Zēngguǎng fēnmén lèilín záshuo 增廣分門類林雜說
Greatly Expanded, Categorized Forest of Categories with Miscellaneous Notes
Expanded and reprinted by 王朋壽 (Wáng Péngshòu, Jīn, 增廣); base text Lèilín 類林 originally by 于立政 (Yú Lìzhèng, Táng, 撰)
About the work
An expanded reprint of the Táng-dynasty classified anecdote collection Lèilín 類林 originally compiled by 于立政 (Yú Lìzhèng, CBDB id 31486, fl. 656–666). The Táng original comprised 50 categories (mén 門) of anecdotes and moral exempla drawn from canonical and historical sources. The Jīn edition (Dàdìng 大定 29 / 1189) by 王朋壽 of Píngyáng 平陽 doubles the existing entries by interpolating additional examples, expands the categories from 50 to 100, and adds a layer of záshuo 雜說 (miscellaneous notes) appended to each section, making the work approximately three times the length of the original. The 1189 preface describes this process: “逐篇裨之，以贊為十五卷，較之舊書，多至三倍.”
The Kanripo file preserves 10 of the 15 juan (卷第一 through 卷第十). The surviving content begins with 孝行篇第一 (chapter on filial piety), followed by 忠節篇 (loyalty), 義士篇 (righteous conduct), and subsequent moral and social categories. Each chapter opens with canonical examples (Shùn 舜, King Wén 文王, Zǐlù 子路, etc.) drawn from the Shàngshū, Lǐjì, and Zuǒzhuàn, followed by Han-dynasty narratives (董黯, 晉申生, 眉閒尺, 伯夷叔齊), predominantly sourced from Xiào zǐ zhuàn 孝子傳 and similar collections.
Prefaces
Preface by Wáng Péngshòu 魯老 of Píngyáng 平陽, dated Dàdìng jǐyǒu 大定己酉 (Dàdìng 29, summer intercalary month, 1189 CE), titled “重刊增廣分門類林雜說序”:
The preface notes that earlier scholars had organized anecdote material into a collection called Lèilín 類林 (Forest of Categories), but that this older text suffered from disordered arrangement and insufficient categories. Wang undertook an expansion: he doubled the older entries, increased the categories to 100, appended miscellaneous notes (záshuo) to each, and organized the whole into 15 juan — “three times the old book.” A neighbor (鄉人李子文) praised the project and funded the woodblock carving. The preface closes with “時大定己酉歲夏晦平陽王朋壽魯老序.”
Abstract
The original Lèilín 類林 by 于立政 (Yú Lìzhèng, Táng) was a moral exempla collection organized into 50 topical categories. Jiù Táng shū and Xīn Táng shū bibliographic chapters record the work (under zájiā 雜家 or shǐchāo 史鈔 class). 于立政 is recorded in CBDB (id 31486) with a floruit 656–666, placing the Lèilín’s composition in the early Táng (Gāozōng reign, 650–683).
The 1189 Jīn expanded edition (Zēngguǎng fēnmén lèilín záshuo) was produced in Píngyáng 平陽 (modern Línfén 臨汾, Shǎnxī), which was the major center of woodblock printing in Jīn-dynasty northern China. Píngyáng publishers (Píngyáng kè) were responsible for many significant Jīn and Yuán editions of classical texts; 王朋壽 signs himself 魯老, suggesting an elderly literatus sponsoring a reprint for scholarly circulation. No further biographical data for 王朋壽 has been located in standard references or CBDB.
The text is not in the Sìkù quánshū (WYG) and is not listed in the standard catalog meta for this corpus division. The currently transmitted file (10 juan) is incomplete relative to the 15-juan original.
Translations and research
No substantial secondary literature located.
Other points of interest
The Píngyáng printing industry in the Jīn and early Yuán periods was one of the most productive in North China, and texts like this expanded Lèilín are valuable evidence of what kinds of moral-literary compendia circulated in the Jin-ruled north. The genre (expanded topical anecdote collection) is related to the Song shìlín 事林 tradition but is transmitted separately.
Links
- Base text: Lèilín 類林 by 于立政 (Táng, Jiù Táng shū records).