A Different View of Traditional Chinese Culture -- A Different View of Poetry

Author: Xu Jun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-02-22
Features: Combining music, chess, calligraphy, painting, tea, wine, dining, and cooking under the title "Exquisite Artistic Pursuits" seems somewhat incongruous, even bordering on desecrating the realms of spirit, wisdom, and rare beauties. Chinese people have a particularly strong aesthetic sense when it comes to eating, food preparation, especially in drinking and tea ceremonies. The selected article "Dong Xiaowan's Culinary Skills" in the book is a perfect example. If cooking requires such attention to detail, then refined dining, of course, is no exception. For instance, Zhang Ying's "On the Twelve Combinations of Rice" in the book discusses the material and spiritual pleasures brought by food from numerous perspectives. The book is divided into eight major categories: music, chess, calligraphy, painting, food and drink, wine, dishes, and cooking. When translating the classical Chinese text, the method of free translation is adopted. All the selected works are masterpieces, and their essence can only be fully appreciated by the readers.