Su Shi
Su Shi, courtesy name Zizhan, art name Dongpo, was a Chinese poet, essayist, calligrapher, painter, scholar-official, literatus, artist, pharmacologist, and gastronome who lived during the Song dynasty. A major personality of the Song era, Su was an important figure in Song Dynasty politics. He had a lengthy career in bureaucracy, taking various provincial posts and briefly serving as a senior official at the imperial court. Despite his high hopes to serve the country, Su's political career was filled with frustrations due to his out-spoken criticism, and he often fell victim to political rivalries between the radical and the conservative forces. He endured a series of political exiles during which his creative career flourished.
Su is widely regarded as one of the most accomplished figures in classical Chinese literature, leaving behind a prolific collection of poems, lyrics, prose, and essays. His poetry had enduring popularity and influence in China and other areas in the near vicinity such as Japan, and is well known in some English-speaking countries through translations by Stephen Owen, Burton Watson, and Arthur Waley, among others. In arts, Su was described by Murck as "the preeminent personality of the eleventh century." His prose writings contributed to the understanding of topics including 11th-century China's travel literature and iron industry. His writing frequently touched upon the topic of cuisine, where he is considered to have had a profound influence. Dongpo pork, a prominent dish in Hangzhou cuisine, is named in his honor.
Su remains a revered and beloved figure among both intellectuals and the general populace, transcending the boundaries of his era. Contemporary Chinese scholars Zhu Gang and Wang Shuizhao observed that Su's impact on Chinese people's values and beliefs is profound, stating that his cultural and philosophical influence rivals that of notable philosophers like Mencius and Zhuangzi.
Early life and education
Su Shi was born in Meishan, near Mount Emei in Sichuan province. His given name Shi refers to the crossbar railing at the front of a chariot. His father Su Xun remarked that the railing, despite being an essential component in the carriage, appears low profile and unassuming. He hoped that the talented and outspoken Su Shi would learn self-restraint. Unfortunately, Su Shi did not fully heed his father’s counsel, and his conspicuous nature led him into a tumultuous career.Su Shi's early education was conducted under a Daoist priest at a local village school. When he reached the age of 10, his education transitioned to homeschooling, initially guided by his mother, Lady Cheng, and subsequently by his father, Su Xun. Over the course of more than a decade, Su Xun dedicated himself to comprehensive studies of classical literature, philosophy, and historical texts, while providing coaching to his two adolescent sons as they prepared for the imperial examination.
Su Shi married at the age of 17. Su Shi and his younger brother Su Zhe maintained a close relationship since their childhood.
Official career
Initial success and fame
In 1057, at the age of 19, Su Shi and his younger brother Su Zhe both passed the highest-level civil service examinations and attained the degree of jinshi, a prerequisite for high government office. His accomplishments at such a young age attracted the attention of Emperor Renzong and leading literary figure Ouyang Xiu, who became Su's patron thereafter. Ouyang had already been known as an admirer of Shu Shi's father Su Xun, endorsing his literary style at the imperial court and stating that no other pleased him more. When the 1057 jinshi examinations were given, Ouyang Xiu unexpectedly required candidates to write in the ancient prose style when answering questions on the Confucian classics. The Su brothers gained high honors for what were deemed impeccable answers and achieved celebrity status, particularly due to Su Shi's exceptional performance in the subsequent 1061 decree examinations.Provincial posts
Beginning in 1060 and throughout the following twenty years, Su Shi held a variety of government positions throughout China; most notably in Hangzhou, where he was responsible for constructing a pedestrian causeway across the West Lake that still bears the name . He had served as a magistrate in the Mi Prefecture, which is located in modern-day Zhucheng County in Shandong. Later, when he was governor of Xuzhou, he wrote a memorial to the throne in 1078 complaining about the troubling economic conditions and potential for armed rebellion in Liguo Industrial Prefecture, where a large part of the Chinese iron industry was located.Political exiles
Su Shi was often at odds with the political faction headed by Wang Anshi. Su Shi once wrote a poem criticizing Wang Anshi's reforms, especially the government monopoly imposed on the salt industry. The dominance of the reformist faction at court allowed the New Policy Group greater ability to have Su Shi exiled for political crimes. The claim was that Su Shi was criticizing the emperor, when in fact his poetry was aimed at criticizing Wang's reforms. Wang Anshi played no part in this action against Su, for he had retired from public life in 1076 and established a cordial relationship with Su Shi. Su Shi's first remote trip of exile was to Huangzhou, Hubei. This post carried a nominal title, but no stipend, leaving Su in poverty. During this period, he began practicing Buddhist meditation. With help from a friend, Su built a small residence on a parcel of land in 1081. Su Shi lived at a farm called Dongpo, from which he took his literary pseudonym. While banished to Hubei province, he grew fond of the area he lived in; many of the poems considered his best were written in this period. His most famous piece of calligraphy, Han Shi Tie, was also written there. In 1086, Su Shi and all other banished statesmen were recalled to the capital due to the ascension of a new government. However, Su was banished a second time to Huizhou and Danzhou, Hainan. In 1098 the Dongpo Academy in Hainan was built on the site of the residence that he lived in while in exile.Although political bickering and opposition usually split ministers of court into rivaling groups, there were moments of non-partisanship and cooperation from both sides. For example, although the prominent scientist and statesman Shen Kuo was one of Wang Anshi's most trusted associates and political allies, Shen nonetheless befriended Su Shi. Su Shi was aware that it was Shen Kuo who, as regional inspector of Zhejiang, presented Su Shi's poetry to the court sometime during 1073–1075 with concern that it expressed abusive and hateful sentiments against the Song court. It was these poetry pieces that Li Ding and Shu Dan later utilized in order to instigate a law case against Su Shi, although until that point Su Shi did not think much of Shen Kuo's actions in bringing the poetry to light.
