The Poetics of Sovereignty
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See Deng Shiliang, Liang Jin shi lun, pp. 158–74; and Zhang Tingyin, Wei Jin xuanyan shi yanjiu.
119. Sui shu, 35.1090.
120. This alludes to a comment by Cai nobleman Gongsun Guisheng 公孫歸生, also
known as Shengzi 聲子, comparing the officials of Chu and Jin: “Jin ministers do not compare to those of Chu. As for their grand masters, however, they are worthies, all of them possessing ministerial talents; like wolfberry and catalpa timber or skins and leather hides, they originate in Chu. Although Chu may possess the talent, it is Jin that truly makes use of it” 晉
卿不如楚，其大夫則賢，皆卿材也；如杞梓皮革，自楚往也。雖楚有材，晉實
用之. See Zuo zhuan, Duke Xiang, 26th year / Chunqiu Zuo zhuan zhu, p. 1120. Following Hucker, during the Zhou the title of Grand Master 大夫 was second in rank only to the
Minister 卿; see A Dictionary of Official Titles in Imperial China, p. 465.
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The Reception of Literature in Tang Taizong’s Court
and hastening forth “fine blossoms” [of fame] in the dynasty’s early years.121 In
character and discernment, he was pure and fresh; in spirit and feeling, he was out-
standing and remote. His literary phrasings were grandly beautiful, without peer in
the age; his discourses were deeply moving, the cap of all since antiquity. His lofty words shone afar, like how the bright moon suspends its light; his layered conceptions spread out into the distance, like how the folded peaks amass their greatness.
The thousand threads analyzed principles ( li), then lightning cracked and frost spread; a single strand connected the pattern ( wen), and the pearls and jades [of his writing] were fluent and cohered.122 His words were profound and elegant, and his
meanings broad and illuminating, and thus he was able to far surpass Mei Sheng
and Sima Xiangru, and to loftily step over Wang Can and Liu Zhen. In regard to
the literary ideal of a hundred ages, there was only this one man.
古人云：“雖楚有才，晉實用之。”觀夫陸機、陸雲，實荊衡之杞
梓，挺珪璋於秀實，馳英華於早年，風鑒澄爽，神情俊邁。文藻宏
麗，獨步當時；言論慷慨，冠乎終古。高詞迥映，如朗月之懸光；疊
意迴舒，若重巖之積秀。千條析理，則電坼霜開；一緒連文，則珠流
璧合。其詞深而雅，其義博而顯，故足遠超枚馬，高躡王劉，百代文
宗，一人而已。
The question in reading this text becomes, at its heart, one of motive. That
is to say, why did Taizong write a summation for Lu Ji? Taizong’s other
three Jin shu pieces can easily be explained, as two were for the Jin founders and one for Taizong’s beloved calligrapher Wang Xizhi. Lu Ji was, of
course, the major poet of the Western Jin, but he is elevated by Taizong in-
to “the literary ideal of a hundred ages.” Taizong also claims that the Jin po-
et far surpassed the achievements of the Western Han court poets Mei
Sheng 枚乘 (d. 141 bc) and Sima Xiangru, and the Jian’an writers Wang
Can and Liu Zhen. The thrust of this statement is quite radical, as it is the
Western Jin writer who is identified as the founding figure of literature,
—————
121. The term yinghua 英華 (“fine blossoms”) appears in Ban Gu’s “Answering the Guest’s Jest” 答賓戲, where it is glossed by Yan Shigu as mingyu 名譽 (“fame,” “reputation”). See Ban Gu, comp., Han shu, 100A.4226.
122. The “thousand threads” refer to the complexity of Lu Ji’s rhetorical craft or perhaps of his writing in general. The pearls and jades refer to the beauty and invention of his writing.
The locus classicus of the phrase zhuliu bihe 珠流璧合 is found in the Han shu’s “Treatise on Calendrics” 律曆志: “Sun and moon are like matched jade disks; the five planets are
like connected pearls” 日月如合璧，五星如連珠. See Han shu, 21A.976. The “five
planets” correspond to Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, Venus, and Mercury. See Needham with
Wang Ling, Science and Civilisation in China, vol. 3, sec. 19–25, Mathematics and the Sciences of the Heavens and Earth, pp. 398–401.
