[Music] Fanny -- When Things Change

Fanny

1. When Things Change ("每當變幻時") is composed by the Japanese Koga Masao in the 1940s and the Cantonese cover first came out in 1977 and was sang by Fanny.

It has since been covered by many Hong Kong singers.

This song is the theme song of a 2007 Hong Kong movie called Hooked on You (also called "每當變幻時" in Chinese).

(While When Things Change is a literal translation of "每當變幻時", Hooked on You is an allusion to the story line of the movie.)

The 2007 version of the song is sung by Miriam Yeung who is also the female lead of the movie.

This song is also the ending theme song of the 2010 Hong Kong movie The Stool Pigeon ("綫人").

(I understand the mainland China release of this movie uses a different ending theme song.)

I believe this classic Cantonese song is very popular with ordinary folks as there are many amateur covers in YouTube.


2. The song When Things Change is about changes (what else!).

Changes often lead to sadness so it is essential to good mental health that we are able to face changes in positive ways.

And there is a sad undertone to this song.

Yet like any good music, poetry or other art forms, this song expresses sadness about changes without being injurious to the soul ("哀而不傷").


3. When Things Change by Fanny:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhl__dqYUgg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lue1fUxo7wg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rFVa25T29U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZ0_Cw74R8s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4E8SGjSZok

Fanny live in concert in 2010:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2a05Y-S5qu8

As noted by a commentator in YouTube, this was 33 years after the debut of the song.


4. When Things Change by Miriam Yeung:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiH9gxn78Rc


5. The ending scenes of the movie The Stool Pigeon (2010):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEbnSGWuu5M


6. A cover by Cheng Kam-cheong:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zptw1wWP3Xo


7. Covers by Sam Hui:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0HD2KldTOw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2hONU_T_ys


8. Covers by Frances Yip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbRJph98IBQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmr4idkEsGU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBCA5ElrI5E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p54BKT10I_Q

No reflection on Frances Yip's singing abilities, but the music arrangement is not right for this song.


9. The Hong Kong pop band The Wynners in concert:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Fkqqo_fFnM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wnhr0cb-5VQ


10. A cover by Priscilla Chan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hH5x1daXqfg

First of three songs.


11. Covers by Donald Cheung:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4tJRj49quY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRaaD2leFKs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sz5cAE0xvKg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCI4GM7VnlU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OJYcjp-Zps


12. Covers by Rosanne Lui:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zalZriGkL4A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwnpHMBmPoU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqSz7NEEwlw

First of three songs:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hx7gGWsvO3Q


13. A cover by Tong Li:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOZ-mbjUMbQ

Very nice music.

Tong Li is from mainland China and it is obvious Cantonese is not her first language; but good effort.


14. A Piano cover:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsCz1d39QAA


15. A Wooden Flute cover:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FgaHxymvic


16. Harmonica covers:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGpwh2YCO00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaRoYKs2i20


17. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:


每當變幻時 -- 薰妮

懷緬過去常陶醉   一半樂事   一半令人流淚
夢如人生   快樂永記取   悲苦深刻藏骨髓
韶華去   四季暗中追隨   逝去了的都已逝去
啊......常見明月掛天邊
每當變幻時   便知時光去

懷緬過去常陶醉   想到舊事   歡笑面常流淚
夢如人生   試問誰能料   石頭他朝成翡翠
如情侶   你我有心追隨   遇到半點風雨便思退
啊......常見紅日照東方
每當見夕陽   便知時光去

如情侶   你我有心追隨   遇到半點風雨便思退
啊......常見紅日照東方
每當見夕陽   便知時光去


18. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:


每当变幻时 -- 熏妮

怀缅过去常陶醉   一半乐事   一半令人流泪
梦如人生   快乐永记取   悲苦深刻藏骨髓
韶华去   四季暗中追随   逝去了的都已逝去
啊......常见明月挂天边
每当变幻时   便知时光去

怀缅过去常陶醉   想到旧事   欢笑面常流泪
梦如人生   试问谁能料   石头他朝成翡翠
如情侣   你我有心追随   遇到半点风雨便思退
啊......常见红日照东方
每当见夕阳   便知时光去

如情侣   你我有心追随   遇到半点风雨便思退
啊......常见红日照东方
每当见夕阳   便知时光去


19. Names, Words and Phrases:

Cheng Kam-cheong (Traditional Chinese: 鄭錦昌; Simplified Chinese: 郑锦昌).

Donald Cheung (Traditional: 張偉文; Simplified: 张伟文).

Fanny (Traditional: 薰妮; Simplified: 薰妮).

Frances Yip (Traditional: 葉麗儀; Simplified: 叶丽仪).

Harmonica (Traditional: 口琴; Simplified: 口琴).

Koga Masao (Traditional: 古賀政男; Simplified: 古贺政男).

Miriam Yeung (Traditional: 楊千嬅; Simplified: 杨千嬅).

Priscilla Chan (Traditional: 陳慧嫻; Simplified: 陈慧娴).

Rosanne Lui (Traditional: 呂珊; Simplified: 吕珊).

Sam Hui (Traditional: 許冠傑; Simplified: 许冠杰).

The Wynners (Traditional: 溫拿; Simplified: 温拿).

Tong Li (Traditional: 童麗; Simplified: 童丽).

Wooden flute (Traditional: 木笛; Simplified: 木笛).


References:

"The Stool Pigeon (2010 film)", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Stool_Pigeon_%282010_film%29
(accessed 2014-12-31).

"薰妮", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E8%96%B0%E5%A6%AE
(accessed 2014-12-31).

"每當變幻時", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%AF%8F%E7%95%B6%E8%AE%8A%E5%B9%BB%E6%99%82
(accessed 2014-12-31).

End.

[Music] A Sound of Laughter Across the Blue-Green Sea -- James Wong

James Wong

1. The Hong Kong lyricist James Wong (1941 - 2004) passed away 10 years ago this week.

This music selection is to commemorate James Wong's 10th anniversary.


2. After the Second World War the main place for Cantonese music was Hong Kong with contributions from other Chinese communities in such Asian countries as Singapore and Malaysia.

Cantonese music has experienced a golden age from the late 1960s to the 1990s and has been in decline ever since.

(The golden age of Cantonese music more or less coincides with James Wong's career as a lyricist.)

But why is there a decline in Cantonese music?

There are three classes of people that contribute to the creation of a song:

(a) The composers that compose the music;

(b) The lyricists that write the lyrics; and

(c) The singers that sing the songs.

I do not believe that there is a lack of contemporary talents for composers and singers.

My hypothesis is that the decline is due to a dearth of Cantonese lyricists and that in turn has to do with the decline in the level of Chinese language in general and Cantonese culture in particular in Hong Kong.


3. The question then becomes: Why is there a decline in the level of Chinese language and Cantonese culture in Hong Kong?

I think there are at least three factors that lead to the decline: Cultural, economic, and political.

(a) The Chinese language is not an easy language to master and it underwent two major changes in the 20th Century.

Both changes were meant to modernize the Chinese language.

The first was to write Chinese in the vernacular instead of the classic style.

This change in written Chinese style was one of the major planks of the May 4th Movement of 1919.

The second was the introduction of Simplified Chinese characters by the Communist Government after 1949.

Both changes put Cantonese music lyrics under pressure.

James Wong's generation still knows their classic Chinese but not many of the contemporary lyricists do, and the lack of grounding by many contemporary lyricists in classic Chinese leads to a decline in the quality of Cantonese lyrics.

(b) In order to survive, post-World War 2 Hong Kong has become a city of finance and economics.

Of the four broad divisions of human learnings (humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and formal sciences) the humanities have received the least attention by Hong Kong students and parents.

This is so because of the perception that studying the humanities will not lead to financial or economic payoff.

This trend is contrary to traditional Chinese culture with its emphasis on the humanities.

This deemphasizing of the humanities leads to a decline in the quality of Cantonese lyrics.

James Wong's generation grew up in a time before this deemphasizing of the humanities takes place.

(c) I live in Canada where multi-culturalism is celebrated.

Many western countries have a unity in basic values and are not afraid to celebrate their diversities.

It is not so with contemporary China.

Pre-1911 Chinese societies have been glued together by traditional values from Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism.

Since the revolution of 1911 and for over 100 years, China has not been able to find the cultural glues to glue together its different regional cultures.

One of the most important constraint for any contemporary cultures and religions is to make peace with a free-market economy.

Western countries have more or less done so with its basic values rooted in Christianity and the Enlightenment.

Contemporary Islam is in the birth-pang of making peace with free-market economies and we are witnessing the birth pains.

China realize the problem but is at a loss of its cultural identity.

