Chapter 15 Awake

In many Chinese dictionaries, the word "awakening" has no derogatory meaning.For example, "Ciyuan" (Commercial Press, 1989) interprets "drunkenness", "dream awakening", "awakening" and so on. Awakening is the opposite of confusion and confusion, and can only extend the meaning of reason, clarity and wisdom. In Qu Yuan's "Fisherman" poem, there is a famous sentence "The whole world is turbid, but I am alone, and everyone is drunk, but I am awake alone", which injects bright brilliance into the character Xing. Maqiao people don't see it that way.On the contrary, Maqiao people have become accustomed to using this word with a contemptuous expression of shrinking their noses and clenching their mouths, to indicate all folly. "Wake up" means stupid. "Xingzi" of course refers to an idiot.Did this habit start when their ancestors encountered Qu Yuan?

Around 278 BC, Qu Yuan, who was awake, thought that he was awake, could not bear the boundless intoxication of the whole world, and decided to die in martyrdom, resisting evil with death, and drowned himself in the Miluo River, which is the lower reaches of the Luo River—now It is called Chutang Township.He came in exile.The state of Chu that he served loyally, at that time, "a group of officials protected each other with meritorious service, flattered and used things, good officials scolded them, and the people were divorced" (quoted from "Warring States Policy"), which could not tolerate him.He looked back at Yingdu, crying for a long song, his ambition is hard to pay off, and he asked the sky with sadness.If he cannot save the world, he can at least reject it.If he couldn't tolerate the betrayal and hypocrisy all around him, he could at least close his eyes.So he finally chose the darkness at the bottom of the river, where he settled his painful heart.It is worth noting that his route of exile passed through Chenyang, Xupu and other places, and finally circled Daluo along the Xiangjiang River.In fact, this is a frontier country, the last place that debased ministers should not go.The Luo people were mercilessly expelled by the mighty Chu State, and they came here first.When the Chu people were driven to death by the more powerful state of Qin, Qu Yuan almost followed the same route, and then wandered here.History is repeating itself, only in different roles.What can we say when we are in the same park and a foreign land?

Qu Yuan used to be the left disciple of Chu State, presided over the imperial court's copywriting, of course he is familiar with the history of Chu State, and he is familiar with Chu State's extermination of Luo State. To the familiar voice.Experienced the folk customs and customs that seem to be familiar to you——this is a lucky escape from all the swords and axes of the Chu people, how do you feel?It is even more difficult for me to imagine that when the humiliated and impoverished Luo people faced the former minister of the invading country, silently greeted him, silently held down the hilt of the knife, and finally helped him with a scoop and ladle, whether the minister's hands were still intact trembling?

History has not recorded all this, and has neglected all this. I suddenly felt that Qu Yuan chose this place as his final resting place, and there may be complicated reasons that we don't know yet.Luo Di is a mirror that allows him to see through the absurdity of rise and fall.Luo Di is a strong medicine, which can make him relieve the inner reservedness of courtiers.The cold waves on the river beat his memory, not only torturing his grievances to Chu, but also torturing his loyalty to Chu, torturing his belief in self-cherishing and fighting for it all his life.At this time, it was not the first time he was demoted, so he should have enough experience and psychological endurance to deal with Luobo.He has been in the barbaric land for a long time, and he should be used to the hunger, cold and fatigue on the way to exile.He finally disappeared by the Miluo River, leaving an empty river bank. It must be that his spirit has undergone some kind of fundamental shake, which made him feel frightened by a life bigger than life, and a bigger life than history. History feels inextricably confused and can only step on the ground.

Where else could he have gotten brighter and harsher-wake? Where else could he better understand what he has always cherished—waking up? This is speculation. When Qu Yuan was in Luodi, he wore bare feet, wore flowers and plants, drank dew and ate chrysanthemums, called wind and rain, talked with the sun and the moon, and slept with insects and birds. He must have lost his mind.He was awake (his own view and later "Ci Yuan" etc.), and indeed he was awake (Maqiao people's view). With his own leap across the river, he communicated the two meanings of the word wake: ignorance and wisdom, hell and heaven, the physical moment and the metaphysical eternity.

Luo people can't understand Chu Chen's loyalty, but they seem to forgive their defeated opponents, and they also show the same compassion to Qu Yuan-this is the tradition of rowing dragon boats on the fifth day of May every year.They threw away the zongzi, hoping that the fish and shrimp would not eat Qu Yuan's bones.The noise of their gongs and drums hopes to wake up the poet who is sleeping at the bottom of the river.They called out their souls hoarsely over and over again, yelling until men, women, young and old had twitching veins, wide-eyed eyes, hoarse voices, and profuse sweating.Their voices from the sky completely overwhelmed their deep hatred for Chu Ying, just to save a person, a strange poet.

This custom was first seen in the "Jingchu Sui Shi Ji" written by Liang Renzong in the Southern Dynasties.There was no saying that the Dragon Boat Festival commemorated Qu Yuan before.In fact, dragon boat rowing has long been a common worship ritual in the south, and it has no conclusive relationship with Qu Yuan.Linking the two is likely to be the literati's fabrication and fantasy of history, for both Qu Yuan and himself.More and more solemn sacrifices mean: If there is a kind of eternal glory that can be rewarded and promised, will the martyrs of civilization be a little more safe and gratified?

Qu Yuan did not see the brilliance, nor could any Qu Yuan be able to earn brilliance.On the contrary, Maqiao people's understanding and use of the word "awakening" hides another perspective, hides the ancestors' indifference to the politics of a powerful country and heterogeneous cultures, and hides the inevitable ambiguity between different historical positions.Substituting the word "stupid" and "stupid" with the word "awakening" is a fossil of the unique history and thinking of the Luodi people.