A Study On Fengxiang Prefecture Literature In The Tang Dynasty

As the capital of Zhou and Qin dynasties,Fengxiang prefecture has left a rich cultural heritage.Fengxiang prefecture in the Tang dynasty was adjacent to Chang ’an in the east,Longyou in the west,and Bashu in the south.It was located at the intersection of the three cultural areas,thus it had many visitors and lots of famous sights.The long history and unique geographical environment of Fengxiang can help us better understand the literati in the Tang Dynasty and the whole process of the Tang dynasty changing from flourish to decadence.This paper is divided into three chapters.The first chapter recalls the memory left by the literati in the Tang Dynasty brought by the history and culture of Fengxiang prefecture,and explores the mythological elements in the writings about Fengxiang of the Tang Dynasty.The legend of “Feng Ming Qi Shan” became a carrier for people in the Tang Dynasty to yearn for the Western Zhou Dynasty and the King Wen and long for times of peace and prosperity.“Mingfeng”,“Qishan”,“Qiyang” and other images are full of people’s yearning for a wise emperor,virtuous officials and their own bright official career.In addition,the mythology of “Xiao Shi Nong Yu”in the Qin Dynasty also has new characteristics in the poetry of the Tang Dynasty.According to the quantity statistics,the literati in the early Tang Dynasty liked to quote this kind of allusions,because the gorgeous background of this sort of story fits the aesthetics of the literati in that era.The second chapter selects Taibai Mountain and San-kuan Pass which are the two most representative geographical landscapes to explore the geographical description of Fengxiang in the Tang Dynasty literature.Confucianism,Buddhism and Taoism exchange and merge on Taibai Mountain.Taibai Mountain was not only a place for some of the literati in the Tang Dynasty to live in seclsion and visited,but also a provider of materials for the writing of Tang legend.San-kuan Pass guards the main road of Sichuan and Shaanxi,and witnessed the joys and sorrows of the literati travelling between Changan and Bashu.The third chapter divides the literati of Fengxiang Prefecture into three categories: traveling literati,shogunate officials,and the literati who follow the emperor,paying attention to the sentiments of the literati in Fengxiang literature.The first is the literati from Fengxiang to Chang’an,Bashu,and Longyou.In the hearts of this part people,there is a strong feeling of homesickness,which is normal.But the difference is that in the journey from Fengxiang to Longyou,sorrow did not fully occupy their hearts,instead sometimes their hearts were imbued with the enthusiasm of serving the motherland.The second is literary creation in the local military government.The farewell poems from the literati in the Fengxiang military government and the hymns to Li Sheng,Li Su,and Li Pin mostly contain the hope of resisting Tubo and recovering Hehuang area.The third type is the literati who followed the emperor to Fengxiang to take refuge,with Du Fu and Han Wo as the main representatives.Du Fu’s going to Fengxiang embodies the loyalty of the literati during the war.And Han Wo’s following Emperor Zhao Zong to Fengxiang is the last adherence of the literati in the late Tang Dynasty to loyalism.