The traditional Confucianism, Taoism or Buddhism will not do since all three have yet to make peace with free-market economies; Marxism is a foreign import and not too many people really believe in it anymore.

It is because of the lack of agreement in basic values that the central government of China in Beijing fears the regional cultures.

With agreement in basic values, there can be unity in diversity and diversity in unity.

Without agreement in basic values, diversity may leads to disunity or worst, the breakup of the country.

It is because of this fear of disunity and breakup that China even suppresses its regional cultures.

Post-1997 Hong Kong attempted to teach secondary schools using Putonghua only instead of Cantonese and that policy failed.

Even so, students in post-1997 Hong Kong have to master (besides Cantonese and Traditional Chinese): Putonghua, Simplified Chinese and northern Chinese culture and this dilute the Cantonese culture in Hong Kong which in turn leads to its decline.

Another example: a few years ago, the central government dictated that news broadcast in Guangzhou must be read in Putonghua instead of Cantonese and that led to demonstrations and near riot.

The policies of the central government in Beijing towards the regional cultures have led to a decline in the quality of Cantonese lyrics.


4. Both the lyrics and the music for A Sound of Laughter Across the Blue-Green Sea ("滄海一聲笑") were composed by James Wong.

A Sound of Laughter Across the Blue-Green Sea was the theme song of the 1990 Hong Kong movie Swordsman ("笑傲江湖").

There are two versions of the song in the movie:

(a) A solo by Sam Hui; and

(b) A trio by Sam Hui, James Wong and Donald Cheung.

(Sam Hui was also one of the male leads of the movie.)

This song was also the theme song of the 1992 Hong Kong movie The Legend of the Swordsman ("笑傲江湖 II - 東方不敗").

Same song and same lyrics, but the singers this time were Olivia Chow and Roman Tam.

This song has since been cover by many singers, either in solo or in chorus.


5. I trust that anyone who reads Chinese will agree that the lyrics of this song are written in superb literary Chinese and yet understandable by the average person.

It is lyrics writing at its best.

The lyrics are also written with a very high artistic conception.

The title, for example, paints a picture of a solitary person beholding a blue-green lake (or sea or ocean) and hear a laughter coming from who knows where.

(Or: A solitary person beholding a blue-green lake and burst out a laughter at the water.)
 
The influence of the artistic conception is Taoist.


6. A Sound of Laughter Across the Blue-Green Sea in Cantonese by Roman Tam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMFY_rNu1i0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFFRDtmWeso

I start with this video because the images of the video matches the lyrics quite well.

Another one by Roman Tam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7tY8O26KE4


7. The song in Putonghua by the trio James Wong, Tsui Hark, and Lo Da-Yu:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iknGg9l4a7s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0K27MndYBk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVol0hjekj8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmrFREjC1EM

The singing is about right.

This song can be sung not only in the usual way, but also shout out from the bottom of the heart.


8. The song solo by James Wong in Cantonese:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2P1Wo1wyiOA


9. James Wong lip-sing his own song in a theater production in 2003:

The songs starts at the 7:05 minutes mark:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5ZhWRIPjm0

Very funny dialogue!


10. The song by Sam Hui in Cantonese:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBYNRNWshCk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyVLz1s7kWo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDckosIvfNE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_WsmI6PrSo


11. The song by Olivia Chow in Cantonese:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvGaTnM6-Ek


12. A cover by Hong Kong singer Adam Cheng in Cantonese:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYtHpYQhzMo


13. Covers by the female mainland Chinese Dong Zhen in Putonghua:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k4GTJ3CpVE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2H5QpvacjIM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mjAv2T38wU


14. A cover by Taiwanese singer Jam Hsiao in Mandarin:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNjOWRWJZSQ

I quite enjoy this lively alternate music arrangement.


15. A cover by the Taiwanese singer Richie Jen in Mandarin:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRI2EOjBJC0

The singing is ok, but I do not know what the music video has anything to do with either the music or the lyrics.


16. The music by The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_oqIDWcUtw

Surprisingly good.


17. The music in Guzheng:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qmbxge3rxgs

Very good.

The over 1 million views are well deserved.


18. The music in Chinese Bamboo Flute:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EyykZO70iQ

Good.


19. The music in Guzheng and Flute with Pipa (Chinese lute) and Free Reed Mouth Organ in the background:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sO_GUcmEl8

Quite nice.


20. The music in Guqin:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flbGm23W5bA

I wish the volume is higher.


21. The music in Guitar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csPwRbBGqG0

Nice also.


22. Another good music version:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w70dwAPhDAg

And many more in YouTube.


23. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:


滄海一聲笑 -- 黃霑

* 滄海一聲笑
滔滔兩岸潮
浮沉隨浪
只記今朝

# 蒼天笑
紛紛世上潮
誰負誰勝出
天知曉

@ 江山笑
煙雨遙
濤浪洶盡紅塵俗世幾多嬌

清風笑
竟若寂寥
豪情還剩了一襟晚照

Repeat *, #, @

蒼生笑
不再寂寥
豪情仍在癡癡笑笑

啦．．啦．．啦
啦．．啦．．啦


24. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:


沧海一声笑 -- 黄沾

* 沧海一声笑
滔滔两岸潮
浮沉随浪
只记今朝

# 苍天笑
纷纷世上潮
谁负谁胜出
天知晓

@ 江山笑
烟雨遥
涛浪汹尽红尘俗世几多娇

清风笑
竟若寂寥
豪情还剩了一襟晚照

Repeat *, #, @

苍生笑
不再寂寥
豪情仍在痴痴笑笑

啦．．啦．．啦
啦．．啦．．啦


25. Names, Words and Phrases:

Adam Cheng (Traditional Chinese: 鄭少秋; Simplified Chinese: 郑少秋).

Donald Cheung (Traditional: 張偉文; Simplified: 张伟文).

Dong Zhen (Traditional: 董貞; Simplified: 董贞).

Flute (Traditional: 笛; Simplified: 笛).

Free reed mouth organ (Traditional: 笙; Simplified: 笙).

Guitar (Traditional: 吉他; Simplified: 吉他).

Guqin (Traditional: 古琴; Simplified: 古琴).

Guzheng (Traditional: 古箏; Simplified: 古筝).

Jam Hsiao (Traditional: 蕭敬騰; Simplified: 萧敬腾).

James Wong (Traditional: 黃霑; Simplified: 黄沾).

Lo Da-Yu (Traditional: 羅大佑; Simplified: 罗大佑).

Olivia Chow (Traditional: 周小君; Simplified: 周小君).

Pipa (Traditional: 琵琶; Simplified: 琵琶).

Richie Jen (Traditional: 任賢齊; Simplified: 任贤齐).

Roman Tam (Traditional: 羅文; Simplified: 罗文).

Sam Hui (Traditional: 許冠傑; Simplified: 许冠杰).

The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra (Traditional: 布拉格市愛樂樂團; Simplified: 布拉格市爱乐乐团).

Tsui Hark (Traditional: 徐克; Simplified: 徐克).


References:

"James Wong (lyricist)", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Wong_%28lyricist%29
(accessed 2014-11-27).

"黃霑", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E9%BB%83%E9%9C%91
(accessed 2014-11-27).

"笑傲江湖 (1990年電影)", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E7%AC%91%E5%82%B2%E6%B1%9F%E6%B9%96_%281990%E5%B9%B4%E9%9B%BB%E5%BD%B1%29
(accessed 2014-11-27).

"笑傲江湖II東方不敗", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E7%AC%91%E5%82%B2%E6%B1%9F%E6%B9%96II%E6%9D%B1%E6%96%B9%E4%B8%8D%E6%95%97
(accessed 2014-11-27).

End.

[Opinion] Hong Kong's Umbrella Revolution -- Romanticism and Realism

1. For most of last week, I was afraid that the demonstration in Hong Kong will end in violence.
 
In this, I was continuously surprised by the political maturity of the demonstrators.
 
When most of the demonstrators dispersed by Monday (October 6, 2014) morning, they have successfully avoided a possibly violent crackdown by the Hong Kong Government.

 
2. Hong Kong's public opinion was by no means unanimous on the demonstration.
 
There was a perceptible intergenerational difference of opinion.
 
Quite a few of the older people did not support the demonstration while the demonstrators were mostly young people.
 
The older people tried not to disturb the status quo while the younger people demonstrate for a better future.
 
My sympathy is with the younger people.
 
Given the central government's policy towards Hong Kong, the status quo is not maintainable.
 
What distinguish Hong Kong from other Chinese cities is its British heritage: a set of customs and values that includes freedom and the rule of law.
 
Without this set of customs and values, Hong Kong will lost its competitive advantage and be just another Chinese city.

