The Painted Wall

The Painted Wall by Pu Songling

While visiting a monastery with Mêng Lung-t‘an, Mr. Chu enters a wall painting and marries one of its pictured girls. He hides from an armed man seeking concealed mortals until the monastery priest calls him back out of the wall. The girl's painted hair now has a married woman's style, and the priest says visions originate in those who see them.

By Pu Songling · Genre: Supernatural Fiction, Short Story · 1,221 words

First lines

A Kiang-si gentleman, named Mêng Lung-t‘an, was lodging at the capital with a Mr. Chu, M. A., when one day chance led them to a certain monastery, within which they found no spacious halls or meditation chambers, but only an old priest in _deshabille_. On observing the visitors, he arranged his dress and went forward to meet them, leading them round and showing whatever there was to be seen. In the chapel they saw an image of Chih Kung, and the walls on either side were beautifully painted with life-like representations of men and things. On the east side were pictured a number of fairies, among whom was a young girl whose maiden tresses were not yet confined by the matron's knot. She was picking flowers and gently smiling, while her cherry lips seemed about to move, and the moisture of her eyes to overflow. Mr. Chu gazed at her for a long time without taking his eyes off, until at last he became unconscious of anything but the thoughts that were engrossing him. Then, suddenly, he felt himself floating in the air, as if riding on a cloud, and found himself passing through the wall,[1] where halls and pavilions stretched away one after another, unlike the abodes of mortals. Here an old priest was preaching the Law of Buddha, surrounded by a large crowd of listeners. Mr. Chu mingled with the throng, and after a few moments perceived a gentle tug at his sleeve. Turning round, he saw the young girl above-mentioned, who walked laughing away. Mr. Chu at once followed her, and passing a winding balustrade arrived at a small apartment beyond which he dared not venture further. But the young lady, looking back, waved the flowers she had in her hand as though beckoning him to come on. He accordingly entered and found nobody else within. Then they fell on their knees and worshipped heaven and earth together,[2] and rose up as man and wife, after which the bride went away, bidding Mr. Chu keep quiet until she came back. This went on for a couple of days, when the young lady's companions began to smell a rat and discovered Mr. Chu's hiding-place. Thereupon they all laughed and said, "My dear, you are now a married woman, and should leave off that maidenly _coiffure_. " So they gave her the proper hair-pins and head ornaments, and bade her go bind her hair, at which she blushed very much but said nothing. Then one of them cried out, "My sisters, let us be off. Two's company, more's none. " At this they all giggled again and went away.

Genres

Tags

wall paintings · fairies · marriage · visions · Buddhist monastery

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The Painted Wall is listed on Textopian as a short story by Pu Songling, dated Date unknown.

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