Reflection on Yuan Dynasty Culture

 

Reflection on Yuan Dynasty Culture

 

In the Yuan Dynasty, the culture of the Mongolian nomads entered the hinterland along with the force of force, causing an impact on the traditional Han feudal culture.

Agudengba chatted with Azhuo and Chu Sanxing about the Yuan Dynasty and the culture of the nomadic people.

Chu Sanxing asked: Mr. Agudengba, after the Mongolian nomadic culture was brought into the mainland, what changes did it bring to the customs and social trends of the Han people?

Azhuo said: I am also very curious about this. I heard that there was a dispute between "national customs" and "Han customs" in the Yuan Dynasty.

Agudenba said:

"National customs" and "Han customs" are the names for the two cultures of Mongolia and Han in the Yuan Dynasty. After the Mongolian nobles entered the interior, they took many preventive measures to prevent them from being assimilated by the Han people and tried their best to protect the original Mongolian nomadic culture.

First of all, the Mongol rulers divided the people of all ethnic groups in the country into four classes: the first class was the ancients; the second class was the Semu people, which were the people of all ethnic groups in the Western Regions; the third class was the Han people, which were the people of various ethnic groups under the rule of the Jin Dynasty. The first group of people include Khitan and Jurchen people; the fourth group is the southerners, the people of Jiangnan under the rule of the Southern Song Dynasty. This confirms the superior status of the Mongolian people over other ethnic groups and enjoys numerous political and legal privileges.

  For example, "Officials have permanent positions and positions, and the leaders are Mongolians." "Han people are not allowed to compete with military affairs." "Military status is an important part of military affairs, and Han people do not read their numbers." "The Mongols compete with the Han people. , beat the Han people, the Han people should not retaliate, but you are allowed to sue Yousi."

The Yuan Law stipulates: "Everyone who kills will die." However, the Mongols did not pay for their lives if they killed Han people. "Any Mongolian who beats a Han to death due to quarrels or drunkenness will be punished and sent to the expedition, and all the money will be burned and buried."

The principle of national oppression runs through every aspect including imperial examinations and schools. Due to the ethnic oppression policies carried out by the Mongolian rulers, the conflict between the Han feudal culture and the Mongolian nomadic culture never stopped. During the reign of Wokuotai Khan (Taizong of the Yuan Dynasty), there was a dispute. The Mongolian emperor Biedie and others proposed: "The Han people are of no use to the country and can only be regarded as pastureland." This idea represents a part of the Mongolian slave-owning aristocracy, who attempt to fully expand the nomadic culture to the Central Plains. Due to the strong opposition of Yelu Chucai, a Khitan who had become Chinese, it was not implemented. However, until the end of the Yuan Dynasty, some people still proposed to "kill the Han people with the surnames Zhang, Wang, Liu, Li, and Zhao."

Agudenba said:

Boyan, the prime minister of Emperor Shun of the Yuan Dynasty, said in a memorial: "Your Majesty has a prince who has taken a break from teaching to read Han Chinese books and interpret people, and he also likes to bully others. In the past, I had a master who had not seen him for a long time. I asked him about it. Day: 'I went to take the examination but didn't come back.' I don't want this kind of people to get the imperial examination." So Emperor Shun ordered that the imperial examination of the Ministry of Rites in February of that year be cancelled.

Emperor Yuanshun's son and Crown Prince Aita Shili Dara once said to people around him: "Mr. Li taught me to read Confucian books, but for many years I didn't know what they meant. Monk Xifan taught me Buddhist scriptures, and I understood them overnight. .”

If we say that Biedie and others advocated converting Han land into pastoral land, it represented the attitude of the Mongolian aristocrats who had just entered the Central Plains towards Han culture. Then, Boyan and others' criticism of Han culture and preventing its spread are different.

Due to the rejection of Chinese culture, Emperor Yuen Long did not learn Chinese and did not understand Chinese. There were very few Mongolian nobles who were proficient in Chinese. Han people and southerners were also "forbidden from learning Mongolian and Semu writing." The Yuan Dynasty was difficult to understand and accept, and was even resisted as a custom of national subjugation.

Azhuo and Chu Sanxing were speechless after hearing what Agudengba said.

Agudemba continued:

"For thousands of years, national customs have accumulated old dynasty honors. Once they are driven away from the idea of serving as servants, it will be very difficult to change the customs of the country's subjugation." The incident that occurred during the reign of Emperor Shizu of the Yuan Dynasty, when the king of the northwest vassal sent envoys to the court to question the crime, can very well be said. Explain the question.

