Instrument of the Sages: Guqin

Tian Qing

Tian Qing is a well-known musicologist and expert in protecting intangible cultural heritage. He is currently the honorary director of the Music Research Institute of the Chinese National Academy of Arts， president of the Chinese Kun Opera and Guqin Research Association， and member of the China Central Institute for Culture and History. He has long been devoted to researching and promoting traditional Chinese music， religious music， and the protection of intangible cultural heritage.

This book talks about China and Chinese people through traditional Chinese music; it is a Chinese story told with deep emotion. In this book， the author covers three sections： traditional Chinese instrumental music and instruments， folk songs and folk vocal music， and new Chinese music. The book tells the national emotions embedded in the music at three levels： musical， geographical and historical， and humanistic.

Music of the Chinese People

Tian Qing

CITIC Press Group

June 2022

88.00 （CNY）

Guqin was originally simply called “qin，” but because of qin’s unparalleled importance in Chinese culture， the word “qin” gradually became a generic term for all musical instruments in Chinese. In order to differentiate it， the word “gu” was added in front of the word “qin.” Guqin is an instrument belonging to the Chinese literati， and therefore， like the Chinese literati， it also has some elegant names， such as yaoqin and yuqin. It also has a more direct name： seven-stringed qin.

In China and around the world， people have invented and used many instruments， all of which have their own characteristics， and many of them are rich in expression and cultural accumulation. Not only does guqin have a long history of more than 3，000 years， leaving behind more than 3，000 ancient musical pieces， but it also has a musical score system that is unique in the world and has been used from 7th century CE to the present， bringing forth many famous qin masters.

Most importantly， since its inception， guqin has been associated with the traditional Chinese literati and traditional culture. Confucius “taught the lessons of life” through the music of qin， giving guqin the name “Instrument of the Sages” and a noble position in traditional Chinese culture. In 2003， the Chinese guqin was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. （After the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage entered into force on April 20th， 2006， the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity Proclamation Program was automatically terminated， and a new list was re-established， including the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The art of guqin was inscribed on this list in 2008.） Guqin nowadays has become the pride of all mankind， and cultural heritage to be preserved and passed on together.

As a musical instrument， guqin has a basic structure that reflects some of the perceptions of classical Chinese philosophy and the basic Chinese view on nature and heaven and earth. A guqin consists of two wooden boards， the top of which is curved and the bottom of which is flat， symbolizing the “round Heaven and square Earth.” The length of a typical guqin is three chi， six cun， and five fen in the old measurement system （about 1.22 meters）， which implies the 365 days of the year. There are 13 emblems on the surface of a qin， which mark the tones， implying the 12 months plus a leap month. It is said that guqin used to have only five strings， namely gong， shang， jue， zhi， and yu， representing the emperor， ministers， people， affairs， and things of the five elements. Later， King Wen of Zhou and King Wu of Zhou each added one string， thus establishing the seven strings. A qin has a forehead， a neck， a shoulder， a body， and a tail， which symbolize the body of a human. Thus， the three vitals are represented： man， heaven， and earth. The forehead of the qin is called “yue shan，” the head of the qin has a “feng she” （the tongue of the phoenix）， the tail of the qin has a “long yin” （the gums of the dragon）， and the two feet on the bottom of the qin are called “yan zu” （the feet of the wild goose）. Of the two sound holes one is called “long chi” （dragon’s pool）， and the other is called “feng zhao” （phoenix’s pond）. Those are the most beautiful things in nature， as seen or imagined by our ancestors.

The traditional Chinese literati have always emphasized that the guqin has two functions. For one， “guqin is the restraint，” which means that playing the guqin is to restrain oneself， and guqin is a ritual instrument to cultivate one’s moral character. As Li Zhi said， “guqin is the sound of the heart.” The ancient people played the qin not to entertain people， but firstly， to talk with their hearts， to communicate with nature and heaven and earth; secondly， to delight their intimate friends， to be appreciated by a few friends who could be called “soulmates.”

The four arts of “qin， chess， calligraphy， and painting” occupied an important place in the life of the literati in ancient China， and the qin was at the top of the “four arts.” In ancient China， if one was not good at qin， chess， calligraphy， and painting， one could not be called a literati， or at least not a good literati. Since the time of Wei， Jin， and North and South Dynasties， “qin on the left and calligraphy on the right” has been the basic cultivation of Chinese intellectuals， and it is because of this that the “Seven Sages of the Bamboo Forest” have always been the object of admiration and respect of Chinese literati. Ji Kang’s playing of “Guang Ling Verse” is especially well-known and admired by Chinese intellectuals today. This great artist， who was graceful， proud， upright， unrestrained， idealistic， rebellious， and individualistic， represented the independent personality and liberal ideal spirit of Chinese intellectuals of all times. He was not only the most profound and critical elite figure of his time in terms of ideology but also the most dedicated， courageous， and politically ethical among the scholars of his time in terms of action.

Mencius said， “Those who love others are always loved by others; those who respect others are always respected by others.” A benevolent gentleman should extend his love from loving himself to loving others. Therefore， “to take care of one’s own parents and other people’s parents， and to raise one’s own children and other people’s children” and “to do not unto others as you would not have them do unto you” have become the most important aspects of Confucianism. Going from respecting oneself to respecting others is the inevitable law and orientation of a gentleman’s moral development. There are many guqin cultures and spirits that reflect the idea of “respect for others.” In China， we all know the story of Boya and Ziqi and their story of “identifying each other as soulmates via the melody of high mountains and flowing water.” Showing respect for the soulmate and the music is the essential cultivation of a qin master.

There are many representative pieces for the guqin， and one of the most famous Chinese guqin pieces is Flowing Water. In 1977， NASA launched two Voyager probes into outer space， each carrying a gold-plated record that would not deteriorate for a billion years. The records contained greetings in the major human languages and 90 minutes of music representing human civilization， the longest piece of which was Flowing Water played by guqin master Guan Pinghu. The score of the piece was first recorded in the Mysterious and Miraculous Score， but the score commonly heard today was handed down by a qin master called Zhang Kongshan from the Sichuan School. The story of Flowing Water was first mentioned in Lie Zi. According to the story， Boya was playing his qin on a boat. He played one song first， to which Ziqi said， “Excellent！ As majestic as Mount Tai.” He played another song， to which Ziqi said， “Excellent！ Surging forward like a flowing river.” And that was the origin of High Mountains and Flowing Water.

Because Ziqi understood the qin played by Boya and understood his music， a word emerged： zhiyin， which means soulmate in Chinese. Literally speaking， “zhiyin” means “to understand music”， however in Chinese， “zhiyin” does not only mean to understand music， but also refers to a person who understands one’s own heart and shares a common perception of the world. Why did Ziqi think Boya was his zhiyin， his soulmate， just because Ziqi could hear the high mountains and flowing water in his music？ Because Ziqi was a woodcutter， a member of the general working public; while the guqin was an instrument for the literati， a niche instrument， an instrument for intellectuals to enjoy themselves. As a woodcutter， Ziqi was not supposed to know the qin， and Boya did not expect him to know the qin. But Ziqi understood him and only Ziqi understood him， so Boya recognized him as a soulmate， so much so that after Ziqi’s death， Boya smashed his qin and determined not to play it again. There is something so heartbreaking in this simple story， so determined， so intense， that it reflects not only the aloofness and nobility of the guqin， but also the respect and preciousness of the qin player for his soulmate and the Chinese concept that soulmates are rare. It is also because of the passing of this story that in the Chinese vocabulary， there came another word that uses music as a metaphor for life： people often call their best friend who understands them and knows them， who matches them best “zhiyin.”