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Abstract Yin Tun was a renowned Confucian scholar and educator during the transitional period between the Northern and Southern Song dynasties in China. He studied under Cheng Yi and stood out among Cheng Yi’s numerous students for his dull intelligence and exceptional dedication to the virtue of “respect” in rituals. “Calligraphy Manuscripts Pasted on the Wall (Bi Tie),” the fifth volume of YIN Tun’s Collected Works of YIN, Courtesy Named Hejing (Hejing Yin Xiansheng Wenji), preserves certain textual forms of the calligraphy manuscript from Three Fears Studio (San Wei Zhai) and the ink rubbing from stone inscriptions from Linchuan Prefecture Studio (Linchuan Jun Zhai).The content of Bi Tie could be quotes or poems from predecessors or personal reflections. YIN’s bi tie is “a handwritten manuscript recording the essentials of the methods of cultivating mind and regulating qi (intangible nutritive energy circulating in the body) proposed by previous sages, interspersed with his own occasional commentaries. Its textual form and literature-generating process can be analyzed with cross reference to “The Master’s Teachings (Shi Shuo),” the third chapter of The Collected Works, thereby revealing the interweaving of textuality and materiality existing in handwritten copies of historical materials. The Analects records that “Tsze-chang asked how a man should conduct himself, so as to be everywhere appreciated. The master said, ‘let his words be sincere and truthful and his actions honorable and careful; such conduct may be practiced among the rude tribes of the south or the north. If his words are not sincere and truthful and his actions not honorable and careful will he, with such conduct, is appreciated, even in his neighborhood? When he is standing, let him see those two things, as it were, fronting him. When he is in a carriage, let him see them attached to the yoke. Then may he subsequently carry them into practice.’ Tsze-chang wrote these counsels on the end of his sash.” The practice of bi tie has its origin in the culture of admonitions and epigraphs of ancient times and the model of Zi Zhang “writing the Master’s words on the end of his sash” in Confucian Analects and conforms to the cultural custom of “pasting paper on the wall” in the Song Dynasty. It can be interpreted as the “pictorial” spatial representation of the Confucian way of cultivating moral character. The underlying function of bi tie is to facilitate people’s grasping of Dao (the Way) through constantly observing and introspecting. Similar to Wu Cheng’s praise for Zhang Kegong in Discourse on Zhujing Tang, where he admires the placement of essential sayings on the wall, visible day and night, claiming that such dedication is commendable. In terms of generating methods, bi tie encompasses writings, transcriptions, and miscellanies, which can be closely examined in light of the different historical contexts of the Confucian approach to cultivating oneself and teaching others during the Song Dynasty. Along with its institutionalization, the text of bi tie has gradually attained an “awareness of genre,” displaying a stylistic tendency towards inscriptions and maxims. Approaching literary works from the angle of their textual forms, the “archaeology on the paper” that focuses on the material medium proves to be a research method promising abundant possibilities. Although physical documents no longer exist, historical records allows us to faithfully interpret each piece of historical evidence, reconstructing the historical field of ancient document’s generation and representation. Which inspires us on how such documents participated in the spiritual and daily lives of ancient individuals.
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Published: 26 February 2024
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