Author: CHUNG Yoon Ngan
Date: 04-11-12 01:08
中國姓氏故事 - 白姓
各人自掃門前雪,---Ge4 ren2 zi4 sao3 men2 qian2 xue3,
莫管他人瓦上霜.---Mo4 guan3 ta ren2 wa4 shang4 shuang.
Each one sweeps the snow in front of his own doorstep
And does not bother about the frost on his neighbour's roof.
[The meaning of this saying is: mind one's own business]
A Chinese proverb
-----------------------------------------------------
Chinese Surname - BAI (白)
Bai means: white; snowy.
The surname Bai is about 2,600 years old
The surname Bai originated in an area referred to during the Qin Dynasty
(秦朝 221BC to 207BC) as the Nanyang prefecture (南陽郡). The present day
location of Nanyang prefecture is the Nanyang county (南陽縣 112.5 degree
East and 33.0 degree North on the world map) in Henan province (河南省).
During the Shang Dynasty (商朝 1783BC to 1135BC) the Zhou Clan (周族) lived
in the northern edges of Wei (渭) Valley, west of the great bend of Huanghe
(黃河) or Yellow River. Around 1198BC, due to pillaging by the barbarians
from the north, the leader of the Zhou Clan Gugong Danfu (古公亶父), moved
his people to the center of the Wei Valley and established the capital in
Qishan 歧山, which is the present day city of Qishan in the Shaanxi province
(陜西省).
After the death of Gugong Danfu his third son Ji Jili (姬季歷) succeeded
him as the leader. According to the tradition of the Zhou Clan, succession
was from the father to the elder son. The two elder brothers of Ji Jili
called Ji Taibo (姬太伯) and Ji Zhongyong (姬仲雍) were against his leadership,
and disputed the succession of leadership. When Ji Jili began to take action
against his recalcitrant brothers they fled to Jiangnan (江南) or south of
Changjiang (長江) and settled down in a place called Meili (梅里 in the
present day county of Wuxi county 無錫縣 in Jiangsu province 江蘇省).
In 1122BC, Ji Fa who was the grandson of Ji Jili, who was better known as
Zhou King Wu (周武王) destroyed the Shang Dynasty and founded the Zhou Dynasty
(周朝 1134BC to 256BC). Zhou King Wu gave his cousin brother Ji Zhong (姬
仲), the grandson of Ji Zhongyong, the authority to rule a district called
Yu (虞 in the east of present day county of Pinglu 平陸縣 in Shanxi province.
陜西省). Zhou King Wu and Ji Zhong were the great-grandsons of Gugong Danfu.
Ji Zhong was known as Yu Zhong (虞仲) and renamed the district of Yu as
the State of Yu (虞國).
The offspring of Yu Zhong continued to rule the State of Yu until 655BC
when it was subjugated by the State of Jin (晉國 in the present day county
of Yicheng 翼城縣 in Shanxi province 山西省). An aristocrat of Yu called
Jing Xi (井奚) was captured by the Jin soldiers who took him to the Jin
capital, Handan (邯鄲). Jing Xi was made a servant in the house of Bo Ji
(伯姬), the daughter of Ji Guizhu (姬詭諸), the 19th ruler of the State of
Jin. A year later Bo Ji married Ying Renhao (嬴任好), the 14th ruler of
the State of Qin (秦國 in the present day county of Fengxiang 鳳翔縣 in
Shaanxi province). Jing Xi followed her mistress to Qin and became a servant
in the Qin Court.
Jing Xi was a smart, talented and well educated man, excelling in his job
as a servant. On one occasion the talent of Jing Xi was discovered by Ying
Renhao who made him an official.
It was during the Spring and Autumn Period (春秋時代 722BC to 481BC) that
Ying Renhao, an ambitious ruler, wanted to expand his domain. Jing Xi helped
him to conquer and annex many small states in the west. In appreciation
Ying Renhao awarded Jing Xi to rule a place called Baili and he was then
known as Bai Lixi (百里奚).
Bai Lixi fathered a son called Meng Mingshi (孟明視) who became a general
in the Qin armed forces. Meng Mingshi had two sons; his eldest son was called
Xi Qishu (西乞術) and the youngest Bai Yibing (白乙丙), who like their father,
became the generals in the Qin armed forces.
