SuaveG – The Gentle Path

Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature

  • Fa Zhen [Biographies of Noble Scholars]

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    Great Confucian Fa Zhen taught hundreds of disciples yet shunned officialdom. He turned down repeated imperial summons, citing Xu You’s tale of washing ears to guard his purity. Honored as Master of Mysterious Virtue, he lived to eighty-nine in seclusion.

  • Zhi Xun [Biographies of Noble Scholars]

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    Descendant of hermit Liang Hong, erudite Zhi Xun taught many scholars and wed his daughter to talented Ma Rong. Highly commended by ministers, he rejected multiple imperial summons and lived out his secluded life with an untainted reputation.

  • Ren Tang [Biographies of Noble Scholars]

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    Recluse Ren Tang taught the Spring and Autumn Annals and refused official summons. He sent silent symbolic reminders of integrity, punishing tyrants and caring for youth and the old to Governor Pang Can. Villagers revered him with a portrait after his death.

  • Jiao Shen [Biographies of Noble Scholars]

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    Daoist Jiao Shen practiced immortality arts and lived secluded. He ignored Wu Cang’s letter persuading him to serve the court. Unmarried, he predicted his own death; later sighted in Dunhuang, he was deemed an immortal. His townsman Ma Yao also lived a simple hermit’s life.

  • Qiu Xin [Biographies of Noble Scholars]

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    Gifted scholar Qiu Xin held the world in disdain. When summoned by the governor, he asked whether he would be treated as a subordinate, friend or teacher, rejecting top local official posts and the Xiaolian title. The governor dared not force him into service.

  • Han Kang [Biographies of Noble Scholars]

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    Herbalist Han Kang stuck to fixed prices for thirty years. Once recognized by a customer, he fled to mountains to shun fame. Summoned by the emperor, he took a plain ox cart, then escaped midway and lived out his days in seclusion.