Search for Spirits (Vol. 2)

Author: Gan Bao (Jin Dynasty)
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2004-01-01
Features: The Record of Strange Events (Soushenji) is a representative work of ancient Chinese supernatural fiction. It records early Chinese myths, legends, ghost stories, and extraordinary tales from the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, with rich content and fantastical plots. The compiler, Gan Bao, was a historian of his time who believed in the Three Destinies and practiced the Yin-Yang arts. He firmly held the conviction that "the divine path is not false," and thus essentially adopted the method of historical records to compile and document these supernatural events, preserving for later generations this precious, rich, and bizarre collection of supernatural tales. As an early work of supernatural fiction, The Record of Strange Events may have simple stories and structures, but it genuinely and typically reflects the boundless and unrestrained imagination of early Chinese ancestors, as well as their understanding and perception of the world. These imaginative ideas and story materials themselves had a profound and far-reaching influence on later Chinese literature and fiction writing, becoming an important artistic source for them. The Record of Strange Events was introduced to the Korean Peninsula in the 11th century and to Europe in the 19th century. This book is a full English translation, translated by Ding Wangdao, a renowned contemporary Chinese translator.