''Wu xing'' () is a
Warring States period
The Warring States period () was an era in History of China#Ancient China, ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded ...
text ascribed to
Zisi
Zisi (; c. 481–402 BCE), born Kong Ji (孔伋), was a Chinese philosopher and the grandson of Confucius.
Intellectual genealogy, teaching, criticism
Zisi was the son of Kong Li (孔鯉) ( Boyu (伯鱼)) and the only grandson of Confucius. ...
, known mainly due to the
Mawangdui Han tombs site (1973, sealed 168 BCE) and
Guodian (1993, sealed about 300 BCE) discoveries.
Relationship between the two versions of the text remains debated. Unlike the Guodian version, written on bamboo strips, the Mawangdui "Wu xing" is written on silk and contains both the main text (''jing'') identical to that of the Guodian and the explanation (''shuo'').
The text is related to the "
Zhongyong" and "
Daxue" (presently chapters in the ''Classic of Rites''). However, in Mawangdui Han tombs site it was discovered written in the same scroll with the ''
Laozi
Laozi (), also known by numerous other names, was a semilegendary ancient Chinese Taoist philosopher. Laozi ( zh, ) is a Chinese honorific, generally translated as "the Old Master". Traditional accounts say he was born as in the state
...
''.
Li Xueqin
Li Xueqin (, 28 March 1933 – 24 February 2019) was a Chinese historian, archaeologist, and palaeographer. He served as Director of the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Professor of the Institute of Sinology of T ...
. 帛书《五行》与《尚书·洪范》
Literature
* Mark Csikszentmihalyi, Material Virtue: Ethics and the Body in Early China. 2005.
* Kenneth Holloway, "The Five Aspects of Conduct" 五行: Introduction and Translation. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, Third Series, Vol. 15, No. 2 (Jul., 2005), pp. 179-198.
History of ancient China
{{China-hist-stub