About YK 1965

Class of WYK1965 Microbiologist (Environmental Microbiology) Honorary Research Fellow Agriculture Canada, Ottawa

大風歌劉邦

Posted on September 12, 2012 by YK 1965

**Song of Gale Winds* LIU Bang (256 or 247 BCE – 195 BCE)**

陳耀國譯 Tr. YK Chan

大風起兮云飛揚 Gale winds blow wild clouds fly.

威加海內兮歸故鄉 Home coming now, I’ve conquered all within four

seas.

安得猛士兮守四方 For peace of mind fierce warriors guard the

country for me?!

*After defeating all his adversaries, LIU Bang rose to his opportune height to become the first emperor of the Han Dynasty in 202 BCE. However, his subordinates rebelled soon afterwards. In 195 BCE after suppressing the rebellion of YING Bu 英布, Lord of Huai Nan 淮南王, LIU returned to his native Pei County 沛縣 (in Jiang Su Province 今江蘇省). Celebrating his triumph with friends and relatives, he sang this song at the banquet.

Although just made up of three lines of verse, the song is rich in meaning. It encompasses the satisfaction and hesitation of a victor, the enormous joy of forgetting oneself, as well as the anxiety and fear of the future. Establishing an enterprise was difficult; keeping it was even more so. That was why he yearned for fierce warriors to stand guard for his country. Even with the majesty of an emperor, he still harboured some pathetic emotion of a commoner. At the momentous and pompous superiority of power, he voiced sincere sentiments from the heart.

_________________

Source 取材自: <古詩三百首>, 曹明綱編選, 高克勤丶王立翔等注評. 2000年上海古籍出版社

四海之内皆兄弟也: 1st Anniversary of the Fukuyama Tsunami

Posted on March 11, 2012 by YK 1965

The Japanese have been in love with Beethoven’s 9th for a century and more.

Toshio’s generation college students, practically all, have the Ode to Joy memorized in German.

This concert was in 仙台Sendai, a city in the area of the earthquake/tsunami….

they certainly needed an uplifting Event, with a 10K strong chorus.

Schiller: Ode to Joy, 4th movement, Beethoven’s 9th symphony

http://www.youtube.com/embed/paH0V6JLxSI

I was at the Japanese Embassy yesterday to view an exhibition of the anniversary photos and Japanese children’s drawing project. One of the photos (bottom left) in a composite shows a rescue team sent from China, working in the disaster area.–YK

International humanitarian aid for the Fukuyama tsunami

光緒的講話

Posted on March 11, 2012 by YK 1965

The following is one of the numerous e-mails forwarded to me recently. Although I can’t verify its origin or authenticity, as an unusual reformist emperor Guangxu’s ideas seem to be more progressive than some of ours in the 21st century. It is commonly believed that Guangxu was poisoned by Yuan Shikai with arsenic.

The comments before and after his speech are not mine.–YK

百多年前光緒在北京大學的講話

讀後感到很新鮮，過去從未讀到過。說它新鮮還因為他的講話沒有現今流行的

八股氣，沒有官僚們常見的那些大話空話假話套話廢話，也沒有君臨天下傲視黎民

自以為“奉天承運”偉大正確的那種帝王的霸氣。再是他的改革的精神和開放的思想，

還是很可觀的。可惜這樣一位立志改革竭力要有所作為的青年帝王，竟被慈禧用

水銀偷偷給毒死了……

______________________________________________________________

百多年前光緒在北京大學的講話

站在千名京師大學堂學生前面，光緒沈默了片刻後，徐徐說道，“今天是

京師大學堂正式開學的第一天，所謂學堂，在朕看來就是研習學問的地方。

雲軒閣我們的古人有一個傳統叫作坐而論道，今天，朕就和你們論一論這世間

的道。”。說罷，光緒抬起右手輕輕的往下壓了壓：“大家都坐下吧，朕也坐下。”

