Chapter 16 Chapter 15 Layman Dongpo

Now Su Tungpo farmed out of need, and became a hermit because of his temper and nature.The study of society, culture, economics and history, external work and responsibilities hide a person's nature.Get rid of these current and traditional traps, and the true self emerges.When Su Dongpo returned to the crowd, he was like a seal in the water; a seal wagging its fins and tail on land was only half a seal.The most lovely thing about Su Dongpo is the face of a self-reliant farmer.The Chinese often praise the poet who wears a bamboo hat to plow the field and stands on the side of the field and mountain. If he can still write good poems, he will beat the horns to beat the time.It would be even better if he got drunk occasionally or often, and climbed to the top of the city wall to peek at the moon.So he became nature's big urchin--maybe nature wants people to be like this.

On January 1, the third year of Yuanfeng (1080), Su Dongpo took his 21-year-old eldest son Su Mai to leave the capital for Huangzhou, where he lived in exile.He went straight to the land, handed his family over to Ziyou, and went back later.Poor Ziyou had to take his whole family (seven daughters, three sons and two sons-in-law) to work in Gao'an, hundreds of miles south of Jiujiang, plus Su Dongpo's family.The official position of wine supervisor is far less charming than we imagined, just the shopkeeper of a public hotel.A few months later, Ziyou arrived in Jiujiang and asked his family to wait for him there, so he went up the Yangtze River and sent Dongpo's wife, Chaoyun and two young sons to his elder brother.Dongpo arrived in Huangzhou on February 1st, and his family did not arrive until March 29th.

Huangzhou is a riverside town downstream from Hankou.Dongpo and his family first went to Dinghui Temple, which was far away from the river and was located on the side of a densely forested hill.He ate with the monks, often walked under a hawthorn tree after lunch and dinner, and wrote his best famous poems.Soon there are many friends around me.Xu Taishou treats each other sincerely and often invites him to drink.The prefect of Wuchang (not the present Wuchang) on ​​the other side of the Yangtze River was surnamed Zhu, and he often sent him food and wine.On rainy days, Su Dongpo got up very late. In the evening, he roamed alone at the foot of Dongshan Mountain, looking for temples, gardens and clear streams.Sometimes friends came to see him, and we traveled together to the mountains on both sides of the Yangtze River.This is a mountainous wooded area with nice countryside views.On the south bank, there is Fanshan Mountain, towering in the plain intertwined with lakes and waterways.

Su Dongpo narrowly escaped from death, his heart and soul were shaken, and he tried to speak as little as possible.He began to think about the true meaning of life.In a farewell poem in June, he said that his life was like an ant under a millstone, or a feather in a whirlwind.He began to contemplate his own personality and study how to obtain peace of mind.He became more and more devout in religion. "Anguo Temple Records" said, "Yu Eryue went to Huangshe. The hall was roughly fixed, food and clothing were provided slightly, but the door was closed but the sweeping was done to collect the soul. Retire and miss, and seek a way to rehabilitate .Also observe that all intentions and actions have never been in the right way. It is not the only reason why you are offended today. If you want to innovate one, you may lose the other. If you touch the analogy and seek it, there are those who cannot overcome regret. So he sighed and said: "The way is not enough To control Qi, the nature is not enough to win the practice, not to hoe the root but to cultivate the end. Although it is changed now, it must be reworked in the future. I return to the Buddhist monk and ask for a cleansing'. I got the Jingshe in the south of the city, called Anguo Temple, There are luxuriant forests and bamboos, ponds and pavilions. For a day or two, I often go to burn incense and sit in silence. Deep self-examination will forget things and me, and the body and mind will be empty. Asking for sins is born but not available. One thought is pure, and pollution will naturally fall. The outside and the inside are smooth, and there is no beauty attached to it. It is a pleasure to steal..."

A Confucian tendency in Su Tungpo's mind, contrary to his religious impulse, dragged him in another direction.Yes, people should pursue peace in religion, but if Buddhism is right, if life is just an illusion, if people should completely separate from society, human beings will become extinct and worries will disappear.Therefore, the goal of Buddhism is emptiness and selflessness, and the goal of eliminating all selfish thoughts often conflicts with the Confucian view of responsibility for fellow citizens.Liberation is, after all, only a matter of attaining spiritual harmony, of bringing base instincts under the control of noble sentiments.If people can train themselves to reach this state, there is no need to separate from society to seek liberation.