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The Reception of Literature in Tang Taizong’s Court
155
and not the prominent poets of the Han and Wei who preceded him. In
fact, Taizong does not only recognize Lu Ji’s greatness, which earlier critics
like Zhong Rong had also noted, but he goes so far as to claim for Lu Ji a ge-
nealogical preeminence that reverses the very logic of literary history em-
ployed by the Zhenguan historians in composing the dynastic histories.123
At this point, Taizong turns to situate Lu Ji’s literary achievement
within his biographical context. Indeed, it could be said that Lu Ji’s im-
portance as a poet is framed—and one might say overshadowed—by the
essay’s account of his political and military career:
His ancestors cast their “doubled radiance”124 and assisted the fortunes of Wu;
serving in civil and military offices for successive generations, generals and ministers were as a braid of flowers. But it was Lu Ji who was the storehouse of talent
in the court, the outstanding jade vessel used for sacrifice at the ancestral tem-
ple,125 worthy to receive the blessings of the noble worthies and to undertake the
task of assisting the age, proffering his abilities and displaying his capacities, preserving reputation and transmitting merit. When it happened that the seat of
Wu was overthrown and Jinling lost its aura, then the sovereign was displaced
and the state was destroyed, the clan died out and its subjects fled. Raising high
their pinions, they [Lu Ji and his brother Lu Yun] bade farewell to the south, but
unfortunately roosted upon a burning tree; flying scales departed for the north,
but ended by taking refuge in a boiling pond. As a consequence, the grottoes of
the twin dragons were splintered; the nests of the two phoenixes overturned.
Their intentions to stir the waves were not yet sent forth, when suddenly great
scales were stripped to bone; thoughts of soaring above the clouds were about to
take flight, but not before vigorous wings were burned to ash. They hoped for
such soaring and leaping, but how could they get to do this?
然其祖考重光，羽楫吳運，文武奕葉，將相連華。而機以廊廟蘊才，
瑚璉標器，宜其承俊乂之慶，奉佐時之業，申能展用，保譽流功。屬
吳祚傾基，金陵畢氣，君移國滅，家喪臣遷。矯翮南辭，翻棲火樹；
—————
123. Zhong Rong, in the first preface from his Shi pin 詩品 ( Gradations of Poetry), argued that “Lu Ji was the flower of the Taikang reign” 陸機為太康之英. See Shi pin jizhu, 1.28.
124. This is an allusion to “Gu ming” 顧命 in the Classic of Documents: “The former sovereigns King Wen and King Wu displayed their doubled radiance” 昔君文王、武王，宣
重光. The figure of doubled radiance refers to the successive reigns of the Wen and Wu.
See Shang shu zhengyi, 18.126a, in Shisanjing zhushu, p. 238.
125. This is an allusion to the passage in which Confucius compares Zigong to the hulian 瑚璉. The Eastern Han commentator Bao Xian 包咸 (6 bc–ad 65) notes that the hulian
w
as the ritual vessel used for holding millet ( shuji 黍稷). See Lunyu 5.3 / Lunyu jishi, 9.292.
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156
The Reception of Literature in Tang Taizong’s Court
飛鱗北逝，卒委湯池。遂使穴碎雙龍，巢傾兩鳳。激浪之心未騁，遽
骨修鱗；陵雲之意將騰，先灰勁翮。望其翔躍，焉可得哉！
Following in his grandfather’s and father’s footsteps, Lu Ji served as a mil-
itary commander of Wu. Later, when Wu fell to the Jin, Lu Ji served in a
variety of governmental posts and appointments in the Jin princely courts,
but then quickly found himself embroiled in the Rebellion of the Eight
Princes, which lasted from 291 to 307.126 Sima Ying 司馬穎 (279–306),
Prince of Chengdu, had earlier saved Lu Ji from a death sentence, follow-
ing the defeat of Lu’s patron Sima Lun 司馬倫 (d. 301). However, when
the prince moved against his brother Sima Yi, Lu Ji was appointed com-
mander-in-chief and was defeated in battle. After this, Lu Ji and his sons,
as well as his brother Yun, were all executed.127
The question of what it means to display one’s talents in a dangerous
age—to be the preeminent poet during a time in which there is no dis-
cerning and enlightened sovereign—leads Taizong to muse on the choice
between service and reclusion. He goes on to comment:
When worthy men establish themselves, they take deed and name as the basis;
when gentlemen dwell in the world, they take wealth and rank as the priority.
