction and grow i n g i n te rest in vernac u l a r l i teratu re F a l l of the M i n g ; fou n d i n g of the Q i n g 1 644
Li Zhi ( 1 527--,16 02), philoso pher Yuan Hong-da o ( 1 5 68-1 6 1 0 ) , poet and essayist Tang Xian-zu ( 1 5 5 0-1 6 1 7 ) , Peony Pavilion The Romanc e ofthe Gods ( 1 6th century) "Ten Days of Yang-zh ou" ( 1 64 5 ) by Wang Xiu-chu . Feng Meng-long ( 1 5 74-1 646 ) , story writer and collector of vernacular literature Lang-xian, story writer, " Censor Xue Finds Immortality in the Guise of a Fish" Wu Wei-ye ( 1 609- 1 6 7 1 ) , poet Zhang Dai ( 1 5 9 7-1 6 79 ) , essayist Li Yu ( 1 6 1 1-1 6 8 0 ) , "An Actress Scorns Wealth and Honor . . . " Gu Yan-wu ( 1 6 1 3- 1 6 8 2 ) , poet and scholar Wang Shi-zhen ( 1 634-1 7 1 1 ) , poet Nara Singde ( 1 655-1 6 8 5 ) , lyricist
Com p i l ation of the Complete Tang Poetry 1 705
O p i u m War beg i n s 1 840 Tai-ping tian-guo Rebe l l io n 1 850-60s
Pu Song-ling ( 1 640-1 7 1 5 ) , Liao-zhai's Record of Wonders final version of The Palace of Lasting Life ( 1 6 8 8 ) by Hong Sheng Peach Blossom Fan ( 1 6 9 9 ) by Kong Shang ren Wu Jing-zi ( 1 70 1- 1 754), novelist, author of The Scholars ( published 1 8 0 3 ) C a o Xue-qin ( 1 7 1 5-1763 ) , novelist, author of Story of the Stone Zhao Yi ( 1 727-1 8 1 4 ) , poet Huang Jing-ren ( 1 749-1 7 8 3 ) , poet Gong Zi-zhen ( 1 792-1 8 4 1 ) , poet first publicatio n of Story of the Stone ( 1 79 1 ) Huang Zun-xian ( 1 848-1 9 0 5 ) , poet and diplomat
Boxer Rebe l l io n beg i n s 1 89 9
Qiu Jin ( 1 8 79-1 907), poet and revolutionary
Fal l of the Q i n g ; esta b l i shment of the Rep u b l i c 1 91 1
Wang Guo-wei (1 8 77-1 92 7 ) , poet, scholar, and Qing loyalist May 4 movement ( 1 9 1 9 ) advocating the use of the vernacular in all writing
XXXVll
I ntrod u cti o n
The C h i nese l iterary trad ition extends conti n u o u s l y from early i n the fi rst m i l l e n n i u m B.C.
to the present. I t was u nt i l very recently the bas i s o f a l l C h i nese read i n g, a n d a
l iterate adol escent co u l d read a l l b u t the earl i est works i n th i s trad ition with l ittl e d i ffi c u l ty, i f n ot a l ways w ith pe rfect accu racy. The trad i t i o n ' s g row i n g b o d y of works-th e c l as s i cs, p h i l osophy, h i sto ry, and l iteratu re-u n ified C h i nese c i v i l iza tion through its long h i story a n d across reg i o n a l d i v i s i o n s of l a n g u age. As was true of a n c i e nt c i v i l izations in gen e ra l , w h at we now call l ite rature was i n it i a l l y i n separable fro m h i story and thought. The stories of legendary he roes were n e i t h e r h i story nor ficti o n in the modern sense, but the beg i n n i ng of both : the " p h i l osopher's" fantasti c spec u l ations a d m i tted n o c l ear d i ffere ntiat i o n between ver bal i n vention a n d thought; a n d the l y r i c poem was c o n s i d e red the em bod i ment of m o ra l and h i sto r i c a l truth s . A sense o f " l iteratu re" a s a category o f w r it i n g d i st i n ct from t h o u g h t d i d eve n tu a l l y beg i n t o take s h a pe, a l t h o u g h it w a s n o t a l ways " l iteratu re" i n the same way we use the te rm in the twentieth century. L i ke o u r own con cept, the scope and de f i n ition of C h i nese I iterat ure c h a n ged over the centu ri e s . Poetry and n o n -fiction ( i n c l u d i n g essays, l ette rs, a n d even pol itical d o c u m ents) were c o n s i d e red ser i o u s l i t eratu re; n ove l s a n d p rose ficti o n were n ot fu l l y accepted as true l iteratu re u nt i l the l ast cent u ry in C h i n a-nor in E n g l a n d a n d E u rope, fo r that matter . D rama, t h o u g h i m mensely pop u l a r a n d sop h i sti cated, acq u i red o n l y m a rg i n a l l e g i t i m acy i n C h i n a . Yet these works, both " h i g h I iteratu re" a n d t h e p o p u l a r gen res o f fict i o n a n d d ra m a, were perhaps the most bel oved component of the textu a l u n ity of C h i n ese c i v i l i za tio n . A n i neteenth-century merchant, a B u d d h i st monk, a n d a Confu c i a n offi c i a l may h ave held p rofo u n d l y d ifferent val u es ; the n atu re a n d d e pth of the i r educat i o n s m a y h a v e d i ffe red g reatly; b u t all th ree wou l d p ro b a b l y h ave k n o w n , l oved, a n d m e m o r i z e d a few o f the same p o e m s by L i B o . They wou ld have m e m orized the poems as c h i l d re n and rec i ted them t h ro u g h o u t the i r l i ves when the occa s i o n seemed ap propriate. Although the l i terary trad i t i o n was a u n i fy i n g fo rce, it was far from m o no l ith i c . B road l y defi ned, C h i nese I iterature offered i ts peo p l e a w i d e ran ge o f h u m a n poss i b i l.ities a n d res p o nses. L i te ratu re cou l d confirm soc i a l v a l ues, twi st t h e m , o r s u bvert them a l together. The e i ghth-centu ry poet Du F u p ro v i ded a Confu c i a n vo i ce of p r i n c i p le d response t o d y n asti c u p h eaval a n d soc i a l s u ffe r i n g . W h e n W e n T i a n -x i a n g , the captu red h e r o o f the Song res i stance t o the M o n g o l i nvas i o n , awa ited his exe cution in Da- d u , modern B e i j i ng, h e passed h i s t i m e in p r i so n compos i n g poems made up of memorized l i nes of Du Fu rearra nged . Later, when the M an c h u s con q u e red C h i n a in the m i d -seventeenth centu ry, Du Fu's poetry p ro v i ded a model for how to g i ve an accou nt of the h u ma n s uffe r i n g that was caused. L i kewise, if a p e rxxxix
Introduction son fe l t expan s i ve, th ere were the poems of Li Bo; if a person h u n gered for the s i m p l e l ife , there w a s t h e poetry o f Tao Q i a n a n d W a n g We i ; i f a person w a s i n l ove, there was the poetry of Li S h a ng-y i n o r Tang X i a n-zu's p l ay, Peony Pa vilio n. Popu l a r I iteratu re i n vernac u l a r C h i n ese, espec i a l l y p rose ficti o n , a l so could represent the i m p u l ses that the c i v i l izat i o n rep ressed . A person m i ght be l i eve that a son o w e d ab s o l ute obed i e n ce to h i s father, but that same person as a reade r cou l d enjoy read i n g in The Romance of the Gods how the d i v i n e c h i l d Ne-zha c h ased down h i s fa ther with m u rdero u s i ntent. Readers of a n other age and c u l t u re often h ave the i m p u l se to i d e ntify some u n i tary "Ch i neseness" i n t h i s l iteratu re-pe rhaps i s o l at i n g t h e i m age o f a n o l d fisher m a n in the m i sty m o u n ta i n s utte r i n g words of Dao i st w isd o m . This i m a g i n ary C h i n a i s constructed out of t h e motives a n d h i story o f outs i d e c u ltu res ; i t i s i m po rta nt to see t h i s s i m p l ified i m age as s u c h , a n d to recog n ize the i m m e n se d i versity of trad i tional C h i n a t h r o u g h out i ts l o n g h i story. One of the most d i sto rt i n g e l ements of the co nvent i o n a l Western i m age of tra d i t i o n a l C h i n a is the bel i ef in its c h a n gelessness. There were i n d eed conti n u ities i n the c u lture a n d n o sense of p rofo u n d a l i e nation from the past u nt i l the twentieth cen tu ry, but i n both fact and self- i m age, trad itional C h i n a was i nte nsely " h i sto rical," each h i stor i c a l period c h a racterized by its d i sti n ctive perso n a l ity. I n deed, the read er's awareness of the peri od of which he or s h e was read i n g was an i m portant part of the read i n g experience. V i ewed from a l a rge perspective, these works were part of a o n go i n g c reat i o n of a m yth of C h i nese c u ltural h i story. There i s a vast body of p remodern C h i nese l ite ratu re, as befits a very l a rge a n d o l d cou ntry t h at a l so h a d exte n s i ve commerc i a l p r i n t i n g m a n y centuries befo re E u r o p e . Even a n antho logy s u c h as the present o ne c a n n ot h o p e to encom pass its i m p ress i ve s ize; but it can accom p l i s h the critica l l y i m portant tas k o f recreati n g t h e fa m i l y o f texts a n d voi ces that m a ke u p a "trad ition" rath er than s i m p l y col lecti n g s o m e o f the m o re fa m o u s texts a n d a r ra n g i n g t h e m i n c h ro n o l o g i c a l order.
Vernac u l a r and C l assical Written vernac u l a r C h i nese fi rst appeared i n B uddh i st sto r ies fo r performance be fore i l l iterate a u d i e n ces who cou l d not h ave u nd e rstood c l as s i c a l C h i nese . The rea l b i rth of vernac u l a r l iteratu re, h owever, occu rred i n the thi rteenth centu ry, when com m e rc i a l p u b l i s h e rs sought to c a p i ta l ize o n the popu l a r ity of storyte l l i n g and theater in the great c ities. P u b l i cati o n s of d ra m a and fiction tried to catch the l i ve l y cadences of the spoke n l a n g u age with l i n g u i stic u sages that were str ictly exc l u ded from c l as s i c a l C h i nese. Thereafter c l as s i c a l C h i nese was u sed for poetry, essays, and some p rose fict i o n , w h i l e vernac u l a r was u sed fo r ficti o n , d rama, and pop u l a r s o n g . The i nevita b l e c h a n ges in l a n g u age that occu rred across m i l l e n n i a te nded to ente r C h i nese written I iteratu re by accret i o n . The l iterary fo rm of C h i nese known as " c l as s i c a l " C h i nese took its b as i c shape in the l ast th ree centuries
S .c . ,
and conti n
ued to evo l ve u nti I the present centu ry t h r o u g h n e w us ages, syntax, a n d fo rms o f ar g u ment. Although the i nfluence of the evo l v i n g s poken l a n g u age made itself fe lt i n s u bt l e ways, " c l a s s i c a l " C h i nese g rew i n creas i n g l y d i stant from it. A s early a s the
xl
Introduction e ighth century
A . D . there appeared a written "vernac u l.ar" l iteratu re, i n corporati n g m a n y e l e m e nts o f t h e spoken l a n g u age . The re lation between " c l a s s i c a l " a n d "vernac u l ar" l iterature was roug h ly anal ogo u s t o t h e w a y i n w h i c h A m e r i c a n s use written E n gl i s h f o r essays a n d A m erican fo r nove l s a n d p l ays. O n t h e o n e h a n d , i f a n A m e r i c a n, in writi n g a n e ssay, uses "gotta" to express neces sity, readers w i l l u n consc i o u s l y wince. I f, o n the oth e r hand a c h a racte r says " m u st" i n a p l ay o r a m o v i e , the c h a racter i s proba b l y we l l edu � cated a n d E n g l i s h . Americans s u bconsc i o u s l y th i n k of an i m m e nse l i n g u i stic range of l iterary a n d vernac u l a r u sage as o n e l a n g u age, with d i fferent leve l s or " regi sters" a p p ro p r i ate to d i fferent gen res a n d s i tuations. T h i s was roug h l y the sense of the C h i
nese l a n g u age befo re the twent ieth centu ry.
Th e P resent S e l ection T h i s anthology i s orga n i zed t o rep resent t h e I iterary trad i t i o n , n ot as a stati c arr a nge ment of " m o n u ments" in c h ro n o l o g i c a l order but as a fam i I y of texts that ach i eve the i r i dentity a n d d i st i n ctness in re l ation to o n e a n other. As i n a n y i n te rest i n g fa m i l y, not a l l the voi ces s i n g i n h a r m o n y . T h e anthology i s neither a conservative no tion o f "canon" (th o u g h it conta i n s a fa i rl y comprehens ive representation of that canon), nor an attempt to construct a cou nter-canon of texts s u p p ressed and over l oo ked (th o u g h they a re p resent as we l l ) . Texts h ave been c hosen because they re spond to one a nother, e ither add ress i n g s i m i l a r issues or respo n d i ng to oth e r par t i c u l a r texts . The trad ition i s a whole, a n d no antho logy c a n be that w h o l e ; b u t an anth o l ogy can show how the trad ition works. C o m mentary i s i n c l u ded b oth t o p ro v i d e backgro u n d i nfo rmat i o n and to h e l p non-Ch i n ese readers n otice what a p re modern C h i n ese reader m ight h ave noticed i n st i n ct i ve l y . T h e a rrangement o f t h e sect i o n s i s p r i m a r i l y c h ro n o l o g i c a l , t h o u g h these a re i n terspersed with secti o n s that c u t across h i story to s h ow d iffere nces a n d con t i n u ities from a l a rger p e rs pective . With i n the c h ro n o l o g i c a l sect i o n s I wi l l sometimes offer a text from a thousand years i n the futu re or from a thousand years i n the past. C h ro n o l o g i c a l h i story is the bas i s of a trad i t i o n ; but l iteratu re, w h e re there a re no l i n g u i stic barriers, cuts across c h ronological h i story with ease. T h i s is sometimes hard to recog n ize for the reade r of E n g l i s h , in whose trad ition texts q u i c k l y s h ow t h e i r age. B ut i n c l assical C h i nese, a poem from a thousand years i n the past m ight not be essenti a l l y d iffe rent fro m a poem written yesterday; th i s i s n ot to deny h i sto r i c a l c h a n ge, b u t , t o return to t n e m eta p h o r o f a fam i l y, it i s l i ke h av i n g m a n y generat i o n s l i v i n g i n t h e same h o u s e . The anth o l o g i st who wou l d create a vers i o n of a trad i t i o n faces one i n s u r m o u ntab l e l i m itati o n : l o n gworks. C h i nese vernac u l a r works a re often very l o n g i n deed . Trad i t i o n a l nove l s freq uently r u n to a h u n d red c h a pters, tak i n g u p fou r t o five vol umes in E n g l i s h trans l ati o n . Fo rty o r fifty acts a re common in the h uge p l ays cal led " d ramatic ro m a n ces," a n d they can fi l l a s u bsta n t i a l vo l u m e in E n g l i s h . With n u m e ro u s c h a racters a n d i ntricate p l ots, these works do not eas i l y l e n d themse l ves to exce rpts . I h ave i n c l uded a few acts from two of the most fam o u s d ramatic rom a n ces and a m o re exte n s ive select i o n (about two fifths of the w h o le) fro m a th i rd . To g i ve
xli
Introduction the reader a sense of the vernac u l a r n ove l , I h ave i ncl u d ed th ree c h apters w h i c h form a coherent e p i s i d e in The Romance of the Gods. The major premodern n ove l s h ave been tra n s l ated, a n d they s h o u l d be read outs i d e of th i s anthology. D u r i n g the l ast fifty years there has been an i m mense amount of tra nsl at i o n from the C h i nese, w ith the i n evita b l e res u l t that any anthology w h i c h seeks to p resent many of the most fa m o u s works w i l l i nevita b l y repeat m ate r i a l tra n s l ated e l sewhere. I h ave tried to i n corporate works that h ave long been considered i m po rta nt, togeth er
with some less wel l known ones. B ut m y c r i te r i o n of c h o ice has been those texts w h i c h , worki n g toget her, te l l a story that embodies the concerns of the trad ition and s h ows its coherence.
xlii
A N ote o n T ra n s l ati o n
Tra n s l at i o n i s , fo r the s c h o l ar, a trou b l i n g a rt; it i s I iterary h i sto ry gone ga m b l i n g . Knowled ge a n d s k i l l a re essenti a l , but o n l y a s m a l l p a rt o f a n enterprise w here l u c k r u l e s . G reat fortu nes a re parl ayed i nto n oth i n g a n d s m a l l wagers beco m e g reat. I m p o rta nt texts c o m e o u t fl at, w h e reas m i n o r p i eces s u cceed s p l e n d i d l y . Everyth i n g h a n g s o n t h e moment, t h e tran s l ator's d i sposition, a n d t h e c i rc u m sta n t i a l sources and resou rces of the l a n g u age. I f there is a s i n g l e p r i n c i p l e beh i nd these tra n s l at i o n s , it is tra n s l at i n g texts aga i n st one a n other: try i n g to c reate a com p l ex fa m i l y of d ifferences th at does not corresp ond to, but attem pts to rei nvent some of the d ifferences perceived by a good reader of C h i nese. Tra n s l ators of C h i n ese often c reate the i r own v i s i o n of " C h i nese" l ite ratu re as a whole, either a rt i c u l ated agai n st E n g l i s h l iterature o r as a poss i b i l ity with i n it. Th i s e l u s i ve " C h i neseness" was the one q u a l ity that was utte r l y beyo n d t h e g r a s p o f t h e trad i t i o n a l C h i nese reader. I n t h e i r o w n l iteratu re, t h e y perceived o n l y d ifferences in period, gen re, style, and above a l l in the p e rso n a l ities of w r iters . As a tra n s l ato r, I h ave the conviction that the " C h i n eseness" of these works w i l l show itse lf: m y task i s to fi n d i d i o m s t h at w i l l catch the fa m i l i es of d ifferences. In his fa m o u s essay o n tra n s l ;J.tion, Friedrich S c h l e iermacher arti c u l ated the basic
antithe s i s between adapting the mawria l to the convenTIons ot the host laognagP ao.d � preserv i 'lg the d ifference of th'i' Qriginal the- a ntitbes i s t h at J a m e s I . Y . L i u was l ater
to c a l l " n atu ral i zatio n " and " b a r t u r a l ize" some e ifference of others. T h i s tra n s l ato r is conv i n ce
t at
the differences of the Ch i nese literary tradition are profollnd enough t at we d o n ot ..llf!ed to exaggerfi1t9 tf'l'i'm
If I� moderate l y to t h e " n at u r a l i z at i o n " c a m p ,
offer an occas i o n a l i n s i ght i nto wh v
it i s to
tliese wo rks were compel l i n g i n the i r own
uts i d e rs .
I h ave tried t o avo i d a rc h a i z i ng, b u t h ave a t the same t i m e en deavored t o u s e the leve l s of E n g l i s h sty l e to mark the stron g d ifferences in period and regi ster in the C h i nese. I tra n s l ate c l as s i c a l C h i �iDto E n g l i s h a n d ver n ac u l a r i nto A m e r i ca n . T h e l at ter is a d a n ge ro u s enterpri se, a n d the d iscomfo rt that some American readers may fee l on encounte r i n g America n i s m s may e c h o i n s o m e s m a l l way t h e d i scomfort that some c l assica l l y educated readers in the M i n g and Q i n g felt o n encounte r i n g the vernacu lar. As in the M i ng a n d Q i ng, Americans permit the i r contemporary l a n g u age in fic tion and d rama, but object when vernac u l a r u sage s l i p s i nto our own for m a l g e n res. Readers w h o a re a l ready fam i l i a r with the conventi o n s used in tra n s l at i n g c l as s i c a l C h i n ese l ite ratu re may be s u rp r i sed o r puzzled, perhaps even a n noyed, by some of the convent i o n s adopted h e re . Rathe r than reject i n g such u nfam i l i a r i ty, the reader s h o u l d reflect o n the n u m ber of pecu l i a r tra n s l at i o n te rms that the habit of recent xliii
A Note on Translation tran s l ators has made seem n atu ral . To solve the n u mero u s p ro b l e m s of trans l ation from the C h i nese, Weste rn s c h o l ars a n d tra n s l ato rs h ave created th e i r own spec i a l d i a l ect o f E n g l i s h . Wh i l e s o m e o f t h e stra ngeness o f th i s l a n g u age i s unavo i dable, much of it is the deadwood of h a b it that contri butes u n necessar i l y to the sense of the c ategorical strangeness of trad i t i o n a l C h i nese l iteratu re. I h ave tried, as they u sed to say, to " E n g l i s h " these texts; th at is, to say some th i n g as one wou l d say it i n E n g l i s h . When p rec i s i o n is i m p l i c i t i n the C h i nese, I h ave tried to be prec ise. For exam p l e, the C h i n ese wan, "ten thousand," is often u sed when the E n g l i s h speaker wou l d say "thousands" o r "m i l l i o n s , " and that i s the exact tran s l at i o n . In othe r cases, wa n is u sed as a p rec ise cou nter, and in those cases, "te n thou s a n d " is the exact tra n s l at i o n . W h at fo l l ows a r e s o m e o f the convent i o n s ado pted i n t h i s vo l u me, both i n l a rge m atters of fo rm and s m a l l m atters of word c h o i ce .
Form In tra n s l at i n g poetry, I h ave general l y tried to f i n d very flex i b l e E n g l i s h fo rms that do n ot s e e m t o o artifi c i a l : fo rms that c a n recreate a s e t of differences to echo the bas i c fo rmal d ifferences o f C h i nese poetry . I h ave been u s u a l ly, b u t n ot u n iversal ly, con s i stent i n the fo l l ow i n g po l i c i e s . C h i n ese l i nes of fo u r a n d five sy l l a b l e s are trans l ated as s i n g l e E n g l i s h l i n es. L i nes of Ch u-ci a n d fu, i n the o r i g i n a l C h i nese often broken i nto h e m i stiches by l i ghtly acce nted sy l l ab l es, a re l eft as s i n g l e l i nes i n E n g l i s h w ith a d d i t i o n a l b l a n k s paces i n between t h e h e m i stiches. L i nes o f seven s y l l a b l es a r e tra n s l ated as a p a i r of l i nes w ith the seco n d l i ne i n d ented , s i nce t h e seve n than the sy l l ab l e l i n e b e g a n as a s o n g l i n e a n d w a s genera l l y freer a n d l ooser . five-sy l l a b l e l i n e. I n sta n z a i c p o e m s , I h ave l eft an a d d i t i o n a l space between sta nzas. I n poems based o n c o u p l ets, I h ave l eft add itional space between cou p l ets to set off the cou p l et as a u n it. In poems before the fifth centu ry, in q u atra i ns, a n d in sta n z a i c poems, I h ave not l eft the add i t i o n a l space between cou p l ets. I n genera l , if the cou p l ets i n themse l ves seem to bear I itt l e for m a l weight, I h ave someti mes taken the I i b e rty n ot to represent them with the extra space. I h ave genera l l y c a p i ta l i zed the fi rst word in a r h ym i n g u n it a n d l eft the s u bse q u e n t l i nes u nc a p i ta l ized ( h owever, in open i n g cou p l ets w h ere both l i nes rhyme, r h ave l eft the second l i ne u n ca p i ta l ized ) . T h i s fu rther sets off the cou p l et as the bas i c semantic u n it i n poetry, t h e eq u i v a l e nt o f t h e sentence; a n d i n s o n g l y r i c th i s prac tice a l so sets off the semantic u n its arti c u l ated by rhyme, w h i c h serves as a p u n ctu ati o n . H e re aga i n , in poems that seem to overflow the c o u p l et, I h ave someti mes taken the I i b e rty to s u ggest th i s by p u nctuat i o n a n d l ower-case l etters at the beg i n n i ngs o f cou p l ets . There i s no way to be perfectly co n s i stent without m a k i n g the chosen E n g l i s h forms appear artifi c i a l . I h ave p referred i nco n s i stency t o obstru s i veness o f fo r m . There is a l so no way to echo the fo rms of C h i nese poetry a n d sti l l p rod u ce tra n s l at i o n s that are accu rate and read a b l e . O u r p u rpose is rathe r to cal l atte ntion to grou p i n gs s u c h as stanzas, c o u p l ets, a n d the r h y m e u n its o f song l y r i c , a n d t o create a recog n i z a b l e stru ctu re o f d ifferences. xliv
A Note on Translation I h ave tried to keep footn otes to a m i n i m u m , though in some cases they_ were u n avo i d a b l e . I have attem pted to g ive as m u c h of the essen t i a l backgro u n d as pos s i b l e in my own comments befo re and after the poe m s .
T he c a l e n d a r Trad itional C h i n a used a l u n a r calendar i n w h i c h t h e months o f th i rty d ays were n u m be red from one to twel ve, with d i screpancies reme d i e d by the a d d i t i o n of " i nte r c a l a ry months . " The fu l l moon was a l ways to come m i d-month, on the fiftee nth . The fi rst th ree months were s p r i ng, the second th ree were s u m mer, a n d so o n . The be g i n n i n g of the year came at d i fferent ti mes o n the Western c a l e n dar, but it was gen era l l y some time in l ate J a n u a ry o r in February. In t h e tra n s l at i o n s it i s somet i m e s necessary to use the C h i nese n u m bered m o n t h s , but w h e re poss i b l e I h ave fo l l owed the conventi o n of tra n s l at i n g the F i rst Month as March, the Seco n d Month as A p r i l , a n d s o o n . Although th i s i s i n exact, i t corresponds rou g h l y t o o u r sense o f the sea sons. The reader who, fo r some reaso n , wants to k n ow the exact C h i nese date can con vert i m med i ate l y based o n th i s syste m . I have not attem pted to conve rt d ates to the i r exact cou nte r p arts i n E u ropean d ating; t h u s Dece mber 2 2 ,
1 076, i s the twe nty 1 07 7 .
seco n d of the te nth month . The e l eventh month, "J a n u a ry," wou l d be g i ven as
I h ave converted re i g n d ates a n d cyc l i ca l d ates i nto the i r correspo n d i n g Weste rn years.
Measu res I h ave kept a cun (vary i n g thro u g h h i story from a c h i (1 to
0
cun) a s a "foot" ; a n d a zha rig
(1 0
2 .2 5 to 3 . 2 centimeters) as a n " i n c h " ; 2.25
chi) a s a "yard . " T h e zhang, from
3 . 3 meters, is t h e meas u re m ost seri o u s l y a t odds with t h e E n g l i s h tra n s l a t i o n , a n d
i n cases where t h e measu re j a r s w i t h c o m m o n s e n s e (and w i t h t h e poet i c meas u re ren), I have somet i mes converted i nto true E n g l i s h feet a n d y a rd s . T h ro u g h h i sto ry t h e C h i nese I i v aried from
4 0 5 t o 5 7 6 meters, o r very rou g h l y
a th i rd o f a m i le . I h ave u sed t h e tra n s l at i o n " m i l e" a n d somet i m es " l ea g u e . " I n trave l accou nts th i s can someti mes g i ve the i m p ression that the trave l e rs are m a k i n g ex traord i n a r i l y good t i m e . The sta n d ard l a rge n u m be r i s wan, "ten t h o u sa n d . " W h e n s o m e exactitu d e i s c a l led for, I tra n s l ate it a s "ten thousand" o r " m y ri a d " ; h owever, w h e n i t i s u sed l oosely, as i t often i s, I u se the n atu r a l E n g l i s h cou nterpart of "th o u s a n d s " or " m i l l i ons," depen d i n g o n context.
M u s i c a l i n struments The qin : very few modern readers h ave h ea rd a z ither p l ayed ; somewh �t
� o re � ay
have seen one (but prob a b l y sti l l m o re h ave seen a qin o r koto) . The q t n I S noth i n g I ; ke a l ute, w h i c h h as become the convent i o n a l tra n s l at i o n . I have c os � n o tra n �
�
�
l ate the q i n as " h a r p " a n d the se as "great h a rp . " The kong-houl whlch In Its � ert l ,, . c a l vers i o n i s i n d eed a h arp, w i l l a l s o h ave to be a h a r p . The c h O i ce of " h a rp I S a n
; m pe rfect tra n s lation (espec i a l l y i f o n e th i n ks o f a modern concert h a rp p l ayed b y a xlv
A Note on Translation wom a n i n l o n g w h ite robes), but its anti q u ity and range of assoc i at i o n s seem p refe r a b l e . The p ro b l e m with tra n s l at i n g a qin as " h arp" is that the qin has b r i dges. The pi-pa in some ways more rese m b l es a l ute, b u t it was a pop u l ar i n strument rath e r than o n e w ith the cachet of e l egance th at the I ute possesses. The p layi n g tech n i q u e a n d t i m b re most c l os e l y a p p rox i m ate the Weste rn m a n d o l i n , so I h ave trans l ated it th u s .
Hu T h e word H u was u sed as a general term fo r t h e peoples o f Central As i a, i n c l u d i n g . I ndo- I ra n i an peo p l es a s we l l a s T u r ks, a n d t h e peo p l e o f t h e c i ty states a s wel l as nomads. Hu refers to eth n i c i ty, h owever i mp e rfect ly, rather than to a l evel of c i v i l i zati o n , a n d "barbaria n " i s both i n ac c u rate a n d often metri c a l l y offe n s ive. S i nce i n m a n y p e r i o d s t h e H u were T u r k i c peoples, Hu w i l l u s u a l l y be translated a s "Turks."
! h ave g reat affecti o n for the T u rks; when they come out bad l y i n a C h i nese poem, I t represents C h i nese p rej u d i ces rathe r than m y own .
A l coho l i c beverages jiu is conventio n a l l y tra n s l ated as " w i n e . " A l t h o u g h true w i ne, o n ce it was i m ported t h ro u g h Central A s i a, was c l assified as jiu, most C h i nese jiu was actu a l l y beer, made
from g ra i n rath e r than fru it. Sometimes I u se "wine," but often I tra n s l ate j i u as " beer." T h e c h o i ce o f w i ne as the tra n s l ation o f jiu i s p u re snobbery, to p ro j ect the i m age of the Mandar i n as " c u l t i vated . " The p rocess of m a k i n g jiu-as we l l as Wester n w i n e a n d beer, t h o u g h w e d o n ot see t h i s i n commercial p rod u ctio n-i nvolves l ees a n d d regs. Thus the c l ar ity o r "th i c k ness" o f j i u is often referred to .
B u i l d i ngs T h ere a r e severa l aspects o f a trad i t i o n a l C h i nese dwel l i n g p l ace t h a t a reader needs to keep in m i n d . U pper-cl ass dwe l l i ngs were genera l l y co m p o u n d s s u r ro u nded by w a l l s . The grander the fam i ly, the l a rger the c o m p o u n d and the m o re i ntern a l d i v i s i o n s i t h ad . O n e entered a sect i o n o f t h e c o m p o u n d through gates. T h u s " l ayers" or "tiers" of gates s u ggested a wealthy h o u seh o l d . The em peror's p a l ace was spo ken of as h a v i n g a "th o u s a n d gates" a n d " n i n e tiers . " I n s i d e a gate was a " c o u rtyard" o r "yard . " T h ere were vera n d a h s a ro u n d the house and b a l co n i es o n the u pper sto ries. The term fo r a door to a c h a m b e r is d i fferent from the word fo r gate, b u t "to go out" is u s u a l l y to go out the gate rather than to go out the door. W i n dows were cov ered with gauze or paper in the w i nter and often h ad e l aborate gri l lwork. S i n c e b u i l d i n gs were open, swa l l ows wou l d often f l y i n a n d make thei r n ests i n t h e rafters. A "terrace," in the l a n g u age of convent i o n a l tran s l at i o n from the C h i nese, i s n ot a p at i o . C h i nese b u i l d i n g s were sometimes con structed on raised p l atforms of earth, faced with b r i c k or sto n e . These are "te rraces ." A lou i s, rou g h l y , a b u i l d i n g of m o re than o n e story that i s u s u a l l y w i d e r t h a n i t
i s tal l . Lou were a l so b u i I t o n top o f city wal l s a n d over gates fo r d efe n s ive p u rposes . When positioned there, a lou is a "tower" ; w h e n on the grou n d , a lou is sometimes
xlvi
A Note on Translation a " m a n s i o n , " someti mes a " b u i l d i n g , " somet i m es a " [ room] u psta i rs , " depen d i n g on
co ntext.
A ge gets tra n s l ated as "tower," though it is genera l l y (but not a l ways) a b u i l d . I n g o f m o re t h a n one sto ry that i s more n a rrow th a n it i s high. H o u ses were s u p posed t o face south, with t h e wo m e n ' s q u a rters i n t h e back of the house o n the n o rth s i d e .
Hair C h i nese women genera l l y wo re th e i r h a i r i n elaborate coiffu res p i l ed o n the head . S u c h c o i ffu res used l o n g p i n s deco rated with the s h apes of i n sects or flowers, a l though someti mes t h e h a i r w a s deco rated w i t h rea l s p rays o f flowers. B rows were often s h aved, then p a i nted o n h i g h o n the fo rehead . Men a l s o wore th e i r h a i r l o n g (the l ate i m pe r i a l q u e u e was a M a n c h u fas h i o n i m posed o n C h i nese b y t h e Q i n g con q u est) . I nfo rm a l l y, o n e m i ght wear a headband o r a turban, but offi c i a l s wore caps, with the i r hair h e l d i n p l ace b y h atp i n s ; th us, to " p u l l out one's h atp i n s" was to g i ve u p offi ce. Lett i n g one's h a i r down h a d a p p rox i m ate l y the same assoc i ations in C h i nese as it has in E n g l i s h .
F l ora a n d fa u n a A s the n atu ral h i story o f N o rth America d iffers from that o f E u rope, s o that o f C h i n a d i ffers fro m either. A n American writ i n g i n E n g l i s h i s i n a rath e r b i z a rre s i t u ati o n . M u c h o f o u r rece i ved literary l a n g u age o f flora a n d fa u n a i s E n g l i s h a n d E u ropean th i n gs a n d c reatu res with rich I iterary assoc i at i o n s th at the A m e r i c a n h a s never or h a rd l y ever seen . It i s we l l known that n i ghti n ga l es, n o n - n ati ves o f N o rth A m e r i ca, s i n g p r i m a r i l y in anthologies-" b i rd thou never wert." To take th i s a l ready E u ropea n spec ific l a n g u age to tra n s l ate C h i nese flora a n d fau n a i s a double h a rd s h i p fo r A m e r ican readers. I n addition, we h ave become, by a n d l a rge, c ity dwe l l ers, a n d we k n ow brand names with m o re p rec i s i o n than p l a n t n a m es, not h a v i n g the variat i o n s of species a n d the i r s i g n ifi ers ava i l a b l e to u s . I s u s pect that the majority of A m e r i c a n readers can m o re read i l y d i sti n g u i s h a C o k e from a P e p s i than a d u c kweed fro m a waterl i l y . C h i nese l i te ratu re i s , not s u rp r i s i n g l y, fi l l ed with the f l o ra a n d fau n a a n d m i n e ra l s th at writers encou ntered every day. It i s i ro n i c that s o m e o f t h e most e x oti c featu res of tra n s lation f r o m the C h i nese are the most everyday growi n g th i n gs. The reader of tra n s l ation w i l l never reac h the rich assoc i at i o n s of the l a n g u age of fl owers i n C h i nese; but l et me q u ote a passage from the E n g l i s h I iterary trad ition ( S h a kespeare's The Winter's- Tale) that m ight rem i n d the E n g l i s h reader how effec tive the n ames of fl owers can be : o
Proserpina For the flowers now that, frighted, thou let'st fall From Dis's wagon; daffodils, That come before the swallow dares, and take The winds of March with beauty; violets dim, xlvii
A Note on Translation But sweeter than the lids of Juno's eyes Or Cytherea's breath; pale primroses That die unmarried, ere they can behold Bright Phoebus in his strength-a malady Most incident to maids; bold oxlips and The crown imperial; lilies of all kinds, The flower-de-luce being one. 0, these I lack To make you garlands of, and my sweet friend, To strew him o'er and o'er. The tran s l ato r c a n not do that. I h ave, however, c hosen the fo l l ow i n g sy nonyms to avo i d some of the most p a i n fu l moments of C h i nese tra n s l ation i d i o mWu-tong: The wu-tong is a relatively common tree i n China, b u t is not native to North America. It is slowly becoming naturalized as the "tung " tree. Per haps I should have left it as such in the translations. The beech does not, so far as I know, grow in C h ina. The two trees are rather different, but both are wid e-spreading and beautiful. Admittedly, the wu-tong does its wide spreading considerably higher up t han the beech ; but when you see a beech in these translations, it is a wu-tong. Let:
du-ruo be mint jie-ju be wintergreen h u i be lavender or sage
du-heng be asarum zhi trees be hawthorns zhi be white angelica q u a n be the iris
bi-Ii
be ivy
Ian be orchid
xlviii
Ea r l y C h ina
EARL Y C H I NA : P E R I O D I NTRODUCTION
the seco nd m i l l e n n i u m
T h ro u g h most of
B .C., N o rth C h i n a, along the Yel l ow
R i ver, was r u l ed by a dyn asty k n own as the S h a n g or Y i n . The Shang see m s to h ave been a c o l l ection of c ity states u n der the n o m i n a l ru l e of a h i g h ki ng, who p robab l y exe rted very l ittl e d i rect author ity over t h e fa rther reac hes o f t h e k i ng d o m . T h e S h a n g h a d writi ng, w h i c h s u rv i ves i n c i sed on torto i s e shel l s a n d bones used fo r d i vi n ati o n . If writi n g w a s used fo r oth e r p u r poses, it was on softer m ate r i a l s that have l o n g s i nce d i sap peared . What Shang l iteratu re m i ght h ave been l i ke we can o n l y guess : l ater ages i nvented songs a n d speeches that they att r i b uted to the S h ang, but s u c h p i eces b e l o n g to the h i sto r i c a l i m a g i n ation o f those l ate r ages rath e r t h a n t o t h e S h a n g itse lf. The l ast century of the seco nd m i l l e n n i u m
B.C. saw the r i se
of a new d o m a i n , the Z h o u , to the west of the S h a n g he artl a n d . In
1 020 B.C. (th o u g h d iffe rent d ates have been p roposed), the
Zhou th rew off its subord i n ation to the Shang monarch and con q u e red the S h a n g . A s m a l l k i n gdom s u d de n l y fo u n d itse lf i n possess i o n of l a rge te rritories, a n d to adm i n i ster those territo ries, mem bers of the roya l house were sent out to p res i d e over fe u d a l d o m a i n s throughout N o rth C h i n a . The Zhou fe u d a l sys tem, conceived as a fa m i l y work i n g together, was to h ave l ast i n g con seq u e n ces. D u r i n g the early centu r i es of Zhou rule, writi n g was u sed fo r d i v i n at i o n , fo r commemorative i n sc r i pt i o n s on b ronze ritual vessels, and p rob ably for bas i c reco rd kee p i n g . I t is u n l i ke l y that writi n g was ever u sed for l o n g e r texts that we m i ght recog n ize as " l iteratu re, " even i n the b roadest d efi n it i o n of the te r m . As i n G reece a n d I n d i a, the earl i est exta nt l iteratu re of C h i n a w a s o r i g i n a l l y oral a n d passed d o w n that w a y from o n e generat i o n to the n ext. There were two grou ps of works that were h a nded down oral l y and c i rc u l ated t h ro u g h the Zhou feu d a l d o m a i n s . N e ither g ro u p was stab l e : w h i l e conserv i n g very early m ate r i a l , both k i n d s of works were added to and varied over the centu r i e s . The fi rst of these co n s i sted of say i ngs and speeches that s u p posed l y came from the early k i ngs, offe r i n g g u i d ance i n the p r i n c i p l es o n w h i c h the Z h o u p o l i ty was fou nded ; th i s became the Classic of Documents (Shu-jing). The second was a body of over th ree h u n d red poems that became the Classic of Poetry (Shi-jing). The Classic of Po etry conta i ned ritual h y m n s and bal l ads that were s u p posed to d ate back to t h e be
g i n n i n g of the d y n asty, a l o n g with m o re " recent" poems from the e i ghth and sev enth centu r i es
B .C. Because the Classic of Poetry g rew and c h a n ged in the cou rse of
oral tra n s m i s s i o n over these centu r i es, it is i m poss i b l e to d ate the o l d est p i eces with a n y certa i nty. Most of the works that can be d ated by i nter n a l h i stori c a l referen ces come from befo re
600 B .C., the d ate t h at s c h o l ars often g i ve fo r the c o l lection be
com i n g more o r l ess fixed . But there are a few poems that seem to d ate from the l ate s i xth centu ry
B.C., w h i c h sug gests that the c o l l ecti o n cont i n ued to g row a n d evo lve.
D u r i n g the l o n g period i n which the Classic of Poetry was tak i n g s h ape, the Z h o u 3
Anthology of Chinese Literature m o n a r c h y was p rogress i v e l y l o s i n g power and author ity . There was a b r ief period of restorat i o n of the royal powe r u nd e r the re i g n of King Xuan (82 7-782
B .C.), but
d u r i n g the re i g n of his s u ccessor, non-C h i nese i nvaders s acked the royal cap ital and fo rced the king to move east to a new cap ital near modern L u o-ya n g . Thus the fi rst period of Z h o u r u l e was known as the Weste rn Z h o u , and the second period as the Eastern Z h o u . In the east, the a rea d i rectl y u n der royal control was very s m a l l , and the Zhou k i n g, though he reta i ned ritual i m portance, was pol itical l y at the m e rcy of the powerf u l feu d a l d o m a i n s that s u rro u n d ed h i m . To the east of the new royal cap ital was the D u c h y o f L u , a m i no r po l itical power, but a d o m a i n of great c u ltural i m portance. The ru l ers of L u traced th e i r ancestry back to the D u ke of Zhou, the v i rtuous yo u n ger b roth e r of K i n g Wu, who fou n ded the Z h o u . L u was the d o m a i n that p r ided itse l f o n the preservat ion and obse rvation of p roper Zhou c u sto m s . A l l the do m a i n s proba b l y kept a n n a l s , but the cou rt a n n a l s o f L u d u r i n g t h i s period s u rvive; these a r e t h e Ch un-qiu, The Springs and A u tumn, [of L uL someti mes tra n s l ated as The Spring and A u tumn A n nals. These a n n a l s cover
B .C., and they g i ve the i r name to the l a rger period of the e i g hth B.C. The a n n a l s are terse statements of what of i m portance h a p pened d u ri n g a given yea r; the seco n d entry for 720 B.C. i s c h a racte r i sti c : "The
the years 7 2 0-4 8 1
through the fifth cent u r i e s
th i rd m o nth . The D u ke [of LuJ and Y i -fu of Zhu took a b l ood oath at M i e . " S i nce The Springs and A u tumns were s u p posed to h ave been ed ited by Confu c i u s (ca .
5 5 2-4 7 9
B .C.), Confu c i a n s c h o l a rs too k the i r terse ness as b e i n g rep l ete with s u btle
moral j udgments through the p a rti c u l a r words chose n . T h e period o f The Springs a n d A u tumns was a v i o le nt, yet a r i stoc ratic age. There was c onstant warfare th ro u g h o u t the dom a i n s as r u l ers of the l a rger d o m a'l n s strug g led-th ro u g h v i o l ence and d i p l o m acy-to become Sa, Overlord, and compel the s m a l l e r d om a i n s to obey the m . Yet warfare was sti l l cere m o n i o u s and c o n d u cted on a re l at i ve l y s m a l l scale . Th i s same p e riod saw the r i se of new powers on the m a r g i n s of the Z h o u heart l a n d . There was Q i n in the West, the reg i o n from w h i c h the Zhou had o r i g i n a l l y come; Q i n grad u a l l y d rove back the n o n - C h i nese tri bes that h ad occ u p i ed the area a n d esta b l ished itse lf as an i m portant power . To the south, a l o n g the m i d d l e reac hes of the Y a n g z i R i ver, w a s the K i ngdom o f C h u , i n iti a l l y the most powerfu l of the p e r i p h e ra l doma i n s . I n the south east, where the Yangzi j o i ned the sea, were Wu and Yue. In vary i n g deg rees these new states fe lt l i ttl e a l legi ance to the Zhou k i ngs and Zhou tra d i t i o n s . Confu c i u s was born i n the D u c h y o f L u toward t h e e n d o f th i s period . Confu c i u s was i nten s e l y com m i tted to his own v i s i o n of a n idea l i zed Zhou past, a wo r l d i n which the o l d c u sto m s were fo l l owed , and through those c u sto ms, peo p l e treated o n e another with a n atural g race . Confu c i u s taught that the i n stitution of those Z h o u v a l ues with i n the p resent c o u l d restore h a rm o n y to soci ety and the p o l ity. F rom th is p a rti c u l a r l y h i sto r i c a l vision came Confu c i us' more p rofo u n d l egacy t o the c u l t u re : the bel i ef that the n atural bei n g a n d the soc i a l b e i n g i n m a n cou l d b e recon c i l ed . A s a teach e r, Confu c i u s was i m m e n s e l y persuasive a n d gathered a l a rge fo l l ow i n g o f d i s c i p l es, w h o became t h e fo u n d e rs o f t h e Confu c i a n "scho o l . " I n h i s de s i re to p o l i t i ca l l y i n stitute h i s p r i n c i p les, h owever, he had no s u ccess . H e trave led from c o u rt to cou rt, o n l y to d i scover th at the i m peratives of p ractical p o l itics out we ighed a l l oth e r v a l u e s . After h i s death, the say i n gs attr i b uted to h i m m u l t i p l ied,
4
Early China but the Confu c i a n school carr ied o n h i s teac h i ngs and p reserved a s m a l l corpus of authentic say i n gs, w h i c h were at l ast writte n down (? th i rd centu ry B.C.) in a work known as the L un-yu, com m o n l y tra n s l ated in E n g l i s h as t h e Ana lects. N ot o n l y d i d Confu c i us' teach i n g have no p racti c a l p o l i t i c a l conseq u e n ces, but fo r a l most th ree centu ries after his d eath , wa rfare s i m p l y became m o re perva s i ve a n d effi c ient a n d res i d u a l Z h o u c u stom s m o re i rrelevant. The period from 403 B.C. u nt i l t h e u n ification o f C h i n a u n d e r t h e Q i n i n 2 2 1 B .C . i s k n o w n a s t h e Warri n g States. Earl ier, d u r i n g the Springs and A u tumns period, the m i n i sters a n d ge n e ra l s o f t h e d o m a i n s we re l a rge l y d rawn from a r i stoc ratic fam i l ies, often tied by descent to the ru l i n g house; fa r from tem pe r i n g pol i t i c a l behavior b y fam i l y so l i d a r ity, t h i s often led t o i nte rne c i n e fe u d i n g t h a t someti mes c r i p p l ed d o m a i n s fo r generat i o n s . As we move toward t h e Warri n g States, h owever, the ru lers of t h e d o m a i n s fo u n d that b y p rofess i o n a l i z i n g the i r m i l.itary a n d b u rea u c racy they co u l d ach ieve g reater sec u r i ty and authority . In d e l egat i n g authority to ta lented men from oth e r d o m a i n s o r fro m t h e lower gentry, t h e r u l e r h e l d th e i r perso n a l a l l eg i a n ce . B u t a l t h o u g h s u c h i n c reas i n g l y meritocrat ic gove r n m e nts g a i n e d i n sta b i l ity a n d effi c i e n cy, th i s new government e l ite fe lt none of the restra i nts of trad i t i o n a l c u sto m , a n d its d ec i s i o n s were u s u a l l y gove rned b y exped i e n c y . R u l e rs a n d m i n i sters e a c h seek i ng adva ntage fo r h i s own d o m a i n foste red a c u l tu re o f expert advise rs a n d conte n d i n g pol itical p h i losoph ies, t h e so-ca l l ed h u n d red schoo l s . T h i s v i o l ent era of competition between the dom a i n s was one of the most i nte l l ectua l l y c reative in C h i n a ' s h i story. The p h i l os o p h e r Mo-z i , who p roba b l y l i ved i n t h e l ate fifth century
B .C., advocated a rad i c a l uti l i ta r i a n i s m a n d t h e rej ec
tion of a l l trad i t i o n s that d i d not se rve the c o m m o n good . H i s doctr i n e of " u n iver sal l ove" was n oth i n g m ysti c a l ; rather, it was an i m pa rti a l benevo l e n ce w h i c h , when u n iversa l l y p ract iced, wou l d work toward the g e n e r a l good . O n e u nfortu n ate l y s h o rts i ghted doctr i n e o f Mo-z i was that t h e i m p rovement of tec h n i q u e s of defe n s i ve warfa re wou l d contri b ute to general peace a n d stab i l ity. Afte r the m aster's d eath , t h e m e m bers o f Mo-z i ' s we l l - o rg a n i zed school became tec h n i c a l experts i n m i l itary fo rtification . What Mo-z i cou l d not foresee was the st i m u l us th i s p rovided fo r the deve l opment of offe n s ive wa rfare and s iegec raft. Certa i n l y the most s u ccessfu l of these p o l itical experts was S h a n g Yang, who was made m i n i ster of the weste rn d o m a i n of Q i n in the m i d d l e of the fou rth century B . C . S h a n g Y a n g was t h e p arent o f t h e p o l i t i c a l p h i l osophy that wou l d be known a s Le ga l i s m , w h i c h became state pol i cy in Q i n . S h a n g Yang advocated a code of strict l aws, a p p l ied u n ivers a l l y and i m parti a l l y . There was a system of c o n s istent rewa rds and, above a l l , severe p u n i s h me nts . The reso u rces of the state were mob i l ized to encou rage ag ricu ltural p rod uction and to s u p p l y and tra i n Q i n ' s army. Whatever was use less or an i m ped iment to the smooth fu ncti o n i n g of the state mecha n i s m was to be e l i m i n ated . Q i n flourished u nd e r th i s syste m of tota l state contro l , a n d i ts arm ies were soon the d read of a l l the oth e r d om a i n s . Lega l ism fo u n d its most e l o q u ent exponent i n the writi n gs o f H a n F e i (ca . 2 8 0-ca . 2 3 3 B.C.), who advi sed Q i n as it g rew toward e m p i re . By H a n F e i ' s t i me, Lega l i s m
h a d become i n te rtw i ned w i t h o n e stra i n o f D ao i s m , rep resented by t h e Lao-zi, a rh ymed p h i l osoph i c a l text attr i b u ted to the shadowy p h i l osopher Lao-zi advocat i n g pass i v ity a n d s i m p l i c ity. T h e L ao-zi h e l d that peo p l e were h a p p iest w h e n t h e y were 5
Anthology of Chinese Literature i g norant; the Lega l i sts agreed and saw the state as a means to keep them so. The ruler a t the center of the Lega l i st state apparatu s was c a s t i n the ro l e of D a o i st sage, govern i n g through non-actio n , h i s powe r com i n g through the i m perso n a l l aws rath er than the enforcement of royal w i l l . O n e D ao i st th i n ker, h owever, too k D ao i st concerns i n a very d i fferent d i recti o n . T h i s was Z h u a n g Z h o u , writi n g i n t h e m i d d l e o f t h e th i rd century
B.C.
U n l i ke most
of h is conte m poraries, Z h u a n g Zhou was a p h i l osop her of the i n d i v i d u a l m i n d rath er than soc i ety, and h e stressed the rel ativ ity of percept i o n and v a l u e s . The h i stor i c a l Z h u a n g Zhou i s b e l i eved t o be the a u t h o r of the early c h apters of the b o o k th at bears h i s name, the Zhuang-zi, and those c h a pters conta i n some of the most d a r i n g and i m ag i n ative writ i n g i n early C h i n a . T h e fou rth a n d th i rd centu r i es
B.C.
s a w a p ro l i ferat i o n o f p h i l osop h i cal schoo l s
a n d types o f expertise, a l l com peti n g fo r t h e patron age o f p r i nces and t h e devoti o n of d i sc i p l e s . There were agra r i a n p r i m it i v i sts, p h i losop h i c a l sol i p s i sts, witty l og i c i an s, a l o n g with iti nerant m asters of p ragmat i c d i p l o m acy and m i l itary science. F aced with th i s rich array of com petitors, the Confu c i a n school fo u n d someone i n the l ate fou rth century
B.C.
w h o c o u l d speak fo r Confu c i a n v a l ues in a new way, adeq u ate to the
i nte l l ectu a l l y sop h i st i c ated c l i m ate of the t i mes. This was Meng-z i , c o m m o n l y re ferred to i n E n g l i s h as Men c i u s . F i erce l y anti-uti l it ar i a n , Me n c i u s dec l a red the es senti a l goo d n ess of h u m a n n atu re, a good ness that cou l d be d a m aged o r perve rted by c i rc u m stance. Add ress i n g r u l ers who sought s uccess, Men c i u s to l d them that p rag m atic s u ccess cou l d come o n l y from a moral pe rfecti o n that was i nd iffe rent to s u c h success. Men c i u s w a s fo l lowed i n the n ext generation b y another Confu c i a n p h i l oso p h e r, X u n - z i , who too k the contrary position that h u m a n n at u re was essenti a l l y bad, o r more p recisely, that i t was d r i ve n by appeti tes that cou l d be gove rned o n l y by a Confu c i a n moral e d u c at i o n a n d the restrai n i n g force of cere m o n y . I n t h i s age of n e w p h i loso p h i es i n d i fferent t o the p ast, the Confu c i a n school c o n served o l d e r trad i t i o n s s u c h as the r i t u a l s of Z h o u , the Classic of Poetry, the Classic of Documents, a n d The Springs and Autumns. O u t of the Confu c i a n school came The Zuo Tradition, the earl i est h i sto r i c a l work of C h i n a . The date of The Zuo Tra dition h a s been m u c h d i s p u ted ; the l ate fo u rth century
B.C.
see ms l i ke l y, though i t
may wel l h ave b e e n ear l i e r . The Zuo Tra dition i s g i ven as a commentary o n The Springs and A u tumns, offe r i n g narrative accou nts that flesh out the te rse entries i n
the a n n a l s . W e c a n n ot k n ow exact l y w h e n writing c a m e t o b e u sed i n exten d ed compos i t i o n s s u c h as t h e essays o f t h e p h i losop hers o r The Zuo Tradition. I t see m s l i ke l y that there was a grad u a l expa n s i o n of written composition throughout the cou rse of the War r i n g States . The tightly contro l led Lega l i st state of Q i n depended o n writi n g fo r the d i ssem i n at i o n of its l aws a n d the accu rate gath e r i n g of i nfo r m at io n . The C h i nese c h a racters u sed i n th i s period were u n l i ke those t h at came i nto use in the Han Dy n asty, w h i c h can sti l l be read by any reader of C h i nese. Early script was c u m ber some, u n stan d a rd i zed, and open to n u merous a m b i gu ities (th o u g h we may be s u re t h at Q i n fo u n d ways to avo i d any a m b i g u i ty ) . Books were w r i tten on th i n b a m boo str i ps, bou n d together w i th str i n g i nto b u n d l e s . A b roken o r rotten str i n g c o u l d eas i l y l eave the book owner with a l a rge, j u m b l ed p i l e of bamboo stri ps, each contai n i n g a sente n ce o r two . S o m e o f t h e d iffi c u lties i n read i n g e a r l y works are attr i b u ted to
6
Early China b u n gled attem pts to reasse m b l e s u c h books . The sheer b u l k a n d weight of these books p resented p ractical d iffi c u lties with p rofo u n d conse q u e n ces . A wo rk that now fi l l s one modern p r i nted vo l u m e cou l d eas i l y h ave req u i red one o r m o re wago n s to tra nsport. In the Warr i n g States, re l ative l y few peo p l e " read ," though works m i ght sti l l be widely d i ssem i nated . Those who did read memorized a n d repeated what they had memorized-though h u m a n mem ory being w h at i t is, variations and p a ra p h rase crept i n . In m a n y of the early texts we now h ave, H a n and l ate r s c h o l ars h ave reco n c i led d i ffe rent versi o n s ; but in m a n y oth e r cases, we fi n d rete l l i n gs of the same sto ry o r passage, each d i ffe rent t o a l a rge or s m a l l degree, but i n c l u d i n g enough of the same word i n g that we can recog n i ze them as variations of the same p i ece. Al though the Wa r r i n g States had written texts, i t was sti l l a wo r l d in w h i c h l iteratu re, b road l y co n c e i ved, was p r i m a r i l y d i ssem i n ated ora l l y . The vari ati o n s that accom pany oral transm ission m i ght be i n c l uded in a new written vers i o n , or m o re p recisely, a vers i o n that was "written d ow n . " E a r l y writi n g often i m itated t h e fo rms o f speec h . There were n a rrat i o n s a n d i m perso n a l d i s c u rs i ve treati ses i n early C h i nese l ite rature, b u t there was a p a rti c u l a r pleas u re i n d i a l ogue, a n d espec i a l l y i n oratory. Modern a u d i e nces h ave i n l a rge mea s u re l ost the taste for oratory, and its p l eas u res are d i m i n i s h e d i n w r i t i n g (and fu r ther d i m i n i s h ed in tra n s l ati o n ) . B u t the writte n texts of early C h i n a were often crafted to rec a l l the p l ea s u res of a good speec h , with the p l ay of s o u n d s a n d rhymes, rhyth mic para l l el p h rases, and a n i ntricate structure of a n a logies d rawn to s u p p o rt a n ar gu ment. A r i s i n g out of o ratory came one of the m ost pop u l a r ente rta i n ment fo rms of the H a n e l i te, t h e "poet i c expo s i t i o n " (fu), long rhymed descri ptions w ith rich vo c ab u l ary t h a t were dec l a i med i n c o u rts . Early i n the th i rd centu ry
B .C . , the K i ngdom of C h u exte n d ed from the borders of
S i c h u a n down the fu l l l e n gth of the Yangz i R i ve r . A major m i l itary a n d p o l i t i c a l power, C h u a l o n e w a s a m atch fo r t h e g row i n g power o f Q i n . C h u c u l t u re, partic u l a r l y of its e l ite, had been i nf l u e n ced by long contact with the central Zhou do m a i ns, but C h u ' s ru l i ng fa m i l y was i nd igenous, and i t rem a i ned a h y b r i d c u lture w ith d i sti n ct traits. D u r i n g C h u ' s long pol i t i c a l struggle w ith Q i n , the a r i stocrat Q u Y u a n ( c a . 340-2 7 8
B .C.) represented t h e party o pposed t o a n y com p ro m i se with Q i n . Even
t u a l l y h e was sent i nto exi l e by the k i n g and, accord i n g to l egend, d rowned h i m self in despa i r in the M i - I u o R iver. T o Q u Y u a n w a s attr i b uted a b o d y of verse u n l i ke anyth i n g else i n a n c i e n t C h i n a . These works, a l o n g w ith l ater works i n the same tra d ition, are known as the "Lyrics of C h u " (Ch u-ci). The ear l i est works in the co l l ec tion were p robab l y p reserved o ra l l y in the l ower Y a n gz i River reg i o n , where they came to the attention of the Han e l ite aro u n d the m id d l e of the second centu ry
B.C.
T h e q u esti o n o f w h i c h , if a n y , o f these p i eces a r e actu a l l y b y Q u Y u a n rem a i n s a
m atter o f s c h o l a r l y deb ate, b u t s o m e seem t o represent authentic trad i t i o n s o f C h u
shama n i s m . "The N i ne Songs" are mostly h y m n s t o t h e C h u gods. T h e c o l lection a l so conta i n s two "sou l-ca l l i ngs," i n which the shaman tries t o persuade the wan dering s o u l of someone dead o r d y i n g t o retu rn t o its body. Most of the p i eces m ix sham a n i st i c e l eme nts with moral a n d p o l i t i c a l motifs . The most fam o u s work is the Li Sao, a long m o n o logue i n w h i c h the s peaker i s rej ected by the king a n d r i d es w ith
a cava l cade of deities through the heavens, p rotesti n g h i s v i rtue and see k i n g a m ate . The meters, the l a n g u age, the i m ages, a n d the fierce i nte n s i.ty of the " Ly r i c s of 7
Anthology of Chinese Literature C h u " are u n l i ke a n yth i n g from N o rth C h i n a of the ti me, a n d they exe rted a power fu l i nfl u e n ce o n l ater writi n g . The shaman i st i c acco u n t of the fl i g h t through the heav e n s became the model fo r represent i n g re l i gi o u s expe r i e n ce i n H u a n g-Lao D a o i s m , p revalent i n the H a n Dyn asty a n d c o n cerned w i t h tec h n i q u es o f s p i ritu a l m astery and atta i n i ng i m moral ity. The i m pass i o n e d poetry of l o n g i n g fo r u n i o n with a god dess became the b as i s of a poetry of desi re, wheth e r e rotic, s p i ritu a l , o r a l l egori ca l . T h e r i t u a l pers u a s i o n o f the so u l i n the " s o u l -cal l i n gs" became a m o d e l fo r moral pers u a s i o n s , c a l l i ng the errant s p i rit back to good behav i o r by th reaten i n g a n d al l u ri n g descripti o n . T h e th i rd century
B.C. saw t h e steady r i s e o f t h e wel l-d i sc i p l i ned a n d a m b i t i o u s
doma i n o f Q i n . The pol i t i c a l a l l i a n ces o f oth e r dom a i n s s h i fted back a n d fo rth , try i n g either to check Q i n ' s exp a n s i o n or p l acate it. N oth i n g, however, cou l d stop the steady advance of Q i n ' s arm ies eastward . In 249
B.C., Q i n u n seated the l ast Zhou
k i ng, H u i , who ru led as a petty l o c a l c h i efta i n over his t i n y domain, a n d p u t a n e n d once a n d for a l l t o the Z h o u D y n asty . F i n a l ly, i n 2 2 1
B .C., the u n ification o f Ch i n a
was co m p l eted, a n d t h e Q i n r u l e r assumed the n ew title o f hua ng-di, " E m peror," ca l l i ng h i ms e l f the " F i rst E m peror of Q i n , " Q i n S h i -h u a n g . Q i n took d raco n i a n measures t o d estroy n o t o n l y a l l o p position but a l l d i versity a n d regi o n a l i s m as wel l . The scri pt, we ights a n d measu res, a n d even the w i dth of wheeled veh i c l es were sta n d a r d i zed (reg i o n a l d ifferen ces i n the d i stance between whee l s c reated ruts of d i fferent w i dths, w h i c h were a m aj o r obstac l e to travel through the country) . These p o l i c i es sti l l seem reaso n a b l e fo r p o l i t i c a l u n ification, but others, such as the atte m pt to sta m p out a l l p o l i t i c a l schools oth er than Legal i s m and to b u r n thei r books, a r e sti l l rem e m bered w i t h horror. T h e Q i n state a p paratus w a s a n effi c i ent too l o f i m pe ri a l wi l l , a n d without a n y c h ecks, t h e i m pe r i a l wi l l passed from b o l d dec i s iveness to mega l o m a n i a . La rge-s cale transfers of pop u l at i o n and massive conscriptions o f forced l ab o r to b u i l d p a l aces a n d frontier fortificat i o n s h e l ped cre ate the soc i a l u n rest that led to Q i n ' s downfa l l after less than two decades of ru l e . The death o f t h e F i rst E m peror i n 2 1 0
B . C . a n d t h e weakness o f h i s yo u n g h e i r
led to w i d e sp read outbreaks of rebe l l i o n ; the overexte nded Q i n a r m i es, p rev i o u s l y i n v i n c i b le, fel l apart i n the atte m pt t o p u t d o w n u p r i s i ngs o n s o many s i d e s . The lead ers of two rebel co nfederati ons, X i a n g Y u and L i u Bang, competed fo r d o m i n ance. Although Xiang Yu long a ppeared the stro nger of the two, in 2 0 2
B.C. he was s u r
ro u n ded by L i u B a n g' s forces a n d com m i tted s u i c i d e . The H a n D y n asty i s u s u a l l y d ated fro m 2 0 6
B .C. w h e n L i u B a n g took t h e t i t l e of
" Pr i n c e of H a n . " On d efeat i n g X i a n g Yu, L i u B a n g fo u n d h i mself in the r u i n s of the Qin ad m i n i strative stru ctu re with a frag i l e a l l i a nce of reg i o n a l warlord a r m i e s . Po l it i ca l l y astute, Liu Bang seems to have u n derstood th at no one cou l d hold the em p i re as tightly as Q i n h a d tried to in p u rs u i t o f its Lega l i st d reams of absol ute state contro l . He kept part of h i s new e m p i re u n der d i rect i m p e r i a l contr o l , a p po i nt i n g ge n e ra l s a n d fa m i l y m e mbers a s feu d a l l o rds o f t h e farth e r reg i o n s . As confl i cts be tween the central government and these feu d a l doma i ns a rose in subsequent re i g n s, the H a n emperors conquered, d i v i ded, and whittled away at th e feu d a l doma i n s u nti l the l o n g re i g n of E m peror Wu ( 1 40-8 7
B .C.), when the C h i nese heartland was se
curely centra l i zed u n der i m pe r i a l control and C h i nese a r m ies were off w i n n i n g g l o ry aga i nst the X i o n g - n u K i n gdom i n Central As i a .
8
Early China It was d u r i n g the re i g n of Em peror Wu that S i - m a Q i a n ( c a . 1 4 5-c a . 85
B . C . ) set
out to fi n i sh h is father's task of compi l i n g the h i story of C h i n a from the earl i est ti mes down to the p resent. H i s c o u rt office gave h i m access to the i m pe r i a l l i b rary, w hi c h h e s u p p l e m e n ted by h i s o w n researches. S i - m a Q i a n ' s Historica l Records p reserve sto ries that we m i ght best consider " h i stor i c a l roma n c e . " S u c h stories a re d r i ven by the p l ea s u res of n a r rative a n d c h a racter rath e r than by verifi a b l e facts . It is i m poss i b l e t o say wheth e r th i s was i n t h e c h a racte r o f S i - m a Q i a n ' s sou rces o r w a s d u e to h i s own i n c l i nations as a write r : p robab l y it was a com b i n at i o n of the two . S i - m a Q i a n d u l y re ports t h e legends o f h i gh a n ti q u ity a n d g i ves a deta i led acc o u n t o f the pol itical struggles c l oser to h i s own ti me, but he i s at h i s most l i vely from the fifth centu ry
B . C. to the conso l i dation of the H a n early in the seco n d centu ry B . C .
W e have m u c h writi n g that s u rv i ves from a n c i e n t C h i n a , b u t prob a b l y n oth i ng comes to us d i rect ly as an author w rote it. The earl i est mater i a l p assed th rough cen t u ries of oral tran s m i s s i o n befo re i t was writte n d ow n . The l ater m ate r i a l may have been com posed i n writing, but it passed through m a n y cent u r i es of recopy i n g, w i th a l l the e rrors and m i s u ndersta n d i ngs that occurred in the p roces s. Wel l i nto the West em H a n there was l i ttle sense of the i ntegrity of a text; sect i o n s cou l d be added o r d e l eted, a n d passages cou l d b e reph rased . T h e l o n g p rocess that occu rred th rough the Han of reco n c i l i n g the variant texts of the Confu c i a n C l as s i c s l ed t o the notion of a sta b l e text that cou l d n ot be a l tered ; th i s , i n t u r n , produced a notion of the sta b l e l iterary text with w h i c h we a re fam i l i a r . I n t h e Western H a n , s i l k w a s u s e d fo r writi n g, b u t it w a s a m o re expen s ive m ed i u m than bam boo stri p s . A form of paper was used in the fi rst centu ry
A.D.,
but
did n ot come i nto w i de-scale use u n t i l several centu ries l ate r . The d ates are u n cer ta i n , but between the fi rst century
B .C. and the end of the second century
A.D.
the
scro l l repl aced the b u n d l e of bam boo stri p s as the p r i m a ry m ed i u m of wri t i n g . A scro l l was eas i e r to p rod uce a n d u se, a n d it was m o re d u ra b l e . D u r i n g the same pe riod, script became i n c reas i n g l y sta n d a rd ized and easy to write. With the age of the scro l l and the sta n d ard ized scri pt, we c a n beg i n to th i n k of read i n g as the r u l e rath er than the except i o n . It was sti l l not the age of the p r i nted boo k : scro l l s were t i me cons u m i n g to p ro d u ce and treasu red proporti o n ate l y . B ut through the cou rse of the Han, the written word became m u c h more w i d e l y ava i l a b l e and co u l d be transported from one s i d e of C h i n a to another with rel ative ease. A book i n b u n d l es of b a m boo stri ps that wou l d have req u i red a wago n to carry i t over r i vers and bad roads cou l d n o w be rep l aced by a l i ght satc h e l o f scro l l s . Th i s s m a ll tec h n o l o g i c a l advance h a d i m m ense con seq u e n ces. Learn i n g was n o l onger confi ned to centers where there were i m m ovab l e masses o f books a n d mas ters who contro l l ed access to th e m . Stories cou l d be c o n ve n i ently written down and ca refu l l y cop i ed rather than reto l d , with each rete l l i n g d i ffe r i n g s l ightly from the l ast. D i ffe rent vers i o n s of a text cou l d be eas i l y brought together, set s i d e by side, a n d t h e vers i o n s compared . A n d th i s c o u l d be done by a n y o n e who cou l d p u rc h ase t h e scro l l s o r h a v e them made. Though a n oral l i teratu re o f s o n g a n d sto ry cont i n ued i n C h i na, the scro l l bri ngs u s i nto t h e age o f t h e b o o k a n d l i teratu re proper.
9
T h e Classic of Poetry: B eg i n n i n gs T h e Classic of Poetry (Shi-jing) i s a col l ecti o n of j u st over th ree h u n d red poems fro m the Z h o u Dynasty ( 1 0 2 0-249 B . C . ) . Although the col l ecti o n reached someth i n g l i ke i ts p resent fo rm a ro u n d 6 0 0 B . C., the o l dest p i eces may d ate from as early as the tenth centu ry B . C . F o u n d i n a sec t i o n entitled the "Te m p l e H y m n s of Z h o u , " these early works are s i m p l e h y m n s u sed i n d y n astic ritu a l s t o add ress t h e deified s p i rits o f t h e fo u n ders of the Z h o u Dyn asty, K i n gs Wen a n d Wu . I n these hymns, words can be a necessary part of ritual . As i n modern ritu a l s s u c h as wed d i n gs o r c o u rt p roceed i n gs, fo rm a l l y dec l a r i n g someth i n g i n w o r d s i s neces sary to m a ke i t so. S u p pose a gro u p of men l ead catt le and sheep i nto a l a rge h a l l . There they k i l l the a n i m a l s , cook them over a fi re, and eat the meat i n s i l e n c e . That is a mea l . But i f, as they l ead the a n i m a l s i nto the h a l l , they s i n g the fo l l ow i n g verse from the "Te m p l e H y m n s of Z h o u , " the same action becomes a ritu a l , and the s p i rit of K i n g Wen eats the s m o ke that r i ses from the b u r n i n g sacrifice.
Classic of Poetry
CCLXXII " We Have in Hand "
We have in hand our offerings : these are sheep, these the cattle, may Heaven favor them. This act is patterned on King Wen's rules, which daily bring peace to all the land. Exalted be King Wen !he favors us by feeding on them. May we, early and by night, stand in dread of Heaven's might, and in this way preserve it. It is often necessary to n a m e someth i n g i n order fo r that th i n g to h ave its p ro per func tion in a syste m of ritu a l . This beco mes a s i g n ificant ro l e of early poetry : To d e c l are the names of t h i ngs and acti ons, and to desc r i be the orderly system of the i r rel ati o n , th u s g u a ra ntee i n g the cont i n u i ty o f ritu a l a n d soc i a l processes. The fo l l ow i n g i s one of the agra r i a n hymns from the "Te m p l e Hymns o f Zh o u . "
10
Early Chi na
Classic o f Poetry
CCXC " Mowing Grasses "
Mowing grasses, felling trees, we till the churning soil. A thousand pairs do weeding, off to paddies, off to dikes. Here the squire, here the firstborn, here the nextborn, here the clan, here the yeomen, here the hands, hungry for their field-fare. Comely are the wives, sturdy are the men . Sharp-tipped are the plowshares, that turn the sod on southern tracts . We scatt er all the many grai ns, the life is store d with in the seed . Then the bounty of the shoo ts, and fulln ess in the sing le stalk . Full indeed are all the sprouts, row by row the weeders go. In lines we come to harvest it, and we have the grains in piles, in myriads and millions. Beer we make and the sweet ale, to bestow on Foremothers and Forefathers, and by this j oin the many rites . Musky is the grain-smell, the splendor of our homeland. Pungent is its fragrance, well-being for our elderly. Not j ust this which is befo re us, , not j ust for now what is here now this. as from early time s it was
The Z h o u F ou n d i n g The Classic of Poetry has fo u r l a rge secti o n s : the " H y m n s " (Song), the " G reat Odes" . (Oa-ya), the " L esser Odes" (Xiao-ya), a n d the " A i rs" (Feng). The n ext fo u r poems are
from the " G reat Odes" and reco u nt c r u c i a l e p i sodes in the fou n d i ng of the Z h o u D y n asty . The fi rst, " S h e Bore t h e F o l k, " tel l s the sto ry of t h e m i racu l o u s b i rth of L o r d M i l l et (Hou J i) , who c reated agr i c u lture a n d whom t h e Z h o u royal h o u se revered a s thei r a n cestor. The legend as p resented in " S h e B o re the F o l k " is fragm entary, l eav i n g l ater h i stor i a n s and commentators to f i l l in the m i ssi n g d eta i ls . An exam p l e of th i s is g i ven in the l ater p rose acco u n t of Hou J i by the h isto r i a n S i- m a Q i a n . " L i u 11
Antho logy of Chinese Literature the D u ke" te l l s of the m i g rati o n of the Zhou people i nto the l a n d of B i n . In B i n , the Zhou peo p l e were eve ntu a l ly attac ked by the Rong and Di tri bes a n d m i g rated fu r ther to the territo ry aro u n d M o u n t Q i , where the peo p l e too k the name of Zhou . The settlement of the " p l a i n of Zhou" i s to l d i n " S p read i ng" F i n a l ly , in "The G reater B r i ghtness," we h ave an acco u nt of how Z h o u , gath e r i n g Power (De) by good works and advantageo u s m a r r i ages, at l ast received the Ch arge of H eaven to overth row the Y i n - S h a n g D y n asty a n d r u l e in its stead . Although critics h ave often grou ped these fo u r and one other poem together as a set, they are essenti a l l y d i fferent poetic types. " L i u the D u ke" and "Spread i n g" are n a r rative accou nts of Zhou m i grat i o n and settlement. "She Bore the Fo l k" is not so m u c h a n a r rative as a ritu a l song that exp l a i n s the o r i g i n of the harvest ceremony. "The G reater B r i ghtness" i s a n u n abashed p i ece o f roya l Zhou propaga n d a . Despite m i l l e n n i a o f s c h o l a rs h i p and g reat p rogress i n l i n g u i stics a n d p h i lology d u ri n g the past fo u r centu r i es, m u c h rem a i n s u ncerta i n in the l a n g u age of the Clas sic of Poetry, espec i a l l y in the most arc h a i c poems of the "G reat Odes" and the "Tem
p l e H y m n s of Z h o u . " There are m a n y words in these poems that we u n dersta n d o n l y rou g h l y, w h i c h le aves t h e tra n s l ator t o r e l y more heav i l y o n t h e i n terpretati o n o f the Zhou world from w h i c h the poems come. At o n e extre me are schol ars, p r i mari I y C h i n ese, who s e e the Z h o u as the model fo r l ater, i m pe r i a l C h i na, w i t h Confu c i a n v a l u e s and a government con s i sti n g o f a b u reau c rati c structure o f offices . A t t h e other extrem e are those Western, J a p a n ese, and some C h i nese schol ars who see the Zhou as a m o re " p r i m i t i ve" soc i ety, one h e l d together b y re l i g i o n , hero i c v i rtues, a n d fa m i l y ties.
Classi c of Poetry
CCXLV " She Bore the Folk"
She who first bore the folkJiang it was, First Parent. How was it she bore the folk? she knew the rite and sacrifice. To rid herself of sonlessness she trod the god's toeprint and she was glad. She was made great, on her luck settled, the seed stirred, it was quick. She gave birth, she gave suck, and this was Lord Millet. When her months had come to term, her firstborn sprang up. Not splitting, not rending, working no hurt, no harm. He showed his godhead glorious, the high god was greatly soothed. He took great j oy in those rites and easily she bore her son. 12
Early China She set him in a narrow lane, but sheep and cattle warded him She set him in the wooded plain, he met with those who logged the plain. She set him on cold ice, birds sheltered him with wings . Then the birds left him and Lord Millet wailed. This was long and this was loud; his voice was a mighty one. And then he crept and crawled, he stood upright, he stood straight. He sought to feed his mouth, and planted there the great beans. The great beans' leaves were fluttering, the rows of grain were bristling. Hemp and barley dense and dark, the melons, plump and round . Lord Millet in his farming had a way to help things grow: He rid the land of thick grass, he planted there a glorious growth . It was in squares, it was leafy, it was planted, it grew tall. It came forth, it formed ears, it was hard, it was good. Its tassels bent, it was full, he had his household there in Tai. He passed us down these wondrous grains: our black millets, of one and two kernels, Millets whose leaves sprout red or white, he spread the whole land with black millet, And reaped it and counted the acres, spread it with millet sprouting red or white, hefted on shoulders, loaded on backs, he took it home and began this rite. And how goes this rite we have ? at times we hull, at times we scoop, at times we winnow, at times we stomp, we hear it slosh as we wash it, we hear it puff as we steam it. Then we reckon, then we consider, take artemisia, offer fat. 13
Anthology of Chinese Literature We take a ram for the flaying, then we roast it, then we sear it, to rouse up the following year. We heap the wooden trenchers full, wooden trenchers, earthenware platters. And as the scent first rises the high god is peaceful and glad. This great odor is good indeed, for Lord Millet began the rite, and hopefully free from failing or fault, it has lasted until now.
The fo l l owi n g is the m u c h l ate r acco u nt of Lord M i l l et in the " C h ro n i c les of Z h o u , " from t h e Historica l Records o f S i - m a Q i a n ( c a . 1 4 5-ca. 8 5
B.C.). The
Historical
Records is the most i m portant h i storical work treat i n g a n c i ent and early Han C h i na .
Si-ma Q i a n ' s vers i o n i s essenti a l l y a p rose s u m m ary p rovi d i ng a n swers to l arge q u esti o n s l eft by the poem . N ote how S i- m a Q i a n i ntegrates Lord M i l let i n to the leg e n d ary pol i t i c a l structu re of the ti mes of the Sage- K i ngs; parti c u l ar l y s i g n ificant is Lord M i l l et's tra n sformat i o n from dem i god to p o l itical appoi ntee. As the em p i re was to be brought to p o l i t i c a l u n i ty in the Western H a n , one of the fu nctions of the H a n h i sto r i a n w a s t o b r i n g the d i verse frag ments o f myth, l e g e n d , and early h i story i nto a s i n g l e u n ified sto ry.
Historical Records,
" Chronicles of Zhou "
Lord Millet (Hou Ji) of Zhou had the given name Qi, " the Castoff. " His mother was the daughter of the ruler of Tai and was named Jiang "Yuan" [ " first parent " ] . Jiang was the principal consort of Emperor Gao. Jiang Yuan went forth into the wilderness and saw the print of a huge man. Her heart was filled with delight and she wanted to step in it. When she stepped in it, her body stirred like one pregnant. After her term, she bore a son. She thought of him as ill-omened and cast him away into a narrow lane, but the horses and cattle that passed by stood out of his way and did not step on him. She moved him and put him in the forest, but he encountered many people in the forest. She carried him elsewhere and cast him on the ice of a ditch, but birds in flight came to cover him with their wings . Then Jiang Yuan thought of him as a god, took him b ack, and raised him. Since she had first wished to cast him off, she named him Qi, the Castoff. When Qi was still a boy, he had fully developed aims like those of an older person. In his games he was fond of planting hemp and beans, and his hemp and beans grew very well. When he grew up, he liked farming and working the soil; he could observe what crop the land was most suited to, and he planted and reaped the most suitable grains there. All the folk fol lowed his example. Emp eror Yao heard about him and raised Qi to be the 14
Early China Master of Farming . He achieved much, and all the world had benefit from him.
Classic of Poetry
C CL " Liu the Duke "
Duke Liu the Steadfast neither bided nor enjoyed: now marking plots and boundary lines, now gathering, now storing; now wrapping up the meal, in pouches and in sacks; and glorious by all amassed, he brought forth bows and bolts, shield and pike, ax and hatchet, and then began the march. Duke Liu the Steadfast went and paused upon that plain: teeming it was and bountiful, yielding it was, word was spread, nor were there long cries of woe; he climbed and was upon the hill, again came down upon the plain. What was wrapped around him then ? it was j ade and j asper studding the sheath of the Dirk . 1 Duke Liu the Steadfast went off to the hundred springs, and scanned this vast plain. Then he climbed the southern hill-spine, beheld there the great citadel. In the wilds around the citadel there he stayed ever, there he dwelt ever; there he spoke ever, there he talked with others ever. Duke Liu the Steadfast settled in the citadel; with grave and reverent motion proffered mat and proffered armrest; he mounted the mat, he then reposed. He had his bands next go and seize a pig within the pen. 'The " D i rk" seems to h ave been one of the i n s i g n i a s of c h i eftai n s h i p .
15
Anthology of Chinese Literature He had wine poured in j ugs of gourd, they fed him, they gave him drink, they made him lord, founder of the line. Duke Liu the Steadfast made his land vast and made it long, he marked the shadows, then the hill lines, he surveyed shadowed and sunlit slopes. He observed where the springs flowed, and his army went in three files. He measured the bogs and plains, he assessed the fields for his stores. He measured slopes that stood to the evening sun, his abode in Bin was verily grand. Duke Liu the Steadfast built the lodgings in Bin, made a fording place to cross the Wei, there took whetstones and hammerstones. Foundations built, he marked off fields, then we grew many, then we thrived. On both sides of the Huang Creek, and upstream to the Guo Creek. We settled there and we grew teeming, all the way to the bend of the Rui. I n sofar as these poe m s are nar ratives, it is worth n ot i n g w h at constitutes a satisfy i n g c o n c l u s i o n . Rather t h a n t h e com p l et i o n o f a c o n q uest o r t h e ac h i evement o f a deed, these poems often end with spread i n g, exte n s i o n , and conti n u ity . That is, the n a r rat ives avo i d conc l u s i o n ; they p o i nt i n stead to conti n u ati o n .
Classic 0 f Poetry
CCXXXVII " Spreading "
Melons spreading, large and small, when first the folk were born. From Du he fared to Qi, our duke of old, Dan-fu . They fashioned dwellings in pits and cliffs; they did not yet have houses. Our duke of old, Dan-fu, that morning sped his horse. He followed the edge of the western river and came to beneath Mount Qi. Then he j oined the woman Jiang, they came and shared a roof. 16
Early China The plain of Zho u was fat and fair whe re thist le and buttercup taste d ike hon ey. The re he star ted, ther e he reck oned , ther e he pier ced our tort oise shel ls. " Stop , " it was , and " Stan d, " in this plac e they built hou ses.
l
Then he reste d, then he stop ped, then he wen t left, then he wen t righ t, then he mar ked bord ers, then he mark ed boun ds then exten ded, set out field s. ' From west he fared to east, and everywhere he took char ge. He called to his Master Builder, he called to his Master of Workmen. He had them set up houses, and the plumblines hung straight. They lashed planks and raised it, made the Ancestral Temple well aligned. One after another they took earth in hods, in countless loads they measured it. With thud upon thud they rammed it hard, and with scraping sounds they pared it flat. A hundred wall segments rose together, and drowned out the sounds of the drums . Then they set up the outermost gate, and the outermost gate loomed high. Then they set up the central gate, and the central gate was stately. Then they set up the Altar to Earth, where his war hosts set forth . Yet he did not abate his ire, nor did his repute subside. The oaks were uprooted, and roads were cleared through. The Kun-yi tribes flew in panic, how we harried them to gasping! Yu and Rui gave warr ants for peac e, King Wen laid their beasts on his altar s. He had all those both far and near, he had those befo re and behin d him He had those who woul d rush to hi biddi ng, he had those who wou �d fend off sligh ts.
;
17
Anthology of Chinese Literature T h e des c r i pt i o n of b u i l d i n g the rammed-earth wal l s of the Zhou capital i n " S pread i n g" is o n e of the more re markable moments in ea r l y l iteratu re, d i sti n g u i s h i n g the C h i nese trad i t i o n from others. The m o n u mental l abor that went i nto construct i n g the Pyra m ids, the wal l s of Babylon, the arch i tectu ral m o n u me nts of G reece and Rome, o r the castles of the M i d d l e Ages were genera l l y not s u bj ects of the l i teratu re of those worlds, and the d i ffi c u lties i n vo l ved are o n l y tou c hed o n fragmentari Iy in documents. But th i s poem, one of the most i m portant p u b l i c poetic texts of the Zhou K i ngdom, i s a celebrat i o n of col l ective endeavo r . E v e n t h o u g h the f i n a l sta nzas o f " S p read i n g" a r e g l eefu l l y v i o l ent, D a n -fu was tran sfo rmed i nto the exe m p l a ry pacifist. The fo l l ow i n g para b l e, te l l i n g of D a n -fu ' s m i g ration from B i n , c o m e s from s o m e t i m e between the fo u rth and s e c o n d century It is taken fro m :
B.C.
The
Zhuang-zi,
" Renouncing Kingship "
Dan-fu the great King was dwelling in Bin when the Di tribes attacked. He offered them tribute of skins and cloth, but they wouldn't accept it; then he offered tribute of dogs and horses, but they wouldn't accept it; he offered them pearls and j ade, but they still wouldn't accept: for what they wanted was his land. Then Dan-fu the great king said: I could not bear to dwell among elder brothers whose younger brothers I had sent to death, or to dwell among fathers whose sons I had sent to death. You my people endeavor to continue living here-what's the difference between being my subj ect and being a subj ect of the Di? Besides, I have heard it said that one should not harm those one would nurture by the very means of their nurture. And then he left, leaning on his staff. His people all followed him in a long line, and a new state was established below Mount Qi. "The G reate r B ri ghtness" beg i n s with a n acco u n t of the royal Zhou marri ages that p rod u ced K i ngs Wen and Wu, who, fo l l ow i n g H eave n ' s p l a n , overthrew the Y i n S h a n g D y n asty. T h e word " Powe r" (De) i s o n e o f t h e most i m portant terms i n Zhou pol itical thought and l ater i n Confu c i a n eth i c s . D e l itera l l y means "atta i n ment, " a k i n d of c h a r i s m a (and perhaps even sex u a l potency and fe rt i l ity) am assed by d o i n g good a n d p roper works. W i t h e n o u g h Power, t h e peo p l e stay l o y a l and enem i es s u b m it. I n i ts l ater Confu c i a n transfo r m at i o n , De became "v i rt u e . "
Classic of Poetry
CCXXXVI " The Greater Brightness "
The brightness is below, fierce splendor is on high. Hard to trust in Heaven, the kingship is not easy. Yin's heir stood in Heaven's place, yet it made him lose his lands around. From Zhi the second daughter, Ren, went from the land of Yin and Shang. 18
Early China She came to marry into Zhou, in its great city, foreign bride. Together then with Ji the King they did that work of Power. And Great Ren became with child and gave birth to our King Wen. This King Wen of ours, his prudent heart was well ordered. H e shone i n serving the high god, and thus enjoyed much fortune . Unswerving in the Power he had, he held all the domains around. Heaven scanned the land below, its charge was laid upon him. In the first doing of King Wen Heaven made a mate for him. It was on the Xia' s north shore, there on the banks of the Wei, King Wen found the woman fair, daughter of a mighty land. This daughter of a mighty land was seen like Heaven's little sister. He fixed by good custom a lucky time, himself he welcomed her at the Wei . He fashioned boats into a bridge, with light great and glorious. There was a charge from Heaven, a charge for Wen the King, In Zhou, in its great city, this next queen, who was of Shen. This eldest daughter did the work, and steadfast, bore King Wu. "I who preserve you, charge you to j oin and smite the great Shang. " There, the hosts of Yin and Shang, their standards like a forest. An oath was made on the Pasture Ground, " It is we who are in the ascendant. The high god looks upon you, be there no treachery in your hearts . " The Pasture Ground stretched o n and on, with sandalwood chariots glorious. The teams of bays well muscled, 19
Anthology of Chinese Literature War Chief was our Shang-fu. He was the falcon taking wing, he showed the way for Wu the King. They fell on great Shang and smote them, the morning they gathered was clear and bright. A n u m be r of the poems in the Classic of Poetry can best be descri bed as the " p ro paga n d a of Z h o u , " c e l e brati n g the d y n asty ' s fo u n d at i o n by r i g h t of rece i v i n g H eave n ' s C h arge . T h e fo l l ow i n g poem, "Overbea r i n g, " i s p resented a s the add ress of K i n g Wen to the l ast r u l e r of the Y i n - S h a n g Dyn asty . V i rtu a l l y a l l C h i n ese critics h ave taken this t o be a covert den u n c i at i o n of K i n g L i of Zhou ( r u l ed 8 7 8-842
B.C.),
who i s assumed t o be the h i g h g o d referred t o i n the poem . H owever, there i s noth i n g in the poem to s u p po rt such a n i nterpretat i o n , w h i c h wou l d h ave fi rst appeared m o re than s i x h u n d red years after the p u tative d ate of com positi o n .
Classic 0 f Poetry
C C LV " Over bearing "
Overbearing is the high god, he gives his rules to folk below. Perilous, the high god's power, many the rules within his Charge. Heaven bore the teeming folk, his Charge cannot be trusted. All men begin well, but few can keep it to the end. King Wen said, Woe ! Woe upon you, Yin and Shang ! You have been the harsh oppressor, you have been grasping and crushing. You have been in the places of power, you have held the functions. Heaven sent recklessness down in you, and you rise by acts of force. King Wen said, Woe! Woe upon you, Yin and Shang ! Cling to right and seemlinessmuch hate comes back from harshness. Loose words are given as answers, plunder and pillage are in the center. They rise up, they speak curses, Without ceasing, without close. King Wen said, Woe ! Woe upon you, Yin and Shang ! You have roared i n the heartland, you draw wrath as your Power. 20
Early China You shed no light from your Power, so none stand at your back or side. Your Power sheds no light, so none will stand with you and serve. King Wen said, Woe! Woe upon you, Yin and Shang! Heaven does not swill you with wine, you chase and choose things not right. You have overstepped in your behavior, unable to tell darkness from the light. You howl and you shout, and would have daylight be as night. King Wen said, Woe ! Woe upon you, Yin and Shang ! You are like locusts, like grasshoppers, like froth, like the soup that simmers. Things great and small draw to destruction, you men still follow this way. You have domineered in the heartland, and it spreads all the way to Gui-fang. King Wen said, Woe ! Woe upon you, Yin and Shang! Not the high god who is not good Yin does not act as it did of old. And though it has no wise old men, still it has its sanctions and codes. Never have you heeded these, and the Great Charge is overthrown. King Wen said, Woe ! Woe upon you, Yin and Shang ! There is a saying among men: When a tree falls and is torn from earth, there is yet no harm to boughs and leaves the roots meet ruin first. Yin' s mirror lies not far away, it is there in the reigns of the lords of Xia. As with the r i tu a l hymns, the poetry of royal Zhou often gave act i o n s legiti macy a n d mean i n g b y representi n g t h e m i n a w a y t h at reflected Z h o u pol itical ideology. Ex u ltat ion i n warfare and co n q u est was s u b o rd i n ated to a c e l e b rati o n of b r i n g i n g order and peace to the land and to the k i n g' s h e art. As H eaven d e l egated authority to the Zhou roya l h o u se, so the Zhou k i n gs m i ght d e l egate legit i m ate authority to t h e i r fe u d a l l o rds, w h o s e c o n q u ests were t h u s sanctioned . T h e re i s a g ro u p o f n a r ratives of m i l itary campaigns bel ieved to d ate from the t i m e of K i n g X u a n ( r u l ed 8 2 7- 7 8 2
B .C.), 21
Anthology of Chinese Literature whose re i g n saw a resu rgence of Zhou roya l power. The fo l l ow i n g bal l ad , te l l i n g of a c a m p a i g n aga i n st the tri bes of H u a i River reg i o n , see m s to h ave been writte n to celebrate the casti n g of a ceremo n i a l vessel fo r the D u ke of S h ao, who is rem i n ded of h i s a n cestor and h i s fa m i ly's h i sto r i c a l a l l eg i a n c e to the house of Zhou .
Classic of Poetry
CCLXII " Y angzi and Han"
Y angzi and Han go rolling on, our warriors go flooding. We do not rest, do not roam free, we go to assail the Huai tribes. We have brought our chariots forth, we have lifted our falcon standards. We do not rest, we take no ease, we go to bring hurt to the Huai tribes . Yangzi and Han sweep in torrents, our warriors seethe and surge . We bring order to the lands around and declare the deed done to the king. The lands all around are made peaceful, the king's domain nigh settled. Now there is no conflict, and the king's heart may be at ease. It was by the shores of Yangzi and Han, the king gave a charge to Hu of Shao: " Open the lands that lie around, tax the lands within our bounds . Neither injure nor oppress to the farthest reach of the king's domain. Go make boundaries, mark out fields all the way to the southern seas . " The king gave a charge to Hu of Shao, " Go everywhere, go make this known. When Wen and Wu received the Charge, a Duke of Shao was their support. Say not: I am but a childyou, Duke of Shao, are successor. You persevered in these great works, whereby I grant you blessings. " On you I bestow the gui ladle, one urn of black millet beer with spice. With these inform your cultured Forebears that I confer on you earth and field. Here in Zhou you receive a charge that derives from the charge to Ancestor Shao . " 22
Early China Hu bowed and touched his head to the ground: " Live thousands of years, Heaven's Son ! " H u bowed and touched his head t o Earth, he answered acclaiming the king's goodness. He made the holy vessel of Shao's Duke thousands of years to Heaven's Son. The Son of Hea ven sheds shining light, his fine renown will never end. He spreads his Power gained by cultured works, attunes the domains all around. The p reced i n g poems come from the secti o n in the Classic of Poetry known as t h e "G reat Odes" (Oa-yaJ, which by a n d l a rge represents the p u b l i c poetry of the dy n asty . The section known as the " Lesser Odes" (Xiao-yaJ a l so conta i n s poems on m i l itary campaigns, but the way in w h i c h these poems treat such c a m p a i g n s shows
i n terest i n g d i fferences fro m the h i g h l y p o l itical representat i o n of m i l itary act i o n i n the " G reat Odes . " T h e speaker here i s n o l o n ge r foc u sed o n t h e k i n g ; h e speaks fo r the offi cers and so l d i ers of the Zhou . Among the i r advers a r i es, the n o n -C h i nese X i an - y u n were o n e of the Z h o u ' s greatest th reats . " B r i n g i n g F o rth the C h a r iots" treats a royal exped i t i o n w h o s e p u r pose is both to h a rry the X i a n - y u n and to b u i l d fortificat i o n s i n the N orth , w h i c h wou l d b e t h e p recu rsor o f t h e G reat Wa l l .
Classic o f Poetry
CLXVIII " Bringing Forth the Chariots "
We bring our chariots forth, down upon the meadows . From the Son of Heaven' s place we have been bidden to come. The drivers have been summoned, we have bidden them to load. The king's work has great troubles, they press upon us hard. We bring our chariots forth, upon the plain beyond the walls. Raise high the Snake-and-Tortoise, set the oxtail standards. The Eagle and Snake-and-Tortoise see how they flap in the wind. Our worried hearts are restless, the drivers are harried and drawn. The king commanded Nan-zhong, " Go, build walls in Fang." The chariots go surging forth, the Snake-and-Tortoise and Dragon shine. 23
Anthology of Chinese Literature The Son of Heaven commanded us, " Go, build walls in the northland. " Nan-zhong strikes terror, slayer of the Xian-yun. Long ago we marched away, with millet in full flower. Back we come today, snow is falling in the mire. The king's work has great troubles, no chance to sprawl or sit. Of course we long to go home, but we dread what is written.2 Insects abuzz in the grasses, katydids hopping about. Before we saw our lord, our worried hearts knew no ease. Now that we have seen our lord, our hearts begin to calm. Nan-zhong strikes terror, he who smites the Western Rong. More slowly pass the days of spring, heath and tree grow full and green. Starlings sing in choruses, tarragon is picked in throngs . With some held for question and captured bands, we now turn back and go home . Nan-zhong strikes terror, the Xian-yun are brought low. A n c i e n t Zhou wa rfa re was a ceremo n i a l activity, co n c l uded in autu m n (the seve nth to n i nth m o nths) . The X i an - y u n rai ders seem to h ave v i o l ated c u sto m, str'l k 'l n g 'In l ate s u m mer, i n the s i xth month . The fo l l ow i n g poem, fro m the " Lesser Odes," celebrates a n other c a m p a i g n .
Classic o f Poetry
CLXXVII " Sixth Month "
In the sixth month, all was in tumult, war chariots were made ready. The four-stallion teams were brawny, our kits and outfits were loade d. T h e Xian-yun came to raze widely, 'For a l l the s o l d i e rs' glee in Nan-zhong's m i l itary p rowess, they are kept in the exped ition by con· scription l i sts that w i l l res u l t in p u n i s h ment for deserters,
24
Early China by this we were hard pressed. The king sent forth his hosts, to bring order to the king's domain. Matched beasts, four black steeds, well trained to the standard. N ow in this sixth month our outfitting was done. And when our outfitting was done, we went our thirty leagues. The king sent forth his hosts to serve the Son of Heaven. Four stallions, tall and broad, stout and with great skulls. They went to smite the Xian-yun and show forth glorious deeds. With strictness and with order, we share this work of war. We share this work of war to settle the king's domain. The Xian-yun did not reckon, they stayed drawn up in Jiao and Hu. They raided Hao and Fang and reached the Jing's north shore . O ur woven designs, our bird devices, our swallow-tail pennons gleaming. Then ten of our great war wagons went forth first to begin the advance. Steady were the war chariots, as if bearing down and looming high. Four stallions moving in line, moving in line well trained. W e went and smote the Xian-yun, all the way to Great Plain. Ji-fu, warlike and courteous, was the model for all the lands. Ji-fu feasts and makes merry, much bounty he has received. Back we came from Hao, our j ourney far and long. With drink he serves all the friends, turtle roast and ground carp. Who else was there present ? Nan-zhong, loyal to parent and friend. 25
Anthology of Chinese Literature
H u m a n S a c r i fi ce : M a k i n g E xc h a n ges In the cere m o n i a l a n d dyn ast i c poems of the Classic of Poetry, n am i ng a th i n g or a ct i o n g u a ra n teed i t s fu nction w i th i n a structu re o f r i t u a l exc h a n ge a n d o r d e r . The words for the r i te stated what was rec e i ved, w h at was given, the i nte n t i o n s o r state of m i nd of those m a k i n g the offe r i ng, a n d the correctn ess a n d conti n u i ty of the p ro ced u res. On the pol i t i c a l l eve l , poems work in a s i m i l a r way, authori z i n g the dele gati on of power a n d assert i n g the correctness a n d conti n u ity of the syste m . Words c a n a l so d e c l a re m o re p ro b l e matic exc h a n ges a n d substitut i o n s . T h i s i s n ot a wo r l d o f obv i o u s r i t u a l a n d po l i t i c a l order b u t o n e o f m ysterious s e ries o f cor respondences reve aled in word s . In the fo l l owi n g poem, every t i m e the ye l l ow b i rd perches on the b r a n c h of a d i ffe rent p l a n t, a d i fferent member of the Z i -j u c l a n i s n amed t o accom pany h i s l o rd i n death . N o c a u s a l re l ation i s asserted , b u t some cor respondence is i m p l i c i t . In th i s poem, H eave n , who " s l ays o u r best men, " is as dan gero u s as i n the p reced i n g poems, b u t it i s less c o mpreh e n s i b l e . A n d the speaker in vain proposes a m o re open exc h a n ge, a ranso m . The date i s 6 2 0
Classic of Poetry
CXXXI " Yellow Bird "
Jiao cries the yellow bird,
it stops upon the briar. Who goes with Lord Mu? Yan-xi of the Zi-ju. And this man Yan-xi was the finest of a hundred, but standing by the pit he trembled in his dread. You Gra y One, Heaven, you slay our best men. If this one could be ransomed, for his life, a hundred. Jiao cries the yellow bird,
it stops upon the mulberry. Who goes with Lord Mu? Zhong-hang of the Zi-j u . A n d this m a n Zhong-hang could hold against a hundred, but standing by the pit he trembled in his dread. You Gray One, Heaven, you slay our best men. If this one could be ransomed, for his life, a hundred. Jiao cries the yellow bird,
it stops upon the thorn. 26
S.c.
Early China Who goes with Lord Mu? Qian-hu of the Zi-j u. And this man Qian-hu could ward against a hundred, but standing by the pit he trembled in his dread. You Gray One, Heaven, you slay our best men. If this one could be ransomed, for his life, a hundred . A l though t h e fo l k of Q i n h e re l a ment th e d eath of t h e th ree m e m bers of the Z i -j u c l a n , they accept i t a s a r i t u a l necess ity, someth i n g d e m a nded b y the "G ray O n e, H eaven . " As s u c h , th i s s o n g is a remarkable document from an a rc h a i c wo r l d i n wh i c h reta i n ers were k i l l ed a n d b u r i ed with the i r l o rd . The fo l low i n g acc o u n t o f t h e composition o f "Ye l low B i rd " comes fro m The Zuo Tradition, the a n n a l istic h i story com posed in the l ate fifth or fo u rth century
B.C. In
th i s s i ghtly l ate r period i t i s not m yste r i o u s He aven that i s respo n s i b l e , b u t h u m a n eth i c a l dec i s i o n .
The Zuo Tradition, ( 62 0 B . C . )
a n entry for the 6th year of Duke Wen
Qin's earl Ren-hao [Duke Mu] died. Three men of the Zi-j u clan-Yan-xi, Zhong-hang, and Qian-hu-were sent to die with their lord. All three were the best men of Qin. Men of the domain mourned for them and composed " Yellow Bird " on their behalf. A good man said, "It was most fitting that Mu of Qin did not become master of the covenant. When he died, he for sook his folk. When former kings passed from the world, they left a legacy of rules; they would hardly have stolen away its worthiest men . " Eventu a l l y s u bstitutions cou l d be m a d e : c l ay fi g u r i nes of m e n were exch a n ged fo r rea l l i egemen accompan y i n g the i r l o rd to the grave. O r a m a n bent on revenge, b l o c ked fro m fu l fi l l i n g his goa l , cou l d be sat i sfied b y stab b i n g h i s v i ct i m ' s c l oak, say i n g, "Th u s I k i l l you and take reven ge." Words become essent i a l when s u c h s u bsti tutions and exc h a n ges take p l ace; they may d ec l a re o n e th i n g as equ ivalent to an oth e r or p rotest i m p roper exc h a n ge s .
The Zuo Tradition, ( 64 0 B . C . )
an entry for the 1 9th year of D uke X i
That summer the Duke of Song bade D uk e Wen of Zhu to use the Lord of Zeng for sacrifice on the banks of the river Sui. He hoped in this way to win the adherence of the eastern tribesmen. His War Chief Zi-yu said, " In olden times the six domestic animals were not substituted for one another in sac27
Anthology of Chinese Literature rificial use; for small events they did not use large sacrificial animals-much less would they dare use a man ! Sacrifices are made for men. The people are hosts for the god. And if you use a man in a sacrifice, who will eat it? Duke Huan of Qi preserved three domains from ruin and in that way won the ad herence of the great nobility. Even so there are men of virtue who say that even his Power was slight. Now in one gathering you have treated brutally the lords of two domains; and beyond that, you have used one for sacrifice to a vile demon, the god of the river Sui. If you want to be overlord now, you will have a hard time of it. You will be lucky if you die ! " I n the sto ry ab o ve the h u m a n b e i n g may b e treated l i ke an a n i m a l , a "th i ng" i n the ,
ex c h a n ge syste m . Revers i n g the p rocess, one m i ght look o n a n a n i m a l with the sym pathy u s u a l l y reserved for fe l l ow h u m a n s . The fi rst case d i sq u a l ified the m a n who c o n d u cted such sacrifice from beco m i n g ove r l ord of the d o m a i n s ; the second case wou l d , we ass u m e, e n s u re his q u a l i fi cati o n s . S o m e th ree centu ries after the d ate o f The Zuo Tradition's acco unt o f t h e D u ke of Song's h u m a n sacr ifice, we h ave a fam o u s transformation of th i s q u esti o n of sac r i fi c i a l exc h a n ge in the Mencius, the d i a l ogues and say i ngs of the Confu c i a n p h i l oso p h e r M e n g-z i ( I at i n i zed, "Men c i u s " ) . The g reat i m portance attached to sym pathy i n th i s d i a logue i s a measure o f the c h a nges i n Confu c i a n val ues from arc h a i c ritu a l i s m t o a h u m a n i st i c eth ics o f m o r a l fee l i ng s . L i ke t h e yo u n g men o f t h e Z i - j u c i a n , stan d i n g bes i d e t h e g rave p i t o f L o r d M u , here t h e v i cti m a l so tre m b l es-a nd i n th i s case i s ransomed .
from
Mencius
I A, 7 (4th century
B.C. )
King Xuan of Qi said, " May someone like myself really be the protector of the people ? " Mencius answered, " You may . " The king, " How d o you know that I may ? " Mencius, " I heard from H u He that once when Your Majesty was seated in the great hall, someone was pulling a bullock along across the other end of the hall. When Your Maj esty saw it, you asked, 'Where is that bullock going ? ' And the answer was that it was being taken to be a blood sacrifice to anoint a newly cast bell. And Your Maj esty said, 'Let it go free. I cannot bear the look of terror in it-like someone going innocent to the execution ground . ' To this came the reply, 'Then shall we waive the blood sacrifice to anoint the bell ? ' And Your Maj esty said, 'How can we waive the sacrifice ? Use a sheep in its place.' I am not certain whether this happened. " The king, " It did . " Mencius, "A heart such a s this i s enough t o bring the high kingship . All the common folk may have thought Your Maj esty was being stingy, but I know quite well that it was because Your Majesty could not bear the sight. " The king, "This is so. And truly it was as you said with the common folk-but however small the realm of Qi be, I am not going to be stingy 28
Early China about one bullock.3 It was because I could not bear the look of terror in it, like someone going innocent to the execution ground. It was for that rea son I had a sh el" used in its place. " Mencius, "Y our Majesty should not think it strange that the common folk considered this as stinginess on y our part. Since you u sed a small thing in place of a large one, how could th ey understand ? If Y our Maj esty was touched by sadness a t something going innocent to the execution ground, on what grounds co uld a distinction be made between a bullock and a sheep ? " The king laughed. " What really was in my mind then ? I t is not that I am stingy with possessions, and yet I did have a sheep used in its place. It's quite right that the common folk claim I was being stingy. " Mencius, "There is no cause t o feel hurt. This was, in fact, the way of a man who feels sympathy. You sa w the bullock-you did not see the s heep . A good man feels the following way about animals: when he has seen them alive, he cannot bear to see their death; when he has heard the sounds they make, he cannot bear to eat their flesh. This is the reason a good man sta JI far from the kitchen. " The king was delighted . "The Classic of Poetry ( CXCVIII) has the lines: The hea rt may be ano ther 's, but I can take its mea sure . This applies to you, sir. I was the one who did it, but when I turned to fol low the process, I couldn't grasp what was in my own heart. But now that you have put it into words, there are the stirrings of such a feeling in my heart . . . . "
3"St i n g i ness" is the context u a l tra n s l ation of ai, to "begrudge, " to " c l i n g to someth i ng," a word for " l ove."
29
T h e Classic of Poetry: "Ai rs"
T o d ifferent ages a n d d iffere n t readers the Classic o f Poetry has rep re sented w h at they fe l t a " c l a s s i c of poetry" s h o u l d be. For some Confu c i a n i nterp rete rs, the col lection was the e m bod i m ent of the fate of the Zhou pol ity, m a n i fested through the mouths of its peo p l e . In th i s v i ew, the poe m s were j u d i c i o u s l y c h osen and arranged by Confu c i u s to s h ow eth i c a l v a l u e s at work i n pol i t i c a l a n d soc i a l h i story. To other Confu c i a n i nter p reters, it represented the fu l l range of n atu ral h u m a n fee l i ng and some permanent perfect i o n of fee l i ng's express i o n . T h e poems i n t h i s sect i o n are d rawn p r i m a r i l y from t h e fi rst part o f t h e Classic of Poetry, known as the " A i rs " (Feng) or the " A i rs of the D o m a i n s " (Guo-feng). The
"Ai rs" c o n stitute m o re than half of the over th ree h u n d red poems that m a ke u p the Classic of Poetry, a n d they are p ro b a b l y among the l atest poems to be added to the
reperto i re, w h i c h seems to h ave reached someth i n g I }ke its p resent fo rm a ro u nd
600
B.C.
T h e " A i rs" a r e grou ped u n der fifteen reg i o n s , w h i c h represent m a n y but n o t a l l of the feu d a l d o m a i n s o f the early Zhou m o n archy. I n s o m e premodern and some modern i nter p retat i o n s i nf l u en ced by a nth ropo l ogy, the " A i rs" h ave been taken to rep resent fo l k p oetry as the authentic voice of the common peo p l e , col l ected a n d transfor med by mus i c i a n s of the reg i o n a l cou rts . More recently the a r g u m e n t h a s b e e n made t h at the " A i rs" do n o t and n e v e r did represent t r u e fo l k poetry, but t h e p oetry of the Z h o u feu d a l cou rts . B o t h p o i nts of v i ew a r e correct. Some of the " A i rs" were c l e a r l y com posed for cou rt occas i o n s , s u c h as d i p l omatic wed d i ngs, w h i l e oth ers make stra i g htfo rward sense o n l y w h e n accepti n g the i r p rove n a n ce i n the peas antry. I t is best then to see the " A i rs" as representi n g reg i o n a l song trad itions, with l yr i c s d rawn from d iverse sou rces and transformed by the song trad itions of the Zhou feu d a l c o u rts .
Classic of Poetry I
" Fishhawk "
The fishhawks sing gwan gwan on sandbars of the stream. Gentle maiden, pure and fair, fit pair for a prince . Watercress grows here and there, right and left we gather it. Gentle maiden, pure and fair, wanted waking and asleep. 30
Early China Wanting, sought her, had her not, waking, sleeping, thought of her, on and on he thought of her, he tossed from one side to another. Watercress grows here and there, right and left we pull it. Gentle maiden, pure and fair, with harps we bring her company. Wat ercre ss grow s here and there , right and left we pick it out. Gent le maid en, pure and fair, with bells and drum s do her delig ht.
B.C.) made spec i a l comment on " F i s h h awk" in h i s c o l l ected ( 1 1 1 . 20) : " H e s a i d , ' F i s h hawk' is d e l i gh t without wanto n n ess,
Confu c i u s (ca. 5 5 2-4 7 9 say i ngs, the A n alects
sadness without h u rtfu l p a i n . " Throughout most o f t h e i m pe r i a l period, Confu c i u s was c red ited with h av i n g edited t h e Classic o f Poetry. S i nce Confu c i us' a rrangement o f t h e anth o l ogy was sup posed to have been p u rposefu l , " F i s h hawk," as the fi rst poem in the c o l l ecti o n , was made to bear a spec i a l i n terpretive we i g h t . Accord i n g to the trad i t i o n a l Confu c i a n i nter p retat i o n known as t h e " M a o c o m m entary," t h e p o e m represented the " v i rtu o u s atta i n ment" of the Q u een Consort of K i ng Wen of Zhou, who "de l i gh te d that p u re a n d fai r m a i d e n s had been fo u n d to be m ated with the p r i n c e [ i . e . , K i n g Wenl . " T h u s i t h a s been read a s a p o e m express i n g a n absence o f j e a l o u sy, w h i c h i n t u r n s h owed t h e perfect harmony o f t h e royal househ o l d . I n th i s w a y t h e p o e m was s u p posed to i n itiate K i n g Wen ' s p rocess of c i v i l i z i n g the l a n d , begi n n i ng with the most i nt i m ate and c l ose of re l at i o n s h i ps, then grad u a l l y exte n d i n g h i s i nf l u e n c e o utward .
Classic of Poetry
IX " The Han So Wide "
Tall are trees in the south country, they give no shade to rest in. By the Han the girls roam free, but no man can pursue them. So wide, the Han, I can't wade over; the river too long to go by raft. Heaps of kindling pile high; cut away the gorse. If only she would be my bride, 1 ' d offer fodder for her horse. So wide, the Han, I can't wade over; 31
Anthology of Chinese Literature the river too long to go by raft. Heaps of kindling pile high; cut away the dodder. If only she would be my bride, her colts would not lack fodder . So wide, the Han, I can't wade over; the river too long to go by raft. Often the assoc iation betwee n d i sparate i m ages-here the c l e a r i n g of b r u s h and the gathe r i n g of k i n d l i n g-are l i n ked by fo rtu itous rhymes with the m a n ' s w i s h to marry a certa i n woma n . Several e a r l y i nterp retat i o n s o f th i s poem l i n k t h e fi rst sta nza w i t h t h e story of the two goddesses of the H a n River who were encou ntered by one Zheng J i ao-fu . Fragments of th i s l egen d , i n d iffe r i n g vers i o n s, appear i n a variety of ea r l y sou rces . I n some vers i o n s , the n y m p h s wore egg-sized pear l s h a n g i n g from th e i r sashes. J i ao fu asked them fo r the i r p e n d a nts as a s i g n of prom i s i n g the i r l ove fo r h i m . They u n tied the pendants a n d gave them to h i m . B u t after taki n g seve ral ste ps to p i c k u p the pendants, J i ao-fu fo u n d that they h ad d i s appeared ; o n t u r n i n g aro u n d , he fou n d that the goddesses too had d i sappeared . T h i s i s j u st one of many lege n d s in w h i c h a mor tal man encou nters a goddess who, either with or without h av i n g sex u a l re l at i o n s with h i m , fi n a l l y p roves e l u s i ve. If w e take th i s poem as refe r r i n g t o the same river n y m p h s that Zheng J i ao-fu met, we s h o u l d proba b l y tra n s l ate the th i rd l i n e a s : "There a r e m a i d e n s swi m m i n g i n t h e H a n . " The ph rase you-nu can m e a n either " g i r l s that swi m " or " g i r l s roam i n g free . " " G i r l s roam i n g free" c a m e t o h ave stro n g asso c i at i o n s of p ro m i sc u i ty, in contrast to chu-nu, " g i r l s who stay home," l ater a te rm for v i r g i n s . T h rough the cou rse o f t h e Eastern H a n d u r i n g t h e fi rst and second centu ries
A.D.,
t h e so-ca l l ed M a o commentary t o t h e Classic of Poetry became dom i nant. T h e Mao commentary sought to exp l a i n a l l the Poems as part of the moral h i story of the Zhou Dyn asty, and there was therefore no room i n the comme ntary fo r reco l l ections of sex u a l encou nters with river nymphs, even though the poem m a kes the q u est hopeless. In the Mao exp l a n ation of th i s poem, the e l u s iveness of the m a i d e n s aro u n d the Han River i s due to K i ng Wen's eth i c a l transformati o n of c u sto m s in the dom a i n s u n der h i s r u l e . T h e coy goddesses a re tra n sfo rmed i nto prudent you n g l ad i e s : "Th u s far reached t h e b readth o f Z h o u ' s v i rtue. T h e true way o f K i n g W e n exte nded ove r the southern k i ngdoms, a n d s u c h love l y c i v i l i z i n g fo rce moved through the reg i o n s o f the Yangz i and H a n . N o o n e t h o u g h t o f transgress i n g p roper c u stom s ; i f y o u sought such, you cou l d n ot find them" (Mao, " Lesser P reface" to "The Han So W i d e" ) . ' 'The M a o "G reat Preface" treats the theory o f poetry i n genera l ; t h e " Lesser Prefaces" offer i nter pretat ions of a l l the i n d i v i d u a l poems in the Classic of Poetry.
32
, I
Early China
Other Voices in the Tradition J i ao-fu ' s amorous nymphs of the H a n R iver appeared often in l ater poetry, as in this very cryptic poem by the thi rd-centu ry poet Ruan Ji, in w h i c h the legend, s h ift i n g from J i ao-fu to a forsaken woman, s u ggests general betrayal and loss. T h e " d a n gerous beauty" m e n t i oned in Ruan Ji ' s poem i s l i tera l l y "one to m a ke a c i ty fa l l , " as in the verses Li Yan-n i a n s i ngs (see p. 2 1 5 ) about h i s s i ster to Em peror Wu of the H a n :
She glances once, a city falls; a kingdom falls when she glances again. The h o ney-to n g u ed o rator Song Yu ascribed to h i s lovely n e i g hbor the a b i l ity to "beg u i l e [the c i ty of] X i a-ca i . "
Ruan ]i
( A .D. 2 1 0-2 63 ) , Songs o f M y Cares I I
Two maidens roamed b y river's shore, they freely moved, borne by the breeze. Jiao-fu put their pendants in his ro bes; they were tender, young and sweet of scent. By passion his heart was swept awayhe would never forget in a thous and years. Such dangerous beauty beguiled Xia-cai; fair features knotted his heart within. Strong feelings, roused, brought troubled thoughts , in orchid rooms were planted ob livion's blooms. For whom now is her oiling and washing done ? wish for rain reproaches the morning s un. How can a bond strong as metal and stone change in only a day to parting's pain ?
R u a n J i ' s stra n g e l y i ntense poem in turn m a kes a f i n e contrast w i th a fam o u s poem by the Tang w r iter Meng H ao-ra n , who, early in the eighth centu ry, v i s i ted the s u pposed s ite of J i ao fu ' s e n c o u nter.
Meng Hao-ran (ca. 6 9 0-ca. 740 ) , Written at Wan Mountain Pool
I s a t o n a boulder, l e t my fishing line hang, the water was clear, my mind also calm. Fish swam along under trees by the pool, isles. and gibbon s hung among vines on the ts , Once roami ng girls untied their pendan says. legend so ain, mount on this very He pursue d them, he didn't get thema rowing song. movin g in moonl ight, I turn back with
33
Anthology of Chinese Literature
C o r respo n d e n ces Correspondences a r e a n essen t i a l part o f t h e Classic of Poetry. The most obv i o u s correspondences a re the co n n ecti o n s between words c reated by r h y m e , but the ar b itrary l i n kages of s o u n d often l ed to the assu m ption of deeper l i n kages . Many poems i n the Classic are con structed of sta nzas that h ave one set of a l ternations i n the n atural wor l d i n the fi rst p a rt of e a c h stanza, w i t h a para l l e l s e r i e s of a l ternations i n the h u m a n wo r l d occ u p y i n g the l ast part of each stanza. Trad i t i o n a l C h i nese poet i c theory made a c l e a r d i st i n ct i o n between cases i n which there was a n overt a n a l ogy between the n a t u r a l i m age a n d the h u m a n con d it i o n , a n d those cases i n which the n atural i m age w a s more myste r i o u s l y assoc i ated with the h u m a n s i t u ati o n . The fo rmer w a s cal led "com parison" (bi), a n d the l atter was c a l l ed a "sti r r i n g " o r a n "affect ive i m age" (xing). In oth er poems, the a l te r n at i o n s i nv olve s o m e h u m a n activity i n the fi rst part o f t h e sta nza a n d a fee l i n g or thought i n the second part o f the stanza. B ut whether t h e fi rst part o f the sta nza i s a n atural i m age o r a h u m a n acti v i ty, the pattern a l ways s u ggests a correspondence between seem i ng l y u n re l ated th i n gs.
Classic of Poetry VI
" Peach Tree Soft and Tender "
Peach tree soft and tender, how your blossoms glow! The bride is going to her home, she well befits this house. Peach tree soft and tender, plump, the ripening fruit. The bride is going to her home, she well befits this house. Peach tree soft and tender, its leaves spread thick and full. The bride is going to her home, she well befits these folk .
Classic of Poetry X
" Bluffs of the Ru "
All along the bluffs of the Ru I hack the boughs and branches. Until the time I see m y prince, I crave him like dawn hunger. All along the bluffs of the Ru, I hack the branches and boughs. Once I have seen my prince, he will not forsake me afar. 34
Early China Tail of bream, flushed with red; the royal house seems aflame; but even though it seems aflame, m y father a n d mother are close by.
Somet i mes, as i n the poem above a n d in the o n e th at fo l l ows, the l ast sta nza s h i fts to a m o re c rypt i c i m age, w h i c h has an u n certa i n relation to the theme esta b l i s h e d i n the open i n g stanzas.
Clas sic of Poetry XLI
" North Win d "
Chill y is the north wind , heavy falls the snow; if you care and love me, take my hand, we'll go. Don't be shy, don't be slow we must leave now! Icy is the north wind, thickly falls the snow; if you care and love me, take my hand, come away. Don't be shy, don't be slow we must leave now! No red but the fox, no black but the crow; if you care and love me, take my hand, share my cart. Don't be shy, don't be slow we must leave now!
Classic of Poetry XII
" Magpie's Nest"
the magpie has its nest, but the dove does take it as her own. The bride is going to her home, a hundred coaches greet her. o
o the magpie has its nest, but 'tis the dove that holds it. The bride is going to her home, the hundred c oaches j oin her. o the magpie has its nest, but 'tis the dove that fills it.
35
Anthology of Chinese Literature The bride is going to her home, a hundred coaches in her train. The b i rd tra n s l ated as a dove is a jiu, a te rm u sed fo r several d i st i nct k i nd s of b i rd s . C o m m e n tators bel ieve that th i s j i u w a s a s p e c i e s that l eft i ts eggs i n the nests o f other b i rds, who u n know i n g l y h atched and foste red the m . T h i s, however, i s h ard to rec o nc i l e with the dove itse lf occup y i n g the magp ie's nest, and the strange a n a logy to a b r i d e go i n g to her new h o m e .
Classic of Poetry xx
" P lums Are Falling"
Plums are falling, seven are the fruits; many men want me, let me have a fine one . Plums are falling, three are the fruits; many men want me, let me have a steady one. Plums are falling, catch them in the basket; many men want me, let me be bride of one.
Classic of Poetry XXIII
" D ead Roe Deer "
A roe deer dead in the meadow, all wrapped in white rushes . The maiden's heart was filled with spring; a gentleman led her astray. Undergrowth in forest, dead deer in the meadow, all wound with white rushes, a maiden white as marble. Softly now, and gently, gently, do not touch my apron, sir, and don't set the cur to b arking.
Classic of Poetry xxx
" First the Winds "
First the wind, then the storm, you look on me and laugh, Scorn and gibes and mockery, till my heart aches inside. 36
Early China First the wind, then blowing dust, would you be kind and come ? For if you do not visit me, longing lasts on and on. First the wind, then dark skies, dark skies come at any time. I lie a wake and cannot sleep, I am frantic from yearning. So dark now are the shadows, and the thunder roars. I lie awake and cannot sleep, my heart is filled with yearning.
Classic of Poetry xxxv
" Valley Winds "
Valley winds are howling; bringing darkness, bringing rain. I did my best to share your heart; unfair-this rage of yours ! Pull up turnips, pull up radish, not j ust for the bottom half. In no way did I fail my good name I was with you until death. Slowly then I walk my road, I fault you in my heart. You did not go so far with me, j ust rushed me to the door. Who says bitterroot is harsh ? it tastes as sweet as cane. But peace to you and your new bride, be as kin, be as brothers . The Jing is muddied by the Wei, bu t then it settles, crystal clear. Peace to you and your new bride, you take me as a paltry thing. But stay away from my fish-weir, and don't upset my gill-net. I am someone you cannot stand why should I care for what will come ? When you come to where it's deep, cross by raft, cross by boat; and when you come to the shallows, wade across or swim. 37
Anthology of Chinese Literature What we had, what we lacked, I did my best to get it. When great ills came to others, on hands and knees I helped them. A man who could not care for me but took me as his foe; you spurned my honor as goods that can't be sold. Once it was fear I felt, and dread, tumbling together with you; but then I gave birth and suck, and now you think of me like venom. Fine dried foods I have that still may last through winter. But peace to you and your new bride : you had me to last through the hard times. Seething you were and storming, you gave me the harshest tasks . You gave no heed to earlier times, when once you came and loved me.
In " N o rth W i n d " (XLI), g i ven earl i e r ( p .
35), we can see the i m age of the sto rm as a
backgro u n d of tro u b l e , aga i n st w h i c h the l overs or friends s h o u l d go off together. I n the two p reced i n g poems w e can see the i m age of the sto rm a s a cou nterpart of the tro u b l es between l overs o r spouses. But what can we do with the i m age as it ap pears in the fo l l owi n g poem, "Wi n d and R ai n " ?
Classic o f Poetry xc
"Wind and Rain "
Chill and dreary, wind and rain, the roosters crow together. Now that I have seen my prince, how else but heart's sweet ease? Gust and spatter, wind and rain, the roosters' cries are shrill. Now tha t I have seen my prince, how else but heart's relief? Somber sky, wind and rain, the roosters keep on crowing. Now that I have seen my prince, what else but heart's delight ? 38
Early China
Classic of Poetry
XLVI " Thorn-Vine on the Wall "
Thorn-vine on the wall cannot be brushed aside. What went on behind the screen are words not to be told; it might still be told, but the words are ugly ones. Thorn-vine on the wall cannot be pulled away. What went on behind the screen are words not to be made full known; it might be made full known, but the words would last long. Thorn-vine on the wall cannot be cleared in sheaves. What went on behind the screen are words not to be repeated; it might be repeated, but the words defile .
Classic of Poetry
LI " Rainbow"
There is a rainbow in the east, but no one dares to notice. A girl goes to be a bride, far from brothers, mother, father. There is dawn mist in the west, it will rain the morning long. A girl goes to be a bride, far from brothers, mother, father. Such a girl, behaving so! the ruin o f her wedding; not to be trusted at all: she defied what was bidden.
Classic of Poetry LXIII
" Fox"
Fox on the prowl, on the prowl, there on the weir of the Qi. Troubled is this heartthat person has no skirt. 39
Anthology of Chinese Literature Fox on the prowl, on the prowl, there where the Qi runs shallow. Troubled is this heartThat person has no sash. Fox on the prowl, on the prowl, there by the edge of the Qi. Troubled is this heartThat person wears nothing at all.
Classic of Poetry
XCIV " Creepe rs on the Moorla nd "
Creepers on the moorlan d, dripping with the dew. There was a lovely woman with clear and sparkling eyes. It was by chance we met, I had what I desired. Creepers on the moorland, soaking in the dew. There was a lovely woman eyes sparkling and clear. It was by chance we met, together went for cover. In the poem above and in the one that fol l ows, the n atural i m age may be as m u c h t h e sett i n g of t h e s ituat i o n i n t h e seco n d p a rt o f t h e stanza a s a cou nterp art of h u m a n fee l i n g .
Classic of Poetry
CXL " Willows by the Eastern Gate "
Willows by the Eastern Gate, their leaves so thick and close. Dusk had been the time set, and now the morning star glows bright. Willows by the Eastern Gate, their leaves so dense and full. Dusk had been the time set, and now the morning star shines pale.
Classic of Poetry
CLXXXIV " Crane Cries Out"
The crane cries out in deepest marsh, its voice is heard upon the moor. The fish dive down to depths of pools 40
Early China or remain beside the isles. How the garden brings delight! planted all with sandalwood, whose leaves are shed beneath it. The stones of other mountains can be taken for our whetstones. The crane cries out in deepest marsh, its voice is heard in the skies. The fish remain beside the isles or dive to the depths of pools . How the garden brings delight ! planted all with sandalwood, and scrub brush grows beneath it. The stones of other mountains we can use to work our j ade.
Classic of Poetry V
" Grasshoppers ' Wings "
Grasshoppers' wings are teeming, teeming; fit that your offspring be thus abounding. Grasshoppers' wings, are swarmmg, swarmmg; fit that your offspring go on never-ending. .
.
Grasshoppers' wings, are thronging, thronging; fit that your offspring be fruitful and grow rife. M a n y of the Classic of Poetry poems te l l of the m i l itary c a m p a i g n s of the Z h o u , par t i c u l a r l y aga i n st the l ess settled peo p l es who raided Z h o u territory . A m o n g these no mad i c i n vaders, the X i a n - y u n mentio ned i n this next poem were the most tro u b le some.
Classic of Poetry
CLXVII " Gather the Fiddleheads "
Gather them, gather them, fiddlehead ferns, fiddleheads now start to grow. We want to go home, to go home for the year soon comes to a close. We have no house, we have no home 41
Anthology of Chinese Literature all because of the Xian-yun. No chance to sprawl, no chance to sit, all because of the Xian-yun. Gather them, gather them, fiddlehead ferns, fiddleheads now turn tender. We want to go home, to go home, our hearts are filled with care . Careworn hearts are seething, we hunger and we thirst. Our expedition is not done, and no one brings us word from home. Gather them, gather them, fiddlehead ferns, fiddleheads now are firm. We want to go home, to go home, the year is in winter's first month. No man is slack in the king's work, no chance to sprawl and rest. Our careworn hearts are tormented, off we went and came not back. What is this that blooms so fair ? it is the wild plum flowering. What is the great rig there ? it is the chariot of our prince. His war chariot now is hitched, his four stallions are sturdy. We dare not bide in one set place, each month we have three clashes. Hitched are the four stallions, his four stallions stalwart. This is ridden by our prince, on both sides screened by common troops. His four stallions move evenly, ivory bow-tips, shark-skin quivers . We must be watchful every day, we are hardpressed by the Xian-yun. Long ago we marched away with willows budding in a haze . Back we come today, in falling snow, sifting down. Slowly we walk the way, we hunger and we thirst. O ur hearts are wounded with pain, no man knows how much we mourn . 42
Early China In m a n y cases the c o n n ect i o n between the open i n g i m age a n d the h u ma n sentiment seem s arbitra ry, perhaps a n acc ident of rhyme o r p l ay o n a n i m age that may have been assoc i ated with a tu n e or tune type.
Classic of Poetry IV
" Trees with Bending Boughs "
In the south are trees with bending boughs, and ivy binds them all about. Mirth and j oy be to our prince, and may fair fortune fall on him. In the south are trees with bending boughs, and ivy runs wild over them. Mirth and j oy be to our prince, and may fair fortune prosper him. In the south are trees with bending boughs, and ivy twines around them. Mirth and j oy be to our prince, and may fair fortune bide with him.
Classic of Poetry VII
" Rab bit Snare "
The rabbit snare has mesh so fine, with a thump we knock its pegs in. A staunch and fearless warrior, our lord duke's shield and bastion. The rabbit snare has mesh so fine, we stretch it in the wagon track. A staunch and fearless warrior, well paired with our lord the duke. The rabbit snare has mesh so fine, we set it in the forest. A staunch and fearless warrior, heart and gut of our lord duke.
Classic of Poetry
LIX " Bamboo Pole"
There is flex and play in bamboo poles, you can fish with them in the Qi. How can I help longing for you ? You are far, I cannot reach you. Quan fountainhead is on the left, the river Qi lies to the right. A girl goes off to be a bride, far from brothers, mother, father. 43
Anthology of Chinese Literature The river Qi lies to the right, Quan fountainhead is on the left. The gleam of her beguiling smile, her pendants in rich panoply. The river Qi keeps flowing on, oars of cypress, boat of pine. I hitch my team, go roaming to ease my troubled mind.
U n d e rsta n d i n g a n d M i s u n d e rstan d i n g : T h e N eed to E xp l a i n By the s i xth centu ry
B . C . , passages fro m the
Classic of Poetry were bei ng c ited, ap
p l ied to contemporary s ituations, a n d given figu rative exp l a n at i o n s . Acts of i nter p retat i o n accom p an y i n g the poems became a constant featu re of the C h i nese tra d it i o n ; and when the Classic of Poetry c h a n ged from a p r i m a r i l y oral reperto i re to a written text, the text rare l y a p peared without a com mentary . Rather t h a n tak i n g t h i s need to exp l a i n what the poems " real ly" mean as mere Trad i t i o n a l i st (Confu c i an ) s c h o l asti c i s m , we m i ght n ote how often the q u est i o n of poss i b l e m i s u n d e rstand i n g ari ses with i n the Classic of Poetry itse lf and how often the poems i n corporate acts of exp l a n ati o n . T h i s often takes the fo rm : " I t is not X; it is Y . "
Classic of Poetry
XLII " Gentle Girl "
A gentle girl and fair awaits by the crook of the wall; in shadows I don't see her; I pace and scratch my hair. A gentle girl and comely gave me a scarlet pipe; scarlet pipe that gleamsin your beauty I find delight. Then she brought me a reed from the pastures, it was truly beautiful and rare. Reed-the beauty is not yoursyou are but beauty's gift.
Classic of Poetry
LXI " The River Is Broad "
Who claims that the river is wide ? A single reed can cross it. Who claims that Song is far away ? I rise on my toes and gaze at it. 44
Early China Who claims that the river is wide ?� It won't hold even a dinghy. Who claims that Song is far away ? I can be there ere morning is done.
Classic of Poetry LXIV
" Quinc e"
She cast a quince t o me, a costly garnet I returned; it was no equal return, but by this love will last. She cast a peach to me, costly opal I returned; it was no equal return, but by this love will last. She cast a plum to me, a costly ruby I returned; it was no equal return, but by this love will last. I nterpretati o n is the ab i l ity to k n ow what th i ngs and gestu res " rea l ly" mean b eneath su rface appearances. In the fo l l owi n g poem, " M i l l et L u s h ," the speaker i ma g i n es h i m self be i n g observed by others. Those who know h i m u n de rsta n d the fee l i ngs that l ead h i m to pace back and fo rth , w h i l e others see o n l y the s u rface, a man l o ite r i ng, a n d
q u esti o n h i s motives.
Classic of Poetry LXV
" Millet Lush "
There the millet i s lush, There the grain is sprouting. I walk with slow, slow steps, My heart is shaken within. Those who know me Would say my heart is grieved; Those who know me not Would ask what I seek here. Gray and everlasting Heaven What man is this ? There the millet is lush, There the grain comes to ear. I walk with slow, slow steps, My heart as if drunk within. Those who know me 45
Anthology of Chinese Literature Would say my heart is grieved; Those who know me not Would ask what I seek here . Gray and everlasting Heaven What man is this ? There the millet is lush, There the grain forms its seed. I walk with slow, slow steps, My heart as if choked within. Those who know me Would say my heart is grieved; Those who know me not Would ask what I seek here. Gray and everlasting Heaven What man is this ? The speaker i n the next poem repeated l y fo r b i d s her l over to come a n y c l oser a n d then, afra i d that h e m i ght m i s u n dersta n d , has to exp l a i n h e rself.
Classic of Poetry LXXVI
" Zhong-zi, Please"
Zhong-zi, please don't cross my village wall, don't break the willows planted there. It's not that I care so much for them, but I dread my father and mother; Zhong-zi may be in my thoughts, but what my father and mother said that too may be held in dread. Zhong-zi, please don't cross my fence, don't break the mulberries planted there . It's not that I care so much for them, but I dread my brothers; Zhong-zi may be in my thoughts, but what my brothers saidthat too may be held in dread. Zhong-zi, please don't cross into my garden, don't break the sandalwood planted there. It's not that I care so much for them, but I dread others will talk much; Zhong-zi may be in my thoughts, but when people talk too muchthat too may be held in dread. 46
Early China
Clas sic of Poetry
XXVI " Boat of Cyp ress "
That boat of cypr ess drifts along ' it drifts upon the strea m. Rest less am r, r cann ot sleep , as thou gh in torm ent and troub led. Nor am r lackin g wine to ease my mind and let me roam . This heart of mine is no mirro r ' it cannot take in all. Yes, r do have brothers, but brothers will not be my stay. r went and told them of my grief and met only with their rage . This heart of mine is no stone; you cannot turn it where you will. This heart of mine is no mat; r cannot roll it up within. r have behaved with dignity, in this no man can fault me. My heart is uneasy and restless, am reproached by little men. Many are the woes I've met, and taken slights more than a few. r think on it in the quiet, and waking pound my breast. r
Oh Sun! and you Moon ! Why do you each grow dim in turn ? These troubles of the heart are like unwashed clothes . r think on it i n the quiet, r cannot spread wings to fly away. The vers i o n of " B o at of Cypress" below h as the same title and the same open i n g i m age, b u t develo ped i n a very d i fferent way.
Class ic of Poetry XLV
" Boat of Cypr ess "
That boat of cypres s drifts along, It drifts along midst ream. The boy with hangin g locks of hair is really right for me. r swear I'll have no other till r die. Oh mother! oh Sky! Won't you put faith in me ? 47
Anthology of Chinese Literature That boat of cypress drifts along, it drifts by river's edge The boy with hanging locks of hair is really the mate for me. I swear no switching till 1 die. Oh mother! oh Sky ! Won't you put faith in me ?
Oth e r Poe m s Among the poems i n the Classic o f Poetry we' seem to h ave frag me nts o f lyrics fo r o l d festiva l s . The fo l l ow i n g p i ece is fro m the Poems of the do m a i n of Zheng, whose m u s i c and perhaps l y r i c s were associ ated with dangerous wanto n ness. As in oth er poems in the Classic, the gift of a flower or fru it i s a n esse ntial part of the co u rts h i p exc hange.
Classic of Poetry xcv
" Zhen and Wei "
Zhen and Wei together, swollen now they flow. Men and maids together, chrysanthemums in hand. The maid says, "Have you looked ? " The man says, " I have gone . " " Let's g o then look across the Wei, it is truly a place for our pleasure . " Man and maid together each frolicked with the other and gave as gift the peony. o
o Zhen and Wei together, flowing deep and clear. Men and maids together, teeming everywhere. The maid says, " Have you looked ? " The man says " I have gone . " " Let's g o then look across the Wei, it is truly a place for our pleasure . " Man and maid together each will frolic with the other and give as gift the peony.
Among these poems we fi n d h i nts of a n c ient rites : the d a u g hter of Z i-zhong, cho sen as the sacred d a ncer, i s fo l l owed by c rowds as she g i ves out h a ndfu l s of pepper p l a nts, u sed to m a ke offe r i ngs to the god s .
48
Early China
Class ic of Poetry
CXXXVII " Easte rn Gate ' s Whit e Elms "
Eastern Gate's white elms, thorn-oaks of Wan Hill. The daughter of Zi-zhong goes dancing under them. On a fine morning we choose her, on the meadow to the south. She does not spin her hemp today; she dances in the marketplace. On a fine morning we go our way, we wend away in crowds . We see you as the Lavender, who gives us pepper in handfuls. S h o rt lyrics l i ke "With i n Ten Acres" b e l ow, which see m s to have been a m u l berry p i c k i n g song ( m u l be rry l e aves were u sed to feed s i l kwo r ms), stro n g l y s u ggest that at l east some of the "A i rs" were of peasant o r i g i n . P i eces with l y r i c s as s i m pl e as th i s m a y have been i n c l uded o n l y fo r t h e sake o f the i r m u s i c , n o w l o n g l ost.
Classic of Poetry
CXI " Within Ten Acres "
Within ten acres of groves, sl owly the mulberry pickers go, shall you and I go back together ? Beyond ten acres o f groves merrily mulberry pickers go, and why don't we go off together ? I n some cases the bas i c s ituation of the poem is fa r fro m c l ear, as i n " Dew on the Way, " which see ms t o i n vo l ve l it i gation o f some sort.
Classic of Poetry XVII
" Dew on the Way"
The dews are soaking the way; of cou r se I would go in the dark before dawn, but I dread so much dew on the way. Who will say that the wren lacks beak ? how did it peck through my roof? And who will say that you lack kin ?how did you bring me so quickly to court ? But though you brought me quickly to court, your house and kin are not enough. 49
Anthology of Chinese Literature Who will say that a rat lacks teeth ? how did it pierce my wall ? And who will say that you lack kin ? how did you charge me so quickly ? But though you charge me quickly, you still will not have your way.
Classic of Poetry
XXXIV " D ry Leaves on the Gourd "
Leaves are dry on the gourd now, the crossing is deep on the Ji. If deep, lash them to your waist, if shallow, hang them at your back. Floodwaters come, the Ji is full, the hen pheasant sings wei-wei. The Ji is full, it won't wet your axles, the hen cries after the cock. Wild geese cry out, at dawn the sun grows bright. If the well-born man would take a bride, let him come before the banks ice up. The boatman waves and waves; others cross over, not I; others cross over, not I; I am waiting for my friend.
Classic of Poetry LVI
"We Had Our Delight "
In the valley we had our delight, a big man free and easy. I sleep alone and waking speak, vow never to forget him. Upon the slopes we had our delight, a big man winning and merry. I sleep alone and waking sing, vow never to betray him. On the highlands we had our delight, a big man and a shrewd one. I sleep alone, then wake all night, vow never to make it known. The poem above i s a fi n e exa m p l e of the problems of i n terp retat i o n i n the Classic of Poetry. The p h rase tra n s l ated as "we h ad o u r d e l i ght" is kao-pan. The great C o n
50
Early China fu c i a n p h i l osopher and c o m m e ntato r Z h u Xi ( 1 1 3 0-1 2 0 0 ) took ka o-pan to mean " a m b l i n g about," the behavior of a hermit. Oth e r commentato rs th i n k that the ph rase means "to beat o n an earthenw are vesse l "-s u p posed l y as an exp ress i o n of good cheer. I h ave fo l l owed the o l dest i nterp retat i o n of th i s p h rase as " a c h i eve pe rfect joy," although here the "joy" is s u pposed to be that of someone esca p i n g the m i s governme nt of D u ke Z h u a n g of Wei and fi n d i n g h a p p i ness in a m o u n ta i n va l l ey . As the rem a i nder of each sta nza s u ggests that the s i tuat i o n is sex u a l rath e r than po l iti cal, I have chosen the i nterp retat i o n adopted by many modern comme ntato rs.
Classic of Poetry
LXXXI "I Went Along the Broad Road"
I went along the broad road and took you by the sleevedo not hate me, never spurn old friends. I went along the broad road and took you by the hand do not scorn me, never spurn a love.
Many of the " A i rs" h ave a m ov i n g s i m p l i c ity that is as c l ea r n ow, even in tra n s l a tion, as it was two a n d a h a l f m i l l en n i a ago.
Classic 9f Poetry
LXXXII " Rooster Crows "
The woman said, " The rooster crows . " The man said, " Still the dark before dawn . " " Get you up, man-look a t the night! the morning star is sparkling; go roving and go roaming, shoot the wild goose and the teal. When your arrows hit them, I will dress them j ust for you; when they're dressed, we'll drink the wine, and I will grow old with you. There will be harps to attend us, and all will be easy and good. If I know that you will come, I'll make a gift of many j ewels; if I know you will accept, I'll show my care with many j ewels; if I know you will love me, I'll answer you with many j ewels . " 51
Anthology of Chinese Literature
Classic of Poetry
CXXXIII "No Clothe s "
How can y o u say, " I have n o clothes " ?1 will share my greatcoat with you. The king is raising his army, we will make ready pike and spear, and 1 will share all foes with you. How can you say, "I have no clothes " ?will share my shift with you. The king is raising his army, we will make ready halberd and pike, and 1 will set out with you. 1
How can you say, "I have no clothes" ?1 will share my war-kilt with you. The king is raising his army, we will make ready buffcoat and dirk, and 1 will march with you. In a d d i t i o n to exp ress i o n s of l ove a n d fr i e n d s h i p, the "Ai rs" a l s o conta i n sati re, both perso n a l and pol itica l . M i sr u l e has a l ways i n te rested C h i nese commentators fa r m o re than peace and prosperity. The Mao commentary fo rced m a n y a l ove poem to serve as a ve i l ed atta c k o n r u l ers by those r u l ed . The pol itical s ati re of " H u ge Rat" is c l ear, a n d the poem has a l ways been a favo rite of those who w i shed to bel i eve i n the Classic of Poetry as a means to exp ress soc i a l d i scontent.
Classic of Poetry
CXIII " Huge Rat"
Huge rat, huge rat, eat my millet no more, for three years I've fed you, yet you pay me no heed. swear that 1 will leave you and go to a happier land. A happy land, a happy land, and there 1 will find my place.
1
Huge rat, huge rat, eat my wheat no more, for three years I've fed you and you show no gratitude. swear that 1 will lea ve you and go to a happier realm. A happy realm, a happy realm, there 1 will find what 1 deserve. 1
52
Early China Huge rat, huge rat, eat my sprouts no more, for three years I have fed you, and you won't reward my toil . I swear that I will leave you and go to ha ppy meadows. Happy meadows, happy meadows where none need wail and cry.
Classic of Poetry
CVII " Sandals of Straw "
So tightly wound, sandals of straw can serve to walk through frost. Slender and fine, the maiden's hands can serve to stitch his clothes, Can make the sash, can make the hem, and a fine man will wear them. And that fine man, so richly clad, whirls around and leaves her, hung with combs of ivory. This is a man of ungenerous heart, thus he gets the needle's barb.
C o u rts h i p, M a r r i age, a n d Love Co u rtsh i p, m a r r i age, and the l o n g i ngs of sepa rated l overs fig u re p ro m i n e n t l y in the " A i rs," a n d these rem a i n among the most appea l i n g poems of the col l ectio n . The lyrics are put i nto the mouths of both common fo l k a n d the a r i stocracy, women as we l l as m e n .
Classic of Poetry
CXXXVIII " Barred Gate "
Behind barred gates a man may find peace. And where a spring gushes, hunger may be healed. When eating fish, who needs bream of the river ? When taking wife, who needs a Jiang princess of Qi? Eating fish, who needs carp from the river? Taking wife, who needs the royal daughter of Song? 53
Anthology of Chinese Literature " B arred G ate" h a s the to n e of fo l k w i s d o m . B ut the fo l k metap h o r of fish i n g fo r c o u rts h i p also appears i n the fo l l ow i n g poem, w h i c h seems to be a cele brat i o n of a m a r r iage between a Z h o u p r i n cess, s u rnamed J i , a n d a count of the ru l i n g h o u se of the d o m a i n Q i . " B a rred G ate" cou l d be read as a poor m a n ' s a n swer to "Ah, H ow Splend id."
Classic of Poetry
XXIV " Ah, H o w Splendid "
Ah, how splendidthe flowers of the cherry. What but reverence and awe for the coach of a royal J i? Ah, how splendidflowers of peach and plum. King Ping's grandchild and the son of the Count of Qi. How then is fishing done ? the line is made of silk. The son of the Count of Qi and the grandchild of King Ping.
Classic of Poetry
CLVIII " Cutting the Haft "
H o w do y o u cut a haft?you have to use the ax. How do you get a wife ?you have to use a go-between. In cutting a haft, cutting a haft the model is not far. And now I see her face to face, plates and tureens in rows .
Classic of Poetry
XXII " The River Has Its Forkings "
The river has its forkings, the bride goes to her home. She will not take me with her, she will not take me with her, and later she will rue it. The river has its holms, the bride goes to her home. She will not let me j oin her, she will not let me j oin her, and later she'll be sick with grief. 54
Early China The river has its feeders, the bride goes to her home. She will not stop to visit me, she will not stop to visit me, and now I sing here wailing.
In the fo l l ow i n g p i ece, the s i nger boasts of i l l i c i t l i a i so n s " i n the m u l berries" with the d a u g hters of the greatest h o u ses of N o rth C h i n a .
Classic of Poetry XLVIII
" In the Mulberries "
Where did I pick the sweet pear?it was right across the Mei. Who was the woman I longed for ? the noble Jiang's daughter fair. In the mulberries she promised to meet, she called me to her high bower, and went off with me on the river Ji. And where did I pick the wheat ? it was there, north of the Mei. Who was the woman I longed for ? fair daughter of the noble Yi. In the mulberries she promised to meet, she called me to her high bower, and went off with me on the river Ji. And where did I pick the radish?it was there, east of the Mei. Who was the woman I longed for ? the noble Yong's fair daughter. In the mulberries she promised to meet, she called me to her high bower, and went off with me on the river Ji.
Classic of Poetry LXVI
" My Prince Has Taken the Field "
My prince has taken the field, he sets no time of return. When at last will he come ? The chickens roost in hen-house, and at the evening of the day, cattle and sheep come down. My prince has taken the field, how can I not long for him ? 55
Anthology of Chinese Literature M y prince has taken the field, no term of days, no term of months, When at last will we meet? The chickens roost in coops, and the evening of the da y, sheep and cattle come down to the herd. My prince has taken the field, how can I not hunger for him ?
Classic of Poetry
LXXIII " Great Cart "
The great cart goes rumbling along, a flannel coat as green as gras s. Well you know I long for you, but fear you will not dare. The great cart pitches and sways, a flannel coat like rust red barleycorn. Well you know I long for you, but fear you won't run off. Alive, we live in different rooms, but dead, we'll share a single tomb. If you say I can't keep faith, it will shine as bright as the sun.
Classic of Poetry
LXXVII " Shu Is on
a
Shu is on a field hunt, no one is in the streets . Is no one really in the streets? no one there is like Shu, a gentle, handsome man. Shu is on the winter chase, no one drinks in the streets. Does no one really drink in the streets? no one there is like Shu, a good and handsome man. Shu has gone to the wilds, in the streets no one drives horses. Does no one really drive horses? no one there is like Shu, a soldierly, handsome man.
56
Field Hunt "
Early China
Classic of Poetry LXXXVII " Lift Your Kilts " If you love me dearly, lift your kilts and cross the Zhen. And if you do not love me, there are other men, o rashest of all rash young men. And if you love me dearly, lift your kilts and cross the Wei . And if you do not love me, there are other squires, o rashest of all rash young men.
57
Us i n g the Poe m s a n d Ea rly Inte rpretatio n A l iterary traditio n begin s not o nly with important early literary texts b u t also with a system whereby those texts a r e received , u n d erstood , and u sed with in the society. Early commentaries on langu age, writing , and most partic u larly the
Classic of Poetry voiced
concerns that would rem ain in
poetry a n d oth er fo rms of writin g th roughout the C hinese traditio n . The
Classic o f Poetry w a s
seen as a n e d u catio n al text, pr ovi din g k n o w l edge
a n d m o d e l s fo r speaking. I n the
Analects,
c o m m e n ts on the
Classic of Poetry
at
tributed to Confu ciu s were a m o n g t h e m o st inf l u e n tial a n d often q u oted.
Analects XVIL9 The Master said, " My young ones, why not work a t learning the Poems? By the Poems you can stir (xing), by them you can observe, by them you can have fellowship, by them you can express reproach. Close to home they let you serve your father; farther away, they let you serve your lord. And you recognize many names of birds, beasts, plants, and trees." T h is passage suggests the im p o rtance of the poems from the cou rse. The term " stir"
(xing) probably
Classic in
p u blic dis
refe rs to u s in g q u otatio n s from the
Poems in
politic al o rato ry to " stir" the l istener's sympathies or to c lin c h an a r g u m e nt. "Ob serve" was taken b y trad itio n al comme ntators in the sense of "observe the flo u ris h i n g a n d d eclin e o f c u sto m s "; i . e . , fin din g i n t h e
Poems a
m irror reflectin g social a n d
m o ral h isto ry.
Analects 11.2 The Master said, "The Poems are three hundred, yet one phrase covers them: 'no straying .' " "No stray ing" (or " I n thought no straying") is itse l f a p h rase from the
Poems,
de
s c ribing the h o rses in a wel l-trained c h a riot tea m . I n the Mao comme ntary o n the
Classic of Poetry,
the m e a n in g l ess pa rticle
si is interp reted
as "thought, " leading to
the popular interp retation "in thought no strayi n g . " Co nfu c i u s' a p p l ic ation of the p h rase to the
Classic of Poetry as a w h o l e was
u nd e rstood to mean that every poem
was eth ic ally correct. T his , in turn, was taken as the basis fo r moral interp retatio n s o f all t h e p o e m s i n t h e 58
Classic.
Early China
Analects 1. 1 5 Zi-gong said, "What d 0 you think 0 f someone who i s poor but does not fawn or one who is wealthy but not haughty ? " The Master said, " It's all right, but better still to be poor yet happy, or wealthy yet loving proper behav ior . " Zi-gong said, " When the Poems say, As if cut in bone or ivory, as if carved and polished, is this what you mean ? " Then the Master said, " Zi-gong, now at last I can speak of the Poems with you. I told you one thing, and you knew what fol lowed from it. "
T h e ability to " a p ply " the
Poems to
the situation at h a n d was an im portant p a rt of
the general education of the elite in the pe riod of
The Springs and Autumns of Lu The Zuo Tradition, an histo ric al wo rk r u n n in g roug hly p a ra llel to The Springs and Autumns of Lu, con tain s m a n y exam ples of the u se of the Poems
( 7 70-403 B.C. ) .
in o ratory a n d j udgment. Ofte n , s u c h u se is q u ite straig htfo rward; at oth e r times, as in the fo l lowin g passage, fig u rative applicatio n s a re made in m u c h the same way as metap h o rs in folk rhymes . U s u ally the citatio n of the
Poems
is followed by a b rief
expla n atio n .
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 3 1 st year of Duke Xiang ( 542 B.C. ) It was the twelfth month . Bei-gong Wen-zi was serving as Adviser to Duke Xiang of Wei on a j ourney to Chu. It was in consequence of the oath at Song. As they passed the city of Zheng, Yin Duan lodged them in North Forest to offer consolation for the hardships of their j ourney. He treated them with the ceremonies for receiving foreign visitors and spoke gracious words to them. Then Bei-gong Wen-zi entered the city of Zheng as foreign ambas sador, with Zi-yu serving as his herald. Feng Jian-zi and Zi-tai-shu met him as a guest. When matters were concluded, he went forth again and said to the Count of Wei, " Ceremony is preserved in Zheng, and it will bring them several generations of good fortune. I am sure that they will be free from as sault by the great domains . As the Poem says: Who can take hold of something hot? does he not first wet his hands ? The relation of ceremony to governing is that of water to something hot. "
Wars were fo u g h t over small slig hts e n d u red in the interactio n between p rinces. The state o f Z h e n g treated the D u ke of Wei and his entou rage with all cou rtesy a n d p roper 59
Anthology of Chinese Literature cere m o n y . T h e c o u p l et from the
Poem prov i d es
a meta p h or of i n s u l ation that g i ves
Be i -gong Wen-zi an i ntu ition about the true n atu re of ceremony
(Ii) as something
that i n s u l ates from the confl i cts t h at a r i se in h u m a n relat i o n s . In the v i o l e n t world of the period of The Springs and Autumns of Lu, ceremony was i nd eed the only th i n g t h at cou l d keep b r u ta l i ty a n d raw w i l l u n d e r restra i nt . T h e
Classic o f Poetry was
i t
self a co m p l ement to cere m o n y, somet f mes part of i t, b u t a l so a means to comment w ith authority o n the q u a l i ty of behav i o r, its a d h e re nce t o ceremony or the fai l u re to do so. Yet i t was early recogn ized t h at the
Poems cou l d a l so be q u oted out of context The Zuo Tradition, someone was crit
to p rove a n y p o i nt. I n a wond erfu l passage in
i cized fo r m a rry i ng a wife of the same surn ame, w h i c h was taboo. He rep l ied, "As i n taki n g a passage out of context w h e n reci t i n g the
Poems,
I took o n l y the part I
wanted . " T h i s bri n gs u p the q u esti o n : w h i c h i s m aster, the poem or the interp reter? T h e pious m o ra l i z i n g of the Trad ition a l i sts a n d the i r "a p p l i cati o n " of the
Poems
to eth i c a l cases a l so d i d n ot escape parody by the Dao i st writers who com posed the l ater c h a pte rs of the
Zhuang-zi from
the th i rd o r seco n d century B.C. T h e verses
q u oted in the fol l o w i n g anecdote are not fou n d in the c u rrent vers i o n of the
sic of Poetry,
Clas
a n d it seems l i ke l y that they were i nvented for the s i t u atio n .
The Zhuang-zi, " Outer Things " Traditionalists break into tombs using the Poems and Ceremony . The chief Traditionalist deigned to convey these words, "It beginneth to grow light in the east. How's it going?" The subordinate Traditionalist responded, "I haven't got the skirt and j acket off yet, but there's a pearl in his mouth." The high Traditionalist: "Verily it is even as the Poems say: Green, green groweth grain upon the slopes of the mound. The man ungenerous alive, in death his mouth will hold no pearl. I'll grab the whiskers and pull down on the beard; you take a metal bar, break through his cheeks, and slowly part his j aws, but don't damage the pearl in his mouth ."
T h e other s i d e of "app l i cati o n " is i nterpretati o n , a n d trad i t i o n a l C h i nese l i terary i n terpretat i o n g rew out of i nterpretation of the
Classic of Poetry,
w h i c h i n turn g rew
o u t of a l arger sense of how l a n g u age worked . In the fo l l ow i n g passage, Men c i u s speaks as a m o ra l i st, b u t n ote t h e ass u m pt i o n s about how l a n g u age it is not necessari l y w h at a speaker or writer
intends to say,
·IS u n d erstood ;
but w h at he c a n not h e l p
revea l i ng through h i s words. G o n g-s u n C h o u i s q u estio n i n g t h e great Trad ition a l i st (Confu c i a n ) p h i losopher Menc i u s on w h at he co n si ders to be his most i m portant ski l ls.
60
Early China
Mencius II A, 2 .xi, xvii GONG-SUN CHOU: What , sir, are your strong est point s ? MENCIUS: 1 under stand langu age and have maste red the foster ing of that bound less and surgin g vital force. GONG-SUN CHOU: What do you mean by " understanding language " ? MENCIUS: When someone's words are one-sided, 1 understand how his mind is clouded. When someone's words are loose and extravagant, 1 under stand the pitfalls into which that person has fallen. When someone's words are warped, 1 understand wherein the person has strayed. When someone's words are evasive, 1 understand how the person has been pushed to his limit.
In M e n c i u s , we a l so f i n d the ear l i est exa m p l es of d i sp ute over the i nterpretat i o n of the
Poems.
I n the fo l l owi n g passage, a t h orny eth i cal pro b l e m is posed: W h e n Sage
K i n g Yao a b d i c ated the throne to Sage-K i n g S h u n , was Yao then S h u n ' s s u bj ect? A n d furtherm ore, w a s S h u n ' s o w n fath er t h e n S h u n ' s s u bj ect (an u nt h i n ka ble s it u at i o n i n w h i c h t h e p o l itica l a n d fam i l y h i erarc h i es are a t o d d s ) ? H ered itary m o n a r c h y e n s u red t h at s u c h a s it u at i o n wou l d n ever ari se; b u t a m o n g the Sage- K i n gs of ear l i est a n t i q u ity, a r u l er wou l d vol u n tar i l y cede the throne to a worthy you n ger m a n . Men cius has made a n exception t o the k i n g' s d o m i n io n i n t h e s e cases, but X i a n -q i u Meng c ites the
Classic of Poetry as a n authority to prove t h a t th ere are n o except i o n s . M e n
cius attacks Xian-q i u Meng's i nterpretation (but d o e s not q u estion the authority o f the
Classic of Poetry t o
deci d e s u c h i ssues) . The p o e m i n q u esti o n , Men c i u s says,
arises from a particu l ar s ituation in w h i c h a n offi cer i s caught between confl i cti n g c l a i m s o f d u ty t o t h e k i n g and d u ty t o h i s parents. The " k i n g's b u s i n ess" i s t h e d uty of a l l , but he fee l s as if he a l o n e were c h arged with com p l eti n g it. H owever q u es t i o n a b l e the parti c u l ar i nterpretat i o n may be, the way in w h i c h Men c i u s m a kes it is s i g n ificant. The u n i versal mean i n g of the
Classic of Poetry can
o n l y b e d i scovered
through the parti c u l ar c i rc u m stances of an i nd i v i d u a l poe m .
Mencius V A, 4 . ii
�
�
Xian-q u Meng sa d, " I have accept ed your declar ation that the Sage-K ing Shun dId not consId er Yao [who a dicated the throne in favor of Shun] to be hIS subJec t. Yet there IS a poem III the Classic of Poetry
?
:
Of all that is under Heaven, No place is not the king's land; And to the farthest shores of all the land, No man is not the king' s subj ect. 1 would like to ask how it could be, when Shun became Emperor, that his father, the Blind Old Man, would not be considered his subject ? "
61
Anthology of Chinese Literature
Mencius replied, "The poem is not talking about that. Rather, the poem concerns the inability to care for one's parents when laboring in the king's business . It says, 'Everything is the king's business [and should be a re ' sponsibility shared by all] , yet I alone labor here virtuously .' In explaining the Poems of the Classic of Poetry, one must not permit the literary pat terning to adversely affect the understanding of the statement; and one must not permit our understanding of the statement to adversely affect our un derstanding of what was on the writer's mind. We use our understanding to trace it back to what was in the writer's mind-this is how to grasp it. " M e n c i us' con cept of u nd ersta n d i n g the
Poems
is not a g rasp of the "mean i ng" i n a n
abstract sense, b u t rather a knowledge of w h at w a s in the m i nd of the writer i n a p arti c u l a r s i t u ati o n . L i terary u n d e rstan d i n g was a form of perso n al u nd ersta n d i ng, w h i c h i n cluded eth i c al a n d conceptual i ssues, but went beyo n d them. Read i n g m i gh t t h u s offer a c o m m u n ity o f fri e n d s t h at could exte n d beyo n d o n e ' s local re g i o n a n d t i m e . In the fo l low i n g passage, I h ave tra n s l ated the te rm m a n " ; ori g i n a l l y the
shi were
shi
as "gentle
the k n i gh tly class w h o by Men c i u s ' t i m e had become
the edu c ated gentry of the War r i n g States.
Mencius VB, 8.ii Mencius said to Wan-zhang, "A good gentleman in one small community will befriend the other good gentlemen of that community. The good gen tleman of a single domain will b efriend the other good gentlemen of that domain. The good gentleman of the whole world will befriend the other good gentlemen of the whole world. But if befriending the good gentleman of the whole world is not enough, then one may go on further to consider the an cients. Yet is it acceptable to recite their poems and read their books, yet not know what kind of persons they were ? Therefore one considers the age in which they lived. This is 'going on further to make friends . ' " The follow i n g passage from the
Classic of Documents
is not from the oldest sect ions
of that work , which d ate back t o the early fi rst m i lle n n i u m . T h e section of the
Clas sic of Documents from w h i c h th is statement is taken p roba bly d ates from the period of The Springs and Autumns of Lu o r from the Warr i n g State s; but becau se, u p u ntil t h e modern period, it was bel i eved t o h ave been from the o r i g i n al Classic, it c arried i m m e n s e authority and was accepted as the c a no n i c al defi n i tion of poetry . T h i s de fi n i t i o n i s pseud o-ety m o l o g i c al, based o n s p l itti n g the c h a racte r for "poetry,"
shi �, yan 13, to "speak" or "articu late . " The i nterp reted as zhi ;6;, "what is on the m i nd i ntently,"
i nto i ts two components, T h e fi rst of these i s second element was erroneo u sly
l ater often with the political sense of "a i ms " o r "a m b i t i o n s . " The second d efi n ition takes the w ord
yong
W}, a w o r d fo r "song" o r "s i n g i n g ," a n d d i v i d es it i nto
here tra n slated a s "lan g u age," a n d
yong
yan 13,
ik, to "p rolo n g . " Although th i s primarily
refers to d raw i n g o u t t h e syllables i n s i n g i ng, Confu c i a n i n terpreters expanded t h e i nterpretat i o n t o a broader sense o f exte n s i o n , i n w h i c h poetry, as repeatable words, could c a rry d i scourse to fa r places a n d futu re t i m e s . 62
Early China
Classic of Documents (Shu jing), " Cano n of Shun " The Poem articul ates what is on the mind intentl y; song makes langua ge last long. There were m a � y variatio ns of th i s e xplanat ion, i n c l u d i n g the fo l l o w i n g passage from The Zuo T d( (on, fa � l y attrib uted to Confu c i us, in w h i c h the i d ea of l a n g u age's ext lo n , gOl n g far, IS a p p l ied to the q u a l ity of wen "X, w h i c h means "patte r n I n g, the we l l-writte n word , " a n d l ater " l iterat ure . "
���
�� :
�;
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 25th year of Duke Xiang ( 5 4 8 B.C.) Confucius said, " There is a record that says: the language is to be adequate to what ;s ;ntently on the person's mind, and the patterning (wen) is to be adequate to the language. If a person does not use language, who will know what is on his mind ? If the language lacks patterning, it will not go far . " T h e q u est ion o f the adeq u acy o f l a n g u age t o thought a n d o f t h e adequ acy o f the written l a n g u age to spoken l a n g u age was a m aj or concern i n e a r l y t h o u g ht, a n d o n e that came t o p l ay a n i m porta nt ro l e i n the theory of poetry. T h e fo l l ow i n g passage, from
"Appended Discourses," a p h i loso p h i c a l treatise attached to the Classic of Changes, an a n c ie n t d i v i n ation tract, became the most fam o u s statement on t h i s
q uesti o n . T h e attribution t o Confu c i u s i s fa l s e .
Classic of Changes, " Appen ded Discou rses " Confuc ius said, " What is written does not give the fullness of what is said ,. what is said does not give the fullness of the concep t in the mind." " If this is so, then does it mean that the concept s in the minds of the Sages cannot be perceiv ed ? " e said, " The Sages establish ed the Images [of the Classic of Change s1 to give the ullness of the concept s in their minds, and they set up the hexa grams to give the fullness of what is true and false in a situatio n; to these they appende d stateme nts to give the fullness of what was said . . . ."
�
�
The idea of " i m age"
(xiang) became
an i m portant term m e d i ati n g betwee n con cept
and l an g u age. T h i s i s deve l o ped in a treat ise o n the " I m ages" of the
Changes by the
Classic of
p h i losopher Wang Bi (A.D. 2 26-2 4 9 ) .
Wang Bi, " Elucidation o f the Images " (Classic 0 f Changes) The Image is what b rings out concept; language is what clarifies the Image. Nothing can equal Image in giving the fullness of concept; nothing can equal language in giving the fullness of Image . Language was born of the Image, 63
Anthology of Chinese Literature
thus we seek in language in order to observe the Image. Image was born of concept, thus we seek in Image in order to observe the concept. Concept is fully given in image; Image is overt i n language. The c l a i m that h u m a n t h o ughts a n d feeli ngs could somehow be writte n i n langu age, however pro ble m atic that process m i ght be, was c h alle n ged in the
Zhuang-zi,
in
the fam o u s para b l e of Wheelwright P i a n .
from the Zhuang-zi, " The Way of Heaven" Duke Huan was reading in his hall. Wheelwright Pian, who was cutting a wheel j ust outside the hall, put aside his hammer and chisel and went in. There he asked Duke Huan, "What do those books you are reading say ? " The duke answered, "These are the words o f the Sages . " The wheelwright said, " Are the Sages still around ? " And the duke answered, "They're dead . " Then the wheelwright said, "Well, what you're reading then i s n o more than the dregs of the ancients . " The duke: "When I, a prince, read, how is it that a wheelwright dares come and dispute with me ? If you have an explanation, fine. If you don't have an explanation, you die ! " Then Wheelwright Pian said, "I tend to look at it in terms of my own work: when you cut a wheel, if you go too slowly, it slides and doesn't stick fast; if you go too quickly, it j umps and doesn't go in. Neither too slowly nor too quickly-you achieve it in your hands, and those respond to the mind. I can't put it into words, but there is some fixed principle there. I can't teach it to my son, and my son can't get instruction in it from me. I've gone on this way for seventy years and have grown old in cutting wheels. The ancients have died, and along with them, that which cannot be transmitted. Therefore what you are read ing is nothing more than the dregs of the ancients . "
The " Great Preface" t o the Classic of Poetry T h e " G reat Preface" to the
Classic of Poetry was
the most authoritative state ment o n
the n ature a n d function o f poetry in trad i t i o n al C h i n a . N ot o nly w a s i t the begi n n i n g o f every student's study o f t h e
Classic o f Poetry from
the Eastern H a n through the
S o ng, its con cerns and term i n o logy became a n essenti al part of writi n g about po etry and learn i n g about poetry . Th i s was the one text o n the n ature of poetry known to everyo n e from the end of the Han o n . I t is u n certa i n exactly w h e n t h e " G reat Preface" rea ched its present form, b u t we c a n be reaso n a bly s ure that it was no l ater t h a n the fi rst century A.D. Many readers accepted the "G reat Preface" as the work of Confucius' d i sc i ple Zi-xia, and thus saw i n it an u n b roken trad ition of teac h i n g about the Classic of Poetry that cou l d be traced back to Confuc i u s h i mself. A more learned and skept ical trad ition took the "G reat Preface" as the work of o n e Wei Hong, a s c h olar of the first centu ry A.D. It is prob ably a n a c h ro n i st i c to apply the con cept of "compos i t i o n " (except in its root sense of " p u tti n g together") to the "G reat Prefac e . " Rath er, the "G reat Preface" is a loose synthes i s of s h ared "truths" about the Classic of Poetry, truths that were the com64
Early China mon possess i o n ofthe Trad ition ali sts (whom we now call "Confu c i a n s " ) in the War r i n g States and Western Han periods. In the ir oral tra n s m i s s i o n , these truths were conti n u ally b e i n g reform u lated ; we m ay c o n s ider the moment when they were wr it ten down as the "G reat Preface" to be the stage in their tra n s m i s s i o n when refor m ulat i o n c h a n ged i nto exeges i s . The " G reat Preface" is g i ven i n i t s o r i g i n al co ntext, j o i ne d t o t h e first p o e m of the Classic of Poetry, "Fi s h h awk" (see p. 3 0), trad ition ally u n d erstood as celebrat i n g the v i rtue of the Q u een Consort of K i n g Wen of the Z h o u Dyn asty.
" Fishhawk " is the virtue of the Queen Consort and the beginning of the " Airs " [Feng, the first large section of the Classic o( Poetry]. It is the means by which the world is influenced ((eng) and by which the relations between husband and wife are made correct. Thus it is used in smaller communities, and it is used in larger domains. "Airs " (Feng) are " Influence " ((eng); it is to teach. By influence it stirs them; by teaching it transforms them. The text plays o n the m ulti p l e mea n i ngs of the word
feng,
w h i c h primar i l y mea ns
"wi n d." I t i s a k i n d o f poetry ("A irs " ) ; it means " c u sto m s " ; a n d it also mea ns "to i n flu e nce," often u s i n g the metaphor of the w i n d ben d i n g the grasses. For the Confu c i an trad ition, the p u rpose of the " A i rs" was to i nflu e n ce behavior.
The poem is that to which what is intently on the mind (zhi) goes. In the mind, it is " b eing intent" (zhi); coming out in language, it is a "poem . " The affections are stirred within and take o n form i n words. I f words alone are inadequate, we speak it out in sighs. If sighing is inadequate, we sing it. If singing is inadequate, unconsciously our hands dance it and our feet tap it. T h i s is the early psych olog i c a l theory of poetry . I t beg i n s with an i ntense concern, u n derstood as a n accu m ulation of "vital breath"
(qi). A mo dest a c c u m ulat ion comes
out as a sigh; a larger acc u m ulat i o n comes out in words as a s o n g . A n d if the accu m ulat ion is too great to get o u t, it drives the body to d a n c i n g .
Feelings emerge i n sounds; when those sounds have patterning, they are called " tones . " The tones of a well-managed age are at rest and happy: its government is balanced. The tones of an age of turmoil are bitter and full of anger: its government is perverse. The tones of a ruined state are filled with lament and brooding: its people are in difficulty. Perso n al concerns are u n derstood in a soc ial and pol itical context, and that co ntext can be seen in poetic express i o n. S i nce the poems of the
Classic of Poetry were per
formed to m u s ic , the "tones" that revea l soc ia! a n d politica l co ntext are contained in both the words and the m u s i c. When th is was a p p l ied to poetry later in the tra d it io n, "to ne" was u nderstood as the mood of the poem and its style. 65
Anthology of Chinese Literature
Thus to correctly present achievements and failures, to move Heaven and Earth, to stir the gods and spirits, there is nothing more appropriate than poetry. By it the former kings managed the relations between husbands and wives, perfected the respect due to parents and superiors, gave depth to human relations, beautifully taught and transformed the people, and changed local customs. Thus there are six principles in the poems: (1) Airs (Feng); (2) " exposi tion" ((u); (3) " comparison " (bi); (4) "affective image" (xing); (5) Odes (Ya); (6) Hymns (song) . The "s i x pri n c i p les" i n c l u d e the th ree m a i n d i v i s i o n s of the three m o d e s of ex press i o n . "Expo s i t i o n " w h at h ap p e n ed . "C om p a r i s o n " i m age"
(xing) h a s been
(bi)
Classic of Poetry a n d (fu) descri bes those p o e m s that s i m p l y te l l
descri bes poems t h at use s i m i l e . "Affective
d i scu ssed earl ier; th i s i s a n i m age that i s s u p posed to sti r the
e m oti o n s .
B y (eng, those above transform those below; also b y (eng, those below crit icize those above. When an admonition is given that is governed by pat terning, the one who speaks it has no culpability, yet it remains adequate to warn those who hear it. In this we have (eng. T h e poetry of the
Feng
is s u p posed to go i n two d i recti o n s with i n the soc i a l h i erar
chy. S u periors use it to m a ke peop l e i n st i n ctively fee l the mode l s of good behav ior. But when the s u p eriors are n ot govern i n g wel l , those below them use poems t o show their r u l ers the conseq u e nces of m i sru l e . As long as the cri t i c i s m is "patter ned, " that i s , presented thro u g h poetry, the person who com poses or u ses s u c h a poem can n ot be p u n i shed . I n part, th i s l i cense to use poetry for po l it i ca l crit i c i s m i s bec ause poetry is s u p posed to em erge i n vo l u ntar i l y from fee l i n g .
When t h e Way of t h e Kings declined, rites a n d moral principles were aban doned; the power of government to teach failed; the government of the do mains changed; the customs of the family were altered. And at this point the changed Feng ( " Airs " ) and the changed Ya ( " Odes " ) were written. The his torians of the domains understood clearly the marks of success and failure; they were pained by the abandonment of proper human relations and lamented the severity of punishments and governance. They sang their feel ings to criticize ((eng) those above, understanding the changes that had taken place and thinking about former customs. Thus the changed Feng emerge from the affections, but they go no further than rites and moral prin ciples. That they should emerge from the affections is human nature; that they go no further than rites and moral principles is the beneficent influence of the former kings. The "c h a n ged" poems come from a period of ge neral soc i a l dec l i n e . This passage attem pts to reso l ve a ser i o u s pro b l e m : If poetry i s s u pposed to express the soc i a l a n d 66
Early China po l itical temper of the age, a n d if the social and pol itical te m p e r of the age is cor ru pt, how can such poems p resent good eth i c a l mode l s ? The problem is resol ved by assu m i n g t h at the poems were com posed by good peo p l e in bad t i mes, peo p l e who were d i stressed a b o u t t h e c o n d i t i o n s o f the i r age.
Thus the affairs of a single state, rooted in the experience of a single person, are called Feng. To speak of the affairs of the whole world and to describe customs ((eng) common to all places is called Ya. Y a means " proper" (zheng). These show the source of either flourishing or ruin in the royal gov ernment. Government has its greater and lesser aspects : thus we have a " Greater Ya" and a " Lesser Ya." The " Hymns" give the outward shapes of praising full virtue, and they inform the spirits about the accomplishment of great deeds . These are called the " Four Beginnings" and are the ultimate perfection of the Poems. H e re the P reface d i st i n g u i s h es the "Ai rs"
(Feng) from the "Odes" (Ya). The "Ai rs" a re
s u p posed to be the voice of a parti c u l a r person i n a part i c u l a r p l ace or s it uat i o n . B y contrast, t h e "O d e s " a r e su pposed t o s p e a k m o re genera l l y a n d a p p l y t o the w h o l e ki ngdom .
Selections from the " Record of Music " (Yue ji) The
Classic of Rites (Li ji)
has o n l y the m ost te n u o u s c l a i m to the status of a Confu
cian C l as s i c . It i s a Weste rn Han m i sce l l a n y of l a rge l y Confu c i a n texts from the War r i n g States a n d H a n . Among its "c h a pte rs" i s a treat i se o n the o r i g i n , fu nction, a n d re l ation between m u s i c a n d rites: t h e
Yue j i o r "Record o f M u s i c . "
Much of the ma
ter i a l i n t h i s w o r k appears, o n l y s l i g h t l y recast, i n the "Treat ise o n M u s i c , " i n the
Historical Records ( Shi ji) of S i - m a Q i a n .
Yue shu,
I n both of these texts we f i n d aga i n
some o f the m ate r i a l that went i nto t h e m a k i n g o f t h e "G reat P reface," a l o n g with a fu l l er e l aborat i o n of the psyc h o l ogy on w h i c h the "G reat P reface" is based . The "Record of M u s i c " a n d the "G reat P reface" s h a re a concern fo r recon c i l i n g the spontaneous express i o n of fee l i n g a n d its n o r m at i ve reg u l at i o n . As the "c h a n ged
feng,
"
com posed by the " h i sto r i a n s of the d o m a i n s , " a re generated sponta n eo u s l y,
but stop at decent norms, so here "rites" a re the n at u r a l e x p ress i o n of h u m a n fee l i n g that f i n d s a n o r m ative a n d l i m it i n g fo r m . O u t o f th i s a r i ses t h e beautifu l d i sti nc tion between the ro les of m u s i c and r ites in cere m o n y: r ites assert the d i st i n ct i o n of roles in h u m a n re l ations, wh i l e m u s i c overco mes these d i st i n ct i o n s and u n ifies the part i c i pants .
All tones that arise a r e generated from the human mind. When the human mind is moved, some external thing has caused it. Stirred by exter nal things into movement, it takes on form in sound. When these sounds re spond to one another, changes arise; and when these changes constitute a pattern, they are called " tones." When such tones are set side by side and 67
Anthology of Chinese Literature
played on musical instruments, with shield and battleax for military dances or with feathered pennons for civil dances, it is called " music ." Music originates from tone . Its root lies in the human mind's being stirred by external things . Thus when a mind that is miserable is stirred, its sound is vexed and anxious. When a mind that is happy is stirred, its sound is relaxed and leisurely. When a mind that is delighted is stirred, its sound pours out and scatters. When a wrathful mind is stirred, its sound is crude and harsh. When a respectful mind is stirred, its sound is upright and pure. When a doting mind is stirred, its sound is agreeable and yielding. These six conditions are not innate: they are set in motion only after being stirred by external things . Thus the former kings exercised caution in what might cause stirring. For this reason we have rites to guide what is intently on the mind; we have music to bring those sounds into harmony; we have govern ment to unify action; and we have punishment to prevent transgression. Rites, music, government, and punishment are ultimately one and the same a means to unify the people's minds and correctly execute the Way. All tones are generated from the human mind. The affections are moved within and take on form in sound. When these sounds have patterning, they are called " tones." The tones of a well-managed age are at rest and happy: its government is b alanced. The tones of an age of turmoil are bitter and full of anger: its government is perverse. The tones of a ruined state are filled with lament and brooding: its people are in difficulty. The way of sounds and tones communicates with [the quality of] governance. [Th i s sect i o n o m its e l a borati n g the corres ponden ces between the five notes and gov e r n m e n t offices, as we l l as the soc i a l pro b l e m s i m p l i c i t in m u s i ca l d i sorder.]
All tones are generated from the human mind. Music i s that which com municates [tong, "carries through" ] human relations and natural principles. The birds and beasts understand sounds but do not understand tones. The common people understand tones but do not understand music. Only the superior person is capable of understanding music . Thus one examines sounds to understand tone; one examines tone to understand music; one ex amines music to understand government, and then the proper execution of the Way is complete . Thus one who does not understand sounds can share no discourse on tones; one who does not understand tones can share no dis course on music. When someone understands music, that person is almost at the point of understanding rites. And when rites and music are both at tained (de), it is called De [ " virtue" I " attainment" I " power" ] , for De is an " attaining" (de) . The true glory of music is not the extreme of tone; the rites of the Great Banquet are not the ultimate in flavor. The great harp used in performing " Pure Temple" [one of the Hymns in the Classic of Poetry] has red strings and few sounding holes. One sings, and three j oin in harmony: there are tones which are omitted. In the rite of the Great Banquet, one values water 68
Early China
and platters of raw meat and fish; the great broth is not seasoned: there are flavors which are omitted. We can see from this that when the former kings set the prescriptions for music and rites, they did not take the desires of mouth, belly, ears, and eyes to their extremes, in order thereby to teach peo ple to weigh likes and dislikes in the balance and lead the people back to what is proper. Here the aesthetics of o m i ss i o n , so i m portant in l ater C h i nese l iterary thought, i s given its earl iest express i o n in a n eth i c a l context. The perfect m u s i c h o l d s back from be com i n g a n overw h e l m i n g force; the sense that someth i n g i s o m i tted d raws oth ers i n a n d b r i ngs res ponse. The p h rase "one s i ngs, a n d th ree j o i n i n h a r m o n y " w i l l come to be com m o n l y u sed for pre c i s e l y such aesthetic restra i n t th at engages others . H oweve r, i n its o r i g i n a l context here i n t h e " Record o f M u s i c , " that restra i n t h a s a n eth i c a l rath er th a n a n aesthet ic fo rce: o m i s s i o n i s t h e em bod i ment o f t h e p r i n c i p l e o f p roper l i m its i n s e n s u o u s sati sfaction .
A human being is born calm: this is his innate nature endowed by Heaven. To be stirred by external things and set in motion is desire occur ring within that innate nature. Only after things encounter conscious knowl edge do likes and dislikes take shape. When likes and dislikes have no proper measure within, and when knowing is enticed from without, the person be comes incapable of self-reflection, and the Heaven-granted principle of one's being perishes. When external things stir a person endlessly and when that person's likes and dislikes are without proper measure, then when external things come before a person, the person is transformed by those things . When a person is transformed by things, it destroys the Heaven-granted principle of one's being and lets a person follow all human desires to their limit. Out of this comes the refractory and deceitful mind; out of this come occurrences of wallowing excess and turmoil. Then the powerful coerce the weak; the many oppress the few; the smart deceive the stupid; the brave make the timid suffer; the sick are not cared for; old and young and orphans have no place this is the Way of supreme turbulence. For this reason the former kings set the prescriptions of rites and music and established proper measures for the people. By weeping in mourning clothes of hemp, they gave proper measure to funerals. By bell and drum, shield and battleax [for military dances] , they gave harmony to expressions of happiness. By the cap and hairpin of the marriage ceremony, they dis tinguished male and female. By festive games and banquets, they formed the correct associations between men. Rites gave the proper measure to the peo ple's minds; music made harmony in human sounds; government carried things out; punishments prevented transgression. When these four were fully achieved and not refractory, the royal Way was complete . Music unifies; rites set things apart. In unifying there is a mutual draw ing close; in setting things apart there is mutual respect. If music over whelms, there is a dissolving; if rites overwhelm, there is division. To bring 69
Anthology of Chinese Literature
the affections into accord and to adorn their outward appearance is the func tion of music and rites . When rites and ceremonies are established, then noble and commoner find their own levels; when music unifies them, then those above and those below are j oined in harmony. When likes and dislikes have this manifest form, then the good person and the unworthy person can be distinguished. By punishments one prevents oppression; by rewards one raises up the good; if these are the case, then government is balanced. By fel low feeling one shows love; by moral principles one corrects them, and in this way the management of the people proceeds.
H an Confu c i a n i s m sought to h old oppos i n g forces in balanc e. R i tes defi ne fu n cti o n s in s o c i a l relat i o n s a n d t h u s are a system of d i sti ncti o n s ( e . g . , s o c i a l s u perior and i n fe r i or i s not a d i st i n ct i o n o f i n n ate " q u ality" b u t a sanctioned s o c i a l conventi o n ) . As a system of role d i st i n ct i o n s , h owever, rites always th reaten to p u ll peo ple apart a n d set them in o p p o s i t i o n t o o n e another. T h at d a n gero u s centrifu g al fo rce in rites i s c o u n te red by m u s i c , w h i c h i s s h ared b y all part i c i pa nts i n a ceremony; it i s m u s i c t h at m a kes t h e m feel li ke a u n ified body, part o f a s i n gle enterpr ise. H owever, that i m p ulse to u n ity th reate n s to destroy d i sti n ct i o n s , a n d t h u s it is cou nterbala n ced by r i tes.
Music comes from within; rites are formed without. Since music comes from within, it belongs to genuine affections; since rites are formed with out, they have patterning. The supreme music must be easy; the supreme rites must be simple . When music is perfect, there is no rancor; when rites are perfect, there is no contention. To bow and yield yet govern the world is the true meaning of rites and music. There is no oppression of the people; the great nobility sub mit; armor is not worn; the five punishments are not used; no calamity be falls the masses; the Son of Heaven feels no wrath-when things are thus, music has been perfected. Within the four seas fathers and sons are j oined in affection, the precedence between elder and younger is kept clear, and re spect is shown to the Son of Heaven-when things are like this, rites are in practice. The supreme music shares the harmony of Heaven and Earth. The supreme rites share the proper measure of Heaven and Earth. In the har mony of the former, none of the hundred things fail; in the proper measure of the latter, the sacrifices are offered to Heaven and Earth. In their mani fest aspect they are rites and music; in their unseen aspect they are spiritual beings . When things are like this, then all within four seas are brought to gether in respect and love. Though acts differ in the performance of a rite, these acts share the quality of respect. Though music has different patterns, these are brought together in the quality of love. Since the affections involved in music and rites remain the same, wise kings have followed them. Thus, when act and occasion are matched, fame and accomplishment are j oined. 70
Early China Th i s raptu ro u s Confu c i a n v i s i o n of soc i ety, fu n ct i o n i n g in harmony with h u m a n na ture a n d u n i versa l natu re through m u s i c and rites, i s not d i rect l y rel ated t o l i tera ture. H owever, the v i s i o n provides an essent i a l backgro u n d fo r l i teratu re, recur r i n g throughout t h e history of C h i nese l iterary thought i n t h e u n i o n o f gen u i n e fee l i ng a n d fo rm.
Other Voices in the Tradition Tang Xian-zu, Peony Pavilion (1598) The Classic of Poetry was continu a l l y re interpreted throughout the i m peri al period . S u c h rei n terp retations to uched not onl y t h e expl anat i on of ind i v i d u a l poems b u t a l s o t h e s i gnificance of the Classic as a whole. Desp ite the s u btleties of such h i gh s c h o l a r s h i p , the Classic of Po
etry a l s o re m a i ned a school text with the Mao commentary or the twe lfth-cent u r y Z h u X i commentary, w h i c h l a i d even greater stress o n t h e Poems a s expres s i ons o f nat u r a l fee l i ng, accepting many of the l ove lyrics as such rath er th an as pol itic a l a l l egori es. The p ainfu l con trad iction between the Confu c i an teac her's i m po s i t i on of external authority and the mes sages of this parti c u l a r i nterp retat ion of the Classic, often i nvo l v i ng love and natural fee l ing, made the Classic of Poetry a target for h u m o ro us treatment in vernac u l a r l i te rature. Prob ab l y its most fa m o u s appearance i n the vernac u l a r i s found i n two scenes from T ang X i an-zu's p l a y Peony Pavilion (Mu-dan ting) of 1 598. The pa rents of Du L i -n i ang, the h e ro ine, are t h i n king ahead to her m a r r i age and h ave h i red a tutor to instruct her in the Classic
of Poetry. The resu l ts are u nant i c i pated; Du L i-ni ang's study of the fi rst poem, "Fi s h h awk," "sti rs" (xing, a term that can a l so convey sex u a l arousal) h e r and l eads her o u t of the schoo l room i nto t h e gard en. A text th at wa s i ntended a s a l esson i n obed i ent w i fely v i rt u e lea ds to rebel I i o u s eroti c fantasy, in i t i ating the action in the rest of the pia y. In these scenes the h a b i ts of C h i nese s c h o l asti c i s m , embodied in tutor C h en, come i nto confl ict with a m o re p rofound, though innocent des i re t o grasp the l a rger s i gn i f i c ance of canoni cal texts. L i ke Sh akespeare, C h inese dramatists love to exp l o it the c o m i c poss i b i l i ti es of puns and q u i b b l e s . Except when accidents of l anguage offer a l u cky counterpart, the transl ator is h e l p l ess h e r e . T h e m a i d S p r ing Scent's h i l a r i o u s m i s read i ngs of "Fi s h hawk" depend on j u st s u c h word p l ay .
FROM SCENE VII: THE S CHOOLROOM FOR WOMEN
Enter the tutor
CHEN ZUI-LIANG,
reciting a poem.
CHEN: In recitation's aftermath I polish and change lines I wrote last spring, breakfast over, my thoughts turn fondly to noontime tea. An ant has climbed up on my desk and skirts the inkstone' s water, a
bee comes through the window grate, sipping nectar from blooms in the vase.
I've set up my school in Prefect Du's official residence; and since Miss Du's fam ily has a tradition of studying the Mao tradition of the
Classic of Poetry,
I've
71
Anthology of Chinese Literature been exceptionally favored by Madam Du's hospitality. Now that my morning meal is over, I can take a casual look over the Mao commentary again while I'm still alone.
[Recites]: The fishhawks sing
gwan gwan
on sandbars of the stream. Gentle maiden, pure and fair, fit pair for a prince. The meaning of " Fit" is " fit . " The meaning of "Pair" is "pair . "
[Looks up] The
morning grows on, and I still don't see my pupil coming into the classroom. She's so dreadfully spoiled. I'll hit the gong a few times.
[Hits the gong] Spring Scent,
ask your young mistress to come to class .
Enter Du LI-NIANG, carrying books.
Du
[sings]: Just now finished dressing in simple attire, slowly I walk to the classroom door, with serene indifference I come before these clean desks and bright windows.
SPRING SCENT [continuing the song]: The plaque reads: " Virtuous Literary Grace,
For Long Time Our Family's Place " now that really puts a person off! But eventually I can successfully teach our p arrot Polly to call for tea.
[Sees CHEN]
Du: Good morning, sir.
SPRING SCENT: Don't be mad at us, sir ! CHEN: As soon as the rooster crows, all
young ladies should wash up, rinse their
mouths, comb their hair and do it up, then greet their parents. After the sun has risen, each should go about what she is supposed to be doing. As girl students, what you are supposed to b e doing is study, so you absolutely must get up ear lier. Du: I won't do it again.
SPRINGSCENT: I understand perfectly. Tonight we won't go to sleep, and at midnight we will come and ask you to give us our lesson.
CHEN: Did you
go over yesterday's poem from the
Classic of Poetry thoroughly ?
Du: I've been over it thoroughly, and now I wait for you to explain it.
CHEN:
Du
Recite it.
[reciting]: The fishhawks sing
gwan gwan
on sandbars of the stream. Gentle maiden, pure and fair,
CHEN:
fit pair for a prince. Here is the explanation. " The fishhawks sing gwan
bird, and
"gwan gwan "
is the sound it makes.
SPRING SCENT: What's that sound 72
like ?
gwan ": the fishhawk is
a
Early China
CHEN makes the sound of a pigeon,l and SPRING SCENT mockingly imitates him.
CHEN: By its nature this bird delights in quiet and keeping away from strangers, hence
it is " on sandbars of the stream . " Now maybe i t was yesterday, but i f not, i t must have been the day before-or maybe it was last year-but a mottled pigeon got shut up in the of ficial residence. When Miss Du set it free, it flew off to the house of Assistant Magistrate He.'
SPRING SCENT:
CHEN: Utter nonsens e! This is a xing, an " affective image , " a "stirring. " SPRING SCENT: What is this xing, " stirring ? " CHEN: A xing o r " stirring " means "to start up. " It starts up what follows.
Now this " gentle maiden pure and fair " is a good girl who is quiet and keeps away from strangers, waiting for her prince to come eagerly to form a couple with her. SPRING SCENT: Why is he so eager to couple with her ? CHEN: You're getting far too sassy! Du: Teacher, I can understand the poems line by line with the aid of the commen tary, but I want you to expound on the broader significance of the
etry. CHEN [sings]:
Classic of Po
Of the Classics the Poems are the flower in full bloom, with much grace and refinement for women. It gives us proof how Jiang the First Parent birthed bawling babe, how the Consort's virtue perfected kept her from j ealousy. In addition there is: the poem that sings how " The Rooster Crows , " the poem that laments for the swallow's wings, the poem of weeping by the river's banks, the poem that broods " The Han S o Wide " poems washed clean o f all powder and paint. It has " Airs " that influence, it has the p ower to transform, it is suited for the chamber, it is suited for the home. Du: Is there that much in the
CHEN:
" The
Poems
singing]
Classic?
are three hundred, yet one phrase covers them. "
[Continues
Not so much-just two words: "No straying " ; and this, young people, I impart t o you. Lesson over.
' T h e ju-jiu i s the f i s h h aw k . The second s y l l a b l e a l o n e , however, is the m u c h more common word for " p i geo n . "
'Here i s a series o f untranslatable puns. Gwan gwan, the fishhawk's cry, can also mean "shut in, s h u t i n , " prec i s e l y t h e proper c o n d i t i o n for a v i rtuous y o u n g l ad y w h o " de l i g hts in q u i et a n d keep ing away from strangers . " "On san dbars of the strea m , " zai he zhi zhou, can be m i s u n d e rstood as "at" (zai) He (he) "the assistant magistrate's (zhi-zhou) [housel. 73
Anthology of Chinese Literature FROM S CENE IX: GETTING THE GARDEN IN ORDER
SPRING SCENT [sings]:
Enter SPRING SCENT.
Little Spring Scent belongs to the highest sort of menial, leading a coddled life in painted chambers . I wait on my mistress' pleasure, dabble with powder and rouge, fastening kingfisher feathers , holding flowers in fingers, ever beside her make-up stand. A companion to make her brocade bed, a companion to light the incense by night. Just a slip of a girl, the worst I must take is a taste of Madam's cane.
[Speaks in rhythmic doggerel]
I'm a serving maid, face like a flower, just in my
early teens; springtime's here, I'm as cute as can be, and someone who knows what's what. And now at last I'm waiting for someone to stir my passions, to go with me everywhere, and at every footstep give me the eye. I go with my young mistress day and night. Though she could be known as the fairest in the land, she watches out for the family reputation instead. Those cute and bashful tender cheeks assume a mature and grave look. Since her father engaged a tutor to give her lessons, she has been reading the
Classic of Poetry;
but when she got to the part of the first stanza that goes " gentle maiden pure and fair, fit pair for a prince, " she grew pensive and put down the book, sighing, "In this t h e loving feelings o f the S a g e a r e fully revealed. H o w clear it is that those in the past had the same sentiments that we do today! " So then I suggested, "Miss, this studying is getting you down . What don't you take your mind off of it ? " She pondered this a while, then rose hesitantly and asked me, " And just how do you suggest I take my mind off of it? " I answered, "I'm not thinking of anything par ticular-why don't we go for a walk in the garden at the rear of the house ? " Then she said, " Stupid maid! What if my father hears about it! " So I replied, " Your father will be out in the countryside for several days . " She lowered her head and didn't say anything for the longest time . Then she got out the almanac and looked through it to choose a day. " Tomorrow is no good, and the next day won't do either, but two days from now would be a lucky time, one favored by the God of Short Outings. Go tell the garden boy to sweep the path clear under the flowering trees beforehand. " I agreed at the moment, but now I'm afraid that Madam her mother will find out-but that's as it will be. So I might as well go give the garden boy his assignment. Hey! There's our teacher, Mr. Chen, coming around the corridor over there. As the lines go Springtime's splendor is everywhere calling to be en joyed, but tell it to a silly old man and he won't understand at all. CHEN
[enters, singing]: An old bookworm for a while has on loan
74
[recites]:
Early China Ma Rong's crimson screen; that is, a teaching j o b ; a n d in the warmth of the sun the hooked-up curtains flutter. Hey! Around the corridor over there is a little serving girl who seems to be talking, but no words come I'll go closer to see who it is. It's Spring Scent! Now tell me
[Continues singing]
where will I find the good Master, and where will I find his Lady, and why has my pupil not come with her books ?
SPRING SCENT: Well, if it isn't
our teacher, Mr. Chen! These past few days my young
mistress has had no time to come to class.
CHEN: Why ? SPRING SCENT:
Listen and I'll tell you.
[Sings] The springtime in such glory is just too much for our know-it-all princess, and what she does now involves "a mood . "
CHEN: And what i s this SPRING SCENT: You still
" mood " ? don't know, but her father is really going to put the blame
on you.
CHEN: For what? SPRING SCENT: I'm talking about that lecture you gave her on the Mao commentary to the
Classic of Poetry.
Well, you've gone and Mao'ed her up all too well. Ah,
my poor young mistress!
[Sings] All because of that poem she was lectured into passion.
CHEN: All I did was lecture on " The fishhawks sing gwan gwan." SPRING SCENT: And precisely because of this my mistress is saying,
" The fishhawks
may have been shut in but they still have their 'stirrings' on sandbars of the stream.3 Is it possible a person can be less well off than a bird ? "
[Continues, singing] To read you must bury your head in a book, but to taste the world around you, you lift your head and look. And now I have instructions that the day after tomorrow we are to go on an out ing in the flower garden behind the house.
'Aga i n the pun on gwan a n d to be "shut i n . " The xing i s not only the " st i r r i n g , " the term of tech n i c a l poetics from the Mao c o m mentary, but also an "arou s a l " and a less sexu a l "excite ment."
75
Anthology of Chinese Literature
CHEN: Why are you going SPRING SCENT [singing]:
on an outing ?
She obviously feels stung by spring, and because spring is in such haste to go, she wants to lose her spring melancholy
CHEN:
in the flower garden . This really shouldn't be.
[Sings] If the young lady goes walking, people could watch her wherever she goes, so her steps should be shielded from sight. Spring Scent, Heaven is my witness but in all my sixty years, I never have expe rienced the sting of spring, and I never have gone on an outing in a park in flower.
SPRING SCENT: Why ? CHEN: You may not know,
but Mencius said it well: that the thousands of words of
the Sage come down to recovering a heart that has been allowed to run free"
[Sings] Just keep a normal heartwhy should she feel the sting of spring ? why must she go on a spring outing ? if she goes on an outing as spring goes away, how will she set her heart at ease?5 Since the young mistress will not be coming to class, I might as well take a few days off myself. Now Spring Scent,
[sings]
go to the classroom regularly, and always go to the window, for I worry that swallow droppings will stain the harp and books.
"St i rred" by the Classic
of Poetry,
Du L i - n ian g d o e s i n d e e d g o on her s pri n g o u t i n g into the
gard en, after w hic h she has an e rotic d ream of the beloved she has n ot yet met, Liu Men g mei . Car r i ed away by u nfu lfilled pas s i o n , she asks to be b u ried u n d e r a p l u m tree in the gar d en-t h en d i es . 4There i s a twist here i n the u s e o f a " h ea rt a l l owed to r u n free" (fang-xin). Mencius wanted peo ple to recover the c h i l d l i ke i n nocence with w h i c h they were born and from w h i c h the i r hearts had "gone astray"; l ater the ph rase came to have a stro nger sense of wantonness, acti n g without restra i nt. A n d by Tang X i a n-zu's t i m e i t h a d a l ready acq u i red its conven t i o n a l vernacu l a r sense of "fee l i n g re l axed," "not being a n x i o u s , " "to set one's heart at ease." 'Aga i n , the c o l l o q u i a l construction here c a l l s to the fore the vernac u l a r mean i n g of fa ng-xin, "set one's heart at ease"; h owever, in the backgro u n d is the c l as s i c a l sense, " l et one's heart ru n free," w h i c h in this co ntext i s op posed to the vernacu l a r.
76
Ea rly Na r rative
C h i nese h i sto r i c a l writi n g began in t h e cou rt a n n a l s of t h e vari o u s fe u d a l d o m a i n s of the Z h o u K i ngdom . The most fam o u s of t h e s e c o urt a n nals i s
The Springs and Autumns [of Lu] (Chun-qiu),
kept by the d o m a i n
o f L u fro m 7 2 2 t o 4 8 1 B . C . ("s p r i n gs a n d autu m n s" w a s a g e n e r i c term fo r "a n n a l s " ) . These a n n a l s g i ve terse entries on the most s i g n ificant events of the year and can scarcely be c o n s i d ered "nar rative." Because Confu c i u s h i ms el f was bel ieved t o have b e e n their author, Trad itio n a l i sts o f the l ate Warr i n g States a nd H a n deve l o ped a doctr i n e o f pe rfect expres s i o n , by w h i ch the p rec ise p h ra s i n g of the entries was a s u btle refl ect ion of Confu c i us' j u d g ments on events. As a n ex a m ple we may take the fam o u s entry fro m the s i xtee nth year of D u ke Xi (644 B.C. ) :
"S p r i ng, the ki ng's first month, a t t h e very beg i n n i n g o f the m o nth there fe l l sto nes [meteors] in S o n g, five of them; t h at m o nth six a l b atrosses flew in reverse, pass i n g t h e capital o f S o n g." mentary o n
The Gong-yang Tradition, a Western H a n Trad i t i o n a l i st com The Springs and Autumns of Lu, exp l a i n s Confu c i u s' positi o n i n g of the
num bers as fo l l ows: i n the case of the meteors, the th i n g e n u m e rated comes fi rst be ca use the meteors were seen fi rst a n d their n u m ber d i scovered o n l y l ater; in the case of the a l batrosses, fi rst the n u m ber of b irds was recog n ized, then the fact that they were a l batrosses . Extended h i stor i c a l writ i n g i s fi rst fo u n d i n
The Zuo Tradition (Zuo zhuan) a n d Discourses o ft h e Domains (Guo-yu), b o t h proba b l y from t h e l ate fo u rth centu ry B.C . , but based on earl i e r mater i a l s . The Zuo Tradition has been trad i t i o n a l l y treated as a commentary o n The Springs and Autumns of Lu, p rov i d i ng a fu l l er acco u n t of events recorded in the a n n a l s, a l o n g w ith other, u n recorded eve nts. The Zuo Tra dition was m u c h ad m i red i n t h e C h i n ese p rose trad ition for its terse expos ition of
the
events . Its n a r rat ive sty l e is q u i rky a n d e l l i pt i c a l : rather t h a n p u re n a rrative, most of the accou nts in
The Zuo Tradition
are either frames for speeches i n w h i c h eth i c a l
val ues are expou nded, or exe m p l a ry a necdotes i n w h i c h the deta i l s of the sto ry are s h aped by the eth i c a l p o i n t to be m ade .
Two Sad Sto r i es of G ood B e h avi o r The fi rst of the two fo l l ow i n g passages from
The Zuo Tradition comes from
a set of
anecd otes o n the fl ight of the J i n army after its defeat by C h u at the B att l e of B i . Zhao Zhan, a c o m m a n d e r of the J i n army, is escap i n g on foot w h e n his s u b ord i n ate Feng passes by, d r i v i n g i n a c h ar i ot togethe r with his two s o n s . Four r i d e rs wou l d s l ow the c h a r iot a n d l e ave them v u l nerable to the e n e m y . Feng is presented with an eth ical d i lemma. 77
Anthology of Chinese Literature
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 1 2th year of Duke Xu an ( 5 9 7 B.C.)
Zhao Zhan gave his two best horses to save his older brother and his uncle, and he was going back driving his other horses. He ran into enemy soldiers and could not get away, so he abandoned his chariot and ran off into the woods. Feng, the Grand Master, was driving his chariot with his two S Ol1S . He told his sons not to turn and look back. But they did look back and said, " Zhao Zhan is there behind us . " Feng was enraged with them. He made them get down from the chariot and, pointing to a tree, said, " I will find your bodies here . " Feng then handed the mounting strap to Zhao Zhan and took him away from danger. The next day he went to where he had indi cated his sons' bodies would be, and he found them both dead at the foot of the tree.
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 22nd year of Duke Xi ( 63 8 B.C.) Chu was attacking Song to relieve Zheng. The Duke of Song was about to go into battle when Gu, his Grand War Chief, obj ected: " Heaven deserted the house of Shang long ago . My lord wants to raise it up again. This will not be forgiven. " The Duke refused to pay him heed. It was in winter, the eleventh month, on the day ji-si, which was the first day of the month . The men of Song had formed their battle lines, and the men of Chu had not yet crossed the river. The War Chief said: " They are many and we are few. Let me strike them now before they are done with the crossing . " But the Duke said, No. When they had crossed but had not yet drawn up their battle lines, again the War Chief pleaded, and the Duke said, Not yet. He struck them only after they had fully drawn up their bat tle lines, and the hosts of Song were routed. The Duke was wounded in the thigh, and the palace guards were slain. All the people of the land found fault with the Duke for this, but he said: " A nobleman does not wound someone twice, nor does he take captive some one with gray hair. When armies were used in olden days, they did not cut off the enemy in a narrow place. Though I may be only the remnant of a fallen dynasty, I will not smite an enemy who has not yet drawn up his bat tle line . " Zi-yu, the War Chief, said: " My Lord does not understand battle. I f a more powerful foe is caught in a narrow place with his battle lines not drawn up, this is Heaven acting on our side. How is it wrong then to cut him off and smite him ? Even if we did this, we would have cause for fear. This more powerful force we met today were all our foes. If we caught them, we should have taken them captive, even if they had been venerable and elderly men what does it have to do with gray hair ? 'Understanding shame ' and train ing for battle is this: to try to kill our foes. If you wound someone but do 78
Early China
not kill him, why not wound him again ? I f you spare him a second wound,
it is as if you had not wounded him at all. If you spare those with gray hair,
it is like surrendering to them. Our armies use the sharpest things; our metal drums raise the spirit by their sounds. Use it when and where it is sharpest;
it is well done to cut foes off in a narrow place. The s ounds swell to steady resolve; it is well to smite them in their disarray. "
The dom a i n of Song, where the desce n d a nts of the S h a n g roya l hous e h a d been e n feoffed b y the Z h o u , h a d a reputat i o n for fo l l y a n d m a d i m p racti c a l ity. Stories of t h e " m a n of Song" h a d someth i n g o f the q u a l ity o f a n a n c i e n t C h i nese eth n i c joke. The most fam o u s i s t h e fol l owi n g para b l e fro m the
Mencius: "There o n ce was
a man of
Song w h o was u pset that his sprouts were not g row i n g ta l l , so h e p u l l e d o n them . H e went h o m e i n a weary daze a n d to l d h i s fam i l y, ' I ' m rea l l y worn out today- I 've been h e l p i n g the s p routs grow . ' H i s sons h u rr i ed to take a look, a n d the s p ro u ts were a l l dried o u t . "
A n E xeget i c a l L i te ratu re One of the m ost str i k i n g c h a racteristics of early C h i n ese I iteratu re i s how often it comes back to acts of exp l a n at i o n and i nte rpretati o n : peo p l e exp l a i n i n g their ac tions, attitudes, and dec i s i o n s , or "experts" exp l a i n i n g s u c h m atters to p r i nces. Ea r l y C h i nese l i terature was, after ail, com posed by those who m a d e their l i v i n g b y t h e i r a b i l ity t o exp l a i n the causes a n d con seq u e n ces o f p h e n o m e n a , espec i a l l y i n a po l i t i c a l context. T h u s Confu c i u s enj o i ned h is d is c i p les to look b e h i n d appeara n ces.
Analects II. 1 0 The Master said, " Look to
how it i s . Consider from what it comes. Exam
ine in what a person would be at rest. How can a person remain hidde n ?
h o w can s omeone remain hidden ? "
I n the fol l owi n g passage, the great dom a i n of C h u h as d efeated the m i nor d o m a i n o f Cai a t S h e n a n d taken i ts co u n t i nto captivity. The Cou nt o f C a l bore a g r u d ge agai n st the Lord of X i ; i n order to h ave revenge, he p r a i ses the bea u ty of Lady
CUI
of X i to the r u l e r o f C h u s o that the r u l er w i l l seize her for h i S ow n .
The Zuo Tradition, a n entry for the 1 4th year of D uke Zhuang ( 6 8 0 B.C. ) On account of what happened at Shen, Count Ai of Cai commended the Lady Gui of Xi in speech
to the Master of Chu. The Master of Chu went to
Xi; and bringing food for a feast, he entered that place and destroyed It. He
brought back the Lady Gui of Xi wIth hIm and begat on her I?u-ao and
Cheng-wang. She never spoke. The Master of Chu asked her of thIS, and she 79
Anthology of Chinese Literature answered, "I am but a single wife, yet I have served two husbands. Even though I have not been able to die, how can I continue to speak ? "
Because the Count o f Cai had brought destruction o n Xi, the Master of
Chu then attacked Cai. It was autumn, the seventh month, when Chu en
tered the city of Cai.
The Lady of Xi was much prai sed for her s i lence; yet she has to speak up in order to expla i n w h y she i s keep i n g s i lent. Without words, the s i lence would not be u n de rstood . Most of the entries i n
The Zuo Tradition
are exem plary i n that there is an eth i
c a l conclu s i o n t o be d rawn from t h e event n a rrated . I n t h e follow i n g exam ple, there is someth i n g fa i n tly com i c i n the lesson th at the morali st is obli ged to d raw.
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 3rd year of Duke Ding ( 5 0 7 B.C. ) In spring, the second month, the third year, on the day
xin-mao,
the Mas
ter of Zhu was on the terrace over the gates, and he looked down into the
courtyard. The gatekeeper was washing down the courtyard with a j ug of water. The Master of Zhu saw him and was enraged. The gatekeeper said,
" Yi Shi-gu pissed here . " The Master of Zhu commanded that the man be
seized; and when he was not taken, it fed his rage. He cast himself upon a bunk and fell into the embers of a brazier. He b urned, then died. He was
buried with five chariots, and five men went with him to the grave . Duke
Zhuang of Zhu came to this on account of his hot temper and love of clean liness.
The Zuo Tradition was m u c h a d m i red by the C h i nese fo r its economy o f style,
a sharp
terseness by w h i c h g reat th i n gs occur in a few word s . In the followi n g acco u nt, n o o n e i s s u re who cut the o rc h i d s or w h y . T h at year i n the e n t r y in the a n n als of L u , Duke M u o f Z h e ng, w h o s e n a m e w a s "Orc h i d , " d i e d . As he h i m s elf knew, h i s death corresponded with the cutt i n g of the orc h i d s .
The Zuo Tradition tries to expla i n
th i s
occurrence; t h e expla n at i o n leads t o a n exam i n ation o f h o w he rece i ved h i s name a n d how h e eventu ally came t o the th ro n e of Z h e n g . The acco u n t beg i n s with Or c h i d ' s b i rth to a lowborn con c u b i ne a n d how the other sons of D u ke We n , with bet ter cla i m to the Z h e n g t h rone, were eit her k i lled or b a n i s h e d .
The Zuo Tradition, a n entry for the 3rd year o f Duke Xuan (606 B.C. ) In that winter Duke Mu of Zheng [O rchid] died. At the beginning, Duke Wen of Zheng had a lowborn handmaiden, who
was of the house of Ji from Yan. She dreamed that a messenger from Heaven gave her an orchid. He said, "I am Uncle Minnow; I am your fore bear. This
80
Early China will be your son. And because [the) orchid has the sweetest smell in all the land, people will wear it in their sashes and be fond of it. " After that Duke Wen saw her. He gave her an orchid and bedded her.
She sent him word, "I am not a person of high birth. 1 have been lucky to
have a son, and it will not be believed that he is yours . May 1 take the or
chid as proof? " And the Duke said, " Yes . " She bore D uke Mu, and she named him " Orchid . "
Duke Wen had committed incest with Gui of Chen, who had been the
consort of the former Master of Zheng. She bore Zi-hua and Zi-zang. Zi zang did a wrong and left the land. The Duke tricked Zi-hua and had him slain at South Hamlet. Then he set thugs to slay Zi-zang in the region be
tween Chen and Song.
He then took a wife from the house of Jiang. She bore him Gong-zi Shi.
Gong-zi Shi went to the court of Chu. Someone in Chu gave him poisoned wine, and he died when he reached Ye.
The Duke next took a wife from the Suo She bore him Zi-xia and Zi-yu
mi. Yu-mi died young. Xie Jia hated Zi-xia. Duke Wen also hated him, and therefore would not make him the heir. The D uke banished all his princes,
and Prince Orchid fled to Jin. And Orchid later went with Duke Wen of Jin
when he inva ded Zheng.
Shi Gui said, "I have heard that when the house of Tsi [the Jin) and the
Ji are mated, their offspring will always be teeming. The Ji are people of good
luck. One of them was the foremost wife of Hou Ji. Prince Orchid is o f the
Ji on the distaff side. Heaven may well be opening the way for him; he will
surely be the ruler, and his offspring will surely be teeming. If we are the
first to bring him into the domain, we may keep his favor . " With Kong Jiang
chu and Hou Xuan-duo he brought him into the domain and took an oath
with him in the great palace and set him on the throne. By this peace was made with Jin.
Duke Mu became ill. He said, " When the orchid dies, will 1 not die ? For
by this was 1 born . " They cut down the orchid and he died.
H e roes of the W i l l Extended n a rrative fo r the most part deve l o ped a ro u n d certa i n i n d i v i d u a l s w h o cap tu red a n i nterest that went beyo n d exem p l a ry l essons to be l e arned from th e i r be havior. We h ave acco u n ts of spokes m e n for eth i c a l val ues o r po l it i c a l ex ped i e n cy. Yet th ere were a l so stories of men e m bod y i n g l ess app roved val u e s : h eroes d r i ve n by fated m i sfo rtu nes, irrati o n a l l oyalties, o r t h e h u nger for reve nge. I n t h e s e sto r i es, more than in others, we often n ote a fasc i n ation with b a l a nces and i m b a l a n ces, acts of ge neros ity rep a i d a n d h u rts revenged . The fo l l ow i n g story of Yu-rang is taken from the Schemes of the Warring States (Zhan-guo ce), a com p i l ation of h i storical anecdotes and framed po l itical speeches fro m the early Weste rn H a n . The same story occ urs a l so in the "B iogra p h ies of the Assass i n s " in the
Historical Records of
Si-ma Q i a n . 81
Anthology of Chinese Literature
from the Schemes of the Warring States (Zhan-guo ce) Yu-rang, grandson of Bi Yang of Jin, first entered the service of the houses
of the Fan and the Zhong-hang, but he was unhappy there. He quit and
went to the Earl of Zhi of Jin, who treated him with great favor. When the three branches of Jin divided up the realm of the house of the Earl of Zhi,
it was Lord Xiang of Zhao who felt the greatest ill will toward the Earl of
Zhi and took his skull as his drinking vessel. Yu-rang had fle d into hiding
in the hills and said, "A liegeman dies for the man who appreciates him; a
woman makes herself beautiful for the man who is pleased with her. May 1 then take vengeance on this enemy of the house of the Earl of Zhi ! " He
changed his name and made himself a branded criminal . Thus he got into
the palace as a plasterer of the latrines, with the purpose of assas sinating Lord Xiang.
Lord Xiang was on his way to the latrine and had a trembling of the
heart. He had the plasterer seized and questioned, and it turned out to be
Yu-rang, who had put a sharp edge on his trowel. Yu-rang said, "I wanted
to take revenge on the enemy of the Earl of Zhi . " His entourage wanted to
put Yu-rang to death, but Lord Xiang of Zhao said, "This is a liegeman of principle. 1 will merely keep him away from me. The Earl of Zhi is dead and
has no offspring, yet one who served him will go so far as to seek revenge
on his enemie s. This is one of the most worthy men in the world . " And in
the end he had Yu-rang set free.
Yu-rang next put lacquer on his body to cover it with sores; he got rid
of his whiskers and eyebrows and mutilated himself to alter his appearance .
He then went b egging. Even his wife did not recognize him. But she said,
" Since this man doesn't look at all like my husband, why does his voice
sound so much like that of my husband ? " After this he swallowed ashes to make himself hoarse and changed the sound of his voice .
A friend said to him, " The course you are following is one of great hard
ship, yet one that does not do the deed. If you would be spoken of as a man
of powerful will, then it will be so; but you will not be spoken of as a re
sourceful man. If you used your talents in the skillful service of Lord Xiang,
he would certainly draw you close to him and make you his favorite . If you could get close to him, then you could do whatever you wanted. This would be very easy, and the deed could be done . " Yu-rang then laughed and an
swered him, " This would be to take revenge on the second man who ap preciated me for the sake of the first man who appreciated me. This would be to turn outlaw against a new lord for the sake of a former lord. Nothing could more violate the principle of the bond b etween a lord and one who
serves him. What 1 intend in doing as 1 do is to make clear the bond between a lord and one who serves him-it is not to take the easy way. To give a
pledge of fealty and serve a man while seeking to assassinate him is to serve one's lord with duplicity in the heart. This hard thing that 1 do now may even put to shame all those in the world who in later times serve their lords
with duplicity in their hearts . " 82
Early China After some while, Lord Xiang was to go forth, and Yu-rang hid under a
bridge across which he would have to pass. But when Lord Xiang reached
the bridge, his horse reared, whereupon Lord Xiang said, " Yu-rang must be here. " He ordered someone to question the man, and it was indeed Yu-rang.
Thereupon Lord Xiang of Zhao faced Yu-rang and said, " Did you not once
serve the houses of Fan and Zhong-hang ? Yet when the Earl of Zhi destroyed those houses, you did not take revenge on him, but rather pledged him your
fealty. The Earl of Zhi is dead now, so why only in this case are you so deeply determined to take revenge on his enemy ? " Yu-rang said, "I served the
houses of Fan and Zhong-hang, yet they treated me as an ordinary man. So
in return 1 behaved toward them like an ordinary man. The Earl of Zhi
treated me like one of the liegemen of the domain. So in return 1 behave like a liegeman of the domain . "
Lord Xiang gave a great sigh and shed tears, saying, " Oh, Yu-rang ! You
have already become famous for what you have done on the Earl of Zhi ' s
account. And 1 forgave y o u then-that t o o was enough. You make plans o n your own behalf now, and 1 m a y n o t forgive you. " And he ordered his men
to form a ring around him.
Then Yu-rang said, " I have heard it said that a wise ruler does not force
a man to conceal his principles and 1 have heard that one who serves with
loyalty, to make his fame complete, does not cling to life. Before you were
lenient and forgave me, and for this the whole world praises your virtue. 1 do indeed accept the punishment that must follow from what has happened
today. Still, if 1 could ask for your coat and stab it, 1 would feel no resent
ment in my death. 1 cannot expect this, but 1 reveal what is within me . "
Thereupon Lord Xiang saw that Yu-rang did indeed have principles, and
he ordered one who served him to take his coat and give it to Yu-rang. Yu rang drew out his sword, leapt around several times, shouted to Heaven, and
stabbed the coat, saying, " By this 1 take vengeance for the Earl of Zhi . " Then
he fell on his sword and died. On the day he died the liegemen of Zhao heard of it, and they all wept.
S w i n d l es a n d B ad Exc h a n ges : T h e P ro b l e m s S u rr ou n d i n g B i a n H e ' s J ad e There m a y b e problems with exchanges. F i rst o f a l l , t h e worth o f somet h i n g offered m u st be recog n i zed and the g i ver acknowledged . But beyo n d that, sw i n d l es are pos s i b l e, part i c u l a r l y d u r i n g the world of stratagem and decept i o n of the Warri n g States, in w h i c h c l everness was the o n l y m atch fo r raw powe r . S u c h e x c h a n ges are often m atters of l ife and death, or body parts sacrif iced . The
Han Fei-zi
are the essays of the Leg a l i st p h i l osopher H a n F e i ( c a . 2 80-c a .
2 3 3 B .C . ) .
83
Anthology of Chinese Literature
" He's Jade " (or " Bian He's Jade " ) , from the Han Fei-zi There was a man of Chu, of the family He, who found a piece of j ade in the rough out in the mountains of Chu. He presented it to King Li, who had his
j ade expert examine it. The j ade expert said, " This is ordinary stone . " The
king thought that Bian He was trying to deceive him and had his left foot
cut off as a punishment. When King Li passed away and King Wu took the
throne, Bian He again took his j ade and presented it to King Wu. King Wu had his j ade expert examine it, and again it was pronounced to be ordinary
stone . This king too thought Bian He was trying to deceive him and had his
right foot cut off. When King Wu passed away and King Wen ascended the throne, Bian He took his j ade in his arms and wept at the base of Chu Moun
tain. For three days and three nights he wept until he had no more tears left,
until blood fell from his eyes. The king heard of this and sent someone to
find out the cause. The envoy said, " There are many people in the world
whose feet have been cut off. Why are you weeping about it so sadly ? " And Bian He answered, " I'm not sad about having my feet cut off; I'm sad be
cause this precious piece of j ade has been judged a mere stone and because
a most honorable gentleman has been called a fraud-this is what makes
me sad . " The king then had his own j ade expert work on the stone, and he found the gem within. Consequently the king commanded that it be called " Bian He's Disk . "
B i a n H e ' s j a d e i s m a d e i nto a d i sk, a bi, a n obj ect o f power that was m u c h p r ized by the g reat n o b i l ity. As the d i s k made from B i an He's j ade c h a nges h a n d s , we h ave aga i n p ro b l e m s of exc h a nge va l u e, fra u d , and the th reat of v i o l e n ce.
Historical Records (Shi-ji), from the " Biographies of Lian Bo and Lin Xiang-ru " Lian Bo was Zhao's finest general. In the sixteenth year of King Hui-wen of Zhao Lian Bo served as Zhao's general in the attack on Qi, inflicting great ruin pon them and taking Yang-jin. He was granted the post of high min ister and was known for his boldness among the great nobility. Lin Xiang ru was also from Zhao and was the retainer of Miao Xian, commander of
�
the eunuchs. It was in the days of King Hui-wen that Zhao got the j ade disk of Bian He of Chu. King Zhao of Qin heard of this and sent a man with a letter for r the King of Zhao, conveying his wish to exchange fifteen walled cit es f� the j ade disk. Upon hearing this, the King of Zhao took counsel with hiS grand general Lian Bo and with his other great officers . When they consid
!
ered presenting the j ade to Qin, they feared that they would not get Qin's cities in return, that they would be cheated and left empty-han ded. And yet when they considered refusing to present the j ade, there was the danger that Qin's troops would come upon them. Their course of action was not yet set-
84
Early China
tled, nor were they successful in finding someone who could be sent to Qin
with their answer.
Miao Xian, the commander of the eunuchs, said, " My retainer, Lin
Xiang-ru, could be sent. " The king asked, " Why do you think he could do i t ? "
And Miao Xian replied, " I was once held guilty for a misdeed and
planned to flee to Yan, but my retainer Lin Xiang-ru stopped me, saying,
'Why do you think you can have confidence in the King of Yan ? ' I said to
him that I had gone with Your Majesty to a meeting with the King of Yan at the frontier and that the King of Yan had clasped my hand and said, 'I
wish to be your friend. ' That was why I had confidence in him and thus in tended to go there. But Lin Xiang-ru told me, 'Zhao is the stronger, Yan is
the weaker, and you enjoyed the favor of the King of Zhao. That is why the
King of Yan wanted a bond of friendship with you. If you now flee Zhao to Yan, Yan will be in fear of Zha o. The situation will be such that they will
not dare let you stay; they will tie you up and send you back t o Zha o . The best thing for you to do would be to bare the upper part of your body and
bend down to the block and headsman's ax, asking for punishment for your
misdeeds. If you do that, you might be lucky enough to be set free . ' I fol
lowed that course of action he proposed, a n d Your Maj esty w a s kind enough
to pardon me. I think that this man is a bold fighter, and one with wise coun sels. It would be fitting to let him be sent. "
Thereupon the king summoned Lin Xiang-ru to an audience and asked
him, " Qin wishes to exchange fifteen walled cities for my jade disk. D o I
make him a present of it or not ? "
Lin Xiang-ru said, " Qin i s the stronger and Zhao the weaker-you have
no choice but to agree . "
The king said, "What can w e d o i f they take m y j ade disk and don't pre
sent me with the cities in return ? "
Lin Xiang-ru answered, " If Qin offers cities for the disk and Zhao does
not agree, the fault lies with Zhao. If Zhao presents the jade and Qin does
not present cities to Zhao in return, the fault lies with Qin. If we weigh these
two stratagems in the balance, it is better to agree and make Qin bear the fault. "
The king then said, " Whom can I send ? "
And Lin Xiang-ru answered, " Your Maj esty o bviously has n o one else.
Let me take the disk and go as your envoy. If the cities come to Zha o, the disk will stay in Qin. If the cities don't come to us, then I would bring the
disk whole back to Zhao. " Thereupon the King of Zhao sent Lin Xiang-ru
to bear the disk westward into Qin.
The King of Qin was sitting on Zhang Terrace when he received Lin
Xiang-ru. Xiang-ru held the disk before him in his hands and proffered it to the King of Qin. The King of Qin was greatly pleased and handed it around to show to his beautiful women and courtiers, at which all his
courtiers shouted their congratulations.
85
Anthology of Chinese Literature O b serving that t h e King o f Q i n h a d n o intention o f compensating Zhao
with the cities, Lin Xiang-ru then came forward and said, " There is a flaw
in the j ade disk, let me show Your Majesty. " When the king handed him
the disk, Lin Xiang-ru held it firmly and drew away, keeping his back to a
column, the hair bristling against his cap in his rage . And he addressed the
King of Qin, " When Your Maj esty wanted to get the j ade disk and sent an
envoy with a letter to the King of Zhao, the King of Zhao summoned every one of his officers to discuss the matter . They all said, ' Qin is grasping. Be
cause it is the stronger, it wants to get our j ade disk with empty promises,
and we fear we will not get those cities in compensation.' They had proposed
not to present Qin with the j a de disk. But it was my opinion that if com
moners do not cheat one another in their dealings, the great domains are
even less likely to do so. Moreover, it would not be fitting to opp ose mighty Qin's power for a single disk of j ade. Thereupon the King of Zhao fasted
for five days, and sent me as the envoy to proffer the disk and to deliver his
letter in your court. Why did he do this ? To give due show of respect for the
awe that we have for your great domain. Now I have arrived. Your Maj esty
receives me in an ordinary lodge and is extremely haughty in the forms of behavior with which you treat me. You get the j ade disk and pass it around among your women to mock and insult me. Now that I see that Your
Maj esty has no intention of giving the cities in compensation to the King of Zhao, I have taken back the j ade disk. I am sure that Your Maj esty wants
to have your people fall upon me now; but if you do, I will smash both my
head and the j ade disk on the column . " Lin Xiang-ru held the disk firmly in hand, with his eyes on the column, ready to strike it.
The King of Qin, fearing that Lin Xiang-ru would break the disk, made
excuses and entreated him. He summoned the man in charge to spread out a map, and with his fingers he pointed to the line beyond which the fifteen
great cities would be Zhao ' s . But Lin Xiang-ru had the measure of the King of Qin, that he merely was pretending to present Zhao with the cities and
that Zhao would never have them. He then addressed the King of Qin, "He's
j ade d i s k is a treasure known everywhere in the world. In his fear the King
of Zhao did not dare to refuse to offer it. But when the King of Zhao sent it, he fasted for five days . It is fitting now that Your Maj esty as well fast for
five days and that you have a ceremony for officers of all ranks in your court. Then I will offer up the j ade disk . "
The King o f Qin took the measure o f the situation and knew that he
would never be able to take the j ade away by force. So he agreed to fast five days and gave Lin Xiang-ru apartments in the Guang-cheng Lodge. For his
part Lin Xiang-ru had the measure of the King of Qin, that even though he
was fasting, the king had determined to break the agreement and not to offer the cities in compensation. He then had one of the men who had come with him put on shabby clothes and conceal the j ade disk in the folds. The man
was to flee by the shortest route and bring the j ade disk back to Zha o .
After the King of Q i n h a d fasted for five days, he h a d the ceremony for
officers of all ranks in his court, then had the envoy of Zhao, Lin Xiang-ru, 86
Early China
led in. When Lin Xiang-ru arrived, he addressed the King of Qin: " O f the
more than twenty lords of Qin from the time of Duke Miao there has never been one who has been steadfast in his oaths . Since I was truly afraid of being
cheated by Your Majesty and thus failing Zhao, I ordered a man to take the
j ade disk back, and he should be in Zhao shortly . Qin is the stronger and Zhao the weaker. Your Maj esty sent a single envoy to Zhao, and Zhao sent
one back at once proffering the j ade disk. Given Qin's superior strength, if
it had first cut away fifteen of its cities and presented them to Zhao, Zhao
could not possibly have kept the j ade and, by its actions, shown itself guilty
before Your Maj esty. I understand that I must be executed for the crime of
deceiving Your Maj esty, so carry me off to the cauldron of boiling water.
All I ask is that Your Maj esty and his officers give this some discussion . "
The King 0 f Qin and his officers looked a t one another in seething rage.
Some among the courtiers wanted to drag Lin Xiang-ru a wa y, when the king said, " If we kill Lin Xiang-ru now, we'll never be able to get the j ade disk
and we will break the goodwill that exists between Qin and Zhao . The best
course is to treat him very well and send him back to Zha o . For how could
the King of Zhao work a deception on Qin for the sake of a single j ade disk ? "
I n the end h e invited Lin Xiang-ru to a feast and sent him back after hav
ing treated him with all the courtesies .
Once Lin Xiang-ru had returned, the King of Zhao considered him a most
worthy grand master who had kept him from humiliation before the great nobility. He appointed Lin Xiang-ru as High Grand Master. And Qin never
presented Zhao with its cities, nor did Zhao ever present the j a de disk to Qin.
T h e Sto ry of Wu Z i -x u There are bas i c d i fferences between n a r rative i n ern H a n
The Zuo Tradition a n d i n the West Historical Records of S i - rn a Q i a n . The Zuo Tradition is an i nt r i cate l y struc
tu red tota l h i story of the d o m a i ns, w h i c h rem a i n s true to its o r i g i n s in the c h ro n i c l e . Necessary p i eces o f i nfo rmat i o n a n d rel ated events appear i n s ma l l p i eces scattered over a span of years, each g i ven u n d e r the year w h e n it o c c u r red . No s i n g l e l i ne a r n a rrative can arise out o f the tota l ity of h isto r i c a l n a rrative, a n d t h u s the Wu Zi - x u n a rrative i s s u b m e rged with i n the m o re i ntri cate acco u nt of the r i se o f W u a n d i ts d efeat of C h u , then the rise of V u e a n d its u l t i m ate c o n q u est of W u . These n a r ratives a re, in tu rn, bo u n d by many th reads to eve nts in the oth er d o m a i n s . In co ntrast, the n a rrat i ve acco u n t of a parti c u l a r person in the
Historical Records is a rel ative l y com
p l ete w h o l e . S i - m a Q i a n u s u a l l y worked with earl i e r h i stor i c a l m ate r i a ls, but h e re v i sed them and s h aped them i nto a u n ity. The same i nfo r m at i o n may be g iven i n d iffe rent parts of the
Historical Records, b u t i n each
context S i - m a Q i a n refas h i o n ed
the m ate r i a l accord i n g the needs of the sto ry at h a n d . Before the
Historical Records,
the anecd ote was the most fu l l y deve l o ped n a r rat i ve fo r m ; S i - m a Q i a n u sed b i og raphy, p a rti c u l a r l y the l ife of someone d r i ven by a s i n g l e pu rpose, to c reate a l a rger n a rrative u n ity . 87
Anth ology of Chinese Literature The Wu Z i - x u story is a good exam p l e of how stories worked in e a r l y C h i n a . Sto ries were reto l d aga i n a n d aga i n , someti mes verbat i m , someti mes d ifferi n g i n ph ras i n g accord i n g to the i d i o m and period of the writer. Sometimes passages d ropped o ut, but m o re often the p rocess was one of e l aborat i o n , with old i n c i dents expanded in g reater d eta i l a n d new i n c i dents added . As can be seen in the comparison be twee n the vers i o n s of the Wu Z i - x u sto ry in the
Zuo Tradition, the e l aborati o n s w e r e often
Historical Records
and the earl i e r
i rres i sti b l y "good sto r i es," s o m e o f whose
sou rces we can fi n d in oth e r early texts . The p rocess was by no means com p l eted with the vers i o n i n the Han works,
Historical Records. It was fu rther e l aborated i n two Eastern Springs and Autumns of Wu and Yue (Wu Yue Chun-qiu) and the Yue
jue shu. T h e sto ry fou nd a ve rnac u l a r vers i o n centu ries l ater i n the Tang, k n own as the Wu Zi-xu Transformation Text ( Wu Zi-xu b ian-wen), and it conti n u ed to be re worked i n p l ays and sto r i e s i n the l ater i m pe r i a l period: For the sake of c l a r i ty we w i l l g i ve fi rst the fu l l vers i o n of the Wu Z i - x u story fro m the
Historical Records, fo l l owed by the earl i e r accou nts of i n c i dents i n Wu Z i - x u ' s The Zuo Tradition. N ote h o w i n the Historical Records, S i - m a Q i a n fo l l owed The Zuo Tradition very c l osely i n s o m e p l aces a n d devi ated i n oth ers. S i nce
l ife from
the n a r rative has many c h a racters, a l i st of the major groups i s given be l o w : Chu Royal Family KING PING: who has Wu Zi-xu's father and brother killed PRINCE JIAN: heir apparent, driven into exile by King Ping KING ZHAO: another son of King Ping, and his successor SHENG: son of Prince Jian, rescued by Wu Zi-xu The Wu Family Wu SHE: the father, loyal adviser to King Ping Wu SHANG: Wu She's eldest son Wu ZI-XU (Wu YUN ) : Wu She's younger son Wu Royal Family KING LIAO: ruler when Wu Zi-xu first came to Wu KING HE-LV: formerly Prince Guang, conqueror of Chu, dead of a wound in battle with Yue KING FU-CHA: He-Iii's son, defeated by Yue Yue Royal Family KING GOU-JIAN Other Important Characters FEI WU-JI: corrupt adviser to King Ping of Chu Bo PI: adviser to Kings He-Iii and Fu-cha of Wu, bribed by Yue BAO-XU OF SHEN: loyal minister of King Zhao of Chu, who persuades Qin to come to the aid of Chu
Historical Records, " Biography of Wu Zi-xu" Wu Zi-xu, or Wu Yun, was a native of Chu. His father was called Wu She' �
his elder brother was called Wu Shang. An ancestor, called Wu Ju, was fa
mous for having served King Zhuang of Chu with his forthright counsels '
and thus his descendants had a good name in Chu. 88
Early China
King Ping of Chu had a crown prince called Jian; the king commissioned
Wu She as his chief tutor and Fei Wu-j i as his secondary tutor. Yet Fei Wu j i was not faithful to Prince Jian. King Ping sent Fei Wu-j i on a mission to
Qin to get a bride for the prince. The daughter of Qin was lovely, and Fei
Wu-ji hurried back to tell King Ping: " This daughter of Qin is exceedingly beautiful-Your Majesty might take her himself and get another wife for
the prince. " Thereupon the king did indeed take the daughter of Qin for him self and doted on her exceedingly, from which union was born a son, Zhen .
He got another wife for the crown prince .
Having used the daughter of Qin to win the favor of King Ping, Fei Wu
ji left the service of the crown prince to serve King Ping himself. But he feared
the day when the king would die and the crown prince succeed to the throne;
and he feared that then he would be killed. For this reason, he spoke ill of
Prince Jian. Jian's mother was the daughter of the house of Cai and enj oyed no favor from King Ping. Bit by bit King Ping grew increasingly distant from
Jian, and he sent Jian to hold Cheng-fu and watch over the troops on the frontier.
After a short while, Fei Wu-ji once again spoke of the crown prince's fail
ings to the king day and night. " Because o f the affair o f the daughter of Qin,
the prince cannot avoid bitterness. Your Majesty might want to take a few precautions for your own sake. Since the prince occupies Cheng-fu, has com
mand of troops, and has dealings with the great nobility outside the king
dom, he may well want to move on the capital and create a rebellion. " Then
King Ping called his chief tutor, Wu She, to question him thoroughly about thi s. Wu She knew that Fei Wu-j i had spoken ill of the prince to King Ping,
so he said: " How can Your Majesty become estranged from your own flesh
and blood because of some maligning villain of a p etty court official ? " To
which Fei Wu-ji said: " If Your Maj esty doesn't stop it now, the matter will
be accomplished, and Your Majesty will be seized . " Thereupon the king flew
into a rage, imprisoned Wu She, and sent the Commander of Cheng-fu, Fen
Yang, on a mission to kill the prince. But before he reached the prince, Fen Yang sent someone ahead to tell him: " Your Highness should leave as
quickly as possible; otherwise I will execute you. " Prince Jian escaped and fled to Song.
Then Fei Wu-j i said to King Ping: " Wu She has two sons, both worthy
men. If you don't execute them, they may bring troubles to Chu. With their
father as a hostage, you may call them to court. Otherwise they may bring
great evil upon Chu. " The king sent an envoy to tell Wu She: " If you get
your two sons to come, you will live; if you cannot, you will die . " Wu She
replied: "Wu Shang is kindly by nature; and if I call, he will certainly come .
But Wu Zi-xu is by nature hard and untamed; he can put up with the shame, and he is capable of creating great problems. When he sees that he and his brother will both be seized if they come, his inclination
will certainly be not
to come . " But the king would not listen, and sent someone to call the two
brothers to court: " Come, and I will let your father live. Fail to come and I
will kill Wu She immediately . "
89
Anthology of Chinese Literature Wu Shang was ready to go, but Wu Zi-xu said: "When Chu calls both
brothers to court, it is not because he intends to let our father live . He will
fear that if we get free, we will work great harm in later time s. That's why
he is calling us to court with false assurances, using our father as a hostage.
When we get there, we and our father will all die together. What will that
do for our father 's death? By going we will make it impossible to b e revenged on our enemy. The best course would b e to flee to some other domain and
make use of their force to wipe away this shame that has been put on our father. It will do no good for all of us to be wiped out . " Wu Shang answered:
"I know that going will not save our father from his doom. But still I could
not endure to have failed to go when our father has called us to save his life; if afterward I could not wipe away the shame done to him, I would end up
b eing laughed at by the whole world . " And he told Wu Zi-xu: " Get away
yourself! You will be able to revenge us on our enemies. I am going to go die . " When Wu Shang had gone to submit to arrest, the envoy tried to seize
Wu Zi-xu. Wu Zi-xu bent his bow, notched an arrow, and pointed it at the
envoy, who did not dare come any closer. Then Wu Zi-xu escaped. And hear ing that Prince Jian was in Song, he went off to serve him.
Wu She heard that Wu Zi-xu had escaped, and he said, " The lord and
court officials of the Kingdom of Chu now may well suffer war. " When Wu Shang reached the capital, the king killed both Wu She and Wu Shang.
When Wu Zi-xu came to Song, the civil strife caused by the Hua clan
broke out. Then together with Prince Jian he fled to Zheng. The people of
Zheng were on very good terms with them. Prince Jian next went on to Jin.
Lord Qing of Jin said: " Y our Highness is on such good terms with Zheng
that Zheng trusts Your Highness. If you would act for me from within the capital when I attack it from the outside, Zheng will surely b e wiped out.
When Zheng is wiped out, I will give Your Highness a fief. " The prince then went back to Zheng. Before that action came to pass, it happened that the
prince, for his own reasons, was going to kill one of his entourage. The man
knew of the plot and told the Lord of Zheng. Lord Ding and his minister
Zi-chan then executed Prince Jian. Jian had a son named Sheng. Wu Zi-xu
was afraid, so he fled together with Sheng to Wu. When he reached the Zhao
Barrier [between Chu and Wul , they were going to arrest him. Then Wu Zi
xu went running off on foot alone with Sheng, and they almost didn't get away. The pursuers were right behind them. They reached the river, on which there was a single fisherman in a boat. Understanding that Wu Zi-xu was
hardpressed, the fisherman took him across. Once Wu Zi-xu was across, he
took off his sword, s aying: "This sword is worth a hundred in gold-I am
giving it to you . " The fisherman said: "There is a law in the Kingdom of Chu that whoever takes Wu Zi-xu will be rewarded with fifty thousand mea
sures of rice and the j ade badge of a court noble. What' s a sword worth j ust a hundred in gold to that ! " And he would not accept the sword. Before he
reached the capital of Wu, Wu Zi-xu got sick and had to stop halfway along
his j ourney to beg for food. When he reached the capital of Wu, King Liao
90
Early China was ruling, and Guang, a prince of the blood, was general. Then, through Guang, Wu Zi-xu sought a meeting with the King of Wu.
A long time later King Ping o f Chu flew into a great rage because two
women attacked one another in an argument over some mulb erry trees , one from the Chu frontier town of Zhong-Ii, and the other from a Wu fr on
tier town under the Bei-liang clan, both of which towns made silk. It reached the point where b oth kingdoms were raising troops to attack one
another. Wu sent prince of the blood Guang to attack Chu, and he returned
after taking possession Zhong-Ii and Ju-ch ao. Wu Zi-xu made an argument
to King Liao of Wu : " Chu can be smashed. I would have you send Guang back again. " But Guang told the king: "Wu Zi-xu ' s father and elder
brother were slain by Chu, and his urging Your Maj esty to attack Chu is
only his desire to be revenged on his own foe s. No attack on Chu can smash it yet. " Wu Zi-xu understood that the prince Guang had aims that he was
keeping to himself, that he wanted to kill the king and take the thr one him self, and therefore could not be swayed to actions outside the kingdom.
Wu then recommended Zhuan Zhu to the prince Guang, and withdraw
ing from court, went to farm in the wilderness with Prince Jian's son Sheng.
After five years King Ping of Chu passed away. Earlier, the daughter of
Qin, whom King Ping had snatched away from Prince Jian, had given birth
to Zhen; and when King Ping passed away, Zhen ultimately succeeded him as heir to the throne, known as King Zha o . King Liao of Wu took advan
tage of the mourning for the king and sent two princes of the blood with
troops to make raids into Chu. Chu sent out troops to cut off the rear of the
Wu troops, and the Wu troops were unable to get back. The Kingdom of
Wu was left bare; then prince of the blood Guang ordered Zhuan Zhu to
rush in and stab the king, after which he himself took the throne as He-Iii,
King of Wu. Once He-Iii ascended the throne and his ambitions were ful filled, he then called Wu Zi-xu to serve him in relations with other states; and he took counsel with him on matters of the domain.
Chu had executed two great officers of the court, Wan of Xi and Bo
Zhou-li. Bo Zhou-li's grandson, Bo Pi, escaped and fled to Wu; and Wu went so far as to make him a Counselor. Previously the two princes and their
troops, whom King Liao had sent to attack Chu, had their retreat cut off and could not get back. Hearing later that He-Iii had killed King Liao and
set himself on the throne, they surrendered with their troops to Chu, who
gave them fiefs in Shu. Three years after He-Iii took the throne, he raised an army and, together with Wu Zi-xu and Bo Pi, attacked Chu, took Shu , and
seized the two former Wu generals who had changed sides. Thereafter he
wanted to reach Ying, the Chu capital, but his general, Sun Wu, said: " Not
yet-the men are worn out. Wait a while . " Then he returned. In the fourth year of his reign, Wu again attacked Chu,
and took Lu and
Qian. In the fifth year of his reign he attacked Yue and defeated it. In the
sixth year, King Zhao of Chu sent the prince of the blood Nang Wa with
91
Anthology of Chinese Literature troops t o attack Wu. W u sent W u Zi-xu t o meet him, and h e smashed the
Chu army at Yu-zhang and took Chu's city Ju-cha o. In t h e ninth year o f h i s reign, He-Iii, King of Wu, spoke t o Wu Zi-xu and Sun Wu: " Before, you said I could not enter the Chu capital Ying. How is it now ? " B oth men answered: " Chu's general Nang Wa is a grasping man,
and the domains of Tang and Cai both hold a grudge against him . If Your Majesty must make a maj or attack, it will work only if you first get Tang and Cai. " He-Iii listened to them. He raised his entire army and together with
Tang and Cai attacked Chu, forming his ranks facing the Chu forces that were drawn up on the other side of the Han River. The king's younger brother Fu-gai asked to be sent after them, but the king would not agree. Then, with the five thousand men attached to him, Fu-gai struck the Chu general Nang Wa, who was defeated and ran a w ay, fleeing to the state of Zheng. Thereupon Wu took advantage of its victory and advanced; and after five b attles, it finally reached Ying. It was the day ji-mao when King Zhao of Chu fle d the city; it was one day later,
entered Ying.
geng-chen, when the King of Wu
King Zhao escaped the city into the Yun-meng hunting preserve . There
outlaws attacked the king, who was hurrying toward Yun. Huai, who was
the younger brother of the lord of Yun, said: "Would it not b e fair that
since King Ping of Chu killed my father, I may kill his son ? " The Lord of
Yun was afraid that his brother would kill the king and j oined the king in
flight to Sui. Troops of Wu surrounded Sui and told the people of Sui: " It was Chu that wiped out all the heirs of the house of Zhou along the river
Han . " The people of Sui wanted to kill the king, but the prince-royal Qi
sheltered him and was going to act the part of the king himself. The peo
ple of Sui made divination as to whether or not they should deliver the king to Wu. The result was unlucky . So they refused Wu and did not deliver the king.
In the beginning, Wu Zi-xu had been associated with Bao-xu of Shen .
When Wu Zi-xu was escaping, he told Bao-xu: "I will be the ruin of Chu . "
T o which Bao-xu replied: " And I will preserve it . " When the troops o f Wu
entered Ying, Wu Zi-xu went looking for King Zhao; and since he couldn't
find him, he dug up the tomb of King Ping of Chu, took out the corpse, and
flogged it, stopping only after he had given it three hundred lashes. Bao-xu of Shen escaped into the mountains and sent someone to say to Wu Zi-xu :
" D on't you think you have gone too far in your revenge ? It is my under
standing that masses of men may overcome Heaven, but that He aven is cer
tainly capable of smashing those men. You once were a liegeman of King Ping; you yourself served him, facing north to the throne; now you have
reached the point of dishonoring a dead man. D on't you see that this is an
extreme failure to follow Heaven's right way ? " Wu Zi-xu replied: " Give my respects to Bao-xu of Shen. The day draws toward nightfall; my road is long. I go against the tide, yet I will do this in spite of all . "
A t this, Bao-xu o f Shen hurried t o Qin t o tell them about the crisis, seek
ing succor from Qin. But Qin would not agree to help . Bao-xu stood in the 92
Early China courtyard of Qin and wept by day and by night. For seven days and seven
nights the sound never ceased. Then Lord Ai of Qin took pity on him and
said: " Even though Chu was wanting in the right way, it has liegemen like
thi s ! Can we do otherwise than save it ? " Then he sent five hundred chari ots to save Chu and strike Wu. In the sixth month of that year they d efeated
Wu 's troops at Ji. It happened that He-Iii had remained a long time in Chu seeking King Zhao; meanwhile He-Iii's younger brother Fu-gai surrepti
tiously made his way back to Wu and set himself on the throne as king.
When He-Iii heard of it, he let go of Chu and made his way back to strike his brother Fu-gai. Fu-gai was defeated and ran, eventually fleeing to Chu.
When King Zhao saw the internal strife in Wu, he reentered Ying. He gave
Fu-gai a fief at Tang-xi, which became the Tang-xi clan. Chu again j oined
Wu in b attle and defeated it, whereupon the King o f Wu made his way home.
Two years afterwards, He-Iii sent the Crown Prince Fu-cha with troops
to attack Chu. They took Pan. Chu feared that Wu would come again in
force and left Ying, shifting the capital to Ruo . It was in those days that Wu,
using the counsels of Wu Zi-xu and Sun Wu, broke through its western bor ders with Chu, held Qi and Jin to make the north feel awe of their might,
and to the south made the people of Yue yield.
Four years after that, Confucius was the minister in Lu.
Five years later they attacked Yue. The Yue king Gou-jian met them, de
feating Wu at Gu-Su. They wounded He-Iii's finger, and the army withdrew.
He-Iii, on the point of death from a sickness from that wound, told the Crown Prince Fu-cha : " Will you forget that Gou-jian killed your father ? "
Fu-cha replied: " I will never forget. " That evening He-Iii died. When Fu-cha ascended the throne, he made Bo Pi the Grand Steward, and had the troops
practice archery. After two years he attacked Yue, and defeated Yue at Fu
j ia o . Then Gou-j ian, King o f Yue, took temporary refuge on Kuai-ji with his remaining five thousand troop s . He sent Counselor Zhong with rich gifts
for Grand S teward Bo Pi, begging for an accommodation, and seeking to make his state a vassal of Wu. The King of Wu was a b out to agree, but Wu
Zi-xu protested : " The King of Yue is the kind of man who is able to take
suffering. If Your Maj esty does not wipe him out now, you will certainly
rue it later. " But the King of Wu would not listen to him, and employed the Grand Steward Bo Pi to make peace with Yue.
Five years later, the King o f Wu heard that Lord Jing of Qi had died and
that the great officers of the state were struggling for the favor of the new lord, who was then young. He then raised his army to go north to attack
Qi. Wu Zi-xu protested, saying: " When Gou-jian eats, he pays no attention
to how the food tastes; he laments those who die and pays attention when people are sick; it would seem that he has plans to make use of them. So
long as this man does not die, he will certainly bring affliction upon Wu . At present Yue's existence in relation to Wu is like a person having
an
illness
in the heart or stomach. Can't Your Maj esty see what a mistake it is to ex
pend your efforts in Qi without first considering Yue ? " The King of Wu did 93
Anthology of Chinese Literature not listen to him. He attacked Qi and inflicted a great defeat on the Qi army
at Ai-ling. Then he put the rulers of Zou and Lu in awe of his might and re
turned. And he paid increasingly less attention to Wu Zi-xu's counsels .
Four years after that, the King of Wu was about to go north to attack
Qi, and King Gou-jian of Yue, following the counsels of Zi-gong, led his
hosts to help Wu. Again he made presents of rich treasures to the Grand
Steward Bo Pi. Bo Pi, having received the gifts of Yue, developed for Yue immense faith and fondness, and day and night spoke on its behalf to the
King of Wu. The King of Wu had faith in Bo Pi's plans and followed them.
Wu Zi-xu protested again: " Yue is an illness in the heart or stomach. In your present greed for Qi, you are giving faith to baseless statements and decep
tions . If you smash Qi, it will be as a stony field-you will have no use from it. The Pan-geng Declaration in the
[ Classic of] Documents says: 'Whoso
ever overturns my will or transgresses or wants due reverence, his nose shall
b e hacked off and I will destroy him utterly, and I shall cause him to have
no spawn remaining, neither shall I let him shift his sprouts to this my new
city. ' This was how the Shang rose. I would have Your Majesty let go of Qi
and consider Yue first. If you do not do so, the regrets you will have later
will do you no good . " Yet the King of Wu did not heed him, but sent Wu
Zi-xu as an envoy to Qi. When Wu Zi-xu was on the point of going, he told
his son: "I have protested to the king on a number of occasions, but the king does not follow my advice. I now will see the destruction of Wu. It will do
no good if you and Wu are destroyed together. " Then he put his son under the protection of Bao Mu of Qi and returned to report to Wu .
