Dèng Càn Jìnjì 鄧粲晉紀
Dèng Càn’s Record of the Jin by 鄧粲 (撰); reconstructed by 湯球
About the work
Dèng Càn Jìnjì 鄧粲晉紀 is a jíyìběn reconstruction (1 juǎn, approximately 1,652 lines) of the lost Jìnjì 晉紀 composed by the Eastern Jìn writer and official 鄧粲 (Dèng Càn, fl. mid-to-late 4th century CE). The reconstruction is part of 湯球’s Jiǔjiā Jiù Jìnshū Jíběn 九家舊晉書輯本, published in the Guǎngyǎ Shūjú Cóngshū 廣雅書局叢書.
The text opens with the reign of Emperor Yuán 元帝 (r. 317–323 CE), the founder of the Eastern Jìn. Among the notable passages:
- Emperor Yuán’s abstinence from wine: Wang Dǎo 王導 counseled the emperor on the dangers of drinking, and the emperor thereafter overturned his cup when wine was proffered, never drinking again — an example of self-restraint (kèjǐ fùlǐ 克已復禮).
- Ruǎn Jí’s grief at his mother’s death: continuing a game of go, then drinking three pints and crying out, vomiting blood — illustrating unconventional mourning (kuángtǒng 狂慟).
- Anecdotes about Wáng Dǎo, Wáng Qǐ 王起, Cài Móu 蔡謨, and other Eastern Jìn grandees.
- Several entries on Western Jìn figures from before the Eastern Jìn founding, apparently in retrospective narrative.
- Passages on Liu Yao’s 劉曜 occupation of the west, including the story of Lady Xīn 辛氏, wife of Liáng Wèi 梁緯, who refused Liu Yao’s demand and was killed.
The principal citation sources are Shìshuō Xīnyǔ 世說新語 annotations (cited as “《世說‧規咸篇注》” and similar) and Tàipíng Yùlǎn 太平御覽.
Tiyao
No tiyao found in source. This is a jíyìběn reconstruction.
Abstract
鄧粲 (Dèng Càn; zì Wèizǔ 蔚祖; fl. late 4th century CE) was a native of Xiāngzhōu 湘州 (Hunan). His biography is preserved in Jìn shū 82, grouped with the historians. He was known for his unorthodox personality (xiān dá 閑達, “disengaged and perceptive”) and philosophical interests. The Jìnjì he composed, covering the Eastern Jìn from its founding, was considered one of the significant early histories of the dynasty. The Suí shū jīngjí zhì records a Jìnjì at 10 juǎn attributed to him.
After the Tang Jìn shū was completed in 648 CE, Dèng Càn’s Jìnjì fell from circulation and was lost. 湯球 reconstructed fragments primarily from the Shìshuō Xīnyǔ annotation tradition and from the Tàipíng Yùlǎn encyclopedic citations. At approximately 1,652 lines, the reconstruction provides a useful supplement to the Tang-era Jin history for the early Eastern Jìn period. CBDB has an entry for 鄧粲 at id 418976 (no year data).
Translations and research
- Goodman, Howard L. 2015. “Jin shu.” In Chennault et al., eds., Early Medieval Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide. IEAS, University of California, Berkeley, pp. 136–145.
Links
- Eighteen History Books of Jin: Wikipedia