Here is the first booklength study of the life and works of Wu Yun, one of the most remarkable figures of eighth-century Daoism. Blending literary criticism with religious and cultural history, this book assesses the importance of Wu Yun the Daoist priest, the poet, the anti-Buddhist, the defender of reclusion and the philosopher of immortality, and in doing so, sheds new light on the very nature of Tang dynasty Daoism.
The book, which should be of special interest to students of Tang literature and Medieval Daoism alike, alternates narrative and analysis with annotated translations of two thirds of Wu Yun’s remaining writings, including two stela inscriptions, three prose treatises, four rhapsodies and several dozens of poems.