Since the Grand Steward Bo Pi had a grudge against Wu Zi-xu, he spoke
ill of him: "Wu Zi-xu is a hard and violent man, short on love, mistrustful,
a spoiler; and I fear his resentments will bring deep troubles upon us. When
before Your Majesty wanted to attack Qi, it was Wu Zi-xu ' s opinion that
you should not; yet in the end Your Maj esty did indeed attack Qi and won
for yourself great glory. Wu Zi-xu feels humiliated that his counsels were
not adopted; he feels a perverse resentment at your success. And now that Your Maj esty will again attack Qi, Wu Zi-xu shows single-minded stub
bornness in his unbending protests to wreck the undertaking . He will think
Wu' s defeat a happy outcome because it will show the triumph of his own counsels . Now Your Maj esty is himself going, having brought together all
the military force in the kingdom to attack Qi. Wu Zi-xu's counsels not being
adopted, he withdraws, refusing to go on the pretext of illness. Your Maj esty absolutely must take precautions, for in this situation it would not be diffi
cult to cause troubles. Moreover, I sent a man to spy on him when he was
on his mission to Qi; he even went so far as to put his son under the pro
tection of the Bao clan. This is the sort of liegeman he is: failing to have his way within the kingdom, he will rely on foreign nobility; considering him
self the counselor of the former king and finding his counsels not now
adopted, he is always in a state of seething resentment. I would have Your
Maj esty do something a bout it as soon as possible . "
94
Early China The King of Wu said: " Even apart from what you have told me, I would have doubted him. " Then he sent an envoy to present Wu Zi-xu with the sword Zhu-lou, saying: " By this you die . " Wu Zi-xu raised his head toward
Heaven and sighed: "That malicious officer Bo Pi is creating havoc, and Your Maj esty executes me instead. I made your father overlord. Before you took the throne, all the princes of the blood were contending for the succession; I was ready to support your cause to the death with the former king, and
even so you came close to not succeeding to the throne. And when you did take the throne, you wanted to divide the Kingdom of Wu with me, but I refused it as not being something I expected. However, now you give heed
to the words of a lying courtier and kill an honorable man. " Then he in
formed his retainers : " Plant my tomb with catalpas, that they may be had
for making coffins for Wu. Dig out my eyeballs and hang them above the
eastern gate of the capital of Wu, so that I can watch Yue's thugs when they
enter the great city and wipe out Wu. " He then cut his throat and died. When
the King of Wu heard this, he fell into a great rage; he got hold of Wu Zi
xu's corpse, and stuffing it into a leather wineskin, had it set afloat on the
Yangzi River. But the people of Wu felt for him and erected a temple beside
the river, which consequently was named Mount Xu.
Having executed Wu Zi-xu, the King of Wu proceeded to attack Qi. The
Baa clan of Qi killed their ruler Lord Dao and set Yang-sheng on the throne.
The King of W u wanted to chastise this crime, but had to withdraw with
out having achieved the victory. Two years later, the King of Wu called the
rulers of Lu and Wei to meet with him at Tuo Meadow. The next year he followed this with a great meeting of the high nobility at Yellow Pool, where
,
he claimed leadership over all the house of Zhou. But then the king of Yue,
Gou-jian, made a surprise attack, killing the Crown Prince of Wu and smash
ing Wu's troop s . As soon as the King of Wu heard this, he went back and sent an envoy with rich gifts to treat for peace with Yue. Nine years later,
King Gou-jian of Yue wiped out Wu and killed Fu-cha, and further executed the Grand Steward Bo Pi for not having been loyal to his ruler and for tak
ing rich presents from outside the domain, and for forming a faction for the
King of Yue himself.
th whom Wu Zi-xu had first Sheng, the son of the Chu crown prince Jian, wi . Fu-cha , KIng HUI of Chu escape d remain ed in Wu . D uring the tIme of KIng ed: " Sheng loves dar protest She Lord but wanted o call Sheng back to Chu, . Don't you ImagIn e him for die will who s knight ing and is secretly seeking not heed hIm and sent for he has some private designs ? " King Hui did where he was called Lord Sheng, making him live in the frontie r city of Yan, execut ed Wu ZI-XU. Wu Chu, to Bo. Three years after Lord Bo's return a store of resentm ent had he Chu, to d returne had Once Sheng, Lord Bo, And he secretly father. his killed having for Zheng of against the domain to pay back Zheng. FIve nourish ed knights willing to die for him in his quest attack Zheng ; the Chu to . years after his return to Chu, he asked permis sion
�
95
Anthology of Chinese Literature Vizier Zi-xi allowed it. But before the troops set out, Jin attacked Zheng,
and Zheng requested aid from Chu. Chu sent Zi-xi to go to their defense,
and after taking a blood oath with them, he returned. Sheng, Lord Bo, was
enraged and said: " I am not Zheng's foe; I am Zi-xi' s ! " Sheng was sharp ening his sword, and someone asked him what he was doing. Sheng replied:
"I am going to kill Zi-xi . " When Zi-xi heard of this, he laughed and said,
" Sheng is j ust a hatchling-what can he do ? " Four years later, Sheng, Lord Bo, and Shi Q i assassinated the Chu Vizier
Zi-xi and Commander Zi-qi in the court. Shi Qi then said, "We have to kill
the king too , " whereupon they abducted the king and took him to the High Storehouse. Qu Gu, one of Shi Qi's followers, carried King Hui of Chu as
they fled quickly to the palace of the Lady Zhao. On hearing that Lord Bo
had rebelled, Lord She led people from his own fief to attack Lord Bo. Lord Bo's followers were defeated, and he escaped into the mountains, where he
killed himself. Then, when they made Shi Qi a prisoner, they asked him
where Lord Bo's corpse was, saying they would boil him if he didn't tell
them. To this, Shi Qi replied: " Succeed and you are the Grand Minister; fail and you are boiled; each position has its own demands . " He never was will
ing to tell where the corpse was. Then they boiled Shi Qi, and after search ing for King Hui, they put him back on the throne.
The Lord Historian's comment:
The venom of rancor and resentment is a powerful thing in man. If even
a king dare not incite it in his subj ects, the case is even more serious among men of equal rank. Had Wu Zi-xu died together with Wu She, it would have
been no different from the death of an ant. It is moving indeed that in re
nouncing that lesser act of virtue he wiped away a greater humiliation, and
his name lasts on to later generations . When Wu Zi-xu was in desperate
straits beside the river or begging for food on his j o urney, do you suppose
that in his aims he forgot the capital Ying even for an instant? To endure
quietly, to reach the deed and the glory of it-only a man of fierce will can achieve this . And if Lord Bo had not set himself up as the ruler, neither his deeds nor his designs would have been worth the telling.
The Zuo Tradition
acco u nt of Wu Z i - x u ' s c a reer fo l l ows.
The Zuo Tradition
takes
for granted that its read ers al ready know the c h a racters and the general backgro u n d . I n the
Historical Records,
one o f S i - m a Q i a n ' s tasks w a s t o p rov i d e e n o u g h i nfo r
m ati o n fo r the n a r rative to sta n d on i ts ow n . I n the fi rst
Zuo Tradition
pass age, we
h ave Fei WU-j i , the self-serv i n g v i l l a i n , w h o has sought to c u rry favor with the K i n g o f C h u by u rg i n g h i m t o take t h e b r i d e who h a d been brought from Q i n fo r C rown P r i nce J i a n . The k i n g takes her fo r h i mself and has C rown P r i n ce J i a n sent off to the border fortress of F a n g . Wu She, Wu Z i - x u ' s father, is the h o n est cou rtier, who rai ses objecti o n s to the k i n g' s h i g h - h a nded behavior and thus w i n s the e n m ity of Fei Wu-j i .
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Early China
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 20th year of Duke Zhao ( 5 22 B.C. ) Fei Wu- ji said to the Ruler of Chu: " Crown Prince Jian and Wu She are going to lead the area beyond Fang City to rise in rebellion, and they will set them selves on a par with Song and Zheng. Qi and Jin will make league to help
them, whereby they will work harm on Chu. The deed draws to fullness now. " The king believed him. He questioned Wu She. Wu She answered:
"Your Maj esty' s first misdeed was great enough [referring to the king's hav
ing taken the crown prince's bride] ; why believe maligning words ? " The king arrested Wu She and ordered the Commander of Cheng-fu, Fen Yang, to kill the crown prince. Fen Yang ordered someone to precede him and send
the crown prince away before he could arrive. The crown prince fled to Song.
The king then summoned Fen Yang; and Fen Yang had himself arrested by men of Cheng-fu and taken to the king. The king said: " Words came forth
from my mouth, they entered your ears. Who told Prince Jian ? " Fen Yang
answered: " I did. It was my lord's command: 'Serve Jian as you serve m e . '
I lack guile. I could n o t wrongly keep double faith. I have k e p t your first command throughout, and could not bear the later one. Therefore I sent him
away. I have regretted this, still it avails nothing . " The king said: " And how
is it that you dare come to me ? " He answere d : "I was given an order and
failed to carry out the command. To be summoned and not to come would
have been a second treason. There would have been nowhere to escape. " The king said: " Go back and continue to govern as before . "
Fei Wu-ji said: "Wu She's sons have talents. I f they were i n Wu, they
would surely bring grief to the Kingdom of Chu. Why not summon them by an offer to free their father ? They have kindness and will surely come.
Otherwise they will bring great evil upon Chu . " The king sent someone t o
call them t o court, saying: " Come a n d I will s e t your father free . " W u Shang,
Lord of Tang, said to his younger brother Wu Zi -xu: "You go off to W u. I will go back and die. My knowledge does not equal yours. I am able to die;
you are able to take revenge . Hearing this command that would free our father, one cannot fail to hurry to answer it. Yet when kin are slain, one also
cannot fail to take revenge. To hurry to one's death in order to free one's
father is to act well as a son; to take the measure of the deed and c arry it
through is kindliness; to choose such a burden and leave is knowledge; t o
know o n e will d i e and n o t to flinch is courage. O u r father must n o t b e for
saken, yet our name must not perish. Do your utmost! It is best to let me go my way . "
W u Shang went back. When W u She heard that W u Zi-xu had not come
with him, he said: " The Lord of Chu and his Grand Master will not be able to eat their dinners on time now. " . Chu had them both killed.
W u Zi-xu went to W u and there spoke to Zhou-yu, King Liao, of the
advantage of an attack on Chu. B u t t h e prince Guang [later KingHe-lii] said:
97
Anthology of Chinese Literature " This man's kin were slain, and he wants to pay back his foes. We may not
follow his advice. "
Wu Zi-xu said: " That man would seem to have aims all his own. For the
while I will seek fighting men for him, and I myself will bide my time. " It
was then he had the prince meet Zhuan She-zhu, while he himself farmed in the wilderness.
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 4th year of Duke Ding ( 5 0 6 B.C. ) (within the longer account of the defeat of Chu) At first Wu Zi-xu had been a friend of Bao-xu of Shen. When he was es
caping, he told Bao-xu of Shen: " I will be the ruin of Chu . " To which Bao
xu of Shen replied: "Do your utmost! For if you are able to be its ruin, I will
surely b e able to make it rise up again . " When King Zhao was in Sui [hav
ing fled the Wu army that had taken his capital] , Bao-xu of Shen went to
Qin to seek an army, s aying: "Wu is a great boar, a long serpent that will
devour the larger domains one by one. The evil has begun in Chu. My ruler
has failed to guard his ancestral altars and is now at large in the wilderness.
He has sent me to give you these words of his distress: 'The p ower of these
s avages knows no satiety; if they become your neighbors, it will be a great evil for your borders. Now, while Wu has not yet completed its conquest,
come you and take your portion of us. If Chu then is to perish, it will be
your land. But if, by your holy force, you show us grace, so will we serve you for generations . ' "
The Duke of Qin commanded him to withdraw, saying: " I h a v e heard
the command. You go to the and inform you of them . "
guest lodge for the while. I will make plans
But Bao-xu o f Shen answered: " My ruler i s a t large i n the wilderness and
has found no place of refuge. How can I, his liegeman, take my ease ? " He
stood there, resting against the courtyard wall and weeping. The sound did
not cease by day or night. For seven days not a spoonful did he drink with his mouth. At last Duke Ai of Qin recited for him the
Poem "No Cl othes, "
a t which h e touched his head t o the ground nine times and sat down. The armies of Qin then went forth.
By rec i t i n g " N o C l othes," D u ke Ai of Q i n l et Bao-xu know that he had ag reed to take the f i e l d aga i n st W u .
H o w c a n y o u say, " I have n o clothes " ? I will share my greatcoat with you.
The king is raising his army,
we will make ready pike and spear, and I will share all foes with you.
98
Early China After Wu Zi-xu had com p l eted h i s reve n ge aga i n st C h u , he rem a i ned as a n adviser t o Wu . W h e n he p rotested aga i n st the po l i cy of con c i l iati n g the n e i g h bori n g k i n g dom of V u e a n d i nterfe r i n g i n the i ntricate pol itics of the n o rthern d o m a i ns, he l ost the favo r of the new ki ng, F u - c h a , a n d was ordered to c o m m it s u i c i d e .
The Zuo Tradition, an entry for the 1 1 th year of Duke Ai (484 B.C. ) Wu was about to attack Qi, and the Ruler of Yue led his hosts to pay his respects to the court of Wu. The king and his warriors all were given pre
sents . The men of Wu were all delighted. Only Wu Zi-xu was afraid and
said, " They fatten Wu up for the slaughter . " And he presented his protest:
" Yue's relation to us is that of an illness of the stomach or heart. Our lands
would form a single whole, and they want to take ours from us . By s uch meekness and yielding they further their desire. If you achieve your aims in Qi, it is like getting a stony field-you will have no use from it. If you don't
turn Yue into a lake, it is Wu that will be drowned. One never has a doctor get rid of a disease and tell him, 'You have to leave some of it. ' The Pan geng Declaration in the
Documents says : 'Whosoever overturns my will or
transgresses or wants due reverence, his nose shall be hacked off and I will
destroy him utterly, and I shall cause him to have no spawn remaining, nei
ther shall I let him shift his sprouts to this my new city . ' In such a way the Shang rose. My lord now does otherwise, and in your search for greatness
you will also find great troubles. "
The king refused to heed Wu. He sent him as an envoy to Qi, where Wu
entrusted his son to the Bao clan, and from that son came the house of Wang
sun. When he returned from his mission, the king heard o f this and presented
him with the sword Zhu-lou by which to die.
When he was ready to die, Wu Zi-xu said: " Plant m y tomb with catalpa
trees, that they may serve for coffin timbers. Wu is lost ! In three years it will begin to weaken. What comes to fullness must go to ruin. It is Heaven's
way . "
Other Voices in the Tradition The story of Wu Z i - x u is only one strand in the co m p l i cated saga of the strugg l e between southeastern d o m a ins of Wu and V u e . T h i s saga continued to grow throughout the ent i re h i story of C h i nese l iterature. After the acco unt given in the Historical Records, two new fig u res rose to central i m po rtanc e . F i rst th ere was F an Li, the wise adviser of G o u - j i an, King of V u e. In many ways, F an Li i s the s u ccessfu l d o u b l e of W u Zi-x u : as F u-cha of W u ignores Wu Zi-x u ' s warnings, K ing Gou-ji an of Vue heeds Fan L i ' s advice and has h i s revenge on Wu. It was Fan Li who devised the fa m o u s stratagem of r u i n i ng W u by sen d i n g to its k ing
the most beautifu l woman in t h e world-X i S h i The v i s i on o f the King o f W u ' s doomed .
caro u s ing with Xi S h i , heed l ess of t h e forces of V u e gathering against h i m, was a favorite of Tang poets of the e i ghth and n i nth centuries .
99
Anthology of Chinese Literature A m o n g the m a n y lege n d s of G o u -j i a n ' s reven ge, one sto ry te l l s that he fo rced h i m self to suffer b i tter hards h i ps a n d deprived h i mself of s l eep so as never to forget, even for a s i n g l e mo ment, hi s h atred a n d h is earl i e r h u m i l i at i o n by the a r m y o f W u . I n t h e heat o f s u m m er h e wou l d take hold of someth i n g b u r n i n g hot, and in the c o l d of w i nter he wou l d hold ice in his a r m s .
Yuan Zhen ( 779-8 3 1 ), A Winter " White Linen Song" Night stretches on in the palace of Wu, the water-clock drips slowly, curtains and draperies hang on all sides, the lanterns' flames shed warmth. It is Xi Shi herself who is dancing, the king himself plays the pipes, her snow white linens billow, plumes of cranes scattering, the beat speeds up, strings strum swiftly, the dancer's waist grows weary. The dancer's waist grows weary, the king ceases drinking and covers over Xi Shi with a p hoenix flower brocade. Her body is the bed where he rests, her arm will serve as his pillow; j ade pendants clink, men come to dawn court but the king is sleeping late. When he wakes at last, gatekeepers tell him "No problems here at all ! "for after the death of Wu Zi-xu, speaking out is shunned. The courtiers closest to the king divine the king's will well, and they all laugh how the King of Yue must surely quake in fear, who was holding ice in his arms each night, unable to sleep from the cold.
After encom pass i n g the destruction of Wu, F a n Li, kn ow i n g that he wou l d i n evitab l y lose his own k i ng's favor as W u Zi-xu had l ost the favo r of F u -cha, w i t h d rew from his pos ition a s c h i ef counselor a n d set off t o sea (or onto the F i ve L a k e s of the l ower Y angz i ) . I n making t h i s dec i s i o n he became, l ater i n the trad ition, a m odel f o r t i m e l y withdrawal from p u b l i c office (a model o f happy f l i g h t from p u b l i c l i fe made h a p p i e r sti l l by a romantic vers i o n of the story i n w h i c h he sets off w ith the beautifu l X i S h i as h i s l over) . When F a n L i , anti ci pat i n g h i s ru l er's d i sfavor, set off to sea, he too k a rather u n u s u a l pseu donym-a reference to someone else who had lost h i s ru ler's favor and a l s o ended up in the river. Fan Jj c a l l e d h i mself "Master Leather W i n e s k i n " -the very obj ect K i n g Fu-c h a had u s e d t o d i spose o f the body of Wu Z i -x u . Thus, in the end, Wu Z i - x u and Fan Li, d iffe rent types with d i fferent fates, become one.
100
Early China When you v i s i t the pl aces w h e re these events we re s u pposed to have occ u r red, a l l that h a ppened iR the past can seem stra ngely u n re a l , as it seemed when the t h i rteenth-centu ry l y r i c i st W u Wen-y i n g v i s ited the Mag i c C l i ff, w h i c h s u pposed l y had o n c e fa l l en as a meteo r. This c l iff was bel ieved t o have been the s ite of Fu-cha's p a lace. F i rst there i s em pty space; i nto it a great stone fa l l s, w h i c h becomes a c l i ff, a n d on that c l iff trees a n d the p a l aces of Wu appear and then d i ssolve aga i n , as the cou rse of Wu's rise and fa l l i s p l ayed out. It was a l l a d r u n k en d ream, a conj u ror's i l l u s i on-w h i c h i s the perspective of the too sober Fan Li , "weary wand erer on the F ive Lakes . " T h i s too is the perspective of the l ater l y r i c ist, who gazes on the s i te so l o n g after the events fo r w h i c h it had become fam o u s .
.
Wu Wen-ying ( c a . 1 200-1 2 6 0 ) , to " Eight-Note Gan-zhou, " � isi; ing the Magic Cliff with Various Gentlemen of the Transport OfflCe Empty skies recede far into mists all aroundand when was it that a streaming star came plummeting down from blue skies ? Then phantoms were conj ured up : trees in clouds upon gray slopes, the gilded chambers of that famous maid, a broken overlord's walled palaces. On Arrow Path a stinging wind shoots into the eyes, and o i ly waters stained by the stench of flowers. At times come afterechoes of her lovebird slippers autumn's sounds, leaves in the corridors . In his palace the King of Wu lay in a drunken stupor, all hangs on that weary wanderer on the Five Lakes fishing alone, 0 so sober. Ask the gray Heavens- they will not speak,
and my white-flec ked hair cannot bear the green of hills. The skies are drowned within these waters,
and from a high balcony, I follow a chaos of crows in setting sunlight that descend on the beaches of fishermen . Again and again I call for wine,
then go off up the Harper's Mound where autumn is level with the clouds. ' I n the song l y r i c the title o f the m e l o d y i s given fi rst, i n d i cated by " t o . " T h i s i s fo l l owed by t h e
top i c occas i on on which the l y r i c i s c o m posed .
101
Ea r l y L ite r a ry P rose : T h e De l i gh t of Wo rd s I n e a r l y C h i nese p rose it is i m poss i b l e to d raw a c l e a r d i v i s i o n between t h o u ght, rheto r i c , and l iteratu re. Exempl ary anecd otes and parabl es, even sti r r i n g speeches, seem to h ave had great enterta i n m ent v a l u e ; and the a u d i e n ce's apprec i ation of the p l easu re of the te l l i n g seems to h ave been i n separa b l e from th e i r a p p re c i ation of the l esso n . Many early p rose texts are staged as scenes of i n structi o n , d i a l ogues i n w h i c h one fi g u re poses a q u es t i o n , and a n other, w i ser fi g u re respo n d s with the m a i n body of the d i scou rse, l ead i n g to the general e n l i ghte n ment of the q u esti o n e r . In the d i scou rses t h at are framed by such d i a l ogues, we may d i st i n g u i s h th ree loosely con stituted gen res o r types of wri t i n g : the a rg u ment or essay, the parable or exem p l ary story, and the d e s c r i pti o n . T h e desc r i pt i o n w a s u s u a l l y r h yth m i c a n d rhymed, either i n w h o l e o r i n part. When rhymed desc r i pt i o n predo m i n ates in such d i alogues, we h ave a fo rm that i s c l ose or identical to w h at were c a l l ed " poeti c expos itions"
(fu) from the
Han on .
S u c h descriptions seem to h ave been a n i m portant fo r m of l iterary ente rta i n ment d u r i n g the l ate Warr i n g States a n d early Western H a n . C h a racteristi c a l l y , the speaker w i l l make a series of d i sti n ct i o n s-so meti mes a s i m p l e antithe s i s and someti mes a series of gradat i o n s-th e n he w i l l a m p l ify each component to m a ke h i s p o i n t . The fi rst p i ece b e l ow i s a n exam p l e of a descrfiJtive mode t h at i s c l ose to p u re enter tai n m e nt, a poet i c expo s i t i o n o n the w i n d . I t is attr i b uted to the l ege n d a ry p re-Q i n rheto r i c i a n Song Y u , w h o i s the speaker i n the frame, but i t i s proba b l y a Western Han work. The second p i ece, set in a m o re i ntricate n a r rative, i s one of the l ate r c h a pters of the D a o i st c l assic, the Zh uang-zi, i n w h i c h a fict i o n a l Z h u ang-zi ap pears in the g u i se of a Warr i n g States o rato r to b r i n g the K i n g of Z h ao to h i s senses. There the frame n a r rative i s far m o re co m p l ex than the description of the a l l egorical swords embedded w i th i n it.
The Wind (Western Han ? ) King Xiang of Chu was roaming through his palace compound at Orchid
Terrace with Song Yu and Jing Zuo in attendance. A wind came along rustling, w hereupon the king spread wide the folds of his gown, and said, . "What a fme refreshing wind this is ! Now here is something that I share equally with the common people, is it not ? "
To this, Song Yu answered, " This wind belongs to the king alone-or
dinary p eople could certainly never share it with Your Maj esty ! "
The king, " But wind i s the breath of Heaven and Earth, which spreads
evenly everywhere. It touches things without making distinctions between 1 02
Early China nobteman and commoner, between high estate and low. Do you have
some explanation for your singular opinion that this wind is royally
mine ? "
And Song Y u answered, " I was told b y my teacher that a s crooks i n a
hawthorn bring nesting birds, so empty crevices will bring the wind. But the breath of a wind will differ according to where it lodges . "
The king then asked, " And how i s the wind first born ? " T o which Song Yu replied: The wind is born in earth, first rising in tips of green rushes.
It seeps oozing down into valleys,
it swells with rage in mouths of caverns.
It bends round the folds of Mount Tai and dances beneath cypress and pines.
Blustering and whooshing,
it puffs in gales, flares in fury,
with booming sounds of thunder,
gusting and whirling, dashing together. It kicks the stones, assails the trees,
flogs the forests and fields.
And when it is ready to subside,
it disperses flailing in all directions,
rams into holes, shakes doorbolts.
Then, glistening and sp arkling, it all dissi pa tes, shifting on.
When you have such male wind, pure and cool, it swirls aloft, rising then sinking,
and mounts up over the highest walls and enters the palace's deepest p arts.
Touching flowers and leaves, shaking loose scent, it lingers ab out among p epper and cinnamon,
then soaring in flight over ruffled waters, it is ready to strike the lotus blossoms. It courses through clover, runs upon rosemary,
flattens the rue,
and spreads sprouting willows.
Whirling, dashing, bounding up over, its rustling strips all aromatics.
Thereafter i t tarries i n courtyards a while , then northward climbs to t h e marble hall, and striding through gauze draperies,
it passes into the women's chambers .
By this we recognize it as the king's wind. 103
Anthology of Chinese Literature A nd when this kind of wind strikes a person, . hIs manner shows shivers of apprehe nsion, and its chill will bring a sigh. Icy and cool, healing ills, dispellin g groggin ess
it brings clarity to ear and eye, calms the body and gives a man ease. And this is what I mean by the king' s male wind . The king then said, " How well you explain things ! A nd might I now hear of the wind of ordinary people ? " Whereupon Song Yu said, " The wind of ordinary people: rises rapidly within the b ack alleys, in puffs of dust suddenly surging,
a troubled and turbulent whirling,
ramming holes and slipping through gates, stirring grit grains,
blowing dead ashes,
kicking up refuse and filth, lifting garbage and trash,
pushing through edges of j ug-shard windows, it gets into their rooms .
And when this kind of wind strikes a person, his manner shows discomfort and revulsion, driving in mugginess, bringing rheums.
People's hearts grow depressed,
it brings sickness, produces fevers;
it strikes the lips and makes them crack,
it gets into eyes which grow bleary and red,
coughing and sneezing,
with no relief in life or in death.
This is what I mean by the common folk's womanly wind. "
" Of Swords" (Zhuang-zi) A long time ago King Wen of Zhao took great pleasure in swordplay, and over three thousand men thronged his gates to receive his p atronage as swordsmen. In his presence they would hack at each other day and night,
and every year more than a hundred died of their wound s. But the king loved
it dearly and never tired of it. It went on like this for three years, and as the kingdom's fortunes slid into decline, the no bility debated what to do about it.
Crown Prince Kui was appalled by the situation, and summoned his
entourage: "I will offer a reward of a thousand pieces of gold to anyone 104
,
Early China who can dissuade the king from this mania of his and put a stop to these swordsmen. "
Members of his entourage said, " Zhuang-zi can certainly do it. "
The crown prince then sent a messenger with a thousand pieces of gold
to offer to Zhuang-zi. But Zhuang-zi refused to accept the gold and went back with the messenger to see the crown prince. " What is it that the Crown
Prince wants of me, presenting me a thousand pieces of gold ? " The crown prince said, " I have heard o f your sagely understanding, and out of respect I offered you a thousand pieces of gold so that you could dis tri bute it to your followers. Since you have refused to accept it, what more can I say ? " Zhuang-zi said, " I have heard o f the purpose for which you want t o em
ploy me, which is to put an end to the king ' s amusements . Now let us sup
pose, on the one hand, that I try to persuade the king and in doing so, of
fend him, thus not satisfying you; in that case, I will be executed. What would I do with gold then ? On the other hand, let us supp ose that I persuade the king and do satisfy you. In that case, I could have anything I wanted in the
Kingdom of Zhao . "
The crown prince said, " True. However, our king will see only swords
men. "
Zhuang-zi: " Understo od. But I am rather good with the sword . "
The crown prince : " B e that a s i t may, the swordsmen that our king sees
all have messy hair with bristling locks and slouched caps, plain, rough cap strings, robes hitched up in the back, bulging eyes, and stumbling speech.
This is the sort the king prefers. Since you will no doubt visit the king wear ing your scholar's clothes, the whole thing will inevitably be a complete fail ure . "
Zhuang-zi: "Would you please have a swordsman's clothes prepared for
me ? "
Three days later, after the swordsman's clothes had been prepared, he
met with the crown prince, and the crown prince presented him to the king,
who waited for him with a bare blade drawn. Zhuang-zi entered the gate of the great hall without hurrying; and when he saw the king, he did not bow.
The king, " Now that you have had the Crown Prince put you forward,
what do you expect to do for me ? "
" I've heard that the king enj oys swordplay, s o I've come to see the king
by way of swordplay. "
The king said, " How can that sword of yours defend you ? "
"If I had a n opponent every ten paces, I could g o a thousand leagues with
out pausing. "
The king liked that very much. " Then there's no match for you in the whole world. " Zhuang-zi said, " In swordplay one displays himself as vacant,
initiates by advantage,
105
Anthology of Chinese Literature is the second to swing the blow, is the first to strike home.
And I wish to have the chance to put this to the test . "
The king said, " Stop now. G o t o your lodgings and await m y bidding.
I'll invite you when I have arranged a contest to the death . "
Then the king tried his swordsmen against one another for seven days,
during which over sixty died of their wounds. Of these he got five or six men,
whom he had bring their swords into the great hall. Then he summoned Zhuang-zi.
"Today I'm going to have my men match swords . "
Zhuang-zi: "I've been looking forward t o this for a long time . "
The king: " Which would you use a s your weapon, the long o r the short ? "
" For m y own use, anything i s fine. However, I have three swords that
may be used only by a king. Let me tell you about these first, and then we will have the trial . "
The king said, " Tell m e about these three swords . "
" There i s a n Emperor's sword, a sword o f the great nobility, and the
sword of an ordinary man . "
The king said, " What i s the Emperor's sword like ? " Zhuang-zi said, " The sword o f an Emperor:
has as its point Yan Valley and Mount Stonewall, has as its blade Tai Mountain in Qi,
has its blunt edge in the kingdoms of Jin and Wei, has as its guard the kingdoms Zhou and Song, has as its hilt the kingdoms Han and Wei;
its wrappings are the barbarians that surround us, its sheath is the four seasons,
it is wound about by the Sea of Bo,
Mount Heng is the sash from which it hangs, it is governed by the five phases,
it makes j udgments of punishment or virtue; it is brought forth through D ark and Light, it is held through spring and summer, and is used in autumn and winter.
This sword, when held straight, has nothing before it, pointed up, has nothing above it,
pressed downward, has nothing below it, and swung, has nothing around it.
It slashes the clouds that drift above, it cuts to Earth's axis below.
Use this sword but once,
and the nobility will all be brought in line, and the whole world will yield-
for this is the sword of an Emperor . "
106
Early China As if in a daze, King Wen was completely absorbed. He said, "What is the sword of the great no bility like ? " Zhuang-zi said, " The sword o f the great nobility: has as its point shrewd and valiant gentlemen,
has as its blade honest and unassuming gentlemen,
has its blunt edge in good and worthy gentlemen,
has as its guard loyal and wise gentlemen,
has as its hilt daring and outstanding gentlemen. And this sword too, when held straight, has nothing before it,
pointed up, has nothing above it,
pressed downward, has nothing below it, and swung, has nothing around it.
It takes model from the roundness of Heaven above,
whereby it moves with sun, moon, and stars .
It takes model from the squareness of Earth below,
whereby it moves with the four seasons.
From the center it knows the people's will,
by which it brings peace to lands all around.
Use this sword but once,
and it is like a rumbling quake of thunder.
Within the boundaries all around,
there is no man but yields to it
and o beys the bidding of their lord.
This is a sword of the great nobility . " The king then asked, " And what i s the sword of the ordinary man like ? "
Zhuang-zi said, " The sword o f the ordinary man belongs to one with
messy hair, with bristling locks and slouched cap, plain, rough cap-strings,
robes hitched up in the back, bulging eyes, and stumbling speech, men who
hack at each other in front of you. A high hack will chop off a neck, and a low one cuts liver or lungs . This is the sword of the ordinary man, and it is
no different from cockfighting, with a life cut off in a single morning. It has
no use at all in the workings of a kingdom. We have here a king, to whom belongs the position of an Emperor, and yet who is in love with the sword
of the ordinary man. And for this king's sake I have taken the liberty o f dis
p araging it. "
The king then drew him up into the hall where the Master of the Kitchens
was having food set out. The king kept circling the table, until Zhuang-zi
said, " Sit calmly and settle your spirit. I have finished my expostulation on
swords . " Thereafter the king did not leave his palace for three months, and his swordsmen all perished on their own swordpoints in their places.
One of the favo r i te setp i eces fo r rhymed desc r i pt i o n was the Way itself. The Way
(Oao) was
a general term u sed by many schoo l s of p h i l osophy in a n c i ent C h i n a to
107
Anthology of Chinese Literature desc r i be the "cou rse th i ngs do (or s h o u l d ) fo l l ow . " O n e s c h oo l , the D a o i sts, of w h o m Z h u ang-zi was one, took the i r n a m e from the Way. T h e i r vers ion of the Way was a rad i c a l sense of n at u r a l p rocess, i n d ifferent to h u m a n perspectives and d i s t i n ct i o n s . In the Zhuang-zi a n d e l sewhere, the speaker w i l l frequently l apse i nto rh ap sod i c d e p i c t i o n s of the Way' s transfo rmati o n s . S u c h passages, often in fo u r- c h a rac ter I i nes, bear rem a r ka b l e s i m i l a r ity to the D ao i st work known as the
Lao-zi.
The
fo l l ow i n g passage sets the desc r i ption of the Way in a d i a l ogue fra me .
from " Heaven's Motions " (Zhuang-zi) Cheng of Northgate once asked the Yellow Emperor, "My Lord, when you p erformed Heaven' s Pool music in the wilderness on Mount Dong-ting, I was at first terrified by what I heard; then as I heard more, I felt a sense of apathy; finally, in the last p art, I was all in confusion, swept along in a state of blankness, stupefied. "
The Yellow Emperor answered: " That's j ust about how it was. First I
played mankind in it, strummed it with Heaven, carried it forward with cer emony and right action, and gave it a basis in absolute clarity . ! F o u r seasons alternated i n rising, all things were born in their sequences:
first a splendor and then a fading, peace and war, each in its place;
something clear, then something murky, shadow and light in harmony blend.
Insects first stir from hibernation-
it was I who shook them with my thunders : its ending has no tail,
no head to its beginning,
only a dying and being born, a falling flat and rising up .
The only constant is endlessness,
but no single thing can one trust to endure.
A n d it was for this reason that you felt terror in it. Next I played i t with the harmonies of Shadow and Light, and I set it ablaze with the shining of sun and moon, and the sounds:
could be short or could be long, could be soft, could be strong,
always changing but equal and one.
If in a valley, they fill the valley; if in a pit, they fill the pit.
Stuffing gaps they keep their spirit
' T here i s a section of t h i rty-seven c h a racters here that most commentators su spect was a n early com m e ntary that got incorporated i nto the text. I h a ve therefore om itted it.
108
Early China and take their own measure from other things :
these sounds sweep everywhere and disperse and their name is the High and Manifest.
" Because of this, demons and divinities keep to their hidden places, and
sun, moon, and stars move in their courses. I made the sounds stop at the
boundary of the limited, but set them rolling on without stopping. You tried
to think about them, but you couldn't know them . You tried to look for them, but you weren't able to see them. You chased after them, but you
weren't able to catch them. Then you found yourself standing in a daze, on
a
path with emptiness all around. You leaned against a dead tree and
moaned, 'My eyes have been worn out by what I am trying to see. My strength flags in face of what I am trying to catch. I can't reach it and that's
it.' Your form then became all empty within, to the point where it j ust slid
along. And when you j ust slid along, you attained the condition of apathy.
" Then I played it again, this time with sounds in which there was no ap-
athy, and I blended it with what is ordained by the way things are. As if: chaotically chasing, clumps appearing, a forest of music without form,
strewing, spreading and never bogged down,
hidden, dusky and lacking sound:
set into motion with no direction,
coming to lo dge in sequestered blackness:
there were some who called it death, and some who called it life,
some called it the fruit,
some called it the flowering:
it rolls on into dispersion,
dominated by no constant sound. " The ordinary people of the age were uncertain about it and sought ex
planation of the Sage-for the Sage has achieved perfection in the disposi
tions of things and acts in accordance with what is ordained. When Heaven 's
initial motive impulses are n o t yet set in operation, yet all the internal or
gans are complete, this is called Heaven's music, in which the heart takes a wordless delight. Thus You-biao made an ode for it: You listen to it but don't hear its sound, you look at it but don't see its form; it fills all Heaven and Earth,
and wraps around all six directions.
You were trying to listen to it, but you couldn't make contact. That's why you felt uncertain.
" That music began in terror, and from terror you felt drea d . Then I
followed it up with ap athy, and from ap athy you went along with it. I brought it to a close with confusion, and from confusion, you became fool109
Anthology of Chinese Literature ish. In foolishness it was the Way. The Way can carry you and you can be
together with it. " Works l i ke the
Zhuang-zi a n d
P l ato's
Dialogues
suggest that both p h i l osophy a n d
l iteratu re ga i n when the two a re fused togeth e r . H owever, s u c h exa l ted moments do n ot l ast. The sop h i sticated a n d e l u s ive thought of Zhuang-zi was popu l a rized a n d b e c a m e a body o f com m o n p l aces o n the fl u x of the wo r l d , the wheel o f fortu ne, a n d the n eed for d i spass ion i n face of I ife a n d death . What was l ost i n p h i l osop h i c a l com p l ex i ty was b a l a n ced by the way i n which s u c h va l u es became i nte n s e l y perso n a l a n d a p p l i e d t o t h e c i rc u m stances o f peo p l e ' s l i ves. The writer Jia Y i (2 00-1 68 B.C.), having l ost i m pe r i a l favor a n d been ex i l ed to the m i asmal reg i o n of C h a ng-sha, tran sformed the c o m p l e x ities of D ao i st thought i nto what m i gh t be cal led the "conso l at i o n of Dao i s m . "
Jia Yi, The Poetic Exposition on the Owl I, Jia Yi, was mentor to Chang-sha ' s prince. In the third year an owl flew into my lodgings and alighted on the edge of my seat. It was a Fu owl, like
the common hoot owl, and a bird of ill omen. Since I have been banished
to this low-lying and humid land of Chang-sha, I mourned my lot, taking this to mean that I did not have long to live. I then wrote a poetic exp osi
tion to make myself feel better . Chan-yan is the year,
the fourth month, summer's first, The sun set on the day
geng-zi
when an owl perched in my lo dging. It settled on my seat's edge, its visage unperturbed,
When weird creature comes to roost, I wonder at the cause.
I spread a book and read the signs, the omens told my fate :
" A wild bird enters the house :
the owner soon will leave . " O f this owl I would ask,
" On leaving, where will I go ?
Do you tell me words of luck,
or ill words of my doom?
Will my span end soon or late ? speak to me the time . "
A breath then passed the owl 's beak,
it raised its head, spread its wings . Its mouth incapable of words,
let me give its heart's reply: 1 10
Early China All things of this world move in change
with never a moment's pause or rest; They flow past swirling and away,
sometimes forge forward and return,
Form and force in endless revolutions,
moving through change as if shedding husks.
Deep mystery is here that has no endhow can I win the full telling ?
Close on misfortune fair fortune presses,
under fair fortune misfortune lurk s.
Worries and j oys throng t h e gateway,
luck and mischance have common zones. There once was Wu, great and strong, whereby its king Fu-cha was ruined. He drove Yue to refuge at Kuai-j i ,
yet Gou-jian was overlord in his time. Li Si roamed to Qin, fulfilled his aims,
he was put to death in the end .
Fu Yue was roped in a prison gang,
but then was adviser to Wu-ding, the king.
Misfortune stands with fair fortune
no different from strands that braid a cord.
What is ordained cannot be explained, who can know how a thing will end ? Water, impelled, grows turbulent, the arrow, impelled, goes far.
All things of the world bump and j o stle as they sweep along spinning around.
Cloud vapors steam, the rain descends ,
teeming tendrils intertwining.
The P otter's Wheel is shaping things
in a boundless expanse with no margin.
None may outguess Heaven's plots,
none may outguess schemes of the Way.
Your end is ordained, either soon or delayed, and its moment none can tell.2
For Heaven and Earth are the forge, and the Fashioner is the smith; Shadow and Light is his coal,
and the things of the world are his bronze . 'These two d i stiches do not rhyme, wh i c h i n d i cates l i nes d ropped out. 111
Anthology of Chinese Literature Merging and scattering, melting then solid
where in this is enduring rule ?
A thousand changes, mutations in myriads, in which never has been an end. All of a sudden it is a man
why is that worth clinging to ?
Then he is changed to some other thing and why is that an affliction?
Small wisdom favors the self,
demeaning others, honoring Me.
The Perfected Man has larger views,
that nothing there is that is not right. Grasping men spend themselves for goods; brash warriors spend themselves for glory.
The man overweening will die for power, and the common man covets his life.
The sort who are thus lured and pushed
may go scampering east and scampering west. But the Great Man does not bend, a million changes he takes as the same.
The fool is tied to common custom, hemmed like a prisoner in chains.
The Man Arrived leaves things behind, is alone together with the Way .
The average man is filled with misgivings, his loves and hates collect in millions.
The Genuine Man is indifferent and calm, is alone in reposing with the Way.
He lets wisdom go, forsakes body's form, rises above things , loses the self.
In the chaos of empty and boundless space he soars around along with the Way.
If currents bear him, he passes on; if he comes to an islet, he halts.
He lets his body free, accepts the ordained, shows no special favor to self.
Such living is like drifting along, such dying is like ceasing.
Serene like the stillness of deep waters, afloat like an unmoored boat.
112
Early China He does not treasure what pertains to himself, he nurtures emptiness as he floats .
No cares bind the man who has it within,
he knows the ordained and does not worry.
Trivial problems, picayune troubles are not worth bringing anxieties.
The Zhuang-zi I n its p resent fo rm, the
Zhuang-zi is
a l a rge m i scel l a n y of p re-Q i n and Western H a n
texts from v a r i o u s sou rces. T h i s i s n o t a t a l l u n u s u a l i n the works t h at s u rv i ve fro m the Weste rn H a n a n d ea rl i e r . What is remarka b l e about the Zhuang-zi is that it b r i ngs together such good texts . Even many of the p i eces in the l ater c h a pters are s u perior t o the best of the i r kind p reserved e l sew h ere. A n d the l ate r c h a pters p a l e i n c o m parison w i t h the fi rst, so-ca l led I n n er C h a pters, which conta i ned p rose writ i n g un matched by a n yth i n g e l se i n e a r l y C h i n a . The te rm
Zhuang-zi,
w h i c h mea ns "Mas
ter Zh u a n g , " can refe r either to the D ao i st p h i l osopher Zhuang Zhou, o r to th i s book that c i rc u l ates u n d e r his name. The " D i scou rse o n Th i n k i n g of T h i ngs as B e i n g o n the Same Leve l " tra n s l ated in its enti rety bel ow, is the seco n d c h a pter of the
( Qi-wu fun), Zhuang-zi a n d c o m b i nes
a l l th ree types of p rose d i scou rse set in a d i a l o g u e fo rm (and in d i a l ogues-with i n - d i a l ogue ) . The u ntran s l ata b l e (somewhat i n c o m p reh e n s i b l e ) secti o n s o f a r g u m e n t d raw o n t h e m o d e o f reason i n g o f Log i c i a n s s u c h as H u i - z i a n d G o n g- s u n L o n g-z i , try i n g to p rove paradoxes s u c h a s " A wh ite h o rse i s n ot a horse . " T h e Zhuang-zi takes that mode of argume nt, treats it seri o u s l y to some degree, but c a r r i es it to the very edge of parody. The Zhuang-zi can be very d i ffi c u lt. It i s fi l l ed with fa n c i fu l c h a racte rs, zany s ages and a l l egorical i n terl ocutors, who are someti mes pass i o n ate l y i nte nse and someti mes j o k i n g . It often tu rns back o n itself, m a k i n g fu n of a n argument it has j u st deve l o ped . I n m a n y ways its p h i l osop h i c a l message is as m u c h i n w h at it "does" as i n w h at it says .
"Discourse on Thinking of Things as Being on the Same Level "
(Qi-wu [un)
Nan-guo Zi-qi was sitting propped up on an armrest. He looked up at the
sky and heaved a small sigh, slumping over as if he had lost the other half of himself. Yan-cheng Zi-you, who was standing in waiting in front of him,
. said, "What's this ! Can the outer form really be made like deadwood and can the mind really be made like cold ashe s ? Whatever this thing is propped up on the armrest, it is not what was propped there previously. "
Then Zi-qi said, " Ah Zi-you-isn't it wonderful that you should ask this !
Did you realize that j ust now I had lost the m e ? You have heard the flutes
of men, but you have never heard of Earth' s flutes. Or you have heard
Earth 's flutes, but you have never heard the flutes of Heaven . "
113
Anthology of Chinese Literature Zi-you said, " Could I get to hear this lore ? "
Zi-qi said, " When the greatest o f clods, which is the Earth, exhales its
breath, the name that we give it is ' wind . ' But this is only when it is not in
action. Once it acts, all the thousands of fissures bellow forth in their fury
haven't you heard them howling ? In forests on rugged crags there are great
trees whose trunks are a hundred armspans around; and they have holes and fissures like snouts and like mouths and like ears and like basins and like sockets and like mortars and like sinkholes and like oozes . There are splash
ings and whizzings and rantings and slurpings and screechings and wailings and dronings and keenings. The ones that get there first sing out, . . . ' and the ones that follow sing back,
'
'Heyy)' . . . yaaah. ' The little drafts blend
in their small voices; the mighty blasts blend in their loud ones. And when
the fierce gales have passed by, all the fissures are left emptied-haven't you seen them still swaying and creaking ? "
Zi-you said, " Earth' s flutes, then, are nothing more than the multitudes
of fissures; the flutes of men are nothing more than bamboo pipes placed
side by side. But if you would, I would like to hear of the flutes of Heaven. "
And Zi-qi said, " They blow forth the thousands that are not the same
and cause them to cease by themselves; each and every one chooses for it
self, but who is it that excites them to do s o ? Great knowing is slow a n d capacious, small knowing is sly and capricious. Great words blaze with distinction,
small words amaze making distinctions. In their sleeping, souls cross; in their waking outer forms come apart. When we touch another, we set to contrive, every day minds struggle and strive .
Those curtained off, those stashed away, those closely hoarded. Small fears are anxious and skittish;
great fears unfold sluggishly.3
They shoot forth as when a crossbow trigger pulls the pin-this i s what is
meant by close attention to claims of 'so' and 'not so.' They stay put as if
o ath-bound-this is what is meant by winning through holding fast. Their deadliness is like autumn and winter-this says that they dwindle day by day.
They are drowned in the means of their own doing; one cannot make them
return to the b eginning. They are enclosed as if sealed up-this says that they grow senile in their aging. Hearts that draw nigh to dying, and none can make them return to the light.
3 " U nfo l d s l u gg i s h l y , " man-man, someth i n g spread i n g l i ke creepers or waters. T h i s can be taken i n a positive sense, su ggest i n g t h e p a radox i c a l c a l m o f "great fear s"; o r it c a n b e another negative con d ition, the bec l o u ded m i n d swept h e l p l e s s l y a l o n g .
114
Early China "Happiness and rage, sorrow and j oy, worries, sighs, and changes, times
of sluggishness, j itters, recklessness, moments of openness, posturings
these are the music that comes from
our
empty spaces, mushrooms forming
of ground mist. By day and by night one follows after another here before
us, and no one knows from where they sprout. That's all of it! From dawn
to dusk these are what we get-but that from which they are born ?
"Without these there is no me, and without me there is nothing for them
to take hold of. Now we're really close, and yet we don't know what drives
them on. It is as if there were someone truly in charge, but I cannot catch the least trace of him. I have faith that he can indeed act, yet I never see his
outer form. He has a given nature but no outer form-j ust a hundred bones,
nine bodily fissures, six organs within-I have a full set right here. Which of those am 'I' most akin to ? Are you fond of them all equally, or is there
some particular one you favor ? And if it's this way, are they all able to act
as loyal servants and handmaidens ? Do such loyal servants and handmaid
ens have the capacity to govern themselves ? Or perhaps they take turn act
ing as lord over the others ? Or is there a true lord present there ? Even if we
try to grasp his given nature and fail, it adds nothing and takes nothing away from the truth of him. He is received once when we take on physical form, and we do not lose him until the end.
"Is it not a sad thing how we cut into things and grind against them, how
we are cut and ground in return, going on to the end as if at a gallop that no one can stop ? Can we help grief at toiling and toiling our whole lives
through and never seeing anything achieved from it, how we labor so wearily
to the point of exhaustion without ever knowing where we are going at last?
A man claims that he will not die-what good does it do ? His physical form
undergoes change, and his mind goes along with it. Wouldn't you call that
the s addest thing of all ? The lives of men are blind in j ust this way. Am I the
only blind man-are there others who are not blind ? Each follows his own
mind as it has reached its complete form and takes it as his guide . Is there a single person who lacks such a guide ? Why must this guide belong only to
the wise man, whose completely formed mind chooses for itself? A simple
ton has one along with him too . To have a sense of 'so' and 'not so' before
it has taken complete form within the mind is like Hui Shi's paradox of
' going off to Yue today and getting there some time ago . ' This is to treat
what-is-not as what is. And if you treat what-is-not as what is, even the holy Sage Yu cannot understand. What can I make of it all by myself?
"To say something is not j ust blowing forth breath. In saying there is
something said, but what is said is never quite determine d. So is there really
something said or has there never been anything said? I hope we can take
this as different from the sounds made by baby birds, but can we argue a
distinction or not? How can the Way be hidden so that there is truth and falsity ? How can something said be hidden so that it may b e so or not s o ?
How can the Way lead off and then n o t be her e ? H o w can words be here,
but not be possibl e ? The Way becomes hidden by being constituted on a
small scale; something said is hidden by flowery flourishes. This is how we 1 15
Anthology of Chinese Literature come to have the 'so's' and 'not so's' of the Traditionalists and the Mohists , 4
each claiming that what others say is 'not s o ' is indeed ' s o , ' each claiming
that what others say is 'so' is indeed 'not s o . ' If you want to claim that what
others say is 'not so' is indeed 'so' and that what other say is 'so' is indeed 'not so,' the best thing to do is shed light on it.
" Every single thing is a 'that other' ; every single thing is a 'this . ' From
the vantage point of the 'that other,' it does not appear; from the vantage point of knowing, it can be known. This is why we say that 'that other' grows
out of 'this,' and 'this' is also contingent on 'that other'-which is the propo sition that 'that other' and 'this' are born in tandem.
" However, no sooner is there a being born than there is
a
dying; and no
s ooner is there a dying than there is a being born. No sooner is there a 'pos
sible' than there is a 'not possible'; no sooner is there a 'not possible' than
there is a 'possible . ' A contingent 'so' is a contingent 'not so'; a contingent
'not so' is a contingent ' s o . ' And this being so, the Sage does not go this way
but instead reveals it in the light of Heaven-which is also a contingent 'so . '
'This' i s also 'that other'; 'that other' i s also 'this . ' 'That other' i s a unity
comprehending 'so' and 'not s o ' ; 'thi� here' is also a unity comprehending
'so' and 'not s o . ' Is there really a 'that other' and 'this, ' or is there no 'that
other' and 'this' ? When 'that other' and 'this' can no longer find their com plement, we call it the ' Pivot of the Way . ' s And only when the pivot finds the very center of the ring can it respond and never be used up. The 'so's'
are one of the things never used up; the 'not so's' are another of the things never used up . Which is why I said that the best thing is to shed light on it.
"To use a finger pointing out to convey the lesson that pointing out is
not pointing out is not as good as using a non-pointing out to convey the lesson that a pointing out is not pointing out. Or to use a horse to convey
the lesson that a horse is not a horse is not as good as using a non-horse to
convey the lesson that a horse is not a hors e . 6 Heaven- and-Earth are a sin
gle case of pointing out. And the thousands and thousands of things are a single horse.
" Is that possible ! ? It's possible. Is that not possible ? It's not possible. It
goes along the Way and achieves its completed form . As a thing is called, ' F o l l owers of the uti l itarian p h i l osopher Mo-z i .
5Th i s fiend i s h passage i s acces s i b l e neither to p h i losophy nor p h i l ology. I t i s a parod i c and p l ayfu l tw i st i n g of the a l ready p l ayfu l sty l e of the Log i c i a ns, w i l lful l y u s i n g the fo rm of l o g i c a l argument to tie the reader i n to knots. The M o h i sts and the Log i c i a n s had taken some care with u s i n g term s . Z h u ang-zi p u rpose l y confuses two u ses of the word shi. The fi rst use i s t h e anto n y m o f fei and i s u s u a l l y tra n s l ated as " s o " aga i n st fei as "not s o . " T h e second usage, tra n s l ated as "th i s , " is t h e antonym of bi, "that." 8i has another antonym, ci, w h i c h i s "th is" or "th i s here." Z h u a n g-zi not o n l y m i xes the two p a i rs of usages together so that sentences are i m poss i b l e to put together; he p l ayfu l l y d rops in convent i o n a l p h rases of prose argumentat i o n , such as shi yi, tra n s l ated as "Th i s b e i n g s o . " 6These refer t o the l o g i c a l paradoxes set by Gong-sun Long. The p l ay i n th i s passage d e p e n d s on the w o r d
zhi, wh i c h means both "fin ger" a n d "to p o i n t out." Contemporary p h i losophers had
extended the mean i n g "point out" to a term fo r a s i n g l e con cept. Thus, i n the fo l l owi n g sen ten ce, " H eaven-and-Earth" ("the world") are both "a s i n g l e case of pointing out" (a con cept) and "one finger."
116
Early China that's how it is. How is it as it is ? It is how it is in being how it is. How is
it not as it is ? It is not as it is in being not as it is. In a thing there is some
thing by which it is really how it is; in a thing there is something which is really possible. No thing is not how it is; no thing is not possible.
" Then, taking as 'so' all straws and columns, pock-faced women and fair
Xi Shi's, weird phantoms and eldritch apparitions-the Way makes them equivalent as one . D istinguishing them is their complete formation; the com
pletion of their formation is their destruction. But any thing in which there is no completion of formation and destruction is again made equivalent as
one . But only someone who has reached perfection knows that they are
equivalent as one . 'Taking as so' is not practiced, but rather he gives them a place in the general. Such 'generality' is itself practiced, but its practice is
making equivalent-and making equivalent is grasping it. And when you
come to grasping it, you're almost there . Contingent 'so's' are done. When they are done and you don't know how it is, it is called the Way. Even when
you bring trouble to the spirit, it can be taken as one, but it doesn't know that it's all the same. And this is called 'three at daybreak . '
" What i s meant b y 'three a t daybreak' ? A monkey keeper was once dis
tributing nuts and said, 'Three at daybreak; four at sunset . ' The monkeys were all enraged. Then he said, 'All right-four at daybreak; three at sun
set. " And all the monkeys were delighted . There was no difference in either
name or fact, yet joy and rage were put into practice , which is another con tingent ' so . '
" This being s o , the S age brings harmony b y his 'so's' and 'not so's,' while
he himself rests in the equipoise of Heaven. And this is called the Two Pro cedures.
" Among men of olden times knowledge got t o something, b u t what did
it get to ? There were some who thought that there had not yet begun to be
things-which did indeed get there, completely, able to go no further. The
next thought that there were indeed things, but that there had not yet begun to be divisions among them. The next thought that there were divisions
among them, but that there had not yet begun to b e 'so's' and 'not s o ' s . ' The appearance of 'so's' and ' not so's' was how the Way attenuated. How the
Way attenuated was clinging love completely taking form. But then were there really these events of completion of form and attenuation, or were there no completions of form and attenuation ? " There
is something taking complete form and attenuating-Zhao Wen
playing on his harp . " There is
nothing taking complete form and attenuating-Zhao Wen not
playing on his harp .
" Zhao Wen playing on his harp, Music Master Kuang supp orted by his
staff, the sophist Hui-zi leaning braced on his armrest of beechwo od-three masters whose knowledge was so close ! It swelled to fullness in all of them,
and they carried it to the end of their years . Yet in their passion for it, they
took it as different from what was other; in their passion for it, they wanted to shed light on it. What was other was not placed in the light when they
117
Anthology of Chinese Literature shed light on something, and thus they ended up in obscurities of 'hard' and
'white . ' ?
" Zhao Wen's s o n also ended with h i s father's harp strings, y e t t o the end
of his life he brought nothing to complete form. In a case like this, can we call it 'reaching complete form ' ? If so, even I have reached complete form. O r in a case like this, are we not able to call it 'reaching complete form'
"
there is nothing that has reached complete form in things and myself? For
this reason the Sage takes measures against the glare of slick bewilderments.
He does not practice 'taking things as so' but gives them a place in the gen eral. What this is called is ' shedding light . '
" I have something to s a y here, b u t do n o t know whether it belongs to
the category of ' b eing s o ' or does not belong to the category of ' b eing s o . '
If belonging t o a category and not belonging t o a category can b e j o ined to
gether and taken as a category, then there is nothing at all to differentiate one from any other. But would you please let me get on with saying it: There is what has begun.
There is what has not yet begun to be 'there is what has begun . ' There is what h a s n o t y e t begun t o be 'there i s what h a s n o t y e t begun
to be " there is what has begun . " , There is a there is.
There is a there is not.
There is a not yet begun to be a 'there is not . '
There i s a n o t yet begun to b e a 'not yet begun t o be a " there is not. " , All of a sudden there
is a there is not! But I don't know whether 'there
is a there is not' is actually a 'there is' or a 'there is not . '
" For my part now, there is something I meant. But I don't know whether
in 'what I meant' I really meant 'something' or meant 'nothing. '
" I n all the world there i s nothing a s large a s the wisp o f a n autumn hair,
yet Great Mountain is taken as small. No one lives to such old age as a child dead in infancy, yet Grandfather Peng passed away before his time. Heaven
and Earth were born together with me, and the thousands of things are taken as one with me. Since we have been taken as one, can we further have the saying of it? But then I have already
claimed oneness !-so can there not be
the s aying of it? The oneness and the s aying of it are two . The two and their oneness are three. Going on from this point, even a person who is clever at arithmetic will not be able to grasp it, much less average persons!
"So if we proceed from 'there is not' to 'there is,' we reach three, and
j ust imagine proceeding from one 'there is' to another! Or there is not the proceeding itself-contingent 'so's' cease.
" The Way had not yet begun to have boundaries. Saying things had not
yet begun to have stable standards. Take this as 'so' and there are demar cations. Let me say something about these demarcations. Now there is left.
There is right. There is consideration. There is taking a position. There is
'Th i s refers to the d i scussion of attr i b utives by Gong·sun Long.
118
Early China making distinctions . There is showing by argument. There is contention.
There is conflict. These are called the Eight Attained Powers .
" On the other side of the six bounds that enclose the cosmos, the Sage
is simply there and makes no consideration. Within those six bounds the Sage
may consider but takes no position. In the accounts of those former kings who through the ages managed their generations, the Sage took positions
but did not show by argumentation. In making distinctions, there is what is
not distinguished; in showing by argument, there is what is not shown by argument. 'What's this ! ' you say. What the Sage keeps within himself, or
dinary men split up in argumentation to make a show to one another. This is why I say that in argumentation there is always something not revealed. The greatest W a y is not affirmed;
The greatest argument is not said;
The greatest fellow feeling does not show fellow feeling; The greatest reserve shows no reserve;
The greatest boldness is not hot-tempered. A Way is made visible, but not the Way;
Things said make arguments, but do not get there;
Fellow feeling b ecomes a standard, but not complete;
Reserve becomes all pure, but wins no trust;
Boldness grows hot-tempered, but not complete.
These five, in their rounded form, are almost at the method.
" Knowing to stop at what is not known is to have reached it. And who
knows the argument that does not say or the Way that is not-Way [or " not spoken " ] . If there were someone able to know it, such a person would be
called Heaven's Storehouse. To pour into it but not fill it, to pour out from
it but not empty it, and not to know from where it comes-such is called
the Veiled Ray.
" Thus long ago Yao asked of Shun, 'I want to strike the chiefs of the
Zong, the Kuai, and the Xu-ao. Why is it that I feel no contentment upon
this throne ? ' Shun answered him, 'Those three chiefs are like creatures liv
ing in the sagebrush and prairie grass. How can such lack of contentment be? Long ago ten suns came out together and all the thousands of things were
revealed in their light. Just think of Attained Power close to that of the sun ! ' "
Chomp-Gap asked Wang Ni, " D o you know what there is that all things would agree is so ? "
And he replied, " How would I know ? "
" D o you then know what you don't know ? "
H e replied, "How would I know ? "
" Well then, i s there nothing things know ? "
H e replied, " How would I know? Nevertheless, I will try t o say some
thing about it. How could I know that what I call knowing is not, in fact,
119
Anthology of Chinese Literature not knowing? And how could I know that what I call not knowing is not,
in fact, knowing?
" Or let me put some questions to you. When folk bed down where it is
wet, their midsections ache and they lose feeling in half their bodies . But is
the same thing true of a minnow ? When folk stay in trees, they tremble and
shake from terror. But is the same thing true of a monkey ? Which of these
three knows the 'right' place to dwell ? Folk eat beasts that feed on hay and
grains; the deer eat the wild grasses; the centipede has a taste for serpents;
crows and owls hanker for rats. Which of the four knows the ' right' way
things should taste ?
" An ape will take a gibbon as mate; the roebuck mingles with the deer;
minnows swim with the fish . The Furry Girl and Damsel Fair have been thought beautiful by men; b ut if a fish were to see them, it would dive deep
under; if a bird were to see them, it would fly high away; if a deer were to see them, it would straightway bolt. Which of the four knows the 'right' ver
sion of the world's most desirable beauty ? From where I look, the standards
of fellow feeling and virtue, along with the paths of 'so' and 'not so,' are a
hopelessly confused mess. How could I be able to know how to argue the . case between them ? "
Chomp-Gap answered, " If you know nothing of gain and loss, does the
man who has achieved p erfection truly also know nothing of gain and loss ? "
Wang Ni said, "The man who has attained perfection i s spirit ! The great
bogs may burn, but he can feel no heat. The Yellow River and the Han may
ice over, but he can feel no cold. Claps of thunder rend the mountains and gales whip the seas, but he can feel no alarm. Someone like this rides upon
vapors of cloud and has the sun and moon as his mounts . Facing life and death there is no change in him-still less are there questions of gain and loss ! "
Master Mynah posed the question t o Master Tallbeech, " From the Mas
ter I have heard that the Sage does not commit himself to common o bliga
tions, that he does not move to grasp gain, does not evade loss, does not seek j oy, does not conform to the Way. In claiming nothing he claims some
thing; in claiming something he claims nothing; and he roams out beyond
the foul dust. The Master took these as preposterous words, yet I think of
them as moving along the most subtle Way. What is your opinion, sir ? "
Master Tallbeech replied, " This would baffle even the Yellow Emperor!
As for Confucius, how could he have the capacity to understand it ! As for yourself, you are forming your designs far too early-seeing an egg and look
ing for the rooster, seeing bird-shot and looking for roast squa b . I will say it to you in an outlandish way, and you will listen to me outlandishly. How to stand by sun and moon, take the universe in arms, Do what fits p erfectly as lips,
Forsake all glib confusion,
view those held in honor as slaves.
120
Early China The throngs of men toil and toil,
The Sage is a simpleton,
He shares thousands of years that make one spring. All the things of the world are thus,
And by this he garners them.
" How do I know that my j oy in living is not befuddlement? How do I
know that my hatred of dying is not as a child who has lost his home and
does not know the way back ? The D amsel Fair was the child o f a borderer
of Ai; and when she was taken by the house of Jin, she shed so many tears
that she soaked her bodice. But then she came to the place of the king and
shared the king 's bed, ate livestock fed on hay and grain, and afterward felt embarrassed at her tears . How do I know that the dead do not feel embar
rassed at how they used to pray so for life ?
" One who drinks wine in dream may weep in the dawn. One who weeps
in dream may go off on a hunt with the coming of dawn. But while they are
still dreaming, they know not that they dream. In their dreams they may even
read the meaning of dreams-within-dreams . But only after waking do they
know it was a dream. So there may be a still greater awakening, after which
we will know that this was the greatest dream. And yet simpletons take it that they are now awake-they know it with such cocksureness. Is he a lord ?
Is he a herdsma n ? Such bullheadedness ! Yes, even Confucius and you are
both dreaming. And when I claim that you are dreaming, that too is a dream .
" These things that have been said, their name is the Ultra- O utlandish.
If in ten thousand generations we were to happen j ust once on a great Sage
who knew how to explain them, we might take that as running into him all the time .
" Let us take the case that you and I argue a point. You best me; I don't
best you; but does this really mean that what you said is s o and what I said
not so? Or I best you; you don't best me; but does this really mean that what
I said is so and what you said not s o ? Is one p osition so and the other not
so? Are they b oth so; are they both not s o ? If both you and I are unable to
come to j o int knowledge, others will be truly left in darkness. Who can I
have decide what's right ? Shall I have someone who agrees with you decide
what' s right ? He already agrees with you, so how can he decide what's right ?
Shall I have someone who agrees with me decide what's right ? He already agrees with me, so how can he decide what's right? Shall I have someone
who has differences with both you and me decide what's right ? He already has those differences with you and me, so how can he decide what's right ?
Shall I have someone who agrees with both you and me decide what's right ?
He already agrees with both you and me, so how can he decide what's right ? And since this is the case,
then none of us-you and I and others-are a ble
to come to joint knowledge. But then do we depend on something else al
together ?
121
Anthology of Chinese Literature " The interdependence of these voices, as they undergo change, is like
their not being interdependent. Make them blend by using Heaven's D i
viding Line, go along with them so that they spill over their bounds, a n d i n this w a y y o u will live your years to their fullnes s . Forget t h e years, forget right, j olt into the Unceasing, and thus you will find a place for it in the
Unceasing.
" What do I mean by 'make them blend by using Heaven's Dividing
Line ' ? Answer : say 'so' to what is not so; take what is not the case as the
case. For if so is really so, then there can be no argument about so being dif ferent from not s o . And if the case is really the case, then there can be no
argument about the case being different from not being the case . "
Phantom asked Shadow, " You were moving b efore; now you've stopped.
You were sitting before; now you're getting up . Can't you stick to any thing ? "
Shadow answered , " I wonder i f this i s the way i t i s because there is
something I depend on? And I wonder if it is the way it is for what I de pend on because there is something
it depends on? I wonder if I depend
on a snakeskin that has been shed or the husk of a cicada's wings ? How
can I tell why it is the way it is ? And how can I tell why it is not another
way ? "
Once upon a time Zhuang Zhou was dreaming that h e was a butterfly,
a b utterfly utterly absorbed and content in being what it was. But did he
take this as a lesson about s atisfaction? How could h e ? He didn't know
he was Zhuang Zho u . All of a sudden he woke up . Then he was Zhuang
Zhou, sprawled on his b e d . But he didn't know whether he was Zhuang
Zhou who had dreamed of being a butterfly, or a butterfly now dreaming
of being Zhuang Zhou. And there surely must be some dividing line be
tween a butterfly and a Zhuang Zhou! This is what we mean by things in
change .
Coda Li Bo ( 70 1-762 ) , The Old Airs IX Zhuang Zhou dreamed of a butterfly, and that butterfly was Zhuang Zhou.
A single shape keeps changing, a million things go on and on. I know now the sea around Peng-lai
will again be clear and shallow streams . The man who raised melons by Green Gate
was in olden days Count of Dong-ling. 122
Early China Since this is the way of honor and wealth,
what do we seek in this scrambling ?
Peng- I a i was a myth i c a l i s l e of the U n d y i n g fa r off in the Easte r n Ocean (the Pacific Ocea n ) . O n e common fig u re fo r the passage of eons was land a n d ocean c h a n g i n g p l ace, s o t h at t h e deep seas a ro u n d Peng- I a i d ry u p t o tri ck l i n g strea m s . The Q i n C o u n t o f D o n g- l i ng, who turned t o ra i s i n g m e l o n s after t h e fa l l o f h i s dyn asty, was a favo rite exam p l e of d rastic c h a nges of fortu n e .
123
E a rly Pol itical O rato ry
I n e a r l y C h i n a , as i n a n c i ent G reece, pers u a s i ve o ratory p l ayed a n i m portant ro le i n pol itical deci s i o n s . W e k n o w that G reek o rato rs wou l d write o u t th e i r speeches a n d memo rize them fo r d e l ivery; afte rwards such speeches wou l d c i rc u l ate i n w r i tten fo rm . We know fa r l ess about the p ractice of e arly C h i nese oratClry, a n d there was noth i n g l i ke the i n sti tutio n a l ization of G reek and Lat i n rheto r i c , a l th o u g h some s c hol ars have s u s pected that one text, the
Schemes of the Warring States, was a m a n u a l of exam p l es fo r rhetor
i c a l tra i n i n g . Most exta nt speeches from p re-Q i n C h i n a a re the speeches that m i ght h ave been g i ven o r s h o u l d h ave been g i ven o n a parti c u l a r occas i o n , m u c h l i ke the i n vented s peeches fo u n d in the works of the G reek a n d Lat i n h i sto r i a n s . The fo l l owi n g exa m p l es a re s u c h pol itical pers u a s i o n s, e ither rea l o r i m a g i n a ry. A l th o u g h the rea l persu a s i o n s served i m med i ate po l it i c a l ends, the i r p reservation ( o r the i r i nvention) s at i sfied a variety of i n terests q u ite i n dependent o f a n y d o c u m e n t a r y l i gh t they m i ght shed o n a parti c u l a r p o l itical event. They se rved as the a rt i c u lation of eth i c a l positions a n d as m od e l s of how t o p resent a pol itical case. B ut be yond th at, s u c h w r i t i n g had a certa i n v a l u e as enterta i n ment. ( " E nterta i n me nt" here s h o u l d be taken i n a l a rge sense as a fasci n at i o n with the way words were u sed a n d the beauty of a n argument.) The fi rst case i s a p r i m itive arg u m ent, put i n the mouth of Tang, the fo u n der of the Shang Dyn asty, p u b l i c l y d ec l a r i n g his deci s i o n t o overth row j i e, the ev i l l ast ruler of the Xia Dynasty . The pu rported d ate i s 1 7 5 0 B . C . but the d o c u m e n t i s, i n fact, a m u c h l ater c reati o n , perhaps from as l ate as the fifth centu ry B. C . It is w h at Tang " s h o u l d h ave said" o n the occas i o n . "Tang's Vow" see m s to consc i o u s l y model it self o n the a rc h a i c author ity of the gen u i n e Z h o u decl arations i n the
uments,
Classic of Doc
but it a i m s to add even g reate r te rseness, as wou l d befit a text s u p posed to
be far o l d e r t h a n those of the Z h o u fo u n d i n g . Econom i c a l l y, Tang l ays the res pon s i b i l ity fo r his revo lt with H eave n , e n u m e rates the c h a rges aga i n st X i a, p rom i ses re wards, and at l ast th reate n s to k i l l the enti re fam i l ies of those who rem a i n u n per s u aded by h i s other arguments .
Classic of Documents, " Tang's Vow " The king said:
Be this known to you, hosts of the folk, and heed ye all these my words .
I am no young boy that dares stir up troubles. He who holds Xia has done
many wrongs . Heaven has charged me to put him to death.
You, my hosts, now you say, " O ur overlord shows no mercy on us, his
hosts, He makes us to lay aside our tillage and march to smite Xia . " 124
Early China I hear your words, 0 my hosts . But the house of Xia has done wrongs .
I dread the high god and dare not fail to put them right.
You now may say, "What were these wrongs done by Xia ? "
X ia's king has worn out the strength o f his hosts; h e worked harm on
the city of Xia; the hosts grow slack and there is discord among them . They
say, " When will this sun sink away ? You and I will all perish. " Such is what
Xia has attained for itself. I must now go against him .
I would have you stand by my side, I who am the one man, to bring upon
him Heaven's punishment . I will greatly reward you. Do not ye disbelieve
me. I do not eat my words. If you do not follow the words of this vow, I will slay you and all your offspring and none will be forgiven.
In the fo l l ow i n g exam p l e from
The Zuo Tradition,
we h ave the d i g n ity of appeal to
the Zhou trad ition in a l ette r to the g reat n ob i l ity from P r i n ce Zh ao, the p rete n d e r t o the Zhou throne. The s ituation w a s as fo l l ows : Th e re had b e e n a str uggle fo r t h e s u ccess i o n t o the Z h o u th rone, a n d o n e o f the two p rete n d e rs, Zhao, h ad been dri ven fro m the capital by a c l a i m a n t s u pported by J i n , then the m ost powe rfu l of the d o m a i n s . Zhao fled to the K i ngdom of Chu, which was freq uently a l l too ha ppy to do J i n an i l l tu r n . F rom C h u , Z h ao sent th i s appeal to the n o b i l ity of the d o m a i n s . Zhao beg i n s b y a s u m m a ry o f Z h o u h i story i n w h i c h t h e remarkab l y v i o l e nt h i sto ry of the roya l house is descri bed as a series of cases in w h i c h the b rothers and u n c l es (the g reat nob i I ity) p rotected the Zhou th rone . '
The Zuo Tradition, a n entry for the 26th year of Duke Zhao ( 5 1 6 B.C. ) Of old King Wu conquered Yin,
King Cheng brought peace to the four quarters, King Kang gave the people repose;
and all of them set their full brothers in fiefs
to be a hedge and a screen for Zhou.
This they said as well:
We do not keep the great accomplishments of Kings Wen and Wu for ourselves alone;
and should our descendants stray toward ruin
or be overthrown and drowned in troubles,
then the nobility will bestir themselves and save them. When it came to King Yi:
the king had a disease in his person;
not one among the nobility failed to rush to sacrifice in prayer for the king's person.
'The " p rose" of th i s a n d some other selections i n this sect i o n h a s been tra n s l ated l i ke verse to show the rhyth m i cal orga n i zati o n . 125
Anthology of Chinese Literature When it came to King Li:
the king's heart was wayward and cruel;
the myriads of the folk could not bear it.
They then lodged the king in Zhe,
and the nobility gave up their own places
to attend to the king's government.
King Xuan possessed resolve,
and they yielded back their offices. When it came to King You:
Heaven had no pity on Zhou,
the king was blind and unfit,
by misdeeds he lost his position.
King Hui usurped the Charge;2 the nobility replaced him
and set in his stead the king's true successor,
whereby the capital was shifted to Ge-ru.
This, then, is how the brothers showed themselves able to exert themselves for the king's house.
When it came to King Hui: Heaven gave no peace to Zhou,
it gave birth to Tui' s destructive mind,
which extended to Shu-dai.
Kings Hui and Xiang fled the troubles and left the king's city.
Then there were Jin and Zheng; both purged the unrighteous,
thus soothing and settling the king's house. This, then, is how the brothers showed themselves able to follow the Charge of the early kings .
It was in the sixth year of King Ding:
an apparition descended among the men of Qin; it said:
" Zhou will have a mustached king
who will be able to carry out his office, and the nobility will submit to him.
For two generations they will fulfill their offices.
I n the king's house there will be a n intruder i n the king's place, the nobility will make no plan against him,
and they will suffer the blows of his misrule. "
'The H eave n ' s C h a rge, the authority to r u l e gra nted b y Heave n . A l so the commands of early k i ngs to their descendants.
126
Early China When it came to King Ling:
he was born with a mustache.
The king was godlike and sagely; he was not hated by the nobility.
King Ling and King Jing
were thus able to finish their generations. But now the king's house is in disarray: Qi of Shan and the Liu Di
have thrown the world into turmoil;
their desp otic actions are unrighteous.
Of our former kings they say:
"What constant principles are there ?
There is only what my own heart commands ! "
Who dare reproach them ?
They lead bands of merciless men
to wreak havoc on the king's house.
Their desires and encroachments are never sated,
there is no measure to what they seek.
Accustomed to outraging gods and demons,
wantonly casting aside punishments and laws, betrayers of oaths taken with equals,
insolent in their behavior,
they have made a mockery of the early kings .
Jin has acted against the Way,
supported them, assisted them,
intending to give them free rein in their unrestrained designs.
I, unfortunate one,
have been shaken, driven afar, hiding away in Jing-Man
with nowhere to go.
lf a few of you, my brothers, my nephews, my uncles, will acquiesce to the laws of Heaven and give no aid to the wicked,
thereby following the Charge of the early kings and avoiding hastening Heaven 's retribution,
by pardoning and making provision for this unfortunate one, then I will have my wish.
I will dare set forth fully what is in my mind,
which are the constant principles of the early kings;
and may the nobility seriously consider these in their plans .
The Charge of the olden kings states:
Should the queen l a c k legitimate heir,
then select the eldest for the throne.
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If equal in years, choose by virtue; if equal in virtue, choose by lots . The king may not set a favorite on the throne, the great lords may not have personal favorites . This is the ancient rule . Queen Mu and Crown Prince Shou died young. Shan and Liu aided a favorite and put a younger on the throne, thereby infringing on the early kings . Would that my relations, both elder and younger, consider this in their provisions. The passage that fo l l ows the l etter in
The Zuo Tradition,
put in the mouth of a J i n
m i n i ster (the fact ion oppos i ng P r i n ce Z h ao), i s a c h i l l i n g re m i n der o f the rea l ities of pol itical power a n d of the world in w h i c h the l etter c i rc u l ated . The " m ight of J i n , " n ot l o n g-dead feu d a l o b l i gati o n s , i s w h at d r ives pol itical act i o n s .
Min Ma-fu heard these word of Zhao and said, "He is practicing cere monies by the written word. Zhao has transgressed the mandate of King Jing and has taken himself far from the might of Jin to accomplish his own per sonal ambitions, and this is want of ceremony in the extreme ! What good will these writings do ? " The fo l l o w i n g passage i s o n e of the m ost fa m o u s exa m p l es of a fu l l y develo ped o r namental pers u a s i o n from the p re-Q i n perio d . The speech with its occas ion is i n c l uded i n
Schemes of the Warring States (Zhan-guo ce). O n e m i ght n ote th at,
i n spite
of both the hypnotic repetition of patter n that l e n d s Z h u a n g X i n ' s speech its fo rce and the p ro m i se of the exord i u m , the speech is not a pers u a s i o n at a l l . I n stead of te l l i n g K i n g X i a n g of C h u how he can save the si tu ati o n , Z h u a n g X i n offers an e l ab o rate "I to l d you s o . "
from the Schemes of the Warring States Zhuang Xin said to King Xiang of Chu, " You, my lord, keep the company of the Count of Zhou on your right side and the Count of Xia on your left. Your carriage is attended by the Lord of Yan-ling and the Lord of Shou ling. You do nothing but indulge yourself in wanton excess and vain amuse ments, paying no attention to governing the kingdom, and our great city of Ying is surely in peril . " King Xiang replied, " Have you grown doddering i n your o l d age ? D o y o u make baleful auguries for the Kingdom o f Chu ? " Zhuang Xin said, " Truly i t i s that I see what must come. I would not dare make baleful auguries for the kingdom. Yet the favor my Lord shows these four men has never weakened, and the Kingdom of Chu must fall. I 128
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ask your permission to take myself to safety in Zhao, where I will stay to observe it. " Zhuang Xin went away to Zhao ; and after he had stayed there four months, Qin did indeed lay hold of the regions of Yan, Ying, Wu, Shang cai, and Chen. King Xiang fled into hiding at Cheng-yang. He then sent someone with a mounted escort to Zhao with a summons for Zhuang Xin. Zhuang Xin agreed; and when he arrived, King Xiang said, "I did not do as you said, and now matters have come to this. What is to be done ? " Zhuang Xin replied: "The common folk have a saying: 'It is not too late to look for your dogs after seeing the hare nor too late to fix the pen after the sheep get away . ' I have heard that long ago Kings Tang and Wu became glorious with territories of only a hundred leagues , while Kings Jie and Chow perished though they had the whole world. Though the Kingdom of Chu has become smaller, if you average out the larger and smaller parts, it is still several thousand leagues-far more than j ust a hundred leagues . " Has the king ever seen a dragonfly ? With its six legs and four wings , it flies hovering between earth and sky. It drops down to snatch gnats to eat and rises up to catch the sweet dew to drink . It believes that no harm will come to it and has no quarrel with man. Little does it know that a boy, j ust over three feet tall, is at that very moment taking a sticky line with sweet bait, which will catch it twenty feet up, and it will come down to be food for the ants. "But the dragonfly is a small case; let us follow it with that of the brown sparrow. Bobbing down, it pecks the white grains; and turning up, it perches in leafy trees, whirring its small wings . It believes that no harm will come to it and has no quarrel with man. Little does it know that the young no bleman, holding his slingshot under his left arm and in his right hand hold ing the pellets, will hit it fifty feet up, its neck as his target. By day it roamed through the leafy trees, and that evening it will be flavored with salt and vine gar. In the space of an instant it topples into the young nobleman's hand . " But the sparrow is a small case; let us follow it with that of the golden swan. It roams about the rivers and lakes and lingers in the great ponds . Ducking its head down, it gobbles up eels and carp; then raising it up, it nib bles water chestnuts and cress. It spreads its great wings and rises on the clear wind, wheeling about as it soars on high. It believes that no harm will come to it and has no quarrel with man. Little does it know that at that very mo ment the fowler is preparing his bow and arrowheads and arranging the arrow's string to hit it hundreds of feet up . Those stone weights will drag on the thin line and bring it plummeting down, j erked out of the clear wind. By day it roamed over the rivers, and that evening it flavors the stewpot. " But the golden swan is a small case; let us follow it with what happened to Count Ling of Cai. He roamed south to Highslope and to the north climbed Mount Wu. He drank of the current of Ru Creek and ate fish from the waves of the Xiang. He had his left arm around a tender young concu bine and hugged a favorite with his right; he went galloping with them in Gao-cai and did not concern himself with the matters of his domain. Little 129
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did he know that at that very moment Zi-fa was receiving a charge from King Xuan to have him bound with red line and brought before the king. " But what happened to Count Ling of Cai is a small case; let us follow . it with what happened to Your Maj esty. You kept the company of the Count of Zhou on your right side and the Count of Xia on your left. Your carriage was attended by the Lord of Yan-ling and the Lord of Shou-ling. Dining on the grain that was income of the fiefs and carrying gold of the treasury, you went galloping with them in Yun-meng preserve, not con cerni ng yourself with the matters of the world and your kingdom. Little did you know that at that very moment the Count of Rang was receiving a charge from the King of Qin to bottle up all within Min Pass and cast yourself out beyond Min Pass . " When King Xiang heard this, the color drained from his face and his body shuddered. Thereupon he took the insignia that he carried and passed it to Zhuang Xin, making him the Lord of Yang-ling and giving him the terri tory north of the Huai . Although written pers u a s i o n s l i ke P r i n ce Zhao's l etter are attrib uted to e a r l y peri ods, the Western Han saw the transformati o n of po l i tical o rato ry i nto a p r i m a r i l y writ ten fo r m . S u c h pers u a s i o n s b u i lt upon the styl e of o rati o n s att r i b uted to the Wa r r i n g States p e r i o d , b u t w r i t i n g perm itted fa r m o re a l l u s i veness a n d i n tricacy o f argu mentati o n . With the writte n pers u a s i o n s of the Han we leave the rea l m of the fic tional o r recreated speech and fi n d texts that we can say with some confidence p l ayed a ro l e in real pol i t i c a l events . I n the fo l lo w i n g l ette r, m u c h l i ke a m e m o r i a l to the th rone, Mei S h e n g (who d i ed i n 1 40 B . C . ) p l ays the wise sage i n a scene of i n struct i o n . B u t ben eath the D a o ist p r i n c i p l es o f royal N o n -Action a n d h o m e y meta p h ors s u c h as t h e p reca r i o u s ness o f a p i l e of eggs, there was m u c h at stake i n M e i S h e n g ' S l ette r. Mei S h e n g ' S patro n , the Han p r i nce of Wu, L i u Pi, l ed the rebe l l io n of seven fe u d a l d o m a i n s aga i n st the H a n e m peror J i ng , a rebel l i o n t h a t eventu a l l y cost L i u P i h i s l i fe . The pos ition that M e i takes h e re i s l itera l l y a m atte r o f l i fe a n d d e a t h , n o t s i m p l y fo r h i s patron but fo r h i m self as wel l . T o s i d e o pe n l y a n d l o ya l l y with the em peror wo u l d assu re h i m of tro u b l e f r o m h i s patro n ; h owever, if the rebe l l i o n were to fa i l-as it d i d-a n y h i n t o f s u p
port for the p r i nce wou l d be h i g h treaso n . The l etter i s a n i ntricate p i ece of pol itical rheto r i c fo r a n i n tri cate p o l i t i c a l s i tu ation, w ith a com p l i cated d e p loyment of h i sto r i c a l exa m p l es and nested a n a l og i e s .
Mei Sheng (d. 140 B.C.), Letter of Protest to the Prince of Wu I have heard that
whosoever attains the perfection of a thing will flourish, whosoever falls short of perfection will perish.
Shun had not the land in which to set an awl, but came eventually to possess all the world.
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Yu had not a cluster of ten households, but eventually became king of the great nobility. The territories of Tang and Wu went no more than a hundred leagues . He who causes no eclipse in the light of the Three Luminaries above, and harms not the hearts of the masses of people below such a person possesses the skills of kingship. The Way of father and son is our nature endowed by Heaven: If a faithful retainer remonstrates straightforwardly, not avoiding grave punishment, then no counsel will be overlooked in your affairs , and the deed will continue for thousands of generations . I, Mei Sheng, wish to open my heart and demonstrate my simple faith, and I wish only that my Prince pay some slight heed and attend to my words with a sympathetic heart. Take a single thread as bearer of a burden; tie it to a weight of a hundred pounds; suspend it above from a limitless height; let it hang down below into an unfathomable abyss even a very foolish man knows enough to be anxious that it will break. A horse will rear up, if you prod and alarm it; what is tied will snap, if you weigh it down further. And falling into the deep abyss , it will be hard to get it out again; though between getting it out and not getting it out there may lie not even a hair's breadth . If you can heed this faithful retainer's words, you will get out every time. But if you must act as you wish, it will be: more precarious than a pile of eggs, harder than climbing to Heaven. If you change what you wish, it will be: easier than turning over the hand, more secure than Tai Mountain. You now wish: to reach the limit of the greatest old age ordained by Heaven, to fulfill the extremes of pleasures unending, to know an emperor's power, lord of ten thousand chariots . Not taking a course of such ease as in turning over a hand, or residing in the security of Tai Mountain,
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but instead wanting: to ride the precariousness of a pile of eggs, and rushing into the hardships of climbing to Heaven this is what so greatly bewilders your retainer. In human nature there are some who fear their shadows and hate their footprints. As they turn their backs and run, their footprints grow steadily more, their shadow becomes steadily swifter. Best to go to some shady spot and stop : there shadow vanishes, footprints cease. If you want others not to hear something, best not to speak; If you want others not to know, best not to act. If you want hot water to cool off, and one man fans the flames while a hundred men ladle it, it would be better to stop the fuel and end the fire ! Not stopping one thing, while trying to fix it with another, may be compared to taking an armload of kindling to put out a fire. Yang Yi-j i was the expert archer of Chu. He went a hundred paces from a willow leaf, in a hundred shots hit it a hundred times. Considering t h e size of a willow leaf, to hit it a hundred times can be considered expert archery indeed. Nevertheless, the point where he stopped was still but a hundred paces. Compared to your retainer Sheng, he didn't know even how to hold a bow and arrows ! When fair fortune appears, it has some base; when misfortune appears, it has some womb . Preserve the base, stop off the womb, and how shall misfortune come ? The water that drips on Tai Mountain pierces stone; the well-rope on a single stock breaks the roller. Yet water is no drill for stone, rope is no saw for woodit is the gradual abrasion that makes it so. 1 32
Early China
If you weigh something grain by grain, you will always miss at the pound; if you measure something inch by inch, you will always err at the yard. If you weigh by the pound, gauge by the yard, you will go straight and seldom fail. The tree of ten arms pans in girth first grew as a shoot: your foot could scrape and break it, your hand could yank and pull it upthis depended on its not being fully grown, you acted before it took full form. Grind and grate, rub and scrapeyou see no harm from it, but sometime it will get through; seed and plant, nourish and tendyou see no gain from it, but sometime it will be large. Seed attainments, accumulate merits you see no good from it, but sometime it will be illustrious; forsake Virtuous Attainment, rej ect the Pattern you see no ill from it, but sometime it will bring ruin. I wish that my Prince would give mature consideration to his plans and practice this himself. This is the Way that does not change in a hundred generations. Pol itical o rato ry begged fo r parody, yet there is remarka b l y l ittl e parody in the ex ta nt texts of early C h i n a . One of the rare cases is in the "Atta i n i n g L i fe" c h a pter of the
(Da -sheng)
Zhuang-zi.
Zhuang-zi, " Attaining Life " (Da-sheng) The Master of the Sacrifice, in his black ceremonial hat, looked down into the pigsty and persuaded the pig as follows : Why should you hate death ? I will fatten you for three months, make you abstain ten days, make you fast for three days, spread out white rushes, then put your rump and shoulders on the finely carved platter you would go along with that, wouldn't you? 133
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If I were making pig-plans, I would say, better to be fed with the dregs and be locked inside a pigsty. If I were making plans for myself, then if in life I could have the honor of carriage and crown, and in death got to ride a fine hearse in a bunch of ornaments, �. then I would do it! Making pig-plans, I would avoid it; planning for myself, I would choose itwhat is this that distinguishes me from the pig ?
134
"
S i- m a Q i a n (ca . 1 4 5�c a . 8 5 B . C . ) L i ke the works of G reek a n d Lati n h i sto r i a n s , S i - m a Q i a n ' s
Records (Shi-ji)
Historical
is read as m u c h fo r the p l eas u re of the n a rrative as fo r
h i sto rical i nfo rmation . The
Historical Records (or, more properly, Records Historian) was beg u n by S i - m a Q i a n ' s fath er, S i - m a Tan, who h e l d t h e post o f Ta i-shi u n der t h e g reat emperor Wu o f t h e H a n . A l t h o u g h we of the
now transl ate th i s post as " Lord H i sto r i a n , " it was j u st as m u c h " Lo rd Astro n o mer" : the
Ta i-shi was c h a rged w ith
the d a i l y l ife o f the cou rt. As
keep i n g acco u n t both of astro n o m i c a l p h e n o m e n a a n d
Tai-shi,
Si-ma Tan had access to the d o c u m ents i n the
i m pe r i a l l i brary a n d began t o com p i l e a h i story of C h i n a u p t o his own time. T h i s enterprise w a s a perso n a l p roject a n d had noth i n g t o d o w i t h t h e d uties o f h i s of fice. U po n S i - m a Tan's death, S i - m a Q i a n i n h e rited both h i s father's post a n d h i s p roject. When co m p l eted , the
Historical Records not o n l y set the model fo r shi from a post-so meth i n g l i ke
h i sto r i c a l writi n g but c h a n ged the word
l ater " as
tronomer," " s c r i be," o r "co u rt d i a r i st"-to the sta n d a rd te rm fo r " h i story . " T h e fo rm o f t h e
Historical Records
i s n ot conti n u o u s n a r rative . It i n c l udes a n
n a l s o f t h e i m pe r i a l h o u ses a n d o f t h e royal h o u ses o f t h e fe u d a l d o m a i n s , c h ro n o l o g i c a l ta b l es, a n d treati ses on to p i cs s u c h as ceremony, the c a l e n d ar, a n d m u s i c . B u t t h e greate r part o f t h e work i s com posed o f b i ograp h i es, some o f s i n g l e i n d i v i d u a l s a n d some i n comparative pa i r i n gs, a s i n P l utarc h . A t t h e e n d o f eac h , S i - m a Q i a n offe rs h i s o w n co m m e nts a s " Lord H i sto r i a n . " T h e depth o f S i - m a Q i a n ' s perso n a l e n gagement w ith t h e h i sto r i c a l figu res about whom he writes has a l ways been a n i m portant sou rce of the work's appea l . Both the p roject of the h i story and the expe r i e n ces of c h a racters in h i story acq u i red a spe c i a l s i g n ificance to S i - m a Q i a n w h e n , after e n rag i n g E m peror Wu by h i s defense of the fa i l ed frontier general Li L i ng, h e was sentenced to c astrat i o n . The h u m i l i at i o n o f th i s sentence w a s supposed t o l ead a person t o h o n o r a b l e s u i c i d e o r a requ est for exec ution i n I ieu of p u n i s h ment. S i - m a Q i a n ' s dec i s i o n to accept castrat i o n i n order to fi n i s h his h i story made the work i nte n s e l y perso n a l to h i m . H e gave a n acco u n t o f h i s expe rience a n d ex p l a i ned h i s dec i s i o n i n a fa m o u s l etter t o a n acq u a i ntance, Ren An, a l ette r th at i s not in the
Historical Records. The vers i o n tra n s l ated be l ow Han History, co m p l eted a l most
is conta i ned i n S i - m a Q i a n ' s biography i n B a n G u ' s
two centu ries l ate r : wh i l e vary i n g S i - m a Q i a n ' s mode l , it essenti a l l y accepted h i s sense o f h o w h i story s h o u l d b e writte n .
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Letter i n Reply t o Ren An The Lord Historian, your obedient servant Si-ma Qian to Ren An Some time ago you were so kind as to grace me with a letter, instruct ing me to observe caution in my associations and to devote myself to rec ommending worthy gentlemen. Your manner then was earnest and forth right, as if anticipating that I would not do as you directed, but would rather be swayed by what ordinary people said. I would never dare to act in such a way. I may be an old horse that has outlived its usefulness , but I always harkened to the influences from my seniors . When I consider how my body has been mutilated, how fault has been found in whatever I have done, and how my desire to be of benefit has brought ruin to me instead, my heart bursts and I have no one to tell. There is a saying: " For whom do you act, and who will pay attention to you ? " When Zhong-zi Qi died, Bo Ya never played his harp again. Why was that? A man does something for the sake of someone who understands him, as a woman adorns herself for someone who is attracted to her. Some like me, whose flesh is now missing a part, can never be thought to flourish, even if I had qualities within me like Sui's pearl or Bian He's jade, or even if my actions were like those of Xu You or Bo Yi. In fact, all they could do is win me ridicule and humiliation. I should have answered your letter immediately, but at the time I was coming back from the east with His Maj esty and I was also beset by minor problems. Few were the days when we could meet, and I was always in such a hurry that there was never even a moment when I could tell you every thing that was on my mind. Now you yourself stand accused of the gravest crimes. As the weeks and months pass, the last month of winter draws near; and I am again con strained to accompany His Maj esty to Yong. I fear that ultimately there will be no escaping your swift death. Were I never to have the opportunity to re veal all that torments me and make things clear to you, then in death your soul would harbor an unceasing resentment against me. Let me then tell you my thoughts, and please do not take it amiss that I have been negligent in replying. I have learned that cultivating one's person is the treasurehouse of wis dom, that a love of offering things is the beginning of feeling for others, that taking and giving is the counterpart of a sense of right, that feeling shame determines courage, and that making one's name known is the ultimate end of action. Only after having all five of these may a man give himself to pub lic life and be ranked among the best. There is no misfortune so miserable as desire for advantage, no grief so painful as a wound that festers within, no action more loathsome than one that brings dishonor upon one's ances tors, and no degradation greater than castration. Those who live on after castration are comparable to no one else. Nor is this true only of the pre sent age-it has been this way from long ago in the past. In olden times when Duke Ling of Wei shared his carriage with the eunuch Yong-qu, Confucius 136
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left for Chen; Shang Yang arranged an audience through Eunuch ling, and Zhao Lang's heart sank; when the eunuch Zhao Tan j oined the Emperor in his coach, Yuan Si turned pale. This has been considered shameful ever since antiquity. When a man of even middling qualities has business to conduct with a eunuch, he always feels ill at ease-not to mention a gentleman of strong spirit! The court may need capable men these days, but would you have a person who has been gelded recommend the outstanding gentlemen of the world for service ! It has been more than twenty years since I took over my father's pro fession, and though unworthy, I have had the opportunity to serve the throne. When I think it over, on the most important level I have not been able to contribute my loyalty or show my good faith, winning esteem for re markable plans and the power of my talents, thus forming a natural bond with my wise lord. On the next level I have not been able to catch matters that have been overlooked, summoning worthy men to court and recom mending those with abilities, bringing to the public eye those who live hid den in caves in the cliffs . On a still lower level I have not been able to take a place in the ranks and in assaults on cities or in battles in the open, to win glory by beheading generals and seizing the enemy's colors. Finally, on the lowest level, I have not been able to accumulate a stock of merit through continuous service, getting high office and a good salary, thus bringing honor and favor to family and friends. Having been successful in none of these, it is obvious that I have merely followed expedience and tried to please others, achieving nothing that deserves either praise or blame. Previously, among the ranks of minor grandees, I took part in lesser de liberations of the outer court. On those occasions I brought in no grand plans, nor did I give matters their fullest consideration. Now, as a castrated servant who sweeps up, as the lowest of the low, if I were to try to lift my head, arch my brows, and hold forth with judgments, wouldn't that be showing contempt for the court and offering insult to those gentlemen now in power ? What more is there for somebody like me to say! It is not easy to explain the sequence of events clearly. When I was young I had an ungovernable disposition, and as I grew older I won no esteem from the people of my locale. I was fortunate that, on account of my father, His Majesty allowed me to offer him my meager skills and to frequent the royal apartments . I felt that I could never gaze on Heaven with a bowl covering my head, so I cut off contact with my friends and gave up all thought of the family property; day and night ! tried to exercise my miserable talents to their utmost, striving single-mindedly to carry out my office and thus to please His Maj esty and win his affection. Yet one thing happened that was a great mistake and had a very different effect. Li Ling and I had both been in residence in the palace, but we were never good friends. Our interests led us in different directions, so we never even shared a cup of beer or had a direct and earnest relation. Nevertheless, I o b served that h e was a remarkable person, showing a son's proper devotion to his parents, true to his word with other gentlemen, scrupulous in mat137
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ters of property, possessed of a sense of right in matters of giving and tak ing; in questions of status he would yield place, and he behaved deferen tially, demonstrating respect and temperance. Always he longed to put his life on the line in responding to some crisis of the empire. He had always harbored these virtues, and to my mind he possessed the qualities of one of the great men of the state. When a subj ect would brave death thousands of times without thinking to save his own life, going forth to meet threats to the commonwealth, it is remarkable indeed. It truly pained me personally that those courtiers who keep themselves and their families out of harm's way plotted to do him mischief when one thing went wrong out of all that he had done. The foot soldiers that Li Ling took with him were less than five thou sand, and they marched deep into the lands of the nomads; on foot they crossed the khan's own preserve to dangle bait in the tiger's mouth; they brazenly flaunted a stronger force of barbarians and stood face to face against an army of millions. For more than ten days they did continuous bat tle with the khan and killed more than their own number. When the tribes men tried to rescue the dead and carry back the wounded, they couldn't take care of themselves, and their chieftains, dressed in wool and furs, were all quaking in terror. Then the Good Princes of the Right and Left were called up and anyone among the folk who could draw a bow; the whole nation surrounded them and attacked. They fought on the move across a thousand leagues, until their arrows were used up and they had nowhere to go. The relief column did not come; dead and wounded troops lay in heaps. Never theless, Li Ling gave a shout to cheer up his army, and not a soldier failed to rise; he was weeping, swallowing the tears running down his bloodied face. They drew their empty crossbows and faced down naked blades; fac ing north, they fought with the enemy to the death. Before L i Ling was destroyed, a messenger brought word o f him; and all the great lords, princes, and counts of Han lifted their goblets in a toast to his health. Several days afterward, the letter bearing news of Li Ling's de feat became known, and on this account His Majesty found no savor in his meals and took no pleasure in holding court. The great officers of the court were worried and fearful, not knowing what to do. Without giving due consideration to m y lowly position, I saw that His Maj esty was despondent and distressed, and I truly wanted to offer him my sincere thoughts on the matter. I held that Li Ling always gave up fine food and shared meager fare with his attendant gentlemen, that he was able to get men to die for him to a degree that was unsurpassed even by the famous generals of antiquity. Though he was defeated, if one but considered his in tentions, they should make up for it and repay what he owes the Han. Noth ing could be done about what had happened, but those he had defeated were an accomplishment sufficient to make him famous in the empire. I had it in mind to make this case, but had not yet had the means . Then it happened that I was summoned and questioned; and I spoke highly of Li Ling's ac-
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complishments in this way, wanting to set His Majesty's mind to rest and stop malicious comments. I was not able to be entirely persuasive. Our wise ruler did not fully un derstand, thinking that I was trying to injure the Ni-shi general, Li Guang Ii, and acting as a personal advocate of Li Ling. I was subsequently sent to prison. And never was I able to demonstrate the depth of my loyalty. In the end I was convicted of having tried to deceive the Emperor. My family was poor, and I didn't have the means to buy my way out. None of my friends came to my rescue. My colleagues, kin, and close friends did not say a sin gle word on my behalf. The body is not a thing of wood or stone; and alone in the company of j ailers, in the hidden depths of a dungeon, to whom could I complain ? This you can see for yourself now, Ren An-was what happened to me any different? Since Li Ling surrendered alive, he ruined the good name of his family. Yet I too, in my turn, came to the silken chambers, where the knife is used, and I am the laughingstock of the world. Oh, the misery of it ! The matter is not easy to explain in a few words to ordinary people. My father's accomplishments were not such as would bring the imperial seal of investiture among the nobility; writers of history and astronomical calcula tions are close in status to diviners and soothsayers. His Maj esty finds amusement in such, and we are kept by him on a par with singers and ac robats, thus held in contempt by the common opinion. Suppose that I had bowed to the law and accepted execution; it would have been like the loss of a single hair from a herd of cattle, a death no different from that of an ant or a cricket. And the world would never have granted that I might be compared to those who could die for principle. They would have consid ered it nothing more than a person finally accepting death because he could think of no way out of the gravity of his crime, someone with no other choice. Why is this ? It would have been the consequence of the position in which I had so long established myself. Human beings truly have but one death. There are deaths that seem heav ier than Mount Tai, but to some death seems lighter than a piece of swans down. The difference lies in what is done by dying. Uppermost is not to bring dishonor upon one's forebears; next is not to bring dishonor upon oneself; next is not to dishonor the right or appearances; next is not to dishonor one's own words; next is to bear the dishonor of bending in submission; next is to bear the dishonor of changing into the uniform of a prisoner; next is to bear the dishonor of being flogged, tied with a rope to the pillory; next is to bear the dishonor of having one's head shaved and bound in metal chains; next is to bear the dishonor of having one's flesh cut and one's limbs am putated; but the worst of all is castration-that is the ultimate. Tradition says : " Physical punishments are not applied to grandees . " This means that a gentleman has n o choice but to b e severe in guarding his honor. The fierce tiger dwells in the depths of the mountains, and all crea tures there quake in fear of him; b ut when he falls into a pit, he wags his tail for food-this follows gradually from constraining his fearsome power.
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Thus if you mark out the form of a prison cell on the ground, a gentleman will not enter it; and if you cut a piece of wood to represent the warden, he will not speak to it in his own defense; he has made of his mind to show who he is [by suicide] . But let him cross his hands and feet to receive the manacles and rope, let him expose his flesh to receive the blows of the rod, hide him away in an enclosed cell-and in a situation like this he will knock his head to the ground when he sees the warden and he will breathe hard in terror when he catches sight of the guards. Why is this ? It is the natural out come of constraining fearsome power. And brought to such a state, anyone who says that there is no dishonor is putting up a false front and deserves no esteem. Yet King Wen, the Earl of the West, may have been an earl, but he was held in the prison at You-Ii; Li Si was a minister, yet he endured each of the five punishments; Han Xin of Huai-yin was a prince, yet he endured the stocks in Chen; of Peng Yue and Zhang Ao, who sat on the throne and called themselves rulers, one went bound to prison, and the other, to death; Jiang hou Zhou-bo executed all the members of the Lu clan and his power was greater than that of the five earls, yet he was imprisoned in a dungeon await ing death; Wei Qi was a great general, yet he wore the prisoner's uniform and was bound head, hands, and feet; Ji Bu became a slave of the Zhu clan; Guan-fu bore dishonor in the guest chambers . All these men had reached the p ositions of prince, count, general, o r min ister, and their fame was known far and wide; but when they were accused and brought before the law, they could not summon the resolution to kill themselves. When one is lying in the dirt, it is the same thing, both in an cient times and in the present-how could one think they were not dishon ored! Judging from these examples, courage and fearfulness depend on the situation; resolution and weakness are circumstantial. Reflect on it-there's nothing strange about it! For if a man cannot commit suicide before he is brought to the law, he is already slowly slipping down to the whips and rods. And if he wants to assert his honor then, it is already far out of reach. Cer tainly this is the reason why the ancients thought it a grave matter to apply physical punishments to grandees. By their very nature all human beings are greedyfor life and hate death, care about their parents, are concerned for their wives and children. But it is otherwise for those who are stirred up by their sense of right, and in fact they cannot help themselves. I had the misfortune to lose both my parents early in life; and not having brothers to be my close family, I was all alone. And you can see how much I took wife and children into consideration ! Yet a man of courage does not necessarily die for honor; and when fearful man aspires to the right, he will strive in any way he can. I may have been fear ful and weak in choosing life at any cost, but I also recognize quite well the proper measure in how to act. How then could I come to the dishonor of letting myself sink into prison bonds ? If even a captive slave girl can take her own life, certainly someone like me could do the same when all was lost. The reason I bore through it in silence and chose to live at any cost, the rea140
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son I did not refuse to be covered in muck was because I could not stand to leave something of personal importance to me unfinished, because I despised perishing without letting the glory of my writings be shown to posterity. The number of rich and noble men in ancient times whose names have been utterly wiped away is beyond reckoning; the only ones who are known are the exceptional, those outside the norm. King Wen of Zhou, when Earl of the West, was in captivity and elaborated the Classic of Changes; Con fucius was in a desperate situation and wrote The Springs and Autumns of Lu; Qu Yuan was banished, and only then composed the Li Sao; Zuo Qiu ming lost his sight, and he wrote The Discourses of the Domains; Sun-zi had his feet amputated, and then his Techniques of \\"' ar was drawn up; Lu Bu wei was demoted to Shu, from which has been preserved the Synopticon of · Lu; Han Fei was imprisoned by Qin and wrote "Troubles of Persuasion" and " Solitary Outrage . " The three hundred Poems were for the most part written as the expression of outrage by good men and sages. All of these men had something eating away at their hearts; they could not carry through their ideas of the Way, so they gave an account of what had happened before while thinking of those to come. In cases like Zuo Qiu-ming's sightlessness or Sun zi's amputated feet, these men could never be employed; they withdrew and put their deliberations into writing in order to give full expression to their outrage, intending to reveal themselves purely through writing that would last into the future. Being, perhaps, too bold, I have recently given myself over to writing that lacks ability. I have compiled neglected knowledge of former times from all over the world; I have examined these for veracity and have given an ac count of the principles behind success and defeat, rise and fall. In all there are one hundred and thirty chapters. In it I also wanted to fully explore the interaction between Heaven and Man, and to show the continuity of trans formations of past and present. It will become an independent discourse that is entirely my own. The draft version was not yet completed when this mis fortune happened to me; I could not bear that it not be completed, so I sub mitted to the most extreme punishment without showing my ire. When I have actually completed this book, I will have it stored away on some fa mous mountain, left for someone who will carry it through all the cities. Then I will have made up for the blame that I earlier incurred by submit ting to dishonor. I could die thousands of deaths without feeling regret. This, however, may be said only to a wise man; you can't explain it to an ordi nary person. It is not easy to live enduring contempt, and the inferior sort of people usually put a malicious interpretation on things. It was by the spoken word that I met this misfortune; and if I am also exposed to the ridicule of the people of my native region, dishonoring my ancestors, how could I ever again face the tomb mound of my parents ? The blot on our name would grow worse and worse, even after a hundred generations. Thus every day I feel a pang in the heart again and again. When I'm in the house, I am distracted, as though I am not there; when I'm outside, I don't know where I'm going. 141
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My thoughts keep returning to this shame, and I always break into a sweat that soaks my clothes. I am fit to serve only in the women' s quarters, and I ") would rather take myself off to hide deep away in the caves of the cliffs. But I keep on following the ordinary world, rising and sinking, moving with the times, keeping in communication with fools. Now you, Ren An, instructed me to recommend worthy men-would not that be the wrong thing to do, considering my private aims? Even if I wanted to give myself refinement and explain myself with gracious words, it would do no good, because ordinary people would not credit me and I would only earn more humiliation. Only when I am dead will the final judg ment be made. Writing cannot say all that is in a person's mind, thus I give you only the rough account of my thoughts . Even by the sta n d a rd s of e a r l i e r h i sto r i c a l writi n gs, S i - m a Q i a n was an i d i osyn cratic h i sto r i a n . Nowhere i s th i s m o re c l e a r than in the fi rst of h i s " B i ograp h i es," o n the a n c i e nt h e r m i ts Bo Y i and S h u Q i . These a re the earl i est figu res treated in the b i ograp h ies, a n d S i - m a Q i a n beg i n s by try i n g t o separate figu res o f h i sto ry from fig u res of l ege n d . Yet very q u i c k l y the i s s u e t u r n s to q u esti o n s of y i e l d i n g power, r i g h t, starvat i o n , a n d the fa i rness of Heave n . I n the backgro u n d we can hear the reso nance of S i- m a Qian's sense of his own wro n g s . The h i stor i a n opens by affi r m i n g his fa ith in the Confu c i a n C l as s i cs, and c l oses with a f l u rry of q u otations, try i n g to make sense of the s u ffe r i n g that good men h ave had to end u re .
The Biography of Bo Yi and Shu Qi Texts by men of learning range most widely in what they include, yet we look into the Six Classics for what is reliable. Although works were omit ted from the Poems and Documents, still we can read writings from the times of Shun and Yu. Sage-King Yao planned to cede the throne and yielded his place to Shun. Between Shun's accession and that of Yu, governors and prefects all rec ommended men. Shun tested them in posts and let them perform their of fices over several decades; only after there was ample evidence of merit and ability did he hand over the reins of government. This testifies to the fact that the empire is a weighty vessel, and the kingship is the supreme office. Thus it is no easy thing to pass the empire from one person to another. And yet tellers of tales say that Yao offered up the empire to Xu You, but Xu You would not take it and fled out of shame into hiding. Bian Sui and Wu Guang did the same in the time of Xia . But how did these men be come widely known ? This is my opinion as Lord Historian: I personally climbed Mount Ji, on whose summit was reputed to be the grave of Xu You. When Confucius named the gentle, the good, and the sagely men of antiquity, he went into some detail in cases like Wu Tai-bo and Bo Yi. Now from what I have heard, Xu You and Wu Guang were supposed to have had the highest sense of 142
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right-why is it, then, that they are not even mentioned in passing in Con fucius' writing? Confucius said: "Bo Yi and Shu Qi did not brood on old hatreds, and thus they felt little bitterness of spirit. " He also said: "They sought feeling for their fellow man and achieved it-so how could they have known bit terness of spirit ? " I myself am moved by Bo Yi's sense of purpose, and when I look at his poem that has come down to us, I find it remarkable. This is the story about them. Bo Yi and Shu Qi were two sons of the Lord of Gu-zhu. Their father wanted Shu Qi to take his place, but when their father died, Shu Qi yielded to Bo Yi. Bo Yi said: "Those were our father's orders , " and he fled into hiding. But Shu Qi also refused to become Lord of Gu-zhu and fled into hiding. Then the people of the domain made the middle son lord. Then Bo Yi and Shu Qi heard tha t the Earl of the West [King Wen of the Zhoul took good care of the elderly, and they considered going to put them selves under his protection. But when they arrived, the Earl of the West had died; and King Wu had taken his father's Spirit Tablet, given his father the title " King Wen , " and gone east to attack King Zhow of the Shang. Bo Yi and Shu Qi stopped King Wu's horse and criticized him: " Can this be con sidered the right way for a son to behave, taking up arms even before your father's funeral rites have been completed? And can a subj ect murdering his ruler be considered feeling for one's fellow man ? " The king's party wanted to put them to the sword, but his Counselor Tai-gong said: " These men have a sense of right. " And he helped them up and sent them away. When King Wu had settled the lawlessness of the Shang, all the world gave their allegiance to the Zhou; yet Bo Yi and Shu Qi thought that to be something shameful, and out of their sense of right they refused to eat the grain of Zhou. They lived as hermits on Shou-yang Mountain and picked bracken ferns to eat. As they were dying
of hunger, they composed a song,
whose words go: We climbed West Hill, we picked its bracken. Brute force for brute force he knew not it was wrong. Shen-nong, Yu, and Xia gone in a flash, where can we turn ? Ah, let us depart now, our lifespans are done. And then they died of hunger on Shou-yang Mountain.
Considered in this light, did they or did they not feel bitterness of spirit ? There are those who say: "The Way of Heaven shows no personal favorites and always provides for good men . " Can we or can we not consider people like Bo Yi and Shu Qi good men ? To have such a history of kindness 143
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to one's fellow men and to be so pure in actions, yet to die from hunger! Of his seventy disci pIes, Confucius singled out Yan Hui for praise for his love of learning. Yet Yan Hui lived in dire poverty and never ate his fill even of J grain mash or bran. And he died before his time . How is it then that Heaven repays good men with its gifts ? Zhi the Outlaw killed innocent men every day and fed on their flesh. A brutal, savage man, he committed every kind of Qutrage and gathered a band of several thousand men who wreaked havoc all over the world. In the end he died at a ripe old age. From what virtue did this follow ? These are particularly clear and obvious cases. And if we come down to more recent times, conduct beyond the rules of morality and willful trans gressions have brought lifetimes of carefree pleasures and great wealth passed on for endless generations. Others take care where they tread, speak up only when it is timely, take no dark byways, and are stirred only for j us tice and the common good; yet the number of such people who have met with disaster is beyond reckoning. I cannot understand this at all. Is this what is meant by the "Way of Heaven " ? Confucius said: " Men who follow different ways cannot make judgments for one an o ther . " Each person follows his own aims in life . He further said: " If wealth and noble station could be properly sought, I would seek them, even if it meant being the king's meanest servant; but since they cannot be sought, I will follow what I love . " And: " Only in the cold of the year can you know that pine and cypress are the last to turn brown . " When all the world is foul and corrupt, the pure man appears most clearly. O bviously what is considered so important by some is despised by others. " The man of virtue is pained by the thought of dying without his name being known . " [Analects] Jia Yi wrote: Grasping men spend themselves for goods; brash warriors spend themselves for glory. The man overweening will die for power, and the common man covets his life . " Things of equal light reveal one another; things of the same kind seek one another . " [ Classic of Changes] " Clouds follow the dragon; winds follow th e tiger; the Sage arises and all things are perspicuous . " [ Classic o f Changes] Although Bo Yi and Shu Qi were virtuous men, it was through Confu cius that their names became more widely known. Though Yan Hui was de voted to learning, like the fly on the tail of a fine steed, his actions became more widely famed. It is most sad that men who live in caves in the cliffs may have an equal sense of appropriateness in their decisions, yet their good names are obliterated and never known. How can folk of the villages who wish to perfect their behavior and establish their names be known to later generations unless through some gentleman who rises high in the world ? 144
Early China In S i - m a Q i a n ' s accou nts of the H a n , we see fi n e j u d gments of c h a racter with i n a co m p l ex pol itical wo r l d . B u t i n m a n y of the n a r ratives of the Warri n g States a n d the fou n d i n g of the Han, we find someth i n g that m i ght best be cal l ed h i sto r i c a l romanc e . T h i s i s a wo r l d o f stratagems, heroi s m , and someti mes betraya l ; t h e c u rrency o f h o n o r is, m o re often t h a n not, death . The Pri nce of W e i i s the pe rfect W a r r i n g States l o rd , u s i n g his w e a l t h a n d the power o f d efere nce t o gath er loyal reta i ners to e m ploy in his own com m i tments of honor. H i dden a m o n g the c o m m o n fo l k everyw h e re are worthy men, capab l e of deeds of strength or sage advice. The d i scern i n g l o rd k n ows how to fi n d them and w i n them ove r. S u c h barely v i s i b l e h e roes are necessary to cou nter a g reat danger. The Ki ngdom of Q i n is the r i s i n g m i l itary power of the d ay, th reaten i n g the s m a l l e r states of N o rth C h i n a, s u c h as Wei and Z h a o .
The Prince of Wei Wu-ji, the Prince of Wei, was the youngest son of King Zhao of Wei and the half brother of King An-li [r. 278-243 B.C.] . When King Zhao died, King An-Ii took the throne and enfeoffed the prince as Lord of Lin-ling. That was the time when Fan Sui, out of his bitterness against Wei Qi, had fled Wei to become a royal adviser in Qin. Qin troops surrounded Da liang and smashed Wei's army at the foot of Mount Hua-yang, sending Wei's general Mang Mao into flight. The King of Wei and the prince were deeply troubled because of this. The prince was the sort of person who showed kindness to others and treated gentlemen with deference. No matter whether the person was virtu ous or unworthy, he treated all with humility and received them with cour tesy, taking care not to behave haughtily because of his wealth and noble rank. As a result gentlemen from several thousand leagues around flocked to his service, until he had three thousand retainers eating at his table. At this time, because of the prince's virtue and the number of his retainers, the high nobility of the domains did not dare use their troops in designs against Wei for more than ten years . Once the prince was playing chess with the King of Wei when beacon fires were lit from the northern reaches of the kingdom. They were told that raiders had come from Zhao and crossed the border. The King of Wei quit the game and was going to summon his chief officers for consultation, but the prince stopped him, saying, " It's j ust the King of Zhao out on a hunt; he's not raiding us. " They returned to their game of chess, but the king was apprehensive and his mind wasn't on the game . After a short while word was again brought from the north: "The King of Zhao is j ust hunting; he's not on a raid . " The King of Wei was amazed and asked, "How did you know ? " The prince replied, " One of my retainers has in -depth access to the King of Zhao's secrets . Whatever the King of Zhao does, my retainer reports it to me. This is how I knew. " After that the King of Wei stood in awe of the prince's virtue and his abilities, and he dared not entrust the prince with political power in the kingdom. 145
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In Wei there was a man named Hou Ying, who kept out of the public eye. Seventy years old, his household was poor, and he served as the gate keeper of the Yi Gate in Da-liang. The prince heard of him and went to visit him, with the intention of giving him a generous gift. Hou Ying refused to accept it, saying, " For several decades now I have cultivated my virtue and acted blamelessly; I could never accept a present from you simply because of the hardships of my life as a gatekeeper . " The prince then held a great party with beer for his guests and retainers . ' When everyone was seated, the prince set off with his chariots and riders, leaving the place of honor at his left empty. He personally made an invita tion to Hou Ying at Yi Gate. Hou Ying straightened his tattered cap and robes, then got right up on the prince 's chariot and took the position of the social superior. He didn't defer to the prince because he wanted to observe him. The prince took the reins in his own hand and became increasingly re spectful. Then Hou Ying said to the prince, "I have a retainer in the butcher shops of the marketplace-I would like you and your entourage to make a detour to visit him . " The prince then turned his chariot into the marketplace, where Hou Ying got down and met with his retainer Zhu Hai. Watching out of the corner of his eye, he stood there a long time on purpose, talking to his retainer, and he secretly observed the prince. The prince's expression was even more calm. Meanwhile, Wei's generals, counselors, members of the royal family, and the prince's retainers filled his hall, waiting for the prince before beginning to drink. The people in the marketplace were all watching the prince holding the reins. And the attendant riders were all curs ing Hou Ying under their breaths . Once Hou Ying saw that the prince's ex pression would never change, he took leave of his retainer and went back to the chariot. When they reached his home, the prince led Hou Ying to the seat of honor, commending to him each of his guests in turn . The guests were all amazed. Then, growing merry from drink, the prince rose to offer a toast to Hou Ying. But then Hou Ying told the prince, " I've already done enough on your behalf today. I am but the person who bars Yi Gate, yet you came with chariots and horsemen to invite me personally into this great gather ing of people. One should not overdo things, and today you have really over done it. Nevertheless, I wanted to complete your reputation, so on purpose I made your chariots and riders stand there so long in the marketplace; I stopped by to visit my retainer in order to observe you, and you became even more respectful. The people of the marketplace all think of me as someone of no importance, and yet you found it within you to treat me with defer ence as an elder . " At this the party ended, and thereafter Hou Ying became the most honored of the retainers. Hou Ying told the prince, "The butcher I stopped by to visit is Zhu Hai . He is a worthy man, but no one has been able to recognize his worth, so he lives out of the public eye among the butchers . " The prince went to pay his respects a number of times, but Zhu Hai purposefully did not return the greeting. And the prince thought it very strange. 146
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In the twentieth year of King An-Ii's reign, King Zhaw of Qin had smashed the army of Zhao at Chang-ping and sent his troops on to surround the Zhao capital at Han-dan. The prince's sister was the wife of the Lord of Ping-yuan, who was the younger brother of King Hui-wen of Zhao. The Lord of Ping-yuan sent a number of letters to the King of Wei and the prince, asking that Wei save them. The King of Wei sent his general Jin Bi with a hundred thousand troops to save Zhao; but the King of Qin sent an envoy to tell the King of Wei, "I am attacking Zhao, and it will fall any day now; but if any of the great nobility dare to try to save it, I will move my troops to strike them first, once I have seized Zhao . " The King of Wei grew frightened and sent someone to stop Jin Bi and hold his army in a fortified camp at Yeo He was to say publicly that he was going to save Zhao, but in fact he was to keep his options open while observing the situation. One after another the caps and carriages of envoys from the Lord of Ping yuan came through Wei and they reproved the prince: " The reason why I, Sheng, Lord of Ping-yuan, allied myself with you through marriage was be cause of your noble sense of right, which makes you rush to someone in dire need. Han-dan may fall to Qin any day now and no rescue has come from Wei-where now is your willingness to rush to help someone in dire nee d! But even i f you care nothing about me and would abandon me to Qin, have you no pity at all for your sister ? " The prince was very upset b y this and often pleaded with the King of Wei; and the political strategists among his retainers plied the king with thou sands of persuasive reasons. But the King of Wei stood in dread of Qin and he never heeded the prince. Taking the measure of the situation, the prince realized that he would never win over the king; and he decided that he could not stay alive himself while letting Zhao perish. He then called on his retainers, and gathered and mustered more than a hundred chariots and horsemen, intending to go against Qin's army with his retainers and to die together with Zhao. He went past Yi Gate a n d m e t with H o u Ying, explaining t o him the en tire situation that led him to plan to die b efore Qin's army. As he said his farewell and went on his way, Hou Ying said, "Do the best you can ! I'm old and can't go with you . " After going several leagues, the prince felt uneasy and said to himself, "I have treated Hou Ying perfectly in every way! Every one in the world knows about it. Now I'm going off to die, yet Hou Ying never offered the least piece of advice to see me off. Could I have possibly failed him in some way ? " He turned his chariot around and went back to ask Hou Ying, who laughed and said, "I knew quite well that you would be back. " He continued, "You delight in gentlemen-retainers, and your repu tation is known all over the world. Now there is a crisis, and having no other recourse, you plan to go against Qin's army. I would compare this to toss ing meat to a ravenous tiger. What will you accomplish by that? How will you make use of your retainers? Still, you have treated me generously, so that when you left, I didn't see you off, knowing by this that you would feel wronged and come back . " 147
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The prince bowed to him several times and next asked him what to do. Hou Ying then made the others withdraw and spoke quietly to the prince: "I have heard that the tally authorizing Jin Bi to use his troops is always in the king's bedchamber. Lady Ru enj oys his favors most often; and since she passes in and out of the king's bedchamber, it is within her power to steal it. I have heard that Lady Ru's father was murdered, and this has occupied her thoughts for three years . She has sought to get revenge on her father's killer from th e king on down, but she has never gotten satisfaction. When Lady Ru pleads weeping before you, send a retainer to cut off her enemy's head and respectfully present it to her. In her readiness to die for you Lady Ru would refuse you nothing, but she will not be able to think of any means . Indeed, all you have to do is open your mouth once and ask this of her , and Lady Ru will surely agree. Then you will get the tally to seize Jin Bi's army, go north to save Zhao, and make Qin retreat back to the west. This will be a campaign worthy of the Five Overlords . " The prince followed his plan and made the request 0 f Lady Ru. And the outcome was that Lady Ru stole the tally for Jin Bi's troops and gave it to the prince. When the prince set out, Hou Ying said, " When a general is away from the capital, there are cases when he will not accept his ruler's orders if it seems in the best interest of the kingdom. Once you match the tallies, if Jin Bi does not give you the troops and makes further inquiries, you will be in a very dangerous situation . 1 My retainer, the butcher Zhu Hai, should go together with you; he is a man of strength and force. If Jin Bi obeys, that would be best; but if he doesn't obey, have Zhu Hai strike him. At this the prince began to weep, and Hou Ying said, " Are you dread ing death-why are you weeping ? " The prince replied, "Jin Bi is a stout hearted old general from way back. When I go there, I'm afraid he won't obey me and I'll have to kill him. That's the only reason I'm weeping. Of course I don't dread dying. " Next the prince went to make his request of Zhu Hai. Zhu Hai laughed and said, "I am j ust a butcher who wields a knife in the marketplace, yet you have personally paid your respects to me on a number of occasions . The reason why I didn't respond was that such a small courtesy would have been of no use. Now you are in a crisis, and this is the season for me to put my life at your disposal . " He then went off together with the prince. The prince visited Hou Ying to take his leave, and Hou Ying said, " It would be right that I go with you, but I am too old. Reckon up the number of days you will be traveling, and on the day when you are to reach Jin Bi's army, I will face north and cut my throat as my farewell to you, my prince . " Then the prince set off. 'Authority was d e l egated by means of a broken ta l l y, of w h i c h the r u l e r kept half. By b r i n g i n g the r u l e r' s half of the ta l l y and matc h i n g i t up with the general ' s ha lf, the bearer demon strated that he was acti n g on the authority of the r u l e r .
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When he reached Ye, he pretended that the King of Wei had ordered him to take Jin Bi's place. Jin Bi matched the tallies, but doubted him; raising his hand, he looked at the prince and said, " Here I am surrounded by a host of a hundred thousand, camped on the frontier, bearing a grave responsibility to the kingdom. How is it that you can come in a single chariot to take my place ? " He was not going to obey. Zhu Hai drew an iron club weighing twenty-five pounds out of his sleeve and bludgeoned Jin Bi to death. The prince then took command of Jin Bi's army . He had his officers convey these commands to the army: "If a father and son are both in the army, let the fa ther go home; if brothers are both in the army, let the elder go home; if there is an only son with no brothers, let him go home to take care of his par ents . " From this he got eighty thousand select troops and advanced to strike the army of Qin. The Qin army broke its siege and left. Thus he rescued Han
dan and saved Zhao. The King of Zhao and the Lord of Ping-yuan personally welcomed the prince at the edge of the city. The Lord of Ping-yuan carried a quiver of ar rows as a sign of respect, and he led the way for the prince. The King of Zhao bowed to him repeatedly, saying, " None of the virtuous and worthy men since ancient times is your equal. " And at this time the Lord of Ping yuan did not dare compare him with anyone. The prince had said his farewell to Hou Ying; and when he had reached the army, Hou Ying at last faced north and cut his own throat. The King of Wei was enraged that the prince had stolen his tally for the army, then bluffed Jin Bi and killed him. And for his own part the prince too knew this. Having forced Qin to withdraw and having saved Zhao, he had the generals take the army back to Wei, while he and his retainers stayed in Zhao. King Xiao-cheng of Zhao was indebted to the prince for having seized Jin Bi's troops by a bluff and saved Zhao, so he planned with the Lord of Ping-yuan to give the prince five cities as a fief. When the prince heard of this, he felt very proud of himself and his face showed his sense of his own achievements. One of the prince' s retainers counseled him, " There are some things that should not be forgotten and some things that you should always forget. If you are in debt to someone else, you should not forget it; but if someone else is in debt to you, I would encourage you to forget it. To have pretended to be acting under the King of Wei's order and seized Jin Bi's troops in order to save Zhao was indeed a great achievement to Zhao, but to Wei it was not being a loyal subject. You are in fact very proud of your self and think it was a great achievement, but in my own opinion you should n't have taken this course . " A t this the prince immediately rebuked himself, and i t seemed a s i f he couldn't stand himself. The King of Zhao had the stairs swept and welcomed him personally; and carrying out the ceremony of a host, he led the prince to the western stairs. But the prince backed away and declined the honor, going up by the eastern stairs. He spoke of his own transgressions, having
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been disloyal to Wei and having accomplished nothing important for Zhao. The King of Zhao accompanied him drinking until sundown, bu t he couldn't bring himself to present the five cities because of the prince 's modesty. In the end the prince stayed in Zhao . The King of Zhao gave him Hao as a trib utary city, and even the King of Wei restored to him his fief of Xin-ling. But the prince stayed in Zhao. The prince heard that in Zhao there was a recluse, one Master Mao, who hid himself amOl1g gamblers, and another, Master Xue, who hid himself among tavern keepers . The prince wanted to meet both of them, but they both concealed themselves and were unwilling to meet him. When the prince found out where they were, he went secretly on foot to keep them company, and he enjoyed it greatly. The Lord of Ping-yuan heard about this and told his wife, "I first heard of your brother the prince as someone without peer in all the world. Now I heard about him recklessly keeping company with gamblers and tavern keepers. The prince is a reckless man . " The lady informed the prince about this. The prince then took his leave of her, saying, "I first heard of the Lord of Ping-yuan as a worthy man, and for that reason I betrayed the King of Wei to save Zhao-to satisfy the Lord of Ping-yuan. Those with whom the Lord of Ping-yuan keeps company are only the arrogant and overbearing; he does not seek out gentlemen. When I, Wu-j i, was back in Da-liang, I heard constantly of the worthiness of these two men; and when I came to Zhao, I was afraid that I wouldn't get the chance to meet them. I was even afraid that they might not want me to keep them company. If now the Lord of Ping-yuan considers this a cause for em barrassment, then he is not worth keeping company. " At this he started pack ing to depart. The lady repeated everything that he had said to the Lord of Ping-yuan. And the Lord of Ping-yuan removed his cap and apologized, insisting that the prince stay. When the Lord of Ping-yuan's followers heard of this, half of them left the Lord of Ping-yuan for the prince; and again gentlemen from all the world over flocked to the prince, until the prince had taken all the Lord of Ping-yuan's retainers. The prince stayed in Zhao for ten years without returning. When the Qin ruler heard that the prince was in Zhao, he constantly sent troops eastward to raid Wei. The King of Wei was deeply troubled by this and sent envoys to go ask help from the prince. But the prince was afraid that the king was angry with him, and he gave this warning to his followers : "Whoever dares come as an envoy of the King of Wei dies ! " His retainers then all abandoned Wei and went to Zhao, and none of them dared urge the prince to return. Then both Masters Mao and Xue went to meet the prince and said, " The reason why you are treated with importance in Zhao and your fame is known among the great nobility is due only to the existence of Wei. Qin now attacks Wei. If you do not take pity on Wei in its hour of dire distress and then Qin should smash Da-liang and level the ancestral temples of its for mer kings, how will you have the face to stand up in the world ? " Before they
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finished speaking, the expression on the prince's face suddenly changed; he told his drivers to prepare his train to go home and rescue Wei. The King of Wei met the prince, and they came together in tears . And the king gave the prince the seal of the supreme general of his armies. The prince then took command. In the thirtieth year of King An-Ii of Wei, the prince sent envoys to all the high lords of the domains . When the high lords heard that the prince was the general, each sent generals with troops to res cue Wei . The prince led the troops of the Five Domains to crush the Qin army at He-wai, putting their general Meng Ao to flight and following up on their victory by pursuing the Qin army to Han-gu Pass, where they so subdued the troops of Qin that they did not dare come forth. At this time the prince's power shook the whole world, and retainers of the high lords of the domains submitted their techniques of warfare to him. The prince put each down under its appropriate name, in what is commonly called today The Military Techniques o f the Prince o f Wei. The King of Qin was greatly troubled by this and had ten thousand mea sures of silver transported to Wei to win over a retainer of Jin Bi. He or dered him to speak ill of the prince to the King of Wei, saying, " The prince fled the kingdom and lived for ten years in a foreign country. Now he is a general of Wei, and the generals of the high lords of the domains are all sub ordinate to him . The high lords have heard only of the Prince of Wei; they have not heard of the King of Wei. And if the prince should take advantage of the moment to establish himself as king and ruler, the high lords would stand in dread of the prince's power and would j oin to support his taking the throne. " O n numerous occasions Qin made devious use o f Wei's intelligence net work by sending false congratulations to the prince regarding whether he had taken the throne as King of Wei. Hearing such slander every day, the King of Wei could not help believing it, and finally he sent s omeone to re place the prince as general. Knowing that he had been removed from office because of repeated slander, the prince refused to go to court on the pretext of illness. He spent the whole night long drinking with his retainers, drinking strong brew, and consorting with many women. For four years he drank and made merry day and night, until at last he died of the effects of drinking. King An-Ii of Wei died that same year. When Qin heard that the prince was dead, Meng Ao was sent to attack Wei. He took twenty cities and established them as the " Eastern Province . " After that, Qin nibbled away a t Wei, and eighteen years later took the King of Wei captive and sacked D a-liang. When Gao-zu, the founder of our dynasty, first lived as a humble man, he frequently heard of the virtues of the prince. Later when he became Son of Heaven, he would always offer up prayers to the prince whenever he passed Da-liang. In his twelfth year [ 1 9 5 B . C . ] , returning from attacking against Jing Bu, he established five families to take charge of maintaining
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the prince's tomb so that offerings would be made to the prince in every sea son forevermore. The Lord Historian: I have passed by the ruins of Da -liang and have looked for the place known as the Yi Gate. The Yi Gate was the eastern gate of the city. Among the princes of this world there were others who delighted in gentlemen-retainers. Still there was good reason why the Lord of Xin-ling made contact with those who lived, removed from the public eye, in the caves of cliffs, and felt no sh,ame in forming relationships with those socially be neath him. It was not for nothing that his fame crowned the high lords of the domains . Whenever our Founder passed by there, he ordered that of ferings be made without end. When D u ke M u of Q i n went to h i s g rave in 6 2 0
S.c.
(see " Ye l low B i rd , " p . 26), the
reta i ners who accompan ied h i m in death were his s u bj ects, men of good fam i l y . War r i n g States reta i n ers of the fo u rth a n d th i rd centu ries were " bo ug ht"-by s u p p o rt, by outright g i fts, a n d , as shown i n the case of the Pri nce of We i , by gestu res of estee m . These m e n were often fo u n d i n t h e l ower strata o f soc i ety-gate kee pers, b utc hers, o r wanderi n g men-at-a r m s . B u t o n c e chosen, they were bound by a code of h o n o r t o d i e for thei r l o r d s . C e n t r a l h e re w a s the q u estion o f " n a m e " o r reputat ion t h a t fo l l owed from the i r self-sacrifice. T h e story o f N i e Z h e n g i s a variation on th i s q u es t i o n , the story of the assass i n - reta i ner who made h i s " n ame" by h i s dete r m i nation to m a ke his death a n o n y m o u s .
from " Biographies of the Assassins " : Nie Zheng Nie Zheng came from the Deepwell section of the city of Zhi. He killed some one, and to escape his enemies' revenge, he went to Qi with his mother and sister. There he worked as a butcher. Some time later Yan Zhong-zi of Pu-yang was in the service of Count Ai of Han, and he had a quarrel with Xia Lei, the Minister of Han. Fearing that he would be executed, Yan Zhong-zi fled and traveled about looking for someone who could get revenge on Xia Lei. When he reached Qi, some of the local people said that Nie Zheng was a man of courage and daring, who lived out of the public eye among butchers in order to escape his ene mIes. Yan Zhong-zi went to his gate to pay his respects but was repeatedly turned away. After that he had beer prepared and went to offer a congrat ulatory toast to Nie Zheng's mother. When everyone was feeling the effects of the beer, Yan Zhong-zi presented a hundredweight of gold to Nie Zheng's mother to wish her a long life. Nie Zheng was alarmed at such generosity and was determined to refuse it. Yan Zhong-zi pressed it on him with j ust as much determination, but Nie Zheng refused, saying, " I am lucky to still have my aged mother. Our household may be poor, but I make my living here as a dog butcher so that I can provide her delicacies to eat every day. She is well provided for, and I dare not accept your gift . " 152
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Yan Zhong-zi had the others withdraw and then said to Nie Zheng, " I have a n enemy and have roamed through many o f the great domains . When I came to Qi, however, I heard of your high sense of right, sir, and this is why I presented the hundredweight of gold-to use for ordinary expenses in taking care of your aged mother and in that way to get on good terms with you. I wouldn't dare expect anything from you for it. " Nie Zheng replied, "The only reason I have curtailed my ambitions and accepted the indignity of working as a butcher in the marketplace has been to take care of my aged mother. So long as my mother is alive, I do not dare commit my self to anyone. " Yan Zhong-zi insisted that Nie Zheng give way, but in the end Nie Zheng refused to accept the gift. Nevertheless, Yan Zhong-zi played out his proper role as a guest and then left. Some time later Nie Zheng's mother died. After she was buried and the period of mourning completed, Nie Zheng said, "To think that I am but a man of the marketplace, one who wields the knife as a butcher, while Yan Zhong-zi is an adviser of the high nobility, and yet he did not think it too much to turn his carriage and riders to meet me ! The way I treated him was ungenerous in the extreme. I had done nothing important to deserve it, yet he offered a hundredweight in gold for my mother's sake. Even though I didn't accept it, in doing this he was simply showing how deeply he under stood me. How can I j ust do nothing when a good and worthy man has been stirred to glaring rage and then personally shows his confidence in a poor and humble man ? When he pressed me earlier, I acted as I did only because of my mother. Now that my mother has lived out her natural span, I will be of use to this man who so well understands me. " He next went west to Pu-yang, and meeting Yan Zhong-zi said, "The only reason that I could not commit myself to you earlier was because my mother was still alive . Now unfortunately her years are over. Who is it that you want me to take revenge on ? Please let me carry this matter through . " Yan Zhong-zi told him the whole story: " My enemy i s Xia Lei, the Minis ter of Han. Xia Lei is also the uncle of the ruler of Han. His kindred are very numerous, and whenever he stays outside his compound, he is extremely well guarded. I tried to get people to assassinate him, but none was ever suc cessful. Now I am lucky that you have not rej ected me, so let me increase the number of carriages, mounts, and strong warriors to assist you. " Nie Zheng replied, "The distance between Han and Wei is not very great. If you're going to kill a minister and that minister is also a relation of the ruler of a domain, the situation is such that you should not use many people. If you use many people, something will inevitably go wrong; if something goes wrong, word will inevitably leak out; and if word leaks out, the entire do main of Han will be your enemy. Then you really would be in danger ! " Thus Nie Zheng refused carriages, horses, and men. He then said farewell and set out alone. Sword in hand, he came to Han. Xia Lei, the Minister of Han, was seated in his office, and there was a great throng of men with weapons and pikes standing guard around him. Nie Zheng went directly in, climbed the stairs, 153
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and stabbed Xia Lei to death. His entourage was in great confusion. Nie Zheng gave a loud shout and killed several dozen men. Then he cut the skin off his face, gouged out his eyes, cut himself open and pulled out his entrails, and died. The ruler of Han tookNie Zheng's corpse and had it exposed in the mar ketplace, trying to find o ut who the man was-but no one knew. He then offered a reward of a thousand silver pieces to anyone who could tell him who killed the minister Xia Lei. But after a long time no one came forward with this knowledge. Nie Zheng's sister Rong heard that someone had assassinated the Min ister of Han, but that the criminal could not be ascertained because no one in the kingdom knew his name; thus they had exposed his corpse and of fered a reward of a thousand pieces of silver. At this she let out a moan. " Could this be my younger brother ? Alas, Yan Zhong-zi understood my brother all too well ! " She went to the capital of Han and to its marketplace, and the dead man was indeed Nie Zheng. She collapsed on the corpse, weeping with the utmost grief. And she said, "This man was known as Nie Zheng, from the Deepwell quarter .of the city of Zhi. " The crowds of peo ple walking through the marketplace all said, "This man assaulted the min ister of our domain, and the king has posted a reward of a thousand pieces of silver for his name-haven't you heard ? How can you dare come here and recognize him ? " Rong answered them, " I have heard. Nevertheless, the reason why Nie Zheng endured disgrace and abandoned himself to the commerce of the mar ketplace was so that our aged mother would come to no harm and because I was not yet married. Once our mother had passed away and I had mar ried, Yan Zhong-zi selected my brother to be his friend, even in his degraded position. He was so kind and generous that my brother had no choice. A gentleman will indeed die for someone who understands him. And now, be cause I was still alive, he has gone further, mutilating himself so there will be no traces to follow. How could I stand in dread of paying with my own life, and by doing so wipe away forever my worthy brother's name ? " This amazed the people in the marketplace of Han. Then she called out to Heaven several times, until, with a piteous moan, she died at Nie Zheng's side. When this story was heard in Jin, Chu, Qi, and Wei, everyone said, "It is not j ust that Nie Zheng showed ability-his sister too was a woman of fierce principles. Suppose that Nie Zheng had truly known that his sister lacked the determination to simply endure the situation and that she would surely cross a thousand leagues of perils, unmindful of the troubles that would come from recognizing the exposed corpse, j ust to proclaim his name. Had he known that, he would not necessarily have committed himself to Yan Zhong-zi. " B u t Y a n Zhong-zi m a y indeed also be known a s someone capable o f ac quiring gentlemen by his ability to understand a person's worth.
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T h e Ch u-ci: " Ly r ics of C h u ff
The
Chu-ci or " Lyrics of C h u "
is, fi rst of a l l , an anthol ogy of rhymed, met
rical works that represent a trad ition of " poetry" q u ite d i st i n ct from that of the
Classic of Poetry.
Th i s trad ition o r i g i n ated in the p re-Q i n K i ngdom
of Chu, a powe rfu l state that g rew up o n the southern m a rg i n s of the Zhou c u ltural reg i o n . As Chu co l l apsed i n the th i rd centu ry B.C. befo re the east ward advance of Q i n ' s arm ies, the capital of C h u a n d its c u ltu ral h e ritage moved east to the c ity of S h o u -c h u n . It was S h o u -c h u n and the s u rrou n d i n g a rea of H u a i n a n a n d W u that became t h e centers o f
Chu-ci learn i n g e a r l y
i n t h e Wester n H a n ;
from there it w a s taken t o t h e H a n capital a n d became a schol a r l y a n d I iterary en te rprise. Thus the anthol ogy cal l ed
Chu-ci c o n s i sts of l ate War r i n g States works fro m
C h u , early Weste rn H a n works written i n a I i v i n g trad ition of the " L y r i c s of C h u , " a n d s c h o l a r l y conti n u at i o n s o f that trad ition l ater i n both t h e Wester n a n d t h e Eastern H a n . N o one fu l l y u n d e rsta n d s t h e n atu re a n d p rove n an ce o f t h e earl i est a n d most i m portant works i n t h e " Lyrics o f C h u . " Trad itio n a l l y, these ea r l i e r texts i n t h e a n t h o l o g y h ave b e e n i nterp reted as the com pos itions of one Qu Y u a n (ca. 3 40-2 7 8 B . C . ) , a n anti-Q i n ari stoc rat who l ost t h e favo r o f t h e C h u ki ngs H u a i a n d Q i ng-x i a n g, was sent i nto ex i l e, and eventu a l l y com m i tted s u i c i d e by d rown i n g h i ms el f in the M i l u o R i ver. The e a r l y works i n t h e
"Lyrics o f Ch u " a re taken t o rep resent v a r i o u s stages
in Q u i Y u a n ' s l ife and career, in w h i c h he a l l ego r i ca l l y l a m ents h i s m i sfo rtu nes, de c l a res h i s vi rtue, attacks those who h ave d efamed h i m , a n d goes o n a cos m i c q u est fo r a worthy l o rd . The deb ate about whether Qu Y u a n w rote a n y or a l l of the wo rks trad ition a l l y attr i b uted to h i m conti n u es a n d i s n ot l i ke l y ever to b e reso l ved . B ut m ost o f t h e po eti c p h ases in t h i s b i z a r re pol itical n a r rative correspond to stages in the re l ation of the s h a m a n - l over to the goddess o r god. The l over l a ments be i n g s p u rned by the god o r goddess, d e c l a res h i s bea uty and worth , then goes through the heave n s on a s p i rit q u est. Th i s s h a m a n i st i c s p i rit q u est, i n vo l v i n g a c i rc u i t of the heavens with a vast caval cade of gods and d ragon-drawn c h a r i ots, e a r l y came to ove r l a p with and se rve as a representation of the D ao i st adept's search fo r s p i r i tu a l a n d p h y s i c a l "tr a n sce n d e n c e . " F u rthermore, this n a r rative of "tra n scendence" ove r l a p ped with Han D a o i st noti o n s of the em peror as god-ki ng, ru l i n g the w o r l d by n o n-acti o n . I n s h o rt, there is an i ntricate pol itico-re l i g i o u s stru ctu re of myth beh i n d several of the most i m portant works in the " Ly r i c s of C h u , " and th i s same str u ct u re i nforms a l a rge body of p rose and poetic expos itions
(fu) from
the l ate Wa r r i n g States and Weste rn H a n .
W e c a n see parts o f it, b u t w e d o not u n d e rsta n d i t fu l l y . T h e fi rst two works tra n s l ated be l ow a re from t h e e a r l y strat u m o f t h e " Ly r i c s of C h u . " "The N i n e Songs" a re, in fact, e l even : n i n e are to deit ies from v a r i o u s pa rts 1 55
Anthology of Chinese Literature of C h i na , o n e is for sol d i e rs of the k i n gd o m who h ave d i ed i n battle, and one is a s h o rt coda on the r i t u a l itself. These a re c l ea r l y l iturgical works i n a s h a m a n i st i c tra d i t i o n . Ten of the e l even are tra n s l ated below. The Li Sao, w h i c h fo l l ows at p. 1 6 2 , i s a l o n g fi rst-person m o n o l ogue ( d i v i d ed i nto n i nety-two fo u r- l i n e stanzas a n d a codal t h at h a s been trad ition a l l y read as the authentic voice of Qu Y u a n . W h ether
it i s i n d eed by Q u Yuan or n ot, we d o k n ow that in performance it wou l d be the d ra m a of Q u Y u a n . ' Ling, u s u a l l y tra n s l ated a s lithe h o l y one [S] ," someti mes refers t o t h e deity i n q u es t i o n a n d at other ti mes to the sacred perfo rm e rs, who i n some cases assume the role o f the d e i ty .
"The N i ne S o n gs" The Sovereign of the East: The O n e (Dong-huang Tai-yi) On a day of good luck, at the well-favored hour with due awe we delight the Sovereign on High. Stroking our long swords, j ade are the hilt-guards, with clinking of pendants, onyx and agate. On yao-fiber mats, j ades weight the corners, we hold in their bunches carnelian blooms, j oints wrapped in sage on orchid-strewn cloths, proffer cinammon wine and peppered beers. Raise up the drumstick, strike now the drums, the beat sparse and slow, steady the song, play pipes and the zithers, let the paean swell; the holy ones sway, gorgeous their gowns, the scent spreads around us, it fills the whole hall, a tumult of all notes, played swiftly together, and our Lord is much pleased, hale in his j oy.
Lord in the Clouds (Yun-zhong jun) In orchid baths bathed, hair washed in blooms' scent, our robes are resplendent, with lavender fl6wers. The holy one writhes, he lingers within her, she glows with a nimbus, his light is unbounded. He shall be here transfixed in the Temple of Life, He whose rays are the equal of sun and the moon; in his dragon-drawn cart, the garb of the god, he soars in his circles around and around. ' 0f the various verse forms in the " Ly r i c s of C h u , " two of the most common break a l i n e i nto h e m i st i c h es, d i vided by either the sound s y l l a b l e xi or a l i ghtly stressed s y l l a b l e . In the tra n s l ation I h ave represented t h i s meter by leav i n g extra spaces at the break in the l i n e. T h i s rou g h l y fo l l ows the l o n g l i ne of accentu a l verse in Old and M i d d l e E n g l i s h , w h i c h was also d i v ided sharply i nto h e m i stiches.
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The holy one glistens, for he has come down; he lifts up in a gust, afar into clouds. He scans all the heartland and far off beyond, across seas on each side; where does he end ? We yearn for our Lord and heave a great sigh, hearts greatly troubled, and fretful within.
The Lady of the Xiang River (Xiang jun) The Lady will not go, still does she linger, who is it stays her on the isle midstream? Lovely gaze, heavy-lidded, her mouth shows a smile; streaming swiftly I ride my cassia boat, and charge Yuan and Xiang to be without waves, and command River's waters to steady their flow. I gaze toward my Lady, I blow on my panpipes,
she will not come; for whom do I yearn ?
I yoke flying dragons and j ourney on north, then bending my way around Lake Dong-ting . Hanging moss is my sail, screens of sweet clover, the oars are of iris, orchids, my flags . Gaze to Cen's sunlit banks, to far northern shores, and across the great river I send my soul flying. I send my soul flying, still it can't reach her; the woman so lovely for me heaves a sigh; my tears now flow freely, trickling down, and I long for the Lady, I am tormented . The paddles were cassia, of magnolia, t h e sweeps, I cut through the ice and raised spray of snow. It was picking hanging moss in the middle of waters; it was plucking the lotus from tips of the trees. When hearts are not one, the go-between struggles; her love was not strong, it lightly was broken. Over stone shallows the current runs swift, my dragons were flying, b eating their wings . Her friendship was faithless, reproach long remains; untrue to her pledge, she told me she had no time . I galloped that dawn on the plain by the river, stayed my pace in the twilight by northern isles, where birds took their lodging high on the roof and the waters were circling the base of the hall. I threw a ring broken down into the river, my pendants I left at the mouth of the Li. 157
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I plucked lavender on flowering isles to give as gift to the woman below. This moment may never be ours again, let us wander off freely and be at our ease.
The Senior Master of Lifespans (Da si-ming) " Open them wide, the gates of the heavens, i n a mass I come riding dark purple clouds, and charge the whirlwinds to speed on ahead, commanding a downpour to moisten the dust. " ,
My Lord sweeps in circles, then He descends, It is I who go with you past Mount Kong-sang. " Earth's nine domains are teeming with men; and their spans, long or short, depend upon me . " High off w e fly, steadily soaring, riding pure vapors, He drives Shadow and Light; then I and my Lord, dashing swiftly ahead, lead on the High God down to Nine Hills. Our robes are of cloud, they flap in the wind, our pendants of j ade sparkle and flash. " Sometimes the Shadow, sometimes the Light; of the many, none know that which I do . " I snapped off a hemp bud and blossoms o f yao-grass to give as a gift to Him Who Dwells Apart; old age steals upon me and now has arrived; His affection withdraws, He grows more remote. He rides his dragon-car, its wheels are rumbling, and racing high off He dashes to Sky, I plait cassia twigs, long stand fixed and gazing, for increase of longing thus troubles a man. What is it then that so troubles a man?I wish that now be forever, and never wane : Fixed is man's fate, it is as it must be; how may it happen that the sundered rej oin ?
The Junior Master of Lifespans (Shao-si-ming), " Lord Iris " Orchids of autumn, the deer-weed, they grow in their rows at the foot of the hall, green are their leaves, pale their stalks, their scent spreads around, hanging upon us. To men have been given children so fair, why should Lord Iris be troubled s o ? 158
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Orchids of autumn, lushly they grow, green are their leaves, purple their stems. The hall is filled with fair women; at once with me only His eyes meet and fix. He comes without speaking, without farewell, goes; He rides on the whirlwind, bears banners of cloud. No grief is so great as parting while living; no j oy so strong as love newly found. His robe is of lotus, sash wound with sweet clover, He comes in a flash, as suddenly leaves; He lodges this night in the fields of the god; for whom waits our Lord at the brink of clouds ? "With you I will roam to the river's nine channels, when blasts of wind rise, heaving the waves; I will wash my hair with you in the Pools of Xian, we will let your hair dry in the Sun Gorge clefts . I gaze for the Fairest, she does not come; I face the wind dazed, loud I sing forth. " With peacock-plume canopies, kingfisher streamers, He mounts nine-banked Sky and strokes comet's tail, high he lifts long sword, weak and young's bulwark Lord Iris alone is fit to rule all the folk.
The Lord of the East (Dong-jun) "I glow coming forth in the eastlands, I shine on my porch by the tree Fu-sang, then slapping my steeds to a steady gallop, the night is lit up, and the day breaks . My dragon team hitched, I ride on the thunder, bearing banners of cloud streaming behind. But I heave a great sigh on the point of ascending; there the heart falters, I look back with care: for the sounds and beauty so give a man j oy those who watch are transfixed and forget to go. Harps tightly strung, the drums alternating, bells being rung, chime frames shaking, fifes sing out, pipes are blown; those who act holy ones, wholesome and comely, hover here winging, suddenly mount, reciting the lyrics joining in dance. Catching the pitch, matching the rhythms, the holy ones come, they cover the sun. 159
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In gown of green cloud and white rainbow mantle, I raise the long arrow, I shoot Heaven's Wolf, with yew-bow in hand I now sink back under, and seize the North Dipper to pour cinnamon wine, then clutching my reins, I rush soaring high, off far through darkness voyaging east. "
The Yellow River's Earl (He-bo) With you I will roam to the river's nine channels, when blasts of wind rise driving waves across stream, we will ride my coach of waters, its canopy, lotus, hitched to paired dragons, by basilisks flanked. I climbed Mount Kun-Iun, I gazed all around, the heart flew aloft, it went sweeping off free. Soon the sun was to set, I, transfixed, forgot going, and then to the far shore I looked back with care. My roofs are of fish scales, halls of the dragon, turrets of purple cowries, palaces of carmine why is the holy one here, down in the water ? We will ride on white turtles, goldfish attend us, with you I will roam by the river's isles, where the current is rushing, there we'll go down. You clasp your hands, j ourneying eastward; you go with the Fairest to the southern shores where the swell of the waves is coming to meet us, and the schools of fishes, will send off my bride.
The Hill Wraith (Shan gui) It seemed there w a s someone i n the cleft of the hills, her mantle was hanging moss, she was girded with ivy, her eyes glanced upon me, her mouth formed a smile: " You who yearn for me, who am so comelyI ride the red leopard, striped lynxes attend me, with magnolia-wood wagon, my flags, plaited cassia, my cloak is stone-orchid, my sash is asarum, I snap the sweet fragrance, gift for him that I love . " She dwells in bamboo's darkness, she never sees sky; the way was steep and hard, late she came and alone. 160
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Alone she stands forth, high on the hill, with clouds' rolling billows there down below her; it grows dim and blacker, daylight turns dark, and in gustings of east wind the goddess rains . I remain for the holy one, transfixed, forget going, the year has grown late, who will clothe me in flowers ? I picked three-bloom asphodel out in the hills, on slopes rough and rocky, through tangles of vines; reproaching the Lady, I in grief forget going, for though she may love me, she does not find time. In the hills there is someone, sweet smell of lavender, she drinks from the stone-springs in shadow of pines.
and though she rna y love me, she holds back unsure. The sky shakes in thunder, with darkness comes rain, the apes are all wailing, in the night monkeys moan; the whistling of winds that howl through the trees; I long for the Lady, fruitless torment I find.
The Kingdom's Dead (Guo-shang) Our great-shields we grasped, donned j erkins of leather, wheelhub scraped wheelhub, short-swords met. Banners blocked sunlight, foemen like clouds, bolts crossed and fell, warriors pressed forward. They break through o u r ranks, they crush down our line, the left horse has fallen, the right horse takes wounds. We dig in both wheels and tie the team to them, grasp the j ade drumstick, strike the great drum, Fate is against us, the spirits are angry, all lie dead on the field, left behind in the meadows. We marched out but not back, we went forth but not home, the plains stretch on far, the j ourney, a long one. Long-swords at waists, bows under arms, heads cut from bodies, hearts never yielding, brave we were truly, stout fighters too, hard to the last, not to be conquered, our bodies are dead, our souls are now gods, among ghosts, the stalwart, heroes among the wraiths. 161
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Rites for Souls (Li hun) The rites are done now, drums beat together, the wands are passed on, new dancers take our place. Fairest maidens' songs, slowly sung and softly, in spring the orchids come, chrysanthemums in fall, forever and unceasing from the first and on forever .
T h e L i Sao O n e of the most d iff i c u l t aspects of the " Ly r i c s of C h u " is its u se of flowers a n d aro m atics, few of w h i c h h ave cou nterparts in E n g l i s h . These were c l e a r l y part of the
cere m o n y and cou l d sta n d fo r q u a l ities of the de i ty, who is, o n o n e occas i o n , ad d ressed by a flower name. In the
Li Sao,
such sacred attri b utes me rge with moral at
t r i b u tes . I h ave u sed E n g l i s h fl owers a n d a ro m atics, w h i c h h ave the i r own asso c i a tions, to s u bstitute fo r some of the m o re exotic flora.
1 Of the god-king Gao-yang I am the far offspring,2 my late honored sire bore the name of Bo-yong. The she-ti stars aimed to the year's first month;3 geng-yin was the day that I came down. 2 He scanned and he delved into my first measure, from the portents my sire gave these noble names: The name that he gave me was Upright Standard; and my title of honor was Godly Poise.4 3 Such bounty I had of beauty within, and to this was added fair countenance . I wore mantles of river rush and remote angelica, strung autumn orchids to hang from my sash. 4 They fled swiftly from me, I could not catclY themI feared the years passing would keep me no company. At dawn I would pluck magnolia on b luffs, in the twilight on isles I culled undying herbs. 2Gao-yang was one of the myth i c emperors of h i g h a n t i q u i ty, from whom t h e C h u r o y a l h o u se ( a n d several o t h e r roy a l h o u ses) c l a i med a ncestry. T h o u g h n o t the ru l i ng fa m i ly, Q u Y u a n ' s c l an, t h e Qu, was o n e of the th ree royal clans of C h u and descended f r o m G ao-ya n g . 3 T h e she-ti stars w e r e a conste l l at i o n by w h o s e p o s i t i o n early astro nomers dete r m i n e d t h e beg i n n i n g of t h e year. 4To c hoose the name, the father reads his "meas u re" : whether that comes from the astro n o m i c a l conj u nctions o f h i s b i rth or h i s p h y s i o g n o m y i s i m poss i b l e t o s a y . T h e s e " a u s p i c i o u s n a m es" are not the names u s u a l l y asso c i ated with Qu Y u a n .
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Days and months sped past, they did not long linger, springtimes and autumns altered in turn. I thought on things growing, on the fall of their leaves, and feared for the Fairest, her drawing toward dark.s 6 Cling to your prime, forsake what is rotting why not change from this measure of yours ? Mount a fine steed, go off at a gallopI will now take the lead, ride ahead on the road. 7 The Three Kings of old were pure and unblemished,6 all things of sweet scent indeed were theirs. Shen's pepper was there, together with cassia, white angelica, sweet clover were not strung alone. 8 Such shining grandeur had Kings Yao and Shun;7 they went the true way, they held to the path . But sloven and scruffy were Kings Jie a n d Zhow;8 they walked at hazard on twisted trails. 9 Those men of faction had ill-gotten pleasures, their paths went in shadow, narrow, unsafe . Not for myself came this dread of doomI feared my king's chariot soon would be tipped. 10 I n haste I went dashing in front and behind, till I came to the tracks of our kings before. Lord Iris did not fathom my nature within,9 he believed ill words, he glowered in rage . 'The "fai rest" i s taken to be a f i g u re for the C h u k i n g as a beautifu l wom a n . T h u s h i s l ater q u est for a m ate is taken as a search fo r a p r i nce who w i l l a p p re c i ate h i s wo rth and e m p l oy h i m . 'The "Th ree K i ngs" are proba b l y the early k i ngs o f C h u , though there i s some d i sagreement o n t h i s poi nt. 'Yao and S h u n were the two Sage- K i ngs of a n t i q u ity revered in Trad i t i on a l i st c i rc l e s in N o rth C h i n a . I n C h u trad itions, either by variant l egend or by some stra nge s y n c ret i s m , they p l a y a n i m portant q u as i - rel i g i o u s ro l e . S h u n , or Zhong-hua, su pposed l y bu ried at Cang-wu in southern Chu (stanza
47), w i l l be the f i g ure the speaker goes to visit to "state his case" about the moral conseq u e n ces of princely behavior. Yao's two daughters married S h u n ; o n S h u n ' s death, they became the river god desses of the X i a n g . 8J i e w a s t h e l ast r u l e r o f t h e X i a Dyn asty a n d Z h o w (actu a l l y Zhou, t h e spe l l i ng h a v i n g b e e n c h a nged to d iffe renti ate h i m from the dynasty that s u p p l anted h i m ) was the l ast r u l e r of the Y i n- S h a n g . Both are taken as exem p l a ry bad r u l e rs . ''' Lord I ri s " i s a ken n i n g (com p o u n d ) f o r the k i ng, now figu red as a m a l e d e ity.
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11 I knew well my bluntness had brought me these woes, yet I bore through them, I could not forswear. I pointed to Heaven to serve as my warrant, it was all for the cause of the Holy One . 12 T o m e a t first firm word h a d been given, she regretted it later, felt otherwise . I made no grievance at this break between us, but was hurt that the Holy One so often changed. 13 I watered my orchids in and planted sweet clover I made plots for peonies mixed with asarum and
all their nine tracts, in one hundred rods; and for the wintergreen, sweet angelica.
14 I wished stalks and leaves would stand high and flourish, I looked toward the season when I might reap. If they withered and dried, it would cause me no hurt, I would grieve if such sweetness went rotting in wee ds. 15 Throngs thrust themselves forward i n craving and want, they never are sated in things that they seek. They show mercy to self, by this measure others, in them the heart stirs to malice and spite. 16 Such a headlong horse race, each hot i n pursuit, is not a thing that thrills my own heart. Old age comes on steadily, soon will be here, I fear my fair name will not be fixed firmly. 17 At dawn I drank dew that dropped on magnolia, in twilight ate blooms from chrysanthemums shed. If my nature be truly comely, washed utterly pure, what hurt can I have in long wanness from hunger? 18 I plucked tendrils of trees to knot white angelica, pierced fallen pistils of flowering ivy. I reached high to cassia for stringing sweet clover, and corded the coilings of the rope-vine.
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19 Yes, I took a s m y rule those fair men before me, it was not the garb worn in the ways of our age . Though it did not agree with men of these days, I would rest in the pattern left by Peng and by Xian . 1 20 Long did I sigh and wipe away tears, sad that men's lives lay in such peril. Though love of the fair was the halter that guided me, at dawn I was damned and by twilight, undone. 21 Yes, I was undone for sash hung with sweet clover, then I added to it the angelica and orchid. Still my heart will find goodness in thesethough I die many times, I will never regret. 22 I reproach the Holy One's unbridled rashness, never discerning what lies in men's hearts. Women-throngs envied my delicate brows, they made scurrilous songs, they said I loved lewdness. 23 Of these times the firm folkways: to be skillful in guile; facing compass and square, they would alter the borehole. They forswear the straight line, go chasing the crooked; rivals for false faces, such is their measure . 24 A woe wells within me, to be so hapless, alone at an impasse in times such as these. Best to die promptly, to vanish away, for I cannot bear to show myself thus . 25 The great bird of prey does not go in flocks, so it has been from times long ago. The square and the circle can never be matched, what man can find peace on a way not his own ? ' S h a m a n Peng and S h a m a n X i a n were two q u as i -d i v i n e s h a m a n a n cesto rs. Trad i t i o n a l commen taries a l ways took th i s as a single name, Peng X i a n , both here and i n The E n d i ng Song
(see p . 1 7 5 ) ,
Peng X i a n was s u pposed t o have been a worthy adviser o f a S h a n g k i n g w h o c o m m itted s u i c i d e b y drow n i ng, hence Q u Y u a n ' s d e c i s i o n t o fo l l ow h i m i n T h e E n d i n g S o n g .
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26 Bending one's heart, quelling one's will, abiding faults found, submitting to shame, embracing pure white, death for the rightthese indeed were esteemed by wise men before us.
27
I regretted my course was not well discerned, long I stood staring, about to go back . I turned my coach round along the same path it was not yet too far I had strayed in my going. 28 I let horses walk through meadows o f orchids, to a hill of pepper trees I raced, there rested the while. I drew close, did not reach him, I met with fault-finding, I withdrew to restore that garb I first wore .
29
Waterlilies I fashioned to serve as my robe, I gathered the lotus to serve as my skirt. Let it be over then, no man knows me, my nature in truth has a scent sweet and steadfast. 30
High was my hat, above m e i t loomed, well strung, the pendants that swung from my sash. Sweet scent and stench were all intermingled, this gleaming flesh only suffered no dwindling. 31 All at once I looked back, and I let my eyes roam, I would go off to view the wild lands around. Pendants in bunches, I was richly adorned, their sweet fragrance spread, ever more striking.
32
Each man has a thing in which he finds j op I alone love the fair, in that I abide. Though my limbs be cut from me, I still will not change, for how could my heart be made to cower ? 33 Then came the Sister, tender and distressed,2 mild of manner she upbraided me thus, ' ''T h e S i ster" i s nO-xu, clearly a title rather than a proper name; h owever, the actu a l role o r re la t i o ns h i p i m p l i ed by the p h rase is u n certa i n . E a r l y commentators too k t h i s as Qu Yuan's s i ster, and there i s some evidence that nO-xu was a popu l a r term for " s i ster"-though whether a l iteral or a fig u rative s i ster i s aga i n u n certa i n . It may also mean "wen c h . "
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she said: " Gun was unyielding, he fled into hiding, at last died untimely on moors of Mount Yu.3 34 "Why such wide culling, such love of the fair ' in you alone bounty of beautiful raiment ? Haystac ks of stinkwe ed are heaped in their rooms; you alone stand aloof and refuse such attire. 35 " No swaying the throngs person by person; None says : ' Come, discern this my nature within ! ' Now men rise together, each favors his friends why do you stand alone- why not listen to m ? "
�
36 I trust sages before u s for moderate j udgment, my heart swelled in torment, it had come now to this . I crossed Xiang and Yuan, faring on southward, reached Zhong-hua, King Shun, to state him my case: 37 " King Q i had Nine Stanzas and the Nine Songs extreme in wild pleasures, he did as he pleased. He was heedless of troubles, made no plans for the morrow, whereby the five sons brought strife to his hous e.4 38 " Yi recklessly ventured, h e was lavish i n hunts, he also loved shooting the great foxes. Such turbulent wickedness rarely ends well : and Han Zhuo was lusting to seize his bride.s 39 " Guo Ao garbed himself in the stiffened leather; he followed his wants, he failed to forbear. He lost himself daily in wild pleasures . whereby his own head was toppled and fell.6 3 G u n w a s a son o f Gao Y a n g , who was c h a rged by Sage- K i n g Yao with contro l l i n g the great flood . When he fa i l ed, he was put to death a n d h i s body left on Mount Y u . Accord i n g to one trad ition, h e w a s transformed i n to a bear. 4 K i n g Q i was the son of G reat Yu, who was i n turn the son of Gun and the fou n d e r of the Xia Dy n asty. He brought back "The N i n e Songs" from H eave n .
' Y i the A r cher seized the kingsh i p after K ing Q i ' s death, b u t w a s subsequently k illed by h i s retainer Han Zhuo. 6 G u o Ao w a s a son o f H a n Z h u o and Y i t h e Archer's sto l e n b r i d e . H e w a s k i l led by S h a o G a ng, w h o resto red t h e X i a Dynasty .
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40 " Xia's J i e was steadfas t in h i s misdeed s, in pursuit of these he met with his doom. Shang's Zhow, the Lord Xin, minced men to stew ' whereb y Yin's great lineage could not last long.?
41 "Yu the Mighty was stern, respectful and godly;8 the right way was Zhou's norm, it thus did not err. They raised men of worth, rewarded the able, they kept the straight line, they did not veer. 42 " Sovereign Heaven is slanted in favor of non i; it discerns a man's virtues, puts helpers beside him. When wisdom and sense do deeds that are splendid, they may then act their will in this land down below. 43 "I scanned times before us, looked to times yet to come, read the measures of men, and the ends of their plans: who found wanting in virtue may be put to use ? who found wanting in good may be still retained? 44 "By the brink stands my body, I am in death's peril, I discern my first nature and still regret not. Not j udging the drillhole, they squared the peg: indeed, fair men of old came to mince in a stew. 45 " S ighs come from me often, the heart swells within, sad that I and these times never will be matched . I plucked sage and lotus to wipe away tears, ' that soak my gown's folds in their streaming. " 46 I knelt with robes open, thus stated my case, having grasped so clearly what is central and right. I teamed j ade white dragons, rode the Bird that Hides Sky, waiting on winds to fleetly fare upward. 7J i e w a s the l ast r u l e r o f t h e X i a a n d notorious f o r h i s m i s r u l e . Z h o w w a s t h e b a d l ast r u l e r o f the Y i n - S h a n g (see note t o stanza
8).
"G reat Y u , G u n ' s s o n , w a s t h e fou n der o f t h e X i a .
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47 At dawn I loosed wheel-block there b y Cang-wu, and by twilight I reached the Gardens of Air.' I wished to bide a while by the windows of gods, but swift was the sun and it soon would be dusk. 48 I bade sun-driver Xi-he, to pause in her pace, to stand off from Yan-zi and not to draw nigh .! O n and o n stretched m y road, long i t was a n d far, I would go high and go low in this search that I made. 49 I watered my horses in the Pools of Xian, and twisted the reins on the tree Fu-sang, snapped a branch of the Ruo Tree to block out the sun, I roamed freely the while and lingered there.2 50 Ahead went Wang Shu to speed on before me, behind c.ame Fei Lian, he dashed in my train. 3 Phoenix went first and warned of m y coming, Thunder Master told me that all was not set. 51 I bade my phoenixes mount up in flight, to continue their going both by day and by night. Then the whirlwinds massed, drawing together, they marshaled cloud-rainbows, came to withstand me. 52 A bewildering tumult, first apart, then agreeing, and they streamed flashing colors, high and then low. I bade the God's gatekeeper open the bar; he stood blocking gateway and stared at me. 'Cang-wu was the mounta i n where S h u n (Zhong-h ua) l ay b u r i e d . The " G ardens of A i r, " Xua n-pu or "Suspended Gardens," was a section of the K u n - I u n Range and a n abode of the U n d y i n g . The name i s also r endered with a h o m o p h o n e as "The Gardens of Mystery . " ' X i - h e i s t h e goddess w h o d r i ves t h e c h a r i ot o f t h e s u n across t h e s k y . M o u n t Yan-zi w a s su ppos ed l y located in the farthest extreme of the West, the point where the sun goes down . Thus the poet i s ordering the sun not to set 'The sun rises from S u n r i s e G o rge, and in its r i s i n g i s bathed i n the Poo l s of X i a n , com i n g out at l ast at the base of the Fu-sang Tree. The Ruo Tree is at the opposite extreme of the wor l d , the point where the s u n goes i n . lWang S h u was the d r iver o f the moon; F e i L i a n t h e god o f w i n d s .
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53 The moment grew dimmer, light soon would be done, I tied signs in orchids, standing there long. An age foul and murky cannot tell things apart; it loves to block beauty from malice and spite . 54 A t dawn I set to fare across the White Waters, I climbed Mount Lang-feng, there tethered my horses.4 All at once I looked back, my tears were streaming, sad that the high hill lacked any woman. 55 A t once I went roaming to the Palace of Spring,s I broke sprays of garnet to add to my pendants . Before the blooms' glory had fallen away, I would seek a woman below to whom I might give them.6 56 Feng Long I bade to go riding the clouds, to seek out Fu-fei down where she dwells? I took pendant-sash, I tied there a message, and bade Lady Mumbler act as my envoy. 57 A bewildering tumult, first apart, then agreeing, she suddenly balked, she could not be swayed. S h e went twilights to lodge at Farthest-of-Rocks, and at dawn bathed her hair in Wei-ban Stream .8 58 S h e presumed on h e r beauty, s h e w a s scornful and proud, in wild pleasures daily she wantonly strayed. Though beautiful truly, she lacked right behaviorI let her go then, I sought for another. 4 B oth Wh ite Waters a n d Mount Lang-fe ng are sections of the K u n - I u n Range. 'The P a lace of Spring b e l onged to the E m peror of the East, and t h u s was on the other s i d e o f the world from K u n- I u n . 6"Woman b e l ow" m a y su ggest a woman w h o dwe l l s on Earth, as opposed t o t h e womall o f H eaven whom he co u l d not reac h . H owever, the ph rase, as used in "The N i n e Songs," suggests a water god dess, as Fu-fe i i n deed was. 'Feng Long was the god of t h e clouds, or perhaps of th u n d e r . F u -fe i was the goddess of the river Luo. " T h e goddess has apparently wand ered t o the F a r West ( i n the river?) . The Farthest R o c k w a s s u p posed to be in the extreme West, the spot from w h i c h the Ruo waters had their source. Wei-ban Stream came off Mount Yan-zi, where the sun sets (see stanza
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59 I let m y gaze sweep over a l l the world's ends, I roamed throughout Sky, then I came down. I viewed the surging crest of a terrace of onyx, there saw a rare woman, the You-Song's daughter.9 60 I bade the venom-owl make match between us, and the venom-owl told me she was not fair. Early summer's dove-cock went away singing, and I still loathe its petty wiles . 61 M y heart then faltered, doubts overcame me, I wanted to go myself; it was not allowed. Already the phoenix had given my troth gifts, still I feared that Gao Xin had come before me.! 62 I wanted t o alight far away, there w a s no place to halt, so I drifted the while and roamed at my ease. If still not yet married to Shao-kang the Prince, there remained the two Yao girls of the clan You-Yu.2 63 My envoy was feeble, my matchmaker bumbling; I feared words to charm them would not hold fast. An age foul and murky, it spites a man's worth, it loves to block beauty, it acclaims what is ill. 64 Remote and far are the chambers of women; and the wise king also is not yet aware. I keep feelings within me, do not bring them forth, yet how can I bear that it be thus forever ? 65 I sought stalks of milfoil, and sli ps to cast lots, and bade Holy Fen to divine the thing for me. I said: "Two lovely beings must surely be matched; whose fairness is steadfast that I may adore her ? 'The You-Song (the c h i efta i n c l a n of the Song tribe) once provided a wife, J i an - d i , fo r D i -gao, fro m w h i c h u n i on came J i e, who was a n cestor of the royal h o u se of S h a n g . ' G ao X i n or D i -gao w a s the legendary em peror who married J i an-d i , the " d a u ghter o f the You-So n g . " ' W h e n G u o-ao sti l l h e l d the X i a throne, S h ao-kang, the r i g htfu l p r i nce, f l e d to the You-Yu, the c h i ef ta i n c l a n of Y u , whose r u l e r gave h i m h i s two d a u g hters in m a r r i age.
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66 " Consider the wide sweep o f these Nine Domains can it be only here that a woman be foun d ? " H e said: " Undertake to fare far, be not full of doubts; none who seeks beauty would let you slip by. 67 " Is there any place lacking in plants of sweet fragrance ? why must you cherish your former abode? This age is a dark one, eyes are dazzled and blinded, no man can discern our good or our bad. 68 "What men love and loathe i s never the same only these men of faction alone stand apart. Each person wears mugwort, stuffed in their waists, they declare that the orchid may never be strung. 69 "If in judgment of plants they still cannot grasp it, can they ever be right on the beauty of gems ? They seek shit and mire to stuff their sachets, and say that Shen's pepper lacks any sweet smell. " 70 I wished to follow Holy Fen's lot of good fortune, yet still my heart faltered, doubts overcame me. The Shaman Xian would descend in the twilight,3 I clasped pepper and rice to beseech him. 71 The gods blotted sky, their full hosts descending , spirit vassals of Many Doubts j oined to go greet them.4 In a light-burst the Sovereign sent forth his spirit, giving me word of a lucky outcome . 72 He said: " Undertake to fare high and then to fare low, find one who agrees with the yardstick and square. Yu the Mighty was stern, he sought one who matched him, he held to Gao Yao as one able to suit him.s 3For S h a m a n X i a n , s e e t h e note t o stanza 1 9 . u sed c o m m o n l y for a vague " m any") 4Many D o u bts ( l itera l ly, " N i ne Dou bts," the n u m ber n i ne being was the range i n the Far South where Shun was s u p posed l y bu ried . reat Yu in the begi n n i ng of the ' F o r Y u , see the note to stanza 4 1 . Gao Yao served as m i n i ster of G Xia.
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73 "If one's nature within loves what is fair, what need to make use of matchmaker or envoy ? Yue held an earth-ram upon Fu's cliff; Wu-ding employed him and did not doubt.6 74 " Once there was Lil Wang who swung a butcher's knife, yet he met Zhou's King Wen and he was raised up .? And there was Ning Qi, a singer of songs; Huan of Qi heard him; he served as the helper. 8 75 " Yet act now before the year grows too late, now while the season has not yet passed. I fear only cries early from summer's night jar, making all plants lose their sweet scent. " 76 My pendants of garnet, how they dangle down from me yet the throngs would dim them, cover them up . These men of faction are wanting in faith, I fear their malice, that they will break them. 77 The times are in tumult, ever transforming how then may a man linger here long ? Orchid, angelica change, they become sweet no more; iris, sweet clover alter, they turn into straw. 78 These plants that smelled sweet in days gone by have now become nothing but stinking weeds . Can there be any reason other than this ?the harm that is worked by no love for the fair. 79 I once thought that orchid could be steadfast: it bore me no fruit, it was all show. Forsaking its beauty, it followed the common; it wrongly is ranked in the hosts of sweet scent. 'The S h a n g k i n g W u - D i n g d reamed of someone su ited to be h i s m i n i ster, and fou n d h i m as a con v i ct or corvee l aborer named Yue, m a k i n g ram m ed-earth ramparts on F u C l iff, hence c a l led F u Yue. ' LO Wa n g o r i g i n a l l y worked as a butcher, then became a fi s herm a n ; in his old age h e was d i scov ered by King Wen of the Zhou and made his m i n ister. 'Ning Q i was o r i g i n a l l y a petty merchant who wou l d s i ng as h e rapped the h o r n s of his buffa l o . D u ke H u a n of Q i heard h i m a n d m a d e h i m an a i d e .
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80 Pepper i s master o f fawning, i t i s swaggering, reckless, only mock-pepper stuffs sachets hung from waists . It pressed hard to advance, it struggled for favor, what sweet scent remains that is able to spread ? 81 Truly, ways o f these times are willful and loose, who now is able to avoid being change d? Look on orchid a n d pepper, see them like this will less be true of river rush and wintergreen? 82 Only these m y own pendants are still t o be prized; forsaken is loveliness, and I come to this. Yet their sweet scent spreads, it is not diminished, an aroma that even now has still not abated. 83 In their blending's balance I take my delight, I will drift and will roam, seeking the woman. And while such adornment is still in its glory, I will range widely looking, both high and low. 84 Since Holy Fen told me my fortunate lot, I will choose a luck-day, and I will set out. I snap sprays of garnet to serve as my viands, fine garnet meal will serve as my fare. 85 For me have been hitched those dragons that fly, mixed onyx and ivory serve as my coach. How can a mind set apart be ever like others ? I will go away far, keep myself removed. 86 I bent m y way round a t Kun-lun Mountain, long and far was the road, there I ranged widely. I raised my cloud-rainbows, dimming and darkening, j ade phoenix chimes rang with a j ingling voice. 87 A t dawn I loosed the wheel-block a t Ford-of-the-Sky,9 by twilight I came to the ends of the west. Phoenix spread its wings, and bore up my banners, high aloft it soared, its wingbeats were steady. 'The Ford of S ky i s a n aste r i s m , the n a rrowest po i nt i n the M i l ky Way.
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88 All a t once I was faring across Drifting Sands, 1 I went down the Red Waters, there took my ease .2 I signaled the dragons to make me a bridge, I called to West's Sovereign to take me across . 89 Long and far was the road, i t was filled with perils, I passed word to my hosts: drive straight and attend me. I made way to Mount Bu-zhou, there turned to the left,3 toward the Sea of the West, my appointed goal. 90 Then I massed all my chariots , a thousand strong, j ade hubs lined even, we galloped together. I hitched my eight dragons, heaving and coiling, and bore my cloud banners streaming behind. 91 I then quelled my will and paused in my pace; the gods galloped high far to the distance, they were playing " Nine Songs " and dancing " the Shao , " 4 making u s e o f this day t o take their delight. 92 I was mounting aloft to such dazzling splendor all at once I glanced down to my homeland of old. My driver grew sad, my horses felt care, they flexed looking backward and would not go on.
The Ending Song It is done now forever! in all the kingdom there is no man, no man who knows me, then why should I care for that city, my home ? Since no one can j oin me in making good rule, I will go off to seek where Peng and Xian dwell. 'The Drift i n g Sands i s a general term for the i m agi ned terrors of t h e northwestern deserts . 'The Red Waters were a river that fl owed off the K u n - I u n Range. 3 M o u nt B u -zhou is a m yth i c a l mou nta i n i n the F a r West. 'Ancient ceremon i a l m u s i c and dance. Th ese " N i ne Songs" a re legendary and not the s h a m a n i stic h y m n s g i ven e a r l i e r .
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T h e Ch u-ci T rad itio n
J o u r n eys H eave n l y a n d E a rth l y D a v i d H awkes, a d i st i n g u i shed s c h o l a r of the " L yrics of C h u , " d i st i n g u i s h e s two bas i c co m po n e n ts i n w o r k s fo l l ow i n g the trad i t i o n o f " T h e N i ne Songs" and
the Li Sao.
O n e of t h e s e h e c a l l s "tr i st i a , " in w h i c h
t h e poet co m p l a i n s o f h i s u n h a p p i ness, h o w h e h a s been w ronged o r m i sj u d ged . The seco n d c o m p o n e n t H aw kes c a l l s " i ti n e r a r i a , " the w a n d e r i n gs, i n w h i c h the poet m a kes the c i rc u i t of the u n i verse (th o u g h in "The N i n e Songs," the c i rc u i t see m s m o re rest r i cted t o t h e X i ao-X i a n g R i v e r reg i o n ) . I n m a n y ways, a l l C h i nese trave l l iteratu re and l a ndscape w r i t i n g c a n be traced to the heave n l y w a n d e r i n g s of the
L i Sao.
B ut the same m o d e l i s n o l es s true o f s p i r i t u a l j o u rneys than of p h ys
i c a l o n e s . The s h a m a n ' s s p i r i t j o u rney t h r o u g h the heave n s was c l osely rel ated to the s p i r i t j o u rneys that attracted v a r i o u s k i n d s of D a o ist a depts . " F a r Roa m i n g , " i n c l uded i n the " Ly r i c s of C h u , " i s a H a n D ao i st transformati o n of the
Li Sao' s
heav
enly journey. " F a r Roam i n g" i n c l udes m a n y of t h e d e i t i e s a n d fantastic l o c a l e s o f the
Li Sao,
but i ts poet i c space is a l so popu l ated by fam o u s ad epts who, by v a r i o u s tec h n i q ues of b reath contro l , d i et, and a l c hemy, had u n d ergo ne a metamorphosis and joi ned the U n d y i n g, a l so referred to as the G en u i n e Men a n d the feathered men. Such fig u res i n c l u d e the Master of Red P i ne, the h i sto r i c a l Han Zhong (who sought the West em I s l e s of the U n d y i n g fo r the F i rst E m peror of Q i n ) , and Q i ao the P r i n ce (Wang zi Q i ao) . In a d d ition to the adepts thems e l ves, the poem m a kes exte n s ive u se of the j a rgon of D a o i st H u a n g- L ao ' s tec h n i q u es of metamo rphos i s .
Far Roaming I deplored the world's ways, they hampered and hemmed me, I wished to rise lightly, go roaming afar. Yet this flesh was crude stuff, I had not the means, what carriage would bear me floating up and away ? I was drowning in filth, soiled by things rotting, locked lonely in torment with no one to tell. In the night I tossed restless, I did not sleep, a fretfulness of soul that lasted to dawn. Of Earth and Heaven I thought on the endlessness, I mourned for man's life and its lasting travail. 1 76
Early China
, I never would reach to those who are gone, I never would learn of those who will come. With faltering pace, thoughts turned to things far, in anguish and woe my cares long continued. Turbulent fancies, reckless and rash, the heart in its gloom enlarged sorrow's store. Spirit fled in a flash, it did not turn back; outer form like dead wood remained there alone. I reflected within upon the best conduct, I sought out the source from which comes Right Breath. In a void that is still there was placid delight, then calm in not-acting, I found myself there. I had heard of Red Pine, pure of all dirt, I wished for the influence of the model he left. I prized fine Attainments of the Genuine Men, I este �med the Undying reached in ages gone by. They went off with Change, no longer were seen, their names' glory is known, each day spreading more. A marvel, how Fu Yue found his lodging in stars;1 and I envied Han Zhong, who attained to th� One. Outer forms grew inert, they receded still farther, they departed men's throngs, held aloof and withdrawn. Through Breath' s transformations they rose to the heights, fleet spirits racing, wraithlike and eerie. Now and then in a blur we can see them afar, incandescent essences flitting to and fro. They broke from dust billowing, struck upon wonder, never turned back to those cities once home. Shunning all ills, they felt terror no more, in their ages none knew where they had gone . I feared Heaven's seasons' changing succession, Holy Lights all ablaze and voyaging west. Faint frosts descend, sinking down under, alas, the sweet plants leaf-stripped too soon. I stroll carefree the while, go rambling freely, I had spent long years with nothing achieved. Who could share my delight in the sweetness remaining? I faced the dawn winds and let feelings spread free. ' F u Vue, w h o in t h e L i Sao was d i scovered in a l a bor gang by t h e S h a n g k i n g W u -d i n g and m a d e his m i n i ster, w a s s u p posed t o h a v e mastered the W a y a n d taken a p l ace a m o n g the stars,
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Remote was Gao-yang, too faint in the distance,2 fro m whom would I take my model ? Reprise: Springs and autumns are fleeting, they do not abide, how could I long linger in the place I once dwelled? I could not catch the Yellow Emperor and cling t o him, but Qiao the Prince I would follow to frisk and be merry. I dined on Six Breaths, I drank magic dew, in my mouth I swished sun-glow, I chewed dawn's rosy clouds. I preserved the pristinenes s of the light of the soul, essential Breaths entered, the crude and foul fled. I blew with the south wind I roamed along with it, I came to South Chao, it was there that I rested. I met Qiao the Prince and greeted him gravely, I queried him on balancing Universal Breath. He said, The Way can be accepted; it cannot be passed on. So small, nothing within it; so large, has no limit. Spare your soul b ewilderment it comes in its own course. Universal Breath augments spirit, at midnight keep it with you. Be empty to attend on it, prior to not-acting. All categories thus complete, this is Attainment's Gateway. What I heard was much treasured, I then set to go, and all at once I was on my way. Nigh to the feathered men on Cinnabar Hill, I lingered in that olden land of the Undying. At dawn I washed my hair in Sun Gorge's clefts at twilight, dried my body beneath its nine suns . I sucked subtle distillates from the cascades, clasped to bosom the sparklings of diamonds. Jade complexion grew ruddy, my face began to glow, with essence strained pure, I first felt my vigor. All flesh-firmness melted, I began to grow pliant, the spirit grew slender, moved with wanton abandon. 'Gao-yang was the myth i c a l king to whom the speaker of the
178
L i Sao traced his a n cestry.
Early China
I admired the blazing Attainment of southern lands, found fair winter flowering of cassia trees. Hills bleak and barren with no beasts there; moors silent and gloomy, without men. I bore up my several souls, I climbed to rose wisps, and by floating clouds hidden, I fared on above. I charged Heaven' s gatekeeper to open the bar; he pushed back the gates and stared at me. I called on Feng Long, made him guide the way,3 I asked where was lodged the god's palace of stars. At Tiered Rays I alighted, I went in the God's precincts, pushed on to Xun-shi,4 viewed the Clear Citadel. At dawn I loosed wheel-block in the Sacred Yard; and by twilight I hung above Yu-wei-lii Hill. Then I massed all my chariots, a thousand strong, in majestic tumult we galloped together. I hitched my eight dragons, heaving and coiling, and bore my cloud banners streaming behind. Upright bright pennons, bearing cock-rainbows, mixed of all colors, dazzling, flashing. Up sprung the yoke team, low, then aloft, the trace dragons coiled, they burst headlong forward. A j umble of riders, mixed in confusion, a motley surging cavalcade, moving together. I myself seized the reins, I held the whip straight, for we soon were to pass the place of Gou Mang.5 We traversed Tai-hao then bent to the right,6 Ahead went Fei Lian to open the path.7 In glow of the sunlight before the full rays, we crossed Heaven's Pool and forged straight ahead. The Wind-Earl sped for me, taking the van, purged billowing dust, it was clear and cool. Phoenix spread wings and bore up my banners, I met with Ru-shou where the West's Sovereign dwells .8 3 F e n g Long, the god of c l o u d s o r thu nder, was e m p l oyed by the speaker of the Li Sao to m a ke a m atch with F u -fe i . 4 X u n - s h i was a star near t h e D i p per; it figu res often i n heave n l y fl i g hts . sGou Mang was the tute l a r y god of the East.
6Tai-hao was the Emperor of the East. 'Fei Lian was a wind god, who a l so a p p e a rs in the heave n l y f l i g h t in the Li Sao. 8Ru-shou was one of the tute l a ry gods of the West.
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I snatched up a comet to serve as my standard, I raised Dipper's handle to serve as my sign. Chaotic, pellmell, we rose and dipped down, we swam flowing waves of fog-tendrils winds truck. But the moment grew dimmer, all darkened in shadow, I called on Black Tortoise to dash in my train. 9 Behind went W e n Chang, in charge of the columns,! all the gods stood in order, the wheelhubs were even. The road kept on going, it was long and far, I slowed, pausing in pace, and crossed up on high. To my left the Rain Master I made wait upon me, to my right was Lord Thunder, who served as my guard . I wished to cross from the world and forget to return, my fancies ran wild, were reckless and rash. I felt merry within, and I found myself fair, I sought pleasure the while, and wanton delight. I fared through blue clouds, I swam swirling currents , all at once I glanced down to my homeland of old. My driver felt care, m y heart grew sad, the outer horses looked back and would not go on . . I longed for those I had known, I imagined their forms , I heaved a great sigh and wiped away tears . Adrift for amusement, I rose to far places, and then quelled my will and gave myself ease. Toward the Blazing God I galloped straight forward, ready to journey to Southern Doubts Mountains . I viewed seething blurs beyond the world's bounds , I streamed through the swirling wending my way. Zhu Rong gave the warning, he cleared out my path, I passed word to Phoenix, encountered Fu-fei. They performed " Pool of Xian , " played "Receiving Cloud," the two maidens attended, the "Nine Shao" were sung, I had Xiang' s Goddess strike the great harp, I bade the Sea Lord to have Ping Yi dance. Purple krakens and hydras came forward together, forms wriggling, writhing, they slithered along. Iris Rainbow, fair and frail, increasing her spirals, phoenixes burst into flight, flew soaring in circles. ' B l ac k Tortoise, X u a n-wu, occupied the northern pos ition i n the Zod i a c . ' We n Chang was a conste l l ation o f s i x sta rs, l ater t a k e n as b e i n g i n cha rge o f government offices.
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A deluge o f music that spread without limit, then I went on my way and tarried a while. Slow the pace, but together, we galloped ahead to the far and last limit, to the Gateway of Cold. I overtook fleet wind at the Pure Source of Waters, I had Zhuan Xu follow across the tiered ice.2 By a bypath I passed the Black God of Dark ' I rode Sky's Interst ices, turned to look back. I called to the Demiu rge, had him appear , and he took the lead for me upon the flat road. I went back and forth throug h the world 's four bound s' and flowed all aroun d the Six Enclos ures. Rising I reache d the Lightning Crack, then plunging I gazed on the Great Chasm . Vertig inous depths below me where no land was ' a cavern ous emptin ess above ·where was no sky. It flashed and flared where I looked , but I saw nothin g, a blurred rumble when I listened , but I h'eard nothin g. I passed beyond non-ac ting, I reached to the Clear ' the Very Beginn ing becam e my neighb or. The fi rst-centu ry wr iter S i - m a X i ang-ru's poet ic expos ition on "The G reat One" rep resents the pol itic ization of the heave n l y j o u r n ey, as E m peror Wu of Han is descri bed as the s h a m a n adept who fl ies th rough the cosmos and fi n a l l y passes " beyo n d . " E m peror Wu w a s a patro n of e l aborate s h a m a n istic perfo r m a n ces a n d h a d n o d o u bt heard m a n y trance repo rts of the u ppe r u n iverse. I n the
Li Sao, the s peaker was
grad
u a l l y tran sformed from the concerned l i egeman i nto a fi g u re of d o m i nee r i n g power who com m a n d s a t u r b u l e n t cava lcade of d i v i n it i e s . I t is t h at fi g u re of power who becomes the point of depa rtu re fo r S i - m a X i a ng-ru's panegy r i c . T h e m ost i nterest i n g q u estion raised i s w h ether t h e f i g u re descri bed i n " T h e G reat One" is a figu re of panegyric or of hyperbo l i c sati re. C e rta i n l y with i n the tra d i t ion th i s vision of E m peror Wu has been i nterp reted as sati re t o warn the e m peror a ga i n st the evi l s of exces s i ve i nterest i n the c u l t of the U nd y i n g . W h ether the poet i c expo s i t i o n i s to be taken as panegy r i c o r sat i re i s a q u esti o n of the p utat i ve i ntention of the author and of how one j u dges the val ues i m p l i c i t in the text-va l ues of k i n g s h i p that a re fa r removed from t h e Confu c i a n v i s i o n o f em peror a s C h i ef Ad m i n i strator and L i a ison Officer with H eave n . The ru l e r in "The G reat One" is a pec u l i a r m i x tu re of C h u s h a m a n i s m , H u a ng-Lao D ao i s m , and Lega l i st abso l ut i s m . No d o ubt i n the o r i g i n a l performance o f a poeti c expos ition l i ke " T h e G reat O n e , " the em peror cou l d beam with d e l ight at the panegyric h e heard, w h i l e the Confu c i a n officers of the co u rt cou l d s m i l e n o l ess at w h at they heard as a savage sat i re on the excesses
of the H u a ng-Lao Daoist q u est for i m perial transcendence.
' Z h u a n X u w a s the E m peror o f the N c rth,
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Si-ma Xiang-ru ( 1 79-1 1 7 B.C. ) , The Great One There was a Great One in this age, he was here in the very heart of the land. His dwelling filled thousands of miles, but too paltry to hold him even a while. Oppressed by this age's ways, crimping and curbing, · he rose lightly aloft and traveled afar. He bore crimson banners, his device, the pale rainbow, he carried cloud vapors floating above him. He raised a tall shaft of golden vapors, bound round with glowing hung as bright bangles. The star Xun-shi dangled, strung as a tassle,3 behind comets trailed, floating as streamers. Pulsing and fluttering, cascading upward, throbbing and quivering, those waving undulations. He snatched the Sky's Pike-star to serve as his pennant, wound fractured rainbows to serve as haft-wrappings. The red grew remote, all was murky and purple, wind blasts gushed forth, clouds went floating. He drove an ivory car with winged dragons, heaving and slithering, teamed scarlet serpents and blue basilisks, wriggling and writhing. Upward and downward flexed straining straightened necks, they bounded flaunting, sinuously spiralling humped bristling loping legs bent under, and arced away swaying. Rearing and bucking head-tossing they balked, and faltered unbudging, then broke loose unbridled amok they reared rampant in towering tangles. Jerking forward and back, eyes rolling tongues lolling, slackening, they slithered, then twined together cascading upward they boldly bolted gripping and grappling. Wound coiling together, roaring and bellowing, they alighted and cleaved to the path, then soared aloft buzzing and bounding burst upward dashing ahead in a frenzy. With a whoosh and a sizzling crackle in flares they arrived, like lightning bolts passing, 30. note
1 82
4, p. 1 79 .
Early China
in a flash all fogs were gone, bursting open, clouds dissolved. Sheared obliquely past Shao-yang, climbed to High Dark, it was the Hallowed Man that He was then seeking. Bending round patches of dark, He wheeled to the right, fared straight across the Cascade and directly on eastward. He mustered all Spirits Assembled, he selected among them, He enlisted a god-band at the star Quivering Rays. He bade the Five Emperors lead ahead on the way, sent the Supreme One back, had Ling-yang follow attending. To his left, the Dark Spirit, to his right, Qian-Iei, Demiurge, ahead was the sacred bird Chang-li, behind, Summer-burgeoning. Zheng Bo-qiao was his liegeman, Xi an-men served him, and He summoned Qi-bo w be his Lord Druggist. . The South's Lord, Zhu-rong, warned to empty his path, clearing murky miasmas, only then He fared onward. I have massed all my chariots ten thousand strong, I marshal cloud-canopies, lift floriate banners . I bid Gou Mang, East's Prince, to lead the procession, I am soon to set off for the Mountain Nan-xi. I fare past Sage-King Yao on the Exalted Hill, go on by Sage-King Shun in the Many Doubts Range. My hosts, a deep deluge, all intermingled, a bustling clamorous tumult, we gallop side by side. A frenzied turbulence tangled, bumping and dragging, a surging and boundless swill, cascading spills forward. Rallied ranks and rows swarming, teeming the throngs, then spewing strewn multitudes, all scrambled about. My path entered Thunder-house, deepset its rumblings, then out into Wraith Gorge, of sheer looming crags. I beheld the world's Eight Stays, viewed all in the Encircling Seas, I crossed back over Nine Channels, I passed the Five Rivers. I dealt with the Blazing Fires, I floated on Ruo's waters, I sailed past the Floating Isles, I fared on Flowing Sands. At Cong-ji I rested, sported at the source of all waters, bade Holy Crone play the harp, had Ping-yi dance for me. But the moment grew dim and shadowed, dusky and turbulent, I called Ping-yi to slay Wind-Earl, and flog the Rain Master. I gazed west to Kun-Iun, it was murky and vague, and galloped straight thither across San-wei Mountain. I pushed Gates of Sky open, I went in the God's palace, I seized his Jade Maidens and took them back with me. We climbed Lang-feng Mountain, gathered there afar, I ll 3
Anthology of Chinese Literature
then as birds soared aloft and stopped all together . We tarried sweeping around Shadow Mountain, in spiralling curves, for today I would behold the West's Queen Mother. Her hoary white head bears ornaments, she dwells in a cave, blessed to have the bird Three-Foot to be her messenger. As she does so I must live forever and never die, even ten thousand ages would not be enough to give j oy. I turned my carriage and went back, m y way went right over Mount Bu-zhou, and we j oined for a feast in the Hidden City. We sucked primal liquids, we dined on dawn clouds, we chewed caps of asphodel, nibbled j asper blooms . Facing up I fared forward, I set forth on high, my hosts through huge space wended above. We pierced through the flashes of light down below, we waded through Rain Master's streaming downpour. I sped the lead carriage in a lengthy dive, I left fogs behind me, I raced off afar . I was pressed by this realm, by its narrow constraints , drew away with slowing pace from the margins of North. I left my massed riders at the Purple Towers, I lurched ahead speeding to Gates of the Cold. Below were sheer heights, all earth was gone, above was huge hollowness and no heavens. Vision blurred and was dazzled, sight was lost, listening was indistinct, hearing was lost. And I rode on that Blankness I passed far above, beyond lack of others I endured Alone.
The heave n l y j o u rney became i m portant in the trad ition of c l as s i c a l poetry
(shi),
t h o u g h as a s h o rter for m it te nded to treat the motif l ess fu l l y, a n d eventu a l l y m o re fo rm u l a i c a l l y .
Ruan Ji (A.D. 2 1 0-263 ) , Songs of My Cares LXVIII I looked out north on the Gorge of Dry Dark, then westward I went to visit Shao-ren. I peered round to Sky's Ford in the distance, a rashness uncurbed was my heart's delight. A shimmering wisp was Life and D eath's gate, roam there once and you will not seek it again. Then I happened to meet with the dawn-wind hawk and rode it in flight to the southern groves. In the Pole-Star's incandescent floods 1 84
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I sped instantly, indulging my most wanton will . I repose at a feast in the Pure Citadelwho now can stop me from leaving the world ?
The heave n l y j o u rney is c l ose l y re l ated to the deve l o p m e n t of C h i nese l a n dscape I iterature. V i s its to the g reat m o u n ta i n s of C h i n a, with th e i r B u d d h i st m o n asteries a n d D ao i st covens, represented a p rocess of physical str u gg l e a n d s p i r i t u a l atta i n m e n t t h at fou nd t h e m ost n atu ral fo rm o f representat i o n i n t h e trad ition o f t h e heav e n l y j o u rney. In the fo l l owi n g poet i c expos ition by S u n C h uo, the a rc h a i c fo rm u l a i c p h rases a n d t h e l i ta n y o f deities a n d fa ntast ic p l aces a r e g o n e , yet t h e s p i r i t jou rney u pward i nto l i ght rem a i n s .
Sun Chuo ( 3 1 4-3 7 1 ) , Wandering to the Tian-tai Mountains The Tian-tai Mountains may well be the most divine and outstanding of the great mountains. What the isles Fang-zhang and Peng-lai are to those who fare upon the sea,4 the Si-ming Cluster and Tian-tai are to those who move upon dry land. And all are places where the arcane sages wandered and were transformed, lair and lodging for holy beings and the Undying. Their configurations that loom to high limits, their fine and fortunate loveliness, bear all the costly bounty of mountains and seas, include all the most breathtaking beauties of mortal men and gods. The cause for such mountains not being ranked among the Five Great Peaks and for omission of their mention in surviving classics must surely be that they are situated in such a dark recess of the world, and that the road thither is so long and so hard to find. Some cast their reflections inverted into the dark deeps; others ensconce their peaks among a thousand other crests. One begins by passing along goblin paths, until at last one strides through a realm without men. Not many men alive in an age can scale them; and no prince has a way to perform sacrifices there. Thus notice of them is absent in common texts, and their name is remarked only in accounts of things rare . Even so, should we think it for nothing that there is such an abundance of pictures and illustrations of them ? Unless a man gives up the world and practices the right Way, quitting common grains and feeding on asphodel, he cannot lift off in lightness and lodge there. Unless a man gives himself over to things remote and delves into dark mysteries, unless he is someone utterly sincere and in contact with the gods, he can never envision that remote place and hold it fast. It was for this reason that I sent my spirit rushing and worked my thoughts, sang by day and stayed waking by night. And in the interval of a nod, it was as if I had gone up the mountain more than once. Now I will ' F a ng-z h a n g and Peng- I a i were two of the th ree i s l es of the U nd y i n g , said to be located in the Ea st ern Ocea n .
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untie these bands of an officer's cap to lodge forever on these crests. I can not resist the full force of such visions and spontaneous chanting, so let me here make a show of fine phrases to disperse these concerns. Utter Void, hollow magnitudes, lacking all limit, there worked elusive presence: What Is Naturally So. It liquefied and formed the streams and channels; it hardened and formed the mountains and knolls. Ah, crests of Tian-tai are rare things upraised, in truth braced and bolstered by light of the gods. It shadows the Herder star with glowing peaks, lodged in Yue the Holy for well-set foundation. Its roots knit more widely than Mounts Hua or Dai, it points upward higher than Many Doubts Range. It fulfills Ta ng's Canon's phrase: "Peer of the Heavens " ; it equals Zhou's Poem's words: " looming to limits . " Remote are these tracts, far flung, secret recesses well sequestered . Stuck within senses, shortsighted wisdom goes not thither; since paths run out, those who would go never can know it. I scorn such summer bugs, who doubt there is ice, I hold light wings straight, I long to mount upward. No true pattern is hidden or fails to be shown: two wonders divulged show me the signs: there is Redwall, russet-cloud rising, set as my marker;5 there is the Cascade, stream in flight, defining the way. Spying these witnesses of holy things, I then fared ahead, and all of a sudden I was off on my way. I sought men with feathers on cinnabar hills, I searched the never dying in the hallowed yards. If only I might climb to Tian-tai's crest, what craving then would be left for Tiered Walls Mountain. 6 Unbound from common yearnings of earthly tracts, I set free noble passions for passing beyond. I donned a wool tunic, somber and dark, and brandished staff of metal, clinking along. I pushed through thickets, dense and concealing, I scaled sheer escarpments looming above me. I waded the You Creek, went straight on ahead, left five borders behind me and fared swiftly forward. SOne of T i a n -tai's peaks. 'T i e re d W a l l s was the h i ghest peak of the fab l ed K u n - I u n R a n ge in the Far West.
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I strode over arch of a Sky-Hung Walkway,? looked down ten thousand yards lost in its blackness; I trod upon mosses of slippery rock, clung to the Azure Screen that stands like a wall . I clutched the long vines from low-bending boughs grasped stems hung in air from the wild grape vines. Though this one time I risk the " rim of the hall, " 8 I will b e here forever i n life everlasting. The heart's faith must match the Mystery Hidden, then one paces steep perils and paths grow more smooth . I succeeded surmounting its nine sharp bends, and the trail wound away, long and on through . I let eyes and ears roam in those luminous magnitudes, I let slow steps saunter wherever they would. I smoothed back frail grasses, lush and so green, took shade by tall pines spread grandly above. I viewed luan birds soaring, bending their wings, heard phoenixes sing with melodious tones . I crossed Holy Creek and washed myself there, drew far from the fancies that troubled my heart. The last dust was purged in those swirling currents,9 I dispelled the Five Coverings that move with u s blinding. ! I pursued the lost tracks o f F u X i and Shen Nong,2 walked in the obscure footprints of Lao-zi and Lao-lai-zi.3 I scaled heights and descended, spending two nights , and at last reached the great citadel of the Undying. Paired towers, thrust in clouds, lined the road, heaven-touching j asper terraces hung there suspended. Vermilion turrets appeared in fragments through the forests, halls of j ade, revealed and blocked in hills' lofty folds. Involute bands of scarlet cloud hovered in lattices, shimmering beams of the brilliant sun passed in the grillwork. Eight cassias rise somber and dense, last through the frost, five- budded asphodels, bursting with spore, spread open with dawn . Gentle breeze hoarded scent in sunlit forests, 'Th i s is the fa m o u s stone b r idge of Mount T i a n -ta i . 8 A figure for peri l . 9 Although the d u st h e re m i ght be eas i l y taken as mere l y worl d l y conta m i nati o n , the L i S h a n com
mentary i d e ntifies it as the "six fo rms of d u st" that bring i m p u rity to the sou l : the five sen ses as we l l a s the activities o f m i n d . ' T h e " F ive Coverings" a r e five v i ces-l u st, wrath, s l oth, lev ity, a n d u n certa i nty-that h i nder B ud d h i st s p i ritual p rogress. 2Two sages of rem ote antiqu ity. 'Two of the early sages of D a o i s m .
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sweet fountains spurted trickles in shadowy channels. The boughless Jian Tree lost its shadow a thousand yards high,4 the tree of chalcedony twinkled and sparkled dangling pearls . Qiao the Prince harnessed his crane and dashed to the heavens,s A Buddhist arhat, with flying staff, strutted through void. Spirit-changes were racing, with lightning swiftness, all at once leaving Presence and entering Absence. Then when I finished my gaze all around, my body grew tranquil, my heart was serene. Whatever hurts horses had been left behind,6 all worldly problems here were forsaken. Always the blade fell into empty spaces, the ox in my eyes was never entire.? I focused m y thoughts on the hidden cliffs, sang out clearly beside the long stream. Now Xi-he brought the sun j ust overhead, and drifting vapors lifted on high. Dharma drums boomed, their echoes resounded, crowds of scents wafted, their smoke ascending. Then I encountered august Heaven, and next there gathered the Undying Hosts. Oils of purple-black j ade were ladled out, I imbibed the fountains of the Flower Pool. Beyond-Image doctrines dissolved m y ignorance,8 the texts on Non-Birth opened m y heart.9 I realize that abandoning Presence is not yet complete, grasp that the j ourney to Absence has its gaps. I efface the emptiness of appearances, merge all traces, suddenly reach Presence and grasp the mystery. I expound how these two names have a common source, melt the Three Flags in the unity of Absence. 1 Indulging i n t h e j oys o f talk t h e whole d a y through equals perfect silence of not speaking. I blur the thousands of images by dark observation, my body, insensate, identical with What Is Naturally So. 4A m yt h i c a l tree a t the Earth ' s center o n w h i c h the h i g h g o d s rise and desce n d . ' Q iao the Prince w a s an a d e p t w h o became one o f the U n d y"l n g . ' F rom a para b l e i n the Zhuang-zi i n w h i c h a b o y herd i n g horses w a s a s k e d by the Yel l ow E m peror about ru l i n g the wor l d ; he responded that one need o n l y get rid of what h u rts the horses. ' E c h o i n g the para b l e of B utcher D i ng in the Zhuang-zi. B utcher D i n g never needed to sharpen h i s kn ife because h i s s k i l l was s u c h that t h e b l ad e moved o n l y through t h e "empty s paces . " ·Neo-Daoist doctr i n e . ' T h e B u d d h i st p r i n c i p l e of transcen d i n g the cycles o f rebi rth . ' T h e "Th ree F l ags" was B u d d h i st j a rgon for three as pects of s p i ritual experi ence: appearance, empti ness, a n d contem p l at i o n . Their d i ss o l ution i nto Neo-Daoist Absence s uggests not so much the vic tory of Neo- D a o i s m as the syncret i s m that pervades the enflre poetic expos i t i o n .
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T h e E n c o u n te r w i th t h e Goddess A l so o u t o f t h e " Lyrics o f C h u " g rew poet ic expos itions on encou nters with t h e god he two earl lest of these , "The Poet ic Expos ition o n G ao-ta n g " and "The God . dess, , a re att r i b uted to Song Yu, who was s u p posed to h ave been a fo l l ower of Qu Yuan ( h e appea rs e l sewhe re as a n e l oquen t o rato r i n the N o rthern m a n n e r) Th ese . . two poetiC expos i t i o n s a re certa i n l y n ot by S o n g Y u ; rath er, they seem to be H a n works attr i b uted t o ong Y u b e c a u s e h e is t h e s p e a k e r i n the fra m e . S o n g Yu was a very popu l a r f i g u re I n the fra m e sto ries i n w h i c h poet ic expos i t i o n s were set. The prose frame of "The Poet ic Expos ition on G ao-ta n g " g i ves the most fa m ous vers i o n o f the encou nter w i t h the � oddes s, w h o co m e s as a n a p p a r i t i o n to the K ing o f C u a n d s p e n d s t h e n i ght with h i m . O n leav i n g, she c l a i m s to be the " c l o u d s , and ra i n , which grad u a l y b e c a m e a poet ic term fo r sex u a l i nterco u rse. The main body of the poet i c expos i t i o n , a descri ption of Gao-ta ng, i s o m i tted below . dess.
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Song Yu ( attribute d), The Poetic Exposition on Gao-tang ( opening) Once upon a time King Xiang of Chu visited the high terrace at Yun-meng with S ong Yu, when he gazed off toward the lodge of Gao-tang. Above it was a mass of cloudy vapors, first rising up towering, then suddenly changing its aspect, s o that in a moment there were endless transfor mations . And the king asked Song Yu, "What vapor is that ? " Whereupon Song Yu replied, " That is what they call 'the clouds of dawn . ' " And again the king: " What is meant by 'the clouds of dawn' ? " Song Yu: " Once upon a time one of the kings before you visited Gao tang. He grew weary and lay down to rest during the daytime . He dreamed then of a woman, who said to him, 'I am the Maiden of Wu Mountain and am a soj ourner here at Gao-tang. When I heard that my lord was visiting Gao-tang, I wanted to share a bed with you . ' Then the king enj oyed her. And when she left, she said on parting, 'I am found on Wu Mountain's sun lit slope, on the steeps of the high hill. In the early morning I am the clouds of dawn; in the evening I am the passing rain. So it is every morning and every evening beneath the Terrace of Light.' He watched for her in the early morning, and it was as she had said. And he then built her a temple and named it ' Clouds of Dawn . ' " The king then said, "When these clouds of dawn first come out, what do they look like ? " And Song Yu replied: When they first come out, they billow out like the perpen dicula r pine, when they come somew hat closer they glow like a comel y maid n, who lifts her sleeve s to screen away sun and gazes off towar d the one she loves.
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Then suddenly their aspect changes, they are headlong as a four-horse team, with feathered-pennons raised. Nipping like the wind, chill like the rain, then the wind stops, the rain clears, and the clouds are nowh ere to be found .
Although the k i n g' s encou nter with the goddess was fleet i n g and only i n d ream it
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was at l east con s u m m ated . " T h e G oddess" b e l ow represents a v a r i at i o n o n the m re c o m m o n co n c l u si o n i n w h i c h someth i ng b l ocks c o n s u m m atio n .
The Goddess King Xiang of Chu and Song Yu were roaming along the shores of Yun-meng Marsh, and the king ordered Song Yu to compose a poetic exposition about what had happened at Gao-tang. That night, while Song Yu was asleep, he dreamed that he himself met the goddess, whose appearance was very lovely. Song Yu marveled at her, and the next day he told the king, who then asked, " What was your dream like ? " Song Yu answered: The time was past twilight, my spirit went into trance and it seemed there was some cause for delight. All excited I was and astir, but I did not yet know what it meant. Then colors appeared as a blur in my eyes, at once I seemed to make something out. I saw a single woman there, a vision wondr ous and rare . As I slept she was in my dream , but on wakin g I saw her not. Dazed I was, I felt no joy, I was wretch ed, thwart ed in will. Then I calmed my heart and steadie d my breath , and saw once again what I had dream ed. The king said, "What did she look like ? " And Song Yu replied: S h e w a s i n full bloom, she w a s beautiful, all things good were there within her. Splendid she was and lovely, impossible to fathom it all. She was such as never had been in the past, and never yet seen in this present age. Her gestures were j ewels, her postures gems, that far surpass all adequate praise. 190
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When she first was comingthere was a glow, like the sun j ust appearing and shining on roofs and beams. And when she had drawn somewhat closer she glistened, like the bright moon unfurling its rays . Then in an instant's interval her fair, overwhelming visage appeared, so glorious, like flowers in all their splendor, so gentle, like j ade's polished sheen. From her sped all a rainbow's colors together, I cannot completely describe them. And if you stared at her too closely, the eyes would be dazzled and blinded. Such was her raiment's splendor: meshes and lace and fabrics of every hue, and opulence of patterns, superb garments with finely worked colors, shining in all directions. She donned an embroidered gown, wore vest and skirt, whose thick cloth was not too short, whose fine cloth was not too long. With a stately grace she paced, and the great hall was all aglow. She suddenly changed her bearing, stunning like the dragon that soars on cloud. Sumptuous were the garments she wore, her filmy attire was becoming. Her hair was washed in orchid lotions, she gave off the scent of pollia. Pleasant and gentle of temper, fitting to serve by one's side. Meek and mild, her manner; amiable in the heart. The king said, " She was certainly magnificent. Why don't you compose a poetic exposition for me on the topic? " And Song Yu said: Such beguiling beauty has the Goddess: she embodies rich adornments of D arkness and Light. Clothed in filagree finery to be adored, she resembles the kingfisher wide-spreading its wings. A semblance without peer, a beauty without bound. Mao Qiang would hide behind her sleeves, unequal to such standards; 191
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Xi Shi would cover her face, by comparison lacking allure. When close to her, so bewitching that afar one is gazing ever. The form of her frame is full of wonder, she is fit to be mate for a lord. When I stared at her, she filled my eyes who is there to surpass her ? She gave my heart singular pleasure and my j oy in her knew no measure. Encounters are seldom, her grace rarely given I cannot recount it all. No other man has beheld her, but my king may survey her appearance. Her appearance was so imposing, how can I speak it thoroughly? Her face plump and full, firm it was and fair, alabaster features enfolding a kindly glow. Her eye-pupils glinting, sharp and radiant, beaming and so beautiful, fair to look upon. The brows' delicate arching were moths ascending, red lips glistening like cinnabar. Her pale-fleshed torso was thick and firm, her will was easy and generous, her body was relaxed. Voluptuous charms achieved in stillness and seclusion, now she moved in undulations within the human world. A high hall was fitting to give room to her intent, there she let herself go winging, open she was and free. S h e stirred a fog of gauze in her stately paces, the sound as she brushed the pavements was swish, swish. She looked toward m y curtains, there let gaze linger, like rolling of ripples rising to waves. She lifted long sleeves, adj usted gown's folds , and stood there wavering, not at her ease. Then rapt and still, familiar and gentle, her mind's state serene, untroubled utterly . Sometimes free and easy, then she barely moved no full fathoming of her intent. Her mood seemed intimate, but then was remote; it seemed she was coming, but then she turned round. She lifted my bedcurtain, entreated to serve me, she wished to show fullness of heart's steadfast love. What she felt was bright and pure, clear and unsullied, but then in the end she found fault with me. I delivered fine phrases, I tried to respond, 192
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they had a sweet fragrance as of orchids. Our spirits intertwined, passed back and forth, our hearts were in bliss with pleasure and j oy. My soul reached through to her, but no tie was formed, the psyche left lonely, with no ground to rest. The assent that was in her was fated not to be; a moan then rose from me, I sighed out in sorrow. Faintly angered she colored, then mastered herself, for never might any trespass upon her. Then her pendant s and ornaments swaying , j ade phoenixe s ringing, she straight ened her clothes and compos ed her face. She looked round to her tutor, to duenna gave orders; and our passion unconsummated, she took leave to go. S h e drew body away, I could not approach her. Then as if withdrawing, but not yet gone, midway it seemed that she turned her head, and barely glancing from eye's corner, a flash of spirit was conveyed; and the will's bent broke through I cannot manage the full recollection. Before our loves were sundered, my heart and soul collapsed in dread. There was no chance to say the proper good byes, and my words were left incomplete . I wished her to grant me but a moment, but the Goddess pleaded haste. The heart twisted, the spirit knew pain, I fell and had no support. Then suddenly all turned black, and I knew not where I was . What I feel in the secrecy of the heart to whom could I speak it? I shed tears in my wretchedness and kept seeking her until the dawn.
Cao Z h i ' s "The Goddess of the Luo" is the most fa m o u s of a n u m be r of poet i c ex pos itions o n encou nters with the goddess w ritten ea r l y in the th i rd century. The par ticu l a r goddess is F u -fe i , rath e r than the goddess of Wu M o u nta i n . 193
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Cao Zhi ( 1 92-2 3 2 ) , The Goddess of the Luo In the third year of the Huang-chu Reign, A . D . 222, I had gone to the capi tal to attend court, and on my return I forded the Luo River. There is an an cient legend that the goddess of this river is named Fu-fei. Touched by Song Yu's response to what occurred between the King of Chu and the goddess, I myself composed the following poetic exposition. I was on my return from the capital back to my eastern domain, Yi Tower Peak lay behind me as I passed over Huan-yuan Hill, then made my way through Tong Valley, and crossed up over Mount Jing. The sun was bending down to the west, my carriage slowed, the horses balked. I unhitched my team by spikenard flats and set them to graze on asphodel fields. I rambled at ease in the Grove of Sunshine, and my gaze swept over the River Luo . At that moment, my soul shuddered, my spirit was startled, in an instant all thoughts were dispersed: looking down I could make out nothing, but I raised my head and beheld a marvel. I spied a lovely woman there at the side of the steep slope. I then seized my driver and asked him: " Did you catch sight of her ? Who that was she, to be so beguiling ? " And my driver answere d me: "They say her been have must It Fu-fei. of name the by goes the goddess of the Luo told I on Whereup " . like looked she what hear to like would I that you saw. him: Her form: swept along lightly like startled swan, was sinuous as the swimming dragon, shimmering like sheen on fall's chrysanthemums, splendid like pines that swell in the spring. She was a blur as when pale clouds form a film on the moon, she floated through air as when winds send snow swirling. When I gazed on her from afar, she shone like the sun through morning clouds mounting; when nearer I viewed her, 1 94
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she glowed like a lotus coming out of clear waves. She achieved the mean between slender and stout, between tall and short she met the right measure . Her shoulders seemed hewn to perfection, her waist was tight as if bound with white silk. When she stretched her neck, the throat was fair, and her radiant flesh was displayed, unassisted by aromatic lotions and with no powder lending it aid. Her hair coiled high in lofty clouds, and long brows formed delicate arches. Scarlet lips on the outside luminous, with shining teeth gleaming within. Her bright eyes cast wondrous glances, dimples stood close by her cheekbones. A rare bearing, alluring, aloof, her manner was poised, her body calm . With tender feeling and lovely expression, her speech was enthralling. Her singular garb was unique in these times, her figure well fitted what we find pictured. She wore a gown of shimmering gauze, in her ears were gems cut cunningly; her head was adorned with feathers and jade, and strung pearls made her body sparkle. She wore patterned slippers for roaming far, she trailed light sleeves of misty mesh. Through a filmy aromatic haze of orchids she paced, then paused on the fold of the hill. All at once she broke loose, moving wild and free, she skipped and cavorted here and there, she leaned on bright streamers to her left, to her right she was shadowed by cassia flags . She bared bright wrists on those sacred shores, and from seething shallows picked purple asphodel. Thus my heart took delight in unblemished beauty; the mind, swept away, could feel no cheer. Lacking go-between to let our loves meet, I trusted soft glance-waves to carry my words . I wished my true feelings would be conveyed, I untied m y jade pendants to win her. She possessed such beauty, she was truly fair, familiar with custom, she knew the Poems: 1 5' 5
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she raised j asper b angles to answer me, and made signs to the deeps where we should meet. For her I felt a single-minded passion, but feared that this spright might beguile me. Troth to Jiao-fu broken touched on my heart,2 I paused, deeply troubled, and doubted. I composed m y face a n d calmed m y will, I pled custom's restraints and mastered myself. Then the Luo Spirit too was much touched; she lingered long in her hesitation. The goddess' nimbus came and went, sometimes in shadow, sometimes bright. Like a crane her light body stood poised and tall, as if ready for flight, not yet taking wing. She walked in billowing scents of pepper tree paths, stepped through swirling odors of spikenard clumps. Then came a long moan of eternal desire, a voice that was sharp, and pained, and lingering on. The hosts of spirits massed in their multitudes, calling and whistling each to companions. Some went frisking in the clear currents, and some soared off by the goddess' isles, some went down to pick the bright pearls, some went gathering kingfisher plumes With the Xiang River Maidens they headed south, or held hands with those girls who roam the Han's shores. She sighed that the Pao-gua Star lacked a mate, she sang how the Herder lived alone. Her light blouse rose, it fluttered in breeze, her long sleeves hid her, standing there long. Her body, more fleet than ducks in their flight, flitted past in a puff, like the goddess she was. Her delicate footsteps swept over the waves, and dust rose from her stockings of gauze. To her motions there was no set pattern: as if apprehensive, then as if at her ease. And her movements were hard to predict: she would seem to go off, then seem to turn back. When she turned her gaze sidelong, the spirit flowed, and light soaked those features so like j ade. She held back her words, she would not speak, but her breath was like the aroma of orchids. 'Zheng J i ao-fu encou ntered two n y m p h s by the river H a n , who gave him th e i r pendants as to kens of the i r troth, then v a n i s h e d along with their pendants, leav i n g J i ao-fu ·,n despa i r .
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There was in her glorious face such gentleness that it made me forget all about eating. Then Ping-yi gathered back his winds, the Queen of the Waters stilled the waves. Ping-I made the drums sound out, while Nii Wa sang her clear, sharp song. Goldfish vaulted, warned of carriages coming, phoenix bells chimed as they all left together. With six dragons matched, their heads held even, cloud-coaches went off, swaying along. Great whales surged up on each side of the wheels, and the waterfowl soared around in escort. They went off beyond by the northern shoals, then passed down by the hills to the south. It was there that she bent her pale neck round and sent back flashing glances. Her ruby lips stirred, and slowly she spoke, explaining the laws for mating with gods, and regretting how men and gods stood apart, grieved that no match could be made in my prime. Then she lifted gauze sleeves and wiped away tears that flowed in streams on the folds of her gown. " It is sad that our union is now lost forever, once gone, we must dwell in realms set apart. I have no way to show all the love in my heart, but I give you bright earrings from southern lands. Though I will dwell concealed in the shadow world, my heart will forever be yours, my prince . " At once I could no longer grasp where she was; I grieved that the goddess had vanished, her light hidden. And I went back down the heights of the hill; my feet left that place, but my spirit stayed . My love remained with the vision of her form, I looked back and gazed, my heart filled with pain. I wished that the Holy One take form again; I guided my skiff up against the current, I sailed the long river, forgot to turn back, my thoughts keeping on with growing yearning. That night I was restless, I could not sleep, the heavy frosts soaked me, and then dawn broke. I ordered my driver to hitch up the carriage, I set off to go back on that eastward road. Then I pull up the reins and set by my whip, I hung there in sorrow, I could not go on. 197
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Other Voices in the Tradition A popu l a r story g rew up a ro u n d Cao Z h i ' s "The Goddess of the L uo , " i nterpret i n g the pi ece as a figu rative descr i pt i o n of Cao Z h i ' s relation to a woman he l oved, a woman who was married to h i s b rother Cao P i and became E m press Zhen . After her death, Cao Z h i was sup posed to h ave encou ntered her s p i rit by the L u o . The story i s , u n fortu n ate l y, apocry p h a l . B u t i n t h e T a n g co l l ection o f c l as s i c a l stories entitled " Accou nts of Marve ls" (Ch uan-qi), we have a n authentication of the legend by none other than the s p i r i t of E m p ress Zhen herself.
Pei Xing ( 8 25-8 8 0 ) , " Accounts of Marvels " (Chuan-qi) : Xiao Kuang ( op ening secti on ) During the Tai-he Reign ( 8 27-8 3 5 ) , Xiao Kuang, a private citizen, w a s traveling east from Luo-yang and had reached Xiao-yi Lodge, where he rested for the night in the Double Beauty Pavilion. The moon was bright and the breeze was cool, when Xiao Kuang, who was a skilled harpist, took out his harp and was playing it. At around midnight the melody grew intensely plaintive; he suddenly heard someone heaving a great sigh over the waters of the Luo . The person gradually drew closer, and it turned out to b e a beautiful woman. Xiao Kuang then put down his harp and bowed to her, asking, "Who might you b e ? " And she answered, "I am the goddess of the b anks of the Luo. Don't you recall that Cao Zhi, the Prince of Chen, wrote a poetic exposition about me long ago ? " Xiao Kuang replied, "I do indeed. " Then Kuang went on to ask, "I have heard from some that the goddess of the Luo was in fact the Empress Zhen, who had passed away, and that Cao Zhi encountered her soul on the shores of the Luo. As a consequence he wrote ' Stirred by Lady Zhen .' Later he realized the impropriety of the matter a n d changed it t o 'The Goddess o f t h e Luo,' figuring h i s real intentions in the guise of Fu-fei. Is that what happened? " She replied, " l a m that very Empress Zhen. Because I was s o taken b y Cao Zhi's talent a n d manner, Cao Pi, t h e Emperor Wen, was enraged; I w a s locked away and died. Afterward my soul met the prince, Cao Zhi, by the River Luo and gave an account of the wrongs I had endured. He was touched and wrote about it. But he realized that the matter was indecorous and changed the title. What you said was not at all inaccurate. " All at once a serving girl appeared carrying a mat and prepared wine and hors d' oeuvres. Then the goddess said to Xiao Kuang, "When I recently married Mr. Yuan, I found I had a natural fondness for harp playing. Whenever someone played things like 'Sad Winds' or ' Streams Flowing in the Three Gorges,' I would always stay on through the whole evening. I happened to hear the clarity and grace of your harp playing and would like to listen to more . " Xiao Kuang then played the toc cata " The Parted Crane" and " Sad Winds. " The Goddess heaved a long sigh. "You are truly the equal of Cai Yong . " And she went on to ask Xiao Kuang about "The Goddess of the Luo . " Xiao Kuang replied, " It had such genuine smoothness and clarity of description thatthe Liang prince Zhao-ming anthologized it with the most choice literary works . " Then the goddess gave a faint smile. " D on't you think he went somewhat wide of the mark when he described my movements as 'swept along lightly like startled swan, sinuous as the swimming dragon' ? "
After F u -fei offers her c r i t i q u e of Cao Z h i ' s poet i c l i cense, the t al e conti n ues a s X i a o Kuang takes the opport u n i ty t o ask the goddess a ll m a n n e r of q u esti o n s regard i n g d ragon l o re and
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Early China eventu a ll y con s u m m ates the sex u a l encou nter that had el u d ed Cao Z h i s'lx centu ries prev i ously. The motifs a n d concerns of the " L y r i c s of C h u " fo u n d th e i r w a y i nto every as pect of C h i n e s e I iteratu re. E v e n t h e a n c i e nt w o r l d of g o d s a n d goddesse s, rel egated l a rge l y t o fo l k re l i gion, d i d not d isappear enti re l y from el ite l i teratu re. T h e Tang poet Wang Wei, serv i n g i n a prov i n c i a l post in the East (a post he cou l d we l l have considere d "ex i le" l i ke that of Qu Y u a n ) , wrote the fo l l ow i n g two p o e m s f o r a shaman istic serv i c e o n F i s h M o u n ta i n .
Wang Wei ( c a . 69 9-76 1 ) , Songs for the Goddess' Shrine o n Fish Mountain
Song IVelcoming the Goddess Beat the drums booming: at the foot of Fish Mountain blow the panpipes and gaze to far shores. Shaman girls enter dancing in frenzy. Onyx mats spread, clear liquors infused.
A chill in the wind,
rain by night,
will the goddess come, it makes my heart
will she not?-
suffer pang upon p ang.
Song Sending the Goddess on Her IVay In a mass they come forward bowing, eyes gaze with yearning
before the hall,
toward the alabaster mat.
She came but did not speak, she was the twilight rain,
her will was not made known,
she made bare hills forlorn.
In the shrill pi pes there is sadness, and longing in swiftly strummed strings, the holy one's carriage
is ready to turn.
At once the clouds draw back, and the hills so green,
the rain ceases,
the waters splashing on.
In Wang We i ' s poems, a trace of the a n c i e n t awe in face of d i v i n ity re m a i n s . By the n i nth centu ry, however, pop u l a r re l i g i o n had been transformed i nto someth i n g l i ke a "Goth i c " taste fo r r u i ned te m p l es, stormy n ights, a n d d rago n s with glea m i n g eyes . A l t h o u g h h i s own i n terest i n d i v i n i ty i s far mo re c o m p l ex, t h e poet L i H e w a s a n i m portant fig u re i n c reati n g t h i s taste fo r t h e " poetic" s h a m a n k a ( a woman s h a m a n ) .
Li He ( 79 0-8 1 6 ) , String Music f o r t h e Gods The shaman woman pours wine, clouds fill the skies; from j ade brazier's burning coals scented smoke pulses. Gods of the seas and hill wraiths come to their places to feast, 199
Anthology of Chinese Literature the paper money crackling sounds in the swirling gusts. Passionwood mandolin inlaid with golden dancing phoenix; she knits her brows and mutters, with each mutter, sweeps the strings . She calls to stars and summons wraiths to taste from cup and plate, when mountain goblins are feeding, men shudder and feel the cold. Then over Zhong-nan the sun draws low into a level trough, and the gods are hanging forever between being here and not. With the god's rage or the god's delight the medium's face shifts, then she sends the gods, riding in thousands, back to the green hills.
Wen Ting-yun (d. 8 6 6 ) , Written on the Temple of Mount Xiao An ancient path darkened by shadows of trees, weed-grown shrine east of the hill's shadow. Pines and firs, a whole courtyard of rain, awnings and streamers, winds fill the hall. Evening sands soaked from worshippers' libations, a horse whinnies, the shrine empty in spring. Thunder and lightning cease deep in night, and the dragon goes into the ancient tarn.
Guan-xiu ( 8 32-9 1 2 ) , Shrine by the River The pines are dark and gloomy, the turbulent river churns, an ancient shrine by the river, empty, its gates shut tight. I am certain the holy being grew drunk on the village festival wine, and the white tortoise gnawed apart the roots of the calamus. Tattered blossoms cold and red, still drip with last night's rain; the shell of the earthen dragon is soaked, demon eyes glint scarlet. Sooner or later a sign from Heaven will come from the s apphire sky:
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Early China last night in the village up ahead the peals of thunder passed.
Later in the trad i ti o n, the goddess often d i sappears i n to the l a n d scape and parti c u l a r l y i nto her own Wu ( S h a m a n ka) M o u n ta i n , by the Yangzi River gorges. The you ng Su S h i (Su Dong po), trave l i ng down the Yang z i for the first time fro m his native S i c h u a n , passed the p l ace as a s i ghtseer 'In the m i d d l e of the e l eventh centu ry . By now the goddess no l o nger appears . D i v i n i ty s u rv i ves o n l y as an eerie l a n d scape, located on the oth er s i d e of the r i ver, reported by someone e l se who v i s ited the spot many years ago .
Su Shi ( 1 03 7-1 1 0 1 ), Wu Mountain Where the Ju-tang's winding course is done, there the Wu Gorges rise looming. Peak linked to peak, quite astonishing how stone-hues change to blue-gray. Heaven's workman used godly craft to gradually make something grand and rare. Its dips and sharp rises lead me in deeper, and the mind cannot grasp this intricate frame. When viewed sidelong passing, no pause to glance, so I went on foot to those hidden clefts. The gray slopes suddenly hemmed me in, a sheer cliff wall where I shivered in awe . Above I viewed its eight or nine crests, in spry splendor mounting past flooding vapors. Sky's vault stood high in a deluge of light, the river seethed surging and leaping below. Alone above others, standing fast, not yielding, drawn up straight, an undaunted audacity. Climbing along, I saw the goddess's lodge, I took a place on the rock to sit and rest. Across river's waves were craggy heights, I asked the temple guide about each one. In the distance I saw the Goddess Rock, of such grace and charm, aptly named indeed. Head lowered, she shows skewed coils of hair, and sports a long shift of trailing red cloud. A man's heart changes with what it meets, from afar I was aware of deep meaning here.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature An old rustic laughed out at my side: " When young I made it there often. "I would go up as the gibbons went or sometimes try the ascent with ropes. " Stone dolmens rest on that lonely peak, j utting up, not of the usual kind. " Men these days delight in marvels of gods, and tell stories to amaze young children . " Chu's poems too are groundless traditions how can there be gods or the Undying ? " I then asked o f bamboo that swept her altar, and he said, " It's still there today. " Azure leaves hang down in a tangle, the swaying dance of green pho enix tails. " When a breeze comes they wave up and down, as if driven on by some godlike thing. " On the highest crest are three slabs of stone, with the sworls and curves of old characters. " This old man could, of course, not read them, I saw them by chance, I can't recall. "I went on in my search to the peak's other side to gather and chop yellow poplars. " Yellow poplars grow upon the rocks, gaunt and hard, with patterns like lace. " My greedy heart went without looking b ack, through mountain gorges with thousand-yard drops. " High on the hill wolves and tigers were gone, deep in I went, untroubled and without dread. "A dim murkiness, hidden plants and trees, clouds moist and glossy, billowed around. " Huge springs came from fissures within the rock, they were slick and sweet like liquid marrow. "All that morning through I bathed and rinsed, a sharp chill cleared both skin and mind. "I washed my clothes, hung them from branch tips, found a beak of stone to sharpen my ax. "I stayed still the sun grew late in the clouds, and my thoughts turned with longing for the city.
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Early China "It's been ten years now since I went there, frail and old, the strength of muscles spent. "Of the trees I cut down at that time the shoots from their stum ps are alread y like arms . " I was dismayed b y this old man's tale and sighed about it the whole day through. The gods and Undy ing do exist, but it's hard to forget the prom pting s
of gain.
Why did you love your p overty s o ?cast it a wa y like shedding a slipper. Too bad-for had you never returned, forgoing food, you would surely never have died.
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C a l l i n g B ac k the Sou I
The " Ly r i c s of C h u " h ave two for m a l sou l-cal l i ngs, " C a l l i n g Back the So u l "
(Zhao h un)
and "The G reat C a l l i ng"
(Oa -zhao).
Both are l iterary
vers i o n s of a re l i g i o u s ritu a l in w h i c h the s h a m a n c a l l s back the so u l of someone dead, d y i ng, or otherwise not in fu l l possess i o n of the sen ses (com atose, sou l -wanderi n g ) . The s h a m a n fi rst descri bes the terrors that l i e i n wait for the sou l i n a l l d i rect i o n s , then the p l easu res t h at the so u l c a n e njoy if only i t comes back t o the p a l ace o r g reat h o u se at the cente r . Of the two so u l -ca l l i n gs, " C a l l i n g B a c k the S ou l " s e e m s c l oser to the re l i g i o u s ceremony, m a k i n g refer ence to parti c u l a r aspects of the s h a m a n i st i c rite. As l iterary trad i t i o n s d evelop, we often find a p rocess of d i v i s i o n i nto parts and e l a borati o n of the separate p a rts . In the sou l - ca l l i ng, the major d i v i s i o n i s between the description of terrors, i ntended to fri g h te n the sou l i n to retu r n i ng, and the de s c r i ption of d e l i ghts, i ntended to l u re the sou l back. "Ca l l i n g Back the Rec l u se"
yin-shi) ( p .
(Zhao
2 1 1 ), a Han work i n c l ud e d in the " Lyrics of C h u , " is a tra n sfo r m ation of
the segment of s o u l - c a l l i ng descri b i n g terrors, with the v i o l e n t l a n dscape tak i n g the p l ace of the d e m o n - i n h a b i ted cosmos of "Cal l i ng Back the SOU L " l
" Calling Back the Soul" (Zhao hun) [The open i n g is apparently the fragment of a fra me story . ]
The g o d then gave word t o Yang the Shaman, saying, "There is a man down below. I want to help him. His several souls are dispersing. Go cast the lots for him . " Yang the Shaman answered, " . . . Holder o f Dreams . . . high god . . . hard to follow the traces. But if I must cast the lots, I fear that it is too late, for he is decaying and it will no longer be of any use . " Then Yang the Shaman went down and called: 'The descript ion of d e l i ghts h a s a far richer h i story. "Seven St i m u l i , " a work by the Weste rn Han wnte M e l S h e n g , I S a good exa m p l e o f how, very early, t h e r i tu a l fu nction o f sou l-cal l i n g i n ter se � te with the N o rther n orator's sense of m i s s i o n in moral persu a s i o n . Here an orator tries to rouse a s i c k and d i s s i pated p n. nce from his m a l a i se by descr i b i n g a series of del ights. Ca l l i n g the sou l back to phYSica l health me rges wl�h rec a l l i ng the p r i n c e to moral and s p i ritual health, and t h u s bri n g i n g g o o d governm ent t o the p l ity . The verbal d i s p l ay o f s e n s u a l del ights is set i n co ntrast � t o t h e d i s p l a y of m o r a l p l ea ures T h i S became p art of the j u stificatio n of the poetic expo s i t i o n (fuJ, � : but it was a p ro b l e m at i c J u stificat i o n .
�
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Early China
Soul! Turn back ! You have left your wonted frame why go to the four directions ? You forsake your places of delight and will come upon cursed things . Soul! Turn back ! No lodging for you in the east: Giants a thousand cubits tall seek only souls to eat. Ten suns emerge in sequence, melting metals, fusing stone . All there find this usual, but souls that go there soon dissolve . Turn back ! Turn back! No lodging for you there. Soul ! Turn back! No place to rest in the south. Tattooed brows and blackened fangs use meat of men in offerings, and season their stew with the bones. Cobras form j ungle-tangles, and giant foxes range a thousand miles. Nine-headed stag-pythons pass back and forth in a flash, and swallow men to feed their minds. Soul ! Turn back! No leisurely lingering there. Soul! Turn back ! There is harm for you in the west, where the sand flows for a thousand miles, You whirl into the Thunder Pit, you are ground to powder and may not rest. If luck lets you escape, beyond are boundless barrens. With red ants like elephants and black wasps like gourds. Not one of the five grains grows, clumps of straw-grass is the food. The soil there grills a man, he seeks water with none to be found. He roams aimlessly with no shelter in vast spaces that have no limit.
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Soul! Turn back ! I fear you will bring yourself ruin. Soul! Turn back ! No place to rest in the north. Piling floes of ice loom high, and the snows fly a thousand leagues . Soul ! Turn back! You cannot stay there long. Soul! Turn back! D o not climb to the heavens. By its nine-fold gates, leopards and tigers rend men from Earth below. Each one has nine heads and tears up nine thousand trees . And wolves turn their eyes upon you, prowling around you in packs . They string men up for sport, then cast them into the deepest pit. And only when the god ordains can he close eyes in darkness at last. Soul! Turn back! Should you go, I fear your peril . Soul ! Turn back ! G o not down t o the Unseen City. The Ground-Earl has nine tails, and his horns are razor-sharp . His back is humped, his talons bloody, he goes bounding after men. Three are his eyes, a tiger's head, and his body like a bull. All of these find men savory, Turn back! Turn back! I fear you bring upon yourself doom. Soul! Turn back! Enter in through these soul-gates. The Spell Master summons you, goes before you walking backwards. A basket from Qin, thread from Qi laced over with Zheng's satins. All summoning implements are on hand; and now I keen and wail: Soul ! Turn back ! Come home where you used to dwell.
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Early China
In Heaven, Earth, and the four directions many are the evils and perils. I will set forth semblances of your chambers, secure, peaceful, and calm. A high hall, closets deepset within, rimmed with high-tiered balconies . Banked terraces dense with belvederes look down from the high hill . Grillwork entries, interlaced vermilion, with continuous angular friezes carved . F o r winter here are deepset salons, in summer the chambers are chill. Gullies with streams run straight and bend back, their currents babbling. Sunlit breezes bend sweet clover and send waves through the clumps of orchid. Through the great hall into the back rooms go vermilion awnings and mats. Rooms faced with stone, kingfisher wings hung from hooks of carnelian. Quilts of kingfisher feathers and pearls, each glowing with equal light. Wall covers made of rush and crepe , gauze canopies extended. Red and motley plaits, silks patterned and plain, knotted to agate half-rings . To be seen within the chambers are many cherished marvels. Bright candles, tallow scented with orchid, of sparkling faces a full array. In two rows of eight they wait at your bed, taking turns for your evenings . Chaste daughters of the nobility much surpassing the commoners. Piled hair and hanging tresses, styles not alike fill full your grounds. Well matched in figure and features, they are truly the best of this age . Gentle of face, firm of intent, and, ah, they possess desire. Comely features and tall statures are found all through the harem.
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Mothlike brows and liquid eyes from which dark pupils flash. Smooth faces, skin's glossy tracery, from which glances of love are given. Behind tall drapes in pavilions apart they await upon my lord's leisure. Kingfisher curtains and draperies adorn the high halls . Red walls and ochre boards and beams faced with black j ade. Above you see the graven timbers, with paintings of dragons and serpents . Sitting in hall or leaning on rail you look over curving basins . There the lotuses begin to come out mingled with waterlilies. Watermallows with purple stalks make patterns along with the waves. Guards dressed in rare�patterned leopard skins attend on the sloping shore. When the great coach at last arrives, b oth foot and horse stand in their ranks. At the entry are planted orchid clumps, trees like j ewels form your hedge . Soul! Turn back ! Why do you keep so far ? The household comes to show you reverence with foods of many kinds . Rice, millet, wheat, barley combined with yellow millet. The very bitter, the salty, the sour, the hot and the sweet are used, The leg tendons of the fat ox cooked tender and smelling sweet. Mixing the bitter and the sour, they serve the broth of W u. Braised terrapin, lambs roasted whole, there is sauce of sweet potato . Sour-boiled goose, braised duck, simmered swan and fishhawk. Seared fowl, chow de red turtle fiery, but not mouth-burning. Doughballs and honey buns, sweetcakes as well. 208
Early China
Precious brews, quaffed like mead, brim feather-patterned flagons, the pressed mash drunk chilled as ice, and the clarified wine, cool. Well-wrought ladles have been set and there is the precious brew. Turn back to your old chambers where you are honored and free from offense. Before those morsels make the rounds, girl musicians move to their lines . They ring the bells and roll the drums, performing the recent songs : "Wading the River, " " Pick Caltrops, " then breaking into " 0 Brightness . " And a s the beauties grow more drunk, their rosy faces flush. Eye 's teasing gleam, the half-lidded gaze, glances come wave upon wave. Patterned cloaks, fine-woven gowns , flashy but yet not garish. Long tresses and trailing locks, sensual, bright, and alluring. In two rows of eight, in unison, they begin the dances of Zheng. Then, sleeves crossed like staves before them, slowing the beat they withdraw. With pipes' and psalteries' wild concert, they hammer booming drums Till the whole court of the great house shakes and the " Frenzied Chu " begins.2 The la ys of W u, lyrics of Cai, and they play the Great Lu. Men and women are sitting together, mixed and not kept apart. Sashes and ribbons are cast down, the places all in confusion. Seductive diversions of Zheng and Wei are performed mixed in among them. But the coda of the " Frenzied Chu" is the finest of them all. Smoky-j ade markers and ivory pieces they play the game of Six Whites. ' T h e " F renzied ( h u " i s a dance.
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Dividing in teams, they attack together, and press one another hard. The throw succeeds, the score is doubled, one shouts : " Five white ! " Horn buckles of Jin-craft, aglow like bright suns. Bells are rung, chime frames shake, they sweep the catalpa-wood harps. Joys of the wine are not set aside as they pass throug h days and nights . When bright lamps burnin g orchid oil are set in their splend id frames . Verses are made t o speak longing, with phrase s finely wrought. And in the height s of their passio n, j oined hearts recite . Drinki ng we reach the crest of pleasu re to give the ancest ors j oy . Soul, turn back! Return here where you once dwelle d.
The Ending Song The entering year, the onset o f spring, it was then that we made our way south. The green leaves of duckweed lay even, and the white iris grew. Our course cut across the Lu River, tall j ungles lay to the left. By the pools edging the floodplain, our gaze swept wide and far. Jet black steeds were yoked in teams, a thousand chariots held the line. The hunters' torches stretched off, and the black smoke rose. Those on foot reach ed to where we charg ed, a n d the hunt leader gallop ed ahead . We curbe d their stamp ede to an easy gait, then bent the chario ts round to the right. With the king I dashed throug h the fens, we raced to see who would be the first. The king himse lf made the shot, the black buffalo was slain. Red dawnlight follows the night, the time does not let us linger. 210
Early China
Marsh orchids blanket the trail, the path here fades away. The river rolls in swollen floods, above there are maples. The eyes reach a full thousand leagues wounding the heart in spring. o soul ! Turn back ! Have pity on the Southland. "Ca l l i n g Back the Rec l u se"
(Zhao yin -shi) is
attributed to a c o u rt i e r of the Han p r i nce
of H u a i - n a n . H u a i - n a n was wel l to the east of the o r i g i n a l Chu h o m e l a n d , but it was the s i te of the l ast Chu capital at S h o u - c h u n . The Han p r i n c i pa l ity of H u a i - n a n i n c l u d ed m u c h o f t h e reg i o n o f W u as wel l . I t was i n th i s l a rge reg i o n that t h e " L y r i c s o f C h u " s e e m t o h ave been p reserved, a n d oth er works of the a rea s h ow stro n g traces of o l d C h u learn i n g, s u c h as the essay col l ecti o n com p i l ed in the H u a i - n a n cou rt, the
Huai-nan-zi.
" Calling Back the Recluse" (Zhao yin-shi) Dense groves of cassia in hills' hidden places, writhing shapes rising, boughs locked together, where hill vapors loom with rocks j utting high, where chasms drop deep and waters raise wave s. Packs of apes shriek, leopards and tigers roar, there he snapped cassia branches and lingered a while. A royal prince wandered, he did not come home: in spring the plants grew, thick and so green; and then with year's ending, he grew dej ected, the cicadas were singing their mournful cries. Jagged and craggy, clefts of the hills, there the heart lingered, dazed with dread, its murky recesses sent shivers of fright, caves of leopards and tigers, in deep forest thickets a man climbs from fear. Steep is its sheernes s, rocky and rugged, looming and lofty, strewn with great stones, tree limbs locked together, woods dense with leaves and twigs; green sedge grows between the trees, and high grass rattles , whipped by winds. The white deer and the hart, sometimes bounding, sometimes still, there poised on the heights, on the towering cliff, in the gloomy chill and the soggy air. 211
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Apes and baboons, black bears and brown ' each yearns for its own and feels the grief. He snaps cassia branches and lingers a while, leopards and tigers battle, bears bellow, then beasts and birds shudder, they do forget kin. Come home now my princein the hills one may not linger so long. o rato r u ses words to rouse the pri nce As the s h a m a n sets out to s u m m o n the sou l , the h i s d u ty . In " C a l l i n g B ac k the Sou l , " the to G ood B e h av i o r , to c a l l h i m home to do of his verse with a descrip tion of a feast n o i shama n speake r con c l u ded the m a i n port p l easure to the s p i r i ts of the a n cestor s. give to was a n d o rgy, whose expres s p u rpose t compo nent of r i tu a l s fo r the dead Offe r i ngs of meat a n d wine were an i m portan So u l " ) . Yet the dead rare l y gave t h e i r o p i n (th o u g h not orgies as in " C a l l i n g B ac k the e l b a were poets r, oweve h es, fou rth centu ri i o n o f t h e p racti ce. D u r i n g t h e th i rd and y b a c k . T h e sou l m ay s u rv ive t h e body's t o i m agi n e t h e s o u l try i n g t o m a ke i ts w a d r i n k in the usual way . and eat o d i ss o l u ti o n , but i t needs the body t
Other Vo ices in the Tradition Ruan Yu (d. 2 1 2 ) , Seven Sorrows Hard to meet youth a second time
�
honor and riches will not come ag in. Life's best moments are suddenly past, and body is nothing but soil and ash. The D eep Springs' chambers are somber and dark ' forever in mansions of endless night. Body is gone, the breath's force spent, and the soul has nothing to which to return. Fine foods are served, yet you cannot dine, and the best wines fill the flagons . Come forth from the tomb, gaze on your home, and see nothing but weeds and brambles.
Ta o Qia n ( 3 6 5-42 7 ) , Pall B earer' s S o ng
II
I used t o have n o wine t o drink '
today it spills uselessly over the cup. A spring brew with its floating leeswhen can I ever taste it again? Before me a table is filled with fine foods' kin and old friends weep by my side. I try to speak, but my mouth makes no sound ' I try to see, there's no light in my eyes. I used to bed in a high-roofed hall, now I spend nights in a land of wild grass.
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Early China One morning at dawn I went out my gate, and I truly have not yet made it back.
The negative h a l f of the sou l -ca l l i n g-the warn i n g about the per i l s of go i n g far-does reap pear occas i o n a l l y in l ater l i teratu re, though with a hyperbole that may be tongue- i n -cheek. T h e fol l ow i n g i s perhaps the most fam o u s negati ve s u m mo n s in the trad i t i o n , in w h i c h Li Bo, a native of Shu, part of modern S ic h u a n , warns a n i m a g i n a ry trave l e r from C h a n g- a n not to u n d ertake the h a rd s h i ps of the j o u rney t h rough the m o u n ta i n s .
L i B o ( 70 1-762 ) , Hard Ways
to
Shu
Aiyaiyai ! ! High ! ! My, my! ! Steep ? ! ! Yep. Yipes ! ! The way to Shu is hard, harder than climbing blue sky. Dzhom-dzhung and Ngiu-bhio
in the far, murky past founded this land / for forty-eight thousand years after them
hearth smoke of men did not stretch through the passes into
Qin.
Over Mount Tai-bo directly west there is a way for birds whereby they can cut straight across Mount E-mei's crest. There once was a landslide, an avalanche, and warriors died in their prime,4 and only after that time did ladders to sky and plankways on stone link it through, one to the other. Above there is the high ensign where the team of six dragons bends the sun, and below is the stream that winds around with dashing waves surging back crashing. Even in flight the brown crane cannot pass, apes and monkeys want to cross and sadly strain, dragging themselves along. At Blue Silt it looped and twisted, each hundred steps had nine sharp turns that curved around ridges and peaks. You will pat the Plow-Star, pass by the Well, look up and gasp, lThe l egend ary fou n ders of the K i ngdom of Shu a re h e re given in thei r Tang p ro n u n c i ati o n . 4Th i s refers t o a story o f how K i n g H u i o f Q i n o n c e offered h i s five d a u ghters i n m a rriage to a n a n c i e n t K i n g o f S h u . T h e S h u k i n g sent f i v e sta lwart m e n t o get them. On the i r return, o n e o f t h e m e n s a w a h u ge s n a ke w h o s e tai l was sti c k i n g o u t of i t s h o l e . H e grabbed t h e tai l a n d was joined
by his fou r com p a n i o n s ; together they p u l led so h ard that the m o u n ta i n c o l l a psed, k i l l i n g both them and the five d a u ghters of Q i n . 213
Anthology of Chinese Literature with your hand stroke your breast, sit and sigh in pain. I ask: from your westbound wanderings when you will return ?for I am dismayed by paths so craggy they can't be scaled. You will hear and see only s orrowing birds tha t wail in leafless trees, the cock flies on, and the hen follows, winding their way through woods . You will also hear the night j a r crying t o the night moon and casting a gloom in deserted hills.s The way to Shu is hard, harder than climbing blue sky, causing wrinkles to form in youthful features of any who hear this song. Peak j oined to peak, short of Heaven j ust less than a foot, barren pines hang upside down, clinging to sheer cliff face. Torren ts burst over bluffs in cascades in bellowing duels, boulders roll smashing down slopes thunder in thousands of canyons. Since here there is such peril you who have come so far on this way, why have you come at all? Sword Tower looms high, juts into sky, one man holds the gate and thousands cannot break through. And the one who holds it may prove no friend, may change into wolf or j ackal. At dawn we dodge fierce tigers, at dusk we dodge long snakes. They sharpen fangs to suck out blood and kill men like scything down hemp. Men may speak of the j oys in Brocade Town,6 but best to turn home as soon as you can. The way to Shu is hard, harder than climbing blue sky, I sway gazing off toward the west and give a mighty sigh. 'The n ightjar was s u p posed to h ave been a m etamorphosis of the a n c i e n t S h u r u l e r Wang-d i . 6 B rocade Town i s C h e n g-d u , the capital of S h u .