 
3. I see hope for the future of Hong Kong in the romanticism and realism of its young people.
 
The young people are romantic in that they demonstrated for something the central government will not possibly grant them: free Chief Executive Election in 2017.
 
The young people are realistic in that they did not repeat the mistake of the students of Tiananmen Square of 1989 and disperse after their point is made.
 
What is achieved by the Umbrella Revolution is that the demonstration has put Hong Kong's Chief Executive Election of 2017 onto the international political agenda.
 
I am hopeful for Hong Kong because its young people are willing to fight for its future.

 
End.

[Music] Below the Lion Rock – Roman Tam

Lion Rock

 
1. Below the Lion Rock ("獅子山下") (1979) is considered by many to be the unofficial anthem of Hong Kong.

It is originally the theme song of a RTHK TV drama of the same name.

("RTHK" is Radio Television Hong Kong.)

The reason why many considered Below the Lion Rock (1979) to be the unofficial anthem is because not only does the lyrics reflect the values of post Second World War Hong Kong, this song actually has played a part in the formation of Hong Kong self-identity in the 1980s and 1990s.


2. The history of post Second World War Hong Kong can be divide into four periods:

(a) 1945 to 1967:

1945 was the end of the Second World War.

There were two separate riots in Hong Kong in the 1960s.

The 1966 riots had to do with the economy and dissatisfaction over British colonial rule.

The 1967 leftist riots was basically a spill-over from the Cultural Revolution in China.

Economically, the majority of the people of Hong Kong during this period were in the lower class.

(b) 1968 to 1984:

1984 was the year of the signing of the Sino-British Joint Declaration in Beijing.

Hong Kong people knew for certain that year that sovereignty will return to China.

The Hong Kong economy was booming during this period and many people moved into the middle class.

(c) 1985 to 1997:

1997 was the year the sovereignty of Hong Kong was returned to China.

The general tenor during this period in Hong Kong was one of anxiety and uncertainty.

The anxiety was caused by the uncertainty over how China will rule over Hong Kong.

There were waves of immigration to western countries.

On the whole, the economy of Hong Kong was doing very well.

(d) 1998 to 2014:

2014 is the year of the Umbrella Revolution.

Between 1997 and 2014, China has basically kept its promise of respecting "One Country, Two Systems".

Many Hong Kong people who has immigrated to other countries has migrated back to Hong Kong.

The one policy since 1997 that has a long term impact on Hong Kong is that China has mandated 150 people will be allowed to "immigrate" to Hong Kong on a daily basis.

The people of Hong Kong has no say on the matter and the Government of Hong Kong does not have the power to screen the "immigrants".

Although still doing well on the surface, Hong Kong during this period faced increasing competition from other Chinese cities.


3. Lion Rock is a landmark in Hong Kong.

It is visible throughout Kowloon peninsula and the north side of Hong Kong Island.

"Below the Lion Rock" is where the majority of Hong Kong people lived.

James Wong wrote the lyrics of this song and the lyrics expressed the values and aspirations of post War Hong Kong.

The singer of this song is Roman Tam.


4. Below the Lion Rock by Roman Tam:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxmuQ9A0ru4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twV8deBOMwI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASXwFoKnwLk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErazHn-xBvw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKMC4whUKGI


Roman Tam and his student Joey Yung:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_-EPT76hdQ


This is just the music with some old photos of Hong Kong:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYLTWjfcgWs


5. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:


獅子山下 -- 羅文

人生中有歡喜
難免亦常有淚
我地大家在獅子山下相遇上
總算是歡笑多於唏噓

人生不免崎嶇
難以絕無掛慮
既是同舟在獅子山下且共濟
拋棄區分求共對

* 放開彼此心中矛盾
理想一起去追
同舟人   誓相隨
無畏更無懼

# 同處海角天邊
攜手踏平崎嶇
我地大家用艱辛努力寫下那
不朽香江名句

Repeat *, #


6. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:


狮子山下 -- 罗文

人生中有欢喜
难免亦常有泪
我地大家在狮子山下相遇上
总算是欢笑多于唏嘘

人生不免崎岖
难以绝无挂虑
既是同舟在狮子山下且共济
抛弃区分求共对

* 放开彼此心中矛盾
理想一起去追
同舟人   誓相随
无畏更无惧

# 同处海角天边
携手踏平崎岖
我地大家用艰辛努力写下那
不朽香江名句

Repeat *, #


7. Names, Words and Phrases:

James Wong (Traditional Chinese: 黃霑; Simplified Chinese: 黄霑).

Joey Yung (Traditional: 容祖兒; Simplified: 容祖儿).

Roman Tam (Traditional: 羅文; Simplified: 罗文).

RTHK (Traditional: 香港電台; Simplified: 香港电台).


References:

"Hong Kong 1966 riots", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong_1966_riots
(accessed 2014-10-08).

"Hong Kong 1967 Leftist riots", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong_1967_Leftist_riots
(accessed 2014-10-08).

"Sino-British Joint Declaration", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sino-British_Joint_Declaration
(accessed 2014-10-08).

"獅子山下 (歌曲)", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E7%8D%85%E5%AD%90%E5%B1%B1%E4%B8%8B_%28%E6%AD%8C%E6%9B%B2%29
(accessed 2014-10-08).

End.

[Music] Hong Kong, Hong Kong -- Agnes Chan

Hong Kong

 1. Following news about the "Umbrella Revolution" in Hong Kong for the past week makes me nostalgic about the Hong Kong I grew up in.

But the Hong Kong of today is markedly different from the Hong Kong I grew up in in the 1960s and early 1970s, or even from the Hong Kong I worked in in the mid to late 1990s.

So it is that the dreamy Hong Kong depicted in the lyrics of Agnes Chan's Hong Kong, Hong Kong  ("香港,香港") (1982) does not reflect the Hong Kong of today:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LE4Rq07tQWg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3O8B6tMCk4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOYn57eQ5mQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBVUC4s25po

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSX-SL55wJM

This is posted by the song's composer Richard Yung:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Sv5X8c_nMk


2. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:


香港, 香港 -- 陳美齡

* 香港   我心中的故鄉   這裡讓我生長
有我喜歡的親友共陽光
路上人在跑   趕呀趕   幹勁令我欣賞
這裡有許多好處沒法講
說一聲香港   香港   你永遠是尋夢鄉
香港   香港   你那色調難忘

山頂看小島水裡躺   處處換上新裝
看看那海鷗飛過自由港
海邊看小島穿晚裝   處處耀眼生光
這個市區的的吸引沒法擋
說一聲香港   香港   載有我童年夢想
香港   香港   叫我不易遺忘

Repeat *

香港   香港   載有我童年夢想
香港   香港   叫我不易遺忘
香港   香港   你永遠是尋夢鄉
香港   香港   你那色調難忘


3. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:


香港, 香港 -- 陈美龄

* 香港   我心中的故乡   这里让我生长
有我喜欢的亲友共阳光
路上人在跑   赶呀赶   干劲令我欣赏
这里有许多好处没​​法讲
说一声香港   香港   你永远是寻梦乡
香港   香港   你那色调难忘

山顶看小岛水里躺   处处换上新装
看看那海鸥飞过自由港
海边看小岛穿晚装   处处耀眼生光
这个市区的的吸引没法挡
说一声香港   香港   载有我童年梦想
香港   香港   叫我不易遗忘

Repeat *

香港   香港   载有我童年梦想
香港   香港   叫我不易遗忘
香港   香港   你永远是寻梦乡
香港   香港   你那色调难忘


4. Names, Words and Phrases:

Agnes Chan (Traditional Chinese: 陳美齡; Simplified Chinese 陈美龄).

Richard Yung (Traditional: 翁家齊; Simplified: 翁家齐).


References:

"Agnes Chan", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnes_Chan
(accessed 2014-10-06).

"陳美齡", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E9%99%B3%E7%BE%8E%E9%BD%A1
(accessed 2014-10-06).

End.

[Opinion] A Consequence of the Death of One Country, Two Systems

The Chinese novel Three Kingdoms begins with the sentences:

"The empire, long divided, must unite; long united, must divide. Thus it has ever been."

China has been fragmented since the revolution of 1911.

After a century of division, many Chinese long to see the unification of China.

With the return of Hong Kong in 1997 and Macau in 1999, the only division left is between mainland China and Taiwan.

When Deng Xiaoping designed the "One Country, Two Systems" model, it serves not only Hong Kong and Macau but also as an example to the people of Taiwan for unification.

The present policy of the central government in Beijing towards Hong Kong signals the death of the One Country, Two Systems model.

With the death of the One Country, Two Systems model, we might not see the peaceful unification of China and Taiwan within our lifetimes.

End.

