司马彪

司马彪（240年代—306年），字绍统，河内温（今河南温县）人，西晋宗室、史学家、文学家。司马懿六弟司马进之孙，高阳王司马睦长子，出嗣司马懿八弟司马敏。

事迹及著作

自小好学不倦，然好色薄行，所以不得为嗣。司马睦将其出嗣，实为废除他的继承权。司马彪因此折节改志，闭门读书。晋武帝时，任秘书郎、秘书丞、散骑侍郎等职。晋惠帝末年于家中去世，享年六十余岁。

曾作《九州春秋》，记述东汉末军阀混战。又因东汉史籍记述繁杂，汉安帝、汉顺帝以后史事亡佚颇多，汇集整理群书，著成《续汉书》80卷。另有《庄子注》21卷，《兵记》20卷，文集4卷。均佚。今仅于《文选》中存《赠山涛》《杂诗》等。其《续汉书》八志后来并入范晔《后汉书》中。

评价

《晋书》：

“古之王者咸建史臣，昭法立训，莫近于此。若夫原始要终，纪情括性，其言微而显，其义皎而明，然后可以茵蔼缇油，作程遐世者也。丘明即没，班马迭兴，奋鸿笔于西京，骋直词于东观。自斯已降，分明竞爽，可以继明先典者，陈寿得之乎！江汉英灵，信有之矣。允源将率之子，笃志典坟；绍统戚籓之胤，研机载籍。咸能综缉文，垂诸不朽，岂必克传门业，方擅箕裘者哉！处叔区区，励精著述，混淆芜舛，良不足观。叔宁寡闻，穿窬王氏，虽勒成一家，未足多尚。令升、安国有良史之才，而所著之书惜非正典。悠悠晋室，斯文将坠。邓粲、谢沈祖述前史，葺宇重轩之下，施床连榻之上，奇词异义，罕见称焉。习氏、徐公俱云笔削，彰善瘅恶，以为惩劝。夫蹈忠履正，贞士之心；背义图荣，君子不敢。而彦威迹沦寇壤，逡巡于伪国；野民运遭革命，流涟于旧朝。行不违言，广得之矣。”

赞“陈寿含章，岩岩孤峙。彪溥励节，摛辞综理。王恧雅才，虞惭惇史。干孙抚翰，前良可拟。邓谢怀铅，异闻无纪。习亦研思，徐非绚美，咸被简册，共传遥祀。”

诗赞

唐太宗作诗赞其《志》：

Sima Biao (Chinese: 司馬彪; between 238 and 246 – 306?), style name Shaotong (紹統), was an historian and nobleman during the Jin dynasty of China.

Biography

Born under Cao Wei, Sima Biao was the eldest son of Sima Mu (司馬睦), Prince of Gaoyang. His grandfather was Sima Jin (司馬進), younger brother of Sima Yi. This made Sima Biao one of many second-cousins to Emperor Wu of Jin, grandson of Sima Yi and founding emperor of the Jin dynasty. Although the eldest son, Sima Biao was disinherited by his father due to his love of leisure and sex, pushing him onto a scholarly career path.

Appointed to minor sinecures, he began to work on literature and history, annotating the Zhuangzi and the Huainanzi, and writing the Chronicles of the Nine States (九州春秋; Jiuzhou Chunqiu). Lamenting the absence of a coherent history of the Eastern Han, Sima Biao began collating various sources into what would become his greatest work, the Continuation of the Book of Han (續漢書), covering the two hundred years from Emperor Guangwu of Han to Emperor Xian of Han. He also edited Qiao Zhou's Examination of Ancient History (古史考), altering over two hundred events so they would comply with the Bamboo Annals.

Works

Sima Biao's Continuation of the Book of Han was one of many attempts during the Jin dynasty to create a history of the Eastern Han. Like most traditional Chinese histories, his book was arranged into annals and biographies, along with eight treatises, and ran to a total length of 80 fascicles. Of these, all have been lost but the five volumes of treatises, on the topics of the calendar, ceremony, rituals, astronomy, the five phases, geography, bureaucracy, vehicles, and clothing. These have been incorporated into Fan Ye's Book of the Later Han, and Sima Biao is sometimes credited as a coauthor on that work.

Titles and appointments held

Commandant of Cavalry (騎都尉)

Assistant in the Palace Library (秘書郎)

Vice Director of the Palace Library (秘書丞)

Gentleman Cavalier Attendant (散騎侍郎)