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Farewell to Jian Xin ¹ at the Lotus Tower ²

Wang, Chang-ling ³ (?-756 CE?)

A cold torrential rain ⁴ entered Wu District ⁵ during the night.
At dawn I saw my guest off at lonely ⁶ Chu Mountain.
If my friends … in Lo-yang City ⁷ ask about me,
Tell them that my heart is as pure as crystal ice in a jade bottle.

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¹ Jian Xin was Chang-ling Wang's friend.

² The Lotus Tower was located in Zheng-jiang City (present day Zheng-jiang-shi City in Jiangsu Province).
    The key to understanding the theme of this poem is to grasp the circumstance of the poet at the time it was written. Chang-ling Wang was an assistant district magistrate in Jiang-ning City when he wrote this poem. It was after 742 CE. Before this time, he was banished from the position of junior officer in Si-shui City (present day Chang-gao-xian City in Henan Province) to Ling-nan Area in 739 CE. Later, he was demoted to assistant district magistrate in Jiang-ning City. In 748 CE, he was banished again to the more remote and desolate area near Long-biao City (located southwest of present day Qian-yang City in Hunan Province). It could be said that Wang suffered many demotions and banishments and his political career was doomed with frustrations. Fan Yin, a contemporary of Chang-ling Wang, wrote in his book, The Souls of Heroes in China, "Chang-ling Wang was a virtuous man indifferent to fame or gain. During the late years of his life, Wang became careless about small matters. His enemy used this fact and the fact that he had been sent into exile twice to foment a slanderous rumor about him." Actually, it was not Chang-ling Wang's fault, but rather he was too proud to follow the prevailing customs. When Wang was banished to the desolate area near Long-biao City, Bai Li wrote the following poem: Poplar flowers have all fallen and goatsuckers cry./ I heard you had crossed five rivers and reached Long-biao City./ I entrust my care for you to the bright moon./ My thought of you will follow the wind up to the western border of the Kingdom of Yie-lang./ The Kingdom of Yie-lang was located west of Long-biao City. Li's poem showed great sympathy toward Wang's suffering. In this poem, Wang claimed that he was innocent and asked his friends and relatives not to believe in rumors.

³ Shao-bo was Chang-ling Wang's alternate first name. He was a native of Wan-nian City (present day Xi-an City in Shaanxi Province) of Jing-zhao County. He was an assistant district magistrate in Jiang-ing City and then a junior officer in Long-biao City. Consequently, people called him Jiang-ning Wang or Long-biao Wang. Wang passed the Advanced Exam in 727 CE. He was appointed to the office of Editor in the Department of Confidential Documents and Official Dispatches and then was selected as a Great Scholar in the Royal Academy. When Lu-shan An and Si-ming Shi led a rebellion, Wang took refuge in the area between the Yangtze River and the Huai River. He was framed and killed by Qiu-xiao Lü , the Mayor of Hao-zhou City. Chang-ling Wang mastered the Qi-lü (similar to heptameter) style of poetry. His poems about border fortresses were vigorous, grandiose, and powerful; his poems on women were refined, beautiful, and full of passion.

⁴ A cold torrential rain symbolizes the destructive power of the rumor.

⁵ "Wu District" and "Chu Mountain" refer to the area around present day Zheng-jiang-shi City, the capital of Jiangsu Province.

⁶ The word "lonely" refers to Wang's isolation and inability to stop the rumor.

⁷ Lo-yang City was located in present day Henan Province. Chang-ling Wang was a native of Chang-an City, the capital of the Tang dynasty. Here "Lo-yang City" refers to Chang-an City, present day Xi-an City of Shaanxi Province. Chang-an City was the capital of the Western Han dynasty and Lo-yang City was the capital of the Eastern Han dynasty. Therefore, they could be used interchangeably.

Farewell to Uncle Yun ¹ at Xie-tiao Tower in Xuan-zhou City ² (753 CE)

Li, Bai (701-62 CE)

That which has abandoned me is the irrevocable past;
That which troubles my mind is the sorrowful present ³.
Long winds escort the autumn geese for a thousand miles ⁴.
This scene invites us to drink at this tall tower.
Your essays are as broad and profound as those in the classics collected at Peng-lai Mountain ⁵
And they are as vigorous and powerful as the Jian-an style of writing ⁶.
My poetry is elegant, graceful … like that of Tiao Xie.
We are both in a creative mood that inspires our imaginations to fly high
As if we were ascending the blue sky to pluck the bright moon.
I draw a sword and cut the flowing water,
But it only flows more violently ⁷.
I hold the wine cup to banish my sorrows
But only become more upset.
There is no hope to realize my dreams during my lifetime.
It is better to let my hair loose and float in a flat boat ⁸.

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¹ Yun Li, Bai Li's uncle, was an editor at the Bureau of Archives.

² Xie-tiao Tower was built by poet and mayor Tiao Xie of Xuan-zhou City in the Kingdom of Southern Qi around 500 CE. A person's name in China is pronounced last name first, the first name second. Xuan-zhou City is now called Xuan-cheng-xian City and is located in Anhui Province.
    Bai Li was banished from the emperor's court by corrupt influential officials in 744 CE. This poem expressed his pent-up emotions. He had the talent to save the corrupt government, but he had no opportunity to use it.

³ "That which troubles my mind" refers to the conflict between his ambitions and his frustrations rather than sorrow due to his separation from his uncle.

⁴ This line not only refers to the fact that Bai Li saw his uncle off, but also naturally and elegantly suggests that his passion escorts his lofty aspirations. As one sees one's guest off, one usually escorts the guest for a short distance.

⁵ It was said that Peng-lai Mountain was a heavenly mountain where gods collected secret records and classical books. Chinese scholars often referred to the library in the Eastern Palace as Peng-lai Mountain. The people of the Tang dynasty frequently used Peng-lai Mountain to represent the Bureau of Archives.

⁶ "The Jian-an style of writing" refers to the writing style established and promoted by Prime Minister Cao Cao, his sons, and the Seven Great Writers during the Jian-an Period (196-219 CE).

⁷ This line and the previous one say that he cannot separate himself from the frustrations pursuing him.

⁸ At first glance, this line seems to say that Li tried to avoid reality by living in seclusion. In fact, it is intended to convey that Li protested the corruption that emerged after state power fell to crafty sycophants.

Climbing the Shu Mountain Path is Difficult

Li, Bai ¹ (701-762 CE)
Alas! The Shu Mountain Path is high and dangerous.
Climbing the Shu Mountain Path is as difficult as ascending to the blue sky.
The founding of the State of Shu by Can-cong and Yu-fu is lost in time.
Shu has had no contact with the State of Qin for the last 48,000 years
Even though they are neighboring countries.
Only birds can cross over E-mei Peak ²
By passing over Tai-bai Mountain ³ on Qin's western border.
Only after the ground collapsed, mountains were destroyed, and the Muscular Men ⁴ died,
Did a stone path, steep as a scaling ladder, connect Shu and Qin.
Above the path is a high beacon ⁵ that even the sun’s chariot, drawn by six dragons ⁶, has to circle around.
Below the path is a winding river whose waves surge, clash, and churn at its turns.
Even yellow cranes ⁷ are unable to pass over the peak.
Apes ⁸ that wish to cross don't, because they worry about scaling the heights.
Why does the path on Qing-ni ⁹ Mountain coil so much?
It circles the rocky mountain and turns many times every hundred steps.
Looking up at Orion and Gemini ¹⁰, I hold my breath and try to reach them.
Beating my chest in frustration, I sit down with a deep sigh.
When will you return from traveling westward?
The dangerous path and precipitous rocks are not scalable.
All I see are sad birds crying among ancient trees.
Male birds, followed by females, swirl around the woods.
I also hear cuckoos ¹¹ weeping beneath the night moon.
The empty mountain is filled with sorrow.
Climbing the Shu Mountain Path is as difficult as ascending to the blue sky.
If one hears these words, one's face will turn pale.
Less than a foot separates the series of peaks from the sky.
Withered pine trees hang upside down and lean on a precipice.
The flying rapids and the waterfall compete for percussion.
When the rapids strike rocks, the sound reverberates like thunder in many valleys.
Given the danger, why do you come here from afar?
The rocky summits near Jian-ge Pass ¹² are steep and lofty.
One man garrisons the pass.
Ten thousand men cannot enter ¹³.
If the defender is not trustworthy,
He can be as harmful as jackals and wolves.
One who lives here must avoid fierce tigers …,
And long snakes ….
They sharpen their fangs, suck blood, and kill countless people.
Although Jing-cheng City ¹⁴ is a paradise,
I would rather hurry home.
Climbing the Shu Mountain Path is as difficult as ascending to the blue sky.
I turn sideways, look west, and heave a long sigh.

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¹ After Zhi-zhang He, a contemporary dignitary, read this poem, he admired Li’s talent so much that he praised him as a god exiled to earth. This story led later generations to call Li "the God of Chinese Poetry".

² E-mei Peak is in present day Sichuan Province.

³ Tai-bai Mountain is located southeast of present day Mei-xian City in Shaanxi Province.

⁴ The chapter titled "The Mythology of Shu" in The History of the State of Hua-yang says, "The King of the State of Qin married five beautiful young women to the King of Shu. The latter king sent five muscular men to welcome them. On their way back, when they arrived at Zi-tong County they saw a huge snake slither into a cave. The five muscular men grabbed its tail and pulled it out. As a result, the mountain collapsed, and all the people were crushed and killed. The originally tall mountain turned into five smaller mountains."

⁵ "The high beacon" refers to the highest summit of the mountain range.

⁶ According to Chinese mythology, the sun's driver, Xi-he, travels in the sky riding a chariot drawn by six dragons.

⁷ Yellow cranes are supposed to be good at high flight.

⁸ Apes are supposed to be good at climbing mountains.

⁹ "Qing" means green and "ni" means mud.

¹⁰ The ancient Chinese astronomers mapped the stars in the sky to certain regions in China. Shu corresponded to Orion and Qin corresponded to Gemini.

