Jiu Ge
Jiu Ge, or Nine Songs, (Chinese: 九歌; pinyin: Jiǔ Gē; literally "Nine Songs") is an ancient set of poems. Together, these poems constitute one of the 17 sections of the poetry anthology which was published under the title of the Chuci (also known as the Songs of Chu or as the Songs of the South). Despite the "Nine" in the title, the number of these poetic pieces actually consist of eleven of these separate songs, or elegies.[1] This set of verses seems to represent some shamanistic dramatic practices of the Yangzi River valley area involving the invocation of divine beings and seeking their blessings by means of a process of courtship.[2] The poetry consists of lyrics written for performance as part of a religious drama, however the lack of stage directions or indications of who is supposed to be singing at any one time or whether some of the lines represent lines for a chorus makes an accurate reconstruction of how such a shamanic drama would actually have been performed quite uncertain; although, there are internal textual clues, for example indicating the use of spectacular costumes for the performers, and an extensive orchestra.[3]
Authorship and dating
In common with other Chuci works, the authorship of these 11 poems has been attributed to the poet Qu Yuan, who lived over two-thousand years ago. Sinologist David Hawkes finds evidence for this eclectic suite of eleven poems having been written by, "a poet (or poets) at the Chu court in Shou-chun (241-223) B.C.)."[4]
Text
The "Jiu Ge" songs include eleven, despite the "Nine" in the title, nine of the verses are addressed to deities, one to the spirits of fallen warriors who died fighting far from home, and the concluding verse.[5] The reason for the discrepancy between the 9 verses referred to in the title and the fact that there are actually 11 is uncertain, although an important question, which has had several possible explanations put forth.
List of contents
The following table shows the eleven individual poems of the Nine Songs. The English translations are following those of David Hawkes.[6]
| Standard order | English translation | Transcription (based on Pinyin) | Traditional Chinese | Simplified Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Great Unity, God of the Eastern Sky | "Dong Huang Tai Yi" | 東皇太一 | 东皇太一 |
| 2 | The Lord within the Clouds | "Dong Huang Tai Yi" | 雲中君 | 云中君 |
| 3 | The Goddess of the Xiang | "Xiang Jun" | 湘君 | 湘君 |
| 4 | The Lady of the Xiang | "Xiang Fu Ren" | 湘夫人 | 湘夫人 |
| 5 | The Greater Master of Fate | "Da Si Ming" | 大司命 | 大司命 |
| 6 | The Lesser Master of Fate | "Shao Si Ming" | 少司命 | 少司命 |
| 7 | The Lord of the East | "Dong Jun" | 東君 | 东君 |
| 8 | The River Earl | "He Bo" | 河伯 | 河伯 |
| 9 | The Mountain Spirit | "Shan Gui" | 山鬼 | 山鬼 |
| 10 | Hymn to the Fallen | "Guo Shang" | 國殤 | 国殇 |
| 11 | Honouring the Dead | "Li Hun" | 禮魂 | 礼魂 |
Illustrated versions
Illustrated versions of the Chuci exist. Below is a selection from the "Nine Songs":
An English adaptation[7]
The songs feature mythological content, expressing love between anthropomorphic gods or goddesses and the persona of the poet. The songs were influenced by a certain erotic aspect, perhaps the influence of contemporary love songs.
Note that after verse number 2 that the English verse order differs from the Chinese: verse 3 in the original is "湘君", but here it is presented as number 4 "Lord of Xiang-river (Mr. Xiang) (Xiang Jun)", and number 7 (東君) put in its place, and so on. Note that the original line order (and thus, the actual order of the verses) is better reflected by the actual line numbers shown, rather than the numbers assigned to the verses, which have been rearranged into a significantly different numeric sequence from the original.
