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Liu An

Western Han Prince of Huainan who sponsored the compilation of the Huainanzi, a syncretic Daoist-centred compendium.

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

  1. 179 BCEBornHan
  2. 122 BCEDied

Works

  1. Literature · Prose22
    1. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan)HanWestern Han compendium compiled under Liu An, King of Huainan: Daoist at heart and rich in myth
    2. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Surveying ObscuritiesHan
    3. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Originating in the WayHan
    4. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Activating the GenuineHan
    5. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Celestial PatternsHan
    6. +17 more
      1. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Terrestrial FormsHan
      2. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Seasonal RulesHan
      3. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): The Quintessential SpiritHan
      4. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): The Basic WarpHan
      5. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): The Ruler's TechniquesHan
      6. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Profound PreceptsHan
      7. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Integrating CustomsHan
      8. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Responses of the WayHan
      9. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Boundless DiscoursesHan
      10. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Explaining WordsHan
      11. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): An Overview of the MilitaryHan
      12. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): A Mountain of PersuasionsHan
      13. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): A Forest of PersuasionsHan
      14. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Among MenHan
      15. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): Cultivating EffortHan
      16. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): The Exalted LineageHan
      17. Huainanzi (The Masters of Huainan): An Overview of the EssentialsHan
  2. Literature · Sayings5
    1. Chang'e Flies to the MoonHanIdiom from a Huainanzi myth: longing for the moon and for faraway places
    2. Nüwa Mends the SkyHanIdiom from the Huainanzi: world-mending vision, or turning back a looming disaster
    3. The Old Frontiersman Loses His HorseHanIdiom from a Huainanzi parable: misfortune may turn out a blessing
    4. The Three Rivers and Five Lakes Dredged by YuHanIdiom from the Huainanzi's account of Yu taming the flood: rivers and lakes far and wide
    5. Ten Suns Rising TogetherHanIdiom from the Huainanzi: ten suns scorch the earth until Yi shoots them down
  3. Literature · Fables1
    1. The Old Man at the Frontier Loses His HorseHanTale from the Huainanzi: a frontier old man's lost horse, new horse and lame son

Family tree

  1. Direct kin
    Liu An
    Grandfather
    Liu Bang

Records

Liu An writes a commentary on the Lisao

Reign of Emperor Wu

Liu An, Prince of Huainan, was a learned debater who wrote prose well, and Emperor Wu held him in high regard. When the emperor ordered him to write a commentary on the Lisao, he received the order at dawn and presented the finished text by the breakfast hour.

References (1)

Liu An Gathers Guests and Compiles Books

Early Han

Liu An drew several thousand guests and masters of arts to his court and produced twenty-one inner chapters, many outer books, and a middle section in eight chapters on immortals and alchemy. The closing chapter of the Huainanzi states that the books aim to examine where the Way opens and where it is blocked, so that later ages may know what to do and what to avoid.

References (2)