Scholars › Philosopher / Thinker
Liu An
Western Han Prince of Huainan who sponsored the compilation of the Huainanzi, a syncretic Daoist-centred compendium.
Mural guide
Mural of the cultural record “Work Chants (Haozi)”, which this person is tied to.
Also known as Prince of Huainan · Huainan Wang An
Liu An (179–122 BCE), a grandson of Emperor Gaozu of Han, inherited the title Prince of Huainan. He gathered thousands of scholars and adepts at his court and sponsored the Huainanzi, a syncretic treatise grounded in Daoist thought that also draws on Confucian, Legalist and Yin-Yang ideas. He took his own life in 122 BCE after being accused of rebellion; parables such as 'the old man at the frontier who lost his horse' come from the Huainanzi.
Life and times
Dates 179 BCE–122 BCE
EraHan