The Marvelous Bookcase: Yang Jiong's "Fu on the Bookcase for Reading While Lying Down".

• Author: Miao, Xiaojing

Yang Jiong [phrase omitted] (650-ca. 694), along with Wang Bo [phrase omitted] (649-676), Lu Zhaolin [phrase omitted] (ca. 632-ca. 685), and Luo Binwang [phrase omitted] (ca. 619-687), was hailed both by his contemporaries and later generations as one of the "Four Elites of the Early Tang" (chu Tang sijie [phrase omitted]). (1) Yet he among those "Four Elites" has received the least scholarly attention. When articles and books discussing the "Four Elites" collectively are set apart, studies on Yang Jiong can be counted on two hands with fingers still to spare. (2) There is but a single English-language article that focuses exclusively on Yang Jiong. (3) This neglect has much to do with readers' preoccupation with shi [??]-poetry, (4) which, taken alone, does not fully exhibit Yang Jiong's literary talent. As Stephen Owen notes, "though he wrote a number of excellent poems, Yang Chiung [Yang Jiong] never really found his own poetic voice" and "much of his work is indistinguishable from that of his fellow courtiers," (5) and as Paul W. Kroll also states, "we would wonder what was so special about him if we read only his shift, for they are quite commonplace and insignificant." (6)

Yet shi-poetry only forms a part of Yang Jiong's repertoire. Once we pay attention to his works in other genres, such as fu [??]-poetry and parallel prose, it becomes clear that it is these that bring out the genius that won him appreciation among his contemporaries. We also realize that the long-standing neglect of Yang Jiong is unjustified. Here we shall examine his "Fu on the Bookcase for Reading While Lying Down" ("Wodu shujia fu" [phrase omitted]), which will reveal something of the poet's distinctive literary talent. He depicts the bookcase in such a clever way that it might simultaneously be read as a direct, not allusive, representation of himself. In other words, he crafts a double text so that both the physical bookcase and he himself, the "mental bookcase," as it were, become the dual subjects of the fu. The interplay between the bookcase, the poet, and his self-representation will also contribute to the wider discussions of material culture, social norms, and literary expression. (7)

Compared to the other three Elites, Yang Jiong had a relatively successful political career and was more of a "court" poet, for he spent a large amount of his life at the imperial court, holding positions in institutes with large book collections. In 660 he arrived at court a prodigy, having passed the Examination for Marvelous Lads (shentong [phrase omitted]), in which candidates ages nine or under were tested in their knowledge of the Analects (Lunyu [phrase omitted]), the Classic of Filial Piety (Xiaojing [phrase omitted]), and one other classic text of their own choosing. He was awarded the status of an "Attendant upon [Imperial] Order" (daizhi [phrase omitted]) at the Institute for the Enhancement of Literature (Hongwen guan [phrase omitted]), where he spent his adolescence and early manhood. With this designation, Yang Joing was basically "on-call": standing by should the emperor ever wish to consult with him. Of course, we do not know that the emperor ever did, but this placement conferred a certain prestige on Yang Jiong, due to its implication that he had secured the personal approval of the emperor. Importantly for our purposes, it made him a member of the Institute for the Enhancement of Literature and gave him access to this institution that boasted one of the largest imperial book collections. (8) In 676, after succeeding in a decree exam (zhike [phrase omitted]), Yang Jiong received an appointment as Collator (jiaoshu lang [phrase omitted]) in the Institute, followed by promotions to Scholar of the Institute for the Veneration of Literature (Chongwen guan xueshi [phrase omitted]) and Rectifier of the Household Administration of the Heir Apparent (taizi zhanshi fu sizhi [phrase omitted]) in 681. His promising political career took a sudden turn in 685, when, as a punishment for his blood relationship with a paternal uncle who had been involved in an abortive rebellion the year before, he was demoted to Zizhou [phrase omitted] (in present-day Sichuan [phrase omitted]) to serve as a local administrator of law and punishment. By 690 he was back at court, taking a teaching post in the Inner Institute of Literature (Nei wenxue guan [phrase omitted]), a college for the study of literature by palace women. (9) After that tenure ended, he was appointed as Magistrate of Yingchuan (Yingchuan ling [phrase omitted]) and passed away in that post sometime after 694. (10)

There is no hard evidence suggesting when Yang Jiong wrote the "Fu on the Bookcase for Reading While Lying Down." I suspect it was during his "on-call" time in the Institute for the Enhancement of Literature, when he enjoyed the leisure and luxury of reading all the books, which is consistent with the image he represents in the fu. The bookcase in question is a piece of furniture that Yang Jiong designed for himself to enjoy reading while lying down in comfort. His fu is the first extant fu on a piece of reading furniture. The poem consists of sixty lines, arranged in seven separately rhyming stanzas. We will consider the structure of the poem in more detail after first translating and discussing the complete poem.

