Chapter 2 Section 1 The Invention of Block Printing in the Early Tang Dynasty

The invention of printing can start from ancient stone tablets and seals. Our ancestors knew how to engrave words on stone very early.The earliest surviving carved stone is the stone drum of Qin State.There are 10 stone drums, each engraved with a four-character poem, the content is to praise the hunting scene of the king of Qin, so it is also called "hunting Jie".The Existing Inscription Hall of the Palace Museum.There are different opinions on the absolute age of this set of stone drums, but it is generally believed that it was built by Qin Wengong (765-716 BC) in the early Spring and Autumn Period.Later, people erected large rectangular stones with engraved characters on the ground, and this became the stele.The original stone steles were originally things for the ruling class to boast about. For example, Qin Shihuang traveled around the world after unifying the world, and carved stone steles at seven scenic spots to promote his "merit".The people at that time also used the same method to express their dissatisfaction with the Qin Dynasty, and engraved on the big stone: "The first emperor dies and the land is divided!"

Stone carvings were more popular in the Han Dynasty.Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, most emperors of all dynasties used steles as a tool to maintain feudal rule.By the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, steles became the standard editions of important classics.In the fourth year of Emperor Xiping of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 175), the emperor accepted the suggestion of the famous calligrapher Cai Yong (Yong Yong), and corrected seven classics: "Lu Shi", "Shangshu", "Zhouyi", "Spring and Autumn" ", "Gongyang Zhuan", "Yili", a total of more than 200,000 characters were inscribed in official script on 46 stone tablets, and stood outside the gate of Luoyang Taixue, as a standard copy for everyone to copy and proofread. This is the famous "Xi "Pingshi Jing" (Figure 1) (also known as "Han Shi Jing") is the earliest official Confucian classic in the history of our country.It is said that thousands of people go to copy the scriptures on the stone tablet every day, or take the manuscripts to proofread carefully.In order to save the trouble of copying, especially to avoid the shortcomings of copying mistakes and omissions, our ancestors invented the method of rubbing (ta) steles.The earliest method of rubbing steles was to paint ink on the stele first, and then cover it with a piece of paper to print the words. The printed inscriptions on the stele were black and white, but the words were reversed, which was very inconvenient to read.Later, the method was changed. Wet the paper and pasted it on the stele, brushed it several times with a brush, or tapped it several times with a cloth wrapped in cotton, so that the sunken strokes of the inscription appeared clearly on the paper, and then inked. In this way, the black and white characters on the front are developed. We call it "rubbing", and this technology is called "rubbing stone". down.Using steles to print books is naturally much more convenient than copying books, but it is difficult to popularize.How can ordinary people have the ability to carve entire books on stone tablets? Therefore, the technology of "tumbling stones" can only inspire the invention of printing, but cannot meet the requirements of the majority of people for books, so our ancestors are looking for new ones. the printing method.

About four or five thousand years ago, people living in the Neolithic Age knew how to use stamping on pottery.They first made pottery molds engraved with patterns such as geometric patterns, water ripples, string patterns, etc., and stamped the molds on the pottery before the pottery blank was dry. This is the stamped pottery.It can be said that it is the most original printing.In the Warring States Period, seals appeared.The original seal was made of copper, but also made of gold or silver. Qin Shihuang's seal "Chuan Guozhi Treasure" was carved from white jade.When it was used, the usage of the seal was different from what it is now.At that time, to seal and distribute important official documents and private letters, clay should be applied to the knots binding bamboo slips, which is called "sealing mud", and a seal should be added to the sealing mud as a seal, which is called "sealing".In ancient times, the woodblocks used for public and private letters were usually one foot long, so they were called chidots. Later generations called letters "chidots", which is the old name.The words on the seal are all inverted characters.Some are sunken inscribed characters, some are raised inscribed in relief, and they all become orthographic characters when printed.Generally, there are not many engravings on the seal.In the Han Dynasty, it was popular to wear "Gangmao", which is a three-inch long rectangular seal carved from jade or peach wood. It has holes on it and can be worn on a rope. The superstitious words of epidemic prevention and ghosts, such as engraved with words such as "Don't dare to be", the number of words is about 30.In the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Taoist monks who went up the mountain to practice Taoism wore a kind of jujube wood seal, with more than 100 characters engraved on a two-inch square wooden block, which was said to be used to drive away beasts and water monsters.At that time, the application of paper was correspondingly extensive, and the usage of seals was basically the same as it is now.If the woodcut talisman is dipped in color and printed on paper, then it only needs to be stamped once, which is equivalent to copying more than 100 characters, which is much more convenient.Our ancestors got inspiration from this, thinking that engraving a complete book on a wood block like a stamp is not so much easier than engraving a book on a stone tablet?Therefore, people who are good at thinking and have the courage to innovate choose pear wood and jujube wood suitable for carving, saw them into square blocks, paste the manuscripts that have been copied and corrected on the wood blocks, and carve out the characters according to the strokes of each character. Raised Yangwen.After the entire book block is engraved, it can be printed.First, use a brush dipped in ink to brush on the book block, so that the protruding reverse characters on the block are all coated with ink, then cover the white paper, and then use a clean brush to gently brush on the back of the paper to remove the ink. The paper is removed, and a book with black and white characters is printed.In this way, it gradually evolved from stone tablets, seals, and seals, and after countless people's research and improvement, finally invented block printing.

