Tao Yuanming's catalog
Life introduction
Literary achievements
Historical evaluation
Works catalog
Biography
Tao Yuanming (about 365-427), whose courtesy name was Yuanliang, changed his name to Qian in his later years. When it comes to the name Qian, the word Yuanming. He named himself Mr. Wuliu, and after his death, his relatives and friends privately gave him the posthumous title of Jingjie, and he was known as Mr. Jingjie in the world. Born in Chaisang, Xunyang (now Jiujiang City), he was a poet, poet, and essayist in the late Eastern Jin Dynasty and the Southern Dynasty in the early Song Dynasty.
Tao Yuanming was born into a declining official family. Great-grandfather Tao Kan was the founding father of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. He had outstanding military exploits and held the rank of Grand Sima, military commander of eight states, governor of Jingzhou and Jiangzhou, and was granted the title of Duke of Changsha. Both his grandfather Tao Mao and his father Tao Yi served as prefects.
When he was young, his family declined and his father died at the age of nine, so he lived with his mother and sister. Orphaned and widowed, most of them live in the home of their grandfather Meng Jia. Meng Jia is a contemporary celebrity. "He is not a stoic in his behavior, he is not boastful in his years, and he never looks unhappy. He likes to drink heavily, and does not mess up after too much. As for forgetting his pride, he acts as if there is no one else." ("The General of the Former Jin Dynasty in the West") "Shi Mengfu Jun Biography") Yuanming "managed to live in the world with great intentions, and many of his ancestors imitated him." (Daqin Liyu) In the future, his personality and cultivation were very much like those of his grandfather. His grandfather had a large collection of books at home, which provided him with the conditions to read ancient books and understand history. In the Jin Dynasty, when scholars regarded "Zhuang" and "Lao" as their sects and deposed the "Six Classics", he not only studied "Laozi" like ordinary scholar-bureaucrats, ", "Zhuangzi", and also studied the Confucian "Six Classics" and "exotic books" such as literature, history and mythology. Influenced by the ideological trends of the times and his family environment, he accepted two different ideas, Confucianism and Taoism, and cultivated two different aspirations: "a strong ambition to travel to the world" and "a natural love for mountains and hills".
Tao Yuanming rarely had the ambition of "reaching far across the world with his fierce ambition, and thinking about far away places" ("Miscellaneous Poems"). In the eighteenth year of Taiyuan (393 years) of Emperor Xiaowu, he cherished the idea of ??"greatly benefiting the people" According to his wish, Ren Jiangzhou offers wine. At that time, the clan system was very strict. He was born in a common people and was looked down upon by others. He felt that he was "unworthy of his official duties and had to relieve himself after a few days" ("Book of Jin·Biography of Tao Qian"). After he resigned and returned home, the state called him again to be the chief clerk, but he also declined. In the fourth year of Emperor Long'an's reign (400), he went to Jingzhou and worked as a subordinate under Huanxuanmen. At this time, Huanxuan was controlling the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River, waiting for the opportunity to usurp the power of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Of course, he was unwilling to join the ranks of Huanxuan and become the confidant of this ambitious man. He wrote in his poem: "How can I leave here and go as far away as West Jing." ("Xin Chou went on leave in the seventh month of his year and returned to Jiangling for a night trip to Tukou"), which showed regret for the official Huanxuan. "Born of long-term travel and love, how can I be drowned in nourishment?" ("Two poems from "The capital is still blocking the wind in Guilin in the fifth month of the year of Gengzi") expresses a deep sigh for the official life that depends on people. In the winter of the fifth year of Long'an, he resigned and returned home because of his mother's death. In the first month of the first year of Yuanxing (402), Huanxuan raised his troops to confront the imperial court, invaded Jiankang, and seized the military and political power of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. In the second year of Yuanxing, Huan Xuan publicly usurped the throne in Jiankang, changed