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Diaoji litan 釣磯立談

Oct 24, 2013 © Ulrich Theobald

Diaoji litan 釣磯立談 "Spontaneous talks while fishing at the jetty", also called Diaoji xianke 釣磯閑客, is a collection of stories written by Shi Xubai 史虛白 (894-961), courtesy name Weiming 畏名, who lived in the state of Southern Tang 南唐 (937-975) during the Five Dynasties period 五代 (907-960).

The short text was available in two different versions, one Song-period 宋 (960-1279) manuscript that was once owned and published by Qian Zengjia 錢曾家 and purchased by Ye Linzong 葉林宗 (where no author is mentioned), and one copy published by Cao Yin 曹寅 (1658-1712), and imprinted with the name Shi Xubai. This version seems less authentical than the former, yet both include stories about the Southern Tang dynasty, enriched by a theoretical discussion.

The Diaoji litan is included in the series Siku quanshu 四庫全書, Zhibuzuzhai congshu 知不足齋叢書, Dongting cangshu shier zhong 棟亭藏書十二種, Danshengtang yuyuan 淡生堂余苑, Congshu jicheng chubian 從書集成, Rongyuan congshu 榕園叢書, Fanyuepian 反約篇 and Biji xiaoshuo daguan 筆記小說大觀.

Sources:
Bian Xiaoxuan 卞孝萱 (2003). "Diaoji litan 釣磯立談", in Bian Xiaoxuan 卞孝萱, ed. Tangdai wenxue baike cidian 唐代文學百科辭典 (Beijing: Hanyu da cidian chubanshe), 1130.
Li Xueqin 李學勤, Lü Wenyu 呂文鬰, ed. (1996). Siku da cidian 四庫大辭典 (Changchun: Jilin daxue chubanshe), Vol. 1, 1045.
Zheng Yunbo 鄭雲波, ed. (1992). Zhongguo gudai xiaoshuo cidian, 中國古代小說辭典 (Nanjing: Nanjing daxue chubanshe), 58.