Page:A Chinese Biographical Dictionary.djvu/265

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page needs to be proofread.
246
A Chinese Biographical Dictionary

pleased with him and appointed him to a post; bat Li Sstl soon became jealous of his influence, and by misrepresentations succeeded in throwing him into prison where he committed suicide. Fifty-five of his essays are still extant, and are especially valuable as containing many of the sayings attributed to Lao Tzti, woven later on into the spurious work known as the Too TS Ching.

615 Han Hsi-tsai . dth and 10th cent. A.D. A scholar and official, who graduated as chin ahih at the close of the T'ang dynasty and rose to be Minister of State. He was popularly known as ^ ^ -^ Philosopher Han, and he and HsiQ Hs^n are often spoken of as ^ ^ . Canonised as ^ j|| .

616 Han Hsiang (T. j^ ^ ). 9th cent. A.D. A nephew of the great Han Til, of an idle and harum-scarum disposition. His uncle urged him to study, and he subsequently produced some verses in which he spoke of flowers blossoming instantaneously. "What!" cried Han Yfl, "can you make flowers better than God Almighty?" Thereupon Han Hsiang took a little earth and put it under a basin; and after a short interval he raised the basin and disclosed a flower with two buds, on the leaves of which was written in gold characters a couplet referring to exile. "You will understand this by and by," said he; and later on, when Han Yfi was on his way to his place of banishment near the modern Swatow, his nephew suddenly appeared to him and asked if he remembered the verses on the flowers. He became a pupil of Ltl Yen, and was taken up into the peach-tree of the gods, from the branches of which he fell and so entered into eternal life. He is now ranked as one of the Eight Immortals.

617 Han Hsin . Died B.C. 196. A native of Huai-yin in

Eiaugsu, who was so poor that he was compelled to earn his