214
In te r l u d e B etwee n the " Ly r i cs o f C h u " and Yue-fu : " T h e B i og ra p h y o f L ad y L i " The fo l l ow i n g s h o rt b i o g ra p h y, a n exce l l e n t exa m p l e of the h i stor i a n ' s a rt, foc u ses o n t h e q u esti o n o f d e s i re, see i n g, a n d i l l u s i o n . T h e Confu cian h i sto r i a n B a n Gu d i stru sts s u rface a p pearan ces and h e re p u rpo rts to s h ow u s the truth beneath them, although o n e need o n l y c o n s i d e r how u n l i ke l y it wou l d be for the h i stor i a n to h ave knowl edge of the d i a l o g u e between the d y i n g L a d y L i a n d h e r s i ster to rea l ize t h a t the i m agi n ative constru cti o n o f a n eth i c a l exa m p l e i s a t w o r k h e re rath e r t h a n report i n g known facts . T h e rel a tion between appearances, des i re, and pol i t i c a l power partic u l a r l y t ro u b l es the m o ra l i st. It i s a l so a situation in which poetry of v a ry i n g sorts p l ays a n essenti a l role, with each for m of poetry i n vo l v i n g the q u esti o n o f i l l u s i o n . We h ave h e re o n e o f the ea r l i est exa m p l es of the five-sy l l a b l e poetic I ine in its c h a racte r i st i c fo rm, in the l y r i c s o f the c o u rt s i n ge r L i Yan- n i a n ; w e h ave the i rregu l a r extem pore verse of E m peror Wu, w h i c h i s l ater set to m u s i c b y the M u s i c Offi ce (Yue-fu); and we h ave t h e em peror's e l egy, a composite p i ece j o i n i n g the Ch u-ci trad i t i o n of the l ost goddess and a m o re perso n a l l a ment.
Ban Gu (A.D. 32-92 ) , The Han History, from " The Biographies of the Imperial In-Laws " Emperor Wu's Lady Li originally entered the court as a singing girl . In the beginning the Lady's brother Li Yan-nian had an innate understanding of music and was skilled in both singing and dance. Emperor Wu was quite fond of him. Whenever he did his variations on popular songs, the audience never failed to be stirred . O nce, when attending on the Emperor, Li Yan nian rose to dance and sang: In the north c ountry is a lady fair, she stands alone beyond compare. She glances once, a city falls; a kingdom falls when she glances again . Surely you know that a lady so fair, she for whom cities and kingdoms fall, will never be found again. The Emperor heaved a great sigh: " Wonderful ! But could there really b e such a woman in our own time ? " Princess Ping-yang thereupon said that Li Yan nian had a younger sister; and when the Emperor summoned her to an au dience, she was indeed a remarkable beauty who was skilled in the dance. From that encounter she received the Emperor's favors and bore him a son, 215
Anthology of Chinese Literature
who became Prince Ai of Cheng-yi. Lady Li died an untimely death while still in her youth . The Emperor was deeply saddened and had her likeness painted in Sweet Springs Palace. Four years after the Empress Wei-si was re moved, Emperor Wu himself passed on. The Grand Marshal Huo Guang then acted in accord with the Emperor's long-standing wishes and made sac rificial offerings to Lady Li j ointly with those to the Emperor, giving her the title " Emperor Wu's Empress . " Earlier, when Lady Li's sickness had become grave, the Emperor him self had come to see how she was. The Lady covered herself with her blan ket and refused to let him see her, saying, "I have been lying sick for a long time, and my looks have been marred; I can't see you this way. But I ask to that you take care of the prince, my son, and my brothers . " The Emperor replied, " My Lady, you are seriously ill, and it may be that you never get up again. Wouldn't it ease your mind to let me see you this one time and charge me with the care of the prince and your brothers ? " The Lady said, "A woman does not let her ruler see her when she is not properly adorned. I would not dare see Your Maj esty as disheveled as I am now . " The Em peror replied, " If you will j ust let me see you once, I will grant you a thou sand pieces of gold and give your brothers high posts . " The Lady said, "High posts depend on the Emperor; they do not depend on letting you see me once . " The Emperor again said that he absolutely must see her, but the L ady turned away from him, sobbing, and said no more. At this the Em peror was put out of countenance and rose to leave . Then the Lady's sister reproached her, saying, "Weren't you willing to let him see you j ust once in order to charge him with the care of your broth ers ? Why did you so anger the Emperor like this ? " The Lady replied, "The reason that I was unwilling to let the Emperor see me was precisely because I wanted him to feel a stronger responsibility to take care of my brothers. From a lowly position I won the Emperor' s love and favor because of the beauty of my appearance. If one serves another through p hysical attraction, then love slackens when those attractions fade. The reason why the Emperor pays me such regard and feels such attachment to me is because of the way I used to look. If he now were to see the ruin of my beauty, that my face is not as it was before, he would inevitably recoil from such ugliness and re j ect me. Would he then still have been willing to give future thought to my brothers and show pity on them ? " When the Lady died, the Emperor had her interred with rites befitting an Empress. Afterwards the Emperor made the Lady's elder brother, Li Guang-li, the Er-shi general and enfeoffed him as the Duke of Hai-xi. Li Yan nian was made Director of Imperial Music. The Emperor could not stop longing for Lady Li. A wizard of Qi, known as the Young Old Man, said that he would be able to bring back her spirit. When it was night, he hung up lamps and candles and erected a curtained enclosure, where he set out meat and wine. Then he made the Emperor take his place within another curtained enclosure . Gazing from the distance he saw a lovely woman, whose appearance was like that of Lady Li, walking 216
Early China
around the place set for her within the curtains . But he could not go to take a closer look. The Empero r then felt longing and sadness even more strongly' and wrote this poem: Is it her or is it not? I stand and gaze at her, yet she glides along, so slow in her coming. He ordered the musicians of the Music Bureau to make a song of it, set to the accompaniment of strings. His Maj esty also wrote a poetic exposition to lament the Lady Li. These are its words: Lithe and lovely, of features fair, lifespan sundered, it did not last. A spirit-lodge well fitted, long did I wait; she vanished, not returning to her home of before. Despair wells within me, she rots with the weeds, she dwells in dark places, and I feel the pain. I untied coach and horse from the hill' s pepper tree, all at once, long night, no light of the sun. Bleak air of autumn, somber and chill, cassia boughs shed and then waste away. My soul, forsaken, yearns for one far, the spirit roams drifting beyond all the bounds. Long time and forever she stays sunk in shadow, I regret her full flowering reached not its zenith. I brood that forever she will not return; I conceive a faint presence roaming afar. Enclosed stamens unfurl, awaiting the wind, then fragrances hoarded grow ever more clear. Bright being in motion, graceful and yielding, wind-whirled swirling, it grew overpowering. Festive and wanton, brushing the columns, her gaze swept around, she lifted her brows . Stirred and aroused, my heart did pursue her, she hid her flushed face, it does not appear. We shared intimate pleasures, now we are parted; I wake up from dreams, I am lost in a daze. All at once she was Changed and does not turn back, her soul was set free, her breath rose away. Such a baffling blur is her hallowed spirit, I linger lamenting, I falter in distress. Her course carries her each da y further from me, and I was bewildered as she took her leave. Going beyond in a journey westward, 217
Anthology of Chinese Literature
moving swiftly, now unseen. At last I am left forlorn in a stillness without sound. My longing is like the rolling waves, and sorrow is here in my heart.
The Closing Piece From splendid beauty full of light, the crimson petals fall. How can those paltry and envious women weigh in the balance with you? In the very height of your season you were stricken before your years . Your child and brothers sob, tears bubble in,. their despair. Overcome with sorrow wailing cannot be stopped. Echoes left unansweredit is all over now! Gaunt from grief I moan and sigh for your young son. So wretched I cannot speak trust him on whom you relied. Kind hearts need make no vows, still less are pacts made with kin. Since you have gone and will not come, I add to this my troth. You have gone from the world of light, you have entered into dark. You did descend to the spirit-lodge but will not come back to your former grounds. o the sadness of it! I envision your soul. Afterwards, Li Yan-nian's younger brother Li Ji was implicated in licentious acts in the imperial harem. Li Guang-li surrendered to the Xiong-nu. The entire family was exterminated.
21 8
T h e C h i n ese " M i d d l e Ages"
~
T H E C H I N ES E "MI D D L E AGES": P E R I O D I N T R O D U C T I O N
The g reat C h i nese e m p i re of l ate anti q u ity, the H a n , reached its h e i ght d u r i n g the long reign of E m peror W u ( 1 40-8 7 B . C . ) . T h e central government h a d effectively b roken t h e power o f the H a n fe u d a l l o rds, and Han armies were wag i n g s u ccessfu l cam paigns in Central As i a aga i n st the X i o n g - n u k i n g d o m . In the re i g n s that fo l l owed E m peror Wu, h owever, i m pe r i a l power grad u a l l y weakened, l ead i ng fi n a l l y to the u s u rpation of the throne by Wang Mang, who r u l ed over the b r i ef X i n ( " N ew " ) Dynasty (A . D . 9-2 3 ). Wang M a n g t r i e d t o p u s h t h r o u g h a n am b i t i o u s program of pol i t i c a l a n d c u lt u r a l reforms, but in d o i n g so, he sti r red oppos ition from powerfu l i nterests a l l over t h e em p i re . The most serious problem fo r Wang Mang, h owever, arose from the s h ift of the cou rse of the Yel l ow R i ve r . The ensu i n g floods a n d agri c u ltural d i s l ocation i n w h at was t h e n C h i n a ' s m aj o r popu l ation center l ed t o l a rge-sc a l e fa m i n e . The gov ernment was u n a b l e to cope with the extent of the d i saster, a n d a h u ge peasant revo l t w a s i n it iated by the R e d Eyeb rows, so c a l led beca use the rebe l s pai nted red o n t he i r fo reheads to d i s ti n g u i s h t h e m s e l ves from i m pe r i a l troo p s . Several of W a n g Mang's a r m i es were d efeated, a n d as the R e d Eyeb rows s p read, reg i o n a l a r m ies were rai sed to oppose Wang Mang's armies and the government. F ro m o n e such army came Liu X i u , a m i n o r descendant o f the H a n i m pe r i a l h o u se, who, after Wang Mang's a rm i es were defeated, was dec l a red the e m peror G u a ng-wu of the restored H a n Dyn asty i n A.D. 2 5 . Liu Xiu was far from the only c l a i mant t o the th rone, a n d the n ext decade saw a series of c i v i l wars fro m w h i c h L i u Xiu eme rged v i cto r i o u s . I n t h e cou rse of E m peror G u a ng-wu ' s r i se, t h e R e d Eye b rows had occ u p ied and devastated the capita l , C h ang-a n . T h e new e m p e r o r s u bseq uently m oved the capita l e a s t t o L u o-ya ng, a n d th u s the restored d y n asty came to be known as the Eastern H a n . A lthough the Eastern H a n s u rvived fo r a l most two cen tu r ies, it never recovered the power of the fi rst half of the dy nasty, s u bseq u e n t l y known as the Western H a n . In the c a p i ta l , powe rfu l fa m i l ies fo rmed facti o n s that competed fo r centra l government positions, a n d i n the p rov i n ces reg i o n a l auto n o m y g rew . Aware of the greate r m i l itary a n d pol itical power of the i r Western H a n p redecessors, Easte r n H a n r u l e rs a n d i ntel l ectu als sought to d i sti n g u i s h the i r own period by its observance of Confu c i a n val ues. D u r i n g the cou rse of the Western H a n , Confu c i a n i s m had come to p l ay an i n c reas i n g l y i m porta nt ro l e a s t h e i d e o l og i c a l b as i s o f t h e state; by t h e W a n g M a n g reg i m e a n d t h e Easte rn H a n , Confu c i a n i s m a n d t h e i m pe r i a l system had become i n se p a ra b l e . For reaso n s of state o r perso n a l bel ief, l ater e m p erors m i gh t offer l a v i s h patronage to 22 1
Anthology of Chinese Literature D a o i s m or B u d d h i s m , b u t the state itse l f cou l d n ot be conceived apart from Confu c i a n i s m ( a l th o u g h in the t h i rteenth century the Mongo l s b r i efly attem pted to d o so) . A l t h o u g h there was n oth i n g i n the H a n l i ke a true Confu c i a n o rthodoxy, the i n c reas i n g i m po rtance o f t h e Confu c i a n C l assi cs t o pol itical l ife i nten sified t h e need to reco n c i l e v a r i ant texts and i nter p retat i o n s . S c h oo l s of c l as s i c a l s c h o l a rs h i p were rou g h l y d i v i ded between I N ew Text" and " O l d Text." The I N ew Text" schoo l s were so c a l led because they s u p posed l y represented oral tra n s m i ss i o n of texts and com menta r i e s on the Confu c i a n C l assics, w h i c h , after the b u m i n g of the books in the Q i n , were written down in the reformed s c r i pt after the establ i s h ment of the H a n . T h e " O l d Text" school p r i m a r i l y represented written texts recovered after t h e H a n . T h e d i fference between t h e " N ew Text" a n d " O l d Text" schoo l s was, however, more p rofo u n d than s i m p l y textu a l l i n eages of the Confu c i a n C l ass i c s . The " N ew Text" s c h oo l s rep resented an o l d e r sty l e of Confu c i a n learn i n g, based on perso n a l trans m i s s i o n of texts a n d i nte rpretat i o n by a m aster whose authority wou l d be traced i n u n b roken s u ccess i o n
bac� to the d i sci p l es o f Confu c i u s . Though the " N ew Text" c l as
s i cs a n d the i r i n terp retati o n s w e r e written d ow n , t h e y rem a i ned very m u c h schoo l s i n w h i c h students stu d i ed o n e parti c u l a r c l assic u nder t h e m aster a n d s i m p l y repeated the a u t h o r i tative i nterpretat i o n of the m aste r . T h e " O l d Text" schoo l s i n c l u d ed schol astic l i neages s u c h a s that o f the M a o
sic of Poetry,
Clas
yet the very i dea of the " O l d Text" c l assics was based on a b reak i n
the perso n a l tra n s m i ss i o n o f the Confu c i a n C l assi cs a n d the ab i l ity o f l ate r s c h o l a rs to offer i n terp retat i o n s fro m written texts . Wang Mang was a stro n g s u p p o rter of the " O l d Text, " a n d a l t h o u g h " N ew Text" schol arsh i p enj oyed a b r i ef rev ival in the early Easte r n H a n , the "Old Text" schoo l s grad u a l l y emerged tri u m p hant. T h e i r s u ccess was due in n o s m a l l part to the i r d i ssem i n ation among p r i vate schol ars, who fe lt con fident in work i n g w i th written texts a n d d raw i n g the i r own co n c l u s i o n s rath er than re l y i n g o n the autho rity of a m aste r . Out of th i s trad ition, comparison a n d d ete rm i n at i o n o f aut ho ritative vers i o n s o f t h e texts o f t h e Confu c i a n C l as s ic s conti n u ed t h r o u g h the Eastern H a n ; and in A . D . 1 7 5 , u nd e r state sponsors h i p, texts of the so c a l led F i ve C l assics were carved in sto ne and set up outs i d e the I m pe r i a l Academy in L u o-yang so that stu dents wou l d have authoritative vers i o n s of the c l assics from w h i c h to stu d y . ' I n t h e Wester n H a n , poetic expos itions
(fu)
had b e e n one o f t h e p r i m ary fo rms
of c o u rt l ite rary enterta i n ment. These poet i c expositions were l ong, rhymed d e s c r i pt i o n s t h at made u se of a r i c h vocabu l ary; those dec l a i med i n cou rt were usu a l l y d i rect o r i n d i rect panegyrics of i m pe r i a l power, though often i n c l u d i n g e n cou ragement t o restra i nt. E m peror W u ' s c o u rt poet S i - m a X i ang-ru ( 1 79-1 1 7 B . C . ) p r a ised the em peror as liThe G reat Oneil (see p. 1 8 2 ) , an adept D a oist who m a r s h a l ed the forces of the cosmos and rode to tra n scendence. Si- ma X i ang-ru a l so wrote a fam o u s poet i c expo s i t i o n descri b i n g the i m pe r i a l h u nti n g park, n am i n g the flora and fau n a from all over the e m p i re that had been gathered there. In his yo u n ger days, the writer and i nte l l ectu a l Yang Xiong (53 B . C .-A . D . 1 8) h ad s i m i l ar l y prai sed the h u nts a n d cere m o n ies of E m peror W u ' s s u ccessors, but in the writi n g of h i s l ater years, ' These were the Classic of Poetry, the Classic of Documents, the Classic of Changes, the Yili (one of the ritu a l books), a n d The Springs and A utumns [of L ul .
222
The Chinese "Middle Ages " read ers w itness some of the c h a n ges i n p u b l i c val u es that were occ u r r i n g as the East ern H a n a p p roac hed . Yang X i o n g ren o u n ced the poetic expos i t i o n s of h i s youth o n t h e g ro u n d s that they encou raged i m pe r i a l extravagance a n d fai led i n w h at he saw as the i r p r i m ary p u rpose, w h i c h was to offer m o ra l g u i d a n c e to the em peror. F o l lowi n g i n t h e trad ition o f Y a n g X i ong, the p u b l i c l iteratu re of t h e Easte r n H a n often te nded to Confu c i a n m o ra l i z i n g . As a gen re, poet i c expos ition conti n u ed t o be i m porta nt throughout t h e Eastern Han, and it came to be u sed i nfo rm a l l y as a d e m o n strat i o n of e d u cation and ta l ent b y you n g men see k i n g appoi ntment in the central gove r n m ent. S u c h use of l ite rary composition in the appoi ntment p rocess outlasted the Eastern H a n ; eventu a l l y, it be came fu l l y i n stituti o n a l ized in the exam i n ation system of the seventh century. State Confu c i a n i s m was o n l y a th i n l ayer of e l ite i d e o l ogy, b eneath w h i c h lay a c o m p l e x wo r l d of po p u l a r rel i g i o n a n d c u lts of esote r i c knowledge. Confu c i a n i s m itself c a m e t o b e permeated b y s u c h b e l i efs from t h e Weste rn H a n o n . H a n r u l e rs p l aced particu l a r faith i n p rognostication by omens, a n d though the Confu c i a n C l as sics themselves offered l i ttle s u pport fo r such p ractices, there was a n exte n s ive body of Confu c i a n apocry p h a p ro m i s i n g the esote r i c knowledge fo r w h i c h many Han i n te l l ectu a l s h u ngered . H u a n g-Lao D ao i s m went m u c h fu rth e r than esote r i c Confu c i a n i s m , offe r i n g tec h n i q ues of yoga a n d a l c he m y by w h i c h the adept cou l d ref i n e h i s p h y s i c a l b e i n g a n d atta i n i m mo rtal ity. H u a n g-Lao Daoi s m g rad u a l l y d eve loped a l a rge fo l l owi n g among the popu l ace, a n d it was s p read in c u l ts headed by c h a r i s matic l eaders with mess i a n i c p rete n s i o n s . I n A . D . 1 84, the wea kened H a n state was s h aken by two a l m ost s i m u ltaneous c u l t u p r i s i ngs in d ifferent parts of the c o u ntry: the Ye l l ow T u r b a n s and the " F ive Pecks of R i c e . " These m i l itary-re l i g i o u s c o m m u n ities defeated i m pe r i a l arm ies a n d estab l i sh ed l o c a l k i n g d o m s i n t h e d i s i ntegrati n g e m p i re. In add ition t o t h e u p r i s i ngs of the D ao i st c u l ts, the l ast decades of t h e second centu ry saw local genera l s with i n dependent a r m ies establ i s h i n g themsel ves as re g i o n a l powers. One genera l , Dong Zhuo, took advantage of facti o n a l f i g hti n g in the capital in 1 89 a n d seized the em peror X i a n ; h e then p l u ndered a n d b u rned L u o-yang, d r i v i n g i t s i n h a bitants west to reesta b l i s h the capital in C h a n g-a n . A yea r l ater, D o n g Z h u o w a s h i mself k i l l ed by h i s officers, C h a n g-an was sacked, a n d the e m p i re c o l l apsed i nto tota l a n a r c h y . E m peror X i an , prov i d i n g the w e a k a u ra o f H a n legiti m acy, passed from one w a r l ord to a n ot h e r u nt i l h e came i n to the h a n d s of Cao Cao
( 1 5 5-2 2 0 ) , who was grad u a l l y esta b l i s h i n g his position as the p reem i ne n t m i l itary leader in N o rth C h i n a . By t h e early th i rd centu ry, t h e weaker wa r l o rd s h a d fa l l e n b y t h e ways i d e a n d t h e fo rmer e m p i re was d i v i ded i nto t h e "Th ree K i n gd o m s " t h at g i ve th e i r n a m e to the period . I n the West was the S h u - H a n K i n g d o m , r u l ed by a remote descendant of the Han i m pe r i a l h o u s e ; i n the S o u t h a l o n g the Yangzi R i v e r was the K i ngdom of W u , w h o s e r i ve r fl eet p rotected it aga i n st i nvas i o n ; a n d in t h e N o rth was Cao Cao, p ro c l a i med " K i n g of We i , " b u t not em pero r . In h o l d i n g E m peror X i a n a s h i s p u ppet, Cao Cao kept a l ive the fiction of the H a n D y n asty; but on Cao Cao's death in 2 2 0 , h i s s o n , C a o P i , deposed the em peror a n d p roc l a i med h i mself em peror of the new Wei D y n asty. The h e i rs of Cao Pi p roved to be far less a b l e t h a n e ither Cao Cao or Cao Pi, a n d 223
Anthology of Chinese Literature the Wei soon came u n de r t h e d o m i n at i o n of the powerfu l S i - m a fam i l y . The Wei was sti l l n o m i n a l l y in e x i sten c e when N o rthern a r m i e s i n corporated the S h u - H a n K i ngdom i n 2 6 3 , b u t i n 2 6 5 t h e S i - m a fam i l y deposed the C a o s , j u st as the C a o s had deposed the Han e m peror less than half a century ear l i er. With th i s began the J i n D y n asty, w h i c h i n 2 8 0 a t l ast c o n q u e red the K i n gd o m of W u a n d b r i efly reu n ified China. T h e grad u a l d i ssol u ti o n o f H a n power i n t h e seco n d h a l f o f the second century a n d the c o n stant warfare of the T h ree K i n gd o m s proved to be one of the most fer t i l e and tra n sfor m ative periods i n C h i nese l i te ratu re. The l o n g rei g n of the i l l -fated E m p eror X i a n , from 1 9 6 to 2 2 0 , was known as the J i a n-an, a n d it gave its n a m e to t h e l iterature of t h e period . O l der fo rms s u c h as poetic expos ition conti n ued to be w r itte n , b u t the i r range expanded to i n c l u d e top i cs from everyday l ife . At the same t i me, p op u l a r song a n d a new fo r m of c l ass i c a l poetry in t h e five-sy l l ab l e I ine were adopted by wel l - known l iterary men. U n l i ke the poet ic expos i t i o n , c l as s i c a l poetry was a gen re that i n vited accou n ts of perso n a l experience and express i o n of p r ivate fee l i ng : the poetry of the J i an-an gave vo i ce to the i n sta b i l ity and u n certai nty of l ife d u r i n g the period . Cao Cao, h i m self a n acco m p l i shed poet, was the g reat patron of contemporary w r i ters, w h o gathered to the rel ative sec u r i ty of h i s c o u rt . H i s son and h e i r, Cao P i , was n ot only a d i st i n g u i shed w r iter b u t a l so com posed the fi rst treatise o n l iteratu re. A you n ge r son of Cao Cao, Cao Zhi, became the most fam o u s wr iter of h i s d ay, p rovo k i n g the j e a lousy of h i s o l d e r b roth er. The i ntel l ectu a l tem p e r of the t i mes h ad c h a n ged p rofo u n d l y from the p u b l i c se r i o u s ness of the fi rst part of the Eastern H a n ; there was a stron g react i o n aga i n st the comm itment to p u b l i c l ife demanded by Confu c i a n eth i c s . T h i n kers s u c h as Wang Bi ( 2 2 6-2 4 9 ) w rote c o m m e ntaries o n Confu c i a n a n d Daoist C l assics, foc u s i n g o n meta p h ys i c a l i s s u es without regard t o the i r soc i a l , eth i c a l , or pol itical i m p l icatio n s . Writers a n d i nte l l ectu a l s were i n creas i n g l y d rawn t o t h e v a l u es o f private l i fe a n d d i d t he i r best t o avo i d serv i n g i n t h e gove rnment. T h ose w h o d i d serve were often caught i n the c o n stant facti o n a l struggles and m a n y were exec u ted . Al ready i n the m i d-th i rd centu ry we see a fasc i n at i o n with eccentric ity, acco m p a n i ed by extrava gant gestu res rej ect i n g the n o r m s of soc i a l behavior. M a n y s u c h i nte l l ectu a l s were d rawn to a l ch e m y and the D ao i st q u est fo r p h y s i c a l i m m o rtal ity. The messi a n i c Daoi sts of the l ate second centu ry were fi n a l ly defeated m i l itar i l y, but in the i r p l ace a D ao i st "ch u rc h " took s h ape with an organ i zed rel i g i o u s h i erarchy, a body o f esote r i c s c r i ptu res, a n d a l arge po p u l a r fo l l ow i n g t o s u p po rt it. In contrast to the ath e i st i c p h i l oso p h i c a l Daoism of the p re-Q i n period, the D a o i st c h u rc h wors h i p ped a l a rge p a ntheon of deities orga n i zed i n cel esti al b u reaucracies n ot u n l i ke t h e i m pe r i a l government. B u d d h i s m m ade its i n it i a l appearance in C h i n a in the fi rst cent u ry A . D . , and by t h e t h i rd century a grow i n g n u m b e r of m i ss i onaries from Central As i a were w i n n i n g converts everywhere. I n t h e t u r m o i l o f t h e t i mes, B u d d h i st doctri nes o f perso n a l s a l v at i o n a n d release from the i n evitab l e sufferi n g o f I ife h e l d great appea l . Sutras, the B u d d h i st s c r i ptu res, offered a taste of the com p l ex ities of I n d i an p h i l osophy, and l arge-sc a l e t ra n s l at i o n p rojects demanded a new k i n d of refl ecti o n o n the C h i nese l a n g u age. With B u d d h i s m came a h i g h l y developed c h u rc h and m o n astic stru ctu re t h at provided 224
a
model for rel i g i o u s D a o i s m , B u d d h i s m ' s c h ief re l i g i o u s com petitor.
The Chinese "Middle Ages " After o n l y th i rty-seven years of ru l i n g over a u n ified C h i n a , the l i n cap ital i n L u o yang fe l l i n 3 1 6 t o non-C h i nese i n vaders from the N o rt h . As " b a r ba r i a n " armies es tabl i s h ed t h e i r h o l d over N o rth C h i na, m a n y great fam i l ies fled with t h e i r retai ners a n d possess i o n s south of the Y a n gz i R iver, w here, in 3 1 7 , a l i n p r i n ce, S i - m a R u i , proc l a i med h i mself t h e l i n em pero r . Fo l l ow i n g t h e m o d e l o f t h e Z h o u a n d H a n when the capital m oved east rath e r t h a n south after d y nastic c r i s i s, th i s came t o be known as the " E aste rn l i n . " For more t h a n two and a half cent u r i es, a s u ccess i o n of C h i nese dyn asties r u l ed the Yangzi River reg i o n in a period known as the "Southern Dyn as ties." D u r i n g th i s same period, N o rth C h i n a was u n der the sway of v a r i o u s n o n -C h i nese k i n gd o m s . T h u s t h e period from 3 1 7 u nt i l t h e reu n i fi cat i o n o f C h i n a u n d e r the S u i in 589 i s known as the " N o rthern and Southern D y n asties . " W h e n v i ewed by most objective sta n d ards, t h e Southern Dyn asties were s m a l l , reg i o n a l reg i m e s . B y far t h e g reater part o f t h e C h i nese pop u l at i o n sti l l l i ved i n the N o rth . The N o rthern D y n asties patro n i zed B u d d h i s m a n d Confu c i a n s c h o l a r s h i p , a n d the i r legacy i n re l i g i o u s a rt c a n sti l l be see n . B u t i n l ite ratu re t h e y w e r e p ro porti o n a l l y i n s i g n ificant, and the role of l iterat u re in d efi n i ng C h i nese c u l t u ra l con t i n u ity w a s s u c h t h at su bseq u e n t ages thought of the S o u t h e r n Dyn asties as the m a i n l i n eage l i n k i n g t h e Western l i n w i t h t h e g reat medieval e m p i res o f S u i a n d Ta n g . T h e i ntel l ectu a l concerns o f the Wei a n d Weste rn l i n conti n u ed t o g row d u r i n g t h e Southern D y n asties. Although t h e state w a s sti l l u nd e rstood i n Confu c i a n te r m s , perso n a l h a p p i ness and the expe r i en ce o ft he i n d i v i d u a l o r a g ro u p o f l i ke - m i nded fr i e n d s were considered of greate r i m portance than service to the state . Tao Q i a n
( 3 6 5-4 2 7 ) vo l u ntar i l y renou nced h i s ad m i n i strative post because h e fe l t that i t s de m a n d s v i o l ated h i s n atu re, and h i s poetry celebrated h i s dec i s i o n to retu r n to work his own fi e l d s in the fa rm i n g com m u n ity that was h i s home. For others, a sty l i s h ec cent r i c ity m a rked the i n d i v i d u a l ' s refu s a l to conform to soc i a l c u sto m s . B u d d h i s m s p read a n d f l o u r i shed i n both t h e N o rth a n d South, a n d i t s m o n ast i c com m u n ities p rovided the means t o re n o u n ce the secu l a r wo r l d a l togethe r . In t h e South, tem p l e s a n d m o n asteries were esta b l i s hed deep i n the m o u nta i n s , a n d a m o n g m o n ks and l a ity a l i ke there deve l o ped a new appreciation of l a n dscape and n at u ral beauty. When earl i e r poets had trave led, it was a means to get from one p l ace to another. I n t h e fifth centu ry, we beg i n to fi n d poets u n d e rta k i n g travel for its own sake, wan dering through the m o u n ta i n s t o a p p reci ate the beauty of n at u r e . N ot o n l y w a s the overa l l popu l at i o n o f the S o u t h m u c h s m a l ler t h a n that of the N o rth, the e m i g re ru l i n g h o use a n d great fam i l ies constituted only a s m a l l m i n ority of the Southern popu l atio n . These e m i gre fam i l i es comprised an a r i stocracy. Ed icts to p rese rve the p u r i ty of N o rthern b l ood l i nes were soon i g n o red, but the c u lt u re of the South had become a r i stocrat i c . By the l ate fifth centu ry a r i sto crati c soc i ety d rew i nward, with l iterary composition i n c reas i n g l y restri cted to the cou rts of the e m peror and i m pe r i a l p r i nces in the cap i ta l , l i an-kang (modern N a n j i ng ) . Poems were writ te n on the occa s i o n of i m peri a l and p r i n ce l y outi n gs , a n d topi cs for composition wou l d often be s e t as a pasti m e . L i te rary i s sues were de bated, i n w h i c h l i terary a n d pol itical facti o n a l i s m w e r e c l osely i n tertw i ned . O l d song l y r i c s w e r e ca refu l l y c o n se rved , anth o l o g i es o f o l d e r a n d contemporary l ite rat u re c om p i l ed , a n d l iterary h i s tory u n d ertake n . S u c h a frag i l e world cou l d n ot l ast l o n g, a n d i n 5 4 9 t h e rebel H o u l i ng took l i a n 225
Anthology of Chinese Literature kang a n d sacked it. The r u l i n g L i a n g Dynasty eventu a l l y put down the rebe l l i o n a n d recovered the c i ty, b u t i t n ever fu l l y recovered its pol itical o r m i l itary powe r . I n t h e decades t h at fol l owed, a n ew dynasty was i nsta l led, the C h e n , but the Southern ru l e rs became p u p pets of the m i l itari l y powerfu l N o rth . T h e 5 8 0 s saw the r i se of a pow e rfu l n ew N o rthern state, the S u i , w h i c h fi rst u n ified the d i v ided k i n gd o m s of the N o rth and then, in 589, c o n q uered the Chen a n d reu n ified the e m p i re . T h e S u i i n stituted a n u m be r o f i n stituti o n a l a n d eco n o m i c refo rms that wo u l d b e t h e bas i s o f gove r n m e n t for the fo l l owi n g centu ries, but t h e S u i itse lf d i d n o t e n d u re l o n g . T h e astute fi rst S u i r u l e r b u i lt a s o u n d pol itical structu re that was bad l y m i s m a n aged and overextended by h i s s u ccessor, E m peror Yang. I ndeed, E m peror Yang m oved the Sui capital from C h a n g-an to one of the greatSouthern c ities, Yang-z h o u , a n d fe l l u nd e r the s pe l l of the p l ea s u re- l o v i n g c o u rt c u l t u re of the South . Out breaks of rebel l io n oc c u rred a l l over the cou ntry. After l ess than th i rty years, the S u i was rep l aced by a n ew d y n asty, the Tang, w h i c h wou l d r u l e C h i n a fo r the n ext th ree cen turies.
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Y ue-fu 1
I n 1 2 0 B .C . , a spec i a l b u reau was estab l i s hed i n the H a n gove r n m e n t to provide m u s i c a n d songs for state ritu a l s a n d i m pe r i a l enterta i n me nts . Th is b u reau was known as the Yue-fu, o r "Music Offi ce," a n d the same te rm came t o be a p p l ied t o the lyrics of the songs themselves. The b u reau u sed not o n l y m u s i c and l y r i c s com posed at c o u rt and in the office itse l f but a l s o l y r i c s that seemed to h ave been fo l k poe m s . S u c h use of pop u l a r songs i n t h e c o u rt was rem i n i scent o f t h e " A i rs" o f t h e Classic o f Poetry, i n w h i c h lyrics that orig i n ated among the common peo p l e fou n d c u rrency in the reg i o n a l cou rts of the Zhou p r i n ces. A h a n d fu l of Western H a n lyrics sti l l s u rvive that proba b l y came from t h e o r i g i n a l i nstituti o n , t h e H a n " M u s i c B u reau . " A m o n g these a r e p i eces t h at seem t o h ave o r i g i n ated i n fo l k poetry, i n c l u d i n g the two fo l lowi n g p i eces : a l over's oath o f ete r n a l fidel ity a n d a p o e m b rea k i n g off w ith a n u nfa ithfu l l over.
Heaven Above (Western Han yue-fu ) B y Heaven above, I will be your true love, let it be forever and never wane. When hills no longer rise, when the river's water dries, when winter thunder rolls, and snow in summer falls, when sky and earth fuse, I'll stop loving you .
The One I Love (Western Han yue-fu ) The one I love is south of the sea. What gift can I send him ?'The category of yue-fu, as it has been u sed for the past m i l l e n n i u m , represents a c o m p l ex h i stor i c a l aggregat ion of types of p o e m s . W h a t m a kes a p o e m a yue-fu i s i t s t i t l e . A l t h o u g h i t often s u g gests the t h e m e of t h e p o e m , t h e t i t l e i s essenti a l l y cons idered the t i t l e of a m e l ody, e v e n i f the m e l o d y
i s long lost. The term yue-fu includes all anony mous poems from before the seventh century writ ten to yue-fu titles. Many of these are fol k poems. The category also i n c l udes a l l poems by known writers w h i c h use that body of yue-fu titles, as wel l as poems by known w r iters to titles t h at can be recog n i zed as variations on the o r i g i n a l set of p re-seventh-century titles. 227
Anthology of Chinese Literature
a hair-clasp of tortoise shell, set with paired pearls, and wound all about with j ade. Then I heard that his heart had changed, I broke it and burned it in a pile, broke and burned it, threw the ash to the wind. From this day on, no more longing, no more love, my love for him is done. When roosters crow and the dogs all bark, my brother, his wife will know, tra-la-la, the autumn winds. howl, the pheasants shrill, soon the east will grow bright and all will be known.
Some of these Western H a n
yue-fu
rec a l l earl i e r ritu a l songs, s u c h as the fo l l ow i n g
l y r i c spea k i n g fo r s o l d i e rs w h o d i ed for a n u n k n ow n c a u se i n a n u n known batt l e . T h i s H a n song s h o u l d be compared with the C h u r i tu a l song, " T h e K i n gd o m ' s Dead" (see p . 1 6 1 ), w h i c h a l so a l l ows those d ead in d i stan t battle to speak. A l t h o u g h it does not echo o r d e r i ve from "The K i n gd o m ' s Dead , " "South of the Wal l s We Fought" serves the same function of a l l ow i n g the com m u n i ty to acknowledge the b ravery a n d l oyalty of the d e a d .
South of the Walls We Fought (Western Han yue-fu ) " South of the walls w e fought, north of the ramparts we fell, fell in the meadows, left unburied, food for the ravens. Speak to the ravens for us, say: we were brave men, far from home, we fell in the meadows, left unburied, how can our carrion flee you ? " Where the waters run deep and clear, the reeds and the rushes are dark: the horsemen all died in battle, their tired mounts linger and neigh. " On the bridge a guardhouse is built how can we cross south ? 228
The Chinese "Middle Ages "
how can we cross north? If the grain is not taken in harvest, how shall our lord eat? we want to be loyal liege men, but how can this be done ? " "We think o n you, good liegemen, good liegemen should be in our thoughts: at dawn you went forth to battle, and at evening did not return. "
The o r i g i n a l " M u s i c Offi ce" was c l osed i n 6 B . C . , but t h e term
yue-fu conti n u ed
to
be a p p l i e d to anonymous poems t hat seem i n iti a l l y to h ave been fol ksongs. We have a co nsi derab l e body of s u c h poems, p ro b a b l y d a t i n g from the Eastern Han in the fi rst and second cent u r i e s A . D . Some such songs, l i ke " E ast of P i n g- l i ng" bel ow, d e a l with the k inds o f situ at i o n s in the I i v e s of the c o m m o n peop l e t h a t a l most never ap pear in " h i g h " l iteratu re.
East of Ping-ling ( Eastern Han ? ) East of Ping-ling, the royal tomb, beech tree, cypress, and pine, there is someone-I can't say who has kidnapped our good lord, they kidnapped our good lord right from his own great hall, the ransom is set at a million coins and a pair of the swiftest steeds. A pair of the swiftest steeds is going to be hard indeed: I look back and see the wardens coming, my heart quails and grows cold, my heart grows cold within, the blood drains dry, I go home and tell the kin that the brown calf must be sold. In l ater C h i nese song trad itions, s o n gs were often perfo rmed in sets, w i th the d i ffer ent sect i o n s themati cal l y p l a y i n g off one a n other. I n a few of these Easte r n H a n
fu, s u c h as " P re l u d e : W h i te Swans
yue
in Pai rs , " we have an i n d i cati o n of how s u c h song
sets m i ght h ave b e e n structured . T h e open i ng s e g m e n t often d ea l s with a n a n i m a l , b i rd , o r p l a nt; then a central segment d e a l s w ith a h u m a n s ituation that i s p a ra l l e l with o r contrasts t o t h e open i n g segment; fi n a l ly , there i s a convent i o n a l coda i n w h i c h t h e s i nger w i s h e s h i s a u d i ence l o n g I ife a n d b l essi n g s . 229
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Prelude: White Swans in Pairs (Eastern Han ? ) I n pairs white swans came flying, came flying from the northwest, five by five and ten by ten, all in lines uneven. Suddenly one was struck sick and could not fly with the rest. Every five leagues he looked back once, every six leagues he lingered. "I would take you in my beak, but my beak is shut and won't open; I would bear you on my back, but my feathers are broken and fallen. " Great j oy comes with first meeting, then grief, when parted in life. He faltered and looked round to the flock ' and unawares tears were falling. As my thoughts fix on parting with you, the breath in me chokes, I cannot speak. Let e ach take care for himself, herself, the road is far, return will be hard. And I will stay in my chamber alone, our gates kept closed and doubly barred. If you live, we will meet again; if you die, we will j oin down below. Live this day with delight on delight, Long life to you, ten thousand years . b l y c o m posed by p rofe s s i o n a l M a n y of the a n o n y m o u s H a n yue-fu were prob a ition, s u c h a s for m u l ae a n d s i n gers, a n d t h e y s how c h a racte r i stics of oral compos yue-fu w e r e p ro b a b l y n ot fixed s h a re d l i ne s . I n the i r o r i g i n a l for m , t h e s e a n o n y m o u s perfo r m a n ce u n t i l at l ast each in "texts, " but were i n stead conti n u a l l y c h a n ged fixed . B y a remarka b l e became words the and someo n e w rote one versi o n down s o f t h e s a m e s o n g from n o i vers ree th g n owi l l fo e h t ave h e w , n o i acc i d e n t o f p reservat i s h b a l l ads, these songs leave the Eastem H a n . As is often the case in E n g l i s h o r Scott d i rectl y : o n e b rother wrong stated ot m u c h u ns ai d . Each vers i o n h i nts at someth i n g n but i n stead e n terta i n i n g tasks ic domest to g n i d n i n g a n other; the you n g wife n ot atte someone.
Cocks Crow (Eastern Han ? ) Cocks crow in the treetops, dogs b ark deep behind walls, where is the wanderer heading, 230
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now that the world is at peace ? Nothing slips past the law, the wicked meet j ustice, the helpless get care. Golden is your gate, and emerald is your hall, where flasks of wine are set in pairs, and Han-dan singers there perform. Roof tiles of lapis lazuli appear on roofs of lesser clans . Behind the rooms a square pool lies, and in that pool are ducks in pairs, seventy ducks and two, all in order, formed in lines, and when they sing, their sad cries are heard on the eastern porch of our hall. Brothers there are, four or five, all are attendants on the king, when they come home one day in five, the roadsides fill with onlookers. Gold winds round their horses' heads, gleaming and sparkling fine. A peach tree grew by an open well, a pear tree grew by its side: worms chewed away the peach's roots, but the pear tree fell in its stead. A tree will offer itself for another, but brother forgets brother.
Meeting ( Eastern Han ? ) We met upon the narrow lanes, on roads so narrow no coach could pass, I knew not w ha t young man it was, wheel to wheel, asked of your home. Easy is your home to know, easy to know, hard to forget. Golden is your gate, white j ade is the hall, and in the hall are flasks of wine, and Han-dan singers there perform, with cinnamon trees in the courtyard where sparkling lanterns brightly shine. Brothers there are, two or three, the second, attendant to the king, 231
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when he comes home one day in five, the whole roadway fills with light, gold winds round his horse's head, and roadsides fill with onlookers . He enters his gates, he looks around and sees only ducks in pairs, seventy ducks and two, all in order, formed in lines. and he hears the sound of melodious cries, cranes sing on porches east and west. The eldest wife weaves the silken mesh, the middle wife weaves the yellow floss, the youngest wife does nothing a t all, harp in her arm, she mounts the hall. " Sit calmly, my lord, aD-d listen a while, for the play of the strings is not yet done. "
Chang-an Has Narrow Alleys ( Eastern Han ? ) Chang-an has narrow alleys, alleys so narrow no coach can pass . I chanced on two young men, wheel to wheel, I asked of your home. Your home is beside New Market, easy to know, hard to forget. The eldest son brings in two thousand pecks, the middle son, constable of the king. The youngest son has no post at all, in cap and gown he serves in Luo-yang. When the three sons together enter the room, all through the room a light appears . The eldest wife weaves silks and linens, the middle wife weaves the yellow floss, the youngest wife does nothing at all, harp in her arm, she mounts the hall. " Be still, my lord, and listen a while, for the play of the strings is not quite done. "
Other Voices in the Tradition L ater poets often took some stri ki n g l i n e or passage fro m ear l i e r poetry and e l ab o rated i t in a sepa rate poem . I n the c l o s i n g passage of the preced i n g two versions, we do not know the fu l l s i tuat i o n , but we do know th at there are three b rothers and three wives. Two o f t h e w ives a re d o i n g w h at wi ves s h o u ld do: they a re weav i n g . T he th i rd is d o i n g
232
The Chinese "Middle Ages " someth i ng e l se---€nterta i n i ng someone she a ddresses with respect ( i n the fi n a l vers i o n w e a r e to l d t h a t the you n gest brother, her h u s b and, i s off i n L u o-ya n g ) . Poets o f the fifth and s i xth centuries cou l d not res i st the erot i c i m p l i cati o n s , and they often com posed sho rt poems to two n ew yue-fu titles, "The Sensual Charms of the Th ree Wives" and "The M i d d l e Wife Weaves the Yel low F l oss," ech oin g the endi ngs of the songs above.
Shen Yue (441-5 1 3 ) , The Sensual Charms of the Three Wives The eldest wife wipes off boxes of j a de, the middle wife knots beaded curtains, but the youngest wife does nothing at all, she fixes her brows in the mirror. " Lie quietly, love, j ust for a whilelater tonight we'll do private things . " W h e n enth u s i asts began to co l l ect fo l ksongs a n d bal l ad s i n E n g l a n d a n d E u rope i n the e i g hteenth a n d n i netee nth centuries, they wou l d often " i m p rove" them, rev is i n g passages a n d leav i n g out segments t h a t see med "garbled" o r "corrupt ." In m o re recent ti mes, s c h o l ars have recogn i zed that s u c h i n co n g ruous e l e ments are a n at u ra l p a rt of fo l ksong trad itions, w h i c h do not fo l l ow the same r u l es as the l iteratu re of the e l ite. We h ave a f i n e exam p l e of t h i s in two vers i o n s of the E aste r n H a n ( ?) "Song of W h ite H a i r . " O n e vers i o n i s i n c l u d ed i n the " T reatise on M u s i c , " part of an offi c i a l h i story com p i l ed i n the l ate fifth century; t h i s treatise p reserves m a n y of the best H a n
yue-fu a n d
seems to represent the tra n s c ription of s i n gers' reperto i res.
The second vers i o n comes from rou g h l y the same period a n d i s fou n d in a n early s i xth-century a n t h o l ogy,
Recent Songs from a Terrace of Jade (Yu-tai xin-yong), yue-fu. L i ke the E u ropean fo l ksong col lectors of the e i ghteenth and early n i neteenth centuries, the ed itor of Recent Songs from a Terrace of Jade see m s to h ave "fixed" some of the yue-fu. I n h i s version of "Song of Wh ite H a i r, "
w h i c h i n c l u ded m a n y
t h e ed itor regu l a rizes t h e stanzas a n d o m its passages t h at s e e m i n congruous, c reat i ng a coherent l y r i c of a woman brea k i n g off with a fa ith l ess m a n . T h e secti o n s i n the o r i g i n a l vers i o n that are o m i tted i n the " l iterary" vers i o n a re given i n ita l ics below.
Song of White Hair ( Eastern Han ? ) A s bright a s the snow o n mountaintop, as clear as the moon between clouds, I have heard that you love another, I have made up my mind to break it off.
We have both lived our lives in this city, but when have we met with a flask of wine? We meet toda y with a flask of wine, then tomorrow at dawn, by the royal moat, we'll linger there by the royal moat, where the water flows off east and west. 233
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There's a woodcutter east of the city, there's a woodcutter west of the city too; both woodcutters heave togetherwith no friends for whom can I show off? Sad and dreary, sad and dreary, when a woman marries, she should not cry, I wanted a man with a faithful heart ' till white hair came, never to part. The bamboo pole bends with the strike' The fish's tail flips violently. In a man value true feeling; money is no use at all.
horse is chomping at the hay, and on the river great gentry play. Live this day with delight on delight, Long life to you, ten thousand years.
A
The fo l low i n g two songs treat rou g h l y the same theme-a m a n approaches a beau tifu l young woman and h i s advances a re rebuffed-i n very d ifferent ways . T h e sec ond of these songs is attr i b u ted to a n otherwise u n known figu re, X i n Y a n - n i a n , prob a b l y a p rofess i o n a l s i n ge r of the Easte r n H a n . The m otif bears i nteresti n g comparison to the poet i c exposit i o n "The Goddess" (see p. 1 9 0), i n w h i c h the poet meets the goddess a n d i s rejected j u st befo re they c o ns u m m ate the i r love.
Mulberries by the Path (Eastern Han ? ) Sunrise in southeast shines on the halls of our house of Qin, and the house of Qin has a lovely girl whose name, they say, is Luo-fu. Luo-fu is skilled with silkworms she picks mulberry leaves south of the wall. The straps of her basket are of blue silk' its handle, a branch of cinnamon'' Her hair has a trailing ponytail, in her ears are bright moon pearls. Her skirt below is saffron damask ' of purple damask, her vest above. When passers-by see Luo-fu, they drop their loads and stroke their beards'' when young men see Luo-fu, their hats fall off and their headbands show. Men at the plow forget the share; men with the hoe forget the hoe, 234
The Chinese "Middle Ages "
when they go home there's always a fight, all because of seeing Luo-fu. From the south the lord governor came, and he halted his five-horse team; the lord governor's sent a runner to find out who that maiden is: " The house of Qin has a lovely girl whose name, we shall say, is Luo-fu. " " And just how old is this Luo-fu ? " "Not yet u p t o twenty, and just beyond fifteen. " The governor invites Luo-fu: " Now will you ride with me? " Luo-fu came forward and said these words: " The lord governor's a foolish man: the lord governor has his own wife; I, Luo-fu, have my man. In the east are a thousand riders and more, and my husband is head of them all. How can you tell who my husband is? he rides a white horse, a black colt behind, the horse's tail is wound in blue silk, and gold is the halter on its head, at his waist is a wound-pommel sword, worth perhaps a million or more. At fifteen he was a county runner, by twenty, a great lord at court, by thirty, in the Emperor's entourage, by forty, the master of a city. His skin is smooth, his skin is white, his beard is wispy and long, he walks with slow pace through the courts, with stately steps he goes through the hall. There are thousands that dine at his board, and all of them say how grand he is! "
Xin Yan-nian, Officer of the Guard (Eastern Han) A bondsman of t h e house of Huo, Feng by name, Feng Zi-du, hid behind the Lord General's power and trifled with the Turkish tavern girl. Fifteen was the Turkish maid, alone at the bar one day in spring, a long-hung skirt, twined-ribbon sash, 235
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billowing sleeves, acacia vest. On her head she wore Lan-tian j ade, in her ears she wore pearls from Rome, her hair in two buns was so lovely there was nothing like them in the world: one bun was worth five million in gold, and the two together, more than ten. "I never expected this dashing guard to stop by our tavern so gallantly, his silver saddle sparkling, his blue-covered coach waiting empty. " And he comes to me wanting clear wine: I brought him a rope-handled j ug. And he comes to me wanting fine things to eat; a golden plate with carp fillet. And he gives me a green bronze mirror and grabs hold of my skirts of red gauze . " I don't care if my red gauze gets torn, such cheap treatment is what I expect: a man always wants a new woman, but a woman values the man she has; in human life there are new things and old, the highborn do not mix with the low. No thank you, officer of the guard, private love isn't worth it. " B y the e n d o f the Easte r n H a n , i n the l ast part o f the seco n d centu ry A . D . , l ite rary men began to w r ite poems in the s p i rit of the a n o n y m o u s to be known as
yue-fu. Yue-fu became
yue-fu, a n d these too came
i m portant as a ki n d of poetry 'In w h i c h a poet
c o u l d speak n ot i n h i s own voice b u t as a c h a racte r type : the abandoned wo m a n , the frontier sol d ier, the you n g n o b l e m a n . T h e setti ngs o f l iterary
yue-fu
a re i m agi
n a ry scenes, s u c h as Chen Lin i ma g i n i n g the fo l l owi n g exc h a n ge between a con s c r i pt laborer o n the frontier and h i s wife .
Chen Lin ( d. 2 1 7 ) , I Watered M y Horse at a Spring b y the Wall I watered my horse at a spring by the Wall with water so cold my horse hurt in its bones . They went to the boss-man beside the Great Wall, saying, " D on't keep us Tai-yuan lads long past our time . " " Let's keep the state work o n schedule, boys, so lift your mallets to the rhythm of the sound. " " Better for a man to die fighting than bear pounding earth to build the Great Wall . " 236
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And the Great Wall keeps stretching on and on, on and on three thousand miles. There's many a stout lad on the frontier, and many a wife alone at home. I wrote a letter to my wife: "Better find another man, don't you wait for me; be good to your new man's family, j ust now and then remember me . " A letter came back to the frontier land, said, "What's this foolishness you're telling me ? " " Since I've got troubles, why should I try to hold down a woman no blood-kin of mine ? If you have a boy, don't raise him, if you have a girl, feed her well. If you could only see how it is by the Wall, with the bones of dead men stacked in a pile . . . " " They dressed my hair as a woman and I went to be your wife, now my heart knots with misery; I see well how you suffer on the frontier, and I don't think I'll be long for life . " After t h e H a n ,
yue-fu
became a very b road category o f poetry, e n c o m pass i n g a l l
anonymous popu l a r songs a s wel l a s l ite rary works d o n e i n what d i fferent ages saw as the " s p i rit" of the o r i g i n a l
yue-fu.
Yue-fu of t h e S o u t h A type o f anonymous pop u l a r s o n g very d ifferent from t h e o l d H a n
yue-fu f l o u r i s h ed
south of the Yangzi R i ver from the t h i rd through the fifth centuries. These were mostly q u atra i ns, with many d ifferent lyrics made to a s i n g l e title that probab l y represented a song o r melody type . Some of the song types seem to h ave been s u n g o n l y by wo m e n , w h i l e others a l l owed either a male o r a fem a l e voice. T h ese s h o rt lyrics a re mostly l ove songs, some movi n g l y d i rect i n the i r s i m p l i c ity a n d others w i tty a n d m i s c h ievo u s . They m a ke heavy use of a s m a l l g ro u p of p u n s , i n c l u d i n g : "pass i o n " ;
5i, " s i l k, " "th read," o r " l o n g i n g " ; ou, " l otus root"
{ian,
" l otus" o r
a n d " m ate" ; a n d
pi, " b o l t"
[of c l oth] a n d " m atc h . " T h ese pop u l a r songs came to h ave a g reat i nf l u e n ce on the fo rmation of the l itera ry q u atra i n . S u c h songs became very popu l a r with t h e a r i stocrats o f t h e Southern cou rt, a n d i n the ea rly s i xth centu ry,
choruses of women were i m ported i n to the palace a n d
tra i n e d t o perfo rm t h e m . The l a rgest a n d most fa m o u s g ro u p of t h e s e q u atra i n s a re known as the "Zi-ye Songs,"
Zi-ye b e i n g a ter m
for " m i d n i g ht," a n d s upposed l y the
n a m e of a fam o u s cou rtesan of the m id-fo u rt h century . Most of the
Zi-ye Songs are 237
Anthology of Chinese Literature in a wom a n ' s vo i ce, but the f i rst two seem to form a d i a l og u e between a m a n a n d a wom a n .
Zi-ye Songs I-II " I went out the gates at sunset, and glimpsed you passing by. Enchanting features, tresses fetching, a sweet scent filled all the road . " " The sweet scent was made b y perfume, enchanting features I cannot claim. But Heaven won't thwart a person's desire, and on purpose it let me see you . " XII At dawn I long to go out the gates, at dusk I long to go back to the isles. I'll laugh and chat with anyone, but my heart in secret thinks of you. XVI My love was taken by another, he betrayed me more than one time. I opened the door, didn't set the bar, which is to say: " Close no more . " N o . X V I i s a p u n n i n g q u atra i n . T h e open door ( " C l ose n o m o re") i s wu fu xiang guan,
both " n ot l oc ked any m o re" and " I ' l l h ave n oth i n g to d o with you a n y m o re . " Of cou rse, the open door a l so s u ggests the wom a n ' s avai l a b i l i ty fo r a new l over.
XIX When my love is sad, I'm also down; when my man laughs, I'm happy too. Have you never seen two trees entwined: from different roots shared branches rise ? XX I was moved by how loving you were at first, now I sigh how distant and cold you've grown. Pound out gold leaf on a tortoise shellall glitter outside, nothing deep within. XXIII Who can feel longing and not sing out? Who can be starving and not eat? The sun grows dark, I lean by the door, so upset that I can't help thinking of you. 238
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XXIV I held my dress, not tying the sash, I painte d my brows and went to the windo w. My gauze skirt is easily whirle d by the breeze if it opens a bit, just blame the spring wind. XXXIII The night lasted on, I could not sleep, and the moonlight shone so bright. I though t I heard my true love call, and I wasted an answer ing " Yes ! " to the sky. XXXVI I am that star at the Dipper's end that never shifts in a thousand years . My lover's heart is like the sun, in the east at dawn, at dusk turning west.
The Zi-ye Songs of the Four Season s Spring Songs VI The cuckoo is singing in the bambo o, plum blossom s fall, filling the road. Girls seeking pleasur e roam in spring moonli ght. their gauze skirts trail through fragran t grass. IX Skirt of gauze, tight red sleeves, hairpin of jade and full-moon earrings. Roaming for pleasure, I walk the spring dew, wanton and seeking a like-hearted man. X Flowers so lovely in the spring groves, the mood so sad of birds in spring. Then the spring breeze, so full of desire, blows open wide my skirts of gauze.
Winter Songs XIII Where will we tie our true-love-knot? under the cypress of Western Mound. Windswept and bare, no shelter there, and the hard frosts will freeze me to death. There seems to h ave a l ready been a c u ltu re of rom a n c e in w h i c h exte m p o re q u a tra i n s were exc h a n ged, u s i n g s i m p l e rhymes, sto ck i m ages, a n d repeated l i n e s . L i nes 239
Anthology of Chinese Literature from t h i s strange, d a r k q u atra i n reappear in another q u atra i n from the same period, d u b i o u s l y att r i b uted to the fam o u s c o u rtesan " L i ttle S u . "
I ride the coach with polished sides, my love rides a dark mottled horse. Where will we tie our true-love-knot? under pine and cypress of Western Mound. S u c h a n o n y m o u s q u atra i n l y r i c s often s h ow a n erotic d i rectness that is r are in early C h i nese poetry. N o o n e k n ows w h at the t u n e title
Yan Pan-er means; the same
lyric
i s a l so i nc l uded with a g ro u p of l y r i cs t o a n other m e lody, Du-qu, wh i c h may mean "solo song."
Yang Pan-er ( also Du-qu Song) I happened to go o u t before White Gate where the willows can hide the crows. My love is the aloeswood incense, and I am the brazier where it burns . "Wh ite G ate" was o n e of the gates of the Southern capital J i an-kang. C rows are not the o n l y t h i n g s t h at c a n be h i d d e n by the d e n se and low- h a n g i n g fro n d s of wi l low trees. J u d g i n g by the sm o k i n g meta p h o r in the second cou p l et, the si nger here had better l u c k than the l over who w a i ted by the w i l l ows in the
Classic of Poetry C X L
(see p . 40).
Yue-fu of the N o rt h e r n D y n ast i e s F rom t h e same period a s t h e Southern
yue-fu w e a l so
have a s m a l l gath e r i n g o f very
d i ffe rent s o n gs, from the n o n -C h i nese reg i m es in N o rth C h i n a of the fo u rth to s i xth cent u r i e s . These h ave a sty l ized m ascu l i n ity that ever afterward became associ ated with " N o rthern" modes. I n contrast to the soft wo r l d of the South, the N o rthern songs are h a u nted by death and v i o l e n c e . W h i l e i t seems proba b l e that many of these songs were i nd eed o r i g i n a l l y from the N o rth, they were fo r the most part p reserved i n South e r n sou rces a n d col l ecti ons, a n d represented, either b y sel ecti o n o r mod ifica tion, a southerner's idea of w h at typ i c a l " N o rthern" poetry s h o u l d s o u n d l i ke .
Qi-yu Songs (Northern Dynasties yu e-fu ) I A man should act with daring, many friends he does not need. The hawk goes flying through the sky, wrens surge away on either side.
240
The Chinese "Middle Ages "
IV A man is a pathetic bug: once out his gate, he fears his death: a corpse that rots in a narrow ravine, white bones that none will gather and bury.
Song of the Prince of Lang-ya (Northern D ynasties yue-fu ) I j ust bought a five-foot sword, from the central pillar I hang it. I stroke it three times a daybetter by far than a maid of fifteen.
In the fou rth to s i xth cent u r i es, the l o n g a n o n y m o u s
yue-fu
n a r rative ba l l ad s of the
Eastern H a n were n o l o n ger w r i tten in the Southern Dyn asties, but they d i d s u rv i ve i n the N o rth . B e l ow is the fam o u s N o rthern b a l l a d of a g i r l , H u a M u - I a n , tak i n g the p l ace of h e r father in m i l itary servi ce. The r u lers of the N o rthern Dyn asties were non C h i nese. N ote that the r u l e r i s not o n l y referred to b y the C h i n ese title of E m peror but by the n o n -C h i nese title of K h a n .
The Ballad of Mu-Ian ( Northern Dynasties yue-fu, 4th-6th century) Tsk, tsk, and tsk, tsk, Mu-Ian weaves by her window. We cannot hear the shuttle's sound, we only hear the girl's sighs. " Now tell me, girl, who's on your mind, and tell me, girl, who's in your heart ? " "There's n o one o n m y mind a t all, and no one in my heart. " Last night I saw conscription lists, the Khan is calling troops everywhere. The army's rolls were in twelve scrolls, and every scroll had Father's name. "My father has no older son, Mu-Ian has no big brother. I wish to go buy horse and gear and march to the wars for Father. " In the east mart she bought a fine steed, in the west mart bought blanket and saddle. 241
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In the north mart she bought a long whip, in the south mart bought bit and bridle. At dawn she took her parents' leave, by the Yellow River she camped at dusk. She did not hear her parents' calls, she heard only the sounds of the waters of the Yellow River rolling. In the morning she left the river, she came to Black Mountain at dusk. She did not hear her parents' calls, she heard only the sad whinnying from Turkish horsemen on Mount Yan. She went thousands of miles to battle, she flew across fortified passes. The north wind carried the sounds of the watch, and cold light shone on her armor. After many a battle the general died, after ten years the stout troops went home . She came back and saw the Emperor, the Emperor sat in his Hall of Light. Her deeds raised her rank by twelve degrees, and he gave her a hundred thousand and more. The Khan then asked her what she wished; " I've no use to be Grand Secretary. Just loan me a camel with far-running feet to carry this lad on its back to home . " When her parents heard that their daughter h a d come, they came out of town, leaning each on the other. When her sister heard that big sister had come, at the window she made herself up with rouge . When young brother heard that his sister had come, he sharpened his knife and got pigs and sheep . Then she opened the door to her room in the east, and she sat on her bed in her room in the west. She took off her buffcoat for battle, and put on the skirt she used to wear. At the window she combed her wispy locks, in the mirror she put on rouge. Then she went out the gate to see her companions, and all her companions were struck with surprise. " We marched together for twelve long years, and you never knew that Mu-Ian was a girl.
242
The Chinese "Middle Ages "
The male hare's legs have a nervous spring, the eyes of the girl hare wander; but when two hares run side by side, who can tell if I'm boy or girl ? " As i n m a n y oth e r song tra d i t i o n s , I i nes a n d segm ents reappear i n d ifferent p l aces, often in very d i ffe rent contexts . The open i n g of "The B a l l ad of M u - I a n " retu r n s in a g ro u p of N o rthern Dynasties q u atra i n s , i n the voice of a m o re conventi o n a l yue-fu h e ro i n e who is th i n k i n g about gett i n g m a r r i e d .
Breaking the Branches of Willows (Northern Dynasties yue-fu) I A date tree grows before my gate, year after year it never gets old. If Mother does not have me married, how will she get a grandson to hold ? II
Tsk, tsk, and woe is me, the girl weaves at the window. We cannot hear the shuttle's sound, we only hear the girl' s sighs. III " Now tell me, girl, what's on your mind, and tell me, girl, what's in your heart ? " "Mother promised t o have m e married, and this year again there's no good news . "
Other Voices i n the Traditio n : The L a ter L ineages of Yu e-fu O n ce a yue-fu such as "South of the Wal l s We Fought" ( p . 228) was estab l ished, l ater poets m i gh t compose the i r own vers i o n s u nd e r the same title. S u c h poets freq u e n t l y thought of themselves as conti n u i n g o r rec reat i n g the mood of the o r i g i n a l vers i o n , b u t m o re often t h a n n o t , these l ater vers i o n s o n l y rem i n d u s of the p rofo u n d d i fferen ces separat i n g l ater i m per ial C h i n a from the mo re sta rk and s i m p l e world of the a n o n y m o u s Han yue-fu. Of the g reat Tang poets, Li Bo ( 7 0 1 -762) was the most fas c i n ated by the wo r l d of the o l d
yue-fu, yet t h e contrast between h i s vers i o n o f "South of t h e W a l l s We F o ught" a n d t h e H a n b a l l ad i s stri k i n g : n a m i n g the tro u b l e spots on t h e T a n g fro n t i e r a n d beyo n d rep l aces t h e n a m e l ess battlegro u n d of the old b a l l ad ; a n d a pol i t i c a l message aga i n st war takes t h e p l ace
of the ritual a ck n o w l edg m e n t of the service of the dead sold iers. N ote, however, that the Tang's Central As i a n enem i es are a n a c h ro n i st i ca l l y c a l led the X i o n g- n u , the g reat Centra l A s i a n k i ngdom that fo ught the H a n .
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
Li Bo, South of the Walls We Fought We fought last year at the Sang-gan's source, this year we fight on the Cong River road. We washed weapons in the surf of Tiao-zhi, grazed horses on grass in Sky Mountain's snow.2 Thousands of miles ever marching and fighting: until all the Grand Army grows frail and old. The Xiong-nu treat slaughter as farmers treat plowing; since bygone days only white bones are seen in their fields of yelfow sand. The House of Qin built the wall to guard against the Turk; for the House of Han the beacon fires were blazing still. Beacon fires blaze without ceasing, the marching and battle never end. They died in fighting on the steppes, their vanquished horses neigh, mourning to the sky. Kites and ravens peck men's guts, fly with them dangling from their beaks and hang them high on boughs of barren trees. The troops lie mud-smeared in grasses, and the general acted all in vain. Now I truly see that weapons are evil's tools: the Sage will use them only when he cannot do otherwise.
During the Song Dynasty (960-1 279), poetry became i n c reas i n gl y rarefied or refl ecti ve, char acteristic of the sop h i st i c ated self-co n s c i o u s wo rld that was the Song. B u t in the fo u rteenth centu ry, m a n y poets began to look back to the Tang and earl ier ages as offeri n g poeti c mod els of d i rectness and s i m p l i c ity of fee l i n g that seemed to h ave an swers to the various d i s satisfacti o ns poets felt w ith th eir own "modern" wor l d . In the Arc h a i st movement of the M i ng, d u r i n g the l ate fifteenth and s i xteenth centu ries, we can parti c u l ar l y see a l o n g i n g for the rou g h n ess and d i rect fo rce of Han poetry. M i n g Archa ist poets often i m itated the Han bal l ads, the i r i m itati o n s m u c h ad m i red i n t h e i r own t i m e but rev i led by cri t i cs and poets from the seventeenth century o n for b e i n g too derivative. The fo l l o w i n g vers i o n of "South of the W a l l s We Fought" shows somet h i n g of the M i n g des i re to recaptu re the o r i g i n a l vital ity of the Han song. In p l ace of the au sterity of the Han b a l l ad , h owever, a "Goth i c " excess i s now evident. 'The S a n g-gan was a river i n northern H e-bei where the Tang fo ught the Kh itan . The Cong River was i n the Pam i rs, where the Tang fou g h t the T i beta n s . T i ao-z h i was off i n Afg h a n i stan, w h i l e S ky M o u n ta i n was in X i n- j i a n g . Together, these locat i o n s s u ggest the c a m p a i g n s in the N o rth and N o rthwest.
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The Chinese "Middle Ages "
Wang Shi-zhen ( 1 526-1 5 9 0 ) , South of the Wall We Fought South of the wall we fought, by the ramparts south of the wall, north of the wall black clouds pressed low. Troops lay in ambush to our east, while to the west scattered horsemen harried us. They gave us no rest. The brown dust circled us all around. The sun turned blue-black, the sky was a blur. Gongs and drums sounded, shouting and clamor. Turkish riders drew back, then charged swift as a gale. The trees seemed like weeds, the grass was sere. Who is that crying out?a father gathering up his son. A wife asks of her husband, pikes and armor in piles, blood covers skulls. Every household calls back a soul, every company mourns its own. Go tell the Lord General, if the Lord General does not know. In our lives we were troops of the borders; why should we grieve to have graves on the steppes? The food in the pot, was not cooked at noon. Too bad! -the hasty alarm carne, then we parted for good, and never were able to finish our meals. Over the steppes wind whistles and with it run our souls. Can't they glimpse our Lord General, who sits in the fort with an ivory staff beneath a great banner? In his lifetime he'll surely be made a great noble; and when dead, in his ancestral temple he will eat his fill.
In these vers i o n s , we can see someth i n g of the operat i o n of the poetic trad i t i o n , h ow e a r l i e r poetry was conti n u a l l y reworked for n e w c i r c u m stances. D u r i n g t h e s i xteenth century, w h e n Wang S h i-zhen wrote the vers i o n of " S o u t h of the Wal l s W e Fought" above, the M i n g h a d b e e n h a v i n g major frontier w a r s with the M o n go l s . S i m i l ar l y, the fol l ow i n g vers i o n b y Li Y e s i offers a g rotesq u e v i s i o n of v i o l "2 n c e a n d ravaged c ities t h a t wou l d b e hard t o d is soci ate
245
Anthology of Chinese Literature from the h orrors of the Q i n g i n vas i o n , through w h i c h Li Ye-si l ived . The utter c o l l apse of the M i n g ar mi e s before the i nvad i n g M a n c h u s ( Q i n g) and the s u bsequent destru ction of poo r l y d efended ci ti e s c o u l d eas i l y be s e e n as the i nvers i o n of the h e ro i c H a n bal l ad , where sol d i ers fou g h t t o the death and the com m u n i ty acknowledged the i r servi ce. F a r m o re th a n Wang S h i -zhe n' s vers i o n , L i Ye-s i ' s vers i o n i s m e a n t to be r e a d i ro n i ca l l y aga i n st the o r i g i n a l H a n b a l l ad : the troops f l e e rather than d i e, and the speaker add resses " c a r r i o n wrens" rather than rave n s .
Li Ye-si ( 1 622-1 6 8 0 ) , South of the Walls We Fought South of the walls we fought, east of the walls we fled; and though grain grows r i pe in the wild, it will not save our lord. Whose skeletons are those strewn scattered in the streets? Yellow maggots gorge by day, lairs of foxes appear by night, right by mattress and pillow. Yellow maggots are teeming, blood red rivers streaming; the old woman shuts the gate and cries, a young child leans on the door and dies .
I went b a c k home, all the neighbors were gone, the kitchen was destroyed.
I took a basket, went out the gate, arrows were shot at meI had wanted to die of starvation, it seems I won't get my wish. I turn my head and see wrens, and say to the wrens-don't fly away ! Dawn's gaunt flesh will be evening's carrion, and that will appease your hunger.
The yue-fu romantic q u atra i n s of the South a l so captu red the i m ag i n at i o n of l ater w ri ters. W h i l e the o r i g i n a l anonymous Yang Pan-er went as fol l ows :
I happened to go out before White Gate where the willows can hide the crows. My love is the aloeswood incense, and I am the brazier where it burns
the fol l ow i n g transformation by the Tang writer Li Bo m a kes the effective s i m p l i c ity of the earl i e r a n o n y m o u s yue-fu e l aborate . As was c h a racteristic of Tang myths, Li Bo renders the scene of s i n g i n g the song itself as part of the song.
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The Chinese "Middle Ages "
Li Bo, Yang Pan-er You were singing
Yang Pan-er,
I urged you to drink more Xin-feng beer. What is it matters most to me?the crows that cry in White Gate' s willows . The crows cry hidden in willow flowers, you grow drunk and stay at my home. In a mountain-shaped brazier the aloes wood incense burns, two columns of smoke form a single vapor passing the purple wisps of cloud.
As l i terary men wrote the i r own vers i o n s of the old Han and Southern fo l k poems, many of the b a s i c motifs of those poems a l so took on a d i ffe rent k i n d of cont i n u ity, reappea r i n g i n l ater l y r i c s o f ano ny mo us s i n gers. We often find remarkable cont i n u ities i n the C h i nese song trad iti o n, with motifs appear i n g fi rst in the Classic of Poetry, then in yue-fu, and aga i n in l ater song up to the twe ntieth centu ry. Rather than see i n g s u c h conti n u ities as the d i rect i n fl uence of earl i e r l y r i c s o n later ones, i t i s best to th i n k of some of these e n d u r i n g motifs as recu rrent expres s i o n s of co nstant soc i a l fu nctions. F o r exam p l e, g i ven the general fic kl eness of the h u m a n heart, l overs m u st swear oaths, as in " H eaven Above," the Western H a n song q u oted at the beg i n n i ng of th i s sectio n :
By Heaven above, I will be your true love, let it be forever and never wane. When hills no longer rise, when the river's water dries, when winter thunder rolls, and snow in summer falls, when sky and earth fuse, I'll stop loving you. S u c h l overs' vows appear in l ater popu l a r songs dec l a r i n g conditions for separat i o n re m a rkab l y s i m i l a r to those i n the old H a n yue-fu. On e of the anonymous song lyrics fou n d i n t h e Tang m a n u s c r i pts recovered i n t h e D u n - h u a n g caves ea rly i n t h e twen t i et h cent u ry fo l l ows.
Anonymous Song Lyric to " Boddhisattva Barbarian" ( 9th- 1 0th century) On our pillows we made a thousand vows: if you want to end things, you'll have to waittill the green hills fall;
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Anthology of Chinese Literature till steel weights float on the water, you'll have to wait till the Yellow River dries to its bed; till the stars Shen and Chen in broad daylight appear, till the Northern Dipper moves round to the south. If you want to end things, it won't be all right till the sun shines brightly at midnight.
248
T h e B eg i n n i ngs of C l ass i c a l Poetry (Sh i) Sad songs can take the place of tears, far gazing can take the place
-"Sad Song" (Eastern Han
of return.
yue-fuj
A l t h o u g h trad i t i o n a l c r itics h ave a l ways traced the C h i nese poet i c trad i tion back to the
Classic o f Poetry a n d
the " L y r i c s of C h u , " t h e rea l be
g i n n i ng of the c l as s i c a l trad i t i o n , u n b roken fo r two m i l l e n n ia, is best u n d erstood a s begi n n i ng i n t h e Eastern H a n , w h e n a new perso n a l l y r i c poetry g rew u p a l o ng s i d e the
yue-fu.
T h i s n e w " c l a s s i c a l poetry"
was writte n i n l i nes o f five syl l a b l es , t h e most popu l a r m eter fo r
(sh i} yue-fu,
a n d was very d ifferent i n tone from the stiff, arch a i c poetry i n fo u r syl l a b l e l i nes t h at was sti l l w r i tte n i n the H a n , i n i m itati o n of the
Classic
of Poetry. The earl i est c l as s i c a l poems are a n o n y m o u s , the so-ca l led O l d Poem s
(gu-shi}.
The most fam o u s of these a n o n y m o u s l y r i cs, p robab l y d ati n g f r o m t h e s e c o n d cen tu ry
A.D., a re the " N i n eteen Old Poe m s . " A n other g ro u p of anonymous p a rt i n g
poems w a s c i rc u l ated as t h e works o f L i L i n g a n d S u W u , two fam o u s figu res o f the Western Han (th o u g h the poem s actu a l l y d ate from the seco n d and thi rd centu ry
A . D . ) . In add ition to these two groups, there a re v a r i o u s oth e r e a r l y a n o n y m o u s " o l d poems" scatte red through e a r l y s o u rces .
A l t h o u g h we f i n d a few c l u m sy attem pts at c l as s i c a l poetry i n the five-sy l l a b l e
l i ne earl ier, it w a s a t t h e e n d o f t h e seco n d century A.D. that wel l-known I iterary m e n adopted t h e n e w form of c l as s i c a l poetry, j u st as t h e y began t o w r i te
yue-fu
i n the
s a m e period .
Yue-fu
a n d c l as s i c a l poetry came to be seen as q u i te d i st i n ct i n l ate r centuries,
but d u r i ng th i s early period t h e y a re very c l ose a n d sometimes i n d i st i n g u i s h a b l e . The two fo rms s h a red a set of c o m m o n themes a n d s ituat i o n s which, taken together, e m bod ied the basic c o n c e r n s of the period, as the H a n Dynasty c o l l a psed a n d w a rr i n g a r m ies tore t h e c o u n try a p a rt. I n
yue-fu, t h e speaker often
ass u m ed t h e v o i ce o f a n
oth e r person i n a n i m a g i n e d s ituat i o n ; c l as s i c a l poetry, b y contrast, d evel oped i nto a fi rst-person l y r i c , with the poet speak i n g fo r h i m s e l f or herself i n the h i stor i c a l p re sent. Although this d i st i n ct i o n i s b y n o means con s i stent in the early period, it g u i ded the evo l ution of the two fo r m s i n separate d i recti o n s .
Yue-fu
may h ave been per
formed by p rofessi o n a l s i n gers, proba b l y i l l iterate; e a r l y c l as s i c a l poetry, even in the a n o n y m o u s "Old Poems," s h ows at l east a r u d i m e ntary educat i o n ; and
wh i l e both
forms were n o d o u bt enjoyed by the ed u c ated e l ite, c l as s i c a l poetry came from them . I n the fo l l owi n g s e l ecti o n we fi rst treat yue-fu, the a n o n y m o u s " O l d Poem s , " a n d e a r l y c l as s i c a l poetry by known w r i te rs together, s h ow i n g h o w t h e y s h a re a n d m a ke 249
Anthology of Chinese Literature d i fferent u se of a body of common themes. Then we look at some of the k nown poets writi n g i n the th i rd century. The t h e m ati c head i ngs are arranged to te l l a s i m p l e h ypotheti cal story: parti ng, l o n g i n g o n the road (either o n the part of the trave l e r o r the person who remai ned b e h i nd ) , com i n g to the c i ty, b e i n g a l o n e at n i ght, the m essage o r g i ft sent to the b e l oved, the stranger encou nter i n g a woman, feast i n g , i m permanence a n d d i s i l l u s i o n , a n d fi n a l l y the retu r n . Ben eath the story t h at these themes te l l , we can see the overr i d i n g concerns of the poets of the perio d : sepa rati on, re l ationsh i ps torn ap art and n ew r e l ati o n s h i ps fo rmed . T h i s is very m u c h a poetry of d i s l ocat i o n , a poetry about ou ts i ders who h ave l eft t h e i r com m u n ities and go ne to the c i ty, i n to servi ce, or i nto the army. As we l ook a t some of the p h ases of this "story , " we s h o u l d a l so keep i n m i n d t h e l iterary h i stor i c a l c h anges t h at were occu rri n g . F o r exa m p l e, i n t h e fi rst section, o n " P a rti n g a n d G o i n g Off," we s e e a
yue-fu
vers i o n in which the m a n l eaves h i s
fam i l y t o perfo r m some u n n amed act o f v i o l en t desperati o n . There are " o l d poems" o n the parti n g of fri e n d s, with conso l at i o n offered . O n a more sop h i st i c ated l eve l , there i s t h e " a p p l icat i o n " o f t h e convent i o n s o f parti n g t o a spec ific h i storical expe r i e n c e : in
A. D.
1 92 , after rebel fact i o n s d evastated the capital C h a ng-an, Wang C a n
takes l eave of friends a n d k i n , a n d o n t h e r o a d h e s e e s a n other, terr i b l e exa m p l e of aba n d o n ment a n d brea k i n g of the bonds of k i n s h i p . F i n a l ly, from the m i d d l e of the th i rd century, Ruan Ji i nvokes the motif as a general p r i n c i p le-perhaps as p a rt of a d ec i s i o n to q u i t the soc i a l world for the p r i vate l ife of a rec l use.
P a rt i n g and G o i n g Off East Gate (Eastern Han? yue-fu) He went out East Gate, no hope to return; he came in the gate, he was shaken with grief. No food in the kettle;
no clothes on the rack. He drew his sword, he went out the gate, his children wept and wife pulled at his clothes. " Other wives want wealth and honor, I gladly share gruel with you, share gruel with you: By broad Heaven above, by our babies here below, this is wrong ! " " Get out o f my way ! I go! I've waited far too long! 250
The Chinese "Middle Ages "
Already my hair hangs white, I cannot stay here forever ! " The fo l l ow i n g two part i n g poems are p reserved i n the corpus s p u r i o u s l y attr i b uted . to LI L i ng and Su Wu . The fi rst is spoken in a wom a n ' s voice, sayi n g goodbye to a . m a n leaV i n g fo r the wars.
Anonymous Old Poem ( attributed to Su Wu) When I bound my hair and became your wife, there were no doubts in the love we shared. Our pleasure is j ust for this evening now, j oy must be had while the time is here. A traveler thinks on the long road ahead: you rise and check the time of night. The stars Shen and Chen have already set, and you go, taking leave from this moment on. You are marching off to the battlefield, we do not know when we'll meet again. Holding your hand, I give a great sigh, wet with tears for this parting in life . Try hard to take care of your years of youth, and forget not the times of our pleasure. If you live, you will come back again, if you die, I will think of you forever.
Anonymous Old Poem ( attributed to Su Wu) Flesh and blood j oin as branch to leaf; companions as well depend on each other. And if on this earth all men are brothers, no man is a traveler alone on the road. We two were trees linked limb to limb, you and I were like one body; we were once those ducks that mate for life, now split like the stars Shen and Chen; once always found at each other's side, now far as Qin from Turkestan. When we thought how each must go his way, our love was renewed with each passing day. The deer cry out, they think on wild grasses: which may serve as a figure for honored guests, and here I have a flask of wine to offer you, soon to be far away. 25 1
Anthology of Chinese Literature
I want y ou to stay and pour it out, solace for a lifetime's closeness. "The deer c ry o ut, they th i n k o n w i l d grasses" i s a s l i g h t l y a l tered q u otation from one of the most fa m o u s poems in the
Classic of Poetry,
" Deer C ry" ( C L X I ) (see p .
2 75 ) . T h i s p i ece conti n u ed t o b e performed a t banquets to welcome guests. T h e l evel of l iterary e d u cati o n in the poem i s s u ggested l ess by the act of c i t i n g the
Poetry t h a n
Classic of
by the sto ck exegeti cal response i n the fo l l ow i n g l i n e . Th i s l i n e is the
" r i ght a n swer, " the sta n d ard i nterp retati o n , as i f " Deer C ry" had been a n i d e n tifica tion q u esti o n o n a n e l ementary q u i z o n the
Classic of Poetry may
Classic of Poetry.
Such n a"ive u se of the
be contrasted with the m o re so p h i sticated reference in Wang
Can's poem below. "Seven Sorrows" c a n be d ated with some prec i s i o n t o t h e year 1 9 2 o r soon there after. In 1 9 0 , Dong Z h u o h ad sacked L u o-yang, the " E astern Capita l , " abd u cted the Han emperor Xian, a n d carried him to C h a ng-an, the "Western Capita L " In 1 9 2 , fight i n g b ro ke o u t between D o n g Z h u o ' s s u bo rd i n ate ge n e ra l s in C hang-a n . Wang Can decided to seek refuge with L i u B i ao, the gove rn o r of J i n g-z hou U i ng-man), who h ad been a stu dent of Wang C a n ' s grandfath er.
Wang Can ( 1 77-2 1 7 ) , S eve n Sorrows I In Chang-an the fighting was out of control, j ackals and tigers contrived our doom. 1 abandoned the heartland, 1 went away, to take myself far to the land of Jing-man. In sorrow my kinsmen stood facing me, my friends came after me, clinging. 1 went out the gates, no one was seen, only white bones hiding the meadows . On the road was a starving woman who abandoned her baby in the grass. She heard it wail, she looked around, she wiped away tears but did not turn back. "I know not where I myself will die, I cannot keep us both alive . " 1 whipped o n my horse and left her there, such words 1 could not bear to hear. To the south 1 climbed the slope of Ba Mound and turned my head to gaze on Chang-an. And 1 understood why someone wrote "Falling Stream " 1 gasped and felt t h a t p a i n within. Ba M o u n d was the tom b of the Western H a n em peror Wen, w h o presided over a n a g e of p rosperity a n d g o o d gove r n m e n t that stood i n s h a r p contrast t o the war-torn C h a n g-an of A . D . 1 9 2 . " F a l l ing Stre a m " was the title of a p o e m i n the
etry ( 1 5 3 ) 252
reca l l i n g a n other capita l . It beg i n s :
Classic of Po
The Chinese "Middle Ages "
Biting chill, that falling stream that soaks the clumps of asphodel. o how I lie awake and sigh, thinking of Zhou's capital. Poets of the end o f the s e c o n d centu ry and the fi rst decades o f the th i rd century gave accou nts of the co l l apse of H a n c i v i l i zation-its cities in r u i ns, h u m a n re l ati o n s h i ps to r n apart, u n b u ried bones throughout the cou ntrys i d e . T h e reason t h at these l a rge h i sto rica l u p h eava l s were represented i n C h i nese l iteratu re was perhaps the expec tati o n , a rti c u l ated in the " G reat P reface," that the poet wou l d be the vo i ce of the age. In the fo l l ow i n g somew h at l ater poem by Ruan J i , the part i n g is n ot from any o n e in part i c u l ar, but from the e n t i re soc i a l world and the very poss i b i l i ty of havi ng a fam i l y . Y e t the next-to - I ast co u p l et reca l l s the words of the mother t o h e r aban doned baby in Wang C a n ' s "Seven Sorrows . "
Ruan Ji ( 2 1 0-263 ) , Songs of M y Cares III A path will form beneath fair trees, in eastern gardens, peach and plum. Autumn winds blow bean leaves flying, from now begins wasting and the fall. The glory of flowers comes to tatters, briar and brush grow in the hall. I forsook it all, I galloped away, went off up the foot of Western Hill. I cannot protect myself alone, much less take care of wife and child. Frost blankets the grass of the meadows, and the year too has reached its end.
Lo n g i n g on t h e Road Nineteen Old Poems I Keep on going, on and on, parted from you while alive. Ten thousand miles apart and more, each of us at a corner of sky. The road between is blocked and long, will we ever meet face to face again ? A Turkish horse leans to the north wind, a Yue bird nests in the southernmost bough . ! Every d a y w e grow farther apart, ' Y u e was the south eastern part of C h i n a .
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every day my sash hangs looser. Drifting clouds block the bright sun, and the traveler does not look to return. To think of you makes a person old, and the time of year is suddenly late. Let it go now, say no mor e ! j ust eat well and take care .
The p o i n t of the fou rth cou p l et i s t h at each c reat u re l o n gs to be w h e re it b e l o n gs : the h o rse from the N o rth faces n o rth, w h i l e the V u e b i rd c h ooses to nest on the south e r n most bough of a tree . The poem does not i n d i cate the genders of those peo p l e parted from , n o r i s i t c l ea r whether t h e p o e m i s spoken from t h e v i ewpo i nt o f the trave l e r o r of the person l eft beh i n d . I n one common a l ternative i nter p retat i o n , the l ast l i n e i s u nd e rstood as the speaker reject i n g l o n g i n g : he o r s h e d ec l a res, "I w i l l eat wel l a n d take care of myself." T h e fo l l owi n g poem is e a r ly, b u t m o re l iterary t h a n the " N i n etee n Old Poems." It u ses the convent i o n a l i m ages a n d p h rases of the " o l d poems, " b u t it is a l so m u c h m o re specific i n t h e situation it descr i bes.
Qin Jia ( 2nd century) , To His Wife (first of three) ( attributed) Liken man' s life to morning dew, our time in the world is much trouble and pain: worries and hardships come always too soon, j oyous reunions are always so late. I brood on my present mission, each day I go still farther from you. I sent a carriage to take you home: alone you went and alone will return. When I read your letter, I was sad, at meals, unable to eat. I sit alone in the empty room, with no one there to cheer me, and through long nights unable to sleep, I toss and turn on the pillow. Sorrow comes like tracing a ringthe heart is no mat to be rolled away.
The poem e n d s with a reco l lection of
Classic of Poetry XXVI
p . 4 7) : ·
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T h i s h e a rt of m i ne is n o sto n e ;
y o u c a n n ot tu r n it w h e r e you w i l l .
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The Chinese "Middle Ages " T h i s h e art o f m i n e i s n o m a t; I c a n n ot r o l l it up w i th i n . . .
Com i n g to the C i ty Com i ng to the c i ty is l ess a p h ase i n its own r i g h t t h a n the c o n d i t i o n of the feast, i n wh i c h new re l at i o n s h i p s o f c l oseness are b r i efly fo rmed i n face o f d a n ger a n d d e ath . Th ese re latio n s h i ps are co l l ective rather t h a n i n d i v i d u a l , a n d the voice is q u i te d i f ferent from the vo ice t h at spoke of wel l -esta b l i s h e d i n d i v i d u a l re l ati on s h i ps i n p art i n g . F o r a fu l le r treatment of th i s t heme, see the sectio n on " Feast" ( p p . 2 74-2 94)
Nineteen Old Poems III Cypress on grave mound, green so green, and in the ravine, rocks heaped in piles. Man is born between earth and sky; he goes swift as a wayfarer traveling far . So take your j oy in beakers of ale, pour it full, not stingily; Drive the cart harder, lash on the nag, in Luo-yang and Wan good times are had. Luo-yang is a city teeming full, where fine hats and sashes seek out their own. Narrow lanes line the thoroughfares with many great houses of princes and earls. Two palaces face each other afar, paired towers, a hundred feet high and more. So feast to the end, give the heart glee, why let grim woes beset you ?
Nineteen Old Poems IV A good feast brings us together today, of such revels and mirth it is hard to tell all. The harp is struck, the notes rise free, new tunes so fine they touch the gods . Those with virtue sing high words, those skilled in song will hear what's true. All of one heart, we share the same wish, but the thought is withheld, not fully shown. Man is born into only one time, a sudden thing, dust whirled in the wind. So why not whip your fine steed on, seize a stronghold before some other ? Don't stay a common man and poor, ever in hardship, always beaten down. 255
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A l o n e at N i ght Nineteen O l d Poems XIX Moonlight glowing so bright shines on my bed curtains of lace. From worry and sadness I cannot sleep, I pull on my clothes, rise and pace. Though travels are said to have their. j oys, better by far to turn home soon. I go out the door and walk alone, to whom can I tell these dark thoughts? I crane my neck, go b ack in the room, and tears that fall are soaking my gown. We m ay reca l l that Wang Can was the poet who, in the fi rst of his "Seven So rrows," was flee i n g C h a n g-an in 1 9 2 . The fo l l owi n g poem was written after he escaped south to refuge in l i n g-ma n ; but even there he was u n happy, u n a b l e to s l eep, "alone at n i ght."
Wang Can, Seven Sorrows II Jing-man is not my home, so why do I linger here so long? In a double boat I went upriver until sunset saddened my heart. The last light hung on the ridges of hills, in the folds of cliffs the shadows increased. Foxes went scurrying to their lairs, birds flew circling native groves. Rolling waves stirred clear echoes, and monkeys howled from high on shore. A sudden breeze ruffled my skirt and sleeves, and silver dew soaked the folds of my gown. Alone that night I could not sleep, then lifting my robe, I stroked the harp . Its silk and beechwood stir passions and make me bring forth sad melody . This wayfaring will never end, the sting of care is hard to endure .
Ruan Ji, Songs of My Cares I In the night I could n o t sleep, restless I rose and plucked the harp . Thin curtains mirrored the bright moon, cool breeze blew into gown-folds. A lone swan screeched out on the moors, 256
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in the north woods birds flew singing. I wavered then, what would I see?
troubled thoughts injure a heart all alone. The motif of l o n g i n g at n i ght appears a l so in the fol lowi n g p i ece from the " Ni neteen Old Poems" o n the Oxherd and Weaver stars, doomed by the gods to be lodged apart in the h eaven s because of the i r l ove affa i r . They a re a l l owed to m eet o n l y o n ce a year, on the seventh eve of the seventh month, when they c ross the R iver of Stars-the M i l ky Way-o n a b r i dge formed by magpies.
Nineteen Old Poems X Faraway lies that star, the Oxherd; she sparkles, the Maid in the River of Stars . She stretches her pale and delicate hand, clacking, she whiles away time with the shuttle. A day is spent and her weaving not done, as her tears fall down like the rain. The River of Stars is shallow and clear, nor are they so very far apart. But across that bright and brimming stream, she gazes with longing and cannot speak. The sto ry of the Oxherd and the Weaver and the i r m eeti n g on the Seventh Eve, cross i n g a b r i dge of magpies, was a favor i te theme of poets over the ages. It was u s u a l l y treated i n terms o f frustrated l o n g i n g (as i n t h e tenth o f t h e " N i n eteen O l d Poems") or the brevity of the l overs' meeti n g . The e l eventh-century Song l y r i c i st Qin G u a n , however, l ater writi ng l y r i cs t o t h e m e l od y "Gods o n t h e Magpie B r i dge," gave the theme a memorable tw i st.
Qin Guan, ( 1 049-1 1 00 ) , to " Gods on the Magpie Bridge " Fine wisps of cloud sport their craft, shooting stars bear word of the lovers' pain, and now far off in the River of Stars they are making the crossing unseen. To meet just once in fall's metal wind and in the j ade white dew turns out to be better by far than the countless meetings of mortals. Their tender feelings seem like water, this sweet moment is as in dream how can they bear to turn their heads to the path leading back over Magpie Bridge ? But so long as both of them love and so long as their love lasts on, 257
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it does not need to be done every night and every morning at dawn.
The Message a n d G ift Watering My Horse by the Great Wall ( Eastern Han? yue-fu) Green, green the grass b y the river, thoughts on far travels go on and on; I can't bear to think on his travels, I saw him last night in my dreams, in dream I saw him right by my side, when I woke he was off in another land, in another land and a different place, I tossed and turned and s aw him no more. The mulberry, bare, knows Heaven's wind, the ocean's waters know Heaven's cold. Whoever comes shows love for his own, and no one wants to comfort me. A stranger came from a far-off land, and gave me a paired-carp letter case; I called for the boy to cook the carp and in it I found the letter. I read the letter on my knees, and what did the letter say?It began, " Take care of yourself, "
and ended, "I love you forever . "
Nineteen O l d Poems IX There is a rare tree in my yard, green are its leaves, rich in flowers. I pulled its boughs to pluck a bloom to send to the one I love. Sweet scent filled my gown and sleeves, the way is too far to send it. What value has the thing itself?it only recalls how long since he left.
The Stranger a n d the Wo ma n T h i s p hase o f o u r hypothetical n a rrative m ay b e seen a s re l ated to " M u l berries b y the Path" (p. 234) and "Officer of the G u ard" (p. 235), both transl ated in the yue-fu secti o n . T h e d ifference i s t h at i n these vers i o n s t h e perspective is, a t l east i n part, t h e m a n ' s . The yue-fu " Prel ude" i s a typ i c a l l y fragmentary n a rrative of a wom a n s h o w i n g k i n d ness t o the stranger and her h usband com i n g i n and v i ew i n g t h e m w i t h suspicion . 258
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Prelude (Eastern Han? yue-fu) Swallows g o winging before the hall, gone with the winter, in summer back. Once there were brothers, two or three, who were drifters in faraway lands . "There was no one to patch my worn-out clothes, there was no one to sew me new ones, but then I found this good lady, who took them and sewed them for me. " And her husband comes in through the gate, he looks at them sideways and glares northwest. "My husband, do not glare so: when the water's clear, stones can be seen . " " Stones jut u p all along the stream; it is best to go home and not travel afar . "
Nineteen Old Poems II Green, green i s the grass b y the river, in garden the willows are all dense and full. High in the tower a woman so lovely, she glows in the window, white and so pure. Rouge on her cheeks, bright in her beauty, and she puts out a pale and delicate hand. Once long ago I sang in the bar room, now I'm the wife of a traveling man. He travels for pleasure and never comes home now, A lonely bed can't be kept empty for long.
Nineteen Old Poems V To the northwest stands a tower high whose top is level with drifting clouds, its windows are meshed with latticework, with eaves all around, three flights of stairs. From above came song and the sound of a harp whose echoes were sad as they could be. And who could sing a song like that ?it must be someone like Qi Liang's bride.2 The minor tones came out clear with the wind, 'Af ter her h u sband was ki l led in battle, Qi Liang's wife wept for ten days, t hen comm itted suicide. The association here i s primarily m u s i c a l: "Qi L i ang's Wife's Lament," f a n c i fu l l y attri b u ted to her, was a standard p i ece in the harp reperto i re .
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and then they faltered, mid-melody; once she strummed, then sighed again, impassioned and filled with melancholy. I don't care that the singer feels pain, what hurts is that few understand the sound. I wish we could be two golden swans to fly with great wingbeats high and away.
I m per ma n e n ce a n d D i s i l l u s i o n T h e speaker rides out the c i ty gates, l o o ks at the tombs outside the c i ty, and reflects on the b revity of l ife. He may decide th at the best t h i n g to do is enjoy h i mself i n the p resent, o r h e may be l eft in despa i r.
Nineteen Ol d Poems XIII I drove my wagon out Upper East Gate
and gazed at far tombs north of the walls. Winds whistled in silver poplars, cypress and pine lined the wide lanes. Beneath them lay men long dead, fading far off into endless night. They sleep under Yellow Springs sunken from sight, and never will wake in a thousand years. Shadow and Light move in endless floods, our destined years are like morning's dew. Man's life is as brief as a sojourner, old age lacks the firmness of metal or stone. They have brought men here for thousands of years, a span unmatched by good man or Sage. With pills and diets men seek the Undying, and are usually duped by elixirs. The better way is to drink fine ale and dress yourself in satin and silk.
Nineteen Ol d Poems XIV Each day those gone are farther withdrawn, each day newcomers grow more like kin. I went out the gate, stared straight ahead, and all I saw were b arrows and tombs. The ancient graves have been plowed to fields, their cypress and pines smashed to kindling. Mournful winds fill silver poplars, 260
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in their moaning a woe that destroys a man. I long to turn back to my native town, I wish to return, but there is no way.
Nineteen Old Poems XV Life's years do not reach a hundred, but we always have cares for a thousand. The daylight so short, the night so long why not go roaming, candle in hand? Joy must be seized at its momentwhy should you wait for times to come ? The fool who cannot bear to spend wins only mocking in later days. Qiao the Prince, a man Undyingit is hard to match his term of years .
The Retur n Anonymous Old Poem At fifteen I went with the armies, now at eighty at last I come home. On the road I met one from my village, "Who remains of my family now ? " " Yo u can see your house far over there, in the cypress and pines and rolling tombs . " Hares come i n through the dog-holes, and pheasants fly up from the beams. Wild grains grow in the courtyard, greens take root by the well. I boiled the grain for my gruel, and picked the greens for a soup. When soup and gruel were both ready, there was no one to give them to. Then I went out the gate and gazed east, and the tears fell, soaking my robes.
One of the most d u ra b l e open i ngs of yue-fu a n d the " o l d poems" was goi n g out the gates of Luo-yan g, the Eastern H a n capita l , as in " N i n eteen Old Poems" X I I I . F rom the eastern gates cou l d be seen the great cemetery in the Bei-mang H i l l s . In w h at seems to be a poem on returning to the city, an ironic reversal occurs: Cao Zhi (or Mr. Y i ng, as referred to in the title) c l i m bs B e i - m a n g and looks back on L u o-yan g it self, in ru i n s, sacked by Dong Zhuo in 1 90 and now v i rtu a l l y deserted . 261
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Cao Zhi ( 1 92-2 3 2 ) , Sending Off Mr. Ying ( first of two) On foot I climbed u p Bei-mang's slopes and gazed afar on Luo-yang's hills. Luo-yang, so silent and forlorn, its halls and palaces all burned away. Each wall has collapsed and crumbled, briars and brambles stretch to sky. I saw no old folks from times before, in my eyes were only new young men. I walked at an angle, there was no path, fields had run wild, tilled no more. Long had the traveler not returned, he can no longer tell the boundary paths . And the moors, so barren and bleak, no hearthfires seen for a thousand miles. When I think on this place I used to live, breath chokes within, I cannot speak.
Coda: Ree n c ounter Old Poem I climb ed the hill to pick deerw eed going down I met my husba nd of ld. I knelt down and asked my husba nd " And how d o you find your new bri e ? " " Thoug h good d o I find m y new bride ' she's not so fine as my wife of old. In fairne ss of featur e both are alike but in skill of hands you are not th same. When the new bride entere d the gate in front ' the old wife left by the door at the side. The new bride weave s the golden silk , ' the old wife wove the plain. Of golde n silk, four yards a day, to more than five yards of the plain. Then put the plain silk by the gold, the new bride canno t match the old. "
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T he Poets Althoug h we d o h ave poems and songs by l ite rary m e n from ear l i e r in the Eastern Han , the peri o d when we beg i n to fi n d yue-fu and "old poems" written extensively by known authors w a s d u r i n g t h e J i an-an (196-219), t h e l ast, a n d p u re l y nom i n a l
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Han re i g n period, when both the emperor a n d N o rth C h i na were i n the h a n d s of the warl o rd Cao Cao ( 1 5 5-2 2 0 ) , the "Lord P rotecto r . " Cao Cao gathe red t o h i mself m a n y o f t h e i t i n e rant i nte l l ectu a l s a n d writers of the day. The most famous of these i nte l l ectu a l s constituted the so-ca l led Seven Mas ters of the J i an-a n . Cao Cao h i m s e l f l eft a sma l l but remarkable co l l ection of yue-fu. Cao Cao's son and h e i r, Cao Pi ( 1 8 7-2 2 6 ) , who dec l a red the esta b l i s h ment of the Wei Dynasty, l eft a somewhat l a rger co l l ection of both poetry and yue-fu. The most d i sti n g u i shed poet and writer of the period, h owever, was one of Cao Cao's you n ge r sons, Cao Z h i ( 1 92-2 3 2 ) . T h e poets o f th i s period tended t o take t h e forms o f treatment o f t h e yue-fu and "old poems" a n d apply them m o re specifica l l y to the i r p resent c i rc u m stances. Thus, i n the fo l lowi n g yue-fu, Cao Cao app l i es the poem o n the h a rd s h i p s of trave l to a m i l itary campaign i n w h i c h he was engaged .
Cao Cao ( 1 5 5-22 0 ) , The Bitter Cold Northward we climbed the Tai-hang Range, the way was hard-going and steep, the slopes wound round like sheepguts and on them our wagon wheels broke. Trees were bare and bleak, where the voice of the north wind moaned . Bears crouched right before us, tigers roared on both sides of the road. Few folk dwell in these valleys, where the snow comes down so thick. I craned my neck and heaved a sigh, many the cares on far campaigns . My heart was then so full of woe I wished at once to turn back east. But the rivers were deep, the bridges broken, mid-j ourney I faltered, unsure. In confusion I lost my former path, and at sundown had no place to rest. On and on, going farther each day, men and horses both starving. With sacks on our backs we gather kindling, and chop at ice to make our gruel. Sad is that poem " Eastern Mountains " : i t makes my heart always grieve.
When Cao Cao s hows h is l e a r n i n g, there is ofte n p o l i t i c a l p ropaganda i nvol ved. " Eastern Mounta i n s " was a poem i n the Classic of Poetry, att r i buted to the D u ke of Zhou, on a campaign in the East. The D u ke of Zhou h ad been the u n c l e and "Pro-
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tector" of the Zhou k i n g ; the poten t i a l h i stor i c a l a n a l ogy, wrap p i n g h i mself in the respecta b l e mantle of the D u ke of Zhou, m u st h ave been i rresi sti b l e for Cao Cao, who held the you n g Han em peror a v i rtual captive. The fi rst stanza of " E astern Mou n ta i ns" (CL VI) fo l lows :
We marched to those eastern mountains, streaming on and never turning. And now we come back from the east, in the pall of driving rain. We are returning from the east, our hearts are grieving for the west. Prepare those wraps and gowns, make us serve no more with the soldier's gag. Now caterpillars are creeping and crawling, teeming in mulberry fields. I sleep alone all curled up right here under the chariot. We can a l so see s u c h pol itical use of the Classic of Poetry in the fo l l owi n g poem by Wang Can, desc r i b i n g h i s j o u rney to Cao Cads d o m a i n ("the borders of Q i ao") as leavi n g a l a n d in ru i ns and com i n g to the " h a ppy l a n d " descri bed i n " H uge Rat" (CX I I I ; see p. 5 2 ) . Wang Can wrote th i s poem after leav i n g Ji ng-man (see " Seven Sor rows" I I , p. 2 5 6 ) .
Wang Can ( 1 77-2 1 7) , With the Army V I kept faring down roads choked with weeds, with a trudging pace, my heart in sorrow. When I looked around, no hearth fires seen, all that I saw were forests and mounds . City walls grew with brush and briars, footpaths were lost, no way to get through. Canes and cattails to the broad bog's end, reeds and rushes lined the long stream. A cool breeze blew up at sundown and swept my boat gliding swiftly along. Wintry cicadas sang out in the trees, and the swan ranged, brushing the sky. The traveler's sorrows were many; I could not stop my falling tears. Then at dawn I crossed the borders to Qiao, where cares melted, I felt easy and free. Roosters were crowing o n every side, millet swelled the level fields . Inns and lodgings filled the hamlets, men and women thronged the crossroads. Unless in domains ruled by a Sage, 264
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who could enj oy such blessings ? The Poet once praised a " happy land" though a stranger here, I still wish to stay. One of the most common motifs i n yue-fu and o l d poems was to see a b i rd and l o n g t o fly away w i t h i t , o r i f a wom a n were i nvol ved, t o become a b i rd a n d fly away to her or with her (see " N i n eteen O l d Poems" V). Aga i n , one m i ght reca l l the l ast stanza of " B oat of Cypress" (XXVI) in the Classic of Poetry: o Sun ! and you Moon! Why do you each grow dim in turn ? These troubles of the heart are like unwashed clothes. I think on it in the quiet, I cannot spread wings to fly away.
In the J i an-an, t h i s v i s i o n a ry des i re to escape can be attached to so m u n d a n e a m i s ery as too m u c h work in the offi ce. L i ke Wang Can, L i u Zhen was one of the "Seven Masters of the J i an-an . "
Liu Zhen (d. 2 1 7) , Unclassified Poem The work in my office keeps piling up, with documents scattered everywhere. My writing brush speeds, no chance to eat, into late afternoon I have no rest. I am lost among records and registers, my head whirling in confusion. I get away, go west of the walls, climb the heights and let my gaze roam. There, a square pool with silvery water, and in it are ducks and wild geese. o to have such fleet feathers and to bob in the waves along with you. In Cao Z h i ' s famous " U n c l as s i fied Poem," the pass i n g b i rd is not the means of vi s i o n ary escape but a potenti a l message bearer, a l be i t a fai l ed o n e .
Cao Zhi, Unclassified Poem I High on the terrace are sad strong winds, the dawn sun shines on northern woods. The man is thousands of miles away, past lakes and rivers, deep and far. How can my double boat reach him? this separation is hard to bear. 265
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A lone goose came flying on its way south and passing my yard, gave a long sad call. My thoughts took wing, I yearned for him far, and wished by this bird to send him word. But its shape and shadow were suddenly gone, its swift wingbeats wound my heart. T h i ngs that f l y-w i l d geese or c l o u d s- m i g h t serve as messengers to carry word to those far away. I n the poem bel ow, n ote that C h i nese bronze m i rrors req u i red con stant pol i s h i n g to keep g i v i n g a reflect i o n . Xu G a n was another of the "Seven Mas ters of the J ian-an."
Xu Gan ( 1 71-2 1 8 ) , Chamber Thoughts III Clouds go drifting in billowing floods, and by them I wished to send these words. They tossed in the wind, wouldn't take my words, and I faltered here helpless in longing. All others who part will meet again; you alone give no date for return. Sihce you have gone away, my bright mirror darkens, unpolished. Like flowing waters I long for you there is never a time that they end. The c l os i n g s i m i l e of X u G a n ' s poem, with its memorab l e s i m p l i c ity, offers a good i l l u strat i o n of how the poet i c trad ition worked . " S i nce You H ave G o n e Away" be came a y ue- fu title in the fifth and s i xth centuries, with doze ns of attem pts to rewrite the l ast fou r l i nes of Xu Gan ' s poem as a q u atra i n . The first l i ne is a l ways " S i nce you h ave gone away" ; the second l i n e speaks of someth i n g negl ected; the th i rd and fou rth l i nes offer a s i m i le of l o n g i n g :
Yan Shi-bo ( 5th century) Since you have gone away, the scented curtains hang unraised. Like whirling snow I long for you, turbulent sifting, no edge or end.
Wang Rang (467-493 ) Since you have gone away, in the golden brazier no incense burns. Like the bright candle I long for you, at midnight burning down uselessly. 266
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Chen Shu-bao ( 5 5 3-604 ) Since you have gone away, cobwebs darken my curtains of lace. Like the setting sun I long for you that even a moment does not turn back .
Cao Zh i (192-232) The tu rn of the th i rd centu ry was a remarka b l y v i o l e n t and d a n gerous period i n C h i nese h i story. Power was n o t sec u re . Cao Cads s o n and s u ccessor, C a o P i , E m peror Wen of the Wei Dyn asty, was natu ral l y u n easy about co l l u s i o n between the other Cao p r i n ces, among whom was his h a l f b rother Cao Zhi, c o n s i d e red then a n d now to be the g reatest l iterary ta lent of the age. After s u m m o n i n g the p r i nces to h i s cap ital in 223, Cao P i i s bel i eved to h ave arranged the m u rder of one of his b rothers, the Pri nce of Ren-ch e n g . Fearfu l of p l ots, Cao P i objected to h i s b rothers' spend i n g t i m e together outs i d e t h e watc hfu l eyes o f t h e palace. A s a resu lt, w h e n h i s b roth ers Cao Z h i and Cao B i ao p l a n n ed to j o u rney back to the i r d o m a i n s together, Cao P i fo rbade them to l odge in the same p l ace overn ight. The proh i b ition e n raged Cao Zhi and sti rred h i m to m u ster h i s considerable poet i c ta lent in one of the f i n est sets of poems of the period . H e re Cao Z h i portrays h i m self in a role with g reat c u ltural reson a n ce, as the wronged l iegeman l i ke Qu Yuan, far i n g o n a n e n d l ess j o u r n ey, tormented by the m a l i ce of i l l-wishers .
Presented to C a o Biao, Prince o f Bai-ma In July of 223, the fourth year of the Huang-chu Reign, the Prince of Bai rna, the Prince of Ren-cheng, and myself all went to court in the capital for the seasonal gathering of the great nobility. After we reached Luo-yang, the Prince of Ren-cheng departed this life. When it came to September, I was planning to go back to my own domain in the company of the Prince of Bai rna; but subsequently an official in charge of such matters thought that it would be best if we two princes, returning to our fiefs, should spend our nights at separate locations. The thought continues to provoke resentment in me. Since our final parting will be in a few days, I wanted to show how I feel in these poems, to take my leave of the prince . I completed them in a state of outrage. We greeted the Emperor in Cheng-ming Lodge, and were soon to turn back to our old frontiers. W e set forth i n dawn's cool from the royal city, and by sundown had passed Mount Shou-yang. The Yi and the Luo were deep and broad, we wished to ford, but there was no bridge. Then sailing by boat we traversed huge waves, 267
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resenting h o w long was our r o a d to the east. I looked back with longing to palace towers;
stretching to see them, my heart ached within. II
Great Valley, so barren and vast, the trees on the hills, dense and gray. Torrents of rain turned the road to mud, the runoff was flooding all around . Where the roads j oined, the tracks broke off; I changed my course and climbed a high hill. A long slope stretched to the cloud-covered sun, my horses were black and smeared brown. III
Though black and smeared brown, they could still go on, but my thoughts were a knotted tangle within. A knotted tangle from what concern ?that dear kin and I must lodge apart. At first we had planned to go side by side, midway it changed, we could not be together. Owls were hooting on my carriage yoke, wolves and wild dogs stood in the road. Blue flies mar both black and white, those who speak ill estrange kin . I want to turn back, but there is no path; I pull back on the reins and stand wavering. IV I waver, yet why do I linger here ?this longing I feel knows no bounds . Autumn winds bring a faint chill, cold-weather cicadas cry out by my side. The moors, so bleak and gloomy, as the sun is abruptly hid in the west. Returning birds head to tall trees, their wingbeats are urgent and swift. A lone beast goes running, seeking the herd, plants in its mouth, no chance to eat. Being touched by these things wounds my cares, I touch my chest and heave a long sigh.
V I heave a long sigh, but what can I do? Heaven's charge runs afoul of me. Can I help longing for my full brother,
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now gone for good, body never to return ? His lonely soul hovers about his old realm, his sarcophagus rests in the capital. Those who survive will go suddenly too, perish utterly, their bodies decay. Man's life finds lodging in but one age, and he goes as the morning dew that dries. M y years sink westward among the stars, shadow and echo cannot be pursued. I look on myself, neither metal nor stone, and I gasp at the sorrow this brings to the heart. VI Sorrow in heart shakes my spirit, let it go then, describe it no more ! A true man's aims include all the world, a thousand miles is as a near neighbor. If only this love neither fail nor flag, though far away, fate brings us closer. Why need we share bed curtains and quilt, and only then state the strength of our care ? If troubled thoughts become a fever, it is naught but the passions of boys and girls. But such turmoil of love for my flesh and blood can I help harboring bitternes s ? VII What broodings come in my bitterness? that Heaven's charge truly wins distrust. It is vain to go seek the Undying, Red Pine the Undying misled me long. The last change can come in an instant, who can seize for himself a century's span ? Now as we part, so long ere we meet, when again will we thus clasp hands ? Prince, take fond care of your precious self, may we both enj oy times of frail white hair. I cease my tears and take the long road, grasping my brush, I say farewell here. As earl ier in Han poetry, the s ituat i o n that brought forth poetry m o re q u i c k l y than any other was a th reatened re l at i o n s h i p : be i n g kept apart from one's kin a n d friends, be i n g u n a b l e to return to one's roots, o r, as i n the poem t h at fo l l ows, lacking the power to act to help a n other. Worried that h e has the actu a l power to p rotect h i s friends, Cao Z h i i nvents a para b l e o f p rotectio n a n d g ratitude.
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Song of a Brown Wren in Wild Fields (yue-fu) High i n the trees are sad strong winds, the ocean's waters lift up their waves. If you have no sharp sword in hand, what point in making many friends ? Didn't you see the wren in the fields that saw the hawk and flew in the net ? The fowler rej oiced in catching a wren, but a young man saw it and felt sad. He drew his sword and cut the net, and the brown wren was able to fly away. It flew and flew till it touched the sky, then came again down to thank the young man.
Unclassified Poem II Tumbleweed rolling, severed from root, tossed tumbling along with the steady wind. "I d i d not expect to rise in whirling gusts, that blew me off high into the clouds. Going higher and higher, reaching no bound, Heaven's roads never run out. " Of such kind too is the traveler who risks his life on the far campaign. His woolen tunic leaves limbs exposed, greens and beans never fill him. Keep going then, say no more! brooding troubles make a man old.
Ru a n J i (2 1 0-2 63) R u a n li w a s a n i mportant i nte l l ectu a l figure o f the th i rd centu ry and one o f the "Seven Sages of the B a m boo G rove . " L i ke many other i nte l l ectu a l s of the period, he was deeply i nvolved in pol itics; and l ike most ofthem, h e tried h i s best to avo i d its d a n g e r o u s entanglements. His poems, all entitled "Songs of My Cares," a re often read as conta i n i n g ve i l ed p rotests aga i n st the S i- m a c l a n ' s usu rpation of power from the Caos, the r u l i ng house of the Wei , fo l l owed by the eventual overth row of the Wei and the esta b l i shment of the li n Dynasty. In the fi rst poem, the earl i e r Warri n g States K i ngdom of Wei , whose cap ital was Da- l iang, seems to be a f i g u re for the Wei Dynasty of the th i rd centu ry. The refer ence to the Fi re of the Q u a i l (a conste l l ation) fac i ng south refers to a prophecy i n The Zuo Tradition foretel l i ng l i n ' s overth row o f the state of G u o . Aga i n the pre-Q i n domain o f li n m a y be used a s a figure for t h e li n Dyn asty o f t h e S i - m a c l an that sup p l anted the Wei . 270
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Songs of My Cares X VI I was walking about beside Peng Pond when I turned my head and gazed on Da-liang. The green waters raised their mighty waves, the broad moor stretched off boundless. In every direction beasts swiftly ran, birds soared in flight each following others. 'Twas the season when Fire of the Quail faced south, when sun and moon stood straight apart. North winds were harsh, bitter and cold, and the shadowy air shed faint frost. I, on a j ourney and lacking companion, in an instant felt pain within. Lesser men reckon the due for their deeds, the better man stays ever with the Way. No regrets that he ends up wasted and gaunt, and this is the burden of my song.
From th i s period we beg i n to find a n i n c reas i n g n u m ber of poems celebrati n g the exem p l a ry figu res of the s i m p le l ife, such as the Q i n Count of D o n g- l i ng, who after the fal l of the Q i n l i ved happ iJy as a wel l - known m e l o n farmer.
Songs of My Cares VI I have heard of Count Dong-ling's melons close outside Chang-an's Green Gate. Patch by patch, they stretch to the paths, baby melons and mothers, all j oined together. Their many hues glow in the morning sun, drawing fine visitors from all around. An oil-fed fire burns itself out, much property brings its owner harm. One may spend a life in commoner' s clothes, put no trust in stipends and popularity.
Songs of My Cares XXXIII One more day, then one more evening, one more evening, one more dawn. Complexion changed from what it was, by itself the spirit wastes away. I hold fire and boiling water in my breast, all things in change are calling to me. Thousands of problems that ha ve no end, 271
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more than deftest schemes can comprehend. I fear only that in an instant my soul will be whirled away by wind. All my life I have walked upon thin ice, and none understand how this heart seethes. \
T u rning Away The poets of the generat i o n after Ruan J i , the poets of the Western J i n (265-3 1 6), c o n t i nued to use the same themes as the p reced i n g centu ry, pol i s h i n g them and re cast i n g them in ever m o re e l egant d i ct i o n u n t i l the l ast vesti ges of the pop u l a r o r i g i n s of yue-fu and c l assical poetry had d isappeared . B u t a l ready i n the poetry o f R u a n Ji a group of n e w c o n c e r n s had become i n c reas i n g l y p rom i nent: the des i re t o sever rel ationsh i p s rather than to rebu i l d them, the rejection of the soc i a l l ife, and a turn ing away from the c i ty to the safety of u n popu l ated l andscapes whose beauties cou l d take t h e p l ace o f t h e trap p i ngs o f wealth a n d h o n o r . T h i s new poetry o f t h e p r i vate I ife and the n atural l a n d scape was the begi n n i ng of i nterests that wou l d come to dom
i n ate I iteratu re over the next few centu ries. In the fol l ow i n g Western J i n poems, na tu re exp l i c i t l y rep l aces a rich m a n s i o n , with its fine decorat ions and ente rta i n m ents, w h i c h h ad been the s ite of sensual del i g hts in "Cal l i ng Back the Sou l " (p. 204) .
Lu Ji ( 2 6 1 -3 0 3 ) , Calling to the Recluse At daybreak I felt uneasy at heart, I dusted my clothes and paused a while ; and pausing there, wondered where to go to the recluse who lives in his deep ravine. At dawn he picks cress in the southern stream, at twilight he rests by the foot of West Hill. Light branches like structures stretching to clouds, dense foliage forms his green feather screens. The " Frenzied Chu" halts in orchid-filled groves,3 and swirling fragrance meets stately trees . Such tinkling comes from mountain rills, falls scour j ade stones and make them ring. Magic waves bear away tones of lame �t,4 through layered bends toppling echoes depart. There is nothing false in this perfect j oy, why strive to mar the simple and pure ? If honor and wealth are hard to devise, let me unhitch my team and do what I will. 3The " F renzied C h u " was the dance performed in "Ca l l i ng Back the SouL" 4The "tones of l a ment" are those of a fal l en state in the "G reat Preface" t o t h e Classic of Poetry_
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Zuo Si (ca. 253-ca. 3 0 7 ) , Calling to the Recluse I I leaned on my staff and called to the recluse
whose weed-grown path is blocked now as ever. No structures are built in the caves on cliffs, yet a harp is playing among the hills. A white cloud halts on the shadowed ridge, red petals gleam in sunlit groves. Stony streams scour their agates a n d j ades, fine fins rise to the surface and sink. There is no need here for harps or flutes, hills and streams make their own clear notes. And why depend on whistling or song, when tree clumps hum so movingly ? Dried grains are mixed with fall's chrysanthemu ms, hidden orchids inserted in folds of gowns. As I pace here, pausing, my feet grow weary I would cast down the pins of my officer's cap.
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Feast
The feast p l ayed an i m portant and ever-changing ro l e i n trad i ti o n al Chi nese culture, as it does in other c u l tu res; poems and songs, in turn, p l ayed an essential role in t h e feast. The feast and its songs were part of the harvest ritu al, as i n "Sh e Bore the Fo l k" from the (p.
Classic
of Poetry
12). I n the harvest feast, the com m u n ity comes together to consume
w h at has b e e n accu m ulated and t o share it with a ncestors. The time of the feast is o n e of relaxation: com m u n ity restra i nts are eased, and it is t herefore a dangerous moment. The words of a feast s o n g are i ntended to help the parti c i pants i nto the world of the feast and through its per i l s. Judging by the content of feast songs i n trad itional Chi n a a n d e l se where, p l easu re is s u rprisi n g l y d ifficu l t: h u ma n bei ngs h ave to be prod ded to it, tau nted, cajo l e d. Once they are persu aded to i n d ulge, there is the d a n ger of d i ssolution and excess, and the poem m u st p l ay the op posite ro l e of u rg i n g restra i nt. Side by side in the
Classic o f Poetry we
two contrast i n g voices, one mock i n g restrai nt, the other u rg i ng it.
Classic
of Poetry C XV " Hawthorn on the Mountain"
Hawthorn on the mountain, elm tree in the marsh: Gown and robe have you, but never donned, never worn; cart and horses have you, never driven, never ridden; when you wither up and die, they will delight another man. Gao tree on the mountain, niu tree in the marsh: court and chamber have you, but never swept or sprinkled down; bell and drum have you, never beaten, never struck; when you wither up and die, another man will hold them. Lacquer tree on mountain, chestnut tree in marsh: foo d and drink have you, 274
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so why not have the zither played to take your j oy, draw out your days, for when you wither up and die, another man will take your home.
Classic of Poetry CXIV " Cricket" Cricket in the hall, the year draws to its end. If we don't take our j oy now, the days and months will pass us by. Yet let not pleasure go too far, j ust think upon your stations; delight should not get out of hand, the well-born man is circumspect. Cricket in the hall, the year is on its way. If we don't take our joy now, the days and months will leave us. Yet let not pleasure go too far, j ust think what lies beyond this moment; delight should not get out of hand, the well-born man is prudent. Cricket in the hall, the chariot lies idle. If we don't take our j oy now, the days and months will flee us. Yet let not pleasure go too far, j ust think upon your cares; delight should not get out of hand, the well-born man is steady. "Deer Cry" became the representative feast poem, celebrat i n g the ceremo n i a l wel come of one's guests.
Classic of Poetry CLXI " Deer Cry" Yoo, yoo cry the deer, eating shoots in the meadow: Worthy guests are here with me, p la y the ha r p and blow the pipes. Blow the pipes, trill their reeds, baskets offered are received. 27S
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Men who like me well show me the ways of Zhou. Yoo, yoo cry the deer,
eating the cress in the meadow: Worth y guests are here with me, their virtue's fame is bright. They do not look on men with spite, they are the model for a prince. And thus I have this fine wine, for worthy guests to feast and revel. Yoo, yoo cry the deer,
eating the greens in the meadow: Worthy guests are here with me play the harp and psaltery. Play the harp and psaltery, b athed in common pleasure. Thus I have this fine wine, to feast and delight my worthy guests' hearts . Death is often not fa r from the poetry of the feast. The
Classic of Poetry tau n ts the
l i stener to feast now, otherwise another man wi l l enjoy what h e has gathered after h e is dead. But perhaps, even dead, h e can sti l l enjoy a party. In "Cal l i n g Back the Sou l , " one of the great feasts of C h i nese literat ure is desc ri bed-it is an orgy, whose explicitly stated pu rpose is to give p l easu re to the an cestors or the sou l of the dead.
from " Calling Back the Soul" Before those morsels make the rounds, girl musicians move to their lines. They ring the bells a n d roll the drums, performing the recent songs : "Wading the River, " " Pick Caltrops," then breaking into " 0 Brightness . " And a s the beauties grow more drunk, their rosy faces flush. Eye's teasing gleam, the half-lidded gaze, glances come wave upon wave. Patterned cloaks, fine-woven gowns, flashy but yet not garish. Long tresses and trailing locks, sensual, bright, and alluring. In two rows of eight, in unison, they begin the dances of Zheng. Then, sleeves crossed like staves before them, slowing the beat they withdraw. 276
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With pipes' and psalteries' wild concert, they hammer booming drums Till the whole court of the great house shakes and the " Frenzied Chu " begins. The lays of Wu, lyrics of Cai, and they play the Great Lu. Men and women are sitting together, mixed and not kept apart. Sashes and ribbons are cast down, the places all in confusion. Seductive diversions of Zheng and Wei are performed mixed in among them. But the coda of the " Frenzied Chu" is the finest of them all. Horn buckles of Jin-craft, aglow like bright suns. Bells are rung, chime frames shake, they sweep the catalpa-wood harps. Joys of the wine are not set aside as they pass through days and nights. When bright lamps burning orchid oil are set in their splendid frames. Verses are made t o speak longing, with phrases finely wrought. And in the heights of their passion, j oined hearts recite. Drinking we reach the crest of pleasure to give the ancestors joy. Soul, turn back! Return here where you once dwelled . . . . As the ceremony for the dead turns at l ast to p l e asure, even to ecstasy, so a moment of celebrati on may turn suddenly somb er. The sudden motion from one extreme fee l i n g t o another became a commo n p l ace i n the trad ition, a s in the l i ne: "at p l easure's h e i ght, many a sad thought comes." The source of the l i n e is a feast song attri b uted to Emperor Wu of the Ha n .
Song of the Autumn Wind Autumn winds rise, white clouds fly, plants turn brown and fall, wild geese go south, the orchid has its bloom, chrysanthemum its scent, my thoughts are on the fairest, her I can't forget. I sail in a great galley across the River Fen, 277
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we breast the midstream current, raising white waves; drums and fifes sing out, a rowing song begins, at pleasure's height, many a sad thought comes: how long does youth's prime last ?- no hope against old age. I n the m i d d l e of the feast, dark thoughts come. The feaster m ay rise, leave the party in the great h o u se, and l ike the wandering so u l to be cal l ed back, go wanderi ng off th ro ugh the darkness. Chen L i n was another of the "Seven Masters of the Ji an-an."
Chen Lin (d. 2 1 7) , [no title] It was a fine feast, j oy suddenly left, and I, a stranger, could not keep my cheer; dark thoughts came from deep within, a sadness stirred by song's clear notes. I set down my cup and left the happy board, went aimlessly walking among tall trees, where the wind whistled down mountain valleys, and tracks through sky darkened with cloud. Lost in sad thought I forgot to turn home, and tears fell with sighs and soaked my robes. The two fo l l ow i n g lyrics were origi n a lly Han fu neral songs. It is said that in the East em Ha n , they came to be com m o n ly performed at feasts.
Dew on the Onion Grass (Han funeral song) On onion grass the dew dries quickly in the sun, dries in the sun but tomorrow it will settle again at dawn; when a person dies he is gone, never to return.
The Graveyard (Han funeral song) Whose yard is it, the graveyard ? where they muster souls of good men and fools; and the Wraith Master drives them without respite, man's doom doesn't waver a moment. The feast song often takes the voice of persuasion; it rejects sadness as waste and cal ls the l istener t o p l easu re, bidding him light a cand l e and continue merri ment through the n ight: 278
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West Gate ( anonymous yue-fu, Eastern Han ?) Out West Gate I walked in thought: if we don't take pleasure today, what day are we waiting for ? the taking of our pleasure must come at its due time: why should we stay in dark brooding awaiting the moment to come again? Drink the strong wine, broil the fat ox, call to the one your heart loves and in this way be s orrow-free. Man's life does not reach a hundred, but we always have cares for a thousand: the daylight so short, the night so long why not go roaming, candle in hand ? I am not the undying Qiao the Prince
nor can I match his count of years. I am not the undying Qiao the Prince nor can I match his count of years. A man's life is not of metal or stone, how can one expect to live a full span? The miser who cannot bear to spend wins only mocking in later days. The feast had another essenti a l functi on. D u r i n g the Warri n g States period, the pri nces of the domains wou l d gather retai ners and m a i nta i n them. These were cal l ed si-shi-"k n i g hts ready to di e." As they were feasted by the p r i n ce, so they were s u p posed to be ready to sacrifice themselves for h i m. The d isso l ution of Han soc i ety i n t h e second century A.D. a n d t h e rise o f warlordi s m h a s l eft u s l y rics that seem t o rep resent the retu rn of such a wor l d , in w h i c h a l o rd wel comes reta i n e rs as if to say, Dri n k, take you r p l easu re now, dark days l i e ah ead.
Grand ( anonymous yue-fu, Eastern Han?) Hard times wait in days to come, mouth will be parched, lips will be dry, today we should take our pleasure, And everyone should be merry. I passed through all those fabled hills,
and roamed through fields of asphodel, there the undying Qiao the Prince gave me a philter in a pill. 279
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I'm sorry these sleeves are so short that hands drawn in still feel the cold; and shamed that there is no Ling-che to pay his debt to Xuan of Zhao.! The moon is setting, Orion rises, the Northern Dipper hangs aslant: kin and comrades at my gate, hungry, but never getting to eat. Days of pleasure left are few, days of pain are many: how can we forget our s orrow ? with zithers and drinking songs. Eight lords came to Huai-nan's Prince:2 the true Way brings no bother, j ust hitch six dragons to your coach and frolic at the edge of clouds. Cao Cao was the greatest of the warlords, and "Short Song" is one of the most fa mous feast songs in the trad iti o n . Cao Cao takes the conventions of a banqu et song l i ke "Grand," and bends it to his pol itical pu rposes. The second stanza is bu i lt on two qu otati ons from the Classic of Poetry, the fi rst (accord i n g t o the sta ndard i n ter pretation) express i n g ad mi ration for students (perhaps the iti nerant i nte llectu a l s of the period), and the seco nd, "Deer Cry," be i n g the standard Poem for welco ming guests.
Cao Cao ( 1 55-220 ) , Short Song The wine before me as I sing: how long can a man's life last? I liken it to morning's dew, and the days now past are too many. The feeling is strong in me, brooding thoughts I can't ignore. How can I banish melancholy ?by Du Kang's gift of wine. " Blue, blue are your gown's folds, ever you are in my heart ," a n d only because of you, my concerns keep on till now. 'The thi rd stanza refers to a story in TheZuo Tradition in which Lord Xuan of Zhao fed the starv i n g L i n g-che. While serv i n g as a guard, L i ng-che l ater thwarted an assass i nation attempt aga i n st Lord X u a n. 2The H a n p r i n c e of H uai-nan, L i u An, w a s said to h ave taken a drug of i m mortal ity and as cended to H eaven in b road d a y l i ght, a l o n g with h i s eight c h i ef reta i ners.
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The Chinese "Middle Ages " "Yoo, yoo cry the deer, eating the shoots in the meadow: Worthy guests are here with me so play the harp and blow the pipes. "
Bright and full is the moonwhen will its passage cease ? cares come from deep within, nor can they be halted. You crossed the paths and lanes, taking the trouble to visit me, now feasting and chatting after hard times, your hearts consider old kindness done. The moon is bright, the stars are few, and magpies come flying south, three times around they circle the tree, where is the branch on which to roost? The mountain does not mind its height, the ocean does not mind its depth. The Duke of Zhou broke off his meals, and all the world turned to him in their hearts. The D u ke of Zhou, who served as regent for the Zhou k i ng, was so zea lous in tak ing care of the 'busi ness of the ki ngdom that he would spit out his food in the mid dle of a meal to attend to a pro b l e m. Cao Cao, perhaps compari n g his own posses sion of the pu ppet Han emperor to the Duke of Zhou's regency, a l so c l a ims the Duke of Zhou's zeal in welcomi n g h i s guests, or potential reta i ners. Si nce the height of p leasure often seems to be also the edge of death and de struction, the vo ice in the feast poem may turn suddenly to caution a wary restra i nt: "Hold it at fu l l ness, without spi lli ng over." Cao Pi was Cao Cao's son a n d su cces sor.
Cao Pi (1 8 7-22 6 ) , Grand (yue-fu) This morning let there be j oy upon j oy, drink till we're tipsy, never feel drunk, from passionate strings stir recent tunes, and from long flutes a clear breath comes, songs sung to strings can touch man's heart, all at the party may feel the delight. All is hushed in the high halls, and cool winds enter my chamber. Hold it at fullness, without spilling over, one with virtue can bring things to happy ends; yet a good man's heart is full of worries, 281
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his cares are not just one alone; he comes decently down from his plain rooms, bolting his food so as to miss naught. The guests are full now and go home, yet the host's cares never are done. Two birds, wing to wing, soar through upper air, no fowler can take them in his toils: calm and indifferent, they find Nature's state, what are glory and splendor to them?
The sudden s h i fts of mood and top i c i n Cao Pi's song a re the l ast of the o l d ballad t rad i ti o n. Dur i n g the same period, a n ew and more formal banquet poetry was com ing i nto bei ng. The "pri nce" in the fi rst l i ne of the fol low i n g poem is probably Cao Zhi's half b rother, Cao Pi h i mself.
Cao Zhi (192-232), Public Banquet The prince honors dearly loved guests, and he tires not to the party's end. We roam West Park on clear, cool nights, canopied coaches one after another. With clear rays the bright moon washes all pure, the constellations lie scattered. Fall's orchids blanket the long slopes, red blooming covers green pools. The sunken fish leaps in limpid waves, and in high boughs the fine birds sing. Numinous gusts catch our russet hubs, light carriages move along with wind. Whirled along, our spirits are free may it stay this way forever!
Poetry conti n ued to be composed for state banquets throughout the i m per ial period, but these excited n o more enthusiasm than p u blic banquets anywhere. Duri n g the th i rd centu ry, the i n tellectual and l iterary i n terests of the e l ite i ncreas i ngly tu rned to private life and the free associations of friends. I n May 3 5 3 was h eld what was per haps the m ost famous of a l l parties: the gath ering at the Orc h i d Pavilion. Wang Xi z h i , the greatest calligrapher of the day, wrote the preface t o a coll ectio n o f poems written by those present at the party. The poems a re no l o n ger frequently read , but the Preface rem a i ns the classic statement o n parties. The p l easure of the moment, and the i m permanence of both the pleasure and those who enjoyed it, rem a i ned the d o m i nant themes. But in Wang Xi-zh i's hands these motifs were utterly transformed:
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the pleasures enjoyed were tranqu i l ones and the recogn ition of their i mpermanence sti rred m ela n c h o l y refl ecti o n rather than despa ir.
Wang Xi-zhi ( 3 2 1-3 79 ) , Preface to the " Orchid Pavilion Poems " In the year 3 5 3 , the ninth year of the Yong-he Reign, early in the last month of spring, there was a gathering at the Orchid Pavilion on the northern slopes of the Kuai-ji Mountains; our purpose, to carry out the spring cere monies of purification. Many a good man came, the young and old alike. The place was one of mighty mountains and towering ridges covered with lush forests and tall bamboo, where a clear stream with swirling eddies cast b ack a sparkling light upon both shores. From this we cut a winding chan nel in which to float our winecups, and around this everyone took their ap pointed seats . True, we did not have the harps and flutes of a great feast, but a cup of wine and a song served well enough to free our most hidden feelings. The sky that day was luminous, and the air was clear; gentle breezes blew softly around us. Above us we looked on the immensity of the universe; then, lowering our eyes, we saw nature's infinite variety. And as we let our eyes roam and our hearts speed from thought to thought, we could experience the greatest delights of ear and eye-this was true happiness. The times that human beings may be together occur within the fleeting glance of a lifetime: some find them in emotions spoken openly, face to face, in a single room; others invest their feelings in something external as they roam free, beyond the body's world. Our inclinations and aversions have a million different forms; the active man and the contemplative man are un like; but still, when j oy comes with a chance encounter, there is a brief mo ment of satisfaction, a cheerful self-containment with never a thought o f old age coming on. Then, as we weary of the direction in which we are going, our mood shifts with life's events, and depression inevitably follows . In the blink of an eye the j oy that has been becomes an experience past-yet still we cannot help having our feelings stirred by it. Even more there are our lives, whether long or short, changing and transforming, but ultimately bound to an end. As was said long ago, " Life and death are the greatest con cerns. " No escaping the p ain in this. Each time I examine the causes that brought emotion to men in the past, it is as though I have found there the mirror image of my own feelings. Never have I looked upon such writings without a brooding sigh, nor can I find words adequate to explain to myself why. But this I have learned: the belief that life and death are the s ame is a grand deception; to say that Ancestor Peng's centuries are no more than the lifespan of an infant who died un timely-this is delusion, a forced conceit. Those in later times will look on today as we today look on the past-there is the sadness! For this reason I have written out the list of those present at that time and copied their com283
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positions. Though ages change and experiences differ, all may share what stirs deep feelings . And those who read this in later times will also be moved by what is in this writing. More than any other Tang poet, Li Bo was fasc i n ated by the world of the old yue fu, and he recreated the tone of the yue- fu feast poem in h i s own ch aracteristica l l y
extravagant way. (The "Pr i n ce o f Chen" is Cao Zhi.)
Li Bo, Bring In the Wine Look there ! The waters of the Yellow River coming down from Heaven, rush in their flow to the sea, never turn back again. Look there! Bright in the mirrors of mighty halls a grieving for white hair, this morning blue-black strands of silk, and now with evening turned to snow. For satisfaction in this life taste pleasure to the limit, And never let a goblet of gold face the bright moon empty. Heaven bred in me talents, and they must be put to use. I toss away a thousand in gold, it comes right back to me. So boil a sheep, butcher an ox, make merry for a while, And when you sit yourselves to drink, always down three hundred cups. Hey, Master Cen, He, D an-qiu, Bring in the wine ! Keep the cups coming ! And I, I'll sing you a song, Lend me your ears and take heed The bells and drums, the tasty morsels, these are not what I love All I want is to stay dead drunk and never sober up. Sages and worthies of ancient days lie silent now forever, 284
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And only the greatest drinkers have a fame that lingers on! Once long ago the Prince of Chen held a party in Ping-Ie Lodge. A gallon of wine cost ten thousand cash, all the joy and laughter they pleased. So you, my host, How can you tell me you're short on cash? Go right out ! Buy us some wine ! And I'll do the pouring for you ! Then take my dappled horse, take my furs worth a fortune, Just call for the boy to get them, and trade them for lovely wine, And here together we'll melt the sorrows of all eternity! The paradox of the poetry of feasti n g a n d d r i n k i n g is the "dec i s i o n to act sponta neously," a self-conscious antici patio n of u n s el f-co n s c i o u s ness . The d r i n ke r con tem p l ates his o w n u n r u l y behavior and i s proud of it; h e not only d r i n ks but a l so conte m p l ates h i mself d r i n k i n g . To some degree th i s l i es beneath the to n g u e- i n cheek hyperbol e of Li Bo's " B r i n g I n the W i n e . " The i nterplay between forgetti n g oneself and knowi n g better atta i n s a c h a racteristic depth i n the w o r k of the fa m o u s eighth-centu ry poet Du Fu. D u F u has g o n e w i t h s o m e friends t o Wh ite E m peror Cas tle on a h i l l east of K u i -z h o u on the Yangz i River, where Du Fu was stay i n g at the t i m e . There he gets d ru n k and decides to show off h i s h o rsem a n s h i p .
Du Fu ( 7 1 2-770 ) , Having Fallen Off my Horse Drunk, Various Gentlemen Come to Visit Me Bringing Wine I, Du Fu, have all my life been a guest of men of rank; I set down my wine, sang drunkenly, and brandished a gilded spear. I went off riding, at once recalling how I used to be when young; those hooves set free kicked stones falling down into Ju-tang Gorge. White Emperor Castle' s gates lie high, up beyond river and cloud, I hunkered over, sped straight downslope, some eight thousand feet. 285
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Lightning bolts arced past white battlements my purple reins trailing; then to the east I reached the plateau, that came from the Heaven-formed cliff. River villages, wilderness lodges all showed themselves to my eyes, riding whip dangling and bit hanging loose, I sped over purple lanes. In an instant this white-haired old man shocked people in the thousands, but I trusted in my youthful skills to ride a horse and shoot. How could I know of such spirit set free in those hooves that chased the wind ? its bloody sweat and headlong gallop like spurting flecks of j ade. Unexpectedly it stumbled at last, and I ended up hurtwhen you do what you want in human life, humiliation follows. Then I was utterly miserable, confined to pillow and sheets; and worse still, age's frailties added to my vexation. When friends came by to ask of me, I hid the chagrin in my face; I forced myself up on my cane, leaning upon my servant. As soon as we spoke, we broke at once into open-mouthed laughter, and hand in hand cleared a new spot by the bend of the clear creek. Meat and wine came heaped like mountains yet another time, the plaintive strings at the start of the feast stirred the brash music of flutes. W e gestured all t o the sun i n the west, it is unforgiving to man, we shouted and hooted, tipped upside down the green wine in the cup. 28 6
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What need you come express concern for my galloping on my horse ? have you not seen how Xi Kang took such care of his life and at last was executed ? 3
Han Yu's poetry somet imes sh ows a prosa i c garrulo u sness, evident in the fol l ow i n g poem; h i s verse rambli ngs do give the sense o f someone w h o i s , as the title i n forms us, "d r u n k . " Among a gro u p of friends, H a n Y u's i n terpretat ion of the feast serves to create a sma ll elite society. I n this case, d r i n k i n g is n ot to ban ish sorrow but to free poetic i n s p i rati o n . The sty le of each of the poets present at the party is descri bed with an impress i o n istic image.
Han Yu ( 76 8-824 ) , Drunk, to Zhang Shu of the Imperial Library Others always insist that I drink; I act like I do not hear; yet coming to your house today, I call for wine and urge it on you. The reason-these guests at your table, and l as well, can write with skill. Your own poetry is filled with charms: clouds billowing through spring skies. Meng Jiao always shocks the common: Heaven's bloom emitting outlandish bouquet. Zhang Ji works at antique clarity: crane on a coach, shunning common flocks. A-mai doesn't know his characters,4 but has outstanding grasp of archaic script: we let him copy each poem we make, and he too serves to augment my troops. These are the reasons I wished to get wine, awaiting its glow in order to write. The wine's flavor is biting, the wine's force swells in the blood. Our mood grows gradually loose and free, banter and laughter abounding. 3Xi Kang (22 3-2 62) was a th i rd-century recluse i n terested in various tech n iq u e s for p ro l o n g i ng l ife. The most elementary precaution was to stay out of the tro u b led pol itics of the era. He u nfortu nate l y fai l ed i n this, ru n n i ng afo u l o f the powerfu l Si-ma fam i ly, a n d w a s f i n a l l y executed. 'A-mai is a c h i ld's name, and the passage on A-m a i ' s cal l i graph i c ski l l is proba b l y a joke on a c h i ld's ha ndwriti n g .
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Herein the true sense of wine is fulfilled all else but this is mere muddle . All wealthy young men of Chang-an have rich-smelling meat and garlic served; but they don't grasp literate drinking, skilled only in getting red-skirted courtesans drunk. Although they may find a moment's pleasure, they're a bit like a crowd of mosquitoes. I and these various others today have nothing rank in our sweetness. Our daring diction daunts demons ' courage; magnificent phrases consort with Canons. These most perfect j ewels are not engraved; they are spirit-work, spurning all tending. We are entering now an age of great peace, men of talent aid a ruler like Shun or Yao. Our sort are lucky to have no concerns--':' may we go on like this from dawn to dusk!
Han Y u's friend and contemporary Meng Jiao offers a more desperate vision of poets dri n k i n g . Destruction hangs over them, and thei r fate is to lose themselves in the celebration of the moment.
Meng Jiao ( 75 1-8 1 4), Inviting Writers to Drink Cao Zhi and Liu Zhen could not shun death none dare turn their backs on spring's glory. So let no poet turn down the wine, for a poet's fate belongs to the flowers . Han Y u w a s sent into exile; Li Bo was prideful by nature. All time seems suddenly much the same: in a brief span everyone comes to sighs. Who says that Heaven's Way is straight ? it alone skews the shapes of Earth. The Southerner grieves, being always ill; the Northerner, j oyless at leaving home. Plum blossom songs pour already through flutes, and the willows' colors cannot yet hide crows. So I urge you to cease your songs of the snow, and in turn drink sadly the rose-cloud wine. When we sober up, we cannot pass over this ocean of sorrow, vast without shore.
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Li He much admired the work of Li 80, but carried that poet's extravagance to a level of strangeness Li 80 wou ld never h ave i magi ned . Here, as el sewhere i n Li He's poetry, the feast becomes almost demo n i c.
Li He ( 790-8 1 6 ) , Bring In the Wine In goblets of lapis lazuli, an amber dark and strong, from small casks the wine dribbles down in pearls of red. Stew a dragon, roast a phoenix, let tears of marble fat be shed; mesh curtains and broidered arras enfold an aromatic breeze. Blow dragon fifes, strike lizard-skin d rums, gleaming teeth sing, frail waists dance. Now most of all in the green of spring with the sun about to set, and a tumult of peach blossoms falling, rainstorms of red. I urge you to spend this whole day through reeling drunk, for wine will never reach the soil of the grave of Liu Ling.s
At another extreme, th is qu iet qu atra i n by 80 Ju-yi sets u p a warm world of l i ght and color inside, contrasted with the cold d arkness outside. The scene " i n v ites" even be fore the exp l icit i nv itati on is given .
Bo Ju-yi ( 772-846 ) , An Invitation for Mr. Liu Green lees of beer newly brewed, red coals, a brazier's small fire. Late in the day the sky looks like snow would you come drink a cup with me or not?
The trad ition of the feast poem conti n ued in the sh ort song lyrics of the tenth and eleventh centuries. These songs were written for profess i o n a l s i n g i n g g irls to sing at SLiu L i n g was a t h i rd-cent u ry eccentric known as a great d r i n ker.
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parties. The song title in the fo l l owi n g l yric has n ot h i n g to do with the theme of the
lyric.
Feng Yan-si (903-960), to " The Pleasures of Kicking the Football" The wine was gone, and the songs were ending, but we still weren't ready to go, strolling together beside the small bridge and clear waters. You could see the plum blossoms swaying in ripples, white in the heart of the water; and the wind blew her dress clinging cold against her body"But let's not go back j ust yet, we have to stay with the songs to the end, and the pleasures of the evening. "
Yan Shu (991-1055), to "Washing Creek Sands " (Huan xi sha) Only a moment, this season's splendor, this body, a bounded thing; to part now as if it didn't matter easily breaks the heart; so don't be hasty, refusing the party's wine, the banquet's song. Mountains and rivers fill our eyes, but care is wasted on things too far; besides which, this grief at spring passing, at wind and the rain bringing down flowers; it is better by far to take as your love the person before your eyes.
to " Reaching Golden Gates" (Ye jin-men) The autumn dew descends, dripping away all the red tears of orchids from the South. Experiences past and bygone loves bring a mood that has no bounds when I think on it, it seems a dream. The face is older than last year, but the wind and moon are no different at all.
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At my table are welcome guests, spiced wine is in the cups, so don't refuse to spend the evening drunk. F rom earl i est ti mes, poets rea l ized that utter a b a n d o n ment to the p l easu res of the party was h a rd to ach i eve. Eventu a l l y a n ote of retrospective m e l a n c h o l y appears in the poetry of the feast. The poet is too old a n d has been t h r o u g h it a l l before. He sets his c u s h i o n and p i l l ow bes i d e the m ats l a i d out fo r the perfo r m a n ce o f the s i n g i n g g i r l s , a n t i c i pat i n g t h at h e w i l l d r i n k a l ittl e and then fa l l a s l eep-b ut sti l l h e goes .
Zhou Bang-yan ( 1 0 5 6-1 1 2 1 ) , to " Fragrance Fills the Yard " (Man ting fang) . Written on a summer day at Wu-xiang Mountain in Li-shui Breezes age oriole nestlings, rains fatten the plums, at noon the fine trees' shade grows cool and round. The land lies low, hills are near, brazier's smoke spent on mildewed clothes. The person calm, hawks exult, and past the small bridge a fresh green trickles on. Long I lean on the balustrade yellow reeds and bitter bamboo make me think to set sail on that boat of Jiu-jiang. Every year like the swallows on the springtime festival, drifting wind-tossed over deserts, come to lodge in these long rafters. Do not long for what is beyond you have a cup of wine always brought. Weary traveler in the Southland, looking battered and worn, who cannot bear to listen to shrill flutes and strings swiftly played. Beside the mats for the singers I first set cushions and pillows, a space to sleep when I get drunk. We come at l ast to a s m a l l party that eq u a l s in fam e the gath e r i n g at O rc h i d Pav i l i o n descri bed b y Wang X i -z h i . A g ro u p o f fri e n d s a re eati n g a n d d ri n k i ng i n a boat on the Yangz i River. They a re carried beneath Red C l iff, from w h i c h the g reat Cao
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Cao h ad p l a n ned to l a u n c h a fl eet to in vade the Southern K i n gdom of Wu . The ad m i ra l of the Wu fleet, Zhou Yu, l a u n c hed an attack with fi reboats and bu rned Cao Cao's entire fl eet. It was before th is great battle that Cao Cao was sup posed to h ave com posed h i s "Short Song," qu oted earlier (p. 2 8 0 ) :
The wine before m e as I sing: how long can a man's life last? I liken it to morning's dew; and the days now past are too many. The feeling is strong in me, brooding thoughts I can't ignore. How can I banish melancholy?by Du Kang's gift of wine. . . .
Su Shi (1037-1101) , The Poetic Exposition on Red Cliff It was the autumn of 1 0 82, the night after the full moon in September, when I, Su Shi, together with some companions, let our boat drift, and we were carried beneath Red Cliff. A cool breeze came gently along, but it raised no waves in the water. I lifted my wine and toasted my companions, reciting the piece from the Classic of Poetry on the bright moon and singing the stanza on the woman's grace : The moon comes forth, glowing bright, comely woman, full of light, Her motions slow, of gentle grace heart's torment, heart's pain. After a while the moon did indeed come forth over the mountains to the east and hung there in between the Dipper and constellation of the Ox. A silver dew stretched across the river until the light on the water reached off to the very sky. We let this tiny boat, like a single reed, go where it would; and it made its way across thousands of acres of bewildering radiance. We were swept along in a powerful surge, as if riding the winds through empty air. And not knowing where we would come to rest, we were whirled on as if we stood utterly apart and had left the world far behind, growing wings and rising up to j oin those immortal beings . By then I had been drinking to the point of sheer delight. I tapped out a rhythm on the side of the boat and sang about it. The song went: O ars made of cassia, magnolia sweeps, beat formless brightness, glide through flowing light, far off and faint, she for whom I care, I am gazing toward a lady fair there at the edge of sky. One of my companions played the flute, accompanying me as I sang. The notes were resonant and low, as if expressing some deep wound, as if yearn-
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ing, as if sobbing, as if declaring some discontent. The afterechoes trailed away, attenuating like a thread but not breaking off. Such notes made the dragons dance as they lay sunken in their dark lairs, and caused women who had lost their husbands to weep in their lonely boats. I too grew melancholy. I straightened my clothes and sat upright. And I asked my companion, "Why did you play it like that ? " My companion an swered: "The moon is bright, the stars are few, and magpies come flying south. Isn't that Cao Cao's poem? Here facing Xia-kou to the west and Wu-chang to the east, where the mountains and the river wind around each ot her with the dense green of the forests-isn't this the place where Cao Cao was set upon by young Zhou Yu? Once Cao Cao had smashed Jing-zhou, he came down to Jiang-ling, going east with the current. The prows and sterns of his galleys stretched a thousand leagues, his flags and banners blotted out the very sky; he poured himself some wine and stood over the river, hefted his spear and composed that poem-he was indeed the boldest spirit of that whole age, and yet where is he now? Consider yourself and I by comparison, fisherman and woodsman on the great river and its islands, consorting with fish and friends o f the deer. We go riding a boat as small as a leaf and raise goblets of wine to toast one an other. We are but mayflies lodging between Heaven and Earth, single grains adrift, far out on the dark blue sea. We grieve that our lives last only a moment, and we covet the endlessness of the great river. We would throw an arm around those immortal beings in their flight and go off to roam with them; we would embrace the bright moonlight and have it done with forever. And since I knew that I could not have these things immediately, I gave the lingering echoes of that desire a place in my sad melody . " I replied, " And do you, m y friend, indeed understand the water and the moonlight ? As Confucius said as he stood by the river, 'It passes on j ust like this,' and yet it has never gone away. There is in all things a fullness and a waning to nothing, j ust as with that other thing, the moon; and yet it has never increased and never vanished altogether. !f you think of it from th�J?ointof view of changing, then Heaven awl Ea rth have never he en able to stay as ttle v are �en tor the lJjmk ot an eye . ]jut lt you think ot It from me nomt ot view nt not cba!}ginJ?;. then neIther the self n�I oth er th . qgs ev(':r c", and this is the delight of the birds at the departure of the human vis itor SJ And yet the birds may experience the delight of the mountain forests, but they do not experience the delight of the people. The other people may ex perience the delight of coming to visit this place with the governor, but they do not experience the governor's delight in their delight. The person who in drunkenness can share their delight and who, sobering up, can give an ac count of it in writing is the governor. And who is the governor ? Ou-yang Xiu of Lu-ling.
F u nerary G e n res I n The Zuo Tradition, Confu c i u s i s c red ited w ith t h e say i n g : " I f t h e l a n g u age l acks patte r n i ng, it wi l l not go fa r . " This has been given grand i m p l i cati o n s in the trad i tion o f C h i nese l iterary thoug ht, but o n o n e l evel a t l east, wen, "pattern i n g," si m p l y m e a n s "writi n g . " Writi n g e n a b l e s words t o b e carried d i sta nces i n s p ace a n d l ast th ro u g h ti m e : i t is in some essent i a l way commemorative. In C hi na, as in m a n y c u l tu res, e a r l y tradi t i o n s o f writi n g se rved a n i m portant rol e i n h o n o r i n g a n d com m e m o rat i n g the dead . There were several p rose gen res that p l ayed various ro les i n h e l p i n g the l i v i n g p l ace themselves i n re l ation to the dead . These gen res i n c l uded l aments, i n scri ptions, a n d p rayers or ceremonial add resses. Although s u c h p rose gen res were often i nte nded to serve normative p u rposes, it is u s u a l l y the most perso n a l , t h e most i n di v i d u a l , a n d t h e l east n o r m ative works that a r e sti l l a p preciated tod ay.
Cao Zhi ( 1 92-2 3 2 ) , A Lament for Golden Gourd, Jin-hu Jin-hu was my firstborn daughter, and though she had not yet learned to speak, she could already recognize expressions on a person's face and knew what was in our hearts . She died an untimely death, after a life of only one hundred and ninety days . I wrote these lines for her: Caressed a n d nursed i n swaddling clothes, already child's laughter, though not yet speaking. In less than a year untimely gonewhy was she punished by sovereign Sky ? It was surely brought on by my misdeeds, I grieve for this infant, she had no fault. She has left the embrace of father and mother, her small bones dissolve in the filth of soil. Sky is forever, Earth endures, how long does a man's life last ? Whether sooner or later we do not know, but a time will come when I go with you . 614
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Tao Q i a n , o n e of the m ost u n conventi o n a l figu res i n the C h i nese tradition, has l eft perhaps the most u n conventi o n a l use of a h i g h l y fo rmal fu nerary gen re, t h e "sacri' I fi c i a l prayer for the dead . "
Tao Qian, A Sacrificial Prayer for the Dead on My Own Behalf
�
The year i 427, the pitch-jpipe's note signals November. The weatijer is cold, the nights grow long, there is a gloom in the atmosphere. Wild gees� and swans are on their migrations, all growing things yellow and shed their leaves. And Mast p r Tao is taking his leave of this ; inn where he lodged on his journey to return �orever to his earliest dwelling. Old friends are upset and grieve for him, having come together this evening to feast him before he sets off. They hav laid a table with fine vegetables 1 and offer{jd him a round of clear wine. But when he looks at their faces, they are already dim; when he listens to voices, they seem ever more blurred. Such a sad moment ! This eartH, this huge clod of soil, is so vast, and the h�gh welkin stretches on and on. These give birth to the thousands of things, and fhappened to become a man. And ever Since I became a man, it was my fortune to be poor. Gourd an(l foodbasket were ever bare, summer's thin clothing laid out in winter. Yet happt inside, I drew water from vales and sang as I carried my firewood along. Hidden behind my brushwood gate I did my irork both night and day.
i
. amI d autumns passe d III · succeSSIOn, · Spnngs there wer b tasks to be done in my garden. I did my 7 0eing, I did my weeding, then it was nurtured, then grew lush. I found delight in my books, I accompanied them with my seven-string harp. In winter�ime I sunned myself, in summer I bathed in streams. No energy remained in me after my labors, yet my heart was ever at peace. 615
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I rej oiced in Heaven, accepted my lot, and reached my full span of years.
And this full span of years everyone clings to them so. Men fear they will accomplish nothing, greedy for days and begrudging their seasons. When alive they are treasured by the age; even when gone men think of them. But I, alas, go my singular way, I have ever been different from men like these. To find favor gave me no sense of glory, nor could any soiling stain me. I lived aloof in my bare cottage, drinking till tipsy, composing poems. Though I recognize fortune and understand fate, who can help turning to look back fondly ? Yet in this change I will now undergo I can be without resentment. I have passed a full span to ripe old age seeking comfortable privacy for myself. And aged now, I meet my endwhat more is there to yearn for ? Cold and warm seasons move on, those gone differ from those alive. Kin of mother and wife come in the morning, good friends rush to my side by night. Bury him in the midst of the meadow to give peace to his soul. I will move on, blind in the darkness, grim is the door to the grave. The excess of Song's liegeman would shame me, I laugh at the thrift of Yang Wang-sun.l I have vanished into vast darkness, I have gone far from all agony. Raise no mound and plant no trees, let sun and moon pass overhead. I did not value praise when alive, who cares for songs of me afterward? Life was truly difficult, I wonder how death will b e ? Alas. ' ''Song's l iegeman" was H u a n Tu i , who had a lavish stone casket made that too k more than three years to com p l ete. Yang Wang-sun, on the other hand, comma nded his c h i ldren to b u ry h i m n a ke d .
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Para b l es A l t h o u g h they were an i m portant p a rt of C h i nese p rose w r i ti n g s i n ce anti q u i ty, "parables" were not con s i d ered a d i sti n ct ge nre i n the reperto i re of C h i nese prose genres. N evert h e l ess, s u c h s h o rt works rem a i n a m o n g the best known and l oved of c l as s i c a l p rose w r i t i n g s . T h e lessons of these l ater parables, someti mes made exp l icit as in the seco n d of the two by Liu Zong-y u a n t h at fo l l ow, are more often than not pol itica l .
Liu Zong-yuan, "Three Cautionary Tales " : The Fawn o f Lin-j iang A man of Lin-j iang once caught a fawn while hunting and wanted to raise it. When he entered his gate, his pack of dogs began to drool, and they all began to advance on it, their tails wagging. The man was furious and made them cower to him; then every day he would carry the fawn in his arms over to the dogs until they got used to seeing it. He forced them not to misbe have and gradually got them to play with it. After a long time the dogs all behaved as the man wanted; and as the fawn gradually grew larger, it forgot that it was a deer. It believed that the dogs were its true friends, and became increasingly familiar with them, butting them and knocking them over. In fear of their master, the dogs would romp with the deer in a very friendly manner-although every once in a while one would bite on his own tongue. Three years later the deer wandered out the gate and saw another pack of dogs on the road. There was a large number of them, and the deer went running toward them, wanting to play. These other dogs were at once de lighted and stirred to fury. Together they killed the deer, ate it, and left bits ohhe carcass strewn all over the road. Until the very moment it died, the deer didn't understand.
The Story of the Fuban, or Pack Beetle The fuban is a small insect that excels at carrying loads on its back. When it chances on something as it walks along, it immediately takes hold of it, and then, raising it up with its head, it loads the thing onto its back. The weight on its b ack gets increasingly heavy, but it will not stop what it does, even in dire straits. Its back is quite rough, so that the things it has accu mulated do not slip off. It eventually collapses and j ust lies there, unable to get up. Sometimes a person will feel pity for it and get rid of its load. But no sooner is it able to walk again than it takes hold of things j ust as it did b efore. It also likes to climb high places; and when it does so, it will con tinue to use every bit of its strength until it falls to the ground and dies. Those in our own times who lust to lay hold of things will never back away when they chance on possessions by which to enrich their household. They don't understand that it encumbers them; rather, they fear only that 6 17
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they won't accumulate enough. When they become weary and stumble, they are dismissed from office or sent into banishment. They even think that an ill has befallen them in this. If they can get up again, they will not forbear. Every day they think about how they can get a higher position and increase their income, and their greed for acquisition intensifies. As they draw near to falling from their perilous perch, they may consider those who have sim ilar! y perished before, yet they never take warning from the example. Though their bodies are immense by comparison, and they are named "human be ings , " yet their wisdom is that of a small insect, and also worthy of pity.
I nfo r m a l P rose I n add ition t o t h e o l d e r p rose gen res, n e w a n d rel ative l y i nfo rmal gen res o f c l a s s i c a l p rose grew i n popu l a r ity from t h e S o n g Dyn asty o n . The l a n g u age i n these works ran ged from a n easy c l assical sty l e to a m i xed sty l e in w h i c h e l e m e nts and co n structions from t h e vernac u l ar appear with i n t h e c l as s i ca l . These n e w genres i n c l uded i nfor m a l l etters, trave l and perso n a l d i a ries, co l l ecti o n s of "random j otti ngs" (bi-ji), m e m o i rs, a n d co l o p h o n s ( s h o rt prose p i eces written i n com ment on books, pai nt i ngs, a n d p i eces of c al l i g ra p h y) .
Su Shi ( 1 0 3 7-1 1 0 1 ), Written After Seeing the Paintings o f Wu Dao-zi Those with knowledge first fashion a thing; those with ability carry it through. It is not accomplished by one person alone. The superior man in his study and all the various artisans in their skills reached a state of com pletion in the passage from the Three Dynasties of antiquity through the Han down to the Tang. When poetry reached Du Fu, when prose reached Han Yu, when calligraphy reached Yan Zhen-qing, and when painting reached Wu D ao-zi, then all the variations of past and present and all the possibili ties in the world were over. Wu Dao-zi's paintings of people and things are like casting a reflection with a lamp; in anticipating what is to come and re calling where they were, seen from side or angle, slanting or level, each is perfect in degree, and he achieves the proportions of nature, without erring in the smallest detail. He displays fresh thoughts within strict rules and leaves the most subtle sense of pattern beyond swaggering self-expression. This is what Zhuang-zi meant by plenty of space for the blade to move or a wind rising from plying the ax. He is absolutely unique in ancient and mod ern times. As for other paintings, I may not necessarily be able to tell the painter's name. But when it comes to Wu Dao-zi, no sooner do I look at one than I can tell if it is genuine or a fake . Few indeed are the genuine ones in our age, yet the one Shi Quan-shu has in his collection is such as I have seen only once or twice in my life. -Written October 7, 1 0 8 5 . 618
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The fo l l owi n g is a c o l o p h o n attached to a p rose acco u n t (ji) writte n by F u ' s friend Dai Ti n g-s h i ( t h e Feng-z h o n g refe rred to i n the c o l o p h o n ) a b o u t a tower that Dai h i mself had constructed , the i n s p i rati o n fo r w h i c h was a d ream Dai had h ad .
F u Shan ( 1 609-1 6 8 4 ) , Colophon o n the " Account o f the Scarlet Maple Tower " Because of Feng-zhong's dream, there was a tower; because of the tower, there was an account of the tower. The tower resembles how it was in his dream, and the account resembles his tower. But then who can say that these really correspond ? In any case, dream and account both having been com pleted, he further enj oined me, old fellow that I am, to write on the topic. Now it happens that I am someone quite able in telling dreams . I once main tained that the most remarkable men in the world, the most remarkable events, the most remarkable creatures, the most remarkable scenes, and the most remarkable transformations were none so remarkable as a dream. When it comes to dream's elusive presences and spectral fleetings, the liter ary man's writing brush cannot describe one thing in a million. Nonetheless, insofar as the elusive scenes in literary works themselves resemble dreams, they lie beyond our common expectations. Feng-zhong truly has a great love of literature. For my own part, I cannot write-but I can dream. Now and then I'll be reading some piece out loud for Feng-zhong, and all at once I'll find myself in a scene of dream. Both of us will be all groggy and confused; and then as we come to our senses again, we will for get it. I can still recall one or two things, but Feng-zhong immediately for gets everything and retains nothing. This is why I am the one who tells dreams and Feng-zhong is the one who listens to dreams. Now telling dreams and listening to dreams are poles apart. It is most fortunate that Feng-zhong forgets them. For if the least of them lingered in his mind, I would lead Feng zhong into a land of engulfing blackness, and he would never awaken.
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P l ace
C h i n a has an i m m ense l iterature of " p l ace, " w h i c h i n c l udes descri ptive geography, "accou nts" (ji) of sce n i c l a n d scapes and b u i l d i n gs, travel d i a ries, poe m s , a n d n u merous l ocal gazetteers that com p i l ed a wealth o f i nfo rmation o n t h e n atu ral, po I it i c a l , c u l t u r a l , and l iterary h i story of each reg i o n .
C h i n a w a s t h e l argest territory o f t h e premodern world whose i n h abita nts h a d a sense th at it was "one p l ace . " Other c u ltural reg i o n s were d i vided by l a n g u age a n d ri v a l eth n i c groups o r were u nified as a s i n g l e peo p l e ( s u c h as the Arab s ) . H oweve r vague its bou n d a ries, C h i n a was seen (perhaps erroneo u s l y) as a u n ified te rrito ry, p o l i ty, peo p l e , a n d c u l tu re. C h i n ese re ligious, di p l o matic, and commerci a l trave l s , a l o n g w i t h conti n u o u s emi grati o n o utward, espec i a l l y i nto South east Asia, s h ow that the C h i nese were no less venturesome than thei r E u ropean cou nterparts . I n E u rope, h owever, acco u nts of m a rve l s seen o n di stant voyages were the norm of travel l it eratu re a n d no s m a l l fo rce behi n d the E u ropean age of ex p l o rati o n . A lthough ac cou nts of d i sta nt j o u rneys d o p l ay a ro l e in C h i nese l iteratu re, that ro l e is m u c h s m a l l e r than t h e ro l e p l ayed by t h e l i te ratu re o f i ntern a l trave l . C h i n a h a d the fi rst tou r i st i n d u stry, and its h u ge territo ry was grad u a l l y mapped b y writi n g-poems, p rose accou nts, i n script i o n s , travel d i a r ies-u nti l the p l easu re of travel became i n n o s m a l l p a rt the physical experience o f a p l ace a l ready known from texts . C o l d M o u n tai n ' s sense of " p l ace" as p u re l y a state of m i n d was re l ati vely rare in c l assical C h i nese l iteratu re, its most fam ous expressi o n b e i n g Tao Qi a n ' s "the m i n d f a r away, i t s p l ace becomes remote . " Most " p l aces," however, a re m a d e b y config u rati o n s of n atu re o r by acc i d e nts of hi story: p l aces h ave a p h ysical form and h i s tori cal l o re that the w riter encou nters a n d to w h i c h he respo n d s . The l o re of a p l ace and even ways to observe a p l ace's p h y s i c a l forms are tra n s m i tted in s u c h texts .
The Master of Cold Mountain (Tang) Someone asked me the way to Cold Mountain to Cold Mountain no road goes through. The ice does not melt on summer days, when the sun comes out, the fog there glows. How did someone like me get there ? my heart is not at all like yours. If only your heart were j ust like mine, you could get right there right away. 620
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When Su S h i , the most fam o u s of a l l Song writers, v i s ited Lu Mou ntain, he reso l ved at fi rst to be a n " i n nocent" trave l e r, wanti n g to experience the mou nta i n s without writi n g poems (as a modern to u r i st m i g h t reso lve to trave l without taki n g pho tog ra p h s ) . T h i s i n iti a l reso l ution q u i c k l y fe l l p rey to d e m a n d s a ri s i ng from his fame as a poet. Then a friend sent h i m a g u i d e to the m o u ntai n , w h i c h to l d h i m where to go and w h at to look for, q u oti n g fam o u s poems by p rev i o u s visitors, and S u S h i cou l d n ot stop h i m self from respo n d i n g t o earlier p o e m s a b o u t t h e m o u nta'i n s . I n deed, the fi n a l q u atra i n in the acco u nt bel ow, w h i c h is taken from S u ' s c o l l ecti o n of i nfo rmal acco u n ts, The Forest of Records, became o n e of the most fam o u s of a l l L u M o u n ta i n poem s .
S u Shi, Account o f a Visit t o Lu Mountain (from The Forest of Records ) When I first entered the L u Mountain Range, I found its mountains and valleys extraordinary. Never before in my life had I seen their like, and I had hardly any time to come up with the expected responses. At this point I had the notion that I didn't want to write any poems. But afterward, whenever I met monks or laymen in the mountains, they always said, "Su Shi is here ! " Before I knew it, I had written a quatrain that went: Straw sandals, cane of green bamboo, I roam, leaving strings of a hundred cash.2 But I marvel how deep in the mountains everyone knows the old count.3 Having finished this, I scoffed at myself for the folly of my earlier decision. Then I wrote two more quatrains that went: Green hills feel no cause to act familiar; haughty they rise and refuse to be amiable. If I want to recognize Lu Mountain's face, in some future year it will be an old friend. And another: I recall long ago admiring this place, and then first roamed in its distant haze. But this time it isn't in a dreamthis really is Lu Mountain. On that day someone sent me a copy of Chen Ling-ju's " Account of Lu Mountain. " I read it as I went along, and saw that he mentioned poems by 'Th i s refers to a story of the m o n k Z h a-dao who, when h e ate some dates by the road s i de, left a str i n g of cash h a n g i n g from the tree to pay for h i s m ea l . 3The "old cou nt" i s the Count o f D ong- l i ng, who took u p p l anting melons after the fal l o f the Q i n Dyn asty. Su S h i u s e s the reference p l ayfu l ly here t o term h i mself someone who formerly held h i g h office and n o w acts t h e ro le o f t h e commoner.
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Xu Ning and Li Bo. Before I knew it, I couldn't help laughing. In a short while I entered the Kai-yuan Temple, and the abbot there asked for a poem, whereupon I wrote a quatrain [on the Cascade] that went: The god sent this silvery river that hangs in a single stream, for all time its only lines of verse were written by Li Bo. The splashing spray of its flying current I wonder how much there isnot enough to wash away one bad poem by Xu Ning. I went back and forth in the northern and southern parts of the range for over ten days, finding it to be the most splendid scenery, finer than one can adequately describe. If I were to select the two most entrancing spots, Scoured Jade Pavilion and the Three Gorges Bridge are beyond comparison. Thus I wrote two poems for them. Last of all, I went with old Chang-zong to visit West Forest Temple and wrote another quatrain: See it stretched before you in a ridge; from the side it becomes a peak, no matter from where I look at the mountain it is never exactly the same. I cannot tell the true face of Lu Mountain, which is simply because I myself am here within the mountain. My Lu Mountain poems are summed up in this. Those w h o w rote l a n d scape "acco u n ts " (ji) often gave the h i story of a p l ace, tel l i ng of its p rev i o u s v i sitors a n d exp l a i n i n g the o r i g i n of its n a m e . I n the fo l l ow i n g fa m o u s "Acco unt of Stone B e l l M o u n ta i n ," S u S h i speaks as t h e ventu resome e m p i r i c i st, cor recti n g the fai l u res of h i s p redecessors and d e m o n strati n g the l i n k betwee n the p l ace and its n a m e .
Account of Stone Bell Mountain It is written in the Classic of Waters: " By the mouth of Lake Peng-li we find Stone Bell Mountain. " Li Dao-yuan [d. 527, the commentator on the Clas sic of Waters] gave the opinion: " If you stand over the deep pools and a faint breeze agitates the waves, then water and stone will smack against one an other, giving the sound of a huge bell . " Such is the story-though people have always been dubious about it. If you place a bell or chimes in water, they won't ring no matter how strong the winds and waves are-much less stone. 622
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In the Tang, Li Bo was the first to go seek out the place where this was supposed to occur, and he found two stones by those pools.4 He struck them and listened: the sound of the one on the southern side was muffled and deep, while the tone of the one on the northern side was clear and carried far. When he stopped using the drumstick, the aftertones kept rising, until the last resonances slowly came to an end. And here he thought he had found the source of the story. I find, however, that I have even more doubts about this version than I have about Li Dao-yuan's. Stones with ringing tones are much the same anywhere, so why was this place singled out with the name "Bell " ? In 1 0 84, the seventh year of the Yuan-feng Reign, on July 1 4 , I was on my way by boat from Qi-an to Lin-ru. My eldest son, Mai, was going to take up his post as commandant in De-xing County in Rao-zhou. I went along with him to the mouth of the lake to see him off, and this gave me a chance to visit the so-called Stone Bell. One of the monks at the temple had his young servant boy take a hatchet to strike one or two rocks chosen from a j umble of rocks there. The little clink clink they made was truly ludicrous, and I found it utterly incredible. As the night came on and the moon grew bright, Mai and I got in a small boat and went off all by ourselves to a spot beneath the sheer cliff. The huge rock stood leaning a thousand feet above us, like some fierce beast or strange demon ready to seize human beings in that brooding darkness. And then, high on the mountain, a roosting falcon, hearing human voices, flew up sud denly with a screeching cry among the clouds . Then also there was some thing like the sound of an old man's giggling laughter among the mountain valleys. Someone said that this was the stork. At that point my heart was shaken and I was ready to turn back, when a huge sound came out over the waters, booming like a bell being struck continuously. The boatman was quite frightened. But when I took the time to examine the phenomenon closely, I found that there were crevices in the rocks at the foot of the mountain, whose depth I couldn't tell. When a small wave entered them, it heaved and sloshed about, producing this sound. The boat turned back and passed between two mountains at the entrance to the mouth of the bay. There in midcurrent stood a large rock, with room enough for a hundred persons to sit on it. It had hollow spaces inside and many cavities that either sucked in or spurted out wind and water, produc ing sounds like ding-dong and ding-a-ling. These answered the earlier boom ing sounds as if music were being played. I laughed and said to Mai, " D o you recognize it? The one that goes boom i s the famous wu-yi bell o f King Jing of the Zhou; the ones that go ding-dong and ding-a-ling are the song bells once given to Wei Jiang [by Lord Dao of Jin] . The ancients weren't de ceiving us. " Can a person make a decision regarding the existence o f something purely on the basis of his own fancy, without having seen it with his own 4Th is Li 80 is not the poet, but a p rose writer who com posed an essay on the s ite in 798.
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eyes or heard it with his own ears ? What Li Dao-yuan saw and heard was pretty much the same as what I had j ust experienced, yet he didn't speak of it in enough detail. If a grand gentleman weren't willing to moor a small boat at the foot of the sheer cliff in the night, he couldn't know about it. Though the fishermen and navigators on the lake know about it, they can't express it. This is the reason the explanation was not passed down to the present times. And some fool tries to find the source of the story by striking rocks with an ax and thinks he has gotten the truth. This is my record of the mat ter, deploring the brevity of Li D ao-yuan's account, and laughing at the folly of Li Bo.
Thri l l s Su S h i ' s i n vestigat i o n of the e m p i r i c a l bas i s of the myste r i o u s sou n d of bel l s p l ays cou nterpo i nt to the eerie boat i n g scene that p recedes it. Many l a n d scape acco u nts are soberly p h i losop h i ca l a n d descri pti ve, but there are a l so those that d e l i be rate l y s e e k t o evoke the t h r i l l s o f trave l , to recaptu re s o m e o f the excitement o f the u n k n o w n i n a ge n re w h o s e p r i m a ry fu nction i s t o m a ke t h e p l ace k n o w n a n d fam i l i a r .
Chao Bu-zhi ( 1 05 3-1 1 1 0 ) , An Account of a Visit to North Mountain at Xin-cheng Thirty miles north of Xin-cheng we went ever deeper into the mountains, where the plants, trees, streams, and rocks became increasingly isolated. At first we could still ride among the teeth of the stones. On every side were huge pines, some bent over like the awnings of carriages and others straight like parasols; those that stood upright were like human beings, and those that lay down were like great serpents . Among the grasses beneath the pines were streams bubbling up, then disappearing until they fell into wells of stone with a ringing sound. Among the pines were vines some twenty or so feet long, twisting around like great eels. On the top there were birds, as black as mynah birds, with red crests and long beaks, bobbing their heads up and down and pecking with a rapping sound. A little farther west a single peak rose abruptly to a prominence, and there was a path marking a division on it, a path that could be traveled only on foot. We tied our horses to outcroppings of stone and went up, helping each other along. When we looked up through the bamboo, we could not see the daylight. We went on like this for four or five leagues until we heard the sounds of barnyard fowl. Monks in cassocks of plain cloth and slippers came ou t to greet us. As we talked with them, they stared at us in wide-eyed amaze ment, like deer that could not be touched. At the summit there was a build ing with twenty or so rooms, its balconied outer hallway curving along the course of the cliff wall, twisting like the course of a snail or a rat, after which we came out into the open again. There doors and windows faced one an other. As we sat down, a howling gust of mountain wind came, and all the 624
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chimes and clappers in the halls were set ringing. We few looked around at one another in surprise, not knowing into what kind of realm we had come. And when it was evening, we all went to bed. It was then November; the heavens were high and the dew clear, the mountains deserted and the moon bright. We looked up at the stars, which together shed a great light, as if they were right over us. Through the win dow twenty or so stalks of bamboo began tapping against one another with an endless clacking. Among the bamboo, palm and plum trees stood dark and ominous, looking like disheveled demons holding themselves apart. And we few again looked around at one another, our spirits so shaken that we couldn't get to sleep. As it gradually grew light outside, we all left. Several days after I returned home, I was still in a daze as if I had en countered something, so I wrote this account from memory. I never went there again, but I always see what occurred in my mind's eye. The fo l l owi n g pop u l a r anth o l ogy p i ece is a n even m o re soph i sticated atte m pt to evoke the mood of a tr i p and the a l te r n at i o n between te rror and exh i l arat i o n on the part of the trave lers. The wr iter's obv i o u s p l easu re in the th r i l l of d a n ger (even though the d anger p roves i m agi n ary rather than rea l ) is counterb a l a n ced by the con c l u s i o n , in w h i c h h e solem n l y c h astises h i mself fo r h i s l ac k of cauti on-re m i n d i n g the read er th at i n t h e Confu c i a n trad ition t h e t h r i l l o f d a n ge r i s i l Hcit.
Cheng Min-zheng (ca. 1 446-ca. 1 5 0 0 ) , Night Passage Over Two Passes I asked for leave to return to my home in the South. In winter, on Decem ber 1 6, 1 47 8 , I crossed Great Spear Ridge and reached Great Willow Sta tion. It was only a little after noon, and I didn't want to stop j ust there. When I asked the attendant of the way station, he deceived me, saying, "You can still make it to Chu-zhou by evening. " I got on my horse and had gone thirty miles, when I dimly heard one of my party saying, " Clear Current Pass lies ahead-it's terribly dangerous-many tigers. " That stuck in my mind. When we reached the pass, it was already getting black, and there was no place to which we could turn back. At that point I sent someone to have the official couriers hurry ahead at the foot of the mountain, holding gongs and carrying torches as we proceeded. At the opening of the pass, two peaks rose up several thousand feet high on either side of us; and when I looked up, I couldn't see all the way to their summits . The stone walkway being steep and rough, everyone dismounted, and we went up at such an incline that we seemed to be climbing on each other's shoulders . We further agreed that if there were some cause for alarm, those in front and behind would re spond by shouting and making loud noises. At that moment it happened that there was a large shooting star, flaring brightly as it coursed from east to west. Then a cold wind came up violently, and the torches all went out. The plants and trees on the mountains all around us were making howling 625
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sounds in the wind. From all of this everyone felt in grave danger, and we shouted and made noise without letup. The gongs were rung, and the moun tain valleys shook with their echoes. We went on about six or seven miles and reached the summit, where we suddenly saw the moon come out like a gleaming plate of silver, casting its glow everywhere. At this point we raised our hands and congratulated one another. But even so, as we went down the mountain my heart was still apprehensive, and I couldn't calm down for quite a long time. I surmise that this pass was the very place where the Palace General Zhao Kuang-yin smashed the Southern Tang and captured its two generals. Although this trip was dangerous and full of strangeness, it was, I'm sure, the crowning moment of my entire life. At about ten o'clock that night we reached Chu-yang. At noon on the seventeenth, we passed Quan-j iao and were hastening to He-zhou. Having luckily gotten out of one dangerous situation, I had be come blase and had no further anxieties. We went on forty miles and crossed Back River, when I saw the shadowy form of a mountain directly facing us. I asked someone in my party and was told that we would have to climb this before we could reach the Xiang-lin Temple in He-zhou. In a little while the sun gradually passed behind the peak, and the horses moved into a spur of the mountains. The ridges and peaks bent around and merged, with care fully laid out mulberry fields and several villages j ust like Wu-ling or Mate Pool Mountain, and I found it delightful. Then evening came on, and as we went further in, it became increas ingly mountainous. Plants and trees blocked the road, which seemed to go on so far that we did not know where it would end. We passed a temple in the wilds where I met an old man, whom I asked, "What mountain is this ? " He said, " This is the old Zhao Pass. It's still more than thirty miles to Xiang-lin Temple. You had better hurry because there are people setting fires on the mountain ahead of you, burning the plateaus to drive off the tigers. " That time we had prepared neither gongs nor torches. At the side of a mountain we waded through a swift torrent, and there were eerie rocks like a forest. The horses shied away from these. The whole party thought the rocks were tigers crouching to pounce, and people turned to run in the op posite direction, falling over on top of one another . The sounds of our shouts was very weak, but even when we forced ourselves to yell loudly, we couldn't drive them away. After quite a long time we got up again. As we went on along the ridge, I peered intently down the slopes and into the crevices, but they were so deep I couldn't see the bottom. There were the splashing waters of a torrent that seemed fast or slow according to how strongly the wind was blowing. I looked up and saw the stars and constel lations filling the sky. And I predicted that I would probably not escape this time. Then I thought how once long ago Wu Zi-xu found himself in great difficulty in this very pass. I wonder if this sort of thing is inevitable for any one who comes to this terrible place. It was after ten o'clock when we
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reached Xiang-lin Temple. In the lamplight I was lost in a daze, as if I had been reborn. Since I had been away from my parents for such a long time, I showed no foresight in anything. Challenging danger and traveling by night, I had crossed two passes and braved the lairs of tigers. Though I stood on the brink of peril, I had the good fortune to escape. And this may well be called lack of caution. I have dutifully noted it down as a warning to posterity.
Peo p l e a n d P l aces I n C h i nese popu l a r re l i g i o n , as i n G reco- Roman anti q u ity i n the West, there were s p i rits of p l ace-gods or dem i gods who had a c l a i m to certa i n natu ral obj ects or ter rito r i e s . Writers in an el ite c u l tu re d i d n ot often d i rect l y acknow l edge s u c h s p i rits ( H a n Yu was o n e of the exceptions), but i n the i r p l ace we often fi n d a perso n i fied l a ndscape. L i ke peo p l e, l a n dsc apes come to p u b l i c notice o r h i de themselves away l i ke rec l u ses; and a l so l i ke peo p l e, l a n d scapes depend o n h u m a n beings fo r recog n i ti o n .
Wen Zheng-ming ( 1 470-1 5 5 9 ) , Preface t o the "Joint Collection of Poems on Seeking Plums on Xuan-mu Mountain" Xuan-mu Mountain is in the southwestern part of Wu Prefecture, over looking the Great Lake. Western Summit and Copper Pit shine beside it on either side. There can be found thousands of sprays of alabaster plums, grow ing mixed together with pine and bamboo. At the j uncture between winter and spring there is a rich profusion of fragrance and color from the blos soms. And OD the sheer cliffs, among the melting patches of snow, they give off a glow, both above and down below in the rippling vastness of light upon the waters, thousands of acres within a single sweep of the eye. All the moun tains of Lake D ong-ting are as if tightly stacked on a bookcase. It is the supreme realm, the region of those pure beings who live forever. Yet the place is remote and out of the way, with few people living there, and unreachable by horse and carriage. Even though it has ancient monas teries and famous abbeys, these have become rundown through the long years; and their eminent monks and their lively and spirited gentlemen have gradually disappeared into the past. No one can truly grasp the quality of the place unless they have genuine perceptiveness and their sentiments are inclined to such isolated places. Nor can one ramble through such a realm without feeling a full measure of that excitement that comes with high spir its and a willingness to go off on one's own. Furthermore, to express the place in poetry, to celebrate in verse each variety of thing viewed, requires a deep insight into its splendors. In this regard I find something worthwhile in the compositions on seeking plums by Messrs. Fang and Wu. In ancient times, notable mountains were made glorious by particular persons; yet the reason they were so valued was not merely for roaming 627
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around sight-seeing. Those people had some notable worthiness whereby they honored such places, and found some insight into those mountains through their own elevated sentiments and the grace of their temperaments. Nevertheless, without the robust brilliance of literary works to bring out what was remarkable and otherwise hidden, these places still would have ended up dim and unknown. So it matters not whether a mountain is low or high, near or far: if it happens to encounter some notable person, that is always enough to have its splendors celebrated all the world over. This homeland of mine, Wu, is called the prefecture of mountains and waters . Yet the most famous places nowadays are Tiger Hill and Spirit Ridge, which became important because of the prose of Gu Ye-wang and poems by the D aoist Qing-yuan, by Li Bo, by Wei Ying-wu, and by Bo Ju yi. The splendors of Xuan-mu Mountain are really in no way inferior to those other two, but ilt the moment there have been few who were capable of ex pressing what makes the place noteworthy. I can only conclude that the mountain had not yet found the right people for it, and that its own liter ary works had not yet been written and accepted. It has been said that the various mountains of Yong-zhou and Liu-zhou became widely known through the writings of Liu Zong-yuan. Yet the ex ceptional qualities of Liu Zong-yuan's prose could only have been brought out by those very mountains of Yong-zhou and Liu-zhou. Other poems by Messrs. Fang and Wu do indeed have great clarity and beauty, but critics say that the pieces on Xuan-mu Mountain are particularly fine. Might we not then say that the exceptional qualities of that particular landscape had something about it that brought out the best in them as well ? And their own genuine perceptiveness and their sentiments inclined to isolated places, to gether with that excitement that comes with high spirits and a willingness to go off on one's own-these truly made it possible for them to have in sight into the place. Moreover, both of these men have refinement and have established themselves; they have been eminent in public service, and known for their principles when withdrawing into private life, unwilling to assume commonplace obsequiousness toward others. The sum of what they have achieved will surely make them eminent. And in time to come someone will surely read their poems and imagine seeing the persons, all through their en joyment of the splendors of this mountain . Thus I wrote this preface for pos terity. One of the e a r l i est and best- known d i s c u s s i o n s of the p r i n c i p l e whereby a p l ace be comes known t h r o u g h a parti c u l a r person is the fo l l owi n g acco u nt by O u -yang X i u . O n Mount X i a n near the city of X i ang-yang was the fam o u s "ste l e fo r s h ed d i n g tears," dedicated to the t h i rd-century governor Yang H u . O n th i s m o u n ta i n , Yang Hu wept when he con s i d e red how many worthy peo p l e had d i ed, th e i r n a m es n ow forgot ten . For Ou-ya n g X i u , the acco unt is an occas ion to consider the s i g n ificance of ming, w h ic h means both " n ame" a n d "fa m e . "
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Ou-yang Xiu ( 1 007-1 072 ) , An Account of the Pavilion on Mount Xian Mount Xian looks down on the river Han; when I gaze at it, I can barely make it out. It is surely the smallest of the maj or mountains, yet its name is particularly well known in Jing-zhou. This is, of course, because of the per sons associated with it. And who are those persons ? None other than Yang Hu and Du Yu. The Jin was engaged in a military struggle with the state of Wu, and it was considered of great importance to hold Jing-zhou. These two men, Yang Hu and Du Yu, were governors here in succession; and thus in the con quest of Wu and in the fulfillment of Jin's destiny, their glorious deeds crowned that age. Some lingering echo of their valiant and dashing manner still suffuses the whole region, where the Yangzi meets the river Han; and people today still think on them. But it is on Yang Hu that they think most deeply. Du Yu is, perhaps, the mote famous for his deeds, while Yang Hu is fa mous for his kindness. Although these two men differed in their actions, in both cases what they did was sufficient to bring them immortality. But I do wonder why it was that they were both so anxious about their fame in later ages. The story goes that Yang Hu once climbed this mountain and in de pression said to his entourage that the mountain would be here forever, while men of ages past had perished utterly and no more was heard of them. Then he considered his own case and fell into deep sorrow. Little did he realize that the mountain would become famous because of him. Du Yu, on the other hand, had his achievements inscribed on two stones; one of these he set up on the mountain, and the other he threw in the deepest part of the river. He understood quite well that valleys �nd hills would someday change their places. What he did not understand was that the stone would some day wear away. Was it that they both went too far in their concern for im mortality out of too much pleasure in fame ? Or did they long for such re mote goals because they paid themselves too much honor? The mountain has had a pavilion from early times. Tradition has it that this is the place Yang Hu visited. It has often fallen into ruin and j ust as often has been rebuilt; the reason for this is that there have been so many in later ages who admired Yang Hu's name and thought about the kind of person he was. In 1 0 6 8 , my friend Shi Zhong-hui left his post as ceremonial direc tor and came here to Xiang-yang as governor. Because the pavilion was get ting old, the following year he enlarged it and renovated it, surrounding it with a magnificent balcony and extending its rear porch, making these as popular as the pavilion itself. Shi Zhong-hui's name is well known in our times, and his excellent rep utation follows him wherever he goes. Xiang-yang's people are peaceful under his government, and they delight in going with him on excursions. Thus it was that they came to give his former office title to the name of the
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new porch-"The Porch of the Ceremonial Director. " They wanted, more over, to record the occasion on stone so that it would be transmitted far into the future along with the names of Yang Hu and Du Yu. Shi Zhong-hui was unable to prevent them in either matter, so he came to me to write the ac count. I am of the opinion that since Shi Zhong-hui understands so well the proper admiration for Yang Hu's manner and how to follow in his footsteps, we can know the kind of person he is and his aspirations. Because the peo ple of Xiang-yang love him and are contented with him, we can know the way he has governed Xiang-yang. This is written because of the desires of the people of Xiang-yang. When it comes to the splendid forms of the mountains and rivers around the pavilion, the blurring haze of plants, trees, clouds, and mist coming into view and disappearing in the broad and empty expanse, hanging between presence and absence, which can fully satisfy the gaze of a poet as he climbs these heights and writes his own Li Sao-it is best that each viewer find such things for himself. As for the frequent ruin and repair of the pavilion, either accounts already exist or the details do not merit close examination. I will sa y nothing more. -An account written by Ou-yang Xiu on the twenty-second day of December, 1 0 70
A C ity : Yang-z h o u Take a l l this world's bright moonlit nights, divide them in three parts, and the two most breathtaking are the city of Yang-zhou . . . .
--from Xu Ning, " Recalling Yang-zhou"
L i ke a l l t h e g reat cities of C h i n a, Yang-z h o u was very m u c h a " p l ace," with a com plex h i story a n d perso n a l ity. Yang-z h o u was once G u a n g- l i n g , popu l a r l y b e l i eved to h ave been the "Weed-Covered C ity" o n whose ru i n s Bao Z h ao (ca. 4 1 4-4 6 6 ) wrote a fa m o u s poetic expositi o n . The city des cri bed there w a s a great c o m m e r c i a l center whose i n h a b i ta nts s h owed th e i r a rroga nce a n d heed l ess extravagance u nt i l sudden l y fortu n e reversed itself a n d the city was red uced to a waste l a n d . Yang zhou's reputation as a city of p l easu re l u red E m peror Yang of the Sui to l eave C h a n g an a n d estab l i s h h i s " River C a p i ta l " there ( so u n d pol itical reasons fo r m a k i n g Yang z h o u a capital we i g h l i ttl e besi d e the fo rce of i ts l eg e n d a ry sensuous attract i o n s ) . H e re E m peror Y a n g b u i lt his fa b l ed Labyri nth (Mi-louJ, i n w h i c h h e h o u sed h i s p a l ace l a d i e s . E m peror Yang's n otori o u s extravagance i n t h e " R iver Capita l " was h e l d
to h ave
been o n e of the factors respon s i b l e fo r h i s fal l and the destru cti o n of the S u i Dynasty by t h e T a n g . E m peror Yang was b u ried i n h i s bel oved c i ty, at a s pot ca l l ed T h u nder 630
The Song Dynasty
Basi n . By the Tang, the c i ty h ad acq u i red a reputatio n fo r its moo n l ight a n d m e l a n c h o l y sensual ity. As D u M u wrote t o h i s friend J u dge H a n C h u o i n Yang-z h o u :
Yang-zhou has twenty-four bridges, and on nights when the moon is bright, at what spot is a girl, white as marble, being bidden to play on the flute ? Du Mu was Yang-z h o u ' s poet, a n d l i nes of h i s poetry were a l ways associ ated with the city. D u Mu's most fam o u s poem-an d the most fa m o u s poem of the c i ty speaks of a decade spent by the poet in l ove affai rs with the cou rtesans of Y a n g z h o u ' s ente rta i n ment q u a rte rs, the " b l u e m a n s i o n s . "
Du M u, Getting Something Off My Mind Footloose and lost on the rivers and lakes I went my way carrying wine, Chu women's waists, slender and fine, danced lightly on my palm. After ten long years I woke at last from a Yang-zhou dreamI had won only fame for careless love in its blue mansions.
Presented to Someone on Parting She is graceful, lithe, and winsome j ust somewhat past thirteen, a cardamom bud on branchtip early in April. There were ten miles of springtime breeze along the streets of Yang-zhou; the beaded curtains were all rolled up, and none could compare with you.
Yang-zhou (first of three) The soil o f Yang-di's Thunder Basin Tomb, his former Labyrinth for losing one's way. At whose home do they sing his River Song as the bright moon fills Yang-zhou? Fitting that splendid horses go idly forth; well done-a thousand in gold tossed away. In all the din a drunken young man half removes his cloak of purple fur. 631
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The sere n ity of one of Yang-z h o u ' s most fam o u s B u dd h i st te m p l es exi sts i n cou n terp o i n t to that c i ty
of p l easure.
Written on Chan-zhi Temple in Yang-zhou Rain passes, a cicada's piercing cry, wind whistles, an autumn of cassia and pines. Green moss fills its pavements and stairs, where white birds linger willingly. Twilight haze appears deep in the trees as the sun goes down by a small tower. Who would have known down the Bamboo West Road the singing and piping that is Yang-zhou ? Du M u ' s contem porary Z h a n g H u th i n ks of C h a n -z h i Tem p l e i n a very d i fferent way.
Zhang Hu ( 9th century ) , Roaming Free in Huai-nan For ten miles long avenues j oin markets and neighborhood wells, and on the Bridge of Bright Moonlight I watch the goddesses go. The best thing in human life would be to die in Yang-zhou: Chan-zhi and Shan-guang Temples have good fields for tombs. As a rich a n d low- l y i n g c ity n o rth of the Y a n gz i , Yang-z h o u was beyo n d the p ro tection of the river fl eets that g u a rded the g reat c ities o n the southern s h o re . T h u s , Yang-zhou often c a m e t o be sac ked a n d destroyed d u r i n g i nvas i o n s fro m t h e N o rth . When the J i n Dynasty w rested N o rth C h i n a away from the Song, Yang-z h o u re m a i ned genera l l y u nder Southern Song contro l , but was several ti mes devastated by J i n attacks . In 1 1 76 , the yo u n g Southern Song l y r i c i st J i a n g Kui passed by the ru i n s a n d reca l l ed D u M u ' s c i ty .
Jiang Kui ( 1 1 5 5-122 1 ) , to " Yang-zhou Andante " On the first day of winter in 1 1 76, I passed by Wei-Yang. The night snow was j ust clearing from the sky, and shepherd's purse and millet filled my gaze. When I entered the city walls, a desolation lay all around me. The cold wa ters grew sapphire as the colors of twilight gathered, and the garrison bu gles moaned sadly. My heart was stricken with grief, and I was stirred to sorrowful thoughts on the city's past and present. Therefore I composed this melody. The Old Man of a Thousand Cliffs thought that it had the kind of sadness that we find in "Millet Lush" in the Classic of Poetry. 632
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Famed metropolis East of the Huai, splendid spots at West of Bamboo, where I uncinched my saddle pausing a while on my journey's first stage. Through "ten miles of springtime breeze " I passed and everywhere was millet so green. Ever since the Turkish horses spied across the river, then left, its ruined pools and towering trees seem weary of telling of war. Dusk comes on gradually with clear bugles blowing the cold all here in this deserted city. Young Du Mu supremely admired it; yet I would guess that were he to come again today, he would be shocked. Even though his lines on the cardamom bud were skilled and his dream of blue mansions was fine, it is hard to write these stronger feelings. The twenty-four bridges are still here, and swept along in the heart of the waves is the cold and soundless moon. I think on the red peonies by the bridge-for whom ' do they come again year after year ? As Ou-yang X i u reca l l ed the s i te on M o u n t X i a n w h e re Y a n g H u once s h ed tears th i n k i ng of h u m a n m o rta l ity, many of the p l aces associ ated with Ou-yang X i u h i m self became "fa m o u s bec a u se of the perso n . " O n e of the best known of s u c h s i tes was Level Mounta i n H a l l , j u st outs i d e Yang-z h o u . S u S h i w rote the fo l l owi n g s o n g l y r i c o n rev i s i t i n g the h a l l after O u - y a n g X i u ' s d eath .
Su Shi, to "Moon Over West River " : on Level Mountain Hall Thrice I've passed by Level Mountain Hallin half the sound of a finger's snap. Ten years since I saw that old man, the immortal, whose written words are dragons still flying upon these walls. I will grieve for him, stylist and governor, singing " willows and spring wind" still.
Just tell me no more how all things vanish in the turning of a head633
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even before my head could turn, they were all already a dream. There is the truth u n d e rstood by O u -yang X i u that a p l ace becomes recog n i zed on acco u n t of a perso n . O u -yang X i u ' s own Level M o u n ta i n H a l l was often d estroyed and j u st as often reb u i l t because the b u i l d i n g was s u p posed to be there. L i te rate i n h a b itants o f Yang-z h o u , offi c i a l s serv i n g a to u r o f d uty i n t h e a rea, a n d v i s itors a l l expected i t s p resence. Modern Weste rn sens i b i l ities p refer r u i n s or a n em pty space with a p l a q u e m a r k i n g the s ite; the C h i nese h ave p refe rred i m agi n ative reconstruc tion . J u st as l i terary accou nts were written o n behalf of b u i l d i n gs, bu i l d i ngs came to be e rected o n behalf of l i terary accou nts, thereby p rod u c i n g new l i te rary accou nts. Leve l M o u n ta i n H a l l was rebu i l t i n honor of O u -yang X i u ' s l ite rary gen i u s a n d his status as a Confu c i a n cu Itu re hero. Y e t there was a n i n congru ity th at s u c h a s i te s h o u l d be so c l ose to Yang-z h o u , the c i ty of wealth a n d se n s u a l p l e a s u re; a l l th i s comes togeth e r i n t h e seventeenth centu ry w h e n t h e h a l l i s reb u i l t yet aga i n .
Wei X i ( 1 624-1 6 8 0 ) , A n Account o f the Reconstruction o f Level Mountain Hall Level Mountain Hall is some five miles northwest of the walls of Yang-zhou. It was constructed by Ou-yang Xiu in the Song. Ou-yang Xiu was governor of this prefecture toward the end of the Qing-li Reign in the late 1 040s when all the world enj oyed universal peace. Preferring easygoing simplicity in governing, he was able to initiate this undertaking, and he would drink and compose poems here with guests and colleagues. Now after more than six hundred years, it has fallen into ruin and been rebuilt more than once. It even came to the point where it was completely swept away, leaving nothing but underbrush and weeds; it was illegally seized and made into a Buddhist temple. And yet this place, because of Ou yang Xiu, has become increasingly well known throughout the world. Those who climb up here and gaze out are deeply touched by the very same sort of thoughts one has on Mount Xian. Yang-zhou has been acclaimed as a scenic spot since ancient times, yet the place itself has very little of the beauties of mountain forests or hills and ravines. Within the city itself there is only one little mound called "Kang's Mountain," from which the waters of the Han Canal can be seen on three sides. But outside the city there is Level Mountain Hall, giving the most ex tensive view of all the mountains of the Southland. There was a building on "Kang's Mountain, " yet at the same time Level Mountain Hall long lay in ruins. Since this hall was first constructed, Yang-zhou has suffered the hor rors of war on several occasions. In 1230, early in the Shao-ding Reign, one hundred and eighty-two years after Level Mountain Hall was built, Li Quan was in rebellion; but he still could hold a grand drinking party there. I won der if this hall might not have had the good fortune to be spared burning during the wars; or perhaps it was destroyed by fire and some worthy per son restored it. 634
The Song Dynasty
In our own time the surveillance commissioner Jin Zhen used to govern this prefecture. Once he had his administration running smoothly, he was distressed that no offerings were being made to his worthy precursor Ou yang Xiu and that the prefecture's most scenic spot had been left so long abandoned. Together with Wang Mao-lin, who is from a prominent local family, he planned an extensive rebuilding; the hall was completed in fifty days, without collecting a single copper from the common people. There was a terrace and the hall, behind which was a building of several stories, with two wings outspread, where offerings could be made to the spirit of Ou-yang Xiu. It was airy and spacious, with a splendid beauty, giv ing access to thousands of scenic views. I don't know how it compares to Ou-yang Xiu's building back then, but from it we can infer His Excellency Jin Zhen's intentions regarding the moral education of the people and the promotion of virtuous customs. The customs of Yang-zhou are, in fact, a melting pot for people from every corner of the land. It is a concourse for the fish trade, for the salt trade, and for money. Those who have served in office and powerful families move here. Therefore its people have a great lust for gain, love parties and excur sions, procure singers and pursue courtesans, wear fine clothes, and live for the pleasure of the moment in order to show off their splendor to others. Only the most worthy among them still has any interest in things of culture. Once His Excellency had restored the ruin, he often drank and composed poetry here with members of prominent local families and those who came to visit him. This practice had the following result: what these people heard and cast their eyes on here gave them a j oyous admiration for both the land scape and things of culture. Soon every family and household was reciting poems, until the way of literature and of the Classic of Poetry gradually changed the atmosphere of money and horse-trading. Moreover, the land of Yang-zhou is flat and soggy; only this mountain is somewhat higher and thus fit to be a place for fighting. By building the hall here and making it a place for the regular use of ceremonial vessels, His Excellency may well have intended to mollify its bellicose atmosphere by the presence of cultural ac tivities. His Excellency's given name is Zhen, and his courtesy name is Chang zhen. He is a native of Shan-yin in Zhe-j iang. In mid-autumn 1 6 77, I was staying in Yang-zhou, and His Excellency happened to come up from the Southland to take care of the regulations of the salt monopoly. He halted his coach and entourage and walked on foot down my winding lane; and then with great courtesy asked me to compose this account. And I consid ered how Kang Mountain received its name only from the Ming writer Kang Hai, while Level Mountain Hall's name is known all over the world because of Ou-yang Xiu. Since a place is valued because of a person, what you have done here will go far indeed.
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T h e O r n a m ents of " L i te rati " C u I tu re
At �
The Master said: " Set your ultimate aims on the Way. Cleave to virtue. Keep close to gentleness . At your ease roam in the arts . "
-Analects VII.6
The l iteratu re of the Tang sh owed a n i m mense cu ltural confidence that can be seen in other as pects of the dynasty. Literatu re sti l l seemed to be, in L u J i ' s remarkable ph rase, "the means fo r all p r i n c i p les of n atu re" -th e external patte rn through which the wo rki ngs of the world and of h u ma n be i n gs cou l d be made m a n i fest. Whether in con seq uence of changes i n soc iety, i n thought, o r i n the i nte r n a l momentum o f l iter ary trad itions themselves, Song c l assical l ite ratu re as a whole p resents a very d i ffe rent face from that of the Tang. With commerc i a l p r i nti n g a n d a s i g n i ficantly l a rger ed ucated c l ass, the actu a l pract i ce o f c l as s i c a l I iteratu re was fa r m o re w i d e s p read i n the S o n g t h a n i n t h e Ta n g . T h e s u rv i v i n g corp u s o f S o n g poetry a n d l iterary prose i s m a n y ti mes l a rger that w h at s u rv i ves from the Tang. At the same ti me, l iteratu re i n the Song Dynasty see m s to have l o st someth i n g of its grande u r a n d sense of i m portance. D u r i n g t h i s d y n asty, c l as s i c a l l iteratu re took o n the role it wou l d reta i n u nt i l the twentieth centu ry : as a l e i s u re l y pasti me, o n e a rt a m o n g m a n y . Desp ite some fa m o u s memo r i a l s to the throne written in the Song, offi c i a l p rose works i n c reas i n g l y came to be seen as m e re docu ments rather than works of l iteratu re. Oth er I itera ry gen res, w h i c h served i n peo p l e ' s p r i vate l i ves, became central to one of the Song Dyn asty ' s most i m portant c u l tural ach i evements : t h e creation o f a rea l m o f p r i vate l ife a n d l e i s u re that cou l d be kept to some degree separate both from the d e m a n d s of state service and from the u n re m itt i n g m o r a l seriousness of N eo-Confu c i a n self-exa m i n at i o n and s e l f-cu l t i va tion . T h i s k i n d of l iteratu re-a l o n g with its atte n d a n t a rts of p a i n t i n g , c a l l i graphy, and approved fo rms of m u s i c-became the heart of " l iterat i " c u l t u re, a space of free dom and sanctioned p l ea s u re w i th i n a n i n creas i n g l y i ntrusive p u b l i c w o r l d . To these a rts were added a w i d e range of oth e r e l ite past i mes, s u c h as col l ecti ng, a n t i q u a r i a n i s m , and the creat i o n of gardens. L i te rature was the m at r i x that u n ified t h i s s e t o f c u ltural acti vities, commenti n g o n a n d i nterp reti n g them, g i v i n g m ea n i n g to the i r d i s p l ay a n d exch ange.
Co n n o i sseu rs h i p The a rts, i n c l u d i n g poetry i tse l f, became a n i m portant top i c with i n Song writ i n g . A poem often se rved as an act of a p p re c i at i o n-to p ra i se a fri e n d , to offer thanks fo r a g i ft, or to take p r i d e i n a new "fi n d . " Co n n o i s s e u rs h i p, co l l ecti ng, a n d a n t i q u a r i 637
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an i s m went h a n d i n h a n d w i th compositi o n . The fo l l owi n g poem by Ou-yang X i u te l l s o f h i s d i scovery i n 1 045
o f a s h o rt i n s c r i pt i o n b y the fam o u s e i ghth-century c a l
l i grapher L i Y a n g- b i ng, a m aster of s e a l scri pt, a n a rc h a i c sty l e of writi n g C h i nese c h a racters (the E n g l i s h tra n s l ation "seal scri pt" i s because th i s sty l e of w r i t i n g was used in m a k i n g sea l s ) . The sty l e of the poem, d e r i ved u l t i m ate l y fro m the Tang poet H a n Y u , is o n e the c h a racte r i stic poet i c "types" fo r commenti ng on works of a rt a n d anti q u ities : a section o f i m agi native d e s c r i p t i o n i s em bedded i n a ram b l i ng, d i sc u r s i ve verse sty l e . O u - y a n g X i u beg i n s w i t h a l etter t o h i s fr iends, exp l a i n i ng t h e s ituation and te l l i ng them w h at they are s u p posed to d o :
Ou-yang Xiu, Seal Script i n Stone ( 1 045 ) Dear friends, Recently, by the grace of the court, I was made governor of this prefecture. In the southwestern part of the prefecture is Lang-ya Mountain, with the stream made famous by Li Yao-qing, onetime Mentor of the Heir Appar ent. Earlier when I was in the Academy, the Royal House sent an order to seek out texts on old steles all over the world, which were to be collected in the Academy. It was there that ! had a chance to see Li Yang-bing's seal script " Inscription for the Mentor's Stream. " Those who make a study of seal script say that even though there are many extant examples of Li Yang-bing's work, none of them can compare to this particular inscription. For the past ten years I have constantly wanted to get hold of a copy, but with no success. When I came here, I obtained one. But in addition, at the side of the stone that bears the inscription, there is another group of more than ten charac ters by Li Yang-bing. These are even more marvelous than the text of the inscription itself, even though they are rarely seen in circulation. A moun tain monk, one Hui-jue, pointed them out for me, and I lingered for a long time beneath them, unable to tear myself away. Accounts, both recent ones and older ones, have thoroughly documented remarkable sites in these mountains, and I felt especially distressed that this inscription alone had es caped their mention. I wanted to describe it, but feared lest my own writ ing prove inadequate for my thoughts . The men whose writing I cherish yet cannot equal are you two, Mei Yao-chen and Su Shun-qin. For this reason I am sending you both this poem together with an ink rubbing of the in scription, asking of you poems about the calligraphy carved in that stone. From cold cliff a cascade flies, it falls upon green moss, Here a wonder !-script in stone set by cascade's side. The man who wrote it now is dead, his bones have rotted away, but these his words do not perish, in the mountain's folds they stay. 638
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An aging monk of the mountains feared erosion of the stone and made a print upon paper, rubbed with the charcoal of pine. He wished a copy to be shared by people of our times, and took one to give to me, a match for finest j ade. It seemed to me these characters were made by no stroke of the brush, it seemed in fact things not to be done by human powers at all. When first the Earth and Heavens in embryo split apart, the Primal Force congealed to this high and looming thing. In those days birds of the wilderness stepped on this mountain stone, they left their tracks forever here upon these slate gray slopes. The god of the mountain did not want men to see it often: he gave off constant clouds and fog to bury it deep away. When bands of immortals fly through sky and wish to come down to read, they always employ the moon's clear light as it rises over the sea. Poor me, who lacks ability to j udge the calligrapher's skill when I see this, I am only aware that it opens both heart and eyes . Good phrases stint me, my words are dull and not worth writing down, so I wrap them and mail them far away to Su Shun-qin and Mei Yao-chen. Ou-yang X i u ' s p l ayfu l m yth that the i n sc r iption was actu a l l y b i rd tracks made at the beg i n n i n g of the u n iverse echoes the l egend of the i n vention of C h i nese c h a racters by C a n g-j ie, who d rew h i s i n s p i rati o n from observ i n g the tracks of b i rd s . O u -yang Xiu had asked fo r a n sweri n g poems from his fri e n d s M e i Yao- c h e n a n d S u S h u n 639
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q i n . Those poems s u rv i ve a n d show neither M e i n o r Su at h i s best. From Mei Yao c h e n ' s verse we may q u ote a co u p l et that o n l y a Song poet cou l d h ave written :
You, sir, understand this stone, the stone does not understand you; but you, sir, and that man before [Li Yang-bing] are certainly true friends. Su S h u n-q i n , whose poetry often s h ows stra i ned hyperbo l e in i m perfect e m u l a tion of h i s Tang p redecessors, has o n e b ri l l i ant i m age of the scri pt as the h o r n s a n d ta l o n s o f d rago n s b u r i ed with i n t h e sto n e :
And then it seems like dragons a n d basilisks sprouting talons and horns, hiding away in the azure rockface, coiled up and not stretching out. S u S h i ' s writi n gs o n the a rts a re a m o n g the m ost remarka b l e in the S o n g . H i s poems h ave a l l the v i rtues o f S o n g poetry a n d a t times they raise its very weaknesses to the status of h ig h art. Su S h i is c h atty, h u moro u s , someti mes perverse . The fol l ow i n g poem i s to a n a cq u a i ntance w h o was adept i n "d raft c u rs i ve" (eao-sh u), a free, often u n read a b l e s c r ipt i n w h i c h a m a n of cu ltu re was s u p posed to be a b l e to g i ve express i o n to an otherw ise s u pp ressed extravagance of s p i rit.
Su Shi, Shi Cang-shu's " Hall of Drunken Ink" ( 1 06 8 ) All worry and woe in life begins from learning to read and writebe able to roughly mark your name and then you should call it quits. What point is there in cursive draft that flaunts the spirit's speed?the blur in my eyes when I open a scroll makes me ill at ease. Yes, I too have been fond of it, but always I laugh at myself; how can we cure this affliction as it shows itself in you ? You tell me that in doing this you find a perfect joy, mind's satisfaction, not distinct from spirit's roaming free. Just recently you built a hall and named it "Drunken Ink," 640
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comparing this art to drinking wine that melts anxieties. see now that Liu Zong-yuan wrote something not untrue: such affliction may crave dirt and ash as if it were haute cuisine.
I
Still we may say that in this art you have achieved the heights : worn-out brushes pile by your walls like little hills and knolls. When the whim strikes, one swish of the hand and a hundred sheets are gone: in a fleeting moment a splendid steed bestrides the entire land. My own script takes shape to my mood, I have no special technique: the dots and lines j ust follow my hand, it's a bother to try too hard. Then tell me why in your critiques I am singled out for praise, isolated words and scraps of paper all find themselves collected. Your script may be properly judged no lower than Zhong or Zhang; on a lower level my own is still better than that of Luo or Zhao. You should no longer si t by the pool and practice so ardently, in the end j ust take all that writing silk and use it to stuff a quilt . l The a rti st's passion a n d h i s utte r absorpti o n i n h i s a rt a re treated h u moro u s l y in the poem above. Yet S h i Cang-s h u ' s h a l f-foo l i s h obses s i o n is rel ated to o n e of the h i gh est val ues i n p a i nti n g : a l o s s o f s e l f i n t h e t h i n g d e p icted, as i n t h e fo l l ow i n g fam o u s p o e m by S u S h i o n a p a i n t i n g o f b a m boo by h i s c l ose fr i e n d W e n To n g . ' T h e pen u lti mate cou p l et, ech o i n g o l d traditions o f eva l u ative comparisons, refers t o t h e great c a l l igraphers Zhong Y a o a n d Z h a n g Z h i , and t o t h e good b u t less d i st i n g u i s hed c al l i graphers Luo S h u j i ng and Zhao Yuan-si, a l l from t h e beg i n n i n g of t h e call igra p h i c trad ition in t h e first th ree centuries A.D. The l ast l i ne refers to an anecdote about Z h a n g Zhi, whose own s pecialty was d raft c u rsive: he wou l d practice his cal l igraphy by a pool so often that it became black with his i n k .
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On the Paintings of Bamboo by Wen Tong in the Collection of Chao Bu-zhi ( first of three ) At the moment Wen Tong was painting bamboo, he saw the bamboo and no personNot j ust that he saw no person, he was emptied, let go of the self; His person was transformed with bamboo in an endless production of freshness. There is no Zhuang Zhou alive in this world who now grasps such fusion of spirit ?
A somew h at d iffere nt a n d m o re s u bt l e deve lopment of th i s notion of art can be seen in the fam o u s open i n g of S u S h i ' s acc o u nt of bam boo p a i nti ngs, aga i n by Wen Ton g .
from "An Account of Wen Tong's Paintings of the Slanted Bamboo of Yun-dang Valley " When bamboo first grow, they are sprouts only an inch long, yet all their j oints and leaves are already complete. They pass from shedding their sheaths, like cicada husks and snakeskins, and reach a point when they thrust up like swords ten yards high: this occurs as something innate within them. Nowadays painters do them j oint by j oint and accumulate their foliage leaf by leaf-and there is nothing left of a bamboo in it! The reason is that in order to paint bamboo, the painter must get the bamboo beforehand in his breast; then, when he takes hold of the brush and looks fully, he actually sees what he wants to paint and quickly sets out in its pursuit, and it is com pleted with a flourish of the brush, in which he goes after what he has seen like a falcon swooping down on a bounding hare-if you go off j ust a lit tle, it gets away. This is what Wen Tong taught me. I could not do this, yet I recognized that it was true. When the mind has recognized how something is true, yet is unable to do it, the internal and the external are not the same; mind and hand do not respond to one another, which is an error of inade quate learning. Whenever there is someone who sees it within himself yet has not reached the mature stage to take hold of it, he may normally consider himself to be fully developed: yet on the point of doing something, he loses it. This goes beyond the question of bamboo . . . .
" O n t h e P a i nti n g of T i e red B l uffs . . . " i s one of S u S h i ' s fi n est poems o n p a i n t i n g, fi rst " read i ng " the scene, then l i n k i n g the experience
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On the Painting of Tiered Bluffs and the Misty River in the Collection of Wang Ding-guo ( 1 0 8 8 ) A sad heart upon the river, hills in a thousand tiers, azure masses adrift in sky as if they were clouds and mist.
Whether a mountain or whether a cloud from afar no one can tell, then in misty skies clouds scatter, the mountain remains as it was . I see only two slopes, slate gray, that darken sheer valley below, and into it go a hundred courses of streams cascading down;
They wind through forests, encircle stones, now hidden, now seen again, wending on down to the valley's mouth forming a rushing river. The river grows level, the mountains divide, the forested foothills end: there a small bridge and a wilderness inn rest before the mountain. Someone walking has passed just a bit beyond the towering trees; there's a fishing boat, like single leaf, where river swallows the sky. From where did the governor get hold of a work like this ? adorned by the finest brushwork, so clearly fresh and fine. I know not where in this mortal world one might find such scenery, but I would want to go there at once and buy a two-acre field.
Have you ever seen that spot so remote at Fan-kou in Wu-chang where I, the Master of Eastern Slope, remained for five long years ?
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There spring breezes shook the river, the sky spread opening wide; and when twilight clouds rolled away rain, hills showed their winsome charms. Crows beat their wings through red maples, companions of nights spent afloat, and snow-loads falling from tall pines woke me sharply from drunken sleep. Peach blossoms and flowing water do exist in the world of men; Wu-ling's dwellers need not be all gods and the undying. The rivers and hills are empty and pure, but I belong to the dust; though there may be a path to reach them, it is not my fate to follow. I give you back this painting and I sigh repeatedly, yet I'm sure old friends in the hills will write poems calling me to come home. So
The reference to peach b l ossoms a n d Wu-l i n g echoes Tao Q i a n ' s fam o u s story of " Peach B l ossom S p r i n g, " a com m u n ity sec l u d ed from h u ma n h i story. Tang writers began to treat th i s p l ace as i f it were i n h a b ited by i m m o rta l s (an u nwarranted e l ab oration of Tao's story to w h i c h S u S h i stre n u o u s l y obj ected e l sew h e re) . The act of apprec i ation is c l o s e l y rel ated to the act of eva l u ation a n d j u d gment. The praise of one pai nter often req u i res the d i s p ra i se of a n other; a n d when the artist d i sprai sed is h i g h l y regarded by most people, the act of apprec i at i o n can beco me the assertion of "true taste" aga i n st conventi o n a l o p i n i o n . I n the fo l l ow i n g poem by the e l eventh-century poet Wang An-sh i , the famous pai nter J u - ra n i s l i ghtly d i s m i ssed i n favor of two pai nters p refe rred by Wang, who rare l y l ac ked self-co nfidence in h i s j u d gments . A s i n S u S h i ' s poem above, the experience o f t h e p a i n t i n g i s g i ven a s a person a l fantasy sti rred by the pai nti n g . I n both cases, the i n itial fantasy jogs the v i ewer's memory-i n S u S h i ' s case, a memory of h i s years of ex i l e in H u a ng-z h o u , a n d i n Wang An-s h i ' s case, t h e memory of a n other p a i nt i n g h e l i ked .
Wang An-shi ( 1 02 1 -1 0 8 6 ) , My Brother Wang Chun-fu Brings Out a Painting by the Monk Hui-chong and Engages Me to Write a Poem on It P ainters there are in droves, and hardly worth the listing; 644
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but of the more recent, Hui-chong is the one I most esteem. It is August; clouds of a heatwave come welling up from woods; yet this transports me, wild and free, and drops me down on an isle. In broken stubble of yellow reeds snow blankets the ground, ducks and geese stand serenely, each with a companion. Scenes witnessed in times gone by stand now before my eyes: level sands and unruffled waters, the beach of West River. Twilight haze engulfs a boat, it hides the fishing net; a man is sleeping, slumped in sounds like the creaking of the oars. I strongly suspect this painter-monk has powers of Perfection Achieved the skill to detach and carry away landscapes of elsewhere. He filled a basin with water, mixed herbs of fantasy, then splashed them over raw silk and changed this heat to chill. Ju-ran's few panels of mountains in the Han-lin Academy show needless excess of pigment and ink, haphazard in execution. But Cui Bai of Hao-liang is a good painter as well; once I saw his blossoms of peach, serene in their first bloom. Tipsy with wine, his carefree brush brought up a springtime breeze, and I feared they would be whirled away in a rain of pink petals. The gliding oriole sought a branch, winsome and ready to speak, 645
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honeybees were collecting pollen in a train of wings and legs . A single age with two masters, both the apogees of art, with tattered clothes and worn-out horses longtime wayfarers. In splendid halls the price was deemed high ten thousand pieces of goldas they stressed the point that painters today could not equal those of old.
D u r i n g the N o rthern S o n g, there ap pea red many new fo r m s of writ i n g o n the a rts . I n contrast to the rare but grand comments by Tang writers, Song i nte l l ectu a l s took pride in c reati n g a casu a l , a l m ost offh a n d di scou rse in both poetry a n d prose. A new critical gen re, " Re m a rks o n Poetry" (Shi-hua), took i ts n a m e fro m a work by Ou-yang Xiu co n s i sti n g of ran d o m c o m m e nts a n d rem i n i scences o n poetry. Song w rite r s were i nte n s e l y aware of the d i ffe rences that sepa rated them from the i r Tang p redecessors. S o m et i me s they spoke w i th p r i d e of th e i r own acco m p l i sh m e nts, b u t ofte n w e c a n s e e so meth i n g l i ke a n a w e o f t h e Ta n g . As co l l ecto rs and s c h o l ars, they were a l so kee n l y aware of texts and artifacts l ost, and the l os s of past greatness was stra n g e l y l i n ked to the p h y si c a l l o s s of s u c h texts a n d artifacts, as we l l as t o the deteriorat i o n of w h at h a s s u rvived, as i n the fo l l owi n g entry .
from Ou-yang Xiu, Remarks on Poetry (Shi-hua) In these days when literature is at the height of its glory, Secretary Chen Cong-yi has received singular praise for his old style learning. His poems are very much like those of Bo Ju-yi. After Yang Yi and Liu Yun wrote their se ries of group compositions and the " Xi-kun Collection" became current, as piring writers did their best to imitate that style. Poetry underwent a com plete change, and the new fashion was called the "Xi-kun style. " Because of this, the poetry collections of the great Tang masters were virtually aban doned and were not found in general circulation. At one point Chen chanced to obtain an old edition of Du Fu's poetry, whose text was full of errors and lacunae. In Du Fu's poem sending off Waterworks Commissioner Cai, there was the line: His body light: a single bird . . . One word had been lost. Thereupon Chen and several of his friends tried to fill in the missing space. One tried: [His body light: a single bird 1 goes swiftly. 646
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Another tried: [His body light: a single bird] sinks. And another: [His body light: a single bird] rises. And another: [His body light: a single bird] descends. No one could get it j ust right. Later Chen got hold of a good edition, and found that the line was in fact: His body light: a single bird in passage. Chen accepted his defeat with a sigh: as he saw it, even though it was a question of only one word, neither he nor any of his friends could equal Du Fu's choice. The p reced i n g anecdote reappears i n the fo l l ow i ng poem by Su S h i , wr itten to a friend to th a n k h i m fo r the g i ft of the tattered rem a i n s
of a pai nti n g by Wu D ao-z i ,
t h e g reatest T a n g p a i nter o f B u d d hi st s u bj ects . It i s a n u rbane, ram b l i n g poem, fi l l ed with references, yet it tou c h es o n many of the essent i a l q u esti o n s of con n oisse u r s h i p : the a b i l ity to recog nize true a rt, the destruction of a rt, a n d the re l ati o n between art's va l u e as art and as commodity.
Su Shi, " Some Time Ago in Chen Han-qing's House in Chang an I Saw a Painting of the Buddha by Wu D ao-zi . It was unfortunately tattered and falling to pieces. When I saw it again over ten years later in Xian-yu Zi-j un's house, it had been mounted and restored. It was given to me by Zi-j un and I wrote this poem to thank him " ( 1 07 8 ) Noblemen whose wealth i s great, whose lives are spent in ease, are rivals to purchase painting and script and never reckon the cost. They have taken the script of Yin Tie-shi to serve as their Wang Xi-zhi's,2 and have further introduced Zhu Yao's work in the place of Wu D ao-zi.3 'Su S h i ' s note : "Yin Tie-s h i l ived i n the t i m e of Emperor Wu of the Liang (r. 5 0 2-549). N owadays,
among the model c a l l igraphy sheets attri buted to the elder Wang, there are some with the name 'Tie-s h i . ' " Wang X i-zhi was genera l l y considered the greatest c a l l igrapher of all time. 3SU Shi's note : "Many of the p a i ntings c u rrently col l ected a s Wu Oao-z i ' s a re actu a l l y the b r u s h work of Zhu Yao." 647
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Reeking of smoke and water-stained, these are mounted on rollers of j ade; who understands which valued more gray disk or its deerskin pouch ?4 Wu Dao-zi's paintings of Buddha, were gifts of divine spirit; in the metamorphosis of dream he became an immortal flying the skies. Then waking, he would start to paint, heedless of painstaking thought; matchless marvels divine would come out through his brush's hairs. I saw this painting long ago when staying in Chang-an, and I sighed for this perfect treasure, my eyes were streaming with tears: I could not bear to look upon its shredded silken threads, they had become like butterflies fluttering in air.
Yet you were able to have it mended, to patch and repair its gaps; though the whole remains dismembered, its spirit is still complete. By Bao-zhi, the monk, I vaguely see the ruler and the knife; its ashuras are still dauntless; its heavenly maids still fair. Just as when thinking of Du Fu's line on the bird in flight: though you want to add the missing word, you know there is no way. I wonder, receiving this from you, if you truly had this intent: to act for the sake of the common eye, by this to wash them clear. 41n a story in The Han History, the jade d i sks presented to the throne were worth less than the deer skin pouches in which they were presented . Here the reference may s uggest the i n a b i l ity of aristo crat i c col l ectors, concerned o n l y with fine mountings, to apprec i ate the p a i ntings themselves. I n t h e context o f t h e p reced i n g I i nes, however, it m a y wel l suggest that t h e mountings are, i n fact, worth more than the exa m p l es of painting and cal l igraphy they h ave c o l l ected .
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Once those noblemen see this, they will surely blush with shame; the thousand sheets in their brocade bags won't be worth tossing away. No need to find for them further use to trade for threads of hemp j ust put a single torch to them and let them fly off in smoke.
O rd i n a ry Th i ngs If they had lost someth i ng of the m a g i c of Tang poetry, m a n y Song wr iters e m b raced the u n m agical everyday wor l d and sought to celebrate it in the i r poem s . We often f i n d a d e l i ght i n the tri v i a l a n d its i ma g i native tra n sformation i nto poetry. S o n g poets made it the i r b u s i ness to notice t h i ngs p rev i o u s l y l eft u n n oti ced . Ou-yang X i u ' s o l d e r contem porary M e i Yao-c h e n often em bedded these d eta i l s i n verse that w a s w i l l fu l l y u n poet i c . H i s i d e a l o f " m e l l ow b l a n d ness" (ping-dan) h a d a n a d m ixtu re o f t h e u n poetica l l y harsh, as i n t h e fo l l owi n g l i nes i n w h i c h h e descri bes h i s poetry :
I write poems that suit my nature and mood, and come quite close to mellow blandness. Rough phrases are left unfinished, they jab the mouth worse than burrs . I would have poured forth a great dark sea, but my vessel is small, and already brimming over. I f Tang poets were the ocean (g reat ta l e n t) , the S o n g poet wo u l d accept h i s s m a l l er vesse l a n d m ake a v i rtue o f it. The l ast l i ne o f the fol l ow i n g poem i s n ot s i m p l y b a d , it i s w i l l fu l l y b a d , b rea k i n g t h e grand T a n g poet i c e n d i n g j ust as t h e t r i v i a l top i c m o c k s T a n g poet i c s l ee p l essness.
Mei Yao-chen ( 1 002-1 0 6 0 ) , A Companion Piece to Xie Jing chu's " Spending the Night in My Wife's Study, Hearing Mice, and Being Greatly Troubled" Bl ue burned the lamp flame, the man was asleep, hungry mice came gradually forth from their holes. With the ringing of basins and bowls overturned, he wakes startled and listens, dreaming ceased. He worries they'll thump table's inkwell, then fears lest they gnaw the shelves' books. His son, naIve, mocks a cat's meow that was really a childish idea. 649
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In the Rain, Spending the Night in the Library of Messrs . Xie, Xu, and Pei The hard rain rang as it dashed on the window, I was j ust going to sleep by the dying lamp. Insects' voices kept up terribly long, the echoes were carried to my lonely pillow. The rest were all drunk, seemed not to hear, I was forced to listen, and it was awful. The night was short, I never slept my eye was irritated by a dust speck.
Mei Yao-c h e n became fam o u s fo r the fo l l owi n g poem o n the b l owfi s h , a seaso n a l d e l i cacy re l i s hed i n spite o f (or because o f ) i ts dead l y po i s o n , wh i c h , w h e n errors are made in the p reparati o n , has been the fi n a l meal of many a dari n g gou rmet.
At a Party Given by Fan Zhong-yan the Guests Spoke of Eating " River-Hog, " or the Blowfish Spring isles grow with shoots of reeds, spring shores fly with willow flowers . At such times " river-hog" is prized beyond the common run of fish. Its form may make one marvel, there is also no worse poison. Its raging belly is like a great hog, its furious eyes like a southeastern frog. When fried in the kitchen, if things go amiss, it will enter the throat like the sword Mo-ya . Why give sustenance to tooth and palate with something that wrecks the body like this ? If one dare question the Southerners thus, they band to defend it and boast its merit. They all say it's tasty beyond any measure, none think of how many folk die from the pleasure. And since to my views they will make no concession, I helplessly sigh and give no more expression. 650
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When Han Yu came to Chao-yang at last, at a dinner of snakes he was left aghast. When Liu-zhou was Liu Zong-yuan's abode, he learned to grow fond of the taste of toad. Although both creatures may be abhorrent, one's life is not risked by an accident. Such flavor may truly be like nothing else, but within is mayhem that's limitless. " Great beauty has some evil as pair " I really think that saying is fair.s Though the s m a l l th i ngs of l ife fi n d th e i r way i nto th e work of many S o n g w rite rs, the poet c l osest to Mei Yao- chen in the poet i c c e l ebrat i o n of the q u oti d i a n was Yang Wan- I i . In contrast to Mei Yao-c h e n ' s someti mes w i l lfu l c l u ms i ness and p l a i n ness, Yang Wan- I i fo u n d in such to p i c s i n v i t i n g occas i o n s fo r wit a n d s m a l l wo n d e rs of daily l ife . Yang Wan- l i ' s poetry often i nvol ves p l ayfu l tra n sformat i o n s a n d meta p h o rs : a sheet of ice becomes a frag i l e gong, o r a l i ne o f ants carry i n g food becomes the retu r n from a royal h u nt laden with s p o i l s .
Yang Wan-Ii ( 1 127- 1 2 0 6 ) , A Child Playing with Ice From the metal bowl a child took early morning ice, he pierced it with colored thread to serve as silver gong. Struck, it echoed like a j ade chime piercing through the woods, then all at once the sound of glass shattering on the ground.
Watching Ants When one of them chances to meet another, he whispers, asking the way, I can't understand the reason they're so often moving house. How much provision is necessary to feed bodies so small? returning home from the hunt, their wagon train is filled. S H ere Mei Yao-chen paraph rases a passage from The Zuo Tradition, h u moro u s l y but aptly appl ied to the s ituati on.
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Both of Y a n g Wa n ' l i-s q u atra i n s above are p u re p l ay. I n oth er cases, the poet ic at tention to s m a l l th i ngs h i nts at someth i n g deeper.
Su Shi, Thirteen Companion Pieces for Wen Tong's " Garden Pool in Yang-zhou" : Bridge Over the Lake Its red railings and painted posts brightly reflect in the lake, in white linen and black gauze cap, you go, dragging your feet. Beneath the bridge turtles and fish are teeming late in the day: for they recognize the sound of your staff crossing over the bridge.
Yang Wan-li, June 1 0 , 1 1 77, Traveling by Boat to Take Up My Post at Pi-ling. Held up by adverse winds, we stayed the night at the mouth of the Zhou-pi River I can't stand hearing the cries of insects from both shores and take a candle to melt melancholy, along with a cup of wine . I wonder who stayed the night on this boat as melancholy as I?the roof of the boat still bears the streaks of candle soot. The act of poetic i magi n ation that makes the s m a l l th i n g the foc u s of atte ntion i s often g i ven as a m i no r tri u m p h over some harsher rea l ity :
S u Shi, East Slope Rains have bathed Eastern Slope, the moonlight's colors are clear, the passage of market folk is done, only wilderness folk walk now. Let no one hate that the path on the ridge is rocky and too roughI myself am fond of the clatter of my staff as it drags along. Parti c u l a r l y in the Southern Song, the use of poetry to create in m i n i atu re a wo r l d o f the i m ag i n at i o n became com m o n p l ace. I n t h e face o f m a n y k i n d s of restriction, 652
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acts of poetic i m agi n at i o n might resto re freed om a n d power. The next two poems are by L u You, the most fam o u s of Southern Song poets .
Lu You ( 1 1 25-1 2 1 0 ) , Snowy Night
My books lie scattered all around, boxes of pills among them; huddled in blankets, from time to time I burn incense from Hai-nan. Growing old and slow, I laugh at myself, that a young man's heart survives, that still loves to listen to northern winds blow snow across my bed. II On village lanes the snow turns slush, and people cease their goings; the dot of a Buddhist temple lantern is a bright grain of red sand. How late now the falcon returns to his mountain home to roost the winds bear the whir of mighty wings. It i s o n e th i n g to possess a c h i l d i s h fasc i n ation with the s m a l l th i n gs of the wor l d ; i t i s someth i n g e l s e t o claim t o possess s u c h n a'lvete, t o h o l d t h at as the h i g h est v a l u e , a n d t o celebrate o n e ' s o w n i n nocence:
Drawing Water from the Well and Making Tea I get up sick, done looking at my books, pull hands into sleeves, clear night stretching on. All the neighborhood's silent, nowhere a sound, and the lamp fire now burns chill and low. My servant boy too is sleeping soundly, so I go draw water and make my own tea. There's the sound of the well pulley creaking: a hundred feet down the ancient well sings . Inside, my organs shiver from the cold, then from bone to hair, I'm revived,
aware.
I go back; moonlight fills the corridors and I can't bear to step on sparse shadows of plums . 653
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As Lu You, Yang Wan- I i , a n d oth e r wr iters i m agi n atively tran sformed the wo r l d a ro u n d t h e m by acts o f words, they a l so actively staged s u c h experiences i n t h e p h ys ical worl d . The l e i s u re l i fe, from the age n d a of a p l a n ned exc u r s i o n to the co n stru ction of gard e n s , was s h aped by i m ages g i ven in poetry; a n d t h o s e acti vities a n d c o n struct i o n s i n t u r n gave rise to poem s . The S o n g s a w the appearance o f n ew fo rms o f cas u a l p rose co n s i st i n g o f ran d o m j ott i n g s o n various top i c s . Sometimes these books of j ott i n g s treated pol itical m atters, sometimes they treated I iterary m atters, a n d someti mes, as i n the p i ece that fo l l ows, they add ressed s u c h bas i c q u esti o n s as s u n n i n g oneself in w i nte r . T h i s pas s age from a m i sce l l an y entitled Rustic Chat from the East of Ch i (Qi-dong ye-yu), by the th i rteenth-centu ry Southern Song writer Zhou Mi, g ives a good i l l u stration of the i nterp l ay between art a n d p r i vate l ife, with its odd m i xtu re of p l ayfu l l y d i s p l ayed eru d it i o n , bod i l y comfo rt, "home i m p rovement," a n d the writi n g of poem s . H e beg i n s with exa m p les o f s u n n i n g oneself i n earl i e r anecdotes a n d poe m s .
Zhou Mi ( 1 232- 1 2 9 8 ) , " Sunning Oneself" ( from Qi-dong ye-yu ) Yuan An would lie with his back to the sun and have his boy scratch his back, saying, "Now that really feels good ! " Zhao Sheng would bare his back to the sun on an open patio, waiting for woodsmen and herdsmen to return. From this we have the lines in Du Fu's poetry: My back to the light, I wait for woodsmen and herdsmen. and: My back to the light, I am near a high wal1.6 and from "Sunning Oneself in West Tower" : When, shivering with chills, I weary o f black winter, I revel in this soaring tower, my back to the light. and later there is: In a while my hair feels gently warmed, gaunt flesh grows imperceptibly more plump and glossy. The sun truly shows its deep kindliness, waning energies suddenly have a recourse. Teetering, I must bother to pay close attention, but effortless now, I draw my sick feet. Bo
Ju-yi's " Sunning" goes:
6Th i s seems to be the second l i ne of a poem entitled " Even ing," w h i c h Zhou Mi has either m i s re membered or had access to a variant read i n g no longer extant. Present editions read : "To toast my back, I d raw near to the s u n l ight on the wal l . "
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With a glow the winter sun comes forth and shines on my room's south corner. My back to the light, I sit with eyes closed, gentle breath courses through starving flesh. At first it's like drinking a heady wine, and then like one reviving from hibernation. Thawing outside, all my bones stretch, content within, I have not a single care. I feel expansive, I forget where I am, my mind joins together with the void. All of these are examples of a deep understanding of the quality of sunning one's back. Winter days merit such fondness that they truly seem like things to be offered as presents. Chao Duan-ren once had a case of the chills that no med icine could cure . It got better only when he toasted his back in the winter sunlight. Zhou Bang-yan once wrote a poem that went: Winter sunshine is like village beer its strange warmth lasts but a moment. One insists that it go on and on, but however we yearn, it is suddenly gone. I once built a small tower for sunning myself in Nan-rong and named it "Porch for Offering Sunlight." I hung it all around with white, oiled cheesecloth so that the open brightness of sunlight was plentiful throughout the whole day, and the comfortable relaxation of my limbs was not limited to a mere moment. It happened that a visitor joked with me, "This is what is meant by the cotton padded j acket of the world, " and we had a laugh about it. Then later I saw He Si-ju's "Song of the Yellow Cotton-Padded Jacket, " whose preface went: In March there was a great snowfall that did not stop for ten days. When the sun came out, in the house next door they called to one another to go lie in the sun, saying, " The yellow cotton-padded j acket is out. "
On reading this, I realized that the expression had already been used before. But then Wang Li-zhi had also named his window for taking the sun " the Overcoat Porch . " [Zhou M i then goes o n to q u ote t h e poem written fo r W a n g L i -z h i ' s porch a n d other exam p l es of s u n n i n g oneself in the past.] Perhaps the f i n est poetry o n the s m a l l expe r i e n ces of l i fe occu rs not when those expe riences a re stage d o r tran sformed by a w i tty i nte rpretat i o n , but w h en t h ey are presented as acc i d e nta l d i scoveries, in w h i c h someth i n g i s n oted that has i nterest but no obvious mea n i n g . 655
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Chao D uan-you ( 1 1 th century ) , Spending the Night at an Inn Outside the West Gate of Ji-zhou Winter woods in the last sunlight, crows about to roost; blue lamp flames flicker on the wall, at once there, at once gone. In the stillness of a gentle rain I pretend to be asleep, I lie listening to a tired horse munch on the last of the hay. In C h ao D u an-yo u ' s poem above a n d H ua n g T i n g-j i a n ' s below, we h ave two rou g h l y conte m p orary q u atra i n s-we don't k n o w w h i c h i s t h e ear l i e r-th at m a ke the same " d i scovery . " E ither i n d ream o r l y i n g with his eyes c l osed, the poet seems to hear the " poetic" sou n d of ra i n , but in rea l ity it i s a h o rse m u n c h i n g o n hay. As i n so many poems of the period, the comparison cal l s attention to the i m agi n at i o n ' s transfor mation of everyday expe r i e n ce . In that p rocess, the u s u a l l y u n poetic i mage-a horse m u n c h i n g on h ay-acq u i res a nearly magical d i g n ity. B u t a l most ce rta i n l y one of these two poets was writi n g not from a fresh, i m a g i n ative experience of everyday l ife, but from h av i n g read the other poe m . It m i ght be m e re l iterary i m itat i o n , or per haps the seco n d poet actu a l l y d i d expe r i e n ce the s i m i l itude in real l ife, but noticed it o n l y because h e h ad read the oth er poe m . Even more than in earl i e r periods, i n the Song the rel ation between poetry a n d experience became rec i p rocal : poems grew out of expe rience, b u t the experie nce of poetry a l so s h aped experience i n the world outs i d e poetry.
Huang Ting-jian ( 1 045-1 1 0 5 ) , August 1 7, Sleeping in Daytime In this world's red dust, wearing hat of straw and raven black hose, I imagine seeing a pair of white birds upon the gray-green isles. A horse is munching on dry straw, a sound by my pillow at noon, as the dream forms, it is wind-blown rain rolling the waves on the river.
Pasto ra l Scenes S o n g Dyn asty writers were n ot so m u c h i nterested i n everyday experience i n its own r i g h t as in stag i n g or d i scoveri n g the extraord i n ary with i n the ord i nary. They ro m a n t i c ized the deta i l s of the s i m p l e l i fe to c reate a n essenti a l l y pasto ral v i s i o n of satisfied domestic ity. The poetic wo r l d s they descri bed in the i r own l i ves were c l o s e l y re l ated to a more trad itional pasto ral poetry-" snapsh ots" of rural scenes a n d the t i m e l ess contentments of v i l l age l i fe . L i ke m o d e r n p hotographers, they wou l d 656
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ca refu l l y frame s u c h scenes a n d try to catch th e i r s u bject at a s i g n ificant moment. At the same ti me, when they themse l ves a re the s u bj ects
of the " s n apshot, " there is
a stro n g sense that they are pos i n g but try i n g h ard to appear to h ave been caught u n awares .
He Zhu ( 1 063-1 1 2 0 ) , A Walk in the Wilds From the ford a tiny path slants off toward the city; where waters sink, a single village lies across soft sands. In a hut of yellow thatch soaked by sporadic rain a white-haired old lady sits, watching over her melons.
Kong Ping-zhong ( d . after 1 1 0 1 ) , The Grain Is Ripe The millet smells sweet in the west wind across a hundred miles, streams draw back to underground channels, the harvest is brought in. The old ox has pretty much done with obligations of the plow: chewing grass at the top of a bank, it rests in the setting sun.
Ou-yang Xiu, Ox As the sun comes over the eastern hedge, brown sparrows fly up in alarm; the snows melt and springtime stirs the sprouts of plants to growth. Earthen embankments stretch level, the paddy fields are vast; bearing a young boy stretched on its back and leading a calf, it walks.
Fan Cheng-da ( 1 1 2 6-1 1 9 1 ) , A Description of Walking in the Meadows on Cold Food Festival ( first of two ) A wilderness inn by a dock with weeping willows, a rundown temple in clumps of bitter bamboo. Waters where egrets peer through reed-weirs, winds where crows peck ashes of paper cash. 657
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An old woman leads a girl with thick make-up, a boy helps an old man, reeling drunk. In this remote village the festival was good I'm sure because last year's harvest was rich.
Lu You, Visiting West-of-the-Mountain Village D on't laugh at the old farmers all muddled with winter beer, in years of plenty they entertain guests with chicken and suckling pig. Hills in layers, stream after stream, it seems there's no way through; willows conceal, the flowers are bright, then here is another village. Flutes and drums in succession, Spring Festival draws near; their clothes and caps are simple, the old ways linger here. From this day on, if you permit, I'll come idly in moonlight, and unexpectedly, propped on my staff, knock at your gate one night.
Walking in the Wilds Afternoon butterflies dance in the vegetable plot; under clear skies doves sing in wheat fields. Sometimes I go to the shade and briefly rest, then walk privately along the path. Village women peer at me through the hedge, old men of the hills brush off mats in welcome. Can things like this be found in court and market? a good laugh is solace for life's last days .
F a n C h e n g-da was the master of the r u r a l vignette. H i s most fam o u s a n d m u c h i m itated work w a s a s e r i e s o f s i xty "Va r i o u s Occa s i o n s o f I n terest i n t h e F i e l d s a n d G a r d e n s T h ro u g h the Fou r Seaso n s . " Each is a b r i ef moment i n the i m agi ned l i ves of a fa rm i n g h o useho l d . 658
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Fan Cheng-da, Various Occasions of Interest in the Fields and Gardens Through the Four Seasons XV Butterflies go in pairs culling pollen from the flowers; through long days no visitors come to the farmer's home. Then chickens fly over the hedge, a dog barks in his lair, and you know a traveling peddler is here to sell his tea. XXXI At daybreak, out to weed the fields, in evening hemp is spun, boys and girls of the village each has a role in the home. The younger children don't yet know how to help with tilling or weaving, they too, in the shade of a mulberry, are learning to plant melons. XXXIII A traveler in the brown dust, his sweat flowing like broth, stops a while at a farmhouse to drink from the sweet-smelling welL They offer him a flat stone to sit before the gate: noon in the shade of willows is where the breeze is most cool. XL He calmly watches a spider weave its web hanging low from the eaves, it somehow or other obstructs small insects from flying through. A dragonfly hangs upside down, a wasp is also trappedthey frantically call to the mountain boy to help them break the siege. XLIV A newly constructed threshing floor, clay surface as flat as a mirror, where every family beating the grain make the best of the frosty weather. 659
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In the sounds of singing and laughter the rumble of light thunder: the flails echo all night long until the day grows light. LII The burning sap of a pine brand serves them as a lamp; its thick smoke resembles ink and darkens all the room. Towards evening they wi pe clean the paper on southern windows, taking note that the setting sun is twice as red as before.
Wit Tang poets occas i o n a l l y com posed c l ever e p i g rams, b u t t h e n u merous s h ades o f wit a n d h u mo r p l ayed a much l a rger ro l e in Song poetry, which often p r i ded itse l f on a l i ghtness of tou c h . S u c h poems u s u a l l y a i med for the h i nt of a s m i l e rath er than a l a u g h . Somet i m e s we bare l y n otice.
Yang Wan-Ii, Strolling Along a Juniper Path in the Morning ( second of two ) The rain stopped and in the groves a chill arose, when wind pierced through into the path, the morning seemed still more fresh. I walked where I pleased and chanced to come to a spot where no one wasI startled the mountain birds to flight, and I also was startled.
Lu You, On the Three Peaks of Magic Stone Mountain Wondrous peaks welcome my horse and startled a weak old man: the summits of Shu and mountains of Wu are all washed away to nothing. Green and gray they poke from the Earth to a height of five thousand yards: and I troubled them to coil themselves up into this tiny poem. 660
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In the fo l l owi n g poem , Lu You refe rs to h i mself by h i s pseudonym, the " O l d Man Set F ree."
Plum Blossoms III ( 1 202) They tell me that the plums bloomed in the morning breeze, their snowy piles are everywhere all around in the hills. Is there some method to transform one body into billions ?for each tree of blossoming plums, one Old Man Set Free.
Yang Wan-Ii, For Play Wild chrysanthemums and moss mint coins of their own: yellow of gold, green of bronze, rivals both in charm. Heaven's Lord disburses these to poor poetsbut they purchase only melancholy and purchase him no fields.
Cod a : Self-Co n sc i o u s n ess T h e a n c i e nt defi n it i o n o f c l as s i c a l poetry w a s to "speak w h at the m i nd i s i ntent o n " ("G reat P reface") o r t o " s i n g o n e ' s fee l i ngs a n d n ature." S o n g poets conti n ued t o write poe m s about i nter i o r experience, b u t when d o i n g so they often l ocated the poi nt of view outs i d e themselves : they set u p the camera a n d then h u rr i ed to take th e i r p l ace in the s n apshot. The i r wit a n d i rony, a n d someti mes a capa c i ty for self-mo ckery, fo l l owed fro m s u c h self-co n s c i o u sness. They not o n l y know w h at a poet' s sen s i b i l ity shou l d be, they also know w h at h e is s u pposed to l oo k l i ke .
Lu You, Meeting a Gentle Rain on the Sword-Gate Pass Road ( 1 1 72 ) The dust o f travel o n my clothes mixes with stains of wine, nowhere I go in these distant travels fails to melt the heart. I wonder-should this body of mine have been a poet or not ?661
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riding a donkey in gentle rain I enter Sword-Gate Pass.
In Moonlight The moonlight white, the yard is bare, the shadows of trees are spare, magpies, unsettled on their roosts, go flying around the boughs . This old man is imitating childish girls and boys, batting the passing fireflies and letting dew soak his clothes.
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S u S h i ( 1 0 3 7-1 1 0 1 )
;tt �
Su S h i , a l so com m o n l y known by h i s pen n a m e Su D o n g-po, was the most out stan d i n g l ite rary f i g u re of the Song. U n l i ke most Tang a n d writers of earl i e r periods, Su Shi enj oyed the fu l l measu re of ad u l ation as a c u ltu ral h e ro in his own l ifeti me h i s ro l e stren gthened by h i s pol itical d iffi c u lties d u r i n g the reg i m es of Wang An-s h i a n d h i s fo l l owers . A n ative of M e i - s h a n i n S i c h u a n , Su S h i , with h i s fath e r Su X u n a n d h i s brother Su Che, set out for the capital in the m i d d l e of the e l eventh centu ry to seek offi ce. Ou-yang Xiu was th e i r patro n , a n d the exam i n e r who passed both b roth ers in 1 0 5 7 . After ta k i n g the jin-shi exa m i n at i o n , S u S h i began a prom i s i n g po l i tical career, se rv i n g fi rst in a p rov i n c i a l post, then in the capita l . In 1 0 6 9 , Wang A n - s h i began to put his pol itical refo rm pol i c ies i nto p ractice a n d came i n to confl ict with m a n y of t h e lead i n g i nte l l ectu a l s o f the day; these h e either forced i nto reti rement o r sent out to prov i n c i a l posts . Late i n 1 0 7 1 , Su S h i h i m s e l f was sent off to gove rn H a n g-z h o u ; thereafter, except fo r a few b r i ef periods i n the capita l , Su spent the re m a i n i n g t h i rty years of h i s l ife i n o n e provi n c i a l post after a n oth e r . S u S h i ' s pol itical d iffi cu lties e n h a n ced rather than h a rmed h i s ro l e as a cu ltural hero. As a yo u n g m a n , he was genero u s l y promoted by figu res s u c h as Ou-yang X i u , a n d a s h e g rew o l d e r h e was eage r l y sought b y yo u n g m e n see k i n g h i s s u pport i n tu r n . S u S h i was t h e m aster o f a l l l iterary fo r m s : c l as s i c a l p rose, c l assical poetry, song lyric, a n d i nfo r m a l prose (fr i e n d l y l etters, c o l o p h o n s, a n d n otes ) . H e was a l s o a pai nter a n d cal l igrapher of d i st i n cti o n . S u S h i w a s t h e spokes m a n fo r o n e powerfu l c u rrent i n S o n g i nte l l ectu a l c u ltu re : a cas u a l e n gagement with experience that was e q u a l l y d i st i n ct from B u d d h i st de tac h ment a n d from the rigid i d e o l o g i c a l e n gagement of Wang A n -s h i a n d some of the N eo-Confu c i a n s . Such cas u a l e ngagement offered a rel axed p l e as u re that was q u ite d i fferent from the i nten s ity of pass i o n and was a value that S u Shi held and es pou sed . It was, h owever, n ot a v a l u e that Su, with h i s i m me n s e l y turbu l e n t person a l ity, cou l d co mforta b l y l i ve up to .
