Liu Zongyuan, courtesy name Zihou, was born in Hedong (now Yongji City, Shanxi Province) in the Tang Dynasty. He was born in the capital Chang'an in the eighth year of Dali (773), and in the fourteenth year of Yuanhe (819) of Emperor Xianzong. ) died in Liuzhou. A famous writer and thinker of his generation died under the age of 50. Because he was from Hedong and finally became the governor of Liuzhou, he was called Liuhedong or Liuliuzhou.
Poetry style: clear and light. Famous poems: "Climb the Liuzhou Tower and Send to Zhangting to Connect the Four Prefectures", "Snow on the River" and "The Fisherman".
Prose style: Somber and solemn.
Literary propositions: In terms of content, "literature makes the way clear" and "unfairness leads to criticism"; in terms of form, learning from the past and innovating, the words must come from one's own.
Philosophical thoughts: He is a simple materialist ontologist and opposes "theory of destiny". He believed that everything in the world was created by the yin and yang changes of material "vital energy".
Political thought: He proposed a view of historical development driven by "the will of strangers" and believed that the development of history does not depend on "the will of saints."
Literary influence: Essays, landscape travel essays, fables, and biographical essays have a great influence on later generations. In particular, "he made pioneering contributions to the two genres of landscape travel notes and fables. The final completer of these two literary styles, and achieved achievements that are difficult for future generations to achieve." In August of the first year of Yongzhen (805), the political reform of Wang Shuwen Group failed. Because Liu Zongyuan participated in it, he was demoted to Shaozhou Governor in September, and in November, he was demoted to Yongzhou Sima. At that time, those who were demoted to Yuanzhou Sima at the same time were: Liu Yuxi, Wei Zhiyi, Han Tai, Chen Jian, Han Ye, Ling Zhun, and Cheng Yi. This is the famous "Eight Sima" incident. After his political ideals were shattered, thirty-three-year-old Liu Zongyuan began to devote himself to the transformation of literary words. "Eight Records of Yongzhou" is his work after he was demoted to Yongzhou. The author is deep in a desolate place, and in his spare time, he indulges in the mountains and rivers. At the same time, he "discovered and understood his own beautiful sentiments and values ??from the beautiful natural landscapes, and strengthened his life beliefs and social critical consciousness." "New Book of Tang Dynasty·Liu Zongyuan Biography" records: "It was repelled and the land was desolate. Because it was left in the mountains and swamps, the misfortune and depression were reflected in all the articles." This article was written in the fourth year of Yuanhe (809). , using scenes to express emotions, revealing the author's dissatisfaction with the thoughts and feelings of being in a remote and remote place. In the same year, he also wrote "Eight Notes of Yongzhou", "The Notes of the West Xiaoqiu of the Cobalt Lake" and "The Notes of the West Xiaoshitan of Xiaoqiu".
The Liu family, Xue and Pei families are collectively known as the "Three Surnames in Hedong". Liu Zongyuan's eighth to sixth generation ancestors were all high officials in the imperial court, and the fifth generation ancestor served as governor of the four states. After entering the Tang Dynasty, the Liu family had a close relationship with the Li royal family. During the reign of Emperor Gaozong alone, as many as 22 members of the Liu family lived in the Ministry of Officials and Secretaries. But during the Yonghui period, the Liu family was repeatedly attacked and persecuted by Wu Zetian. By the time Liu Zongyuan was born, his family had declined, and he had fallen from the privileged position of a relative of the emperor to the ordinary bureaucratic landlord class. Liu Zongyuan's great-grandfather and grandfather also only served as minor officials such as county magistrates. His father, Liu Zhen, had always had a low official rank. Liu Zongyuan said with great emotion that of his generation, "there has been no one who has been a court official since the fifth or sixth century." The Anshi Rebellion caused another huge impact on the Liu family. During the war, Liu Zhen sent his mother to seek refuge in Wangwu Mountain, and he and his family joined the fleeing crowd and fled to Wudi. In the south, life was once difficult, and sometimes there was no money to be made. Liu Zongyuan's mother often starved herself in order to support her children. Liu Zongyuan was born after the "Anshi Rebellion", and he spent his childhood in poverty and hardship. When Liu Zongyuan was nine years old, another large-scale separatist war - the Jianzhong Rebellion broke out, causing Liu Zongyuan's family to suffer the pain of war again. Liu Zongyuan grew up in a turbulent era. From his boyhood, he had a certain understanding of the sufferings of the people and a certain understanding of social reality, which had a great influence on his future literary achievements and ideological achievements.
