Dying Flowers

Unlike the rest of the country, living in Southern California enables you to prolong the heat of summer.  Sadly even the warmest of seasons fall victim to the periods of life and death.  As I was picking the last flower in my front yard, it reminded me of Lin Daiyu, a character from Cao Xueqin's The Red Chamber.

For those of you unfamiliar with The Red Chamber, it's a comprehensive book that saga that follows the rise and fall of an aristocratic Qing Dynasty family.  I initially interpreted Lin Daiyu as an overly emotional sick girl that complained to much.  But once I continued reading into her character and the movement of the story, I regretted my initial underestimation of her.

As the year 2012 is about to end, I couldn't help but not feel the present and it's ephemeral nature.  As Lin Daiyu feels pity for the fallen flower petals, she says in a few lines:

"儂今葬花人笑癡，他年葬儂知是誰?"

"As I bury flowers others laugh at my insanity, how will I know who buries me?"

"一朝春盡紅顏老，花落人亡兩不知!"

"Once spring ends the red face of youth ends, fallen flower and missing departed will never be known!"

The entire poem roughly translates to "Ode to the Flower Burial".   Here's a shortened English translation, and a the full Chinese text.

Death and endings are morbid truths that seems to have been erased, or at least blind-sighted by instant communication and high speed internet.  The internet is not a window into the future, or even the present. It's quick recall of information from the past.  Constant availability of quick information provides the illusion of power and immortality, but death and endings are truths that cannot erase.

Stop.  Smell the flowers.

 

What is "Chinese Culture"?

To understand this phrase you have to remove the mask of stereotypes and clichés that weigh it down.  Let's look at something thats the complete opposite of this ambiguity of this phrase:  Marina Abramovic's: The Artist is Present.

It appears to be a woman sitting in a large clunky dress staring at a member of the public across a table.  Once a viewer is done, the person leaves and another sits staring at Abramovic.  Nothing special. But Marina Abromovic has sat on this chair during museum hours for 3 months!  She's not spacing off either.  If the viewer on the other chair is open to the present, she stares straight into you with full concentration.  Both are defenseless, the viewer senses emotion in it's purest form without hiding behind ego or pretext.

The general perception Chinese culture is the complete opposite.  Culture is old, traditional, full of symbolism.  It's 5000 years old and Confucius preaches it's morals.  But is is meaningful?

I forgot which survey, but there's always talk that China surpasses the entire world in math and science.  Was this due to "Chinese culture" ?  I doubt it.  The first line of the Analects quotes, "If there is the practice of learning, is there not joy?"  Were these kids happy when they were bubbling their multiple choice answers?  Both Chinese and non-Chinese have this preconceived notion that education will equate to success, but rarely do people question if the test itself is meaningful.  Barely after 100 years after the civil service exam during the Han Dynasty, it was riddled with corruption and bribery.  I doubt Confucius envisioned his predecessors to strive for perfects on the SAT.

Like a viewer looking into Marina's eyes, we have to let go of our own ego and prejudice when trying to find meaning behind culture.  Chinese culture isn't meaningful because of it's traits, it's meaningful through the values we can sense and intuit.  I hope that as I continue writing my blog, my viewers will find joy in learning.