Red Moon (Interpretation of "The Orchid Pavilion Preface")

Author: Wu Daxin
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-03-01
Features: The world says, "The Orchid Pavilion Preface is the supreme running script in the world, but few know its text reflects the eternal sorrow of ages. The world says, Wang Xizheng is the 'sage of calligraphy' and 'emperor of ink,' but few know he was a fierce warrior in the army and a sharp critic in the court. The world says, the Orchid Pavilion's curved water stream was a gathering of literary elites, but few know it was a time of great changes in the Eastern Jin's northern expedition. · Orchid: an elegant herb; Pavilion: a ethereal guest hall. The Orchid Pavilion is the pavilion of orchids. A wisp of fragrance spread to a king of a fallen nation 2,500 years ago. In the ninth year of the Yonghe era, the Orchid Pavilion was backed by towering mountains and faced the vast Jian Lake. During the Wei and Jin periods, people pursued a poetic way of life (like the "Free and Easy Journey"). Wang Xizheng fell in love with the Orchid Pavilion, culturally speaking, because of the gift poems between Ji Kang and his brothers during the Wei and Jin period — Ji Kang: "Morning flow on the high plateau, evening rest at Orchid Pool"; Ji Xi: "Strolling leisurely at Orchid Pool, moved by things and remembering the ancients." · "Generally, the Southern Dynasties were broad-minded, but pity the Eastern Jin's flourishing style!" For 1,650 years, people have interpreted the Orchid Pavilion Collection as a pleasure of appreciation and the Orchid Pavilion Gathering as an elegant literary event. Scratching away the layers of poetic and artistic charm behind the "great elegance and style," a thrilling and little-known story is hidden! The Orchid Pavilion Gathering was not, as traditionally said, an "elegant literary event," but an important policy and military meeting concerning the fate of the Eastern Jin, led by Wang Xizheng. · The drunken version of "The Orchid Pavilion Preface" is described as "floating like clouds in the sky, fierce as a startled dragon," and widely praised as the "supreme running script in the world." Modern people only copy its characters without reading its text, which is a great mistake. The text of "The Orchid Pavilion Preface" is profound and distant, yet also lingering and repetitive. It subtly reflects the universal social psychology of the Eastern Jin era — sorrow, deeply proving a painful experience in Chinese cultural history: how awakening citizens in chaos once desperately sought a path to liberation from life and death. · Xue Daozu, who discovered the Dingwu version of "The Orchid Pavilion Preface" in the Song Dynasty, wrote a poem: "The Eastern Jin's flourishing style had many great events, but all the figures of the time are now gone. Without the drunken version of the Orchid Pavilion, would the world know the Yonghe era?" This period of history during the Yonghe era in East Asia is little known to the general public. Added to it is the "Sayings of the World," which seems to suggest that Eastern Jin people were all stylish, their calligraphy was elegant, and their events were all great. In reality, the Eastern Jin was a time of chaos. The "red moon" (a lunar eclipse, a beautiful yet sorrowful symbol, a sign of chaos, and an illusion of life and death) hung in the sky when "The Orchid Pavilion Preface" was born. The author has meticulously researched anded the political and historical background of "The Orchid Pavilion Preface" and the list of attendees at the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, as well as the content of the poems and preface. They believe that in the ninth year of the Yonghe era, Qin, Yan, and the Eastern Jin were in confrontation, war was imminent, and the court was in an uproar. The Qingtan master Yin Hao, who led the northern expedition, was in conflict with the military leader Huan Wen. Wang Xizheng, an important military commander, as a representative of the Wang-Xie clan, was deeply concerned about the situation and strongly advocated harmony between the ministers and generals. The 42 attendees at the Orchid Pavilion Gathering were mostly from the military, some even directly from the northern expedition front. The 37 poems composed at the gathering subtly revealed the hidden truths of the meeting, while the later part of "The Orchid Pavilion Preface" was Wang Xizheng's appeal for the nation's well-being. Several letters from Wang Xizheng to the imperial family, Yin Hao, and Huan Wen, as well as the mysterious "Zeng Yun Tie," further provide direct evidence that the Orchid Pavilion Gathering was a political and military meeting. Hou Hui, the editor-in-chief of the Xiling Seal Society Publishing House, believes that the author, with their research on ancient Chinese culture and history, has offered a unique interpretation of the Orchid Pavilion, "The Orchid Pavilion Preface," Wang Xizheng, and the Wei-Jin period. "The Orchid Pavilion Preface" is praised as the "supreme running script in the world," but modern people only copy its characters without reading its text. The text of "The Orchid Pavilion Preface" is profound and reflects the universal social psychology of the Eastern Jin era — sorrow. The Xiling Seal Society, adhering to the principle of "freedom of thought," has published this work, valuing its novel and unique perspective.