This being so, then glory and profit are what men seek, while ruin and shame are
what men detest. Dwelling in peace and preserving one’s name—a superior per-
son could find rest in this; risking danger and treading among the mighty—the
wise gentleman would flee from this. This is to recognize that if the thorough-
wort grows in the middle of the path, it certainly will not possess a green that
spans the age; and if the osmanthus grows in a hidden gulch, to the end it will
preserve a crimson that endures the years.128 It is not that the thoroughwort is de-
tested while the osmanthus cherished; nor could it be that the pathway injures
while the gulch is advantageous. Rather, the differing circumstances of hiding
and exposure are the reason for differing ends of life and death.
—————
126. On the internecine wars of the Western Jin, see Graff, Medieval Chinese Warfare, 300 – 900, pp. 44–47.
127. Here I have consulted David R. Knechtges’ synoptic biography of Lu Ji in Knechtges’
translation of the Wen xuan, or Selections of Refined Literature, vol. 3, pp. 379–81.
128. Here, the description of the gui 桂 tree as preserving its “crimson” ( dan 丹) indicates that it is the osmanthus, which has either white or red flowers, to which the text is referring.
See Chennault, “Reclusive Gui,” p. 153. For a comprehensive study of the gui plant, see Kern, Zum Topos “Zimtbaum.” An earlier study is Schafer, “T’ang Osmanthus,” pp. 1–2.
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The Reception of Literature in Tang Taizong’s Court
157
夫賢之立身，以功名為本；士之居世，以富貴為先。然則榮利人之所
貪，禍辱人之所惡，故居安保名，則君子處焉；冒危履貴，則哲士去
焉。是知蘭植中塗，必無經時之翠；桂生幽壑，終保彌年之丹。非蘭
惌而桂親，豈塗害而壑利？而生滅有殊者，隱顯之勢異也。
This is a fairly standard meditation on reclusion as a way of preserving
one’s life. Taizong acknowledges how it is in the nature of worthy men to
seek after fame and reputation, but how the wise among them also realize
that historical circumstances must be heeded.
In the closing passage, the emperor goes on to lament how Lu Ji and Lu
Yun chose to realize their ambitions of serving the Jin princes even if it
meant death:
Thus I say: few can rest secure for long if they flaunt their virtues in a disadvantageous location, but one would be able to preserve one’s nature by concealing one’s
extraordinary talents in a well-chosen dwelling. When I observe the conduct of Lu
Ji and Lu Yun, I see that their wisdom did not match their words. When I see the
warnings in their literary works—I wonder how could knowing it be easy but put-
ting it into practice difficult? I consider that his [Lu Ji’s] wisdom was sufficient to settle the age, that his talent was enough to assist the Mandate, that he only desired to preserve family prestige, and that in no way did he disgrace the ancestral patrimony. He did not know that the age afforded no passage, that wielding the bells at
the time would come to naught.129 If he advanced, he could not avoid darkness or
rectify disorder; if he retreated, he could not shield his tracks and preserve his life.
And so he exerted his powers in dangerous territories and worked his mind for me-
diocre rulers. Though loyalty was pledged in truth, he was not forgiven; though the
slander was without basis, he was met with suspicion. Life may rest in one’s own
hands, but it is hard to prolong; death, however, when it comes at the hands of oth-
ers is easy to hasten. The “hound of Shangcai” provided no warning from the past;
the “crane of Huating” at that moment felt regret for the future.130 In the end, the
—————
129. The bells allude here to Lu Ji’s service as a military commander. The association of bells with military service is articulated in the “Record of Music” 樂記, which was appended to the Record of Ritual: “When the gentleman hears the sounds of bells, he then thinks on those who serve in battle” 君子聽鍾聲，則思武臣. See Li ji xunzuan, 19.592.
