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badasstransswag · 1 year

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Just asking out of curiosity, but where does the idea that swk is trans come from?

Macaques are matriarchal, and 王 (typically translated as the "king" in Monkey King) was historically a gender neutral title. This is widely known enough that some scholarly readings of JTTW interpret the other macaque in his sworn brotherhood to be a female monkey king. (On a similar but less impactful note, though often translated as "Handsome Monkey King," Sun Wukong's title of 美猴王 more accurately translates to "Beautiful Monkey King," with 美/beautiful having feminine connotations.)

It is widely known that Sun Wukong was appointed the position of 弼马温 (translated directly as “to soothe the horses”) as a pun on the identically pronounced 避马瘟 ( “to ward off sickness for horses”). This title references a traditional Chinese belief (often cited to 马经 by 赵南星 of the Ming dynasty) that female monkeys and their menstruation would ward off plague for horses if kept in the same stable

The disciples in Journey to the West hold elemental names in addition to their given and Buddhist names. Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing both have feminine elemental names (木母 "Wood Mother" and 黄婆 "Yellow Matron" respectively), but in contrast, Sun Wukong holds a masculine elemental name, 金公 Metal/Gold Male

Sun Wukong is a 妖 yao, and yao in general have a history of being associated with the Chinese trans community. (Supplemental: see Bai Suzhen being read as an allegory for trans panic)

Thematically-wise, Sun Wukong's story is one of transgressing boundaries. JTTW as a whole is a story that places a lot of weight on the topic of transformation and change. Buddhas becoming humans, humans becoming gods, gods becoming yaoguai, yaoguai becoming buddha, buddhas taking the face of yaoguai. Yin within yang, light within dark, nothing is inherent, nothing is black and white. 变化者乃天地之自然 "Change is the nature of heaven and earth" (Daoist text 抱朴子 by 葛洪), 诸行无常 "all forms are ever-changing/no self is permanent" (Buddhist three marks of existence), etc etc. Sun Wukong is at the center of it all, a yao who not only asserts his identity as a god, but also a yao who will not change his being in lieu of that (SWK is very invested in showing off his grand power, and achieving/living in human form is an end goal show of power by many yao, yet SWK markedly remains steadfast in keeping his monkey form). SWK is a yaoguai, a god, and a buddha all at once, transcending boundary over boundary and master of the 72 transformations, transforming himself into what he wants to be and what he feels is true for himself.

This naming scene: 祖师笑道：“你身躯虽是鄙陋，却像个食松果的猢狲。我与你就身上取个姓氏，意思教你姓‘猢’。猢字去了个兽傍，乃是个古月。古者，老也；月者，阴也。老阴不能化育，教你姓‘狲’倒好。狲字去了兽傍，乃是个子系。子者，儿男也；系者，婴细也，正合婴儿之本论。 "The Patriarch laughed and said, “Though your features are not the most attractive, you do resemble a pignolia-eating monkey (husun). This gives me the idea of taking a surname for you from your appearance. I intended to call you by the name Hu. If I drop the animal radical from this word, what’s left is a compound made up of the two characters, gu and yue. Gu means aged and yue means female, but an aged female cannot reproduce. Therefore, it is better to give you the surname of Sun. If I drop the animal radical from this word, what we have left is the compound of zi and xi. Zi means a boy and xi means a baby, and that name exactly accords with the fundamental Doctrine of the Baby Boy." -JTTW Chapter 1

Also 1961 Sun Wukong speaks in a very characteristically Chinese opera 生 voice while no other character in the movie really does so outside of exclamations and such. And well... (The sheng is a role type in Chinese opera for dignified and respectable male characters such as Confucian scholars, nobles, or heads of households. They may be portrayed by either male actors or actresses. In Yue opera, sheng roles have been mainly portrayed by actresses. Actresses playing men (sheng) is also common in some southern genres like Teochew opera and Taiwanese opera. It also appears in Ping opera. (Wikipedia))

#asks #he's basically the only one who hasnt turned to the camera and said 'i'm trans' on this poll but i think its enough .#thank you marcus for all of this teehee

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risalei-nur · 6 months

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The Words - The Thirty-second Word - Part 76

Also, with its creatures being its amiable residents and lovable adornments, with which you feel a profound connection and for whose wretched- ness you grieve, the world is like a home for you. Through reflection, you may perceive how much your spirit loves and to what degree you need the Names the All-Wise and the All-Sustaining of the One Who has organized the world and it creatures and thus governs, grows, and sustains them with perfect wisdom. You also may understand to what extent your spirit needs the Names the Heir, the All-Quickening, the All-Permanent, the All- Munificent, the All-Reviving, and the All-Benevolent, of the One Who brings all of the people to whom you feel connected and at whose death you are grieved, out of the darkness of eternal extinction and settles them in a place far more beautiful than this world.

Since we, as human beings, are noble, elevated beings with comprehen- sive natures, our endless needs and aspirations make us needy of one thou- sand and one Divine Names in their numerous degrees of manifestation. Compound or intense need is eagerness, compound or intense eagerness is love, and compound or intense love is adoration. In proportion to the degree of the spirit’s perfection, love increases and flourishes in degrees according to the levels of the Divine Names’ manifestations. Since the Names are titles with which the Majestic Being manifests Himself, love of all Names turns into love of the Divine Being. Out of thousands of levels of manifestations of the Names the All-Just, the All-Wise, the (Ultimate) Truth, and the All- Compassionate, we present one as an example as follows:

If you want to see the Names the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate, and the (Ultimate) Truth in full manifestation in wisdom and justice, con- sider the following comparison: Suppose an army formed of four hundred companies. Each company has unique uniforms, rations, weaponry, and medicines. If these companies are situated together mixed with one another without the uniqueness of each considered, and yet, out of his perfect compassion and through his extraordinary power and miraculously encompassing knowledge, and with utmost justice and wisdom, a peerless king equips each with unique uniforms and weapons and provides them with appropriate foods and medicines without mistake or help, you may under- stand what a powerful, compassionate, just, and munificent king he is.

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mystical-evergreen · 2 years

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It’s been a “fun” week, so to try and escape a little I thought I’d start to compile all my ideas about Criladith, or some. Sorry for the word spill

So, let’s start with the save itself. “Criladith 1” as we can call it started to shows signs of corruption (I think). Couldn’t load families, certain lots weren’t loading/crashed if they did. I was pretty spooked and contemplating simply building my own lots (I’d been using prebuilt Gwrych lots) and moving families, when I remembered. I had been getting my servants by simply teleporting sims on the sim blender and moving them in, very bad idea because these were all service sims. It was a theory until I checked something, our darling evil Judith Kellers had incomplete data. You couldn’t even extract her appearance (which is why she’ll look different in round 2.) So Judith had been an unsafe npc and Criladith 1 was on a timer.

It many ways a corruption scare was probably just what I needed. I hadn’t been liking the map, the way I had set up four corners each province was going to be its own separate entity in competition with one another. I ended really hating that and the looming rise in households I’d need to play (we started with 16 at the beginning of round 1) and lots I’d need to build. I also wasn’t vibing with the grwych lots, they weren’t meeting the needs of the sims or me. So I extracted all of the sims, recreated them in a new map (terrain?) and started to build everything from scrap. Which has led to a long process of building but it’s been sooo rewarding.

As it stands Criladith will now one day be a kingdom, instead of 4. Each province will be built up as rural villages where my yeoman and peasants will reside. Each will have natural resource lots (ie forest, mine) and a village green and well in addition what other regional specific lots it’s hold. All the other lots and families (families will be randomized from now on, no more couples straight from cas) past hamlet will be built in the “Capital/Charter City” in the middle of the map. The CC will host merchants, gentry, nobles, and one day my royals. Taxes from all the regions will be pooled together toward the CC. So how will we know who is to be crowned our monarch if not through monetary gain? I think I’ve mentioned it before, but it’s whichever noble tops the Politics career first. If the noble dies before they can it falls on their child to continue to fight for their house. The success of the province/level in their career will decide what titles the other three nobles obtain when the royal family is crowned. Not sure if the noble reaches the top of the career before the CC is complete if they will be crowned, maybe maybe not.

Besides the CC and provinces there will be a university section (city planning is not my strong suit, it will either be on the hill or somewhere in the CC). Religious sections will also be built for those that practice convent type devotion. Athos (Vilena’s god) is going to have nuns who run the orphanage and maybe brothers. I also want to build a military compound with a prison tower, knight barracks, regular military barracks (for peasant/yeomans, a much more grueling track than that of knights), a church, training grounds, and some sort of relaxation building. (If you can’t tell this is what I’m currently working in game.) Very heavily inspired by how @mortia handles her barracks. Nectarine Nivell is one of our knights to be, and others will soon follow. Also if anyone has some nice medieval N names for her instead of Nevaeh/Nectarine I’d appreciate the suggestions :)

#criladith #ts2 medieval #extras #criladith lore

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l-r-christian · 3 years

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Title: 'Tied to one' part three

Pairing: Poly!Mikaelson x Black!Witch!Reader

Summary: Hayley had gone to a undoing the Mikaelsons soulstrings to Y/N and to have Elijah tied to the hybrid. Not only did it undid the strings it also had brought back Mikael and Esther along with the second oldest Original.

Warnings: Angst, Jealous Mikaelsons, Hayley being kinda of bitch, Reader being a shy bean, Soft Finn

A/N: holy another long part Batman 😳 I am really enjoying doing this series.

Hayley went to the witch that she was going to check out with Elijah but since the noble vampire and his siblings found their soulmate, Elijah was more focus on Y/N instead of Hayley.

"This spell is powerful. Are you sure you want this? The price for this is great."

"Whatever it takes. Just do the spell." Hayley said glaring at the witch who swallowed knowing she'll die after doing the spell as to rewrite a soulstrings could disrupt the balance of nature. Hayley woke gasping feeling an arm tighten around her and Elijah's scent hit her nose and felt him nuzzle her neck.

"It's too early to be awake baby." Elijah's voice husky from sleep making Hayley flush as she realized that she was bare. Hayley looked seeing it was 7AM and heard Klaus with Hope then felt Elijah's hand move along her waist.

"Elijah?"

"Hmm?" Elijah acknowledge Hayley as he placed kisses along her neck pulling her closer and Hayley caught a glance at her string that was tied to Elijah's finger and couldn't help but notice three other strings tied to hers.

"Hum...what...happen last...night?"

"Did you drink too much last night?" Marcellus threw a party then Niklaus and I took you to bed which you took us both so well." Elijah says as Rebekah walked in without a care surprising Hayley when the vampire kissed her.

"You and Nik wasn't too rough on her, right?"

"Never Rebekah." Elijah says kissing Hayley's shoulder before getting out of bed and Rebekah began to dress Hayley. The hybrid walked out a little overwhelmed of the fact she took Y/N's place to which she noticed the witch wasn't in the compound as it was like that the witch didn't even step foot in the place.

"What happened to Y/N?"

"Y/N? Who is that?" Kol asked confused as the others looked at Hayley confused as Hayley realized the spell the witch did had work though Hayley only wanted Elijah.

"Nothing, I was just thinking of a character of a book." Hayley said sitting next to Elijah as everyone took her word unaware of what was coming their way. Mikael woke in a tomb with the thought of killing Klaus while Esther had woke where Klaus left her last frowning when she didn't see Finn. The second oldest Mikaelson had woke before his mother and saw his string having a burst of color and went to follow it to his soulmate.

Y/N flet like something was wrong as four of her strings was a ash gray yet one was a warm orange and brown with swirls of gold mixing with her pastel colors but she couldn't ignore the magic over the other four. Y/N rush down the street carrying a bag of herbs and bumped into a man who quickly caught her from falling.

"Oh.....sorry." Y/N breathed staring at the man getting lost in his hazel-green eyes as the string on her finger glowed and the man stared into her chocolate eyes. Soulmate echoed through Finn's head and now he was going to focus on her no longer caring about Esther's mission.

"No my fault. I'm Finn Mikaelson......your soulmate."

"Oh hum....I'm Y/N L/N." Y/N said flushing when Finn kissed her hands and he noticed the ash gray string.....dead soulmates this made his heart ache at the idea that Y/N had ready lost four soulmates.

"Witch?"

"Yes....an old one..... I was just getting some herbs." Y/N said as Finn held his arm out to his little soulmate and the urge to protect her filled him.

"Allow me to take you home."

Klaus stormed into the compound tearing a stake from his chest getting the others attention right away. Elijah stood pulling away from Hayley worried about Klaus watching the Original hybrid pour a drink.

"What happen Niklaus?"

"Our father happen! Mikael is some how alive again." Klaus growled angry as Elijah narrowed his eyes as Freya frowning walking into the den getting their attention.

"Freya is something wrong?"

"Finn isn't in the pendant.....I can't feel his soul."

"First Mikael now Finn what's next? Our mother?" Rebekah asked as they all looked at one another unaware of Hayley's worried face. Hayley left the den to check on Hope as Freya went to do a spell to Finn and Kol leaned back looking at the others.

"Hey do guys feel like something is missing? I know that Mikael is important and a missing Finn but lately I have been feeling a dull heartache."

"Yes and the ash gray string....are we going to ignore it?" Rebekah asked as they looked at the second string seeing how dark the string was. Klaus and Elijah knew what both Rebekah and Kol was talking about.

"A dead soulmate we never met? Though it is impossible as soulmates always find one another." Elijah said as Klaus stood from his chair he sat in.

"We'll deal with it later at the moment our loving father is alive."

Finn watched Y/N make some kind of potion for her protection rituals as the three months he spent with her was the most joy he had ever felt in a millennium as she made him feel alive. The vampire moved behind her placing his hands on her hips nuzzling her neck taking in her scent relaxing against her making the witch smile reaching up rubbing his cheek and he turn his head kissing her palm.

"You seem clingy today Finn."

"Only for you my beloved. Are you feeling better today?"

"I am so is our little jelly bean." Y/N said as Finn placed a hand on her abdomen listening to the small heartbeat. A sudden crash caught Finn's attention and he quickly place his soulmate behind him growling lowly fangs showing feeling Y/N grip the back of his shirt.

"Protective of your little witch, brother?" Finn heard Klaus say as the oldest Mikaelson stood straight glaring at the hybrid as Elijah and Hayley walked in. Y/N peeked out from behind the tall vampire seeing the other Mikaelson brothers feeling an urge to hold them fill her.

"What do you two want?"

"Our mother and father has been back for awhile now. Niklaus and I hoped you knew where mother was."

"I haven't seen her, Elijah. I have been focused on my soulmate." Finn says as the two looked at Y/N feeling the need to kiss her filled them as an ache settled in their chests hearing a soft heartbeat coming from her. Elijah was snapped out of his thoughts when Hayley held his hand making him smile as Y/N felt hurt for some reason but shook it off.

"Your witch uses old magic maybe she can find mother or father. Her magic won't be sensed my mother."

"It is up to her."

"We should help them my big bear." Y/N says softly still staying behind Finn feeling shy as she clings to her vampire while Klaus smirked looking at Elijah.

"A bear? Elijah, I thought our brother was the boar."

"He is, Niklaus."

"He isn't a boar! He is a bear!" Y/N said shouting at them narrowing her eyes at them then squeaked when the three looked at her.

"Stop scaring her. We'll help."

Freya was so happy to see Finn even more learning her brother found his soulmate too while both Kol and Rebekah stared at the young witch feeling the need to rush to hold her. Y/N was beautiful in their eyes as it seemed her mocha skin was glowing as Finn was carrying her things talking to Freya about the spell Y/N would be doing.

"So you're Finn's soulmate." Y/N heard a voice say and look seeing Kol standing in the door away watching the black beauty working on a spell as Kol thought it was odd that he could see her strings but was drawn back to her cute face.

