Zhāng Róng jí 張融集
Collected Works of Zhang Rong (Reconstructed) by 張融 (撰)
About the work
A reconstructed collection (jíyìběn 輯佚本) of the literary writings of Zhāng Róng 張融 (444–497 CE), Southern Qí 南齊 official, eccentric intellectual, and author of the Tōngyuán lùn 通源論 (Essay on the Comprehensive Sources [of the Three Teachings]). Organized in two juǎn, the surviving fragments carry multiple first-person signatures (“張融白”), are documented through seven citations in the Nán Qí shū 南齊書 biography (juǎn 41), and include citations from the Hóng míng jí 弘明集 juǎn 6 (for the Tōngyuán lùn) and lèishū compilations. The Tōngyuán lùn argues for the essential unity of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. Zhang Rong’s famous self-description “融，天地之逸民也” (Rong is an unrestrained citizen of Heaven and Earth) appears in a surviving letter.
Tiyao
No tiyao found in source. This text is an extra-catalog reconstruction not included in the Sìkù quánshū 四庫全書.
Abstract
Zhāng Róng 張融 (444–497 CE; zì Sīguāng 思光; CBDB id 445921) was a Southern Qí official and intellectual eccentric from Wú jùn 吳郡 (modern Suzhou). He served in various court positions but was more celebrated for his unorthodox personality, unconventional writing style, and syncretic religious philosophy. His biography is in Nán Qí shū juǎn 41 and Nán shǐ juǎn 32.
His Tōngyuán lùn 通源論, arguing for the confluence of the Three Teachings (sān jiào 三教), was a notable contribution to the religious debates of the Southern Qí era, preserved in the Hóng míng jí compiled by the monk Sēngyòu 僧祐. He also corresponded with the calligrapher Wáng Sēngqián 王僧虔 on stylistic questions — a letter preserved in the collection (“與吏部尚書王僧虔書”) — and was known for his idiosyncratic calligraphic style. Nán shǐ juǎn 70 (Gù Huān zhuàn 顧歡傳) confirms his authorship of the Tōngyuán lùn. The Suíshū Jīngjízhì records a Zhāng Róng jí in ten juǎn. Zhāng Pǔ 張溥 included a Zhāng Sīguāng jí 張思光集 in the Hàn Wèi Liùcháo bǎisān jiā jí 漢魏六朝百三家集.
Translations and research
- Knechtges, David R., and Taiping Chang, eds. Ancient and Early Medieval Chinese Literature: A Reference Guide. Leiden: Brill, 2010–2014. Entry on Zhang Rong.
Links
- Wikipedia: Zhang Rong (Southern Qi)