"Yin Chuang Zala"

Author: Zhonghua Book Company
Publisher:
Publishing Date: November 1, 1997
Features: Yin Chuang Za Lu is an anthology compiled by Song Dynasty editors, gathering works on poetic styles, recitation scripts, verse diagrams, and poetic theories from the early Tang Dynasty to the Northern Song Dynasty. It holds significant value as a poetic literature document. Due to its rarity in circulation—only Ming Dynasty manuscripts and printed editions have been preserved—it has been difficult for readers to access. This publication is a photomechanical reproduction based on the Ming Dynasty manuscript microfilm (the original is now housed in the Central Library of Taiwan), making it available for reading and research. However, the original manuscript contains numerous errors, misplacements, and omissions, making some chapters difficult to read. Therefore, the following editions were used for collation:
(1) Chen Shixue Yin Chuang Za Lu (50 volumes, 3 catalogs, 8 volumes), a Ming Dynasty manuscript with the "Tie Qin Tong Jian Lou" seal. Each half-page has 12 lines, with 20 characters per line, and no grid. It is now housed in the Beijing Library (hereafter referred to as the Ming manuscript).
(2) Chen Shixue Yin Chuang Za Lu (50 volumes, 10 volumes), a Ming Dynasty printed edition. The preface is signed "Jiajing Wushen Meng Xia Ji Dan Chong Wen Shu Tang Jia Cang Song Ben Chong Kan," indicating it was printed by Chong Wen Shu Tang in 27 Jiajing, with 12 lines per half-page, 20 characters per line, white margins, and double-sided borders. It is now housed in the Peking University Library.
(3) Chen Shixue Yin Chuang Za Lu (50 volumes, 16 volumes, with volumes 6–10 collated). This edition has the "Yu Shan Ji Gu Ge Zhu Mao Jin Tu Shu" seal, a preface, and is categorized without subheadings. Its line and grid format matches that of the Peking University edition, with identical text but slightly different page layouts. The collated sections also contain minor textual variations (the two printed editions are hereafter referred to as Ming printed editions, and the collated sections as "collated").
The collation primarily focuses on correcting and identifying errors, misplacements, omissions, and other issues in the original manuscript. For misaligned pages (e.g., 333–345, 390–393, 558–563, 597–603, 1039–1045), corrections were made based on other editions, catalogs, or contextual clues. Missing pages (e.g., 366, 367, 391, 392, 845, 846, 1129, 1130, 1147, 1148) were supplemented using the Ming manuscript housed in the Beijing Library. Textual errors in the original manuscript, where other editions are correct or where variant readings are valuable, were annotated with brief explanations. Errors confirmed as correct in the original manuscript were not annotated. Certain issues pointed out by Mr. Zhang Bowei in his essay On Yin Chuang Za Lu are also included in the annotations. The collation notes are printed at the end of the book.
It should be noted that this collation primarily focuses on textual comparison between editions (hebing) rather than cross-comparison (tuoji), aiming to restore the original form of the Ming Dynasty editions. Only when textual comparison reveals discrepancies requiring judgment were additional references consulted. The original manuscript still contains unresolved issues, such as incorrect attributions of poems, missing titles, and textual errors. Many quoted lines lack authors or titles, requiring further research and verification, which is a time-consuming and labor-intensive task. Due to limitations in time and resources, not all issues could be corrected in this photomechanical reproduction.
The original catalog has some flaws, such as mismatched titles and text, or text without titles. Additionally, the inability to mark page numbers in the photomechanical reproduction makes it inconvenient to consult. A new catalog has been compiled to address these issues. However, the original catalog remains preserved for reference. Due to the chaotic editing style of the book, determining titles and their hierarchical order required careful consideration. While the new catalog corrects obvious omissions and errors in the original, it may still contain inaccuracies. Fortunately, the original catalog is retained for comparison. To avoid redundancy, no annotations are provided for the catalog section.
Mr. Zhang Bowei of Nanjing University has conducted in-depth research on this book. His essay On Yin Chuang Za Lu is included as an appendix for readers' reference. During the collation and preparation of this book, the authors were greatly assisted by colleagues from the Rare Books Department of the Beijing Library, the Rare Books Department of Peking University Library, and the Library of the Institute of History at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Their contributions are deeply appreciated.
Editor: Zheng Xiumei
December 20, 1995