Emperor Huizong Research Articles

A Study on the Activating Tradition and the Will to Practice in the LiuTao

LiuTao is one of the WuJingQiShu compiled during the Yuanfeng reign of Emperor Shenzong of the late BeiSong Dynasty (1078-1085), which delineated the vertical and horizontal aspects of East Asian military science. Throughout the history of East Asia in this period, library science and bibliography, as official books, formed a huge collection. At the end of the reign of Emperor Shenzong, due to the failure and death of WangAnshi's reform, this was a historical period that could predict the trend of imperial power in the reigns of Emperor Zhezong and Emperor Huizong for more than 40 years. It also foreshadowed a large-scale war, as the capital of the BeiSong Dynasty was relocated to Hangzhou in the NanSong Dynasty (today) due to political struggles and chaos during the war. In addition, the political, social, historical, religious, linguistic, artistic and other cultural areas in this period, in addition to the geopolitical factors in East Asia, also through the textual research of various scholars in the ChunQiuZhanGuo periods, indicate the areas where ancient customs [易俗] can change the development of knowledge and information in the Middle Ages. The distribution and staging of the gains and losses in history, regional, and sociology during the ChunQiuZhanGuo periods have played a role in the development of human civilization and the spirit of war and political humanism in the common track. This is both an economic and moral, legal and educational issue, and also lies in rediscovering the ‘TaoHai (韬海)’ of hegemonic victory to inquiry the Probability variable. In order to investigate the outcome of the ‘Wuyi (无疑)’ military expert hegemony, specifically criticized the traditional activation of military politics based on probability variables and the differences in mercenary techniques and utilitarian positions reflected in the outbreak of war.

『大觀茶論』 ‘序’에 나타난 徽宗의 茶文化觀

『DaeGwan Tea Theory』 consists of one chapter of the ‘Introduction’ and 20 chapters of the ‘Main Text’, and is a representative tea book of the Northern Song Dynasty that shows comprehensive tea affairs on Huizong’s intuitive and practical ‘DaeGwan Tea Theory’. Huizong’s tea ceremony was both useful and popular, and “During the Song Dynasty, tea ceremony was popular from the court to the common people, and with the popular response.” Huizong’s unexpected ascension to the throne was certainly a special event for the Song court and Huizong Zhaoji. A young, multi-talented royal family member recorded all the tea ceremony of the tea ceremony with his ignorance of governance and his genius and artistic talent as a literati. His tea ceremony was specific and detailed, and he fully revealed his political intentions toward the people in the preface of the 『DaeGwan Tea Theory』. In this paper, we understand the political background of the late Northern Song Dynasty and the life of Emperor Huizong, and study the social bonds that the multiculturalism of the Northern Song Dynasty has had on the globalization of tea ceremony in the present era

Artistic Exploration of Court Music During Emperor Huizong s Reign: Style, Genres, and Innovative Characteristics

Objective: This dissertation examines the many court music forms, genres, and inventions that emerged under the reign of Emperor Huizong in the Northern Song Dynasty. It analyses the distinctive characteristics of this music and the influence of Huizong. Methodology: The study explores composition, performance, and instruments, particularly the integration of Chinese and foreign instruments, via literature evaluations. It also examines the relationship of music with other arts and its function in education.. Research Findings: This text explores the many and innovative aspects of court music under the reign of Huizong. It focuses on the fusion of Chinese and foreign instruments, the creation of literati music, and the creative blending of different elements. It highlights Huizong s substantial impact on the advancement of music and education. Conclusion: The court music during Huizong s reign exemplifies the cultural renaissance of the Northern Song dynasty and his endeavors to advance the arts. It provides significant perspectives on the music and culture of ancient China. This remark suggests further exploration of the relationship between court music and the socio-political context, as well as its lasting impact on the progress of music and art.