¹¹ It was said that the soul of Yu Du, the last king of Shu, became a cuckoo after he died. Its voice was sad and seemed to say, "Bu-ru-gui-qu (would rather go home)."

¹² Jian-ge ("Jian" means sword; "ge" means tower) Pass was located north of Jian-ge County and between Da-jian ("da" means large) Mountain and Xiao-jian ("xiao" means small) Mountain.

¹³ This line says that if the government were to fail to use the right people, they might dare to rebel if they were to possess this pass. The mistake could result in an enormous disaster. This poem was written before the decline of the Tang dynasty. Thus, these two lines indicate that Li cares about state affairs, has the foresight to see the danger of inappropriate appointments, and is providing a warning to the government.

¹⁴ Jing-cheng City is now called Cheng-du City, the capital of Sichuan Province.

Soldiers and Chariots ¹

Du, Fu (712-770 CE)
The chariots rumble,
The horses neigh,
The soldiers march forward with their bows and arrows hanging at their waists.
Their wives and parents rush to see them off.
The dust obscures the Xian-yang Bridge.
Relatives clutch at the clothes of the soldiers,
Stamp their feet in anger, and cry, blocking the road.
The sad cries shoot skyward and pierce the clouds.
A passerby asks the members of the procession what is happening.
They hurriedly reply that the government drafts soldiers too often.
Some soldiers have been stationed north of the Yellow River since the age of fifteen.
After they reach forty,
They will be sent to the western border to cultivate wasteland.
When they left their hometown,
The head of the village helped them wrap their hair with handkerchiefs ².
Even after they return home white-haired,
They still cannot avoid being sent back to defend the frontiers.
The border has become a sea of blood,
But the emperor's desire to expand China's territory is insatiable.
…
Thousands of fields are abandoned to weeds and briers.
The grain grows disorderly in the field
Even though there are sturdy women able to hoe and plow.
The soldiers stationed at the Middle Wall ³ can bear hardship and endure toil.
They are driven abusively like dogs or chickens.
Even if one inquires about their welfare with concern,
How dare these slave soldiers complain?
For instance,
This winter there is still no relief for the soldiers stationed at the West Wall ⁴.
Mayors urgently press for payment of taxes.
From what resources can a family pay its taxes? ⁵
People feel doomed when they have sons.
Parents prefer to have daughters instead
Because after they marry, they can still be neighbors.
A son will be killed on the battlefield and later buried in weeds.
Look at the shore along Lake Qing-hai ⁶.
Since ancient times, the white bones of soldiers have not been buried.
The new ghosts cry out and the old ghosts weep.
The howl of ghosts is intermittently heard on cloudy, rainy days.
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¹ This poem, written in 751 CE, was Du's first that addressed contemporary social problems. Later generations honored this type of poem by referring to them as poetic history. After 741 CE, in order to expand China's territory toward the west, the emperors of the Tang dynasty started many wars. However, it turned out that China lost almost every war and 20,000 Chinese soldiers were killed. To replace the dead soldiers, Prime Minister Guo-zhong Yang ordered governors to arbitrarily arrest people on the streets, shackle them, and then send them to army camps. This was the reason people protested the emperor's tyranny. Du blamed the government's aggression for the people's great suffering. His strong concern about the country's social problems demonstrates that his poetic style of realism had reached maturity.

² This was because they were too young.

³ The Middle Wall is the short name for the middle part of the Great Wall.

⁴ The West Wall is the short name for the western part of the Great Wall.

⁵ A family cannot pay its tax because there are no men to tend the fields.

⁶ Lake Qing-hai (green sea) is an inland sea in Qinghai Province.

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Giving My Daughter Away to the Yang Family ¹

Wei, Ying-wu ² (737-792 CE?)

I was sorrowful all day.
Even when I took a walk outdoors,
My sadness remained.
You are going to travel a long distance to be married.
Your light boat will go up a mighty river.
Unfortunately, you and your sister are motherless ³.
As I recall the past,
I wish I could have loved you more.
You have had to raise your sister.
When you parted,
You both cried endlessly.
When I saw you cry I was heartbroken.
However, for your happiness I cannot ask you to stay.
You have lacked a mother’s guidance since you were little,
So I worry whether you can serve your mother-in-law properly.
Fortunately, you are entrusted to a kind family.
I hope that your mother-in-law will treat you well
…
Frugality should be promoted,
So why do you need a rich dowry ⁴?
Respect your in-laws and observe a woman's proper conduct.
Your appearance and demeanor should follow the customs of propriety.
We must part this morning.
In what year will I see you again?
I used to be able to master my feelings,
But when we must part my feelings suddenly overwhelm me.
As I return home and see your little sister,
My tears stream down along the strings of my hat.

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¹ Chinese people regard marriage as one of the most important events in one's life. This poem reveals a father's view about his daughter's wedding. The video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPNu1Unprb4&feature=related, shows how a Chinese girl prepares her wedding. The video,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DunkGaaGGsM&feature=related, is entitled "Entering the Bridal Sedan Chair".

¹ Ying-wu Wei was a native of Wan-nian City (present day Xi-an City of Shaanxi Province) of Jing-zhao County. He was a descendent of Xiong Wei, the Carefree Duke of the Zhou dynasty. Dai-jia fathered Ling-yi; Ling-yi fathered Luan; Luan fathered Ying-wu. In 751 CE, Ying-wu Wei was appointed to San-wei-lang (Imperial Guardian) in the emperor's court. During the Yong-tai Period, he was appointed as Assistant Magistrate of Lo-yang District and then as an official at Jing-zhao County. He managed state affairs with integrity. In 779 CE, he was transferred from Mayor of Hu-xian City to Mayor of Li-yang City. He declined the transfer with the excuse of illness. In 781 CE, he was transferred from Counsel on the Board of Examination Affairs to Mayor of Chu-zhou City and then reappointed as Mayor of Jiang-zhou City. Soon after the emperor's court ordered him to go to the palace and appointed him as a senior secretary of Zuo-si (left department). During the early Zhen-yuan Period, Wei was appointed as Mayor of Su-zhou City. This seems to have been his last government position.
    "A Banquet with Local Writers in the Lobby of the City Hall as the Rain Falls" written by Ying-wu Wei says,
"The entrances of the magnificent City Hall are closely guarded;
Fragrance fills the guest room.
As the wind and rain from the sea arrives,
The pool and the hall are cool and guests become carefree.
My annoying illness has recently disappeared.
Guests of honor fill the lobby again.
I am ashamed of assuming a high position
Because I have not yet improved people's well-being.
Wisdom solves disputes;
Looking on the bright side of things eliminates one's unnecessary burdens.
Meat and fish are no longer popular;
Fruits and vegetables are fresh and tasty.
Looking down, I drink a cup of wine.
Looking up, I listen to beautiful poems.
I feel weightless when I am happy.
I wish I could ride the wind and fly.
History and literature have flourished in the Central Region of Wu District.
The talent of my guests is like a sea of treasures.
I finally realize that the treasure of Wu District is not limited to its wealth."
    Wei was noble and fond of cleanliness. He liked to light incense and sweep the immediate area before he sat down. Only outstanding poets such as Kuang Gu, Chang-qing Liu, Dan Qiu, Ran Jiao were extended the honor of being invited to Wei's home to write poems with him. A letter that Tai-zhen Liu wrote to Wei said, "Kuang Gu visited me and showed me your poem, 'A Banquet in the Lobby of the City Hall'. How expressive, vigorous, and refined it is! During the Song (420-479) and Qi (479-502) dynasties, Ling-yun Xie (385-443), Yue Shen (441-513), Yun Wu; Xun He (?-535) were able to master expressing their thoughts. Although they could follow their feelings and express their profound experiences, their poems were disconnected from the legacy of Chinese classics. You are the only poet who is able to control your thoughts with the ancient style. Those who master The Book of Poetry in its entirety will find that your poems carry on the traditions of classical Chinese poetry."
    Wei mastered writing verses with five characters to a line. His poetry was as simple and elegant as Qian Tao's. Most of his poems described pastoral features of landscapes. In Ju-yi Bai's letter to Jiu Yuan, Bai praised Wei's poetry by writing, "Wei's poetry is simple and elegant. He has his own style."

³ Wei wrote a poem to mourn his wife when she died. It says, "My little children knew what they had lost./ They clutched at my clothing as they cried."

⁴ This shows that Ying-wu Wei was an honest and upright government official. He did not use his position to take bribes.

1.

The arrows in the general's quiver are strengthened with vulture quills at their tails.
A embroidered flag with a swallowtail streamer flutters beside him.
The general stands tall to announce his new orders.
All the soldiers in the camp hail him in one voice.

2.

The forest is dark and the grass trembles in the wind.
The general draws his bow at night
For he thinks he sees a tiger blocking the path.
At dawn he searches for his arrow
And discovers it stuck in the crevice of a stone.
3.

The moonlight is dim and wild geese fly high.
The King of Huns flees under the cover of night.
The general resolves to lead his cavalry to capture him
Even though heavy snow covers his troops' bows and swords.

4.

A banquet is served in the wilderness camp.
The border tribes have come to congratulate the general on his triumph.
In spirits high from drink,
He dances with his swords ….
The thundering drum beats shake the mountains and rivers.

