Introduced by Xie An, a famous politician in the Eastern Jin Dynasty
Introduction to Xie An, a famous politician in the Eastern Jin Dynasty
Xie An in the Eastern Jin Dynasty
Xie An (320 AD - October 12, 385 AD), whose courtesy name was Anshi, was A famous politician in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Xie An lived in seclusion and refused to become an official until he was in his forties. After entering the court as an official, Xie An devoted himself to the court and made significant contributions to the political stability and peace of the Eastern Jin Dynasty for many years, so he was deeply appreciated by later generations.
Portrait of Xie An
Because he was born in a famous family and was young and smart, Xie An was recognized by many celebrities and officials in the Eastern Jin Dynasty since he was a child. However, Xie Anzhi was no longer in official career and had always refused recommendations from others and promotion from the court. In order to avoid becoming an official, Xie An went to live in seclusion in Dongshan, Kuaiji, where he traveled leisurely with Wang Xizhi and other famous friends. In addition to indulging in the mountains and rivers, he also continued to educate the children of his Xie family.
It was not until his younger brother, who was an official in the court, was defeated and demoted, and the Xie family's power in the court weakened, that Xie An started to become an official. In 360 AD, he first served as a Sima under Huan Wen, and then was appointed as a prefect. After that, he rose through the ranks in the imperial court. In 373, when Huan Wen attempted to usurp the throne, Xie An took his time and joked with him for a long time, so that he did not dare to take action. It was also Xie An's excuse to delay when he asked for Jiuxi's gift. Xie An tried his best to assist the emperor, ease the conflict between the Huan clan and the imperial court, coordinate the officials, and stabilize the government.
In addition to politics, Xie An also had considerable achievements in the military. In 377, Xie An selected his nephew Xie Xuan and others as generals to guard Guangling, thereby repelling the attack of the former Qin Dynasty. In 383, Xie An commanded the Battle of Feishui, defeating the former Qin army of one million with 80,000 troops. Later, he regained lost territory for the Eastern Jin Dynasty and won 40 years of peace.
After the Battle of Feishui, Xie An began to be jealous of the emperor because of his great achievements. Therefore, Xie An took the initiative to hand over power. Unfortunately, he died of illness soon at the age of 66. He was posthumously awarded the posthumous title of Taifu, Wenjing.
Who is Xie An?
Xie An was born in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. He was a famous hermit, politician, and military strategist at that time, and he was proficient in all kinds of literature, Taoism and military strategy. He did not become an official until he was forty years old, and he has been dedicated to the court for more than twenty years. It can be said that he has truly cultivated himself, managed his family, governed the country, and brought peace to the world in his life.
Portrait of Xie An
Xie An is primarily praised for his political and military achievements. He is known as "the magnanimous and courageous statesman in Chinese history." During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the country was internally divided. There were also the Five Hus and Sixteen Kingdoms in the north. The political situation was turbulent and wars continued. When Xie An was in power, he tried his best to assist the young emperor and constantly ease the conflicts between the DPRK and China. Preventing Huan Wen's intention to usurp the throne and commanding the Battle of Feishui were Xie An's most important political and military achievements, which won decades of peace and stability for the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
Compared with serving as an official and engaging in politics, Xie An spent more of his 66 years in seclusion. Xie An came from a well-known family and was quite famous since childhood, but he had no ambitions in officialdom, so he had been living in seclusion to avoid being called up by the court. Xie An has been living in seclusion in Dongshan, Kuaiji. The friends he travels with include celebrities and monks, the most famous of whom is Wang Xizhi. In addition, Xie An is also versatile. He once studied running calligraphy under Wang Xizhi and was proficient in music.
Because later generations spoke highly of Xie An, many anecdotes and allusions related to him have been circulated. For example, "Come Back" tells the story of Xie An who lived in seclusion in Dongshan for a long time before becoming an official at the age of forty; for example, "The Talent of Ying Xu" tells the story of a snowy day when Xie An got together with his family to discuss poetry and asked his niece Xie Daoyun what snowflakes looked like. Xie An praised him because his answers were like catkins flying.
The Xie family where Xie An belongs is one of the largest families in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Xie An's descendants have many celebrities who have left their names in history, among which Xie Xuan, his nephew, and Xie Lingyun, Xie Xuan's grandson, are the most famous.
