Singde [Nara]

Singde 性德 (T.容若 H. 楞伽山人), original name, Cengde 成德, Jan. 19, 1655-1685, July 1, poet and official, was the eldest son of Mingju [q.v.] of the Yehe Nara clan, and a member of the Manchu Plain Yellow Banner. When he took his chü-jên degree, in 1672, one of the chief examiners was Hsü Ch'ien-hsüeh [q.v.] who later did his utmost to advance the studies and the fame of this Manchu scholar. Although he passed the metropolitan examination in 1673 at the age of nineteen (sui), Singde was hindered by illness from proceeding at once with the palace examinations. In the interval of three years before the next examination he jotted down four chüan of miscellaneous notes on his studies which he entitled 淥水亭雜識 Lu-shui t'ing tsa-chih, after the name of a pavilion in his father's garden near the Shih-ch'a hai 十剎海 in the northern precincts of Peking. This garden later became the property of Prince Ch'êng (see under Yung-hsing) and still later of Prince Ch'un (see under I-huan). In the palace examinations of 1676 Singde ranked seventh as chin-shih of the second class. But instead of appointing him to a literary post, Emperor Shêng-tsu made him an officer of the Imperial Bodyguard.

Singde's fame as a writer of tz'û (poems in irregular metre), and as a scholar, spread rapidly in literary circles of Peking. By 1678 his second collection of tz'û was edited and printed by his friends, Ku Chên-kuan 顧貞觀 (T. 華封, H. 梁汾, b. 1637) and Wu Ch'i [q.v.], under the title 飲水詞 Yin-shui tz'û—the first collection, 側帽詞 Ts'e-mao tz'û, having appeared some time earlier. Many of the Chinese scholars who were summoned to Peking to take the special examination in 1679, known as po-hsüeh hung-tz'û (see under P'êng Sun-yü), became his intimate friends, and not a few were benefited financially by him or through the influence of his father who had been made a Grand Secretary in 1677. Apparently it was Singde's hospitality to Chinese scholars which gave rise to the theory that he was the hero of Ts'ao Chan's [q.v.] famous novel, Hung-lou mêng.

In 1682 Singde joined the commission under Laugtan and Pengcun [qq.v.] which was sent to investigate the activities of Russia in the Amur region. From then on he accompanied the Emperor on many tours outside the capital—once to Chekiang in 1684. When the Emperor set out in June 1685 on a trip to the Eastern Tombs, Singde was too ill to go. He died in the following month, leaving three sons and two daughters.

The collected works of Singde, in 20 chüan, were edited by Hsü Ch'ien-hsüeh and printed in 1691 under the title T'ung-chih t'ang chi, after the name of his studio. This work received descriptive notice in the Ssû-k'u Catalog (see under Chi Yün), as did two others on the Classics which seem, however, to have been compiled by Chinese scholars and later attributed to Singde. His studio name appears in the title of the great collection of 138 treatises on the Nine Classics, entitled 通志堂集 T'ung-chih t'ang ching-chieh (經解). Hsü Ch'ien-hsüeh's preface to it states that Singde provided the funds to initiate the printing. His name appears in the margins as the editor, and there are various perfunctory prefaces attributed to him, but these were probably written by others. The work itself seems not to have been printed until after Singde's death.

Singde ranks as one of the great poets of the Ch'ing period, especially in the writing of tz'û in which he followed patterns set in the period of the Five Dynasties (907-960). The tragic and passionate mood of much of his poetry, and his premature death, invite comparison with the T'ang poet, Li Ho 李賀 (790-816), or with John Keats. It is said that his poems were inspired by his frustrated love for a cousin who was taken to the Palace and whom he therefore could not marry.

Singde's eldest son, Fuge 富格 (or 福哥, 1675-1700), was selected to serve Emperor Shêng-tsu as a page, but died before he could rise to a higher position. Fuge left a son, Jandai 瞻岱 (1700-1741?, posthumous name 恭勤), who served as provincial commander-in-chief of Chihli (1737-38) and of Kansu (after 1738). Singde's second son, Furdon 富爾敦, was a chin-shih of 1700.

Singde is remembered for his part in bringing about the release of the exiled poet, Wu Chao-ch'ien 吳兆騫 (T. 漢槎, 1631-1684), a native Wu-chiang, Kiangsu, who became a chü-jên 1657 at the provincial examination in Nanking. Later in that year one of the chief examiners was accused of corruption, and the successful candidates (also under suspicion for irregularity) were examined in Peking. Though an able writer, Wu was for some reason adjudged unworthy of chü-jên degree and was exiled to Ninguta in Manchuria. He reached his destination in 1659 and endured there an exile's life for twenty-two years. Occasionally he corresponded with old friends, among them the above-mentioned Ku Chên-kuan and Hsü Ch'ien-hsüeh. In 1676 Ku wrote a poem which he dedicated to his friend in exile. Singde read it and was so moved that he promised to work for Wu's release—the method used was to make public Wu's merits as a writer. The commission which went to Kirin in 1677 to locate the highest peak of the Ch'ang-pai shan (see under Sabsu) brought back a long poem by Wu eulogizing the mountain as the place where the Ch'ing Imperial Family had originated. This poem was presented to the throne. Other poems by Wu were edited and printed by Hsü Ch'ien-hsüeh under the title, 秋笳集 Ch'iu-chia chi, 4 chüan. It was not difficult then for Singde's father to persuade the Emperor to release the exile, and in 1681 he was given his freedom. Singde helped further to rehabilitate Wu by engaging him to teach his brother, K'uei-hsü [q.v.], who later studied under Cha Shên-hsing [q.v.]. The poet's wife had voluntarily joined him in exile in 1661, and while there gave birth to a son, Wu Chên-ch'ên 吳桭臣 (T. 南榮, b. 1664), who in 1726 re-edited his father's works in 8 chüan—likewise with the above-mentioned title, Ch'iu-chia chi. This son was the author of a descriptive account of Ninguta, entitled 寧古塔紀略 Ninguta chi-lüeh, printed about 1721.

