SuaveG – The Gentle Path

Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature

  • At Parting

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    Ana

    — Wang Wei Dismounted, I drink with you And ask what you’ve in view. “I can’t do what I will; So I’ll do what I will; I’ll ask you no more, friend, Let clouds drift without end!”

  • Farewell to Xin Jian at Lotus Tower [Tang Poems]

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    Ana

    — Wang Changling A cold rain dissolved in East Stream invades the night; At dawn you’ll leave the lonely Southern hills in haze. If my friends in the North should ask if I’m all right, Tell them I’m free from blame as ice in crystal vase.

  • Breaking Pots and Sinking Boats: Xiang Yu’s Gamble at Julu

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    Juan

    The Race to the Qin Heartland After the death of Xiang Liang, King Huai II of Chu faced a critical decision. With the Qin dynasty still formidable – and the rebel cause reeling from recent defeats – he sought to strike at its core. Gathering his generals, he declared:”Whoever first enters Guanzhong (the Qin…

  • Liu Bang

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    Ana

    Liu Bang (256 or 247 BCE – 195 BCE), posthumously known as Emperor Gaozu of Han, was the founder of the Western Han dynasty and reigned from 202 to 195 BCE. His courtesy name was Ji, and he was from Pei County (in present-day Xuzhou, Jiangsu). He initially served as a minor local official…

  • Lie Yukou

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    Ana

    Lie Yukou was a representative figure of Daoism in the early Warring States period. He is also known as Yu Kou, Yu Kou, or Liezi. Traditionally believed to be from the state of Zheng (in present-day Zhengzhou, Henan) during the Warring States era, he advocated the principles of emptiness, stillness, and non-action (wu wei),…

  • Zhang Liang

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    Ana

    Zhang Liang (?–189 BCE) was a prominent statesman in the early Western Han dynasty. His courtesy name was Zifang, and he was from Chengfu, Yingchuan (in present-day southwestern Xiangcheng, Henan). His ancestors were nobles of the former state of Han, with five generations serving as Han ministers. Seeking revenge for the Qin conquest of…