Xie An Family
During the Jin and Jin Dynasties, due to the clan system, there were many gentry families, large and small, all over the country. Among all the noble families, the most powerful and famous were the Wang family of Langya and the Xie family of Chenjun, so later generations called them both "Wang Xie". Among them, the Xie family was Xie An's family and the one who contributed the most to literature. family.
Portrait of Xie Tiao
The Xie family of Chen County is said to date back to the Cao Wei period of the Three Kingdoms, and is Xie An's great-grandfather. Later, several members of the Xie family recorded in history books became officials, but their official positions in the court were not very high, so the Xie family did not become a top family member at that time. The real fortune of the Xie family was in Xie An's generation.
It is said that Xie An has three elder brothers and three younger brothers in his generation. Among them, Cong brother Xie Shang was a well-known romantic figure at that time. He was versatile and proficient in music and dance. He later became an official and had considerable political achievements. The eldest brother Xie Yi once served as governor of Yuzhou. But the person who really made the Xie family a family comparable to the Langya Wang family was Xie An. Especially after Xie An won the Battle of Feishui, not only Xie An's personal power and reputation rose to its peak, but his brother Xie Shi, nephew Xie Xuan and other family members who also made contributions in the war also received corresponding rewards. With many heroes in one branch, the Xie family rose to prominence and flourished for more than three hundred years.
After Xie An, although the Xie family did not have another son who could achieve great achievements like him and bring supreme glory to the family. However, several important poets and writers in Chinese history emerged from the Xie family. Among them, "Big Xie" Xie Lingyun and "Xiao Xie" Xie Tiao are the most famous. These two people can be said to be the founders and pioneers of Chinese landscape poetry. The glory of Tang poetry is also closely related to them.
Xie Xuan Xie An
Xie Xuan is Xie An's nephew and the son of his eldest brother Xie Yi. Xie Xuan can be said to be the most outstanding one among Xie An's nephews, so he was later valued and cultivated by Xie An. Not only did he participate in the Battle of Feishui commanded by him, but he was also indispensable for the Eastern Jin Dynasty to defeat the former Qin army. One of the characters.
Battle of Feishui
During his lifetime, Xie Xuan's father, Xie Yi, once served as general of Anxi and governor of Yuzhou. Xie Xuan was raised by Xie An when he was a child. The two had a deep relationship. He was smart and highly regarded by Xie An since he was a child. Legend has it that Xie An once educated his family's children and asked them: "You don't need to be officials, why do you need to be trained?" Only Xie Xuan came out to answer Xie Xuan's introduction. He metaphorically said: "Just like the orchid and jade trees, people also I always want them to grow in my own garden." Xie An was overjoyed after hearing this, and fell in love with him even more.
When Xie Xuan grew up, he was similar to Xie An. He refused many calls from the imperial court at the beginning, and later went to work under Huan Wen. When Fu Jian of the former Qin Dynasty continued to send troops to invade the north, the imperial court began to select generals to guard it. At this time, Xie An's first thought was his nephew Xie Xuan, and he recommended him without avoiding relatives. Xie Xuan then became the governor of Yanzhou, responsible for the military defense of the north. He continuously recruited troops and selected generals, and trained the elite "Beifu Army".
In 379, after the former Qin Dynasty captured Xiangyang, Xie Xuan led his troops to meet the enemy and annihilated the Qin army. Later, in the Battle of Feishui in 383, Xie Xuan was also the vanguard of the Eastern Jin army. He confronted and fought with Fu Jian's army, and finally defeated the former Qin Dynasty and won a comprehensive victory. After the war, the Eastern Jin Dynasty took the opportunity to lead the vanguard army of the Northern Expedition, also led by Xie Xuan, who regained a lot of lost territory for the court.
It can be said that Xie Xuan's achievements in the Battle of Feishui are second only to the commander-in-chief Xie An. A few years after the war, both his uncle and nephew died of illness, and Xie Xuan was only three years younger than Xie An.
Xie An’s Suo Jie
“Xie An’s Suo Jie” comes from Article 24 of the Literature Chapter in Shi Shuo Xin Yu. story. "Suo" means to explore and inquire, and "Jie" means to explain knowledge. Xie An asked questions and repeatedly asked questions if he didn't understand something. This shows that he is eager to learn and not ashamed to ask too many questions.
Xie An's paintings
The story goes that when Xie An was young, he asked Ruan Yu, who was then the highest official in Jin Ziguanglu's office, for advice on White Horse Theory, and Ruan Yu himself wrote an article for him. look. At that time, Xie An couldn't immediately understand what Ruan Yu said, so he repeatedly asked the question. Ruan Yu then sighed: "Not only are people who can talk about the White Horse Theory rare, but it is also very rare for people to explore and understand the White Horse Theory now."
