The Selected Poems of T'ao Ch'ien Read online
Page 6
HUMANS RANK WITH HEAVEN AND EARTH: Heaven, earth, and human are the Three Powers.
THREE EMPERORS: Legendary emperors from the Golden Age in China’s prehistory.
P’ENG-TSU: In legend, China’s longest living human.
Page 44 9/9: Holiday celebrated on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month.
Page 45 9TH MONTH, KENG YEAR OF THE DOG: October 410.
CHÜ AND NI: Ch’ang-chü and Chieh-ni. See note to page 26.
Page 47 CONFUCIUS IN CH’EN: See note to page 28.
Page 48 SOUTH VILLAGE: Located somewhere in the immediate neighborhood of Hsün-yang/Ch’ai-sang, probably just south of Hsün-yang. It isn’t clear why T’ao moved to South Village, or how long he stayed. Although he continued farming there, most of his friends were fellow scholar-officials – some still in government, some living as recluse-farmers.
CH’I-SITED: It was thought that the different features of a landscape determine the movement of ch’i, the universal breath. The best site for a house would be determined by a diviner who analyzed the local movements of ch’i by using a divining rod and a special type of astrological compass.
Page 50 SHAO: Shao P’ing was the Marquis of Tung-ling under the Ch’in Dynasty. But when the Han overthrew the Ch’in (206 B.C.), he was reduced to growing melons for a living.
Page 52 CHRYSANTHEMUMS: The petals of chrysanthemums were mixed with wine to make chrysanthemum wine, popularly believed to promote longevity. Chrysanthemums have always been identified with T’ao Ch’ien because of the central place they held in his poetic world.
Page 54 PINE: Because they are large, strong, and always green, pines were seen by the Chinese as the embodiment of permanence and constancy, a stoicism which perseveres under the harshest conditions.
Page 55 YEN: Yen Hui, Confucius’s disciple. See note to page 14.
JUNG: Jung Ch’i-ch’i, an impoverished ninety-year-old man in chapter 1 of Lieh Tzu, whose sagely contentment with the wonder of life itself impressed Confucius.
NAKED BURIAL: Yang Wang-sun (1st c. B.C.) insisted on being buried naked so he could return to his true (natural) state.
Page 58 ISLAND OF IMMORTALS: P’eng-lai, located far out in the Eastern Sea.
Page 59 1ST MONTH, HSIN YEAR OF THE OX: February 401. This date is textually corrupt.
K’UN-LUN MOUNTAINS: A mythic range in the far west, associated with immortality because it is home to Hsi Wang Mu, queen of the immortals, who grows the peaches of immortality in her palace gardens. There is a formation in these mountains with the same name as the cliffs T’ao and his friends are looking at: Tseng Cliffs.
Page 62 SUNG AND CH’IAO: Ch’ih Sung-tzu and Wang Tzu-ch’iao, examples of immortals from legendary antiquity.
Page 63 6TH MONTH, WU YEAR OF THE HORSE: July 418.
TUNG-HU: Tung-hu Chi-tzu, a sage ruler said to have lived in the twenty-ninth century B.C., at the beginning of China’s legendary Golden Age.
Page 65 9/9: Dominated by thoughts of mortality, this autumn festival is celebrated on the 9th day of the 9th lunar month because the word for “9” (chiu) is pronounced the same as the word meaning “long-lasting” or “long-living,” hence “ever and ever.” Chrysanthemum wine is especially associated with this holiday. There is a famous passage in the early biographies which is traditionally associated with this poem. It tells how Wang Hung (page 69), the provincial governor-general and T’ao’s friend, happened by when T’ao was out sitting among the chrysanthemums. Wang had some wine with him, and the two of them ended up getting drunk together.
Page 67 THE CLASSIC OF MOUNTAINS AND SEAS: An ancient book of fantasy, which describes the mythic geography of ancient China and other nearby lands. From line 14, it’s clear that T’ao is reading an illustrated edition of the book.
TALES OF EMPEROR MU: An ancient book of historical fantasy, which describes the mythic journeys of Emperor Mu (d. 946 B.C.).
Page 68 CHA FESTIVAL: Ancient name for the La Festival, which in T’ao’s time, fell on the last day of the lunar year. It was the first day of New Year festivities celebrating the arrival of spring.
Page 69 GOVERNOR WANG: Wang Hung, the provincial governor-general in Hsün-yang from 418–425 and a friend of T’ao’s, admiring him for his wisdom and integrity as a recluse.
Page 71 ASKED THE WAY: See note to page 26.
HUANG AND CH’I: The hermits Hsia Huang-lung and Ch’i li-chi.
Page 75 HUA OR SUNG: Two of China’s five sacred mountains, often climbed by pilgrims.
Page 77 This poem uses the four-character Classic of Poetry line for its classical austerity.
PITCH-TONE WU-YI: There was a series of twelve standard pitch-pipes used in ancient music, and each pitch corresponded to one of the twelve months. Wu-yi corresponds to the 9th lunar month, or October.
TING YEAR OF THE HARE: 427.
Page 80 HUAN: Huan T’ui had such an extravagant coffin made for himself that it took over three years to build.
YANG: Yang Wang-sun. See note to page 55.
Acknowledgments
Publication of this book is supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and a grant from the Lannan Foundation. Additional support to Copper Canyon Press has been provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund, and the Washington State Arts Commission.
The translation of this book was supported by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Vermont Council on the Arts.
Copyright 1993 by David Hinton
All rights reserved
Cover art: Section one of T’ao Ch’ien’s “Drinking Wine.” Calligraphy by Wen Cheng-ming, Ming dynasty. Ink on silk. Kyoto National Museum.
ISBN: 978-1-55659-056-6
eISBN: 978-1-61932-144-1
Support Copper Canyon Press:
If you have enjoyed this title, please consider supporting Copper Canyon Press and our dedication to bringing the work of emerging, established, and world-renowned poets to an expanding audience through e-books:
www.coppercanyonpress.org/pages/donation.asp
Contact Copper Canyon Press:
To contact us with feedback about this title send an e-mail to: [email protected]
The Chinese character for poetry is made up of two parts: “word” and “temple.” It also serves as pressmark for Copper Canyon Press.
Poetry is vital to language and living. Since 1972, Copper Canyon Press has published extraordinary poetry from around the world to engage the imaginations and intellects of readers, writers, booksellers, librarians, teachers, students, and donors.
We are grateful for the major support provided by:
Anonymous
Donna and Matt Bellew
John Branch
Diana Broze
Janet and Les Cox
Beroz Ferrell & The Point, LLC
Mimi Gardner Gates
Alan Gartenhaus and Rhoady Lee
Linda Gerrard and Walter Parsons
Gull Industries, Inc.
on behalf of William and Ruth True
Mark Hamilton and Suzie Rapp
Carolyn and Robert Hedin
Steven Myron Holl
Lakeside Industries, Inc.
on behalf of Jeanne Marie Lee
Maureen Lee and Mark Busto
Brice Marden
Ellie Mathews and Carl Youngmann as The North Press
H. Stewart Parker
Penny and Jerry Peabody
John Phillips and Anne O’Donnell
Joseph C. Roberts
Cynthia Lovelace Sears and Frank Buxton
The Seattle Foundation
Kim and Jeff Seely
David and Catherine Eaton Skinner
Dan Waggoner
C.D. Wright and Forrest Gander
Charles and Barbara Wright
The dedicated interns and faithful volunteers of Copper Canyon Press
To learn more about underwriting Copper Canyon Press titles, pleas
e call 360-385-4925 ext. 103