Category: Culture/Art>>Literature>>Novel
Analysis:
Wang Wei, also known as Mojie, was a very famous poet in the poetry world of the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The poet was called Wang Youcheng because he was the official of Shangshu Youcheng.
Wang Wei’s birth year is still a mystery. Both "Book of Tang" biographies state that Wang Wei was 61 years old. "New Book of Tang" states that he died in the early Yuan Dynasty, "Old Book of Tang" says that he "died in July of the second year of Shangyuan (761)", and "Buddha in the Past Dynasties" Volume 13 of "Tong Zai" also states that Wang Wei died in the second year of the Yuan Dynasty. Zhao Diancheng, an expert on Wang Wei in the Qing Dynasty, "Youcheng Chronicle" concludes that Wang Wei died in July of the second year of the Yuan Dynasty. According to the calculation of his death date of 61 years, he was born in the first year of Chang'an (701), the same year as the great poet Li Bai. However, Wang Jin was Wang Wei's younger brother, and he rose to the rank of prime minister. Both "Book of Tang·Biography of Wang Jin" record that Wang Jin died in the second year of Jianzhong (781) at the age of 82. It is presumed that he was born in the first year of Empress Wu Jiushi ( 700), the younger brother was born one year earlier than the older brother. Based on Zhao Diancheng's "Chronology of Youcheng" and Chen Tiemin's "Chronology of Wang Wei", it is determined that Wang Wei was born in the first year of Chang'an (701) and died in the second year of Shangyuan (761).
Wang Wei’s birthplace is also controversial. "Old Book of Tang" says that Wang Wei was from Qi in Taiyuan, and later moved to Puzhou and became a native of Hedong. "Jijiaoji" compiled by Yao He of the Tang Dynasty said that Wang Wei was from Hedong, and Zhang Yanyuan's "Records of Famous Paintings in the Past Dynasties" also said that he was from Taiyuan. Regarding the records of Wang Wei's younger brother Wang Jin, the "Old Book of Tang" says that he was from Hezhong, while the "New Book of Tang" says that he was originally from Qi, Taiyuan, and later lived in Hezhong. Pu refers to Puzhou, and its administrative seat is now Yongji County, Shanxi Province. It was renamed Hedong County in the first year of Tianbao by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (742), and was promoted to Hezhong Prefecture in the third year of Qianyuan (760), so it was also called Hedong and Hezhong. It is now generally accepted that Wang Wei's ancestral home is Qi County, Taiyuan (today's Qi County, Shanxi Province), and he belongs to the Wang family in Taiyuan. He is the descendant of the famous clan, and his hometown is Puzhou. He is from Hedong. In this way, Wang Wei was from the same hometown as Liu Zongyuan, a great writer and thinker who was younger than him.
Wang Wei was smart since he was a child. Not only was he able to compose poems and articles at the age of nine, he later became a famous poet in Kaiyuan and Tianbao. He was also good at cursive script, good at silk and bamboo music, and good at painting. He was a versatile person. The talented scholar had already become famous in the capital in his youth and was respected by all the kings of the royal family. King Ning and King Xue treated him like a mentor and friend. Xue Yongruo of the Tang Dynasty records in "Ji Yi Ji": "Wang Wei Youcheng was crowned weak at the end of the year, and the article was named after him. He had a good temperament and a wonderful pipa. He traveled among the nobles, and was especially favored by King Qi." Wang Wei concentrated. There are poems such as "From King Qi to the Yang family's special business to teach", "From King Qi's night banquet in Wei's mountain pool to teach", "From King Qi's Jiucheng Palace to escape the summer to teach" and other poems. It can be seen that he did have a banquet with King Qi in Chang'an. Regarding Wang Wei's application, there is an interesting record in "Ji Yi Ji". At that time, a man named Zhang Jiugao made people get through the princess's back door. The princess once instructed the Jingzhao examiner to use Zhang Jiugao as the solution. Wang Wei will also apply for the election and discuss with King Qi, hoping to be recommended by King Qi. However, King Qi's power was not as powerful as that of the princess, and he could not compete with her, so he had to use Wang Wei's talent to win over the princess, and arranged something like this. A few days later, King Qi asked Wang Wei to put on brocade clothes and exotic flowers, and bring a pipa with him to the princess's mansion, saying that he was bringing wine and music to entertain the princess. Wang Wei was a fair-skinned young man with a handsome appearance and very eye-catching appearance. When the princess saw it, she asked King Qi, "Who is this?" King Qi replied, "He is someone who knows music." Then he asked Wang Wei to play a solo for the princess. New song. Wang Wei played the pipa with a mournful tone, which moved the whole audience. The princess asked Wang Wei directly: "What kind of music is this?" Wang Wei stood up and replied: "It's "Yulun Pao"." The princess was surprised and very happy. King Qi took the opportunity to say to the princess: "This man is not only good at music, but also better at speaking words. No one can surpass him." The princess was even more surprised and asked Wang Wei if he had written any poems. He took out several volumes of poems and presented them. After the princess saw it, she was amazed and said, "This is what I have recited before. I thought it was written by the ancients, but it turns out it was written by you!" Then she asked Wang Wei to change his clothes, not as an actor, but as a guest. List. Wang Wei was very charming and witty, and was highly respected by all the nobles in the room. Seeing that the time was ripe, King Qi said: "If Jingzhao Mansion can teach him to take this person as his head this year, it will truly be the glory of the country." The princess said, "Then why not teach him to take the exam?" King Qi said, "I heard that You have asked me to give my head to that Zhang Jiugao, didn't I?" The princess smiled and said, "That's because others are asking for mercy, not me." Then she turned back to Wang Wei and said, "If you want to give me your head, I will take it." I fully recommend you." Just like that, he recommended Wang Wei again, and Wang Wei made a decision and rose to the top in one fell swoop. This story may not be completely true, or it may be purely fictional, but it shows that Wang Wei became a notable celebrity in his youth. It is a fact that Wang Weizhong was the number one scholar. According to research, he was the number one scholar in the ninth year of Kaiyuan (721) at the age of 21.