the country to Chu, and imprisoned Emperor An in Xunyang. He farmed in his hometown and financed his own business. He closed his door and sang loudly: "I sleep under the Hengmen, and I am isolated from the world. No one knows that the Jing Fei is always closed during the day." He expressed his disdain for Huan Xuan's proclaimed emperor. In the third year of Yuanxing, Liu Yu, General Wu of the Jianjun Army and Governor of Xiapi, joined forces with Liu Yi, He Wuji and other officials to raise troops from Jingkou (now Zhenjiang, Jiangsu) to attack Huan and ping the rebellion. Huanxuan was defeated and went west, taking Emperor An, who was imprisoned in Xunyang, to Jiangling. He left home and joined the army under Liu Yu's curtain (it is said that Tao Yuanming joined Liu Yu's army after he captured Jiankang). When Liu Yu led his troops to attack Huan Xuan, he imitated the story of Tian Chou who was loyal to the Eastern Han Dynasty and traveled in disguise. He disguised himself and traveled privately. He ventured to Jiankang and told the story of Huan Xuan's kidnapping of Emperor An to Jiangling. He reported to Liu Yu and completed his mission. Willingness to fight against the usurper. He was so happy that he wrote a poem to clarify his ambition: "I am unknown in my forties, and I am not afraid of this. I have a famous car, and I have a famous horse. Although it is thousands of miles away, who dares not to reach it!" (Chapter 4 of "Rongmu") Liu Yu fights After entering Jiankang, his style of work was also quite extraordinary. The politics of the Eastern Jin Dynasty had long been plagued by the long-standing corruption phenomenon of "a hundred ministers failed to relax". After Liu Yu's "exemplifying things by one's own example" (leading by example), he first used threats and prohibitions. (a majestic ban was issued in advance), "all officials inside and outside were solemnly dedicated to their duties, and customs were changed."
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Literary achievements
Tao Yuanming was the most outstanding poet in the 800 years of Han, Wei, Southern and Northern Dynasties, as well as an outstanding poet and essayist. There are 125 Tao poems in existence today, including 9 four-character poems and 116 five-character poems. There are 12 Tao inscriptions in existence today, including 3 poems, 5 rhymes, and 4 prose.
"Xian Qing Fu" in Tao Yuanming's Ci Fu is imitated from Zhang Heng's "Ding Qing Fu" and Cai Yong's "Jing Qing Fu". The content is a fantasy about love and has little meaning. "Ode to Feelings for Scholars Not Encountered" is modeled on Dong Zhongshu's "Ode to Scholars Not Encountered" and Sima Qian's "Ode to Sad Scholars Not Encountered". The content is to express the resentment of those who have ambitions and have difficulty in achieving their goals under the clan system; "Returning to Come and Come to Xici" is Tao Yuanming's resignation from office and hermitage. A political declaration to openly break with upper class society. The article devotes a great deal of space to writing about his infinite joy of leaving officialdom and imagining the infinite fun after returning to the countryside, which expresses the author's yearning and love for nature and hermit life. The article cleverly integrates narrative, discussion, and lyricism to create a vivid, natural, and fascinating artistic realm; the language is natural and simple, washed away from the lead, and has a strong local flavor. The rhymes include "Ode to Paintings on Fans", nine chapters of "Reading History", "Essays to Commemorate Cheng's Sister", "Essays to Commemorate Congdi Jingyuan", and "Essays to Commemorate Myself"; prose articles include "History of the Former Jin Dynasty's General in the Western Campaign" "The Biography of the Lord of Mengfu", also known as "The Farewell Biography of Meng Jia", is a biography written for his grandfather Meng Jia; in addition, there are "The Biography of Mr. Wuliu", "The Story of Peach Blossom Spring", "Yu Ziyan and others" and so on. Generally speaking, the number and achievements of Tao's essays are not as good as those of Tao's poems.
Tao Yuanming's poems are sincere, simple and natural, and sometimes reveal the Lao-Zhuang thoughts of escaping reality and being optimistic about fate. Therefore, Tao Yuanming is known as the "Pastoral Poet" and the originator of the Pastoral Poetry School. His poems can be divided into three categories in terms of content: drinking poems, chanting poems and pastoral poems.
