Qu Yuan was a Chinese poet and aristocrat in the State of Chu during the Warring States period. He is known for his patriotism and contributions to classical poetry and verses, especially through the poems of the Chu Ci anthology : a volume of poems attributed to or considered to be inspired by his verse writing. Together with the Shi Jing, the Chu Ci is one of the two greatest collections of ancient Chinese verse. He is also remembered in connection to the supposed origin of the Dragon Boat Festival.
"Li Sao" is an ancient Chinese poem from the anthology Chuci traditionally attributed to Qu Yuan. Li Sao dates from the 3rd century BCE, during the Chinese Warring States period.
Summons of the Soul, Summoning of the Soul, or Zhao Hun is one of the poems anthologized in the ancient Chinese poetry collection, the Chu Ci. The "Summons of the Soul" consists of a four-part poem. The first part consists of a few lines with no clear relationship to the rest of the poem. The second part is a prolog in the form of a conversation in heaven, in which God (帝) orders the Ancestor Shaman Wu Yang (巫陽) to go down below to earth and help out in the case of someone whose soul has wandered off. Part three is the actual summoning of the soul, by means of threats and temptations. The fourth part is an epilog (luan). The authorship of "Summons of the Soul" has been attributed to Qu Yuan, but Song Yu is more likely. The "Summons of the Soul" is very similar, but longer, than another of the Chu ci poems, "The Great Summons". Both poems derive from a shamanic tradition of summoning the soul of someone who has seemed to die, most likely originally with the intention of having it to re-animate its former body. The two poems both follow a similar pattern: threats of dangers lurking in all directions to which the soul might wander and then detailed lists with tempting descriptions of magnificent sensual pleasures which would be available as a reward for the souls obedient return
Jiu Ge, or Nine Songs, is an ancient set of poems. Together, these poems constitute one of the 17 sections of the poetry anthology which was published under the title of the Chuci. Despite the "Nine", in the title, the number of these poetic pieces actually consists of eleven separate songs, or elegies. This set of verses seems to be part of some rituals of the Yangzi River valley area involving the invocation of divine beings and seeking their blessings by means of a process of courtship. Though the poetry consists of lyrics written for a performance, the lack of indications of who is supposed to be singing at any one time or whether some of the lines represent lines for a chorus makes an accurate reconstruction impossible. Nonetheless there are internal textual clues, for example indicating the use of costumes for the performers, and an extensive orchestra.
Jiu Zhang is a collection of poems attributed to Qu Yuan and printed in the Chu Ci.
Song Yu was a Chinese poet from the late Warring States period, and is known as the traditional author of a number of poems in the Verses of Chu . Among the Verses of Chu poems usually attributed to Song Yu are those in the Jiu Bian section. Also credited to Song Yu, somewhat improbably, are several fu collected in the 6th century literary anthology Wen Xuan.
Han poetry as a style of poetry resulted in significant poems which are still preserved today, and whose origins are associated with the Han dynasty era of China, 206 BC – 220 AD, including the Wang Mang interregnum. The final years at the end of the Han era often receive special handling for purposes of literary analysis because, among other things, the poetry and culture of this period is less than typical of the Han period, and has important characteristics of its own, or it shares literary aspects with the subsequent Three Kingdoms period. This poetry reflects one of the poetry world's more important flowerings, as well as being a special period in Classical Chinese poetry, particularly in regard to the development of the quasipoetic fu; the activities of the Music Bureau in connection with the collection of popular ballads and the resultant development of what would eventually become known as the yuefu, or as the rhapsodic formal style; and, finally, towards the end of the Han dynasty, the development of a new style of shi poetry, as the later development of the yuehfu into regular, fixed-line length forms makes it difficult to distinguish in form from the shi form of poetic verse, and at what point specific poems are classified as one or the other is somewhat arbitrary. Another important poetic contribution from the Han era is the compilation of the Chuci anthology, which contains some of the oldest and most important poetic verses to be preserved from ancient China, as well as the transmission of the Shijing anthology.
The Heavenly Questions or Questions to Heaven is a piece contained in the Classical Chinese poetry collection of Chu Ci, which is noted both in terms of poetry and as a source for information on the ancient culture of China, especially the area of the ancient state of Chu. Of all the poems attributed to Qu Yuan, "Tianwen" contains more myths than any of the other pieces which may be attributed to him; however, due to the formal structure of "Tianwen" as a series of questions, information regarding the myths alluded to appear more as a series of allusive fragments than as cohesively narrated stories.
Wang Yi, courtesy name Shushi, was a Chinese anthologist, librarian, and poet during the Eastern Han dynasty who was employed in the Imperial Library by the Later Han emperor Shun Di. Wang Yi is known for his work on the poetry anthology Chu Ci. Although with varying reliability, his commentaries on this work are a main source of information regarding some of its often obscure textual references.
Nine Longings form one of the 17 major sections of the ancient Chinese poetry collection, the Chu ci. The "Nine Longings" consists of ten poems, each individually titled, written according to the style of the earlier pieces in the Chu ci anthology. It is one of the several collections of poems grouped under the title of "Nine" something-or-others, most but not all of which consist of 9 pieces of poetry. One of the older of them, Jiu ge consists of 11 individual pieces: "nine" in antiquity was often used as a synonym for "many", and in the context of the Chu ci generally refers to a musical arrangement with "nine" modal changes. The "Nine Longings" poems were written by the Han dynasty royal librarian Wang Yi, who is more famous for his commentary on the Chu ci than he is for these original works which he appended to his published annotated copy.
