"Preface to Orchid Pavilion"
The famous pavilion through the ages - Orchid Pavilion
Because of "Preface to Orchid Pavilion", I went to Orchid Pavilion.
Lanting is a post pavilion built in the Han Dynasty. Because Gou Jian, the king of Yue, planted orchids here, the Orchid Pavilion got its name. But at that time, Lanting was unknown. If there had not been the "Preface to the Collection of Lanting", Lanting would have been lost in the long river of history like other pavilions on the ancient road. An accidental opportunity made him famous all over the world. It became famous because of Wang Xizhi in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, when he was the general of the Right Army and the internal historian of Kuaiji. In the ninth year of Yonghe, at the beginning of late spring, he invited 41 friends to practice bad luck in Lanting. Get rid of illness. This is a prayer ceremony that originated in the Han Dynasty. After the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the first day of March was designated as the third day of March, and the form was changed from washing cups to inviting drinking wine and composing poems.
On that day, the breeze was gentle and the weather was sunny. Literati and yake columns were sitting on both sides of the meandering river. They placed wine glasses on the clear stream. Whoever floated in front of them would compose an impromptu poem, otherwise they would be fined. Three cups of wine. In this gathering, 26 people composed 37 poems. Wang Xizhi wrote a preface on the spot while he was intoxicated with wine. Legend has it that he wrote this preface quickly with silkworm cocoon paper and a rat whisker pen. It has 28 lines and 324 words. Any words that are repeated have different variations and are exquisite. This is Wang Xizhi's calligraphy masterpiece "Preface to the Lanting Collection", known as "the best running script in the world". Since this preface is a precious calligraphy treasure from a calligrapher, Lanting has become a holy place for calligraphy and a place where literati of all ages have visited, visited, and recited poems to their heart's content. On the east side of the garden is the Liushang Pavilion, which was the place where the meandering water flowed to drink wine. It is the center of the Orchid Pavilion. There is a plaque in the pavilion that reads "Qushui Invites Viewing Place", and "Orchid Pavilion Repairing the Misfortune" by Li Gonglin, a famous painter of the Tang Dynasty, hangs below. In front of the pavilion, there are rocks stacked on the water. The water is not very deep, and the stones on the bottom of the water are clearly visible. In such a clear flowing water and elegant environment, how can you not drink from your glass?
Everywhere in Lanting, you can smell the strong fragrance of ink. Although the Orchid Pavilion moved its location several times, the Orchid Pavilion was rebuilt in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the "Orchid Pavilion" was written by Kangxi's imperial pen. From then on, the Orchid Pavilion has been here. Today's Orchid Pavilion more realistically reproduces the charming scenery described in the "Preface to the Collection of Orchid Pavilion" as "high mountains, lush forests and bamboos, and clear and turbulent streams reflecting the scenery to the left and right."
Lanting is a place full of allusions. The three steles in the Lanting Pavilion all have a story, and they all happened because of the Lanting Pavilion. Walking in from the quiet stone road of Orchid Pavilion, the first "Goose Pond" stele that you see is erected in a triangular stele pavilion beside a clear water. The pool is not big, and as expected there are a few white geese playing there, because they have seen a lot and don't pay attention to the arrival of tourists. King Luobin once composed this song when he was a child: "Goose, goose, bend its neck to sing to the sky. White hair floats on the green water, and anthurium stirs the clear waves." Here you can feel the poetry and picturesqueness in a child's eyes. As for the word "goose", it is said that Wang Xizhi had just finished writing the word "goose" at that time. When he heard the emperor's edict arrived, he went out to receive it. At this time, his 8-year-old son Wang Xianzhi saw his father leaving and picked up the pen to write the word "pool". If you observe carefully, you will find that the styles of the two characters are indeed different. "Goose" is thin and "Chi" is fat. This is the famous father and son monument.
After passing the Echid Pond and continuing along the tree-lined path, crossing the Sanqu Bridge, you will reach the Xiaolan Pavilion. You will see the second "Lanting" stele. These two characters were originally written by Kangxi. During the Cultural Revolution, it was smashed into three pieces and thrown into the water. In the early 1980s, they were salvaged again and glued together again, but the word "LAN" has no tail and the word "Ting" has no head, and traces of the glue can be clearly seen. According to the tour guide, I asked Mr. Sha Menghai to fill in the missing parts, but Mr. Sha declined because it was difficult for civilians to fill in the imperial pen. Mr. Sha is really smart. He is not afraid that he will follow the example of others. In my opinion, he may be unable to eliminate his resentment towards the disaster that happened in China. So, some people say that there is also a kind of incomplete beauty in this. In fact, it is not the monument that is incomplete, but the incomplete souls. Whenever visitors come here, they can't help but trace the incomplete parts with their hands. After decades of ups and downs, although the font is incomplete, the incomplete parts are now faintly visible due to the constant caressing of the people.
In the park, I bought a locally produced brand-name writing brush, a silk fan with the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" said to be handwritten by a local calligrapher, and a paperweight with the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" written on it. These were all expensive, because the seller explained He said that the price is calculated per word, because there are 324 characters in the "Lanting Preface". I have never been a fan of kiosks with a strong commercial atmosphere in scenic spots, but in Lanting, although there are such kiosks, the products sold are all related to Lanting, which makes it easier for people to accept.
Looking at the tourists in groups of twos and threes, far less than the number of tourists at other attractions, viewing the scenery here, it is better to feel the culture and get closer to Wang Xizhi. Lanting will continue to exist forever because of Wang Xizhi and his stories, and new stories will also emerge.