Archive for January, 2010
LIU Ling / Boom Boom Boom
Posted by Sylvia Xiaorui in Thoughts on January 18, 2010
So as a raining day went, we decided to check out the super hip new hotel while wandering around the West Village and Meatpacking District. Having admired the crispy glass nostalgic exterior several times from the High Line, the flaneuse was in awe of the super boutique-hip interior from the guests and staff’s sleek hairstyles and the other-worldly video in the elevator, and the waterfront view from the entrance of the eighteenth floor lounge! Oh yes from the entrance as we were politely informed by the Maître d’ that a sort of dressing code was required, ‘as if you are meeting your business client’, and of course my trekking boots and the flaneur’s khaki cargo pants were far from being fabulous.
Alas, summa cum laude!
Out of curiosity, the flaneuse checked about what other netizens have to say about their Boom Boom Boom experience, and here’s what I found on Yelp: For 2010, this is THE ultimate New York City hotel experience. Īdem. Read the rest of this entry »
The sun on the hill forgot to die
Posted by Sylvia Xiaorui in Poems Talk to Me on January 16, 2010
I forgot to die, he said. How deep it is. Reminded me A Musical Instrument by Elizabeth Barrett Browning:
The sun on the hill forgot to die,
And the lilies revived,
and the dragon-fly Came back to dream on the river.
And the Farewell By Master Hong Yi:
晚风拂柳笛声残，夕阳山外山。
天之涯，海之角，知交半零落，
一瓢浊酒尽余欢，今宵别梦寒。 Read the rest of this entry »
Fish and Bear’s Paw
Posted by Sylvia Xiaorui in Thoughts on January 15, 2010
Been reading Thomas Merton’s The Way of Chuang Tzu with a comparison of Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English’s Chuang Tsu-Inner Chapters, while Merton’s poetic approach is beautiful and inspiring, as M pointed out, it is not as ‘authentic’ as Feng’s.
So we went back to read the preface of Merton, and here’s his explanation: Read the rest of this entry »
Beautiful Translation
Posted by Sylvia Xiaorui in Literature on January 14, 2010
If Lao Tzu was a philosopher, Chuang Tzu for sure was a poem, romantic one.
M just bought Thomas Merton’s The Way of Chuang Tzu by Thomas Merton in 1965, and here I found Alan Watts’ review on New York Times Book Review in 1966,
“For my own taste, Chuang Tzu is the most readable, congenial and profound of all philosophers and mystics of the world because his exposition is uniquely graced with humor. Father Merton’s third partial translation…is the most admirable introduction to this less known but most important sourcebook of Taoism. It is prefaced by a concise study of the philosophy that shows Father Merton understands it very well indeed.”
The Wisdom of History
Posted by Sylvia Xiaorui in Thoughts on January 13, 2010
Emperor Taizong is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, emperor in all of Chinese history. His “Reign of Zhen Guan” is the golden age of Chinese history, under which China flourished economically and militarily.
Weizheng, one of his former enemy, was known for being outspoken and argue with the Emperor all the time. When Weizheng died, Taizong said the following, “With a bronze mirror, one can see whether he is properly attired; with history as a mirror, one can understand the rise and fall of a nation; with men as a mirror, one can see whether he is right or wrong.” “以铜为镜可以正衣冠，以人为镜可以明得失，以古为镜可以知兴替”.
Just started a new The Teaching Company’s course: The Wisdom of History, in the first lecture Professor J. Rufus Fears listed the following as his view on history, Read the rest of this entry »
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