Li Gou

Life

In the second year of the Qingli era, he failed the 茂才異等 examination. He then took charge of the commandery school and supported himself by teaching; he also established the Xujiang Academy, whose students often numbered several hundred. He was friendly with Fan Zhongyan and others and supported the Qingli New Policies. In the early Huangyou era, Fan Zhongyan and others recommended him for a trial appointment as assistant professor at the Taixue; he later served as a zhijiang. In the third year of Jiayou, he was appointed clerk of Haimen, Tongzhou, and shuoshu at the Taixue; in the fourth year, he served as acting administrator of Taixue affairs. His official titles also included lecturer at the National University and Jiangshilang. He died in the eighth month of the fourth year of Jiayou, aged fifty-one.

Scholarship and teaching

Li Gou was known for his prose and was versed in the classics. He valued agricultural production, had little regard for the Mencius, and strongly opposed Buddhism and Daoism. Among his disciples were Zeng Gong and Deng Runfu.

Works

He wrote 《明堂圖議》. His works include 《退居類稿》 in twelve juan and 《皇祐續稿》 in eight; the corpus is also described as a collection of thirty-three juan with a six-juan sequel. During the Chenghua era of the Ming, Zuo Zan of Nancheng compiled 《旴江集》, also known as 《直講李先生文集》, in thirty-seven juan with an outer collection of three juan. The poetry occupies three juan, and five poems outside the collection were added at the end.

Family

His mother was Zheng (鄭氏, 983–1051), and his wife was Chen (陳氏, 1015–1047). He had an only son, Li Canlu (李參魯), and an elder daughter who married Chen Ruyi (陳汝翼); Song Xian (宋咸) was an affinal relation. Among his wife's kin, Rao Changling (饒昌齡) was the father of his second wife, while Chen Qiu (陳璆) was an uncle of his first wife.