In the spring of the ninth year of Zhenyuan (793), 20-year-old Liu Zongyuan passed the exam and passed the exam. At the same time, his friend Liu Yuxi also passed the exam. In the twelfth year of Zhenyuan (796), Liu Zongyuan was appointed as the secretary of the Provincial School Secretary, and he entered the officialdom. In this year, he married Yang Ping's daughter in Chang'an. Two years later, he was transferred to the Jixian Hall of Zhongboxuehongci Department. With Zhengzi in the Academy, he could read a lot of books and broaden his horizons. At the same time, he also began to contact courtiers and bureaucrats, understand the official situation, and care about and participate in politics. In his first year at Jixian Hall Academy, he wrote "The Monument of the Relics of the Imperial Son Siye Yangcheng", which praised Yangcheng, the admonishing official who had the courage to insist on his own opinions on major political affairs. In the second year, he wrote "The Invasion Debate". "On Defeat", expressing a strong desire to uphold unity and oppose division.
In the seventeenth year of Zhenyuan (801), Liu Zongyuan was transferred to Lantian Lieutenant. Two years later, he was transferred back to Chang'an to serve as Supervisory Censor Li Xing. He was 31 years old at the time and had the same official rank as Han Yu, although his official rank was low. , but his authority was no less than that of the imperial censor. From then on, he had more extensive contacts with the upper echelons of the officialdom, gained a deeper understanding of the dark corruption of politics, and gradually developed a desire for reform, becoming an important figure in Wang Shuwen's reformist faction.
Although Wang Shuwen and Wang (任丕)’s Yongzhen Reform failed after only half a year, it was a progressive movement that shocked the country. The measures implemented struck a blow against the domineering eunuchs and officials at that time. The separatist power of vassal towns benefited the country and the people, and conformed to the development of history. Liu Zongyuan and his friend Liu Yuxi were the core figures of this revolution, and were known as the "Two Kings Liu Liu". The young Liu Zongyuan had a sharp struggle with eunuchs, wealthy families, and old bureaucrats on the political stage. His innovative spirit and fighting spirit are very valuable.
As Shunzong stepped down and Xianzong came to power, the reform failed, and "Two Kings Liu Liu" and other reformists were immediately demoted. Xianzong ascended the throne in August, and Liu Zongyuan was demoted to the governor of Shaozhou (now Shaoyang City, Hunan Province) in September. Before he was halfway, he was demoted to the Sima of Yongzhou (now Lingling, Hunan Province). This time, there were seven other people who were demoted to Sima at the same time, so history calls this incident the "Two Kings and Eight Sima Incident".
Yongzhou is located at the junction of Hunan and Guangdong. It was very remote at that time, a sparsely populated and scary place. Going to Yongzhou with Liu Zongyuan were his 67-year-old mother, cousin Liu Zongzhi, and cousin Lu Zun. After they arrived in Yongzhou, they didn't even have a place to live. Later, with the help of a monk, they stayed at Longxing Temple. Due to the hard life, his mother Lu passed away less than half a year after arriving in Yongzhou.
After Liu Zongyuan was demoted, his political opponents still refused to let him go. They spread rumors, defamed him and attacked him personally, turning him into a "weirdo", and they continued to criticize him several years later. This shows how much conservatives hate him. In Yongzhou, the brutal political persecution and difficult living environment made Liu Zongyuan sad, angry, melancholy, and miserable. Coupled with several ruthless fires, his health was severely damaged, to the point where "his knees tremble when he walks and his spine becomes paralyzed when he sits." . The various persecutions and hardships he endured during his relegation failed to shake Liu Zongyuan's political ideals. He made it clear in his letter: "Although he has been rejected by many people, it is nothing more than what he deserves."
The demotion of Yongzhou lasted for 10 years. This was a major turning point in Liu Zongyuan's life. When he was in the capital, he was directly engaged in revolutionary activities. After arriving in Yongzhou, his struggle shifted to the ideological and cultural field. The ten years in Yongzhou were the ten years in which he continued to struggle. He extensively studied some major issues in philosophy, politics, history, literature and other aspects throughout the past and present, and wrote articles and books, such as "On Feudalism", "Fei Guoyu", "Heavenly Duties" "", "Six Countermeasures" and other famous works were mostly completed in Yongzhou.
In the first month of the tenth year of Yuanhe (815), Liu Zongyuan, Liu Yuxi and others were recalled to Beijing. But he was not reused. Due to the hatred of Wu Yuanheng and others, they arrived in Chang'an in February and announced their demotion in March. Liu Zongyuan was demoted to the governor of Liuzhou (now Liuzhou City, Guangxi), and Liu Yuxi was appointed the governor of Bozhou. Although he was promoted from Sima to governor, the place he was demoted to was more remote and difficult than before. Liu Zongyuan thought that Bozhou was even more difficult than Liuzhou and that Liu Yuxi still had his 80-year-old mother to support him, so he wrote to the court several times, requesting an exchange with Liu Yuxi. Later, because of someone's help, Liu Yuxi was demoted to Lianzhou, and Liu Zongyuan left for Liuzhou.
