Lovesickness without words-- A textual Research on Ditang, Chang Di and Tang Di

I met Ditang when I took part in the phenological observation of the Green Association of Peking University for the third time. "that's what Ditang looks like! Is it the one who uses it to describe brothers in the Book of songs? " Later found that the memory is wrong! Chang Di is mentioned in the Book of songs, while Chang Di and Datang are two completely different plants. In addition, there are "Tang Di" and "Tang Di", the four sounds are similar and are often confused.

The blooming blossoms of Ditang

1 Datang: no words, but lovesickness

Kerria japonica is officially called "Ditang Flower" in Chinese. It is a common ornamental plant in the garden, which belongs to Rosaceae, Diitang genus and deciduous shrub. Ditang flowers can be divided into single and double flowers, and the blossoms are blooming. Fan Chengda (1126-1193), a poet of the Southern Song Dynasty, described Diantang with "green hazel knot belt" ("Shenjiadian Road near Ditang Flower"). On the other hand, the noble scholars of the royal families of the Northern Song Dynasty were extremely sad when they saw the blooming Ditang after the subjugation: "the lonely minister looked very much like the imperial robe Huang." ("Datang")

Datang is also known as "Mountain blowing" in Japan. Bajiao Matsuo (1644-1694), a famous haiku poet in the Edo period, wrote a poem with Ditang:

The mountain blew and withered, quietly silent, flying, the sound of Taki.

Note: Taki (l ó ng, rapids)

The poem was also translated as "turbulent and restless, but the falling flowers of Ditang are rustling".

The water in the river is swift and powerful, and the river flows endlessly; the blossoms on the bank are falling, dancing with the wind, quietly. Imagine this kind of artistic conception, the two states of nature appear in the same time and space, and the "movement" of running water can better reflect the withering silent beauty of Ditang, which is quite Zen.

Wild Tripterygium in the mountains

In the traditional Japanese color, there is "mountain blowing color", which refers to the color of Ditang flowers. [1] it is said that if the rattan yellow in traditional Chinese painting is mixed with a little ochre and a little bit of ochre, the flowers of Ditang can appear on the paper.

Double Diitang flower

Single blossom

Mountain blowing color

"Mountain blowing Color" can be found in Japanese classical literature such as the Tale of Genji and Pillow Caozi. Pillow Caozi is a collection of essays written by Qing Shao Na Yan, a female writer in the Heian period of Japan, which was written in 1001. Qing Shao Na Yan ("Qing" is taken from the family name "Qingyuan", "Shao Na Yan" is an official in the palace) has been a female official in the court for seven years, serving as the queen of the 66th emperor in the Heian era. Although they are masters and servants, they get along well with each other and have deep feelings. After the death of Zhonggong, the author left the palace and no longer served others. Living alone in his later years, recalling the previous court life, bit by bit, Nianzi Zizi, this wrote "pillow grass son". In the section of "Ditang petals" in the book [2], it tells a story of expressing love with flowers:

I haven't heard from Zhonggong for a long time, but after more than a month, this has never been seen before. I was afraid that Nakata was also doubting me. When I was feeling uneasy, the maid in the palace came with a letter.

……

When I opened it, I saw that nothing was written on the paper, but the petals of Ditang flower were only wrapped in it. Write on the paper: "do not say, but Acacia."

"do not speak, but Acacia", saying "ancient and modern six posts" [3], is an ancient song, the whole lyrics:

The heart is rolling under the ground.

No words, but lovesickness

It's better than words.

After reading the letter, Qing Shao Na Yan was so moved that tears came down. Naturally, he replied half a sentence before. A letter, a petal, a love poem, such a tacit understanding, not lovers, better than lovers. So, can Ditang flowers be used to express lovesickness in Japanese culture? Zhou Zuoren's translation notes this passage as follows: the flower color of Ditang is yellow, like gardenia, and the Japanese name gardenia is "mouthless", saying that the fruit is ripe and does not crack, which is homonym with the word "dumb". Here we use Ditang flower piece pun not to speak, corresponding to the song. [4]

"Gardenia" in the interpretation is also a traditional Japanese color, dyed with the fruit of Gardenia jasminoides, and the color is similar to that of Ditang. Connecting Ditang with Gardenia jasminoides, and then corresponding to "don't say", is still a bit of a circle. And Qing Shao can read the meaning of the petals of Diitang in the letter in a moment, and he is worthy of being a bosom friend of the Central Palace. It is admirable that there can be such feelings between masters and servants.

