Chapter 76 talent

It is said that Li Shutong was able to recite 500 characters a day at the age of 7, and had the ability of photographic memory.He entered Furen Academy at the age of 16. His classmate Wang Xilun recalled: "Li Shutong's writing is good, and his lowercase script is exquisite. He can write two characters in a small box that is commonly used. He was praised by his classmates as 'Double Li Wentao'." Yuan Xilian, Xu Huanyuan and others organized the "Chengnan Literature Society" in the Chengnan Thatched Cottage in Shanghai, with monthly meetings.When Li Shutong was 19 years old, he moved to Shanghai with his mother and newlywed wife, and studied in a literary society. He was excellent in writing.Xu Huanyuan loved his talent, so he specially set up a room, and asked his family to move to the thatched cottage in the south of the city, and personally inscribed the word "Li Lu" as a gift.

Li Shutong's "twenty articles shocked the world".When the members of the Chengnan Literary Society got together, Zhang Puyou, the elder of the society, each wrote a poem and essay. The essay needed to be completed on the same day. Different, let's try to explain it in detail"; the title of the poem is "Imitation of Song Yu's Xiaoyan Fu", and it will be handed in within 3 days.Li Shutong splashed ink and did it overnight, and this article was recommended by the public as the leader.A few days later, the poems and prose were submitted to the case, and Li Shutong won the first place again.

Li Shutong, Cai Xiaoxiang, Zhang Xiaolou, Yuan Xilian, and Xu Huanyuan swore to Jinlan and were known as the "Five Friends from the End of the World".Mrs. Xu Huanyuan's wife, Song Mengxian (Zhen), once wrote five poems titled "The Picture of Five Friends at the End of the World", among which a poem chanting Li Shutong said: "Li Ye's literary name is as big as Dou, and his works are well-known for his body. Poems full of wine and thoughts are like Quan, just call Sheling my little friend!" Li Shutong once organized the "Shanghai Painting and Calligraphy Association" with Wumu Mountain Monk (Zong Yang), Tang Bochi, Ren Bonian, Zhu Menglu, Gao Yongzhi, etc., and published calligraphy and painting newspapers every week, which were issued by China and Foreign Daily News.This is the earliest calligraphy and painting newspaper in Shanghai.

Li Shutong once studied in Nanyang Public School under the name of Li Guangping.At that time, Li’s teacher was the educator Cai Yuanpei, and his classmates were Shao Wentai (Lizi), Hong Yunxiang (Qiaojia), Wang Esun, Hu Renyuan, Yin Zuyi, Xie Shen (Wuliang), Huang Yanpei, Xiang Xiang, Bei Shoutong, etc. Li Shutong also dabbled in law. When he was studying in Nanyang Public School, he translated "Journal of Law" and "International Private Law", which were published by Shanghai Kaiming Bookstore in 1903. When Li Shutong was studying in Japan, Tadayashi Nakamura, a professor of Tenrikyo, commented on Li's poetry: "His poetic style seems to present a gloomy and tragic face amidst the bewitching beauty."

Li Shutong's seal cutting art follows the Qin and Han Dynasties, and he is a close student of the Wan School, Zhejiang School, Xiling Eight Schools and Wu Xizai.There are "Li Lu Yinpu" and "Late Qingkong Yinju" in existence. In his letter to Xu Huilu, Master Hongyi talked about his views on literature and art: "It has been more than 20 years since the dead have been shaved and dyed, and they are no longer at a loss for literature and art. The classics also say: 'Scholars first understand the arts and then literature and art'. It’s like a couple who left home and left the vulgar world; the old man used to tell people, ‘The literature and art should be passed on to others, and not passed on to others’, that’s what it means.”

Master Hongyi's calligraphy disciple Huang Fuhai recorded in the article "Master Hongyi and Me" that in the winter of 1939, at Chengtian Temple in Quanzhou, "I once boldly asked the master: 'Although you are a monk and don't want to talk about art, But in my mind, I always think that the Master is an artist.... I always look up to the Master from the artistic point of view. In the book "A Brief Explanation of the Ten Doubts of Buddhism", the Master said that Buddhism is not superstitious, non-religious, and non-philosophical Wait, I didn’t say that Buddhism is not art. Can I say this: Life in Buddhism is life in art?’ The master nodded and said, “Everyone’s point of view is different, so you can say the same.””