Abstract：The intellectual movement of “supplementing Confucianism with Zen” (以禅济儒) from the Mid-Tang to the Northern Song Dynasty accomplished a theoretical paradigm shift from cultural hermeneutics through analogy to ontological reconstruction while pioneering innovative pathways for poetic practice. Han Yu’s implicit appropriation, Li Ao’s systematic transformation, and Liu Zongyuan’s explicit integration collectively implanted Chan Buddhist mind-nature theories into Confucian reforms, driving poetics from the utilitarian “expression of aspirations” (言志) to the introspective “illumination of mind” (明心), thereby catalyzing breakthroughs in the theory of artistic conception and the aesthetics of simplicity. Northern Song Neo-Confucians achieved creative transformations of Zen epistemology at the ontological level: Zhou Dunyi’s Taiji ontology, the Cheng brothers’ framework of principle-unity-with-multiplicity (理一分殊), and Su Shi’s tripartite integration of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism collectively constituted the philosophical paradigm of “immanent transcendence” in Song Neo-Confucianism. Consequently, Northern Song poetics realized a profound synthesis between Chan’s intuitive contemplation and Confucian mixing metaphorical traditions. Huang Tingjian’s formulation of “living phrases” (活句) through transforming gongan (koan) thinking, alongside Su Shi’s implementation of Middle Way aesthetics to generate speculative profundity, became exemplary models for Song poetry’s dual characteristics of speculative depth and ethereal resonance. The Chan-Confucian synthesis not only reshaped the spiritual structure of literati but also transformed religious experiences into aesthetic practices through poetic thinking, thereby opening a new interpretive space for the philosophical turn of classical Chinese poetics. More significantly, the syncretic wisdom, discursive strategies, and systematic frameworks demonstrated in this synthesis provide vital insights for contemporary civilizational dialogue and poetic innovation.
潘链钰. 中唐至北宋以禅济儒的理论演进与诗学实践[J]. 《深圳大学学报》（人文社科版）, 2025, 42(3): 35-43.
PAN Lian-yu. The Theoretical Evolution and Poetic Practice of Integrating Buddhism with Confucianism from the Middle Tang Dynasty to the Northern Song Dynasty. , 2025, 42(3): 35-43.
2025, Vol. 42 
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