A traditional Chinese painting Bamboo, Rock and Withered Tree by Zhao Mengfu in Yuan Dynasty, a well-known painter and one of the best calligraphers in Chinese history.

 

A traditional Chinese painting Bamboo, Rock and Withered Tree by Zhao Mengfu in Yuan Dynasty, a well-known painter and one of the best calligraphers in Chinese history.

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The Chinese character shi refers to all kinds of rocks, stones and pebbles. In accordance with the aesthetic tradition of drawing analogies between the attributes of an object and the virtues of humanity, Chinese people frequently use shi in literary works to demonstrate their admiration for and pursuit of certain virtues.

The use of shi symbolism can be found in such literary works as early as the Book of Songs. The song Lofty South Hill includes the line: “Lofty the South Hill stands, Covered with piles of rocks. Grand Master Yin is so renowned, That expectance of him is crowned.” The lofty hill and grand rocks symbolize the prestige of Master Yin. The song Qi River Bay goes “The virtuous man is elegant and wise, As neatly made as an artifact of bone or ivory, As carefully polished as jade or stone.” Polishing jade is called zhuo while polishing a stone is called mo. Hence, zhuomo later came to mean improving or perfecting something. This verse is also used to mean persistent pursuit of fine virtues.

  
Unyielding will, determination
Stones or rocks are solid and rigid. In Chinese culture, they are symbols of unyielding will. The I Ching has a line: “He is upright and firm as a rock and understands appropriateness of delight within a day. He perseveres in the right way and there is good fortune [for him.]” Sayings such as “as solid as a rock” are commonly used to praise those who uphold their principles.

The Huainanzi by Liu An (179-122 BCE) has the line: “A stone is rigid from the very beginning, and an orchid is fragrant from the very beginning. Each of them bears its special characters from the very beginning, and their character becomes more prominent as they grow.”  

The Spring and Autumn of Lü Buwei included the line: “Stones can be broken. However, they will not lose their rigidity. Vermilion can be granulated. However, it will still be red. Rigidity is the inherent character of stone, and redness is the inherent character of vermilion. These characteristics are bestowed by Heaven, so they cannot be chosen or concocted according to their own will. For outstanding people who are concerned with the preservation of their moral integrity, it is also natural that they will not be contaminated.”

Rigidity is an inherent part of shi. Shi can be broken or crushed but never deprived of its rigidity. For Chinese people, stone symbolizes a person who would prefer death over abandoning his principles or beliefs. As Han Fei concluded in his masterpiece Hanfeizi, “A person who adheres to the Way always harbors a heart as firm as gold and rock. He would prefer to die as Wu Zixu did in maintaining his integrity.” Wu was a prominent minister of the Wu Kingdom in the Spring and Autumn Period. He committed suicide when he was falsely accused of plotting against the king.

Shi is also used to symbolize a firm foundation. For example, according to the Guanzi by Guanzhong, Duke Huan of the Qi Kingdom asked Guanzi “How can I provide stable residence and jobs to the people?” Guanzi answered, “The four kinds of citizens—scholars, farmers, artisans and merchants—are the stone citizens of the nation.” Here, using “stone” to modify the people, Guan Zhong emphasized the fundamental role of the people in a nation’s development.

The unchangeable and immortal nature of shi is also frequently used to symbolize interpersonal relationships. For example, sharing a strong friendship with another, one would call that person his “rock friend.” It indicated that the friendship between them would never perish.

Another famous amatory saying goes that “Not until the hills become flat and the heaven mingles with the earth will I part from you.” A similar oath of unchanging fidelity goes “Utill the seas dry up and the rocks rot away.” The rigidity and immortality of rocks is a frequently used symbol of unchanging fidelity to one’s life partner. 

 

Authenticity, reclusive life
Ancient Chinese scholar-officials had an obsession with rocks. It is said that poet Li Bai once drank and wrote poems in front of the rocks among the Yellow Mountain. He walked around the rocks and shouted when he was drunk. Dramatist Li Kaixian (1502-1568) treated rocks as his friends, pouring wines on the rocks as if he were drinking with a friend. Well-known painter Zheng Banqiao (1693-1765) painted only three things in his life—orchids, bamboo and rocks. These are just a few examples of the rock’s association with Chinese history.

