Saturday 31 December 2011

煢煢, an old piece of mine

Thinking about translating this piece into English, written in the year preceding the Millennium. Or perhaps I will continue in Chinese... Something to contemplate/meditate/muse on, this final day of 2011.


09/28/99

煢煢


半圓形的天頂被一層月華光澤的膜緊緻地拉扯住,像一只充滿著水的氣球,虛擬著生腥的焦慮與一種無所事事的、完完全全脫離精神性的美與憂鬱。那個午后,是薄如蟬翼且裹上銀粉的新生的卵,適於討論命理與禪。雲以敏捷的腳步滑行於透明且虛弱的藍,泡沫似的溫順與漠然。青春其實是極度缺乏生命力的。在旺盛與浮躁之中貪慕假象的匱乏,而後需索從不曾或缺的旺盛;在柔弱的本質中渴求堅強與信仰,之後因對於軟弱愚蠢的不自覺與惑於自我宣稱的虛偽堅強而尋覓所謂謙恭溫潤的中庸。青春是僅只存活於對純粹的堅持下、一種具備了美卻不易碎的浪費。如果死的優雅與精神性建構了藝術中闡釋生命的美學,則生不過是為襯托死的一種附屬的存在。但是生命卻是無法磨滅的,即使蒼白而無意義,卻無止盡地散發出猩紅的血的氣味。印度神濕婆在宇宙的輪迴當中毀滅自己所創造的鏡花水月,而後使之重生,不斷重複操縱著生與死的轉輪;祂是否也感受到生命中那種匱乏虛弱的美,以及死亡中屬於生之投影的愛與信念?藍所象徵的嫌惡與非難,以清澈且充滿靈性的美存在於自然界的蒼穹。隅隅獨行的生,幾人在腐臭中仍吟哦走了調的聖詩,又幾人能擺脫所有倫常的帷幕而誠摯地憎恨與厭惡?然而這一切的思索總似時間過度充裕的青春所編織的蛛網,純白得美麗亦膚淺得軟弱。當青春終於被擺脫後,生命開始進入下一段對死複雜的戀慕和禁忌,與對消逝的水光緬懷的遺憾。


artwork inspired by a spider's web at the Setouchi International Art Festival, Inushima Museum, Japan (image via Winged Wheel's p.s. write soon!)

washi paper lantern (also via p.s. write soon!)


Tuesday 27 December 2011

Beauty Matters

"I think that we are losing beauty, and there is a danger that with it, we will lose the meaning of life."

~Roger Scruton, philosopher & writer


于右任 書法四屏
*A micro-website compiled by the National History Museum in Taipei on Yu Youren.


Why Beauty Matters by Roger Scruton, BBC documentary (2009).



*Thank you my dearest Leanne (里杏姊姊♥) ever so much for sending this to me...

Tuesday 18 October 2011

Madame Xiang from Nine Songs 九歌之湘夫人


湘夫人 Madame Xiang

She-shaman princess in a stone boat
in winged dragon-boat
awning of fig-vine
sweet flag paddles magnolia rudder
Rides to that Island, to that Bright Island, abode of light
Swinging her mesmere lamp, her incense burner on a gold chain
She drops her thumb-ring in the Sea
And turning, and turning, stretches her body burning
toward me
(though she told me, told me
she was not
free)
And flying dragons sweep her far away
from me
I gallop my horse in the morning
through the lowlands by the river
(*translation from unknown source, via)

湘君:
君不行兮夷猶,蹇誰留兮中洲?
美要眇兮宜修,沛吾乘兮桂舟。
令沅湘兮無波,使江水兮安流!
望夫君兮未來,吹參差兮誰思!
駕飛龍兮北徵,邅吾道兮洞庭。
薜荔柏兮蕙綢,蓀橈兮蘭旌。
望涔陽兮極浦,橫大江兮揚靈。
揚靈兮未極,女嬋媛兮為余太息。
橫流涕兮潺湲,隱思君兮陫側。
桂櫂兮蘭枻,斲冰兮積雪。
採薜荔兮水中,搴芙蓉兮木末。
心不同兮媒勞,恩不甚兮輕絕。
石瀨兮淺淺,飛龍兮翩翩。
交不忠兮怨長,期不信兮告余以不閒。
鼂騁騖兮江臯,夕弭節兮北渚。
鳥次兮屋上,水周兮堂下。
捐余玦兮江中,遺余佩兮醴浦。
採芳洲兮杜若,將以遺兮下女。
旹不可兮再得,聊逍遙兮容與。


