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Tales of ink
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DRAFTING in the belly
Wang Bo (AD 649-676), courtesy name Zi’an, was a Chinese poet in the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907) who is considered one of the “Four Literary Eminences of Early Tang.” Whenever people asked the poet to write a poem or essay for inscription on stones, Wang would start by grinding liters of ink. Then he went to bed with his face veiled with a quilt and slept.
After a while, the man quickly jumped up and finished the article with a coherent whole. People called what he did “da fu gao” (打腹稿), literally “drafting in the belly,” which means mentally preparing a draft.
It is said that the teenage Wang once had a dream: A man gave him a lot of ink as a gift, which filled his belly — hence the term “draft in his belly.” The expression has lasted until today, and it means working out a draft in one’s mind.
Su Shi and his inkstick fascination
For Su Shi (1037-1101), one of the greatest writers, poets, calligraphers, painters, gastronomes and statesmen in China, two things were indispensable — tea and inksticks.
Si Maguang, a historian and high chancellor of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), mocked Su about his two loves, saying the characteristics of fine tea are fresh and limpid while ink needs to be dark and mellow.
Responded Su Shi: “Fine tea and ink both exude exquisite aroma — that’s a quality they share. Or you can say the same character. They are like two men: one of noble character and the other of intelligence and integrity; one with pale skin and the other with swarthy skin. Nonetheless, the difference in appearance won’t affect their good qualities.”
Heitun
Duke Cheng, from 606 to 600 BC was the ruler of the State of Jin, a major power during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC). Duke Cheng was his posthumous title, while his ancestral name was Ji, and given name Heitun which literally means “black buttocks.”
The duke’s mother had a dream when expecting the baby. It was a man drawing a male hip in ink. She was then told that her child would become the duke of Jin for three years. The child fulfilled the prophecy and thus his name became “Heitun.”
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