Li Bai happens to be one of the most outstanding poets of all times in the Chinese history of poetry. He wrote poems that have been acclaimed this day and that are acknowledged and studied all over the world. He embraced different themes in the poems and thus employed many poetic devices as seen through all his poems. One poem in particular which stands out is Zazen on Ching-t’ing Mountain. This particular poem is very short with only two stanzas that contain two lines each, which makes a total of four lines. It is incredible that with only these four lines there is so much that one can learn in regard to understanding an individual. Everything that comes with being human has its explanation through all that happens all around us. It is therefore imperative to seek to understand perspectives on the individual by keenly studying this poem (Beath 112).
In the poem Zazen on Ching-t'ing Mountain, Li Bai centrally brings forth a perspective that centrally focuses on the individual self. To explicitly understand the poem, it is paramount that some of the words he uses be understood from the onset lest the poem fails to make meaning at all. The word “Zazen” which is found in the title of the poem refers to the sitting meditation that is found in Zen Buddhism. During the sitting, one tends to surrender whole heartedly to his or her thoughts. This means that a person takes time to think about the self through reflections of his or her thoughts in regard to his or her life (Seth 48). This means that the central focus is limited to an individual person through thinking and not any other thing in the environment. This therefore explains the richness of the poem as seen through is main focus on the individual through thought just as seen in Zen Buddhism.
In regard to the practice, the individual does not get involved in all the internal processes that take place while seated. This then means that a person is in a state of just thinking and observing without making any move to interfere with whatever that is happening. This could imply that an individual becomes an observer of nature, fuses his or her thoughts and feelings with the environment but puts no effort in changing or interfering with anything. In Zen, such is done in order to understand what life really is without necessarily letting the environment interfere or mislead an individual (Beath 111). This, in regard to the title of the poem is a pointer of what is really taking place on Ching-t’ing Mountain. The persona in the poem may be the one who is taking a silent thoughtful moment on the mountain in order to critically evaluate and look at life from that silent perspective. The title of the poem is therefore very helpful in looking at and analyzing life through the eyes of an individual in assessing the individual through meditation.
Mountains have a very special place in Buddhism and in Zen practices. By choosing a very secluded place such as a mountain then it is crystal clear that the persona in the poem really wants it quite, secretive and personal, a place where meditation can take place. Mountains are places where Buddhists go to pray meditate and carry out worship practices. Many a time, they are encouraged to go about prayer and meditation at a personal level in that one takes time to reevaluate the self in regard to the environment and other people that they live with. Taking time to sit in a secluded place and have such a monologue as the one exhibited by the four lines of the poem clearly indicate the value that is given to such an act. A mountain is a central figure in meditation and because the persona seems to be meditating, it comes in handy as a tool that the poet used to drive his message home. It is therefore imperative to try and fuse the individuality of the self and the title of the poem with regard to how the two are related and the issue of the individual perspective in the poem (Hamill & Seaton 42)
There are four mountains that are seen to be of great importance by the people and society in which this poem was written. These mountains are considered to be a manifestation of enlightenment to the Buddhists and that they represent the four corners or rather quarters of the world. They include Putuoshan to the East, Wutaishan to the North, Emeishan to the West and Jiuhuashan to the South. Chin-t’ing Mountain may have been used by Li Bai to represent one of these mountains where individuals go to have a private meditation. It is therefore no wonder a mountain is used in a poem that seeks to illuminate the perspectives on the individual considering the background and era in which the poem was written (Hamill & Seaton 44). By the use of a mountain and the event that takes place, there is a clear correlation between the two which clearly point to the fact that the self is the point of concern.
When looking at the poem from the unity of all things, that is the Zazen point of view, it is clear that there is change of something from one state of being to another. This change can be looked at from the humanistic perspective as such, a human being changing from one state of being to another. There is the shedding of some attributes maybe physical, emotional or even social in an effort to acquire some new ones that the self may have not possessed there before. It is therefore clear that the individual self transforms from one state to another as implied by the words of the poem (Seth 23). By talking about birds vanishing into the sky, it can be understood that some attributes or characteristics of the persona have left and vanished into thin air maybe by choice or due to some circumstances because it is not very clear how this happens. The birds could be symbolizing some attributes of the self and therefore when they vanish, those attributes are the ones that have vanished. This really implies that there are some changes that take place which the persona acknowledges and seems to be playing a long with now that they are seen through meditation of some sought.