Ying Renhao wanted to expand his territory eastward, but his plan was hindered
by the state of Jin. In 654BC, Qin and Jin fought a battle at Longmenshan
(龍門山 in the present day region between Hejin county (河津縣) in Shanxi
province and Hancheng county (韓城縣) in Shaanxi province. Bai Yibing was
one of the Qin generals who took part in the battle. Bai Yibing was a very
courageous general and fought bravely. The ferocious battle lead to a standstill
and eventually developed into a stalemate. When the battle finally ended
General Bai was seriously wounded, and was hailed as the hero by the Qin
troops.
After he had recovered from his wound he continue to serve Ying Renhao and
became a legendary hero in the State of Qin. After his death some of his
children adopted BAI (白) as their surname in remembrance of his heroism.
The couplet of surname Bai
源自春秋,---Yuan2 zi4 Chun Qiu,
望出南陽.---Wang4 chu Nanyang.
Surname BAI was originated during the period of the Spring and Autumn,
It began to spread from Nanyang Prefecture
.........................................................
Prominent persons produced by the BAI clan are:
(1)
白居易 (Bai Juyi 772AD to 770AD)
[This poem is too long to explain it in plain Chinese. I haven't had the
time to do it. So I take a short cut and explain it in English in a story
form].
長恨歌 A Song Of Unending Sorrow
漢皇重色思傾國,---Han huang2 chong2 se4 si qing guo2,
御宇多年求不得.---Yu4 yu3 duo nian2 qiu2 bu4 de2.
楊家有女初長成,---Yang jia you3 nu3 chu chang2 cheng2,
養在深閨人未識.---Yang3 zai4 shen gui ren2 wei4 shi2.
天生麗質難自棄,---Tian sheng li4 zhi4 nan2 zi4 qi4,
一朝選在君王側;---Yi chao2 xuan3 zai4 jun wang2 ce4;
回眸一笑百媚生,---Hui2 mou2 yi xiao4 bai3 mei4 sheng,
六宮粉黛無顏色.---Liu4 gong fen3 dai4 wu2 yan2 se4.
春寒賜浴華清池,---Chun han2 ci4 yu4 hua2 qing chi2,
溫泉水滑洗凝脂;---Wen quan2 shui3 hua2 xi3 ning2 zhi;
侍兒扶起嬌無力,---Shi4 er2 fu2 qi3 jiao wu2 li4,
始是新承恩澤時.---Shi3 shi2 xin cheng2 en ze2 shi2.
雲鬢花顏金步搖.---Yun2 bin4 hua yan2 jin bu4 yao2,
芙蓉帳暖度春宵;---Fu2 rong2 zhang4 nuan3 du4 chun xiao;
春宵苦短日高起,---Chun xiao ku3 duan3 ri4 gao qi3;
從此君王不早朝.---Cong2 ci3 jun wang2 bu4 zao3 chao2.
承歡侍晏無閒暇,---Cheng2 huan shi4 yan4 wu2 xian2 xia2,
春從春遊夜專夜.---Chun cong2 chun you2 ye4 zhuan ye4.
後宮佳麗三千人,---Hou4 gong jia li4 san qian ren2,
三千寵愛在一身.---San qian chong3 ai4 zai4 yi shen.
金屋妝成嬌侍夜,---Jin wu zhuang cheng2 jiao shi4 ye4,
玉樓晏罷醉和春,---Yu4 lou2 yan4 ba4 zui4 he2 chun.
姐妹兄弟皆列士,---Jie3 mei4 xiong di4 jie lie4 shi4,
可憐光彩生門戶.---Ke3 lian2 guang cai3 sheng men2 hu4;
遂令天下父母心,---Sui4 ling4 tian xia4 fu4 mu3 xin,
不重生男重生女.---Bu4 chong2 sheng nan2 chong2 sheng nu3
驪宮高處入青雲,---Li gong gao xu chu3 ru4 qing yun2,
仙樂風飄處處聞;---Xian le4 feng piao chu3 chu3 wen2;
緩歌謾舞凝絲竹,---Huan3 ge man4 wu2 ning2 si zhu2,
盡日君王看不足.---Jin4 ri4 jun wang2 kan4 bu4 zu2.
漁陽鞞鼓動地來,---Yuyang bing4 gu3 dong4 di4 lai2,
驚破霓裳羽衣曲.---Jing po4 Ni Shang Yu Yi Qu.
九重城闕煙塵生,---Jiu3 chong2 cheng2 que4 yan chen2 sheng,
千乘萬騎西南行.---Qian cheng2 wan4 qi2 xi nan2 xing2.
翠華搖搖行復止,---Cui4 hua2 yao2 yao2 xing2 fu4 zhi3,
西出都門百餘里.---Xi chu du men2 bai3 yu2 li3.
