Ruan Ji (Chinese: 阮籍; pinyin: Ruǎn Jí; Wade–Giles: Juan Chi; 210–263) was a poet and musician who lived in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was one of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove. The guqin melody, Jiukuang (酒狂 "Drunken Ecstasy", or "Wine Mad") is believed to have been composed by him. The China of the 3rd century saw an overall interest in music. Music in China was a matter of national importance.
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Ruan Ji (Chinese: 阮籍; pinyin: Ruǎn Jí; Wade–Giles: Juan Chi; 210–263) was a poet and musician who lived in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was one of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove. The guqin melody, Jiukuang (酒狂 "Drunken Ecstasy", or "Wine Mad") is believed to have been composed by him. The China of the 3rd century saw an overall interest in music. Music in China was a matter of national importance. The Qin ( 琴) and the flute received the same importance as the brush for writing or living language. For Ruan Ji music meant an ideal of harmony. Ruan Ji perceived music not in sounds but in the world, music that is inherent to the world. He linked music with the “natural way” (道). Ruan Ji didn’t like music to cast non-constant feelings, even sorrow or joy, especially if man feels the pleasure of his emotional experience. Ruan Ji explained his understanding of music with the example of an episode from Confucius' life: ”Once, Confucius, in a state of Qi, heard ancient music and then for three months he didn’t know the taste of meat. That means", Ruan Ji explained, "that perfect music doesn’t arouse desires. The heart is serene, the spirit is placid, and then the taste of meat is unknown.” From this point of view the music of ancient, wise men is merely the expression of harmony.
