Classic Poem

" At Dragon Gate Mountain stands a turpentine tree
a hundred feet high to the lowest branch,
In it for ever multiply the age-rings,
its roots spread far and wide,
Behind it towers the eight-thousand-foot peak,
a hundred feet below it rushes a torrent,
Turbulent waves, conflicting currents wash
its roots half life half death,
In winter it is stabbed by frost, fierce wind and swirling snow
in summer assailed by flashes of lightning, peals of thunder,
In the morning the oriole settles there,
the hantan bird cries in its branches,
In the evening the bereaved female bird
and the lost male
rest there,
Upon it the solitary snow-goose sings in the dawn,
the crane mournfully circles and cries below it.
Now the year turns its back on autumn, and winter comes:
the master lute-maker hews it down for his instrument
Wild silk cocoons become the lute-strings,
the orphans' jewelry adorns it,
its frets are the ear-rings of the widow with nine children
I will cause Confucius's music-teacher, Master Tang, to play
upon it the time-honored melodies,
And Bo Ya the fabled lute-player will sing this song to it:
Among the thick ear-rings of wheat
the wild cockerel flies at dawn.
Facing the desolate village, alas,
the bird turns its back on the withered ashtree
The paths and road are blocked, alas,
I face the everflowing torrent
The birds will hear it,
fold their wings and be unable to fly,
The wild beasts will hear it,
droop their ears and be unable to walk,
The creeping ants and insects will hear it,
cease their gnawing and be unable to move
This song is the sum of the world's sadness:
can the Prince force himself to rise and listen to it? "
The Prince said: " I am ill,
I am not yet well enough. "
The courtier said:
Cook
the flesh of a young calf
garnished with the tenderest shoots,
Brew
a harmonious broth from plump dogflesh,
cap it with a layer of mountain truffles,
Prepare the rice of Chu
and the fine cereals of the South,
choice dainties,
Rolled into balls,
dropped in the mouth,
they will melt at a taste,
Summon the master chef Yi Yin to perform the cuisine,
the famed cook Yi Ya will blend and spice it,
And then prepare well-cooked bear's paw,
add a sweet sauce,
Take delicately sliced, braised lean meats,
slivers of fresh carp,
Adorn the whole with autumn-yellow sapan,
September mushrooms plucked amidst white dew,
Serve with wine steeped in orchids,
a sip will freshen the mouth,
Then add the flesh of wild pheasant,
the fetus of home-reared leopards,
Taste a little rice,
drink much thin gruel,
And it will be like sun melting snow
This is the sum of the world's cuisine:
can the Prince force himself up to savor it? "
The Prince replied " I am ill,
I am not yet well enough. "

The courtier said: " Bring fine horses of the Kingdom of Zhao,
matched by age and harnessed to chariots,
The front span as swift as flying birds,
the rear span as frisky as the heavenly gazelle
Feed them a fine mash of wheat —
their mettle will be without compare.
Caparisoned with stout harness and bit
they will gallop the level roads.
Then have the horse-fancier Bo Le
to choose the order of the team,
Wang Liang and Cao Fu, as master-charioteers,
brave Qin Que and stout Lou Ji to be outriders
With men like these to control such fiery horses
or right the toppled chariot,
Then you may lay wagers of a thousand talents,
compete in races of a thousand miles.
These are the sum of the world's mettle —
Can the Prince force himself up to mount his chariot? "
The Prince replied: " I am ill,
I am not yet well enough. "