Gardenia and gardenia color

2 Chang Di, Tang Di: all people today are like brothers

It is not new in modern times for Datang to mix with Tang Di. Li Shangyin sent a message to Luo Yexing: "Tang Di has yellow hair and forgets to worry about the blue leaves." The yellow flower here should be the "Datang" mentioned above, not "Tangdi".

It is generally believed that "Tangdi" is another way to write "Chang Di". "Chang Di" was first seen in "Poetry Xiaoya Chang Di". This poem celebrates the Brotherhood between brothers. As we all know, "the order of the spine is in the original, the brother is in distress", and "the brother lies in the wall and governs his affairs" is derived from this poem:

The flower of Chang Di, Hubei Province [Wenchi].

All people today are like brothers.

In the poem, "E Bu" refers to the calyx and the pedicel [5], which are closely dependent on each other, so later generations often use "Dihua" and "Di calyx" to compare brothers, such as the frontier fortress poem sent to my brother by the famous general Gao Pian in the late Tang Dynasty: "Di calyx divides into messengers, and how many local tears are wet for clothes. The sound is broken before the heart is broken, and the birds do not fly. "

Guo Moruo has a play "the Flowers of Tangdi", adapted from the story of Nie Zheng, who was entrusted by Yan Zhongzi to assassinate Han Xiangxia in the biographies of the Assassins. In Historical Records, after completing the assassination task, Nie Zheng "slaughtered his eyes from the skin and slaughtered his intestines" in order not to let his sister recognize her, so as to avoid tiredness. South Koreans are exposed to dead bodies in the city, offering a heavy reward to those who can identify the assassin. When Nie Zheng's sister Nie Jung learned of this, she guessed that the assassin was her brother Nie Zheng. when she went to identify the body, she revealed her identity and said something that shocked South Koreans: "how could my concubine fear the punishment of my body and finally destroy the name of my virtuous brother?" Also died beside Nie Zheng. At that time, people called Nie Zheng's sister a martyr. Guo Moruo created this play during the Anti-Japanese War, and he raised the assassination in the original story from "the scholar dies for the bosom friend" to the height of the "public hatred" of the Xuejia country and sacrificed his life to serve the country. At the beginning of the play, it focuses on the heroic image of the two brothers and sisters who died for their country until their death.

I don't want to live for a long time, but I want to die.

I would like to save my life and save my life.

Life has been ruined for a long time, but there is no end to the ten rooms.

……

I think at the moment, all the sisters and brothers in the world are in dire straits. If we can save them, we will sacrifice ourselves, which is the supreme happiness of life.

I hope your bright red blood will burst into a flower of freedom and bloom all over China! (act 1, scene 2)

The reason why the play is named "the Flower of Tangdi" is probably based on the Brotherhood of sister and brother. In explaining Xiaoya Changdi, Yu Guanying said: "the poet compares Chang Di's flowers to his brothers, perhaps because they depend on each other every two or three, so they associate."

Having said so much, what kind of plant is "Changdi", that is, "Tangdi"? During the three Kingdoms period, Lu Ji, a scholar from the State of Wu, described Mao's poems on plants, trees, birds, animals, insects and fish as follows:

Chang Di, Xu Shen said, "Bai Dishu is also." As small as plum, and as white as cherry. It is planted in the official garden today. There is also Chidi tree, also like Bai Di, whose leaves are like thorn elm leaves and slightly round, and the seeds are red, such as Yu Li and small, ripening in May. There are many in Kansai, Tianshui and Longxi.

Scholars in the Western Jin Dynasty believe that Guo Pu's "Erya" Changdi is like a cherry, edible. " It is not far from Lu Ji's description.

Chang Di? Bai Di? Chi Di? What on earth is it? Since ancient times, there are still many relevant notes and textual research, but they have not led us to a clear conclusion. But what is certain is that "Chang Di" and "Tang Di" are trees similar to cherries.

Fruits like cherries? The picture shows Yu Li.

3 Tang Di: what's wrong with that? Tang Di Zhihua

In the Book of songs, in addition to Chang Di, there is also Tang Di. The prosperity of Tang Di flowers is compared to the extravagance of chariot and horse costumes when aristocratic women get married.

What's wrong with n ó ng? China of Tang Di.

Yawning ng? The car of Wang Ji.

What kind of plant is Tang Di? The controversy is even greater.