Liuzhou is further away from the capital Chang'an than Yongzhou. It is more backward and desolate. Most of the residents are ethnic minorities, living in extreme poverty, and their customs and habits are very different from those in the Central Plains. When Liu Zongyuan first came here, he didn't understand the language and was uncomfortable with everything, but he was still determined to use the limited power of the governor to continue to implement reforms in this local area and do good things for the local people.
When Liu Zongyuan was in Liuzhou, he was determined to abolish the cruel custom of "taking men and women hostage for money and agreeing to redeem them from time to time. If the son is a good match, he will not be a slave", and formulated a set of methods for the release of slaves, stipulating that those who had already Those who become servants can be paid according to their time. After paying off their debts, they will regain their personal freedom and go home to reunite with their relatives. This move was welcomed by the poor people and was later implemented in prefectures and counties outside Liuzhou. In view of the superstitious and backward customs of the local people, Liu Zongyuan strictly prohibited quack witch doctors from cheating money and harming people; he organized and developed cultural and educational undertakings, set up schools, promoted medicine, and made Liuzhou, which had never dared to dig wells, drill several wells in succession to solve the problem. Drinking water problem. Liuzhou has a lot of wasteland, and Liu Zongyuan organized idle labor to reclaim it. On the wasteland reclaimed in Dayun Temple alone, 30,000 bamboo poles and hundreds of vegetables were planted. He also attached great importance to afforestation, and Duohuan personally participated in tree planting activities.
In the fourth year of Liuzhou, Liu Zongyuan carried out a number of reforms to promote advantages and eliminate disadvantages within his own ability. The legacy benefited one party. In fact, it was the implementation of Wang Shuwen's reforms in some areas.
The long-term relegation career, life difficulties and mental torture made Liu Zongyuan's health worse and worse, and he was indeed aging before he was old. His friend Wu Wuling went to the door of the ruling minister Pei Du many times to try to rescue him from Liuzhou and return to Beijing. Pei Du and Liu Zongyuan were both from Hedong. In the 14th year of Yuanhe, Xianzong implemented a general amnesty because of his honorary title. After Pei Du interceded, Xianzong agreed to recall Liu Zongyuan. However, it was too late. Before the edict reached Liuzhou, Liu Zongyuan left the world with grief and anger. He was only 47 years old at the time. Before his death, Liu Zongyuan wrote a letter to his friend Liu Yuxi and left his manuscript to him. Later Liu Yuxi compiled it into "Liu Zongyuan Collection".
Although he lived less than 50 years old, Liu Zongyuan created brilliant achievements in literature, making great contributions in poetry, poetry, prose, travel notes, fables, novels, essays and literary theory. made outstanding contributions.
There are more than 140 poems by Liu Zongyuan in the collection. In the poetry world of the Tang Dynasty, where everyone was in great numbers and flowers were blooming, he was one of the few surviving poems, but many of his poems were handed down from generation to generation. On the basis of his unique life experience and thoughts and feelings, he drew on the artistic experience of his predecessors, gave full play to his creative talents, created a unique artistic style, and became an outstanding poetic talent representing a school at that time. Su Shi commented: "The most valuable thing is dry talk, which is said to be dry on the outside but creamy in the middle. It seems to be bland but actually beautiful, which is also the case with Yuanming and Zihou." Liu Zongyuan and Tao Yuanming were juxtaposed. Most of Liu Zongyuan's existing poems were written after he was demoted to Yongzhou, with a wide range of themes and diverse genres.
His narrative poems are simple in style and vivid in description, his allegorical poems are vivid in image and profound in meaning, and his lyric poems are better at using fresh and refreshing writing style to express his moods euphemistically and profoundly. Regardless of the genre, they are all written with exquisite craftsmanship and profound charm. They express extremely deep emotions in a simple and plain style, and present a unique look. Because he is a poet who cares about reality and sympathizes with the people, he can write poems with social significance and artistic value no matter what subject he writes.
Yan Yu from the Song Dynasty said: "The only people in the Tang Dynasty who are rich in Sao Xue." This argument is quite pertinent. Liu Zongyuan's Ci and Fu inherited and carried forward the tradition of Qu Yuan's Ci and Fu. His poetry not only made use of traditional forms, but also inherited Qu Yuan's spirit. This may be because although they are separated by thousands of years, they have similarities in their thoughts, experiences, ambitions and characters. According to the original biography of "Old Book of Tang Dynasty", Liu Zongyuan "was on the run, wading through the barbaric miasma, and the rough terrain (House Yi). It contains the melancholy of a poet, and writes emotional narratives, which must be moved by prose. There are dozens of poems, please read "It's very similar to Qu Yuan's poems." Liu Zongyuan's "Nine Fu" and "Ten Sao" are indeed excellent works of Fu style literature in the Tang Dynasty. Whether they focus on expressing feelings or chanting objects, they are both sincere and full of content.
