Part 12

In both these poems, Ts'ui is compared to T'ao Yüan-ming, author of "Once More Fields and Gardens," published in this volume. T'ao is the ideal of the educated scholar, who prefers a life in the fields to any official post. Many stories are told of him. He planted five willows in front of his house, and is therefore often spoken of as the "Teacher of the Five Willows." He was so fond of music that he declared he could imagine the sweet sounds of the _ch'in_, and often carried about a stringless instrument over which he moved his hands. The _ch'in_, or table-lute, is fully described in Note 114.

WIND-BOUND AT THE NEW FOREST REACH

_Note 55._ _To-day, at dawn, see the willows beyond the White Gate._

The White Gate is the Western Gate. The points of the compass are governed by colours, elements, mythological beasts, and seasons, thus:

East: Green. Wood. The Blue-green Dragon. Spring.

South: Red. Fire. The Vermilion Bird. Summer. West: White. Metal. The White Tiger. Autumn. North: Black. Water. The Black Warrior. Winter. Centre: Yellow. Earth.

DRINKING ALONE IN THE MOONLIGHT

_Note 56._ _But we will keep our appointment by the far-off Cloudy River._

The Cloudy River is the Chinese name for the Milky Way.

_Note 57._ _There would be no Wine Star in Heaven._

The Wine Star is a constellation composed of three stars, to the North of the Dipper.

_Note 58._ _There should be no Wine Springs on Earth._

The Wine Springs lie, one in Kansu, and one in Shansi. (See map.) The water of the one in Kansu is supposed to taste like wine, that of the one in Shansi is used in the making of wine.

RIVER CHANT

_Note 59._ _Jade flageolets and pipes of gold._

The Chinese flageolet is a tube measuring a little more than a foot in length. It has five holes above, one below, and one at the end through which it is played. They are now made of bamboo, but formerly were made of copper, jadestone, or marble, as such materials were considered less liable to be affected by the weather.

_Note 60._ _The Immortal waited, Then mounted and rode the yellow crane._

Tou Tzŭ-an, who had attained Immortality by living a life of contemplation, was transported to the Taoist Paradise by a crane so old that it had turned yellow.

_Note 61._ _Rather would he be followed by the white gulls._

This line refers to a story from a book treating of Taoist subjects long supposed to have been written by a philosopher called Lieh Tzŭ, but this is now known to have been a Second Century forgery. A translation of the story reads: "The man who lived by the sea loved the sea-gulls. Every day, as the sun rose above the horizon, the birds from the sea assembled in hundreds and flew about. His father said: 'I hear the sea-gulls follow you and fly round you. Catch some in your hands and bring them to me that I too may enjoy them.' The next day the birds from the sea all performed the posturing dance in the air, but did not descend."

_Note 62._ _The_ tzŭ _and_ fu _of Ch'ü P'ing hang suspended like the sun and moon._

The _tzŭ_ and _fu_ are two irregular forms of verse, they are referred to in the Introduction in the part dealing with versification. Ch'ü P'ing is another name for Ch'ü Yüan, a famous poet and statesman who lived 332-295 B.C. (See Introduction.)

_Note 63._ _I could move the Five Peaks._

The sacred mountains of the "four quarters" and the nadir (or the four points of the compass and the centre of the earth). They are the T'ai Shan in the East, the Hua Shan in the West, the Hêng Shan in the North, the Hêng Shan in the South, and the Sung Shan in the centre.

SEPARATED BY IMPERIAL SUMMONS

_Note 64._ _The Emperor commands; three times the summons. He who left has not yet returned._

The official has not responded quickly to the summons from the capital, so the messenger has been obliged to come three times. Upon the third occasion, the official realizes that the matter is urgent and prepares to depart the next day at sunrise, before the messenger can have reached the Palace on his return journey.

_Note 65._ _Our thoughts will be with each other. I must ascend the Looking-for-Husband Hill._

(See Note 45.)

_Note 66._ _You must not imitate Su Ch'in's wife and not leave your loom._

Su Ch'in, who lived in the Fourth Century B.C., was away from home many years; when he returned, his wife took no notice whatever, and did not even leave the loom at which she sat weaving cloth.

A WOMAN SINGS TO THE AIR: "SITTING AT NIGHT"

_Note 67._ _I sit, sit in the North Hall._

The "North Hall" is a term for the Women's Apartments, which always lie farthest from the Great Gate placed in the South wall of the house. (See Plan of House.)