六軍不發無奈何?--Liu4 jun bu4 fa wu2 nai4 he2?
宛轉娥眉馬前死.---Wan3 zhuan3 e4 mei2 ma3 qian2 si3.
花鈿委地無人收,---Hua tian2 wei3 di4 wu2 ren2 shou,
翠翹金雀玉搔頭.---Cui4 qiao2 jin que4 yu4 sao tou2.
君王掩面救不得,---Jun wang2 yan3 mian4 jiu4 bu4 de2,
回看血淚相和流.---Hui2 kan xue4 lei4 xiang he2 liu2.
黃埃散漫風蕭索,---Huang2 ai san3 man4 feng xiao suo3,
雲棧縈紓登劍閣.---Yun2 zhan4 ying2 shu deng jian42 ge.
峨嵋山下少人行,---E Mei Shan xia4 shao3 ren2 xing2,
旌旗無光日色薄.---Jing qi2 wu2 guang ri4 se4 bo4.
蜀江水碧蜀山青,---Shu jiang shui3 bi4 shu shan qing,
聖主朝朝暮暮情.---Sheng4 zhu3 zhao zhao mu4 mu4 qing2.
行宮見月傷心色,---Xing2 gong jian4 yue4 shang xin se4,
夜雨聞鈴腸斷聲.---Ye4 yu3 wen2 ling2 chang2 duan4 sheng.
天旋地轉迴龍馭,---Tian xuan2 di4 zhuan3 hui2 long2 yu4,
到此躊躇不能去.---Dao4 ci3 chou2 chu2 bu4 neng2 qu4.
馬嵬坡下泥土中,---Maweipo xia4 ni2 tu3 zhong,
不見玉顏空死處.---Bu4 jian4 yu4 yan2 kong si3 chu3.
君臣相顧盡霑衣,---Jun chen2 xiang gu4 jin4 zhan yi,
東望都門信馬歸.---Dong wang4 du men2 xin4 ma3 gui.
歸來池苑皆依舊,---Gui lai2 chi2 yuan4 jie yi jiu4,
太液芙蓉未央柳;---Tai4 ye4 fu2 rong2 wei4 yang liu3;
芙蓉如面柳如眉,---Fu2 rong2 ru2 mian4 liu3 ru2 mei2,
對此如何不淚垂?--Dui4 ci3 ru2 he2 bu4 lei4 chui2?
春風桃李花開日,---Chun feng tao2 li3 hua kai ri4,
秋雨梧桐葉落時.---Qiu yu3 wu2 tong2 ye4 luo4 shi2.
西宮南入多秋草,---Xi gong nan2 ru4 duo qiu cao3,
落葉滿階紅不掃.---Luo4 ye4 man3 jie hong4 bu4 sao3.
梨園子弟白髮新,---Li2 yuan2 zi3 di4 bai2 fa4 xin,
椒房阿監青娥老.---Jiao fang2 a jian qing e2 lao3.
夕殿螢飛思悄然,---Xi dian4 ying2 fei si qiao ran2,
孤燈挑盡未成眠.---Gu deng tiao3 jin4 wei4 cheng2 mian2.
遲遲鐘鼓初長夜,---Chi2 chi2 zhong gu3 chu chang2 ye4,
耿耿星河欲曙天.---Geng3 geng3 xing he2 yu4 shu3 tian.
鴛鴦瓦冷霜華重,---Yuan yang wa4 leng3 shuang hua2 zhong4,
翡翠衾寒誰與共?--Fei3 cui4 qin han2 shui2 yu4 gong4?
悠悠生死別經年,---You you sheng si3 bie2 jing nian2,
魂魄不曾來入夢.---Hun po4 bu4 zeng lai2 ru4 meng4.
臨邛道士鴻都客,---Lin2 Qiong dao4 shi4 Hong Du ke4,
能以精誠致魂魄;---Neng2 yi3 jing cheng2 zhi4 hun po4;
為感君王輾轉思,---Wei2 gan3 jun wang2 zhan3 zhuan3 si,
遂教方士殷勤覓.---Sui2 jiao fang shi4 yin qin2 mi4.
排雲馭氣奔如電,---Pai2 yun2 yu4 qi4 ben ru2 dian4,
升天入地求之遍,---Sheng tian ru4 di4 qiu2 zhi bian4;
上窮碧落下黃泉,---Shang4 qiong2 bi4 luo4 xia4 huang2 quan2,
兩處茫茫皆不見.---Liang3 chu3 mang2 mang2 jie bu4 jian4.