湘夫人:
帝子降兮北渚,目眇眇兮愁予。
嫋嫋兮秋風,洞庭波兮木葉下。
白薠兮騁望,與佳期兮夕張。
鳥萃兮蘋中,罾何為兮木上。
沅有茝兮醴有蘭,思公子兮未敢言。
荒忽兮遠望,觀流水兮潺湲。
麋何食兮庭中?蛟何為兮水裔?
朝馳余馬兮江臯,夕濟兮西澨。
聞佳人兮召予,將騰駕兮偕逝。
築室兮水中,葺之兮荷蓋。
蓀壁兮紫壇,播芳椒兮成堂。
桂棟兮蘭橑,辛夷楣兮葯房。
罔薜荔兮為帷,擗蕙櫋兮既張。
白玉兮為鎮,疏石蘭兮為芳。
芷葺兮荷屋,繚之兮杜衡。
合百草兮實庭,建芳馨兮廡門。
九嶷繽兮並迎,靈之來兮如雲。
捐余袂兮江中,遺余褋兮醴浦。
搴汀洲兮杜若,將㠯遺兮遠者。
時不可兮驟得,聊逍遙兮容與。

image & text below via Xue Xue Colors, Taiwan
Sweet nostalgia: this beautiful photo brings back such precious memories... It was my first experience of seeing Cloud Gate Dance Theatre live on-stage (back when I was thirteen years of age), and Nine Songs was to become Lin Hwai-Min's work which left the deepest impression on me.


屈原的《九歌》敬天地,祭鬼神,歌頌愛情,悼念國殤,是萬民的禱告。
舞劇以屈原的原作作為想像力的跳板,呈現一場劇場儀式。


然則,神祇從未降臨。

由國際舞台設計大師李名覺操刀,取材自出生於嘉義的國寶級畫家
林玉山先生的《蓮池》,
2012年雲門技術團隊全力重建。(images via Cloud Gate Dance Theatre)
*image via

1993年8月10日 台北國家戲劇院首演

雲門二十週年紀念作《九歌》,由屈原的《九歌》出發,發展出融合古今、荷花與燭光、神話與詩的舞作。《九歌》曾在美國華盛頓甘迺迪中心、紐約下一波藝術節、澳洲雪尼奧林匹克藝術節以及歐洲各大城演出,受到國際舞評人一致推崇與觀眾的喜愛。


圖像介紹

編舞家林懷民的舞作《九歌》(1993),二度邀請國際舞台設大師設計。以台灣前輩畫家林玉山早期作品「蓮池」為稿底,再切割為直或橫的布幕,經接合、分離、交錯、昇降等變化運用,令舞台呈現華麗莊嚴又簡潔明快的風格。舞台前的荷花池與舞作中豐美的意象相互呼應,在八百盞燈火綴成的點點燈河中落幕。
1996年,《九歌》的舞台設計獲紐約舞蹈與表演藝術獎,並在隔年的「1997李名覺舞台設計回顧展」中展出。


Know more about Cloud Gate's Nine Songs inspired by Qu Yuan's cycle of poems Jiu Ge written some 2,400 years ago, in this gorgeous microsite here.



*楚辭 Chu Ci on the Chinese Text Project*


And the poetic, onirique experience of re-/discovering a dried scarlet rose (or a delicate, exquisite veined leaf) amidst the yellowed pages of a beloved old book... Chen Jialing's lotus flower.

Lotus, by Chen Jialing, *image courtesy of Sotheby's, Hong Kong.

Saturday 23 July 2011

北斗七星: my Saptarshi (सप्तर्षि) across the blogsphere


Several months ago my little blog here was awarded the "Versatile Blogger Award" by my artist friend Ingrid Lee.  Here is what she wrote, "Thanks for sharing your the creative passion with others, you share art and culture which is close to my heart, and I'm always happy visiting your site. So I naturally thought of you when particpating in this award. (...) Poetic Oneirism, by Ting-Jen Hwang, [is] an insight into the beauty and inspiration of music, art and culture." Thank you once again Ingrid and my apologies for the very long delay...

To accept this award, I am supposed to write seven things about myself, in addition to nominating/re-gifting it to seven other - in my own words - 'virtual places of my heart.' However, I decided to instead choose ten (yes!!) songs of my favourite Chinese singer Faye Wong, with a link to each song for all my lovely readers to appreciate. These songs are listed in no particular order and I have also included some of the lyrics that I like very much. Is this not even more fun than talking about myself...? :-)

i.  Face: 
呼吸是你的臉 你曲線在蔓延 不斷演變那海岸線 長出了最哀艷的水仙 攀過你的臉 想不到那麼蜿蜒 在你左邊的容顏 我擱淺 我卻要 繼續冒險 最好沒有人會明白我說甚麼 只有你聽懂我想甚麼 你一臉沉默 甚麼 我沒說甚麼 濕濕的汗水不只一點點 你眉頭是否碰上黃梅天 來吧滋潤我的滄海桑田 你每一臉 是我一年 已好久不見 抽煙抽象的眼 雨綿綿 讓我失眠 一點一滴的沉澱 累積成 我皺紋 在你的笑臉 
(music: Faye Wong/ lyrics: the *brilliant* Lin Hsi)
*Here is another stunning live version with Faye's signature humming, "invented language"...

