A Man in “Jiang Hu”. 人在江湖

There were 3 main elements in the Butterfly & Sword. 流星•蝴蝶•剑 Wuxia story 武侠小说 (see earlier post – 29 Mar). The shooting star 流星 liúxīng represents brilliance, glory but also brevity. The butterfly 蝴蝶 húdié represents beauty, fragility, and romance. The sword 剑 jiàn represents fame, ruthlessness and ambition. Which of the three is temporal? Which of the three is eternal? Maybe, we should instead ask what is beauty? What is brilliance? What is eternity? Is brilliance and eternity the fluttering of the butterfly’s wings? Or the rule of the blood soaked sword?

The comment by reader Choo below explored these themes. The beautiful words are from her, the poor translations are all mine and I took artistic liberty to interpret them the way it appealed to me. Please let us have your comments if you disagree.

江湖恩怨, jiānghú ēnyuàn
政坛风云, zhèngtán fēngyún
The gratitude and enmity of “Jiang Hu”,
Or the turbulence of politics.

是敌或友, shìdí huòyǒu
谁是谁非, shuíshì shuífēi
Whether friends or foes,
Whether right or wrong;

扑朔迷离, pūshuò-mílí
像雾里看花, xiàng wùlǐ kànhuā
难分虚实. nánfēn xūshí
Are all complicated and confusing,
Like looking at flowers through the fog,
Impossible to distinguish with certainty.

剑虽无情, jiànsuī wúqíng
却光芒永恒. què guāngmáng yǒnghéng
Though the sword is heartless,
Is the glory forever?

但江湖儿女私情, dànjiānghú ér-nǚ sīqíng
更为万人所道, gèngwéi wànrén suǒdào
Or will it be the romance
That will be recalled

叫人回肠荡气. jiàorén huícháng dàngqì
And which touches the soul?

Whether in the world of Jiang Hu or in this very real world we lived in, very often we are not in control of the situation we found ourselves in. (Hence, the proverb 人在江湖, 身不由己rénzàijiānghú, shēnbùyóujǐ which was a title of another of 古龙 Gulong’s martial arts novel). But it is how we response to the world we lived in that determines who we are. What will be that wish we will make at the sighting of the falling star?

Butterfly & Sword. 流星•蝴蝶•剑

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Something happened yesterday (Sunday) that made me wrote this instead of what I had intended. It had to do with the messy election of the Malaysian Chinese political party where the choices should have been who you wanted to vote out rather than in. The politicians involved were like the characters portrayed in 流星•蝴蝶•剑 liúxīng húdié jiàn (Shooting Star, Butterfly and Sword), a 1973 武侠小说 wǔxiá xiǎoshuō Wuxia or martial arts novel by Gu Long 古龙 gǔlóng, one of the two arguably most influential Wuxia novelists. Even the intrigues and betrayals of this complicated story pales in comparison with the actual events. What made it even more interesting was that after being betrayed by his trusted man and long-time friend (as also happened in the story), the politician affected quoted this very book.

This novel was made into a movie in 1976 with the unfortunate English title of “The Killer Clans”. It started my love for the world of Jianghu 江湖 jiānghú. (An imaginary Chinese martial arts world that intersects the real one. Literally, the term means rivers and lakes; real yet not solid like the ground you stood on. And on a misty morning, you are never really sure that the waters are real or just a figment of your imagination even though you have sailed it the night before.) It was remade in 1993 as “Butterfly & Sword” starring Michelle Yeoh but that adaptation was rubbish.

In the original movie, the leader of the 龙门 lóngmén Dragon Gate Society was forced to trust the assassin who was sent to kill him and when he was asked why, he gave this poignant reply “You are the only one whom I can trust for I know your true intention. You were sent to kill me.” Incidentaly, the politician concerned did not survive the election (but his ex-man did) but if I could vote, he would the last I voted out for he at least (too late) has the wisdom to see that the sword has no feeling.

This is the introduction to the tale of 流星•蝴蝶•剑 (truncated with apology).

流星的光芒虽短促,但天上还有什么星能比它更灿烂,辉煌
蝴蝶的生命比鲜艳的花还脆弱。它的生命虽短促却芬芳。

只有剑,才比较接近永恒。
一个剑客的光芒与生命,往往就在他手里握着的剑上,
但剑若也有情,它的光芒是否也就会变得和流星一样短促。

"The shooting star is brilliant although short-lived, but which star in the sky is more glorious.
The butterfly is more fragile than even the colorful flowers. Its life is short but beautiful.

Only the sword is more enduring.
The life and brilliance of the swordsman is that sword he held in his hand.
But should the sword have feeling, will its brilliance be as short as the shooting star?"

It is a pity that the characters in the tale and the politicians never realize that even if their swords are heartless, their glory will still be as brief as that flash of light, and less bright.