Account of the Hall of Precious Artworks The superior person may let his interests find temporary lodging in exter nal things, yet he may not let those interests remain caught up in things. When our interests find temporary lodging in external things, even the hum blest things can bring delight and even the most beguiling things can bring no harm upon us. But if our interests do remain caught up in things, even the humblest things can do us damage and even the most beguiling things bring no delight. It was Lao-zi who said, "All the colors together blind the 663
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eyes. All the musical notes deafen the ears . All flavors ruin the palate. And galloping on field hunts brings out a madness in the mind of man . " But the Sage never gives these four things up-he simply lets his interests lodge in them only temporarily. Liu Bei, the founder of the Shu-Han Kingdom, had the gift of bold action, yet he loved to plait animal hair. Xi Kang, the Daoist eccentric, achieved the spirit's perfection, yet he loved the labors of a smith. Ruan Fu was a free spirit, yet he loved waxed clogs. These are hardly the sensual pleasures of sound, physical beauty, smell, or taste; yet throughout their lives these men found an unflagging delight in such things. Among all the things that bring us j oy and have the capacity to please a person without swaying him, nothing can compare to books and paintings. But when our interests remain caught up in them and cannot get loose, the evil they can wreak is beyond the telling. By these Zhong Yao was brought to vomit blood and dig up a tomb . ! Emperor Xiao-wu of the Liu-Song, who wanted to be the dominant calligrapher of the time, came to feel spite for Wang Seng-qian. Huan Xuan's speeding boat, in which he carried his col lection of books and paintings in order to have them with him always, and Wang Ya's multiple walls, by which he protected his collection, were both childish amusements that harmed the nation and brought ruin on the men themselves. Such is the evil of having one's interest caught up in things. When first I was young, I loved both books and paintings . I feared only losing what I already had and that others would not give me what they them selves had. But then I laughed at myself and said: "I care so little for wealth and honor, yet I treat b ooks with the highest regard. I care little about my life or death, but my paintings are important to me. Doesn't it seem that I've gotten things upside down and lost what is basic in the heart ? " From that point on, I didn't dote on them any more. Even though, when I came upon something that gave me pleasure, I would sometimes keep it, I no longer cared when such things were taken by someone else. Compare them to clouds and mist shapes passing before the eyes or to all the different birds that stir the listening ear-of course we rej oice when we encounter them; but when they are gone, our thoughts do not hang'on them. Thus books and paintings always give me delight, yet they can do me no damage. Although Commander Escort Wang Shen hails from the quarter of the imperial in-laws, in his clothing, in his sense of ceremony and right, in his learning, and in his literary accomplishments, he is of equal stature to poor scholars. His style of living eschews rich foods and fancy fare; he keeps apart from the sensual pleasures of ear and eye and devotes himself to books and paintings. To the east of his mansion he has built a Hall of Precious Art works where he keeps what he has acquired; and he has asked me to write an account for it. Worried lest he have the misfortune to be as I was in my youth, too much loving these things, I have made a point of telling him this, ' Z h o n g Yao, the t h i rd-centu ry c a l l igrapher, saw a spec i men of Cai Yong's ca l l igraphy and beat h i m s e l f for t h ree days u nt i l h e was black a n d b l u e . When W e i D a n d i ed a n d h a d t h e p iece o f C a i Yong's cal l i g r a p h y b u ried with h i m , Zhong Yao dug u p the tom b to get hold of it.
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in hopes that he can enjoy the fullness of their delights and keep far from the potential damage. -An account written this twenty-second day of September, 1 0 77
to " Fragrance Fills the Yard " (Man-ting fang) Hollow glories won on a snail's horn, on a fly's head some small advantage gained: when I think about it, why do we go to such pointless trouble ? Everything that happens has been settled long before no one comes out short, no one comes out ahead. So I'll make the most of my leisure, and the fact I'm not yet too old, and indulge myself to my limit in a little wildness. In life's possible hundred years you should let yourself get drunk in total thirty-six thousand times. I have considered it, and how much longer do we have with gloomy winds and rain keeping us from half? Also why should we spend the rest of our lives arguing over what's better, what's worse? W e are lucky to have cool breeze and also the silvery moon, a cushion of moss spread for us, a tent of cloud stretched high. The Southland is fine, a thousand cups of sweet wine, and a song: " Fragrance Fills the Yard . "
Account o f the Terrace " Passing Beyond " In all things, however ordinary, there is something that deserves reflection. And insofar as there is something tha t deserves reflection, there is in all such things something in which we can find delight, and it need not be unusual or peculiarly beautiful. You can still get drunk chewing the dregs or guz zling weak beer. Fruit and vegetables and other growing things can all pro vide plenty to eat. Extending this by analogy, I will find delight no matter where I go. 665
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What we mean by seeking good fortune and avoiding adversity is that good fortune brings happiness, while adversity brings sadness. But human desires are endless, while the things that can satisfy our desires are limited. So long as distinctions of attraction and aversion battle within me and so long as decisions on which course to choose converge before me, few things bring delight, while the things that bring sorrow remain ever numerous. This may, in fact, be thought of as looking for adversity and turning down good fortune. To look for adversity and turn down good fortune is hardly human in stinct. If someone does so, there is something in external things that clouds his instinct. Such people move within external things and not beyond them. Things have no real distinctions of magnitude in their own right; and yet when someone reflects on them from within, every single one of them looms large. Should things loom large over me, my eyes are always dazzled and confused. As if watching a struggle through a crack, how can one tell who is the victor and who the loser ? In this way attractions and aversions spring up out of control, and anxieties and delights emerge from them. Can we help feeling sorry for someone in such a situation? When I left Qian-tang [Hang-zhou 1 to take up the administration of Jiao xi [Mi-zhou], I forsook the steadiness of the boat and submitted to the dif ficulties of going by horse and coach. I left behind the attractions of carved walls and took shelter in a dwelling with plain beams. I turned my back on vistas of lakes and mountains to walk through a wilderness of mulberry and hemp. On the day I arrived, I found the harvest had been bad for several years running. There were bandits everywhere in the outlands, and com plaints clogged the courts . I kept to a plain diet, each day eating only med lar and chrysanthemums . Obviously people suspected I was unhappy. But when I had been there for a full year, my features looked increasingly healthy; and the white in my hair every day progressively reverted to its former black. For I found delight in the purity of their customs, while office work ers and populace alike were comfortable with my ineptness. At that point I had work done in the park, and had the buildings and grounds cleaned up; I ordered the tall, dense trees on An Hill cut down to repair what had been broken; and I made plans to complete the work what ever way I could. In the northern part of the park there was an old terrace built into the contours of the city wall. I had the building there thatched and renovated a little. And from time to time I go up there with others and look around, giv ing my mood free rein. To the south there is a view of Horse-Ear Mountain, while Chang Mountain is sometimes hidden and sometimes dimly appears, seeming both close at hand, yet far away-perhaps there are good men liv ing in seclusion there? Then to the east you have Lu Mountain, into which Lu Ao went into retreat during the Qin Dynasty. To the west there is a view of Mu-ling, shadowing like ramparts, where the lingering glories of Lil Shang and Duke Huan of Qi still survive. To the north I look down over the river Wei, where strong feeling overwhelms me when I think on the deeds 666
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of Han Xin, Count Huai-yin, and lament how his story did not come to a good end. The terrace is high and stable, deepset and bright, cool in sum mer and warm in winter. In dawns when the snow is falling or on evening of wind al'ld moonlight I never miss a chance to be there, and my guests never miss a chance to go along with me. We pick vegetables in the garden, take fish from the ponds, brew sorghum beer, boil and eat unpolished rice. And we say, what a delight to visit the place ! At this time my brother Zi-you happened to be in Ji-nan, heard about this place, and wrote a poem about it in which he gave the terrace the name "Passing Beyond . " In this he saw that my ability to find delight wherever I go comes from the fact that I roam beyond things.
Occas i o n s of d e l i g ht, whether staged or acc i d e nta l l y encou ntered, a re a recu rrent motif in Su S h i ' s writi n g . L i te rary works, parti c u l ar l y poems, celebrate such moments, reflect on thei r s i g n ifica nce, and reaffi rm S u ' s c o n v i ct i o n that joy is poss i b l e o n l y w h e n w e d o n ot c l i ng to i t . T h e moment' s m a g i c i s , b y its very n atu re, tra n s i tory.
Getting Up at Night in a Boat ( 1 079) I t was the rustling o f a faint breeze blowing through rushes and reeds: I opened the door to watch the rain, but moonlight filled the lake. The boatmen and the waterbirds were both in the same dream, a large fish leapt, then dived deep down, like a frightened fox fleeing away. In night's depths both creatures and men lie outside each other's concerns, and I was alone, a body and shadow for our mutual amusement. In the dark, rivertides rose on the isles with the sad sounds of winter worms, the sinking moon hung in the willows which I saw as a spider's web. This life goes b y me in a flash with anxiety and troubles, clear scenes like this pass my eyes and last but for a moment.
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they beat the drum at the front of the boat again shouting each to the other. Although S u S h i warns aga i n st the d a n gers of c l i n g i n g to t h i ngs and to experience, writi n g often serves as the m e a n s to catch the moment before it gets away from h i m . T h e fo l l owi n g a re entries from o n e o f S u ' s col l ecti o n s o f i nfo rmal prose, The Forest
of Notes (Zhi-linJ. The Song p l e a s u re i n i nfo r m a l p rose is closely re l ated to the fas c i nation with the moment-its acc i d ents, its random deta i l s and u n expected p l ea s u res.
Visiting White Waters . Written for my son Su Mai (from The
Forest of Notes ) December 1 2, 1 094. I visited the Monastery of the Buddha's Footprints with my young son Mai. We bathed in the pool formed by the hot springs there, which were very hot indeed, being virtually able to cook something. We went east following the contours of the mountain, and a little to the north there was a waterfall a hundred yards high. This flowed off around the mountain in a number of sharp turns, then at one bend formed a pool whose deepest parts were plumbed to a depth of forty-five feet without reaching the bot tom. The waters splashed with snowy froth and roared like thunder, both delightful and awe-inspiring. On the water's bank there were some twenty or thirty huge human footprints, which are known as the " Buddha's Foot prints. " At twilight we went home, and retracing our steps, we watched while they burned away the vegetation on the mountain-quite a fire. In no time at all we passed several valleys and reached the river. When the moon came out over the mountains, the highlands were awash in mid current, and we scooped watery handfuls of pearls and j ade rings. We got home about ten o'clock, and again I drank with Mai as we ate the remaining sweets and boiled vegetables. I looked at my woozy shadow but wasn't very sleepy, so I wrote this out for Mai: -The Old Man of East Slope
Account of a Visit One Night to Cheng-tian Temple (from The
Forest of Notes)
D ecember 12, 1 0 8 3 , nighttime. I had taken my clothes off and was about to go to sleep when the moonlight came in through the window. Delighted, I got up and went for a walk. I kept thinking how there was no one to enj oy this with me, so I went off to Cheng-tian Temple looking for Zhang Huai min. Huai-min also hadn't gone to sleep, and we walked together in the courtyard. At one end of the courtyard there was an elusive radiance, as if from a body of water, and in that water there seemed to be the intricate pat tern of waterplants. These were, in fact, shadows of cypress and bamboo. Will there ever be a time without moonlit nights, or is there any place that 668
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has no cypress and bamboo? It is only that there are few easygoing people like the two of us. The " Record of M u s i c " in the Classic of Rites observed that tem p l e m u s i c s h o u l d not be too l o u d a n d extravagant, g i v i n g a sense of restrai nt by o m i s s i o n . I n the same way, cere m o n i a l d i shes served i n the tem p l e s h o u l d be b l a n d , l e av i n g out some possi b i l ities of flavor. A n y k i n d of exper i e n ce, carried t o t h e l i m i ts of i nte n s ity, reve rts q u i c k l y to its oppos ite, as i n the fa m o u s l i n e of a song att r i b u ted to E m peror Wu of the H a n : "when p l ea s u re c rests, g r i m thoughts a re m a n y . " A certa i n reserve seemed
to m a ke the conti n u ity of p l easu re poss i b l e . The very lack of excitement in the fo l lowi n g p o e m e n s u res t h e pe rfecti o n o f t h e poet's p l eas u re, w h i c h l i ngers o n i nto t h e composition o f the p o e m , looki n g back to catc h the m e m o ry of the fleet i n g moment.
On the Winter Festival I Visited Lone Mountain and the Two Monks Hui-jin and Hui-si ( 1 07 1 ) The sky looked like snow, clouds were filling the lake, terrace and tower appeared and vanished, the hills seemed there, then gone. Waters so clear that stones were revealed, and I could count the fish; deep in the woods there was no one, birds called each to the other. On this winter festival I didn't go home to be with children and wife, I sought these holy men, known by repute, which was really to please myself. Where was the holy men's lodging found ? in front of Jewel Cloud Mountain where the road twists and turns. There was Lone Mountain, so completely alone who would build his hut here ?yet if holy men have the holy Way then the mountain cannot be lonely. Paper windows and bamboo roof, deep within it was warm, wrapped in cassocks they sat asleep on mats for meditation. The cold weather and j ourney's distance made my servant worried; the carriage was readied, I hurried back, before it was late afternoon. 669
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When we left the mountain I turned to gaze it was covered by clouds and trees, and all I could see was a wild hawk circling the pagoda. The very blandness of this trip left its residue of pleasure: when I reached home I was in a daze, still shaking myself from dream. I wrote this poem as swift as fire to catch what was fleeting away, for once a clear scene escapes us it cannot be grasped again.
Account of a Visit to Pine River ( from The Forest of Notes ) Some time ago I was transferred from Hang-zhou to Gao-mi, and I went in a boat with Yang Yuan-suo Chen Ling-ju and Zhang Zi-ye both followed us, and we visited Li Gong-ze in Hu-zhou. Next we were j oined by Liu Xiao shu, and we all went to Pine River. At midnight the moon came out, and we had a drinking party at Hanging Rainbow Pavilion. Zhang Zi-ye was eighty five years old and was known all over the world for his song lyrics. There he composed a version of " Settling Wind and Waves, " whose summation went: It is said that worthy men have gathered under the astral lines of Wu, and should you askI'm sure at their side you'll find the Old Man's Star. Everyone at the party was having a great time, and some of us were so drunk we passed out. I have never forgotten that j oy. Now seven years have passed. Zhang Zi-ye, Liu Xiao-shu, and Chen Ling-j u have all j oined the world of shades. On September 9 this year, an ocean storm brought a tidal wave that left over nine feet of water on level land; the pavilion and bridge over Pine River were swept away and not a trace was left. When I think on that by gone moment, it was truly a dream. -February 12, 1 0 72, written at night in Lin-gao Pavilion in Huang-zhou "The Ocean M i rage at D e n g-z h o u , " about a m i rage at sea, is one of Su S h i ' s fi nest poems, characteristical l y b a l a n c i n g e n gagement and d i sen gagement, v i s i o n a ry i n ten s i ty a n d p l ay, a n d tu r n i n g a t l ast t o meas u re S u ' s poet i c experience with a s i m i l a r experience b y H a n Y U . T h e central term that beg i n s t h e poem i s " e m pti n ess" kong-a tec h n i ca l term in B u d d h i s t t h o u g h t refe r r i n g to the i l l u so r i ness a n d i n s u bstantial ity o f sensory percepti o n . B oth t h e m i rage c reated by t h e s e a g o d a n d the poet' s i magi n ative representat i o n a r e "em pty" th i ngs, " a i ry" v i s i o n s . 670
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After the sea god performs h i s conj u rer's trick i n p rod u c i n g e m pty i l l u s i o n s for Su S h i ' s a m u sement, Su reca l l s o n e of H a n Y u ' s most fam o u s poems, " V i s iti n g t h e Te m p l e of M o u n t H e ng, Then Spend i n g t h e N i ght at the B u d d h i st M o n a stery : I
W rote Th i s on the G ate Towe r," com posed when H a n was retu rn i ng fro m a te rm of ex i l e i n the fa r south where he se rved as governor of C h ao-ya n g (see p. 4 8 5 ) . H a n had hoped to get a good v i ew o f Mount H e n g, but
Surges of cloud and oozing fogs hid its waist halfway up; and though a summit it must have had, none could get all the way through. I came here j ust at the time of the season of autumn rains, it was shut up in shadowy vapors, there was no clear breeze. If to silent prayers from my secret heart an answer is here given, it must be because one upright and true is able to touch and sway. In an instant all was swept clear, the throngs of peaks emerged! I looked u p and sa w them towering there, buttresses of blue sky. Purple Awning fanning out until it touched Pillar-of-Heaven, and Stone Granary in hurtling vaults piling on Firegod Peak. Assu m i n g that the god of the m o u nta i n h ad a n swered h i s s i l e n t p rayer, Han Y u rev erently goes off to the tem p l e of the god, overseen by a scruffy p r i est who te l l s h i s fo rt u n e .
He took the talismans in his hand and showed me how to toss them, said, "This is most lucky of all, no other cast can compare. " Banished from sight in barbarian j ungles, lucky not to be dead, my food and clothing j ust barely enough, willing to meet my end. To be prince, lord, minister, general, all hope has fled long ago671
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though the god might wish my good fortune, it is something not easily done . I n contrast to H a n Y u ' s p a i n fu l i ro n y, the S o n g poet offers an a l together d i fferent a n swe r :
The Ocean Mirage at D eng-zhou ( 1 0 8 5 ) I had long heard about the ocean mirage at Deng-zhou. Old men told me that it usually appeared in spring and summer and, since it was now later in the year, it wouldn't be appearing again. I went there five days after reach ing my post; and thinking it would be too bad if I didn't get to see it, I made a prayer in the temple of the sea god Prince of Extensive Virtue. On the fol lowing day the mirage appeared, and I wrote this poem. In the cloudy sea off to the east, there is emptiness on emptiness, where immortal hosts appear and vanish in an empty radiance. As this drifting world is swept along there are thousands of images born, but how could there really be cowry gates hiding palaces of pearls ? This mind knows well that what it sees are all but conjured forms, yet to please my ears and eyes I dared bother the craftsman-god. In the cold of the year the water is chill, Heaven and Earth are closed tight, but on my behalf He roused from sleep and whipped on dragons and fish. I ts tiers of mansions, its azure hills came forth in frosty dawnan event so rare it thoroughly shocked even centegenarians. Whatever we get in this mortal world permits being taken by force, but beyond this world there are no "things, " and who can intimidate there ? What I made was but a casual plea; the god did not refuse: truly this monstrosity was wrought by man, not troubles Heaven-sent. 672
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When the governor of Chao-yang returned from his southern exile, he was cheered to see " Stone Granary piling on Firegod Peak . " H e thought that someone upright and true had touched the wraith of the hill; how could he know that the Shaper of Things j ust felt pity for his frailty ? The face relaxes, a moment's laughter is not a thing easily had: indeed the god did answer you, and generously as well. In thousands of miles of dying sunlight a lone bird sinks away, then all I see is the sapphire sea polishing its green bronze. This new poem of mine and its fancy words, have they any more point than this ? they will j oin it, change and vanish away along with the eastern wind. Poetry may be as i n s u bstantial a n d poi ntless as the ocean m i rage at D e n g-z h o u , a mere con struct of "fa n cy words" a n d w i t, l i ke the fo l l owi n g poem on peo n i e s that b l oomed in w i nter. B ut the poem sti l l can h ave seri o l) s conseq uences.
Companion Pieces to Chen Xiang's " Peonies on a Winter Day" ( 1 073 ) ( first of four) A single bloom of beguiling red, an azure almost dissolving, shining back the glory of spring, shaming the frost and snow. The Artist of Change wants only to show a novelty of craft and will not allow these idle flowers even the briefest respite. C h i nese poets wou l d somet i m e s write po l itical co m m e ntary i nto the most i n n ocu o u s poems. Readers m i ght often d i scover s u c h pol i t i c a l messages, e v e n when they were not i nte nded . Su S h i was stro n g l y oppose d to t h e " N ew Laws" po l i c i es of Wang A n -s h i a n d h i s fo l l owers, a n d i n 1 0 79, the poet w a s th rown i nto p r i s o n on the c h a rge of s l a n d e r i n g t h e reg i me i n h i s poetry. A record o f h i s tri a l h a s s u rvi ved , k n o w n as " T h e 673
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Poetry T r i a l on Wu Terrace ," a n d it is o n e of the most rem arkab le d o c u m e nts of C h i nese poet i c i nterp retat i o n a n d m i s i nterpretat i o n . Poems a r e b ro u g h t u p by t h e p ros ecuti o n and the " s l anderous i ntent" is expl a i ned . Some of these poems c l e a r l y do m a ke u n k i n d refere nces to the c u rrent government, but l y r i c s l i ke the one above, a n apparently harmles a n d witty comment o n the u n seaso n a b l e b l oom i n g of some pe o n i es, were a l so i n c l uded in the i n d ictment. In regard to the set from w h i c h the poem above is take n , the c h a rge aga i n st S u was : "These fo u r poems were r i d i cu l i n g the sen i o r offi c i a l s then oversee i n g government pol icy by com pari n g them to the Artist of C h a n ge, see k i n g o n l y to come up with novel schemes and p reventi n g the com m o n peo p l e from enjoy i n g even a b r i ef respite." Esca p i n g t h e s e r i o u s c h a rges agai n st h i m , S u Shi was sent off t o a l ow post in H u a n g-z h o u , where h e wrote some o f his most fam ous poetry. The " E i g ht Poems o n Easte rn S l o pe"-"Dong-po, " f r o m w h i c h h e took the name by w h i c h h e i s often kn own-take Su back to basics, to far m i ng, a n d to the theme of h a rd s h i p ove rco me by effort and i m agi n ati o n . The Preface and the fi rst two poems of the set fo l l ow.
from " Eight Poems on Eastern Slope " ( 1 0 8 1 ) Two years after arriving at Huang-zhou, I found myself in ever greater want with each p assing day. An old friend, Ma Zheng-qing, felt sorry that I had so little food, and from the government office he requested a few dozen acres for me on the site of an old military camp so that I could grow things for myself there. This land, long left to run wild, was a field of thorns, shards, and stones. In addition, there was a major drought this year. All my energy was virtually exhausted in the effort to reclaim the land. I set aside my plow with a sigh and wrote these poems, both to console myself for my labors and in hopes that I would forget these efforts with the onset of the coming year. An abandoned fort for which no one cared, its fallen walls filled with scrub. Who would spend willingly muscles' strength in efforts unrewarded later in the year ?Only the solitary wayfarer, left with nothing by Heaven, with nowhere to flee. At last he comes here, picks up shards and stones, the year has been dry, no moisture in soil. From this rugged place among the thorns he wants to scrape an inch of growth . Then he sets his plow aside with a sigh when will my granary be piled bigh? 674
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II Though these weed-filled fields have run wild, there are crops that suit its high and low spots. In the damp bottoms I will plant my rice, set dates and chestnuts on flats to the east. This scholar of Shu in the Southland has already been offered mulberries. And good bamboo are not hard to growl just worry the shoots will spread uncontrolled. I still have to choose a fine spot and measure it out to site my house. When my servant boy burned the dry grass, he ran to tell me a well was uncovered: I don't yet dare expect full meals, but of a bucket of water I am assured. Also from Su S h i ' s period i n H u a ng-z h o u came the two fam o u s " Poeti c Expositi o n s on R e d C l i ff." The fo l l ow i n g passage i s the seco n d (fo r the fi rst, s e e p p . 2 9 2-294) .
The Second Poetic Exposition on Red Cliff It was the night of the full moon in December of the same year. I was walk ing back from my Snow-Viewing Lodge on my way to Lin-gao. Two com panions were with me as we passed Brown Mud Slope. A frost had fallen and the trees had all lost their leaves; our shadows were there on the ground, and I looked up and saw the bright moon. Then I looked around and saw that it had delighted the others. We went our way singing songs in response to one another. Eventually I sighed, saying, "I have companions but no wine, or wine but nothing to eat along with it. The moonlight is silvery and the breeze is cool. What can we do on a wonderful night like this ? " One companion said, "Today as it was getting dark, I pulled up my nets and had caught a fish with a very large mouth and tiny, delicate scales, which looked like a Pine River bass. But then where will we get some wine ? " When we got back, we consulted with our wives, and my wife said, "I have a gallon of wine which I've kept put away for a very long time in anticipation of just such an un foreseen need. " Thereupon we took the wine and the fish and again went to visit the base of Red Cliff. You could hear the sound of the river's current, and the shore rose up sharply for a thousand feet. The mountains were high and the moon small; the water level had fallen, and rocks had emerged from the surface. 675
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It had not been all that many months and days since the first time we came here, yet the mountains and the river had become unrecognizable. Then I gathered up my robes and stepped onto the bank, finding my footing up the steep slope and pushing back the undergrowth. I crouched on a tigerlike boulder and climbed a dragon-twisting tree. I pulled my way up to the pre cariously perched nest of the roosting hawk and looked down into the hid den palaces of Ping-yi, the river god. My two companions were not able to follow me there. Then there came a long, piercing screech . The trees shuddered; the moun tains resounded and the valleys echoed; the wind came up and the waters were seething. I too was struck dumb and distressed, shivering and afraid, and I felt such a chill that I could not stay there long. I went back and got in the boat, and we pushed off to midstream, to come to rest wherever the boat might take us. It was then about midnight and all around us was a for saken gloom. It happened then that a solitary crane was coming over the river from the east. Its wings seemed like wagon wheels, and it had a black lower garment with a pure white j acket. It gave a long, shrill cry, and, mak ing a close pass over our boat, it went off to the west. Soon afterward my companions left, and I too went to go to sleep. I dreamed of a D aoist wizard, soaring lightly in his feathered robes, and as he was passing by Lin-gao, he descended. He bowed to me and said, "Did you enjoy your visit to Red Cliff? " When I asked him his name, he bowed his head and would not answer me. But ah!-then I understood. "Wasn't that you this last night who flew past us and cried out? " The D aoist looked around smiling, and I woke up with a start. When I opened the door and looked for him, I couldn't see him anywhere. The e x p e r i e n c e of m o re o r less conti n u a l adm i n i strative ex i l e, bei n g tran sferred from one post to a n ot h e r, i m pa rted a sense of u n real ity to a l l past expe r i e n ce, a l o n g with i nten s e attention to the deta i l s of the p resent moment.
to " D own and Out Drunk " (Zui luo-po), Written on Leaving Jing-kou The clouds were thin, the moon was faint I sobered up around ten o'clock just as the boat was shoving off. As I turned to gaze on the lonely city, gray mists closed around it. I recall the time she was singing, but I don't recall coming back. My turban askew, fan fallen from hand, the hammock slick, when I woke there was no one there to tell my secret dreams . 676
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Throughout this life I am swept along, when will it ever cease ? My home is in the southwest, but I am always setting off to go farther on southeast. Su S h i conti n u ed to be tra n sferred from post to post, and in h i s l ast years was sent as far south as poss i b l e-to H a i - n a n I s l a n d . In 1 1 00 h e was reca l l ed , but d i ed i n 1 1 0 1 befo re m a k i n g it back t o the N o rt h . T h e seco n d o f t h e two fo l l ow i n g poems was written w h i l e m a k i n g the c ross i n g from H a i - n a n back to the m a i n l a n d .
Tong-chao Tower a t Zheng-mai Station ( 1 1 0 0 ) For the rest o f m y days I would grow old in a village of Hai-nan, and the god will send down Shaman Yang to summon back my soul. Dim in the distance, at the base of sky, where a hawk is sinking away, is a hair's breadth line of green mountains, and that is the heartland.
Crossing the Sea, June 20, 1 1 00 Orion lies flat, the Dipper bends down, it is almost midnight now, after harsh rains and daylong wind skies also know how to clear. When clouds scatter, the moon shines bright, who needs add decoration?for Heaven's complexion and colors of sea are basically clear and pure. All that remains is that old man of LU'S2 wish to sail off on a raft; and I roughly discern the melody of the Yellow Emperor's music .3 In southern j ungles I died nine times yet I feel no cause for complaint this present trip's utter wonder crowns my entire life. lThe "old man of Lu" is Confu c i us, who, in desp a i r that the Way was not in practice in the world, once expressed a wish to sai I off to sea on a raft. 3The Zhuang-zi te l l s of the Y e l low E m peror performi ng h i s cos m i c m u s i c i n the w i l derness by Lake Dong-ti n g .
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Re l ati o n s h i ps Even m o re than thei r T a n g p recu rsors, S o n g poets wrote withi n a web of l ite rary a n d person a l re l ati o n s hi p s . Poe m s were to be read i n re l ation to othe r poems, both pre sent and past, and they i n voked know l edge and memories s h a red with fri e n d s a n d k i n . S u S h i ' s m o s t freq uent poetic correspondent w a s h i s b roth er S u C h e . S u C h e ' s "Th o u g hts of F o r m e r T i m e s a t M i a n - c h i , " to w h i c h the fo l l owi n g w a s a com panion pi ece, s u rv ives, b u t it i s p o o r . S u S h i ' s p o e m , h owever, sta n d s o n i t s own, speaki n g o f t h e v an i s h i n g traces o f th i ngs that s u rv i ve o n l y i n s h a red memories.
A Companion Piece to Su Che's "Thoughts of Former Times at Mian-chi " Human life no matter where do you know what it is like ? It must be like the swan in flight that treads in slushy snow. By chance it leaves within the slush the marks of its feet; the swan flies on-thereafter who can reckon its direction ? The old monk there has died, a new pagoda is made; there is no way on his crumbling wall now to see poems we wrote there before. But those rocky roads of days gone by do you recall them still ?how the way was long and we were worn out and my limping donkey brayed.4 I n the fo l l owi n g poem, S u S h i ' s patro n , the g reat Ou-yang Xiu, was i n d u l gi n g i n one of his favorite poeti c modes : hyperbo l i c desc r i ption in the manner o f the Tang poet H a n Y u . T h i s sty l e was considered parti c u l ar l y appropriate for praisi n g works of a rt. The poem by S u S h i that fo l l ows at p. 680 seems to be o n the same sto n e screen, now in the posses s i o n of Ou-yang X i u h i mself-or perhaps o n a nothe r screen very m u c h l i ke the fi rst, in which the patter n s in the sto n e were deve l o ped by i n k brush work. N ot o n l y d o e s h e a d o p t the sty l e of O u -ya n g Xiu's poe m ; S u S hi p l ayfu l l y re s p o n d s to the earli e r work and refutes Ou-yang X i u ' s m yth that the patte r n s i n the sto n e were made by "gods a n d demons" at the begi n n i n g of c reat i o n or perhaps made p u rpose l y to h u m i li ate mortal m e n a n d thei r l i mited ta l ents. I n S u S h i ' s ver s i o n , the s p i rits of two famous former p ai nters, fru strated by th e i r i n corporeal ity, h ave been work i n g at the i r c raft in the afte r l ife. 'Su S h i ' s o r i g i n a l note says : I n that past year my horse had d i ed at Er- l i ng, and I rode a d o n key to M i a n -c h i .
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[Ou-yang Xiu] , On the Carved Stone Screen of Wu Kui, the Han-lin Academician ( 1 05 6 ) When dawn's rays enter the woods, all birds awake with a start; and flying in flocks with a whir of wings, the crows cry out raucously. They wind through the woods in all directions, then cast themselves into sky, for yellow-beaked fledglings in the nest wait famished to be fed. The female comes down to peck the ground, the male wheels high overhead, then female and male to each other call and go flying back again. The woods are empty of people, the voices of birds rej oice, an ancient tree touches Heaven with gnarled, twisting boughs. Beneath it is an eerie stone stretched among the trees, buried in mists and grasses, streaked with lichens and moss. Tell me now, who could depict a scene such as I have described ? it is, in fact, in Wu Kui's house on his screen of stone. A Guo-zhou craftsman hewed the hills and took the mountain's bones, he carved by dawn and hacked at dusk no task of a single daythen thousands of images all came forth from there within the stone. I sigh at man's folly in failing to see how hard it was at first for He Who fashioned Heaven and Earth; they claim, instead, existing things arose spontaneously, mere processes of Nature. Don't men know how they chiseled and carved, cutting out representations of loathsome things and things that please, all the thousands of poses and postures 679
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that c a n never be exhausted, how gods suffered and demons wept by day and night never finding any ease? Were it otherwise, how could we have in this screen what perfected skill and fullest forethought of finest craftsmen could not achieve?half present and half unseen in a filmy blur of rising clouds and haze . When gods and demons worked this deed, Earth and Heaven begrudged the possession; it was hidden in Guo-zhou's mountains, in the most remote of their stones. If man but have the will, there is nothing he cannot obtain; though Earth and Heaven are godlike, they could not hide it away. Or it also seems that demons and gods love always to prevail and show their spite for our kind, wishing here to show ultimate strangeness past the point our talents fail, and did, in fact, have Zhang Jing-shan bring it from the west. Wu the Academician saw it and merrily chortled, he drunkenly dipped his lavender brush, streaming with charcoal ink. Your talent, sir, may well compete to rival demons and gods, but unfortunately I have grown very old and can't keep you company.
Ou-yang Xiu Asks Me to Write a Poem on a Stone Screen That He Owns ( 1 071 ) Who sent you that stone screen on which there are of ink the very faintest traces ? No tall forests are depicted there nor mighty growths, just a lone pine 680
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un aging after thousand of years, on a snowy ridge west of E-mei. Cliffs have collapsed, streams are cut off, you can gaze but 'never reach that spot where lonely mists and setting sun j oin in a dimming haze. It rises writhing, shaped by winds, its true appearance achievedI believe at last in this carved depiction there is Heaven's skill indeed. But then I suspect that Bi Hong and Wei Yan lie buried beneath Guo-zhou's hills, and though their bones may rot away, their hearts last on forever. The promptings of spirit and clever ideas could find no outlet there; these were transformed to blankets of mist that sank within the stone. The great painters since ancient days have been no common men: in describing the likenesses of things they are much the same as poets. I would have you write a poem, sir, to console their untimely fates, do not let those two men, biting back their fury, weep in secret mansions of the tomb. Many of Su S h i ' s prose accou nts a re a l so part of h i s l a rge n etwork of fri e n d s a n d ac q u a i ntances. I n an acco u n t of a fri e n d ' s p av i l i o n a n d h i s pet cran es, we c a n h e a r echoes of h i s bel i ef i n not l etti n g o n e ' s fee l i n gs " rem a i n caught u p i n t h i n g s . " O n e keeps w h at o n e l oves b y a lways l ett i n g go o f it; t h u s the c r a n e s a lways ret u r n t o t h e man who " sets t h e m free" every d a y .
An Account of the Pavilion for Setting the Cranes Free In the autumn of 1 077 there was a great flood at Peng-cheng, whose waters reached halfway up the door of the thatched cottage of Zhang Tian-j i of Cloud Dragon Mountain. In the spring of the following year the waters re ceded, and Zhang moved to the east of his former dwelling, up to the foothills of the eastern mountains . When he climbed to the heights and looked out, he found a rare vista and built a p avilion on the summit. The 681
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ridges and crests of Peng-cheng's mountains j oin around the city on all sides, as if protecting it by a great ring, the only gap being about twenty percent of the western edge. Our mountain man's pavilion happened to be situated exactly facing that gap . D uring the passage from spring into summer, the trees and vegetation stretch to the sky. D uring the snowy months of autumn and winter, a thousand leagues around are all the same color. In the shift ing from darkness to sunlight during rainstorms there are a hundred varia tions both above and below. Our man of the mountains had two cranes, which were well trained and fine fliers. At dawn he would set them free toward the gap in the mountains to the west, letting them go wherever they pleased. Sometimes they would stand on some field on the slopes; at other times they would soar above the clouds. Then at twilight they would head for the eastern mountains and re turn. For this reason he named it " The Pavilion for Setting the Cranes Free . " Together with some companions and subordinates, I , S u Shi, the gover nor, once went to see this man of the mountains. We drank wine in his pavil ion and enj oyed ourselves. Then I bowed to him and declared, "Do you know how enjoyable such a private life is, living here in seclusion? One would not exchange it for anything, even to be the ruler of the realm. In the Classic of Changes it says : 'A crane cries out in the shad'e; its young ones j oin in.' And the Classic of Poetry says: The crane cries out in deepest marsh, its voice is heard in the skies . " For the crane is indeed a pure and aloof creature, at ease and free, pass ing beyond all the world's filth. For this reason the writers of the Changes and the Poems used it as a figure for worthy men, good men, and men of private virtue. To be the familiar of cranes and to amuse oneself with them seems something that should have benefit and do no harm. Nevertheless, Duke Yi of Wei destroyed his domain because of his love of cranes . The Duke of Zhou composed the 'Declaration Against Wine' and Duke Wu of Wei gave admonition in the Poem 'Dignified'; both considered wine as the very worst thing, making people besotted and bringing ruin. Yet Liu Ling, Ruan Ji, and their sort used wine to keep themselves entirely genuine and established a reputation in later ages. Think of it! The ruler of the realm cannot be per mitted to love even so pure, aloof, easy, and free a creature as a crane-for if he loves it, he will destroy his domain. Yet someone who withdraws from the world to the mountain forests cannot be harmed even by so besotting and ruinous a thing as wine-much less by crane s ! Considering the matter from this point of view, the delights of the recluse and the ruler cannot even be spoken of in the same breath . " Our man o f the mountains was amused and laughed. "That's right ! " Then I composed songs for setting the cranes free and calling them back. The cranes go off in flight to the gap in the western hills, soaring high and scanning below, 682
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they choose where they will go . Drawing in wings in a whir, it seems they will alightbut what do they suddenly see again beating their wings aloft ? They spend whole days among valleys and streams, pecking sapphire mosses and treading white stones . The cranes are coming back to the shadows of eastern hills. Below them is a man, yellow cap, straw slippers, homespun coat, playing the harp . He eats what he grows himself; you cranes have your fill on what's left. Turn back, turn back ! In the western hills you cannot linger long. -An account written this eighth day of January, 1 0 7 8
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ft:.tL S o n g C l ass i c a l Poetry
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The c l as s i c a l poetry of the S o n g D y n asty presents a very d i ffe rent face from that of Tang poetry; it offers its own, q u ite d i st i n ct p l ea s u res. Sti l l , despite the g reat d i ver s i ty of Song poetry, there rem a i n s in it some d i rect i d e ntity when co m p a red to the poetry of the Ta n g . Critics h ave rem a rked o n the Song c l as s i c a l poets' gen ial ity a n d reserve, i n co ntrast to the i nten s i ty o f the Tang poets, a n d o n Song poetry's self-con s c i o u s ness. One of the o l dest critiques, offered in the Song itself, was of Song po etry 's exp l i c it p h i losop h i z i ng, in contrast to w h at seemed the more authentic ex p res s i o n of emotion in Tang poetry. " P h i l osop h i z i ng" (suggest i n g a d i m i n u tive and popu l arized form of p h i losoph ical refl ection) may adeq u ate ly describe the Song cl as s i c a l poets' d i s c u rs i veness a n d the i r constant te ndency to offer rati o n a l izati o n s or witty exp l a n at i o n s for p h e n o m e n a a n d ex perience. Though genera l l y val i d , a l l of these c h a racte r i z at i o n s of Song poetry a n d contrasts with the Tang are i n ad eq u ate attem pts to exp l a i n w h at was a bas i c s h ift i n sen s i b i l ity . As w i t h every genera l i zati o n , there a r e m a n y except i o n s to b road c h a racteriza tion, and many refi n e m ents that s h o u l d be made. Song poets l oved a fi ne c o u p l et no less than a Tang poet, but to l ater readers, the Song cou p l et wou l d often show the "traces of the h atch et"-a sense of conscious, carefu l c raft that seemed to con trast with the ease of the best H i g h Tang c o u p l ets . The f i n est Song c o u p let seemed l i ke someth i n g made; the fi n est H i g h Tang c o u p l et seemed l i ke someth i n g fo u n d . Song poets reta i n ed t h e fo rms o f Tang c l as s i c a l poetry, b u t someth i n g deep h ad c h a n ged . To the i r own taste a n d to the taste of l ater poets a n d read ers, Tang poetry was often p refera b l e (th o u g h there were groups who modeled themselves o n Song poets in the Q i ng ) . Tang poetry may h ave been p referred, but the wo r l d that had produ ced such a poetry was gone; in its p l ace was a n ew, a n d i n many ways more modern age .
O u -yan g X i u (1 0 0 7-1 0 7 2 ) au-yang X i u was the d o m i nant cu ltural fi g u re of h i s day a n d the fi rst representative Song l iterary figure. He was an h i stor i a n , po l it i c i a n , a n t i q u a r i a n , e p i g ra p h er, l iter ary critic, writer of p rose, poetry, and song lyric, as we l l as the patron of most of the i m portant figu res in c l as s i c a l I iteratu re of the e l eventh century. H i s ac h i eveme nts i n c l as s i c a l poetry s h o u l d p ro b a b l y b e ran ked l ast among h i s m a n y acco m p l i s h m ents. A l t h o u g h Tang poets often i m i tated the i r p redecessors, in the Song, model i n g poe m s o n earl i e r poets became a pervas i ve phenomen o n . T h e poet i c trad ition had evo l ved i nto a reperto i re of sty les a n d voices, each assoc i ated with a p a rti c u l a r po eti c gen re and type of s it u at i o n , a n d ava i l a b l e to the Song poet when he sought to 684
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ass u m e a ro l e . The fi rst poem below, i n w h i c h O u -yang X i u decl ares h i s chosen per sona as the " D ru n ken O l d M a n , " i s mode led o n seve ral poems by the M i d-Tang poet Bo J u -y i . H e re the we i g hty act of self- n a m i ng, of c h oos i n g a pseudonym, is figu red as a n acc i dent a n d c h a nce w h i m .
On the Pavilion o f the Drunken O l d Man i n Chu-zhou Forty is not yet old, and I j ust chance to sign poems " Drunken Old Man . " When drunk I leave everything behind, so why would I still need to note my age ? I love simply how this pavilion's brook makes its way here through tangles of peaks, Sounding as though it were falling from sky, spilling straight down toward these two eaves . Then off it flows to the stream by the cliff, where hidden springs add to its gurgling; Its sound never drowns out conversation, its clarity, unlike that of flutes and harps. Of course I find flutes and harps lovely, but their music is much too fast and loud; Therefore I often take wine in hand and walk far away to this purling stream. Wild birds peer at me when I'm drunk, and creek's clouds keep me here asleep. Hill flowers waste their practiced smiles, not knowing how to speak with me. Only the breeze that comes from the cliff will blow me back sober again. The fa m o u s ca l l igraphy paper known as " C l e a r H eart" paper, properly " C l ea r H e a rt H a l l " paper, was made for L i Y u , the l ast e m peror of the so-ca l led Southern Tang, one of the F ive D y n asties (" a century of warfare when p i ke a n d s h i e l d/streamed with battle's b l ood " ) . A Song col l ecti o n of l iterary a n ecdotes re marks that th i s parti c u l a r paper was n ot c o n s i d e red very v a l u a b l e a t t h e very beg i n n i n g o f t h e d y n asty, but once Ou-yang Xiu wrote the fo l l ow i n g poe m , its p r ice rose d ramati c a l l y, to the p o i nt where it beca m e v i rtu a l l y u n atta i n a b l e . The j udgment of the con n o i s s e u r can never be fu l l y d i senta n g led from c o m m e rc i a l va l u e. 685
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The poem is c h a racte r istic of some of O u - yang X i u ' s best-known poet i c wo r k : a c h atty expos ition, occas i o n a l l y d ro p p i n g i n a fi ne metaph or, w i t h m a n y l i nes that are flabby verse rather than poetry. In such poems, Ou-yang X i u u nfa i l i ng l y promotes h i s fri e n d s , j u st as, in th i s case, he a l s o promotes the v a l u e of " C l ea r Heart" paper. Yet such garru l o u s verse seemed to fu lfi l l the S o n g i nterest in a cas u a l a n d n atu ral poetic fo rm to express a gen i a l , generous perso n a l ity.
A Companion Piece to Liu Chang's " Clear Heart Paper " Have you not seen how those truly rare talents, Shi Man-qing and Su Shun-qin, were long cast down into hardship and buried at last in brmvn dust ? Though Su Shun-qing lived a pauper's life, in death he grew in esteem: scraps of writing and incomplete drafts are now like precious gems. Shi Man-qing in drunkenness wrote a poem on a red plaster wall; patches of plaster have crumbled away, dusky from charcoal smoke . Like the river spilling from Mount Kun-lun, its momentum twisting round bends; or snows weighing down on Great Mount Hua, looming high above. Ever since these two young men perished, one after the other, the atmosphere of our rivers and hills stands everywhere subdued. Though your household came to possess the paper called " Clear Heart, " I wonder who there is left alive who would dare set brush to it? Mei Yao-chen, Xuan-zhou's old poet, is starving and near to death; when the golden swan breaks its wings, sad are the sounds of its cries . From time to time he eats h i s fill, and then he can speak fair, like listening to loud singing as golden flagons are quaffed. Though both the younger men are dead, this older man survives; 686
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aging craftsman, capable still of skillfully trimming to size. Why did you not send the paper to him ? why set it instead before me ?it's like spurning honest discourse, preferring banter and wit. Sad to say, I am in my decline, no more what I used to be, and all I can do is take this bundle to open, then roll up again. A century of warfare when pike and shield streamed with battle's blood; now all that kingdom's songs and dance are terraces grown with weeds . Yet the artifacts of those bygone days are all good and finely made, they lie abandoned everywhere buried in brush and scrub. From where did you get hold of paper such as this ?pure and tough and glossy, a roll of a hundred sheets. The duties of my office happily leave me leisure; poems exchanged with the Secretariat continue and redouble. From ancient days the world was never lacking in literaturehow do we know that in times to come, such writers won't show up again ? Though Ou-yang X i u is best known fo r l o nger m o n o l ogues i n w h i c h he a s s u m e s the ro l e o f the " D ru n ken Old Man" or the ge nerous patro n , some of h i s most attractive poems are v i rtu a l l y a n o n y m o u s p i eces such as " B oati n g on West Lake" and "Wh ite Eg ret, " c l ose in sty l e and s e ns i b i l ity to h i s song l y r i c s .
Boating on West Lake: to Zhang Shan, Academician and Fiscal Commissioner Light on the waves, colors of willows, veils o f sapphire haze, to winding isles and arching bridges our painted skiff makes its way. 687
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The farther we go, the more lovely, we fear only that it will end; but on deeper within, the more secret, and it seems a space without bounds. In the fragrance of figured satins fine guests are brought to stay, and the sound of harps and piping sweeps in with evening's wind. Half-drunk then, we turned the boat, uncertain of our direction, there were mansions and terraces high and low in the light of the evening sun.
White Egret Splashing on stones, the rapids' sounds are like the drums of battle, a surface of waves that toss the sky seems like silver hills. When rapids leap and waves smash, in wind as well as rain, it stands there alone with dignity, thoughts even more serene.
Mei Vao-chen (1 002-1 060) Ou-yang X i u saw h i mself a s a patro n o n t h e model o f H a n Y u , a n d o n e o f the fu nc tions of a patron was to gath er a c i rc l e of writers a n d c h a m p i o n them . Anyone who assu m ed the ro l e of Han Y u needed someone to corres pond to Meng j i ao, the i m pove r i s hed o l de r poet whose u n a ppreci ated gen i u s w a s t o b e p rom oted . Ou-yang Xiu fou n d his Meng j i ao in Mei Yao-c hen, a pol itica l l y u n s u ccessfu l o l d e r m a n who had t u r n ed h i s attention fu l l y to poetry. At th i s po i nt the rese m b l ance between Meng j i ao a n d Mei Yao-c h e n stops (alth o u g h M e i , so often exp l i c itly compared to Meng j i ao , occas i o n a l l y atte m pted to i m itate the Tang poet i n m o re s u bstanti a l way s ) . The v i o l e n ce of the fo l l ow i n g poem, one of Mei's most fa mous, i s s i m i l a r in some su perfi c i a l ways to Meng j i ao's work.
A Lone Hawk Over the Buddha Tower of the Monastery of Universal Purity From my newly rented lodgings I saw the temple's tower, its green and gold stood shining before my ramshackle rooms. 688
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Over the tower with my own eyes I saw pigeons in their flocks, nesting, perching, drinking, feeding, heedless of passing time. Carved rafters, muraled walls were stained by droppings everywhere; they soiled even the shoulders and head of the statue of the Buddha . Monks of the temple did not dare make use of slings and arrows, then all at once a gray hawk appeared spreading its deadly talons . Crows cawed, the magpies squawked, mynah birds were screeching, for thither the savage hawk had come to seek out the smell of flesh. The hawk's fierce and fiery heart stood in no awe of their numbers; in a flash it shattered a single skull, the others around were alarmed. The dead bird came plummeting down, and before it hit the ground, with turning wing the hawk took it like a whirling gust of wind, Then perched alone on the roof's ridge, freely shredding its prey, ripping flesh in beak, laying liver open, flinging the guts away. An old owl, lacking the skill, cruel yet cowardly, wheeled in circles, ready to close, and pierced it with famished eyes. Soon afterwards the hawk was full and flew away on its own; fighting for scraps one could not tell vultures from common birds. Groups of children were pointing, passers-by all laughed, I now recall this and make it a poem beside this autumn river . 689
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Mei Yao-c h e n ' s l a rge col l ecti o n of poetry ( c l ose to th ree thousand poems) conta i n s a g reat variety o f work. H e i s best known for t h e top i c s he took u p , often c l ose ob servat i o n s of d eta i l s of everyday l i fe that had not p rev i o u s l y been treated in poetry. H i s work someti mes exte nded to cri t i c i s m of soc i a l abuses. M e i ' s s i m p l i c ity s h ows itself to advantage in the movi n g poems o n the d eath of h i s fi rst wife a n d of seve ral of h i s c h i l d re n . M e i Yao-c h e n ' s poetic ideal was the d iffi c u l t te rm ping-dan, some th i n g l i ke " m e l low b l a n d ness," a n aesthet i c fl atn ess whose beauty was s u p posed to g row o n the reader rather than str i k i n g h i m o r her i m med i ate l y .
Writing of My Sorrow Heaven took my wife from me, then also took my child. And though my eyes are never dry, this heart is ready to die. Rain falls and enters the ground, a pearl sinks to the floor of sea. If you go to the sea, you may see the pearl, or dig in the ground, you may see the water. But men, when they go to the streams below, we know they are gone forever more. I stroke my chest, who can tell me why ? this gaunt and worn ghost in the mirror.
Listening to a Neighbor Singing at Night I couldn't get to sleep one night, a neighbor sang-l heard something rare . I envisaged her red lips in motion, and fancied dust flying from beams. A beat missed-surely she smiled to herself; I rose and dressed to listen unobserved. But when I had dressed, her song was done, I was left with glow of the moon in my window.
On March 26, 1 04 8 , I Had a Dream Since the time that I remarried, two years she stayed out of my dreams. B ut then last night I saw her face, and mid-evening was struck by pain. The darkening lamp showed its faint light, it somberly shone on the rafters and beams . 690
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Out of nowhere snow beat on my window, borne along, as well, by a furious wind.
Crescent Moon When the crescent moon comes shining on the corner of my roof, the dog on the west side barks, the eastern neighbor is troubled. D eep in the night bright spirits and wraith-things are astir, on the ancient plain there's a rustling and there is no wind.
Wan g A n -s h i (1 0 2 1 -1 0 8 6 ) Wang A n -s h i was a scruffy Confu c i a n pol itical theori st, of tota l ita r i a n i n cl i n at i o n s , fi r m l y convi n ced of the correctn ess o f h i s o w n v i ews a n d o f the u rgency o f the i r i m plementat i o n for the redemption of the Song state . H e h a d the m i sfortu n e to h ave h i s refo rm p rogram taken ser i o u s l y by the new em peror S h e n -zong, and h i s pol iti cal age n d a was put i nto p ractice i n the " N ew Laws" pol icy of 1 06 9 , which g a i ned him the i m m ed i ate oppos ition of conservative a n d p ragmat i st a l i ke . Although h e h as a few poems on soc i a l i s s u es, Wang An-s h i is best known-somewhat i ncongru o u s l y-as a fasti d i o u s sty l i st of q u atra i n s a n d reg u l ated verses a n d as a n ardent ad m i rer of O u F u .
The Temple of Shooting Stars Into j utting clouds terrace and hall rise looming upward; long river that reaches thousands of miles, a single cup of wine. From here I see streams and mountains swallow down sun and moon, while far in the distance no wagon or horse brings along dust and dirt. Wild geese fly on paths through cloud, their voices pass down low, the visitor draws near Heaven's Gates, and quickly comes back from dream. The scope of such splendor only a poem could tidily display; but I, lacking talent, am put to shame, having come here so casually. 691
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J i n- l i n g, the a n c i ent seat of the Southern Dynasties, had l o n g been a favorite to p i c for poets . A l t h o u g h Wang A n -s h i ca refu l l y keeps t h e h i sto rical m o m e n t u nd efi ned in the fo l l ow i n g poem, he is p roba b l y refe r r i n g to J i n - l i n g p r i m a r i l y as the capital of the F i ve Dyn asties K i ngdom of the Southern Tang and to its s u rre n d e r to the Song. To Ou-ya n g Xiu, the artifacts of the Southern Tang w e r e s i m p l y lying a ro u n d fo r t h e tak i ng, as h e s a y s i n "A Com p a n i o n P i ece t o Liu C h a n g ' s ' C l e a r H e a rt P a p e r ' " :
Yet the artifacts 0 f those bygone days are all good and finely made, they lie abandoned everywhere buried in brush and scrub. N ote t h at Wang A n - s h i m o re co rrectly recogn i zes to m b robbery as the sou rce of s o m a n y antiq u a r i a n trea s u re s .
Meditation on the Past at Jin-ling III The lay of the land bends eastward here on the river's thousands of miles, among the clouds, " Heaven's Turrets, " paired peaks for eternity. In those days troops moved over the earth, a manly hero took it; when a Sage came forth in the heartland, each place surrendered in turn . In a vast silence of river and hills the royal aura lies buried, a gloomy bleakness of mist in the wind fills the windows of monks. Ruined barrows and rifled tombs stripped of their caps and swords who again will weep on his sash and pour out a cup in libation?
Climbing Bao-gong Pagoda My tired servant and worn-out horse I left at the gate of pine, while I myself took my long bamboo cane to lean on these roots of stone. The river moon wheeled through sky, making its own daylight, as clouds over ridges split darkness and cast a shadowy dusk. A rat shook the stillness of summits, along its passage sounds rose, 692
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in the desolate chill a crow mounted swiftly, its shadow's wingbeats faced it . In a place like this we do not know who is guest and who is host this holy man forgets the self, while I myself forget words. 1
Wu-zhen Monastery Stream in the wilds running zigzag, scouring stairs to the rooms, noontime window, a fading dream as birds call one to the other. Day after day the breeze of spring blows on the fragrant plants until north of the hill and south of the hill the path is almost gone.
One D ay Coming Home: Ballad ( on the death of his wife ) When we were poor I rushed here and there to provide us clothing and food; a hundred days spent rushing here and there, and I could come home only one. It pains me that we will not live out a lifetime's worth of pleasure, My wish was that when we were old we could stay together. It is gloomy in the empty room where the coffin curtains hang, the blue lamp flame at midnight, the sound of weeping faint. I can envisage face and voice, but where now are you yourself? and if we meet in the world below, will it be you or not?
H u an g T i n g-j i an (1 045-1 1 05) For a l l h i s i m portance i n the h i story of C h i nese poetry, H u a n g T i n g-j i a n ' s poetry i s d i ffi c u l t fo r modern C h i nese readers t o a p p reci ate a n d even h arder to appreciate i n tra n s l at i o n . Song poets were a l ready i nti m i dated b y t h e ach i evements o f the i r Tang ' ''Forgets the self" also h as the sense of "forgets about me."
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p redecessors, a n d H u a n g T i n g-j i a n ' s generat i o n h ad Song l iterary g i a nts s u c h as O u y a n g X i u a n d S u S h i before t h e m . H u a n g T i n g-j i a n ' s response w a s to u s e the work of h i s p redecessors and transfo rm it. H i s poems a re stu d d ed with a l l u s i o n s a n d p h rases d rawn from earl i e r poetry, c l everl y reworked . E v e n m o re s i g n ificant i s t h e p l ay o f reg i sters, m i x i n g vernac u l a r ex pres s i o n s w i t h recog n i z a b l y " poeti c" p h rases. O u t of a l l th i s comes a p l ayfu l l y u rbane d e l i g ht in l a n g u age a n d poet i c trad i t i o n . T h i s w a s apparent t o we l l -ed u c ated S o n g readers w h o sh ared H u a n g T i ng-j i a n ' s own backgro u n d , and h i s work was so m u c h ad m i red it was taken as the begi n n i n g of a w h o l e school of poets, the "J i a n g-xi Schoo l , " w h i c h rem a i ned active through the rest of the d y n asty . For modern C h i nese readers, h owever, such soph i sti cation is red uced to cop i o u s footnotes; and fo r readers of tra n s l ation, it is a l together i n v i s i b l e .
Following the Rhymes of Huang Da-lin's " S ent to Su Che" BaH a lifetime's fellows and friends are gone with the p assing water, for how many men will portraits of honor enter the Royal Gallery. In springtime wind and springtime rain the flowers pass my eyes, north of the river and south of the river water strikes the skies. I am ready to take "Off my badges of bronze, I am soon to seek the Way, knowing full well that friendship like stone is in different to unequal years. For each wagtail there is the frustration2 of longing to go home, with days and months hastening a forehead filled with snow.
To Huang Ji-fu I am lodged by the northern sea, you, by the sea in the south, I would send .a letter by wild goose, but forbear, being unable . Peach and plum in springtime breeze, a single cup of wine; night rain on the rivers and lakes, a lamp ten years before. 2The "wagtai l " refers to the t h i rd stanza of Classic of Poetry CLXIV: "Wagta i l s in the meadows,lbroth ers p ressed by tro u b l es . " It suggests the u nchanging l ove of brothers for one another ( H u a n g Da-l i n w a s H ua n g T i n g-j ian's e l d e r brother) .
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To keep a household all I have are four bare walls, in healing ills I do not hope to three times break my arm.3 I imagine you there studying, your head already white, with gibbons wailing across the creek among miasmal vines.
Asking for a Cat Since autumn the rodents have taken a gross advantage of cat-death: they eye my crocks, upset my plates, disturb my sleep by night. I've heard tell that your pussikins has littered several young, I purchased a fish strung on willow twig to beseech you for a kitty.
L u You (1 1 2 5-1 2 1 0) Lu You was the most famous of the Southern Song poets a n d the most prolific poet before the Mi n g, with approxi m atel y ten thousand poems to h i s credit. S u c h p rod u c tivity is a l l the more remarka b l e because Lu You d estroyed v i rtu a l l y a l l the poems h e wrote before m i d d l e age. Modern C hi nese critics l ay speci a l weight o n h i s poems ex press i n g the frustrated desi re to conquer the N o rth and reu n ify C h i n a . Even though this "patri otic" i m p u l se was i m portant to Lu You, s u c h poem s form only a very tiny porti o n o f h i s work a s a whole, most o f which celebrates t h e moments o f his d a i l y l i fe with geni a l wit. Poetry i n s u c h vo l u me, c h ronical ly arranged, approaches di a ry : al though there i s a l most noth i ng in his co l l ecti o n that rises to the heights of the best Tang poets, Lu You i s rarely c l u msy and bori ng. The easygo i n g p l easu res p rovided by his work are different from those w e normal ly expect o f poetry.
Small Garden Misty plants of my small garden reach to my neighbor's home, and through the shade of mulberries a single path slants. I lay here reading Tao Qian's poems, but before I finished the book, 3The p hrase "three times break m y arm" echoes a proverb i n The Zuo Tradition that after thrice break ing an arm one can become a good doctor. H u ang Ting-j i a n is probably referring to h i s capacity to "doctor" the i l l s of the fol k he governs.
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I took advantage of gentle rain to go and weed my melons.
Gazing in the Evening North of My Cottage Red trees and green forests streaked with twilight mist, ever beside the bridge there is a boat where fish are sold. The lines of Du Mu's poetry, the paintings of Li Cheng, all can be found right here beside the master's walking stick. II Every day by the crossing my tiny boat stays tied, an old man grown too lazy to travel beyond his gates. A single bamboo walking cane passing beyond my sparse hedge gives full command of a thousand cliffs and Fall in ten thousand valleys.
End of Spring ( 1 1 9 7 ) A thatched cottage o f several rooms on the shores of Mirror Lake, a thousand-volume library doesn't help my poverty. Swallows come and swallows go, I pass another day, flowers blossom, flowers fall, the course of spring is run . I open a book with j oy to see the friends I've known in life, and I'm shocked by the mirroring water not the man I used to be. I laugh at myself, how this heart remains that wants to destroy the Turk;
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when I stand on the heights, I am carried away and I almost forget where I am.
Lonely Cloud I've lived on this very mountain for the past forty years, I served at court and did no good, and so came home again. Don't think me strange if, standing long, I lean on this balconyit' s because I love that lonely cloud so calm the whole day long.
Lu You took as h i s pseudonym the " O l d M a n Set F ree . " I n a d d i t i o n to celebrat i n g m i l d d o mestic p l easu res, he a l so enj oyed assu m i n g a ro l e o f extravagant excess i n t h e m a n n e r o f L i B o . T h i s w a s t h e p roper frame of m i n d for writ i n g i n t h e w i l d c a l l igrap h i c sty l e o f d raft c u rs i v e .
Song of Draft Cursive To brew three thousand gallons of beer I bankrupt my family, yet for thousands of gallons of wistfulness this beer will be no match. Early this morning my drunken eyes saw lightning flashing on cliffs, I seized my brush, looked all around hemmed in by Earth and Heaven. All of a sudden the brush went sweeping, I was utterly unaware: wind-blown clouds had entered my breast, Heaven had lent me its force. Dragon gods battled on wild plains shrouded in reeking fog; strange wraiths shattered the mountains blackening the moonlight. At this moment I drove away the sorrow lodged in my chest: I slammed the bench with a loud shout, in frenzy my turban fell.
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The paper of Wu and Shu's white silk did not suit my mood: I consigned it all to the great hall whose walls were nine feet high. The fo l l ow i n g fa m o u s poem is s u p posed to have been writte n by Lu You on h i s d eathbed .
For My Sons Dying now, I know full well that nothing truly matters, and yet I'm sad I did not see China united once more . The day the royal armies quell our heartland in the North, forget not in our family rites to let this old man know.
Yang Wan- I i (1 1 2 7-1 2 0 6 ) B y the Southern Song, the sta n d a rd themes a n d fo rms of expres s i o n o f c l a s s i c a l po ' etry h ad been fu l l y exp l o red . It was a l ways poss i b l e to g i ve a n ew tw ist to a n o l d i m age, but t h e l an g u age o f poetry h a d c o m e t o seem i n c reas i n g l y com m o n p l ace a n d flat. T h e poet Y a n g Wan - I i add ressed th i s p ro b l e m b y a m i l itant vita l i s m-an i nte n tion to m a ke all t h a t w a s h a b i t u a l a n d m o r i b u n d a l i ve a n d I ively. Y a n g Wan-I i bor rowed the term "vita l i s m " (huo-fa) from C h a n B u d d h i st d i scou rse, wh ere it refe rred to the way in w h i c h Chan teac h i ng m i ght m a ke the truths of B u d d h ist scri ptu res i m med i ate l y apparent. I n Y a n g Wan - I i ' s poeti c u se, "vita l i s m " appeared as t h e i m p u l se to shock and s u rpri se, by w i t a n d h u mor, by reference to the gritty deta i l s of l ife, by d a r i n g metaphors, by tak i n g n ote of w h at poets commo n l y ove r l ooked, a n d by a n aggres sive use o f vernac u l ar, even s l ang, te rms i n c l as s i c a l poetry.
Yan Ji-sheng, Chancellor of Education, Invited His Junior Colleagues to Visit the Pei Garden. In our boat we sailed around Lone Mountain enj oying the lotus blossoms . Then late in the -day we moored at the imperial park at Yu-hu. I wrote ten quatrains ( one of ten) As soon as the boat shelved off we were far from the world's dirt, and swept along, we rode the winds crossing the Great Void. One of the p arty, by accident, dropped some pastry crumbs: 698
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fish and turtles in countless numbers came out within the waves.
D uring an Intercalary August After the " Arrival of Autumn" It Was Hot in the Evening and I Went to Be Cool in the Prefectural Garden ( first of two ) When I made it to the top of the wall, at once my eyes saw clearly: twilight hills were rivals to offer me several sharp points of green. Then weeping willows ceased their dance of leaves within west windfor the longest time one leaf alone did not stop .
One Day Before New Year's Eve, While Returning by Boat, We Moored at Qu-wo Market, and I Spent the Night in Zhi-ping Temple The river was broad, the winds were strong, cold cut through my thick coat, there were more rocky rapids than shore as the boat made its way upstream. The market was not so far away, but the boat could not put in, yet my fancies had already rushed ahead to a spot beside bright lanterns . That night I stayed in an old temple, which I entered slogging through mud, the soggy kindling when set ablaze crackled like insects' cries. Cold windows and freezing walls combined to keep me from sleepbut better by far than the flimsy boat roof where I looked up and saw the sky. In the market the people shouted and s ang, keeping the holiday, while a huddled poet's pair of knees rose higher than his cheeks . When I make it home, my children will ask me how things were but tomorrow I won't be able to bear telling this mood tonight. 699
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Just Before the Mid-March 1 1 64 Festival, I Heard That My Father Was Not Feeling Well . Going back west I saw plum blossoms and had these thoughts (first of two ) Along the highway at Tong-j iang I keep on heading west, a thousand trees of wild plums hang over the sparse hedge. Just yesterday in the capital borne in a bamboo tray for three hundred copper coins you could buy a single spray. B e s i d e s a l l u s iveness, Yang Wan- I i ' s poetry d e l i ghted In J a rgon and s l a n g te rms, w h i c h he em bedded in c l as s i c a l verse as some modern American poets mix ve r n ac u l a r a n d l iterary E ng l i s h . The fo l l ow i n g poem u ses C h a n B u d d h i st j a rgon a n d the c rypti ca l l y m ag i ste r i a l to n e of C h a n . The th i rd l i n e rem i n d s the read er th at the cas sock and begg i n g bowl a re m e re c u sto m s and n ot a n essenti a l part of B u d d h i s m ; the a n a l ogy is th at poetic trad itions, w h i c h seem so necessary and constr i ct i n g, a re not an essenti a l p a rt of poetry. The fifth l i n e refe rs to the fa m o u s cou p l et of Xie L i ng y u n ' s " C l i m b i n g a n U pper Story by the Poo l " (see p . 3 2 1 ) :
Pond and pool grow with grasses of spring, garden willows vary the "birds that there sing. Yang Wan- l i ' s cou p l et su ggests that not o n l y shou l d the l i ne of poetry be beautifu l l y crafted a s someth i n g to b e envisaged , i t s h o u l d also h ave a n e l u sive attracti o n "beyond the word s . " The final i m age of food suggests someth i n g of a u n i q ue, i ndefi nable flavor.
Two Companion Pieces for Li Tian-lin ( first of two ) You've got to cut loose to learn poetry, trust your own hand to bring unique heights . Cassock and begging bowl are no old tradition, a hill's weight is j ust like a hair's. Within the line there are " gr;lsses in pond, " yet beyond the words, both eyes are dazzled, So tasty!-what can I liken i t to ?a frosty crab pickled in dregs of beer.
Ten Stanzas on the Autumn Rain ( one of ten) I was sick of hearing the rain drip from the beech beside the well, I got up to see the drizzling sky everywhere in my gaze. 700
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The eastern hills lay stretched out for thirty miles: beyond a curtain of pearls an azure-colored screen.
March 5, 1 1 8 0. In early morning crossing on the Great Marsh ferry ( first of two ) The river and hills beyond the fog I cannot clearly see, only by dogs and roosters can I tell there's a village ahead. All over the planks of the ferryboat the frost is thick as snow, printed by my straw sandals is the very first mark. The p l ay of contr i ved m eta p h o rs in the fo l l ow i n g poem m i g ht seem m o re c h a racte r i st i c of the b a roq u e poetry of M a r i n o or G o n go ra t h a n of C h i n ese poetry. The crescent m o o n b e c o m e s a bow l , p res u m a b l y of s i l v e r fo i l o v e r l ac q u e r, f r o m w h i c h the s i l ve r h a s w o r n away except a ro u n d p a rt of the r i m . T h e n it beco mes the e y e of the m o o n - m a i d e n h e rs e l f, b l a n k to s how h e r contempt fo r the poet; o r , I it a ro u n d the edge, i t becomes a s i d e l o n g g l a n ce , s h ow i n g s u p p ressed l o v e . F i n a l l y, the o r b becomes t h e w h e e l of h e r coac h , l ed away i n the dawn b y the m o r n i n g sta r ( a p l u m of j ade) a n d fo l l owed b y a host of l es s e r sta r s .
Going to the Palace Library Early in the Morning with the Crescent Moon Just Rising I rushed toward my office, lantern in hand, gates were still shut on both sides of the street. Alone the pale moon-maiden had risen early to wash her j et bowl in a sapphire pond. Its costly rim peeling and showing its lacquer, around half the rim remained silver light. All at once she gave me contempt's blank eye, rebuke's round stare, directed at me. Through her pupil black vapors threaded, glancing sidelong, not daring to show what she feels. There was one gleaming plum of j ade that went ahead leading her voyaging wheel. 701
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And several flickering grains of gold served as her train in the coach's dust. D awn's roosters announced their message thrice, and the capital's riders went galloping. Star-rays were gradually almost gone, and moonbeams grew pale, with vanishing streaks. Then the Golden Crow flew up into the sky and spewed forth a red dragon's scales.
A Child Crying for Food Warm and well fed, could I fail to know my lord's kindness to me ?but that small child, used to poverty, is always hungry. The moment I hear the child crying every morning at dawn is exactly the time when the millet is almost fully cooked. The reference to coo k i n g m i l l et in the l ast two l i nes reca l l s the Ta n g ta l e in w h i c h a d reamer l i ves a l ifet i m e fi l l ed w i t h s u ccesses a n d suffe r i ngs, o n l y t o wake a n d f i n d that a l l h a d occ u r red i n t h e t i m e it took a pot o f m i l l et t o be fu l l y cooked .
Cod a For a l l the i r wit a n d fi n e s e n s i b i l ity, the Southern Song poets were a l so writi n g the i r poems wh i l e t h e m i l l et was sti l l cook i n g . H av i n g ruth l e s s l y c r u s h ed Southern Song's r i va l , the J i n Dyn asty, i n 1 2 7 6 Mongol a r m i e s u n der the c o m m a n d of Bayan, the rou g h Mongol general i ro n i ca l l y refe rred to as " G ra n d M i n i ster," desce n d ed i nto the South a n d put a n end to the S o n g . Wang Y u a n - l i a ng, whose exact d ates are u n known, was a cou rt m u s i c i a n w h o u lt i m ate l y accompan ied the Song i m pe r i a l h a rem n o rth to capti vity in the Mongol capital of B e i j i n g . The scene in the fo l l owi n g poem is the s u rrender of the Southern S o n g .
Wang Yuan-liang, Songs of Hu-zhou (third of ninety-eight) In the palace halls crowds of officials are dumbstruck and say nothing, Grand Minister Bayan demands we be quick with the document of surrender. The women of the harem all stand behind the beaded curtains, while thousands of horsemen with wild hair ride in circles before the hall. 702
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The fo l l ow i n g a n o n y m o u s N o rthern song lyric comes from a centu ry or so l ate r. T h e peaks refe rred t o a r e o n e i t h e r s i d e o f West Lake i n H a n g-z h o u , the South e r n S o n g capita l . L i ke the Southern Dyn asties before i t , t h e Southern Song has become a fad e d d ream i n a l a n d o f p l ea s u re .
to " Leaves of a Thousand Lotuses " (Qian-he ye) Tall peak to the south, tall peak to the north, with caves in mist and pale cloud. Founder of the Southern Song, the whole stage now left bare, As always in the hills of Wu breeze blows the tavern streamers twice dreamt now, that dream of the Southland.
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( 1 2 3 6- 1 2 8 2 ) a n d th e F a l l of t h e Song The Mongol c o n q u est of C h i n a p roceeded by stages over the cou rse of a h a l f ce n tu ry, from the i r fi rst battle w i t h t h e N o rthern J i n Dyn asty i n 1 2 2 7 u n t i l the n a v a l bat tle off the coast of G u ang-dong in 1 2 7 9 , w h i c h saw the death of the l ast c l a i mant to the S o n g throne. Not only were the Mongo l s ruth less in battle, thei rs was a cos mopol itan savagery that fo r a wh i l e i nocu l ated them aga i n st the b l a n d i s h me nts of C h i nese c i v i l izati o n . Content to e n r i c h themselves from the Confu c i a n tax m ac h i ne, the M o n go l s i n it i a l l y fe lt conte m pt for Confu c i a n c i v i l v i rtues . That d o u b l e expe r i ence of the M o n go l s ' ruth lessness a n d the i r cultural contem pt hel ped prod uce a re m a rkab l e group of C h i nese writers in the th i rteenth centu ry, the so-ca l l ed loya l i sts
(yi-min). The C h i nese term yi-min means l itera l l y "the peo p l e l eft beh i n d , " those who, after the estab l i s h ment of a new d y n asty, reta i n th e i r l oyalty to the fo rmer dy n asty either by active res i stance o r by a passive refu sal to take p u b l i c offi ce. Although the Mongol d y n asty, u nd e r its C h i nese n a m e the Y u a n , soon m e l l owed to someth i n g c l oser t o the fam i l i a r C h i nese dynastic ro uti ne, the i n it i a l shock o f Mongol host i l ity h e l ped to create a sense of n at i o n a l i d e ntity i n the co n q u e red e l ite. Wen T i a n - x i ang's a c h i evements as a writer are i n extr i c a b l e fro m the d ramatic experiences of h i s l ife a n d death in the Y u a n s u bj u gati o n of the Southern Song. The top gradu ate of the p a l ace exam i n ation of 1 2 5 6 , Wen began a p ro m i s i n g pol itical career as the Southern Song was begi n n i n g to face a Mongol th reat i n the N o rth . With the Mongol i nvas i o n of the South, he p l ayed a ro l e i n the u n s u ccessfu l m i l i tary defense of the d y n asty . When at l ast i n 1 2 7 6 the Mongol co m m a nder Bayan cam ped h i s army o n G ao-ti n g M o u n ta i n near the Southern Song capita l of H a ng zhou, Wen T i a n -x i a n g was made G ra n d Cou n c i l o r a n d sent to Baya n ' s camp to ne goti ate . Sayan p l aced h i m u n der house a r rest a n d had h i m acco m p a n y the Y u a n arm i es ; en route W e n T i a n - x i a n g escaped . H e w a s eventu a l l y recaptu red a n d w it nessed the f i n a l sta n d of Song forces i n the g reat n aval battle of 1 2 7 9 . At l ast Wen was sent to Da-d u , modern B e i j i ng, where he was kept in prison, refu s i n g repeated offers from K h u b i l a i to serve in the Y u a n government. E n feebled and a l m ost b l i n d , W e n T i a n - x i a n g req uested death , w h i c h w a s fi nal l y gra nted t o h i m i n 1 2 8 2 when h e was executed in the m a rketp l ace. Wen T i an-xiang's early writ i n gs s h ow h i m a n a b l e but not espec i a l l y g i fted writer in the Southern Song mode. The story of his i n itial detention, his escape, and recap t u re is to l d in two col l ections, the fi rst and seco n d series of The Account of the Com
pass ( C h i nese com passes took the southern end of the compass need l e as the p r i m a ry i n d i cator, t h u s the compass cou l d serve as a figu re for We n ' s loyalty to the South ) . These two col l ecti o n s a re essenti a l l y o f poetry, b u t there i s s o m u c h co n n ecti n g p rose between the poems in the fi rst account that the work becomes, in effect, a poetic d ia ry. In the fo l l o w i n g s e l ecti o n from The Account of the Compass (Zh i-nan /u), Wen 704
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a n d a gro u p of other Song offi c i a l s are b e i n g ta ken n o rth . When they reach Zhe n j i a ng o n the Yangz i , they escape from the i r N orth ern guards a n d , after many d iffi c u l t i es, reac h Z h e n - z h o u somewhat u p r i ve r o n the opposite bank. Zhen-zhou is u n d e r the c o m m a n d o f M i ao Zai-cheng, whose s u pe r i o r, L i T i ng-zh i , the M i l itary Com m i ss i o n e r of the H u a i - d o n g Reg i o n stat i o n ed in Yang-z h o u , s u s pects Wen of be i n g a spy for the n o rtherners. L i T i ng-z h i o rd e rs M i ao Zai-cheng to put Wen to death . M i ao can n ot b r i n g h i mself to carry out these orders a n d i n stead puts Wen T i a n - x i a n g outs i d e the c i ty wal l s and bars the gates agai n st h i m . F rom there, Wen sets off toward Yang-z hou and beyo n d , through
a
cou ntrys ide i nfested with N o rth
ern troo ps. Wen ' s s i m p l e p rose, with its sense o f excitement a n d d eta i l , i s often s u perior to h i s fl acc i d verse that u s u a l l y mere l y s u m m a r izes the s ituation desc r i bed i n the prose. To give a sense of the stru ctu re of the poetic d i a ry, some of the verses have been tra n s l ated ; others h ave been o m i tted .
from " The Escape from Jing-kou" (The Account of the
Compass) At night on April 29 we got out of the city of Jing-kou, and taking a short cut across the floodplain to the river, we embarked by boat. We went up stream past Gold Mountain and hurried toward Zhen-zhou. We ran into hardships and difficulties in every imaginable form. I have given an account of each of these with a poem.
The Difficulty of Deciding on a Plan Ever since I was taken captive outside the capital, I had plotted to escape but with no success. At Xie Village on the way here, I almost got away. At Ping-j iang I had again wanted to flee my captors, but it hadn't worked out. When we reached Zhen-jiang, making some kind of plan seemed even more urgent. We discussed making a dash to Zhen-zhou. Du Hu, the Archivist, and the Lecturer Yu Yuan-qing plotted with me in earnest. Du said to me, " If this succeeds, we'll be incredibly lucky. If we're not lucky and the plot gets out, we'll all die . Do you resent the prospect of dying ? " I put my hand on my heart and swore, "No regrets, even to the death . " And I kept a dag ger on me to be ready to kill myself if the enterprise did not succeed. Du also asked to die to show his loyalty. The plan was decided. To go north or south-every man suffers torment at a crossroads, but bold hearts, whatever the cost, vowed to go southeast. Had we not then hacked the table! 1 During
the Th ree Ki ngdoms period, when the Northern warl ord Cao Cao i nvaded the Southern ki ng dom of Wu, many of the King of Wu's advi sers wanted to s u rrender to h i m . The k i n g d rew h i s sword and h acked apart the table in front of h i m , say i n g that anyone who aga i n suggested s u rrendering to Cao Cao wou l d end up l i ke the tab l e .
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and willingly risked our lives, which man of us that midnight would have dared break free from our guard ?
The Difficulty of Going on the Streets Jing-kou had no walls, but there were b arricades on all the maj or streets . The city was about ten leagues away from the river. We chanced to find an old army drover, who led us on a shortcut through a number of back alleys, and then we found ourselves all at once in the open moors. We hurried to the bank of the river, which turned out to be quite close. If we hadn't found out about that shortcut and had j ust gone down the main streets of the market district, we never would have made it. Chimney smoke linked all the rooftiles, enclosed as though in an iron jug, and we had to find a shortcut to reach the river shore. Who was that man, willing to be last recourse for the general? an old soldier of the garrison who longed for officials of Han.
The Difficulty of Finding a Boat The Northerners' boats were everywhere on the river, and the common folk didn't have a single boat left that we could ask to use. Du Hu tried to arrange something, but because there were no boats we all sighed and gave up . After that, Yu Yuan-jing met an old acquaintance who was in charge of the boats for the Northerners. He made him a secret proposal, promising him two thousand taels of the Pacification Commissioner's silver. But the man said, "What's money got to do with it? I will have saved the Grand Councilor for the sake of the dynasty and accomplished a great deed. All I want is a note to prove at some future date that I came to your aid. " After ward we gave him the note testifying to his service, and we gave the Pacifi cation Commissioner the responsibility of making him take a hundred taels. He was a good man. It would have been all over if we hadn't had this sin gle encounter. We planned and plotted for ten days, but alas there was no boat; in misery I beat my breast, my tears flowed with blood. It seemed to me that fisherman was sent to us by a god,
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we met him on the Yangzi, on the great river's bank.2
The Difficulty of Getting Past the Barricades
' Everyw here in the villages and markets the Northerners had set up barriers, using a dozen or so horses to block the roads . We were coming to one of the barricades when the horses shied. We were terrified, but fortunately the Northern soldiers were all sound asleep, so we got away. Daggers in our sleeves, learning to go gagged,3 we were crossing by the barrier gate when the horses grew suspicious . The night was still, the sky was dark, our shadows scattered away, and the snoring of the Northern troops was j ust then like thunder.
The Difficulty of Going Upriver Once we had embarked in the boat, I thought we would go directly upriver and that nothing else would come up, I hadn't known that, in fact, boats of the Northerners lay all along the riverbank for twenty or thirty leagues. There was a frenzy of activity everywhere, with the sounds of the watch men's rattles and crying out the hours of the night. Our boat had no alter native but to pass right beside every one of the boats of the Northerners. Luckily no one questioned us; but when we had gone seven leagues, a river patrol suddenly appeared, and they shouted over, "What boat are you ? " We yelled back that we were a fishing vessel out to catch blowfish. Then the pa trol called out in a loud voice, " Snoopship ! " (" Snoop " was what the North erners called spies . ) The patrol boat was going to cut in front of our boat, but it j ust so happened at that moment that the river tide was ebbing, and their boat stuck in the shallow waters, unable to reach us. At that point every one in our boat was sweating. It was j ust sheer luck that they didn't catch us. War galleons along both banks lined the long stream; like mice we hid in our lone skiff and rowed on forward. After seven leagues on the riverside we were startled by a shout, 'Wen i s compari ng the man who got them a boat with the fisherman who rescued W u Zi-xu on h i s fl ight t o W u . 3 1 n wartime, soldi ers were req u i red t o wear wooden gags i n thei r mouths t o keep them from tal k i ng.
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but Heaven caused the tide to ebb and the patrol boat ran aground.
The Difficulties in Gazing Toward the City As soon as we caught a favorable breeze, I thought we could reach the out skirts of Zhen-zhou by the final hour of night. But after a long time the wind calmed, and when the sky brightened, we were still more than twenty leagues from Zhen-zhou. We were quite afraid that boats of the Northerners were chasing us, and we were also frightened that mounted patrols would be on the Huai shore. The anxiety and pressure of that moment was more than I can express. The men in our boat pulled the oars and pushed the poles with all their might. Where the boat could be pulled along, we went onshore and hauled the tow rope. But even though we felt the urgency in our hearts, our strength wasn't up to it. And to see the city in the distance and yet be un able to make any further headway was terrible-the difficulty of escaping from the mouth of a tiger.
The Difficulty of Going Onshore The moat around Zhen-zhou is linked to the river; but only when the tide is high can one reach the city by boat. That day we moored at Five-League Village and went onshore. It was desolate outside the city walls; all was still, with no one in sight. The land all around us was flat as the palm of a hand, with no barriers anywhere; and our only concern was to be lucky enough to reach the walls. As we went along the road, we kept turning our heads apprehensively, afraid that pursuing cavalry would burst down upon us. When we made it to into the city gates, we heard that the morning of the day b efore Northern mounted scouts had reached Five-League Village. It was the first of May. Five leagues we went along the bank and entered Zhen-zhou, outside the walls it was desolate, even ghosts grieved there. We suddenly heard folk on the road saying with a sigh that the morning before mounted scouts had reached the riverside.
The Difficulty of Getting into the City Once we reached the foot of the walls of Zhen-zhou, people who heard about us gazed at us in crowds. We told them that the Grand Councilor Wen Tian xiang had escaped at Zhen-jiang and had fled directly here for refuge. The various officers in command of the city came forward and immediately in vited us inside the walls . Miao Zai-cheng, the governor of the city, met me and welcomed me . We talked for some time about the situation in the coun try, and I was stirred to such rage that I wept. He immediately urged me to
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stay in the official residence, and I was lodged in Qing-bian Hall. After that, my companions arrived. We were led to an officer, who searched our per sons for weapons . Only when it was found that we had none were we trusted. The precautions they took were so strict ! If it had happened that fears and suspicions had run rampant in people's hearts and they had closed their gates and refused to take me in, then where would I have gone in the vastness of this world ? It was a precarious situation indeed. My body light and tossed about into Luan-j iang, the governor greeted me with joy and gave me a refuge . But had they closed their walls, not answering my cries, through this world 'twixt life and death my road would have kept going on.
After the party made it safe l y to Z h e n - z h o u , the governor M i ao Z a i - c h e n g rec eived orders from h i s s u p e r i o r, Li Ti ng-z h i , to have Wen T i a n - x i a n g ki l l ed as a N o rthern spy. Wen ' s d ramatic escape seemed i m p l a u s i b l e without the con n i vance of the Norther ners . U n a b l e to b r i n g h i mself to ca rry out the order of execut i o n , M i ao Z a i c h e n g had W e n evi cted from t h e c ity. Some geog raphy is h e l pfu l here. Wen is in the H u a i regi o n n o rth of the Y a n gz i , d i v i ded i nto two m i l itary d i stri cts, H u a i-dong ( E ast-of-the- H u a i ) a n d H u a i - x i (West of-the- H u a i ) . M i ao u rges Wen to go to H u a i - x i , whose M i l itary Co m m i ss i o n e r is n ot hosti l e to Wen . Wen wants i n stead to go n o rth to Y a n g-z h o u , the center of the H u a i d o n g d i strict, t o meet L i T i n g-z h i a n d c l ea r h i s n a m e . After h i s cou rage fai l s h i m at Yang-z h o u , Wen conti n u es n o rth to G ao-you (or G ao-sha), then tu r n s southeast to ward the coast. The Song a r m ies are s p read everyw h e re i n garrisons, perm itti n g the Yuan fo rces to d efeat them p i ecemea l . It was Wen's hope to u n ite the various re g i o n a l com m a n d s and thereby offer m o re effective resi stance.
from " Leaving Zhen-zhou" (The A ccount of the Compass) On the third day after I reached Zhen-zh ou, Governor Miao said, " After breakfast, take a look at the walls . " I was pleased and agreed to do so. A little while later Commander Lu came and took me to Lesser West Gate, where I could get a good view from atop the wall. Soon after that Com mander Wang arrived, and we strolled outside of the wall. All at once Com mander Wang said, "There is a man in Yang-zhou who has given informa tion against you . " He then took out a dispatch from the Military Commissioner Li Ting-zhi. I examined it, and it turned out that someone who had escaped from the Northerners had given testimony regarding what he had witnessed. He had said, " There is a certain Grand Councilor who 709
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has been sent to Zhen-zhou to betray the city. " Wang was not supposed to have let me see it. As I stood there, upset and shaken, the two commanders suddenly whipped their horses and rode back into the city. Lesser West Gate was shut on me and I couldn't get back in. I stood there outside the walls in complete confusion, not knowing where I would die. That morning I agreed to wear armor and go off to look at the walls, we rode in a group beside the moat, and I sighed at the dust of war. I never expected to be thrown out, locked beyond Western Gate, worn down by troubles in these times, with no one to tell my case. Suspecting that I was in the employ of the Northerners and that Gover nor Miao 's loyalty had been subverted by me, the Military Commissioner, Li Ting-zhi, had sent a supervisor to Zhen-zhou. He said, " It is simply not reasonable that a Grand Councilor could have been able to escape. And even if he had been able to escape, it is not reasonable that he could have brought a dozen men with him. Why didn't you have them shot down with arrows ? Instead you opened the city gates and let them inside ! " His intention was to make Governor Miao kill me in order to show his own loyalty. It was ter rible ! Last night from Yang-zhou a courier came riding, wrongly suspecting and ready to kill, a man who was loyal and good. "No wonder, Governor Miao, that you seem to lack shrewdness the other day you never should have let the gates be opened. " The Military Commissioner wanted me killed; Governor Miao couldn't shield me. Miao was torn between doubting me and trusting me, but his com passion for me was the stronger. As soon as I was lucky enough to escape and reach Zhen-zhou, I had begun discussions on uniting the armies of the two Huai regions to work for the restoration of the dynasty. But Li Ting-zhi, the Military Commis sioner, suspected me of being in the employ of the Northerners and wanted me killed. Everyone in the Southland and in the North knows that I am loyal; only in the Huai region am I not trusted. My reputation and my works dur ing a lifetime of public service have reached nowhere in this area. In the vast ness of this world, to whom can I speak ? I remained outside the gate a long time . Suddenly two men came out. These were Captains Zhang and Xu of the militia. I charged them to give 710
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me an explanation, and the two men said, " Miao Zai-cheng sends you this message: that he has sent the two of us to accompany you and find where Your Excellency plans to go. " I replied that I had no choice but to go to Yang-zhou and see Li Ting-zhi. One of the captains said, " Governor Miao says that you can't stay in Huai-dong . " I said, "I don't know Xia in Huai xi and I have no way to get there. I'll trust my life to Heaven and go to Yang zhou . " Then the two captains said, " Let's get going, then . " After a long time a company of fifty men with bows and swords came along to j oin us. The two captains rode ahead, with Du Hu and I side by side on two horses fol lowing behind. And thus we set out. While I was outside of Lesser West Gate, beside myself with anxiety and with nowhere to turn, my traveling companion Du Hu cried out to the heav ens and almost threw himself into the moat to die right there. Those who had followed me were all drained of color and didn't look like living men; no one knew what to do. I couldn't get back in the city walls, and outside the city there might be unforeseen encounters with soldiers . We stood there on the wild moor with nothing to eat or drink, and I brooded to myself, " How can I die here ? " I paced about, feeling as though I had been stabbed in the heart. Later we got the two captains to go along with us, and Gover nor Miao also sent bundles of clothing and supplies. It was the third day of the month. My fortune spent, perils braved, I escaped the felt-cloaked Mongols, I never thought that a Southern official would be treated like a foe ! I will remember all that happened outside Lesser West Gate, and every year on the third of the month I will weep by the riverside . The captains led us on for several leagues, to a point from which we could still look back and see the walls of Zhen-zhou. All of a sudden, right there in the wilderness, the fifty soldiers suddenly took hold of their swords, halted, and went no further. I came up from behind, and the two captains asked me to dismount, saying there was a matter we had to discus s . The sit uation looked very alarming. I dismounted and asked them what it was they wanted to discuss. They said that we should walk on a ways. When we had walked some distance, they then said, " Let's sit a while. " I thought they were going to kill me right there. I began talking with them. The two captains said, "What happened today was not Governor Miao's idea. In fact, the Mil itary Commissioner Li Ting-zhi sent someone to have Your Excellency killed. Governor Miao couldn't bear to see you harmed, so he sent us to ac company you. But now where do you want to go ? " I said, ''I'm going to Yang-zhou-where else is there for me to go ? " They said, "What if they have Your Excellency killed in Yang-zhou ? " I told them, "No matter-I'll go there 711
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trusting in fate . " The two captains then said, " Governor Miao has sent us to accompany you to Huai-xi. " I replied, " Huai-xi is right across from Jian kang, Tai-ping, Chi-zhou, and Jiang-zhou, all of which have been occupied by the Northerners, and there is no way to get there. I j ust want to meet Mil itary Commissioner Li; and if I can get him to trust me, then I still want to combine the troops to work for the restoration. Otherwise I'll take the road to Tong-zhou and go by sea to the imperial headquarters . " The two captains then said that the Military Commissioner had already refused my plan, and that the best thing for me to do would be to hide out in some stockade in the mountains. I replied, "What good would that do? If I really am meant t o live, then I ' l l live; if I ' m t o die, then I ' l l die . I t will b e decided b y the walls of Yang-zhou . " Then the two captains said, " Gover nor Miao has made a boat ready for you on the shore . Your Excellency should travel by river, and then you can go to either the Southern side or the Northern side. " I was shocked and said, "What's this you're saying ? This means that Governor Miao also suspects me ! " The two captains saw how sincerely I rej ected their suggestion and said, " Governor Miao didn't know whether to believe you or not, so he ordered us to act on our own discre tion. We can see what kind of person you are, a loyal servant of the throne in everything you say. We wouldn't dare kill you. Since Your Excellency is really going to Yang-zhou, our company will escort you there . " It was then that I realized that Governor Miao had not made up his mind and had ac tually sent the two captains to keep an eie on the direction of my speech and then to act on their own discretion. If at any point my answers had not been on the mark, I would have been killed right there in the wilderness and no one would have known anything more about it. It was very upsetting. I took out one hundred and fifty taels of silver I had brought with me and gave it to them for the fifty troops, promising them another ten taels when we reached Yang-zhou. As for the captains, I promised to give them a hundred taels to divide between them. Then we set forth. Out in the moors I dismounted, they asked me where I would go, my life or death actually hung on their personal discretion. Had not those local militiamen been clearsighted in j udgment, none would have known of the puddle of blood unjustly shed.
On the road the two capta i n s tu r n back, l e av i ng Wen a n d h i s pa rty with a n escort of twenty men to acco mpany them to Yang-z h o u ; a I ittle fa rther a l o n g the way, those men too desert and te l l Wen to fo l l ow a ped d ler, who w i l l l ead the pa rty to Yang z h o u . Once h e reaches Yang-z h o u , Wen T i a n - x i a n g has seco n d thou ghts about g i v i n g h i m s e l f u p to the j u dgment of the M i l itary Com m i s s i o n e r who h a s ordered h i s 712
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death . He a n d h i s party turn i n stead to a rou n d a bout ro ute that w i l l b r i n g h i m to the camp of the f l ee i n g Song gove r n m e nt.
from " Reaching Yang-zhou" (The A ccount of the Compass) We traveled by night in complete silence, and when we reached the western gate of Yang-zhou, it was locked up tight. Nearby was a temple to the god San-shi-Iang, with only the walls remaining-it had no roof at all. Our whole party spread out, lying against one another on the ground . The time was already midnight; the wind was cold and the dew was soaking us. Our distress was beyond description. When I had left Zhen-zhou, I really had no place to go and had no choice but to proceed with all haste to Yang-zhou, hoping that I might be cleared of suspicion by the Military Commissioner. But now that we had reached the walls, in the dismal cold of wind and dew, I could hear a deathly, mur derous sound in the drums and bugles. I was left in confusion, not knowing what to do. D epressed that in all Earth and Heaven I have nary a place to go, in wind and dew from Level Mountain, what time of night is it now ? How can I let old Li Ting-zhi have his way with me ? from the high tower come bugles and drums why do they sound so sad? The Military Commissioner had sent orders to Zhen-zhou to have me killed. If I knocked at the gates of Yang-zhou now, I was afraid that he might have me shot. This spot outside the wall was quite close to the Y ang-zi Bridge. But it was dangerous, and there were also patrols. I could neither go on or withdraw. The helmets on the city wall watch me, swords in hands; on the plain all around Turkish horsemen ride circling the town. All my life I never knew the tears that Yang Zhu shed,4 but coming here I understand that either course is hard. Du Hu thought that since Li Ting-zhi wanted me killed, the best course would be to find some spot as soon as possible where we could avoid the 4Th e ancient p h i losopher Yang Zhu was s u pposed have wept at a crossroads, not knowing which way to go.
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patrols for a day, then to make a dash for Gao-you by night and try to reach Tong-zhou. Then we could go by sea back to the Southland, where I might get an audience with the two princes and show my determination to serve the dynasty .5 It would accomplish nothing j ust to die by the walls. Captain Jin Ying maintained that since there were patrols outside the walls and it was five or six hundred leagues before we got to Tong-zhou, there was no way we could get there. It would be better to die by the walls of Yang-zhou than to die after undergoing such hardship . We would still be dying in the South. But he still thought that Li Ting-zhi might not kill us. The ocean clouds are faint and far at the end of the skies of Chu, the dust from Turks fills all the roads, we cannot go as we please. Supposing that some morning we are carried off, captives of war better to throw our lives away and die in Yang-zhou. I couldn't decide whether to go on or stay, and then Yu Yuan-qing brought out a man who sold firewood, saying, " Your Excellency is in luck ! " I asked him, " Can you guide u s t o Gao-sha ? " And h e replied that h e could. Then I asked him, " Where can we hide away for a day ? " He said that his own house would do; and when I asked how far away it was, he said it was twenty leagues or so. I next asked him whether they had patrols or not, and he answered that there hadn't been a single one in the past few days . I asked, "What if the patrol comes today ? " And he answered, " It depends on whether your luck holds . " Beside the road b y chance w e met a man who sold kindling; he said to us he could find the way to take us to Gao-sha. " My own home lies thirty leagues away from here: a nook in the hills where for a while you can shun the dust of war . "
W h i l e Wen was try i n g to decide whether to r i s k ente r i n g Yang-z h o u or to head to G ao-you (Gao-sha), the day was grad u a l l y b reak i n g . Fea r i n g d i scove ry, fo u r of h i s fri e n d s l eft h i m i n i n dec i s i o n a n d set off o n th e i r own . Wen p a n i c ked a n d went off after them, away from Yang-z h o u . 'These were the Prince of Yi and the Pri nce of G u ang, who were i n Wen-zhou , d i recti ng the Song res i stance.
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I had no choice but to leave the outskirts of Yang-zhou and make haste toward the home of the firewood seller. But the sky was gradually getting brighter, and we couldn't go on any further. When we had gone fifteen leagues, there was an earthen-walled enclosure halfway up the hillside, which had once been a peasant's dwelling. It had been thoroughly gutted and had no roof beams or tiles left. In the middle were heaps of horse dung. At the time we were afraid that the Northerners would have lookouts on the heights, and as soon as they saw a band of travelers, they would come in pursuit. All we could do was hide out for a while inside the earthen-walled enclosure. We had bungled very badly in our planning, and our lives were at the mercy of Heaven's will. By starlight we were on our way to the home of that rustic man, then light of dawn spread everywhere, the j ourney seemed too far. In our panic all we found to do was stop halfway up the hill, in crumbling walls, above which lay j ust a cover of white cloud. When we entered the earthen-walled enclosure, the hills all around us were utterly silent and there wasn't even the distant form of a person any where. At the time we had no rice to eat; and even if we had rice, we had no fire where we could cook it. Our money did us no good. On our way we came on a broken hut good only as chicken coop, a plain hut out in the wilderness where even ghosts wept in sorrow. In our sleeves we carried money but had no rice to buy, and even had we plenty of rice, we still had no fire to cook. There was no way to avoid the dung and filth inside the earthen walls. We j ust cleaned out space for a few people. I spread some of the clothing I brought to be between me and the b are ground. I would sleep, get up, then sit back down, get up again, and then lie down to sleep. The day seem to drag on unbearably, and my spirits were beginning to flag.Jt was a terrible situation. As a rule the Northerners send out their patrols only before noon, and then these return separately in the afternoon. We held out from sunrise to the afternoon, at which point we were exhilarated and said, " Our lives have been given to us this day ! " All of a sudden we heard the loud noise of human voices. When we peered out from the wall, it turned out to be several thou sand Northern cavalry heading to the west. At this point I blamed myself 715
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for not dying by the walls of Yang-zhou, but instead letting myself be cap tured here . It was a bitter thing indeed! At that very moment a strong wind suddenly rose, and black clouds came rolling up over us. Then several drops of light rain fell, and the hills grew all murky and black, as if some god were working to rescue us . Tossed here and there, dispirited, I had reached the end of my road, I scratched my head and paced about as the sun drew overhead. Then from nowhere the sounds of men's voices came like a boiling tide, and black clouds burst upon us, and winds were filling the hills. Those several thousand cavalry kept on going, following the curve of the hill, and passed right behind our earthen enclosure. Everyone in our party went white and no one looked like a living person any more. We sat hunched down right against the wall, afraid they might see us through the doorway. If one of those horsemen had ridden in, we would have ceased to be mem bers of the human race then and there. At the time the sounds of the horses' hooves and their quivers were clearly in our ears, with only a single wall be tween. Fortunately it began to rain hard, and the horsemen j ust passed right on. It was terrifying. A s midday ended thousands o f riders suddenly came from the east; we hid away in that broken-down farm, our fate was feather-light. When beyond the wall we heard only the rainstorm in its passage, each of us looked at his shadow congratulating rebirth. There were eight of us in that earthen-walled enclosure: myself, Du Hu, Jin Ying, Zhang Qing, Xia Zhong, Lii Wu, Wang Qing, and Zou Jie . 1t was already past noon and we thought that no more patrols would come. At the bottom of the hill a league away there was an old temple with a beggar woman living in it. There was a well in front of the temple, so I sent Lii Wu and Zou Jie down the hill to draw some water for us. I thought they also might be able to get some rice or vegetables to ward off our hunger a little. A p atrol came by unexpectedly, and both men were captured. They took out the nearly three hundred taels of silver they were carrying and gave it all to the patrol. The Northerners took the silver, and they managed to avoid get ting killed. They came back only after the patrol passed. They wept facing us, but once again we had been lucky enough to get away with our lives.
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Earlier, when we had not been able to go on further with the firewood seller and had consequently gone into the earthen-walled enclosure, I had given the firewood seller the task of going into the city to buy some rice to save our lives. I said, "We can't endure going the entire day without eating. The officials in the city will open the gates in the late afternoon, so when the rice arrives, it will be dusk. " That day, several hundred Northern cav alry made a sortie against the western side of the city. Thus they didn't open the gates and the firewood seller couldn't get out. We were starving and ut terly at a loss as to what to do. Furthermore, we were exposed to the sky in the earthen-walled enclosure and couldn't sleep. Therefore we went down the hill and put up in the temple, to stay there with the beggar woman. Once we reached the temple and before we had settled in, a man carry ing a club suddenly arrived. After some time, three or four others came in one after another. I thought we were not going to get away this time for sure. But then I learned that in fact these men had come from the city to look for firewood by night and then take it back into the city early in the morning to sell it. They had no bad intentions toward us. Several of them cooked up some rice soup and gave what was left to us. That evening one of them, a young lad still in his teens, lit a fire in the courtyard, which shone very brightly. None of the woodcutters went to sleep. I and my friends were worn out and went to sleep. It was beyond description. We stopped that night in an old temple seeking a soup of boiled greens, there were a few woodsmen whose names I didn't know. But the young lad seemed to know that I had troubled dreams he lit a fire of green wood that burned until the dawn.
After ta l k i n g with the wood cutte rs, the m e n agree to take Wen a n d h i s party to the i r vi l l age, fro m w h i c h they set o u t to G ao-yo u .
from " On the Gao-sha Road " (The Account o f the Compass) We had hired mounts and were making swift progress toward Gao-sha by night. After having gone more than forty leagues, we came to a plank bridge and lost the road. All evening long we went through the level fields, unable to tell east from west. Our bodies were soaked all over by droplets of mist in the air, and both we and our horses were worn out and hungry. We sim ply went on through the fog, unable to make anything out. Then in a moment the hills around us gradually brightened, and all at once I saw the shadowy forms of Northern horsemen. There was a bamboo
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thicket by the road, and we hurriedly went into it to get away from them. A moment later there were twenty or so horsemen surrounding the thicket and shouting. The Military Inspector Zhang Qing was hit in the left eye by an arrow; he took two blade wounds in the neck; then they cut off his hair and left him naked on the ground. Wang Qing, an officer in the Ministry of War, was tied up and taken off. When Du Hu and Jin Ying were captured in the thicket, they took out the gold they were carrying, bribed the patrol, and managed to escape. I lay hidden in a spot not far from Du. When the Northern horsemen entered the thicket, they passed right by me three or four times and never saw me. I didn't think I would get out of this alive. Zou Jie, a groom in the Royal Stud, was lying under a clump of small bamboo; a horse had stepped on his foot when passing and he was bleeding. Lii Wu, of the Office of Military Administration, and his personal attendant Xia Zhong, fled to a different spot. I expected that I was surely going to die in this en terprise. When things became most desperate, the wind began howling through all the cracks and crevices of the earth, confusing men's voices. The North erners were in a state of alarm that they hadn't caught everyone and sus pected some god must be aiding us. The horses left. Then I heard them mak ing plans to burn the bamboo, and I hurriedly scrambled toward the hill in front of me, looking for another clump of bamboo in which to conceal my self. Not knowing which road to take and on top of that having nothing to eat, no situation in a person's life could be more desperate than this. A lit tle while later when Lii Wu brought me the news that the Northern horse men had gone back to the Bay, and also let me know that Yu-nian Levee was by the road, I didn't entirely believe what he was telling me.6 Never theless, we had no alternative if we wanted to stay alive, so we did our best to get there as quickly as possible, this being one chance in a million. We were in a panic, scrambling ahead on our hands and knees, unable to walk. When we had made our way out from Yang-zhou previously, there had been three men leading the way and three men bringing along the horses . Now there were only two left, the others having fled or been captured. When those two came out of their daze, each grasped his cudgel and followed after us, with intent to do us harm. We walked on, not sure what to do, but we had no choice. As it grew later, we suddenly came upon several woodsmen, who seemed to have descended upon us like Buddhas. We happened to find a large basket that a person could sit in, and we fastened it with cords . Then we hired six fellows and took turns being carried; in this way we rapidly came out west of the walls of Gao-you. We couldn't cross the river until dawn had come, and we were in constant fear that at any moment horse men would appear, chasing us. We stayed over at Chen's inn, lying on its straw-covered floor and enduring our hunger. In the full light of dawn, we crossed the river and our hearts calmed at last. When a hurt is over, a per son thinks about it, and then tears fall like rain. 6The bay was j u st n o rth of Yang-zhou, where the Mongol army attac k i n g Yang-zhou was encamped.
718
The Song Dynasty
T h i s l o n g story is fo l l owed by a sti l l l o n ge r poem of 1 7 2 l i nes, one of Wen T i a n x i a n g ' s best, i n w h i c h h e rete l l s the w h o l e sto ry i n poet i c fas h i o n . There t h e acco unt conti n u e s .
The Northerners thought that Gao-you had been sending rice to relieve the siege of Yang-zhou, so that night they had sent cavalry from the Bay to cut off all the river crossings, of which Yu-nian Levee was one. If we had n't lost our way that night, we might have reached the levee by two or three in the morning, and then we would have all been caught in their net with no one escaping. I then realized that our panic all evening long and losing our way was also as if the gods and spirits were operating in our midst, stir ring things up . In the aftermath of such chaos, though I felt lucky to still be alive, I wondered what I had done to deserve to be brought to such extreme straits .
from " Reaching Gao-sha " (The Account of the Compass) When we got to Gao-sha, there were very strict precautions against enemy spies . At the time we were using the basket as a sedan chair, and those who saw us felt sorry for us. Moreover, blood was oozing all over Zhang Qing's face, and his clothes were all stained . Everyone knew this was because we had run into the Northerners, and they no longer suspected us of being spies. I heard, however, that Li Ting-zhi had sent documents to all the various com mands informing them tha t the Grand Councilor migh t try to come and be tray their city, and ordering them to be on guard to keep him out. There fore we didn't dare go into the city itself, but quickly bought a boat and left.
Setting Out from Gao-sha At dawn I set out from Gao-sha lying in a barge, a vast extent of level sands, a spreading stretch of waters. The boatman points out for me the shore with roiling mist this very year, North against South, so many battlefields. For a thousand leagues around the level Huai the dune grasses formed into hummocks, rising out of the high sands, bleak and desiccated every where I looked. The waters at Gao-you connected with those of the Bay, going down to Hai-ling and up into Shi-yang, passing Lian-shui County, all belonging to this district. On April 6, there had been a battle at the Cheng zi River in which our army won a great victory. People had pointed out a certain place as being the site of that battle. Beside the Cheng-zi River tangled corpses lie, 719
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the bloody flesh on the south shore is fainter and hard to make out. North and south of the Tai-hang Range, out beyond Yan Mountain, how many are the wandering souls that go chasing the horses' hooves ? 7 When we reached the Cheng-zi River, heaps of corpses covered the moors and there were countless corpses carried along in the current of the river. The stench of rotting was unbearable, and continued up and down the river for almost twenty leagues without interruption. On April 6, Commis sioner Liu Yue and Hong Lei-zhen caught the baggage train accompanying the Northerners; from Ji Family Village they struck its vanguard, and from Gao-you they struck its center. It was a major defeat for the Northerners . Liu Yue died in the battle, and Hong Lei-zhen is now in Gao-you. I've heard it said that since the Northerns entered the Yangzi and Huai area, this is the only battle in which our troops had a major victory. All day long we passed on through piles of white bones, losing a rudder in the current can break a person's heart. Our oarsmen from Hai-ling always look around dread when b oats approach on the water or horses approach on land. As we passed through the battlefield that day, there was an litter still ness in every direction. The oarsmen were edgy, constantly afraid that some one would come forth from the Bay, and also afraid that horses would come after us on land. In the midst of our fear and sense of desperation, the rud der happened to snap, and it took a long time to get it fixed. It was a dan gerous moment indeed. Eventu a l l y , Wen made his way to the seas h o re at Tong-z h o u , then took a n ocean goi n g vessel down the coast to the Song co u rt at Wen-z h o u . H i s loyalty p roven , he was i n vo l ved i n a series of u n su ccessfu l defe n ses aga i n st the advan c i n g Y u a n armies u nt i l early in 1 2 79, when he was recaptu red by Yuan fo rces in G u a ng-dong.
' T h e Ta i - h a n g R a n g e and Yan Mounta i n were i n North C h i na; Wen i s i m ag i n i n g the sou ls o f t h e N o rthern battle d e a d try i n g t o g e t b a c k t o their home l a n d .
720
The Yuan and M i ng Dyn asti es
THE YUAN A N D M I N G D YNAST IES: PERIOD I NTRODUCTION Over the centu ries, N o rth C h i n a had passed t h ro u g h long pe
riods of war, devastat i o n , and conquest by n o n -C h i nese peo p l es, but the Mongol co n q u est of the N o rth in 1 2 3 4 was i n many ways u n i q ue, c h i efl y i n the i n d ifference of the M o n go l s to t h e benefits o f C h i nese c i v i l izatio n-except a s those bene fits served the Mongol war mach i n e . Legend has it that G e n g h i z K h a n c o n s i d e red tu rn i n g h i s new l y co n q u ered te rritory i nto a l a rge pastu re l a n d fo r Mongol pon i es, a n d j u d g i n g from the h i s tory of h i s c o n q u ests, he p robably had the w i l l , the means, a n d t h e ruth l essness to effect s u c h a d ec i s i o n . H e w a s d i ssuaded, the story goes, o n be i n g s h ow n that the C h i n ese t a x syste m wo u l d p rove to be a m o re p rofita b l e use of the l a n d . T h e Mongol c o n q u est of N o rth C h i n a was, l i ke early Mongol c o n q u ests everyw h e re, of stu n n i n g feroc ity, depopu l ati n g enti re reg i o n s . B u t fo r the Confu c i a n i ntel l ectu a l s w h o h ad ru led C h i n a a n d wrote i t s h i story, s u c h mere p h y s i c a l v i o l ence w a s h a rd l y a g reate r affront than the c h a nge i n the i r own status i n the new Mongol h i erarchy of p rofess i o n s-c l ose t o the bottom o f a l i st graded by u sefu l n ess . S l i ghtly better than beggars a n d i nfe r i o r to a r tisans a n d B u d d h i st m o n ks, the C h i nese i nte l l ectu a l s who had comfo rta b l y se rved the J u rc h e n J i n D y n asty saw what h ad seemed a n i m m uta b l e soc i a l order tu r n ed u p s i d e down . When, i n a m i l d e r mood, the M o n go l s c o n q u e red the Southern S o n g s o m e forty years l ater, a n eth n i c h i erarchy p l aced the M o n go l s o n t o p , fo l l owed b y fo re igners from the M o n g o l conquests i n the West, then N o rthern C h i nese, fo l l owed by "Southerners" at the very bottom . Despite the p rofo u n d c u ltural affront, i n South C h i n a the M o n go l s a n d the i r for e i g n h e n c h m e n (such as Marco Polo) were a m e re i rritant. The Mongols, in the i r n ew C h i nese g u i s e as the Y u a n Dyn asty, recogn ized that the reg i o n was a p rofita b l e e n ter p r i se, so t h e y d i s r u pted n e i t h e r com merce n o r patte r n s of l a n d h o l d i n g . Despite heartfe lt regrets about the e n d of the S o n g, ca refu l l y b u r ied i n e l aborate m eta phors, the old Southern Song el ite essenti a l l y rem a i ned in p l ace a n d conti n u ed Southern u rban cu lture l arge l y u n c h a n ge d . The M o n g o l s ' C h i nese capita l a t D a-du ( m o d e r n B e i j i n g ) w a s , however,
a
tru l y
cosmopo l itan c i ty a n d very d i fferent from t h e C h i nese cities o f t h e South . C h i n ese el ite c u ltu re was represented there, yet at the same t i m e a tru l y popu l a r u rb a n c u l tu re fl o u r i shed with u n p recede nted confi d e n ce a n d v i ta l ity. T h e vernac u l a r songs of Da-du d e l i ghted in boast i n g, cau sti c sati re, b u ffoonery, and d i rect e roti c i s m , a l l treated i n t h e I ively a rgot o f t h e c i ty. Voices that h a d been r i go r o u s l y exc l u ded from the deco r u m of e l i te l iteratu re h e re fo u n d express i o n , and these voices g a i ned m u c h o f the i r e n e rgy p rec i se l y because they v i o l ated s u c h r u l es o f decor u m . T h i s w a s a cou nterc u l t u re, a n d we h ave i n d i cati o n s that s u c h a cou nterc u l t u re a l ready e x i sted i n the Song, though its texts were rare l y preserved ; from the Y u a n , h owever, p r i nted songbooks h ave been p reserved, attesti ng not o n l y to the exi stence of s u c h a l itera tu re but that it had beco me a commod ity that cou l d be s o l d in p r i nt to a l iterate read ersh i p . C l os e l y rel ated t o vernac u l a r songs were t h e "variety p l ays," za-ju, each of whose fo u r acts was b u i l t a ro u n d a song s u ite i nte rspersed with d i a l o g u e . The top723
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i c s of these p l ays were l a rge l y s h a red with storyte l l i ng : sto r i es fro m h i story, p a rtic u l a r l y the Th ree K i n gd o m s ; ro m a nces e l aborated from Tang a n d Song c l as s i c a l tal e s ; sto r i es of W u S o n g a n d h i s r i g hteo u s b a n d its from t h e end of t h e N o rthern S o n g ; a n d cou rt cases, i n w h i c h a m ystery i s res o l ved by a wise magistrate . T h e v a r i ety p l ays were associ ated w ith Da-d u ; the Southern c ities h ad th e i r own local d ra m a, d i ffer i n g from variety p l ays in m u s i c a n d stru ctu re . I n contrast to the variety p l ay's fo u r acts, the Southern p l ays were l ong, s p raw l i n g affa i rs with m a n y acts a n d m a n y s i n gers. The ear l i est Southern p l ays, dati n g from the Yuan, were preserved i n m a n u s c r i pt. Var i ety p l ays, h owever, l i ke the songbooks, were fi rst p r i nted in the Y u a n . From the Yuan a l so comes the earl i est p r i nted e d i t i o n of vernac u l a r sto r i e s . B oth storyte l l i n g a n d d ra m a pred ated t h e Y u a n , b u t t h e Y u a n sta n d s o u t a s a moment w h e n vernac u l a r I iteratu re entered p r i nt c u l t u re and became ava i l a b l e in the privacy of one's h o m e as we l l as i n the street. Although it l eft its mark on the C h i nese cu ltural i m ag i n ation, Mongol ru l e of a l l C h i n a l a sted l ess than a centu ry. B y t h e seco n d q u a rter o f the fo u rtee nth centu ry, reg i o n a l rebe l l i o n s were a l ready b rea k i n g out everywhere in response to the i nep titude and corruption of the Y u a n govern ment. A scheme to i s s u e paper m o n ey, fo r exam p l e, l ed to r u n away i nflation a n d econ o m i c d i saster. I n 1 3 5 6 , Z h u Y u an-zhang, at the head of a reg i o n a l army, c o n q u e red the old Southern Dyn asties capital of J i n l i ng a n d u s ed it as a base to defeat oth e r warl ords a n d the Y u a n a rm i es sent aga i n st h i m . I n 1 3 6 8 , the l ast Y u a n em peror abandoned Da-d u a n d f l ed back to Mongo l i a . I n t h e s a m e y e a r a n e w dyn asty, t h e M i ng, w a s proc l a i med, w i t h i t s capital a t J i n l i ng, now renamed N a n j i n g . I n a s u bseq uent re i g n at the turn o f the fifteenth cen tu ry, the p r i m a ry capital was m oved to Da-d u , w h i c h was re named Beij i n g . Z h u Y u a n -z h a n g, t h e fou n d e r o f t h e M i ng, was n o t a n attractive ru l e r : h e was autocratic, b l oodth i rsty, and n a rrow- m i nded . H i s son Z h u D i , who u s u rped the suc cess i o n , was a m atch fo r h i s father. H e exec uted not only the i n d i v i d u a l s who op posed his u s u rpation but the i r fam i l ies a n d associates . It i s s a i d that in respo n s e to Fang X i ao-ru ' s opposi t i o n to h i s taki n g the th rone, Z h u D i put to death a l m ost a tho u s a n d peo p l e-a l l F a n g ' s exte n d ed fam i l y mem bers, fri e n d s , a n d n e i gh bo r s . I n con trast t o the rel ative l y to l e rant emperors of the Tang a n d Song, who expressed d i s p l ea s u re by send i n g offe n d i n g offi c i a l s i n to ex i l e, the M i n g represented a new sty l e of i m per i a l r u l e a n d a degree o f i nt i m i d at i o n t h a t c h a n ged fo rever the re l ation be tween the em peror and offi c i a l d o m . Despite some d i sastro u s wars w ith the M o n go l s i n t h e frontier reg i o n a n d the d e p redati o n s of Japanese p i rates a l o n g the coast, the M i ng was, by a n d l a rge, a pe riod of peace a n d u n precede nted prosperity . Particu l a r acts of i m pe r i a l tyra n n y, and l ater of the tyra n n y of the i m pe r i a l e u n u c h s , had re l atively l i tt l e i m pact o n the c u l tu ra l , soc i a l , a n d eco n o m i c h i story o f t h e d y n asty . O n e s i g n of the confi dence of the n ew dyn asty was a series of s i x i m pe r i a l l y spo n s o red voyages u nd ertaken betwee n 1 40 5 a n d 1 42 2 , com m a n d ed by t h e e u n u c h Z h e n g H e . T h e s e voyages took h i m to South east A s i a, t h e I n d i a n s u bcont i n e nt, a n d u lt i m ate l y d o w n t o Zanz i ba r o n t h e east coast of Afr i c a . The voyages were carried o u t o n a n i m m e n se sca l e : the fi rst i n c l uded a l most 2 8,000 m e n , a n d 6 2 l arge and 255 s m a l l e r s h i ps . The l a rgest of these s h i ps measu red 440 feet i n l e n gth a n d were 724
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1 8 6 feet w i de, m a n y times b i gger than the l a rgest sh i ps i n the su bseq uent E u ropean age of d i scovery . Despite encou nters with p i rates and battles with local r u l ers, the voyages of Zheng H e were a com b i n ation of trad i n g exped itions and d i p l om at i c m is s i o n s . U lt i m ate l y i t was the s h ee r m a g n i t u d e of these exped itions and the e n o r m o u s costs t h e y i n c u rred t h a t led to the i r e n d . U n l i ke the l ate r E u ropean voyages, they were n ot p rofitable o n such a sca l e . Moreover, the E u ropean powers' control of th e i r newly establ i s h e d colon ies took a very d i fferent turn i n t h e C h i nese case, where the spread of traders a n d col o n i sts t h ro u g h out South east Asia was a pri vate u n d ertak i ng that carried the e m i gres away from the control of the C h i nese pol ity. E d u cation s p read rap i d l y in the M i ng , with the " F o u r Books"-Z h u X i ' s com pact selecti o n of the essence of the Confu c i a n C l as s i cs-as the i m pe r i a l l y sanctioned core of the cu r r i c u l u m . The u n p recedented n u m be r of a s p i r ants to p u b l i c offi ce, a l l of whom knew the " F o u r B ooks" by h e a rt, req u i red an exam i n ation syste m that cou l d exc l u d e t h e m aj o r ity. Out o f t h e o l d e r req u i rement fo r t h e com position o f fo rmal p rose developed a new kind of exa m i nation essay cal l ed the " e i g ht- l egged essay, "
ba-gu wen, req u i ri n g a h i g h l y for m a l i zed argu ment i n e i g h t b a l a nced pa rts, deve l o p i n g s o m e Neo-Confu c i a n t h e m e . It w a s a fo rm that i n v ited e rro r a n d awkward ness, th u s offeri n g some common crite r i a fo r grad i n g . The gen re, h owever, tested sk i l l s that were of no practical use fo r the b u re a u cracy, either in m atters of statec raft or i n the d o c u m e ntary e l o q u ence essenti a l to the smooth fu ncti o n i n g of the b u rea u c racy. C l as s i c a l poetry and "old sty le" p rose conti n u ed to be writte n , but contempo rary critics fe lt stro n g l y that these fo rms h ad beco me weak and awkward in com parison to the Tang a n d ea r l i e r per i o d s . Toward the end of the fiftee nth centu ry a new movement arose a m o n g i nte l l ectu a l s , see k i n g the renewed v ital ity of c l a s s i c a l l ite ratu re by the strict i m itation o f earl i e r writers. Several gen erat i o n s of t h e s e i nte l lectu a l s a r e grou ped together a s the " Arch a i sts." The Arc h a i sts bel i eved t h at each of the major gen res of c l as s i c a l l iteratu re had ach i eved a degree of for m a l perfec tion at a certa i n h i stor i c a l moment, a n d that the compos i t i o n s of t h at b r i ef period of flou r i s h i n g shou l d set the i m m uta b l e norms fo r a l l s u bseq uent writers. P rose was s u p posed to h ave reac h ed i ts m o m e nt of perfecti o n i n the Q i n a n d H a n ; poetry i n the "old sty l e " reached perfect i o n in the Eastern Han and Wei ; and reg u l ated poetry reac hed perfection in the H i g h T a n g . I f the aspi r i n g writer confi ned h i m self to these for m a l models, h e wou l d be able to i nfuse them with h i s own s p i r i t a n d concern s . T h e Arc h a i sts' o w n l iterary works were u n i n s p i r i n g i n t h e rea l i z at i o n o f t h e i r age n d a for l ite rary refo r m . T h e i r open advocacy of i m itat i o n produ ced a stro n g cou ntermovement i n t h e l ast part o f t h e s i xteenth centu ry, a n d a n e n d u r i n g h osti l ity t h at rema i n s e n s h r i ned i n C h i nese textbooks o n t h e h i story o f l i terat ure. Despite bei n g a l most u n i versa l l y rev i l ed i n l ater ti mes, thei r m o re s u bt l e i nf l u e n ce was e n o r m o u s . I n a soci ety that had d eve l o ped an i m me n se appetite fo r the fo r m s of el i te c u l t u re, they offered a vers i o n of l iterary composition that co u l d be taught. T h e i r a n thologies, pedagogic i n i ntent, h ad a w i d e c i rc u l ation ; a n d the p o e m s a n d prose p i eces that they sel ected as exem p l a ry m od e l s have rem a i ned part of the l i terary canon to the p resent day. The Ming a l so saw the l a rge, a m o r p h o u s cyc l e s o f pop u l ar sto ryte l l i ng emerge as nove l s . Although s u c h nove l s are conventi o n a l l y ass i g n ed authors, the authors 725
Anthology of Chinese Literature
named a re h i sto r i c a l l y very s u s pect. These nove l s are essenti a l l y a n o n y m o u s , the commerc i a l com p i l at i o n of story cyc les that had evo l ved over centu r i e s . In m a n y cases, t h e y appeared i n n u merous a n d very d i ffe rent ed itions d u r i n g the s i xteenth and seventeenth centu ri es, and modern e d i t i o n s s i m p l y choose the vers i o n they be l i eve to be the " best," on g ro u n d s of p r i o r ity, a m p l itude, o r aestheti c i nteg rity. The old storyte l l i ng cyc l e treat i n g the b rea k u p o f the Han emerged a s The Ro mance of the Three Kingdoms (San-guo zh i yan-yi), trad itiona l l y attr i b u ted to o n e L u o G u an-zhong, the earl i est e d i t i o n o f w h i c h i s d ated t o 1 5 2 2 , fo l l owed by m a n y s u bseq u e n t e d i t i o n s . M a n y s c h o l ars bel i eve that th i s w a s o r i g i n a l l y a Y u a n work. The seco n d of these nove l s is Water Margin (Shui-hu zhuan), attri buted to one S h i N a i - a n ; its earl i est exta nt e d i t i o n a l s o comes from t h e e a r l y s i xtee nth centu ry, a n d i t too was rep r i nted i n m a n y d iffe r i n g commerc i a l ed i t i o n s . T h i s te l l s o f a g ro u p of r i g hteo u s b a n d its at the e n d of the N o rthern S o n g . The th i rd novel is The Journey to
the West (or Monkey; Xi-you ji), attrib uted to Wu Cheng-en, the earl i est exta nt ed i t i o n dat i n g t o 1 5 9 2 . T h i s te l l s t h e sto ry o f t h e Tang m o n k X u an-zang ( a l s o cal l ed T r i p itaka) a n d h i s j o u r n ey to I n d i a to fetc h B u d d h i st scri ptu res, a i d ed by th ree s u pernatu ral d i sc i p l es, the most i m portant of whom w a s the e v e r resou rcefu l " M o n key" (Sun W u - kong) . B ra n c h i n g off from Water Margin c a m e the fi rst o r i g i n a l n ov e l i stic compositi o n : th i s was The Golden Lotus Uin Ping Mei), p robab l y co m p l eted i n the l ate s i xtee nth century a n d fi rst p u b l i s hed i n 1 6 1 7 . L i n ked ta n genti a l l y to o n e of the m aj o r figu res i n Water Margin, it treats the sex u a l escapades o f a powe rfu l m e mber of a l oc a l e l ite, X i - m e n Q i ng, h i s excesses, a n d u lt i m ate d e m i s e . The M i ng a l so s a w the i n c reas i ng pop u l a r ity o f t h e l o n g Southern d ra m a, s p u rred on by the vogue for The L ute (Pi-pa ji), by Gao M i n g ( 1 3 0 5-ca. 1 3 70), a m e l o d ra matic work about a poor but loyal wife who goes in search of her p o l i t i ca l l y suc cessfu l h u s b a n d , who has been compe l l ed to remarry. Southern d ra m a h a d n u mer ous reg i o n a l sty l e s , and a m o n g these a fo rm known as Kun-qu e m e rged d o m i nant in the s i xteenth centu ry. The i m mense popu l arity of these p l ays contr i b u ted to the i r transfo r m at i o n i nto a l i terary d ra m a fo r read i ng a s wel l a s performance. M i n g c u l t u re became perhaps m o re memorable i n the sty l i s h i n d i v i d u a l i s m of its l ast s i xty years than in all the two p reced i n g centu ries of the d y n asty. M a n y schol a r s bel i eve that the fo u n d at i o n of l ate M i n g i nd i v i d u a l i s m can be traced back to t h e i nfluenti a l Neo-Confu c i a n p h i losopher Wang Yang-m i n g ( 1 472-1 5 2 9 ) . Wang Yang m i ng's thought i s too com p l ex to perm it easy c h a racterizat i o n , but perhaps its best known and most i nfl u e n t i a l as pect was the c l a i m that moral categories e x i st with i n the m i nd alone a n d d o not depend o n stu d y a n d the outer fo rms o f Confu c i a n i s m . W a n g Yang- m i ng's foc u s o n i nd i v i d u a l self-c u l tivati o n gave s o m e s u p p o rt t o t h e re m a rkable turn aga i n st soc i a l n o r m s that occu rred toward the end of the s i xteenth centu ry. The eccentri c p h i l os o p h e r Li Zhi ( 1 5 2 7-1 602) entitled h i s works Fen-shu,
Books to Be Burned; in them, he offered a sharp critique of conventi o n a l moral j u d g m ents. H i s most i nfl uenti a l essay, " O n the C h i l d M i n d , " argues that eve ryth i ng gen u i n e fol l ows from an i m med i acy that i s i n herently corru pted by learn i n g a n d soc i ety; t h e a rg u ment i s framed i n a pass i o n ate d efense o f vernac u l ar l iteratu re. L i Z h i was g reat l y ad m i red by the th ree Yuan brothers, the m ost fam o u s of whom was Y u a n H o n g-dao ( 1 5 68-1 6 1 0 ) . Yuan H o n g-dao advocated a poetry of com p l ete sponta n e i ty, by wh i c h a person cou l d g i ve free express i o n to wh atever was natural 726
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with i n h i m . Y u a n H o n g-dao even wrote a p reface for h i s brother's poetry w h i c h de c l a red that h i s b roth er' s fo rmal errors and styl i st i c l apses were more val uable th a n the passages i n h i s works t h a t were beautifu l in a conventi o n a l sense: ord i n ary grace was a fu nct i o n of norms, w h i l e l apses came from the i n d i v i d u a l a l o n e . Y u a n H o n g-dao a l so s i n g l ed out the crude popu l a r s o n g s o f the v i l l ages a s b e i n g t h e m o s t pe rfect o f the dyn asty's l iteratu re. This led to a vog u e in col l ecti n g popu l a r song, most nota b l y by Feng Meng- I o n g ( 1 5 74-1 646) . Feng p u b l i s hed two co l l ecti o n s o f s u c h songs, t h e most fam o u s o f w h i c h , t h e "Mou nta i n S o ngs" (Shan-ge), was com posed i n Wu d i a l ect. The fra n kness of th e i r e roti c i s m was fe lt to be an ex press i o n of " n at u ra l " fee l i n g . F e n g Meng- I o n g was w i d e l y i n vo l ved in ed iti n g a n d pu b l i s h i n g vernac u l a r l ite ratu re, o f w h i c h th ree co l l ecti o n s o f vernac u l a r stories are best known. The age was fasc i n ated with qing, a term that ran ges from the more del i cate "sen timent" to "pass i o n . " Qing was often p a i red with the m otif of " d ream," b r i d g i n g the wo r l d of the sen ses a n d that of the m i nd ; d ream somet i m e s cast a haze of i l l u s i o n aro u n d t h e expe r i e n ce o f qing a n d someti mes became t h e m e a n s b y w h i c h it cou l d b e rea l i zed i n t h e worl d . Both qing a n d d ream were stro n g l y associ ated with t h e p l ays of Tang X i an-zu ( 1 5 5 0-1 6 1 7 ) . Tang's Peony Pa vilion (Mu-dan ting) was the most popu l a r l ite rary work of h i s day, a n d its cel ebrati o n of l ove gave it a near-c u lt sta tu s . I n Peony Pavilion, a you n g wo m a n fa l l s in l ove in a d ream, then d i es of l o n g i n g, o n l y to retu rn to l i fe when h e r d ream l over appears i n the flesh a n d takes u p l od g i n g near h e r grave . The c u l t of Peony Pa vilion was s h a red as m u c h by women as by m e n . L i teracy among e l ite women m ade g reat adva n ces in the M i n g . T h e n u m b e r of fem a l e writ ers i n c reased, a n d these writers looked back to the meager s u rv i v a l s i n earl i e r l iter atu re to estab l i s h a trad ition of wom e n ' s l iteratu re. The h e ro i nes of the d ay were the great cou rtes a n s of N a nj i n g ; poets and co n n o isseu rs, th ey p a rti c i p ated fu l l y i n the artistic l ife of the c i ty and recei ved the ad u l ation of l iterati throughout the e m p i re . T h e fortu nes o f t h e M i n g were, h owever, com i n g t o a n e n d . F a m i n e a n d wide spread corruption weakened the fab r i c of the state, a n d in the 1 6 3 0 s there were a n u m be r of u p r i s i ngs that the gove r n m e n t h a d d i ffi c u lty contro l l i n g . Beyo n d the G reat Wal l in the N o rtheast, a non-C h i nese peo p l e-the M a n c h us-had fo rmed a h i g h l y d i sc i p l i ned state a n d m i l itary m ac h i ne, a n d h a d ga i n ed the a l l eg i a n ce of the l a rge popu l ation of C h i nese frontiersmen l iv i n g in the reg i o n . In 1 644, the m ost pow erfu l of the C h i nese rebel a r m i es, commanded by Li Zi-cheng, e ntered B e i j i ng, a n d t h e M i n g em peror co m m itted s u i c i d e . The story goes that o n e o f L i Z i - c h e n g ' s g e n e r a l s took t h e beautifu l Yuan-yuan, prom i sed as a concu b i n e t o Wu San-gu i , t h e M i ng general h o l d i n g the fortificati o n s i n the N o rtheast aga i n st the a r m i es of the M a nc h u s . I n rage, Wu San-g u i opened t h e passes a n d i n vited i n t h e M a n c h u s, w h o q u i c k l y defeated L i Z i - c h e n g befo re turn i n g t o s l o w l y con q u e r t h e rest o f t h e cou ntry. They p roc l a i med their new dynasty the Q i n g .
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Y u a n Ve r n ac u l a r So n g
I n 1 1 2 7 , the Song Dyn asty l ost the N o rth to the n o n - C h i nese J i n Dynasty, a d i v i s i o n that i nte n s i fied t h e c u ltural g a p between N o rth a n d South C h i n a that had been g row i n g over centu r i e s . The Mongols, who repl aced the J i n Dyn asty in the N o rth, esta b l i s h ed Da-du (modern B e i j i n g) as the i r C h i nese capital in 1 2 64, a n d a few years l ater p roc l a i med themselves as a new d y n asty, the Y u a n . D u r i n g the Y u a n , Da-du deve l o ped a f l o u r i s h i n g urban c u ltu re, o n e that seems to h ave p r i d ed itself on its vigor and rou g h n es s i n contrast to Southern refi nement, w h i c h its i n h a b itants ofte n saw as effete. T h e former t u n e s of song l y r i c s from the N o rthern S o n g capital of K a i fen g were c a r r i ed s o u t h a n d became a n ossified I iterary form in the S o u t h e r n Song. Some of t h o s e s a m e N o rthern S o n g m e l od i es a n d new ones went fa rther n o rth a n d reappeared i n Y u a n D a-du transformed . T h e s e Y u a n pop u l a r song l y r i c s a re c h a r acterized by new themes, a new to ne, a n d a stri k i n g use of N o rthern ver n ac u l a r C h i nese. S i nce t h e s a m e m e l o d i e s were u sed in the aria s u i tes of Yuan v a r i ety p l ays, the vernac u l a r l y r ics were c a l l ed " i n d e p e n d e n t songs" (sa n-qu). Some of these songs appear as s i ng l e s h o rt lyrics; others appear in sets to the s a m e tune, m a k i n g vari ati o n s on a s i n g l e theme; sti l l others occ u r i n s u ites of d ifferent m e l od i e s , work ing together j u st l i ke the song s u ites t h at fo rmed the core of a n act in a Yuan va r i ety p l ay. These song s u ites cou l d be long l y r i c s , b u t many were n a rrative or d ramatic m o n o l o g u e s . G u a n H a n -q i n g, w h o f l o u r i s h ed i n the l ast p a rt of t h e th i rteenth centu ry a n d i nto the fou rteenth, w a s b o t h a d ra m at i st a n d a l y r i c i st of ve r n ac u l a r s o n g ; h e w a s a l so the g reatest m aster of the rough c i ty s l a n g of Da-d u . He a l so o bv i o u s l y l oved Da-d u ' s u rban cu lture. H i s most fa m o u s song s u ite, o n the theme of " not g i v i n g i n t o o l d age," a s s u m e s t h e v o i c e o f a n o l d rake c e l e brat i n g l ife i n t h e ente rta i n m e n t q u a rters o ft h e c i ty-d r i n k i n g , gam b l i n g , a n d above a l l e n j oy i n g its cou rte s a n s , the "fl owers" a n d " w i l l ows" d e s c r i bed b e l ow . S u c h a s u ite s h o u l d n ot be taken as a " rea l i stic" portrait of G u a n H a n-q i n g or of anyone e l se, b u t as repre senti n g a new set of v a l ues in s o n g, a n a n t i - h e ro who i s ad m i red n ot fo r the q u a l i t i e s h e c l a i m s to possess, b u t fo r t h e way i n w h i c h he b o l d l y c l a i m s those q u a l i t i e s o f w h i c h s o c i ety d i sapprove s . H e p o rtrays h i m s e l f a s defiant, c a n n y, a n d a s u rv i v o r . T h e conventi o n a l v a l u e s at w h i c h he s n u b s h i s n o s e are n ot s i m p l y p ro p e r Confu c i a n soc i a l mores; h e a l so mocks the convent i o n a l v a l u e s o f t h e p l ea s u re q u a rters a n d i t s l ove affa i rs . G u a n H a n -q i n g i s not the S o n g l y r i c i s t w h o sta n d s w i th h e s i tant l o n g i n g before the h o u s e of the b e l oved : h e tel l s u s at the out s e t that h e h a s e n j oyed them a l l . 72 8
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Guan Han-qing (late 1 3th-early 14 century ) , to "A Spray of Flowers" ( Not Giving In to Old Age ) I've plucked every bud hanging over the wall, and picked every roadside branch of the willow. The flowers I plucked had the softest red petals, the willows I picked were the tenderest green. A rogue and a lover, I'll rely on my picking and plucking dexterity 'til flowers are ruined and willows wrecked. I've picked and plucked half the years of my life, a generation entirely spent lying with willows, sleeping with flowers.
to "Liang-zhQu " I'm champion rake of all the world, the cosmic chieftain of rogues . May those rosy cheeks never change, let them stay as they are forever. For among the flowers I spend my time, I forget my cares in wine; I can: swirl the tealeaves, shoot craps, play checkers, do a shell game. And I know whatever there is to know about music in every key nothing sad ever touches me. I go with girls with silver harps on terraces of silver, who play upon their silver harps, and smiling, lean on silver screens. I go with j ade white goddesses and take them by their j a de white hands, then shoulder to j ade white shoulder, we go upstairs in mansions of j ade. I go with girls with pins of gold who sing their songs of golden threads, who raise their golden drinking cups and golden flagons brimming full. You think I'm too old! Forget it! I'm the best known lover anywhere, I'm center stage, I'm smooth, 7Z '}
Anthology of Chinese Literature
sharp, too! I'm commander in chief of the brocade legions and garrisons of flowers . And I've played every district and province.
to Ge-wei You boys are baby bunnies from sandy little rabbitholes on grassy hills, caught in the hunt for the very first time; I'm an 01' pheasant cock plumed with gray; I've been caged, I've been snared, a tried and true stud who's run the course. I've been through ambushes, pot-shots, dummy spears, and I never came out second-best. So what if they say: "A man is finished at middle age " you think I'm going to let the years j ust slip away?
Coda I'm a tough old bronze bean that can still go baing, steamed but not softened, stewed but not mush, whacked but not flattened, baked but not popped. Who let you boys worm your way in to the brocade noose of a thousand coils that you can't chop off and you can't cut down and you can't wriggle out and you can't untie ? The moon of Liang's park is what I enjoy, Kaifeng wine is what I drink, Luo-yang's flowers are what I like, Zhang-tai's willows are what I pick. Me, I can: recite poems, write ancient script, 730
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play all stringed instruments woodwinds too; and I can: sing "The Partridge, " dance " Dangling Hands, " I can hunt play soccer, play chess, shoot craps. You can knock out my teeth, scrunch up my mouth, lame my legs, break both my hands; but Heaven bestowed on me this gift for vice in each assorted kind, so still I'll never quit. Not till Yama the King of Hell himself gives me the call, and demons come and nab me, my three souls sink to Earth below, my seven spirits float away into the murky dark, then, Heaven, that's the time I'll walk the lanes of misty flowers no more.
Although we find the p ractice earl i er, in the Yuan, M i n g, and Q i n g it became com mon for writers a n d anyone with cu ltural p rete n s i o n s to take pseu d o n y m s . S i nce writ ers often gave names to the l i braries or "stu d ios" where they worked, one of the m ost popu l a r k i n d s of pseu d o n y m s was the " stu d i o n a m e . " Z h o n g S i -c h e n g , the fou r teenth-centu ry co n n o isseur of theater a n d vernac u l a r song, n a med h i s stu d i o fo r what he fe l t was h i s most outsta n d i n g trait.
Zhong Si-cheng ( 1 4th century) , from a song sequence to "A Spray of Flowers " (A Word About Ugly Studio) I. to
"A
Spray o f Flowers "
Born to dwell between Earth and Sky, endowed with humors of D ark and Light, and given a man-child's body, I was sure to make my way in the world. Whatever I did would have gone all right, and each particular suited me. 73 1
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But comments provoked one point of contention: friends old and new, no matter who, snicker when they catch sight of me.
II. to "Liang-zhou " Because my looks don't meet wide commendation, my inner merits can't appear as they please; half a life's writing brings no compensationfor nothing my breast holds rich tapestries, and my lips drip pearls of poetry. I can't help this ashen complexion, the missing teeth, the double j owls, added to which are eyes like slits, the narrow brow, a too short space 'twixt nose and lips, and scraggly wisps of thinning hair. If only I could have gotten Chen Ping's pure and j a delike glow, He Yan's handsome, gallant features; if only I could have gotten Pan Yue's splendid looks and figure. And I know the real reason why ! I'm sick of facing my mirror each morning, and furious at Mom and Dad for not having tried their very best! Should the day ever come when a royal decree summons the homely to serve the state, I guarantee I'll top the list.
III. to Ge-wei There are times at those idle moments as evening draws nigh at the back door I stand with a winged black hat of gauze on hair piled sky-high, and jet black boots sticking out from my gown that brushes the groundthen all of a sudden I start to laugh. I look like what?a modern-day queller of demons, Zhong Kui, who could not frighten a ghost away.
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IV. to "Sheep-Herding Pass " If the hat is askew, friends can blame you; but a face unappealing is nobody's failing; it's true, as they say, men honor appearance, and a dignity of face invites a certain deference. I think about this lying in bed and rage rises in my heart: I've lived these thirty years in vain, nine thousand times it's been on my mind j ust like knots in lumber you can't plane smooth, a congenital illness no remedy can soothe.
V. to "Congratulating the Groom " Whatever can run in this world can't fly, no matter how much goes your way, no matter how gifted and clever you be in quiet times I understand the meaning of this for me, and secretly comfort myself this way. I have no urge to see the frontier or by a pool to stroll: the fish in the pool would dive in fear, and frontier geese would fly off in alarm, and if I went to park and grove even the commonest birds would flee. They'll paint me no portrait while I live, and dead, they'll write no poems for me.
IX. Coda I'll always recall one night in the rain when the lamp had j ust gone out, the autumn wind blew over my bed, and I was still far off in dream. There I met someone, he asked me j oin him,
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and he said that I was meant rise high. " Having been a Confucian scholar, you were to hold office as well; a man who could take it easy, with a fine eye for detail too. But there was a certain moment when best-laid plans went awry; and since your body was formed thus, regret can remedy naught. I can only bring it about that you receive an ample salary, have many children and grandchildren, a good marriage, plenty of property, a well-stocked granary, good fortune added, and great longevity. I came here on purpose j ust to let you know. Soon I'm going to leave you, and beg your forgiveness . " A t last h e heaved a few sighs in a moment of remorse. On waking I remembered him, remembered who he washe was that very demon who shaped me in the womb back then and made me: unhandsome.
Vernac u l a r song lyrics started out in the songs of the ente rta i n ment q u a rters, a n d m a n y of t h e extant san-qu treat the wor l d o f ro m a n ce a n d t h e cou rtes a n s . Some times bawdy, sometimes com ic, sometimes mere l y coy, s u c h l y rics are l ight a n d often d e l i ghtfu l p i eces .
Xu Zai-si ( 1 4th century) , to " Dead Drunk in the East Wind"
(Chen-zui dong-feng)
My sweetheart and I had long been apart, I didn't know when we'd meet again. Then all of a sudden I saw him today passing right in front of my door. I was going to shout, then worried that people around would stare. 734
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So I sang out right then and there the popular " River Melody , " t o let him know b y the voice i t was me.
Although the q u a l ities of such songs often evaporate o n refl ect i o n (and u s u a l l y i n tran s l at i o n ) , m a n y depend o n the s u rp ri s i ng p l eas u re 0 f vernac u l a r u s age, especi a l l y when a conventi o n a l l a n g u i d l y " poetic" s ituat i o n i s s u d de n l y n atural ized, both i n l a n g u age a n d sentiment.
Bo Pu ( 1 226-after 1 3 0 6 ) , to " Victory Music " (De sheng yue) I walk here all alone, I've walked a trail into the ground, and back and forth a thousand times I've walked in vain. Won't you hurry up and let me know. Come on, don't make me hang around till dawn !
Many of the N o rthern vernac u l a r songs were senti m e n ta l l ove songs, c h u rned out fo r the commerce of the ente rta i n ment q u a rters; others were s o n g setti n gs of com mon p l ace poetic m ater i a l . There was a l so a w i t a n d i ro n y that was rel at i v e l y rare i n c l as s i c a l poetry a n d the o l d e r song l y r i c .
Qiao Ji ( d . 1 345 ) , to Lii-yao-bian, Of Myself I didn't graduate in the top ten, I'm not in " The Lives of Famous Men . " Now and then I'm Sage of Beer, I find zen of poetry everywhere. A cloud and mist valedictorian, the drunken immortal of lakes and the river. In conversation, witty and clevermy own kind of Royal Historian. After forty years I still endure, of life's finer pleasures, connoisseur.
In the e a r l y 1 2 60s, a b u tterfly of remarka b l e s i ze was s i g hted i n Da-d u . T h i s was the stuff of ve r n ac u l a r song. N ot o n l y did it ca l l to m i nd t h e conve n t i o n a l assoc i ation of the butte rfl y as the ga l l ant you n g rake tast i n g "flowers" (courtesans), but the mem ory of Zhuang Zhou's fa m o u s " b u tterf l y d ream" was i r re s i st i b l e (see p . 1 2 2 ) . 735
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Wang He-qing ( late 1 3th century) , to "Heaven Drunk" (Zui-zhong Tian), Big Butterfly It came crashing out of Zhuang Zhou's dream, its two mighty pinions mounted east wind. Three hundred famous gardens were every one picked clean who would ever have thought it was such a man about town ? It terrorized the honeybees chasing blossoms' scent, and when it gently flapped its wings, it fanned a gale of flowersellers east across the bridge. Vernacu l a r s o n g d id n ot, I ike most c l assical poetry and the o l d e r song l y r i c , avo i d t h e b o d y a n d p h y s i c a l l ove . Someti mes it w a s m e r e l y titi l l at i n g , somet i m e s obscene, and often com i c, as i n Wang H e-q i ng's l itera l l y " reversed " vers i o n of spen d i ng the n i ght in bed with h i s g i rlfri e n d .
to " Helped Home Drunk" (Zui fu gui) My lips were squeezed against her glossy coils of hair, her back lay pressed against my breast hardly what they call " sweet cheeks nuzzled everywhere . " I had t o heave m y plaintive sighs into the nape of her neck. I never saw her face all night, my vIew: her ivory comb's backside.
Lan Chu-fang ( 1 4th century? ) , to " Four Pieces of Jade " (Si-kuai yu), Passion I am utterly bumbling,l she is as homely as can be; but no matter how bumbling and homely we've fallen deep in love. Because she's homely, her heart is true, which makes a bumbling fellow like me care for her all the more . ' I n the context of Yuan u rban culture, " bu m b l i ng, " l itera l l y, "rustic," could perhaps best be trans l ated by the American s l a n g term "nerd. "
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Such a homely lover and such a bumbling mate make a match found only in Heaven. One of the favo rite songs was Yi-ban-er, l itera l l y, "A H a l f." Lyrics to th i s song usu a l l y c o n c l u ded with the l i n e s : "half one th i ng, h a l f a n other." Although apparently triv i a l , the s i gn ificance of th i s song's pop u l a r ity l i es in its i nterest in cond itions that were i nte rmed i ate or made up of contrad i cti o n s ; espec i a l l y when a p p l ied to h u ma n fee l i ng, it m arked, l i ke Y u a n i ro n y, a grow i n g i nte rest in the c o m p l ex i ty of h u man behav i o r a n d fee l i n g .
Guan Han-qing, to " A Half" (Yi-ban-er) Cloudy coils of hair and hazy tresses, blacker than piled crows , with a rustling of crimson satin a golden lotus foot shows . No common flower over the wall is quite so pleasing: you tell off your good-for-nothing lover and half of you is furious, and half of you is teasing.
Xu Zai-si, to " Moon Palace " (Chan-gong qu), Spring Passion I had never felt longing all my life, no sooner do I feel it now than longing brings me injury. My body, like a cloud adrift; the heart, like willow catkins flying, my force, like spider's floss drifting in air. Only a thread of incense smoke remains still here, And I, wondering where my high-class lover has gone. Precisely when did the symptoms first appear? when the lamp had half dimmed its light and the moon had grown half bright. Although ve r n ac u l a r song h ad its beg i n n i n gs i n u rb a n e n terta i n me n t q u a rters, l iter ary men soon u sed it to evo ke i d y l l i c r u ra l scenes. 737
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Zhang Ke-jiu (ca. 1 2 8 0-after 1 3 4 8 ) , to " Someone Leaning on the Balustrade " (Ping-Ian ren), By the Lake Far-off waters, sunlit skies bright with colored wisps of cloud sinking away. Ancient shore, a fishing village where fishing rafts are spread. The azure curtains of a tavern keeper's home . A painted bridge where willow catkins blow.
Guan Yun-shi ( 1 2 8 6-1 324 ) , to " Clear River " (Qing-jiang yin) I gave up what little status I had and went awayit makes the heart feel good! Beyond white clouds laughter's heard. And if a few true friends and I drink ourselves sick, who cares at all ! Our drunken sleeves go dancing and we loathe a universe that seems too small.
Vernac u l a r song took over and "tra n s l ated" i nto i ts own i d i o m many of the sta n d ard themes and types of c l as s i c a l poetry and ear l i e r l iterary song. The fo l l ow i n g i s a stan d a rd occas i o n , writi ng a poem o n a fam o u s a n c i e n t s i te; in th i s case, Tong Pass, w h i c h guarded the a p p roach to C h a n g-a n .
Zhang Yang-hao ( 1 2 70-1 329 ) , to " Sheep on the Hillside " (Shan-po yang), Thoughts on the Past at Tong Pass Here peaks and ridges seem to mass, wa ves of the ri ver seem enraged, into river and hills and out again goes the road through Tong Pass. I gaze toward the Western Capital, it gives pause to thought. This spot that Qin and Han marched past breaks the heart, towers and chambered galleries turned to dirt all. The common folk suffered when kingdoms rose; 73 8
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
the common folk suffered when kingdoms fell.
The Yuan Dyn asty began in brutal ity and e n d ed with a sense of corru pti o n and i n eptitude that went beyo n d even t h e i nfam o u s l y fai l e d l ast re i g n s of earl i e r dynasties. C l assical poetry may have d i rected barbed i ro n ies aga i n st those in power, but the u n s u btl e sarcasm of the fo l l ow i n g anonymous ve r n ac u l a r song was a l most u n i q u e . T h e " R iver Proj ect" w a s a m a s s i ve p u b l i c works ente r p r i se o f 1 3 5 1 t o b u i l d a trans port c a n a l to Da-d u . The i ntrod uction of paper m o n ey caused r u n away i nflation and com b i n ed with oth er facto rs to wreck the eco n o m y .
Anon. , to " Drunk in an Age of Peace " (Zui tai-ping) Glorious is our Mighty Yuan !all power is held by vile men. The River Proj ect and paper cash were root cause of our doom, driving millions to insurrection. Laws that govern slacken, laws that punish, stern, the common folk burn in rage: men eat men, cash buys cash, things never before seen. Thieves hold public office, officials turn to thieves, good men are confused with fools, a sad state indeed.
Ma Zh i -y u a n (1 2 6 0-1 3 2 5 ) Writers of l y r i c s for vernac u l ar song rare l y s h ow the k i n d of s a l i e n t perso n a l ities that we f i n d in c l as s i c a l poetry a n d even i n S o n g l i terary song l y r i c . Rather t h a n i n d i v i d u a l ity, the i r p referen ces appear i n the range o f themes a n d sty l e s t h at vernac u l a r song offered . These l y r i c i sts often assumed t h e voi ces o f conventi o n a l roles, not u n l i ke t h e ro l e s provided i n drama. G u an H an-q i ng m a y b e d i st i n ctive for h i s l ove of city s l a n g and the c u l t u re of the d e m i monde, a l ove w itnessed in both h i s plays a n d i n h i s l y r i c s . Ma Z h i -y u a n appears from h i s p l ays a n d songs as s o m e o n e with rath e r m o r e " l iterary" p references, though l ittl e more of h i s l i fe i s k n o w n than o f G u a n H a n q i ng's. O n e parti c u l a r l y pop u l a r for m of san-qu w a s the s h o rt l y r i c descr i b i n g a scene, perhaps re l ated to the poet i c v i g n ettes of rural I ife fou n d i n the Southern Song a n d contem porary Y u a n q u atra i n s o n pai ntings. The m o s t fa m o u s s h o rt s o n g l y r i c o f the 739
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Yuan is j u st s u c h a s i m p l e desc r i pti o n . It is often prai sed i n trad i t i o n a l critical te rms for its h a n d l i n g of sta s i s (jing) and motion (dong).
to " Heaven Pure Sand" (Tian jing shay, Autumn Thoughts Withered vines, old trees, twilight crows . Small bridge, flowing water, people's homes. Ancient road, the west wind, gaunt horse. The evening sun sinks westward. A man, broken-hearted, on a far horizon.
to " Shou-yang Melody " (Shou-yang qu), Clearing Haze at a Market in the Hills Past the village filled with flowers, west of the thatched tavern. Wisps of cloud brighten in late afternoon, the rain stops, the heavens clear. Hills all around within the fading light of the sun hanging low in the sky. To this brocade screen is added another swathe of azure green.
to " Shou-yang Melody " (Shou-yang qu), A Sail Returns to the Distant Shore The evening sun goes down, tavern streamers calm. Two or three b oats have still not yet touched the shore. Waters smell sweet from fallen blooms, a thatched cottage late in day. Beside the broken bridge, each fishseller goes his way.
to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu), Evening Bells in a Misty Temple Chilly mist hangs thin, the ancient temple pure . Nearing dusk the sounds grow still from people praying to Buddha. Borne with the western wind, a bell late in the day rung three or four times. 740
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It will not let the aging monk remain deep in his meditation .
to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu), Evening Sunshine in a Fishing Village The rapping of mallets ends,2 in twilight sunbeams flash. By a levee with green willows come sounds of fishermen's songs. At several homes, from scrapwood gates, hang idle nets drying in sun. All are snatched up within this picture of catching fish.
to " Shou-yang Melody " (Shou-yang qu), Autumn Moonlight on Lake Dong-ting Clouds veil the moon, breeze plays the chimes: two different kinds of enhancement for my gloom. I trim the silver lamp wick to write what's in the heart, then give a long moanthe sound blows out the flame. The fo l l owi n g s u i te of seven songs, one of M a Z h i - y u a n ' s most fa mous, beg i n s with the c a l l to seize p l ea s u re w h i l e you can, a n d e n d s with the praise of the s i m p l e l ife .
A Suite on Autumn Thoughts I.
to
"A
B oat Going by Night" (Ye xing chuan)
The time passed in life's century, a dream of a butterfly. Looking back, all that happened brings a sigh. Spring comes today, tomorrow flowers fall. Hurry to offer another toast night ends, the lamplight burns away. 2The m a l l ets are u sed to frighten the fish i nto the nets.
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II. to "Tall Trees Far Away " ( Qiao-mu yao ) I imagine Qin's palaces, the towers of the Han, all have turned to meadows now where sheep and cattle graze. How else would woodsmen and fishermen ha ve their tales to tell ? Although great stone inscriptions lie broken on their grassy tombs, I can't make out the serpentine words.
III. to "Celebrating the Xuan-he Reign " ( Qing Xuan-he) They have come to fox tracks and rabbitholes, so many proud and daring men. The Three Kingdoms then, a tripod's legs however strong, cracked midway. Was it Jin ? Was it Wei ?
IV. t o "The Wind That Brings Down Plum B lossoms " ( Luo-mei-feng) If Heaven makes you richbe not too intemperate. Yet fine days, fair nights last not long. Then, rich man, let us say your heart is stingy, hard as steel how could you j ust throw away pleasures of moonlight and breeze in your brocade hall ? V.
to " Wind Enters Pines " ( Feng ru song) Before my eyes the crimson sun sinks again to the west, fast as a wagon rolls downhill. Just look in your mirror tomorrow at dawn, a further increase of snow white hair. You'll get in bed and say farewell forever to shoes left on the floor. Mock not the dove's incompetence because it borrows another's nest. I bumble along and always play the fool.
VI. to "Keep Stirring Things Up " (Bo-bu-duan ) Fame and profit are done, should's and shouldn't's are gone .
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The world's red dust can never lure me out my door. Green trees are the perfect cover for roof's corner, and green hills fit the broken ledge in my garden wall . And so much more !my thatched cottage and bamboo hedge.
VII. to "Feast at the Pavilion of Parting" ( Li-ting yan sha) The crickets' chirping stops, I wake comfortable and snug; but when the rooster crows come cares in thousands never ceasing. When will it be through ? I view ants parade in packed maneuvers, . chaotic swarms of bees that brew honey, and the furious din of horseflies seeking blood. The Green Meadow Hall of Lord Pei Du, Magistrate Tao at White Lotus Club.3 These things I love when autumn comes: to pick chrysanthemums mixed with dew, to split purple crabs with frost within, to burn red leaves to warm my wine. I think in our lives the cups will pass a limited number of rounds, and how many times in all comes the autumn festival? I charge my servant to keep in mind: if Kong Rang comes seeking me,4 tell him he'll find me utterly drunk by the eastern hedge .
3Pei D u , one of the great m i n i sters of the early n i nth centu ry, eventu a l l y reti red to h i s estate c a l led G reen Meadow H a l l , where he held famous parties for I iterary men. Magistrate Tao is Tao Q i a n , w h o , accord i n g t o one erroneous legend, w a s assoc iated w i t h the m o n k H u i-yuan's famous "Wh ite Lotus C l u b . " 4Kong Rong, an i n te l l ectua l and l iterary man o f t h e Th ree K i ngdoms period, w a s s u p posed t o h ave said that he h ad no worries as long as h e had ample guests and the w i necups were never e m pty.
743
Va r i ety P l ays : G u a n H a n -q i n g ,
Rescuing One of the Girls (jiu feng-chen)
Written d ra m a i n C h i n a appeared in the context of a n estab l i shed theatr i c a l p rac tice that was m u c h o l der. In the u rban c u ltu re Song and J i n dyn asti es, the skits a n d popu l a r m u s i c a l ente rta i n m ents of earl i e r p e r i o d s grad u a l l y assu med m o re com p l ex
a n d exte n d ed forms, wi t h sto r i es developed i n s u i tes of songs a n d i m p rovised d i a l og u e . In N o rth C h i n a d u r i n g the Yuan Dynasty there deve loped a k i n d of p l ay cal l ed a "variety p l ay , " za-ju, con s i st i n g of fou r acts, u s u a l l y with an add i t i o n a l s h o rt act known as the "wedge . " The core of each act was a s i n g l e s u ite of songs in the same m u s i c a l mode, all sung by o n e of the l e ad i n g c h a racters. B etween the songs, and often i nte rru pti n g them, w a s spoken d i a l ogue. The mate r i a l o f s u c h p l ays. w a s much
the same as th at o f u rb a n storyte l l i ng : great h i sto rical sagas, v i rtuous b a n d i ts , l ove stories from Tang ta l es, detective stories featu r i n g the c a n n y and v i rtuous J u dge B ao, a l o n g with some l i vely stories of u rban l ife, of w h i c h Rescuing One of the Girls is a n exa m p l e . The re l at i o n between s u r v i v i n g p r i nted e d i t i o n s o f variety p l ays a n d t h e rea l i ty of theatrical p ractice is a co m p l i cated q u esti o n . Though the songs, com posed by the "dramat i sts , " prov ided a degree of sta b i l ity, such p l ays were a l most certa i n l y not per formed from scri pts . Rath er, they were conti n u a l l y c h a n ged in reperformance by the p rofess i o n a l acto rs, b u i l d i n g o n the stre ngths of a parti c u l a r tro upe and respo n d i n g t o t h e needs a n d i n s p i rati o n o f t h e performance. The earl i est p r i n ted vers i o n s o f s u c h p l ays, d ati n g fro m t h e th i rteenth centu ry, conta i n o n l y t h e songs, w ith m i n i m a l stage d i rect i o n and h i nts of d i a l og u e . The fu l l e r ed i t i o n s of Y u a n variety p l ays, i n c l ud i n g the p resent text of Rescuing One of the Girls, a re M i n g recreat i o n s i n writi n g of a com p l ete variety p l ay performance. B y i ts very n atu re, theater i s a h i g h l y artif i c i a l med i u m . Read e rs a n d theatergo e rs of d i fferent trad itions become u sed to the conven t i o n s of the i r own d rama, a n d its a rtifi c i a l ity seems l ess str i k i ng; but when a read er encou nters a p l a y fro m another c u l tu re, conventi o n a l d ra m atic devi ces can d i s r u pt the i l l u s i o n . Variety p l ays h ave m a n y s u c h i ntru s i ve devices. F i rst and fo remost a re the songs that fo rm the core of each act ( i n the tran s l ation bel ow, the melody titles that m ake up the song s u ite h ave been o m i tted ) . When c h aracters m a ke th e i r entrance they i ntrod uce themsel ves, often rec i t i n g a verse that i d e ntifies t h e i r type. S ituat i o n s are ex p l a i ned rather than grad u a l l y revea led, as i n m ost Western d ra m a . C h a racters come a n d go o n the stage with l ittl e regard fo r the u n ity of p l ace, and when they are go i n g to u n d ertake some acti o n , they often d e c l a re w h at they a re d o i n g to the a u d i ence, as was necessary i n a theatr i c a l trad i t i o n that u sed few stage props. F o r exa m p l e , when a c h a racter i s about to enter a h o u se, h e o r s h e w i l l dec l a re, " I 've come to so-and-so's h o use; I ' l l
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go in now." F i n a l ly, c h a racters repeated l y s u m m arize the sit uation before add i n g some n e w comment. Very l ittl e i s known about G u a n H a n-q i ng's l ife . H e worked in the l ast part of the th i rteenth a n d fi rst two decades of the fo u rteenth century. More than any of h i s conte m porary d ra m ati sts, G u a n H a n -q i n g seems t h e voice o f t h e city c u l t u re of Oa du (now B e i j i ng), a m i l itant "cou ntercu ltu re" in both its l a n g u age and values. A play l i ke Rescuing One of the Girls represents someth i n g gen u i n e l y new in the C h i nese l ite rary trad ition . There is a tou c h i n g moment in Z h ao Pan-er's fi rst a r i a when she s i ngs of the l ife of a cou rtesa n ; she says (see p. 749) that if she married,
I'd pretend to act like an honest woman, to work at submission and be a good wife; but I can't help being what I am, j ust a no-good dancehall girl, . fickle in heart and always meaning other than what I say. And how would the last act end ? The p u b l i c v a l u e s of N eo-Confu c i a n i s m d e m a n ded absol ute s i n cerity. The cour tesa n , however, is p rofo u n d l y corru pted by a l ways know i n g better, see i ng hypocri sy, conce i v i n g of stratagem s and a l te r n atives . She is worl d l y and she knows too m u c h , b u t th i s c u rse o f lost i n nocence t u r n s o ut, i n a corrupt wo r l d , t o b e Z h ao Pan-er's v i rtue. S h e i s , perhaps, the fi rst true "anti-h ero" in the C h i n ese trad i t i o n . Good e n d s a r e ach i eved by l ies. Zhao Pan-er's l i es t o the v i l l a i n Z h o u S h e m i ght be j u stified, but s h e a l so bends the truth bad l y befo re the v i rt u o u s m a g i strate . Confu c i a n s oc i a l v a l u e s a re n ot t h e o n l y targets i n t h e p l ay : t h e convent i o n a l val ues o f C h i nese ro m a n ce a re attacked, too, though they w i n out in the e n d . G u a n H a n -q i n g's p l ays a r e crude, a n d except fo r t h e patri otic sentiment o f c r it ics that wou l d m a ke h i m "the C h i nese S h akespeare , " the o bv i o u s coarseness of h i s work c a n b e too eas i l y d i s m i ssed . G u a n H a n - q i n g i s n o S h a kespeare, w h o cou l d sta n d between cou rt a n d com mons, speak i n both wo r l d s , a n d tra nscend both . I n
Rescuing One o f the Girls, G u an H a n-q i n g reve l s i n t h e com m o n . T h e re i s n oth i n g pretty about h i s world, a n d good i s rel ative, meas u red aga i n st caricatu res o f evi l . The c o u rte san's w i les are set aga i n st a re l atively h o nest beastl i ness, a n d we a p p l a u d h e r v i cto ry. T h i s w a s t h e h o rror o f l ate i m pe r i a l c i v i l izat i o n , w i t h i t s obses s i o n with gen u i ne n ess-that the l i e may be h u m a n l y bette r than a n o d i o u s truth . The c u sto m s of sex u a l co m m e rce i n l ate i m pe r i a l C h i n a d i ffered i n s i g n ificant ways fro m those i n the West. N o n e of the ava i l a b l e E n g l i s h words q u ite fits the s i t uation, be i n g either too ro u g h or too san itized . The borrowed F re n c h term "demi
mondaine" is c l osest to the statu s of the women i n Rescuing One of the Girls. The women of the C h i nese enterta i n ment q u a rters were performers, s i n gers, a n d d a n cers; however, there is very l ittl e reference to a rti sti c accom p l i s h m ents h ere (except per haps in Song Y i n-zhang's ta l e nt fo r n u d e somers au lts) . These women were a l so cou r tesans, w h o made the i r l iv i n g by s e l l i ng rom a n c e as m u c h as sex, a n d they often looked to bei n g bought out of the b u s i ness a n d i n sta l l ed as m i stresses or secondary wives. The l a n g u age of marri age is a l ways u sed in these transact i o n s , but because
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s u c h rel ati o n s h i ps were not sanctioned by the m a n ' s parents, they d i ffe red fro m the fam i l y a l l i a n ces of " reg u l a r" marri ages . The woman was enti re l y s u bj ect to the m a n ' s good w i l l : he cou l d either th row h e r out ( a s Z.h ao P a n - e r anti c i pates Z h o u She wi l l d o with S o n g Y i n -z h a n g) o r keep h e r aga i n st h e r wi l l (as Zhou She i n fact does) .
ACT I
Enter ZHOU SHE. ZHOU SHE [recites] : Thirty years gorging and guzzling, two decades lucky with girls; all my life I've never bothered with costs of room an d board, on booze and women I spend my cash. The name's Zhou She. My family's from Zheng-zhou and I'm the son of a lieutenant governor. I've hung out in the dancehalls ever since I was a youngster. Here in Kaifeng there's a singer named Song Yin-zhang. She's got her heart set on marrying me, and I've got my heart set on marrying her. The only thing is that her mother won't go along with it. I've j ust gotten back from a business trip, and I guess I'll go to her place now to see her mother and bring up this question of our getting married. [Exit]
Enter MRS. SONG and SONG YIN-ZHANG. MRS. SONG: I'm from Kaifeng. I was born a Li, but I'm a Song by marriage . My husband passed away some time ago. My daughter here, Yin-zhang, is all I've got left in the world. This girl of mine knows all there is to know about fast-talking and playing on words . Zhou She from Zheng-zhou has been her man friend for some time now. The two of them want to get married. I've tried every trick in the book to put a stop to it. [to SONG YIN-ZHANG] Listen Yin-zhang, it' s not that I'm just trying raise difficul ties in this marriage to Zhou She----I 'm just afraid you're going to have a bad time of it later on. SONG YIN-ZHANG: Don't worry, Momma. I've really got my heart set on mar rying him. MRS. SONG: All right, all right, go ahead and do what you want.
Enter ZHOU SHE. ZHOU SHE: Here I am at their door. I'll go right in. [Greets them] SONG YIN-ZHANG: Zhou She, you're here! ZHOU SHE: I came right over to find out about us getting married. What's your mother say ? SONG YIN-ZHANG: My mother says it's okay. ZHOU SHE: Well then, I'll go see her. [MRS. SONG comes in and greets him. ] I came right away to find out about getting married to Yin-zhang. 746
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MRS . SONG: It's a lucky day today-I'll go along with this, but don't go treat ing my daughter badly ! ZHOU SHE: I would never treat my girl badly. Come on, Momma, you go invite all the other girls and their friends while I go get things arranged . MRS . SONG [to YIN-ZHANG] : Honey, you stay and take care of things here while I go invite all the girls. ZHOU SHE [recites] : I've spent all my energy for years, today at last our wedding nears . SONG YIN-ZHANG: It was all destined to work out this way. MRS. SONG: But you can't always tell what will happen in love. [Exeunt
omnes] Enter AN XIU-SHI . AN [recites]: I failed m y exams like Liu Fen, a thousand years of rue; yet like Fan D an I keep my goals, poor my whole life through. I figure that if Heaven ever has its way, a man of books and learning it surely won't betray. The name's An Xiu-shi, from Luo-yang. I've studied Confucian texts since I was little, and I'm full of learning. My trouble is that all my life I've never been able to take my mind off drinking and girls. When I came to Kaifeng there was a singer, Song Yin-zhang, who became my girl friend. She originally wanted to marry me, but now she's going to marry Zhou She instead. Her best friend is Zhao Pan-er. Why don't I go see her now to try to get her to talk Song Yin-zhang out of this. Is Zhao Pan er home ?
Enter ZHAO PAN-ER. ZHAO: Zhao Pan-er's the name. I heard someone calling for me at the door. I'll go open it and see who it is. [ Greets AN] I wondered who it was it's you! Why are you here ? AN: I came all the way here because I want you to do me a favor. Yin-zhang was originally going to marry me, but now she's going to marry Zhou She instead. And I want to see if I can get you to talk her out of it. ZHAO: D idn't she promise to marry you first? How can she want to marry someone else now ? This marriage spells trouble for sure!
[Sings] Dancehall girls keep men company, we chase after money all our lives 747
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for our " retirement plan"we can't waste time with winning ways j ust to show how much we care for some man that has our heart. I think when it comes to marriage, your timing can't be off, not a moment, not an instant. How did he catch her fancy ? How did they get to meet? Even if she's headstrong, and headlong to get it done as soon as she can, she may well regret it later and hit herself on the head. We seek happily-ever-after's, to quit and settle down, but it's j ust like the blackest ocean where it's hard to find your way. In my view you'll never know another's mind, you'll never outsmart Heaven's design. If "marriages made in Heaven" depended on j ust a "you" and "me, " who wouldn't want to pick a person j ust to suit her fancy ? She may pick her way through millions but if she wants an honest man, she'll probably search a lifetime and never find a mate; but if she wants to marry a handsome, clever man, she'll probably end up dumped, quite casually, halfway along the way. Then whether she's dunked in dog-piss or left on a piles of cowpies, she'll find herself suddenly flat on her face and then when she finally opens her eyes, j ust who will she have to blame ? I can think of some married j ust a few days their looks were wrecked, they were gaunt as ghosts. But they couldn't explain and couldn't complain, 748
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
they j ust cried in vain. I've seen some good-looking girls, hot for marriage, who met some hard-hearted men and spent their lives sleeping alone I think the whole thing sucks. I can tell you what it would be like if I were to get married to one of my clients. AN: What would it be like ? ZHAO [sings]: I ' d pretend t o act like a n honest woman, to work at submission and be a good wife; but I can't help being what I am, j ust a no-good dancehall girl, fickle in heart and always meaning other than what I say. And how would the last act end ? I may live in the lanes of the demimonde, in the streets of willows and flowers, but nothing comes cheap to me. I don't fleece clients with phony wares, but they are out to gain whatever little edge they can; corrupt of morals, every one, false in action, rash in deed. If a guy has visited me a few times, and then I don't ask him for money, he'll think, " This girl's a golddigger. " He'll j ust think I'm not coming clean, he'll say: the girl means to bamboozle me. Some women love to be dancehall girls, and some love to be mistresses. Ladies who run a household throw tantrums for nothing at all; we are merchants of illusion, with an eye to earn interest on our capitalbut if one of us gets married, soon she comes to feel the jab behind the feint. And that's a girl who cannot learn from another girl' s blunder. You sit here a while, and I'll go try to talk her out of this marriage. Just don't be too overj oyed if I succeed, and don't be too disappointed if I don't. 749
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AN: I won't stay. I'd rather go home and wait there to find out how it goes. Do the best you can for me. [Exit] ZHAO PAN-ER walks over and greets SONG YIN-ZHANG. ZHAO : Are you going out to pay a call, Yin-zhang ? SONG YIN-ZHANG: No, I'm not going out-I'm going to get married. ZHAO: Well now, I've come j ust this moment to put in a good word for a man you can marry. SONG YIN-ZHANG: Who's that? ZHAO: An Xiu-shi, the scholar. SONG YIN-ZHANG: Marry An Xiu-shi-me ? We 'd end up playing beggarman and beggar's wife ! ZHAO: Then who do you want to marry ? SONG YIN-ZHANG: I'm marrying Zhou She. ZHAO: Listen, isn't it a bit soon for you to be getting married ? SONG YIN-ZHANG: What's too soon about i t ? It's " Hey, baby ! " today and " Hey, baby ! " tomorrow-a big pimple to squeeze all the pus out of. ! But when I'm married, I'll be a "Mr. Zhang's wife " or a "Mr. Li's spouse. " If I could have the title o f a proper wife, I think it would b e great, even if I had to die and become a ghost. ZHAO [sings] : Before you act you'd better think, then think it through again. Right now you're young and green, I'll find you another man, and take my time . For your part it's easyj ust keep snug as a bug at home; from your very best friend this sincere admonition: I don't think you could stand the man's disposition. A man who's a husband can't act like a lover, and a man who's a lover can't act like a husband. SONG YIN-ZHANG: Explain that to me. ZHAO [sings] : "A man who's a husband can't act like a lover"she doesn't know what that means. A lover can be j ust a hollow facade, a man who's a husband is honest inside. SONG YIN-ZHANG: But Pan-er, Zhou She dresses so nicely, and he's really cute. T T h i s metaphor is based on a pun: da-jie ("Hey, baby," l itera l ly, "big s i ster"), the way one add resses a s i n g i n g g i rl , and the homophone "big p i m p l e . "
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ZHAO [sings] : Even if that fellow wore a dung beetle's shining shell, what does he understand of relationshi ps in families ? Why do you want to marry him ? SONG YIN-ZHANG: I want to marry him because he treats me well. ZHAO : And j ust how does he treat you well ? SONG YIN-ZHANG: There's something for every season of the year. During those little naps I love to take in summertime, he fans me; and in winter he warms the covers for me and helps me rest comfortably. When I go off somewhere to pay a call, he fixes the collar ties on the clothes I wear and straightens my hairpins. And it's because he treats me well in things like this that I want to marry him with all my heart. ZHAO: So that's why ?
[Sings] Now I've heard how you really feel, the reason you do what you do, and I can't stop a bit of a smile. So he fans you to sleep in those hot summer months and in winter he warms things updo you think he's worried you'll catch a chill through your thick clothes ? And when you're eating h e takes a spoon to get out the gristle and skin; when you go out, he ties your collar and straightens up your clothes and in your hair arranges the pin. But all of this is j ust false show that girls never see through, but fall more deeply in love. You think your love's sweet as honey, but once you're married and in his house, he'll probably dump you in less than a year. He'll soon bare his teeth and curl his lip, whack with fists, kick with feet, and beat you till you're left in tears . Your boat will be in mid river then, too late to fix the leaks, and who will you have to blame ? First think things through, or you'll be sorry. 75 1
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I can't talk you out of this now, but a day will come I'll have to figure out how to save you from helpless pining. Yin-zhang, if things go bad for you later on, just don't come complain ing to me. SONG YIN-ZHANG: Even if I were condemned to die, I wouldn't come com plaining to you.
Enter ZHOU SHE. ZHOU SHE: Spread out the wedding gifts, boys, so we can admire them a bit. ZHAO : Is this guy that j ust came in Zhou She ? If he doesn't say anything to me, I'll let it be; but if he says j ust one word, I'll give him a piece of my mind. -ZHOU SHE: So this is Zhao Pan-er ? ZHAO : That's right. ZHOU SHE: Please, have something to eat and drink. ZHAO: You-inviting me to eat something ! I'm so hungry at home my cheeks are gaunt-oh no, there's nothing in any of my cooking pots. You think it's an autumn moon shining in the cellar, that I've never seen food like this! ZHOU SHE: Look, I have something I'd like you to do for me, Miss. Would you vouch for the person I'm going to marry ? ZHAO: Vouch for whom? ZHOU SHE: For Song Yin-zhang. ZHAO : What do you want me to vouch for ? Her needlework? Her cooking ? Her embroidery ? Her ability to furnish the bridal chamber ? Her sewing? Her ability to raise children? ZHOU SHE: [Aside] This bitch has got a mean tongue on her. [to ZHAO PAN ER] Everything's all set anyway, so I don't need you. ZHAO : Then I'm leaving. [Goes out door]
Enter AN Xru-SHI. AN: How did your talk with Yin-zhang go ? ZHAO: I got nowhere. AN: In that case I'll be off to the capital to take the examinations. ZHAO: Don't go just yet. There's something in which I'm going to need you. AN: I'll go along with you. I'll stay here in the inn to see what you come up with. [Exit] ZHAO [sings] : That girl's a monster, a demon, a temptress who trips men updon't be too sure those are legs in her pants; and when we spit out our blood for her, she thinks it's j ust red dye . Don't believe all the sweet-talk you hear. 752
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
She hates you so she would easily gouge out your eyes she's only happy if you stick close to her all the time.
[Aside] I hope she comes to her senses quickly. Our poor Shuang-lang, scholar lover, had a golden tiara ready for her and cloudlike cape.
[Aside] He had the great lady in his hands, But instead, because of a tea seller's fortune, she married the merchant Feng Kui.2 [Exit] ZHOU SHE: Now that we've said goodbye to your mother, get in the sedan chair, and we' ll be off to Zheng-zhou.
[Recites] No sooner out of the courtesan's gate than you are the wife of a decent man. SONG YIN-ZHANG [continuing] : What's got me worried is: when I bear the abuse of this " decent man, " I'll think of becoming a whore again. [Exeunt] ACT II
Enter ZHOU SHE and SONG YIN-ZHANG. ZHOU SHE: I've ridden horses all my life, and now I've fallen off trying to ride an ass. I j ust about wore out my tongue trying to get this woman to marry me. I had her get into the sedan chair, I got on a horse, and we left Kaifeng on our way to Zheng-zhou. I let the sedan chair go on ahead because I was afraid that the better class of people would make me the butt of their j okes and say, " Zhou She has married Song Yin-zhang. " Then I see the sedan chair bouncing u p and down. S o I go up ahead, give the guys who are carrying it a flick of my whip, and say, " Are you try ing to put something over on me ? " And I ask them, " Why are you mak ing it bounce ? Just carry it! " And they say, " It's not our doing-we don't know what the young lady is up to in there. " When I lift the sedan chair curtain and take a look, I see her stripped down to the buff, turning som ersaults. Then, when we get to my house, I tell her, " Sew up the quilt ing so that I can sleep under it. " I come into the room and I see a quilt standing on end, as tall as the bed. So I shout, " Where are you, woman ? " And I hear a n answer from inside the quilt, "I'm here, Zhou She, inside the quilt. " So I say, "What are you doing inside the quilt ? " And she says, 'Zhao Pan-er here i s a l l ud i ng to a popu l a r l ove story in w h i c h S u X i ao-q i ng was in l ove with the scholar S h u ang-j i an (or S h uang-Iang), but was forced to ma rry the tea merchant Feng K u i . S h uang j i an, after getting office, finds a poem s h e has l eft, and eventu a l l y rescues her.
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"I was sewing in the cotton stuffing, and 1 got myself stuck inside some how . " 1 pick up a stick and am j ust about to hit her when she says, " It's no big deal if you hit me, Zhou She, but don't hit old Mrs . Wang next door . " And 1 say, " Great! You've got the neighbor in there too ! " SONG YIN-ZHANG: 1 never did any such thing! ZHOU SHE: 1 haven't told the half of it. 1 may beat you to death with my own hands, you bitch, but I'm never going to sell you off or let you buy your way out. I'm going off to get something to drink now, and when 1 come back I'm going take my time beating you up. [Exit] SONG YIN-ZHANG: You always get in big trouble if you don't believe what a good person says . Zhao Pan-er tried to talk me out of this, but 1 would n't listen, and no sooner did we get inside his house than he hit me fifty times j ust to teach me a lesson. He beats me and yells at me morning and night, and I'm sure I'm going to die at his hands. There's a peddler next door named Wang who's going to do some business in Kaifeng, and I've written a letter for him to take to my mother and Zhao Pan-er to have them come get me out of this. If they take too long, I'm not going to be among the living. Heaven! You're letting me get beaten to death ! [Exit]
Enter MRS. SONG, crying. MRS. SONG: I'm Song Yin-zhang's mother. My daughter went and married Zhou She, but yesterday Wang the peddler brought me a letter, and in it she writes, " No sooner did we get inside his house than he hit me fifty times j ust to teach me a lesson. Now he beats me and yells at me morn ing and night, and pretty soon I'm going to die. Please beg Pan-er to come get me out of this as quickly as she can . " I'll take the letter to Zhao Pan er to let her know and to see how we can get Ying-zhang away from there. Poor little Ying-zhang, you're going to be the death of me. [Exit]
Enter ZHAO PAN-ER. ZHAO PAN-ER: The name's Zhao Pan-er. I keep wondering when I'm going to be able to get out of this way of making a living.
[Sings] Getting married has been on my mind these past few years, and I've heard how some girls paid their indenture and some girls were bought free. They made themselves suck up to rich men and never realized that rich men will break a dancehall girl and lightly toss her aside . Every one of them, eyes bulging wide, is like fish dumped from a net; every one of them, lips in a pout, 754
The Yuan and Ming D ynasties
is like pigeon shot from the air. No planting them in the Royal Park, those common roadside willows, and no respectable household will ever put up with a whore. At first men always mean it a little, but in the long run it never works out well. Who has not wedded impetuously? or leapt at the chance of married life ? and then who hasn't been carelessly dumped? We are bubbles ali, adrift on the waters, each one after another. We make our own folks into enemies, so mad they won't see us again, like sun and moon or opposing stars, each rising as the other sets, when we get caught in men's snares. They show every form of ardent passion, thousands of kinds of love and care until, in the end, the slate is wiped bare.
Enter MRS. SONG. MRS. SONG: This is her house. I'll go in and find her. [Greets her] Pan -er, I'm terribly upset ! ZHAO : Mrs . Song, why are you crying like this? MRS. SONG: Let me tell you. Yin-zhang didn't listen to your advice and mar ried Zhou She anyway. No sooner did she get inside his house than he hit her fifty times j ust to teach her a lesson. Now he's beating her within an inch of her life, and she can't last much longer. What are we going to do? ZHAO: So, Yin-zhang's being beaten.
[Sings] I think back when she secretly married,3 I feared they would never get along. The things I said then that needled her now have all come true. It was only last autumn you left. He was the most shiftless of all shiftless men, but you thought he really loved you and that you both would be j oined fast. 3The "secrecy" p robably refers to Zhou S he's parents.
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So you spread out the lovebird covers and hung up the phoenix drapes, hoping it would last like Heaven, endure as long as Earth; but once you step past the threshold and know what he's like, you're through. I've watched this sort of thing many a time, and now it's no business of mine, the whole thing's out of my hands.
[Aside] But Zhao Pan-er . . . You're in a situation where if you let her die and don't save her, you'll be shamed forever for failing the oath of sisterhood we swore. So that's how it's turned out. Who let you marry him ? MRS. SONG: But Pan-er, Zhou She promised . . . ZHAO [sings] : D oesn't each of them put on a woeful face and claim he's going to die ? But when it comes right down to it, doesn't each of them change his mind halfway ? You're the courtesan's all-too-honest mother what young men say when they want a girl is the same the whole world overZhou She is not the only liar. Doesn't each of them point to Heaven, all kinds of vows he swearsvows soon done, like autumn winds blowing past the ears. MRS. SONG: But Pan-er, how are we going to save my daughter ? ZHAO: I've got a couple of bars of silver stashed away. We'll take those and go buy her away from him. MRS. SONG: But he said he'll beat her to death rather than sell her off or let her buy her way out. ZHAO PAN-ER thinks a while, then says something in MRS . SONG'S ear. ZHAO: . . . It's the only way. MRS . SONG: But can you bring it off? ZHAO : Don't worry. Let me have a look at the letter . [MRS . SONG hands her the letter and she reads] : " D ear Momma and Pan-er. I didn't b elieve your good advice and now I've ended up in big trouble. As soon as I got inside his house he hit me fifty times j ust to teach me a lesson. Now he beats me and yells at me morning and night, and I can't t ake the abuse any more. If you come soon, you may see me again, 756
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
but if you delay, you'll never see my face in this world a gain.
Yin-zhang. " Oh Yin-zhang, what got into you to do this in the first place?
[Sings] I think on how it used to be, when one of us worried, we worried together,
when one was in sorrow,
our sorrows were shared.
Now she tells me she'll soon be gone, buried on some grassy hill,
a ghost who roams back alleys
begging for gifts of village wine-
you told me that after you're gone . . . Well, dear sister, didn't you yourself say, "It's Hey, baby! this and Hey,
baby!that-a big pimple to squeeze all the pus out of. " Better to get mar ried and be a Mr. Zhang's wife or a Mr. Li's spouse.
[Sings] If I could be known as a proper wife.
it would be great, even if I had to die and turn a ghost.
Mrs. Song, has the man who brought the letter gone yet?
MRS. SONG: Not yet. ZHAO: I'll write a letter and send it to Yin-zhang. [Writes and sings] I'll compose this letter myself to send her all my love,
and tell her not to let
a word of my scheme leak out.
I'll send it to that once reckless and now repentant girl,
give greetings to the sufferer
whose body aches all over.
Didn't I try to talk you out of it, Yin-zhang? But there really was no reason
you should find such a brute, thrashing you heartlessly with his stick till your fresh red blood oozes down, spending each morning in your home like a criminal on death row-
I'm sure you're not long for this world.
What's more, you're living so far away in Zheng-zhou
that no one can watch over you, 757
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so it couldn't be helped that these awful things came about.
MRS. SONG [weeping]: How can my poor daughter stand it? How are you going to get her out of this, Pan-er?
ZHAO: Don't worry, Mrs. Song.
[Sings] Just to make you bear it better
I'll come up with another plan
I'll fix up these cloudy coils of hair and wispy tresses,
[Aside] and then on again with my gown of brocade, with its coral hooks and lotus buttons,
I'll go wiggle my hips
and be oh so sexy.
I'll make these powdered cheeks of mine rescue your daughter-cadaver,
I'll risk myself, in spite of all, so let him curse me and curse some more. I'm not just talking big now-
he'll never escape the hands of this whore!
MRS. SONG: Keep a sharp eye out and be careful when you get there, Pan er. [Weeps] Oh daughter, you're going to be the death of me!
ZHAO [sings]: Just stop your heart from fretting, relax those worried brows,
I'll pull it off and bring her back without a hitch.
That bastard's girl-chasing heart . will come like a puppy to me,
trying to show how clever he is. When I get there, I'll talk to him a little, and if he'll sign the divorce pa
pers, that'll be it. But if he won't sign them, then I'll give him a few
pinches here and a little fondling there and a few hugs and a few squeezes
till his whole body melts like butter and goes completely numb. It will
be like rubbing a little sugar under his nose, and the guy will try to lick
it but he won't be able to get to it, and he'll try to bite it, but he won't be able to reach it. I'll trick him into signing the divorce papers, and once
Yin-zhang gets hold of the divorce papers, she'll be out of there in a flash. And at that point I'll make my own exit. [Sings] And won't it be a sensational scene
when I make this man give her up! [Exit]
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ACT III
Enter ZHOU SHE and INNKEEPER. ZHOU SHE [recites]:
Everything's set by destiny,
no point in working-life drifts by.
Nothing but pretty women and wine
can ever fluster this heart of mine.
Listen, boy, when I had you open this establishment, it wasn't because I had an eye to get money for rent to take care of my family. If a good
looking woman comes to the inn, just call me-no matter whether she's on the government payroll or in business for herself.
INNKEEPER: Got it. But since you're always on the move, where am I going to find you at any particular time?
ZHOU SHE: You can find me in the whorehouse.
INNKEEPER: And if you're not in the whorehouse? ZHOU SHE: You can find me in a gambling den.
INNKEEPER: And if you're not in a gambling den? ZHOU SHE: Then you can find me in jail. [Exit]
Enter the errand boy ZHANG XIAO-XIAN with suitcases. ZHANG XIAO-XIAN [recites]: I make my living with cleated boots and umbrella to keep off the rain, my living is made passing love notes that tell of secret passion.
I'm not an idle person, so I never get to be idle,
and even when I have idle time, I'm incapable of idling.
Zhang Xiao-xian's my name, which means "Just Slightly Idle. " I've
never been involved in regular business, but whenever a singer or one of
the girls needs someone to pass messages back and forth between lovers,
I'm always the one they call. This time Zhao Pan-er had me pack two
suitcases of clothes and things to go to Zheng-zhou. Everything's set, and it's time to mount up, Miss.
Enter ZHAO PAN-ER. ZHAO: Xiao-xian, do you think I can make that guy hot for me dressed up like this? [XIAO-XIAN falls down] What are you doing?
ZHANG XIAO-XIAN: You don't need to worry about making him hot for you-this time even I've melted down!
ZHAO [sings]:
I really feel bad for her,
worries fill my breast;
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she's gotten herself in a mess with no way out.
That woman was hot-headed, she didn't think it through,
and now I've got to make myself play
one of that troupe who lead souls astray.
I'll puff my breath ever so slightly,
and set his heart aflame,
I'll make him kick the traces,
go bolting out of the stall.
And I'll make out that he's a lover like no one else in the world.
Thinking this up is easy enough, but no small thing to bring off,
and many's the time I would have preferred not to interfere;
it's the old lady I'm sorry for first, having no one to support her;
and second, being so used to the road, I've a special pity for travelers;
and third-well, craving
a
drink myself,
I take pity on a drunkard.
So once we get there,
I'll give it my heart and soul. And here as I've been talking we're already in Zheng-zhou. Xiao-xian, take the horses while I stop here a while in the shade of this willow.
ZHANG XIAO-XIAN: Sure.
ZHAO: Just making idle conversation, Xiao-xian, but you know that people
from good families behave well, while people from the wrong sort of fam ilies have bad habits.
ZHANG XIAO-XIAN: Tell me what you mean.
ZHAO [sings]:
A high-class lady's a high-class lady;
a dancehall girl's a dancehall girl. So what if she struts 'cross the threshold wiggling her hips,
she can't stop him bossing her around and making her into a slave-
and she has to put up with it silently. Good families powder their faces
lightly and with good taste, unlike us, who gob it on; good families comb out their tresses, with a slow and gracious ease,
unlike us, who just untie hairbands 760
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
leaving deep marks on the chin.
Good families well understand degrees of intimacy and reserve,
and know how to observe
when to be distant, when to comply it's a sort of breeding that's quite distinct.
It's nothing like us at all-
m,onkeys locked in empty rooms, with a thousand deceitful wiles,
with a million sham persuasions-
you can never get rid of the ways of a whore.
ZHANG XIAO-XIAN: Here's an inn. Let's stop here.
ZHAO: Call the innkeeper. [INNKEEPER greets them] Get a nice clean room ready for me and put my bags in it, then go ask Zhou She to come see me-tell him I've been waiting here a long time.
INNKEEPER: All right.
INNKEEPER walks away, calling out: Zhou She, where are you?
Enter ZHOU SHE. ZHOU SHE: What's going on? INNKEEPER: There's a good-looking woman at the inn asking for you.
ZHOU SHE: Well, let's get going, then!
Greets ZHAO PAN-ER. [Aside]: Now here's a good-looking girlie.
ZHAO: Good to see you, Zhou She.
[Sings] My friend's got a good eye for men, and she must have good luck too
she's spruced up her splendid husband even more splendidly,
right in the prime of his youth. ZHOU SHE: Now where have I met you? It was at a bar. You were playing the zither. And didn't I give you a strip of brown silk?
ZHAO [to ZHANG XIAO-XIAN]: Did you ever see that happen?
ZHANG XIAO-XIAN: I've never seen you with a strip of brown silk.
ZHOU SHE: Ah! Didn't I share a meal with you once when I was drinking at a bar, having come to Shen-xi after clearing out of Hang-zhou?4
ZHAO [to ZHANG XIAO-XIAN]: Did you ever see that happen? ZHANG XIAO-XIAN: I never saw it.
4This may ref er to Zhou She's travels, the business trips he mentioned in the first act, but some com mentators suggest that these a re streets in the entertainment qua rters.
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ZHAO [sings]:
You're always hot for new girls,
you grow forgetful and mix up the old,
what's more your eyesight is failing.
It's just like those lines in the ballad:
I, urn, . . .
"knew you once beside that creek of peach blooms in Wu-ling,
but now you feign conjectures and recognize me not. "
And here my own dreams have been fitful, tormented because of you!
ZHOU SHE: Now I've got it. You're Zhao Pan-er, aren't you? ZHAO: That's right.
ZHOU SHE: You're Zhao Pan-er! Well great, just great! You were the one trying to stop my marriage. Innkeeper, lock the door and beat up Xiao xian here!
ZHANG XIAO-XIAN: Hey! Don't beat me up! Here the lady comes with a trousseau of embroideries and brocade, with toilette and bedding to
marry you, and you want to beat me up?
ZHAO: Sit down, Zhou She, and listen to what I have to say. When you were in Kaifeng, people were always bringing up your name
until my ears were all abuzz with you. But I never met you. By the time I got to meet you I was already a wreck-I couldn't eat or drink from thinking of you. When I heard you were going to marry Song
Yin-zhang, how could I help getting upset? Here I wanted to marry you, Zhou She, and you were going to have me vouch for Yin-zhang
instead.
[Sings] And then since I was the older, I put a good face on it,
supported the wedding
don't you realize I was jealous, and tried on purpose to break the match? You may seem sharp on the outside,
but inside you're just a little slow.
But marry me now and I'll let the whole thing go.
Look, I came here looking for you with the best intentions, bringing my
carriage and horses and my whole trousseau, and now you want to beat me up and yell at me for no good reason. Turn the carriage around, Xiao xian, we're going home.
ZHOU SHE: If I had known you came to marry me, I would never have wanted to have the little fellow beaten up!
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ZHAO: You really didn't know? Well, since you didn't know, don't leave; just sit here and keep me company.
ZHOU SHE: I wouldn't mind sitting here with you for days-no, even for a year or two.
Enter SONG YIN-ZHANG. SONG YIN-ZHANG: Since you haven't been home for a couple of days, I fol
lowed you here to the inn to see what you were up to. And here I find Zhao Pan-er sitting with you! That old whore is so shameless that she's
even come after you here. Zhou She, you'd better not come home ever again, because when you do come, I'm going to take myself a knife and
you can take yourself a knife, and we'll fight it out between us. [Exit]
ZHOU SHE [taking his stick]: I'm as ready as you are, and if the lady weren't
present, I'd kill you in a moment. ZHAO [Aside, sings]: I won't forgive him either,
but why won't I dare be open about it?
I'll grit my teeth and bear the pain, but how can I watch you beat her up? Don't they say,
"One night together as man and wife
means a hundred nights of gentleness, "
so calm yourself, man, stop fumingif he's going to be rough,
he ought to be rough in secret,
he ought to think twice
before acting this way in front of me
what genteel lover would ever beat a bargirl to death?
But here I see him raging,
patting that cruel stick,
even the most hot-tempered men are not as bad as you.
[To ZHOU SHE]: Suppose you beat her to death with that rough stick you're holding what then?
ZHOU SHE: When a man beats his woman to death, he doesn't have to pay with his own life.
ZHAO: Now who would be willing to marry you if you go around saying things like that! [Aside, sings]:
I'll pull the wool over his eyes,
trick him to do what I want,
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I'll leave this jerk nowhere to run. Just watch me, little sister, see one sweet-talking whore
save a girl of the streets.
[to ZHOU SHE]: You almost made me fall for that one. While you were
sitting here, you sent for your wife to come make a scene and insult me.
Xiao-xian, turn the carriage around. We're going back.
ZHOU SHE: Come on, honey, sit down. I didn't know she was going to come here. Strike me dead if I knew she was coming.
ZHAO: You really didn't have her come? The girl's no good. Here's the quick est way out-you get rid of Yin-zhang and I'll marry you right away.
ZHOU SHE: I'll divorce her as soon as I get home. [Aside] Whoa! Slow down a moment! I've been beating that woman regularly, and she's so scared
of me that if I give her divorce papers, she'll be gone in a trail of smoke.
Then if this one won't marry me, I'll lose out on both sides. Don't go
rushing into things! I had better make sure of this woman. [To ZHAO
PAN-ER] Look, baby, I may have the wits of a donkey, but let's just say
I go home and divorce my wife, but then you just shut your eyes tight and won't marry me. Then I'll be losing out on both sides. So you've got
to swear an oath. ZHAO: You really want me to take an oath, Zhou She? All right, if you di
vorce your wife and I don't marry you . . . may horses trample me to
death in my own living room, may a candlewick crush my pelvic bone! There now, you've forced me to take a really serious oath.
ZHOU SHE: Innkeeper, bring us some wine.
ZHAO: Don't buy any wine. I've got ten bottles of wine in my carriage. ZHOU SHE: Then I'll go buy us some lamb. ZHAO: No need to buy lamb. I've got a cooked lamb in my carriage. ZHOU SHE: Fine. Well then, let me go buy some red silk.
ZHAO: Don't buy any red silk. In my luggage I have a matched pair of strips of red gauze. Don't let it bother you, Zhou She. What's yours is mine, and what's mine is yours.
[Sings] One who is dear will be so ever, as kin are always kin.
I, with my flowerlike body, with my youth like a tender shoot of bamboo,
for a splendid marriage will bring you in dower fine silver ingots.
I don't care if our life brings
more chaff than wheat,
no matter if you take other women, 764
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
I'll bear with the worst you do
you won't regret being my husband for all the rest of your life.
If you're broke, I'll be glad
to share your poverty, But if you're rich, well,
don't mock me if my comfort breeds wantonness and makes people talk.
If that suits your wishes well,
divorce the woman with you now.
I don't want you to spend a penny on me
it was I who came to you all on my own. All I've saved, all that I have
I put to your family's service;
sleek horses and light furs I bestow on you yourself;
I'll pay myself for the bridal suite
where we become man and wife.
If I marry you, I won't be like Song Yin-zhang, who knew nothing of needlework, cooking, embroidery, how to furnish the bridal chamber, all kinds of household tasks.
[Sings] Just write out the divorce papers
and all you're owed will be squared away. [Exeunt omnes] ACT IV
Enter SONG YIN-ZHANG. SONG YIN-ZHANG: Zhou She ought to be back soon. [Enter ZHOU SHE. She
greets him] What would you like to eat?
ZHOU SHE [enraged]: All right.Bring me a pen and a piece of paper.I'm going to write you divorce papers and I want you out of here right away!
SONG YIN-ZHANG [takes the divorce papers but doesn't leave]: What have I done to make you divorce me?
ZHOU SHE: Are you still here? Get out right now! SONG YIN-ZHANG: So you're really divorcing me! Was this what you said
back then when you wanted me? You treacherous man, you monster! You may want to get rid of me, but I won't go! [ ZHOU SHE pushes her out the door] I'm out of his house! You're such a dimwit, Zhou She.And
you, Pan-er, you were brilliant! I'm going to take these divorce papers
straight to the inn to find her. [Exit]
ZHOU SHE: Now that this bitch is gone, I'll be off to the inn to marry Pan
er. [Goes to inn, shouts] Innkeeper, where's the woman who was just
here?
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INNKEEPER: She got in her carriage and left as soon as you were out the door.
ZHOU SHE: I've been had! Bring me my horse. I'm going to catch up with her. INNKEEPER: The horse is foaling.
ZHOU SHE: Then harness the donkey.
INNKEEPER: The donkey's lame. ZHOU SHE: All right, I'll catch up with her on foot. INNKEEPER: I'll go after her with you. [Exeunt]
Enter ZHAO PAN-ER and SONG YIN-ZHANG. SONG YIN-ZHANG: I would never have gotten out of there if it hadn't been for you.
ZHAO: Hurry up!
[Sings] I have to chuckle: so dependably
he wrote out the writ of divorce!
and now where's our conniving friend? So sure of his way with women,
so sure of the tricks of power, but he couldn't outwit my clever tongue
with its thousands and thousands of lines.
Let me have a look at the divorce papers, Yin-zhang. [SONG YIN-ZHANG
hands over the papers and ZHAO PAN-ER switches them] If you ever want
to get married again, Yin-zhang, everything depends on this piece of paper as proof, so take good care of it!
SONG YIN-ZHANG takes the paper. Enter ZHOU SHE, catching up with them. ZHOU SHE [shouting]: Where do you think you're going, you bitch? You're
my wife, Yin-zhang, so how do you think you're going to get away from me?
SONG YIN-ZHANG: You gave me divorce papers and kicked me out!
ZHOU SHE: Divorce papers have to have five fingerprints. How can one with only four fingerprints be the real thing?
SONG YIN-ZHANG opens the paper to look at it. ZHOU SHE snatches it away
from her and rips it to pieces with his teeth. SONG YIN-ZHANG: Pan-er! Zhou She has chewed up my divorce papers!
[ZHAO PAN-ER goes over to protect her] ZHOU SHE: You're also my wife. ZHAO: How could I possibly be your wife?
ZHOU SHE: You drank my wine. ZHAO: I had ten bottles of good wine in my carriage-you can't claim they were yours! ZHOU SHE: You accepted my lamb. ZHAO: I brought the cooked lamb myself-you can't claim it was yours! 766
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
ZHOU SHE: You accepted my pledge of red silk. ZHAO: I brought my own piece of red gauze-you can't claim that was yours!
[Sings] The lamb and wine
were from my own carriage,
I brought the red gauze myself.
You're corrupt through and through and never true,
laying false claim to another's goods.
ZHOU SHE: But you swore that you would marry me. ZHAO [sings]:
I was just stringing you along, I make my living
by taking such oaths and vows.
And if you don't believe me,
ask dancehall girls anywhere
who live in streets of flowers:
is there one who would not swear before a bright and scented candle? Is there one who would not call
on Heaven high and Earth so deep? Is there one who would not hazard retribution from the gods if she proved false?
If all such pledges and vows had been valid,
they and their kin would have all long been dead.
You go along with him, Yin-zhang.
SONG YIN-ZHANG [terrified]: If I go with him I'll be a dead woman.
ZHAO [sings]: You never think ahead, so giddy and confused.
ZHOU SHE: The divorce papers have been destroyed, so what else can you do but go with me?
[SONG YIN-ZHANG looks terrified] ZHAO: Don't be scared. The papers he tore to pieces in his teeth were a fake writ of divorce. [Sings] I had the standard form copied on purpose and gave it to you,
here's the original from before. ZHOU SHE snatches at it. Even nine oxen couldn't drag it away from me! 767
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ZHOU SHE [seizing ZHAO PAN-ER and SONG YIN-ZHANG]: There are laws
against this sort of thing. You and I are going before the magistrate. [Exe
unt] Enter Magistrate LI GONG-BI, with ZHANG QIAN, the bailiff LI GONG-BI [recites]:
My fame and virtue in governing are known to our emperor,
on fine nights each household need not lock the door.
When rain stops folk go out to plow in green wilds,
no dogs bark under moonlight in villages of flowers.
I am the governor of Zheng-zhou, Li Gong-bi. I'm holding morning
court today to hear a few cases. Zhang Qian, prepare the docket.
ZHANG QIAN: Yes, sir!
Enter ZHOU SHE, ZHAO PAN-ER, SONG YIN-ZHANG, and MRS. SONG. ZHOU SHE [shouting]: Justice, Your Honor!
LI GONG-BI: What's the accusation?
ZHOU SHE: Have mercy, Your Honor! I've been defrauded of my wife! LI GONG-BI: And just who defrauded you of your wife?
ZHOU SHE: It was Zhao Pan-er who devised a scheme to defraud me of my wife, Song Yin-zhang. LI GONG-BI: And what does the woman have to say?
ZHAO: Song Yin-zhang already has a husband, but she was forcibly taken by Zhou She to be his wife. What's more, he gave her divorce papers yes
terday. So how could I have defrauded him?
[Sings] This guy is a vicious brute,
his family, high-handed and rich,
thoroughly false and conniving,
he has never set foot on the path of truth. Song Yin-zhang has her own man,
but he forced her into his home.
Evil-tempered debaucher of girls,
all too arrogant, ruthless and cruel, a villain,
doing wrongs wherever he goes. Here are the divorce papers, I beg Your Honor to examine them.
Enter AN XIU-SHI at back of stage. 768
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
AN XIU-SHI: Pan-er just sent a message to me, saying, "Yin-zhang has her divorce papers. If you come quickly and make an accusation to the mag
istrate, you can get her as your wife." Here's the courtroom door. I'll yell, "Justice!"
LI GONG-BI: Who's that making noise outside the court? Bring him in. ZHANG QIAN [bringing AN XIU-SHI forward]: The man making the complaint is here before Your Honor.
LI GONG-BI: Who are you accusing? AN XIU-SHI: My name's An Xiu-shi, the fiance of Song Yin-zhang, who was
forcibly carried away by Zhou She to be his wife. I beg Your Honor to judge the matter.
LI GONG-BI: Who will stand as your guarantor? AN XIU-SHI: Zhao Pan-er. LI GONG-BI: Zhao Pan-er, you said that Song Yin-zhang already had a man who was to be her husband. Who is it?
ZHAO: It's this man, the student An Xiu-shi. [Sings] In his youth he studied Confucian wisdom;
he has learned the Nine Classics by heart; we are also from the same hometown,
and since she accepted his pins and rings and engagement gifts,
she is clearly a good man's wife.
LI GONG-BI: Now I ask you, Zhao Pan-er: are you really the one who will stand as his guarantor?
ZHAO [sings]:
The guarantees I put before you can be trusted but how could he stand up to
that wife-stealer's schemes?
That was no honorable marriage
that so openly violated customs!
I pray Your Honor give a decision today and unite them as man and wife. LI GONG-BI: Zhou She, it's obvious to me that Song Yin-zhang already has
a husband, so how can you still maintain that she is your wife? Were it not to spare your father the humiliation, I would turn you over to the authorities for punishment. So all present heed the judgment that I ren
der now: Zhou She shall be flogged sixty times and reduced to the sta tus of a commoner. Song Yin-zhang will go back to An Xiu-shi as his
wife. Zhao Pan-er and the rest are all to return to their homes.
[Recites verses] It was all because of a bawd's greed,
as Zhao Pan-er has in detail explained;
Zhou She did not keep to his proper role, 769
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and An the scholar will be joined with a wife.
All bow to the court and thank the Magistrate. ZHAO
[sings]: I've explained each detail to Your Worship
to split greedy man from suffering girl.
If Miss Noodlebrain stops making lifelong vows,
in the quarter for lovers
our lovebirds will join once again, man and wife.
Thus: Scholar An among "flowers and willows " accomplished his nuptials,
And Zhao Pan-er, the prostitute, rescued one of the girls.
770
from The Romance of the Gods (Feng-shen yan-yi): Ne-zha and His Father The long Chinese prose romances of the Ming Dynasty, written in vernacular Chi nese or in a mixed classical and vernacular style, grew out of story cycles that had evolved over the course of centuries. Such story cycles also were material for pro fessional storytellers, and incidents from these cycles provided a rich source of plots for variety plays. The most famous of the prose romances were The Romance of the
Three Kingdoms (San-guo zhi yan-yi), on the wars that followed the dissolution of the Han Dynasty; Wat er Margin (Shui-hu zhuan), on a band of righteous outlaws in the Song Dynasty; and Monkey or The Journey to the Wes t (Xi-you ji), on how the ever resourceful Sun Wu-kong ("Monkey") and his companions guarded the Tang monk Tripitaka on his pilgrimage to India to fetch the Buddhist scriptures. The sixteenth-century Romance of the Gods (Feng-shen yan-yi) is a fantastic elab oration of ancient history in one hundred chapters. It recounts the rise of the house of Zhou and the overthrow of the wicked last ruler of the Shang Dynasty and his in famous consort Da-ji, in the novel presented as an evil spirit in human guise. Past that broad statement of narrative theme, all resemblance to ancient history ceases. Both the Shang and the rising Zhou are aided by wizards, Daoist immortals, bod dhisattvas, and spirits of various animals and inanimate objects in more or less human form. All have magical powers and engage in titanic battles using magical weapons. The souls of those killed in this combat are kept in reserve in the Jade Void Palace in Heaven, and a t the end of the romance, these souls are appointed as gods by Jiang Zi-ya, the architect of the Zhou victory. It is from this "investiture of the gods" that the romance takes its name. Incorporated into the romance is a version of the very old story of Ne-zha (or Nata in his Indian form), son of the demon-king (devaraja) Vaisravana (here known as one Li Jing, a failed Daoist acolyte turned general). When Jiang Zi-ya comes down the mountain and begins to assemble the forces to support the Zhou cause, Ne-zha becomes an important champion on the Zhou side. But before this occurs, early in
The Romance of the Gods, three episodes are devoted t o the story of Ne-zha's birth, his disastrous childhood exploits, and his subsequent conflict with his father. Ne-zha has the terrifying charm of a deity's power in the mind of a seven-year old. In contrast to the polite, reserved, and sometimes timorous male figures in elite literature, Ne-zha, like many other heroes of prose romance, tends to act on im pulse-and his impulses are frequently violent. The only thing that can control such violence is a hierarchy of power, within which Ne-zha eventually finds his place. Like his close kin Sun Wu-kong ("Monkey"), Ne-zha eventually learns to "be" good by being forced to act good.
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In Ne-zha's struggle with his father, an economy of moral exchange-whether of obligation or revenge-comes into conflict with the more absolute Confucian de mand for filial piety. A child owes his corporeal existence, his "flesh and bones," to his parents. To Ne-zha's mind, once he has repaid that debt by an act of filial self sacrifice and been reincarnated, there is no further bond between him and his fa ther. To underscore that point, he consistently refers to his father as "Li Jing." It re quires considerable coercion on the part of his Daoist master and his immortal associates to bring Ne-zha to his knees and say "Father" again.
The Romance of the Gods, attributed to one Xu Zhong-lin (died ca. 1566), draws everywhere on the occult lore of popular Daoism. This is a world where the high immortals dwell in caverns on magic mountains with fantastic names, surrounded by disciples who are gifted with a measure of the powers of their masters. Each of the high immortals is a master of magic arts and possesses magic treasures that serve as weapons. Despite their occasional claims of pacifism and serenity, they can be a
hot-tempered and violent lot, ready to take offense and test their skills against oth
ers. The wisest of these high immortals (those who will be in the service of the Zhou) already know the future in some detail; they direct the course of the novel whose plot is predestined.
Episode XII: Ne-zha Is Born into the World at Chen-tang Pass Within the cavern Goldenray there was a treasure rare
who went down to the mortal realm to aid a gentle liege.
Already the glow of good fortune shone from the line of Zhou; in turn the essential spirit
was lost in the House of Shang.
The Great Cycle ever has needed many to prop and brace;
always in times of ascendant glory
was the shimmer of kalpa fires.
In the moment of one cycle's ending a new beginning is met,
if court and commons both hide from sight it is pointless to sigh with care.!
There was a commander at Chen-tang Pass whose name was Li Jing. At a
young age he had studied the Way and practiced its discipline, honoring the
1 Popular prose romances commonly punctuate the prose narrative with verse and rhymed descrip
tive passages. Unlike later novels, where the verse often is put to useful purposes, here the verse is often doggerel.
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
high immortal of Western Kun-lun, Antidote-to-Adversity, as his master.
There he learned the magic technique of Elemental Vanishing. But because he could not perfect the Way of the Immortals, he was sent down the moun
tain to help King Zhow of the Shang. He came to hold the office of Com
mander and enjoyed the wealth and honor of the mortal world.
His principal wife, whose maiden name was Yin, had borne him two chil dren: the eldest was named Jin-zha, and the next was named Mu-zha. Af
terward Madam Yin again became with child, but after three years and six months she still hadn't given birth. This curious circumstance constantly
troubled Li Jing. One day he pointed to his wife's belly and said, "To carry
a child more than three years and still not give birth means that it must be some monster or demon. " His wife, who was also upset, replied, "This preg
nancy certainly doesn't bode well-I worry about it day and night. " And
hearing what she said, Li Jing felt quite unhappy.
At midnight that very night Madam Yin was sleeping soundly when she
dreamed that a Daoist, his hair bound up in a double coil and dressed in Daoist robes, came right into her bedroom. The lady began to scold him,
"You have absolutely no sense of how to behave! This is my bedroom. How
did you get in here? This is terrible!" The Daoist only said, "Quick, take
this child, foal of the unicorn." Before she could answer him, the Daoist took
something in his hand and put it into her bosom. At this she woke up with a start, her whole body drenched in cold sweat. She hurriedly woke Com
mander Li and told him the whole thing: "I just dreamed thus and so . . . . "
As she was speaking, Madam Yin could already feel the pains in her womb.
Li Jing hastily got up and went to sit in the front hall, thinking to himself,
"After carrying the baby for three years and six months, and now after what
happened tonight, it's finally going to be born�but it remains to be seen
whether it will be lucky or unlucky."
As he was pondering this, two maids came in a panic: "Sir, the madam
has just given birth to a demon!" Hearing this, Li Jing hurried to her bed
room as quickly as he could and grabbed his precious sword; but what he
saw was a globe of reddish vapor in the chamber, and an unearthly fragrance
filled the whole room. There was a ball of flesh, dripping wet and perfectly round, like a wheel. Amazed, Li Jing hacked at it with his sword, and there
came a sound as if it were ripping apart. Opening up the ball of flesh, out
jumped a young child, filling the whole place with reddish light. His face was as white as powder, and there was a golden bracelet around his right
hand; around his belly was a piece of fine red silk, and golden rays shot from
his eyes. The divine sage who had been incarnated into the mortal world and ap
peared at Chen-tang Pass was the officer who would go in the forefront of
Jiang Zi-ya's army. He was the avatar of Numinous Pearl. That golden bracelet was the Cosmic Ring, and the name of that piece of fine red silk
was the Celestial Confusion Cloth. These were the magic treasures that
guarded Goldenray Cavern on Primordial Mountain.
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When Li Jing hacked open the ball of flesh, he saw a young child emerge
and begin running about everywhere. Astounded at this marvel, Li Jing went over and took the child up in his arms. It was so obviously a fine young boy that he couldn't harden himself to treat it as a demon and take its life.
He then passed him to his wife so that she could have a look. Neither of them could help feeling affection for the boy, and each was delighted. On the following day a number of Li Jing's subordinates came to offer him their congratulations. Li Jing had just finished sending them on their way when his adjutant came in and announced, "Sir, there's a Daoist out
side who wants to see you. " Since Li Jing had originally been a Daoist him
self, he couldn't ignore his own kind and immediately replied, "Ask him to
come in." The adjutant rushed out to invite the Daoist in. The latter strode
straight into the great hall and, directly facing Li Jing, said, "A humble Daoist
. at your service, General. " After quickly exchanging courtesies, Li Jing of fered the Daoist the seat of honor. Without any show of polite reluctance,
the 1)aoist sat right down. Li Jing then asked, "From which of the fabled
mountains do you come, master, and from which cavern? And what do you
have to tell me, that you visit this pass? " To this the Daoist replied, "I am
the high immortal Unity from Goldenray Cavern on Primordial Mountain. I heard that you just had a son, and I came especially to congratulate you.
I wonder if you would be so good as to let me have a look at the child? " Hearing what the Daoist said, Li Jing told a servant to bring the child
in. The servant brought out the child in her arms. Taking the child by the
hand and looking him over, the Daoist asked, "What time of day was the
child born?" "In the early morning before dawn, " replied Li Jing. "Not good, " said the Daoist. LiJing asked, "Should we then not keep him? " "No,
you should keep him, " replied the Daoist, "but since he was born in the early morning hours, he will break the one thousand seven hundred injunctions
against killing. " The Daoist went on to ask, "Have you given him a name
yet? " Li Jing replied that he had not, and the Daoist said, "Would it be all
right if I gave him a name and made him my disciple? " To this Li Jing replied, "I would be glad for you to be his master. " "How many sons do you have? "
asked the Daoist. "Three now, " replied Li Jing, "The eldest is called Jin-zha,
and his master is the Exalted Celestial 'Extensive Dharma of Remarkable
Culture' from Nimbus Cavern on Five Dragons Mountain. The next oldest
is called Mu-zha, and his master is the high immortal 'Universal Goodness'
from White Crane Cavern on Nine Lords Mountain. Since you want this
child among your disciples, just give him a name in keeping with the oth ers, and you will be his master." "For your third son I'll choose the name
'Ne-zha,' " said the Daoist. Li Jing thanked him, saying, "My gratitude is
boundless for your generosity in bestowing this name on him. " He then or dered his servants to prepare a vegetarian meal, but the Daoist declined.
"This is unnecessary. I have things to attend to and must get back to my mountain right away. " Since he was adamant in his refusal, all Li Jing could do was see the Daoist on his way out of the official compGund. There the Daoist said goodbye and went off straightway.
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Li Jing had been having no problems at the pass. Then suddenly the news came that four hundred counts of the empire had rebelled. He immediately
issued orders to guard the pass fortifications closely, to drill the army and give his troops further training, and to defend the positions on Wild Horse Ridge.
Time sped by, and seasons changed. Before he knew it, seven years had passed. Ne-zha was seven years old and six feet tall. It was midsummer and the weather was blazing hot. Jiang Wen-huan, the Earl of the East, had re
belled and fought a great battle with Dou Rong at Spirit Roaming Pass, and therefore Li Jing was drilling and training his soldiers daily. Ne-zha was growing restless and irritable from the heat. He went to pay
his respects to his mother, and then, standing over to one side, said, "I want to go out to the other side of the pass fortifications to have some fun, but I thought I should ask you first, Mother. " Madam Yin, who doted on her son,
replied, "If you want to go out beyond the walls and have some fun, you
should have a household guard take you. Don't try to have everything your
own way, and come back quickly. I'm afraid you father will return from drilling the troops." "Yes, Mother, " answered Ne-zha.
When Ne-zha went with the guard outside the walls of the pass, it was
typical July weather and terribly hot. The true fires of the Daystar
were smelting the dust and dirt,
the green willows and lovely grains had almost turned to ash.
The man on travels dreads its might, too spent to lift his foot;
the lady fair stands in fear of the heat, too tired to climb the terrace.
In the cool kiosk it's scorching and dry like smoke from a blazing brand;
in the river tower there is no breeze as if buried in a fire.
Speak not of the fragrance of lotuses reaching the nooks of the park Only with thunder and gentle rain can a person's mood relax.
Ne-zha went out beyond the walls of the pass with his guard. After pro
ceeding for a bit more than a mile, it became difficult to continue on because
of the heat. His face streaming with sweat from the hike, Ne-zha told the
guard, "Why don't we take a rest in the cool shade of those trees up ahead? "
When the guard reached the shade of the green willows, he felt a sweet smelling breeze brush over him and all his discomforts melted away. He
rushed back to tell Ne-zha, "The shade of the willows is very pleasant and
cool. We can get out of the heat there."
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Hearing this, Ne-zha was immediately filled with delight and entered the
grove. He undid the sash of his robe and relaxed, feeling completely happy.
All at once over to one side he noticed clear waves rolling past and spilling green waters. Willows hung down along both shores, and there were gentle gusts of breeze; you could hear the waters splashing over jumbled stones along the banks.
Ne-zha got up at once and went over to the riverside, calling out to the
guard, "I've gotten all hot since we left the pass, and my whole body is
sweaty. I'm going to bathe myself on the rocks here for a while. " To this
the guard replied, "Be careful. We had better be getting back pretty soon, because your father will probably be returning. " "It doesn't matter, " said Ne-zha.
He then took off his clothes, sat on the rocks, and put his seven-foot
long Celestial Confusion Cloth in the water to wash it off. He didn't real
ize""that this was Nine Bend River, which emptied into the Eastern Sea.
When Ne-zha put his magic treasure into the water, it made all the water turn red. He swished it about, and the rivers heaved and shook; he shook it a bit, and the very universe shuddered. There was Ne-zha washing his cloth,
not realizing that the great Crystal Palace of Waters was being deafened by the roar.
We turn now from Ne-zha washing his cloth to Ao-guang, dragon king
of the Eastern Sea, who was sitting in his Crystal Palace when he heard a
thundering din all around. He quickly called his attendants and asked, "There's no earthquake due-why are my palace halls shaking like this? "
Then h e deputed Li Gen, the yaksha of the Ocean Patrol, 2 to go the ocean
feeding rivers to find out what was causing this bizarre disturbance. When
the yaksha got to Nine Bend River and looked around, he noticed that the water was all red and shimmering with light. But all he could see was one
small boy washing a red kerchief in the water. The yaksha rose from the
water and called out in a loud voice, "Boy, what kind demonic object is that you're holding, turning the water red and making our palace shake? "
When Ne-zha turned to look, he saw something in the water with a face
blue as indigo, hair red as cinnabar, a huge mouth with fangs, and a large ax in his hand. Ne-zha said, "You there, creature, what sort of thing are you
that you can talk? " At this the yaksha flew into a rage. "I am the yaksha as
signed to the Ocean Patrol by my lord-how dare you insult me by calling
me 'creature'? " And he leapt out of the water onto the shore, ready to swing
his ax down on Ne-zha's head. Ne-zha was standing there stark naked; and when he saw the yaksha coming toward him with violent intent, he dodged, took the Cosmic Ring from around his right hand, and tossed it into the sky.
This magic treasure was among the things that the Jade Void Palace on Mount Kun-Iun had bestowed on the high immortal Unity to guard Gold
enray Cavern. No mere yaksha could survive that, and it came down right 'A demon. Originally Indian, the yaksha entered
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on his head, dashing his brains out. The yaksha died immediately there on
the shore.
"He's gotten my Cosmic Ring all messy, " laughed Ne-zha, and he went
back to sit on the rock and wash the ring. And how could the Crystal Palace survive this second magic treasure-the great halls of the palace were all in
danger of being shaken down. "My yaksha hasn't come back from going to
investigate, " said Ao-guang. "This is a disaster!" As he was speaking, one
of his dragon soldiers came in and reported, "Our dragon lord is hereby in formed that the yaksha Li Gen has been killed on dry land by a young boy. "
Shocked, Ao-guang said, "Li Gen was commissioned by His Sacred Majesty
himself in the Gallery of Numinous Aether. Who would dare kill him? " Then he gave the command, "Summon my dragon soldiers. I am going person
ally to see who this is. "
At that moment the dragon king's Third Prince, Ao-bing, arrived and
said, "Why are you so angry, Royal Father? " Ao-guang then told him the story of how Li Gen had been killed. "Don't trouble yourself, Royal Father, "
said Ao-bing, "your son will take care of it. " Ao-bing quickly assembled his
dragon troops, mounted his Waterproof Beast, raised his painted trident, and
marched straight out of the Crystal Palace. As he cut through the waters,
the breakers fell like mountains, raising waves and billows in every direc
tion until the water had risen several feet on dry land. Ne-zha stood up and looked at the water, exclaiming, "What a flood!" Then he saw a water crea
ture appearing amid the waves, on which was seated a man, all decked out in colorful clothes and brandishing his trident in a menacing way. "Who was
it that killed our yaksha of the Ocean Patrol, Li Gen? " he shouted in a loud vOIce.
"It was me, " replied Ne-zha. Once Ao-bing saw him, he asked, "Who
are you? " "I am Ne-zha, the third son of Li Jing of Chen-tang Pass. My fa
ther is personally in charge of the defense of this region and master of the
fortifications. I was washing myself here because of the heat and minding my own business. He came and insulted me, so I killed him-it doesn't re ally matter. "
The Third Prince Ao-bing was shocked. "You vicious little tough! The
yaksha Li Gen was given his post by his Sacred Majesty in Heaven. You ha ve the gall to kill him and then dare to speak to me so rudely!" The Third Prince took his painted trident and aimed a blow at Ne-zha. Having no weapon with which to defend himself, Ne-zha dodged out of the way: "Hold on a moment! Who are you? I have the right to know who you are . " "I am Ao-bing, the Third Prince of the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea. "
A t this Ne-zha laughed. "So you're Ao-guang's son! You have no business acting so high and mighty. If you get me irritated, I'll catch you all, right down to that old sardine your father, and skin the lot of you. " At this the Third Prince yelled, "My temper's going to explode! What a vicious little tough! Such a way to behave!" And he aimed another blow of his trident at Ne-zha.
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Ne-zha was desperate and threw open his Celestial Confusion Cloth into
the sky. Looking like a thousand burning embers, it came down and wrapped itself around the Third Prince, knocking him off of his Waterproof Beast.
Ne-zha stepped forward and put his foot on Ao-bing's neck, then lifted his
Cosmic Ring and brought it down on his head. This brought out the Third
Prince's true form, a dragon stretched out straight on the ground. "I've re vealed the little dragon's original appearance, " said Ne-zha. "Fine, I'll pull out his tendons and make a dragon-tendon thong for my father's armor
pack."
Ne-zha pulled out the tendons o f the Third Prince and took them straight
back to the pass. His guard had been so frightened that his whole body was
weak; as they drew near to the commander's gate, his legs were shaking so
badly that he could barely walk. When Ne-zha went in to greet his mother,
she said, "Where have you been, young man? You've been gone half the
day!" "I've just been playing around outside the walls, " answered Ne-zha, "and
I hadn't realized it was getting so late. " Then he went off to the gar
den behind the house.
When Li Jing returned from drilling his troops, he dismissed his atten
dants, took off his armor, and sat in the rear hall. There he worried about
the misrule of King Zhow of the Shang, how he had driven the four hun
dred Peers of the Empire into rebellion, and how the plight of the people
grew more dire with each passing day.
Back in the Crystal Palace, Ao-guang listened to the report of his dragon troops: "Ne-zha, the son of Li Jing of Chen-tang Pass, has killed the Third Prince and pulled out his tendons. " Hearing this report, Ao-guang was
shocked. "My son was a full-fledged deity, in charge of raising clouds,
bringing rain, and nurturing the life of all things. What do you mean, he was killed? Li Jing-when you studied the Way on Western Kun-lun Mountain,
you and I were on very good terms. You have let your son do this evil deed
and kill my son-this is already an injury whose memory will last to the hun
dredth generation! But how dare he, on top of everything else, pull out my son's tendons! Even to speak of it pierces me to the very quick!"
Ao-guang flew into a great rage, rankled because he could not avenge
his son right then and there. Accordingly, he transformed himself into a scholar and went directly to Chen-tang Pass. Reaching the commander's
quarters, he addressed the gatekeeper, "Please inform your master that his
old friend Ao-guang has come to pay a visit. " The adjutant went into the
inner apartments and announced, "There's an old friend of yours outside, Ao-guang, who has come to see you. " "It's been many years since we last saw each other, " said Li Jing, "I'm really lucky to meet him again today. " And hastily neatening his clothes, he went out to welcome him.
Ao-guang entered the great hall, paid his respects, and sat down. Seeing
the look of rage on Ao-guang's face, Li Jing was on the point of asking him what the matter was, when Ao-guang said, "Li Jing, my worthy brother, a
fine son you've got there!" Li Jing laughed and answered hi'll, "We haven't
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had a chance to get together for many years, brother, and we're really lucky to have this unexpected chance to meet today-why do you burst out with something like that? I have only three sons: the eldest is Jin-zha, the second oldest is Mu-zha, and my third son is Ne-zha. All are disciples of Daoist mas
ters from the fabled mountains. They're far from perfect, but they're still not good-for-nothings. Don't misjudge them, brother. "
"Brother, " replied Ao-guang, "it is you who misjudge them, not I! Your son was washing himself in Nine Bend River; and I don't know what kind
of magic arts he used, but he almost shook down my Crystal Palace. I sent my yaksha to see what was going on, and he killed my yaksha. My third son
went to find out what was going on, and he also killed my third son-and
he even pulled out all his tendons!" By this point Ao-guang felt such swelling bitterness in his heart that he burst out in rage: "Are you still going to pre tend ignorance and defend him? "
Li Jing hurriedly answered, laughing even harder, "It's not my family. You're making a mistake in blaming me. My eldest son is on Nine Dragon
Mountain studying the magic arts; my second son is studying the magic arts
on Nine Lords Mountain. My third son is only seven years old and never
goes outside the main gate. How could he have been able to do anything of that magnitude!" "But it was your third son, Ne-zha, who killed them, " replied Ao-guang. At this Li Jing said, "This whole thing is truly bizarre.
Don't be so hasty, brother. I'll have him come out and we can see what hap
pened. "
Li Jing then went back into the rear apartments, and Madam Yin asked
him, "Who is that in the great hall? " "It's my oid friend, Ao-guang, " replied Li Jing. "Someone killed his Third Prince, and he claims that Ne-zha did it.
I'm going to have Ne-zha come out now and introduce himself. Where is
Ne-zha now? " Madam Yin thought to herself, "He did go outside of the walls today, but how could he have done something like this? " But she did
n't dare tell this to her husband and simply said, "He's in the garden out back. "
Li Jing went straight back into the garden and shouted, "Where are you,
Ne-zha? " He called for quite a while without getting any reply, so Li Jing
then went straight to Crabapple Terrace and noticed that the gate was locked. He stood there and shouted for Ne-zha in a loud voice. Ne-zha, who was inside, heard him and quickly opened the gate. "What have you been
doing in there, son? " asked LiJing. Ne-zha replied, "I went outside the pass
fortifications today for no particular purpose and went to play at Nine Bend River. It was so hot I got down in the water to wash myself. There was this
horrible old yaksha named Li Gen-I didn't do anything to provoke him, but he called me all kinds of names and then took his ax and tried to cut me
in half. So I hit him with my ring and killed him. And there was some Third Prince or other called Ao-bing who tried to stick me with his trident. I
wrapped him up in my Celestial Confusion Cloth on the shore, then stepped
on his neck with my foot, and got him with my ring too! And to my sur-
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prise he turned out to be a dragon! Well, I thought to myself how dragon
tendons are so valuable, so I pulled all his tendons out and was just making a dragon-tendon thong for your armorpack, father. "
Li Jing was so badly shaken that his mouth hung open as if he were a
simpleton. He was tongue-tied and couldn't say a word. After a moment he
screamed, "What a disaster you are! You've brought a catastrophe down on us! Quickly now, go see your uncle and explain it to him!" "Don't
worry, Father, " said Ne-zha. "If someone doesn't know, he can't be held
responsible. And on top of that, I haven't done anything to the tendons yet if he wants them, they're right here, in perfect shape. I'll go see him. " Ne-zha rushed to the great hall and paid his respects to Ao-guang, say
ing, "Uncle, I didn't know what I was doing and made a big mistake-1 hope you'll forgive what I did. The tendons ate still in their original condition I haven't done a thing to them. "
Seeing the tendons caused Ao-guang great pain, and he said to Li Jing,
"Here you've begotten such an evil child, and you just told me that I was
mistaken. Now he admits it himself, and you're still willing to let it pass. And on top of everything else my son was a full-fledged deity, while the yak
sha Li Gen was given his commission by Heaven! How can you two, father and son, just do as you please and kill people for no good reason? Tomor
row I'm going to petition the Jade Emperor and ask that your spiritual mas ters deal with you!" At this Ao-guang departed in a towering rage.
Li Jing stamped his foot and, weeping loudly, cried out, "We are in se
rious trouble!" When his wife heard him weeping so piteously in the front courtyard, she immediately asked a servant to find out what was wrong. The
servant reported back, "Today when the third young master went out to
play, he killed the Third Prince of the dragon king. Just now the dragon king was arguing the matter with the master, and tomorrow he is going to peti
tion the Heavenly Court for a judgment. I don't know why the master is weeping so. "
Madam Yin quickly rushed to the front courtyard to see her husband.
When Li Jing saw his wife coming/he immediately stopped crying and said
with great bitterness, "I tried to become an immortal and didn't succeed. But no one would have expected that you would bear me such a fine son as
this-someone who is going to bring disaster down on the entire family! That dragon prince was a full-fledged deity who brings rain, and Ne-zha wan
tonly murdered him. Tomorrow the Jade Emperor will act on the petition,
and you and I have two days at the most before we both become ghosts under the executioner's blade!" Then he began crying again in utter despair. His wife was also streaming with tears, and she pointed to Ne-zha and said, "I
had you in my womb for three years and six months before you were born, and I suffered I don't know how much misery. Little did I know that you would become the cause of the destruction of the whole family!" Seeing his parents crying like this, Ne-zha felt very upset, and he got down
on his knees before them. "Father, Mother-let me explain things. I'm not
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an ordinary mortal. I am the disciple of the high immortal Unity from Gold enray Cavern on Primordial Mountain. Both of my magic treasures were given me by my master, and I doubt that Ao-guang is any match for me. I'm
going to go now to Primordial Mountain and ask my master what to do
he'll surely have an idea. People always say, 'When one person does some thing, that person is responsible.' I would never get my parents involved. " Ne-zha went out of the gate of the compound, picked up a handful of dirt and scattered it in the air, then vanished without a trace. Disappearing
into a cloud of dust, he went to Primordial Mountain. There's a verse that supports this:
Our lad paid a visit to Primordial Mountain;
he gave account of the situation
with Eastern Sea's Ao-guang.
Before the Precious Virtue Gate
he worked his dharma power
know now that immortals' magic arts are not for nothing famed.
Ne-zha disappeared in a cloud of dust and came to Goldenray Cavern
on Primordial Mountain, where he awaited his master's bidding. The lad Golden Wisp quickly informed the master, "Ne-zha awaits your bidding. "
"Have him come in, " replied the high immortal Unity. Golden Wisp went
back to the door of the cavern and said to Ne-zha, "The master commands
you to enter. "
When Ne-zha came to the Sapphire-roaming Bench, he fell to the ground
and paid his respects. "Since you're not at Chen-tang Pass, what's the story that brings you here? " asked the high immortal. "By your grace, master, "
said Ne-zha, "I was born as a mortal at Chen-tang Pass, and I am now seven
years old. The other day I happened to be washing myself in Nine Bend River when Ao-guang's son, Ao-bing, unexpectedly did me injury by his vile words. On the spur of the moment I got mad and ended his life. Now Ao-
. guang is going to petition the Heavenly Court, and my parents are in a state of panic. I am very upset about this and have no way to save them. I had no
. alternative but to come to the mountain and earnestly entreat my master to
pardon this crime I committed in my ignorance, in hopes that you will be
so kind as to save them." The high immortal thought to himself, "If Ne-zha in his ignorance made
the mistake of killing Ao-bing, it was ordained by fate. Although Ao-guang is a king among the dragons, raising clouds and bringing rain, how can he
pretend not to understand a sign sent down by Heaven? And bothering Heaven with such a small matter as this shows that he really doesn't know
much about the shape of events. " Quickly he called out, "Ne-zha, come over here! Open your gown!" The high immortal drew a Daoist talisman with his finger on Ne-zha's chest, and then instructed him, "When you reach Pre-
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cious Virtue Gate, do thus and so. When you're done, go back to Chen-tang Pass and explain to your parents. I'm here to help you if there's a problem. This doesn't involve your parents in any way. Get going now!"
Ne-zha left Primordial Mountain and went straight t o the Precious Virtue Gate of Heaven. It was, as they say: Rare scenes of Heaven's palaces, no sem blance of the mortal world; lavender fog and reddish cloud webbed the Sap
phire Void. Yes, the Upper Hea vens were like nothing else at all:
When first he mounted the Upper Realm, at once he caught sight of Heaven's halls; myriad streams of golden light spurting reddish
rainbows, a thousand trails of magic vapors puffing lavender fog.
And he saw Heaven's South Gate: Fashioned of dusky sapphire glass, adorned with glistening tripods.
On both sides were four huge columns, and winding around each
Cjolumn was a red-whiskered dragon that raises clouds and drives the
fog.
Directly in the middle were two bridges of jade, and standing on those bridges were cinnabar-crested phoenixes, with their brightly colored
feathers spread into the sky.
Luminous wisps flashed with glints of celestial light; a sapphire fog cast its veil, covering Dipper and Sun. In Heaven there were thirty-three Palaces of the Immortals, among them: The Palace of Dispatching Clouds,
The Kun-sha Palace,
The Palace of Lavender Aether, The Palace of Supreme Yang, The Palace of Supreme Yin,
The Palace of Trarisforming Joy;
and on the golden roof-ridge of every palace was the Golden Griffin that can tell right from wrong.
There were also seventy-two precious halls, among them: The Hall of Dawn Audience, The Hall of Rising through Emptiness, The Hall of Precious Light,
The Hall Where Immortals Gather, The Hall of Petitions;
and on every hall there were jade unicorns lined as pillars. There were: The Terrace of the Star of Long Life,
The Terrace of the Star of Rewards,
The Terrace of the Star of Wealth;
and beneath those terraces were rare flowers that did not fade for millennium upon millennium.
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There were:
The Furnace for Refining Cinnabar, The Furnace of the Eight Trigrams, The Furnace of Liquid Fire;
and around these furnaces were brocade plants green ever through eons upon eons.
Gowns of ruby satin in the Hall of Sagely Audience shimmered with wisps of gold; lotus crowns at the foot of the Stairs to the Vermilion Plaza blazed with the glow of sapphire and gold.
In the Treasure Hall of Numinous Aether golden studs clustered upon the doors; before Galleries of the Sages assembled phoenixes danced on the crimson gates.
Covered passageways, winding porches stood out everywhere with
intricate grillwork patterns; three-tiered eaves clustered all around,
with dragons and phoenixes soaring at every level.
On top were gourd-shaped cupolas, lavender-looming, brightly
glistening, smoothly rounded, freshly shining, clearly dazzling; all round were sounds of jade pendants, thickly clustering, densely
layered, resonantly tinkling, plink-a-plink dribbling, brightly clear.
For as they say: In Heaven's palaces strange things
are present in all kinds; in the world below things like these are every item rare.
Silver simurghs on golden towers join Precincts Lavender;
unusual blooms and wondrous plants reach Heavens of Alabaster.
The Jade Hare on his way to court passes beside the altar;
the Golden Crow, consorting with Sages, flies on down below.
Should ever a man have the lucky fate to come to Heaven's realm,
he will never fall back to the mortal world and escape its corrupting filth.
Ne-zha reached Precious Virtue Gate early and caught no sight of Ao
guang. Seeing that the various gates of Heaven's palaces had not yet been
opened, Ne-zha stood below the Gate Where Immortals Gather.After a short while he heard the jingling of Ao-guang's formal court attire coming directly toward Heaven's South Gate.
Seeing that Heaven's South Gate was not yet open, Ao-guang said, "I'm
early-the Yellow Turban warriors of the guard are still not here, so I'll have to wait. " Now Ne-zha could see Ao-guang, but Ao-guang could not see Ne783
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zha-for the magic talisman that the high immortal Unity had drawn on Ne
zha's chest was called "The Seal of Invisibility, " which, of course, was the
reason that Ao-guang could not see Ne-zha.
Seeing Ao-guang waiting there, Ne-zha's heart flew into a rage. Striding
over to Ao-guang, Ne-zha lifted his Cosmic Ring and bashed Ao-guang on
the back, in the region behind the heart, with the blow known as "the hun gry tiger paws its prey. " Ao-guang fell to the ground, and Ne-zha went up and set his foot on Ao-guang's back. And if you want to know what hap
pened to Ao-guang, just read the next episode.
Episode XIII: The High Immortal Unity Catches Rock -in-the-Stream What was, by nature, mere rock learned to seize initiative,
a womb of consciousness formed therein for ten thousand years.
It sucked in moonlight, fed on stars, searched the pits in Earth,
it added Fire, got hold of Water,
hid Heaven's Active Force. It rashly vaunted magic arts
of bringing fog and clouds,
and listened to the immortals,
humming dragon, howling tiger. Caught in fires of eon's end no recourse did it have-
and thus we know that right and wrong are finally brought full circle.
Ne-zha had put his foot on Ao-guang's back at Precious Virtue Gate; and
when Ao-guang twisted his head around and recognized that it was Ne-zha,
he was overcome with a burst of rage. But having been knocked down and
held in place by Ne-zha's foot, he couldn't force himself up, so he heaped
insults on him: "You brazen little bully! You haven't lost your baby teeth yet, and you're not even dry behind the ears, but you brutally killed an im perially commissioned yaksha, and on top of that you killed my Third
Prince! What hostility did you bear him that you dared pull out his tendons? Such viciousness is a crime not to be pardoned. And now, on top of every thing else, you have struck down the divinity in charge of raising clouds and bringing rain right outside of Precious Virtue Gate! There is no worse abuse
of Heaven's generosity-even cutting your corpse up into mincemeat would
n't settle the score!" These insults threw Ne-zha into a fury, and he chafed that he couldn't
kill Ao-guang then and there with his ring. But he had to follow Unity's in
structions, so he held him down and said, "You just keep on shouting, but 784
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
it wouldn't be a big deal if I killed you, you old sardine! You don't know
who I am-I am none other than Numinous Pearl, the disciple of the high
immortal Unity from Goldenray Cavern on Primordial Mountain. I'm under
orders from the Jade Void Palace to take an avatar as the son in the house of Li Jing of Chen-tang Pass. Because the lineage of King Tang, the House of Shang, is to perish and the House of Zhou is to rise, Jiang Zi-ya will soon
come down from his mountain. And I am to be the officer in the vanguard,
helping Zhou crush the Shang king. I just happened to be washing myself in Nine Bend River when your people tried to push me around. I lost my temper and killed two of them-but that's nothing very important. But you go and present a complaint to Heaven. According to what my master says, it wouldn't matter even if I killed all you old lizards!"
Hearing this, Ao-guang kept at Ne-zha, "What a sweet child! Go ahead,
hit me, hit me!" "You want me to hit you, " said Ne-zha, "then I'll hit you. " And he yanked up his fist and socked him
0n
both sides a dozen 0 r so times
at one go, until Ao-guang was yelling. "You're a thick-skinned old lizard, "
Ne-zha declared. "I'm not going to hit you any more because it doesn't scare
you. But there's an old saying, 'A dragon is scared of having its scales torn
off; a tiger is scared of having its tendons pulled out.' " Ne-zha grabbed Ao
guang's court robes and pulled them half open, exposing the scales on his
left side. Ne-zha then tore off several handfuls with his bare hands. After
tearing off forty or fifty scales, fresh blood was streaming from the wound
and it hurt right down to Ao-guang's bones. Unable to bear the pain, Ao
guang shouted, "Spare me!" "If you want me to spare your life, " responded Ne-zha, "I'm not going to let you present your complaint to Heaven. I'll spare your life if you go with me to Chen-tang Pass. And if you don't do
what ! say, I'll kill you with my Cosmic Ring. If I do, the high immortal Unity will take charge, so I'm not scared of you. "
Finding himself dealing with such a dreadful person, Ao-guang had no
choice but to accept: "I would prefer to go with you. " "Then I'll let you up, "
Ne-zha said. Ao-guang got up and was about to go with him when Ne-zha
said, "I've heard how dragons can do transformations. If they want to be
big, they can stretch all the way from Heaven to Earth; and if they want to
be small, they can hide themselves in a mustard seed. I'm afraid that if you
escaped, I wouldn't know where to find you. Change into a little tiny snake,
and I'll carry you. "
Unable to get away, Ao-guang had no choice but to change himself into a little green garden snake. Picking Ao-guang up and putting him in his
sleeve, Ne-zha left Precious Virtue Gate and set off for Chen-tang Pass. In
just an instant he arrived at the commander's compound. The household guard immediately reported to Li Jing, "The third young master is back. "
On hearing this, Li Jing was quite unhappy. Then he saw Ne-zha entering the compound and coming to greet his father. Seeing the furrows in Li Jing's brow and the look of distress on his face,
Ne-zha came forward to accept his punishment. "Where have you been!? "
Li Jing asked him. "I went to the South Gate o f Heaven, " replied Ne-zha, 785
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"to ask Uncle Ao-guang not to present his complaint." At this Li Jing yelled
in a loud voice, "Don't lie to me, you little monster! Who do you think you
are that you would dare go to the region of Heaven! This is all a pack of wild stories to deceive your parents! It's driving me mad!"
"You don't have t o get s o angry, Father, " said Ne-zha. "Uncle Ao-guang will bear me out in this." To this reply Li Jing said, "More nonsense! And just where is Uncle Ao-guang now? " "Right here, " replied Ne-zha. And he
pulled a green garden snake out of his sleeve and dropped it on the ground.
In a puff of air Ao-guang changed himself back into human form. Li Jing gasped in amazement and quickly asked, "Why were you in that shape,
brother? " Ao-guang was in a rage and told him the whole story of how he
had been assaulted at the South Gate of Heaven, then gave Li Jing a look at
the scales on his side: "You have begotten an evil child! I am going to get thel dragon kings of all the four seas to go with me to the Hall of Numinous Aether and present a full account of the injuries I have suffered! Then we'll
see how you're going to explain it away!" At this he turned into a gust of wind and left.
Li Jing stamped his foot and said, "This thing's going from bad to worse!
What are we going to do? " Ne-zha came up to him, got down on his knees,
and said, "Father, Mother, try not to worry. When I went to get help from
my master, he told me that I wasn't reincarnated here merely on account of my own personal merit. I am under commission from the Jade Void Palace to protect a virtuous ruler. It wouldn't matter a bit even if I destroyed all the dragon kings of the four seas. If there's something too big for me to han
dle, my master will naturally take responsibility. So, Father, you shouldn't
let it occupy your mind."
Being a Daoist, Li Jing was aware of the divine mysteries. What's more, he had seen that Ne-zha had the techniques to beat up Ao-guang at the South Gate of Heaven. Since he had been given some higher office by Heaven, there
had to be some reason for it. Madam Yin, on the other hand, simply felt love for her son. Seeing Ne-zha standing off to the side and Li Jing fuming, bitterly angry at his son, she said to Ne-zha, "What are you still doing here? Get off to the back!"
Ne-zha did what his mother told him and went straight to the back gar
den. He sat there a while feeling glum, then left the garden and went straight
up to the wall tower on the fortifications of Chen-tang Pass to catch some cool breeze. At this time the weather was terribly hot and he had never been
to this spot before. Here he saw beautiful scenery: a vast, hazy expanse,
where green willows hung gracefully, and gazing into the broad sky, it seemed like a round canopy of fire. As they say: All over the faces of trav
elers flowing beads drip down; an idle man escaping the heat waves the fan he holds.
Ne-zha took a look and said, "I never knew what fun this spot was!" Then, over on the weapons rack, h e caught sight of a bow, which bore the name "Cosmic Bow, " and three arrows, which bore the name "Heaven
Shakers." Ne-zha thought to himself, "The master told me I would be the 786
The Yuan and Min g Dynasties
officer in the vanguard when we destroy the empire of the Shang and the royal line of King Tang. When am I going to have a chance to practice my military skills if I don't do it now? And what's more, I have a bow and ar rows right here ready for me. Why don't I practice a bit? " Ne-zha's heart filled with delight. He took the bow in his hand, notched an arrow on the bowstring, and shot it to the southwest. The arrow went whizzing off, surrounded by a red light and swirling flashes of color. Ne zha never should have shot this arrow. As they say: Along the river he made
a cast of fishing line and hook; and from that moment made a catch of tri als and tribulation. Ne-zha didn't realize that this bow and these arrows were the magic trea
sures guarding Chen-tang Pass. The Cosmic Bow and the Heaven-Shakers had been handed down since the time the Yellow Emperor routed the rebel Chi-you. And during all that time no one had been able to use them. On this
particular day, Ne-zha picked them up and shot an arrow; and he shot that arrow all the way to White Bone Cavern on Skeleton Mountain. A member
of Lady Rock-in-the-Stream's household named the Sapphire Cloud lad had
gone to the foot of the cliff, flower basket in hand, to pick herbs. The arrow
hit him right in the throat, and he fell to the ground and died. When the lad
Colored Cloud saw that Sapphire Cloud had been killed by an arrow, he
rushed in to tell Lady Rock: "I don't know what's going on, but my brother
has been shot in the throat by an arrow and killed. "
Hearing this, Lady Rock went out of her cavern to the cliffside and saw
that Sapphire Cloud had indeed been killed by an arrow. Then she noticed
that there was a name inscribed on the arrow, just under the fletches: "Li
Jing, Commanding Officer of Chen-tang Pass. " In a rage, Lady Rock said,
"Li Jing! When you couldn't be successful in achieving the Way, I had your
master send you down the mountain to find wealth and honor in the mor tal world. Now that you have become a great lord, not only do you not think to repay my goodness to you, you shoot my disciple with an arrow instead! Kindness has been answered by hostility. " Then she shouted, "Colored Cloud, watch over the cavern. I'm going to get my hands on Li Jing and pay
him back for this outrage. "
Lady Rock mounted her blue simurgh and went off in a vast sweep of
golden wisps and shimmering scarlet haze. As was said: The marvelous
tricks of immortals never can run out; a foot away the blue simurgh arrived at Chen-tang Pass. There, in the middle of the sky, the Lady shouted in a loud voice, "Li Jing, come out here to me!"
Li Jing had no idea who was shouting for him; and when he rushed out to see, it looked like Lady Rock-in-the-Stream. Li Jing fell to his knees and
bowed: "Your disciple Li Jing humbly greets you. I hope you will forgive
me for failing to come out and welcome you properly. " "A fine thing you've done, " replied Lady Rock, "and here you're still making pretty speeches to
me ! " Then she took her Cloud-Ray Scarf, on which were the Eight Trigrams (with magic markings of four trigrams on the outer surface and able to en
close the treasures of all phenomena within) , and threw it down, com-
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manding her Yellow Turban warriors, "Take Li Jing to my cavern!" Out of
nowhere the Yellow Turban warriors seized Li Jing and carried him away. When they got to White Bone Cavern, they let him go. Lady Rock left her
blue simurgh and took a seat on her rush mat.The warriors brought Li Jing
before her, and he got down on his knees. "Li Jing, " said Lady Rock, "when you failed to achieve the Way of Immortals, you found wealth and honor
in the mortal world. Who did you have to thank for this? Now I find that
instead of thinking how to repay me, you have conceived malice against me.
