The author of "The Preface to the Holy Religion of the Wild Goose Pagoda" is Chu Suiliang.
"The Preface to the Holy Religion of the Wild Goose Pagoda", also known as the "Preface to the Holy Religion of Ci'en Temple", is a famous stele work in the history of calligraphy and a representative work of Chu Suiliang's regular script in the Tang Dynasty. In the fourth year of Yonghui reign of Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty (AD 653), two stone tablets were set up in two brick niches on both sides of the south gate of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. The foreheads and writing directions of the two tablets are symmetrical to each other. The monument contains 1,463 words.
The upper stele is a preface stele, the full name of which is "The Preface to the Holy Religion of the Tripitaka of the Tang Dynasty". It is located in the brick niche on the west side of the gate on the south side of the bottom floor of the pagoda. It was written by Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty. The stele has 21 lines and 42 words in each line, starting from the right. The left side is inscribed with inscriptions; the lower stele is a preface stele, whose full name is "The Emperor of the Tang Dynasty's Preface to the Tripitaka Sacred Religion". It is located in the brick niche on the east side of the gate on the south side of the bottom floor of the pagoda. It was written by Li Zhi, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty. The stele has 20 lines and 40 characters. Write from left to right.
Appreciation of the work "The Preface to the Holy Religion of the Wild Goose Pagoda":
The "Preface to the Holy Religion of the Wild Goose Pagoda" was written by Chu Suiliang when he was fifty-eight years old. It is the most representative of Chu Suiliang's regular script style. The work has clear and vigorous fonts and skillful brushwork. Chu Suiliang had already entered old age when he wrote this monument, and by now he had created a complete set of standards for the new Tang Kai script.
In the structure of the characters, the long characters of Ou and Yu were changed, creating a font that looks slim but is actually powerful and full. Wang Yan once commented: "The prefaces of Tongzhou and Yanta Two Saints are his own method, and the copies of "Lanting" handed down from generation to generation are also different from Sui. Most of the covers are from his own Jishu." The characteristics of Chu Suiliang's calligraphy are comprehensive. Most of the calligraphy works are curved lines. Even the short lines have a sentiment of chanting or sighing.
Reference for the above content: Baidu Encyclopedia - Preface to the Holy Order of the Wild Goose Pagoda