Influence of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism on Su Shi

Su Shi's concept of "a book is like a person" in calligraphy appreciation is based on Confucianism, and it is also the inheritance and development of "a book also paints a heart" in the Tang Dynasty and Liu Gongquan's thought of "a correct mind and a correct pen". Su Shi pointed out in the Postscript of Qian Gong's Book on Military Power: "A man is ugly, but a gentleman and a villain cannot be concealed. Words are different, and the spirit of a gentleman and a villain cannot be deceived. Although the book is clumsy, the hearts of gentlemen and villains cannot be chaotic. " [2] So, "Qian Gong doesn't study, but by reading his books, he knows that he is quite loyal and polite." [3] This is to know people by books, and to discuss people by books. Su Shi declared loudly: "ancient books, but their lives, not their people, although the work is not expensive." [4] This view not only shows that Su Shi attaches importance to the role of ideological quality in calligraphy appreciation, but also shows the close relationship between calligraphy and character. Calligraphy is the expression of people's ideological quality. Therefore, to evaluate the quality of a work, we should not only start with the agility of calligraphy, but also grasp the calligrapher's thoughts, feelings and moral quality from the work. This is the embodiment of Su Shi's adherence to the Confucian thought of "benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, loyalty and filial piety" in book theory.

Su Shi's view of appreciation is clearly reflected in his evaluation of many great calligraphers in past dynasties. Taking Yan Zhenqing as an example, Yan Shu achieved the same prominent position as Wang Xizhi in the history of calligraphy. It was not until the Song Dynasty that Yan Shu became a "poet saint" and only a poet, which reflected the changes in the mentality and aesthetic concept of the literati in the Song Dynasty. Yan Zhenqing was honest and outspoken all his life. He was not afraid of powerful people and was famous for his benevolence and righteousness. Yan Shu replaced the exquisite brushwork of Jin people with a round and vigorous brushwork, and replaced the beautiful style of Er Wang's calligraphy with a steady and dignified structure, which was magnificent and self-contained, creating a new generation of style. However, this new style was not recognized at that time until later generations. Li Yu said that Yan Shu "has a model and a law but no beauty, just like the cross between South Korea and China". But Su Shi's focus is on his style from his books. "Book title Lu Gongtie" said: "I don't want to read Gong Yan's book, but I hate reading it." [4] Yan Zhenqing's words connected him with others, and then others further affirmed the artistic achievements of his book. This is the practical application of Su Shi's appreciation theory. For example, in the postscript of Ouyang Wenzhong's Official Book, he commented on Ouyang Yunxiu: "Ouyang Wenzhong uses a sharp pen to dry ink and make square characters, which is beautiful and has endless paste.