The courtier said: " Ascend the pagoda of Jing Yi,
to the south you will look out to Mount Jing
to the north you will see the vast waters of Ru,
To the left the mighty Yangtze,
to the right Lake Dongting
the world holds few such joys
Then you may summon scholars learned in disputation
who will in verse describe the mountains and rivers,
exhaustively name each tree and plant,
All these they will marvellously classify —
to make the Sum of Things
After this brief excursion
you will come down to feast and wine in Yu Huai Palace
whose corridors are belvederes,
With story upon story painted dark green,
interconnecting carriageways,
sinuous ornamental ponds.
Amongst birds reared here is the white-striped Hunzhang,
the Eastern Egret, the Peacock, the Kungu Jungle Fowl,
the Mandarin Duck, the Green Crested Grebe;
Some birds sport turquoise crests of kingfisher feather,
others boast purple throat-bands;
The hornless Dragon-Fowl, the Virtuous Shepherd-Bird —
their song harmonizes
Endless varieties of fish leap and splash
their fins strumming the waters
By the fresh green rivulets grow
elegant grasses and marsh-reeds,
The convolvulus and opulent water-lily,
tenden mulberry-bushes and river willows
with white leaves and purple stems;
Mighty pine-trees and camphor laurels
whose branches brush the heavens,
for turpentine tree and the coir palm
form forests as far as the eye can see.
Manifold thick fragrant shade blends
with every sound of rustling
the treetops are pliant to the wind,
the foliage shifts from light to shadow
Orator Jing Chun serves the drinks,
Lutemaster Du Lian sees to the music.
Dainty foods are laid out,
dishes of fish and fowl stand ready
Exquisite colors charm the eye,
fine sonorities delight the ear.
Then like a whirlwind the tunes of the South strike up:
the melodies of lubricious Zheng and lascivious Wei
float upon the air
Then are summoned Lady Xi Shi, concubine Zheng Shu,
Lady Sun-Pattern, Mistress Broken Stem,
South Baby, Lu Zhou, Fu Yu and other lovely women
trailing dresses of every color,
hair hanging like swallowtails,
eyes provocative, bosoms hinting at
dark permissiveness.
They bring water to bathe in,
turmeric unguents perfume their naked bodies,
Their hair piled up like dust-clouds
where floats the scent of orchids,
They slip on flimsy silks to await the lovemakers' couch
This is the sum of the world's expansive luxury:
can the Prince force himself up to dally? "
The Prince replied: " I am ill,
I am not yet well enough. "

The courtier said: " Well then for you I would offer
to break in steeds,
harness them to paneled light chariots
Mounted in a car drawn by noble stallions
in your right hand you will grasp
Prince Xia's quiver of straight arrows,
in your left, the bow, crowblack, of the Yellow Emperor.
Then set out to Cloud-Dream Forest,
drive through the Orchid Lowlands,
halt by the Great River's flood,
rest among the marsilea plants,
swallow the transparent wind,
get drunk on the sun's air,
unshackle your spring heart,
Pursue the crafty beasts of the field,
shoot down light-soaring birds,
Try out the talents of hound and horse,
tire out the wild beasts' hoof,
exhaust the charioteer, his skill,
Tiger and leopard flushed out of hiding will take fright,
birds of prey will fly on wings of panic.
As the horse runs full tilt the harness-bells will tinkle;
they will leap like fish, butt like stags.
You will tread deer and hare, trample down antelope.
The beasts will sweat, cower, fall exhausted,
they will die unscathed, of fright
Your chariots in the rear will be piled with game.
The world knows no mightier hunt:
can you force yourself to rise and join the meet? "
The Prince replied: " I am ill,
I am not yet well enough "
But in his eyes glinted a livelier light,
a happy look began to steal upon his majestic countenance

Seeing the Prince's look of joy,
the courtier developed his theme, and said:
Night hunting fires will light up the heavens,
war chariots roll like thunder,
The standards flutter aloft
and feather-pennants crazy in array,
You will set the riders in hot pursuit;
scenting the killed game,
they will compete for first place.
The undergrowth will be beaten flat
clear to the very frontiers.
A beast perfect in hide and pelt will later be sacrificed
to your ancestors. "
Then came the Prince's interruption: " Excellent.
I should like to hear more of this. "

The courtier said: " That is not all there is to it.
There within the hazel forests, the deep marshlands,
enveloped in dusk-smoke
rhinoceros and tiger appear together,
Stout hunting warriors, fierce and steadfast,
their sleeves rolled up to do battle,
White blades glinting like white rocks,
a tangle of lances and spears all stabbing
The bag's recorded, achievements written down,
prizes of gold and silk awarded,
They roll out grass mats, spread couches,
and for the chief sacrificer prepare a feast:
The finest wine, the choicest dishes,
thin cuts well braised to banquet the retainers
Such loyalty is a hardness
firmer than iron or rock
Loud they sing and tell of deeds,
long life to the King, unwearying
This is truly something you, my Prince, could delight in
Can you not force yourself up to join this venture? "
The Prince said: " Indeed I would like to take part.
It's just that I feel my presence a hindrance
to the other lords. "
Yet nonetheless he took on color.

