Ōuyáng Shǒudào 歐陽守道 (b. 1209; conventionally d. c. 1273), originally named Xùn 巽 with zì Yū 迂, later renamed Shǒudào with zì Gōngquán 公權, sobriquet Xùnzhāi 巽齋. A native of Jízhōu 吉州 (modern Jí’ān 吉安, Jiāngxī).
Early life. Lost his father young and was raised in poverty without a regular teacher. He worked at his learning by himself (zìlì 自力於學), and before reaching age thirty had drawn the unanimous esteem of his prefecture as the local Confucian elder.
Career. Obtained the jìnshì in Chúnyòu 1 (1241) — the tíyào of his collection (KR4d0363) reads “Jiāyòu 1” by clerical slip, the correct date being Chúnyòu 1 as preserved in CBDB and the Sòngshǐ biography. He was appointed Magistrate-Recorder (zhǔbù 主簿) of Yúdū 雩都, transferred to be Recorder (sīhù 司户) at Gànzhōu 贛州, entered the central government as Proofreader (zhèngzì 正字) of the Imperial Library, and rose to Mìshūláng 秘書郎. After retirement he was recalled in Xiánchún 3 (1267) on the recommendation of Lǚ Wéndé 吕文徳, then Shàofù 少傅, as Vice-Administrator of Jiànchāngjūn 建昌軍 and was further promoted to Zhùzuò zuǒláng 著作佐郎 with concurrent appointment as Lecturer of the Chóngzhèng Hall 崇政殿説書 and Quán Dūguān lángzhōng 權都官郎中. He died in office at Zhùzuòláng.
Academic affiliations. Ōuyáng was first engaged by Jiāng Wànlǐ 江萬里 (the founder-patron of Báilùzhōu Academy 白鷺洲書院 in Jízhōu) as its first lecturer, then by Wú Zǐliáng 吳子良 (Húnán Transport Sub-Commissioner; transmitter of the Yè Shì 葉適 / Yǒngjiā 永嘉 school) as head of Yuèlù Academy 岳麓書院. Through Wú Zǐliáng, Ōuyáng stands in the lineage of Yè Shì, although his independent positions kept him from any school-line orthodoxy.
Notable disciples. The Jízhōu rénwén jìlüè records that Wén Tiānxiáng 文天祥 (1236–1283; 文天祥) and Liú Chénwēng 劉辰翁 were both Ōuyáng’s pupils at Báilùzhōu. The moral-philosophical idiom of Wén Tiānxiáng’s late-Sòng loyalist tradition is in significant part the inheritance of Ōuyáng’s teaching.
Sources. Sòngshǐ 宋史, juàn 411 (biographical entry); SòngYuán xuéàn 宋元學案 juàn 88 (Xùnzhāi xuéàn); CBDB 20765.
Works in the Kanripo corpus. KR4d0363 Xùnzhāi wénjí 巽齋文集, 27 juàn.