Preface to the Collection of Monk Bi-yan's Poems
Ou-yang, Xiu (1007 A.D.-1072 A.D.)
After I passed the advanced exam at a young age, I traveled through the
capital and, thereby, was able to make friends with all the contemporary wise
and virtuous people. Our kingdom had conquered the Four Seas
1 and
ended the war. The peace had allowed our nation to rest and prosper for forty
years. However, in my opinion, there were still people with rare gifts and bold
strategy who preferred to live in seclusion unless the government would make
special efforts to utilize their talents. These recluses either hid in mountain
forests or pursued an occupation like monk or peddler. Their talent is never
utilized as they become old and die. I tried to search for these talented men
without success.
Afterwards, I found my late friend, Man-qing. He had high aspirations. The
government was unable to utilize his talent. Man-qing did not accommodate
himself to fit available positions. He had no way to fulfill his dreams, so he
visited old people in the country, enjoyed drinking to excess, and did not mind
even if his manners looked unconventional and unrestrained. I suspected that
only by getting to know these recluses intimately could one gain their trust and
discover their talents. Therefore, I loved to visit Man-qing and secretly hoped
that I could find all the talented people through him.
Monk Bi-yan had a long-standing friendship with Man-qing and was able to
detach himself from worldly affairs. Encouraging each other to value integrity,
the two men enjoyed a seamless friendship. Man-qing hid himself in wine; Bi-yan
hid himself in Buddhism. Both of them were remarkable men. Bi-yan loved to amuse
himself by improvising poetry. When he became intoxicated, he would sing songs,
recite poetry and laugh boisterously. How magnificent his approach was when he
sought the ultimate happiness. All the contemporary scholars loved to befriend
him. I frequented his house as well. Over the course of the next ten years, Monk
Bi-yan traveled north across the Yellow River and east to Yun-cheng City of the
State of Ji 2. He did not find anyone who could share his interests.
Frustrated by poverty and disappointment, he finally returned home. Sadly, at
this time, Man-qing died and Monk Bi-yan was old and sick. Having observed the
peak and decline of both men, I have also become old.
Man-qing, whose poems were uniquely creative, lavishly praised Monk Bi-yan's
writing. He considered Bi-yan's poems graceful, bold and imbued with poetic
quality. Monk Bi-yan was a man of great stature who had a big heart. After he
become a Buddhist, his talent could not be utilized. Only his poems could be
passed down to future generations. However, he was too lazy to save his poems.
When he was old, he opened his book bag and found more than three hundred of his
poems. All of them were beautiful. After Man-qing died, Monk Bi-yan became
depressed and did not know where to go. He had been told that there are many
mountains and rivers in the southeast and that the lofty peaks, steep cliffs and
the dashing of great waves are grand and imposing. Therefore, he decided to
visit these beautiful sites. This decision is sufficient to show that his
ambitions remain despite his old age. Before the start of his journey, I have
written this preface to the collection of his poems. I lament his decline by
telling the story of his life in its prime.
1 The "Four Seas" means "four directions". Er-ya (an ancient book
which interprets the bibles and antiques) says, "The nine Yi tribes (barbarian
tribes in eastern China), the eight Di tribes (barbarian tribes in northern
China), the seven Rong tribes (barbarian tribes in western China), and the six
Man tribes (barbarian tribes in southern China) together are called the Four
Seas."
2 The State of Ji is now called Shangdong Province.
