Sima Xiangru ( , c. 179117BC) was a Chinese musician, poet, and politician who lived during the
Western Han dynasty
The Han dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) and a warring in ...
. Sima is a significant figure in the history of
Classical Chinese poetry
Classical Chinese poetry is traditional Chinese poetry written in Classical Chinese and typified by certain traditional forms, or modes; traditional genres; and connections with particular historical periods, such as the poetry of the Tang dy ...
, and is generally regarded as the greatest of all composers of Chinese
''fu'' rhapsodies. His poetry includes his invention or at least development of the ''fu'' form, applying new metrical rhythms to the lines of poetry, which he mixed with lines of prose, and provided with several of what would in ensuing centuries become among a group of common set topics for this genre. Sima Xiangru was also versatile enough to write in 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, ...
'' style, while it was enjoying a renaissance, and he also wrote lyrics in what would become known as the ''
yuefu
''Yuefu'' are Chinese poems composed in a folk song style. The term originally literally meant " Music Bureau", a reference to the imperial Chinese governmental organization(s) originally charged with collecting or writing the lyrics, later the ...
'' formal style.
Early life and career

Sima Xiangru was born in the commandery of
Shu (now
Sichuan Province
Sichuan is a Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capita ...
) in the early 2nd century BC. He probably was born in 179BC, but some sources give it variously as 172, 171, or 169BC. Most sources agree that he was born in
Chengdu
Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...
, although the 19th-century scholar Wang Peixun proposed he may actually have been from Pengzhou (modern
Peng'an County).
Little is known of Sima's family and ancestry. His family may have been descended from Sima Cuo (; fl. 316–280BC), a
Qin general who led Qin's invasion of Shu in the late 4th century BC. During his youth he is said to have been a studious child who read widely, and to have been a lover of swordsmanship. As a youth, Sima took the name "Xiangru" out of admiration for the
Warring States period
The Warring States period in history of China, Chinese history (221 BC) comprises the final two and a half centuries of the Zhou dynasty (256 BC), which were characterized by frequent warfare, bureaucratic and military reforms, and ...
leader
Lin Xiangru
Lin Xiangru () (died July 260 BCE) was a politician and general of the Warring States period, who served the state of Zhao. He figures prominently in two stories of the period, namely the episode and the namesake '' chengyu'' of " Returning the J ...
.
Around 150BC, while in his twenties, Sima left his home in Shu and traveled to the imperial capital
Chang'an
Chang'an (; zh, t=長安, s=长安, p=Cháng'ān, first=t) is the traditional name of the city now named Xi'an and was the capital of several Chinese dynasties, ranging from 202 BCE to 907 CE. The site has been inhabited since Neolithic time ...
. He received a court appointment "by virtue of property", which means he had at least 40,000
copper cash. He was made a mounted military attendant to
Emperor Jing of Han
Emperor Jing of Han (188 BC – 9 March 141 BC), born Liu Qi, was the sixth Emperor of China, emperor of the Han dynasty from 157 to 141 BC. His reign saw the limiting of the power of the feudal kings and princes which resulted in the Rebellion ...
, which was a low-ranking position but allowed Sima to accompany the emperor and the court on imperial excursions. Sima does not seem to have enjoyed this position, likely because Emperor Jing, and his mostly
Legalist advisors, were known for their dislike of literary embellishment.
In 149BC, Sima moved to Liang (modern northern
Anhui
Anhui is an inland Provinces of China, province located in East China. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze and Huai rivers, bordering Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the east, Jiang ...
, southern
Shandong
Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...
, northeastern
Henan
Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...
, centered around modern
Shangqiu
Shangqiu ( zh, ), Postal romanization, alternately romanized as Shangkiu, is a city in eastern Henan province, Central China. It borders Kaifeng to the northwest, Zhoukou to the southwest, and the provinces of Shandong and Anhui to the northeast ...
city) to become a guest scholar at the court of
Liu Wu, Prince of Liang
Liu Wu (刘武) ( - May 144 BC), posthumously named Prince Xiao of Liang, was a Han prince. He was a son of Emperor Wen and Empress Xiaowen, and a younger brother of Emperor Jing. He played a prominent role in the suppression of the ...
, Emperor Jing's younger brother. The prince's court already held a number of prominent literary men of the era, including Mei Sheng (; d. 141BC), Zou Yang (; fl. 150BC), and
Zhuang Ji. During this period, Sima began composition of his "''Fu'' on Sir Vacuous" (''Zixu fu'' 子虛賦), which later became the first half of his famous ''fu'' on the Shanglin imperial hunting park.
Sima stayed in Liang until Prince Liu Wu's death in 143BC, after which he returned to his home area of Shu. Sima no longer had any money, and he lived in a state of near poverty after returning home. His fortunes improved when he was taken on as a protégé of Wang Ji, the magistrate of Linqiong (modern
Qionglai, Sichuan). Wang introduced Sima to Zhuo Wangsun (; fl. 140BC), a wealthy iron manufacturer, and Sima immediately fell in love with Zhuo's recently widowed daughter
Zhuo Wenjun. In 142BC, the following year, Sima and Zhuo Wenjun eloped together. Sima's biography states that the couple supported themselves by running an ale shop until Zhuo's father was forced by public shame into recognizing their marriage, giving the couple 1,000,000 copper cash, 100 servants, and valuables from the dowry of Zhuo's first marriage.
