"Assistant Minister Xiao, this was found in the room," the army counselor said, handing a purple bamboo smoking pipe to Xiao Song.
This type of smoking pipe was a rare find, made specifically for smoking opium and already bore the prototype of later generations' pipes. It was as thick as a thumb, and about two feet long, with one end fitted with a curved jade bowl, and the other a jade mouthpiece. Elegantly inscribed along the shaft were the words "A soul's true nature abides, not to be confounded with the common heart."
Because a soul's true nature abides, it does not conform to other people's hearts. What a proud and otherworldly sentiment...
In the Tang Dynasty, opium was grown in the Shu region, and it was known that overdosing on it was poisonous. Thus, its public consumption was prohibited, though not strictly punished, primarily because of its scarce production—a highly prized medicinal ingredient, expensive and rare, not often available in a steady supply.