ii. 寒武紀 The Cambrian Age:
故事從一雙玻璃鞋開始, 最初灰姑娘還沒有回憶, 不懂小王子有多美麗, 直到伊甸園長出第一顆菩提, 我們才學會孤寂; 在天鵝湖中邊走邊尋覓, 尋覓; 最後每個人都有個結局, 只是踏破了玻璃鞋之後, 你的小王子跑到哪裡? 蝴蝶的玫瑰可能依然留在幾億年前的寒武紀, 怕鏡花水月終於來不及, 去相遇... 
(music: Faye Wong/ lyrics: Lin Hsi)

iii. 白癡 Idiot (music: San Bao/ lyrics: Lin Hsi)

iv. 彼岸花 Flowers of Paramita:
看見的 熄滅了 消失的 記住了 我站在海角天涯 聽見土壤萌芽 等待曇花再開 把芬芳留給年華 彼岸沒有燈塔 我依然張望著 天黑 刷白了頭髮 緊握著 我火把 他來 我對自己說: 我不害怕 我很愛他 
(music: Faye Wong/ lyrics: Lin Hsi)

v. 浮躁 Restless: 
九月天高人浮躁 九月裡 平淡無聊 一切都好 只缺煩惱 
(music & lyrics: Faye Wong)

vi. 誓言 Pledge (music: Faye Wong & Dou Wei/ lyrics: Faye Wong)

vii. 無常 Impermanence: 
夜風微涼 樹搖月晃 雲兒在飛 我在想 水流 花兒香 一片夜色放心上 喜中帶憂 暗中有光 怎麼度 怎麼量 田野 山崗 美麗之下的凄涼 無常 你看那山色湖光 你看那藍天白楊 看不到一絲渺茫 你再看海天碧浪 你再看晚霞曙光 禁不住匆匆忙忙 把希望留給失望 
(music & lyrics: Faye Wong)

viii. 開到荼蘼 Last Blossom (music: C Y Kong/ lyrics: Lin Hsi)

ix. 討好自己 Ingratiate Oneself: 
討好自己 現實逃避 不知不覺 抽離 漫天的是非 做我的真理 一團和氣 處事道理 遮遮掩掩 臉皮 其實都自卑 其實都自欺 討好自己 現實逃避 不知不覺 飄離
(music & lyrics: Faye Wong)

x. 流浪的紅舞鞋 (from 4:35) The Wanderer's Red Dancing Shoes
藍色黃昏 流浪兒 慵懶的歌 紅馬車 梧桐遮住了 舞蹈的鞋 馬戲團描出聲色 不管 你有一分錢或黃金萬貫 不管 你是一隻螞蟻還是個上帝 我願意翹盼 安然的醉酒微酣 紅鬍子的老人 微笑多恬淡 我的舞鞋旋轉 歌唱到瘋癲 我願棄世登仙 旋轉的車輪 來為我獻歡 我怎會疲倦

*Bonus: 明天我要嫁給妳
I am marrying you tomorrow...
**Bonus ii: 傳奇 Legend (I just love this song...
)
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And finally, here are my seven blogs of choice (in alphabetical order), which I named after each of the seven stars in Saptarshi asterism, as they are indeed brilliant stars in their own right.



i. 天樞/貪狼 (Dubhe)  Alas de mariposa

Like a poem by Edgar Allen Poe, Alas de mariposa is an imaginarium of the darkly fascinating and exquisitely curious. At times achingly beautiful (as well as stunningly grotesque in equal measure), it enchants you with romantic classicism and Gothic lyricism - perhaps not unlike the creative mind behind this oneiric universe, the gorgeous Eurídice, her hair of black satin and skin of pale, translucent alabaster. A world of unchained imagination and poetry beckons...

{*Eurídice is also the author of the entrancing space Gabinete de Curiosidades.}


ii. 天璇/巨門 (Merak)  Couleurs

Clouds and sunrays (verso), formerly attributed to Richard Parkes Bonington. Graphite, bodycolour on paper (pale buff, stained)
An ethereal and intoxicating realm of pure elegance and poetry, pure "dreamscapes." A ceaseless stream of jewels and inspirations, with silent melodies filling a musical state of consciousness as beautiful as the sound of jade - 剔透, 清澈, 玲瓏. This is one of my favourite blogs in the virtual world, perfect for one's quiescence of light and solitude.


