♕ D O W N, D O W N, G O N E: a mix for orpheus, descending
somewhere a man is standing at a dark gate, lyre in hand. he is not weeping; he has wept so long that he is emptied out, and the spirits of the woods wept with him. now his eyes are dry as stones, and his heart as hard. he knows where he must go; he knows what he must do he knows where this grey road leads. his foot is on the path. he is setting out. he is gone.
you are my sunshine peter broderick | ashes hauschka & hilary hahn | bow to string iii: air to breath daniel bjarnason | Þú ert sólin olafur arnalds | elegia jacaszek | feelings for something lost in two parts (pt. 2) library tapes | they being dead yet speaketh johann johannsson | words melt away rothko
MYTHIC POETRY series:
But her body had disappeared as dust—such a sad event!
“The Tale of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai” — Unknown
THE BUTTERFLY LOVERS is a Chinese legend of a tragic love story between Liang Shanbo (梁山伯) and Zhu Yingtai (祝英台).
Zhu Yingtai is a beautiful and intelligent young woman, the only daughter of the wealthy Zhu family. Although traditions of that era discourage females from going to school, Yingtai manages to convince her father to allow her to attend classes in disguise as a young man. During her journey, she meets Liang Shanbo, a scholar. They converse, feeling a strong affinity for each other at their first meeting. They study together for the next three years in school and Yingtai gradually falls in love with Shanbo. He fails to notice the feminine characteristics exhibited by his classmate.
One day, Yingtai receives a letter from her father, asking her to return home as soon as possible. Yingtai has no choice but to bid Shanbo farewell. Shanbo accompanies his “sworn brother” for 18 miles to see her off. During the journey, Yingtai hints to Shanbo that she is a woman, but he remains oblivious. Shanbo and Yingtai reluctantly part ways at the Changting pavilion.
Months later, when Shanbo visits Yingtai, he discovers the truth. They become devoted to each other and they make a vow of “till death do us part.” The joy of their reunion is short-lived as Yingtai is already arranged to marry another man. Shanbo is heartbroken when he hears the news and his health gradually deteriorates. Ultimately, he succumbs to death.
On the day of Yingtai’s marriage, mysterious whirlwinds prevent the wedding procession from escorting the bride beyond Shanbo’s grave, which lies along the journey. Yingtai leaves the procession to pay her respects to her former lover. She descends in bitter despair and begs for the grave to open up. Suddenly, the grave opens with a clap of thunder. Without further hesitation, Yingtai throws herself into the grave to join Shanbo. Their spirits turn into a pair of beautiful butterflies and emerge from the grave. They fly away together, never to be separated again.
Chinese Literature | The Cowherd and the Weaver
「河漢清且淺，相去複幾許？盈盈一水間，脈脈不得語。」
The Cowherd and the Weaver is not a work of literature, but a folktale. However, since it inspired a fair amount of poetry and writings, I am including it here. Niulang, an orphan, lived with his brother and sister-in-law. However, his sister-in-law despised him, and banished him by giving him nine cows and telling him not to return until he had ten. To his surprise, he finds a sickly ox on a mountain. Niulang cares for this ox which is actually an exiled Taurus. Taurus helps him find a place where fairies descend from the heavens to play and bathe. One of the fairies, Zhinu, falls in love with Niulang, and eventually becomes pregnant with twins. However, due to liaisons between celestial beings and humans being strictly forbidden, she was taken back to the heavens. Taurus lends Niulang his aid once again, telling him to skin him after his death and make his leather into shoes. These shoes takes Niulang to Zhinu, but the goddess Xi Wangmu separates them with her silver hair ornament, the Milky Way. However, magpies are moved by Niulang’s devotion to Zhinu, and take pity upon their circumstances. Forming a bridge, they allow Niulang and Zhinu to cross the Milky Way and reunite. Having seen that, Xi Wangmu makes concessions, and allows the couple to meet once a year on Qixi, the seventh day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar.
Chinese Mythology: The Story of Chang’e and Houyi
Houyi was an exceptional archer - one whose skills were known far and wide. His lover, Chang’e was just as exceptional - her beauty was unsurpassed.
One day, the ten children of the Jade Emperor rose in the sky in rebellion of their parents. They scorched the earth with their heat and razed the ground with their rays. To save the world Houyi shot them down with arrows saving only one to light the earth.
mythology meme | [2/5] OTPs
Orpheus and Eurydice
On his mother’s side he was more than mortal. He was the son of one of the Muses and a Tracian prince. His mother gave him the gift of music and Thrace where he grew up fostered it. The Thracians were the most musical of the peoples of Greece. But Orpheus had no rival there or anywhere except the gods alone. There was no limit to his power when he played and sang. No one and nothing could resist him. When he first met and how he wooed the maiden he loved, Euridice, we are not told, but it is clear that no maiden he wanted could have resisted the power of his song. They were married, but their joy was brief. Directly after the wedding, as the bride walked in a meadow with her bridesmaids, a viper stung her and she died. Orpheus’ grief was overwhelming. He could not endure it. He determined to go down to the world of death and try to bring Eurydice back. He dared more than any other man ever dared for his love. He took the fearsome journey to the underworld. There he struck his lyre, and at the sound all that vast multitude were charmed to stillness. They summoned Eurydice and gave her to him, but upon one condition: that he would not look back at her as she followed him, until they had reached the upper world. So the two passed through the great doors of Hades to the path which would take them out of the darkness, climbing up and up. He knew that she must be just behind him, but he longed unutterably to give one glance to make sure. But now they were almost there, the blackness was turning gray; now he had stepped out joyfully into the daylight. Then he turned to her. It was too soon; she was still in the cavern. He saw her in the dim light, and he held out his arms to clasp her; but on the instant she was gone. She had slipped back into the darkness. All he heard was one faint word, “Farewell.”