"I'm Y/N and you must be Kol." Y/N said smiling as Kol spotted her tarot cards and walked in sitting down.

"Can you give me a tarot reading?"

"Yeah I can. I need to leave this sitting anyway." Y/N said shuffling the cards and had Kol pick four cards. Hayley stopped hearing Kol and Y/N while seeing Finn and Elijah watching from the doorway.

"What do they say?" Kol asked watching the witch frown as she looked over the cards then looked at Kol.

"Someone close to you is lying to you, something is not real or not what it seems." Y/N said as Kol stared at the cards and how all this felt familiar. Kol looked at her and his heart skipped a beat as he swore a memory flashed in his mind.

"What do they say?"

"Hmmm something good is in your future." She says making Kol smile brightly staring at her in awe as Elijah comb though her hair loosening her curls letting them fall down her back.

"Is that good thing you, baby?" Elijah asked the witch as he kissed her neck making her flush while Kol smirked enjoying how Elijah flirted with her.

"You alright Kol?" Elijah asked snapping the vampire from his thoughts and just got up leaving in a hurry confusing them all. Y/N looked at Elijah worry on her face as Elijah looked at her feeling the urge to cup her cheek to soothe the witch.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No beloved." Finn said moving down kissing her forehead as jealousy fill Elijah watching Finn with Y/N. Hayley stepped up to Elijah pulling his attention to her as he gave her a smile.

"I'm sure Kol is fine. Maybe your tarot cards are wrong?"

"Her cards are never wrong." Finn says noticing the worry on Hayley's face but Y/N grabbed his attention.

"I found your mother. She is in the Ninth ward hiding with the witches."

"Stay here with Freya. I don't want you hurt." Finn tells you as much like Elijah the other three felt jealousy fill them seeing Y/N cup his face placing a gentle kiss on his lips.

"Return to me safe. Return to us safe."

"I will my beloved." Finn says smiling as his siblings saw their ash gray strings spark with color before dying out. The siblings left unaware that Mikael was headed for the Abattoir while they headed for Esther and soon Hayley's mistake was about to com ed to light.

#L.R writes #mikaelson x reader #mikaelson family x reader #Finn mikaelson imagine #elijah mikaelson imagine #klaus mikaelson imagine #kol mikaelson imagine #rebekah mikaelson imagine

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stiltonbasket · 4 years

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How does Lan Wangji feel about Wei Wuxian's new title, Xinhua-jun?

The first time someone addresses him as something other than Honored Master Wei during an assembly, Wei Wuxian barely registers it.

But in his defense, he’s been up all night for a week straight, hurrying to get his irrigation talismans finished in time for the planting season, and the first batches have just been shipped off with a handful of Lan-trained shidao cultivators accompanying them to supervise.

All Wei Wuxian wanted to do was sleep, after that. It’s a wonder that he stayed awake long enough to attend the conference at all, which is why he doesn’t realize what the petitioners from Moling called him until he takes a soak in his bathtub that night and asks Lan Zhan to rub his shoulders for a while.

“How was the assembly?” Lan Zhan asks, while Wei Wuxian raises the temperature of the bathwater until the washroom fills up with steam. The ability to take long, hot baths without harming his cultivation is the only good thing that came from losing his golden core, and Wei Wuxian made sure to bathe in heated tubs as often as he could after his resurrection; he used to envy the Jiang shimeis in his childhood, since heat only benefits cultivators with excess yin energy, but now...

“Wei Ying?”

“Oh!” Wei Wuxian sighs and straightens his back before reaching up to pat his husband’s arm. “It was fine, I suppose. The Su cultivators presented their case, Uncle and I went through it, and then we agreed to all their demands except the one about Moling receiving a sixth of Gusu’s tax revenue.”

“A sixth?”

“They don’t have enough noble families living within their borders,” he says absently, making a small sleepy sound of approval as Lan Zhan pats the tension out of his neck. “The Lai and Xu clans relocated to Qinghe last year, and the Liao family—you remember that clan whose little mistress proposed marriage to Jingyi this spring?— they moved to Laoling the year before that, and they all paid enough taxes to keep the Su clan comfortable.”

Lan Zhan’s hands withdraw from his neck and reappear in his hair a moment later, covered in the sweet-smelling hair soap Wei Wuxian makes from the lotus pond in the back hills. “Did they—treat you well?”

It’s a sensible question, Wei Wuxian supposes, even if the worry in his husband’s voice makes his heart ache with love for him. “Better than most Moling cultivators usually do, Lan Zhan. It was all Xiandu this and Xinhua-jun that, until—”

“They called you Excellency?”

The conversation comes to a swift end at the realization, because Wei Wuxian accidentally swallows a mouthful of foamy water and chokes on it until Lan Zhan helps him cough it up. And then they have to get ready for dinner, and coax the children into finishing it before they fall asleep in their bowls, which is why Wei Wuxian doesn’t think about the conference again until after hai shi.

When the truth of Su She’s association with Jin Guangyao came to light—as Wei Wuxian recalls when Lan Zhan and the little ones are safely asleep—most cultivators from Moling Su seemed to detest Wei Wuxian more than they did while he was dead, if Jiang Cheng’s spies were to be believed. As a matter of principle, none of them even attended Wei Wuxian’s wedding, and offered nothing but flimsy excuses when Lan Xichen traveled to Moling to deliver the invitations in person; and since then, they preferred to keep their distance from him, and would likely have continued to do so if Xichen hadn’t been in Baling for the month to see his new baby grandson.

But today’s petition had been urgent, so Wei Wuxian had to stand in as Lan-zongzhu by proxy while his husband and brother-in-law (not to mention A-Yuan and Jingyi, who accompanied Lan Xichen to Baling) were occupied elsewhere, and none of the Su cultivators were discourteous to him in the slightest.

Oh, no,” he groans, as Lan Zhan tries to hush him with a kiss. “This can’t be good, Lan Zhan. They ordered their city magistrates to send word if I crossed the Moling border, and they turned Xichen-ge down again when he invited them to Chun-bao’s hundred-day feast—you don’t think they’re planning something, do you?”

Lan Zhan only gives him a fond look and kisses him again. “Go to sleep, A-Ying,” he says gently. “We’ll talk about it in the morning.”

* * *

When Wei Wuxian married into the Cloud Recesses nine years ago, the question of his formal title remained unsettled until after the month before his and Lan Zhan’s first wedding anniversary. If he were a woman, the cultivation world would have known him as Lan-furen, and that would have been the end of it: but Wei Wuxian was a man with no title save that of the Yiling Patriarch, and even Lan Zhan was at a loss when his uncle asked what he should be called following the wedding.

“Third young master Lan?” Wei Wuxian suggested, absently petting Xiao-Yu’s fluffy hair. “Or Wei-gongzi? It doesn’t really matter, Shufu.”

“Third young master Lan is unsuitable,” Lan Qiren pointed out, plopping another baby rabbit into Xiao-Yu’s lap. “Xichen is the sect leader, and Wangji is the Chief Cultivator. Neither of them can rightly be called gongzi any longer, so the titles of first and second young master must pass to Sizhui and Jingyi.”

They settled on Lan-san-gongzi in the end, mostly because everyone already knew that Sizhui and Jingyi were the first and second heirs to the Lan sect, but then Lan Xichen (who remains the best brother-in-law Wei Wuxian could ever have hoped for) came to bring Wei Wuxian his lunch one afternoon while he was working in the produce field, and laughed himself silly at the sight of his difu talking to a particularly stubborn lotus bloom in an effort to get it to grow.

“What a happy flower, to be so doted upon!” he chuckled, passing Wei Wuxian a wet cloth so he could clean his hands and sit down to eat. “Xinhua-jun, xiao-hua, be good for A-Xian and grow, won’t you?”

And then a strange excited grin spread across his face, right before he dropped the lunch boxes into Wei Wuxian’s arms and ran back towards the main compound as fast as his legs could carry him.

Wei Wuxian’s students have called him nothing but Xinhua-jun ever since, even though it was more of a pet name than a title. But it never caught on outside the Cloud Recesses, since most of Nie Huaisang’s court is much older than he is, and Yunmeng still knows him as Wei-zongzhu from the year he spent leading Yunmeng Jiang before he and Lan Zhan were married; and the less said about Lanling Jin the better, even if Jin Ling and Mianmian have been ferreting out the last two sect leaders’ supporters ever since A-Ling succeeded Jin Guangyao.

The thought of his title becoming common knowledge in Moling of all places gives Wei Wuxian a chill down the spine, and he says as much the next evening while going over the reports of young women’s education rates from Gusu’s subsidiary sects.

“Who could possibly have told them? It’s very suspicious,” he grumbles, answering a plaintive letter from a particularly pompous scholar who insisted it was far too much work for his colleagues to teach the boys in the morning and stay three hours longer to teach the girls in the afternoon. Teach them both in the same class, Wei Wuxian writes back, snorting at the man’s foolishness as his daughters climb into his lap to peer curiously at the scroll. If any of the young ladies’ parents prefer their daughters be taught separately from the boys, the Cloud Recesses will send a delegation of lady tutors to Xibei and have a second school built.

“Suspicious?” Shuilan pipes up, before pointing to one of the characters on the scroll. “That’s part of my name! It says shui!”

“Very good!” Wei Wuxian smiles, kissing the top of A-Lan’s head. “Chun-bao, can you find any?”

Chunyang nods shyly against his neck. “A-Chun see cloud,” the baby says, happily smudging the yun in yunshen buzhichu with her little hands before snuggling down into Wei Wuxian’s silky robes. “A-Die, eat? A-Chun is hungry.”

Wei Wuxian glances up at the sky and cries out in dismay as he notices that night has nearly fallen. “Come, come—but A-Lan, sweetheart, put your socks on first! It’s cold in the kitchen, and I don’t want to leave you here all alone.”

“I’m a big girl,” A-Lan complains, as Wei Wuxian laughs again and slides a pair of soft slippers onto her dimpled feet instead. “Can’t I stay with gege?”

“Gege’s taking a bath,” Xiao-Yu shouts—from the bathroom, naturally, since he spends his afternoons getting delightfully muddy in the produce field and moseys back home by sunset with grubs and leaves and rich black earth clinging to his clothes. “Be a good Lan-bao and go with A-Niang.”

At twelve years old, Xiaohui has finally settled on a course of cultivation study, surprising everyone but his parents by deciding he wanted to learn natural cultivation instead of following the martial dao, and he and Wei Wuxian have been working on agricultural talismans together for the past two years; Xiao-Yu even had a hand in the talismans Wei Wuxian just sent out for the border territories, since Wei Wuxian relies on his son’s spiritual energy to activate them. He is so very proud of Xiao-Yu, grubs and mud and all, and Wei Wuxian throws back his head and laughs when his tall son rolls into the kitchen half an hour later with his hair pinned up in a damp knot at the back of his neck.

“Is supper ready, A-Niang?” Xiao-Yu asks, while A-Lan sits at the table with one of her brother’s many, many cats purring in her lap. “Should I lay out the bowls?”

“Yes, please, A-Yu,” Wei Wuxian yawns, swaying back and forth with Chunyang on his hip as he stirs chili paste into his pot of soup. “And fetch a shawl for A-Lan, her clothes aren’t warm enough.”

“A-Niang stir more,” Chunyang tells him, pointing down at the pot. “Not done.”

Wei Wuxian does as she says, breaking up the last chunks of paste just as A-Yu comes rushing back in with a warm shawl to drape around A-Lan’s shoulders. After that, he puts a broad wooden lid over the pot and leaves it to boil, moving from cauldron to cauldron with one hand keeping Chun-bao in place and the other wielding his ladle: a weapon almost as effective as his sword, if A-Yuan’s condemnation of his cooking at the Burial Mounds is to be believed, though Wei Wuxian learned how to cook without covering everything with chili oil during his brief stint as Sect Leader Jiang ten years ago.

“I love A-Die’s food,” Shuilan declares, squeezing Heimao (named, quite literally, for his smooth black fur) in sheer delight when Wei Wuxian plops a bit of hot tofu into her mouth. “If Papa doesn’t come home in five minutes, can I eat everything?”

“A-Lan can eat as much as she wants,” Wei Wuxian promises, because A-Lan is only five years old and eats less than half of what Lan Zhan does. “Come help Yu-gege serve the rice, and then we can eat.”

Lan Zhan comes home late that night, after Lan Yu and Wei Shuilan have finished their dinners and gone to bed. He went to Lanling to help Jin Ling oversee a trial just after mao hour, and his early return is a pleasant surprise; Wei Wuxian nearly weeps with joy when his husband opens the door to the jingshi and sweeps him and A-Chun up into his arms, carrying them to the long divan in the receiving room to kiss them to his heart’s content, and fussing over A-Chun until she toddles away and comes back again with the little bowl of hot soup that Wei Wuxian left on the table with a warming talisman.

“Papa eat,” she says adoringly, curling into a chubby pink ball against Wei Wuxian’s stomach and watching with big eyes as Lan Zhan raises the bowl to his lips. “A-Niang cooked!”

“Your A-Die always cooks dinner,” Wei Wuxian says, kissing the tip of her sweet pink nose. “Remember, Chun-bao?”

“Papa breakfast, and A-Niang dinner,” the little girl agrees, before drifting right off to sleep between her parents with one tiny fist curled around the end of Lan Zhan’s forehead ribbon.

Jiang Yanli used to fall asleep like that, Wei Wuxian remembers, safe in Jiang-shushu’s purple-draped bed with him and a toddling Jiang Cheng curled up next to her on either side, and she always stayed asleep no matter how often they squirmed and kicked and whispered over her head.

“Sweetheart?”

“I missed you,” Wei Wuxian sighs, without mentioning where his thoughts had gone—the pain of his shijie’s passing will never heal as long as he lives, but it has been easier to bear with Lan Zhan beside him, if only a little. “Will you have to go again next week, Lan Zhan?”

His husband shakes his head and gives him a lingering soup-tasting kiss on the soft dent over his mouth. “It is finished, my heart. Forgive me for coming home so late?”

Their faces draw together again, yearning towards one another like two mated butterflies forcefully parted as Lan Zhan shifts A-Chun to the crook of his arm and lays Wei Wuxian down on the divan to kiss his cheeks, and his forehead, and then caresses his hands with heart-breaking tenderness, as if he were holding a treasure beyond price. In turn, Wei Wuxian reaches up to touch his husband’s face, tracing the smooth lines of his brow and chin until Lan Zhan catches his fingertips with his lips and pulls him upright to keep Chunyang from getting squashed.

“Let’s put this little lotus to bed,” Wei Wuxian whispers, though it turns into another yawn before he gets to the end of the sentence. “Come with me, xingan?”

His husband—his beloved, precious, perfect husband—goes with him without a word, coaxing their daughter into her sleeping gown and laying her in the middle of the bed without waking her. “I heard some news in Lanling before I left,” he says, while Wei Wuxian helps him take off his Chief Cultivator’s headpiece and put away his waist-pendants. “I investigated the issue with Moling Su, since I feared that they might have a greater grudge against you than we thought, and Jin Ling informed me that the minor sects have begun to address you as xiandu of their own accord.”

Wei Wuxian feels his jaw drop. “What?”

“You have been taking over the portion of my work that cannot be solved by night-hunting,” Lan Zhan points out, as they slip under the covers and tuck A-Chun in between them to keep her warm. “The schools, the trade conferences, the farming failures in the south and the northwest. These matters are resolved by letters written in your hand, not mine, and petitions written to the Chief Cultivator are taken to court by the Chief Cultivator’s husband.”