眾人遲疑了片刻，都紛紛席地而坐，目光有些疑惑的望著前面的皇上。一旁的

太監也端過來一把放有明黃色座墊的椅子，光緒一提衣襟下擺，靜靜的坐下說道：

“朕從識字開始，朕的老師就在教授朕為君之道，朕親政後，也在不斷學習治國

之道。世間的道或許有所不同，但是朕一直在想，對於我們這樣一個國家，

什麼才是真正的大道，什麼才是讓國家振興之道！”

“這次開辦京師大學堂遇到了很多阻力和質疑，大家也都清楚，這其中還死了人。

死的這個人叫王長益，朕一直在想，他為什麼會死呢？又是誰把他逼死的呢？

朕想到了幾百年前，也有一個姓王的人，叫王陽明，這個人大家都是知道的，

他曾經說過一句話，破山中賊易，破心中賊難。所以朕以為，王長益之死，就是

死於心中之賊！而這個賊，不僅在他心中，也在我們每個人心中，要論清世間的

大道，首先就要破除這心中之賊。”

王長益，因為家貧如洗，在科舉上面又是幾番落第，頗不得意。這次聽說就讀

京師大學堂每月都有生活津貼，將來畢業後還能謀得一個實缺，左思右想後，

雖然心裏也並不是十分情願，但還是到京師大學堂報了名。不曾想，他的這

一舉動卻惹來了同住在旅店裏的其他學子們的譏諷和嘲笑。王長益為人忠厚老實，

也不善言詞，再加上心中多少也有些羞愧，對這些人的謾駡更加不敢還擊，只是

左躲右閃，儘量回避和那些學子們見面。誰料到有一天晚上，那群學子們在店中

飲酒作對，一時興起，竟然在王長益的床頭貼了副對聯。上聯是:孝悌忠信禮義謙,

下聯是一二三四五六七。這副對聯的上聯缺了一個恥字，意思是罵王長益無恥。

下聯少了一個八，忘八，意思就是罵王長益是王八。那個時代的讀書人名節觀念

甚重，王長益的面子又比較薄，再加上心胸不夠開闊，受了這些天無數的氣，

心裏鬱結難遣。晚上躺在床上翻來覆去輾轉難眠，想到科舉失意，就讀京師

大學堂又招致如此的侮辱，一時氣憤之下，竟然用床單在房間裏面懸樑自盡了。

坐在下面的學子們隱隱的發出一些竊竊私語的聲音，光緒淡淡一笑，停頓了

一下接著說道：

“然而這個心中之賊究竟是什麼呢？在朕看來，這第1,一個賊就是偽善!平常大家

學習程朱理學，學到的無非是，存天理，滅人欲。可是翻翻我們的歷史，歷朝

歷代，靠聖人之學，仁義道德當真就能夠治國平天下了？滿口仁義道德是無法

挽救一個國家的危亡的，你們想想，你們所學的四書五經、你們苦苦研習的

八股文，能夠抵抗洋人的堅船利炮嗎？能夠改變貪腐橫行，土地兼併，流民千里，

國家積弊叢生的局面嗎？重名節而輕實務，這裏面隱藏著的其實就是虛偽和虛弱。

再說說你們，如果這次朝廷沒有下旨，讓京師大學堂的學子們畢業後，能夠享有

科舉及第的待遇，你們能棄科舉而就新學嗎？朕不是責怪你們，朕只是希望你們

每個人都能明白，道德改變不了一個人的命運，也根本改變不了一個國家的命運，

空談道德仁義，就是世間最大的偽善。”

“這第2,二個賊，就是守舊。說到這一點，朕想把17年前李鴻章寫給恭王信裏的

一段話念給大家：中國士大夫沉浸于章句小楷之積習，武夫悍卒又多粗蠢而不加

細心，以致所用非所學，所學非所用。無事則嗤外國之利器為奇技術巧，以為

不必學；有事則驚外國之利器為變怪神奇，以為不能學……17年前李鴻章的這些話，

至今仍然讓朕感慨啊。17年的時間過去了，我們的士大夫，乃至我們這個國家

依然如故。世間沒有一成不變的道理，天下事窮則變，變則通。今日的世勢，乃是

三千年未有之危局，因循守舊，固步自封，只會讓我們這個國家越來越落後，越來

越衰弱。長此以往，國將不國啊。”