What explanation do you have for shooting my disciple Sapphire Cloud? "
This all came as a total surprise to Li Jing, who had n o idea what was going on. "What have I done wrong, Lady? " said Li Jing.The Lady replied,
"You answer my kindness with hostility, shoot and kill a member of my
household, and you still pretend to know nothing!" "Where is the arrow? " asked Li Jing. "Bring the arrow for him to see!" commanded Lady Rock. When Li Jing looked at it, it was, in fact, one of the Heaven-Shakers.Li Jing
was amazed and said, "The Cosmic Bow and the Heaven-Shaker arrows ha ve been handed down since the time of the Yellow Emperor.They are now
the magic treasure guarding Chen-tang Pass.But who was able to use them?
All this comes from your disciple's bad luck lately, in which bizarre things
have been happening. I hope that Your Ladyship will keep in mind that I
am guiltless in this and wronged, and that it is hard to clear myself. Set me free to return to the pass and discover who shot the arrow, then I'll bring
him back so that guilt and innocence may be assessed-I hope you will not
punish someone who is guiltless. If I don't find who shot the arrow, then I
will accept my death." To this Lady Rock said, "In this case I'll set you free to go back. But if you don't find out who did it, I'll ask your master to deal
with you. Go now!"
Li Jing took the arrow back with him and reached the pass hidden in a cloud of dust. Making himself visible again, he entered the commander's
compound. Madam Yin had not known what was going on when she saw
Li Jing snatched away out of nowhere; and when Li Jing returned, she was in a state of panic. "Why were y ou just hauled off like that out of nowhere? " she asked. "I was frightened out
0f
my wits!"
Li Jing stamped his foot and said with a sigh, "Wife, I've been at this
post for twenty-five years now, and who could have expected the run of bad
luck that I've been having recently? Up in the watchtower on the walls there
is the Cosmic Bow and the Heaven-Shaker arrows, which are the magic trea sures that protect this pass. Somebody or other shot one of those arrows and
killed a disciple of Lady Rock-in-the-Stream.But my official title was on the arrow, so she had me taken away to pay for it with my life. I pleaded with
her to let me come back here and find out who really did it.I won't be quits
with her until I take that person back to her." Then Li Jing went on to say,
"About that bow-nobody has ever been able to pull it. Could this possi bly be Ne-zha's doing again? " "No, that's- not possible, " replied his wife.
"Do you mean to suggest that with the whole Ao-guang affair not yet set-
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The Yuan a nd Ming Dynasties
tied, he would stir up even more trouble? Besides, Ne-zha couldn't draw the
bow."
Li Jing thought about it for a moment and had an idea. He called to his
attendant, "Ask Ne-zha to come see me." In no time at all Ne-zha came in
and stood over to one side. "You tell me that your master accepts respon
sibility for your actions, " said Li Jing, "and that he told you to assist a vir
tuous ruler. Why don't you go practice your military skills a little so that you'll be more effective when the time comes." "I made up my mind to do
just that, " replied Ne-zha. "I was just in the watchtower on the wall, and I saw a bow and arrows there. I shot off one of the arrows, and it was sur
rounded by a reddish light and a cloud of lavender haze. I shot one good arrow clear out of sight!"
This drove L i Jing's temper to a point where h e shouted, "You little trou
blemaker! First you kill the Third Prince, and the whole thing is still not set
tled.Now you provoke this other catastrophe!" His wife just held her tongue and said nothing. Not understanding the situation, Ne-zha asked, "Why?
What else happened? " "That single arrow, " replied Li Jing, "killed the dis
ciple of Lady Rock-in-the-Stream. The Lady had me taken away, but I per
suaded her to let me come back and find the person who shot the arrow. And now it turns out to be you! You go see the Lady and explain yourself to her!"
"Don't get so angry, Father, " laughed Ne-zha. "Where does Lady Rock
live? And where was her disciple? How could I have possibly killed him? I'm not going to take the blame if I'm being accused for nothing." Then Li Jing told him, "Lady Rock lives in White Bone Cavern on Skeleton Moun
tain. Since you've killed her disciple, you go see her." "What you say is rea
sonable, Father, " replied Ne-zha. "Let's both go to the White Bone Cavern
or whatever. But if it wasn't me who did it, I'm not coming back until I give her one hell of a whack! You go first; I'll follow along right behind you."
And thus father and son went off to Skeleton Mountain hidden in a cloud of dust.
Golden light rose from the arrow's flight,
and in the Great Void red clouds shone.
The high immortal is in our world now, the royal child may bide in peace.
Boast not rashly of magic artsyou must learn to recite the Book of Jade.
The millions of evils are hard to set right: the imperial army must be smashed.
On reaching Skeleton Mountain, Li Jing instructed Ne-zha, "You stay
right here. I'm going to go in and report back to the Lady." At this Ne-zha smiled coldly. "And where will I be when she makes her groundless accu sations against me and decides how she is going to deal with me? "
Li Jing went into the cavern and was received b y Lady Rock. "Who shot
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my lad Sapphire Cloud? " Li ling declared to the Lady, "It was my own
wicked son, Ne-zha. I wouldn't dare disobey you in this, and I've brought
him here to your cavern-he is outside awaiting your orders. " The Lady then ordered Colored Cloud, "Have him brought in."
Seeing someone coming out of the cavern, Ne-zha thought to himself,
"When you're going to strike a blow, be sure you're the first to strike. This
is her lair, and I won't have the advantage in there. " He lifted the Cosmic
Ring and delivered a blow. Unprepared to protect himself, Colored Cloud
took the blow on the neck and fell to the ground with a shriek, gravely wounded and in peril of his life. Hearing the sound of someone falling out
side her cavern, the Lady rushed out. Colored Cloud was already on the gtound, struggling for life. "You monster!" said Lady Rock. "You continue
to do evil and have wounded another of my disciples!"
Ne-zha saw Lady Rock dressed in her golden crown with fishtail pat
terns, a huge red grown marked with the Eight Trigrams, and hemp shoes with silken ties; she was coming after him with the sword Tai-e in her hand.
Ne-zha took back his ring and sent it spinning at her. Seeing that this was
Unity's Cosmic Ring, the Lady said, "Aha! So it's you!" Then the Lady caught the Cosmic Ring in her hand. Ne-zha was shocked. Quickly he took
out the seven-foot Celestial Confusion Cloth and threw it to wrap the Lady up in it. The Lady laughed aloud and raised her open sleeve to receive it.
They watched as the Celestial Confusion Cloth fluttered down ever so lightly
into the Lady's sleeve. "Come on, Ne-zha, " shouted Lady Rock, "try using
a few more of your master's magic weapons and see what my own magic
arts are like!"
Having no weapons left with which to defend himself, Ne-zha had no
choice but to turn and run away. Then the Lady shouted, "Li ling, this has
nothing to do with you-you had better go back." As Li ling was returning to his pass, Lady Rock went chasing after Ne-zha. In flying clouds and light
ning bolts and driving rain and gales, she stayed hard on his heels for a long time until he reached Primordial Mountain. When he got to Goldenray Cav ern, he went into the gate in a panic and bowed down before his master.
"Why are you in such haste, Ne-zha? " asked the high immortal. To this
Ne-zha replied, "Lady Rock has falsely accused me of shooting her disciple,
and she took her magic sword to kill me. She's captured your Cosmic Ring and your Celestial Confusion Cloth. She's chasing after me, and she won't
give up-she'S right outside the cavern now. I didn't know what to do so I came to find you and beg you to save my life!" The high immortal Unity said, "You little monster! Go back into the
peach garden for a while, and let me go out and see what can be done. " The
high immortal went out and leaned against the gate to his cavern. There he saw Lady Rock coming along in furious pursuit, sword in hand and her face
suffused with rage. Seeing the high immortal Unity, she bowed her head re
spectfully. "Greetings, brother." After Unity returned the courtesy, Lady Rock said, "Using your magic arts, brother, a disciple of yours has killed
my lad Sapphire Cloud, seriously wounded my lad Colored Cloud, and then 790
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
used the Cosmic Ring and the Celestial Confusion Cloth to try to harm me. So, brother, if you're willing to tell Ne-zha to come out to me, then we're
still on good terms and the whole matter can be put to rest. But if you try
to protect him, you'll be wasting your good efforts for someone who isn't
worth it, and it won't be pretty." "Ne-zha is inside my cavern, " replied the high immortal, "and it's not hard to get him to come out-just go to Jade Void Palace and see the Elder
of our sect. If he wants him delivered to you, I'll deliver him to you. But Ne zha was sent into the world on the orders of the Heavenly Emperor, and he
is to assist a virtuous ruler. I'm not protecting him for my own personal rea sons. " A t this the Lady laughed. "You've made a big mistake, brother-using your Elder to intimidate me. Do you really mean say that you're going to let your disciple run wild and do evil, killing my disciple, and then try to in
timidate me with this high and mighty talk! Do you really think I'm no match for you? Should I just give up? Hear this: Mysterious are the Way and its Power, coming from Primal Fusion; whosoever perfects the vigor of Qian
will attain life everlasting. "Essence, Breath, and Spirit refine d "
this i s no idle theory; "The Five Vapors honor the Primal as lord " far from reckless words!
Sitting peacefully on the Gray Dragon I go to the Lavender Pole-Star
and joyously ride on the white crane descending to Mount Kun-lun.
Do not try then to dupe my sect with the Elder of your teaching the cycle of kalpas turns in a ring
from sources in the thousands.
The high immortal Unity said, "Rock-in-the-Stream, I take this to mean that your mastery of the Way is pure and lofty. You belong to the Jie sect, the Teaching of Severing; I belong to the Chan sect, the Teaching of Open Access. Because, for the past fifteen hundred years, we have never managed we to cut away the Three Corpse-spirits that curse the body, and because be to down sent been have we killing, against s have violated the injunction s and execution and s campaign be will there where world, mortal the in born to a killing and battles, by which the fated span of the eon will be brought , destroyed be to is Tang, King close. The lineage of Shang, descended from invested be will gods Palace, Void Jade the In rise. and the House of Zhou The with powers, and they will enjoy wealth and power in the mortal world. Three Teachings-Daoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism-have all sub
scribed to a 'List of the Gcds,' and my own teacher has commanded that 7'n
Anthology of Chinese Literature
our sect send down our numerous disciples to be born into the world below
to assist the virtuous ruler. Ne-zha is the incarnation of Numinous Pearl,
who will assist Jiang Zi-ya destroy the royal line of Shang. He bears the com
mand of the Elder of our sect, Primal Origin. If he harmed your disciples, it was destined by Heaven to be so. How can you claim to comprehend all that
is or that you will eventually ascend to the heights? Those such as you
should not worry or be filled with cares; you should feel neither humiliation
nor elation. It would be best to practice self-control. Why be so easily stirred by a mere trifle and do harm to the grace of your Way? "
Lady Rock could not endure the fires that burned in her heart, and she shouted, "The Way is one-how can there be levels in it? " "Although the
Way is one, " replied the high immortal, "it comes out differently in each person. Let me explain it to you:
Convergent rays of sun and moon refined a bloom of gold:
a single kernel of numinous pearl shed light throughout the chamber.
When he shakes Earth and Heaven, the might of his Way is known;
he will escape from life and death
when his deeds of merit are done.
He will roam free through the universe, leaving the trace of passage,
then return to the Three Pure Realms
where his name will be established.
Straight up through the rainbow clouds, steady his path through sky,
the lavender simurgh, the scarlet crane
will come on their own to greet him."
Flying into a great rage, Lady Rock took her magic sword in hand and
swung it at the high immortal. Unity dodged the blow, then slipped back
into his cavern. He there took his own sword, and dangling it from his hand, he secretly put something in his pouch. Then, facing eastern Kun-lun, he bowed down: "On this mountain today your disciple will set aside the in
junction against killing." When he finished, he went out of the cavern and pointed at Lady Rock. "Your grounding is shallow, and your practice of the Way is weak-how dare you be so insolent as to commit mayhem on my
mountain!" Lady Rock swung her sword at him again, and Unity blocked the blow with his own sword, saying, "Nicely done!"
Rock-in-the-Stream was actually the refined essence of a stone that had drawn on the numinous vapors of Heaven and Earth and had received the
luminous essences of sun and moon. She had attained the Way for several thousand years but had still not achieved the fruit of true immortality. Now a Great Eon was coming to its close, and her original appearance could not
survive-it was because of this that she had come to the mountain. The first 792
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
reason was that Rock's own time had run out; and the second reason was
that this was the place where Ne-zha would have his incarnation. Destiny is fixed, and it cannot be evaded. Lady Rock and the high immortal Unity attacked one another back and forth, whirling up and down several times around and blocking each other's
blows, and before long one could see only the glow of sparkling clouds. Then Lady Rock took out her dragon-whisker scarf with the Eight Trigrams and
threw it into the air to wound the high immortal. But Unity only laughed and said, "Can thousands of evils ever even touch the right? " At this the
high immortal recited several phrases and pointed to the scarf: "Fall now what are you waiting for? " And the scarf with the Eight Trigrams came
falling down. Lady Rock flew into a greater rage; her cheeks flushed as pink
as peach blossoms, and her sword seemed like a snowflake. "When things
reach this stage, we have to go on with it, " commented Unity. He leapt out of the circle of the fight and tossed his Nine Dragons Net of Spiritual Fire
into the sky. Rock was caught within the net and couldn't get out.
Seeing his master use the net to catch Rock, Ne-zha sighed, "If he'd only
given this to me earlier, we wouldn't have had to waste so much energy!"
Ne-zha then went out o f the cavern to his master. When the high immortal
Unity turned his head and saw his disciple coming, he thought, "Oh no! When the little devil sees my net, he's going to want it. But he can't use it yet. I can only hand it over to him when Jiang Zi-ya becomes the general. "
And the high immortal quickly shouted, "Ne-zha! Get going! The dragon
rulers of the four seas have presented their petition to the Jade Emperor, and
they've gone to seize your father and mother!"
Hearing this, Ne-zha's eyes welled with tears and he entreated the high
immortal, "Master, have mercy on my parents! No son's heart can ever be
at peace if he gets his parent implicated in troubles he himself has caused. " Then he began to cry in a loud voice. Seeing Ne-zha in such a state, the high
immortal whispered in his ear, "Do thus and so, and you can save your par ents from harm. " Ne-zha bowed in gratitude and went off to Chen-tang Pass
hidden in a cloud of dust.
When the high immortal Unity caught her in his net, Lady Rock became
completely disoriented. The high immortal clapped his hands together, and
flames began to lick up from within the net, giving off a blazing light. Nine
fire dragons spiraled upward around her-these were the spiritual fires of Concentrated Meditation that were burning Lady Rock. Then with a crash
of thunder the Lady's true form emerged from the smelting: a large piece of rock. This rock had come into being out beyond the Purple and Brown of Heaven and Earth. It had passed through earth and water and fire and wind. And it had been refined into an Essence endowed with spiritual con sciousness. But this day its destiny was settled, and in this place it was to die. Thus was its true form revealed. Herein the high immortal Unity had
to relax the injunctions against killing. He retrieved his Net of Spiritual Fire,
his Celestial Confusion Cloth, and his Universal Ring, and went back into
his cavern.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
Meanwhile Ne-zha was flying with all possible speed back to Chen-tang
Pass. There he heard an uproar of voices in front of the commander's com
pound. When the crowd of guards saw that he had arrived, they hurriedly
reported to Li Jing, "Your son is back." Standing before the dragon kings
of the four seas-Ao-guang, Ao-shun, Ao-ming, and Ao-ji-Ne-zha shouted
in a shrill voice, "When one person does something, that one person is re
sponsible. 1 killed Ao-bing and Li Gen, and 1 must pay with my life. But it is not right that a son implicate his parents in what he himself has done. "
Then facing Ao-guang, he said, "I am not a person of small account. 1 am Numinous Pearl. 1 bear the commands of the Jade Void Palace, and it was
my destiny to be born into the mortal world. This day 1 will cut open my
belly, gouge out my intestines, and scrape the bones, returning this body of flesh to my parents so that they will not be implicated in my misdeeds. Will
this satisfy you? For if it does not satisfy you, we will all go together to the
Hall of Numinous Aether to see the Ruler of Heaven, and there 1 will tell my own story."
When Ao-guang heard this, he said, "All right, in this case your parents
are spared, and you will be known for your filial devotion to your parents."
Then the four dragon kings set Li Jing and his wife free.Ne-zha took a sword
in his right hand. First he hacked off his other arm at the shoulder, then cut open his own belly, gouged out his intestines, and scraped the bone, scat tering his seven earthly souls and his three heavenly souls, and his life was over. As they had agreed, the four dragon kings then returned.
Madam Yin, his mother, put Ne-zha's corpse in a wooden coffin and had
it buried.
Ne-zha's souls had lost their physical lodging-he was the incarnation of a jewel that had borrowed the essences of physical life, and thus he had
souls. Ne-zha was tossed wildly and whirled along with the wind straight to Primordial Mountain. And if you don't know what happened afterwards, read the next episode.
Episode XIV: The Reincarnation of Ne-zha from a Lotus Blossom The mystery of immortals' power cannot be estimated:
to raise the dead and bring back life
they have their strange techniques.
A grain of magic cinnabar restores the jewel of life,
in several stalks of lotus leaves the drifting soul returns.
To pass beyond the common world one needs not unclean bones, to be a Sage one must seek out the soul-recalling scent.
794
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
From this point on the Ruler-Sage extended his domain,
the founding of the House of Zhou made use of helpers.
The lad Golden Wisp went into the cavern and informed the high im
mortal Unity, "I don't know what's going on. My fellow disciple Ne-zha was
lost far in the darkness, then tossed wildly and whirled along; the wind
brought him to rest here. " When he heard this, the high immortal already
understood what it meant, and he hurried out of the cavern. There he gave
his instructions to Ne-zha: "This is not the place where you will rest secure.
Go back to Chen-tang Pass and appear to your mother in a dream. Forty
leagues from the pass is Azure Screen Mountain, and on the mountain there is a bare spot. Command your mother to have a Ne-zha Shrine constructed there.When you have received offerings of incense there for three years, you
can again take your place in the mortal world and assist the true ruler. Get
going quickly now! You can't hang around here!" Hearing this, Ne-zha left Primordial Mountain for Chen-tang Pass. At exactly the hour of midnight, Ne-zha went to his mother's bedroom and called out, "Mother, I am your child Ne-zha. My soul has no resting place now, and I hope you will consider what pain I suffered in dying. Forty leagues from here there is a mountain named Azure Screen. Set up a shrine for me there and let me receive a little incense so that I can go live in Heaven.
My gratitude for your kindness is greater than anyone can imagine. " Madam Yin woke up and realized that it had been a dream. Then she wept out loud. "Why are you crying? " asked Li Jing.Then his wife told him all about the dream.
Li Jing flew into a rage: "How can you still be crying for him? He caused us no small amount of harm!People always say that dreams come from the dreamer's own mind-the only reason your having such crazy dreams is be
cause you're thinking about him. Don't be fooled. " To this his wife said nothing.
The next night Ne-zha came to her again in a dream, and again the night
after that. No sooner did Madam Yin close her eyes than there was Ne-zha
standing before her. After a week or so, Ne-zha, whose soul was as hot-tem pered in death as his personality had been belligerent in life, addressed his mother. "I've been here asking you to do this for a number of days now, and you don't care anything at all about how much I suffered when I died.
If you won't make a shrine for me, I'm going to make so much trouble around here that you'll wish you had!"
This time when Madam Yin woke up, she didn't dare tell L i Jing. She
secretly gave some taels of silver to a trusted servant, who broke ground for
the construction on Azure Screen Mountain, erected the shrine, and had an image of Ne-zha fashioned. In ten months the work was done.
Here on Azure Screen Mountain Ne-zha made manifest his divine na-
Anthology of Chinese Literature
ture and stirred the hearts of all the populace. Each one of their thousands
of prayers was answered. The buildings in the temple complex rose stately
and high, and all was perfectly regular.
Through the shrine's arched gateway stucco walls appeared,
crimson doors and rings of bronze arra yed on every side. Sapphire tiles and carved eaves, three feet of water,
several cypress and juniper trees, a terrace in two layers.
His jeweled place on the pedestal was decorated with gold,
dragon and phoenix banners all with holy colors decked.
The hooks that hung from the curtains swallowed the half moon,
ferocious demon judges
stood in the dirt and dust.
The smoke of aloes and sandalwood coiled into phoenixes,
and da y by da y in droves
worshippers came to pray.
When Ne-zha made manifest his divine nature on Azure Screen Moun
tain, the common people who dwelled near and far on every side all came to worship him with incense. They came in droves, like ants in an unceas ing line, each day more numerous than the last. And he answered every one,
whether they prayed for blessings or to avert some evil. Time flew by, and before he knew it, half a year had passed.
As we said earlier, the Earl of the East, Jiang Wen-huan, was avenging
his father; he mustered an army of four hundred thousand men and horse,
and at Spirit Roaming Pass he fought a great battle with Dou Rong, in which Dou Rong was unable to achieve victory. As a result, Li Jing had been
drilling his army on Wild Horse Ridge and kept his own pass secure.
One day, while bringing his troops back past Azure Screen Mountain,
Li Jing saw the throngs going back and forth. The men and women going
to the temple to worship ranged from doddering old folks to babes in arms; they went in droves like ants, and the smoke from their fires gathered above them.
Still on horseback, Li Jing asked, "This is Azure Screen Mountain-why
this unbroken line of men and women in such numbers? " The adjutant replied, "Half a year ago a god made manifest his divinity here. He answers each one of thousands of prayers. If someone prays for blessings, blessings
come; if another wants to avert calamity, the calamity is gone. This is the 796
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
reason that men and women from all around have been stirred to offer him incense. " On hearing this a thought rose in Li Jing's mind, and he asked the adjutant, "What's the name of this god? " "This is the Shrine of Ne-zha, "
replied the adjutant.
Li Jing flew into a rage and gave the order, "Make camp! I'm going up the mountain to worship and offer incense. " His men stood there, and Li Jing let his horse race up the mountain toward the temple, while the men and women worshippers quickly opened a path for him. He let his horse race
on right to the front of the main temple hall, where he saw an inscription
hanging high above the gate, and on it was written: "The Temple of Ne zha. " When he went inside, he saw the image of Ne-zha, looking just as he had when alive. On either side stood the demon judges. Li Jing pointed to
the statue and began to hurl insults at it. "You little beast! You caused all
sorts of trouble for your parents when you were alive, and now that you're
dead, you're making fools of the common people!" When he finished, he
lifted his whip and with one blow shattered Ne-zha's gilded image into
pieces. Li Jing's rage grew, and with one kick he knocked over each of the
demon judges. He then issued the command, "Light fires! Burn the temple
down!" Next, he instructed the people who had come to worship, "This is
no god! You shouldn't worship him. " The crowds were so frightened that
they went running down the mountain as fast as they could go. By the time
Li Jing got back on his horse, his rage had still not subsided. This is shown
in the following verse:
The moment that the valiant troops
reached Azure Screen Mountain,
at once they saw the common folk daily coming to worship.
He whipped the gilded image, shattered it to bits;
he kicked the demon judges down, and they too were destroyed.
A fire burned the temple,
its flames then mounted high,
the smoke passed through the air, the light was blazing bright.
And all because that vapor reached Dipper and the Ox, strife between son and father became a battlefield.
When Li Jing's troops entered Chen-tang Pass, he dismounted at the com
mander's compound and gave the order, "Dismiss the men. " Li Jing went into the rear hall; and when his wife came to greet him, he berated her, "A
fine son you bore! After all the harm he brought on me, you went ahead and had a shrine built for him to stir up delusions among the common folk! You
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won't give up until I've had to resign my badge of office! The government
is run by ruthless and domineering ministers, on top of which I have no per
sonal connections with Fei Zhong and You Hun. If anyone gets word of this
to the capital at Zhao-ge, corrupt officials will impeach me for falsely call
ing on evil spirits, and everything that I have accomplished over the past years will be sacrificed for nothing. And all this would be because of what you have done, woman! Well, I burned his temple down today. And if you build it back up for him, I'll never forgive you!"
Turning now from Li Jing to Ne-zha, on that day Ne-zha had been away
from his shrine working his divine powers; when he came back, he saw that nothing remained of his temple. The mountain was scorched bare, and the
flames and smoke had not completely died out. His two demon judges came to meet him with tears in their eyes.
"What happened!? " asked Ne-zha. The demon judges replied, "Com
mander Li of Chen-tang Pass burst up the mountainside, smashed your gilded image, and burned down your shrine. We have no idea why. " "Li Jing,
there is nothing between you and me any more, " said Ne-zha. "I gave my
flesh and bones back to my parents, so how could you break my gilded image
and burn my shrine, leaving me no place to rest? " Ne-zha felt extremely
dispirited and brooded over the whole thing for a long time. "I had better
go back to Primordial Mountain. "
Having received the smoke from incense for half a year, Ne-zha already
possessed a little form and voice. In a short while he reached the high moun
tain and went into the cavern. There the lad Golden Wisp led Ne-zha to see
the high immortal Unity, who said, "How come you're here and not in your
shrine receiving incense? " Ne-zha got down on his knees and explained the situation. "My father smashed my clay image and burned down my shrine.
Since I had no place to stay, all I could do was come here. I beg you to have
pity on me and save me. "
Hearing this, the high immortal said, "Li Jing did wrong in this. Since
you returned your flesh and bones to your parents, your presence on Azure
Screen Mountain had nothing to do with him. Now that he has prevented
you from receiving the smoke of offerings, how can you get a body? What's
more, Jiang Zi-ya is due to come down from his mountain very soon. All right then, since it's for you, Ne-zha, I'll do you a good turn . " He then told Golden Wisp, "Go pick two lotus blossoms and three lotus leaves from Five Lotus Pool and bring them to me. " The lad rushed out and got the lotus blos
soms and lotus leaves, then put them down. The high immortal first took
the flowers and picked off the petals, spreading them into three separate groups, representing Heaven, Earth, and Man. He then snapped the ribs of the lotus leaves into the three hundred bones. The three leaves themselves were arranged in the positions of high, middle, and low, representing
Heaven, Earth, and Man. Next the high immortal took a kernel of metallic mercury and placed it in the middle. Using the technique of Anticipating Na ture, he set the vital energies operating through the ninefold turns. He di-
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
vided the dragon of Li, which is the Sign of Fire, from the Tiger of Kan, which is the Sign of Water, thus separating the Female and Male Essences. Then
he grabbed firm hold of Ne-zha's souls and heaped them into a pile on the
lotus, shouting, "Hurry up, Ne-zha, take human form!" There was an echo
ing sound, and a man leapt forth. His face was white as powder, his lips were
crimson, beams of light flashed from his eyes, and his body was fifteen feet
tall. This was Ne-zha's reincarnation from a lotus blossom. When he saw his master, Ne-zha fell to the ground and bowed. The high
immortal then said, "It's really upsetting that Li Jing destroyed your clay image. " "Honored Master, " replied Ne-zha, "I cannot give up this desire
to be revenged on him. " "Come with me into the Peach Garden, " said the
high immortal. There the high immortal gave him the Fire-Point Spear, and
in no time at all Ne-zha was familiar with its use. Ne-zha wanted to go down the mountain right then to take his revenge, and the high immortal said, "Your technique with the spear is fine. I'm giving you my pair of Wind-and
Fire Wheels to stand on, along with the talismans and spells to use them. "
The high immortal also entrusted him with a leopard-skin pouch in which he put the Cosmic Ring, the Celestial Confusion Cloth, and a brick of gold.
"Be off with you now to Chen-tang Pass. " Ne-zha bowed his head to the ground to thank his master, then mounted the Wind-and-Fire Wheels, plant
ing his feet firmly upon them; he took the Fire-Point Spear in hand and went straight off to Chen-tang Pass. As the verse says: A pair of lotus blooms revealed a body reincarnated, Numinous Pearl's second life
transcended common dust.
His hand held a magic treasure, a snake-pike lavender flamed;
his feet on Wind-and-Fire Wheels, in golden wisps of cloud.
Within his pouch of leopard skin was peace for all the world;
inside his cloth of red brocade
were blessings for the folk.
Of sages from every age
he was foremost of all,
the tale from the chronicler's pen
is fresh for ten thousand years.
When Ne-zha reached Chen-tang Pass, he went straight through the
walls and up to the commander's compound, where he called out in a loud
voice, "Come out to me at once, LiJing!" An adjutant went in and reported,
"The third young master is outside. He's standing on Wind-and-Fire Wheels,
holding the Fire-Point Spear in his hand, and calling for you by name. I don't
knowwhat's going on, but you had better go out and settle things wi th him. "
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"Nonsense, " shouted Li Jing. "When a person is dead, he can't come
back to life!" As he was saying this, another person came in and said, "If
you don't get out there fast, he is going to fight his way into the compound. "
Li Jing flew into a rage. "We'll see about that!" He quickly picked up
his painted halberd, mounted his gray steed, and went out of the compound.
There he saw Ne-zha standing on his Wind-and-Fire Wheels, holding the Fire-Point Spear, and of a size very different from what he had been before.
LiJing was shocked and said, "You little beast!You did monstrous things while you were alive; and now that your soul has returned, you've come here
to get us in trouble again!" "Li Jing!" replied Ne-zha, "I gave you back my
flesh and bones, and there is no connection between us any more. Why did you go to Azure Screen Mountain, shatter my gilded image, and set fire to
my shrine? Now I've got you, and I'm going to pay you back for the bitter
hate you caused by that one blow!" Then he flourished his spear and thrust it, aiming a blow at Li Jing's head. Li Jing met the blow with his painted halberd. Around and around they spun, spear and halberd both raised.
Ne-zha's strength was boundless, and after only a few rounds Li Jing was
quite overwhelmed: the strength of his sinews was spent and the sweat ran
down his spine. All Li Jing could do was flee away to the Southeast. Ne-zha shouted after him in a loud voice, "Don't think I'll spare your life this time.
Li Jing! I won't turn around until I've killed you!" And with this he went
off after him.
In no time at all Ne-zha was just about to catch up-for his Wing-and Fire Wheels were as fast as Li Jing's horse was slow. In his desperation Li
Jing had no choice but to get off his horse and disappear in a cloud of dust.
"Any old Daoist can do these magic tricks with the elements, " laughed Ne
zhao "Do you really think that I'll let you go simply because you disappear in a cloud of dust? " He then stepped up onto his pair of Wind-and-Fire
Wheels and set off chasing him in the sounds of a wind-driven fire, like fly ing clouds and a lightning bolt.
Li Jing was thinking to himself, "What am I going to do? This time when
he catches up to me, I'll be killed by one thrust of his spear!" As Li Jing saw Ne-zha just about to close in on him, he suddenly heard someone singing a song:
Beside a pool of clear water, bright moon;
by a bank of green willows, peach blooms. A chaste savor distinct from all else:
a few cloudy wisps flying up through the sky.
When Li Jing looked, he saw a Daoist lad, wearing a turban, a Daoist robe with wide sleeves, and hemp shoes with silken ties. This was Mu-zha,
disciple of the high immortal Universal Goodness from White Crane Cav ern on Nine Lords Mountain. "I'm here, Father, " said Mu-zha. When Li Jing looked and saw that it was indeed his second son Mu-zha, he felt calmer.
At that moment Ne-zha, riding his wheels, caught up and saw Li Jing con versing with a Daoist lad. When Ne-zha leapt down from his wheels, Mu-
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
zha came toward him, shouting in a loud voice, "Slow down, there! You
have a lot of nerve, you monster! For a son to kill his father violates every principle of ethical conduct. If you turn around and get out of here as
quickly as you can, I'll spare you. " "Who are you to talk so high and mighty? " replied Ne-zha. To this, Mu
zha said, "You don't even recognize me! 1 am Mu-zha!" Realizing that this
was his older brother, Ne-zha quickly shouted, "You don't understand the whole situation, brother." And then Ne-zha told him the story of what hap pened on Azure Screen Mountain in all its details. " . . . who is in the right,
Li Jing or me? " "This is nonsense!" shouted Mu-zha, "Parents are always
in the right-never the other way around!" But Ne-zha continued, "I hacked open my belly, gouged out my entrails, and gave him back my flesh and bone.
There's nothing between us any more, so why should 1 still have any feel
ings for him as a parent? " Mu-zha flew into a rage, "You unnatural son!" And h e struck at Ne-zha
with his sword. Ne-zha blocked the blow with his spear, saying, "There is no enmity between us, Mu-zha. Stand back and let me take my revenge on Li Jing. " But Mu-zha only shouted, "What a monster! How can you possi bly be so evil!" As Mu-zha again came at him with his sword, N e-zha said,
"This is the work of fate-choosing death rather than life . " Then he returned
the blow, striking toward Mu-zha's face. Circling around one another ex
changing blows, the two brothers engaged in a great battle.
Noticing Li Jing standing over to one side, Ne-zha was afraid he would
get away and grew impatient. Knocking aside Mu-zha's sword with his spear, Ne-zha took his golden brick and tossed it into the air. Catching Mu
zha off guard, the brick hit him on the back, in the region right behind the
heart, and he fell to the ground. Then Ne-zha mounted his wheels to get Li
Jing, who turned and ran off. "Even if you run to some island in the sea, " shouted Ne-zha, "my hatred will not be appeased until 1 bring back your head!"
Li Jing flew off just like a bird that had lost its grove or a fish that had
slipped through the net, without any sense of where he was going. After flee
ing for quite some time, Li Jing saw that the situation was not good and sighed to himself, "Enough! 1 don't know what terrible things 1 must have
done in a former life that first kept me from attaining the Way and then made
me beget such a vindictive creature. But if it has to be this way, the best thing to do would be to die by my own hand so that 1 won't have to endure hu miliation by this boy. "
Just as he was about to kill himself, he heard someone shouting, "Don't
do it, General Li!" The person then composed an extempore song that went: Clear breeze brushing willows beyond the wilds,
blossoms bob in the water upon the pool.
If you ask of the place where 1 dwell in peace
in the depths of white clouds 1 make my home.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
The singer was the Exalted Celestial named "Extensive Dharma of Re
markable Culture " from Nimbus Cavern on Five Dragons Mountain, and
he approached with his dust-whisk in hand. Seeing him, Li Jing spoke. "Venerable master, save my miserable life!" "Go into my cavern, " replied
the Exalted Celestial, "and I will wait for him here."
In a moment Ne-zha came chasing up i n pursuit, his spear in hand. He
was in a belligerent and violent temper, his feet planted on his Wind-and
Fire Wheels. There he saw a Daoist, who may be described as follows: Hair drawn into double tufts, spreading into hazy cloud; a water compound gown, tightly bound with silken ties.
Immortal's air, a Daoist's bones, he wanders as he pleases; hidden in
his breast are found countless mysteries. By the Gate of First Beginning in the Palace of Jade Void, the Chief of All Immortals goes to Coiling Peach Tree.
Relying on the Five-fold Breaths, the Domineering was refined; the Immortal-fost'ring Way achieved by one of Heaven's Sovereign's
line.
Ne-zha saw an immortal standing on the mountainside, but he didn't see
Li Jing. "Daoist, " he asked, "have you seen a general pass by? " The Exalted Celestial replied, "Just now a General Li went inside my Nimbus Cavern.
What do you want with him? " "He is my enemy, Daoist, " said Ne-zha. "You
had better send him out of your cavern because this doesn't concern you. If
Li Jing gets away, I'll have a go at you with my spear instead of him." To this the Exalted Celestial said, "Who are you? Such bloodthirstiness
wanting to skewer even me with your spear!" Not realizing the sort of per son this Daoist was, Ne-zha shouted, "I am Ne-zha, disciple of the high im
mortal Unity of Goldenray Cavern on Primordial Mountain! You can't go
treating me lightly!" The Exalted Celestial replied, "I've never heard of any disciple of the high immortal Unity called Ne-zha. You can go act rudely
somewhere else, but not here at my place. If you keep on behaving this rudely here, I'll take you off into my peach garden and let you languish there three years after giving you two hundred strokes of the cane!"
Having no idea what was good for him, Ne-zha twirled his spear and
aimed a blow at the Exalted Celestial. The Exalted Celestial dodged and ran
back to his cavern. Ne-zha got on his wheels and chased after him.Turning
his head and seeing that Ne-zha had gotten close, the Exalted Celestial took something out of his sleeve. This was named the Vanishing Dragon Stake,
also known as the Golden Lotus of the Seven Treasures. When he tossed it
into the air, winds rose up from all four directions and clouds came rolling over the sky. Dust and dirt were lifted in the wind and struck with a sound. Lost in the gloomy and murky darkness, Ne-zha couldn't tell where he was
going. Then all of a sudden his neck and two legs were clamped by metal bands, and he found himself standing upright against a gleaming golden pil
lar. When Ne-zha opened his eyes wide to look, he found himself completely unable to move.
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
"What a monster!" said the Exalted Celestial. "You've behaved very
rudely indeed." Then he called to Jin-zha, "Fetch me my cane!" Jin-zha quick got the cane and brought it to the Exalted Celestial, who then said, "Beat
him for me!" Jin-zha did as his master ordered; he took the cane and gave Ne-zha a beating until the true fires of Concentrated Meditation came pour ing out from all Ne-zha's seven apertures. Then the Exalted Celestial said;
"Stop now, " and went off into the cavern with Jin-zha. Ne-zha stood there thinking to himself, "Instead of catching up to LiJing,
I've been given a beating myself and can't even get away!" In the depths of his fury Ne-zha ground his teeth together, but there was nothing he could do but stand there burning with rage.
Reader, the high immortal Unity had knowingly sent Ne-zha here in
order to subdue his murderous nature. Thus the high immortal already
knew the situation he was in. As Ne-zha stood there seething, over to one
side he caught sight of a broad gown with wide sleeves and hemp shoes with silken ties. It was the high immortal Unity.
Seeing him, Ne-zha shouted, "Master, save me!" He shouted this sev
eral times, but the high immortal ignored him and went directly into the cav ern. There the lad White Cloud announced, "The high immortal Unity is
here. " The Exalted Celestial went out to welcome him, and, taking him by the hand, laughed, "Your disciple has asked me to give him some instruc
tion. " The two immortals then sat down. "Ne-zha's violation of the in
junctions against killing had grown so serious, " said the high immortal
Unity, "that I sent him here to subdue the violence of his nature-but I had no idea he would end up committing a transgression against the Exalted Ce
lestial himself!" Then the Exalted Celestial ordered Jin-zha, "Let Ne-zha come . " Going to Ne-zha, Jin-zha said, "Your master is calling for you. "
"Since you obviously didn't know what to do with me, " replied Ne-zha,
" you worked some kind of eye-blinding spell and then made me unable to
move-and still you came and play around with me!" Jin-zha just laughed
and said, "Close your eyes." And Ne-zha had no choice but to close his eyes.
When Jin-zha had finished drawing the magic talisman, he took back the Vanishing Dragon Stake. When Ne-zha quickly looked around, neither the
stake nor the metal bands were anywhere to be seen. Then, nodding his head,
Ne-zha said, "All right, all right.I've really gotten the worst of it today. I'll
go into the cavern now and meet my master, then I'll decide what to do." The two of them went into the cave, where Ne-zha saw the Daoist who had beaten him sitting on the left side and his master sitting on the right. The high immortal Unity said, "Come over here and bow to your uncle!"
Not daring to disobey his master's orders, he had to bow down, saying,
"Thank you for the beating!" Then he turned and bowed to his own mas
ter. At this the high immortal called out, "Li Jing, come over here." Li Jing
fell to the ground and bowed his head. "As for what happened on Azure
Screen Mountain, you really shouldn't have been so narrow-minded-that's
the cause of this strife between son and father. " Standing over to the side,
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
Ne-zha's temper was rising until his face seemed like it would catch on fire,
and he felt that his hatred would not be appeased until he had devoured Li
Jing. Both the immortals already understood what was on his mind. "From now on, " said the high immortal, "neither of you, neither father nor son, may offend the other." Then he instructed Li Jing to leave first.
Li Jing thanked the high immortal and went straight out. This drove Ne
zha into a frenzy of rage, but he dared not say a word. He simply stood over to the side pinching his ears, rubbing his cheeks, and giving long sighs. Laughing secretly to himself, the high immortal said, "Ne-zha, go back now. Keep a close watch over my cavern. I'm going to play a game of chess
with your uncle and I'll be back in a while."
Hearing this, Ne-zha was overjoyed and said, "Yes, sir!" He left the cav
ern as fast as he could, got on his Wind-and-Fire Wheels, and went off in
pursuit of Li Jing. After chasing him for a long time, Ne-zha caught sight of Li Jing ahead of him riding in a cloud of dust. In a loud voice he shouted, "Don't try to run, Li Jing-I'm on my way!"
Seeing him, Li Jing cried out bitterly, "That Daoist didn't mean what he
said. Since he sent me away first, he should not have let Ne-zha leave the
mountain, and now he's after me. That was really a traitorous thing to do, to let him come chasing me after such a short time!What am I going to do!" And he fled on ahead.
With Ne-zha following hot on his heels, Li Jing saw no route of escape.
Just as the situation was getting desperate, there appeared a Daoist up on a
hilltop, leaning against a pine among the rocks. "Could that be Li Jing down there at the foot of the mountain? " said the Daoist. Li Jing lifted his head, saw a Daoist, and said, "Master, I am Li Jing. " Then the Daoist said, "Why are you in such a hurry? " Li Jing replied, "Ne-zha is hot on my trail,
master. Please save me!" "Quickly, come up the hill, " said the Daoist, "and
stand behind me. I'll save you." Li Jing climbed the hill and, still out of breath, took a position behind the Daoist. Then the sound of Ne-zha's
Wind-and-Fire Wheels could be heard, and he was about to reach the foot of the hill. When Ne-zha saw the two of them standing there, he gave a frosty
smile. "I don't think I'm going to get the worst of it this time!" And he rode
his wheels up the hill.
"Are you, by chance, Ne-zha? " asked the Daoist. "That I am, " replied
Ne-zha. "Why do you have Li Jing standing there behind you? " "Why are
you chasing him? " asked the Daoist. Ne-zha then told him the whole story of what had happened on Azure Screen Mountain. To this the Daoist said,
"Since this was all cleared up at Five Dragon Mountain, you are breaking
faith by chasing him again." "Stay out of this business between us, " replied
Ne-zha. "I am determined to get him today and assuage this bitter hatred that I feel."
To this, the Daoist said, "Well, since you won't have it any other way . . . "
Then he turned to Li Jing and said, "Go fight him, and I'll watch." "Ven erable master, " said Li Jing, "this beast has boundless strength. I can't beat
him." Then the Daoist straightened up, spit on Li Jing, and gave him a slap 804
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
on the back, saying, "You beat him, and I'll watch. I'll be here so there's no problem." Li Jing had no choice but to take his halberd and thrust it at N e zha, who met the blow with his Fire-Point Spear.
There on the hilltop father and son battled for fifty or sixty rounds. But this time Ne-zha was hardpressed, until the sweat ran all over his face and his whole body was giving way with fatigue.Unable to fend off the painted
halberd any longer, Ne-zha brooded to himself, "Li Jing could never beat me on his own. The reason has to be because the Daoist just spat on him and gave him a slap.I know what to do-I'll pretend to slip up, then strike.
I'll run the Daoist through with my spear first, and then I'll get Li Jing." Ne-zha leapt out of the circle of battle and aimed a thrust at the Daoist. The Daoist spread his mouth wide open, and a white lotus blossom emerged, blocking the Fire-Point Spear. "Stop now, Li Jing, " said the Daoist. Hear
ing this, Li Jing hastily parried the Fire-Point Spear. Then the Daoist asked
Ne-zha, "Listen, you monster! Your father and you may be trying to kill each other, but there's no enmity between us.Why did you just strike at me
with your spear? My white lotus caught the blow-otherwise you would have gotten me by a sneak attack.What's going on? " "Li Jing couldn't beat
me before, " replied Ne-zha. "When you told him to fight with me, why did
you spit on him and slap him on the back? This was obviously some trick of yours to keep me from winning in the fight. That's why I tried to stab
you with my spear, to assuage my anger!"
"So you dare to try to stab me, monster!" said the Daoist. Ne-zha flew
into a rage, twirled his spear, and aimed another blow at the Daoist's head. The Daoist jumped over to one side and raised his sleeves upward. There appeared winding wreaths of magic cloud and a vortex of lavender fog, from
which an object fell; and Ne-zha found himself trapped inside a pagoda of intricate grillwork. Then the Daoist hit the pagoda with both hands, and a fire broke out inside. It burned Ne-zha until he shouted, "Spare my life!" From outside the pagoda, the Daoist asked, "Do you acknowledge your fa
ther, Ne-zha? " Ne-zha had no choice but to answer repeatedly, "I ac
knowledge him as my father, master!" "Since you have acknowledged him
as your father, " said the Daoist, "I will spare you." Thereupon the Daoist
quickly took back the magic pagoda. When N e-zha opened his eyes to look,
there was not the least burn anywhere on his body.Ne-zha thought to him self, "How weird! This Daoist really is playing tricks on me!" "Ne-zha, "
said the Daoist, "since you have acknowledged Li Jing as your father, get down on the ground and bow to him." When Ne-zha seemed reluctant to do so, the Daoist was about to invoke the pagoda again, so Ne-zha had no alternative but to subdue his temper, keep his mouth shut, lower his head,
and bow down.But still he looked unrepentant. So the Daoist said, "I want
to hear you say 'Father' from your own lips." Ne-zha refused, and the
Daoist said, "Ne-zha, since you won't say 'Father,' you still haven't given in.I'm getting my golden pagoda to burn you again." Desperate, Ne-zha re
peatedly shouted in a loud voice, "Father! Your son admits he was in the
wrong!"
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
Even though he had spoken these words with his lips, in his heart he had
not given in.Secretly he ground his teeth, thinking to himself, "Li Jing, you're going to have to be taking this Daoist around with you for a long time ! "
The Daoist then called to Li Jing: "Kneel down and I will tell you the se
cret of the golden pagoda. If Ne-zha refuses to obey, you can invoke this
pagoda and burn him." Standing off to the side, Ne-zha silently cried out in anguish. Then the Daoist said, "Ne-zha, from now on you and your father are to be on good terms. At some time in the future you will both serve as
officials in the same court, and there you will assist a virtuous ruler bring
his work to fruition. Never again speak of what happened before. Ne-zha, go now." Seeing how the situation stood, Ne-zha had no choice but to re turn to Primordial Mountain.
Li Jing then knelt down and said, "Venerable Master, you have exercised
the Way generously and have redeemed me from great peril. May I ask your name and the name of this mountain of the immortals? " The Daoist replied, "I am the Daoist Burning Lamp of Primal Aware
ness Cavern on Magic Vulture Mountain. When you failed to perfect your
self in the Way, you were given riches and honor in the mortal world. Now Zhow, King of the Shang, has lost his virtue, and great turmoil is unleashed
upon the world. You should not serve in office now; go hide yourself in a mountain valley and forget advantage and fame for while. Wait until Wu of the House of Zhou raises an army, and then come forth again to do great
deeds." Li Jing bowed his head to the ground, then returned to his pass and subsequently disappeared.
The Daoist had been asked by the high immortal Unity to subdue Ne
zha's nature here to make him acknowledge his father. Later, the father and his three sons were to become sages in the flesh. Li Jing is the devaraja Vais ravana, who bears the pagoda in his palm. A later poet wrote: Of yellow gold was fashioned a grillwork pagoda,
ten thousand threads of shining light pierce the ninefold sky.
It was not Burning Lamp alone
who used his dharma power
Heaven made son and father to join again.
This was the second time that Ne-zha appeared at Chen-tang Pass. Af terwards Jiang Zi-ya came down from his mountain, at the same time King Wen finished his seven-year sentence in You-Ii Prison. And if you want to know what happened, read the following episode . . ..
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Late Min g Info rmal Prose
C l as s i c a l l iterat u re of t h e seco nd h a l f of the fi ftee nth a n d most of the s i xteenth cen tu ry was do m i n ated by the i nfl u e n t i a l l i terary gro u p known as the "Arc h a ists . " The Arc h a i sts advocated strict a d h erence to fo r m a l models estab l i s hed by ea rl ier writ ers. " O l d sty le" verse was s u p posed to be modeled on the poetry of the Han and We i , regu l ated poetry was s u pposed to be modeled o n the H i g h Tang, and p rose was s u pposed to be modeled o n p re-Q i n writ i n g . The theories of the Arc h a i sts were wo nderfu l l y teac h a b l e and we l l s u ited to the d e m a n d s of a n e d u c at i o n a l system grow i n g rap i dly in the new p rosperity of the s i xtee nth century. Anthologies of model essays a n d poe m s served the schoo lteac h e r a n d autod i d act a l i ke . Mo reover, the i n s i stence on str i ct i m itat i o n o f mode l s p roved a u sefu l way t o p revent solec i s m s a n d awkward ness i n stu dent writers, fo r whom l iterary C h i nese had become i ncrea s i n g l y remote from t h e l a n g u age they spoke. At the same ti me, such a form a l i st i c v i ew of writi n g i n s p i red a sense of fa l sen ess and a rtifi c i a l ity t h at went aga i n st the most a n c i e n t v a l u e s of C h i nese l ite ratu re, where poetry was s u p posed to give d i rect e xpress i o n to fee l i ng and whose p rose was s u p posed to be a n i n dependent expres s i o n of the writer's v a l u e s . I t i s not s u r p r i s i n g , the refo re, that A r c h a i s m p rovoked a stro n g react i o n a m o n g certa i n g r o u p s of i nte l l ectu a l s d u r i n g t h e seco n d h a l f o f t h e s i xteenth century (th o u g h A rc h a i s m retai ned its hold o n the early stages of l iterary ed u c at i o n ) . When the A r c h a i sts c h a m p ioned fo rmal co rrectness, these new i nte l l ectu a l s of the l ate M i n g c h a m p i o n ed i nfor m a l ity, even awkward ness. W h e n t h e A rc h a i sts c h a m p i o n ed d i s c i p l i ne, these n e w i n te l l ectu a l s c h a m p i o n ed freedom a n d fo l l ow i n g o ne's natural i n c l i n at i o n s . W h e n the Arc h a i sts c h a m p i o n ed "m o r a l seriousness," t h e s e new i ntel l ectu a l s c h a m p i o n ed t r i v i a l th i n gs a n d the u n p l a n ned s u r p r i ses of the ord i n ary. A m aj o r i n s p i rat i o n in th i s l i terary movement was the eccent ric a n d h eterodox i ntel l ectu al Li Zh i . His d i scou rse "On the C h i ld-M i nd" tou c h ed a whole you nger gen erati o n . O n e con seq u e n ce fo r l i teratu re was a new sense of the va l u e of d ra m a and prose fi cti o n , of which L i Z h i spoke with a p p rova l . This was v i rtu a l l y the fi rst t i m e i n the C h i nese trad i t i o n that p rose fiction a n d d ra m a were n ot j u stified d efe n s i ve l y, but rathe r treated as " l iteratu re" on a par with poetry a n d the essay. Another con seq uence was a ren ewed i nte rest i n i nfo rmal p rose. Anthologies of the period ofte n refer to s u c h works as " m i n o r p i eces" (xiao-pin), treat i n g the experiences of d a i l y l ife with h u m o r a n d d e l ight. Although "On the C h i ld-M i n d " had l iteratu re as its p r i m a ry to p i c a n d was im mense l y i nfl u e n t i a l i n s u bseq uent l iterature, the essay itsel f i s certa inl y not "literary," nor does it practice the val ues it p reaches. Li Z h i's adopt i o n of the pondero u s sty l e o f C h i nese p h i losoph i c a l writi n g m a y m a k e t h e fi rst p a rt of h i s a rg u ment s e e m m o re
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Anthology of Chinese Literature d iffi c u l t than it actu a l l y i s . The "beg i n n i ng of m i n d " (or with the a m b i g u ity of l iter a ry C h i nese, "beg i n n i n gs in the m i n d " ) is both the pres u med i n nocence of the c h i ld's response a n d i m med i ate o r i m p u l s i ve thoughts a n d res ponses in a n yo ne someth i ng l i ke the i m p l i c i t "fi rst t h o u g hts" t h at m u st h ave been there i n order to say we had "second t h o u ghts" about so meth i n g . T h e "Way" (oao) a n d " I n herent Patter n " (Ii) were key con cepts i n Neo-Confu c i an i sm , w h i c h h ad become state p h i loso p h i c a l orthodoxy. Although the great Neo Confu c i a n p h i l osophers argued t h at these were i n h e rent both in the self and i n the exte r n a l wor l d , Li Z h i was i nten s e l y aware of the soc i a l and psyc h o l og i ca l truth that these con cepts a n d t h e i r a p p l i cat i o n were l earned and s u pported by soc i a l p ressu re. T h u s, from Li Z h i's perspective, these most revered p r i n c i p l es in N eo-Confu c i a n t h o u g h t were l earned th i ngs that c a m e from the outs i d e and gove rned response, cor r u pt i n g a l l that was spontaneous, n atu r a l , and i n n ocent. The word tra n s l ated as " i n authentic" (jia), w h i c h L i Z h i repeats aga i n and aga i n , m e a n s both "fa l se" a n d "bor rowed , " in the sense of com i n g from e l sewhere, n ot be i n g one's own. Li's argument h i n ges o n that range of mean i n g : w h at comes from the outs i d e i s "bo rrowed , " not essent i a l l y one's own, a n d to represent oneself through such a borrowed m ed i u m i s t o b e "fa l s e . " I f th i s attack o n the fu n d a m e nta l p r i n c i p les o f N eo-Confu c i a n i s m a n d the g l o r i ficat i o n o f d ra m a a n d fict i o n were n ot s h o c k i n g e n o u g h t o conservative sen s i b i l i ties, L i Z h i went o n i n the fi n a l sect i o n t o assau l t the i ntegrity o f the Confu c i a n C l as s i cs themselves.
Li Zhi ( 1527-1602), " On the Child-Mind" When I ( using the pseudonym "M ountain Farmer of Dragon Cave " ) wrote on the play Western Parlor, I commented at the end: "Those who j udge such matters may not think it is all right that I still have a child-mind. "! The child mind is the genuine mind; and if having the child-mind is taken as not being all right, then having a genuine mind is also taken as not being all right. Free of all falseness and entirely genuine, the child-mind is the original mind of one's very first thought. Loss of the child-mind means loss of the genuine mind, and a loss of the genuine mind means loss of the genuine person. One who is a person and not genuine will never again have beginnings. As the child is the beginning of the person, so the child-mind is begin ning of mind. How could mind's beginnings ever be lost-but then how does it happen that the child-mind is indeed lost so abruptly ? Initially, things seen and heard come in through eyes and ears. And when we take these as a gov erning factor from without, the child-mind is lost. As we grow older, the Way and Inherent Pattern come in through what we see and hear. And when we take these as the governing factor from within, the child-mind is lost.2 1 The
Western Par/or, Xi-xiang ji, was a Yuan variety p l ay by Wang S h i -fu, b u il d i n g on Yuan Zhen's
" Y i n g- y i n g ' s Story . " 'N ote t h a t L i Z h i very m u c h i n cludes w h at w e h e a r from others a n d w h at w e read a m o n g s e n s e i m p re s s i o n s ; the C h i nese term is "see i n g and h e a r i n g , " read i n g associ ated w i t h the fo rmer and oral
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
After a long time, as what we see and hear of the Way and Inherent Pattern steadily increases, what we know and what we are aware of also steadily broadens. At that point we further learn that to be praised is desirable; we endeavor to enhance opinion of ourselves, and the child-mind is lost. We learn that to be criticized by others is undesirable; we endeavor to avoid that, and the child-mind is lost. Everything we see and hear of the Way and Inherent Pattern comes from extensive reading and ju dgments about what is morally right. Of course the ancient Sages read and studied; however, even if they hadn't read and stud ied, the child-mind would have remained secure within them all by itself. Even though they read and studied extensively, they also guarded their child-mind and kept it from being lost. They were not like scholars of our time, who repress the child-mind by extensive reading and moral ju dgments . And since scholars have indeed repressed their child-minds by extensive reading and moral judgments, what use was there in the Sages writing so extensively and instituting their words if it only served to make scholars re press their child-minds ? Once the child-mind is repressed, when words are uttered, those words do not come from what lies deep within; when they reveal themselves in ques tions of governing, what they do lacks any core; and when they write, their writing cannot reach others and accomplish its ends. In such people there is none of the inner reserve that reveals itself as beauty; there is none of the frankness and real substance that gives off its own aura. And if such people try to write even one line with moral force in the words, they ultimately fail. What is the reason for this ? Their child-minds have been repressed, and their minds are constituted of things external to themselves; that is, what they have seen and heard, questions of the Way and Innate Pattern. Since their minds are constituted of things they have seen and heard, the Way and Innate Pattern, then their words come from those external things and are not the words that the child-mind would sayan its own. However artful such words may be, what do they have to do with the self? Can an in authentic person do otherwise than to speak inauthentic words, to act in authentically, and to write inauthentically ? In fact, once a person becomes inauthentic, then he is inauthentic in every way. It follows from this that if you speak inauthentically to an inauthentic person, the inauthentic person will be pleased; if you tell an inauthentic person about inauthentic action, the inauthentic person will be pleased; and if you talk over inauthentic writ ing with an inauthentic person, the inauthentic person will be pleased. Being inauthentic in every way, it becomes pleasing in every way. When the whole stage is filled with inauthenticity, how can the short person standing in the audience tell the difference? In this case, even if we have the most perfect o p i n ion with the l atter. P r i ma ry sensory experience and these mo re lingu ist i c forms of "seeing a nd hea r i n g" a r e al i ke i n b e i n g exte rn a l. Awareness of the Way a n d I n herent Pattern can come either from d i rect observation or Neo-Confu c i a n i n struction, but L i Zhi i s t h i n k i n g very much of i n struc tion here.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
works of writing in the whole world, it is not uncommon that they are de stroyed by inauthentic people and do not survive to be seen by later gener ations. The reason for this is that the most perfect works of writing in the whole world always come from the child-mind. If the child-mind were per manently preserved, then the Way and Inherent Pattern would not be prac ticed and external things seen and heard would not take over. If the child mind were preserved, then literary quality would never be missing from writing and no person would lack literary ability. It wouldn't be at all like the kind of writing constructed to fit formal models, writing that is not lit erature ! Why should poems have to be like those in the ancient Anthology ? Why should prose have to be like that of the pre-Qin period? Writing continued to change after those periods, turning into the Six Dynasties style and then turning into regulated poetry. It changed again and turned into classical tales; it changed and turned into the early play-scripts and variety plays .3 It turned into The Western Parlor; it turned into the novel Water Margin; it turned into the formal essays that people practice today for the examination. Every time a person of great virtue speaks of the Way of the Sages, it is perfect writing, in times gone by as well as now-it cannot be j udged in its histor ical relation to the tendencies of the age . This is the reason I feel moved by the inherent literary quality of anyone who has the child-mind-who cares about the Six Classics or the Analects or the Mencius! But let's consider what we find in the Six Classics, the Analects, and the Mencius-if they're not passages of excessive adoration by some official his torian, then they're inordinate praise by some official. If neither of the above, then it was inexperienced followers and dimwitted disciples writing down from memory what their teacher had said. They gave the first part without the last, or got the conclusion but left out the beginning. They wrote it in books according to what they had personally witnessed. Later scholars did not reflect critically, so they claimed that these had come from the Sages' own mouths and decided to view them as " Classics . " Who real izes that for the most part these are not the words of the Sages ? Even if they did come from the Sages, they were uttered for some particular purpose, nothing more than matching the treatment to the disease, applying a rem edy at the proper moment to save this very same dimwitted disciple or in experienced follower. If the medicine worked for the disease in question, that doesn't mean we should cling fast to it-we certainly shouldn't right away make it the perfect doctrine for thousands of generations ! Be that as it may, the Six Classics, the Analects, and the Mencius have in fact become the stock excuses for Neo-Confucians and an abundant re s ource for inauthentic people. It is perfectly obvious that they cannot speak in words that come from the child-mind. This is a sorry state of things in3 "Play-scri pts" (yuan-ben) were a Northern form of d rama, no longer extant, that p receded the va r i ety p l a y .
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
deed! If only I could find someone who had never lost the child-mind of an authentic Sage and have a word with him about writing!4 Y u a n H o n g-dao w a s a great ad m i re r o f L i Z h i's i conoc l a s m . Y u a n Hong-dao a n d h i s two b rothers fo rmed o n e o f t h e most i n f l u e n t i a l I iterary g r o u p s o f t h e t u r n o f t h e sev enteenth centu ry . Although the Y u a n brothers thems el ves w rote i n l i terary C h i nese, they were, l i ke Li Z h i h i m s elf, c h a m p i o n s of vernac u l a r l iteratu re and fo l ksong. I n a n age when c l as s i c a l l iteratu re seemed to possess a weary sameness a n d h o l l ow fo rmal ity, they despe rate l y sought qual ities of fres h ness, spontaneity, a n d some e l u s ive attractiveness that c o u l d n o t b e red u ced t o fo rm u l a . The term qu, tra n s l ated as " l ive l i ness" bel ow, was j u st s u c h a q u a l ity; i t appears in th i ng s by c h a n c e and can be ap p rec i ated o n l y by those w i th " i ntu it ive gras p . " Because s u c h i nt u itive grasp i s a s i g n o f d i st i ncti o n , oth er peo p l e "try" t o atta i n i t, b u t s u c h self-co n s c i o u s attem pts i m med i ate l y become fa l s e .
Yuan Hong-dao ( 1568-1610), On Chen Zheng-fu's Collected Works, Intuitive Grasp What people of our time find the hardest to achieve is liveliness. Liveliness is like the colors of a mountain, or the taste in water, or the light on flow ers, or the way a beautiful woman looks. Even the master of discourse can not put down a single word about it; only those with intuitive grasp can un derstand it. People these days admire what is known for liveliness and seek the semblance of liveliness. For this reason, discriminating discussions of cal ligraphy and painting or delving deeply into antiques are thought to be pure and disinterested activities; involving oneself in the occult or removing one self from the world's dirt and confusion is thought to evince detachment. On a lower level still, we have those like the connoisseurs of incense and tea in Su-zhou. These sorts of things are all the mere surfaces of liveliness-what do they have to do with spiritual feeling ? Liveliness, when it is achieved from what is natural, is deep; when achieved from study, it is shallow. When one is a child, one knows nothing of the existence of liveliness, but liveliness is present everywhere. The face is never grave; the eyes are never still; the mouth prattles trying to talk; the feet leap up and down and are never still. Life's most perfect happiness is truly never greater than at this time. This is, in fact, what Mencius meant by " not losing the heart of an infant" and what Lao-zi meant by " able to be the baby. " This is the highest grade of liveliness, its correct enlightenment, its highest doctrine. ' I n the c l o s i n g l i ne, Lu Zhi p l ayfu l l y echoes a famou s passage on l a n g u age in the "Outer T h i n gs" chapter of Zhuang-zi: "The reason for the net i s the fish; when you get the fish, you forget t h e net. The reason for the s n a re is the rabbit; when you get the rabbit, you forget the s n a re. The reason for words is the idea; when you get the i dea, you forget the word s . If o n l y I cou l d find someone who has forgotten words and h ave a word with h i m!"
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Anthology of Chinese Literature People of the forests and hills are not caught up and entangled in things; they are content to just pass their days; thus, though they do not seek for liveliness, liveliness is close at hand. The reason simpletons and ne'er-do wells are close to liveliness is because they lack status. The lower one's sta tus, the lower the things one wants. They go where their hearts take them, some for food and drink, others for women and entertainment, despising nothing and shrinking from nothing; feeling themselves cut off from all worldly expectations, they pay no attention to the world except to laugh at it. This also is a kind of liveliness. But as the years gradually go by, as one's official position gradually gets higher, and as one's status gradually increases, one's body is as if in fetters and one's heart is as if stuck by thorns. One's hair, the body's apertures, one's bones and joints are all entangled by knowledge and experience; and though one becomes ever more deeply aware of the pattern of things, still one grows farther and farther away from liveliness. My friend, Chen Zheng-fu, is deep in liveliness; and thus liveliness is the most prominent quality in his collected works, Intuitive Grasp, done in sev eral chapters. If this were not so, I would not have written these comments for him, even if he had the principles/of the martyr-recluse Bo Yi or were as noble as the hermit Yan Guang. W�o would have thought that someone of your sta tus, of your official rank, arid someone in the prime of his years like yourself would have such a comprehension of liveliness?
Writ i n g often celeb rated refi ned pasti mes a n d a m u sements o f the i nte l l ectu a l e l ite : the co n no isseu rs h i p of a rt, books, tea, fl owe rs-a l o n g with some m o re u n u s u a l sports. There was a fasc i n at i o n w i t h t h e spec i a l k n owl edge associ ated w i t h e a c h ac tivity, even when that knowl edge was i n ve nted o n the spot. Writers often describe tec h n i q ues, h i erarc h i es of q u a l ities, or d i fferent types of the acti vity, as in Y u a n Hong daD's acco u n t of s p i d e r-fi g hti n g .
Spider-Fighting To my knowledge the technique of fighting spiders never existed in earlier times. My friend Gong San-mu invented the sport. San-mu was staying in the same lodgings as myself, and whenever the weather grew mild in spring, each of us would catch several small spiders, ones with rather long legs, raise them in a window, and, to amuse ourselves, make them fight for victory. Spiders are usually found in the shadowy spots on walls or under tables. Catch them when they have just formed a few long strands of their webs without cross-strands, taking care not to move too quickly, because if you move too quickly, they'll become frightened; and once frightened, they'll never be able to fight. You should take the females and not the males, be cause the male flees when he encounters an adversary. The male's legs are shorter and his belly thinner-it's quite easy to tell them apart. The way to train them is this: take the offspring of another spider that has not yet hatched and stick it on a piece of paper in the window; when 812
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties the female spider sees it, she will take it as her own offspring and protect it fiercely. When she sees the other spider coming, she will think it has come to take her own young and will do everything she can to fight the other off. You shouldn't use spiders who still have their eggs in their belly or whose young have already hatched. When they come on the field, they first grab one another with their legs; then after a few preliminary skirmishes, their ferocity intensifies, and they go at it tooth and nail until you can't see their bodies. The victor wraps her enemy up in threads and doesn't give up until the other is dead. There are also those who get frightened and run off in de feat in the middle of the battle; and there are some cases when the strengths are so equally matched that they quit after several rounds. San-mu is always able to determine ahead of time which ones will win and which will lose. When he catches them, he'll say that this one will be a good fighter and that one won't be a good fighter and that these two are well matched-and it always works out just like he says. The jet black ones are the best; the ash gray ones second best; and the ones with mottled col ors are the worst. We also have many special names for the types: "purple black tiger," "hawk-talons," "tortoise-shell belly," "black Zhang ling," "night prong," "cheery lass," "little iron lips," in each case named for what they resembled. You feed them flies and large black ants. We both knew how they looked when they were hungry or well fed, happy or enraged-but this gets into a lot of little details that I'm not going to include here. San-mu was very clever and good at poetry; as soon as he saw some skill or technique practiced deftly, he understood it-but also on this account he neglected his studies. S i nce the Song Dynasty, i nfo r m a l l ette rs to fr i e n d s a n d fam i l y had been treated as a fo rm separate fro m the sty l i zed l i terary l ette rs t h at an author wou l d preserve i n h i s co l l ected works. L i ke l etter co l l ecti o n s i n t h e West, these l etters were often p u b l i shed separate l y . In the i r cas u a l ness and rou g h ness of sty le, they perfectly s u ited the l ate M i n g i d e a l s of sponta n e ity a n d easy i nfor m a l ity, a n d they were often i n c l u d ed i n anth o l o g i e s of " m i n o r p i eces . " C h a racte r i st i c o f l ate M i n g s e l f-co n s c i o u sness, s u c h l etters freq uently took as th e i r to p i c the very v a l u e s t h e y s o u g ht t o e m body. T w o l et ters by Y u a n H o n g-dao and one by Tu Long fo l l ow.
Letter to Li Zi-ran Have you been writing any poems recently? If you're not writing poetry, how are you getting through these dreary days? A person can only be happy when he finds something to put his heart into. Some people put their hearts into chess, some into beautiful women, some into a particular skill or craft, some into writing. The reason that the most self-realized people of olden times were a level better than others was their unwillingness to simply pass their lives drifting along. Every time I see people with nothing to put their hearts into-so busy all day long, as if they had lost something, worrying even though they have 813
Anthology of Chinese Literature nothing to worry about, getting no joy out of a scene before them-I per sonally can't understand why. This is being in hell while alive-who needs the iron beds, the bronze pillars, knife mountains, and sword trees! It's too bad! There's probably nothing really hard to do in the whole world; and as long as you just get it over and done with haphazardly, your day will go along like water forming its own channel. With a talent like yours, Zi-ran, there's nothing in the whole world you couldn't do. I'm just afraid that you're too cautious and serious and not willing just to throw yourself into it and do it. Go ahead and try it. It's all right not to disappoint a true friend's intention to help you succeed.
Letter to Qiu Chang-ru I've been very concerned since I heard how sick you've been. If you should die, all the grace and culture of the Southeast will be gone. Can I help being concerned? As a county magistrate, I've had to play the most hateful roles they are indescribable. To give you a general idea: when I chance to meet a superior official, I'm a slave; when I entertain a guest who has dropped by, I'm a courtesan; when I manage money or grain, I'm a warehouse supervi sor; when I explain things to the peasantry, I'm an old lady matchmaker. In the course of a single day, things blow hot and cold a hundred times, now bright and active, now dark and passive-the county magistrate experi ences all the worst qualities of the everyday world. It's painful and it's like poison to me. My brother was going to pass through Wu this autumn, and though he did pass through, he just wanted to sit around in the county office library reading books and poems, and we didn't get to go climb Tiger Hill as we had before with Mr. Hou. Have you felt much of an inclination to travel lately? Even though, as chief officer of Mao-yuan here on the outskirts of Su-zhou, I don't have any money to give to visitors, still I have wine to get drunk on, tea to drink, the Great Lake as my spoonful of water on which to go boating, and Dong-ting Mountain as my lump of rock to climb-so I'm not too gloomy. What do you think?
Tu Long (1542-1605), From the Capital, to a Friend In Beijing I cover my face and ride a brown horse; the wind rises and the dust flies, filling the streets and avenues. When I get home and dismount, both of my nostrils are as black as chimney-holes. The piss of men and horses mixes with the sandy dirt; and after it rains, you sink into the muck up to your kn:ee or saddle. Peasants push ahead, whipping their half-lame donkeys, their shoulders rubbing against those of officials. When the cry comes to clear the way for a high official, when you can't get to duck quickly into a wind-
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties ing sidelane, you run wildly until you're breathless and the sweat flows down to your heels. That gives you a sense of what it's like here. And I imagine the evening sunlight in some Yangzi River village far away, the fishing boats putting into shore, the last rays of the sun shooting back into the forest, and the sand bright as snow. Under flowering trees fish ing nets dry in the sun, and the white planks and blue awnings of a tavern are half-hidden behind hanging willows. An old man comes out of a ram shackle gate, holding a fish and carrying a jug. To go strolling on the sands with a few good friends at this time would be far better than riding a horse into the mud in the capital.
Chen Ji-ru (1558-1639), A Colophon for "The History of Flowers" Those who have a taste for the wilderness but experience no delight in it are woodsmen and herdsmen; those who let fruit rot without ever getting to taste it are hired gardeners and grocers; those who have flowering trees but can not enjoy them are the nobility. Of the famous men of olden days, only Tao Qian found his interest held everywhere by mulberry and hemp, by pines and chrysanthemums, by fields and villages. Su Dong-po loved gardening and was able to touch flowers and trees with his own hands. This comes from a person's nature and cannot be forced. Force it, and even if you give someone the "History of Flowers," he will become irritable and throw it away. But if such things are close to your nature and you also love them, then I urge you to take this book with you to lie in the sun among the trees and watch carefully as the flowers blossom and fall. What difference is there between this and the course of the rise and fall of men and dynasties over the past thousand years? What we refer to as the "Twenty-one Dynastic His tories" may well all be in this one unorthodox history.
Z h ang Dai bel onged to the generation of M ing writers who, in the i r m atu r i ty, w it nessed the fa l l of the M ing and the estab l i s h ment of the Q ing D ynasty. L i ke oth e r writers of " m inor p i eces," Z h ang D a i's best-known w o r k s , " T h e D ream Reco l l ec ti ons of Tao- an" (Tao-an meng-yi) and "Trac ing West Lake i n D ream" (Xi-h u meng
xun), treated spec i a l mom ents and s m a l l occasions; but Z h ang D a i , writing after the fa l l of the M ing, recasts such moments through the h aze of m e m o ry.
Zhang Dai (1597-1679), Night Theater on Gold Mountain ( "The Dream Recollections of Tao-an" ) One day after mid-autumn in 1629, en route from Zheng-jiang to Yan-zhou, we reached Bei-gu in the late afternoon and moored the boat at the mouth of the river. Moonbeams had been poured from an upturned bag into the
815
Anthology of Chinese Literature water, and their light played flickering on the waves; misty vapors swallowed in the light, then spat it back out, whitening the sky. I was amazed and de lighted; and when we moved the boat past Gold Mountain Temple, it was already about ten o'clock. As we went through the Dragon-King Chamber and into the main hall, everything was silent and black as pitch. Moonbeams leaked through the forest and lay widely scattered like patches of snow.
I told my servant boy to bring the props and costumes for a play, and we hung up lanterns throughout the main hall. And we performed two plays-Han Shi-zhong, Prince of Qi, at Gold Mountain and The Great Bat
tle on the Yangzi. The drums and gongs resounded everywhere, and every one in the whole temple got up to look. There were old monks rubbing the sleep out of their eyes with the backs of their hands, their mouths all hang ing open in one accord. There was yawning and stretching and laughing and sneezing, until gradually their attention was fixed; and where these people were from, what they were doing, and when they had come-none of these things did they dare ask. When the plays were over, the daylight was soon to arrive. We undid the moorings and crossed the river. The monks of the mountain followed
us down to the foot of the mountain and for a long time followed us with their eyes, not knowing whether we were people or apparitions or ghosts.
Z h a n g D a i see m s to h ave had a parti c u l a r fo n d n ess fo r events that appear s u d d e n ly, fu l l of l i ght and n o i se, then d i sappear j u st as s u d d e n l y . The fo l l ow i n g p i ece is an ex a m p l e of Z h a n g's b reath l ess, i m p ress i o n istic p rose at its most c h a racte r isti c .
Mid-September on West Lake ( "The Dream Recollections of Tao-an" ) There i s nothing at all t o look at on West Lake in mid-September but peo ple looking at the mid-September moon. There are five types of looking among people looking at the mid-September moon. One type looks at it thus: in great pleasure barges with cabins, flutes and drums playing, banquets teeming with tall-capped officials with lanterns, actors and servants in a tu mult of voices and light, and though they call it "looking at the moon," they don't actually see the moon. Another type looks at it thus: they are also in pleasure barges, and these barges also have cabins, with famous courtesans and the flower of the fair sex, and those whose hands are held include hand some young catamites; laughter and cries are mixed together as they sit in circles on open-air platforms, with seductive glances cast right and left; they are right under the moon but they don't actually look at the moon. Yet an other type looks at it thus: they are also in pleasure barges and there are also voices in song, with well-known singing girls and relaxed monks pouring small cups of wine and caroling softly, with gentle piping and strings played softly, throat and woodwind each coming forth in turn; they are also right under the moon, and they do look at the moon, but want others to look at 816
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties them looking at the moon. Yet another type looks at it thus: neither in boat nor carriage and wearing neither cloak nor turban, but drunk from wine and having eaten their fill, they shout in small groups and make their way into the crowds. At Zhao-qing Temple and Broken Bridge they make a racket, and pretending to be drunk, they carol out of key; the moon they do indeed look at, and those looking at the moon they look at, and those not looking at the moon they also look at, and actually don't look at anything. Yet an other type looks at it thus: in small boats with light awnings, clean tables and warm stoves, teapots soon to boil, and the pale white porcelain quietly passed round; good friends and fair ladies invite the moon to sit with them, sometimes concealing their reflections under trees, sometimes fleeing the din to the interior of the lake; they look at the moon, but no one sees how they look when looking at the moon, and they don't look at the moon self-con sciously. When the people of Hang-zhou go sailing on the lake, they go out mid morning and come back in the early evening, avoiding the moon as if it were their enemy. But on this evening of such fair repute they all go out in throngs, usually giving their household guards some wine money as a bonus, and sedan-chair bearers, torches in hand, wait for them in lines along the shore. Once they get in their boats, they hurry the boatmen to push off as soon as possible from Broken Bridge, and catching up, they enter the swarm of other boats. Thus, before ten o'clock people's voices, the drums and piping, seem to boil up and crash, seem like nightmares or talking in one's sleep, seeming to deafen and drown out speech, until all together the large boats and small boats make for the shore, and one sees nothing but boat-pole knocking against boat-pole, boat bumping boat, shoulder rubbing shoulder, face looking at face. In a brief moment the excitement is over; the parties of officials break up, with black-robed government servants yelling to clear the road; .sedan-chair bearers shout, and people in the boats become distressed that the city gates will be locked, and, with lanterns in hand like constella tions of stars, they go off, everyone squeezed into groups. People on the shore also follow the crowds to make it to the city gates, gradually growing fewer and more scattered, until a moment later they're all gone. Only then did we moor our boat near the shore. And as the stone stairs to Broken Bridge grew cool, we spread out mats on them and called to those still out to come drink with us. At this time the moon was like a newly pol ished mirror; the hills were again freshly adorned, and the face of the lake was again bathed clean. Those who had poured small cups of wine and car oled softly came forth; those who had concealed their reflections under the trees also came forth; we exchanged friendly words with them and urged them to sit with us. Companions in verse came by; well-known singing girls showed up; winecups and chopsticks lay still; throats and woodwinds sang out. The moonlight was gray and cool, and the guests didn't go their ways until the east was growing light. Then we pushed off in the boat again and slept off the wine in the midst of ten leagues of lotus blossoms, whose fra grance brushed over us, and our clear dreams were quite contented. 817
Anthology of Chinese Literature
Viewing the Snow from " Heart of the Lake Pavilion" ( "The Dream Recollections of Tao-an" ) In February 1632, I was living at West Lake. There was a blizzard that lasted three days, and the sounds of birds and people on the lake ceased entirely. On the day in question, just as the night was drawing to a close, I took a small boat, and wrapped in a fur coat and huddled close to a portable stove,
we went off by ourselves to look at the snow from Heart of the Lake Pavil ion. There was a white haze of lake mist around the trees; the sky and the clouds and the mountains and the water were all white above and below. The only reflections on the lake were the single streak of the Long Em bankment, the ingle dot of Heart of the Lake Pavilion, the single mustard
�
seed of our boat\ and the few specks of the people in the boat. When I reached the pavilion, there were two people sitting on a rug and a servant boy who was tending a stove on which the water for heating wine had just come to a boil. When they saw me, they were delighted and said, "Who would have thought there would be anyone else on the lake!" They
dragged me over to drink with them, and I took my leave after forcing my self to drink three mugs. When I asked who they were, I found out that they were from Jin-ling and were visiting. When I got in the boat, one of the boat
men mumbled, "I guess the gentleman here isn't all that foolish because there are others even more foolish than he is."
"Fool i s h" (chi) was a d o u b l e-edged q u a l ity, sometime pej o rative and somet i m es pos iti ve. It was a p p l ied to those who were "besotted" by l ove but was a l s o the te rm used to describe the i n nocence of c h i l d ren . To the boatm a n , go i n g out in the freez i n g co l d a t the b reak of dawn i s "foo l i s h ness" i n one s e n s e ; Z h a n g D a i re ports t h e sto ry pos itively, because to h i m s u c h "foo lish ness" is a q u a l ity in wh i c h he takes p rid e .
The Performance of Peng Tian-xi ( "The Dream Recollections of Tao-an" ) The performances of Peng Tian-xi were the finest in all the world, yet in every scene he stayed with the script and never altered a single word to suit his own taste. When he wanted a scene performed, he would invite the actors to his house and spend twenty or so pieces of silver; and in no time at all his family fortune of one hundred thousand was used up. Throughout the months of spring he was usually at West Lake and visited Shao-xing per haps half a dozen times. He came to my house and played fifty or sixty scenes without ever exhausting the range of his art. Tian-xi usually played villains and clowns. The most vicious and violent men of all time and the worst flatterers became even more cruel in passing through Tian-xi's heart, on Tian-xi's face they became still more wicked, and coming from Tian-xi's mouth they became even more malevolent. When he put himself in their positions, it seemed that even the evil of King Zhow of 818
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties Shang was not as bad as this. He would knit his brows and peer around, and there was really a sword in his heart and a dagger behind his smile; he had a demonic air and a deadliness so sinister that the audience felt dread. We may well say that all the book learning in Tian-xi's breast, all the moun tains and streams in his breast, all the schemes and stratagems in his breast, and all his extraordinary and restless energy had nowhere to express itself, so that he expressed it in this singular way. When I see a good play, I regret that I cannot wrap it up in fine brocade and pass it on forever without perishing. I have compared it to a whole night of fine moonlight in the heavens and to a cup of tea brewed just for the right amount of time-all of these provide only a moment's use, and yet we trea sure them endlessly. When Huan Yin saw a fine spot in the landscape, he abruptly shouted, "It's just too much, too much!"5 There truly are such things that are just too much, things the mouth cannot express.
Preface to "Tracing W est Lake in a Dream" I was born in the wrong time and have been far apart from West Lake for twenty-eight years. Nevertheless not a day has gone by when West Lake was not in my dreams, and the West Lake of my dreams has, in fact, never left me for a single day. Earlier, in 1654 and 1657, I twice went to West Lake; and of places like the mansions beyond mansions of the Shangs at the Yong jin Gate, or the Qis' temporary lodgings, or the estates of the Qians and Yus, along with my own family's gardens-of a whole shore of lake villas there survived only shards of the tiles. Thus what still existed in my dreams was, in fact, not there at West Lake itself. And as for the view from Broken Bridge, all the lithe willows and tender peaches of bygone days, the mansions and pavilions for singing and dance, were as if swallowed up by a vast flood, and not one in a hundred survived.
I then fled the place as quickly as I could, telling myself that I had come here because of West Lake and that from what I now saw, it would be bet ter to guard the West Lake of my dreams, where I could still keep it com plete and unharmed. At that point I fancied how different my own dreams were from the dream of Li Bo. When Li Bo dreamed of Tian-mu, it was like a goddess or a renowned beauty; he dreamed of what he had never seen, and such a dream was illusion. But when I dream of West Lake, it is like my
home garden and my family; I dream of what used to be, and such dreams are genume. I have now lived in lodgings rented from someone else for twenty-three years, but in my dreams I am still where I used to live. The young servant who served me then now has white hair, but in my dreams his hair is still done up like a young boy's. I cannot rid myself of these long-standing habits and cannot escape an old disposition; and both now and hereafter I can only
Si n fact, the famous E astern J i n ari stoc rat gave t h i s response to heari n g a song.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature be melancholy in my Butterfly Cottage and walk slowly from my Bed of Rude Awakening. My dreams are all that I have to hold to, a stream of scenes of West Lake, still perfectly arranged and unmoving. When the children want to know about it, I may happen to tell them; and it may be all speaking a dream from within a dream, but it is not speak ing out of this present nightmare. Thus I came to write the seventy-two en tries of "Tracing West Lake in a Dream" and leave them for generations to
come as a reflection of West Lake. I am like that man of the hills who re turned from the seaside, praising the pleasures of seafood in glowing terms;
anq everyone in his hometown crowded around him to lick his eyes. But, un£rrtunately, once those precious relishes and sweet morsels of shellfish
J
pass the tongue, they are gone-and then how can licking the eyes ever sat isfy the craving?
-The sixteenth of the seventh month, 167l. By Zhang Dai, the old man of Butterfly Cottage in Gu-jian
Belatedness A l t h o u g h t h e M i n g a n d Q i n g was a th eater- l o v i n g c u l t u re, t h e a rg u m e nts made by some l ate M i n g i nte l l ectu a l s fo r the legiti macy of d ra m a and p rose ficti o n as " h i g h " l iteratu re w e r e i ntended t o s h o c k com m o n o p i n i o n . Poetry w a s sti l l genera l l y c o n s i d e red the most i m portant l iterary for m , a n d t h e H i g h T a n g w a s co n s i dered the h e i g h t of poetry and the i m m utab l e norm of poeti c exce l l ence. The m o re extreme vers i o n s of such a n o p i n i o n , held by the i nf l u e n t i a l Arc h a i sts, dec l a red t h at one s ho u l d not even read the c l as s i c a l poetry of the Song a n d Yuan d y n asties, so far had it d i verged from the H i g h Tang sta n d a rd . T h at common o p i n i o n had se r i o u s conse quences fo r contempora ry poet i c p racti ce: new poems cou l d e ither be l i ke the Tang, in wh i c h case they wou l d be i m itative, o r u n l i ke the Tang, in w h i c h case they wo u l d be bad poems, swerv i n g from the very q u a l ities t h at seemed to def i n e poetic excel lence. The Arc h a i sts favored i m itat i o n ; but a centu ry of "Arc h a i st" d o m i n at i o n of c l assical l iteratu re p rod u ced so much u n i n s p i red verse that new s o l u t i o n s had to be fo u n d . T h i s d i l e m m a i n c l as s i c a l poetry was o n l y o n e as pect o f a m u c h l a rger p ro b l e m i n el ite c u l t u re d u r i n g the M i n g and Q i n g : how a conte mporary wr iter o r i ntel l ec t u a l cou l d establ i s h h i s own worth in a c u l t u re where past ach ievements set the stan d a rds aga i n st w h i c h contem porary works were j u d ged . A very s i m i l a r d i l e m m a can be fo u n d in E u ropean c u l t u re from the Re n a i ssance through the e i ghteenth centu ry, a n d the C h i nese so l ut i o n s para l l e l those of E u rope in i nterest i n g ways. B oth c u l t u res eventu a l l y produ ced a modern notion of " h i sto r i c i s m , " i n w h i c h each period had d i sti nct q u a l ities that defi ned what was "good" o n l y for that p e r i o d . T o a r g u e , as L i Z h i and others d i d , fo r the i m porta nce o f vernac u l a r l iteratu re was o n e s o l u t i o n to the d i l e m m a; that so l ut i o n emerged v i cto r i o u s o n l y i n the twen t i et h century. Another so l ut i o n was t o go b a c k and take a fresh l oo k at c l as sic al po etry from periods oth e r than the Tang, to develop a broader sense of what was "good" in poetry, and to beg i n to deve l o p a sense of rel ative h i stor i c a l val ue in w h i c h each 820
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties age had its own d isti nct stre n gt h s . The c l assical poetry of the Song, so m a l i g n ed by the Arc h a i sts, was the idea l p l ace to begi n . T h u s the l ate M i n g saw a rev i v a l of i n terest i n S o n g poetry a n d a c u ltivated ad m i rat i o n fo r p rec i s e l y those ways i n w h i c h i t d i ffered from Tang poetry . T h e fo l l ow i n g p reface to a new ed ition of Song a n d Y u a n poetry com p i l ed by Y u a n Zh o n g-dao catc hes t h e fl avor of t h e t i m e s . It w a s a n u n easy defense of the Song, and, as a l ways, the i m age of the Tang l oomed l a rge i n the backgro u n d . Y u a n Z h o n g-dao was t h e younger b rother o f Y u a n H o n g-dao a n d a we l l -known I iterary f i g u re in his own right.
Yuan Zhong-dao (1570-1623), A Preface to "Poetry of the Song and Yuan" Poetry never reached a greater height than in the Tang. If a poem comes from the hand of someone in the Tang, it possesses color when you look at it, it possesses tone when you test it with a knock, and it seems to possess a bou quet when you sniff it. Even from as much as a thousand years ago, those poems are like blades just off the whetstone or the petals of flowers newly spread. The Song and Yuan masters who followed them found in song lyric and vernacular song the unique achievements of their own talents and feel ings; and even if Tang writers had condescended to write in such forms, they would not necessarily have been able to surpass the Song and Yuan. But when it came to classical poetry, the Song and Yuan masters could only yield place to the Tang. Take a couplet like Chang Jian's on " Broken Mountain Temple": A bamboo trail leads through to hidden places, a meditation chamber deep in flowering trees. Ou-yang Xiu claimed that he could never come up to that, even if he spent his whole life trying. Su Dong-po said that Ou-yang Xiu had, in fact, be come sick of the rich flavors of meat and fine rice and developed a taste for conch-but this is not the case. Literature is bound up with the temper of the times. Comments like these do not mean that their talents were inferior to those of the Tang or that their learning was inferior-it was merely a lim itation imposed by the temper of the times and an inability to force them selves to be the same. It is not a matter of want of effort that the Han and Wei was not like the Classic of Poetry, or that the Tang was not like the Han and Wei, or that the Song and Yuan were not like the Tang. Never theless, it is indeed an error to seize upon this and subsequently claim that the Song and Yuan had no poetry worthy of the name. Past critics maintained that excellence in poetry was like the taste of salt in water or the pure pigment in colors, that the meaning was not exhausted
when the words stopped. This is, in fact, true of countless individuals dur ing each generation of the Tang and of countless poems by each of those in dividuals. In expressing their emotions and drawing scenes, they made what 821
Anthology of Chinese Literature was far seem close at hand, and they made what was separate merge; their excellence lay in a sense of something held in reserve and in not expressing everything openly. Their style was elevated, their energy had an organic unity, and they observed the rules strictly. Yet they were extremely conser vative in their choice of material for poems, and the path they took was a very narrow one. There is no question that the course of development they set in motion had no choice but to change, becoming the Mid-Tang and the Late Tang. Given the fact that Li Bo and Du Fu already could not help ex tending poetry's range in new directions in order to say everything they wanted to say, why blame the Song and Yuan masters for doing the same? The Song and Yuan were the successors of the three phases of Tang po etry, and they spent all their efforts and skill in poetry, until the splendors of the universe were virtually all divulged with nothing left over. Those who made poems found themselves at an impasse where change was necessary. And they preferred to let each person bring out his own innate capacities, to let each person come up with his own devices and strategies in order to adequately convey what he wanted to say; they were never willing simply to repeat or imitate, to gather up the drops of spit left by others to die in the words of their predecessors. Thus the full gamut of feeling was exhausted, and there was nothing they left undescribed; the full range of scenes was exhausted, and there was noth ing they left unused in their poems. They left nothing undescribed, yet reached the point of describing what did not need to be described; they used everything, yet reached the point of using what did not need to be used. At their worst what they wrote could be preposterous, clumsy, crude, or slick and frivolous, as if they simply brought out poems like turning over a bar rel or emptying a sack, without taking time to pick and choose. In general they took their sense of measure from their own sensibilities and learned rules only from their native wit; when a thought stirred them, they gave voice to it; and when the thought was done, they were silent. Even though they can not compete with the Tang for the heights, still those points where their flashes of brilliance cannot be expunged should be preserved in this world together with the Tang. It is for this that Song and Yuan poems are being printed here. When I read the Song and Yuan masters, I find that the talents of the most outstanding are high, their grace is also deep, and they read everything there was to read. Thus when they conceived poetic ideas and fashioned phrases, they tended to go far off on tangents; even if this was a different mode from any other period in history, they still made something worth handing on to posterity. I find it outrageous that later scholars, short on tal ent and with pedestrian sensibilities, didn't read over the books gathered to gether and just picked out the most superficial phrases of Tang poets on wind, clouds, moonlight, and dew, while at the same time looking on Song and Yuan writers as if they didn't exist. In fact, rhetoricians of recent times came up with the unprecedented claim that one should not read the writ ings of the Song and Yuan. 822
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties Any reader should draw from a wide range and garner what is best; each of those talented and ingenious men over the course of five or six centuries achieved something unique. When you take what's the best in them, it can always bring something out in one's spirit and wisdom. Is it not a great in justice to wipe them generally from consideration in one fell swoop? Ever since this theory that one should not read Song and Yuan poetry appeared, it has been the jungle in which closed-minded and lazy men have found refuge. Since one need not read their books, they don't need to be preserved either. In this case should we then just let the literary collections of the Song and Yuan be scattered to the winds and lost, and not be concerned with them any more? Early in the Song, there were the collected works of the "Nine Monks" ; it was said that if you put them together with Tang works, you couldn't tell them apart. By the middle of the Song, their collected works no longer sur vived. Lu You praised the poems of Pan Bin-lao as having an unequaled ex cellence. And yet today we have no way to get a glimpse of Pan's collected works. Huang Ting-jian had the highest words for Gao He's achievements in emulating Du Fu, but even the local gazetteer of his native Jiang-ling omits his name. Everywhere I see lines from the Song and Yuan written on a painting or on some set topic, and there are some extremely fine poems; but either we know of the person yet don't have his collected works, or we have his works yet these don't include that poem. From this we know that a great many Song and Yuan poems have not survived. If we look for them now, we will find one in a hundred or ten in a thousand that we ought to trea sure, make our secret acquisitions, and extol publicly to keep this part of our culture from being lost forever; how then can they say that we need not read this and need not preserve it! The calligraphy and paintings of the Song and Yuan are still preserved in the households of erudite connoisseurs and collectors and have become immortal now. Yet the fact that their poems alone are so rarely exhibited makes them truly lost classics. Pan Shi-heng of Xin-an has spent much ef fort seeking out and purchasing various collected works by Song and Yuan masters. He has had plates carved to print them in order to ensure that the writings of these two dynasties last forever, together with those of the Tang. This is a most welcome event in the past several centuries and one that is very much in accord with my own feelings on the matter. Thus I have not demurred and have written this introduction for him.
Diary Although exte n s i ve travel d i ar i es h ad been writte n s i n ce the Song, the great age of the d i ary i n C h i n a began i n the l ate M i n g . O n e of the best d i aries of the period i s t h e l o n g "Acco u n t of My Trave l s i n F e i " b y Y u a n Z h o n g-dao. H e beg i n s b y per s u adin g h i m self that he needs to get out of the house and take a vacation: that a trip b y boat wou l d rea l l y be m u c h better for h i s stu d i e s t h a n stayi ng at h o m e trying to read . 823
Anthology of Chinese Literature
Yuan Zhong-dao, from "Account of My Travels in Fei" 1.
December 1, 1 60 8 , in the Wan-li Reign. I've been staying in Yun-dang
Valley. After I failed the examination last year in 1 607, I lodged with Com mander in Chief Qian of Yu-yang and came home this May. My brother Hong-dao had previously held an office in the Ministry of Rites and was on his way south in the winter of 1 607-08 when he got news from the Min istry of Personnel. He went back to the capital this spring, while I stayed on at home. The bamboo in Yun-dang Valley grew leafier from each day to the next, and the flowers grew more splendid. At several spots among them I added pavilions and terraces, and I felt a strong determination to live a life of retirement.
2.
After living quietly for a few months, I suddenly longed to go traveling.
In fact, while I was in Yun-dang Valley I had had a really good experience of the secluded life and was able to shut my door and study. But as things were, it couldn't go on that way very long. I was oppressed by family re sponsibilities and got caught up in social obligations to outsiders, such as writing responses and paying social calls; and habitual guests were intrud ing on me and disturbing me until finally I didn't have a moment to breathe. These are the reasons I wanted to go traveling; First, famous mountains and splendid rivers could flush clean the everyday concerns that filled me. Sec ond, there are quite a few chapels in Wu and Yue where I could sit quietly and study. Third, even though my learning has reached the level of reliable interpretation, my intuitive powers are still not deep enough; beholding a scene gives rise to feelings, but there are still many points where 1 get bogged down on precipitous paths. On a trip I might meet famous monks and su perior companions and be imbued with their improving influence, molding and quickening the sense of everyday routine that I have in my bones and making me susceptible to transformation. This is the reason I didn't dare cling to my peace and quiet. 3.
I happened to be with my uncle Gong Jing-ting when the talk turned to
the question of traveling. I said, "Traveling shouldn't be pressured by ques tions of fame and profit; it's better just to go along with the river. However, when you go by river, it's also best to buy one's own boat and carry one's own provisions in it. Then, no matter whether you go quickly or slowly, no matter whether it's near or far, you can hope to come upon fine scenery and fine friends, and then you can linger there a long time and follow all your impulses to climb mountains, go sailing, or just hang around; and you won't be hurried along by your elders. Also there are a lot of storms on the rivers and lakes, and only when you have your own boat can you travel when you should travel and stop when you should stop-there is nothing more con venient than this." My uncle said, "I have a boat that I had made myself, as strong and solid as possible. Moreover, I've used it over the course of many 824
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties years, and now, nephew, I'll turn it over to you." At the time the boat was right in Sha -shi, the district capita!. From town I crossed the river and went to the district capital to see to
4.
preparations for the trip. At nightthe sky looked quite bad, with dense clouds spread out on all sides. By daybreak the sky had cleared, and there were small ripples on the surface of the river. The atmosphere was clear and lovely. I took a short rest when I reached Yellow Rapids. In Wang Shi-peng's col lected works this is written "Yellow Altar"-there must have been a reason.
5.
I went to the river to get a look at the boat that Uncle Jing-ting had given
me, and it was quite sturdy. I got in the boat and made tea using river water-it was excellent. Then I took a stroll in the marketplace, recalling when I came here twenty years before, with the " girls like clouds." Too bad that it's so dreary and deserted now . . . .
[Yuan Zhong-dao sets off o n the river. A n y expectat i o n of esca p i n g the c i rc l e of fri e n d s a n d the i r d e m a n d s wou l d p rove i l l u so ry-but one s u s pects that Z h o ng-dao never rea l l y wanted p r i vacy in the fi rst p l ace. Letters a l so rea c h h i m . ]
12.
I received a letter from my brother Hong-dao in which he said, "Now
I really understand that I cannot be an active, enthusiastic official-my only fear is that I can't get away from this quickly." You can tell what was on his mind. I got a letter from Li Ben-ning that said, "I recently read the Yu yang Collection and didn't know about the poems 'On the Words "Wild Goose." , When it's convenient, I would be grateful if you would copy them out and send them to me." I had actually written that poem in the spring of 1 606. Subsequently the monk Wu-ji wrote two more poems on the topic. Next Hong-dao and I locked horns in competition in front of Ju-luo Pavilion and together did ten more poems on the topic. Long Zhu-ling later saw them and admired them, and he too did ten matching poems. Long Jun-zhao also did ten matching poems, while the two official astrologers Zeng and Lei did two poems apiece. I had my poem printed in my Yun
d ang Collection . . . .
29.
I embarked to go back to Gong-an and spent the night at He Cave.
There was nothing else to do in the boat, so I read, revised poems, burned incense, made tea, and did calligraphy on fans. Thus I passed a day in ease.
30.
I got in the boat with my uncles Gong San-mu, Gong Jing-ting, and
Gong Fang-ping. We moved the boat to the sandy beach on the northern shore, where we sat on mats and drew characters in the sand to amuse our selves. I got some intuition of the excellence of the ancients in making seal impressions in clay and drawing in sand. The wind grew a little stronger, and we moved closer to the water's edge and listened to the waters churn825
Anthology of Chinese Literature ing. We boiled a fish and heated wine, then lay back drunk and sang bois terously. We saw the evening sun tum blood red and decorate the isles and sandbars . . . . 32.
Night, there was a great blizzard. I had wanted to get in the boat and
go to Sha-shi, but was finally prevented by the snowfall. Nevertheless, the bits of snow struck against the thousands of stalks of bamboo and made a tinkling sound. With the window dark and the fire red, I read a few chap ters as my whim took me, but found little interest in them. And I thought it was too bad that whenever I wanted to go somewhere, something would come up that would keep me from it; still, I go when the course of things in-
"-
dicates, and when thwarted, I stop-I j ust go with the flow. This is what Huang Ting-jian meant by: "There is no spot I cannot find lodging for a dream."
Th ese are j u st a few i n c i d e nts from the early pages of Y u a n Zhon g-dao's d i ary, w h i c h goes o n i n th i s vei n , deta i l i n g t h e s m a l l p l easu res, p a i ns, a n d i n c i d ents o f that pe r i od of h i s l ife, fo r 3 1 0 pages in a modern ed i t i o n (it wou l d be about two to th ree t i m es as l o n g i n E n g l i s h tran s l at i o n ) . Less than forty years l ater, we h ave a d i ary of a very d i fferent so rt-sh o rt, and cove r i n g o n l y ten days. B u t they were ten memo rable days. The s u btl ety a n d c u lt i vated ease of the l ate M i ng has q u ite gone. In 1 64 5 , Shi Ke-fa, c o m m a n d e r of the Southern M i n g fo rces, decided to m a ke h i s sta nd aga i n st the adva n c i n g Q i n g a r m i es i n the city of Yang-zh o u . After a s i ege of o n l y seven d ays, the c i ty fe l l , and w h at fo l l owed was the b l ood i est c h a pter in the Q i n g c o n q u est of the M i n g . Q i n g critics, p e r h a p s u nfa i r ly, sometimes b l amed l ate M i n g aesthet i c and i nte l l ectu a l c u ltu re for t h e fal l o f t h e d y n asty . The l ate M i n g sens i b i l ity, with its foc u s on private l ife a n d i n ne r expe r i e n ce at the expen se of concern fo r the pol ity, was af terward seen as decadence. The c itize n ry of Yang-zhou certa i n l y paid a terri b l e price for the i r pass iv ity a n d i n a b i l ity to act in the i r own d efe n se, but they possessed the abi l ity to te l l the story with a n i nte n s i ty of d eta i l that m a kes it sti l l m e m o rable, a n d that ab i l ity derived i n n o s m a l l p a r t f r o m an a rt o f d i a ry a n d " m i n o r p i eces" fostered i n a n age of heed less peace.
Wang Xiu-chu, from "Ten Days of Yang-zhou" On t h e fourteenth of t h e fourth month in 1 645, t h e High Commander Shi Ke-fa couldn't hold his position on the Bai-yang River and fled to Yang-zhou in disarray, closing the city walls tight to withstand the enemy. Up to the twenty-fourth, the walls had not yet been breached. There were soldiers defending each of the gates that controlled access to the city. My own house was in the western part of the city, whose defense was under the command of someone named Yang. Soldiers and staff were distributed everywhere . I had two billeted in my house, as did each of the houses around me. These soldiers acted in a shamelessly overbearing way, and more than a thousand cash a day was spent to provide for them . Even826
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties tually we had no choice but to make plans as a group to entertain their com manding officer, and I even went to such lengths as to treat him with great deference, so that our relations gradually became cordial. The commanding officer was delighted and warned his troops to keep away from us. This commanding officer liked music and was good mandolin pia yer. He wanted to get some well-known courtesan to entertain him in his time off from his military duties. That evening he had invited us to drink with him. Everyone present was ready to indulge himself freely when all of a sudden a note came from the high commander; the officer looked it over and the color drained from his face. Immediately he went atop the walls, and all of us dispersed to our homes. The next morning the high commander's proclamation was read out; and when it came to the words, "So long as there is one man in the city to with stand them, they will not oppress the common folk," all who heard it were stirred to tears. We also got news that a patrol had achieved a minor vic tory, and everyone touched their foreheads in celebration. After midday, one of my wife's relations came from Gua-zhou to get away from the fleeing troops of the Earl of Xing-ping ( Gao Jie was the Earl of Xing-ping, and the high commander had dispatched him out of the city to hold himself at a distance ) . Since my wife had not seen her in a long time, they were sobbing when they met; but I had already been told by several people that enemy troops had entered the walls. I quickly went out to see what I could find out, and someone said, "The relief column of Huang De gong, the Count of Jing-nan, has arrived." Then I observed that the troops defending the wall were maintaining strict discipline. Next I went to the mar ket, where there was an uproar of people talking. Men with their hair hang ing loose and in bare feet appeared right afterward. I asked them what was happening, but they were in such a state of panic and so out of breath that they weren't able to answer me. All of a sudden a few dozen horsemen went galloping from the north toward the south in a disorderly mass like a surg ing wave; they were closely gathered around a single man-it was the high commander. It turned out that they had fled out to the east of the walls, but couldn't get through the soldiers assaulting the city, then had decided to flee through the south gates and thus had passed through here.6 At this point I realized that there was no doubt the enemy had entered the city. Abruptly a single horseman appeared going from north to south. He had let the reins drop and was going slowly, looking upward and crying out in despair; in front of him two foot soldiers led the horse by the bit and, out of affection, wouldn't abandon him-to this day I can see the picture clearly in my eyes, and I regret never having learned his name. When that horse man had gotten some distance away, the men who had been defending the wall began to come down in droves to hide, throwing away all their helmets 'When the M a n c h u troops had broken through Yang-zhou's defe nses, S h i Ke-fa tried to commit s u i c i de, but w a s saved by h i s escort and taken out o f t h e city, w h e r e the M a n c h u s eventu a l l y captu red h i m and k i l led h i m .
827
Anthology of Chinese Literature and weapons. Together with them were those with head wounds and bro ken legs; and when I turned and looked at the wall towers, they were al ready completely empty. Seeing that the city walls were too narrow to set up his cannons, the high commander had earlier ordered plank scaffolding to be erected on the para pets; room was left in the front for passage along the wall, while the back part reached to the roofs of people's houses, allowing extra space so that it could rest secure. Before this work was completed, the first of the enemy over the wall clasped their bows and descended with naked blades. The sol diers defending the wall were jammed against one another; and since the way was blocked off in front of them, they all escaped on the wooden planking. Crawling along, some managed to reach the roofs; but the new planking was n't firmly fixed, and all at once the footing gave way; men were falling like leaves, and ninety percent died. Those who reached the roofs broke tiles wherever they stepped, all making sounds like swords and pikes striking one another, or like a rain of hailstones or shot; the clanking and crashing echoed all around without letup, and the people in the houses were in utter terror an d frantic, not knowing what to do. Inside and outside main halls and deep into the women's apartments, everywhere the soldiers who had been defending the wall were climbing down from roofs and in their fear looking for some cubbyhole in which to hide themselves. The owners of the houses yelled at them but couldn't stop them. Doors to corridors and be tween adjoining rooms were shut, and all evidence of human habitation was hidden from sight. The back o f m y main hall faced the wall, and from a crack i n m y win dow I peered out and saw soldiers moving along the wall south and then west. They were marching in strict order and even in the heavy rain they showed not the least suggestion of disarray, so I guessed they were a force sent to bring the situation under control, and at that my heart calmed down a little. Suddenly there was an urgent knocking at my door. This turned out to be one of my neighbors, who wanted me agree to go out as a group to welcome the Qing troops and set up a table with burning incense to show that we were not resisting. Even though I knew this wouldn't work, I still wouldn't go against the consensus of the group and at the moment answered, "All right." Then I changed into clothes of a different color and kept a look out, but for a long time no one showed up. When I went back to the rear window to get a look at what was hap pening on the wall, the companies of soldiers had somewhat thinned out; some were on the move and some were standing still. All at once I saw that there were some walking with women clustered among them, and I noticed that the colors of the women's clothes were all in the Yang-zhou fashion. Then I became very alarmed. I went back and said to my wife, "The soldiers are in the city. If something unforeseen should happen, you will have to com mit suicide. " My wife agreed and said, "I have a certain amount of silver that I want to turn over to you to take care of. We women no longer can
828
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties envision staying alive in this world." And with tears streaming down her face, she got out her silver and gave it to me. At this point a domestic came in, shouting urgently, "They're here! They're here! " I rushed out, and looking north I saw several horsemen com ing, holding the reins and moving slowly. At once the man who had gone out to welcome the Qing troops bowed his head as though something had been said. At the time everyone was watching out for himself, and there was no normal interchange-even people a few feet away made no comment. When they got somewhat closer, I realized that they were going from house to house looking for money. Still their intentions seemed rather moderate: as soon as they got a little something, they would let people go and demand no more. Some people wouldn't give them what they wanted, but even though they would hold them at sword point, they still didn't hurt anyone. When I later learned that someone had been killed even though he made an offering of ten thousand taels, it was, in fact, because people from Yang zhou itself had led the enemy soldiers to do it. Next they reached my threshold. One horseman singled me out, point ing to me and shouting to the horseman behind him, "Get something from the one with the indigo blue gown. " At that the horseman behind dis mounted, but I had already fled and hidden myself. Thereupon the rear horseman let me go, mounted up again, and left. I tried to figure it out to myself. "I'm dressed in rough clothing like a servant-why did they single me out?" After that my younger brother showed up, and one of my older brothers also came. I discussed with them what should be done: "The resi dences all around me belong to rich merchants. What am I going to do if they take me for a rich merchant as well? " I then entrusted my wife and the others to my eldest brother; he was to go out in the rain and take them as quickly as possible by back lanes to the house of my next oldest brother. His house lay behind the He family tombs, a stinkhole inhabited entirely by poor people. I stayed on at the house by myself to see what would happen. All at once my oldest brother showed up and said, "The main roads are splattered with blood. What are you waiting for staying here? If we brothers can stay to gether dead or alive, we should ha ve no regrets. " So I reverently took the family's ancestral tablets in my hands and went with my eldest brother to the house of my other older brother. At thattime one older and one younger brother, his wife and her child, along with my wife and one child, my two sisters-in-law, and one brother-in-law all took refuge in my brother's house. Dusk was gradually falling, and the sounds of enemy soldiers killing peo ple came from outside the gate, so we climbed up on the roof to hide for the time being. The rain was very heavy, and a dozen of us were huddled to gether in one rug, everyone's hair drenched. Outside the gate the voices cry ing out in pain kept ear and soul in a state of terror on into the night, when
all gradually grew still. Only then did we dare get down from the roof, climb ing down from the eaves, and Ii t a fire to cook our meal. Inside the city fires
829
Anthology of Chinese Literature had started up on every side-a dozen or so places nearby and more than we could count farther away. Red beams of light glinted like bolts of light ning, and the crackling sounds roared endlessly in our ears. We also heard the muffled sounds of blows being struck, and now and again we would look around in anguish-the misery was beyond description. When the food was ready, we looked at one another in such a state of shock that no one could use their chopsticks and no one could suggest a plan as to what to do. My wife took out the silver and broke it into four equal parts. My three broth ers and I each hid one part. It was everywhere-in our hair, in our shoes, in our clothes, in our sashes. My wife also found a worn-out robe and some battered shoes for me so that I could be comfortable, and then I lay with my eyes wide open all the way to dawn. A bird was singing in the sky that night, its voice like the notes of a reed mouth organ, and there were also sounds like a baby crying, all not far from our heads. Later I asked the others about it, and they had all heard it too. The twenty-sixth: After a while the force of the fires died down a bit. As the sky gradually grew brighter, we once again climbed up on the roof to keep out of sight, and there were already a dozen people hiding in the roof drains. All of a sudden by the eastern porch a man climbed up over the wall; a soldier was following him sword in hand, bounding along in pursuit as if flying. He looked and saw us, and the group of pursuers gave up on the man they had been chasing and ran in my direction. I was shaking with fear and immediately fled down from the roof; my elder brothers came next, and then my younger brother. After we had run over a hundred paces, we stopped. And from this point on I lost track of my wife and child, not knowing whether they lived or died. The cunning soldiers were afraid that too many people would hide them selves, so they deceived people by claiming there were orders to bring calm to the populace and that there would be no executions. People in hiding scrambled to come out and follow them, and they had gathered a group of fifty or sixty, with women making up half. My elder brother said, "The four of us are helpless, and if we run into rampaging soldiers who ignore the or ders, we won't escape. It would be better to join this large group where it will be easier to hide. And if it doesn't go well, I won't regret it as long as we can die together. " At that time our minds were in turmoil, and we did n't know what the best stratagem would be to save our lives. So we all agreed and together went to join the group. There were three Manchu soldiers i n charge o f the group. They searched everyone for silver and money, and my brothers were cleaned out of every thing they carried, leaving only me unsearched. All of a sudden some peo ple called out to me from the group of women. I looked closel y and saw that they were the two concubines of my friend Zhu Shu. I hurriedly stopped them. Both women had disheveled hair and their flesh was showing; their feet were mired deep in the mud up to their calves. One of the women was still carrying her baby daughter. A soldier hit them with his whip and threw the baby into the mud, then drove everyone on. One soldier led the way, 830
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties holding a sword; a second soldier brought up the rear hefting a long spear; the third soldier sometimes stayed in the group and sometimes went to ei ther side of it to keep anyone from escaping. The several dozen men were driven along like dogs and sheep; if there was the least holding back, the soldiers would immediately beat the person and sometimes kill him on the spot. All the women were tied at the neck by a long rope, like pearls on a string; they would stumble at every other step, and their bodies were cov ered in mud.7 Babies lay everywhere on the ground, some in between the hooves of horses and some under people's feet; brains and internal organs were smeared on the ground, and the sound of wailing filled the wilderness. We walked across ditches and pools stuffed with piles of corpses, hands and feet layered on one another. The blood, flowing into the water, reddened its sapphire blue and made it multicolored. The canal was filled in until it was level with the ground. We came to the compound that had belonged to Judge Yao Yong-yan of the Court of Judicial Review and entered directly through the rear gate. The building held a deep maze of rooms, and every where there were piles of corpses. I thought for sure that this would be the place I was to die. But we wound our way through the rooms until we reached the front door, then went out into the street and came to another compound, which was the house of the western merchant Qiao Cheng wang. This was the lair of the three soldiers. We entered the gate, and one soldier was already there holding several beautiful women captive inside. Baskets and hampers had been sorted through, and brightly colored silks were heaped like mountains. When this soldier saw that the three others had arrived, he gave a loud laugh and im mediately drove our group, the several dozen men, to the rear banquet hall, while keeping the women in a side chamber. In that chamber two square ta bles were set up, with three seamstresses and a middle-aged woman mak ing clothes. That woman was from Yang-zhou; she was heavily made up in an elegant style and was dressed in splendid clothes with an elaborate hairdo. She was smiling and chattering as she gave orders. She appeared cheerful and quite content, and whenever she found something nice, she would im mediately turn to the soldiers and beg to have it with wheedling, ingratiat ing airs. I regretted that I couldn't snatch one of those soldier's swords and cut the vile creature down. At one point a soldier said to the men, "When we were on the Korean campaign, we captured tens of thousands of women, and not one of them failed to keep her honor. How is it that glorious China has reached this level of shamelessness? " And this, alas, is how China came to these troubles. The three soldiers then ordered the women to take off all their wet clothes, outer garments and underclothes from tip to toe. At the same time they ordered the women making clothes to measure them for length and g;rth to furnish them a change of fresh clothing. Under duress the women had no 'The women ' s d i ff i c u l ty in wa l k i n g is no doubt due to the i r bou n d feet, m a k i n g it i m poss i b l e to keep pace in the m u d d y streets. S31
Anthology of Chinese Literature choice and were compelled to face them naked, with their private parts all exposed, and they looked like they would die of shame-the scene was be yond description. When the women had finished changing, they herded them over to drink wine, while keeping up an endless stream of joking and chatter. All of a sudden one of the soldiers hefted his sword and leapt up, shouting sharply to those in the rear banquet hall, "Come on, Southerners, come on! " Several men who approached had already been tied up, and my eldest brother was among them. My next oldest brother said, "Since the sit uation has come to this, what more can I say?" He then quickly took hold of my hand and pulled me forward; my younger brother also followed him. At that time there were over fifty males who had been captured; with the mere lifting of a sword and a single shout, their souls took flight, and not a single man failed to go forward. As I followed my older brother out of the rear banquet hall, I saw that outside they were killing the men, and the group just stood in line, each awaiting his fate. At first I had thought that I too would willingly go to be tied up, but all at once, as if by divine aid, my heart balked, and I fled back into the rear banquet hall to hide. And none of those more than fifty men realized it. The rooms on the west side at the back of the banquet hall still held all the old women, so I couldn't hide there. I went through the central hall to a back room, and it was filled with camels and horses feeding so that I could n't get through. I felt an increasing sense of desperation, so I crouched down and went under the animals' bellies and came out on the other side after crawling under several bellies. If I had startled one of those camels or horses and one had lifted its hoof just a little, I would have immediately been smashed into mush. I passed through several more levels of rooms, but none offered a route of escape. Only at the side was there a rear gate that led to an alley, but the soldiers had already shut this gate tight with a long spike.
I went from the rear alley back toward the front of the compound and heard the sounds of killing in the front hall; at this my terror increased and I saw no recourse. I looked around and the kitchen was over to the left. The four men in it had been taken to serve as cooks. I asked if they would let me join them, thinking that if they used me to perform menial tasks such as tend ing the fire or drawing water, I might have a chance. But the four men adamantly refused, saying, "The four of us were selected for this task. If we pick someone else and add to out number, they will surely suspect us of try ing to put something over on them, and ruin will come to us." When I would n't stop pleading, they got even more furious and wanted to seize me and take me outside. Then I left a n d felt even more panic. I looked a n d s a w that i n front of the stairs there was a wooden frame, on which there was a jug. It wasn't very far from the room, so I climbed up on the frame; but as soon as my hand reached the jug, I lost my balance and fell, because the jug was empty inside and I had been exerting too much force. Nothing could be done about it, so I ran quickly to the side alley gate and hit the spike with both my hands and shook it a hundred times. But I 832
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties couldn't budge it. 1 then used a stone to hit it, and the sound reached the outer court yard-I was terrified they would be alerted. 1 had no choice but to again use all my strength to move it. My fingers were cut and blood flowed, trickling in a stream down to both elbows. Suddenly the spike moved; and using all my strength, 1 pulled on it. When the spike was in my hand, 1 hastily worked at the bol t of the ga teo The bolt was made of hibis cus wood, and swollen from having been soaked by the rain, so that it was twice as tight as the spike. 1 was desperate in the extreme, and the only thing 1 could do was to force the bolt. 1 couldn't pull the bolt, but the hinges sud
denly snapped, and the door of the gate collapsed with a sound like thun der. 1 quickly leapt up and flew through the opening, and 1 still don't know where my strength came from. 1 ran quickly out the back gate and was right at the foot of the city wall. At the time soldiers and horsemen were everywhere one went. Unable to go on, I ducked into the rear gate of the neighbor to the left of the Qiao compound. Every place a person could hide had someone in it, and they would never let anyone else in. Going from the rear to the front of the com pound, 1 tried five times to get into a hiding place, and in each case it turned out the same way. When 1 reached the main gate overlooking the street, there were soldiers going back and forth in an unbroken stream. Everyone else had deserted the street as being too dangerous a place to stay. 1 hurried back in and found a bed. At the head of the bed was a canopy frame. After climb ing up the post and curling up inside it, my panting subsided. All of a sud den 1 heard my younger brother crying out on the other side of the wall; then I heard the sound of a sword chopping; after three chopping sounds, all was silent. After a short interval 1 again heard my second oldest brother say with desperate earnestness, "I have silver in the cellar of my house; let me go and I'll give it to you ." There was a blow and again it was silent. . . . The n a rrator's tro u b l es were far from ove r. W h e n h e fi n a l l y fou nd h i s w i fe a n d w h at was l eft of the fam i l y, the n i ghtmare was j u st begi n n i n g .
833
Ve r n ac u l a r Sto r i es : F e n g M e n g- I o n g a n d L a n g-x i a n
A l t h o u g h the S o n g D y n asty i s the age i n w h i c h the o r i g i n s of p r i n ted vernac u l a r fic tion a n d the sett i n g fo r many sto r i es emerged, the earl i est actu a l p r i nted vernac u l a r stories d ate from t h e Y u a n a n d e a r l y M i n g i n t h e fo u rteenth and fifteenth centu ries. Early vernac u l a r sto ries d rew o n the p l ots of stories in the c l a s s i c a l l a n guage and covered the same r a n g e of t h e m e s , from ta les of the s u pern atu ral t o ro mance. To th i s , h owever, were added new top i c s i n an u rban setti ng, s u c h as sto r i e s of c r i m e a n d cou r t cases. Beyond the core of p l ot, vernac u l a r fict i o n's rese m b l a n ce to c l as s i c a l fiction ceases . Early vernac u l a r sto ries a l so evoke the ethos of sto ryte l l i n g-add res s i n g the reader, d i g ress i ng, offe r i n g freq uent j u d g m e nts, c i t i n g verses, a n d g i v i n g desc r i ptive passages in r h yth m i c p rose. C h aracterization is m ore deve l oped a n d the sett i n g s are descri bed in m o re deta i l . Vernac u l a r d i a l ogue opened poss i b i l ities of n u ance in ex p ress i o n that were i m poss i b l e in the c l as s i c a l l a n g u age. Vernac u l a r stories conti n u ed t o be p u b l i s h e d throughout the M i ng, but the fo rm saw a m aj o r res u rgence toward the end of the d y n asty, in the early seventeenth c e n t u r y . In t h at remark a b l e era of fasc i n at i o n w i th a l l that was u n conven t i o n a l , s e r i o u s i ntel l ectu a l s fo r t h e fi rst t i m e tu rned the i r atte n t i o n t o co l l ecti n g popu l a r l iteratu re a n d w r i t i n g i n the verna c u l a r . F e n g Meng- I o n g ( 1 5 74-1 646) i s n o w rec ogn i zed as the c e ntra l f i g u re in t h i s i nterest in vernac u l a r l i terature. Feng co l l ected fo l ksongs and j o kes, w rote p l ays and l y r i c s fo r popu l a r songs, and e l a borated o l d nove l s . I n a d d i t i o n , h e p u b l i s h e d th ree l a rge co l l ecti o n s o f sto r ies, s o m e from h i s own h a n d . " D u Tenth S i n ks t h e Jewel B o x i n Anger," from F e n g's co l l ecti o n Common Words to Warn the World (jing-shi tong-yan), i s based on a c l as s i c a l ta l e and se rves as a good exam p l e of the conventi o n s of ve rnacu l a r sto r i e s . There is a l o ng, c h atty i ntrod uction sett i n g the h i sto r i c a l backgro u n d , a n d , l i ke a sto ryte l l er, the n a r rato r b reaks i nto the acti o n with
p oems, wise say i n gs,
and j u dgments.
S i xteenth-centu ry C h i n a e n j oyed a c o m m e rc i a l boom c o m p a r a b l e to t h at of contemporary E u rope. T h e Song D y n a sty may h ave seen the beg i n n i n g of a n u rban m e rcanti l e c u l t u re, but the M i n g of the s i xtee nth a n d seventee nth cen t u r i e s wit nessed its m atu rity. In Tang tales of ro m a n ce, eco n o m i c q u est i o n s were someti mes p resent, but they were u s u a l l y kept j u st ben eath the s u rface; "Du Tenth S i n ks the J ewel Box in Anger" belongs to a long trad i t i o n of cou rtesan r o m a n ces, but h e re t h e exact costs, debts, and the b a l a n c i n g of accou nts become central to the sto ry. This is
a
wo r l d of commerce, in w h i c h obj ects are commod ities with p r i ces-p r i ces
t h at are sometimes set o n th i ngs t h at s h o u l d not b e l o n g in a wo r l d of c o m m e rc i a l exchange. 834
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
Feng Meng-long ( 1 5 74-1 646 ) , "Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger" ( from Common Words to Warn the World) Translated by Robert Ashmore The last barbarians swept away, the imperial seat is established; soaring dragons and dancing phoenixes-a majestic scene! To the left, encircled in a sash of east-sea sky; to the right, hugged by Tai-hang's ten-thousand-mountain walls. ! Halberd and spear: the nine frontiers held i n sway to the utmost passes; gown and cap: the myriad fiefdoms look up in reverence to the serene robes of state. In a peaceful age, the people rejoice in the realm of Hua-xu;2 for ever and ever, a golden jar gleaming in the sun.3 This poem is devoted to the praise of our dynasty's founding of the capital at '{an.4 As for the situation of the Yan capital, it is guarded to the north by towering passes, and commands the region of central China to the south. It is truly a golden citadel, a heavenly mansion, a foundation not to be top pled in ten thousand years! In the beginning, Granddad Hong-wu swept away the barbarian dust and established his reign at Jin-ling.5 This is the cap ital known as Nanjing. When Granddad Yong-le led his troops out of Bei ping to pacify the turmoil,6 the capital was removed to Yan. This is the ca p ital known as Beijing. And all as a result of this removal, what had been a region of bleak chill was transformed into a realm of flowered brocade. From Granddad Yong-le the throne passed down through nine generations to Granddad Wan-Ii,? the eleventh Son of Heaven of our dynasty. He was wise and strong, perfect in both virtue and good fortune. He succeeded to the kingdom at the age of ten and ruled for forty-eight years, during which time he put down three armed uprisings. Which three were they? The Prime Minister Toyotomi Hideyoshi of Japan, Bei Cheng-en of the Xi-xia, and Yang Ying-long of Bo-zhou.8 'The B o h a i G u lf and the Ta i - h a n g Mounta i n Range fo rmed parts, respective ly, of the eastern a n d southwestern borders o f t h e Northern capital z o n e i n t h e M i n g . T h e d i rections " l eft" and " r i ght" here, as i n old C h i nese m aps, assume a v i ewer fac i n g south . 2 H u a-xu : a legendary state c h a racterized by n atural and soc i a l tranq u i l ity. 3 " G o l d e n jar:" a poet i c fi gure for the s o l i d ity and permanence of a n at i o n ' s borders . 'Yan is the a nc i ent name for the region of Beij i n g . ' T h e Ho n g-wu em peror Z h u Y u a n - z h a n g ( 1 3 2 8-1 3 9 8 ) fou nded the M i n g Dynasty i n 1 3 6 8 after de feat i n g the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. 'The Yong - I e emperor Zhu Di ( 1 3 60-1 424), bel i eved to h ave been Zhu Yuan-zhang's son by a l esser consort, su ccessfu l l y u s u rped the throne from his ne p hew, the J i a n -wen em peror Zhu Y u n -wen ( 1 3 77-1 402 ?), in a c i v i l war l asti ng fro m 1 3 99 to 1 40 2 . Zhu Di su bseq uently went to great l engths to j u stify his right of s u ccess i o n , and to depict his own v i ctory in the c i v i l war as the "pacification of turmo i l . " ' Z h u Y i -j u n ( 1 5 6 3-1 620), em peror from 1 5 7 3 to 1 6 2 0 . BToyoto m i H i deyos h i ( 1 5 3 6-1 5 9 8 ) gai ned the title kanpaku, o r " p ri m e m i n i ster," i n 1 5 8 7 . A t t h i s poi nt, he w a s effective l y m i l itary r u l e r of J a p a n . He orchestrated i nvas i o n s o f t h e Korean pen i n s u l a i n 1 5 9 2 and 1 5 9 7 .
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Anthology of Chinese Literature Toyotomi Hideyoshi invaded Korea, and Bei Cheng-en and Yang Ying long were native officials9 who plotted revolt; they were put down one after the other. There were none among the distant tribes who were not fright ened into submission, and they strove with one another to pay homage and tribute. Truly, One man's blessed fortune brings content to all; No trouble within the four seas mars the nation's peace. Our story picks up during the twentieth year of the Wan-li period,l when the Japanese Prime Minister created discord by invading Korea. The King of Korea submitted a missive requesting assistance, and our celestial court dispatched troops to traverse the sea and go to the rescue. Around this time, a proposal by a Bureau of Households official was granted approval, to this effect: In view of the present armed strife, our logistical supplies are insufficient. Let us provisionally adopt the precedent of accepting payment in exchange for po sitions in the imperial academy. . . . Now it turns out that there were several types of advantage for those who bought academy scholar status in this way: it made it easier to study, easier to participate in the civil service exams, and easier to pass. All in all, it added up to a nice little prospect for career advancement. For this reason, the young masters of official families and the scions of wealthy houses became un willing to take the ordinary licentiates' exam, preferring to take advantage of the quota and become academy scholars. Following the implementation of this practice, the number of scholars at the academies at each of the two capitals rose to over a thousand. Among this number there was a young man surnamed Li, named Jia, with the cognomen Gan-xian, a native of Shao-xing Prefecture in Zhejiang. He was the eldest of the three sons of his father, Provincial Commissioner Li. From childhood he had been studying in the local school, but had not yet passed the district licentiates' examination. At this time he entered the acad emy at the Northern capital under the new provision. When he had been enrolled as an academy scholar, he would pass the time in the compound of the Ministry of Music2 along with his townsman the academy scholar Liu 'Bo Cheng-en (d. 1 5 9 2 ) a l o n g with his father, B o Bai, l ed a m i l itary u p r i s i n g on the northwestern ' frontier of the M i n g in 1 5 9 1 ; they were both k i l l ed when the u p r i s i n g was put down by M i ng troops. Yang Y i ng-Iong (d . 1 600) w a s a h e red itary leader u n der the Ming of the M i ao eth n i c m i nority in the Southwest. He l ed sporad i c raids in the border reg i o n between Sichuan and G u i-zhou , sometimes escal ating i nto fu l l -sca l e revo lt, from 1 5 8 7 u nti l his defeat and s u i c i d e in 1 600. Eth n i c e n c l aves in rernote regions were adm i n i stered o n behalf of the Ming by dom i n ant members of the local eth n i c g ro u p ; once granted, t h e posts became hered itary. ' 1 5 9 2 in the Western calendar. 'Origi n a l l y a k i n d of imperial conservatory fo r the tra i n i n g a n d m a i nte n a n ce of m u s i c i a n s and d a ncers f o r the cou rt, by t h e Mi ng, the term " M i n i stry of M u s i c" cou l d al s o be l o o s el y a p p l ied to p r i vate l y r u n broth e l s .
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties Yu-chun. There he encountered a famous courtesan. She was surnamed Du, named Mei, and was tenth-born of her generation, so in the quarters every one called her Du Tenth. She was
High-toned allure from head to toe' ' every inch coy scent. Two arcs of eyebrow traced with green of distant hills; a pair of eyes bright with welling autumn floods. F ace like a lotus bud-just like Wen-jun of the Zh uo clan;3 lips like cherries-not a jot inferior to Fan-su of the Bai household.4 Pity this slip of flawless j ade that fell by mistake amid whoredom's flowers and willows! Du Tenth had lost her maidenhead at the age of thirteen, and was at this time nineteen. During those seven years there is no telling how many lordlings and ducal heirs she had gone through, leaving each of them wan ton and besotted with passion-they wrecked households and squandered fortunes without the least regret. A jingle circulated around the quarters that went: When Tenth attends a drinking bout abstainers quaff till the wine runs out. When dandies meet Mei on their rounds They swear the rest all look like hounds
.'
Now our young master Li was a dashing fellow who had never before encountered real womanly charms. When he ran into Du Tenth, his happi ness exceeded all expectation. He took the whole burden of his youthful pas sion and loaded it on her alone. Our young master had a handsome face and a tender disposition, besides being a big spender and quick to say the right thing. So he and Du Tenth became an inseparable couple who got along in everything. Tenth, knowing how greedy and unjust her madam was, had long been meaning to go straight. Furthermore, when she noticed how sin cere and earnest young master Li was toward her, she was very much in clined to throw in her lot with him. The thing was that master Li was deathly afraid of his old man, and did not dare take her up on her proposal. Nonethe less, the two grew ever more devoted to one another, and happily spent both day and night in each other's company, j ust like a married couple. They swore by seas and vowed by mountains that they would never have thoughts of another. Truly,
3Zhuo Wen-j u n was the wife of the Han Dynasty writer S i - m a X i ang-ru. 'Fan-su was a s i ngi ng-girl in the household of the Tang poet Bai J u -y i .
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Anthology of Chinese Literature Affection as deep as an unfathomed sea; Loyalty as heavy as mountains, but higher. Now as for Tenth's madam, what she saw was her girl being monopo lized by Master Li-none of those other worthy heirs and lordlings who were drawn by Tenth's reputation could get so much as a peek. In the beginning, when Master Li was spending in grand style, the madam would hunch up her shoulders and laugh ingratiatingly, playing up to him for all she was worth. But days and months went by, and before they knew it, it had been over a year. Master Li's coffers gradually grew empty, and he was unable to spend according to his heart's desires. Then the madam began to snub him. And when old Commissioner Li back home heard that his son was pass ing his time whoring in the pleasure district, he repeatedly sent letters call ing him back home. But Master Li was befuddled with Tenth's charms, and was forever putting off his departure. Later on he heard that his old man was in a towering rage at home, and he became more unwilling than ever to go back. The ancients said, "friendship based on profit grows cold when profit runs dry." But that Du Tenth had a real affection for Master Li, and the more she saw the hard financial straits he was in, the warmer she grew toward him. Her madam told her repeatedly to send Li Jia away from the premises, and when the madam saw that her girl was paying her no mind, she began herself making verbal attacks on Master Li, in hopes of angering him and thus provoking him to take his leave. But the young master was mannerly and subdued by nature, and only became ever more accommo dating in his tone. The madam had nothing for it, and could only browbeat Tenth day in and day out, saying, "In our profession we rely on our guests for both food and clothing. We 'see off the old at the back gate and welcome the new at the front. ' Our forecourt stays as lively as a house on fire, and money piles up in a heap. That Li Jia has been hanging around here for over a year now. Forget about new guests, even our old patrons have been cut out of the pic ture. It's clear as clear can be that it's a ghost-catcher you've brought in here-not even a little ghost would dare set foot in this door! It's to the point where your old lady's household is running on nothing but wind. What way is this to do business? " Du Tenth could not remain silent in the face of this dressing-down, and answered, "Master Li didn't show up here empty-handed. He's spent big money." The madam said, "That was then; this is now. You j ust tell him to go and spend some little money to keep your old lady and you in rice and firewood, and that'll do. Those girls in the other houses are all money trees-it's just like magic. Why does it have to be my place that's got all the bad luck? I've raised a money-losing white tiger. Every one of the seven ne cessities has to be seen to by my poor old self.5 And it's to the point where
SThe " seven necessities" were fi rewood, rice, coo k i n g o i l, salt, soybean paste, vi negar, and tea, re fer r i n g genera lly to day-to-day household expenses.
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The Yuan and Ming D ynasties I have to see to the upkeep of this bum of yours, you lousy slut! Where are my clothes and food supposed to come from? You go and tell that bum: if he's worth anything let him give me a few ounces of silver and buy you out so you can go off with him. Then I can find another girl to support me. How about that?" Tenth said, "Mama, do you mean that or are you just kidding? " The madam knew that Li Jia had not a penny to his name, and had even pawned all his clothes. She figured he'd never be able to bring it off. So she replied, "When has your old lady ever told a lie? Of course I mean it." Tenth said, "Ma, how much money do you want from him?" The madam said, "If it were anyone else, I'd ask for a thousand or so. But I know that bum can't afford it, so I'll just ask for three hundred. Then I can go find another tart to take your place. But there's just one thing: he's got to give me the money within three days. I'll hand you over to him as soon as he hands me the cash. But if he hasn't got it within three days, then I'm not going to trouble my old self about any 'Master' this or 'Master' that-I'll cudgel his footsoles, and drive that vagrant right out the door. And when that day comes, don't you go finding fault with poor old me! " Tenth said, "Though the young master may be a little strapped for cash here this far from home, I'm sure he can raise three hundred. But three days is such a short time. Give him ten, and you've got a deal." The madam thought to herself, "This bum has got nothing but a pair of empty hands. Even if I gave him a hundred days, where would he ever get the money? And if he can't raise the money, then no matter how shameless he may be, I'll bet he won't have the nerve to show his face at this door again. Then I can put this house back in style, and Mei won't have a thing to say about it. " She answered, "For your sake, then, I'll give him ten days. But if the tenth day comes and he hasn't got the money, don't go trying to blame it on me. " Tenth said, "If he hasn't raised the money inside of ten days, then I'll bet he won't have the gall to come back here. I'm just afraid that if he gets the three hundred taels of silver, Mama may have second thoughts. " The madam said, "My poor old self is now fifty-one years old, and I carefully keep the ten fast-days. 6 How should I dare to tell a lie? If you don't believe me, we can slap hands and swear on it. If I go back on my word, let me be reborn as a pig or a dog." The ocean's water can't be guessed in cups; that farcical old bawd has no goodwill. She's sure the struggling scholar's purse is dry, and speaks of marriage gifts to trick the girl. That night, Tenth and the young master discussed their future as they lay in bed. The young master said, "It's not that I don't want this to work out. But getting a girl's name off the courtesans' register is extremely ex6The ten days in each month on w h i c h B u d d h ist lay beli evers were forbidden to eat meat or s l a ugh ter a n i m als. 839
Anthology of Chinese Literature pensive. Nothing less than a thousand taels will do the trick. My purse is empty, down to the last speck. What can I do about it?" Tenth said, "I've already got Ma to agree to only three hundred, but it's got to be raised within ten days. I know you've used up all your traveling funds, but don't you have any friends or relatives in the capital who might lend you some? If you can raise the set amount, then I shall be yours alone, and we can be spared the overbearing behavior of that evil woman." The young master said, "My re lations and friends have had nothing to do with me since I began spending all my time in the pleasure quarters. Tomorrow I'll pack up my things and set out, going to each house as if to take my leave. Then I'll bring up the topic of borrowing some money for traveling expenses. If I pool it all to gether, perhaps I could reach that figure." He got up and dressed, said goodbye to Tenth, and set out. Tenth said, "Be sure to be quick about it. I will be waiting here for good news." The young master said, "L need no reminding about that." He set out from the gate of the quarters and went in turn to the places of his various relatives and friends, pretending that he was setting off for home and had come to take his leave. When they heard he was headed home, they were in fact glad to hear it. But then he came to the part about lacking traveling money and hoping to borrow some. The adage has it that "the mention of money dis solves predestined ties." His friends and relatives did not respond to his pitch, and, to tell the truth, they had good reason. They thought to themselves, "Here is this Master Li, a big-spending wastrel, enchanted with high living. He's been dallying here a year or so, and his father at home is sick with fury. And today he suddenly wants to set off on his return? There is no telling if this is real or an act. And what if it should turn out that the money he col lects as 'traveling expenses' ends up being paid out on whoring debts? If his father should get wind of it, he'd take our good intentions as bad ones . . . One way or another we're sure to end up on somebody's bad side, so when all is said and done, it's cleaner just to turn him down." And so they an swered, "It just happens we're a little short at the moment, and unfortunately can't help you out. It's really most embarrassing . . . . " And it was the same with each and every one of them; there was not a single man of noble sen timent to agree to spot him ten or twenty. Master Li rushed about for three days in a row without a thing to show for it. He did not dare go back to tell Tenth it was no good, so he just made equivocal replies to buy time. When the fourth day came and he still hadn't come up with a plan, he felt too embarrassed to return to the quarters. And since he'd been staying at Du Mei's place lately, he did not even have lodg ings of his own. So at this point he found himself with no place to spend the night. All he could do was go to the lodgings of his townsman, the academy scholar Liu, to stay over. When Liu Yu-chun saw the worry clouding the young master's face, he asked him what he had been up to. The young master told him all about how Du Tenth wanted to marry him. Yu-chun shook his head, saying, "I wouldn't be so sure about that. That Du Mei is the number-one courtesan in the pleasure district. If she wanted to go straight, wouldn't there 840
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties have to be a marriage gift of ten measures of pearls and a good thousand in silver? How could that madam just ask for three hundred? I bet the madam is just down on you for having no money to spend, and taking up her girl's time for nothing. She's made up a plan to get you out of her house. As for the girl herself, she's been with you for a long time, and feels too much com punction to say it outright. She knows good and well you're empty-handed. But by setting this price of three hundred taels, and giving you ten days, she makes it seem like she's doing you a favor. And if you don't have the money in ten days, you won't very well be able to show your face at their door. Even if you did, she'd make fun of you and put you down. You'd end up with a good dose of humiliation, and would naturally find it impossible to settle down there again. This is an old brothel trick for getting rid of unwanted guests. My good friend, I hope you'll consider carefully-don't be taken in! If you want my advice, I'd say your best plan is to make a clean break right away." On hearing this, the young master sat a long while in silence, not know ing what to think. Yu-chun continued, "My friend, make no mistake. If you really return home, the travel expenses won't come to that much, and there will still be people to help you out. But if it's three hundred you want, well then, forget ten days, in even ten months you could scarcely raise that amount. In this day and age, who do you expect will show understanding for your situation? That mist-and-flowers woman knows you've got nowhere to go to raise that kind of money, and is only telling you all this to put you in an impossible position." The young master said, "Worthy brother, what you say is quite true ." But though h e said this, he was unable t o fully resign himself t o it i n his heart. He continued as before to run about here and there looking for help-but at :�ight he did not return to the quarters. The young master lodged for three days running in the rooms of academy scholar Liu, which made six all to gether. When Du Tenth saw that the master had gone several days without returning, she grew quite anxious, and sent her little servant boy Number Four to go out on the streets looking for him. When Number Four went out, it just happened that he ran into Master Li. Number Four called out to him, "Brother-in-law Li, the mistress is looking for you at home." The young mas ter felt too ashamed to go, and answered, "I haven't got time today. I'll go tomorrow." But Number Four had received strict orders from Tenth, and grabbed hold of the young master and would not let go for anything. He said, "The mistress told me to find you. You've got to come along." Now the young master was secretly missing that whore, so there was nothing for it but to give in and follow Number Four to the quarters. When he saw Tenth, he just stood there dumbly. Tenth asked him, "How is our plan progressing? " The young master began to shed tears. Tenth said, "Can it be that people have grown so unfeeling that you cannot raise the three hundred? " The young master, with tears in his eyes, said, "Catching tigers cannot be considered easy, but begging favors is what's truly hard. 841
Anthology of Chinese Literature I've been rushing about for six days in a row, and haven't a penny to show for it. With this pair of empty hands I've been ashamed to see you, so these few days I have not dared come here. Today I received your command, and come bearing up under shame. It is not that I haven't tried. But human feel ings have in fact come to this pass." Tenth said, "Don't let that wicked crone hear any of this. Stay here tonight, my love-I have another idea." Tenth prepared food and drink, and shared a happy banquet with the young mas ter. When they'd slept half the night, Tenth said, "My love, can you really not come up with even a single coin? What is to become of the plan for my future? " The young master just wept, unable to answer a single word. Around the fifth watch, it gradually grew light. Tenth said, "The padded quilt I sleep on contains a hundred fifty taels in odd change. This is my pri vate savings. My love, you may take it. I will take care of half of the three hundred, and you can take care of the other half. That should make things easier. But there are only four days left before our time is up. Be sure not to be late." Tenth got up and gave the quilt to the young master, who was pleased beyond his wildest expectations. He called the servant boy to take the quilt away and took his leave. He went straight to Liu Yu-chun's place, and told him all that had happened the night before. When they opened up the quilt and looked inside, there were odd coins wrapped inside the stuffing. When they took them to exchange, the amount really did come out to one hun dred and fifty taels. Yu-chun said, astounded, "This is truly a woman with sincere intentions. Since she has real feeling, she should not be let down. I will see to this on your behalf. " The young master said, "If our dream is ful filled, I promise not to forget you." Then Liu Yu-chun, leaving Master Li at his place, set out himself to bor row money. Within two days, he had put together the one hundred and fifty taels, and handed them over the master, saying, "It was not for your sake that I borrowed this money, but rather because I am moved by the sincere feeling of Du Tenth ." When L i Jia had the three hundred i n hand, i t was like a gift dropped from Heaven, and he went off, beaming with joy, to see Tenth. It was only the ninth day, so he had not even used all ten of the allotted days. Tenth asked him, "A few days ago you had a hard time borrowing even the least bit. How is it that now you have suddenly got a hundred fifty taels?" The young master related to her the business with academy scholar Liu. Tenth raised her hands to her forehead, saying, "It is all thanks to the efforts of Mr. Liu that our desires have been fulfilled." The two of them were over come with happiness, and spent another evening in the quarters. The next day, Tenth rose early and said to Li Jia, "Once I've handed over this silver, I will be able to follow you. We should prepare the necessary car riages and boats. I have recently borrowed twenty taels of white silver, which you may take to cover our traveling expenses." The young master had
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties just then been worrying that he had no source of traveling money, but had not dared speak of it. When he received this money, he was extremely happy. Before they'd done speaking, the madam came knocking at the door, say ing, "Mei, today is the tenth day." When the master heard her call, he opened the door and asked her in, saying, "We have benefited from your kindness, and were just going to invite you here." With this he put the three hundred taels on the table. The madam had not expected the young master to have money, and stood silently, her expression suddenly changing. She seemed to have it in mind to go back on her promise. Tenth said, "I have been in Mama's house for eight years, and the gold and treasures I have brought in are nothing short of a thousand talents. The happy occasion of my reformation today was granted from Mama's own lips. There is not one jot lacking of the three hun dred taels, nor have we passed the time limit. If Mama should go back on her word and prevent us, my husband will take the silver away, and I will make an end of myself this very instant. I fear that then you will have lost both person and profit, and it will be too late for regrets." The madam had no reply to make to this, and pondered it over for a while to herself. In the end, all she could do was bring out a scale to weigh out the silver. She said, "Since it has come to this, I guess I won't be able to stop you. But if you mean to go then go at once. Don't imagine you'll take one bit of your clothes and jewelry along with you." When she'd done saying this, she pushed the young master and Tenth out the chamber door, found a lock, and locked it right up. It was around November at this time, and Tenth, who had just got out of bed, had not even had time to dress. Wearing the old robe she happened to have on at the time, she Jowed twice to her "Mama." Master Li also made a bow. With this they departed, husband and wife, from the door of that old crone. The carp slips off the iron hook and glides off without looking back. The young master asked Tenth to wait up a moment. "I will go and call a sedan chair to carry you. For the time being we can go to Liu Rong-qing's lodgings, and make further plans from there. " Tenth said, "All my sisters in the quarters have stood by me through thick and thin. By rights I should go and take my leave of them. What's more it was from them that I got the loan of that traveling money. It would not do to go without thanking them." Thereupon she went with the young master t o the homes o f all her sisters to thank them and to take leave of them. Of the sisters it was Xie Yue-lang and Xu Su-su who lived closest by, and they were also on especially good terms with Tenth. Tenth went first to Xie Yue-lang's house. When Yue-lang saw Tenth going about in a bare hairknot and old worn robe, she asked in bewilderment what had happened. Tenth told her the whole story, and led Li Jia in to see her. Tenth pointed to Yue-lang, saying, "The travel money I received the other day was the loan of this elder sister. My lord ought to
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Anthology of Chinese Literature thank her. " Li Jia bowed again and again. Then Yue-lang asked Tenth to dress, going in the meanwhile to invite over Xu Su-su. When Tenth had done making herself up, the two beauties Xie and Xu brought out their whole store-emerald brooches and gold bracelets, jade hairpins and precious earrings, patterned skirts and brocade-sleeved blouses, phoenix sashes and embroidered slippers, and they did up Tenth all over again, so that she looked like a completely different person. They also pre pared wine for a celebratory banquet. Yue-lang gave up her own chamber to Li Jia and Du Mei to spend the night. The next day, they had another big banquet and invited all the sisters from the quarters. None of those who were good friends with Tenth failed to appear, and they all drank to the health and happiness of bride and groom. With pipes and strings, song and dance, each made the most of her talents, intent on making it a joyful gathering. They kept at it right up until midnight. Then Tenth thanked each of the sisters in turn. The assembled sis ters said, "Tenth is commander in the legion of glamour. She is now setting out with her man, and we will have no more chance of seeing her. On the day you choose to leave for good, we sisters should once more come to see you off. " Yue-lang said to them, "When the time is fixed, I will come and notify you. Our sister will be journeying hundreds of miles over hill and dale along with her husband. Yet her savings are scanty, and she is not in the least prepared. This is a matter that should concern all of us. We should work together to ensure that our sister does not have to worry about being left without resources." All the sisters voiced their assent to this and went their separate ways. That evening, the master and Tenth lodged once more at the Xie house. At the fifth watch, Tenth said to the young master, "After this departure of ours, where will we settle? Have you come up with some solid plan?" The master said, "My aged father is in the height of rage. If he learns that I've returned home along with a prostitute as my wife, he is sure to make trou ble, and I may end up more trouble than help to you. I've thought over this again and again, and I still have no perfect plan. " Tenth said, "How could the Heaven-ordained relation of father and son be permanently cut off? But since it is not a good idea to provoke him by a sudden confrontation, it would be better to take up temporary residence in the scenic region of Su-zhou and Hang-zhou. You can return first, and ask friends and relatives to intercede on your behalf before your reverend father and convince him to relent. Then you can come and take me home with you. In this way all will be well on both sides." The young master said, "This is well said. " The next day the two set out, taking leave of Xie Yue-lang, and went for a time to the lodgings of academy scholar Liu to get their luggage ready. When Du Tenth saw Liu Yu-chun, she prostrated herself before him and thanked him for the kind service which had allowed things to work out. "On some future day I swear that we will worthily repay your kindness. " Yu chun hurriedly returned her bow, saying, "You were stirred to true love for
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties your favorite, and did not change your feelings on account of poverty. This makes you a hero among women. All your servant has done amounts to 'blowing a flame along with the wind'-really, what need is there to men tion my insignificant efforts! " The three of them spent another day drinking. The next morning, they selected an auspicious day for their departure and hired the necessary sedan chairs and horses. Tenth once more dispatched her servant boy to take a mes sage to say goodbye to Xie Yue-lang. When it came time to leave, bearers and palanquins began arriving in great numbers. It was Xie Yue-lang and Xu Su-su, who had brought along all the sisters to say goodbye. Yue-lang said, "Tenth sister is following her husband into distant parts, yet their trav eling purse is barren. We are by no means able to put aside our sisterly con cern, and have raised a meager sum among ourselves. Tenth sister, you may take it under your care. It may be that in your long journey you fall short, and even this may be of some small use." When she had done speaking, she commanded the others to bring forward a gold-inlaid stationery box, which was locked up most securely so that there was no guessing what it might contain. Tenth neither refused it nor opened it to look inside. All she did was to thank them earnestly. In a short while carriage and horses were in readiness, and the attendant urged them to set out at once. Academy scholar Liu poured out three cups of parting wine, and saw them off as far as the outside of Chong-wen Gate, along with the troop of beauties. One by one they tearfully took their leave. Truly, None can predict a future meeting date This moment of parting is most hard to bear. Now when Master Li and Du Tenth had traveled as far as the Lu Cana],7 they left the land and took to boats. By good luck they were able to take ad vantage of the envoy boat from Gua-zhou,8 which was about to set out on its return journey. They agreed on a price and reserved a cabin. When it came time to board, Master Li's purse had not the least bit of cash left in it. Now you may be asking, if Du Tenth gave the young master twenty taels of sil ver, how came it that he suddenly had nothing left? Well, the young master had been whoring in the quarters till his clothes were all bedraggled. When he got his hands on some money, he couldn't help but go to the pawnbro ker's to redeem some clothes, and have a set of quilts and bedding made. What was left over was just enough to cover the carriage and horses. Just as the young master was growing worried, Tenth said, "My hus band, don't be troubled. The collection made by all my sisters will surely ' L u Can a l : a name for the northern section of the G ra n d Canal w h i c h l i n ked the northern and m i d southern reg i o n s of C h i n a . The major embarkation point for traffic in a n d out of Bei j i ng was at T ong zhou, approx i m atel y twenty k i lometers east of the city. 8 G u a-zhou was a transport post at the mouth of the G ra n d Canal, on the northern b a n k of the Yangzi R i ver.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature help us out. " With this, she took out the key and opened up the case. The young master, who was standing to one side, felt ashamed, and did not ven ture to peek at what was inside the box. Tenth pulled out a red silk pouch and tossed it onto the table, saying, "Why don't you open that up and take a look?" The young master lifted it up in his hand and felt that it was quite heavy. When he opened it up and took a look, he saw it was all white sil ver, together all of fifty taels. Tenth locked up the box once more without
saying what else might be inside. She merely told the young master, "Thanks to the noble feelings of all my sisters, we will not only lack nothing on our
journey, but there should be a little something to help with our household expenses while we pass the time in the South." The young master, startled
and pleased all at once, said, "If I had not encountered you, my dear bene factress, I, Li Jia, would have been left without even a place to be buried. I will never dare forget this debt of gratitude as long as I live." From this time on, whenever their talk turned to events of the past, the young master would always be moved to tears, and Tenth would try gently to console him. And so they traveled on.
Before they knew it, they had reached Gua-zhou, and the big boat moored at the bank. The young master hired another boat, loaded their lug gage onto it, and arranged that they should set out across the river at dawn. It was now around the beginning of January, and the moon was as bright as water as the young master and Tenth sat at the bow of the boat. The young master said, "Ever since we left the capital gate we've been penned up in one little cabin with people all around us, and have been unable to speak freely. Now we've got this whole boat to ourselves, and have no further cause for restraint. Furthermore, we've left the North behind us and are just now drawing near Jiang-nan. It is fitting that we should set ourselves at ease and drink as much as we please, so as to relieve our cooped-up feelings. Dear benefactress, what do you say to that?" Tenth said, "I have grown long un used to conversation and laughter, and I share this feeling of yours. That you should speak of it now is proof of our fellow nature. " Then the young master brought out drinking vessels and arrayed them on the deck, and spread out a felt mat for the two of them to sit on. The cups passed back and forth between them. When they were half-giddy with the wine, the young master, clutching his cup, said to Tenth, "Dear bene factress, your wondrous voice was counted finest among the quarters at the time when my unworthy self first made your acquaintance. Each time I heard one of your incomparable songs, I was unable to restrain the flight of my soul. Much has gone awry since then, and both of us have long been anx ious and ill at ease. The simurgh's cry and the phoenix's song have long been silent. Now on this clear river under the bright moon, in the still of the night with no one else to hear, will you deign to sing me a song?" Tenth as well felt a sudden stirring, and she unleashed her voice and var ied her tone, tapping out the time with a fan. Crooning and murmuring, she sang from the scene "The Exam Champion Holds the Cup to Chan-juan"
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties from the opera Bowing to Moon Pavilion by the Yuan writer Shi Jun-mei, to the tune of "Little Red Peach." Truly, The tone flies up to the Milky Way-clouds stop in their tracks; the echo sinks into the deep pool-fish come up to play. Now on a neighboring boat there was a young man surnamed Sun, named Fu, with the cognomen Shan-lai, who was a native of Xin-an County in Hui-zhou. His family had been in the salt trade at Yang-zhou for gener ations and had amassed an immense fortune. Sun Fu was just twenty years old at this time, and was also a fellow of the Nanjing Imperial Academy. He was glamorous by nature, accustomed to buying smiles in the "blue houses," seeking happiness in rouge and powder just as if on a jaunt to enjoy breeze and moonlight. He was a commander in the legion of loverboys. Well, co incidences will happen, and it came about that on that evening he was also moored at the ferry dock at Gua-zhou, drinking alone in boredom. Suddenly he heard the bright sound of a singing voice-chanting phoenix and piping simurgh could not compare to it in beauty. He rose and stood at the prow, listening raptly for a while. Soon he divined that the sound was coming from the neighboring boat. Just as he was making ready to inquire, the resounding tones grew suddenly still. Thereupon he dispatched a servant to ask the boatmen what it was. All they knew was that the boat had been hired by his excellency Li, but they did not know the background of the singer. Sun Fu thought to himself, "This singer is certainly not of respectable background. Now, how can I get a look at her?" He mused over this, staying awake all night. When he'd stuck it out to the fifth watch, he suddenly heard the wind on the river kicking up fiercely. By dawn the sky was packed with dusky clouds, and snow swirled wildly about. How can we know about this scene? There is a poem bearing witness: A thousand hills wiped clean of clouds and trees; the tracks on countless human paths swept clear. In poncho and rainhat, an old man on a skiff fishes alone in the snow of the cold river.9 With this snowstorm enveloping the ford, the boats were unable to set out. Sun Fu commanded his helmsman to move the boat, mooring it by the side of Li Jia's boat. Sun Fu, in ermine cap and foxfur coat, opened the win dow and looked out, pretending to be enjoying the snowy scene. Du Tenth had just then finished washing. With her slender jade white hands, she lifted up the short curtain at the side of the boat and emptied the washbasin into the river. Her powdered face shone out for a moment, and Sun Fu got a peek. Sure enough, she was a heavenly beauty, and his soul was shaken and his
9T h i s is the poem " R i ver Snow," by the Tang poet L i u Zong-yu a n ( 7 7 3-8 1 9), with m i no r a l terations.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature heart went wild. He stared intently at the spot, waiting for another chance to see her, but he had no such luck. He sat long in a funk, and then loudly chanted these two lines of Scholar Gao's "Poem of Plum Blossoms" : ! Snow fills the mountain slopes, the recluse lies a t ease; moonlight shines beneath the forest's eaves-the lovely one approaches. When Li Jia heard someone chanting poetry in the neighboring boat, he stretched his head out of the cabin to see who it was. And with this he fell right into Sun Fu's trap. Sun Fu was chanting that poem precisely in order to entice Master Li to poke his head out, so there would be a chance to start up a conversation. Right away Sun raised his hand in greeting and asked, "Respected friend, what is your surname and given name?" Master Li told him his name and native place, and of course it would not do not to ask Sun Fu in turn. Sun Fu introduced himself as well. Then they exchanged some idle talk of the academy, gradually growing more cordial as they chatted. Then Sun Fu said, "This snowstorm which has delayed our boats was Heaven's way of granting me the chance to meet you-this is truly a stroke of good fortune for me! Lodging on board a boat is tiresome and monoto nous. It is my sincere wish to go ashore with you for a drink in the wineshop, so as to receive some small portion of your wise instruction. I earnestly beg that you not refuse me! " The young master said, "We have met like drift ing duckweed on the water. What right have I to put you to such trouble?" Sun Fu said, "What can you possibly mean? 'Within the four seas all are brothers. ' " 2 He barked out a n order to the boatmen to leap over and to the servant boy to hold open an umbrella and receive the young master on board his boat. Sun Fu came right up to the bow of his boat to greet him. Then, mak ing room for the young master to lead the way, Sun followed up as they went ashore. Before they'd walked more than a few steps, they came upon a wineshop. The two walked upstairs and sought out a clean spot beside the window. The steward laid out wine and snacks before them. Sun Fu raised his cup and urged Master Li not to stand on ceremony, and the two of them sat drinking and enjoying the snowy scene. First they exchanged a few po lite commonplaces, but soon the conversation turned toward affairs of the heart. The two of them were both men of the world, and found in each other sympathetic listeners. As their talk became relaxed and unrestrained, they grew ever more con fidential. Sun Fu sent away all the attendants and asked in a low voice, "Who was the clear-voiced singer on your boat last night?" Li Jia was just then anxious to play the man of the world, and he blurted out, "That was Du Tenth, the famous courtesan from Beijing." Sun Fu said, "If she is a sister from the quarters, how is it she has become part of your household?" Then ' Sc h o l a r Gao is the M i ng Dyn asty poet Gao Qi ( 1 3 3 6-1 3 74 ) .
'A fam i l i a r q uotation from t h e Analects, X I I . S . 848
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties the young master told all about how he first met Du Tenth, how they be came lovers, and how later she wanted to marry him and how he borrowed money to win her, from beginning to end in full detail. Sun Fu said, "My dear friend, your return home with this beauty is cer tainly a happy event. What I wonder is, will your family be able to accept her?" The young master said, "My humble mate is no cause for concern. What worries me is my oId father, who is by nature strict and unyielding. This is still causing me some hesitation." Sun Fu, adapting his strategy to the circumstances, asked, "If you fear your reverend father may not accept her, where do you plan to settle this lovely whom you are escorting? Have you spoken to her of this and made plans together? " The young master wrin kled up his brows and answered, "I have in fact discussed this matter with my unworthy consort." Sun Fu asked with a smile, "Surely your esteemed pet has a splendid strategem. " The young master said, "It is her intention to take up temporary residence in Su-zhou or Hang-zhou, to linger for a while among the hills and lakes. She would have me return first and ask re lations and friends to put things delicately before the head of my family. At such time as he shall change his ire to pleasure, we will consider how we may best return. But what do you make of this? " Sun Fu sat murmuring to himself for a while, and put on an anxious ex pression. He said, "I made your acquaintance only a short time ago. If I pre sume on such a brief friendship to speak frankly to you, I truly fear that you will be offended. " The young master said, "I find myself just now in need of your wise instruction. Why need you stand on ceremony like this? " Sun Fu said, "Your esteemed parent holds the keys of the provincial government, and is sure to be strict about maintaining propriety in the affairs of his house hajj. From the beginning, he has been displeased that you frequented houses of ill fame. How then can he be expected to accept your marriage to an un chaste woman? Furthermore, which of your noble friends and relations will not be solicitous of the wishes of your esteemed parent? If you vainly ask them for favors, they are sure to refuse. And even supposing that some tact less one among them puts in a word on your behalf, once he sees that your esteemed parent does not mean to give in, he will surely change his tune. You will find yourself unable either to restore harmony to your family or to answer to your esteemed pet. Even whiling away the time amid the scenery of hills and lakes is no long-term solution. If some day your savings should run out, will you not be left with nowhere to turn? " The young master knew that all he had left was the fifty taels of silver, and by now even that had largely been spent. When he heard this part about being left with no place to turn, he unconsciously began nodding his assent. Sun Fu continued, "I have one thing further to say. Will you indulge me by listening?" The young master said, "You are too kind. I beg you say every thing that is on your mind." Sun Fu said, " 'Distant relations should not come between close ones. ' On second thought, I think it i s better not to say it. " The young master said, "Just say it, what harm can there be in that? " Sun Fu said, "Of old it has been said, 'woman's nature i s water, devoid of 849
Anthology of Chinese Literature constancy.' How much more so of the league of mist and flowers, who lack truth and abound in artifice? Given that she is a famed courtesan of the plea sure districts, she must have acquaintances everywhere under the sun. It may just be that she has a previous engagement in the South, and is making use of you to bring her there, to run off with someone else." The young master said, "As for that, I really don't think that that is the case." Sun Fu said, "Even if it isn't, the young men of Jiang-nan are champion womanizers. If you keep such a lovely alone there, it is hard to be sure there won't be some 'fence-climbing and wall-tunneling. ' And if you take her along home with you, it is certain you will further inflame your esteemed parent's anger against you. There really seems to be no good way out of your present sit uation. Moreover, the relation of father and son is sanctioned by Heaven, and is by no means to be abrogated. If you offend your father on account of a concubine, if you abandon your family due to a prostitute, everyone in the world will surely agree that you are a reckless and outlandish person. In the future your wife will not treat you as a husband, your brother will not treat you as brother, and your colleagues will not treat you as a colleague. How will you find a place to stand between Heaven and Earth? My friend, you really cannot but consider this carefully." When the young master heard all this, he was dazed and at a loss for words. He edged his seat closer and asked, "As you see it, what advice would you give me? " Sun Fu said, "Your servant has one plan which could be most advantageous. I only fear that you, enamored as you are of the joys of pil low and mat, will not necessarily be able to carry it out, in which case it would be a mere waste of words to tell you." The young master said, "If you have a plan that can allow me once more to know the joy of a harmo nious family, you are truly my benefactor. What need have you to be fear ful of telling me? " Sun Fu said, "You have been roaming away from home for over a year, and your stern parent has become enraged. Chamber and tower are set at odds. Imagining myself in your position, it seems this must be a time when there can be no peace of mind in sleep or at table. However, the cause of your esteemed parent's anger with you is nothing more than your fondness for the land of 'flowers and willows,' for which you spend money like dirt. You must seem sure to turn out a homeless wastrel, and thus not suited to inherit the family fortune. To go home empty-handed at such a time would be just the thing to set him off. But if you are willing to set aside the affections of quilt and mattress, and act decisively when op portunity presents itself, I would be willing to present you with a thousand taels. With these thousand taels to placate your esteemed parent, you can claim that you kept to your chambers at the capital and have not wasted the least bit. Your esteemed parent is sure to believe this. From then on your family will be at peace, and there should be no further grumbling. In no time at all you could change disaster into good fortune. Please think this over care fully. It is not that I am covetous of the charms of the lovely one. The truth is that I am eager to give some small expression of my devotion to your wel fare. " 850
The Yuan a n d Ming Dynasties Now Li Jia had always been a man with no backbone who, when all was said and done, was terrified of his dad. Sun Fu's little talk went right to the heart of his fears. He rose and bowed, saying, "On hearing this instruction from you, the scales have fallen from my eyes. But my little consort has stood by me through a journey of hundreds of miles; I cannot in justice cut her off all at once. Allow me to return and discuss it with her. When I have received her earnest assent, I will come back and present my reply." Sun Fu said, "When you talk to her, you ought to put it delicately. But if she is really mo tivated by sincere loyalty to you, she's sure to be unwilling to cause father and son to split. She'll certainly do her part to bring about your successful return home." The two o f them drank a while longer, and when the wind settled and the snow stopped, it was already quite late. Sun Fu told his servant boy to settle the bill, and he led the young master by the hand down toward the boats. Truly,
With strangers, say a third of what you think; don't throw out all your heart's designs at once. Now we turn to Du Tenth in the boat. She set out wine and dainties, meaning to share a small banquet with the young master. When he failed to return all day, she trimmed a lamp and sat up waiting for him. When the young master came aboard, Tenth rose to greet him. He had a flustered ex pression and seemed to have something unhappy on his mind, so she poured out a full cup of warm wine and tried to console him. But the young mas ter shook his head and refused to drink. Without uttering a single word, he went right to bed alone and lay down. Tenth was worried by this, and, after gaThering up the cups and trays, she came and helped Master Li undress and make ready to sleep. She asked him, "What has happened that has put you in such a gloomy mood? " The young master just sighed, still not opening his mouth to speak. She asked him the same thing three or four times, but in the end she noticed he had already nodded off. Tenth could not resolve it in her mind, and sat at the side of the bed, unable to sleep. In the middle of the night, the young master woke up and sighed once more. Tenth said, "My lord, what difficult matter do you have in your mind, that you sigh so? " The young master sat up, clutching the blankets about him, and made as if to speak, but stopped short several times. And then streams of tears began running down his cheeks. Tenth clasped the young master in her bosom and spoke softly to comfort him, saying, "You and I have been lovers for two years now, and we have held out to this day through innumerable trials and reversals, and every manner of difficulty. But through all the hundreds of miles of our journey together I have never seen you grieve like this. Now we are preparing to cross the river, on the verge of a new lifetime of happiness. How is it that you instead grow sad and trou bled ? There must surely be some reason. Husband and wife share all equally between them, in life and death. If any problem arises it can surely be talked over. Do not be afraid to say whatever is on your mind. " 851
Anthology of Chinese Literature The young master, thus repeatedly egged on, could not hold out, and at last said tearfully, "I was left destitute and without recourse at the ends of the earth. I undeservingly received your forbearing indulgence, and you con sented to follow me to this place. It is truly an incomparable favor that you have done me. But I have pondered it over and over; my father, in his posi tion of local prominence, is subject to strict standards of propriety. Fur thermore, he himself is stern and inflexible by nature. I fear that if I add to his ire, he is sure to run me out of the house. If you and I are forced to wan der rootlessly, where shall we come to rest? The joys of husband and wife will be hard to preserve intact, while the relation of father and son will be broken. During the day, I received an invitation to drink from my new friend Mr. Sun of Xin-an. He considered this problem on my behalf . . . yet my poor heart feels as if it is being cut!" Tenth said in great alarm, "What is it you mean to do?" The young mas ter said, "Being as I was personally involved in the situation, I was unable to grasp it clearly. Now my friend Sun has devised a plan for me which seems quite good. My only fear is that you, my love, will not give your assent to it." Tenth said, "Who is this friend Sun? If the plan is a good one, what can there be against following it? " The young master said, "My friend Sun is named Fu, a salt merchant from Xin-an. He is a stylish young fellow. Dur ing the night he heard the clear tones of your voice, and thus inquired about you. I told him your background, as well as the reasons making my return home difficult. He has it in mind to take you in for one thousand taels. With that thousand taels I will have a pretext on which to call on my parents, and you, my dear benefactress, will also have someone to rely on. But I cannot bear to give up the affection I feel for you. It is for this reason that I am grieved and weep." When he had said this his tears fell like rain. Tenth removed her hands from him and laughed coldly, saying, "The man who devised this plan for you is truly a great hero. The fortune of the thousand taels will enable you to restore your position in your family, and I will go to another man so as not to be a burden to you. ' Originating in feeling and stopping in accordance with propriety'3-truly this can be called a strategy with advantage on all sides. Where are the thousand taels?" The young master dried his tears and said, "Since I had not received
your approval, the money has not yet been exchanged. It is still over at his boat ." Tenth said, " Go first thing in the morning to settle it with him. You mustn't let this opportunity slip by. But a thousand taels of silver is a se
rious matter. You must be sure to have it counted out in full and securely in your hands before I go over to his boat-do not fall victim to an un scrupulous trader." By this time it was nearly the fourth watch, and Tenth
got up and lit a lamp and made herself up, saying, "Today's dressing is for the purpose of 'welcoming the new and seeing off the old. ' It's no ordi nary occasion."
3 "O r i g i n a t i n g in fee l i n g and stopping in accord ance with propri ety"-a quote from the "G reat Pref ace" to the Classic of Poetry.
852 I
,I
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties Having said this, she attentively made herself up with powder and per fume. In her ornate bracelets and embroidered jacket, she looked splendid. A fragrant breeze seemed to play about her, and she radiated a brilliance that dazzled all who saw her. By the time she was done dressing, it was just beginning to grow light outside. Sun Fu's servant boy came to the bow of their boat to await news. Tenth looked in at the young master, smiling as though pleased with how things were going, and urged him to go and give his reply, and to quickly count out the silver in full. The young master went in person to Sun Fu's boat, and replied that he agreed to everything. Sun Fu said, "Counting out the silver is not a problem. But I would like to have the lovely's make-up stand as security." The young master went back once more to pass this reply on to Tenth. She pointed to the gold-inlaid stationery box, saying, "Go on and take it." Sun Fu was greatly pleased. He then took one thousand taels of white silver, and sent it off to the young master's boat. Tenth counted it out her self and found to that it was sufficient in both purity and amount, without the least error. Thereupon she grasped the gunwale and waved to Sun Fu, and as soon as Sun Fu saw her, his soul flew out of him. Tenth opened her crimson lips, exposing gleaming teeth, saying, "Please send back that box I sent over just now. In it are some travel documents of Master Li's which should be picked out and returned to him." Sun Fu already regarded Tenth as a turtle in his trap, and without hesitation ordered his servant to carry that gold-inlaid stationery box right over and place it at the prow of Li Jia's boat. Tenth took out thekey and opened the lock. Inside the box were many small drawers. Tenth asked the young master to pull out the first drawer to look, and there was all kingfisher feathers and bright pendants, jade hair pins and jeweled earrings filling it up inside, probably worth several hun dred taels. Tenth threw it all right into the river. Li Jia and Sun Fu and the rest of the people on the boats were all astonished. She then told the young master to open another drawer. It was filled with jade whistles and golden pipes. He opened another drawer full of antique knicknacks of ancient jade and purple gold, probably worth several thousand. Tenth threw all this into the great river. People began gathering on the bank, until they packed the en tire shoreline. They said with one voice, "What a shame! " and were left standing there, wondering what it was all about. Finally Li Jia opened one more drawer. Inside this drawer there was an other box. When he opened the box and looked, there were handfuls of priceless pearls, and all sorts of sapphires, cat's-eyes, and rare treasures such as they had never seen before. There was no guessing at their worth. The crowd of people all cheered lustily, and the noise of their commotion was like thunder. Tenth made as if to throw these things as well into the river. In that instant Li Jia was overcome with remorse. He clasped Tenth and wailed aloud. Then Sun Fu came over as well and tried to reason with her. Tenth pushed the young master to one side and cursed Sun Fu, saying, "Mr. Li and I have endured every kind of hardship. It was no easy thing for us 853
Anthology of Chinese Literature to come this far. But you with your lecherous intentions hatched a cunning plot that has dissolved all our destined life together in a single day, and de stroyed the love and affection between us. You are my sworn enemy. If I have consciousness after death, I swear I will take my grievance against you to the clear-eyed gods. And you dream of sharing the joy of pillow and mat with me! " Then she said to Li Jia, "I languished in a fallen life for several years, during which time I amassed some private savings. This was meant as a pro vision against old age. I did not intend for those mountain vows and ocean oaths that we exchanged to be broken even in our declining years. That day as we were leaving the capital, I used the pretext of my sisters' parting gifts to store these hundred treasures in this box. There is no less than ten thou sand taels here. I meant to use this to set you up in such style that you could return to see your parents without shame. Perhaps they might have taken pity on me for my sincerity and allowed me to assist your wife in the duties of the household, so that I could live out my life relying on you, with no re grets to my dying day. How could I have guessed that your trust in me was so shallow that you could be confused by groundless counsel? You have abandoned me at midjourney and betrayed my earnest heart. Today, before these many eyes, I open this box to reveal its contents, so that you may learn that a thousand taels is no great thing. In my jewel case there is true jade; I regret that you lack eyes in your head to see it. Born in an ill-fated hour, I fell into the bonds of a shameful life. And just as I made good my escape, I have been cast aside once more. Today every person who has ears and eyes can witness that it is not I who have betrayed you, but rather you who have betrayed me! " At this the crowd that had gathered to watch all shed tears, every last one of them, and they all cursed Master Li for a heartless deceiver. The young master was both ashamed and grieved. He wept with remorse, and was just beginning to beg for her forgiveness when, clutching the treasure box, she plunged right into the heart of the river. The crowd cried out in alarm for someone to save her. But all that could be seen were dark clouds over the river, and the restless waves-there was no trace of her. Alas, a famed cour tesan, beautiful as flowers or jade, left all at once to be entombed in fishes' bellies! The three souls settle to the water-kingdom's trackless depths; the seven spirits set off on the distant road of darkness. At the time, the people who were watching gnashed their teeth in fury, climbing over one another in their desire to thrash Li Jia and Sun Fu, which startled these two so badly they didn't know what to do. They hurriedly called out to the boatmen to set out, and went off in separate directions. Li Jia sat in his boat looking at the thousand taels and thinking back on Tenth, brooding day in and day out on his shame. These oppressive feelings even tually drove him crazy, and he never recovered as long as he lived. As for Sun Fu, after the shock of that day he fell ill and was bedridden for over a 854
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties month. All day he would see Du Tenth beside him, cursing him. In time, he died. People said it was revenge exacted from the depths of the river. And now we speak of that Liu Yu-chun. When his stint in the academy at the capital was up, he packed up his things to return home, and moored at Gua-bu.4 He happened to drop a bronze washbasin in the river as he was washing his face over the water, and he sought out a fisherman to fish it up with his net. When the net came out, what was inside was a little case. Yu chun opened the case to look, and in it were bright pearls and rare treasures, precious things of inestimable price. Yu-chun richly rewarded the fisherman, and kept the things by his bedside to play with them. That night in a dream he saw a woman out in the river, striding toward him over the waves. When he looked closely, it was Du Tenth. She approached him and greeted him, and complained to him of Mr. Li's unfeeling behavior. She also said, "I was the recipient of your gracious assistance, when you helped us out with that hundred and fifty taels. I originally meant to seek out a way to repay you when we came to the end of our journey. Little did I know that there was to be no constancy from beginning to end. Yet I often bear your noble favor in mind, unable to forget it. This morning I presented you a small case by way of the fisherman as a small token of my heartfelt thanks. From this time on, we shall never meet." When she had done speaking, he awoke all at once in alarm. Only then did he realize that Tenth had died, and he sighed with pity for several days. Those who later assessed the merits of this case felt that Sun Fu, who thought nothing of throwing away a thousand taels in a plot to steal away a lovely woman, was certainly no gentleman, while Li Jia, who failed to rec ognize Du Tenth's sincere devotion, was a vulgar person not even worth talk ; ng about. But most of all they wondered why a rare hero among women like Tenth could not find a mate worthy of her, to ride away together on a Qin Terrace phoenix.s Yet she mistakenly took up with Master Li, casting bright pearls and lovely jade before a blind man. The result was that grati tude was made enmity, and their ten thousand feelings of affection were changed to flowing water. This is most pitiful! A poem lamenting this event says: Do not talk idly of romance if you don't know the game; a world is hidden there within love's name. If one knew all of love that was in love to know, the epithet "romantic" should be thought no cause for shame.
4 G u a-bu is on the north b a n k of the Yangzi, about s i xty k i l ometers u pstream of G u a-zhou . It seems poss i b l e that the two p l aces are conflated here. SA reference to the story of X i ao Shi a n d Nong Y u, d aughter of D u ke M u of the state of Q i n . X i ao S h i was an expert p l ayer of the xiao, a w h i stl e l i ke i n stru me nt, a n d cou l d i m i tate the c a l l of the phoe n i x . At l ast, a phoe n i x descended to the cou p l e at the terrace b u i l t for them by D u ke M u and carried them off to H eaven together.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature In F e n g Meng- I o n g ' s fi n a l col l ecti o n of sto r i es, Constant Words to A wa ken the World (Xing-shi heng-yan), there a p pears a gro u p of stories by another h a n d , a writer known o n l y by h i s pseudonym Lang-x i a n , the "Wi l d I m morta l , " a l so tentati ve l y iden tified as the author o f another co l l ectio n of vernacu l a r stories entitled The Rocks Nod
Their Heads (Shi dian tau). "Censor X u e F i n d s I m morta l i ty i n the G u i se of a F i s h , " based o n a Ta n g tale, i s o n e o f t h e Lang-x i a n sto rie s i n Feng's col lecti o n . T h e ta l e o f heaven-sent s u ffe r i n g that leads t o e n l ightenment a n d the re n u n c ia t i o n of p u b l i c l ife h ad a l o n g h i story in the l iterary trad i t i o n , but rare l y did it take on the c om i c d i me n s i o n s i t h a s h e re . Trapped in the body of a fi s h , Censor Xue rai l s h e l p less l y aga i n st h i s fr i e n d s a n d co l l eagues a s t h e y d e bate whether t o d i n e o n h i m . T h e mode o f fi l l et i n g a n d p reparat i o n , i n w h i c h Censor X u e h a d h i mself i n stru cted h i s cook, is descri bed i n l ov i n g c u l i n a ry deta i l , with the good censor h i mself as the m a i n cou rse u n d e r c o n s i deratio n .
Lang-xian, " Censor Xue Finds Immortality in the Guise of a Fish" ( from Constant Words to Awaken the World) Translated by Robert Ashmore Pray, how did that white dragon come to be? -all through a puny fish' s sincerity. Though now the dragon sport in the broad stream, if rain and cloud's force failed him, wouldn't he be bogged in mire ? To learn the transformations of the airy soul, rest rudderless, always empty. It's not sudden j oy that dulls the senses: Zhuang Zhou was once a butterfly, and Xue Wei became a fish. The story has it that in the Qian-yuan era [A.D. 75 8-760] of the Tang em peror Su-zong there was an official by the name of Xue Wei. This Xue Wei was a native of the Wu district, who had passed the jin-shi examination at the end of the Tian-bao era [A.D. 742-75 6 ] . He started out as a district pre fect in Fu-feng, where he built up quite a reputation. Later he was transferred to the post of Censor in Qing-cheng district in Sichuan. His wife, a certain Madam Gu, from the leading family of Wu County, was a lovely woman with a kind and gentle temperament. The two of them were a perfect match, and lived together in mutual love and respect. Before they knew it three years had gone by at the new post, and the district magistrate left town on a pro motion. Censor Xue's superiors, knowing well his character and ability, ap p ointed him to take over the seal of the district administration. Now this Qing-cheng district was made up of remote mountains and deep valleys with rocky and infertile soil. Years of poor harvests had left the people destitute, and from time to time there were outbreaks of banditry. As soon as Censor Xue took over the district administration, he instituted 856
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a system of local accountability, and enlisted the cooperation of the citizenry in apprehending bandits wherever they cropped up. He also set up a public academy to foster young talent, and opened the relief granaries to assist the helpless and destitute . Every spring he would go personally into each village to supervise the plowing and planting, and would exhort the people with well-meaning words to do their best to play their allotted roles in the com munity. As a result of all this, crops flourished throughout the county and the very bandits were transformed into upright citizens. Truly, public order reached the point that " doors were left open at night, and lost valuables re mained where they fell by the roadside . " The common folk, out of gratitude for the benefit which had been bestowed on them, composed a ditty in praise of the Censor's achievements. Which went, In autumn there's harvest, and plowing in spring. no overseer extorts rent; our doors lie unlatched at night. The people set happily to their tasks, schools bring culture's blessings : moral and material benefit, all through Father Xue's goodness. From this day on in our children's line, we vow to preserve his name. what will we call them ? " Xue's son" and " Little Xue. " That Censor Xue was not only an upright and compassionate official who loved the people like his own children; in his dealings with his colleagues, too, he was respectful and modest, treating them well in every way. As it happens, in that district seat there were a deputy magistrate, a censor, and two prefects. The district magistrate was called Zou Pang. He was also a jin-shi graduate-in fact, it happened that he was a good friend of Xue's from the same class. The two prefects were named Lei Ji and Pei Kuan, and they also performed their duties in a scrupulous and ethical manner. The four of them had so much in common in character and interest that whenever they had a spare moment, they could be found together discussing poetry, play ing chess, or sitting beside flowers or in the shade of a bamboo grove, shar ing a drink together. They were constant companions who got on splendidly. One evening, j ust when the Seventh Night festival had come around, Cen sor Xue and his wife were together in their official quarters to " pray for skill " and hold their own private celebration . . . ( Now as it happens, on the evening of the Seventh Night festival, every family of whatever social sta tion would be sure to set out some wine and a few dainties for the banquet of " praying for skill and threading the needle . " Now why do you imagine that was ? It all came about because of a certain daughter of the Emperor of 857
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Heaven, named the Weaver Woman, who worked away at her loom day and night. The Emperor of Heaven was fond of her for her industry, and mar ried her to Oxherd to be his wife . But-who'd have guessed it t-once the Weaver Woman had married Oxherd, she was carried away with the j oys of love, and spent the days combing her hair and making herself up; she never tended to loom and shuttle any more. The Emperor of Heaven was enraged, and banished the Weaver Woman to live on the east side of the Milky Way, and Oxherd to live on the west. In the whole year they were permitted to meet j ust once, on this seventh day of the seventh month . On this day, mag pies were sent to fill in the Milky Way for them so that they could cross over. Because of this, the people of this world would keep track of the time when they were to cross, and, standing out beneath the stars and moon, would thread colored threads through needles' eyes-if one could thread it through, that meant " receiving skill , " and if one couldn't that meant " missing skill. " I n this way they would predict their skill i n handiwork during the year to come. Now j ust stop and think for a moment: Oxherd and Weaver Woman had been longing all year for this one night when they could finally meet. What's more, they were only given three or four hours to pour out their sin cere longing all at once, still fearing there might not be time enough to tell it all. How could they possibly have enough spare time to come to the human world delivering skill ? Is this not an absurd tale ? ) Now o n that evening, Censor Xue was i n his courtyard, exchanging toasts with his wife. Losing track of the time, they sat up until deep in the night. Unexpectedly, Censor Xue took a little chill from the dewy night breezes, and this chill soon grew into a serious illness. His whole body felt as hot as if it were being roasted over coals and sweat poured from him like rain. Gradually he stopped eating altogether, and lost track of what was going on around him. He mumbled, "I can't hold out another instant ! Why must you force me to stay here ? Why don't you j ust let me go . . . . " Now you may well imagine that when a sick person begins speaking like this, it is not good news. It so frightened Madam Gu that her wits and courage both flew from her in an instant. But could she j ust sit there and watch him die ? Of course she had to call in doctors and consult diviners, summoning spir its and offering up vows to the gods. As it happens, in that district there was a certain Qing-cheng Mountain-the fifth immortal grotto of the Daoist sect. On that mountain stood a temple in which there was an image of Lao-zi which had been proven to be of marvelous efficacy. Truly, if one prayed to it for clear skies one got clear skies, if for rain then it rained; if one prayed for a son one got a son, if for a daughter, a daughter. Pilgrims flocked there from far and wide. So Madam Gu wrote out a spirit-petition, and sent peo ple to that Lao-zi temple to pray. She'd also heard that the fortune-slips of that temple were most accurate, so she had them on one hand pray for the protection of the Censor, to extend his lifespan and avert the calamity be setting him, and on the other to ask for a fortune-slip, to try to get some idea how the thing was likely to come out. And as for those three colleagues, who had long admired Censor Xue for his virtue, when they heard what had 858
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happened, they went on foot to the mountain to present offerings of incense, and to express their willingness to forfeit part of their own allotted lifespans in order to release the Censor from his peril. And j ust when the three col leagues had turned back homeward, there came the elders of the entire county, leading the common folk, who came in a body to prostrate them selves and pray. It was proof of the good effect of the Censor's accustomed way of governing that he could win over the hearts of the people like this. Now the slip they drew was number thirty-two. The rhyme on that slip said: A hundred streams flow down to the river, Peer down in the deep and hold back a shiver. Why wander to Longmen to seek what you wish ? Three foot two, the enchanted fish. A servant was sent to take a copy of this riddle back to the lady at the district seat, yet she could make no more of it than they. She thought to her self, "I have ' heard that the slips people have received in the past have al ways suited the person in question in every detail. How is it the one we've drawn speaks of some condition not the least like my husband's? Is this a good omen, or an evil one ? It's really beyond me. " Her hopes and fears grew more tangled and confused than ever, and her anxiety increased. But then she thought, " It's plain that this slip may have no bearing on the situation at all. Let me find a doctor to treat the disease-that at least is a sound ap proach. " And she commissioned people to search about. Well, they found out about a certain Daoist adept named " Eight Hundred " Li, who lived in the prefectural capital of Cheng-duo He was said to have been the leading disciple of the great Master Sun;6 and, since he'd received eight hundred se cret cures from his teacher, people called him " Eight Hundred" Li. And truly, when he was called in to treat someone, the sickness would be gone as soon as he'd set his hand to it; he was uncannily effective. He'd hung a New Year's couplet over his door which read, Like Druggist Kang, I never change my price/ Like D octor Feng, I have apricots in groves . 8 The thing was, when you called him in, you could never b e quite sure he'd come. If he did agree to come, then you could bet there was some hope for that patient. The fees he required were also different from the common run of doctors: Sometimes he'd demand several hundred taels before he'd 6Master S u n : S u n S i - m i a o ( 5 8 1 -682), a herm it-sc h o l a r famed d u ri n g the e a r l y T a n g Dynasty fo r h i s med ic a l expertise. The d ates g i v e n h e re a re based on S u n ' s o w n report, but popu l a r trad ition sug gested he had l i ved several h u n d red years. ' '' D ru g g i st Kang" : Han Kang ( m i d - 2 n d c.), a herm it-sage who, h o p i n g to avoid the p u b l i c eye, s u p ported h i mself sel l i n g herbal m e d i c i nes in the Eastern H a n capital of C h a ng-a n . He became famous
in spite of h i mself for never changing a price i n th i rty years. ' Doctor Feng was a legendary doctor said to have been active a ro u n d the turn of the th i rd century. He is s u p posed to h ave asked the patients h e c u red to plant a p r i cot trees in l i eu of monetary pay ment.
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so much as opened up his medicine case; at other times even after curing the patient he would not ask for a single penny in compensation-he' d j ust want someone to treat him to one roaring drunk. Sometimes he'd set out as soon as he got the summons; at other times there was no budging him no matter how one begged. He was a hard one to fathom. As a general rule, though, if one were sincere about it he' d be willing to come . When Madam Gu learned of this medical man, she immediately dis p atched a servant bearing tokens of earnest to set out in the middle of the night and invite that " Eight Hundred" Li. As luck would have it, he was in the prefectural capital, and came as soon as he was called. With this the lady's mind was eased somewhat. Who ' d have known that as soon as he set foot in the door, before even taking a pulse, he said, " Though this illness looks mortal, it is nonetheless not morta l. What do you mean by asking me here ? " Right away the lady related the whole story of the onset of the sickness, as well as the rhyme they'd drawn at the Lao-zi temple, for the doctor's consideration, begging him to prescribe a cure. That " Eight Hundre d" Li j ust snorted sarcastically, saying, "This disease doesn't make it into the medical books. I've got no medicine to prescribe for it. All you can do is to keep feeling about his chest after he's dead-as long as he's not cold, you must not la y him in his coffin! After two weeks or three weeks or so, when he gets the hankering to eat something, he'll come around of his own. That slip from the Lao-zi temple, though accurate, will only become clear after the fact; it is not something we can make a guess about j ust now. " He absolutely refused to administer any medicine, and set off again without further delay. There was no telling what to make of this. Would this disease of the Censor's really clear up of its own with no need for medicine? Or had the doctor simply made up an excuse to leave because the disease was already too advanced for a cure to be at tempte d ? Truly, Green dragon and white tiger walk together; no way of knowing what your lot might be. When the lady saw that " Eight Hundred" Li had gone, she sighed, "When a doctor with a reputation like his is unwilling to give treatment, could there be any other who would dare to try ? It's sure the disease has progressed past cure ! All that we can do is wait helplessly for death to come . " She sat by the Censor as his fever raged for seven days and seven nights, growing steadily more severe. Then all at once he lost consciousness, and no amount of calling could bring him around again. The lady gave way to sobbing, and meanwhile sent word to the three colleagues, so they could set about preparations for the funeral. These three were j ust on their way to see how things stood, and when they heard the evil news they all shed tears. They hurried to the official residence to weep before the body, and then spoke with the lady, consoling her for a while. As it was early autumn and the weather was still hot, they set out separately to see to the coffin and 860
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burial garments right away. By the third day all had been put in readiness, and it should have been time to close up the coffin. But j ust then as the lady was weeping bitterly, slumped down over the body, she felt that, sure enough, there was a slight hint of warmth about the chest. For this she began to think there might be something to the words of " Eight Hundred" Li, and wanted to leave the body lying in the bed. But the domestics all said, "That's always been the way of it. Dead people can keep warm about the chest for as long as three or four days; they don't really turn cold right after they die. So what does that prove? It's now early Septem ber, and the heat has not yet abated. If there is so much as a thunderclap, that body will swell up in a second-then how will you ever get it into that coffin ? " The lady said, " Master Li said that as long as his chest wasn't cold, he was not to b e put in the coffin. Well, he' s warm now, and even if I did n't believe what Master Li said, I'd keep watch over him for half a month or twenty days-how could I bear to shut him up after j ust three days, and still warm ? Anyway, the coffin is all ready; j ust leave me to keep watch day and night. As soon as his chest grows cold I'll put him in-that won't be too late. 0 Heaven! Only let Master Li's words come true. If I can tend my man back to health, it won't be saving j ust one life, but, counting me, two lives. " They all tried again and again to dissuade her, but she j ust wouldn't lis ten. And since they couldn't outstubborn her, they had no choice but to go along with her : they left the Censor lying in his bed, with his wife keeping constant watch. Enough on that account for now. Now when the Censor's illness entered the seventh day, his body grew ex tremely hot, so that he could not bear it for so much as another moment. His mind was completely taken up with the idea of finding a cool spot to relax a spell-perhaps then, he thought, there might be some hope of the sickness abating. So he slipped off quietly, evading the notice of his wife and colleagues, and, picking up a bamboo staff, quietly left the official quarters without calling anyone to wait on him. In a twinkling he' d reached the out side of the town walls . He felt like a bird leaving its cage, or a fish slipping free from a net. Filled with delight, he put all thought of sickness behind him. Now you may b e wondering how the Censor, b eing an official, was able to leave his quarters without a single person taking note of it. As it turns out, the depth of his longing had given rise to a dream, and it was his dream ing soul which felt all this was happening. His b ody remained b ehind as be fore on the bed-how could it have gone anywhere ? Of course, this left the one watching over the b ody to weep and wail without cease day and night, hoping against hope to pull life back from the maw of death. How could she have known that the dreamer was drifting and floating without the least hindrance, himself in fact drawing j oy from the heart of suffering ? Censor Xue went out the South Gate and then headed off into the moun tains. He came to a certain mountain called Dragonsease. On that moun tain there was a pavilion that had been built by the Sui emperor Wen on the occasion of the investiture of his son Yang Xiu as Duke of Shu. It was named 861
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" Refuge from Heat . " Around it on all four sides was lush forest and long bamboos. Breezes came from all directions, and there was not the least ray of sunlight. So that King of Shu, whenever the sultry days came, would mar shal his court guests off to this pavilion to escape the heat. It was truly a fine cool spot! Just then when the Censor caught sight of it, he felt his spirits set at ease. " If I hadn't come out from the town, how should I ever have known that there was a setting like this in the mountains ? I've been assigned to Qing cheng for a long while, yet I have never come to this place. And those col leagues of mine, how could they find out about it ? I ought to tell them, so that we could bring wine goblets to this spot and hold a Heat-shunning Ban quet. It's a shame that, in this worthy setting, I lack my worthy friends to share it-when all is said and done there' s something missing. " The scene which lay before him was lovely, and he comp osed a poem then and there. It went: A half-day's leisure snatched from drifting life, on ruin's brink, I've scaled this slope alone. Though here I draw breath close to Heaven's gates, don't let me float away without return! Censor Xue sat a while in the pavilion, and then set off once again into the mountains. There were no trees shading that mountain path, so it could not compare to the cool comfort of the pavilion and he felt more and more stifled as he went along. When bit by bit he'd covered three or four miles, off in the distance he made out a large river. Now what river do you suppose that was ? Back when Great Yu was tam ing the floods,9 he channeled the Min River out ofthe Min Mountains. When he'd p assed through the lands of Mao-zhou and Sheng-zhou, he further carved out this river, which is called the Tuo. To this very day, from the bank of this river hangs a great iron chain-there's no telling j ust how long it is, since it's sunk down in the riverbottom. This is the spot where Great Yu chained up Ying Dragon-it turns out that when Yu was taming the floods, whenever he came to a place where the watercourse was blocked, he'd send that Ying Dragon on ahead. Let those peaks and crags be never so tall, j ust one flip of Ying Dragon' s tail, and in an instant they'd be split in two. That's why Great Yu is also referred to as "Wondrous Yu" : if he did not know how to command such creatures, how could he have set the floods to rest within j ust eight years? To this day on the Si River there is another iron chain, which holds down Water Mother (the form of this creature is like a macaque). Now at this Tuo R iver, it was the Ying dragon. Both of these creatures were chained up after the work of taming the floods had been accomplished, in order to prevent any future trouble. Is that not a miraculous feat?
9G reat Yu was the l egendary fou nder of the X i a Dynasty, c red ited with sav i ng the peop l e from ram pant flood i n g by d i gging C h i n a ' s system of rivers.
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Just then the Censor was feeling oppressed by the heat as he walked along. Besides, he was suffering from a fever. When he suddenly caught sight of this stretch of the Tuo River, broad and rolling, extending without break to the horizon, he naturally felt a fresh coolness penetrating to his very mar row. He wished he could make every step into three and fly off at once like a sail-cart. He didn't realize, however, that though it looked very close from up on the mountain, once he'd come down, his path was cut off by East Pool before he could reach the Tuo. This pool was quite large . The water was clear as a mirror, and one could see right to the bottom even in the deepest parts. And the bamboos along the banks shone with a fresh greenness you could touch. The Censor took off his clothes and went into the pool to bathe. It happens that the Censor was from the Wu region-he had grown up in the land of ponds and lakes. He had learned to dive from childhood. Since he'd become a grown man, this skill of his had fallen into long disuse. Un expectedly coming here today, he felt the old j oy come back to him with dou bled force. As he splashed about, he happened to sigh to himself, "This swim ming of humans can't compare with that of the fishes, after all! I wish I could borrow a suit of scales to grow onto my body, so I could swim about freely where I pleased-now that would be more like it! " Just then there appeared a little fish by his side who, eyeing the Censor, said to him, " If you want to be a fish, there's no problem to it. Why speak of ' borrowing ' ? Wait here while I go to He Bo to work on it for you. " And almost before he'd finished saying this, the little fish was gone. This gave the Censor quite a scare, and he thought, " How was I to know there were magical creatures in this water ? This is no place for swimming alone. I'd best get out of here with no delay ! " Little did the Censor know that, having once felt such a desire, h e could not but be subj ected to such a course of karmic retribution. It led to: Robe and cap: doffed for a time along with human cares. Scaly armor: soon seen springing forth upon the water. Censor Xue paused, sunk in thought, and was about to put his clothes back on and make his way home, when the little fish suddenly reappeared with news, saying, " Congratulations ! He B o has made his will known. " And there came a fish-headed person, astride a large fish, with innumer able little fishes in attendance before and behind, who read out He Bo's decree� Which said, Town dwellers, water-wanderers: floaters and sinkers go by separate paths. If not through some special penchant, who could pass freely along both ? Yon Qing-cheng Censor Xue Wei, native of Wu, member of the lesser or ders of officialdom, j oys in the watery vastness of the clear river, and swims with happy abandon; wearied by the commotion of the dusty world, he shakes off 863
Anthology of Chinese Literature his robes and departs. Let him undergo for a time the scaly transfiguration, yet not for life. Let him assume the duties of Crimson Carp of East Pond. Pay heed! Those who indulge in far-roving pleasures with no thought of return will surely be punished by the clear-eyed spirits; those who ignore the thin hook and gulp the sweet bait will find it hard to escape the calamity of block and blade. See that you do not, by some error, bring shame on our kind. Heed these words!
When the Censor had done listening to the reading of this decree, he glanced down at his body to find that it had already grown scales-from head to toe, he'd been transformed into a golden carp. Though he was shocked and amazed, still he thought to himself, " Since it's come to this, let me at least go and swim to my heart's content, to learn the pleasures of the watery life . " And from that time on, there was no spot among the three rivers and five lakes which he did not visit in his travels as he wandered about according to his whim. It turns out that as He Bo's decree had appointed him Crimson Carp of East Pool, that East Pool was like a fixed address to him; and no matter how far afield he traveled, he'd at least have to come back there to rest. Now being tied down to that one little place began in time to make him feel a bit restless. After a few days, that little fish came again and said to the Censor, " Have you not heard that in Ping-yang Prefecture in Shan-xi there is a mountain called Long-men, or Dragongate ? It was drilled through by Great Yu when he was taming the floods. Beneath the mountain is the Yellow River. Now since there is a stream at the top of the mountain that joins up with the waters of the Milky Way, rushing down to become the headwaters of the Yellow River, that spot is named Riverford. As we speak, the eighth month is coming around, and the autumn floods will soon rush down, heralded by thunder. All the carp under Heaven will go there to j ump Dragongate. Why don't you request a leave of absence from He Bo, and go yourself to j ump ? If you make it across you will become a dragon-wouldn't that beat being a carp ? " Now i t j ust happened that right then the Censor was beginning to grow a bit fed up with living in East Pool; when he heard about this, he was overj oye d . Right away, he took leave of the little fish, and headed straight for He B o ' s place. Now He Bo's palatial halls all have coral columns and tortoise-shell rafters-a real dragon castle, a sea treasury, dif ferent in its own way in every detail from the ones of this world. At this time, carp from all the regions under He Bo's j urisdiction-the Min, Tuo, Ba, Yu, Fu, Qian, Ping-jiang, She-hong, Zhuo-jin, Jia-ling, and Qing-yi rivers, along with the Five Streams, the Lu Waters , the Sevengate Shallows, and the Three Straits of Qu-tang-had come to request leaves of absence to go and jump Dragongate. The Censor, as the only golden carp present, was appointed their representative, to lead them in to their audience with He Bo. In keeping with ancient custom, a general banquet was held, j ust like those held in this world to see off the candidates for the civil service exams. The Censor and the carp of the various regions partook of the ban quet, gave thanks for imperial bounty, and set off together for Dragongate t o j ump . Who'd have guessed, they couldn't make it over, and returned 8 64
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with dotted foreheads. Now you may ask, " What's this about ' dotted foreheads' ? " That is because when the carp try to j ump through Drag ongate they have to fight their way against the current, concentrating all their blood and vital spirits in the center of their foreheads, so that it looks as if they've been dotted there with a red brush. That's why people of this world refer to unsuccessful exam candidates as having " dotted fore heads" -it all stems from this. Truly, Hardpressed to pass through Dragongate's fierce flood, in shame they bear the forehead's splotch of blood. Now in Qing-jiang County there lived a fisherman named Zhao Gan, who made his living, along with his wife, netting fish out on the Tuo River. All unexpectedly he'd netted a great snapping turtle that had dragged the net along with it-even Zhao Gan himself was nearly pulled into the river. His wife berated him, saying, "We depended on that net as our sole capital, to keep the two of us alive. Now that you've gone and lost our only fixed asset, how do you expect to come by any liquid assets to buy a new one ? What's more, those people from the district government come by every so often to pick up a fish. What will you come up with to satisfy them now ? " The two of them argued over this the whole night. Zhao Gan could not stand up to her browbeating, and had nothing for it but to rig up a fishing pole and make ready to come fish at East Pool. Now why do you suppose that Zhao Gan left that great river behind, and came instead to this pool to fish? As it hap pens, the current of the Tuo River is of the fastest, and thus perfect for net ting, but unsuited to pole-fishing. So he thought of coming to East Pool to try his luck at this new line of work. He stuck a fragrant lump of oily dough on the end of that pole and tossed it into the water. Now Censor Xue, ever since his return from getting his forehead dotted at Dragongate, had been out of sorts, and had hidden himself away in East Pool for several days without venturing out to look for something to eat. His belly was j ust then aching with hunger. When Zhao Gan's fishing boat came paddling up, he couldn't resist following after it, j ust to see what was afoot. As soon as he smelled the fragrance of that bait, he felt a great long ing to eat it. He already had it up to his lips when he thought to himself, " I know good and well that there's a hook i n this bait. I f I swallow it, won't he have then caught me ? Though I've turned for a time into a fish, is there really no other place for me to look for food, that I must eat only what's on his hook ? " And he returned to play about in the shadows of the boat's hull. But how could he resist the overpowering fragrance of that bait, which seemed to bore its way right into his nostrils ? What's more, he was very hun gry-he really couldn't hold out any longer. He thought, "I am a human being, and who knows how much I weigh. And this little hook is going to drag me away ? And what if he does pull me out? I'm a third-grade magis trate in the district government, and he is the fisherman Zhao Gan. He can not fail to know me, and will naturally send me on my way home to the dis-
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trict seat. So won't I still end up eating his bait for free ? " He'd barely closed his mouth around the bait, and hadn't even had time to swallow when Zhao Gan have a tug, and pulled him out. This is what is known as: the eyes see through the trick, but the belly can't hold back. When that Zhao Gan saw he'd hooked a golden carp about three feet long, he clapped both hands to his head and cried out, "Heavenly day! If only I can catch a few more like this, I'll have enough money to tie a new net in no time ! " The Censor called out to him repeatedly, " Zhao Gan ! You are a fisherman under my j urisdiction. Hurry up and send me b ack to my office. " But that Zhao Gan paid him no attention, and went right ahead and strung a straw rope through the Censor's gills and threw him into the hold. Then his wife said to him, "The district government is always sending peo ple at odd intervals to pick up fish. Now as I see it, with a fish as big as this one, if some ministry errand-runner catches sight of it and takes it away, j ust how much government compensation do you think you'll get for it? We'd do better to hide it away among the reeds along the bank and wait for a peddler to come along, so we can sell it on the free market. And we'll have that much more to spend ourselves . " Zhao Gan said, " Good idea , " and took the fish off to hide in the reeds, covering it with an old straw poncho. He came back and said to his wife, " If we can get a good price for this one, I'll take s ome of the money and buy some beer for the two of us to get good and drunk. If our luck holds through the night, who's to say tomorrow I won't catch two ? " Now not too long after that Zhao Gan had hidden the fish and brought the boat b ack, sure enough there came an errand-runner from the district administration, named Zhang Bi, who called out to Zhao Gan, saying, "Fifth-Granddad Pei wants an extra large carp to poach. I came out to the Tuo this morning to find you, but now you've moved over here, making me search high and low for you, till I'm all sweaty and out of breath. Hurry up now and pick me out a big one, and come along with me to deliver it. " Zhao Gan said, " I'm much to blame for making you go out of your way, sir. It's not that I wanted to move to this spot. But the other day I lost my net, and have no money to buy a new one, so I had no choice. I have to hook a few here until I can make up the money. But no big fish will take my hook-all I've got is three or four p ounds of small ones. If you want those, take them . " Zhang B i said, "Fifth-Granddad Pei's orders were t o get a big one. How can I report back with small ones ? " With a lunge he jumped down onto the boat and lifted up the well cover to look. Sure enough, they were all small ones. He was about to take those and try and make do . But then he thought to himself, "In a big wide stretch like this, how could ther e really be no big fish ? It's certain this guy is up to something. He must have the big ones hidden away somewhere . " With that he went ashore and searched all around, but couldn't find anything. Next, he went over to look among the reeds. There was an old straw poncho flap866
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ping wildly up and down. Zhang Bi guessed there must be a fish under there. When he strode up and lifted the poncho to look, it was a golden carp about three feet long. When Zhao Gan and his wife saw what had happened they could only curse their luck. Zhang Bi paid them no mind, but simply picked up that fish and stalked off. He looked back over his shoulder and said, "A fine job of deception! You j ust wait till I've reported this to Fifth-Granddad Pei-you'll get a sound beating, you rascal ! " The Censor cried out in a loud voice, " Zhang Bi! Zhang Bi! You too must certainly know me . I've come by chance to East Pool, and am amusing my self as a fish. How is it that seeing me you do not kowtow, but j ust sweep me up and rush off ? " Zhang Bi paid not the slightest attention. He made straight for the district seat, with that fish dangling by his side. Zhao Gan followed at a distance. And all the while Zhang Bi was walking, the Censor was cursing him. Zhang Bi carried the fish up to the town gate, where there was a soldier named Hu Jian on guard. Hu Jian said to Zhang Bi, "What a huge fish! Fifth Granddad Pei has called all the granddads to a banquet, and they're all wait ing j ust for that fish, so they can make poached carp . They say you've been gone a long time with no word, and they j ust sent out an express message to summon you. You'd sure enough better make it quick. " When the Cen sor lifted his head to look, it was that same south gate, called the " Greeting Fragrance Gate , " through which he'd gone out the other day. He called out to the gatekeeper, saying, "Hu Jian! Hu Jian ! The other day when I left town, I instructed you that I was leaving on my own and that you needn't notify the other granddads, or send anyone along to attend on me. Can it be that before I've been gone even one month, you've already forgotten? Now you should go and notify the other granddads, and assign someone to attend on me. How is it that you pay me no heed-such impudence ! " Yet oddly the gatekeeper seemed not to hear, j ust like Zhang Bi. That Zhang Bi went straight on with the fish into the town gate, Censor Xue all the while yelling and cursing without break. There inside the gate were a clerk of the Households Bureau and a clerk of the Penal Bureau, sitting opposite each other over a chessboard. That Households Bureau clerk said, " Yugh ! A fish that size must weigh over ten pounds ! " The Penal Bureau clerk said, "What a lovely golden carp ! He should be put in the 'Emerald Ripples' Pool of rear hall in the ministry com pound j ust for the pleasure of looking at him-what a shame to waste him j ust to make poached carp ! " The Censor bellowed, " You two clerks wait on me all day in the ministry. Though I may have turned into a fish, you should recognize me. How is it tha t on seeing me you don't stand up, or run to make report to the other granddads ? " Those two clerks j ust sat there as before playing chess, as if they hadn't heard a thing. The Censor thought, "The saying has it that 'a dog's obeyed in office. ' Can it be that now that I've no control over you, you've lost all fear of me whatsoever ? Do you think that since I've been away these few days, my office has been taken away? And even if it had been taken away, I have still not left my post; when it 867
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comes down to it I do have power over you. Just wait till I meet my col leagues. We'll write up reprimands against the lot of you slaves, and have you flogged till skin splits and flesh bursts . . . . " Dear Audience: take careful note of this situation, for in the next in stallment the outcome will be made clear. Now Madam Gu kept careful watch over Censor Xue's corpse, and before she knew it, more than twenty days had gone by. Yet the flesh remained as firm as ever, showing no signs of deterioration. When she stretched out her hand to feel the region of his heart, it seemed as if it had grown if anything warmer than before. Bit by bit, the warmth extended, till up as far as the throat and down as far as the navel the body was not very cold at all. When she thought back on the words of Master " Eight Hundred " Li, it seemed as if they really were coming at least partly true . Thereupon she pricked out some blood from her forehead and wrote out a spirit-petition. She asked a few advanced Daoist adepts to hold a service to pray for a magical cure, and protection for the Censor in his return to life . She made vows to rebuild the Lao-zi temple, and to erect a golden image if her prayers were answered. On the day when her petition was to be submitted, the three colleagues and the civil functionaries and common people of the entire district all burned in cense and prayed on the Censor's behalf, as they had on that former day. I'm reminded of that old saying, " The blessed person bears the stamp of Heaven " : now with an official as virtuous as Censor Xue, and with all the civil servants and commoners of the county praying on his behalf, could there be any fear that it would all come to nothing ? It was j ust that this was a per son who' d been dead over twenty days whom they were trying to restore to life. Though no one who ever made a petition at that Lao-zi temple ever had it go unanswered, still, of those souls that report before the hall of King Yama, not a single one can ever return. Truly, Trust that good will ever come of good, doubt not the power of the unseen gods. Now on that night the adepts laid out seven bright lamps on the altar, in the form of the seven stars of the Big Dipper. As it happens, the seventh star of the Big Dipper is called the " dipper handle . " In spring it points to the east, in summer to the south, in autumn to the west, and in winter to the north, spinning about up there in Heaven. Only the fourth star, called " Heaven's Hinge, " never moves . For this reason, the lamp in the position corresponding to " Heaven's Hinge " is specially designated as the " Life lamp . " If this lamp is bright, then the person concerned will have no trou ble; if it is dark, then that person will be beleaguered by illness; and if that lamp goes out, then one can be sure that person has little chance of recov ery. Now on that evening the presiding adept raised the ritual implements in 868
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his hands and chanted incantations, praying fervently for the dispersal of the evil influences. He entered into a trance, and personally submitted the petition to the star-official, requesting that Censor Xue's soul be permitted to return to the world of light. When the others went to look at the seven lamps, they were all burning brightly, and one felt that the Life-lamp was especially brilliant-manifesting the truth of the saying that he was not yet meant to die . The adept congratulated the lady on her good fortune, saying, "The Censor's Life-lamp is glowing with doubled brilliance. His return to life will be at any time now. Above all you must remember not to give way to excessive grieving, for fear that you may disturb the peace of his spirit and make his return more difficult. " The lady thanked him with tears in her eyes, saying, " If it comes out in this way, then I will not have gone through this ceremony and the bitterness of these long days and nights of watching in vain. " When she'd heard this news, she felt her spirits lighten somewhat . Without knowing it she grew groggy and fell asleep, and dreamed a dream: As clear as day she saw the Censor all in a panic, rushing in at the gate as naked as a newborn infant, his entire body stained with fresh blood. Cov ering his neck with both hands, he said, " Confounded luck ! I was sailing out on the river in high spirits, when all at once a wild wind rose up and great waves stirred. My boat was overturned, throwing me into the water . By good fortune the river god took compassion on me, seeing as my allot ted span was not yet up, and sent me out of the river and on my way, be stowing on me a suit of golden chainmail. Just as I made to seek out the road into town, I unexpectedly encountered a gang of robbers blocking the way. With designs on my golden armor, they killed me with a single stroke. If you have a thought for our marital bond, take care to keep watch over my soul and bring me back. " When the lady heard this in her dream, she unwittingly let out a great cry, and with this awoke. She thought, "Just now that Daoist priest said that he would not die; how comes it that I've had such a horrible dream ? Yet I re member that phrase from the book of dream interpretation: 'Those dreamed dead will live.' For all I can tell it may be that he has j ust now escaped calamity through penitence, and for this reason appeared without a stitch of clothing. All I can do is keep close watch over the body every moment . " The next day the lady divided u p the offerings from the votive altar and sent them over to the three colleagues-this is known as " scattering fortune. " Prefect Pei, acting a s host, invited the others t o his home for a ceremonial banquet. This is known as " drinking fortune. " It was for this reason that Prefect Pei had sent Zhang Bi to the fisherman's home to fetch a big fish to poach, to go along with the wine. In the end it was Second-grade Zou whose feelings for his old classmate proved the stronger, as he sighed before the laden board, " This is no ordi nary drinking party, but has been called for the purpose of summoning Cen869
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sor Xue back to life-half of the very dishes on this table come from the vo tive altar. Not knowing whether Censor Xue is to live or die, how can we call up any appetite for food? " Fifth-grade Pei then said, "The ancients did not sigh over their food. Do you think that you are alone in your worry for your classmate ? Do we not also worry for our colleague ? I hear the priests said that his return to life would occur either last night or today. Let's wait until that fish comes so we have something to chase our drink, drink our selves silly, and wait here for news of him. Won't that fulfill both our pub lic and our private obligations ? " That day it was not until the early afternoon that Zhang Bi came into the courtyard with the fish dangling at his side. As it came out, Fifth-grade Pei had been made to wait j ust for that fish, and he was sitting there eating peaches as he watched Second-grade Zou and Fourth-grade Lei play b ackgammon. When he glanced up and saw Zhang Bi sitting there, he flew off the handle and yelled out, "I sent you to get fish and bring it here-how is it you've been gone so long ? You mean to tell me that if I hadn't sent out that express message to summon you, you wouldn't have come at all ? " Zhang B i kowtowed and told i n detail the story o f how Zhao Gan had hid den the big fish away. Then Fifth-grade Pei ordered the attendant on duty to drag Zhao Gan down and give him fifty good lashes with a whip. Zhao Gan was left with skin in tatters and broken flesh, fresh blood streaming down his legs . Now why do you think that Zhao Gan didn't go away ear lier, but instead had to follow Zhang Bi all the way back to the county seat, ' as if j ust to come looking for this beating ? It was those few pennies of gov ernment compensation he was thinking of! Yet in the end he got fifty lashes and never saw any payment. Wasn't he j ust like that golden carp that had taken his hook ? Truly, In this world life and death are all for gain, no thought of pause until our final day. Fifth-grade Pei ran Zhao Gan off. When he lifted that fish to look, he saw it was a golden carp, over three feet long. He happily exclaimed, " This fish is excellent! Send it at once to the kitchen to poach . " Censor Xue cried out, " What do you mean 'fish' ? I am your colleague. How can you fail to recognize me? Now I have endured a great number of insults and have been waiting j ust to complain to you gentlemen, so that you can help me to exact revenge. How is it that you too take me for a fish, and send me off to the kitchen to poach? If I am poached, will that not be a case of wrongful death? For nothing I've worked side by side with you all these years-you don't show the least sympathy ! " But while he said all this, those colleagues of his paid no attention whatsoever. The Censor was then worked up in the extreme and burst out, " Classmate Zou, we were jin-shi graduates together back in the Tong-bao era. We used to be the best of friends back at the cap ital and have now been made colleagues here. You're not like the rest of them-how can you sit there and see me taken off to death without a word ? " Then Second-grade Zou said to Fifth-grade Pei, " In my humble opinion, this 870
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fish should not be poached. There is a big pond for releasing life up at the Lao-zi temple on Qing-cheng Mountain, and a lot of the people who go up there to hold services buy fish, turtles, and shellfish to release in the pond. Since today's feast is made up partly of the 'scattered fortune' from Censor Xue's service, we would do better to release this fish there as well, to plant this karmic seed. " Fourth-grade Lei interj ected, " Releasing the fish is a noble idea! The teaching of karmic retribution does not permit of doubt. Furthermore, we have plenty of delicacies for our banquet as it is; what need have we to eat poached carp as well ? " At this, Censor Xue, who was still lying out in the courtyard, said, " Classmate Zou, you really are a scatterbrain! If you've a mind to save me, why not j ust send me back to my quarters ? What is the point of sending me back up into the mountains-won't I perish of thirst ? Still, that would beat dying at the hands of the cook. Just wait till I've got to the pool for releasing life and have returned to my true form, and put on my robes and trappings to be an official again. Forget about Zhao Gan and that lot of curs-let' s j ust see which of you will have the nerve to come and look me in the eye ! " A s h e was blustering t o this effect, Fifth-grade Pei replied again, say ing, " O l d man, if you want to release this fish, that is a manifestation of the sacred call to cherish life-how should I presume to interfere ? But that ceremony of intercession was performed according to the tenets of Dao ism, bearing no relation to Buddhist teachings. If you wish to establish good karma, this is not the proper occasion. Just think: Heaven brings all things to fruition expressly for the sustenance of humankind. Take fish, for example: if they were not caught and eaten by people, then all would be fish beneath the sky, and even the riverways would be blocked up. Everyone does what they can to make themselves good, but this is a mat ter of the heart and not of the mouth . Thus the old saw has it: 'The Bud dha sits within the heart; meat and liquor pass by through the gullet . ' And: " If you would abide by Buddhist law, then abandon the desire of even a sip of cool water . ' Do you really believe that j ust eating this fish will do harm to the sincerity of our feelings for our departed colleague ? A perfectly good fish, and you won't poach it, but' want to release it to no good pur pose? How are we to know j ust because we don't eat it that it will not be eaten by an otter instead? It will die j ust the same . So when all is said and done, it is better that we eat it. " When the Censor heard this, he yelled out, " Look, your two guests both want to release me. You really are mule headed ! Not only is your feeling for a colleague most tepid, it turns out that you also utterly lack any understanding of the deference due of a host to his guests ! " Now it turns out that Fourth-grade Lei was diffident by nature. Seeing how Fifth-grade Pei really had his heart set on making poached carp, he said to Second-grade Zou, "Mr. Pei does not go in for karmic retribution, so it looks as if there is no saving this fish. Yet today as he is acting as our host, and wants to take this fish to offer us, how can we be adamant in refusing 871
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him ? As I see it, it is not that we really mean to kill this fish; let's j ust say that its allotted span has run out today and there is thus no saving it. " Im mediately the Censor burst out, " Mr. Lei, you really are spineless! How do you come to be arguing on both sides at once? If you want him to release me and he proves unwilling, you should continue to reason with him. How can you turn around and persuade Classmate Zou to give up the thought of rescuing me ? Is it that you've been living on a tight budget and haven't had any fish to eat in a long time, so that you're hoping for a chance to eat your fill when the poached carp is ready ? " All the Censor could d o was t o turn again t o Second-grade Zou, saying, " Classmate ! Classmate ! Don't tell me you're j ust putting on a show of friendship ! A few insincere high-sounding words, and that's that ? Will you not let out so much as another peep on my behalf? Of old it's been truly said, 'When one is to die and the other to live, the true depth of feeling comes clear . ' If it were not that today I come to die and you to live, how should I ever have known that your feelings for your classmate are as shallow as this ? If one day the term of my release comes, you j ust wait till I've returned to my oId form-can I not do as that Secretary Zhai did and hang those words of spite up at my door for you to see? Classmate, classmate, I only fear that when you come to regret this, it will be too late ! " Though the Censor was shouting and making quite a racket, host and guests all behaved exactly as if they had not heard a thing. Then Fifth-grade Pei called in the kitchen servant Wang Shi-liang, since he was a skilled cook and made the best poached carp. Pei handed the fish over to him, saying, "We want it to be both good and fast. Otherwise we'll take you out j ust like that Zhao Gan and serve you up fifty lashes of the whip . " Wang Shi-liang answered that he understood and reached over to pick up the fish. The Censor was so terrified that the three souls flew out the top of his head and the seven spirits sank through the floor. He wept piteously, and said, " In the old days, we colleagues were as inseparable as brothers. Why is it that today no matter how I beg you, you think only of killing me ? Ah, I have it: you surely envy me the administrative seal-that' s why you have brewed up this villainy. I'll have you know, this seal was be stowed on me by the authorities; I did not come by it through plotting ! But if you'll only agree to let me go home, I'll resign this instant. What is so hard about that ? " When he'd said this, he once more burst into tears. Yet, who'd have imagined, his colleagues acted as i f they had not heard! And the Cen sor was rushed straight off to the kitchen. In no time at all a chopping block had been brought over and the Cen sor laid on top of it. When he looked up, he saw it was the very man who had always served him as cook. He yelled out, "Wang Shi-liang! Can you not see that I am Third-Granddad Xue ? If I hadn't passed all those Wu re gional recipes on to you, what dishes would you have been able to come up with on your own, that all your masters should play up to you so ? Now you should consider the debt of gratitude you owe to me for bringing you up in the world. Hurry now, and report who I am to all the granddads, and have 8 72
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me sent along home ! What do you mean by putting me up on the chopping board like this ? " Yet strangely Wang Shi-liang paid not the least attention. Picking up the knife in his right hand, he pushed down with his left on the fish's head. This so discomfited the Censor that he flew into a rage . He snarled, "You cur ! So you save all your fawning for Fifth-grade Pei and have no fear of me! Do you imagine I have no means of getting back at you ? " He began to thrash about, and flipped his tail right up in Wang Shi-liang's face, catching him j ust like the slap of an open palm to the side of the head, leaving him with eyes dimmed and ears ringing. The cook brought both hands up to cover his face and let the knife fall clattering to the floor. As he stooped back down to pick up the knife, he sneered, " All right, fish ! If you're so sassy, let's j ust wait and see how you like swimming around in my pot ! " I t turns out that making poached carp calls for the sharpest knife possi ble-the fish must be sliced as thin as snowflakes, to be dipped into boiling water for j ust a moment and then scooped out. With the addition of a little pepper and some sesame oil, it comes out naturally tender and fresh-tast ing. So Wang Shi-liang went once more to whet his knife . The Censor, when his repeated calls still brought no response, let out a mournful sigh, and thought, "When that knife is sharpened, my life is at an end. Thinking back now on the time I lay sick at home, that seems bearable compared to this. Why did I ever steal out alone, to undergo this torment? If only I'd never seen East Pool, or, even if I'd seen it, if only I'd never thought to go in bathing. Or having gone in, if only I'd never wished to turn into a fish! If I hadn't wished for that, I'd never have received He Bo's summons, and all this would never have happened. Still, before I'd become a fish there was the little fish egging me on; after I'd become a fish, that Zhao Gan came along to trick me. It is all the workings of fate, and I've brought it on myself. How can I blame anyone else? I only pity my poor wife, left alone in our residence, without son or daughter-on whom can she rely ? If only I could somehow get a message to her, so that I could die without regrets ! " As he was moan ing and weeping like this, Wang Shi-liang took the freshly honed blade and chopped off his head with a single stroke. Truly, While three inches of breath remain, who's willing to give up the least advantage? When the six-foot body passes, it all fades like a dream on a spring day. Alas, poor Censor ! Now while over here Wang Shi-liang had j ust chopped off the fish's head, back in the official residence in the district administration compound, Cen sor Xue suddenly sprang upright on his bier. Forget about Madam Gu, who, being a woman, was nearly frightened to death-even all those household servants watching over the body wagged their heads and let their tongues loll out, saying, "Strange ! We've been keeping close watch all along, and no 8 73
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cat has j umped over the body. How is it then that the corpse has been drawn upright? " Then the Censor gave a sigh and said, " How many days is it that I've been unconscious ? " His wife replied, "Don't try to scare me! You've been dead for over twenty days, and we wondered whether you could ever live again . " The Censor said, "When did I ever die? I j ust had a dream. I never guessed I'd been dreaming that long . " Then he called out to the ser vants, " Go over to look in on my three colleagues . Right now they're sit ting in the hall, getting ready to eat poached carp . You tell them to put down their chopsticks and not to eat it. Have them come over right away to my residence to have a word with me. " Sure enough, the colleagues were in the hall drinking, and the poached carp had j ust been brought in. They were j ust making ready to pick up their chopsticks, when suddenly Censor Xue's messenger announced, "The Cen sor has come around. He requests that you three gentlemen not eat the fish, but come at once to the ministry to have a word. " Those three were so shocked they all leapt to their feet, saying, "To think that Doctor 'Eight Hun dred' Li's diagnosis and the lamps in the Lao-zi temple were so uncannily accurate ! " They rushed over to the Xue residence, calling out, " Congratu lations, congratulations ! " The Censor said, " Gentlemen, do you know what has happene d? That golden carp you poached j ust now was yours truly. If it had not been for that knife stroke of Wang Shi-liang's, it's more than likely there would have been no waking from that dream. " The three of them stared vacantly, not taking in what he was saying. They said, " How could such a thing be possible ? If it please Your Excellency, try telling it to us from the beginning, so that we may give you our undivided attention. " Censor Xue said, "Just now when Zhang Bi arrived with the fish, Classmate Zou and Mr. Lei were playing backgammon, while you, Mr. Pei, were sitting to one side eating peaches, were you not ? Zhang Bi reported that the fisherman Zhao Gan had hidden away the big fish and tried to pass off some little ones. Mr. Pei was furious, and had Zhao Gan given fifty lashes. Did this happen ? " The three of them said, "Sure enough, it is as you say. But how is it that Your Excellency knows this in such detail ? " The Cen sor said, "Now go and summon Zhao Gan, Zhang Bi, that soldier Hu Jian who watches the Greeting Fragrance Gate, and those two clerks of the Households and Penal Bureaus, along with the cook Wang Shi-liang, and let me ask them a few questions . " The three colleagues sent off servants to call the lot of them in. When they had all been assembled there, the Censor said, " Zhao Gan, you were fishing in East Pool and caught a golden carp about three feet long; on your wife's instructions, you hid it among the reeds, covered with an old straw p oncho . When Zhang Bi came for fish you claimed not to have any large ones. But the fish was discovered by Zhang Bi, who carried it up to the Wel coming Fragrance Gate. There the gatekeeper Hu Jian said that Fifth-Grand dad Pei had sent an express note to summon him and he'd better make it quick. He then went inside the gate, where these two clerks were sitting fac ing each other, playing chess. One said, 'That fish is frightfully large ! It will 8 74
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certainly make good poached carp ! ' The other said, ' Such a lovely fish! It should be kept in the pond of the rear hall, not wasted on poaching. ' When Wang Shi-liang held the fish down on the chopping board, the fish flipped its tail up and hit him in the face. He went again to sharpen his knife before letting the blade fall. Now, did all those things happen ? " Zhao Gan and the others all said in amazement, " Every one of them. But how did Granddad Xue come to know all this ? " The Censor said, "I was that fish. Ever since being caught, I've been yelling without pause, de manding to be sent home, yet none of you paid me any heed. What was the meaning of that ? " Zhao Gan and the rest o f them all kowtowed, saying, " Your servants truly heard nothing. If we had heard, how should we have dared not to send your eminence back to the ministry ? " The Censor also asked Prefect Pei, " When you, sir, wanted to make poached carp, Classmate Zou repeatedly urged you to release the fish, and Mr. Lei chimed in to the same effect. Yet you would not listen, instead calling Wang Shi-liang and urging him to set about his business . Thereupon I burst out crying, saying, 'In vain have I been your colleague all this while, that today you are hell-bent on killing me ! ' Was this the action of a man of humane sentiments ? Now forget for the time being Mr. Pei's lack of courtesy; Classmate Zou, and you too, Mr. Lei, did not in tercede with a single word on my behalf. What am I to make of this ? " The three o f them simply looked a t one another, saying, "When did we ever hear the least sound ? " And they rose together to beg forgiveness. The Censor laughed, saying, " As long as this fish did not die, I could not live. What's past is past; there is no need to mention the matter further . " With this he dismissed Zhao Gan and the others. The three colleagues also took their leave and returned to their homes. They threw the fish into the water and swore that from that moment on they would never eat fish again . It turns out that when the Censor had been crying out and weeping, there had never been any sound at all; all that happened was that the fish's mouth opened and closed. So there was good reason for the three colleagues and Zhao Gan and the rest to have heard nothing. Now when Madam Gu reflected back on the wording of the slip from the Lao-zi temple, there was not one thing which had not been fulfilled. So she told the Censor in full detail of the matter of the fortune-slip and the votive offering she'd made; she hoped to see to the fulfilling of the vows she'd made. The Censor said in amazement, " After all the time I've been here, I'd only heard that there was a Lao-zi temple on Qing-cheng Mountain, which drew quite a number of pilgrims. How could I have known that it possessed mag ical efficacy like this ? " Right away he began seven days of fasting and prayer, and then, setting lamps and incense in readiness, prepared to go in person to the temple to fulfill the vows . At the same time he sent people to make cost estimates for lumber, for the setting up of the golden image, and for all the necessary labor. Drawing on his personal fortune and on his government salary, he made the 8 75
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necessary purchases, and awaited an auspicious day to begin the work. On the morning of the seventh day, he dismissed his servants, and, accompa nied only by a pageboy of twelve or thirteen, set out alone from his residence, prostrating himself at every step, toward Qing-cheng Mountain. Just when he'd got halfway up the mountain slope, as he was making his obeisance, he suddenly heard someone calling out to him, saying, " Censor Xue. You know what ? " The Censor gave a start, and when he looked up, there was a herdboy in a broad straw hat, holding a small flute in his hand, seated side ways on the back of a blue cow, who had j ust rounded a bend in the moun tain slope. Censor Xue said, " And what is it that you'd have me know ? " That herdboy said, " D i d you know that among the immortals there was a certain Qin Gao, who first ascended to Heaven astride a scarlet carp ? One night at the table of the Queen Mother of the West, he stole a glance at that Tian Si-fei who plays the Cloud-glockenspiel, and succumbed to worldly thoughts . For this the two of them were banished into the mortal world . Now, your former self was j ust this Qin Gao; and that wife of yours was Tian Si-fei. Since your arrival at your post here, you've been enamored of the realm of the senses, unable to leave it behind. So you were sent to act temporarily as Crimson Carp of East Pool and to undergo all manner of suf ferings, so that you might change your ways . Why do you still not come to your senses? Can it be that you still have not awakened from your dream ? " The Censor said, " According t o what you say, I was once a n immortal. Yet now I've fallen into delusion. What I need, then, is a teacher to prompt my memory. " The herdboy said, " If it's prompting you want, the person is closer than a thousand leagues; in fact, as close as the end of your nose . That master ' Eight Hundred' Li of Cheng-du Prefecture-is he not an im mortal? Back in Han times, he was called Han Kang, and was there in Chang-an all along, selling medicines and never changing his price. Later on a woman saw through his disguise, and he changed his name to 'Eight Hundred' Li. People all say it's because he received eight hundred secret cures from Sun Si-miao. What they don't know is that his skills are far su perior to those of Sage Sun; in fact, he's been alive for over eight hundred years. Now the term of your banishment and that of your wife will soon be at an end, and you are both due to be restored to the register of im mortals. Why don't you ask that ' Eight Hundred' Li, and have him clear away your worldly delusion ? " Now it j ust happened that Madam Gu had only told him about the mat ter of the votive offering, and hadn't told him yet about " Eight Hundred" Li and his diagnosis. Thus when the herdboy mentioned the name " Eight Hundred, " the Censor had not the least idea who that was. He thought to himself, "What does a herdboy in the mountain wilds know ? He's j ust mak ing up this whole outlandish tale; it's not worth taking seriously. Let me j ust stick to fulfilling these vows, prostrating myself at every step-that is the important thing . " He' d hardly expected that as soon as his head was turned, that herdboy and ox would both change into a wisp of purple mist, which floated up into the sky. Truly, 876
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Face to face with immortals, you still don't know them; how can you hope to know your former lives ? The Censor, already somewhat mystified by the uncanny nature of his transformation into a fish, on seeing this herdboy float away on a breeze, was even more at a loss. He tried to settle his doubts, thinking, "Was even that herdboy part of a dream ? " Yet in the end he couldn't make up his mind j ust what to think. In time he'd made his way all the way to the Lao-zi shrine at the top of the mountain, and kowtowed in thanks for the protection of the spirits which had allowed him to return to life . All that remained was to fix an auspicious day to fulfill the vow to rebuild the temple. When he'd paid his respects and rose to leave, he noticed that the spirit-image of Lao-zi had exactly the ap pearance of that herd boy. And there by the dais was an image of a blue cow j ust like the one the herdboy had been riding. Only then did the realization come to him who it was who had appeared to him, and he exclaimed, " It's clear as can be that that herdboy j ust now was the supreme Lao-zi, guiding me to return to the ranks of immortals. Yet I've got eyes in my head to no good purpose, and let this chance slip by me ! " With that he threw himself down again and begged forgiveness. When he'd returned home, he told his wife in full detail all that the herd boy had said. Only then did she say, "When you were dangerously ill, we invited in the master ' Eight Hundred' Li from Cheng-du Prefecture to come examine you. He said the case was 'mortal yet not mortal,' and that we must wait after your death for half a month to twenty-odd days, and you'd grad ually come back around of your own accord; there was no need to admin ister medicines. When he was about to leave, he said again, 'That fortune slip is true as true can be. Only after'you've seen the fish will it become clear. ' A s I see it, if he can tell the past and future like that, h e really must be an immortal. Never mind about Lord Lao-zi appearing to you and directing you to go to him; even if he were not an immortal, j ust for his trouble in com ing to diagnose you, and so accurately at that, you ought to go and thank him. " When the Censor had heard all this, he said, "So there was this layer of circumstance as well! Indeed, how should I fail to go and thank him ? " He performed seven more days of ritual purification, and set off on foot for Cheng-du to seek out Master " Eight Hundred" Li. Just by luck, on the day he arrived, " Eight Hundred " Li was sitting in his medicine shop. As soon as he saw the Censor, he asked him, "So have you woken from your dream yet ? " The Censor threw himself down on the ground and said, " Your dis ciple has now awakened. I only request, Master, that you instruct me, so that I may free myself of this world and quickly hear of the great way. " " Eight Hundred" Li laughed and said, " Now you're not some novice with no spiritual root who needs to learn about alchemical philters and all that. In your former existence you were a banished immortal-the supreme Lord Lao-zi has already explicitly revealed as much to you. You don't recognize 877
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yourself, and come asking another to recognize you ? Can it be that you know only a certain Censor of Qing-cheng County ? " On hearing these words, realization came t o the Censor i n a flood, and he prostrated himself in thanks, saying, " Now your disciple has well and truly awakened ! Yet there remains the matter of the vow at the Lao-zi tem ple. When I have fulfilled this vow, I'll quit my post and bring my wife along, so that together with Master we may make good our return to the immor tal rolls ! " With that he took leave of " Eight Hundred" Li and hurried back to Qing-cheng County, where he told his wife all that " Eight Hundre d" Li had said. She also realized the truth upon hearing these words, that she had been that Tian Si-fei who played the Cloud-glockenspiel before the Western Queen Mother, who had fallen from that state as a result of worldly stir ring. That night she and the Censor settled down in separate chambers, burn ing incense and meditating, striving to realize their karmic destiny. The next day, the Censor sent his seal of office over to Second-grade Zou, asking him to take over the post, and submitted a report to his superiors. In the mean while, he was urging on the workers in the construction of the great halls and courts, and of the golden image. It was all most impressive and orderly. At last the day came when the work was completed, and Second-grade Zou, in order to fulfill a vow of his own, wanted to pitch in part of his salary to help with the costs . He arranged to meet with the two county prefects, whereupon they all went over to the Censor's quarters to inform him of their wishes. The servants thought he was in his room meditating, and went in to announce the visitors. But all they saw was a poem left lying on the writing desk. There was no telling where the Censor and the lady had gone. The ser vants handed that poem to Second-grade Zou to read. It was composed by the Censor as a farewell to his colleagues and to the clerks and people of the county. The poem read: Through dreamed fish-body, happily unscathed; if I'd been truly fish, then death too would be true. Wherever life is death must be as well; I long to part from life and death, free from this world's red dust. When Second-grade Zou had done reading, he could not contain his sighs, and said, " If my classmate meant to take orders and cultivate his soul, he ought to have left us with at least a word of farewell. As it is, I cannot help feeling a deep regret. Still, I'll wager he's not gone far . " And he sent people to search all around, yet there was no further trace of him. Just as Zou was standing there dumbfounded, Fifth-grade Pei laughed, saying, "Y ou two gentlemen are really dens e ! I'll bet he's still unable to shake off his love of the aquatic life; more than likely he's gone to play carp again. Just go down to East Pool and catch him, and there'll be an end of it . . . . " Enough of these wild speculations of the three colleagues. To return to Cen sor Xue and his wife, they were headed to nowhere else but to call on " Eight 878
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Hundred " Li. That " Eight Hundre d" Li laughed and said to the Censor, " Your former self was Qin Gao . Since you've not too far to go in your rise to immortality, you should have a red carp waiting for you at East Pool. Today, we'll return your red carp to you as before. What say you to that ? " And t o the lady, " Since your banishment, Dong Shuang-cheng has tem porarily filled in for you playing the Cloud-glockenspiel before the Queen Mother of the West. Now it is time for you to play again. " Naturally the race of immortals are in on all the secrets, and there's no need for any incantations or spiritual techniques-with a laugh they understand all. At that time, the Censor and his wife said in turn to " Eight Hundred" Li, " Through all these years of selling cures and practicing medicine, saving and enlightening the multitudes, your accumulated merit is quite consider able. What need have you to linger in the world of mortals ? " " Eight Hun dred" Li said, " It is my destiny to make the ascent along with you. I have been waiting for you here . " In a moment, auspicious clouds twined about them and prodigious mists appeared in profusion. The music of immortals rang out in the heavens, and phoenixes and cranes soared about. Immortal boys and girls clasping banners and canopies came forward to lead them on their way: The Censor on his red carp, the lady riding a lavender haze, and " Eight Hundred" Li astride a white crane, they ascended into Heaven to gether. Young and old throughout the city of Cheng-du all saw it and made obeisance toward the skies, with no end of sighing at the marvel. To this day, the wondrous " Bridge of Immortal Ascent" marks the spot where they ascended. The poem sa ys, Confused and churning, this plot is novel: a man turned fish, and fish made man again. Once recognized, dream form can't hinder nature; through form to perfect nature is the way of the immortal.
879
T a n g X i a n -z u ,
Peony Pa vilion :
Se l ected Acts Wh i l e the N o rthern "variety p l ay" (za-ju) w a s flou r i s h i n g i n the Y u a n c a p i t a l a t Da du in the t h i rtee nth centu ry, a very d i fferent k i n d of d ra m a was also taki n g s h a pe i n t h e South . A l t h o u g h "variety p l ays" conti n u ed a s a gen re of p u re l y l i terary d rama through the Q i ng, the fo rm had l a rge l y d i sappea red from the pop u l a r th eate r by the l ate fifteenth century. T h ro u g h o u t the M i ng, Southern d rama conti n u e d to grow i n prom i n e n ce, both a s po p u l a r th eate r a n d a s a n e l i te l iterary fo rm . These Southern sty l e p l ays (so named fo r their m u s i c al sty l e and its p rove n a n ce-they were writte n by n o rtherners and southerners a l i ke) conti n u ed to be the dom i nant fo rm of l i terary d ra m a through the n i neteenth centu ry . South e r n -sty l e d ra m a came to be known as chuan-qi, " accou nts of remarkab l e t h i ngs," t h e s a m e g e n e r i c te rm app l i ed t o T a n g t a l e s (wh i c h p rov ided m a n y o f the p l ots for the p l ays) . For the sake of conve n i e n ce, we w i l l refer to ch uan-qi p l ays as "d ramat i c ro m a n ces . " Dramatic ro m a n ces were often vast, s p raw l i n g works, u s u a l l y w i t h twe n ty t o fifty s c e n e s . U n l i ke t h e N o rthern variety p l ay's restr iction t o one s i nger per scene, d ramatic ro m a n ces a l l owed the free a l ternation of s i n g i n g parts, i n c l u d i n g d u ets and c h o r u ses. The p l ots of d ramatic ro m a n ces were often i ntri cate, w i th n u mero u s s u b p l ots, u s u a l l y weav i n g togeth er one or more l ove stories with po l it i c a l i ntrigue and/or warfare. As c l as s i c a l poetry a n d song lyric had do m i n ated the m i d d l e period of C h i nese l iteratu re through the Song, so d ra m a was arg u a b l y the most popu l a r l i terary fo rm of the M i n g and the fi rst half centu ry of the Q i n g . P l ays were w i d e l y read and per fo rmed, with perfo r m a n ces both of enti re works and i n d i v i d u a l acts . B y the l ate six teenth centu ry, d ra m at i sts were a l ready w r i t i n g with a stro n g sense of the h i story of ear l i e r p l ays, a n d l i ke modern fi l m d i rectors, they cou l d ass u m e that a s i g n ificant part of the i r a u d ience wou l d enjoy echoes of earl i e r works. Famous a ri a s were c i r c u l ated i n songbooks a n d became as m u c h a part of a sta n d a rd reperto i re of mem o rized texts as c l as s i c a l poetry; and as i n the R e n ai ssance West, the u se of theatr i c a l metaphors t o desc r i be soc i a l a n d pol itical l i fe became c o m m o n . O n e famous passage tran s l ates q u ite l ite ra l ly, "Al l the wo r l d ' s a stage . " It i s d i ffi c u l t t o d raw t h e l i n e between d ra m a as theater and d ra m a as l iterature. N ot all great theater i s good l i teratu re, a n d certa i n l y not all great d ra m at i c l iteratu re i s good theater. There is, however, a s i g n ificant body of p l ays that provides a m p l e b u t d ifferent p l easu res i n both read i n g and performance. M a n y variety p l ays and d ra matic romances are l i ke the l i b retti of some fa m o u s Western operas : they were p rob a b l y a del ight as theatrical spectac l e but seem vapid as l i terary texts. B y the fifteenth centu ry, h owever, p l ays were bei n g p u b l i shed to be read-some p r i m a r i l y i nte nded
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The Yuan and Ming Dynasties to be read . Famou s p l ays were often p u b l i shed i n fine, i l l u strated editions, some t i mes with e l aborate I iterary c o m m e ntary. Although certa i n earl i e r d ramatic ro m a n ces were i nte nded fo r read i n g as we l l a s perfo r m a n ce, the m ost i m portant f i g u re i n l iterary chuan-qi was Tang X i an-zu ( 1 5 5 0-1 6 1 7 ) . H i s fo u r m a i n p l ays are known as " L i n - c h u a n ' s Four D reams" ( L i n c h u a n be i n g T a n g X i an-z u ' s topo n y m ) . D ream serves a n essenti a l ro le i n each of these works, not o n l y as a p l ot device but a l so as a themat i c concern that touches both the B u d d h i st idea of the emptiness of experience a n d an i l l u s i o n i st notion of theater itself. The most famous of the fou r p l ays i s Peony Pa vilion (Mu-dan ting), writ te n in 1 5 9 8 , a n d c o n s isti n g of 55 scenes ( 3 4 0 pages in Cyr i l B i rc h ' s co m p l ete trans l ati o n ) . A n Aristote l i a n eco nomy o f p l ot i s n o t c h a racte r i st i c o f C h i nese d ramatic ro m a n ces. As the p l a y opens, a yo u n g sch o l a r named L i u recou nts a d ream of a beau tifu l you n g wo m a n stand i n g beneath a p l u m tree a n d takes Meng-mei ( D reamed of P l u m) as h i s name. U n beknow n st to Liu Meng-me i , the yo u n g wo m a n in the d ream i s D u L i - n i a n g , the d a u g h ter of the p refect of N a n - a n . Forced by her fath e r to study the Classic of Poetry, she reads the fi rst poem, " F i s h hawk," c e l e b rati n g the pe rfect m a r r i age, a n d is so arou sed by it that s h e arranges to go fo r a l o n g wa l k i n the flower garden beh i n d the res i d e n c e . H e r pass i o n s sti rred by s p r i ng, s h e retu rns t o h e r rooms, fa l l s a s l eep, a n d i s v i s ited by L i u Meng-mei i n a d re a m . L i u Meng-mei carries h e r out i nto the gard e n a n d t h e y m a k e l ove b y t h e peo n y pavi l i o n ; when D u L i - n i a n g wakes u p , s h e i s so over whel med by a sense of loss that she p i nes away and d i es. But before exp i r i ng , s h e pai nts h e r o w n portrait, a n d as h e r d y i n g w i s h the portr ait i s b u ried by the peony pavi l i o n , wh i l e s h e he rse lf i s b u r i ed ben eath the p l u m tree in the gard e n . After D u L i - n i a n g ' s d eath, t h e fam i l y m oves away; l ater, L i u Meng- m e i , h a v i n g become s i c k o n h i s w a y t o t h e capita l , takes u p l o d g i n g i n t h e garden t o recu perate and d i scovers Du L i - n i ang's portrait. Meanwh i l e Du L i - n i a n g has rece i ved perm i s s i o n i n the u nderwo r l d t o retu rn t o Eart h , a n d s h e v i s its L i u , i n structi n g h i m t o d i s i nter her body. L i u Meng-mei d i gs up her corpse, w h i c h has suffe red no decay. Du L i - n i a n g rev ives; the co u p l e marries and goes on to the c a p i ta l , where L i u Meng mei passes the exa m i nation with the h i g h est h o n o r s . I n o n e o f the o t h e r p l ot strands, D u L i - n i a ng's fat her i s p l a y i n g a m aj o r ro l e i n defe n d i n g the dynasty from i nvasi o n . After n u merous com p l i cations, i n c l u d i n g L i u Meng- m e i ' s be i n g c h a rged with g rave-ro b b i ng, the f i n a l fou rtee n scenes m a n age to get the cou p l e together with h e r parents, u nt i l at l ast, i n a scene at court, D u L i - n i ang's father accepts the m a r r i age. F i rst comes Tang X i a n -zu's own " I ntrodu ctory C o m m e nt" on the p l ay .
A n Introductory Comment on Peony Pavilion The young women of the world experience the feelings of love, but can any of them compare with Du Li-niang ? No sooner did she dream of her man than she grew sick; the sickness became protracted; at last she reached the point of painting her likeness with her own hand in order to preserve it for others; then she died. Three years she lay dead; and then, from the dark 881
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world below, once again she sought the man of whom she had dreamed; then she came to life. Someone like Du Li-niang may well be called a person with the feelings of love. No one knows where love comes from, but once it comes, it goes deep. The living can die from it; the dead can be brought to life . And if the living cannot die from it or if the dead cannot be brought back to life, then it is not the ultimate love. Why should the feelings of love experienced in dream not necessarily be gen uine ? Are there not quite a few people in this world who are living in a dream ? When the relationship between lovers depends on bedding together or intimacy awaits the renunciation of public office, we are on the level of mere flesh. The story of her father, Governor Du, resembles that of Li Zhong-wen, the governor of the capital of Wu in the Jin, and the love story involving Feng Xiao-j iang, the governor of Guang-zhou. I changed them a bit and elab orated them. As tor Governor Du's torture of Liu Meng-mei to make him confess to grave-robbing, this resembles the Han Prince of Sui-yang's inter rogation of Mr. Dan.1 The things that may happen in a human life cannot all happen in a sin gle lifetime . I am not someone of comprehensive knowledge, and I must al ways investigate matters to consider whether they are rational . But when we say that something cannot happen rationally, how do we know that it might not be inevitable through the feeling of love ? The steamy, perferv i d , a n d someti mes p rec i o u s poetry of "Wa k i n g S u d d e n l y from D ream" (bel ow) made i t one of the most popu l a r scenes in the p l ay and a sta n d a rd p i ece i n the perfo rm i n g reperto i re of Kun-qu, the most i nfl u e n t i a l performance tra d ition of d ra m at i c ro mance (th o u g h the scene was bowd l e r i zed and rev i sed fo r s i n g i ng) . I n the l ate seventeenth-cent u ry- p l a y Peach Blossom Fan, the h e ro i n e X i ang j u n is shown learn i n g to s i n g one of the s u ites from th i s scene as part of her trai n i n g as a cou rtes a n . As Du L i - n i an g learns of pass i o n from read i n g the Classic of Poetry, so X i a n g-j u n learns to be the rom a n t i c h e ro i ne who g i ves a l l fo r l ove from read i n g
Peony Pa vilion. I n both cases, t h e lesso n s learned were not a t a l l what was i nte nded by those in c h a rge of the g i rls' edu cati o n .
WAKING SUDDENLY FROM DREAM ( X )
Enter D u LI-NIANG a n d h e r maid, SPRING SCENT. Du LI-NIANG [sings] : Back from dreams in orioles' warbling, a tumult of bright spring weather everywhere, and here I stand in the heart of this small garden. 'These a re a l l earlier tales whose p lot e lements served as sou rces for Peony Pavilion.
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SPRING SCENT [sings] : The stick of aloes burns away, its smoke is gone, thrown down, the last embroidery threadswhy does this spring touch my feelings so much more than springtimes past? Du LI-NIANG [recites] : I gazed down toward Plum Pass at dawn, last night's make-up traces fading. SPRING SCENT [continuing] : Hair done in tumbling coils with swallow cut-outs to welcome spring as you lean upon the railing. Du LI-NIANG: " Cut but never severed, put in order, then tangled again-" a melancholy without cause. SPRING SCENT: I have issued instructions to orioles and have given direction to swallows that hurry along the flowers, to take advantage of the spring and come see, come see. Du LI-NIANG: Did you have someone sweep up the path through the flow ers ? SPRING SCENT: I did. Du LI-NIANG: Then get out my clothes and vanity mirror and bring them to me. SPRING SCENT leaves and returns with clothes and vanity mirror. SPRING SCENT [recites]: Done combing her cloudlike tresses, she looks into the mirror, ready to change her lacy gown she adds another sachet. Here's what you asked for. Du LI-NIANG [sings] : Sunlit floss comes windborne coiling into my quiet yard, swaying and bobbing, spring is like thread. I stop a moment t o straighten the flowered pins in my hair to suddenly find that the mirror plunders
Anthology of Chinese Literature
half my face, prodding my sparkling tresses to one side. [ Walks away] Though I pace my chambers, do I dare let my body be seen entire ? SPRING SCENT: You're nicely dressed up today. Du LI-NIANG [sings] : Note the skirt's madder red, set off by vivid azure, the opulent glitter of flowered pins richly inlaid with gemsyou can tell my lifelong love of such, comes from my nature spring's finest touch is seen by no man ever. No matter if, at the sight, the fish dive deep or wild geese come down or birds squawk out in alarm, I only fear to shame the flowers, to make the moon hide away, and blossoms will quiver from sorrow. SPRING SCENT: It's time for breakfast. Let's go. [They walk] Just look !
[Recites] Gold dust on painted walkways, half is scattering of stars, the moss at the lodge by the pool, a single swathe of green. Walking through grass, afraid to stain new stockings of brocade, feeling sorry that flowers ache from the tiny golden bells .2 Du LI-NIANG: If I hadn't come to the garden, how could I have ever known how beautiful spring was. [Sings] Coy lavenders, fetching reds bloom everywhere, here all left to this broken well and tumbled wall. Fair season, fine scene-overwhelming weather. Where 'A reference to a story about the Tang P r i nce of N i n g early in the 740s. He had be l l s h u ng by red t h reads from fl owers' branches, to scare away b i rds that m i g h t h a r m the b l ooms. H ere, h ype rbo l i c a l l y, e v e n t h e s m a l l est bel l s m i ght themselves h u rt t h e flowers w h e n r u n g .
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and in whose garden shall we find pleasure and the heart's delight ? My father and mother have never mentioned such scenery. TOGETHER: Drifting in at dawn, at twilight roll away clouds and colored wisps through azure balustrades, streaming rain, petals in wind, a painted boat in misty waves, the girl behind her brocade screen has long ignored such splendor of spring. SPRING SCENT: All the flowers have bloomed, but it's still early for the peony. Du LI-NIANG: Throughout green hills the nightj ar cries red tears of blood; and out beyond the blackberry, the threads of mist coil drunkenly. Oh, Spring Scent ! And though the peony be fair, how can it maintain its sway when spring is leaving ? SPRING SCENT: The orioles and swallows are mating ! TOGETHER: Idly I stare where twittering swallows crisply speak words cut clear, and from the warbling orioles comes a bright and liquid melody. Du LI-NIANG: Let's go. SPRING SCENT: I really can't get enough of this garden. Du LI-NIANG: Let it go! [They walk on; she sings] When you cannot get enough, you are ensnared, then to enj oy each of the twelve pavilions is wasted. When the first impulse wears away, it is better by far to turn back home and idly pass the day.
