Alongside the Embracing Clouds Cliff, we find the Hall of Harmony, or Hexu Tang (No. 19). It’s worth visiting, even if only to look at the furniture here. The design of the furniture is very unique; the pieces are more than 200 years old. Perhaps they’ll give you some new ideas, or thoughts to use back home!
By now you have surely noticed dragons on the walls and it’s time we tell you the story of the famous Dragon Wall.
Yuyuan Garden - the Dragon Wall
The Dragon Wall located here in the third scenic area of Yuyuan Garden, is certain to be one of the most memorable sights in the garden. There are few places in China were one can see so many dragons in one place. And the most powerful ones of those dragons are depicted on the Dragon Wall.
The Wall can be seen from some way off. Quite near the Pavilion of Ten Thousand Flowers, if we look through gaps in the foliage, we notice a black dragon with white teeth, glittering in the sunlight. The body of the dragon curves and twists; the dragon itself looks skyward. It seems as if the dragon has been petrified mere moments before leaping into flight – for this reason, it is called the Dragon Crossing the Clouds, or Chuan Yun Long (No. 20).
The Dragon Crossing the Clouds is hard to miss. Its prominence is further enhanced by skillful use of materials – the black tiles make up the scales of the serpent, and the white splashes with black dots under them, create a splendid color effect. From whichever angle you look at it, it is clearly distinguishable and visible from everywhere in the third scenic area. The wall surrounding the garden itself is uniformly white and not so interesting to look at. The Dragon Wall surrounding the third scenic area is, thanks to the dragon climbing atop it, a much more interesting sight. The Dragon Crossing the Clouds continues on in nine sinuous waves over the entire wall, from north to south. The head and front legs of the beast are marvelously detailed, and looking up to it, you can almost feel that a few moments ago, the dragon was slithering along in some Chinese myth. It appears to hold power over every mortal; and it is not uncommon to stay and stare at it for a long time.
But the dragon is not alone here. It is accompanied by a worthy friend – a toad. You can see it when you take a closer look under the dragon’s head. The small amphibian is crouched there, almost invisible. In Chinese traditions, the toad symbolizes longevity. Combined with the power of the dragon, the lucky recipient of their blessing would receive both unimaginable power and incredible lifespan.
Without a doubt, the Dragon Crossing the Clouds is the most famous dragon in the garden and probably the best looking as well. That, of course, implies that there are other dragons in Yuyuan Garden; and there are. Four more dragons are hidden nearby.
One of those four is situated behind the Grand Rockery near the Cuixiu Hall. The Crouching Dragon, as it’s called, or Wo Long, is a reference to an ancient Chinese story.
In the second century, there lived in China one of the most celebrated military strategists of all time – Zhuge Liang. The feats of Zhuge Liang are told in one of Chinese literature’s most outstanding novels, the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The book itself was written in the 14th century; excerpts from it can be read on the Ting Tao Tower located in the fifth area. And as it happens, the nickname for Zhuge Liang was nothing other than Crouching Dragon. It might seem weird to have a dragon referring to a famous, talented and brave general in such a secluded place. But in this case, it is not weird at all. In Old China, the characters for Crouching Dragon also meant a wise man living far from people, or a hermit. In other words, the title was used to describe those wise men who felt disgusted with the corruption and greed of the world and chose to separate themselves from it. Additionally, such men often had knowledge that could either help or doom a kingdom; due to this, their seclusion was all the more noble.
Similar idealized heroism is common in classical Chinese literature and art, but nicknames referring to dragons were reserved for the mightiest of the mighty.
And the dragon, hidden in the farthest and darkest end of Yuyuan Garden, beautifully symbolizes the saying, still waters run deep. The dragon might sleep, far from us, but its skills, powers and knowledge surely exceed ours. The Crouching Dragon does not expect hordes of tourists; on the contrary, it enjoys true solitude. And anyone who needs help, from the lowliest peasant to the highest emperor, always knows where to search for their best advisor. But without someone pointing it out, the average visitor will probably pass it by, unaware.