After Wang Wei won the first prize in the spring of the ninth year of Kaiyuan, he was promoted to Tai Le Cheng and began his official career. However, he was immediately relegated to the Jeju Judicial Army after being implicated because an actor in the department broke the ban by dancing the yellow lion. In the autumn of that year, he left the capital and went to Jeju. Jeju is located southwest of today's Shandong Province. Wang Wei spent more than four years there. Among them, in the 13th year of Kaiyuan (725), the poet Pei Yaoqing was appointed as the governor of Jezhou. Pei was from Hedong and the same hometown as Wang Wei. He treated Wang Wei well, which gave Wang Wei some comfort. However, Pei soon went to Xuanzhou to serve as the governor. Wang Wei felt very sorry.
Shortly after Pei Yaoqing left Jeju, Wang Wei also resigned from his judicial post and joined the army in the spring of the fourteenth year of Kaiyuan (726) and left Jeju.
According to Chen Tiemin's "Chronicle of Wang Wei", after Wang Wei left Jeju, he lived in Qishang for two years. In the seventeenth year of Kaiyuan (729), he went to Chang'an and lived in Chang'an for several more years. When he first arrived in Chang'an, he began to learn Dunjiao from Zen Master Daoguang of Dajianfu Temple and met the poet Meng Haoran. In the 16th year of Kaiyuan (728), Meng Haoran went to Chang'an to take the examination. After failing, he stayed in Chang'an. He returned to Xiangyang in the winter of the next year. Wang Wei wrote a poem to say goodbye. The poem goes: "Du Men doesn't want to go out and has been alienated from the world for a long time. This is a long-term strategy. I advise you to return to your old home." He advised Meng Haoran to go back to his hometown and live in seclusion instead of going to Chang'an to take an exam. This is because I am still not satisfied after winning the top prize, so I say this. As a talented man and a celebrity of his generation, Wang Wei was not very proud of himself at this time. He was idle in his youth, which certainly did not make him happy. Moreover, he lost his wife during this period. Wang Wei's wife died around the 19th year of Kaiyuan (731), when he was only 31 years old. After the death of his wife, Wang Wei stopped remarrying and remained single for decades. This also shows his state of mind.
Although Wang Wei advised Meng Haoran to return to his old house and live in seclusion, his own desire to seek an official position was not completely dead, or he might seek an official position again because of the famous officials in power. When he was living in Chang'an, at the age of 34, he went to Luoyang and presented poems to Zhang Jiuling in the hope of promotion, and then hid in Songshan Mountain. Luoyang, the capital of the Near East in the Songshan Mountains, is hidden here and ready to go out. The next year, he worshiped You Shiyi and became a court official. He worked as You Shiyi for two years and became the supervisory censor. When he was 40 years old, he moved to the palace to pass on the censorship. He spent many years in leisurely living and changing official positions, and entered middle age. From then on, he either lived in seclusion or became an official. His official position was Zuo Bu Que, Kubu Ji Zhong, although his rank was a little higher. , but still serving as an idle official, always dissatisfied, so another 10 years passed. When Wang Wei was 50 years old, Ding's mother was worried and left the court to live in Wangchuan. After serving his term, he worked as a doctor in the Ministry of Education for several years. What further frustrated his career was that he fell into the rebel army during the Anshi Rebellion and offended the Tang Dynasty.