They arrive. SPRING SCENT [recites]: Open the gate t o m y western parlor, in the eastern parlor make my bed. The vase has purples-that-shine-in-hills, 885
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to the brazier aloeswood incense add. You rest here a bit while I go check with your mother. [Exit] Du LI-NIANG [sighs and recites] : In silence back from a springtime stroll, I'll do my face in the fashion of spring. Oh, spring, now that I have become attached to you, what am I going to do with myself when you go ? Ai! Weather like this really wears a per son out. Where is Spring Scent? [She looks around, then lays her head down, mumbling] My goodness ! Is it really true that spring's beauty can upset a person s o ? I've always read poems and lyrics, and in olden days young women's passions were stirred by spring, then when autumn came that passion turned to pain. That was really no lie. Now is my sixteenth year and I have not yet encountered a man who has " snapped the cas sia twig. "3 Now that I feel this sudden yearning for springtime passion, how will I get a visitor to my lunar palace?4 Once upon a time Lady Han got to meet young Yu You, and Zhang chanced on Cui Ying-ying; and lovers got together in The Account of the Poem on a Red Leaf and " Cui Hui' s Story. "5 These fair ladies and talented young men first got together in secret, and they all formed marriage alliances later. [Sighs] I was born into a family of officials and I have grown up in an illustrious household. Yet I have already reached fifteen, the age to have one's hair pinned up, without having found a worthy mate. I'm wasting the spring of m y life, whose years flash past me. [ Weeps] What a pity that this complexion so like a flower is destined to end up like a leaf. [Sings] I cannot purge this riot of passion, I am suddenly plunged into secret despair. Young and winsome, for me must be chosen a match from a house of equal station, equal station, kin to the very gods. Yet what blessed union would squander the green spring of my youthful years ? Who sees my slumbering passion? So must I remain retiring and demure. But secret dreams will lead me where ? rolled on unseen with the light of spring.
' I .e., had success i n the ex am i n ations. 4 D u Li-niang is com p a r i n g h e r l o n e l i ness to that of the moon goddess C h a n g E. ' L a d y Han, i n the Tang p a lace, o n c e com posed a poem o f her l o n e l i ness and longing on a red l eaf; s h e l et it float out on the p a l ace moat, where it was fo u n d by Yu You . H i s consequent passion for h e r a n d the i r l ove story was e l a borated in a p l ay by Tang Xian-zu's contemporary Wang J i -de, The Account of the Poem on a Red L eaf. The love story of Zhang and C u i Yi ng-y i n g given in " Y i n g-ying's Story" (see p . 540) was e l aborated a n d given a happy ending i n the Yuan p l ay The Account of the Western Par/or, wh i c h is the vers ion Du L i - n i a n g has in m i n d . The story of the courtesan C u i H u i a n d h e r lover Pei J i ng-z h o n g i n vo l ves C u i send i n g P e i a painting o f herself, a s D u L i - n i a n g w i l l l eave a p a i n t i n g for Liu Meng- m e i .
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As I waver here to whom can I tell heart's secret care ? I burn away, my life is cursed, unless I demand that Heaven tell me why. I'm completely worn out. I'll put my head down and sleep a while.
She goes to sleep and a dream comes. Enter Lru MENG-MEI, holding a willow (!iu) branch. Lru MENG-MEI [recites] : As orioles meet the sunlight's warmth their singing voices mellow, so when a man finds love and passion, he laughs out loud from j oy. A whole pathful of fallen flowers go off down to the waters, this is the morning young Ruan Zhao reaches Mount Tian-tai .6 I followed Du Li-niang back along the path, but where has she gone now? [Turns and looks at her] Ah, there you are ! [Du LI-NIANG startles awake and they see one another] Here you are-I was looking for you every where. [Du LI-NIANG gives him a sidelong glance but says nothing] I j ust sna pped off half a branch of a weeping willow in the flower garden. Since you are so well versed in literature, would you write a poem for this wil low branch? [Du LI-NIANG is at first delighted and is about to speak but
stops] Du LI-NIANG [Aside] : I've never met this man-how did he get in here ? Lru MENG-MEI [laughing] : I'm madly in love with you.
[Sings] Because of your flowerlike beauty, and your youth flowing past like water, I've looked for you everywhere. And you were here, self-pitying in your lonely chamber. Let's go somewhere and talk. Du LI-NIANG smiles but won't go. Lru MENG-MEI pulls her by her clothes. Du LI-NIANG [softly] : Where are we going ? Lru MENG-MEI [sings] : Pass round by the railing where peonies stand, 'Th is a l l udes to a story of Ruan Zhao and a compa n i o n who encou ntered two goddesses in the Tian tai Mounta i n s a nd stayed with them h 3 1 f a year. It became a sta n d a rd fig u re for a l ove affa i r.
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close by the great Tai-hu rock. Du LI-NIANG [softly] : But what are we going there for ? L IU MENG-MEI [sings] : To unfasten your collar's buttons and loosen the sash of your gown. You will hold your sleeves pressed tigh t against teeth, then after you bear my tender attentions, enjoy a moment's sleep . Du LI-NIANG is embarrassed. LIU MENG-MEI puts his arms around her and she
pushes him away. TOGETHER [sing] : Where have we met before that we look at each other unsure ? How at a wonderful moment like this could we come together without a word ? L IU MENG-MEI forces his arms around Du LI-NIANG and exeunt. Enter FLOWER GOD, with cap under bound-up hair, a red gown, and flowers stuck
in cap and gown. FLOWER GOD [recites] : A s supervisor who expedites flowers I cherish the flower-days, inspecting spring's endeavors another year goes its way. The visitor suffers heartbreak, drenched under a rain of reds, and mortals are lured to be hung in dream beside these colored clouds. I am the flower god who manages the rear flower garden of the Nan-an district residence. Du Li-niang and Liu Meng-mei are fated to marry in the future. Since Miss Du was so upset after her little spring excursion, she had Mr. Liu come into her dream. We flower gods have a special tender spot for fair young maidens, so I came to watch over her, want ing her to enjoy perfect bliss in her lovemaking. [Sings] Now the turbid Yang force simmers up transforming, and see how he, squirming like worm, fans her passion. Likewise her soul quivers at the crack in charming azure foliage. This is but shadows' conj unction, fancies brought to fullness within, 888
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things appearing inside Karmic Cause. But, ah, these lewd doings have stained my galleries of flowers . I'll pinch off a blossom and let it fall to wake her. [He goes toward the
stage entrance dropping flowers] How can she linger in her dream, woozy with spring?in red flecks of tattered flowers falling. Young man, your dream is now half-done. When the dream is over, be so good as to escort Miss Du back to her chambers. I go now. [Exit]
Enter Du LI-NIANG and Lru MENG-MEI, holding hands. Lru MENG-MEI [sings ] : For this one moment Heaven gives ease, sprawled in grass, asleep on flowers. How are you ? [ Du LI-NIANG lowers her head] She nods her cloudlike coils of hair, with tousled red and azure skewed. Don't forget thi s ! how I clasped you tight and languidly lingered I wish only our flesh could fuse in a ball, we drew forth red droplets that shimmered in the sun. Du LI-NIANG: You had better go now. TOGETHER [sing] : Where have we met before that we look at each other unsure ? How at a wonderful moment like this could we come together without a word ? Lru MENG-MEI: Your body is worn out. Take care of yourself. [He goes with
her back to where she was and she resumes her p osition asleep; he pats her lightly] I'm going now. [He starts off, then turns back] You've got to take care of yourself now. I'll be back to see you.
[Recites] She brought along a third of the rain that comes with springtime's glory, she slept away a whole cloudburst on Wu Mountain. [Exit] Du LI-NIANG [suddenly waking and softly calling out] : You've gone, you've gone ! [She sinks back into sleep] 889
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Enter MRS. Du. MRS. Du [recites] : My husband sits in a yellow hall, my sweet daughter stands by her window. Even on her embroidered dress the birds and flowers are all in pairs . D aughter, how come you have dozed off here ? Du LI-NIANG [waking and opening her mouth as if calling LIU] : Aiya ! MRS . Du: Child, what's going on ? Du LI-NIANG [getting up, startled] : Momma, you're here ! MRS. Du: Child, why don't you do some needlework or read something for pleasure to ease your mind? Why are you sleeping here in broad daylight? Du LI-NIANG: I happened to go out to enjoy myself in the flower garden, but I suddenly felt upset by the excitement of springtime and returned to my rooms. There was nothing else to do, and without knowing it, I was worn out and took a little nap . I hope you'll excuse me for not being awake to greet you. MRS . Du: The flower garden is too isolated-don't go there to take walks . Du LI-NIANG: Yes, Mother. MRS. Du: Now go off to your classroom and study. Du LI-NIANG: The teacher's not here so we have a little time off. MRS . Du [sighing] : When a daughter grows up, it' s natural that she gets moody, so I'll j ust let her be for a while. As they say,
[Recites] She's pulled one way and another by her children, a mother's lot is hard toil. [Exit] Du LI-NIANG [giving a long sigh as she watches her mother leave] : Heavens! Today was certainly full of pleasant surprises for me! I chanced to go into the flower garden, and with all the flowers blossoming around me, the scene stirred me. My spirits sagged and I went back and took a nap in my room. Suddenly I saw a young man, about twenty years old, hand some and so very attractive. He had broken a strand of willow branch in the garden, and laughing, he said to me, " Since you are so well versed in literature, would you write a poem for this willow branch ? " At that moment I was going to give him an answer, but I thought it over, and since I'd never met him before and didn't know his name, how could I casually hold a conversation with him j ust like that? As I was thinking about this, he came out with some lines about how heartsick he was, then he threw his arms around me and we went off to beside the peony pavilion, right by the railing, and we made love together. Both of our hearts were in perfect accord, with a thousand shows of love and a million tendernesses. When our pleasure was finished, he escorted me back to where I was sleeping and said " Take care of yourself" a few times. I was j ust about to see him out the door when my mother sud denly came in and woke me up. 890
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My whole body is in a cold sweat. This was really one of those " life times lived in a dream. " I was all flustered when I greeted my mother, and she rambled on at me. I had nothing to say back to her because my mind was still on what happened in the dream and I hadn't calmed down. I feel a constant restlessness, as if I had lost something. Oh Mother, you told me to go to the classroom and study-I don't know any book I can read that will get rid of this depression. [ Wipes away tears and sings] Rain's sweet scent, a puff of cloud j ust came to my side in dream. But, alas, the lady of the house called me awake from my fitful sleep by the gauze-screened window. A burst of fresh cold sweat sticks to me and stings. It drives my heart to distraction, my footsteps freeze, my thoughts waver, my hair hangs askew. All spirit is almost spent, and since neither sitting nor standing pleases me, let me go off back to sleep !
Enter Spring Scent. SPRING SCENT [recites] : Her evening toilette melts powder's streaks, spring dampness makes scenting clothes a waste. The covers ha ve been scented, so let's go to sleep. Du LI-NIANG [sings] : This spring-troubled heart is weary from roaming; it seeks no scented broidered quilts to sleep. Heaven !-if you care, let not that dream be gone too far .
[Recites] To idly roam and gaze on spring I left the painted hall, [Zhang Yue] screening willows and open plums give overpowering scent. [Luo Ye] I wonder where young Liu and Ruan met the two fairy maids ?- [Xu Hun] with a turn of the head spring's east wind breaks the heart for good. [Wei Zhuang] In m a n y c u l t u res, one of the most d u ra b l e and revea l i n g convent i o n s in e a r l y trad i t i o n s of ro mantic l ove i s fal l i n g i n l ove u pon see i n g a portra i t of the b e l oved o r hear891
Anthology of Chinese Literature i n g a desc r i pt i o n of h i m or h e r ; and i n the C h i n ese trad i t i o n , somet i mes u po n read i n g a perso n ' s writi n g s . L i u Meng-mei, strol l i n g in the garden where, u n known to h i m, Du L i - n i a n g l ies b u r i ed , f i n d s the self-portrait Du L i - n i an g made before she d i ed . The portra i t s h ows h e r h o l d i n g a p l u m b r a n c h , a n d the poem he d i scovers m a kes reference to w i l l ows and p l u m s . He f i n d s th i s porte ntous, in th at h i s s u rname L i u means "wi l l ow," a n d t h e n a m e h e h a s taken, Meng-mei, means " D reamed o f P l u m . "
LOOKING OVER THE PORTRAIT (XXVI )
Enter LIU MENG-MEI. LIU MENG-MEI [recites] : On leaves of the plantain tree raindrops do not stay, on branches of the peony soon the breeze will draw away. Unclear, the portrait's meaning, let eyes focus there where barely to announce itself spring light makes its way. Feeling lonely and somewhat downhearted during my travels, I took a stroll in the garden at the rear of the compound. At the foot of the Great Lake rock, I picked up a small painting on a scroll. I think it must be of the Boddhisattva Guan-yin. It was well protected in a precious case. The past ten days have been stormy, so I couldn't unroll it and take a close look; but happily the weather today is pleasant and bright, so I can ex amine it and offer my devotions. [ Opens the box and unrolls scroll]
[Sings] As in the Silver River of stars the autumn moonlight hangs, her body divine unrolls, free from attachments, self-contained. Here confirmed are all her sacred signs. She is really in holy Potala, yet we chance to meet here by the southern sea. But [reflectively] why is her radiant maj esty not set upon her lotus seat ? And wait a moment more ! why, beneath her Xiang silk skirt, is there a pair of wave-traversing, dainty feet ?
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If this is Guan-yin, why does she have bound feet ? I'd better look this over more closely. I'll think a little bit about the image in the picture. That's it! I'll bet it's probably a small Chang E that hung in someone's studio, painted with such charm and grace . Well, if this is Chang E, I really ought to make some gesture of my re spect. T ell me true, Chang E, will I snap the spray of cassia.7 B u t wait !-how come this Chang E beside her image has no trace of lucky cloud ? And this cracked bark does not seem like the tiny blooms of her cassia grove . It may not be Guan-yin and it may not be Chang E, but there couldn't possibly be a mortal girl like this. Amazed am I and overwhelmed: I think I've met her once before, and I grope for it in memory. Let me have a good look. What this drawn by a professional painter or by the beauty's own hand ? I wonder from where came this painting's maiden fair, beams of moonglow that appear beneath the brush. Someone like her would have made all the flower-kind bow low. Her grace entirely innate, a hard thing to delineate; pale tresses, springtime wisps, who could even approximate ? When I think about it, no professional painter could have done this . Most likely only she herself could have made this likeness.
'That is, pass the exa m i nation, p l ay i n g o n the i m age of the cassia tree that g rows i n the m oo n .
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Just a minute-if you look very close! y at the top of the scroll, there are a few lines of tiny characters. [Looks] Hmm. It's a quatrain. [Reads it
out loud] Viewed up close it's obvious, and very much like me, seen afar, immortal flying self-contained and free. If someday I could j oin the man in the palace of the moon, it will be by the flowering plum, or by the willow tree . So this really is a picture of a mortal girl amusing herself. But what did she mean by: " It will be by the flowering plum, lor by the willow tree " ? This is very strange !
[Sings] Mountain passes and Plum Ridge, a single swathe of skyI look and wonder how she knew that I, Liu Meng-mei would be coming through. I wonder what she meant to say by " j oin the palace of the moon" ? I'll be glad-but take it slow, think it over carefully: for I am Liu, the "Willow, " and Meng-mei, "Dreamed of Plum " why should Chang E bother here to fix my name ? Lost in thought, I ponder: could my dream be true ? But 0 how she turns her gaze on me ! From light in empty air descends beauty's slender grace, stirring spring plantain, billowing silk and lace. Springtime passions there remain confined between her brows that trace two azure hills of spring, and balmy tresses of spring haze. Who could lightly disregard two pairs of eyes meeting in such mutual gaze ? 894
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And I am awash in the flash of the turning glance and the unflinching sidelong stare . But why she is holding a piece of a leafy plum sprig in her hand, j ust as if she were holding me ? A leafy plum sprig in her hand, a whispered poem, entice heart's passions to a fall. For me, a painted feast sates hunger; and for her, plum-gazing to slake thirst .s You, my dear, never open mouth's lotus-bud even a bit, but smiles suppressed, behind the pale brushstroke of her crimson lips, give strong intimation of her passion. It seems she want to sadly speak all she needs is a puff of breath. Her painting is like that of Cui Hui; her poem is like Su Hui; and her calligraphy is exactly like that of Lady Wei. I may have some classical dignity in my own work, but I'll never be this girl' s match. Having met her unexpectedly like this, I'll write a poem to match hers. Her painting's excellence is due to nature and not artif not an immortal of Heaven, then an immortal of Earth. Is he near or far-that man she'd j oin in the moon?still there is some springtime here by plum and willow tree.
[Sings] Plying the brush she shows her skill, good at writing poems, their splendor enters stream and hill, and others sing along. I'm going to call out to her as loud as I can. My beauty ! My love! Do you know BThat i s, the p a i n t i n g i s a l l h e has to sati sfy h i s desi re, wh i l e the woman in the p a i n t i n g has the p l u m i n h e r h a n d t o take t h e p l ace o f h i m . T h i s a l l udes t o a story i n w h i c h Cao Cao's soldiers were suf fer i n g from t h i rst, and Cao Cao to l d them there was a grove of p l u m trees up ahead w h ere they cou l d sati sfy the i r t h i rst.
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I am shouting my throat raw, crying to my Zhen-zhen, the painting that came alive. I call to you to sneeze a spray of heavenly petals.9 The feet that skim the waves would splendidly descendI do not see her image stir. So, I'm all alone here . But I'll keep looking over her portrait and exam ining it, bowing to it, calling out to it, and praising it. For laying hands on such as her I deserve congratulation surely Willow and the Plum have some deep connection. And yet, my love, your eyes do slay me, image without body. One should not too single-mindedly make the painting bear reproach, [Bo Ju-yi] but can one let it always hang here at the courtyard door ? [Wu Qiao] In despair I write a poem, hidden among willows, lSi-kong Tu] it adds to drunkenness of spring, sobering grows still harder. [Zhang Jie] In the scene before "Sec ret U n i o n , " the D a o ist n u n who l ives in the compou nd h o l d s a ceremony f o r D u L i - n i ang, who roa m s i n ghostly fo rm a b o u t t h e p l ace. D u L i - n i a n g eventu a l l y h e a r s Liu M e n g - m e i cal l i n g out t o her. As s c e n e XXVI I I , "Secret U n i o n , " o p e n s , L i u Meng-mei conti n ues h i s l over's d i scou rse, t h e n fa l l s asleep, t o b e v i s ited by Du L i - n i an g .
SECRET UNION (XXVIII)
Enter Lru MENG-MEI. Lru MENG-MEI [sings] : Where is the goddess I glimpsed? her image blurs into empty air like moonlight veiling sand. Bereft, I linger here, lost in a wordless reverie. 9A s neeze was s u p posed to be a sig n that someone, espec i a l l y one's bel oved, was spea k i n g of or
t h i n k i ng of a pers o n .
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And now already the evening sun sinks down into the west.
[Recites] A single puff of rose red cloud came down from Heaven on high, her coy smile, like a blossom, j ade's beguiling grace. Who can picture forth for me that sweet and living face, facing me and holding back a passion she cannot speak ? Ever since I encountered her features, in the passionate bloom of their spring, she has been on my mind day and night. Now as the hours of night grow late, I'll spend a little time reciting those pearls of verse and mulling over her spirit. And if, by chance, she should come to me in dream, it would be for me a spring breeze passing. [He unrolls the paint ing and looks it over] Just look at this beauty, her spirit restrained but wanting so much to speak, her eyes pouring forth gentle waves . It makes me think of those lines by Wang Bo: " Sinking wisps of rose red cloud fly level with the solitary heron; and autumn waters share the same color with broad expanse of sky. "
[Sings] The evening breeze blows down one threadlike wisp of cloud from Wu-ling stream,! descending and emerging, she of overwhelming grace. Chaste and without flaw, bright against the crimson lace fresh in the window screen. And once again I take this little painting and hang it in my heart. Dear girl, thinking of you will be the death of me. So delicate, so reticent, sweet maid, tender and refined, she seems of noble family. I envisage her, swept away by a passionate heart, looking in the mirror, 1 "Wu- l i n g
strea m " refers to "Peach B l ossom Spring," w h i c h by the l ate i m pe r i a l period had become,
in the popu l a r imagi nation, the dwel l i ng p l ace of i m m o rta l s .
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and painting springlike features here, her feelings locked within could she envisage then the man who, finding this, would rouse her ? She comes in flight like moonbeams, leaving me to find a magnitude of melancholy sky. Usually I can sleep any night facing the moon. These past few nights, though Its secret beauty sends darkling flashes of lunar loveliness, a brilliance overwhelming. They raise a clamor in my besotted heart, and whether night or light of day my troubled yearnings fix on her. If I did not fear to stain your painting by taking it in hand, I would lie in bed, arms wrapped around your image. I think that we are surely destined to be lovers. Let me read out those lines of her poem one more time.
[Reads out poem 1 She chose to speak in the poem for one who would understandof destiny shared by "willow" and "plum. " Her passionate feelings gush from the crack in poolside rock, and E-lii-hua, the goddess, flew into this painting's silken mesh. I should bow down before her. I am in torment, before cheeks' glow and streak of brow scratched into my heart, and the one I love is not off beyond the horizon. As I stay here on my j ourney, how can I get her to meet me for j ust one brief moment of love ? I hate how this narrow strip resists our double metamorphosis put us on a painted screen, I but a straw, leaning against her j ade white bough. 898
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
Love, can your ears, moon crescents crossed by cloud-wisp tresses, hear anything at all I say from this broken heart? I'm ridiculousflirting with her as I speak. She is the autumn moon that hangs by clouds' edge over the seas, or azure shadow in misty skies, brushed over distant hills. She should be my companion in pure, unruffled ease how can one even try to tease her into passion? I speak as if reciting spells or reading out the scriptures. The very stones may nod their heads, and flowers rain from Heaven. Yet why does such devotion not bring the immortal maiden down ? It is that she will not go strolling casually.
Wind rises within, and LIU takes the scroll. To make the goddess stay, fearing the wind's cruel caress, I hold fast to the ivory roller on scroll's brocade. I'm afraid she's going to be damaged. I'd better find some master to copy the scroll. I waste my breath !how could such glorious maj esty, Guan-yin who views the moon in water, come as mortal to my bed? Perhaps I'll meet her somewhere in the flesh, then I'll ask her how much love she feels, and it will be no less than the sense conveyed by this portrait of spring' s passionate mood. I'll trim the lamp wick again to look closely j ust one more time. Such presence divine would surely be feigned if found in the world of mortal men. 899
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[From within, a wind blows the lamp's flame] Such a gust of cold wind I feel! Take care lest sparks fall on the painting's image. Enough now-I'll try to sleep, closing the gauze window screen, and of her dream.
Goes to sleep. Enter the soul of Du LI-NIANG. Du LI-NIANG [recites] : Long lying in the world below, but no dream ever comes, from my life there still remain so many paSSlOns. My moonlit soul goes following the painting's pull, I find him in the sound of sighs borne upon the wind. I am the soul of Du Li-niang, who had a dream of a garden in full flower and then died of longing. It was then that I painted my own features in the bloom of youth and buried it beneath the Great Lake rock. On it I wrote: If someday I could j oin the man in palace of the moon, it will be by the flowering plum, or by the willow tree. After wandering here several evenings , little d i d I expect to hear from in side the eastern chambers a student cry out with a restrained voice, " My beloved, my beauty ! " There was misery in the sound of his voice, and it stirred my very soul. I softly flitted into his chambers, where I saw a small painting hung high on the wall. When I examined it more carefully, it was the painting of my own youthful features that I had left behind. On the back there was a companion piece to my poem. When I looked at the signature, it was by Liu Meng-mei of Ling-nan. " By the flowering plum-mei-or by the willow tree-liu "-there must be some destiny at work here ! And now with the leave of the authorities in the dark world below, I have taken this fine night to finish out that dream begun before. And I feel such bitter pain when I think of it.
[Sings] I fear how fragrance fades and powder chills from tears shed on the sheer vermilion gauze, to Gao-tang's lodge again I come to enjoy the glow of the moon. 900
The Yuan and Ming Dynasties
Then all at once I turn and gasp in shame at these disheveled coils of hair, I pat them straight. Ah, and here is his room right before me! I fear being duped by the too straight way that leads to Peach Blossom Spring, let me swiftly be sure that it is him. Lru MENG-MEI [reciting her poem in his sleep ] : If someday I could j oin the man in palace of the moon, it will be by the flowering plum, or by the willow tree. Dearest! Du LI-NIANG [listening with emotion] : His cries break the heart and make tears flowthese lines from my lost poem he has without mistake. I wonder if he's already asleep . [Peeks] Lru MENG-MEI cries out again. From within the screen where he sleeps he recites with fierce sighs. Keeping the noise low I'll rap at his window frame of azure bamboo. LIU MENG-MEI [waking up suddenly] : Dearest! Du LI-NIANG (moved ): I'll send the sweet soul off to draw near. Lru MENG-MEI: Hmmm. That sound of tapping on the bamboo outside my door-was it the wind or a person? Du LI-NIANG: A person. Lru MENG-MEI: At this time of night you must be the Sister bringing tea .2 You really shouldn't have. Du LI-NIANG: No, not her. LIU MENG-MEI: Then are you the itinerant nun staying here ? Du LI-NIANG: No. LIU MENG-MEI: Now that's really strange. And it' s not the good Sister either.
'The S i ster i s the Daoist nun, " S i ster Stone, " who had establ i s h ed a s m a l l convent of the g rounds of Governor Du's former res idence.
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I wonder who it could be. Let me open the door and take a look. [Opens
the door and looks around] [Sings] Out of nowhere a lovely maid, whose charms bedazzle with uncommon wonder. Du LI-NIANG smiles and slips inside. LIU MENG-MEI quickly closes the door. Du LI-NIANG: Hello, young gentleman. LIU MENG-MEI: May I ask you, miss, where you come from and why have you come here so deep in the night ? Du LI-NIANG: Guess. LIU MENG-MEI [sings] : I'll bet it's because of that lout Zhang Qian, whose raft has invaded your River of Stars,3 or it must be little Liang Yu-qing fleeing the punishment by night of Heaven's officers?4 Du LI-NIANG: Those are both immortals of Heaven. How could they be here ? LIU MENG-MEI: Are you the phoenix of bright colors wrongly mated to a crow ? Du LI-NIANG shakes her head. LIU MENG-MEI: Did I somewhere for your sake to the green poplar tie my horse ? Du LI-NIANG: We never met. LIU MENG-MEI: It must be your vision is blurred, mistaking me for Tao Qian;5 if not, then perhaps you strayed, 3Th i s i s a c o m m o n m i x i ng o f two a l l u s i o n s : fi rst, o f t h e H a n exp l o rer Z h ang Q i a n , s e n t t o fi nd t h e sou rce o f t h e Y e l l ow R i ver; a n d second, o f the o l d man who rode a r a ft u p i nto t h e R i v e r o f Stars, where he saw the Weaver Star. L i u Meng-mei is here com p a r i n g h i mself to the i ntruder o n the raft and Du L i - n i a n g to the Weaver Star. 4 L i a n g Yu-q i ng was s u pposed to have been the i m mortal h a n d m a i den o f the Weaver. Sh e ran off with the star Tai-bo to Eart h . sTao Q i a n ' s " Peach B l ossom S p r i n g , " the refuge i n the m o u nta i n cut off from h i story, became m i xed up w i th another story about peach b l ossoms, in wh i c h two young men, L i u Z h e n and R u a n Zhao, met two goddesses . In this confu s i o n Tao Q i a n sometimes became, i n congruou s l y, the figure of the h andsome you n g man that caught the goddess's rov i n g eye. L i u Meng-mei s u ggests that D u L i - n i a n g i s s u c h a goddess, but a d i m -sighted o n e .
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The Yuan and Ming D ynasties
eloping down the Lin-qiong Road.6 Du LI-NIANG: There is no mistake. LIU MENG-MEI: Are you looking for a lamp ? And yet you go about by night without a lamp ? 7 And thus you wish t o share m y lamp, red sleeves by my window of sapphire gauze . Du LI-NIANG [sings] : I am not that heavenly maid who scattered the blossoms of sacred scent in vain;8 nor am I the scholar's lamp idly moist with waxen tears . I am not like Zhao Swallow-in-Flight, who came with reputation stained;9 yet neither am I Zhuo Wen-jun who would hold fast to newly widowed chastity. You, young sir, once strayed in flowers, the dreaming butterfly. LIU MENG-MEI [thinking] : Yes, I did have such a dream before . Du LI-NIANG: Thus did I, to oriole fifes, go to the willow array. And if you wonder where my rooms are not so farj ust some doors down from Song Yu's neighbor.1 L IU MENG-MEI [thinking] : Yes ! Turning west from the flower garden a t sundown I saw a young woman walking. Du LI-NIANG: That was I. L IU MENG-MEI: Who is your family ? Du LI-NIANG [sings] : Off beyond the setting sun, 'Th i s refers to the story of Zhuo Wen-j u n , who, after he aring the Han write r S i - m a X i ang-ru play h i s h arp, r a n off w i t h h i m to L i n-q iong . Aga i n , L i u Meng-mei suggests that D u L i - n i a n g h a s t h e wrong man . ' L i u Meng-mei is a l l ud i n g to the " Domestic Regu lations" of the Classic of Riles, i n w h i c h it says that a woman m u st h ave a lamp when she trave l s by n i g ht, and when s h e has no l a m p, s h e s h o u l d stay put. 8Th i s refers t o a story i n the Vimalakirti sulra, i n which a heave n l y maiden scattered d i v i n e b l os soms on the body of the s i c k V i m a l a k i rti-blossoms that d i d not c l i ng to h i s body because of h i s s p i ritual atta i n ments. 'The H a n consort Z h ao Swa l l ow- i n - F l ight was said to h ave h a d a n affa i r before ente r i n g the i m pe r i a l h a rem . ' ''Song Yu's n e i g h bor" is a l iterary a l l u s i o n to a poetic expos ition that became p roverb i a l for the beautif u l " g i r l next door."
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
on the horizon of fragrant prairies, mother and father are all alone, none other there . My age is sixteen years, a bloom sheltered by leaves from wind, chaste beyond reproach. Spring left, I was stirred to sighs, when suddenly I glimpsed your manly grace. For no other purpose ha ve I come but to trim the lamp wick in the breeze and chat at ease by the western window. Lru MENG-MEI [aside] : Remarkable that such sensual beauty exists in this mortal world! Out of nowhere in the middle of the night I have met a bright-moon pearl. What can I say?
[Sings to Du LI-NIANG] Wonder-struck by beauty, her loveliness beyond compare, a smile flashes, passion's silver taper. The full moon seems to retire, and I wonder what night this could be for the raft drifting through stars. A woman with hairpins of gold comes in night's cold, a spirit of the upper air to the bed of mortal man.
[Aside] Yet I wonder of what sort of household is she the child, to welcome me in this fashion? I'll ask more about her. [Turning back to Du LI-NIANG] Is this perhaps a dream that you come to visit me so deep in the night ? Du LI-NIANG [smiling] : It is no dream; it is real. But I'm afraid you won't have me. Lru MENG-MEI: And I'm afraid it's not real. But if I am really beloved by such a beauty, then I am happy beyond all expectation. How could I dare refuse ? D u LI-NIANG: Don't worry-I have truly set my hopes o n you.
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[Sings] On cold slopes of a secret valley, you make me blossom flowers by night.2 In no wa y was I ever wed, as here you will discover one by good family closely kept. At the peony pavilion loving heart's affection; by the lake rock's side, shy and blushing bride; window of the scholar's room, in rattling of wind. Let this fine night not be lost, the cool breeze, bright moon costs us nothing.3 Lm MENG-MEI: In amazement melts the soul and wakes from sleep in moonlit chill. A burst of sudden splendor, and I wonder if this might be Wu Mountain in a dream.4 I am humbled by the way you tread in flowers' shade without the least dread, by the way you touch green moss not sliding on its slipperiness, by the way you ignore a daughter'S obligation, feeling no intimidation, and, certain that there is no error, in the way you've chosen me. Look how the Dipper's slanting low, and how the flowers droopthis late at night the flowers sleep. Laugh merrily, chant in bliss, no breeze and moon will better this.
2Th i s refers to a verse by E m p ress W u , in w h i c h she com m a nded t h e flowers to b l ossom in the n i ght a n d not wait u nt i l dawn . 3"(001 breeze, bright moon" was a p h rase that had become, in contexts l i ke the present one, a stan d a rd figure for a sex u a l encou nter. 'Wu Mounta i n ' s goddess meet i n g the K i n g of (hu was a sta n d a rd fig u re for a sexu a l encou nter, ei ther i l l usory or a rea l ity so bew i l d e r i n g that it seems l i ke i l l us i o n .
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Lend me of your own free will your lovely softness, and sweet charms, and bear as I humble it, humble it for but a moment. Du LI-NIANG: Please forgive me, but let me first say one thing to you in all earnest. Lm MENG-MEI: Don't hold back-say whatever you want. Du LI-NIANG: In this moment I give this precious body of mine to you. Do not betray this love I feel. My lifelong wish would be fulfilled if every night I could share pillow and mat with you. Lm MENG-MEI [laughing] : Since you love me, how could I ever put you out of my mind ? Du LI-NIANG: One more thing. Let me go back before the rooster crows. Don't try to see me off-so that you will stay out of the early morning wind. Lm MENG-MEI: As you say. But let me ask your name. Du LI-NIANG [sighs and sings] : Flower must have its root, the j ade, its sprout, but were I to tell, it would call forth too great a sound of gale. Lm MENG-MEI: I look forward to your coming nightly from now on. Du LI-NIANG: And now with me let us annotate and compare this very first flower in the spring breeze . Lm MENG-MEI: Surging manner, wild scent, never encountered before, [Han Yu] Du LI-NIANG: the moon slants past the high chamber, the bell before the dawn . [Li Shang-yin] Lm MENG-MEI: Dawn clouds go in by night, no trace of their passage, [Li Bo] Du LI-NIANG: I wonder from which of the peaks the goddess came. [Zhang Zi-rong]
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The Q i n g Dyn asty
THE QING DYNASTY: PERIOD I NTRODUCTION
Early i n the
seve nteenth centu ry, the Manchus, a Tungusic people, conso li dated a smal l reg i o n a l state beyond the northeaste rn frontiers of the M i ng . They b u i lt a powerfu l army, d raw i n g on the l a rge C h i nese popu l ation of the reg ion as wel l as the i r own eth n i c gro u p . I n 1 644, after t h e rebel L i Zi-cheng h a d taken Beij i n g and the M i ng em peror comm itted s u i c ide, the M i n g general W u San-gu i opened the passes to the Manchu army and j o i ned with them to crush Li Zi-cheng's forces. The Manchus were poised for a conq uest of C h i n a; but C h i n a was a very l a rge cou ntry and n ot one to be eas i l y swa l l owed by a sma l l reg i o n a l state, however pro fessional i ts m i l itary mac h i ne . The conquest was ai ded by the i ncompetence, d i sso l ution, or defection of n u merous l a rge M i n g a r m i es, and when S h i Ke-fa, one of the few M i ng genera l s with any reso l ution, tried to hold the city of Yang-zhou with a s m a l l force, h i s q u i c k defeat and t h e s u bseq uent s a c k o f that o n c e prosperous city served we l l to i nt i m i d ate others who conte m p l ated res i sta nce. V i gorous defe n ses were mou nted in some regions, but the i n abi l ity of M i n g forces to coord i n ate res i stance en su red the i r i n effectiveness, and a l l oppos ition was bruta l l y s u p p ressed . When the Q i n g arm ies descended on N anj i ng, where a new M i n g reg i m e had been establ i s hed u nder the Pri nce of Fu, the M i n g " restorati o n " government s i m p l y d i ssolved . The early decades of Q i n g r u l e req u i red the e l i m i nation of a series of M i n g p re ten d e rs and seve ral res i stance moveme nts . The Q i n g s h owed a ruth l essness in es tab l i s h i ng its author ity that was comparab l e to that of the M i n g in its own early years; and if the M a n c h u r u l ers never won the general l ove of t he i r C h i nese s u bjects, they eventu a l l y enfo rced a deg ree of i nt i m i d ated doc i l ity. M a l e C h i nese s u bjects we re req u i red to s h ave the i r heads except fo r a l o n g p i gta i l or q u e u e worn in the M a n c h u sty l e . Although t h e q u e u e appeared a s one o f t h e most stri k i n g c h a racteristics o f " C h i nese" att i re t o e a r l y Weste rn observers, i t w a s t o the C h i nese a n ofte n - h ated symbol of fo re i g n d o m i n at i o n . L i ke other frontier peoples who had conquered C h i n a, the M a n c h u s faced the prob lem of beco m i n g abso rbed i nto the general C h i nese pop u l ati o n . The J u rchen J i n of the twelfth and th i rteenth centu ries came from a peo p l e c l osely rel ated to the Manchus, and t h e y had d i sappeared i nto the popu l ation of N o rth C h i n a leav i n g scarce l y a trace . The Mongols, by contrast, h ad m a i nta i ned the i r separaten ess, but had never been a b l e t o q u ite estab l i s h themselves as effective ru lers. The M a n c h u s fo u n d themse lves a s overlords o f a m u lti -eth n i c emp i re, i n c l u d i n g Mongols, Tu rks, and T i beta n s as we l l a s C h i n ese, and they sought t o e n s u re a measure o f eth n i c separat i o n . M a n c h u s were supposed to m arry o n l y M a n c h u s to p reserve the i ntegrity of the peo p l e . B l ood was, however, a less powerfu l force than c u ltu re; with i n a few generations, the s i n i c izat i o n o f the r u l i n g M a n c h u e l ite w a s complete. A l armed Qing emperors req u i red the stu dy of the M a n c h u l a n g u age for M a n c h u s in C h i na, and encou raged you n g Manc h u s to spend time in M a n c h u r i a and experience the m a n l y v i rtues of the i r forebears . T h e M a n c h u state h ad never been enti re l y M a n c h u , even befo re the c o n q u est of C h i n a p roper. The M a n c h u m i l itary orga n izat i o n was com posed of m i l itary u n its
known as "ban ners," some of w h i c h were M a n c h u and some C h i nese. The so cal led bannermen and the i r desce n d a nts, C h i n ese and M a n c h u a l i ke, were g i ven prefere n t i a l treatment i n pos i t i o n s in the Qing gove r n m e n t . 909
Anthology of Chinese Literature Wh i l e try i n g despe rate l y to p rotect the i r eth n i c identity, the Manch u em perors, u n l i ke the i r Mongol p redecessors, set out to be exe m p l ary C h i nese r u l e r s . They were, if a n yth i n g, m o re p u ritan i ca l l y Confu c i a n t h a n the C h i nese, and they set a to ne of p i o u s p ro p r i ety that had conseq u e n ces i n the c i v i l serv ice and i n el ite c u ltu re i n ge n era l . Censo rs were ready t o d e n o u n c e n o t o n l y a n y book that conta i n ed i m ag i ned eth n i c s l u rs but also any book deemed " i nj u r i o u s to the p u b l i c moral s . " The " l iter ary i n q u i s i t i o n " of the e i g h teenth century cast a pal l of a n x i ety over writi ng, and the rel ative I i b e rty of the l ate M i ng, i n c l u d i n g the fi rst decades of Q i n g r u l e , gave way to a general caut i o n . A l t h o u g h t h e M i n g h a d been suffe r i n g fro m i nte r n a l d i sturbances fo r decades, the overth row of the d y n asty and the esta b l i s h ment of the Q i n g with i n the cou rse of a year p rofo u n d l y s h oc ked C h i nese i ntel l ectu a l s . M a n y became m o n ks o r reti red permanently to p r i vate l ife, either because they h ad prev i o u s l y se rved the M i n g o r o u t o f a l i ngeri n g sense o f loyalty to t h e o l d dynasty . Com i n g t o terms with t h e M i ng's destr uction remai ned a p reoccu pati o n of writers fo r decades after the c o n q u est. The works of Zhang D a i ( 1 5 9 7- 1 6 7 9 ) represent o n e fo rm of h o m age t o the fa l l e n dy n a sty i n d ream l i ke p rose s ketc hes of l ife i n the Southern c ities o n the eve of the con q u est. Kong S h a n g-ren's p l ay Peach Blossom Fan ( 1 699) rep rese nts the c u l m i n ation of attem pts to represent the fate of the M i n g . Written by a d ra m atist born i n 1 648, after the Q i ng c o n q u est, Peach Blossom Fan tel l s the story of two lovers whose fate is i n tertw i ned w i t h that o f t h e "Southern M i n g , " t h e restorat i o n reg i m e i n N a n j i n g that l asted o n l y a yea r . The p l ay genera l l y avo i d s reference to the Q i n g and its arm ies, a n d when they are mentioned, it is u s u a l l y in com p l i m entary te rms. The Southern M i n g i s d e p i cted as destroy i n g itse lf through i n com petence, greed , a n d a p reocc u pat i o n with d o m e s t i c i nt r i g u e . T h e early Q i n g s a w a stro n g react i o n aga i n st l ate M i n g i n d i v i d u a l i s m and a fas c i n at i o n with the i m ag i n at i o n on the part of some i nte l l ectu a l s . A new e m p i r i c i s m appeared i n a l most a l l branches o f l earn i n g . I n s p i red i nterp retat i o n w a s rep l aced b y reaso n i n g f r o m e v i d e n c e . O n e area o f sch o l a r l y research w i t h p rofo u n d conse quences was h i sto r i c a l p h o n o l ogy-the stu d y of the way in w h i c h the pron u n c i a tion of c h a racters had c h a n ged over t i m e . It was recog n i zed that before the l o n g process o f standard i z i n g the script i n the Q i n and H a n , scri bes h ad often c hosen char acters purely to re present sou n d s . S u c h c h a racte rs are c a l led " l oa n c h a racte rs" and they occu r t h roughout a n c i ent texts . Armed with t h e i r new p roto-science of h i stor i c a l phonology, sch o l a rs began m a k i n g new g u esses about loan c ha racte rs in a n c i ent texts a n d prod u c i n g i n terpretat i o n s o f the Confu c i a n C l assics t h a t were very d iffe rent from the recei ved i nte r p retat i o n s . Si nce the Confu c i a n C l assics had a scrip t u r a l authority i n the constitut i o n of the state and el i te soc i ety, s u c h exce l lent s c h o l a rs h i p w a s i n h erently destab i l iz i n g a n d i n c reased the g a p between ser i o u s s c h o l a rs a n d t h e sti l l orthodox i nterpretat i o n s of the Southern Song N eo-Confu c i a n Z h u X i . A c u l t u re fou n ded o n ancient texts t h u s fo u n d itse lf n o l o nger certa i n o f the mean ing of those texts . " L i te ratu re" i n the Q i n g was not co n ce ived as a s i n g l e category; rather, it was a l a rge fi e l d of d isti n ct gen res, some com i n g down i n an u n broken trad i t i o n fro m the Tang and Song, and others revived after a long period of relative neglect. Q i n g l it910
The Qing Dynasty e rature was, moreover, c l osely l i n ked to scholarsh i p on earl i e r l iteratu re a n d its re p u b l i cati o n . The Q i n g govern ment sponsored n u merous scho l a r l y projects, s u c h as
the com p i l ation of the Complete Tang Poetry ( 1 7 05 ) . S c n o l a rs, read e rs, and w r i te rs often spec i a l ized i n one or more gen res and sty l e s . The "so n g l y r i c " of the Song, fo r exa m ple, was sometimes writte n as a p u re l y l iterary form i n the M i ng-the o l d m u s i c h a d been l o n g lost-but it was not popu l a r . Yet t h e l ast decade o f the M i n g witnessed a major revival in the compos i t i o n of song l y r i c s in the Song trad i t i o n , and th i s re vival began a new and u n b roken trad ition of song l y r i c composition that conti n u ed we l l i nto the twe ntieth centu ry. Some wr iters wrote i n oth e r fo rms, but m a n y spe c i a l ized o n l y in the song l y r i c . It had its own h i story o t" conte n d i n g schoo l s in the
Q i ng, with anthologies and an i m m ense corpus of c r i t i c a l writi n g . Mo reover, th i s h i story o f Q i n g s o n g l y r i c w a s i n extr i c a b l y l i n ked t o sch o l a rs h i p and c r i t i c i s m o n the song l y r i c of the Song D y n asty. The Q i n g l y r i c i st p r e s u m e d t h at h i s o r her read
ers wou l d be thoro u g h l y fam i l i a r with h i s S o n g p redecessors a n d wou l d recog n i ze in h i s work how he pos itioned h i mself i n re l at i o n to the h i sto ry of song l y r i c . T h i s i s n ot t o s a y that Q i n g l y r i c s were necessari l y i m itati ve-i n fact, t h e Q i n g trad ition of
the gen re is fa r r i c h e r i n range a n d sty l e than the S o n g-but Q i n g o r i g i n a l i ty was fo u n ded u po n a pres u med body of learn i n g a n d a fa m i l i a r ity with c r i t i c a l debate . S i m i l a r spe c i a lties exi sted i n the various periods of c l as s i c a l poetry, i n " o l d sty le" p rose and fo rmal p rose, i n i nfo rmal p rose gen res, in vernac u l a r song l y r i c , in vari ety p l ays (wh i c h by th i s p o i n t had become a p u re l y I iterary gen re) . The c l as s i c a l ta l e o f t h e s u pernatu ral h ad a l o n g h i story, stretc h i n g b a c k t o t h e p e r i o d i m med i ate l y fo l l o w i n g t h e H a n . Despite t h e seve nteenth-century v o g u e fo r vernac u l a r s h o rt sto r ies, the c l as s i c a l ta le ( ra n g i n g i n sca le from the a n ecdote to so meth i n g a p p roac h i n g a nove l l a) h a d been com posed conti n u o u s l y . I n the l ate seve n tee nth centu ry, it ree m e rged to p ro m i n e n c e in L iao-zhai's Record of Wonders, by P u S o n g- l i n g ( 1 640-1 7 1 5 ) . T h i s l a rge col l ection of su pernatural tales was i m m e n s e l y po p u l ar, and it spawned renewed i n terest in the gen re, tak i n g the fo �m of n u merous vers i o n s of s u c h tales in the e i g htee nth a n d n i n eteenth centu r i e s . Pu Song- l i ng's col l ecti o n of s u pernatu ral stori es-l i ke the ed i t i o n s o f Tang poets, the anth o l o g i es of " o l d sty le" p rose, fam o u s p l ays, and a l l the m aj o r vernac u l a r nov el s-was p r i nted with extensive c r i t i c a l c o m m e nta rie s. S u c h commentaries m i g h t be p r i nted i n the m a r g i n s , i n between the l i nes, o r after passages . Ear l i e r w o r k s , s u c h as the Tang poets o r " o l d style" p r o s e w r i te rs, u s u a l l y had s c h o l a r l y c o m m e n ta r i es as wel l . C r i t i c a l comme ntary was not an academ i c a d d i t i o n to works u s u a l l y read without comme ntary; rather, it was a l most i m poss i b l e to find a n e d i t i o n of P u Song l i n g or the fam o u s nove l s without a comme ntary. For Tang a n d S o n g writers, e d i tions and anthologies without commentaries were the l ess popu l ar, m o re s c h o l a r l y fo rms. Comme nta r i es i n d i cated l iterary tec h n i q u es, b r o u g h t o u t h id d e n i m p l i cati o n s i n passages, a n d i n l o n g e r works cal led attention t o the overa l l structu re. N ot u nti l the twentieth centu ry, i n part fo l l owi ng t h e Weste r n model and i n p a rt seek i ng to b reak free of the h a b its of trad i t i o n a l crit i c i s m , wou l d s u c h works be p r i n ted with out the critical c ommenta r i e s .
The two outsta n d i n g novels of the eighteenth centu ry represent
a major t ranS
fo rmation of the gen re from its p redecessors in the s i xteenth and seventeenth cen turies. The e i g hteenth-century nove l s are by known a u t h o rs, and the rough exu ber911
Anthology of Chinese Literature ance of vernac u l a r C h i nese in earl ier l o n g fi cti o n has been s u p p l anted by a m u c h s h a rper a n d m o re ref i n ed vernac u l a r . Both o f these nove l s were n o t p r i nted u nti l decades after the deaths of the i r authors. T h e fi rst is The Scholars (Ru-lin wa i-sh i), by Wu J i n g - z i ( 1 7 0 1 - 1 7 5 4 ) , fi rst p u b l i s hed i n 1 80 3 . A m ed l ey of i nte r l o c k i n g e p i sodes, The Scholars i s a savage l y sati r i c a l po rtra it o f l ate i m pe r i a l soc i ety, its hypoc r i sy and the fa i l u re of its va l u es. B ut p robab l y the defi n i n g work of Q i n g l it e ratu re is Story of the Stone (or Dream of the Red Chamber; Hong-Iou meng) , by Cao X u e-q i n ( 1 7 1 5-1 7 6 3 ) . Cao worked on vers i o n s of h i s novel over the cou rse of about two decades, leav i n g it i n com p l ete after e i g hty c h apters. The fi rst p r i nted ed i t i o n of 1 79 1 w a s com p l eted by the add ition of a n other forty c h a pters by Gao E ( c a . 1 740-c a . 1 8 1 5 ) .
Story o f the Stone q u i c k l y became m o re than a success: l i ke S h akespeare i n E n g l i s h o r Don Quixote i n S p a n i s h , it w o n the utter d evot i o n o f readers s o o n after its p u b l i cati o n and that d evot i o n has n ot d i m i n i s hed to the p resent day. On one l evel i t i s the story of a magic p i ece of j ade, dest i ned to be born i nto the world a n d ach ieve en l i ghte n m e n t by experi e n c i n g the d i s i l l u s i o n ment of l ove . The novel tel l s the story of an adol escent boy, B ao-yu ( " Prec i o u s Jade"), born i nto a powerfu l Q i n g hou se h o l d j u st pass i n g from the h e i ght of its powers i nto dec l i ne . Bao-yu l i ves s u rro u n ded by women-m a i d servants, s i sters, co u s i n s, and the o l d e r women of the h o u s e h o l d . B u t h i s pass i o n i s reserved fo r h i s hyperse n s itive cou s i n D a i -y u ( " B l ac k J ade" ) . Story
of the Stone is an extraord i n a r i l y r i c h novel i n the p h y s i c a l and c u l t u r a l deta i l s of I ife i n e i ghteenth-century C h i n a ; it is no less r i c h i n the com p l ex ity of i ts v i s i o n of
the soc i ety, with moments of everyday petti ness and te n d e rness framed i n a l a rger and d a ngerous wo r l d of men and pol i t i c a l powe r .
Story of the Stone w a s p e r h a p s parti c u l ar l y mov i n g because it rep resented t h e v e r y end of trad i t i o n a l C h i nese c i v i l ization as a wo r l d u nto itself. D u r i ng the n i ne teenth centu ry, the Weste rn powers made the i r presence fe lt in ways that wou l d c h a n ge C h i n a forever . T h e J es u i t m i ss i o n a r i es o f t h e M i n g a n d e a r l y Q i n g h a d sought to c u ltivate C h i na's r u l e rs a n d e l ite. The i r tec h n i c a l knowledge a n d devi ces e l i c i ted the fasc i n ati o n of m a n y C h i n ese i nte l l ectu a l s ; but a lthough the e a r l y m i s s i o n a r i e s won a sel ect b o d y of converts, the i r g o a l o f the g e n e r a l co nvers i o n o f C h i n a t o a C h r i st i a n c o u ntry was not on the h o r i zo n . C h u rc h pol itics a n d other facto rs eve n tu a l l y led the Q i n g gove r n m e n t t o a g e n e r a l p ro h i b it i o n aga i n st C h r istian ity i n 1 7 2 3 . I n a l i ttl e m o re t h a n a centu ry, E u rope wou l d retu r n to C h i n a i n fu l l fo rce. O p i u m , i n i t i a l l y s m o ked with tabacco, i n c reased in use in C h i n a through the cou rse of the eighteenth century. By e ar ly in the n i n eteenth centu ry, add iction h ad r i sen to a ser i o u s l evel and the s u bseq uent d r a i n on s i lver rese rves led to a n i n c rease in com mod i ty prices. B y the 1 8 3 0 s , the p ro b l e m had reac hed c r i s i s p roporti o n s . A zea l o u s reformer, L i n Ze- xu, w a s d i s patched by the Q i n g government t o Canton, the p r i m a ry port of the Ang lo-C h i nese o p i u m trade, w h e re he destroyed a l l the e x i sti n g o p i u m stocks. T h i s a n d oth e r sou rces o f friction between t h e E n g l i s h a n d t h e C h i nese, i n c l u d i n g the u n dersta n d a b l e re l u ctance o f the E n g l i s h to turn the i r nati o n a l s over to w h at they saw as the barba r i c p ractices of the C h i nese l egal system, eventu a l l y l ed to the O p i u m War i n 1 84 0 . After E n g l i s h fleets d e c i s i v e l y defeated Q i n g naval fo rces and coasta l defenses, the war was fi n a l l y brought to an end by the Treaty of N a n j i n g i n 1 84 2 , by w h i c h H o n g Kong w a s a n n exed a n d the E n g l i s h w e r e g i ven ex912
The Q ing Dynasty traterrito r i a l r i g hts at five major C h i nese ports ; by these r i g hts the E n g l i s h c o u l d l i ve in th e i r own c o m p o u n d s and were s u bject to E n g l i s h rather than C h i nese law. O n c e E n g l a n d h ad exposed t h e h e l p l essn ess o f C h i n a i n face o f Weste rn m i l itary tec h n o l ogy, i n t h e decades that fo l l owed oth er Weste rn powers com peted t o e n fo rce u po n C h i n a the i r own treaties, with the i r own ports and the same r i g h ts as the Eng l i s h . I n the m i d d l e o f t h e centu ry, t h e Q i n g faced a n even more devastat i n g c h a l l e n g e . The p e r i o d fro m 1 8 5 0 through the e a r l y 1 860s s a w the rebe l l i o n o f the Ta i-ping tian
guo, the " H eaven l y K i ngdom of G reat Peace . " The Tai-ping tian-guo was a theo c rati c movement based o n a syn cret i s m of C h r istian ity and n ative C h i nese m i l l e n a r i a n i s m . The Ta i - p i ngs h e l d Central C h i na, i n c l u d i n g the great c i ty o f N a nj i n g, and they defeated Q i n g arm ies aga i n and aga i n u nti l Zeng G u o-fa n ( 1 8 1 1 -1 8 7 2 ) , t h e Q i n g i n te l l ectu a l and genera l , a t l ast s u p p ressed them . I n 1 864, after a p ro l o n ged s i ege, N a nj i n g was at l ast taken and the c i ty was sacked by Q i n g troops. Wh i l e the war with the T a i - p i n gs was u n der way, the Western powers were dema n d i n g l ega t i o n s in Beij i n g o n a status of d i p l o matic e q u a l i ty, the ri ght to travel in the i nter i o r o f C h i na, open i n g t h e cou ntry t o m i ss i o n a ries, and more territo r i a l concess i o n s fo r trad e . Negotiations b roke down, a n d i n 1 8 60 a j o i n t Anglo-Fre n c h army i nvaded Beij i ng, send i n g the Q i n g cou rt i nto fl i ght to the i r M a n c h u r i a n c a p ital at j e ho l . The res u l t i n g Treaty of Beij i n g gave F ra n ce and E n g l a n d everyth i n g they had d e m a n d ed . I n 1 8 8 5 , after host i l ities, the F re n c h c l a i med V i etn a m ; R u s s i a a n d Germany, i n the meantime, were a l so w i n n i n g concess i o n s u nd e r th reat of fo rce. In 1 894, the S i no japanese War b ro ke o ut, lead i n g to yet a n other h u m i l iation fo r the Q i n g and treaty concess i o n s to the japanese. A h a l f cent u ry of repeated m i l itary a n d pol i t i c a l h u m i l i at i o n l eft both the Q i n g government a n d m u c h of the C h i nese pop u l ace with a deep h atred fo r j a pa n a n d the Western powe rs . With i n the fo reign c o ncess i o n s , governed by the l aws of t h e fo re i g n powers, C h i nese were treated as seco n d - c l ass c itizens w i t h few r i g hts, a n d they expe r i e n ced Western rac i s m . Weste rn g u n boats patro l l ed the coast a n d t h e Y a n g z i R i ver, ready t o s u p p ress a n y th reat t o fo re i g n n ati o n a l s . Eventu a l ly, i n 1 8 9 9 , t h e feste r i n g rage b roke out i n t h e Boxer Rebe l l i o n , a sec ret soc i ety swo rn t o r i d C h i n a o f a l l fo reigners. A l l fo re i gners were attacked, espec i a l l y m i ss i o n a r i es, a n d i n 1 9 0 0 the fo re i g n l egations i n Beij i n g were besi eged . A re l i ef force m a d e u p of d etac h me nts from japan and the Weste rn powers marched fro m T i a n -j i n to Beij i n g, and p re d i cta b l y the Q i n g government was fo rced to pay l a rge s u m s in reparat i o n s . The encou nter w i t h t h e West brought oth e r c h a n ges as wel l . Weste rn nove l s began t o b e tra n s l ated , fi rst free l y recast i n c l as s i c a l C h i nese, b u t l ate r t ra n s l ated ac cu rate l y . Toward the end of the n i n etee nth century newspapers made the i r a p pear ance, conta i n i n g s e r i a l ized nove l s that a l ready s h owed Weste r n i nf l u e n c e . Stud ents went off to E u rope and the U n i ted States, and p r i m a r i l y to j a p a n , b r i n g i n g back not o n l y tec h n i c a l expertise b u t a l so Western l iteratu re and t h o u g h t . As a n East As i a n n at i o n that h ad s u ccessfu l l y ada pted t o t h e e n co u nter w it h the West, j a p a n w a s see n as a model of what C h i n a cou l d beco me. I n 1 9 0 5 , the o l d i m pe r i a l c i v i l serv ice ex a m i n at i o n s were
abolished, and at last, in 1 9 1 1 , the Qing was overth rown with
re
m a rkab l e ease and the Rep u b l i c was establ ished. C h i na's tro u b l es were fa r from over, but the o l d i m pe r i a l system was go n e fo reve r . 913
Anthology of Chinese Literature F ro m the l ate Q i n g through the fi rst d ecades of the Repu b l i c, c l as s i c a l l ite ratu re conti n u e d to be writte n in the o l d for m s ; but a new l iteratu re was taki n g s h ape, a l i terature i nfo rmed by Wester n a n d J ap a nese mode l s . On May 4, 1 9 1 9 , a l a rge stu dent p rotest c a l l ed for bas i c c u ltural refo r m , i n c l u d i ng the abandonment of c l as s i c a l C h i nese i n favor of the written vernacu l a r . L i terary and c u ltural trad i t i o n s atte n u ate a n d tra n sfo rm s l owly, b u t somet i m e s a s i n g l e d ate can se rve a s a s y m b o l of c h ange. The May Fou rth movement is genera l l y u n d e rstood as the beg i n n i ng of mod ern C h i n ese l iterat u re .
914
L i Yu ,
Silen t Operas (Wu-sheng xi)
�Ir
P r i o r to the seventeenth centu ry, C h i n ese f i c t i o n a n d d ra m a u s u a l l y embel l i s hed o l d e r stories rather than i n venti n g new o n e s . Even when an a u t h o r i n vented a story, I ite rary conven t i o n d e m a n ded t h at i t be p resented as i f i t came from some outside
sou rce, either a contem porary o r a n e a r l i e r text. T h e d ramatist a n d storyw r i ter Li Y u ( 1 6 1 1 -1 6 8 0 ) too k great pride i n tel l i n g read ers t h at h i s sto r i e s were the p rod u cts of h i s own fe rt i l e w i t, a n d he rare l y l ets h i s readers forget h i s a u t h o r i a l pres ence. L i ke m a n y Q i n g writers, L i Y u fa i l ed the c i v i l serv i c e exam i n at i o n a n d had to re l y on h i s l i terary reputat i o n to make a l i v i n g . To s u p p o rt h i m s e l f, he too k the u n u s u a l c o u rse o f o rg a n i z i n g a theatr i c a l c o m p a n y a n d ta k i n g i t o n to u r . A s i n the E n g l i s h theat r i c a l c o m p a n ies of the E l i z abeth a n a n d Jacobean eras, L i Y u a l so wrote t h e m ater i a l . Writi n g a n d p u b l i s h i n g h i s p l ays was no l e s s a b u s i ness ve n tu re, a n d was a s m u c h to attract patro n age a s fo r d i rect i n co m e . Part o f what L i Y u so l d w a s a n i m age o f E p i c u re a n p l easu res a n d past i m e s e m bod i ed i n t h e e s says e n t i t l ed " R a n d o m Ventu res i n I d l eness" (Xian-qing ou-ji) . These i n c l u d e sec t i o n s o n gard e n i n g , eat i n g and d r i n k i n g , a r c h i tect u re, and h e a l t h , as wel l as sev eral o n d ra m a . L i Y u wrote vol u m i n o u s l y, t u r n i n g o u t t e n come d i es o f ro m a n t i c i n trigue, a pornograp h i c nove l , and seve ral col l ecti o n s of sto r i e s . "An Actress Scorns Wealth a n d Honor . . . " i s d rawn from the fi rst of the sto ry co l l ect i o n s , entitled Silent Op
eras (Wu-sheng xi). The story s h ows a p reocc u pati o n with theater that c h a racte r i zed both Li Y u and h i s age. The i nte r play of truth and fe i g n ed appearances moves back and fo rth across the bo u nd a r ies of the stage, with L i Yu's vo i ce ever p resent in the backgro u n d to d raw co n c l u s i o n s fo r us. T h e i nt r u s i ve n a r rator had long been a fea tu re of C h i nese sto r i es, but Li Yu p l ays the ro l e with an i ro n i c and self-co n g ratu l at i n g gu sto that is h i s trademark.
"An Actress Scorns Wealth and Honor to Preserve Her Chastity" Translated by Patrick Hanan Poem: Beauty's power to stir the heart Is heightened by her acting art. T hough her singing make a thousand cry, No tear will come to Beauty's eye.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
Lyric: A pretty bawd with a singing voice Charms, she has them all. Her constant smile will banish care, Till all men think she favours them, Their hearts in thrall. They risk their lives to make her gifts, Not stopping till they die. They shower her with precious gems, And when they get no sweets in turn,l They think-she's shy. Both poem and lyric make the point that when it comes to charm, ac tresses are in a different class altogether from the ordinary run of prostitutes . Men lose their hearts to actresses, the strait-laced turning into romantics and the tight-fisted into big spenders . Why should this be? Because in training to become actresses, these women have practised those warbling, dulcet tones and that delicate, willowy grace of theirs to perfection. There is no need for them to affect such things in company, for they come naturally. When ac tresses are placed beside girls of good family, their impurity outshines the latter's purity; when put beside prostitutes, their naturalness highlights the others' affectedness. In addition, that carpet on the stage is a most peculiar thing, for it hurts the ugly woman as it helps the beauty. When an ugly woman comes on stage, she appears even uglier, but when a beautiful woman does so, her beauty is enhanced. It is common for a woman of middling at tractiveness off-stage to look like the reincarnation of Xishi or Yang Guifei2 as soon as she sets foot on stage and begins her performance, at which point even a perfect beauty cannot compare with her. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, actors and actresses are predestined for their trade and have a god, Erlang, who watches over them. And secondly, the impression they make is the result of long training, not something that can be produced by a mere act of will. However that may be, the four lowliest classes in society consist of pros titutes, entertainers, lictors and slaves. 3 Thus actresses, as both prostitutes and entertainers, combine two of the four classes . Why, then, should an ac tress be made the subj ect of a story ? Because when a person from the lowli est class of all performs the noblest deed of all, it is fully as remarkable as a magic mushroom growing out of a dunghill, and it deserves to be publicized. 'The a l l u s i o n i s to the l ove song "Mugu a" in the Poetry Classic: "She th rew a tree- peach to me; / As req u ital I gave her a bright greenstone," etc . See Arth u r Waley, tra n s . , The Book of Songs ( N ew York: G rove Press, 1 9 87), p . 3 1 . 'Of the Zhou and Tang dyn asties, respectively, they came to perso nify idea l s of beauty. 'Sons born to people i n a n y of these occupations were exc l uded from the c i v i l service e x a m i n a tions.
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The Qing Dynasty
Whereas other stories relate an anecdote as a prologue to the story proper, this one will follow a different course . It has no need to play the host ushering in the guest, for it will generate the child from the mother. To begin with the dunghill and go on from there to tell of the magic mushroom-that is something entirely new in literary composition. Let me tell how in Xi'an county of Quzhou prefecture in Zhej iang there was a township of moderate size named Yang Village in which all of the in habitants, men as well as women, took up acting as a career . Now, actors are produced in every part of the country, not j ust this one, but actresses were the specialty of this area, because the singing and acting here were re markably authentic. If geomancy was one factor, genetic inheritance was cer tainly another . Because an actress's parents were actor and actress them selves, they brought into play during the sexual act, before the seed was sown, the very same voices and movements that they employed on stage . Thus the essential ingredients of an acting career were already present in the father's semen and the mother's blood. Moreover, during the mother's preg nancy, she would continue to act full time . The ancients held the theory that a child's education begins in utero;4 thus the mother's dulcet tones and wil lowy grace would have been instilled in the child before birth. And once she was born, everything she saw or heard had to do with the theatre. Custom eventually turned into instinct, and she proved a natural performer. How could anyone who took up acting at a later stage even begin to compare with her ? Which explains why this locality produced several outstanding ac tresses in every generation. Actresses in other parts of the country, who began as prostitutes, would act during the day and entertain their clients by night, using their acting merely to attract custom. But these actresses, with their " three do's and three don't's , " were quite different. What were these do's and don't's of theirs ? Do let them look , but don't let them taste.
Do let them have the name, but don't let them have the reality. Do let them plan, but don't let them succeed.
While they were on stage, the whole of their persons was visible to the audience, and even off-stage they were still playful and flirtatious. However , when it came to that goblet of aromatic wine they possessed, they would let men water at the mouth but not wet their lips . This was what was meant by " letting them look but not taste . " When young noblemen o r rich merchants tried t o u s e their power or money to get them into bed, the actresses never refused outright, but their consent was merely verbal. They would plead illness, claiming they could not make love at the moment, or else pretend that their husbands obj ected ' I . e . , taijiao, by w h i c h the embryo i s held to be mora l l y i nf l u e n ced by the mother's behav i o u r .
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
and suggest that their admirers await some other opportunity. But the days would go by, and they would remain as unattainable as ever. This was what was meant by " letting them have the name but not the reality . " Even i f they went t o b e d with their admirers and behaved s o passion ately that you would think them genuinely in love, in their eyes it was j ust a performance, as if they were playing a romantic scene or two with their leading men. While the play was on, they were utterly serious, but when they left the stage, they left their seriousness behind. Lovestruck young men would frequently offer large sums of money to buy them out, but although they consented, and let their admirers scheme away from dawn to dusk heed less of the costs of courtship, the plans would all end up as a spring dream, for the actresses could never bring themselves to marry. This was what was meant by " letting them plan but not succeed . " What was their motive for being so difficult ? You must understand that their hearts were not set on preserving their chastity for their husbands' sake, but on making money for those husbands, and not small sums of money ei ther, but large amounts . A man's true feeling for a woman does not arise from the bodily contact, but from the eye contact that precedes it. A gour mand at a feast will smell the aroma of the food before he sits down to din ner and start watering at the mouth, feeling he has never in all his life met with such delicacies; but after he gets the food into his mouth and has wolfed down a meal of it, if a second gourmet dinner is brought out, he will feel disgust rather than desire. Now, at the sight of a woman, a man is like the gourmand at the sight of food; you can allow him to smell the aroma but not to start eating, for once he does so, he will lose interest, and it will be impossible to set his mouth watering again. Therefore the actresses from this locality, who were well aware of the principle involved, did not enter lightly into liaisons, but made this tripartite formula of theirs a family heir loom. Mothers passed it down to daughters, and mothers-in-law to daugh ters-in-law, through scores of generations, until one day an unfilial daugh ter came along who rej ected the formula outright and would let men do anything-taste as well as look, have the reality as well as the name, suc ceed as well as plan. As the proverb so aptly puts it: " Every case is a law unto itself. " After years of this accommodating attitude, she had cooperated with her husband to earn a large sum of money-as well as a reputation for unconventional behaviour. Her surname was Liu and her personal name Jiangxian, and she lived at the end of the Jiaj ing era .S She was as pretty as a flower and as fair as j ade, she had an excellent voice and a beautiful figure, and she was blessed with a sharp intelligence. Other actresses could play only one role, but she had an exceptional versatility and would play the heroine or the hero, a man or 5 1 5 22-6 6 .
918
The Qing Dynasty
a woman, as the manager wished. And she had another talent too , of a free, unfettered kind; after the main play was over, she would quickly put on a painted face and play the jing or chou.6 Her byplay was sparklingly origi nal, and every word of it impressed her audience . They lost their hearts to her, and there was no man who did not wish to take her to bed. And she was exceptionally accommodating by nature, too. It was not absolutely nec essary that you be endowed with Pan An's looks and Cao Zhi's talent;7 in fact, even if you could neither read nor write, and were as ugly as sin, she would go to bed with you j ust so long as you could put up a large enough sum of money. From accepting the ugly as well as the handsome, she came to be patro nised by the stupid as well as the intelligent, and before she was thirty she had amassed a large fortune and established her husband as a local worthy of some note . But although her business expanded, she never gave up her profession, and would entrust her property to others while she and her hus band went on tour. Their hope was to have a child who would one day take over their responsibilities and allow them to retire. But " when things reach one extreme, they turn back toward the other . " After years o f trying, this couple produced a daughter, another unfilial daughter, who scorned not only the traditional family code but her own mother's rules as well. In the end she created a true play out of a false play, one that would be performed for thousands of years to come. Her childhood name was Miaogu, and she was as pretty as a flower and as fair as j ade, a truly outstanding beauty whose charms were too numer ous to mention. An old j ingle sums her up: One One One One
trace of powder-she'd be too pale; touch of rouge-she'd be too red; inch more-she'd be too tall; inch less-she'd be too short.
As for her voice, which " stopped the passing clouds and lingered among the roof-beams, ,, g it was her forte and there is no need to speak of it. Not only did she cause thousands to applaud her extraordinary art, she was ca pable of suddenly driving the whole world crazy and leaving her audience hanging between life and death. How did this happen? Because when she came to a moving love scene, the audience's eyes would suddenly glaze over and their mouths drop open, as if the sight had driven them to their deaths . Then, j ust as suddenly, they would begin dancing with j oy, as if the sight 6Conventional rol e-types of the trad itional C h i nese th eatre that are d i sti n g u i shed by costume, ma ke up, and acti n g sty l e . Jing genera l l y po rtrayed warriors or v i l l a i n s ; chou genera l l y portrayed com i c characters. 'Pan Y u e or Pan An (247-300) and Cao Zhi ( 1 92-2 3 2 ) , person ifications of male beauty and i ntel
l igence respectively. 'A c l i c he for beautifu l song deri ved from the Lie Z i ("Tang wen " ) .
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
had restored them to life. As a result, they raved over her, saying: "What kind of woman is this, to hold the power of life and death over us ? " Her troupe became famous simply because she was its lead actress. But Hea ven never makes one creature without making another to match it. It so happened that there was also a male lead of unprecedented quality, and when he came to be paired with Miaogu, theirs could truly be called a match made in Heaven. And there was another remarkable thing about this actor too; he did not start out as a male lead, but was promoted from the ranks of the jing and the chou. But in order to tell the story of this romance of theirs, it is necessary to begin at the beginning. When Miaogu was eleven or twelve, before she was capable of acting in a full-length play, she would often j oin her mother in doing isolated scenes. There was a young student there at the time whose surname was Tan and whose personal name was Chuyu, and who came from Xiangyang prefec ture in Huguang. His was an established family, but he had lost his mother as a child, and when his father went away to study, the little boy had been taken along. His father died while away from home, and the son was left with no one to depend on. He had drifted about from place to place in east ern Jiangsu and in Zhejiang, and was now sixteen years old. One glance at Miaogu was enough to convince him that she was a ravishing beauty, and he determined to get to know her now, while she was still a virgin. Using an interest in drama as a pretext, he made constant visits to the green-room. He hoped to declare his passion with his eyes and arouse thoughts of love in her; he would begin with the apertura and gradually work his way through to the continuatio and exordium. 9 Alas for his hopes ! Her parents exercised such strict control over her that, except in acting class, she was not allowed to talk to anyone outside the family. Although Tan spent months covertly watching her, he found no opening for his advances. One day he heard that Miaogu's troupe was fully staffed except for a jing and that they were looking for some bright young man to study along side her. Since Tan was at a loose end anyway, how could he pass up such an opportunity? He went at once to see Jiangxian and her husband and told them of his desire to j oin the troupe. They were delighted, and invited him to stay behind, make his bows to the teacher, and begin practising with Miaogu that very day. Needless to say, as an intelligent youth, he picked up the art very quickly. For her part, Miaogu, although still a child, was better educated than many an adult. Even before Tan j oined the troupe, she had admired his looks and, noting how assiduously he attended the theatre, had realized that "the Old Tippler's mind was definitely on something other than his wine . " ! When he j oined the troupe, she realized that he had been driven by his passion for her into disregarding the lowly status of actors; he was using the drama class as a means of offering her his allegiance, even at the 9Names for the fi rst th ree p a rts of the e i ght-part ("eight-l egged") exam i n ation essay. ' Ouyang X i u ( 1 007-1 0 7 2 ) styled h i mself Zuiweng, " O l d T i p p l e r . " The q u otation i s from h i s essay "Zu iweng t i n g j i . "
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The Qing Dynasty
cost of playing a " painted face . " 2 He was obviously a romantic spirit, and she wished to entrust her heart to him. Unfortunately their drama teacher proved even stricter than her father. He forbade all whispering when his pupils were reciting plays, and his main concern, when they were practising their movements, was that they should not touch. In effect, Tan was playing Liang 5hanbo to Miaogu's Zhu Ying tai,3 for although they studied side by side, they never managed to exchange a single word of love. Their only hope was to wait until their next lives and then, like Liang and Zhu, turn into butterflies and go off together. After some time , Tan began to regret his decision. "In acting, " he thought, " the male lead is the only role to study, if you want to preserve a shred of gentility. Even if our love is not predestined and can never be ful filled, on stage we'd at least have a 'pretext to expound the faith,' and could open our hearts to each other. If I called her wife, she would ha ve to call me husband. Although it could never be a real marriage, why not seize those fleeting moments of love to consummate our desire and give meaning to my joining the troup e? This painted face role is beneath my dignity as a man ! In any case, I'm depressed beyond words by the parts I have to play, which are all either bumpkins or menials. And how can I stand the bile that rises in me as I watch with starving eyes while she plays wife to another man ? " One day, when the teacher was out o f the classroom and the pupils were all in their places reciting, Tan, who was sitting close to Miaogu, was tempted to take this chance to declare his love but feared that the others might overhear. Fortunately, apart from Miaogu and himself,4 no one else in the troupe knew any classical Chinese. If he spoke in the vernacular, they would understand, but if he sprinkled in a few classical expressions, they would be left in the dark. So while everyone was reciting, Tan kept his eyes on Miaogu and spoke to her, as if practising his part: "0 Mistress, Mistress, most intelligent creature as thou art, how canst thou not be aware of my purpose in coming ? " Miaogu replied, also a s i f reciting: " Man i s not made o f wood o r stone, so how can he be unaware ? It grieveth me that I cannot speak my love ! " Tan continued: " Madam watcheth closely, and the pedagogue is strict. How long must I wait ere I fulfill the desire of three lifetimes ? " "We can but give each other our hearts and await another day. Here, before the gaze of all, there is, i'faith, no chance of a tryst. Pray cease thy too, too sanguine hopes . " Tan continued in a low voice: " I a m ashamed to g o o n playing painted faces, and I beseech thee to intercede with thy parents and have me promoted 'Th i s refers to thejing ro l e-type, in which the actors' faces a re heav i l y made u p , and somet i mes a l so to the chou. 3A famous romantic l ege n d . D ressed as a boy, Zhu Y i ngtai stu d i es a l on g s i d e L i a n g S h a n b o . When he d i scovers h e r sex, h e tries to m arry h e r, but she i s a l ready betrothed . After his d e a t h , s h e i s pass ing by his grave when it s u d d e n l y opens up for her. T h e i r s o u l s fly away together as bu tterfl ies. 'The text says "male and fem a l e leads," but Tan has not yet become the male l e a d .
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to male lead, so that we can j oin in wedlock on the stage as an auspicious omen of future love. What sayest thou, milady ? " "Well said, forsooth, but i f the suggestion issue from your humble ser vant, it will but arouse parental suspicion and close the very door we wish to open. Thou must needs use a stratagem. " " And what stratagem would that be, pray ? " "The troupe setteth great value upon thy services, and i f thou wish est to leave, disdaining to play the painted face, nought will be denied thee. With Xiao He at the ruler's side, thou canst count on Han Xin's being summoned back to court. " 5 " I shall respectfully do thy bidding, " said Tan, with a nod. A few days later, following her suggestion, he went and took leave of his teacher and also of Jiangxian and her husband, saying that he wished to re turn home and resume his studies . Jiangxian and her husband were aghast. " But you've j ust finished your training and are about to go on tour ! Why give it all up so suddenly ? " Together with the drama teacher, they probed the reason for his change of heart. " 'Even in poverty one must not give up one's aspirations,' " said Tan. "I did receive an education, but because o f the decline in m y family's fortunes, I had no choice but to enter this lowly profession. My intention, in donning an actor's garb, was to express the frustration I felt. I assumed that, as principal jing, I would be playing either Guan Yunchang or the Hegemon of Chu,6 and that although I would have to apply some greasepaint, at least in the more stir ring scenes I could be true to my nobler self. It never occurred to me that, in nine plays out of ten, I would be playing petty rogues, and that I would hardly ever have a chance to play a superior man. No true gentleman would put up with such a dishonour able role, and I am unwilling to do so any more . " " Since y o u regard a painted face a s beneath you, by all means choose a role more to your liking. There' s no need to be inflexible! " Tan then offered his assessment of the various roles. "As for the sec ondary female roles, I'm afraid a man would be sacrificing his manhood if he stooped to play them. And in the case of the secondary male roles, I'm afraid a young man would be losing his youthful vigour if he played an old fellow. The only possibility would be the j unior male lead, but he so often works through others, helping them make their names, that he fails to es tablish an identity of his own and present us with a nobler self, and that is why I wouldn't consider the role . " A t this point the drama teacher remarked t o Jiangxian and her husband: " From what he's saying, it's quite clear that he has set his heart on being the male lead. In my opinion, his looks and voice are of the right calibre. The only problem is that the male lead's part is longer than anyone else's, and we've ' E a r l y in h i s career, the famous general Han X i n , fee l i n g u n a p p reci ated, deserted. X i ao He, the prime m i n i ster, who b e l i eved stro n g l y i n H a n , raced after h i m, b r o u g h t him b a c k , and persuaded the ruler t o a p p o i n t h i m c o m m a n d e r- i n-ch ief. 'Th e warrior figu res G u a n Y u and X i a n g Yu, of the Th ree K i ngdoms and Qin dyn asties, respectively.
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already finished rehearsing and are about to go on tour. Even if we make him the male lead, how is he going to memorize all those scripts at once ? " Tan gave a laugh. " The only question i s whether I ' d accept the male lead. If I did, my memory would be more than a match for those few dozen old plays . At the rate of one a day, I'd be learning ten every ten days . If we delay the tour by a month, surely the thirty plays I'll have memorized by then will be enough for any repertoire ! " The drama teacher had been with Tan long enough to know his powers of memory, so he urged Jiangxian and her husband to appoint him male lead and make the present male lead a painted face. In fact Tan's memory was so good that he was able to recall his lines after a single reading. In less than a month, he had learned the thirty scripts, and he and Miaogu set off. During his period of training, Tan had had to contend with her parents ' protectiveness inside the house and the drama teacher's surveillance outside it, as well as with their classmates' constant presence, and he had failed to come up with any effective way of expressing his love. But he had assumed that, once they went on tour and the whole troupe was away from home, they would, as colleagues, have to start behaving like members of the same family-that is to say, there would be no segregation among them and no suspicion. While rubbing shoulders with Miaogu, he should not find it too difficult to inhale her warm fragrance and stroke her soft, translucent flesh. To his dismay, he found thatthe rules of conduct in the green-room were twice as strict again as in the women's quarters. Every man in the world could make a play for the female lead-except her fellow actors ! The rule was not of Jiangxian's or her husband's devising; there was a founding fa ther of the acting profession, the god Erlang, and he it was who had estab lished it. Byplay among the actors and actresses offended against morality as much as incest between brother and sister. On stage you might j est and banter to your heart's content, but as soon as you stepped off it, you had to treat the actresses with perfect decorum and refrain from the slightest j est. The merest hint of an affair was enough to offend against the god's taboo, and not only would business go into a decline, the whole troupe would fall ill. Thus after Miaogu went on tour, she had to endure not only her parents ' protectiveness and her teacher' s surveillance but also her fellow actors' scrutiny. When they saw her sitting beside Tan, they would sidle over to spy on them, fearing they might start an affair that would affect not only them selves but the entire troupe. Pity these poor lovers, whose mouths were officially sealed, as it were, and who could no longer employ even the classical language to communi cate ! Their only recourse was to " use the past to express the present" on stage, and to try to guess each other's hidden meanings . Whereas other ac tors and actresses preferred being off-stage, because on stage they had to exert themselves and off-stage they could relax, Tan and Miaogu preferred the stage, because there they could play husband and wife, while off-stage they had to hold themselves above suspicion. On stage, as male and female leads, they formed a dazzling couple, and 923
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every man in the audience fell in love with her and every woman with him. Inevitably, because they took such delight in their acting, they threw them selves into every scene, and the same old plays, as performed by them, took on an entirely new guise. In the romantic parts, the passion of their courtship and lovemaking seemed to spring from the very marrow of their bones. None of this was present in the play, but it never failed to captivate the audience. In the tragic parts, their tirades against Heaven and Earth, their piteous lamentations, seemed to issue from the very depths of their being. None of this was in the printed text either, but it never failed to move the audience to tears . What was the reason ? Because what other actors performed was the play, whereas they performed the truth. When a play is performed as a play, no matter how well it is done, the male lead remains the male lead and the female lead the female lead, and their spirits never j oin. Thus tragedy does not seem tragic, nor j oy j oyous. When a play is performed as a play, the audience looks on it as a play. But if it is performed as the truth, the fe male lead's spirit is fixed on the male lead while his soul is held in her hands, and they fuse into a single person who feels the j oys and woes of each. Thus tragedy seems tragic and j oy j oyous. Tan and Miaogu acted their plays as if they were the truth, and the audiences looked upon them in the same light. Their very presence in the troupe helped raise the position of their mediocre fellow actors. Other troupes earned no more than three to six taels per play, but this troupe charged twelve taels, exclusive of the female lead's gratuities. For a hundred miles around, whenever the rich and eminent were planning theatricals, they tried to engage the troupe . Those who succeeded were proud of the fact, while those who failed took it as a personal disgrace. Because of the new troupe's success, Jiangxian handed over control of the old troupe to her husband so that she could accompany Miaogu . Her aim was to instruct her daughter in the feminine wiles needed to make a for tune. But Miaogu had given her heart irrevocably to Tan and refused to as sociate with other men. Whereas they thought her the apple of their eye, she thought them a thorn in her flesh. Get her to a party to accompany the guests in their drinking, and. she would declare that she never drank and refuse to let the wine cup touch her lips. Say s omething personal to her, and her face would drop and she would find an excuse to leave. Rich young men squan dered large sums of money to make her acquaintance, but they received not a smile nor a frown in return, let alone any other favours. If j ewellery was created for her, she would wear it only once or twice, and then melt it down and use the silver. If any clothes were made for her, she would put them in the props trunk for the supporting actresses and not wear them herself. In her heart she was determined " not to take a second husband" and to remain chaste for Tan Chuyu, but she could tell no one of her resolve. One day the troupe brought its plays to a place named Port X, in which there was an old temple called Lord Yan's Temple. ? Lord Yan was a deity 'Te m p les were b u i l t to Lord Yan d u r i n g the M i n g Dyn asty. Accord i n g to legend, he was a Song or
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in charge of wind and wave who, enfeoffed as the Marquis Pacifier-of Waves, had demonstrated striking magical powers . The temple was built be side a stream, where the god's birthday was celebrated on the third day of the tenth month with theatricals arranged b y the temple's benefactors. In past years they had invited Jiangxian's troupe, but when they heard that the j unior troupe was even better, they sealed up the booking fee and sent it off well in advance, which is how Jiangxian and her daughter came to be pre sent. In the past, the whole troupe, men as well as women, had arrived to gether, but this time there had been a misunderstanding, and Tan and Miaogu arrived before the others. They had been waiting years for this fleeting chance and were not about to let it slip. But the temple was hardly the place to make love, and they contented themselves with expressing their true feelings for each other, after which they knelt down before Lord Yan's image and swore an oath together : " Neither I, Tan Chuyu, nor I, Liu Miaogu, will ever accept another in marriage . If our parents deny our plea, we will j oin each other in death. We will never betray our love or rej ect our commitment. If either of us breaks this vow, let him or her be destroyed. " Just as they finished, they saw the other members of the troupe arriving. Fortunately they escaped in time, and their secret was safe . Otherwise, " sus picion would have seen ghosts in the dark , ,, g and many ill-fated things might have happened. After that day's performance, they returned to their rented quarters for the night, and there I shall leave them. Let me now tell of one of the temple's benefactors, a very rich man who had bought himself an official post and served a term in the capital. He was worth a good hundred thousand, and by now, approaching the age of fifty, he had eleven concubines to his name. When Jiangxian was younger, she, too, had come under his tutelage, but he now observed that Miaogu was ten times as beautiful as her mother, and he was prepared to put up a large sum to marry her and fill up his complement of "Twelve Golden Hairpins . " 9 Inviting both mother and daughter t o stay, h e treated them royally. Needless to say, he renewed his friendship with Jiangxian, offering her his tutelage once more. Then, at their moment of greatest intimacy, he ex pressed his earnest desire to marry her daughter. Jiangxian would have agreed, but for one consideration: that her daughter was a money-tree who, if she could only be straightened out, was capable of making many large sums far surpassing this one betrothal gift. On the other hand, Jiangxian would have declined, but for a second consideration: that her daughter was of a very stubborn nature and had refused to make money for her parents; rather than have her offend people with her sulking fits, it might be b etter to marry her off in exchange for ready money. Yuan offi c i a l who, after death, was d e ified and put i n c h a rge of c a l m i n g storms. H e i s s a i d to have rec e i ved the title M a rq u i s Pacifie r-of-Waves at the begi n n i ng of the M i n g Dy n a s t y . 8A c l i c h e derived from the L ie Zi ("Kou y i " l . 'A reference t o o n e m a n ' s h a v i n g twe lve c o n c u b i n e s .
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Unable to decide the issue, Jiangxian was forced to hedge. " It's a most generous offer, which I dare not refuse . But my daughter is still very young, not yet fifteen. Moreover, we've hired a drama teacher to give her lessons. There'll be time enough for marriage after she's been working for a few years and has made some money for us. I really wouldn't presume to give my con sent at this point. " " I see, " said the rich man. " Well, this time next year we'll be holding our theatricals again, and I'll invite you over and ask you for an answer. " " Very well, " said Jiangxian. A few days later the performances came to an end and she took her leave. Her motive, in replying like this, was to observe her daughter closely over the course of the next year. If the girl were prepared to change her mind and make some money for her parents, she would be kept at home to work, but if she should prove incorrigible, Jiangxian would have this offer to fall back on. Therefore, after leaving the rich man, she took an entirely different at titude toward her daughter and opposed her at every turn. If the girl failed to obey, she would be screamed at, and if screaming produced no effect, she would be beaten. Miaogu's will, however, was as firm as iron or stone, and she yielded not an inch. When bullied beyond endurance, she would refuse to perform and even threaten suicide. Next year, towards the end of the ninth month, the rich man sent a ser vant with an invitation for Jiangxian. On greeting her, he asked for her an swer, and she, since her daughter was clearly not the stuff of which great fortunes are made, accepted with alacrity. He then weighed out a betrothal gift of a thousand taels and handed it over. The wedding was set for the evening of the third, j ust after the last performance . All this while, Jiangxian, reluctant to bring the subject up, had been keep ing Miaogu in the dark. Not until the evening of the second did she inform her. "When I brought you into the world, I went to great trouble to give you a training, in the hope that you would cooperate with us and work hard to improve the family' s position. But you've been wilful from the very start, and have actually turned against money. You don't know your place in so ciety, you pout when you meet people, and one da y you're going to find your self in real trouble. This business is simply not for you, and you'd better pack up your costumes and get married as soon as you can. I know a gentleman who's very rich and who has served in office. If you became his wife, you'd b e a lady of sorts, and what' s more, you'd never want for anything the rest of your life. I've already accepted his betrothal gift and promised you to him as a concubine, and the wedding is set for tomorrow. Now don't start act ing up, or you'll make your mother very cross. " At first Miaogu was shocked out of her wits . She stared wide-eyed at her mother. " Mother, you've made a mistake, " she said at last. " I'm already mar ried, and a virtuous woman does not take a second husband. Remarriage is out of the question. " 926
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Jiangxian had no idea what her daughter was talking about. Her face hardened. "Where is this husband of yours ? Your father and I have had nothing to say about it. Surely you haven't taken it upon yourself to arrange a mar riage ? " " Of course not! You can't arrange your own marriage ! You and Daddy matched me with him when I was j ust a child. You know perfectly well the one I mean, you're j ust pretending not to understand. " "What an extraordinary thing to say ! Well, won't you tell me who he is? " "Tan Chuyu, the male lead, of course. Before he j oined the troupe, he used to pay us constant visits, always on my account. Even when he j oined, it was j ust an excuse to get a foot in the door and be closer to me. Then later on, when he refused to play the jing and insisted on changing to the male lead so that he could be paired with me, he did it because he wanted you to guess his intentions, since he couldn't declare them openly. You and Daddy have played the male and female leads, you've been in romantic plays to gether, so you must have guessed his intentions. If you didn't want me to marry him, you shouldn't have taken him on for training in the first place, but even if you did take him on, you certainly shouldn't have switched him to male lead. By letting him do both things, you made it quite clear that you guessed his intentions and approved of the marriage. Every day since we began our performances, he's been the husband and I the wife, as tens of thousands in our audiences can attest. Everyone says that ours is a match made in heaven. Yet now, after we've been husband and wife for years, you suddenly tell me to betray him ! Impossible! You're so used to making such compromises in your own life, Mother, that they don't shock you any more. I may be an unfilial child, but my virtue is unsullied, and I'm not going to sully it now. I would never do anything so outrageous ! " Jiangxian gave an involuntary hoot of laughter, then spat out a reply, " You must be dreaming! Playing husband and wife on stage isn't to be taken seriously. Tell me: what do you think the word ' play' means ? It's called a 'play,' so it's 'playful. ' How can you take it as real? How many actresses ha ve you noticed marrying their leading men ? " " Everything else i n the world can b e taken playfully except marriage. When I began acting with him, I was ignorant of moral principle and thought we were j ust acting in a play, so I readily called him husband. By now I'm in the habit and cannot correct myself. All I can do is make the best of my situation and recognize him as my husband. Other actresses, who are igno rant of moral principle or who have lost their chastity, are free not to marry their leading men. But I do understand moral principle, and I have preserved my chastity, and so my only course is to marry Tan Chuyu . " Jiangxian realized that n o matter what was said, she and her daughter would still be at cross purposes, so she stopped trying to persuade her and, after a brief, angry outburst, took herself off to bed. Next morning, when breakfast and lunch had passed and the time for 927
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the p erformance had almost arrived, the rich man appeared in the theatre dressed in his finest clothes and began parading up and down in front of the stage, hoping to catch the audience's eye and make them sigh with envy: " He's going to get this unattainable beauty into his seraglio, where he'll enj oy himself at will . " He would dearly have loved to emblazon the words " I've Won the Queen of the Flowers " ! across his forehead and bask in the audi ence's applaus e. Tan was furious at the sight. H e expected that Miaogu would make a violent scene, refuse to go on, and eventually do so only after a beating from her mother. But the world is full of surprises. Although Miaogu had protested violently the night before, after a night's sleep, she seemed recon ciled to her future . She looked perfectly happy, sitting there in the green room without the trace of a pout. She even made an appeal to her fellow ac tors : "I shall soon be saying goodbye to you all . We've been together for years, but the play we do today will be the first real one we've ever done . The others were all make-believe. I'm asking all of you to back me up and do your level best. " Then she turned to Tan. "So far you've always played a make-believe hero, but this time you're going to play a real one. So do your very best to work with me. " " I don't know what you mean by doing my best. I wish you'd explain. " "Just watch m e and d o a s I do. S o long a s w e act i n concert, you'll be doing your best. " Tan was deeply hurt, for what she was saying ran counter to everything he had come to expect. When the rich man came swaggering into the green room to ask for the repertoire, Tan, in a bitter mood, watched closely for Miaogu's reaction, thinking that with her nemesis there before her, she would surel y flush with anger. But she not onl y showed no anger, she seemed to beam with delight. " Mother tells me, " she said, standing up to address him, "that after the performance today I shall be going to your house. " "Just so. " " In that case, out of all the plays I've learned, today's is the only one I still have a chance to perform. After today the audience will never have an other chance to see me. So you must let me put on my finest performance, both to demonstrate my abilities and also to take my leave of the audience. Would that be agreeable ? " " Of course it's agreeable . " " In that case, I shan't let you choose the play, I'll choose it myself. I'll
' '' Q u een of F l owers" was a name g i ven to Wang Mei n i ang, hero i n e of a Ming ro mantic sto ry. The most fam o u s c o u rtesan of her ti me, she i s won over by the devoted attentions of a h u m b l e oil s e l l e r . H i s w i n n i n g of her i s referred to, i n t h e t i t l e s of both the M i n g story and t h e M i n g p l ay based on it, as Zhan huakui, " Possess i n g ( o r W i n n i ng) the Queen of the F l owers . "
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do a play I'm familiar with, one that will let me do full j ustice to my tal ents . " " Quite right. You choose, b y all means . But I wonder which one you'll pick ? " Miaogu took the repertoire, hesitated, then pointed to a title. " Let's do The Thorn Hairpin, "2 she said. The rich man thought for a moment, then began laughing. "You're not comparing me with Sun Ruquan, by doing The Thorn Hairpin ? Oh, very well. So long as you're willing to marry me, it's no great hardship to be Sun Ruquan for a little while. And now that that's settled, let's have everybody on stage ! " Once the play was chosen, the cast dressed and took the stage, where they all put forth their best efforts, as Miaogu had asked. No words were dropped from the songs, no passages from the speech . Only Tan, sick at heart, failed to give of his best. Fortunately, Miaogu was there to cover for him; after he had sung the first word or two of a song, she would quickly j oin him in a duet, saving him from utter disgrace . As for her performance, it was divine, superb throughout. In the first few scenes, however fine the acting, she failed to captivate the audience, but when she came to " Sending the Bride Away to Her Wedding, " 3 the scene touched her own anguish and her performance became spellbinding, as she uncon sciously bared her heart and soul. Each syllable was worth a piece of gold, each word produced a tear, until, in the most harrowing passage of all, not only was her face streaming with tears, there was not a dry eye in the audi ence of over a thousand. Then when she came to " Clasping a Rock and Plunging into the River ,"4 her rendering seemed even more tragic. Not only did the audience shed tears, the very elements seemed to grieve; the sun went in and dark clouds covered the sky as with primeval gloom. Normally Qian Yulian expresses only her private anguish and does not denounce anyone. But the way Miaogu played the role was different; she inserted a new pas sage at the point where Yulian intends to throw herself into the river but has not yet clasped the rock to her bosom, and now Yulian cursed Sun Ruquan by name. The rich man happened to be sitting beside the stage. Miaogu stood facing him, and every time she spoke the words " False-hearted rogue " she pointed at him, and every time she said " D amned villain" she stared him in the eye. He knew that her curses were meant for him, but he couldn't help feel2A Southern p l ay of d i sputed authors h i p , written probably in the fou rteenth century. Wang S h i peng m a r r i e s Q i a n Y u l i a n , then l eaves f o r the capital t o t a k e the exa m i nati o n . A rival s u itor, S u n R u q u a n , forges a letter o f d i vorce from h i m . Y u l i a n th rows herself i nto t h e river, from w h i c h s h e i s resc u ed by an offi c i a l ' s boat. Eventu a l ly, s h e and Wang red i scover each oth e r w h e n sacrifi c i n g at the same tem p l e . The thorn h a i rp i n , the humble engagement g i ft which was a l l his fa m i l y co u l d affo rd , serves to p rove her identity. lScene 1 0 ("Bi j i a" ) . 4Scene 2 6 ("Tou j i a n g " ) .
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ing a twinge of conscience and tried hard to be fair-minded. Far from get ting angry, he nodded his head and exclaimed in admiration: " Quite right ! " After a volley of curses, Miaogu clasped the rock to her bosom and went to throw herself into the river. Other actresses, in doing this scene, would j ump from the back of the stage into the green-room, pretending to j ump into the river but actually j umping on to dry land. But Miaogu's way of throwing herself into the river differed again . Here, too, she wrote a new script that was even more remarkable than the first. The temple lay opposite a broad stream, and the stage had been erected outside the temple gate, with its back resting on the bank and its front ex tending out over the water. Clasping the rock, Miaogu went straight to the front of the stage, from which, as she concluded her song, she gave a mighty leap-right into the river. She had acted out a real play, j ust as she had promised. Shocked almost to death, the audience clamoured for someone to rescue her. But before anyone could try, a second person had j umped in to j oin her. How did that come about? As Miaogu was about to j ump, she had suddenly turned around and shouted in the direction of the green-room: " Husband, Wang Shipeng ! Your wife can stand this persecution no longer and is going to throw herself into the river. How can you go on living without me ? " Tan, who was sitting on the props trunk at the time, rushed on stage. When he saw Miaogu's leap, his one fear was that he might be too late to catch her up, so he flung himself like an arrow into the water. He hoped they would die in each other's arms, but he was far from sure that he would ever be able to find her. By this time the whole audience knew that Miaogu had chosen The Thorn Hairpin with this outcome in mind. Her cursing of the rich man had been an incidental thing, to raise her spirits, not an attempt to get some ver bal satisfaction before resigning herself to marriage. She had pleaded her case fully the night before and her mother had not relented, so she knew she would not be able to preserve her chastity after the day's performance . Rather than stab herself in her room and turn into a mute ghost, she pre ferred to die openly and forthrightly in front of others, providing people with a tale to tell for centuries to come. That whole night she lay awake planning what to do, and composed this remarkable script. Her first stroke of brilliance was in keeping a smile on her face and betraying no resentment, which lulled people into complacency and allowed her to pursue her aim. Otherwise, she would never have been allowed to perform such a highly sensitive play. Her second stroke was in not leaving the choice of play to someone else, but choosing it herself, which gave her a pretext for expressing her feelings and venting her grievances. Had she chosen some other play, even if she had inserted a few clever remarks here and there, she could not have expressed her grievances as directly or as satisfyingly. The third stroke of brilliance was that she did not try to arrange the double suicide in secret, but publicly invited her lover to be her ghostly 930
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companion, a move worthy of the maxim " An upright person does not do underhand things . " If she had tried to arrange the suicide behind people's backs, she would probably have failed to kill herself on this occasion and been forced to wait until after her marriage to Sun Ruquan before emulat ing Qian Yulian. Afterwards the poets all wrote elegies, one of which ran: They swore to die before they' d break their vow. Why call them mad ? They'd promises to keep. As one they leapt into the raging flood, And turned to sole ( soul) mates in the wat'ry deep.s Let me now tell of the lovers after they leapt into the water. The skies had j ust cleared after heavy rain, and the mountain streams were raging tor rents . This broad stream, with its steep banks, was different from others "a mighty river spilling down for hundreds of miles . " 6 Within minutes after the lovers had leapt into the water, it had swept them away to another dis trict altogether, far beyond any hope of rescue, which is why the audience, for all their shouting, did nothing to save them. From the stage Jiangxian saw her daughter drown and began beating her breast and stamping her feet, weeping without pause. Two thoughts dis tressed her: firstly, she had lost her money-tree and had no one left to make her fortune, and secondly, now that her daughter was dead, she might have to return the betrothal gift, a case of " losing both the person and the purse in one fell swoop . " But then, after weeping for a while, she made a sudden volte-face. Ignoring the relationship of mistress to patron, she charged the rich man with using his money to drive her daughter to her death and de clared that she was going straight to the authorities to file a complaint. The audience already envied the rich man because of the way he had flaunted himself. Now, on hearing that he had driven the girl to her death, they were positively gleeful and rose up in arms, ready to go before the pre fect and lodge a petition. Fortunately for him, the rich man knew the ropes well enough to settle the case privately through an intermediary. He arranged a peaceful solution by letting Jiangxian keep the thousand-tae! betrothal gift and distributing another thousand or more to buy the audience's silence. He had failed in his attempt to marry Qian Yulian, merely spending a couple of wasted hours as Sun Ruquan. His only consolation was the thought that a girl " flirts by cursing the one she fancies. " He told himself that he had been personally cursed by the most beautiful girl in the world. In Tonglu county of Yanzhou prefecture, there was a riverside hamlet by the name of Port Newtown which had very few inhabitants, all of whom were engaged in fishing. Among them was a man surnamed Mo, known as ' Bimuyu a re s a l e o r fl atfi s h . The male and fem a l e are s a i d to be i n separablej hen ce, l i ke butterfl ies and m a n d a r i n d u c ks, they symbo l ize devoted lovers. "Sole m ates" i s a pun o n "sou l m ates . " 6 A c l i che, derived from t h e S o n g writer C h e n L i ang, w h i c h i s most often a p p l i ed t o a forcefu l , ma j estic sty l e .
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
Fisherman Mo, who lived with his wife in a tiny thatched hut that they had built beside the bank. On this particular day, expecting some large fish to be swept down by the flood waters, they set out their big net and took turns pulling it up .? Then, a long way off, they made out amid the waves some thing that was heading downstream. Taking it to be a large fish, Mo waited until it came near and netted it at his first attempt. But, strangely enough, although it had been clearly visible on the surface, no sooner was it in the net than it suddenly fell back and tried to submerge. Mo pulled as hard as he could, but he was unable to budge the net. He had to get his wife to help him, and together, with the last ounce of their strength, they managed to pull it out of the water . A shock awaited them when they raised their heads and looked into the net. It was no fish they had caught, but two bodies, face pressed against face, breast against breast, as if trussed up together. Filled with compassion for the dead, Mo wanted to give them a decent burial. He tied the rope to a tree, and he and his wife, with a great deal of effort, managed to lift them out of the net. On examining them closely, they found they were a man and a woman locked together in a tight embrace, as if they had been cast into the river in the act of love . Mo and his wife were puzzled. Then they looked closely at the faces and saw that the bodies were not quite dead. While the faces and feet were ice-cold, the nostrils retained a little warmth, even though all breathing seemed to have stopped. " They can obviously be revived , " said Mo. "We'd better give them mouth-to-mouth. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could save both lives-like building a fourteen-storey pagoda ! " g " Yes, indeed! " said his wife. He put his mouth against the man's, and she put her mouth against the woman's, and they blew their warm breath down into the two bodies. Within minutes the pair had revived . They were helped into the hut and asked how they had come so close to drowning. They poured out their hearts to their rescuers . The man proved to be Tan Chuyu and the woman Liu Miaogu. They had leapt into the water in turn, fearing they might never find each other. But it seemed as if someone amidst the waves were leading them together and preventing them from drifting apart. It seemed, too, as if a gigantic fish were carrying them on its back along the surface of the water, so that they didn't drown in the course of travel ling a hundred miles. When the fish came near the net, it seemed to sense that there were rescuers at hand and, as if wishing to deliver its charges and return, it shook them off its back and swam away. That was why they were on the surface one moment and submerged the next. Fortunately the net was there to stop them from sinking to the bottom, and the mighty heave that 'The i l l u strat ion in the Silent Operas, Combined Collection (Wusheng xi heji), a n earl i e r anth ology than Priceless jade, s hows a l a rge basket-shaped net suspended from a stout wooden p o l e that can be raised or l owered with a rope. BPagodas are b u i l t with a n odd n u mber of storeys, to a max i m u m of th i rtee n .
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The Qing Dynasty
Mo and his wife gave on the rope brought them up . Tan and Miaogu knew that they owed their lives to Lord Yan's miraculous powers, and they kow towed to the hea-,ens before bowing in gratitude to their rescuers. When Mo and his wife learned they were a virtuous couple, they offered them their hospitality, insisting the pair stay in the hut and treating them generously. Then, as soon as Tan and Miaogu had recovered, they urged them to go fur ther afield, because if the news of their rescue ever reached her parents, some one would be sent for them, and they would not be able to continue as hus band and wife . Tan discussed the problem with Miaogu. " S ince I come from Huguang, why don't we go back there ? My family doesn't own much land, but if we work it, we should be able to grow a little food for ourselves. Let me get back to my studies and put in a few years' hard work, and I'm sure I'll suc ceed . " " You're absolutely right, but it's such a long way t o g o . W e have noth ing to our name, so where is the money coming from ? " M o could tell from Tan's face that the man was n o loser, and h e decided to offer him an examination loan. " How much will you need for the j our ney ? " he asked. " Anything would do. If we are very careful, ten taels should get us by. " " That's no problem. I've collected several purses from my fishing. I'll get the money together and lend it to you-on one condition. If you fail, I don't want a penny of it back. But if you study and succeed in the examinations, I must be repaid tenfold. Nothing less will do . " "Han Xin received a single meal from the washerwoman and repaid her with a thousand taels . 9 You've saved our lives-much more than a meal ! I'd want to reward you handsomely anyway, even if you weren't offering us a loan, and all the more now that you're being so generous. If I should fail, never mind, but if I succeed, I assure you I shan't limit myself to a thousand taels, let alone a mere hundred . " M o and his wife saw that he was eager to set off, and s o they prepared a farewell feast. As might be expected, they provided delicacies from the seas and rivers rather than from the mountains, dishes such as shrimp, fish, crab, and turtle. There is no segregation of the sexes among poor folk, and the two couples sat down together and drank until they were merry. Then, after a night's sleep, they arose and Fisherman Mo gathered together ten taels in loose silver and gave it to the young couple, after which they took their leave. From hardship itself, of course, they did not take their leave, but suffered all the rigours of a hurried and difficult j o urney. In less than a month they arrived. They fixed up a tumbledown house on the property, moved into it, and set about bringing the abandoned fields under cultivation in order to provide for themselves. Since Miaogu had been busy studying acting from childhood on, she was utterly ignorant of women's 'In H a n X i n ' s Shi ji b i ography, the washerwoman feeds him for twenty o r t h i rty d ays a n d he l ater rewards her with a thousand catties of g o l d .
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
skills. Even her slippers and leggings had been made for her by others . Now, as Tan's wife, she was studying these skills for the first time, but her quick intelligence proved equal to the task, and she learned at the first attempt. She spent her days weaving hemp and straw, and making shoes and stock ings, all to bring in a little money and support her husband's studies. At first Tan would labour in the fields during the day and study by night, but Miaogu was so afraid the farmwork would distract him from his studies that she persuaded him to give it up and depend on her handiwork alone for their needs. Lest his studies be affected, she would not even let him go and buy provisions, but entrusted those chores to a neighbour. After three years of study, Tan began taking the examinations. He hit the mark every time, no matter what the level of the examination. After enter ing the prefectural school, he passed the provincial and metropolitan ex aminations. Then, following the palace examination, he was appointed j udge! of Dingzhou prefecture in Fujian. Since Fujian is adj acent to Huguang, he ought by rights to have travelled down the Yangzi and revisited his home en route, enacting a splendid " Returning Home in Triumph" scene .2 But his desire to repay his benefactor was far stronger than any thought of basking in hometown glory, so he sent a s ervant to fetch his wife and bring her to Jingkou to j oin him. From there they travelled through Zhejiang to Quzhou and Yanzhou prefectures in order to worship Lord Yan and to repay and thank Fisherman Mo and his wife. Tan felt it would be embarrassing if his subordinates learned that he had begun life as an actor, so he sent the wel� coming party back to wait for him at Pucheng, while he and his wife en joyed the mountains and lakes alone . Arriving in Port Newtown, they found Mo and his wife fishing and sent a servant over with a card to say that " the man they had rescued was now an official and on the way to his post. He was passing through and desired to wait on them . " Overcome with j oy, Mo and his wife hastily took off their bamboo hats and hemp coats, and without waiting for their visitors to come ashore, went on board to congratulate them. Tan and Miaogu begged them to take the place of honour while they bowed before them four times. Tan appealed to Mo: " Fishing is such a hard life, and it brings in so lit tle money. Why not throw your nets away and come with me to my post, where you'll be able to enj oy a little wealth and prestige ? " While her hus band was issuing his invitation, Miaogu, without waiting for their consent, told her servants to start packing up their belongings. But Mo stopped the servants from going ashore. " Your Honour, My Lady, " he began, shaking his head, " please forgive me, but my wife and I are incapable of enj oying that sort of wealth and pres tige; in fact we're not even willing to accept it. Fishing may be a hard life lJietui meant a prefect u r a l j u dge in Song times. 2The title of a common scene i n which the hero retu rns home after his tri u m p h i n the metropol itan a n d p a lace exa m i n ations.
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The Q ing Dynasty
and the earnings small, but it has its pleasures too . We fishermen are lucky enough to live among blue hills and green waters, and to enj oy the clear moonlight and the cool breeze. We need pay no money for good wine and meat, j ust catch a few fish and use them for barter. We send no cards to in vite our friends , j ust eat with them whenever they come by. It's no idle boast to say that we're the only people in the world who enj oy such pleasures. There is some hardship, true, and the earnings are small, but at least they're reliable. If you lead an idle life, you'll constantly be dreaming of big sums of money. If fate is against you, you won't succeed anyway, but even if you should make money, you're bound to suffer trouble and anxiety before parting with it. You're proposing that I accompany you to your post, where all my needs will be met, a case of ' one man's windfall, shared with all,' which is fine. But I would never feel at ease there and I cannot accept your offer, I'm ashamed to say. Moreover, my wife and I are accustomed to our freedom. If we found ourselves penned up in an official residence, unable to move, our frustration would surely bring on an illness . You'd be over there in the courtroom trying cases and punishing tax evaders, but the sounds of the lash and the cries of the punished would drift into the residence, and how could we, tender-hearted as we are, bear the pain we'd feel on their account ? For that reason I prefer to go on living in poverty and must decline to share in your wealth and prestige. Let me say, however, how much I appreciate the generous offer. " Tan's enthusiasm was distinctly chilled by this rendering of " Fisher man's Pride . " 3 " If that's the way you feel, I would never dream of trying to press you, " he said. "The trouble is that I've only j ust passed the examina tions and have not held office, so I still cannot repay that generous loan you gave me. However, as soon as I'm in office, I'll send for you and throw a few opportunities your way. When you've made some money, you can come back here, buy some land, and have enough over to live on for the rest of your days . At least you'll get some recompense for saving our lives. Now, don't turn this offer down, whatever you d o . " Again Mo shook his head. " I ' m still unwilling, " he said. " Gratuities and commissions are not for unworldly folk like us. We leave that sort of thing to those medicine men who pass themselves off as recluse s.4 I'm not smooth tongued or thick-skinned enough for all the self-promotion and chicanery involved. The only thing I ask is that when you've been in office a year or so, you set aside a few taels you've honestly come by, either from your salary or your savings, and send them along to me so that my wife and I can pro-
3The title of a wel l -known a r i a type in the d rama ("Yuj i a ao" ) . 'The word shanren, rec l u ses, c a m e t o refer a l so t o self-sty l e d rec l u ses, espec i a l l y writers a n d artists who made a l iv i n g from iti nerant patronage seek i n g, an i n creas i n g l y common phenomenon from the m i d-M i n g o n . As s u c h , the term genera l l y carried a derisory to n e . Later in h i s l ife, Li Yu h i mself came to depend on t h i s very activ ity.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
vide for our funeral things . You'd be doing us a great favour. But I will never, ever go about asking for patronage, so don't send for me, whatever you do. " Tan's respect for Mo was all the greater because of this refusal. He now ordered a farewell feast prepared on board, but this time only mountain del icacies were served, not seafood, because the latter was local produce for Mo and his wife and Tan would not have dreamed of giving them ordinary fare. And although he was now a distinguished man himself, he chose to ignore the segregation of the sexes and had both couples sit and eat together. Be cause their friendship had been formed while he was still poor and unknown, he did not dare behave toward them as an official. Hosts and guests ate and drank the whole night through, until finally, at the fifth watch, they took leave of each other. By the time Tan and Miaogu reached the scene of their suffering, it was the beginning of the eleventh month, a full month after Lord Yan's birth day. "What a pity we couldn't have been here a month earlier ! " said Tan. " There ' d still have been some actors in the temple, and we could have had a play performed. What a fine thing that would have been, to celebrate the god's birthday and express our thanks to him at the same time ! " "Just what ! was thinking, " said Miaogu, " but the birthday is long past, and I doubt that there are any actors to be found in such a rural area. We'll simply have to prepare the offerings and sacrifice in silence . " As they approached, however, they could see from a long way off that the stage was still standing in front of Lord Yan's Temple, and that the table and chairs were still on it, as if the performances were not over. Tan sent one of his servants off to inquire. It appeared that there had been several days of heavy rain at the beginning of the tenth month, and that there was no shelter for the audience. Now, people who put on ritual plays claim to be doing it for the god's benefit, but actually they do it for the audience. If the conditions don't suitthe audience,the god will scarcely be allowed to enjoy the play on his own! So the benefactors cancelled the performances and arranged a make-up cele bration for the third day of the following month. Tan and Miaogu had hap pened to arrive j ust as the performances concluded and the actors were about to be dismissed. Coincidence though this was, the power of the god may also have had something to do with it. Perhaps he wanted this romance, which began in the theatre, to end in the theatre, and so delayed the festival until their arrival, thus setting up a " Happy Reunion" finale.5 Tan sent a second servant off to find out which troupe was performing. The answer came back that it was the same troupe as before, except that the male and female leads were new. Jiangxian now played the male lead, and her daughter-in-law, Miaogu's sister-in-law, a girl of sixteen or seventeen, played the female lead. After Miaogu's death, there had been no one to take her place, and the daughter-in-law had been brought in as a substitute . Al though neither could compare with Tan or Miaogu, they were so much bet'The l ast scene of a Southern p l ay ("Tuanyuan") i s trad itio n a l l y a reu n i o n after a l l confl i cts have been reso lved .
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The Qing Dynasty
ter than their competition that the temple's benefactors had continued to in vite them. When she 'leard that her mother was present, Miaogu was eager to sum mon her at once, but her husband resisted. " If we see her now, the finale will be very dull indeed. To create a little excitement, we'll have to do thus and-thus. "6 " Y ou're perfectly right, " said Miaogu . Tan told one of his stewards to draw twelve taels and write out a call ing card, then give the following message to the temple benefactors: " My master is passing through here on the way to his post. He met with a ty phoon on the river and made a pledge to the god that he would like to re deem at this temple. He also wishes to engage the actors for one play, in con sideration of which he remits the normal booking fee in full . " The benefactors, presented with this opportunity both t o d o someone a favour as well as to see another play, were only too glad to accept. Tan told his servants to prepare a pig and a sheep in sacrifice and place them before the god's image. They were to explain that their master had caught a cold and could not go ashore, but that he would moor his boat alongside the tem ple, with the cabin door opposite the god's image, and that he and his wife would bow and give thanks from behind the curtain. Afterwards they would sit and enjoy a little wine as they watched the play. Jiangxian now approached to show them the repertoire . " Your Honour, which play would you like us to perform ? " she asked from outside the cabin. Tan told a servant to reply for him: " The Mistress had a dream last night in which Lord Yan wanted to have The Thorn Hairpin performed, so please do that play. " Jiangxian took back the repertoire and returned to the green room, where she dressed as Wang Shipeng. Gentle reader, why do you suppose Tan and his wife chose this play again ? Were there no other good plays besides The Thorn Hairpin ? You must understand that they were less interested in seeing the play than in test ing Jiangxian's love for her daughter. It was The Thorn Hairpin that Miaogu had been performing when she leapt into the water, and their reason for choosing the same play was to force Jiangxian to relive the experience. If she wept a few genuine tears during the tragic scene, it would mean that she had repented, and they would invite her on board to meet them. But if she played the scenes routinely, without any sign of distress, there would be no need to meet with her, and they could slip quietly away. That was why they chose this play, of all plays. The choice was another example of Tan's shrewdness. Jiangxian now appeared on stage as Wang Shipeng. During the first few scenes, she showed no distress. Only when she came to the scene in which her daughter-in-law, like Miaogu, played Yulian throwing herself into the river, did her conscience begin to trouble her. Despite herself, " the cruel cat 'The author w i shes to h i d e the p l a n from the reader.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
suddenly began crying over the dead mouse . " But it was clear from the way she cried that she was trying to keep the fact from the audience, because she fought back her sobs and kept dabbing at her eyes with her sleeve. How ever, when she came to "Sacrificing to the River, " ? she could control her self no longer and burst into unrestrained sobbing. Whereas before she had cried out " Qian Yulian, wife, where are you ? " , she now, as she continued sobbing, forgot where she was and substituted the word " child" for " wife . " The audience knew she was weeping for Miaogu, but not even Master Zhou8 would have had the heart to criticize her mistake . When Miaogu noticed how heartbrokenly her mother was weeping, her own tears streamed down too, streaking her make-up. She told a maid to pull the curtain aside and cried out: " Mother! Don't cry ! Your daughter did n't die ! I'm here ! " Jiangxian stared wide-eyed at the boat and saw Tan Chuyu and her daughter sitting there side by side, wine cups in front of them, like a couple of wronged ghosts who had learned of the sacrifice being held on stage and had come to partake of it. Panic-stricken, she screamed at the actors in the green-room: " My daughter's ghost! Come quick ! " The troupe dashed on stage, and, looking intently at the boat, declared: " It's her ghost, all right. There's no doubt about it. " Hearing talk o f ghosts, the audience panicked and turned t o flee, at which p oint one of Tan's stewards, a resourceful fellow, stood up in the bow and shouted to them: " There's no cause for alarm. Those aren't ghosts you see in the boat, they're the real Master Tan and his lady. They were rescued after they leapt into the water, and then the master passed the examinations, and now he's been appointed prefect of Dingzhou. He's passing through here on the way to his post. He and his lady owe their lives to one of Lord Yan's miracles, and that's why they're giving thanks here today. " At this, the audience turned back again and, instead of fleeing, pressed forward to get a good look at this couple who had been saved from suicide, hoping to have an item of news to take home . The theatre became a heav ing mass of humanity, and the very old and the very young were forced into the water or trampled underfoot. Tan saw the danger and hurriedly con sulted with his wife : "We've already shown ourselves and can't hide any more . I suggest we go on stage together and let everyone take a good look at us. Otherwise someone will be crushed to death. " "Very well," she said. They changed into their formal clothes, Tan putting on his crimson col lar and Miaogu her phoenix hood and cloud mantilla. Under new bright blue parasols they stepped ashore surrounded by servants and maids. First they went to the image of Lord Yan and bowed low four more times. Then 'Scene 3 0 ("Ji j i ang" l . Actu a l l y i t i s not Wang but h i s moth er who sacrifi ces, and the words q u oted do not appear in the p l ay . ' Z h o u Yu ( 1 75-2 1 0), who came t o represent the expert c r i t i c o f m u s i c .
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they went on stage and paid their respects to Jiangxian. Finally, they called all their fellow actors and actresses over and greeted them one by one . Jiangxian ard the rest of the troupe asked how they had come to be res cued. Tan told of someone leading them through the water, of a great fish carrying them on its back, of the fish's sudden disappearance when it reached the net, and of their fortunate rescue by the fisherman and his wife. He told his story in a loud, ringing voice so that all those on and off the stage could hear it and learn to venerate the god all the more by knowing of his spiri tual power. Everyone was astounded. The benefactors came forward to offer their congratulations. The rich benefactor who had tried to marry Miaogu was afraid that Tan's and Miaogu's hatred would turn to thoughts of revenge, so he hastily prepared some lavish presents and begged the others to inter cede for him. But Tan would accept none of the presents. "Without the stimulus this gentleman provided, not only would our romance not have succeeded, I would still be an actor; I could never have risen to the position I hold. He is not an enemy of ours, quite the contrary. How could I even think of re venge ? " The benefactors marvelled at him and praised his generosity. Miaogu turned to her mother. " Now that your son-in-law is a national graduate and your daughter a lady, surely you won't want to go on with your acting ? Pack up your things as quickly as you can and come and live with us, so that you won't have to make a spectacle of yourself any more . " Jiangxian was delighted that her daughter and son-in-law bore her no grudge. Handing the troupe's management over to her daughter-in-law, she went off with Miaogu to enjoy a life of wealth and prestige. But within a month of her arrival she came down with an illness that defied every attempt at cure, and in the end she had to get her daughter to send her back again. Once she was home, the illness vanished of its own accord, without further treatment. As soon as she recovered, she went on tour again, enjoyed ex cellent health, and suffered no further misfortune. Why ? In the first place, she had been destined for an actress's career by the eight characters of her birth9 and could not be away from the theatre for a day without incurring some mishap. Clearly, if someone has a lowly fate, not even her own child will be able to raise her to a higher status, let alone anyone else. Hence poor men should resign themselves to their lot, not hate the rich and eminent for failing to raise them up. Secondly, Jiangxian had grown accustomed to a frivolous life and could not suddenly switch to a se rious one. Compare the case of a maidservant promoted to a wife, or a ser vant-boy adopted as a son; not only will their lowly destinies show in their faces, they will get no pleasure from their new status but instead will feel strain, which in turn will give rise to illness. Therefore prostitutes who re form and get married, like priests who leave the priesthood-unless they do 'The e i g ht c h a racters represent the year, m o n t h , day, and h o u r of b i rth .
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so of their own volition and are not pressured into it-will not be able to persevere and will ultimately revert to their old professions. Let me turn now to Tan, who, after serving six months in his new post, sent Mo five hundred taels with the promise of more to come, to a total of over a thousand. But Mo, a scrupulously honest man, kept only one hun dred, as the tenfold repayment of his loan, and sent the rest back. When his term of office was over, Tan set off for the capital and again passed through Quzhou, Yanzhou, and other towns . He renovated Lord Yan's Temple and also bought several acres of sacrificial land, which he handed over to the benefactors to fund future sacrifices and theatricals with. From there he went on to Port Newtown to visit Fisherman Mo. Mo opened with a few disdainful remarks designed to chip away at Tan's evident vanity and love of luxury, then went on to speak of matters of gain and loss to attack his cupidity. Now, Tan already possessed a cer tain spiritual capacity. In his days as an actor, he had noted how high the excitement was as long as the play lasted-" one thousand in tears , ten thou sand in love "-but that once it was over and the gongs and drums were silent, the audience would stream out of the theatre without a single back ward glance, as if they were cutting him dead. Clearly, there was no play in the world that did not come to an end and no excitement that would last forever. Therefore he had never felt any very strong desire for wealth and prestige. Now, as he listened to Mo's enlightening talk, he felt as if he had been subj ected to "a blow and a shout " ! j ust at the moment he awakened from a dream, and he would never let himself be deluded again. No longer did he have the slightest desire to seek promotion in the cap ital or enj oy his hometown glory. Instead, by the side of Two Mile Stream in Tonglu county, he bought an acre or two of hilly ground and built a thatched hut on it. He spent his days fishing, partly to follow the lofty ex ample of Yan Ziling2 and p artly to receive Fisherman Mo's guidance. By Mo he was introduced to a circle of friends, ploughmen and woodcutters, men of noble character who possessed the talent, if not the desire, to succeed in public life. By spending his days with them, Tan learned something of fish ing, woodcutting, and farming. Miaogu, too, had her circle of friends, in troduced to her by Mo's wife, wise women who could have helped their hus bands succeed in public life but chose not to press them. By spending her days with these women, she learned something of raising silkworms and spinning silk. Both Tan and Miaogu lived on into their nineties. The only pity was that they had no son. This was partly because Miaogu's beauty was of the deli cate type that is not conducive to bearing sons, and partly because Tan was so deeply devoted to his wife that he could not contemplate taking a con cubine . 'A B u d d h ist notion, it refers to a sal utary shock adm i n i stered by a re l i g i o u s mentor. 2Yan G u ang, whose sty le was Z i l i ng, of the H a n Dyn asty. L i Y u often u sed h i m as a symbol of the h ig h - m i nded rec l u se who refused offi ce.
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The Q ing Dynasty
Critique This romance has seven peculiar features, all of which fly in the face of com mon sense. One: an exceptionally wanton mother gives birth to a perfectly chaste daughter. Two : someone from the lowliest social level performs the noblest action. Three: whereas playwrights have always developed plays from real events, this story develops real events from a play. Four : whereas the jing and chou roles have always been something for the male lead to fall back on, here they serve as stepping-stones to his position. Five : since cults are established by the gods, Erlang, as the patron of the acting profession, ought to have been called upon to play the celestial matchmaker; instead he is left out, and it is Lord Yan, with no connection to acting, who takes his place. Six: in fiction it is the main character who, without exception, takes the subordinate characters a wa y with him; when Tan Chuyu meets with sud den success, the normal thing would have been for him to take Fisherman Mo off to become wealthy and eminent, instead of which it is the periph eral Mo who takes Tan off to become a high-minded recluse. Seven: plays and stories have to end in an exciting finale to suit contemporary taste without such an ending, they would be rej ected by their audiences-and yet this story ends in rustic solitude. One might well consider himself lucky if all of these unnatural and un reasonable things did not provoke the reader's irritation. How then, can one explain the fact that they cause the reader to start praising the story's nov elty as soon as he opens the book and leave him dancing on air as he closes it ? Impossible ! All we can do is curse the author as a peculiar romancer who deals in peculiarities.
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Ko n g S h a n g- re n ,
Pea ch
Blossom Fan : Se l ected Acts
Kong S h a n g-ren's ( 1 648-1 7 1 8) Pea ch Blossom Fan i s a n h i sto rical d ra m a that treats the b r i ef Southern M i n g reg i m e set up in N a n j i n g in 1 644 after the captu re of B e i j i ng by the rebe l L i Z i - c h e n g and the s u i c i d e o f the l e g i t i m ate C h o ng-zhen E m peror of the M i n g . T h i s was the period of the M a n c h u i n vas i o n , w h i c h put a n end to the "Southern M i n g " in the p rocess of estab l i s h i n g the Q i n g Dyn asty. Stro n g sentiment fo r the M i n g sti l l I i n ge red in the l ate seventeenth century when Peach Blossom Fan was written ( 1 699), and the Q i n g government was p roportio n a l l y s ens i tive to any h i nt of criti c i s m . L u c k i l y for Kong S h a ng-re n , the "Southern M i ng" was so i n com petent a n d corrupt that a n h i sto r i ca l l y accu rate portraya l wou l d not offen d Q i n g i m per i a l sens i b i l ities. A t t h e s a m e t i m e a pass i o n ate l oyalty t o t h e M i n g cou l d b e rep resented, n ot d i rected aga i n st the Q i n g but aga i n st the se l f-destructive fo l l y of the Southern M i n g c o u rt . I n the p l ay, Kong S h a n g- re n a r g u e d with some j u stificat i o n that the h i sto r i c a l events po rtrayed were themselves theate r : t h e "Southern M i ng" w a s s h ow rather t h a n s u bstance. Each o f the two sect i o n s i nto w h i c h the forty acts a r e d i v i ded i s i ntro d u ced by a n old m a n , once a m i n o r parti c i pant in the events represented , spea k i n g from t h e fictiti o u s present o f the p l ay's performance i n 1 6 84 . H e co n c l udes t h e i n trod uction t o t h e seco n d h a l f w i t h a verse that u nde rscores t h e po i nt :
In those days reality was a play, this play today seems reality. From sidelines I watch a second time Heaven preserves the man with cold eyes. The c h a racters in the p l ay all are based o n i n d i v i d u a l s who too k part in the ac tual h i stor i c a l events, and Kong S h ang-ren d rew exte n s i ve l y o n h i stor i c a l documents. At the center of the act i o n i s the l ove sto ry of Hou Fang-yu, one of the most fa mous writers of the d ay, and the cou rtesan L i X i ang-j u n . The h i sto r i c a l H o u F a n g-yu was acq u a i nted with Li X i a n g-j u n and even wrote a b r i ef b i ography of her; but as with other c h a racte rs, the m o re eve ryday facts a n d events of h i story a re tran sformed u nd e r the i m peratives of d ra m atic ro m a n c e . Performa nces of s o n g s , p l ays, a n d popu l a r storyte l l i n g, a l o n g with cere m o n i es staged l i ke performances, occ u r throughout Peach Blossom Fan. The arch v i l l a i n , R u a n Da-cheng, was n o t o n l y a part o f t h e corru pt Southern M i n g government, h e w a s a l so the p reem i n ent p l aywr ig h t o f h i s o w n d a y . References t o R u a n ' s m ost fa m o u s p l ay, The Swallo w Letter, rec u r often as an exam p l e of a fl awed, h o l l ow art ( i t is a l so the favorite play of Pri nce F u , who becomes the theater- l ov i n g Southern M i n g e m p e ro r) . Aga i n and aga i n , Peach Blossom Fan comes back to q u est i o n s of
942
The Qing Dynasty ro l e p l ay i ng, fe i g n i ng, and the way the gen u i n e can appear with i n a ro l e . The fi n est exam p l e is the yo u n g hero i n e Li X i a n g-j u n , who is fi rst ta ught to s i n g the ro l e of a ro mantic h e ro i n e and fi n a l l y becomes the k i n d of c h a racter she p l ays. One of the most remarka b l e figu res in the fi rst half of the play i s the pai nter Yang We n-co n g o It is h e who g i ves Li X i a n g-j u n h e r name and he who event u a l l y pai nts the b l oodsta i n s o n X i a n g-j u n ' s fan i nto peach b l ossoms, fro m w h i c h the play takes its title. Mov i n g eas i l y between the camps of the good c h a racters and the v i l l a i n s, Yang Wen-cong is t h e cause o f t h e l overs com i n g toget her, t h e cause o f the i r sepa rat i o n , and the one who i n itiates the events that lead to the i r eventu a l reu n i o n . The scenes tra n s l ated here are the Pro l ogue and the th ree central scenes that i n vo l ve Yang and the fa n . F i n a l l y, p a rt of the l ast reu n i o n scene te l l s the u l t i m ate fate of the fa n . The Prologue opens with a fi cti ve fi rst performance of the p l a y i n 1 6 84, the be g i n n i n g of a new grand cyc l e in the C h i nese d ati n g syste m . The o l d m a n , once an offi c i a n t at the M i n g a n cestra l tem p l e, prai ses the good gove r n m e n t of the re i g n i n g Kang-x i em peror t o h e l p a l l ay a n y h i nt o f d i s l oyalty.
PROLOGUE (I), O CTOBER 1 6 84
Enter an OLD MAN with a white beard, a felt hat, and Daoist robes. OLD MAN: Is there such an antique as I? antique of neither bronze nor j ade, but my face gives off an antique gloss. The last soul surviving, companions gone why flinch from young men's scorn? The outrage that once filled my breast has all been swept away, and now I may well linger on, wherever I find drink and song. Now children revere their parents, state officers are true, all things rest secure, so yearn no more for the ginseng root that makes a man live long. The sun shines gloriously on this age of sage-kings, and flowers bloom in the onset of a new cycle of years . There are no bandits in the hills, while gods and immortals fill the earth. I was once an Officiant at the Court of Imperial Sacrifices in Nanjing, a post of no great prestige or pay, so my name may be withheld here . It has been my great good for tune to have escaped disaster, and I have been alive these ninety-seven years, during which I have witnessed much of splendor and ruin. And now I have reached the first year of a new hundred-and-eighty-year cycle. A ruler comparable to Yao and Shun is on the throne, and minis ters like Yu and Gao have been installed to aid him. Everywhere the pop943
Anthology of Chinese Literature
ulace is happy, and the harvests have been abundant year after year. This is the twenty-third year of the Kang-xi Reign, and twenty-one signs of good luck have appeared. VOICE [offstage] : What are these signs of good luck ? OLD MAN [counting them off on his fingers] : The Yellow River Diagram appeared. The Luo River Inscription appeared. The Star of Virtue brightened. Auspicious clouds manifested themselves. A sweet dew fell. An oily rain came down. A phoenix roosted. A unicorn roamed. The ming plant came out. The sacred mushroom grew. There were no waves on the sea. The Yellow River cleared. Every single one of these occurred-doesn't that deserve celebration? I'm delighted to have lived to see such glorious times, and I roam about every where. In the Tai-ping Gardens yesterday I saw a new play being put on, entitled Peach Blossom Fan, which concerned what happened around Nanj ing in the last years of the Ming. It treated the emotions of separa tion and reunion, and it described how people felt about the splendor and ruin of men and kingdoms. The events really happened and the peo ple were real ones; it was all accurate. I not only heard of these things, I saw them all with my own eyes . Even more amusing, I, now a frail old man, was actually put on the stage as one of the minor characters . This inspired tears, laughter, rage, and condemnation in me. And no one in the whole audience realized that I, j ust an old man to them, was really one of the persons in the play. VOICE [offstage] : Who wrote this fine play ? OLD MAN: Don't you gentlemen know that the most famous playwrights don't reveal their names. But when you observe how he apportions praise and criticism, it must come from someone with a family tradition in the study of The Springs and Autumns; and its suitability for singing shows that the author clearly had family instruction in the Classic of Poetry. VOICE [offstage] : In that case it's obviously the Hermit of Yun-ting Moun tain. OLD MAN: To whom are you referring ? VOICE [offstage] : There's going to be a gathering of the upper crust of offi cialdom, and they're going to have this very play performed. Since you're one of the characters in it and since you've also heard this new version, why don't you give us an outline of the plot beforehand, and we'll all listen carefully. OLD MAN: It's all in the lyrics to "Fragrance Fills the Yard, " sung by the D aoist Zhang Wei. 944
The Q ing Dynasty
[Sings] A young gentleman, Hou Fang-yu, sometime resident in Nanjing, was matched with the Southland's fairest; Harm worked unseen by vicious lies in one night split this loving pair. They saw the world turned upside down, the Jiang-Huai garrisons amok. Next a blind prince took the throne, choosing performers, his only concern, while faction's ills raised wicked ministers. Their bond of love could not continue : she in her tower with martyr's ardor, he in his dungeon, in deep despair. They owed thanks to Liu and old Su whose earnest endeavors set them free. A t midnight ruler and minister fled, who laments a loyal soul in misty wave s? And the peach blossom fan shredded on the altar lay, and I shall show you how they strayed . VOICE [offstage] : Excellent ! Excellent ! But sometimes we couldn't quite un derstand you because of the ringing quality of the melody. Summarize it again in a few lines. OLD MAN: Let me try.
[Recites] The traitors Ma and Ruan lurked with swords both inside the court and out; deft Liu and Su went back and forth seeking to tie the secret threads. Young Hou Fang-yu found true love's course broken beyond recall, Zhang Wei the D aoist gave judgment on glory and the fall. But here as I'm talking, Hou Fang-yu has already come on stage. Let's all watch. I n herent in Peach Blossom Fan is a fasc i n at i o n w ith acti n g roles, both the k i nd t h at occ u r on stage a n d the k i n d t h at occ u r i n the pol i t i c a l a n d soc i a l world . I n scene I I , "Teac h i n g the Song," w e m eet the h e ro i ne, L i X i a n g-j u n , a t fi rst t h e p u re type o f the n u b i l e v i rg i n , l ite ra l l y n a m e l ess. F ro m the pai nter Yang Wen-cong s h e rec e i ves both a name and a marriage "plot, " in w h i c h she is s u pposed to p l ay her appoi nted ro l e . Between h e r n a m i n g and the s uggestion o f a m atc h , s h e p ractices s i n g i n g the ro l e o f D u L i - n i a n g i n Peony Pavilion, t h e romantic h e ro i n e ' s r o l e fo r w h i c h s h e i s des945
Anthology of Chinese Literature t i ned both on stage a n d off. At h e r s i d e , h owever, is the m u s i c tea cher Su K u n-sheng, whose i n s i stent correct i o n s c onstantly rem i n d u s of the artifice of role. T h e stage i s set in the p l ea s u re q u a rters of N a n j i ng, by the Q i n - H u a i River.
TEACHING THE SONG (II), APRIL 1 64 3
Enter MADAM L I ZHEN-LI, elegantly made up. LI [sings]: With dark-drawn brows, I do not close the doors of this red mansion. On Long Plank Bridge thin willow strands flirt and draw the passing riders. I tighten up the harp strings and deftly work the mouth organ's pouch.
[Recites] Blooms of pear are like the snow, the grasses like a mist, springtime comes to the Qin-Huai, here on both its shores. Courtesans' parlors in a row look out on the waters, and from each house reflections cast the fetching images of girls. I am Li Zhen-li, and I belong to the finest troupe of singers, to the most famous band of " misty flowers " and " moonlit breeze . " I was born and bred in the pleasure quarters, where I have welcomed clients and sent them on their way across Long Bridge. This face, with its p owder and paint, has not yet lost its bloom, and ample charms remain to me. I have raised one adopted daughter, a tender and gentle little thing, j ust now beginning to take part in our elegant soirees; but in her shy grace, she has not yet gone behind the lotus bed curtains. There is hereabouts a re tired county magistrate called Yang Wen-cong, who is the brother-in law of Ma Shi-ying, the governor-general of Feng-yang, and a sworn friend of Ruan Da-zheng, the former head of the Court of Imperial En tertainments. On his frequent visits to my establishment, Yang has often praised my daughter and wants to arrange for a client to " do up her hair . " ! The spring weather is so bright and inviting today, I suspect he'll be here for a visit. [ Calls out] Maid, open the curtains and sweep up, and keep your eye out to see if any visitors are coming. VOICE [offstage] : Yes, ma'am. ' H av i n g one's hair done up ma rked the passage i nto womanh ood ; h e re it i s a e u p h e m i s m for tak i n g her v i rg i n ity.
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The Qing Dynasty
Enter YANG WEN-CONG. YANG [recites] : Triple Mountain's scenery is a resource for my paintings, the flair of Southern Dynasties courses through my poems . I am Yang Wen-cong, a licentiate and former county magistrate who has retired from my post to live a quiet life . Li Zhen-li, the famous courte san of the Qin-Huai, is an old friend of mine, and I'm taking advantage of the spring weather to pay her a visit and have a chat. Here I am now. I'll be going in. [Enters] Where's the lady? [Greets her] Splendid! See how the petals of the plum have fallen and the fronds of the willows are turn ing yellow. Soft and rich in color, spring's beauty is everywhere in the yard, which makes me wonder how we may best spend these moments . LI: It is lovely indeed. Come to the little room upstairs. I'll burn some in cense and put on some tea, and we can read over some poems . YANG: Even better! [They climb stairs. He recites] Curtain stripes seem to cage the bird on its perch, flowers' shadows seem to guard the fish in its bowl. These are your daughter's apartments. Where is she ? LI: She hasn't yet finished dressing; she's still in the bedroom. YANG: Ask her to come out. LI [calling out] : Come out, child. Mr. Yang is here. YANG [reading the poems on her walls ] : How remarkable! These are all poems inscribed to her by well-known figures ! [He clasps his hands be
hind his back and recites them] Enter HEROINE, splendidly made up. HEROINE [sings] : Just now called back from sweetest dreams, I threw off red coverlets broidered with mated ducks . I put on lipstick and glossy rouge and hastily did my hair in a ponytail with straying tresses . What relief is there for spring's moodiness ? j ust learning new lyrics for songs .
[Greets YANG] Good-day, sir! YANG: You have grown even more stunning in these past few days since I saw you last. These poems are not at all wrong in their praise of you. [Reads on and registers surprise] Well, look at this ! Such prominent fig ures as Zhang Pu and Xia Yun-yi have b oth written poems to you. I re ally must write you a poem of my own, using their rhymes. [LI ZHEN-LI 947
Anthology of Chinese Literature
brings him a brush and inkstone. YANG takes the brush in hand and mulls over it a long time, as if ready to recite] I can't do as well as them; I might as well hide my weaknesses by decorating your white wall here with a few black-ink drawings of orchids. LI: That's even better! YANG [looking at the wall] : Here's a rock like a fist painted by Lan Ying. I can use his painting as a backg�ound and draw my orchids over at the side of the rock. [Paints and sings] The white wall glows like rippling silk, Here I sketch the Li Sao's poetic temper.2 Tender leaves and scented sheaths, rain-burdened, drunk in streaks of mist. This rock of Xuan-zhou, ink-flowers shattered, with several spots of gray moss, tingeing the pavements randomly.
[Goes back and looks at it] Not bad! No match, of course, for black-ink orchids done by masters of the Yuan, that mood of nonchalance, but our own famous beauties should wear Xiang orchids at their waists. LI: This is truly the brushwork of a master. You have added much beauty to our apartments . YANG: You're making fun of me. [To HEROINE] Tell me your professional name so that I can write it here in the dedication. HEROINE: I'm still young and don't have a professional name yet. Lr: Why don't you do her the honor of giving her a name ? YANG: There is a passage in The Zuo Tradition: " And because [the] orchid has the sweetest smell in all the land, people will wear it in their sashes and be fond of it. " 3 Why don't we call her Xiang-j un, " Queen of Sweet Fragrance" ? LI: Excellent! Xiang-j un, come over and thank Mr. Yang. XIANG-JUN [bowing] : Thank you very much, sir. YANG [laughing] : We even have a name for these chambers . [ Writes the ded ication] " In mid-spring, this sixteenth year of the Chong-zhen Reign, 1 643, I chanced to draw these orchids in ink in the Chambers of Beguiling Fragrance to win a smile from Xiang-jun, who is Queen of Sweet Fra grance. Yang Wen-cong of Gui-yang. " ' B y the e m b l ematic asso c i ations with i n the L i Sao itself, the orc h i d was, i n its sol itary p u rity, asso c i ated w i th Q u Y u a n . 3See p. 8 1 .
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The Qing Dynasty
LI: Both the paintings and the calligraphy are superb, worthy of acclaim as a double perfection. Thank you so much! [All sit] YANG: As I see it, Xiang-j un here may be the most beautiful woman in the land, but I don't know her level of skill in the arts . LI: She has always been spoiled and allowed to have her own way, so she didn't study anything . But j ust recently I've asked one of the habitues of the pleasure quarters to give her lessons in singing . YANG: Who is it ? LI: Someone called Su Kun-sheng. YANG: Yes, Su Kun-sheng. His real name is Zhou Ru-song, originally from He-nan and now a resident of Wu-xi. I have known him well for some time-he is a true master. What suites of songs has he taught her ? LI: The " Four Dream Plays " of Tang Xian-zu. YANG: How much of them has she learne d? LI: She' s j ust now learned half of Peony Pavilion. [ Calls to XIANG-JUN] Child, Mr. Yang here is no stranger to us. Get out your score and prac tice some of the songs you know. After your teacher quizzes you, you can try some new tunes. XIANG-JUN: How can I practice my singing with a guest present? LI: Don't be silly ! For those of us in the quarter the costume for singing and dancing is the endowment that provides us our food. How are you going to get by if you won't practice singing ? [XIANG-JUN looks at her score] LI [sings] : When born among bevies of powder and paint, and entering blossom and oriole troupes, a throat that can carry an aria is the place where we find our wealth. Don't lightly throw your heart away, but study "The early morning wind and dying moonlight sinking" ;4 then with red clapper's slow beat, from Yi-chun performers you'll steal the glow,S and tied before you gate will be seen horses of princes.
Enter Su KUN-sHENG, wearing a headband and in informal dress. Su [recites] : Idly I come to azure lodges to train my parakeet, lazily leaving vermilion gates to see the peonies. 4Th is p h rase is a d a p ted from a fa mous ly ric by the N o rthern Sung l y r i ci st Liu Yang. sYi-chun Pal ace was the site of the famous " Pear Garden Academy" of i mperial m u s i c i a n s and s i n gers d u r i n g the re i g n of X u an-zong in the Tang.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature
I am Su Kun-sheng. I've left Ruan Da-cheng's levee to come here to the plea sure quarters. Taking this beautiful girl through her lessons is certainly a lot better than toadying to that foster child of a eunuch. [Goes in and greets them] Well, Yang Wen-cong, fancy meeting you here. It's been some time. YANG: My compliments, Kun-sheng, on taking such a stunning beauty as a pupil. LI: Your teacher, Mr. Su, is here. Go pay him the proper welcome, child. XIANG-jUN bows. SU: No need for that. Have you memorized thoroughly the song I taught you yesterday? XIANG-jUN: I have. Su: We'll take advantage of Mr. Yang's presence as our audience to ask him for pointers as you go over it with me. YANG: I j ust want you to show me how it should be performed. XIANG-jUN [seated opposite Su, sings]:6 C o y lavenders, fetching reds bloom everywhere, here all given to this broken well and tumbled wall . Fair season, fine scene, overwhelming weather . . . Su: Wrong! Wrong! " Fair " gets a beat and " overwhelming" gets a beat; don't run the two clauses together. Let' s try it again. XIANG-jUN: Fair season, fine scene-overwhelming weather. Where and in whose garden shall we find pleasure and the heart's delight ? Drifting in at dawn, at twilight roll away clouds and colored wisps through azure balustrades streaming rain, petals in wind . . . Su: No, that's not right again. " Streaming " carries a special weight in the melody; it should be sung from the diaphragm. XIANG-jUN: streaming rain, petals in wind, a painted boat in misty waves, the girl behind her brocade screen has seen but dimly such splendor of spring. 6The aria she s i ngs is from "Wak i n g from Dream" in Peony Pavilion.
950
The Qing Dynasty
Su: Excellent! Excellent ! Exactly right! Let' s go on.
XIANG-JUN: Throughout green hills the nightjar cries its tears of blood; and out beyond the blackberry the threads of mist coil drunkenly. And though the peony be fair, how can it maintain its sway when spring is leaving ? Su: These lines are a bit rough. Try them again .
XIANG-JUN: And though the peony be fair, how can it maintain its sway when spring is leaving ? Idly I stare where twittering swallows crisply speak words cut clear, and from the warbling orioles comes a bright and liquid melody. Su: Fine ! Now you've completed another suite of songs . YANG [to LI ZHEN-U] : I'm pleased to see that your daughter is so quick. I have no doubt she will become a famous courtesan. [To Su ] I met y�ung Hou Fang-yu the other day, the son of Hou, the executive in the Min istry of Revenue. He is well provided for, and he also is known for his talent. At present he is looking for a woman of distinguished beauty. Do you know him, Kong-sheng? Su: Our families are from the same region. He is, indeed, a young man of great talent. YANG: We' d be making no mistake if we arranged a union between these two .
[Sings] Fair match for our Sapphire, now sixteen:7 she sings charming songs, he rides a sleek horse. He will lavish her with turban brocades,8 and hand i n hand they will drain their cups. Wedding poems will speed them to bed, a lacquered coach to greet the bride. With a rare young noble as her mate,
'Sap p h i re, B i -yu, was the l egendary co n c u b i n e of the P r i n c e of Ru-nan in the Southern Dyn asties. 8 B rocade u sed for turbans was the sta rl d a rd f i g ure for g i fts ( i . e . , payment) to a courtes a n .
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year after year she will never let her Ruan Zhao go away,9 by the spring waters of Peach Leaf Ford he will buy a cottage and stay.! U : It would be just wonderful if such a young gentleman were willing to come "do up her hair." I hope you will do what you can to help in bringing this match about. YANG: It is on my mind.
Lr [sings] : No pearl can compare to this girl of mine, who mimics the new oriole's sweet cries, in springtime closed behind many gates, never known by man. We can't waste such a glorious spring day. Let's go have a little wine downstairs. YANG: Sounds good to me. [Recites] In front of Little Su's curtain, flowers fill the meadow,2
Lr: orioles tipsy, swallows languid across the springtime banks .
XrANG-JuN: In my red silk handkerchief are fruits of cherry,
Su: waiting for Pan Yue's carriage to pass west of the lane.3 Having arranged the sale of X i ang-j u n ' s v i rg i n ity, Yang Wen-co n g anti c i pates a con ventional u n i o n of "ta lented youth and fa i r m a i d . " X i an g-j u n h as stud ied the rol e she i s to play. After a l l , as h e r m oth e r L i Zhen- l i rem i nds her, i t i s by p l a y i n g ro l es (si n g i n g i n m u s i c a l d rama and m a k i n g c u stomers fa l l i n l ove w i t h her) that she m u st make h e r I i v i n g . But i n stead o f becom i n g t h e actress-cou rtesan who mere l y p l ays roles, X i a ng
j u n l earns her ro l e too wel l and actu a l l y becomes the romantic hero i n e . I n t h e acts that fo l low, facti o n a l p o l i t i cs c reep i nto t h e convent i o n a l l ove m atc h . T h e vi l l a i n R u a n Da-cheng, r u d e l y scorned by t h e po l it i ca l l y p rogressive you n g men of N a nj i ng, i s l o o k i n g for someone to s u p p o rt his cause a n d win accepta nce fo r h i m a m o n g the local e l i te . Yang Wen-cong tel l s R u a n o f the m atch h e has p roposed be tween Li X i ang-j u n and Hou Fang-yu, and he s u ggests that i f R u a n were to p rovide
' T h e story of R u a n Z h a o and L i u Zhen's encou nter w i t h two i m m o rta l m a i d e n s i n the mounta i n s a n d t h e i r sta y i n g with them for more t h a n h a l f a year became a standard figure for l o s i n g oneself i n a love affa i r . "Young R u a n Goes Away," Ruan-lang gui, was a fa mous melody. ' Peach Leaf w a s a n other fa mous concu b i n e of the Southern Dynasties . Peach Leaf Ford, where W a n g X i a n -z h i of the Jin s u p posed l y wrote a q u atra i n t o the you n g lady i n quest i o n , w a s on the Q i n - H u a i R i ver, i n t h e a rea o f t h e p l ea s u re q u a rters o f N a n j i n g . ' L i tt l e S u w a s another famous cou rtesan o f t h e Southern Dynasties. 3The Jin writer Pan Yue was known for his good looks. One story h as i t that when he traveled i n h i s c a r r iage, t h e wom e n wou l d gathe r around h i m a n d th row fru i t t o h i m as a s i g n o f the i r attracti o n .
952
The Q ing Dynasty the "wedd i n g g i fts" (the p rice fo r Li X i a ng-j u n 's v i rg i n ity) , H o u F a n g-yu wou l d be obl i gated to ret u r n the favor a n d use h i s i nfl uence with his fri e n d s o n Ruan's b e h a lf. R u a n Da-c h e n g agrees to the p l a n eage r l y . Y a n g Wen-cong then m a kes the p roposal t o H o u F ang-y u , i nti mati n g t h a t Y a n g h i mself w i l l cover the cost of the wed d i n g g i fts . H e arranges f o r H o u F a n g-yu a n d L i X i ang-j u n t o meet, and H o u i s properly s m i tten by her beauty a n d shy charm . There is a "wed d i n g " b a n q u et a n d the c o u p l e go off h a pp i l y to bed . I n the sobriety of the morn i n g after, Li X i a n g-j u n , h it herto doc i l e a n d u s u a l l y s i l ent, beg i n s to speak fo r
h e rse l f, i n s i st i n g on l earn i n g the truth of where the wedd i n g gifts came fro m . When she knows the truth, she acts o n i t, causi ng the com p l i cati o n s that wi l l drive the p l ay's l ove sto ry. Hou F a n g-yu, o n the other h a n d , is i n it i a l l y m o re w i l l i n g to part i c i pate i n a wo r l d of compro m i ses .
REFUSING THE TROUSSEAU (VII), MAY 1 643
Enter SERVANT, picking up the nightstools. SERVANT: Tortoise piss, tortoise piss spews out little tortoises, blood of turtle, blood of turtle turns to little turtles fertile. Tortoise piss and turtle blood, whose is whose I cannot guess; turtle blood and tortoise piss, can't say if it's that or this. Whose is whose I cannot guess, can't say who the father is; who can tell one from another ? can't say who's the father's brother.
[Laughing] Tsk, tsk, tsk. Last night Miss Xiang-jun lost her virginity, and the hoopla went on half the night. I got up early today and have to scrub out the nightstools and empty the chamberpots. There's so much to get done. I wonder how much longer the client and our girl are going to spend in each other's arms. [Scrubs the nightstools] Enter YANG WEN-CONG. YANG [sings]: They spend nights deep in willow lanes of Ping-kang Ward,4 and outside the gate a flower peddler wakes them suddenly from dreams. The finely wrought door still unopened, and the curtain hooks are tinkling, 4The P i ng-kang Ward was the p l e a s ure q u a rter of the Tang capital C h a ng-an .
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with spring blocked off by ten layers of hanging lace. I've come early to offer Hou Fang-yu my congratulations, but as you can see, the door to the establishment is closed tight and there's not a sound from the servants . I suppose they ha ven't gotten up yet. [ Calls out] You, boy, go over to the newlyweds' window and tell them that I've come to offer my congratulations . SERVANT: They got to sleep rather late last night, and they may not have gotten up yet. Why don't you come again tomorrow, sir. YANG [laughing] : Don't be silly. Quick, now, go find out! LI [from within] : Boy, who's that who j ust came ? SERVANT: It's Yang Wen-cong, who 's come to offer his congratulations. L I [enters hurriedly, recites] : Head rests on pillow, spring nights too brief, but good often comes from a knock at the gate.
[ Greets YANG] Thank you so much for bringing about this lifelong union for my daughter. YANG: Think nothing of it. Have the newlyweds risen yet ? LI: They went to sleep late last night and still haven't gotten up yet. [Ges tures to YANG to sit] Please have a seat while I go hurry them up. YANG: There's no need for that. Exit LI ZHEN-LI. YANG [sings] : Young passion is heady like flower wine, so fine that they think of nothing else but to share that sweet black land of sleep. Which would have been impossible, of course, failing my help . Pearls and kingfisher feathers gleam, silks and satins ripple and rustle, each and every item of new attire is proclamation of love's desire .
Enter LI ZHEN-LI. LI: It's so charming. They're both in there buttoning each other up and look ing in the mirror to see how they look as a pair. They've finished comb ing and washing up, but they're not through with getting dressed. Let's go into their rooms together and call them out to drink a cup of wine to help their hangover. YANG: It was unforgivable of me to have woken them. [Exeunt]
Enter Hou FANG-YU and XIANG-JUN, fully made up. Hou and XIANG-JUN [sing] : Passion's cloud j oining to cloudburst and rain 954
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scratches a wondrous itch in the heart who now disturbs the sleeping pair of mated ducks ? Blankets heaved in waves of red, as we j oyously took full measure of all love's pleasure. A lingering scent on the pillow, a lingering scent on the handkerchief, sensations that melt the rapturous soul tasted now as we rise from dream.
Enter YANG WEN-CONG and LI ZHEN-LI. YANG: Well, you've gotten up at last. Congratulations . [He bows, then sits] Did you like the wedding night verse I wrote for you yesterday evening ? Hou [bowing] : Thank you very much. [Laughs] It was the height of excel lence-except for one little point . . . YANG: What little point ? Hou: However tiny Xiang-jun may be, she deserves be kept in a chamber of gold, but [looks in his sleeves] how would I get her in my sleeves ? 5
All laugh. YANG: I'm sure you also must have written something fine last night when you two declared your love. Hou: I j ust scribbled out something hastily-I wouldn't dare show you. YANG: And where is the poem? XIANG-JUN: The poem is on the fan. XIANG-JUN takes the fan out of her sleeve and gives it to YANG WEN-CONG,
who looks it over. YANG: It's a white satin palace fan. [Sniffs it] And it has a subtle aroma. [Re
cites the poem] " Blue mansions line the road, a single path slants through, here the prince first drives the Count of Fu-ping's coach . Everywhere upon Blue Creek there are magnolia treesno match for blooms of peach and plum in the east wind of spring. " 6
'The H a n emperor Wu-d i s a i d that if h e cou l d get A-j i ao a s h i s consort, h e wou l d keep h e r in a c h a m ber of gol d . H o u Fang-yu is refe r r i n g to a l i n e in Yang's poem in w h i c h s h e wou l d be " h idden i n his s l eeves," s uggest i n g a n e m b race rather than H o u F a ng-yu's j o k i n g i nter p retatio n . 6The poem i s not repeated i n th i s act, b u t I h ave i n c l uded it fro m scene V I . The poem is, i n fact, a variation on one by the h i sto r i c a l H o u Fang-y u . The p r a ise of " peach a n d p l u m " over the magno-
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Excellent ! Only Xiang-jun would not be put to shame by this poem. [Hands it back to XIANG-JUN] Take care of it. [XIANG-JUN puts away the
fan. YANG sings] Scent of peach and scent of plum, fragrance at its sweetest, all written on a satin fan. Lest they meet the tossing gusts of wild winds, hide it close within your sleeve, hide it close within your sleeve.
[Looks at XIANG-JUN] After her wedding night, Xiang-j un seems to have an even more sensual beauty. [To Hou FANG-Yu] You're a lucky man to enj oy this splendid creature. Hou: Xiang-jun's natural beauty makes her the fairest in the land, but the pearl and kingfisher ornaments that she wears in her hair today and all her silken finery add something extra to her utterly flowerlike beauty. She is entirely lovable. LI: This is all thanks to Mr. Yang's assistance. [Sings] He sent the turbans of brocade, the chests of varied gems, fringed curtains wound with pearls and kingfisher feathers, silver candlesticks, shades of gauze shining through the night, golden cups for offering wine to go along with song at feasts . And now he has come to see you so early today. As though you were his very own children he raised himself, first providing the needed trousseau, now also paying this early call. XIANG-JUN: It seems to me, Mr. Yang, that even though you're a close rela tive of the governor-general, Ma Shi-ying, you are in rather difficult fi nancial circumstances yourself and live on the goodwill of others; why should you so casually throw away your money into the bottomless pit of the pleasure quarters ? For my own part, I am embarrassed to receive it; and on your side, it was given anonymously. Please make things clear to us so that we can plan how to repay such generosity. Hou: Xiang-jun is quite right to ask this. You and I have met like duckweeds drifting on the water; your show of kindness the other day was so gen erous that I feel uncomfortable. l i a p l ays on X i a n g-j u n ' s s u rname L i , w h i c h i s the word for " p l u m . " Peach b l ossoms w i l l p l ay an even l arger ro l e i n the p l a y .
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YANG: Since I have been asked, I can only tell you the truth. The trousseau and the party cost somewhat over two hundred pieces of silver, and all of it came from a gentleman from Huai-ning. Hou: Who from Huai-ning ? YANG: Ruan Yuan-hai, who was the head of the Court of Imperial Entertainments. Hou: Do you mean Ruan Da-cheng from An-hui ? YANG: That's right. Hou: Why has he been so lavish ? YANG: He simply wants to become acquainted with you.
[Sings] He admires your prospects and panache, your name for talent like Luo-yang's Zuo Si, your writings like those of Si-ma Xiang-ru. Wherever you go, you find welcome; all crowd around the young man in the coach.7 I n the finest spots of the Qin-Huai you sought a fair maiden for your side, but you lacked the spread for the marriage bed and lotus make-up. You wonder who did thisthe senior Ruan of the southern branchs put himself out for your wedding apparel. Hou: Ruan Da-cheng was an acquaintance of my father's, but I despise him and have had nothing to do with him for a long time. I can't understand this unexpected show of generosity to me now. YANG: Ruan Da-cheng has a problem that troubles him and he would like to put it before you. Hou: Please explain. YANG: Ruan Da-cheng used to be associated with Zhao Nan-xing and was one of our own.9 When he later became associated with the faction of Wei Zhong-xi an, the eunuch, it was only to protect the East Grove fac tion.l He had no idea that once the Wei Zhong-xian faction was defeated, the East Grove faction would treat him like an arch enemy. Members of the Restoration Society have recently advocated attacking him, and they viciously beat up and humiliated him. This is a fight within the same household. Even though Ruan Da-cheng has many former associates, no one will try to explain his side of the story because his actions were so 'The reference aga i n i s to Pan Vue. 'Th i s refers specifica l l y t o the Wei poet and eccentric R u a n J i , to whom R u a n D a - c h e n g is, some what outrageously, compared . 'Zhao N a n - x i n g had been a sen i o r M i n g offi c i a l who was unjustly denou nced and sent i nto ex i l e b y t h e W e i Zhong-x i a n faction. 'The East G rove Society was a g ro u p of l ate Ming i nte l l ectu a l s ded icated to reform i n g the Ming gov ern ment. After they were p u rged, a s u ccessor group, the Resto ration S o c i ety, was formed .
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dubious. Every day he weeps toward Heaven, saying, " It is painful to be so savaged by one's own group . No one but Hou Fang-yu of He-nan can save me. " This is the reason that he now seeks so earnestly to make your acquaintance. Hou: Well, in this case I can see why he feels such anguish, and it seems to me that he deserves some pity. Even if he had really been a member of Wei Zhong-xi an's faction, he's come around again and is sorry for his mistakes. One shouldn't ostracize him so absolutely, and even less if there's an explanation for what he did. Ding-sheng and Ci-wei are both close friends of mine. I'll go see them tomorrow and try to resolve this. YANG: It would be a great blessing for us if you would do this. XIANG-JUN [angrily] : What are you saying ! Ruan Da-cheng rushed to j oin the corrupt men in power and lost all sense of shame. There is not a grown woman Or young girl who would not spit on him and curse him. If you try to save him when others attack him, what camp will you be putting yourself in?
[Sings] You aren't thinking when you speak like this so frivolously. You want to rescue him from ruin, you want to rescue him from ruin, but beware lest the j udgment fall on you. The only reason you're going to speak for him is because he provided my trousseau; that is disregarding the common good and selling oneself for private benefit. Don't you realize that I find all these bangles and hair pins and skirts and gowns beneath contempt. [She pulls out hairpins and
takes off gown] I take off these skirts, accepting poverty; in homespun and simple adornments a person's name smells sweet.2 YANG: You're being far too hot-tempered, Xiang-jun. LI: What a pity to throw away such fine things on the floor! [She picks them
up] Hou: Splendid! Her j udgment in this matter is better than mine. I truly stand in awe of her. [To YANG] Please don't think ill of me in this. It's not that I wouldn't accept your suggestion, but I fear the scorn of women.
[Sings] In the pleasure quarters' lanes they can lecture on principle and good name; while school and court, while school and court 21n th i s l i ne, X i ang-j u n is p l ay i n g on her name, " Q u een of Sweet Fragra nce."
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confuse virtue and vice, and cannot tell black from white. My friends in the Restoration Society have always held me in esteem be cause of my sense of right. But if I associate myself with someone who is corrupt, they will all rise and attack me; and I won't have a chance to save myself, not to mention someone else. Principles and good name are no common things; one must consider carefully what is serious and what is negligible. YANG: Considering Ruan Da-cheng's goodwill, you shouldn't act so drasti cally. Hou: I may be foolish, but I'm not going to throw myself in a well to save someone else. YANG: In that case, I will take my leave. Hou: All these things in the chests belong to Rlian D a-cheng. Since Xiang j un has no use for them, there's no point in keeping them, so would you have them taken away? YANG: As the couplet goes: One full of feeling finds himself upset by lack of feeling, I came here following my whim; the whim done, I return.3 [Exit]
XIANG-JUN shows herself upset. Hou [looking at XIANG-JUN] : When I look at your natural beauty, pulling out a few pearls and feathers and taking off your fine silken gown, your perfect beauty is doubled in its perfection, and I think you are even more lovable. LI: Whatever you say, it's still too bad to give up so many fine things.
[Sings] Gold and pearls come to you, you carelessly throw them away; these spoiled and childish poses betray all my hard efforts to sponsor you. Hou: These things aren't worth brooding over. I'll make the loss good in kind. LI: Then it will be all right.
[Recites] The money spent on powder and paint costs some consideration, 3Th i s coup l et, q u oted as p roverb i a l , i s constructed of a l i ne from a l y r i c by S u Shi and a metrical rep h ras i n g o f a passage i n New Stories and Tales of the Times.
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XIANG-jUN: homespun skirts and hairpins of twig do not bother me. Hou: What matters is our Xiang Princess could take off her pendants,4 XIANG-jUN: the standard of taste does not follow the fashions of the times. Ruan Da-c h e n g, i nfu r i ated by Hou F a ng-yu ' s refu sal of his wedd i n g g i fts, u ses the o p po rt u n ity of u n rest in the army to accuse Hou of p l otti n g rebe l l i o n . Yang Wen cong h u rries to warn Hou F a n g-yu to escape befo re he is arreste d . After p a rti n g from X i ang-j u n , who swea rs to re m a i n fa ithfu l to h i m , Hou p uts h i mself u n d e r the p ro tect ion of the g reat general S h i Ke-fa, a friend of H o u ' s fath e r . Meanwh i l e the M i n g a r m i e s are col l ap s i n g everywhere, the rebel L i Z i -c h e n g takes B e i j i n g , a n d the M i ng e m peror c o m m its s u i c i d e . The M a n c h u a r m i e s of the Q i n g come down fro m the Northeast and take North C h i n a (an event treated in the p l ay o n l y with the utm ost d i sc reti o n ) . A n ew M i ng reg i m e is esta b l i s h ed in the South, with its capital in N a n j i n go The n e w e m peror i s a figu rehead, the d ra m a - l ov i ng fo rmer P r i n c e F u , w i t h the v i l l a i n s M a S h i-yi n g and Ruan Da-c h e n g as the powers beh i n d the throne. W i t h H o u Fang-yu out o f t h e p i ctu re, Y a n g Wen-cong suggests t o Ma Sh i-ying a n ew m atch for X i ang-j u n . When she refu ses, offi cers are sent to compel her to remarry. Yang goes a l o n g to try to p revent tro u b l e . X i ang-j u n persi sts in her refu sal and tries to com m i t s u i c id e by b a n g i n g her head o n the floor-sta i n i n g the fan , her wed d i n g gift from Hou Fang-yu, with spots of her b l ood. See i n g that X i a ng-j u n w i l l harm herself if they persi st, Li Zhen-l i offers to go in X i a n g-j u n ' s p l ace. Li Zhen- l i is taken off, and as the next scene opens, X i a ng-j u n i s l eft a l o n e in the hou se, l amenting her fate.
SENDING THE FAN (XXIII), JANUARY
1645
Enter XIANG-jUN, looking ill, her head wrapped with a kerchief as bandage. XIANG-jUN [sings ]: These icy silks pierced through by wind's harsh chill, the heart too dull to light the scented brazier. The single thread of blood, here at the tip of brow, is a more becoming red than red of rouge. My lonely shadow stands in fear, 4Wh en goddesses such as the X i a n g Pri ncess (Xiang-jun, p u n n i n g on X i ang-j u n' s name) take off the i r pendants, it i s u s u a l l y t h e s i g n o f p l ighting troth with a m a n; here it seems t o refer t o X i ang-j u n's stri p p i n g away h e r ornaments i n rejecting the tro u ssea u .
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a weak soul tossed about, my life suspended as by a spring floss strand. A frosty moonlight fills the upper rooms, the nighttime stretches on and on, and daylight will not melt this pain.
[Sits] In a moment when I had no other choice, I inflicted wounds on my own flesh as the only way to save myself. By doing so I managed to keep my honor intact. But now I lie here, sick and alone in these empty rooms, under cold blankets within chilly bed curtains, with no companion. It's so cold and lonely here. Freezing clouds and patchy snow block Long Bridge, the red mansions are closed up tight, and men seeking pleasure, few. Low beyond the balcony the lines of geese write signs in the skies, and from the curtained windows icicles hang; the charcoal chills, the incense burns away, and I grow gaunt in the sharp evening wind. Though I live here in the blue mansions of the pleasure quarters, all scenes of love and passion are finished for me from now on. Past patterned doors winds wail, the parrot calls for tea, its skill displayed for its pleasure alone; the chambers are still, the snow white cat hugs the pillow sound asleep . My skirt, pomegranate red, ripped to shreds, waist dancing in wind, and phoenix-decorated boots, slit to pieces the wave-pacing soles; with sorrow's increase sickness grows, never again will these chambers allow the turmoil of passion. I think back on when Hou Fang-yu had to flee for his life in such haste, and now I don't know where he's gone. How can he know that I am liv ing here alone in this empty house, protecting my honor for his sake?
[Rises and sings] I recall how in an instant all thrill of charming song was swept away, 961
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at midnight passion's flood forsaken; I look for him at Peach Leaf Ford, I seek him out by Swallow Jetty j ust hills with roiling clouds where winds blow high, and wild geese faint and far. Who would have thought that though the plums will bloom again reliably, the man would be still farther away? I lean on the balcony and concentrate my gaze, but autumn floods from lovely eyes are frozen hard by sour wind. It enrages me how the servants of that evil man crowded into my gate and insisted that I get married. How could I ever betray Hou Fang y u? They took advantage of a courtesan whose fate is fragile, not her own; their awful arrogance depended on the Minister's authority. To keep this alabaster body pure I could not help rending these features like flower. The saddest thing of all is how my mother sacrificed herself for my sake and was whisked away. [Points] See her bed there as it always was, but when will she come back? Just like a petal of peach, borne on snow-capped billows, or floss of willow, tossed in wind; her sleeves hid a face like the breeze of spring, as she left the court of Han at dusk.s Such loneliness-the dust that covers her quilt not brushed away; a silence where a flower bloomed, which I admire alone. A rush of sourness catches me unawares when I consider this. It seems to goad me in the heart, so many teardrops spilled. No girlfriends call me away to idle pastimes, 5Li Z h e n - l i's forced m a r r i age (in X i ang-j u n ' s pl ace) i s here compared to Wang Zh ao-j u n being sent f r o m the Han c o u rt to m a rry the X i o n g - n u Khan.
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I listen to the clack of hooks hanging from the curtain. Sitting here with nothing to do, I'll take out the fan with Hou Fang-yu's poem and look at it. [She takes out fan] Oh no! It's ruined, stained all over with drops of my blood. What am I going to do ? Look at them-some far apart, some thick together, dark spots and pale, with fresh blood haphazardly stained. Not sprinkled from the nightj ar's tears, these are the peach blooms of my cheeks turned to a red rain, falling speck after speck, splattering the icy silk. Oh Hou Fang-yu! This was all for you. You caused me to dishevel hair's cloudy coils and mar my slender waist; Senseless I lay like the Consort on Ma-wei's slope interred;6 my blood streamed like the concubine who leapt from tower's heights. ? I feared the shouts of those below and left my too frail soul uncalled. In silver mirror, afterglow of scarlet cloud, and on the lovers' pillow, red tears in spring flood. In the heart a rancor sprouts, and melancholy sits upon the brows, I washed away the rouge, that stained the seafolk gauze. I feel a weariness coming over me. I'll doze here a moment at my dress ing table. [Falls asleep on the fan]
Enter YANG WEN-CONG in everyday clothes. YANG [recites] : I recognize this red mansion that slants on the water's face, a row of dying willows bearing the last of the crows. 6The reference here i s t o Yang the Pri zed Con sort, whose death was demanded by the i m pe r i a l g u a rd when X u a n -zong fled C h a n g-a n . 'G reen Pearl, t h e con c u b i n e of S h i Cho ng, th rew herself from a tower rather t h a n b e taken from h i m by a powerfu l enemy.
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Enter Su KUN-SHENG. Su [recites] : The silver harp and castanets, a lovely maiden's yard, now with wind-blown snow the same as the home of a recluse. YANG [turning his head and greeting him] : Ah ! Good to see you, Mr. Suo Su: After Li Zhen-li got married, Xiang-jun has been living alone. I can't stop worrying about her, so I always come by to visit. YANG: The day that Li Zhen-li had to go, I stayed with Xiang-j un the entire night, but I've been so busy at the office these past few days that I haven't been able to get away. Just now I was going to the eastern part of the city to pay a visit, and I thought I'd look in on her.
They enter her apartments. Su: Xiang-jun won't come downstairs, so why don't we go upstairs to talk to her. YANG: Fine. [Th ey climb stairs. YANG points] Look how depressed and sickly Xiang-jun seems, all worn out dozing there at her dressing table. Let's not wake her up for a while. Su: Her fan is spread out here by her face. Why does it have so many splotches of red ? YANG: This was Hou Fang-yu's wedding gift to her. She has always kept it hidden and wasn't willing to show it. I imagine she's left it out here to dry because it got stained with blood from her face. [Pulls away fan and looks at it] These spots of blood are a gorgeous red ! I'll add some branches and leaves and decorate it for her. [Thinks] But I don't have any green paint. Su: I'll pick some of these plants in the flowerpots and squeeze fresh sap from them-that can serve in place of paint. YANG: An excellent idea. [Su KUN-SHENG squeezes plants and YANG paints
and recites] The leaves share the green of aromatic plants, the blooms draw their red from a lady fair.
The painting is finished. Su KUN-SHENG looks at it with delight. Su: Superb ! It's some broken sprays of peach blossoms.
YANG [laughing] : It's a true peach blossom fan. XIANG-jUN [waking startled] : Mr. Yang, Mr. Su, I'm glad to see you both. Please forgive me. [She invites them to sit down] YANG: During these past few days when I haven't come to look in on you, the wound on your forehead has gotten better. [Laughs] I have a painted fan here that I would like to present to you. [Hands fan to XIANG-jUN] XIANG-jUN [looking at it] : This is my oId fan that was ruined by bloodstains ! I can't even look at it. [Puts it in her sleeve] 964
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SU: But there's some marvelous painting on it-how can you not take a look and admire it ? XIANG-JUN: When was this painting done ? YANG: It's my fault. I've j ust ruined it. XIANG-JUN [looks at the fan and sighs] : Ah! The unhappy fate of peach blos soms, tossed and fallen on this fan. Thank you, Mr. Yang, for painting my own portrait in this.
[Sings] Every blossom breaks the heart, lazily smiling in springtime breeze; every petal melts the soul, sadly swirled in the current. Fetching colors freshly picked, drawn from nature; even old masters like Xu Xi could hardly have painted these.s Vermilion's tint is mixed on cherry lips, first sketch made on lotus cheeks, then in a few strokes, red peach blooms, depicting the truth within. You added some azure twigs and leaves, remarkably fresh and fair, and of an unfortunate woman drew the portrait in blooms of peach. YANG: Now that you have this peach blossom fan, you need a companion like Zhou Yu to notice you and appreciate you.9 Do you really mean to live here as a widow in the spring of your life like Chang E in the moon ? XIANG-JUN: D on't go on like this. Guan Pan-pan was also a courtesan, and didn't she stay locked up in Swallow Tower until old age ?l Su: I f Hou Fang-yu were t o come back tomorrow, wouldn't you come down from your tower then ? XIANG-JUN: In that case I'd have a glorious married life ahead and would enj oy everything. I wouldn't j ust come down from my tower, I'd want to go roaming everywhere. YANG: We don't often see such a long-suffering sense of honor these days. [To Su KUN-SHENG] Mr. Su, I would feel a lot less worried if you would go find Hou Fang-yu and bring him back here, out of the affection of a teacher for his student. 8XU X i was a famous pai nter of flowers and vegetati o n of the tenth centu ry_ 'L itera l ly, " a you ng m aster Zhou to pay attention to the t u n e , " refe r r i n g to Zhou Yu, the adm i ra l of the Wu fleet in the Th ree K i ngdoms, who was said to have had a parti c u l a r l y f i n e ear for m u sic. Y a n g Wen-cong i s , of cou rse, conti n u i n g h i s c a m p a i g n to h ave her remarry. 1 Pan-pan, the con c u b i n e of the powerfu l Tang m i l itary governor Zhang J i a n-fe n g, refused to rem arry after his death . Although such behavior was considered proper for fi rst w i ves, i t was an u n us u a l s i g n o f d evotion on the part o f a concu b i n e .
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SU: Yes, I've had it in mind to go visit him for some time now, and I've found out that he served on the Huai for half a year with Shi Ke fa, then from the Huai he came to Nanjing, and from Nanj ing he went to Yang-zhou. Now he's gone off again with the army of General Gao Jie to defend the Yellow River. I was going to go back to my home town soon, and on the way I can go look for him when I have the chance. [ To XIANG-JUN] It would be a good idea if I had a letter from you. XIANG-JUN [to YANG WEN-CONG] : My words come out without literary pol ish. Would you write for me Mr. Yang ? YANG: Just tell me how to write what is in your heart. XIANG-JUN: Just let me think a moment . . [Thinks] No, no ! All my griefs and sufferings are on the fan, so take the fan with you. Su [delighted] : Well, this is a whole new style in personal letters. XIANG-JUN: Wait while I wrap it up. [ Wraps up fan, then sings] : He plied the brush's silvery hairs and will know these lines he wrote before. Specks stain the red marks of the dice newly painted, hold it fast. For though the fan be small, it has heart's blood, ten thousand streaks; wrapped up in my handkerchief, with hairribbon wound about, saying much more than palindrome brocade.2 Su [taking the fan]: I 'll take good care of it and deliver it for you. XIANG-JUN: When are you going to leave ? Su: I'll get my things ready in the next few days. XIANG-JUN: I j ust hope that you'll set out soon. Su: All right. YANG: Let's go downstairs now. [To XIANG-JUN] Take good care of your self. When we tell Hou Fang-yu of the hardships you have endured to stay true to him, he will naturally come to get you. Su: I won't be back before I leave. As they say, [recites] A new letter sent afar: the peach blossom fan, YANG [capping couplet] : a yard forever shut up tight: the Tower of the Swallows.3 [Exeunt] XIANG-JUN [wiping away tears] : Mama hasn't returned and now my teacher is going away too. It's going to be even more lonely closed up here in my room. .
'This refers to the famous palindrome woven into brocade by Su H u i and sent to her husband, both to express her l ove and to call him home. 'The Tower of the Swa l l ows i s where Guan Pan-pan, the beloved con c u b i n e of Zhang Ji an-feng, shut herse l f up after his death .
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[Sings] The warbler's throat has done with melodies of North and South, the icy strings have given up tunes of Sui and Chen, my lips will no more play the pipes, the flute is thrown aside, the mouth organ is broken, and castanets are cast away. I wish only the fan's swift delivery, that my teacher be ready to set off soon; Let my young Liu come on the third of May,4 then hand in hand we'll come down from the tower, and eat our fill of peach blossom grue[.5
[Recites] The letter will reach the garden of Liang ere the snow has melted, when the path along Blue Creek will be blocked by springtime floods . Peach Root and Peach Leaf are visited by none,6 by Ding-zi Curtain there is a broken bridge.7 Hou Fang-yu fi n a l l y receives the fan and m akes his way b a c k t o N anj i ng, o n l y to d i scover that, through the m ac h i n ations of Ruan Da-cheng, X i ang-j u n has been taken away i nto the i m pe r i a l h a rem to perform fo r the d ra m a - l ov i n g e m peror. A l o n g with a group of his friends, H o u F a n g-yu i s arrested fo r h i s ties to the Resto rat i o n Soc i ety
and th rown i n to p r i so n . Meanw h i le, the Southern M i n g is c ru m b l i n g befo re the Q i n g a r m i e s adva n c i n g o n N anj i ng. A s t h e c i ty i s about t o fa l l , X i a n g-j u n a n d H o u F a n g yu escape separately, a n d they m a ke t h e i r way to refu ge i n the mou ntai n s . Aro u n d t h e central l ove sto ry a re n u merous s u b p l ots t h at tel l t h e g r a n d sto ry of the destru cti on of the M i n g Dyn asty . The th reads of a l l these i nterwove n stories come together in scene X L , "Accepti n g the Way," p re s i ded over by Zhang We i , o r i g i n a l l y an offi cer i n t h e i mpe r i a l gu ard i n B e i j i n g w h o h a d b u r i ed t h e C h o n g-zhen e m peror after his s u i c i d e . Z h a n g Wei had m a d e h i s way to the Southern M i n g cou rt in N a n j i n go Th ere h e w a s g i v e n a h i gh post but eventu a l l y grew d i s i l l u s i o ned b y t h e cor ruption and theatrical fa l seness of the reg i m e . H i s d ec i s i o n to wit hd raw from p u b l i c l ife was i n s p i red by another p a i n t i n g of peach b l osso m s-th i s o n e of the i d y l l i c
4The reference i s to L i u Zhen. 'Th i s w a s evidently a c u stom o f Luo-ya n g for t h e Cold Food Festiva l . 'For Peach Leaf, see note o n p . 952; Peach Root was her s i ster. ' D i n g-zi C u rta i n was a spot in the N a n j i n g p l e a s u re q u a rters.
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Anthology of Chinese Literature retreat of Peach B l ossom S p r i n g . The p a i n t i n g was d o n e by Lan Y i ng, who h ad taken u p res i d e nce in X i ang-j u n ' s q u a rters after she was carried off to the i m pe r i a l palace; and it was L a n Y i n g , work i n g o n th i s p a i n t i n g, w h o m H o u F a n g-yu had d i scovered o n c om i n g back to Na nj i n g and go i n g in search of X i ang-j u n . I nd eed, H o u F a n g-yu h i m self writes the i n scription o n the p a i n t i n g t h at h e l ps c o n v i n c e Z h a n g Wei to with d raw. When Z h a n g Wei l eaves p u b l i c l i fe, h e becomes t h e a b bot oLa D ao i st m o n astery i n the m o u n ta i n s , the very mon astery i n w h i c h gather the various fi g u res in the play after flee i n g Nanj i n g . In t h e fi rst p a rt o f "Accepti n g t h e Way," Z h a n g W e i l a m e nts t h e C h ong-z h e n em peror (the M i n g e m peror who had taken his own l ife when B e i j i n g fe l l ) ; then Z h a n g h a s v i s i o n s of the loya l i sts w h o d i ed defe n d i n g the dynasty . We p i c k u p the scene as X i a n g-j u n and Hou Fa ng-yu come from separate d i rections to l i sten to Zhang Wei ' s serm o n . X i ang-j u n i s acco m p a n i ed by B i a n Yu-j i n g, a fo rmer cou rtesan w h o has be come a D ao i st n u n , w h i l e Hou F a n g-yu is acco m p a n i ed by a Dao i st pri est, D i n g J i z h i , a former b a l l adeer.
FROM "ACCEPTING THE WAY" (XL ) , SEPTEMBER
1645
Enter BIAN YU-]ING, leading XIANG-]UN. BIAN YU-]ING: The greatest j oy in Heaven and among mortal men comes from doing good. We and a group of Daoist nuns have just strung up votive banners before the altar to Empress Zhou, and now we come to the lec ture hall to listen to the abbot's sermon. XIANG-]UN: May I j ust come along ? BIAN YU-]ING [pointing] : See all the Daoists and laypersons in the two side porches; there are too many to count, so there shouldn't be any prob lem with you watching. [ BIAN bows before the altar] Your disciple Bian Yu-jing prostrates herself. [Together with XIANG-]UN, she stands back to
one side] Enter DING ]I-ZHI. DING ]I-ZHI: Hard to be born in human form, hard to learn of the Way. [He bows before the altar] Your disciple Ding ]i-zhi prostrates himself. [Calls out] Hou Fang-yul This is the lecture hall. To come here will bring you J OY·
Enter Hou FANG-YU hurriedly. Here I am. Long weary of the sufferings of the secular world, I now see the path that can lead to immortality. [Stands back to one side with DING ] I-ZHI] ZHANG WEI [hitting his lectern] : You good folk listening in the wings, you should abandon your worldly hearts utterly, for only then can you seek the path that will lead you upward. If you still have even a grain of base
Hou:
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passlOn, you will have to endure a thousand more revolutions of the karmic cycle. Hou [looks at XIANG-jUN from behind the fan and is startled] : That's Xiang jun standing over there. How did she come to be here ? [He pushes for
ward urgently] XIANG-jUN [sees him and is startled] : Hou Fang-yu, I almost died of longing for you.
[Sings] I think back on how you abruptly left me, faint and far across the silvery River of Stars no bridge could span, a barrier higher than the very edge of sky. No way to convey a letter, I struggled in vain to reach you in dream, and yet the passion did not end; and when I escaped, the road to you seemed even further away. Hou [pointing to the fan] : When I looked at these peach blossoms on the fan, I wondered how I would ever repay your love.
[Sings] See how fresh blood covered the fan and bloomed into red blossoms of peach, as they say flowers fell from Dharma Heaven.8 XIANG-jUN andHou FANG-YU examine the fan together. DING JI-ZHI pulls away Hou FANG-YU, while BIAN YU-jING pulls away XIANG-jUN. BIAN YU-jING: The abbot is at the altar. You can't go discussing how you feel about one another now! Hou FANG-YU and XIANG-jUN cannot be restrained. ZHANG WEI slams his
hand on the lectern in fury. ZHANG WEI: What sort of young people are you, making love talk in a place like this ? [He comes quickly down from the altar, snatches the fan out of Hou FANG-YU'S and XIANG-jUN'S hands, tears it up, and throws it on the ground] These pure and unsullied precincts of the Way have no room for lecherous young men and loose girls to get together and flirt with one another. 8When Abbot G u a ng-cheng reached the best part in his l ectures o n the s utras, flowers were s u p posed to h ave fa l l e n from H eaven .
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CAl YI-SO [recognizing them] : Aiya ! This is Hou Fang-yu of He-nan. Your Reverence knew him once . ZHANG WEI: Who's the girl ? LAN YING: I know her. She's Xiang-jun. I used to live in her apartments. She is Hou Fang-yu's concubine. ZHANG WEI: And where ha ve the two of them come from? DING JI-ZHI: Hou is staying at my Lodge of Finding the Genuine. BIAN YU-lING: Li Xiang-jun is staying at my Retreat of the Genuine Accu mulated. Hou [bowing to ZHANG WEI] : This is Master Zhang Wei, who was so mer ciful to me in the past. ZHANG WEI: So you're Hou Fang-yu. I'm glad you were able to escape from prison. Did you know that it was on account of you that I renounced the world? Hou: How could I have known ? CAl YI-SO: I am Cai Yi-s o. I also renounced the world on account of you. I'll tell you at leisure how all this came to pass . LAN YING: I am Lan Ying. I brought Xiang-j un here looking for you, but I didn't think we would finally meet you. Hou: Xiang-jun and I will need lifetimes to repay your kindness in taking us in, Ding Ji-zhi and Bian Yu-jing, and to repay the feeling you two showed in guiding us, Cai Yi-so and Lan Ying. XIANG-lUN: And don't forget Su Kun-sheng, who accompanied me here. Hou: And Liu Jing-ting, who came with me . XIANG-lUN: The way in which Su and Liu stayed with us through everything, without flinching in desperate situations, is even more moving. Hou: When my wife and I get home, we hope to repay you all for every thing. ZHANG WEI: In all this babbling and jabbering, what do you think you are talking about ? Great upheavals have turned Heaven and Earth upside down, and you're still clinging to the love and passion that has taken root within you. Isn't this ludicrous ! Hou: You are wrong in this ! A man and a woman founding a household has always been the primary human relationship, a focus for love through separation and reunion, through grief and joy. How can you be con cerned about this ? ZHANG WEI [furiously] : Aaah ! Two besotted worms . Just where is your na tion, where is your family, where is your prince, where is your father? Is it only this little bit of romantic love you can't cut away ?
[Sings] Pathetic trifling of man and maid the world turned upside down and you don't care; you babble on with wanton phrases, lurid words, 970
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tugging clothes and holding hands, declare a happily-ever-after to the gods. Don't you realize that long ago your fated wedlock was erased from registries in Heaven? With thudding wingbeats mated ducks wake from dream and fly apart, the precious mirror of reunion lies in fragments on the ground, happy endings proved unsound . Blush at this bad performance of your scene, inspiring bystanders' laughterthe great path lies before you clear, flee on it immediately! Hou [bowing] : What you have j ust said makes a cold sweat run down me, as if suddenly waking up from a dream. ZHANG WEI: Did you understand ? Hou: I understood. ZHANG WEI: Since you understood, go accept Ding ]i-zhi as your teacher right here and now. Hou FANG-YU goes and bows to DING ]I-ZHI. XIANG-jUN: I also understood. ZHANG WEI: Since you understood, right here and now go accept Bian Yu j ing as your teacher. XIANG-jUN goes and bows to BIAN YU-jING. ZHANG WEI [instructing DING and BIAN] : Dress them for the parts of Daoists. Hou FANG-YU and XIANG-jUN change clothes. DING and BIAN: Would Your Reverence please take the seat at the altar so that we can present our disciples to you. ZHANG WEI climbs back to the altar and seats himself DING ]I-ZHI leads Hou FANG-YU and BIAN YU-jING leads XIANG-jUN before him; they bow. ZHANG WEI [sings]: Weed out the sprouts of passion, weed out the sprouts of passion and behold j ade leaves and boughs of gold wither up and die; cut out the embryo of love, cut out the embryo of love and hear phoenix chick and dragon spawn cry out. 971
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Bubble swirling in the water, bubble swirling in the water, a spark struck from flint, a spark struck from flint; half this life adrift remains and now you will learn the Teaching.
[Pointing] The male has his proper domain, which lies to the south and corresponds to the trigram Li; go then at once south of the southern mountains, where you will learn the Genuine and study the Way. Hou: Yes. Now I understand the rightness of the great Way, and feel regret recognizing the strength of my passion. [Exit DING ]I-ZHI to the left, lead ing Hou FANG-YU] ZHANG WEI [pointing] : The female has her proper domain, which lies to the north and matches the trigram Kan; go then at once north of the north ern mountains, where you will learn the Genuine and study the Way. XIANG-JUN: Yes. In the turn of a head everything all proved to be illusion. Who was that man facing me? [Exit BIAN YU-JING to the right, leading XIANG-JUN] ZHANG WEI [descending from the altar with a loud laugh; sings] : Note that when those two parted no lovelorn glances passed. Thanks to my having ripped shred by shred the peach blossom fan, no more may besotted worms spin their soft cocoons of thread enwrapping themselves a thousand times.
[Recites] White bones and blue ashes lie forever in the weeds, the peach blossom fan bids goodbye to a southern dynasty. Never again will come those dreams of glory and the fall, but when will love of man and maid melt away once and for all?
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Ho n g Shen g ( 1 6 05- 1 7 04 ) , The Palace of Lasting Life: Se I ected Acts
�
The l o n g trad ition of vers i o n s of the l ove story between the Tang em peror X u a n-zong a n d Yang the Prized Conso rt c u l m i n ated in The Palace of Lasting Life (Chang-sheng
dian), a d ramatic ro mance in fifty scenes by H o n g S h e n g . The fi rst d raft of the p l ay was done i n 1 6 7 9 , with a more or l ess com p l ete vers i o n appear i n g a ro u n d 1 6 84, and the fi n a l vers i o n in 1 68 8 . It was i m m ed i ate l y successfu l and rem a i ns, together with Peach Blossom Fan, the h i g h p o i n t of Q i n g d ra m a . There a re few d ramatic s u rp r i ses i n The Palace o f Lasting Life. T h e scenes mostly e l aborate wel l-known i n c i d e nts in a fam i l i a r sto ry. Perhaps Hong S h e n g's most s i g n ificant a d d i t i o n w a s the e l aborate wo r l d of g o d s , goddesses, a n d m i n o r d e i t ies, w h o weave th e i r w a y t h r o u g h the story a n d a t l a st b r i n g the E m p e r o r a n d L a d y Y a n g together i n t h e m o o n t o t h e stra i n s o f " S k i rts o f Ra i n bow." T h e p l ay's c o n s i d e r a b l e appeal I i es in its poetry a n d the sense of spectac l e c reated t h ro u g h t h at poetry . If d ramatic ro m a n c e has a c l a i m to be g reat I iteratu re, it is n ot by p l ot o r c h a r acte r i z at i o n , b u t by s h i ft i n g perspect ives t h at l e n d d e pth a n d c o m p l e x ity t o the s i g n i ficance of events a n d th i n g s . We c a n see th i s i n fam o u s scenes s u c h as "Sto c k i n g -V iew i n g," in w h i c h the senti mental m u s i c i a n L i Mo, a D ao i st a b bess, a n d G u o Cong-j i n , a peasant, v i ew t h e rel i c o f Lady Y a n g ' s stoc k i n g u sed b y t h e i n n keeper "Gra n n y" W a n g to attract b u s i ness to h e r estab l i sh m e n t. Ea c h reads the object's s i g n ificance in a d i ffe rent way. O n a l a rger, deeper l eve l , each scene in the p l a y i s set i n a w e b of rel ati o n s h i ps t o p a ra l l e l scenes t h at constantly redefi n e p e r spective. I n o n e scene, w e s e e cou r i ers tramp l i n g d o w n a peasant's g ra i n fi e l d i n t h e i r h u r ry t o b r i n g fres h I yc h ee fru it i n t i me fo r L a d y Y a n g ' s b i rthday. I n the n ext, we see the E m peror offe r i n g the fru it to Lady Y a n g as a b i rthday s u rp r i s e . As s h e eats the fresh fru it w i t h d e l i g ht, b l i n d as t h e Emperor i s b l i n d t o the s u ffe r i n g that l i es beh i n d the m o m e nt's p l ea s u re, we c a n v i ew the fru it both as a t h o u g htfu l g i ft of l ove a n d as the occas i o n of l a rger h u m a n suffe r i n g . B oth scenes retu rn to m i n d when the Emperor, desperate a n d h u n g ry i n h i s fl i g h t fro m the rebel a r m i e s of A n L u - s h a n , i s offe red a d i s h o f p l a i n b a r ley by a peasant. Motifs appear and d i sappear in c o n t i n u a l variations, g i v i n g the p l ay a c om p l ex u n ity of a very d i ffe rent sort from t h e u n ity of p l ot ex pected i n Weste r n d ra m a . A central motif o f t h e p l ay i s t h e m u s i c " Ra i n bow S k i rts," w h i c h fi rst appe ars i n t h e e l eventh scene as performed fo r L a d y Y a n g d u r i n g a d ream v i s i t t o t h e m oo n . Taken b a c k t o Earth a n d tra n s c r i bed b y Lady Y a n g from m e m o ry, t h e m u s i c passes t h r o u g h a wide v a r i ety of s i t u at i o n s and c h a racters. In the e n d , when Lady Yang a n d the E m peror a re t o be reu n i ted in H eave n , t h at m o rta l vers i o n of " S k i rts of Ra i n bow" is p refe r red by C h a n g E, the goddess of the m oo n , to t h e o r i g i n a l ver sion. 973
Anthology of Chinese Literature DRAMATIS PERSONAE XUAN-ZONG, Li Long-ji, Emperor of the Tang, whose reign is the Tian baa, avatar of the immortal Kong-sheng LADY YANG, Yang Yu-huan, the Prized Consort, Tai-zhen, beloved of Xuan-zong and avatar of the immortal Jade Consort GAO LI-SHI, Chief Eunuch AN LU-SHAN, frontier general who rebels against the dynasty ZHANG QIAN, administrator for Yang Guo-zhong, Chief Minister, uncle of Lady Yang YANG GUO-ZHONG, Chief Minister, uncle of Lady Yang LADY HAN, Lady Yang's sister LADY Guo, Lady Yang's sister LADY QIN, Lady Yang's sister Guo ZI-YI, Tang general responsible for recapturing the capital PEASANT WOMAN HOMELY GIRL FLOWERSELLER YOUNG SQUIRE TAVERN WAlTER CHANG E, goddess of the moon HAN-HUANG, attendant of Chang E YONG-XIN, maid of Lady Yang NIAN-NU, maid of Lady Yang LI GUI-NIAN, head of the imperial music ensemble MA XIAN-QI, chime player in imperial ensemble LEI HAI-QING, mandolin player in imperial ensemble HE HUAI-ZHI, mandolin player in imperial ensemble HUANG FAN-CHUO, player of the clappers in imperial ensemble LI Mo, scholar and amateur flute player FIRST and SECOND COURIERS FARMER BLIND FORTUNETELLER and HIS WIFE STATION ATTENDANT WEAVER WOMAN, "Heaven's Daughter," goddess and star, permitted to meet her beloved Oxherd once a year, on the Seventh Eve of the seventh month Two IMMORTAL HANDMAIDENS OXHERD, god and star, consort of the Weaver CHENYuAN-LI, officer in charge of the imperial guard Guo CONG-)IN, an old peasant GRANNY WANG, tavern keeper FIRST, SECOND, and THIRD TRAVELERS, from Shan-xi DANCEHALL GIRL NUN, abbess of the Lodge of Maidenly Purity Two GUARDIAN DEITIES LOCAL GOD YANG TONG-YOU, a wizard
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PROLO GUE AND ARGUMENT (I)
Enter PROLOGUE. PROLOGUE: On passion's stage, in olden times as now, whose hearts stayed true until the end? If only lovers keep their faith and never fail, at last they will be j oined again. No separation troubles them, though miles in thousands lie between from north to south; and life or death for two such hearts IS no concern. I scorn those men and women of this world who complain of harshness in their fate this is lack of love. Love stirs even stone, and can turn the Earth and Heaven. It stands revealed in light of sun, it lasts in histories. Think of the loyal subj ect, think of the filial childall come to this because of love. As Confucius did not cut away the love songs of Zheng and Wei, we set this law to melody. And we have taken Tai-zhen's Story, new lyrics, new score, which is love, and nothing more. Bright Sovereign of the Tian-bao Reign, his Consort Yang Yu-huan, to meet were fated long before. He let her bathe in Hua-qing Pool, she then first felt his favor's flood. She prayed for skill on the Seventh Eve in the Palace of Lasting Life, where they swore the sweet vow to be forever man and wife. Her wondrous dance was j ust completed, but ere the clear song was done, from Fan-yang war drums boomed. 975
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Then came the post station at Ma-wei; the royal army would not go on: for the rouged beauty, a last farewell. His journey west was filled with pain: he could not bear the space between the world below and this of mortal men. The fortunate repentance of her errant soul restored her to the gods' immortal roll. And when the royal coach returned, he meant to have her reinterred, but only her perfume bag remained. Heaven's daughter pledged their reunion, through a winged adept her love was conveyed by inlaid box and golden hairpin sent. Their story lasts onof meeting in the palace of the moon and of the dance called " Rainbow Skirts " n o w shown upon the lyric stage. The Tang's Bright Sovereign finds pleasure in the feast where " Rainbow Skirts " is played; the soul of Prized Consort Yang is severed when the Yu-yang army rebels . A wizard who went to the god's great city for a lunar meeting serves as guide; The Weaver Star fulfills the vow made in the Palace of Lasting Life. DECLARATION OF LOVE (II)
Enter the Tang EMPEROR XUAN-ZONG, followed by Two EUNUCHS EMPEROR [sings] : This mitered crown scrapes the sky, while I sit on my southward-facing throne, ruling by royal presence alone, with hills and rivers j oined as one by sovereign Tang. From cloudy heights the rain restores the spring, and deep in palace grounds the plants and trees breathe scent in unison. An early morning levee in an age of peace while spring is in such finery!why should this hold me back from pleasure ? May I spend my life's remaining days in passion's soft delights, and I will not yearn for lands of gods in white clouds. 976
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[RecitesJ1 A blooming splendor enters harem gates, and palace trees give off a springtime glow. Heaven takes j oy in seasonal accord, men are in harmony, nothing goes amiss. The Nine Songs extol polity's priorities, with Six Dances disperse the robes of court. Now other amusements, Yang Terrace's delight, where last week the rain flew at twilight. I, who am now the Great Tang's Tian-bao Emperor, once rose up from my princely estate, where I had waited biding my time, and took my own place in the imperial succession. I have consistently chosen good men to employ in my government, placing the likes of Yao Chong and Song Jing in charge in the Hall of Audience. I have followed good advice as water flows downhill, setting the likes of Zhang Jiu-ling and Han Xiu in my ministries. I further am pleased that the atmosphere remains undisturbed for thousands of miles along our frontiers, while among the common folk rice is so cheap it costs three coppers a measure. It is truly the govern ment of an age of peace, almost equal to the Zhen-guan Reign of my an cestor Tai-zong. It has become customary to dispense with corporal pun ishments, which makes my reign in no way inferior to the times of Emperor Wen of the Han. Recently, in leisure from my responsibilities, my feelings have found an outlet in music and the attraction of women. Just yesterday I saw a palace lady, one Yang Yu-huan, of a virtuous nature, soft and gentle, of full-fleshed charms and striking beauty. Then I divined this lucky day to enroll her in the harem as my Prized Consort. I have sent orders that she be granted a bath in Hua-qing Pool and have commanded the palace ladies Yong-xin and Nian-nu to wait on her and help her change. And soon Gao Li-shi will bring her into my presence-that must be them com lllg now.
Enter GAO LI-SHI and the Two PALACE LADIES holding fans, leading the Consort YANG YU-HUAN. LADY YANG [sings] : I rejoice how favor's flood descends from Heaven upon me. My bathing done and fully groomed, I make haste to the bright regalia. ' T h e l ast th ree co u p l ets of th i s poem a r e rearranged from an actu a l poem in five cou p l ets by X u a n zong. X u an-zong's o r i g i n a l poem i s set i n s u m m e r a n d i n vo l ves a b a n q u et of offi c i a l s. B y rewriting an open i n g co u p l et, H o n g Sheng m akes it s p r i n g and l ocates the scene i n the h a re m .
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PALACE LADIES: " In all Six Harems none have seen her, and now at once they worry, " they stand in lines on Golden Stairs to steal a distant glimpse.
They arrive, and GAO LI-SHI advances and kneels before the EMPEROR. GAO: Your humble servant Gao Li-shi salutes Your Majesty and begs to in form you that Lady Yang, now formally registered as the Prized Con sort, has arrived at the palace gates and awaits your instructions. EMPEROR: Have her come forward. GAO : His Imperial Maj esty instructs the Prized Consort Yang to approach the throne. LADY YANG [coming forward and bowing] : Your Maj esty's Prized Consort Yang Yu-huan salutes Your Maj esty and wishes you everlasting life. EUNUCH ATTENDANT: Rise now. LADY YANG: Though of humble origin and plain appearance, I have been selected for the harem. I was surprised to hear that I had been granted such favor, and I'm so nervous I'm afraid I'm going fall to pieces. " EMPEROR: You are descended from an eminent family and blessed with both beauty and virtue. My heart is well content to receive you for service in the bedchamber. LADY YANG: Long live Your Majesty! GAO : Rise now. [LADY YANG rises] EMPEROR: Have them set out the banquet. GAO LI-SHI passes on the imperial instructions. Music is played within. LADY YANG gives wine to the EMPEROR, and a PALACE LADY gives wine to LADY YANG. The EMPEROR is seated in the center, with LADY YANG seated beside him. EMPEROR [sings]: Throughout this great realm everywhere I sought a " maiden pure and fair" to lead all ladies of the court. This very morning Heaven granted me such loveliness-she truly has no peer in all the Earth. I do surmise no other woman will share my favor in Alabaster Palace, and tablets of j ade will bear the titles of her praise; three thousand beauties in powder and paint must willingly yield to her. ALL:
And may this love stay full and fair as Heaven lasts and Earth endures. 978
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LADY YANG [sings] : Although I bask in commendation, I brood a while in fear that one so plain and lowly never dare to j oin him in Peppered Chamber. Receiving here such love and favor parts me at once from mortal men. I shall emulate: Handmaiden Feng, who faced a bear, protecting Han's Emperor Yuan, and Lady Ban's prudence refusing to share a coach with Emperor Cheng; forever with scarlet stylus in hand, a woman chronicler, at my ruler's side I will attend. ALL: And may this love stay full and fair as Heaven lasts and Earth endures.
PALACE LADIES [sing] : In enj oying pleasure I wonder who from this moment on will be first in all the harem ? As with Flying Swallow, the Lady Zhao, in the Palace of Shining Light, whenever love and favor come, they always fall on one alone. So modestly decline no more to dress yourself in a golden room, or in j ade mansions sing songs through, or pass on flagons of cloudy brew for thousands of years forever more. ALL: And may this love stay full and fair as Heaven lasts and Earth endures.
EUNUCHS [sing] : We look up and behold " sunlight circling dragon scales," " pheasant tails shifting in clouds" ; delight shows o n His Maj esty's face before his new beauty freshly groomed . So keep the wine coming apace, whose scent blends with breeze of spring through the palaces swirling. Enj oy these things: the round moon's swaying gold, " tatters of cloud scattering lace ," 979
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ALL:
and dusk that draws on quickly where clouds of many hues crowd the imperial palace.
And may this love stay full and fair as Heaven lasts and Earth endures. GAO: The moon has risen. It is time for Your Majesty to have the banquet cleared. EMPEROR: Lady Yang and I will stroll before the stairs and enj oy the moon light for a while.
Music within. The EMPEROR leads LADY YANG forward b y the hand while the others step back. They stand there together. EMPEROR [sings ] : Down I come from the golden hall more closely to study her features by the lamplight of the moon, no courtyard flower can compare to her sweet countenance as against me she gently presses. The shadows of her tresses, the rays upon her gown, contrasts of dark and light display her thousand full-fleshed charms .
[Laughs softly and faces LADY YANG] The pleasures of this evening, its cool breeze and shining moon, bring laughter at the dream-rain once darkening Gao-tang .
LADY YANG [sings ] : Companion o f your revels, from now on I am blessed to wait attending on my Lord. Standing a while on marble stairs, Heaven speaks and comes the spring whose scent enwinds the royal guard, and jade dew coldly soaks our garb. Now I look around and peer at golden palaces in tiers where ducks j oined in mated pairs have settled for the night. EMPEROR: Take the lanterns off to the Western Palace.
EUNUCHS and PALACE LADIES, each holding a lantern, go off, leading the EM PEROR and LADY YANG. 980
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ALL [singing] : Flashing flames, a thousand rows, the crowding light of silver candles goes; And when we turn to look through beaded curtains drawn aslant, a silver river of stars out there faintly glows . Through tiered walkways and winding halls everywhere the scented powder of petals wafts upon the air. How seems the night? The moon stands high above the palms of the statue Immortals of Bronze. This is the night that reigns supreme in beauty of spring weather, red covers the azure screen, and inside brocade clouds will be a matched phoenix pair. " Bloom of Jasper," "Trees of Jade ," "Night Moon and Spring River " each note sung in unison, as moonbeams pass the palace walls . We lift the hanging arras of lace and help the lovers, tipsy still, into the orchid chamber. GAO: We have reached the West Palace, Your Maj esty. EMPEROR: Let my attendants withdraw. GAO� A spring breeze blows through lavender halls, EUNUCHS: And Heaven's music from pearled mansions falls. [Exeunt attendants]
EMPEROR [sings ]: Flame-plumes o n the candle sway, into the window moonlight shines, let me now speak each particular of love on this wonderful night.
TOGETHER: Think not how this night drags on in the harem's other wings and halls.
PALACE LADIES help the EMPEROR and LADY YANG change clothes, then exit. The EMPEROR and LADY YANG seat themselves. EMPEROR: The silver candles' turning beams scatter across your gauze and lace; 991
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LADY YANG: where the royal scent is strongest is the depth of love I bear.
EMPEROR:
B O TH :
This night throughout the harem brooding brows will stare,
tomorrow's rivals in singing our " Song of a Jewel Found . " EMPEROR: Our vow t o stay together through old age will begin from this very night. [Takes a hairpin and box out of his sleeve] I brought this golden hairpin and inlaid box as special tokens of our love .
[Sings] This golden hairpin and inlaid box with clustered j ewels and medallions of kingfisher plumes have I guarded next to my heart and have taken care to keep them no matter what. Tonight I give you this hair-pick: to adorn your cloudlike coils of hair with a phoenix pair stuck in aslant. And forever may this box: stay hidden in your brocade sleeve, tightly wrapped in scented silk. May we be like those phoenixes, in flight together, wing to wing; may we be linked like the box pattern, an interlocked love-knot of rings.
He gives these to LADY YANG and she receives them with thanks. LADY YANG [sings ] : For the golden hairpin take m y thanks, and for the inlaid box, and for the grace of your desire. But I worry my plainness cannot repay the drops of rain and dew that fall from him who is Heaven's Son. [Looks around] But as I observe phoenixes soaring and dragons that coil, I do so love those heads paired in infatuation, and these twinned panels interlocked. 982
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May our love be as firm as this metal: rna y the hairpin be never divided, may the box be always whole.
EMPEROR: The pale light of the spring moon shines on sprays of flowers, [Yuan Zhen] LADY YANG: this was the moment when first she received the flood of royal favor. [Bo Ju-yi]
EMPEROR: Ever leaning against this woman like jade, the heart is intoxicated, [Yong Tao] BOTH: year after year and on forever may we find j oy here. [Zhao Yan-zhao] BRIBE (III)
Enter AN LU-SHAN dressed like an archer, wearing a felt hat. AN [sings] : Hopes dashed, I helplessly mourn the promise my youth; heartsick as well to fall, trapped in the toils of law. Yet ambitions beyond the common run are hard to overawe, and how can anyone quell such surging savage energy rising a thousand yards ? Yet I had best endure the while.
[Recites] My belly hangs down across my lap, my strength can lift a thousand pounds; shrewd enough and filled with schemes, daring beyond all bounds. Who would have thought such dragon-spawn would willingly shrink from harm? when rivers and seas seethe in my turmoil, then men will shake in alarm. Know me as An Lu-shan, from Liu-cheng in Ying-zhou. After my mother Ah-shi-de prayed for a son on Ya-luo Mountain, she went home and gave birth to me. Because of this she gave me the name Lu-shan, which sig nifies "Mountain of Fortune. " At that moment rays of light filled her tent; and the birds and beasts, chirping and yelping, all cowered and fled. I later went with my mother when she was remarried to An Yan-yan, and 983
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I took his surname, An. Know me then as An Lu-shan, native of Liu cheng in Ying-zhou. I enlisted in the army of the regional commander, Zhang Shou-gui, who thought I showed signs of remarkable things and treated me as his foster son. He put me in charge of a strike force and sent me off to assail the Xi Tribes and the Khitan. But on one occasion I grew overconfident and advanced carelessly, and my troops were slaughtered and routed. Thanks to Commander Zhang's leniency and his affection for me, I was not executed; but I have been sent under guard to the capital to ask for imperial instructions in the case. I reached the capital j ust yesterday, and it is not yet decided whether things will go well or ill for me. But I am delighted that I have a sworn brother here called Zhang Qian, who is an administrator in the office of Chief Minister Yang Guo-zhong. Yesterday I paid off the officers es corting me, to set me free for a while. I asked Zhang Qian to take a bribe to the Chief Minister, and he accepted my gifts. He told me to wait for his answer, so I had better hurry ahead to see what will happen. [ Walks on] Come on, I ' m not such a bad fellow-who would have thought I would end up like this ? It makes me really mad to think about it!
[Sings] A wild dragon-serpent was I, j ust waiting to cleave the sea and spill great rivers over their shore; but now I've turned to a turtle, out of the water, stuck in a j ar and this is what enrages me, a trap that was sprung so suddenly on a man of such daring and mettle. Had I known that reverses in battle would mean the headsman's ax, I would rather have died in the desert and escaped being bound in chains both feet falling from under me. Now I depend entirely on gold changing hands in the dark, to get me out of this pit. And yet I reckon that Heaven had purpose in making me and would not, halfway along my course, let me be broken for naught. Now I've reached the Minister's gate. I'll wait for Zhang Qian to come out.
Enter ZHANG QIAN. ZHANG [recites] : The brother-in-law of our ruler is ranked with the Three High Lords, 984
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and I, of the Minister's household, hold an office of seventh degree. [Greets AN] Welcome, brother An! The Minister has accepted all your gifts and will have you meet with him in the Ministry office. AN [bowing] : Thank you for taking care of things for me. ZHANG: Since the Minister hasn't come o u t yet, let's go wait a while in my office. Everything lies in the hands of him who in the Secretariat shapes destiny . . . AN: . . . to rescue a man who suffered reversals out in the frontier passes.
[Exeunt] Enter YANG GUO-ZHONG with attendants. YANG GUO-ZHONG [sings] : Her rise to glory is vaunted within the palace grounds, and royal favor extends to homes of his marriage kin; brothers, sisters, and cousins all receive His fond regard. In the Secretariat I alone hold power in the court: the hands of men will be burned by the blazing wind of my authority.
[Recites] Rule of the kingdom comes to me, it lies within my grasp, eight Council seats, three Ministries hold me in highest awe. I leave the court in late afternoon returning to my mansion, then countless officials and underlings bow in servility. As uncle of the Prized Consort of the Western Palace, I, Yang Guo-zhong, occupy the post of Minister of the Right and hold the rank of Minister of Works. I share that imperial splendor which shines like the sun and moon, and in my hands are commands that have the force of a thun derstorm. [ Chuckles] If I do engage in every excess and take whatever I happen to desire, it is merely enjoying myself while I have the chance. By taking bribes and amassing power I have the might to turn Heaven. [To attendants] Leave me now. [Exeunt attendants] Zhang Qian has j ust given me a report on a frontier general, one An Lu-shan, who has been brought to the capital for punishment because he lost a battle. He sent gifts to my office to get me to spare his life. It 985
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seems to me that victories and defeats are quite normal for military men; and if he happened to suffer a setback, the situation is forgivable. [Laughs] So I'll spare his life-it's only because our court treasures its human talents. But I've ordered that he be brought to meet me to see for myself.
Enter ZHANG from behind. ZHANG: Zhang Qian reporting. An Lu-shan is waiting outside to meet you. YANG GUO-ZHONG: Have him come in. ZHANG: Yes, sir. [Exit]
Enter ZHANG QIAN, leading AN LU-SHAN in a blue robe and small felt hat. ZHANG: Come this way.
AN [coming forward on his knees] : An Lu-shan, in disgrace, greets Your Excellency with all humility. YANG GUO-ZHONG: You may rise. AN: It is fitting that a condemned prisoner report to you on his knees. YANG GUO-ZHONG: Zhang Qian has already explained your purpose in coming. Now tell me the particular circumstances of your offense. AN: Well, Your Excellency, here's what happened. I was carrying out or ders to attack the Xi and the Khitan . . . YANG GUO-ZHONG: Stand while you explain. AN [rises and sings] : Confident in our courage, we charged into the fray, no foe could stand in our way. But their warriors caught us unaware, surrounded us that night. And then we faced the naked blade, our quivers bare. YANG GUO-ZHONG: How did you get away ? AN [replying] : I cut a bloody path through the encirclement and fled.
[Sings] A single horse, a single spear, I was lucky to escape, and now my only hopethat of past deeds consideration and my small record might redeem this grave transgression. Yet never did I think today I'd face my execution ! [Kowtows] Show mercy, Your Excellency! take pity on me! YANG GUO-ZHONG [rising, sings] : Breach of rules, loss of troops touch statutes of the gravest kind; 986
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and though I hold the reins of power, I dare not act as I please. The punishment prescribed is clear and hard to change. I fear I have not the might to turn Heaven. AN [kneeling and weeping] : If only Your Excellency would help me, I will live. YANG GUO-ZHONG [smiling] : I may have some slight power to persuade, but herein lie devices I cannot now explain. AN [kowtowing] : Everything depends on Your Excellency taking personal charge of the case ! YANG GUO-ZHONG: All right. Wait until I go to court tomorrow, and I'll do what seems best under the circumstances.
[Sings] When the chance comes, I'll open the net and spare your life. AN [kowtowing] : I am indebted to Your Excellency's great kindness. Per mit me to repay you by being your horse, your spaniel. I'll take my leave now. YANG GUO-ZHONG: Zhang Qian, show him out. ZHANG [exiting with AN LU-SHAN] : Eyes now gaze for the victory pennant, ears listen for welcome news. [Exeunt] YANG GUO-ZHONG [thinking] : It seems to me that this An Lu-shan is really nothing but a minor frontier officer who has never been noted for any particular accomplishments. If I make an exception in his case by cir cumventing a death sentence and saving him, it will inevitably arouse His Majesty's suspicions. [Laughs] I've got it! In his letter to the throne the other day, Commander Zhang spoke of An Lu-shan's knowledge of the languages of the nomad tribes and his fine grasp of various military skills, which made him suitable for employment as a frontier general. I'll drop a hint in the Ministry of War to take this line, and then present a request to His Maj esty to have him summoned before the throne and examined. In this process I'll take the opportunity to get an imperial decision in his favor. That's the best way. The mettle to make all power one's own is daring to the core, [Lu Zhao-lin] one puts on a thousand faces all in the blink of an eye. [Wu Rong] To build a pile of yellow gold may buy one's execution, [Li Xian-yong] 987
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who knows but that selfish purposes might even serve the common weal . [Du Xun-he] In the i nterve n i n g scene, the Emperor observes Lady Yang as she takes a d a yt i m e n a p . After s h e wakes, t h e y go together t o a pavi l i o n . Y a n g Guo-z h o n g enters a n d arranges a n a u d ience w i t h the Emperor fo r A n Lu-s h a n . T h e n the Emperor s u ggests to Lady Yang that they go to the B e n d i n g R i ve r Park to v i ew the peo n i e s .
OUTING ON A SPRING HOLIDAY (V)
Enter the chief eunuch GAO L I-SHI. GAO [sings] : In the harem's exalted ranks I hold the highest place, I serve His Majesty personally from dawn till the sun goes down. Newly decked in formal gown of gold, sable, and j ade, in all my goings I enjoy his special grace. I, Gao Li-shi, the eunuch Commander of the Palace Horse Guard, am charged with managing everything within the harem; and my power looms over that of all other court officers. I take every opportunity to suck out the very marrow of His Maj esty's wishes and to probe his mind. By prudence and an ingratiating manner I have come to enj oy im perial favor. Today is the holiday of the Third Day of the Third Month, and His Majesty, in the company of the Prized Consort, is going to pay a visit to the Bending River Park. He has commanded me to summon the Minister Yang Guo-zhong, as well as the Ladies of Qin, Han, and Guo, to j oin the imperial retinue. I have to give them His Majesty's instruc tions.
[Recites] To the Ward of the Marriage kin make known the word that today He will grace Chang-yang Palace. [Exit]
Enter AN LV-SHAN in an official's cap and sash, followed by attendants. AN [sings] : Since I sought protection from a mighty clan, the rain and dew o f royal grace have been renewed. The one-time officer in chains delights t o be in service near the throne988
The Qing Dynasty
here someday may daring purposes unfold. Since I was restored to my post by His Majesty's generosity, I have been held in the highest favor. What most amuses him is my huge belly that hangs down over my waist. One day I had an audience with the Emperor, and he jokingly asked me what I had in there. And I answered, " Only a sincere and loyal heart. " His Majesty's face showed his great pleasure in my answer, and from that time on he has placed increasing confidence in me, promising that someday soon he will make me a prince. It has been quite an extraordinary turn of events. All of you, leave me now. [Exe
unt entourage] Today is the Third Day of the Third Month. The Emperor and Lady Yang are going to visit the Bending River Park, with the Three Ladies accompanying them. Every girl and gentleman of the city has gone to see them. I'm going to change into more comfortable clothes and ride off there myself to have some fun.
Changes clothes, mounts horse, and sets off No sooner am I through the gate than, look, how the scented dust fills the road, with horses and carriages like clouds. What a commotion! It is as they say: Drifting floss upon the road entwines the drunken traveler, singing birds behind the flowers call to passers-by. [Exit]
Enter Two PRINCES, a YOUNG NOBLEMAN, and a STUDENT, all splendidly attired. ALL [sing] : People are roused by spring's beauty, and we adore flower-filled breezes as if fanned, squadrons formed by willow mist. Where'er we pass we see no trace of the red dust of the capital's lavender lanes. [They greet one another] Good-day to you. PRINCES: Today is the Purification Ceremony and we're going to the Bend ing River to enjoy ourselves. YOUNG NOBLEMAN and STUDENT: I wonder if that group of carriages over there is the Three Ladies coming. We had better hurry. [They walk on,
singing] A tumultuous cavalcade of broidered curtains, coaches fine, 989
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wQund with kingfisher feathers and pearls. Rival attractions, each trying to catch preeminence. Billowing tendrils of musky scent and orchid borne on the wind, you can tell them even far away by their colorful gowns and pendants' glint. [Exeunt]
Enter the LADY OF HAN in an embroidered gown, the LADY OF Guo in a white gown, and the LADY OF QIN in a scarlet gown, each riding in a coach followed by servants and maids-in-waiting. ALL [sing] : Here is our array: clouds of figured gauze a contest of enchantment, each making brave display of wispy tresses and jet black brows . Graced with royal favor, we have come together to survey springtime at the river by particular decree. HAN: I, the Lady Han . . . Guo: . . . and I, the Lady Guo . . . QIN: . . . and I, the Lady Qin TOGETHER: . . . have received a summons to visit the Bending River. So let's be quickly on our way. SERVANTS: Yes ma'am. LADIES [sing] : Crimson wheels crush scented sward, where earrings lost and hairpins dropped lie mingled with the fallen flowers . Such is our glorious lot, the kin-by-marriage now will j oin the royal retinue, advancing bevies of palace finery. [Exeunt]
Enter AN LU-SHAN on horseback; catches sight of the THREE LADIES leaving. AN [sings] : Such marvels ! With a turning glimpse I see unparalleled divinity, that in an instant holds the soul in thrall. They go in coaches so remote it maddens me I can't approach. 990
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I was on my way to the Bending River, when I had the good fortune to run into the Three Ladies. Each single one of them has a divine beauty. They can claim to be the fairest of the land. Emperor of Tang-you al ready have Lady Yang, and now on top of that you have these three sis ters of hers. Now, that's the life ! This, my critical observation: when all the fairest flowers belong to one, we understand the maj esty of Heaven's Son. I'll j ust gallop forward and get a full view once. Gazing into the dust before me these hungry eyes see but a blurI'll have to keep urging my horse ahead.
Gallops ahead. Enter ATTENDANT, who blocks his way. ATTENDANT: Hey! His Excellency the Minister is here ! Who dares push his way through so brazenly?
Enter YANG GUO-ZHONG on horseback. YANG GUO-ZHONG: What's causing all the fuss? YANG GUO-ZHONG and AN LU-SHAN look at one another. AN LU-SHAN turns his horse and hastily exits. ATTENDANT: I j ust met this man who was brazenly pushing his way through here on horseback, so I blocked his way. YANG GUO-ZHONG [laughing] : That was An Lu-shan who j ust rode off. But why did he get out of here so quickly when he caught sight of me? [Thinks it over] Where are the carriages of the Three Ladies ? ATTENDANT: Just ahead. YANG GUO-ZHONG: I see ! How dare that scum An Lu-shan behave with such rudeness !
[Sings] An outrage ! insolence to royal kin, rudely pushing above his station to j oin the scented carriages. Sudden fury swells within, I scarcely can contain it. Tell the entourage to form a tight circle around those carriages and to drive off all idle onlookers. [They do as he says] Hurry now, do not delayuse golden whips to clear the way and pursue with well-wrought saddles their painted wheels. 991
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Enter PEASANT WOMAN, HOMELY GIRL, FLOWERSELLER, and YOUNG SQUIRE. WOMEN [sing) : Our fresh finery gives us some glamour, yokels are we, peculiar our manner, yet we can love how sweet-smelling grasses stick to skirts, how the wildflowers pile in our tresses.
They meet. PEASANT WOMAN: Are you all on your way to visit the Bending River? OTHERS: That's right. Both the Emperor and his lady are there today, and we're all going to have a look. HOMELY GIRL: They say that the Emperor dotes on his lady j ust as if she were a j ewel. I wonder which of the two of us is prettier. [FLOWERSELLER laughs; YOUNG SQUIRE eyes the HOMELY GIRL) And why are you look ing at me so boldly ? YOUNG SQUIRE: I was j ust noticing that your face has some j ewels of its own. HOMELY GIRL: What j ewels ? YOUNG SQUIRE: Well, your eyes are an inlay of cats-eye; your forehead is dec orated with streaks like the banded agate; the beeswax yellow of amber adorns your teeth; and of coral are your lips carved.
The PEASANT WOMAN laughs; the HOMELY GIRL hits the YOUNG SQUIRE with her fan. HOMELY GIRL: You can just babble on, but you've got no " j ewels " at all. Y OUNG SQUIRE: Who says ? HOMELY GIRL: But your " backdoor" is like a silver mine-so many people have been working to open up a pit in it ! PEASANT WOMAN: Quit j oking around. I've heard that when the carriages of the Three Ladies pass by, they drop things all along the way. Let's hurry up and see if we can find something. HOMEL Y GIRL: Let's get going.
They walk on, the HOMELY GIRL flirtatiously teasing the YOUNG SQUIRE. TOGETHER [sing) : Slowly rises the gentle breeze and sweeps the clouds through sunlit skies, 992
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once carriages so plush pass by, springtime comes to plants and trees. YOUNG SQUIRE: Maybe we'll find something if we look around in the grass here. FLOWERSELLER: Well, I've got to go now. By crimson gates and fancy kiosks to cry with all my heart: "Flowers for sale ! Come buy ! Come buy! "
Exit FLOWERSELLER, crying, "Flowers for sale "; others continue looking and each finds something. HOMELY GIRL [to PEASANT WOMAN]: What did you find ? PEASANT WOMAN: A hairpin. HOMEL Y GIRL [inspecting it] : It's gold! And it's got a tiny scarlet gemstone on top. What luck! PEASANT WOMAN [to HOMELY GIRL] : What about you? HOMELY GIRL: A single phoenix slipper. PEASANT WOMAN: That's nice. Why don't you try it on? HOMELY GIRL [stretching out her foot to compare the size] : Phooey! I could n't even get a toe in it! But I will take this pearl off the tip . [Picks off the
pearl and throws the slipper away] YOUNG SQUIRE: Let me keep that. HOMELY GIRL: You're really going to keep that thing ? Let me take a look at what you picked up. YOUNG SQUIRE: It's a golden box wrapped in a scarf of merman lace. HOMELY GIRL [taking it and looking inside]: Hey, there are thin wafers, all black and yellow, with a slightly sweet smell-I'll bet they're aphrodisi acs ! YOUNG SQUIRE [laughing] : It's aromatic tea. HOMELY GIRL: Let me gi ve it a taste. [She and PEASANT WOMAN chew some,
then each spits it out] PEASANT WOMAN: Yech, it's bitter! How can anyone eat that? YOUNG SQUIRE [taking it back] : Cut it out. Let's all go on ahead. [They walk
on] TOGETHER [sing] : It's the time for idle butterflies and bees, willow-welcomed, lured by flowers; gazing where waters downward spill from Dragon Tower Bending River is drawing near.
Exeunt YOUNG SQUIRE and PEASANT WOMAN; the HOMELY GIRL is left behind alone. HOMELY GIRL [shouting] : Wait a minute ! I've got to pee bad. I'll just piss a little hole in the sand over here. [Exit] 993
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Enter the THREE LADlES with ATTENDANTS and MAIDS. LADlES [sing] : Scent in clothes, scent of flowers, odors mingle wantonly; oriole voices, voices laughing heard faintly mixed together. See willow catkins shed their snow, covering white duckweed, pair by pair the bluebirds go, bearing garlands of fallen red. Of spring's bright weather two parts in three are gone, in the slowing light of the lovely sun our carriages hurry ahead. ATTENDANT: My Ladies, we have come t o the Bending River . HAN: Where is His Excellency the Minister? ATTENDANT: His Imperial Maj esty is in Spring Prospect Palace, and His Ex cellency the Minister has gone ahead there. LADlES HAN, QIN, and Guo get down from their carriages. LADIES: Isn't this
a
lovely scene, after all !
[Sing] Around the Bending River's shores, around the Bending River's shores, red petals tipsy, evenly spreading green. By the Bending River's waters, by the Bending River's waters, new reeds grow and willow leaves are fine.
Enter GAO LI-SHI with a young eunuch; he reins in his horse. GAO [recites] : Royal decree brings a peach-spotted horse chomping its bit of j ade, as mount on which to seat a skirt with gilded butterflies. [Greets them] A decree given orally by His Imperial Majesty: The Ladies Han and Qin are to be granted a feast in one of the detached villas. Lady Guo is ordered to ride this horse to the palace, where she will join Madam Yang for a feast. LADIES [kneeling] : Long live His Majesty! [They rise] GAO [to LADY Guo]: Please mount up. Guo [sings ] : Inner Household officer pressing me so urgently. Sisters, I leave you alone now and approach the royal breeze of spring. 994
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QIN and HAN [sing] : Not for nothing did you paint pale moth-wing brows to meet His Exalted Majesty.
Exit LADY Guo on horseback, led by GAO LI-SHI. QIN: Look how our sister, as favored as Empress Pei, rides off with a snap of her whip. HAN: Let her do as she will. MAID: Will their Ladyships please come now to the villa to dine. Pink peaches and sapphire willows, spring in the festival hall, [Shen Quan-qi] HAN: spring excursions are of a piece, their experience shared by all. [Zhang E] QIN: Yet I would enj oy an Emperor's love and pleasure beyond all bounds, [Wu Ping-yi] TOGETHER: and facing breeze I laugh ap art at those of springtime's splendid light. [Du Mu] I n the i nterve n i n g scenes, the E m peror's i nterest i n the Lady Y a n g ' s s i ster, the Lady Guo, leads to a rift between h i m a n d Lady Yang, a n d between the s i sters. In a p i q ue, the E m peror sends Lady Y a n g back to h e r home, but then i s overcom e with remorse . When Lady Y a n g sends h i m a token of h e r l ove, the E m peror h a s h e r recal l e d .
OMEN (X)
Enter Guo ZI-YI, in turban, wearing a sword. Guo [recites] : No one understands my mind, my purpose fair and bold, this sword my sale protection and my whole livelihood. When all the world is set aright and troubled times repaired, that is the moment all will see that I am a real man. I am Guo Zi-yi from Zheng County in Hua-zhou. I have mastered the lore of warfare, and I am equally well versed in questions of policy. My aims are to bestride the whole earth and leave a legacy of peace and sta bility in the kingdom. Now, with the military examinations behind me, I have come to the capital to await selection for a post. But I find myself 995
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here at a time when Yang Guo-zhong is secretly abusing his power and An Lu-shan is enj oying an excess of imperial favor. The authority of the court will soon have been abused beyond all repair. Still, without even a minor post, I don't know when I will be able to exert all my efforts on behalf of the court.
[Sings] A man's bold thoughts must find expression; I am not one who looks up and cries, afraid that the sky will fall . Yet I despise that swallow-kind nesting complacently in the hall not one among them spies the ravens on the roof. They take no care of the tiger penned or caged bear, in temples they let the rats run wild, let foxes make lairs in the wall. I, like Zu Di long ago, when I hear the roosters crow, often rise to dance at night, resolved to save the state from peril. I think of frequent rise and fall of dynasties since time began; I'll make my deeds of glory known to last within the world and never let my name grow old among woodsmen and fishermen. And now that I've reached the Chang-an market, I'm going to get drunk.
[ Walks on] I slowly pace the royal streets for brief respite from brooding cares and from my travels to find ease. Jostling crowds go to and fro, reeling like drunks that can't stand straight Not here we find that lord of Chu, singing as he walks his way, the only sober man ?2 ' T h e reference here i s t o Qu Y u a n , w h o wrote i n " T h e F i s h e r m a n " : The whole of this age is fi lthy, and I alone am c l e a n . T h e crowds of men a re a l l d r u nk, a n d I alone am sober.
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I look for a like-hearted companion, but I am discouraged now to find the fisherman Tai-gong is gone, tiger-shooting Li Guang is far, dog-butcher Fan Kuai is no more.3 [Exit]
Enter TAVERN WAITER. WAlTER [recites] : This tavern that I run is of the highest class: no credit for oaths and forfeits, you've got to pay your bill. As long as you have cash enough, be my guest and drink, but if you're broke, I will not waste even a drop of water.
I'm a waiter in the great Xin-feng Tavern in the Chang-an market. Our tavern lies right between the east and west market districts, where crowds of people are always passing in both directions. Everyone comes to our tavern to have a few drinks-people from the city and outsiders, princes and lords, officials and market folk, military men and commoners. Some j ust buy a drink; some order food with their drinks; some buy wine and take it off with them; some bring their wine and drink it inside. I'm al ways taking orders . But here comes another customer.
Enter Guo Zl-YI. Guo [sings]: I gaze afar o n green willows swept aslant at the corners of painted mansions, blue tavern banners rattling, they dance away from the breeze I wish I could find some Jing Ke, who drank in the market of Yan, to come share my wine with me.4
3Th i s is a rath er heterogeneous assortment of exe m p l a ry figu res of a n t i q u ity t o whose company G u o Zi-yi fee l s s u ited . Tai-gong or L li Shang was a n a g i n g f i s h e r m a n w h e n d i scovered by K i n g W e n a n d made an i m portant m i n i ster i n t h e r i se o f Z h o u . L i G u a n g w a s o n e o f t h e g reatest o f t h e Western Han genera l s aga i nst the X i ong-n u . Fan Kuai, o r i g i n a l l y a dog butcher, was a n i m portant early West ern Han m i n i ster. 4J i n g Ke was the reta i ner-assas s i n of P r i nce Dan of Van and serves as the type of h e ro that Guo Z i yi wo u l d l i ke t o know.
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[ Calls out] Waiter ! WAITER [welcoming him] : Do come in, sir, and have a seat upstairs. Guo [climbing stairs] : This is really a nice tavern.
[Sings] Spacious windows and balconies, the sunlight clear, refreshing breeze, and on stucco walls all around are frescoes of the drunken gods . WAITER: Do you want something to drink now or are you waiting for someone ? Guo: I'll have a few drinks by myself. Do you have some good wine for me ? WAITER: Indeed we do. [Brings wine] Here it is. VOICE [calling from within] : Waiter! Come here ! [WAlTER exits in a hurry] Guo [drinking, sings] : No magistrate Tao Qian am I, idle and fond of wine, nor do I ape the rude Guan Fu, mastered by his cups, headlong drinking made him overbearing, rough. My sober eyes stay open wide does anyone take note ? I wonder if the Land of Drink is deep enough to let me in ? I listen to the hubbub here of streets and shops, and one of Gao-yang's drinkers is lonely and quite lost. [Gets up to look]
Enter eunuchs and officials, all sumptuously attired, followed by servants carrying golden coins and wine, and leading sheep . They circle the stage and exeunt. Enter WAlTER with wine. WAlTER: Here's warm wine, sir. Guo: I have a question for you, waiter. Where were those officials outside going ? WAlTER: Drink up while I tell you. His Imperial Maj esty has made a gift of newly built mansions to the Minister Yang Guo-zhong, and to the three Ladies of Han, Guo, and Qin. These four compounds were built adj oining one another in the Xuan-yang Quarter, and all are modeled on the building style of the imperial palace. These days if one of those families builds something, they want it to be better than their neigh bor's. And when the neighbor builds, he wants it to be still better than the first family's building. If someone sees that his neighbor has built something splendid, he will tear down his own house and build anew. And he won't rest until he's sure that he has something as good as his 998
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neighbor. A single hall can cost upward of ten million strings of cop per cash. Today the work has been completed on the Yangs' mansions, and all the great and small officials of the court are taking presents of sheep and wine. Everyone was passing by here on their way to offer congratulations . Guo [shocked] : Can this be true ? WAITER: Let me go see to warming some more wine for you. Guo [sighing] : This is what happens when the favor that the Emperor shows his in-laws reaches such degree!
[Sings] No common clan should arrogate the privilege of the throne in contests of extravagance, vain show of earth and wood. Here grandees gladly scamper off to bend their servile waists, rivals to reach the gates of power like thronging to a fair. Will no one stand before the throne and tell the way the people feel ? Their sapphire and vermilion tiles are all smeared with blood.
[Rises] I suddenly find my heart is filled with fury-the wine has gone to my head without my realizing it. Let me steady myself by taking a look at the walls . [Looks] On this wall here someone has written some lines of poetry in small characters . Let me have a look. [Reads them
out] "Yan's market stands deserted, from Han Pass no horse returns. Should you meet a ghost beneath the hill, tie her gauze robes on a ring. " This is really quite strange!
[Sings] Here my eyes came to rest, and line by line I read it out from the first. Considered carefully, this poem hardly foretells a happy lot. Let me see who wrote it. [Reads on] " Written by Li Xia-zhou. " That name is quite familiar-yes, that's it-I've heard of a soothsayer named Li Xia-zhou, who knows all that has passed and all things to come. He must be the one. 999
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[Sings] Herein are things best left unsaid, hidden in enigmatic words, but now we have no Master Du to solve the riddle of the verse.5 Perhaps this was some drunken scrawl, the hand's whim, a tangled flight of crows across the wall.
[Noise offstage. Guo calls] Waiter ! Enter WAITER. WAITER: What do you want, sir? Guo : Why is there so much noise below? WAITER: If you j ust look down from the window, you can see for yourself. Guo looks out. Enter AN LU-SHAN, mounted, dressed as an imperial prince,
with attendants clear the way before him. He circles the stage and exits. Guo: Who was that? WAITER [laughing] : Didn't you see his huge belly ? That was An Lu-shan. He is a particular favorite of His Majesty and once was even permitted into the imperial section of the Golden Rooster Tent. Today His Majesty en feoffed him as the Prince of Dong-ping. He has j ust now left court after thanking the Emperor for his kindness, and now he is headed back to his new mansion outside Dong-hua Gate, which brings him past our es tablishment. Guo [shaken with anger] : So this is An Lu-shan! What did he ever accom plish that he should so suddenly be made a prince ? I can read the signs of treachery on this dog's face. This will surely be the person who will bring war upon the whole world.
[Sings] I see what he is: a savage-hearted, half-breed, sheep-herding slave, the bee's eyes and j ackal's voice show a crafty schemer for sure. How could they bring such a wild wolf into the house to dwell?don't they see how this fulfills the prophecy on the wall? He and the Emperor's marriage kin the whole lot show signs of witchery. WAITER: What has gotten you so upset, sir ? S O u Oa-bo was the p roverb i a l figure in vernacu l a r l i terature of someone who cou l d solve poetic riddles.
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Guo [sings] : I can't help this spreading, prickling chill that makes my hairs to stand on end against my cap, and this searing rage that heaves swelling in my breast, again and again I turn my eyes to the rare sword that clinks at my waist. WAITER: Please calm down, sir. Let me bring you another j ug. Guo: Even if I emptied a thousand cups and drank down a hundred j ugs, it would still not free me from this engulfing weight of care. I'll drink no more. Here, take the money for the wine. WAITER [taking money] : For others it is: " A few cups can calm a host of ills . " but i n your case: " One outburst stirs a thousand cares . " [Exit] Guo ZI-YI descends the stairs and walks along. Guo: I'll go back to my lodgings for a while.
[Sings] I see the tangled situation of the times, it strikes me to the heart wi th pain. I came on cryptic lines of prophecy within a poem; two things I cannot graspHeaven's will and minds of men which sets me to futile brooding, and knits my brows in furrows . I see now the sunlight sink to dusk as I reach my dreary inn, lost and bewildered.
Goes into lodgings and sits. Enter BODYGUARD. Greets him. BODYGUARD: An announcement has come from court, master. Guo [reading it] : " Ministry of Military Affairs: Regarding: official appointment His Imperial Majesty instructs that Guo Zi-yi be posted to the Tian-de Army . " 1001
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My orders have come through. I'll have to get my things packed right away and set off for my post immediately. [BODYGUARD sets to work] Though the post is low and the duties minor, from now on I can at least do my best for the court.
[Sings] Like the fish in a foot of water I still can stretch my fins, like the bird caught among hawthorns I still can spread my wings . I rej oice that it is my lot to spurn the clouds and rise to Heaven' s avenues, at last I will set the universe aright, and I intend a legacy of glorious deeds to last a million years . And though foul witchery's abroad, I can do no less than on these shoulders bear the sun and moon, and with my own hand prop up the Great Tang. My horse's hooves have trod the dust several years for naught, [Hu Su] but always a man of daring will seize the crucial spot. lSi-kong Tu] A low official, on his own, blocked from the starry heights, [Wang Jian] yet I wonder who else there is to worry for our land. [Lu Wen] THE MUSIC (XI)
Enter CHANG E with attendant HAN HUANG. CHANG E [sings] : The finest nights lie under the sway of my clear beams alone, unsullied by the dust's least mote since time began. Windborne dews are strewn through crystal air and splash the moon's silver rays, in a stream of faintly tossing notes of music of the gods.
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[Recites] I pound the herbs of lasting life far from the changing eons' dust, a clear and alluring countenance, by nature pure, by nature true. Look carefully among the clouds where Heaven's scented blossoms fall there I rest in this single orb by the gray-green Cassia Tree. r, Chang E, have always been mistress of the Supreme Yin. The legend that I was once the wife of Hou Yi is a baseless rumor. This many-jew eled orb has lasted for thirty-six thousand years, a radiantly glowing wheel of one thousand and two hundred miles. Here the Hare of Jade and the Silver Toad produce a perfect j ewel of everlasting brightness. And here too the White Elm and the Cinnabar Cassia have been planted to bring forth wondrous blooms forever. We have a piece of the music of the gods, " Coats of Feathers, Rainbow Skirts ," long kept secret in the moon-palace and never passed down to the world of mortal men. But now in that realm below there is a Tang Son of Heaven who loves music and can truly understand it. His consort, Yang Yu-huan, was, in her for mer life, the Jade Consort of Peng-Iai, the Isle of the Gods, and she used to come visit the moon. I am planning to summon her soul here in dream and let her listen to this melody once again; then when she wakes, I'll make sure she remembers it and puts it down in notation for string and wind instruments. In the end the music of the gods in Heaven will linger as a lovely tale among mortal men. Wonderful! Come here, Han-huang! HAN-HUANG: Here I am. CHANG E: I want you to go to the harem of the Tang palace and bring the soul of Yang Yu-huan here in dream to listen to a melody. When the melody is done, take her back to where she was before. HAN-HUANG: Yes, madam. CHANG E [recites] : As she peacefully rests on her pillow let her dream that she visits the gods and secretly be taught the notes of millennial melody. HAN-HUANG: By your orders, Lady, I will now leave the moon-palace and go off to the palace of Tang. [Goes off, singing] Glowing, the River of Light arcs down, stars flash faintly, thickly strewn. I peer to the world of dust below and see but scented fog and haze. I have left our Jade Precincts, orderly and clear; I let
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my pendants toss their windborne rays and robes on colored wisps throw light, as I tread with tiny pace stepping stones of reddish cloud. I will take the music of Heaven to give to the harem's queen and secretly summon her sweet soul into the sparkling Moon. Here I am in the women's quarters of the Tang palace. See the fish-form locks shut fast and the dragon-arras drawn there Yang the Consort lies asleep, like a cherry-apple bloom, heightening her charm. Softly now I'll wake her clinging to her icy bed. [ Calling] Get up, my Lady.
Enter LADY YANG as a dreaming soul. LADY YANG [sings] : I was j ust enj oying the cool of night, fatigued from bouts of " clouds and rain " ; I was drifting into tipsy sleep, still wearing my powder and paint. HAN-HUANG: Come, my Lady. LADY YANG: Who is that calling to me from under the eaves so deep in the harem?
[Sings] This surely is no palace maid with news who comes so lightly to these painted eaves. HAN-HUANG: Quickly, madam ! LADY YANG [stretching wearily, sings] : Charmingly hesitant, groggy I stretch and ever so slowly open the drapes.
[ Coming out, she meets HAN-HUANG] Oh, it's a palace lady ! HAN-HUANG [sings] : I am not from Chang-men Palace, in service there because I was spurned. LADY YANG: If you are not a palace lady, then perhaps you are some beauty from separate apartments . HAN-HUANG [sings] : N 0, I am not ranked among those Concubines called " Fair-of-Face, " who once did catch the eye o f the throne. 1 004
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LADY YANG: Then who are you ? HAN-HUANG: I am the handmaiden in the moon, and my name is Han huang,
[Sings] so my name is on the registers of the Alabaster Palace and the moon's great galleries. LADY YANG: You're an immortal from the moon! Why ha ve you come here ? HAN-HUANG [sings] : I've j ust now come on instructions of the goddess Chang E herself to ask you to come and dispel the heat under Cassia Palace's flowers. LADY YANG: Amazing ! HAN-HUANG: No need to hang back, my Lady. Come with me now and I'll take you there. TOGETHER [sing] : We head off into sapphire space, and gradually beneath our feet the clouds appear; we pace upon blue wisps, the winds play gently in the listening ear. Now eyes first fix on dangling stars that seem within the fingers' grasp, and soon we see the shimmering glow, the images of a palace sunk within a mirror. LADY YANG: Strange ! It's midsummer. Why is it so chilly here ? HAN-HUANG: These are the lunar precincts of the Supreme Yin, known in the world of mortal men as the Palace of Spreading Cold. Please come lil.
LADY YANG [delighted] : Just imagine-here I am, a person of gross corpo real substance and ordinary looks, who this evening gets to visit the lunar precincts. I'm really lucky.
[Moves ahead, looking around, sings] To visit such a splendid site brings me such satisfied delight!
[Thinking it over] And yet it seems I have seen all these sights sometime before. 1 005
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[Sings] Circling these pavements of j ade, winding under the sapphire eaves, vistas vaguely familiar leave me wondering. Isn't that cassia over there blooming too early ? HAN-HUANG: This is the Cinnabar Cassia of the moon, ever in flower all the year long, scented in leaf and bloom. LADY YANG [examining it] : Such lovely flowers !
[Sings] Insatiate, observer, pleasures multiply. Golden blooms unfurl, j oined with azure leaves . Swelling fragrance in the air penetrates the gown of someone hidden here away in the Cassia 's shade.
[Music is played offstage] Look at the troupe of immortal maidens in pale j ackets and red skirts coming out from under the cassia playing music. So beautiful to the ear! HAN-HUANG: This is the melody " Coats of Feathers, Rainbow Skirts . " Enter between four and eight IMMORTAL MAIDENS, wearing white jackets, red skirts, cloud-brocade capes, necklaces, and trailing sashes, each playing music and singing as they circle the stage. LADY YANG and HAN-HUANG stand off to the side, watching. IMMORTAL MAIDENS [sing] : Bringing Heaven's music, clustered flowers compete each to be the choice, swishing skirts of rainbow soaking in the dew. Far cut off from time's slow passage in the world's red dust, here expressed is pure enchantment of alabaster terraces. But though the agile tongue may trill the pipes and slender marble fingers pluck the strings with harmonies increasing, we waken not the nightmare dream in the world of mortal men, nor do we halt the motion of the water-clock in palaces of Heaven. 1006
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On her pillow she visits gods, and hearing the coda the melodies end, gift to one who can understand music, to transcribe again. [Exeunt] LADY YANG: This music is so wonderful ! Its purity and tenderness touch my very soul. This is really something not to be found in the mortal world.
[Sings] I seem to have seen beauteous forms, a company of fairy maids, in a blur, in a haze; I heard their clear notes to the end, they linger still in mind. I count each ringing of the chime, I count each ringing of the chime, and plunder every syllable with light tap of my phoenix shoe, and following the shifts in key, I catch the melody, marking it by fingertip. My cheeks, embarrassed, glow how foolishly I thought well of charm I had in song and dancing skill, now humbled by comparison to dignified performance here of Heaven's tune. Would it be possible to meet the Moon Queen? HAN-HUANG: It is still too soon for you to meet the Moon Queen. And now the sky is gradually growing bright. It is time for you to go back to your palace.
[Sings] But you should keep in mind that you found your way to the moon. LADY YANG: Without a flaw will I recall new notes of melody. HAN-HUANG: It's just too bad that half the night you had to leave the king to sleep alone. [Exit LADY YANG] Yang the Prized Consort has gone back to the Tang palace. I had better go find my Lady the Moon Queen and report to her on my mission. Sapphire tiles, beech balustrades, halls of the moon drew open, [Cao Tang] 1007
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and take then the bright moonlight to send you on your way. [Ding Xian-zhi] Though permitted that Heaven's music be heard by mortal man, [Li Shang-yin] now mortal man is hurried along by drops of the water-clock. [Huang Tao] In the fo l l ow i n g scene, Lady Yang appears writing out the score of the m u s i c she heard i n the m o o n . Wh i l e L a d y Yang goes t o c h a nge h e r c l othes, the Em pero r comes in and catc hes s i g ht of the score. Lady Yang retu rns, and in the e n s u i n g d i s cussion the Emperor tel l s h e r that Guo Zi -y i ("Omen") has b e e n g i ven a frontier com m a n d . The Emperor then s u ggests that h e r c o mpos ition be re hea rsed by the m u s i c i a n s of the i m pe r i a l m u s i c acad e m y fo r performance. In the n ext scene, Y a n g G u o-z h o n g and An L u - s h a n h ave a v i o l ent q u arre l , after w h i c h each d e n o u n ces the oth e r to the Emperor. To p revent fu rth er confl i ct betwee n h i s two favorites, the Emperor appoi nts An L u - s h a n to take over the north eastern m i l itary c o m m a n d at Fan-yang.
MELODY-THEFT (XIV)
Enter YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU with the score in hand. YONG-XIN [sings] : The score of " Rainbow Skirts " is done, NIAN-NU [joining in] : deep behind the latticed windows she copied out the secret text; and then, with perfumed throat and mouth like jade, she had us learn this perfect tune. YONG-XIN: After my Lady produced a new score of " Rainbow Skirts, " she taught i t t o the two o f us.6 Soon His Majesty will visit Hua-qing Palace; and when he does, " Rainbow Skirts " will be performed. We have been commanded to give the score to Li Gui-nian in Chao-yuan Tower and show him the particulars of how it is to be performed . He then will have the members of the Pear Garden Ensemble rehearse it every night. NIAN-NU: We have already taught them the whole prelude, and they have that down. Today we should teach them the central movement. YONG-XIN: Just look at the moonlight tonight, like water-perfect for per forming music! It's time to take the score off to the tower. TOGETHER [walking on] : Just now the cool moon rises over the high tower, 6Ch i n ese m u s i c a l n otation was l ess p recise than Western notation . A score was accompan ied by i n struction in its performance.
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drapes are furled in sweet south wind, shining upon crystal. Such clear heights suit perfectly notes of fairy music from halls of Spreading Cold. [Exeunt]
Enter LI GUI-NIAN, a gray-whiskered old man, head of the imperial music ensemble. LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : My name long known as court musician, now in old age with new promotion, Conductor of the Ensemble. On call from dawn to dusk I serve my shift in the Inner Court. Previously but a common musician, I, Li Gui-nian, received His Majesty's appointment to head the Music Academy of the Pear Gar den. Lady Yang has recently composed a new melody called " Rainbow Skirts, " and Yong-xin and Nian-nu have been instructed to teach me how to execute the score. We are learning to play it in Chao-yuan Tower, for it is to be performed very soon. We have to do a rush re hearsal every night. I had better call my fellow musicians to get going. Where are you?
Enter MA XIAN-QI, chime player. MA XIAN-QI [recites] : When chimes are played by Xian-qi, amazement strikes the very gods,
Enter LEI HAI-QING, mandolin player. 7 LEI HAI-QING: the iron pick strives to commend Lei Hai-qing.
Enter HE HUAI-ZHI, an elderly mandolin player with a white beard. HE HUAI-ZHI: The mandolin of aging He dominates the stage,
Enter HUANG FAN-CHua, clapper player. HUANG FAN-CHua: I, Fan-chuo, born a Huang, am master of the clappers. 'Lei H a i - q i n g pl ayed a n u n u s u a l mandol i n with a sto n e b r i d ge, crane-te ndon str i ngs, a n d a n i ro n pick.
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A ll greet LI GUI NIAN. -
TOGETHER: Here we are, sir. LI GUI-NIAN: Welcome. Now, gentlemen,
[Sings] Our Ruler has given us commands to rehearse " Rainbow Skirts " with speed and take no break. Yong-xin and Nian-nu, lovely maids, have brought the short, corrected score, marked for the red ivory clapper, and how they wait in the moonlight in Chao-yuan Tower. ENSEMBLE: In that case we had best get going. LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : Together then, gentlemen. [They walk on] With the water-clock's slow dripping the cool of night comes on, we will work through this new music until we get it right, we will work through this new music until we get it right. [Exeunt omnes] Enter LI Mo, in scholar's garb. LI Mo [sings]: I indulge youth's uncurbed stirrings, the imp of romance prods me on to shape my heart through the wondrous truth that lives in melody. I've heard tell this very night in the precincts of Peng-lai Palace a new song will be played from a wondrous score transcribed. Though originally from the Southland, I've been staying here in the cap ital. Ever since youth I've been expert in the rules of music and am par ticularly well known for my mastery of the iron flute. I recently heard that in the palace a new melody was composed, called " Coats of Feath ers, Rainbow Skirts. " The Master Musician Li Gui-nian and others are rehearsing it every night in Chao-yuan Tower. I long to hear this new piece, but I have no way to get hold of the score, kept secret. I've made inquiries about that tower, and it turns out to be right beside the wall, outside which sounds can be heard. So I've put my iron flute in my sleeve and come here to Mount Li, taking advantage of this moonlight as bright as day, to listen to it unseen. And what wonderful scenery I've seen all along the way! 1010
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Walking on, sings: The woodlands gather twilight haze, the weather is cool and clear, into cold skies the mountains rise, crossed by the moon's glittering rays . What a lovely scene ! Just as if I were strolling through a painting.
