Appendix 7 “Ten Views of Mount Chicken Foot: Seventeen Poems”
by Xu Xiake
During his two visits to Mount Chicken Foot in Yunnan, Xu Xiake wrote several poems extolling the mountain’s scenic wonders. Given the mountain’s fame as a Buddhist retreat and Buddhist-related legends, it is not surprising that Buddhist topics constitute a central theme of these poems. Notable among them is the mountain’s association with Mahākāśyapa, a famous disciple of Gautama Buddha who was thought to have ended his days at Mount Chicken Foot. Xu Xiake’s poems also contain several Daoist themes, such as the famed goddess Queen Mother of the West and the transcendent Guangchengzi.
“FOUR VIEWS FROM THE ULTIMATE SUMMIT: EASTERN SUN, THE WESTERN SEA, THE SOUTHERN CLOUD, AND THE NORTHERN SNOW” (JUEDING SIGUAN: DONGRI, XIHAI, NANYUN, BEIXUE)
A lotus of a thousand rods cuts through Heaven’s core,
Sculpting the sky, shaping the earth, every view is suspended high.
Her heights threaten the eastern gloom as the sun appears at night,
The sky enjoins her northern reaches where a thousand years of snow are piled.
Sunshine above Lake Erhai shakes the silvery moon,
Auspiciously tinted southern clouds spread colored cushions.
Her extraordinary sights completely capture splendors, both old and new,
In her, the Celestial Creator has clearly been one-sided.
“THE SUN VIEW”
The heavenly vault far above and the oceans below unite,
The Sun-Chariot casts ruby rays halfway through the night.
I can’t believe they’re still dreaming down there in the dells,
I rather think they’ve all forgotten to ring the morning bells.
“THE SNOW VIEW”1
With the North Star close at hand, the Jade Dragon sleeps.2
Shattered on the vacuous void is snow of ten thousand years.
The ornate signpost does not disturb the Liaohai Crane,3
Mount Kongtong can but face Mount Miaogu’s transcendent maid.4
“THE SEA VIEW”5
Ten thousand river valleys return to a single pool,6
While the Milky Way from far away caps the autumn sky.
Why need we make inquiries in the changing world below?
The raft we ride will reach the stars before much time goes by.7
“THE CLOUD VIEW”8
White clouds have always arisen among the mountain ranges,
Blessed light from her southern foothills in rainbow colors swirl.
All at once, cotton clouds become another world,
Yet my single body still remains on top of Buddha’s peak.
“HUASHOU DOUBLE GATE”9
A precipitous cliff, tall and steady, is fringed with ivory cloud,
Walls and screens of iridescent green, how the path winds ‘round.
Twin towers conceal the spring, earth and sky are old;
Double doors shut fast by day, sun and stars are cold.
The Golden Robe, throughout the ages, as always still remains,10
Brocade staircase to the sky, by whom was it thus laid?
Why must we ask Mahākāśyapa, holding a flower all the while?
When precipitous crags standing straight break into a smile.11
“THE CROWN PRINCE’S ARCANE PASS”12
Lotus, lotus, straight and tall, her creeping shadows earthward fall.
All at once, aloft the heights, I penetrate mysteries recondite.13
Secretly to that island dwelling-place went Guangchengzi without a trace.14
The world within the Vacuous Garden-plot is ever found inside a pot.15
When shadows enter and circulate, we may the twin apertures differentiate.
When breathing within its cavernous zone, I find myself all alone.16
I’ll fully shed from this time hence the grime of human existence.
Now the wind has strengthened on both sides, my bones will soon revitalize.17
“THE ARHAT’S SHEER WALL”18
Arrayed brocade fringed in sunset glow, such a lovely scene,
During quiet meditation, don’t go gazing at the cloudy haze.
When monks face the sheer cliff, clouds are ever calm;19
Having spread their pleated peaks, bedrock accompanies the stars.20
Branches lend verdant groves so that each may find repose,21
Water provides for cooking, offerings made in threes.22
Hidden, ephemeral, what an illusion is this human form;
Layers of alpine mist reveal the Dharma Realm.23
“NUMINOUS SPRING IN THE LION GROVE” (TWO POEMS)24
THE FIRST
Who may touch the glistening pearls of a thousand charitable acts?