The meanings a dragon holds for the Chinese are hard to overestimate. In order to understand, several questions must be asked. For starters: what is a dragon? As we can see in various locations in China, there are depictions or names referring to dragons everywhere. And yet, nowhere is it explicitly stated what a dragon actually is. It seems an unearthly and mythical creature, and yet it has the abilities of animals, and seems like an animal itself. And then there are characteristics, which set it apart! All things considered, though, you are right if you think that the Chinese dragon is a creature composed of many separate beasts. The debate over which animals are the ingredients, if we may say so, of a dragon, is still ongoing, but the most common view is that a dragon is a mix between a snake and a crocodile. In the primitive societies of ancient China, these animals were revered beasts; it is thought that as time passed and nations and cultures mixed with one another, so did their legends and traditions. This may have been the beginning of a supernatural beast with magical abilities we now call a dragon. On a grassroots level, we should also pay attention to the etymology of the Chinese character for dragon.
The oldest versions of the character long, meaning dragon, clearly show that the shape is very similar to a snake, to which was added the head of a different animal – for example, the head of a deer, a horse or a camel. The modern character for dragon also contains some hint of a snake’s body and the head of a cow-like animal. In either case, the age of the character is more than 3000 years; the fact that the beast has remained important through all this time is a clear indicator of how powerful and vibrant the legends must be.
Being a composite of many different animals, dragons have the antlers of a deer, the head of a camel, the ears of an ox, the mouth of a crocodile, the neck and body of a snake, the ‘skin’ of a seashell, the talons of an eagle and the paws of a tiger. In individual cases, these parts may differ. For example, pictures of dragons often lack the antlers; furthermore, there are significant differences between how dragons are seen in different parts of China. Such minor variations are understandable, considering the age of the Chinese dragon. And whatever the actual look of a dragon may be, to a Chinese person, the important thing is that a dragon contains within itself nearly all of the animals that bring good luck. Perhaps now you see why the question, what is a dragon? is so hard to answer.
If we now study the Dragon Crossing the Clouds, we notice the talons of an eagle, the antlers of a deer and the ears of an ox. In order to recognize the head as coming from a donkey, more imagination is required.
All things said, however, the most recognizable feature in any dragon is the body of a snake. The sinuous shape of a dragon is the first hint of supernatural. And supernatural describes dragons perfectly. Their connections to various animals do not stop at appearance. A dragon can swim, fly, crawl and walk; it can move about during night and day, in summer as well as in winter. This is the source of a dragon’s supernatural powers and the countless legends surrounding them. Every Chinese dragon is a mix of many animals; depending on the situation, it will use whatever powers it needs. To a layman, a dragon will appear as a vicious creature that breathes fire wherever it goes and feels neither mercy nor compassion. For the Chinese, however, a dragon is a protective creature that can chase off any and all evil spirits. In Chinese legends, dragons have terrorized people only on very rare occasions, and for this reason, dragons are sometimes used in the sense of tyranny, but seldom so.
In order to illustrate the importance of dragons in China, and to show their power, we will here retell an old s
tory.
Once, long ago, there was a small village in the Tiantai Mountains. The ground there was so fertile that when stepped on, pure cooking oil was squeezed out of the earth. For many years, the people there enjoyed rich harvests and lived in happiness. But this happiness was not to last. One year, there was a great drought. Not a drop of water fell from the clouds, and the fields remained barren. In the heat, the earth was baked yellow and as hard as iron. The people were very worried.
Near that village lived a tortoise with supernatural powers. One night, he manifested himself in the dreams of all the villagers, commanding them to bring him rice and meat. The tortoise gave a warning that if his commands were not obeyed, not a drop of rain would fall all year long. The fearful villagers took all their food to the wicked tortoise, who immediately ate it all. Seeing that the appetite of the tortoise was endless, the villagers became infuriated and decided to try to slay the creature. But as soon as they thought of a plan, the tortoise knew all about it. In his power he commanded that all those who were responsible for the plan come before him. As soon as the men showed up, the tortoise ate them all. But still he needed more.
