The secret of calligraphy lies in the water
——Wang Xizhi and his son learned secretarial work
When I was young, in order to learn calligraphy, my grandfather once told me Wang Xizhi’s " The story of "Linchi Studying Calligraphy" earnestly warned me that I should persevere in learning and never be interested for only three minutes. Later, in the countryside, my father told me the story of Wang Xianzhi and the Seven Tanks of Water, warning me not to take shortcuts in everything. Only by studying hard, practicing hard, can I achieve something in my career. Later, when I became a teacher, I told the above two stories to students of all levels more than once to encourage them to study hard and make progress, and all achieved good results. In particular, a former student who had become an engineer wrote to me and told me that he told the story of the "Two Kings" to his daughter. The girl swore to follow the "Two Kings" as an example, studied hard, and actually won the national calligraphy competition. Win the prize. From this point of view, the exemplary behavior affirmed by the ancestors will be an inexhaustible and precious source.
Everyone will know that Wang Xizhi (321-379) is one of the most outstanding calligraphers in the history of our country. He was born in Linyi (now Shandong) in Langya (now Shandong) in the Eastern Jin Dynasty and lived in Shanyin (now Zhejiang) in Kuaiji. Shaoxing). Because he served as a general of the Right Army and an official in Kuaiji, he was also called Wang Youjun. As Wang Xizhi, who is revered as the "Sage of Calligraphy" in the history of Chinese art, the calligraphy community praises him as "a master of all kinds of works, both ancient and modern, who combines various methods to form a family." His hard training, careful study of body posture, unique path, and tenacity have always been a role model for future generations. For example: It is said that he once "study calligraphy" by the Lanting Pond in Shaoxing, Zhejiang. Day after day, he worked hard to learn the calligraphy skills of various calligraphy schools. In order to save time, the pond water around him became a convenient place for him to write brushes. As time went by, , a pool of pure products was dyed inky black, leaving behind a touching story of being focused on studying without any distractions.
A few years later, Wang Xizhi's youngest son Wang Xianzhi followed him to practice calligraphy. After a few years, his calligraphy was actually impressive. Wang Xianzhi had great ambitions at a young age and was determined to catch up with his father's fame, so he was a little eager for success. One day, he took the opportunity of his father to praise him and asked his father for the secret of practicing calligraphy. After hearing this, Wang Xizhi smiled slightly, beckoned and led Xianzhi to the courtyard, pointed to the 18 large water tanks in the courtyard and said: "Practice calligraphy." The secret is in the water in these 18 jars. From tomorrow on, you can use the water in this jar to grind ink until all the water in the 18 jars is used up. Then you will know the secret." Wang Xianzhi is very smart and knows what his father said. He was not lazy, scooping water and studying ink day and night. He practiced harder and harder, and finally became good at calligraphy. Later, his achievements were as famous as his father's, and he was called the "Two Kings" in the history of calligraphy.
Of course, there are rules to follow in learning calligraphy, and hard practice alone is not enough. However, the reason why the ancestors passed down the stories of the "two kings" who learned calligraphy hard from generation to generation was to emphasize the importance of diligent study and practice, and to use the water in the pool and the water in the vat to encourage people to maintain their determination. , keep learning, only in this way can you achieve great things.
Wang Xizhi writes for geese
Wang Xizhi was a great calligrapher during the Eastern Jin Dynasty in my country. He came from a noble family, and because of his talents, all the ministers in the court recommended him to be an official. He served as governor and general of the Right Army (people also called him Wang Youjun).
Wang Xizhi loved writing since he was a child. It is said that when walking, I would practice calligraphy with my fingers at any time. As time went by, even my clothes were scratched. After diligent study and practice, Wang Xizhi's calligraphy became more and more famous. People at that time regarded his writing as a treasure.
It is said that once, Wang Xizhi went to a village. An old woman was selling a basket of hexagonal bamboo fans at the market. That kind of bamboo fan was very simple, without much decoration, and did not attract the interest of passers-by. It seemed that it could not be sold, and the old woman was very worried. When Wang Xizhi saw this, he sympathized with the old woman, so he stepped forward and said to her, "Of course you can't sell this bamboo fan with no paintings or words on it. How about I inscribe it for you?" The old woman didn't know Wang Xizhi, so when she saw He was so enthusiastic that he gave him the bamboo fan to write on. Wang Xizhi picked up his pen and wrote five words on each fan, then returned them to the old woman. The old woman was illiterate and felt that his writing was very sloppy and she was very unhappy. Wang Xizhi comforted her and said, "Don't worry. Tell the person who bought the fan that it was written by Wang Youjun." As soon as Wang Xizhi left, the old woman did as he asked. When people at the market saw that it was Wang Youjun's calligraphy, they all rushed to buy it. A basket of bamboo fans was sold out immediately.
Many artists have their own hobbies, some like to grow flowers, and some like to raise birds.
But Wang Xizhi had his own special hobbies. No matter where there is a good goose, he is interested in seeing it or buying it back to enjoy. There was a Taoist priest in Shanyin who wanted Wang Xizhi to write him a volume of the Tao Te Ching. But he knew that Wang Xizhi was not willing to copy scriptures for others easily. Later, he found out that Wang Xizhi liked white geese, so he specially raised a batch of good varieties of geese. Wang Xizhi heard that there were good geese in the Taoist family, so he actually ran to see them. When he approached the Taoist priest's house, he saw a group of geese floating leisurely on the water in the river. Their snow-white feathers contrasted with the tall red roof, which was really cute. Wang Xizhi looked at the geese by the river and couldn't bear to leave, so he sent someone to find the Taoist priest and asked to sell the geese to him. The Taoist priest smiled and said: "Since the prince likes it so much, I will give you all these geese without any expense. But I have one request, which is to ask you to write a volume of scripture for me." Wang Xizhi did not hesitate. Wang Xizhi copied a scroll of scripture for the Taoist priest, and Wang Xizhi took the geese back.