Informatie over 彭祖 péng zǔ - Pengzu

Vertalingen:
Engels (Ziporyn, Mair): Pengzu
Duits (Kalinke): [der achthundertjährige] Peng Zu
Frans (Levi): P'eng-tsou.

Biografische informatie:

Letterlijk: ‘de aartsvader van Peng’, wiens naam Qian Jian luidde. Volgens de legende was hij raadsman onder de oerkoningen Yao en Shun. Hij werd ingewijd in de geheimen van het Lange Leven, die niet alleen gymnastiek en ademhalingsoefeningen behelsden, maar ook seksuele praktijken. Hij leefde achthonderd jaar. In de Chinese folklore wordt hij geïdentificeerd met de Ster van het Lange Leven (Shouxing), wiens afbeeldingen als een oude man, met een zeer prominent en hoog voorhoofd, overal te vinden zijn. (Schipper)

Eskildsen:
References to Pengzu are found in various ancient books such as the Shiji, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, and Huainanzi. According to legend, his family name was Jian and his personal name was Keng. He was the grandson of the legendary Emperor Zhuanxu. He served as a high official during the reign of Emperor Yao and continued to serve in government up until the end of the Shang dynasty. He allegedly lived for over 700 years. (Eskildsen 1998 Asceticism In Early Taoist Religion, noot 6 bij hst 2, pag 171)

Meer informatie:
- wikipedia: Pengzu (NL)
- wikipedia: Peng Zu (EN)

Zie ook Campany 2002 To live as long as heave and earth (vertaling van Shenxian zhuan van Ge Hong - de biografieën van de onsterfelijken) p 172-186.
Enkele citaten:
A14. Jian Keng (Peng Zu)
Peng Zu (Progenitor [of] Peng) was surnamed Jian; his avoidance name was Keng. He was the great-great-grandson of Thearch Zhuan Xu. At the end of the Yin era [Shang dynasty] he was already 767 years old, yet he had not physically aged. From his youth he loved tranquillity and stillness and did not feel compelled to serve the world. He did not seek fame or promotion, nor did he make a show of elaborate carriages or clothing; he occupied himself solely with nourishing his life and regulating his body. The king, on hearing of his longevity, wished to make him a Grand Master, but he repeatedly protested illness and kept himself secluded and did not accept a government post. He excelled at the arts of “supplementing” and “pulling,” [daoyin] and he also ingested cassia, cloud-mother, and powdered deerhorn. He always maintained a youthful visage. (..)
He would shut off his breath and breathe internally. From sunrise to noon he would sit rigidly, rub his eyes, and knead his body and limbs, while licking his lips, swallowing his saliva, and ingesting pneumas several dozen times. Only then would he rise, move about, and converse. If there was any illness, fatigue, or discomfort in his body, he would practice “guiding and pulling”9daoyin] and shut off his breath so as to attack what was troubling him. He would fix his heart by turns on each part of his body: his head and face, his nine orifices and five viscera, his four limbs, even his hair. He would cause his heart to abide in each location, and he would feel his breath circulate throughout his body, starting at his nose and mouth and reaching down into the tips of his ten fingers. (Campany p 172-175)

Het personage Pengzu komen we 2 keer tegen waarvan 0 keer in dialogen (of monologen) en 2 keer in anekdotes of overige vermeldingen. Hieronder ziet u een overzicht:

Overige vindplaatsen

Er zijn 2 paragrafen met vermeldingen van Pengzu:
1. hst. 1-I, pag. 45-48
2. hst. 6-V, pag. 110-112