Tomb of Lu Guimeng

Tomb of Lu Guimeng

The Tomb of Lu Guimeng is a cultural relic protection unit of Suzhou City.

Lu Guimeng was a renowned poet and literary figure in the late Tang Dynasty. His tomb is located on the former site of the White Lotus Temple, now within the west courtyard of Baosheng Temple in Luzhi Town, Wuxian.

Lu Guimeng, courtesy name Lüwang, also referred to himself as Tiansui Zi, Jianghu Sanren, and Fuli Xiansheng. He was a native of Changzhou (present-day Suzhou). Having failed the imperial examination, he once served as an aide to the prefects of Huzhou and Suzhou, and later devoted himself to writing poetry and essays while engaging in agricultural pursuits. The New Book of Tang · Biographies of Recluses records that he often farmed alongside peasants. For a literati of the feudal era to possess such a spirit was truly commendable.

In his later years, he lived in poverty but “did not like to associate with vulgar people.” When summoned by the imperial court to take up an official post, he declined. He passed away in poverty and illness during the Guanghua era of the Tang Dynasty (around 881). During the Guanghua period (898–901), Wei Zhuang recommended Lu Guimeng among ten others for posthumous recognition, and they were honored as Right Assistant Imperial Censors, and buried on the outskirts of Fuli.

The tomb site of Lu Guimeng covers about two acres, facing south with its back to the north. It includes a burial mound, a tomb stele, a tomb path, a duck-fighting pond, and the Qingfeng Pavilion. In front of the tomb stands a stele erected in the fifth year of the Tongzhi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1866) by Xu Shuzhong, then acting magistrate of the Yuan-Kunxin Subprefecture, inscribed with “Tomb of the Tang-Dynasty Virtuous Master Fuli.” Inside the pavilion, four stone tablets remain: from the late Ming Dynasty, in the spring of 1610, “Record of the Renovation of the Statue of Lu Lüwang,” authored by Zhong Tang Qiyi Zhong Wei from Yunjian, calligraphed by Shao Weishi and Lu Yingyang from Jiusha; from the same year, in mid-1610, “Preface to the Renovation of the Tomb of Master Lu Lüwang,” authored by Jiong Xingwen from Wu Commandery, calligraphed by Qian Langming from Lucheng; from 1866, “Record of the Renovation of the Temple and Tomb of Master Fuli of the Tang Dynasty,” by Xu Shuyi; and from the 33rd year of the Republic of China (1944), “Record of the Renovation of the Temple and Tomb of Master Fuli.” The original statue of Lu Guimeng and the plaque inscribed with “Qingfeng Liangjie” (Integrity and Uprightness) have been lost. From 1981 to 1986, funds allocated by the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Culture and the Urban Construction Bureau were used to restore the burial mound, realign the tomb stele, add an altar, pave the tomb path, rebuild the Qingfeng Pavilion, and construct stone revetments and a small rainbow bridge. The burial mound currently stands 2 meters high with a circumference of 20 meters.

In front of the tomb are two stone troughs, said to be remnants from Lu Guimeng’s time when he fed ducks, known as “duck-fighting pens.” They are rectangular in shape, with a hole at one end of the bottom, measuring 0.75 meters in height and width, and 2.2 meters in length. They were carved from a single piece of Wukang stone.

Lu Guimeng, courtesy name Lüwang, was a native of Changzhou (present-day Wu County, Jiangsu Province). His birth date is unknown; he died around the first year of the Zhonghe era of the Tang Dynasty (881 AD). His field was agriculture. Lu Guimeng came from a bureaucratic family—his father, Lu Binyu, had once served as an imperial censor. In his early years, Lu Guimeng was keen on the imperial examinations. From childhood, he had a deep knowledge of Confucian classics such as the Book of Songs, Book of Documents, Book of Rites, and Spring and Autumn Annals, especially excelling in the Spring and Autumn Annals. He ultimately failed the imperial examination. Later, he traveled with Zhang Bo, the prefect of Huzhou, and became his assistant. He later returned to his hometown in Songjiang, Fulu... More detailed information on Lu Guimeng ++