iii. 天璣/祿存 (Phecda)  Eric Hwang Lab


Technically speaking not a blog, but my scholarly brother's brilliant and beautiful website simply has to be included in my Saptarshi (just look at his incredible images!). Although I have mentioned this in my blog before, my brother's encouragement and confidence in me is the reason why Poetic Oneirism is here in the blogsphere today, not only as a collection of my personal inspirations (which was originally my sole intention) but it has prompted precious encounters with other creative/artistic minds and connected me with friends who now introduce me to wonders after wonders, challenge my thoughts and inspire me, in the best of ways!


iv. 天權/文曲 (Megrez)  Ingrid Creates

Ingrid is one of the most multi-talented and creative persons I know: all forms of art which include (but not limited to) oil paintings and watercolours, bakery, cake decoration, nail art, porcelain painting, embroidery, writing etc. A self-taught artist who delights in sharing her love and passion, Ingrid very kindly included my little space Poetic Oneirism in her "Versatile Blogger Award" which was the catalyst behind this post.

{*Ingrid now has a new blog, purely about her artwork and journey as an artist - Ingrid Lee Art.}


v. 玉衡/廉貞 (Alioth)  Japonisme


Lotusgreen's Japonisme is as exquisite in its poetic beauty as it is rich in its information. It is, quite simply, a blog that you must head over right now to experience the pure loveliness, the pure poetry... Amongst so many things I have learned on Japonisme, one of the most precious discoveries (well, in fact, it was lotusgreen who kindly introduced to me) has to be painter Elyse Ashe Lord. As she so kindly said of my little world,

"...it's always wonderful to be discovered by someone with a blog that makes you, well, swoon. post after post in this woman's blog, poetic oneirism, somehow make you want to use the word utterly."

And this is indeed how lotusgreen's Japonisme makes me feel - swooningly gorgeous, it utterly captivates me...


vi. 開陽/武曲 (Mizar)  Tang Dynasty Times: all the peonies of Chang'an...

How can one not fall in love with this blog simply by looking at its name "All the Peonies of Chang'an?" Leanne is a beautiful writer and true intellectual who has created a dreamlike but incredibly knowledgeable world of her thoughtful, poetic, and philosophical meditations which time and time again charm me. When I have a grown-up(!!) blog, I would love for it to be like hers, elegantly written with clarity and insight (alas this shan't happen anytime soon due to my sloth nature)... We share so many similar interests and passions that if one day I do decide to pursue a doctorate degree, I hope very much to have a supervisor as generous, knowledgeable and encouraging as the lovely Leanne. As Kyoto Journal aptly puts it:


"Leanne Ogasawara’s blog, Tang Dynasty Times, was the catalyst for this special themed issue [Silk Roads] of Kyoto Journal. In posts that read as dispatches from outposts on a journey of exploration deep into the history of relations between East and West, she reflects on aspects of what a truly global culture might encompass, presenting Tang multiculturalism and Silk Road cosmopolitanism (and much, much more) as reference points for our present times..."

Elated by the spring breeze

My horse quickens its pace
In but one short day
Do I view all the peonies of Chang'an

昔日齷齰不足誇,今朝放蕩思無涯,春風得意馬蹄疾,一日看盡長安花。

~孟郊《登科後》Meng Chao (中唐, 751-814)

(From one of my favourite blogposts of hers: All the Peonies of Chang'an - although there is not a single article in her Tang dynasty world that I do not love...!)


vii. 瑤光/破軍 (Alkaid)  Things of Beauty
Georges de La Tour's Candlelight {via}
My artistic dancer friend Michiko has piercing perceptiveness to beauty. Being aesthetic in everything she does, it is of little surprise that her blog Things of Beauty is an irresistible, inspired collection of art, music, dance, photography, words and so on... She has introduced me to numerous artists (in all artistic fields) whom I now consider to be very dear to my heart, and pieces of music which will stay with me forever. Her blog is a world where I always enjoy being in - the quiet (perhaps above everything else), simple elegance and subtle beauty - distantly alluring and yet it forever draws you in. Like a veiled diamond or Georges de La Tour's candlelight behind a Japanese screen...

I dearly miss our exchanges of each other's love and passion for art, culture, beauty, and basically everything girly. And our little conversations... Hope you are well M, and I look forward to hearing from you soon. Meanwhile, one just has to visit your poetic realm even more frequently to make up the void!


Wednesday 6 July 2011

The Nature of Poetic Inspiration

For a poet is a light and winged and sacred thing, and is unable ever to indite until he has been inspired and put out of his senses, and his mind is no longer in him: every man, whilst he retains possession of that, is powerless to indite a verse or chant an oracle. Seeing then that it is not by art that they compose and utter so many fine things about the deeds of men — as you do about Homer — but by a divine dispensation, each is able only to compose that to which the Muse has stirred him, this man dithyrambs, another laudatory odes, another dance-songs, another epic or else iambic verse; but each is at fault in any other kind. For not by art do they utter these things, but by divine influence; since, if they had fully learnt by art to speak on one kind of theme, they would know how to speak on all. And for this reason God takes away the mind of these men and uses them as his ministers, just as he does soothsayers and godly seers, in order that we who hear them may know that it is not they who utter these words of great price, when they are out of their wits, but that it is God himself who speaks and addresses us through them.

