Tomb of Gui Youguang

Tomb of Gui Youguang

The tomb of Gui Youguang is a cultural relic protection unit of Suzhou City.

The tomb of Gui Youguang was originally located in Jintongli, within the southeast gate of Kunshan. Due to urban development, in 1989, the tomb was moved 300 meters eastward and relocated to the foot of Dongdaqiao Bridge. A 3.7-acre site along the city moat was developed and retained the name "Zhenchuan Garden."

(1507–1571) A prose writer of the Ming Dynasty. His courtesy name was Xifu and his pseudonym Xiangjisheng. He was from Kunshan (now part of Jiangsu Province) and was respectfully called Master Zhenchuan. He became a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) during the Jiajing era. He served as an official up to the position of Assistant Magistrate at Taiping Temple in Nanjing. At that time, the literary circle was dominated by the “Later Seven Masters” led by Wang Shizhen, who strongly advocated that literature must emulate the Qin and Han dynasties, and poetry must follow the flourishing Tang style, promoting the imitation of ancient styles. In opposition to this retrogressive trend, Gui Youguang strongly resisted and criticized Wang Shizhen as an arrogant mediocrity. He said: “As for literature from the Song and Yuan masters, their achievements were sufficient to rival those of thousands of years past and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them. Yet people actually believe it’s as futile as an ant trying to shake a tree—it’s truly lamentable. Isn’t it just a few deluded and mediocre individuals who think so...” More detailed information about Gui Youguang ++