Air of Curvilinear Clouds

卿雲歌

English: Air of Curvilinear Clouds
k'rjang-gwjen-kar
Curvilinear clouds depicted on medal
National anthem of Themiclesia
Lyrics	author unknown, antiquity
Music	Siw-gwrje′-me, 1823
Adopted	1851
Audio sample
File:Song to the Auspicious Cloud.ogg "Air of Curvilinear Clouds" file help

The Air of Curvilinear Clouds (卿雲歌, k'rjang-gjwen-kar) is the national anthem of Themiclesia. Considered one of the shortest anthems in Septentrion, it consists of only 24 syllables and 16 distinct words.

It was adopted by Cabinet directive in 1851, to address the lack of a national anthem, the playing of which was customary in many diplomatic situations. Lyrics were drawn from an epexegesis of an ancient anthology of prose works, valued for its philosphical content. The symbol was chosen for its inoffensive and polysematic nature: it could either be read as an ode to a beautiful cloud, or it could be understood to have a political significance. The three lights—the sun, moon, and star—are praised for their beauty; however, these are also symbols associated with the emperor, likening him to the source of natural light that the world shares, even though nowhere is the emperor mentioned in the air. The same three celestial bodies are also part of a set of 12 motifs, which are associated with the Themiclesian nation; by mention of the first three, the remaining nine are evoked, meaning the air also assigned Themiclesia a very special place in the world.

History

Themiclesia did not have a piece of music associated with its people or polity in antiquity. Such a need only arose in the middle of the 19th Century, when playing of national anthems became customary in diplomatic situations, and Themiclesia's lack of one became a subject of discussion amongst learned circles. As early as 1845, the new Liberal government under Rah made a public appeal for national anthem melodies and lyrics; a considerable numbere were submitted, but the government found that establishing such a novel thing in its youth could be politically dangerous, and the subject was not mentioned until a few years later.

Allegedly, it was the Minister of the Left, then responsible for creating the anthem, who came up with the lyrics. Dissatisfied with almost all of the submissions, he took the lyrics almost verbatim out of an ancient poem dating to the mythical beginnings of Menghe. Trimming off its second and third stanzas, and repeating the fouth line in lieu of the sixth, he had it passed through Cabinet as his own creation. It is not known with any certainty how the Cabinet then received his proposals, though given the literary proficiency of top government members, the unoriginality of the piece may have been obvious and deemed intentional. Themiclesian underwent a transformative phase in its history at the time, and uncontroversial statements about the nation rarely appeared; only a vague poem sung about an idealized past with no characters or events mentioned could pass under every political radar. The melody was settled upon even more quickly, as another Cabinet member—the Secretary of State for War—happened to be an avid musician. He penned the basic melody in promptu during the meeting, though more complex scores were produced only later, by professional songwriters, according to the base the minister had given.

Lyrics

Shinasthana	Transliteration	Translation
卿雲爛兮 糺縵縵兮 日月光華 旦復旦兮	k′rjang-gwjen-ranh-gê kju-mranh-mranh-gê njik-ngwjat-kwang-gwra tanh-bjuh-tanh-gê	How resplendant is the curvilinear cloud How extensive its loops The beauty of the solar and lunar light Returns one dawn after another
靈異載至 瑞祥獻昌 庶邦同慶 萬壽永康	rjeng-legh-dze′-tjidh djolh-ljang-ng′janh-t'jang sdjagh-prong-dung-k′ljangh mjanh-djuh-gwrjêng'-k'lang	The strange and wondrous are all here and auspicious and well-portending signs offer benediction! The many nations and their people join in conviviality and wish ten-thousand years of longevity and eternal happiness!

Use

• In the armed forces, it is customary to stand at-attention upon hearing the national anthem. If wearing a hat that can be easily removed, it should be removed and kept under one's arm. These rules do not apply if their observance tends to cause danger.
  • It has been decided that helmets, plaster casts on the head, caps of maintenance, skullcaps (worn by attorneys-at-law when arguing in the court-martial), and berets when worn by females do not count as hats.
• There are no laws regarding the national anthem in civilian settings.