忽聞海上有仙山,---Hu wen2 hai3 shang4 you3 xian shan,
山在虛無縹緲間;---Shan zai4 xu wu2 piao3 miao3 jian;
樓閣玲瓏五雲起,---Lou2 ge2 ling2 long2 wu3 yun2 qi3,
其中綽約多仙子.---Qi2 zhong chuo4 yue duo xian zi3,
中有一人字太真,---Zhong you3 yi ren2 Tai Zhen,
雪膚花貌參差是.---Xue3 pi2 hua mao4 cen cha shi4.
金闕西廂叩玉扃;---Jin que4 xi xiang kou4 yu4 jiong;
轉教小玉報雙成.---Zhuan3 jiao4 Xiao Yu bao4 shuang cheng2.
聞道漢家天子使,---Wen2 dao4 Han jia tian zi3 shi3,
九華帳裏夢魂驚.---Jiu3 hua2 zhang4 li3 meng4 hun2 jing.
攬衣推枕起徘徊,---Lan3 yi tui zhen3 qi3 pai2 huai2,
珠箔銀屏迤邐開,---Zhu bo2 yin2 bing3 yi3 li3 kai,
雲髻半偏新睡覺,---Yun2 ji4 ban4 pian xin shui4 jiao4,
花冠不整下堂來.---Hua guan bu4 zheng3 xia4 tang2 lai2.
風吹仙袂飄飄舉,---Feng chui xian mei2 piao piao ju3,
猶似霓裳羽衣舞;---You2 si4 ni2 chang2 yu3 yi wu3;
玉容寂寞淚闌干,---Yu4 rong2 ji4 mo4 lei4 lan2 gan,
梨花一枝春帶雨.---Li2 hua yi zhi chun dai4 yu3.
含情凝睇謝君王,---Han2 qing2 ning2 di4 xie4 jun wang2,
一別音容兩渺茫.---Yi bie2 yin rong2 liang3 miao3 mang2.
昭陽殿裏恩愛絕.---Zhao Yang dian4 li3 en ai4 jue2.
蓬萊宮中日月長.---Peng Lai gong zhong ri4 yue4 chang2.
回頭下望塵寰處---Hui2 tou2 xia4 wang4 chen2 huan2 chu3,
不見長安見塵霧.---Bu4 jian4 Changan jian4 chen2 wu4.
惟將舊物表深情,---Wei2 jiang jiu4 wu4 biao3 shen qing2,
鈿合金釵寄將去.---Tian4 he2 jin chai ji4 jiang qu4.
釵留一股合一扇,---Chai liu2 yi gu3 he2 yi shan,
釵擘黃金合分鈿;---Chai bo4 huang2 jin he2 fen tian4;
但教心似金鈿堅,---Dan4 jiao4 xin si4 jin tian4 jian,
天上人間會相見.---Tian shang4 ren2 jian hui4 xiang jian4.
臨別殷勤重寄辭,---Lin2 bie2 yin qin2 chong2 ji4 ci2,
詞中有誓兩心知.---Ci2 zhong you3 shi4 liang3 xin zhi.
七月七日長生殿,---Qi yue4 qi ri4 Changshengdian,
夜半無人私語時.---Ye4 ban4 wu2 ren2 si yu3 shi2,
在天願作比翼鳥,---Zai4 tian yuan4 zuo4 bi3 yi4 niao3,
在地願為連理枝.---Zai4 di4 yuan4 wei2 lian2 li3 zhi,
天長地久有時盡,---Tian chang2 di4 jiu3 you3 shi2 jin4,
此恨綿綿無絕期.---Ci3 hen4 mian2 mian2 wu2 jue2 qi.
The explanation in English
In 713AD Li Long Ji (李隆基) was crowned Emperor Xuan Zong (玄宗) of the
Tang Dynasty (唐朝 618AD to 907AD). Emperor Xuan Zong, who was also known
as Tang Ming Huang (唐明皇), regined from 713AD to 755AD. The period of
his rule was regarded as the second golden age of the Tang Dynasty.
Emperor Xuan Zong had a passion for young, beautiful girls. Since his coronation
he had been searching, far and wide, but without success, for the most beautiful
girl in the land.
A family in his empire by the surname of Yang (楊) was to play a ominous
role
during his rule. The Yang family had a very beautiful teenage daughter,
Yang
Yu Huan (楊玉環), a fact not known to many people. Since she was not about
to be bethrothed to any young man her father sent her to work as a lady-in-waiting
in the Emperor's Palace. She was the most beautiful girl ever to step foot
in the palace. One of the many sons of the Emperor soon married her.