[Opinion] Continue to be Amazed by the Political Maturity of Hong Kong Students

I am continue to be amazed by the political maturity shown by the students of Hong Kong:

(a) Earlier in the week, Hong Kong students demanded that Chief Executive C.Y. Leung resigned by Thursday (October 2) night.

Politically, this demand for resignation is a mistake.

When the students met C.Y. Leung on Thursday night they did not mentioned this demand.

When C.Y. Leung announced himself that he will be not resign, the students did not object.

I applaud the students for realizing that this is a political mistake and did not pursue the matter further on Thursday night.

(b) On Thursday (October 2) night, Chief Executive C.Y. Leung announced that his Chief Secretary for Administration Carrie Lam will talk with the Hong Kong Federation of Students.

After the announcement, scuffles broke out in Mong Kok District when some people tried to dismantle the tents and barricades of the demonstrators.

The demonstrators believe C.Y. Leung is behind the incident, his motive being to provoke the demonstrators into violence and so destroy their peaceful image.

Also, it is alleged that the Hong Kong Police did not sufficiently protect the demonstrators during the incident.

As a result, the Hong Kong Federation of Students announced on Friday that they are suspending the impending talk with C.Y. Leung's Administration.

This is an astute political move.

When C.Y. Leung announced talks with the students, Leung has, politically, passed the ball into the students' court.

When the students suspended talk with C.Y. Leung's Administration because of the violent incident in Mong Kok District, they have passed the political ball back into C.Y. Leung's court.

This is a very astute political move.


Reference:

BBC News. 2014. 香港學聯：擱置原定與特區政府對話. BBC中文網, October 3.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/trad/china/2014/10/141003_hk_dialogue_not
(accessed 2014-10-03).

End.

[Opinion] Cautiously Pessimistic about the Development in Hong Kong

1. I am cautiously pessimistic about the latest development in Hong Kong.

Although my view is currently fluid, I still think the best way to resolve the current political crisis peacefully is for the central government in Beijing to send a special envoy to talk with the people of Hong Kong.


2. On Thursday (October 2) night Hong Kong time, Chief Executive C.Y. Leung announced that his Chief Secretary for Administration Carrie Lam will talk with one group among the demonstrators, the Hong Kong Federation of Students.

In itself, this is a welcome development; talking is better than not talking.

But I am cautiously pessimistic about this development for two reasons:

(a) I do not believe C.Y. Leung is engaging in good faith negotiation with the demonstrators.

(b) There is no one person or group that can speaks for all the demonstrators.


3. Two reasons why I do not believe C.Y. Leung is engaging in good faith negotiation:

(a) The demonstrators are not one unified group of people but are consist of three distinct groups plus a diffuse "mass" of people.

The three distinct groups are: Occupy Central, the Hong Kong Federation of Students, and the student Scholarism movement.

My interpretation of C.Y. Leung's instruction to Carrie Lam to talk to the Hong Kong Federation of Students only is that the talk is meant as a divide and conquer tactic.

(b) Before C.Y. Leung's announcement on Thursday night, there were already news reports that some people tried to dismantle the tents and barricades of the demonstrators in Mong Kok District.

As if on cue, scuffles broke out after the announcement by C.Y. Leung on Thursday night.

It is widely believed on the demonstrators’ side that C.Y. Leung's administration is behind this incident.


4. And then there is the major weakness for negotiations on the demonstrators’ side: There is no one person or group that can speaks for all the demonstrators.

When engaging in negotiations, one should talk with the person who has the power or authority to make decisions.

Who among the demonstrators can speak for the whole group?

It is because no one can speak for all the demonstrators that C.Y. Leung can use the divide and conquer strategy.


5. Until now, the central government in Beijing is pursuing a hands off policy and let the local government of C.Y. Leung handle the demonstrators.

If the goal of the central government is to maintain peace and order in Hong Kong, then continuing to let C.Y. Leung handle the demonstrators is a bad idea.

The divide and conquer strategy of C.Y. Leung will only lead to disorder and chaos.

It is quite obvious that C.Y. Leung does not have either the intention or the ability to resolve the current Hong Kong political crisis in a peaceful way.

There is no need to let the present situation drags out.

The best way to resolve the current political crisis peacefully is for the central government in Beijing to send a special envoy to talk with the people of Hong Kong.


References:

BBC News. 2014a. Hong Kong protests: Student leaders postpone talks. BBC News China, Last updated October 3.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-29477731
(accessed 2014-10-03).

BBC News. 2014b. Hong Kong protests: Talks accepted amid protest stand-off. BBC News China, Last updated October 3.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-29471027
(accessed 2014-10-03).

BBC News. 2014c. Hong Kong protests: The key players. BBC News China, Last updated October 1.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-29408476
(accessed 2014-10-03).

BBC News. 2014d. 中國官媒首次報道涉及香港佔中行動消息. BBC中文網, October 3.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/china/2014/10/141003_hk_china_students
(accessed 2014-10-03).

BBC News. 2014e. 香港學聯：擱置原定與特區政府對話. BBC中文網, October 3.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/trad/china/2014/10/141003_hk_dialogue_not
(accessed 2014-10-03).

Philip Wen. 2014. Hong Kong protests: Key players from Joshua Wong to Leung Chun-ying. The Sydney Morning Herald, October 1.
http://www.smh.com.au/world/hong-kong-protests-key-players-from-joshua-wong-to-leung-chunying-20141001-10ot6j.html
(accessed 2014-10-03).

End.

[Opinion] A Suggestion towards Resolving the Current Hong Kong Political Crisis

1. I do not have a solution to the current political crisis in Hong Kong but I do have a suggestion that may help towards finding a solution: The Communist Government in Beijing should appoint a special envoy to talk with the people of Hong Kong.

And there is a candidate that should be acceptable to all sides: Henry Tang, who was a candidate in the 2012 Hong Kong Chief Executive Election.


2. In western countries, a special envoy maybe consider an intermediary between two parties.

But given the political situation in China, a special envoy will not be an intermediary between two equal parties but more akin to an Imperial Envoy of Chinese history.

(When the need arises, an emperor in Chinese history often appoint an Imperial Envoy to represent him to go to local places to solve special problems.)

The special envoy will not be an intermediary between two equal parties but represent the central government to the local people.

The special envoy is representing the central government in listening to the local people and solve problems for them.

In this case, the problem is finding a solution to the Chief Executive Election of 2017 that is acceptable to both the central government in Beijing and the local people of Hong Kong.


3. From the face saving perspective of the central government:

The appointment of a special envoy means the failure of local officials to solve the problem.

In this case, the administration of Chief Executive C.Y. Leung is manifestly unable to come up with a solution to the current political crisis.

The current political crisis is in many ways provoked by C.Y. Leung's intransigence during the consultative process for the Chief Executive Election of 2017.

The central government in Beijing need not openly rebuke C.Y. Leung.

What the central government can do is to reaffirm their faith in C.Y. Leung despite his mistakes on the one hand and simultaneously appoint a special envoy to Hong Kong on the other.

Given the precedents of appointing Imperial Envoys in Chinese history, there is nothing improper for the Beijing Government in appointing a special envoy for the current Hong Kong political crisis.

The central government in Beijing is not losing any face by appointing a special envoy.

The blame, if any, lies with the failures of the local Hong Kong administration resulting in the need for the central government to appoint a special envoy.


4. Henry Tang was a candidate for the 2012 Chief Election of Hong Kong and so has already been vetted by Beijing and was acceptable to them.

("Henry Tang", Wikipedia):

"Henry Tang Ying-yen GBM GBS JP (born 6 September 1952, Hong Kong) is a Hong Kong politician who served as the Chief Secretary of Hong Kong between 2007 and 2011. He held the position of Financial Secretary from 2003 to 2007. He lost the 2012 Hong Kong Chief Executive Election to CY Leung."

Henry Tang was not a career civil service bureaucrat but was a business man from a prominent family recruited into government in 2002 and became the Financial Secretary of Hong Kong in 2003.

Although he was involved in some scandals, Henry Tang still commands sufficient respect in Hong Kong that people will talk with him.

I hope the central government will appoint a special envoy for Hong Kong or otherwise come up with a peaceful solution to the current political crisis.

I do not wish to see the current political crisis in Hong Kong to end in violence.


5. Names, Words and Phrases:

C.Y. Leung (Traditional Chinese: 梁振英; Simplified: 梁振英).

Henry Tang (Traditional: 唐英年; Simplified: 唐英年).

Imperial Envoy (Traditional: 欽差大臣; Simplified:钦差大臣).


References:

"CY Leung", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leung_Chun-ying
(accessed 2014-10-02).

"Henry Tang", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Tang
(accessed 2014-10-02).

End.

