The Image Of The Seven Sages Of The Bamboo Grove In Song Poetry

The Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove were a representative group of literati in the Wei and Jin dynasties,with their eccentric manner and far-reaching speeches,who rose to fame at the time and had a profound influence on later generations with their unique charm and temperament.The image of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove in Song poetry is an inheritance and development of the pre-Song image of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove,which is more diversified and three-dimensional,carrying the identification and hope of the Song scholars for their own values,and mapping the character and spirituality of the Song people.From the recognized literature,the names of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove were first mentioned in the Eastern Jin Dynasty,and the period of the Eastern Jin and the Northern and Southern Dynasties is the closest period to the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove,which can be said to be the goblet of the acceptance of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove in later times.The image of the Seven Sages in Tang poetry is mainly focused on the acceptance of the Seven Sages’ travels in the bamboo forest,the style of famous scholars and the sentiment of seclusion,reflecting the selective acceptance of the Seven Sages in the bamboo forest by Tang poets.The image of the Seven Sages in the Bamboo Grove in Song poetry coalesces with the characteristics of the Song dynasty,and the dashing and unrestrained sentiments of the Seven Sages in the Bamboo Grove and their hermitage reverberate in Song poetry;the seven sages’ travels in the Bamboo Grove also become a symbol of pleasure and feasting and a symbol of friendship.The Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove are both a representative group of literati in the Wei and Jin dynasties and seven different individuals.The legend of Jikang’s extraordinary appearance,elegant sentiments,and his taking food to seek immortality is presented in the poets of the Song Dynasty.The image of JI Kang appears more frequently in Su’s poems,mainly in his exploration of JI Kang’s independent spirit,tragic fate,and thoughts on health and wellness.The image of Ruan Ji focuses on the acceptance of Ruan Ji’s wild and unrestrained demeanor,his confused state of mind and his prudent attitude towards the world.The image of the other five sages is mainly reflected in Shan Tao,Wang Rong’s greed for money,Liu Ren’s love of wine,Ruan Xian’s indifference and Xiang Xiu’s love.JI Kang and Ruan Ji were the main representatives of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove in Song poetry,and the Song people often included "JI and Ruan" in their poems to express their admiration for their grace and elegance.The Song people valued virtue,but when examining their political choices,they showed a tendency to "honor JI and disparage Ruan".Under the influence of the Song dynasty environment and ideological atmosphere,the Song people tended to be more introverted in their creative mindset and more calm and rational in their thinking.The Song people had both emotional resonance and rational questioning of the spiritual thoughts,behavior,personality traits and attitudes of the Seven Sages;they had admiration and criticism,and the images of the Seven Sages were written with the introversion and rationalization characteristic of the Song Dynasty,making the images of the Seven Sages in Song poetry more discursive.