The Lazy True Master

马永卿Jul 2024

3.7

Word count: 35K words
Chapters: 8

Summary

Traditional Chinese culture boasts a long and profound intellectual history, marked by a high degree of originality, inventiveness, and literary quality. Early forms of thought are highly distinctive, and the vast, profound content of religious theology, classical texts of traditional Chinese medicine, ancient military strategy, Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and the Hundred Schools of Thought, feng shui and metaphysics, the Twenty-Four Histories, and customs and local gazetteers is immense. This "Essential Classics of Chinese Culture: Original Texts" series preserves the original appearance of the books, with a focus on preserving and transmitting traditional Chinese thought and culture. By reading the literary essence left by ancient sages, readers can cultivate their temperament and subtly come to appreciate the classics of Chinese learning.

Editor's review

Lanzhenzi (The Lazy Immortal) is a biji-style work by Ma Yongqing of the Song Dynasty. Its contents mostly involve textual criticism of the classics and histories, institutional regulations and historical facts, miscellaneous discussions of poetry and prose, and random notes on personal observations. The entries are short and the writing style casual, making the book suitable for fragmented reading. As part of the "Essential Classics of Chinese Culture: Original Texts" series, this book focuses on preserving the original appearance of the text without excessive editing, allowing readers to directly encounter the original form of Song Dynasty biji. Its value lies in preserving, in a leisurely tone, much of the intellectual curiosity and everyday thinking of Song Dynasty literati. It can both fill gaps in historical records and offer glimpses into what concerned scholars of the time. It need not be read systematically from beginning to end; readers can dip in at random and investigate further whichever entries interest them. It is suitable as an introductory sample of classical biji and also for readers with some grounding in literature and history to browse at leisure.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in Song Dynasty biji and literary-historical notes
Those who enjoy short entries that can be read and set aside at will, without seeking systematic coverage
Literature and history enthusiasts with some grounding in classical Chinese who are willing to look things up themselves
Readers who want to understand the intellectual interests and everyday thinking of Song Dynasty people

Not a good fit for

Readers who need a complete storyline or continuous narrative
Those with very little experience reading classical Chinese who rely on sentence-by-sentence translation
Readers seeking systematic academic conclusions rather than scattered entries

Reading tips

There is no need to read through in order; one can browse a few entries each day and make brief notes on interesting ones.
For entries involving textual criticism of the classics and histories, read the original text first and then look up relevant background; there is no need to memorize conclusions.
Keep a notebook and record entries by theme (institutions, poetry and prose, observations) for easy review.
Read alongside other Song Dynasty biji to appreciate differences in what different authors focused on.

版权信息
懒真子
提要
卷第一
卷第二
卷第三
卷第四
卷第五

FAQ

What kind of book is Lanzhenzi?

It is a biji-style work by Ma Yongqing of the Song Dynasty, covering textual criticism of the classics and histories, institutional regulations and historical facts, miscellaneous discussions of poetry and prose, and random observations. The entries are short and the writing casual; it belongs to the traditional biji genre rather than being a systematic monograph or narrative work.

Can someone without a foundation in classical Chinese read this book?

It would be rather difficult. The book preserves the original appearance of the text, with limited annotation and translation, so readers with a weak foundation in classical Chinese may easily get stuck on wording. It is advisable to first acquire basic classical Chinese reading ability, or to read with reference books and background materials at hand.

Is this book suitable for reading straight through from beginning to end?

Not necessarily. The biji entries are not always linked by a continuous thread, so it is better suited to browsing and selective reading according to interest. If one wants a systematic understanding, entries can be organized by theme, but there is no need to finish it in one go.

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About the author

马永卿 Author

Ma Yongqing's biographical information is very limited in publicly available records: his place of origin, dates of birth and death, and English name are all difficult to establish with certainty. The only surviving work currently confirmed to be his is Lazy Zhenzi (Lanzhenzi), which is classified under Eastern philosophy and serves as the main basis for understanding his thought. The book takes the form of miscellaneous notes, dealing largely with reading reflections, the examination of names and things, and reflections on the principles of life. Its style is plain and concise, without elaborate exposition, and it often draws reflections on the classics and on human affairs from short entries, showing an orientation toward moral principle and introspection. Because relevant historical sources are scarce, present-day understanding of Ma Yongqing and his scholarship remains incomplete, which makes this work all the more valuable: it is both primary material for studying his thought and a concrete example for observing the note-writing form and the ways of Eastern philosophical reflection in earlier times. Readers who wish to approach this author can mostly only sense his stance and interests between the lines of Lazy Zhenzi.