The Reform of Ceremonial Music and the Construction of New Music in the Huizong Period of the Song Dynasty

The Song Dynasty attached great importance to the performance of ceremonial music, and the Northern Song Dynasty experienced six large-scale music discussions. Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty was a renowned artistic emperor with a unique aesthetic outlook on music. His personal aesthetic led to the sixth reform of the Northern Song Dynasty’s ceremonial music, which created the Dasheng music with the personal element of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty. After the formation of music, Yuefu was created. Dasheng Fu and Dasheng music can be said to be the pinnacle of Song Huizong’s personal pursuit. He attempted to fulfill his political ideals by playing Dasheng music. It can be said that the sixth reform of the Northern Song Dynasty was a selfperformance by Song Huizong.

We don’t need no (Confucian) education! A Northern Song Reading of the Liezi

Abstract One of the common traits ancient speculative Daoist texts share is their aversion to a society based on Confucian morals. The Liezi’s anecdote about Huazi has often been cited as prime example for this attitude and its inherent yearning for a return to the Dao. Remarkably, one of the most radical interpretations of this passage was authored by a high-ranking member of the Northern Song imperial court. Combining references to other classics with Buddhist concepts and terminology to expound a mysticism rooted in the Daoist tradition, Fan Zhixu’s 范致虛 (?–1129) commentary is not only a masterpiece of exegetical literature, but also provides valuable insights into the unique intellectual atmosphere at and around Emperor Huizong’s court. This case study serves as introduction to Fan’s forgotten work and simultaneously to a widely neglected set of sources regarding the religio-political developments during Huizong’s controversial reign.

宋人不言慶曆“新政”“新法”“變法”考———基於觀念史的個案研究

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in Chinese; abstract also in English.
 宋人雖常以“新法”“變法”“新政”賅括熙豐政事，但未曾以這些詞彙歸納慶曆之政；當代文史著作常言“慶曆新政”，這説法卻不見於清代以前文獻，原因何在？本文考析宋人慶曆書寫，指出：（1）熙豐變法時期宋人從未直接比較范、王改革主張，也不曾認爲慶曆、熙寧更革是可比的對象，這些聯繫待朱熹而後始。今人或曰熙豐變法之時，慶曆革新派趨於保守，這固屬當代觀點，卻非宋人認識；（2）范仲淹故後，對其顯有貶評者只有梅堯臣、宋神宗、王安石三例，後二者對范的批評，反映熙豐變法主事者並不完全認同慶曆改革；（3）歐陽修等慶曆當事人認爲范仲淹改革失敗皆因“群言營營，卒壞於成”，可是徽宗朝以後卻出現“慶曆之治”説法，其内涵又被簡化爲仁宗能“開納直言，善御群臣，賢必進，邪必退”。這説法無法揭示慶曆之政真正特色，又故意忽略慶曆改革主事者因“衆訾成波，擠落在外”的事實，卻有利於范仲淹作爲忠義第一人形象的建立；（4）宋人從不曾認爲慶曆之政有違祖宗之法，這是宋人不言慶曆“新”政的根本原因。南宋以後論者以范仲淹爲“守我宋之家法者”，進一步確立這觀點。
 When Song-Dynasty people summarized the political situation of the Xining (1068-1077) and Yuanfeng (1078-1085) eras, they used the terms “new laws,” “reform of laws,” and “new policies,” but the Qingli era (1041-1048) was never treated in the same way. The term “New Policies of the Qingli era” is commonly used in contemporary scholarship of Chinese history, but this term was not in existence in the literature before the Qing Dynasty. What is the reason for these phenomena? The present study analyzes Song people’s writing on Qingli and makes the following arguments:
 (1) During the Xining-Yuanfeng reform, Song people had never directly compared the reformist advocacy of Fan Zhongyan (989 1052) and that of Wang Anshi (1021-1086), nor had they ever considered the Qingli and Xining-Yuanfeng reforms comparable, until Zhu Xi (1130-1200) made such a comparison. Today’s view that the Qingli reform advocacy was deemed conservative during the Xining-Yuanfeng reform movement was never so perceived by Song people. (2) After Fan’s death, he was explicitly criticized by Mei Yaochen (1002-1060), Emperor Shenzong of the Song (r. 1067 1085), and Wang Anshi only. The criticisms by the latter two indicate that the Xining-Yuanfeng reform leaders did not completely agree with the Qingli reform. (3) Ouyang Xiu (1007-1072) and the other leaders of the Qingli reform held that Fan’s failure was due to the extensive wave of criticisms the reform had triggered. However, during the reign of Emperor Huizong (r. 1100-1126), a positive view emerged, coming with it inarguable narratives that describe the reform as a sign of Emperor Renzong’s (r. 1022-1063) willingness to accept advice. Unable to reveal the Qingli reform’s true features, this opinion deliberately ignores the historical fact that the Qingli advocates were lambasted and thus demoted, but helps construct Fan’s personal image as a most loyal person. (4) Song people had never considered that the Qingli reform violated the ancestral custom of the Song Dynasty, and this is the very reason why they had never referred to it as “new policies.” This argument was further supported by the opinion of Southern Song critics, who viewed Fan as a protector of the traditional norms laid down by the ancestors of the Song Dynasty’s royal house.