In June of the fifteenth year of Tianbao's reign (756), Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the Anlushan rebels fell into Tongguan and then invaded Chang'an. Xuanzong fled to Sichuan in a hurry. Wang Wei was captured before he could escape. After being captured, he took medicine for diarrhea and pretended to be sick to avoid trouble. But because of the great reputation of his poems, An Lushan sent people to welcome him to Luoyang and detained him in Bodhi Temple. Regardless of whether he agreed or not, he was given a false position. In desperation, Wang Wei became An Lushan's servant. But his heart still followed the Tang Dynasty. An Lushan hosted a banquet for his subordinates in the Ningbi Palace. Wang Wei was saddened by the news and secretly wrote a poem: "The hearts of thousands of households are filled with wild smoke. When will hundreds of officials rise to the sky again? The leaves of locust trees fall in the palace in autumn, and the orchestra plays on the head of the Ningbi Pond." ." It was this poem that saved his life.
In September and October of the second year of Zhide (757), the Tang army recovered Chang'an and Luoyang one after another. Wang Wei and other officials who had fallen into disgrace were imprisoned and then taken to Chang'an. These people deserve to die according to the law. Some people suggested that Wang Weining's Bi Palace poems could prove his loyalty to the Tang Dynasty. In addition, his younger brother Wang Jin requested that his official position be reduced to atone for his death penalty. Tang Suzong hereby forgave him and not only did not kill him, but also gave him the position of Zhongyun. It can be said to be the greatest blessing among misfortunes. At this time, Wang Wei was 57 years old and approaching his twilight years. Not long after he took over the crown prince Zhongyun, he became a bachelor of the Jixian Hall, and later moved to the crown prince's concubine and a member of the royal family. In the summer of the first year of Shangyuan (760), 60-year-old Wang Wei was transferred to Youcheng, the Minister of Secretariat. This was the highest official position he held in his life and the last position he held. He only served for one year. In July of the next year He passed away, so later generations called him Wang Youcheng.
As a talented man of his generation, Wang Wei achieved great success at a young age and became famous far and wide. However, throughout his life, he still encountered many ups and downs and was extremely unlucky, even nearly being beheaded. As a poet, Wang Wei brought glory to the poetry world of the prosperous Tang Dynasty with his excellent poems. He was an important poet in the Tang Dynasty and even in ancient China.
Wang Wei is good at various poetry styles, and is especially famous for his five-character rhyme poems and quatrains. The early poems were full of enterprising spirit, ridiculing nobles and eunuchs, condemning dandy sons and daughters, reflecting frontier life, expressing the spirit of knights, with impassioned sentiments and full of romantic pride. In his later poems, due to his dangerous life and his belief in Buddhism, his poems mainly described pastoral landscapes, expressed leisure and relaxation, and promoted hermit life and Buddhist Zen philosophy. The landscape and pastoral poems he wrote are numerous and have high artistic achievements, which best represent Wang Wei's artistic style. For example, the poem "Hanjiang Linfan" describes the magnificent mountains and rivers in Xiangyang from a large perspective. It is majestic and has a vast artistic conception. The couplet "The river flows beyond the sky and the earth, and the mountains are in and out of the sky" has become a famous sentence through the ages. Another example is "Mountain Residence in Autumn", which uses delicate brushstrokes to outline many characteristic things such as moonlight, spring flow, bamboo noise, lotus movement, etc., presenting readers with a fresh, beautiful, graceful and harmonious picture of the mountains after the autumn rain. His landscape pastoral poems feature exquisite crops, vivid descriptions, and bright and picturesque colors. The language is fresh and concise, subtle and vivid. In addition to his beautiful poems, Wang Wei was also good at painting. He was a famous painter at that time. Su Shi, the great poet of the Song Dynasty, said in his "Shu Mojie Lantian Misty Rain Picture": "When you taste Mojie's poems, there are paintings in the poems; when you look at Mojie's paintings, there are paintings in them." There are poems." The review is extremely accurate.
Wang Wei's poetry became a genre of its own in the Tang Dynasty and had a long-lasting influence. There are now more than 400 poems, some of which have been handed down in collections. Zhao Diancheng of the Qing Dynasty's "Wang Youcheng's Collection of Notes" can be used as a reference for research. Xiaoyong all day long. He devoted himself to worshiping the Buddha and fasted and meditated for a long time in his later years. One day, he suddenly asked for a pen to write a book and counted paper. He left his pen and died saying goodbye to his younger brother Jin and his relatives. Presented to Secretary Supervisor.
In Baoying, Emperor Daizong asked Jin: "I often sit and listen to the music of Wei among the kings. How many of them are there now?" Jin collected six volumes of poems and four volumes of essays, which are listed in the table. The imperial edict said that Qing Bo's family was ranked first in the previous dynasty and was named Gao Xidai. Resist Zhou Ya and bow to Chu Ci. Poets are popular, and the opinions of the times return to beauty. After recording it, I sighed deeply. Yin Fan said that Wei's poems were beautiful and elegant, with new ideas and pleasant ideas. Beads form in the spring, and paintings become painted on the wall. Su Shi also said: "There are paintings in Wei's poems, and there are poems in paintings." There are four volumes of poems compiled today.