“Waiting for the Unicorn”
Wang P’eng-yün (Yu-hsia; PAN-T’ANG LAO-JEN, WU-WENG), a native of Kweilin, Kwangsi province, took the chü-jen degree in 1871 and was thereafter appointed to a number of posts in the provinces and the capital city, including that of censor.
Wang was a serious student of tz’u poetry, and he compiled a much admired edition of the tz’u of the Sung and Yüan periods. The modern critic Cheng Ch’ien (b. 1906) has observed that Wang played a key role in the late Ch’ing revival of the form. This late renaissance of the lyric is in part traceable to the emergence of the so-called Ch’ang-chou school in the late eighteenth century, and its insistence on the use of allegory and allusion in commenting on contemporary realities. Wang was on good terms with other poets, such as Cheng Wen-cho, K’uang Chou-yi, and Chu Hsiao-tsang (qq.v.), who were also involved in this movement.
Late in life, Wang edited his own collections of tz’u poetry, which he combined under the single title: Pan-t’ang ting-kao. Like many of his contemporaries, his poetry reveals a deep interest in current affairs, regret and sorrow for the declining political and military strength of the state at a time of internal disorder and external threat, and a lessening of the thematic gap between the shih and tz’u forms. Less experimental-minded than some of his peers, his poems are nonetheless richly allusive and evocative of the age in which he lived.
(William Schultz)
Tune: Che-ku t’ien
Title: Random Thoughts upon Reading
History, Hastily Composed1
I
For thirty years the entire world has looked to lung-men;2
Who would expect a pedant scholar to be known for his mad fame?
In the private quaters of Wu-an, a festive toast was cut short,3
When, still in formal dress, he was bundled off on the road to Linho.4
Startled by His Majesty’s sudden disfavor,
Recalling those days of roaming through the classics.5
The edge of the world next day became for him a city of spring;
Before he could take leave of the Emperor, an edict was issued.
His hair now white, among rivers and lakes, he sobbed his way into a new life.
II
Brilliant minds were legion by the gate of the ancestral kingdom;
In the past, generosity belonged to the lord of P’ing-chin.6
At the crossroad, he alone shed tears for the people;7
Eight hundred “lost souls” were put to shame by this noble lord.8
Pour the parting toast,
No time to waste for the homeward boat.
My great ambition committed in vain to the wind and clouds;
Pitiful is the painted boat surging through the billows,
As I see with my own eyes the dust gathering over the P’eng-lai Isles.9
(PTTK, pp. 23–24)
(Tr. Kang-i Sun Chang)
Tune: Nien-nu chiao (The Charm of Nien-nu)
Title: Climbing to the Peak of Yang-t’ai
Mountain to View the Ming Tombs10
Ascending the mountain, I let my eyes roam,
Face rivers and plains embroidered intricately,
Like lapels and sleeves sewn together;
I point to shadows of trees on the thirteen royal tombs,
And T’ien-shou Mountain lurking low like a mound.
5
In a twinkling, the world has changed its course;
In the mountains all around, nothing but wind and rain,
And spirits of kings long mired in dissolution.
The swelling sound of the wind emerges from the mountain;
The ancient pines take it to be a dragon’s roar.
10
There’s nothing but the undefined grassland steppes,
And White Wolf River11 running on forever,
Rushing in torrents along the frontier wall.
Even the old man in the wilds knows the world has changed,
But still he tells of mountain spirits and their sentry calls.
15
The forest stretches, cool and dark,
And confused clouds jostle one another.
I would make a libation to the gods, but the wine is nearly gone.
After emerging from the mountain, I turn back to look,
The slanting rays still linger lovingly on the mountain peak.
20
(PTTK, pp. 5–6)
(Tr. Kang-i Sun Chang)
NOTES
1. This title is merely a pretext for expressing thoughts about a contemporary incident. The two songs relate to the dismissal of Weng T’ung-ho (1830–1904), the eminent tutor of the T’ung-chih (reg. 1862–1875) and Kuang-hsü (reg. 1875–1908) emperors, for supporting the latter in the Reform Movement of 1898. In the meantime, the author himself was also forced to resign from his post for similar reasons.
2. In Chinese mythology, lung-men (literally, “dragon gate”) is where a carp turns into a dragon. Thus, the attainment of success is generally described as entering the “lung-men”.
3. This alludes to an incident recorded in the Shih-chi. T’ien-fen, the Marquis of Wu-an of the Han dynasty, married the daughter of the king of Yen in 131 B.C. During the banquet toast at T’ien-fen’s house, Kuan Fu boldly offended the tyrannical T’ien-fen, which action consequently brought death to Kuan Fu and his righteous friend Tou Ying, the Marquis of Wei-chi. This allusion emphasizes the fact that it was on Weng T’ung-ho’s birthday that he was sent into exile.
4. Lin-ho Mountain is located on the border between Kwangtung, Kwangsi, and Hunan provinces. One must pass the mountain in order to reach the area south of the Five Ridges.
5. Before leaving the court, Weng T’ung-ho went to Yi-ho Garden to take leave of His Majesty. Yet much to his surprise and disappointment, the emperor, who was his longtime student, quickly passed him by in his sedan chair and completely ignored his presence. The truth was that the Kuang-hsü emperor, though himself aligned with the reform party, had already surrendered to the power of the Empress Dowager Tz’u-hsi, and had become a prisoner in the Forbidden City.
6. Kung-sun Hung of the Han dynasty was known for his ability to recruit the services of talented young men. He was also remembered for his generosity in giving all of his wealth to the needy.
7. Thousands of people thronged to see Weng T’ung-ho off the day he left the court. It is said that before his departure, a man suddenly cried out: “After you go, master, what can we commoners do?”
8. This alludes to the story of the T’ang official Li Te-ÿu (787–849). As a poet described it, “eight hundred lost souls” all shed tears when Li was banished to the south.
9. P’eng-lai is believed to be one of the three fairylands in the Yellow Sea, situated somewhere between Japan and China. This line probably refers metaphorically to the Sino-Japanese War of 1894.
10. Yang-t’ai Mountain is located in Wan-p’ing county, Hopei province. The tombs of thirteen Ming emperors were built near T’ien-shou Mountain.
11. The Po-lang (White Wolf) River originates in Po-lang Mountain in Jehol province.
We use cookies to analyze our traffic. Please decide if you are willing to accept cookies from our website. You can change this setting anytime in Privacy Settings.