1. Drinking Poems
Tao Yuanming was the first poet in the history of Chinese literature to write a large number of drinking poems. His twenty poems on "Drinking" use an "intoxicating" tone to accuse the upper class society of confusing right and wrong and criticizing the same; some expose the corruption and darkness of the secular world; some reflect the dangers of official career; some express the poet's intoxicated mood after retiring from officialdom; Or express the poet's dissatisfaction in distress. Judging from the mood and style of the poem, it may not be a work from the same period. In the second year of Yuanxi of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (420), Liu Yu deposed Emperor Gong of the Jin Dynasty as King Lingling. He killed him the following year and established the Liu Song Dynasty. "Shujiu" uses metaphors to obscurely and tortuously record the process of usurping power and changing dynasties, revealing infinite sadness for Emperor Gong of Jin and the collapse of the Jin Dynasty. At this time, Tao Yuanming had been living in seclusion for many years. He was used to seeing troubled times and usurping power, but this poem still reveals his unforgettable spirit about worldly affairs.
2. Poems about Huaihua
Tao Yuanming’s poems about Huaihua are represented by twelve poems in "Miscellaneous Poems" and thirteen poems in "Reading the Classic of Mountains and Seas". More than twelve poems in "Miscellaneous Poems" express his political anguish of having ambitions and difficulties after retiring into seclusion, and express his noble personality that does not go along with the world. It can be seen that the poet's inner sorrow and anger are infinitely deep and wide. The thirteen poems in "Reading the Classic of Mountains and Seas" express the same content by chanting strange things in "The Classic of Mountains and Seas". For example, the tenth poem expresses and shows that one's ambition to help the world is eternal by praising Jingwei and Xingtian's "fierce will is always there". extinguished.
3. Pastoral Poems
Tao Yuanming’s pastoral poems have the largest number and the highest achievements. This kind of poem fully expresses the poet's lofty aspirations and noble integrity that despise fame and wealth; fully expresses the poet's extreme hatred and complete break with the dark officialdom; fully expresses the poet's love for the simple pastoral life and his love for labor. understanding and friendly feelings towards the working people; fully expressing the poet's pursuit and yearning for the ideal world. As a literati, such thoughts and feelings, and such content, are unprecedented in the history of literature, especially in a society with a clan system and strict concepts. Some of Tao Yuanming's pastoral poems also reflect his difficult situation in his later years, which can allow readers to indirectly understand the miserable life of the peasant class at that time. Tao Yuanming's "Peach Blossom Spring Poem" was probably written in the early years of the Song Dynasty in the Southern Dynasty. It depicts a utopian ideal society. It expresses the poet's complete negation of the existing social system and his infinite pursuit of the ideal world.
It marks that Tao Yuanming's thoughts have reached a new height. Tao Yuanming is the founder of pastoral poetry. With his simple and natural language and lofty artistic conception, his pastoral poems opened up a new world for Chinese poetry and directly influenced the pastoral poetry school of the Tang Dynasty. In his pastoral poems, his boredom with the dirty reality and his love for the quiet pastoral life can be seen everywhere. In "Returning to the Garden and Living in the Fields", he described the officialdom as a "dust net", compared being in it to "restrained birds" and "pond fish", and compared retreating to the countryside to breaking out of the "cage" and returning to "nature" . Because of his actual labor experience, his poems are filled with the joy of workers and express the thoughts and feelings that only workers can feel. For example, the third poem of "Returning to the Garden and Living in the Fields" is a strong proof. This is also his Idyllic progress.
Historical evaluation
After Tao Yuanming's death, his best friend Yan Yanzhi wrote "Tao Zhengtu Edict" for him and gave him the posthumous title of "Jingjie". Yan Yanzhi praised Tao Yuanming's character and integrity in his life, but did not fully affirm his literary achievements. Tao Yuanming's status in the history of Chinese literature was not fully affirmed and recognized in the decades after his death.
Xiao Tong, the prince of Zhaoming in Liang Dynasty, attached great importance to Tao Yuanming's poems and couldn't put them down. Xiao Tong personally edited, wrote the preface, and wrote the biography for Tao Yuanming. "The Collection of Tao Yuanming" is the first collection of literati in the history of Chinese literature, which is of great significance. In the "Preface to the Collection of Tao Yuanming", Xiao Tong praised "his articles are unique, brilliant in diction, and full of ups and downs. He is unique and transcends all other genres. He is restrained and hearty, and there is nothing like it in Beijing."
