Yan Yan (philosopher)
Yan Yan (Chinese: 言偃; Wade–Giles: Yen Yen; 506–? BC), courtesy name Ziyou (Chinese: 子游; Wade–Giles: Tzu-yu), also known as Yan You (Chinese: 言游; Wade–Giles: Yen Yu), was a prominent disciple of Confucius, considered by Confucius to be his most distinguished disciple in the study of the classics.[1] Honorifically known as Yanzi (Chinese: 言子; Wade–Giles: Yen Tzu) or Master Yan, he was said to be the only southerner among Confucius' disciples.[2]
Life
Yan Yan was born in 506 BC in the State of Wu. He was 45 years younger than Confucius.[1][3][4]
Yan Yan served as commandant of Wucheng (Wu City) in the State of Lu. He was said to have succeeded in transforming the character of the people of Wucheng by teaching them ritual propriety and music, and was praised by Confucius.[3]
After Confucius died, Ji Kang asked Yan why Confucius was not as widely mourned as Zichan, the prime minister of the State of Zheng. Yan replied, "The influences of Zichan and my master might be compared to those of overflowing water and those of fattening rain. Wherever the water in its overflow reaches, men take knowledge of it, while the fattening rain falls unobserved."[3]
Honours
In Confucian temples, Yan Yan's spirit tablet is placed the fourth on the west, among the Twelve Wise Ones.[3]
During the Tang dynasty, Emperor Xuanzong posthumously awarded Bu Shang the nobility title of Marquess of Wu (吳侯). During the Song dynasty, he was further awarded the titles of Duke of Danyang (丹陽公) and Duke of Wu (吳公).[5]
See also
Notes
- ^ a b Confucius 1997, p. 203.
- ^ "言子在常熟传90世 孔门七十二贤唯一南方人" (in Chinese). Phoenix TV. 2013-04-23.
- ^ a b c d Legge 2009, p. 116.
- ^ Han 2010, pp. 4603–4.
- ^ Wu Xiaoyun. "Yan Yan" (in Chinese). Taipei Confucian Temple. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
Bibliography
- Confucius (1997). Huang, Chichung (ed.). The Analects of Confucius. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-506157-4.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help) - Han, Zhaoqi (2010). "Biographies of the Disciples of Confucius". Shiji (史记) (in Chinese). Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company. ISBN 978-7-101-07272-3.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help) - Legge, James (2009). The Confucian Analects, the Great Learning & the Doctrine of the Mean. Cosimo. ISBN 978-1-60520-644-8.
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