For example, the problem of fighting against evil in human society.Neo-Confucianist Zhu Xi criticized the two poems written by Su Dongpo when he was released from prison, without the meaning of self-reflection and a new life.We think these two poems show that Su Dongpo's writing style is still the same.The question is, does he really want to change?Is he going to shut up about what's wrong with the country?He is a way of saying ordinary friends, and another way of saying acquaintances and close friends. He had two letters to his friends that betrayed his deepest convictions.One is for Li Chang.Li Chang wrote poems to comfort him, and his tone was too affectionate. Su Dongpo wrote back and said: "He Naiya? The servant treats the public with a heart of iron and stone. Although we are old and poor, our principles run through our hearts, and our loyalty fills our bones. We just need to talk and laugh about life and death. If you feel sorry for your servants when you see them tired and tired, you are not far from those who do not learn the Tao....Although you are full of sorrows and sorrows, when you encounter problems, those who can respect the Lord and the people will forget your body and give it to the creation How can you not say this if you are not a brother and servant. After seeing it, you will be angry. Those who don't know it will think it is a criticism."

Su Dongpo wrote several letters to Wang Gong, who was the most implicated and relegated to the southwest border.He first expressed that he was very sorry to be involved, and then said that after receiving Wang Gong's letter, he knew that he could find comfort in philosophy: "The Zhigong is really a person. If you don't like him in the future, you will still have gray hair in the future, and the end of the toilet guest... ..." Then he talked about the Taoist art of life, which he himself is practicing: "I know a lot about health preservation, and I feel that I have a little income. Everyone who sees it says that the Taoist appearance is different from the past. We have known each other for several years, so I will be in the wind. It's up. I also painted the cold forest and the ink bamboo. I'm fascinated. The cursive is excellent, but the poetry and pen are special. I don't know why. The Linjiang army letter I sent yesterday has been received for a long time. The second book has repeatedly discussed and dealt with patients in detail. , not only to relieve my worries, but also to wash away my ignorance, and I have gained a lot. However, what I have gained is not a book that I can understand. I hope that you will often recite this phrase. Du Zimei is in distress, one drink and one food, never forgetting you. Poet Since then, only one person."

But he has another way of saying things to his old friend Zhang Dun.Zhang Dun has now worshiped officials, participated in politics and advised deacons, and once wrote to persuade him to rehabilitate.He wrote a perfectly correct reply, full of confession.The letter is so well written that it can be presented to the emperor: "Usually, Zihou and Ziqu are extremely hard-pressed to hear warnings, and it is very painful to repeat them, but a certain one is strong for his own use, so he doesn't take it seriously. And in prison, there is no way to regret it, and he is bound to die. Unexpectedly, the Holy Lord is lenient, and the repatriation will make the world look dead. If you don’t change it, you are really inhuman... A rough man in the past was also known by the Holy Lord, so he made a little bit of reason and peace, so how can he be today. Thinking about what he committed, It's really meaningless. It's no different from a sick and mad person who crosses the river and enters the sea. Fang's illness is unknowing, and he is also forced by poverty. It seems that there is something to make him. When he reaches the day of madness, he feels ashamed. But the public is suspicious How can it be reasonable for him to commit another crime?..." Then he described his life: "Huangzhou is remote and rainy, and the weather is dim. Fish, rice and firewood are quite cheap, which is very suitable for the poor. However, a certain person has never done work in his life, Zihou knows Therefore, the income from the salary is spent at will. And the son has seven daughters, and the debts are piled up. The cheap and rich are all in the canal, and I don’t know when they will come here. See the monk’s house, common clothes and vegetables, and a meal with the monk. The difference is It’s simple. I’m afraid of its arrival. I’m so poor that I lose my reason, but I don’t know how to pay. I’m afraid of hunger and cold in the years. However, as the saying goes, when the time comes, you must deal with it yourself. An Neng Are you worried about it? When I first arrived, I saw the eunuch. Since Yu Du didn’t leave the house, I can’t avoid reading books when I live in leisure, but the Buddhist scriptures are used to send the day, and I’m no longer close to the pen and inkstone.”

The family arrived safely, and everything seemed to be settled, but Dongpo still didn't know how they would live after the money was spent.The second son, Su Xi, was twelve years old, and the youngest, Su Guo, was ten.The prefect treated them very politely and let them live in Lingaoting, which became a household name because of him.This is a post station for government officials to take a rest on the Yangtze River waterway.Su Dongpo wrote to a friend and said, "There are no ten steps to the river where you live. The wind, the misty rain, and the ever-changing dawn and evening. There are several mountains in the south of the Yangtze River. This luck has never begun." This place is beautiful, but the beauty of it probably comes from Dongpo's imagination.He saw a lot of charm in this hut facing Xiayang, but other tourists were disappointed when they saw it.Later, someone built a study for him. He once boasted that he woke up from a nap, forgot where he was, pulled up the curtains, and saw thousands of ships going down the river from the reclining chair, and the water and sky in the distance became one color.