He pauses to brush their noses together, and then:

“It has been so since you married me,” he says, with a smile that melts Wei Wuxian’s limbs into jelly. “Did you never notice, Wei Ying? It is well known that Hanguang-jun follows the jiandao, and goes wherever the chaos is, and that Xinhua-jun sees to the everyday matters that must be put right for a sect to thrive. Even the clans who would have dared speak against you know it now, and give credit and praises where they are due.”

“I can’t just become the Chief Cultivator by sharing your work,” Wei Wuxian snorts, rolling his eyes fondly as Lan Zhan leans over to blow out the candle on the nightstand. “I’m your husband. What else would I do?”

“I have not yet heard your sister-in-law being called Jiang-zongzhu,” Lan Zhan returns, with a bright spark of mirth in his sweet voice. “Though I suspect your brother would not mind, if she was.”

“Yes, I suppose—but Lan Zhan, surely the minor sects can’t just decide to call me Chief Cultivator? You were chosen for the position by vote.”

“They chose me for Chief Cultivator ten years ago, did they not? And now, since there is no law that two people cannot share the title, they have chosen you. Nie Huaisang will support it, since he lives in fear of me stepping down and making him succeed me as Excellency, and so will Jin Ling. And Jiang Cheng.”

“...I’m never getting out of this, am I?”

“Do you wish to stop?” Lan Zhan inquires, with some concern. “You have done more good than I could ever have dreamed of, but if you do not want—”

“Let’s talk about it in the morning,” Wei Wuxian begs, thoroughly overwhelmed at the thought of it. “Come hold me, er-gege.”

And Lan Zhan does, hugging him so tightly that all he knows is the sharp scent of sandalwood on his husband’s clothes and the soft-smelling lotus of Chun-bao’s hair until he falls asleep.

* * *

Nanhai Cheng, Baling Ouyang to the Cloud Recesses, Gusu Lan

Senior Wei,

When did you become the Chief Cultivator? Jingyi and A-Yuan want to know, but they can’t write at the moment because A-Qing put them on diaper duty. Is it true? Or was A-Ling just making fun of us?

Best wishes,

Ouyang Zizhen.

P.S.—make sure to bring Lan-xiansheng for A-Chen’s full month party! You haven’t forgotten about it, have you?

* * *

The Cloud Recesses, Gusu Lan to the Unclean Realm, Qinghe Nie

Nie-xiong,

If I ever find out that this Excellency business was your fault, I’ll steal all your grandchildren and hide them in the jingshi. What in Heaven’s name were you thinking?

Suspiciously yours,

Wei Wuxian.

* * *

The Unclean Realm, Qinghe Nie to the Cloud Recesses, Gusu Lan

Brother Wei,

My, such accusations! I really can’t say. But have fun with all the paperwork, Wei-xiong—it’s the best part of the job!

Your (best) friend,

Nie Huaisang.

#wangxian #the untamed #mo dao zu shi #my fic #thoroughly in earnest

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seoafin · 3 years

Note

JJK 139,, ok so i was right on yuuji and sukuna abt jjk137’s title of gongsun long’s philosophy. the term demon god (kishin/ 鬼神) was repeated twice now in the manga. the first one was in chapter 3 where gojo described sukuna as kishin and now it’s yuuji by choso. but according to the eng translation it’s : “ryomen sukuna, with 4 arms and 2 faces is a demon of legend” while the raw is 「両面宿は腕が４本顔が2つある仮想の鬼神」🥴 so now the line which distinguish both of them are actually starting to blur, i think that since junpei’s arc they’re...merging? + gojo also said that in time yuuji would be able to learn sukuna’s CT so umm,,

kishin according to wiki : fierce deities or wrathful deities are the fierce, wrathful or forceful forms (or "aspects", "manifestations") of enlightened Buddhas, Bodhisattvas or Devas (divine beings). Because of their power to destroy the obstacles to enlightenment, they are also termed krodha-vighnantaka, "fierce destroyers of obstacles".

or just : a wrathful manifestation of beings and/or buddhas or bodhisattvas depending on the tradition, that spread teachings and guard against demons, shepherding the transformative elements that become enlightenment

in terms of enlightment, i think yuuji’s almost in the first stage of it (?), there are 4 stages of enlightment. the first one is called “sotapanna”. the word sotapanna literally means "one who entered (āpanna) the stream (sota), stream-enterer", after a metaphor which calls the noble eightfold path a stream which leads to vast ocean, nirvana.

“The sotapanna is said to have "opened the eye of the Dhamma", because they have realized that whatever arises will cease (impermanence). Their conviction in the true dharma would be unshakable”

to become sotappana, one must abandon 3 fetters which are : self view (The view of substance, or that what is compounded (sankhata) could be eternal in the five aggregates (form, feelings, perception, intentions, cognizance), and thus possessed or owned as 'I', 'me', or 'mine'. A sotāpanna doesn't actually have a view about self, as that doctrine is proclaimed to be a subtle form of clinging.)

clinging to rites and rituals (Eradication of the view that one becomes pure simply through performing rituals (animal sacrifices, ablutions, chanting, etc.) or adhering to rigid moralism or relying on a god for non-causal delivery (issara nimmāna). Rites and rituals now function more to obscure, than to support the right view of the sotāpanna's now opened dharma eye. The sotāpanna realizes that deliverance can be won only through the practice of the Noble Eightfold Path. It is the elimination of the notion that there are shortcuts to perfecting all virtues.)

skeptical doubt (Doubt abt the Buddha, his teaching (Dharma), and his community (Sangha) is eradicated bc the sotāpanna personally experiences the true nature of reality through insight, and this insight confirms the accuracy of the Buddha's teaching. Seeing removes doubt, because the sight is a form of vision, that allows one to know )

and 6 types of defilements (klesas) would be abandoned : envy, jealousy, hypocrisy, fraud, denigration, domineering

not only that but while sukuna calls yuuji "brat (kozo)", 小僧 is a much less snarky way of saying it (as opposed to something like ガキ [gaki]), and "boy" would probs be a better word choice. and...that word literally means "young buddhist priest/ monk" in the way of an apprentice monk in training,,, thinking of the attachment of tenjo tenge yuiga dokuson to sukuna 😳

i’m starting to see that whoever had a direct or indirect parallel to the/ a buddha would be a mentor figure to another : gojo, sukuna, geto. geto is a rip-off amitabha raising a cult while gautama’s word is attributed to gojo and sukuna,,, altho geto’s one is ironic bc commiting matricide and patricide would be 2 of the worst karmas u’ll ever reap

and there are actually 2 types of buddha : Samyaksambuddhas, who taught others abt the “truth” of the world that they discovered via enlightment and those who are taught could also reach enlightment

Pratyekabuddhas, who keep the knowledge/ truth to themself and are considered as a second to samyaksambuddhas [i’m looking at u, mr “i’ll teach u the real jujutsu” but end up killing them]

and u dont need to be a buddha to be enlightened since an arahant, the person who reach the 4th stage of enlightenment, is considered as “truly enlightened”,,

on a completely separate note: the use of the GUISE of religiosity has been extremely interesting bc geto acknowledges this even, when he dons a monk's robes (gojo gesa),, uraume also wears monk's robes. kamo (kyoto tech) wears some traditional clothing, uses a BOW, like purifying arrows anyone

i’ve seen a lot of gojo and geto comparison with buddha, but i’m actually surprised that nobody brought up abt him and yuuji bc like,, the “dying surrounded by ppl” is exactly how it was like when the buddha died before reaching nirvana, 7 days after his death,,

gojo quoting buddha’s first words in his “enlightment” is one thing but what if yuuji quoted/ said sth similar of buddha’s words prior reaching nirvana when he’ll die in the manga,

ie : “I exhort you: All compounded things are subject to vanish. Strive with earnestness.” / “All individual things pass away. Strive on, untiringly”

ngl if this would happen, it’d be a huge contrast against his grandfather’s last request to “save ppl”

and,, i don't really think naoya's ability is around speed - if we guess based off naobito and mai abilities, i’d guess it has sth to do with image manipulation, some kind of detection delay...lmao it's camera exposure and/or shutter speed or sth completely different

interesting to focus on speed tho. yuuji is also adapting very very fast in skill. his clapping thing also reminded me not just of todo but sukuma but given that todo was the first to talk to him abt curse energy manipulation, probs a reference to him.

imo yuuji's growth style rn is sort of similar to mahito's, learning thru combat rapidly. or is his increased technique also a side effect of sukuna having eaten more fingers?? - 🐱

im actually really curious what naoya’s cursed technique is bc he talks about speed in the chapter and all i could think about was the you wanna see some REAL SPEED? meme LMAOOO

i’ve seen comparison of yuji and mahito and it makes me so sad...i feel like he’s becoming a new person and that scares me PLEASE GOD....DON’T LET HIM SUFFER TOO MUCH AHHGGNGN

I DON’T WANT YUJI TO REACH ENLIGHTENMENT IM GOOD!!! keep him safe 😭😭😭

#nooOOOO #NO MERGE!!!#STAY YUJI!!!!#brb going to cry the rest of the night #every chapter makes me feel like that pic of the girl staring at her phone with the alc and cigarettes #🐱 anon #long post

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bookofjin · 4 years

Note

Do you know any worthwhile Northern Liang and Northern Yan generals or officials? Preferably ones not related to their ruling families

The most storied person of Northern Liang outside the house of Juqu is perhaps the monk Dharmakṣema. You can read about him here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharmak%E1%B9%A3ema

Outside of that, it's difficult to find someone whose surving record goes beyond a couple of scattered references. As an example, here is what I could find on Zang Mohai臧莫孩:

In 398 Duan Ye, at this point using the title Duke of Jiankang, was at war with Lü Guang of Later Liang. “Ye built Xi'an City, and used his general Zang Mohai as Grand Warden. Mengxun said: “Mohai is brave but has no plans, he perceive when to advance but miss when to withdraw. He can be said to be a builder of barrows, and not a builder of cities.” Ye did not follow, and soon after he was defeated by Lü Zuan.”

In 401 Duan Ye executed Juqu Mengxun's cousin Juqu Nancheng. Mengxun exploited Nancheng's popularity to raise a rebellion against Duan Ye. “By the time [Mengxun] reached Dichi, the multitudes exceeded ten thousand. The garrison army [commander] Zang Mohai led his section multitudes to adhere to him.”

Later that year, after toppling Duan Ye, Juqu Mengxun took the title of Duke of Zhangye . His chief followers were rewarded with new titles. Zang Mohai became General who Assists the State.

The same year the Former Qin general Yao Shuode put the capital of Later Liang under siege, and forced the Later Liang ruler, Lü Long, to submit. Mengxun sent the official Zhang Qian and his brother, the General who Establishes Loyalty, Juqu Ru, to treat with Shuode. Shuode treated them well and gave them titles. When they returned, Qian advised submission, while Ru said that Shuode would soon have to retreat due to lack of provisions and there was no reason to became a vassal of another.

“[The General] who Assists the State, [Zang] Mohai, said: “The words of [the General] who Establishes Loyalty are correct.” Mengxun therefore beheaded Zhang Qian.”

In 404, Mengxun “dispatched the [General] who Assists the State, Zang Mohai to assault the miscreants north of the mountains. He greatly routed them. Yao Xing dispatched Qi Nan to lead a multitude of 40 000 to welcome Lu Long. Long recommended Nan to attack Mengxun, and Nan followed him. Mohai defeated his forward army. Nan therefore joined a covenant [with Mengxun] and turned back.

And that is the last we hear of Zang Mohai.

It's much the same situation for Northern Yan. Sun Hu孫護 seems to have been an important man in the time of Feng Ba.

In 407, Yan's Marshal of of the Northern Section, Sun Hu, was part of the conspiracy against the ruler, Murong Xi. Feng Ba and his brothers, who had fallen out of favour with Murong Xi, managed to sneak into Longcheng by hiding in a chariot driven by a woman, and then hide in Hu's house while they waited to launch the coup which put Gao Yun on the throne.

At Feng Ba's ascension in 409, Sun Hu was appointed Palace Attendant, Prefect of the Masters of Writing, and Duke of Yangping.

A few years later the following took placer according to JS130:

“At that time, a well went dry for three days and then was restored. His Prefect of the Masters of Writing, Sun Hu's compound there was a dog that mated with a dog. Hu saw and hated it. He summoned the Prefect Grand Scribe, Min Shang to divine about it. Shang said “A dog and a pig are of different kinds, and yet they mate, defying their nature and neglecting their origin, this is in the Vast Pattern as a calamity of dogs. There is about to be sudden disorder losing the people, arriving at defeat and destruction. Your Enlightened Excellency's position ranks as the furthest and foremost minster, [your] younger brothers are all ennobled as marquises, [your] noble status overflow the royal house; when the unnatural is seen in your compound's courtyard, it is not for someone else. [I] implore Your Excellency to take precautions against the error of satisfied fullness, and apply yourself in placing high respectful temperance, then the unnatural weirdness can be dispelled, [and you will] forever enjoy your paramount fortune.” Hu was silent and discontent.

The Governor of Changli, Sun Boren, Hu's younger brother Chizhi, and Chizhi's younger brother, Yiba, and others, all together had talent and strength, and hence had a reputation for bravery and valour. At Ba's instalment, all hoped to open offices, yet Ba had not yet allowed them it. Because of this, they made bitter talk. Always at the juncture of court banquets, they would regularly pull out their swords and strike the pillars, saying: “At raising up and building the great legacy, [we] had merit and put [our] strength into it, yet are choked off among the scattered generals. How is this the Han Founder's righteousness of rivers and mountains!” Ba was angry, and executed them. He advanced Hu to Brilliantly Blessed Grandee of the Left, Opening Office with Rites Similar to the Three Ministers, Recording the Affairs of the Masters of Writing so as to console him. Hu after the execution of his three younger brothers was often despondend and dissatisfied, and had a discontent countenance. Ba was angry and poisoned him.

(ZZTJ117 dates these deaths to 415, but neglects to mention the fun omens that preceded them. The relationship between Sun Hu and Sun Boren孫伯仁 is a bit puzzling. JS seems to explicitly not call Boren Hu's brother, or I would expect the text instead to read something like “Hu's younger brother, the Governor of Changli, Boren, Boren's younger brother Chizi etc.” But further down the killed men are referred to as Hu's “three younger brothers”. Maybe because that, the ZZTJ instead writes “Yan's Prefect of the Masters of Writing, Sun Hu's younger brother Boren was Governor of Changli.” But it seems odd for a younger brother to be given the name Boren. Bo伯 usually designates the oldest brother. Maybe the “three younger brothers” is just an imprecision for brevity, and Sun Boren actually was a cousin or some such?

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sage-thrasher · 5 years

Text

Extra: “Sanitize” and Outsider POVs (Chemical Reactions)

Well, here’s 1.5k words of outsider POV: a hobbyist chemist/physicist meets Yui. Science results. It’s basically indulgent fluff I wrote for no reason besides, well... indulgence. Sparked by the thought that our knowledge of physics and chemistry has grown so much... people and science are pretty wonderful. Takes place in no specific time. Here’s Chemical Reactions.

---

Being wealthy and charismatic meant that Haru Watanabe was called ‘eccentric.’ He was also a middle-aged man with three children and a doting wife, the owner of a thriving spice business—mostly ran by the aforementioned wife—and a self-described scholar with a surprising amount of perceptiveness. Basically, Haru did everything else right so that he could get away with doing some things wrong.

(The first sin in question: throwing himself headfirst into physics and chemistry despite having enough money to pursue respectable subjects like history, politics, literature, or historical political literature.)

Haru had people who could do the tiresome but necessary business of actually bringing the goods from one place to another. Unfortunately, there did come times where he had to make the trek in person, generally when it involved a noble personage of one dinky plot or another who got delusions of grandeur. Haru would then kiss his wife and children, board the caravan, and head to woo the noble who was choking his trade routes. This time, he was with a scribe, a servant, and two hired Sarutobi guards.