Many years later, one day, Emperor Xuan Zong accidentally met his daughter-in-
law in the palace. At that time, Emperor Xuan Zong was already 61 years
old and Yang Yu Huan was only 26. He was immediately enamoured to her and
snatched her away from his son. He adored her so much that he made her a
Gui Fei (貴妃), first class concubine, and Yang Yu Huan was come to be known
as Yang Gui Fei (楊貴妃).
Just a smile from her was said to be enough to enchant and enrapture the
Emperor. He loved her dearly and more than anything else in the world. He
built her a natural warm spring pool so that she could take her bath at
Spring time. After her bath in the pool her body, reputedly, would look
as smooth as jade.
溫泉水滑洗凝脂﹐侍兒扶起嬌無力。
During Spring time, court officials were made to wait lengthy periods to
get an audience with the Emperor as Yang Gui Fei took up almost all his
time and attention.
Yang Gui Fei's brothers and sisters were appointed to high offices by the
decree of Emperor Xuan Zong. Gradually members of her family gained enornomous
power in the Tang Court. Yang Gui Fei's first cousin older brother, Yang
Guo Zhong (楊國忠), became the Prime Minister and held more than forty portfolios.
However, he was very corrupt and amassed great fortunes. People envied
the Yang family for producing such a beautiful daughter. Due to the glory
and wealth that Yang Gui Fei had brought to her family many families preferred
to have baby girls than baby boys. They hoped that one day their daughters
could follow Yang Gui Fei's footsteps and became the favourite concubine
of an Emperor.
The Emperor's excesses and obsessions with his beloved concubine brought
about the gross neglect of affairs of the state.
An Lu Shan (安祿山), the non-Han Chinese commander-in-chief and governor
of Fan Yang (范陽 present day Beijing 北京 city in Hebei province 河北省
) had the occasion to visit the capital, Chang An (長安 present day Xi An
西安 city in Shaanxi province 陜西省). An Lu Shan could clearly observe
the corruption among the Emperor's officials, especially the Prime Minister
and the decay of the Tang Court. He reported the matters to the Emperor who,
however, refused to believe him. The Prime Minister came to know about this.
An Lu Shan shortly went back to Fan Yang but he had made a formidable enemy,
Yang Guo Zhong, who vowed to destroy him.
One day, to instigate a rebellion by An Lu Shan against the Tang Court,
the Yang Guo Zhong, Prime Minister sent troops to ransack a house that belonged
An Lu Shan. In the process the soldiers also killed a few of An Lu Shan's
friends. That enraged An Lu Shan who was left with no option but to retaliate.
With 170,000 troops under his command An Lu Shan marched west to the Tang
capital, to take puntitive action against Yang Guo Zhong who thought that
he could take this opportunity to get rid of An Lu Shan. However, it seemed
that An Lu Shan and his forces were unstoppable. An Lu Shan and his troops
crossed the Yellow River, overran Luo Yang (洛陽) and turned west marching
towards Chang An. The Tang Court fled in panic as the Tang Ming Huang ordered
a mass evacuation. Soon after, An Lu Shan occupied the capital and razed
it to the ground.
Emperor Xuan Zong and his Court, together with thousands upon thousands
of
residents from the capital, fled southwest towards Cheng Du (成都 present
day
Cheng Du city in Sichuan province 四川省).
Arriving at a place called Ma Wei Po (馬嵬坡 present day Xing Ping county
興平縣 in Shaanxi province) about 100 kilometers from the capital, the retreating
army and the mass of people stopped and refused to go any further. They
demanded the death of the Emperor's concubine, Yang Gui Fei and her elder
brother Yang Guo Zhong, the Prime Minister. Under such extreme circumstances
Emperor Xuan Zong had no alternative but to issue an order to have them
executed.
The execution of the Prime Minister was carried out instantly. Yang Gui
Fei was to be executed by hanging from a tree in a nearby hill. While being
led up the hill Yang Gu Fei cried and begged,
"Save me, save me, Your Majesty! Save me, save me, Your Majesty!"
However, the exodus shouted,
"Hang her! Hang her! Hang her!"
There was a big commotion and the great multitude were looking at Emperor
Xuan Zong awaiting for his reaction. Emperor Xuan Zong was powerless to
help his Gui Fei and very relunctently he gave the order to proceed. Suddenly
the crowd were quiet. Not a sound was heard when the noose was placed around
her neck. Emperor Xuan Zong hung his head and buried his face in his dragon
robes. He dared not look at the execution and tears welled in his eyes.
