Su Shi

Su Shi (1036-1101), with courtesy name Zizhan and literary name Dongpo Jushi (Resident of Dongpo), was one of major literatis in Song era. Su excelled in the shi, ci and fu forms of poetry, as well as prose, calligraphy and painting. He was often considered the greatest poet in Song Dynasty and one of ``the Eight Greatest Essayists in Tang and Song Era``.He was born in Meishan, Sichuan province. Su lived in a period of a chaotic political faction. In 1074, he served as a magistrate in Mizhou, which is located in modern day Zhucheng city of Shandong province. That year coincided with a year of famine and plague of locusts. Su devoted himself to fighting with all these disasters. After improvement of people`s life, he implemented necessary construction including Chaoran Tai, Erquan Pavilion, and Changshan Temple. Su loved the people and scenery in Mizhou. He had travelled over many mountains, such as mounts of Wulian, Jiuxian, Marong, Changshan, Lushan and Zhangri. At the same time, he wrote his travel experience in essays, poems and ci, such as Chaoran Tai Ji, ``Hunting in Mizhou`` to the tone of Jianchengzi, and ``Ming Yue Ji Shi You`` to the tone of Shuidiaogetou. In 1076 (Xining 9th year), Su left Mizhou. He had gained great respect from the people there. People built a temple and a shrine in his honor in Chaoran Tai to show their respect.