Page 482 - The Encyclopedia of Taoism v1_A-L

442 THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TAOISM A- L

Ge Hong

283- 343; zi: Zhichuan m)ll; haG: Baopu zi rPL~~r (Master Who
Embraces Simplicity), Xiao xianweng /J\1IlJ~ (Lesser Immortal
Gentleman)

Various dates for Ge Hong, ranging between 253 and 363, have been indicated
in the past, but most scholars now accept 283 and 343 as the years of his birth
and death. The main sources on his life are an autobiography in the Outer
Chapters (waipian 7'~m) of his work (Wang Ming 1985,369-79; trans. Ware
1966, 6- 21) and a biography in the Jinshu (History of the ]in; trans. Davis and
Ch'en I94I; Sailey I978, 52I- 32). In addition, several hagiographic collections
contain notes on his life (see, e.g., Davis T. L. 1934).
Life. Ge Hong's family, based in Jurong 15]?(;. (near Nanjing, ]iangsu), had
provided officials to the imperial administration for at least ten generations,
and his grandfather and father had served the Wu and]in dynasties in various
capacities. In 297, at the age of fourteen, Ge became a disciple of *Zheng Yin,
with whom he studied both classical and Taoist texts. His training ended in
302, when Zheng, then around the age of eighty-five, retired on Mount Huo
(*Huoshan, Anhui) with several disciples.
Ge opted to remain in the secular world, and in 303 took part in the suppres-
sion of Zhang Chang's * El rebellion. In the same year, however, he decided
to travel to Luoyang to search for more teaching, but rebellions around the
capital forced him to continue his journey in other regions. He finally headed
back to the south and reached Guangzhou (Canton), where he became the
adjutant of ]i Han Wt1{ (263- 306), inspector (cishi wl3l:.) of that region and
reputed author of the Nanfang caomu zhuang l¥i1f 1j1[*JtjC (Herbs and Trees
of the Southern Regions; Li Huilin I979). After ]i's murder, Ge stayed in the
Guangzhou area and began to work on his *Baopu zi (Book of the Master Who
Embraces Simplicity). In 312 he retired to the Luofu Mountains (*Luofu shan)
and became the disciple and son-in-law of *Bao ling (?- ca330), governor (taishou
::t~) of Nanhai l¥im, who reportedly had found the *Sanhuangwen (Script
of the Three Sovereigns) in a cave on Mount Song (*Songshan, Henan) two
decades earlier. In 314, Ge returned to ]urong, and in 3I7 he received the title
of Marquis of Guanzhong ~~ if1 . In the same year he completed the first draft
of the Baopu zi, but the Inner Chapters (neipian i*J m-) of his work underwent
further revision and reached their final form only around 330.