君王掩面救不得﹐回看血淚相和流. As soon as Yang Gui Fei had kicked her
bucket the crowd roar. Her jewellery was scattered all over but no one bothered
to pick them up. The people had condemned her as well as the jewellery she
wore.
While the Tang Court took refuge in Cheng Du the lovelorn Emperor was pining
away. At times he could not bear to look at the full moon as it reminded
him of the joyous occasions he shared with his Gu Fei. He lost his vitality
to continue as Emperor.
In 756AD Emperor Xuan Zong abdicated the throne and his third son, Li Heng
(李亨), was installed as Emperor Su Zong (肅宗).
The rebellions were eventually crushed and the Tang Court began to move
back to Chang An. On the way back to the capital, at the spot where Yang
Gui Fei was hung, the ex-Emperor stopped and lingered for what seemed like
eternity. He seemed to be searching for his beautiful Gui Fei. He could
not find the place where she was buried. He recited the secret phrases which
no one knew except her and him,
在天願作比翼鳥﹐ 在地願為連理枝。
"Up above the sky we wish we were a pair of birds
On earth we wish we were the two branches of a tree."
Finally when the time came to be moving on, the Ex-Emperor left behind
his tears but not his sadness.
春風桃李花開日﹐秋雨梧桐葉落時。
Back at the capital, the natural warm spring pool was still there and intact,
as were the flowers and trees. It was as if he had not left the palace
at all. But reality soon hit home. His beautiful Gui Fei was no more. He
grieved and longed for her and he was losing his will to live. He wished
he could see her in his dreams every night. He engaged a soothsayer to search
for her spirit but appear it did not, not even just once.
天長地久有時盡﹐ 此恨綿棉無絕期。
..................................................................
(2)
白蛇娘娘 Bai She Niang Niang (White Snake Lady)
during the Song Dynasty (宋朝 960AD to 1279AD)
山外青山樓外樓,---Shan wai4 qing shan lou2 wai4 lou2,
西湖歌舞幾時休?--Sihu ge wu3 ji shi2 xiu?
暖風董得遊人醉,---Nuan3 feng dong3 de2 you3 ren2 zui4,
直把杭州作汴州.---Zhi2 ba3 Hangzhou zuo4 Bianzhou
Out there, over the green mountains are the mansions,
When will the singing and dancing in the West Lake end?
The visitors are lost in the warm wind,
And they are taking Hangzhou as Bianzhou[1A]
[1A] Bianzhou (汴州) was the ancient name of the present day city of Kaifeng
(開封市) in Henan province (河南省)..
Hangzhou (杭危b) is the present day provincial capital og Zhejiang province
(浙江省). There is an old Chinese blurb "天上有天堂, 地上有杭州 In heaven
there is paradise, on earth there is Hangzhou", particularly in the Xihu
(西湖) area.
Xihu, the symbol of Hanzhou city, was originally a lagoon joining the river
of Qiantang (錢塘江). In the 8th century the governor of Hangzhou ordered
the lagoon to be dredged. A dike was built cutting off the lagoon completely
from the river Qiantang. The end result was that a lake was formed with
an area of three kilometres by three kilomrtres. Two causeways, the Baiti
(白提) and Suti (蘇提) were built splitting the lake into sections. Please
refer to the map of Hangzhou:
A few arched bridges were built on each of the causeways. Small boats and
ferries could pass under the bridges. There are flower gardens, pavilions
and bridges around the lake.
During the reign of Emperor Gao Zong Zhao Gou (高宗皇帝趙構 1127AD to 1162AD)
of the Song Dynasty (宋朝 960AD to 1279AD), there was a young student named
Xu Xian (徐仙) who lived with his parents and an elder sister in the city
of Linan (臨安 the present day city of Hangzhou). His father was a herbalist
who owned a herbal shop. Every day, Xu Xian walked to school which was
about two kilometers from his home.
One hot day, as usual he walked to school. Half way to the school, he saw
two tiny snakes, one white and one green, lying on the bank of a small stream
which had dried up due to the drought. He was not afraid of the snakes since
they were so small. He felt sorry for them, lying there drying up. For sure
they were going to die in a short time if he didn't help them. Feeling compassionate
towards the hopeless little creatures, he picked them up and put them inside
his school bag. He gave them a little bit of his lunch and a few drops of
water. He continued to walk to school.
That evening, he made a little wooden box with many tiny holes and kept
the snakes there. Every day, he fed them with food and water before he went
to school. The snakes grew very quickly and within a month both of them
had grown to about six inches long. Xu Xian thought it was time to let them
go back to the wild. The following day he released them near the stream
where he found them; the drought was over and there was water running in
the stream.
