Journal of Art and Civilization of the Orient

The Charm of the Dao in Chinese Painting(A Re-examination of Zong Bing’s Preface on Landscape Painting)

https://doi.org/10.22034/jaco.2026.567535.1513
Volume 14, Issue 53
Autumn 2026
Pages 46-57
Journal of Art and Civilization of the Orient

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Esmaeil Radpour

Department of Religious Studies, Iranian Institute of Philosophy, Tehran, Iran

Abstract
In the art of landscape painting in China, as in many other forms of art, one always finds Daoist roots more apparent than the influences from Confucian or Buddhist traditions. The most fundamental subject matter that elucidates the Daoist origin of this art in China lies in the attitude of Chinese painters toward “forms.” Despite numerous studies concerning the history and techniques of Chinese painting, it is very necessary to analyze ancient texts on the philosophy of painting based on Daoist teachings to understand how ideas manifest in forms and how one can transcend from forms to ideas. Investigating the link between the art of Chinese painting and Daoist metaphysics, this study seeks to answer how the treatise “Preface on Landscape Painting” by Zong Bing (375–443 CE, a lay Buddhist practitioner) resolves the paradox between the limitation of forms and the transcendence of Dao as the Supreme Principle. The findings of this study show that Zong Bing, by proposing concepts such as “kindred resemblance” and relying on the “numinous spirit,” transforms landscape painting into a locus of manifestation for the “charm of the Dao.” Finally, it is elucidated that adhering to the principle of “correspondence with the eye and concordance with the heart” turns the artwork into a gateway that frees the heart-mind of the viewer who steps into it from the bounds of form and connects him to the celestial archetypes of forms.

Keywords

Chinese Painting
Landscape Daoism
Zong Bing
Form and Formless
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Wang, B. (2004). Daode Zhenjing 道德真經 [The True Scripture of the Dao and Its Virtue]. In Zhonghua Daozang 中華道藏 [The Compiled Daoist Canon]. Huaxia Publishing House, 9, 192–219.
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Xie, H. (2011). Guhua Pinlu 古畫品錄 [The Classification of Old Painters]. Chinese Text Project. https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&res=244595 
Xu, SH. (2011). Shuowen Jiezi 說文解字 [Explaining Graphs and Clarifying Characters]. Chinese Text Project. https://ctext.org/shuo-wen-jie-zi  
Ye, F. (1965). Hou Han shu 後漢書. Zhonghua shuju 中華書局.
Zhang, Y. (1936). Lidai Minghua Ji 歷代名畫記 [Records of Famous Paintings of All Dynasties]. Commercial Press 商務印書館.
Zhuangzi. (2004). Nanhua Zhenjing 南華真經 [The True Scripture of Nanhua (Original Daozang Version)]. In Zhonghua Daozang 中華道藏 [The Compiled Daoist Canon]. Huaxia Publishing House, 13, 1–64.

Bush, S. (1983). Tsung Ping's Essay on Painting Landscape and the 'Landscape Buddhism' of Mount Lu. In S. Bush & C. Murck (Eds.), Theories of the Arts in China. Princeton University Press, 132-64.
Bush, S. (2004). The Essay on Painting by Wang Wei (415–453) in Context. In Z. Cai (Ed.) Chinese Aesthetics The Ordering of Literature, The Arts, and the Universe in the Six Dynasties. University of Hawai‘i Press, 60-80.
Bush, S., & Shih, HS. (1985). Early Chinese Texts on Painting. Harvard-Yenching Institute.
Coomaraswamy, A. (1934). The Transformation of Nature in Art. Dover Publications.
Confucius. (2011). Lunyu 論語 [The Analects]. Chinese Text Project. https://ctext.org/analects/ 
Dongfang, SH. (2004). “Hai nei shi zhou ji 海內十洲記” [Record of the Ten Continents Within the Seas]. In Zhonghua Daozang 中華道藏 [Zhonghua Daoist Canon]. Huaxia Publishing House, 48, 75–79.
Du, G. (2004). Daode Zhenjing Guangshengyi 道德真經廣聖義 [Comprehensive Exposition of the Sacred Meaning of the Daode Zhenjing]. In Zhonghua Daozang 中華道藏 [The Compiled Daoist Canon]. Huaxia Publishing House, 9, 558–833.
Huang, SH., & Zhang, SH. (2016). Zhouyi Yizhu 周易譯注 [Translation and Commentary of the Book of Changes]. Shanghai Guji Publishing House 上海古籍.
Laozi. (2004). Daode Zhenjing 道德真經 [The True Scripture of the Dao and Its Virtue (Original Daozang Version)]. In Zhonghua Daozang 中華道藏 [The Compiled Daoist Canon]. Huaxia Publishing House, 9, 36–44.
Li, Y. 李延壽. (1975). Nan Shi 南史. Zhonghua shuju 中華書局, Beijing.
Michael, TH. (2012). The Pristine Dao: Metaphysics in Early Daoist Discourse. State University of New York Press.
Radpour, E. (2021). Heavenly Paradise of Kunlun in Daoism. Sophia Perennis, 17(2), 179-202. https://doi.org/10.22034/iw.2020.256599.1471 
Radpour, E. (2023). Laozi’s Daodejing (3rd ed.). Everydaylife Publication. 
Shen, Y. 沈約. (1974). Song shu 宋書. Zhonghua shuju 中華書局.
Sullivan, M. (1967). The Arts of China. University of California Press.
Wang, B. (2004). Daode Zhenjing 道德真經 [The True Scripture of the Dao and Its Virtue]. In Zhonghua Daozang 中華道藏 [The Compiled Daoist Canon]. Huaxia Publishing House, 9, 192–219.
Wang, B. (n.d.). Zhouyi Lueli 周易略例 [General Remarks on the Changes]. Yixue Wang 易學網. https://www.eee-learning.com/book/wangbeoo 
Xie, H. (2011). Guhua Pinlu 古畫品錄 [The Classification of Old Painters]. Chinese Text Project. https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&res=244595 
Xu, SH. (2011). Shuowen Jiezi 說文解字 [Explaining Graphs and Clarifying Characters]. Chinese Text Project. https://ctext.org/shuo-wen-jie-zi 
Ye, F. (1965). Hou Han shu 後漢書. Zhonghua shuju 中華書局.
Zhang, Y. (1936). Lidai Minghua Ji 歷代名畫記 [Records of Famous Paintings of All Dynasties]. Commercial Press 商務印書館.
Zhuangzi. (2004). Nanhua Zhenjing 南華真經 [The True Scripture of Nanhua (Original Daozang Version)]. In Zhonghua Daozang 中華道藏 [The Compiled Daoist Canon]. Huaxia Publishing House, 13, 1–64.

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