The Study On Ji Kang’s Aesthetic Ideology

Ji Kang is really not a single Confucianist or Taoist, and it is true that heworships Confucianism as well as Taoism. As a representative of aesthetics, hedevelops Confucius’ idea of gentleman and Taoistic ideal of freedom to the apex.Confronted with the false Taoism in vogue, he, negating King Tang and Wu andlooking down upon Chou Kung and Confucius, highlights the idea of gentleman,safeguards the true Confucianism and adheres to his resolution although it riskshis life. Facing the flippant, greedy and self-abandoned social reality, he gettingrid of the customs and integrating into the nature, directs humans to cast off theenslavement of the common customs as well as materialistic desires and return tothe natural field. Ji Kang’s personality charm stems from not only his pursuit offree and easy lifestyle but the adherence to the ideal of morality. ExperiencingLaozi and Zhuangzi’s “inaction thought” in an inner spiritual way, Ji Kang puts itinto practice at the same time.Ji Kang’s living attitude has not only the side of being free and easy inTaoism, but selfless in Confucianism. Contrary to people’s injuring and indulgentbehavior, Ji Kang tries to be self-restrained and improve both form and spirit.With the help of Laozi and Zhuangzi’s spiritual enlightenment, he breaks awayfrom the temptation of high official positions and riches in society, as well as theshock of being happy, angry, sad or joyous, restoring the body and mind to anatural and peaceful state. Ji Kang holds that Confucian obtainment of the outsideis not to satisfy individual desire, but to highlight the practice of the self. At thislevel, the nature in Taoism and the customs in Confucianism are accordant.Self-alleging as a gentleman, Ji Kang, forthright and selfless, believes that beinginactive is a kind of beauty, and realizes the lifestyle of “getting rid of the customsand integrating into the nature”. His choice still proceeds from his moral beliefs.Based on naturalism, Ji Kang regards that it is for the essence of music as the sum of nature that music can influence human feeling. The beauty of music, bornof nature, has profound impact upon humans, and such impact is not achievedthrough moral cultivation but the essence of music as the sum of nature. Hismusical thought coincides with his health preserving thoughts, both of whichpropose getting rid of the social restraints by the inner spiritual transcendence,pursue the sum of nature, make individuals transcend reality in their ideal andspirit, and then get into a spiritual sphere in harmonious with nature.