Culturally, the Song refines many of the…

Culturally, the Song refines many of the developments of the previous centuries.

Included in these refinements are not only the Tang ideal of the universal man, who combines the qualities of scholar, poet, painter, and statesman, but also historical writings, painting, calligraphy, and hard-glazed porcelain.

Song intellectuals seek answers to all philosophical and political questions in the Confucian Classics.

This renewed interest in the Confucian ideals and society of ancient times coincide with the decline of Buddhism, which the Chinese regard as foreign and offering few practical guidelines for the solution of political and other mundane problems.