[Opinion & Music] The Umbrella Revolution

1. I have been following the current political demonstration in Hong Kong with intense interests.

My sympathy is with the demonstrators for a free (and not pre-screened) election for the Chief Executive of Hong Kong in 2017.

Although I have no idea how the "Umbrella Revolution" will end, I have been amazed by the political maturity shown by the demonstrators so far; especially so by the students whom initiated this demonstration.


2. Anyone who has watched the 1980s British sitcom Yes Minister (and its sequel Yes, Prime Minister) will have a good idea of the bureaucratic mentality.

Similarly, anyone who has watched the 1997 Chinese historical TV drama Yongzheng Dynasty ("雍正王朝") will have a good idea of how the powers that be in Beijing think.

I like to dedicate the opening theme song of Yongzheng Dynasty to the peaceful demonstrators of Hong Kong.

The title of the theme song is Those Who Have the Hearts of the People Will Have the World ("得民心者得天下"):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ofswTSYs24

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4XeallSS-I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUqCWLoqtYk

 
2a. Added: Later on Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Alternate translation of "得民心者得天下": He Who Has the Hearts of the People Will Rule the World.


3. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:


得民心者得天下 -- 劉歡

數英雄   論成敗
古今誰能說明白
千秋功罪任評說
海雨天風獨往來

一心要江山圖治垂青史
也難說身後罵名滾滾來
有道是人間萬苦人最苦
終不悔九死落塵埃

輕生死   重興衰
百年壹夢多慷慨
九州方圓在民心
斬斷情絲不萦懷

誰不想國家昌盛民安樂
也難料恨水東逝歸大海
有道是得民心者得天下
看江山由誰來主宰
得民心者得天下
看江山由誰來主宰


4. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:


得民心者得天下 -- 刘欢

数英雄   论成败
古今谁能说明白
千秋功罪任评说
海雨天风独往来

一心要江山图治垂青史
也难说身后骂名滚滚来
有道是人间万苦人最苦
终不悔九死落尘埃

轻生死   重兴衰
百年壹梦多慷慨
九州方圆在民心
斩断情丝不萦怀

谁不想国家昌盛民安乐
也难料恨水东逝归大海
有道是得民心者得天下
看江山由谁来主宰
得民心者得天下
看江山由谁来主宰 


5. Names, Words and Phrases:
 
Liu Huan (Traditional Chinese: 劉歡; Simplified Chinese: 刘欢).


References:

"Liu Huan", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liu_Huan
(accessed 2014-10-01).

"Yes Minister", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yes_Minister
(accessed 2014-10-01).

"Yongzheng Dynasty", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yongzheng_Dynasty
(accessed 2014-10-01).

End.

[Opinion] Scottish Independence Referendum

1. Congratulation to the people of Scotland for holding a successful Referendum yesterday.

Congratulation also to the Westminster Parliament for agreeing to this Referendum.

In holding this Referendum, the British people demonstrated to the world how civilized people act to settle their disagreements and put dictators, tyrants, totalitarian governments, and other pretenders all over the world to shame.

 
2. The two proudest moments for me as a Canadian were when Prime Minster Pierre Trudeau patriated our Constitution from the United Kingdom in 1982 and the holding of the Quebec Referendum in 1995.

Yesterday, I was as proud of the Scottish people as I was proud of the Canadian people in holding a referendum to settle question of independence.

Congratulations!


Reference:

"Scottish independence referendum, 2014", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_independence_referendum,_2014
(accessed 2014-09-19).

End.

[Music] Li Xiang-lan -- Jacky Cheung

Yoshiko Yamaguchi

 
1. Chinese Poem of the Day:


李白 (701 - 762)


朝發白帝城

朝辭白帝彩雲間，千里江陵一日還。

兩岸猿聲啼不住，輕舟己過萬重山。


2. Li Xiang-lan ("李香蘭") by Jacky Cheung is one of the saddest love song I have listened to but it is extremely well-done.

The namesake of this song, Yoshiko YAMAGUCHI, just passed away last week in Japan at the age of 94 years.

(Yoshiko Yamaguchi was born in China in 1920 and her Chinese name Li Xiang-lan was given to her by her Chinese guardian, a Mr. Li, while she was in her teens.)

I like to blog this song in memory of this most interesting woman.


3. Variety

Japanese Actress Shirley Yamaguchi, Who Starred in 'House of Bamboo,' Dies at 94
 
Mark Schilling, September 14, 2014

Yoshiko "Shirley" Yamaguchi, who starred in Japanese WWII pics posing as a Chinese but segued postwar to fame in Japanese and Hollywood films such as Samuel Fuller's "House of Bamboo," died at her Tokyo home of heart failure on Sept. 7, her family announced on Sunday. She was 94.

Born in 1920 in Manchuria to Japanese parents, Yamaguchi took the name Li Xianglan (in Japanese "Ri Koran") to use in her Chinese singing and acting career, presenting herself as a local. Her films, including the 1938 "Honeymoon Express" and the 1940 "China Nights," made her popular with Chinese audiences, while serving the propaganda purposes of her Japanese backers.

After the war she was tried and nearly executed for treason by a Chinese court, but was repatriated to Japan after her true identity became known. In the early postwar years, this time as Yoshiko Yamaguchi, she built a thriving singing and acting career in Japan.

In Hollywood, where the English-fluent actress was known as Shirley Yamaguchi, she scored major roles in films, television and even a short-lived Broadway play, "Shangri-la."

Among her credits were Akira Kurosawa's "Scandal" (1950), King Vidor's "Japanese War Bride" (1952), Samuel Fuller's noir classic "House of Bamboo" (1955) and the pioneering Toho and Shaw Brothers co-production "Madame White Snake" (1956), in which she played an ancient snake spirit able to take human form. In Hong Kong she appeared in several now-lost local films, while recording Chinese-language hits.

In 1951 she married Japanese-American sculptor Isamu Noguchi, but the union ended in divorce in 1956. In 1958 she wed Japanese diplomat Hiroshi Otaka and retired from show business. In 1974, she was elected to the House of Councillors, Japan's upper house, as a member belonging to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, a post she held until 1992. She also wrote her autobiography, in which she expressed regret for her wartime deceptions, hosted a TV talk show and otherwise maintained a media presence, this time as Yoshiko Otaka.

She penned an autobiography and her dramatic life was fictionalized in Ian Buruma's novel "The China Lover." In Japan her life story has inspired a hit musical, TV dramas and a biopic that director Hirokazu Kore'eda is reportedly preparing.

 
3a. Added: Wednesday, September 17, 2014

 
The Washington Post

Yoshiko 'Shirley' Yamaguchi, actress, dies at 94

By Megan McDonough, September 15

Yoshiko "Shirley" Yamaguchi was a singer, actress and politician whose life was a series of incarnations.

Born to Japanese parents in Manchuria, Ms. Yamaguchi masqueraded as a Chinese actress under the name Li Xianglan in Japanese propaganda films during World War II. (She became a star in Japan, where her name was pronounced Ri Koran.)

After the war, she narrowly avoided treason charges and execution by firing squad in China. Then, as Shirley Yamaguchi — a name she chose because of Shirley Temple — she appeared in a handful of American films and on Broadway. Decades later, as Yoshiko Otaka, she reinvented herself as a TV presenter and served in the Japanese parliament.

She died Sept. 7 in Tokyo. She was 94. Her family announced the death, but did not cite a specific cause.

A rising star during the 1930s and 1940s, Ms. Yamaguchi acted in romantic melodramas produced by the Japanese-funded Manchuria Cinema Association.

She was typically cast as a beautiful Manchurian woman who falls in love with a handsome Japanese hero, usually a seaman, soldier or patriot. Her movie-star looks and fluency in Mandarin transformed her into the film company's most popular star.

Although she revealed to the film company her true nationality, they promoted her to Japanese audiences as a Chinese national, using her characters to portray a false sense of pan-Asian unity and to advocate the Japanese cause.

"I was a Chinese manufactured by Japanese hands," Ms. Yamaguchi wrote in her 1987 autobiography, "Half My Life as Ri Koran." She said that she knew little of the Japanese propaganda efforts and was purposely kept in the dark about the atrocities committed by the Japanese military on Chinese civilians, including the 1937 Nanking massacre.

"I thought I was working for the good of the Manchurian people," she told the Boston Globe in 1991. "I thought my films were simple romances."
 
She garnered fan followings in China, Korea and Taiwan, but most notably in Japan; a 1941 Tokyo live performance in Tokyo reportedly produced a line of people that circled the venue 7 1/2 times.

The most controversial of her pictures was "China Nights" (1940). She portrayed a prideful Chinese war orphan whose ill will against the Japanese is changed when she is rescued by a Japanese military captain who later becomes her love interest.

