Asia Trip 2023 Inspirations VI - Sanzen-In 三千院, Temple Of Trichiliocosm

This poem was inspired when I visited the Sanzen-in garden in Kyoto…

1 莫見石池波動難 ‘tis difficult to see stone waves moving without the rock garden pond,
2 秋時紅楓葉落殘 And autumn’s withering red maple leaves are falling.
3 水滴流聲三千院 The sound of flowing and dripping water of the Temple of Trichiliocosm,
4 清靜隔世避塵凡 Is a serenity that separates the escaped realm of mortals.

1 There is no rock garden at the Sanzen-in. What I was remembering was the one from Ryoanji, 龍安寺 from a previous trip. Another interpretation is that it is not difficult to see the ripples moving in the rock garden because of the double negatives used in the line.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ry%C5%8Dan-ji

2 This line comes from these photos that I took,

• 

3 This line comes from these photos,

三千院 or in Japanese Sanzen-In. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanzen-in 

Textually, the name means three thousand courtyard/institution in Chinese. “Three thousand” is a short for trichiliocosm, a Buddhist term to mean “a concept in cosmology” of a third-order universe containing one thousand second-order clusters which in turn consists of one thousand first-order clusters which in turn is made from a thousand worlds.

4 清靜 must be translated as “serene” and not quietude as this would contradict the previous line in a place of sounds. 凡塵 is the normal way of saying “mortal realm” but is reversed in order to satisfy the rhyming rules.

Thursday, November 23, 2023

Asia Trip Inspirations V - Mt Fuji In Winter

 

Mt Fuji as we passed it on the Shinkansen on our way to Kyoto and was inspired to create a poem to kill time…

1 白頭翠裙富士山 White headed Mt Fuji still wears a skirt of green,
2 頂上冬雪花已殘 And flowers of winter’s snow had  withered already.
3 京都新幹時辰悶 The hours in the Shinkansen to Kyoto was such a bore,
4 陽光透射醉人間 And yet sunshine shafting through, inebriating the mortal world.

3 The trip took two and a half hours.

Wednesday, November 22, 2023

Asian Trip 2023 Inspirations IV - Different Perspectives

I was doodling while having breakfast at the HK Skycity Marriott but finalized on the plane heading to Tokyo on Cathay Pacific. The two stanzas contrast between the different perspective of the sexes.

1 月色醉影花迷魂 Inebriated are the shadows under the moon and souls lost to the flowers,
2 波動銀碎亂心神 Spirit in chaos - shattered by the sounds of waves under the silvery beams.
3 寂寞春宵柳堤音And in spring nights ‘tis lonely to hear the sound of willows on the bund,
4 河畔琵琶獻殷勤 Only the lute can offer diligence to soothe [the aching heart].

5 前殿未央接新歡 Received by the outer palace of The-Zenith-Not -Yet-Reached is the new favorite,

6 後宮椒房棄舊人 And abandoned in the inner quarters of the Pepper Room is the former had-been.
7 廣寒嫦娥塵阿嬌 The celestial Moon Goddess and A-Jiao of the mortal realm,
8 天地夢異同一恨 Dreams of theirs may be different but regrets are the same.

4 Reminiscent of The Ballade of the Wandering Lute, 琵琶行

5 A Han Dynasty concept that once the zenith is reached that decay and descent will be the next step. Thus, never to reach the zenith forever flourishing and improvement. 殿 is the administrative palace where the most important functions takes place – commonly known as the outer palace. 宮 is the private quarters of the emperor and his women, thus the inner palace.

6 The Pepper Room is another Western Han Dynasty concept. It is built with bricks imbued with pepper and other parts of the plant. Not only did they keep the room warm but with hygienic and insect repellent purposes from the aroma. This is usually the abode of the empress.

7 The Palace of Great Cold is the lunar palace where Chang-Er, the moon goddess resides. 塵 is a pun for 陳 which has the same pronunciation - the last name of Emperor Han Wu’s first empress before he disposed her of her position.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang%27e
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chen_Jiao

8 Dreams refer to their lives for Chinese believed that life is but a dream.

Tuesday, November 21, 2023