Xiāngshān jí 相山集
Mount Xiāng Collection by 王之道 (撰)
About the work
Xiāngshān jí 相山集 in 30 juǎn is the literary collection of Wáng Zhīdào 王之道 (1093–1169), Húnán zhuǎnyùn pànguān under Gāozōng. The title takes Wáng’s hào Xiāngshān jūshì 相山居士. The collection is significant for three documentary moments: (a) Wáng’s graduation policy-essay opposing the Xuānhé invasion of the Yānyún region; (b) his three letters to Wèi Gāng 魏矼 and Zēng Tǒng 曾統 in 1138 forcefully opposing the Shàoxīng peace settlement, comparable in vehemence to Hú Quán 胡銓 胡銓’s memorial — they cost him 20+ years of demotion; (c) various jiāzǐ on military and administrative matters. Reconstituted from the Yǒnglè dàdiǎn by the Sìkù editors.
Tiyao
Xiāngshān jí in 30 juǎn, by Wáng Zhīdào of the Sòng. Zhīdào, zì Yànyóu, of Lúzhōu. Xuānhé 6 (1124) with elder-brother Zhīyì and younger-brother Zhīshēn together took the jìnshì. Appointed Lìyángchéng. After the southward-crossing, cumulatively-promoted to Húnán zhuǎnyùn pànguān. With Zhāofèng dàfū retired. Later, owing to his son [Wáng] Lìn’s office of Shūmì shǐ, retroactively-elevated to Tàishī. The Sòng shǐ gave Lìn a biography but did not reach Zhīdào, hence his career is unclear. Only Yóu Máo’s shéndàobēi — still in the Yǒnglè dàdiǎn — can be examined for the outline.
Zhīdào once self-styled Xiāngshān jūshì; the collection accordingly takes-it as name. Sòng shǐ Yìwénzhì makes-it 25 juǎn; Shūlù jiětí makes-it 26 juǎn; the Bǎoyòu Rúxūzhì and Rúxū xùzhì both make-it 40 juǎn; Yóu Máo’s bēiwén makes-it 30 juǎn — these bǐcǐ guāihù bùhé (mutually-divergent and not-matching). Today the original-collection has perished — no way to verify. Yet Yóu Máo’s bēi is according-to his son’s family-statement what is written — surely should obtain the truth.
In the beginning, when Jīn troops invaded south, in Lúzhōu thieves arose; Zhīdào led his villagers to occupy the strategic-points and together preserve the city — depended-on for safety. His gànluè (administrative-skill) is rather worth-praising. Further: his graduation policy-essay then strongly-spoke of the Yānyún use-of-arms’s wrongness, on-account-of qièzhí (incisive-uprightness) suppressed-and-placed-at-the-lower-rank. When the Shàoxīng peace was-just-concluded, Zhīdào was then Tōngpàn Chúzhōu. Sent-letters to Lìbù shìláng Wèi Gāng and Sījiàn Zēng Tǒng, strongly-arguing that humiliating-the-state was-not-convenient. Soon-also sent-up a memorial discussing-it; together with his earlier letters submitted-them. Greatly wǔ (offended) Qín Guì’s intent; relegated to Inspector of Nánxióng salt-tax; on-this-account exiled-and-set-aside for 20 years.
Today the original memorial is lost-and-not-extant; but the two letters to Gāng and Tǒng are entirely in the collection — what they argue, the “Jiǔ bùkě hé” (nine reasons cannot make peace) discussion — kāngkǎi jīliè (vehement-and-intense) — is enough to xiāng pǐ (rival side-by-side) Hú Quán’s fēngshì (sealed-memorial). His qìjié (resolute-integrity) especially cannot be matched.
His other discussion jiāzǐ are also mostly míngbái xiǎochàng (clear-and-fluent), can be visible-when-implemented. Rhymed-language though not his strength, in expressing-and-depicting-feelings has zhēnpǔ zhī zhì (true-and-simple charm). Surely yǒutǐ yǒuyòng zhī yán (words-with-essence-and-application) — solidly not to be discussed merely in terms of literary-merit.
Carefully gathered-and-edited from various yùn of Yǒnglè dàdiǎn; still able to obtain 30 juǎn. Suspect that early-Míng compilers, valuing his man, included the entire-set; hence even though there are scattered-losses, still not-far from the original-count. Respectfully collated, Qiánlóng 46 (1781), 9th month.
Abstract
The 30-juǎn WYG recension is a Yǒnglè dàdiǎn recovery; the original juǎn-count is uncertain (reported variously as 25, 26, 30, and 40 in SòngYuán catalogs and gazetteers). The Sìkù editors take Yóu Máo’s shéndàobēi figure of 30 as authoritative. Yóu Máo’s bēiwén — itself preserved only in the Yǒnglè dàdiǎn — is the principal biographical source for Wáng Zhīdào, since the Sòng shǐ gives a biography only to his son Wáng Lìn 王藺.
The collection’s most consequential pieces are the two letters to Wèi Gāng 魏矼 and Zēng Tǒng 曾統 arguing nine reasons against the 1138 Shàoxīng peace settlement. The Sìkù editors compare these explicitly with Hú Quán 胡銓’s 1138 Fēngshì memorial — placing Wáng Zhīdào in the front rank of the post-southward-crossing peace-opposition. The personal cost was substantial: 20+ years of demotion to a Salt-tax Inspectorship at Nánxióng. Wáng’s earlier graduation policy-essay opposing the Xuānhé (1122) invasion of the Yānyún region had similarly cost him a low first-placement.
CBDB id 1786 confirms 1093–1169.
Translations and research
- 尤袤 Wáng-gōng shén-dào-bēi — preserved in Yǒng-lè dà-diǎn and reproduced by the Sì-kù editors.
- Sòng shǐ j. 392 — biography of Wáng Lìn (son), with passing references to the father.
- No dedicated Western-language study located.
Other points of interest
- The pairing of Wáng Zhīdào and Hú Quán in the 1138 peace-opposition is one of the documentary high points of early-Southern-Sòng court politics. Read together with KR4d0196 (Hú Quán’s Dànān wénjí).