The first stanza of the "Fu on the Bookcase" (11) introduces and explains Yang Jiong's motivations for inventing this unique bookcase. Rhyme words are identified with an asterisk following the relevant graph; italicized lines are hypermetrical and excluded from the linecount.

[phrase omitted] In the Confucian tradition: [phrase omitted] The key to transmitting the classics is "reaching out to what is distant"; (12) [phrase omitted]* The key to putting effort into study is "requesting further instruction." (13) [phrase omitted] Shi'an got called a "book fanatic"; 4 [phrase omitted]* Yuankai was known for his obsession with the Zuo Tradition. [phrase omitted] Sleeping high [on a pillow] is truly proper--why would I forfeit the same chiding that Master Bian got? [phrase omitted]* Napping comfortably is satisfactory--why should I feel ashamed to be criticized as Zai Yu? [phrase omitted] That craftsman of the state tests out his ingenuity, (14) 8 [phrase omitted]* He measures the mountain wood to make it into a frame. [phrase omitted] It serves as the trustee of the Odes and Documents, [phrase omitted]* Never to be estranged from pillow and mat. Yang Jiong begins by recounting canonical ideals of learning by dropping the names of two exemplary book lovers who were known for the extremity of their habit. "Reaching out to what is distant" and "requesting further instruction" are from the classical texts the Book of Changes (Zhouyi [phrase omitted]) and Book of Rites (Liji [phrase omitted]), which outline the Confucian ideals of learning. Huangfu Mi [phrase omitted] (215-282) and Du Yu [phrase omitted] (222-285), reputed for their passion for reading, are examples of devoted Confucian scholars. Huangfu Mi, styled Shi'an, read books compulsively, to the extent that he forgot all about eating and sleeping; because of that, "his contemporaries called him a 'book fanatic'" [phrase omitted]. (15) Du Yu, styled Yuankai, devoted himself to the study of the Zuo Tradition (Zuozhuan [phrase omitted]) and once said to the emperor, "I have an obsession with the Zuo Tradition" [phrase omitted]. (16) Though the objects of their infatuation were books, even Confucian classics, "fanatic" (yin) and "obsession" (pi) suggest criticism of overdoing from the bystander's point of view. At the same time, they hint at the subject's complacency in their self-indulgence in defiance of social opinions. Yang Jiong's reference to them suggests that he sees himself in the same light, an aspect that will manifest itself in the remainder of the fu.

One might think, after reading the first four lines, that Yang Jiong would continue to situate himself within the orthodox tradition of learning and with its most extreme examples, no less. But the ensuing two lines take an unexpected turn: the poet proceeds to defend lying asleep in the daytime and refute Confucius's criticism of it. Line 5 alludes to the Eastern Han scholar Bian Shao [phrase omitted] (ca. 100-ca. 170), styled Xiaoxian [phrase omitted]. According to the Hou Han shu [phrase omitted], Bian Shao was once chided by his disciples for napping during the daytime: "Bian Xiaoxian, / With his belly well-fed, / Too lazy to read, / He just wants to sleep!" [phrase omitted]. To this accusation Bian Shao responded with a clever comeback, claiming that while lying asleep his mind was not at rest. On the contrary, it was busy at work contemplating the classics:

[phrase omitted] Bian is my family name, [phrase omitted]* And Xiao my style. [phrase omitted] My belly, well-fed-- 4 [phrase omitted]* Is a bamboo hamper for the Five Classics. [phrase omitted] Just wants to sleep?-- [phrase omitted]* I am contemplating matters of the classics. [phrase omitted] When in repose, I commune with the Duke of Zhou in my dreams; [phrase omitted]* When at rest, I am of the same mind as Confucius. (17) The last two lines of Bian Shao's retort allude to a famous lament voiced by Confucius: "How I have gone downhill! It has been such a long time since I dreamt of the Duke of Zhou" [phrase omitted]. (18) The Duke of Zhou was the most important representative of Zhou culture, and Confucius admired him greatly. Exactly why Confucius said this about himself has provoked centuries of discussion; for our purposes, it is enough to note that it suggests that the Duke of Zhou was often on his mind, even in his subconscious. Bian Shao's point is that he is doing exactly what Confucius did. Owing to the cleverness of this response, this story was often told in Bian Shao's favor. Yang Jiong, nonetheless, emphasizes the fact that Bian Shao had been "chided" (chao [??]), though...