The White Horse Theory has been discussed by many philosophers in the pre-Qin period. ’s question, better known as “A white horse is not a horse.
The reason why we say "white horse" is not "horse" is because "horse" defines its shape, while "white horse" refers to its color, and color and shape are different. Now it seems that this problem is a logical change of concepts.
There are relatively few records of Xie An's study and study in history books. This is mainly related to the historical background at that time. The Eastern Jin Dynasty vigorously implemented the clan system. There were many noble families, large and small, and officials were basically selected from the noble families. Therefore, the noble families have always maintained a monopoly on education and education. The children of the family are basically educated by their own people instead of being sent to private schools. The Xie family where Xie An lives was already a big family when he was a child, so he should have studied at home since he was a child.
In the story, Xie An consulted on pre-Qin philosophical issues, which also shows his later love for philosophy. It is said that Xie An likes Laozi, Zhuangzi and Buddhism very much, so he is also very good at conversation, that is, he does not talk about politics, military and other mundane matters, but only discusses philosophy.
Shishuoxinyu by Xie An
"Shishuoxinyu" is a notebook novel compiled by Liu Yiqing during the Southern and Northern Dynasties. It mainly records the upper class people in the late Han Dynasty, the Three Kingdoms and the Two Jin Dynasties. Their lives include words, deeds, and interesting anecdotes. The subjects written in the book are mainly celebrities in the Wei and Jin Dynasties, and Xie An is the most important among them.
"Shishuo Xinyu"
Someone made a rough statistics and found that there are more than 1,100 deeds in "Shishuo Xinyu", including those involving Xie An 114 articles. Therefore, it can be said that Xie An is the character who appears the most in "Shishuoxinyu", so he is also the most described and vivid character in the book. Moreover, in the book, only one of Xie An's deeds appears in the chapter "Political Affairs", while the two most common are "Goodwill" and "Pin Zao". It can be seen from this that Xie An was so famous in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties and was the idol of thousands of intellectuals. However, the reason for his popularity was not his achievements in politics and military, but his character, morality and spirit. Probably the romance of the Wei and Jin Dynasties.
For example, the book often praises Xie An for his extraordinary magnanimity. It is said in Article 28 of the Yaliang Chapter that when Xie An was in Dongshan, he once went out for a boating trip with his friends. The waves suddenly surged. The others looked frightened and restless when they saw it, but Xie An was calm and composed, and said to them: "How can you go back if you are so panicked?" ?” This story not only reflects Xie An’s calm attitude in dealing with things, but also shows his optimistic and open-minded character.
For another example, Xie An’s home education methods are mentioned many times in the book. It is said in Article 36 of the Chapter on Virtue that Xie An's wife educates her children. She once asked Xie An why she did not see him teaching. Xie An replied: "I have been educating them myself." It can be seen that Xie An is more important than teaching in reading and writing. Pay attention to teaching by words and deeds.
Xie An's Go
"Xie An's Go" comes from Article 35 of the Yaliang chapter in "Shishuo Xinyu". It tells the story of Xie An's battle with The story of people playing Go. Xie An lived in seclusion before he became an official in his forties, and those who were with him were all celebrities at that time. In addition to traveling around, they either drank wine, recited poems, or played piano and chess. So Xie An is also a loyal fan of Go.
Xie An played chess
The story goes that Xie An and his guests were playing Go. After a while, a messenger sent by his nephew Xie Xuan from Huai River arrived. After Xie An read the letter, he remained silent and slowly turned his attention to the chess game. The guest was curious and asked him about the battle at Huai River. Xie An replied calmly: "The children defeated the bandits." Xie An's expression and behavior were no different from usual.
The Huai River is the Feishui River, so the war they are talking about is the famous battle commanded by Xie An at that time - the Battle of the Feishui River. The Eastern Jin Dynasty not only prevented the invasion of pre-Qin Fu Jian's million-strong army, but also defeated the opponent with a small victory and a large victory. After that, it recovered the lost territory and enjoyed peace for more than 40 years. It was also because of this victory that Xie An's power and reputation reached its peak. However, when receiving such good news, Xie An could remain calm and continue playing chess, which shows his extraordinary magnanimity and calmness in the face of trouble.
