Wang Bo
Wang Bo (649 or 650-676 or 675) was a poet of the Tang Dynasty. Han nationality, named Zi'an. A native of Longmen, Jiangzhou (now Hejin, Shanxi). Wang Bo is as famous as Yang Jiong, Lu Zhaolin, and King Luo Bin, and is known as the "Four Heroes of the Early Tang Dynasty" in the world. Among them, Wang Bo is the first of the "Four Heroes of the Early Tang Dynasty".
Character Life
Early Experience
Wang Bo was very intelligent when he was young. He was able to compose poems at the age of six, with ingenious conception and heroic lyrics. He was praised by his father's friend Du Yijian as one of the "Three Trees of the Wang Family", which shows that Wang Bo showed outstanding literary talent in his early years. When he was nine years old, after reading the "Book of Han" annotated by Yan Shigu, Wang Bo wrote ten volumes of "Zhixia", pointing out the errors in Yan Shigu's works, showing that Wang Bo was erudite and talented in his early years. At the age of ten, Wang Bo read the Six Classics. From the age of 12 to 14, Wang Bo followed Cao Yuan to study medicine in Chang'an. He successively studied "The Book of Changes", "The Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic", "The Difficult Classic", etc., and he knew something about "the things of three talents and six armors, and the number of jade cabinets in Mingtang".
Becoming an official before being crowned
In the third year of Longshuo (663), Wang Bo returned to his hometown, wrote "Shangjiangzhou Shangguan Sima Shu" and other articles, looking for opportunities and actively becoming an official. In the autumn of the first year of Linde (664), Wang Bo wrote to Liu Xiangdao, stating his political opinions directly and expressing his determination to actively serve the world. Liu Xiangdao praised him as "this child prodigy!" In the second year of Linde, Wang Bo presented the "Ode to Qianyuan Palace" to Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty through Huangfu Changbo. The purpose of borrowing the "Ode" to promote his career was very clear. In the first year of Qianfeng's reign (666), Wang Bo approved Li Changbo's "Ode to Chen's Journey to Dongyue", and then passed the Yousu examination and was awarded Chao Sanlang, becoming the youngest official in the imperial court. After that, his thoughts surged and his writing blossomed, and he wrote "Ode to the Qianyuan Palace". The article was so beautiful that it shocked the saints. When Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty saw this eulogy, it was written by a child prodigy who was not as good as a weakling, and he was amazed: "Wizard, wizard, I am a wizard of the Tang Dynasty!" Wang Bo's literary name was also greatly inspired by it. Together with Yang Jiong, Lu Zhaolin, and King Luo Bin, he was called the "Four Heroes of the Early Tang Dynasty" and was ranked first.
Cockfighting Fu
After Wang Bo became the Sanlang of the court, he was introduced by the examiner and served as the editor for the Prince of Pei, and won the favor of Li Xian, the king of Pei. Once, there was a cockfight between King Li Xian of Pei and King Li Zhe of England. Wang Bo wrote an article "An Essay on Chickens Against the King of England" to criticize the King of England's cockfighting in order to cheer up King Pei. Unexpectedly, this article reached the hands of Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty. He was displeased. After reading it, he sighed angrily: "Crooked talent, crooked talent! Two kings had a cockfight. Wang Bo, as a doctor, did not advise, but instead wrote a proclamation (used in ancient times for recruitment, government announcements or denunciations). , documents that expose crimes, etc., are now also referred to as militant criticism and denunciation articles. ), deliberately fabricated and exaggerated, this person should be expelled from the palace immediately. "Tang Gaozong believed that this article was intended to sow discord, and ordered him to be expelled from Chang'an. As a result, Wang Bo was expelled. The career he had just opened up with his talent and hard work was ruined in one day.
Being demoted for the second time
The second blow that Wang Bo encountered was when he was serving in the army in Guozhou and committed a crime by killing the official slave he was hiding. In the autumn and winter of the second year of Xianheng (671), Wang Bo returned to Chang'an from Shu to participate in the scientific examination. His friend Ling Jiyou, who was a judicial officer in Guozhou at the time, said that Guozhou was rich in medicines and that he knew medicine and herbs, so he got him a job in the army in Guozhou. While he was serving in Guozhou and joining the army, an official slave named Cao Da committed a crime. He hid the criminal, and later, fearing that the news would be leaked, he killed Cao Da to settle the matter. As a result, he committed a capital crime. Fortunately, he was granted amnesty and was not executed. This matter is very strange. Why did Wang Bo protect the criminal Cao Da? How could he hide and protect him but also kill him. According to the old and new "Book of Tang" records, Wang Bo was in trouble this time because he was arrogant because of his talent and was jealous of his colleagues. When the official slave Cao Da happened, some people suspected that he was setting up a trap for his colleagues to frame Wang Bo, or that it was purely a false accusation, which is not unreasonable. Although he was pardoned and did not lose his life this time, it marked the end of his career.
