Aug 7, 2024 © Ulrich Theobald
Xiangyushu 相雨書 is a book on divination about rain or – in modern term – about meteorology – written during the Tang period 唐 (618-907) by Huang Zifa 黃子發.
The transmitted version of the text approaches the topic from nine different angles, like "observing breath" carrying away the ashes of reed (hou qi 候氣), the inspection of clouds (guan yun 觀雲) and the movements of the planets, listening to the sounds of the wind, calculating the progress of time (tui shi 推時), taking into consideration the phenomena of the living world, or prayers for rain or good weather.
The text is preserved in the series Shuofu 說郛 (Wanwei Shantang 宛委山堂 edition), Jianxi cunshe huike 漸西村舍彙刻, Congshu jicheng chubian 叢書集成初編 and Yuhan shanfang jiyi shu xubian 玉函山房輯佚書補編.
Sources:
Chen Yongzheng 陳永正, ed. 1991. Zhongguo fangshu da cidian 中國方術大辭典, 658. Guangzhou: Zhongshan daxue chubanshe.
Ma Xiaowen 馬孝文, and Chen Chong 陳翀. 2014. "Xiangyushu qixiang yubao fangfa ji sixiang tanxi 《相雨書》氣象預報方法及思想探析." Heilongjiang shizhi 黑龍江史志 2014 (5): 167–168.
Wu Feng 吳楓, ed. 1987. Jianming Zhongguo guji cidian 簡明中國古籍辭典, 614. Changchun: Jilin wenshi chubanshe.
Wang Yuhu 王毓瑚, ed. (1964). Zhongguo nongxue shulu 中國農學書錄, 51. Beijing: Nongye chubanshe
Yang Wenheng 楊文衡. 1997. "Xiangyushu 相雨書." In Zhonghua guocui da cidian 中華國粹大辭典, edited by Men Kui 門巋, and Zhang Yanjin 張燕瑾, 397. Xianggang: Guoji wenhua chuban gongsi.
Zhou Yao 周躍. 1996. "Xiangyushu 相雨書." In Zhonghua baike yaolan 中華百科要覽, edited by Shi Quanchang 石泉長, 966. Shengyang: Liaoning renmin chubanshe.