The tortoise could not grasp the idea that the puny peasants had refused to serve him, the mightiest tortoise in the land. Full of anger, he went to see the Queen Mother of the West, who commanded the God of Thunder and Rain. The tortoise told her that the villagers in the Tiantai Mountains had refused to worship Heaven and Earth, and had even insulted the Queen Mother herself. This, obviously, was a lie. But the Queen Mother of the West did not know that; and immediately she ordered the God of Thunder and Rain that for ten years, no rain should fall on the blasphemous village. This led to an even greater drought, and soon there was hunger.
Luckily, the mountains near the village were home to a dragon, who one day happened to overhear the crying and wailing coming from the village. The dragon turned himself into a young boy and went to see what was the cause of all this. The boy asked an old woman, what had happened, and heard the full story of the evil tortoise. This made the dragon very angry, and he decided to make things right. But although the fury of the dragon was great, he could not simply kill the tortoise. Instead, he came up with a cunning plan. He decided to sneak into the Temple of Rain in the Celestial Palace. Within the temple was held a mystical bowl, full of holes, which was used to bring rain.
The first part of his plan went smoothly. He crept into the palace, found the bowl and hid it about himself. But then, upon exiting the palace, he ran into none other than the tortoise himself! The tortoise immediately realized that something was wrong; with one glance, he also noticed that the dragon, still in the guise of a boy, has something hidden under his clothes. Even the wind was against the dragon – just then, a gust blew his coat open, and the tortoise saw that he was stealing the bowl of rain. “How dare you, dragon, come to the Celestial Palace and steal our treasures“ he roared. “I shall immediately go to the Queen Mother of the West and tell her of your insolence!” This, the dragon could not allow to happen; and his only option at that point was to engage the tortoise in combat.
The battle took place in the sky above the village. The fighting was fierce. The tortoise was mighty indeed. In order to help and support the dragon, the villagers started to beat their drums, and burned incense.
Soon, the dragon was almost overcome by the tortoise’s power. To save the villagers, he decided to throw the bowl down, into the mountains. Falling, the bowl broke, all the water within it ran out and the fields, and the villagers with them, were saved.
By that time, all gods had noticed the battle. They quickly took word to the Jade Emperor, who summoned a council to investigate the reasons for the fight. Soon, the truth was unearthed and the Jade Emperor had the evil tortoise thrown in prison and the noble dragon rewarded. Ever since that time, the dragon is considered the rain god of the Tiantai Mountains who will always try to help the villagers.
Similar stories, where dragons stand up for simple villages and peasants, are everywhere in China. Often, they contain examples of the dragon’s transformational powers – as in the story we just heard, where the dragon changed his shape into that of a young boy. And it goes without saying that dragon stories always contain battles. It’s in the nature of a dragon to be brave and fearless!
As a symbol, dragon is inextricably linked to Chinese culture and society. Throughout history, dragons have symbolized the emperor. As you know, the Chinese had to worship their emperor and honor him in everything they did; the common people as a whole were the property of the emperor. This boundless submission was even expressed in their hair, which was cut according to a nationwide standard. The whole nation firmly believed that the emperor had the powers of a dragon. He could feed his subjects, bring rain, win wars and so on. In short, the emperor was a dragon.
This view is particularly evident in the Qing, the last Chinese Dynasty. Even their flag held a huge dragon. Of course, only emperors could wear clothes decorated with pictures of dragons. The common people were strictly prohibited from doing so. Draconic abilities, you see, were the emperor’s and his alone! And it seems that this approach, where the emperor claimed to be someone he was not, made it easier for him to rule the country.
The Chinese are sometimes called descendants of the dragon. Even in international affairs, China is often referred to as the ‘dragon’ country. Now that you know a bit more about dragons, it seems a bit different, does it not?
But let us return to the present time. There are still three more dragons to see in Yuyuan Garden.
One of them is in the sixth scenic area – in the Inner Garden. This is called the Sleeping Dragon, or Shuimian Long; it has hidden itself on a wall between the pavilions and narrow pathways on the artificial mountain.