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¹ Yun-yan was Lun Lu's alternate first name. His family was an eminent clan in Fan-yang City (present day Zhuo-zhou City in Hebei Province) in Jun-wang County. His ancestral home was in Pu-zhou City (west of present day Yong-ji City in Shanxi Province) of He-zhong County. Between the end of the Tian-bao Period and the beginning of the Da-li Period Lun Lu failed the Advanced Exam many times. Due to Prime Minister Jin Wang's recommendation, he was appointed as a junior officer at Wen-xiang City. Later, he passed the Advanced Exam during the late Da-li Period and became a judge in a marshal's headquarters. At the peak of his career, he was a senior secretary of the Finance and Revenue Department. He, Zhong-fu Ji, Hong Han, Qi Qian, Shu Si-kong, Fa Miao, Tong Cui, Wei Geng, Shen Xia-hou and Duan Li are honored as the Ten Gifted Poets of the Da-li Period. He wrote many "farewell" poems. Some of his poems reflected the nature of military life. He was good at telling stories through his poetry. He was adept at writing in many poetic styles. His ancient style was imposing; his contemporary styles, Lü -shi (stanza of eight lines with certain rules about rhymes, tones and antitheses) and Jue-ju (Chinese poem with four lines to a stanza, each consisting of five or seven characters), were refined, lucid and lively.
    During Emperor De-zong's reign, Qu-mou Wei, the brother of Lu's mother, recommended Lu's talent. Consequently, the emperor often summoned Lu to his home. Whenever the emperor wrote a poem, Lu would responded to it by writing a similar one. One day the emperor asked Qu-mou, "Where are Lun Lu and Yi Li?" Qu-mou replied, "Lun Lu followed Zhen Hun to He-zong City." The emperor sent a messenger to summon Lu to the palace. Soon after Lun Lu died. Emperor Wen-zong loved to read Lun Lu's poems. The emperor asked Prime Minister De-yu Li, "Does the imperial library collect Lun Lu’s writings? Did Lun Lu have sons?" Li answered, "Lun Lu had four sons. They all have passed the Advanced Exams and work in the cabinet." The emperor sent people to Lun Lu's home to search for his writings. They found about five hundred of his poems.

Farewell to Duan Li

Lu, Lun (737?-799? CE)
The grass withers everywhere in our home town,
So it is all the more disheartening as we part.
Your journey goes beyond the distant cold clouds.
After seeing you off,
I will return home to evening snow.
I … led a vagrant life in childhood.
In view of the hardships I have suffered,
I wish we could have become friends earlier.
Gazing down the road where I last saw you,
I cover my face to conceal my tears.
Seeing the wind-blown dust in your wake,
I wonder if we will ever meet again.

The Song of a Traveling Son

Meng, Jiao ¹ (751-814 CE)
Thread in the hands of a loving mother
Becomes traveling clothes for her son's long journey.
She sews with tight stitches right before he departs
For she worries that his return might be late ¾ very late.
How can one say that the heart of a short blade of grass
Can repay the gift of Spring sunshine?

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¹ Xing Li recommended Jiao Meng to Jian-feng Zhang, the Mayor of Xu-zhou City, by saying, "Jiao Meng masters writing verses with five characters to a line. His poems combine the merits of those of Du-wei Li and Shu-guo Su of the early Han dynasty, the Seven Talented Poets of the Jian-an Period, as well as Ling-yun Xie and Dao-yun Xie of the Southern dynasties." Yu Han wrote, "Jiao Meng is so poor that he cannot afford to provide for his parents. He has traveled all over China, but has been unable to find a job that can utilize his talents. He wrote, 'The coarse vegetables I eat cause my stomach suffering./ I force myself to sing,/ But my song is full of sad tunes./ As soon as I go out,/ I encounter obstacles./ Who says that the world is wide?' This poem clearly shows the extent of his frustration. In general, sages are proud of themselves. They do not associate themselves with a corrupt society. This is why one may see them but cannot recognize their talents. If one sees a sage but cannot recognize his talents, the result is the same as not seeing him. If one recognizes the sage's talents but fails to offer him a position, the result is the same as not recognizing his talents. If one offers the sage a position but fails to fully utilize his talents, the result is the same as not offering him a position. If one fully utilizes the sage's talents but allows others to slander him, the result is the same as not fully utilizing his talents." Yu Han developed this amazing theory of recruiting talent by analyzing Jiao Meng's frustrations.
    Dong-ye was Jiao Meng's alternate first name. He was a native of Wu-kang City (present day De-qing City in Zhejiang Province) in Hu-zhou County. He lived in seclusion on Song Mountain in his early youth. In 796 CE, he passed the Advanced Exam at the age of forty-five. Later, he was appointed as a junior officer at Li-yang-xian City. He was poor and suffered frustration all his life. Most of his poems expressed sentimentality about his own experiences regarding his suffering and were filled with a poverty-stricken tone.

Night Mooring at the Maple Bridge ¹

Zhang, Ji ² (fl. 740-780 CE)
The moon set, ravens crowed,
And the frost swept all over the sky.
Facing the red maple trees and fishermen's fires …,
I was inflamed with worry ³ and could not sleep.
Bell tolls ⁴ from Han-shan Temple ⁵ outside Gu-su City ⁶
Reached our passenger boat at midnight.

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¹ The Maple Bridge was located in the Feng-qiao Borough, outside Chang Gate of Su-zhou City. The bridge is six miles from downtown Su-zhou City. One may visit
^{https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML3u8QWCk7w&feature=related}
to learn how this poem is sung by local musicians. In this video, a man and a woman sing in a local dialect. After every half line the man sings, the woman repeats his words with a different tune. For the last half line in a stanza, they sing together. Their song is full of local flavor. This video is a good example of how we should popularize poetry: How do we add accompanying background music to make a poem more interesting and more closely related to our daily lives?

² Yi-sun was Ji Zhang’s alternate first name. His ancestral home was in Xiang-zhou City (present day Xiang-yang City in Hubei Province). His family was an eminent clan in Nan-yang City (in present day Henan Province). He passed the Advanced Exam during the Tian-bao Period. He was the minister overseeing sacrificial rites and then a judge in charge of the affairs concerning salt and iron in Hong-zhou City. Most of his poems were his travel notes written in a simple style. Zhong-wu Gao said, "Ji Zhang was from a family that produced poets generations after generations. He clearly inherited the talents of his ancestors. His poems are simple and natural without ornamentation. They give readers a lingering appeal as though they were written by a philosopher. His description of an event is concise but thorough; his analysis is to the point."

³ "Worry" is often explained as the feeling of homesickness. It can also refer to the various problems of life in general.

⁴ In Zen philosophy, a sudden beautiful thing, such as the tolling of a bell, is known to bring inspiration or epiphany.

⁵ Han-shan Temple was located one mile west of the Maple Bridge. The temple was first built during the Southern Liang dynasty. Poet Monks Han-shan and Shi-de lived here. This was how the temple gained its name. It was destroyed by the flames of war many times. The current temple was rebuilt at the end of the Qing dynasty.

⁶ Gu-su City is another name for Su-zhou City. The city was so named because Gu-su Mountain was located southwest of Su-zhou City.

Mr. Zhang ³ showed me a book, imprinted from the stone drums,
And persuaded me to write a song about them.
Poets no longer live near the Young Tomb ⁴;
The exiled god ⁵ is deceased.
Lacking talent as I do,
How can I succeed in writing such a poem?
In the middle of the Zhou dynasty
Law and discipline of the government were in decline.
China heaved in turmoil like a raging sea.
Emperor Xuan-wang rose, brandishing his lance,
And led his troops to crush the rebellion.
He opened his palace to celebrate his triumph.
All the kings and dukes came to congratulate him.
The party was so crowded that the swords hanging from the guests' waists clashed against each other.
In Spring, the emperor and his retinue rode horses south of Qi Mountain.
They hunted and captured all the birds and animals in this area.
To show their great achievement to later generations,
They shaped the huge stones on a tall mountain into drums.
All the officials in the emperor's court were talented.
Emperor Xuan-wang chose their best writings,
Had them carved on these stones,
And left the drums on the mountain.
Although drenched in rain, roasted by the sun, and burned by wild fires,
The engravings have remained in good condition.
Perhaps the patron god has protected them against evil spirits.
I wonder how such a complete copy was made with nothing lost.
Refined rhetoric and profound meaning make it difficult to understand its content.
The form of the characters does not resemble the Jailer ⁶ or Tadpole ⁷ form.
The passage of many years has caused the sculpted writings to lose a stroke or two.
Even the character missing a stroke is as full of life
As a dragon whose tail has been freshly slashed by a swift sword.
Each character is as graceful as a goddess
Riding a phoenix and drifting down to the earth.
The calligraphy is as lively and graceful as coral or a green tree
Whose branches intertwine with each other.
The handwriting is vigorous;
The analysis is rigorous
As if the argument were as strong as a gold rope or an iron chain.
The calligraphy is as grandiose and unpredictable as a shuttle that becomes a dragon ⁸
Or the water splashing when a huge caldron is dropped into the river.
It is deplorable that the shallow scholars failed to include the drum engravings
When they compiled The Book of Poetry.
This omission makes it appear
That Major Grace and Minor Grace ⁹ were compiled from narrow resources.
Confucius traveled to every country in China to collect historical material,
But his westward trip did not reach the State of Qin ¹⁰.
Although he gathered all the stars in the sky,
He left out the sun and the moon.
What a pity that I who love ancient culture was born too late to be able to appreciate it.
Facing such precious writing,
I am tearful, overwhelmed by emotion.
I recall when I was appointed as a member of the Royal Academy
In the year the Yuan-he Period ¹¹ began.
A friend of mine, the secretary of a commander,
Managed to excavate the buried stone drums for me.
I washed my hat and took a bath
Before I went to the Director ¹² of the Academy for help
And told him how truly rare this treasure was.
Had the stone drums been wrapped with blankets or straw mats,
It would have taken only a few camels to carry them to the palace.
Had we put them in the royal temple alongside the worshipping caldron,
They would have been valued a hundred times more than the caldron.
Had the emperor allowed them to be preserved in the Imperial University,
The lecturers could have done research on these stone drums
And the students could have studied the findings of their teachers.
In the Han dynasty,
Even a library with ordinary books attracted crowds of book lovers daily.
Such precious writing would surely have drawn the entire nation to rush to see it.
We could have removed the moss on the drums to show the beautiful strokes of the characters.
We could have leveled and stabilized them to prevent accidental damage.
Had we put them in a high-rise with protruding eaves,
We could have provided the drums with lasting protection much earlier.
However, all the officials in the emperor's court cared only about their personal ambitions.
None of them had the vision and enthusiasm to react quickly enough to rescue the treasure.
Now shepherd boys use them to strike a fire
And cattle use them to sharpen their horns.
…
Scorched by the sun and eroded by the wind,
These stone drums will soon deteriorate to a complete ruin.
I have looked to the west and lamented in vain for six years.
Xi-zhi Wang sought the beauty in calligraphy.
Even a few pages of his handwriting could win white geese in return ¹³.
Eight dynasties have passed since the storm drums were erected.
Each dynasty rose from a new war.
But alas! Even though China is at peace now,
Still no one has proposed to preserve these drums.
The government's education emphasizes only Confucianism,
So how can I persuade the emperor to preserve these stone drums?
I wish I could be as eloquent as a waterfall.
My poem about the stone drums stops here
Because no one will listen
No matter how hard I try to persuade them.