In one memorable scene, she is brutally slapped across the face by her lover, the force of which knocks her into a wall. Instead of displaying anger, however, she interprets his actions as an expression of love.

"Forgive me!" cries the actress, "It didn’t hurt at all to be hit by you. I was happy, happy! I'll be better, just watch. Please don’t give up on me. Forgive me. Forgive me!"

The disciplinary action was not well received in midland China and, after the war, the movie's songs "The Suzhou Serenade" and "Fragrance of the Night" — sung by Ms. Yamaguchi — were banned.

At the end of World War II, Ms. Yamaguchi was charged with treason by the Chinese, arrested and interned in a Shanghai detention camp for nine months.

Her true citizenship was revealed when her parents, at the time under arrest in Beijing, were able to produce her birth certificate that proved she was a Japanese national and have a family friend smuggle it into Shanghai.

Yoshiko Yamaguchi was born on Feb. 12, 1920, in Fushun, Manchuria, which came under Japanese control.

Her father was educated in Beijing and taught Mandarin to employees of the South Manchuria Railway. His daughter, who was bilingual, was raised with the understanding that China was her "home country" and Japan was "her ancestral country," she told The Washington Post in 1991.

"My father felt, we are the younger brother nation, China is the older brother," Ms. Yamaguchi recalled.

At 13, she was taken in by a Chinese general, a family friend who she considered a "godfather" figure. He called her Li Xianglan, meaning "fragrant orchid."

She would use that as her Chinese stage name. After starting in radio, she made her screen debut at 18 in the 1938 film "Honeymoon Express."

After she was cleared of treason charges — the judge reportedly warned her to leave China or risk being lynched — she attempted to resurrect her film career in Japan. Under her birth name, she starred opposite Toshiro Mifune as a singer who becomes the subject of tabloid attention in "Scandal" (1950), directed by Akira Kurosawa.

A few years later, under the name Shirley Yamaguchi, she began acting in low-budget Hollywood films and was one of the first native Japanese actresses to have a leading role in American movies. Opposite Don Taylor, she played the Japanese wife of an American soldier in "Japanese War Bride" (1952), directed by King Vidor.

She was featured in the 1955 Samuel Fuller-directed film noir "House of Bamboo," starring Robert Ryan and Robert Stack.

In 1956, she performed in a short-lived Broadway musical production of "Shangri-La," based on a James Hilton novel. "Miss Yamaguchi has the flowing rhythms, the delicacy of manner and the artistic disciplines that bring 'Shangri-La' alive," wrote the New York Times theater critic Brooks Atkinson.

That same year, her marriage to Japanese American sculptor Isamu Noguchi ended in divorce. In 1958, she married Japanese diplomat Hiroshi Otaka, returned to Asia and retired from movies. Otaka died in 2001. A complete list of survivors could not be determined.

In 1969, Ms. Yamaguchi returned to show business as anchor of a popular Japanese afternoon television talk show, where she covered international conflicts in Vietnam and the Middle East.

She was elected to Japan’s upper parliament in 1974 and served as a member of the governing, conservative Liberal Democratic Party until 1992. As a politician, she worked to promote relations with China and other Asian countries.

"In every period of her life, she was the face of a very political arrangement," said author Ian Buruma, who wrote a fictionalized account of Ms. Yamaguchi's life, "The China Lover," in 2008. "First, she was the face of the Japanese imperialism in China, then the face of Japanese reconciliation with the Americans, and lastly the face of Japanese reconciliation with China and the Third World. She lent her image to all these political changes."

A musical "Ri Koran," adapted from her autobiography, was produced in Tokyo in 1991, and a biopic, by Japanese director Hirokazu Koreeda, is reportedly in the works.

Earlier in life, Ms. Yamaguchi wished to have her story depicted on the big screen.

"There is a plan to make a film of my life," she told the Chicago Tribune in 1989, "but it seems the Chinese don't want to cooperate."

 
4. Li Xiang-lan by Jacky Cheung:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFh4sUYu-rY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQlb2ktnbFo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFprdzHje0o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxKYDeiUWQ0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fj3_JYwV8do


5. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:


李香蘭 -- 張學友

惱春風   我心因何惱春風
說不出   借酒相送
夜雨凍   雨點透射到照片中
回頭似是夢   無法彈動   迷住凝望你   褪色照片中

* 啊   像花雖未紅   如冰雖不凍   卻像有無數說話   可惜我聽不懂
啊   是杯酒漸濃   或我心真空   何以感震動

照片中   哪可以投照片中
盼找到   時間裂縫
夜放縱   告知我難尋你芳蹤
回頭也是夢   仍似被動   逃避凝望你   卻深印腦中

Repeat *, *


6. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:


李香兰 -- 张学友

恼春风   我心因何恼春风
说不出   借酒相送
夜雨冻   雨点透射到照片中
回头似是梦   无法弹动   迷住凝望你   褪色照片中

* 啊   像花虽未红   如冰虽不冻   却像有无数说话   可惜我听不懂
啊   是杯酒渐浓   或我心真空   何以感震动

照片中   哪可以投照片中
盼找到   时间裂缝
夜放纵   告知我难寻你芳踪
回头也是梦   仍似被动   逃避凝望你   却深印脑中

Repeat *, *


7. Names, Words and Phrases:

Jacky Cheung (Traditional Chinese: 張學友; Simplified Chinese: 张学友).

Yoshiko Yamaguchi (Traditional: 山口淑子; Simplified: 山口淑子).

[Chinese name] (Traditional: 李香蘭; Simplified: 李香兰).

[English name] (Shirley Yamaguchi).


References:

"Yoshiko Ōtaka", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoshiko_%C5%8Ctaka
(accessed 2014-09-15).

"李香蘭", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9D%8E%E9%A6%99%E8%98%AD
(accessed 2014-09-15).

"李白", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9D%8E%E7%99%BD
(accessed 2014-09-15).

McDonough, Megan. 2014. Yoshiko 'Shirley' Yamaguchi, actress, dies at 94. The Washington Post, September 15.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/yoshiko-shirley-yamaguchi-actress-dies-at-94/2014/09/15/68171634-3ce6-11e4-b0ea-8141703bbf6f_story.html
(accessed 2014-09-17).

Schilling, Mark. 2014. Japanese Actress Shirley Yamaguchi, Who Starred in 'House of Bamboo,' Dies at 94. Variety, September 14.
http://variety.com/2014/film/news/japanese-actress-shirley-yamaguchi-dies-at-94-1201305445/
(accessed 2014-09-15).

End.

[Music] We're All Alone -- Takako Matsu

Poster for At the Soul of An Actor (2006)

Takako Matsu

1. Chinese Poem of the Day:


李白 (701 - 762)

山中問答

問余何意棲碧山，笑而不答心自閒。

桃花流水窅然去，別有天地非人間。


2. I have been enjoying Takako MATSU's acting since I came across her in the 1996 Japanese TV drama Long Vacation.

According to Wikipedia, "Takako Matsu was born into a traditional buyō house, which produced famous actors and actresses", so I suppose singing and acting is in her gene.

And she does excel in both singing and acting.

Many of Takako Matsu's music are of the folksy type.

("Takako Matsu", Wikipedia): "Matsu has an established career as a songwriter and singer and the style of her music is often laid-back and relaxing."


3. The song We're All Alone is the theme song of the 2006 Japanese TV drama At the Soul of An Actor, which starred Takako Matsu and Makoto FUJITA.

("Yakusha Damashii", DramaWiki):

"Life is often likened to a stage of a play. And you are the star of your life. Everyone should have a story or two to tell. But some people just don't realize it and stay out of the limelight choosing to live in someone else's backstage just like our heroine. Since she lost her parents when she was only 3, she just has been accepting what life gives her instead of trying to get more. But when she starts working for a seasoned Shakespeare actor who has his own problems as his manager, she finds a strange bond with him and develops a special relationship like a family. This is a heartwarming comedy with full of struggle, humor, witty conversation, and love."

This 11 episodes TV drama is very heartwarming and I do feel warm and fuzzy when I watched it.

Although all the actors give very good performances, I especially like the main character Kaizo HONNOJI, which is "Japan's representative Shakespearean actor" in the drama.

Kaizo Honnoji was played by Makoto Fujita, who was 73 years old when he appeared in this drama.

Makoto Fujita passed away in 2010.


4. We're All Alone by Takako Matsu:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dl7_ur3SZkI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODLOegF-6DQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWVNjMw5GSI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pekfd5JQ9Y0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZIWIin8TdM


5. Covers of We're All Alone by Aya Matsuura:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK0rgpBqncQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKhfeseE8ZM

The song starts at the 2:50 mark:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0dq7djM9y0


6. An aside -- The Japanese version of Let It Go of Disney's Frozen (2013) is sung by Takako Matsu:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZ1poicuB2s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-dqMG-Uycg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oph93kXKEQg


7. Names, Words and Phrases:

At the Soul of an Actor (Japanese: 役者魂!; romaji: Yakusha Damashii).