_Note 68._ _Then, though my Lord sang ten thousand verses which should cause even the dust on the beams to fly, to me it would be nothing._

It is said that when Yü Kung, a man of the State of Lu who lived during the Han Dynasty, sang, the sounds were so exquisite that even the dust on the beams flew. "To cause the dust on the beams to fly" has therefore become a current saying.

THE PALACE WOMAN AND THE SOLDIERS' COOK

_Note 69._ _Once the Unworthy One was a maiden of the Ts'ung Terrace._

The Ts'ung Terrace referred to by the sad lady who, in the dispersal of the Palace women (see Introduction), had fallen to such a low degree, stood in the Palace of King Chao, who lived at the time of the "Spring and Autumn Annals," many centuries before our era.

A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN ENCOUNTERED ON A FIELD-PATH

_Note 70._ _Down comes the riding-whip, straight down--it strikes the Five Cloud Cart._

The Immortals used Five Coloured Clouds to ride upon, therefore the term, "Five Cloud Cart," has become a complimentary expression for a cart or carriage in which a beautiful young woman is travelling.

HEARING A BAMBOO FLUTE IN THE CITY OF LO YANG

_Note 71._ _I hear "The Snapped Willow."_

An allusion to the old song suggesting homesickness. (See Note 2.)

THE RETREAT OF HSIEH KUNG

_Note 72._ Hsieh Kung is the honorary title of the poet, Hsieh T'iao, who lived in the Fifth Century A.D. Li T'ai-po, who greatly admired him, constantly quoted his poems, and expressed a wish to be buried on the Spring-green Mountain where Hsieh Kung had lived. Some accounts say that he was first buried elsewhere, but that afterwards his body was removed and put where he desired.

A TRAVELLER COMES TO THE OLD TERRACE OF SU

_Note 73._ _The old Imperial Park--the ruined Terrace--the young willows._

Early in the Fifth Century B.C., Fu Ch'ai, King of Wu, built the Ku Su Terrace to please Hsi Shin, one of the most famous beauties in history. It was nearly two miles long, and took three years to build. Its foundations can still be traced on the hills near Soochow, which was the capital of Wu.

THE REST-HOUSE ON THE CLEAR WAN RIVER

_Note 74._ _I love the beauty of the Wan River._

A little river near Ning Kuo-fu in Anhwei. (See map.)

_Note 75._ _Really, one cannot help laughing to think that, until now, the rapid current celebrated by Yen Has usurped all the fame._

The philosopher Yen Kuang (_circa_ A.D. 25) is better known as Yen Tzŭ-ling. The river in which he loved to fish was the Hsin An.

ANSWER TO AN AFFECTIONATE INVITATION FROM TS'UI FIFTEEN

_Note 76._

A party of friends who are in the habit of meeting each other constantly are called by numbers according to age. The same custom is used to distinguish members of a family. (See Introduction.)

_Note 77._ _You have the "bird's foot-print" characters._

Writing is supposed by the Chinese to have been invented by Ts'ang Chieh, a minister of the Yellow Emperor (2698-2598 B.C.) who, having "observed the shapes of things in the heavens and the forms of things on earth, also the foot-prints of birds and beasts on the sand and mud," suddenly conceived the idea of pictographic writing. It is highly complimentary to speak of a person's writing as being like the "bird's foot-prints."

_Note 78._ _You suggest that we drink together at the Lute Stream._

The Ch'in Ch'i T'ai (Table-lute Stream Terrace) was a stone terrace where a famous player of the table-lute, who is said to have attained Immortality, lived. The legend is that he took a small dragon in the form of a carp from the Ch'in stream and kept it for a month, when it changed its shape into that of a dragon and ascended to Heaven.

THE HONOURABLE LADY CHAO

_Note 79._ _Moon over the houses of Han, over the site of Ch'in._

Ch'in was the name of the State which overcame all the others and welded China into a homogeneous Empire instead of a loose federation. (See Introduction.) The lady Chao lived during the Han Dynasty.

Wang Ch'iang, known to posterity as Chao Chün, the "Brilliant-and-Perfect," lived in the First Century B.C. The daughter of educated parents, she was brought up in the strictest Confucian principles; in the words of the Chinese, she "did not speak loudly nor did she look beyond the doors, indeed, even within the house, she only walked the path which led to her mother's room. Her ears were closed to all distracting sounds, therefore her heart and mind were pure like those of the Immortals." Her father regarded her as a precious jewel, and although many suitors presented themselves, he refused to listen to their proposals, and finally, when she was seventeen, sent her to the capital as an offering to the Han Emperor Yüan.

