The question of sticking to the Lord is very interesting and accurate. Many people think that Tang and Song literati like poetry as the same "literati", but it is not. Because the differences between Tang and Song can be seen from many Tang poems, it is understandable why many people say that the decline of China began in the Song Dynasty. The following excerpts are from the book Expansion of the Tang Empire, which I personally think can explain the style of the Tang people at that time.
Where there are tough countries, there must be tough people.
"Why don't men take Wu Gou and accept fifty states in Guanshan?" This impassioned poem can almost express the heroism of the Tang people. The times have promoted this heroism, and heroism has also promoted the strength of the country. This is a virtuous circle and complements each other.
Although the government also advocates Confucianism, martial arts has become a common practice among the people. This social trend can be seen from a large number of epitaphs in the Tang Dynasty. Here are some quotes:
"Small poems are still small, and high pens are good for painting"; "I don't want to be an official, but I want to join the army"; "Abandoning the pen of the scribes is quite Qiang Jian"; "Shame on the power of pen and ink, learning the sword defeats ten thousand people"; "Learning books has become a festival for every shameful pedant; It is said that swords are invincible and there are often many martyrs. "
There are many similar records. This kind of contemptuous and pedantic literati mentality can also be seen in Tang poetry. Yang Jiong, a famous poet in the early Tang Dynasty, wrote a famous poem "A centurion is not as good as a scholar". Centurion is just a small leader, not a fame. Even so, in the eyes of contemporary people, it is much better than being a Confucian scholar. Wei, who is famous for writing pastoral landscape poems, can also write them.
The heroic deeds of the Han Dynasty, especially Ban Chao, had the deepest influence on the martial spirit of the Tang Dynasty. Why is Ban Chao the most influential figure? Because his personal heroism is the most obvious, it has also become one of the spiritual sources of advocating martial arts in the Tang Dynasty. The legendary story of his "meritorious service in joining the army" was a great inspiration to the Tang Dynasty, and he struggled in the western regions for 30 years alone and accomplished the heroic feat of conquering 50 countries in the western regions, which was unprecedented and unprecedented, and was almost the perfect embodiment of the hero. Ban Chao's outlook on life had a profound influence on the Tang people. The lonely hero of that year has actually become a sample list pursued by men hundreds of years later.
Besides Ban Chao, there are Wei Qing, Huo Qubing, Li Guang, Ma Yuan, Zhang Qian, Liling, Dou Xian, Zong Jun, Chen Tang, Fu Jiezi and Ji Zheng. It is also a hero worshipped by the Tang people and the spiritual source of the martial arts consciousness in the Tang Dynasty.
Heroic worship is inevitable under the heroic spirit of martial arts. There are a lot of poems praising historical heroes in Tang poetry, which are inexhaustible spiritual food in the great achievements of predecessors. Of course, poetry is mainly the product of literati. From the epitaph of the Tang Dynasty, we can see the true spiritual realm of the people. The following excerpts are about hero worship in epitaphs of the Tang Dynasty:
"Recruiting from the army is wide and deep; Casting a prestige, Wei and Huo ran rampant. " "Intellectual donated books, Le Yanran's inscription; Sword-fighting, the feat of casting copper columns "(Xerox Ran Yan is the flat Xiongnu of Dou Xian, and the bronze column of the tree is the flat toe of Ma Yuan); "Sacrifice many countries and admire Ban Chao's pen; Bow to the moon and learn from Wang Canjun "(RoyceWong is also a figure in the Eastern Han Dynasty, one of the seven sons of Jian 'an); "If the war will be defeated, it will be open to Wei Qing; This is a suit, I believe in Ma Yuan's southern expedition "; "The beauty of Ji Shen Wang Bo is sealed by Dingyuan" (Zhang Qian sealed Wang Bohou and Ban Chao sealed Dingyuan Hou); "Learning to be excellent is an official, written by Ban Chao"; "Irrigation Ren Xia, every wine friend tour; Class years old, but also sigh from the husband. "
Another manifestation of the spirit of martial arts is the chivalry prevailing in the Tang Dynasty. It is chivalrous to arrive without pomp. Wang Wei has a poem: "Even if you die, you will still smell chivalrous bones", which is a portrayal of chivalrous men and warriors. Even the literati are deeply influenced by the chivalrous atmosphere. There is a poem by Lu, a poet in the early Tang Dynasty: "Every man is responsible for biting off the hand that feeds him." It is also said that "Chang 'an heavy ranger, Luoyang is rich and talented." "It can be seen that people's pursuit at that time. Wang Weishi: "Xinfeng wine fights a thousand, Xianyang ranger for many years. "Lu's poems can prove it. Cui Hao has a copy of "Ancient Rangers" presented to the generals in the army, which can be described as a masterpiece: "Young people are timid and brave. "A sword to go out, isolated city through. Kill people, lead horses to fish and return to the sun on the Liaohe River. ……"
It can be said that the hero worship complex and Ren Xia spirit ran through the prosperous Tang Dynasty, which also made the heroes of the prosperous Tang Dynasty come forth in large numbers. Drunk in the battlefield, treating life and death like nothing, spilling blood on Huanggang and burying me in my own world; Ambition horizontal knife, running for the country's life, ambition fencing, opening up territory; A century of prosperity, Guowei Wan Li; Merit in the contemporary, Liu Fang's name in later generations. Datang empire, strong Tang people!
2. About the imperial examination system.
In fact, since the Han and Wei Dynasties, the rulers of China have been dissatisfied with the influence of clans or traditional nobles on state affairs. After many explorations, I finally found a good way in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, that is, the imperial examination. Through the fair imperial examination, a large number of civilians entered the ruling class, which greatly reduced the influence of traditional nobles on state affairs. Personally, I think this is the biggest role of the imperial examination system. Of course, the ruling class later joined the ideological control ... this is a double-edged sword.