The Four Annotated Versions of the Liezi 冲虚至德真经四解

Compiled by Gao Shouyuan.

It was roughly completed in the Jiyou year of the Dading reign period of Emperor Shizong of Jin Dynasty (1189).

Consisting of twenty volumes, it is included in the Yujue (Jade Commentary) category of the Dongshen Section of the Daozang (Daoist Canon).

The Four Annotated Versions of the Liezi

This work collects four commentaries on the Liezi, namely Zhang Zhan’s annotations of the Jin Dynasty, Lu Chongxuan’s interpretations of the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Huizong of Song’s exegeses, and Fan Zhixu’s interpretations of the Song Dynasty, boasting considerable documentary value as it echoes the core thought of Laozi inherited in the Liezi. The Xuxiu Siku Quanshu Tiyao (Annotated Bibliography of the Revised Complete Library of the Four Treasuries) states: "Annotated versions of the Liezi handed down through generations are extremely rare; those existing today are only Zhang Zhan’s annotations, Yin and Chen’s annotated texts, as well as commentaries by Lin Xiyi, Jiang Yu, Wu Cheng, Zhu Dezhi and Jiao Hong. However, the annotations by Lin, Zhu and Jiao are all flawed by shallowness and shoddiness. Only Zhang Zhan’s annotations capture the profound purport of the text, and no other early commentaries have survived. Fortunately, this compilation, produced by a scholar of the Jin Dynasty, has preserved the four commentaries, all of which are precise and insightful. It is thus a work that cannot be overlooked by scholars dedicated to literary and philosophical studies." Following the main text, this book presents the four commentaries, with Zhang Zhan’s annotations placed first without indicating the author’s name; the other three commentaries are listed with their authors’ names specified.