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¹ In the beginning of the Tang dynasty, ten stone drums were discovered in present day Feng-xiang-xian City in Shaanxi Province. There was a poem inscribed on each stone drum. Yu Han wrote this poem in 811 CE. He recognized the historical value of the stone drums and stressed the importance of preserving them. The engravings on the stone drums are China’s oldest sculpted writing on stones. Yu Han thought the characters were of the form used in the Zhou dynasty. However, recent research has shown that they were of the form used in the Qin dynasty.

² Tui-zi was Yu Han's other first name. He was a native of Nan-yang City (present day Meng-xian City of Henan Province). His ancestors used to live in Chang-li City (west of present day Xu-shui-xian City in Hebei Province), so he called himself "Yu Han from Chang-li City". When he was three, his parents died. His brother’s wife raised him. He studied hard during his early years and mastered the Six Classics and various schools of philosophy. In 792 CE, he passed the Advanced Exam. At the peak of his career, he was the Minister of the Civil Service. He was given the posthumous name "Wen" (literature) by the emperor.
    In the early Tang dynasty, writers loved to write essays in poetry form. Han advocated that an essay must have a virtuous theme and tried to revolutionize literature by reverting to an ancient style. He also advocated for replacing the contemporary essays written in poetry form with prose. Han's views on literature greatly affected the literature of both his contemporaries and later generations. Anthologists of later generations collected the essays of Yu Han, Zong-yuan Liu, Xiu Ou-yang, Gong Zeng, An-shi Wang, Xun Su, Shi Su, and Che Su as exemplary essays for literature students, and called the above eight essayists the Eight Masters of Literature During the Tang and Song dynasties. Yu Han was ranked first.
    Dong-po Su commented on Yu Han's writing: "Chinese literature had been lifeless for eight dynasties until Han published his essays. Han proposed that an essay must have a virtuous theme. His effort in promoting virtue guided China along a vigorous and prosperous track."
    Tu Si-kong said, "In order to determine the purity of gold, it is sufficient to test it with a bell or a chime. If it is pure gold, it will ring melodiously for both. Similarly, from a poem or an essay one may tell the writer's talent and taste. No writers master one style but not the other. I observe that when one writes a poem or an essay, one typically bases it on one's expertise first. Through comprehensive reading and study, one gradually masters a new style and eventually achieves great accomplishments. A talented writer is like a man of unusual strength who can defeat his enemy no matter what weapon he uses. I have read a hundred of Yu Han's poems. His drive and spirit, like thunder and lightning, shook the world. Anyone who read his writings will be affected by their power and lingering appeal."
    Shi Huang-fu wrote the epitaph for Yu Han's tomb. It says, "In September 824CE Yu Han resigned his position as the Minister of Civil Service due to his illness. He wrote to me, 'Death makes me work hard on what may last after I die. I will entrust my work to you.' Then he died in January 825 CE. [¼ ] Yu Han was a sixth-generation descendent of the An-huan King of the Late Wei dynasty. Rei-su, the Secretary of Gui-Zhou City, fathered Zhong-qing; Zhong-qing fathered Yu. Yu Han loved to study. He wrote essays when he was seven. He indulged his passion in promoting sages' legacy during his early twenties. At first, people ignored him. Later, his writings shook the field of literature and his accomplishments illuminated China. Government officials were amazed by his explosive influence and tried to push him aside. Yu Han endured hardship and frustrations and worked hard in promoting virtue. One cannot classify his writings into a single style because he was a versatile writer. However, all of his writings were refined. Yu Han focused on the essence of Chinese classics, led Chinese literature to the virtuous track, and united with other writers to promote Confucianism. He mastered both classics and contemporary literature. His ability to think and write fast, his vigorous poetry, and his powerful words would burst forth as long as there was a writing brush in his hand. It will be difficult for future generations to surpass him. Yu Han has been the greatest writer in China since the Zhou dynasty. Since he passed the Advanced Exam, he has been appointed to twenty-seven government positions: censor, minister, senior secretary, and member of the Legislative Bureau. Yu Han suffered three demotions because when he attempted to improve the government, the authority considered his advice damaging to the government's reputation. [¼ ] When Yuan-ji Wu rebelled, the emperor sent troops to crush his army. However, the government's attempt to quell the rebellion had been to no avail for a long time. The war depleted the nation's treasury and everyone lived in fear. At that time Yu Han was in charge of defense affairs under Prime Minister Du Pei. When the prime minister's troops left Tong-guan Pass, Yu Han volunteered to go to Bian-liang City in advance to persuade the enemy commander to surrender. Yu Han's success prevented a civil war and led to the capture of Yuan-ji Wu. Later, Ting-cou Wang rebelled and attacked Yuan-yi Niu at Shen City. One hundred thousand relief troops hesitated, stalled, and lacked courage to advance to his rescue. Emperor Mu-zong asked the court officials to go to the rebel camp to persuade them to surrender. All the officials, except one, trembled and excused themselves from the task. Yu Han bravely took up the perilous mission. Yuan Zhen advised the emperor, "It would be deplorable if the rebels killed Yu Han." (In 785 CE, Zhen-qing Yan, the Minister of Punishment and a famous calligrapher, was killed when he went to an enemy camp to summon the rebels to surrender.) Emperor Mu-zong regretted his decision and hurriedly sent a messenger to order that Yu Han find a safe place for negotiation. Yu Han said, "The emperor's message has showed his benevolence, but death is my unshirkable duty." Consequently, he went directly to the enemy camp and rebuked the rebels. The rebels were astonished. They released Yuan-yi Niu, knelt in front of Yu Han and admitted their mistakes. In The Spring and Autumn Annals, Confucius praised Sun-chen Zang for using his possessions to buy grain from the State of Qi and then using the grain to give relief to famine victims. If one compares this event with Yu Han’s story, one may easily tell whose task is more difficult. It can be said that Yu Han was an exemplar of court officials. Soon after Yu Han became the mayor of the national capital. He saved money by reducing the number of imperial guards and used it to buy grain for the victims of drought. During his government he dulled the edges of evil officials’ swords. Then he became the Minister of Civil Service again. [¼ ] Yu Han was hospitable, optimistic and broad-minded. If his relatives or friends could not support themselves, he would help them with food, clothing, and money for their weddings and funerals. He never separated himself from books. When he slept, he used them as a pillow. When he ate, he used them to promote his appetite. He prepared his lectures industriously while he taught at the Imperial University. He often used humor and songs to entertain his students and thus intoxicated them with the grandeur of virtue. His students were so interested his lectures that they often forgot to return home. Alas! It can be said that Yu Han was an easygoing gentleman and literary giant."

³ "Mr. Zhang" refers to Che Zhang, a disciple of Yu Han. According to others, "Mr. Zhang" refers to Ji Zhang.

⁴ Fu Du, a great Chinese poet, used to live in the neighborhood of the Young Tomb. After the rebel troops stormed and captured the capital and Emperor Xuan-zong fled, Du called himself the Old Adherent of the Young Tomb to signify his loyalty to the emperor. The Young Tomb was the tomb of Queen Xu, the wife of Emperor Xuan-di of the Han dynasty.

⁵ The exiled god refers to Poet Bai Li.

⁶ The form of characters used in the Qin dynasty made them difficult to write. When imprisoned for his crime, Miao Cheng of the Qin dynasty created this more convenient form for jailers who needed to write official documents.

⁷ The Tadpole form is the form of Chinese characters used in the Zhou dynasty.

⁸ It was said that one day during the Jin dynasty, the child Kan Tao went fishing at Thunder Pond. He caught a weaving shuttle. After returning home, he hung it on the wall. Before long, there was a thunderstorm. The shuttle suddenly became a dragon and flew away. Here the shuttle describes the unpredictable transformations of the words used.

⁹ Major Grace and Minor Grace were two major poetry books in ancient China.

¹⁰ The stone drums were discovered in a location that had belonged to the territory of the State of Qin during the Warring States Period.

¹¹ "Yuan" means perfect; "he" means harmony. "Yuan-he" was Emperor Xian-zong's reign title during the Tang dynasty.

¹² The title of the Director of the Royal Academy is "Libationer", but his duty was to oversee the Royal Academy.

¹³ Xi-zhi Wang was the father of Chinese calligraphy. It is said that he copied Dao-de-jing (the Bible of Taoism) for a Taoist priest. The priest rewarded him with a cage of geese.

