Appreciation of the article "Han Yu·Preface to Master Gao Xian"
Gou can incorporate his ingenuity and wisdom①, so that the opportunity is in the heart and not frustrated in the spirit, then the spirit will be perfect and guarded. Solid ②, although external objects arrive, they are not glued to the heart. Yao, Shun, Yu and Tang governed the world, Yangshu governed shooting, Paoding cured cattle, Shi Kuang cured voices, Bian Que cured diseases, Liao cured pills, Qiu cured Yi, Bo Lun cured wine, and Yue governed the world. He will never get tired of it all his life, and he will admire him in his spare time⑦. Those who admire and immigrate outside their homes do not build their halls 8 and do not wear their harems 9 .
In the past, Zhang Xu was good at cursive calligraphy, but if he didn't use his skills, he would feel happy, angry, embarrassed, sad, happy, resentful, yearning, drunk, bored, and restless. If something moved his heart, he would have to express it in cursive calligraphy. Looking at things, we can see mountains, rivers, cliffs and valleys, birds, beasts, insects and fish, vegetation and flowers, sun, moon and stars, wind, rain, fire, thunder and thunder, songs, dances and battles, changes in the world and things, both gratifying and shocking, all are contained in the book {11}. Therefore, Xu's book changes like ghosts and gods, and cannot be traced. This will last his life and be famous in future generations.
If you have nothing to do with cursive writing today, do you have a heart for the future? If you don't understand his heart and chase his traces, you won't see his ability to shine. If there is a way for the future, the interests and losses must be clear, and no money is left behind {12}. The passion is in the midst, and the desire to gain is fighting for progress. There will be gain and loss, and you will not let go. Then you will decide on the book {13}, and then the rise will be rare. Today's Master Futu {14}, after death and rebirth, the external glue is untied, so his mind must be indifferent and have nothing to do, he must be indifferent and have no interest in the world, indifference and indifference encounter each other, decadence and despondency, and the collapse is out of control. So it seems that there is no image in the book? However, I have heard that the people of Futu are good at illusions and have many skills. If they are free to master their skills, I cannot know it.
Notes
① Apartment: to place one's trust in. Qiaozhi: skill, miraculous ability. ②The spirit is complete and the body is solid: Then the spirit will be perfect and the body will be solid. Full of energy, full of nerves, thoughtful and focused. To be firm means to place one's trust in one's heart and remain single-minded. ③Pao Ding treats cattle: Cook Ding is engaged in studying the technology of cattle management. Cook Ding, a man from the Warring States Period, was good at slaughtering cattle. ④Shi Kuang: A native of Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period, he was blind but good at vocal music. ⑤Liao: Yi Liao, a native of Lu in the Spring and Autumn Period, was good at manipulating projectiles. ⑥Autumn: refers to Yiqiu. A native of the Spring and Autumn Period, he is good at Go. ⑦Xi Lei Wai Admiration: How can I have time to admire other things? ⑧Not building its hall: If you don’t go to its hall, that is, if you fail to enter the hall, you cannot understand its secrets. ⑨Those who don’t eat the meat and don’t know its taste. ⑩佚: Tong "yi", comfort, peace and happiness. {11}One is in the book: everything is in calligraphy. {12}锱锢: tiny, a metaphor for smallness. {13}Decide in calligraphy: everything is expressed in calligraphy. Jue means to dredge the waterway and make the water flow down, which is extended to dredge and express. {14}Buddha: refers to Buddhists.
This is a preface written by Han Yu in his later years. Gao Xianren is a monk from Kaiyuan Temple in Huzhou. His religious name is Gao Xian. He likes to learn Zhang Xu's cursive script and was once named the "Emperor Cao Sheng". Han Yu showed an attitude of contempt and ridicule towards this "big man". Although every sentence talks about Chinese calligraphy, it actually criticizes and refutes Buddhism.
"Preface to the Master Gao Xian" clearly explains at the beginning that artistic creation is a high degree of mental labor, and one must devote one's life's energy to it; in the process of artistic creation, one needs to put all one's emotions into it. and devoted their energy to it, and cited representative examples in history: "Yao, Shun, Yu, and Tang governed the world, Yang Shu cured archery, Bu Ding cured cattle, Shi Kuang cured sound, Bian Que cured diseases, and Liao Zhi cured For pills, Qiu is for chess, Bo Lun is for wine, and he will never tire of having fun. "The reason why they have achieved such high achievements is because they have devoted their whole life to the business they govern. It is completely impossible for a person who is distracted and distracted to reach such a height by casting them into one and inseparable from his own life.
Although there is no positive discussion of ancient Chinese calligraphy, this article can be regarded as a valuable expository article commenting on the art of Chinese calligraphy. It includes calligraphy creation and calligraphy appreciation and other aspects. The art of calligraphy, like other art categories, includes two value levels: "technique" and "Tao". If you want your works of art to shine for future generations and shine for generations to come, you must transcend the level of "technique" and enter the realm of "Tao" .
What is "Tao"? That is to say, after Boding went through the two stages of "one who sees nothing but cattle" and "one who has never seen all cattle", he finally reached the state of "meeting gods without looking at them". The full text gives a high evaluation to Zhang Xu's cursive calligraphy, pointing out that calligraphy art is an artistic expression with emotion as its core, and reveals the thinking mode of cursive cursive art creation: object-emotion-calligraphy.
This article finally sublimates the theme from the comments on calligraphy: if a person wants to use his talents, he must grasp the laws of things and be single-minded, which is to "purify away the mysterious knowledge". Even if something is happening around you, you must be "mindless". Only in this way can you "embed your ingenuity and wisdom, make the opportunity respond to your heart, and not be frustrated by your anger. Then your spirit will be complete and solid, even if it is external." When things arrive, they are not stuck in the heart."
Comments from later generations
Su Shi's "Send Shen Liao Shi": "If you retreat and talk about cursive script, everything will not be over. The sadness and injustice are all driven by the pen. It's quite strange for the people of Futu, See yourself as a well."