'''1. King of the sky (Dong Huang Tai Yi)''' 1 Strike the Dark Strings 2 Strike Strike 3 the dark strings 4 And reed & zither answer 5 Spirit moves 6 in splendid gear 7 And is the body's splendid shaman 8 through which a god may sing 9 And indeed does sing 10 And strikes and strikes 11 that Darkest Bell 12 ah darkest bell--- 13 my body struck 14 with love '''2. Lord of Cloud (Mr. in the cloud) (Yun Zhong Jun)''' 15 Flower-spirit, shaman-child 16 in blaze of brightness dancing 17 Endless as the earth 18 She dances round it 19 As sun 20 As mantic moon 21 in dragon-chariot of sun 22 O endless flight! 23 Part of me climbs to heaven 24 through the Four Seas & seasons 25 Longing for you '''3. Lord of Sun (Mr. East) (Dong Jun)''' 70 Lord Sun 71 wheels in flight 72 trailing his spirit-garment 73 High over the Nine Hills 74 he handles Yin & Yang 75 male & female 76 shade & sunshine 77 soul & body 78 a Yin for every Yang 79 And gallops into Light 80 I pluck the lovely hemp flower 81 Age creeps on apace 82 Soon all will be over 83 Soon all done all one 84 And fate is fixed in the heart 85 And not to draw nearer 86 is to drift forever 87 further apart '''4. Lord of Xiang-river (Mr. Xiang) (Xiang Jun)''' 50 I build a bride-room 51 underwater 52 roof thatched with lotus 53 courtyard paved with murex 54 At dark dusk I cross 55 to the Western bank 56 Here it was 57 she cast down 58 her thin dress 59 upon the shore 60 Over the white nut grass 61 my eyes wander 62 see only water swirl 63 in the flood rains 64 Someone says my loved one sent for me 65 I gallop my horses 66 over the lotus leaves 67 toward where a dragon waits 68 toward where an elk browses 69 On the Mountain of Nine Doubts '''5. Mrs. Xiang (Xiang Fu Ren)''' 26 She-shaman princess 27 in a stone boat 28 in winged dragon-boat 29 awning of fig-vine 30 sweet flag paddles 31 magnolia rudder 32 Rides to that Island 33 to that Bright Island 34 abode of light 35 Swinging her mesmere lamp 36 her incense burner 37 on a gold chain 38 She drops her thumb-ring in the Sea 39 And turning 40 and turning 41 stretches her body burning 42 toward me 43 (though she told me told me 44 she was not 45 free) 46 And flying dragons sweep her far away 47 from me 48 I gallop my horse in the morning 49 through the lowlands by the river '''6. Master of Fate''' 102 A glow in the sky 103 and soon you'll arise 104 Night pales 105 Day shines forth 106 You ride on thunder wheels 107 cloud banners trailing 108 heave great sighs 109 look back yearning 110 for earth's beauty burning 111 look and linger 112 forget your way 113 I draw a long arrow 114 and shoot Heaven's Wolf 115 then draw me down the Dipper 116 And plunge alone into 117 the White Void '''7. Young Master of Fate (Shao Si Ming)''' 88 Hall full of lovely ones 89 Yet you had eyes for me alone 90 Riding a whirlwind A cloud for a banner 91 Suddenly you came 92 And as suddenly departed 93 And only had eyes for me 94 I bathed with you 95 in the Pool of Heaven 96 In a sunny fold of the hill 97 I dried your hair 98 Now it is I who shout & sing with despair 99 Under a chariot-awning 100 of peacock feathers & halcyon flags 101 You climb again to the Nine Heavens '''8. Spirit of mountains (Shan Gui)''' 135 Mountain Spirit left me alone 136 dark in a bamboo grove 137 Air dark with rain 138 Monkeys twitter again 139 cry all night again 140 And cry and cry 141 all night again 142 Waiting for you 143 I wander and linger 144 turn and turn 145 and turn again--- 146 And won't turn back 147 and won't turn back--- '''9. Count of Rivers (He Bo)''' 148 Without my beloved 118 With you wandered 119 down rivers and coasts 120 River God 121 in fish-scale boat 122 drawn by dragons 123 with griffin oarsmen 124 With you I wander 125 on the river islands 126 go with you as far 127 as the Southern Shore 128 Dark dusk falling 129 And I too sad 130 to think of returning 131 Eyes only for 132 that farthest shore 133 I lie awake 134 yearning '''10. Spirits of warriors ''' '''11. End of ritual'''
Poems 6 and 7 refer to comets, which the ancient Chinese kept meticulous records of.[8]
The God of the Clouds
Back in ancient China, people worshiped the God of Clouds hoping that there would be rain and nice weather for crops. This poem can be divided into two parts: one part is sung by the person who does the offering and the other part is sung by the person who acts as the God of Clouds in the form of antiphonal singing in order to show their admiration towards God of Clouds. The God of Clouds is sometimes seen as male and sometimes seen as female, but in Chinese literature, the God of Clouds is usually portrayed as female.
This poem expresses the characteristics of the God of Clouds, the deep desire that human have towards God, and how God responds to people’s prayer through the antiphonal singing of human and God. This is such a deep emotion that it cannot even be fully conveyed through this poem.
See also
- List of Chuci contents
- Chu ci
- List of Chuci contents
- Liu An
- Liu Xiang (scholar)
- Qu Yuan
- Song Yu
- Wang Yi (librarian)
- Xiang River goddesses
Notes
References
- Davis, A. R. (Albert Richard), Editor and Introduction,(1970), The Penguin Book of Chinese Verse. (Baltimore: Penguin Books).
- Hawkes, David, translator and introduction (2011 [1985]). Qu Yuan et al., The Songs of the South: An Ancient Chinese Anthology of Poems by Qu Yuan and Other Poets. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-044375-2
- Murck, Alfreda (2000). Poetry and Painting in Song China: The Subtle Art of Dissent. Cambridge (Massachusetts) and London: Harvard University Asia Center for the Harvard-Yenching Institute. ISBN 0-674-00782-4.
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