Aloft the numinous spring a numinous shrine is delved.
Pine shadows sway in its purity amid a thousand feet of snow,
Plum blossoms bathe in its chill as moonlight fills the pond.25
Within her emerald eye, cinnabar infuses the nectar;26
Upon white lotus rock, dew becomes sweet.27
The whole forest lacks offerings from neither man nor Heaven,
Pearls rain as heavenly flowers to moisten the Buddha realm.28
THE SECOND
Spring water flows within serenity and stone suddenly sunders;29
With a luminous moon aloft the peak, the Dipper is simply radiant.
When the aperture and terrestrial bones enjoin, the very marrow is refreshed,30
When the fountain overhead cascades, it’s like drops of liquid jade.
They only say that cream may from Heaven fall,31
Yet here our very hands may cup the sweet, auspicious dew.32
Serving maids and imperial palaces are but ordinary things,
Who’s to know that the numinous spring such wonders could outdo?
“AUSPICIOUS SHADOWS AT RELEASING LIGHT MONASTERY”33
That which surrounds this spiritual place, a blessed halo forms,
Thus does opalescent vapor the Buddha realm renew.34
As I slough my dusty self, emptiness takes on form;35
Having assumed the Buddha’s image, illusion is now all true.36
A mirage is not the ocean, whose breath has been exhaled?37
To the jade mirror within the sky, I give up my physical form.38
Now I realize that each tree and every blade of grass throughout the mountainside
Has light to cleanse the shadows of all with vitality born.39
“THE GLORIES OF THE BUDDHA’S TOP-KNOT” (TWO POEMS)40
THE FIRST
Back then the Great Asoka was willing to try his strength,41
Deep within countless mountains divine works were manifest.
All the devas rallied ‘round, pagodas were all raised,42
A single pillar gave sole support, protecting the very core.43
Its splendor surpassed the turtle isles which immortals locked and bolted,44
Its luminescence shook Vulture Ridge, lotus-like and capped in snow.45
It’s as though the Queen Mother herself has visited the peak,46
Guangchengzi and his long swords here once again to meet.47
THE SECOND
Who uses shadow puppets divine power to manifest?
The immortal’s palm held midair conjures layered forms.48
Cathay’s famous mountains are with many splendors blessed,
Southeast of the summit, Mount Writing Brush twin peaks erects.49
Four verdant cliffs display their living faces;
Three Realms of the Golden Buddha reveal the dharma nature.50
No matter what showy verses glibly praise Compassionate Grace,51
This day southern Yunnan will Mount Song outpace.52
“A WATERFALL RIDES THE VOID”53
Three spurs all facing east, who is there to guard them?54
A bolt of silk centrally suspended before the countless glens.
The tripod’s legs forever view the cockerel to the rear;55
Above the waves, I suddenly see speeding equestrians.56
Curvy pearls cascade down from Heaven’s very heights,
Snow and ice dashed on double cliffs transform into a roar.
Could I but straddle the jade dragon and ride against the flow,
Join countless cranes upon the peak and as one together soar.
“ANCIENT PINE AT TRANSMITTING THE ROBE MONASTERY”57
Jasper tree of a thousand rods and cloud-shadows layered;
Ancient branches brave the breeze, he alone is verdant.58
What was once the First Emperor’s sacrificial spoils,59
Is now a guardian-dragon of Buddha’s holy servants.60
His scaly bark halfway to Heaven is like a gibbon’s dancing arms,
Flags and banners of a thousand cohorts are with phoenix feathers sewn.61
Dining on ice, supping on snow, for a thousand years refined,
Still for the Flower-Holder a single smile is shown.62
“A PARALLEL WORLD INSIDE AN ANCIENT CAVE” (TWO POEMS)63
THE FIRST
Simurghs and cranes on the empty mountain, the road is lost in haze,
While the very heights of pleated peaks climb into the clouds.
What person from the outside world may come to dally here?
Betwixt and between the flower-heads lies a solitary cave concealed.
Jasper herbs and jade branches bring blossoms that bloom and fall,
Silvery dew and transcendent milk drip tears so very long.64
A divine dragon of a hundred feet forever guards the pond,
He won’t allow the peach blossoms to be banished to Yelang.65
THE SECOND
Cave-worlds were once never found within the mortal realm.