“所以朕今日說了這麼多，就是想告訴大家，朕為什麼堅持要開辦這個京師大學堂，

就是希望在座諸君，能夠破除我們心中之賊，以國家強盛為己任，不驕狂，不自卑，

正視現實，發憤圖強。”

整個禮堂內鴉雀無聲，連最初的竊竊私語都沒有了，只有一片凝重的讓人窒息的沈默。

_______________________________________________________________________

講話中的「重名節而輕實務」，一語中的點出國人之弊，但出自百多年前的封建帝王之口，非常難能

可貴。已退休的香港大學教授陳耀南博士，於其《中國文化對談錄》一書，亦指出中國人重道德以致

輕知識，於是不論理論科學與實際科學都不受到鼓勵。到近代遇到西方文化，以我之短逢人之長，

於是大吃其虧。這些觀點，讀來令人沉痛。但願今時今日國人都有以下的領會：「悟已往之不諫，

知來者之可追；實迷途其未遠，覺今是而昨非」。

冬至诗三首, & Let the Sun Shine In 陈耀国 YK Chan

Posted on December 22, 2011 by YK 1965

(一) 序

昔日未空前明朝焉绝後

喜怒哀樂慾无为返田園

唐敖消遥游小山赴红文¹

浮生歲月沈征途日暮歸

(二) (三)

早见日中天晚靠夕阳红冬临耳当顺岁长欲从心

昏黄驯白辉暗里耀天涯或曰人胜天終归大自然

银光回反昼太阴悦眼前明日永不多自负成蹉跎

斗柄正北移银河非寒冰心雄非万丈他山无汗青

—————————————————

¹ 唐敖、小山俱(清)李汝珍著<鏡花缘>故事中心人物。

Let the sun shine in

during winter to savour its lovingness.

Its radiance thaws the heart

and invigorates you with compassion.

Like gentle tendrils solar rays

cuddle up the slender trunk, mending where it is sore.

Its warmth curls your hair more,

darkening it and rekindling youthful lore.

Outdoors it melts the frost

that slowly encroaches like moss,

chilling your conscious mind.

Let the sun shine in and reflect back to the frost.

Let not the sun shine in during summer time

when it is too hot to mime.

So scalding it’d numb your soul,

just keep the shutters down to block its tentacles.

Let the sun shine in spring and fall,

as it brightens the days you recall.

Drive away the rain and fog,

which are too much to be at odds.

May the sun always rise on Golden Pond,

and bring reflections on the water that meanders.

Punting on the way singing an evensong,

for sure I will hear it when you come on board.

“A Translation Is A Woman” by YK Chan

Posted on November 23, 2011 by YK 1965

It’s been said that a translation is like a woman, who is either beautiful or faithful, but not both.

For example, try to translate this Chinese doublet:

光阴似箭日月如梭

人生几何对酒当歌

My friend, SL Chow of Regina (a psychology professor), rendered it this way:

Like an arrow time travels in haste

As sun and moon interlaced

To Bacchus and Terpsichore

Fleetingness of life submits

It has an appeal of western art and culture. He also corrected the order of the last two phrases. On the other hand, in my attempt I keep their order as written above because 梭 rhymes with 歌 in Cantonese:

Time flies like an arrow; sun and moon shuttle forward.

Life lasts only so long; drink together and sing along.

This rendition remains faithful to the oriental flavor without allusion to Greek mythology,

while preserving the original imagery.

The native English speaker may identify with the first version more easily, while some may

prefer an unfamiliar taste of naïveté or uncouth literalism. I have also made each phrase

conform to a five-word structure similar to the four-word phrase of the Chinese format.

It is even harder to make each phrase with the same number of syllables for uniformity

as in the original Chinese, which consists of monosyllabic characters.