During the Southern Dynasties, although Tao Yuanming's literary status did not receive due recognition, his poetry and prose works became more and more widely circulated and had an increasing influence. By the Sui and Tang dynasties, more and more poets liked Tao Yuanming's poems, and their evaluation of Tao Yuanming became higher and higher. Wang Ji in the early Tang Dynasty was a pastoral poet. Like Tao Yuanming, he retired to the countryside many times and entertained himself with gin and wine. Meng Haoran, a landscape and pastoral poet of the Tang Dynasty, admired Tao Yuanming very much. He wrote in "Returning to the South of Han Dynasty in Midsummer to Send an Old Tour to Jingyi":
Enjoy reading "The Story of Gaotu",
The best Tao Zhengjun,
has pastoral interests,
calls himself a Xihuang person.
Li Bai even admired Tao Yuanming's character and poetry. In "A Play Presented to Zheng Liyang", he wrote:
Tao Ling was drunk every day and did not know the five willow springs.
The plain qin has no strings, and a Ge towel is used to filter the wine.
Under the cool breeze of the north window, he calls himself a Xihuang person.
When I arrived in Lili, I met my dearest friend.
Li Bai's idea of ??"being able to make eyebrows and bowing down to serve the powerful" is the same as Tao Yuanming's spirit of "not bowing down for five buckets of rice".
After the An-Shi Rebellion, Du Fu lived a wandering life and took Tao Yuanming as his confidant. He wrote in "A Letter to the Father-in-law of Wei Yin in Henan":
A good heart should be wine. , There is nothing more prosperous than poetry.
This means Tao Qianjie, I will be born after you.
Bai Juyi, a poet of the Mid-Tang Dynasty, admired Tao Yuanming very much. In the tenth year of Tang Yuanhe (815), Bai Juyi was demoted to Jiangzhou Sima, which was very close to Tao Yuanming's hometown of Xunyang. I once visited Tao Yuanming's former residence and wrote the poem "Visiting Tao Gong's Old Residence". The poem first uses "dust will not stain the jade, and the phoenix will not peck the fishy fish" to praise Tao Yuanming's noble personality, and finally writes:
The ancient village of Chaisang, the old mountains and rivers of Lili.
There are no chrysanthemums under the fence, only smoke in the ruins.
Although the descendants are unknown, the family clan has not moved.
Every time I meet someone with the surname Tao, my heart still remains.
Bai Juyi wrote in "Sixteen Poems on the Imitation of Tao's Hidden Body":
My husband has been away from me for a long time, and there are some posthumous writings on paper and ink.
Every article persuaded me to drink, but there was nothing else to say.
I come from the boss and admire him as a person.
Others cannot reach it, and the effect will be drunk and faint.
Ancient Chinese literati were addicted to alcohol, which is inseparable from the influence of Tao Yuanming.
This poem by Bai Juyi makes it very clear: "Nothing else can reach it, and the effect will be drunk."
In the Northern Song Dynasty, Tao Yuanming's position in the history of Chinese literature was further consolidated and confirmed. Ouyang Xiu praised "Returning to Come and Ci" and said: "There are no articles in Jin Dynasty, only Tao Yuanming's "Returning to Come"." Ouyang Xiu also said: "I love Tao Yuanming, I love wine and I love leisure." Wang Anshi of the Northern Song Dynasty once said that Tao Yuanming's poem "The house is built in a human environment, without the noise of cars and horses. When I ask you how you can do it, your heart is far away and you are biased." "There has never been a poet who has said this. However, Yuanming tends to be different from others. , the lyrics are brilliant, and there is only one between the Jin and Song Dynasties."
