Sūn Shì 孫奭 (962–1033)
Zì Zōnggǔ 宗古. Native of Bópíng 博平 (modern Liáochéng 聊城 area, Shāndōng), in some sources Yǎngǔ 兗谷. Northern Sòng court classicist and educational official.
In the Duāngǒng 端拱 era (988–989) of Sòng Tàizōng he passed the Jiǔjīng 九經 examination at the top of the candidates and was made instructor in the Imperial Academy. Under Rénzōng he rose to bīngbù shìláng 兵部侍郎 兼 Lóngtúgé xuéshì 龍圖閣學士. His career as preserved in the Sòngshǐ 宋史 (juan 431) and the Sùshuǐ jìwén 涑水紀聞 of Sīmǎ Guāng 司馬光 emphasises his role in collating and standardising the Classics: under the directorship of Xíng Bǐng 邢昺 (see 邢昺), in the second year of Xiánpíng 咸平 (999), Sūn Shì was named, with Dù Hào 杜鎬, Shū Yǎ 舒雅, Lǐ Mùqīng 李慕清, Cuī Wòquán 崔偓佺 and others, to the imperial commission that fixed the subcommentaries (yìshū 義疏) of the Zhōulǐ 周禮, Yílǐ 儀禮, Gōngyáng 公羊, Gǔliáng 穀梁, Xiàojīng 孝經, Lúnyǔ 論語 and Ěryǎ 爾雅.
Surviving works in Kanripo:
- KR1h0009 Mèngzǐ yīnyì 孟子音義 (2 juàn, WYG) — phonological-philological glossary on Zhào Qí’s Mèngzǐ commentary; Sūn Shì’s only securely attributed monograph.
- KR1h0003 Mèngzǐ zhùshū 孟子注疏 (14 juàn, WYG) — the zhèngyì subcommentary is traditionally attributed to Sūn Shì but is already rejected by Zhū Xī (citing Cài Jìtōng 蔡季通 in the Yǔlù) as the work of a Shàowǔ 邵武 shìrén writing under Sūn’s name; the Sìkù editors (see tíyào at KR1h0003) cite the SūnShì biography in the Sòngshǐ and the Sùshuǐ jìwén, neither of which records a Mèngzǐ zhèngyì among his works.
Sūn Shì also presented the throne with explanatory papers on classical texts (jīngyì duì 經義對); his name appears as a court Confucian advisor in numerous Northern Sòng court debates.