[ Nien-p'u by Chang Jên-chêng in Kuo-hsüeh chi-k'an (Sinological Journal), vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 741-90; 1/489/26b;3/327/40a; Ssû-k'u, 6/7a,21/5a,183/6a; Tung-hua lu, Ch'ien-lung 101/8a; Hu Shih wên-ts'un (see bibl. under Li Ju-chên) 1st series, vol. 3, p. 196; Ninguta chi-lüeh; Shêng-yü [q.v.], Hsüeh-chi hsün-pei lu, 13/3a; Su Hsüeh-lin, "A Study of Two Tz'û Writers of the Ch'ing Period" (in Chinese), Quarterly Journal of Liberal Arts, Wuhan University, vol. 1, no. 3; Kao-tsung shih-lu (see under Hung-li), 136/13a.]

FANG CHAO-YING

原名成德 字容若 號楞伽山人

《清史稿》卷484 文苑一

性德，納喇氏，初名成德，以避皇太子允礽嫌名改，字容若，滿洲正黃旗人，明珠子也。性德事親孝，侍疾衣不解帶，顏色黧黑，疾愈乃復。數歲即習騎射，稍長工文翰。康熙十四年成進士，年十六。聖祖以其世家子，授三等侍衛，再遷至一等。令賦乾清門應制詩，譯御製松賦，皆稱旨。俄疾作，上將出塞避暑，遣中官將御醫視疾，命以疾增減告。遽卒，年止三十一。嘗奉使塞外有所宣撫，卒後，受撫諸部款塞。上自行在遣中官祭告，其眷睞如是。

性德鄉試出徐乾學門。與從揅討學術，嘗裒刻宋、元人說經諸書，書為之序，以自撰禮記陳氏集說補正附焉，合為通志堂經解。性德善詩，尤長倚聲。遍涉南唐、北宋諸家，窮極要眇。所著飲水、側帽二集、清新秀雋，自然超逸。嘗讀趙松雪自寫照詩有感，即繪小像，仿其衣冠。坐客期許過當，弗應也。乾學謂之曰：「爾何似王逸少！」則大喜。好賓禮士大夫，與嚴繩孫、顧貞觀、陳維崧、姜宸英諸人遊。貞觀友吳江吳兆騫坐科場獄戍寧古塔，賦金縷曲二篇寄焉，性德讀之歎曰：「山陽思舊，都尉河梁，並此而三矣！」貞觀因力請為兆騫謀，得釋還，士尤稱之。

《中國大百科全書 中國文學》（俞智先 撰）

清代滿族詞人。原名成德﹐字容若﹐號楞伽山人。其先祖原為蒙古吐默特氏﹐因攻佔納喇部﹐以地為氏﹐改姓納喇──即納蘭。17世紀初為清太祖努爾哈赤降伏﹐後屬滿洲正黃旗。其父明珠為清康熙時大學士。

納蘭性德自幼勤於修文習武。18歲中舉﹐22歲賜進士出身。選授三等侍衛﹐後晉為一等﹐扈從於康熙身邊。康熙非常賞識他的才幹﹐曾委派他到黑龍江呼倫﹐查勘沙俄侵擾情況﹐並安撫達斡爾邊民。輯有《全唐詩選》和《詞韻正略》。擅書法﹐精於書畫鑑賞。

納蘭性德的詞集《側帽集》於康熙十七年(1678)問世﹐時年僅24歲。繼而﹐另一詞集《飲水詞》在吳中刊行。而綜合編纂他詩﹑詞﹑文﹑賦為《通志堂集》的﹐則是他的漢文老師徐乾學。

他的詞集問世後﹐曾形成“家家爭唱飲水詞”(曹寅語)的局面﹐這不僅因其詞作“纏綿清婉﹐為當代冠”(鄭振鐸語)﹐其思想的深沉﹐風格的清新﹐抒情狀物的不落窠臼﹑別開生面﹐也是重要原因。

納蘭性德性澹泊。在涉獵漢文學傳統時﹐他將李白﹑陶潛奉為楷模。視功名權勢如敝屣﹐視相府長子﹑御前侍衛的地位為難以解脫的束縛﹐不到30歲竟“懮愁居其半﹐心事如落花”﹐產生了“海鷗無事﹐閑飛閑宿”的出世之想﹐這種心緒給他的作品塗上了一層濃重的哀愁。思鄉﹑思親﹑思友的主題﹐詞集裡多有所見。顧貞觀說:“容若詞一種淒惋處令人不忍卒讀。”

王國維論及納蘭性德時說:“納蘭容若以自然之眼觀物﹐以自然之舌言情。此初入中原未染漢人風氣﹐故能真切如此。北宋以來﹐一人而已。”不僅指出了他在中國詞壇上的歷史地位﹐而且概括了他的個人風格。