~ From Plato's Ion (dialogue)


Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian, Birds of Paradise, 2008,
Mirror mosaic and reverse glass painting. 180 x 129cm (each).
© of Rose Issa Projects

“Birds of Paradise was inspired by Monir’s love of nature and birds in particular, whom she feeds from her balcony in Tehran and New York. Inspired by the shape and ingenuity of their feathers, she incorporates their perfect form into her geometric compositions, made with mirror mosaics, chalk and three dimensional frames.” (Rose Issa, gallerist)


Kaleidoscope - Convertible Series (more...)


Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian, Convertible Series, Group 5, Versions 1 & 3, 2010,
Mosaic mirrors and plaster on wood, Sizes Variable

Through out her long career, Farmanfarmaian's work exhibits a strong connection to the history of Iranian reverse glass and mirror mosaics, a craft traditionally passed on from father to son.

Her work brings together the tradition and the avant-garde to form colourful and geometric motifs: circles, squares and polygons are skilfully cast within the rigorous mould of classical Islamic geometrical design.

It was in the late 60s when Farmanfarmaian started experimenting with adapting and combining age old techniques of reverse-glass painting, mirror mosaics and Iranian design with a modern abstract expressionism and minimalism. The result is a geometric and reflective kaleidoscope with shard-like forms of colour and light slicing through fragments of mirror. (via The Third Line)

Breaking the Waves, 2008, Mirror and reverse glass, 135 x 86 cm

Wednesday 22 June 2011

The Art of Sun Zi in Vadim Repin's Sibelius

故其疾如風,其徐如林,侵掠如火,不動如山,難知如陰,動如雷震。

軍旅行動時,快速如風;靜止時,肅穆嚴整如林木一般進球敵人時,如燎原烈火,猛不可當;防守時,如山岳一樣,不可動搖;隱蔽時,如烏雲遮天,使敵人無從知曉;快速動作起來,如迅雷不及掩耳,使敵人無從退避。


Ring, 5th-4th century B.C.E., Eastern Zhou dynasty.
Glass, H: 4.0cm, China.
Freer & Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian's Museums of Asian Art (via)
A set of six graduated bells (yong zhong),
ca. 6th century B.C.E., Eastern Zhou dynasty
Bronze, H: 28.7cm, W: 13.0cm, D: 10.3cm, China
Freer & Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian's Museums of Asian Art (via)

Let your rapidity be that of the wind, 
your compactness that of the forest.
In raiding and plundering be like fire, 
in immovability like a mountain.
Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, 
and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.

~Sun Zi, The Art of War; Chapter vii: Military Combat
(English translations by Lionel Giles)

Ring, 5th-4th century B.C.E., Eastern Zhou dynasty.
Glass, H: 4.0cm, China.
Freer & Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian's Museums of Asian Art (via)

Pendant (long pei) in the form of a dragon,
5th century B.C.E., Eastern Zhou dynasty
Jade, H: 3.6 W: 5.4 D: 0.5 cm, China
Freer & Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian's Museums of Asian Art (via)

One of the most intoxicating qualities of Vadim Repin's interpretation is his freedom and effortlessness, together with the utmost passion (yet always in a wonderfully relaxed, zen manner), as if he was forever deeply in love with the music...

"Music is Russian violinist Vadim Repin’s mother tongue. He is a virtuoso of many voices, and his astonishing ability to draw a rich palette of sound from his instrument, together with his dazzling technique, has enthralled audiences around the globe. Fiery passion with impeccable technique, poetry and sensitivity are Repin’s trademarks." (via)


Vadim Repin plays Sibelius Violin Concerto in D Minor, conducted by Valery Gergiev, Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Saint Petersburg, Russia. (Prom 48, live at the Royal Albert Hall, 2006.)

Saturday 21 May 2011

易安居士

《聲聲慢》

尋尋覓覓,冷冷清清,淒淒慘慘戚戚。
乍暖還寒時候,最難將息。
三杯兩盞淡酒,怎敵他、晚來風急?
雁過也,正傷心,卻是舊時相識。

滿地黃花堆積,憔悴損,如今有誰堪摘?
守著窗兒,獨自怎生得黑?
梧桐更兼細雨,到黃昏、點點滴滴。
這次第,怎一個、愁字了得!

溥儒仕女圖; Portrait of a Lady, by Pu Ru (Pu Hsin-Yu).

