Digging Deeper Into Li Po’s “Good Fellowship”
Li Po or also known as Li Bai is considered the greatest Chinese poet of all-time. According to historical accounts, he wrote about 1000 poems in his entire life. Out of these thousand pieces that deal with relationships, nature, and love for wine, he scribbled the poem “Good Fellowship”. The poem is a three-stanza piece with four lines each (quatrain) in free verse. By applying the reader-response theory, I realized that the literary piece explores the sentiments of Li Po as inclined with the teachings of Taoism.
In my perspective, there are three themes to be found in the literary craft as represented by each stanza yet mingled by the Taoist point-of-view. Taoism during the Tang Dynasty, when Li Po is born, became the official religion as well as a philosophy of ancient China. It revolves around the principle of 'going with the flow' of Tao or Dao — a cosmic force that moves and shapes the universe. For Tao believers, human beings must follow the natural tendencies of things to obtain balance. Also, it taught the concept of yin-yang that indicates the existing contradictions in the realm such as feminism and masculinity, light and darkness, and evil and good.
Based on the descriptions stated by Li Po in the first stanza, he describes the Yellow River. It can be pinpointed that the second line depicted the poet’s sentiments of seeing the river as a gift from "Heaven". Indeed, the land near the river itself became the birthplace of the Chinese Civilization as it is fertile and good for farming. The agricultural development was brought by the yellow loess deposit after the water subsided as the Yellow River had frequent overflow annually. Besides, he also took note of the river’s natural subsiding in the last two lines of the opening stanza.
Moreover, since ancient times, despite bringing death and destruction due to its intense flooding — the reason why it got the monicker “China’s Sorrow” — the Yellow River is undeniably a relevant geographic feature in China’s history and blossoming as a great nation in the contemporary world. It continues to provides irrigation that the agricultural sect of the country needed to grow crops and sustain water among communities.
In the second stanza, like the Yellow River, another thing that has its natural tendency is humanity’s aging. It looks like Li Po is frankly frustrated about getting old as presented by the quatrain. By looking in the mirror in the hall, the poet observed that he is becoming older as symbolized by the "white hair". He described this experience as sorrowful with the word "grief". Although, in the last two lines, he shrugged off the sensation by making fun of the white hair as he metaphorically compared it with black silk during the morning while covered by snow in the evening.
On the other hand, the third stanza illustrates Li Po’s alcohol intake as well as the appreciation of the Moon — the only satellite of the planet. As written in Chinese history books, readers can understand how China’s greatest poet deeply indulges himself with wine and the moon as reflected by the poems he wrote.
More particularly, the first three lines of the last stanza described his experiences of drinking wine placed in a golden bottle, even telling the readers that while they are in the mood, they should not let the "bottle" to be lonely.
Moreover, the fourth and final line gave a briefer of how amazed Li Po was to the moon. It can be implied that he loves the serene beauty of the moon. During the Tang dynasty, the poet’s appreciation of the moon suggests another Tao teaching. It says that the moon is the feminine counterpart of the masculine Earth; hence, should be given respect and people must celebrate its elegance. Also, it is safe to say that he and his fellow Chinese poets in the past are what we call the modern-day "selenophiles" — people who love the moon.
The title of the poem itself presents the good fellowship that Li Po has with the Tao. As can be discerned from the three stanzas, the poet wants the readers to understand and appreciate how the universe works based on the Chinese POV. Having such a good connection to the Tao, as I said in the second paragraph, can lead people to a good and balanced life.
Additionally, the Tao-Te-Ching (The Book of the Way) is an anthology of poetry written by the said founder of Taoism Lao-Tzu explained and narrated the simple way of living and adapting to one’s self, others, and the ever-changing world. According to Ancient History Encyclopedia, "the Tao-Te-Ching is an attempt to remind people that they are connected to others and the earth and that everyone could live together peacefully if people would only be mindful of how their thoughts and actions affect themselves, others, and the earth."
In my conclusion, Li Po through his poem the "Good Fellowship" unconsciously or consciously exposes people to the teachings of Taoism. By sharing his experiences and understanding of the world, China’s world-renowned poet lets the readers appreciate the natural flow of the universe as well as indulging themselves with a cup of wine or anything that will set us free. Thus, Li Po’s literary piece allowed people to have a preview of how an ancient Chinese contemplate and make sense of the things he/she perceives.
