Recently Viewed

New

Hidden and Visible Realms: Early Medieval Chinese Tales of the Supernatural and the Fantastic by Zhenjun Zhang

No reviews yet Write a Review
RRP: $107.25
Booksplease Price: $83.67
Booksplease saves you

  Delivery: We ship to over 200 countries from the UK
  Range: Millions of books available
  Reviews: Booksplease rated "Excellent" on Trustpilot

  FREE UK DELIVERY: When you buy 3 or more books on Booksplease - Use code: FREEUKDELIVERY in your cart!

SKU:
9780231187169
MPN:
9780231187169
Available from Booksplease!
Availability: Usually dispatched within 5 working days

Frequently Bought Together:

Total: Inc. VAT
Total: Ex. VAT

Description

Chinese culture of the Six Dynasties period (220-589) saw a blossoming of stories of the fantastic. Zhiguai, "records of the strange" or "accounts of anomalies," tell of encounters with otherness, in which inexplicable and uncanny phenomena interrupt mundane human affairs. They depict deities, ghosts, and monsters; heaven, the underworld, and the immortal lands; omens, metamorphoses, and trafficking between humans and supernatural beings; and legendary figures, strange creatures, and natural wonders in the human world.

Hidden and Visible Realms, traditionally attributed to Liu Yiqing, is one of the most significant zhiguai collections, distinguished by its varied contents, elegant writing style, and fascinating stories. It is also among the earliest collections heavily influenced by Buddhist beliefs, values, and concerns. Beyond the traditional zhiguai narratives, it includes tales of karmic retribution, reincarnation, and Buddhist ghosts, hell, and magic. In this annotated first complete English translation, Zhenjun Zhang gives English-speaking readers a sense of the wealth and wonder of the zhiguai canon. Hidden and Visible Realms opens a window into the lives, customs, and religious beliefs and practices of early medieval China and the cultural history of Chinese Buddhism. In the introduction, Zhang explains the key themes and textual history of the work.

About the Author
Zhenjun Zhang is associate professor of Asian studies and modern languages and literatures at St. Lawrence University. His books include Buddhism and Tales of the Supernatural in Early Medieval China: A Study of Liu Yiqing's (403-444) Youming lu (2014).

Reviews
This book is an important contribution to the growing canon of translated primary source materials of medieval China. * Choice *
The nearly three hundred miracle tales that survive of Liu Yiqing's compilation offer fascinating insights into China's society and imagination of the late third to early fifth centuries. This complete translation will be eagerly welcomed by all students and scholars of Chinese literature, religion, and thought, as it was precisely in this period that Buddhism had become part of Chinese life. -- Wilt L. Idema, Harvard University
Hidden and Visible Realms is the most complete and critically annotated translation of the seminal collection of zhiguai ('tales of anomalies'), Liu Yiqing's Youming lu, in any language, one that will be enthusiastically welcomed by all who are interested in the history of Chinese fiction and religion. -- Victor H. Mair, University of Pennsylvania
The fields of early Chinese studies will enthusiastically welcome this excellent work by Zhenjun Zhang that combines a skillfully rendered translation of Liu Yiqing's Youminglu with an extensive treatise, providing the most comprehensive review of the long history of zhiguai studies we have to date. -- Kenneth J. DeWoskin, University of Michigan
Hidden and Visible Realms makes a valuable contribution to the study of Chinese zhiguai "Records of the Strange" literature. For the first time, Zhang's translation of the Youming lu gives English readers a sense of the marvelous richness of the text's contents and its diverse themes. -- Keith Knapp, The Citadel
This is a substantial study and translation that can serve as a model for future translations of zhiguai texts. Accurate and carefully annotated, Hidden and Visible Realms is in effect a new recension of the Youming lu. It is a valuable contribution to our growing understanding of early xiaoshuo. -- Daniel Hsieh, Purdue University
This book is an appropriate work for Western students or non-native readers. For the beginner of zhiguai study, this work, and especially the "Introduction" is to be recommended. * Monumenta Serica *



Book Information
ISBN 9780231187169
Author Zhenjun Zhang
Format Hardback
Page Count 304
Imprint Columbia University Press
Publisher Columbia University Press

Reviews

No reviews yet Write a Review

Booksplease  Reviews


J - United Kingdom

Fast and efficient way to choose and receive books

This is my second experience using Booksplease. Both orders dealt with very quickly and despatched. Now waiting for my next read to drop through the letterbox.

J - United Kingdom

T - United States

Will definitely use again!

Great experience and I have zero concerns. They communicated through the shipping process and if there was any hiccups in it, they let me know. Books arrived in perfect condition as well as being fairly priced. 10/10 recommend. I will definitely shop here again!

T - United States

R - Spain

The shipping was just superior

The shipping was just superior; not even one of the books was in contact with the shipping box -anywhere-, not even a corner or the bottom, so all the books arrived in perfect condition. The international shipping took around 2 weeks, so pretty great too.

R - Spain

J - United Kingdom

Found a hard to get book…

Finding a hard to get book on Booksplease and with it not being an over inflated price was great. Ordering was really easy with updates on despatch. The book was packaged well and in great condition. I will certainly use them again.

J - United Kingdom