Ginger Post

Wei Djao’s latest book is about Li Qingzhao (~ 1084 – 1156 CE) of the Song dynasty who is indisputably the most brilliant woman writer in Chinese history. This biography offers an insightful interpretation of her character and a new translation of some of her writings. Wei Djao’s English rendition consistently captures the poet’s elegance, refreshing originality and creativity.

Li Qingzhao lived in a turbulent period in Chinese history when half of China was lost to conquerors and two emperors were taken into captivity never to return to China. In this well-researched and eminently readable narrative, the events of her life are set against the backdrop of political and socio-cultural developments in the Song Dynasty.

Li Qingzhao in her extant poems expresses many different moods and feelings about personal relationships that still resonate poignantly with the readers today. In her more political works she mocks the emperor and high officials of her day for their cowardice in the face of attack and occupation of northern China by invaders. Her versatility is also shown in a trilogy about a gambling game known as dama (Whipping Horse).

In one of her poems, Li Qingzhao sings praise of the small but exquisite plum blossom that buds forth in deep winter, symbolizing the human qualities of integrity and endurance. It is a blossom like no other. It very aptly describes her own life.

“So much research into Chinese history, yet the book makes such pleasant reading because of the strong point it makes about the character of an unusual woman. As a native Chinese speaker/reader, I have had great joy in savouring the beautiful verses in Chinese and then admiring the flowing translation in English.”
– Dora Choi Po-king, Chinese University of Hong Kong
“The author provides a prodigious amount of information about Li Qingzhao, and the socio-political background of Song China. Undoubtedly, A Blossom Like No Other, written in an easy and fluent style, sets a new standard for scholarly works in this genre.”
– Allen Wittenborn, San Diego State University
“The clear writing style makes the indomitable Li Qingzhao and her exquisite poetry accessible to lay people and Chinese literature experts alike. The last chapter presented in the name of Li Qingzhao is the most creative in every conceivable way.”
– Helen Wu, University of Toronto
“With profound imagination and learning in literature, history, and philosophy of both China and the West, Wei Djao has achieved something quite monumental: conveying Li Qingzhao’s unsurpassed literary achievement as palpably human and distinctly memorable for the English speaking readers.”
– Howard Xie, North Seattle Community College
“Wei Djao has succeeded in transcending the language barriers by meticulously translating Li Qingzhao’s songs into equally beautiful English with poetic rhythm.”
– Liqun Cao, University of Ontario Institute of Technology

The following is an excerpt from Chapter 2.

Early Writings
Ci *

Li Qingzhao personally dated only a few of her works. The year in which she wrote the few extant shi and essays could be fixed somewhat from their content. Very few of her ci could be dated in such a way as in most of them there are explicit allusions to historical events or literary texts, but rarely to the events of the day. Literary critics through the centuries since her death have divided her undated writings into early and later periods again based on the content. But there is no certainty as to when most of the ci were actually written. The ci thought to be written in her youth describe the conduct and reflect the mood of a young woman before marriage. However, they could have been written later in life as reminiscences of the carefree days in her parents’ house.

If Li Qingzhao in the early years of her life lost her mother and grew up with a stepmother, there is nothing in Li Qingzhao’s writings or those of her contemporaneous writers that gives any hint of such circumstances. A few ci that are considered to have been written in her youth or at least regarded as descriptions of her youth were happy poems. In a few short phrases, she would express her spontaneous love of nature and enjoyment of life. There is a vivaciousness that cannot be suppressed, but no hint at all of a sad or mournful childhood or adolescence. There would be melancholia and sorrow in her ci yet, but that would come later. The poems about her girlhood express an eagerness for life and a certain playfulness. With joy in her heart she sings with simplicity and striking vividness. One of her best known ci is about a boating experience, which could have taken place near her ancestral town Mingshui which is known for the clear spring water of its streams, ponds and lakes, or in Bianjing.

To the tune of “As in a Dream”

Recall often lingering in the brook-side pavilion till dusk**,
Intoxicated, forgetting the way home;
Delighted, tarrying, we slip into the boat.
Lost in the depth of the lotus patch,
Splash, row; splash, row!
Surprise the seagulls and egrets into flight.