But of course, it is impossible for Xie An not to be happy about the victory in the Battle of Feishui.
After the chess game was played and the guests were sent away, he got carried away and jumped around the room, accidentally breaking the clogs he was wearing.
It is said that before this, during the Battle of Feishui, Xie An also played Go with his friends and bet him on a house. Because his friend was nervous about the war, his performance was abnormal. In the end, Xie An won the chess game and turned around and gave the house to his nephew.
Xie An's poems
In addition to being an outstanding politician and military strategist, Xie An was also a litterateur. Because he spent most of his life living in seclusion in the mountains and forests, and was a famous scholar who did not want to become an official, he left some articles and poems. Among them, Volume 13 of "Jin Shi" contains two of his poems: "Lanting" "Two Poems" and "Poems with Wang Hu".
Xie An Lanting
"Two Lanting Poems" can be seen from the title of the poem that it has a great relationship with Wang Xizhi. Xie An lived in seclusion in Dongshan, Shanyin, Kuaiji for a long time, and Wang Xizhi also moved there. Therefore, the two had a deep relationship and were good friends. They often traveled together and Wang Xizhi was also Xie An's teacher in running script. Once, a group of friends went to Lanting to drink and compose poems together, which resulted in Wang Xizhi's "Preface to the Lanting Collection", "the best running script in the world", and Xie An's "Two Lanting Poems". These two poems, one with four words and one with five words, are both composed by You Wan. The former plays the main role in describing scenes, while the latter mainly expresses emotions.
"Poetry with Wang Hu" is a four-character metaphysical poem. This type of poetry does not have a clear scene or emotion, but mainly explains the author's understanding of Lao Zhuang and Buddhist thought. This poem by Xie An can be divided into six sections. Judging from the name, it was written by him to Wang Huzhi, and it can be regarded as a letter. Wang Huzhi is Wang Xizhi's cousin, so he is probably one of Xie An's friends.
Although very few of Xie An's poems remain in history, given his talent, especially since he lived in seclusion for many years, he must have written many poems during his lifetime. In addition, Xie An also attached great importance to the education of poetry when nurturing his family's children. This can be seen from his admiration for his niece Xie Daoyun's story that "it is not like catkins blowing in the wind." Therefore, the descendants of the Xie family have produced many outstanding poets.
Xie An’s Tomb
On October 12, 385 AD, Xie An died of illness at the age of 66. Because he did not have a cemetery, Emperor Xiaowu not only gave him a good coffin, but also selected a geomantic treasure land for him in Meiling (now Nanjing). Unfortunately, the tomb was later destroyed by robbers, so later generations collected the remains and reburied it.
Xie An’s Tomb
According to historical records, although the Xie family did not live up to its glory after the fall of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, it was still enough to protect the grave of their ancestor Xie An. But in the Chen Dynasty of the Southern Dynasty, Chen Shuling, the second son of Emperor Chen Wen, selected a cemetery for his biological mother. He took a fancy to the location of Xie An's tomb, so he dug up the cemetery and even occupied Xie An's coffin, which can be said to be a dove occupying a magpie's nest. It was not until Chen Shuling was killed that the cemetery was returned to the Xie family, but Xie An's coffin was not.
Xie An’s tomb is now located in Changxing County, Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province. There is a local Taifu Township. This "Taifu" refers to Xie An, and his cemetery is at Sanya Gang there. At that time, a descendant of Xie An was serving as a county magistrate here, so his coffin was moved and buried here. It is said that during the Tang Dynasty, there were both tombstones and tombstones here. Although tombstones were constantly rebuilt and added in the Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties, Xie An's tomb was still destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, leaving only two tombstones. It has been renovated and open to the public.
Compared with the misery of Xie An’s tomb in Changxing, Xie’an’s tomb in Shangyu, Shaoxing is much luckier. This is Xie An's former residence, Dongshan, where he has always lived in seclusion, and where the Xie family later moved. It is said that Xie An always had a long-cherished wish to return to Dongshan during his lifetime. Xie An's descendants rebuilt a tomb here after Xie An's tomb in Nanjing was destroyed. Because it is the residence of the Xie family, this cemetery has been well protected. Introduction to Xie Xuan. In recent years, it has been repaired by the local government and is now located in the local Dongshan Temple. There is not only a cemetery, but also tomb passages, stele pavilions, and a Taifu Temple.
Introduced by Xie An, a famous politician in the Eastern Jin Dynasty