Lunar Companion

After refining the 池塘碧綠靜無風, I had the following line came into my mind but could not continue further, 橋上明月照江銀 and had to leave it as it was.  A few days later, as I practised my calligraphy by writing the first line over and over again that I finally had a lead...

1 橋頭蟾宮照波銀 Silvery are the rippling waves at the bridge head where the Toad Palace shines,
2 靜伴寒影渡故人 Quietly accompanying and helping a lonely shadow of an old friend cross.
3 莫道悲哀喜樂時 Speak not of the times of sorrow or joy,
4 千古依舊獻殷勤 As time immemorial, unfailing to offer solicitous support.

1 Referring to the moon as it is also the residence of the three legged toad. It is believed that this toad has a fondness of gold and kept the gold in its stomach. It can be coaxed out through making the toad spit out the contents. Perhaps, it is the reason Naruto’s wallet is in the shape of a frog/toad. In Japanese, the word for frog, 蛙, kaeru has the same pronunciation as “to return” 帰る or 返る.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liu_Haichan

2 寒 means cold. The first line implies that there is a wind blowing because of the waves. Figuratively, the meaning can be extended to mean “poor” as in 寒窗 where the owner is too poor to buy a candle for his night reading and has to rely on a bare window for the moonlight to shine through. When one is poor, there are lesser friends around!

渡 means “to cross” and extended to mean “salvation” as in the Buddhist phrase 普渡眾生, universal salvation for all sentient beings. The mortal world is seen as a 苦海, “sea of bitterness” and needed to be crossed before reaching nirvana.

Wednesday, April 19, 2023