Clerics › Religious Figure
Han Xiang
Han Xiang, Tang grandnephew of Han Yu and a jinshi of 823, whom later legend made one of the Eight Immortals; his story became a staple of daoqing ballads.
Mural of the cultural record “Daoqing and Yugu Fish-Drum Ballads”, which this person is tied to.
Also known as Han Xiangzi · Zi Qingfu
The figure of Han Xiangzi rests on the Tang man Han Xiang, styled Qingfu, Han Yu's grandnephew and son of Han Laocheng, born around 794. When Han Yu was banished to Chaozhou in 819, Han Xiang went with him as far as Languan Pass, and Han Yu wrote him the poem Demoted and Arriving at Languan, for My Grandnephew Xiang. He passed the jinshi examination in 823 and rose to assistant in the Court of Judicial Review. Later legend made him a disciple of Lu Dongbin who became an immortal, counted him among the Eight Immortals and credited him with making flowers bloom in an instant and converting Han Yu; from the Ming on, narrative daoqing ballads told and retold the tale of his nine attempts to convert his uncle.
Life and times
Dates Born c. 794 CE; death date unknown