Su Shi said in "Books with Su Zhe", "I don't have any good friends with poets, but I like Yuanming's poems. Yuanming didn't write many poems, but his poems are rich in quality and plump in quality. "Since Cao, Liu, Bao, Xie, Li, and Du, no one has ever surpassed it." Su Dongpo placed Tao's poetry above Li Bai and Du Fu, which was unfair, but he used the eight words "quality but solid Qi, fat but solid plump" to summarize the artistic style of Tao's poetry, which is still very accurate. Su Dongpo regarded Tao Yuanming as a good teacher and friend throughout his life. He not only loved his poems, but also admired his personality. He once commented on Tao Yuanming: "If you want to be an official, be an official, and don't think it's a disgrace to ask for it; if you want to be hidden, hide it, and don't think it's high to leave it. If you're hungry, knock on the door and beg for food; if you're full, beg for food. The wise people of ancient and modern times, People value authenticity, and poetry also values ??authenticity. The authenticity of poetry comes from people’s authenticity. This is the main reason why Tao’s poems have enduring charm. In his later years, Su Shi said in "Books with Su Zhe": "I am deeply ashamed of Yuan Ming, and I want to use Wanjie as a teacher to set an example for him."
"Being loud and far away", due to Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, and Su Shi's supreme status in the literary world of the Northern Song Dynasty, they strongly praised Tao Yuanming, which undoubtedly played a crucial role in further determining Tao Yuanming's status in the history of Chinese literature. important role.
Xin Qiji, a patriotic poet of the Southern Song Dynasty, took Tao Yuanming as his confidant when he was frustrated with no way to serve his country and unfulfilled ambition. In the poem "Shuilongyin" it is said: "It must be believed that this old man is not dead, and he is still alive and awe-inspiring". Xin Qiji left behind 626 poems, of which 60 poems chanted, mentioned, explicitly quoted, or implicitly quoted Tao poetry and prose. Almost every 10 poems have one related to Tao Yuanming. Xin Qiji said in "Niannujiao": "If you have to trust the chrysanthemums on the east fence, you will have high feelings for thousands of years, only Tao Pengze." He gave Tao Yuanming the highest praise throughout the ages.
The Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, until modern times, followed the two Song Dynasties’ lofty evaluation of Tao Yuanming.
Mr. Lu Xun once said, "Tao Qian is great just because he is not 'quiet and quiet' all over."
When Liang Qichao commented on Tao Yuanming, he once said, "Nature is his loving partner and often smiles at him." True to his words, Tao opened a channel between nature and philosophy, and achieved a reconciliation between the hardships of life and the interests of nature. Even the most ordinary scenes of rural life show an infinite and meaningful beauty in his writing.
Tao Yuanming's immortal poems and Tao Yuanming's great character have influenced the thoughts and creations of several generations of literati such as Li Bai, Du Fu, Bai Juyi, Su Dongpo, and Xin Qiji. He has made immeasurable contributions to the development and prosperity of Chinese literature.
Tao Yuanming's poetry focuses on lyricism and expressing ambition. His language seems simple, but is actually wonderful. The plain and mellow poems contain fiery emotions and rich flavor of life. Tao Yuanming's five poems "Returning to the Garden and Living in the Fields" are the finest or best pastoral poems. Among them, "Shaowu Suitable Rhyme" was once included in the Chinese textbook for middle school students. The lyrical expression of the poem is refreshing; the description of the scenery is eye-catching. After reading it, you will never forget it. Whenever I read it, it is a beautiful enjoyment.
As a hermit living in the troubled times of the late Jin Dynasty, Tao Yuanming often interacted with Taoists in Mount Lu in his later years. This is conceivable, but they may not have the same ideas. Anyone who has carefully studied Tao's poems and understood the poet's life knows that Tao Yuanming was an atheist who was calm and quiet on the outside but passionate in his heart. When he was young, he had great ambitions, accepted Confucianism, and hoped to make achievements. However, after serving as an official for a period of time, he was disappointed by the reality. He did not want to join the ranks of those in power, so he chose a path of retirement and return to farming.
At this time, he was influenced by the philosophy of Lao and Zhuang. Because he had a pastoral life that many literati had never had before, and he personally participated in labor and had contact with the working people, he inevitably got some new feelings and inspirations in his thinking. , can create a new form of pastoral poetry with a unique style, and has made a great contribution to the history of the development of Chinese poetry. From his "fierce ambition to spread all over the world" when he was young to his "fierce ambition to persist" in his old age, he has never forgotten the world. His famous work "The Story of Peach Blossom Spring" is exactly his vision of a "happy and contented" society like the primitive times, in which people are self-reliant, live in harmony, and free from all the turmoil and poverty in reality. Even his seclusion and drinking, when analyzed in the context of the times, also contain a certain degree of dissatisfaction and resistance to the dark rule at that time.
