Lü Shi Chunqiu · Huainanzi

Author: Lü Buwei, Liu An et al. (compilers), Gao You (annotator), Yang Jian (proofreader)
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-11-01
Features: The Lüshi Chunqiu and the Huainanzi were respectively compiled by Lü Buwei, the Chancellor of the Qin Dynasty, and Liu An, the King of Huainan in the Han Dynasty, with contributions from their guests. The entire works draw heavily from various schools of thought, lacking a unified ideology. However, what fascinates modern readers is the wealth of ancient historical and cultural materials accumulated in these two works: numerous myths and legends, lost anecdotes from ancient history, the sayings of predecessors, ancient scientific knowledge, and long-lost schools of thought. The writing in these two works is concise in narrative and clear in reasoning; the Huainanzi, in particular, is renowned for its elegant and rich prose, vibrant in color.
Both the Lüshi Chunqiu and the Huainanzi had annotations as early as the Han Dynasty, and the current plain text edition is published for popularization. The base text for the former is Chen Qiyou’s Lüshi Chunqiu Jiaoshi, while the latter adopts Liu Wanding’s Huainanzi Honglie Jijie. The punctuation and division of chapters in this volume follow Chen’s edition for the Lüshi Chunqiu, while the Huainanzi is punctuated and divided by Mr. Yang Jian, with reference to the annotations of predecessors. This book is included in the Classical Masterpieces Popularization Library series by the Yuelu Book Society.