He Xian (simplified: 何咸, traditional: 何咸, pinyin: Hé Xián) was the son of He Jin, General-in-Chief of the Eastern Han dynasty. He died early, but his legacy survives through his son He Yan, one of the most important philosophers of the Wei period.
Biography
He Xian was the son of He Jin. Little is recorded of his own life; he died young, before his father’s assassination in 189 CE.
After his death, his widow Lady Yin (尹氏) became a concubine of Cao Cao. She brought her young son He Yan into the Cao household, where He Yan was raised alongside Cao Cao’s own sons. He Yan went on to become one of the most prominent intellectuals of the Wei dynasty, a leading figure of the Xuanxue (玄學) or “Neo-Daoist” philosophical movement. He was executed in 249 CE during the political purge following Sima Yi’s coup.