The Du Daojian 杜道坚

Du Daojian (1237-1318) was a native of Caishi in Dangtu (present-day Dangtu County, Anhui Province) during the late Song and early Yuan dynasties.

As recorded in Taiping Fu Zhi (Gazetteer of Taiping Prefecture): "His courtesy name was Chuyi, and his literary name was Nanguzizi. At the age of 14, he obtained and read rare books; later, he became a Taoist priest at Shengyuan Guan (Shengyuan Temple) on Maoshan Mountain."

In the 7th year of the Dade reign (1303), he was appointed as the Taoist Registrar of Hangzhou Circuit and honored with the title "Taoist Master of High Status".

During the Huangqing reign period, he was bestowed the title "Zhenren (Immortal) of Longdao, Chongzhen and Chuzhen". In The Stele of Duke Du, the Zhenren of Longdao, Chongzhen and Chuzhen written by Zhao Mengfu, it is stated that Du Daojian founded Yuantong Guan (Yuantong Temple), built Lan Gu Lou (Pavilion of Reviewing Antiquities), and collected ten thousand volumes of books.

During the Yanyou reign period (1311-1320), he resided at Zongyang Gong (Zongyang Palace) in Wulin (an old name for Hangzhou). He renovated and constructed Laojun Tai (Platform of Laozi), enshrined the statues of ten virtuous figures there, and paid homage to them every morning and evening. His works included Daode Xuanjing Yuanzhi (Original Meaning of the Profound Classic of the Dao and De) in four volumes, Xuanjing Zhenyuanzhi Fahui (Elaboration on the True Original Meaning of the Profound Classic) in two volumes, and Tongxuan Zhenjing Xuanyi (Supplementary Meaning of the True Classic of Profound Mystery) in twelve volumes, all of which were circulated in the world.