Su Lüzi The Book of the Unadorned Path 素履子

Written by Zhang Hu of the Tang Dynasty.

Su Lüzi The Book of the Unadorned Path

Both Tongzhi·Yiwennüe (Comprehensive Records of Literature and Arts) and Songshi·Yiwenzhi (History of Song·Treatise on Literature and Arts) recorded this book as one volume. The existing Daozang (Daoist Canon) version has three volumes and is included in the Taixuan (Supreme Mystery) section. The book is divided into fourteen chapters, namely Practicing the Dao, Practicing Virtue, Practicing Loyalty, Practicing Filial Piety, Practicing Benevolence, Practicing Righteousness, Practicing Wisdom, Practicing Integrity, Practicing Propriety, Practicing Music, Practicing Wealth and Nobility, Practicing Poverty and Humility, Practicing Peace, and Practicing Danger in sequence. In his preface, the author stated: "The title Suluzi is derived from the 'First Nine, Plain conduct; going forward, no blame' in the Li Hexagram of Zhouyi (I Ching).

It takes pure simplicity as the foundation and practical conduct as the priority; even if one wears plain clothes, he must practice the political teachings of the ancient kings." Therefore, the core purport of this book focuses on upholding simplicity and sincerity, and practicing Confucian ethics such as loyalty, filial piety, benevolence and righteousness. Its ideological connotation is subtly connected with the moral concepts implied in the theoretical system of Taoism, and echoes the philosophical propositions of the Laozi. Siku Quanshu Zongmu Tiyao (Annotated Bibliography of the Complete Library of the Four Treasuries) praised the book for its plain and straightforward wording, noting that "it is all based on the tenets of sages’ teachings and returns to the right path, thus belonging to the Confucian school".