Three tributaries on the eastern side, we yet again ascended.
Directly arriving at a place where numberless peaks recede,
Suddenly then, amid the gloom, were twin towers suspended.
Peach blossoms flourish and fall yet the portal is always there,
Ancient cranes dip and dive, the road is never closed.
Thirty thousand li due east lie the transcendent isles,66
Between which a single cloud sometimes comes and goes.
—Translated by Alister D. Inglis
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Source: “Jishan shijing: shiqi shou” (YJJZ, 2: 1383–86; YJ, 2:1151–55).
1 North is the snow view, referring to the snow on the mountains north of Lijiang Prefecture.
2 Jade Dragon, or Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, is north of Mount Chicken Foot.
3 The Liaohai Crane (Liaohai He) refers to a fourth-century story about the transcendent Ding Lingwei, who returned to his birthplace in the guise of a crane. As Ding approached the city gate, he was spotted near a signpost. In China, cranes are associated with transcendents and are a symbol of longevity. Xu Xiake compares the color of Jade Dragon’s snow-capped peaks with a crane’s snow-white feathers, while the ornate signpost symbolizes a sleeping dragon.
4 Mount Kongtong, in Gansu province, has inspired many legends about the cult of immortality. Here Xu Xiake contrasts the juxtaposition of Mount Kongtong and Miaogu Mountain [Miaogu Shan] with that of Chicken Foot and Jade Dragon, which he considered geomantically related. The transcendent of Miaogu Mountain first appears in the Zhuangzi, an early Daoist philosophical work. Although the term “transcendent” is gender-neutral, the description there strongly suggests a female. If so, Xu Xiake seems to imply that Jade Dragon Snow Mountain is even more beautiful than a goddess.
5 The west is called the Sea View since that is the location of Mount Diancang and Lake Erhai.
6 This line compares Lake Erhai with a puddle or a small pool, despite its vastness, given its diminutive appearance from the lofty mountain-top.
7 This line refers to an account that envisioned the Milky Way as connected to the ocean, and that a raft traveled annually between the two.
8 In this and another poem, Xu Xiake refers to an optical illusion known as a glory (foguang). This is caused by the refraction of sunlight (or, more rarely, moonlight) in water droplets that comprise clouds or mist. The result is a rainbow-colored circle, similar to a saint’s halo. The observer’s shadow may often be seen in the circle’s center when viewed from a great height. Hence Xu Xiake’s reference to his physical body remaining on the mountain implies that his shadow was projected onto the halo. As he gives no reference to having personally experienced this phenomenon in his diaries, it is uncertain whether this and another similar poem, translated below, are composed from imagination.
9 This is a distinctive cliff to the west side of Mount Chicken Foot’s main peak. A large, flat, arched rock-formation with a fissure running down its center resembles double gates, hence the name. It is thought to be the place where Gautama Buddha’s disciple, Mahākāśyapa, entered a state of suspended animation (dhyāna), thereby preserving his body while waiting for the coming of the Maitreya Buddha. Given its sacred nature, many pilgrims still visit the site today.
10 The Golden Robe (Jinlan) refers to Gautama Buddha’s robe, which he gave to Mahākāśyapa as a gesture of respect.
11 According to Buddhist lore, Gautama Buddha showed a flower to his disciples when preaching under the Bodhi tree. Only Mahākāśyapa indicated his understanding with a smile. The Buddha then gave him his robe and begging bowl, symbolic of spiritual authority. Mahākāśyapa was thought to have brought these to Mount Chicken Foot to await the coming of the Maitreya.
12 Otherwise known as Arcane Pass Cavern [Xuanguan Dong], this was a narrow, precipitous cave leading down from Worshipping the Buddha Terrace, located on the northwestern side of the main summit. One needed to navigate a plank walkway built onto a sheer cliff to reach it.
13 “Mysteries recondite” is a free rendition of zhenzhong fu 枕中符, an alternate title for the Daoist philosophical work Talisman Inside a Pillow (Zhenzhong shu). Xu Xiake playfully suggests that the experience of entering Arcane Pass Cavern was akin to entering a pillow (traditional ceramic pillows in China were hollow), thus enabling him to understand the mysteries of this esoteric work. All this is difficult to translate succinctly in verse.
