Shù Xī jí 束晳集
Collected Works of Shu Xi (Reconstructed) by 束晳 (撰)
About the work
A reconstructed collection (jíyìběn 輯佚本) of the works of Shù Xī 束晳 (c. 261–c. 303 CE; also written 束皙), the Western Jìn 西晉 scholar, bibliographer, and poet. Organized in two juǎn, the fragments are cited in the Tàipíng yùlǎn 太平御覽 (attributing them to 《束晳集》), the Wénxuǎn 文選, and the Chūxué jì 初學記. The opening item is Shù Xī’s celebrated 《補亡詩六首》 (Six Poems Supplementing What Was Lost), which reconstructs the music and texts of six Shījīng 詩經 poems — 〈南陔〉, 〈白華〉, 〈華黍〉, 〈由庚〉, 〈崇丘〉, 〈由儀〉 — that the tradition acknowledged existed but had lost their texts. The preface to 《補亡詩》 is signed “晳” (Xī), confirming authorship. Also included are 〈山路吟〉 and several fù 賦 fragments.
Tiyao
No tiyao found in source. This text is an extra-catalog reconstruction not included in the Sìkù quánshū 四庫全書.
Abstract
Shù Xī 束晳 (c. 261–c. 303; zì Guǎngwēi 廣微; CBDB: not yet confirmed) was the principal scholar who transcribed and reported on the Jízhǒng 汲冢 bamboo-slip cache discovered in 281 CE, working alongside 荀勖 Xún Xù. His Jízhǒng suǒ dé zhūshū 汲冢所得諸書 account in Jìnshū 51 remains the canonical ancient record of the cache contents. See 束晳 for full biography.
The 《補亡詩六首》 is Shù Xī’s most famous literary achievement. The six “missing” Shījīng pieces are named in the Lǐjì 禮記 (Yùzǎo 王藻 and Xiāngliǎo 鄉飲酒 chapters) but their texts had been lost even in antiquity. Shù Xī, following his mastery of ritual from his role as Bóshì 博士 at the Tàixué 太學, composed texts for them in a style imitating the Shījīng; the Wénxuǎn 文選 (juǎn 19) preserves all six along with their brief prose introductions identifying the theme of each poem. Wilkinson (2013, 30:116) notes that these poems are among the rare surviving Western Jìn Shījīng-inspired compositions. The Bǔwáng shī were recognized as literary achievements even in antiquity: Zhāng Pǔ 張溥 included a Shù Guǎngwēi jí 束廣微集 in his Hàn Wèi Liùcháo bǎisān jiā jí 漢魏六朝百三家集.
Shù Xī also wrote the Bǐngfù 餅賦 (Rhapsody on Pasta/Dumplings), a jocular description of steamed buns, cited in the Wénxuǎn annotation tradition (Knechtges 1999 translation).
Translations and research
- Knechtges, David R. “A Literary Feast: Food in Early Chinese Literature.” Journal of the American Oriental Society 106.1 (1986): 49–63. (For the Bingfu.)
- Knechtges, David R. “Sweet-peel Orange or Southern Gold? Regional Identity in Western Jin Literature.” In A Festschrift in Honor of Professor Jao Tsung-I, 1999. (Translation of the Bingfu.)
- Knechtges, David R., and Taiping Chang, eds. Ancient and Early Medieval Chinese Literature: A Reference Guide. Leiden: Brill, 2010–2014. Entry on Shu Xi.
Links
- Wikipedia: Shu Xi