Of course, Tao Yuanming was, after all, a scholar-bureaucrat who lived in a feudal society more than a thousand years ago. It is impossible that there would not be many negative things in his thoughts and poems such as being content with poverty, enjoying life in time, and avoiding the world. However, literary critics and writers of later generations, out of their own class preference, mostly appreciated and praised his characteristics in this aspect, believing that this is the essence of Tao Yuanming's poetry.
Catalogue of Works
Tao Yuanming's handed down works include 125 poems and 12 articles, which were compiled by later generations into "Collected Works of Tao Yuanming".
The table of contents is as follows: "Tao Yuanming", a painting by Feng Weimin, a master of pottery from Foshan, Guangdong:
Four words of a poem in volume 1
Stop the cloud and preface
Fortune and preface
The Preface of Rong Mu
The Preface of the Changsha Gong clan
The reward of Ding Chaisang
The Preface of Pang joining the army
Encouraging Farmers
Mingzi
Returning to Birds
Volume Two, Five-Word Poems
Preface to the Harmony of Form, Shadow and God
p>Shadows give shadows
Shadows answer to shapes
Divine interpretation
Nine days of leisurely residence in sequence
Return to the garden and live in the fields for five days First
Visiting Xiechuan
Showing gratitude to Jingyi Sanlang, the ancestor of Zhou Xu
Begging for food
Everyone will visit the cypress of Zhou family tomb
Drinking alone in the rain
Two poems about moving to the country
With Liu Chaisang
Rewarding Liu Chaisang
Two poems with Mr. Guo
p>Seeing guests off at Wangfu's military seat
Saying farewell to Yin and Jinan and prefaced
Presenting a long history of sheep and preface
At the end of the year and Zhang Changshi
He showed his concern to Cao Cao, the thief of the West,
Sad from his younger brother Zhongde
The third volume of the poem with five words
Begins to suppress the army Song of Joining the Army
In the middle of the fifth month of Gengzi's year, he still blocked the wind in Guilin.
In the seventh month of Xin Chou's year, he went on leave and returned to Jiangling for a night walk
The second song of Guizhou Chunhuanghuanghuanghuangshu
Guizhou and Middle December and Congzhi Jingyuan
In March of Yiyi, he joined the army to join the army in March Passing Qianxi
Returning to the old residence
Fire in the middle of the sixth month of the Wushen year
September 9th of the Jiyou year
Gengxu In the middle of the ninth month of the year, I harvested early rice in Xitian
In the middle of the eighth month of the year, Bingchen harvested it in Xiatianshe
Twenty poems for drinking and in order
Stop drinking
p>Narrating Wine
Kui Zi
Written during a meeting
Wax Day
Volume Four Poems and Five Words
Nine poems imitating ancient times
Twelve poems
Seven poems about poor people
Two poems
Ode to the Three Good Persons
Ode to Jing Ke
Read thirteen poems from "The Classic of Mountains and Seas"
Prepare three elegies
Couples
Volume 5: Fu Ci
The Fu of Feelings about Scholars and the Preface
The Fu of Leisure Love
The Fu of Return
Volume 6: Biography and Praise
Peach Blossom Spring with Poems
Biography of Shi Mengfujun, the former Jin general who conquered the West
Biography of Mr. Wuliu
Painting praise on the fan
Read the nine chapters of the history and preface it (Yi Qi, Ji Zi, Guan Bao, Cheng Chu, Seventy-two Disciples, Qu Jia, Han Fei, Lu Er Confucianism, Zhang Changgong)
Volume 7 of the Sacrificial Essays
With Ziyan and other essays
The Sacrifice of the Cheng Family’s Sister
The Sacrifice of the Concubine Jingyuan Essay
Self-sacrifice essay
Representative works:
Drinking Drink
The house is in a human environment, without the noise of carriages and horses. I ask you, what can you do? The mind is far away from itself. Picking chrysanthemums under the eastern fence, you can leisurely see the Nanshan Mountain. The mountain air is getting better day by day and the birds are flying back and forth. There is a true meaning in this, but I have forgotten to say it in trying to discern.