Being authentic and natural rather than artificial objects is another admirable attribute of shi. A piece of rock has its own natural beauty which requires no further improvement through polishing. Contrary to the Confucian philosophy of improving one’s virtue as if one is polishing a stone, Taoist philosophy emphasizes more on following the natural course of things and maintaining one’s authenticity. Hence, unpolished, eccentric or ugly stones in the mountains or by the rivers became symbols of a person staying true to oneself.

In this sense, it would be natural for shi to appeal to scholar-officials who were exhausted with the struggles in the imperial courts. Sleeping on the rocks among the mountains, one would be able to separate themselves from the annoyance of daily life.

Sun Chu in the Jin Dynasty was about to live a hermit life among the mountains. Intending to tell his friend Wang Ji that he was to lay down his head upon a pillow of rock and gargle with brook water, in a slip of the tongue, he said “to lay down my head upon a pillow of water and gargle with rocks.” Laughed at by Wang, Sun explained in a brilliant way that “gargling with rocks is to sharpen my teeth while laying upon a pillow of water is to wash my ears.”

Here, Sun alluded to the story of Xu You, a legendary Taoist sage. The story goes that Emperor Yao planned to abdicate and hand over the crown to Xu You. He sent an official to tell Xu about this. Xu washed his ears by the river, saying “My ambition is to soar to and wandering in the blue sky. Please do not pollute my ears with such an insignificant position as emperor of the state.”
Originating from the story of Sun Chu, the saying “gargling with rocks and using water as a pillow” became a symbol of hermit life. Even Japanese novelist Natsume Sōseki (1867-1916) named himself after the story of Sun as Sōseki means to gargle with rocks.

Rocks and stones speak no words and give out no fragrance. Stone shows no emotions like pleasure, anger, sorrow or joy. Also, it has no wishes, desire or will of its own. However, riding on the true course of the Heaven and the Earth, and harnessing the changes of six vital elements of yin, yang, wind, rain, darkness and brightness, rocks and stones are able to travel in the infinity of time and space. They echo the order of life and show transcendence of following the laws of nature and letting things take their own course. 

Unpolished rocks are objects of natural beauty. Two of China’s Four Great Classical Novels were heavily influenced by the rock symbolism in Chinese culture. The Monkey King, the protagonist in Journey to the West, was conceived in a magic stone on the top of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits. The Monkey King discarded the rules and rebelled against the orthodoxy. His raising havoc in the Heavenly Palace was one of the most classic chapters of novel.

Stones are solid and unyielding as well as stubborn. Refusing to be harnessed, the Monkey King shared similar tempers as the stones that conceived him.

Another classic Chinese novel, A Dream of Red Mansions, is also known as A Tale of the Stone. The protagonist of the novel is Jia Baoyu, whose name Baoyu means “treasured jade.” However, his family name Jia is homophone of “fake” in Chinese. It indicates that he was not as orthodox as expected.

According to Chinese mythology, the sky once collapsed as a result of a war between two gods. Goddess Nü Wa melted down rocks to repair the sky. The novel goes that as the only surplus block for the course, one specific stone was abandoned on the Blue Ridge Peak of the Baseless Cliff at the Great Waste Mountain. After tempering and acquiring spiritual understanding, it lamented day and night in distress and shame.

Jia was the mortal reincarnation of that stone. As the novel goes “It was an account of the stone’s rejection for repairing heaven, its transformation to the world of men and the joys and sorrows, partings and encounters, warm and cold treatment from others it had experienced there.”

Unlike orthodox virtuous people following Confucian teachings about dedicating oneself to serving the nation and benefiting society, Jia cared more about the girls in his life, which was generally despised in ancient Chinese culture because it was not an aspiration as lofty as benefiting society. In this sense, again, Jia became a surplus man in a male society. However, he had the most genuine and intense love for the women he encountered.

Failing the expectations of his parents, Jia chose to be genuine stone following his heart rather than a treasured jade following the requirements of a society which distorted humanity. Choosing to be stone, in this sense, means to maintain one’s genuine feelings and authentic self.

 

(edited by CHEN ALONG)