14 Guangchengzi was a Daoist transcendent thought to reside on Mount Kongtong, to whom Xu Xiake refers elsewhere. On Mount Kongtong, see note 21, page 478, and note 4 above.
15 The Vacuous Garden [Langyuan] refers to a legendary abode of transcendent beings. The expression “world inside a pot” signifies a story from Biographies of Gods and Transcendents (Shenxian zhuan) in which a transcendent was able to enter a kettle or teapot, not unlike a genie into a bottle. Evidently, the constrictive nature of Arcane Pass Cavern and the commonly-held associations between caves and the cult of transcendence inspired Xu Xiake to draw this analogy.
16 Tentative translation. The meaning of the phrase zuotong 座通 at the beginning of this line is unclear.
17 “Both sides” is a rendering of ye 腋, which usually refers to armpits. In this context, I understand ye to mean the wings, flanks, or sides of a large rock formation.
18 This is a huge, sheer, rocky wall southeast of the summit, near Lion Grove.
19 In his diary, Xu Xiake tells how monks would meditate facing the sheer wall.
20 The specific term Orion (Shen) I have rendered generally as “stars,” given that Xu Xiake is simply asserting—in his hyperbolic style—that the wall is high enough to accompany Orion.
21 As Xu Xiake mentions monks building meditation chambers near the sheer wall, I understand this line to mean that branches were used for this purpose.
22 “Cooking” (xiangji) refers to cooking in a Buddhist context. Certainly, the establishment of a monastery was contingent on a water source. In his travel diary, Xu Xiake mentions how local monks used a spring beside the cliff. It was customary for votive offerings to be made in threes.
23 Dharma Realm (Fatan) occurs elsewhere in Xu Xiake’s poetry. According to Buddhist doctrine, it refers to the ultimate reality of the universe.
24 Although there was originally no water source in the vicinity of the Lion Grove, the monk White Cloud serendipitously—or Xu Xiake might say, providentially—struck a spring from the bare rock on top of a spur. Xu Xiake regarded it as proof of Buddha rewarding those with great virtue, hence the reference to charitable acts in the first line.
25 In the diary entry for the first day of the lunar new year, 1639 (YJJZ, 2:1027; YJ, 2:835), Xu Xiake describes his visit to the spring. He mentions a pool at its bottom in which the monk White Cloud had placed cut plum blossoms. The reference to plum blossoms in the line almost certainly refers to those. In traditional Chinese poetry and painting, plum blossoms symbolized perseverance against diversity and, together with the pine and bamboo, constituted the “three friends of winter” (hanshi sanyou). Hence, the plum blossoms nicely complement the reference to the pine trees and snow in the previous line. As Xu Xiake first visited the spring during winter, he likely refers to actual snow.
26 According to alchemical Daoism, cinnabar was considered a health-giving ingredient. I have rendered yu 玉 (jade) in the original text as “emerald” for the benefit of the general reader.
27 Sweet dew was considered an auspicious portent in China from ancient times.
28 According to a passage from the Vimalakīrti Sutra, heavenly maidens cast flowers to test Buddhist devotees. While the flowers fell from the bodhisattva’s (enlightened beings) bodies, they stuck to those of the lesser followers (śrāvakas), thereby revealing their respective degree of cultivation. Heavenly flowers may also have contained a secondary level of meaning for Xu Xiake, given that a type of orchid known as Heavenly Maiden was found in the mountain’s environs. On the Dharma Realm, see note 23 above.
29 When White Cloud, one of Mount Chicken Foot’s Chan Masters, set about building a meditation chamber at the Lion Grove, the work caused a spring to miraculously flow. Hence the idea that the stone was sundered.
30 I understand the term gujie 骨節 (lit., “joints”) to signify a landform’s underlying structure according to traditional geomancy, as it would have been unlikely for Xu Xiake to have bathed here during winter when he first visited the site. He uses “bones” (gu) elsewhere in his diaries in a similar sense.
31 In Buddhist lore, cream (tihu) has special significance being a refined form of milk; hence it may symbolize spiritual cultivation.
