The First Time

This came to me during my usual doodling with the brush.  As usual, the first line is the inspiring line.  

This is about the story between the emperor and a courtesan.  The beauty and artistic accomplishments of Li Shishi (李師師) reached the ears of the Emperor Sung Hui Tsung.  He disguised himself as a businessman to see for himself as he could not believe the rumours. After their first meeting, the emperor was infatuated with her talents and it was said that a tunnel was built from the palace to the brothel to avoid further scandalous tongue wagging by the populace.

1 萬花樓閣千客烟 The Pavilion of Ten Thousand Flowers filled with the air of a thousand guests,
2 沉香亭苑無人前 And yet none dare entered the garden to approach the Gazebo of Deep Fragrance.
3 鶯語歌曲彩鳳勝 The mellifluent songs of orioles superior than those the colored phoenix,
4 醉杯月下金龍現 Cups a teeter in tipsiness and under the moon, revealed the golden dragon.

1 Usually the name of a brothel. The numbers here are just an exaggeration to show that there are more women than the frolicking patrons.

2 Another name for a pavilion in the pleasure gardens.

3 The language of orioles is used to describe the lovely voices of the maidens. The phoenix is the queen of birds here we are contrasting the status of the orioles and the phoenix and is synonymous with the Empress.

4 The dragon symbolizes the emperor.

Monday, July 19, 2021