如夢令

常 記 溪 亭 日暮, 沈 醉 不 知 歸 路。興 盡 晚 回 舟, 誤 入 藕 花 深 處。爭 渡、爭 渡, 驚 起 一 灘 鷗 鷺。

In this ci, the reader can taste the sweet carefree day Li Qingzhao and her companions spent outdoors, sharing in the joy of her outing, wine and rowing. In a few words she depicts the time and the settings of a pavilion by the brook, lotus blossoms and birds. But it is her mood that we feel the most: her pleasure in wine, a little wilfulness in lingering too long till it is dusk, and even having fun in getting lost and waking up the water fowl that have settled down for the night. This is a happy poem. A prevalent view in Chinese literature since the ancient times is that it is difficult to compose works of joy and happiness while verses of sorrow are easy to perfect as poetry lends itself to expressing sadness (Chen 1995:140). That Li Qingzhao could express her joy so simply and effectively attests to her remarkable talent.

There is another ci that describes the conduct and mood of a young woman who would perhaps be a year or so older than the girl in the previous ci and has an interest in who comes to call.

To the tune of “Painted Lips”

Alighting from the swing
Too lazy to wipe her slender hands.
Frail blossoms in the gathering mist,
Light perspiration seeps through her thin dress.
A guest arriving she sees.
No time to put on shoes,
Slips away in stocking feet, hairpin falling.
Blushing, shy;
Turning her head at the door,
Savours the green plum fragrance in pretence.

點絳脣

蹴罷秋千, 起來慵整纖纖手。露濃花瘦, 薄汗輕衣透。見客人來, 襪剗金釵溜。和羞走, 倚門回首, 却把青梅嗅。

The sensuality in this ci is palpable: motion of the swing, perspiration on her skin, falling hairpin, peeping at the door and fragrance of the plums. What makes the ci so charming is the depiction of a girl who is curious about the visitor. She is shy and blushes, but she decides to have a look at the caller. Then she hides her curiosity by pretending to smell the plums.

It is conceivable that the guest is a suitor or a go-between on behalf of a suitor asking for her hand. Marriages were, of course, arranged by parents at that time. But adherence to this norm varied by degrees from region to region and from family to family (Zhao and Li 2003:170). In a relatively permissive household such as Li Qingzhao’s, her parents might have dropped some hints as to who might be calling that day. They might even have solicited her preference or obtained some tacit consent from her in the choice of a husband.

In the ci, nonetheless, there is still that mischievous playfulness as in the previous one. It is all so natural and spontaneous although this ci is a take-off from a shi composed by Han Wo (韓偓) in the late Tang dynasty. That shi is about a young Imperial Concubine who after stepping off the swing smiles at a guest as she brushes aside the plum tree at the door. However, Han Wo’s piece is almost prosaic compared to the lively ci by Li Qingzhao (Zhuge 2004:36).

It should be pointed out that in the long Chinese literary tradition, writers would take phrases, ideas and themes from compositions of others, to improve on them or to incorporate them into their own pieces. No citation of references was required unless the writers felt it necessary for special reasons. It was not considered as plagiarism since the readers – if they were worthy to be called scholars – were expected to recognize the sources. In fact, it was deemed an honour to the original authors when their phrases or ideas were copied or used in others’ writings. Li Qingzhao typically alludes to or uses ideas, descriptions and phrases of many authors in her writings.

One striking characteristic of Li Qingzhao’s writings, and especially noticeable in her ci, is her facility in turning a phrase. She would use ordinary words and phrases from everyday life and paint a vivid picture or strike a resonant chord with the reader. She would even use thoughts and phrases from other writers, ancient and contemporary, as we have seen in the above ci. But at her hand, words are not only amazingly refreshing and poignant but express original ideas. She thus takes her readers to an entirely unexpected view of the land or glimpse into the heart. It is no wonder that Zhao Yanwei of the Southern Song period heaps generous accolade on her in light of the popularity of her writings (see Chapter 1). This is his comment about Li Qingzhao in its entirety:

Ms. Li gave herself the hao of “Yi’an Jushi.” She was the wife of Zhao Mingcheng, courtesy name Defu, and the daughter of Li Wenshu. She was most talented and original. The ink of her writings had hardly dried before people would clamour to have it distributed. Her ci enjoy great popular acclaim, and have been published and widely circulated. Other writers have seldom met with such reception (quoted in Chu, Sun and Rong 1984:17).
. . . . .

* In her life time, Li Qingzhao was best known for her shi poems (詩), a more widely used form of poetry, and essays (wen文). But in the centuries since then she is most admired for her ci (詞) which is a specific form of poetry consisting of lines of irregular length. Ci poems were set to music and sung in her days.

** There was actually a placed named Brook-side Pavilion within the Jinan jurisdiction during the Song time.

A Blossom Like No Other is now available on Amazon.com.

To order this, go to www.amazon.com or www.amazon.ca.