NOTES AND QUERIES
207
One day he asked Liu Kung-ch'üan about the proper methods whereby a person could become a good calligrapher. 'The movement of the brush is directed by the mind,' Liu replied. "The brush will move properly if the mind is rectified." The emperor changed his expression immediately since he knew that Liu's remarks had a double meaning. They were a remonstration, though indirect and implied.
Of another famous calligrapher, Tung Ch'i-ch'ang of Ming, it was written
Tung Ch'i-ch'ang was equally famous for seal carving and calligraphy. Hardly did a day pass without someone requesting his work. Even a letter or a brief note of his became a collector's item, and people were willing to pay a high price for it. He was profound and discriminating as a critic—a single word in his own handwriting commanded such attention that a collector would consider it a matter of great prestige to have obtained it.
Our abbot, then, followed in a great tradition and his work on presentation boards and inscriptions, done in various styles, can be appreciated by visitors. He used three pen names, *, *, and *. The abbot also took a great interest in natural beauty and was instrumental in calling attention to various local beauty spots which he and his friends and disciples proceeded to embellish by carving names and inscriptions on rocks. They added, in a tasteful way, to the amenities of the area since many persons would come to visit them. The most famous of these places is Sam Dip Tam (=the three saucer-like pools) to the west of the Monastery, which owes its present name to Abbot Mou Fung. Closer by is a small garden area, now neglected, with a pool called Kan Lo Chi (*) commemorated with an inscribed tablet and formerly nicely laid out with statues of Kuan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, a popular Buddhist deity. The Abbot chose this area because of the two rivulets of clear water which ran through this small area. Unfortunately, they have since been polluted by pig farms and bean curd factories above the site and the area has been neglected. However, the District Office Tsuen Wan intends to assist in restoring the place and put it under proper management, so that visitors to Lo Wai village and the monasteries can again enjoy its former charms.