There is more than one way to skin a cat.

We, SL and I, agreed that for the reader, each has his/her own taste and interest.

A last word: The Chinese doublet reminds me of the wit of Groucho Marx, who once said:

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

子夜四時歌* (唐) 李白

Posted on November 10, 2011 by YK 1965

**Ziye’s Ballads of the Four Seasons* Li Bai (701-762)**

Tr. YK Chan 陈耀国译

^*Note: 亦作”子夜吳歌”。Also known as “Ziye’s Song of Wu”.

“子夜” (Midnight) was the name of a woman in the Jin 晉 Dynasty (265 – 420), who allegedly started this ballad style of poem in southern China.

春歌
秦地羅敷女             采桑綠水邊
素手青條上              紅妝白日鮮
蠶飢妾欲去      五馬莫留連

Spring Song

Maiden Luofu in the land of Qin,
Picks mulberry leaves by the river.
Her pale arms stretched across the green bough,
In bright sunlight her red dress shimmers.
Silkworms famished I’d like to go,
Ought not to loiter here your five-horse carriage.

夏歌
镜湖三百里 菡萏发荷花
五月西施采 人看隘若耶¹回舟不待月 归去越王家

Summer Song
***Mirror* Lake *stretches far and wide,***

Teeming with lotus blossoms nigh.
In the fifth moon when Xi Shi the beauty picks the flowers,
Onlookers amass in Yuoye¹ for such a spectacular.
Before moonrise her boat returns,
To the royal house as heads turn.

___________________

¹Xi Shi’s hometown

秋歌
长安一片月          万户捣衣声
秋风吹不尽          总是玉关情
何日平胡虏         良人罢远征

Autumn Song
The moon shines bright over Chang An City;
Household laundry bats are stirring the night.
Autumn breezes forever blow and blow,
Always carry my heart to Gate Jadeite.
When will all the Tartars be conquered,
To let my dear husband quit this distant fight?

冬歌

明朝驿使发          一夜絮征袍
素手抽针冷          那堪把剪刀
裁缝寄远道          几日到临洮

Winter Song

Next morn the courier is setting off;
My warrior’s gown has to be sewn tonight.
Slender hands pulling a chilly needle;
Those scissors can hardly be held tight.
To send the tailored garment far away,
When will it reach Lintao and be alright?

Taranto, tarantula and tarantella 塔兰图蜘蛛舞曲 by YK Chan

Posted on August 20, 2011 by YK 1965

Is tarantella the dance music for avoiding death from tarantism caused by a tarantula bite?

Lycosa tarantula

A myth goes like this: When you are bitten by the tarantula wolf spider (Lycosa tarantula) you will succumb to the hysterical condition of tarantism, and need to dance to the tarantella―a type of agitated, manic and fast-rhythm (usually at 6/8 time) music―to counter the poison by sweating and avoid death.

Here is how it looks like, traditionally, enacted from the bite to the dance with some innuendo of youthful sexual flirtation:

http://my.lifeinitaly.com/threads/4926-SEXY-GIRL-DANCING-quot-TARANTELLA-quot-%28Italian-traditional-dance%29

Another depiction of a barefoot dancer can be viewed in the first part of this clip:

Tarantella in ballet form

http://www.youtube.com/v/481A2k4IgUo&hl=it&fs=1

Both the spider and the music are attributed to the Italian region of Taranto, at the heel of the “Italian boot” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Province_of_Taranto), although the dance form is Greek in origin. The spider bite may be painful but it usually is not fatal to humans. If not for curative purpose, tarantella music may be graceful instead of frantic for dancing couples, as seen here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvlP4KrIzls

Tarantella couple dance

I prefer to associate tarantella with frenzy and excitement as it conveys a sense of passion and not reason. Human emotion could be an outlet for relieving the fatigued reasoning faculty, thus refreshing it.