The courtier said: " Soon comes the eighth month,
the fifteenth day.
Then princes from far regions journey together with their brothers
To look down at Guangling's mighty flood-bore
Till now they have not seen the power of waves,
even the looking bowls you over,
Seeing it rushing and rising,
tearing and pulling,
rending and hurrying,
rearing together,
pouring away
Had you but the words to describe it,
its shape would elude you like its curves
O see it, fear it, be stunned by it, ground by it,
sudden flusterer, roller and roysterer,
pouring forth, roaring away, massive in onslaught,
Swallowing up the Southern hills,
evilly lusting for the Eastern sea,
A rainbow vaulting the blue skies,
building a cliff in the mind,
It flows and roars without end,
seeking a path to the Sun-mother's home
Now up it drives and down it goes,
No telling where its end,
The waves in confusion flow and tear,
Clash suddenly and no return.
Look there at the Southern bank,
rushing to the distance.
You are empty and filled with a violent fear,
an impression of waves so deeply staining your heart
it cannot be washed away.
But water refreshes the lungs,
purges the bowels, cleanses the hands and feet,
soaks the teeth and hair,
Drives away languid humors,
cleans off all dust and dirt,
Makes certain uncertainties,
rinses the ears and eyes
Suppose now there was some despondency,
Why, even the hunchback would straighten up,
the cripple walk,
The deaf would hear, the blind would be enlightened
to gaze upon this scene.
How much more for those with but light afflictions,
disciples of wine, hangover-sick
As it is said of old, Truly no words of mine
could make a sum of this enlightenment. "
The Prince said: " Excellent
Yet what is the nature of this flood? "

The courtier said: " It is not recorded
Yet I have heard my teacher say
the water possesses three things
that spirits lack:
Sudden thunder heard from a hundred miles;
the sea-bore flowing back against itself,
blanketing mountains in the cloud
endlessly day and night;
Slowly it starts, gathering speed
till the ominous swell of waves
builds up a mighty rhythm
like the Eastern egret soaring,
advancing and tipped with small white crests
as bright
as the silken parasols of white chariots
driven by white horses
Then the chasers become cloud-confused,
rushing forward like a full-geared army
With small waves hurrying lightly —
generals on the wing riding light chariots.
A team of six dragons pulling Great White the water spirit's car
a massing perspective of rainbows together,
pressing ahead,
High and high, low and low,
forward and back hustling and crowding,
Now like a castellated fort,
now like a cavalry and footsoldiers forward advancing,
Its noise is a roaring, it fills the sky with seething,
its strength cannot be withstood.
See the two banks, massive flood-anger around them,
for a moment dark and lowering,
suddenly then it's palpable,
to overwhelm, to undermine,
The waves like brave soldiers
forward rushing without fear,
smashing down walls and stopping breaches,
It roars round curves, leaps over sandbanks,
those it meets die, those who oppose are smashed,
Gathers up speed to thunder past Encircling Ford,
with a fearful rush it fills the valleys,
Its maelstrom whirls round Green Splint
laying a muffled ambush for Sandalwood Forest,
Descending on Mount Wu Zixu
for the assault on Bone-Mother Battlefield,
It cuts Red Crag away, sweeps past Purple Mulberry Grove,
its advance is impetuous thunder
Truly it robs warriors of spirit
in its enraged vibration,
in its gulping and gurgling,
the strength of galloping horses,
in its swirling and swallowing,
the sound of hungry drum-thunder
Clear rising, the back waves leap clear over,
follow up to do battle at the mouth of Crashing River.
Fish are stranded, beasts cannot run, birds cannot fly,
they flap their wings, winged waves like clouds.
It violates the Southern Mountain,
steals up to attack the Northern shore,
Tearing down dykes, flattening the Western Weir,
In dangerous sport it playfully swallows reservoirs,
victory alone will check it,
But the quick advance of the gurgling flood
rips out everything with its mighty waves.
This is the sum of cruelty,
fish and turtle are helpless, tossed and turned,
floating and bloated, stranded,
Even the spirits would be afeared:
so many abilities baffling speech
That men fall down in fright,
faint from fear,
slowly to regain consciousness
This is the world's most varied, strange and terrible vista:
can the Prince not force himself up to look at it? "
The Prince said: " I am ill,
I am not yet well enough. "

The courtier said: " Then let me summon
men of skill and knowledge,
Schooled in policy and debate:
Master Zhuangzi the Taoist,
Yangzi the Individualist,
Mo Di the Chivalrous Altruist,
Bian Juan, Zhan He and others,
To expound to you the nature of the world,
reason out the rights and wrongs of Manifold Existence.
Confucius and Laozi could test and observe,
Mencius could investigate and assess,
out of ten thousand wisdoms
not one would be lacking:
Such is the sum of succinct words and excellent teaching:
why not listen, my Prince? "
The Prince heaved himself up with both hands,
saying:
" Things are clear, it is as if
I hear the wise disputers' words. "
His fever broke
and in a sweat
Suddenly
his sickness had ended.