Analysis of Aesthetic Features of Official Kilns in Song Dynasty

The Chinese Porcelain art burgeoned during the Song Dynasty, particularly under emperor Huizong’s rule. Within the era, the official kiln was known for its exquisite quality and the fascinating philosophical thoughts underpinning the art pieces’ unique aesthetic features. This paper analyzes and portrays the aesthetic outlooks of the official kilns, examining the philosophy, form, textures, colors, production details, and the influences of the art. Sources of the analysis will be derived from different literature, including Mandarin and Western. The findings of this paper suggest that the Celadon art, particularly the official kiln, is an art form that stems from the particular political situation of the Song era, with the art form’s development comprised of the combined intellectual thoughts of the Song artists and literati. In addition, not only has the official kilns evolved from its previous art forms, which originated as early as the Han Dynasty but also carried on its influences on future art forms even until the modern period.

Reacting to Epidemics: The Innovative Imperial Public Health System during the Late Northern Song Dynasty

Song China was a period in which China experienced a great increase in its population. Concurrently, the Song dynasty also experienced a rise in the frequency of epidemics and two major wars with the Western Xia and Liao dynasties during the 1000s and 1040s. The consequences of these changes were exacerbated by the increased geographical mobility of certain social groups such as traders and examinees attending civil service examinations. Thus, casualties of wars, epidemics, or disease, especially of people whose families were far away and could not care for them were left without care and “their corpses often lay bare along the roads.” This new social environment created a need for general relief. The Northern Song government (960–1127 CE), especially during the reign of Emperor Huizong, established an innovative public health system to address this issue. The public health system included poorhouses, public hospitals, and pauper’s cemeteries. The first were more of charity organizations, whereas the latter two promoted public health by providing medical services for the poor and burial for those that nobody cared for. In terms of rationale behind these institutions, on the one hand, they constituted an attempt to get the poor and homeless off the streets while providing them relief or burial. On the other hand, it seems that Huizong’s deep concern with medicine propelled him to design and implement a comprehensive public health system oriented to prevent contagion and outbreak of epidemics. This article depicts the background, the organization, and the functions of the system. The article also discusses the conditions and reasons that gave rise to such a unique undertaking by the Northern Song government.

A computer vision-aided analysis of facial similarities in Song dynasty imperial portraits

Similarity between faces in portraiture is incredibly informative for art historical questions involving the sitter's identity, as well for setting a painting in its historical context to understand why someone was depicted a certain way. A set of royal portraits from Song dynasty, China, has been the subject of rich art historical scholarship. Here, I demonstrate the usefulness of computer vision-based quantitative metrics in complementing existing rich subjective evaluations. Working with the portrait set, I show that L2 distances generated by OpenFace support the accepted hypothesis that emperor Lizong is depicted in Listening to the Wind in the Pines. I then use the technique to gain insight into whether the zither player in Listening to the Zither resembles emperor Huizong and why that might be, as well as what degrees of similarity between emperor portraits in the set may mean in terms of metaphorical inclusion or exclusion from the lineage. I then extend discussions on metaphorical inclusion to women in this set by exploring spousal similarity. Fascinating mysteries surrounding posthumous portraiture float amidst confounding factors in the clouds of memory, and this study shows the promise of using computer vision-based techniques as complements to subjective analyses in exploring these mysteries.

