Shaohao ( Chinese : 少皞 ; pinyin : Shàohào ; lit. 'Lesser brightness' ), also known as Jin Tian ( 金天 ), was a legendary Chinese sovereign, usually identified as a son of the Yellow Emperor . According to some traditions, such as that within the Book of Documents , Shaohao is one of the Five Emperors . His place in the mythical lineage of the Yellow Emperor has been subject to controversy. Members of the 19th–20th century Doubting Antiquity School of historians posited that Shaohao was added to the orthodox succession legend by Liu Xin as part of a politically motivated campaign revising ancient texts c. 1 AD .
26-722: Jiaoji (? – ?) was an ancient Chinese figure and the son of Shaohao . According to the Records of the Grand Historian : Annals of the Five Emperors by Sima Qian , Jiaoji was the grandson of the Yellow Emperor and a son of Shaohao . Neither his father Shaohao nor him became the leaders ( Five Emperors ) of the Central Plains . By the end of Zhuanxu 's reign, Jiaoji's son Gaoxin (高辛氏) (or Qūn (夋)) succeeded Zhuanxu under
52-544: A group of texts written in the orthography currently in use during the Han dynasty. Historical sources record the recovery of a group of texts during the last half of the 2nd century BC from the walls of Confucius ’s old residence in Qufu , the old capital of the State of Lu , when Prince Liu Yu (d. 127 BC) attempted to expand it into a palace upon taking the throne there. In the course of taking
78-544: A prophet or "uncrowned king" that should have received the Mandate of Heaven . He could perform miracles and wrote the Five Classics himself. The New Text school, founded by Dong Zhongshu , believed the texts were sacred and carried hidden clues to the future that they tried to decode. They were also interested in apocryphal writings that were abstruse and esoteric. They believed historical events were caused by cosmic forces beyond
104-454: A star goddess—was a beautiful fairy named Huang'e, who fell in love with the planet Venus while drifting along the Milky Way . The two enjoyed many intimate nights together on her raft and they created a son. She soon gave birth to Shaohao, who grew up to be a handsome young man with a lot of potential. The Yellow Emperor—here his great-uncle—was so impressed with Shaohao that he named him God of
130-575: The Ancient Script Classics ( Chinese : 古文經 ; pinyin : Gǔwén Jīng ; Wade–Giles : Kuwen Ching ) refer to some versions of the Five Classics discovered during the Han dynasty , written in a script that predated the one in use during the Han dynasty, and produced before the burning of the books . The term became used in contrast with "Current Script Classics" (今文經), which indicated
156-485: The Doubting Antiquity School , represented by Kang Youwei , Gu Jiegang , and Qian Mu , posited that Shaohao was inserted into the orthodox lineage during the Han dynasty by imperial librarian Liu Xin , as part of a wide-ranging campaign to revise ancient texts in order to justify the present monarch—either the Han imperial house, or the brief Xin dynasty that overthrew it. According to the theory, Liu Xin
182-564: The Shiji to be the Yellow Emperor's eldest son—the incompetent Qiongji would be identified with Jiaoji , Xuanxiao's only known offspring. Jiaoji was also passed over to serve as emperor; however, his son Ku , as well as his grandsons Zhi and Yao , would all ultimately become emperors. The site traditionally claimed to be Shaohao's tomb is located in present-day Jiuxian village on the eastern outskirts of Qufu , most likely constructed during
208-630: The Song dynasty . The site also includes Shou Qiu , a pyramidal monument marking the legendary birthplace of the Yellow Emperor . In the Bamboo Annals , it is stated that Shaohao was not the Yellow Emperor's son but the son of a certain Lady Jie ( 女節 ), who miraculously conceived him after seeing a rainbow-like star flowing downwards onto Hua Islet ( 華渚 ). Another legend says that his mother—the Weaver Woman,
234-603: The Current Script Text. When Wang seized power, he declared the Ancient Script Texts to be the state orthodoxy. After the Han restoration, the Current Script Texts became orthodox again. Later Han (AD 25–220) scholars began favoring the Ancient Script Texts. Zheng Xuan synthesized the teachings of both schools. While he was very influential, he was unable to unseat the Current Script Texts orthodoxy though
260-538: The Western Heavens. According to this telling, Shaohao created a kingdom in the five mountains of the Eastern Paradise inhabited by different types of birds. As ruler of this land, he captured the identity of a vulture, and other birds worked below him: a phoenix was his Lord Chancellor, a hawk delegated the law, and a pigeon was in charge of education. He deigned that the four seasons of the year would watch over
286-472: The control of man. They also believed officials should disobey the sovereign's decree if it will harm the state or dynasty. To betray the sovereign for the sovereign's own sake will keep the Mandate of Heaven in the dynasty's hand and is an act of greater loyalty. The Ancient Script school was rationalistic. They rejected apocrypha and believed that the classics were only edited by Confucius. They believed history
SECTION 10
#1732848618602312-469: The earlier sages who founded and ruled the Zhou dynasty or even the still more archaic states which preceded it. And yet, these archaic sage-kings are shown ruling China with a bureaucratic apparatus peculiarly like that available to Han dynasty rulers, and hence by methods which strikingly echoed those of putative enemies of Wang Mang , the modernists. The Former Han (206 BC – AD 8), prior to Wang Mang, had favored
338-687: The early royal lineage during his edit of the Zuozhuan . In the Korean Samguk Sagi , it was mentioned that Kim Yu-sin was a descendant of Shaohao. Three Exalted Ones: Suiren · Fuxi · Taihao · Nüwa · Zhurong · Shennong · Yandi · Gonggong · Yellow Emperor (Huangdi) Four Perils: Gonggong · Huandou · Gun · Sanmiao · Hundun · Qiongqi · Taowu · Taotie Five Primal Emperors: Yellow Emperor (Huangdi) · Shaohao · Zhuanxu · Ku · Zhi · Yao · Shun Ancient Script Texts In Chinese philology ,
364-502: The issue became moot when both schools disappeared after the collapse of the Han. Zheng became the mainstream source of interpretation until the appearance of Neo-Confucianism in the Tang and Song dynasties . The controversy was forgotten until it was rediscovered during the Qing dynasty by scholars of Han learning . Significance of the ancient/current script text controversy is a debate topic in
390-570: The leader of the Dongyi for 84 years, during which he moved the capital to Qufu . He was succeeded by his nephew Zhuanxu , the son of his brother Changyi . However, the Shiji did not list an emperor between the Yellow Emperor and Zhuanxu. Shaohao is mentioned therein as a person living between the two fretting over an incompetent son, labelled as Qiongji ( 窮奇 ; 'Extremely odd'). If Shaohao were to be identified with Xuanxiao ( 玄囂 )—claimed by
416-506: The new orthographic standard set by Qin and its clerical script successor which evolved under Han dynasty. It was the change in orthography which divided the Warring States and early imperial period textual traditions, and in this respect the newly discovered texts were no different from those used as the basis for the "current script text" transcriptions soon after the fall of Qin dynasty . The "current script texts" portray Confucius as
442-446: The new orthography back in the beginning of 2nd century BC, either from oral transmissions or from texts that had survived the Qin dynasty's burning of the books or were rescued by the Han dynasty in the provinces. Surviving scholars in the direct line of transmission of these texts got hold of surviving copies and transliterated them into the new orthography. The "ancient script texts" were
468-496: The old wall apart, the restorers found versions of the Classic of History , Rites of Zhou , Yili , Analects of Confucius and Classic of Filial Piety , all written in the old orthography used prior to the reforms of the clerical script . Hence, they were called "Ancient Script texts". By the 1st century, a new controversy had begun between these two texts. The "current script texts" are those that had been transliterated into
494-474: The ones that off and on since the late 2nd and during the 1st century BC had turned up, some discovered in the walls of Confucius's residence, or in Warring States period graves. They were called the "ancient script texts" because they were written in the pre-Qin writing. The discoverers of the "ancient script texts", such as Liu Xin , claimed that all existing texts suffered from an interrupted pedigree, which
520-407: The regnal name of Ku . Shaohao Model humanity: Main philosophical traditions: Ritual traditions: Devotional traditions: Salvation churches and sects : Confucian churches and sects: Though its provenance can only be reliably traced from the 1st century AD onwards, the traditional story of Shaohao posits him as a son of the Yellow Emperor., Furthermore, he ruled as
546-410: The remaining birds. Although his kingdom was successful for many years, he moved back to the west and left his kingdom of birds to his son Chong. With a different son, Ru Shou, he made his home on Changliu Mountain, where he could rule over the Western Heavens. In union as father and son, they were responsible for the daily setting of the sun. In addition, Shaohao was thought to have introduced China to
SECTION 20
#1732848618602572-396: The twenty-five string lute. While no modern scholarship accepts any part of the Yellow Emperor body of myth as describing historical events, traditional Chinese historiography viewed them as real. Shaohao's place in the succession is not dateable to early sources on the topic, and has its source in the so-called " Ancient Script Texts " only. In a theory that has since been discredited,
598-425: The worship of Shaohao was brought west into Qin by migration. Documentary evidence of Shaohao originates in the extant version of the ancient text Zuozhuan , but the lineage recited there that includes Shaohao is not corroborated by contemporaneous or earlier texts. The Doubting Antiquity School therefore theorizes that Liu Xin fabricated Shaohao from an existing but separate legendary figure, and inserted him into
624-494: Was caused by human actions and viewed the Son of Heaven (the emperor of China ) as the axis mundi whose will was absolute . Officials may advise but not disobey as it is the emperor who is ultimately responsible for keeping or losing the Mandate of Heaven. The "ancient script texts" had a peculiarly archaist bent. They emphasized the sage-like as opposed to the prophet-like characteristics of Confucius, thereby making him look more like
650-446: Was keen to create a narrative which would satisfactorily reflect the five phases theory of dynastic succession, a "generative cycle" that rotated between different lineages, which would together legitimise the rule of either the Han, the Xin, or both. There is debate whether that Shaohao was a real or legendary ruler of the Dongyi , a people who lived in eastern China. It is theorized that
676-458: Was rectified by the newly discovered texts. "Current Script text" supporters claimed that the "ancient script texts" are forgeries that lack a line of transmission. In reality, the burning of the books probably did little more than symbolically burn a few copies of the Confucian books conveniently at hand in the capital. Many other copies survived elsewhere, and these were available for copying into
#601398