A red curtain is hung across the stage to serve as the wall, behind which is a tower. I've made it to the palace wall in no time at all. Among the colored clouds I see outlines of great watchtowers sequestered traceries of light set off in moon's brightness. These shimmering beams confound my sight, these shimmering beams confound my sight. And I fancy the royal aura there courses unseen, while everywhere in mansions of gods women like j ade idly lean upon the balustrades. I've heard that Chao-yuan Tower lies at the west end of the imperial park, so I'll go following the red wall to make my way there.
Walking on, sings: Under the shadows of flowers the royal road runs smooth, I walk on ever so slowly hugging the red wall. [ Gazes] I see a tall mansion appearing over the top of the wall in the shadows of the weeping willows-I bet that's it.
[Sings] When I fix my gaze and look closely, when I fix my gaze and look closely, I see billowing blurs of painted curtains half concealing patterned windows. [Points] Isn't that a red lantern up there ! YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU climb the tower on the other side of the wall. LI GUI-NIAN and the musicians speak from within. 1011
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LI GUI-NIAN: Today we should rehearse the central movement. Let's all play i t through once, starting with the prelude. LI Mo: There seem to be voices coming from up there, hidden behind the light of the lantern. This is obviously the place. I'll keep out of sight here and listen.
Stands out of sight of the tower and listens, singing: Softly, now, softly, hidden in blackness, I secretly listen in the shadow of the wall.
Music is played within. LI Mo takes his (lute out of his sleeve. I'll take out my flute and repeat each passage, carefully memorizing all the fine points of the notes and rhythm.
[Sings] I have listened until the moon is high, after the first watch, now at last strings sound together. And deep in the night with everyone still I delight how palace walls resound with ringing sounds equally answering. And the mind, in a flash, has learned the notes, and the mind, in a flash, has learned the notes.
As the music of the full orchestra is heard faintly offstage, LI Mo repeats the passage on h is (lute. The music then stops. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU sing the after-song within the tower. LI Mo accompanies them on the (lute. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU [sing] : Black-dragon pearls are strewn, a sudden shock when we come to the prelude. Rolling clouds are shadows of sleeves, wind-tossed snow whirling, light dancing breeze. Wind-tossed snow whirling, light dancing breeze, in the pale outline of misty brows, a charm beyond measure. LI Mo [continuing the song] : And the mind, in a flash, has learned the notes, and the mind, in a flash, has learned the notes.
Full orchestra plays softly within as before. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU sing within, LI Mo accompanying them on the (lute. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU [sing] : Pearls glow shining on azure, 1012
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the phoenix soars upward, the simurgh stays. On Mount of Jade, on Peng-lai Peak the Primal Goddess waves her sleeve to lead along Shuang-cheng. The Primal Goddess waves her sleeve to lead along Shuang-cheng, E-lii-hua turns her shoulder, to summon Xu Fei-qiong.8 LI Mo [continuing the song] : And the mind, in a flash, has learned the notes, and the mind, in a flash, has learned the notes.
Full orchestra plays softly within as before. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU sing within, LI Mo still accompanying them on the (lute. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU [sing] : Notes come fast, headlong the tune, strings and woodwinds in frenzy. Soaring clouds stop suddenly, dancing sleeves draw slowly back, and sport a lighter grace. Dancing sleeves draw slowly back, and sport a lighter grace, a single note of singing flies up to alabaster skies. LI Mo [continuing the song] : And the mind, in a flash, has learned the notes, and the mind, in a flash, has learned the notes.
The full orchestra goes through it offstage. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU exit. LI Mo: What a wondrous melody-like bamboo tapping together in the au tumn wind or the clinking of springtime ice, a clear stream of note of the god's music and truly not something from the world of mortal men! It was a real stroke of luck to steal it all in my flute.
[Sings] " Rainbow Skirts ," music of Heaven, heard by a traveler over the wall. Notes and rhythm clear, keys rightly used, as in the breeze sounds soft and loud each respond to the other. I stole it in my flute and when I let it out, nothing will be missing. 8The f i g u res mentioned in t h i s sta nza are various goddesses and i m m o rta l s .
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It is quiet now, and no sound is heard from the tower. I imagine they will play no more.
[Sings] Musicians scatter, the song is done, the red mansions grow still, in fading moonlight on half the wall shadows of flowers sway. Look how the River of Stars sinks down and the moon sets, the Dipper turns and Orion lies across the sky. Time to go back.
Puts his (lute in his sleeve and walks on, singing: Turning back to follow the homeward path. I hear on the Jade River's flowing stream, its echoes clear and remote, like a trailing note of " Rainbow Skirts. " Hall and mansion rest in sky, clear in the light of the moon, [Du Mu] around high clouds the song revolves and night is still more cool. [Zhao Gu] I stole for myself several melodies recently composed, [Yuan Zhen] when I play my flute in the tavern now it will be the newest tune. [Zhang Hu] BRINGING HER FRUIT (XV)
Enter FIRST COURIER, carrying a basket of lychees hung from a pole, whipping on his horse. FIRST COURIER [sings] : Alone I've sat astride the saddle and traveled thousands of miles, great were the hardships I endured to bring these lychees to her. An agent sent by royal command cannot act on his own, now I account all fortune and fame less than a life of ease. If only, when I reach Chang-an, the Consort will be pleased. I am a courier on the Western Circuit. Since the Consort Yang adores fresh lychees, His Majesty has decreed that Fu-zhou is to send them as 1014
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tribute every year. The weather has been hot and journey long. But I can not shrink from this task and now must make my horse fly on. [Exit gal
loping, singing reprise, "If only, when I reach Chang-an . . . "] Enter SECOND COURIER, carrying a basket of lychees, whipping on his horse. SECOND COURIER [sings] : Hai-nan's lychees, of all most sweet, will please the palate of Lady Yang. When picked they are wrapped within their leaves and in small bamboo baskets sealed. My steed stops not by night or day to make this delivery, and all along the way I fear delaywhenever a post station comes in sight, I rush for it straightway. .
I am a courier on the Hai-nan Circuit. Since Madam Yang adores fresh lychees, the ones produced in Hai-nan-which are far better than those from Fu-zhou-must be brought as tribute by imperial decree, together with those of Fu-zhou. But the journey from Hai-nan is even longer than from Fu-zhou. After seven days pass, the lychees' flavor and aroma will be lost. I must gallop on swiftly. [Exit galloping, singing reprise "All
along the way I fear delay . . . "] Enter old FARMER. FARMER [sings] : A farmer's plowing and sowing is a lot of effort and pain, we worry about dry weather, we worry about the rain. These few sprouts are all we have the whole year through, and with the harvest half of that is taken as revenueI wonder sadly how much grain will ever reach our bellies. Every day I hope it will ripen, I pray to the gods and seek help from Heaven. I come from the eastern village of Jin-cheng County . I have a family of eight, and we depend entirely on these few acres of poor fields for our livelihood. I heard this morning that couriers delivering fresh lychees are following the most direct route all along the wa y, and no one knows how much of the growing grain of framers they have trampled. This is why 1015
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I've come out specially to watch over my own fields. [Gazes off] There are a pair of fortunetellers coming this way.
Enter a b lind FORTUNETELLER, holding a clapper in his hand, and his WIFE, a blind woman, p lucking a single-string guitar. FORTUNETELLER [sings] : I live in Baa-cheng and go now to Chang-an, keen observer of the turning year and of its ruling stars . . Of life as well as death my j udgments are made clear; this mouth of ironclad prophecy everywhere is famed . A gentleman, though blind, possessed of insight divine I give a cry: To the gods come pray and learn your fate. FORTUNETELLER'S WIFE: Old man, we've been traveling for many days now and my feet have gotten so sore that I really can't go on any further. At this point I'm not making prophecies about lives, j ust struggling to stay alive. FORTUNETELLER: Well, mother, I j ust heard someone talking hereabouts. Let me go ask him where we are. [ Calls out] Sir, what place is this? FARMER: This is the eastern village of Jin-cheng County, bordering on the western part of Wei-cheng. FORTUNETELLER [bowing] : Thank you.
Horsebells are heard within. FARMER looks off in that direction. FARMER: Oh no ! A group of riders is coming ! [Shouts] Sirs, you there on the horses ! Keep to the main road! Don't trample the grain growing in the fields ! FORTUNETELLER [addressing his WIFE] : Good news, mother-the capital isn't far now. I'll go on ahead to hire a young donkey for you to ride. FORTUNETELLER walks on, singing reprise, "A gentleman, though blind . . . " Enter FIRST COURIER, whipping on his horse and singing again, "If only, when I reach Chang-an . . . " He hits the FORTUNETELLER and his WIFE and knocks them down, then exits. Enter SECOND COURIER, whipping on his horse
and singing reprise, "All along the way I fear delay . . . " He tramples the FORTUNETELLER to death under his horse, then exits. The FARMER, weeping, stamps his feet, facing the place where the COURIERS exited. FARMER: Heaven! See how this entire field has been trampled by those bas tards ! I have nothing left ! It's going to be hard enough for the family to 1016
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survive, and now they're going to be after us for the tax grain. What am I going to do? This is terrible! FORTUNETELLER'S WIFE [crawling] : They trampled us down! Old man, where are you ? [Feels the body] Here's my oId man. Why don't you say some thing? Have you been knocked out? [Feels further] There's something dripping wet on your head! [Feels him again, then smells her hand] This is awful-they've crushed out his brains ! [Shouts, weeping] Heaven ! Call the authorities ! FARMER [turning around to look] : One of the fortunetellers has been tram pled to death here ! FORTUNETELLER'S WIFE [getting up and bowing her head] : I've got to find the local authorities to bring back those horsemen to pay for my hus band's life. FARMER: Those horsemen were delivering fresh lychees to Lady Yang. Who knows how many people they've trampled to death along the way. No one can make them pay for those lives-and a blind person like yourself has even less chance. FORTUNETELLER'S WIFE: What am I going to do then? [ Weeping] Oh, old man, I saw that your fate was to die on the road, but now how am I going to take care of your body? FARMER: All right. You'll never find the local authorities on your own. I'll help you pick him up and bury him. FORTUNETELLER'S WIFE: Well, thank you then. It would be j ust fine if I go with you.
They pick up the FORTUNETELLER together and go off, alternately weeping and flirting. Enter ATTENDANT of government way station. ATTENDANT [sings] : The stationmaster ran away, the stationmaster ran away, the horses died and all that's left is a single horse's prick. Of attendants there is one; of grain and cash, almost none. Beaten and bawled out, I have to hold them off alone, I have to hold them off alone. I'm j ust an attendant in the Wei-cheng Station. Because Lady Yang adores fresh lychees and because her birthday is on August 1, both Fu-zhou and Hai-nan ha ve sent couriers bringing offerings, and they all want to get there as quickly as possible. Their route passes through this way station. I can't help it that there isn't any grain or cash remaining in the station and that 1017
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all we have left for them is one scrawny nag. The official in charge was afraid of getting beaten, and he ran off to no one knows where, leaving me, an underling, in charge of the whole station. How am I going to deal with the couriers when they come ? Let them do as they will.
Enter FIRST COURIER, galloping. FIRST COURIER [sings] : In rays through brown dust the sun bites into the mountain peak, faster, faster, faster, closer to Chang-an. [Dismounts] Attendant! Get me a fresh horse, and be quick about it!
Attendant takes the horse. FIRST COURIER sets down his fruit basket and straightens his clothing. Enter SECOND COURIER, galloping. SECOND COURIER [sings] : Sweat pours from all my body, my every limb is stiff, hurry, hurry, hurry, quickly change my mount. [Dismounts] Attendant! Get me a fresh horse, and be quick about it! ATTENDANT takes his horse. SECOND COURIER puts down fruit basket and sees FIRST COURIER. SECOND COURIER: Good-day, sir. Are you bringing lychees ? FIRST COURIER: I am. SECOND COURIER: Attendant! Where is the wine and food for the next stage of the j ourney? ATTENDANT: There is none prepared. FIRST COURIER: All right. We won't eat. Bring the horses quickly. ATTENDANT: There are two of you gentlemen, but the station has only one horse left-who will ride it depends on the two of you. SECOND COURIER: What ! A maj or way station like Wei-cheng and only one horse? Quick-call that dog of a stationmaster of yours so I can ask him where all the station's horses have gone. ATTENDANT: If you are wondering about the station horses, over the course of the past few years they have all been ridden to death by gentlemen bringing lychees. The official in charge of the station saw there was nothing he could do about it, so now he's run away. SECOND COURIER: Since the official in charge of the station has run away, we will hold you responsible. ATTENDANT [pointing] : Isn't that j ust one horse over there in the stable ? FIRST COURIER: Attendant, since I got here first, give it to me to ride. SECOND COURIER: I have had a longer journey, coming from Hai-nan, so let me take it. 1018
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FIRST COURIER [heading within, sings] : I will be first for a fresh horse, and I'm not going to argue with you.
SECOND COURIER [dragging him back, singing] : Don't try to throw your weight around, you'll provoke me to use my fists. FIRST COURIER [taking his lychees in hand, singing] : Don't you dare spill my lychees! SECOND COURIER [taking his lychees and facing FIRST COURIER] : Don't you dare break my bamboo basket.
ATTENDANT [trying to appease them, singing] : Stop it now ! calm your rage. The best thing would be for both of you to ride the horse together.
SECOND COURIER [puts down his lychees and hits ATTENDANT] : What blather! I'm going to beat you to death, you putrid piece of muck.
FIRST COURIER [puts down lychees and beats ATTENDANT] : I'm going to beat you too, you shameless crook.
SECOND COURIER [sings] : Smooth-talking pilferer of government mounts.
FIRST COURIER [sings] : Misuse of imperial property, a gallon of gall.
BOTH [sing] : A flurry of lashes, fists pummel painfully, we will thrash until you can't bear it, and then we'll have our horses.
ATTENDANT [kowtowing, sings ] : I kowtow again and again t o the ground, hoping Your Excellencies will lay off a bit. COURIERS: If you want us to be done with you, get us fresh horses quickly.
ATTENDANT [sings] : There in front of behold the only horse in the station . . .
COURIERS [sing] : We need one more!
ATTENDANT [sings] : That second horse may prove to be rather hard to provide. 1019
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COURIERS: If you don't have it, then we'll beat you. ATTENDANT [sings]: Just loosen your hold a while and hear what I have to say I'll have to take off my clothes to give you to pawn for beer. FIRST COURIER: Who wants your old clothes! SECOND COURIER [looks at coat, puts it on] : All right. I'm really in a hurry. I'll ride the horse I had and get a fresh one at the next stop .
SECOND COURIER takes fruit and mounts, singing reprise, "All along the way I fear delay. " Exits. FIRST COURIER: Quick ! Get me the fresh horse! ATTENDANT: Here it is. FIRST COURIER takes fruit and mounts, singing reprise, "If only, when I reach Chang-an. " Exits. ATTENDANT: Lady Yang, Lady Yang-all this because of a few lychees ! The golden chains of iron gates open at break of day, [Cui Ye] a royal parchment flies its way, words of decree return. [Yuan Zhen] The sounds of whips of post riders swift as a lightning bolt, [Li Ying] and no one realizes that these are her lychees coming. [Du Mu] THE CIRCLE FOR DANCE (XVI )
Enter EMPEROR, leading two palace attendants and GAO LI-SHI. EMPEROR [sings] : The hills are peaceful, breeze is light, the daylight hours last long, horn lamps shine in palace halls, a thousand yards of cloud. Purple vapors come from the east and, gazing west to Onyx Pool, the bluebird makes its fluttering descent into the courtyard.9 9 T h e ph rase " P u r p l e vapors c o m e f r o m t h e east, " u sed i n D u F u ' s "Aut u m n Stirri ngs" (Qiu-xing ba
shou), refers to Lao-zi , the putative a n cestor of the Tang royal house, going westward through the ' passes to become an i m morta l . O n yx Pool was in the K u n - I u n M o u n ta i n s, where Zhou K i n g Mu feasted with the Queen Mother of the West. F rom her home i n the K u n - I u n Mounta i n s , the Queen Mother of the West once went to visit the Han emperor Wu i n C h a n g-an, sen d i n g her attendant b l u e b i rd ahead as a herald o f her visit. These l i nes seem to prefi g u re the a n t i c i pated meet i n g be tween the Em peror (a L i l i ke Lao-z i ) and Lady Yang.
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Lady Yang and I have come to Mount Li to escape the summer heat. Today is the first of August and the Lady's birthday, so I have arranged a special banquet in the Palace of Lasting Life to celebrate it. Then we will also have the new song " Rainbow Skirts " performed. Gao Li-shi, go to the harem and tell the Lady to come to the hall. GAO : As you command.
GAO LI-SHI faces within and passes on the message. From within comes the answer, "As you command. " Enter LADY YANG, elaborately dressed, with YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU. LADY YANG [sings] : In pepper-scented chambers sunbeams glow, blooming branches play on window grills. From the gate is hung a small flap of imperial yellow, embroidered with a phoenix pair soaring on high beside the rainbow clouds.
[Greeting the EMPEROR] Your servant Yang greets Your Majesty. Long live Your Majesty! EMPEROR: And may such long life be shared with you, my Consort. LADY YANG is seated.
EMPEROR [recites] : In deep recesses of purple cloud the Maiden Star shines bright, LADY YANG: the Magic Peach, drenched in dew, flourishes in sun's light, YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU: facing the flowers year after year may this couple never grow old, GAO LI-SHI [joining in] : and in this Palace of Lasting Life we wish you life everlasting. EMPEROR: Since today is your birthday, I have arranged a special banquet for lasting life so that we can enjoy ourselves together all day long. LADY YANG: I am overwhelmed by this kindness shown to me on my birth day, and I would like to offer a toast to long life. GAO LI-SHI: The wine is ready. LADY YANG bows and presents the wine to the EMPEROR, who offers her a cup in return. LADY YANG drinks, kneeling, then bows her head to the floor and cries, "Long live Your Majesty ! " Then she resumes her seat.
EMPEROR [sings]: There's a scent in the breeze, the s u n is bright, see blazing light shake on the single leaf 1021
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of the ming plant . 1 Now the magnificent feast begins with South Mountain reflected from afar in goblets filled with wisps of cloud.
TOGETHER: Fruit formed of pods embracing, the peach tree lives a thousand years; paired flowers on a single stalk, the lotuses bloom for ten yards. Suited for pleasures, this palace, well-named " Lasting Life , " is a realm t o match immortal lands.
Enter a palace EUNUCH, bearing a document. EUNUCH [recites] : I hold in my hands a red placard with golden flourish adorned, we have all come to the precious halls to wish you a thousand years.
[Greets them] Your Majesty, my Lady-the Minister Yang Guo-zhong and the Ladies of Han, Guo, and Qin offer you this card with felicita tions, and send their good wishes from outside the court. GAO LI-SHI takes the card and hands it over to the EMPEROR, who reads it. EMPEROR: Our thanks to them. Let the Minister not feel he has to observe all the courtesies, but let him go back to court and take care of business. The Three Ladies should come j oin us when Lady Yang and I go back to the palace for the banquet. EUNUCH: As you command. [Exit]
Enter S ECOND EUNUCH, carrying the lychees covered with a yellow cloth. SECOND EUNUCH [recites] : For this feast of longevity in the gods' Onyx Park, from the fiery South are offered the lychees known as " youngest mai d . "
[Greets them] Your Majesty, here are fresh lychees presented from Fu zhou and Hai-nan. EMPEROR: Bring them here. GAO LI-SHI takes the lychees and removes the cloth covering them, then presents them to the EMPEROR. My Lady, since you love this fruit, I sent a special edict to these places ' T h e fab u l o u s ming plant was s u p posed to grow a new l eaf every day through the fi rst half of the month, then l ose a leaf daily d u r i n g the seco n d half of the month. S i nce the present d a y i s the fi rst of the month, there i s o n l y one l eaf.
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to have them brought to you with all possible haste. And today these fine fruits have arrived just in time for your birthday banquet. Let us drink another cup together. LADY YANG: Long live Your Majesty! EMPEROR: Maids, bring wine. NIAN-NU and YONG-XIN bring wine. LADY YANG [sings] : A basketful, fair fruits' aroma, wrapped in yellow, brought from afar, from west and south by royal command. I love their rich and ripe red velvety skin with crystalline balls of white within, a pure fragrance in the hand, on teeth a moisture sweet and cool. TOGETHER: Now must the fiery date give way and the pear of immortality, for on these eternal terraces at a banquet of longevity these j oin the Goddess of Onyx Pool in offering alab aster sap. EMPEROR: Gao Li-shi, give my command to Li Gui-nian to bring the musi cians of the Pear Garden Academy into the hall to attend on us. GAO LI-SHI: As you command. GAO LI-SHI passes command within. Enter LI GUI-NIAN with musicians LEI HAI-QING, HE HUAI-ZHI, MA XIAN-QI, and HUANG FAN-CHUO, all in brocade
gowns and splendid caps, responding, "As you command. " LI GUI-NIAN [recites] : Red clappers are ready, the zither pegs tuned, urging on one dressed in lace to mount the stage for dance. We've changed into new headgear, the saffron-colored caps, and in our troop have come here before the royal throne.
[Greets EMPEROR] The musician Li Gui-nian brings the Pear Garden Troupe to greet Your Maj esty and the Lady. EMPEROR: Li Gui-nian, the other day you performed the overture of " Rain bow Skirts . " Have you thoroughly rehearsed the second movement, " Coats of Feathers " ? LI GUI-NIAN: We have. 1 023
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EMPEROR: Well, put your heart into the performance. LI GUI-NIAN: As you command. [Rises and exits] LADY YANG: Your Majesty, in the six sections of the overture the only tempo is largo with no andante, while in the six sections of the middle move ment the tempo is andante but with no allegro, and for this there is no choreography yet.
[Sings] It lifts as with a breeze, in the mood of notes, a vibrancy, stopping the brightly colored clouds in flight and whirling around the rainbow beams . The third movement of " Coats of Feathers" is called the " Ornamented Section. " There every word and every note contains the motion of a dance. There are the slow notes, the tremolos, the rubatos, echoing bell-like and clear, a string of black-dragon pearls. There is the statement of the theme, the exposition, and the finale, each matching a thousand lithe positions on the dance rug. And then there is the hua-fan, the dao-he, the side beat, the fast beat, and the stolen beat, so many tones of melody, all rising together with slow dance, unfolding in the interplay with leisurely song. EMPEROR: You have described all the fine points of the song and dance. LADY YANG: I have had a circular surface of azure constructed. Let me dance thereon to give Your Majesty some pleasure of entertainment. EMPEROR: I have never had a chance to see your finesse in dance, Lady. Yong xin, Nian-nu, along with Zheng Guan-yin and Xie Ah-man, are to at tend upon Lady Yang and bring in the azure circle. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU: As you command. LADY YANG [rising] : May I withdraw to change clothes, sire ?
[Recites] I'll put my costume in order dress up once again, then this body will fly upon the circular surface of azure.
Exit LADY YANG with YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU. 1 024
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EMPEROR: Gao Li-shi, instruct Li Gui-nian to have the Pear Garden Ensemble play the music according to the score. I will keep the rhythm myself on a Jie drum.
GAO LI-SHI: As you command. GAO conveys the instructions within. The EMPEROR rises to change. LI GUI NIAN and the other musicians play music offstage. A circle of azure is placed on the stage. Enter LAD Y YANG, wearing a splendid cap, a white embroidered gown, a necklace, a brocade cloud-mantle, kingfisher-decorated sleeves, and a great red dancing skirt. YONG-X1N and NIAN-NU, along with ZHENG GUAN YIN and XIE AH-MAN, are all wearing white gowns for dancing, and holding multicolored rainbow streamers and peacock cloud fans. They step upon the azure circle, crowding around LADY YANG and completely hiding her. The music stops and the pennons and fans slowly draw back, to show LADY YANG dancing on the circle with YONG-XIN, NIAN-NU, ZHENG GUAN-YIN, and XIE AH-MAN singing. GAO LI-SHI kneels, h olding the drum, while the EMPEROR as sumes his seat and beats on it. Offstage, the musicians join in. ALL
[sing] : Figured lace j oins blossoms' light, a bud of red cloud ripples in the sky. Behold the rainbow streamers circling round, as scent from Heaven tumultuously falls. With steady grace fan shadows slowly draw apart and show her bright array. In every way like those spirits of the air that fall through moonbeams in their flight. Now lightly tossing in the breeze, she spreads her colored sleeves, and on the azure circle shows her skill. In windborne undulations she forward comes, then draws away, as bloom of lotus meets the wind upon its bobbing leafy pad. With cuffs upraised toward sky as though about to fly, her body bends in sudden turns passing through measures unforeseen.
[Dancing more swiftly] Now lost in whirling ecstasy, spray of flowers catching gusts, twig of willow rising, phoenix outline mounting high, shape of simurgh soaring. 1 025
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Words cannot tell such charm of form, upward blown by Heaven's wind amid the players' frenzied tones. From icy strings and stops of j ade the notes are piercing clear, from phoenix reeds and ivory pipes come floods of melody. Now blending with the beat of drum, swelling and diminishing, new modes of music compassed and performed. Her trailing skirts of gold recall how Lady Zhao was held by all when dancing she took flight. EMPERO R stops drumm ing; GAO LI-SHI carries drum away. The dancing halts, her wispy skirts draw in. LADY YANG bows to EMPEROR. And once again her forehead b ows, and she shouts, " Long live His Majesty! " YONG-XIN, NIAN-NU, ZHENG GUAN-YIN, and XIE AH-MAN help LADY YANG off the dancing circle. ZHENG GUAN-YIN and XIE AH-MAN withdraw. EMPEROR rises, comes forward, and takes LADY YANG'S hand. EMPERO R: That was splendid ! That was a dance ! It gave a powerfu l im pression of unearthl iness, with intoxica ting beauties appearing every where. Just like the eddying wind or whirling snow or a swallow in flight or the swimming dragon. You are unsurpa ssed in a millenni um. Maids, see to some wine! I am going to toast Lady Yang. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU bring wine; EMPEROR raises his cup and sings: I lift this flagon of gold and face you with a gentle smile, bidding those cherry lips to lightly taste drop by drop. [Hands it to Lady Yang] Now drain it to the dregs, my gift of gratitude to you for having strained limbs and waist in dance. LADY YANG [taking the cup and thanking EMPEROR] : Long live Your Maj esty! [sings] This j a delike brew bestowed by his own hand are favor's broad waves, I feel only shame that this exceeds the merits of my paltry skills. 1 02 6
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EMPEROR [looking at Lady Yang] : When I gaze closely on her face, how she holds the cup, every kind of lover's grace strikes a man to the heart. Let your payment be ten bolts of golden brocade figured with mated ducks and a hairpin of purple-rubbed gold from the river Li. [Takes out a sachet] Here also is a sachet of eight precious brocade pouches filled with ambergris to hang from your waist, to add to your dance costume. LADY YANG [taking sachet and thanking EMPEROR] : Long live Your Maj esty! EMPEROR [taking LADY YANG by the hand and walking] : This fair dance of " Rainbow Skirts " can be enj oyed forever, fit complement to my prayer for your long life. LADY YANG: My body is redolent throughout with the unforeseen flood of favor.
EMPEROR [recites] : the secret galleries of Lasting Life rest against gray sky, [Wu Rong] LADY YANG: the j adelike sweet wines are portioned in flagons for the toast. [Zhang Yue]
EMPEROR: Done with drinking, I cherish still more the paired sleeves of the dance, [Han Hong] LADY YANG: all over my body I newly bear scents of rainbow-cloud. [Cao Tang] Meanw h i le, at h i s c o m m a n d in F a n -yang in the N o rtheast, An L u - s h a n has been q u i etly remov i n g h i s C h i nese gener a l s a n d rep l a c i n g them with Central As i a n s l i ke h i m self. He watc hes a g reat h u nt i n w h i c h he rev i ews h i s army's p rowess, secret l y p l ot t i n g rebe l l i o n . At the s a m e t i me, Lady Y a n g is suffe r i n g t h e torments o f j e a l o u s y because the Emperor h as d eve l o ped a n i nterest in a n ew fav orite known as the P l u m Cons ort. The Emperor is d a l l y i n g with the P l u m Cons ort in a pav i l i o n when Lady Yang comes to the door and demands ad m i s s i o n . The Em peror, f l u stered, h ides the P l u m Con sort, a n d in a com i c scene t h at bears witness t o the Em peror's i nfatu ated weakness before Lady Yang, she accuses h i m of dece i v i n g her. The Emperor at fi rst beats a h asty retreat, then retu rns to conso l e h e r a n d reassure h e r of h i s l ove. Retu r n i n g to the frontier, Guo Zi-yi's scouts i nform h i m of A n Lu-sh a n ' s p repa rati o n s for rebe l l i o n and how i mper i a l i nvesti gato rs h ave been deceived i nto re porti n g h i s l oy a l ty . Meanwh i l e, back near the c a p i ta l , the steamy p l eas u res of fe1 027
Anthology of Chinese Literature m a l e voye u r i s m i n nocently echo the m o re d estructive envy that fu e l s An L u - s h a n ' s ambitions.
PEEKING AT THE BATHERS (XXI)
Enter FIRST PALACE MAID . FIRST MAID [sings] : Since youth my face was nature's gift of pocking; foremost in bevies of palace demoiselles m sweepmg. I met a young eunuch by the stairs, adawdling, I stuck out my hand and stroked his pants but nothing. .
.
[Recites in doggerel] I'm number one of the palace maids, my standard is top-notch: my cheeks are smeared with powder, my mouth, a lipstick splotch. My twinkling eyes are bells of bronze, I flatten my brows to a line, My dainty digits, ten pestles, my willowy waist, great pine. My naked body is lacquer coarse and my footsies are bigger than an outrigger built to run a rapids' course. Lady Yang dotes on my cleverness, and picked me for " Rainbow Skirts " chorus; but my vocal cords were a sonorous wonder, from singing lips rose peals of thunder . And my body proved a bit too bumbling for I danced the royal table tumbling. This did the royal dander inflame: from the roll of dancers he struck my name. I forthwith departed for Mount Li to serve in Warmsprings Gallery. The royal coach set off yesterday to Hua-qing with Lady Yang to stay. They will j ointly bathe in warm pools here by imperial writ, so I must sweep and clean and get everything set. But here as I'm rambling on, another palace lady is coming. 1028
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Enter SECOND PALACE MAID. SECOND MAID [sings] : We have frittered away the spring of youth, the harem's bitter women, we stamp our feet and beat our breasts in vain, none knows our pain. We have wasted our lives without a man, the dance of the wild goose flying alone.
They greet one another. FIRST MAID: What's this "wild goose dance" you're talking about ? Now that His Maj esty has Lady Yang's " Skirts of Rainbow, " he doesn't even care for the Plum Consort's " Startled Swan " dance any more. SECOND MAID: How true ! I used to be a maid of the Plum Consort. But since my Lady took sick and died after returning from the Azure Tower in hu miliation, I got sent off to this place. FIRST MAID : That's how it is. Lady Yang is so j ealous that we should give up even dreaming of a day when we will enj oy the Emperor's atten tions . SECOND MAID: Let's drop it. FIRST MAID: His Majesty is j ust about to arrive. Let's you and I go to the outer corridor to wait for him.
They move to the edge of the stage. Enter EUNUCHS, leading the EMPEROR, LADY YANG, NIAN-NU, and YONG-XIN. EMPEROR [sings] : Around this pleasure palace the scenes are private and rare: see how beside the carved beams, and beyond the pearl screens the rain rolls off and clouds fly. There, winding away, several turns of vermilion rails ring painted streams, and long walkways in rising tiers touch the azure haze. A red wall encircles all with passage opened through marble doors . EUNUCHS: Your Maj esty, we have come to Warmsprings Palace. EMPEROR: Leave us now. [Exeunt EUNUCHS] My Lady, Behold clear channels gushing under, the turning wavelets and furrowed ripples, whose soft luster of fragrant fountains well suits your pale flesh. 1 029
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Let us bathe here, my Lady. [NIAN-NU and YONG-XIN remove the outer
robes from EMPEROR and LADY YANG] Now softly undo your cloudlike gown, pearl-glow already showing through and j ade's white sheen, I cannot but stand facing you, cannot but love you, cannot but care for you, cannot but gaze on you, cannot but cherish you. EMPEROR gives LADY YANG a hand down into the baths. YONG-XIN: Seeing the love that His Majesty and Lady Yang share, Nian-nu, is enough to make a person die of envy. NIAN-NU: Indeed it is. YONG-XIN [sings] : On flowered dawns in one another's arms, embracing on moonlit nights, they taste that soft and warm pleasure, the body's savor. NIAN-NU: Like shadow and form, linked always together, indivisible as when a knife cuts water. A thousand small accommodations, and hundred compliances, two people j oined in flesh and in heart. The tongue has no words for love's secret, nor can the written word convey that bed with lovebird curtains where they lie together forever twined. YONG-XIN: You and I have waited on Lady Yang for many years now, and though we have seen her charming face, we have never had a glimpse of her naked body. Why don't we steal a peek through this gap in the hangings. NIAN-NU: A good idea.
Both peer through the curtains within. TOGETHER [sing] : A s we steal a glimpse of her naked body before us spread like a lotus riding upon the waves, its charming glow besprent with dew. The fragrant unguents melt away from delicate wrists and arms, a lithe torso rolling with sapphire ripples. 1 03 0
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YONG-XIN: Her frame, bright wisp of cloud, her flesh is steeped in snow. NIAN NU : A swathe of creamy skin, paired buds poking through, -
YONG-XIN: a half speck of spring conceals the small and musky navel. NIAN NU : And I love the spot her red wraps gape just barely revealing her private parts. -
Yong-xin, look at His Maj esty, how he fixes his gaze on her! And he smiles steadily like someone who's lost his wits .
TOGETHER: Not j ust we her palace maids almost take leave of our senses, even the ruler, used to the sight, can't control himself.
YONG-XIN: Would that the springtime waters run dry! NIAN NU: Or that her marble mass be bathed until it senseless swoons ! -
YONG-XIN: Kisses unceasing upon her sweet shoulders,
NIAN-NU: his arm ever circles her slender waist;
YONG-XIN: our lady says nothing, and discreetly smiles, withholding her passion. NIAN-NU : And they are content, as magic liquids and springtime breeze sweep across them drunkenly.
YONG-XIN: The light on the waves is warm, rays of the sun cast their glow, as this pair of dragons frolic, rising out of the level pool.
TOGETHER: Almost like King Xiang of Chu falling from thirst by Yang Terrace, 1031
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and she, just like the goddess, brings back the twilight rain.
Enter FIRST and SECOND MAIDS, unnoticed, laughing. MAIDS: You two seem to be having a good time. Let us get to see too. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU: We're j ust waiting on Lady Yang while she is bathing. What's the " good time " about that? MAIDS: I'll bet you weren't j ust waiting on Lady Yang, but stealing a peek at His Maj esty in there. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU: Shame on you! Don't talk nonsense. His Majesty and Lady Yang are coming out now.
Exeunt MAIDS. Enter EMPEROR and LADY YANG. EMPEROR [sings] : Rising from the warm pool fresh cool runs through flesh, I observe the increase of radian t loveliness within your face. Most charming-the scattered flecks of make-up left and in azure streaks a gloss appears in drying clouds of hair. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU help EMPEROR and LADY YANG to change. LADY YANG has a look of lassitude, and YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU hold her up. EMPEROR: You look like a willow in wind or a bloom affrighted by dew. So languid you can't hold yourself up, charming in your frailty, needing others to help you along.
Enter two EUNUCHS with attendants pulling a small carriage. EUNUCHS: If Your Majesty and our Lady would please get in the carriage, we will go back to Hua-qing Palace. EMPEROR: Let the carriage follow behind. EUNUCHS: As you command, sire. EMPEROR [taking LADY YANG by the hand, sings] : Let you and I go shoulder to shoulder and hand in hand, who needs a carriage to rush beneath the flowers ? let us go back with a fine breeze on our faces. TOGETHER: The one who's always on my mind turns the mind to thoughts of love, 1 032
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even those unfeeling flowers and birds are fools of feeling, all alike know to pair and seek a common roost.
EMPEROR [recites] : The breath of flowers, exactly like incense of compound scent, [Du Fu]
LADY YANG: avoiding breeze, having j ust emerged from a tub's warm waters. [Wang Jian]
EMPEROR: Attendants, hold her up, charming in her frailty, [Bo Ju-yi] LADY YANG: laughing, I lean by the east window on a bench of white j ade. [Li Bo] SECRET PLEDGE ( XXII)
Enter the goddess WEAVER WOMAN, with two IMMORTAL HANDMAIDENS. WEAVER [sings]: Clouds shelter my j ade shuttle as with skill I weave the threads on the loom. Pangs of longing never come to palaces of Heaven-yet hearing this night is the Seventh Eve, I think back abruptly on times gone by.
[Recites Qin Guan's lyrics] Fine wisps of cloud sport their craft, shooting stars bear the news, and now far off in the River of Stars we will make the crossing unseen. To meet j ust once in fall's metal wind and in the j ade white dews turns out to be better by far than the countless meetings of mortals. Our tender feelings seem like water, this sweet moment is as in a dream how can we bear to turn their heads to the path leading back across Magpie Bridge ? But so long as both of us love and so long as our love lasts on, it does not need to be done every night and every morning at dawn. 1033
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I am that Weaver Woman who, according to the decree of the High God, wedded the Oxherd to become a heavenly husband and wife. Every year on the Seventh Eve we cross the River of Stars and meet. In the world below, this day is the Seventh Eve of the seventh month in the tenth year of the Tian-bao Reign. See how there are no waves on the River of Light, which will soon be filled with magpies . I had best set aside my weaving for a while and get myself dressed up.
Music is played faintly within. Enter magpies, which fly around stage. A bridge is set up and the magpies fly to either end. IMMORTAL HANDMAIDENS: The Magpie Bridge is erected. You may cross the River of Stars now, my Lady. WEAVER WOMAN rises and walks toward it. WEAVER [sings] : I set aside my woven words and briefly ride a scented coach. ALL [sing] : For no clouds stain the sapphire sky, and fresh cool comes with evening's breeze. [They step upon the
bridge] We tread the bridge through shadows strewn as down below us shines Star-River's resplendent clarity. By these new j oys overwhelmed: the new moon's slender sliver, the moistness of the sparkling dew, as magpies ply their wings below in circling pairs; we note at once how the Silver Stream takes on new aspects in the fall. IMMORTAL HANDMAIDENS: My Lady, we have crossed the Milky Way. WEAVER: Down there underneath the Star-River, I can j ust barely make out a puff of incense smoke, coiling as it rises into the sky. Where is it com ing from ? IMMORTAL HANDMAIDENS: That is Yang Yu-huan, the Prized Consort of the Tang Emperor, praying for skill in the palace.2 WEAVER: It's good that she has such a true heart. The Ox herd and I will go down to watch her.
2 " P ra y i n g for s k i l l " was one of the various custo ms of the Seventh Eve. The "ski l l " referred to i s pri m a r i l y s k i l l i n weav ing, a gift t h a t t h e Weaver Woman s t a r might we l l gra nt-though i n the c a s e of the Prized Consort, " s k i l l " i s m e a n t i n a broader s e n s e o f "artfu l charm." When a wo m a n " p rayed for s k i l l , " she wou l d capt u re a spider and put it in a box . Then she wou l d see how m u c h of a web it s p u n by the n ext day, and that wou l d te l l her the degree to w h i c h her w i s h had been granted.
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ALL [sing] : Heavenly meetings of lovers last on year after year right here, and we smile at love's fate in the mortal world that is in an instant gone. [Exeunt omnes]
Enter two attendant EUNUCHS, holding lanterns, followed by EMPEROR. EMPEROR [sings] : Tranquil autumn light engulfed in wisps of sapphire smoke bringing on the dark of night. Showers pass the beech trees leaving a faint chill; the Silver River arcs around with frail wisps of cloud adorning the Paired Stars. [Laughter within; the EMPEROR listens] I listen closely-borne on the breeze is happy laughter past the flowers in shadows of the trees. Eunuch ! What's all that laughter for ?
EUNUCH [asking within] : His Majesty asks: what's all that laughter for ? VOICE [from within]: My Lady Yang has come t o the Palace of Lasting Life to pray for skill.
EUNUCH [replying to EMPEROR'S question] : My Lady Yang has come to the Palace of Lasting Life to pray for skill.
EMPEROR: Attendants, don't announce my arrival. Let me sneak in quietly. [Sings] Put the red lanterns away, let me softly slip within to the dragon-court to get a better view.
EMPEROR moves off to the edge of the stage. Enter LADY YANG, with Y ONG XIN and NIAN-NU, accompanied by two palace girls carrying a box of incense, a silk fan, a vase of flowers, a wax doll, and a golden basin.3 LADY YANG [sings] : The palace yard is sunk in haze from incense of golden braziers, half concealing the candles' rays . A spider the size of a grain of rice, here securely enclosed 3 F l oati ng a wax doll i n a b as i n of water was a ceremony associated with pray i n g for fert i l ity.
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beans set to sprout in a pan of gold, and sprays of blossoms unfurl in a silver vase. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU: We have reached the Palace of Lasting Life, and all the preparations have been readied for you to make the prayer for skill. Would you now take a stick of incense, my Lady?
They take flower vase, doll, and basin, and set them on a table. YONG-XIN holds out the box of incense and LADY YANG takes a stick. LADY YANG: I, Yang Yu-huan, with a reverent and earnest heart hereby re spectfully address the Paired Stars . I humbly entreat your divine aid.
[Sings] I pray that the love shown by hairpin and box long stay firm, let the fan be not abandoned when winds of autumn come.4
EMPEROR [secretly observing her, sings] : She is so lovely to my sight, b owing Iow an alabaster stairs, and I can hear her muffled sounds of prayers. YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU [seeing EMPEROR] : His Maj esty is here ! LADY YANG quickly turns and bows down before the EMPEROR. EMPEROR lifts
her up. EMPEROR: And what's this mischief you are up to ? LADY YANG: Tonight is the Seventh Eve, and I've set out fruit to pray for skill from the Weaver Woman, Heaven's Daughter. EMPEROR [laughing] : You've already plundered Heaven of all its skill. Why would you have to pray for more ? LADY YANG: You make me tremble with shame at such excessive praise. LADY YANG and EMPEROR are seated. Exeunt YONG-XIN, NIAN-NU, and the
two palace girls. EMPEROR: My Lady, I think on how the Weaver and the Oxherd are sepa rated by the Silver River and get to meet only once a year. Such longing is no easy thing to bear.
[Sings] Night stretches on in autumn sky, the sapphire river of stars is clear, 4Th i s refers to a poem attri buted to the rejected favorite Pan J i e-yu, in w h i c h the c o u rt lady com pares herself to a fan, cast away once the cool of autu m n comes.
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the holy wayfarers have barely a chance each to greet the other, helpless that Heaven grants them a meeting that lasts but an instant, and all too soon the rooster's crow reaches their ears. Then in the cold of clouds and chill of dew they hurry back to yearlong solitudes. LADY YANG: It makes me sad when Your Maj esty speaks of the pain that the Paired Stars feel when they part. It's too bad that mortal men don't know how things are in Heaven.
[Sings] If we asked, we would find they suffer terribly the pangs of longing. [ Wipes away tears] EMPEROR: Why are you crying ? LADY YANG: I realize that even though the Weaver and the Oxherd get to meet only once a year, their love will continue as long as Heaven lasts and Earth endures. I'm afraid that the love Your Majesty and I share can not possibly last as long as theirs. EMPEROR: What's this, now!
[Sings] Though mated gods have everlasting life, compared to worldly bonds like ours they're not much better off. In mortal lifespans we may seize all the excitement of romance, we have our moments and our scenes that heighten passion and pleasurewhy then sob with sorrow so? [Moves closer to Lady Yang and
speaks softly] How can the Paired Stars compare to you and I who share every night and every dawn ? LADY YANG: The love you have shown me is deep, but tonight there are a few things I want to say . . [Stops herself] EMPEROR: You can say whatever you want to. LADY YANG [facing EMPEROR, choked with sobbing] : I have had your favor and kind regard more than any woman in the harem. I am j ust afraid that as time passes, I will gradually lose that love and that I will end up as Zhuo Wen-jun did with Si-ma Xiang-ru, lamenting promises be trayed. .
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[Sings] My heart aches whenever this thought comes, . and I brood how, lowly and poor, I've served in the royal chambers, and have been raised so high to wait on your wardrobe, share your coach. But I fear that in the blink of an eye flowers grow old and nothing remains of springon lasting favor can none rely. [ Weeping, grasps his clothes] If I could get this love to stay and last on long, I would even die. If I could get this love to run its full course to the end, in death I would close my eyes. Then I would be far better than she who once danced and sang for Princess Ping-yang, then the ruler's love changed and lonely in Chang-men Palace her spirit crushed, teardrops fell and her heart broke in helpless weeping for the fate of fair faces. EMPEROR [taking his sleeve and wiping away LADY YANG'S tears]: Cease such sad thoughts, my dear. The love that I feel for you cannot be compared to such casual attractions.
[Sings] Cease heart's cares, no more shed tears fearing time passing will bring about change . [Takes LADY YANG'S hand] Honeycake, honey cake, stuck together fast, never an instant apart.
TOGETHER [sing] : Or consider the long and trailing vine lost among flowers, in dark of the moon, then none can tell its shadow from form. LADY YANG: Since you love me so much, I ask you to take an oath with me here under the Paired Stars to keep our love steadfast to the end. EMPEROR: Then let's both go burn incense and make our vow.
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TOGETHER [sing] : Leaning shoulder to shoulder, we descend the stairs hand in hand. Above the halls stretches the River of Light, LADY YANG [sings]: and suddenly I feel a chill creep into my gown of mesh.
EMPEROR [sings] : Let us now, speaking softly, swear by the mountains and seas.
EMPEROR offers incense, bows, and swears with LADY YANG. By the paired stars above, I, Li Long-ji . . . LADY YANG: and I, Yang Yu-huan . . . TOGETHER: . . . because of the depth of our love, wish to remain together as man and wife in every one of our future lives and never to be parted. May the Paired Stars stand as witnesses if this vow is ever betrayed.
EMPEROR [bowing, sings] : If in Heaven, may we become those birds that fly on shared wing,
LADY YANG [clasping hands and bowing head, sings] : if on Earth, then may we become branches that twine together.
TOGETHER [sing] : Heaven lasts, the Earth endures, yet a time will come when they're gone, yet this oath of ours will continue and never finally end.
LADY YANG [thanking EMPEROR with head bowed] : I am deeply moved by your love and will keep this vow made tonight to the death.
EMPEROR [taking L AD Y YANG by the hand, sings] : Here in the Palace of Lasting Life private vows were said,
LADY YANG [sings] : but who is there tonight to be our witness ?
EMPEROR [pointing, sings] : There by the bridge across the Silvery River that pair of stars, Oxherd and the Weaver. [Exeunt]
Enter OXHERD wearing cloud-figured turban and robes of an immortal, ac companied by the WEAVER WOMAN with her two IMMORTAL HANDMAIDENS. WEAVER [sings] : They made their vows, their secret troth,
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and prayed with heartfelt reverence, an undivided love in two, whose mouths shared the same words . OXHERD: Goddess, see what love the Tang Emperor and Yang Yu-huan share !
[Sings] Silently embracing, leaning shoulder to shoulder, no breach between them. You and I have had the good fortune to be united in Heaven, and we should direct what is played out on the stage of love below. Not only that-they made their vows before us, so we should watch over them.
[Sings] They yearn to be birds that fly on paired wing, aspire to be branches j oined, wish to share future lifetimesthis is true love indeedand we should have them ever be guardians of romance in the world of mortal men. WEAVER: Yet a disaster will befall them both, and death will part them. But if at last they do not forswear the vows they took tonight, then we will arrange their reunion. OXHERD: What you say, goddess, is true. But look how the colors of night draw to their close. Let us make our way back to our palace in the stars.
Takes WEAVER WOMAN'S hand and they walk. TOGETHER [sing] : Heavenly meetings of lovers last on year after year right here, and we smile at love's fate in the mortal world that is in an instant gone . No need that years and months speed on in the world of mortal men- [Luo Ye] the star-bridge stretches across the sky, magpies turn back in flight. [Li Shang-yin] Say not that meetings in Heaven are too few, [Li Ying] we simply do not have the heart to send the asked-for skill. [Luo Yin] I n the next scenes, An Lu-shan appears in rebe l l i o n , d efeat i n g the i m pe r i a l army u nder Ge-s h u Han and b reaki n g through the passes that defe n d the capita l . The Em1 040
The Qing Dynasty peror is feast i n g with Lady Y a n g when the n ews ar r i ves that An Lu-shan has defeated the i m pe r i a l army and is th reate n i n g C h a ng-a n . As the scene c l oses, the Emperor plans t o flee the capital the n ext mor n i ng.
JADE BURIAL (XXV)
Enter CHEN YUAN-LI, officer in charge of the imperial guard, with attendant soldiers. CHEN [sings] : On we speed, throngs of pikes and pennons, on we speed, Plumed Guards ward the royal coach, the royal coach. In panic fleeing the mutineers, we set off on the march. The road is rough, the men trudge through, when at last will we make Cheng-du? Because An Lu-shan has rebelled and taken Tong Pass, His Maj esty is making a j ourney to Shu to escape the fighting. He has ordered me, Chen Yuan-Ii, the Long-wu general, to take charge of the palace troops that will serve as his escort. We have j ust completed one stage of the j ourney and reached Ma-wei Station. [ Uproar within] You soldiers, what's the reason for all the noise ? SOLDIERS [within] : The rebellion of An Lu-shan and the fact that the Em peror has been forced to flee is all Yang Guo-zhong's fault-he abused his power and stirred up the revolt. Unless this traitor is executed, we will rather die than escort the Emperor any further. CHEN: There is no need for such rowdiness . Sta y quietly in cam p for a while, and I will state the case to His Majesty, who will make the decision.
Offstage, soldiers agree. Exit CHEN, leading his guards, singing the reprise, "The road is rough, the men trudge through, " etc. Enter EMPEROR and LADY YANG on horseback, followed by YONG-XIN and NIAN-NU. EMPEROR [sings] : Drops of tears are shed for my palace in panic forsaken, and I sigh at this rag-tag retinue heading to Cheng-du off beyond the edge of sky. On and on, ever farther from the capital, 1 04 1
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through half a dozen isolated rivers and hills, interspersed with a few deserted shacks and fallen tiles. GAO: We have reached Ma-wei Station. May it please Your Maj esty to rest here a while. EMPEROR and LADY YANG dismount, go in, and are seated. EMPEROR: How wrong I was ! What a mistake I made in showering favor on someone who turned out to be a rebel! It's I who has brought us to this flight-I cannot tell you how much I regret it. My dear, if only I had not involved you in these adversities ! LADY YANG: Of course I should be with you. I could never refuse to go through these hardships. I only hope that the rebels will be crushed soon so that Your Majesty can return to the capital. [More shouting within] SOLDIERS [within] : Yang Guo-zhong took all power to himself and betrayed the state. Now he is even aligning himself with Tibet. Either he dies or we die, this we swear! Whoever wants to kill Yang Guo-zhong, come with us quickly!
Enter SOLDIERS carrying swords, chasing YANG GUO-ZHONG around the stage. They kill YANG GUO-ZHONG, then exit, shouting. EMPEROR [alarmed] : Gao Li-shi, what's all that noise outside ? Tell Chen Yuan-Ii that he is to report to me at once. GAO: As Your Majesty instructs. [Passes command to CHEN YUAN-LI outside, who enters and greets EMPEROR] CHEN: Chen Yuan-Ii reporting. EMPEROR: Why are the soldiers in such an uproar? CHEN: Your Majesty, Yang Guo-zhong instigated this rebellion by taking all power upon himself. He also had private contacts with Tibet. This aroused the rage of the Grand Army, and as a result they killed Yang Guo-zhong. EMPEROR [alarmed] : Can it be ? [LADY YANG turns away and wipes tears from her eyes. EMPEROR ponders] All right then, give the orders to set out. CHEN [going out and giving orders] : These are His Maj esty's instructions: He pardons you for taking it on yourselves to kill Yang Guo-zhong. Now let us be on our way quickly. SOLDIERS [again shouting from within] : Yang Guo-zhong may have been ex ecuted, but there is still Lady Yang. We won't accompany the Emperor unless Lady Yang is killed. CHEN [to EMPEROR] : The soldiers say that even though Yang Guo-zhong has been executed; they won't set off as long as Lady Yang is alive. I hope Your Maj esty can overcome your private feelings and do what is right.
EMPEROR [greatly alarmed] : How can they even suggest such a thing ! [LADY YANG clutches EMPEROR'S gown in terror] General, 1 042
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[Sings] Even if Yang Guo-zhong owed atonement for his crimes, already he has been seized and killed. But the Consort spent her time with me deep within the palacewhy should she stir the army's mistrust? CHEN: Your Majesty i s clearly right, but the soldiers are in a fury, and I don't see what we can do about it.
EMPEROR [sings]: Come, sir, make sure at once they understand such a wild demand is not their place ! [More shouting within]
CHEN [sings] : Your Majesty, hear the uproar in the ranks ! how can I restrain their rage ?
LADY YANG [weeping, sings] :
.
Your Majesty, I am shocked and stunned by outcomes unforeseen; already distressed that my uncle was slain, I too find my fortunes turned. Former lifetimes fix our fate; forfeit is my own life now. I pray my Lord surrender me up at once though to say so breaks my heart . . . EMPEROR: No more such talk, my Lady! [More shouting within] SOLDIERS [within]: Unless Lady Yang is killed, we absolutely refuse to escort the Emperor ! CHEN: Your Majesty, even though Lady Yang has done nothing wrong, Yang Guo-zhong was her blood uncle. The soldiers around Your Maj esty are not going to feel safe while she lives. If the soldiers feel safe, then Your Maj esty is safe. I beg you to give it some thought.
EMPEROR [pondering, sings] : I ponder in silence, my thoughts in confusion.
LADY YANG [weeps; clutching EMPEROR'S robes, sings ] : I t hurts sohow can I let you go !
TOGETHER [sing] : Poor ducks, mated pair, tossed by winds and waves of storm, caught in its cruel tyranny. [More shouting within] 1 04 3
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LADY YANG [weeping, sings] : The soldiers make my heart leap in alarm, EMPEROR [lost in thought, suddenly embraces LADY YANG weeping, sings] : My Lady, I simply cannot bear this.
Enter SOLDIERS shouting. They circle stage and surround the station. GAO : Your Majesty, soldiers outside have surrounded the station pavilion. If we hesitate further, they may get even more violent. What will we do?
EMPEROR: Chen Yuan-li, go out there immediately and calm the army. I will find a way.
CHEN: As you command. [Exit] EMPEROR and LADY YANG embrace, weeping. LADY YANG [sings] : The trembling soul takes flight, tears in crossing tracks are shed.
EMPEROR [sings] : In all my sovereign might, less j oy have I than he who wed Mourn-No-More .5
TOGETHER [weeping, sings] : How can love conjoined with right be instantly cast aside ? LADY YANG [kneeling] : I have enj oyed so much love from Your Majesty that even my death cannot repay it. In this present crisis I hope you will per mit me to end my life in order to pacify the army. If Your Maj esty can make it safely to Shu, then I am content to die.
[Sings] I see no other way to quell the army's fury, so gladly will I end my life, gladly will I end my life. [ Weeping, she buries her head in his
bosom] EMPEROR: How can you say such a thing ? If you sacrifice your life, what would I care about the honors of my great palaces or the wealth of all the world ? Let the empire be destroyed and my family die, I refuse to abandon you.
[Sings] Let them howl, I will feign to be deaf and blind the wrong was entirely mine. 5Th at is, the Em peror is less fortunate than commoners who get to l i ve to o l d age with t h e i r spouses. T h e l i n es a l l ude to the l ast cou plet of a poem by L i S h a ng-y i n on "Ma-we i " : " H ow i s it that having been f o r fou r decades Son o f Heaven/is less than the L u ' s home, which has Mourn-No-More . "
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Here blooms a flower of such grace I cannot bear to see it felled by tempests and to say our last farewell at the very edge of sky. And if still they thwart my will, to the brown sand let me fall in your place. LADY YANG: However deep Your Maj esty's love may be, when things have reached this point, there is no way to save my life. If you persist in trying to hold on to me, then the good will be destroyed with the bad, and the wrongs for which I am responsible will be multi plied. I beg Your Maj esty to give me up in order to preserve the imperial house . GAO [kneeling, wiping away tears ] : Since my Lady has shown herself so heroic in her willingness to sacrifice her life, I hope Your Maj esty will accept your responsibility to the state and try to set aside your love. [More
shouting within] EMPEROR [weeping, stamps his foot] : All right then. Since Lady Yang is so determined, I cannot compel her. Gao Li-shi, j ust . . . j ust let my Lady do as she will. [ Covers his face and exit, sobbing] LADY YANG [making ceremonial bow] : Long live the Emperor ! [ Collapses
in tears] GAO [addressing SOLDIERS within] : Soldiers, listen! His Imperial Majesty has given instructions that Lady Yang is to end her life. SOLDIERS [shouting within] : Long live the Emperor ! Long live the Emperor ! Long live the Emperor ! GAO [helping LADY YANG to her feet] : My Lady, please come back here with me. [Helps her along] LADY YANG [weeping, sings] : A lifetime of separation can happen in a moment, the fairest face of all the age is dying for her lord. [They reach a chapen GAO : Here is the Buddhist chapel. LADY YANG [going in] : Stop a while and let me say a prayer to the Buddha. [Bows] Lord Buddha, think on Yang Yu-huan, [sings] deep in sin, deep in sin, yet I hope that Buddha will redeem me. GAO : My Lady, may you be reborn in Heaven.
LADY YANG rises, weeping; GAO LI-SHI kneels, weeping. My Lady, are there any words you want to charge me with ?
LADY YANG: Gao Li-shi, the Emperor is getting on in years, and after I die, you will be the only old friend he has left who can divine what is on his 1 045
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mind, and you must take care to serve him. And expostulate with him on my behalf not to think of me any more. GAO [weeping] : I understand. LADY YANG: Gao Li-shi, there's one more thing. [Takes out hairpin and box] This two-branched hairpin and inlaid box were given me by the Emperor as tokens of his love. Bring them with you and bury them with me-make sure you don't forget! GAO [receiving hairpin and box] : I understand. LADY YANG [weeping, sings] : The heartbreak and the pain and bitterness beyond all word s!
Enter CHEN YUAN-LI, pushing his way in at the head of his troops. CHEN: Since you have, Lady, been instructed to die, what are you waiting for, delaying His Majesty's journey? SOLDIERS advance, shouting. GAO [blocking their advance] : You soldiers can't come in here. My Lady Yang is this very moment going to return to Heaven. LADY YANG: Chen Yuan-Ii, Chen Yuan-Ii . . . [sings] You did not use the weight of command against the mutineersinstead you force me to take my life. GAO: Oh no! The soldiers are pushing their way in ! LADY YANG [looks around] : All right! All right! This pear tree will be the spot where Yang Yu-huan meets her end. [Takes a white silk sash from around her waist and bows] I, Yang Yu-huan, reverently thank His Majesty for his love, and I will never see him again from this time forward. GAO LI-SHI sheds tears, and LADY YANG, weeping,
puts the noose around her neck. LADY YANG: My Lord! Death now ends my fated span, to Yellow Springs I descend, yet beside the king's yellow banners my soul will remain.
She hangs herself. CHEN: The Consort Yang is dead. Soldiers, withdraw at once ! [Exeunt SOLDIERS] GAO [weeping] : Oh, my Lady! [Exit]
Enter EMPEROR. EMPEROR [recites] : " The six-fold army would not set forth, nothing could be done, 1 046
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and the fragile arch of her lovely brows died there before the horses . " GAO [entering with white silk sash]: Your Maj esty, I am here to inform you that Lady Yang has returned to He�ven. [EMPEROR has a numb expres sion and doesn't answer; GAO LI-SHI repeats] Lady Yang has returned to Heaven, and this is the white silk sash with which she hung herself. EMPEROR [looking at sash, beside himself with weeping] : My Consort, my Consort! Grief will drive me to my death!
Falls down; GAO LI-SHI lifts him up. EMPEROR [sings] : Her features were once like the peach in bloom, like the peach in bloom,
GAO [sings] : her life ends this morning with pear flowers, with pear flowers.
[Takes out hairpin and box] My Lady charged me to have this golden hairpin and inlaid box buried with her.
EMPEROR [weeping, looks at the hairpin and box, sings] : This hairpin and this box, were the seeds of our ruin. In the Palace of Lasting Life we shared mutual j oy; at Ma-wei Station all j oys are gone . GAO : How are we going to prepare her for burial properly in all this con fusion ? EMPEROR: Never mind. Wrap her body in a brocade for the time being. Make careful note where you bury her so that we can rebury her later with proper ceremony. Attach the hairpin and the box to my Lady's clothes. GAO: As you command. [Exit]
EMPEROR [weeping, sings] : Warm fragrance, voluptuous j ade, pass away in an instant, in this life I will see her no more
Enter CHEN YUAN-LI and kneels. CHEN: Would Your Maj esty make ready to set out ? EMPEROR [stamping his foot i n anger, sings] : What does it matter whether I go west or not?
Shouting within. Orders are given. Enter troops. Enter GAO LI-SHI, who leads EMPEROR to horse and helps him mount. TOGETHER [sing] : A long stretch of sky, patches of fog, 1 04 7
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cold winds rattle the pennons and banners. Slowly we make the long j ourney, the troops of guards are foul with dust. Who would have guessed that ruler and ruled would share such peril ? Everywhere hated rebels pillage, and beacon fires continuewhen will we get to slay those tigers and j ackals ? We gaze toward the sharp tips of Shu's mountains afar, then peer back toward the palace towers, through several spots of drifting clouds, though close by, Chang-an is hidden, Chang-an is hidden. In the west the royal regalia brushed Shu's clouds in their flight, [Zhang He] Heaven and Earth were thick with dust, the vessels of state, in peril. [Wu Rong] Her cicada wing tresses did not follow the royal carriage away, [Gao Bing] only ducks and egrets, startled to flight, go instantly, one with another. [Qian Qi] GIFT OF A MEAL (XXVI )
Enter EMPEROR with GAO LI-SHI. EMPEROR [sings]: Troubled lovely brows too lightly lost, my nightlong grief assumes a thousand shapes. Too listless to crack my golden whip in early morn, now, past noon, I have not tasted a single precious grain. I journeyed westward in headlong flight, and yesterday at Ma-wei Sta tion the army refused to go on. I had no choice but to let Lady Yang die. [ Weeps] I have reigned as Son of Heaven for nothing and now at last have become one of the most hard-hearted men of all time. I've forced myself to j ourney on another stage and now have come into the terri tory of Fu-feng. I am having the retinue stop at Feng-yi Palace because I have to rest a moment.
Enter Guo CONG-JIN, an old peasant, bringing a dish of cooked barley. 1 04 8
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Guo [recites] : Sunning my back, I may meet the Son of Heaven, from this gift of garden vegetables know a man from the countryside.6 I am Guo Cong-jin, an old fellow who lives in the countryside around Fu-feng. I heard that the Emperor was on his way west and had stopped a while at Feng-yi Palace, so I cooked him up a bowl of barley and have brought it to give to him as a mark of my respect. [Greets GAO LI-SHI] YOllr Honor, would you be so good as to announce that Guo Cong-jin from the countryside has brought a meal.
GAO LI-SHI announces him. EMPEROR: Have him come forward. Guo [coming closer and greeting EMPEROR] : Guo Cong-j in, a commoner, greets Your Majesty.
EMPEROR: Where are you from? Guo [sings]: In Fu-feng born and bred, I worked the land till hair grew white, feeling blessed that times were good. I heard of a sudden rebellion from which the royal cortege roamed, and I felt infinite alarm. I brought this bowl of barley and came, bowed with humility, to bannered gates to set it before Your Majesty. I pray, my Lord, do not despise fare so coarsesustenance from a peasant. EMPEROR: I am grateful to you. Gao Li-shi, bring it here.
GAO takes the food and brings it to the EMPEROR, who looks at it. EMPEROR: I have dwelled retired, deep in the palace, and have never once tasted this. [Sings] It was my wont to be served at table by royal cooks; dainty confections like gold and j ade filled a square yard before my plate, the rarest morsels of every tasteyet I would dismiss them as flavored ineptly. 'Th i s a l l udes to the proverb i a l story of the common m a n w h o fe l t so comforta ble s u n n i ng his back that h e went to tel l the e m peror, so that he cou l d enjoy it as wel l .
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Never would I have dreamed that today I would be satisfying my hunger with something like this.
[Sings] So drab, barley mixed with branhow can I get it down my throat ?
Eats a little, then sets it aside. How like it was for the Prince of Xiao lost by the Hu-tuo River ! ? Guo: Do you know who i s responsible for our present troubles ? EMPEROR: Who would you say i s responsible ? Guo: If you will pardon any offense it might give, I'll risk telling you straight out. EMPEROR: Speak freely. Guo: Yang Guo-zhong is responsible.
[Sings] The man ran ram pant, taking advantage of kinship's ties, hungry for power, receiving bribes, his poison spread throughout the world. He feuded a decade with An Lu-shan, till finally armed troops rose up in Yu-yang. EMPEROR: I had no idea that Yang Guo-zhong had started a feud or that An Lu-shan was plotting rebellion. Guo [sings] : Many a day had An Lu-shan hidden treason in his heart, and all in the whole world knew the shape of his treachery. Last year someone sent a letter to the throne giving Your Majesty evi dence of An Lu-shan's treachery, but Your Majesty had the man put to death.
[Sings] Thereafter who would willingly face the headsman's ax to state the case to the throne ? 'Th e " P r i n ce of X i ao" was the em peror G u a ng-wu, who restored the H a n Dyn asty i n A . D . 2 5 . Ear l i e r he h a d once been in despe rate straits by the H u -tuo River and h ad been sent food by a sympa thetic offi cer.
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EMPEROR [with a bitter expression] : Then it was my own blindness that brought us to this.
[Sings] Thinking it over with clear sight and sharp mind a prince must always watch closely. I recall when Yao Chong and Song Jing were my ministers .
[Sings] They would always come with honest words, and the mood of the folk, though far away, seemed right there in the hall with me. But somehow after Yao Chong and Song Jing died, the officials that filled the court all tended to be greedy for position and trying to win my favor. Guo Cong-j in:
[Sings] It turns out none could compare to you, loyal here in the countryside, pointing out to me the treacherous frontier soldier, the unscrupulous minister. Guo: But then if Your Majesty had not been brought to come here, how could someone like myself have ever gotten to meet you face to face ? EMPEROR [sings] : And now you have made me eat repentance's bitter fruit though too lateand anger fills a hungry stomach. Guo: Your Majesty should rest now a while. I will take my leave now. [Sighs
and recites] Even if a thousand stalks of snow fill my head with white, none can burn a loyal heart into an inch of ash. [Exit]
Enter COURIER, with two attendants carrying multicolored silks. COURIER [sings] : Over paths for birds and twisting sheepgut trails I bring spring silks on the long post road. Often did chains of hills resound wi th the riders' bells that drew us daily nearer the Emperor's city. 1051
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I am a courier on the Cheng-du Circuit, and acting under the command of the military governor, I am bringing one hundred thousand bolts of bright spring silk to the capital. When I heard that His Maj esty had come to Fu-feng, I came here to present them. [to GAO LI-SHI] Would you be so good as to announce to His Maj esty that the Cheng du courier has arrived with the annual tribute of spring silks. GAO LI-SHI approaches EMPEROR and informs him. EMPEROR: Count the silk and accept the shipment, then send the courier back.
The two attendants come forward with silks, then exeunt with COURIER. EMPEROR: Assemble my officers and troops. I have something to say to them directly. GAO: His Maj esty summons the officers and troops of the Long-wu Guard to hear his instructions.
Enter GUARDS. GUARDS [recite] : We rise at dawn to the sound of kettledrums and sleep at night clinging to saddles. The officers and troops of the Long-wu Guard humbly greet Your Maj esty. EMPEROR: Heed what I have to say.
[Sings] Upheaval has brought things unforeseen we flee from the fighting afar and fare through unfamiliar lands. In our frantic exodus you toiled to come with my retinue, But today I've pondered a better course for you. GUARDS: What are Your Maj esty's instructions ? EMPEROR [sings] : Men on campaign think back on home, men on campaign think back on home, and the roads to Shu are like climbing sky. I cannot bear to embroil you and make you too lightly forsake fathers and mothers, children and wives. Therefore I will make my own way very slowly to Cheng-du, accompa nied by the court officers and the young princes .of the blood. Today each of you may return to your own home. 1 05 2
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[Sings] You may cease to venture further on this course, toiling on in hunger and cold. Gao Li-shi, take the spring silks that the courier brought me and divide them among the officers and tro � ps as payment for the costs they have incurred on the j ourney.
[Sings] Unable to give the army its wages, I portion out this silk to serve as your pay. GUARDS: Your Majesty's instructions cut us to the very quick. Armies have always been fed for a thousand days so that they may be used for a sin gle morning.
[Sing] Unable to wipe out those tigers and j ackals, unable to wipe out those tigers and j ackals, your fierce commanders feel helpless shame. We want to go with you, even to death, our battle cries for vigor depend on imperial maj esty. We dare not accept these spring silks. [Sing] Keep them until some future time when rewards are due for deeds, and may High Heaven look closely to see any heart's perfidywe will never fail you. EMPEROR: However deep your sense of loyalty may be, something in my heart cannot bear having you accompany me, so you must go back. GUARDS: Is it that you distrust us on account of Lady Yang's death ? EMPEROR: No, [sings] But old folks in Chang-an are left in suspense go back now, and tell them their Emperor has come to no harm. GUARDS: Don't say such things, Your Maj esty. We want to go with you. We swear our undivided loyalty. EMPEROR and GUARDS [sing] : When the pall of evil is swept away, we will turn back together to the royal domain. 1053
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EMPEROR: It's grown dark. We'll make camp here for tonight and set out early tomorrow. GUARDS: Yes, sir! Sandstorms fly for thousands of miles, war drums moan, [Qian Qi] GAO : a n d the setting sun sinks under, lower into the hills. [Luo Bin-wang]
EMPEROR: The pain and remorse I feel today does no good at all, [Wei Zhuang] GAO :
yet they cannot bear that his carriage wheels head westward all alone. [Zhou Xian]
In the i nterven i n g scene, Lady Yang appears as a g h ost try i n g to catch up with the E m peror, b u t s h e is tossed about by the w i n d . There s h e witnesses d e m o n s from the u n derwo r l d d ragg i n g away Lady Guo a n d Yang Guo-z h o n g . Retu r n i ng to M a-wei Stat i o n , Lady Y a n g is given the p rotecti o n of the l ocal god, who i nforms her t h at she is a n i m mortal b a n i shed t o Earth a n d w i l l not be carried off t o the u n derwo r l d .
DENOUNCING THE REBEL (XXVIII)
Enter LEI HAI-QING, carrying his mandolin. LEI [recites] : Civil servants and generals, all former officers of the crown I hate their two-faced treachery, serving this upstart court. In the Pear Garden Academy some constancy remains: musicians will not shamelessly cling to that slender thread of life. I am Lei Hai-qing, and I enj oyed the kindness of our Tian-bao Emperor, waiting at his service in the Pear Garden Academy. Then An Lu-shan un expectedly rebelled, taking Chang-an; the Emperor went west to Sichuan. The civil and military officials who filled his court used to enj oy high positions and rich salaries, passing privilege on to their children and gain ing fiefs for their wives; they enj oyed that splendor and became rich and noble-and each item of that came from the kindness of the court. But now every single one of them is hungry to stay alive and fears death. They turn their backs on what is right and forget what kindnesses they re ceived, rushing in an unbroken stream to submit to their new ruler. They think only of their security and pleasures in the present moment and pay 1 05 4
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no heed to the disgrace of their names for all time. It makes one feel ashamed and angry! Even though I am only a musician, I could never do anything so shamefully self-serving. Today, An Lu-shan and all his renegades are holding a great banquet by the Pool of Frozen Sapphire, and the Pear Garden Academy has been given instructions to perform for him. I'll take this opportunity to get close to him, and then I'll denounce him roundly and show this fury I feel. Then I won't care if they tear me to pieces. So I'll be going now with my mandolin in arm.
[Sings] Even though we are but musicians of low degree, rough-hewn, ignorant, and naIve, though we never studied or advised, never passed the examinations never stood high in the courtiers' ranks, still in the temper of our blood and in our breast there is some conviction of the right and a sense of loyalty. Beholding now the ruin wreaked, and living through hardship and peril, meeting sad alterations in these times, I cannot help grinding my teeth in pain, my voice stifled, my hate restrained. And how I hate!that putrid backwoods general, reeking slime, an ooze upon the dragon throne, a warty toad with wild fancies to dine upon the goose,S he actually forced our prince to flee southward across the horizon. Are such outrages to be borne ? Even if I ate his flesh and slept on his skin, this hate wouldn't be scraped away. And who would have thought that those witless, crooked-hearted, treacherous, renegade dogs whose used to flap their mouths prating Devotion and Loyalty,
BTh i s was a proverb for reac h i n g a bove one's stat i o n .
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would at peril's point sell out from lust for wealth and honor ? They soon came wagging their tails as one, receiving new positions, and show their ruler's worst enemy deep gratitude for favor shown. Are your false faces capable of shame ? I haven't seen a single person dare act as faithful subj ect of the throne. Now, Lei Hai-qing, if I don't take this weight upon me, for nothing am I flesh and blood. If I hold unfailingly to right and keep from dishonor's stain, I would willingly die and die again. [Exit]
Enter AN L U - SHAN with Two SOLDIERS. AN [sings ] : I have seized control of these rivers and hills and named my dynasty the Yan, my gown is dyed royal yellow, on my head is the sky-touching crown. And now in cool fall at Frozen Sapphire my little troupes of the Pear Garden for a splendid feast will dance and sing. Once I raised the standards of rebellion at Fan-yang, no one stood in my way, and I made a long drive to the west, all the way to Chang-an. The Tang Emperor fled to Shu, and all his splendid mountains and rivers have fallen into my hands. [Laughs] It's wonderful! Today I'm bringing to gether all my officials at Frozen Sapphire Pool to hold a feast in cele bration of an age of peace and have a good time. Attendants-have all my officials arrived on time ? SOLDIER: They are all awaiting your pleasure in the outer gallery. AN: Let them know that they may come in. SOLDIER: As Your Maj esty commands. [Makes announcement] His Highness announces that all the officials may enter.
Enter four turncoat OFFICIALS. OFFICIALS [recite] : Today we have a new Emperor, who used to be a minister back then. We simply see that times have changedit's not that we're ingrates and traitors. [They greet AN] May
AN: 1056
Your Maj esty live ten thousand years ! Long live Your Majesty ! ease. I am taking the day off today from my official duties and
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holding a special feast at Frozen Sapphire Pool to celebrate an age of peace with you. OFFICIALS: Long live Your Maj esty! SOLDIER: The feast is ready. If Your Maj esty pleases, we may go now.
Music is played within. The four turncoat OFFICIALS kneel and offer wine. AN [sings] : Beside this sapphire pool the dragon sports, and colored clouds draw back to show the fresh and lucent autumn weather. Roaming through these purple halls, I rest my riding crop a while. I hold a feast and scarlet-gowned minions scurry, phoenix blades slice fine, rolling up brocade sleeves, streak-patterned plates are proffered full.
OFFICIALS offer wine and bow. By this j asper pool warrior generals like bears, civil officers like herons bow as they pass fountains of wine. Attendants, call in the Pear Garden musicians to perform.
SOLDIER: As Your Maj esty commands. [Facing within] His Highness com mands the Pear Garden musicians to perform for him. [Music from within] AN [sings]: A t m y feast the musicians play " Balance of Heaven. " And " Rainbow Skirts " o f days gone by agam IS sung, half rising into clouds, half blowing down along the wind. Sounds rarely heardapart from pure precincts of the moon, only in the garden of Aloes Pavilion. Today this music, tones of the gods, is played no longer during the Tang. A fine performance !
OFFICIALS: We feel that Your Maj esty truly enj oys good fortune equal to Heaven, for the Tian-bao Emperor of Tang spent no one knows how much energy in having them learn this piece of music perfectly, and now he has left it to Your Maj esty to enj oy. AN [laughing] : There is something in what you say. More wine! 1 057
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SOLDIERS bring wine. LEI HAI-QING weeps within and sings. LEI: Kettledrums crashed in Y ou-zhou, thousands of households lie in weeds, with smoke of beacon fires in wilds on every side. Leaves fall in deserted palaces, when suddenly one shocked to hear this song played! The strangest of transformations, truly Heaven and Earth are overturned, truly men grieve and spirits rage.
[ Weeps loudly]
0
my Emperor!
when again will you hold your court with golden bells and officials all bowing amid the dance? AN: Who's that weeping? How strange ! SOLDIER: It's the musician Lei Hai-qing. AN: Bring him in here. [SOLDIERS drag LEI HAI-QING before AN] Lei Hai-qing, this is terrible-I'm holding a feast to celebrate an age of peace, and for some reason you dare to weep. LEI [denouncing him] : An Lu-shan, you are only a failed frontier general whose losses made you deserve beheading. Spared by imperial mercy, you were made general and prince. But instead of doing your best to repay the throne, you dared to raise your troops and start a rebellion, polluting this holy city and driving our Emperor into flight. By this crime your evil has reached its full measure, and in no time at all imperial troops will come to destroy you-so what's this about a "b anquet for an age of peace" ! AN [in a rage] : How dare you ! Now that I have ascended the throne, all the officials have sworn obedience to me. How can a musician of such little account as yourself dare act so insolently! Soldiers, draw your swords and watch him. SOLDIERS draw their swords. LEI points at AN LU-SHAN and denounces him. LEI [sings] : I curse such utter treachery, heart of beast, false face of man, body's hairs bristle in rage. Though I am a musician, of low degree, I am not like these shameless officials. An Lu-shan, you have stolen the sacred throne, and disobeyed Heaven above; soon your corpse will be streaked with blood. 1058
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Throws his mandolin at AN. throw my mandolin to crush a renegade's head and avenge the Emperor of the Kai-yuan.
I
SOLDIERS seize the mandolin. AN: Take this man away immediately and kill him. [Exit soldiers, carrying LEI HAI-QING away to execution] This is infuriating ! OFFICIALS: Calm your anger, Your Majesty. Why care about an ignorant musician? AN: I'm not in a good mood any more. You may leave me now. OFFICIALS: As you command. We will see Your Majesty off back to the palace. [They kneel] AN [recites] : When with wine one meets good friends, a thousand cups are too few; when talking at cross-purposes, a half a line is too much. [Exit in fury] OFFICLI\LS [rising]: He deserved to die. Imagine, a musician thinking to act the part of a loyal official! Could it be that we here at the feast have been humiliated?
[Sing] Everyone dresses himself for his role, and what is a " loyal official " worth ? And, Lei Hai-qing, since you never wore an official's black cap, you were short on savvy .
[Recite] The blood that has flowed in the land of Qin has become a river, [Luo Yin] whether a slave or whether a king is the outcome of chance. [Li Shan-fu] What person in this world will pity those who suffer for principle?- [Lu Xi-sheng] all one should do is make merry and never turn back. [Xue Ji] BELLS (XXIX)
GAO LI-SHI [shouting from within] : Hurry forward, soldiers. Wait for us up ahead. [Gongs ring within] Please mount up, Your Majesty. Enter EMPEROR on horseback, with GAO Lr-sHr following. EMPEROR [sings]: I j ourney on these thousands of miles, 1 05 9
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my heart grown heavy on the road. See where the clouds and hills form tiers in tangled twists like the grief I feel. A limitless expanse of leafless trees echoes with autumn sounds, and in long skies a lone wild goose j oins with these its melancholy cries . Since leaving Ma-wei Station I have tasted my fill o f bitterness. The other day I sent a courier with the imperial seal and an investiture tablet, by which I abdicate in favor of the Crown Prince. We have traveled a month, and now draw close to Shu. And I can take some joy in gradually getting farther from the rebel armies so that we can go forward at a more leisurely pace. But whenever I come upon the birds singing and falling flowers or blue waters and green hills, they never fail to encourage sad thoughts, so lovely are they! GAO: Your Maj esty, you are already thoroughly worn out by the rigors of the j ourney. I beg you to banish such thoughts and not bring upon your self such excess of pain. EMPEROR: Oh Gao Li-shi, Lady Yang and I sat side by side at table and walked shoulder to shoulder. And now in the panic of my flight west ward, I sent her to such a terrible end-how am I going to get her out of my mind? [ Weeps and sings] This brings up things that pain the heart, tears seem to pour from my eyes . When I look back to Ma-wei slope, a bitterness unbidden swells my breast. GAO: There is a plank walkway on the mountains ahead. Would Your Majesty please take a firm grip on the reins and proceed very slowly? EMPEROR [sings] : Flags and banners fluttering, the dying sunlight at their backs their shadows wa ving in the wind. The horses on these rugged roads never stop a moment. Only somber clouds and darkening skies, the gibbons' sad cries that tear at the heart, the nightjar shrieking bloody tears, terrible to hearso utterly disheartening, so utterly disheartening. Behold a desolation: the foot of E-mei Mountain where few men pass, cold rains, wind-driven, greet me, and strike me in the face. 1 06 0
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GAO: It's raining. Would Your Majesty be so good as to come up to Sword Tower to get out of the rain ?
EMPEROR dismounts, climbs the tower, and seats himself GAO [addressing SOLDIERS within]: We're going to stop here a while, men. We'll set off again as soon as the rain stops. [SOLDIERS respond from within] EMPEROR [recites] : I climbed a high place all alone, my mood grew still more pained, hills of Shu, Shu's waters, I hate such magnitudes. I know not whence or why t h e wind comes blowing on the rain whose every drop is one more note splashing on the heart.
[Sound of bells within] Listen to those sounds from way over there, never ceasing. They can drive a person mad with their din. Gao Li-shi, see what they are. GAO: It's j ust the sound of the rain in the forest j oined with the bell chimes hanging from the eaves that echo in the wind. EMPEROR: Ay ! These bells make such a lovely sound! [Sings] Clinking, tinkling, they fill the air with tingling chill, the heart leaps in alarm. I listen to them far away, beyond the trees, beyond the hill, their sounds at war within the storm, echoing high, ringing low. Each drop that falls is one more note, each drop that falls is one more note, splattering the blood-streaked tears of a melancholy man. This wounding scene before me brings recollection of her leaf-strewn grave. White poplars whistle in the wind, the rain gusts violentlythese moments when her lonely soul feels solitude and chill. Cold is the light from ghost-fires, a riot of fireflies in soggy grass. I repent betraying you in panic, betraying you. 1061
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I am left alone in this mortal world and truly lack desire to live. And this I say to that woman most fair : I will j oin you later or sooner, companion in that dark world below. I am stricken by stillness of empty hills, where bell sounds answer each other, the plankway up is steep and rough, like these writhing coils within, and a pain that never levels out. GAO: Don'ttorture yourself, Your Majesty. The rain has stopped now. Please come down and we'll be off. [EMPEROR descends from the tower and mounts his horse. GAO LI-SHl goes within] Forward, men! [GAO LI-SHl follows EMPEROR] EMPEROR [sings] : The road ahead goes on and on, my sorrow undepleted, calling her soul to return, leaving my capital, both of these haunt the heart. TOGETHER: After the rain the mountain spires are thousands of specks of green beyond which I cannot see. EMPEROR: Unbroken ranges at Sword Tower color a thousand miles, [Luo Bin-wang] here someone cut from one he loves doubles the grief he feels. [Luo Y e] The royal carriage fruitlessly struggles against the rain and mire, [Qin Tao-yu] bells in the downpour, a melody, several lines of tears. [Du Mu]
In the scene t h at fo l l ows, Lady Yang's g h ost a ppears, refl ecti n g o n her past l ife a n d exp ress i n g remo rse for the w r o n g s s h e has d o n e . The local god overhears h e r and gives her a permit a l l o w i n g h e r to wander in the v i c i n ity of Ma-wei Station . I n the n ext scene, we see Guo Zi -y i d efeat i n g An L u - s h a n ' s genera l s . T h e scene then s h i fts back to C h e n g-d u , where the E m peror, h av i n g abd i c ated in favor of the Crown P r i n ce, h a s l ea rned of the defeat of An L u - s h a n ' s army. The E m peror has or dered that a statue of Lady Yang be made; when the statue i s brought i n , h e l a ments before it. The local god of Ma-wei Stati o n reports to the Weaver Star that Lady Yang h as repented of the wrongs s h e had com m i tted w h i l e a l i ve, and the Weaver Star says that she can now be fo rg i ve n . The lo cal god goes o n to say that Lady Yang sti l l c l i n gs fast to her l ove for the Em peror. The scenes that fo l l ow treat the assass i n ation of An Lu-shan by one of h i s adopted sons and Guo Z i -y i ' s recaptu re of the c a pi ta l . 1 062
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STOCKING-VIEWING (XXXVI)
Enter GRANNY WANG, an old tavern keeper. GRANNY WANG [sings] : This spot on the slope at Ma-wei Station, was an unfrequented location but then I found Lady Yang's stocking of brocade. When I opened shop and resumed my trade selling beer, travelers going both ways all stop here. Now free from worries I spend my days . For a long time I've made my living keeping a rundown tavern here on Ma-wei Slope. When An Lu-shan rose in rebellion, the whole populace fled. At the time I went into the Buddhist chapel within the precincts of the station and saw a single brocade stocking beneath a pear tree, some thing left by Lady Yang. I kept it, and to my great surprise it has turned out to be a treasure. Now that Marshal Guo Zi-yi has smashed the rebels and retaken the capital, peace has returned; and I run my tavern here as I used to. But, hearing that I have this brocade stocking, people near and far come to drink in my tavern and ask to see the stocking. In addition to the cost of the wine I charge extra for looking at the stocking, so that my life has grown quite prosperous. [Laughs] This has been a real stroke of luck. This morning I am going to set up the tavern, for I expect cus tomers will be on their way. [Exit]
Enter LI Mo, dressed as a scholar. LI Mo [sings]: The royal carriage headed west, and left a depth of bitterness forever in this ancient station. I am touched by his last farewell to a face so fair, like Green Barrow' s desolation where Zhao-j un lies buried on the steppes,9 or Purple Jade, Fu-cha's hapless daughter, dying untimely, then melting away. 1 9Wang Zh ao-j u n , a beautifu l court l ady, u n recog n ized by the H a n e m peror because s h e was m i s rep resented by a s p itefu l co u rt p a i n ter, was sent off to Central Asia to cement a m a r r i age a l l iance with the K h a n . H e r to m b , a spot of greenery i n the steppes, was k n own as G reen B arrow. 1 P u r p l e Jade was the d a u ghter of Fu-cha, the K i n g of W u . She d i ed of her hopeless passion for H a n Zhong, w h o l ater s a w her bes i d e h e r tomb, a t w h i c h s h e m e l ted away l i ke m i st.
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I couldn't get out of the capital before because troops were blocking the roads; but now I am glad to see that peace is returning. I've heard that in Granny Wang's tavern by Ma-wei Slope there is one of Lady Yang's brocade stockings, and I'm going there to ask her to let me look at it. Hey, there's a Daoist nun coming along.
Enter NUN. NUN [recites] : Epochal changes fill my eyes, for all I wipe back tears, only a brocade stocking remains offered for people to see. [Greets Lr Mo] Lr Mo: Where are you from, sister ? NUN: I am the abbess of the Lodge of Maidenly Purity in Jin-ling. I had gone to the capital to seek scriptures, but because of the war I couldn't return. I recently learned that Granny Wang has one of Lady Yang's brocade stockings in her tavern, and I've come here to see it. Lr Mo: So you've come to see the stocking, too. Why don't we go there to gether? [They continue on] TOGETHER [sing] : Fair as j ade, she is gone, too far to find, yet the heart feels pain for a brocade rag that remains in a rustic inn. Here we'll buy wine and slowly drink a while to closely study what so draws curiosity. Lr Mo: This is the place. Let's go right in. [Both go in] GRANNY WANG [greeting them] : Please take a seat inside. [ Lr Mo and NUN
are seated] Enter Guo CONG-JrN, the old peasant. GuO: I'm so happy the fighting has stopped that I'm on my way to Mount Hua to make an offering. Passing by Ma-wei Slope j ust now, I feel worn out from walking. There's a tavern hereabouts, and I think I'll go drink a few cups. [Enters] Tavern keeper, bring me some beer. GRANNY WANG: Here you are. Guo [greeting Lr Mo and NUN] : Nice to meet you. L! M o [addressing GRANNY WANG] : The first reason we came here was to have a drink, but the second was that we heard you have a brocade stocking that belonged to Lady Yang, and we wanted you to let us look at it. GRANNY WANG [laughing] : Indeed, I do have such a brocade stocking, but . . . 1 064
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[Sings] I guard this treasure most closely and keep it always well wrapped and hidden away. I want its traces of scent not to fade, I want its powders and oils to stay and let no dirt stain it. A fascinating thing it is, a thing to amaze; travelers wanting to see it are eager to come here to drink. So if you don't mind spending a bit, I would gladly let you closely study what so draws curiosity. LI Mo: This is as it should be. It's quite all right to be charged extra, apart from the cost of the wine. GRANNY WANG: In that case let me go get it. [She exits, then returns with
stocking; recites] Her jadelike toes are through wearing it, it still bears traces of oils, even closely wrapped in scarf of gauze you still can smell the scent. Here is the brocade stocking, sir. Have a look. LI Mo [taking it and unwrapping it, he looks at it with the NUN] : Just look at the intricate workmanship of the pattern in the brocade! It's the high est quality. It still has its gloss, and its rare scent has not dissipated. This is truly something not of this mortal world. NUN: What a wonderful scent! [Guo CONG-]ING keeps drinking and pays no
attention] LI Mo [getting up with the stocking in hand, looking at it, sings ] : See the thin lining o f scented cotton, supple and light as a cloud of the gods. In golden palaces long ago its tiny paces were seen by none. How sad that today at a bar it is displayed so casually to the common eye. Traces of thread, needlemarks, each layer wounds the heart. Too bad that this loveliest lady ever, who suffered the greatest wrong ever, left nothing but this relic, eternally fragrant, to be passed on eternally. Guo [irritated] : Damnit, sir, how come you are gawking at that? As I see it, the Tian-bao Emperor made a wreck of the dynasty because he so fa1065
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vored the Prized Consort, spending day and night with her in pleasure. The result was that war rose on all sides and the common folk were re duced to misery. Now as the years of my life are drawing to a close, to meet with such turmoil and upheaval! Seeing this brocade stocking today only makes me feel bitter.
[Sings] I imagine back then when newly made and with red lotuses tightly sewn it showed, touching the ground, then hidden by six-paneled Xiang silk skirts, and our Lord doted upon her every motion. These heights of j oy provoke the working of our ruin and great harm wreaked on all the folk. Today the matter's done, the person's gone, this survives alone. But no sooner do I glimpse the scented stocking toe than misery returns, and recalling our calamity again I wipe back tears . GRANNY WANG: Why does seeing this brocade stocking upset him so much ? I'll bet he's not willing to pay the extra charge. Guo: What extra charge ? GRANNY WANG: You're obviously an old peasant, understanding nothing about " viewing charges. " LI Mo: You shouldn't argue about such trivial things. [to NUN] Sister, take a close look. [to GRANNY WANG] I'll pay the charges for everyone. [Hands
it on] NUN [takes it, getting up to look at it] : I think on Lady Yang, the loveliest face of the age, a life of love ended so abruptly. Even though the stock ing survives today, such a beauty will not come again. Such a sad thing!
[Sings] See these specks of azure, hooks of red, leaves and flowers well wrought still. That pair of gleaming feet is gone, one stocking remains, one phoenix alone . Emptiness alland in her fall and her abandonment, unending bitterness, a dream that faded at Ma-wei. Such beauty for which a kingdom fell 1066
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is but a mirage, no use at all. Look not on these fraying threads and recall where once she walked, but rather believe that all splendor is swept off with the winds of dawn.
[Passes stocking back to GRANNY WANG] I think that Lady Yang was ac tually a goddess who was reborn in the mortal world. I am going to ask you to donate this stocking to the Lodge of Maidenly Purity in Jin-ling, where we will revere it as a sacred relic of the gods. What do you say to that? GRANNY WANG [laughing] : I'm old and have neither sons nor daughters . My livelihood for the rest of my life is entirely in this stocking. I really can't do as you suggest. LI Mo: What would you say if I offered you a good price for it ? Guo: Why would you want something that still stinks ? GRANNY WANG: I'm not going to sell it. Guo [paying his bill] : Here, take the price for the beer. LI Mo [paying his bill] : Here is the charge for all of us looking at the stock mg. GRANNY WANG [taking the money] : Thank you very much. [Recites] Never tire of getting drunk in splendor of spring weather, [Baa Rang] NU N : how many kingfisher feathers and pearls have fallen to scented dust? [Lu Lun] LI Mo: All that's left, half up the slope, this moon bending round, [Li Yi] Guo : the hubbub out in these meadows draws people who want to look. [Song Zhi-wen] THE CORPSE RELEASED (XXXVII)
Enter LADY YANG as a spirit. LADY YANG [sings] : Swept along rippling in wind, a shadow that never stays, but sighs, wondering where I will lodge on the road ahead ? The living are parted from the dead, endless space lies in between1 06 7
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the man is not seen, passion does not cease, nor does bitterness pass .
[Recites a lyric] Life's ultimate romance is done, and pointless to repine at cruel destiny. Yet how can I now grind away " love' s " firm inscription, tha t is the heart's inlay ? But now enjoy this moment's ease this moment's easenone question the gift of the fading moon and early morning breeze. I am the spirit of Yang Yu-huan. Since receiving a travel permit from the local god, I have let myself be carried by the wind from one place to another . And I'm glad that neither will Heaven take me in nor Earth take charge of me. Nothing ties me down, and I drift along in utter abandon. The only thing is that I can't find my way to the Emperor and meet him again . [Looks sad] I feel so miserable. I'll go along with the wind now and see where it takes me. [She moves on
and sings] My soul goes riding on the wind, as if I roamed in dream, the road is sunk in shadow, I cannot tell apart daylight and dark. Through wild woods I pass and briefly pause, suddenly hearing the mournful cries of birds in the chilly hazethey frighten me away, I cannot stay. Blue phosphorescence drifts through tangled grass, and I use it to light my way as I go on ahead in the dark. What place is this, where the corner of a great hall lies in shadowing layers of cloud?
[She looks] This is t h e main gate of the West Palace! Why don't I go in and take a look?
She starts to go in. Enter two GUARDIAN DEITIES, with faces painted black and white, metal armor, each holding tablet and whip. They take their positions on a spot above her. 1068
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GUARDIAN DEITIES [recite] : While living, we were heroes, we kept the world at peace, dead, we are the dread spirits who guard the palace gate.
[They lift whips and tablets to block LADY YANG] Wherever you come from, ghost-woman, you cannot break your way in here ! LADY YANG [taking out travel permit] : I am Yang Yu-huan. Here is my travel permit. GUARDIAN DEmES: It's Lady Yang herself! Now that An Lu-shan has been as sassinated and his son Qing-xu has fled, Guo Zi-yi has purged the palace precincts of their filth. The old Emperor is far away in Shu, and the new Emperor is still staying at Ling-wu. Therefore the great compound is silent and deserted, and the palace gates are all locked and barred. You are wel come to go in, my Lady. We deities will withdraw and leave you. [Exeunt] LADY YANG [entering] : Look! [recites] The palace flowers are one and all branches that break the heart, there is no one behind the curtains that hang and touch the ground. I walk to where a painted screen encloses a special spot clearly I see the hairpin and box at the moment he gave me his love.
She weeps. On the stage have been set her old bed and curtains, along with various objects. Sings. I linger here bewilderedromance of bygone days . [Sits on bed] I recall when first he gave the hairpin and the box, firmly planting this affection. We both to foolish love held fast. [Rises] But who would have guessed with what haste grim fate would tear us apart? Look there how desolate and deserted are Aloeswood Pavilion and Calyx Mansion! [ Climbs stairs] No one climbs the painted tower, no flowers bloom in pairs, and no new ballads are performed now all is bleakness everywhere, engendering sorrow. 1 069
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At such a melancholy scene I can't help shedding tears. This is the Palace of Lasting Life ! It all comes back to me now . . . [She weeps. On stage has been set the table with incense she used in praying for skill in the Palace of Lasting Life] Over here was where I was that day . . . setting out incense, fruit, and melons to pray for skill that night, and over there is where we bowed toward Oxherd and Weaver, shoulder to shoulder, in secret prayer. Oh, my Emperor ! If only I could see you for a little while ! But the guardian deities have j ust now told me that the Emperor is still in Shu. I'll slip back out of the p alace gates and go to the Wei River Bridge to look west toward Sichuan. [ Walks and sings] Into the clear fall scene I stare. [Steps on bridge] I gaze but cannot see E-Mei Mountain rising high in cold clouds and distant trees. Thoughts turn to the royal exile there, his body weary, his shadow alone . In sharp frosts his sickly horse stands on Cheng-du's Thousand-Mile Bridge I wonder if he's well. But even if his health is good, I'm sure he's gaunt because of me . I'll fly off to him ! [She begins to fly but is whirled around by the wind] Oh Heaven! I thought this light and frail soul could fly away; but the journey grew farther and farther still, with a thousand streams and a million hills.
[Looks around. A Buddhist shrine and pear tree are placed on stage] There's a deserted Buddhist shrine all locked up, with a slanting pear tree. It seems that a gust of wind has blown me all the way back to Ma-wei Station!
[Sings] The night is cold by the station wall, a single lamp's faint light leaks through. And all around the Buddha's hall, shadowy winds are rising. I see the empty stables' moon-framed dark a sudden lance of pain brings tears . 1 0 70
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Before me stands that pear tree, hidden back and resting on the ea ves sweet scent severed, white flesh fell, this is the spot where I am interred. The love scene here was played to the end, and of my doomed life's destiny all that remains is the story. Once rosy-cheeked and ravishing, fortunes were spent for my smile; now bleached bones lie forsaken in a half-formed mound of soil. Yet when I call to mind the depth of affection that I received when alive, I die without regrets. Only love's destined ties that I could not see through to the end leave this heart of mine restless and unable to forget, even for thousands of eons.
[Sings] I look back in vain destined love in dream; the waters flowed away, the flowers fell, and what remains is j ust this speck of old passion. Like spring's silkworm dying, still spinning out its thread. Whether grieving in the royal lodge by Sword-Gate Pass or keeping close to Ma-wei Slope in the land of death, I think at least we share this pain that keeps going on. When will golden pin and inlaid box again be fair and whole, and the incense wisp that bore our vows made on the Seventh Eve, now broken, be rej oined?
Enter LOCAL GOD. LOCAL GOD [recites]: From Heaven a courier brings a decree for the secret soul in the underworld.
[Greets her] Consort, the Lady, Heaven's Daughter, comes bearing the High God's command, and you should make yourself ready to receive her. I'll be gone now. 1071
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LADY YANG: Thank you. [Exeunt separately]
Enter four immortal maidens carrying water basin, banners, and standards. They lead the WEAVER WOMAN, who holds the decree in her hands. WEAVER [sings] : From Heaven's precincts comes the j ade decree, attending in front and behind crane and phoenix fly. Because her love is genuine, she is recalled to peaks of Peng-Iai .
Enter LOCAL GOD, who kneels and greets her. LOCAL GOD : As the local god of Ma-wei Slope, I bid your ladyship welcome. WEAVER: Spirit, where is the soul of Lady Yang ? Summon her here imme diately so that she can hear the reading of the j ade decree. LOCAL GOD: As you command. [Exit]
Reenters with LADY YANG, no longer costumed as ghost. They kneel. WEAVER [reading out decree] : The j ade decree has come; kneel then and listen as I read. Thus sayeth the Jade Emperor: You, Yu-huan of the House of Yang, were originally Tai-zhen, the Jade Consort, who, through a minor misdeed, was exiled for a short span in the mortal world. Your affections strayed, as they should not have, into a worldly love, which caused you to fall upon great affliction. Now, according to the report of Our Daughter, you appeal to Heaven and repent your errors; the burden of your transgression has been expiated and your genuine love deserves mercy. I hereby authorize the use of the body-refining techniques of the Supreme Yin, that you may again be listed in the registers of immortals, and be given lodging in the dwellings of the immortal spirits on Peng-Iai. Give ye thanks now for this kind ness. LADY YANG [touching her head to the ground] : All hail, his Holy Highness! [to WEAVER] I also bow to Heaven's Daughter. WEAVER: Rise, Tai-zhen. On the Seventh Eve of the tenth year of the Tian baa Reign, j ust as I was crossing the River of Stars, I saw you and the Tang Emperor in the Palace of Lasting Life secretly vowing the depth of your love. Then, more recently, I heard from the local god of Ma-wei that you were sincere in your repentance, and I made a report to the high god, from whom we now have his own sacred words . LADY YANG: Thank you, your ladyship, for all your help. WEAVER [taking the basin of water and giving it to the LOCAL GOD] : This is fluid j ade and liquid gold. Take it and go with the Jade Consort to her grave. There wet her original body. Once you have refined the physical body and etherealized it, the body will be released from the dross phys ical corpse and rise up to the sky. When the process is completed, escort 1 0 72
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her with music and banners to the precincts of the immortals on Peng lai. I will go now and turn in the j ade decree. LOCAL GOD: As you command. WEAVER [recites]: My coach returns to the paired phoenix gates, clouds crowding around my seven-phase gown.2 [Exit with
immortal handmaidens] LOCAL GOD: Congratulations, my Lady. Let's go to the grave now. [He takes
the water basin and leads Lady Yang, singing] East of the meadow the road goes north, east of the meadow the road goes north, and there I see a small mound. We're there. LADY YANG [looking sad, sings] : So this is the bog where beauty rests, where the scent lies sequestered from life gone by. LOCAL GOD: By command of the Deity of the Western Peak, I have preserved this immortal's body here. Let me lift it out.
Goes to stage door and drags in LADY YANG'S corpse, wrapped in a brocade coverlet. LOCAL GOD removes the brocade coverlet and holds corpse up in standing position. LADY YANG [startled, sings] : My body looks like it used to be, my body looks like it used to be, but the eyes are tightly closed, and red lips are shut and say nothing. LOCAL GOD [wetting the corpse with the water] : I sprinkle it through with liquid gold, I sprinkle it through with liquid gold, and holy radiance floats on the face,
Corpse opens eyes. LADY YANG: and suddenly glances like fall floods flow.
The corpse's hands and feet move. A ll at once it takes a few steps toward LADY YANG. LADY YANG [alarmed] : In an instant it lives again, in an instant it lives again, and moves forward, in appearance no different from me. [She pauses, worried] 'The "seven p h ases" are the seven n i ghtly pos itions in the sky occu p i ed by the Weaver Star, asso c i ated with her weav i n g .
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But wait! If this Yang Yu-huan is alive, where will I, the other Yang Yu huan, go ?
The corpse suddenly begins to move toward LADY YANG, who looks stupefied as she faces it. LOCAL GOD [clapping his hands and shouting] : My Lady, don't be misled, she is in fact you, and you are in fact she.
Addressing LADY YANG and pointing to corpse. This husk of a body is her,
Addressing corpse and pointing to LADY YANG. this soul is her. Let the true nature use the frame, that ere now was cut in twain.
The corpse chases LADY YANG swiftly around the stage. Then LADY YANG runs into the corpse and they fall down together. Corpse makes a hidden exit. The original spirit enters its shell, the original spirit enters its shell, like a second quickening in the womb, or twin rings fused as one. LADY YANG [rising, stands steadily and slowly sings] : Suddenly waking from fogs of dream, suddenly waking from fogs of dream, long I had lost the " I " that used to be, now spirit and body are whole again. I think back in a daze, I think back in a daze, now Zhuang Zhou am I indeed, but of the butterfly what remains ? I never expected that these cold bones would live again, and that the soul, separated from the body, would fuse with it again. Truly, I thank Heaven. Like a traveler who lost his home, like a traveler who lost his home, I come back to the very spot, and the dwelling is there as it used to be. D eity, let me thank you for all your trouble. LOCAL GOD: It was nothing. [They bow to one another] LADY YANG [sings] : Thank you for guarding me through the year, thank you for guarding me through the year, 1 0 74
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from rot and decay keeping me whole, and sheltering the lost and sundered soul. LOCAL GOD: The music and banners are all ready and wait to escort you to the dwellings of the immortal spirits. LADY YANG [about to set off, then stopping] : Wait a moment. Now I have been transformed and the corpse is gone. Someday His Maj esty will re turn and eventually he will want to come and rebury me. I have to leave something here for him to recognize. Deity, would you take the brocade coverlet in which I was wrapped and rebury it in the grave ? And don't let it disintegrate. LOCAL GOD: As you command. [He takes the brocade coverlet, but it flies off] How strange ! How very strange! The brocade coverlet turned into a many-colored cloud and flew off into the sky. LADY YANG [gazing after it] : Ah, I see! When you were refining the physi cal body, some of the liquid gold got on the brocade coverlet, and thus it has acquired some immortal life force.
[Sings] Colored cloud transformed and flying through air, colored cloud transformed and flying through air, seems to mimic the roaming immortals, but what now will I leave behind ? The golden hairpin and inlaid box are things I must keep close with me. I don't have anything else besides these. [She ponders] Ah, I've got it! I wear a brocade sachet at my breast, which the Emperor gave me when I danced on the azure disk. I'll leave that behind. [She takes off sachet
and sings] I hold the brocade sachet in hand, I hold the brocade sachet in hand, [sadly] someday my Lord will recover this better by far than seeing no trace of me again.
[Hands brocade sachet to LOCA L GOD] Deity, take this sachet and put it in the grave . LOCAL GOD [accepting it] : As you command. [Exits, then reenters] I have placed the sachet as you required. Enter four IMMORTAL MA IDENS with music and banners. IMMORTAL M A IDENS [greeting LADY YANG] : We handmaidens of Tai-zhen's compound in Peng-lai greet you. Would your ladyship please change your clothes and come with us ?
Music within. LADY YANG changes her clothes. LOCAL GOD: Goodbye, my Lady. 1 075
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LADY YANG: Goodbye, Deity. [Exit LOCAL GOD; IMMORTAL MAIDENS and LADY YANG set out]
[Sings] Off toward Ying-zhou where cloudy vapors shroud the air, a cluster of gold and sapphire spires appears. For immortals there the months and years last on and on, as long as love . When love is genuine and true, through thousands of eons it will not wane. To the golden hairpin and inlaid box I hold tight right to the summit of Mount Peng-lai.
Ascends to a high p lace, then exits. Melted away is the scent that once hung tied upon my breast, [Zhang Hu] many feelings and filled with love, of course I can't forget. [Lu Gui-meng] From this spot to Mount Peng-lai the j ourney is not far, [Li Shang-yin] the worlds of Heaven and mortal men are both in distance faint. [Cao Tang] BALLAD (XXXVIII )
Enter LI GUI-NIAN, looking even older, in worn-out clothes and hat, carrying mandolin. LI GUI-NIAN [recites] : No sooner did the drums of war come rising from Yu-yang than suddenly we saw the vines grow over palace walls . All that's left is this old man, survivor with white hair, who sets his lasting pain to song that tells of glory and the fall. I am that Li Gui-nian who used to be a musician in the court ensemble and served in the Pear Garden Academy, blessed by great favor from His Imperial Majesty. After I directed the rehearsal of " Rainbow Skirts " in Chao-yuan Tower, the song was performed for the Emperor, and the dragon countenance was greatly pleased. His Maj esty and Lady Yang rewarded me with over twenty thousand cash. No one imagined that An Lu-shan would rise in rebellion and take Chang-an, driving His Maj esty 1 076
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into flight to the West and making the common folk flee for their lives. We too, the musicians of the Pear Garden Academy, were driven thither and yon, each escaping as best he could. I came to the Southland and used up the last of my money here. I have had to take this mandolin and sing songs just to provide myself with a meager living. Today there's a big fair at Vulture Peak Temple by Blue Creek. There will be a crowd, so I'm going there to perform. [Sighs] When I think how I used to sing before the Son of Heaven, and now must beat my clapper from door to door, it really makes me lose heart. [ Walks on, singing] In life's last years, caught unawares, I met with chaos, refugee harried at every crossroad, finding ruin and poverty. My face, made black by storms of war, while thinning hair and frosty beard are turned a melancholy white. Today adrift on far horizons, all I have is my mandolin. Hiding my face in shame, I go up the long avenue, down the short lane. No Gao Jian-li am I, who strummed his cithern, sang sad songs-3 more like Wu Zi-xu, who blew his flute and begged.4 I think on how it used to be: I played clear song and rushed to serve in golden galleries, and there composed new melodies at the call of the alabaster throne. From Heaven's heights, the royal grace came flooding like the sea, more than words can express: snows cleared from the sky when he went to Warm Springs on Mount Li, in Xing-qing Pool the lotus bloomed, and skiffs of the immortals sailed, and in the halls of Hua-qing Palace
lGao J i a n - l i was the friend of J i n g Ke, the reta i n e r of the Prince of Yan, who atte m pted to assass i n ate t h e F i rst Em peror o f Q i n . W h e n he set out, G a o J i a n- l i p l ayed h i s z ither a n d s a n g a s o n g o f a few l i nes. 40ne l egend of Wu Zi-xu was that when he escaped t o Wu after the m u rd e r of his father a n d b rother, he s u rv i ved by p l a y i n g the f l ute and begg i n g .
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he enjoyed the moonlight's charm or on Calyx Tower took pleasure in the scent of flowers. At the moment when I bathed in streams of royal admiration, all at once there came about a strange and tragic alteration. His phoenix carriage fled in dust, exiled prince at Sword-Gate Pass; the fairest lady in the land lay stained with blood on Ma-wei Slope. While I, through the Southland, weep away these lean bones and gaunt frame. Destitute and wretched, I can only go from door to door hawking " Rainbow Skirts , " the royal score and no one thirsts for such brilliant melody. I merely stand before these plants and trees that bury parks and tombs of the Six Dynasties, my eyes are filled with glory and fall. [Moves over to edge of stage]
Enter LI Mo in scholar's garb. LI Mo [recites] : Flowers stir the traveler's eyes, springtime wounds the homesick heart. Since she of Rainbow Skirts is gone, none remain who know true music's tone. I am Li Mo. Earlier I stayed a time in the Western Capital, but after the rebellion I came back here. Outside the palace wall I surreptitiously transcribed several sections of " Rainbow Skirts, " but since that time I have not been able to get my hands on the complete score. Recently I heard that there is an old man who makes his living with the mandolin. Everyone says that his technique is exceptional, like that of the former performers of the Pear Garden Academy. Today is the great fair at Vul ture Peak Temple, and I am sure he'll be there, so I'm going to go try to find him. Look at the throngs of visitors coming along the road!
Enter three TRAVELERS from Shan-xi, variously attired, with a DANCEHALL GIRL. FIRST TRAVELER [recites] : We peacefully stroll seeking sweetness, unwilling to waste a fine spring, 1 078
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SECOND TRAVELER [recites]: for the while to view this splendid fair we follow the travelers. THIRD TRAVELER: Hey, honey, you and I should [recites] : have our fun while the time is right, not let it pass us by, DANCE HALL GIRL [recites]: let's listen to the mandolin play a recent song. LI Mo [to SECOND TRAVELER] : Excuse me, sir. May I ask the young lady what "recent song on the mandolin " she was referring to ? SECOND TRAVELER: Don't you know about the old man who came here just recently and plays the mandolin with such great skill ? Since there's a fair today at Vulture Peak Temple, we're all going together to listen to him. LI Mo: I was just on my way to look for this person. Would it be all right if I joined you ? ALL: That would be j ust fine. [They walk on] On we go, and here we have come to the Vulture Peak Temple. Let's go in. [They go in] SECOND TRAVELER: I think that circle over there with plank benches all around must be it. Let's make our way in together and have a seat to lis ten. [They all sit]
Enter LI GUI-NIAN. LI GUI-NIAN [greeting them] : Welcome. I imagine you all are here to hear my songs, so please make yourselves comfortable. I welcome your com ments. ALL: Go on. LI GUI-NIAN [strumming his mandolin and singing] : Dream's illusions, glory and fallso many I can't sing them all and a grief that stirs your sighs is too great for me to play; only desolation fills my eyes facing these rivers and hills. Let me in swift strings convey the bitterness repressed, and in altering melody trace the troubles and the pain, thus slowly will I play for you what happened years ago in the Tian-bao Reign. FIRST TRAVELER: "The Story of the Tian-bao " -now that's a good topic. THIRD TRAVELER: Hey, honey-what song is he going to sing ? Is it going to be one of our Western songs ? 1 079
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DANCEHALL GIRL: Something like that. LI Mo: Sir, you can't sing the whole story of the Tian-bao Reign in one per formance. Sing for us how Lady Yang first came to the palace back then.
LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : At first peace reigned throughout the world under our royal Tang, when he sought the beauty of woman, and chose the fairest brows. There was a lovely girl, grown up in the house of Yang, deep in the women's chamber a j ewel without flaws . Once our ruler saw her, he was overcome with joy, he ga ve her the golden hairpin, he gave her the inlaid box, in Zhao-yang Palace she was j udged the foremost flower. DANCEHALL GIRL: What did the lady look like ? THIRD TRAVELER: Was she as cute as my little honey here ? SECOND TRAVELER: Just let him sing.
LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : That lady had an inborn grace, like a goddess, features fair, modest and retiring past compare. The very flowers concede defeat to her twin cheeks, and to her waist would willows yield, more ravishing than Wang Zhao-jun, of Xi Shi, double the allure, as if Guan-yin came flying there from summits in the sea, or like Chang E, who stole away from the sapphire heights of sky. Her spring mood was all winsomeness, her spring tipsiness had a pleasing air, in spring sleep her dreams were still. Even the finest painter could never draw her various charms. SECOND TRAVELER [laughing] : When I listen to this old man telling of Lady Yang's stunning beauty in such a lively way, it's as if he had seen her with his own eyes. He's o bviously not telling the truth. THIRD TRAVELER: As long as he sings the story well, who cares whether he's telling the truth or not. Now hurry up and sing for us how the Emperor treated her in those days.
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LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : Our Lord and ruler looked on her like a pearl without a peer, he lifted her high in his palm all the day long. Surpassing Zhao Swallow-in-Flight newly groomed in palaces of Han, they were kingfishers nesting in mansions of jade, mated ducks enclosed in golden galleries, embracing by night, in day side by side. It made the clever man of state befuddled and besotted, of his own heart no longer master. In the court his sway grew lax, he stood in the center of passion's stage, a hundred details can't describe their settings for romance. When walking, they walked together, when seated, they were face to face. As a pair they actually lay on the royal throne, and gained in trade shared pleasure in moonlit nights and dawns of flowers. THIRD TRAVELER [falling over] : Aiya ! It's so real ! When I hear this, I feel like a snowman by a fire. DANCEHALL GIRL [helping him up] : What do you mean by that? THIRD TRAVELER: I'm melted. [All laugh] LI Mo: Back then in the palace there was a song call " Coats of Feathers, Rainbow Skirts, " which I've heard some say was composed by the Emperor himself, while others say that it was done by Lady Yang. Perhaps you know the facts of the matter ? Please sing about this for me.
LI GUI-NIAN [sings]: Back then in Lotus Courts the Lady Yang arranged those notes with care, she wrote the score, new version of the " Rainbow Skirts . " I n person, when the days grew long, she taught it to her maids. With pale hands spread, she beat the clappers of sandalwood, as every note and every word emerged between those gleaming teeth and ruby lips.
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Like the sound of a string of black-dragon pearls easily echoing the tones, like swallows and orioles trilling their melodies, like fountains gurgling under blooms flowing into mountain streams, like sutra-chanting crisp and clear under the bright moon, like shrilling in the lofty cold, the cranes on Mount Hou's crest, like pendants of some spirit of the air, tinkling in the night, striding through the empty sky. She passed it on to the Pear Garden ensemble, to the Academy's companies, and the Lady pirouetting on the azure disk drew our ruler's pleased regard. LI Mo: This stream of divine notes in my ears depicts her well indeed. FIRST TRAVELER [sighing] : And yet it's too bad that the Emperor's infatua tion with Lady Yang, spending his days from dawn to dusk in pleasures, brought about the uprising of the army in Yu-yang. It's painful even to mention it. LI Mo: But sir, don't hold a grudge against Lady Yang for this . What hap pened then was due to mistakes in giving responsibility to a frontier gen eral and lea ving the government to a power-hungry minister. This is what brought about the overthrow of the royal government and caused the u phea vals all over the world. If the old ministers Yao and Song had still been alive, this would never have happened. FIRST TRAVELER: What you say is true. LI GUI-NIAN: If the rebellion of the Yu-yang armies is mentioned, that really was a cataclysm that was sad to behold and painful to hear of. But if you all wouldn't mind, let me sing about it more fully. ALL: Certainly.
LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : As the music throbbed and droned to dancing of the " Rainbow Skirts ," all a t once there came the boom and rumble of the battle drum rising from Yu-yang. Then a fruitless gibbering hum, droves of letters to the throne discussing the frontier, startling both high and low, and nothing was done. 1082
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Soon there was a roaring din, in frightened alarm, stunned in panic and terror, they pressed squeezing through gates to the road leading west, with the royal carriage bringing along the Consort, charming in her tears . Then all one could see were soldiers dense around them in a mob, hear their savage, cruel words, brawling, bellowing, yelling, all around in thunderous strife. They drove apart the loving, the adoring, the doting and the caring Emperor and wife. In those brief moments there was drawn a most melancholy picture: " the loveliest of women ends her life . "
FIRST and SECOND TRAVELERS both sigh. LI Mo [weeping] : It is really terrible that such a Heaven-sent beauty should come to such a sad and violent end.
THIRD TRAVELER [laughing] : It's only a ballad. Why are you shedding tears in earnest ?
DANCEHALL GIRL: Where was Lady Yang buried after she died ? LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : By the ramshackle building of Ma-wei Station, off at an angle from a forlorn chapel to the Buddha. The fairest face of a generation died there for her lord, and grief to last a thousand years dripped in blood on her scarf of gauze. Her tombstone is a blasted tree, marking her sad fate, her grave, a bit of earth scooped out it breaks the heart. Never again will men pass by that desolate moor, and on the trackless edge of sky who mourns for the pear blossoms' fall ? Pity her solitary soul harboring her sense of wrong, kept company alone by the wailing cry of Emperor Wang, 1083
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turned into the nightj ar weeping to the moon. FIRST TRAVELER: What did Chang-an look like after the devastation of the rebellion? LI GUI-NIAN: Ladies and gentlemen, Chang-an, once a splendid place of em broidered brocade, was an utterly unbearable sight after it was sacked by An Lu-shan. Listen as I play some more .
[Sings] Once the royal coach went west along the road to Shu, in Chang-an soldiers ran amok. In the Purple Residence no more did the thousand officers come to morning audience, all its splendor instantly was swept away, instantly was swept away. From the harem's crimson doors long-legged spiders hang, and in daylight foxes howl right beside the royal couch. Owls shriek, weeds grow tall. Wild deer run everywhere, willows of the royal park and palace flowers half withered and fallen. Who is there to sweep them up, sweep them up ? Bare beams set with tortoise shell are fouled by swallows' spatterings, and all that remains is the crescent moon shining in the dusk. I sigh at such desolation, a stench pervading everywhere, a stench pervading everywhere, the jade pavements bare but for piles of horse dung. THIRD TRAVELER: My god, we've been listening half the day, and I'm going wild with hunger. Hey, honey, why don't you and I go have a drink and get some garlic dumplings to eat? [Takes some coins from his pocket and
gives them to LI GUI-NIAN, then exits, bantering with the DANCEHALL GIRL] FIRST TRAVELER: It's getting late, let's get going. [Gives LI GUI-NIAN silver] Here's something for you to buy a drink with.
LI GUI-NIAN: Thank you very much. 1084
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FIRST TRAVELER: There was an immense pain of glory and fall in what you sang. SECOND TRAVELER: And you brought the audience to tears. [Exeunt two TRAVELERS] LI Mo: Old man, it's obvious from your mandolin playing that you are no ordinary musician. From whom did you learn ? Please tell me everything. LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : This mandolin once served the Kai-yuan Emperor and again brings forth heart's pain and falling tears . LI Mo: Someone who says this was obviously one of the court musicians of the Pear Garden Academy. LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : My name indeed was on the list in the Pear Garden Academy, I stood in attendance among the flowers of Aloes Pavilion, and accompanied Hua-qing Palace feasts. LI Mo: Are you old He ? LI GUI-NIAN [sings ]: No, I ' m not H e Huai-zhi. LI Mo: Perhaps then you are Huang Fan-chua ? LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : Huang and I were the seniors. LI Mo: So then you must be Lei Hai-qing! LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : Though I play the mandolin, my name is not Lei: he died long ago cursing treason, his name lives on. LI Mo: Then you must be Ma Xian-qi. LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : Nor am I the master of stone chime, the famous Ma Xian-qispeak no more of those old friends of mine. LI Mo: How did you come to be here ? LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : With ruin of the royal house, destruction of the state, fighting broke out everywhere, and I was left to roam alone in the Southland. LI Mo: But then who are you ? LI GUI-NIAN [sings] : Since you keep on pressing me on who I am, 1085
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know then that my name among the musicians was Li Gui-nian. LI Mo [bowing] : Ah ! So you are Li Gui-nian, the leader of the troupe! I am honored to make your acquaintance. LI GUI-NIAN: What is your name, sir ? And how do you come to know who I am ? LI Mo: I am Li Mo. LI GUI-NIAN: Are you perhaps the Li who plays the iron flute ? LI Mo: That's right. LI GUI-NIAN: I'm very pleased to meet you. [Bows] LI Mo: Can I ask you if you remember the entire score of " Rainbow Skirts " ? LI GUI-NIAN: I still remember it. Why d o you ask ? LI Mo: To tell you the truth, sir, I've always loved music and was staying in Chang-an before. When you were rehearsing " Rainbow Skirts " at Chao-yuan Tower, I was secretly listening very carefully outside the palace walls, and managed to get down several sections on my iron flute. But I didn't get the entire score. I've been searching everywhere to find it, but no one knows it. But I have been fortunate enough to meet you here today, and I wonder if you might be willing to teach it to me. LI GUI-NIAN: Since I've met someone who truly understands music, why should I hesitate to teach him my poor skills ? LI Mo: I would be very grateful if you would do so. Let me ask where you are staying? LI GUI-NIAN: I am down on my luck now and j ust wander about. I'm not staying anywhere. LI Mo: How would you like to stay at my lodgings so that I can learn it with care ? LI GUI-NIAN: That would be j ust fine.
[Sings] Like a frightened crow circling a tree, I keep away from the empty boughs, And now, beyond hope, I find myself a swallow seeking familiar nest among the painted beams. Today one connoisseur delights to find another of his kind; this meeting was remarkable, exhilarating match of minds. I will slowly teach you " Rainbow Skirts" to pass on for a thousand years.
[Recites] A welcome thing to pass along the lanes of peach and willow, [Zhang Ji] 1086
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LI Mo: now I turn my coach aside to seek the recluse ivy-clad. [Bo Ju-yi]
LI GUI-NIAN: If today the music lover will linger on to listen, [Liu Yu-xi]
LI Mo: no place in all the Southland will fail to hear the song. [Gu Kuang] In the scene that fo l l ows, Li G u i - n i a n appears aga i n , v i s i t i n g a n u n n e ry, where he fi nds a s h r i n e ded i cated to Lady Y a n g . H ere he meets Lady Yang's two m a ids, Yong xin and N i a n - n u .
THE IMMORTAL'S RECOLLECTIONS (XL)
Enter LADY YANG as an immortal, followed by an attendant spirit. LADY YAN G [sings] : Borne aloft by phoenix and crane, I left to never return, and now look back in vain to the distance between Heaven and mortal men. Yet what happened before at Upright Hall and in the Palace of Lasting Life pulls without measure on the heart.
[Recites lyric] Blurred by distance, depths of cloud enclose those marble rooms, now back on the lists of immortals, my thoughts are in a daze. I look back and cannot help expense of recollection. By alabaster stairs within the agate trees all at once I see outlines of bright phoenixes roosting in their pairs thoughts so often put from mind again lay claim to me. I have had the good fortune to receive a decree from the Heavenly Em peror restoring me to my place among the immortals, and I have again 1 087
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taken up my residence in Tai-zhen's compound. Yet those tokens by which we pledged our love have never left me for a moment. And the heart finds it impossible to forsake those vows we made on the Seventh Eve . It's such a long tale.
[Sings] Driven apart in an instant, nothing could be done, yet between us remains such mutual care. Life and death could not rend love's bond, but all that's left is bitter pain massing like hills . There he, in sorrow unceasing, his thoughts captive of love's old history; here I, with tears that never dry, shed bloody by a remnant soulwe both waste sighs. Before we formed those fabled fish that share a single eye, troubles were upon us; and when drake from duck is split, what matters immortality ?
She takes out the hairpin and box and looks at them. See those feelings present still in golden hairpin, paneled boxwho would have thought while Heaven lasts and Earth endures our vows would be forsaken ? When will the blue phoenix come to do my will, to reunite our destinies, to let us meet again to give bitter account of our miseries ?
Enter HAN HUANG. HAN HUANG [recites] : I make the climb up Peng-Iai, gaze from the mountain's height, where ocean waves are shallow and clear, there comes a crane in flight. On orders from my Lady, the Mistress of the Moon, I've come to get the new score of " Rainbow Skirts" from Tai-zhen, the Jade Consort. Now that I'm here, I might as well go in. [Approaches and greets her] Madam. LADY YANG: Why have you come, spirit ? 1088
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HAN HUANG [laughing] : Do you still recognize me ? I'm Han Huang. LADY YANG [thinking it over] : Aren't you the immortal spirit from the moon? HAN HUANG: That's right. LADY YANG: Please have a seat. [HAN HUANG sits] lt's hard to believe that it's been several years since I took leave of you in that dream. You have come a long way to pay me a visit, so tell me what your purpose IS.
HAN HUANG: Listen while I explain it to you.
[Sings] Because the music " Rainbow Skirts " played in the Palace of Spreading Cold caught your genius's fancy and you scored anew with precision, I've been ordered by my Lady, the Mistress of the Moon, to visit the true musician to pay a far call on Mount Peng-lai, and borrow that score of days gone by for my Lady herself to read. LADY YANG: I see. Back then I had the good fortune to hear the music of im mortals in my dream. But even though I copied it down in an arrange ment for strings and woodwinds, I'm still embarrassed at its imperfec tions and mistakes.
[Sings] Why should royalty of the moon so blindly choose this remnant tune ? for here my recollections turn round and round in weeping. [ Weeps] HAN HUANG: Lady, why are you spilling these tears ? LADY YANG: Having lived through Armageddon, and having myself been crushed, I am pained how these notes grow cold and fade. The crimson strings are broken, and I am ashamed to let this tune again be played. Please explain to the Lady of the Moon that I do not dare answer her bidding with that old score from the foul and common world. I beg her forgiveness. HAN HUANG: Lady, don't refuse so stubbornly. My Lady, the Mistress of the Moon, 1 089
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I[Sings] !
holds your fine wit in esteem, a rare thing ever, framing these new melodies, matchless among mortals . Though sadly late she seeks it, do not disappoint, please, her respectful attention. LADY YANG: Since the Lady of the Moon has been so gracious as to send you to me, I have a copy here that I wrote out on first coming to this mountain and chancing to recall the past. HAN HUANG: That would be wonderful. LADY YANG: Maid, go get it for me. [MAID exits and brings back the score] MAID: Here it is. LADY YANG: Spirit, though the score has been fetched, maybe it would be best if it could be recopied. HAN HUANG: Why ?
LADY YANG [sings ] : S e e how the notes blur into ruin, lines smudged and broken, all stained by tracks of tears. HAN HUANG: It doesn't matter.
LADY YANG [giving her back the score] : All right, but please explain this to
the Lady of the Moon-and tell her that since I copied it from dream, there are many mistakes in the notes and tempo, so that I would be glad to have her correct it. HAN HUANG: I'll do that. And now I must take my leave. [Recites] : From the very first until the music was complete, [Wang Jian]
LADY YANG:
how could it happen that Chang E knew in such detail ? [Tang Y an -qian]
HAN HUANG: Marvel not with what feeling she felt sorrow at this song, [Liu Yu-xi]
LADY YANG: such beauty adrift in the moonlight is set to meet with whom ? [Li Shang-yin]
Exit HAN HUANG with score. LADY YANG: Maid, lock the gate to my grotto and follow me in. Exit, followed by MAID . I n the scenes that fol l ow, women a re conscri pted to d i s i nter Lady Yang's corpse. S i nce Lady Yang has u ndergone a bod i l y metamorphosis i n to a n i m m orta l , they fi nd 1 09 0
The Qing Dynasty o n l y the sachet t h at Lady Y a n g had pu rposefu l l y l eft beh i n d . T h e E m peror h a s t h e sachet cerem o n i a l l y bu ried, and G u o Zi-yi appears to escort h i m b a c k t o the c a p ita l . A t t h e i r a n n u a l meeti n g' o n the Seventh Eve, t h e Oxherd a n d Weaver stars d i s cuss the l ove s h a red by Lady Yang and the E m peror. They debate whether the E m peror, hav i n g s u rrendered L a d y Y a n g t o h i s m u t i n o u s g u ards, has fa i l ed i n h i s vows of u n d y i n g love. B efore reac h i n g a dec i s i o n about h e l p i n g the l overs be reu n i ted, they w i l l l oo k for signs of re morse. The next scene opens with the E m peror stay i n g awake o n a ra i n y n i g ht, g r i ef str i c ke n over t h e l oss of Lady Y a n g . U rged to s l ee p by G a o L i - s h i , the E m peror i s awakened by two heave n l y messe n gers w h o te l l h i m that Lady Y a n g awaits h i m . T h e E m peror ri ses and fo l l ows them out i nto the c i ty, w h e re h i s way is b a rred by C h e n Y u a n - I i , the officer who had d e m a n ded Lady Y a n g ' s death at Ma-wei Stat i o n . The E m p eror, en raged, o rders the messengers to k i l l C h e n . After C h e n Y u a n - l i ' s exec u t i o n , the messen gers b r i n g t h e E m peror t o Ma-wei Stat i o n a n d v a n i s h . T h e E m peror is l oo k i n g i n v a i n fo r Lady Y a n g w h e n t h e stat i o n itse l f v a n i s h es, a n d h e fi n d s h i mself by a r i ve r . A d e m o n r i ses o u t o f t h e water t o attack h i m and a god enters swiftly to f i g h t t h e d e m o n off. At the e n d o f the scene, G a o L i s h i h u rries i n a n d t h e E m p eror wakes u p t o f i n d t h at it h a d a l l been a d re a m . Even so, t h e E m peror deci des t h at i t m u st h ave been Lady Yang's s p i r i t that i n s p i red the d ream, and he d ete rm i n es t o s u m m o n a w i zard to go search fo r h e r in the world beyo n d . I n t h e scene t hat fo l l ows, t h e w i z a rd goes t o l o o k fo r L a d y Y a n g i n t h e u n der wo r l d . U n a b l e t o l o c ate h e r t h ere, h e sets o ff fo r H eave n , w h e re h e m eets the Weaver Star. Assu red by the w i zard of the E m peror's u n swerv i n g l ove, the Weaver d i rects the w i zard to P e n g- I a i , the i s l e of the i m m o rtal s . The Weaver next s u m m o n s Lady Yang to test the f i r m n ess of her l ove, and c o n v i n ced at l ast of the l overs' devot i o n , she p ro m i ses Lady Yang t h at she and the E m peror w i l l be re u n i ted . Eventu a l l y, the w i z a rd reaches P e n g - I a i and c o n veys t h e E m p e r o r ' s l ove t o Lady Yang, w h o g i ves h i m h a l f t h e h a i r p i n a n d h a l f the p a n e l ed box as a p roof t h at s h e h a s been contacted . S h e s e n d s word to the E m peror t h at they are to meet aga i n soon in the moo n . T h e E m peror, aged a n d s i ck, rec eives the to k e n s and the message through Gao L i - s h i , a n d a n x i o u s l y awa its h i s reu n i o n w i t h L a d y Yang.
REUNION (L)
Enter YANG TONG-YOU,
a
WIZARD.
WIZARD [sings] :
A single love has conjured forth this wedding between Heaven and man. And if the love they bear knows no alteration ever, the wish they made so long before can truly be attained. 1091
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I am the wizard Yang Tong-you, who previously discovered Lady Yang's soul living on the isle of Peng-lai. I received her personal instructions to bring the Emperor to the Moon Palace to meet her on Mid-autumn Eve. The Emperor is really the high immortal Kong-sheng, and this night of the full moon in October is the proper time for him to fly up to Heaven. Just after dusk now, you can see the sapphire sky like water and the sil very River of Stars without a speck of dust. It's time now to lead the Em peror on his way. But as I stand here speaking, here comes the Emperor himself out of the palace.
Enter EMPEROR. EMPEROR [sings] : Clouds open in the distant sky, translucent sapphire, and shimmering moonbeams brighten alabaster halls. WIZARD [greets him] : Your Maj esty, I am your humble subject, the wizard. EMPEROR: Don't stand on ceremony. Tonight . . .
[Sings] Since you brought her engagement to meet in the palace of moon, I have kept impatient watch for twilight's passage. To the high reaches of blue clouds I trust to you to guide my feet. WIZARD: Night's colors have darkened. Let's be on our way. [ They proceed,
as WIZARD recites a song lyric] Where is the bright moon found? I wave my hand, we climb blue sky.
EMPEROR [continuing the WIZARD'S lines with lines by Su Shi] : I wonder-for those in sky palaces it is " this evening" of what year ?
WIZARD [continuing Su Shi's lyric] : I'd go there riding winds, but fear those onyx halls and domes of j ade are up so high I could not bear the cold.
TOGETHER [continuing] : Then rise and dance, cool shadows capering how can anything compare to the world of mortal men? EMPEROR: Master, the road to Heaven is so far, how can we fly the full dis tance ? WIZARD: Don't worry, Your Maj esty. I'll toss this magic whisk that I have 1092
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in my hand, and it will turn into a bridge for immortal spirits of the air, and it will take you right to the Moon Palace. [WIZARD tosses his whisk,
which turns into a bridge, then exits] EMPEROR: Just look, a bridge has materialized out of nowhere and the wiz ard has suddenly disappeared. I'll j ust have to make my way over the bridge by myself.
[Sings] Below my every footstep see a rainbow-colored path appear, all the way to the stars' Silver River and wisps of the upper air there nothing is clear, all is shrouded in scented haze. [Music within] Somewhere I hear played "Heaven's Balance " melody; and I must be drawing near the lunar groves of cassia. [ Withdraws]
Enter CHANG E, followed by IMMORTAL MAIDENS holding fans. CHANG E [sings] :
Our j ade disk, full circle now, adds its autumn light, and with "Rainbow Skirts" playing, our chaste revels are appointed to begin .
I am Chang E, the Lady of the Moon. Here in the moon we use to have a suite of Heaven's music called " Rainbow Skirts. " Long ago Yang Tai-zhen, the Prized Consort of the Tang Emperor, heard it in her dream, then wrote down a score that appeared in the world of mortal men. It turned out that her version of the melody was even better than the one here in Heaven. Recently Lady Yang has been confirmed among the ranks of the immor tals. I had someone go to Peng-lai to find a copy of her score and worked it into the "Heaven's Balance " suite, planning to have it performed this evening. Heaven's Daughter unexpectedly took pity on their deep love and wanted their destiny together to continue. She has asked me to lend my lunar precincts as a place where the two might meet. And now Yang Tai zhen has sent the wizard Yang Tong-you to bring the Tang Emperor here tonight. This is a story that will last forever.
[Sings] His love endured, his faith was firm, so fitting it is that goddess and man meet again. 1093
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Thus was Heaven's Daughter moved and made things come out well for them. All you, my immortal handmaidens, keep a lookout for Tai-zhen's ar rival, and have her wait the while in the shade of the cassia tree. After she has seen the Emperor, I will meet with them. IMMORTAL MAIDENS: As you wish.
TOGETHER [sing] : Now at its finest is cassia's splendor, now the sparkling dew is fresh. We bring the loving pair together, in Heaven's chaste, inviolate zones.
Exit CHANG E. The Moon Palace is set up on stage, and the IMMORTAL MAID ENS stand waiting at the palace gate. Enter LADY YANG with her IMMORTAL HANDMAIDENS. LADY YANG [sings] : I left Jade Hill's immortal bowers and reached these glittering galleries to catch sight of the face of mortal man, one purple-born. The wish of past and future lives is here fulfilled, this evening's meeting will excel encounters in years gone by. [Arrives] IMMORTAL 1.1AIDENS: Please come in. LADY YANG [going in] : Where is her ladyship of the Moon ? IMMORTAL MAIDENS: The Lady instructed us to invite you to wait here a short while until the Emperor sees you. She will meet you after that. Please sit a while.
LADY YANG sits as the IMMORTAL MAIDENS stand beside the moon palace watching out for the EMPEROR. Enter EMPEROR. EMPEROR [sings] : On and on I cross this bridge whose end somehow eludes me, And I, as moving in a dream, whirl around astride the wind. The clear glow is conspicuous, but once inside its light, vision fails me and I see only dim shapes of terrace and hall, as Heaven's sweet odors invisibly brush across my face. [Reads] " The Precincts of Extensive Cold and Pure Space. " This must mean the precincts of the moon. 1 094
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[Sings] I made a date to meet her here, so why do I not see that spirit of the air from Peng-Iai's bowers ? IMMORTAL MAIDENS [welcoming him] : Are you the Emperor ? EMPEROR: That I am. IMMORTAL MAIDENS: The Jade Consort has already been here for some time . Please come. EMPEROR: Where is Lady Yang? LADY YANG: Where is the Emperor ? EMPEROR [seeing LADY YANG and weeping] : My Consort ! LADY YANG: My Emperor! [They embrace]
EMPEROR [sings]: Meeting at once we j oin hands, choked with pain, words hard to find. I t seems to me that day when jade was broken, sweet scent crushed, was all because my strength was weak, entangling you in grievous wrong, the fault was mine entirely. Even now shame fills my heart, which keeps me from saying how much I've longed for you. LADY YANG: Your Highness, come now !
[Sings] The roots of my own misdeeds went deep, my fate adverse, these led to my undoing, and involved you so that you almost could not escape. The j ade flesh perished in blooms of pear, the soul, cut loose, with the nightjar flew. But due to our vow still unfulfilled, with pain I recalled our shattered union, and with foolish stubbornness clung to old promises made. I am grateful you did not forsake me, but yearned with a single intensity, and sought me throughout sky's Sapphire Web and Yellow Springs. EMPEROR: When I passed back by Ma-wei, I was going to have your body reburied. To my surprise there was no trace of your bones, and all that was left was a single sachet. After that I thought of you day and night, and I had a wizard look everywhere for your soul. 1 0 95
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[Sings] As soon as he reached the spirits' hill, he sought you out and passed on the message of the heart.
Takes out hairpin and box. Of the hairpin this single branch, of the box this single panel, and also you mentioned the words of our vow made on that night of praying for skill. LADY YANG [taking out her pieces of the hairpin and box] : Here are the pieces of hairpin and box that I have. TOGETHER [sing] : Now is the inlaid box rejoined, and, paired in flight, upon the pin once more are swallows matched. We helplessly recall unbearable despondency, and seeing each other again we cannot help streaming tears. LADY YANG: We have the Weaver Woman, Heaven's Daughter, to thank for taking pity on us and allowing our divided fates to be reunited. Our meet ing this evening is truly not by chance.
[Sings] By that immortal spirit's grace the intertwined boughs and birds that flew wing to wing are j oined again as they were before. Heaven has mended parting's pain, and filled in sorrow's sea. TOGETHER [sing] : Thank Gray Heaven for its pity, so restoring loving hearts. Newly inscribed as immortal spouse, high in the lavender wisps of cloud eternity will attest our wondrous fate . IMMORTAL MAIDEN: The Lady of the Moon is here.
Enter CHANG E. CHANG E [recites] : The shadow of the white elm shows clearly in the moon, red cassia fragrance whirls in breeze beyond the clouds . 1 09 6
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EMPEROR [greeting her] : Your Ladyship . CHANG E: Sire.. LADY YANG: Mistre.ss. CHANG E: Don't stand on ceremony. Please be seated. [All sit] Your Majesty, Madam, I want to congratulate you on your restoration to the immor tals and that your love can now continue forever. Put all that happened before out of your minds.
[Sings] The only threat is lack of lovewhy fret if shared lives are broken? You two were tempered by separation and by death, smashed through love's barriers to display love's true face, showing thus the thread of karmic connection, contingency and consequent grace. All common meetings will seem pale encountering each other here in the round moon's palace, where all things come to circle full. IMMORTAL MAIDEN: The ruling comes from the Most High.
Enter WEAVER STAR, carrying the ruling. WEAVER [recites] : A thousand strands of artful weave done in Heaven, a hundred lifespans' destiny binding mortal men. EMPEROR and LADY YANG kneel. " This is the Jade Emperor's decree for Li Long-j i, Emperor of the Tang, and for his Consort, Yang Yu-huan: Verily ye two were once the high immortal Kong-sheng and an immortal of Peng-lai who, on account of a small infraction, had to dwell a while in the mortal world. Now, the term of your exile having expired, I have approved what Heaven's Daughter has recommended. I have examined the depth of your love for one another and command that you be lodged in the palace of the Dao-Ii Heaven of Heart's D esire, to be man and wife forever. Let it be so. " EMPEROR and LADY YANG [bowing] : Hail the High God ! [ They rise. WEAVER WOMAN greets them and all are seated] WEAVER: Your Majesty, Tai-zhen-your two hearts have been steadfast and your love has been proven. Now you have become man and wife in Heaven, which cannot be compared with mortal marriage. 1 09 7
Anthology of Chinese Literature
[Sings] From Dao-li, Heaven of Heart's Desire, watch Earth's red dust and sapphire sea change their places instantly. Eternal couple, free of each and every tangling care. Ranging at will, passing moments everywhere enjoying the moon and breeze, without the lingering desire for body's pleasure, childish folly. Gather now that bygone love, the hairpin and the box, for endless ages live out now the wish you made before. CHANG E: The spirits are all assembled, and the moon banquet is suitably laid. Let us now lift our cups in a toast to congratulate the Emperor and the Jade Consort. Have the wine served. [Enter IMMORTAL MAIDENS with wine] Here it is now. [Raises a toast and sings] In this pure immaculate hall see the spirits gathered all, lined upon the silken mats. Here among the cassia blooms a holy pair, in cassia blooms a holy pair will rule love forever more . ALL [continuing] : They meet upon this splendid night, two divided, now made whole; Shining on this splendid night, the moon is also full and whole . WEAVER [facing LADY YANG] : Blind love steadfast unto death, feeling all too firm, this I esteem,
[facing EMPEROR] : while you win scorn for sometimes shifting in your vow. All you saw were phantom flowers, conjured shadows all, conjured shadows, phantom flowers sweep that worldly dust away, and now j ointly rise to Heaven.
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ALL [continuing] : They meet upon this splendid night, two divided, now made whole; Shining on this splendid night, the moon is also full and whole. EMPEROR and LADY YANG: We thank Chang E for empathy with love's subtle inflections; and thanks to Heaven's D aughter too for mending our afflictions. We went through walls of misery and seas of sorrow without bounds, through walls of misery and seas of sorrow without bounds, And now at once we do renounce passion's folly with a smile.
ALL [continuing] : They meet upon this splendid night, two divided, now made whole; Shining on this splendid night, the moon is also full and whole. Life, death, the realm of ghosts and immortalitythey've seen them all, and soon in Heaven's palaces, two lotuses will bloom upon one stem, and then will be fulfilled the vow made in the Palace of Lasting Life. WEAVER: For our gathering this evening we will have the Jade Consort's newly scored version of " Rainbow Skirts . " Where are my Heavenly Maids ? [Enter HEAVENLY MAIDS with instruments] HEAVENLY MAIDS [recite] : By night in moonlight sing away the " Calling Phoenix" melody, and Heaven's winds blow down below notes of "Walking in the Sky. " At your service. WEAVER: Dance for us now " Rainbow Skirts. " HEAVENLY MAIDS [dancing] : Fragrant is the cassia orb as we perform new melody, into dancing rows divided. Pendants of the spirits spring, 1 099
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rushing past in alternation, carried on the Heavens' breeze bearing ringing sounds afar. Winding like the dragon's motion rising through a thousand forms, wing beats like the phoenix turning rainbow colors manifest. Wispy skirts go sweeping past, face to face with sleeves widespread, sewn with alabaster thread. Puffs of azure cloud disperse, piling streams of autumn light. Beside the oboes cranesdown capes swirl and undulate showing forth on Gou-shi's crest; rainbow streamers scintillate gathering beside the cushions for the Jasper Pool feast; fragrance wafting, groups of damsels send j ade petals scattering in Galleries of Unblown Buds. One stands forth singly, mounts with swan-steps, then hides the phoenix form and slips past down below. Gowns are gathered, fans deployed, precisely to the beat, each syllable, one soaring turn. They match the manner of the pace of the Goddess of the Luo crossmg waves, stir visions of Wu Mountain's goddess moving clouds . Round and round the tones and poses sweep along. And with slow and sensual pace they tread the stratosphere in song, as to the notes of melody the tinkling beats respond. Glinting buds of red open in the wind; chasing silver stars, rippling streams of cloud. Unlike delights of mortal men let lotuses be spread and on these slowly tread 1 1 00
The Q ing Dynasty
paired swallows lightly tossing. Treading Air, Treading Air upon the onyx terraces Fei-qiong stirs a frenzy; Nong-yu, Nong-yu on Qin's terraces plays her panpipes urgently. Earthly passions, godlike thoughts both deliberating. Now the style of "Heaven's Balance " melody is changed, artfully composed the final strains spinning without ending. The silver moon is gleaming, the water-clock of j ade drips on, to last a thousand years one sung, dancing "Skirts of Rainbow . " WEAVER: What a wonderful piece of music! It truly will reign supreme for a millennium. Play this music to accompany the high immortal Kong-sheng and the Jade Consort to the palace in the Dao-li Heaven of Heart's Desire. CHANG E: My heavenly maidens, let this music be played as you lead them on their way. [HEAVENLY MAIDENS lead EMPEROR and LADY YANG away,
playing music] Gods and spirits are lovers all; and though Peng-lai Isle lies far, you can get there through love. From its first roots love works its way through eons and through life and death, until at last the lovers j oin. Unions in this world of dust pass with anxious haste, But there's a Heaven of Heart's Desire where love goes on forever. This differs from that common dream, beguiled by grief and j oy alike, where gentle care and passion come at last to emptiness. Leap from that cave of wandering folly, cut free the reins of fantasygolden shackles fall away, chains of j ade grow loose. Laugh as you ride your phoenix pair to Heaven's palaces, insouciant and free. Thus is the former "Rainbow Skirts " 1101
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here composed anew. When sung to those who understand, their hearts will know, and this will make love stay for all eternity. Who made the drunken dancer brush against the seat of the guest? [Zhang Yue] Spirits of the upper realms await those banished down below. [Fang Gan] Before they heard the " Rainbow Skirts" played the whole way through, [Wu Rong] the fragrant wind had carried them to Da-luo Heaven. [Wei Xuan] See a palace built by waters, named for " Lasting Life," [Wang Jian] Heaven's roads stretch on and on to touch the sky's pure heights . [Cao Tang] And from this must the Jade Emperor break the common rule, [Si-kong Tu] that gods and spirits have their fates which are not bound to love. [Li Shang-yin]
1 1 02
P u So n g- l i n g ( 1 640- 1 7 1 5 ) ,
Liao-zhai's Record of Wo nders
iff
Stories of m a rvels and encou nters with s u pernatu ra l bei n gs h ad been popu l a r i n C h i n a a t l east s i n ce t h e H a n Dyn asty, b u t t h e favo rite compend i u m o f a l l s u c h sto ries was Liao-zh ai's Record of Wonders (Liao-zhai zhi-yi), by Pu S o n g- l i n g . By the Q i ng, the n u m ber of edu cated m e n w h o sought p u b l i c offi ce far exceeded the n u m b e r o f ava i l ab l e pos i t i o n s . P u S o n g- l i n g fai l e d t h e p rovi n c i a l exam i n at i o n s a n d spent his l ife i n the e m p l o y of offi c i a l s a n d l o c a l gentry in his n ative S h a n -d o n g . A p re l i m i n a ry vers i o n of Liao-zh ai's Record of Wonders was com p l eted in 1 6 7 9 , t h o u g h he conti n ued t o a d d t o it i n the decades that fo l l owed . N u merous vers i o n s o f t h e col l ection c i rc u l ated i n m a n uscri pt, b u t the w o r k w a s n o t p u b l i s hed u nti l 1 7 6 6 . H e l d u p as a m o d e l o f c l assical p rose sty l e a n d expos i t i o n , Liao-zhai's Record of Won ders tran sformed the ve nera b l e g e n re of the s u pern atu ral ta l e i nto h i g h a rt. The su pern atu ral ta l e seems to h ave an swered some h u nger for the stra nge that is a component o f societies that are re l ative l y stable and o rd i n ary. I n the C h i nese vers ion, stra ngeness often took t h e form o f a n abrupt i ntrusion o f a sex u a l re l atio n s h i p i nto or d i n ary l ife. In Liao-zhai's Record of Wonders, the stra n ge and the o rd i n ary are often i n com petition; ghosts, were-beasts, a n d i m morta l beings may b e domesti cated, b u t their powers eventu a l l y reveal themselves i n t h e common worl d . T h i s constant p l ay on ap pearance and a truth that l ies beh i nd appearance is worked out through the soc i a l ro les and obl igations that sh ape h u m an re l atio nsh i ps, espec i a l l y between men and wome n . O n e stri k i n g d i fference between m a n y o f Pu S o n g- l i ng's l iterary g host stories a n d th e i r Weste rn counterparts i s t h e freq uent u n dercu rrent o f w h i msy a n d h u mor, fou n d prec i s e l y i n t h e conj u n ction o f t h e o rd i n ary and t h e s u pernatura l , t h e domest i c a n d dem o n i c . I n " L i an-xian g," t h e p rotago n i st, yo u n g S a n g, l i es o n h i s deathbed l i ste n ing to his two rival gi rlfriends debate the rel ative destructive powers of g h osts a n d foxes, sudden l y rea l i z i n g t h e e a c h was, i n fact, the s u p ernatu ral c reatu re that t h e oth e r had c l a i m ed . T h e n a rrato r's c o m m e n t : " F o rt u n ate l y h e w a s so u sed t o t h e m th at he was n't a l a rmed by t h e m a t a l l . " A t the very m o m e n t t h at the s u pernatu ral re vea l s itse l f in the ord i n a ry wo r l d , he fi nds that the stra nge has become o rd i nary. O n e fu rth er as pect o f the domesticat i o n o f the stra nge i s the i nt r u s i o n o f the n a r rato r at the end of each sto ry, offe r i n g a j u dgment as the " C h ro n i c l e r of Wonders , " i n the m a n ner o f a C h i nese offi c i a l h i stori a n .
Lian-xiang A native of Yi-zhou, one Sang Xiao, also known as Sang Zi-ming, had been orphaned in his youth and taken up lodging in Red Blossom Port. Sang was the sort of person who enjoyed the quiet, sedate life . Every day he would go 1 1 03
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out to take his meals with a neighbor to his east, but he would spend the rest of his time j ust sitting at home. His neighbor once j okingly asked him, "Aren't you afraid of ghosts and foxes, living all by yourself? " Sang laughed an d replied, "Why should a grown man be afraid of ghosts and foxes? Should a male of either type come, I have a sharp sword. If it's a female, I should open the gate and welcome her in. " Sang's neighbor then went home and hatched a scheme with some friends. They used a ladder to boost a courtesan over the way, and in no time she was there knocking at his gate. When Sang peeked out and asked who she was, the courtesan said she was a ghost. Sang was utterly terrified, and she could hear the sound of his teeth chattering. The courtesan then backed away and left. Early the next day, Sang's neighbor came to see Sang in his study; Sang related what he had seen and announced that he was going back to his native district. At this the neighbor clapped his hands together and asked, "Why didn't you open the door and welcome her in? " Immedi ately Sang realized he had been hoodwinked and went back to the quiet life he had led before. A half a year went by, and then one night a young woman came knock ing at his study. Sang thought that this was another joke being played on him by his friend, so he opened the door and asked her in. She turned out to be a beauty worth dying for . Sang was surprised and asked her where she had come from. She replied, " My name is Lian-xiang, and I am a courtesan who lives west of here . " Since there were many establishments in the red light district of the port, Sang believed her. When he put out the candle and got in bed with her, their lovemaking was perfect. From that time on, she would suddenly show up every fifteenth night. One evening as he was sitting alone, lost in thought, a young woman came flitting in. Thinking it was Xiang-lian, Sang greeted her and was talk ing to her; but when he caught sight of her face, it was someone else alto gether. She was j ust fifteen or sixteen, with billowing sleeves and her hair in bangs, a winsome and charming creature, who seemed uncertain whether to come any closer or to withdraw. Sang was aghast, suspecting she was a fox. The young woman said, " My name is Li, and I come from a good fam ily. I am an admirer of your noble disposition and cultivation, and now I have the good fortune to be able to come and make your acquaintance . " Sang was delighted; but when h e took her hand, i t was cold a s ice. And he asked her, "Why are you so chilly ? " She replied, "How could it be oth erwise, being so young and tender, yet left alone in the cold each night, in the frost and dew ? " And when he had untied the folds of her dress , she was indeed a true virgin. She said to him, " Because of the love I feel for you, I have now, in a short span, failed to preserve my innocence. If you do not look on me as unworthy, I would like to share your bed always. But do you, perhaps, have another woman for your bedroom? " Sang told her that there was no one else but a nearby prostitute and that she didn't come to visit him often. At this the young woman said, "I'll be careful to avoid her . I don't belong to the same class as those women of the entertainment quarters, so 1 1 04
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you have to k ee p' this completely secret. When she comes, I'll leave; and then when she leaves ; I'll come back. " As the roosters were crowing and she was about to go, she gave him an embroidered slipper and said, " By fondling this thing I have worn on my body, you can let me know that you are longing for me. But take care not to fondle it when anyone else is around. " When Sang took it and examined it, he saw that it was as sharply pointed as a knitting needle. And his heart was filled with love and desire. There was no one with him the following evening, so he took it out and examined it. In a flash the young woman was suddenly there, and they then shared tender intimacies. From then on when ever he took out the slipper, the young woman would respond to his thoughts and come to him. He thought this unusual and questioned her about it, but she only laughed and said, "It's j ust coincidence. " One night when Lian-xiang came, she said with alarm, " How i s it that you look so pal l id and drained of vitality ? " Sang said, "I hadn't been aware of it. " Lian-xiang later took her leave and promised to come again in ten days. After Lian-xiang left, Miss Li came regularly, leaving no evening free. She asked him, "Why hasn't your lover come in such a long time ? " Sang then told her about the interval she had stipulated. Li laughed and asked, "In your eyes, how do I compare to Lian-xiang in beauty ? " Sang replied, " Both of you are extraordinary, but Lian-xiang's skin is pleasantly warm . " A t this, L i colored and said, " If y o u are telling m e t o m y face that she and I are matched in beauty, then she must be a veritable goddess of the moon palace, and I am obviously not her equal. " After that she grew sulky. Then, as she reckoned it, the ten days were already up; and forbidding Sang to say a word, she intended to get a glimpse of Lian-xiang. On the following night Lian-xiang finally came, and they laughed and talked quite cheerfully. But when they went to bed, she was shocked and said, "This is terrible! It's been only ten days since I saw you last-how could you have deteriorated so badly? Can you assure me that you haven't been meeting with someone else? " Sang asked her to explain, and Lian-xiang said, "I can see the evidence in your vital signs. Your pulse is fluctuating wildly, like tangled threads . This is the symptom of the presence of a ghost. " The next night Li came, and Sang asked, "Did you get a glimpse of Lian xiang? " Li answered, " S he is beautiful. As a matter of fact, I would even say that in the whole human world there's no woman so lovely. That's because she's a fox. When she left, I tailed her-her lair is in the hill to the south. " Sang suspected Li was simply j ealous and gave her a flippant reply. But the next evening, he teased Lian-xiang: "I really don't believe it, but some one claimed you were a fox . " Lian-xiang pressed him to tell her who had said this, but Sang laughed and answered, "I was j ust teasing you . " Then Lian-xiang asked, "Just how are foxes different from human beings ? " Sang replied, "Those who are bewitched by them grow sick, and in the worst cases they die. This is the reason people are terrified of them. " Lian-xiang said, "It's not so. When someone your age sleeps with a fox, their vitality is re stored after only three days. So even if one were a fox, what harm would it 1 1 05
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do ? But suppose there were a creature that sapped a person's energy every day-there are people far worse than foxes. With all the corpses and ghosts of people who died of consumption and other diseases, it's hardly j ust foxes that cause people to die. In any case, someone has obviously been talking about me. " Sang did his best to persuade her that this wasn't so, but Lian xiang questioned him ever more vigorously. At last Sang had no choice but to tell her the whole story. Then Lian-xiang said, "I was really astounded at how sickly you had grown. But how else could you have reached this con dition so suddenly ? The creature must not be human. Don't say anything about this, but tomorrow night, I have to spy on her as she did on me. " That night, Li came . She hadn't exchanged more than a few words with Sang when she heard a cough outside the window and disappeared imme diately. Then Lian-xiang came in and said, "You're in serious danger. She really is a ghost. If you keep on being intimate with her and don't break it off quickly, the dark path is close at hand ! " Sang thought she was j ealous and said nothing. Lian-xiang then said, "I realize that you can't just put aside your love for her, but still I can't bear to watch you die. Tomorrow, I'm going to bring you some medicine to get rid of this malady brought on by an ex cess of the feminine principle. Fortunately the disease hasn't taken deep root in you, and it should be gone in ten days. I ask you to share a bed with me so that I can keep an eye on the cure . " The next night she brought out some finely chopped herbs and made Sang take them. In a little while he had a few bouts of diarrhea , after which he felt that his entrails had been purged clear and his energy invigorated. Al though he felt grateful to Lian-xiang, he still didn't believe that his sickness had been due to a ghost. Every night Lian-xiang pressed close to him under the covers; but when Sang wanted to make love, she stopped him immedi ately. After several days, his flesh was back to its former fullness. When she was about to leave, Lian-xiang urged him with all her might to break off with Li, and Sang pretended to agree. But as soon as he closed the door and trimmed the lamp wick, he immediately took hold of the slipper and turned his thoughts to Li. Suddenly there she was . Having been kept away from him for several days, she looked rather resentful; but Sang explained, "These past few nights I've been having shamanistic therapy. Please don't be an noyed with me. I still care about you. " At this Li grew somewhat more cheer ful. But later in bed Sang whispered to her, "I love you very much, but there are those that claim you're really a ghost. " Li was tongue-tied for a long time, then rebuked him, " That wanton fox must have bewitched you into believ ing her. If you don't break off with her, I won't come here any more ! " Then she burst into tears. Sang said all sorts of things to make her feel better, then gave up. The following night when Lian-xiang appeared, she knew that Li had come again, and she said angrily, "You must want to die . " Sang laughed, saying, "Why are you so j ealous of her ? " At this Lian-xiang grew even an grier: "The seeds of death had been planted in you, and I got rid of them for you. What would have happened if I hadn't been jealous ? " Then Sang at1 1 06
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tributed words to Li to tease Lian-xiang: " She says that my sickness the other day was the evil eye brought on by a fox . " At this, Lian-xiang said with a sigh, " It really does happen as you say, but you have been duped and don't know it. The whole thing is bound to turn out badly; and then even if I spoke with a hundred tongues, how could I explain myself. I'll leave you now. When I see you again in a hundred days, you will be bedridden. " Sang could n't get her to stay, and she departed at once in indignation. From then on, Li was always with him morning and night. After a little more than two months, he began to feel very weak. At first he still tried to shake it off by himself, but he grew steadily more gaunt and emaciated until all he could eat was a bowl of thick porridge. He was ready to go back to where his family lived, but he still was too attached to Li to bear to leave her so abruptly. After a few more days, the sickness became debilitating, and he couldn't get up any more. When Sang's neighbor saw how feeble he had become, he sent his servant every day to see to Sang's meals. It was only at this point that Sang began to suspect Li and said to her, "I regret not hav ing listened to Lian-xiang's advice. It has brought me to this . " After saying that, he lost consciousness. A while later he came to; and when he opened his eyes and looked around, Li was gone, obviously having decided to have nothing more to do with him. Sang lay there emaciated, alone in his study, longing for Lian-xiang as one might hope for a great bounty. One day as he was lost in reverie, someone suddenly lifted the curtain and came in. It was Lian-xiang. Standing by his bed, she said with a sad smile, "Well, my naive friend, was I wrong ? " Sang was choked up for a long time, then admitted how wrong he had been and asked her to rescue him. Lian-xiang said, "The disease has entered the vital regions below the heart, and there's no way to save you. I came to say my last farewell to you, and to show you that it was not j ealousy . " Sang was terribly upset and said, " There's something I have beneath my pillow-please destroy it for me. " Lian-xiang reached under and found the slipper, then took it over in the lamp to examine it, turning it over in her hand. In a flash Li entered the room, but then suddenly caught sight of Lian-xiang and turned to make her escape. Lian-xiang blocked the doorway with her body, and Li found herself hemmed in with no way out. When Sang took her to task for everything she had done to him, Li had no way to answer. Lian-xiang laughed. "Now I have a chance to confront you face to face. Some time ago you told our young friend that his previous illness could only have been brought on by me. How about now ? " Li bowed her head and admitted she had been in the wrong. Then Lian-xiang said, " You're so beautiful, and yet you used love against him as if he were your enemy. " At that, Li fell to the floor and burst into tears, begging for mercy. Lian xiang then helped her up and questioned her in detail about her life. Li said, "I was the daughter of the Assistant Li. I died young and was buried here j ust outside the walls. Li Shang-yin wrote how when the spring silkworm dies, its threads of longing end. In my case the spring silkworm may have died, but 1 1 07
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those threads remained and did not end. I j ust wanted to live with him hap pily; it was never my intention to bring about his death . " Then Lian-xiang said, "I have heard that ghosts gain advantage by someone's death, because after that person dies they can be with him forever. Is that true ? " Li answered, " No, it's not true. When two ghosts meet, there's no way they can enjoy them selves together. If they could, there are more than enough young men in the underworld ! " Lian-xiang said, " Foolish girl ! A man can't take doing it every night even with a human being-much less with a ghost! " Then Li asked, "But foxes bring about people's deaths. What technique do you have that this is not true for you ? " Lian-xiang answered, "Those are the vampire foxes that suck the vital essences out of a person-I'm not that sort. There really are foxes that don't do people any harm, but there are absolutely no ghosts that don't do people harm-the Yin humors are too strong in them. " As Sang heard them talking, he realized for the first time that they really were a fox and a ghost. Fortunately he was so used to them that he wasn't alarmed by them at all. The only thing on his mind was his sinking breath, now as thin as a thread; and without realizing it, he groaned in misery. Lian xiang consulted with Li. "What are we going to do about him ? " Li blushed crimson and demurred. Lian-xiang laughed and said, "I'm afraid that if he gets strong and healthy again, you'll be so j ealous you'll be eating sour grapes . " Li straightened her sleeves in a demure attitude: " If there were some doctor of national standing who could undo my betrayal of our friend, then I would bury my head in the earth and never be so shameless as to show my face in the world again . " Lian-xiang then opened a pouch and took out some medicine. " I knew long ago it would reach this stage, so after leaving Sang I gathered these herbs on the Three Mountains of the immortals; and now that they have been cur ing for three months, the ingredients are at last ready. If he takes these, they will restore him to health, even if the malignancy has brought him to the edge of death. Nevertheless, the medicine must be helped along by the very same means by which he contracted the disease. That means that it is you who must do your best to save him . " Li asked, "What is require d ? " Lian xiang answered, "A drop of spit from your mouth. I will put in the pill, and then you put your mouth on his and spit into it. " A glow of embarrassment rose on Li's cheeks; she lowered her head and fidgeted, looking at the slip per. Then Lian-xiang teased her, "I guess the slipper is the only thing that satisfies you. " At this Li became even more ashamed and seemed as though she couldn't endure it. Lian-xiang then said, "This is an ordinary remedy for fevers-why are you holding back in this case ? " Then she put the pill between Sang's lips and put increasing pressure on Li. Li had no choice but to spit on it. Lian-xiang said, " Again ! " And she spit on it again. After spit ting on it a few more times, the pill finally went down his throat. After a short while, there was a rumbling in his belly like the sound of thunder. She gave him another pill and this time touched her own lips to his and dissolved it with her breath. Sang felt a fire in his abdomen, and his vitality flared forth. Lian-xiang said, "He's better ! " 1 108
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When Li heard the rooster crow, she grew anxious and departed. Since Sang was still an invalid, Lian-xiang had to stay and nurse him, since he had no way to get his own meals. She locked up the door to give the false im pression that he had gone back to his home region so that no one would come to visit him. She kept by his side day and night, and every evening Li too would come and give her wholehearted help. She treated Xiang-lian like a sister, and Xiang-lian too came to feel a deep affection for her. After three months, Sang was as healthy as ever. After that Li would stay away for several evenings at a time, and when she did come, she would take a quick look and leave. When she faced them, she seemed troubled and un happy. Lian-xiang would always try to get her to spend the night with them, but she was never willing. Once Sang went after her and picked her up to bring her back; her body was as light as one of the straw dolls used in buri als. When she found that she couldn't get away, she lay down in her clothes and curled her body into a ball that wasn't even two feet wide. Lian-xiang increasingly felt sorry for her and secretly had Sang put his arms around her and try to be intimate with her, but he couldn't wake her up even by shak ing her. Sang fell off to sleep; and when he woke up and looked for her, she was long gone. For more than ten days after that, she didn't come again. She was very much on Sang's mind, and he would often take out the slipper and fondle it together with Lian-xiang. Lian-xiang said, " It's so lonely now. I still care for her, and as a man you must feel it even more . " Then Sang said, " It used to be that she would come whenever I fondled the slipper; I did always won der about that, but I never suspected she was a ghost. Now looking at this slipper and thinking of her face really makes me miserable. " Then he began to weep. The wealthy Zhang household had a fifteen-year-old daughter, Yan-er, who died suddenly without showing any signs of sickness. After a night had passed, she returned to consciousness. She got up, looked around, and started to run away. The Zhangs barred the door, and she couldn't get out. At this the young woman said, " I'm the spirit of the daughter of Assistant Li. I have been deeply touched by the kind attentions of Mr. Sang, and there's a piece of footwear of mine tha t still remains at his house. I really am a ghost, so it's not going to do any good to lock me up. " Since there was a certain coherence in what she was saying, they questioned her about how she came to her present state. But she simply looked around in bewilderment, con fused and unable to explain herself. Someone said that Mr. Sang was sick and had gone back to his native region, but the young woman insisted that this was erroneous. The people in the household were quite perplexed. Sang's neighbor to the east heard about this, so he climbed over the wall to peek in Sang's house; there he saw Sang talking together with a beautiful woman. He burst in to catch them by surprise, but in a moment of confusion he lost track of her. Alarmed, the neighbor asked Sang for an explanation; and Sang laughed. "As I said to you quite clearly before, if it was a female I'd invite her in. " 1 109
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Then Sang's neighbor told him what Yan-er had said. Sang unlocked the door and wanted to go find out what was going on, but there was no way he could. When Mrs. Zhang heard that Sang had not, after all, gone back to his native place, she thought the whole matter was even stranger. She sent an old serving woman to get the slipper, which Sang produced and handed over to her. Yan-er was delighted when she got it; but when she tried to put it on, it was smaller than her foot by a full inch, and she was greatly alarmed. When she then took a mirror to look at herself, she was in a daze, suddenly realizing that she had come to life in this other body. At she explained the full course of events, and at last her mother believed her. When the young woman looked at her face in the mirror, she wept loudly, saying, "I had some self-confidence in my looks back then, yet whenever 1 saw Lian-xiang, 1 still felt embarrassment by comparison. But as it is now, I'm even less attractive as a human being than as a ghost. " She would j ust hold the slipper and wail inconsolably. She covered herself up with a quilt and lay stiff. They would try to feed her, but she wouldn't eat, and her flesh and skin became all swollen. For a full seven days she didn't eat; but she did not die and the swelling gradually subsided. At that point, she felt so hungry she couldn't bear it and began to eat again. After several days itching covered her whole body, and the skin all fell away. When she got up in the morning, her bed slippers fell from her feet, and when she went to put them on again, they were too large and didn't fit. Then she tried on her old slipper, and now it fit perfectly. She was delighted. Then she looked at herself in the mirror again and found that her brows, her eyes, her cheeks, and chin were all j ust as they had been originally-and at this she was even more delighted . She then bathed, combed her hair, and went to see her mother, and all who saw her were pleased. When Lian-xiang heard about this marvel, she urged Sang to send a matchmaker with an offer of marriage; but because of the discrepancy in the fortunes of the two households, Sang didn't dare proceed with rash haste. On the old lady's birthday, he went along with her sons-in-law to congrat ulate her. The old lady saw his name and had Yan-er look through the cur tain to see if she recognized him. Sang was the last to arrive, and the young woman burst out, grabbed his sleeve, and wanted to go home with him. Only after her mother scolded her did she grow embarrassed and go back in. Sang had gotten a clear look at her, and without knowing it, tears began to fall from his eyes. At this, he prostrated himself on the floor in front of the old lady and didn't get up. She in turn helped him up and didn't take it as bad manners . As Sang left, he asked one of the young woman's uncles to repre sent him in negotiations for the marriage. The old woman deliberated and chose a lucky day for to take him as her son-in-law. When Sang went back, he told Lian-xiang about this, and they discussed how to handle matters; but then Lian-xiang grew depressed for a long time and finally wanted to take her leave of him. Sang grew quite alarmed and wept. Then Lian-xiang said, "You are going to be married with all the 1110
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proper ceremonies, and if I go along with you, I'll lose all respect. " Sang planned with Lian-xiang to first take her back to her own home, and then to go get Yan-er and bring her back as his bride. Lian-xiang agreed. Sang then explained the situation to Mrs . Zhang, who , on hearing that he had a concubine, became furious and reproached him bitterly. But Yan-er did her best to explain matters, and Mrs. Zhang did as she asked. When the day came, Sang went to get his bride and bring her home. The furnishings of his house had been extremely messy and ill kept; but when he got back, there were woolen rugs laid down on the ground from the gate into the main hall, and thousands of lahterns in sparkling rows like brocade. Lian-xiang helped the new bride under the green wedding awning, and when the bridal veil was lifted, they were as happy to see one another as ever. Lian-xiang joined them in the ritual exchange of winecups and ques tioned Yan-er in detail on the marvel of her recent spirit wandering. Yan-er then said, "That day, I was depressed and upset. I j ust felt that I was no longer human and that my b ody had become something unclean. After I left you, I was so distraught that I didn't go back to my grave but let myself drift along with the wind . Whenever I saw a living person, I felt envious of them. In the daytime I stayed among the plants and trees, and by night I let my feet drift along. Then I happened to come to the Zhang household and saw a young girl lying on a bed. I approached her and then came right up next to her, not knowing that I could come to life . " When Lian-xiang heard this, she remained quiet, a s i f something were on her mind. Several months later, Lian-xiang gave birth to a child. After the delivery she became gravely ill, and her condition steadily deteriorated . She clutched Yan-er's arm and said, " If I can burden you with my bastard, let my son be your son . " Yan-er wept and reassured her. They called in a shaman doctor, but Lian-xiang immediately sent him away. As she lay on her deathbed, her breath grew ragged, while Sang and Yan-er were both weeping. Suddenly she opened her eyes and said, " D on't be like that. You find j oy in life; I find j oy in death. If destiny permits, ten years from now we may get to meet again. " After uttering these words, she was gone. When they drew back the covers to gather her up, the corpse had changed into a fox. Sang couldn't bear to treat her as something unhuman and gave her a lav ish funeral. They named her son Ki t, and Y an -er treated him if he were her own issue. Every year at the Qing-ming Festival she would take Kit in her arms and go weep at Lian-xiang's tom b. After several years Sang won a provincial de gree from his native region, and the household gradually became more af fluent. Yan-er had unfortunately not had a child of her own, and while Kit was very clever, he was frail and sickly. Yan-er always wanted Sang to take a concubine. One day a servant announced, " There's an old lady outside the gate with a girl she wants to sell . " Yan-er called out to have them brought in. When she saw her, she said amazed, " Lian-xiang has reappeared! " When Sang looked at her and saw that she did indeed resemble Lian-xiang, he too was shocked. They asked how old she was, and woman answered that she 1111
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was fourteen. " How much do you want for her ? " And the old woman said, "This little piece of flesh is all I have. It's enough for me that I find a place, that I am able to get enough eat and that in the future my oid bones not j ust be thrown in some ditch. " Sang paid her well and let her stay. Yan-er took the girl by the hand and took her into a room where they could be private; then she pinched the girl's chin and said with a laugh, "Do you recognize me ? " The girl replied that she did not, and Yan-er questioned her about her background. The girl said, "My name is Wei, and my father was a bean-paste merchant in Xu-cheng. He's been dead three years . " When Yan-er thought about it and counted, Lian-xiang had been dead for exactly fourteen years. She looked the girl over carefully again, and all her features and the way she moved bore an uncanny resemblance. Then she patted the girl on the top of the head, shouting, "Lian xiang! Lian-xiang! Don't fool us in your promise to see us again in ten years ! " All of a sudden the young girl seemed as if waking from a dream and said, "Huh ? " Then she looked Yan-er over carefully. Sang laughed and said, " It's like that line of verse: As if they were old acquaintances, the swallows come back again. " Tears streaming down her face, the girl said, " It's true ! I heard my mother say that when I was born, I could already speak. They thought it was un lucky, so they gave me dog's blood to drink in order to forget my previous existence. Today it's like j ust waking up from a dream. Aren't you my friend Li, who was ashamed to be a ghost ? " Then they all talked about their ear lier lives together, with grief and j oy mingling. One day on the festival for visiting the graves, Yan-er said, " This is the day that Sang and I go to weep at your tomb every year. " Then the girl j oined them on the visit to the tomb; the wild grasses were growing everywhere, while the trees planted by the tomb had already reached a double handspan in girth. The girl too sighed, and Yan-er said to Sang, " Lian-xiang and I have been close to one another in two lifetimes now, and we can't bear to be apart. Our bones should be buried in the same grave . " Sang did as she asked; he opened Li's tomb to get her remains, then took them back to bury with Lian xiang's. Friends and relatives heard about this marvel and stood by the graveside in formal attire. Unexpectedly there were hundreds gathered there. In 1670, I visited Yi-zhou during my travels south; unable to go on because of a storm, I stopped at an inn there. A certain Liu Zi-jing was there, a relative of Sang' s, and he showed me a work entitled " Mr. Sang's Story" by Wang Zi zhang, a member of his set. This was a long work of more than ten thousand characters. I finished reading it, and the above is an abbreviated version. Here follows the judgment of the Chronicler of Wonders: A dead per son sought to live, and a living person sought to die. Is not a human body the hardest thing to attain in this world? Yet it seems to happen that those 1 1 12
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who have such a human body always use it in such a way that they come to shamefulness that makes them in life inferior to the fox, and in simply van ishing away their death is inferior to the ghost.
Xiao-cui Wang, the Grand Chamberlain of Ceremonials, was a native of Yue. When he was still a boy, he was napping, when all of a sudden the sky grew dark and there was a mighty clap of thunder. An animal larger than a cat came and hid under his body, squirming and refusing to go. After a while the sky cleared up, and the animal immediately went straight out. When Wa.ng looked closely and saw that it was not a cat, he grew frightened and called to his big brother in the other room. His brother heard him and said cheer fully, "Well, brother, you're going to reach a very exalted position-this was a fox that came to you to escape being destroyed by thunder and lightning. " Afterward the young man did indeed pass the metropolitan examination at a young age, and he rose from the post of county magistrate to become a Censor. He had one son whose name was Yuan-feng, a simpleton who at the age of sixteen didn't know the difference between male and female. As a result, no one of his own class was willing to marry their daughters to him. Wang was worried about him. It happened that a woman brought a girl to his gate and requested that she be made Yuan-feng's wife. When Wang looked the girl over, she smiled in the most fetching manner-she was a beauty of the highest order. De lighted, he asked the name, and the woman said, " Our family is named Yu, and my daughter is Xiao-cui. She's sixteen. " He then discussed the question of price with her, and she said, "With me she has eaten rough fare and has never been able to eat her fill. Now in a single day she will find herself liv ing in spacious apartments, waited on by servants, and having all the meat and fine rice she can eat. If she is content, then my own wishes are satisfied. I'm not going to haggle over a price for her as if I were selling vegetables ! " Wang's wife was very pleased and rewarded the woman generously . Then the woman bade her daughter bow to Wang and his wife and instructed her: "These are to be your parents. You should serve them conscientiously. I'm very busy and am going away for a while. I'll be back in a few days . " Wang ordered his servant t o hitch u p the carriage t o s e e h e r home, b u t the woman said, "I don't live far from here, and I don't want to be a bother. " Then she went out the gate. Xiao-cui didn't seem to miss her at all, but at once went to the dressing table and began to play around with various ways of making herself up. Wang's wife doted on her. After several days, the mother did not return. They asked Xiao-cui where she lived, but she seemed befuddled and couldn't tell them the way. Conse quently they set up separate apartments, and had her formally married to Yuan-feng. When the relatives heard that the Wangs had picked up a poor girl as Yuan-feng's bride, they all made fun of them; but when they saw the girl, everyone was amazed, and the gossip quieted down. 1113
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Xiao-cui was also very clever and could see what pleased and angered her in-laws. For their part, Wang and his wife were fond of the girl far be yond an ordinary affection, and they were apprehensive lest she dislike their son for his simple-mindedn ess. But Xiao-cui was very good-natured, and did n't despise him for it at all. Instead she enjoyed having a good time; she sewed a piece of cloth into a round ball and then kicked it about for fun. Wearing leather shoes, she could kick it twenty or thirty paces, then inveigle Yuan feng to run after it and pick it up for her. Yuan-feng and the maids were al ways going one after another, running with sweat. One day Wang Senior happened to be passing by. With a thunk the ball came flying and hit him square in the face. Xiao-cui and the maids all made themselves scarce, but Yuan-feng continued to leap up and down as he ran to get it. Wang Senior was angry and threw a rock at him, whereupon the boy collapsed to the ground, crying. Wang Senior informed his wife about this, and she went to reprimand the girl. Xiao-cui lowered her head with a faint smile, while digging her hands into the bed. Once Mrs. Wang had left, she went back to her old pranks. Using powder and paint, she made up Yuan-feng's face to look like a ghost. When Mrs . Wang saw this, she grew furious and shouted insults at the girl. Xiao-cui j ust leaned against a table and fiddled with her sash, not frightened but also not saying anything. Mrs. Wang couldn't stand it any more and took a cane to her son. When Yuan feng started yelling, the girl's expression changed and she bent her knees to beg Mrs. Wang to show mercy. Mrs. Wang's rage abruptly left her; she let go of the cane and left. Smiling, Xiao-cui then pulled Yuan-feng into a room, where she brushed the dust off his clothes, wiped the tears from his eyes, rubbed the welts where he had been beaten, and fed him dates and chestnuts. Yuan-feng stopped crying and cheered up. Xiao-cui then shut the gate of the courtyard and again dressed Yuan-feng up, this time as the Overlord Xiang Yu and then as the Khan of the desert . ! She for her own part put on fine clothes, tied her waist tight, and did the swaying dance of Yu in the commander's tent.2 Then she would stick the tail feather of a pheasant in her piled hair, and strum the mandolin in a continuous flood of notes.3 They did this every day, laughing and making an uproar in the room. Since Wang Senior thought his son was a simpleton, he couldn't bring himself to scold his son's wife too harshly. When he heard a bit of what was going on, he seemed to dismiss the mat ter. On the same street about a dozen doors down there was another Mr. Wang, a Supervisory Censor, and the two Wangs couldn't stand one another. ' H ere and with the ghost m a ke-up, X i ao-c u i is p roba b l y i m itat i n g conventi o n a l theatr i c a l costu me. 'Th i s refers to the fam ous scene i n the Historical Records and in l ater theater in w h i c h X i ang Yu, the great com petitor of Liu Bang for the e m p i re after the fal l of the Qin, finds h i m self at l ast s u r rounded by H a n troops and h o l d s a s m a l l feast in w h i c h he l a ments h i s fate and b i d s farewe l l to h i s lady Yu. 3 H ere Y u a n-feng i s p l ay i n g t h e K h a n t o w h o m t h e H a n court l a d y W a n g Z h ao-j u n w a s married a g a i n st her w i l l . X i ao-c u i pl ays Wang Z h ao-j u n , lamenting her fate on the m a n d o l i n .
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The triennial review of officials for promotion had j ust taken place, and Cen sor Wang resented that our Mr. Wang had been given charge of the seal of the Investigator for the He-nan Circuit. Censor Wang was looking for a way to harm him. Wang Senior knew about his machinations and was very wor ried, having no way to protect himself. One evening when he retired early, Xiao-cui put on a cap and sash and dressed herself up as the Chief Minis ter. She cut threads of white silk to make herself a full beard and also dressed up two of the serving girls in blue gowns to act as her bodyguards. Then she secretly mounted herself astride one of the horses in the stable and went out, saying in play, "I am going to pay a call on Mr. Wang . " She galloped t o the gate o f Supervisory Censor Wang and struck her at tendants with her riding whip, declaring loudly, "I was going to pay a call on Investigator Wang ! Why should I bother to pay a call on Supervisory Cen· sor Wang ? " Then she turned the horse around and went back home. But when she had almost reached the gate, the gatekeeper mistakenly took her for the real thing and rushed in to inform Wang Senior. Wang Senior hur riedly got up to go out to welcome him. When he realized that this was a prank of his son's wife, he was furious and said to Mrs. Wang, " Others have chastised me for my shortcomings, but now this clown character from the women of my own household pays me a visit to announce them publicly. My downfall must not be far off! " Mrs. Wang grew angry, rushed into Xiao cui's room, and yelled at her. But Xiao-cui only smiled foolishly and didn't offer a word in her defense. Mrs. Wang would have whipped her, but she couldn't bring himself to; she would have put her out of the house, but then she would have had no home. Both husband and wife were so upset and an noyed that they couldn't go to sleep all night long. The Chief Minister at the time was a flamboyant figure; his behavior, his attire, and his entourage were little different from Xiao-cui's costume; and Supervisory Censor Wang also made the mistake of taking her for the real thing. He went to keep watch at Wang Senior's gate that night, and when the guest had not left by midnight, he suspected that the Chief Minister and Wang Senior were hatching some secret plot. The next day when he saw Wang Senior at dawn court, he asked him, "Did His Excellency go to your house last night? " Suspecting that the Supervisory Censor was making fun of him, Wang Senior hemmed and hawed in embarrassment and didn't re ally answer him. At this, Censor Wang's suspicions were confirmed even more strongly; he laid his plots against Wang Senior to rest and from that point on tried to get into Wang Senior's good graces. Wang Senior figured out what had been going through Censor Wang's mind and was privately delighted; yet he secretly directed his wife to urge Xiao-cui to mend her ways. Xiao-cui answered her with a smile. After another year the Chief Minister was dismissed from office, and it happened that a private letter sent to Wang Senior was mistakenly delivered to Supervisory Censor Wang. Censor Wang was delighted and first used good friends of Wang Senior to go borrow ten thousand cash. Wang Senior refused. Then the Censor himself went to Wang Senior's house. Wang Se1 1 15
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nior was looking for his official cap and gown but could find neither; the Censor waited for him for a long time and then became angry at Wang Se nior's cavalier treatment of him and was about to leave in a huff. Suddenly he saw Yuan-feng dressed in imperial dragon robes and a crown of j ade; there was a young woman pushing him out from behind the door. The Cen sor was quite shocked, but then he smiled and was nice to the lad. Making him take off the imperial robes and crown, the Censor took them and left. When Wang Senior came out hurriedly, his visitor was already long gone. When he heard what had happened, his face turned white, and weep ing loudly, he said, " This young woman is our nemesis. On this very day our entire family and all our relations will be executed. " And together with Mrs . Wang he took a stick and went off to find Xiao-cui. Xiao-cui already knew this and closed her door, bearing their curses and insults. Wang Se nior was furious and took an ax to her door. From within, Xiao-cui smiled and told him, "Don't work yourself up into such a rage, sir. As long as I am here, I will bear the rack and tongs and headsman's ax myself and I won't let any harm come to you, my in-laws. If you go on like this, do you want to kill me to shut me up ? " And then Wang Senior stopped. When Censor Wang got home, he wrote out a denunciation to the throne indicting Wang Senior for lese-majeste, using the imperial robes and crown for evidence. His Maj esty was surprised and examined the evidence: the " crown " was plaited from sorghum stalks, while the "robes " were a tattered piece of yellow bundling cloth. The Emperor was furious at such false charges. He also had Yuan-feng summoned to his presence; and when he saw from his manner that Yuan-feng was obviously simple-minded, he said with a laugh, "So this would be our Son of Heaven. " Then he had Censor Wang sent down to the Judiciary for trial. Censor Wang had also charged that there was a witch girl in Wang Senior's house. The j udiciary thor oughly questioned the family servants, and they all said that it was j ust a simple-minded boy and his touched wife who spent their days playing games. The neighbors also offered nothing to contradict this. The case was then closed and ex-Censor Wang was sent off to serve in the army in Yun-nan. From this point on, Wang Senior considered Xiao-cui something extra ordinary. And since her mother had not returned in such a long time, he con sidered that she might not be a human being. He sent his wife to question her, but Xiao-cui j ust laughed and said nothing. When she was pressed even harder, she covered her mouth and said, "Don't you realize that I'm the daughter of the Jade Emperor in Heaven ? " Soon afterward Wang was promoted to one 0 f the senior positions in the capital. He was over fifty and always felt troubled at not having any grandchildren. Xiao-cui had lived with them three years, and every night she slept apart from Yuan-feng, so it seemed that they had never had intimate relations. Mrs. Wang moved the bed and directed Yuan-feng to sleep to gether with his wife. After several days, Yuan-feng came and told his mother, " Take my bed away-I absolutely won't come back. Every night Xiao-cui puts her feet and thighs on my belly, and I can hardly breathe. She's also got 1 1 16
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the habit of poking around a person's thighs. " Every one of the maids was smirking. Mrs . Wang shouted at them, whacked them, and made them leave. One day Xiao-cui was bathing in her chamber. Yuan-feng saw her and wanted to j oin her. Xiao-cui laughed and stopped him, ordering him to wait a while. When she got out, she poured more scalding hot water into the tub, took off his robe and pants, and then with a maid helped him to get in. Yuan feng felt like he was suffocating from the steam and shouted that he wanted to get out. Xiao-cui wouldn't listen to him and covered him over with a blan ket. After a while he ceased to make any more sounds, and when they opened it to look, he had expired. Xiao-cui smiled contentedly and was not alarmed. She dragged him out and lay him on the bed. She wiped his body until it was dry and clean, and then put a double quilt over him. Mrs . Wang had heard about this and came into the room weeping: " You crazy girl ! Why did you kill my son ? " Xiao-cui beamed her most charming smile and said, "With a son a s sim ple-minded as this, you're better off with none at all . " Mrs . Wang grew even more enraged and charged Xiao-cui with her head lowered. All the maids tried to pull her back and calm her down. Amid all this commotion, one maid declared, "Yuan-feng j ust groaned! " When Mrs. Wang stopped weeping and felt him, she found he was breathing, and a great sweat was pouring from his body, soaking the mat and bedding. After a little while longer the sweat stopped, and he suddenly opened his eyes and looked all around, scrutiniz ing each member of the household as if he didn't recognize them. Then he said, "When I think back on the past, it all seems like a dream-why is that? " Since his speech no longer seemed simple-minded, Mrs . Wang was amazed. She took him by the hand to go consult with his father, and on being ques tioned repeatedly, he was in fact no longer simple-minded. They were de lighted as if they had j ust obtained a rare treasure. When evening came, they moved his bed back to where it had been, and again made it up with covers and a blanket to watch what he would do. When Yuan-feng entered the room, he sent all the maidservants away. When they looked in the next morning, the bed had not been slept in. From that point on there was no more simple-mindedness on his part or craziness on her part; all was rosy between husband and wife, and the two were insepa rable. After more than a year, Wang Senior was impeached by the faction of Censor Wang and dismissed from office for a minor offense. The famil y had a j ade vase long ago presented to them by the Vice-Censor of Guang-xi, its value a thousand pieces of cash. They had taken it out to offer as a bribe to a powerful official. Xiao-cui liked it and was holding it when it slipped from her hands and shattered. She was so ashamed that she threw herself down. Wang Senior and his wife, being on edge because of his dismissal from of fice, flew into a rage when they heard about it. In turn they yelled at her and cursed her. Then Xiao-cui roused herself and went out, saying to Yuan-feng, "During the time I've been in your family, the things I've protected and pre1 1 17
Anthology of Chinese Literature
served have not been limited to j ust a single vase, so why am I not left with some respect! I'll tell you the truth: I am not a human being. When my mother was going to be struck by lightning, she was very generously pro tected by your father. Moreover, you and I have a predestined span of five years together, so she brought me to repay that kindness he once did and to fulfill an abiding wish. I have been spat upon, I have borne curses, and more hairs have been pulled from my head than I can count. The reason I didn't go off immediately was because our five years together were not up. But now, how can I stay here one moment longer ! " With that she went off in a tem per, and by the time he went after her, she was long gone. Wang Senior was despondent and felt lost, but his regrets did no good. When Yuan-feng entered her chamber and cast eyes on the powders and slip pers she had left behind, he broke into tears and wanted to die. He was un willing to eat or sleep and every day grew more wasted and emaciated. Wang Senior was quite worried and quickly set about to arrange a second mar riage to console him, but Yuan-feng was not pleased with the idea. He only sought out a skilled painter to portray Xiao-cui's likeness, and day and night for almost two years he would pour libations and pray before it. It happened once that for one reason or another he was coming back from another village as the bright moon was already casting its glow. Out side the village there was a garden of a gentry household, and as Yuan-feng rode his horse past outside the wall, he heard someone laughing and talk ing. He pulled up on the reins and had his groom hold the bridle. When he stood on the saddle and looked over, there were two girls playing on the other side. Clouds were passing ·over the moon and it was so dusky he couldn't make them out clearly. He heard one who was wearing azure clothes say, " You should be kicked out of here ! " Then one wearing red clothes said, " You're in my garden. Who's going to get kicked out ? " Then the one in azure replied, " You're shameless. You couldn't be a wife and got yourself driven away, and you still presume to claim this as your property ? " The one wearing red said, "Well, it's better than being a n old maid without ever having been betrothed. " When Yuan-feng listened to the sound of her voice, it sounded very much like Xiao-cui's, and he quickly called to her. The one in azure went off, saying, " I'm not going to quarrel with you any more. Your young man has come . " Then the one in red came over, and it was indeed Xiao-cui. He was beside himself with delight. She had him climb over the wall and helped him down, saying, "I haven't seen you for years. You're all skin and bones ! " Yuan-feng took hold o f her hands and wept, telling her everything and how much he had missed her. Xiao-cui said, "I knew it, but I couldn't bring my self to face your family again. Now as I was playing with my big sister in the garden, we've met again unexpectedly-this shows that what is predes tined can't be a voided. " He asked her to come home with him, but she refused. Then he asked to stay in her garden, and to this she agreed. Yuan-feng sent a servant to hurry off and tell his mother. His mother got up in surprise and went off in a sedan 1118
The Qing Dynasty
chair. The lock was opened, and she came into the pavilion in the garden. Xiao-cui immediately rushed over to welcome her politely. Mrs . Wang clutched her arm and shed tears, earnestly declaring her previous faults, and virtually overwhelmed, she said, " If you are willing to overlook those painful memories, come home with me and comfort me in my oId age . " But Xiao-cui adamantly refused. Mrs. Wang was then concerned that this pavilion out in the wilds was too solitary and dreary, and she made plans to have many peo ple work there. But Xiao-cui said, "We don't want to have anyone else around but the two serving girls who formerly were with us day and night, for we can't entirely do without someone to take care of us; beyond that, I would have only an old servant to act as the gatekeeper. We don't need any others at all . " Mrs. Wang agreed to everything she said. She left Yuan-feng to con valesce in the garden, providing him only his food and other daily needs. Xiao cui urged Yuan-feng to marry again, but he wouldn't go along with her. After more than a year, Xiao-cui's features and her v oice gradually be came different from what they had been previously. When Yuan-feng took out her portrait and compared it with her present state, they were as far apart as two different people. He thought this very strange. Xiao-cui said, "When you look at me today, how can my beauty compare to what it used to be ? " Yuan-feng said, "You're beautiful as you are now, but not quite as much so as you used to be. " Xiao-cui said, "You mean, I've gotten old ! " Yuan-feng replied, "How could you get old so quickly, only in your early twenties ? " Xiao-cui laughed and burned the portrait, and when Yuan-feng tried to res cue it, it was already ashes . One day she said to Yuan-feng, " Before, when I lived at your house, your father said that I would die without bearing any children. Your parents are old, and I truly cannot bear a child; I'm afraid that this will ruin the succession of your family line . Please marry someone and set her up in your home. She could wait on your parents all the time and you could go back and forth between here and there-that would work out well in every way . " Yuan-feng agreed and sent the bride-price t o the home o f the Han-lin Compiler Zhong. When the blessed day drew near, Xiao-cui prepared clothes and slippers for the new bride and had them sent to her mother's home. And when the bride entered Wang's gate her speech, her appearance, and her movements were not the slightest bit different from those of Xiao-cui. Yuan feng thought this extremely strange. When he went to the pavilion in her garden, he didn't know where Xiao-cui was. He asked a servant girl, and she took out a red cloth kerchief, saying, " Madam has gone to her mother's home for a time, and she left this for you. " He unrolled the kerchief, and a ring was knotted to it, and in his heart he knew that she was not coming back. Then he took the serving girls and went home with them. Even though he never forgot Xiao-cui for a moment, Yuan-feng was for tunate that every time he looked at his new bride, it was like seeing his old love. Then he realized that Xiao-cui had foreseen his marriage to Miss Zhong and had first changed her own appearance in order to comfort him when he would miss her in days to come. 1119
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Here follows the judgment of the Chronicler of Wonders: A fox still thought to repay a kindness done, even one done through unconscious virtue. Were they not contemptible who, having received the blessing of a second lease on life, yet were still aghast at a broken pot? As the moon wanes and is full again, so in the mortal world division came to fullness and re union. And then, at her ease she departed. Now we can see that the loves of immortals are deeper still than those in the common world.
Blue Maid Huo Huan, also known as Huo Kuang-j iu, was a native of Jin. His father, a county sheriff, had died before his time, leaving Huo Huan at a very ten der age. Huo Huan was an exceptionally clever boy, and at the age of eleven he was enrolled among students for a civil service position as a " gifted lad. " 4 B u t h i s mother, who doted on him t o excess, forbade him t o leave the fam ily compound, and by the age of thirteen he still couldn't tell all his uncles and cousins apart. In the same ward of the city there was a review j udge, a Mr. Wu, who became a devotee of the Way and went off into the mountains, never to re turn. He had a daughter, Blue Maid, fourteen years of age and beautiful be yond the common measure. When younger, she had surreptitiously read her father's books and come to idolize the Maiden Goddess He. When her fa ther disappeared, she made up her mind not to marry, and her mother could do nothing about it. One day Huo Huan caught a glimpse of her outside the gate. Although the boy knew nothing about such things, he felt an intense love for her, but he couldn't explain it in words . He straightway told his mother to send some one to arrange an engagement. His mother knew that it would not be possi ble and raised obj ections. Huo Huan grew depressed and dissatisfied; and his mother, fearing to thwart her son's will, engaged a go-between to convey the proposal to the Wu family. As expected, they did not agree. Huo Huan was constantly brooding and trying to devise schemes, but he could see no way. It happened once that a Daoist came to their gate, carrying in his hand a small hand-spade about a foot in length. Huo Huan took it to look it over and asked, "What's it used for ? " The Daoist answered, " It's a tool for dig ging out herbs. Although it's small, it can penetrate hard stone . " Huo Huan didn't really believe him, so the Daoist immediately cut into the stone of the garden wall, which, at every motion of his hand, fell away as if it were de composed. Huo Huan was amazed; he kept on examining it and didn't put it down. The Daoist then laughed and said, " Since you like it so much, let me give it to you as a gift. " Huo Huan was delighted and tried to give him money for it, but the Daoist refused to accept it and left. When Huo Huan took it back and tried it on a range of rock and brick, 4 " G i fted lad" was the term u sed for those who passed the prel i m i n a ry q u a l i fy i n g exam i n ation at a you n g age.
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The Qing Dynasty
there was hardly any resistance. All of a sudden it came to his mind that if he made a hole in the wall, he could see that beautiful girl, not realizing that it was wrongful behavior. After the bell of the watch had rung, he cut his way right through the wall and went directly to the Wu mansion. There, after digging holes through several more layers of walls, he reached the inner courtyard. He saw a lamp fire still burning in a small chamber; and when he hid himself and spied in, it was Blue Maid taking off her evening attire. In a little while, the candle went out and all was silent. When he made a hole in the next wall and went inside, the girl was already sound asleep . Then he took offhis shoes and quietly got on her bed. He was afraid that if she woke, startled, he would be yelled at and forced to leave; so he nestled down by the side of her embroidered gown, smelling her sweet breath, and his heart's desire was secretly satisfied. After his endeavors through half the night, he was utterly exhausted; and closing his eyes j ust a little, he went off to sleep without realizing it. The girl woke up and heard the sound of breathing. Then she opened her eyes and saw light coming in through the hole. Terrified, she hurriedly got up and in the darkness unbolted the door and got out of the room. Then she knocked on the windows and called to the women of the household, who lit lanterns, grabbed canes, and went to her room. When they got there they saw a young adolescent, dressed as a student, sleeping oblivious on her em broidered bed. Examining him carefully, they recognized him as young Huo. Only after they prodded him did he wake up, and then he got up at once, his eyes sparkling like shooting stars . He didn't even seem to be very fright ened, j ust too embarrassed to say a word. Since everyone was treating him like a burglar, he was afraid they were going to yell at him. At that point, Huo began to cry and said, "I'm not a burglar-it was re ally only because I was in love with Blue Maid and wanted to be close to her sweetness . " But everyone then doubted that a child could have dug holes in several walls. At this, Huo Huan took out his spade and told them about its remarkable powers. They each put it to the test and were utterly astounded, exclaiming that it was a gift from the gods. They were all going to tell Mrs . Wu, but Blue Maid hung her head in brooding and seemed to think this would not be a good thing to do. The other women divined what was on her mind, so they said, " This boy is from an eminent and respectable household, and he hasn't violated your honor in the least. The best thing to do would be to let him loose and make him leave, then to have him once again seek a betrothal. In the morning we'll make up an excuse to your mother about a burglar. How would that be ? " Blue Maid didn't answer, and the women then hurried Huo Huan to get going. Huo Huan wanted his spade back, and they all laughed and said, "You foolish boy! You still can't forget this tool of ruin ! " Huo Huan spied a phoenix hairpin beside the pillow and furtively put it in his sleeve, but a maid saw him do it and instantly told everybody. Blue Maid said nothing, nor did she get angry. One old woman slapped him on the neck and said, "Don't think he's so innocent-he's extremely tricky" ; 1 121
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and she dragged him along to the hole he had dug, from which he then made his way out. When Huo Huan got home, he didn't dare tell his mother the truth. He simply urged her to send the matchmaker to the Wus again. But Huo Huan's mother couldn't bear an open rej ection and instructed all the matchmakers to arrange a marriage with someone else as quickly as possible. Blue Maid found out about this and her heart was in a panic. She secretly conveyed her innermost feelings to her mother. The mother was pleased and let the match maker know. It happened, however, that a young servant girl let out the se cret of what had gone on previously, and Mrs. Wu felt so humiliated that she couldn't contain her rage. When the matchmaker arrived, she met an even greater outburst of anger, as Mrs. Wu struck the ground with her cane and railed against Huo Huan and his mother as well . The matchmaker was frightened and snuck back, giving Mrs. Huo a full account of how things stood. Then Huo Huan's mother also flew into a rage, saying, "I was to tally ignorant of what that wicked boy did. Why should I bear the brunt of such rudeness! Why didn't they kill that wild boy and that wanton girl both while they were twining their legs together! " From that point on, whenever she met her relations she would immedi ately tell the whole story. When Blue Maid heard about this, she could have died from shame. And Mrs . Wu too greatly regretted the whole thing, but there was nothing she could do to stop Mrs . Huo from talking. Blue Maid secretly sent someone to tactfully approach Huo Huan's mother, swearing to her that she would not marry anyone else. Her words were very moving; and Mrs . Huo, touched by them, spoke of it no further. And negotiations to arrange another marriage for Huo Huan were subsequently halted. It happened that a Mr. Ou-yang of Shensi was magistrate of the town, and when he saw Huo Huan's writing, he developed a high opinion of his capacities. Sometimes he had Huo summoned to the county office, where he treated him with the greatest kindness and generosity. One day he asked Huo Huan, " Are you married ? " To which Huo Huan replied that he was not yet. When Ou-yang questioned him in some detail, Huo Huan re sponded, " Long ago I became pledged to the young daughter of the former review j udge Mr. Wu, but later, because of a minor feud, the matter has been left hanging . " Ou-yang asked him, "Do you still want to go through with it or not ? " At this Huo Huan grew embarrassed and said nothing . Ou-yang laughed and said, " I'll get it done for you . " At once he sent the sheriff and the local schoolteacher with the proper bride gifts to the Wus. Mrs . Wu was delighted, and the betrothal was settled. When the year of engagement passed, Huo Huan brought Blue Maid home as his bride. As soon as Blue Maid entered the gate, she threw the spade on the ground, saying, " This is a thing for burglars. Get rid of it. " But Huo Huan laughed. " D on't snub our go-between ! " Then he hung it as a treasure from his sash, and it never left his person. Blue Maid was of a gentle, kindly, yet reticent disposition. Every day she would pa y her respects to her mother in-law three times, but for the remainder of the day she would j ust close her 1 1 22
The Qing Dynasty
door and sit quietly, not concerning herself very much with household du ties. Yet if Huo's mother were gone elsewhere to offer condolences or con gratulations, the management of household affairs was always in good order. After more than a year, she gave birth to a son, Meng-xian. She left every thing to the charge of a wet nurse and seemed not to be particularly con cerned for the child. After another five years, she abruptly said to Hua Huan, "By now the course of our love has lasted eight years. O ur time left together is short and the separation will be long. Nothing can be done about it! " Huo Huan was startled and asked her to explain, but she kept silent, and in full attire went to pay her respects to her mother-in-law, then returned to her own room. When he went after Blue Maid to question her, she was lying on her bed, face up, and not breathing. Both mother and son mourned for her deeply. They purchased a fine coffin for her and had her buried. Huo's mother was already frail and aging. Whenever s h e took the child in her arms, she would think of his mother, and it was as if her heart would break. After this she grew sick and became so exhausted that she could not get up. She felt a revulsion against taking any nourishment. The only thing she wanted was a certain fish dish that could not be obtained anywhere close by, but could be purchased only at a place a hundred miles away. At the time the hired couriers had all been sent on various errands; and Huo, who was genuinely devoted to his mother, was in a hurry and could n't wait. Taking money for his expenses, he set off by himself, and didn't stop traveling day and night. But then he found himself in the mountains, with the sunlight already sinking to darkness; he was hobbling on both feet and couldn't go an inch further. An old man came up behind him and said, " You must have gotten blisters on your feet. " Huo Huan answered that he had. Then the old man led him over to sit by the side of the road and struck some flint to make a fire. Using some herbs he had in a paper packet, he steamed both of Huo Huan's feet. When Huo tried to walk again, not only had the pain stopped but he also felt stronger and more energetic. D eeply touched, Huo Huan expressed his gratitude, and the old man asked, "Why are you in such a hurry ? " Huo explained that his mother was sick, and from there proceeded to tell the events that led up to it. The old man then asked, "Why don't you marry someone else? " Huo Huan answered that he had not found a good-looking woman. The old man then pointed to a mountain vil lage in the distance and said, " There's a good-looking woman there. If only you could go off with me there, I would arrange something for you . " But Huo declined on the grounds that his mother was sick and required a cer tain fish. At this the old man folded his hands and said that if he should come to the village someday, he should j ust ask for Old Wang. Then he went his way. When Huo got home, he cooked the fish and offered it to his mother . Huo's mother improved somewhat, and in several days she quickly got bet ter. Huo Huan then had a servant and horse readied to go look for the old man. When he reached the spot he had been before, he could no longer tell 1 1 23
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where the village was . He wandered around for some time as the evening glow of the sun gradually sank away. The hills and valleys were very con fusing; unable to get a clear view to orient himself, Huo climbed a hilltop with his servant to look for a village. The mountain path was rough and steep, too difficult to continue to ride, so he went up on foot, engulfed in the darkening colors of mist. There he paced about, looking in all directions, but there was still no sign of a village. He started down the mountain but couldn't find the path back. Anxiety seemed to burn in his heart like a fire. As he sought some refuge in the wilderness, night's blackness descended the sheer cliff. Fortunately, several feet below him there was a swathe of wild moss; and when he lowered himself and lay on it, its width was just enough for his body. When he looked down, all was blackness and he couldn't see the bottom . Huo was terrified and didn't dare make the least movement. He was also fortunate that there were small trees growing all along the side of the slope that held his body back like a railing. After a while he noticed that near his feet there was a small cave open ing. Huo felt overj oyed, and keeping his back against the rock, he wriggled into it. There he felt safer and hoped to wait until daybreak to call for help. Shortly thereafter, there was a beam of light like a star in the deeper part of the cave. He started to go toward it, and after a couple of miles he suddenly caught sight of a cottage with a porch; there were no lamps or candles, yet the light there was bright as day. A beautiful woman came out from a room; he looked at her carefully, and it was Blue Maid. When she saw Huo, she was startled. " How could you get in here ? " Without taking the time to ex plain, Huo took her hands and sobbed pitiably. Blue Maid tried to comfort him. When she asked about his mother and their son, Huo gave an account of all their troubles, and Blue Maid also grew melancholy . Then Huo said, "Y ou've been dead for more than a year now-this must be the under world. " Blue Maid replied, " No, this is a precinct of the immortals. I did n't die back then, and what you buried was only a bamboo cane. Since you have come here, you have the destiny to become an immortal . " Thereupon she took him in to pay his respects to her father, a man with a long beard seated at the head of the hall. Huo hastened to bow to him, and Blue Maid said, " Mr. Huo has come . " The old man rose in surprise, took his hand, and politely asked after him. Then he said, "It's a wonder ful thing that you've come here-it's your fate to stay here . " But Huo po litely declined, saying that he could not stay long because of his mother. The old man said, "I understand that, but there won't be any harm if you linger on here a few days . " Then they fed him fine foods and wine, and in the west hall they had a serving girl set up a bed, which she covered with brocade bedding. As Huo was withdrawing for the night, he tried to get Blue Maid to share the bed with him. She refused him, saying, "This is not the sort of place to permit such improper intimacies. " But Huo clutched her arm and wouldn't let her go. Outside the window could be heard the derisive laughter of the serving girl, and Blue Maid became even more embarrassed. As they were 1 124
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struggling, the old man came in and screamed at Huo, " Be gone at once ! Your commonness defiles my cave ! " Huo had always been obstinate, and unable to endure the embarrassment, he colored and said, "The feelings that occur between and man and a woman can't be helped-why must you spy on me ? I don't mind getting out of here right now; j ust have your daughter go along with me. " The old man didn't object and ordered Blue Maid to go with him, open ing the back door to see them off. Once he had tricked Huo into going out the gate, the father shut the door and disappeared. When Huo looked around, there wasn't the slightest seam or crack in the sheer cliff tha t loomed before him. He was utterly alone and had no place to go. He looked up into the sky where the sinking moon was hanging on high and the stars had al ready grown sparse. He remained there in despair for quite some time, and then his grief turned to resentment. He faced the cliff and shouted, but there was no reply. His fury mounted; he took the spade from his waist and set to digging his way in through the rock, hacking away and cursing. In the twinkling of an eye he had burrowed in three or four feet, and he heard the muffled sound of someone saying, " D amn him ! " Huo then put all his strength into it and dug even more quickly. Suddenly the end of his cave opened wide into a dou ble door. He pushed Blue Maid out through the tunnel, saying, " Let's go, let's go! " At once the wall closed up again behind them. Then she said an grily, " Since you loved me as your wife, how can you treat my father like this ? What kind of old D aoist was it gave you that disastrous tool that can aggravate and persecute a person to death ! " Having found Blue Maid, Huo's mbod was somewhat calmer. He did n't argue any more but simply worried about the danger of the road and how hard it would be to get back. Blue Maid broke off two branches and had each of them put the branches between their legs. At once these trans formed into horses and in no time they arrived at his house. By that point, Huo had been missing for seven days . Huo had previously become separated from his servant. The servant looked for Huo but couldn't find him, then went back and informed Huo's mother. His mother sent people to search everywhere in the mountain val leys for him, but no trace was found. Huo's mother had been beside herself with worry, and when she heard that her son had returned, she went out overj oyed to welcome him back. When she looked up and saw Blue Maid, she almost collapsed from the shock. Huo told her the general story, and his mother became calmer and more cheerful. Because of the bizarre nature of what had happened to her, Blue Maid was worried about provoking gen eral gossip and wanted to have the family move at once. Huo's mother agreed with her. They had an estate in another district, and after a fixed period they set off to go there, and no one knew anything about it. They lived together there for eighteen years . Blue Maid had a daughter who married into the Li family of the same town. Afterward, Huo's mother passed away at a ripe old age. Blue Maid told Huo, " In the field of tall grasses 1 1 25
Anthology of Chinese Literature
of my home there is a pheasant nesting on eight eggs. That's where she should be buried. You and our son Meng-xian should take the coffin there and see to the funeral service. O ur son is already grown, and it is fitting that he should remain in the mourning hut by the grave. There's no need to have him return with you . " Huo did as she said, and came back alone after the funeral. After more than a month, Meng-xian went to visit them, and his father and mother were both long gone. He asked an old servant about them, and she said, " They went to a funeral and never came back . " He knew that a marvel had transpired, but all he could do was heave a great sigh. Meng-xian's reputation as a writer was much bruited about, but he had difficulties in the examination and in forty days he did not pass. Later, as part of the local quota of candidates, he participated in the Shun-tian ex amination, where he met a young man in the same dormitory as himself. This young man was seventeen or eighteen, a splendid and nonchalant young man with a certain spiritual manner. Meng-xian was quite drawn to him. When he looked at his paper, Meng-xian saw that he was Huo Zhong xi an, on stipend from Shun-tian district.s Shocked, he stared in disbelief and told his own name. Zhong-xian also thought it remarkable and asked where he was from and his relatives. Meng-xian told him in detail, at which Zhong-xian was delighted and said, "When I set off for the capital, my father advised me that among the examinees if I met someone named Huo from Shansi, he was of my family, and that I should welcome the acquaintance. Now it's happened. But how is it that our names are so similar ? " Meng-xian then questioned him about the names of his parents and grandparents, and when Zhong-xian finished, Meng-xian said in surprise, "But these my own father and mother ! " Zhong xian was still uncertain because of the disparity in age, but Meng-xian said, " My father and mother are both immortals-how can one j udge their age by their appearance ? " When he told the story of all that had transpired, Zhong-xian believed him. After the examination, they didn't take time off to rest but made travel preparations and returned to Zhong-xian's home together . As soon as they reached the gate, one of the family servants came out to welcome them and told them that the night before their father and mother had disappeared. Both men were very surprised. Zhong-xian went in and asked his wife to tell him about it. His wife said, " Last night we were drinking wine together, and your mother said to me, 'You and your husband are still young and in experienced. But tomorrow his elder brother will come, and I won't worry any more .' When I went into their rooms in the morning, they were de-
Sit i s common p ractice to vary the names of b rothers and s i sters in a set, d i stingu i s h i n g them by chang i n g one c h a racter of a two- character g i ven n a m e . Often , as in t h i s case, the variation i n d i cates the degree of s e n i o r i ty . Meng-x i a n i s thus the " S e n i o r I m morta l , " and Zhong-x i a n i s the " M i d d l e- B rother I m morta l . " For someone n a med H u o Meng-x i a n , who thought he was a n o n l y son, to meet some one named Huo Z h o n g-x i a n m i ght be startl i ng because t h i s wou l d be the proper name to give to his younger b rother.
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serted. " When the brothers heard this, they stamped their feet and were stricken with grief. Zhong-xian still wanted to go after them, but gave up when Meng-xian expressed the opinion that it would do no good. Zhong xian had passed the district examination. But since the family tombs were located in Jin, he went back there with his brother. They still hoped that their father and mother were still in the mortal world somewhere and asked for information about them wherever they went. But no trace of them was ever found. Here follows the j udgment of the Chronicler of Wonders: In making a hole in the wall and going to sleep on her bed, he showed naOivete in thought; in digging through the cliff and abusing the old man, he showed rash wild ness in action; the reason why the immortal brought the couple together was purely a desire to reward his devotion to his mother with a gift of eternal life . Nevertheless, having mingled with the mortal world and begotten chil dren, why couldn't they have stayed to the end ? What brought her to aban don her sons several times in thirty years ? Strange indeed !
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Q i n g C l ass i ca l Poetry a n d So n g Ly r ic
L i ke the E l iza beth a n per iod i n the E n g l i sh -spea k i n g wo r l d , the Tang Dyn asty h e l d fo r l ater readers a n a u ra of u n atta i n a b l e perfecti o n i n poetry, a n a g e when great poems seemed to come with ease, even to u n d i st i n g u i s h ed writers. The c l assical poetry and song lyric of the Qing Dyn asty was, in many ways, far richer than the Tang, but the gen i u s of Q i n g poetry h as been obscu red b y seve ral fac tors . F i rst, the i m mense vo l u m e of poetry written d u r i n g the dyn asty and the h uge col lecti o n s of i ts most p ro m i nent poets m a ke it d i ffi c u l t fo r i n d i v i d u a l poems to sta nd out and c l a i m the degree of attention they d eserve. Second, Qing poets d rew o n a great depth of l earn i n g and fam i l i a rity with earl ier poetry that they took for granted i n the i r aud ience. They cou l d n ot foresee an age w h e n the i r a l l u s i o n s wou l d req u i re l earned footnotes and the i r fine turns of p h rase wou l d go u nobserved by most readers. (Sti l l less cou l d they h ave i m agi ned bei n g tra n s l ated i nto a l a n g u age i n wh i c h a l l thei r l i t eratu re and c u ltu re was l a rge l y u n known . ) F i n a l l y, the c l assical l a n g u age they used h ad c h a nged m u c h s i nce the Tang, whose poems can often be tra n s l ated a l most l it eral l y, leav i n g the beauty of thei r i m ages sti l l apparent. The l iterary l a n g u age of the Q i n g was fi l l ed with set p h rases, often figu rative, that sound l u d i c ro u s l y artifi c i a l i n E n g l i s h . Fortu n ate l y, there are poems a n d poets that c a n b e u nderstood with a m i n i m u m of a n n otation, and these w i l l fo rm the greater part of o u r selection below. One of the most stri k i n g c h a racte r i stics of Q i n g c l as s i c a l poetry i s the degree to w h i c h it sp read through a l l leve l s of el ite soc i ety. The M i n g a n d Q i n g saw a d ra matic r i s e i n l iteracy, a n d by the Q i ng , the size of the read i n g and writ i n g p u b l i c w a s very l a rge i n absol ute n u m be rs, i f n ot a s a percentage o f t h e pop u l ation a s a w h o l e . Poetry i n c reas i n g l y became the means to parti c i p ate i n s u b g ro u p s with i n l i t e rate soc i ety. T h ere was an i nterest i n reg i o n a l and l oc a l trad itions as never befo re, with i m m e nse pr ide in earl ier poets asso ciated with a part i c u l a r locale. Women poets formed groups, exc h a n g i n g ve rses and defi n i ng a trad ition of women' s poetry in the i r p refaces. F am i l y trad i t i o n s were i m po rta nt, a n d fam i l ies often bore t h e cost o f p u b l i s h i n g works by th e i r mem bers. I n d eed, poetry became o n e of the m a n y means to establ i s h soc i a l p restige. T h e h i story of Q i n g poetry is of s u c h c o m p l ex i ty that it c a n n ot eas i l y be repre sented i n a s h ort sect i o n s u c h as t h i s . The fa l l of the M i n g a n d its aftermath was a p rofo u n d shock to the c u ltu re, and it i n s p i red some of the fi nest c l as s i c a l poetry s i nce the Tang. D u Fu, the " poet- h i sto r i a n , " was a powe rfu l mode l , and n u m erou s poems bear m o v i n g witness both to parti c u l a r i n c id ents in the Q i ng conquest and to the s p i rit of res i stance. As the dynasty conso l i d ated its ru l e l ate in the seventeenth cen tu ry, the M a n c h u ru l ers were u n dersta n d a b l y d i stu rbed by such poetry, a n d it was c e n s o red . M a n y rem arkable poets were l ost in obsc u r i ty a n d the i r works recovered a n d repu b l i s hed o n l y in the twe ntieth centu ry. 1 128
The Qing Dynasty The turbu lence of the conq uest was fo l l owed by a l o n g period of peace and pros perity, l asti n g from the l ate eighteenth i nto the early n i n eteenth century. With the Q i n g authorities ever v i g i l a nt aga i n st potenti a l s l i g hts, poets tended to avo i d pol iti cal top i c s . T h e o l d d i spu tes o f M i ng poet ics resu rfaced in n ew gu ises : a school o f F o rm a l i sts (ge-diao pai) rewo rked the old val ues of the A rc h a i sts i nto someth i n g l ess woode n ; the school of N atu ral Wit (xing-ling pai), represe nted in the p resent sel ec tion by Z h ao Yi ( 1 7 2 7-1 8 1 4 ) , carried o n the l ate M i n g i nterest in i m med i acy a n d gen u i n e express i o n ; and the s c h o o l of S p i r i t u a l Reso n a n ce (shen-yun pai), l ed by Wang S h i -z h e n ( 1 6 34-1 7 1 1 ), argued fo r the centra l i ty of e l u s i ve poet ic i ma ges that transcended both fo rm a n d self-exp ress i o n . A n d there were others, s u c h as the M a n c h u l y r i c i st Nara S i ngde ( 1 6 5 5-1 6 8 5 ) a n d the c l as s i c a l poet H u a n g J i n g- ren ( 1 749-1 7 8 3 ) , who belonged t o n o schoo l , d i scove r i n g the i r own d i sti n ctive poetic voi ces apart from conte m porary I iterary debates . A l t h o u g h there w a s n o s h o rtage o f poetic ta l e n t, the w e i g h t of the poet i c trad ition and the l i m itat i o n s it i m posed made themselves fe lt. Poets had been writi n g o n the same top i c s in the same poet i c l a n g u age fo r a m i l l e n n i u m , a n d w h i l e there w a s a degree o f i n novat i o n , i n a l a rge sense poetry had beco me a comfo rta b l y restri cted mode of expres sion in a world t h at had c h a n ged p rofo u n d l y s i nce the T an g . I n the pol itical and cu ltural c r i ses o f the n i netee nth a n d early twentieth centu ries, c l assical poetry was tested for its abi l ity to acco u n t for a wo r l d that was be i n g tra n s formed with violent sw iftness. Although it had some s u ccesses i n adapti n g to the changes in the cu ltu re, c l assical poetry treat ing "modern" themes often c a l l s attention t o the d i sparity between the modern rea l ity and the l a n g uage of poetic representation . When a l y r i c i st treated t h e Japanese Rape of N a nj i n g i n t h e 1 9 3 0 s i n the o l d poetic l angu age, the u n p recedented v i olence o f modern wa rfare w a s recast in the g u i se of a tragedy that had befa l len the c ity over and over aga i n for fiftee n h u n d red years. It is artifi c i a l to decl are the end of c l ass i c a l l iterat ure with the May F o u rth m ove ment of 1 9 1 9 , w h i c h advocated the exc l u s i ve use of vernac u l a r C h i nese and the re p l acement of trad itional l iterary gen res with the new g e nres from Japan and the West. Western i nfluence had been s l o w l y transfo rm i ng C h i n ese I iteratu re for m a n y decades p r i o r to 1 9 1 9 ; and although the you n g e l i te enth u s i asti ca l l y took up the vernac u l a r l iteratu re moveme nt, its goa l s were n o t fu l l y rea l i zed u nt i l its grad u a l i n stitution i n t h e school system c l oser t o t h e m i d d l e o f t h e twentieth century. There i s n o q u es tion t h at c l assical poetry and, to a l esser degree, l ite ra ry song l y r i c were weary fo rms, we i g hted down by th e i r h i story, a n d u n a b l e to m atc h the I i b e rty of the new ver nacu l a r poetry (xin-shi) i n s p i red by Western mode l s . N evert h e l ess, va l u a b l e c l as s i c a l poetry conti n u e d t o be written t h ro u g h the 1 9 30s, a n d the fo rm i s sti l l p racticed today, p r i m a r i l y by older s c h o l a r s .
G u Yan-wu ( 1 6 1 3-1 6 8 2 ) G u Yan-wu was one of the lead i ng s c h o l ars o f the early Q i n g : a n h i sto r i a n , c l as s i cal p h i l o l og i st, anti q u a r i a n , and poet. T h o u g h sti l l a re l atively you n g m a n a t the t i m e o f the c o n q u est, h e rem a i ned pass i o n ate l y l o y a l t o the M i n g . "Autu m n H i l l s " i s o n e of his earl i e r p o e m s , o n the Q i n g c o n q u est. 1 1 29
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Autumn Hills ( first of two ) Autumn hills, more autumn hills, and through those hills swell autumn rains. They fought by the river mouth yesterday, today they fight beside those hills . I've heard that our right flank crumbled, I now see the left's resistance fade. Our banners and pennons lie buried in earth, by walls dance ladders and battering rams. In but a morning, defeat at Chang-ping,! the corpses lie covering ridges and slopes. Three hundred barges set off for the north, an d on every barge are fair-faced girls. Camels crowd river ports of Wu, fifes playing, they enter the passes to Yan.2 Men of Yan and Ying of olden days are still found south of the city.3
Wu Wei -ye ( 1 609-1 6 7 1 ) Wu Wei-ye (or Wu M e i - c u n , as he is often known) was one of the two best-k n own poets of the period a ro u n d the Q i n g co n qu est. A member of the Resto rat i o n Soci ety, W u b e l o n ged t o the l ate M i n g soc i a l wor l d desc r i bed in t h e p l ay Peach Blos som
F an, and h i s poetry on the Q i n g co n qu est of the South and its aftermath is among
the f i n est work in a period whose h a rd s h i ps i n s p i red much memorab l e poetry. Re l uctantly persu aded to se rve in the Q i n g government b r i efly i n the 1 6 50s, Wu suf fered a deep sense of h a v i n g betrayed the M i ng, a n d he gave u p h i s post wi l l i n g l y o n t h e death o f h i s mother. The fo l l owi ng poem of 1 64 5 i s from a set in which Wu i s flee i n g w i th his fa m ily fro m the i nvad i n g Q i ng army. W u m oves back and forth fro m the peacefu l scene a ro u n d h i m to the c ru m b l i n g Southern M i n g state beyo n d h i s v i s i o n . " N ature's Moat" was a ken n i n g fo r the Yangzi R i ver, s u pposed to p rotect the South l a n d aga i n st i nvasion from the N o rth .
' C h ang-p i n g was the site of a famo u s battle in the Q i n u n ification when Q i n armies were s u pposed to h ave massacred fou r h u nd red thousand sold iers of the state of Zhao. 'Van, i n to whose passes the victorious Q i n g armies enter, represents the reg ion aro u n d Beij i n g . ' V a n and Y i n g were two of the great c i t i e s o f t h e a n c i e n t state of C h u . After t h e Q i n conqu est of those cities, C h u grandees, u n w i l l i n g to serve Q i n , settled south of the Qi capital at L i n-ze. Here, of cou rse, the a l l u s i o n expresses the determi ned res istance of southerners to the Q i n g co n q u est.
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Escaping the Fighting ( fifth of six) The moon came out, the village ahead turned white, on the creek its rays shone like washed silk. We lifted oars and drifted midstream, sang bravely to winds that broke up sound. Not that Nature's Moat could not hold, but constant depravities worked this grief. Woe to you who made plans for our state you have lost us half our rivers and hill s! The boatman prances, placing the punt, and our small boat runs swift as an arrow. Too bad that troops of the Yangzi and Huai, our " dread berserkers, " put up no fight. To this lone cabin sounds of an iron flute come, hearing its notes, my tears fall like sleet. What have I done in this life to live in such times of anguish and ruin? In bygone days I roamed all the land, I come at last to the Five Lakes' shores. Wearing hemp sandals and used to flight, on hard times fallen, a simple common man. Du F u ' s poems d u r i n g the An L u - s h a n Rebel l i o n p rovided a powerfu l model fo r poets writi n g on the Q i n g c o n quest of the M i ng . These cou l d be s i m p l e n a rratives of s m a l l i n c ide nts that revea led t h e l a rger c o n d i t i o n s o f t h e t i m e s . I n t h e fo l l ow i n g poe m , a rov i n g band of M i n g so l d i ers, h av i n g fled the advan c i ng Q i n g a r m i es, p l u nder a v i l l age where W u Wei -ye i s stay i n g . W u c a n n ot h e l p t h i n k o f the expenses l a v i s hed o n the army, w h i c h n ow seeks o n l y to get out of harm's way.
Escaping the Fighting ( last of six) Marauders came when I rose at dawn, a warship was moored by the market bridge. A disorderly band of a dozen or so came on shore to buy local beer. Their gear was not a civilian's, but swords and bows had been lost. 1131
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They bullied and beat an old shopkeeper, men of no account, with raging looks. And I wondered who their commander was, coming here from an urge to roam carefree. Our army used to press hard for taxes, its orders were strict, no leeway at all. They spoke ever of hardships for men on campaign unpitied, the plowman's grueling toil . The Southland now is defeated, desolation spreads a thousand miles. In this place only villagers dwell, there's no room for your banners and pennons. Go show the enemy your daring don't use it to frighten folk like us.
The re l at i o n between the d eta i l s of a poet' s experien ces a n d the poet i c past i s com p l icated in Q i n g poetry. Old poe m s echo in the backgro u n d of Q i n g poems, but th i s m a y be someth i n g m o re t h a n l iterary a l l u � i o n : fa m i l i a r o l d poems were p rob a b l y a p a rt of m a k i n g sense of expe r i e n c e i tself, and they p rov i d ed m o d e l s fo r re sponse. The fo l l owi n g poem, in wh i ch Wu Wei-ye l a m e nts the death of his i nfa nt daugh ter, i s n o l es s m ov i n g a n d n o l ess heartfe l t fo r b e i n g i n the sty l e of D u Fu. The poet's rea l fea r that h i s newborn d a u g hte r's c r i es wou l d reveal the fam i l y's h i d i n g p l ace a l so reca l l s Du Fu flee i n g the "death and destructi o n " of the A n Lu-shan Rebel l i o n with his fam i l y in a passage from "Song of Peng-ya . "
M y baby girl gnawed a t m e i n her hunger, and I feared wild beasts would hear her cries: I held her to my chest, covered her mouth, but she twisted and turned, crying louder in rage.
A Lament for My Daughter ( first of three) You were born amid death and destruction, the whole family lay hidden by roadside. I feared your cries, thought of leaving you there, we got away, and I loved you much more. Children caught in catastrophe's course. pike and shield harassed your brief years . 1 1 32
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State's rise and fall affects all the world, but when I think back, my distress is doubled. "West F i e l d s" i s a n idyl l i c poem on v i s i t i n g the estate of Wu's friend Wang Ya n- ke after the Q i n g conquest. B e h i n d t h i s a n d oth e r poe m s i n the set is a l o n g trad ition o f l y r i cs, from T a o Q i a n t o s u c h works as D u Fu's "Autu m n W i l d s" and S u Dong po's " E ast S l ope," about w i t h d raw i n g to farm i n g i n face of advers i ty .
West Fields ( first of four ) You dig and build, of world's troubles weary, in wilderness fields you find nature's way. Here north of the city you came by chance, beside the west creek studied Halting.4 Your greatness makes practice of privacy hard, region's remoteness stirs report by the crowd. Then I, all at once, come to visit you, oars enter this reed and cattail sky. The setting sun floats over distant trees, in mulberries rises a faint hint of smoke. The path turns, I lose my way on the creek, but the ducks precede me, leading the boat. A fragrance close by, I smell lotuses, recumbent, I enter blooms fresh and lovely. Men's voices emerge from weeping willows, a fishing raft slants by the bending shore. You take my hand, look at me, smile: " These are indeed my 'Western Fields.' If always I could get a guest like you, we'd enj oy the delights of the wilds together. We'll sit on the grass, drain a j ug of beer, and find some joy in the years that remain . "
Mooring i n the Evening Winter hoes go in line along the shore, light oars yaw, swept by the tide. ' '' H a l t i n g '' is the B u d d h ist cessati o n of des i re and activity.
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The trees shed the last of tattered leaves, winds blow a tangle of evening crows . Where sand is deep, it holds the tracks of pigs, the stream grows still and echoes with a fish spear. We ask for fire, the village beer comes, our cooking smoke rises through reed flowers.
Some of Wu Wei -ye's fi nest poems a re long n arratives fi l led with a l l u s i o n s and h i s torical refe rences, w h i c h u n fortu n ate l y do not fare we l l in tra n s l ation . I n the fo l l owing p o e m , of which o n l y the open i n g i s tra n s l ated , W u Wei-ye retu rns t o N a n j i n g (for m e r l y J i n - l i n g) after the Q i n g c o n q u est. F rom the ru i n s of the M i n g I m pe r i a l Acad emy, w h e re Wu had served, he t u r n s to the other M i n g s i tes in th i s c i ty that had been both the fi rst and fi n a l M i n g capita l .
from Thoughts Stirred o n Meeting the Gardener o f the Royal Academy in Nanjing Cold tides dashed on the ruined fort, fiery clouds set Red Hill ablaze; it was June when I reached Jin-ling, on the tenth I crossed Great Pontoon Bridge. The spots I had visited serving here have all of them slipped from memory. I met an old gardener on the road, who asked me from where I had come. Then I vaguely recognized a former employee, and the circumstances caused heart's pain. He opened the gate and invited me in, broken buildings, a low surrounding wall. Then he pointed into a clump of weeds, saying this was the Royal Academy. The office buildings were rubble piles, which he gardened on lease to pay his tax. He had changed the means of his livelihood, but had made this his garden from nostalgia. In troubled times he had kept to this land, unwilling to go to another place. I took the chance to walk over the site, and at every step my brooding increased. On the gray slopes backed against the water had been the hall where I used to stay. From all the world students gathered here, compositions turned in at the Six Lodges. 1 1 34
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Pines and j unipers, all ten spans in girth, and the ringing sounds of pipes and bells. A hundred-acre clear and rippling pond, with drooping willows all around the shore, splendid porches overhanging pools, where fragrant scent of lotus blew. Chatting and laughing, all noble companions, in flowers and moonlight we drained our cups. There was a pavilion to the south where beech and bamboo gave off a light cool. . . .
Wang S h i -z h e n ( 1 6 3 4- 1 7 1 1 ) I f the poetry of the m i d-seve ntee nth cent u ry wears wel l , i t i s because the d i sso l u t i o n a n d fa l l of the M i n g p rov i d ed a n i m med i ate l y engag i n g top i c th at went beyo n d t h e arid l iterary d i s putes o f the p reced i n g e r a . Wang S h i - z h e n w a s the m o s t i n fl u enti al poet o f t h e fi rst post-c o n q u est generati o n . Wang and h i s poetry a r e k n o w n fo r a p r i n c i p l e, shen-yun, rou g h l y tra n s l ated as " s p i ritu a l reso n a n c e . " T h i s is a vague, evocative te rm fo r a vague evocative q u a l ity t h at was associ ated with certa i n H i g h T a n g poets and espec i a l l y w i t h thei r q u atra i n s . Wang Sh i-zhen represents both some o f the best a n d the worst sides o f Q i n g poetry. Much of his poetry was about either social exchange or captu ring moments on h i s travels; the engagement of poetry around the Qing conquest was gone. Wang was a craftsman, who cou ld tum the situation or the beauty of the momentary scene i nto pol ished poetry.
Crossing the Ancient Barrier Pass in the Rain ( 1 672 ) Perilous walkways, flying cascades, the mountain a thousand yards high, I point afar to a fortress tower there among twilight clouds. And suddenly the west wind brings whooshing gusts of rainash tree flowers will fill the road as I cross the ancient pass.
On the Ba River Bridge: Sent Home to My Wife (second of two ) Mount Tai-hua and Mount Zhong-nan are here thousands of miles away, not a place in this westward j ourney that doesn't break my heart. Should my lady happen to toss a coin to find out of my fate1 135
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in autumn rain and autumn wind I cross the Ba River Bridge. If Wang S h i-zhen someti mes sounds l i ke Wang Wei, it was because the perfection of Wang Wei's poetic art (rather than Wang Wei's values) captured Wang Sh i-zhen's affection.
Farm Home by Cu-lai Mountain On I go through empty azure mist, appearing, fading, still more lovely shapes. Road to the village through sapphire trees, the green hill faces a shrine on the peak. In deep woods chickens and dogs grow still, after much rain, sprouts on the slope are rich. Someday I'll plant the north slope of Gui nor will I be slow to plow on my own.
On the Qing-yang Road Tall bamboo blanket a sunlit stream, whose rippling glints by an empty bend. As the sun goes down, snow melts away, and homes are right there in the cold green.
What I Saw on the Northern Outskirts of Zhen-zhou The cloud cover pressed on the city walls as I left Zhen-zhou's outskirts at dawn. Past the outskirts, a striped bamboo grove and the wind blew down the last of the snow.
At Daybreak I Crossed the Ping-j iang River and Climbed on Foot to the Summit of Crossing-Above-C louds Mountain I really d i d " cross above clouds , " roaming wine i n hand, the utter wonder of Han-jia crowns all this western land. Its nine peaks face to the sun and chant the river leaves, three watercourses flood on through, embracing the district hall. 1 136
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From the old man of Fu's pavilion the mountains grow more fair, and springs gush from the coiled hair of an ancient statue of Buddha. As Su Dong-po grew older, his home in Shu was on his mind, he wanted no fief of ten thousand homes in the world of mortal men.
N ara S i ngde ( 1 6 5 5-1 6 8 5 ) N a ra S i ngde (or, in the s i n ified vers i o n , N a - I a n X i ng-de) was a M a n c h u b a n n e r m a n (a m e mber ofthe Q i n g m i l itary c aste) a n d a n offi cer in the i m pe r i a l g u a rd . H e often acco m p a n i ed the Kang-xi em peror on h i s various j o u rn eys of state . The early seventeenth century had seen a major rev i v a l of the song l y r i c as a p u re l y l iterary form . Song Dynasty tune patterns were sti l l used, even though the orig inal music h ad been l o n g l ost. The song l y r i c too k o n a very d i ffe rent to n e from c l as s i c a l poetry : it was often d reamy and evocative, the p referred fo rm for l ove poetry. N ara S i ngde's l y r i cs, parti c u l a r l y a n u m ber of p i eces on the death of his wife, are c o n s i d e red among the fi n est in the d y nasty .
to " Like a Dream " (Ru meng ling) It was the moment when the pulley creaked on the golden well, and fallen petals filled the pavements, cold and red. All at once I met herno telling for sure what lay in her heart or the look in her eyes. Who can think it through and know? But now it begins: striped marks on body from bamboo mat, a shadow in candlelight.
to " Clear and Even Music" (Qing-ping yue) Tresses in stormy tangles and coils, she comes and I never know j ust when. Weary we lean on marble railings of balconies watching the halo around the moon, Easily then talk turns to whispers, her fragrance draws near. 1 1 37
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A soft breeze blows past the window screen, meeting her now is a world away. And from this moment on: all the pain of spring and being apart, in growing dusk facing the blossoms of pear.
to " Seeking Fragrant Plants " (Xun fang-cao), Account of a Dream in Xiao Temple How can I pass these nights far from home ? I dreamed I was with her, reciting poems together, by the latticed window. And annoyed, she feigned a smile and said, "If you weren't so lonely there, would you still have wanted to come ? " I had to leave all too quickly; I had planned to stay until temple bells were struck at dawn. She suddenly pressed close to methen a spark flashed from lamp wick falling, and I was here facing fire in a globe of glass.
to " Golden Threads " (fin-Iii qu), Thoughts on the Anniversary of My Wife's Death When will this misery end ? Dripping on empty stairs, the rain of night's coldest hours is done, a weather for funerals of flowers. These past three years went on and on, her soul, too far to come in dreams, and may I wake from this dream soon! I guess by now I've grown aware this mortal world holds no appeal. Better to be below the soil in those halls of endless night, cool there and clear, a plot of earth to bury care. The pact of love, hairpin and box, is forsaken in the end. If I could get a letter from streams in the world below, 1138
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I'd like to know her j oys and sorrows this past year, who she's staying with. For me it's restless tossing all night long; I cannot bear to hear strings of marriage played again. I hope we'll be true lovers in a life to come, then fear we both have luckless destinies, and future fate will be unkind in last moonlight and failing wind. My tears are gone, ashes of paper rise.5
to " Like a Dream" (Ru meng ling) In thousands of tents the men are drunk. Starlight shimmers, about to sink. My homeward dreams are blocked by Wolf River and poked to pieces by river sounds. Then I go back to sleep, go back to sleep understanding that waking has no appeal.
to "Butterf lies Love Flowers " (Die lian hua), On the Frontier The rivers and hills have no single master in ancient times and now, and in the notes of the b ugles herdsmen' s horses constantly come and go. Of this bleak wilderness filling my eyes Whom can I tell?west winds blow red maples and make them old. Where could pains suffered silently here ever find expression ? Lances and armored horses, the road to Green Tomb in twilight.6 Carried away, my feelings deepen, how deep do they go ?' T h e "ashes" a r e from the p a p e r money b u rned in commem oration o f t h e dead. 'G reen Tomb was the legendary burial p l ace of W a n g Z h ao-j u n , a beautifu l Han c o u rt lady who was married aga i n st her w i l l to the Khan of the Xiong-n u .
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evening sunshine deep in the mountains, deep in autumn, the rain.
Z h ao yi ( 1 7 2 7- 1 8 1 4) Zhao Yi was o n e of a gro u p of poets associ ated with the "school of N at ura l Wit"
(xing-ling pai), whose most p ro m i n en t advocate was Yuan Mei ( 1 7 1 6-1 7 9 8 ) and w h i c h p l ayed a n i nf l u e n t i a l ro l e in the l iterary world of the e i g hteenth century. The school of N atur al W i t advocated a spontaneous ease in compos i t i o n a n d l i ghtness of tou c h in poetry that was o pposed to the e l evated " s p i ritu a l reso n a n ce" of Wang S h i-zhen a n d h i s fo l l owers. Zhao Y i was a n h i sto r i a n , l iterary critic, a n d e m i nent i n tel l ectu a l , w h o for a p e r i o d i n h i s l i fe served i n t h e Q i n g government w i th d i sti n c tion.
Poems on My Dwelling in the Rear Park (second of nine ) I've suffered poverty years on end, but this year's been especially hard. My wife and children came in and declared there will be no breakfast tomorrow. I laughed and told them to go away, that I couldn't be bothered j ust now. I'm presently writing a little poem and there's still a word not quite right. Just wait until I finish the poem and I'll take care of the groceries. Look on the streets of the capitalno civil servants lie there starving to death!
Poems on My Dwelling in the Rear Park ( third of nine ) A visitor suddenly knocked at my door with an offer of cash for some writing. He asked me to do a tomb inscription and insisted I make it flattering: in political life, a Gong Sui or Huang Ba; in learning, a Zheng or Zhu Xi. I thought it would be amusing, so I did j ust as he required. I patched a piece of fine phrases together, and, 10 and behold, a true gentleman! I checked this against what he really did, it was hardly an ounce to my ten pound s. Suppose what I wrote is handed down- who could tell if the man was a fool or wise? And perhaps they will cite it as evidence, 1 140
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to be copied a t last in historical tomes. Now I see that in histories of old the most part belongs to pure puffery.
Returning on Yang Lake My canvas sail billows lightly, the evening breeze is soft, I turn to look at Yang Mountain, set right in the sunset glow. Egrets dot the sapphire sky, a flying word writ in white, the trees dress up in red leaves, presented with scarlet gowns. The poet's mood, the limpid waters empty without a speck, the heart's concerns, a peaceful cloud distracted, not flying away. I most enj oy the fishermen's songs, their sounds in the creaking of oars, and rapping the rhythm on boatsides, going with me all the way home. Zhao Yi served a period as a magistrate of a d i stri ct in G u ang-x i, w h i c h was popul ated primar i l y by non-C h i nese. These i n d i genous peoples of southwestem C h i n a evoked many of the same responses in ei ghteenth-century C h i nese i nte l l ectu a l s that the native peoples of the Americas evoked in E u ropeans. Someti mes they were descri bed as m u r derous and thieving savages; at other ti mes they were the "noble savage," whose nat u ral behavior put to shame those with the artifi c i a l trappi ngs of c i v i l i zati o n . In the fol low i n g verse, Z h a o Yi descri bes t h e i r cou rtsh i p customs i nvolving s o n g exchanges between you n g men and wom e n . Zhao Yi associ ates the freedom to choose one's own mate (not to mention u n bound feet) with primal antiq u ity and an i n n ocence l ost in C h i n a .
Local Song In months of spring, April and May, the fairgrounds are in flower, girls of the tribes, primped and rouged, go to the fairgrounds to court. Long skirts and wide sleeves, all in fresh finery, one sees no bow-bent slippers and dainty feet three inches wide. A young man of unknown family comes to sing her songs, 1 14 1
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it's not necessary that he be kin by marriage or blood. She only looks at his young face fresh as a blossom of peach, and as he sings, so she sings back in verses never-ending. In every single note is borne currents of tender passion, ligh t as the drifting floss that curls through the sky. There are times when suddenly it is blown apart by the breeze, notes carried ove r the hills ahead, in quavering afterechoes. And touching, when the song concludes fervent glances are cast, and she promises to meet him by night in the glow of the moon. These melodies speak mostly of the red berries of passion, folkways that rarely write of green plums as they fall,? Here in our age we truly find unimpeded succession, it is as if entering the hazy space of the Hua-xu dream.8 I see now that our ritual laws arose in later times, folk of No-Care's and Ge-tian's day knew nothing of them at all,9 Have you not seen how two by two the butterflies form pairs, and without need of a go-between they settle the marriage bond ?
In Bed Lying in bed I thought of a poem and worried that I would forget, I threw on my clothes and got up to write in the dying light of the lamp. '''G reen p l u ms as they fa l l " refers to a poem in the Classic of Poetry, trad ition a l l y i nterp reted as re fer r i n g to marriage in the appropri ate season (these yo u n g women seem to be rush i n g it) . 8The " H ua-xu dream/' descri bed in the Daoist C l a s s i c L ie-zi, was the Ye l l ow E m peror's d ream of a p r i m o rd i a l world of i n nocence.
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My wife broke out in laughter: why take such pains, old man when the youngsters are at their studies they're not so caught up as this?
Livelihood Our subsistence grows steadily bleaker, the harvest was bad; j ust stony fields remain. For fuel, we burn trees that stood leaf to leaf, for meals, count on cash from writing inscriptions . The servant is young, I send my son on errands, the house so bare the watchdog sleeps freely. And faintly I hear the maids telling stories of our days of feasting and me in official robes.
On Poetry (two of five ) I The life I see all around me turns on the Potter's Wheel of Change: Heaven's skill and human craft always compete for the new. The poet provides a new idea that lasts five hundred years, but when it's reached a thousand years, it seems like a cliche. II Poems of Li Bo and Du Fu have passed through thousands of mouths, and by now they've come to seem not vivid or new at all. In every age our hills and our rivers bring forth men of talent and each holds sway over poetry for a span of five hundred years.
' N o-Cares and Ge-ti a n were myth i c a � r u l e rs of ear l i est a n t i q u ity.
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H ua n g J i ng-ren ( 1 749-1 7 8 3 ) H u a n g l i n g - ren p e rfect l y fu lfi l l e d the expectat i o n s fo r a ce rta i n type o f C h i n ese poet : ta l e n ted, u n s u ccessfu l , i m pove r i s hed, and doomed to d i e at a re l at i v e l y you n g age. I t was a ro l e H u an g l i n g-ren accepted co m p l ete l y, a n d t h o u g h there was an e l e m e n t of po s i n g, it somet i m es made poss i b l e a poet i c d a r i n g t h at is l ack i n g i n m o re soc i a l l y s u ccessfu l w r i te r s . M a n y c r i t i c s b e l ieved, with some reason, that H u a n g l i n g -ren was the o u tsta n d i n g poet of the d y n asty .
Written at Night at an Inn in the Hills ( second and third of three) The city people are different in their troubling fantasies; to my eyes this world and I are a wisp in autumn sky. Just now those thousands of homes must all be sharing the very same dream: above them, a white haze, hangs low, then rises high. All night long these mountain windows stand open on every side, with rivers and lakes before and behind, where my thoughts go on and on. So stand at the window, set torch ablaze, hold it high, and watch the fish and dragons come, to drink in the light.
[title lost] My home lies east of the eastern sea: sea -castle mirages, familiar sights for a mind that is the same. I shed ten years of tears for my shadow in the deepest parts of hills, but when I glimpsed a mountain ape, my heart knew also delight. Is this life perhaps ? Or death ? Neither are worth my shouting in rage; brows knit in a frown, then form a smile which of those moments is real ? Magnificent is the Shaper of Things how will he use me now? 1 1 44
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Not of mist and cloud does he conj ure shapes, he conjures his shapes in me. 1
Visiting Ju-fa-yuan Temple with Wang Qiu-cheng and Zhang He-chai I left the ancient temple in twilight mist, afraid on my return to find my study in its autumn as empty as these waters. As night's black colors grew on my clothes, I could not brush them away, and wondered where to find other hills still red in the evening sun.
A Companion Piece to a Poem by Qian Bai-quan Here where the master, his whisk in hand, once discoursed on the sutras, we feel now the autumn chill in August already upon us. So much noise from crowds, travelers outside these gates yet after the great bell's single sound there is sound no more.
Dreaming of a Friend One Night I am in halves: half here far from home, and half in a dream of home, as the west wind rolls the leaves along and rain beats on corridor s. I am a shadow, companioned by clouds threading through the passes; now the moonlight j oins me as always under this roof and rafters . You speak to me with such kindness and care, but somehow I don't comprehend,
. . . zany Daoist v i s i ts a nother , e I n t h e Zh uang-z/, In w h 'IC h one . . , lThe last c o u p l et refers to a passag a n d spoke to Z I - I a l , M agay doorw the st n i aga i - l i lea ned k d b d i sease a n d d y i n g : "Then Z where nder wo I nto; I u make I w nder what it's goi n g to e t i n eed is the S h aper of T h i ngs. , , a rat s l i ver? A b u g s arm, perhap s . it's go i n g to h ave you go. W i l l you be
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and cannot see what would stop me from taking your hand right now: Then I wake up: on my pillow there's' not a spot left dry; through the open curtains the hazy blur of the long road to be traveled.
Offhand Compositions: New Year's Eve 1 774 I Laughter and talk in a thousand homes, the water-clock drips on, yet I feel a misery coming unseen from beyond the world of things . Silent, I stand on the market bridge, recognized by none, watching a single star like the moon such a long, long time. II Year after year I waste this eve reciting poems, beside the lamp my children often secretly laugh at me. Yet how could the likes of you understand how much I regret wastefully spending the heart' s strength to be a poet.
Although c l as s i c a l poetry conti n u ed to be written u s i n g the old c i rc u m s c r ibed range of top i cs throughout the n i n eteenth centu ry, some vo ices were try i n g to express the new c u l t u r a l rea l i ties that C h i n a was confronti n g with the s l ow d i ssol ution of Q i n g ru l e a n d t h e i ntru s i o n o f t h e West. The corruption a n d sporad i c v i o l e n ce o f n i ne teenth -centu ry C h i n a aga i n and aga i n were met with a d es i re to b r i n g about refo r m . C l assical l iterat u re a n d c l as s i c a l writi n g i n g e n e r a l can be taken as a n e m b l em of the cu l tu ral prob l e m . H i sto r i c a l depth was the v i rtue of c l assical writing, b u t by fig u r i n g everyth i n g in terms of p reced ents and prior u sage, critics and writers a l i ke h ad d iffi c u l ty acco u n t i n g fo r w h at was tru l y new.
G o n g Z i -zhen ( 1 7 9 2 - 1 84 1 ) G o n g Z i - z h e n ' s most fa m o u s poems a re the 3 1 5 q u atra i n s w r i tten i n the c yc l i c a l y e a r ji-hai, 1 8 3 9 , o n a j o u rney fro m B e i j i n g t o h i s h o m e i n H a n g-z h o u . Poets a n d l y r i c i sts l i ke H u a n g J i n g-ren o r N a ra S i n gd e c o m p l i cated the c l i c h e s o f the poet ic 1 1 46
The Qing Dynasty l a n g u age to the p o i n t w h e re they c reated s o meth i n g u n i q u e a n d fres h . G o n g Z i z h e n ' s q u atra i n s a r e often e p i g r a m m at i c : h e add resses poet i c c l i c h e s a n d the com m o n p l aces of c u l t u r a l res ponse d i rect l y . At oth e r ti mes, the q u atra i n s s u ggest an a l m ost m e l a n c h o l y res i g n ati o n . Many are extre m e l y a l l u s i ve ; given b e low are j u st a few of the m ost fam o u s that c a n be d o n e i n E n g l i s h w i t h o u t exte n s ive a n n ota tion.
Poems o f the Year Ji-hai, 1 8 3 9 V The sorrow of leaving sweeps over me, the bright sun sinks in sky, a poet on horseback heads eastward and at once is past the horizon. The fallen red petals are not things without a heartthey change into the mud of spring to nurture still more flowers. The fo l l ow i n g p i ece is on o p i u m add i cts, who fi l l ed the l eve l s of offi c i a l d o m d u ri n g t h e o p i u m scou rge o f the n i neteenth century. T h e fi rst c o u p l et see m s t o d es c r i b e a n o p i u m d e n . I n t h e second c o u p l et, G o n g s u ggests t h a t t h e add i ct g o take a prov i n c i a l post i n t h e poppy-grow i n g cou nties o f West a n d Southwest C h i n a , w here even d u ri n g the Co l d Food Festiva l , when coo k i n g fi res (and by i m p l icati o n , the b u r n i n g o f o p i u m ) are s u p posed t o be exti n g u i s hed, h e c o u l d stay h i g h (perhaps fa n c i fu l l y u n der the i nf l uence of the p o p p i es ? ) .
