70 China in World History
purpose of the program. Wang stirred up such powerful opposition that
he was forced to resign from offi ce in 1076. After Emperor Shenzong
died in 1085, all of Wang’s reforms were repealed, and the dynasty con-
tinued to limp along fi nancially, not recognizing the disasters that were
approaching.
One of the most articulate critics of Wang Anshi’s policies was the
brilliant scholar-offi cial Su Shi, better known as Su Dongpo (1036–
1101). Su had a sharp tongue and suffered through two periods of exile
for his opposition to Wang’s reforms, but it is indicative of the nature
of political battles in the Song that he remained on friendly terms with
Wang. They exchanged poems with each other even in old age. In this
regard, the Song dynasty represents the high-water mark of civil politi-
cal debate in imperial China. Before and after the Song, factional politi-
cal confl icts were more often resolved through force—the arrest, exile,
or execution of one’s opponents.
Despite his political persecution, Su Dongpo became one of the
most admired of all Chinese literati. He was a student of the Book
of Changes and the Analects of Confucius, as well as Daoist alchemy
and Chan Buddhist meditation. Known for his compassion, he worked
tirelessly to provide fl ood control measures and famine relief, found
orphanages and hospitals, and provide medical care for prisoners. Su’s
main legacy to Chinese culture was in his poetry, his calligraphy, and
his writings about art. He saw poetry as a way of painting, painting as
wordless poetry, and both as precious vehicles of self-expression. He
left behind 2,400 treasured poems and 300 song lyrics—a new genre
of poetry he did much to popularize. One of the few Chinese literati to
master every style of poetry as well as painting and calligraphy, he epit-
omized the ideal that inspired Chinese scholars from Song times into
the twentieth century: the brilliant scholar, versatile artist, and consci-
entious offi cial who would risk his political career to do the right thing
and, when driven out of power, would take great solace and pleasure in
the beauties of nature and the arts.
In 1101, the year Su Dongpo died, another new emperor, Huizong,
took the throne and stated his intention to restore Wang Anshi’s reforms.
The result was only to intensify rivalries and tensions among Huizong’s
offi cials without addressing the fundamental problems of fi nancial and
military weakness. Huizong was frankly more interested in art and lit-
erature than in the nitty-gritty problems of government. He was a skilled
painter and calligrapher and a passionate collector of paintings, ancient
bronzes, porcelain ware, and beautiful stones. He particularly excelled
at delicate paintings of fl owers and birds, and he perfected an exquisite