Ten years later, Xu Xian had grown up, a handsome young man. His elder sister
had married and lived with her husband who was an army officer. Soon after,
his parents died of illness and Xu Xian took over the business.
清明時節雨紛紛,---Qingming shi2 jie2 yu3 fen fen,
路上行人欲斷魂.---Lu4 shang3 xing2 ren2 yu4 duan3 hun2.
借問酒家何處有?--Jie4 wen4 jiu3 jia he2 chu3 you3?
牧童遙指杏花村.---Mu4 tong2 yao2 zhi3 Xinghuacun.
On the Qingming festival day it is raining occasionally,
The pedestrians look sad,
I ask where the wine shop is?
The shepherd boy replies me by pointing to the village of Xinghua.
The following year, on the day of Qingming (清明), Xu Xian went to the cemetery
to attend to his deceased parents' graves. On his way home, he met a beautiful
woman who was accompanied by a maid on the boat. She was dressed in white
and her maid in green. For a moment Xu Xian enamoured of the beauty of the
woman for he had never seen such a beautiful woman before. She stared at
him for a long time. Somehow they managed to start a conversation and she
introduced herself as Bai (白 White) and told him that her husband had
passed away recently. Xu Xian also told her briefly about himself and they
became friends. She gave him her address and invited him to visit her.
Xu Xian could not sleep that night, constantly thinking of the beautiful
lady. The next day afternoon, he went to visit her. Again he was captivated
by her beauty. She invited him to stay for dinner. After the dinner he became
so infatuated with her that he stayed in her house overnight.
They saw each other quite often and Lady White (白娘娘) suggested that they
should get married. They were married on an auspicious day and her maid
lived with them. They lived happily.
One day, a monk from a nearby temple called Jinshan Temple (金山寺) came
to Xu Xian's shop asking for a donation. Not paying much attention to the
monk, he donated some money and was told to go the temple to pray on the
seventh day of the seventh moon as the temple was going to have a big celebration.
On the seventh day of the seventh moon his best friend called Zhang Ping
(張平) asked him to go to Jinshan Temple to see the celebration. Xu Xian
agreed and he asked his wife to look after the shop while he was away. However,
she told him not to go but he insisted. To avoid disappointing him she
told him that there were three things he should not do when he was at the
temple. First, he should not go inside the chief monk's room. Secondly, he
must not talk to any monk. Thirdly, he must come home early so that she
would not have to go there to look for him. Xu Xian agreed. Off he went
with his friend
Xu Xian and his friend toured the temple, watched the stage show, burned
joss sticks and incense papers and prayed to Buddha. They were having a
wonderful time. The headquarters of the celebration was in the chief monk's
room. When they walked pass the chief monk's room Zhang Ping wanted to go
in and have a look. Remembering what his wife had told him Xu Xian declined
to go in. However, Zhang Ping insisted and persuaded Xu Xian to go in, after
joking about Xu Xian for being a henpecked husband.
The name of the chief monk was called Fa Hai (法海) who, with his psychic
powers, could see that Xu Xian was being possessed by an non- human spirit.
The chief monk told Xu Xian that his wife was not a human. Of course, Xu
Xian wouldn't believe him. Intending to delay Xu Xian from going home Fa
Hai told Zhang Ping to go home first as he had some private matters to discuss
with Xu Xian. After Zhang Ping had left, Fa Hai started to talk about Buddhism
to Xu Xian.
Meanwhile, Lady White was waiting anxiously at home for her husband to return.
As it was already late in the afternoon Lady White sensed that her husband
was not following her instructions. So she went with her maid to the temple
to look for him. She was furious to see Fa Hai trying to incarcerate her
husband. Immediately she attacked Fa Hai with her magic power. Somehow Xu
Xian was knocked out of conscious by one of the monks in the turmoil. Fa
Hai fought back. There were lightings and thunders with heavy storms as they
fought each other with supernatural power. Lady White called upon the water
from the ocean to engulf the temple. The monk managed to hold back the tidal
wave. In the end Lady White extricated her husband from Fa Hai and carried
him home.
When Xu Xian regained his conscious he thanked his wife for taking him home
and was grateful to his wife. However, Xu Xian still did not know that his
wife had supernatural power.
The next year, Lady White gave birth to a baby boy. [Many years later, when
this baby boy grew up he became a well known scholar]. The family of three
lived happily.