It is difficult to verify when woodblock printing was invented.For a long time, Chinese and foreign scholars have been arguing endlessly on this issue, with dozens of arguments.But most scholars believe that it was founded in the Tang Dynasty. There are currently four relatively early Tang Dynasty printed materials preserved at home and abroad. One is the complete "Diamond Sutra" discovered in Dunhuang, Gansu in 1900. This is the earliest printed matter with a clear date.This volume of Buddhist scriptures is printed on seven sheets of paper with engraving blocks and glued together. The whole volume is 16 feet long and one foot high. There is a woodcut Buddhist painting printed on the front of the scroll, which depicts Shakyamuni Buddha sitting on a lotus seat. In the scene of preaching the Dharma to Subhuti, the elder of the Lonely Garden.On the small table in front of the lotus pedestal was a ritual vessel. The elder Subhuti leaned on his right shoulder, put his right knee on the ground, and listened to the teaching with his palms together, with a happy expression.On both sides of the front of the seat, there are two Dharma protectors guarding the Buddha seat, surrounded by many nobles, donors and monks.They listened intently and solemnly.In front of the Buddha seat, there are two lions standing on the left and right, to show that the Buddha is the king among men.At the top, there are two flying clouds flying around.The center of the whole picture is prominent, the characters are well arranged, lifelike, vivid and vivid, ready to come out, showing a high artistic level.At the end of the volume, there is a line of words "On April 15th, the ninth year of Xiantong, Wang Jie [jie Jie] made a general offering for his two relatives".It shows that this printed matter was printed in the ninth year of Tang Yizong Xiantong (868 AD), a man named Wang Jie paid for his parents to pray for blessings and eliminate disasters. It has been more than 1,100 years since now. The eye-catching "Diamond Sutra" not only has bright ink and exquisite engraving, but also dignified and dignified fonts, simple and generous; the pictures and brushwork are very proficient, and judging from the engraving printing technology and woodblock printing techniques, it does not look like it was in the naive and crude early days. works, but has a fairly high level.It can be seen that the invention of block printing must have been much earlier than the time when this volume of Buddhist scriptures was printed.It is a pity that this precious engraving of our country is also the world's first engraving with exquisite illustrations. Together with many precious cultural relics, it was stolen by the British Stein in 1907, and it is still stored in the British Museum in London, England. Hateful.

The second is the single-page engraved mantra of the Tang Dynasty, the "Dharani Sutra", which was found in a Tang tomb near the Wangjiang Tower outside the East Gate of Chengdu in 1944. Still early print.This printed copy of "Sutras and Mantras" is contained in an empty bracelet, about one foot square, and is printed on cocoon paper of the Tang Dynasty, with small Buddha images engraved in the center and around it, and most of the rest are ancient Sanskrit scriptures and mantras. There is a line of blurred Chinese characters on the right, which can be recognized as "Bianjiayin, Longchifang, Chengdu County, Chengdu Prefecture, sells curse books".This one-page mantra book is the earliest printed copy engraved in both Chinese and Sanskrit.There is no specific printing date on this printed matter, but judging from the engraving and the Chinese characters engraved on it, the font is beautiful, round and lively, with the style of Tang calligraphy; Chengdu began to establish a mansion in the second year of Tang Suzong Zhide (AD 757) From this, it can be inferred that the printed copy should be after this year, and the date of the tomb is about the second half of the 9th century, so it can be inferred that the printing time of this printed copy should be between 757 and 900 AD.The printed copy is now in the Chinese History Museum.