Lecherous Emperor Xuan-zong of the Tang dynasty desired a woman of matchless beauty.
Though he had searched for many years,
He had not met his ideal woman during his reign.
Raised and hidden away in a deep boudoir,
The girl of the Yang family had just come of age,
But no one ever noticed her.
With her innate beauty, she had high ambition for herself.
As expected, one day she was chosen to wait on the emperor.
How charming she was when she glanced back with a smile.
All the royal concubines paled in comparison.
On a cold day in Spring,
The emperor invited her to take her bath in the Fresh Flower Pool.
After bathing in the slippery hot spring,
Her skin shone like cream.
The maids supported her because her fragility made her appear to lack in strength.
It was at this moment that the emperor began to become infatuated with her.
Her hair was like clouds,
Her face was like a flower,
And her gold earrings dangled with her steps.
She spent Spring nights with the emperor behind the bed curtain embroidered with lotuses.
A night was too short for them;
They slept until noon.
From then on, the emperor no longer attended the dawn audiences.
She was his favorite and stayed busy waiting on his every whim.
During the day, they went on playful excursions;
During the night, the emperor stayed only in Yu-huan's room.
Of 3,000 royal concubines only she enjoyed his love.
Having made herself ready in her gold chamber,
Yu-huan waited for the emperor to spend the night.
After a banquet in a magnificent tower, the flavor of wine mixed with romantic sentiment.
Subsequently, all her sisters and brothers were appointed to advanced ranks.
The entire nation admired the glory of the Yang family.
Parents in China changed their minds
And preferred to have daughters rather than sons.
The top of the Fresh Flower Palace on Li Mountain pierced the clouds.
Its heavenly music drifted with the wind and could be heard everywhere.
The emperor never experienced enough of her light songs and slow dances accompanied by music
Even though he watched her perform all day.
Suddenly, the earth-shaking war drums ³ of rebel troops closed in on the capital.
The beating drums stopped the Dance of Flying Rainbow-Colored Cloth ⁴ taking place in the palace.
The emperor’s team of horses stirred up a dust storm in the capital.
Thousands of troops escorted the emperor as he fled south-westerly.
But ten miles into their flight,
The swaying flag decorated with jade and feathers suddenly stopped its advance.
The troops refused to move
And forced the beauty of the beauties, Yu-huan, to kill herself as they looked on.
Her feather headdress, gold birds, and jade hairpin fell to the ground,
But no one collected her jewelry.
The emperor covered his face, unable to save her.
As he glanced back, his tears fell, mingled with blood.
The bleak and chilly wind scattered yellow dust in the air.
The troops circled around the mountain path above the clouds
And finally ascended to Jian-ge Pass ⁵, their haven.
With few people traveling at the foot of the E-Mei Mountain,
The emperor’s flag lost its luster and the sun looked pale.
The Shu ⁶ River was green, as were the Mountains of Shu Range.
The verdant color caused the emperor to miss Yu-huan day and night.
When he saw the moon in his temporary palace,
Its color filled his heart with sorrow.
The tinkling of harness bells broke his heart during rainy nights.
After the situation improved, the emperor began his return to the capital.
When he passed by the Horse Hillside ⁷,
He lingered, reluctant to leave.
In this barren site, he could no longer see his beautiful love.
The emperor and his entourage looked at each other and were tearful.
When approaching the gate of the capital,
…
The lotus flowers in Tai-yi Pool ⁸ and the willow trees in Wei-yang Palace remained the same.
The lotus flowers were like her face;
The willow branches were like her eyebrows.
Facing such a scene, how could he stop his tears from falling?
Perhaps he could have endured his sorrow in the spring wind,
But it was difficult for him to pass the night
With the leaves of phoenix trees falling in the autumn rain.
Autumn grass grows thickly around the Western Palace ⁹ and Nan-nei Palace ¹⁰
No one had swept away the red maple leaves covering the steps leading to the entrances.
The hair of those who used to sing and dance with Yu-huan had turned white.
The royal concubines had become old.
At night, the miserable emperor, surrounded by fireflies, thought quietly in the palace.
He could not fall asleep even after the wick of a solitary lamp had gone.
The night went so slowly that the night watchman's bell and drum seemed to sound late.
Galaxies faded away in the gradually brightened sky as dawn drew near.
The Yuan-yang ¹¹ shingles were cold and covered with heavy frost.
Who would share his cold, emerald-colored quilt with him?
Many years had passed since Yu-huan's death,
But her soul had never visited the emperor's dreams.
One day a Taoist conjurer from Lin-yong City ¹² visited the capital.
He could conjure the soul of the deceased through piety.
Moved by the emperor's sleepless longing for Yu-huan,
The conjurer strove to find her soul.
He mounted the clouds and rode the wind with lightning speed
And searched everywhere by ascending to the sky and descending to the earth.
Blue sky and underground water were boundless;
He could not find her in either expanse.
By chance he heard there was a heavenly mountain on the sea.
The mountain was located among the sea of imaginary clouds.
He found an exquisite tower surrounded by colorful clouds.
There were many graceful goddesses in the tower.
One of them was called Yu-huan.
Her snow-like skin and flower-like face were reminiscent of the real person.
The conjurer knocked on the jade door of the room in the west wing
And then asked a maid to announce his arrival to Yu-huan.
When the maid informed her that the emperor's messenger had arrived,
Yu-huan startled from her dream.
She pushed aside her pillow, picked up her clothing,
Rose from her bed, and began to pace back and forth.
Her hair was tousled by sleep.
Leaving her room even without straightening her hat,
She passed through many beaded curtains and screened-off rooms.
When the wind blew, her wide sleeves billowed upward.
This made it appear as though she was again performing the Dance of Flying Rainbow-colored cloth.
Her lonesome face, covered with tears, was like a peach flower after a spring rain.
Swallowing her tears with deep affection,
She asked the conjurer to thank the emperor for seeking her.
Since she and the emperor had departed,
Their voices and countenances had quickly faded from each other’s memory, becoming indistinct.
After their love in the Palace of Bright Sun ¹³ ended,
The days in heaven seemed endless to Yu-huan.
She turned her head and looked down towards the earth.
The capital of China was obscured by mist and dust.
She felt that the only way to express her deep love was to send back her wedding ring in its case.
She split both the ring and its case into two parts.
The emperor and she would each keep half a ring and half a case.
She hoped their love would endure as long as the gold ring.
She felt they would eventually meet someday
Even though they were separated by the distance between heaven and earth.
Before she parted with the conjurer,
She reminded him again and again to send her message to the emperor.
The message contained a secret oath between only the emperor and her.
Years ago, on the night of the seventh day of the seventh month ¹⁴,
They made this oath in the Palace of Eternal Life while alone:
"In the sky, we wish to be a pair of birds that fly together;
On the earth, we wish to be the branches that intertwine with each other."
The size of the universe and the life of earth are limited,
But the emperor's sorrow, like time itself, can never end.

——————————————————————

¹ This poem describes the love between Emperor Xuan-zong of the Tang dynasty and his consort, Yu-huan (jade bracelet) Yang. Her beauty was so mesmerizing that the emperor no longer paid attention to state affairs. Consequently, the government became corrupt. One day, the rebel troops attacked the capital and the emperor fled. Ten miles into his flight, his escort of troops refused to move. There was a standoff between the emperor and his troops. Six generals demanded that the emperor sentence Yu-huan to death. In their opinion it was she who had ruined the nation. Reluctantly, Emperor Xuan-zong ordered her to commit suicide. After she died, the emperor missed her very much and lamented the fate that had separated him from his love.

