Zheng Pu [Biographies of Noble Scholars]

Zheng Pu, whose courtesy name was Zizhen, was a native of Gukou. He cultivated the Dao in quiet solitude, and the people of his time greatly admired his noble and unyielding integrity.

During the reign of Emperor Cheng of Han, the Emperor’s maternal uncle, the Grand General Wang Feng, formally invited him to take office, but Zheng Pu steadfastly refused to yield. Yang Xiong highly praised his virtue, referring to him as Zheng Zizhen of Gukou. He farmed beneath the Yan Stones, yet his reputation resonated throughout the capital. The people of Pingyi Commandery carved a stone monument and built a shrine in his honor, a tradition of remembrance that has continued unbroken to this day.

Note

Zheng Pu, a virtuous Western Han hermit, declined official offers from powerful General Wang Feng. Farming under Yan Stones, he won wide fame and high praise from scholar Yang Xiong. Locals erected a stone stele and shrine to honor him for generations.

Zheng Pu / Zheng Zizhen:

A highly respected Daoist hermit of the Western Han dynasty. His legacy is unique because he achieved immense fame precisely by refusing it. His life under the Yan Stones became a lasting cultural symbol of ultimate spiritual independence and moral purity.

Wang Feng:

The maternal uncle of Emperor Cheng and the most powerful official of his time. His formal attempt to recruit Zheng Pu highlights the immense political and social prestige that true recluses held. Even the most powerful men in the empire had to approach them with the utmost respect.

Yang Xiong’s Praise:

Yang Xiong, one of the greatest scholars of the era, immortalized Zheng Pu’s name by calling him “Zheng Zizhen of Gukou.” This demonstrates how orthodox scholars acted as the bridge between the hermits and the public, validating their spiritual achievements.

Farming Beneath the Yan Stones:

This is a famous literary allusion in Chinese history. It represents the ideal of self-sustaining reclusion. Zheng Pu did not just hide in the mountains; he actively lived off the land, proving that his refusal of office was rooted in a genuine, practical commitment to a simple life, rather than mere posturing.

Carving a Stone and Building a Shrine:

The fact that the local people carved a stone and built a shrine for him, and that this worship continued for centuries, illustrates the immense grassroots reverence for noble recluses in ancient China. They were venerated as local deities and moral anchors for the community.

郑朴，字子真，谷口人也，修道静默，世服其清高。成帝时，元舅、大将军王凤以礼聘之，遂不屈。杨雄盛称其德，曰谷口郑子真。耕於严石之下，名振京师，冯翊人刻石祠之，至今不绝。