The Songs Of Chu: An Anthology Of Ancient Chinese Poetry By Qu Yuan And Others

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Sources show Qu Yuan (?340-278 BCE) was the first person in China to become famous for his poetry, so famous in fact that the Chinese celebrate his life with a national holiday called Poet's Day, or the Dragon Boat Festival. His work, which forms the core of theThe Songs of Chu, the second oldest anthology of Chinese poetry, derives its imagery from shamanistic ritual. Its shaman hymns are among the most beautiful and mysterious liturgical works in the world. The religious milieu responsible for their imagery supplies the backdrop for his most famous work,Li sao, which translates shamanic longing for a spirit lover into the yearning for an ideal king that is central to the ancient philosophies of China. Qu Yuan was as important to the development of Chinese literature as Homer was to the development of Western literature. This translation attempts to replicate what the work might have meant to those for whom it was originally intended, rather than settle for what it was made to mean by those who inherited it. It accounts for the new view of the state of Chu that recent discoveries have inspired.

E-Book Content

  THE SONGS OF CHU TRANSLATIONS FROM THE ASIAN CLASSICS 1   TRANSLATIONS FROM THE ASIAN CLASSICS EDITORIAL BOARD Wm. Theodore de Bary, Chair Paul Anderer Donald Keene George A. Saliba Haruo Shirane Burton Watson Wei Shang 2   The Songs of Chu   An Anthology of Ancient Chinese Poetry by Qu Yuan and Others Edited and translated by Gopal Sukhu Columbia University Press   New York      3   The publisher gratefully acknowledges the generous support to this book provided by Publisher's Circle members John J. S. Balcom and Yingtsih Balcom.   Columbia University Press wishes to express its appreciation for assistance given by the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange and Council for Cultural Affairs in the publication of this book.   Columbia University Press wishes to express its appreciation for assistance given by the Pushkin Fund in the publication of this book.   Columbia University Press Publishers Since 1893 New York    Chichester, West Sussex cup.columbia.edu   Copyright © 2017 Columbia University Press All rights reserved E-ISBN 978-0-231-54465-8   Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data   Names: Qu, Yuan, approximately 343 B.C.-approximately 277 B.C. | Sukhu, Gopal, editor, translator. Title: The songs of Chu : an ancient anthology of works by Qu Yuan and others / edited and translated by Gopal Sukhu. Other titles: Chu ci. English Description: New York : Columbia University Press, 2017. | Series: Translations from the asian classics | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2016045048 (print) | LCCN 2017004499 (ebook) | ISBN 9780231166065 (cloth : acid-free paper) | ISBN 9780231166072 (pbk.) Classification: LCC PL2661 .C4613 2017 (print) | LCC PL2661 (ebook) | DDC 895.1/11—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016045048   A Columbia University Press E-book. CUP would be pleased to hear about your reading experience with this e-book at [email protected]   Cover design: Noah Arlow 4   To the memory of Seth Bernard Adams Merchant Mariner and jazz aficionado who gave me my first books on Asia 5   Contents Acknowledgments Introduction CHAPTER ONE Nine Songs 九歌 Jiuge CHAPTER TWO “Leaving My Troubles” 離騷 “Li sao” CHAPTER THREE “Ask the Sky” 天問 “Tian wen” CHAPTER FOUR Nine Cantos 九章 Jiuzhang CHAPTER FIVE “Wandering Far Away” 遠遊 “Yuan you” CHAPTER SIX “The Diviner” 居 “B
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