刘定之

L"u Dingzhi's birthplace, dates of birth and death, and other biographical details are not well documented in publicly available sources and remain difficult to verify. Three of his works are held in the collection, the representative one being Pi Tai Lu (also written Fou Tai Lu). In terms of common classification, his works fall under folk literature, classic works, and Eastern philosophy, suggesting that their content deals largely with the rise and fall of human fortunes, the gains and losses of the world, and reflections on the philosophy of life. The title Pi Tai Lu derives from the Pi and Tai hexagrams of the Book of Changes, and the work typically uses the workings of heaven to discuss how misfortune and blessing give rise to one another and how prosperity and decline follow in turn. Its style leans toward argument and reflection, combining the plainness of folk narrative with the speculative flavor of philosophical prose. Because relevant materials are scarce, the details of his life and the full scope of his writing still await further study, and readers may begin with the texts themselves to appreciate his intent of observing worldly affairs through the ideas of Pi and Tai.