The Wang Yinglian 王应廉

Wang Yinglian was a native of Lishui (now part of Zhejiang Province) during the reign of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty. His courtesy name was Zhengfu, and he was officially registered as a Taoist priest at Tianqing Taoist Temple.

He received the Shangqing Taoist Precepts (a sacred document conferring Taoist status and authority in the Shangqing School) and studied under Li Manlao from Xishu (the historical name for the Sichuan Basin region), from whom he learned the technique of nourishing vital energy (yangqi). In the 2nd year of the Zhenghe era of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty (1112 AD), he was summoned to the imperial court; after the audience, he was granted a purple robe (a symbol of honor for high-ranking Taoist priests) and returned to his original residence.

Wang Yinglian was fond of reading the works of Laozi and Zhuangzi (the core classics of Taoism). He named his living quarters "Hunlun Hermitage" (Hunlun refers to the primal, undifferentiated state of the Dao in Taoist philosophy). Every day, his residence was filled with guests and friends.

(From The Annals of Quanzhou Prefecture)