LXXXVI The addicts' lamps are ranged in groups, scattered autumn fireflies, a registrar, fallen on hard times, his tear-filled eyes aglow. Why not go govern a city in some county of poppy flowers, and sleep through spring never waking in the Cold Food Festival? CXXV All life in China's nine regions depends on the thundering storm, thousands of horses all struck dumb is deplorable indeed. I urge the Lord of Heaven to shake us up again and grant us human talent not bound to a single kind. 1 147
Anthology of Chinese Literature
When I was passing Zhen-jiang, I saw a service for the Jade Emperor, the Wind God, and the Thunder God, with thousands and thousand of worshippers . The Daoist priest begged me to write a supplicant verse. CLXX The sorrows and j oys of my youthful years surpass those of others, I wept and sang without cause and every word was true. A grown man now, I get around, naivete mixed with guile, but the " child-min d " returns again to this body in its dreams.
Another Repentance Buddhists tell of kalpa fires dissolving all when they come what is it endures a thousand years, raging like tidal bore ? I have ground away the light of day in writings to save the state, dark insights and mad ingenuities recur in midnight hours . They surge in me like a boiling flood, needing a sword's blow to sever; once gone, they are tangled still in thought, consigned to the flute of poetry. Heart's medicine, heart's native wit are both the heart's disease: I am resolved to burn in the lamp these words of parable. " F ro m S p r i n g to Autu m n . . . " m a kes use of one of the favo rite figu res fo r represen tati ons, a n d fo r poetic rep resentati o n s in parti c u l a r : the d ragon fl y i n g i n the sky with the c l o u d s that acco m p a n y it. In order to catc h its a n i m ate c h a n ges, the best rep re sentat i o n s of the d ragon were s u pposed to show o n l y fragments of the c reatu re be h i nd the c l o u d , from w h i c h the w h o l e cou l d be i nfe rred .
From Spring to Autumn of 1 8 27 Some Things Came to Me Which I Wrote Down Haphazardly (last of fifteen ) I once wrote a poem swearing off poems; it was 1 82 0 , the poem was wordy. 1 1 48
The Q ing Dynasty
The most pressing things you want to say have always been hard to say clearly. So I'll try to say them with cunning words, but before I can say them, my voice fails. I seek no forgiveness from the gods, and would even less speak it to living men. To the east of a cloud, one scale exposed, one claw is exposed on the other side. But better than showing scale and claw is to show no claw and scale at all. More true still of the things I've said of scale and claw the lingering trace. I repent my writings from the very first, in heart's silence I will strive for Void. This year I truly swear off poemsthe problem is not that my talent is gone.
H u ang Z u n -x i an ( 1 848-1 9 0 5 ) Not o n l y d i d H u a n g Z u n - x i a n represent the most i m p ortant attem pt to reform c l as s i c a l poetry in the n i n eteenth centu ry, h e was a l so a Q i n g d i p l o m at and pol i t i c a l fig u re of some n ote, serv i n g in C h i nese em bassies and c o n s u l ates in Tokyo, S a n F ran c i sco, London, and S i ngapore. H e tried t o str i p away the a l l u s i o n s , the c l iches, a n d t h e common p l aces of response i n c l as s i c a l poetry a n d t o open u p the poetry t o t h e obj ects and ex perien ces of t h e n ew wo r l d C h i n a w a s enteri n g . The C h i nese poet i c l a n g uage was, h owever, a stu bborn th i ng . T h e p o e m s w r i tten i n the West, s u c h a s a l ong, rath e r horrified verse n a rrative o n w i tness i n g t h e t u rb u l e nt party p o l itics of the 1 884 American e l ecti o n , offer rare and freq u e n t l y s u rpri s i n g perspectives. T h e fo l l owi n g pol itical e p i g ram, written i n 1 8 8 5 , p rotests t h e B ri t i s h occu pati o n of H o n g Ko n g .
On Reaching Hong Kong The waters are those of Yao's time, the sun is the same as Xia's, also the cap and gown I wear are the uniform of Han. Climbing the tower, I look all around this truly is my land, yet on the great flags I do not see our yellow dragon. 1 1 49
Anthology of Chinese Literature The greater part of H u ang Z u n - x i a n ' s col lected poems are on the sta n d a rd top i cs of c l assical poetry; though good , these poems do not stand out stro n g l y . More i nterest i n g a re those works where the sensi b i l ity c u ltivated by p racti c i n g c l assical poetry ac cou nts fo r a n ew experience. In the fo l l ow i n g q u atra i n , H u a n g c rosses the i nterna tional d ate l i n e o n the seco n d day of the second month, known as the " d awn of fl owers . " N ot only a re there n o fl owers here to enjoy o n the two "dawns of fl owers ." An a d d i t i o n a l day seems a g ratu ito u s g i ft for someone worried about wast i n g the time o f his l i fe . It p ro d u ces a p a rti c u l a r p ro b l e m in arran g i n g the d i ary-the repetition of a d ay, but one that is l ittl e d i fferent from the adj o i n i ng day of the same n a m e .
Various Responses on an Ocean Voyage ( one of fourteen) On the eighteenth day of the first month I set off from Yokohama by paddle wheeled steamer to America, and arrived on the twelfth of the second month. I had nothing to do in the boat, so I wrote these lines haphazardly. In the years and months of my middle age I endure being tossed by winds, more than half of the time of my life has been thrown away in travels. Today to break my melancholy I edit my diary: in only one year I have received twice the " dawn of flowers . "
Q i u J i n ( 1 8 7 9-1 9 0 7 ) Q i u J i n was a member o f the revo l u t i o n a ry generation and a m a rtyr o f the Revo l u t i o n . M a r r i ed a n d w i t h two c h i l d ren, s h e l eft h e r fam i l y i n 1 9 04 a n d went t o J a pa n t o stu d y . There s h e j o i ned the movement t o overth row the Qing gove r n m e nt. After retu r n i n g to C h i n a , s h e fou n ded a newspaper fo r women and conti n u ed h e r revo l ut i o n ary activities. I n vol ved in an abortive u p r i s i n g i n An - h u i and Zhe-j i a n g i n 1 9 0 7 , s h e was captu red b y Q i n g authorities, a n d execu ted . T h i s poem was written i n 1 904, after C h i na ' s various h u m i l iations at the ha nds o f Japan a n d the Western powe rs. Qiu Jin was then o n her w a y t o Japan . The " b ronze camels" were o r i g i n a l l y i n L u o-ya n g ; S u o J i n g i n the J i n p rophesied that he wo u l d see them grow i n g with s c r u b a n d thorns, a n d t h e dem i se o f t h e Weste rn J i n fu l fi l l ed h i s prophecy. L ater the bronze c a m e l s came to sta n d fo r d y n astic ru i n .
Mr. Ishii o f Japan Seeks a Matching Verse (using his rhymes ) It is rash to say that a woman can never be a hero, I ride the wind thousands of miles heading eastward alone. 1 1 50
The Qing Dynasty
The poet 's moo d: a single sail on the vast expa nse of sea· soul in drea m: the spar kle of :n oonl ight on three isles of Japa n. The bron ze camels have falle n in sorr ow I turn to look · ' the sweating hors e at last is ' sham ed that the deed is left und one. Such as this is heart's pain and anger for my own land how could I dare in my travels just pass through the breeze of spring!
On the Yellow Sea: A Man from Japan Sought Some Verses and Also Showed Me a Map of the Russo-Japanese War Riding the wind for thousands of miles I left and now return, a lone body on the eastern sea, spring thunder in her breast. Can I bear to look at this map and see how the colo rs chan ge; am I will ing to let our rive rs and hills be left to the kalp a fires ? Strong wine can' t melt away tears of care for our land · to save thes e time s we mus t d epen d on talen t beyo nd the com mon . We will spen d the bloo d that flow s from a hun dred thou sand skul ls bu t we mus t exer t our strength to t � rn Hea ven and Earth arig ht.
Wang
G u o-we i ( 1 8 7 7- 1 9 2 7 )
Wang G u o-we i was one o f the most remarkab l e l ate Q i n g a n d early Rep u b l i c a n i n te l l ectu a l s . He was a s c h o l a r of Western p h i l oso p h y a n d l over of S c h o p e n h a u e r ; a critic who wrote stud ies (sti l l u sed) on the novel Story of the Stone, on earl y d ra ma, and on song lyrics; a scholar of a n c i e n t epigraphy; a n d an h i sto r i a n of the Y u a n Dy n asty . He was a l so an ardent Q i ng l oya l i st, w h i c h i s o n e of the reas o n s offered exp l a i n h i s s u i c i d e i n 1 9 2 7 .
to
N ot on l y was Wang G u o-wei probably the s i n g l e most i nfluential critic a n d the orist of the song l y r ic, h i s own works are some of the finest exa mples of th e gen re i n 1 151
Anthology of Chinese Literature the ea r l y twentieth century. D u r i n g an age when momentous pol itical concerns often dom i n ated I iteratu re, Wang G u o-we i ' s song l y r ics kept to the o l d motifs a n d perfected them accord i ng to h i s own theories of jing-jie, the visionary "world" created i n a poem .
to " Putting on Lipstick " (Dian jiang chun) Waves follow the currents of cloud, and the oarsmen's song goes slowly over the waves away. Several sounds of the oarlocks go far into shores of cattails and rushes. Where setting sunlight strikes current are several specks of idle egrets and gulls. At the spot where they fly off low are countless reeds that speak in the rustling wind. A s a student o f Western thought a n d l iterature a s wel l a s o f C h i nese l iteratu re, Wang G uo wei wel l understood the artifi c i a l ity of the form in wh ich he worked . More than many of h i s best-known C h i nese contemporaries, Wang gloried i n that special poetic world, l i ke many of h i s Westem counterparts. Perhaps such aesthetic rad i ca l i s m (confi ned to h i s work in song lyric) perm itted h i m the w h i m s i c a l i n s i ght of the lyric that fo l l ows .
to "Washing Creek Sands " (Huan xi sha) Does something real lie behind the words in your new songs ? Fancy phrases such as these can make you want to laugh. " Broken-hearted in lamplight" now who did you write that for ? I lean o n the desk and peer around at recent compositions, then turn off the light and reckon up j oys known in the pasttrivial passions of the heart, and nothing corresponds. This lyric i s a fitt i n g coda fo r c l assical C h i nese l i teratu re . Wang G u o-wei i s t h e mod ern poet, fam i l i a r with Weste rn thought and l iteratu re, who c h ooses to work in the old form s . F rom a n cient ti mes, poetry in its vari o u s fo rms was s u p posed to g i ve outer expressi on to what l i es in the heart. B ut there is a moment when Wang l ooks back at h i s l y rics and real izes they are j ust words, old c l i ches, that no l o n ger matc h what he rea l l y fe lt. If the o l d poetry i s no l onger adeq u ate fo r the consc iousness of the mod ern C h i nese writer, h owever, it i s adeq u ate- i n th i s l y r i c-to dec l a re its own fa i l u re .
1 1 52
Se l ected F u rt h e r Read i n gs
The fi rst � ect ion is devoted to tra n s l ati o n s o f C h i nese l iteratu re . The secon d l i st (at . p ' n 5 9 ) IS � b r i e f i n trod uction to c r i t i c a l stu d ies of C h i nese l iteratu re . . N ote that the C r ! t l c a ' stu d i es often conta i n exte n s ive tra n s l ati o n s of mate r i a l not fo u n d e l sewhe . re . Both l i sts are pri mari. l y l i m i te d to works in E n g l i sh , thoug h works in F re n c h a n d G e r m a n h ave been i n c l uded i n cases w here they fi l l gaps or h ave refere nce va l u e .
Tra n s l at i o n s G E N E RAL ANTHOLOG IES
B i rc h , Cyr i l , ed . Anthology of Chinese L iterature. 2 vol s . New York, 1 9 6 5 . Chang H s i n-chang. Chinese Literature: Nature Poetry. N e w York, 1 9 7 7 . ��-
.
Chinese L iterature: Popular Fiction a n d Drama. Ed i n b u rgh, 1 9 7 3 .
Davis, A . R . , e d . The Penguin Book o f Chinese Verse. B a l t i more, 1 9 6 2 . de Bary, W i l l ia m T . , W . T. C h a n , a n d B u rton Watson, eds . Sources o f Chinese Tradition. New York, 1 96 0 . Ebrey, Patr i c i a B u c k ley. Chinese Civilization a n d Society: A Sourcebook. N ew York, 1 98 1 . l i n , Yutang. The Importance of Understanding. C l ev e l a n d , 1 9 6 0 (paperback ed. entitled Translations from the Chinese) . ��- .
The Wisdom o f China and India. New York, 1 94 2 ; repri nted Taipei, 1 9 6 8 .
L i u Wu-ch i . K'uei Hsing: A Repository o fAsian Literature in Translation. B l oo m i n gton, I n d . , 1 974. ��- ,
and I rv i n g lo, eds. Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry. G a r-
den C i ty, N . Y . , 1 9 7 5 . M a ir , V i ctor, e d . The Columbia A n thology o f Traditional Chinese L iterature. N e w York, 1 9 9 4 . Payne, Robert, ed . The White Pony: A n Anthology of Chinese Poetry from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, Newly Translated. N ew York, 1 94 7 .
Rexroth, Kenneth . One Hundred Poems from the Chinese. N ew York, 1 9 5 9 . ��- .
Love and the Turning Year: One Hundred More Poems from the Chinese. New York, 1 970.
��-,
and L i ng Chung. The Orchid Boat: Women Poets of China. New York, 1 9 7 2 .
Strassberg, R i c hard E . Inscribed Landscapes: Travel Writing from Imperial China. Berkeley, 1 994.
Waley, Arth u r . Chinese Poems. L o n d o n , 1 94 6 . ��-
.
The Temple a n d Other Poems. New York, 1 92 6 .
Watson, B u rton . Columbia Book o f Chinese Poetry. New York, 1 9 8 4 . Y i p , Wai-l i m . Chinese Poetry: Major Modes a n d Cenres. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London, 1 9 7 2 .
EARL Y LITERATURE (TO THE E N D O F T H E EASTERN H A N )
The
Classic of Poetry (Shi-jing)
H ightower, James R . Han Shih Wai-ch uan: Han Ying's Illustrations of the Didactic Applica tions of the Classic of Songs. Cambridge, Mass., 1 9 5 2 .
1 1 53
Selected Further Readings Karlgren, Bernhardt. The Book of Odes. Stoc k h o l m , 1 9 5 0 . Legge, J a m e s . The Chinese Classics. 5 vo l s . , rep r i nted Hong Kong, 1 960 ( E n g l i s h tran s l ations of the Confu c i a n canon, i n c l u d i n g the Classic of Poetry) . Pou n d , Ezra. The Classic Anthology Defined by Confucius. Cambri dge, Mass . , 1 9 5 4 . Wal ey, A rth u r . The Book of Songs. 1 9 3 7 , 1 9 60; n e w ed . N e w York, 1 9 8 7 .
Early Prose B i rre l , A n n e . Chinese Mythology: An Introduction. Balti more, 1 9 9 3 . C r u m p , J . I . Chan-kuo Ts'e. Oxford, 1 9 7 0 ; rev ised e d . S a n Fran c i sco, 1 9 7 9 . G raham, A n g u s . The Book o f L ieh-tzu. 1 9 6 0 ; N e w York, 1 9 9 0 . ---
. Chuang Tzu : The Inner Chapters. London, 1 9 8 1 .
K n o b l oc k, J o h n . Xunzi. 3 vo l s . Stanford, C a l if., 1 9 88 , 1 9 90, 1 9 9 4 . Lau, D . C . The Analects. H a rmondsworth, M i d d l esex, 1 9 7 9 . ---
. L a o Tzu : Tao Te Ching. Harmondsworth, M id d l esex, 1 9 6 3 .
---
. Mencius. H armondsworth, M i d d l esex, 1 9 7 0 .
Waley, A rth u r . The Ana lects o f Confucius. L o n d o n , 1 9 3 8 . Watson, B u rto n . Courtier a n d Commoner i n Ancient Ch ina : Selections from the History of the Former Han. New York, 1 9 7 4 .
-__
. H a n Fei Tzu, Basic Writings. New Y o r k, 1 9 64. . Hsun-tsu, Basic Writings. N ew Y o r k , 1 9 63 .
---
. Records of the Grand Historian : Chapters from the Shih Chi of Ssu-ma Ch 'ien. New
___
York, 1 9 5 8 . ---
. Records o f the Grand Historian : Translated from the Shih chi o fSsu-ma Ch 'ien. 2 vol s .
N ew York, 1 9 6 1 . ---
. The Tso Chuan : Selections from China's Oldest Narrative History. New York, 1 9 8 9 .
---
. The Writings o f Chuang Tzu. N e w York, 1 9 6 8 .
Chu-ci a n d Fu H awkes, D av i d . Ch'u T'zu: Songs d the South . Oxford, 1 9 5 9 ; m u c h revi sed ed . (The Songs of the South) London, 1 9 8 5 .
H e rvouet, Yves. L e Chapitre 7 7 7 de Che ki: Biographie de Sseu-ma Hsiang-jou. Paris, 1 9 72 . Knechtges, D av i d . The Han-shu Biography of Yang Xiong. Te mpe, A r i z . , 1 9 8 2 . ---
. " S s u - m a H s ia ng-j u ' s 'Ta l l G ate R h a psod y . ' '' Harvard Journal o f Asiatic Studies, 4 1 . 1
(1 981 ) . --- . Wen Xuan o r Selections o f Refined L iterature. 2 vo l s . P r i n ceto n, N .J . , 1 9 8 2 , 1 9 8 7 .
---, and Jerry Swanson . "Seven Sti m u l i for t h e P r i n c e : T h e C h ' i -fa o f M e i C h ' e n g . " Monumenta Serica, 29 ( 1 9 70-7 1 ) .
Waley, Arth u r . The Nine Songs: A Study o f Shamanism in Ancient Ch ina. London, 1 9 5 5 . ---
. The Temple and Other Poems. London, 1 9 2 5 .
Watson, B u rto n . Chinese Rhyme-Prose: Poems in the F u Form from the Han and Six Dynas ties Period. New York, 1 9 7 1 . --- . Records of the Grand Historian : Translated from the Shih chi of Ssu-ma Ch 'ien. 2 vol s .
New York, 1 9 6 1 .
LITERATU RE OF THE LATE HAN TO T H E S U I
B i rre l , A n n e . New Songs from a Jade Terrace. N e w York, 1 9 8 2 . ___ .
Popular Songs and Ballads o f Han China . London, 1 9 8 8 .
D a v i s , A . R . T'ao Yuan-mingo 2 vo l s . Cambridge, 1 9 84.
1 1 54
Selected Further Readings D i eny, Jean-Pierre. Les dix-neuf poemes anciens. Paris, 1 9 6 3 . Frodsham, J . D . The Murmuring Stream: The Ufe a n d Works o f the Chinese Nature Poet Hsieh Ling-yOn (385-433). K u a l a L u m p u r, 1 9 6 7 . ---
, a n d C h ' e n g H s i . An Anthology o f Chinese Verse: Han Wei Chin a n d the Northern
and Southern Dynasties. Oxford, 1 9 6 7 .
G raham, W i l l iam T., J r . "The Lament for the South ": Y O Hsin's "Ai Chiang-nan fu. " C a m b r i d ge, 1 980.
--- . " M i Heng's 'Rhapsody on a Parrot. ' " Harvard journal o f Asiatic Studies,. 39 ( 1 9 7 9 ) . Henr icks, Robert G . Philosophy a n d Argumentation i n Third Century China . P r i n ceto n , N .J . , 1 983.
H i ghtower, James Robert. The Poetry o f T'ao Ch 'ien. Oxford, 1 9 7 0 . H o l z m a n , Dona l d . Poetry a n d Politics: The Life and Works o f juan Chi. Cambridge, 1 9 7 6 . Kent, George. Worlds o f Dust a n d jade: 47 Poems a n d Ba llads o f the Third Century Chinese Poet Ts'ao Chih. New York, 1 9 6 0 .
Mamey, J o h n . Beyond the Mulberries: An Anthology o f Palace-Style Poetry b y Emperor Chien wen of the Liang Dynasty (503-55 1 ) . T a i p e i , 1 9 8 2 .
Mather, R i c hard . "The Mysti cal Ascent o f the T ' i en-t' a i Mounta i n s : S u n Ch'o's Yu T'ien-t'ai shan Fu. " Monumenta Serica, 20 ( 1 9 6 1 ) . ---
. Shih-shuo hsin-yO : A New Account o f Tales o f the World. M i n neapo l is, 1 9 7 6 .
M i ao, Ronald C. Early Medieval Chinese Poetry: The L ife a n d Verse o f Wang Ts 'an (A. D . 1 7 7-2 1 7 ) . Wiesbaden, 1 9 8 2 .
v a n G u l i k, R . H . Hsi K'ang a n d His Poetical Essay o n the Lute. Tokyo, 1 94 1 . von d e n Ste i nen, D. " Poems of Ts'ao Ts'ao . " Monumenta Serica, 4 ( 1 9 3 9-40 ) .
T A N G POETRY: G E N ERAL
Byn ner, W i tter . The jade Mountain: A Chinese Anthology. N ew York, 1 9 2 9 , 1 9 5 7 , 1 9 64. G raham, Angus. Poems of the Late T'ang. B a l t i more, 1 9 6 5 . Latt i m o re, Davi d . The Harmony o f the World: Chinese Poems. Prov i d e n ce, R . I . , 1 9 7 6 . Sti mson, H u g h M . Fifty-five T'ang Poems: A Text i n the Reading a n d Understanding of T'ang Poetry. New Haven, Con n . , 1 9 7 6 .
TANG POETRY: I N D I V I D U A L POETS
E i d e, E l l i ng. Poems by Li Po. Private ly pri nted, 1 9 84. F rodsham, J. D . The Poems of L i H o . Oxford, 1 9 7 0 . H awkes, Dav i d . A Little Primer of T u Fu. Oxford, 1 9 6 7 . Henri cks, Robert G . The Poetry o f Han-sha n : A Complete Annotated Translation o f Cold Mounta in. Al bany, N .Y . , 1 9 9 0 .
H u ng, W i l l i a m . T u Fu, China 's Greatest Poet. C a m b ridge, 1 9 5 2 . K u b i n , Wo lfgang. Das Iyrische Werk des Tu M u . W i esbaden, 1 9 7 6 . Larsen, Jeanne. Brocade River Poems: Selected Works o f the T'ang Dynasty Courtesan Xue Tao. P r i n ceton , N . J . , 1 9 8 7 .
Lev i , Howard S . , e t a l . Translations from Po ChO-i's Collected Works. 4 vo l s . N ew York, 1 9 7 1 -75 .
L i u , James J . Y. The Poetry of Li Shang-yin. C h icago, 1 9 6 9 . Obata, S h i geyos h i . The Works o f U Po. N e w York, 1 92 2 . Red P i ne. The Collected Songs o f Cold Mountain. Port Tow nsend, Was h . , 1 9 83 . Rob i n son, G . W. Poems of Wang Wei. Ba l t i m o re, 1 9 7 3 .
1155
Selected Further Readings Snyder, G a ry. Riprap, & Cold Mountain Poems. San Francisco, 1 9 5 8 , 1 99 0 . v o n Z a c h , E rw i n . Han YO's poetische Werke. J ames R . H i g htower, ed. Cambri dge, 1 95 2 . ---
. Tu Fu's Gedichte. James R . H i ghtower, e d . Cambridge, 1 9 5 2 .
Wal ey, A rth u r. The L ife a n d Times o f Po Chu-i, 772-846 A . D . London, 1 94 9 . ---
. The Poetry a n d Career o f L i Po. London, 1 95 0 .
Watson , B u rton . Cold Mountain : 7 00 Poems by the T'ang Poet Han-shan. N e w York, 1 9 6 2 . Yates, Rob i n D . S . Washing Silk: The L ife and Selected Poetry of Wei Chuang (834 ?-9 7 0). Cambridge, Mass., 1 9 8 8 . Y i p , W ai- l i m . Hiding the Un iverse: Poems b y Wang Wei. N e w York, 1 9 7 2 . Yu, Pau l i ne . The Poetry of Wang Wei. B l oo m i ngto n , I n d . , 1 98 0 . EARL Y FICTION, CHUAN-QI, PROSE ESSAYS, A N D OTHER G E N RES
B i rc h , Cyr i l . Chinese Myths and Fantasies. Oxford/New York, 1 96 1 . Chang, H . C. Chinese L iterature 3: Tales of the Supernatural. E d i n b u rgh, 1 9 8 3 . Cohen, A l v i n P . Tales o f Vengeful Ghosts: A Sixth-Century Collection o f Chinese A venging Ghost Stories. Ta i p e i , 1 9 8 2 .
D u d b r i dge, G l e n . The Tale o f L i Wa. London, 1 9 8 3 . Eberhard, Wolfra m . Chinese Fairy Tales a n d Folk Ta les (tra n s l ated fro m t h e German b y Desmond Parsons). London, 1 9 3 7 ; N e w York, 1 9 3 8 . Kao, Karl S . Y . , ed . Classical Chinese Tales o f the Supernatural a n d the Fantastic. B l oo m i ng ton , I n d . , 1 9 8 5 . Levy, H oward S . China 's First Novellette: The Dwelling o f the Playful Goddesses, b y Chang Wen-ch 'eng (ca. 657-730). Tokyo, 1 9 6 5 .
L i u S h i h S h u n . Chinese Classical Prose: The Eight Masters o f the T'ang-Sung Period. Hong Kong, 1 9 7 9 . M a , Y . W., and Joseph Lau, e d s . Traditional Chinese Stories: Themes a n d Variations. N e w York, 1 978.
M a i r, V i ctor. Tun-huang Popular Narratives. Cambridge/New York, 1 9 83 . Wal ey, Arth u r . Ba llads and Stories from Tunh uang: An Anthology. London, 1 9 60. Yang H s i en-yi, and G l adys Yang. The Dragon King's Daughter: Ten T'ang Dynasty Stories. Beij i ng, 1 9 5 4 . ---
. The Man Who Sold a Ghost: Chinese Tales o f the 3rd-6th Century. Beij i ng, 1 9 5 8 .
--- . Stories About Being Afraid o f Ghosts. Beij i ng, 1 96 1 .
SHI POETRY OF THE SONG DYNASTY A N D LATER B u l l ett, G e ra l d . Five Seasons of a Golden Year: A Chinese Pastoral. Hong Kong, 1 9 80 (trans l ations from Fan Cheng-da) . . C h aves, J o n athan . The Columbia Book of L a ter Chinese Poetry: Yuan, Ming, and CHing Dy nasties. New York, 1 9 8 6 . --- . Heaven My Blanket, Earth My Pillow: Poems by Yang Wan-Ii. N e w York, 1 9 7 5 .
Lo, I rv i n g Yucheng, a n d W i l l i a m Sch u l tz, eds. Waiting for the Unicorn: Poems a n d L yrics of China 's Last Dynasty, 7 644- 7 9 7 7 . B l oom i ngton, I nd . , 1 9 8 6 .
Sch m i dt, J . D . Stone Lake: The Poetry of Fan Chengda ( 7 7 2 6- 7 7 93). Cambridge, 1 9 9 2 . Waley, A rth u r . YOan Mei: Eighteenth Century Chinese Poet. London, 1 9 5 7 ; repri nted Stan ford, C a l if., 1 9 7 0 . Watson , B u rton . The Old M a n Who Does As H e Pleases: Selections from the Poetry and Prose of Lu Yu. New York, 1 9 7 3 . --
1 156
. S u Tung-p'o: Selections from a Sung Dynasty Poet. New York, 1 9 65 .
Selected Further Readings SONG LYRIC (CI)
B ryant, D a n i e l . Lyric Poets of the Southern T'ang: Feng Yen-ssu (903-960) and L i Yu (937-978). Vancouver, 1 9 8 2 . F u sek, L o i s. Among the Flowers: English Translation. N e w York, 1 9 8 2 .
H ightower, J ames R. "The Songwriter L i u Y u n g . " Harvard journal o f Asiatic Studies, 4 1 .2 ( 1 9 8 1 ), pp. 3 2 3- 7 6; 42 . 1 ( 1 9 8 2 ) , p p . 5-6 6 .
---
. "The Songs o f C h o u Pang-ye n . " Harvard journal of Asiatic Studies, 3 7. 2 ( 1 9 7 7 ) .
L a n d a u , J u l ie . Beyond Spring: Tz'u Poems of the Sung Dynasty. N e w York, 1 9 94. L i u , J ames J. Y . Major L yricists of the Northern Sung: A . D . 9 60-1 1 2 6 . P r i n ceton , N .J . , 1 9 74. La, I rv i n g . Hsin Ch 'i-chi. N ew Y o r k , 1 9 7 1 . Rexroth, Ken n eth, and L i n g C h u ng . Li Ch'ing-chao: Complete Poems. New York, 1 9 7 9 . W ixted, J o h n T i m othy. The Song Poetry o f Wei Chuang (836-9 7 O). Tempe, A r i z . , 1 9 7 8 . Yates, Rob i n D . S . Washing Silk: The L ife a n d Selected Poetry o f Wei Chuang (834?-9 7 O). Cambri dge, Mass . , 1 9 8 8 .
VERNACULAR S O N G A N D D RAMA
Arl i n gto n, L. c . , and H a ro l d Acto n . Famous Chinese Plays. New York, 1 9 6 3 . B i rch, Cyri l . The Peony Pavilion (Mudan Ting). B l oom i ngto n , I n d . , 1 9 8 0 . C h ' e n , L i - l i . Master Tung's Western Chamber Romance (Tung Hsi-hsiang Chu-kung-tiao): A Chinese Chantfable. C a m b r i d ge/New York, 1 9 7 6 .
Ch'en S h i h - h s i ang, a n d Harold Acton , w i t h Cyri l B i rc h . The Peach Blossom Fan. Berkel ey, Los Angeles, and London, 1 9 7 6 . Dol by, W i l l i a m . Eight Chinese Plays: From the 7 3 th Century t o the Present. L o n d o n , 1 9 7 8 . Dolezel ova-Ve l i n gerova, M . , a n d J . I . C ru m p . Ballad o f the Hidden Dragon (L iu Chih-yuan chu-kung tiao). Oxford, 1 9 7 1 .
H ayden, George A. Crime and Punishment in Medieval Chinese Drama: Threejudge Pao Plays. Cambridge, Mass . , 1 9 7 8 . I d ema, W i l t, and Stephen West. Chinese Theater 7 7 00- 7 450; A Source Book. Wiesbaden, 1 982. . The Moon a n d the Zither: The Story o f the Western Wing. Berkeley, 1 9 9 1 . L i u J u ng-en. Six Yuan Plays. B a l t i m o re, 1 9 7 2 .
---
M u l l igan, Jea n . The L ute: Kao Ming's "P'i-p'a Chi. " N e w York, 1 9 8 0 . Radtke, K u rt W . Poetry o f the Yuan Dynasty. Can berra, Austra l ia, 1 9 8 4 . Seaton, Jerome B . The Wine of Eternal L ife: Taoist Drinking Songs from t h e Yuan Dynasty. A n n A rbor, M i c h . , 1 9 7 8 . Sh i h C h u n g-we n . Injustice to Tou 0 (Tou 0 Yuan): A Study a n d Transla tion. Cambridge, 1 9 7 2 . Y a n g H s i e n - y i , and G l adys Y a n g . The Palace of Eternal Youth. Beij i ng, 1 9 5 5 . --- . Selected Plays o f Kuan Han-ch 'ing. B e i j i n g , 1 9 5 8 .
M I N G A N D Q I N G CLASSICAL PROSE A N D FICTION
C h aves, J o n ath a n . Pilgrim of the Clouds: Poems and Essays by Yuan Hung-tao and His Brothers. New York, 1 9 7 8 .
G i les, H . Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio. S h a n g h a i , 1 9 1 6 . Li C h i . The Travel Diaries of Hsu Hsia-k'o. H o n g Kong, 1 9 7 4 . Lu Y u n z h o n g . P u Songling: Strange Tales of L iaozhai. H o n g K o n g , 1 98 2 . M a ir, Den i s c . , and V i ctor H . M a i r . Strange Stories from Make-do Studio. Beij i n g , 1 98 9 . Mowry L i , H u a-yU a n . Chinese Love Stories from the "Ch'ing-shih . " H amden, C o n n . , 1 98 3 .
1 1 57
Selected Further Readings Pratt, Leonard, and C h i ang Su-h u i . Shen Fu: Six Records of a Floating Life. H a rmondsworth, M i d d l esex, 1 9 8 3 . Yang H s i e n - y i , a n d G l adys Yang. Pu Songling: Selected Tales o f L iaozhai. Beij i ng, 1 9 8 1 .
VERNACULAR F I CT I O N : HUABEN A N D VERNACULAR STORIES
Acton , H a ro l d , and Lu Y i h s i e h . Four Cautionary Ta les. London, 1 94 7 (tra n s l at ions from Feng Menglong's Xing-shi heng-yan col l ecti o n ) . B a u e r , Wolfgang, and H e rbert F ra n ke, ed s . The Colden Casket (tra ns. C h r i stopher Levenson). B a l t i m ore, 1 9 6 7 . B i rc h , Cyri l . Stories from a M ing Collection. London, 1 9 5 8 (tra n s lations from t h e Cu-jin xiao shuo c o l l ecti o n ) .
D o l by, W i l l i a m . The Perfect L ady by Mistake. London, 1 9 76 (tra n s l ations from F e n g Menglong's c o l l ecti o n s ) . H a n a n , Patr i c k . A Tower for t h e Summer Heat. New Y o r k , 1 9 92 (tra n s lations from L i Y u ) . --
, ed . Silent Opera (Wusheng xi) by L i Yu. Hong K o n g , 1 9 9 0 .
Ma, Y . W . , and Joseph Lau, ed s. Traditional Chinese Stories: Themes a n d Variations. N e w York, 1 978.
Scott, J oh n . The Lecherous A cademician. London, 1 9 7 3 (tran s l ations from L i n g Meng-c h u ' s col l ecti on s). v a n G u l i k , R . H. Oee Coong A n : Three Murder Cases Solved by judge Oee. Tokyo, 1 94 9 . Y a n g H s i en - y i , and G l adys Y a n g . The Courtesan 's jewel Box: Chinese Stories of the 1 0th- 1 7th Centuries. B e i j i ng, 1 9 5 7 (tra n s l ations from the c o l l ections of Feng Meng-Iong and L i n g Meng
chu).
VERNACULAR FICTION: T H E C H I N ESE NOVEL
B rewitt-Tay l o r, C . H. San Kuo, or Roman ce of the Three Kingdoms. 2 vol s . S h a n g h a i , 1 9 2 5 . Egerton , C l ement. The Colden Lotus. 4 vo l s . London, 1 9 3 9 (tra n s l ation o f }in Ping Mer). Gu Z h i z h o n g . The Creation of the Cods. 2 vo l s . B e ij i ng, 1 99 2 (tra n s l ation of Feng-shen yan yr) .
H a n a n , Patri c k . The Carnal Prayer Mat (Rou putuan) by Li Yu. New York, 1 99 0 . H awkes, David, a n d J o h n M i n fo rd . The Story of the Stone: A Chinese Novel i n Five Volumes. Harmondsworth, M i d d l esex/New York, 1 9 7 3-8 6 . L i n S h u e n-fu , a n d Larry S c h u l z . Tower o f Myriad Mirrors: A Supplement to the journey to the West, by Tung Yueh (1 620- 1 686). Berkeley, 1 9 7 8 .
L i n , Tai-y i . Flowers i n the Mirror. Berkeley, 1 9 6 5 (tra n s lation o f jing h u a yuan) . Marti n , R i chard. jou Pu Tuan (The Prayer Mat of Flesh). New York, 1 9 6 3 . Roberts, Moss. Three Kingdoms: A Historical Novel. Berkeley/Beij i ng, 1 9 9 1 . Shadick, H a ro l d . The Tra vels of Lao Ts 'an. Ithaca, N .Y . , 1 9 5 2 . Shapi ro, S i d ney. Outlaws o f the Marsh. 3 vo l s . Beij i ng, 1 9 8 0 (tra n s l ation o f Shuihu zhua n) . Wal ey, A rth u r . Monkey. London, 1 942 (abridged tra n s l ation of Xiyou jr) . Yang H s i en - yi, a n d G l adys Yang. Wu Ching-tzu: The Scholars. Beij i ng, 1 9 5 7 . Y u , Anth o n y . The journey to the West. 4 vo l s . C h i cago, 1 9 7 7-8 3 .
THEORIES OF L ITERATURE
Bodman, R i c h a rd W . " Poetics a n d Prosody i n Early Med ieval C h i n a : A Study and Translation of KOkai's B u n kyo h ifu ro n . " U n p u b l ished PhD. d i ssertation, Corne l l U n ivers ity, 1 9 7 8 .
1 158
Selected Further Readings Ch'en S h i h - h s i a n g . Essay on Literature. Portl a n d , Me., 1 9 5 3 (tra n s l ation of the " Poetic Expo sition on L i te ratu re" ) . Rep r i nted in Cyri l B i rc h , ed . Anthology of Chinese Literature, From Earliest Times to the Fourteenth Century. New York, 1 96 5 .
Owen, Stephen. Readings i n Chinese Literary Thought. Cambri dge, Mass., 1 9 9 2 . S h i , V i ncent Y . C . The Literary Mind a n d the Carving o f Dragons. N e w York, 1 9 5 9 ; b i l i ngual rep r i n t Taipei, 1 9 70. Wong, S i u-kit. Early Chinese Literary Criticism. Hong Kong, 1 9 8 3 .
S e l ected C r i t i c a l Stu d ies G E N ERAL
B i rc h , Cyri l , ed . Studies in Chinese Literary Genres. Berke l ey, 1 9 74. B i shop, J o h n L . , ed . Studies in Chinese L iterature. Cambri dge, 1 9 6 6 . C h e n g , Frant;:o i s . Chinese Poetic Writing (tra n s . D o n a l d A . R i ggs a n d Jerome Seato n ) . B l oomi n gto n , I n d . , 1 9 8 2 . Chow Tse-tsung, ed . Wen-lin : Studies i n the Chinese Humanities. Madison, W i s . , 1 9 6 8 . Franke l , H a n s . The Flowering Plum a n d the Palace Lady. N e w Haven, Con n . , 1 9 7 6 . G i l es, Herbert. A History of Chinese Literature. L o n d o n , 1 90 1 . H i ghtower, James Robert. Topics in Chinese Literature. Cambridge, 1 9 5 0 . Lee, Peter H . Celebration o fContinuity: Themes i n East Asian Poetry. New Haven, Con n., 1 9 76. Levy, Dore J . Chinese Narrative Poetry: The Late Han Through l'ang Dynasties. Durham, N .C., 1 988. Li, Wai-yee . Enchantment and Disenchantment: L o ve and Illusion i n Chinese Literature. P r i n ceton, N .J . , 1 9 9 3 . L i n S h uen-fu, a n d Stephen Owe n , eds . The Vitality o f the Lyric Voice. P r i n ceto n , N .J . , 1 98 6 . L i u , James J . Y . The A rt o f Chinese Poetry. C h i cago, 1 9 6 2 . ---
. Essentials o f Chinese L iterary Art. N o rth S c i t u ate, R . I ., 1 9 7 9 .
---
. Language Paradox Poetics: A Chinese Perspective. P r i n ceto n , N .J . , 1 98 8 .
L i u Wu-c h i . An Introduction t o Chinese Literature. B l oo m i n gton , I n d . , 1 9 6 8 . Lyn n , R i c h a rd J o h n . Guide t o Chinese Poetry a n d Drama. B osto n , 1 9 84. N ie n h a user, W i l l i a m H., ed . Critical Essays on Chinese L iterature. H o n g Kong, 1 9 7 6 . ---
. The Indiana Companion to Traditional Chinese L iterature. B l oo m i ngto n , I n d . , 1 98 6 .
Owen, Stephen . Mi-Iou: Poetry a n d the Labyrinth of Desire. Camb ridge, Mass, 1 98 9 . ---
. Remembrances: The Experience o f the Past i n Classical Chinese Literature. Cambridge,
Mass . , 1 9 8 6 . --- . Traditional Chinese Poetry a n d Poetics: Omen of the World. M a d i s o n , W i s . , 1 9 8 5 .
Yang, Wi nston L. Y . , Peter L i , a n d Nathan Mao . Classical Chinese Fiction: A Guide to Its Study and Appreciation. Bosto n , 1 9 7 8 .
EARL Y LITERAT U R E (TO T H E E N D OF T H E HAN)
Crump, J. I. Intrigues: Studies of the Chan-kuo Ts 'e. A n n A rbor, M i c h . , 1 9 6 4 . E g a n , Ron a l d C . " N a rratives i n Tso chuan. " Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 3 7 . 2 ( 1 9 7 7 ) . H awkes, Dav i d . "The Quest o f t h e G oddess . " Asia Major, 1 3 , 1 -2 ( 1 9 6 7 ) ; repri nted i n Cyr i l B i rch, ed . , Studies i n Chinese L iterary Genres. B erkeley, 1 9 7 4 . Knec htges, D av i d . The Han Rhapsody: A Study of the F u of Yang Hsiung. Lond o n , 1 9 7 5 . Rigel, Jeffrey K. " Poetry a n d the Legend o f Confu c i u s ' Ex i le . " Journal o f the American Orien tal Society, vol . 1 06, no. 1 U a n u a ry-March 1 98 6 ) , pp. 1 3-2 2 .
Wang C h i ng-hsien. The Bell and the Drum: Shih Ching a s Formulaic Poetry i n the Oral Tra dition. Berke l ey, 1 9 74.
1 1 59
Selected Further Readings ---
. From Ritual to Allegory: Seven Essays in Early Chinese Poetry. Hong Kong, 1 9 8 8 .
Waters, Geoffrey. Three Elegies of Ch 'u. An Introduction to the Traditional Interpretation o f the Ch 'u-tz'u. Madison, W i s . , 1 98 5 .
Watson, B u rton . Early Chinese L iterature. N e w York, 1 96 2 . Yu, Pau l i ne . The Reading o f Imagery i n the Chinese Tradition. P r i n ceton , N .j . , 1 9 8 7 .
L ITERAT U R E FROM T H E E N D OF T H E H A N T O THE S U I
A l l en , joseph R . I n the Voice of Others: Chinese Music Bureau Poetry. A n n Arbor, M i c h . , 1 99 2 . B i rre!, A n n e . Popular Songs a n d Ballads of Han Ch ina. London, 1 9 8 8 . C h a n g , Kang-i S u n . Six Dynasties Poetry. P r i n ceto n , N .j . , 1 9 8 6 . D ieny, jean-Pierre. L es dix-neuf poemes anciens. Paris, 1 9 6 3 . Franke l , H a n s H . "Yueh-fu Poetry. " I n Cyr i l B i rch, ed ., Chinese L iterary Genres. Berkeley, 1 9 74. ---
. " F ifteen Poems by Ts'ao C h i h : An Attempt at a New Approach . " Journal of the Amer-
ican Oriental Society, 84 ( 1 9 6 4 ) .
F rodsham, j . D . "The O r i g i n s o f C h i nese N atu re Poetry." Asia Major, 7 . 1 ( 1 9 6 0 ) . G raham, W i l l i a m T . , a n d j a m es Robert H i ghtower . "YU H s i n ' s 'Songs o f Sorrow . ' " Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 43 . 1 ( 1 9 8 3 ) .
H ightower, j a m e s Robert. "Al l us i o n i n t h e Poetry o f T' a o C h ' i e n . " Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 3 1 ( 1 9 7 1 ) . ---
. "The F u o f T' a o C h ' i e n . " Harvard Journal o f Asiatic Studies, 1 7 ( 1 9 5 4 ) .
H o l z m a n , D o n a l d , La vie et I a pensee d e H s i K'ang. L e i d e n , 1 9 5 7 . Marney, j o h n . Chiang Yen. Bosto n , 1 98 1 . ---
. L ia ng Chien-wen ti. Boston, 1 9 7 8 .
Mather, Richard B . The Poet Shen YOeh (44 7 -5 7 3) : The Reticent Marquis. Princeton, N .j . , 1 988. M i ao, Ronald C . " P a l ace-Styl e Poetry : The Courtly Treatment of G l amor and Love." I n R o n a l d M i ao, ed . , Studies in Chinese Poetry and Poetics. Vo l . 1 . San Francisco, 1 9 7 8 . Owen, Stephen. " D eadwood : T h e Barren Tree from YO H s i n t o H a n y u . " CLEAR, 1 . 2 ( 1 9 7 9 ) . R u s hton, Peter . "An I nterpretat i o n of H s i K ' a n g ' s E i g h teen Poems Presented t o H s i H s i on H i s E ntry i nto the Army." Journal o f the Americal Oriental Society, 9 9 . 2 ( 1 9 7 9 ) . Watson, B u rton, Chinese Lyricism. N ew York, 1 9 7 1 .
TANG POETRY: G E N E RAL
Kao Yu-kung, and Mei Tsu- l i n . "S yntax, D i ct i o n , and I m agery in T'ang Poetry." Harvard Jour nal of Asiatic Studies, 3 1 ( 1 9 7 1 ), pp. 49-1 3 6 .
--- . " T u F u ' s 'Autu m n Med i tations' : An Exerc ise i n L i n g u i st i c Criti c i s m . " Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 2 8 ( 1 9 6 8 ) .
N ie n h au ser, W i l l ia m H. Bibliography of Selected Western Works o n T'ang Dynasty Literature. Tai pe i , 1 9 8 8 .
Owen, Stephen. The Great Age of Chinese Poetry: The High T'ang. N e w Haven, Con n . , 1 98 0 . --- . The Poetry of t h e Early T'ang. N e w H aven, Con n . , 1 9 7 7 .
Schafer, Edward. The Divine Woman: Dragon Ladies a n d Rain Maidens i n T'ang Literature. Berkeley, 1 9 7 3 .
TANG POETRY: I N DIVIDUAL POETS
Chan Marie. "The Frontier Poems of Ts'en Shen . " Journal of the American Oriental Society, 98.4 (October-December 1 9 78), p p . 420-3 7 . 1 1 60
Selected Further Readings --
. Kao Shih. Bosto n , 1 9 7 8 .
C h e n g C h i - h s i e n . Analyse formelle d e I'oeu vre poetique d'un auteur des Tang: Zhang Ruo xu. Paris, 1 9 7 0 .
Chou S h a n . " B e gi n n i ng w i t h I m ages i n the N atu re Poetry of W a n g Wei . " Harvard Journal o f Asiatic Studies, 42 . 1 ( 1 982), pp. 1 1 7-3 7 .
Davis, A . R . Tu Fu. New York, 1 9 7 1 . Dem i ev i l ie, Pau I . L 'oeuvre de Wang Ie Z elateur (Wang F an-tche). Poemes populaires des t'ang, VIII-IX siecle. Paris, 1 9 8 2 .
H a rtman, Charles. Han YU a n d the T'ang Search for Unity. P r i nceto n , N .J . , 1 9 8 5 . H u ng, Wi l l ia m . Tu Fu, China 's Greatest Poet. Cambridge, 1 9 5 2 . Kro l l , Pau l . Meng Hao-jan. Bosto n , 1 9 8 1 . Lee, Joseph J . Wang CHang-ling. Bosto n , 1 9 8 2 . L i u , J a mes J . Y . The Poetry of L i Shang-yin. C h i cago, 1 9 6 9 . N i enhauser, Wi l l ia m , e t a l . L i u Tsung-yuan. N ew York, 1 9 7 3 . --- . P'i jih-hsiu. Bosto n , 1 9 7 9 .
Owen, Stephen . The Poetry o f Meng Chiao a n d Han YU. N e w Haven, Con n . , 1 9 7 5 . P a l a n d r i , Ange l a . Yuan Chen. New York, 1 9 7 7 . Rouzer, Pau l . Writing Another's Drea m : The Poetry o f Wen Tingyun. Stanford, Cal if., 1 9 9 3 . S c h afer, Edward H . Mirages o n the Sea o f Time: The Taoist Poetry o f Ts 'ao T'ang. Berkeley, 1 98 5 .
T u Kuo-ch ' i ng . Li Ho. Bosto n , 1 9 7 9 . Wagner, Mars h a . Wang Wei. Bosto n , 1 9 8 1 . Waley, A rth u r . The Life and Times of Po Chu-yi. London, 1 94 9 . ---
. The Poetry a n d Career of L i Po. London, 1 9 5 0 .
Wong S i u-kit. The Genius o f L i Po. H o n g Kong, 1 9 74.
CLASSICAL FICTION, PROSE ESSAYS, A N D M I SCELLA N EA
Edwards, E. D. Chinese Prose Literature of the T'ang Period. London, 1 9 3 8 . L u X u n , A Brief History o f Classical Chinese Fiction (tra n s . Yang H s i e n - y i a n d G l adys Yang). B e iji ng, 1 95 9 . M a , Y . W . " Fact a n d Fantasy i n r a n g Tales." CLEAR, 2 . 2 U u l y 1 9 8 0 ) . Schafer, Edward H. The Golden Peaches of Samarkand: A Study of T'ang Exotics. Berkeley, 1 9 6 3 . --- Pacing the Void: T'ang Approaches t o the Stars. Berkeley, 1 9 7 7 . .
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. Shore o f Pearls. Berke l ey, 1 9 70.
--- . The Vermilion Bird: T'ang Images of the South. Berke l ey, 1 9 6 7 .
Wong, Ti mothy C . "Self a n d Society i n r a n g Dynasty Love Tales." Journal o f the American Oriental Society, 9 9 . 1 ( 1 9 7 9 ) .
SONG DYNASTY AND LATER POETRY
Chang, Kang-i S u n . The Late Ming Poet Ch' en Tzu-lung: Crises of Love and Loya lism. New H aven, Con n . , 1 99 1 . C h aves, Jonath a n . Mei Yao-ch'en and the Development of Early Sung Poetry. New York, 1 9 7 6 . D u ke, M i chael S . L u Yu. Boston , 1 9 7 7 . Egan , Ron a l d C . The L iterary Works o f Ou-yang-hsiu ( 1 007- 1 072). C a m b r i d ge, 1 9 8 4 . ---
. Word, Image, a n d Deed i n t h e L ife of Su Shih . C a m b r i dge, 1 9 9 4 .
F u l l e r, M i chael . The Road to East Slope: The Development of Su Shih's Poetic Voice. Sta n ford, C a l if., 1 99 0 . L a i , T. C . T'ang Yin, Poet/Painter ( 1 4 70- 1 524). H o n g Kong, 1 9 7 1 . 1161
Selected Further Readings Mote, F . W. The Poet Kao Ch'i. P r i n ceto n , N .J . , 1 96 2 . Pal u m bo-Li u , Dav i d . The Poetics o fAppropriation: The Literary Theory a n d Practice o f Huang Tingjian. Stanford, C a l if., 1 9 9 3 .
Sch m i dt, J . D . Stone Lake: The Poetry o f Fan Chengda ( 7 126- 1 1 93). C a m b r i dge, 1 9 9 2 . ---
. Yang Wan-Ii. Bosto n , 1 9 7 6 .
Waley, Arth u r . Yuan Mei: Eighteenth Century Chinese Poet. London, 1 9 5 7 ; repri nted Stan ford, Cal if., 1 9 70. Wong, S h i rl e e n . Kung Tzu-chen. Boston, 1 9 7 5 . Yos h i kawa Koj i ro, Five Hundred Years o f Chinese Poetry, 1 1 50- 1 650 (tra ns. J o h n Ti mothy W ixted ) . P r i n ceto n , N .J . , 1 9 8 9 . ---
. An Introduction to Sung Poetry (trans. B u rton Watson ) . Cambri dge, Mass., 1 9 6 7 .
S O N G LYRIC (el); G E N E RAL STU D I ES
Chang Kang-i ( S u n ) . The Evolution of Chinese Tz'u Poetry: From Late rang to Northern Sung. P r i n ceto n , N .J . , 1 98 0 . ---
. "Symbo l i c a n d A l l egorical Mea n i ngs i n t h e Yueh-fu pu-t'i Poem Series . " Harvard jour
nal of Asiatic Studies, 4 6 . 2 ( 1 986), pp. 3 5 3-85 .
Ch'en S h i h-ch'uan, "The R i se of Tz'u Recon s i d ered . " journal o f the Americal Oriental Soci ety, 90.2 ( 1 9 70).
F o n g , G race. " Persona a n d Mask i n the Song Lyric (Ci). " Harvard journal of Asiatic Studies,
50.2 ( 1 990), p p . 45 9-84. L i u , James J. Y. Major L yricists of the Northern Sung: AD. 9 6 0-1 1 2 6 . P r i n c eton , N .J . , 1 9 74. ---
. "Some L i terary Q u a l ities of the Lyric (Tz'u). " I n C y r i l B i rc h , ed ., Studies in Chinese
L iterary Genres. Berkel ey, 1 9 74.
Pi e n, Rulan Chao. Song Dynasty Musical Sources and Their Interpretation. C a m b r i d ge, 1 9 6 7 . Soong, Stephen c . , e d . Song Without Music: Chinese Tz'u Poetry. H o n g Kong, 1 9 8 0 . Yu, Pau l i ne, ed . Voices o f the Song Lyric i n China. Berkel ey, 1 9 94.
SONG LYRIC: I N DIVIDUAL AUTHORS
Fong, G race. Wu Wenying and the Art of Southern Song Ci Poetry. P r i nceton , N .J . , 1 9 8 7 . L i n S h u en-fu . The Tran�formation o f the Chinese Lyrical Tradition: Chiang K'uei a n d South ern Sung Tz'u Poetry. P r i nceto n , N .J ., 1 9 7 8 .
L o , I rv i n g . Hsin Ch 'i-chi. N ew York, 1 9 7 1 .
VERNACULAR SONG A N D D RAMA
Crump, James I. Chinese Theater in the Days of Khubilai Khan. Tucson, A r i z . , 1 9 8 0 . ---
. Songs from Xanadu. A n n A rbor, M i c h . , 1 9 8 3 .
Dolby, W i l l i a m . A History o f Chinese Drama. London, 1 9 7 6 . Henry, E r i c P. Chinese Amusement: The L i vely Plays o f L i Yu. H a m d e n , Con n . , 1 9 8 0 . H s i a , C . T. " T i m e and t h e H u ma n C o n d i t i o n i n the P l ays o f T'ang Hs ien-ts u . " I n Theodore de Bary, ed . , Self and Society in Ming Thought. N ew York, 1 9 7 0 .
Hung, Joseph i n e . Ming Drama. Taipei, 1 96 6 . Idema , W i lt, and Stephen West. Chinese Theater 1 1 00- 1 450; A Source Book. Wiesbaden, 1 982.
Lopez, Man u e l D. Chinese Drama: A n Annotated Bibliography of Commentary, Criticism, and Plays in English Translation. Meth uden, N .J . , 1 9 9 1 .
1 1 62
Selected Further Readings Lynn, R i chard. Kuan YOn-shih. Boston, 1 9 8 0 . Mackerras, Col i n , ed . Chinese Theater from Its Origins t o the Present Day. Honol u l u , 1 9 83 . Perng C h i ng-h s i . Double jeopardy: A Critique of Seven YOan Courtroom Dramas. A n n Arbor, M ich., 1 978. S c h l epp, Wayne. San-ch 'O: Its Technique a n d Imagery. Madison, W i s . , 1 9 7 0 . Scott, A . C . The Classical Theatre o f China. N e w York, 1 9 5 7 . S h i h , C h u n g-we n . The Colden Age o f Chinese Drama: Yuan Tsa-chO. P r i n ceton, N .J . , 1 9 7 6 . Strassberg, Ri c h ard E . The World of K'ung Shang-jen : A M a n of Letters i n Early Ch'ing China. N ew York, 1 9 8 3 . West, Stephen . Vaudeville and Narrative: Aspects o f Chin Theater. Wiesbaden, 1 9 7 7 .
M I N G A N D Q I N G FICTION
B i shop, John L . The Colloquial Short Story in China : A Study of the San-yen Collection. Cam b r i dge, Mass., 1 9 5 6 . D u d b r i dge, G l e n . The Hsi-yu Chi: A Study o f the Antecedents to the Sixteenth-Century Chi nese Novel. Cambridge, Mass . , 1 9 7 0 .
H a n a n , Patrick. The Chinese Short Story: Studies i n Dating, Authorship, a n d Composition. Cambridge, Mass., 1 9 7 3 . ---
. The Chinese Vernacular Story. Cambridge, Mass., 1 9 8 1 .
---
. The Invention of Li YO. Cambridge, Mass., 1 9 8 9 .
H egel, Robert. The Novel i n Seventeenth-Century China. New York, 1 9 8 1 . H s i a, C. T. The Classic Chinese Novel: A Critical Introduction. New York, 1 9 6 8 . Idema, W . L . Chinese Vernacular Fiction: The Formative Period. Leiden, 1 9 74. L i , Peter. Ts 'eng P'u. Boston, 1 9 8 0 . L u , S h e l d o n H s i ao-peng. From Historicity t o Fictionality: The Chinese Poetics o f Fictionality. Stanford, Cal if., 1 994. Mao, Nathan, and Liu, Ts' u n-yan . L i Yu. B oston, 1 9 7 7 . Pl aks, A n d rew . Archetype a n d Allegory i n the Dream o f the Red Chamber. P r i n ceton , N .J . , 1 976. --- . Four Masterworks o f the Ming Novel. P r i n ceto n , N .J . , 1 9 8 7 . , e d . Chinese Narrative: Critical a n d Theoretical Essays. P r i n ceton , N .J . , 1 9 7 7 . ___
Roy l ston, Dav i d L, ed . How to Read the Chinese Novel. P r i n ceton , N .J . , 1 99 0 . Wong, T i mothy C . Wu Ching-tzu. Bosto n , 1 9 7 8 . Yang, W i n ston L . Y . , a n d C u rt i s Ad k i n s , eds. Critical Essays o n Chinese Fiction. H o n g Kong, 1 980. Y u , Anthony C . " T h e Q uest o f B rother A m o r : B u d d h i st I nt i m at i o n s i n The Story of the Stone. " Harvard journal of Asiatic Studies, 49 . 1 ( 1 9 8 9 ) , p p . 5 5 -9 2 .
Zeit l i n , J u d i t h . Historian o f the Strange: P u Songling and the Chinese Classical Tale. Stanford, Calif., 1 99 3 .
THEORIES O F LITERATURE
B u s h , Susan, and C h r i stian M u rck, . Theories of the Arts in China. P r i n ceton, N .J . , 1 9 8 3 . H i g htower, James Robert. "The W e n h s u a n a n d G e n re Theory." Harvard journal o f Asiatic Studies, 1 8 ( 1 9 5 5 ) . Repri nted i n J. L. B i shop, ed . , Studies in Chinese Literature ( H a rvard
Yenc h i n g I n stitute Series X X I ) . L i u , J a m e s J . Y . Chinese Theories of L iterature. C h i cago, 1 9 7 5 . Owen, Stephen. Readings i n Chinese L iterary Thought. C a m b r i d ge, 1 9 9 2 .
1 163
Selected Further Readings R i ckett, Adele. Wang Kuo-wei's len-chien tz'u-hua: A Study in Chinese L iterary Criticism. Hong Kong, 1 9 7 7 . , ed . Chinese Approaches t o L iterature from Confucius t o L iang Ch 'i-ch 'ao. P r i n ceton,
---
N .J ., 1 9 7 8 . Saussy, H au n . The Problem o f a Chinese Aesthetic. Sta nford, Cal if., 1 9 9 3 . T u , C h i ng-i, trans. Poetic Remarks i n the Human World: len Chien Tz'u Hua. Ta i p e i , 1 9 7 0 . V a n Zoeren, Steve n . Poetry and Personality: Reading, Exegesis, a n d Hermeneutics i n Traditional China . Stanford, C a l if., 1 9 9 1 .
W i xted, J o h n T i mothy. Poems on Poetry: L iterary Criticism by Yuan Hao-wen (7 1 90- 1 257). Wiesbaden, 1 9 82 . Yeh C h i a-ying, and J a n Wa l l s . "Theory, Sta n d a rds, and Practice of Critic i z i n g Poetry in C h u n g J u ng's S h i h-p' i n . " I n R o n a l d M i ao, ed ., Studies i n Chinese Poetry a n d Poetics. Vo l . 1 . S a n F r a n c i sco, 1 9 7 8 . Y u , Pau l i n e . The Reading of Imagery i n the Chinese Tradition. P r i n ceton , N .J . , 1 9 8 7 . --- . "Ssu-k' u n g T'u's S h i h-p' i n : Poeti c Theory i n Poet i c Form . " I n Ro n a l d M i ao, ed ., Stud" ies in Chinese Poetry and Poetics. Vol . 1 . San Francisco, 1 9 7 8 .
COMPARATIVE LITERAT URE
Eoyang, Eugene. The Transparent Eye: Reflections on Translation, Chinese L iterature, and Com parative Poetics. B l o o m i n gton, I n d . , 1 9 9 3 .
M i ner, Earl . Comparative Poetics: An Intercultural Essay o n Theories o f L iterature. P r i n ceton, N .J . , 1 99 0 . Y i p, Wai-l i m . Diffusion of Distances: Dialogues Between Chinese a n d Western Poetics. Berke l ey, 1 99 3 . Z i a n g Longx i . The Tao a n d the Logos: L iterary Hermeneutics, East and West. D u rham, N . C . , 1 99 2 .
1 1 64
Ac k n ow l ed g m e nts
Many of the tra n s l ations h e re had gathered over the years, long befo re I devel oped the i ntention to do th i s boo k . Most, h owever, were done over the past fo u r years, espec i a l l y d u r i n g s u m mers, when I enj oyed the benefits of a translation grant fro m the B u reau of C u ltu ral P l a n n i n g a n d Deve l o p m e n t of the Repu b l i c of C h i n a . T h i s book owes a deep debt t o m y students, w h o h ave taken m u c h t i m e ed iting, correct ing, and res pon d i n g . T h e students in m y C h i nese I iteratu re in tra n s l at i o n c l ass h ave c a u g h t c o u n t l e s s typos a n d h ave b e e n fo rt h r i g h t with t h e i r d i sa p p rova l . W h at they d i d not l i ke, I genera l l y l eft out o r c h a nged . There i s n o critic s o i n no cently ruth l ess as a roomfu l of th i rty faces . Over the years I h ave had n u merous grad u ate students h e l p me i n p rep a r i n g ver s i o n s of the grow i n g m a n u sc r i pt : J e a n ette Rya n , Sop h i e Vo l p p, Pau l i n e L i n , a n d Robert Ashmore . I h ave espec i a l l y benefited from the help of S h a n g Wei, C h a n g S h u h s i ang, and Pau l i ne Lin i n the tra n s l at i o n s f r o m d ra m a . Pau l i ne L i n i n parti c u l a r went above and beyo n d the cal l of d uty in transport i n g c h u n ks of the m a n u s c r i pt a ro u n d over t h e years t o t h e fa r corners o f t h e g l obe a n d sen d i n g b a c k criti c i s m s . I n t h e fi n a l stages, spec i a l t h a n k s a r e d u e t o D a v i d S c h a berg, whose ca refu I read i ng brought i n n u merab l e l a pses i n sense a n d o m i tted l i nes t o m y atte n t i o n . It i s h u m b l i n g t o d i s cover h ow, after l i v i n g with a m a n u sc r i pt such a long time, one comes to look but not see. I wou l d a l so l i ke to than k A n n a Karve l l as a n d the staff at N o rton for the i r u n fa i l i n g energy, care, a n d good h u mo r i n p u tti n g a n author t h ro u g h h i s paces . F i n a l l y I m u st t h a n k my w i fe P hy l l is, w h o has a l ways known w h i c h of a set of c h o i ces "sounds best, " a n d w h o has steadfastl y h e l ped me over the years i n the preparation of yet another "big boo k . "
A few o f the selections h a v e b e e n p rev i o u s l y p u b l i s h e d , someti mes i n mod ified ver s i o n s, in the fo l l ow i n g works : Robert Ashmore, transl ator, " D u Tenth S i n ks the Jewel Box i n Anger" a n d "Censor Xue F i nd s I m morta l ity i n t h e G u ise o f a F i s h . " Repri nted with the perm i s s i o n of the tra n s l ator. Patrick Hanan, tra n s l ator, "An Actress Scorns Wealth and Honor . . . " from Silent Operas by L i Y u (Hong Kong: Ren d itions Paperbacks, 1 9 9 0 ) . Copyright © 1 9 9 0 by Research Centre for Tran s l ation, C h i nese U n i versity of Hong Kong. Repri nted w ith the perm ission of the p u b
I i shers. Pau l i ne Y u , ed itor, Voices of the Song L yric in China. Copyright © 1 994 by The Regents of the U n i versity of Cal ifo r n i a . Used with the perm i s s i o n of U n i vers ity of C a l iforn i a Press . Maynard Mack, General Edito r, The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces, Sixth Edition. Copyright © 1 9 9 5 by W. W. Norton & Company, I n c . Repri nted with the perm i s s i o n of the p u b l isher.
1 1 65
Acknowledgments Stephen Owen, The Great Age of Chinese Poetry: The High T'ang. Copyright © 1 9 8 1 by Yale U n i versity. Used with the perm ission of Yale U n ivers ity P ress. Stephen Owen, Mi-L ou: Poetry and the Labyrinth of Desire. Copyright © 1 9 89 by the Presi dent and Fel l ows of H a rvard Col l ege. U sed with the perm i s s i o n of H a rvard U n iversity Press. Stephen Owe n , Readings in Chinese Literary Thought. Copyright © 1 9 92 by the Pres i dent and F e l l ows of H a rvard Col l ege. Used with the perm ission of the Cou n c i l of East Asian Stu d i es, H a rvard U n i versity. Stephen Owen, Remembrances: The Experience of the Past in Chinese Literature. Copyright
© 1 98 6 by the P res ident a n d Fel l ows of H a rvard Col l ege. U sed with the perm i s s i o n of H ar vard U n i versity Press. Stephen Owen, Traditional Chinese Poetry and Poetics: An Omen of the World. Copyright © 1 9 8 5 by the Board of Regents of the U n iversity of Wisco n s i n Syste m . Rep r i n ted with the
perm i s s i o n of the U n i versity of Wisco n s i n Press. B o J u-yi, " Letter to Yuan Zhen" from " B a i J u y i : Letter to Yuan Zhen," Renditions: A Chinese English Translation Magazine, 41 & 42 ( 1 994) : 5 1 -5 5 . U sed with the perm i s s i o n of Rendi tions, Research Centre for Tran s l ation, The C h i nese U n iversity of H o n g Kong.
1 1 66
Auth o r, F i rst L i n e , a n d T i t l e I n d ex
abandoned fort for which no one cared, An, 674-75 "Accepting the Way (XL ) , September 1 645 " (Kong Shang-ren), 968-72 "Accompanied by My Kinsman Li Ye, Formerly Vice Director of the Ministry of Justice, and by Jia Zhi, Formerly Drafter in the Secretariat, I Go on an Excursion on Lake D ong-ting" (Li Bo), 4 1 1-12 "Account of a Visit One Night to Cheng tian Temple" (Su Shi ) , 6 6 8-69 "Account of a Visit to Lu Mountain" (Su Shi), 621-22 " Account of a Visit to North Mountain at Xin-cheng, An" ( Chao Bu-zhi) , 624-25 "Account of a Visit to Pine River " (Su Shi ) , 670 "Account of Little Rock Rampart Mountain, An" (Liu Zong-yuan), 6 1 2 " Account of M y Travels in F e i " ( Yuan Zhong-dao ) , 82 3-26 "Account of Peach Blossom Spring, An" (Tao Qian) , 309-1 0 "Account of Stone Bell Mountain" (Su Shi ), 622-24 A ccount of the Compass, The (Wen Tian xiang ), 705-20 "Account of the Hall of Precious Artworks" (Su Shi ), 663-65 "Account of the Pavilion for Setting the Cranes Free, An " (Su Shi ), 6 8 1-83 " Account of the Pavilion of the Drunken Old Man, An " (Ou-yang Xiu ) , 6 1 3-14 "Account of the Pavilion on Mount Xian, An" ( O u-yang Xiu ), 629-3 0 "Account of the Reconstruction of Level Mountain Hall, An" (Wei Xi), 634-35 " Account of the Small Hill West of Gu-mu Pond, An" ( Liu Zong-yuan) , 6 1 1-12 "Account of the Terrace 'Passing Beyond'" (Su Shi ), 665-67
" Account of Wen Tong's Paintings of the Slanted Bamboo of Yun-dang Valley, An " (Su Shi), 642 " Accounts of Marvels" ( Chuan-qi) ( Pei Xing) , 1 9 8 "Account t o G o with the 'Song o f Lasting Pain,' An" ( Chen Hong ), 44 8-52 "Actress Scorns Wealth and Honor to Preserve Her Chastity, An" (Li Yu), 9 1 5-4 1 addicts' lamps are ranged in groups, the, 1 1 47 Afternoon butterflies dance in the vegetable plot, 6 5 8 " Again Passing the Shrine of the Goddess" (Li Shang-yin), 5 1 2- 1 3 Aged Hare, t h e wintry Toad, 4 9 1 " Ah, H o w Splendid," 5 4 Aiyaiyai ! ! High ! ! M y , my ! ! Steep ? ! ! Yep . Yipes ! ! , 2 1 3-14 A l l along the bluffs of the R u , 34-35 All life in China's nine regions, 1 1 47 All wrong and woe in life begins, 640 Along the highway at Tong-jiang, 700 Analects ( Confucius ) : I. 1 5 , 5 9 11.2, 5 8 I I . 1 0 , 79 XL26, 3 1 2-1 3 XVIL9 , 5 8 ancient path darkened b y shadows o f trees, An, 200 Anonymous, 5 64-65 Anonymous (Dun-huang) , 5 6 0-63 " Anonymous Old Poem" (At fifteen I went with the armies ) , 2 6 1 "Anonymous Old Poem" (Flesh and blood . . . ) (Su Wu, attrib.), 25 1-52 " Anonymous Old Poem" (When I bound my hair. . . ) (Su Wu, attrib . ) , 2 5 1 Anonymous Song Lyric t o "Bodhisattva Barbarian," 247-48 1 1 67
Author, First Line, and Title Index "Another Poem on Mr. Zheng's Eastern Pavilion" (Du Fu), 4 1 4 "Another Repentance" ( Gong Zi-zhen), 1 148 "Answering a Friend's Gift of Charcoal" ( Meng Jiao ) , 483 "Answering Magistrate Zhang" (Wang Wei ) , 390-9 1 "Answering Pei Di" (Wang Wei ), 3 74 "Answering the Poem Left by Mr. Su, Nominally of the Bureau of Forestry, When He Stopped by My Villa at Lan-tian" (Wang Wei), 371-72
An xiang (to " Fragrance from Somewhere Unseen " ) (Jiang Kui ), 5 8 6-87 " Appended Discourses, " 63 " Army Song" (Wang Chang-ling) , 409 " Army Wagons: A Ballad, The " (Du Fu), 468-69 As bright as the snow on mountaintop, 23 3-34 " Asking for a Cat" ( Huang Ti-Jian ) , 695 As soon as the boat shoved off, 69 8-99 " At a Party Given by Fan Zhong-yan the Guests Spoke of Eating 'River-Hog,' or the Blowfish" (Mei Yao-chen ) , 65 0-5 1 At autumn's end nomad horsemen break through, 4 6 1 A t daybreak, out t o weed the fields, 659 " A t Daybreak I Crossed t h e Ping-jiang River and Climbed on Foot to the Summit of Crossing-Above-Clouds Mountain " (Wang Shi-zhen ), 1 1 3 6-3 7 At daybreak I felt uneasy at heart, 272 At daybreak those mansions and towers, 453 At Dragon Pool he offers wine, 454 At fifteen I went with the armies, 261 At Kun-wu Hill the Yu-su Brook, 4 3 8 A t Peach Creek I d i d not stay, 5 7 7 "Attaining Life " (Da-sheng), 1 3 3-34 At the moment Wen Tong was painting bamboo, 642 At the water's bottom a tracery screen appears, 3 2 8 "At the Yangzi a n d H a n " (Du Mu), 507 "August 17, Sleeping i n Daytime, " 656 "Autumn Cares II" (Meng Jiao ) , 482 "Autumn Hills " (Gu Yan-Wu ) , 1 1 3 0 Autumn hills, more autumn hills, 1 1 3 0 Autumn hills draw i n the last sunlight, 3 9 3 1 168
autumn moon's complexion i s ice, The, 482 " Autumn Stirrings" (Du Fu ) , 434-3 8 " Autumn Thoughts" (Han Yu), 4 8 4-85 Autumn winds blow over the earth, 491-92 Autumn winds rise, white clouds fly, 277-78 Back from three years in charge of a province, 499 bad poets all win public office, The, 478 Bai xin yue (to "Bowing to the New Moon " ) (Anonymous ) , 560-61 " Ballad (XXXVIII) " (Hong Sheng), 10 76-87 "Ballad of an Old Cypress" (Du Fu), 432-33 "Ballad of Mount Jing, A " (Meng Jiao ) , 482 "Ballad of Mu-Ian, The " (Northern Dynasties yue-fu), 241-42 "Ballad of Running Horse River: Sending Off the Army on a Western Campaign, The " ( Cen Shen) , 467 " Ballad of the Former Palace " (Wang Jian ) , 454 "Ballad of the Painted Eagle" (Du Fu), 42 8-29 " Ballad of the Yong-jia, A" ( Zhang Ji ) , 3 3 1 " Bamboo Pole ," 43-44 Ban Gu, 2 1 5-1 8 Bao Zhao, 323-24 "Barred Gate," 53 Barrier mountains, crossed in dawn's moon, 460 Beat the drums booming, 199 " Begging" (Tao Qian ) , 3 1 8 Behind barred gates, S 3 Behind the embroidered curtains, 563 " Bells (XXIX) " (Hong Sheng ) , 1059-62 " Bending River" (Du Fu ) , 424 bend in the clear river flows, A, 427 Beside the walls in yellow clouds, 399 Beyond the willows soft thunder, 570-71 "Bian He's Jade" ( "He's Jade " ) (Han Fei), 84 Billowing clouds touch sky and reach, 5 8 2-8 3 " Biographies of Lian Bo and Lin Xiang-ru " ( Si-ma Qian), 84-8 7 " Biographies of the Assassins " ( Si-ma Qian ) , 152-54 " Biographies of the Imperial In-Laws" (Ban Gu), 2 1 5-1 8 " Biography of Bo Yi and Shu Qi, The " ( Si-ma Qian), 142-44
Author, First Line, and Title Index "Biography of Master Five Willows " (Tao Qian) , 3 1 4-1 5 " Biography of W u Zi-xu" (Si-ma Qian) , 8 8-96 Birds are still whiter against river's sapphire, 438 birds in flight go off without ceasing, The, 392 "Bitter Cold, The " ( Cao Cao ) , 263 Black clouds weigh down on the walls, 471 Blown tumbling, leaves that fall to the ground, 4 8 4-85 Blue burned the lamp flame, the man was asleep, 649 " Blue Maid" (Pu Song-ling) , 1 1 20-27 " Bluffs of the Ru," 34-3 5 " Boating o n the Reservoir West of the City" (Du Fu ) , 4 1 6 "Boating o n West Lake : t o Zhang Shan, Academician and Fiscal Commissioner" (O u-yang Xiu ) , 6 8 7-88 "Boat of Cypress" ( Classic of Poetry XXVI ) , 47 " Boat of Cypress " ( Classic of Poetry XLV), 47-4 8 boat set sail upon the great river, The, 3 8 6 B o Ju-yi, 2 8 9 , 3 8 3 , 442--47, 457-5 8 , 496-5 02, 603-5 bondsman of the house of Huo, A, 235-3 6 Bones from battles are trampled to dust, 472 Bo Pu, 735 Born to dwell between Earth and Sky, 73 1-34 "Bowing to the New Moon" (Li Duan or Geng Wei, attri b . ) , 560 " Breaking the Branches of Willows " (Northern Dynasties yue-fu), 243 bright moon comes forth from eastern hills, The, 324 bright moon comes out from Sky Mountain, The, 464 Bright moon of the days of Qin, 462 brightness is below, The, 1 8-20 bright sun rests on the hills and is gone, The, 408 " Bringing Forth the Chariots," 23-24 "Bringing Her Fruit (XV) " (Hong Sheng) , 1 0 1 4-20 " Bring In the Wine " (Li Bo), 2 84-8 5
" Bring In the Wine " (Li He ) , 2 8 9 brothers Cen have a passion for wonders, The, 4 1 4-15 Buddhists tell of kalpa fires, 1 1 4 8 bugle blown sets marchers i n motion, A , 462-63 burning sap of a pine brand, The, 660 Butterflies go in pairs, 659 By Heaven above, 227 B y night we passed over Fisherman's Deeps, 3 1 9-20 "By the Passes " (Lu Lun ), 470 " By the Passes: A Song" (Li He), 471-72 " By the Passes: A Song" (Wang Changling ) , 466 " By the Passes: Songs " ( Guan Xiu ) , 472 By the side of Ruo-ye Creek, 3 8 1-82 By the walls of Wei City the rain at dawn, 3 75 " Calling Back the Recluse" (Zhao yin-sh i) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 2 1 1-12 " Calling Back the Soul " ( Zhao hun) (Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 204-1 1 , 276-77 " Calling to the Recluse " (Lu Ji ), 272 " Calling to the Recluse I " ( Zuo Si), 272 " Canon of Shun, " 63 Cao Cao, 263-64, 2 8 0- 8 1 C a o P i , 2 8 1-82, 3 5 9-6 1 Cao Zhi, 1 94-97, 262, 2 65-66, 267-70, 282, 6 1 4 C a o Zhi and Liu Zhen could n o t shun death, 2 8 8 Caressed and nursed i n swaddling clothes, 614 Cascades fly from Mount Li's cliffs, 4 5 4 C e n Shen, 4 1 1 , 466-68 " Censor Xue Finds Immortality in the Guise of a Fish " (Lang-xian) , 8 5 6-79 " Chamber Thoughts III" (Xu Gan), 266 " Chang-an Has Narrow Alleys " ( Eastern Han? ) , 232 " Chang E " (Li Shang-yin), 5 1 5 Chan-gong q u ( t o " Moon Palace " ) , Spring Passion (Xu Zai-si ), 737 Chao Bu-zhi, 624-25 Chao D uan-you, 656 chaotic tumult of maple tree shores, A , 412 Char of lacquer, powder of bone, 4 8 9-90 1 1 69
Author, First Line, and Title Index Cheerless, they leave their hometowns, 473-75 Cheng Min-zheng, 625-27 Chen Hong, 44 8-52 Chen Ji-ru, 8 1 5 Chen Lin, 2 3 6-3 7, 278 Chen Shu-baa, 267 " Child Crying for Food, A " ( Yang Wan-Ii), 702 " Child Playing with Ice, A" ( Yang Wan-Ii ) , 651 Chill and dreary, wind and rain, 3 8 Chilly i s the north wind, 3 5 Chilly mist hangs thin, 740-4 1 " Choosing a Dwelling Place in Luo-yang" (Bo Ju-yi) , 499
Chou nu-er (to "Ugly Slave " ) (Xin Qi-ji), 584 " Chronicles of Zhou" (Si-ma Qian ) , 1 4- 1 5 Chu-ci ( " Lyrics of Chu " ) ( Qu Yuan, attrib. ) , 1 5 5-79 " Calling Back the Recluse" (Zhao yin-shi) , 2 1 1-12 " Calling Back the Soul" (Zhao hun), 204-1 1 " Far Roaming," 1 76-8 1 " Fisherman, The , " 3 9 1-92 " Hill Wraith, The " ( Shan gui) , 1 60-6 1 "Junior Master of Lifespans, The" (Shaosi-ming) (Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 5 8-59 "Kingdom's Dead, The " ( Guo-shang), 161 " Lady of the Xiang River, The " (Xiang jun), 1 5 7-58 Li Sao, 1 62-75 " Lord in the Clouds" ( Yun-zhong jun ) , 1 5 6-57 " Lord of the East, The " ( D ong-jun) 1 5 9-60 ,
" Nine Songs, The , " 1 5 6-62 " Rites for Souls " ( Li-hun ) , 1 62 " Senior Master of Lifespans, The " (Da si ming) , 1 5 8 "Sovereign o f the East, The " (Dong-huang Tai-yi), 1 5 6 "Yellow River's Earl, The " ( He-bo), 1 60 Chu Guang-xi, 4 1 0 cinnamon beaker greets the god's child, A, 395 " Circle For Dance, The (XVI ) " ( Hong Sheng), 1020-27 1 1 70
" Citadel of Sapphire Walls " (Li Shang-yin) , 5 1 3-14 Citadel of sapphire walls, twelve turns, 5 1 3-14 city people are different, The, 1 1 44 Classic of Changes: " Appended Discourses, " 63 "Elucidation of Changes " (Wang Bi), 63-64 Classic of D ocuments (Shu jing), " Canon of Shun," 6 3 , " Tang's Vow," 124-25 Classic of Poetry: I " Fishhawk , " 30-3 1 IV "Trees with Bending Boughs , " 43 V " Grasshopper's Wings, " 4 1 V I " Peach Tree Soft and Tender," 34 VII " Rabbit Snare, " 43 IX "The Han So Wide , " 3 1-32 X " Bluffs of the Ru, " 34-3 5 XII " Magpie's Nest, " 3 5-3 6 XVII "Dew an the Way, " 49-50 XX " Plums Are Falling," 3 6 XXII "The River Has Its Forkings," 54-55 XXIII "Dead Roe Deer, " 3 6 XXIV "Ah, How Splendid," 5 4 XXVI " Boat o f Cypress," 4 7 XXX " First the Winds, " 3 6-37 XXXIV "Dry Leaves on the Gourd," 50 XXXV " Valley Winds, " 3 7-3 8 XLI " North Wind," 35 XLII " Gentle Girl," 4 4 XLV " Boat of Cypress," 4 7-48 XLVI "Thorn-Vine on the Wall," 3 9 X LVIII " In the Mulberries , " 55 LI " Rainbow, " 3 9 LVI " We H a d Our Delight, " 50 LIX " Bamboo Pole," 43-44 LXI "The River Is Broad, " 44-45 LXIV " Quince, " 45 LXV "Millet Lush , " 45-46 LXVI "My Prince Has Taken the Field," 5 5-5 6 LXXIII " Great Cart, " 5 6 LXXVI "Zhong-zi, Please, " 46-4 7 LXXVII " Shu Is on a Field Hunt , " 5 6 LXXXI " I Went Along the Broad Road, " 51 LXXXII "Rooster Crows, " 5 1 LXXXVII "Lift Your Kilts , " 57 XC "Wind and Rain , " 3 8
Auth o r, First Line, a n d Title Index XCIV " Creepers on the Moorland, " 40 XCV " Zhen and Wei," 48 CVIl "Sandals of Straw," 53 C X I "Within Ten Acres, " 4 9 CXIII " Huge Rat," 52-53 CXN " Cricket, " 275 CXV " Hawthorn on the Mountain, " 274-75 CXXXI " Yellow Bird, " 26-27 CXXXIII "No Clothes," 52 CXXXVIl "Eastern Gate's White Elms , " 49 CXXXVIII " Barred Gate, " 53 CXL "Willows by the Eastern Gate , " 40 CLVIII " Cutting the Haft," 54 CLXI "Deer Cry," 275-76 CLXVII "Gather the Fiddleheads , " 41-42 CLXVIII "Bringing Forth the Chariots , " 23-24 CLXXVIl "Sixth Month," 24-25 CLXXXIV " Crane Cries Out, " 40-4 1 CCXXXVI "The Greater Brightness, " 1 8-20 CCXXXVIl "Spreading ," 1 6- 1 8 CCXLV " She Bore the Folk , " 1 2-14 CCL "Liu the Duke," 1 5-16 CCLV " Overbearing," 20-2 1 CCLXII "Yangzi and Han, " 22-23 CCLXXIl "We Have in Hand, " 1 0 CCXC "Mowing Grasses , " 1 1 "Airs , " 3 0-5 7 " Great Preface," 64-67 Classic of Poetry (Shi-jing), 1 0-57 " Climbing an Upper Story by the Pool" (Xie Ling-yun), 3 2 1 " Climbing Bao-gong Pagoda" (Wang An shi) , 692-93 " Climbing Stork Tower " (Wang Zhi-huan) , 408 Cloud-covered hilltops fill my eyes, 5 1 0 cloud cover pressed 0 n the city walls, The, 1136 Clouds brightly colored, now shadowed, now white, 439 Clouds go drifting i n billowing floods, 266 Clouds veil the moon, 74 1 Cloudy coils of hair and hazy tresses, 737 "Cocks Crow" (Eastern Han ? ) , 23 0-3 1 Coiling smoke of sandalwood, 491
Cold mountains grow ever more azuregray, 3 9 0 C o l d notes from silver-inlay pipes, 5 6 6 C o l d tides dashed o n the ruined fort, 1 1 34 " Colophon for The History of Flowers,' A " ( Chen Jicru ) , 8 1 5 " Colophon o n the 'Account o f the Scarlet Maple Tower' " (Fu Shan) , 6 1 9 Come not too close t o the sharp sword, 480 Common Words to Warn the World (Feng Meng-Iong) , 8 3 5-55 " Companion Piece for Grand Master Yan's 'Newly Cleared Skies,' A" (Yu Xin), 3 3 0 " Companion Piece for X i e Jing's 'Terrace o f the Bronze Sparrow,' A " (Xie Tia o), 3 2 6 " Companion Pieces t o Chen Xiang's 'Peonies on a Winter Day' " (Su Shi) , 673 " C ompanion Piece to a Poem by Qian Bai-quan, A" ( Huang Jing-ren), 1 1 45 " Companion Piece to Liu Chang's ' Clear Heart Paper' " (Ou-yang Xiu ) , 6 8 6-87 " Companion Piece to Su Che's Thoughts of Former Times at Mian-chi ' " (Su Shi ) , 678 " Companion Piece to Xie Jing-chu's 'Spending the Night in My Wife's Study, Hearing Mice, and Being Greatly Troubled'" (Mei Yao-chen), 649 Confucius, 3 1 2-1 3 Constant Words to A waken the World (Xing-shi heng-yan) ( Feng Meng-Iong and Lang-xian ) , 8 5 6-79 " Corpse Released, The (XXXVII) " ( Hong Sheng) , 1 0 6 7-76 " Crane Cries Out," 40-4 1 " Creepers on the Moorland," 40 " Crescent Moon" (Mei Yao-chen) , 6 9 1 " Cricket, " 275 Cricket in the hall, 275 " Crossing the Ancient Barrier Pass in the Rain ( 1 672 ) " (Wang Shi-zhen) , 1 1 3 5 " Crossing the Barrier Mountains " (Zhang Zheng-jian ) , 460 " Crossing the Sea, June 20, 1 1 0 0 " (Su Shi ) , 677 " Crows Cry by Night, The" ( Li Bo), 3 9 9 cuckoo i s singing i n the bamboo, The, 2 3 9 Cui Guo-fu, 4 0 8 " Cutting the Haft," 54 1 1 71
Author, First Line, and Title Index Dark blue brows and gleaming teeth, 4 1 6 Da-sheng ( " Attaining Life " ) , 1 3 3-34 Da si-ming ( "The Senior Master of Lifespans " ) ( Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 5 8 date tree grows before m y gate, A , 243 Dawnlight to dusk transmuted the atmosphere, 320-21 Day's cicadas had already brought yearning's pain, 328 " Dead Roe Deer, " 3 6 "Declaration of Love ( II ) " ( Hong Sheng ) , 9 76-8 8 deed of chill betrays blossoms, A, 5 8 7-8 8 Deep, so deep within the yard, 570 " Deer Cry, " 2 75-76 "Deer Fence " (Wang Wei ), 3 9 3 " Denouncing the Rebel (XXVIII ) " ( Hong Sheng ) , 1 0 54-59 Dense groves of cassia in hills' hidden places, 2 1 1-12 Descended from Wei's Warrior King, you, General, 429-3 1 " Description of Walking in the Meadows on Cold Food Festival, A" (Fan Cheng-da), 6 3 7-3 8 Dew on the hidden orchid, 490-9 1 " Dew o n the Onion Grass" (Han ) , 2 7 8 "Dew on t h e Way," 49-50 dews are soaking the way, The, 49-5 0 "Diagram of Eight Formations, The" (Du Fu), 432 "D ialogue in the Mountains " ( Li Bo), 403 D ian jiang chun ( to "Putting on Lipstick " ) (Wang Guo-wei), 1 1 52 D ie fian hua (to "B utterflies Love Flowers " ) ( Ou-yang Xiu ), 570 Die fian hua (to "Butterflies Love Flowers " ) (Yan Ji-dao ) , 5 72 Die !ian hua (to "Butterflies Love Flowers " ) , O n the Frontier (Nara Singde), 1 1 3 9 Ding feng-bo ( t o "Settling Wind and Waves" ) (Su Shi), 578-79 Dipper stretches across the sky, The, 327 " Discourse on Literature, A " ( Lun-wen) ( Cao Pi), 359-61 "Discourse on Thinking of Things as Being on the Same Level" ( Q i-wu fun ) , 1 1 3-22 Discourses of the Domains ( Guo-yu), 300-301 Does something real lie behind, 1 1 52 " Dogwood Strand" (Wang Wei), 393 1 1 72
Dong-huang Tai-yi ( "The Sovereign of the East " ) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 1 5 6 Dong-jun ( "The Lord o f the East " ) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 1 5 9-60 "Don't Go Out the Gate ! " (Li He), 495-96 Don't laugh at the old farmers, 658 "Don't Plant Trees " ( L i He), 496 Don't plant trees in the garden, 496 dragon, submerged, enhances sequestered charms, A, 3 2 1 "Dragon Pool " ( L i Shang-yin) , 454 " Drawing Water from the Well and Making Tea " ( Lu YOlI), 653 "Dreaming of a Friend O n e Night" (Huang Jing-ren), 1 1 45-46 "Dream of Heaven" (Li He), 490-9 1 "Dream Recollections of Tao-an, The " ( Zhang Dai), 8 1 5- 1 9 "Drinking Alone by Moonlight" ( L i Bo ) , 403 "Drinking Wine V" (Tao Qian), 3 1 6 "Drunk, t o Zhang Shu o f the Imperial Library" (Han Yu), 2 8 7-8 8 " Dry Leaves on the Gourd," 5 0 D u Fu, 285-87, 379, 41 3-40, 468-69, 472-75 Duke Liu the Steadfast, 1 5-1 6 Du Mu, 3 8 0 , 452-5 3 , 502-8 , 6 3 1-32 Dun-huang (Anonymous), 5 6 0-63 "D uring an Intercalary August After the 'Arrival of Autumn' It Was Hot in the Evening and I Went to Be Cool in the Prefectural Garden " ( Yang Wan-Ii ) , 699 dust of travel on my clothes, The, 661-62 dust storm over the Gobi, A, 409 "Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger" ( Feng Meng-long ) , 8 3 5-5 5 " Dwelling in Peace on the Double Ninth" (Tao Qian), 3 1 5 Dying now, I know full well, 6 9 8 Each d a y those gone are farther withdrawn, 260-6 1 Each person has some one addiction, 498 " Early C o l d on the River: Something on My Mind" ( Meng Hao-ran ) , 396 " Early Migrating Geese " (Du Mu), 3 8 0 " Eastern Gate's White Elms , " 4 9 Eastern Han yue-fu, 229-3 6 " East Gate " (Eastern Han ? ) , 2 5 0-5 1 " East of Ping-ling" ( Eastern Han ? ) , 229
Author, First Line, and Title Index " East Slope" (Su Shi ) , 652 Eastward goes the great river, 579 east wind did it again, unsentimental, The, 573 "Eating Bamboo Shoots" (Bo Ju-yi) , 500 " Egrets" (Du Mu), 507 " Eight Accounts of Yong-zhou" ( Liu Zong-yuan) , 6 1 1-12 "Eight -Note Gan-zhou, " 101 "Eight Poems o n Eastern Slope" (Su Shi ) , 674-75 eldest wife wipes off boxes of j ade, The, 2 3 3 "Elucidation of Changes" (Wang B i ) , 63-64 Empty skies recede far into mists all around, 1 0 1 "Encountering a Wounded Soldier " (Lu Lun) , 477 " End of Spring" (Lu You ) , 696-97 " End of Spring: On My Newly Rented Thatched Cottage at Ran-xi III" (Du Fu), 439 "Enjoying Rain on a Spring Night" (Du Fu) , 427-28 Epilogue to Records on Metal and Stone (Li Qing-zhao ) , 59 1-96 " Escape from Jing-kou, The " (Wen Tian-xiang) , 705-9 "Escaping the Fighting (fifth of six) " (Wu Wei-ye) , 1 1 3 1 "Escaping the Fighting ( last o f six) " (Wu Wei-ye) , 1 1 3 1-32 evening sun goes down, The, 740 Ever on ward seasons shift, 3 1 3-14 Everyone says that the Southland's fine, 566-67 E very ten miles a horse is set galloping, 463 Facing the wind, my sighs are stirred, 509 "Falling Snow: A Song" (Lu Zhao-lin ) , 461 Famine came, it drove me off, 3 1 8 Fan Cheng-da, 63 7-3 8 , 659-60 Faraway lies that star, the Oxherd, 257 "Farm Home by Cu-Iai Mountain" (Wang Shi-zhen) , 1 1 3 6 "Farming Homes b y Wei River" (Wang Wei), 3 8 7 Far off water s, sunlit skies, 7 3 8 " Far Roam ing , " 1 76-8 1
" Fawn of Lin-jiang, The " ( Liu Zong-yuan) , 617 Feng-liu-zi ( t o " Gallant " ) ( Zhou Bang-yan), 576 Feng Meng-Iong, 8 34-55, 8 5 6 Feng ru song ( t o "Wind Enters Pines " ) (Wu Wen-ying) , 5 8 8-89 Feng-shen yan-yi ( The Romance of the Gods) (Xu Zhong-lin, attrib . ) , 771-806 Feng Yan-Si ( au-yang Xiu), 290, 570-71 Fine artifacts of the Six Dynasties, 504 " Fine-Grained Apricot Wood Lodge" (Wang Wei) , 392 Fine wisps of cloud sport their craft, 257-5 8 " First the Winds, " 3 6-3 7 "Fishhawk, " 3 0-3 1 fishhawks sing gwan gwan, The, 3 0-3 1 Flesh and blood join as branch to leaf, 25 1-52 flock of chickens squawked frantically, The, 423-24 flowers are bright, the moon . is dark, The, 568 Flowers i n spring, moonlight i n fall, 5 6 8 Flowers of springtime, autumn's moon, 5 1 0 Flowers s o lovely in the spring groves, 239 "Following the Rhymes of Huang Da-lin's' Sent t o Su Che ' " ( Huang Ting-jian ) , 6 9 4 Footloose a n d lost on the rivers a n d lakes, 631 For a thousand miles orioles sing, 5 04-5 Forest of Jokes, The (Xiao-lin) (Han-dan Chun, compiler) , 3 0 5 Forest of Notes, The ( S u Shi), 668-69, 670-72 Forest of Tales, The ( Yi-lin) (Pei Qi, compiler ), 3 0 5-6 " For My Sons" (Lu You), 6 9 8 "For Play" (Yang Wan-Ii), 661 For t e n miles long avenues, 6 3 2 F o r t e n years I w a s a drifter, 5 0 5 F o r the rest o f m y days I would grow old, 677 Forty is not yet old, and I, 6 8 5 "Fox," 3 9-40 Fox on the prowl, on the prowl, 3 9-40 From my newly rented lodgings, 6 8 8-89 " From Spring to Autumn of 1 827 Some Things Came to Me Which I Wrote Down Haphazardly" ( Gong Zi-zhen) , 1 148-49 " From the Capital, to a Friend" (Tu Long), 8 14-1 5 1 1 73
Author, First Line, and Title Index From the ford a tiny path, 657 From the metal bowl a child, 6 5 1 From the mouth of the Ju-tang Gorge, 437 From west of the towering ochre clouds, 423 " Frost and Moon" (Li Shang-yin) , 5 1 4-15 "Fu-chun Isle" (Xie Ling-yun) , 3 1 9-20 Fu Shan, 6 1 9 Garments o f snow, tresses o f snow, 5 0 7 " Gather the Fiddleheads , " 41-42 Gather them, gather them, fiddlehead ferns, 4 1 -42 " Gazing from a Boat in the Early Morning" ( Meng Hao-ran ) , 3 9 6 " Gazing in the Evening North of M y Cottage" ( L u Y o u ) , 696 " Gazing on Hua-qing Palace at Daybreak, " 453 " Gazing into the Wilds Under Newly Cleared Skies" (Wang Wei ) , 3 8 9 Geng Wei, 3 79 " Gentle Girl , " 44 " Getting Out What I Feel" (Li Bo), 404 " Getting S omething Off My Mind " (Du Mu), 6 3 1 " Getting U p a t Night i n a Boat" ( S u Shi ), 667-68 " Gift of a Meal (XXVI) " (Hong Sheng) , 1 04 8-54 " Girl Who Danced the Whirl, The " (Bo Ju-yi ) , 4 5 7-5 8 " Girl Who D anced the Whirl, The " (Yuan Zhen ) , 455-57 Glorious is our Mighty Yuan ! , 739 Glossy marble swathed in lace, 5 8 9-90 " Goddess, The " (Song Yu, attrib . ) , 1 9 0-93 "Goddess of the Luo, The" ( Cao Zhi), 194-97 " Going from Luo-yang to Yue" ( Meng Hao-ran) , 3 9 6 " Going O ut Early a n d Meeting a n O l d Love, I Give This to Her in Her Carriage" ( Shen Yue) , 328 " Going Out on the Le-you Plain " (Du Mu), 506 " Going to the Palace Library Early in the Morning with the Crescent Moon Just Rising" (Yang Wan-Ii), 701-2 " Going to Visit Censor Wang on My Day Off and Not Finding Him Home" (Wei Ying-wu ) , 372 1 1 74
" Gold Dust Spring" (Wang Wei ), 394 Gong Zi-zhen, 1 146-49 good rain knows its season, A, 427-2 8 " Grain Is Ripe, The" (Kong Ping-zhong), 657 " Grand, " 279-80 " Grand" ( Cao Pi), 2 8 1-82 " Grasshopper's Wings, " 41 " Graveyard, The " (Han ) , 278 " Great Cart, " 56 great cart goes rumbling along, The, 56 " Greater Brightness, The , " 1 8-20 " Great One, The" (Si-ma Xiang-ru ) , 1 8 2-84 " Great Preface " to the Classic of Poetry, 64-67 Green, green is the grass by the river, 259 Green, green the grass by the river, 258 Green hills stretch past the north ramparts, 376 Green lees of beer newly brewed, 289 Guan Han-qing, 729-3 1 , 737, 744-70 Guan-xiu, 200-2 0 1 , 472 Guan Yun-shi, 73 8 Guo-shang ( " The Kingdom's Dead " ) (Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 6 1 Guo-yu (Discourses 0 f the Domains ) , 300-3 0 1 Gu Yan-wu, 1 1 29-3 0 Half a lifetime's fellows and friends, 694 Half-hidden, a bridge soars up, 40 6-7 halls of the palace at Lavender Springs , The, 5 1 6 Han-dan Chun, 305 Han Fei, 84 Han Fei-zi (Han Fei ) , 84, 299-300 " Hanging Branch Song" (Anonymous ) , 5 64-65 Han History, The (Ban Gu), 2 1 5-1 8 Han-shan (The Master of Cold Mountain) , 404-6, 620 " Han So Wide, The , " 3 1-32 Han's sovereign prized the beauty of flesh, 442-47 Han Yu, 2 8 7-8 8 , 484-89, 59 8-60 1 , 607-9 hard rain rang as it dashed on the window, The, 650 Hard times wait in days to come, 279-80 Hard to meet youth a second time, 212 " Hard Traveling II" (Bao Zhao ) , 323-24 " Hard Traveling IV" (Bao Zhao ) , 323
Author, First Line, and Title Index " Hard Traveling VI" (Bao Zhao ) , 324 "Hard Ways to Shu" (Li Bo), 2 1 3-14 harness goes flying beside the willows, A, 584 Harsh winds blow the frost, 465 Have you not seen, 467-68 Ha ve you not seen how those truly rare talents, 6 8 6 "Having Fallen Off m y Horse Drunk, Various Gentlemen Come to Visit Me Bringing Wine" (Du Fu), 2 8 5-87 "Hawthorn on the Mountain, " 274-75 " Heaven Above " (Western Han ) , 227 Heaven beclouds and bewilders, 495-96 " Heaven's Motions , " 1 0 8-10 Heaven took m y wife from me, 690 He-bo ( " The Yellow River's Earl " ) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 1 60 He calmly watches a spider weave, 659 He comes home late always staggering drunk, 563 He Ning, 566 Her doorway set in white stone cliff, 5 1 2-13 Here among flowers one flask of wine, 4 0 3 Here at the world's edge dew turns to frost, 573-74 Here Li Bo wrote a poem, 505 Here peaks and ridges seem to mass, 73 8-3 9 Here where the master, his whisk in hand, 1 1 45 Her light tresses mimic the drifting clouds, 328 He roamed off to the south on a whim, 5 1 7 Her sleep has been fitful since spring began, 381 "He's Jade" ( " Bian He's Jade " ) (Han Fei), 84 He went out East Gate, 25 0-5 1 He Xun, 326 He Zhu, 657 High in the hall I saw a live bird, 428-29 High in the trees are sad strong winds, 270 High on the terrace are sad strong winds, 265-66 " Hill Wraith, The " (Shan gui) (Qu Yuan, attri b.), 1 6 0-6 1 His deeds overshadowed a land split in three, 432 Historical Records (Shi-ji) (Si-ma Qian ) , 1 3 5-54
" Biographies of Lian Bo and Lin Xiang-ru," 84-8 7 " Biographies of the Assassins, " 1 5 2-54 " Biography of Bo Yi and Shu Qi, The , " 142-44 "Biography of Wu Zi-xu , " 8 8-96 " Chronicles of Zhou," 14-15 " Prince of Wei, The ," 145-52 " Hollow by Meng's Walls, The " (Wang Wei ) , 392 Hollow glories won on a snail's horn, 665 Hong Sheng, 973-1 102 hound is barking at the gate, The, 562 House of Han pursues the Khan, The, 470 How can I pass these nights far from home ? , 1 1 3 8 How can you say, " I have n o clothes " ? , 52 How do you cut a haft ? , 54 How gray and green stands Mount Tai-bo, 400 How long has the moon been up there ? , 5 77-78 Huai-nan-zi, 3 0 1 Huang-fu Song, 5 6 5 Huang Jing-ren, 1 1 44-46 Huang Ting-jian, 6 5 6 , 6 93-95 Huang Zun-xian, 1 1 49-5 0 Huan xi sha (to "Washing Creek Sands " ) ( Anonymous ) , 562 Huan xi sha (to " Washing Creek Sands " ) ( Ou-yang Jiong) , 567 Huan xi sha ( t o " Washing Creek Sands " ) (Wang Guo-wei), 1 1 52 Huan xi sha (to " Washing Creek Sands " ) (Yan Shu), 290, 570 " Hua-zi Hill" (Wang Wei ) , 392 " Huge Rat, " 52-5 3 Hui-yuan's circle, 605-7 Human life no matter where, 678 Humbly I dwell by the valley's mouth, 371-72 " Huo Xiao-yu's Story" (Jiang Fang) , 5 3 1-40 I, Du Fu, have a l l my life, 2 8 5-87 I am in halves: half here far from home, 1 1 45-46 I am lodged by the northern sea, 6 94-95 I am that star at the Dipper's end, 239 I am utterly bumbling, 736 I asked his servant under the pines, 3 73 1 1 75
Author, First Line, and Title Index I built a cottage right in the realm of men, 316 I can't stand hearing the cries, 652 " I can't stand that 'lucky' magpie," 561 " I Chanced on Rain at Wang-kou and Recalled Mount Zhong-nan: Thus I Offered the Following Quatrain" ( Pei Di), 3 74 I climbed the hill to pick deerweed, 262 I couldn't get to sleep one night, 690 I cut fine-grained apricot for its beams, 392 I deplored the world's ways, they hampered and hemmed me, 1 76-8 1 I didn't even know my own face, 496-9 7 I didn't graduate in the top ten, 735 I drove my wagon out Upper East Gate, 260 I dwell in poverty, kin and friends scattered, 500-5 0 1 I face m y wine, unaware of darkness growing, 404 I face the table, I cannot eat, 324 If you love me dearly, 57 I gave up what little status I had, 738 I get off my horse, offer you wine, 3 75 I get up sick, done looking at my books, 653 I glow coming forth in the eastlands, 1 5 9-60 I go climbing up the Cold Mountain road (Han-shan) , 405 I had never felt longing all my life, 73 7 I happened to go out before White Gate, 240 I have a post but, 49 8-99 I have been told that Chang-an, 4 3 6 I have heard of Count Dong-ling's melons, 271 I have no child to take down my writings, 481 I held m y dress, not tying the sash, 2 3 9 I kept faring down roads choked with weeds, 2 64-65 I knew not of the Temple of Incense Massed, 384 I leaned on m y staff and called to the recluse, 273 I left the ancient temple in twilight mist, 1 145 I let my horse drink, then crossed autumn waters, 466 I listened to wind and listened to rain, 5 8 8-89 I looked out north on the Gorge of Dry Dark, 1 84-8 5 1 1 76
" Immortal's Recollections, The (XL) " (Hong Sheng) , 1 0 8 7-90 In a mass they come forward bowing, before the hall, 1 9 9 I n a plain cottage among green hills, 483 " In Bed" ( Zhao Yi) , 1 1 42-43 In Chang-an the fighting was out of control, 252 " Informal Composition" (Meng Jiao), 4 8 0 In front o f the shrine o f Zhu-ge Liang, 432-33 In goblets of lapis lazuli, 2 8 9 I n her yearning i t seems she wants to come closer, 3 2 8 In his bright-colored skiff h e rests his oars, 567 " In Jin-ling: A Second Series on Watching a Chess Game " ( Qian Qian-yi ) , 334 In lonely stillness, echoes from twilight eaves, 3 2 7 In months o f spring, April and May, 1 1 41-42
In my middle years I came to much love the Way, 3 9 0 I n orchid baths bathed, hair washed in blooms' scent, 1 5 6-57 In pairs white swans came flying, 2 3 0 I n response to the season new birds return, 328 Inside a curtain of crystal, 5 6 5-66 " In the Mulberries," 55 In the night I could not ,sleep, 2 5 6-57 In the palace halls crowds of officials, 702 " In the Rain, Spending the Night in the Library of Messrs . Xie, Xu, and Pei" (Mei Yao-chen) , 650 In the sixth month, all was in tumult, 24-25 In the south are trees with bending boughs, 43 In the valley we had our delight, 50 In this world's red dust, wearing ha t of straw, 656 I n thousands of tents the men a r e drunk, 1 139 Into jutting clouds terrace and hall, 6 9 1 " Invitation for Mr. Liu, An" ( B o Ju-yi) , 2 8 9 "Inviting Writers t o Drink " ( Meng Jiao), 288 I n winter's first month, from ten provinces, 42 1 I once wrote a poem swearing off poems, 1 14 8-49
Author, First Line, and Title Index I really did " cross above clouds," 1 1 3 6-3 7 I roll away my books and poems, 562
"I Watered My Horse at a Spring by the Wall" ( Chen Lin ) , 2 3 6�3 7
I rushed toward my office, lantern in hand,
"I Watered My Horse at a Spring by the Wall: Imitating the Old Ballad " (Yu Shi-nan) , 4 60-61 "I Went Along the Broad Road, " 5 1 " I went out the gates a t sunset, 2 3 8 I will always recall that d a y a t dusk, 5 8 0 " I Wrote This o n the Tower b y the Water at the Kai-yuan Temple in Xuan-zhou; on the lower side of the temple compound was Wan Creek, which had people living on both sides of it" (Du M u ) , 504
701-2 I sat on a boulder, let my fishing line hang, 3 3 I s i t alone i n bamboo that hides m e , 3 9 5 I sought i n vast stillness calm chambers, 3 3 0 "I Stand Alone" ( D u F u ) , 426 I studied at night, by dawn was not done, 4 8 1 I t came crashing out o f Zhuang Zhou's dream, 736 It dives in shallows for beakfuls of moss, 327 It is night's third hour, its third division, 5 1 4 I t i s rash t o say that a woman, 1 1 5 0-51 "I tried to climb Zhao-cheng tower, but wasn't able to make it all the way up. I expressed my disappointment in the garden of my nephew, the monk Wu-kong" ( Meng Jiao ) , 4 8 3-84 It seemed there was someone in the cleft of the hills, 1 60-6 1 It seems there is someone, he longs for Ming-gao, 3 76-77 It's fun to be on Cold Mountain Road (Han Shan) , 405 Its green hills lie in shadows, 5 0 7-8 Its j ade mansions lean at a tilt, 454 Its red railings and painted posts, 652 It was a fine feast, joy suddenly left, 278 It was outside Cloud Gate Temple, 505 It was the moment when the pulley creaked, 1 1 37 It was the rustling o f a faint breeze, 667-68 I used to have no wine to drink, 2 1 2-13 I've lived on this very mountain, 697 I've plucked every bud hanging over the wall, 729-3 1 I've suffered poverty years on end, 1 140 I walk here all alone, 735 I wanted to climb that thousand-step tower, 4 8 3-84 I was drinking that night on Eastern Slope, 578 I was drunk and craved some pleasure and fun, 5 8 4 I w a s drunk as I left the western hall, 5 72 I was moved by how loving you were at first, 2 3 8 I was sick of hearing the rain drip, 700-70 1 I was walking about beside Peng Pond, 271
"Jade Burial (XXV ) " (Hong Sheng) , 1 04 1-4 8 Jade white dew scars and harms, 4 3 4 Jia D a o , 3 73 Jiang Fang, 5 3 1-40 Jiang Kui, 5 8 5-87, 632-33 "Jiang Village" (Du Fu), 423-24 Jiao cries the yellow bird, 2 6-27 Jia Yi, 1 1 0- 1 3 Jia Zhi, 4 1 2 Ji luo xiang ( t o " Scent of Lace " ) . O n spring rain ( Shi Da-zu ) , 5 8 7- 8 8 "Jin Bamboo Ridge" (Wang Wei ) , 3 9 3 Jing-man i s n o t m y home, 2 5 6 Jing-yun, 4 1 0 Jin-lii q u (to " Golden Threads " ) , Thoughts on the Anniversary of My Wife's Death" (Nara Singde) , 1 1 3 8-39 Jiu feng-chen (Rescuing One of the Girls ) ( Guan Han-qing), 744-70 "June 1 0 , 1 1 77, Traveling by Boat to Take Up My Post at Pi-ling. Held up by adverse winds, we stayed the night at the mouth of the Zhou-pi River" ( Yang Wan-Ii) , 652 "Junior Master of Lifespans, The" (Shao-si-ming) ( Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 5 8-59 "Just Before the Mid-March 1 1 64 Festival, I Heard That My Father Was Not Feeling Well. Going back west I saw plum blossoms and had these thoughts" (Yang Wan-Ii), 700
Kan-hua hui (to "Turning Back After Seeing the Flowers " ) ( Liu Yong ) , 5 74 Keep on going, on and on, 2 53-54 1 1 77
Author, First Line, and Title Index "Kingdom's Dead, The" ( Guo-shang) (Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 6 1 kingdom smashed, its hills and rivers still here, A, 420 "King of Qin Drinking, The" (Li He), 493-94 King of Qin rode his tiger, The, 493-94 Kong Ping-zhong, 657 Kong Shang-ren, 942-72 Lace curtains flap on the open frame, 3 2 6 " Lacquer Tree Garden" (Wang Wei ) , 395 Lacy trees, touching in separate rows, 3 94 " Lady of the Xiang River, The " (Xiang jun) (Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 5 7-5 8 Lady will not go, still does she linger, The, 1 5 7-5 8 " Lake Qi" ( Wang Wei ) , 394 " Lamentation at an Ancient Battlefield, A " ( L i Hua ) , 475-77 "Lament by the River" (Du Fu), 422-23 " Lament for Chen-tao" (Du Fu), 421 " Lament for Golden Gourd, Jin-hu, A" ( Cao Zhi ) , 614 " Lament for Greenslope" (Du Fu), 421 " Lament for My Daughter, A" (Wu Wei ye) , 1 1 32-3 3 " Lament for Old Mr. Ji, the Finest Brewer in Xuan-cheng, A" (Li Bo), 404 Lan Chu-fang, 736-37 " Lane of Palace Ash Trees, The " (Wang Wei ) , 3 9 3 Languidly binding her dark strands of hair, 563 Lang-xian, 85 6-79 Last night the breeze brought to bloom, 409-10 Late at night my lover comes home, 564 " Late Autumn in the Qi-an District" (Du MU) , 5 0 6 Laughter and talk i n a thousand homes, 1 146 Layers of draperies hang into depths, 5 1 1 lay of the land bends eastward here, The, 692 Lazily waving a white feather fan, 404 Lazy and sickly, with much free time, 497 Leaves are dry on the gourd now, 5 0 Leaves fall from trees i n the autumn wind, 326 1 1 78
Leaves of water chestnuts curl in waves, 383 " Leaving Zhen-zhou" (Wen Tian-xiang) , 709-12 " Left Untitled " (Layers of draperies . . . ) (Li Shang-yin), 5 1 1 " Left Untitled" ( That she would come . . . ) (Li Shang-yin), 5 1 1-12 "Letter in Reply to Ren An" (Si-ma Qian ), 1 3 6-42 " Letter of Protest to the Prince of Wu" (Mei Sheng) , 1 3 0-3 3 " Letter to Li Zi-ran" ( Yuan Hong-dao), 8 1 3-14 " Letter to Qiu Chang-ru" (Yuan Hong-dao ) , 8 1 4 "Letter t o Yuan Zhen ( Yuan Wei-zhi) " (Bo Ju-yi ) , 603-5 " Lian-xiang" (Pu Song-ling) , 1 1 03- 1 3 Liao-zhai's Record o f Wonders (Pu Song-ling ) , 1 1 03-27 Li Bo, 1 22-23, 2 1 3-14, 244, 247, 2 84-8 5, 3 76-78, 3 8 1-82, 3 9 7-404, 4 1 1-12, 463-65 Li Bo's and Du Fu's writings endure, 4 8 7-88 Lie-zi, 302 life I see all around me turns, The, 1 1 43 Life's years do not reach a hundred, 261 " Lift Your Kilts, " 5 7 light boa t goes off t o south cottage, A, 3 9 4 Light on the waves, color of willows, 6 8 7-8 8 light scull greets my worthy guest, A, 3 9 3 Li He, 199-200, 2 8 9 , 4 7 1 , 4 8 9-96 Li Hua, 475-77
Li-hun ( " Rites for Souls " ) (Qu Yuan, attrib. ) , 1 62 Li Jing-liang, 526-3 1 Like a dream (Ru meng ling) (Li Qing-zhao ) , 5 8 0 Liken man's life t o morning dew, 254 Lin-jiang xian (to " Immortal by the River" ) ( au-yang Xiu) , 5 70-7 1 Lin-jiang xian (to " Immortal by the River " ) (Su Shi ) , 578 Li Qing-zhao, 5 8 0-83, 5 9 1-96 Li Sao ( Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 62-75 Li Shang-yin, 454, 5 1 0-1 7 Lissome stalks shine in deserted bends, 393
Author, First Line, and Title Index "Listening to a Neighbor Singing at Night" ( Mei Yao-chen) , 690 "Literary Mind Carves Dragons, The " ( Wen-xin diao-long) (Liu Xie ) , 343-59 Continuity and Variation: Chapter 29, 3 5 1-53 Determination of Momentum: Chapter 30, 353 Hidden and Out-standing: Chapter 40, 354 Its Source in the Way: Chapter 1, 344-46 Nature and Form: Chapter 27, 348-5 1 One Who Knows the Tone: Chapter 4 8 , The, 3 5 8-59 Sensuous Colors of Physical Things: Chapter 46, The, 3 5 5-57 Spirit Thought: Chapter 26, 346-48 "Little Chang-gan Song, A" ( Cui Guo-fu ) , 409 "Little Su's Tomb " ( Li He), 490-9 1 "Liu the Duke, " 15-16 Liu Xiao-chuo, 329 Liu Xie, 343-59 Liu Yan, 328 Liu Yi-qing, 3 0 7-9 Liu Yong, 5 74-75 Liu Zhen, 265 Liu Zong-yuan, 601-3, 6 1 1-12, 6 1 7-1 8 " Livelihood" (Zhao Yi), 1 1 43 Li Ye-si, 246 Li Yu, 5 6 8-69, 9 1 5-41 "Li Zhang-wu's Story" (Li Jing-liang), 526-3 1 Li Zhi, 807-1 1 " Local Song" (Zhao Yi), 1 1 4 1-42 "Lodge in the Bamboo" (Wang Wei ) , 3 9 5 Lone goose, not drinking o r pecking for food, 3 79 "Lone Hawk Over the Buddha Tower of the Monastery of Universal Purity, A " (Mei Yao-chen), 6 8 8-89 " Lonely Cloud" (Lu You), 697 " Lone Wild Goose" (Du Fu), 3 79 Long I've wanted to dwell in south village, 317 long stretch o f sky, vast sapphire, A , 5 0 3 "Long-tou Ballad" ( Zhang Ji), 470-71 " Long-xi: A Ballad" (Wang Wei), 463 "Looking for the Recluse and Not Finding Him Home" (Jia Dao ) , 373 " Looking over the Portrait (XXVI ) " (Tang Xian-zu), 8 92-96
Look there ! , 2 8 4-85 " Lord in the Clouds " ( Yun-zhong jun ), 1 5 6-57 "Lord of the East, The " (Dong-jun) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 1 5 9-60 "Lost Songs Following Short Songs" ( Li He) , 493 "Lotus-Picking Song" (Bo Ju-yi ) , 3 8 3 " Lotus-Picking Song" ( Li B o ) , 3 8 1-82 Lu Ji, 272, 3 3 6-43 Lu Lun, 470, 477 Lun-wen ("A Discourse on Literature" ) ( Cao Pi), 3 5 9-6 1 Luo Bin-wang, 4 6 1 Luo-yang craftsman of renown, A, 323-24 Lu You, 5 8 3 , 6 5 3 , 6 5 8 , 660-62, 695-9 8 Lu Zhao-lin, 4 6 1 Lying i n bed I thought o f a poem, 1 142-43 " Lying Sick" ( Meng Jiao), 478 " Lyrics for the Girls of Yue " ( Li B o ) , 3 82 " Lyrics of Chu, " see Chu-ci Madam Shen, 3 2 8 " Magnolia Dell" (Wang W e i ) , 3 9 5 " Magnolia Fence " (Wang Wei ) , 3 9 3 "Magpie's Nest," 3 5-36 man is a pathetic bug, A, 241 Man jiang hong (to " Red Filling the River " ) (Jiang Kui ) , 5 8 5-86 man of Du-ling in commoner's clothes, A, 4 1 7-20 man should act with daring, A, 240 Man's life in this dust-clouded world ( Han-shan) , 406 Man-ting fang (to " Fragrance Fills the Yard " ) (Su Shi ) , 665 Man-ting fang (to " Fragrance Fills the Yard " ) ( Zhou Bang-yan), 2 9 1 Marauders came when I rose a t dawn, 1 1 3 1-32 " March 5 , 1 1 8 0 . In early morning crossing on the Great Marsh ferry" (Yang Wan-Ii), 701-2 "Master of Cold Mountain, The," see Han shan Ma Zhi-yuan, 73 9-43 " Meditation on the Past at Jin-ling III " (Wang An-shi), 692 " Meeting" ( Eastern Han ? ) , 23 1-32 1 1 79
Author, First Line, and Title Index "Meeting a Gentle Rain on the Sword-Gate Pass Road" (Lu You), 661-62 " Mei-pi Lake Song, A " (Du Fu), 4 1 4- 1 5 Mei Sheng, 1 3 0-33 Mei Yao-chen, 649-5 1 , 6 8 8-9 1 "Melody-theft (XIV)" (Hong Sheng), 1008-14 Melons spreading, large and small, 1 6- 1 8 " Memorial D iscussing the Buddha's Bone" (Han Yu), 5 9 8-6 0 1 Mencius ( Mencius) : I A , 7 , 28-29 II A, 2 .xi, xvii, 61 V A, 4.ii, 6 1 -62 V B, 8 .ii, 62 Meng Hao-ran, 3 3 , 3 7 3 , 3 7 5 , 3 9 5-97 Meng Jian-nan ( to " Dream of the Southland" ) (Huang-fu Song ), 5 6 5 Meng Jiao, 2 8 8 , 478-84 Mid-autumn by Golden River, 3 8 0 " Midcurrent Song" ( Cui Guo-fu ) , 409 " Midnight" (Li Shang-yin), 5 1 4 " Mid-September o n West LIke " ( Zhang Dai), 8 1 6-1 8 " Millet Lush, " 45-46 millet smells sweet in the west wind, The, 657 Misty plants of m y small garden, 695-96 moaning of wind in autumn rain, The, 3 94 moon came out, the village ahead turned white, The, 1 1 3 1 moon grew dark i n the wind, The, 409 " Moon Over the Mountain Passes" ( Li Bo), 464 moon was black, the geese flew high, The, 470 " Mooring in the Evening " (Wu Wei-ye) , 1 1 3 3-34 " Mountain Stones" (Han Yu), 4 8 8-89 Mountain stones ragged and broken, 4 8 8-89 Mount Tai-hua and Mount Zhong-nan, 1 1 3 5-3 6 "Moving My Dwelling I" (Tao Qian ) , 3 1 7 "Mowing Grasses," 1 1 " Mr. Ishii o f Japan Seeks a Matching Verse" ( Qiu Jin ), 1 1 5 0-5 1 " Mulberries by the Path" ( Eastern Han ? ) , 234-35 Murky and flooding, cold currents broaden, 3 74 " Music, The (XI)" ( Hong Sheng), 1 002-8 1 1 80
My books lie scattered all around, 653 " My Brother Wang Chun-fu Brings Ou t a Painting by the MoiIk Hui-ch�mg and Engages Me to Write a Poem on It" (Wang An-shi) , 644-46 My canvas sail billows lightly, 1 14 1 M y home i s set i n blue-gray mists, 5 8 3 M y home lies east 0 f the eastern sea:, 1 144�5 My lips were squeezed against her, 736 My love was taken by another, 2 3 8 " My Prince Has Taken the Field," 55-56 My sweetheart and I had long been apart, 734-3 5 My thatch cottage was set in a narrow lane, 3 1 7-1 8 My tired servant and worn-out horse, 692-93 My traveling man's off in another land, 5 6 0-61 My youth felt no comfort in common things, 3 1 6
Nan-ge-zi ( to " Southern Song " ) (Li Qing zhao ) , 5 8 1-82 Nan xiang zi (to " The South Country" ) ( O u - yang Jiong) , 567 Nara Singd e, 1 1 3 7-3 9 new green in the tiny pond, A, 576 New home in a breach in Meng's walls, 392 Newly cleared skies, the meadows vast, 3 8 9 newly constructed threshing floor, A , 659-60 New Stories and Tales of the Times (Shi-shuo xin-yu) ( Liu Yi-qing ) , 307-9 " New Swallows" (Xiao Gang ) , 328 " Ne-zha and His Father" (from The Romance of the Gods ) (Xu Zhong-lin, attrib . ) , 771-806 Nian-nu jiao (to " The Charms of Nian-nu " ) : Meditation on the Past at Red Cliff (Su Shi ), 579-80 night lasted on, I could not sleep, The, 239 " Night Passage Over Two Passes " ( Cheng Min-zheng ) , 625-27 " Night's Midpoint" (Du Fu), 4 3 9 Night stretches o n i n the palace o f Wu, 1 0 0 " Night Theater on Gold Mountain" ( Zhang Dai ) , 8 1 5- 1 6 Nine days of hustle a n d bustle, 3 72 "Nine Songs, The" (Qu Yuan, attrib.), 156-62
Author, First Line, and Title Index " Hill Wraith, The " (Shan gui), 1 60-6 1 "Junior Master of Lifespans, The " (Shao-si-ming) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 1 5 8-59 "Kingdom's Dead, The" ( Guo-shang), 1 6 1 " Lady o f the Xiang River, The" (Xiang jun ), 1 5 7-5 8 " Lord in the Clouds" ( Yun-zhong jun ) , 1 5 6-5 7 " Lord of the East, The " ( D ong-jun ) , 1 5 9-60 " Rites for Souls " ( Li-hun) , 1 6 2 " Senior Master of Lifespans, The " (Da si-ming) , 1 5 8 " Sovereign o f the East, The " (Dog- huang Tai-yi) , 1 5 6 "Yellow River's Earl, The " ( He-bo), 1 60 "Nineteen Old Poems I," 25 3-54 "Nineteen Old Poems II, " 259 .
Oil, scented with orchid, burns down in the lamp, 454 " Old Airs V, The" (Li Bo), 400 " Old Airs VII, The " (Li Bo), 401 " Old Airs IX, The" (Li Bo), 1 22-23 " Old Airs XIV, The" (Li B o ) , 463-64 old man, a countryman from Shao-ling, An, 422-23 " Old Man's Bitterness" (Meng Jiao ) , 4 8 1 Old men o f the prairie, two o r three homes, 387 Old Mr. J i i n the Yellow Springs, 404 " Old Poem" (I climbed the hill. . . ) , 262 " Omen (X)" ( Hong Sheng), 995-1002 On a da y of good luck, at the well-favored hour, 156 " O n a Lone Duck" ( Xiao Gang ), 3 2 7 " O n a Woman Unwilling to Come Forth " ( Liu Xiao-chuo) , 329
"Nineteen Old Poems III," 255 "Nineteen Old Poems IV, " 2 5 5 "Nineteen O l d Poems V," 259-60 "Nineteen Old Poems IX," 2 5 8 "Nineteen O l d Poems X," 257 "Nineteen Old Poems XIII , " 260 "Nineteen Old Poems XN," 2 60-6 1 "Nineteen Old Poems XV, " 2 6 1 "Nineteen O l d Poems XIX , " 2 5 6 Noblemen whose wealth i s great, 647-49 "No Clothes, " 52 No one is seen in deserted hills, 393 " North Cottage " (Wang Wei ) , 395 North cottage, north of lake waters, 395 Northward we climbed the Tai-hang
"On Chen Zheng-fu's Collected Works, Intuitive Grasp " (Yuan Hong-dao), 8 1 1-12 " One D ay Before New Year's Eve, While Returning by Boat, We Moored at Qu-wo Market, and I Spent the Night in Zhi-ping Temple" (Yang Wan-Ii), 699 " One Day Coming Home: Ballad (on the death of his wife ) " (Wang An-shi), 6 9 3 " One I Love, The " (Western H a n ) , 227-2 8 One more day, then one more evening, 271-72 " On First Arriving in Ba-ling, Joining Li Bo and Pei, We Go Boating on Lake Dong-ting" (Jia Zhi ) , 4 1 2 O n foot I climbed u p Bei-mang's slopes,
Range, 263 "North Wind , " 35 north wind rolls u p the earth, The, 466-67 [No title] ( Chen Lin ) , 278 Now late in life I love only stillness, 3 90-9 1 " Ocean Mirage at Deng-zhou, The " (Su Shi) , 672-73 "Offhand Compositions: New Year's Eve 1 774 " (Huang Jing-ren) , 1 144 "Officer at Tong Pass, The " (Du F u ) , 425 Of old King Wu conquered Yin, 1 25-2 8 " Of Swords , " 1 04-7 Of the god-king Gao-yang I am the far offspring, 1 62
262 On I go through em pty azure mist, 1 1 3 6 On Kui-zhou's lonely walls, 434-3 5 Only a moment, this season's splendor, 290, 570 " On March 26, 1048, I Had a Dream" ( Mei Yao-chen ) , 690-9 1 " On My Laziness " (Bo Ju-yi ) , 4 9 8-99 " On My Portrait" (Bo Ju-yi ) , 496-97 On onion grass the dew, 278 On our pillows we made a thousand vows, 247-48 " On Passing by Hua-qing Palace" (Du Mu) 452-5 3 " On Poetry" (Zhao Yi), 1 1 43 1181
Author, First Line, and Title Index " On Reaching Hong Kong" ( Huang Zun-xian), 1 1 49
" O uting on a Spring Holiday (V) " (Hong Sheng ), 9 8 8-95
"On the Ba River Bridge: Sent Home to M y Wife" (Wang Shi-zhen) , 1 1 3 5-3 6 "On the Carved Stone Screen of Wu Kui, the Han-lin Academician" ( Ou-yang Xiu) , 679-80 " On the Child Mind " (Li Zhi ) , 8 0 8-1 1 " On the Gao-sha Road" (Wen Tian-xiang), 7 1 7- 1 9 " On the Painting of Tiered Bluffs and the Misty River in the Collection of Wang Ding-guo" ( S u Shi ), 643-44 " On the Paintings of Bamboo by Wen Tong in the Collection of Chao Bu-zhi" (Su Shi), 642 " On the Pavilion of the Drunken Old Man in Chu-zhou" ( O u-yang Xiu), 6 8 5 " On the Qing-yang Road" (Wang Shi
" Out the Passes " (Wang Chang-ling) , 462 " Out to the Frontier" (Du Fu ) , 473-75 Out West Gate, 279 Ou-yang Jiong, 567
zhen), 1 1 3 6 " On the Set Topic: 'Wild Goose o n the Sands ' " ( Geng Wei), 3 79 " On the Terrace of Cang Jie's Invention of Characters at the San-hui Temple " ( Cen Shen) , 4 1 1 " On the Three Peaks 0 f Magic Stone Mountain" (Lu You), 660 On the tips of trees are lotus blossoms, 395 On the very summit his thatched roof-hut, 3 72-73 " On the Winter Festival I Visited Lone Mountain and the Two Monks Hui-jin and Hui-si " (Su Shi ) , 669-70 " On the Yellow Sea: A Man from Japan Sought Some Verses and Also Showed Me a Map of the Russo-Japanese War" ( Qiu Jin), 1 1 5 1 " On Yin-wu Pavilion" (Yu Xuan-ji), 5 1 0 Opening drapes, she sees the new moon, 560 " Open them wide, the gates of the heavens, 158 Orchids o f autumn, the deer-weed, 1 5 8-59 Orion lies flat, the Dipper bends down, 677 o the magpie has its nest, 3 5-36 Others always insist that I drink, 2 8 7-8 8 Our army was at Greenslope, 421 Our great-shields we grapsed, donned j erkins of leather, 1 6 1 Our subsistence grows steadily bleaker, 1 143 " Outer Things," 60 1 1 82
Ou-yang Xiu ( Feng Yan-si) , 5 70-7 1 , 609-1 0 , 6 1 3-14, 629-3 0 , 6 3 8-40, 646-47, 657, 679-80, 684-8 8 " Ou-yang Xiu Asks Me to Write a Poem on a Stone Screen That He Owns " (Su Shi), 6 8 0-81 " O verbearing," 20-2 1 " Ox " ( O u-yang Xiu ) , 657 o Zhen and Wei together, 4 8 " Painted Hawk " ( D u F u ) , 4 2 8 Painters there a r e i n droves, 644-46 "Painting of a Pine" (Jing-yun ), 4 1 0 " Palace Lyrics XCV" (Wang Jian ) , 3 8 1
Palace 0 f Lasting Life, The (Hong Sheng), 973-1 102 Palace towers of Peng-lai, 4 3 6-37 " Pall Bearer's Song II" (Tao Qian), 2 1 2-13 Park of Stories, The (Shuo-yuan), 301 " Parted b y Great Distances " (Li Bo ) , 3 9 8-99 " Parting" (Wang Wei), 375 " Parting" (Wang Zhi-huan), 408 "Parting from M r . Xue at Guang-ling " ( Meng Hao-ran) , 3 75 " Passing by Lace-Crest Palace " (Wang Jian) , 454 Past the village filled with flowers, 740 " Pavilion Overlooking the Lake" (Wang Wei), 3 9 3 P a y no heed t o those sounds, 57 8-79 " Peach Blossom Creek " ( Zhang Xu) , 406-7 Peach Blossom Fan (Kong Shang-ren), 942-72 " Peach Tree Soft and Tender, " 34 "Peeking at the Bathers (XXI ) " ( Hong Sheng), 1 028-33 Pei Di, 3 74 Pei Qi, 3 05-6 Pei Xing, 1 9 8 Peony Pavilion (Tang Xian-zu) , 71-76, 8 8 0-906 " Pepper Tree Garden" (Wang Wei ), 395 "Performance of Peng Tian-xi, The " ( Zhang Dai), 8 1 8- 1 9
Author, First Line, a n d Title Index " Performers on the Terrace 0 f the Bronze Sparrow" (He Xun ) , 326 Perilous walkways, flying cascades, 1 1 3 5
" Presented to Cao Biao, Prince of Bai-ma " ( Cao Zhi) , 267-69 " Presented to Someone on Parting" (Du
pines are dark and gloomy, The, 200-2 0 1 Ping-Ian ren ( t o "Someone Leaning on the Balustrade " ) , By the Lake ( Zhang Ke-jiu), 73 8 Piping and singing from thousands of lands, 453 " Plagiarizing Poems " (Meng Jia o ) , 4 8 1 plant does not die i f you pull u p the stalk, The, 4 8 0 Playing the pipes w e pass to far shores, 394 " Plum Blossoms III" (Lu You ) , 661 " Plums Are Falling, " 36 Poems of Li Bo and Du Fu, 1 143 " Poems of the Year Ji-hai, 1 8 3 9 " ( Gong Zi zhen) , 1 147-4 8 " Poems on My Dwelling in the Rear Park " ( Zhao Yi) , 1 140-4 1 " Poetic Exposition on Gao-tang, The " (Song Y u , attrib . ) , 1 8 9-90 " Poetic Exposition on Literature, The " ( Wen fu ) ( Lu Ji) , 3 3 6-43 "Poetic Exposition on Red Cliff, The " (Su Shi ) , 292-94 " Poetic Exposition on the Owl, The " (Jia Yi), 1 1 0-13 poet suffers making poems, A, 4 82-8 3 "Pouring Wine Alone " (Du Mu), 503 " Preface for the Poems Written on an Excursion to Stonegate, A " (Anonymous ) , 605-7 " Preface on Sending Li Yuan Back to Winding Valley, A" (Han Yu), 607-9 " Preface on Sending Xu Wu-tang Off on His Way Home South" (Ou-yang Xiu ) , 609-10 " Preface to 'Poetry of the Song and Yuan,' A " (Yuan Zhong-dao ) , 821-22 " Preface to the 'Joint Collection of Poems on Seeking Plums on Xuan-mu Mountain ' " (Wen Zheng-ming) , 627-2 8 " Preface to the 'Orchard Pavilion Poems ' " (Wang Xi-zhi) , 2 8 3-84 "Preface to 'Tracing West Lake in a Dream ' " (Zhang Dai), 8 1 9-20 Prelude ( Eastern Han ? ) , 259 " Prelude: White Swans in Pairs " ( Eastern Han ? ) , 230
MU) , 6 3 1 prince honors dearly loved guests, The, 2 8 2 " Prince o f Wei, The " (Si-ma Qian ) , 145-52 " Prologue (I), October 1 6 8 4 " (Kong Shang-ren) , 943-45 " Prologue and Argument ( I ) " ( from The Palace of Lasting Life) (Hong Sheng ) , 9 75-76 "Public Banquet" ( Cao Zhi ) , 2 8 2 Pu-sa man ( t o "Bodhisattva Barbarian " ) ( L i Yu) , 5 6 8 Pu-sa man ( t o "Bodhisattva Barbarian " ) (Wei Zhuang) , 566-67 Pu-sa man (to "Bodhisattva Barbarian " ) (Wen Ting-yun), 565-66 Pu Song-ling, 1 1 03-27
Qian-he ye (to " Leaves of a Thousand Lotuses " ) (Anonymous ) , 703 Qian Qian-yi, 3 3 4 Qiao J i , 735 Qi-dong ye-yu (Zhou Mi) , 654-55 Qing-jiang yin (to " Clear River " ) ( Guan Yun-shi ) , 739 Qing-ping yue (to " Clear and Even Music " ) ( Nara Singde ) , 1 1 3 7-3 8 Qing-ping yue ( to " Clear and Even Music " ) . An account on the Censer Mountain Road (Xin Qi-j i ) , 5 8 4 Q i n Guan, 257-5 8 Qin Jia, 254 Qiu Jin, 1 1 5 0-5 1 Qiu Wei, 3 72-73 Qi-wu lun ( "Discourse on Thinking of Things as Being on the Same Level " ) , 1 1 3-22 " Qi-yu Songs " (Northern Dynasties, yue fu ) , 240-4 1 " Quatrain " (Du Fu), 439 " Quatrain on the Pool Behind the District Office in Qi-an, A" (Du Mu), 507 " Quatrains on Various Topics I" (Wu Jun), 328 " Q uatrain Written on the Road, A" (Du Mu), 5 0 8 Q u e ta zhi ( t o "The Magpie Steps on the Branch " ) (Anonymous ) , 5 6 1 " Quince , " 4 5 Qu Yuan, 1 5 5-79 1183
Author, First Line, and Title Index "Rabbit Snare , " 43 "Rainbow, " 39 Rain passes, a cicada's piercing cry, 632 Rains dense and steady darken deserted bends, 3 74 rains drip the sprouts out, The, 4 8 0 Rains have bathed Eastern Slope, 6 5 2 r a i n stopped a n d i n t h e groves, T h e , 660 " Rapids by the Luan Trees" (Wang Wei ) , 394 rapping of mallets ends, The, 74 1 " Reaching Yang-zhou" (Wen Tian-xiang) , 7 1 3-1 7 " Reading the Classic of Mountains and Seas I" (Tao Qian ) , 3 1 8-19 "Reciting Aloud, Alone in the Mountains " (Bo Ju-yi ) , 4 9 8 " Record of Music" ( Yue j i ) , 6 7-71
Records on Metal and Stone (Li Qing-zhao ) , 59 1-96 Red trees and green forests, 696 "Reflection of a High Building in the Water, The " (Xiao Gang ), 3 2 8 " Refusing the Trousseau (VII ) , M a y 1 64 3 " (Kong Shang-ren), 953-60 " Release from Melancholy: Song" ( Li He), 491-92 Remarks on Poetry (Shi-hua) ( O u-yang Xiu ) , 646--47 " Ren's Story" ( Shen Ji-j i ) , 5 1 8-26 " Reproach in the Women's Chambers " (Wang Chang-ling), 4 1 0 Rescuing One o f the Girls Ui u feng-chen ) ( Guan Han-qing), 744-70 "Respectfully Answering 'Drifting on the River ' " (Yu Xin ) , 329 Restless and troubled for thirty years now, 396 "Returning on Yang Lake" (Zhao Yi), 1 14 1 "Returning to Dwell i n Gardens and Fields I " (Tao Qian ) , 3 1 6 " Reunion ( L ) " (Hong Sheng) , 1 0 9 1-1 1 02 " Rising Drunk on a Spring Day, Telling My Intent" (Li B o ) , 404 rites are done now, drums beat to!jether, The, 1 62 " Rites for Souls" (Li-hun) ( Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 62 ritual ranks of the Five Great Peaks, The, 485 1 1 84
river and hills beyond the fog, The, 701 " River Flooded, The " (Du Fu), 427 river flooded outside my scrapwood gate, The, 427 " River Has Its Forkings, The , " 54-5 5 " River Is Broad, The, " 44-45 rivers and hills have no single master, The, 1139 " River Village" ( D u Fu) , 427 river was broad, the winds were strong, The, 699 "Roads of Luo-yang: Presented to the Director Lii Xiang, The" ( Chu Guang-xi) , 410 road to Long-tou is cut off, The, 470-71 " Roaming Free in Huai-nan " ( Zhang Hu), 632 " Roaming in the North Park by Night " (Xiao Gang) , 327 roe deer dead in the meadow, A, 36 Romance of the Gods, The (Feng-shen yan-yi) (Xu Zhong-lin, attrib. ) , 771-806 "Rooster Crows, " 51 Rows of brocade curtains shelter her barge, 327 Ruan Ji, 33, 1 8 4-85, 2 5 3 , 256-57, 270-72 Ruan lang gui (to " Young Ruan Returns " ) (Yan Ji-dao) , 573-74 Ruan Yu, 2 1 2 Ru meng ling ( t o " Like a Dream " ) (Li Qing-zhao ) , 5 8 0 R u meng ling (to "Like a Dream" ) (In thousands of tents . . . ) (Nara Singde) , 1 1 39 Ru meng ling (to "Like a Dream " ) (It was the moment . . . ) (Nara Singde ) , 1 1 3 7 " Sacrificial Prayer for the Dead o n My Own Behalf, A" (Tao Qian ) , 6 1 5- 1 6 s a d heart upon the river, A , 643-44 " Salt Merchant's Wife (in hatred of profiteers) , " 5 0 1-2 " Sandals of Straw, " 53 Sandstorms fill Turkish passes, 463-64 scene is lovely at the evening of day, The, 3 8 9 Schemes 0 f the Warring States (Zhan-guo ce) , 8 2-8 3 , 1 2 8-3 0 " Schoolroom for Women, The (VII ) " (Tang Xian-zu ) , 71-76 Seafarers speak of that isle of Ying, 40 1-3 "Seal Script in Stone" ( Ou-yang Xiu ) , 63 8-40
Author, First Line, and Title Index Searching and searching, seeking and seeking, 5 8 1 Season's close, evening skies clear to translucence, 322 " Seasons Shift" (Tao Qian ), 3 1 3-14 "S econd Poetic Exposition on Red Cliff, The " (Su Shi) , 675-76 "Secret Pledge (XXII ) " ( Hong Sheng), 1033-40 "Secret Union (XXVIII) " (Tang Xian-zu ) , 8 9 6-906 "Seeing Off Reverend Dan XII" ( Meng Jiao), 482-83 " Selling Tattered Peonies " (Yu Xuan-ji ) , 509 "Sending a Friend on His Way" (Li Bo), 376 "S ending a Palace Lady Back by Night to the Rear Boat" (Xiao Gang ) , 327 "Sending Mr. Yuan on His Way on a Mission to An-xi " (Wang Wei ) , 3 75 "Sending Off Mr. Ying " ( Cao Zhi ) , 262 "S ending the Fan (XXIII) , January 1 64 5 " (Kong Shang-ren ) , 960-67 "Senior Master of Lifespans, The " (Da si-ming) (Qu Yuan, attri b . ) , 1 5 8 "Sensual Charms o f the Three Wives, The " (Shen Yue ) , 233 "Sent to Judge Han Chua in Yang-zhou" (Du Mu), 507-8 setting light falls on a hamlet, The, 3 8 7 "Seven Sorrows " (Ruan Yu), 2 1 2 "Seven Sorrows I " (Wang Can ), 252 "Seven Sorrows II" (Wang Can), 256 shaman woman pours wine, The, 1 9 9-200 Shan gui ( " The Hill Wraith" ) ( Qu Yuan, attri b.), 1 6 0-6 1 Shan-hua-zi (to "Mountain Flower " ) (He Ning) , 5 66 Shan-po yang (to "Sheep on the Hillside" ), Thoughts on the Past at Tong Pass, 73 8-3 9 Shao-si-ming ( " The Junior Master of Lifespans " ) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 1 5 8-59 "She Bore the Folk ," 1 2-14 She cast a quince to me, 45 She had happened to go by the river, 3 8 1 She i s graceful, lithe, and winsome, 6 3 1 Sheng-sheng man (to "Note After Note " ) (Li Qing-zhao), 5 8 1 Shen Ji-ji, 5 1 8-26 Shen Yue, 233, 328 She who first bore the folk, 12-14
" Shi Cang-shu's 'Hall of Drunken Ink ' " (Su Shi ) , 640-4 1 Shi Da-zu, 5 8 7-88
Shi-jing, see Classic of Poetry Shi-shuo xin-yu (New Stories and Tales of the Times) ( Liu Yi-qing) , 307-9 Shores shaded by hanging willow fronds, 327 short lyric while drinking, A, 5 73 "Short Song" ( Cao Cao ) , 2 8 0-8 1 Shou-yang qu ( to "Shou-yang Melody " ) , A Sail Returns to the Distant Shore (Ma Zhi-yuan ) , 740 Shou-yang qu (to "Shou-yang Melody " ) , Autumn Moonlight o n Lake Dong-ting (Ma Zhi-yuan), 74 1 Shou-yang qu (to "Shou-yang Melody " ) , Clearing Haze a t a Market i n the Hills (Ma Zhi-yuan ) , 740 Shou-yang qu (to " Shou-yang Melody " ) , Evening Bells i n a Misty Temple (Ma Zhi-yuan), 740-4 1 Shou-yang qu (to "Shou-yang Melody " ) , Evening Sunshine i n a Fishing Village (Ma Zhi-yuan), 74 1 "Shrine by the River " ( Guan-xiu ) , 200-201 Shui-diao ge-tou ( t o "Song for the River Tune " ) (Su Shi ) , 5 77-78 " Shu Is on a Field Hunt, " 5 6 S h u jing ( Classic o f Documents ) , " Canon of Shun," 63 Shuo-yuan ( The Park of Stories ) , 301 Sickness in poverty, true disgrace , 479 "Sight-Seeing in the Moors Outside of Liang-zhou" (Wang Wei ) , 3 8 7 Si-kuai y u (to " Four Pieces o f Jade " ) , Passion (Lan Chu-fang) , 736 Silent and empty, former palace of pleasure, 454 Silent Operas ( Wu-sheng xi) ( Li Yu), 9 1 5-4 1 Si-ma Qian, 1 4-1 5 , 84-87, 1 3 5-54 Si-ma Xiang-ru, 1 8 1 -84 Since autumn the rodents have taken, 695 Since the time that I remarried, 690-9 1 Since you have gone away ( Chen Shu-baa), 267 Since you have gone away (Wang Rang ), 2 6 6 Since you have gone away (Yan Shi-bo), 266 single bird of prey beyond the sky, A, 426 single bloom of beguiling red, A, 673 1 1 85
Author, First Line, and Title Index "Sixth Month ," 24-25 "Sixth Month of 4 0 8 : We Had a Fire, The " (Tao Qian ) , 3 1 7-1 8 Skirt of gauze, tight red sleeves, 239 sky looked like snow, The, 6 69-70 slanting path, shaded by palace ash, A, 3 9 3 " Small Garden" ( L u You ) , 695-96 snows are over, branches turn green, The, 329 " Snowy Night ," 653 soil of Yang-di's Thunder Basin Tomb, The, 631 solid mass of cloud, A , 575 Someone asked me the way to Cold Mountain (Han Shan ) , 405, 620 "S omething Touched Me One Night and I Try to Get It Out" ( Meng Jiao ) , 4 8 1 " Some Time Ago i n Chen Han-qing's House in Chang-an I Saw a Painting of the Buddha by Wu Dao-zi. It was unfortunately tattered and falling to pieces. When I saw it again over ten years later in Xian-yu Zi-jun's house, it had been mounted and restored. It was given to me by Zi-jun and I wrote this poem to thank him" (Su Shi ) , 647-49 "Song: Every Night" (Xiao Gang) , 327 " Song for the Bank Where the Cock Crowed" (Wen Ting-yun) , 3 3 2 " Song for the Governor o f Wild Goose Barrier" ( Li He), 471 " Song of a Brown Wren in Wild Fields" ( Cao Zhi ) , 270 " Song of an Arrowhead from the Battlefield of Chang-ping" (Li He), 4 8 9-90 " Song of a Painting" (Du Fu) , 429-3 1 " Song of a Young Nobleman at the End of Night" (Li He), 4 9 1 " Song of Draft Cursive" ( L u You ) , 697-9 8 " Song of Lasting Pain" (Bo Ju-yi) , 442-47 " Song of Liang-zhou" (Wang Han ) , 407 " Song of Liang-zhou" (Wang Zhi-huan), 407 " Song of Lord Xie's Villa, A " (Wen Ting-yun), 3 3 2 " Song of Ming-gao: Sending Off M r . Cen, a Gentleman in Retirement Who Was Summoned to Court, A" ( Li Bo), 3 76-77 " Song of My Cares III" (Ruan Ji), 253 " Song of My Cares When Going from the Capital to Feng-xian, A" (Du Fu), 4 1 7-20 1 1 86
" Song of the Autumn Wind, " 277-78 "Song of the Bright Moon" (Baa Zhao ) , 324 " Song of the Prince of Lang-ya " (Northern Dynasties yue-fu ) , 241 " Song of the Southland" ( Chu Guang-xi) , 410 " Song o f the Southland" ( Y u H u ) , 3 8 1 " Song o f the Spring Palace" (Wang Chang-ling) , 409-10 " Song of White Hair " ( Eastern Han ? ) , 23 3-34 " Song of White Snow: Sending Off Assistant Wu on His Return to the Capital" ( Cen Shen) , 466-67 " Song of Xiang-yang " ( Cui Guo-fu ) , 408 " Song of Yong-zhou: II North Isle " (Xiao Gang) , 327 " S ong on Reflections i n Water" (Madam Shen) , 3 2 8 " Song o n Visiting Heaven's Crone Mountain in a Dream: On Parting, A" (Li Bo), 40 1-3 " S ongs for the Goddess' Shrine on Fish Mountain (Wang Wei ) , 1 9 9 "Songs o f Hu-zhou" (Wang Yuan-liang), 702 "S ongs of My Cares I" (Ruan Ji), 256-57 "S ongs of My Cares II" ( Ruan Ji), 33 "Songs of My Cares VI " ( Ruan Ji), 271 " S ongs of My Cares XVI" (Ruan Ji) , 271 " Songs o f M y Cares XXXIII" ( Ruan Ji), 271-72 " Songs of My Cares LXVIII" ( Ruan Ji), 1 84-85 Song Yu, 1 8 9-93 sorrow of leaving sweeps over me, The, 1 147 sorrows and j oys of my youthful years, The, 1 148 So tightly wound, sandals of straw, 53 " Source of Pain I I " (Xiao Gang ) , 327 " South Cottage " (Wang Wei ) , 394 South Mountains block up earth and sky, The, 4 8 2 "South o f the Walls We Fought" ( L i Bo), 244 " S outh of the Walls We Fought" (Li Ye-si) , 246 " South of the Walls We Fought" (Western Han ) , 22 8-29 "South of the Wall We Fought" (Wang Shi-zhen) , 245
Auth o r, First Line, a n d Title Index South on the lake the autumn waters, 4 1 1-12 "Sovereign of the East, The " (Dong-huang Tai-yi) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 1 5 6 Speak n o more when w e meet, 5 6 7 "Spending the Night a t a n Inn O utside the West Gate of Ji-zhou " ( Chao Duan-you), 656 "Spending the Night in Reverend Ye's Mountain Chamber, I was expecting the senior Mr. Ding, but he did not come " (Meng Hao-Ran ) , 3 73 "Spider-Fighting" (Yuan Hong-dao), 8 1 2-13 Spill water out on level ground, 323 Splashing on stones, the rapids' sounds, 6 8 8 "Spreading ," 1 6-1 8 spring ice melts on the river Luo, The, 4 1 0 " Spring i n the Southland " (Du Mu), 5 04-5 Spring isles grow with shoots of reeds, 65 0-5 1 "Spring Longings " (Wang Seng-ru) , 329 spring river comes down past White Emperor Castle, The, 329 Star sparkles break through trees on the ridge, 327 starving hound gnaws a dry bone, A, 4 8 1 Still a long road t o travel t o Heng-yang, 3 79 Still and somber, a bare chessboard, 3 3 4 "S tirred b y Something at Mount L i " (Li Shang-yin), 454 " Stocking-Viewing (XXXVI) " ( Hong Sheng ), 1 063-67 "S topping By the Temple of Incense Massed" (Wang Wei ) , 3 8 4 " Story of the Fuban, o r Pack Beetle, The " ( Liu Zong-yuan), 6 1 7-1 8 Stream in the wilds running zigzag, 693 "String Music for the Gods" (Li He), 199-200 "Strolling Along a Juniper Path in the Morning " (Yang Wan-Ii) , 660 " Study in the Hills" (Yu Xin) , 330 Such bustling hubbub, as our troops, 425 "Sui Palace, The " (He roamed off. . . ) ( Li Shang-yin ) , 5 1 7 " Sui Palace, The " (The halls o f the palace . . . ) ( Li Shang-yin) , 5 1 6 "Suite o n Autumn Thoughts, A " (Ma Zhi yuan) , 741-43
"S ummer Day in the Mountains " (Li Bo), 404 Summer's first month, all plants grow tall, 3 1 8-19 "Sunbeams Shoot" ( Li Shang-yin) , 5 1 4 Sunbeams shoot through a gauze window screen, 5 1 4 Sundry A ccounts o f the Western Capital (Xi-jing za-ji), 3 0 6-7 " Sunlight Cast Back" (Du Fu), 440 "S unning Oneself" ( Zhou Mi ) , 654-55 Sunrise in southeast, 234-3 5 Sun Chuo, 1 8 5-8 8 Su Shi (Su D ong P o ) , 201-3 , 292-94, 5 77-8 0, 6 1 8 , 621-24, 6 3 3-34, 640-44, 647-49 , 652, 663-83 Su Wu, 25 1-52 Swallows go winging before the hall, 259 Swarms of flies cluster around my sick horse, 4 8 2 Sweet wine of the grape, 407 "Taking Down a Trellis " (Du Fu) , 245 Tall are trees in the south country, 3 1-32 Tall bamboo blanket a sunlit stream, 1 1 3 6 Tall peak t o the south, 703 "Tang's Vow, " 124-25 Tang Xian-zu, 71-76, 8 8 0-9 06 Tao Qian, 2 1 2- 1 3 , 309-10, 3 1 2-19, 6 1 5-1 6 Ta suo xing (to " Treading the Sedge " ) (Wu Wen-ying ) , 5 8 9-90 "Teaching the Song ( II ) , April 1 64 3 " (Kong Shang-ren ) , 946-52 "Temple of Shooting Stars, The " (Wang An-shi) , 6 9 1 "Ten Days of Yang-zhou" (Wang Xiu-chu) , 826-33 "Ten Stanzas on the Autumn Rain " (Yang Wan-li ) , 700-701 That boat of cypress drifts along, 47 thatched cottage of several rooms, A, 696-97 That man of old was no disdainful clerk, 395 That painted pine looks exactly, 410 That she would come w a s empty words, 5 1 1-12 That time of year when swallows are set to go, 569 Then the blond-headed Xian-pi, 3 3 1 1 1 87
Author, First Line, and Title Index "Theory of Heaven, A" ( Liu Zong-yuan), 601-3 There are some men, their aims unfulfilled, 3 75 There is a rainbow in the east, 3 9 There i s a rare tree i n m y yard, 2 5 8 There is flex and play in bamboo poles, 43-44 There the millet is lush, 45-46 There was a Great One in this age, 1 82-84 There was once one Undying on a crane, 401 These men that I've met on the river, 4 1 2 These sticks, tied together, are falling apart, 426 They roll on and on, rippling and surging, 507 They tell me that the plums, 6 6 1 " Thirteen Companion Pieces for Wen Tong's ' Garden Pool in Yang-zhou': Bridge Over the Lake " (Su Shi ) , 652 This morning let there be j oy upon j oy, 2 8 1-82 This province is truly a land of bamboo, 500 This splendid pavilion enters azure mists, 414 "Thorn-Vine o n the Wall, " 3 9 "Thoughts Stirred o n Meeting the Gardener of the Royal Academy in Nanj ing " (Wu Wei-ye ) , 1 1 34-3 5 thousand homes of the mountain town, A, 4 3 5-3 6 " Three Cautionary Tales " ( Liu Zong-yuan) , 6 1 7- 1 8 " Three Poems Thinking o n Past Travels " (Du Mu), 505 Thrice I ' v e passed b y Level Mountain Hall, 63 3-34 Through the green trees of Xin-feng, 453 Tian-bao was in its final years, The, 455-5 7 Tian jing sha ( t o " Heaven Pure Sand " ) , Autumn Thoughts ( M a Zhi-yuan ), 740 Tian xian zi (to " Immortal in Heaven " ) (Wei Zhuang) , 563 time passed in life's century, The, 74 1-43 [title lost] ( Huang Jing-ren), 1 144-45 to "A Half" ( Yi-ban-er) ( Guan Han-qing ) , 737 t o "A Spray of Flowers " (A Word About Ugly Studio ) ( Zhong Si-cheng) , 73 1-34 to "A Spray of Flowers " (Not Giving In to Old Age) ( Guan Han-qing) , 729-3 1 1188
to " Bodhisattva Barbarian" ( Pu-sa man) (Li Yu), 5 6 8 to " Bodhisattva Barbarian" ( Pu-sa man) (Wei Zhuang ), 5 6 6-67 to " Bodhisattva Barbarian" (Pu-sa man ) (Wen Ting-yun), 5 65-66 to " Bowing to the New Moon" (Bai xin yue) (Anonymous ) , 560-6 1 to " Breaking Through the Ranks " (Po zhen-zi) (Yan Shu ), 569 To brew three thousand gallons of beer, 697-9 8 to " Butterflies Love Flowers" (Die lian hua) ( O u-yang Xiu ) , 570 to " Butterflies Love Flowers " (Die lian hua) (Yan Ji-da o), 572 to " Butterflies Love Flowers" (Die lian hua), On the Frontier (Nara Singde) , 1 1 3 9 t o " Clear and Even Music" ( Q ing-ping yue) ( Nara Singde ) , 1 1 3 7-3 8 to " Clear and Even Music " ( Q ing-ping yue ). An account on the Censer Mountain Road (Xin Qi-j i ) , 5 8 4 t o " Clear River" ( Qing-jiang yin) ( Guan Yun-shi ) , 739 to "Dead Drunk in the East Wind" ( Chen zui dong-feng) (Xu Zai-si), 734-3 5 to " D own and Out Drunk " ( Zui luo-po), Written on Leaving Jing-kou (Su Shi ) , 676-77 to "Dream of the Southland" (Meng Jian nan) (Huang-fu Song ), 565 to " Drunk in an Age of Peace" (Zui tai ping) (Anonymous), 739 to "Fisherman's Lyrics " ( Yu ge ci) (Anonymous ) , 563 to " Four Pieces of Jade " (Si-kuai yu), Passion (Lan Chu-fang), 73 6 to " Fragrance Fills the Yard" (Man-ting fang) (Su Shi ) , 665 to " Fragrance Fills the Yard " (Man ting fang) ( Zhou Bang-yan) , 2 9 1 t o " Fragrance from Somewhere Unseen" (An xiang) (Jiang Kui ) , 5 8 6-87 to " Free-Spirited Fisherman" ( Yu-jia ao) (Li Qing-zhao ) , 5 8 2-83 to " Gallant " (Feng-liu-zi) (Zhou Bang-yan ) , 5 76 to " Gods on the Magpie Bridge " ( Qin Guan ) , 257-5 8
A uthor, First Line, a n d Title Index to " Golden Threads " Uin-IU qui, Thoughts on the Anniversary of My Wife's Death" (Nara Singde ) , 1 1 3 8-3 9 to " Heaven Drunk" (Zui-zhong Tian), Big Butterfly (Wang He-qing) , 736 to " Heaven Pure Sand" ( Tian jing sha ) , Autumn Thoughts ( M a Zhi-yuan) , 740 to " Helped Home Drunk " ( Zui fu gui) (Wang He-qing) , 736 "To His Wife " ( Qin jia, attri b . ) , 254 "To Huang Ji-fu " (Huang Ti-jian), 694-95 to " Immortal by the River" ( Lin-jiang xian) (Ou-yang Xiu ) , 5 70-71 to "Immortal by the River" ( Lin-jiang xian) (Su Shi ) , 578 to "Immortal in Heaven" ( Tian xian zi) (Wei Zhuang) , 563 to "Joy at Midnight" ( Ye-ban Ie) ( Liu Yong) , 575 to "Leaves of a Thousand Lotuses" ( Q ian
he ye) (Anonymous ) , 703 to "Like a Dream " (Ru meng ling) ( Nara Singde ) , 1 1 3 7 to "Like a Dream" (Ru meng ling) ( In thousands o f tents . . . ) (Nara Singde) , 1 1 39 to Lii-yao-bian, " O f Myself" ( Qiao Ji ) , 735 to "Moon Over West River " : on Level Mountain Hall (Su Shi ) , 63 3-34 to " Moon Palace" ( Chan-gong qui, Spring Passion (Xu Zai-si), 737 to "Mountain Flower" (Shan-hua-zi) ( He Ning) , 566 "Tong-chao Tower at Zheng-mai Station " (Su Shi ), 677 to "Night-Closing Flowers " ( Ye he hua ) . Going along the Crane River o n m y way to the capital, I moored at Feng Gate and was moved to write this (Wu Wen-ying) , 589 t o " Note After Note " (Sheng-sheng man) ( Li Qing-zhao ) , 5 8 1 t o " Partridge Weather " (Zhe-gu tian) (Lu You), 5 8 3 t o "Partridge Weather" (Zhe-gu tian) ( A short lyric while drinking . . . ) (Yan Ji-dao ) , 573 to "Partridge Weather " (Zhe-gu tian) (With such feeling . . . ) (Yan Ji-dao), 5 72-73 "To Pei Di" (Wang Wei ), 3 8 9
to " Pleasure in the Lovely Woman" ( Yu mei-ren ) (Li Yu), 5 6 8 t o "Putting o n Lipstick" (Dian jiang chun) (Wang Guo-wei ) , 1 1 52 to "Reaching Golden Gates " ( Ye jin-men) (Yan Shu ) , 290-9 1 to " Red Filling the River" (Man jiang hong) (Jiang Kui ) , 5 8 5-86 "Tormented " ( Meng Jiao), 478 to " Scent of Lace " Ui luo xiang ). On spring rain ( Shi Da-zu ) , 5 8 7-8 8 to "Seeking Fragrant Plants " (Xun fang cao ) , Account of a Dream in Xiao Temple (Nara Singde ) , 1 1 3 8 t o "Settling Wind and Waves " (Ding feng bo) (Su Shi ) , 578-79 to "Sheep on the Hillside " (Shan-po yang), Thoughts on the Past at Tong Pass, 73 8-3 9 to "Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qui, A Sail Returns to the Distant Shore (Ma Zhi-yuan), 740 to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu i , Autumn Moonlight on Lake Dong-ring (Ma Zhi-yuan), 74 1 to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu i , Clearing Haze a t a Marker i n the Hills (Ma Zhi-yuan) , 740 to "Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qu i , Evening Bells i n a Misty Temple (Ma Zhi-yuan ) , 740-4 1 to " Shou-yang Melody" (Shou-yang qui, Evening Sunshine in a Fishing Village (Ma Zhi-yuan) , 741 to " S omeone Leaning on the Balustrade" (Ping-Ian ren), By the Lake (Zhang Ke jiu) , 7 3 8 to " Song for the River Tune " (Shui-diao ge-tou) (Su Shi ), 5 77-78 to "Southern Song" (Nan-ge-zi) (Li Qing-zhao ) , 5 8 1-82 to " Spring in the Mansion of Jade" ( Yu- lou chun ) (Zhou Bang-yan) , 577 to "The Charms of Nian-nu " (Nian-nii jiao ) : Meditation on the Past at Red Cliff (Su Shi ) , 5 79-80 to " The Drunken Lord" (Zui gong-zi) ( Anonymous ) , 5 62 to " The Drunken Lord" (Zui gong-zi) (Xue Zhao-yun ) , 5 63-64 1189
Author, First Line, and Title Index to "The Drunken Lord" ( Zui gong-zi) (Yin E), 564 to "The Magpie Steps on the Branch" (Que ta zhi) (Anonymous ) , 5 6 1 T o the north o f the Chu king's palace, 43 9-40 To the northwest stands a tower high, 259-60 to "The Pleasures of Kicking the Football" ( Feng Yan-si), 290 to "The Pleasures of Meeting" (Xiang-jian huan) ( Li Yu, attrib. ) , 569 to "The South Country" (Nan xiang zi) ( Ou-yang Jiong) , 567 To the south of Redbird Pontoon Bridge, 332 to "The Springtime of Marble Halls" ( Yu-lou chun) (Yan Ji-da o), 573 " To the west of Lake Dong-ting," 4 1 2 t o "Treading the Sedge" (Ta s u o xing) (Wu Wen-ying), 5 8 9-90 to "Turning Back After Seeing the Flowers " (Kan-hua hui) ( Liu Yong ) , 574 to "Ugly Slave " ( Chou nu-er) ( Xin Qi-j i ) , 584 to "Victory Music " ( D e sheng yue) ( B o P u ) , 735 Towards evening t h e piping g r e w mournful, 465-66 to " Washing Creek Sands " (Huan xi sha) (Anonymous ) , 562 to "Washing Creek Sands " (Huan xi sha) ( Ou-yang Jiong) , 567 to "Washing Creek Sands " (Huan x i sha) (Wang Guo-wei) , 1 1 52 to "Washing Creek Sands " (Huan xi sha ) (Yan Shu ) , 290, 570 to "West River Moon" ( Xi jiang yue ) . Expressing what w a s on m y mind (Xin Qi-ji) , 5 8 4 t o "Wind Enters Pines" (Feng ru song) (Wu Wen-ying ) , 5 8 8-89 To Xiao and Xiang the royal daughters, 412 to "Yang-zhou Andante" (Jiang Kui ) , 632-3 3 to "Young Ruan Returns" (Ruan lang gui) (Yan Ji-da o ) , 573-74 Traces of rouge yet darken your skin, 328 traveler in the brown dust, A, 659 1 1 90
Trees shed their leaves, the geese cross south, 3 9 6 "Trees with Bending Boughs," 43 Tresses in stormy tangles and coils, 1 1 3 7-3 8 Tsk, tsk and tsk, tsk, 241-42 Tu Long, 8 1 4-15 Tumbleweed rolling, severed from root, 270 Turkish horn draws the north wind, The, 471-72 "Turks Are Gone ! , The " ( Li Bo), 465 Turn and look back from Chang-an, 452-53 " Two Companion Pieces for Li Tian-lin" (Yang Wan-Ii) , 700 Two maidens roamed by river's shore, 3 3 " Unclassified Poem" ( Cao Zhi ) , 265-66 "Unclassified Poem" ( Liu Zhen) , 265 "Unclassified Poem II" ( Cao Zhi ) , 270 Under vast skies, limpid and clear, 506 Up in heaven the star-river turns, 5 8 1-82 Upon the screen of mica, 5 1 5 "Valley Winds , " 3 7-3 8 Vapors over water consume evening's light, 330 "Variation on 'Hard Traveling' " (Wang Chang-ling) , 465-66 "Various Occasions of Interest in the Fields and Gardens Through the Four Seasons " (Fan Cheng-da ) , 65 9-60 "Various Responses on an Ocean Voyage" ( Huang Zun-xian) , 1 1 50 "Viewing the Snow from 'Heart of the Lake Pavilion '" (Zhang Dai), 8 1 8 "View in Spring, The " (Du Fu ) , 420 "Villa on Zhong-nan Mountain" (Wang Wei ) , 3 9 0 "Visiting Ju-fa-yuan Temple with Wang Qiu-cheng and Zhang He-chai" (Huang Jing-ren) , 1 1 45 "Visiting the Magic Cliff with Various Gentlemen of the Transport Office" (Wu Wen-ying) , 1 0 1 "Visiting the Southern Pavilion " (Xie Ling-yun) , 322 "Visiting the Southern Tower of Chong zhen Temple: Seeing Where the Recent Graduates of the Examination Have Written Their Names" (Yu Xuan-ji), 5 1 0
Auth o r, First Line, and Title Index "Visiting the Temple o f Mount Heng, Then Spending the Night at the Buddhist Monastery: I Wrote This on the Gate Tower" (Han Yu), 4 8 5-86 "Visiting West-of-the-Mountain Village " (Lu You), 6 5 8 "Visiting White Waters. Written for m y son Su Mai " (Su Shi), 668 visitor suddenly knocked at my door, A , 1 1 40-4 1 "Visit to the South Mountains, A" ( Meng Jiao ) , 482 wagons went by rumbling, The, 468-69 "Waking Suddenly from Dream (X) " (Tang Xian-zu ) , 8 8 2-9 1 "Walking in the Hills and Looking for the Recluse, But Finding Him Not In" ( Qiu Wei), 3 72-73 "Walking in the Wilds " (Lu You ) , 658 "Walk in the Wilds, A" (He Zhu ) , 657 Wanderer, homesick, where Yangzi meets Han, 439 "Wandering to the Tian-tai Mountains, " 1 8 5-8 8 Wang An-shi, 644-46, 69 1-93 Wang Bi, 63-64 Wang Can, 252, 256, 2 64-65 Wang Chang-ling, 409, 462, 465-66 Wang Guo-wei, 1 1 5 1-52 Wang Han, 407 Wang He-qing, 736 Wang Jian, 3 8 1 , 453, 454-5 5 , 470 Wang Rong, 266 Wang Seng-ru, 329 Wang Shi-zhen ( 1 526-1 5 9 0 ) , 245 Wang Shi-zhen ( 1 634-171 1 ) , 1 1 3 5-3 7 Wang Wei, 1 9 9 , 3 71-72, 3 74, 3 75 , 3 8 5-95, 462-63 Wang Xiu-chu, 826-3 3 Wang Xi-zhi, 2 8 3-84 Wang Yuan-liang, 702 Wang Zhi-huan, 407-8 Warm and well fed, could I fail to know, 702 "Watching a Hunt" (Wang Wei ) , 3 8 6 "Watching Ants " (Yang Wan-Ii), 6 5 1 Water chestnuts pierce floating algae, 5 0 7 "Watering My Horse by the Great Wall" (Eastern Han ? ) , 258 waters are those of Y ao's time, Thp., 1 149
waters of Kun-ming Pool, The, 437-3 8 Waves follow the currents of cloud, 1 1 52 " Way of Heaven, The, " 64 We are lodged in this world as in a great dream, 404 We bring our chariots forth, 23-24 We fought last year at the Sang-gan's source, 244 We galloped our horses across river's edge, 460-6 1 "We Had Our Delight, " 5 0 " W e Have i n Hand , " 1 0 W e have in hand our offerings, 1 0 Wei Xi, 634-35 Wei Ying-wu, 3 72 Wei Zhuang, 5 6 3 , 566-67 We met upon the narrow lanes, 23 1-32 Wen fu ( " The Poetic Exposition on Literature " ) (Lu Ji), 3 3 6-43 Wen Tian-xiang, 704-20 Wen Ting-yun, 200, 3 3 2-3 3 , 5 65-66 Wen-xin diao-long ( "The Literary Mind Carves Dragons " ) (Liu Xie ) , 343-59 Wen Zheng-ming, 627-2 8 We set our sails and gazed southeast, 396 Western Han, 102-4 Western Han yue-fu, 227-29 "West Fields" (Wu Wei-ye) , 1 1 3 3 " West Gate , " 279 West I gaze from Lake Dong-ting, 4 1 1 West tower, more than a hundred yards high, 4 3 9 " What Came to Me i n a Mood" ( Meng Jiao) , 4 8 0 "What Came to Mind When Chanting My Poems " (Bo Ju-yi ) , 497 "What I Saw on the Northern Outskirts of Zhen-zhou " (Wang Shi-zhen) , 1 1 3 6 What matters i n their lives: t o be seen with respect, 461 " What Was in M y Heart on a Spring Day" ( Meng Jiao ) , 4 8 0 When a single petal falls away, 424 When a thousand miles of long river, 5 0 8 When dawn's rays enter the woods, 679-80 When evening sun passed over western peaks, 373 When first I heard the migrating geese, 5 1 4-15 1 191
Author, First Line, and Title Index When Han-shan utters these words (Han-shan) , 406 When h e travels he often suffers from wounds, 477 When I bound my hair and became your wife, 2 5 1 When I came back, the sun still w a s high, 409 When I made it to the top of the wall, 699 When I reckon up these hundred years, 5 74 When I was young, I didn't know, 5 8 4 " When Living Quietly a t Wang-chuan I Gave This to Pei Di" (Wang Wei ) , 390 When my love is s a d , I'm also down, 238 When one of them chances to meet another, 651 When o n the long river the sun goes down, 410 When the crescent moon comes shining, 691 When the Southern Dynasties Emperor, 3 3 3 When they form their berries red a n d green, 393 When we were poor I rushed here and there, 693 When will this misery end ? , 1 1 3 8-3 9 When winds came to willow-lined shores, 506 Where did I pick the sweet pear ? , 55 Where the curtain opens, I see hairpin's shadow, 329 Where the Ju-tang's winding course is done, 2 0 1 -3 Where willows darken the river bridge, 5 8 9 Where will w e tie our true-love-knot?, 2 3 9 "Where Yangzi Meets the Han " ( D u Fu) , 4 3 9 Whirling girl , 4 57-58 "White Egret" ( O u-yang Xiu ) , 6 8 8 "White Stone Rapid s" (Wang Wei ) , 394 White Stone Rapids are shallow and clear, 394 White strands of hair in my mirror, 5 0 8 Who can feel longing and not sing out ? , 2 3 8 Who claims that the river is wide ? , 44-45 Who sent you that stone screen, 6 8 0-81 Whose yard is it, the graveyard ? , 278 Wild chrysanthemums and moss, 661 wilderness inn by a dock with weeping willows, A, 657-5 8 1 1 92
wilderness temple, its grass-grown terrace at dusk, A, 4 1 1 willows, trees 0 f the eastern gate, The, 408 "Willows by the Eastern Gate , " 40 "Willow Waves " (Wang Wei ) , 394 "Wind, The " (Western Han ) , 1 02-4 "Wind and Rain ," 3 8 Wind-blown frost rises from plain white silk, 428 wind blows hard, the hornbow sings, The, 386 wine before m e a s I sing, The, 2 8 0-8 1 wine was gone, and the songs, The, 290 Winter hoes go in line along the shore, 1 1 3 3-34 "Winter Night " (Bo Ju-yi ) , 500-5 0 1 "Winter 'White Linen Song,' A " (Yuan Zhen) , 1 0 0 Winter woods i n the last sunlight, 6 5 6 Withered vines, old trees, twilight crows, 740 "Within Ten Acres, " 49 Without a word, I climbed the western tower, 569 With such feeling your brightly colored sleeves, 572-73 "With the Army: A Ballad" (Luo Bin-wang) , 461 "With the Army: A Ballad" (Wang Jian), 470 "With the Army: A Ballad" (Wang Wei ) , 462-63 "With the Army V" (Wang Can), 264-65 With you I will roam to the river's nine channels, 1 6 0 woman said, "The rooster crows, " The, 51 Wondrous peaks welcome m y horse, 6 6 1 work in m y office keeps piling up, The, 265 "Writing of My Sorrow" ( Mei Yao-chen) , 690 "Written After Seeing the Paintings of W u Dao-zi " (Su Shi), 6 1 8 "Written a t Night a t a n Inn in the Hills " ( Huang Jing-ren), 1 1 44 "Written at Wan !vlountain Pool" (Meng Hao-ran), 3 3 "Written Crossing the Yellow River to Qing-he " (Wang Wei), 3 8 6 "Written During the Rain One Night and Sent Back North " (Li Shang-yin) , 5 1 5
A u th o r, First Line, and Title Index "Written on Chan-zhi Temple in Yang zhou" (Du Mu), 632 "Written on the Kai-yuan Temple at Xuan zhou" (Du Mu), 503-4 "Written on the Lake, Returning from the Chapel at Stone Cliff" (Xie Ling-yun) , 320-2 1 "Written on the Temple of Mount Xia o" (Wen Ting-yun ) , 200 "Written Playfully to Zhang Ji" (Han Yu), 4 8 7-8 8 Wu Jun, 3 2 8 " W u Mountain" (Su Shi), 20 1-3 Wu-sheng xi (Silent Operas) (Li Yu) , 9 1 5-4 1 Wu Wei-ye, 1 1 30-35 Wu Wen-ying, 1 0 1 , 5 8 8-90 " Wu-zhen Monastery" (Wang An-shi) , 693
Xiang-jian huan (to "The Pleasures of Meeting " ) ( Li Yu, attri b . ) , 5 6 9 Xiang jun ( " The Lady of the Xiang River" ) (Qu Yuan, attrib. ) , 1 5 7-5 8 Xiang-yang is a young man's place, 4 0 8 " Xiao-cui " ( P u Song-ling), 1 1 1 3-20 Xiao Gang, 327-2 8 Xiao-lin ( The Forest of Jokes) (Han-dan Chun, compiler) , 305 X i e Ling-yun, 3 1 9-23 Xie Tiao, 326 Xie Tiao's mansion from Southern Dynasties, 503-4 Xi jiang yue (to "West River Moon " ) . Expressing what was o n m y mind (Xin Qi-ji) , 5 84 Xi-jing za-ji (Sundry A ccounts of the Western Capital), 306-7 Xin Qi-ji, 5 8 4 Xin Yan-nian, Officer of the Guard (Eastern Han ) , 23 5-3 6 Xu Gan, 266 Xun fang-cao (to "Seeking Fragrant Plants " ) , Account of a Dream in Xiao Temple (Nara Singde) , 1 1 3 8 X u Zai-si, 734-3 5, 737 Xu Zhong-lin, 771-806 Yang Pan-er (Du-qu Song ), 240 Yang Pan-er (Li Bo), 247 Yang Wan-Ii, 65 1 , 652, 660, 661, 69 8-702
" Yang-zhou" (Du Mu ) , 63 1 "Yangzi and Han," 22-23 Yan Ji-dao, 5 72-74 " Yan Ji-sheng, Chancellor of Education, Invited His Junior Colleagues to Visit the Pei Garden. In our boat we sailed around Lone Mountain enj oying the lotus blossoms. Then late in the day we moored at the imperial park at Yu-hu. I wrote ten quatrains " (Yang Wan-I i), 69 8-99 Yan Shi-bo, 266 Yan Shu, 290-9 1 , 569-70 Year after year I waste this eve, 1 1 46 year is 427, The, 6 1 5- 1 6 Ye-ban I e ( t o "Joy at Midnight " ) ( Liu Yong) , 575 Ye he hua (to " Night-Closing Flowers " ) . Going along the Crane River 0 n m y way to the capital, I moored at Feng Gate and was moved to write this (Wu Wen-ying), 589 Ye jin-men (to " Reaching Golden Gates " ) (Yan Shu ) , 290-9 1 " Yellow Bird, " 2 6-27 " Yellow River at Bian-zhou Blocked by Ice, The " (Du Mu), 5 0 8 " Yellow River's Earl, The " ( He-bo) ( Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 1 6 0 yellow sands stretch off and up, The, 407 Yi-ban-er (to " A Half" ) ( Guan Han-qing) , 737 Yi-lin ( The Forest o f Tales) (Pei Qi, compiler ) , 3 0 5-6 Yin E, 564 "Ying-ying's Story" (Yuan Zhen ) , 540-49 Yoo, yoo cry the deer, 2 75-76 "You asked when I was coming back , " 5 1 5 You ask m e why i t is, 403 You dig and build, of world's troubles weary, 1 1 3 3 You drink each day from Gold Dust Spring, 394 young wife in her chambers, The, 4 1 0 young W u girl from Chang-an, A , 3 8 2 You've got t o cut loose t o learn poetry, 700 You were born amid death and destruction, 1 1 32-3 3 You were singing Yang Pan-er, 247 Yuan Hong-dao, 8 1 1-14 1 193
Author, First Line, and Title Index Yuan Zhen, 100, 455-57, 540-49 Yuan Zhong-dao, 821-26 yue-fu, 227-48 "Heaven Above " (Western Han ) , 227 Yue ji ( " Record of Music , " 67-71 Yu ge ci (to " Fisherman's Lyrics " ) (Anonymous ) , 563 Yu Hu, 3 8 1 Yu-jia a o (to "Free-Spirited Fisherman" ) (Li Qing-zhao ) , 5 8 2-83 Yu-Iou chun (to " Spring i n the Mansion of Jade " ) (Zhou Bang-yan) , 577 Yu-Iou chun (to "The Springtime of Marble Halls " ) (Yan Ji-dao), 573 Yu mei-ren (to " Pleasure in the Lovely Woman " ) (Li Yu), 5 6 8 Y u Shi-nan, 460-6 1 Yu Xin, 329-30 Yu Xuan-j i, 509 Zhang Dai, 8 1 5-20 Zhang Hu, 632 Zhang Ji, 3 3 1 , 470-71 Zhang Ke-jiu, 73 8 Zhan-guo ce (Schemes of the Warring States) , 8 2-8 3 , 1 2 8-30 Zhang Xu, 406-7 " Zhang Yang-hao," 73 8-3 9 Zhang Zheng-jian, 460 Zhao hun ( " Calling Back the Soul " ) ( Qu Yuan, attrib. ) , 204-1 1 Zhao Yi, 1 1 40-43 Zhao yin-shi ( " Calling Back the Recluse ". ) (Qu Yuan, attrib . ) , 2 1 1-12 Zhe-gu tian (to "Partridge Weather " ) ( A short lyric while drinking . . . ) (Yan Ji-dao ) , 573 Zhe-gu tian (to "Partridge Weather" ) (Lu You), 5 8 3 Zhe-gu tian (to "Partridge Weather " ) (With such feeling . . . ) (Yan Ji-dao ) , 5 72-73 " Zhen and Wei," 4 8 Zhong Si-cheng, 73 1-34 " Zhong-zi, Please," 46-47 Zhou Bang-yan, 29 1 , 5 76-77 Zhou Mi, 654-55 Zhuang Zhou dreamed of a butterfly, 1 22-23 Zhuang-zi, 1 1 3-22 " Attaining Life" (Da-sheng), 1 3 3-34 1 1 94
"Discourse on Thinking of Things as Being on the Same Level" ( Q i-wu lun ) , 1 1 3-22 " Heaven's Motions, " 1 0 8-10 " O f Swords, " 1 04-7 " O uter Things, " 60 parables from, 295-99 " Renouncing Kingship, " 1 8 "The Way of Heaven," 64 " Zi-ye Song" ( Liu Yuan), 328 " Zi-ye Songs, " 23 8-3 9 " Zi-ye Songs of the Four Seasons, The , " 239 Z u i fu gui ( t o "Helped Home Drunk " ) (Wang He-qing ), 736 Zui gong-zi (to "The Drunken Lord " ) (Anonymous ) , 562 Zui gong-zi (to "The Drunken Lord " ) (Xue Zhao-yun ), 563-64 Zui gong-zi (to "The Drunken Lord " ) (Yin E), 564 Zui luo-po (to " D own and Out Drunk " ) , Written o n Leaving Jing-kou ( S u Shi ) , 6 76-77 Zui tai-ping (to " Drunk in an Age of Peace " ) (Anonymous ), 739 Zui-zhong Tian (to "Heaven Drunk " ) , Big Butterfly (Wang He-qing ), 736 Zuo Si, 273 Zuo Tradition, The, 96 an entry for the 3rd year of Duke Ding, 80 an entry for the 4th year of D u k e Ding, 9 8 a n entry for the 6th year 0 f Duke Wen, 2 7 a n entry for the 1 1 th year of Duke Ai, 9 9 a n entry for the 1 2th year o f Duke Xuan, 78 an entry for the 1 4th year of Duke Zhuang, 79-8 1 an entry for the 1 9th year of Duke Xi, 27-2 8 an entry for the 20th year of Duke Zhao, 97-9 8 an entry for the 22nd year of Duke Xi, 78-79 an entry for the 25th year of Duke Xiang, 63 an entry for the 26th year of Duke Zhao, 125-2 8 an entry for the 3 1 st year o f Duke Xiang, 59
G e n e ra l I n d ex
"Account of My Travels in Fei" (Yuan Zhong-dao ) , 823 " Account of Peach Blossom Spring, An" (Tao Qian ), 309 A ccount of the Compass, The (Wen Tian xiang), 704-20 A ccount of the Poem on a Red Leaf, The (Wang Ji-de ) , 8 8 6n A ccount of the Western Parlor, The, 8 8 6n Account of the Western Verandah (Xi-xiang Ji) (The Moon and the Zither) , 557 accounts of visits (you-ji) , 6 1 0-14 landscape, 622-25 of Su Shi, 622-24 Aeneid (Virgil ) , 441 aesthetics of omission, 69 Afghanistan, 244n "Airs" (Feng) section of Classic of Poetry, 1 1 , 30-57 correspondences in, 34-44 lovers in, S 3- 57 misunderstanding in, 44, 50 organization of, 30 purpose of, 65, 66 satire in, 52 A-jiao, 955n alchemy, 1 76, 224 alcoholic beverages, translation and, xlvi Analects (Lun-yu) ( Confucius ) , 5, 3 1 , 3 5 0n, 3 9 7, 436n, 500, 848n Tao Qian influenced by, 3 1 2-14 anecdotes, parables and profound j okes, 295-3 1 0, 320 chuan-qi, 5 1 8-49 collections of, 305-9 from Han Fei-zi, 299-3 00 of High Tang, 4 1 0 from Lie-zi, 302-5 from Zhuang-zi, 295-99 An-hui, 1 1 50 A n Lu-shan, 3 67, 425, 455
An Lu-shan Rebellion, 3 67, 3 6 8 , 3 8 5 , 397, 442, 1 1 3 1 poetry of, 420-25
Anthology, The ( Wen Xuan) (Prince Zhao ming) , 343 Archaist movement, 244, 725, 8 0 7, 1 1 29 aristocracy: of Southern Dynasties, 225 meritocracy vs ., 5 5 3-54 " Autumn Stirrings" (Du Fu), 1 020n "Autumn Wilds " (Du Fu), 1 1 3 3 B a ( overlord ) , 4 ba-gu wen (eight-legged essay ) , 725 bamboo, as writing material, 9 Ban Gu, 1 3 5 , 2 1 5 Bao Jiao, 495n Bao Zhao, 3 23-24, 630 beech trees, 482n Bei-gong Wen-zi, 60 Beijing (Da-du), 704, 723 , 724, 727, 72 8 , 8 3 5n, 9 0 9 Beijing, Treaty of, 9 1 3 B i , Battle of, 7 7 bi ( disk ) , 8 4 bi (comparison), 34, 66 bi (that), 1 1 6n Bin, 12, 1 8 biography, 2 1 5 b y Si-ma Quian, 142-44 Bi-yu (Sapphire ) , 9 5 1 Black Tortoise (Xuan-wu ), 1 8 0n blow fish, 650-5 1 Bo Bai, 8 3 6 n Bo Cheng-en, 8 3 6n Bo Ju-yi, 496-502, 8 3 7n feast poem of, 2 8 9 occasional poetry of, 496-97 private persona of, 497-99 on Yang Yu-huan, 442-47, 496 bone, as writing material, 3 1 1 95
General Index Boxer Rebellion, 9 1 3 B o-wu zhi (Zhuang Hua ) , 435n Bo Yi, 142 breath control, 1 76 Buddhism, 1 8 8n, 222 , 224 Chan, 556, 5 5 7, 6 9 8 , 700 of Han -shan, 404-6 Han Yu on, 597-60 1 in " Middle Ages," 224 in Northern Dynasties, 225 in Tang Dynasty, 3 6 7 of Wang Wei, 3 8 5 , 3 8 6 Buddhist Canon, 5 5 3 butterflies, 735-3 6 Bu-zhou, Mount, 1 75n Cai Y ong, 664 calendar, translation and, xlv calligraphy, 429n, 6 3 8 , 64 1 n, 647n, 664n, 6 8 5 , 697 " Calling Back the Soul , " 272n, 276-77, 322-23, 494-95 Calyx Manor, 4 3 7n Cang Jie, 345n, 4 1 0, 639 Cang-wu, 1 69n Cao Ba, 4 3 1 n C a o Biao, 267 Cao Cao, 223, 224, 263-64, 2 8 0-8 1 , 325-2 6 , 429n, 43 1 , 5 8 5 , 705n, 895n invasion of W u planned by, 29 1-92, 5 06n, 5 79 Cao family, 224 Cao Pi, Emperor, 1 9 8 , 223, 224, 263, 267, 2 8 1-82, 429n literary theory of, 3 3 5 , 3 5 9-61 cao-shu ( draft cursive) , 640, 641n, 697 Cao Zhi, 193, 198, 1 99, 224, 2 6 1 , 263, 267-70, 282, 9 1 9n Cao Pi's prohibition and, 267 Cen Shen, 3 66, 466-6 8 Central Asia, 366-67, 3 6 8 , 375, 409n, 455 Tang poetry on, 459-77 Chan (Zen) Buddhism, 556, 557, 6 9 8 , 700 Chang-an, 22 1 , 223, 252 Du Fu in, 4 1 3 , 420-25, 4 3 3 , 434 Kai-feng and Hang-zhou vs., 5 5 6 Tang capital a t , 366, 3 67, 370, 4 2 0 , 424, 4 3 3 , 434 Chao Cuo, 449n Chao-fu, 4 1 8n 1 1 96
characters, i n Tang poetry, 3 8 0-83 Chen-du, 2 1 4n, 3 6 8 , 422 Du Fu in, 425-2 8 Chen Dynasty, 226, 3 1 1 , 3 3 2 , 5 1 5 Chen Hong, 442, 453 Chen Liang, 9 3 1 n chi (foolish ) , 8 1 8 China: absorption of foreign cultures in, 909 cultural change in, 555-5 6 free speech issue in, 300-3 0 1 history and literature timeline for, xxxvXXXVll
" Middle Ages " of, see " Middle Ages " tax system of, 704, 723 Western images of, xl China, Republic of, 9 1 3 Chinese characters, 345n, 3 84, 4 1 0 , 6 3 9 historical phonology and, 9 1 0 Song alterations t o use of, 5 5 7 Chinese language, vernacular vs . classical, xl-xli chou, 9 1 9n, 921n Christianity, 9 1 2, 9 1 3 chrysanthemums, 3 1 5 Chu (kingdom ) , 4, 7-8 , 77, 1 2 5 , 302n, 1 1 30n see also Chu-ci chuan-qi ( classical tales ) , 5 1 8-49 tales of broken faith, 53 1-49 tales of keeping faith, 5 1 8-3 1 chuan-qi ( dramatic romances ) , 8 8 0-8 1 Palace of Lasting Life, 9 73-1 1 02 Peach B lossom Fan, 942-72 Peony Pavilion, 71-76, 8 8 0-906 Chu-ci ( " Lyrics of Chu " ) , xliv, 7, 1 5 5-75 , 249, 3 9 1-92 " Calling Back the Recluse" of, 2 1 1-2 1 " Calling Back the Soul " of, 204-2 1 1 " Far Roaming" of, 1 76-8 1 "Fisherman, The " of, 3 9 1-92 Li Sao of, 1 62-75 "Nine Songs " of, 7, 15 5-62, 1 76, 395n, 398 shamanic tradition in, 1 5 5-5 6 , 1 76, 1 8 1 , 1 9 9 , 204, 2 1 2 tradition of, 1 76-205 Chu-qin ( The Springs and Autumns of Lu) ( attrib. Confucius ) , 4, 6, 59, 60, 77 ci (song lyrics ), see song lyrics
General Index ci (this here ) , 1 1 6n cities, 255-5 8 , 739 civil service examinations, 3 65-66, 3 6 7, 479 in Ming Dynasty, 725 in Song Dynasty, 553-54 classical Chinese, vernacular vs . , xl-xli classical prose, see prose, classical Classic of Changes, 222n, 320, 344-45, 345n, 350 Classic of Documents (Shu-jing), 3 , 6, 124, 222n " Great Plan" chapter of, 345n Classic of Poetry (Shi-jing), 3-4, 6 , 1 0-5 7, 222, 222n, 249, 694n " airs " section of, 1 1 , 3 0-5 7 Cao Cao's allusions to, 2 8 0 Du Fu's allusions t o , 426 early discussions of, 5 8-76 " Eastern Mountains " ( CLVI ) , 264 " Great Odes " section of, 1 1-23 " Great Preface" to, 64-67, 2 72n, 300, 8 52n human sacrifice in, 26-29 as humans target, 71 "Hymns " section of, 1 1 i n later poetry, 252 " Lesser Odes " section of, 1 1 , 2 3 , 24 as model of representation, 3 54-5 5 , 355n oral transmission of, 3 , 9 , 4 4 Ou-yang Xiu's commentary o n , 5 5 5 restraint i n , 274-75 ritual and, 1 0 , 26, 4 8 sections of, 1 1 "Temple Hymns 0 f Zhou" section of, 1 0-1 1 tone and, 65 Wang Wei's allusions to, 3 8 8 Classic of Rites (Li Ji), 67, 903n " Record of Music, " 669 " Climbing an Upper Story by the Pool" (Xie Ling-yun) , 700 " Cold Mountain, " 404-6 commentaries, in Qing literature, 9 1 1 Commentary to Classic of Rivers (Li Daoyuan ) , 6 1 0-1 1 Common Words to Warn the World Uing shi tong-yan) ( Feng Meng-long ), 834 Complete Tang Poetry, 9 1 1
concubines, 3 6 5 , 3 6 7-6 8 , 745-46, 9 5 1 , 952n, 965n Confucian classics, 222, 222n, 223, 553, 554 civil service examination and, 3 6 6 " Four Books " of, 5 5 8 L i Zhi's assault on, 8 0 8-1 1 in Qing Dynasty, 9 1 0 Song reexamination of, 554-55 Zhu Xi's commentaries on, 5 5 8 see also Classic o f Changes; Classic of Documents; Classic of Poetry; Springs and Autumns, The; Yili Confucianism, xxxix, 6, 1 8 , 2 8 Buddhism and, 5 9 7-601 in Eastern Han, 221-22 Emperor as viewed in, 1 8 1 Empress Wu a s viewed by, 3 6 5 literature judged b y , 326 of Manchus, 9 1 0 Mongol hostility to, 704 in Northern Dynasties, 225 " Old Text" school vs. " New Text" school, 222 on poetry, 62 rites and music in, 70 Tang vs. Song, 5 5 5 " Three Kingdoms " reaction against, 224 Traditionalist, 44, 60, 65 Western Han influence on, 223 Yuan Hong-dao on, 8 1 2- 1 3 Zhou as model for values o f , 1 2 Confucius, 4-5, 3 0 , 31, 5 8 , 77, 79, 3 0 1 , 345, 397, 6 77n see also Analects; Springs and Autumns, The Cong River, 244n connoisseurship, "literati " culture and, 63 7-49 Ou-yang Xiu on, 63 8-3 9 Su Shi on, 640-44, 647-49 Wang An-shi on, 644-46 Constant Words to Awaken the World (Xing-shi heng-yan) ( Feng Meng-long) , 856 courtesans, 5 7 1 , 727, 745-46 , 952n courtship, in Classic of Poetry, 5 3-57 cun, xlv "cut-off lines " (jue-ju; quatrains ) , 325, 3 8 3 , 406-12 1 1 97
General Index Da-du (Beijing ), 704, 723 , 724, 727, 72 8 , 8 3 5n, 909 Dai Ting-shi, 6 1 9 Dan, Prince o f Yan, 997n Dan-fu, 1 8 danger, in landscape accounts, 622-27 Dao (Way ), 1 0 7-8 , 405, 8 0 8 Daoism, 5-6, 6 0 , 1 1 0, 222 anecdotes and parables in, 295-99, 3 0 1 , 3 02-5 , 3 0 6 , 320 Chu-ci and, 1 76 Huang-lao, 8, 1 76, 1 8 1 , 223 of Li Bo, 400-403 messianic, 224 in " Middle Ages , " 224 in The Romance of the Gods, 771-72 Tang Dynasty and, 3 67, 3 7 8 of Yuan Zhong-dao, 823-26 see also Lao-zi; Lao-zi; Zhuang-zi D aoist Canon, 5 5 3
Da-ya ( " Great Odes " ) section of Classic of Poetry, 1 1-23 De (Power ) , 1 2 , 1 8 death: feast poems and, 2 76-77, 278 writing genres for, 6 1 4- 1 6 " deflected tone " (ze-sheng), 3 8 3 diet, 1 76 Di-gao, 1 7 1 n " Discourse o n Literature " ( Lun-wen) ( Cao Pi), 3 3 5 , 3 5 9-6 1 " Discourse on the Lyric" ( Ci-lun-) (Ii Qingzhao ) , 5 8 0 Discourses o f the D omains ( G uo-yu ) , 77 Di tribe, 1 2 domestic life: Bo Ju-yi's poetry of, 496-9 7, 499-50 Du Fu on, 426 Li Qing-zhao on, 5 9 1-96 in Song Dynasty, 6 56-60 Dong-hu, 3 1 8n Dong-po, see Su Shi Dong-ting, Lake, 4 1 1-12 Dong Zhuo, 223 , 252, 261 double ninth festival, 3 1 5 " draft cursive" ( cao-shu), 640, 641n, 697 drama, xxxix, 71-76 Li Yu and, 9 1 5 i n Ming Dynasty, 726, 8 8 0 Palace o f Lasting Life, 973-1 1 02 1 198
Peach B lossom Fair, 942-72 possible beginnings of, 3 8 1 i n Qing Dynasty, 942-1 1 02 Rescuing One of the Girls, 744-70 role-types in, 9 1 9n, 921n i n Song, 5 5 7 " variety plays," 723-24 on Xuan-zong and Yang Yu-huan, 455 Drifting Sands, 1 75n drunken-husband's-return songs, 5 62-65 drunkenness: Du Fu on, 2 8 5-87 Han Yu on, 2 8 7-8 8 Meng Jiao on, 2 8 8 Wang Han on, 407 Du Fu, xxxix, 3 79, 4 1 3-40, 5 8 3n, 1 020n, 1 1 33 A n Lu-shan rebellion poetry of, 420-25, 1 1 3 1 , 1 1 32 arrival of, at Jiang Village, 423-24 Confucian allusions of, 4 1 6 o n drunkenness, 2 8 5-87 early, 4 1 3-1 6 formation-of-soldier poetry of, 472-75 frontier poetry of, 46 8-69 in Kui-zhou, 4 3 1 -40 as lyric poet, 4 1 6 mid- and late Tang poets compared with, 478 e m painting, 428-3 1 in Qin-zhou and Cheng-du, 425-2 8 Shakespeare compared with, 4 1 3 Wang An-shi's admiration for, 6 9 1 o n Yang Yu-huan, 441 Zhuang-zi allusions of, 4 1 6- 1 7 Du M u , 3 79-8 0 , 5 02-8 Wang Wei compared with, 5 0 3 o n Yang Yu-huan, 452-53 on Yang-zhou, 63 1-32 Dun-huang, 560, 5 64-65, 5 74 Du Shen-yan, 4 1 3-14 "Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger" (Feng Meng-long ) , 834 dwellings, xlvi-xlvii in Tang poetry, 3 73 early China, 3-2 1 8 literary prose of, 1 02-23 narrative of, 77-1 0 1 oral transmission o f literature of, 3 , 9 , 44
G eneral Index poetry of, see Classic of Poetry political oratory of, 1 24-34 see also Chu-ci; Classic of Poetry: Historical Records; Springs and Autumns, The; Zuo Tradition, The Eastern Han, 32, 221-23 feast poems of, 278 origins of Shi in, 249 yue-fu of, 229-3 6 Eastern Jin Dynasty, 225, 3 1 1 Eastern Zhou, 4 East Grove Society, 957n " East Slope" (Su Dong-p o), 1 1 3 3 eccentricity, "Three Kingdoms" fascination with, 224 " eight-legged essay, " 725 England, 9 1 2-1 3 , 1 1 49 essay (tun; shuo ) , 6 0 1 ethics, i n early Chinese narrative, 8 0 Ming Dynasty and, 725 everyday obj ects, in Song poetry, 649-5 6 exchanges, as subject of early Chinese narrative, 8 3-87 excursion poems, 329-30 exordium, 1 2 8 famine in " Middle Ages , " 221 Fan Cheng-da, 65 8-60 Fang Guan, 420, 425 Fang Xiao-ru, 724 Fang-zhang, 1 8 5n Fan Kuai, 997n Fan Li, 99, 100, 1 0 1 , 5 04n Fan-su, 8 3 7n feast poetry, 274-94 of Cao Cao, 2 8 0-8 1 of Cao Pi, 2 8 1-82 of Cao Zhi, 282 of Classic of Poetry, 274-77 of tenth and eleventh centuries, 2 8 9-9 1 third-century interests and, 2 8 2-83 Fei (not so), 1 1 6n Fei Lian, 1 6 9n, 1 79n Fei River, Battle of, 3 3 1 Feng Long, 1 70n, 1 79n Feng Meng-Iong, 5 64, 727 Feng section of Classic of Poetry, see " Airs " section of Classic of Poetry Feng-xiang, 423
Fen-shu, Books to Be Burned (Li Zhi ) , 726 " Fisherman, The " ( attrib . Qu Yuan ), 997n Fishermen, 3 9 1 Five Barrows, 436n " Five Coverings, " 1 8 7n " Five Pecks of Rice," 223 flora and fauna, 222 birds, 264-5 5 blow fish, 65 0-5 1 butterflies, 73 5-3 6 chrysanthemums, 3 1 5 i n Chu-ci, 1 62 cypress, 432 horses, 656 ming plant, 1 0 2 1 n peonies, 673 plum blossoms, 5 8 6-87 translation and, xlvii-xlviii wild goose, 3 79-80 willows ( liu ) , 394n, 407 in yue-fu, 229 Ford of Sky, 1 75n Forest of Jokes, The ( Xiao-lin) ( Han-dan Chun) , 30 5 Forest of Notes, The (Zhi-lin) (Su Shi), 668-69 Forest of Records, The (Su Shi ) , 622 form, translation and, xliv-xlv Formalists (ge-diao pail, 1 12 9 " Four Books , " 5 5 8 , 725 fragmentation and isolation, in Southern Dynasties poetry, 3 1 1 France, 9 1 3 free speech, 3 0 0-3 0 1 frontier poetry, 459-77 High Tang, 462-69 mid- and late Tang, 469-72 Southern Dynasties origins of, 459-60 fu ( exposition, poetic exposition), xliv, 7, 66, 1 02, 1 5 5 , 223-23 Fu-cha, King of Wu, 99, 100, 1 0 1 Fu-fei, 1 70n, 1 79n, 1 9 3 , 1 9 8 Fu Jian, 3 3 1 F u Xi, 345 Fu Yue, 1 73 n, 1 77n Gao E, 9 1 2 Gao Jian-li, 10 77n Gao Ming, 726 Gao Qi, 848n Gao Xian-zhi, 366 1 1 99
General Index Gao-Xin, 1 7 1 n Gao-yang, Emperor, 1 62n, 1 67n, 1 7 8 n Gao Yao, I nn Gao-zu (Li Yuan ), 365
g e (tower ) , xlvii Genghiz Khan, 5 5 8 Geng Wei, 3 7 9 , 5 6 0 Genuine M e n (Undying), 1 76, 1 8 1 , 1 8 8n, 3 7 8 , 400-403 Germany, 9 1 3 Ge-shu Han, 3 6 8 , 424 Ge-tian, 3 1 5n, 592n, 1 1 43n Goddess, encounters with, 1 8 9-9 7 Golden Lotus, The Uin Ping Mei ), 726 Gong-sun Chou, 60 Gong-sun Long-zi, 1 1 3 , 1 1 6n, 1 1 8 n Gong-sun Shu, 433 Gong-yang Tradition, the, 7 7 Gong Zi-zhen, 1 1 46-49 Gou-j ian, King of Yue, 99, 100, 504n Gou Mang, 1 79n government, in poetry, 496, 501-2 Grades of the Poets (Shi Pin) (Zhong Rong), 343 graffiti, in Tang Dynasty, 374 Grand Canal, 845n " Great Bellows , " 341n " Great Odes " (Da-ya) section of Classic of Poetry, 1 1-23 Great Wall, 23 Gua-bu, 8 5 5 n Guang-dong, 5 5 8 , 704, 720 Guang-wu, Emperor, 22 1 , 1 0 50n Guan Han-qing, 728-3 1 , 739 variety play of, 744-70 Guan Pan-pan, 965n, 966n Guan Yu, 922n Guan Xiu, 472 Gua-zhi-er (Hanging Branch Songs ) ( Feng Men-long, compiler ) , 564 Gua-zhou, 845n, 855n Gun (son of G a o Yang ) , 1 6 7n, 168n Guo Ao, 1 6 7n, 171n Guo-feng (Airs of t h e Domains ) , 30 Guo P u , 4 3 8 n Guo-yu (Discourses of the Domains ) , 77 gu-shi ( O ld Poems ) , 249, 25 1-62 Gu Yan-wu, 1 1 29-30 hair, translation and, xlvii Han Dynasty, 6, 8-9 , 14, 77 1200
collapse of, 249 Eastern, 22 1-23 usurpation of, 221 Western, 9, 102, 130, 155 Xiong-nu battles with, 463n Han Fei, 5, 8 3 Han Fei-zi, anecdote i n , 299-3 0 0 H a n Gan, 4 3 1 n Hang-zhou, 556, 5 5 8 , 6 6 3 Su Shi in, 674-77 Han History (Ban Gu), 1 3 5 , 648n Han Kang, 859n Han River, 32, 3 3 , 1 96n Han-shan, 404-6, 620 Han Xin, 3 1 8 n, 461n, 922n, 9 3 3 n Han Y u , 3 6 8-69, 4 7 9 , 484-89, 4 9 4 , 5 5 5 , 557, 6 3 8 , 678, 688 " Memorial Discussing the Buddha's Bone," 597-60 1 presentation preface of, 607-9 Su Shi compared with, 670-72 Han Zhong, 1 7 6-77, 1 063n H a n Zhuo, 1 6 7n hao-fang lyrics, 582 Hawkes, David, 176 heavenly journeys, in Chu-ci tradition, 1 76, 181, 185 He-bei, 244n hemistiches, in Chu-ci, 1 5 6 n hermetics, 5 1 0- 1 1 heroes, i n early Chinese narrative, 8 1-83 He Xun, 325-26 High Tang, 3 8 5-4 1 2 frontier literature of, 462-69 Li Bo, 3 9 7-404 Meng Hao-ran, 3 95-97 quatrain of, 406-12 Wang Wei, 371-n, 373, 3 74, 3 75 , 3 8 3-84, 3 8 5-95 historical phonology, 9 1 0 Historical Records (Shi ji) (Sima Qian), 9 , 67, 8 8-96, 1 3 5-54, 3 9 1-92, 963n, 1 1 14n Zuo Tradition compared with, 8 7-8 8 , 96 historical writing, 77-1 0 1 ; see also Historical Records, Springs and Autumns, The; Zuo Tradition, The History of the Eastern Han, 492-93 history poems (yong-shi shi), 3 7 8 of L i Shang-yin, 5 1 0, 5 1 5-17 Hong Kong, 9 1 2 , 1 1 49
G eneral Index Hong Sheng, 973-1 1 02 horses, 656 Hou Fang-yu, 942 Hou Ji ( Millet ), Lord, 1 1 , 1 4 , 4 1 6 , 4 1 7n Hou Jing, 225-26 Hu ( "Turks " ) , xlvi, 455, 470 huai-gu (meditating on the past), 3 74 Huai-nan, 2 1 1 Huai nan-zi, 3 55 Huai River, 2 2 Huan, Duke of Qi, 1 73n, 297-9 8 Huang Chao, 370 Huang Da-lin, 694n huang-di (Emperor) , 8 Huang-lao Daoism, 8, 1 76, 1 8 1 in Han Dynasty, 223 Huang Ting-j ian, 693-95 Huang Zun-xian, 1 1 49-50 Huan Jing-yen, 1 1 29 Huan Tui, 6 1 6n Hua-qing Palace, 4 1 8n, 452-5 3 , 454 Hui-yuan, 605 Hui-zi, 1 1 3 , 296 Hui-zong, Song Emperor, 5 5 6 human sacrifice, 26-29 huo-fa (vitalism) , 6 9 8 H u o Qu-bing, 462 " Hymns" (Song) section of Classic of Poetry, 1 1 hyperbolic satire, 1 8 1 -
imperial hunts, 3 3 2 impermanence a n d disillusionment poems, 260-62 " independent songs " (san-qu ) , 72 8 , 743 informal prose, 6 1 8-19 Late Ming, 807-33 of Li Zhi, 807-1 1 Ou-yang Xiu's style of, 554 of Su Shi, 621-22, 66 8-70 of Yuan Hong-dao, 8 1 1-14 of Yuan Zhong-dao, 821-23 ink, 5 Un Islam, 3 6 7 " itineraria " component of Chu-ci, 1 7 6 Japan, 9 1 3 , 1 1 5 0 jia (inauthentic), 8 0 8 Jian-an, 224 Jian-di, 1 7 1 n
Jiang Kui, 5 8 5-87 on Yang-zhou, 632-33 Jiang-nan region, 3 1 1 "Jiang-xi School, " 694 Jiang Yan, 4 3 8 n Jian-kang (Jian-ye; Jin-ling; Nanjing ), 225-26, 3 1 1 , 3 3 3 , 334, 724 Jian-wen (Xiao Gang ), Emperor, 326-2 8 Jia Zhi, 4 1 1-12 Jie ( Xia ruler) , 124, 1 63n, 1 6 8n, 1 7 1 n Jie Y u , 390n Jin (Pre-Qin domain), 77, 125, 128, 3 02n Jin (Jurchens ) , 556, 5 5 8 , 632, 723 , 909 Jin Dynasty, 224, 270, 329-3 1 jing (villain role in drama ), 9 1 9n, 921n Jing Ke, 9 9 8 n Jing-zhou (Jing-man ), 252 Jin-ling (Nanj ing ), 724 jin-shi (presented scholars) , 3 6 5 , 366, 367, 479 jin-ti ( recent style), 3 8 3 jiu ( bird ) , 3 6 jiu ( beer, wine) , xlvi Jiu feng-chen (Rescuing One of the Girls) ( Guan Han-qing) , 744-70 j oke collections, 295, 305-6 jokes, see anecdotes, parables and profound j okes Journey to the West, The (Monkey; Xi-you ji) (Wu Cheng, attrib. ) , 726 juan ( scroll ) , 5 94n jue-ju ( " cut-off lines " ; quatrains) , 325, 3 8 3 High Tang, 406-12 Jurchen Jin Dynasty, 556, 558, 632, 723, 909 Kai-feng ( Bian-j ing ), 5 5 3 , 556, 5 5 8 kalpas, 494n Khitan, 244n Khubilai Khan, 558, 704 kong-hou, xlv Kong Rong, 743n Kong Shang-ren, 9 1 0 , 942-72 Kuang Heng, 436n Kui-zhou, 4 3 1-40 Kun-ming Pool, 434 Kun-qu, 726, 8 82 Labyrinth ( Mi-lou), 630 landscape accounts, 622-25 personified, 627-30 1201
1
General Index landscape literature, 1 8 5 poetry, 3 1 9, 320, 3 2 1 , 323 language, adequacy of, 6 3 , 6 4 Lang-xian, 85 6-79 Lao-zi, 5-6, 367, 43 7n, 494, 1 020n Legalism, 5-6, 8, 1 8 1 " Lesser Odes" (Xiao-ya) section o f Classic of Poetry, 1 1 , 2 3 , 24 " Letter in Answer to Xie of the Secretariat" (Tao Hong-jin ) , 3 1 9 letters, 597 i n classical prose, 603-5 in verse, 3 74 of Yuan Hong-duo, 8 1 3-14 Level Mountain Hall, 6 3 3-35 " level tone" (ping sheng), 3 8 3 Li, King o f Zhou, 2 0 Ii (third o f a mile ) , xlv Liang Dynasty, 226, 3 1 1 , 325, 326-2 8 , 3 3 0 Liao, 5 5 6 Liao-zhai's Record o f Wonders ( P u Song ling ) , 9 1 1 , 1 1 03-27 Li Bo (poet ) , xxxix, xl, 577 Daoism of, 400-403 frontier poetry of, 464-66 as High Tang poet, 3 9 7-404 Lake Dong-ting outing of, 4 1 1-12 Li He compared with, 493 parting poem of, 376-78 as unrestrained, 403-4 in Xuan-zong court, 397 yue-fu of, 243, 246, 3 9 8-99 Li Bo (prose writer) , 623 Li Cai, 462 Li Dao-yuan, 6 1 0-1 1 Li Duan, 5 6 0 Lie-zi, 1 14 2 n anecdotes a n d parables i n , 3 02-5 , 3 5 7 L i Guang ( "Flying General" ) , 4 6 2 , 997n Li He, 1 9 9 , 4 8 9-96 feast poem of, 2 8 9 frontier poetry of, 471-72 Li Bo compared with, 493 " otherness" as preoccupation of, 4 8 9 L i Hua (Tang prose writer) , 475-77 Li-hua, 5 1 6 L i Ji ( Classic o f Rites ), 6 7 L i Ling, 1 3 5 , 2 5 1 L i M u , 464 ling (holy one ) , 1 5 6 1 2 02
linked verse, 325 Lin Ze-xu, 9 1 2 L i Qing-zhao, 5 8 0-8 3 , 5 8 3 n Epilogue t o Records o n Metal and Stone, 5 9 1-96 " masculine" song lyric of, 5 82-8 3
L i Sao ( Q u Yuan, attrib. ) , 7 , 1 62-75, 1 77n, 1 78 n, 948n two components of, 1 7 6 L i Shan commentary, 1 8 7n Li Shang-yin, xl, 454, 5 1 0-17, 1 044n hermetic poetry of, 5 10- 15 L i Shi-min (Tai-zong) , 365 literary salons, 3 1 1 , 325, 343 of " Middle Ages , " 3 3 5-61 " literati" culture in Song Dynasty, 555, 556, 6 37-62 connoisseurship in, 63 7-49 ordinary things in, 649-5 6 pastoral scenes, 656-60 wit, 660-6 1 literature: as category of writing, xix in Qing Dynasty, 9 1 0-1 1 in Song Dynasty, 6 3 7 of Southern Dynasties, 2 2 5 , 3 1 1-34 Tung Frontier, 459-77 as wen, 343-44 Western influence on, 9 1 3-14, 1 1 29, 1 1 52 see also specific forms Li Ting-zhi, 705, 709 Little Su, 952 liu (willows) , 3 94n Liu An, 2 8 0n Liu Bang, 8, 1 1 14n Liu Biao, 252 Liu Ling, 2 8 9n, 3 0 8 Liu P i , Han prince of Wu, 1 3 0 Liu Xiang, 436n Liu Xie, 343-59 Liu Xin, 3 5 1 Liu Xiu, 2 2 1 L i Yang-bing, 6 3 8 Liu Yong, 574, 5 7 5 , 5 8 2 , 949n Liu Yu-xi, 505 Liu Zong-yuan, 601-3, 6 1 1-12, 6 1 7-1 8 , 847n Li Xiang-jun, 942 Li Yu ( song lyricist, emperor of southern Tang) , 567-69, 5 8 2
General Index Li Yu ( Qing writer) , 9 1 5-4 1 L i Yuan ( Gao-zu) , 3 6 5 Li Zhi, 726, 807-1 1 LiZi-cheng, 727, 909, 942 Logicians, 1 1 3 , 1 1 6n, 296 longing poems, 25 3-54, 257 " long lyrics " (man-ci), 5 74 lou (tower), xlvi-xlvii Lou-Ian, 460 Love: in Classic of Poetry, 53-57 in song lyrics, 565-66, 571-77 Lu, 4 Lu Ji, 3 3 5-43, 637 L u o Guan-zhong, 726 Luo River, 1 70n Lii Shang (Tai-gong) , 1 73n, 997n Luo Shu-jing, 64 1 n Luo-yang, 4 , 22 1 , 2 2 3 , 252, 2 6 1 fall of Jin capital in, 225 Tang eastem capital in, 3 6 8 /ii-shi (regulated verse), 3 8 3 , 4 1 5- 1 6 Lute, The (Pi-pa ji) ( G a o Ming) , 726 Lii Wang, see Lii Shang Luo You, 5 8 3 , 653, 695-9 8 pseudonym of, 6 6 1 lychees, 452 lyric, 4 1 6 " Lyrics o f Chu," see Chu-ci Manchu ( Qing) invasion, 246, 826 Manchus, xxxix, 727 see also Qing Dynasty man-ci (long lyrics ) , 5 74 " Mao commentary," 3 1 , 32, 3 2n, 52, 5 8 ,
75n marriage, in Classic of Poetry, 5 3-57 May Fourth Movement, 914, 1 12 9 Ma Zhi-yuan, 73 9-43 measures, translation and, xlv Mei Sheng, 1 3 0, 204n Mei Yao-chen, 639-40, 649, 65 0-5 1 , 6 8 8-9 1 " mellow blandness " (ping-dan), 649, 690 " Memorial Discussing the Buddha's Bone" (Han Yu), 5 9 7-60 1 memorials, 5 9 7-60 1 Mencius, 79 Meng Hao-ran, 395-97 Wang Wei compared with, 3 8 8-89
Meng Jiao, 478-84, 6 8 8 Meng-zi ( Mencius ) , 6, 2 8 , 6 0 o n interpretation o f Classic 0 fPoetry, 6 1 ,
62 message and gift poems, 25 8 Miao Zai-cheng, 705, 709 mid- and late Tang poetry, 478-5 1 7 B o Ju-yi, 49 1-502 Du Fu compared with, 478 Du Mu, 5 02-8 Han Yu, 484-89 Li He, 4 8 9-96 Li Shang-yin, 5 1 0- 1 7 Meng Jiao, 478-84 self-consciousness in, 478, 496 Song hostility toward, 478 Yu Xuan-ji, 509-10 " Middle Ages," 221-3 6 1 anecdotes, parables and profound j okes of, 295-3 1 0 Feast poems of, 274-94 literary theory of, 3 3 5-6 1 period introduction to, 22 1-26 poetry of sou them Dynasties in, 3 1 1-34 see also shi ( classical poetry) ; yue-fu military: in frontier poetry, 462-64 in " Middle Ages, " 223 poetry of An Lu-shan Rebellion, 420-25 in Tang Dynasty, 3 6 7-68 Millet (Hou Ji), Lord, 1 1 , 14 Mi-lou (Labyrinth) , 6 3 0 Mi-luo River, 7 Ming Dynasty, 3 3 3-34, 724 Archaist movement of, 244 drama of, 744-70 Europe and, 725 imperial voyages in, 724-25 intellectuals of, 820 interest in Song poetry of, 8 2 1-23 yue-fu in, 244-45 ming plant, 1 02 1 n misunderstanding, a s element o f Classic of Poetry, 44, 5 0 Mongol invasion, xxxix, 5 5 8 , 702, 704-20 hostility of, to Confucianism, 704 see also Yuan and Ming Dynasties 1 203
General Index motifs: birds, 265-66 cities, 255-58 Daoist, 3 7 8 death, 2 7 6 drunken husband's return, 562-65 feasts, see feast poetry impermanence and disillusion, 260-62 longing, 254, 2 5 7 male longing, 5 7 1 , 5 74 messages and gifts, 2 5 8 parting, 2 4 9 , 250-5 3 , 3 74-78 " sorry to have missed you, " 371-74 stranger and women, 25 8-60 turning away, 2 72-73 in yue-fu, 247 see also flora and fauna " Mountain Songs " (Shan-ge) ( Feng Menglong), 72 7 Mo-zi, 5, 1 1 6n Mu ( " Orchid " ) , Duke of Zheng, 8 0 "Mugua , " 9 1 6n musical instruments, xlv Nanjing (Jian-kang; Jian-ye; Jin-ling), 225-26, 3 1 1 , 3 3 3 , 334, 724 Nanjing, Treaty of ( 1 842 ) , 9 1 2- 1 3 Nara Singde, 1 1 29, 1 1 3 7-39 narrative: anecdotes, parables and profound j okes, 295-3 1 0 conclusions avoided in, 1 6 early, 77- 1 0 1 exegitical, 79- 8 1 of faith broken, 5 3 1 -49 heroes in, 8 1-83 of keeping faith, 5 1 8-3 1 of Li Yu, 9 1 5-41 stories, 8 3 4-79 of Tang, 5 1 8-49 see also anecdotes; parables, and profound j okes; specific works Natural Wit school, 1 1 29, 1 1 40 Neo-Confucianism, 555, 725 , 745 , 8 0 8 European Reformation compared with, 555 in Southern Song, 5 5 7 " New Laws, " 6 7 3 , 6 9 1 " New Text" school of Confucianism, 222 " New Yue-fu, " 496, 501 1 204
Nie Zheng, 152-54 "Nine Songs, The " ( Qu Yuan, attrib.), 7, 1 5 5-62, 1 76 , 395n, 3 9 8 two components of, 1 76 Ning Qi, 1 73 n " No-Cares , " 3 1 5n, 1 1 43n Nong Yu, 855n "Northern and Southern Dynasties, " 225, 3 1 1 , 332 Northern Dynasties, yue-fu of, 240-43 novels, 9 1 1-12 Western, 9 1 3 Old Poems (gu-shi), 249 " Old Text " school of Confucianism, 222 omission, aesthetics of, 69 " On the Child Mind " (Li Zhi ), 72 6, 8 0 7-1 1 , 8 0 8 n-9n opium, 912, 1 1 47 Opium War, 912 oratory, i n early China, 1 24-3 4, 204n, 212 Orchid Pavilion party, 282-84, 291 Ou-yang Xiu, 5 54-5 5 , 6 3 3 , 6 8 4�8 8 connoisseurship of, 63 8-40, 6 8 5-87 landscape account of, 628-30 pseudonym of, 6 1 2-1 3 , 685, 6 8 7, 920n Remarks on Poetry, 554, 646-47 song lyrics of, 569, 5 70 Su Shi and, 663, 678-8 1 " Over-the-mists " gallery, 430n painting: Du Fu on, 42 8-3 1 Song connoisseurship and, 642-46 , 647-49 in Song Dynasty, 5 5 6 of Wang Wei, 3 8 6 Palace o f Lasting Life, The ( Chang-sheng dian) ( Hong Sheng ), 455, 973-1 102 Pamirs, 244n Panegyric, 1 8 1 Pan Yue (Pan An ), 9 1 9 n, 9 52n, 957n paper, 9 paper money, 724, 739 parables, see anecdotes, parables and profound j okes parting poems, 249, 250-5 3 , 3 74-78, 407-8 party songs, 559-60 eleventh century, 5 6 9
General Index Peach B lossom Fan (Kong Shang-Ren) , 9 1 0 , 942-72 " Peach Blossom Spring " (Tao Qian) , 644, 902n Peach Creek, 577 Peach Grove, Battle of, 424 Peach Leaf, 952, 967n Pei Di, 3 74, 392 Pei Du, 743n Peng-lai, 123, 1 8 5n, 436n Peng Xian, 165n peonies, 673 Peony Pavilion (Mu-dan ting) (Tang Xianzu), xl, 71-76, 727, 8 8 0-906, 949n ping-dan (mellow blandness ) , 649, 690 ping-sheng (level tone ), 3 8 3 pi-pa, xlvi place: sense of, 620-3 3 spirits of, 627-3 0 "play-scripts" (yuan-ben ), 8 1 0n plum blossoms, 5 8 6-87 "poems on things " (yong-wu ) , 378 " Poetic Exposition on Literature, The" ( Wen fu ) (Lu Ji), 3 3 5-43 poetic meter, " syllabic," 3 8 3 poetic theory, 3 4 poetry: commentary within, 44 skill in, as necessary to advancement, 367 social uses of, 3 7 1 , 3 74 of Southern Dynasties, 3 1 1-34 of Tang, see Tang Dynasty, poetry of "Poetry Trial on Wu Terrace, The , " 673-74 "policy discussions" (yi), 5 9 7 political oratory, i n early China, 1 24-34 politics, politicization: of Bo Ju-yi, 476, 501-2 in early Chinese narrative, 79-8 1 of heavenly journey, 1 8 1 o f Li Shang-yin, 5 1 0 in Qing Dynasty, 1 1 28-29 in Song Dynasty, 5 5 5-56 of Su Shi, 663, 673-74 of Wen Tian-xiang, 704-20 Polo, Marco, 723 popular songs:
in Song Dynasty, 5 6 1 , 5 64-65 , 5 74 in " Three Kingdom" period, 224 prefaces, 605-10 of Han Yu, 607-9 printing, 5 5 3 of vernacular literature, 724 private life: late Ming focus on, 826 Soug creation of, 637 prose: of early China, 1 02-23 skill in, as necessary in social life, 597 stories, 8 3 4-79 vernacular, in Ming Dynasty, 726, 771-806 verse used in, 772n see also Zhuang-zi prose, classical, 5 9 7-6 1 9 accounts of visits, 6 1 0-14 essays, 6 0 1-3 funerary genres, 6 1 4-1 6 informal, 6 1 8- 1 9 letters, 603-5 memorials, 5 9 7-60 1 parables, 6 1 7- 1 8 prefaces, 605- 1 0 pseudonyms, " studio name, " 7 3 1 Purple Jade, 1 0 6 3 n Pu Song-ling, 9 1 1 , 1 1 03-27 Qi, Mount, 1 2 q i (vital breath ) , 6 5 , 4 6 1 n Qian Qian-yi, 3 3 4 Qiao the Prince (Wang-zi Qia o ) , 1 76 , 1 8 8n Qi-dong ye-yu ( Rustic Chat from the East of Chi) ( Zhou Mi) , 654 Qi Dynasty, 3 1 1 , 3 2 5 Qi Liang, wife of, 2 5 9 n qin (harp ) , xlv, xlvi Qin (kingdom ), 4, 5-7, 8, 145, 1 1 30n poetry of, 26, 27 script of, 6-7 qing, 727 Qing Dynasty, 727, 909-1 1 5 2 i ntellectuals in, 9 1 0 nineteenth-century realities of, 1 14 6 period introduction t o , 909-14 1 20 5
General Index Qing Dynasty, poetry of, 1 1 2 8-52 Gong Zi-Zhen, 1 1 46-49 Gu Yan-wu, 1 1 29-30 Huang Jing-ren, 1 1 44-46 Huang Zun-xian, 1 1 49-50 Nara Singde, 1 1 3 7-39 Qiu Jin, 1 1 5 0-5 1 schools of, 1 1 2 8 Wang Guo-wei, 1 1 5 1-52 Wang Shi-zhen, 1 1 3 5-3 7 Wu Wei-ye, 1 1 30-35 Zhao Yi, 1 14 0-43 Qing ( Manchu) invasion, 246, 826 Qin Shi-huang, Emperor, 8 Qin-zhou, 425-28 Qiu Jin, 1 1 5 0-5 1 Qiu Wei, 322 quatrains ( " cut-off lines " ; jue-ju ) , 325, 383 High Tang, 406-12 Qu Yuan, 7, 1 5 5-56, 1 8 9 , 3 9 1 , 948n, 996n racism, 9 1 3 Rain o n the B eech Tree ( Wu-tong yu) ( Bai PU), 455 Recent Songs from a Terrace of]ade ( Yu-tai xin-yong ), 2 3 3 , 343 "recent style" (jin-ti), 3 8 3 Red Cliff, 5 0 6n, 579 party at, 2 9 1-92 Red Eyebrows, 221 Red Waters, 1 75 n regulated verse (lii-shi) , 3 8 3-84, 4 1 5-16, 691 Remarks on Poetry (Shi-hua) ( O u-yang Xiu ), 554, 646-47 Rescuing One of the Girls (Jiu feng-chen) ( Guan Han-qing), 744-70 Restoration Society, 9 5 7n, 1 1 3 0 retainers, 2 6-29 , 279, 280n rhetoric, 124 ritual: Chu-ci and, 204; see also Chu-ci, shamanic tradition in Classic of Poetry and, 1 0 for dead, 2 1 2 Rocks Nod Their Heads, The (Shi dian tau) ( Lang-xian, attri b . ) , 8 5 6 Romance of the Gods, The (Feng-shen yan yi) (Xu Zhong-lin, attrib. ) , xl, 771-8 0 6 1206
Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The (San guo zhi yan-yi) (Luo Guan-zhong, attrib. ) , 725 romantic love, in Tang Dynasty, 369-70 Rong tribe, 12 Ruan Ji, 3 3 , 2 70-72, 4 3 1 n, 9 5 7n Ruo Tree, 1 69n Ru-shou, 1 79n Russia, 9 1 3 Rustic Chat from the East o f Chi ( Qi-dong ye-yu ) (Zhou Mi) , 654 Sang-gan River, 244n Sang Hong-yang, 5 0 1 san-qu (independent songs ) , 728-43 satire, hyperbolic, 1 8 1 Schemes o f the Warring States (Zhan-guo ce), 8 1 , 124, 1 2 8 Schleiermacher, Friedrich, xliii Scholars, The (Ru-lin wai-shi) (Wu Jing-zi ) , 912 script: Han, 9 Qin, 8 Shang, 3 for writing vernacular Chinese, 5 5 7 scrolls, 9 change to bound books from, 5 5 3 se ( great harp ) , xlv seal script, 6 3 8 serial analogies, 2 9 8 " Seven Masters of the Jian-an," 2 6 4 , 2 6 5 , 266, 278, 3 5 9 sexuality, 745-46, 946n see al so concubines, courtesans Shakespeare, William, 4 1 3 shamanic tradition, i n Chu-ci, 1 5 5-56, 1 76 , 1 8 1 , 199, 204, 2 1 2 Shaman Peng, 1 65n Shaman Xian, 1 65n, 1 72n Shang (Yin) Dynasty, 3 , 12, 1 8 , 20, 77, 124 Shang Yang, S shanren, 935n Shao-kang, 1 67n, 1 7 1 n Shen De-qian, 407 shen-yun ( spiritual resonance ) , 1 1 3 5 Shen-zong, Emperor, 555, 6 9 1 she-ti, 1 62n shi (classical poetry ), 62 beginnings of, 249-73
General Index Classic of Poetry and, 252, 254 coming to city as subject of, 255-5 8 first-person voice of, 249 heavenly journey in, 1 84 impermanence and disillusion in, 260-62 longing in, 254, 257 in Qing Dynasty, 1 1 2 8-53 in Song Dynasty, 556-57, 6 8 4-703 stranger and woman in, 25 8-60 in Tang Dynasty, 367, 3 8 5 , 559 themes of, 250 yue-fu compared with, 249 shi (gentleman) , 62 shi (power; momentum) , 353 Shi Cang-shu, 640-41 Shi Chong, 3 0 6 Shi-de, 405 Shi-hua ( Remarks on Poetry) ( Ou-yang Xiu ) , 554, 646-47 Shi Ii, see Historical Records Shi-jing, see Classic of Poetry Shi Ke-fa, 826, 827n, 909 Shi Nai-an, 726 "short songs " (xiao-ling ), 574 Shou-chun, 1 5 5 Shuang-guan Wan-er, 3 6 9 Shu-Han Kingdom, 223 Shu-jing ( Classic of Documents ) , 3 , 6 Shun (Zhong-hua), Sage-King, 1 6 3 n, 1 69n Shu Qi, 142 Sichuan, 397 Si-kong Tu, 5 0 8 Silent Operas ( Wu-sheng x i ) ( Li Yu ), 9 1 5-41 silk, as writing material, 9 Silk Road, 3 6 6 Si-ma Cheng-zhen, 4 0 0 S i - m a family, 224, 2 7 0 , 2 8 7n Si-ma Qian, 9, 1 1-12, 14, 67, 77-78, 96, 1 3 5-54 castration of, 1 3 5 Han accounts b y , 1 45-52 as idiosyncratic historian, 142 Nie Zheng biography by, 152-54 Si-ma Rui ( Emperor Yuan) , 225, 3 1 1 Si-ma Tan, 1 3 5 Si-ma Xiang-ru, 1 8 1 , 222, 8 3 7n, 903n singing, 324 Sino-Japanese War, 9 1 3 Sogdians, 455
Song ( domain ) , 79 Song Dynasty, xxxix, 553-720 Confucian Classics in, 5 5 3 , 554-55 on Du Fu, 4 1 3 entertainment in, 5 5 7 late Ming interest in, 8 2 1-23 period introduction to, 5 5 3-5 8 printing in, 5 5 3 , 555 writers and intellectuals in, 554 yue-fu in, 244 Song Dynasty, poetry of, 661-62 on connoisseurship, 63 7-49 on ordinary things, 649-56 pastoral scenes, 65 6-60 self-consciousness in, 661-62 on sense of place, 620-3 3 song lyrics, 5 5 9-90 wit, 660-6 1 Song (Liu-Song) Dynasty, 3 1 1 song lyrics ( ci), 559-90 drunken-husband's-return, 5 62-65 of early Southern Song, 5 8 3-84 as emerging literary form, 576 of Jiang Kui, 5 8 5-87 landscapes in, 575 of Li Qing-zhao, 5 8 0-8 3 , 5 8 3 n literary v s . vernacular, 560-6 1 "masculine, " 5 82-83 in Ming Dynasty, 9 1 1 o f Nara Singde, 1 1 3 7-3 9 party songs of eleventh century, 569-71 party themes of, 5 5 9-60 in Qing Dynasty, 9 1 1 , 1 1 2 8-53 of romance, 571-77 of Su Shi, 5 77-8 0 of Tang and Five Dynasties, 5 65-69 of Wang Guo-wei, 1 1 52 as written by men, 559 of Wu Wen-ying, 5 8 8-90 Song ( "Hymns " ) section of Classic of Poetry, 1 1 Song Yu, 1 89 "sorry-to-have-missed-you " poems, 3 7 1-74 soul-calling, in Chu-ci, 204-14 warnings about, 2 1 3 "Southern Dynasties, " 225 literary theory in, 343-59 poetry of previous eras preserved in, 3 1 1 1207
General Index " Southern Dynasties, " poetry of, 3 1 1-24, 399-400 Bao Zhao, 323-24
Su Xiao-xiao, 490 Su Xun, 663 Su-zong, Emperor, 422, 423
Tang poets compared with, 329, 684 Tao Qian, 3 1 2- 1 9 Xie Ling-yun, 3 1 9-23 yue-fu of, 2 3 7-40 Southern Ming, 334 Southern Song, 5 5 6-5 8 , 632 fall of, 704-20 poets of, 6 5 3 , 695-702 song lyrics of, 5 8 3-84 Southern Tang, 5 6 7-6 8 , 692 Spiritual Resonance school, 1 1 29, 1 1 3 5 Springs and Autumns, The ( Chun-qiu) ( Confucius ) , 4, 6, 59, 60, 77, 222n Springs and Autumns of Wu and Yue ( Wu Yue Chun-qiu ) , 8 8 stories:
swindles, in early narrative, 83-87 " syllabic" poetic meter, 3 8 3
Liao-zhai's Record of Wonders, 1 1 03-27 Tang, 5 1 8-49 vernacular, 8 3 4-79 see also anecdotes, parables and profound j okes; narrative; prose; tales Story of the Stone (Dream of the Red Chamber; Hong-lou men g) ( Cao Xue gin), 9 1 2 , 1 1 5 1 storytelling, 5 5 7 in Ming Dynasty, 725-26 vernacular, 834· Su Che, 663, 678 Su Dong-po, see Su Shi Su Hui, 966n Sui Dynasty, 225, 226, 365, 5 1 5- 1 6 , 63 0-3 1 Sun Quan, 4 3 1 , 5 8 5 Sun Si-miao, 8 5 9 n Suo Jing, 1 1 5 0 S u Shi ( S u D ong-po), 2 0 1 , 555, 663-8 3 , 959n, 1 1 3 3 on arts, 640-44 on delightful occasions, 667-68 Hang-zhou period of, 674-77 Han Yu compared with, 6 70-72 Ou-yang Xiu and, 663, 678-8 1 political difficulties of, 663, 673-74 on relationships, 678-83 song lyrics of, 5 77-80, 582, 63 3-34 travels of, 622-24 Su Shun-gin, 639-40 1208
Tai-gong ( Lii Shang ) , 9 9 7n Tai-hao, 1 79n Tai-ping tian-guo rebellion, 9 1 3 Tai-shi, 1 3 5 Tai-zong (Li Shi-min ), 365 Talas River, 3 6 7 tales: of faith broken, 5 3 1 -48 of keeping faith, 5 1 8-3 1 supernatural, 11 03-27 Tales of Emperor Wu, The, 43 6n-37n Tang ( Shang founder), 124 Tang Dynasty, 226, 3 65-549 Confucianism in, 3 6 8-69 frontier literature of, 459-77 mid-, 3 6 8-69, 469-75, 478-5 1 7 "official history" of, 554 period introduction to, 3 6 5-70 Song overthrow of, 553 Southern Dynasties poets compared with, 329 tales of, 5 1 8-49 women in, 3 6 5 , 366, 3 6 7, 3 6 8 , 3 69-70 Wu Zi-xu story in, 8 8 , 99-1 0 0 yue-fu in, 2 4 3 , 246, 247, 284-89 Tang Dynasty, poetry of, 3 7 1 -4 5 8 character types and vignettes i n , 3 8 0-83 Du Fu, 4 1 3-40 High, see High Tang poetry mid- and late Tang, see mid- and late Tang poetry " occasiona l" poems, 3 7 1 parting poems, 3 74-78 Song poetry compared with, 329, 684 "sorry-to-have-missed-you" poems, 3 7 1-74 Xuan-zong and Yang Yu-huan as subj ects of, 441-5 8 Tang Xian-zu, xl, 71-76, 727, 8 8 0-906 Tao Hong-jing, 3 1 9 Tao Qian, xl, 225, 309, 3 1 1 , 3 1 2-1 9, 3 90n, 620, 644, 743n, 9 02n, 1 1 3 3 individual a s focus of, 3 1 2 "sacrificial prayer for dead" of, 6 1 5- 1 6
General Index self-image of, 3 1 4-15 Wang Wei influenced by, 3 8 8 " Temple Hymns o f Zhou," 1 0-1 1 " terrace," xlvi " Three Flags , " 1 8 8 n Three Kingdoms, 223-24, 579, 705n, 724, 743n Tian-tai, 1 8 5n, 1 8 6n Tibet, 367 wars with, 244n, 470 Tiered Walls, 1 8 6n Tong-zhou, 845n tortoise shells, as writing material, 3 Toyotomi Hideyoshi, 8 3 5 travel literature: Chu-ci as, 1 76, 1 8 1 i n late Ming, 8 23-26 trees, 432 " tristia" component of Chu-ci, 1 76 trompe d'oeil, 42 8 "Tuanyuan," 936n turning-away poems, 272-73 twentieth century, 9 1 3-14, 1 1 50-52 Uighurs, 3 6 8 Undying ( Genuine Men ), cult of, 1 76, 1 8 1 , 1 8 8n, 3 7 8 , 400-403, 4 8 9 urban culture: in Ming Dynasty, 834 i n Yuan Dynasty, 728, 744 " variety plays" (za-ju) , 723-24 Rescuing One of the Girls, 744-70 structure of, 744 vernacular, Chinese: classical Chinese vs., xl-xli literature of, in Ming, 727, 820 mixing of " poetic" language with, 694, 700 song, 557 stories, 8 3 4-79 vernacular song, Yuan, 723, 728-43 classic poetry " translated " into, 7 3 8-39 Ma Zhi-yuan, 73 9-43 verse form, 3 8 3-84 verse letters, 3 74 Vietnam, 9 1 3 vignettes: bedroom, 566 rural, 65 8-60 in Tang poetry, 3 8 0
Vimalakirti sutra, 903n Virgil, 441 visits, accounts of (you-ji), 6 1 0-14 " vitalism" (huo-fa ) , 698 wan, xliv, xlv Wang An-shi, 5 5 5 , 69 1-93 on art, 644-4 6 reforms of, 555, 663, 673-74 Wang Bi, 224 Wang-di, 2 1 4n Wang Guo-wei, 1 1 5 1-52 Wang He-qing, 736 Wang Jian, 470 Wang ]i-de, 8 8 6n Wang Mang, 221 Wang Shi-zhen, 1 1 29, 1 1 3 5-3 7 Wang Shu, 1 69n Wang Wei, xl, 1 9 9 Buddhism of, 3 8 ." 3 8 6 Classic o f Poetry al lusions of, 3 8 8 D u M u compared with, 503 farmers in poetry of, 3 8 7-89 frontier poetry of, 462-64 as High Tang poet, 3 8 5-95 landscape painting of, 3 8 6 Meng Hao-ran compared with, 3 8 8-89 parting poems of, 3 75 quiet life celebrated by, 390-9 1 "regulated vers e" by, 3 8 3-84 "sorry-to-have-missed-you" poems of, 3 7 1-72, 373, 3 74 Tao Qian and, 3 8 8 Wang Shi-zhen compared with, 1 1 3 6 "Wang Stream Collection " of, 3 92-95 Wang Xi-zhi, 282-84, 429n Wang Yang-ming, 726 Wang Yuan-liang, 702-3 Wang Zhao-jun (Lady Wang ), 306-7, 472, 1 0 6 3n, 1 1 14n, 1 1 40n
wan-yue lyrics, 5 8 2 Warring States period, 5-8, 6 2 , 7 7 , 1 02, 464 anecdotes and parables in, 295-99, 302-5 feast songs in, 2 79-8 0 Si-ma Qian's accounts of, 1 45-52 Water Margin (Shui-hu zhuan ) (Shi Nainan, attri b . ) , 726 Wei, Lady, 429n Wei Dan, 664 Wei Dynasty, 223-24, 225, 263, 270 1209
General Index Wei Wei Wei Wei
Hong, 64 Ying-wu, 3 72, 497n Zhong-xian, 9 5 7n Zhuang, 566-67
wen, 34 3-44, 5 5 3 , 6 1 4 Wen, King of Zhou, 1 0 , 1 8 , 20, 3 1 , 32, 1 73n, 252-53 Wen Chang, 18 On Wen Tian-xiang, xxxix, 704-20 Wen Ting-yun, 565-66 Wen Tong, 64 1 , 642 Wen-xin diao-long ( " The Literary Mind Carves Dragons " ) ( Liu Xie ) , 343-59 concealed significance vs. outstanding qualities in, 3 5 3-54 Confucian Classics and, 3 5 1 critics and readers in, 3 5 7-59 literary norms and the particular in, 3 5 0-53 meditation practices in, 346-4 8 " momentum" in, 3 5 3 nature a ri d form of literature i n , 348-5 0 organization of, 343 writer's relationship to natural world in, 3 54-57 Western Han dynasty, 9, 1 02 anecdotes in, 295, 3 02-5 Chu-ci learning in, 1 5 5 Confucianism influenced by, 223 political oratory in, 1 3 0 y ue-fu of, 227-29 Western Jin Dynasty, 225, 272-73 Western Parlor, The (Xi-xiang ;i) (Wang Shi-fu ) , 8 0 8 n Western Zhou, 4 Whirl dance ( hu-xuan) , 452, 455-5 8 willows ( liu ) , 3 94n woman's voice, 509 women: in Song Dynasty, 5 7 1 i n Tang Dynasty, 3 69-70 as voice and subj ect of Tang song lyrics, 560, 565 writers, 369, 509-10, 5 8 0-83, 1 1 2 8 , 1 1 5 0-5 1 writing, see script wu (military aspect of government) , 5 5 3 Wu, Emperor, 8-9, 1 3 5 , 1 8 1 , 2 1 5 , 22 1 , 434, 436� 5 12� 669, 955n
1210
Wu, kingdom of, 4, 2 2 3 , 224, 3 2 9 W u Zi-xu story and, 8 7-1 0 1 Wu, King o f Zhou, 4 , 1 0 , 1 8 WiI Cheng-en, 726 Wu Dao-zi, 647 Wu-di, Emperor, 955n Wu-Ding, King, 1 73 n, 1 77n Wu Jing-zi, 9 1 2 W u San-gui, 727, 909 wu-tong, xlviii Wu Wei-ye, 1 1 3 0-35 Wu Wen-ying, 1 0 1 , 5 8 8-90 Wu Yun, 3 9 7 W u Zhao, Empress, 365-6 6, 3 6 9 , 9 0 5 n W u Zi-xu story, 1 0 77n Historical Records version vs. Zuo Tradition version of, 87-99 other poets on, 99-1 0 1 , 5 8 3 n
Wu Zi-xu Transformation Text ( Wu Zi-xu bian-wen ) , 8 8 Xia Dynasty, 124, 1 63n, 1 6 7n, 1 6 8n, 1 7 1 n, 862n Xian, Emperor, 223, 252 xiang (image ) , 63 Xiang River, 1 63n Xiang Yu, 8 , 922n, 1 1 14n Xian-qiu Meng, 61 Xian-yun, 23, 24, 41 Xian-zong, Emperor, 368, 601 Xiao Gang ( Emperor Jian-wen ) , 326-2 8 Xiao Kuang, 1 9 8 xiao-ling (short songs ) , 5 74 Xiao Shi, 855n Xiao-shuo storytellers, 5 5 7 Xiao-ya ( " Lesser Odes " ) section o f Classic of Poetry, 1 1 , 23, 24 Xie (Founder of Shang Dynasty) , 4 1 6, 4 1 7n Xie An, 3 3 1 Xie Ling-yun, 3 1 1 , 3 1 9-23 , 402n, 700 Xie Shi, 3 3 1 Xie Tiao, 326, 503 Xie Xuan, 3 3 1 X i He, 1 69n, 494n Xi Kang, 2 8 7n, 499n Xin Dynasty, 221 xing (stirring; affective image ) , 34, 58, 66, 71, 75n
General Index Xin-jiang, 244n Xin Qi-ji, 5 8 3-84 Xiong-nu, 8 , 464 Han battles with, 463n Xi Shi, 99, 100 Xi-Xia, 556 Xuan, King of Zhou, 4, 21-22 Xuan-pu, 169n Xuan-wu (Black Tortoise ), 1 80n Xuan-zong, Emperor, 366, 367, 368, 369, 3 8 5, 395, 422 Lady Yang and, as subjects of literature, 441-5 8 , 973-1 1 02 Xu Ling, 343 Xun-shi, 1 79n Xu Xi, 965n Xu You, 4 1 8n yaksha, 776n Yan ( city), 1 1 30n Yan (state ) , 302n, 835n, 1 1 30n yan ( speak), 62 Yang, Emperor, 226, 5 1 5-16, 63 0-3 1 Yang Guo-zhong, 3 6 8 , 4 1 8n, 449n Yang Hu, 628 Yan Guang, 940n Yang Wang-sun, 6 1 6n Yang Wan-Ii, 6 5 1 , 652, 69 8-702 Yang Xiong, 222-23, 3 5 1 Yang Ying-long, 8 3 6n Yang Yu-huan (Yang Gui-fei ) , 3 6 7-6 8 , 3 6 9 , 4 1 8n, 422, 963n Xuan-zong and, as subj ects of literature, 441-5 8 , 973-1 1 02 Yang-zhou, 226, 7 1 2-14, 7 1 8 n, 826 writings on, 630-35 Yang Zhu, 7 1 3 n Yangzi River, 4, 7 Yan Hui, 495n Yan Ji-diao, 572, 582 Yan Shu, 569-70 Yan-zi, Mount, 1 6 9 Yao, Sage-king, 1 63n, 1 6 7n, 4 1 7n Ye Jia-ying, 433n Yellow River, 2 2 1 Yellow Turbans,-2 23 yi (policy discussions) , 597 Yi-ban-er ("A Half" ), 737 Yili, 222n
Yin ( Shang) Dynasty, 3, 12, 1 8 , 20, 77, 1 24 Ying, 1 1 30n "Ying-ying's Story " (Yuan Zhen ) , 540,
557 Yi the Archer, 1 67n Yi Yin, 348n yong, 1 6 2 yong-huai, 3 7 8 Yong-jia, 3 3 0 yong-shi shi, 3 7 8 yong-wu, 3 7 8 you-ji ( accounts of visits), 6 1 0-14 Yu ( Great), Xia Founder, 1 6 7n, 1 6 8 n, 1 72n, 862n Yuan (Si-ma Rui ) , Emperor, 225, 3 1 1 yuan-ben (play-scripts), 8 1 0n Yuan Dynasty, 5 5 8 , 704, 723-906 period introduction to, 723-27 variety plays of, 723-24 vernacular songs of, 723, 728-43 see also Ming Dynasty; Mongol invasion Yuan Hong-dao, 726, 8 1 1-14 Yuan Mei, 1 1 43 Yuan-yuan, 727 Yuan Zhen (Yaun Wei-zhi) 455, 497n, 540 Yuan Zhong-dao, 8 2 1-23 Yue (kingdom) , 4 Wu Zi-xu story and, 8 7-1 0 1 Yue-fu ( Music Office), 227, 229 yue-fu (poetry form) , 227-4 8 , 249, 250, 3 1 1 , 323, 325 animals in, 228 as category, 227n characters in, 2 3 6 death a n d violence i n , 240-4 1 , 245-46 domestic subjects of, 230-32 from Eastern Han, 229-3 6 feast, 274-94 " fixing" of, 2 3 3 frontier, 4 6 0 frontier soldiers in, 472 from Jian-an, 2 62-67 of Li Bo, 2 8 4-8 5 , 3 9 8-99 love and courting as subj ect of, 227, 234-36, 2 39-40, 243, 246, 247 masculine, 240 military as subject of, 22 8, 241 from Ming Dynasty, 244-45
1211
General Index yue-fu ( continued) " New, " 496, 5 0 1 from Northern Dynasties, 240-43 other voices in tradition and, 232-3 3 , 243-48 puns in, 237, 2 3 8 s h i compared with, 2 5 0 song aspects of, 2 3 0 from Southern Dynasties, 2 3 7-40 stranger and woman, 2 5 8 as sung by women, 2 3 7 threatened relationships i n , 2 6 9 from Western Han, 227-29 from Western Jin, 272-73 Yue-jue shu, 8 8 Y u Shi-nan, 460 Yu-tai xin-yong ( Recent Songs from a Terrace of Jade ), 2 3 3 , 343 Yu Xin, 329-30 Yu Xuan-j i, 509-10 za-ju, see "variety plays " Zen ( Chan) Buddhism, 5 5 6 , 557, 6 9 8 Zeng Guo-fan, 9 1 3 ze-sheng (deflected tone ) , 3 8 3 zhang, xlv Zhang D ai, 8 1 5-20, 9 1 0 Zhang Ji, 470 Zhang Liang, 348n Zhang Qian, 902n Zhang Rong, 408 Zhang Zheng-jian, 460 Zhang Zhi, 641n Zhao, Prince of Zhou, 1 25-2 8 Zhao De-fu, 5 9 1 Zhao Kuang-yin, 5 5 3 Zhao-ming, 343 Zhao Nan-xing, 9 5 7n Zhao Yi, 1 129, 1 1 40-43 Zhao Yuan-si, 641n Zhao Zhan, 77 Zhe-jiang, 1 1 5 0 Zheng (Zhou domain ) , 4 8 Zheng H e , 724 Zheng Jiao-fu legend, 32, 3 3 , 1 96n Zhen-zhou, 705, 709 zhi, 62 zhi (finger; to point out), 1 1 6n
1212
zhi-lin ( The Forest o f Notes ) (Su Shi), 66 8-69 Zhong Rong, 343 Zhong Si-cheng, 73 1-34 Zhong Yao, 64 1 n, 664n Zhong-zong, Emperor, 3 6 5 , 369 Zhou Bang-yan, 576 Zhou dynasty, 6, 7, 8 , 10 founding of, 1 1-25 military campaigns of, 2 1 -22, 2 3 , 24, 41 poetry of, see Classic 0 f Poetry regional song divisions of, 3 0 writings of, 3-5 ; see also specific works Zhou Mi, 654 Zhou Yu, 579, 9 3 8 n, 965n Zhow (Zhou) , Emperor, 1 63n Zhuang, Duke of Wei, 51 Zhuang Hua, 435n Zhuang-zi (Zhuang Zhou) , 6, 1 0 8 , 295, 296, 395n Zhuang-zi (Zhuang-zi ) , 6, 60, 108, 346n47n, 4 8 1 n, 6 0 1 , 677n, 1 1 45n anecdotes and parables in, 295-99 Jewish tradition compared with, 297 oratory parodied in, 1 3 3-34 " Outer Things" chapter of, 8 1 1 n pre-Socratics compared with, 296 prose of, 1 1 3 serial analogies in, 298 wisdom and, 298 Zhuan Xu, 1 8 1 n Zhu Di, 724, 8 3 5 n Zhu-ge Liang, 43 1-32 Zhuo Wen-j un, 8 3 7n, 903n Zhu Xi, 51, 5 5 7, 558, 725, 9 1 0 Zhu Yi-jun, 8 3 5 n Zhu Yuan-zhang, 724, 8 3 5 n Zi-ju clan, 26, 27 Zi-xia, 64 Zi-ye (midnight) , 2 3 7 Zuo Tradition, The, 6, 59, 77, 2 8 0n, 614, 6 5 1 n, 695n Historical Records compared with, 8 7-8 8 , 96 letters i n , 6 0 3 political oratory in, 125, 1 2 8