Imperial career
In 137BC, the young
Emperor Wu of Han
Emperor Wu of Han (156 – 29 March 87BC), born Liu Che and courtesy name Tong, was the seventh Emperor of China, emperor of the Han dynasty from 141 to 87 BC. His reign lasted 54 years – a record not broken until the reign of the Kangxi ...
summoned Sima to Chang'an. The traditional account of this incident states that the emperor happened across a copy of Sima's "''Fu'' of Sir Vacuous", and was so impressed by it that he exclaimed, "Why do I not have the privilege of being this man's contemporary?!" The account states that Yang Deyi, the keeper of the imperial hounds and a native of Shu, happened to overhear the emperor's exclamation, and informed him that Sima was the piece's author, whereupon Emperor Wu immediately had Sima summoned to the imperial capital. Notwithstanding its liveliness and charm, modern scholars have noted a number of logical inconsistencies in this traditional account, and do not consider it to be accurate.
In the subsequent, more credible portion of the story, Sima appeared before Emperor Wu and stated that he wished to compose a grand ''fu'' on the emperor's excursions and hunts. The emperor had the chief steward of writing give Sima a supply of brushes and bamboo slips which Sima used to compose his ''magnum opus'', a ''fu'' on the imperial hunting reserve usually entitled "''Fu'' on the Shanglin Park" (''Shanglin fu'' ), though its original title was probably "''Fu'' on the Excursions and Hunts of the Son of Heaven" (''Tianzi youlie fu'' ). The emperor was so pleased with Sima's composition that he immediately appointed him to a position at the imperial court.
Sima served Emperor Wu by composing ''fu'' for special court occasions, though
none of these have survived to modern times. Because of Sima's background in the Shu area, the emperor made him his personal envoy to what was then the southwestern frontier of China, of which Shu was a part. Around 131BC, Sima traveled to Shu on an imperial mission to mediate a dispute between the local population and the area's oppressive governor, after which the emperor promoted him to General of the Gentlemen of the Household (''zhonglang jiang'' ), a fairly high-ranking position at the imperial court. Sometime later, Sima was accused of taking bribes while on the mission, and was summarily dismissed from his position. Although he continued to enjoy the emperor's favor, and was brought back to court after several years, he never again served in a high-ranking position, and seems to have largely lost interest in court affairs.
During Sima's brief tenure as General of the Gentlemen of the Household, Emperor Wu dispatched him back to Shu to oversee a roadbuilding project in the southwest. Upon arriving with his large entourage from the capital, Sima was proudly greeted by his father-in-law Zhuo Wangsun, who decided to bequeath to Zhuo Wenjun a large portion of his estate, equal to that of a son's. This generous inheritance made Sima and his wife independently wealthy, so that after Sima was dismissed from his post around 130BC, he had no need for further employment.
Later life
Between 130 and 120BC, Sima's primary activities were writing poetry and occasionally accompanying Emperor Wu on imperial outings. Around 120BC, Sima accepted an appointment as director of
Emperor Wen of Han
Emperor Wen of Han (; 203/02 – 6 July 157 BC), personal name Liu Heng (), was the fifth Emperor of China, emperor of the Han dynasty from 180 until his death in 157 BC. The son of Emperor Gaozu of Han, Emperor Gao and Empress Dowager Bo, Conso ...
's funerary park, though the position was probably a sinecure. Around 119BC, Sima resigned this position due to increasing illness (likely
diabetes
Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...
), and retired to
Maoling, a town where Emperor Wu had members of wealthy and influential families live so he could surveil them. In 117BC, word reached the imperial court that Sima was dying, and Emperor Wu dispatched an official to visit his home and collect his writings to preserve them. However, by the time the official reached Sima's mansion, he had already died, aged approximately 62.
Works
The
"Monograph on Art and Literature" (''Yiwenzhi'' 藝文志) from the
''Book of Han'' (''Han Shu'' 漢書) lists 29 ''fu'' by Sima Xiangru, but only six complete ''fu'' and a fragment of another have survived to modern times, and two of the six surviving ''fu'' are of disputed authenticity among modern scholars. None of his poetical, non-''fu'' works are listed. A dictionary entitled ''Fan jiang'' () is also listed among Sima's works, but only five fragments of it have survived.
The 5th-century anthology
''Selections of Refined Literature'' (''Wen xuan'' 文選) preserves three of Sima's ''fu'', as well as four non-''fu'' pieces: his "Proclamation on Ba and Shu" (''Yu Ba Shu xi'' ), "Refuting the Elders of Shu" (''Nan Shu fulao'' ), "Letter Admonishing Against Hunting" (''Jian lie shu'' ), and "Essay on the ''Feng'' and ''Shan'' Sacrifices" (''Feng Shan wen'' ).
A volume of Sima's collected works appears in the bibliography catalogs of the dynastic histories of the
Sui and
Tang dynasties, but it seems to have been lost during 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 ...
. Modern versions of it are
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
reconstructions pieced together from quotations in other works.
Influence
Besides being an important poet of the Han dynasty, Sima Xiangru has also influenced later art and artists.
See also
*''
Fu''
*
Han poetry
Han poetry is associated with the Han dynasty era of China, 206 BC – 220 AD, including the Wang Mang interregnum (9–23 AD). Han poetry is considered a significant period in Classical Chinese poetry due to several important developments. One k ...
, a general article on poetry associated with the main time-frame of this dynastic era
*
Science and technology of the Han dynasty
Many significant developments in the history of science and technology in China took place during the Han dynasty (202 BCE – 220 CE).
The Han period saw great innovations in metallurgy. Following the inventions of the blast furnace ...
, regarding gimbals in Chinese architecture
*
Zhuang Ji
Notes
References
Footnotes
Works cited
* Translated and introduced by David Hawkes
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sima, Xiangru
170s BC births
Year of birth uncertain
117 BC deaths
2nd-century BC Chinese poets
Chinese lyricists
Guqin players
Han dynasty musicians
Han dynasty government officials
Musicians from Chengdu
Poets from Sichuan
Politicians from Chengdu
Writers from Chengdu
2nd-century BC musicians