"The Great Summons" or "Da Zhao" is one of the poems anthologized in the ancient Chinese poetry collection, the Chu ci, also known as The Songs of the South. "The Great Summons" consists of a single poem without introduction or epilog. Its authorship has been attributed to Qu Yuan and to the otherwise relatively unknown Jing Cuo. It is very similar, but shorter, than another of the Chu ci poems, Zhao Hun,. Both poems derive from a shamanic tradition of summoning the soul of the someone who has seemed to die, most likely originally with the intention of having it to re-animate its former body. The two poems both follow a similar pattern: threats of dangers lurking in all directions to which the soul might wander and then tempting descriptions of magnificent sensual pleasures which would be available as a reward for the souls obedient return.
"Alas That My Lot Was Not Cast" or "Ai shi ming" is one of the poems anthologized in the ancient Chinese poetry collection, the Chu ci; which, together with the Shijing comprise the two major textual sources for ancient Chinese poetry. "Alas That My Lot Was Not Cast" is an example of the Sao type of Chu ci poetry, in the "O tempora o mores!" vein. The authorship of the "Alas That My Lot Was Not Cast" poem has been attributed to Zhuang Ji.
"Nine Regrets" is the 11th of the 17 major sections of the ancient Chinese poetry collection Chu ci, also known as The Songs of the South or The Songs of Chu. The "Nine Regrets" consists of nine verses plus an envoi (luan), each individually titled, written according to the Han dynasty literary revival style based upon the earlier (pre-Han) pieces in the Chu ci anthology. The "Nine Regrets" is one of the several collections of poems grouped under the title of "Nine" something-or-others, which do not necessarily consist of 9 pieces of poetry. Nine Regrets consists of nine main pieces plus a luan, or envoi. The "Nine Regrets" poems are attributed to the Shu poet Wang Bao who flourished during the reign of Emperor Xuan.
"Nine Laments" is one of the 17 major sections of the ancient Chinese poetry collection Chu ci, also known as The Songs of the South or The Songs of Chu. The "Nine Laments" consists of nine verses, each with an individual name, and each with a main part, paired with a concluding "lament". The "Nine Laments" is one of the several collections of poems grouped under the title of "Nine" something-or-others, which do not necessarily consist of 9 pieces of poetry. One of the older of them, Jiu Ge consists of 11 individual pieces: "nine" in antiquity was often used as a synonym for "many", and in the context of the Chu ci generally refers to a musical arrangement with "nine" modal changes. The "Nine Laments" poems are attributed to Liu Xiang.
"Nine Changes," also known as "Nine Variations,""Chiu pien" or "Jiu Bian" is one of the 17 poems in the ancient Chinese poetry collection Chu ci, also known as The Songs of the South, or The Verses of Chu. Along with Shi Jing, Chu ci is one of the two essential Classical Chinese anthologies of poetry. The authorship, date, division, title significance, and composition intention of "Nine Changes" are controversial. However, it is still vital in the development process of Chinese poetry. As a poem in Chu ci, "Nine Changes" is written in a new style: "Sao Style," which allows each line to contain a good deal of narrative. Moreover, starting from "Nine Changes," "be grieved by autumn" (悲秋) has been a motif of traditional Chinese literature.
"Summons for a Recluse" is one of the 17 major sections of the ancient Chinese poetry collection Chu ci, also known as The Songs of the South or The Songs of Chu. The "Summons for a Recluse" is a short but influential poem. The actual poet is not known; but, Liu An or an associate are likely as authors.
"Seven Remonstrances" or "Seven Admonishments" is one of the 17 major sections of the ancient Chinese poetry collection Chu ci, also known as The Songs of the South or The Songs of Chu. The "Seven Admonishments" consists of seven poetic verses, plus a luan. The Seven Admonishments are written in the persona of Qu Yuan, but the actual poet or poets who authored these pieces is unknown; but, Wang Yi supposes them to have been written by Dongfang Shuo, a supposition which David Hawkes rejects, on various grounds. In terms of poetic quality, Hawkes finds the Qi jian poems to be "extremely derivative" of the other Chu ci pieces, and he further describes them as "a long, almost unrelieved litany of complaint which progresses by mere accumulation and ends only when the poet, reader and metaphor are all three exhausted.".
Wang Bao, courtesy name Ziyuan (子淵), was a Chinese poet during the Western Han dynasty. He was well versed in the Classical Chinese poetry tradition. He was involved in the Chu Ci poetry revival which took place in the second part of Emperor Xuan's reign, and which led to the creation of poetry that would eventually form part of the early poetry anthology by the same name, compiled by Wang Yi. Chu Ci means "literature of Chu", Chu being the area of a former independent kingdom, located in what was from the viewpoint of the Han dynasty the south of China. Wang Bao is particularly known today as the author of the Chu Ci section "Nine Regrets". His poetry was not as famous as "Li Sao" or "Heavenly Questions". Indeed, sometimes Qu Yuan has been credited as the author of his poetry. Wang Bao's works were included in one of the two major early anthologies of Chinese poetry which has helped to secure Wang Bao's legacy as a poet and author. Wang Bao became famous during the reign of Han dynasty emperor Emperor Xuan, and he attended the courts of the emperor and the prince, his presumptive heir.
Ju Song is a Classical Chinese poem which has been preserved in the Nine Pieces section of the ancient Chinese poetry anthology, the Chu ci, or The Songs of Chu. The poem has been translated into English by David Hawkes as "In Praise of the Orange-Tree". In the poem, the orange-tree is used as a metaphor for certain human qualities, such as "steadfastness". Hawkes explains this by the tradition that this type of orange tree is supposed to grow naturally only in the part of China of which the ancient land of Chu was included in. The particular orange-tree (ju) mentioned is what David Hawkes calls "citrus nobilis"; but, this type of orange is now usually botanically referred to as Citrus reticulata, or else by the common name of "mandarin orange".
