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「賦」是中國古代的一種文學體裁形式。什麼是「達人大觀」呢？「達」是通達的意思。有的人看事情「目光如豆」，是說他的眼界就像「豆」這麼微小，只能看到眼前這一點點的範圍，沒有很廣遠周到的眼光，這決不是達人大觀。所謂「達人大觀」，是說他的眼光廣遠周到，他不只看到眼前的「哀」，也不是只看到眼前的「榮」，他能夠看到宇宙、天道和人道都是「衰榮無定在，彼此更共之」的循環往復的。
我今早在（溫哥華）卑詩大學講課，恰好講到宋代的蘇軾，就是蘇東坡，曾被貶到中國的一個島，就是海南島，一個很遠的地方。有一晚上颳起大風，下起大雨，他寫下了一首詩。當然我們現在是講陶淵明的詩，可是為了解釋「達人大觀」，我還是要舉蘇東坡的詩為例子，因為蘇東坡是真正達觀的人，他的達觀是受了陶淵明的深刻影響的。蘇東坡晚年被貶之後曾經寫過「和陶詩」。什麼叫「和」呢？「和」在這裡念「赫」音，不念「河」音，就是陶淵明的詩寫什麼題目，他也寫什麼題目；陶淵明的詩用什麼韻字，他也用什麼韻字。他把陶淵明全集中的詩都和過了，由此可見蘇東坡是非常欣賞陶淵明的詩的。所以從蘇東坡被貶到海南島之後所寫的這首詩中我們可以看出「達人大觀」的人生態度。
這首詩的題目叫「六月二十日夜渡海」，中國舊曆的六月十五至二十，本應還是月圓之時，可是那天晚上颳風下雨，月亮被烏雲遮住了。他的詩是這麼說的，「參橫斗轉欲三更，苦雨終風也解情。雲散月明誰點綴，天容海色本澄清。」他詩後面還有，可時間不夠，我們主要是為了講陶詩，而不是講蘇詩，所以我就引到這裡。
「參橫斗轉欲三更」，「參」與「斗」都是天上星宿的名稱，由於地球運轉的原因，如果你晚上八、九點鐘看到這顆星在這裡，等到後半夜兩、三點鐘再看，這顆星跑到那邊去了，所以「參橫斗轉」是說從星宿的位置轉換上可以看出夜已很深了，已是「三更」的天氣了。中國古代用更鼓報時，三夏天是後半夜的時候，「參橫斗轉欲三更」了。前半夜的風雨依然還在繼續，但蘇東坡堅信「苦雨終風也解晴」，「苦雨」是非常繁密而令人苦惱的雨。「終風」這二個字是出於〈詩經〉的，本來是指那種最強勁的疾風；「解」是懂得、知道的意思。蘇東坡的「達人大觀」就體現在這句詩裡，他說即使是最強勁的風，最繁密的雨，它們不是也知道要有晴的時候嗎？而一旦風住了，雨停了，烏雲散去了，月亮又出現了，大自然的一切又恢復，還原出它的本來面貌。這時大自然還需要你的人工點綴嗎？不需要了。它「天容海色本澄清」，外界變化和影響改變不了宇宙自然的真本色，因此你沒有必要因暫時的「苦雨終風」而煩惱，憂慮。
如果說這首詩還不夠完全證明「達人大觀」的話，我們還可看蘇東坡另外一首牌調叫〈定風波〉的詞。這首詞也是寫有一天他在路上遇到暴風雨的事情。他說當暴風雨突然襲來的時候，他的同伴都一下子慌張起來，可是蘇東坡說他沒有驚慌。他說「莫聽穿林打葉聲，何妨吟嘯且徐行……。回首向來蕭瑟處，歸去，也無風雨也無晴」。他說，當風雨向你襲來的時候，如果你自己先驚慌失措起來，那你有可能在被風雨打倒之前就先把自己嚇倒了，所以他認為應該從容鎮定地應付，「莫聽穿林打葉聲」。你不能讓外界這穿林打葉的聲勢將你的內心打亂。
要知道陶淵明的那首詩，我們已經說過兩次了。「結廬在人境，而無車馬喧」：人世的喧嘩不能夠打亂你的心，外界的風雨聲也不能打亂你的心。那你也許會說，我不怕風雨，我就站在原地頂風淋雨好了。那也不行。那絕不是「達人大觀」的做法，蘇東坡不是讓你做那樣的傻瓜。
待續
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The fu is an ancient Chinese lyrical form.
