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王羲之 Wang Xizhi(AD 303 - 361) Sage of Chinese calligraphy

July 24, 2011, Sunday | Print Edition

WANG Xizhi's influence on the Chinese calligraphy is as fundamental and far-reaching as William Shakespeare's influence on the English literature and language. Nearly every Chinese speaker in the world knows this "Sage of Calligraphy" and ever since his time in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (AD 317-420), there has been no Chinese calligrapher, professional or amateur, who'd never copied Wang's model calligraphy for hundreds or even thousands of times in practice.

Chinese calligraphy derives from the written Chinese language, which is composed of pictorial images. The traditional Chinese calligraphy requires nothing more than the "Four Treasures of the Study," namely, the writing brush, ink stick, ink slab and paper.

Calligraphy in China is not just a form of art, but also an integral part of the Chinese culture. Today, every primary school student in the country is required to practice Chinese calligraphy.

And ever since the appearance of the unified form of written language after China's first emperor Qin Shihuang created a united nation, the country has brought forth numerous master calligraphers. Among them, Wang is considered by many as one of the top master calligraphers and particularly since China's prosperous Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), he has been revered as a god of calligraphy.

Born into a family of many famous calligraphers of their time, Wang began a systematic study of calligraphy when he was only seven. He first practiced calligraphy under the tutorship of a famous woman calligrapher, Wei Shuo. But he had also learned from the works of other calligraphers before his time. For instance, he learned Kaishu (regular script) from Zhong Yao (AD 151-230) and Caoshu (cursive script) from Zhang Zhi, who died in AD 192.

In addition, Wang traveled to many places around the country to study the tablet inscriptions by famous calligraphers of previous generations.

There are countless legendary anecdotes about Wang and his calligraphy.

One story says that Wang used to practice calligraphy by a pond beside the Orchid Pavilion in Shaoxing in today's Zhejiang Province in east China. Since he practiced so many hours a day there and frequently dipped his writing brush into the water of the pond in order to generate more ink, the pond was gradually turned black. And it was said that Wang had created many such "ink ponds" in his lifetime.

It was also said that Wang was so immersed in calligraphy that he'd constantly use his fingers to practice the lines and strokes on tables, arms of chairs or even on his clothes no matter he was walking, sitting or lying in the bed. As result, his clothes were worn out faster than many others.

Thanks to his brilliant talent and diligence, Wang soon became a master of all forms of Chinese calligraphy. Many people of his time would try all means to get his writing or inscription.

One Taoist priest living in a place called Shanyin wanted to ask Wang to copy "Dao De Jing" or "The Classic of the Way and the Virtue," a Taoist canon, but didn't know how. When he learned that the master calligrapher had a penchant for white geese, he got an idea. He then raised a dozen beautiful white geese and let them free on a small pond.

One day, Wang went past the pond and saw the white geese. He insisted on buying these birds from the priest, but the Taoist said that he wouldn't sell them, but he'd give them to the master as a gift if he would copy the "Dao De Jing" for him. Wang immediately agreed. So, after copying the Taoist canon, Wang happily went home with 12 beautiful white geese.

Of all Wang's calligraphic works, "Lan Ting Xu" or "The Preface to the Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion" enjoys the highest praise and popularity for its ethereal running script.

Now and Then


 

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