(The greater sin: blabbing about his scientific interests with everyone who had the slightest amount of interest, which in Haru’s world, was the equivalent of looking in his direction.)

He’d talked his associates’s ears off during the journey there, and on the way back, both his employees were resigned to hearing his newest ideas--his scribe knew it by heart. Though the younger ninja had been interested at first, now the two Sarutobi were staring into the distance with glazed eyes.

(The final sin: making sure that he walked his hostage audience through the concepts in question until they understood it instead of blabbing without input, denying said audience the luxury of entirely tuning it out.)

So when Haru stopped in Chiyuku to pay the necessary pilgrimage to Healer Yui’s residence, he of course took her offer of tea as an invitation to speak about his newest pet theory. Haru hadn’t met with her personally before, having never been down this route himself, but he and every merchant with business on this side of the country knew about her. And Haru especially knew of her reputation for sharing knowledge. Was it likely that she knew anything about his interests? No, but that had never stopped him before.

“I have a great interest in science,” he began, smiling.

She didn’t pause in the middle of bandaging—the younger Sarutobi was lightly burned, but only because he’d practiced some sort of ninja technique above his skill levels, much to the exasperation of the older one—but she looked up.

“Is that so?” Yui was perfectly polite. “What kind of sciences?”

“Oh, physics and chemistry, mainly.” He let his smile grow brighter. “The very big and very small, the planets and the atoms.”

There was a glint of genuine interest now, even as she said, “Give me a minute, please.” Haru was content to wait as she gave the ninja instructions, washed her hands, poured herself a cup of tea, and took a seat across from him. “You’re a scholar in both subjects?”

Her voice was the mix of a rustic drawl and clipped enunciation that educated rural folk tended to have, and Haru could detect traces of other accents, likely picked up from all the travelers that came through Chiyuku.

(Again, he wasn’t a bad merchant. He was a rather excellent one, though his wife was the exceptional half. Haru was well-versed in the art of sizing someone up.)

“I am!” Haru sipped his tea and was pleasantly surprised by its mellow flavor. He’d had worse tea in fancier places. “Are you aware of the elements of matter?” Before he could start his theory, he needed to gauge her current knowledge.

It wasn’t quite a non-sequitur, but Yui took the small leap between topics in stride. “Yes. Carbon, nitrogen…” She hesitated. “I have the periodic chart of elements. A colleague of mine gave me some books with them.”

HHaru’s interest was piqued. “Did he?” He reevaluated her and took a different tack. “As you might be aware, we can put some elements together and create new ones. Organics from organics and inorganics from like. Not one from the other, and some combinations of elements won’t combine at all. Why do you think so?”

And so began a conversation like none other that Haru had participated in, beyond his wildest dreams. (A virtue: Haru could talk and talk and talk, but he could also listen. With colleagues and scholars—and his brilliant, incredible wife—he could sit spellbound for hours, with little to say but “Please, continue!”)

He kept asking why, why, and she kept answering. Yui spoke about the shape of atoms and the charged pieces that made up them. She spoke about the bonds between elements and the shape of those bonds, all connected by little electric pieces of matter that orbited around them. Finally, he asked about the interactions of magnets and forces, about the minutiae of why some elements had so many electric bits, why the shells around each center were numbered the way they were.

“I’ve...” she paused. “ I don’t really know. This is all a guess, anyway,” she added. “None of this will be proved for decades.” Yui cleared her throat, gone hoarse with talking, and she sipped her tea.

By now, the sun had dipped from its high point to begin its journey downwards. Haru’s guard took the opportunity to hazard a reminder: “Perhaps it would be best to continue—”

“Thank you, Sarutobi-san,” interrupted Haru. “I think we shall stay sometime longer, if it suits the esteemed healer.”

Yui seemed torn, having clearly enjoyed a conversation with someone who not only followed along but also hadn’t questioned her authority. “I wouldn’t want to keep you…”

“No, not at all!” He waved her concerns aside. “Now, you were talking about proof? How would you prove this?” Haru took care to keep his voice eager and curious, letting no suggestion of incredulity or accusation color his voice. He knew how easy it was to dismiss a woman’s knowledge, intentionally or not. Why, his own darling wife needed him as a frontman to manage the business, as silly as that was—she was better than he ever could be.

With a hesitant smile, Yui began to describe a series of fantastical devices: microscopes that used electric pieces, machines that spun bits of matter fast enough to tear them open, and lightning that could split bonded compounds in two.

Haru listened eagerly, soaking up as much knowledge as he could. His ability to listen, his experience, and his surprisingly deep well of common sense gave him a fine-tuned nonsense detector. And yet, her words didn’t set it off, likely because they made sense. Likely because she admitted freely how she couldn’t prove any of it, that this was baseless speculation.

(It didn’t feel like it.)

“What about chakra? Where does this fit in?”

The two ninja, alternatively bored out of their minds and surprisingly keen to listen, perked up at Haru’s question.

And to his ongoing surprise, she laughed. “I have absolutely no idea.” Yui leaned back in her chair, taking another sip. “An energy source from another universe? A force we don’t understand? Who knows. All I know is that it seems to break all laws of the natural world.”

Haru mirrored her body language, leaning back as well. “And you know how to use it.”

“I do, but I don’t understand it.”

He made a contemplative sound. Haru liked knowing things, and Yui had done him an enormous favor by sharing. Then again, he liked knowing things, and she… was a mystery. For not the first time this journey, Haru wished that his wife was with him. She would know what to say. (Another flaw: his stubbornness, his refusal to let anything go when it caught his interest...)

“Is your knowledge supernatural?”

(... and the bluntness that resulted from it.)

This time, everyone stared at him.

Yui blinked, a mix of shock, horror, and annoyance displayed in her creasing forehead.

Haru blinked back, suddenly aware that this faux pas was inexcusable, even for him. “Anyway,” he said, moving the conversation on before it lingered like a carelessly lit firecracker between them, “I must thank you sincerely for indulging me. As a token of appreciation...”

Haru opened the bag that he had carried with him, full of physics and chemistry books that he had planned on going over with the healer—before she’d blown away every preconception and filled his minds with theories in no book before her. He chewed his lip, considering the titles, and finally picked out the one that had the most similar and detailed analysis to what she’d told him. It was mostly a comparison of elemental properties and compounds, but… Haru had noticed that despite her detailed knowledge, she’d made up many of the words for the esoteric parts of her masterful theory.

“Here,” he said, placing the book on the table. “If you want any others in my bag, do let me know. And if it pleases you, I can send you any book on any topic you desire, if you promise to share me more of your wonderful theories.” He undercut his statement with a bright smile, trying to convey that he meant it as a friend—or at least a friendly acquaintance.

Yui gave him a careful smile back, though her openness had shuttered with his blundered statement. “I’d like that,” she said.

And just like that, Haru had another puzzle he knew he had to solve: the source of her knowledge.

#sanitize fanfic #Oc-insert #naruto fanfic #extra

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tuwam · 4 years

Text

@urianius

‘the prophecy states, that one knight will rise above all and claim the right hand of the princess, leading the country in peace and saving it from - minjae and donghyuck i will not tell you two to stop fooling around again!’

that doesn’t really get them to stop because well - they both burst into laughter the minute all the attention is on them. the classroom is spacious but there isn’t a lot of them, maybe twenty or more. and there’s a lot of light coming from the floor-to-ceiling windows.

maybe that’s why it’s so hard for them to take this as seriously as they should. maybe it’s because they’ve heard this prophecy a billion times, everyone has heard it a billion times. they hear it before they’re enrolled, they hear it at the enrollment ceremony, they hear it when they take history and it’s the talk of the cafeteria at least once a day.

it’s their origin of code and regulations debate class - so naturally they’re required to cover the history again but even as third-years minjae and hyuck have shown no desire to change their stance on disrupting the academy’s status quo. neither do they have any desire to actually pay attention in class.

their origin of code and regulations debate class professor is not amused. but the bells start to ring ( an effective bang that echoes throughout the entire compound ) and it’s time to change classes. minjae and hyuck are out before they can be asked to stay behind, laughter on their heels and the amusement of their schoolmates along with them.

like class, lunch is a fun time.

‘who do you think will get chosen?’

this is typically the topic of conversation, and although extremely repetitive it’s always a good time to discuss it and see what people come up with. depending on who has received high marks that day, the answer is different. they’re third years so it’s always fun to speculate that who by their fifth year might actually be the knight of prophecy or chosen for the court if a spot opens up. minjae has interests in neither, him and hyuck share the sentiment, but minjae’s a large fan of gossip.

hyuck is tearing through a turkey leg when the question starts, minjae the one who prompted it and jaejin pretending not to listen as he pours over his studies.

“june?” minjae’s quite annoying at times like this, because june was attempting to sit down quietly next to jaejin, him and jaehyun having just left class but minjae won’t let him have it. ‘june?’ it’s a fourth-year that speaks up from another table, jumping like a shark at the smell of blood. ‘the one who won’t pull his sword unless a teacher orders him, that june?’ there’s laughter, there’s red forming on june’s ears and myungsoo is giving him a swift kick under the table.

because this is such a huge topic and because so many wish to become the princess’s ‘fated’ knight it’s often a source of rivalry between the recruits. minjae, who has no problem knocking a fourth-year down to size, or seeing the embarrassment whenever he mentions how june has become such a strong candidate for the tale.

‘ey, cut it out. the lad’s done nothing to you.’ myungsoo settles the riff-raff before it can go any further and junsu gives minjae a rather pointed look from over his books. june is a good candidate because of his kindness and how he excels in everything. excelling but not overbearing, never cocky, it seems to be everything someone would want in a fated knight, but if there’s one offset it’s how june seems thoroughly uninterested in the title. or any title for that matter. he avoids discussion and hates being the center of attention, a waste in minjae’s opinion. so he continues to put him there - until myungsoo stops him. which he often does.

‘you’re a surefire candidate aren’t you red?’ it’s a nickname, mainly because myungsoo’s affinity is fire, and it’s something that he takes pride in and something that he’s well-respected for having. myungsoo only shrugs his shoulder at that, reaching to busy himself with a turkey leg junsu’s brought for him.

‘no one’s a surefire anything. you prove yourself everyday.’ is myungsoo’s response. “boring.” minjae looks at hyuck, both of them sporting thoroughly unamused expressions though the few tables surrounding them practically eat up the response. “sounds like no fun if you ask me.” ‘you’re just mad no one’s considered you as candidate.’ hyuck says it first and minjae’s grin is challenging, his friend knows him too well. “what would i even do as the fated knight of some princess.” ‘drive her crazy no doubt.’ comes jaejin’s quip and minjae’s kick is almost immediate, save for the look myungsoo gives him and the laughs that ensue around the table. instead he leans forward resting his chin in his palm.

“can’t be too bad, being at a princess’ side. protecting her or whatever.” minjae’s never taken the time to imagine it really. from what he’s heard it’s a pretty easy gig, and that’s the boring part about it. standing guard the entire time and though it seems without worry, it’s probably the most boring job in the world, second to answering to the king and working with six other try-hards. not that minjae’s ever been around a princess to know, he’s just heard.

‘or whatever? i think it’s a bit more than whatever.’ “and jaehyun how would you know?” ‘i think what’s funnier is implying that you would know.’

traitor. june is practically turning blue from trying to keep his laughter in. and hyuck is getting a kick out of it all. the perks of knowing too much about his best friend is easily a downfall for minjae. but he accepts it gracefully, because he has his own ammunition ready to fire, that’s when junsu pipes up.

'you lot wouldn’t know what to do if a princess crossed your path.’ junsu isn’t wrong, and it’s effective in stopping any rebuttal he, hyuck or minjae have planned. ‘in fact i’d wager none of you have ever met one.’ which is - also pretty true. minjae can’t speak for the others but the closest he’s been are nobles, high knights not even a knight of the courts.

‘i’d double that wager.’ comes myungsoo’s response, hearty and genial. ‘have you ever met one? a princess?’ in contrast is june’s own, small but showing that he and jaehyun are very much invested in the words despite their silence. june for the most part looks intrigued and jaejin perks up at the words. hyuck and minjae share their own look at that but they’re intrigued, they all are.

‘can’t say i have, my brother might have met her once. i’ve heard tales.’

this ignites the tables around them, people jumping up, scooting closer, the cafeteria a mess of questions and exclamation. questions about her beauty, about the castle, the jewels that adorn her, the view from the highest tower on castle grounds. the luxury of it all.

‘i’ll tell you guys at dinner how’s that? so get through a day without killing one another.’

bicker as they might, there’s this strong curiosity with the luxurious tale surrounding the princess and her fated knight. they’ve only heard it about a million times. compared to tales of the front lines and how slim chances are of becoming a knight of seven, it makes sense. it’s how they chose to go about their day, with silly imaginations about how gorgeous she is, how gorgeous the job might be even if it’s not. for as much as they might not care for the tale in class, it’s still a hot topic and nothing beats myungsoo’s stories after a day of work. with bowls of stew passed left and right and fighting over the biggest leg while myungsoo situates himself atop a ledge to speak.

they are silly questions of course, about whether her hair really reaches to her toes and if she’ll only cut it once her knight shows up. about how much of her dress is hand woven and if the jewels are polished so thoroughly they sparkle even from the castle fields. questions about her voice and if it’s really the cure to a long journey ( with myungsoo saying he can attest that there are some voices that are like that ).

‘what kind of guy do you think she’ll choose?’ myungsoo takes the question in stride, hair still wet from arriving late from the showers, his smile bright and welcoming over the fire. he answers everything calmly, confidently, it’s why the days with his tales are often the best. ‘i think it’s more about what kind of guy is chosen for her. and it’s not up to any of us.’ maybe that’s the exciting part. that it has nothing to do with money, or status, maybe not even skill. maybe that’s why they speculate so much. it’s about fate - scary as the concept is, it’s often become a savior for them.

minjae’s never quite let anything dictate what he does, but - he can see the appeal. he can see the glamour.

"would you want it? to get picked?" his question to his friend comes over the hushed corner they share by the fire. amongst all the commotion it’s rare for them to find a pocket like this, much like the one june and jaehyun share all the time. the two seem to be thoroughly enthralled in the tales, junsu explaining bits and pieces of the lore that jaejin and jaehyun might not understand while the crowd eats up myungsoo’s words. hyuck might be pondering the words first, so minjae busies himself by throwing nut shells into the fire.

‘would you?’

silence comes after this, still filled with the cheers and sounds of their comrades, their fellow recruits. but it’s silence nonetheless. and it’s telling, about what’s going through their minds. about how much they’re in sync without realizing it.

“i think we can pull off a better gig than that.” ‘i think you’re right.’

it’s never really about the title, or the glory. as much as for the two of them it’s about having a good time. so, they’re up and off their own ledge, moving closer to get their fill of myungsoo’s tales, insert some rather shitty ones to rile up some more feathers, and have their fun.

#urianius #boys will be boys #au: knights academy.

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chanoyu-to-wa · 4 years

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Nampō Roku, Book 4 (19a): Appendix I -- Tsurezure-gusa (Episode 66) [徒然草、第六十六段].

Appendix I:

❖ Tsurezure-gusa (Episode 66) [徒然草、第六十六段]¹.

“The Lord Kampaku Okamoto², [breaking off] a branch of red plum in heavy bloom, and wishing to attach a pair of birds to a branch³, [insinuated that] it would be good if [his chosen branch] could be used.

“The royal falconer Shimotsukeno Takekatsu⁴ replied, ‘in the case of [a branch with] flowers, the way one should attach a bird is something I do not know; nor, with respect to attaching a pair to one branch, is this something that I understand.’

