The Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties were another turbulent period in the history of our country after the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, but calligraphy achievements were extremely high and calligraphers doubled. Moreover, during this period, while calligraphy was highly valued by society, it began to spread overseas. "Southern History. Qi Gaodi Zhu Zi 1" said: "The calligrapher Xiao Ziyun came out to be the governor of Dongyang. The Baekje Kingdom sent people to Jianye to ask for books. When Ziyun was appointed as the county, Weizhou was about to leave. The people were sent to Zhu to wait for him. After looking at the boat for about thirty steps, we went to pay our respects. Ziyun asked him about it, and he replied: "The beauty of the rulers and tablets in the servant's body has traveled far overseas. What I want today is only the famous monument." Ziyun stopped the boat for three days, and wrote three With ten pieces of paper, he received millions in gold and goods." This shows how highly calligraphy was valued as an art at this time. From people's awareness of the beauty of calligraphy during the Warring States Period, to the flood of viewers and copycats of calligraphy by Cai Yong and Shi Yiguan in the Han Dynasty, to the popularity of Xiao Ziyun's calligraphy in the Southern Dynasty, this surprising change is indeed exciting. The art of calligraphy can indeed bring great comfort to people's spirits, making it one of the indispensable mainstream arts. The reason why their works have been passed down as classics for all generations is because their art expresses people's spiritual feelings. And this feeling becomes a symbol of "beauty". The art of calligraphy has become more and more important day by day because it can overflow with "beauty". It can cross national boundaries and transcend nations. This is also the reason why.
The Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties were a long historical stage lasting more than three hundred years. There are many calligraphers to mention, but the first one who has left calligraphy in modern regular script is Zhong Yao. He lived from 151 to 230, with the courtesy name Yuanchang, and was a native of Changshe, Yingchuan (now Changge, Henan). During the reign of Emperor Wei Ming, he was promoted to Taifu and was known as Taifu Zhong in the world. Zhong Yao has achieved comprehensive achievements in calligraphy. He is proficient in all official, regular, running and cursive scripts, but regular script is the best. According to records, he learned from Cao Xi, Cai Yong, Liu Desheng and others and made his own achievements. His regular script is naturally simple and lush, and his knotting is stable every time he seeks strange and dangerous characters. Although it is in modern regular script, it has the ancient and clumsy meaning of Han Li. It can be said that those who studied Kaifa in later generations must learn from Zhong Yao's book before they consider it to be the best method. Wang Xizhi also had many good examples. Zhong Yao's learning process was quite painstaking. It is said that he went to Baodu Mountain to study calligraphy for three years, and he also tried to learn Cai Yong's herbal method from Wei Dan. However, Dan was unable to vomit blood in his chest, and Cao Cao saved him with the Five Spirit Pills. Gotta live. After Wei Dan died, Zhong Yao stole his tomb and obtained Cai Yong's calligraphy, so he studied hard day and night. Yu Jianwu's "Shupin" praised Zhong Yao as "nature comes first, and time comes second." Emperor Wu of Liang's "Book Review" said: "Zhong Yao's book sends clouds and cranes fly in the sky, and a group of hongs play in the sea." They all praised the key points of Zhong's book's simplicity and nature. Works such as "Declaration Table", "Ji Zhi Table" and "Bing She Tie" can be found in Zhongshu.
In addition to Zhong Yao, famous calligraphers during the Three Kingdoms period include Wei Dan, Handan Chun, Wei family, Hu Zhao, Yu Song, Huang Xiang and Su Jian of Wu state. He Shao et al. Only Shu calligraphers have not yet recorded it. The outstanding calligraphers of the Western Jin Dynasty include Suo Jing, Cheng Gongsui, Du Yu and others, with Suo Jing as the representative.
The Eastern Jin Dynasty was a short period of one hundred years, but it was able to write a lot in the history of calligraphy. First, it was because of the wonderful scene of many family groups (mostly dignitaries in the court) monopolizing the calligraphy world at this time. Second, because of the emergence of the Wang family among them. This marked the emergence of Wang Xizhi, a figure who set the standard for the development of Chinese calligraphy.
