The White Deer Grotto Academy (,

Gan The word Gan or the initials GAN may refer to: Places *Gan, a component of Hebrew placenames literally meaning "garden" China * Gan River (Jiangxi) * Gan River (Inner Mongolia), * Gan County, in Jiangxi province * Gansu, abbreviated ''Gā ...

: Pak-Luk-Tung Su-yon, sometimes translated as White Deer Cave Academy or White Deer Hollow Academy) is a former school at the foot of Wulou Peak in

Lushan Mountain Lu or Lushan (, Gan: Lu-san), officially named Mountain Lu National Park, is a mountain in China. It was also known as Kuanglu () in ancient times. It is situated in Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province, and is one of the most renowned mountai ...

, now in

Jiujiang Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level city ...

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

province. It was one of the Four Great Academies of China, and today it is maintained as an important landmark.

History

The academy had its beginnings as a place for the pursuit of learning by the

Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

poet Li Bo (李渤 Lǐ Bó, d. 831, not to be confused with the more famous Tang poet

Li Po Li Bai (, 701–762), also pronounced as Li Bo, courtesy name Taibai (), was a Chinese poet, acclaimed from his own time to the present as a brilliant and romantic figure who took traditional poetic forms to new heights. He and his friend Du Fu ...

() or Li Bai) when he was living in retirement. As Li Bo kept a white deer, he was known as the White Deer Teacher and the school premises themselves as the White Deer Grotto. In the years 937–942, when the area was under the control of the Southern Tang, a school was officially established here under the name "Lushan Guoxue" or "Lu-san Goet-hok" (廬山國學, meaning "Mount Lu National Institute"), by

Li Shandao Li, li, or LI may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Landscape Institute, a British professional body for landscape architects * Leadership Institute, a non-profit organization located in Arlington, Virginia, US, that teaches "political te ...

. In the early years of the Northern Song dynasty, which began in 960, the Lushan Guoxue was transformed into an academy known as the White Deer Grotto Academy. The academy was the recipient of imperial favour from the Emperor

Taizong Taizong is the temple name used for several monarchs of China. It may refer to: * Tai Jia ( 16th-century BC), king of the Shang dynasty * Liu Heng (202 BC–157 BC, reigned 180 BC–157 BC), also known as Emperor Wen, Han dynasty emperor * Shi ...

(r. 976–997), who bestowed on it books and awarded official rank to the academy's head. However, it later fell into disrepair. In 1179–80, during the

Southern Song The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. ...

dynasty, the academy was rebuilt and expanded by

Zhu Xi Zhu Xi (; ; October 18, 1130 – April 23, 1200), formerly romanized Chu Hsi, was a Chinese calligrapher, historian, philosopher, poet, and politician during the Song dynasty. Zhu was influential in the development of Neo-Confucianism. He con ...

, later to become the most preeminent of the neo-Confucianists. Zhu Xi, who was serving as prefect of Nankang Prefecture (now

Nankang City Nankang () is a district of the city of Ganzhou in southern Jiangxi province. It was a county-level city until November 2013, when the State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national ...

), rebuilt the academy based on the layout of the Temple of Confucius at Qufu. The new academy opened its doors to students and scholars in 1180. It was involved in instruction, the collection and preservation of books, religious sacrifices, the development of curricula, and lectures by famous scholars, including such notable names as Lu Jiuyuan, Lü Zuqian, and later Wang Yangming. The academy continued to flourish for eight centuries. The rules of the academy as set down by Zhu Xi had a profound and lasting influence on the subsequent development of

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

Image gallery

File:白鹿洞.JPG, White Deer Grotto File:延宾馆.JPG,

bronze statue at the White Deer Grotto Academy in Lushan File:朱子祠.JPG, Zhu Xi temple in White Deer Grotto Academy File:庐山白鹿洞书院周敦颐铜像.JPG, Bronze statue of Zhou Dunyi in White Deer Grotto Academy

External links

Rules of the White Deer Hollow Academy and comments by Korean Confucianist T'oegye
{{coord, 29, 40, 18, N, 115, 59, 21, E, region:CN-36_type:adm2nd_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Confucian education Confucianism in China History of education in China Education in Jiangxi Tang dynasty Song dynasty Zhu Xi Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Jiangxi 9th-century establishments in China Confucian academies in Jiangxi