“Because of this [reply], [Lord Okamoto] asked this and that person among the staff of the royal kitchen [but failed to get an answer]. So he again [said] to Takekatsu, ‘it being the case [that nobody seems to know how to do it], I will leave the matter in your hands⁵.’ In reply, [Takekatsu] took a plum branch devoid of blossoms, and attached one [bird] to it.

“Takekatsu then respectfully said, ‘a branch of brushwood, or a plum branch in bud, or after the blossoms have scattered, to these [the bird] may be attached. Or it may also be attached to [a branch of] the five-leaved [pine], or something of that sort⁶.

“‘The branch should be seven-shaku long, or maybe six-shaku, and separated [from the tree] with a 'returning stroke' of a sword, with the cut 5-bu long⁷.

“‘The bird should be attached at the middle [of the branch].

“‘The bird should appear to be stepping on the branch.

“‘Using a length of wisteria vine that has not frayed, [the bird] should be attached [to the branch] in two places. The ends of the wisteria [vine extending from the knot] should be comparable in length to the flight feathers [of a hawk]⁸. [The ends of the vine] should be bent like a cow's horns.

“‘On the morning of the first snow, [the branch] should be leaned against the shoulder [of the person delivering the to-shiba], who undertakes to make his visit through the middle gate [of the residence]⁹. Proceeding to the stone steps [leading up to the veranda]¹⁰, being careful not leave footprints in the snow. A few of the short feathers¹¹ should be torn out and scattered here and there [on the snow in the courtyard]. Approach the balustrade of the bridgeway [that connects the main hall with the residential quarters] and lean [the to-shiba] there; and if a reward¹² is bestowed, it should be thrown over the shoulder while bowing in thanks, and then [the servant who carried the to-shiba] should leave [the compound].

“‘But even if it is the first snow [of the year], [the servant bearing the to-shiba] should not venture out [on this errand] if the snow does not bury his shoes up to the edge of their sides¹³.

“‘With respect to the matter of scattering the feathers [in the courtyard], since the hawk holds its prey at the narrow part of the back, [the scattering of feathers] should suggest that [this bird] was caught by a hawk,’ so he spoke.”

A bird should not be attached to flowers -- what might the reason be?¹⁴

Around the Ninth Month¹⁵, a pheasant was attached to an artificial branch of plum [blossoms]¹⁶: “kimi ga tame ni to oru-hana ha toki-shimo wakanu [君がためにと折る花は時しも分かぬ]¹⁷” -- that is what [the note that was attached to the to-shiba] said. It seems like [this episode] might be found in the Ise monogatari [伊勢物語].

As for the artificial flowers -- so there really was no problem!?¹⁸

__________________________

¹Yoshida Kenkō [吉田兼好, 1284 ~ 1350]* is the author of the collection of essays, known as the Tsurezure-gusa [徒然草] from which this material was taken. The collection was written between 1330 and 1332.

The photo shows a hand-made copy of Yoshida Kenkō’s manuscript. . __________ *Recently strong evidence has come forward that much of what was supposedly known about Kenkō, and his family ties was forged. Thus, other than the fact that he was the son of an official in the civil administration, nothing can be said regarding his actual place in that clan-oriented society with any certainty.

²Okamoto kampaku-dono [岡本関白殿].

This refers to Konoe Iehira [近衛家平; 1282 ~ 1324], who served as kampaku [関白] to Emperor Hanazono [花園天皇; 1297 ~ 1348] from 1313 to 1315. The Konoe house, one of the major branches of the Fujiwara clan, traditionally claimed the right to hold the titles of kampaku and sesshō [攝政]*.

The title of kampaku designated the Emperor's chief adviser, who was either an official who acted as a sort of regent (for an Emperor who was an adult), or as the Emperor's secretary. In practice, the kampaku often held great political power, and occasionally was the de facto ruler of the state.

Kampaku is sometimes translated Premier, and sometimes Chancellor. __________ *Sesshō [攝政] is the regent for a child Emperor, or an Empress regnant.

³For presentation as a gift. The intended recipient is not mentioned in Kenkō's account.

Commentators suggest that the “pair of birds” were pheasants (a male and a female); but nothing is actually said to this effect in the essay.

⁴On-takagai Shimotsukeno Takekatsu [御鷹飼下毛野武勝].

The personal details of this individual are not know, though some commentators mention that he had formerly served Konoe Iehira's father, Konoe Iemoto [近衛家基; 1261 ~ 1296]. This implies that he had more experience and knowledge of precedent than Iehira.

The takagai was responsible for the care of the falcons used for hawking, and had charge of the birds during the hunt until the prey was actually sighted.

⁵In other words, “since nobody knows, please do it as you think best.” Iehira is asking Takekatsu to improvise.

⁶Go-yō nado ni mo tsuku [五葉などにも付く].

Go-yō [五葉], “five-leaved” is a colloquial name for the Japanese five-needled pine (go-yō-matsu [五葉松], Pinus parviflora). This pine has short, rather soft, needles in bundles of five, and a rather smooth bark. The needles appear silver-gray, due to a white stripe down their middle. It is a member of the white pine taxonomic group.

⁷Kaeshi-katana go-bu ni kiru [返し刀五部に切る].

Kaeshi-katana [返し刀] means a sword stroke that returns upward (following a slashing blow aimed downward).

Go-bu [五部] means go-bu [五分], the unit of length equal to approximately 1.5 cm (0.6").

The commentators explain that the first cut (severing the branch from the tree) is made downward, and on a (natural) diagonal. Then, a second cut is made from below (the kaeshi-katana), 5-bu from the end. This gives the lower end of the branch an off-centered point, as shown in the sketch.

⁸Hiuchi-ba [ひうち羽].

According to the commentators, hiuchi-ba [飛打羽] means specifically the flight feathers of a hawk's wings. These feathers were used for fletching arrows (hence their length would have been common knowledge to military men).

⁹Chūmon yori furumaite-mairu [中門より振舞ひて參る].

Traditional residences were surrounded by a wall, with a gatehouse opening onto the street, and a sort of courtyard on the inner side. The gate would have two or three doorways, the largest of which was in the middle of the gatehouse (hence chūmon [中門]). This gate was usually kept closed, and was used only when an important person would pass into, or out of, the house. The members of the household usually used the side door for their comings and goings.

In noble households, however, the nobleman would use the chūmon (indeed, if he traveled in an ox-drawn carriage, the carriage would only fit in through that entrance).

Though the to-shiba was usually delivered by an underling, it is emphasized that he should make his entrance through the chūmon -- because the gift is coming from a nobleman (and it is the gift that is important, since the underling is only there to act as its mode of conveyance).

¹⁰Ōmigiri-no-ishi [大砌の石].

Noble residences were usually raised several feet above ground level, to protect the residents from dampness that rises from the ground during the wet season. The edge of the veranda was reached by mounting two or three steps (which were often cut in long lengths from granite).

¹¹Amaōi-no-ke [あまおほひの毛].

Some commentators explain amaōi-no-ke [あまおほひの毛] refers to the short feathers that cover the upper side of the wings, protecting the flight feathers from becoming saturated with water when it is raining. Others claim that these are small, downy feathers, located at the base of the larger feathers, that protect the bird from wind and rain.

Either would be possible, since a hawk strikes downward, catching its prey just behind the wings, and thus easily dislodging the small feathers (the scattering of these feathers on the snow in the courtyard -- mentioned later in the account -- informs the recipient that the fowl attached to branch was taken by the nobleman's hawk).

¹²Roku [禄].

A sort of tip presented to the underling who has transported the to-shiba. In the classical period, this generally consisted of an elegant woman's robe (referred to as a goshūgi no i [御祝儀の衣], a “robe of appreciation”) -- since such garments were generally made from imported cloth that was too expensive for the person charged with delivering the gift to afford.

¹³Hatsu-yuki to iedomo, kutsu-no-hana no kakurenu-hodo no yuki ni ha mairazu [初雪といへども、沓のはなのかくれぬほどの雪には參らず].

Kutsu no hana no kakurenu-hodo no yuki [沓のはなのかくれぬほどの雪]: kutsu [沓] are lacquered wooden shoes, such as shown in the photo; kutsu-no-hana [沓の端]) means the “edge” of the shoe, where the toe-cover joins the instep (which is the lowest point on the side of the shoe); kakurenu-hodo no yuki [隠れぬほどの雪] means snow (deep enough) to hide -- or bury -- (the sides of ones shoes).

If the snow had not accumulated to a depth that would rise high enough to moisten the person's foot, then it was not appropriate for him to be sent out on this mission. Apparently the idea was that it should take great effort to convey this gift to the recipient (since a bird, taken while hunting, does not cost much at all).

¹⁴This final section consists of Yoshida Kenkō’s comments and speculations. As such, the passage was separated from the earlier part of the text in the original manuscript (this can be seen in the photo, where the last five lines -- which correspond to this gloss -- are clearly indented), though usually not formatted in any special way in modern printed versions of the Tsurezure-gusa.

These words have no direct connection with the story that he narrated at the beginning of this entry.

¹⁵Naga-tsuki bakari ni [長月ばかりに].

Naga-tsuki [長月], which literally means “the (month of the) long moon,” was the classical name for the Ninth Month of the Lunar calendar, perhaps because the generally cloudless skies of Autumn mean that the moon appears to stay in the sky longer than at other times of the year (the weather of the Ninth Month is usually better, too, for moon-gazing).

The phrase, then, literally means “sometime around the the long month....”

¹⁶Ume no tsukuri-eda ni kiji wo tsukete [梅の作り枝に雉を付けて].

Tsukuri-eda [作り枝] means an artificially fabricated branch (of plum blossoms) -- paper flowers attached to a tree branch.

The pheasant (kiji [雉]) was attached to the branch as a tori-shiba present, which was accompanied by the poem that is quoted in the text.

It is important to mention that women did not usually go hunting. Thus, her “gift” of a pheasant has a special meaning: there is a Japanese proverb that the male pheasant always sleeps apart from his mate, so she is using the bird to allude to her lover’s unfaithfulness.

¹⁷Kimi ga tame ni to oru-hana ha toki-shi mo wakanu [君がためにと折る花は時しも分かぬ].

Kenkō has only quoted lines 2, 3, and 4 of this poem, which comes from episode 98 of the Ise monogatari [伊勢物語].

(1) Waga tanomu [わがたのむ] means “I entrust them [to you]*...”

(2) Kimi ga tame ni to [君がためにと] means “since, just for you†...”

(3) Oru-hana ha [折る花は] means “[I have made] these folded[-paper] flowers...”

(4) Toki mo wakanu [時しも分かぬ], “which do not know the season to do it” [i.e., bloom]...

(5) Mono ni zo ari-keru [ものにぞありける], “these things‡ are like that.”

Because of the long nights (the scene is set in the Ninth Month, the Month of the Long Moon), the lady’s longing is increased. The paper plum flowers are unaware of the season, and so remain always in bloom. The pheasant, which the girl tied to the branch of paper flowers, means that her lover (the recipient of this strange gift) has shown, by his failure to call, that he prefers to sleep apart from her**. Yet she (like the flowers) is always open (for his visit). Even though he rarely visits her, both the paper flowers, and her feelings, are just like that: unaware of circumstances that must be obvious to the whole world.

The last line of this poem appears to be somewhat irregular, at least in the form quoted††. __________ *“Them” refers both to the poet’s thoughts and observations (regarding her relationship with her lover) and the paper flowers that she has folded “just for him.”

†Kimi [君] is a term of endearment, meaning “you.”

‡Mono ni zo [ものにぞ] can be read as part of the previous line, which would mean “(the paper flowers) are things that do not know the season!” It could also be taken separately, as I have done above, to mean “these things (= this situation)! they are/it is just like that.”

Ari-keru [有りける] means “it is as I said.”

**A Japanese proverb has it that the male pheasant prefers to sleep on a different branch from his mate.

††In classical poetics, however, the kanji ari [有り] appears to have more commonly been pronounced mo [も]. a [あ], u [う], or even ri [り]; and one of these “contracted” forms would be more fitting here (since it would have allowed Narihira to respect the traditional form of the waka).

In fact, many of the “irregularities” found in the poems attributed to Ariwara no Narihira [在原業平; 825 ~ 880], and other poets of the early period, are susceptible to this kind of explanation (though many of the authoritative versions are written in kana, and so appear to clearly set out the sounds, none of these texts date back to anywhere near Narihira’s day -- indeed, most seem to have been standardized in the Kamakura and Muromachi periods, when the idea that old poems frequently employ irregular forms had already been accepted as an established fact -- and so very possibly unknowingly incorporated later interpolations, or even corruptions, into what their compilers believed were historically-accurate editions).

¹⁸Tsukuri-bana ha kurushikaranu ni ya [造り花は苦しからぬにや].

Kurushikaranu [苦しからぬ] means “there is no problem;” “there is nothing wrong (with doing that).”

Ni ya [にや], which puncutates Kenkō’s statement, means something like "huh!" or "what?" and seems to indicate Kenkō’s surprise that the woman was able to get away with this sort of prank.

Another possible interpretation, however, is that Kenkō is saying that the Ise monogatari offers what should be a perfectly valid precedent for attaching a bird to a flowering branch, and so is calling the validity of Shimotsukeno Takekatsu's pronouncement into question.

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tipsycad147 · 5 years

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100+ Pagan or Witch names and their meanings

Posted by Michelle Gruben on Apr 11, 2019

Looking for the perfect Pagan or witch name? Check out our list of over 100 magickal names drawn from the realms of the occult. Whether it’s for yourself, an animal familiar, or a fictional character, have fun perusing these delightfully witchy monikers.

Christian names have usually honoured Biblical figures and saints, but Pagans prefer to name themselves after nature, folklore, and the gods of antiquity. Many names are drawn from ancient stories and are charged with mythic power. Some of the names on this list didn’t start out magickal, but got that way in modern times through association with famous witches. (This is admittedly a Eurocentric list, since my own background is in classical literature and Western magick. If you are the bearer of a witchy name from another tradition, I’d love to learn about it!)

Many witch names are unisex and others can be adapted to any gender. Creating compound names are one way that Pagans pay homage to sacred objects, spirits, and concepts (e.g., Raven Moonflower or Amethyst Dragonfyre). Try mixing and matching these first names with your favourite nouns and adjectives to create your very own Craft name.

Adelinda - A Germanic name meaning "noble serpent." A variation is Delinda.

Aine – “Radiance.” Queen of the fairies in Celtic lore.

Airlia – “Ethereal.”

Aislinn – “Dream or vision.” Irish female name.

Alcina – A Greek sorceress. Title character of an opera by Handel.

Alita – “Winged one.”

Althea – “Healer.”

Alvin/Alvina – “Elf.” Many "Al-" names related to elfkind, including Alfred/Alfreda ("elf counsel") and Albert ("bright elf" or "elf ruler").

Ambrosia/Ambrosius – “Food of the gods.”

Amethyst - Lovely purple stone, known to the ancients for bringing sobriety, wisdom, and protection, especially to travelers.

Angela - “Divine messenger.”

Aoelus – “Wind.”

Aradia – Legendary Italian Witch, one of the principal figures in Charles Godfrey Leland's 1899 work Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches.

Ariadne – “Most holy.” Mythical figure associated with mazes and labyrinths.

Ariel – A Biblical name meaning “Lion of God.” In Disney, a little mermaid. In Shakespeare, a shape-shifting spirit who aids the wizard Prospero. Also the name of the famous poem cycle by Sylvia Plath.

Artemis – Greek virgin goddess of the moon and wild animals.

Arwen – An elven princess in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. Arwen is derived from Welsh and means “fine” or “fair.” A masculine form is Arwyn.

