奔馬
夢先於現實。
而純粹
似花，似血，似詩
，似枯腐前消逝的生。
Runaway Horses (Realistically Synaesthetic Purity)
Dreams, a priori, then reality.
And purity
Resembles a flower, resembles blood, resembles poetry,
Resembles life, a priori, disappearing before decay.
Notes on Runaway Horses (Realistically Synaesthetic Purity)
The main inspiration behind my poem “Runaway Horses” was Mishima Yukio’s 奔馬 Runaway Horses, the second book in his tetralogy豊饒の海 The Sea of Fertility, Mishima’s final work before his ritual suicide (seppuku) on November 25, 1970, which he planned meticulously for at least a year with no one outside the group of hand-picked members of Tatenokai (楯の会, or Shield Society, a private militia in Japan dedicated to traditional Japanese values and veneration of the Emperor, founded and led by Mishima himself) having any indication of what he was attempting. Mishima discussed and wrote about seppuku extensively and in great details in Runaway Horses (but surely it was received, and intended to be, a work of fiction when published). The alternative translated title “Realistically Synaesthetic Purity” was given when I first translated this poem from the Chinese it was originally written in. Synaesthesia, meaning “a sensation experienced in a part of the body other than the part stimulated (in physiology)” or “the subjective sensation of a sense other than the one being stimulated. For example, a sound may evoke sensations of colour (in psychology),” is not something one usually experiences in daily life (our ordinary consciousness), but rather, is more likely to occur in an aesthetic experience (an extraordinary consciousness which distinguishes itself from ordinary consciousness in many of its metaphysical and epistemological characters).
Mishima’s Runaway Horses was the book which I enjoyed the least whilst reading his tetralogy – the most politically and socially oriented, and also the most scholastic and ‘academically complex’ style of writing. This book was almost too dry at times for me to recognise the literary giant and his artistic beauty which I fell so hopelessly in love with and has influenced me so much for so long. In this novel, Mishima left me no breathing space (something I crave and adore and need in literature). Nevertheless, the poem came to me a while after I finished all four books of The Sea of Fertility tetralogy, in a way that could not have been purer, simpler, like a flower blossoming at night with a faint, subtle and lingering scent. The feeling I had when naming my poem "Realistically Synaesthetic Purity" is that, I was overwhelmed from being over-stimulated in my eyes and my brain whilst reading Runaway Horses, but the sensation and purity I felt in my heart, from his heart, was realistic and not ‘transcendental’ or ‘idealistic’ (ideal, as opposed to ‘real’). Runaway Horses, albeit being a book on an area which I am not all that interested in, with its difficult words, with Mishima’s complicated, meticulous and formidable system of thoughts, the social and political notions and history discussed, was able to get through to me and make me feel its purity, simplicity and beauty in the end. I saw its heart. Its essence.
A priori: 先驗性, ‘determining something priori to their being given,’ ‘existing in the mind prior to and independent of experience,’ (antonym: a posteriori). I dedicate this poem, and in particular this line, to Mishima Yukio and his book Runaway Horses:
“And purity… Resembles life, a priori, disappearing before decay.”
* * * *
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
Temple in Vijñaptimātra
(…incense, Ātma-grāha, Vijñānavāda)
Dependant arising, from the impermanence
Of mirrored flowers, of moon water
Exists ālayavijñāna between petals of nirvana, as if
Transparency of pure blue flames, and
Within which a filigree of poetry
Rosewood reliefs under caresses
Of pale sorrowful moonlight
Scent of dewdrops at dawn permeates, like
A crystal facet; the soaking, penetratingly
Icy perfume
Notes on Temple in Vijñaptimātra
Inspired by Mishima Yukio’s 曉寺 Temple of Dawn, my favourite book in The Sea of Fertility tetralogy, and perhaps my favourite of all his books and writings I have read, my poem “Temple in Vijñaptimātra” was also written originally in Chinese and translated into English quite some time later. Unlike “Runaway Horses (Realistically Synaesthetic Purity),” which I consider a rather abstract poem of mine, “Temple in Vijñaptimātra” appeared/arrived with imageries, sounds, smells, and words which alone might not mean much but present themselves as gemstones, paint colours and musical notes for me to create jewellery, paintings and songs. Independent and individual images to be made into a ‘moving and flowing’ film. That is how I usually write poetry. Having been influenced by Buddhist concepts since primary school when I first came across a writer whose prose is deeply inspired by Chan Buddhism, and given my love of words and ideograms (specifically Chinese), I fell in love with Buddhist terminologies in Chinese (and later in their original Sanskrit) for their sounds, their appearances, and the ways words are arranged. For me, they are in and of themselves, poetry, and always provide many inspirations.
Vijñaptimātra (唯識論): ‘Mere representation;’ the Yogācāra theory that the contents of everyday, unenlightened experience are merely a false superimposition upon actuality of dualistic concepts generated by the mind that prevent direct experience of reality as it truly is (yathā-bhūta). Some later forms of Yogācāra lend themselves to an idealistic interpretation of this theory but such a view is absent from the works of the early Yogācārins such as Asaṇga and Vasubandhu.
Ātma-grāha (我執): attachment to self
Vijñānavāda (विज्ञानवाद): 唯識宗, the Vijñaptimātra school of thought
Aālayavijñāna (阿賴耶識): The ālaya-vijñāna forms the "base-consciousness" (mūla-vijñāna) or "causal consciousness". According to the traditional interpretation, the other seven consciousnesses are "evolving" or "transforming" consciousnesses originating in this base-consciousness.
The store-house consciousness accumulates all potential energy for the mental (nama) and physical (rupa) manifestation of one's existence (namarupa). It is the storehouse-consciousness which induces transmigration or rebirth, causing the origination of a new existence.
* * * *
Decayed
birds fluttering feathers beasts secretly cringing
as if musk spreading in the mists astray, fading
then never a sound in Death/ nor breath/ not even heart
Death seals and stagnates the pale wax of light
in her mouth
as if a tooth-filing ceremony as if anaemia as if bleeding
One little footnote on Decayed…
*Tooth-filing Ceremony: The Balinese Ceremonies of Tooth-filing
The second part of human ceremonies for the Balinese Hindu life is tooth-filing. The ceremony is held when a child reaches adulthood, the purpose of which is to minimise sins – Anger, Envy, Greed, Arrogance, Drunkenness and so on. This ceremony must be performed prior to a child’s marriage or after the girl’s first menstrual period starts. Only 6 teeth should be filed for this ceremony – 2 eye teeth and 4 incisors of the top teeth. Tooth-filing is a very important ceremony for Balinese life, as it is believed that should the ceremony not be performed on a person, that person’s soul will be restless and never in peace when s/he dies. Those in tooth-filing ceremonies should dress in mostly golden yellow and white colours, symbolism of holiness. In Bali, Balinese Hindus believe in thousands of gods, and every single thing in the house has a spirit. They believe that there is a god watching over the place, and offerings are also essential to bad spirits. This is to give gratitude to the gods, and to the bad spirits for not disturbing their peace. Beautiful and exquisitely colourful ephemeral offerings seen everywhere on the island of Bali are made every single day as small offerings to thousands of deities and evil spirits, one of Bali’s sights that have always had my heart.
*Beautiful ephemeral offerings! One of the topics I enjoyed the most when I studied Southeast Asian art history/archaeology/material cultures in university. (More photographs from my travel to Ubud, Bali...)
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