There are many families: Si Yu, Liu Xi, San Xie, Eight Kings, etc.
Four Yus: Yu Liang, Yu Yi, Yu Yi, Yu Zhun. Liang is the brother of Yi and Yi; Zhun is the grandson of Liang. All three generations were good at calligraphy, among which Yu Yi (also known as Zhigong, Chariot General) was the most outstanding. When Yi Shao was young, he was as famous as Xizhi. "Book of Jin. Biography of Wang Xizhi" said: "Xizhi's book was incomparable to Yu Yi and Xi Min at the beginning, and it was so wonderful in his later years. He tried to answer Yu Liang with Zhang Cao, but Yi was deeply impressed, because he said in Xi's book: "I once had a uncle. Yingzhang drafted ten pieces of paper, crossed the river in an awkward position, and then lost it. He often sighed that the wonderful traces would never be lost. Suddenly he saw his brother's letter under his feet. He was as bright as a god, and his old outlook was restored. "Before seeing this book of Xizhi, Yi was not convinced in his heart. Xizhi. When Yi was in Jingzhou, his children all learned Wang Xizhi's style, but Yi was not happy with it. He once wrote to the capital saying: "The children are cheap chickens who love wild pursuits. They all learned Yi Shao's (Xizhi's) calligraphy, and I must return it." Be scolded. "
Six Xi: Xi Jian, Xi Min, Xi Tan. Xi Jian, Xi Hui. Zhen and Tan are the sons of Jian, Chao is the son of Zhen, Jian and Hui are the sons of Tan. Xi Jian, who rose to the rank of Taifu, was the father-in-law of Wang Xixi. Among the six Xis, Ximin is the most famous, with both Gongkaicao and Yuyi.
Three Xies: Xie Shang, Xie Yi, and Xie An. Shang is the eldest brother, and Yi and An are the younger brothers. Xie An's calligraphy is particularly outstanding. Xie An, whose courtesy name was Anshi, was promoted to Taifu. In the early days of An, he was not an official, so he lived in seclusion in Dongshan, Kuaiji, and often traveled with Xizhi. Xie An grew up with rulers and tablets, and looked down upon Wang Xianzhi (son of Xi), who had written a letter to An, thinking that he would be cherished by An. However, Xie Anke is ranked with Xi Min and Yu Yi, and is not as good as Xian.
Eight Kings: Wang Dao, Wang Shao, Wang Min, Wang Xizhi, Wang Xianzhi, Wang Xun, Wang Meng, and Wang Shu. Among the calligraphy families of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the Wang family is the most famous. Not only the "two kings" (Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi) are well-known, but Wang Dao, Wang Xun, etc. are also very outstanding. Wang Xun's "Bo Yuan Tie", Wang Xizhi's "Quick Snow and Shi Qing Tie" and Wang Xianzhi's "Mid-Autumn Tie" are collectively known as the "Three Treasures". Emperor Gaozong of the Qing Dynasty once hid these three inscriptions in the Yangyu Hall of the Palace Museum in Beijing today. He regarded them as rare treasures and named them "Three Rares".
The Wang family has three sects. One belongs to Langya Linyi, after Wang Xiang. Wang Dao (prime minister at the time of Emperor Yuan) was the grandson of Wang Xiang. Wang Shao (general of chariots and cavalry) was the son of Director Wang. The son of Wang Dao's third son, Wang Qia (Shao's brother), was Wang Min (after Xian was named Zhongshu Ling, Xian was called Dalling in the world, and Xian was Xi's uncle, Wang Xi. And Wang Xi was Wang Dao's grandson. In addition, One sect belongs to Taiyuan. After Wei Sikong Wang Chang, Wang Chang's great-grandson is Wang Shu (Shang Shu Ling, granted the title of Lantian Marquis). Wang Meng also belongs to this sect, and is granted the title of Jinzi Guanglu Doctor.