² Le-tian was Ju-yi Bai's alternate first name. In his late years, he called himself "Xiang-shan (fragrant mountain) Ju-shi (the Buddhist laity)" or "Zui-yin (improvise poetry when intoxicated) Xiang-sheng (mister)". His ancestral home was in Xia-gui City (present Wei-nan City in Shaanxi Province). His family was an eminent clan in Tai-yuan City (in present Shanxi Province). After he died, the emperor honored him by giving him a posthumous name "Wen (writer)". Therefore, later generations called him "Bai-wen-gong (mister)". Bai passed the Advanced Exam in 800 CE. He was given the position of Editor in the Department of Confidential Documents and Official Dispatches. Later, he was an advisor and then the Official Promoting Virtue. Because he offended influential officials, he was demoted to the position of official in charge of military affairs in Jiang-zhou City. In the beginning of the Chang-qing Period, he was the Mayor of Hang-zhou City. In the beginning of the Bao-li Period, he was the Mayor of Su-zhou City. Later, he was appointed as the Minister of Punishments.
    Bai was a great poet, essayist, and literary theorist. He promoted a new style of poetry and argued that poetry should continue the legacy of The Book of Poetry: beautiful and sharp. His poetry bravely revealed the dark side of society and featured simple language. Whenever Bai completed a poem, he would go to the countryside to find a common old woman or a young child, and then read his poem to them. If they could not understand the poem, he would revise it until they could. His practice of using simple language made his poems very popular.
    Ju-yi Bai wrote a preface to his poetry book, The Lo River. It says, "I read classical and contemporary poetry. [¼ ] I observe that poems are born of banishment, exile, cold, hunger, illness, separation, old age, and death. Poets wrote poems to express their feelings. Consequently, nine out of ten Chinese poems are sentimental. It seems that most writers are unfortunate. Especially, talented poets die young. Clearly, peaceful eras are few and troubled times are abundant. I am not eloquent, but I love to write poems and essays. From my youth to the present, I have written several thousand poems. [¼ ] Although I am over sixty, I am still healthy. The salary of my position frees me from cold and hunger. [¼ ] From Spring 829 to Summer 834, I lived near the Lo River. During this period, I wrote four hundred and thirty-two poems. With the exception of the more than ten dirges for my son, the rest of my poems were written while I drank wine or listened to music. I lived in leisure and fully enjoyed life. I did not write a single word of anguish or heave a single sigh. When I am happy, I cannot pretend I am not. My happiness is rooted in being content with what I have. Being provided for and living leisurely expand my happiness which is expressed through wine and music and decorated with mountains, rivers, breezes, and the moon. If this cannot make me happy, where should I find my happiness? [¼ ] I wrote these poems to show posterity not only that there was a happy and easygoing old man who lived in Dong-du (east-capital) City but also that there were poems representing peace and prosperity during the Da-he Period."
    Ju-yi Bai wrote to Zhen Yuan, "The six classics are the most important books in Chinese literature. The Book of Poetry is the most important volume in the six classics. Why? These poems are the vehicle that sages use to touch one’s heartstrings in order to promote peace in this world. In order to touch one’s heartstrings, a poet must have passion and refine his rhetoric; a poem must sound melodious and contain profound meanings. The root of poetry is its passion; the seedling is its rhetoric; the blossoms are its sound; the fruits are its meaning. From sages to idiots, small animals like fish or pigs, mythical figures like gods or ghosts, they all possess energy even though they belong to different kinds; they all possess feelings even though they have different appearances. All of them respond to the sound that reaches them. Their feelings respond to the passion that touches their heartstrings. Sages understand this principle. Consequently, when they write essays, they use the six classics as their model. When they write poems, they apply music rules to make their poems sound melodious. Sound has rhyming schemes and themes of poetry can be classified into the types of virtue contained in the six classics. If the rhyming scheme is harmonious, a line will flow smoothly. If a line flows smoothly, the readers will be attracted to the poem. If the theme of a poem matches any type of virtue contained in the six classics, then the ready-made phrases contained in the classics may help the poet fully express his passion. If a poem is full of passion, it will easily touch a reader’s heartstrings. If poetry contains profound meanings refined with delicacy and subtlety, then it will endow the society with spirit and harmony, and guide the entire nation toward a promising future through its sadness and happiness. [¼ ]
    "Since the office of collecting poems was eliminated by the government during the Qin dynasty, the government has failed to use poetry to examine its policy and people have failed to use poetry to express their needs. Consequently, the government has become corrupt and has lacked means for improvement. [¼ ] I lament the collapse of Chinese poetry. Because of my disappointment I strive to turn the tide despite my lack of talents. Sometimes I even forget to eat regularly and sleep at night. Alas! I must tell you how frustrated I have been: When I was six or seven months old, my nanny carried me to a screen decorated with calligraphical work. She taught me two characters on the screen: Wu (none) and Zi (word). I could not speak, but I memorized them in my heart. Later, people put these two characters in front of me, said a word, and asked me to point to the character that they just said. They tested me a hundred times, but I never failed a single test. This showed that my destiny was to be a poet. When I was five, I learned to write poems. When I was seven, I mastered rhyming schemes. When I was fifteen, I learned that passing the Advanced Exam is a great honor. Consequently, I persevered in study despite my adverse circumstances. Since I was twenty, I have studied classical poetry during the day, read books at night, and studied contemporary poetry in between. Therefore, my tongue and mouth became sore; my hands and elbows became callused. Even when I reached adulthood, I appeared very thin. Before I became old, my teeth and hair started to decay. I cannot see well either. I pity myself because all these symptoms resulted from my dedication to studying and writing. [¼ ] Since I worked for the government, I have become old and gained more experiences. When I speak to people, I ask them about current affairs. When I read books or study history, I try to learn lessons from them. I finally realize that essays are written to meet the demands of an era. A poem is written to respond to an event that has occurred. When Emperor Xiang-zong inherited the throne, he appointed a man of integrity to be his prime minister. The emperor frequently ordered government officials to seek the country's problems and then solve them. At that time I was a member of the Royal academy and an advisor to the emperor. I gave the emperor my advice frequently. However, there were occasions when it was difficult for me to write my thoughts in the form of a formal proposal. Instead, I would write my ideas of solving problems and correcting shortcomings in the form of poetry. Through these means my ideas might win the support of the masses of the people. I hoped that one day the emperor would hear my voice through them. There are three reasons that I should write this kind of poem: First, they may broaden the emperor’s vision and help the government design useful policies. Second, it fulfills my duty and repays the emperor’s appreciation of my abilities. Third, it realizes my life goals. Unexpectedly, I began to regret my pursuit before I could fulfill my dreams. Slander began to bombard me before the emperor had a chance to read my poems. [¼ ] Those who are in a different party from mine said that I write poems to gain fame or slander my opponents. Those who are in the same party as mine such as Seng-ru Liu criticized my straightfordness. Even my wife and children consider my dedication to poetry worthless. Except for you, anyone who appreciated my poetry died soon after reading it. Now you are the only one who considers my devotion to poetry worthwhile. You have suffered hardship for ten years. Alas! Does this mean the Creator wants to destroy the principles of nature and the principles of virtue or prevent people from using poetry to express their problems to the government? If not, I wonder why those who are dedicated to poetry have suffered so much. From another perspective, when I think of my abilities, I am only an ordinary man from Guan-dong District and know nothing about calligraphy, painting, chess, or gambling, which are indispensable means to gain popularity. It shows that how limited my wisdom is. When I attended the Advanced Exam, I did not have any relatives who served in the emperor's court and I did not know any of the high officials. I have advanced my career in slow steps and fought on the literary battlefield with bare hands. Within ten years, I passed the Basic Exam, the Middle Exam, and the Advanced Exam. I became famous and assumed a high office. When I served the emperor's court, I had the opportunity to associate with the able and worthy. In the past, I gained fame by means of writing. It is appropriate that in the end I am punished due to my writing. [¼ ] Several months ago, I started to gather poems from my bags and chests. I divided my old and new poems into chapters based on their types. Since I began to serve as an advisor, I have written poems about beauty, satire, inspiration and comparison. From the Wu-de Period to the Yuan-he Period, I wrote many of them in new folk style. The title assignment to each poem was based on the event to which it referred. I call this type of poem allegorical. While I was at home after a day’s work or I stayed home idle to recuperate, I wrote poems to show that I lived in peace and content, and cultivated my moral character. There are one hundred poems of this type. I call them leisure poems. Occasionally, I loved to analyze an event based on the principles of virtue. With strong feelings toward a subject, I wrote down my sighs and songs. I call this type of poem sentimental. For the rest of my poems with various rhyming schemes, I call them miscellaneous. In total, there are about eight hundred poems divided into fifteen chapters. I will present them to you when we meet again.
    "Ancient sages say, 'When one does not have the opportunity to utilize one's talent, one should cultivate one's moral character. Once one has the opportunity to utilize one's talent, one should have the ambition to save the world.' Though I am not wise, I use their words as my motto. A gentleman should promote virtue and patiently wait for his turn. When his turn arrives, he should go all out as vigorously as a dragon riding clouds or an eagle riding the wind. When his turn fails to come, he should retire from public life, as lonesome as a leopard hidden in the mist or a wild goose gliding in the sky. Thus, one is always happy whether or not one can utilize one’s talent. My goal is to save the world. I cultivate my moral character to wait for my turn: I pursue virtue to gain integrity and write poetry to promote virtue. My allegorical poems show my ambition to save the world. My leisure poems reveal my pursuit of virtue. One will understand my philosophy after reading my poems. [¼ ] The ideas of my allegorical poems are radical and their descriptions are true. My leisure poems advocate peace rather than pleasure and their rhetoric clings to outworn ideas. Thus, I only speak truth and write stale words. No wonder people are not interested in my poems. In China, you are the only one who loves my poems. [¼ ] When we are successful, we use poems to prevent each other from corrupted living. When we suffer hardship, we write poems to encourage each other. When we part, we console each other with poems. When we live in the same city, we entertain each other with poems. [¼ ] Those who understand me consider me a god of poetry. Those who do not understand me consider me bewitched by poetry. Why? I work my heart out and enslave my voice and spirit day and night without feeling hardship. If it is not because I am bewitched, then what is the cause? Occasionally, I face a beautiful scene with friends. It may be when we sit in a garden after a banquet or after we become intoxicated on a moonlit night. We improvise poems without feeling our age. Even riding a phoenix or crane or visiting a paradise like Peng-lai Mountain or Ying-Zhou City is not as interesting as writing poetry. If I am not a god, how can all this be? [¼ ]"
    Zhen Yuan wrote a preface for Ju-yi Bai's Collected Works up to the Chang-qing Period. It says, "Ju-yi Bai is a versatile writer. His allegorical poems are powerful enough to prod readers into action. His leisure poems show how he amused himself. His sentimental poems express his feelings properly. His long poems are rich; his short poems are full of passion. His criticisms are appropriate. His reports are true. His proposals are straightforward. His analysis is complete."

³ "The War drums" refers to ancient drums used on horseback.

⁴ The dance music was composed by Emperor Xuan-zong. It is said that he heard this heavenly music while visiting the Moon Palace in his dream. In Chinese mythology, the moon is a goddess' palace. In this dance, girls attach two long pieces of colored cloth to their sleeves. The girls continue to throw the pieces of cloth up towards the sky and then shake them as they drop. This is the reason the dance gained its name.

⁵ "Jian-ge" means "sword pavilion". Jian-ge Pass, a.k.a. Jian-men Pass, is located north of present day Jian-ge-xian City in Sichuan Province.

⁶ Shu is the short name for Sichuan Province.

⁷ The Horse Hillside was the place where Yu-huan committed suicide.

⁸ Tai-yi Pool was a pool in the palace.

⁹ The Western Palace was Tai-ji Palace.

¹⁰ Nan-nei Palace was also known as Xing-qing Palace.

¹¹ "Yuan-yang" means mandarin ducks in Chinese. They walk in pairs, a male and a female. They symbolize an affectionate couple.

¹² Lin-yong City is now called Yong-lai-xian City and is located in Sichuan Province.

¹³ The Palace of Bright Sun was the palace where the beautiful queen, Fei-yan (flying swallow) Zhao lived. She was the wife of Emperor Cheng-di in the Han dynasty. Here the name of the palace refers to the palace where Yu-huan lived while she was alive.

¹⁴ According to the Chinese lunar calendar, the seventh day of the seventh month is Chinese Valentine's Day.

Not a single bird can be seen flying near the high mountain range.
No human traces are found on any of the countless paths.
In a solitary canoe on a cold river,
An old man …
Fishes alone in the snow.

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¹ After a political power struggle, Liu's reformist party lost. Consequently, Liu was demoted from Counsel on the Board of Rites to mayor of a primitive border city in China. This poem shows his courage to fight against evil and hardship.
    Zong-yuan Liu wrote to Hui-zhi Yang, "When I was seventeen, I resolved to pass the Advanced Exam. It took me four years to pass the exam. When I was twenty-four, I aimed for the position of Great Scholar in the Royal Academy. It took me two years to accomplish my goal. Then I became a lieutenant at Lan-tian City. I visited powerful officials to seek advancement. Rather than being impressed by my conversation and manners, they thought I was no indistinguishable from a common soldier. Then I studied Taoism and mastered its bibles. However, Scholars of Confucius considered my study frivolous. Later, I was promoted to Censor and Counsel on the Board of Rites. I thought I might have the opportunity to fulfill my political dreams. Unexpectedly, within a few months Emperor Shun-zong became ill and our party lost in a power struggle. Unavoidably, I was sent into exile."

