I Ching: The Essence of I Ching Studies

Author: Li Guangdi (Qing Dynasty)
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-01-01
Features: The book "Zhézhōng" (The Middle Way) was introduced by an preface written by Kangxi. It was completed "after two and a half years of effort" in the spring of the 54th year of Kangxi's reign. This indicates that the book began to be written in the 52nd year of Kangxi's reign. At that time, Li Guangdi was already over seventy years old and in poor health, having repeatedly requested retirement due to illness. It is unlikely that he could have meticulously reviewed every character and stroke as Kangxi's preface suggests, such as "reading through at night and carefully examining every character without hesitation." I believe that the main content of "Zhézhōng" was likely already written by Li Guangdi around the 44th year of Kangxi's reign, while he was serving the emperor "daily summoned to the imperial study for discussions and inquiries." Later, the emperor ordered Li Guangdi to oversee the project, appointing (special personnel) for proofreading, drafting, copying, and overseeing the production, which took two years to complete. Examining the "List of Cited Scholars" at the beginning of the book, "Zhézhōng" cites a total of 218 scholars. Among them, there are 18 from the Han Dynasty, 3 from the Jin Dynasty, 1 from the Qi Dynasty, 1 from the Northern Wei Dynasty, 1 from the Sui Dynasty, 11 from the Tang Dynasty, 98 from the Song Dynasty, 2 from the Jin Dynasty, 22 from the Yuan Dynasty, and 61 from the Ming Dynasty. The book particularly cites a large number of scholars specializing in the I Ching (Book of Changes) from the Song and Ming dynasties.