Guo Pu's "Erya Notes" believes that Tang Di is like a poplar, Jiangdong Hufufu. " The Tang Dynasty scholar Kong Yingda's Justice of Mao's Poems and Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica also follow this view and think that Tang Di belongs to the category of poplars. But Lu Ji believes that "Tang Di" is "ao Li". Scholars in Qing Dynasty basically agreed with Lu Ji. Ma Ruichen (1777Mui 1853) and Wang Xianqian (1842-1917), a scholar in the Book of songs, have made textual research on this, and their views are basically the same. Ma Ruichen thinks that Tang Di and Chang Di are plants like Yu Li. After a long textual research, Wang Xianqian came to the conclusion: "Gai Tang Dizi is named Yu Li, which is as big as Li, and Chang Dizi is as small as Yu Li." In addition, botanist Wu Qicheng (1789-1847) directly equated Tang Di with Yu Li:

Yu Li, the inferior product of Benjing. Tang Di. It is as red as a cherry. Wu Zhong is called Jue Mei, and Gushi is called Yang Li. There are two kinds of single valve and thousand leaf. The single petal is more solid, born in the field; the thousand-leaf flower is thick, and the center is connected with the pedicel, commonly known as Chuanxinmei. The flower still hangs between the branches, so Cheng Zi thinks that the calyx is very firm. "Tu Jing" combined with Chang Di as one, there is no basis for it.

Single and double Yu plum

According to Wu Qicheng, there are also two kinds of plum flowers, one is single, and the other is Chiba. "Qianye" may be a double variety of Yu plum. "the flower falls on the heart still hangs between the branches" and "the calyx is very firm". It is more like the "Changdi Hua" of the brother in the Book of songs. However, this also shows that, in Wu's view, Tang Di and Chang Di are not the same plant, but they are very similar.

Today's Tang Di in Flora of China

In the modern Flora of China, the name of Tang Di belongs to a small tree with white flowers. The fruit is about 1 cm in diameter, blue-black, and the fruit period is from September to October, which is absolutely similar to today's Yu Li and all kinds of cherries, but is consistent with the "Tang Di" painted in the illustration of the famous objects of the Book of songs. "the flower spike is drooping, the petals are slender, white and fragrant, cultivated for viewing."

Tang Di in the Diagram of the names of the Book of songs

Puhuangyu, May 17, 2018

[1] many traditional Japanese colors are named after plants, such as "red plum", "peach", "day lily", "pansy", "gardenia" and so on. See http://nipponcolors.com/.

[2] (Japan) Qing Shao Na Yan, translated by Zhou Zuoren: pillow Caozi, China Foreign Translation and Publishing Company, 2001 Edition, p. 231.

[3] (Japan) Qing Shao Na Yan, translated by Zhou Zuoren: pillow Caozi, China Foreign Translation and Publishing Company, 2001 Edition, p. 247, Note 105.

[4] (Japan) Qing Shao Na Yan, translated by Zhou Zuoren: pillow Caozi, China Foreign Translation and Publishing Company, 2001 Edition, p. 247, Note 104.

[5] the word "Bu" in oracle bone inscriptions is like the shape of flower pedicel, and its original meaning is flower pedicel. So drinking utensils made of wood shaped like flower stalks are called cups. In A Dream of Red Mansions, the word "Yi" in "A Pure Land to cover the romance" should be interpreted as "holding", that is, the hand is made into a flower pedicel. Above, see Zou Xiaoli's interpretation of the form and meaning of basic Chinese characters (revised), Zhonghua Book Company, August 2007, pp. 190-191.

[6] it was published on October 10, 1920 in Shanghai "current Affairs News Xue Deng Supplement".

[7] (Jin) Guo Pu Annotation, (Song) Xing Jieshu: notes on Erya, Peking University Press, 1999, p. 309.

Yu Guanying: notes on selected Poems, people's Literature Publishing House, second Edition, 1979, p. 172.

[9] (Jin) Guo Pu Annotation, (Song) Xing Jieshu: notes on Erya, Peking University Press, 1999, p. 309.

[10] (Tang) Kong Yingda. Justice of Mao's Poems. Peking University Press, 1999, p. 570.

[11] (Qing) Ma Ruichen: general interpretation of Mao's Poems and Notes, Zhonghua Book Company, 1989, p. 501.

[12] (Qing) Wang Xianqian, Collection of the three Poems, Zhonghua Book Company, 1987, p. 117.

[13] (Qing) Wu Qiyi, Zhang Xianrui, et al. Proofreading and interpretation of Plant name Map, traditional Chinese Medicine Ancient Books Publishing House, 2008, p. 568.

[14] editorial Committee of Chinese Flora, Chinese Academy of Sciences: Chinese Flora, Science Press, Chinese Flora, Volume 36, 2004, p. 403.

About the author: Jianghan Tang, enterprise employee / gallery public education volunteer / freelance writer, currently lives in Beijing.

Editor of picture and text: Jiang

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