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Hi, Pictures below are of a beautiful inscribed gourd that was dug out of the ground in a garden in Ayrshire, Scotland. No idea how it got there, or what is written on it. It would be fascinating to find out. Can anybody help?
Thanks
Brian

These are for the tourist trade and are sold in China today. the inscription is a story by a poet and official named Tao Yuanming about reading books, drinking, and enjoying a Daoist lifestyle. the text is here: http://ftp.mln.mlc.edu.tw/sunsea0507/howto.html

http://ftp.mln.mlc.edu.tw/sunsea0507/howto.html

先生不知何許人也，亦不詳其姓字。宅邊有五柳樹，因以為號焉

閑靜少言，不慕榮利。好讀書，不求甚解，每有會意，便欣然忘食。性嗜酒，家貧，不能常得。親舊知其如此，或置酒而招之。造飲輒盡，期在必醉，既醉而退，曾不吝情去留。環堵蕭然，不蔽風日；短褐穿結，簞瓢屢空。——晏如也。常著文章自娛，頗示己志。忘懷得失，以此自終。

贊曰：黔婁之妻有言：「不戚戚於貧賤，不汲汲於富貴。」極其言，茲若人儔乎？酣觴賦詩，以樂其志。無懷氏之民歟！葛天氏之民歟！

https://narnew.wordpress.com/2014/06/02/legend-of-mr-pentawillow-a-translation-of-%E4%BA%94%E6%9F%B3%E5%85%88%E7%94%9F%E4%BC%A0/

Legend of Mister Pentawillow

By: Tao Yuan Ming(0)

I know neither of where Mister Pentawillow hails from, nor of what his original name is. The five willow trees just outside his abode is the reason for his nickname. The man rarely speaks, nor does he indulge in glorification or riches. Although he loves reading widely, he does not focus too much about going into details of the subjects; whenever he enlightens himself with new understanding of concepts in the books he has read, he will enter into a state of incredible euphoria to such an extent that he even forgets to eat his meals. He loves to drink liquor, but his poverty prevents him from enjoying it very often. Knowing this, his friends and relatives will at times invite him to dinners hence attracting him with drinks. On every occasion of him going for such an event, he will drink to his heart’s content deliberately to get drunk; once this happens though he immediately leaves for home, never staying further for anything aside for the drinks. The dilapidated shack he calls home is as empty as the echoes that ring through it and in no way does it provide sufficient cover against the blistering cold or the searing heat of the changing seasons. Despite constantly donning an unevenly patched rough cloth robe and often having nothing in his water jug or rice bucket, he still manages to maintain a satisfied daily outlook and at the same time a composure of genuine happiness. He amuses himself by writing scholarly articles and passages from time to time and these papers serve as the only method one can come to know his interests or ambitions. Never allowing gains or losses to greatly impact his psyche, thus is how Mister Pentawillow is known to have lived his life.

Excerpted from the list of his commendations: Quoted from Qian Low’s (1) wife,” If we are talking about being unfazed by poverty and unaffected by power or fortune, I guess this description only applies to those who are like Mister Pentawillow. When he writes poems in a drunken state, he attains euphoria by drawing thoughts on his personal ambitions. I wonder if he could have been a citizen from the ancient age when Wu Huai Shi(2) ruled? Or one who lived during the legendary age of Ge Tian Shi’s(3) governance?”

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