The poem " Inscribed on the Wall in Prison" is the final work of Tan Sitong . It shows the heroic spirit of the reformers who are loyal to their ideals and sacrifice themselves to overcome difficulties, and paints Tan Si and his young life with a strong luster. The pen, the patriotic spirit of reforming to save the country, the fearless spirit of anti-feudalism, and the dedication of blood and sacrifice for reforming and saving the country reflected in him are all admired by the world. There has always been great controversy in the literary and historical circles about who the "Two Kunlun" are.
Multiple versions of one and two Kunlun
Logically speaking, since Tan Sitong used cinders to compose poems in "Prison Wall", Liang Qichao 's explanation of "Two Kunlun" is the most reasonable. Because Liang and Tan were close friends and very close in academic status, they also shared the same revolutionary ideal. However, some scholars combined the historical background and the author's true feelings and found that the explanations of "removing and retaining the liver and gallbladder" and "two Kunlun" are unreasonable.
Li Ao once wrote an article "Two Kunlun Examinations". He quoted Tao Juyin's statement in "Xin Yulin". The two Kunlun refers to Wang Wu and Hu Qi . Because both of them belong to the "Kunlun School", this statement is somewhat interesting, but it cannot explain the word "go or stay". It is impossible to explain who "goes" and who "stays" between Hu Qi and Wang Wu, especially when "Kunlun" is understood to mean "Kunlun Sect". A vigorous revolution has become the end of the martial arts novel, and it is inconsistent with the author's state of mind. .
Liang Qichao
The second view was put forward by Liang Qichao in "Poetic Talk in the Ice Drinking Room". He believed that one of them refers to Kang Youwei and the other refers to the knight swordsman Wang Wu, which is also a view generally recognized by academic circles.
The third view is that " Two Kunlun" refers to Tan Sitong's two slaves, Hu Lichen and Luo Sheng. In ancient times, the servants were called "Kunlun slaves".
The fourth view, believes that the two Kunluns are Wang Wu and Hu Qi, because they practiced "Kunlun Boxing" together.
Guangxu
The fifth view is also the most common view. believes that the "two Kunlun" are Tang Cichang and Wang Wu respectively. Tang Cichang and Tan Sitong were both known as the "Two Heroes of Liuyang" at that time, which meant that they were "Murong in the South and Qiao Feng in the North" at that time. On the eve of the 1898 Coup, Tan Sitong had sent a telegram inviting Tang Caichang to come to Beijing to participate in the coup. The two Kunluns mentioned by Tan Sitong in prison should have the flavor of a will, and he hoped that after Tang Caichang came to Beijing, he would assist Wang Wu to "seize the door and welcome the emperor", try to rescue Emperor Guangxu, and complete the unfinished revolutionary cause.
The above five interpretations of the meaning of "Two Kunlun" can be said to be a matter of opinion and wisdom. The reason for the different opinions is that this poem uses many allusions, metaphors and symbols. In addition, Tan Sitong had a wide social network and made many friends, which made it difficult for future generations to determine the "two Kunlun" when faced with his many close friends. The precise meaning. Many scholars analyze the meaning of "Two Kunlun" either from the perspective of etymological research or from the political and ideological characteristics of the poet. It should be said that it is profound and insightful. Which statement is the most reliable? Time has to go back to the era of the Reform Movement of 1898.
