T of C 
Home 		My
Work		 Hand-
books		 Qin as
Object		 Qin in
Art		 Poetry
/ Song		 Hear
Qin		 Play
Qin		 Analysis History Ideo-
logy		 Miscel-
lanea		 More
Info		 Personal email me search me
Qin Shi      
Wang Ji
- Qin Shi #113		 王績 1
琴史 #113 2

王績 Wang Ji (585 - 644), style name 無功 Wugong, gave himself the name 東皋子 Donggaozi.3 He was the younger brother of Wang Tong, also known as Wen Zhongzi. They were both from 絳州龍門 Longmen in Jingzhou district, northeast of Chang'an.4

According to the ICTCL Wang Ji "eschewed the embellished and oblique style of his time. Instead he opted for simplicity and directness in the fashion of Tao Qian, whom, together with Ruan Ji, he admired greatly."

During the Sui dynasty Wang Ji gained an appointment at the Imperial Library in Chang An, the capital, but he disliked the restraining court atmosphere and was frequently drunk. So with the country in disorder as the Sui collapsed, Wang Ji retired to the countryside of Donggao, near his home. Here he found inspiration from a local recluse named 仲長子光 Zhongchang Ziguang.

Qinshu Daquan includes the following materials related to him

A poem of his about playing the qin; see Folio 20A, #10.
A letter to him from Du Zhisong; see Folio 16, #49.

The original essay in Qin Shi begins as follows.

Donggaozi, or Wang Ji, style name Wugong, was a younger brother of Wenzhongzi. He abandoned public office and didn't serve, instead farming in the eastern marshes, hence his self-nickname. He had female servitors and a number of men to plant sorghum, then in spring and autumn make wine.... He was an excellent qin player. By 加減 revising old melodies, he created landscape melodies (山水操 shanshui cao 8043.xxx) that were praised by those knowledgeable of music.

Not complete. 5

 
Footnotes (Shorthand references are explained on a separate page)

1 ICTCL p. 857; Giles; Xu Jian's History, Chapter 5. A. (p.54). (Return)

2 (Return)

3 "Scholar of Eastern Marshes"; 14827.396 東皋 Donggao ("eastern marshes") was an area near his home. (Return)

4 (Return)

5 (Return)

6 (Return)

7 (Return)

8 (Return)

9 (Return)

10 (Return)

 

Return to QSCB, or to the Guqin ToC.