Aya Matsuura (Japanese: 松浦亜弥).

Kaizo Honnoji (Japanese: 本能寺海造).

Long Vacation (Japanese: ロングバケーション; Chinese: 悠長假期).

Makoto Fujita (Japanese: 藤田まこと).

Takako Matsu (Japanese: 松たか子; Chinese: 松隆子).

We're All Alone (Japanese: みんなひとり; romaji: Minna Hitori).


References:

"Yakusha Damashii", DramaWiki,
http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Yakusha_Damashii
(accessed 2014-08-30).

"Takako Matsu", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takako_Matsu
(accessed 2014-08-30).

"松たか子", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%BE%E3%81%9F%E3%81%8B%E5%AD%90
(accessed 2014-08-30).

"松隆子", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9D%BE%E9%9A%86%E5%AD%90
(accessed 2014-08-30).

"李白", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9D%8E%E7%99%BD
(accessed 2014-08-30).

End.

[Music] KISS shite -- KOH+

 Poster for Galileo (Season 1) (2007)

 Kou Shibasaki and Masaharu Fukuyama

1. The Japanese mystery writer Keigo HIGASHINO has written a series of novels and short stories with Associate Physics Professor Manabu YUKAWA and detective Kaoru UTSUMI as the main characters.

"Detective Galileo" is the nickname given to Associate Physics Professor Manabu Yukawa.

According to the article "Keigo Higashino" in Wikipedia, there are 3 novels and 5 short story collections in the Detective Galileo series.

Seven of the 8 books have been translated into Chinese and I have read 4 of them; they are all very good read.

(While 5 of the novels are published in both mainland China and Taiwan by different publishers, 2 are published in mainland China only.)

(In general, books published in mainland China are in Simplified Chinese and books published in Taiwan are in Traditional Chinese.)

A novel in the series, The Devotion of Suspect X ("容疑者Xの献身") (2005), won the Noaki Prize in 2006.

(The Naoki Prize is among the most prestigious literary awards in Japan.)

According to Wikipedia ("Keigo Higashino"), the English translation of The Devotion of Suspect X (2005) is in 2012:

(a) Nominee for Edgar Award for Best Novel.

(b) Nominee for Barry Award for Best First Novel.

(c) Chosen by the American Library Association as Best Mystery Novel for their 2012 reading list.


2. In recent years, among Asian TV dramas, I enjoy watching Japanese dramas the most.

One reason is because many Japanese TV dramas have very good scripts.

I suppose that is so is because some of them are based on very good literary works.

Examples are the TV dramas:

(a) Galileo (Season 1) (2007),

(b) Galileo SP (2008), and

(c) Galileo (Season 2) (2013)

and the movies:

(d) Suspect X (2008), and

(e) Midsummer's Equation (2013)

all based on the Detective Galileo series of mystery novels.

I have watched all the TV dramas and the movie Suspect X (2008).

(I like to thank one of my younger brothers for supplying the TV dramas and movie for me to watch.)

Some of the short stories in the Detective Galileo series are very brief and the TV dramas have fleshed them out.

In general, I like the TV versions better.

Also, I am very impressed by actress Amami YUKI's performance as the "Woman Saint" in the last two episodes of Galileo (Season 2) (2013), which is based on Salvation of a [Woman] Saint ("聖女の救済") (2008).


3. KISS shite ("KISSして") (2007) is the ending theme song for the TV drama Galileo (Season 1) (2007) and is sung by Kou SHIBASAKI.

The actor playing Associate Physics Professor Manabu Yukawa is Masaharu FUKUYAMA.

The actress playing detective Kaoru Utsumi is Kou Shibasaki.

Masaharu Fukuyama and Kou Shibasaki are both accomplished actors and musicians.

Both the music and lyrics of KISS shite (2007) are composed by Masaharu Fukuyama.

After the drama, Fukuyama and Shibasaki formed a band called "KOH+".

("Masaharu Fukuyama", Wikipedia):

"In 2007, after a four-years absence from drama, Fukuyama returned to television, starring as the brilliant but eccentric Physics Associate Professor, Manabu Yukawa, in the widely acclaimed television drama Galileo. His won 'Best Actor' at the 55th Television Drama Academy Awards for the role. He also formed a band, KOH+, with his co-star in the drama Kou Shibasaki."


4. KISS shite (2007) by KOH+ with Kou Shibasaki as lead singer and Masaharu Fukuyama as guitarist:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_uU5JwkCzQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5_fQpCH7No

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-rnb4P2FIM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lL20p-rrKiY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnVhkPB28lA


5. KISS shite (2007) by Galileo (Season 1)'s lead actress Kou Shibasaki:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMZ4keO5Bbw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vp1TpyHtbQI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCgS87aRQ2k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usINnsqkM4U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4u_XCxHxYg


6. KISS shite (2007) by Galileo (Season 1)'s lead actor Masaharu Fukuyama:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRyntzUmMjY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqzTWwBw3AE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sJ-wdgWqzQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzb7CE_yIaQ


7. This upload has the song twice:

The first is by Kou Shibasaki with video from the TV drama and the second by Masaharu Fukuyama in concert:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mo15efX5YN8


8. Names, Words and Phrases:

Amami Yuki (Traditional Chinese: 天海祐希; Simplified Chinese: 天海佑希).

Detective Galileo (Traditional: 神探伽利略; Simplified: 神探伽利略).

Kaoru Utsumi (Traditional: 内海 薫; Simplified: 内海 薫).

Keigo Higashino (Traditional: 東野圭吾; Simplified: 东野圭吾).

KISSして (Traditional: Kiss 吧; Simplified: Kiss 吧).

Kou Shibasaki (Traditional: 柴咲 幸; Simplified: 柴咲 幸).

Manabu Yukawa (Traditional: 湯川 學; Simplified: 汤川 学).

Masaharu Fukuyama (Traditional: 福山雅治; Simplified: 福山雅治).

Midsummer's Equation (Traditional: 真夏方程式; Simplified: 真夏方程序).

Noaki Prize (Traditional: 直木獎; Simplified: 直木奖).

Salvation of a [Woman] Saint (Traditional: 聖女的救贖; Simplified: 圣女的救赎).

The Devotion of Suspect X (Traditional: 嫌疑犯X的獻身; Simplified: 嫌疑犯X的献身).


References:

"Galileo (TV series)", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_%28Japanese_television_drama%29
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"Keigo Higashino", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keigo_Higashino
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"Kō Shibasaki", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kou_Shibasaki
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"Masaharu Fukuyama", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masaharu_Fukuyama
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"Midsummer's Equation", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsummer%27s_Equation
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"Salvation of a Saint", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvation_of_a_Saint
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"Suspect X", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suspect_X
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"東野圭吾", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9D%B1%E9%87%8E%E5%9C%AD%E5%90%BE
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"柴咲幸", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9F%B4%E5%92%B2%E5%B9%B8
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"福山雅治", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E7%A6%8F%E5%B1%B1%E9%9B%85%E6%B2%BB
(accessed 2014-07-26).

"伽利略系列", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E4%BC%BD%E5%88%A9%E7%95%A5%E7%B3%BB%E5%88%97
(accessed 2014-07-26).

End.

[Music] Anita Mui -- The Heart Sutra

 Anita Mui

1. Religions are very important to human cultures.

If comparing cultures to a building, then religions belong to the ground level of the building.

Among the many reasons, one is because religions are sources of values.

Human decisions and actions are, more often than not, governed by values.

Values in the moral realm are expressed in ethical codes.

Therefore, to understand a person, peoples or cultures, it is very important to have a basic grasp of their religions.


2. According to one legend, Buddhism arrived in China during the Eastern Han period (25-220 CE) of Emperor Ming (28-75 CE) in 67 CE.

The first two orders of businesses for Buddhism in China were the translation of Buddhist texts into Chinese and the organization of monasteries for Buddhist monks.

I suspect translation of Buddhist texts was the more difficult of the two.

It took a few hundred years to complete.

Since many Buddhist concepts have no counterparts in Chinese, the early translators borrowed vocabulary from Taoism to express Buddhist concepts.

The intermingling of different concepts using the same vocabulary worked to the detriment of Buddhism.

Early Chinese Buddhism had difficulties differentiating their brand from the local Taoism.

It was not until a few hundred years later that indigenous versions of Buddhism began to sprang up in China during the Six Dynasties (220-589 CE), Southern and Northern Dynasties (420-589 CE) and Sui Dynasty (589-618 CE).