32 On auspicious dew, also known as sweet dew, see note 27 above.
33 This poem celebrates the optical phenomenon known as a glory; see note 8 above.
34 Buddha Realm (Fajie) is a variant of Dharma Realm. See note 23 above.
35 Emptiness is a metaphor indicating the ontological ambiguity of everything in the universe according to the Buddhist doctrine of non-duality. That is, entities—including living beings—neither exist nor do they not exist as they do according to conventional, binary thinking. This whole line alludes to how the poet’s physical form is projected onto the halo as a shadow.
36 This develops the idea of the previous line. Given that all phenomena are neither this nor that according to the Buddhist doctrine of non-duality, truth is illusion and illusion truth.
37 “Mirage” (shenlou; “clam-monsters’ towers”) in the original text refers to mirages that appear above the ocean, hence the connection between mirage and ocean. Again, this problematizes the conventional dualistic idea of fixed, unambiguous phenomena.
38 The jade mirror-world metaphorically refers to the glory, whereas the poet’s forsaking his physical form again alludes to how his shadow was projected onto its halo.
39 This last couplet alludes to the non-dualistic idea that all living beings within the universe are ultimately one, mutually dependent, and without separate, differentiated natures.
40 Top-knot refers to the ushnisha ascribed to Buddha in some traditions: a fleshy cranial protuberance covered by hair. The following two poems extol a miraculous occurrence that was said to have occurred on the site of or inside the Victorious One Pagoda [Zunsheng Ta], next to Mount Writing Brush, southeast of the summit. It was built in 1638 in the Indian stupa-style. The term zunsheng is a contraction of Foding zunsheng fomu, signifying the Buddhist deity Usnīsavijayā (Victorious One with an Ushnisha), a buddha of longevity. In his gazetteer, Xu Xiake speaks of how the deity’s “golden palm (or palms) suddenly transformed into a thousand manifestations of the Pure Land of Vairocana.” YJJZ, 2:1353; YJ, 2:1141. Since his poems and gazetteer entry preclude detail, we must understand this as a kind of optical illusion revealing the Pure Land of Vairocana. In the Pure Land, within a sea of fragrant water, a thousand-petal lotus flower is believed to encompass an infinite variety of worlds. This harks back to the doctrine of non-duality, according to which any single phenomenon in the universe manifests all other phenomena.
41 The Great Asoka (r. 268–232 BCE) was the third ruler of the Mauryan empire. After a devastating war, he united many separate kingdoms covering most of modern India. Regretting the enormous loss of life, he became a staunch patron of the Buddhist church. In his diary, Xu Xiake professes belief that Asoka had conferred numinous light to the pagoda’s location; hence, his opening line.
42 Deva (lit., “shining one”) is a lower-level deity in both Hindu and Buddhist cosmology.
43 In his diary, Xu Xiake mentions how Mount Chicken Foot’s many temples and shrines were appropriately laid out according to geomantic principles, except for this pagoda’s location; it seems that no spire had been erected during his visit. Hence, the newly-built pagoda is thought to “protect” and complete the mountain’s overall geomantic layout.
44 Legendary islands (aofeng; “giant sea-turtle peaks”) are thought to have been carried on the backs of giant turtles.
45 Vulture Peak was where Gautama Buddha lived and preached for many years.
46 Queen Mother refers to the Daoist deity, Queen Mother of the West. Here, as elsewhere, Xu Xiake demonstrates his reverence for both traditions. In this context, perhaps he implies Buddhism’s capacity to encompass diverse faiths, given the doctrine of non-duality.
47 On the transcendent Guangchengzi, see note 14 above. Among his weaponry was a pair of male and female swords. It is unclear who meets the transcendent: the poet himself or the Queen Mother of the West. I have, therefore, preserved this inherent ambiguity.
48 Layered forms (chonggou) evidently points to the multiple images entailed in the miraculous manifestation of the Pure Land of Vairocana that is the poem’s subject.
49 According to the Kangxi era gazetteer on Mount Chicken Foot, this mountain was so named given the pagoda that was built at the location. Nevertheless, in the local dialect, “writing brush” (wenbi) may also signify a Buddhist pagoda. Therefore, the idea of Mount Writing Brush erecting twin peaks evidently refers to both the mountain and the pagoda; the double image is consistent with the idea of the Pure Land of Vairocana’s multiple realms.
