Gonggar Gyaincain was the fourth generation leader of the Sagya Sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Painstaking efforts in the study of Buddhist scriptures enabled him to gain a good command of medicine, Buddhism, rhetoric, terminology, prosody, dramatics and the calendar. His extensive knowledge earned him fame as a great scholar. Now let’s enjoy a poem by Gonggar Gyaincain, which is obviously a summary of his rich life experiences.

Scholars are a treasure trove of knowledge,

They gather precious sayings.

Seas are the treasure trove of rivers,

Towards which numerous rivers rush.

No matter whether or not one is learned,

Those capable of making choices are capable.

Iron filings mixed with dust,

Magnetite makes the distinction.

A wise man learns everything possible,

Gaining a good command of one aspect

and knowledge of all others.

Although the foolish appear learned,

They are like faintly twinkling stars.

All can determine the difference between achievement and error,

Only scholars know the difference when they are difficult to distinguish.

Everyone can milk a cow,

But only the swan can separate milk from water.

Upright people have good moral character,

Even though in dire poverty.

A torch turns upside down,

Its tongue goes up.

Scholars pretend not to be scholars,

Their fame never dims in the world.

When pouring cymbidium into a cleaned bottle,

The fragrance nonetheless wafts far and wide.

Unlearned people are always cocky,

Learned people are however modest.

Small streams roar down mountain valleys,

Vast oceans seldom make a noise.

This poem uses reasoning and metaphor to spell out how one should go about cultivating oneself, and how to conduct oneself in society. Although it was written long, long ago, its wisdom is still well worth studying.

Now here's another Tibetan poem, which was written by Cangyang Gyaco. He was born in 1682, more than 300 years ago. Cangyang Gyaco’s poems occupy an important position in Tibetan poetry. In 1697, when Cangyang Gyaco was 15, he was confirmed as the reincarnated soul boy of the 5th Dalai Lama. He was tonsured by the 5th Bainqen Erdeni and was given the religious name of Lobsang Rinqen Cangyang Gyaco. The same year he was officially installed as the 6th Dalai Lama through a sitting-in-bed ceremony held in the Potala Palace. By the way, the 6th Dalai Lama and Banqen Erdeni were students of the Tibetan Gelug Sect religious leader Master Tsongkhapa.

Cangyang Gyaco’s poems express his inner feelings, and have a rather folksy flavor. His poems were so loved by the populace that they were copied by hand or on woodprint. Now, let’s enjoy some of them.

From the mountain peaks in the east,

The silvery moon has peeped out.

And the face of that young maiden,

Has gradually appeared in my mind

In the first place it is best not to see,

Then there is no chance of falling in love.

In the second place it is best not to become intimate,

Then you will not be forlorn when you miss her.

The willow fell in love with the small bird,

The small bird fell in love with the willow.

If they love each other in harmony,

The hawk will be unable to get a chance.

The young sprouts planted last year,

Have become bundles of straw this year.

The aged bodies of former youths,

Are more bent than the bows from the south.

If the one to whom I have lost my heart

Can become my lifelong companion.

It would be just like getting a jewel,

From the bottom of the sea.

These verses by Cangyang Gyaco, with their talk of love and forlorn hearts, are quite different from the ascetic words of Gonggar Gyaincain that we heard earlier.

As far as we know, the first English edition of his poems came off the press in 1930.

Now I’ll introduce a contemporary Tibetan poet, named Rabgyai Basang. He was born in 1935. His poetry expresses his love for his hometown and his country. He has been a soldier in the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, an interpreter, and a teacher. Ever since he was young, he has never stopped his research and experimenting with new styles of Tibetan poem. In 1958, he started to publish his poems. One of his representative pieces is entitled “Mother”.

When I was still a child at the breast,

I never thought of molding clay figures, or playing hide-and-seek,

Nor of the sky and earth,

But I had a vague impression:

“There is nothing in the world

As sweet as my motherland’s embrace.”

From the remote border region,

I crossed the Yangtze and Yellow rivers:

Though I haven’t been to the Changbai Mountains,

I whisper to myself in my heart:

“There is nothing in the world

As sweet as my motherland’s embrace.”

Many poets write of sweet memories of their mother’s breast or their motherland. Human beings have many feelings, but their love of mother and motherland seem more profound and solid than other sorts of feelings. In Rabgyai Basang’s poem, ‘Mother’, he mentions the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers and the Changbai Mountains. We can feel his love of his country’s large rivers and tall mountains.

(cri.com.cn July 16, 2002)