The father and son of the "Two Kings" are outstanding representatives of the Wang family and even the entire Eastern Jin calligraphy family.
Wang Xizhi (303-361), courtesy name Yishao, was born in Langyayi. He was born into a noble family and was promoted to General Youjun. He was an internal historian in Kuaiji and was known as Wang Youjun. Due to disagreements with Wang Shu, he resigned and settled in Shanyin, Kuaiji (now Shaoxing, Zhejiang). He is excellent in seal script, official script, regular script, running script and cursive script. In his early years, he learned calligraphy from Mrs. Wei. Later, he traveled north across the Yangtze River and saw the calligraphy works of Li Si, Cao Xi and others. He also saw the calligraphy of Zhong Yao and Liang Hu under Xu, and saw the handwriting of Cai Yong under Luo, so he became a beginner and became a self-study. Family law. A change from the simple style since the Han and Wei dynasties, a new calligraphy style of beautiful and beautiful people was formed. Wang's calligraphy has always been valued by the world. Although it is related to the strong recommendation of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, it is mainly due to the calligraphy that by the time of Wang Xi, the brushwork, structure and composition had reached a state of near perfection. Although the calligraphy style is mainly beautiful, it rejects the vulgar atmosphere. When writing, it is gentle and tough, and the penmanship is unpredictable and very thought-provoking. Although the original copy of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy no longer exists, a considerable number of double-checked copies or engravings have been handed down since the Tang and Song Dynasties, and the excellence of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy can still be seen. Especially in the late spring of the ninth year of Yonghe (353), Xizhi and forty-one of his colleagues met at the Lanting Pavilion in Shanyin. While drinking and composing poems, they wrote the preface "Lanting Preface" (extant in Tang Dynasty) in running script with cocoon paper and rat whisker pen. This is especially the style of Wang Shu, which is said to be the best in the world in running script, and it is a must-learn model for future generations of learners.
Wang Xizhi studied calligraphy very diligently. Zeng Gong's "Mo Chi Ji" said that "Xi Zhi admired Zhang Zhi and came to the pond to study calligraphy. The pond water was full of ink." . Indeed, Wang Xizhi's calligraphy reached its peak in his later years. It took him a lifetime to achieve this, which made him the greatest calligrapher in history.
Wang Xianzhi (344~386), whose courtesy name was Zijing. Xizhi had seven sons in total, and only five of them were good at calligraphy. He was named the seventh son, who had the best calligraphy. Together with his father, he was called the "Two Kings". When Xianzhi was seven or eight years old, he already learned to calligraphy.
Later, whenever he wanted to compete with his father, Xie An once asked him: "How can your book be as respected as your family?" The answer was: "It should definitely win." Xie An also said: "External theory is not like this." Xianzhi said: "People at that time Then you will know how to respect him." However, from a historical perspective, it is still difficult to rank Xi Zhi above Xi Zhi.