² Zi-hou was Zong-yuan Liu's alternate first name. His ancestral home was in Xie-xian City (in present day Shanxi Province) of He-dong County. He was born in Chang-an City, the capital of the Tang dynasty. His father, Qing, was the Assistant Censor. When Zong-yuan was four, his mother, Lu, taught him poetry. When he was twenty-one, he passed the Advanced Exam and then became a Great Scholar at the Royal Academy. Liu mastered Chinese classics and history. His opinions were majestic and outstanding. He was appointed to Editor of the Ji-xian (elites) Palace. Later, he was transferred to Lieutenant at Lan-tian City. In 803 CE, he was promoted to Censor. In 805 CE, Shu-wen Wang and Zhi-yi Wei assumed power. In order to reduce the influence of eunuchs and reform politics, they employed talented people by bypassing the conventional rules. Liu was appointed to Counsel on the Board of Rites. A few months later, Emperor Shun-zong was struck down with an illness. He abdicated the throne to Xian-zong. The political climate changed drastically. Wang and Wei lost power in the political struggle. In September of that year, Liu was demoted to Mayor of Shao-zhou City as a result of his association with Wang and Wei. On the way to Shao-zhou City, Liu was demoted again to Si-ma (a position in charge of the city’s military affairs) of Yong-zhou City. Yong-zhou City is now called Ling-ling City and is located in Hunan Province. At Liu’s time Yong-zhou City was bleak and desolate. He did not have many things to do, so he toured all over the countryside and recorded many travel notes. In Winter 814 CE, he was summoned back to the capital. In Spring of the next year, Liu was transferred to Mayor of Liu-zhou City (present day Liu-cheng-xian City in Guangxi Province), a more remote and primitive region. Even so, Liu still devoted himself to the city government and accomplished meritorious services. The people in Liu-zhou City built a temple in Lo-chi (east of Ma-ping-xian City in Guangxi Province) to honor him. Yu Han wrote an inscription about him on the tablet of the temple.

1.

Though as talented as Prime Minister Xie's favorite daughter ²,
You had resigned yourself to hardship
Since you married me when I was as poor as Lou Qian ³.
After seeing that I did not have any other clothing to change into,
You rummaged through all the trunks.
After I coaxed and pestered you to buy wine for me,
You pulled out your gold hairpin to exchange it for the wine.
You were content with eating wild vegetables ….
For firewood we relied on fallen branches of old pagoda trees.
Now my salary has greatly improved,
But all I can do is prepare some offerings to honor you ⁴.

2.

Once we joked about what would happen after death.
I cannot believe this casual attitude about death would be tested so soon.
I have given away almost all your clothing.
But not your needlework, for I still treasure it even though I cannot bear to look at it.
Because I miss you, I even take extra care of your servants.
I burned some paper money ⁵ for you several times because I saw you in my dreams.
I know everyone resents poverty.
Especially for a poor couple, everything looks sad.

3.

Every time I sit at ease,
I lament your unfortunate life and mine.
How long can one live?
You Deng ⁶ did not have any sons and gradually accepted his fate.
What use was it that Yue Pan ⁷ wrote a poem to mourn his late wife?
Even if we are buried in the same grave,
Will we be able to meet again?
It is even more difficult
To wonder if we could marry in another life.
The only way I can repay you for your brows knitted with worry all your life
Is to think about you all night, never closing my eyes.

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¹ Wei-zhi and Wei-ming were Zhen Yuan's other first names. He was a native of Lo-yang City. Yuan passed the Advanced Exam in 793 CE, and in 803 CE he was honored as one of the Great Scholars. Early in his political career, he was a censor in the emperor’s court. Later, he was sent into exile because he offended the eunuchs. He subsequently allied himself with them and was promoted to a high rank. At the peak of his career, he held the position of prime minister for three months. Yuan also wrote a love story called "Ying-ying". Later, Shi-pu Wang wrote a great novel, The Romance of the Western Chamber, based on Yuan's story (The Romance of the Western Chamber, translated by S. I. Hsiung, New York: Columbia University Press, 1968). One may view the following segment of the movie "The Romance of the Western Chamber",
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-23yUSR3zU&feature=related
, to glimpse how a Chinese movie director in the 1940's interpreted Yuan's story.
    During Emperor Mu-zong's reign, court ladies frequently sang poems entitled “The Palace” written by Zhen Yuan. They called him Gifted Scholar Yuan. Later, Commander Jun Cui of Jing-nan District returned to the capital. He presented Zhen Yuan's poems to the emperor. The emperor was pleased. He immediately appointed Yuan as a senior secretary on the Board of Worship Service, and later as a member of the Royal Academy in charge of the emperor's personal affairs.
    Zhen Yuan wrote a preface to his poetry book and sent it to Ju-yi Bai. It says, "Whenever I am filled with moral indignation; am compelled by duty; discuss success and failure with friends; lament elapsed youth; record beautiful landscapes, scenic spots, my satisfactions, frustrations, and thoughts about the vicissitudes of life; drink wine before flowers; miss my old friends; lie ill; or encounter anything unusual, I like to express my thoughts and feelings in poetic form. I have been in exile for five years since I was thirty-two. During my exile, I have no other means than poetry to release my energy. I am not a Taoist without any ambition and I have no other interest than poetry. Therefore, I have devoted myself to poetry. I mingled refined and coarse lines and wrote many poems, but I did not copy them neatly for others to read. Jing-jian Li, a native of He-dong (east of the Yellow River) District and Mayor of Jiang-ling City, loved my poems. He said my poems contain profound meanings. He wanted to read all of them. Consequently, I compiled my poems into book form. My poems are divided into several classes. If a poem contains a virtuous theme and is close to the ancient style, I classify it as ancient satire. If a poem contains profound meanings and belongs to the folk style, I classify it as folk satire. If a poem is close to the ancient style but limited to expressing my feelings, I classify it as ancient style. If a poem is limited to describing objects or landscapes, I classify it as new folk style. If a poem’s sound and flow are smooth and its parallel constructions are proper, I classify it as a regulated verse. If a regulated verse contains passion and irony, I classify it as regulated satire. My wife died when I was young. I wrote many poems to honor her. These poems are entitled “Mourning My Late Wife”. Some of my poems are related to education and culture. Modern women love to be dressed up according to the latest fashion. Their hair styles, varieties of clothing, and choices of matching colors are amazing. I wrote more than a hundred poems about the beauty of women. [¼ ] I have heard that a scholar should aim to establish virtue. If he cannot, he should aim to make contributions. If he cannot do that, he should aim to write useful thoughts. One desires a job. If one cannot find it, one desires money. If one cannot find money, one desires food. I am not a gifted sage, so my virtue is incomplete. My talent is doomed to be unrecognized, so I have not had an opportunity to make any contributions. My character lacks divine graces, so my writings fail to set examples for later generations. I have devoted myself to poetry for almost forty years like an idiot or a crazy man. [¼ ] Now I am exiled at Tong City. The city is imperiled by tigers, leopards, and snakes and plagued by diseases carried through toads, spiders, and mosquitoes. [¼ ] I have little chance to survive. If I have the luck to come out of here alive, we should visit the capital together and fulfill our mission to make contributions and write useful poetry. If things become worse, I might be desperate for food someday. Then my situation would be worse than yours. I stored my poetry in my chests. It should be viewed as a game like chess, but I value it more than eating my fill. Perhaps my poetry is not even as worthwhile as the game of chess. [¼ ]"
    Zhen Yuan wrote to Wen-gong Ling-hu, "I have been in exile for more than ten years since I was demoted from my post as censor. I was free and at leisure, so I dedicated myself to poetry. Having accumulated my poems over a long period of time, their number exceeds a thousand. I have expressed my thoughts and feelings in these poems. They contain the flavor of ancient musicians. Some of my poems are expressive. However, my words are straightforward and my style is coarse. Because I worry my poems may offend some people, I dare not show them to others. Consequently, I write short poems only to entertain myself while drinking wine. In my opinion, my forms are simplistic and my words lack strength. If I fail to inject some attitude into my poems, they may easily be viewed as vulgar and common. In order to make my poems have a lingering appeal, I often try to contemplate how to express myself, revise the rhyming schemes, and examine my parallel constructions. However, I am unable to accomplish my goal by myself. [¼ ]"
    Zhen Yuan wrote an epitaph for Fu Du's tomb. It begins with a brief history of Chinese poetry by saying, "After reading Fu Du's poems, I realize that his poetry epitomizes the ancient poetic talents. Chinese poetry originated from the poems written by the emperor and his court officials to communicate their thoughts in poetic form during Emperor Yao and Emperor Shun's reigns. During the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, poets had followed this poetry style for more than one thousand years. Then Confucius selected the three hundred and five best poems about education and culture, and compiled them into The Book of Poetry. After Confucius died, Chinese poetry languished for centuries. Most poets began to write poems to express their sorrow, but their style and quality were still close to those in The Book of Poetry. During the Qin and Han dynasties the government eliminated the office that collected people's poems. Even so, ballads, lyrics, folk songs, and seductive as well as satirical poems had developed over time. The poem "The Cypress Beam Pavilion" written Emperor Wu-di of the Han dynasty was in the form of seven characters to a line. Wu Su (140-60 BCE) and Ling Li (d. 74 BCE) mastered the poetic form with five characters to a line. Although these poets wrote different styles and mingled refined and popular tastes, their poems contained profound meanings. They wrote poems to express their feelings rather than seek fame or profit. After the Jian-an Period Chinese writers suffered the disaster of civil wars. Cao Cao (155-220) and his sons often composed poems while in the saddle. Consequently, their poems were grand and vigorous. With respect to cadence, tragedy, or parting sorrow, their poems even surpassed classical ones. During the Jin dynasty public morals still persisted. During the Liu-song and Qi dynasties the foundation of education deteriorated. People tended to dissemble, take it easy, serve their own interests, and live an unruffled life. The style of their essays was bold and carefree; their colors were refined and clear. These essays lacked meanings and strength because they were limited to describing natural feelings, spirit and beautiful scenery. The decadency lasted through the Liang and Chen dynasties. The short poems written during the Liang and Chen dynasties were exquisite in form, but frivolous in content. These poems would have been considered devoid of value by the poets of Liu-song and Qi dynasties. Since the beginning of the Tang dynasty, provincial education has progressed vigorously. Individuals with mastery of various styles emerged in succession. Quan-qi Shen (656-715) and Zhi-wen Song (656-713) mastered poetry study, refined rhyming schemes, and established the style of regulated verses. From then on this new style of poetry steadily improved. However, those who loved classical poems left out the contemporary poetry. Those who stressed the ornate style lacked substance. Those who imitated the style of the Liang and Qi dynasties paled in comparison with the poets of the Wei and Jin dynasties. Those who mastered the folk style were not good at the form with five characters to a line. Poets who lived a carefree life might lack some experiences needed for certain styles of poetry. A poem with a proper rhyming scheme may lack a framework. Fu Du's poems improved Chinese poetry dramatically. His ancient style approaches the level of The Book of Poetry. His contemporary style includes the merits of Quan-qi Shen and Zhi-wen Song's poems. Du's choice of words surpassed Wu Su and Ling Li’s. Du's spirit swallows Cao Cao and Xie Liu's (465-522). Jan-zhi Yan and Ling-yun Xie's (385-433) pastoral poetry pales in comparison with Du's. Du's poems also include the beauty and fluency of Ling Xu (507-583) and Xin Yu's (513-581) poetry. It can be said that Du mastered the classical and contemporary poetic styles and that his poetry combines all the expertise that previous poets individually exhibited. If Confucius were to examine the themes of Du's poetry, he would highly praise Du’s versatility. In my opinion, Fu Du was omnipotent in Chinese poetry. In Chinese history there has been no poet as versatile as him. [¼ ]"