The third is the "Wugou Jingguang Dadharani Sutra" discovered in a stone tower at Bulguksa Temple in Gyeongju, southeast of the Korean Peninsula in 1966. This is the oldest printed matter in the world.Gyeongju was the capital of the ancient Silla Kingdom, and Bulguksa Temple and Stone Pagoda were built in 751 AD.This woodblock printed scripture scroll is about 20 feet long and 21/4 inches high. It is made of 12 woodblocks printed on 楮 [chu foundation] paper and glued together. It is placed in a silk bag on a relic bottle in the tower. .The year is not marked on the scriptures, but several new characters created during the reign of Wu Zetian (684-704 AD) appear in the scriptures. At the same time, the scriptures were translated from Sanskrit by a monk named Mituoshan in Tocharo, an ancient country in Central Asia, when he lived in Chang'an, the capital of Tang Dynasty, from 680 to 704 AD; Scholars have verified that it was published between 704 and 751 AD, and based on the popularity of Wu Zetian's new characters in Silla and Japan, it is inferred that it was engraved and printed by Silla itself.However, most Chinese and foreign scholars believe that this volume of scriptures was printed in China after it was translated by Mt. Mituo in 704, and it was probably brought to North Korea as a gift when Bulguksa Temple was built.

Fourth, it is a circumstantial evidence that the "Wugou Jingguang Dadharani Sutra" was printed in China. It is currently preserved in a volume of "Miaofa Lotus Sutra" in Japan. It was discovered in Turpan, Xinjiang, my country, and it was printed on jute. On the paper, Wu Zetian's new characters are also used in the scriptures, so the two are likely to be relics of the same period.Based on this, we say that the "Wugou Jingguang Dadharani Sutra" is a printed version of the Tang Dynasty, not a printed version of Silla, which is probably closer to the historical fact.The characters in this printed version resemble Ou (Yang Xun) script, with well-proportioned structure, beautiful lines, and excellent engraving. It also strongly proves that the invention of Chinese woodblock printing was before the publication of this volume of Buddhist scriptures.

In addition to the four visible prints mentioned above, there are several other references to printing in Tang documents. "Old Tang Book·Wen Zongji" said: "In the ninth year of Taihe (835 A.D.)... all Taoist governments are not allowed to privately set up calendar editions." It turns out that promulgating almanacs in ancient times was the emperor's prerogative. At that time, Sichuan, Jiangsu, In Anhui and other places, before the official calendar is issued every year, privately printed calendars have spread all over the world, which is detrimental to the authority of the central government, so that the emperor had to order a ban. prevalent.

In addition, the famous poet Yuan Zhen wrote a preface to Bai Juyi's collection of poems "Changqing Collection", in which there is a sentence "write Mole, Xuan (xuanxuan) and sell it in the market". It is generally believed that "Mole" means printing.At that time, the poems of Yuan Zhen and Bai Juyi were very popular among the people, so they were engraved and printed and sold everywhere.This happened in AD 825. Further back, there is a book in the Tang Dynasty that said that the famous eminent monk Xuanzang visited India between 629 and 645 AD. After returning to China, he once "printed the statue of Samantabhadra on Huifeng paper and distributed it in all directions. .The print run was quite impressive.

There is also a later historical material, that is, Shao Jingbang, a famous historian in the Ming Dynasty, said in his "Hongjianlu" that the eldest grandson of Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty died at the age of 36. She wrote about women's self-cultivation in feudal society during her lifetime. Tang Taizong believed that this book was conducive to maintaining feudal rule, so in order to let "this book be handed down to future generations, let Zi carry it out". "Azusa" is engraving and printing.This book can be said to be the earliest block edition, and its time is about 636 AD or later.

It can be seen that the invention of woodblock printing can be traced back to the Zhenguan period (627-649 A.D.), but none of the above-mentioned printed materials has been handed down, and there is still a lack of physical evidence.

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