A Bowl of Good Tea in the Northern Song Dynasty: Using Modern Examples to Understand the Daguan chalun 大觀茶論

Abstract Although tea has played an important role in Chinese culture in both historical and modern periods, the origins and history of tea cultures in China have not received much attention in English language scholarship. We can build a solid foundation for discussing how to prepare and appreciate tea in Chinese history by relying on the hints given in the Daguan chalun 大觀茶論 and associating them with the aesthetics and elite cultures in the Norther Song Dynasty. This article first proposes to conduct simulation experiments by using modern examples to help understand the diancha 點茶 (tea-tipping) process recorded in the Daguan chalun, attributed to Emperor Huizong 徽宗. It argues that, out of the multiple tea practices of the Northern Song period, the authors of the Daguan chalun aimed to establish and regulate a new, single standard and preference for making and drinking tea. By prioritizing the Jian’an 建安 Baicha 白茶, praising the Jian’an tea bowls, grading and categorizing tea types, and promoting the diancha practice, Huizong and his subordinates added much cultural and financial value to the tea. The composition and dissemination of the Daguan chalun assisted in their creation of a new elite culture.

道成肉身的神格对比

道成肉身的神格对比

화문과 화제의 분류체제

This paper is a survey of the systematization and classification of painting divisions(畵門huamen) and painting subjects(畵題huati) from the Northern and Southern Dynasties period to the Song Dynasty period. Painting subjects are titles of works named according to their topic or theme, and painting divisions are kinds of painting subjects sorted by category, such as figure, landscape, and bird-and-flower paintings. Painting divisions, which group the same painting subjects into separate divisions, are also referred to as ‘painting departments’(畵科huake), since they serve the same role as academic departments with respect to paintings. The East Asian painting tradition used such painting divisions to promote the expertise of painters and to evaluate their abilities and used painting subjects to follow the classic works and to propagate and extend them. The intention behind the work, as well as the physical materials used, how the painting is mounted, painting style and criticism, the social status and school, the purpose of enjoymenㅍ t and mode of use, etc. were structuralized and systematized as creative norms and genre conventions under the categories of painting divisions and subjects. Therefore, painting divisions and subjects serve as foundational data in iconological research and provide the core task in understanding the thematic consciousness and substance of East Asian paintings. Discussion of painting divisions and subjects not only elucidates the nature of East Asian paintings, but also is crucial in accurately reconstructing the history of paintings from available materials. The classification of paintings was first mentioned in terms of the Four Divisions(門men) in the 「論畵Lunhua」 by Gu Kaizhi(顧愷之) in the Eastern Jin Dynasty at the end of the fourth century CE. These divisions were further classified into large and small categories in the 『唐朝名畵錄Tangchao minghua lu』 by Zhu Jingxuan(朱景玄), and the 『歷代名畵記Lidai minghua ji』 by Zhang Yanyuan(張彦遠) in the late Tang Dynasty period. The systematization of painting divisions took place in the Song Dynasty. It began in the Northern Song with Liu Daochun`s(劉道醇) 『聖朝名畵評Shengchao minghua ping』(1059), and was continued in Guo Ruoxu`s(郭若虛) 『圖畫見聞志Tuhua jianwen zhi』(1070) and the 『宣和畵譜 Xuanhe huapu』(1123) that sorts the paintings in Emperor Huizong`s imperial collection into ten divisions. In the Southern Song, this was followed by Deng Chun`s (鄧椿) 『畵繼Hua ji』(1167) and Sun Shaoyuan`s(孫紹遠) 『聲畵集Shenghua ji』(1187). This systematization was established by art collectors and critics, all involving classification based on experience, and it is notable that painting activities were sustained through this medium. The collectors and critics aimed to systematize the experiences and outcomes of their historical investigation and evaluation of paintings and artists by locating them in the space of classification, and thereby sought to give a full account of the realm of paintings and its development over time, and also to use this account as a genealogy. Further, during the Northern Song period, a new kind of titling activity became established, along with the emergence of the ‘four-character’ painting subject as ‘wordless poems’, and the adherence to precedents in painting topics.