The achievements of the "Two Kings" are comprehensive, but in terms of their influence on later generations, they are more about the writing of running and cursive calligraphy. In other words, the essence of the calligraphy of the "Two Kings" is especially in the writing of running and cursive calligraphy. Liang Xian, a calligrapher of the Qing Dynasty, said when talking about the overall calligraphy style of each dynasty after the Jin Dynasty: "The Jin Dynasty promoted rhyme, the Tang Dynasty promoted law, the Song Dynasty promoted Yi, and the Yuan and Ming Dynasties promoted style." ("Pingshu Post") The word "Shang Yun" exactly describes the characteristics and beauty of the "Er Wang" calligraphy style that represents the achievements of the Jin people, and these characteristics and beauty are reflected in the "Er Wang" cursive script It is particularly typical. [Note: In the book "Chinese Calligraphy Aesthetics", Jin Xuezhi, a modern person, supplemented the eras not mentioned in Liang Xian's views based on other related theories of predecessors, namely Shang and Zhou Shangxiang, Qin and Han Shangshi, and Jin Dynasty Shangyun , the Northern and Southern Dynasties advocated gods, the Tang Dynasty advocated law, the Song Dynasty advocated Yi, the Yuan and Ming Dynasties advocated attitude, and the Qing Dynasty advocated quality. The views are also very insightful and can be used as reference. The Shang and Zhou Dynasties Shangxiang refers to the calligraphy characters of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties that mostly took the meaning of images, with primitive traces; the Qin and Han Dynasties Shangshi mainly refers to the official script of the Han Dynasty (including Zhangcao) that has shed the pictographic shell and begun to form a pure Line structure symbols, and special emphasis on the intentional exaggeration and combination of line structure and posture when writing; Shangyun in the Jin Dynasty means that because the calligraphy style has got rid of the artificiality of official script (including Zhangcao), the writing style also follows this admiration Natural flow of stool, all in the ordinary way to seek truth. The overall calligraphy style of the remaining dynasties will be explained in the subsequent description of calligraphy history. ]
After the Jin Dynasty, the confrontation between the Northern and Southern Dynasties lasted for nearly two hundred years in our country. Calligraphy shows two different tendencies. The Southern Dynasty mainly inherited the calligraphy line of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, while the Northern Dynasty inherited the Han system and developed stele inscriptions, developing the famous Northern stele calligraphy style.
The Southern Dynasties included four dynasties: Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen. There were many calligraphers, but overall they are not the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The main calligraphers in the Song Dynasty include Yang Xin (good at regular script), Kong Lin (good at cursive script), Xiao Sihua (good at action script), Fan Ye (good at seal script) and the poet Xie Lingyun.
Among the calligraphers of the Qi Dynasty, Wang Sengqian, the fourth descendant of Wang Xizhi, was the most outstanding. He inherited the family tradition and also learned from Zhong Yao. He was especially good at regular script and running script. According to legend, Emperor Qi Gao was also good at calligraphy, and he once gambled with monk Qian with his books. After writing the book, Emperor Gao asked: "Who is the first?" He replied: "I am the first in the book, and so is your Majesty; I am the first among the secretaries, and your Majesty is the first among the emperors." Gao Di smiled and said: "You can be said to be good at doing things for yourself. Conspiracy." In addition to Wang Sengyu, his son Wang Ci and his younger brother Wang Jian are also calligraphers who have left a name in the history of calligraphy.
The calligraphy of the Liang Dynasty was first recommended by Xiao Ziyun, the calligrapher mentioned in this section who easily earned millions in gold for thirty-nine pieces of paper. He is the grandson of Emperor Gao of Qi and is a good official.
The calligrapher Seng Zhiyong during the Chen Dynasty may be the most outstanding person in the entire Southern Dynasty. He became a monk at Yongxin Temple in Wuxing and was called Yongchan Master. His name was Faji and his common surname was Wang. He was the seventh grandson of Xizhi. In the early Tang Dynasty, everyone followed his method and had a huge influence. It is said that Zhiyong lived upstairs and studied calligraphy until he was successful. He was excellent in calligraphy and calligraphy (Zhen, that is, Zheng, that is, regular script). He was considered to be the first person since the Jin Dynasty to obtain the right military law. After diligent study, the bald pen tip was buried in ten jars. The main works handed down from ancient times include "The Thousand Character Essay" and so on.
I remember that the stone carvings used by emperors to record their achievements during the Qin Dynasty promoted the development of calligraphy and produced a generation of calligraphers like Li Si. The Han Dynasty continued the custom of inscriptions on stele and allowed the handwriting of many calligraphers to be circulated. During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the state explicitly prohibited the erection of stele, which partially severed the relationship between inscriptions and calligraphy. The number of inscriptions dropped sharply. Only a few inscriptions like the "Cuan Baozi" stele were preserved because they were located in remote areas of Yunnan. Therefore, the handwriting of most calligraphers (such as "Er Wang") during this period mostly developed through writing as a way of preservation. This development was also facilitated by the widespread use of paper (the popularity of writing books). The chaos at the end of the Han Dynasty resulted in the loss of a large number of classics. In addition, with the emergence of Buddhism, many sutra students appeared who were engaged in copying and writing sutras. Writing on a stele is something that needs to be engraved. It mainly depends on the structure and the attention to the use of the pen. The writing on paper and silk is written directly without any processing or conversion. Therefore, the pursuit of calligraphy beauty is not limited to the structure. The importance of using pens and inks was also brought up. This is a great progress in calligraphy.
