Xia yang, county name, near Longmen. Therefore, Sima Qian claimed to be "moving to Longmen" (Preface to Taishi Gong). Longmen, Longmen Mountain, is very famous. Legend has it that Dayu once opened a mountain in Longmen to control water. To the south of Longmen Mountain is the Yellow River. Sima Qian's home is between the Yellow River and Longmen. There are many local places of interest. Sima Qian liked scenic spots since childhood, but he also had the opportunity to hear many historical legends and stories.
[Edit this paragraph] The life of the character
There is no clear history of Sima Qian's birth and death. According to Wang Guowei's research on Taishi Gongxing Year, Sima Qian was born in the fifth year of Emperor Jing of Han Dynasty (145 BC) and died in the first year of Emperor Zhao of Han Dynasty (86 BC) at the age of 60. It is said that Sima Qian's family is a historian and writer who passed down from Tang Yu to Zhou. Sima Cuo was a famous soldier when King Hui of Qin attacked Shu, and Sima Chang was an iron-fisted official of Qin Shihuang. Sima Tan, Sima Qian's father, was also an official of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and he resumed his ancestral career as a historian.
Location of Hancheng, the birthplace of Sima Qian
In Sima Qian's youth, he "cultivated the grandchildren of rivers and mountains". Sima Qian grew up in this natural environment (Preface to Hancheng County Records) and had some experience in folk life.
At the age of ten, Sima Qian followed his father to Chang 'an, the capital, where he studied under the old doctor Fu Sheng and the great scholar Kong Anguo. Family learning is deeply rooted, and it has benefited a lot from the education of famous teachers and inspiration. At this time, the Han Dynasty was strong, the economy was prosperous, and the culture was prosperous. Zhang Qian went to the Western Regions, Wei Qing and Huo Qubing wiped out the Xiongnu, and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty established Yuefu ...; That's when Sima Qian was rich in knowledge and keen to be born in Beijing.
Around the age of twenty, Sima Qian began to travel abroad-"traveling south to Jianghuai, attending meetings, exploring Yu caves, spying on nine doubts, floating in Yuan, Xiang, covering Wen and Si in the north, talking about the capital of Qi and Lu, observing the legacy of Confucius, and shooting Zou, Yi, Er, Kun, Xue, Yu Xiang, Du Liang and Chu back to China." After returning to Chang 'an, he became a close minister of the emperor and went to Pingliang and Kongdong with Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty to serve Bashu. He went to Kunming at the southernmost tip. According to Sima Qian himself, when he was a teenager, he used to "plow mountains and rivers and graze the sun of rivers and mountains", which means that he did some farm work in his hometown when he was a child. Later, his father Sima Tan made an imperial edict in Chang 'an, and Sima Qian also went to Chang 'an with his father. Under the guidance of his father, he studied hard and laid a deep cultural foundation. He worshipped many famous teachers as his teachers. Sima Qian's family, that is, his family, has been historians for generations. As a historian, he has the responsibility to record the words and deeds of emperors and sages, collect and sort out the heritage of the world, and provide reference for the rulers at that time through narrators. Then his father, Sima Tan, was interested in sorting out the history of the Chinese nation for thousands of years and tried to write an unprecedented historical work. Is to write history books, since his father began to have such an ideal, after his father made an official order, he began to collect and read historical materials to prepare for the revision of history. However, Sima Tan felt that he was too old to write a historical work independently in time, energy and knowledge. Therefore, Sima Tan has high hopes for his son Sima Qian, hoping that he can participate in it as soon as possible and finally realize such a great ambition.
So, he asked his son to go to Wan Li Road on the basis of studying in thousands of books, and he asked his son to roam the country for more than two years. So I want to introduce Sima Qian's roaming here, so Sima Qian began to roam at the age of 20. Sima Qian was preparing for a field trip to write historical records. He personally interviewed and obtained many first-hand materials, which ensured the authenticity and scientificity of historical records. Then his roaming is also the concrete embodiment of the spirit of Historical Records.