Asteria – “Star-like.” Variations include Aster, Astrid, and Astra.

Aura – “Wind,” in Greek. In metaphysics, the word refers to the energy field surrounding the body.

Avalon – Legendary final resting place of King Arthur. Also the setting of a series of fantasy novels by Marion Zimmer Bradley.

Awen – “Inspiration.” Symbol of the well of creativity and of the bardic arts.

Bran – Means “Raven” in several Celtic languages. A great historical name with connections to Welsh mythology and Arthurian legend.

Breena – “Faery place.” Variations: Brinna or Briana.

Brigid – Celtic goddess of the forge, healing, and poetry. Beloved in Ireland and around the world, variations of her name include Bridget, Brighid, and Bride.

Calypso – “Hidden.” A nymph who detained Odysseus for many years.

Cassandra – Ill-fated soothsayer of Troy. Cassandra incurred the displeasure of Apollo, who cursed her so that her prophecies would never be believed.

Cedar – An ancient tree associated with wisdom and protection.

Celeste – “Heavenly.”

Cerridwen – “Fair as the poem.” May also derive from the Celtic word for “cauldron.” A powerful enchantress of Welsh legend, identified with the Wiccan mother goddess.

Charon – As the boatman on the River Styx, Charon ferries souls across to the Underworld. The modern Greek equivalent is Haros.

Chimera – “Dream, phantasm.”

Circe – Greek demi-goddess or witch renowned for her knowledge of herbs and potions.

Corvus – Latin for “raven” or “crow.” A literate alternative to becoming yet another Raven.

Crystal – A name that became popular in the 1980s and 90s. (Witches love crystals!)

Delphine – “Woman from Delphi.” The Delphic oracles were priestesses of Apollo.

Devin – “Musical poet.” A Gaelic boy’s name, now unisex.

Diana – Roman name for the moon goddess, known in European lore as the “Queen of the Witches.”

Draco – “Dragon.” One famous bearer is Draco Malfoy of the Harry Potter series.

Eartha – “Earthly.” From Old English.

Endora – The magical mother-in-law in the TV sitcom Bewitched. Her name comes from the Biblical Witch of Endor who counseled King Saul.

Eris – Greek goddess of Chaos. Patron goddess of the Discordian magickal tradition.

Erzulie – A spirit (or family of spirits) in Vodou. She has many forms and rules over love, beauty, health, and sexual passion.

Fabula – “Legend.”

Faye – “Fairy.” From Old English/Old French. Also Fay, Fae, Faeryn, Fayette.

Fiamma - "Flame." This Italian word carries the same connotations as "flame" in English, meaning either a (literal) fire or a (figurative) lover.

Foster – “Forest guardian.” From Old English.

Freya – “Noble lady.” One of the most revered of the Norse deities.

Gaia – The personification of Earth, and one of the Greek primordial gods.

Glinda – “Fair” or “good.” The Good Witch of the South in the Oz novels of L. Frank Baum.

Gwydion – Master magician and trickster of Welsh lore. His name means “born of trees.” Famous bearers include the American witch and bard Gwydion Pendderwen (1946–1982).

Hazel – “Hazel tree.” Hazel branches are the traditional material for divining rods.

Hecate – Crossroads-dwelling goddess of witchcraft. Her name may mean either “power” or “far-reaching.” The Greek spelling is Hekate.

Hermione – “Messenger.” A female name derived from Hermes. Popularized as a Witch name by the Harry Potter series, but also appropriate for a Hermetic magician.

Herne – “Horned.” The lord of wild things, identified with the Pagan Horned God.

Holly - This cheery girl's name is shared with one of the sacred trees of Celtic lore. A male or family name version is Hollis.

Isis - Mighty Egyptian goddess of magick and healing.

Jasmine – A delicate and aromatic flower known for its mystical and aphrodisiac properties. The name is Arabic in origin.

Jinx – “Trick” or “curse.”

Lamia – The Lamia is a child-devouring serpent or monster in Greek mythology. She was once a Libyan queen, but was cursed by Hera for her trysts with Zeus.

Larissa – A Greek sea nymph, also the name of an ancient city in Thessaly.

Leo – “Lion.” Also a sign of the zodiac.

Ligeia – “Shrill” or “whistling.” The name of one the Greek sirens, revived by Edgar Allan Poe in his short story by the same title.

Lilith – Adam’s first wife, according to Hebrew mythology. Lilith is associated with various night demons and flying goddesses.

Lorelei – Freshwater mermaid of the Rhine River. The Lorelei is a temptress who delights in the destruction of fishermen.

Lucia – A Latin name meaning “light”. The masculine form is Lucius.

Lucifer – A provocative name associated with the Christian devil. Lucifer means “light-bringer.”

Luna – “Moon.” Luna Lovegood is a minor character in the Harry Potter series.

Maeve – “Intoxicating.” An Irish warrior queen. Also related to Queen Mab, faery ruler of British folklore. Variations include Mab, Meave, Maeven.

Marisol – Beautiful Spanish name meaning “sea and sun.”

Medea – A Greek witch, the subject of a play by Euripides and a later opera. Medea was of divine descent and used sorcery to defeat her foes.

Melusine – A water spirit from French medieval folklore. Also written as Melusina.

Merlin – Legendary sorcerer of Old Britain.

Minerva - Roman name for the goddess of wisdom. A well-known bearer is Minerva McGonagall, the headmistress of Hogwarts in the Harry Potter series.

Miranda – “A marvel.” This name first appeared in Shakespeare’s The Tempest.

Morgan – Morgan le Fay is a (usually) adversarial figure in the Arthurian legends. Variations include Morgaine or Morgana. A similar-sounding name belongs to Celtic warrior goddess Morrighan.

Morpheus – “Shaper.” Greek god of sleep and dreams.

Nerissa – “Of the sea.” From Shakespeare.

Neve – “Bright.” An Anglicized version of the Irish name Niamh.

Nissa – A Scandinavian name for a brownie, sprite, or friendly elf.

Oberon – “Elf ruler.” A Faery king in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Famous bearers include Oberon Zell (b. 1942).

Ondine – “Mermaid or “Water spirit.”

Orion – A prominent constellation named for the hunter from Greek mythology. One notable Orion is author Orion Foxwood.

Pagan – “Country-dweller.” The most straightforward Pagan name there is.

Petra – “Stone.”

Peregrine – “Traveler, foreigner, pilgrim.”

Phoenix – Mythical bird that would incinerate itself every 500 years (by most accounts), then rise from the ashes.

Puck – A mischievous forest spirit in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Origin of the adjective “puckish.”

Pythia – One of the traditional titles of the Oracle of Delphi. The Pythia was originally a serpent monster defeated by Apollo.

Raven – One of the most widely-used Pagan/witch names, in various spellings and combinations. Ravens are associated with death, cunning, and secret knowledge.

Rhiannon – Welsh goddess associated with horses. Made popular as a witchy name by the Fleetwood Mac song “Rhiannon.”

Rosemary – “Dew of the sea.” The name refers to the small blue flowers that appear on Rosemary bushes.

Rowan – “Red-haired.” A unisex Celtic name shared with the mystical Rowan tree.

Rowena – A Germanic name, possible derived from the words for “fame” and “joy.” Another name revitalized by the Harry Potter series.

Sabrina – Latin place-name meaning “from Cyprus” or “from the river Severne.” Teenage witch of comics and television.

Sage – “Wise redeemer.” Also a widely-used herb in witchcraft.

Salem – Historic Massachusetts city known for its 17th-century witchcraft trials. The feline familiar of Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

Samantha – In Hebrew it means something like, “God heard” or “told by God.” In Greek, it may mean “flower.” Samantha owes its witchy cred to Samantha Stevens, the protagonist of the TV sitcom Bewitched.

Sedona – A town in Arizon famed for its energy vortexes, now a thriving New Age community. This pretty name has no known meaning and was probably invented by an early settler in the area.

Selene – Greek goddess of the moon. A variation is Selena, and belongs to Pagan elder Selena Fox.

Shadow – A spirit, ghost, or illusion.

Shasta – An active volcano in California, renowned as a spiritual pilgrimage site.

Shayla – “From the faery place.” Many spellings and variations.

Silver - A magickal metal, sacred to the Moon. Famous bearers include author Silver Ravenwolf.

Sirena – “Mermaid.”

Sirius – “Glowing, burning.” Also known as the Dog Star, Sirius is the brightest star in Earth’s night sky.

Sophia – “Wisdom.”

Stella - "Star." Variations include Estelle and Estrella.

Strega – “Witch” in Italian.

Sybil – “Prophetess” or “Divine counsel.” This name, from ancient Greek, also belonged to the famous English witch Sybil Leek (1917-1982).

Sylvia – “Of the forest.”

Tanith – Phoenician moon goddess whose name means "serpent lady." Famous Taniths include science fiction and fantasy writer Tanith Lee (1947 – 2015).

Tara – In Irish, a rocky hill. In Sanskrit, a star.

Thurston – “Thor’s stone.”

Titania – “Great one.” The queen of the fairies in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Variations include Tatiana and Tanya.

Umbra – “Shadow, ghost.”

Urania – “Heavenly" or "daughter of the Sky.” An epithet of Aphrodite and Isis.

Vera – “Truth”

Vernon – “Alder tree.”

Vesta – Roman hearth goddess. Priestesses of Vesta tended the sacred flame in her temples.

Willow – “Willow tree.” Willow is a popular witch character in the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Zephyr – “West wind.”

https://www.groveandgrotto.com/blogs/articles/100-pagan-or-witch-names-and-their-meanings

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risalei-nur · 4 years

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TAFSIR: Risale-i Nur: The Words Collection:The Thirty Second Word .Part 20

Loving virtuous people like Prophets and saints because they are approved servants of Almighty God, and in His name and for His sake, are included in His love. If you love your life because it is a most valuable capi-tal given by Almighty God to gain eternal life, a treasury containing the fac-ulties with which to acquire all kinds of virtues and perfections, and if you spend it in His service, then this love is included in love of Almighty God, the All-Worshipped One. Loving the prime of youth because it is a sweet, fine gift of Almighty God, and thus spending it in His cause is a sort of law-ful love wedded to gratitude.

Loving nature reflectively, especially in spring, because it is a realm displaying the most beautiful inscriptions of the All-Wise Maker’s light-dif-fusing Names and the most splendid and embellished works of His Art, means to love Almighty God’s Names. If you love the world only because it is the field to sow for the Hereafter, the mirror of the Divine Names, the collection of Almighty God’s missives, and a temporary guest-house of His, then this love is also in Almighty God’s name—provided you are not under your carnal soul’s influence.

In short, love the world and its creatures not for themselves but in the name of their Creator and the meaning they contain. Do not say: “How beautiful they are!” Rather, say: “How beautifully they have been made!” In your heart, do not love that which is not Him. Do not set your heart on that which is not Him, for the heart is the Eternally Besought’s mirror and belongs to Him. So pray to Him: “O God, provide me with love of You and the love of what will make me near to You.”

And so if all the types of love mentioned so far are in God’s name, then they give a painless, pure pleasure and are the means of a union that does not allow separation. In addition, they cause your love of God to grow and can be considered gratitude that gives pure pleasure and a reflection that is itself pure love.

For example, if a noble king grants you an apple in his presence, you will receive two sorts of pleasure and feel two kinds of love. The first type is your love for the apple because it is an apple. Thus you receive as much pleasure as an apple can give. Such a love is not in the king’s name, but arises from your love of yourself, for you love the apple because of the pleas-ure it gives you. This kind of pleasure is transient and ends when you fin-ish eating the apple, leaving behind regret for the cessation of the pleasure. Moreover, the king may not be pleased with such an attitude.

The second sort of pleasure and love are directly related to the king. If you love and respect the apple because it embodies the royal compliment to you, then this love is in the king’s name and for his sake. The pleasure arising from such a compliment is far greater than the pleasure coming from eating the apple. Such an attitude is pure gratitude to the king for his gift, and the love shown for the apple is a respectful love for the king himself.

Likewise, loving bounties—all foods and fruits—granted to us because of themselves and the pleasure they give is a carnal love, for it is for the car-nal soul’s sake. The pleasure coming from eating and drinking is transient and mixed with pain. If you love the bounties you receive on account of their being favors of Divine Mercy and fruits of Divine Bountifulness and Benevolence, and if you receive pleasure from them and have an appetite for them in appreciation of the Divine grace in them, this love is pure grat-itude and pure pleasure without any pain.

THIRD POINT: Love of the Divine Names has degrees and levels. As pointed out above, sometimes you love the Divine Names because you love their works in the universe, and sometimes because they are titles of Divine perfections. It sometimes occurs that you are in limitless need due to your comprehensive nature and love the Divine Names in need of them.

For example, while you are seeking help in utter despair for your rela-tives or for poor, weak, and needy creatures, someone appears unexpectedly and does for them what you wish to do for them. How much would you love such a person for his munificence and benevolence, and always be thankful to him for those qualities? Similarly, consider only the Names the All-Merciful and the All-Compassionate. As the manifestations of these Names, Almighty God favors your believing parents and ancestors, as well as your friends and beloved ones, in this world with all His bounties. He will also make both you and them happy in Paradise, in the World of eternal happi-ness, with all varieties of pleasure and bringing you together. Thus, you may understand how much these two Names are worthy of your love, to what extent your spirit needs them, and how proper and necessary it is to say: “All praise and gratitude are for God for His being All-Merciful and All-Compassionate.”

Also, with its creatures being its amiable residents and lovable adorn-ments, with which you feel a profound connection and for whose wretched-ness you grieve, the world is like a home for you. Through reflection, you may perceive how much your spirit loves and to what degree you need the Names the All-Wise and the All-Sustaining of the One Who has organized the world and it creatures and thus governs, grows, and sustains them with perfect wisdom. You also may understand to what extent your spirit needs the Names the Heir, the All-Quickening, the All-Permanent, the All-Munificent, the All-Reviving, and the All-Benevolent, of the One Who brings all of the people to whom you feel connected and at whose death you are grieved, out of the darkness of eternal extinction and settles them in a place far more beautiful than this world.

Since we, as human beings, are noble, elevated beings with comprehen-sive natures, our endless needs and aspirations make us needy of one thou-sand and one Divine Names in their numerous degrees of manifestation. Compound or intense need is eagerness, compound or intense eagerness is love, and compound or intense love is adoration. In proportion to the degree of the spirit’s perfection, love increases and flourishes in degrees according to the levels of the Divine Names’ manifestations. Since the Names are titles with which the Majestic Being manifests Himself, love of all Names turns into love of the Divine Being. Out of thousands of levels of manifestations of the Names the All-Just, the All-Wise, the (Ultimate) Truth, and the All-Compassionate, we present one as an example as follows:

If you want to see the Names the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate, and the (Ultimate) Truth in full manifestation in wisdom and justice, con-sider the following comparison: Suppose an army formed of four hundred companies. Each company has unique uniforms, rations, weaponry, and medicines. If these companies are situated together mixed with one anoth-er without the uniqueness of each considered, and yet, out of his perfect compassion and through his extraordinary power and miraculously encom-passing knowledge, and with utmost justice and wisdom, a peerless king equips each with unique uniforms and weapons and provides them with appropriate foods and medicines without mistake or help, you may under-stand what a powerful, compassionate, just, and munificent king he is.

