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Guo Pu (; AD 276–324),
courtesy name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...
Jingchun (), was a Chinese historian, poet, and writer during the
Eastern Jin Eastern or Easterns may refer to: Transportation Airlines *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...
period, and is best known as one of China's foremost commentators on ancient texts. Guo was a
Taoist Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ...
mystic,
geomancer Geomancy, a compound of Greek roots denoting "earth divination", was originally used to mean methods of divination that interpret geographic features, markings on the ground, or the patterns formed by soil, rocks, or sand. Its definition has ex ...
, collector of strange tales, editor of old texts, and erudite commentator. He was the first commentator of the ''
Shan Hai Jing The ''Classic of Mountains and Seas'', also known as ''Shanhai jing'' (), formerly romanized as the ''Shan-hai Ching'', is a Chinese classic text and a compilation of mythic geography and beasts. Early versions of the text may have existed si ...
'' and so probably, with the noted Han bibliographer Liu Xin, was instrumental in preserving this valuable mythological and religious text. Guo Pu was the well-educated son of a governor. He was a natural historian and a prolific writer of the
Jin dynasty Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...
. He is the author of '' The Book of Burial'', the first-ever and the most authoritative source of
feng shui Feng shui ( or ), sometimes called Chinese geomancy, is a traditional form of geomancy that originated in ancient China and claims to use energy forces to harmonize individuals with their surrounding environment. The term ''feng shui'' mean ...
doctrine and the first book to address the concept of feng shui in the history of China, making Guo Pu the first person historically to define feng shui, and therefore, Guo Pu is usually called the father of feng shui in China.


Life

A native of
Wenxi County Wenxi County () is a county in southwestern Shanxi province, China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Yuncheng. As of 2020, it had a population of roughly 350,000. The name Wenxi, which means "hearing the glad news", ...
, in what is now southwest
Shanxi Province Shanxi; formerly romanised as Shansi is a province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi and Datong. Its one-character abbreviation is ( ...
, Guo studied
Daoist Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...
occultism The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mystic ...
and prognostication in his youth, and mainly worked as a prognosticator for various local officials and leaders, interpreting omens and portents in order to predict the success or failure of various endeavors. In AD 307 a
Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of Nomad, nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese historiography, Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, t ...
clan invaded the area and Guo's family relocated south of the
Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
, reaching today
Xuancheng Xuancheng ( zh, s=宣城, p=Xuānchéng''; Xuanzhou Wu dialects, Xuanzhou Wu:'' Shye-san) is a city in the southeast of Anhui province. Archeological digs suggest that the city has been settled for over 4,000 years, and has been under formal admin ...
and eventually settling in Jiankang (modern Nanjing, Jiangsu). Guo served as an omen-interpreter to military leaders and Eastern Jin chancellor
Wang Dao Wang Dao (; 276 – 7 September 339), courtesy name Maohong (茂弘), formally Duke Wenxian of Shixing (始興文獻公), was a Chinese politician during the Jin dynasty who played an important role in the administrations of Emperor Yuan, Empe ...
before being appointed to official court positions in 318 and 320. Guo's mother died in 322, which caused Guo to resign his position and spend a year in mourning. In 323 Guo joined the staff of warlord
Wang Dun Wang Dun ( zh, c=王敦) (266 – early August 324), courtesy name Chuzhong (處仲), nickname Ahei (阿黑), was a Chinese military general and warlord during the Jin dynasty. Having brought Emperor Yuan (Sima Rui) to submission with his mili ...
, who controlled much of the modern
Hunan Hunan is an inland Provinces of China, province in Central China. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the Administrative divisions of China, province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to the east, Gu ...
and
Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...
areas, but was executed in 324 after he failed to produce a favorable omen toward Wang's planned usurpation of the Eastern Jin throne.


Influence

Guo was likely the most learned person of his era, and is one of the foremost commentators on ancient Chinese works. He wrote commentaries to the ''
Chu Ci The ''Chu Ci'', variously translated as ''Verses of Chu'', ''Songs of Chu'', or ''Elegies of Chu'', is an ancient anthology of Chinese poetry including works traditionally attributed mainly to Qu Yuan and Song Yu from the Warring States period, ...
'', ''
Shan Hai Jing The ''Classic of Mountains and Seas'', also known as ''Shanhai jing'' (), formerly romanized as the ''Shan-hai Ching'', is a Chinese classic text and a compilation of mythic geography and beasts. Early versions of the text may have existed si ...
'', '' Mu Tianzi Zhuan'', '' Fangyan'', ''
Erya The ''Erya'' or ''Erh-ya'' is the first surviving Chinese dictionary. The sinologist Bernhard Karlgren concluded that "the major part of its glosses must reasonably date from the 3rd century BC." Title Chinese scholars interpret the firs ...
'',
Sima Xiangru Sima Xiangru ( , c. 179117BC) was a Chinese musician, poet, and politician who lived during the Han dynasty#Western Han, Western Han dynasty. Sima is a significant figure in the history of Classical Chinese poetry, and is generally regarded as ...
's "''Fu'' on the Excursion Hunt of the Son of Heaven", and three ancient dictionaries: ''Cang Jie'', ''Yuanli'', and ''Boxue''. Guo's commentaries, which identify and explain rare words and allusions, are often the only surviving sources of these glosses, and without which leave the original work mostly incomprehensible to modern readers. In particular, Guo's commentaries to the ''Erya'', ''Shan Hai Jing'', and ''Fangyan'' are considered sufficiently authoritative that they are included in all standard versions of those texts. Without his glosses and commentaries, large portions of these texts would be unintelligible today. Guo was also an accomplished poet, and his 11 surviving ''fu'' poems display his extensive command of the ancient Chinese language. One of them, entitled "''Fu'' on the
Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
" (''Jiang fu'' 江賦), used the image of the Yangtze to praise the restoration of the Jin dynasty, and established his reputation as a leading literary figure. His best known poems are a series entitled "Wandering as an Immortal" (''youxian'' 遊仙), of which 14 survive. The bibliography monograph of the Records of the
Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty ( ) was a short-lived Dynasties of China, Chinese imperial dynasty that ruled from 581 to 618. The re-unification of China proper under the Sui brought the Northern and Southern dynasties era to a close, ending a prolonged peri ...
list Guo's works in 17 volumes; by the
Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
only 10 volumes remained, and by the end of the
Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
all of Guo's writings not included in the ''
Wen Xuan The ''Wen Xuan'' (; ), usually translated ''Selections of Refined Literature'', is one of the earliest and most important anthologies of Chinese poetry and literature, and is one of the world's oldest literary anthologies to be arranged by top ...
'' had been lost. All that remains today are his writings from the ''Wen Xuan'' and reconstructions from quotations in other surviving works.


References


Footnotes


Works cited

* * * * * Wei, Fengjuan
"Guo Pu"
''
Encyclopedia of China The ''Encyclopedia of China'' () is the first large-entry modern encyclopedia in the Chinese language. The compilation began in 1978. Published by the Encyclopedia of China Publishing House, the encyclopedia was issued one volume at a time, be ...
'' (Chinese Literature Edition), 1st ed.


External links

*
www.chinaknowledge.de entry on Guo Pu
*





{{DEFAULTSORT:Guo, Pu 276 births 324 deaths 4th-century executions 4th-century Chinese historians People executed by the Jin dynasty (266–420) Jin dynasty (266–420) historians Jin dynasty (266–420) poets Jin dynasty (266–420) Taoists People executed by the Jin dynasty (266–420) by decapitation 3rd-century Taoists 4th-century Taoists