There is a complete makeover on the part of the individual because seemingly there is no stone that has been left unturned. Nothing has been left to chance because apparently there is change even to the last bit. This is evidence when the second line of the poem is looked at. The second line states that “Now the last cloud drains away.” This implies that nothing has been left just like it was before the transformation of the self took place. This insinuates that everything has been subjected to a situation whereby there has to be total change and that the old self has to be gotten rid of and a new set of attributes be embraced (Beath 113). In essence, this is what normally happens during and after meditation because it is thought that when one meditates, he or she seeks divine intervention from a being that is superior to him or she is. Thus, one change from one state of being to another and nothing is left as it were. A new being is born and therefore a person just remains as he or she was physically but every other aspect of life automatically changes and thus, the last cloud melts and drains away whereas a new being comes into being.
The poem goes on to paint a picture of the persona meditating and the mountain remaining when everything else vanishes. It is only the mountain that is left together with the persona. The process of shedding the self at this point has culminated through meditation. The power of the beauty of a person is a central perspective as seen in the poem. This implies that when an individual gets to a sacred place, the senses and even the whole body is transformed into another being that is so different from what is known of the real person in question. The person gets finely tuned to the thoughts that engulf him or her as well as the environment therefore creating a totally different character that one could mistakenly think is out of the real world. The ideas that come into the person enable the individual view life and things from a totally different perspective thereby creating life a fresh from a totally new angle. This therefore leads to such assumptions as those thought to exist in the imagination. The thoughts that are perceived under such situations speak to the person and this seems to happen in a world that was unknown to the individual before. Thoughts that are created are those that even surprise the person meditating (Beath 110).
Just like in any thoughtful encounter, this poem insinuates that the environment can really be of help in assisting an individual surrender to the world of the unknown. When one stays in an environment that they are used to for example in a church setting or a school setting, chances are that everything that they encounter will be viewed as very normal and that nothing will be any different from their expectations as well as imaginations (Coleman 14). But it is totally a different thing when one settles on a totally different environment which in one way or another may not be considered to be ordinary. Such an environment can create new thoughts and an otherwise different feeling therefore making a person think and even do things differently. After such an encounter, a person becomes enlightened in one way or another and therefore becomes rich in thought and the way in which they go about doing what they do on their everyday life. In such an environment as the one created in the poem, the spirit seems to fuse with the environment which in a way helps transform not only the self but also the world. Therefore, one cannot be mistaken if he sees this as a form of neurological network manifested between human beings and nature or the natural world.
The quality of life improves in a very natural way when thoughts are provoked by the natural environment. Thoughts create space in the human mind that seeks to be filled by new ideas which impact life in general in a big and in most cases a positive way. When one pays attention to new thoughts an intuition, many are the times when new thoughts and ideas are born (Hirshfield 44). Beauty therefore becomes inevitable and life changing happenings take place and that is how perspectives on the individual start to vary. This leads to the reinventing of a person through whatever new insights and thoughts that one comes up with. This in the long run translates to realizing the capabilities that one possesses. It does not just stop at self evaluation but borrows so much from the world at large.
It is always good to be open minded and be in a position to embrace life with open hands. At least this is the lesson that one can pick from this poem. Knowing how to go about searching the self with the aid of the environment is intelligence in itself and this leads to enlightenment, according to the Zen teachings and practices (Coleman 66). The human body and mind through the poem is seen to be reuniting with the mountain as depicted by the last line of the poem. This means that there is a point at which this unity reaches a point of no return because only the mountain remains. This could either mean that as one goes about life, there are things that they encounter that completely transforms them and they are the things that really matter and that they define an individual and help shape their destiny. Self reflection is therefore paramount in finding out what an individual is made up of in regard to finding the self. When exploring the sub terrains that make up an individual, there emerges better understanding of the self.
Works Cited
Beath, Andrew. Consciousness in Action: The Power of Beauty, Love and Courage in a Violent Time. New York: Lantern Books. 2005
Coleman, Mark. Awake in the Wild: Mindfulness in Nature as a Path of Self Discovery. New York: New World Library. 2006
Hamill, Sam & Seaton, J. The Poetry of Zen. Boston: Shambhala. 2004
Hirshfield, Jane. Ink Dark Moon: Love Poems. Kansas: Tandem Library. 1990
Seth, Vikram. Three Chinese Poets: Translations of Poems by Wang Wei, Li Bai and Du Fu. London: Phoenix. 1997