Pursuing Moral Governance

A millennium ago in Northern Song (960–1127) China, Emperor Huizong initiated the “Eight Virtues of Conduct” in order to recruit morally upright officials. In place of the candidates’ skills in literary composition and understanding of the Confucian classics, this scheme adopted candidates’ moral virtues as their major criterion of selection. This paper analyzes how this scheme was implemented. It also shows that the rejection of certain genuinely virtuous nominees and the recruitment of some candidates who had exhibited objectionable conduct somehow compromised the emperor’s ideal. This analysis is followed by a discussion of the political and social implications of the scheme. Instead of perceiving this promotion channel as a means for Huizong and Chief Councilor Cai Jing to eliminate dissidents and install ideological conformity, the author argues that the scheme was an initiative of the emperor to counter the chief councilor’s dominance and alleviate factional conflicts. The final section examines the extent to which this scheme facilitated social mobility in the Song dynasty.

The Literati, the Eunuch, and a Memorial: The Nelson-Atkins's Red Cliff Handscroll Revisited

Abstract The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art's Illustration to the Second Prose Poem on the Red Cliff, attributed to Qiao Zhongchang, has been long celebrated as a major achievement of early Chinese literati painting. Nevertheless, the lifelike portraiture of Su Shi and the depiction of an actual site, as well as the contemporary colophons, all point to a memorial function for the scroll. The early provenance of this handscroll indicates that Liang Shicheng, the eunuch at Emperor Huizong's court, was the one who commissioned it. The painting bears witness to the appropriation of the Li Gonglin style in the late Northern Song court.

송대 茶事典籍및 主要茶書의 내용 考察

This study examined the major contents of some 70 kinds of tea rites and eight kinds of tea books from Song Dynasty based on A Collection of Chinese Historical Materials on Tea Leaves (中國茶葉歷史資料選集) compiled by Jin Jo Gyu and Ju Ja Jin. In China, the writing of books on tea started with Tea Classic(茶經) by Yuku in Tang. In Song Dynasty, a hefty 30% of Chinese ancient books on tea were published, including Cheonmyeongrok by Dogok, Darok by Chaeyang, Yongcharokhuseo by Gu Yang Su, Pumchayorok by Hwang Yu, Donggyesidarok by Song Ja An, Daegwandaron by Emperor Huizong Zhao Ji, SeonhwaBukwonGongChaRok written by Woongbeon(熊蕃), and Bukwonbyeolrok by Jo Yeo Ryeo. In Song, some 70 kinds of tea rites were further enriched by literati s literary talent and emotion such as the writing of poems or literary commentaries. In those times in Song, many literati, scholars, and government officials were the very masters of teas, and they created the harmonious beauty and deep mental world into poems, calligraphies and paintings, from their tea life. In particular, most of books on tea published in Dynasty feature many contents of tribute tea. Nearly all authors of tea books were government officials in charge of tea rites in Bukwon, including officials responsible for transporting grains as taxes in Bukwon, Geonan. The books recorded the authors first-hand experience, detailing the entire process of making tea from cultivation to collection to drying, as well as kinds of tribute tea. Books on tea published in Song are important historical materials for researching Song s tea industry and tea culture. Song s tea culture reached the loftiest level in the history of China. Considering the times publication circumstances and expansive geographical scope, however, the distribution of books on tea and exchange of knowledge presumably were not facilitated. Due to such circumstances, Song s books on tea were generally written based on compilers experience, observation and knowledge.