For a full translation of the passage, see Cook, “Yue Ji,” p. 63.
130. Shangcai 上蔡, in the former region of Chu, was the name of Li Si’s home village.
When Li Si was about to be executed, he said to his son, who was also imprisoned, “I wish that, with you, I could again lead the brown hounds, together leaving Shangcai’s eastern gate to go hunt rabbits—now how could I get to do this!” 吾欲與若復牽黃犬俱出上蔡
東門逐狡兔，豈可得乎！ See Shi ji, 87.2562. Huating 華亭, in the old kingdom of Wu,
was where the Lu family estate was located. When facing death, Lu Ji said, “The crying of This content downloaded from 129.174.21.5 on Sat, 20 Jul 2019 13:01:41 UTC
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The Reception of Literature in Tang Taizong’s Court
lineage was caused to be toppled and the ancestral sacrifices ended—this is indeed
pitiful!131 In this way, three generations served as generals, consecrating the bells for the descendants to come;132 but executing those who had surrendered was inauspicious, and disaster reached down to later generations.133 Thus, one can know
how the Xiling incident would be resolved from its inauspicious start, and how dis-
aster was played out at Heqiao.134 This is the intent of Heaven—how could it be
in the hands of human beings?
故曰：衒美非所，罕有常安；韜奇擇居，故能全性。觀機、雲之行己
也，智不逮言矣。覩其文章之誡，何知易而行難？自以智足安時，才
堪佐命，
庶保名位，無忝前基。不知世屬未通，運鍾方否，進不能闢
昏匡亂，退不能屏跡全身，而奮力危邦，竭心庸主，忠抱實而不諒，
謗緣虛而見疑，生在己而難長，死因人而易促。上蔡之犬，不誡於
前；華亭之鶴，方悔於後。卒令覆宗絕祀，良可悲夫！然則三世為
將，釁鍾來葉；誅降不祥，殃及後昆。是知西陵結其凶端，河橋收其
禍末，其天意也，豈人事乎！135
—————
Huating’s cranes—how will I ever again hear their sound!” 華亭鶴唳，豈可復聞乎！
See Jin shu, 54.1480.
131. Taizong refers here to the killing of Lu Ji and his sons.
132. Having three generations of generals in one’s family is inauspicious. At the end of the
“Biographies of Bo Qi and Wang Jian” 白起王翦列傳, a staged exchange between a
“someone” ( huo 或) and a “guest” ( ke 客) takes place. (This is the only such instance in the Shi ji of a fictional exchange occurring at an extradiegetic level.) The “someone” comments on the likely success of Wang Li 王離, who was a general like his father Wang Fen 王賁 and his illustrious grandfather Wang Jian 王翦 before him. The “guest” replies that Wang Li was not to succeed, explaining the reason as follows: “Now, when three generations have served as general there will certainly be failure. Why will there certainly be failure? It must have been the case that those they killed and fought were numerous, and so their descendants will have inherited the inauspicious fate” 夫為將三世者必敗。必敗
者何也？必其所殺伐多矣，其後受其不祥. See Shi ji, 73.2341–42. The idea of having
three generations of generals being inauspicious is repeated with different examples in Han shu, 54.2469; Hou Han shu, 19.714–15; and Jin shu, 54.1479 (where it refers to Lu Ji’s case). The term xin 釁 refers to the use of blood from a freshly sacrificed animal to anoint ritual vessels. For example, see the famous episode of King Xuan of Qi not being able to bear the sight of the bull being led to sacrifice in Mengzi 1A.7 / Mengzi zhengyi, 3.80.
133. This would seem to refer to the execution of Bu Chan 步闡 by Lu Ji’s father, Lu Kang 陸抗 (226–74). See Sanguo zhi, 52.1240, 58.1356–57.