Research On The Fang Wai Writers Of Former Shu

The literature of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms is a bridge between the literature of Tang and Song Dynasty. In the literature development relatively lagged behind period of the Five Dynasties, the development of literature revealed a local scene of prosperity, and the literature of Former Shu is one of the most prosperous literature during this period. In the wide range of Former Shu writers, Fang Wai writers, including the writers of Taoism and Buddhism, are very important to this group. This paper which is based on the literature works of a taoist called Du Guangting and a monk named Guan Xiu when they come to Former Shu, analyzes on contents and features, and then analyzes on the religious literature of the Five Dynasty to Song Dynasty.This paper is divided into four parts:Part one : mainly discussing the background of the literature of Former Shu. In the stable political environment, abundant material foundation,and positive cultural strategy, one after another writers chose to come to Former Shu who once lived in the Tang Dynasty, which had promoted the prosperity of the literature of Former Shu. The emperors or imperial concubines, the courters, even the writers of Taoism and Buddhism, were actively engaged in literary creation. In the late Tang Dynasty, due to sharp class struggle and constantly peasant war, Taoism and Buddhism had suffered a devastating blow. During Former Shu period, Taoism and Buddhism had a slow progress in the twists and turns. The literary creation of a taoist called Du Guangting and a monk called Guan Xiu, had a typical significance for Fang Wai writers in Former Shu.Part two : mainly discussing the literary creation of Du Guangting after he came into Former Shu. In 886, Du Guangting with Xi Zong came to Xing Yuan, and then he began to go to Cheng Du by begging. He settled on here, and devoted to advocate Taoist theory and to finish Taoist Rites, trying to make Taoism glowing new vitality. Therefore, Du Guangting’s literary works, whether it is poetry, such as seven-character poem, the pagoda poem, or novels, such as, Yongcheng jixian lu, Shenxian ganyu zhuan, Luyi ji, Daojiao Lingyan ji, and so on, both are full of obvious Taoism color. And that has direct contacts with Du Guangting’s religious faiths, and less contacts with Former Shu other literature.Part three : mainly discussing the literary creation of Guan Xiu after he came to Former Shu. In the autumn or winter of 902, Guan Xiu passed Chengqing Song to Wang Jian, the emperor of Former Shu, and received an interview and appreciation by him. And then, Guan Xiu came to Former Shu.Wang Jian used Guan Xiu’s poem to call him. Guan Xiu inherited the realism of the late Tang Dynasty, and his poems profoundly exposed the dark reality,widely reflected the sufferings of the people’s livelihood, deeply expressed deep political aspirations, and broadly reflected the breadth and depth of the social reality. After Guan Xiu came into Former Shu, his style did not have a big change. All his poems are closely related to the social reality and other literature of Former Shu, not closely related to his religious beliefs.Part four : mainly discussing about the religious literature trend of the Five Dynasties to the early Song Dynasty by the writers of Taoism and Buddhism. From Du Guangting and Guan Xiu’s literary works, the religious literary after the Five Dynasties have two directions : one is that the influence of Taoism gradually reduced, reflecting that the writers deviates from the mainstream literary mainstream, and the works directly reveal the religious factors; the other one is that the influence of Buddhism gradually increased, reflecting that the writers have an increasingly contacts with the scholar writers,and the religious factors are simple and obscure.