"The most famous version of the second anecdote is found in He Guangyuan's Jianjie lu from the Five Dynasties:
'One day, while riding on his mule, he suddenly came up with the verse: "The bird spends the night in the tree by the pool,/ the monk knocks at the gate under the moonlight." At first he wanted to use the word "shove"; then he wanted to use the word "knock." Without realizing it, he passed through half a city ward in this fashion. Those who observed him were astonished, but Jia Dao seemed not to see them. At the time Han Yu was serving as provisional Metropolitan Governor of the capitol. Han had a stern and punctilious disposition, and his awesome presence at that moment made itself felt on the great avenue. Passing the third avenue, the criers were clearing the way, but Jia Dao just went on writing characters with his hand. Only when he was suddenly pushed down from his mule by officials and dragged before the Metropolitan Governor did Jia Dao realize the situation. The advisers wanted to have him reprimanded, but Jia Dao responded, "I just happened now to come up with a couplet, but I haven't been able to get a particular word right. My spirit was wandering in the realm of poetry, and this is what led me to run into Your Excellency. I do not dare call your wrath down upon me, but I hope you might be kind enough to give this some consideration." Han Yu halted his horse, thought about it for a while, and said to Jia Dao, " 'Knock' is finer." ' " --Stephen Owen, The Late Tang (2006)


    "Constructed-Language Ringtone"

don the dead husk of olden days
in order to act at all
we are the broken army
in the valley of cornucopia

a crying seagull
circling the parking lot
says as much

broken army, fight


Blood Done Sign My Name.