Although I enjoy watching a graceful or energetic dance that enhances the accompanying music, the music itself is the inducing factor of emotion. The human voice is also an instrument, which can be tuned and trained for expressive vocalization. You would appreciate what it means to compare voice with instrument when you listen to this tongue-twisting and exciting song of Rossini’s La Danza (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Danza) in tarantella napoletana time. Here, the tenor Rolando Villazón sings this song flawlessly with the strong pulsating and arousing rhythm. Listening to it, you may feel being swept off your feet and carried away by a whirlwind: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuaHlOt3SgE

Kreutzer Sonata

The last movement (Presto) of Beethoven’s Kreutzer violin sonata

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violin_Sonata_No._9_%28Beethoven%29)

also comes to mind since it is in rondo form as a 6/8-tarantella. The virtuosi Gidon Kremer and Martha Argerich perform it engagingly thus:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOIVF4ICcnA&feature=related

Tolstoy’s novella, The Kreutzer Sonata (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kreutzer_Sonata), is said to have been inspired by Beethoven’s sonata. Its story in turn inspired the 1901 painting by René François Xavier Prinet and Leoš Janáček‘s first string quartet (1923), both entitled or subtitled Kreutzer Sonata. But, that is another story, another piece of art and music

Dvořák’s Humoresque –by YK Chan

Posted on July 21, 2011 by YK 1965

ABSTRACT

It likely invokes a state of calmness and tranquility to induce sparkles of delight and pensiveness…

Antonín Dvořák’s Humoresque No. 7 in G-flat major is often heard as a popular violin miniature or encore piece. I remember the very first time I listened to it was from a 10”-vinyl disc (comprising violin gems) that brother YH bought during his high school years when I was in grade school. This simple and pleasant melody immediately struck my heartstrings. Since then I had been imagining taking up the violin some day so that I could play it. As an adult, I finally learned the Shin’ichi Suzuki simplified arrangement

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MTyhj3gyI0&NR=1&feature=fvwp]

but played it, as expected, without conveying humor.

Humoresques are fanciful romantic pieces that depict a humorous mood. Dvořák originally wrote eight of them in 1894 as a cycle of piano ditties, which were published as his opus 101

[http://imslp.org/wiki/8_Humoresques,_Op.101_%28Dvo%C5%99%C3%A1k,_Anton%C3%ADn_Leopold%29].

The popular tune arranged for the violin is the seventh designated poco lento e grazioso–a little slow and gracious

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmAZoexenx8].

Fritz Kreisler popularized it further with his own fancy arrangement and played it with much sentiment [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiiAUECbIaw]. Hilary Hahn, the young American violinist, however, admires Mischa Elman’s rendition

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31uJT2IKsR0&feature=related]. Elman played it methodically and slowly with such a precision that exemplified the even bowing division technique, yet adding colors to it. On the other hand, the violin virtuoso Maxim Vengerov interprets it speedily like a child skipping rope

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_JoPEX3pxc].

One of my teachers introduced me to yet another interpretation, one by Josef Hassid, who died tragically and prematurely. He recorded Kreisler’s version but played it with unique articulation and subdued melancholic passion

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpMiNez6RR4].

Dvořák’s Humoresque No. 7 has been transcribed for various instruments and ensembles. Even a song version was used as a joke on the Amtrak train and in a children’s animation. It is not surprising that its original piano version is unknown to or forgotten by some listeners, while its violin and piano versions remain in the popular repertoire. Many violinists, from the very young to the old, have played it. Listeners respond to it in more than a humorous mood as provoked by the artist’s interpretation and delivery. It likely invokes a state of calmness and tranquility to induce sparkles of delight and pensiveness. I recently came across a performance by Rachel Barton Pine, playing Maud Powell’s adaptation of Kreisler’s arrangement

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9AUhoQZOrw]. You may choose your favorite interpretation from all available versions.

詠四季七言句余晃英 Qijue – The Seasons by Fong-ying Yu

Posted on June 9, 2011 by YK 1965

註: 以下中文七言句不合七絕規格, 英譯時則力求用單或雙音節字, 每句七音節,

間亦於二、四句末押韻. 這新嘗試的目標是試圖創做英文新詩體– 英文七絕.