2. The historical background of "Prison Wall"
On September 17, 1989, Lin Xu brought out two secret edicts from Emperor Guangxu. Tan Sitong, Kang Youwei, and others cried over the edicts. Just before everyone When they were all helpless, Tan Sitong went to Fahua Temple alone to see Yuan Shikai on September 18, and persuaded him to save the "holy lord" and punish Ronglu. On September 21, a coup occurred, and Cixi imprisoned Guangxu in Ying. Taiwan and ordered the arrest of reformers. On September 22, Tan Sitong went to the Japanese consulate to meet Liang Qichao, and handed Liang Qichao his poems, essays and works such as "The Study of Renxue"
Japanese friends advised Tan Sitong to seek refuge in Japan, but Tan Sitong refused to listen and made an impassioned speech: "All countries follow the trend of reform. It is because of this that no one in China today has shed blood due to the political reform. This is why this country is not prosperous.If so, please start from the same place! "In the next three days, he conspired with Da Dao Wang Wu to save Guangxu and wanted to sneak into the palace to rob the emperor. However, Ronglu strengthened the security of the palace. Although Wang Wu was highly skilled in martial arts, he was single and weak and failed. Wang Wuku persuaded Tan Sitong to run away and offered to protect him, but Tan Jian refused. On the 10th day of the lunar month, on September 25th, he was arrested and imprisoned for three days. One letter each from Liang Qichao, three letters to his servants Hu Lichen and Luo Sheng, and a poem written on the wall. From the above-mentioned whereabouts of Tan Sitong from the second to the thirteenth day of August, we can see Tan Sitong's actions before and after the reform. Everything he did seemed to be upright and calm. All his thoughts and words and deeds during this period were completely focused on the fate of promoting the new reform cause. He was really thinking hard, generous and fierce, and sacrificing his life. He died in order to protect the king and hope that the cause of the new law would be successful in the future. Other things were not taken into consideration. Thinking about it from another angle, Tan Sitong was upright and dedicated to the law. Before his death, he never forgot about the revival of the new law. How could he suddenly care about the two servants who were taking care of him when he mentioned his death in one word? Therefore, the argument between the two servants is untenable
3. "Go and stay" and "Henan and gallbladder"
The first two sentences of the poem " "Looking at the door to stay, thinking about Zhang Jian, enduring death for a moment and waiting for Du Gen" uses two allusions respectively. These two allusions are from "Book of the Later Han Dynasty".
"Looking at the door to stay" uses Zhang Jian: Zhang Jian is talented De, was falsely accused of being a party rebel because of the impeachment of Hou Lan, the procurator who had harmed the people. When the court ordered his arrest, people admired his name, and every family took him in without fear of being ruined.
"Endure death" sentence. The story of Du Gen: In the Eastern Han Dynasty, Du Gen signed a letter with others because Empress Dowager Deng came to the court and took control of the government. The Empress Dowager ordered people to put Du Gen into a cloth bag and kill the law enforcers in the palace. Pitying Du Gen's loyalty and unwillingness to exert force, Du Gen faked his death and escaped. Du Gen was reinstated and appointed as the imperial censor.
Both allusions contain the basic fact that he is an upright and honest party member. Because he was deeply popular among the people, he received strong support when he was persecuted.
Tan Sitong quoted these two allusions because he compared the situation when they suffered with his own current situation, although he was not as famous as Zhang and Du when they were persecuted. However, compared with Zhang and Du, Tan Sitong felt that he had a clear conscience. Like Zhang Jian and Du Gen, he was a talented, virtuous, and loyal person. The reform had not yet been completed, and he was committed to the cause of the reform. To shed blood and sacrifice is to die a worthy death without any regrets.
The first two lines of the poem are Tan Sitong's discovery and affirmation of the value of his life. In his mind, there has long been a heroic "I" who stands firm and saves the times. of image.
The "two Kunlun" in the last two lines of the poem are not isolated. There are two keywords before it, "go and stay" and "liver and gallbladder". This heroic "I" image emerges more and more. Since you have a clear conscience and deserved your death, why not face the sword, look up to the sky, smile, and die calmly! Just like the choices made by Cheng Ying and Gongsun Peijiu back then, those who left were Liang Qichao, Kang Youwei and others, while he stayed and died to repay the Holy Lord. In Tan Sitong's letter to Kang Youwei, he mentioned that "it's easy for him to be with you, but it's difficult for him to do it", which comes from this allusion.