An ancient record of an avian hybrid and the potential uses of art in ecology and conservation

Hybridization, the interbreeding of different species, is the object of much research and great interest (Mallet 2007, Abbott et al. 2013). As in many taxa (even humans; early modern humans hybridized with Neanderthals and Denisovans (Pääbo 2015)), hybridization is widespread in birds (Randler 2004, McCarthy 2006). According to the most updated literature mining, hybridization has been recorded in 2204 species from 30 bird orders in nature and/or in captivity (Ottenburghs et al. 2015). It presents various challenges to the definitions of species, studies of the process of speciation, reconstructions of phylogenies and strategies of conservation (Grant & Grant 1992). Birds and flowers are important components in traditional Chinese paintings. A masterpiece of Gongbi painting attributed to Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty, or Ji Zhao (reigned 1100–1125 AD), depicts a male pheasant resting on a hibiscus branch, his head turned to gaze at hovering butterflies (Fig. 1a). This pheasant shows chimeric characteristics from two species of pheasant (genus Chrysolophus), both of which occur in China (Lei et al. 2002): the Golden Pheasant Chrysolophus pictus (Fig. 1b) and Lady Amherst's Pheasant Chrysolophus amherstiae (Fig. 1c). The latter species has black and silver cape-like feathers on the sides of the neck and this pattern is clear in the painting. However, other characteristics of the pheasant in the painting are typical of the Golden Pheasant. The painting may represent artistic licence, or a nearly 900-year-old depiction of a hybrid bird. More than seven centuries after the painting was created, both the Golden Pheasant and Lady Amherst's Pheasant were exported to Europe. Hybridization between these birds was first described in 1872 (Elliot 1872). Subsequently, a natural male hybrid pheasant was captured in Sichuan, China, in 1964 and another was reported in 1974 (Deng 1974). This specimen closely matched the bird in the Song Dynasty painting. Additional reports of natural hybrids exist (He et al. 1993) and one hybrid bird also matches the painting (Fig. 1d). Thus, the earliest record of an avian hybrid can be traced back nearly 900 years. The hybrid pheasant in the ancient painting raises an interesting possibility. The massive number of centuries-old bird and flower paintings in various collections may serve to document the biodiversity of ancient China, even to the extent of revealing species lost forever. It is possible that more interesting findings will be made through collaborations between art collectors and connoisseurs and biologists in the future. We thank Xuan Guo, Li-Wei Li and Ming Zhang for providing the photographs of Chrysolophus pictus, Chrysolophus amherstiae and the hybrid, respectively. We also thank Dr Leslie Anthony for editorial feedback. This work was supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) ‘Light of West China’ programme. M.-S.P. thanks the Youth Innovation Promotion Association, CAS, for its support.

Emperor Huizong by Patricia Buckley Ebrey (review)

Emperor Huizong by Patricia Buckley Ebrey (review)

Patricia Buckley Ebrey. Emperor Huizong.

Patricia Buckley Ebrey. Emperor Huizong.

Emperor Huizong by Patricia Buckley Ebrey

Emperor Huizong by Patricia Buckley Ebrey

Stages of Decline

After the fall of the Northern Song [Formula: see text] (960–1127) capital of Kaifeng [Formula: see text] to Jurchen invaders in 1127, diasporic literati of the Southern Song dynasty [Formula: see text] (1127–1279) recreated and revisited its lost sites through textual commemoration, especially in memorabilia literature (biji [Formula: see text], lit. ‘brush notes’). As knowledge of the city passed from communicative memory into cultural memory, its decline and destruction became the focus of nostalgia and indignation for Yue Ke [Formula: see text] (1183–1234), the author of the Pillar Histories (Ting shi [Formula: see text]), a collection of counter-narratives of Northern Song history that expressed the shared experience of social trauma induced by dynastic collapse. Disconnected from their spatial context and even from historical fact, the city’s memory sites became stages for amoralistic declension narrative, in which the city’s destruction and occupation was assumed to have been instigated by the decadence of the imperial court of the passive Emperor Huizong [Formula: see text] (r. 1100–26) and his ‘nefarious ministers’. The most colourful elements of Yue’s ludic and fantastical narratives became the focus of his indignation, which encouraged his readers to denounce the traitors who had betrayed the empire by inviting the Jurchen invasion. In the Pillar Histories, Yue deployed textual imaginaries of nostalgia as forms of resistance by re-contesting the past events that led to dynastic collapse. By reconstructing the city in the cultural memory of his fellow diasporic literati, Yue was creating a vision of an ideal political, cultural and moral community that once existed at the dynasty’s inception, and might be reconstituted in the future, if and when Song subjects recaptured their lost homeland.