Liu Zongyuan's prose is as famous as Han Yu. Together with Ouyang Xiu and Su Shi of the Song Dynasty, Han and Liu are known as the "Eight Great Masters of the Tang Family" and can be called the most outstanding prose writers in the history of our country. In the middle of the Tang Dynasty, Liu Zongyuan and Han Yu launched and led an ancient prose movement in the literary world. They put forward a series of ideological theories and literary propositions. In terms of article content, in order to solve the shortcomings of parallel prose that does not pay attention to content and is empty, it is proposed to "unify literature and Tao" and "to civilize Tao". Articles are required to reflect the reality, "cry out if there is injustice", and be full of critical spirit to eliminate current shortcomings. In terms of the form of the article, it is proposed to innovate the style of writing, break through the constraints of parallel prose, and allow the sentence structure to be of any length. It also requires that the language be improved to "do not state the words" and "the words must be spoken by oneself". In addition, it is also pointed out that one should "establish actions" before "establishing words". This is a progressive literary proposition. Han and Liu put their practice into practice and created many excellent essays with rich content, proficient skills and concise and vivid language. Han Liu's ancient prose movement had a profound impact on later generations.
In terms of travel notes, fables, etc., Liu Zongyuan also left extremely excellent works for future generations. "Eight Notes of Yongzhou" has become a masterpiece of ancient Chinese landscape travel notes. These beautiful landscape travel notes vividly express people's feelings about the beauty of nature, enriching the new realm of classical prose that reflects life, thus establishing the status of landscape notes as an independent literary genre in the history of literature. Because of his artistic achievements, he has been praised and praised by people for thousands of years. In addition to allegorical poems, Liu Zongyuan also wrote many fables, such as "The Donkey of Guizhou", "The Rat of the Yong Family", etc., which have become famous ancient fables. "The Guizhou donkey has no skills" has become an idiom and almost everyone knows it. Although some fables are short in length, they have been passed down through the ages just like his landscape stories.
In addition to his literary achievements, Liu Zongyuan is also a famous thinker. A person who is actively involved in political innovation must be a thinker. Liu Zongyuan's philosophical works include "Fei Guoyu", "Zhenfu", "On Seasons", "On Punishment", "Tian Shuo", "Tian Dui", etc. In these treatises, Liu Zongyuan took a negative attitude towards the fortune-telling theory advocated by Dong Zhongshu, a great scholar of the Han Dynasty, as "the fortune-telling talisman of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties". He denounced big figures like Dong Zhongshu as "obscene witches and blind historians" and accused him of "deceiving future generations." . He opposed the theories of heavenly talismans, destiny, and heavenly ways, criticized theology, emphasized human affairs, and replaced "arsenic" with "human beings." This was very commendable in the feudal society where theological superstitions dominated more than a thousand years ago. Liu Zongyuan also turned his criticism of theology into a criticism of politics, using a simple materialist point of view to explain the "between heaven and man", that is, the relationship between heaven and man, and criticizing the idealist theory of destiny. His philosophical thoughts were in line with the development of social productive forces and the level reached by natural science at that time. He developed the ancient simple materialist atheism thought to a new height and was an outstanding thinker in the mid-Tang Dynasty.
Some of Liu Zongyuan’s social and political treatises are a concrete reflection of his political thoughts and a means for him to participate in political struggles. "On Feudalism" is Liu Zongyuan's most famous political paper. Regarding the dispute between the feudal system and the county system, Liu Zongyuan believed that the entire social history was a natural development process, with an inevitable trend of objective development that was not dependent on people's will. The enfeoffment system exposed various serious drawbacks, but the new system of counties and counties could overcome the shortcomings of the enfeoffment system and was superior and progressive. Therefore, we strongly supported the system of counties and counties. The evaluation of Qin Shihuang also reflects the progressive nature of Liu Zongyuan's political thought. Political treatises such as "Six Countermeasures" and "Jin Wen" advocated meritocracy and opposed hereditary privileges. They even believed that the emperor had made mistakes in the employment of personnel and should correct them. His thought of attaching great importance to agricultural warfare is also prominent, and he attaches great importance to encouraging farming and building water conservancy to benefit and stabilize the people. Liu Zongyuan admired Confucianism, but he did not advocate Confucianism. Many of his remarks often provide harmonious explanations of Confucianism, Legalism, Buddhism, Taoism and other schools of thought from an eclectic and harmonious standpoint. This is where his thoughts differ from other thinkers.
As an outstanding thinker and writer in the history of our country, Liu Zongyuan will always be respected by the world.