Shan Tao (山濤) | 24 Histories

Overview

Shan Tao was a Bamboo Grove Sage and Official.

IdentityHistorical · Male

Roles

Found in

Other names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Alternate name	Shan Gong	山公

Life and dates

Attested activity

AD 205 to AD 283 君欲高斅山公，而以仲容見處，徒以
Directly stated · Book of Song 62, passage 116
AD 240 to AD 283 山濤
Strongly inferred · Book of Chen 27, passage 175
AD 265 to AD 283 山濤以物理勉之
Dated from the passage context · Old History of the Five Dynasties 18, passage 82
AD 262 嵇康死
Dated from the passage context · New History of the Five Dynasties 35, passage 100
AD 265 to AD 283 晉世山濤
Strongly inferred · Book of Southern Qi 16, passage 8
AD 265 to AD 283 西晉
Dated from the passage context · Book of Song 71, passage 227

Key source chapters

Works and attributed material

Odes to the Five Lords 五君詠
Relation Deliberately omitted · Reason wealth and rank
Directly stated · Book of Song 73, passage 46

Events and relationships

Relation Advisor of · Person Ji Shao (嵇紹)
Directly stated · Old History of the Five Dynasties 18, passage 82
Relation Recommender of · Person Ji Shao (嵇紹)
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 35, passage 100

Assessments and attributes

Assessment chose without losing talent · Mode named-speech Speaker Heir Apparent (太子)
Directly stated · Book of Chen 27, passage 175

Source notes

Historicity historical
Directly stated · Book of Chen 27, passage 175; Old History of the Five Dynasties 18, passage 82; Book of Southern Qi 16, passage 8; Book of Song 71, passage 227

References in the histories

Book of Chen, Chapter 27Volume 27: Jiang Zong; Yao Cha · 1 passage

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後主曰：「選眾之舉，僉議所歸，昔毛玠雅量清恪，盧毓心平體正，王蘊銓量得地，山濤舉不失才，就卿而求，必兼此矣。 Houzhu said, "Choosing the right men is what everyone expects. Once Mao Jie was refined and pure, Lu Yu level and upright, Wang Yun balanced in judgment, and Shan Tao chose without losing talent—from you we expect all of this.

Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 18Volume 18 Book of Later Liang 18: Biographies 8: Zhang Wenyu, Xue Yiju, Zhang Ce, Du Xiao, Jing Xiang, Li Zhen · 1 passage

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或語之曰：「嵇中散死，子紹埋沒不自顯，山濤以物理勉之，乃仕。 Someone told him, "When Ji Kang died, his son Shao hid himself and would not serve; Shan Tao reasoned with him about the way of the world, and only then did he take office.

Book of Southern Qi, Chapter 16Volume 16 Treatises 8: Official Posts · 1 passage

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山濤以意辯人，不囗囗囗。 Shan Tao read men by intuition; the text is lost.

Book of Song, Chapter 62Volume 62 Biographies 22: Yang Xin, Zhang Fu, Wang Wei · 1 passage

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君欲高斅山公，而以仲容見處，徒以搥提禮學，本不參選，鄙夫瞻彼，固不任下走，未知新沓何如州陵耳。 You wish to take Mount Gong as your model yet treat me like Ruan Zhongrong; raised on ritual learning, I was never on the selection rolls—a coarse man like me cannot serve as your runner, and I do not know how the new appointee compares with you, Zhouling.

Book of Song, Chapter 71Volume 71 Biographies 31: Xu Zhan, Jiang Zhan, Wang Sengchao · 1 passage

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昔山濤舉羊祜為太子太傅，蓋欲以後事委之，而羊公短世。 Formerly Shan Tao recommended Yang Hu as Grand Tutor of the Heir Apparent, intending to entrust the succession to him, but Yang Hu died young.

Book of Song, Chapter 73Volume 73 Biographies 33: Yan Yanzhi · 1 passage

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延之甚怨憤，乃作五君詠以述竹林七賢，山濤、王戎以貴顯被黜，詠嵇康曰：「鸞翮有時鎩，龍性誰能馴。」 Burning with resentment, Yanzhi wrote his Odes to the Five Lords about the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove, leaving out Shan Tao and Wang Rong as men who had risen to wealth and rank. Of Ji Kang he wrote: "A phoenix wing may be clipped in its season—who can tame a dragon's nature?"

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 35Volume 35 Biographies 15: Zhan Wenyu, Yang She, Zhang Ce, Zhao Guangfeng, Xue Yiju, Su Xun · 1 passage

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崔遠判戶部，又辟巡官，或謂曉曰：「嵇康死，子紹自廢不出仕，山濤以物理責之，乃仕。 Cui Yuan as revenue commissioner took him again; someone told Xiao, “When Ji Kang died, his son Shao would not serve until Shan Tao rebuked him on principle.