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Title:
Water in The Story of the Stone
Abstract:
This paper examines how water serves as a philosophical, religious, and aesthetic foundation within The Story of the Stone (aka. Dream of the Red Chamber). The novel indisputably bears Buddhist undertones, due to numerous Buddhist ideas, temples, and professionals in the story. In addition to teaching the achievement of enlightenment through passion, how does the novel represent Buddhist ideas about space and material reality? Conversely, how do Buddhist perspectives on space and material reality influence the novel’s fictional space? To answer these questions, this paper draws attention to the relationship between the novel and the concept of “Water Meditation” from the Surangama Sutra. I argue that the novel’s Grand View Garden is modeled upon Buddhist meditative practice. In particular, through storytelling, the novel transforms meditative space into physical space. During the time the novel was conceived, the Surangama Sutra enjoyed popularity among intellectuals. The sutra features “Water Meditation,” a meditative practice aimed at altering perceptions of reality. Practitioners are encouraged to view the material world as consisting of nothing but water. Water embodies purity of the mind, whereas stone represents a danger obstructing the achievement of mental tranquility. The Buddhist opposition of water and stone not only contributes to configuring the novel’s fictional space but also foretells the destinies of its major characters. The male protagonist Jia Baoyu is a reincarnation of a precious jade; his female companions in the garden embody the essence of water. As a stone in the Buddhist way, Baoyu must disappear from the garden and the narrative.
