References

• 《四庫全書總目提要·卷4 經部·易類四》

Source: "Zhouyi Benyi Jicheng" (周易本義集成) is a twelve-volume work compiled by Xiong Liangfu during the Yuan Dynasty. Xiong Liangfu, whose courtesy name was Renzhong and who went by the sobriquet Meibian, was a native of Nanchang. In the preface to the work, Xiong Liangfu wrote that he was recommended for the local examination in Yan You fourth year (1317). The details of his career are not well-documented, but he mentioned in the preface that he contributed to the study of the I Ching (Book of Changes) and that his peers believed in his interpretations. They sympathized with his long efforts and funded the publication of his work. The first provincial examination during the Yuan Dynasty was held in Yan You fourth year, and this was Xiong Liangfu's second attempt. According to the Yuan History on the selection system, at that time, Han and Southern candidates were required to answer two questions on the classics and one on the interpretation of the classics. The study of the I Ching was based on the interpretations of Cheng Yi and Zhu Xi, although ancient commentaries were also allowed. This was different from the Ming Dynasty system, which limited the study to the interpretations of Cheng and Zhu, and later exclusively to Zhu. The main focus of "Zhouyi Benyi Jicheng" is to support the I Ching's "Benyi" (本義), but it also includes many interpretations that differ from the "Benyi." This reflects the broader and more inclusive approach to the study of the I Ching during the Yuan Dynasty. According to Huang Yujì in his Qian Qing Tang Shumu (千頃堂書目), Xiong Liangfu also authored another work titled "Yi Zhuan Jishu" (易傳集疏), which has not survived. However, it is noted that "Yi Zhuan Jishu" was actually written by Xiong Kai. The Jiangxi Tongzhi (江西通志) records that Xiong Kai, whose courtesy name was Shunfu, was a native of Nanchang and taught for forty years. He was known as the Scholar of Yaohxi, and Xiong Liangfu was one of his students. This aligns with Xiong Liangfu's statement in his preface that he studied the I Ching under the Scholar of Yaohxi. The confusion arose because Huang Yujì mistakenly combined the two Xiong due to their shared surname, origin, and contemporaneity. ==References== * 《四庫全書總目提要·卷4 經部·易類四》