漱玉詞意圖, 立軸, 劉旦宅繪 (via)


李清照(1084~1155)號易安居士,宋代濟南(今屬山東)人,婉約派代表詞人。父李格非,為元祐後四學士之一,夫趙明誠為金石考據家。崇寧元年(1102),徽宗以紹述神宗為名,任蔡京、趙挺之為左右相,立元祐黨人碑,以司馬光等百二十人為「奸黨」,其父列名黨籍,清照以詩上挺之。崇寧二年(1103),明誠出仕,矢志撰述以訪求、著錄古代金石文字為職志的《金石錄》一書。大觀元年(1107),蔡京復相,挺之卒。蔡京以挺之為元祐大臣所薦,為庇元祐「奸黨」,追奪所贈官。明誠、清照夫婦因此屏居青州(今山東益都)鄉里十年。宣和二年(1120)蔡京致仕後,明誠起知萊州(今山東掖縣),此後又自萊移淄。靖康之難後。明誠奔母喪南下,知江寧府,清照載書至建康。建炎三年,趙明誠卒。離京自建康出走浙中,清照隨亦入浙,經台、嵊、黃岩,從禦舟海道至溫州,復至越州,衢州,於紹興二年(1132)赴杭州。紹興四年,作《金石錄後序》。紹興中,以《金石錄》表上於朝。卒年約七十馀。善屬文,於詩尤工。 《宋史·藝文志》著錄《易安居士文集》七卷,俱不傳。清照創詞“別是一家”之說,創“易安體”,為宋詞大家。詞集名《漱玉集》,今本皆為後人所輯。

評價

男中李後主,女中李易安,極是當行本色。前此太白,故稱詞家三李。 (沈去矜)

清照以一婦人,而詞格乃抗軼周柳,雖篇帙無多,固不能不寶而存之,為詞家一大宗矣。 (《四庫提要》)

李易安作重陽《醉花陰》詞,函致趙明誠云云。明誠自愧勿如。乃忘寢食,三日夜得十五闋,雜易安作以示陸德夫。德夫玩之再三曰:「只有『莫道不銷魂』三句絕佳。」正易安作也。 (《詞苑叢談》)

李易安詞,獨闢門徑,居然可觀,其源自淮海、大晟,而鑄語則多生造,婦人有此,可謂奇矣。 (《白雨齋詞話》)

易安佳句,如《一剪梅》起七字云:「紅藕香殘玉簟秋」,精秀特絕,真不食人間煙火者。 (同上書)

清麗其詞,端莊其品,歸去來兮,真堪攜隱。 (趙明誠)

婉約派四大旗幟之一,四旗中號“閨語”。
李清照是中國古代第一位女詩人,亦稱“一代詞宗”。

(文字節錄轉載)


*李清照詞全集

書法家遆高亮楷書李清照詞

芍藥  Peony, China Tsvetochnoe (via).

Some very old poems of mine...



蒼白,是血的原色與美學的逆鱗。
他舌尖的蓮消蝕一如
右頰的月光
聲音是時間與蛇的舞姿
交纏蜿蜒的連綴
而生存,歌詠著水波紊亂
殞落著無性之魅
猩紅,似卵與熱的曲線
錯誤的春花秋月
頹萎之靡交合在古印度的菱鏡
天人於是註定了五衰
水面下的墜



之一

透過你 / 的純粹的瞳,凝望
我的世界與我的花
凝煉的藍水晶與
琥珀色貓眼石
而寄託細細思量
清靈我腦海中
浮沉暈厥 / 一千首失血的詩歌。
你的音符將在水月中呼息
婆娑敦煌的精靈之舞
序曲,與
敘事歌的終止式
飄搖 / 呈示部交合的美姿
我每一寸膚澤下
嫩滑著你
的涅槃


之二

當你吟哦下一首佛陀之歌
一束碎裂的光,切割
舌根下深植的透明菱鏡
禁忌與神秘主義的信徒遊戲。
是甜,融化
在眼睫的霜露
再也再 / 也浮不過下一輪宇宙
精神與指,屬於光華的芬芳
美的終極


卜算子

行雲流水的飛揚才華變質為劣等貶抑下的決裂
優美超脫的詩文卻是對淒苦誣陷的掙扎和超越
絕非聖人
敏銳易感的浪漫詩人情懷
你也曾經是那樣地狂歌當哭
你也曾經是那樣地恐懼顫抖
你也曾經是那樣地憂鬱孤寂
你也曾經是那樣地狼狽疲倦
倦於那些讒言譏諷
怠於那些無中生有
這究竟是怎樣一種世俗社會的奇特機制
竟令如你這般的靈魂寂然無聲孤獨哀泣
溫和柔雅似你
林間清風似你
深谷白雲似你
他們逼迫你一點一滴無情地剝除自己身上絲毫的異己成分
你卻能蒸餾昇華回歸於清純空靈
成熟於寂滅過後的再生
滿足於淡泊無聲的定止
由孤傲秀絕的山峰粹煉為圓潤優雅的均夷
是這文化人精神上真正的孤獨無告
引領你進入極美極靜極幽的超脫涅槃