The final years
In 1100, Su received a pardon and was posted to Chengdu, after a long period of political exile. However, he died in Changzhou, Jiangsu after his period of exile while en route to his new assignment in the year 1101. Su Shi was 64 years old. After his death he gained even greater popularity, as people sought to collect his calligraphy, depicted him in paintings, marked his visit to numerous places with stone inscriptions and built shrines in his honor. He was also depicted in artwork made posthumously, such as in Li Song's painting of Su traveling in a boat, known as Su Dongpo at Red Cliff, after Su Song's poem written about the 3rd-century battle.Family
Su Shi had three wives. His first wife was Wang Fu from Sichuan, who was sixteen when they married. She died on the second day of the fifth month 13 years later, after bearing him a son, Su Mai. Heartbroken, Su Shi wrote a memorial, stating that Wang had not just been a virtuous wife, but had also frequently advised him regarding the integrity of his acquaintances during his time as an official.Ten years after the death of his first wife, Su Shi composed a ci poem after dreaming of her while in Mi Prefecture. The poem, "To the tune,"River Town" , remains one of the most famous poems Su Shi wrote.
In 1068, two years after Wang's death, Su Shi married her cousin Wang Runzhi, who was 11 years his junior. Wang Runzhi spent the next 25 years accompanying Su Shi through his ups and downs in officialdom and political exile. Su Shi praised Runzhi for being an understanding wife who treated his three sons equally. Once, Su Shi was angry with his young son for not understanding his unhappiness during his political exile. Wang Runzhi chided Su Shi for his silliness, prompting Su Shi to write the domestic poem "Young Son".
Wang Runzhi died in 1093, at forty-six, after bearing two sons, Su Dai and Su Guo. Overwhelmed by grief, Su Shi expressed his wish to be buried with her in her memorial.
Su's third wife, Wang Zhaoyun was a former Qiantang courtesan. Wang was about twelve when Su bought her at Hangzhou. Zhaoyun learned to read and write at Su's house. Of all the women in Su's life, Zhaoyun was probably the most famous, as she tried to "grow to her husband's spiritual level", and who seems to "understands him best". Su expressed his gratitude to Zhaoyun for her companionship to his exile in his old age, as well as her shared quest with the poet for immortal life via Buddhist and Taoist practice.
Su's friend, fellow poet Qin Guan wrote a poem, "A Gift for Dongpo's concubine Zhaoyun", praising her beauty and lovely voice. Su Shi himself dedicated a number of his poems to Zhaoyun, including "To the Tune of 'Song of the South'", "Verses for Zhaoyun", "To the Tune of 'The Beauty Who Asks One To Stay'", and "To the Tune of 'The Moon at Western Stream'". Zhaoyun remained a faithful companion to Su Shi after Runzhi's death, and died of illness on 13 August 1095 at Huizhou. Zhaoyun bore Su Shi a son, Su Dun, on 15 November 1083, who died in infancy. After Zhaoyun's death, Su Shi never married again.
Being a government official in a family of officials, Su Shi was often separated from his loved ones depending on his posting. In 1078, he was serving as prefect of Suzhou. His beloved younger brother was able to join him for the mid-autumn festival, which inspired the poem "Mid-Autumn Moon" reflecting on the preciousness of time with family. It was written to be sung to the tune of "Yang Pass."
Su Shi had three sons who survived to adulthood: the eldest, Su Mai, who would also become a government official by 1084; the second, Su Dai ; and the third, Su Guo. When Su Shi died in 1101, his younger brother Su Zhe buried him alongside his second wife Wang Runzhi according to his wishes.