Although Tao Yuanming has written some well-known poems, his main achievement is in poetry. In the history of literature, he has always been recorded as a poet. The themes of Tao Yuanming's poems are: philosophy, such as Together; Farewells, such as Farewell to Silent Shore and A Long History of Giving Sheep; Family training, such as "life son" and "responsibility son"; The most important of them are pastoral poems and poems about the past.
The Collection of Tao Yuanming Prince Xiao Tong Liang Zhaoming collected Tao Yuanming's posthumous works, compiled them into seven volumes, recorded one volume, and made them: Biography of Tao Yuanming and Preface to Tao Yuanming's Collection.
Tao Yuanming (365-427) was born in Chaisang, Xunyang (now Jiujiang, Jiangxi), a latent and cheerful figure. He served as a state wine festival, joined the army in Zhenjun, and joined the ranks of Jianwei and Peng. At the age of 4 1, Peng resigned and retired until his death. After his death, his friends kept silent about "Jingjie", and the world called him Mr. Jingjie.
Tao Yuanming had no ambition to help the world, but he lived in the era of the Eastern Jin, Liu and Song Dynasties. The political situation is bleak, the political situation is turbulent, social disputes are complex, and ethnic contradictions are intensifying. There is a great conflict between his ideal and reality. He gradually regarded his career as a thorn in the road and yearned for a plain and natural life.
At the same time, metaphysics flourished and metaphysical poems prevailed since Wei and Jin Dynasties, and the influence of metaphysics made him pursue the self-adaptation of his mind and the integrity of his personality. The contradiction between being an official and being secluded has troubled Tao Yuanming 19 years. In the end, he chose to resign and retire in his prime, and never became an official again, which showed his noble character of modesty, integrity and simplicity.
During his seclusion, he wrote some poems reflecting the sufferings and disasters brought about by the war, but more of them were superior to others, some praised seclusion, some described pastoral scenery, and some expressed Laozi and Zhuangzi's thoughts and metaphysical propositions in artistic conception. For this reason, Tao Yuanming is known as the "Sect of hermit poets in ancient and modern times" (Zhong Rong's poems).
Tao Yuanming's works inherited the tradition of the Han and Wei Dynasties, and formed a unique style, rich in content, sincere in emotion, diluted in style, leisurely in charm, and extremely good at using freehand brushwork to touch the depth of artistic conception.