Since ancient times, the guqin has always been a compulsory instrument for literati, scholars, nobles, generals, and prime ministers, and is indispensable in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. It can entertain oneself, express emotions, cultivate oneself and pursue inner peace, or transcend and pursue the highest realm. Regardless of the type, playing the guqin inevitably reflects a state of mind and artistic conception.
The realm of Guqin is constantly changing. However, the "mood" expressed by the guqin player is not only a literal expression, but also presents itself in a beautiful form, covering a wide range. A thousand guqin players have a thousand different musical expressions, and the different moods reflected by the player's integration into their own situation are endless. As Su Shi's "Red Cliff Ode" of the Song Dynasty wrote: "If we observe things in a changable way, then heaven and earth cannot be seen in a moment; if we observe things in a non-changable way, then both things and myself are infinite."
The artistic conception of Guqin can be described as wonderful, as it can make people calm and experience inner peace. In the Tang Dynasty, Bai Juyi's poem "Playing the Qin at Night On a Boat" states: "A calm heart is like a faint voice, with no past or present." It can be seen that the sound of the qin is a bond that embodies the spiritual realm. What we are pursuing is the profound artistic conception of the implied meaning, which can be like meeting a close friend in Boya and Ziqi's "High Mountains and Flowing Waters", or seeking love like Sima Xiangru's "Phoenix Seeking Phoenix".
The guqin is also a carrier of emotions, expressing different moods. For example, in the song "Guangling San", the melody is passionate and generous, expressing an indomitable spirit of indignation; The artistic conception of "Ping Sha Luo Yan" is vast, tranquil, and full of vitality, aiming to borrow the distant aspirations of the wild geese to write about the hearts of the literati; "Bi Jian Liu Quan" expresses the tranquil and relaxed atmosphere of ancient people wandering in the mountains and forests. The musical notes turn back and forth, creating a broad artistic conception. In the clear and bright overtones, it leads people into a lingering and endless realm of meaning; And music such as "Plum Blossom Sannong" and "Missing" are all used to express the inner realm, with different emotional interpretations and different melodies.
Guqin players have always entertained themselves rather than others, focusing on the perception and experience of the soul, and pursuing a state of mind that is "vast, boundless, transcendent, and leisurely.". To a large extent, it is a form of self-expression for the player of the guqin, as well as communication and exchange with all things in heaven and earth. For example, Wang Guowei wrote in "Human Words": "In the realm of self, I observe things, and everything has my own color; in the realm of non self, I observe things, so I do not know who is me and what is things."
The Guqin embodies a subtle and introverted style, which pursues an artistic conception that emphasizes an infinite and profound realm. The ultimate essence of this realm is something that can only be understood but cannot be expressed in words. It is precisely the so-called "off string sound" and "off rhythm essence", which is a rare and independent realm that eliminates the hustle and bustle of the world.
The Guqin has an elegant and vast artistic conception, capturing the soul. It is an art that blends with nature. Everyone has their own "heaven and earth" in their hearts, which refers to the things they see and the feelings they experience in the process. Based on the sublimation of these two, combined with the fusion of guqin music, it is a thing outside of things, realm outside of realm.
自古以来古琴一直都是文人墨客，王侯将相的必修乐器，琴棋书画中不可或缺的。它可以愉悦自己，用以寄托情感，也可以修身养性追求内心平和，亦或超然脱俗追求至高境界。不论是哪一种，古琴奏乐体现的必然是一种心境和意境。
古琴之境，千变万化也。然，抚琴者表达的“心境”它体现的不仅仅是字面的一种，它以美的形态呈现在我们面前，范围更是包罗万象。一千个琴师一千种乐境，因抚琴者融入了自身的境遇，心境之不同，体现自然也是无穷无尽。正如宋代·苏轼的《赤壁赋》文曰：“盖将自其变者而观之，则天地曾不能以一瞬；自其不变者而观之,则物与我皆无尽也。”
古琴的意境可谓妙矣，能让人雪躁静心,体验内心的祥和。唐代·白居易的《船夜援琴》诗曰：“心静即声淡，其间无古今。”可见琴音是一种寄寓精神境界的纽带。追求的正是弦外之音的深邃意境，它可以如伯牙、子期《高山流水》遇知音，也可以如司马相如《凤求凰》觅挚爱。
古琴亦是情感的寄托，所表达的心境也是不同的，如《广陵散》曲中旋律激昂慷慨，其抒发了愤慨不屈的浩然之气；《平沙落雁》之意境苍茫恬淡而又生趣盎然，意在借大雁之远志，写逸士之心胸；《碧涧流泉》则抒发了古人荡迹山林闲适疏放的幽趣，音符峰回路转,意境开阔，在清脆明亮的泛音中引人进入余音绕梁，意味无穷的境界中；而《梅花三弄》、《相思》等乐曲皆以用来抒发内心之境，不同的情感演绎，不同琴音婉转。
古琴向来娱己不娱人，注重的是心灵的感悟与体验，追求的是“浩渺无垠、旷达超脱、悠然自得”的心境。在很大程度上是操琴者的一种自我表达，更是和天地万物间的沟通与交流，如王国维在《人间词话》中写道：“有我之境，以我观物，物皆著我之色彩；无我之境，以物观物，故不知何者为我，何者为物。”
古琴体现的是含蓄内敛的风格，这种风格所追求的意境，强调一种无限和深微的境界。这种境界的至极之处是只可意会不可言传的，正是所谓“弦外之音”、“韵外之致”，是一种绝去尘嚣、遗世独立的希夷境界。
古琴意境优雅，幽远辽阔，摄人心魄，是一门与自然相交融的艺术。每个人心中都有自己的一方“天地”，即见到的事物本身和在这过程中所产生的感受，于这两者之间基础之上感悟后得到的升华，加之琴音融合，是为物外之物，境外之境也。