Upon arriving at the Palace, the young girl was housed in the inner rooms, among the innumerable Palace women who lived there in constant hope of a summons to the Imperial presence. As the Son of Heaven never went into this part of his Palace, it was customary to catalogue the inmates and submit their portraits to him, a form of procedure which led to much bribery of the Court painters. The rigid principles of the daughter of the Wang clan forbade her to comply with this Palace custom, and the portrait which appeared in the catalogue was such a travesty of her exquisite features that it roused no desire in the Imperial breast.

Five or six dreary years passed, and the young girl remained secluded in the Women's Apartments. Shortly before this time, one of the Hsiung Nu tribes (see Note 3) had surrendered to the Chinese soldiers, and as a proof of good faith on both sides had received permission to serve as a frontier guard. Soon after, the head of the tribe sent to ask that one of Yüan Ti's ladies be sent him as Queen. The catalogue was consulted, and the decision fell upon the daughter of Wang as being the one among the Palace women who had the fewest charms. She was therefore told to prepare herself for a journey to the desert wastes where she would reign over a savage Central Asian tribe, a prospect terrifying to one brought up in strict seclusion among people of refinement.

Custom demanded that, on the point of departure, she should appear before the Son of Heaven in order to thank her Imperial Master for his kind thoughtfulness in thus providing for her future, and then be formally handed over to the envoys. The audience was held in one of the secondary halls, the Court was assembled, the envoys stood ready, and the lady entered. At the sight of her unusual beauty, every one was thunderstruck, even the Emperor could hardly refrain from springing off the Dragon Throne and speaking to her. But it was too late; there was nothing to be done. The most beautiful of all the Palace women was pledged to the Hsiung Nu Khan, the escort which was to convey her over the Jade Pass waited, and soon the broken-hearted girl set off.

Fury and consternation spread through the Palace; a camel laden with gold was sent in pursuit; the guilty painter, Mao Yen-shou, was executed and his immense fortune sent as a consolation to the Wang family; but all this could not save the young girl from her fate. The Hsiung Nu ambassador refused to ransom her, and she passed out through the Jade Barrier to the "Yellow Sand Fields" beyond.

The banished daughter of Han was true to the principles in which she had been schooled. Instead of committing suicide, as she longed to do, she submitted to the will of the Five Great Ones--Heaven, Earth, The Emperor, her Father, and her Mother--and performed her duties as a wife to the best of her ability in spite of the homesickness from which she suffered perpetually.

Upon the death of the Khan, she felt that her hour of deliverance had at last come and that she was at liberty to poison herself. This she did, and was buried in the desert, but the mound over her grave remained always green.

Because of her pseudonym, "Brilliant-and-Perfect," she is often referred to as "Ming Fei," the "Bright Concubine." Allusions to her story always suggest homesickness.

THINKING OF THE FRONTIER

_Note 80._ _I desire to send the "harmonious writings."_

Letters from wives to husbands are often spoken of as though they carried sweet sounds.

_Note 81._ _He who wears the dragon robes delighted in the sweetly-scented wind of her garments._

Appointments for the Emperor's use were all spoken of as "dragon" appointments, and the analysis of the character which means the Emperor's love, is a dragon under a roof. Ladies' clothes were, and are to-day, kept in cupboards in which scented woods were burned, therefore as the long sleeves of their dresses swayed back and forth a sweet perfume came from them.

_Note 82._ _How was it possible for the "Flying Swallow" to snatch the Emperor's love?_

The "Flying Swallow" was a famous concubine. (See Note 30.)

RECITING VERSES BY MOONLIGHT

_Note 83._ _I suggest that men meditate at length on Hsieh Hsüan Hui._

A reference, under a pseudonym, to the poet Hsieh T'iao, whose work Li T'ai-po so much admired. (See Note 72.) "Hsüan" is applied to the names of gods to indicate that they deserve praise and worship, and "Hui" means bright, splendid, or a ray of the sun.

PASSING THE NIGHT AT THE WHITE HERON ISLAND

_Note 84._ _At dawn, I left the Red Bird Gate._

An allusion to the bird which rules the South. (See Note 55.)