The Northern Dynasties stayed away from the rule of the Eastern Jin Dynasty in advance, so they would not have such a profound influence on the Eastern Jin Dynasty like the Southern Dynasties. The Northern Dynasties inherited the Han system and developed the style of erecting monuments. Many calligraphy changes were directly adapted from Han Li. Because it was mainly used for stele engravings, and also due to the direct adoption of French and Han Dynasty official scripts, the Northern Dynasties not only relied on regular script, but also had a writing style that was far from the "Wang Shu" line. This formed the distinctive characteristics of the Northern Dynasties stele inscriptions, among which the Wei stele was the most popular. typical. The so-called "sorship of gods in the Southern and Northern Dynasties" is mainly represented by the Wei stele.
There are many famous calligraphy works in the Northern Dynasty, but the name of the calligrapher is ominous. Due to historical reasons, many calligraphers, maybe even great calligraphers, will be missed in each dynasty. In the early Wei Dynasty of the Northern Dynasty, there were mainly Cui and Lu families. The Cui family includes Cui Yue, Cui Qian, Cui Hong and Cui Hao. Cui Hong is the most famous, good at cursive script and running script. It is said that Cui Hong was the official official of the imperial court at that time, and he sent letters from all over the world, but he did not have any influence on Han. The Lu family included Lu Chen, Lu Yan, Lu Miao, Lu Yuan and others, among whom Lu Yuan was the most famous. At that time, most of the plaques in the palaces in Beijing were inscribed by him. In addition to the Cui and Lu clans, there are also people such as Kou Qianzhi who wrote the "Zhongyue Songgao Luo Ling Temple Stele" .
In the Later Wei Dynasty, there was Zheng Daozhao, named Xi Bo, who was born in Kaifeng. The famous "Stele of Zheng Wengong's Up and Down" was created by him.
In the Northern Qi Dynasty, there was Zhang Jingren, who became an official because he could write for a while. Zheng Shuzu left his name with the book "Junsura Stele".
In the Northern Zhou Dynasty, there were Zhao Wenyuan (who once wrote "Xiyue Huatong Stele") and Wang Bao, who was as famous as Xiao Ziyun in the Southern Dynasty and then entered the Northern Dynasty.
It is a pity that the authors of some famous works such as "Twenty Products of Longmen", "Epitaph of Diao Juezun", "Stele of Zhang Menglong" and "Epitaph of Zhang Heinv" failed to leave their names. The special status of this period in the history of calligraphy during the Southern and Northern Dynasties lies in the link between the past and the future in the art of regular script. The regular script of the Wei and Jin Dynasties is not only full of official style, but also more of a small regular script. The inscriptions of the Southern and Northern Dynasties conducted in-depth exploration and experiments on both the Chinese regular script and the large regular script, which made full preparations for the subsequent legislation of regular script in the Tang Dynasty. Regular script got rid of the "artificiality" of official script and moved towards "naturalness", but regular script should also have its own rules and norms. The Southern and Northern Dynasties were in the process of exploring the rules. Its starting point is "the wonderful way of writing, the spirit is the most important, the form is the most important." "Quality comes second" (Wang Sengyu's "Praise for Writing"), which shows that when moving from official script to the more "natural" regular script, calligraphers' starting point is the spirit of the characters, which emphasizes that the characters must be full of vitality. Dynamic. Therefore, when comparing the calligraphy of the Six Dynasties with the later Tang Kai script, it is obviously more "regular style ". This state of calligraphy in the Southern and Northern Dynasties is the meaning of the so-called "Shangshen in the Northern and Southern Dynasties".