50 Three Realms (Santian) refer to the three realms of samsāra (traidhātuka): the desire, form, and formless realms. “Golden Buddha” (Jinsu) refers to Tathāgata, one of Buddha’s ten epithets. “Buddha nature” equates to what I have elsewhere translated as the Buddha Realm.
51 Compassionate Grace [Ci’en Si] was a famous monastery in Chang’an (modern Xi’an). On its grounds was a stupa known as the Great Wild Goose Pagoda [Dayan Ta], in which were kept sutras and Buddhist images brought from India by the famous pilgrim-monk Xuanzang. Xu Xiake favorably contrasts this illustrious center of Buddhism with Mount Chicken Foot’s comparatively humble pagoda.
52 Located in modern Henan, Mount Song is one of China’s five most celebrated mountains. Xu Xiake’s diary of his journey to Mount Song is translated in part 1, this volume. Besides picturesque scenery, it is an important center for both Daoism and Buddhism. In his original poem, Xu Xiake refers to Mount Song as dengfeng. This is the name of the county in central Henan where Mount Song is located. The name alludes to the ancient feng and shan sacrificial rites conducted by the First Emperor of the State of Qin to establish political legitimacy after his unification of the warring states in 221 BCE. Given that Xu Xiake had previously climbed Mount Song, this line implies the poet’s visit to Mount Chicken Foot exceeded his prior travel to Mount Song.
53 This poem celebrates the Jade Dragon Waterfalls [Yulong Pubu], located west-south-west of the summit.
54 Three spurs refer to the mountain’s three main branches. The term “guard” (yao) is a geomantic term often evoked in Xu Xiake’s diaries. Here, it indicates a vital land feature that protects from the elements.
55 The term “tripod” harks back to Mount Chicken Foot’s “three feet” or “three claws.” The “cockerel” refers to the main summit of Chicken Mesa Pass, which Xu Xiake describes as Mount Chicken Foot’s “shin-bone.”
56 By “speeding equestrians” (ma zhengxian 馬爭先), it is unclear whether Xu Xiake refers to Horse Saddle Ridge, which he referred to as “the gateway to Mount Chicken Foot,” or else imagined horse-shapes suggested by the rushing water. Like many other ambiguous phrases in his poetry, either meaning is possible.
57 This poem celebrates an ancient pine tree outside Transmitting the Robe Monastery.
58 Pine trees often symbolized superior men in traditional poetry and painting, given their evergreen nature, even during snowfalls, hence the idea of perseverance in the face of adversity. They also symbolized longevity.
59 The First Emperor refers to the First Emperor of Qin, who conquered the multifarious warring states to form a unified empire in 221 BCE. To consolidate political authority, he carried out elaborate sacrifices, known as the feng and shan, to heaven and earth, respectively, on Mount Tai in Shandong. By rhetorically asserting that the pine tree was a relic from the Emperor’s sacrifice, Xu Xiake establishes its age and importance.
60 In his diary, Xu Xiake describes the tree as resembling a dragon.
61 This line develops the idea expressed in the previous one about the texture of the bark and the appearance of massed pine needles.
62 On the Flower-Holder, see note 11 above.
63 These two poems extol the wonders of Lotus Treasury Cavern [Huazang Dong], inside of which were stalagmites, stalactites, and other spectacular rock formations. Informed by Daoism, Chinese throughout the imperial period generally believed that certain caves harbored alternate, parallel worlds inhabited by transcendent beings.
64 A figurative description of stalagmites and stalactites.
65 This alludes to Li Bai’s poem, “Recalling Peach Blossoms by Autumn Bank While Traveling Long Ago during Banishment in Yelang” (Yi Qiupu taohua jiu youshi cuan Yelang), thought to be composed in 759 during his banishment to Yelang (in modern Guizhou). QTS, 182.1860. In the context of caves with connotations of parallel worlds, peach blossoms also recall Tao Qian’s famous story about the Peach Blossom Spring, for which see part 1, note 6, pages 78–79.
66 On these transcendent isles, see part 1, note 6, page 60.