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《困學紀聞 Kunxue Jiwen》[View] [Edit] [History]

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Author	王應麟
Dynasty	Southern Song
Base text	《四部叢刊三編》本
Data item	ctext:806765
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Kunxue Jiwen, written by Wang Yinglin of the Yuan dynasty, consists of twenty volumes.

Kunxue Jiwen is a collection of scholarly notes and research, compiled by Wang Yinglin in his later years while living in Yong (甬). It includes eight volumes on Confucian classics, two volumes each on astronomy, geography, and the philosophers, six volumes on historical studies, three volumes on poetry and literature criticism, and one volume of miscellaneous knowledge. The content covers "the essence of the Nine Classics, key events in the histories of successive dynasties, the origins and development of systems and objects, as well as discussions and critiques by renowned scholars." Kunxue Jiwen corrects many errors made by previous scholars. For example, in Volume 12 on historical studies: "The Yue Shu consists of nineteen chapters, but the Suyin states, 'It is the Anshi Fangzhong Music.' Upon examination of the Han Catalogue, it shows that the Anshi Fangzhong Song has seventeen chapters and the Suburban Sacrifice Songs have nineteen chapters. Therefore, the Suyin is incorrect." Wang Yinglin was skilled in using taboo characters for verification, often leaving doubts unresolved if necessary. For instance, in Volume 14 on historical studies: "In the Li Deyu Biography, Wei Hongzhi proposed that prime ministers should not also manage finances. In the imperial examination of Jia You sixth year, it states, 'Managing finances is a major responsibility; the words of Wei Xian should not be combined with those of the prime minister.' It appears that to avoid using taboo characters, 'zhi' (质) was mistakenly used as 'xian' (贤)."

The Qing scholar Zhang Jialu commented: "Wang Yinglin's scholarship is not limited to textual studies; his goal is to elucidate the Way. Kunxue Jiwen discusses in great detail the rise and fall of virtuous and unvirtuous people, as well as the reasons behind changes in social customs and public sentiment." Liang Qichao said: "Wang Yinglin's Kunxue Jiwei laid the foundation for Qing dynasty scholarship, which is why it was highly valued by Qing scholars."

Kunxew Jiwen has been annotated by seven scholars—Cheng Yaotian, Tu Jixu, Wan Xihui, Yan Ruoqu, He Chao, Quan Zuwang, and Qian Daxin—and is thus known as the Seven Annotations Edition. It is considered one of the three great note-taking works of the Song dynasty, alongside Mengxi Bitan (Dream Brook Essays) and Rongzhai Suibi.

《困學紀聞 Kunxue Jiwen》[View] [Edit] [History]

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