两種語文, 或可達到相近境界.

Note: While the Chinese seven-character lines below do not conform to
the strict requirements of the Chinese qijue, the English verse form
might be called “English qijue,” with one- to two-syllable words, 7
syllables per line and occasional rhymes. The aim of the experiment is
to bring the two languages together in a similarity of metrical forms.

春 SPRING

初春 (一)

冬寒已退冷未消刮臉猶如利鋒刀
驚鳥匿藏葉叢裏生人步近齐飛高

Early Spring (1)

Winter retreats; its cold stays,
Grazing the face like razor.
Timid birds hide in the bush.
At a noise, to sky they soar.

初春 (二)

春意偷上樹枝頭含苞羞澀候佳音
小鳥還怯三分冷不為人間報早春

Early Spring (2)

Spring steals up the branches’ tips.
Blushing buds announce the news.
Birds, with memory of cold
Won’t tell that good times are due.

初春 (三)

立春己過氣猶寒春雨帶雪灑人間
難堪舊時不忍去乍暖還冷未開花

Early Spring (3)

Chill belies the Day of Spring.
Rain drizzles down mixed with snow.
A slow death dies the old times.
Nor warm nor cold, no flowers blow.

夏 SUMMER

無題

路旁橋畔野花嬌蝴蝶偏憐舞蹁躚
大地到處花盈眼泰半寂寂自榮枯

Untitled

On roadways, gay wild flowers,
Butterflies around them dance.
Flowers fill the eyes, here, there.
Unbeknownst, they live, they die.

炎夏忽至

春長霪兩氣猶寒炎夏曜曜撲面遲
虛己順時心平置冷暖早知受無辭

Summer Comes, Late and Sudden

Long rain-filled Spring is cold still.
Sudden summer comes, full-hot.
Humbled, I go with the times.
Cold and hot, just come. So what?

秋 FALL

拾葉

裸樹肅然立風中樹底葉塚已墳隆
造化脫胎正換骨痴情許是拾葉人

Gathering Leaves

Trees stand in wind: solemn, nude.
Leaves form tombs around trunk-beds.
The world itself renewing,
Why are leave pickers’ eyes red?

深秋, 得二首 Late Autumn (2)

其一: 霜

楓樹搖落別有姿涼風習習拂額寒
偏愛秋來添霜韻蕭瑟草木未衰時

No. 1: Frost

Deleaved maples each a poise,
Cool wind fans my forehead cold;
I love fall — its frosty charm,
And grass and shrubs not yet dead.

其二: 遙看鐵道镇

秋光仍照遠景明紅霞一抹刷天邊
且取美色存腦海寒夜暖夢伴秋眠

No. 2: Viewing Metrotown from Afar

Fall-gleams light up the distance,
Red streaks brush athwart the sky;
I’d store the wonder in mind,
To hug warm dreams in cold nights.

冬 WINTER

冬 (一)

衰草頹竹尚苟存眾芳憔悴早失色
鵝黄欲上怯冬意萬籟屏息待春溫

Winter (1)

Tired grass, weak bamboo, survive.
Colours have long gone from plants.
Sensing cold, new growth retreats.
Breath bated, Earth waits for spring.

冬 (二)

禿樹一行猶有鳥瑟縮枝椏吱两聲
烏雲厚壓鎖冬氣行人哨語問春踪

Winter (2)

Bald trees still harbour some birds.
They cheep in the leaves, once, twice.
Thick clouds lock the wintry chill.
Whistling, I ask, where is spring?

2011/6/7

International Tulip Festival

Posted on May 14, 2011 by YK 1965

七绝: 自然规律–加京国际郁金香节有感陈耀国

根球去秋我先种

香花迎春当怒放

五月承随四月来

君仍近临我心芳

Tulip bulbs I buried last fall

Now spring to life they’re up

Sure as May follows April

Just as sure my heart they rub

Thanks are due to Yu Fong-ying for his English rendition, which I couldn’t do better.–YK