The “Spiritual Love” Between Song Yu and the Goddess of Mount Wu
Release date:
2023-06-18
Song Yu (298–222 BCE), a poet of the State of Chu and a descendant of the Song royal clan, was born in Chu. He served King Qingxiang of Chu and held the rank of a high‑ranking official. A renowned rhetorician and fu writer of the Warring States period, he was ranked alongside Tang Le and Jing Cha. His surviving works include “Jiu Bian,” “Gao Tang Fu,” and “Shen Nu Fu.” The well‑known expressions “Xia Li Ba Ren,” “Yang Chun Bai Xue,” and “Qu Gao He Gua” all originate from him. According to legend, Song Yu is one of the four great beauties of ancient China—alongside Pan An, Prince Lanling, and Wei Jie.
In the “Ode to Gaotang,” Song Yu composed a fu. In its preface, through a dialogue, the work recounts the tale of a certain king of Chu—prior to King Qingxiang of Chu—and a free-spirited goddess who, on Mount Wu, boldly partake in a passionate rendezvous, giving full rein to their desires.
Moreover, the preface to the “Ode to the Goddess” states that after King Xiang of Chu dreamed of a goddess one night, he commissioned Song Yu to compose this poem. The ode vividly recounts how the king’s advances were rebuffed by the beautiful goddess, and it also conveys his lingering affection for her after she departed.
Yet whether passionate and generous or gentle and reserved, the Goddess of Mount Wu is none other than Yaoji of legend.
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