Preface to the Lanting Collection
[Eastern Jin Dynasty] Wang Xizhi
The author's biography Wang Xizhi (321-379), courtesy name Yi Shao, was born in Langya Linyi (now Linyi County, Shandong Province) in the Eastern Jin Dynasty people). At the beginning, he was secretary Lang. Yu Liang asked him to join the army for the Western Expedition. He moved to Changshi, where he paid homage to General Ningyuan and became the governor of Jiangzhou. After the war, he was appointed as the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. If he failed, he was awarded the title of General Protecting the Country, moved to the General of the Right Army, and became the internal history of Kuaiji. The right army is known as the king in the world. In his later years, he complained of illness and resigned from office. He indulged in mountains and rivers and enjoyed fishing. The deceased gave gold to Dr. Ziguanglu. There are ten volumes of poetry collections. Zhang Pu of the Qing Dynasty wrote in his "Inscriptions on the Collection of One Hundred and Three Masters of the Han, Wei and Six Dynasties" that his letters were far-sighted and "good medicine for the emperors and ministers of the Eastern Jin Dynasty" and praised him for "the poetry he chants in the Orchid Pavilion, the rhyme of which is better than that of the Golden Valley". This shows Wang Xizhi’s literary achievements. He is also famous for his calligraphy skills, especially his calligraphy skills. His writing style is as floating as floating clouds and as powerful as a swimming dragon. Commentators rate him as the best in ancient and modern times. The "Preface to the Lanting Collection" that he created and wrote is not only a treasure in the calligraphy garden, but also a masterpiece in the literary world. It has been praised and praised by people for thousands of years.
The Orchid Pavilion on Zhushan Mountain in the southwest of Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province has a beautiful surrounding environment and pleasant scenery. On March 3rd of the ninth year of Yonghe reign of Emperor Mu of Jin Dynasty (353), Wang Xizhi and forty-one people including Xie An, Sun Chuo, and his nephew Ningzhi and Xianzhi, who were famous at that time, gathered in Lanting for a banquet. They drank wine, wrote poems, and expressed their feelings. In addition to two poems, Xizhi also wrote this preface to the collection of poems afterwards. The preface vividly and vividly describes the grand occasion and fun of this gathering, and expresses the feeling that grand events do not come often and life is short. In the Eastern Jin Dynasty, when metaphysics was prevalent and pure talk was advocated, Wang Xizhi was unique in his opposition to "empty talk that wastes business and superficial prose that hinders important matters" (Shishuoxinyu·Yu). This article denounces Lao and Zhuang's "life and death" and "Qi Peng Shang" as "false" and "unprecedented", and to a certain extent, it also reveals his aggressive intention to not waste his time in vain. In the early Southern Dynasties, parallel prose with elaborate sentences has gradually become popular. This preface does not pursue gorgeous rhetoric, but breaks out of its own way. It narrates the scene, is fresh and natural, expresses feelings, is simple and profound, and achieves harmony between content and form.
In the ninth year of Yonghe (1), when he was in Guichou, at the beginning of late spring, he met at the Orchid Pavilion of Shanyin in Kuaiji (2) to repair the evil spirits (3). All the talented people have arrived (4), and the young and old have gathered together (5). Here there are high mountains, lush forests and bamboos, and clear streams and rapids, reflecting the scenery to the left and right. It is thought that the flowing wine is flowing in the water [6], and the next one is sitting next to it. Although it is not as prosperous as silk and bamboo orchestral music, one wine cup and one chant are enough to express the quiet feelings. It's a sunny day, the air is clear, and the wind is gentle and gentle. Looking up at the vastness of the universe and looking down at the abundance of categories, wandering your eyes and wandering your mind is enough to provide you with great visual and auditory entertainment, which is a joy to behold.
The lady's relationship with her will last a lifetime (7). Or they can take each other's arms and talk to each other in the same room [8]; Although there are many different interests [10], calmness and impatience are different. When you are happy with what you encounter, you are temporarily satisfied with yourself, and you are happy and self-sufficient. You never know that old age is coming [11]. When I am tired of what I am doing, my emotions change with the situation, and I am filled with emotion. The admiration for it, and the admiration of it, have become old traces, and I still cannot help but feel happy about them. The situation will be shortened and changed, and it will eventually end. The ancients said: "Death and life are also big things!" [12] Isn't it painful?
Every time I look at the reasons for people’s interest in the past, if they are united [13], I will not fail to lament in writing, which cannot be expressed in my heart. We know that one death and life is an illusion [14], and the death of Qi Peng is an illusion [15]. How sad it is that the future looks upon the present just as the present looks upon the past! Therefore, I listed the people at that time and recorded what they said. Although the world is different and things are different, so the excitement is the same. Those who view it later will also feel the elegance.
