From the “Spirit beyond Life and Death” to the “Free Spirit”: On Buddhism and the Consciousness of Aesthetic Spirit in the Wei and Jin Dynasties      

Author: Liu Min

Abstract: The consciousness of aesthetic spirit was a result of the zeitgeist pursuing transcendence in the Wei and Jin Dynasties, as well as promotion of theoretical thinking and storming to natural emotion of the scholars by the religious belief at that time. The debates on body and spirit pushed the spirit exploration of the scholars in the Wei and Jin Dynasties to the “transcendent realm of spirit beyond life and death” which showed the authenticity of existence. Just like what Plato called the reminiscence of spirit, the spiritual growth aimed at the ultimate source, was an infinite pursuit of the spiritual realm of original nature. The “free spirit” was the aesthetic expression of belief pursuit recovering the original nature, the return to home of existence, as well as the happiness and confidence produced by touching the truth of existence. The seeking of absolute realm inspired the new subjectivity and spiritual power of man, and formed the definition of man on the spirit level: man is the “spiritual me”; the divine power of belief makes man as the “spiritual me” own the transcendent and kind inner bearing when faced with universe and nature, thus can encompass and fuse all creatures with pure nature, bringing the pristine nature of all creatures while realizing self-transcendence.