Similarly, if you want to see the manifestations of the Divine Names the (Ultimate) Truth, the All-Merciful and the All-Compassionate in wis-dom and justice, you can look at magnificent armies of plants and animals, which consist of countless different families, genera, and species. All of these set up their tents on the earth’s face in spring, are infinitely mixed with each other, and yet have unique uniforms, provisions, weaponry, instructions, lifestyles, and demobilizations. Although they have no tongues with which to voice their needs and no power to meet them, see how the One with the Names of the (Ultimate) Truth, the All-Merciful, the All-Providing, the All-Compassionate, and the All-Munificent pro-vides, maintains, and raises them in perfect justice and wisdom and with-out confusing and forgetting any of them.

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dweemeister · 6 years

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Braveheart (1995)

The summer of 1995 provided moviegoing audiences with a third Die Hard movie, Casper, batnipples, Disney’s problematic Pocahontas, Apollo 13, Waterworld, and one of the most understanding children’s films of all time in Babe. That is a busy summer to say the least. Amid that clutter, one of the most successful movies of that period could not possibly have been made now, let alone find the audience it did twenty-three years ago. Released by Paramount in North America and 20th Century Fox internationally, that film is Mel Gibson’s Braveheart, a thirteenth-century war epic about Scottish knight William Wallace (played by Gibson) taking arms against King Edward I of England in the First War of Scottish Independence. Braveheart was Gibson’s second directorial work after more than a decade as a figurehead for 1980s Australian cinema and presence in the Lethal Weapon series. This is a visually striking, technically accomplished film rife with homophobia, misogyny, and historical howlers that continues to sharply polarize viewers about its cinematic merits. Through the fires of these controversies, the extremely violent Braveheart has bludgeoned its way to becoming an iconic fixture of 1990s Hollywood.

It is 1280 in Scotland. As a child, William Wallace survives King Edward “Longshanks” (Patrick McGoohan) invasion of Scotland. Following Scottish defeat, Wallace is taken on a European journey by his uncle Argyle (Brian Cox). Years later, Wallace (Gibson as an adult; James Robinson as a child) will return to his village and marry childhood friend Murron MacClannough (Catherine McCormack as an adult; Mhari Calvey as a child). But Longshanks has granted his English nobles in Scotland right of the first night, and Wallace’s successful attempt to save Murron from rape eventually ends in her execution. Enraged, Wallace – assisted by his fellow villagers – massacres the English forces sent to his hometown and drives the remaining English military from Scotland. Longshanks will not take military defeat without response, ordering Prince Edward (Peter Hanly) to quash the rebellion. War and royal intrigue breaks out, leading to Edward’s wife, Isabella of France (Sophie Marceau), being sent to negotiate with Wallace and the two falling for each other far too quickly.

With that plot in mind, viewers should understand that the only historically accurate aspects of Braveheart are the names of the historical figures involved and place names – really, that’s it. The Scots wear kilts, despite the fact kilts would not be invented for another several hundred years. If one wants to understand the First Scottish War for Independence and the history surrounding this era, read a book instead. Screenwriter Randall Wallace admitted that his script was based less on history than on the epic poem The Actes and Deidis of the Illustre and Vallyeant Campioun Schir William Wallace, written by Blind Harry in the fifteenth century.

In its medieval swordplay, Braveheart has more to do with Spartacus (1960) than anything in a 1930s-40s 20th Century Fox or Warner Bros. swashbuckler. The film’s enormous battle scenes – shot in Ireland with over 1,500 members of the Irish Army Reserve participating on both sides of this cinematic conflict – are excellent collaborations in deploying men on foot and horseback smashing into each other on a grassy plain with a frantic camera attempting to make sense of the scrum. The use of 200-pound mechanical horses running on nitrogen cylinders even fooled an animal welfare organization that decided to investigate the film because of the effect’s realism. When not indulging in ill-advised slow-motion, these battles, perhaps too frequently placed into the film to the point they becoming fatiguing, are spectacular in their choreography. The collaborative effort between Gibson, cinematographer John Toll (1994′s Legends of the Fall, 1998′s The Thin Red Line), editor Steven Rosenblum (1989′s Glory, Legends of the Fall) and second unit crew members contributes to a blood-soaked, crashing symphony of mangled limbs and human brutality that no other film depicting medieval warfare has since equaled – especially the Battle of Stirling Bridge, which is horrifying in its impact despite the absence of the crucial, eponymous bridge. Many films since Braveheart portraying contemporary war likewise pale in comparison.

Braveheart would be a disastrous film without John Toll’s cinematography, whether in action sequences or peaceful moments. The use of natural lighting and the on-location shooting in Ireland and Scotland appeals to Toll’s strengths for exterior shots, lending Braveheart a near-mythical angle amid large landscape shots blessed with eerie cloud covers and looming, verdant mountains. Toll makes Scotland a place of dreams – especially in the blue of twilight when the sun’s reds have retreated westward, welcoming the cool and comfort of the evening. This suits the film, as Gibson is not filming a historical drama. No computerized flourishes or too many swooping helicopter-aided vistas pry the viewer from the film. Toll’s camera for these landscapes and shots of the village (reportedly built by the production crew to Toll’s specifications) remain still or are gently heightened or lowered by crane shots. Close-ups are mercifully spare, reserved almost entirely for violent scenes.

The word “freedom” is tossed around with such promiscuity and depthlessness that Braveheart’s 178 minutes cannot be justified. Wallace’s screenplay touches lightly on the era’s politics, Wallace’s love life, and the ideas why Scotland should be independent from England. Political philosophy this is not. Look elsewhere for films of military leaders with a wracked conscience, psychologically impacted by the slaughter they have initiated. Instead, we are presented with anachronistic dialogue like this:

WILLIAM WALLACE: Before we let you leave, your commander must cross that field, present himself before this army, put his head between his legs, and kiss his own arse.

Sure, dude. If possible, maybe that commander might have a future as a contortionist.

Braveheart presents William Wallace as a man on a revenge-fueled mission who will consider all possible means to liberate his people – he has an irreverent sense of humor that makes given scenes a tonal mishmash. Wallace’s romantic interludes with Murron and Isabella? Gibson, McCormack, and Marceau, respectively, are all unconvincing – despite an enormous assist from Toll in these passionate scenes.

Casual homophobia is directed toward Prince Edward (later King Edward II), the son of Edward Longshanks (Edward I; who was a bellicose monarch, but becomes a cartoonish archetype in this film). Prince Edward is depicted as effeminate and gay, and his lover Philip (Stephen Billington) is killed by defenestration. The film further compounds this depiction by associating the Prince’s homosexuality to his ineffectual character – Longshanks constantly chastises his son’s lack of masculinity and Princess Isabella also disapproves of her husband for those qualities. This is not to say homophobia did not exist in the late thirteenth century, but that Gibson and Wallace are doubling down on the Prince, making him a punchline puppet of a leader because of who he is. Aggressive masculinity and sexual expressions inundate the battle scenes, too – swinging swords should be interpreted as one might think.

Women have almost zero agency in Braveheart, as they are depicted as sexual vessels to remain pure and chaste while the men fraternize and fornicate all they wish. Wallace’s campaign of violence begins not because the English lords have invoked right of the first night (prima noctis) for other women, but because prima noctis has been invoked for Murron (whose sexual faithfulness is idealized after her death in a pair of visions Wallace – who, by sleeping with Isabella, does not return that same faith – has). One of the few topics that women speak of throughout the film is sexual interest/satisfaction or lack thereof – Isabella’s only purpose in the film is to bang Wallace so that she can deliver an inflammatory piece of news to Longshanks on his deathbed.

Other than Toll, another craftsperson showcases their mastery in this film. That master is composer James Horner (Glory, 1997′s Titanic). 1995 proved to be a career year for Horner, having composed the scores for Apollo 13, Balto, and Casper. His second-best score of the year behind Apollo 13, Braveheart’s score is mostly devoid of the wanking masculinity described above, combining cultural elements that might seem inappropriate for a film about Scottish warriors – given the use of Japanese woodwinds in Legends of the Fall (a generational epic drama about a Montana ranching family), Horner’s instrumental appropriation knows no bounds, for good and ill. Along with the requisite bagpipes (rather than the Great Highland bagpipes that are generally associated to be “bagpipes”, Horner utilizes Uilleann pipes – Irish in origin, Uilleann pipes are softer and considered to produce a less harsh sound than Great Highland Bagpipes), this heavily orchestral score also benefits from a boys’ choir reminiscent of Casper, Horner’s affinity for Irish music, and quena (an Andean flute) for “The Secret Wedding”.

Three major motifs exist in Horner’s score: for Wallace, Murron, and Isabella. Wallace’s motif is first in the main title through the Uilleann pipes and will be the most-repeated theme in the film, fragmented up by percussion in the battle scenes, and often accompanied by strings in melodic unison (most heroically at 6:05 in “Freedom/The Execution Bannockburn”). Murron’s motif assumes melodramatic, (and very quickly afterwards) tragic connotations upon its most memorable appearance on quena in “The Secret Wedding”, chorally reprised at 3:10 in the “End Credits”. Dominating the final third of the film is Isabella’s motif, best outlined in “For the Love of a Princess” by the entire orchestra, and containing echoes of “The Ludlows” from Legends of the Fall. Credit the London Symphony Orchestra for providing a gorgeous recording, even if Horner’s score to Braveheart is not the most musically interesting effort of his career.

Producers Bruce Davey (Gibson’s longtime producer) and Alan Ladd, Jr. (son of legendary Paramount contracted actor Alan Ladd) navigated numerous obstacles at 20th Century Fox and Paramount to complete the film. This enormous, nearly three-hour production of a time period unfamiliar to North American moviegoers could not be produced at this scope today. A 2018 Braveheart would require even more major studios from various nations to finance the project, as epic films have all but disappeared from the multiplex because of their forbidding costs and lack of action star/superhero connections. Gibson’s ambition is staggering here. Yet Braveheart is let down by Gibson’s hypermasculinity and homophobia – reflective of his troublesome political dimensions.

The film’s cultural importance when it was released is unquestionable, but it remains to be seen how time will treat Gibson’s directorial breakout work. By being released in the mid-1990s, it is among the last Hollywood epic films largely untouched by excessive CGI – the effects are gruesome because they are practical. Though the characterizations are simplistic, Braveheart is an effective character piece for many, if not for this writer. Caught between the praises of fanboys of a certain demographic and those who loathe Gibson and/or Braveheart, I can neither adulate nor dismiss this movie outright. Bring on the insults on my manhood, but say it with a Scottish accent, would you kindly?

My rating: 6.5/10

^ Based on my personal imdb rating. Half-points are always rounded down. My interpretation of that ratings system can be found here.

#Braveheart #Mel Gibson #Sophie Marceau #Angus Macfadyen #Patrick McGoohan #Catherine McCormack #Brendan Gleeson #Peter Hanly #James Robinson #Mhairi Calvey #Andrew Weir #Randall Wallace #John Toll #Steven Rosenbaum #James Horner #Alan Ladd Jr.#Bruce Davey #TCM #My Movie Odyssey

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things2mustdo · 4 years

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Common Sense[1] is a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine in 1775–1776 advocating independence from Great Britain to people in the Thirteen Colonies. Writing in clear and persuasive prose, Paine marshaled moral and political arguments to encourage common people in the Colonies to fight for egalitarian government. It was published anonymously on January 10, 1776, at the beginning of the American Revolution, and became an immediate sensation.

It was sold and distributed widely and read aloud at taverns and meeting places. In proportion to the population of the colonies at that time (2.5 million), it had the largest sale and circulation of any book published in American history.[2] As of 2006, it remains the all-time best-selling American title and is still in print today.[3]

Common Sense made public a persuasive and impassioned case for independence, which had not yet been given serious intellectual consideration. Paine connected independence with common dissenting Protestant beliefs as a means to present a distinctly American political identity and structured Common Sense as if it were a sermon.[4][5] Historian Gordon S. Wood described Common Sense as "the most incendiary and popular pamphlet of the entire revolutionary era."[6]

The text was translated into French by Antoine Gilbert Griffet de Labaume in 1790.

