Dongjing Meng Hua Lu
Memoir of Kaifeng's splendor by refugee Meng Yuanlao.
Dongjing Meng Hua Lu (东京梦华录, "Dreams of Splendor of the Eastern Capital") is a memoir by Meng Yuanlao (c. 1090–1150). After the Jin dynasty conquered northern China in 1126, Meng fled Kaifeng (then called Dongjing, the Eastern Capital of the Northern Song dynasty), which had been a thriving metropolis. His book offers a detailed, nostalgic account of the city’s daily life, seasonal goods, festivals, foods, customs, and traditions. Later dynasties frequently imitated it and regarded it as a reliable portrait of prosperous Chinese culture.
Little else is known about Meng, who was likely a minor official. He lived in Bianjing (modern Kaifeng, Henan province) from age 13 to 27 before fleeing south. The book’s preface is dated 1147, though it was first printed in 1187, suggesting Meng began drafting it years after the capital’s relocation. Published in ten volumes (juan), traditional bibliographers classified it as travel writing. It is often shortened to *Meng Hua Lu*.
The title’s literal meaning is “Eastern Capital (Dongjing), dream (meng), Hua (the ancient land of perfection), record (lu).” This alludes to the Yellow Emperor’s dream of the land of Hua Xu, a realm of perfect joy and harmony. Upon waking, he realized the Way could not be attained through passion. Meng uses the term ironically, implying he awoke to a world of “perfect shambles.” Historian Wu Pei-yi notes that the Chinese word *meng* differs from the English “dream”: in modern English, dreams often look to the future as hopes, while in China they frequently evoke the past. Other uses of *meng* in literature include the 18th-century novel *Honglou Meng* (Dream of the Red Chamber) and the 13th-century essay *Mengliang lu* (Dreaming Over a Bowl of Millet), which was modeled on *Menghua lu*.
In his 1147 preface, Meng describes the old capital: “Peace stretched on day after day; people were many and all things were in abundance… Season and festival followed one upon the other, each with its own sights to enjoy.” He boasts that “treasures and curiosities from around the world are gathered here… exquisite scents from all over the world were to be found here.” Meng likely had enough wealth and status to enjoy the city’s pleasures, though his descriptions of imperial rituals may have been secondhand.
What sets the book apart, according to Wu Pei-yi, is its detailed portrayal of everyday street and mark
- born
- c. 1090
- died
- c. 1150
- field
- Memoir, travel writing
- nationality
- Chinese (Northern Song dynasty)
- known_for
- Dongjing Meng Hua Lu, a nostalgic account of Kaifeng's urban life
Lore & Background
Meng Yuanlao (c. 1090–1150) was evidently a minor government official. Nothing else is known of him except that he lived in Bianjing (now Kaifeng, Henan province) between the ages of 13 and 27 before escaping to the south after the Jin conquest in 1126. His book was first printed in 1187, but the Preface is dated 1147, indicating he started a draft at that point. The work was published in 10 volumes (juan) and traditional bibliographers classified it as travel writing. It is often cited under the abbreviated name Meng Hua lu.
The literal meaning of the title is Dongjing (Eastern Capital, that is, Kaifeng), meng (dream), Hua (the ancient land of perfection) lu (record). The allusion is to the Yellow Emperor's dream of the land of Hua Xu, 'a sphere of perfect joy and harmony.' By using the term, Meng Yuanlao in ironic contrast implies that he himself awoke to a world of 'perfect shambles.' The historian Wu Pei-yi adds that in Chinese, dreams are frequently used as figures for the past, unlike modern English usage where dreams often project into the future.
Meng's Preface (dated 1147) describes the old capital: 'Peace stretched on day after day; people were many and all things were in abundance... Season and festival followed one upon the other, each with its own sights to enjoy.' The book details street entertainers, over one hundred famous dishes and snacks, and vivid restaurant scenes. The section on the Spring Festival has been used to explain the scroll painting Qingming Shanghe tu by Zhang Zeduan.
Reader's Guide
Dongjing Meng Hua Lu is significant as a primary source for the urban life, food culture, and customs of the Northern Song capital Kaifeng before its fall in 1126. The scholar Wu Pei-yi writes that 'what distinguishes the book from other writings on cities is its detailed description of everyday life as it was lived in the streets and marketplaces... Food and drink seem to have been everyone's preoccupation.' The book describes over one hundred famous dishes and snacks, regional cuisines including Sichuan cuisine, and the operations of taverns and restaurants. It also records street performers by name, which serious writers of the time disdained.
Evaluations of its literary style differ. Meng's own preface describes his language as 'coarse and vulgar' and 'not adorned by literary style.' For many years Chinese critics agreed the prose was of low quality. However, modern expert Steven West suggests the inconsistent style resulted when Meng mixed passages from a journal with later compositions. Wu Pei-yi believes the book's appeal lies in 'the vivid and minute inventory of visual detail, the refusal to delve behind the facade, the preoccupation with the present moment, and the concealment of a narrator.' The book's legacy includes its influence on later works such as the 13th century essay Mengliang lu, and a modern water performance titled 'Song Dynasty-Dongjing Menghua' in Kaifeng's Qingming River Park.
Did You Know?
- The book was first printed in 1187, but the Preface is dated 1147, indicating Meng started a draft at that point.
- The title alludes to the Yellow Emperor's dream of the land of Hua Xu, a sphere of perfect joy and harmony.
- The book describes over one hundred famous dishes and snacks, including numerous mentions of Sichuan cuisine.
- The section on the Spring Festival has been used to explain the scroll painting Qingming Shanghe tu by Zhang Zeduan.
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