Pei Ch'i Shu 45: Biography of Yen Chih-T'ui

This is an annotated translation, with introduction, of the biography of Yen Chih-t'ui (531-591) from «Pei Ch'i shu». Included in Yen's biography is a long autobiographical poem which offers an unusual perspective of the important events of this turbulent period. Yen is significant because of his authorship of the «Yen-shih chia-hsün», a translation of which has been published recently. Thus the biography provides background and setting for the «Chia-hsün», an important social document of medieval China, and taken together, the two provide rich material for further studies of medieval China.