For example, he roamed to the bank of the Miluo River, and Qu Yuan threw himself into the river. He read Qu Yuan's poems aloud. He wept bitterly, so he was so emotional when he wrote Biographies of Qu Yuan that he went to see it himself. He wrote Qu Yuan on the basis of studying Qu Yuan. For example, in Huaiyin, Han Xin's hometown, he also collected many stories about Han Xin. For example, he asked others himself that Han Xin was cheated and humiliated. As we all know, this allusion, why can Han Xin be cheated and humiliated without getting angry? I didn't do anything illegal, but endured it. Han Xin is so tall that he climbs between the legs of a rogue. If he follows his character, he will be killed with one knife. But if you kill him, can you make achievements in the future? Han Xin later helped Liu Bang overthrow the Qin Dynasty, set up the Western Han Dynasty, made the king a Hou, and returned to his hometown. Han Xin himself said that if I had killed you, I wouldn't have made great achievements later, so if I didn't take responsibility, I wouldn't have made great achievements.
For example, in Qufu, he paid a visit to the tomb of Confucius, stayed with some Confucian scholars in Confucius' hometown, bowed step by step arm in arm, learned to ride horses, learn archery and learn ancient rituals to express his memory of Confucius.
For another example, in Xuecheng, Meng Changjun's hometown, he went to the countryside to inspect the folk customs, and what was the relationship between the folk customs of this place and the hospitality cultivation of Meng Changjun literati in those days, so he went all the way and inspected it all the way. It can be said that during his roaming journey, Sima Qian never let go of anyone who knows history, nor did he let go of any story left in people's mouth-to-mouth, and gained many historical materials that he could not get from ancient books. At the same time, he went deep into the people.
In addition, he traveled all over the famous mountains and rivers, appreciated the magnificence of the motherland's mountains and rivers, cultivated his own temperament, and thus improved the expressive force of his literature. So I want to talk about Sima Qian's roaming here, which is a very solid step for Sima Qian to succeed. Is a very typical so-called read thousands of books, Wan Li Road.
In the first year of Yuanfeng (1 10 years ago), Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty made a grand tour to worship Zen, with 180,000 cavalry and thousands of flags. Sima Qian's father, Sima Tan, is a historian. He should have gone to work, but he died in Luoyang. Sima Qian accepted his father's wishes, rushed to Mount Tai, attended meditation, and then returned to Chang 'an along the East China Sea, bypassing the Great Wall beyond the Great Wall.
In the third year of Yuanfeng (BC 108), when Sima Qian was 38 years old, he officially wrote a letter to revise the history and had the opportunity to read all the books, files and various historical materials hidden in the Han Dynasty court. While sorting out historical materials, he participated in the revision of the calendar. In the first year of Tai Chu (BC 104), China's first almanac, taichu calendar, was written, and he began to write historical records. Historical Records tells many stories of capable people.
In the second year of Tianhan (the first 99 years), Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent Li Guangli, the general of the Second Division, to take 30,000 soldiers to attack the Xiongnu, which was defeated and almost completely annihilated, and Li Guangli fled back. Li Guang's grandson, Li Ling, then served as a captain on horseback, fighting the Huns with 5,000 infantry. Khan personally led thirty thousand cavalry to surround the infantry of Liling. Although Li Ling's archery was good and the soldiers were brave, five thousand infantry killed five or six thousand tarquin. Khan assigned more troops, but he still couldn't compete with Li Ling. Just as Khan was preparing to withdraw, a soldier of Liling defected and reported the military situation inside Liling. Tell Khan that there are no reinforcements behind Li Ling, and teach Khan's men to make bows and arrows that can be shot repeatedly. Khan then continued to fight with Li Ling. In the end, Li Ling was outnumbered, leaving only more than 400 Han soldiers to break through. Li Ling was captured by the Huns and surrendered.
Ministers condemned Li Ling for not being afraid of death and surrendering to the Huns. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty asked Taishi to ask Sima Qian to listen to his opinion.