Therefore, the implicit meanings of "go" and "remain" are reincarnation and death. Those who "go" mean to save their lives and try to reform the law in the future. Those who "stay" mean to sacrifice their lives for righteousness and become martyrs. From this point of view, the "Two Kunlun" refers to one of the deceased and the other of the living. The "dead" refers to no other person. It should obviously be Tan Sitong himself. The word " Liver and Gallbladder" refers to the fact that oneself and the "passer" have a sincere relationship with each other. They are friends of life and death. They can share weal and woe during life and can support each other in important affairs after death.
4. Two Kunlun and Ren Xia
Bai Yu believes that one Kunlun is Tan Sitong and the other Kunlun should be Da Dao Wang Wu.Because he was a loyal executor who inherited Tan Sitong's revolutionary thoughts and was also Tan Sitong's last companion in his life. Tan Sitong compared it to Kunlun, which is inseparable from his thought of "Ren Xia".
When Tan Sitong was 18 years old, he wrote the lyrics to "Looking at the Sea Tide" by himself, saying: "I want to sing with my sword drawn, but how many chivalrous bones can I resist rubbing? Suddenly I said this person is me. Open your eyes and take a closer look."
Tan's He was fond of being a chivalrous person, and he also expected himself to be a chivalrous person. This chivalrous spirit constituted Tan Sitong's unique life sentiment. An important characteristic of Ren Xia's spirit is to commit suicide and Shang Qi. In the late Qing Dynasty, due to the violent social and cultural turmoil, the Xia style evolved again.
In that era of civil strife, official corruption and public resentment, intellectuals consciously realized their responsibility to the era, so they longed for the realization of justice and looked forward to heroes, or they were willing to become heroes who saved the era. Tan Sitong expected heroes to be embodied in the form of envy and admiration for "Ren Xia" characters. By chance, he met the "righteous knight" Wang Wu and became an irreplaceable friend. Wang Wu's name is Wang Zhengyi. He has a tall body, excellent martial arts, and is good at fencing. He often carries a big sword on his back to help people in need. He is known as the "Big Sword King Wu" in the world. Tan Sitong abandoned the concept of family status and was not bound by the world. He was willing to worship Wang Wu as his teacher and learn swordsmanship from Wang Wu, who taught him carefully.
Especially Wang Wu's generous, stubborn and brave character and spirit of resistance deeply infected Tan Sitong. Many people agree that comparing the knight-errant Wang Wu with the sword to another "Kunlun" actually deeply contains the poet's "Ren Xia" spirit and his admiration for the knight Wang Wu.
Secondly, related to the idea of "Ren Xia", Tan Sitong advocated a radical social reform in politics. He said in his book "Benevolence": "Chinese people should be careful not to talk about Washington or Napoleon. Men with lofty ideals and benevolence seek Chen She and Yang Xuangan to expel the saints, and they will die without regret; if the opportunity cannot be taken advantage of, , then nothing more than Ren Xia can extend people's morale and promote bravery, which is also a tool to bring chaos!" The "Ren Xia" spirit advocated by Tan Sitong is to call on the people to stage an uprising to overthrow the Qing Dynasty, and to sacrifice for the uprising. If the time is not ripe, it is better to carry out assassination.
The biggest feature of Tan Sitong's thought that is different from other reformists is the idea of "bloody reform". His thoughts and actions are very different from those of Kang and Liang. He has political courage and the courage to speak and act that are rare among ordinary reformists. The mental state to fight bravely against the old forces. The heroic and fearless spirit reflected in Wang Wu's words and deeds is very consistent with Tan Sitong's political thought of "bloody reform".
大刀王五 also sacrificed his life to rescue Guangxu, even after Tan Sitong was arrested, regardless of the danger of his life. He visited Tan Sitong every day, and even tried to rob the execution ground to rescue Tan Sitong. Wang Wu was daring and courageous. Before his execution, Tan Sitong pinned his hope for reform on Wang Wu, the "departed", hoping that his spirit of sacrificing himself for the country would awaken more Chinese people and continue to realize his goals. Unfinished ambition. Therefore, Wang Wu can be called another "Kunlun".
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