_Note 85._ _At sunset, I came to roost on the White Heron Island._

According to the Chinese commentary, this island lies "in the heart's centre of the river, three _li_ West of the district of the Golden Mound (Nanking), and many herons collect there."

_Note 86._ _And the longing in my heart is like that for the Green Jasper Tree._

This tree grows in the Taoist Paradise, supposed to lie in the K'un Lun Mountains. (See map.) Those who eat its blossoms become immortal.

ASCENDING THE THREE CHASMS

_Note 87._

These are the famous chasms of the Yangtze River, between Ichang and Chungking. Their names are: "The Terrifying Barrier," "The Sorceress Gorge," and "The Western Sepulchre." Joined together in one great line of precipitous cliffs, they are among the extraordinary natural objects of the world and are most awe-inspiring.

_Note 88._ _The Serpent River runs terribly fast. The Serpent River can be suddenly exhausted._

A reference to the fact that, although the water of the river flows with terrible speed while the snow waters are coming down, during the Winter it is very low, and many parts are quite dry. (See Note 46.)

_Note 89._ _Three dawns shine upon the Yellow Ox. Three sunsets--and we go so slowly._

A cliff beneath which are rapids so difficult and dangerous to pass that the utmost care must be taken in navigating them. Boats ascending this stretch of the river often take several days to pass a given point. (See Introduction for a description of the Yangtze River and travel upon it.)

PARTING FROM YANG, A HILL MAN

_Note 90._ _You are going to pick the fairy grasses And the shooting purple flower of the_ ch'ang p'u.

"Hill men" is a term applied to those who desire to become worthy of joining the ranks of the Immortals, and for this reason lead a life of contemplation among the hills. The fairy grasses and the _ch'ang p'u_ (see table of plants in Introduction) both grow in the Taoist Paradises.

_Note 91._ _Riding down from the green-blue Heaven on a white dragon._

The dragon is one of the steeds of the Immortals.

THE SERPENT MOUND

_Note 92._ _The mercy of the Sainted Lord is far greater than that of Han Wên Ti. The Princely One had pity, and did not appoint you to the station of the Unending Sands._

The allusion is to an incident which occurred in the Second Century B.C. when a famous scholar named Chia was sent to Ch'ang Sha, literally "Unending Sands" (see map), and died there of the damp vapours.

ON THE SUBJECT OF OLD TAI'S WINE-SHOP

_Note 93._ _Old Tai is gone down to the Yellow Springs._

The Yellow Springs lie in the nether world, where spirits go after death.

_Note 94._ _There is no Li Po on the terrace of Eternal Darkness._

This world is known as the World of Light, and below it lies the World of Shades, where the sun never shines.

DRINKING IN THE T'AO PAVILION

_Note 95._ _The garden pool lies and shines like the magic gall mirror._

The Magic Gall Mirror was a square of glittering, polished metal supposed to possess the miraculous power of betraying the thoughts of all who looked into it, by making the heart and "five viscera" visible. The ferocious First Emperor used it to examine his numerous Palace women, and those who, by a palpitating gall, showed lack of faith were put to death.

_Note 96._ _The Golden Valley is not much to boast of._

A beautiful garden built by the rich and eccentric Shih Ch'ung (died A.D. 300) for his favourite concubine Lü Chu.

A SONG FOR THE HOUR WHEN THE CROWS ROOST

_Note 97._ _This is the hour when the crows come to roost on the Ku Su Terrace._

(See Note 73.)

_Note 98._ _The silver-white arrow-tablet above the gold-coloured brass jar of the water-clock marks the dripping of much water_.

(See Note 22.)

POEM SENT TO THE OFFICIAL WANG OF HAN YANG

_Note 99._ _The shrill notes of the bamboo flute reached to Mien and O._

Mien and O are the ancient names for Hankow and Wuchang.

DRINKING ALONE ON THE ROCK IN THE RIVER OF THE CLEAR STREAM

_Note 100._ _Perpetually casting my fish-line like Yen Ling._

Yen Ling is one of the names of the philosopher Yen Kuang. (See Note 75.)

THE REST-HOUSE OF DEEP TROUBLE

_Note 101._ _At Chin Ling, the tavern where travellers part is called the Rest-House of Deep Trouble._

An inn fifteen _li_ South of the district in which Chin Ling (Nanking) stands.

_Note 102._ _Like K'ang Lo I climb on board the dull travelling boat._

K'ang Lo is a pseudonym for the poet Hsieh Ling-yün, who lived in the Fifth Century A.D.