² One day Prime Minister An Xie of the Jin dynasty met his nephew and niece at a family gathering. Before long it started snowing. The prime minister asked them to describe the scene outside. His nephew replied, "It is almost like someone is throwing salt in the air." His niece, Dao-yun Xie, said, "That description is not as good as willow seeds [with white hair] riding on the wind." The prime minister was greatly pleased. Dao-yun Xie was actually the niece rather than the daughter of Prime Minister Xie. Yuan's wife, Hui-cong Wei, was the youngest daughter of Xia-qing Wei, the Prince's Guardian. Yuan is comparing his noble father-in-law to Prime Minister Xie and his talented late wife to Dao-yun Xie.
    Yuan's wife, Hui-cong Wei, was a native of the national capital. After Wei died, Yuan wrote a poem to mourn her. It says, "Having experienced the great ocean, it is difficult to appreciate ordinary waters (The loving care of my late wife is like an ocean, which dwarfs other waters by comparison)./ Clouds above other places pale when compared with those above Wu Mountain." After twelve hundred years, these famous lines of Yuan's remain popular in China today.

³ Lou Qian of the State of Qi was a hermit. King Gong-gong of the State of Lu wanted to appoint him to be his prime minister. He refused the offer. The King of the State of Qi heard of Qian's talent and offered him two hundred pounds of gold if he would become his official. Qian also refused this offer. He lived in poverty all his life and wrote books on Taoism. When he died, he did not even have proper clothes to be buried in.

⁴ Yuan prepared his offerings in his family shrine.

⁵ Buddhists believe that one can deliver money to one's deceased relatives in the underworld by burning paper (fake) money.

⁶ You Deng of the Jin dynasty was the Mayor of He-dong City. In 312 CE, he fled from home because General Le Shi incited a rebellion against the government. As Deng fled, he encountered the rebel troops. The urgent situation forced him to choose between his son's life and his nephew's life. Deng chose his nephew’s life because his nephew's father, Deng's younger brother, died young. Later, You Deng became the Mayor of Wu-jun City. He was kind, but never had a son again. His contemporaries lamented, “The negligence of the Creator causes Mayor Deng to have no sons.” Here Yuan compares himself to Deng because his wife died and they had no sons.

⁷ Yue Pan was a poet of the Jin dynasty.

Reply to Chu ⁵

Chang, Chieh (766?-830? CE)

You can compare to a freshly made up girl … walking away from her mirror ⁶.
She is strikingly beautiful and often whispers to herself ⁷.
Her song about plucking water chestnuts is worth a fortune
And makes the other girls in fancy silk pale in comparison.

---

¹ In ancient China, if a scholar desired to acquire a good-paying government position, he had to pass the advanced exam held annually in China's capital. The system used for the exam did not conceal an examinee's identity. The examiner could see the signature of the author when he graded the exam. The decision of whether a person could pass the exam largely depended on the recommendations of social elites and the literary work that the examinees handed in before the exam. The work handed in before the exam was called a working book. If one sent in his work many times, the work was called a review book.
    Chang was a famous writer at that time. Consequently, Chu presented some of his work to Chang. Since Chu was not sure whether the examiner would like his writing style, he wrote this poem to ask for Chang's opinion about his work. Chu compared his nervousness about the exam to that of a bride who is waiting to meet her husband's parents.

² During the wedding ceremony, the bride's face was covered by a piece of red cloth. Consequently, she could not see her husband's parents until the next morning.

³ The word "husband" refers to Chang.

⁴ "Whether my eyebrow drawing is in fashion" is being compared to "whether the examiner will like Chu's writings".

⁵ Chang's poem says that all other examinees are not as talented as Chu. Chang's reply dispelled Chu's worry. Due to Chang's recommendation, Chu earned a high score and passed the exam. The above two poems and the friendship between Chang and Chu became a much-told story in the history of Chinese literature.

⁶ Chu's hometown was near Lake Mirror.

⁷ The whispering symbolizes that she is prudent and thinks carefully.

You asked when I would return home,
But I cannot tell you the exact date.
The night rain on Mts. Ba-shan ² fills the autumn pools.
I wonder when we can trim the candle wicks together by our west window ³,
….
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¹ Shang-ying Li wrote this letter to his wife, Lady Wang, in Chang-an City while he traveled to the Eastern State of Shu. The State of Shu is now called Sichuan Province.

² Mts. Da-ba-shan and Mts. Ba-ling are other names of Mts. Ba-shan. The mountain range stretches across the borders of Shaanxi and Sichuan Provinces. Here "Mts. Ba-shan" refers to the eastern region of Sichuan Province.

³ This line reminds us of romantic candlelight. One may desire to view the following video,
http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/y-gO3W0v8lI/. This piece of Chinese classical music is entitled "A Candle's Shadow Dances with the Flame".

Untitled

Li, Shang-yin (812?-858 CE)

The stars and wind tonight are the same as they were last night,
So is the east ball room of Laurel Hall, west of the painted pavilion ¹.
Though our bodies, lacking the wings of a colorful phoenix, could not fly to each other ²,
Our hearts were linked like the heavenly line ³ on a rhinoceros' horn.
Your hand passing the hook ⁴ made the wine warm in my veins
….
We were divided into different groups to play the guessing game ⁵
As the candlelight glowed red.
When the morning drum announced the hour for work
I spurred my horse toward the Orchid Tower ⁶
Like a dandelion seed spinning and drifting on the wind.

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¹ The first two lines say that Li fell in love with a woman he met at the party the previous night, but felt lonely when he visited the same place again.
    After reading Li's love poem, one may desire to listen to the following love song,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgOwpbuigeQ&feature=related, to add proper atmosphere.

² Shang-yin Li recalled the party held the previous night.

³ It was said that the white line going from the top to the bottom of a rhinoceros’ horn would bring good luck. Nowadays this line is more often interpreted as follows: For those whose hearts are closely linked, even the slightest hint of feeling or thoughts will be fully understood between them.

⁴ Gou Yi, the wife of Emperor Wu-di in the Han dynasty, had a hand that stiffened into a fist when she was young. The emperor pried her hand open and found a jade hook. Afterwards, her hand was cured. Later, based on this story, someone invented a game called "hiding the hook". The game is played as follows: A blindfolded person beats a drum. While the drum is beating, a jade hook is passed around. When the drumbeat stops, the person who has the hook in his or her hand must perform some entertainment such as telling a joke or singing a song.

⁵ The guessing game was to guess the object under a cover.

⁶ Li's office was in the Orchid Tower, where the Bureau of Archives was located.

Meeting is difficult;
Parting is also hard.
The east wind loses its power;
Many flowers wither.
Only after a Spring silkworm dies may it stop spinning its silk ²;
Only after a candle's wick burns to ashes may its tears start to dry.
Facing the mirror in the morning, …;
Reciting poems in the evening, you feel the chill of the moonlight.
Peng Mountain ³ is not far from here;
I will send a blue bird ⁴ to watch over you.

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¹ After reading Li's love poem, one may desire to view the following video,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEB5afO6jRA&feature=related, to see how a modern Chinese musician expresses his yearning for love.

² In Chinese, silk and yearning have the same pronunciation, "si". Chinese people often describe hair as three thousand silk threads of care. According to these senses, this line says, "one yearns for love until one dies."

³ Peng Mountain was a brief name for Peng-lai Mountain. It was a fabled island abode of immortals. Here "Peng Mountain" refers to the dwelling of the person for whom the poem was written.

⁴ The chapter on "The Western Wasteland" in The Seas and Mountains Classic says, "In the west there exists a mountain where the Queen Mother of the West (Mother of the Supreme Deity of Taoism; 'West' refers to Heaven) lives. There are also three birds with red heads and black eyes." A footnote says, 'The three birds are the messengers of the Queen Mother of the West." The Story of Emperor Wu-di of the Han Dynasty says, "Before the Queen Mother of the West visited Emperor Wu-di, she sent a blue bird to the palace." Consequently, later generations used “a blue bird” to symbolize a messenger.