This CEAS course allowed me to gain perspectives on the diverse ways in which Chinese writers and poets define the ever-changing relationship between the human realm and nature in imaginative literature. We engaged with a variety of texts that presented themes of Daoism and Yin-Yang, shamanism and prose poetry, martial arts and alchemy, the Peach Blossom Spring, travel and landscape literature, folk religions and ghost stories, and rebellions and migrations. Below is an excerpt of my final essay for the course, in which I discuss ideas of shenji through analytical and creative writing:
In my poem “Impression”, I write about ideas of shenji. In Wu’s essay, he presents divine traces through the example of Mt. Hua. At this natural site, there are two unique divine traces. These traces mark the presence of the Divine Giant- the god of the river. As the legend tells, the Divine Giant pounded the mountain with his hands and feet until water was able to flow freely through. Imprints of his hands and feet remain as traces of this act. This exemplifies a key trait of divine traces: the creators of such traces are not ordinary human beings, but beings of immense supernatural strength and power. That being said, they are not invincible gods. To complete tasks, such as shaping Mt. Hua, these beings must employ intense labor and physical force. Therefore, these beings are both divine and human– they themselves are a living part of the natural landscape. Wu describes this contrast as a “twilight zone between the celestial and human worlds”, an image that contributes to the visual narrative of Impression.
Within this poem, the protagonist explores visual encounters with divine traces. While immersed in nature, she is able to viscerally connect with the past. These encounters ‘belong to the moon and her’ highlighting a divine being’s presence in both human and natural worlds. Later in the poem, she describes these forms as ‘fallen stars…vessels from above that heat and contour the landscape like molten glass’. These lines reference the celestial, highlighting the otherworldly characteristics of divine beings. Finally, it is written that ‘when she opens her eyes, they remain, not in shape but in earthly impression’. Within this line, I explore the permanence– and impermanence– of ji. The tangibility of divine traces create stories of immense power and influence. Although some such legends may lack empirical evidence, the traces they leave behind foster connection between the divine, the human, and the natural. Furthermore, they allow those who engage with shenji to better understand the history of their land and culture.
She remembers, vividly, how it happened.
Hers and not hers, these memories exist within her.
They are layered, like the scales of a pine cone, around
her beating heart. They surge, like the River,
up her spine and behind her eyes. Emerging on cloudless
nights, they belong to the moon and her. She sees what the
sky saw, many years ago: forms that wander with heaving
footsteps through the valley. In the dark, they are beautiful:
fallen stars, she thinks, vessels from above that heat and
contour the landscape like molten glass. When she opens her
eyes, they remain, not in shape but in earthly impression.
