99 cuartetos de Wang Wei y su círculo

by Wang Wei, Anne-Hélène Suárez Girard (Editor & Translator)

Wang Wei (699?-761?) es, junto con Li Bai, Du Fu y Bai Juyi, uno de los poetas más celebrados e imitados del período Tang, el más brillante de la historia de la literatura china.
Político, hombre de letras, pintor y músico, refleja en su poesía las aspiraciones y contradicciones de un hombre chino de su tiempo, impregnadas de una visión del mundo que abarca, íntimamente mezcladas, las perspectivas confuciana, taoísta y zen.
En su obra, destacan particularmente los poemas de un único cuarteto llamados "jueju", en su mayoría de paisaje. En ellos, su ojo de pintor y su pincel de poeta esbozan atisbos y luminosidades, sugieren silencios y ecos, impresiones fugaces que atraviesan la vida del hombre fundido en la naturaleza. 99 CUARTETOS DE WANG WEI Y SU CÍRCULO incluye juejus de otros autores, amigos o familiares del poeta, compuestos, bien a modo de respuesta, o bien sobre los mismos temas de Wang Wei, reflejando en conjunto el papel primordial de la poesía en la sociedad culta de la Època.

248 pages, Paperback

First published November 22, 2000

About the author

Wang Wei (Chinese: 王維, 699-761) was a Chinese poet, painter, musician, and politician of the Tang dynasty, widely regarded as one of the most accomplished and influential literary figures of his time. Known for his mastery of both poetry and painting, he was a key figure in the development of Chinese landscape poetry and art, particularly in the fusion of poetry and painting, a concept later described by critics as embodying "poetry within a painting, and a painting within poetry." His work, deeply influenced by Buddhist thought, particularly Chan (Zen) Buddhism, is characterized by themes of nature, solitude, and contemplation.
A prolific poet, Wang Wei wrote nearly 400 poems, 29 of which were included in the celebrated anthology Three Hundred Tang Poems. His poetic style was known for its elegant simplicity, evocative imagery, and deep emotional resonance. His mastery of the jueju (quatrain) form, especially his landscape poetry, set a standard that influenced generations of poets and artists. Though none of his paintings have survived, his influence on Chinese landscape painting was profound, and his artistic techniques and themes were emulated by later painters, particularly in the literati tradition.
Born into an aristocratic family, Wang Wei demonstrated exceptional literary and artistic talent from a young age. He achieved the highest rank in the imperial examination and enjoyed a successful, though at times turbulent, career as a government official. His later years were deeply shaped by the political upheavals of the An Lushan Rebellion, during which he was briefly held captive by rebel forces. Following his release, he withdrew further into Buddhist practice, dividing his time between official duties and the solitude of his estate in Lantian, where he wrote some of his most famous works.
Wang Wei's legacy endures in both Chinese and world literature. His poetry has been widely translated and studied, influencing poets and writers across cultures, including the Japanese haiku tradition and Western literary figures such as Ezra Pound and Gustav Mahler. His artistic vision, emphasizing the harmonious unity of nature and human spirit, remains a cornerstone of Chinese aesthetic philosophy.