——Selected from "Four Preparations" and "Parallel Style Wenchao"
In the ninth year of Yonghe, Emperor Mu of Jin Dynasty, this was the year of Guichou. In late spring and early March, we gathered at Orchid Pavilion in Shanyin County, Kuaiji County to perform evil spirits cultivation activities. Many capable people came to attend, young and old gathered together. This place has high mountains, dense woods and tall bamboos, as well as clear streams, rapid torrents, and shining waves lingering around the pavilion. The water was brought in as a curved channel for floating wine glasses, and everyone sat by the water. Although there was no music accompaniment and it was a little deserted, drinking and writing poems at the same time was enough to express the inner feelings heartily. It was a sunny day, the air was fresh, the breeze was blowing, and it was warm and comfortable. It is indeed very happy to look up at the vastness of the universe and look down at the variety of all things, so that you can take a broad view and stretch your mind to fully enjoy what you see and hear.
People interact with each other and go through life in a blink of an eye.
Some people are open-minded and talk heartily with friends at home; some people pin their interests on certain things and enjoy themselves without being bound by secular etiquette. Although people's choices in life vary greatly, and their temperaments vary from calm to impatient. But when they encounter happy things, they feel temporary success in their hearts and are happy and satisfied. They never thought that the aging years of life would soon come. When they are tired of the things they pursue in life, their mood changes accordingly, and emotion begins. What I felt happy in the past has become a thing of the past in an instant, and I can't help but feel deeply about it. What's more, the length of human life span changes due to various reasons, but it will eventually end. The ancients said: "Death and life are also a major event in life!" Isn't this very sad!
Every time I read the reasons why the predecessors were so happy and sighing, it always coincided with what I was sighing about. There was never a time when I didn’t sigh and feel sad in front of these articles, but I didn’t know why. I have always believed that it is wrong to regard death and life as the same thing, and it is absurd to equate long life with short life. Later generations look at modern people just as modern people look at ancient people. How sad! Therefore, I wrote down the names of the attendees at the Lanting gathering one by one and copied the poems they chanted. Even though times may be different and things in the world may change, the basic reasons why people express their feelings remain the same. Readers of later generations will also feel emotional about these poems.
Notes
[1] Yonghe: The reign name of Emperor Mu of Jin Dynasty, 345-356 years. [2] Hui (kuàikuai) Ji: the name of the county, including the area around present-day western Zhejiang and southeastern Jiangsu. Shanyin: present-day Shaoxing, Zhejiang. [3] Xiuyu (xìxi): In ancient customs, on Si day in the first ten days of the third month of the lunar calendar (it was designated as March 3rd after the Wei Dynasty), people gathered at the waterside to play and wash in order to get rid of bad luck and seek blessings. In fact, this is a spring outing activity of the ancients. [4] Qunxian: refers to Xie An and other thirty-two celebrities who attended the meeting. [5] Young Master: Refers to Wang Ningzhi and other nine disciples of the family who attended the meeting. [6] Liushangqushui: Use a lacquered wine glass to hold the wine, put it into a curved waterway and let it drift. When the cup stops in front of someone, someone will drink from it. This is an ancient way of persuading people to drink for fun. 〔7〕Praise for one life: life passes quickly. Pitching, between lowering the head and raising the head, describes the short time. 〔8〕Meiyan: face-to-face conversation. "Book of Jin·Biography of Wang Xizhi" and "Complete Jinwen" are both called "Wuyan", which refers to the words of wonderful enlightenment that can be understood from the heart. Also Tong. 〔9〕Beyond the dissolute body: the behavior is uninhibited and the body is not bound by secular etiquette. 〔10〕Qushe: Same as "choice". [11] Old age is coming: The words come from "The Analects of Confucius·Shu Er": "As a human being, he is so angry that he forgets to eat, and he is happy and forgets his worries. He doesn't know that old age is coming." [12] Death and life are also big things: the words come from "Zhuangzi·De Chong Fu". [13] Deed: Talisman Deed, an ancient token. Carve words on the talisman deed, cut it into two, and hold half of it each as a certificate. [14] One death and life: Treat death and life as the same thing. The saying comes from "Zhuangzi·De Chongfu": "Death and life are one." And "Zhuangzi·Great Master": "Whoever knows that life and death are one and the same, I will be friends with him." [15] Qi Pengshang: To live a long life The Pengzu and the short-lived Shangzi are equal. Peng, Pengzu, is said to be the great-great-grandson of Emperor Zhuanxu and lived to be 800 years old. Shang refers to a person who died in a short life. "Zhuangzi·Qiwu Lun": "No one lives longer than Shang Zi, while Peng Zu died young."
The "Gu Wen Guan Zhi" on my computer is absolutely correct. Give me points! ! !