In the history of calligraphy, there are two famous posters in the world, one for joy and one for sorrow. The former is a preface by Lanting, and the latter is a memorial text written by Yan Zhenqing to commemorate his nephew. Because Wang Xizhi did not feel the true pain of bereavement, his emotions were like air flowing over his body, which did not increase the burden, but gave him a sense of relief. Yan Zhenqing was different. He could not vent his depression under human tragedies... so I think the preface to Lanting is still from the mundane world, and the manuscript for offering sacrifices to my nephew is from the world.
The full name of "Manuscript of Sacrifice to Nephew" is "Manuscript of Sacrifice to Nephew Ji Ming", which was written in the first year of Qianyuan of Tang Dynasty (758 AD). Hemp paper, running script, length 28.2 cm x 75.5 cm, twenty-three lines, each line has eleven to twelve characters, totaling 234 characters. The bell has seals such as "Zhao's son, the Subaru family", "Daya", "Xianyu", "Shu", "Xianyu Shu's uncle and father", and "Xianyu". It was once collected by Xuanhe Neifu of the Song Dynasty, Zhang Yan of the Yuan Dynasty, Xian Yushu, Wu Ting of the Ming Dynasty, Xu Qianxue of the Qing Dynasty, Wang Hongxu, and the Neifu of the Qing Dynasty.
The great calligrapher Xian Yushu of the Yuan Dynasty wrote for the "Manuscript of Memorials to My Nephew" The postscript says: "The Manuscript of Yan Zhenqing, Grand Master of Lu of the Tang Dynasty, is the second best cursive script in the world (the first refers to Wang Xizhi's "Lanting Preface")." Even Mi Fu of the Song Dynasty, who had a negative attitude towards Yan style regular script, also believed that "Yan Lugong" The calligraphy can be taught." When he commented on "The Manuscript of Memorial to Uncle," he thought it was "a wonderful book in the world." These two drafts are wonderfully written, straight and unrestrained, and each has its own characteristics. Together with the "Fighting for a Seat", they are a perfect match and a rare artistic treasure in the world.
As one of Yan Shu's famous "Three Drafts" (the other two drafts are "Fighting for a Seat" and "Manuscript of Reporting to Uncle"), it has been included in the engravings of Song, Ming and Qing dynasties. Among them, there have been many imitators and praises throughout the ages.
Yan Zhenqing’s "Manuscript of Memorials to My Nephew" has been handed down from generation to generation (now in the collection of the National Palace Museum in Taipei), and has been praised by later generations as "the best Yan calligraphy in the world". ". This draft is extremely typical in terms of content and calligraphy. The background of the content is that during the "Anshi Rebellion", the twenty-four counties of Hebei were disintegrated. Only Pingyuan County (today's Ling County, Shandong Province) where Yan Zhenqing was the governor and his cousin Yan Tangshan County (today's Zhengding County, Hebei), where Gaoqing was the governor, was able to hold on and fight the rebellion, and sent Yan Jiming, Gaoqing's third son, to communicate between the two counties. Later, Yan Gaoqing outsmarted Tumen, a strategic military location, and won a major victory. He sent his eldest son Yan Quanming to Chang'an to offer prisoners and ask for reinforcements. Unexpectedly, he was intercepted and detained by Wang Chengye, the military governor of Taiyuan. The rebels captured Gaoqing, Ji Ming and his son, who were killed heroically. More than 30 members of the Yan family were killed by swords and axes. It was not until Yan Zhenqing returned to the court to cry out to Su Zong that Gaoqing and his son were commended for the "Anshi Rebellion". After the peace, Yan Zhenqing sent his nephew Yan Quanming to Hebei to search for the remains of Gaoqing's father and son and their scattered family members, but only the skull of Yan Jiming was found and brought back. Yan Zhenqing cherished the memory of his cousin's loyal family, "the father was trapped and the son died, and the nest collapsed." He wrote this memorial with the feeling of grief and indignation, which was filled with blood and tears. It is conceivable that at the time of writing, national calamity and family feud all came to his heart, and he was filled with so much emotion and anger that no words were counted. The work is clumsy, the strokes are bold and bold, the ink is dry and thick, the brushwork is round and vigorous, the brushstrokes are connotative, and the power penetrates the paper, fully revealing the author's agitated and sad mood, and you can find that if you read the draft carefully, you can find that he began to describe his life experience. , is relatively calm, and the characters are more regular and rounded. After writing "The traitor will not be saved", grief fills my chest, and the font breaks the reserved situation. The font shape and line spacing are sometimes large and small, and sometimes heavy, like choking. Not moving forward; sometimes indulgent, like a generous lament, the mistakes and omissions gradually increase. He wrote, "The soul has knowledge, but there is no long-term guest." By the time I wrote the words "Alas, Shang Xi", I had already reached a very high state where I had no intention of writing but my breath was natural. The ups and downs of emotions were naturally revealed with the strokes of my writing. This is because when I wrote the text, I was filled with passionate and tragic emotions. The superb calligraphy art accumulated over a long period of time comes out inadvertently, so the manuscript is majestic and has thrilling artistic appeal. Although there is no trace of artificiality, it can never destroy the strong artistic appeal of the manuscript. , and this is the reason. Zhang Yan of the Yuan Dynasty said in the postscript of "Manuscripts of Memorials to Nephews": "Living in the capital, I tasted the calligraphy of various sages (Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy), and thought that the letter was not as good as a simple letter, and the simple letter was not as good as the grass. The cover is an official work. Although it is written in regular script, it is ultimately a rope agreement. And the drafting was done unintentionally, because he forgot his mind and his hand, which is really wonderful.
"It means that when writing regular script, it is more serious and easy to be restrained, but when writing draft, it is free and easy, which can best show the author's excellent calligraphy art. Su Shi in the Song Dynasty not only studied Yan calligraphy, but also had a very high evaluation of Yan calligraphy and his character. Pin is even more admirable. He said in "Dongpo's Inscriptions and Postscripts": "When I look at Lu Gong's book, I don't want to see its brilliance. It is not just about him as a person, but it is as awe-inspiring as if I saw him criticizing Lu Qi and criticizing Xi Lie. also. "It is said that the calligraphy is like the person, and Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy is the embodiment of his righteousness, righteousness, and integrity. It makes sense for people in the past dynasties not only to appreciate and speak highly of Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy art, but also to praise and admire his personality and moral character. .