Lingao Pavilion is nothing, but the beauty of the scenery depends partly on the location and partly on the appreciation of people.As a poet, Su Dongpo can't help seeing and feeling the charm that others can't feel in Paradise.Dongpo said in his essay: "The layman Dongpo was drunk and full of food. He leaned on a table, white clouds circled to the left, the Qingjiang River turned to the right, the heavy gate opened, and the forests forked in. At that time, if you thought about it but didn't think about it. Prepared by all things. Ashamed and ashamed." Another letter to Fan Zhen's son was humorous: "A dozen steps down from Lingao Pavilion is the Dajiang River, half of which is Emei snow water. I take it for food and bath, why bother Homecoming. The river, the wind and the moon have no permanent owner. The idler is the owner. I heard that Fan Zifeng’s new garden is worse than this. So it’s not as good as the emperor without two taxes and assistant money.”

But Dongpo was really hard.He instituted a special expenditure budget law.There is such a record in his letter to Qin Guan: "Gong Ze has been here for a few days, saying that he is too empty to leave his mouth. Mr. Xin has never had a book, and he has no time to ask questions... When he first arrived in Huang, the granary was cut off. There is a large population, so I am very worried about it. But I save myself, and my daily use should not exceed one hundred and fifty (equal to a quarter of a dollar). On the first day of each month, I will take 4,500 yuan, break it down to thirty yuan, and hang it on the beam of the house. Pingdan picks a piece with a drawing fork and hides it immediately. The money is still stored in a big bamboo tube, and it is inexhaustible for the guests. This is the old Jia Yun (Jia Shou) method. There is still more than one year old in the bag. To Don’t make scriptures and paintings from time to time, it will happen naturally, and you don’t need to worry about it. There is nothing in your mind.” From Lingao Pavilion, you can see the beautiful mountains of Wuchang on the other side.Sometimes he went out in straw sandals, hired a small boat, and spent the day with fishermen and woodcutters. He was often pushed and abused by drunks.In case of a storm, stay here for a few days.Sometimes he took a small boat to Pan Bing's hotel in Fankou.He found the village wine to be quite good.Oranges, persimmons and yams that grow long in this area.The freight on the river is cheap, only 20 yuan for a bucket of rice.Lamb here is comparable to pork and beef in the North.Rabbit meat is cheap.Fish and crab are almost free.Qiting Wine Supervisor has a large library, which he likes to lend to others.The prefect's family has a good cook, and he is often invited as a guest. In the fourth year of Yuanfeng (1081), Su Dongpo became an out-and-out farmer.He began to farm in Dongpo, calling himself "Dongpo Jushi".He wanted to go back to the fields a long time ago, but he didn't expect to be forced to become a farmer like this. The prequel of "Eight Poems of Dongpo" says: "In the second year of Yu Zhihuang, there was a lack of food every day. The old man Ma Zhengqing mourned for the lack of food, and asked for dozens of acres of old camps for the county, so that he could cultivate them. The land has been barren for a long time. It is a field of thorny thorns and rubble, and there is a severe drought every year, and the labor of cultivating the wall has exhausted the muscles and strength. It is a poem to sigh after explaining the lei. Self-satisfied with his hard work, people who are a few years old forget their labor." The East Slope Farmhouse was actually about ten acres, just a third of a mile east of town, on the side of a hill.On the top is a three-bedroom hut, overlooking the pavilion below, and under the pavilion is the famous snow hall.This five-room hall was built in the snow in February of the following year.On the wall, there are snow scenes of forests, rivers and fishermen painted by Dongpo himself.Later, it became a place for him to entertain guests. Mi Fu, a great painter of the Song Dynasty, was only 22 years old at the time. He once visited him and discussed books with him. ) visited Dongpo in October, and recorded that there was a portrait of Su Dongpo hanging in the hall.In the painting, he is dressed in a purple robe and black hat, holding a bamboo pole, and lying against a stone. There is a small bridge across the ditch under the stone steps of the snow hall.Except for rainy days, it is usually dry.To the east of the snow hall is a big willow tree that he planted himself, and beyond that is a small well, the spring water is cold, but there is no special advantage.Below the east are rice fields, wheat fields, a large row of mulberry trees, vegetables and a large orchard.He also planted a tea tree given to him by a nearby friend on the farm. The Yuanjing Pavilion is behind the farmhouse, standing on the top of a pile of mounds, with a panoramic view of the surrounding scenery.His neighbor to the west, surnamed Gu, had a large area of ​​giant bamboos, the circumference of which was seven inches, and it grew so densely that it even covered the sky.Su Dongpo enjoys the shade here in summer.I also picked dry and smooth bamboo sheaths to make shoe linings for my wife. Su Dongpo is now a real farmer, not a landlord.There is a poem in reply to Kong Pingzhong as follows: It has not rained here for a long time, and when Gan Yu came, he was so happy and grateful to farm the fields himself: