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Emperor Guangwu and Mystic Confucian Doctorine as Seen from the Political Situation of the Late Xin–Early Later Han Dynasty Eras
Get PDFAlong with development of the study of the Confucian classics (jingxue 經學) during the Han Period, there also appeared a related strain of mystic doctrine (chenwei 讖緯), related to the power of the emperors. The research to date on the use of chenwei-related works has indicated the possibility that although the writings on divination (tuchen 圖讖) done at the time of the enthronement of Later Han Emperor Guangwu (Guangwudi 光武帝; r. 25–57 CE) had no ideational connection to either Confucius or the Confucian classics, by the time of the fengshan 封禪 festivals of heaven and earth at Mt. Taishan 泰山, such prophetic writing was being influenced by Confucian ideas. The present article follows this research in considering exactly how Emperor Guangwu came to deal with chenwei works in connection with Confucian thought.
To begin with, despite the fact that the theory that Confucius had written chenwei books to testify to the establishment and continued existence of the Han dynasty (Kong Qiu Mijing 孔丘秘經 Theory) had already appeared during the last years of the Xin Dynasty, the influence of Confucian chenwei thought was no widespread; and even after the uprising and enthronement of Emperor Guangwu, little interest was directed at the connection of chenwei to Confucianism. Rather, it was a time when the Emperor regarded chenwei as being effective in more concrete matters connected to rural life, the conquest of Hebei, etc.
It was not until around the 6th year of Jianwu Era (30 CE) that Gongsun Shu 公孫述, the independent warlord of the Sichuan region, began operations to incite people by spreading the word of Confucian chenwei throughout Zhongyuan 中原. Meanwhile, beginning in the previous year, Emperor Guangwu had initiated various programs aimed at stabilizing the social crisis and chaos in the midst of military conflict through the introduction of Confucian ideas. Both movements were attempts to appeal to, agitate among and win the hearts of the people of Zhongyuan, who were by no means steadfast in loyalty to the Emperor Guangwu’s regime, by appealing to them, even if symbolically, with the then widely shared authority, i.e. Confucian ideas.
The author concludes that the preconditions for these efforts, i.e. the penetration of Confucianism into Chinese society, led to the utilization of Confucian chenwei by Emperor Guangwu, through the political tensions at the beginning of the Later Han Period.journal articl
魏文帝の国際秩序構想―「漢代の国際秩序」の継承
Get PDFThe Cao Wei 曹魏 Dynasty was a polity that faced a contradiction between its standing as a bona-fide Chinese dynasty and the reality of the Three Dynasties Period triumvirate. This article examines the idea of an international order envisioned by the Dynasty’s founder Emperor Wen 文帝 (Cao Pi 曹丕) and the background to its conceptualization.
To begin with, throughout the Later Han Period the relationship between that Dynasty and the peoples on its periphery had changed. In the north, the decline of the Xiongnu 匈奴 saw the rise of the Wuwan 烏丸 and the Xianbei 鮮卑; in the east, there was the establishment of tributary relations with the “Eastern barbarians” (Dongyi 東夷); and in the west, there was a rupture in relations with the kingdoms of the West (Xiyu 西域). Under such circumstances, newly enthroned Emperor Wen decided to follow the precedents set by the diplomacy practiced by an idealized Han Dynasty, focusing on the eras when that Dynasty was most influential in each of the three peripheral regions.
Accordingly, in the north, an equestrian nomadic hierarchical order was established placing the emirs of the Wuwan and Xianbei under the Chanyu 單于 of the Xiongnu, as during the reign of Later Han Emperor Shun 順帝; in the east, a system of receiving tribute was set up by giving special treatment to the Gongsun 公孫 Clan regime in Liaodong, which exerted strong influence on such “Eastern barbarian” tribes as the Fuyu 夫餘, in the tradition of Later Han Emperor Guangwu 光武帝; and in the west, Former Han Emperor Yuan’s 元帝 Wuji Xiaowei 戊己校尉 military order was reinstituted and Han Dynasty accomplishments in the region compiled, together with efforts to stabilize relations with the region through special treatment of the oasis city state of Jushi Houbuguo 車師後部國, which had caused the original break with the region during the Xin and Later Han Periods.
It was in this way that Emperor Wen devoted himself to inheriting the “Han Dynasty international order,” although his policies were often at odds with reality. Consequently, it is difficult to conclude that such diplomacy functioned effectively in the midst of uncertainty on all sides of the periphery. That being said, even if not fully in sync with the realities of the situation, there is no doubt that Emperor Wen attempted to gain legitimacy and authority for his Dynasty by assuming a posture of being the successor to the powerful Han Dynasty.journal articl