The soul returns to the South China Sea
Wang Bo killed his official slave Cao Da, which implicated his father Wang Fuchou. Wang Fuchou joined the army from Yongzhou Sigong and was demoted to Jiaozhi County Magistrate, and was relegated to the outside of Nanhuang. This incident hit Wang Bo far more than punishing himself. Although Wang Bo had a bohemian side, his basic principles of life were based on Confucian etiquette. Wang Bo expressed his guilt towards his father in "Speeches on a Hundred Miles of Chang": "What can Rubo say? It is profound to insult a relative. Chengyi should be reduced to ashes and bones to express his gratitude to your father... Now, my lord, I will punish my country and kill you far away." From the border town to the five lakes, across the East and across the South China Sea, there is no way for Bo's sin to escape. "From this, we can feel the strong shame and self-reproach in Wang Bo's heart. After Wang Bo was released from prison, he stayed at home for more than a year. At this time, the court announced that he would be reinstated to his old position. He regarded the officialdom as a daunting prospect and did not accept it. In the autumn of the second year of the Yuan Dynasty (675), he set out from Luoyang and went south along the canal. He arrived at Huaiyin in mid-August. From Huaiyin to Chuzhou, he left Chuzhou and continued south along the canal. After entering the Yangtze River, he turned westward and arrived at Jiangning. Around the spring and summer of the third year of the Yuan Dynasty (676), Wang Bo arrived at King Fuchou of Jiaozhi and met his father who was living in embarrassment. Soon after, Wang Bo set out on his way home. It was summer at that time, and the winds and waves in the South China Sea were strong. Unfortunately, Wang Bo drowned and died of shock. ▲
Reference materials:
1. Yang Xiaocai. Wang Bo’s research. Beijing: China Social Sciences Press, 2013: 19-392, Yang Xiaocai and Jiang Jianyun. Wang Boji. Taiyuan City: Sanjin Publishing House, 2008: pages 177-186 3. Kaikai Wang Haoran Dafu. A well-known literary figure. Beijing: China Economic Press, 2011: pp. 19-23 4. Wan Yongyong. Stories of Chinese and foreign celebrities becoming talented (Volume 1). Beijing: China Overseas Chinese Publishing House, 2011: Pages 144-145 5.
Anecdotes
"Tang Yan": In the autumn of the second year of the Yuan Dynasty (675), Wang Bo went to Jiaozhi to visit his father. When passing through Nanchang, he happened to catch up with the governor Yan Boyu who had newly built the Tengwang Pavilion. On the Double Ninth Festival, he hosted a banquet for guests in the Tengwang Pavilion. Wang Bo went to visit him. Governor Yan had heard of his reputation and invited him to attend the banquet. Governor Yan hosted this banquet to show off his son-in-law Wu Zizhang's talents. Ask the son-in-law to prepare a preface in advance and write it as an impromptu composition during the dinner for everyone to read. At the banquet, Governor Yan asked people to take out pen and paper, pretending to invite everyone to preface the event. Everyone knew his intention, so they all declined to write. However, Wang Bo, a young man in his twenties, did not refuse, took the pen and paper, and wrote in public. Governor Yan was very unhappy. He stood up, transferred the money to his account, and asked someone to see what Wang Bo had written. When I heard that Wang Bo wrote "The old county of Yuzhang, the new mansion of Hongdu" at the beginning, the governor said: It's just a cliché. He also heard that "the stars divide into wings, and the ground connects to Henglu", and he was silent for a long time. When he heard "The setting clouds and the solitary owl fly together, the autumn water is the same color as the sky", the governor had to admire and said: "This true genius should be immortalized!". "The Biography of Talented Scholars of the Tang Dynasty" records: "Bo happily played the goblet to the guests, and he did it in an instant, without adding any words, and the whole audience was shocked." The records in "Tang Zhayan" and other books may be exaggerated, but Wang Bo's "Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng" is indeed an immortal masterpiece.
Preface Poetry Troubles
According to legend, after Wang Bo finished writing "Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng", Master Yan's son-in-law Wu Zizhang (who is said to have a photographic memory) was robbed of the limelight. He was furious and ridiculed Wang Bo for plagiarizing his poems. "Prince Teng" "The Preface to the Pavilion" is a poem written by him, but Wang Bo plagiarized it and recited it secretly! Seeing that Master Yan and other scholars did not believe it, Wu Zizhang recited the "Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng" word by word in public. Everyone was shocked and became suspicious of Wang Bo and suspected Wang Bo of plagiarism. Wang Bo did not panic and asked: "Brother Wu's photographic memory is admirable, but is there a preface at the end of this poem?" Wu Zizhang could not answer, but Wang Bo stood up and wrote a preface with ink, without adding any words:
King Teng's high pavilion is near the river, where the jade-clad luan sings and dances; the painted buildings fly toward the Nanpu clouds, and the bead curtain rolls in the rain on the west mountain at dusk;
After writing, everyone was convinced and praised it. They believed that the "Preface to Prince Teng's Pavilion" was actually written by Wang Bo. Wu Zizhang retreated in shame!
