Northern Sòng 北宋 court official and Daoist commentator, active in the early reign of Huīzōng (徽宗, r. 1100–1125). Known for a single short surviving work, the [[KR5c0066|Dàodé zhēn jīng jiě 道德真經解]] (DZ 683) — a two-juàn commentary on the Dàodé jīng with a preface dated to 6 November 1101.
Office. Chén Xiànggǔ is identified in his commentary’s preface and in the Sòng huì yào jí gǎo 宋會要輯稿 4:3895 as 承議郎 (chéng yì láng, “Gentleman of the Consultation”) at the imperial court — an eighth-grade official rank. The same rank was held a decade later by 章安 (author of DZ 681, KR5c0064), suggesting the two were part of the same stratum of Huīzōng-era court-Daoist scholar-officials.
Work. The Dàodé zhēn jīng jiě — preface dated Jiànzhōng Jìngguó yuán nián 建中靖國元年 (1101) — is his only known work. The commentary is distinguished by:
- Treatment of the Dàodé jīng as a continuous discourse rather than 81 discrete chapters — a highly unusual editorial choice.
- Textual variants from the mainstream Héshàng gōng and Wáng Bì recensions (notably the absence of closing sentences at chapters 48 and 52).
- Short, non-systematic glosses, with occasionally original interpretive readings (notably on chapter 13’s paradox of bodilessness — interpreting “when I have no body” as a positive spiritual condition rather than as hypothetical counterfactual).
Reception. The commentary is cited as a source in DZ 707 Dàodé zhēn jīng jí zhù 道德真經集註 of Péng Sì 彭耜 (Southern Sòng) and in DZ 710 Dàodé zhēn jīng zhù shū 道德真經註疏 — confirming its circulation in the Southern Sòng. See KR5c0066 for the full entry.
Dating. Known active date: 1101 (preface). No further biographical details or lifedates are recorded. No CBDB record is currently identified.