缺月掛疏桐,漏斷人初靜。誰見幽人獨往來?縹緲孤鴻影。
驚起卻回頭,有恨無人省。撿盡寒枝不肯棲,寂寞沙洲冷。

(詠蘇軾)
08' 18' 97


月牙印與泉 – Bhakti

紋理與逆流中的瓊漿。

物,與現世與我執與業
原屬鏡中國度之塵埃
卻是愈歸流麗澄明,似雪蓮與落櫻、似
閃爍浮掠過水菱鏡的漁火
曳曳熠熠翳翳
愛染與濕婆與毘濕奴
婀娜吟哦鷓鴣喃噥
神同人化身鶼鰈
在恆河之風之土之水的曲折臂彎
在祂薰育的曼荼羅

蒼穹之淚 生命之舞 存在之空
煢煢跫跫嬛嬛

祂說神秘已逝 莊嚴隅隅寂寥
精靈與天人與神祇皆騷動
祂的奧義是美學是神諭是終點
姁姁透悟
於是星雲微泛茉莉光澤的胭脂滑行

祂是音符與依存的序曲
馡馡,如華如樂
刺穿薄暮幽玄的靜謐,以
光、以吟頌的詩歌以揭示的秘密獻祭死亡
悲憫垢穢
而神秘不可諭說
祂的涅槃是救贖之荼蘼

我所知的一切
汝卻是全知

祂是隱晦於畫像的箴言
腥紅耽溺如愛,而
清靈無形


如焰


阿修羅

汝愛我心,我憐汝色,以是因緣,經千百劫,常在纏縛。

~ 楞嚴經

若六入緣觸,觸緣受,受緣愛,愛緣取
修羅捨棄神身,寧為善妒挑釁的戰火
即使法界諸行無常,色相生生滅滅
汝仍於菩提樹下
無垠無涯,等待曇花露華
怎奈何花事了
瓣瓣荼蘼送走無愛無恨阿賴耶識的恆常
可是真能捨染得淨、含藏萬法種子?

水清木華
貪染名愛
我的鏡花水月,怎得走火入魔?
汝以毀滅為樂,我在彼岸祈禱
皆熄滅,皆熄滅,生生世世的凝望
修羅,阿修羅
汝能否記住我消失的白髮
記住菩提的種子與佛陀的愛在土壤中萌芽
瞋痴流轉,香塵遷徙
汝能否記住我

記住我笑著遺忘了的
遺忘了的
冷寂戚清的火花

崔護重來伊人已杳,卻是凋殘花樣年華。

The Asuras are powerful beings opposed to the Devas (gods). Originally, in the Vedic times, they were another class of gods, perhaps the indigenous deities. By the end of the Vedic period, however, the Asuras had attained their demonic role. The Asuras are demons capable of assuming the form of animals or humans. They are completely evil, powerful creatures that delight in spreading fear, confusion, chaos, and destruction amongst the humans, sometimes even more powerful than the gods.
07’ Nov’ 00


暗殺者

之後才發覺
眼睛不再是靈長類動物的象徵
鬢角的雲鬚本不是一種降服
之後才出現
黑髮遙遙呼應月華下的寺宇
靈魂與哲學
游離蒸發分裂
之後才渴求
呼喊、思考、嗔笑、狂亂地天真無邪
生不是生
死不是死
黃帝與蚩尤兵荒馬亂
摘取岩壁失了血的氳氤

十億年的永世
天之蝕、光衰竭、月暈眩
之後才會挖掘出相簿裡
蠶食著嗜血的謊言
若冰般晶瑩 剔透似琉璃
而冷
一切本是一雙食人獸的掌,掌心的水晶
水晶裡的裂紋、裂紋下的疵點

