Xiang Mu was a famous calligrapher of the Ming Dynasty, and his writings had a far-reaching influence. On the discussion of the issue of learning books and starting a family, there are strong and colorful strokes in his "Calligraphy Yayan", many of which are quite wonderful and profound.
Since the Wei and Jin dynasties, there have been more and more texts commenting on the high and low levels of calligraphers and books. People argue about this, and the angles and standards they hold are often better. It not only reflects the changes of the times, but also reflects the social situation. In the aesthetic field of the so-called "fun without argument", this is naturally a completely normal thing. It should be said that only in this way can the hundred flowers of art really bloom. For example, Xiang Mu focused on "Shang", "Bo", "Specialized", "Prudent" and "Wanton" and divided five grades for the scholars, which was somewhat different from the traditional classification of "three products" and "nine products". Moreover, the reasons he gave for each grade were quite accurate and comprehensive. For example, what he calls "authentic" covers the realm of neutral beauty (the so-called "not exciting", "wonderful time"), the maturity of the self-style, that is, the inheritance, the success of innovation (the so-called "inheriting the past and opening up, the water hanging mold track"), the combination of wind and bone and qi (the so-called "majestic and elegant" and "clear bone"), and the superb level of skill (the adjustment of "rules and regulations" and "the ability of all bodies"), etc., these are the basic factors that constitute the level of calligraphy art.
Another wonderful point of Xiang is his discussion of talent and kung fu. He believes that: First, the basic methods and techniques of calligraphy art are the same, and the final results obtained by people using this same method and technique are different (different styles, different levels, etc.), because of the difference in their natural quality and the depth of their learning skills. Second, the role of talent quality and skill level in the process of learning books and starting a family is different. What is restricted and determined by the quality of talent is the problem of "divine qi", that is, the advantages and disadvantages of the radiant qi and the existence or absence; What is restricted and determined by the level of skill is the problem of "physique", that is, the attainment and level of methods and skills. Therefore, for learning books and starting a family, "seniority and intelligence, learning is still vast"; "Not to be kind, but to be from the heart"? Third, Xiang acknowledges that talent and quality cannot be obtained through learning (the so-called "capital cannot be strong"), but after weighing the pros and cons, he finally believes that although "capital is indispensable", in the end" "learning is the first". This is because in his mind, first of all, even if he has the quality of talent, he still cannot fail to learn, and the so-called "those who have not learned without learning" can only "fly in the soul for a while", and the "rules that still exist" of "learning too much" can "set an example for thousands of years". Fourth, he looks at the shortcomings of the proposed "excessive learning, every mistake; The view that "learning is too much, still having rules" is to the point. It should be said that Xiang Mu's ability to put the level of skill in a more important position here is debatable, but his original intention in doing so was to encourage people to study diligently and improve (the so-called "learning can be encouraged").
Xiang Mu divides the whole process of learning books and starting a family into four stages. In the "First Standing General Body" stage, it is required to master the basic writing ability of dot painting and knotting; In the stage of "fixing its bones and bones", it is required to improve the writing level of pointillist painting, pay attention to the problems of echoing and breathing in the knot and layout; The stage of "respecting its prestige" requires the pursuit of a holistic aura effect through the change of image characteristics; The stage of "judging their looks" requires the formation of a skillful, wind-god-sprinkled, change from the heart, and unique style form. These four stages are generally not bad, the disadvantage is that the content is not specific enough, the boundaries are blurred, so it may be difficult to grasp, and it seems too specific to identify the completion of the whole process as at least forty years, but on the whole, it is completely correct to think that "can not be late". Sun Guoting said it well, "At the time of the general meeting, everyone writes and writes" (book genealogy). This is actually a basic law of studying books and starting a family, and it is really a view outside the door that a few people have objections at this time.
What we have talked about above are some of the basic laws of studying books and starting a family. As for the specific development of these laws, that is, the implementation of people's specific study books and family activities, Xiang Mu's primary concern is the issue of physical and mental cultivation, Xiang Mu pointed out:
Therefore, those who correct their books, first correct their pens; Just the author, first correct his heart.
In the history of Chinese calligraphy aesthetics, Xiang Mu's theory of positive strokes is of some typical significance. First of all, this is a kind of Confucian concept of learning books and starting a family, and its aesthetic roots are deeply rooted in the concept of book painting with Confucian thought as the philosophical foundation. Therefore, this represents the mainstream direction of traditional calligraphy and its aesthetic thought. Secondly, Xiang Mu here proceeds from the "transmission of the heart" ontology of calligraphy art to determine the nature of "first correcting the heart" of learning books and starting a family. Because the art of calligraphy has the purpose of "transmitting the heart", it is necessary to use "right heart" as a means to study books and start a family. Third, he transplanted the traditional physical and mental cultivation categories such as "sincerity", "zhizhi" and "gewu" into the "righteous heart" field of calligraphy art, in order to solve the problems of sincerity, trade-offs between learning and starting a family, and erudition and fine examination, which has its pioneering merits. Finally, he stressed that after "righteous heart" and then through continuous "dedication" and "further study", that is, continuous diligent study and hard practice in the field of art, we can finally achieve the goal of "thinking of life with pen, Linchi Zhiyi; The artistic maturity of "new in the new, wonderful in the wonderful" shows that he did not underestimate the importance of art itself. Therefore, in this field, Xiang Mu's views are deeply ambiguous and unique.
As for the specific methods and processes of learning books and starting a family, Xiang Mu started from the basic link of copying and discussed. As far as the process is concerned, "Pro" is the way to get started; "Specialized family" and "bo study of the multitude" is the only way to go; and "integrating the heavenly opportunity in self-sufficiency, the group will be wonderful in one heart" is also the integration and integration of "self-sufficiency" and "group magic", which is the only way to form one's own artistic style, that is, the only way to eventually start a family. In this process, the problem that needs to be paid attention to is: the temporary study should be "imitated as expensive, and the judgment is still refined", only in this way can we "give up their shortcomings and take their strengths" and truly learn the things they need; The whole learning process and the pursuit of intentions must adhere to the correct direction of "starting from the level and chasing the show, and finally returning to the neutralization from danger"; we must be determined and single-minded, and we must go through decades of painstaking efforts and tireless efforts to finally realize our dream of starting a family: the kind of "learning without learning to go first" is eager to achieve success, and the act of rushing to achieve quick success and quick profits is completely insufficient.
As a supplement to the above views, Xiang Mu also raised the issue of the "three precepts" and "three essentials" in the process of studying books. The emphasis of the "three points" is only the issue of personal popularity and bookishness; The "Three Precepts" emphasize the "distribution of beginners, uneven and odd precepts; Following the knowledge of the rules, abstain from inactivity and stagnation; In the end, I can be skilled, and I will not be crazy and vulgar." Obviously, these "three precepts" are in the same line with the above-mentioned study books and directions of "starting from the level and chasing the show, and finally returning to neutralization from danger". Today's situation of ugly books is completely contrary to Xiang Mu's theory of neutralization in calligraphy, and it is also a complete subversion of the Confucian view of calligraphy for thousands of years. (Attached: The Work of the Erwang, Xiang Mu's "Treatise on Neutralization in Calligraphy" pushes the Erwang to be a sage in the world of calligraphy and establishes the wanshikai model)