Imitation of "Qushui Shang"
"Preface to the Three-month Shangsi Cultivation" is also known as "Preface to the Mountain Pavilion Presented by the Cloud Gate" and "Jiatai Kuaiji Chronicles" Volume 10: "During the Six Dynasties and the Song Dynasty, Xie Kangle He and his younger brother Xie Huilian, known as Xiao Xie, once went boating on the Ye River and exchanged poems at the prince's Jingshan Pavilion. In the second year of Yongchun (683), Wang Bo, the leader of the Four Great Masters of the early Tang Dynasty, led a poet from eastern Zhejiang Province to preside over an event imitating Wang Xizhi's Orchid Pavilion Collection at Prince Jingshan Pavilion of Yunmen Temple. Perhaps Wang Bo still had some unfinished ideas, so he worked on it again in the autumn of the same year and wrote "Preface to the Yuezhou Autumn Feast in the Mountain Pavilion". After that, there was a poet named Zhedong in Dali (57th century).
"Quan Tangwen" Volume 181 "Preface to the March Shangsi Zuyu": "The second year of Yongchun" sentence is wrong. Note: As mentioned before, Wang Bo died in December of the third year of Shangyuan (676), the third year of Emperor Gaozong’s reign in the Tang Dynasty. However, it had been seven years since Wang Bo’s death in the second year of Yongchun. Can An Neng write this Preface? The "Preface to the Mountain Pavilion Presented by Wang Bo's Xiu Yunmen" (i.e., the "Preface to Sizuyu on the Three Days") recorded in Volume 4 and 5 of "Zhejiang Tongzhi" was written in the second year of Yongchun. This is due to copying the old text and inheriting its errors. Wang Bo's trip to eastern Zhejiang seems to have occurred during the period between Wang Bo's departure from Zhongling in the second year of the Yuan Dynasty and his arrival in Hongdu on September 9th. Some poems and essays written by Wang Bo in Yuezhou are included in "Complete Tang Dynasty Poems", "Complete Tang Poems" and "Supplement to Complete Tang Poems". Among them, the "Preface to the Exorcism of Evil in March" says: "What's more, in the old place of Shanyin, Wang Yishao's pond pavilion was a new friend in Yongxing... In March of late spring, the pavilion in Xian's mountain was built to exorcise evil." The word "Xinjiao" here shows that he arrived not long ago. "March Shangsi" means early March. This is the time when he and his new acquaintance went to the Jingzhi Mountain Pavilion to get rid of evil spirits. (For details, see "A Study of Wang Bo's Travels in Yuezhou" by Zhu Yuebing) ▲
Personal Achievement
Ideology
Wang Bo's thought and personality blended various cultural factors such as Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. He directly inherited the Confucianism of his grandfather Wang Tong, advocated benevolent government, longed for fame, and hoped to help the world. Although he had several ups and downs in the officialdom, in the end, it was still difficult to let go of when and how to help the world. From the perspective of personality and spirit, Wang Bo is first of all a Confucian madman. He has lofty ambitions and the courage to enterprising. He is talented and has great literary talent; but at the same time, he is careless and lacks strategy. Secondly, he is also a proud person, proud of himself, despising things in the world, and despising the world. Wang Bo believes in Buddhism and believes that Buddhism contains profound philosophy and plays a huge role in society.
