The Pan Shizheng 潘师正

Pan Shizheng, courtesy name Zizhen, was a native of Zanhuang in the Zhao region during the early Tang Dynasty (now part of Hebei Province); some records also state he was from Zongcheng in Beizhou (also located in present-day Hebei Province).

He came from a family of government officials. His mother was a woman of great erudition, skilled at expounding on philosophical principles, and she once taught him the Tao Te Ching orally. Pan Shizheng was well-known for his filial piety toward his mother.

During the Daye period of the Sui Dynasty (605-618), he studied under Wang Yuanzhi, from whom he fully acquired the esoteric teachings and talismans of Taoism. Later, he followed Wang Yuanzhi to Maoshan Mountain, and then resided in Xiaoyao Valley on Songyang Double Spring Ridge to practice Taoism for more than 20 years.

In the third year of the Shangyuan era (676) of the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Gaozong visited the Eastern Capital (Luoyang), paid homage to Mount Song, and summoned Pan Shizheng. In the first year of the Tiaolu era (679), Emperor Gaozong offered sacrifices to Mount Song again; he invited Pan Shizheng to live in the Songyang Taoist Temple. The emperor also issued an imperial edict to build Chongtang Taoist Temple in Xiaoyao Valley and construct an additional Jingsi Courtyard on the ridge specifically for Pan Shizheng to reside in.

After Pan Shizheng passed away, he was posthumously awarded the official title of "Taizhong Dafu" (a mid-ranking official position in the Tang Dynasty) and conferred the posthumous title "Mr. Tixuan" (literally meaning "the one who embodies profound mystery").

He had 18 disciples, among whom Guo Chongzhen, Wei Fazhao, and Sima Zixu (later known as Sima Chengzhen, a prominent Taoist master) were the most renowned.

(Sources: Old Book of Tang·Biography of Hermits, New Book of Tang·Biography of Hermits, Records of Maoshan Mountain)