It was a hot summer day and Xu Xian went to the market to buy some refreshment
for the family. Coincidentally, he met Fa Hai, the chief monk of Jinshan
Temple. Fa Hai greeted him and they began talking. Fa Hai tried to convince
him that his wife was not a human. However, Xu Xian did not belief him and
their conversation had gone nowhere. In the end Fa Hai asked him to take
his alms-bowl home and placed it beside his wife without her knowledge.
The true would come out whether she was human or not that was what Fa Hai
told Xu Xian.
Tucking the alms-bowl under his armpit Xu Xian went home without knowing
that Fa Hai was following him. When he returned home he saw his wife was
combing her hair inside the room. Without her knowledge he placed the alms-bowl
next to her. Immediately, the alms-bowl turned into a shining one which
flew into the air and landed on Lady White's head. It produced a supernatural
power and sucked Lady White into the shining alms-bowl and she became a
tiny white snake curled on the shining alms-bowl. Fa Hai came into the room
and picked up his alms-bowl and put it into the big pocket of his robe .
Xu Xian was shocked to see what had happened to his wife and he begged Fa
Hai for mercy. Lady White also pleaded for mercy and said,
"I know I am not a human, but I have done no harm to any human. I came here
as a woman to become Xu Xian's wife to pay my gratitude to him because,
many years ago, he saved my life when I was laid dying near a small stream
at the outskirt of the city. I beg you to let me go back to the wild."
Fa Hai refused to listen, instead he forced Lady White to call for her maid
who responded and came to the scene. Fa Hai cast a spell on the maid who
turned out to be a little green snake. He put the little green snake into
the alms-bowl with Lady White. Fa Hai then closed alms-bowl with a lid.
Fa Hai took the alms-bowl containing Lady White and her maid to a place
near the West Lake (西湖) in Linan city in Zhejiang province. Fa Hai dug
out a little hole on the ground and into it he placed the alms-bowl. He
stacked many bricks on top of the hole and left.
A few months later, one of the monks from Jinshan Temple related the story
to a rich man called Qian Wang (錢王 money king). According to Qian Wang,
Lady White and her maids were demons and should be kept under control. So
Qian Wang built a seven story pagoda on top of the alms-bowl. The pagoda
was named as Lei Feng Ta (雷峰塔 or Thunder Peak Pagoda). Fa Hai composed
a poem and stuck it on top of the entrance to this pagoda. The poem read,
西湖水乾,---Xihu shui3 gan,
江湖不起,---Jiang2 hu2 bu4 qi3,
雷峰塔倒,---Leifeng ta3 dao4,
白蛇出世.---Baishe chu shi4.
When the water in West Lake dries up you will see its bottom.
When Lei Feng Pagoda collapses Lady White will be reborn."
There were many country folks complaining that Fa Hai was a busy-body who
forcefully separated the loving couple because he was jealous. As a monk
he should concentrate on reading his bible and mind his own business.
Jade Emperor (玉皇太帝) in Heaven heard about the complains by the people.
He also agreed with the people that Fa Hai was excessive with his supernatural
power and issued decree ordering Fa Hai to come to Heaven to face trial.
Fa Hai was so frightened that he fled from Jinshan Temple and went hiding.
There was no place on earth for him to hide because wherever he went the
messengers sent by Jade Emperor could find him. In desperation he hid inside
the body of a crab. In later days the crab multiplied and multiplied. The
messengers could not kill all the crabs just to arrest him. So Jade Emperor
recalled the messengers and was willing to wait until the extinction of all
the crabs. By that time hopefully Fa Hai would come out.
(The crabs in Hengzhou are unique. Removing all the legs and organs of a
crab and place it inside out you will see the image of a monk with a sad
face squatting on the shell. People call them "monk crabs 和尚蟹").
Eight hundred years later, during the early period of the Republic of China
people believed that whoever possessed a brick from Lei Feng Pagoda of West
Lake in Hengzhou city would bring good luck and wealth to the family. Many
poverty stricken people believed this common superstition and they began
to remove bricks from the pagoda and placed them on their families' altar.
Within a few years the foundation of Lei Feng Pagoda was wrecked and it
collapsed. White Lady and her maid escaped from the alms-bowl and were reborn.
They went to live in the Court of Jade Emperor. However, the monk, Fa Hai
is still hiding inside the bodies of the crabs in Hengzhou city in Zhejiang
province.
------------------------------------------------------------
Note:
Surname BAI (白姓) is the 79th most common Chinese surname in the world.
Posted to asiawind.com
By CHUNG Yoon-Ngan (鄭永元)
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