Vinegar is cool

Author: Zhang Chi, Zhang Bing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: Su Dongpo visited Zhenjiang 11 times. It might as well call him "Vinegar Su Dongpo." Among the great literary figures in history, if one must be mentioned for their closest connection to Zhenjiang, it is undoubtedly Su Dongpo. According to research, the food-loving literary figure Su Dongpo visited Zhenjiang 11 times. Although he experienced ups and downs in his official career and was often on the move, having such a deep bond with a place is rare. If he had come to Zhenjiang for the vinegar, like me, I would rather call him "Vinegar Su Dongpo." Unfortunately, this is just a hypothesis. Based on existing materials, Zhenjiang's immense attraction to Su Dongpo was not only because he visited here but also for other reasons. As a poet, the mountains and waters of Zhenjiang were enough to inspire his poetic spirit. Additionally, he had bought land in YiXing, making his trips to Zhenjiang more convenient. Moreover, in the area of Zhenjiang, Changzhou, and YiXing, he made friends with a group of sincere teachers and companions, including respected elders, fellow examinees, and Buddhist monks like BaJue, FoYin, and the abbot Guan. In his politically frustrated state, Su Dongpo found some spiritual solace in their interactions. In the "Four Treasures of JinShan Temple" exhibition hall of Zhenjiang JinShan Temple, a jade belt belonging to Su Dongpo is displayed. This belt is a witness to his uninhibited friendship with others in Zhenjiang. By the way, when it comes to uninhibited friendship, the vinegar-loving old Zhang would definitely say "delighted to forget one's formality." Su Dongpo's uninhibited friendship with BaJue of JinShan, FoYin, and the abbot Guan of JiaoShan was particularly close, especially with FoYin. Su Dongpo gifted his jade belt to FoYin, leaving it permanently in JinShan. FoYin, the monk with the Dharma name LiaoYuan, once served as the abbot of JinShan Temple. Today, there is still FoYin's Study in JinShan Temple, believed to be where FoYin received Su Dongpo. In the fourth year of the Xining era (1071 AD), Su Dongpo was appointed as the magistrate of Hangzhou and passed through Runzhou (now Zhenjiang), where he specially visited JinShan Temple to see his old friend and the abbot FoYin. That morning, Su Dongpo, dressed in official robes and wearing a jade belt bestowed by Emperor ShenZong, climbed the mountain. From afar, he saw FoYin sitting high on the dais, preaching. When FoYin saw Su Dongpo approaching, he did not offer a seat but instead asked loudly, "What brings you here, Master Su? There is no seat here." Su Dongpo knew this was not a lack of familiarity but rather a play on words by FoYin. So, he replied in the style of Chan Buddhism, "I temporarily borrow the Four Great Elements of the monk to use as my meditation cushion." FoYin, seeing Su Dongpo using Buddhist classics so casually, seized the opportunity to test him: "The mountain monk has a riddle. If you can answer it on the spot, I shall grant your request. If you hesitate, I will keep your jade belt to guard the temple gate." Su Dongpo thought it would be no problem to answer and placed the jade belt on the table. FoYin asked, "The Four Great Elements are fundamentally empty, and the Five Aggregates are non-existent. Where do you wish to sit?" Indeed! If the Four Great Elements are fundamentally empty and the Five Aggregates are non-existent, then isn't there nothing at all? FoYin's question left the clever Su Dongpo stumped. Seeing Su Dongpo unable to answer immediately, FoYin urgently called for a servant and said, "Seal this jade belt to guard the temple forever." Su Dongpo had to take off the jade belt with one hand while holding his pants with the other to avoid further disrespect. FoYin took the jade belt and returned a monk's robe, implying that Su Dongpo should put on the robe and leave his official career behind. For this, Su Dongpo wrote a poem titled "Presenting the Jade Belt to Abbot LiaoYuan, Who in Return Gave a Monk's Robe in Verse": "My frail bones cannot bear the jade belt's embrace, / My dull mind still falls into the sword's trap. / I wish to teach the beggar in the courtesan's quarters, / But give me the old robe of the misty mountains." "This belt has seen many owners like a passing inn, / Now it has come to me, and I am content. / A brocade robe should match it in elegance, / Grant me to the mad old man, Wan Hui." The poem reveals his frustrations in politics. However, Su Dongpo ultimately did not shed his official robes or don a monk's robe to renounce the world. Later, JinShan Temple built a hall named "LiuYu Hall" to display the jade belt and enshrined bronze statues of Su Dongpo and FoYin inside. The same year Su Dongpo gave the jade belt to FoYin, he even wanted to live permanently in the pine forests of Suanshan in Zhenjiang. During his time in Zhenjiang, Su Dongpo had a deep friendship with the prefect Xu ZhongTu. In the sixth year of the YuanYou era (1091 AD), Su Dongpo was recalled to the capital from his post as magistrate of Hangzhou and passed through Zhenjiang. The prefect Xu ZhongTu hosted a banquet to welcome his old friend. As the wine flowed and the mood was lively, Xu ZhongTu ordered the courtesans Zheng Rong and Gao Ying to entertain the guests. The two courtesans seized the opportunity to present their official certificates, requesting that the prefect remove them from the Yinfang music bureau register. Xu ZhongTu handed the certificates to Su Dongpo for decision. Su Dongpo took Zheng Rong's certificate and immediately wrote a poem titled "Jian Zi Mu Lan" on it: "Zheng Zhuang is a great host, / Rong, let me fall first at your feet. / With a stroke of the brush, the wind rises, / Your fame does not disappoint you. / High mountains in early spring, / Ying's bones and ice-like skin will not age. / From now on in Nan Xu, / Clear nights and breezes fill the lake with moonlight." On the surface, the poem only expresses Su Dongpo's gratitude for Xu ZhongTu's hospitality, but the cleverness lies in using the first characters of the eight words "Zheng, Rong, Luo, Ji, Gao, Ying, Cong, Liang" as the beginning of each line, which is Su Dongpo's way of agreeing to their request in a subtle manner. Once Su Dongpo passed through Zhenjiang, the prefect hosted a farewell banquet. A courtesan sang Su Dongpo's poem about tea: "There is a cup of green grass that delights the lingering guests." Su Dongpo said, "Let me eat the grass!" The courtesan laughed so hard she fell off her bed, breaking it, and Su Dongpo also fell to the ground. The guests laughed and scattered. It's estimated that Su Dongpo fell quite hard, and he was almost sobered by the wine. In the first year of the JianZhong and JingGuo era (1101 AD), Su Dongpo returned to Changzhou from his exile in Hainan Island and was already 65 years old. Passing through Zhenjiang, he met his cousin Cheng DeRu, who was in JinShan. This was his last visit to Zhenjiang, and his faltering steps as he revisited the old place filled him with countless emotions. At JinShan Temple, he saw a portrait of his past self and thought of the spirit and no longer present in the painting. He sensed that he had reached the end of his life and wrote a quatrain on the portrait: "My heart is like ash, / My body like an unmoored boat; / Ask of my life's work, / Huangzhou, Dangzhou, Huizhou." In just four lines, he summarized his life of ups and downs.