The king of the northwest vassal sent envoys to the court. It is said that the old customs of this dynasty are different from those of the Han Dynasty. Today, the Han Dynasty is left to build capitals and cities. Guo Yi's system follows the Han law. What is the reason? The remarks of the northwest vassal king reflect the conservative Mongolian nobles' views on the construction that must be done to rule the Han Dynasty. Changes such as the capital city and the establishment of regulations and systems were also opposed. That is to say, they are opposed to any reform of nomadic culture.

In contrast, the Han scholar-bureaucrats also deeply resented the destruction of Chinese culture caused by the Mongolian occupation of the Central Plains. In their opinion, it is an era when "simple customs are ruined and music breaks down the ritual circle". "After the country suffered great chaos, the heavenly framework was destroyed, the earth's axis was broken, and the human principles were destroyed. The so-called creation of couples is believed by those who have father and son. In addition to the political affairs of the north and the south, they are always at odds with each other. Those who enter and leave the state affairs are all people of all countries. , I don’t understand the language. I have different tastes.”

Some people even shouted loudly: "It hurts! The customs have changed." "It's a great mourning for the world. Its customs have been messed up." "No customs have returned to the old ones. The fashion has changed, and the etiquette has declined for a long time." This change is not local. , but nationwide.

"There are no aristocratic families in the country, and there are no etiquette and customs in the countryside. Those who are capable can only survive and not be abolished. It is not the teaching of the superior, but it depends on the person." Some Han officials in the court also advised Emperor Yuan to accept Han culture. Those who have Zhongxia must practice the Han method, so that they can last for a long time. "It uses the established laws of the country and dynasties, borrows the ancient classics of the Tang and Song Dynasties, and refers to the legacy systems of the Liao and Jin Dynasties. It is decorated with texts and attached to the laws of the Han Dynasty."

Agudemba further said:

Under such a situation, in order to rule the Han Dynasty, the Mongol rulers of the Yuan Dynasty had to adopt the traditional old systems of the Jin and Song Dynasties in some aspects. However, some old Mongolian systems, especially the customs of many nomadic peoples, have been stubbornly preserved.

These customs, which are very different from Han etiquette, have always been opposed by Han officials. During the reign of Emperor Shun, Sun Liangzhen, the censor of Jurchen Wu Gu, remonstrated: "It is a custom in the country that if the father dies, the wife will follow the mother; if the brother dies, the wife will be taken in. There is no need to worry about the death of the parents." He then said: "The principles are always from heaven and cannot be controlled." "The official who discussed the law said that the people of the country should not adhere to this rule, and the people of other countries should follow their own customs. The Han people and the southerners should abide by the rules and regulations, but the people of the country and other countries do not need to abide by the rules and regulations. It is said that it is excellent, but in reality it is trapped." , if you respect them on the outside, but insult them on the inside, because of their original intention, they treat the people of the country not as kindly as the Han and Southerners. Please have a meeting with the officials and right-ranking scholars in the court. From the emperor to the common people, all From the etiquette system, we can form a code that the saints have not yet succeeded in, and clarify the difficult way for all generations."

Wugu Sun Liangzhen made it clear in this remonstrance: Mongolians and Semu people should abide by the principles of the Han people. From the emperor down to the common people, everyone must abide by the Han etiquette system, thereby incorporating the society into the traditional moral norms that will remain unchanged throughout the ages.

Agudengba sighed:

The emperor of the Yuan Dynasty ignored Wugu Sun Liangzhen's sincere speech.

Agudemba sang a song called "Cultural Reflection":

 

When we open the chapter of the Yuan Dynasty,

Like shooting stars flashing across the night sky,

After the grassland culture suddenly became splendid,

It is the long-term darkness of Confucian culture.

 

The Tatars trampled the Central Plains bloody,

Want to lose the light of Han etiquette culture,

Oppression under Mongolian foreign rule

This has intensified national conflicts among major countries.

 

The Yuan Dynasty changed ancient Chinese civilization,

Not just a painful memory,

When faced with this darkness and crying,

It should be a reflection on past mistakes.

 

We can’t just stay in compassion;

We should draw wisdom from history,

This historical intertwining of light and shadow,

It is a textbook that continues Chinese culture.

 

History is like the flickering spark,

Since it is the beacon that guides the way forward,

It is also a warning sign to remind you of risks.

Only by introspection can we keep pace with the times.