The Yueling chapter, from the Confucian classic Book of Rites, served as a foundational model for understanding the relationship between humanity and the cosmos during the Qin and Han periods in China. This text is characteristic of its time, particularly in its detailed knowledge of the phenology of its region. This raises a question, however, did these localized features impede the broader acceptance of the Yueling cosmology among the literati across the vast Chinese empire during subsequent imperial rule? This question becomes especially relevant when considering local gazetteers during the Ming and Qing periods, which provide evidence of both the official codification of knowledge and its adaptation to local circumstances. The primary goal of this study is to investigate the strategies adopted by local officials and other compilers in the textual practice of Yueling cosmology, aimed at developing and perpetuating it across later generations.
Project
(2024-2028)