_Note 103._ _I hum softly "On the Clear Streams Flies the Night Frost."_

A line from one of Hsieh Ling-yün's poems.

_Note 104._ _It is said that, long ago, on the Ox Island Hill, songs were sung which blended the five colours._

The "five colours" are blue-green, yellow, carnation, white, and black. Anything that is perfectly harmonious is spoken of figuratively as being blended like the five colours.

Rapids flow past the Ox Island Hill on the Yangtze, which is not to be confused with the Ox Hill at the Yangtze Gorges.

_Note 105._ _Now do I not equal Hsieh, and the youth of the House of Yüan?_

Yüan Hung lived in the time of the Chin Dynasty. His poems were both erudite and beautiful, but his extreme poverty forced him to take a position on a freight-boat plying up and down the Yangtze. One night, as the vessel lay below the dangerous Ox Rapids waiting for daylight, the official of the place, a learned man named Hsieh Shang, heard Yüan Hung's exquisite songs and was so delighted that he insisted upon the singer's accompanying him to the Official Residence. Here the days and nights were passed in conversation, and upon Yüan Hung's departure, Hsieh gave him much silver and gold, and eventually used his influence to enable the young man to become an official. Since then all men have heard of Yüan Hung. Li T'ai-po compares his lonely lot to that of the youth who possessed a faithful friend.

_Note 106._ _The bitter bamboos make a cold sound, swaying in the Autumn moonlight._

The ancient Chinese divided bamboos into two classes: the bitter and the tasteless.

THE "LOOKING-FOR-HUSBAND" ROCK

_Note 107._ _In the attitude, and with the manner, of the woman of old._

A reference to a legend of a woman who was turned to stone. (See Note 45.)

_Note 108._ _Her resentment is that of the Woman of the Hsiang River._

O Huang and her sister Nü Ying were the wives of Shun, the "Perfect Emperor" (2317-2208 B.C.). When he died, and was buried near the Hsiang River, they wept so copiously over his grave that their tears burned spots on the bamboos growing there, and thus was the variety known as the "spotted bamboo" created. Eventually the despairing ladies committed suicide by throwing themselves into the river.

_Note 109._ _Her silence that of the concubine of the King of Ch'u._

Ts'u Fei, concubine of the King of Ch'u was much distressed because her lord was of a very wild disposition, and only took pleasure in hunting and such pursuits. She constantly expostulated with him on his mode of life, but at last, finding that all her entreaties were in vain, she ceased her remonstrances and sank into a silence from which she could not be roused.

AFTER BEING SEPARATED FOR A LONG TIME

_Note 110._ _Besides there are the "embroidered character letters."_

In the Fourth Century A.D., a lady, whose maiden name was Su, embroidered a long lament of eight hundred and forty characters in the form of a poetical palindrome and sent it to her husband who was exiled in Tartary.

BITTER JEALOUSY IN THE PALACE OF THE HIGH GATE

_Note 111._ _The Heavens have revolved. The "Northern Measure" hangs above the Western wing._

The "Northern Measure" is the Chinese name for the "Dipper," and on the fifteenth day of the Eighth Month, when it can be seen sinking in the West before bed-time, a festival is held. This is essentially a festival for women, who object to being parted from their husbands at that time. Incense is burned to the full moon, and many fruits and seeds, all of a symbolical nature denoting the desire for posterity, are set out for the moon goddess.

_Note 112._ _In the Gold House, there is no one._

(See Note 23.)

ETERNALLY THINKING OF EACH OTHER

_Note 113._ _The tones of the Chao psaltery begin and end on the bridge of the silver-crested love-pheasant._

"The _sê_, or psaltery, is made on the principle of the _ch'in_, and like that instrument has been made the subject of numerous allegorical comparisons. The number of strings has varied ... but the _sê_ now in use has twenty-five strings. Each string is elevated on a movable bridge. These bridges represent the five colours: the first five are blue, the next red, the five in the middle are yellow, then come five white, and lastly five black." ("Chinese Music," by J. A. Van Aalst.) The most desirable specimens came from Chao, a place in Shensi. (See map.) The allusion to the love-pheasants is, of course, symbolical. By it, the lady says that this instrument is only properly used for love-songs, with the implication that it is therefore impossible for her to play it now.

_Note 114._ _I wish I could play my Shu table-lute on the mandarin duck strings._