What is the origin of Chinese chess, calligraphy and painting?

Music, chess, calligraphy and painting are the so-called "Four Arts" in ancient times (also known as the Four Arts in the Study and the Four Arts in the Literati).

Among them, Qin refers to Guqin, which represents traditional national music; Chess refers specifically to Go, not chess or other chess games; Shu refers to calligraphy, not books; Painting refers to painting, specifically Chinese painting, that is, ink painting, rather than oil painting,

Watercolor or other types of painting.

As for the order of arrangement of qin, chess, calligraphy and painting, I think that from the perspective of Chinese grammar, the four are in a parallel relationship, and in principle, they are not ranked in order or status.

If you insist on asking "What is the basis for such arrangement?" then I think it is in order of the time of its production.

Guqin was produced in ancient times, no later than the era of Yao and Shun.

There are different opinions as to who the inventor was: some say Fuxi, some say Shennong, and some say Yao and Shun.

The written history of the harp began in the Spring and Autumn Period. In the "Book of Songs" in the early Spring and Autumn Period, there were many songs about the harp.

Chess has a long history, no less than that of Qin. It is currently generally accepted in academic circles that it originated in the Yao and Shun era at the end of primitive society.

The written history of chess begins with the book "Zuo Zhuan" in the Spring and Autumn Period.

As early as the Spring and Autumn Period at the latest, Go was already very popular among the upper class. During the Warring States Period, it was introduced to the common people and the Go master Yi Qiu appeared who has been famous for thousands of years.

As for the emergence of calligraphy and painting, it happened after the Qin and Han Dynasties.

The Qin Dynasty invented the writing brush, which led to later calligraphy and painting.

Therefore, the order of piano, chess, calligraphy and painting according to the time of production is still in line with objective reality.

So, who made the order of music, chess, calligraphy and painting?

In other words, who was the first person in history to combine the four instruments of piano, chess, calligraphy and painting into one artistic concept?

A very popular theory is that of Zhang Yanyuan in the Tang Dynasty.

When he evaluated the eloquence of the eminent monks of the early Tang Dynasty in the third volume of his calligraphy theory work "Fashu Yaolu", he wrote: "The eloquence of the eminent monks in the early Tang Dynasty is erudite in craftsmanship and literature, and he is excellent in both chess, calligraphy and painting." From this, chess, calligraphy and painting are regarded as a complete art.

The concept was first proposed and passed down from generation to generation. It became the artistic accomplishment subject pursued by literati and officials throughout their lives for more than a thousand years and the standard for measuring a person's artistic accomplishment.

To be honest, I have believed this statement in the past and wrote it in the book "A Brief History of Go".

Later, I did some serious research (the so-called research is nothing more than finding the third volume of "Dharma Book Yaolu" and reading it).

It turned out that the above statement was wrong.

It must be pointed out that the first person in history to propose the concept of "Qin, chess, calligraphy and painting" and to rank Qin, chess, calligraphy and painting in this way was not Zhang Yanyuan in the middle and late Tang Dynasty, but He Yanzhi in the early Tang Dynasty.

In his article "The Notes of Orchid Pavilion", He Yanzhi described the process of Tang Taizong Li Shimin's search for the authentic calligraphy of Wang Xizhi's "Preface to Orchid Pavilion".

When writing about Monk Biancai, He Yanzhi commented that "Biancai is knowledgeable in craftsmanship and literature, and is excellent at playing music, chess, calligraphy and painting."

Two hundred years later, when Zhang Yanyuan compiled the book "Fashu Yaolu", he included He Yanzhi's "Lanting Ji" in the third volume of the book.

Note: It is income, it is reprinting, not originality.

Therefore, the original creator of the concept of "Qin, chess, calligraphy and painting" is He Yanzhi, not Zhang Yanyuan.

However, Zhang Yanyuan’s contribution must also be recognized and deserved.

If Zhang Yanyuan had not included "Orchid Pavilion" when he compiled the book "Dharma Book Yaolu", the "Orchid Pavilion" would have been lost long ago.

On the other hand, it is precisely because "Lanting Ji" was included in "Fa Shu Yao Lu" that it relied on the sensational effect of "Fa Shu Yao Lu" at the time and its far-reaching influence on later generations and has been passed down to this day.

Only then did the concept of music, chess, calligraphy and painting gain great vitality.

Some people say that Go’s biological mother is China and its adoptive mother is Japan.

Borrowing this expression, we might as well say that the biological mother of the concept of "Qin, Chess, Calligraphy and Painting" is He Yanzhi, and the adoptive mother is Zhang Yanyuan.