Taiping Guangji (Complete 10 Volumes)

Author: Li Fang et al. (Song Dynasty)
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-06-01
Features: The Taiping Guangji is a large book compiled by Song Dynasty scholars. It was named Taiping Guangji because it was completed in the third year of the Taiping era (978 AD). The book consists of 500 volumes, with a 10-volume index, specializing in unofficial histories, biographies, and miscellaneous writings primarily by novelists. It cites approximately 400 sources, usually noting the origin at the end of each entry, but occasionally there are errors, leading to the same book being listed under different names or different books being listed under the same name, making precise statistical analysis difficult. Now, there is a bibliography at the beginning of the book, listing 343 sources, but it does not match the actual number of cited works in the text, likely added by later scholars during the Song Dynasty. The Taiping Guangji is organized by category, divided into 92 major themes and over 150 subthemes. For example, under the section on livestock and beasts, there are further subcategories such as cattle, horses, camels, donkeys, dogs, sheep, and pigs, making it easier to search.
In terms of content, the most numerous entries are novels, and it can be said that the book is a collection of novels from before the Song Dynasty. Many of these works are now lost, and their surviving fragments can only be found here. Many Tang Dynasty and pre-Tang Dynasty novels have been preserved thanks to The Taiping Guangji.
The most noteworthy entries are volumes 484 to 492, which include nine volumes of miscellaneous biographies. Works such as The Tale of Li Wa, The Old Man of the East City, The Tale of Liu Shi, The Tale of Everlasting Sorrow, The Tale of the Unparalleled, The Tale of Xiao Yu, and The Tale of Yingying are all famous pieces that first appeared in this book. Additionally, works like The Tale of the Ancient Mirror (found in the category of artifacts), The Tale of Li Zhangwu (found in the category of ghosts), The Tale of Liu Yi (found in the category of dragons), The Tale of Ren Shi (found in the category of foxes), and The Tale of the Lord of Nanke (found in the category of insects) are also highly renowned.
However, the classification standards of The Taiping Guangji are not uniform. Works like The Record of Strange Events in Dongyang (which discusses supernatural beings) and The Tale of the Dragon Maiden (which discusses a dragon princess) are both included in the category of miscellaneous biographies, making it difficult to locate them by category. This reveals that scholars in the early Song Dynasty referred to some Tang Dynasty legends as "miscellaneous biographies" without using the term "legend."
The Taiping Guangji cites a vast number of sources, and some shorter works are included almost in their entirety. Lost works can be reconstructed based on it, and existing works can be corrected and supplemented using it. For example, the citations in works like The Record of Dramatic Conversations, The Lost History, and The Small Notes of Sanshui differ slightly from their current versions, making them worth studying. Scholars of ancient novels all use The Taiping Guangji as fundamental material. Lu Xun, when compiling The Digging for Ancient Novels and The Collection of Tang and Song Legends, made full use of this book. In his essay "Breaking Down The Collection of Tang Dynasty People's Sayings," he pointed out: "I believe The Taiping Guangji has two advantages: first, it includes almost all novels from the Six Dynasties to the early Song Dynasty, so a general study does not require purchasing many other books. Second, it clearly categorizes supernatural beings, ghosts, monks, and Taoists, gathering them in large numbers, which can be both overwhelming and tedious, leaving no appetite for reading The Taiping Guangji by those who discuss ghosts and spirits today."
Indeed, the classification of The Taiping Guangji is convenient for reference and holds significant research value. A large portion of the book consists of supernatural tales, such as 55 volumes on immortals, 15 volumes on female immortals, 25 volumes on gods, and 40 volumes on ghosts, along with topics like alchemy, hermits, strange people, eccentric monks, Buddhist proofs, and the supernatural transformations of plants, birds, and beasts. These are essentially tales of the supernatural, representing the mainstream of Chinese classical fiction. Even the neo-classical fiction of the Qing Dynasty's Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio did not escape this scope.
The tales of immortals and female immortals in the book total 70 volumes and are placed at the beginning of the entire work, revealing the focus of Tang and Five Dynasties fiction and reflecting a cultural and academic trend in early Song Dynasty society. The Tang Dynasty saw fierce competition between Taoism and Buddhism. Although Taoism did not dominate, the supernatural tales created by Taoist scholars and literati had a significant influence, producing many beautiful and moving stories. For example, The Tale of Everlasting Sorrow, which tells of a hermit's journey to find Yang Guifei, is a prime example. Many famous Tang Dynasty novels, such as The Tale of Liu Yi, The Tale of the Unparalleled, The Tale of the Bearded Guest, and characters like Du Zichun, Zhang Lao, and Pei Hang, are also connected to Taoism.
The thought of immortals and supernatural beings was particularly prevalent in late Tang and Five Dynasties times, with Du Guangting being a major author of tales of immortals. The Taiping Guangji includes many of his works. Early Song Dynasty fiction retained this trend. The compilers of The Taiping Guangji placed tales of immortals and alchemy before those of eccentric monks and Buddhist proofs, clearly showing reverence for the nation's religious culture.
As fiction, tales that promote the efficacy of Buddhism and karma may attract some readers, but their artistic quality is inferior to tales of immortals. Tang Dynasty novels often feature descending to the mortal world, the elixir of immortality, and numerous miraculous transformations, all of which are more captivating. Of course, all tales of immortals and ghosts are products of fantasy and generally carry and superstitious religious messages, requiring a critical perspective.
The most representative works of Tang Dynasty fiction should also include those that depict real human life exceptionally well, such as The Tale of Liu Shi, The Tale of Yingying, and The Tale of Li Wa, which are closer to the path of realism in writing.