而現象學裡的精神性,本體論中依存之美
皆胡言

呼吸裡氾濫著牧歌式的甜美
舌尖蔓延著類似亂倫的詩篇
回憶是烙印,似雲母石依順脈理參差剝落
之後融化於下一枚礦石的奢華
之後冶煉
滿空黯淡的星子、滿腔瘖啞的淒涼

蒼老的血,褐色冰雹
蛇吐信
一切庸俗演化變遷
金縷衣的巢穴
08' June' 00

Friday 20 May 2011

獻詩三島由紀夫 Dedicated to Mishima Yukio


Mishima Yukio came into my life relatively late, when I was around eighteen. The first book I read was his Forbidden Colours 禁色. I remember how enchanted I was, and how absorbed by the story I was that there was a certain sadness when I was approaching the end of the book, as if I did not want to leave that magical realm just yet. After reading his Golden Pavilion Temple, I would say that my thoughts, views of this world and aesthetics were much defined, perhaps they even found an identity. In a way, I felt a sense of belonging in the intense, exquisite and intricate flashes of poetry in his articulate and abstract writing. Yet how his language and narratives flow. My favourite work of Mishima, and one that influenced me the most, is his final novels - the tetralogy The Sea of Fertility (豐饒之海), composed of Spring Snow (春雪), Runaway Horses (奔馬), The Temple of Dawn (曉寺), and The Decay of the Celestial, or The Decay of the Angel (天人五衰). Although in my opinion these four books are best read in sequence, my personal favourite ones are The Temple of Dawn and The Decay of the Angel. I was deeply moved ("rocked" could be a better word!) by this tetralogy the first time I read it that I wrote poems after each novel, and dedicated to Mishima Yukio, to whom I feel that I am indebted to - for his artistic achievement, aesthetics, thought system, and his love. These poems were all written in 1999.


“If, raised by the power of mind, a man relinquishes the common way of looking at things, gives up tracing… their relations to each other, the final goal of which is always a relation to his own will; if he thus ceases to consider the where, the when, the why, and the whither of things, and looks simply and solely at the what; if further, he does not allow abstract thought, the concepts of the reason, to take possession of his consciousness, but, instead of all this, gives the whole power of his mind to perception, … so that it is as if the object alone were there, without any one to perceive it, and he can no longer separate the perceiver from the perception, but both have become one … if thus the object has to such an extent passed out of all relation to something outside it, and the subject out of all relation to the will, then that which is so known … is the Idea, … he who is sunk in this perception is … pure, will-less, painless, timeless subject of knowledge.”

 ~ Schopenhauer, The World as Will and Representation, Vol. I., Third Book, p. 231, in the English version trans. by R. B. Haldane and J. Kemp (London, three vols, 1909).


天人五衰,意指天人壽命將盡時,所出現的種種異象。五衰又有大五衰、小五衰兩種。



死亡美學(獻詩三島之金閣)

戰後的廢墟,重建
赭色小提琴喤泣聲線
金箔剝蝕的蒸氣與躁動的香

月華清明塗抹石橋
一如滌淨生的 死亡的確知
我兀自佇立文字的金閣
美學修長的眼睫投影
蔭翳,光正自盡。

顫抖顫抖再顫抖,這齣劇本
與血的斑痕纏綿似水
海面痛苦地沉默
光,一如岩礫,一如陰影,光的自縊。

自縊的美學倫理糾結糾結死的似非而,是。
仁波切寂然誦經
呢喃破曉前刻精神與美的歸巢
逐步逐步,緊貼眼睫的哀悽

生的諷刺文體的,死
的潔白墓塚
光正瀉落一湖的私密,若水。


春雪

透過冰寒的指尖傳遞的水晶;
殘雪流麗時節
逝去透明的傷口..

你唇際每一朵薔薇的綻放,便墜落一整季冬夜的星空

鋼琴碎在半透明的睫毛中
之後
音符便似瞳孔灼燙的匕首


奔馬

夢先於現實。
而純粹
似花,似血,似詩
,似枯腐前消逝的生。


曉寺

(薰息,我執,唯識)

緣起於鏡花水月的無常
存活涅槃之花瓣間的阿賴耶識,似
剔透的純藍火焰蘊蓄
鏤花之詩

桃花心木質的鏤空雕花
在蒼白哀傷的殘月撫觸下
散發似水晶斷面般清明露華
濕漉而冷冽的香氛


豐饒之海天人五衰(獻詩三島由紀夫)

他的世界構築於
對純粹牲祭的行動性
似花之骨髓般的血
他傾洩一身的孤注一擲
於苦痛而豐饒
的虛無之海

如若阿賴耶識是月華的羽翼
飛翔於極度神聖與極度污穢的貝那雷斯
是否沉痛如我執與薰息的唯識色界
得以釋放自殘雪的純粹?

他精神性的美學體系
他對生命、神聖與純粹的無窮需索與追尋
無聲地崩毀於佛陀澄明而冷冽如水的眸子
美麗虛幻而無常若花的微笑
他的生命無聲地崩解於
月之海中虛弱而豐饒的涅槃

而他磅跎的精神體系,與
凝鍊先驗的詩性呢?
恰似無法埋藏於大海中夕陽的掙扎
恰似大自然神聖而無以名狀
的悲苦與愛

而當他的精神現象美學崩毀
當我得以窺視他文字與思想的金閣
當我得以體悟他
不可思議的美與愛
我竟躊躇畏懼掇拾自美的廢墟中
破碎猶濕熱的骨肉
我竟畏懼於參與他壯闊豐饒而苦痛的
精神美之海洋中的呼息
與之共振,並互融為殘春之雪與月
因深恐破碎他幾近完美的神性,驚擾他
悲傷而純粹冷冽的愛


而何處得尋他無我的流動?
何處得覓他阿賴耶識的種子?


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