What is meant by the line: "The wise man has a broad
perspective; there is nothing he cannot handle"? "Broad"
means penetrating and far-reaching. Some people have
pea-sized views, extremely limited in scope. They see only
what's immediately in front of them. Without broad and
far-reaching vision, such people certainly cannot be
considered wise or broad-sighted. A wise person's insights
are far-reaching and thorough. He doesn't merely see the
current state of decline or prosperity, but perceives that
both the human world and the celestial realm of the universe
follow the endless cycle described by the line: "Decline and
prosperity are impermanent, each reciprocating the other."
This morning, I happened to talk about Su Shi of the Song
Dynasty in my class at the University of British Columbia.
Su Shi had been demoted and sent to a remote island, known
today as Hainan Island. One windy and rainy night, he wrote
a poem. Although we are discussing Tao Yuanming's poem now,
in order to explain "The wise man has a broad perspective,"
I will use Su Shi's poem as an example, for Su Shi was
someone who truly had a broad perspective, due to being
deeply influenced by Tao Yuanming.
Being demoted in old age, Su Dongpo (Su Shi) wrote "Matching
Tao's Poems." What does 'matching' mean? Whatever titles Tao
Yuanming chose, he did the same; whatever rhymes Tao
Yuanming used, he used the same. He matched each poem in Tao
Yuanming's anthology. From this, we know that Su Shi truly
appreciated Tao Yuanming's poems.
Through the poem that Su Shi wrote upon being demoted to
Hainan Island, we can see his attitude of being a wise
person with a broad perspective. This poem is entitled
"Crossing the ocean at night on the 21st day of the sixth
month." From the 15th to the 20th of the lunar month, the
moon should be round. However, it was a stormy night and the
moon was obscured by dark clouds. Su wrote:
The constellations of Can and Dou have shifted; It must be
nearly the third watch. The bothersome rain and gusty wind
know when to cease. When the clouds disperse and the moon
shines, What decoration is needed? The sky and sea are
originally clear.
There is more to the poem, but we don't have time to study
it. We are mainly discussing Tao Yuanming's poems, not Su
Dongpo's, so I only quote so much.
"The constellations of Can and Dou have shifted; / It must
be nearly the third watch." Can and Dou are the names of
constellations. Due to the earth's rotation, you may see a
star over here around eight or nine o'clock at night, but by
two or three o'clock in the morning, the same star will have
moved over there. Thus "The constellations of Can and Dou
have shifted" indicates that according to the position of
the stars, it was very late at night-past midnight. In
ancient China, the hours were announced by a gong. The gong
striker would make his third round in latter part of the
night. "The constellations of Can and Dou have shifted; / It
must be nearly the third watch." It had been windy and
raining since the early part of the night, but Su Dongpo
insisted that "The bothersome rain and the gusty wind know
when to cease."
"Bothersome rain" means a heavy downpour that upsets and
annoys people. "Gusty wind" is a phrase from the Book of
Odes, and it refers to a very strong gale. To "know" means
to understand. Su Dongpo's wise and broad outlook becomes
apparent in this line. He was saying, "Won't it eventually
clear up after the gustiest wind and the heaviest rain?"
Once the wind ceases, the rain stops, and the dark clouds
disperse, the moon will emerge and nature will regain its
original appearance. At that moment, does nature need any
artificial ornaments? Of course not! "The sky and sea are
naturally clear." External changes and influences cannot
alter the true character of the natural universe. Thus,
there's no need to get anxious and worried over the
temporary "bothersome rain and gusty wind."
If this poem does not suffice to show that Su Dongpo is a
wise man with a broad outlook, we can examine another poem
of his, "Calmness in a Sudden Storm," describing his
encounter with a sudden storm while on the road. He said
that when the storm suddenly arose, his companions panicked,
but he did not. He said, "Ignore the whistling winds and the
pelting rain. Why not sing and holler and take a pleasant
stroll? ...Look back on that desolate scene-gone! Neither
storm nor clear skies exist." He said if you panic when the
storm strikes, you might knock yourself out even before the
storm gets to you. Su thought we should deal with it calmly.
"Ignore the whistling winds and the pelting rain." Don't let
the external sound of wind rustling through the woods and
raindrops pelting leaves disturb your mind.
Earlier, we mentioned twice Tao Yuanming's line "I make my
home among people, yet hear no noise of traffic" "Worldly
noise cannot disturb your mind, nor can the sounds of the
storm outside bother you. You might say, "I'm not afraid of
the storm—I'll stand here and let the wind blow me and the
rain drench me. That is not what a wise person with a broad
outlook would do. Su Dongpo would not allow you to be such a
fool.
To be continued
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