Notable among these are Pure Land Buddhism, Tiantai Buddhism, Huayan School, and Chan (Zen) Buddhism.

Buddhism probably reached its zenith of influence in China during mid-Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) and was in decline after the state repression of 845 CE.

According to Wikipedia, up till the Song Dynasty (960-1279 CE), the Heart Sutra ("心經") has been translated into Chinese 11 times with 9 of those translations still extant.

The version commonly known today is the translation by the monk Xuanzang of Tang.

I suppose every Chinese knows about Monk Xuanzang through the novel Journey to the West.


3. Although pass the zenith of its influence in China, the cultural effect of Buddhism on Chinese is still pervasive.

The song Heart Sutra ("心經") is a testament to that influence.

("Heart Sutra", Wikipedia):

"The Heart Sūtra has been set to music a number of times. Many singers solo this sutra. The Buddhist Audio Visual Production Centre (佛教視聽製作中心) produced a Cantonese album of recordings of the Heart Sūtra in 1995 featuring a number of Hong Kong pop singers, including Alan Tam, Anita Mui and Faye Wong and composer by Andrew Lam Man Chung (林敏聰) to raise money to rebuild the Chi Lin Nunnery. Other Hong Kong pop singers, such as the Four Heavenly Kings sang the Heart Sūtra to raise money for relief efforts related to the 1999 Chichi earthquake. An alternative Mandarin version was performed by Faye Wong in 2009 at the Famen Temple and its recording subsequently used in the 2010 Chinese blockbuster Aftershock. Shaolin Monk Shifu Shi Yan Ming also recites the Sutra at the end of the song 'Life Changes' by the Wu-Tang Clan, in remembrance of the deceased member ODB. The outro of the b-side song Ghetto Defendant by the British first wave punk band The Clash also features the Heart Sūtra, recited by American beat poet Allen Ginsberg. A slightly edited version is used as the lyrics for Yoshimitsu's theme in the PlayStation 2 game Tekken Tag Tournament. An Indian styled version was also created by Bombay Jayashri title named - Ji Project. It was also recorded and arranged by Malaysian singer/composer Imee Ooi."


4. The Heart Sutra by Anita Mui in Cantonese.

(Anita Mui mentioned in the introduction that she has not recovered from a cold.)

The music starts at the 3:45 minutes mark:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghCEdNVZYWM


5. Other versions by Anita Mui:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1Mm-arOE2E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHfIpxaw5Aw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUC2GlEyAXg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqvmg0zs1XA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC8f-jY2HqA


6. The Heart Sutra by various artists.

 
The Heart Sutra by Alan Tam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzGrL62jsGU


The Heart Sutra by Jacky Cheung:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nNOLrZQ3Ao

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZuC9v75FbQ


The Heart Sutra by Sally Yeh:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5REH0Iyv68


The Heart Sutra by Faye Wong in Mandarin:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAVWsXm1ToY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMhj5qz4v4g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcscgv4wUvE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEPeBzlH7cQ


The Heart Sutra by Faye Wong and Julian Cheung in Cantonese:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5HI-Yw7Aao

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBQJcaK5Ono


The Heart Sutra by Hacken Lee:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaGUWruL-0k


The Heart Sutra by Andy Lau:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZglflAWKFE


The Heart Sutra by Joey Yung:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOjA4LSCRyM


The Heart Sutra by Eason Chan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fXDj3Cpu1M


7. The Heart Sutra sung to a different melody by Chyi Yu in Mandarin:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us7ax3ev50Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHdFsaO86GM


8. The Text of the Heart Sutra in Traditional Chinese:


《般若波羅蜜多心經》 唐·三藏法師玄奘譯

觀自在菩薩，行深般若波羅蜜多時，照見五蘊皆空，度一切苦厄。舍利子，色不異空，空不異色；色即是空，空即是色。受、想、行、識，亦復如是。 舍利子，是諸法空相，不生不滅，不垢不淨，不增不減，是故空中無色，無受、想、行、識；無眼、耳、鼻、舌、身、意；無色、聲、香、味、觸、法；無眼界，乃至無意識界；無無明，亦無無明盡；乃至無老死，亦無老死盡。無苦、集、滅、道，無智亦無得，以無所得故。菩提薩埵， 依般若波羅蜜多故，心無罣礙，無罣礙故，無有恐怖，遠離顛倒夢想，究竟涅槃。三世諸佛，依般若波羅蜜多故，得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。故知般若波羅蜜多，是大神咒，是大明咒，是無上咒，是無等等咒，能除一切苦，真實不虛。故說般若波羅蜜多咒，即說咒曰：揭諦、揭諦，波羅揭諦，波羅僧揭諦，菩提薩婆訶。


9. The Text of the Heart Sutra in Simplified Chinese:


《般若波罗蜜多心经》 唐·三藏法师玄奘译

观自在菩萨，行深般若波罗蜜多时，照见五蕴皆空，度一切苦厄。舍利子，色不异空，空不异色；色即是空，空即是色。受、想、行、识，亦复如是。 舍利子，是诸法空相，不生不灭，不垢不净，不增不减，是故空中无色，无受、想、行、识；无眼、耳、鼻、舌、身、意；无色、声、香、味、触、法；无眼界，乃至无意识界；无无明，亦无无明尽；乃至无老死，亦无老死尽。无苦、集、灭、道，无智亦无得，以无所得故。菩提萨埵， 依般若波罗蜜多故，心无挂碍，无挂碍故，无有恐怖，远离颠倒梦想，究竟涅槃。三世诸佛，依般若波罗蜜多故，得阿耨多罗三藐三菩提。故知般若波罗蜜多，是大神咒，是大明咒，是无上咒，是无等等咒，能除一切苦，真实不虚。故说般若波罗蜜多咒，即说咒曰：揭谛、揭谛，波罗揭谛，波罗僧揭谛，菩提萨婆诃。


10. Names, Words and Phrases:

Alan Tam (Traditional Chinese: 譚詠麟; Simplified Chinese: 谭咏麟).

Andy Lau (Traditional: 劉德華; Simplified: 刘德华)

Anita Mui (Traditional: 梅艷芳; Simplified: 梅艳芳).

Chan (Zen) Buddhism (Traditional: 禪宗; Simplified: 禅宗).

Chyi Yu (Traditional: 齊豫; Simplified: 齐豫).

Eason Chan (Traditional: 陳奕迅; Simplified: 陈奕迅).

Eastern Han (Traditional: 東漢; Simplified: 东汉).

Emperor Ming of Han (Traditional: 漢明帝; Simplified: 汉明帝).

Faye Wong (Traditional: 王菲; Simplified: 王菲).

Hacken Lee (Traditional: 李克勤; Simplified: 李克勤).

Huayan School (Traditional: 華嚴宗; Simplified: 华严宗).

Jacky Cheung (Traditional: 張學友; Simplified: 张学友).

Joey Yung (Traditional: 容祖兒; Simplified: 容祖儿).

Journey to the West (Traditional: 西遊記; Simplified: 西游记).

Julian Cheung (Traditional: 張智霖; Simplified: 张智霖).

Pure Land Buddhism (Traditional: 淨土宗; Simplified: 净土宗).

Sally Yeh (Traditional: 葉蒨文; Simplified: 叶倩文).

Six Dynasties (Traditional: 六朝; Simplified: 六朝).

Southern and Northern Dynasties (Traditional: 南北朝; Simplified: 南北朝).

Sui Dynasty (Traditional: 隋朝; Simplified: 隋朝).

Tang Dynasty (Traditional: 唐朝; Simplified: 唐朝).

Tiantai Buddhism (Traditional: 天台宗; Simplified: 天台宗).

Xuanzang (Traditional: 玄奘; Simplified: 玄奘).


References:

"Chinese Buddhism", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Buddhism
(accessed 2014-07-24).

"Heart Sutra", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heart_Sutra
(accessed 2014-07-24).

"Journey to the West", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journey_to_the_West
(accessed 2014-07-24).

"Xuanzang", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xuanzang
(accessed 2014-07-24).

"摩訶般若波羅蜜多心經", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%91%A9%E8%A8%B6%E8%88%AC%E8%8B%A5%E6%B3%A2%E7%BE%85%E8%9C%9C%E5%A4%9A%E5%BF%83%E7%B6%93
(accessed 2014-07-24).

"摩訶般若波羅蜜多心經", Wikisource,
http://zh.wikisource.org/zh-hant/%E6%91%A9%E8%A8%B6%E8%88%AC%E8%8B%A5%E6%B3%A2%E7%BE%85%E8%9C%9C%E5%A4%9A%E5%BF%83%E7%B6%93
(accessed 2014-07-24).

End.