http://www.ushistory.org/paine/commonsense/sense2.htm

https://iankeildson.blogspot.com/2011/10/to-all-revolutionairies.html

Of the Origin and Design of Government in General, with Concise Remarks on the English Constitution SOME writers have so confounded society with government, as to leave little or no distinction between them; whereas they are not only different, but have different origins. Society is produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness; the former promotes our happiness POSITIVELY by uniting our affections, the latter NEGATIVELY by restraining our vices. The one encourages intercourse, the other creates distinctions. The first is a patron, the last a punisher. Society in every state is a blessing, but Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one: for when we suffer, or are exposed to the same miseries BY A GOVERNMENT, which we might expect in a country WITHOUT GOVERNMENT, our calamity is heightened by reflecting that we furnish the means by which we suffer. Government, like dress, is the badge of lost innocence; the palaces of kings are built upon the ruins of the bowers of paradise. For were the impulses of conscience clear, uniform and irresistibly obeyed, man would need no other lawgiver; but that not being the case, he finds it necessary to surrender up a part of his property to furnish means for the protection of the rest; and this he is induced to do by the same prudence which in every other case advises him, out of two evils to choose the least. Wherefore, security being the true design and end of government, it unanswerably follows that whatever form thereof appears most likely to ensure it to us, with the least expense and greatest benefit, is preferable to all others. In order to gain a clear and just idea of the design and end of government, let us suppose a small number of persons settled in some sequestered part of the earth, unconnected with the rest; they will then represent the first peopling of any country, or of the world. In this state of natural liberty, society will be their first thought. A thousand motives will excite them thereto; the strength of one man is so unequal to his wants, and his mind so unfitted for perpetual solitude, that he is soon obliged to seek assistance and relief of another, who in his turn requires the same. Four or five united would be able to raise a tolerable dwelling in the midst of a wilderness, but one man might labour out the common period of life without accomplishing any thing; when he had felled his timber he could not remove it, nor erect it after it was removed; hunger in the mean time would urge him to quit his work, and every different want would call him a different way. Disease, nay even misfortune, would be death; for, though neither might be mortal, yet either would disable him from living, and reduce him to a state in which he might rather be said to perish than to die. Thus necessity, like a gravitating power, would soon form our newly arrived emigrants into society, the reciprocal blessings of which would supersede, and render the obligations of law and government unnecessary while they remained perfectly just to each other; but as nothing but Heaven is impregnable to vice, it will unavoidably happen that in proportion as they surmount the first difficulties of emigration, which bound them together in a common cause, they will begin to relax in their duty and attachment to each other: and this remissness will point out the necessity of establishing some form of government to supply the defect of moral virtue. Some convenient tree will afford them a State House, under the branches of which the whole Colony may assemble to deliberate on public matters. It is more than probable that their first laws will have the title only of Regulations and be enforced by no other penalty than public disesteem. In this first parliament every man by natural right will have a seat. But as the Colony encreases, the public concerns will encrease likewise, and the distance at which the members may be separated, will render it too inconvenient for all of them to meet on every occasion as at first, when their number was small, their habitations near, and the public concerns few and trifling. This will point out the convenience of their consenting to leave the legislative part to be managed by a select number chosen from the whole body, who are supposed to have the same concerns at stake which those have who appointed them, and who will act in the same manner as the whole body would act were they present. If the colony continue encreasing, it will become necessary to augment the number of representatives, and that the interest of every part of the colony may be attended to, it will be found best to divide the whole into convenient parts, each part sending its proper number: and that the ELECTED might never form to themselves an interest separate from the ELECTORS, prudence will point out the propriety of having elections often: because as the ELECTED might by that means return and mix again with the general body of the ELECTORS in a few months, their fidelity to the public will be secured by the prudent reflection of not making a rod for themselves. And as this frequent interchange will establish a common interest with every part of the community, they will mutually and naturally support each other, and on this, (not on the unmeaning name of king,) depends the STRENGTH OF GOVERNMENT, AND THE HAPPINESS OF THE GOVERNED. Here then is the origin and rise of government; namely, a mode rendered necessary by the inability of moral virtue to govern the world; here too is the design and end of government, viz. Freedom and security. And however our eyes may be dazzled with show, or our ears deceived by sound; however prejudice may warp our wills, or interest darken our understanding, the simple voice of nature and reason will say, 'tis right. I draw my idea of the form of government from a principle in nature which no art can overturn, viz. that the more simple any thing is, the less liable it is to be disordered, and the easier repaired when disordered; and with this maxim in view I offer a few remarks on the so much boasted constitution of England. That it was noble for the dark and slavish times in which it was erected, is granted. When the world was overrun with tyranny the least remove therefrom was a glorious rescue. But that it is imperfect, subject to convulsions, and incapable of producing what it seems to promise is easily demonstrated. Absolute governments, (tho' the disgrace of human nature) have this advantage with them, they are simple; if the people suffer, they know the head from which their suffering springs; know likewise the remedy; and are not bewildered by a variety of causes and cures. But the constitution of England is so exceedingly complex, that the nation may suffer for years together without being able to discover in which part the fault lies; some will say in one and some in another, and every political physician will advise a different medicine. I know it is difficult to get over local or long standing prejudices, yet if we will suffer ourselves to examine the component parts of the English Constitution, we shall find them to be the base remains of two ancient tyrannies, compounded with some new Republican materials. First. — The remains of Monarchical tyranny in the person of the King. Secondly. — The remains of Aristocratical tyranny in the persons of the Peers. Thirdly. — The new Republican materials, in the persons of the Commons, on whose virtue depends the freedom of England. The two first, by being hereditary, are independent of the People; wherefore in a CONSTITUTIONAL SENSE they contribute nothing towards the freedom of the State. To say that the constitution of England is an UNION of three powers, reciprocally CHECKING each other, is farcical; either the words have no meaning, or they are flat contradictions. First. — That the King it not to be trusted without being looked after; or in other words, that a thirst for absolute power is the natural disease of monarchy. Secondly. — That the Commons, by being appointed for that purpose, are either wiser or more worthy of confidence than the Crown. But as the same constitution which gives the Commons a power to check the King by withholding the supplies, gives afterwards the King a power to check the Commons, by empowering him to reject their other bills; it again supposes that the King is wiser than those whom it has already supposed to be wiser than him. A mere absurdity! There is something exceedingly ridiculous in the composition of Monarchy; it first excludes a man from the means of information, yet empowers him to act in cases where the highest judgment is required. The state of a king shuts him from the World, yet the business of a king requires him to know it thoroughly; wherefore the different parts, by unnaturally opposing and destroying each other, prove the whole character to be absurd and useless. Some writers have explained the English constitution thus: the King, say they, is one, the people another; the Peers are a house in behalf of the King, the commons in behalf of the people; but this hath all the distinctions of a house divided against itself; and though the expressions be pleasantly arranged, yet when examined they appear idle and ambiguous; and it will always happen, that the nicest construction that words are capable of, when applied to the description of something which either cannot exist, or is too incomprehensible to be within the compass of description, will be words of sound only, and though they may amuse the ear, they cannot inform the mind: for this explanation includes a previous question, viz. HOW CAME THE KING BY A POWER WHICH THE PEOPLE ARE AFRAID TO TRUST, AND ALWAYS OBLIGED TO CHECK? Such a power could not be the gift of a wise people, neither can any power, WHICH NEEDS CHECKING, be from God; yet the provision which the constitution makes supposes such a power to exist. But the provision is unequal to the task; the means either cannot or will not accomplish the end, and the whole affair is a Felo de se: for as the greater weight will always carry up the less, and as all the wheels of a machine are put in motion by one, it only remains to know which power in the constitution has the most weight, for that will govern: and tho' the others, or a part of them, may clog, or, as the phrase is, check the rapidity of its motion, yet so long as they cannot stop it, their endeavours will be ineffectual: The first moving power will at last have its way, and what it wants in speed is supplied by time. That the crown is this overbearing part in the English constitution needs not be mentioned, and that it derives its whole consequence merely from being the giver of places and pensions is self-evident; wherefore, though we have been wise enough to shut and lock a door against absolute Monarchy, we at the same time have been foolish enough to put the Crown in possession of the key. The prejudice of Englishmen, in favour of their own government, by King, Lords and Commons, arises as much or more from national pride than reason. Individuals are undoubtedly safer in England than in some other countries: but the will of the king is as much the law of the land in Britain as in France, with this difference, that instead of proceeding directly from his mouth, it is handed to the people under the formidable shape of an act of parliament. For the fate of Charles the First hath only made kings more subtle — not more just. Wherefore, laying aside all national pride and prejudice in favour of modes and forms, the plain truth is that IT IS WHOLLY OWING TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE PEOPLE, AND NOT TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE GOVERNMENT that the crown is not as oppressive in England as in Turkey. An inquiry into the CONSTITUTIONAL ERRORS in the English form of government, is at this time highly necessary; for as we are never in a proper condition of doing justice to others, while we continue under the influence of some leading partiality, so neither are we capable of doing it to ourselves while we remain fettered by any obstinate prejudice. And as a man who is attached to a prostitute is unfitted to choose or judge of a wife, so any prepossession in favour of a rotten constitution of government will disable us from discerning a good one. I you want to read more.......

#thomas paine

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royalnovels-blog · 7 years

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EET Chapter 7

Chapter Seven: The Beautiful Wang Fu After visiting the three great personages of the palace, the pair came out of the palace. When they got onto the carriage, Hua Xi Wan put the token in front of Yan Jin Qiu. “The Empress Dowager’s token is very valuable. It is safer for it to be in Jin Qiu’s care.” Yan Jin Qiu looked at the token but did not reach out to take it. “The Empress Dowager likes you and naturally hopes that you will take the token and visit her. I feel safe having it in your care.” Hua Xi Wan did not persist and put away the token with a smile. She adjusted the adornments at her waist and said wryly, “The Empress Dowager is really a friendly elder.” “When I was young and Mother was frail, I grew up for a few years under the Empress Dowager.” Yan Jin Qiu’s smile was harmonious. “She treats everyone benevolently.” Hearing this, Hua Xi Wan recalled a rumor. The rumor was that Xian Wang Fei had been from a scholarly family and birthed Yan Jin Qiu’s older sister one year after marrying Xian Wang. Two years later, she became pregnant with Yan Jin Qiu. But who knew that when she was pregnant, Xian Wang got a ceshi pregnant, and half a year after Yan Jin Qiu was born, a shu son was born as well. The outside did not know if there had been conflict between Xian Wang and Xian Wang Fei due to this matter; they only knew that after Xian Wang Fei gave birth, her health was not good. When Yan Jin Qiu was two years old, he was sent into the Imperial Palace to be reared by the Empress Dowager. Only when he was six years old and Xian Wang Fei was heavily ill did Yan Jin Qiu come out of the Imperial Palace to care for his mother. Before Xian Wang Fei died, Xian Wang asked to title Yan Jin Qiu the Heir to the Wang Fu. She didn’t know if Xian Wang Fei had felt hatred, but Hua Xi Wan felt that, if a female discovered that her husband had gotten another woman pregnant during her pregnancy, she would not be unaffected. Hua Xi Wan wanted to say that he was fortunate to be reared by the Empress Dowager, but looking at Yan Jin Qiu’s smile, she suddenly did not want to speak. The carriage quieted down. She listened to the sound of the hoofs, and adjusted to a comfortable position reclined against the back of the carriage to wait for the carriage to return to the wang fu. Yan Jin Qiu waited for a few moments and did not hear Hua Xi Wan’s voice. When he looked at her, he found that she had fallen asleep against the back panel of the carriage. Thinking back to his uncontrolled actions of last night, a small but sincere smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. “Junwang Ye, Junwang Fei, we have arrived at the wang fu.” Mu Tong announced from outside the carriage. Yan Jin Qiu turned and saw that Hua Xi Wan was sleeping. Just as he was planning to reach out and carry her, Hua Xi Wan opened her eyes. “We’ve arrived?” Hua Xi Wan touched the hairpin in her hair and lifted the curtain to look outside the window. She slowly massaged her waist. “It is not yet time for the noon meal. Will Jin Qiu accompany me to tour the wang fu?” “A request from a beauty cannot be refused.” Yan Jin Qiu raised the curtain and stepped out of the carriage. Then, under the gaze of everyone, he supported Hua Xi Wan’s hand. Only when she got off the carriage did he release her hand. “There are some good places in the wang fu. I’ll accompany you on the walk.” Mu Tong saw that the two seemed to want to tour the wang fu and hurriedly told a servant to order the servants within the second door and lower to stay away so they would not coincide with Junwang Fei. Even though Yan Jin Qiu had locked some places in the wang fu which were over his rank when he succeeded the position, what was locked was the buildings at the edges. The attractive places were still left open. Along the way, Hua Xi Wan saw some beautiful structures as she had expected. With Mu Tong talking along the way, it was pretty interesting. After entering the Door of Drooping Flowers, Hua Xi Wan smiled at Mu Tong and said, “No wonder Junwang Ye has a high opinion of you. If I have such a clever person attending me, I will definitely use you frequently.” “This one does not dare to accept Junwang Fei’s praise. This one is just fulfilling the duties of a servant.” Mu Tong respectfully made a major bow. “Anything that Wang Fei orders, this small one will try his best to fulfill. This one just hopes that Wang Fei does not disdain this small one for his clumsiness and stupidity.” “Someone who can say these words is not one who is clumsy and stupid.” Hua Xi Wan smiled. When she raised her foot to step through the Door of Drooping Flowers, her hand was held by Yan Jin Qiu. She turned her head and saw the considerate smile on the other’s face. “Thank you.” Under the gazes of everyone behind them, Hua Xi Wan did not take her hand away and allowed Yan Jin Qiu to lead her towards the middle of the fake mountain and forests. When the two walked next to the fake mountain, they heard two young servant girls conversing, and she seemed to hear the words “wang fei.” Mu Tong was going to speak and scold them, but when he looked at Junwang Fei who had stopped walking, he hesitated and then stood silently at the side. “I have seen several noble people; Sheng Junwang Fei is the most beautiful.” “So what if she is beautiful, her status cannot rival our wang fei…” “You are stupid—don’t you know that our wang fei is ordinary in appearance?” When the servant girl that spoke first said this, she pushed her voice lower. “I heard that it is because her appearance is not good that the Emperor decreed her marriage to our junwang.” “Don’t speak nonsense, how can you know what the Emperor is thinking?” Hearing this, the second servant girl was frightened and even her voice started to tremble. “If Junwang hears this, what are you going to do?” The first servant girl felt slight regret and said unconfidently, “Junwang and Junwang Fei are not in the fu, how can they hear what we are saying, don’t frighten yourself…” Just as she finished saying this, she saw a corner of a blue robe peeking from behind the fake mountain. When she saw who the people behind the fake mountain were, her legs softened, and she knelt down with a bang. Hua Xi Wan looked at Yan Jin Qiu who did not show any anger and did not speak, and then at the two servant girls who were pale with fright and shaking all over. She raised an eyebrow in interest. Fearful to this degree yet dared to say these things behind people’s backs—they were really daring. “Junwang, spare us! Junwang, spare us!” The servant girl that had gossiped about Hua Xi Wan started to repeatedly kowtow. Moments later, blood started to come out of her forehead. But even so, this servant girl did not decrease the strength of the kowtow and hit the ground even harder as though, if she kowtowed slowly, she would not be able to keep her little life. Looking at the slate bricks that were dyed in fresh blood, Hua Xi Wan spoke. “All right, do not kowtow anymore.” The servant girl whose face was covered in blood paused slightly. Even though Hua Xi Wan had spoken, she was not sure if she should keep on kowtowing and begging for her life to be spared. “Since Junwang Fei does not like bowing, do not cause Junwang Fei to be unhappy.” Yan Jin Qiu looked at the blood on the stone. With a furrowed brow, he said, “You who serve in the inner compound should know best what the protocol of the wang fu is.” The servant girl whose face was covered in blood collapsed in fear and lay facedown on the ground. Even the servant girl who had listened to her speak had an expression of hopelessness. She didn’t know where she got the courage and crawled a few steps forward. She banged her head on the ground in Hua Xi Wan’s direction. “Junwang Fei, this servant has offended. Please, Junwang Fei, spare this life!” Her face was full of tears from fright as she looked pleadingly in Hua Xi Wan’s direction. The next moment, she froze and could not speak any more entreaties. A moment later, she collapsed in a kneeling position on the ground and said, “This servant has offended.” Hua Xi Wan looked at this servant girl that had been urging the other one to not gossip and coughed lightly. “Jin Qiu, I see that this servant girl knows some protocol. How about a lighter punishment for her?” “Since Junwang Fei has spoken on your behalf, then go to the Discipline Room for twenty blows. If you offend again, then you will be punished according to the crime.” Yan Jin Qiu waved his hand at Mu Tong to indicate this servant girl would be spared. “Thank Junwang, thank Junwang Fei.” This servant girl was so excited her face was full of tears and extremely disheveled. The servant girl whose face was full of blood from kowtowing was gagged and dragged away by two taijian. As to what punishment she would endure, Hua Xi Wan did not ask, and Yan Jin Qiu did not explain. The two seemed to forget this event and did not mention the matter of the decree of marriage, nor the rumors on the outside about Hua Xi Wan’s appearance. The two used the noon meal together. Even though the two had been together for less than a day, there was never a cold period when the two did not speak, and they never felt that they were searching for something to say. They did not seem like the newly married couples that had never met before the marriage, but lovers with deep emotion, every one of their actions filled with warmth. Mu Tong who was serving the pair at the meal looked with a complicated gaze at the elegant junwang fei. Junwang Fei was probably not a wooden beauty that was empty inside. In the afternoon, Yan Jin Qiu had matters and left the fu. Hua Xi Wan naturally went back to her room to catch up on her sleep. Last night, His Highness Xian Junwang had been slightly fast the first time, and it might have been that he wanted to prove something to her in the next two times that she had been harassed for some time after. When she woke up, it was in the evening. She rose and put on a comfortable cotton dress, had Hong Ying put her hair into a simple style, and then indolently leaned back against the soft cushion to let the servant girls knead her shoulders. “Has Junwang returned to the fu?” She saw the sky was gradually turning dark and just remembered that she also had a title of junwang fei. No matter what, she should ask about that juwang ye. “Junwang has not yet returned to the fu. The people from the Meal Room came in the afternoon. This servant had them make a few dishes according to the styles you usually prefer. Should the meal be sent for now?” Bai Xia held a cup of hawthorn, wolfberry and date tea to put into Hua Xi Wan’s hand. “The kitchen should have been prepared already.” “I’ve just woken up and do not have an appetite. Let’s speak of this later.” She lazily looked outside. The orchids were at their peak of bloom and were exceptionally beautiful under the sunset, as though surrounded by a halo. This Xian Junwang was more complex than she had imagined. She had seen clearly the terror that the two servant girls had when they faced him—as though if he blinked his eyes, they and their families would die. Sighing, she adjusted her position so she was more comfortable leaning back. “Bai Xia, what do you think of the junwang fu?” Bai Xia said after a moment of silence, “The wang fu is very beautiful, and the servants have very good etiquette.” Hua Xi Wan smiled. “Yes, don’t they have very good etiquette?” Bai Xia’s lips moved. She knew that Mistress was usually intelligent and thought farther than she did, so she did not speak up. She swept the beautiful room. Even though the wang fu appeared very beautiful, the servants were obedient and well-mannered, a place that was too regulated and beautiful would cause people to feel it was unrealistic. This was probably the true colors of the Imperial House? Previous Main menu Next Click to Post

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