The remaining two dragons are located here in the third scenic area; unlike the others, these two are together. They can be found over the doorway between the third and fourth scenic areas west of the Hall of Harmony. The dragons here play with a pearl; underneath them are swimming fish.
This, too, is a reference to a story. According to a well-known legend, all fish desire to be dragons. And that, as strange as it seems, is actually possible. All they need to do is successfully leap over the dragon gate. For this reason, as soon as spring has arrived, all fish start making their leaps. Whoever makes a successful one, turns into a dragon, but those who fail remain as fish. Mildly put, it’s rather difficult – the gate is high and the dream of achieving ‘dragonhood’ far away.
But to us as visitors, this story holds good omens. It is said that those who pass through a gate or doorway decorated with dragons may turn into a dragon themselves, receiving all the powers of a dragon. And that list includes longevity, special powers, riches or boundless happiness. Give it a try; perhaps you will succeed where the fish failed!
Now, through this remarkable gate with two dragons (No. 21), we’ll head on to the fourth scenic area of Yuyuan Garden.
Yuyuan Garden - the fourth area
The fourth section of the garden is even roomier than the one we just left behind. Since the main element of the fourth scenery area is water, we will encounter many ponds and bridges. The bridges are curved and meandering, and they connect different buildings and scenery areas. Up to now, we have seen at least one body of water in every area we have visited in this garden. Now, there are many more.
As an element, water is very common in Chinese gardens. Each garden holds some kind of pond, around which various pavilions are built. When you look at the map of Yuyuan Garden, you will notice a lake or pond in each scenery area. This is the classical, ‘water in the middle, buildings around it’ style commonly used throughout China. It’s the most ubiquitous in South China – perhaps because of the Yangtze River. The Yangtze divides China into two parts, the North and the South. Likewise, the people are divided into two: the Chinese north of the Yangtze, and the Chinese south of the Yangtze. This distinction is evident in almost every aspect of life. They speak diffe
rent languages, they differ in their customs and appearance, and even their philosophies are not the same.
A marvelous view of the fourth scenic area opens from the balcony of the Nine Lion Study, or Jiushi (No. 22). The study is located on the northern side of the fourth scenic area. The building is partly suspended over water; to the east of it stands a small grove of bamboo – the only real forest in all of Yuyuan Garden.
This is perhaps the wildest area in the garden. The building and the grove together imitate the idyllic scenery familiar from Chinese paintings – a lonely house, home to a Taoist poet or artist. Although the builder of the garden, Pan Yunduan, was Buddhist, he strongly supported the Taoist philosophy. His interest in poetry and painting is evident everywhere in the garden – every detail is carefully designed and placed in order to create the Taoist ideal of humans coexisting with nature, in harmony. Like so many other places in the garden, the Nine Lion Study succeeds in this.
The imaginary centre of Yuyuan Garden is located in the Scenery Gathering Tower, or Huijing Lou (No. 23). It’s not the highest building in the garden, but from the second floor, you get a beautiful overview of the whole garden, unobstructed. Among other things, you can see the Toasting Pavilion, or Liushang Ting (No. 24). A one-time owner of the garden and his friends used to visit the pavilion to drink wine and read poetry – hence the name.
Have you heard about a wine drinking game very common in ancient China? In Chinese, the game was called liushang – the same as the pavilion in front of you. If you don’t know, then in the third day of the third month of the lunar calendar, friends would meet near some meandering river and sit down. One of them would place a filled wineglass in the river, and the others would wait downstream. The person near whom the glass touched land was the winner, and could drink the wine. Alternatively, if the glass were about to tip over, the nearest player could pick it up and drink the wine. This game was very popular in China, especially among the more educated. This wine game spread to other counties as well – to South Korea, for example, where it gained great popularity. A clever game, don’t you think? And all you need in order to play is a river, some wine, and good company. All of which was present in Yuyuan Garden.
Shanghai Stories TOP3: the Bund, Yuyuan Garden, Mid-Lake Pavilion Teahouse Page 6