Poetry
Wang Bo's poetry directly inherits the spiritual trend of advocating Confucianism in the Zhenguan period, and injects the flavor of the new era, which is both magnificent and clear, yet impassioned and impassioned. Specifically speaking, farewell poems may be majestic and majestic, such as "Farewell to Du Shaofu in Shuzhou", which expresses the feeling of farewell, comforting each other with the words "there are close friends in the sea, and we are as close as the end of the world", with a broad artistic conception, sweeping away the gloomy atmosphere of farewell and separation; or they may be beautiful, quiet and vaguely misty, such as the second part of "Farewell in the Night Moon at Jiangting Pavilion" "The clouds are surrounded by green bricks, and the moon is flying towards the sky." "Southern end. Lonely and lonely, the mountains and rivers are cold at night." It depicts a beautiful picture of a moonlit night by the river. The picture is beautiful and misty, which makes people enchanted; or it may focus on expressing the sadness of one's life experience, such as "Farewell to Xue Hua". The whole poem is not intended to express the feeling of farewell, but to express the sadness and sorrow of one's life experience everywhere. The image of "smoke" appears very frequently in Wang Bo's farewell poems. It is an external manifestation of Wang Bo's confusion and confusion about his future and destiny. For example, in "Farewell to the King in Autumn", "The wild color envelopes the cold fog, and the mountain light gathers the evening smoke." Lovesickness poems express the emotions of visitors thousands of miles away: missing their hometown, missing relatives and friends, and feeling sad about spring. For example, "Reminiscence of Spring" expresses deep homesickness through descriptions of scenes. Garden and landscape poems not only describe vivid scenery and refined craftsmanship, but also have beautiful scenery and full of vitality, such as "Jiao Xing". At the same time, new attempts have been made in terms of descriptive techniques and poetic realm development, and have achieved remarkable artistic results. The distant travel landscape poems not only fully display the dangerous and magnificent scenery on the way to Shu, but also are particularly deep and sad because of the stagnant energy poured into them, and have a profound foundation.
Ci Fu aspects
Wang Bo Fu is an important part of Fu in the early Tang Dynasty, and in a sense marks the prosperity of Fu style in the early Tang Dynasty. Wang Bo's parallel prose inherited the artistic style of Xu Ling and Yu Xin's parallel prose (the antithesis is exquisite, natural and appropriate; the phonology is harmonious, and both the rhyme and the palace business within the sentence are deliberately pursuing rhythm; the use of things is appropriate to achieve harmony between the classic content and the expression content; he is familiar with the separated pairs, using the four-six sentence pattern as the main sentence pattern, and cleverly Using the interweaving changes of long and short sentences, and at the same time paying attention to the spirit of loose movement, making the article smooth in condensation), but also paying attention to the fresh wind and invigorating the spirit of looseness, so that the parallel prose changes from complicated to clear, and from sluggish to smooth, creating a style of the times with noble atmosphere and vivid charm, which takes parallel prose to a new level. Compared with other literati of the early Tang Dynasty, Wang Bo was very good at expressing emotions, expressing his will and expressing his character in his poems. The specific manifestations are as follows: He showed his eagerness for the world in his poems. When his ideals were thwarted and his official career was frustrated, he expressed his lofty qualities and beautiful personality in his poems, and expressed his melancholy, anger, and uprightness. Despite this, he never gave up his desire for fame and his vision for the future, such as "Chun Si Fu" and "Cai Lian Fu". Wang Bofu can be considered as a true reflection of his psychological journey and a testimony of his persistent pursuit of ideals and achievements. Wang Bo's banquet prefaces embody the temperament of the banquet, have the beauty of painting, and are full of bold and powerful momentum, such as "Preface to a Mountain Temple Tour"; the prefaces to gifts have a broad vision, lofty proverbs, blended scenes, and the text is full of true feelings, such as "Preface to a Farewell in Autumn." Wang Bo rarely used metaphors in his writing techniques, but he was good at argumentation and profound philosophy. For example, in "Preface to Prince Teng's Pavilion", "The sky is vast and the earth is high, and the universe is infinite. When joy and sorrow come, I know the abundance and deficiency." He is good at expressing emotions. , full of enthusiasm and affection, such as in "Preface to the Poems of Seeking Visits by the Public in Summer", "Heaven and earth are unkind, and creation is powerless. The servants are given the nature of sorrow, loneliness and anger, and the servants are endowed with the spirit of injustice and injustice." Good at description, vivid images, such as "Preface to the Prince's Mansion as a Sentence" In the poem, "Servant of a generation of husband, a man from all over the world, his shirt is loosely tied, intended to store a musical instrument, and his sleeves are cut to hold a scroll." He is good at using progressive and inverse sentence structures, such as "Kang Hu cried at the end of his journey in "Preface to Sending Xiao San back to Qizhou from Li Ming's Mansion in Yongxing, Yuezhou" Bai Shou ¨ is not the autumn of farewell; we have diverged in a foreign land, how can we return to a foreign land? "
Literary Advocacy
Wang Bo's literary ideas are expressed in the creative thought of "setting one's words and reflecting one's ambitions". However, Wang Bo's works show the majestic beauty that combines "high emotions and magnificent thoughts" with "magnificent writing skills", the style orientation of "the aura of the clouds, the words carrying the wind and frost" and the expression method of "feeling the sequence and fate, and sending rewards after climbing and leaving". The reason for this conflict is that although Wang Bo's literary thoughts directly inherited the views of his grandfather Wang Tong, his literary creation followed the objective laws of literary development.