1, Travel Notes
Liu Zongyuan's writing style is quiet, unlike Han Yu's aggressive style. He is most famous for his travel notes and fables, especially his travel notes "Eight Notes of Yongzhou", which integrates narration, description and discussion.
He traveled in Yongzhou, trying to get rid of his inner pain by taking advantage of the mountains and rivers. His landscape travel notes are deliberately calm and detached. On the one hand, he objectively described the landscape, on the other hand, he pretended to be happy in a cynical way to suppress his inner sadness.
Yongzhou landscape is despised by the world, which is the same as Liu Zongyuan's fate. So, he wrote a note for Yongzhou landscape, pinning his grief and indignation. Eight Chapters of Yongzhou is not only a praise for nature, but also an indignation at one's unfortunate situation.
2. Poetry
Liu Zongyuan's poems have been handed down from generation to generation, of which about 30% are landscape poems, some are profound and steep, and some are plain. His landscape poems were deeply influenced by Xie Lingyun in the Southern Dynasties. They all express their loneliness through sightseeing, objectively describe the mountains and rivers, and the syntax is concise and beautiful.
3. Cifu
Liu Zongyuan once wrote dozens of poems imitating Li Sao. Among them, the poem "Poetry of Prison Mountain" describes Chushan around him as a prison, and he is imprisoned at the bottom of a deep prison like a pig and an ox. But when he saw the dim light at the wellhead and the wild animals roared among the thorns, he took care of his vicious dog and wrote down the gloomy scenery of hell.
Zhao Hai Wen Jia changed its connotation by imitating the title and structure of "Enchanting the Soul", telling the story that ghosts and monsters eat people everywhere, so as to persuade the maritime businessmen not to venture out for the sake of temporary interests, but to stay in their hometown and live safely. It is a metaphor used to satirize those scholars who are lucky enough to take risks. It is unexpected and innovative.
affect
Liu Zongyuan's reputation is growing day by day. Although living in the southern wilderness, many young scholars have come from afar for advice. Under his advocacy, the relationship between heaven and man became an important topic in the middle Tang Dynasty. Han Yu, Bai Juyi, Yuan Zhen, Lu Wen, Liu Yuxi, Li Ao, and Niu Sengru all responded to Liu Zongyuan's view of heaven, and generally opposed the theory of heaven and man induction.
In the Song Dynasty, Ouyang Xiu deleted the part related to political activities in the chapter "Records of Five Elements in the New Tang Dynasty".
Liu Zongyuan's study of Spring and Autumn Annals is the origin of Spring and Autumn Annals in Song Dynasty, which has a great influence. There are many feudal theories written by later generations, and we can't ignore Liu Zongyuan's article Feudalism. Whether they agree or not, the feudal theory of Song people was developed on the basis of Liu Zongyuan's exposition and inspired by him. For example, both Ye Shi and Chen Liang mentioned "feudalism" as their arguments. Eight Chapters of Yongzhou is vivid in description and profound in feelings, which has a far-reaching influence on later travel notes.