Sima Qian said, "Li Ling has less than 5,000 infantry. He went deep into the enemy's hinterland and struck tens of thousands of enemies. Although he lost the battle, he killed so many enemies that he can tell the world. Li Ling refused to die at once, so he must have an idea. He must want to atone and repay the emperor. "
Hearing this, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty thought that Sima Qian's defense of Li Ling was intended to belittle Li Guangli (Li Guangli was the younger brother of Emperor Wu's favorite concubine), and he flew into a rage and said, "Defending those who surrendered to the enemy is not intended to oppose the court?" He put Sima Qian in prison and handed him over to Ting Wei for interrogation. After Sima Qian went to prison, the case fell into the hands of Du Zhou, a notorious cruel official at that time. Du Zhou tortured Sima Qian, and Sima Qian endured all kinds of cruel physical and mental torture. In the face of cruel officials, he never gave in or confessed. Sima Qian kept asking himself in prison: "Is this my sin? Is this my sin? I am a courtier, can't I express my opinion? " Soon, it was rumored that Li Ling led Xiongnu soldiers to attack the Han Dynasty. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty believed it and hastily killed Li Ling's mother, wife and son. Sima Qian was also sentenced to death for this incident. The following year, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty killed Li Ling's family, and Sima Qian was castrated. Corruption is a great shame, polluting ancestral businesses and making friends. Sima Qian was humiliated in prison. "Hand in hand, tied by a wooden rope, exposed skin, tied by a list, living in seclusion in the wall. At this time, when I saw the jailer, I grabbed the land. When I saw the apprentice, I was anxious. " (Sima Qian's Bao Ren An Shu) almost ruined his life. He wanted to die, but he thought of the information he had collected for many years and said, "People are inherently mortal, either heavier than Mount Tai or lighter than a feather." . I have a long-cherished wish to write history books, so in order to complete the writing of historical records, I have to bear the burden of humiliation and drag out an ignoble existence, hoping for a chance.
In the first year of Taishi (96 BC), Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty changed to the Yuan Dynasty and granted amnesty to the world. Sima Qian was 50 years old at this time. After he got out of prison, he became a secretary. In the eyes of others, he may be "pampered", but he still devotes himself to writing his book. Until the book was completed in Zheng He's second year (9 1 year ago), * * * got 130 articles, with more than 520,000 words.
Later generations spoke highly of Sima Qian, saying that "the articles in the Western Han Dynasty were two Sima, and the economy in Nanyang was one Wolong", which was as famous as Sima Xiangru, a great writer in the Western Han Dynasty, and Zhuge Liang, the most brilliant figure in the Three Kingdoms period.
Sima Qian as an astrologer: Among the astrologers in the Han Dynasty, Sima Qian should be put forward first. Everyone knows that Sima Qian is a great historian, but they don't know that he is also an expert in astronomy and astrology. In fact, as long as you carefully read his Historical Records, Official Books, Law Books and Almanac, you will understand that calling him an expert in astronomical astrology is by no means a hollow name. A profound literary master like Sima Qian will never define his own scope and limit his own knowledge system and exploration field. Ancient palaces in history have always regarded ephemeris as one of their duties, so it is not surprising that they are proficient in astrology. Sima Qian, on the other hand, can combine astrology with historical issues and study the changes of ancient and modern times with the foresight of historians, which is beyond the reach of other astrologers and historians. Sima Qian did not use astrology to measure specific personnel changes, but summed up historical laws, which can not be said to be his creative application of Galaxy Studies.
Sima Qian inherited his father's legacy and completed the task of "deducing the changes in ancient times" in Historical Records, which was clearly stated as "connecting the changes in ancient times and modern times and studying the time between man and nature". His conclusion is expressed in the Book of Heaven, that is, according to the astrological phenomena such as the thirty-six eclipses and the three sightings of comets in the Spring and Autumn Period of 242, the contact points are the decline of the emperor, various political events, the rise of the Five Dynasties and the Warring States, Qin and Han Dynasties. This is the most important example of Sima Qian's application of astrology, which occupies the highest position in the whole history of astrology education.
In addition, Sima Qian also summarized the basic principles of astrology since the Warring States Period, which are expressed as follows (also recorded in official books):
"I carefully consulted the records of historical books and investigated the events in history. I found that in 100 years, all five stars were retrograde. When the five stars are retrograde, they often become particularly bright. The eclipse of the sun and the moon and its movement from south to north have a certain speed and period, which is the most basic data on which astrology is based. The Purple Palace Star Wall, the four palaces in the sky, the stars in the east, west, north and south, and their countless stars are all in the same position, and their sizes and mutual distances are constant. Their distribution and arrangement symbolize the position of the five senses in the sky. This is the basis of astrology as a' classic', that is, unchanged. Water, fire, gold, wood and Saturn are the five auxiliary elements of heaven. Their appearance and concealment have a certain time and period, but their running speed is uneven. This is the' latitude' in astrology, which is the part that changes through purple. By combining these fixed and changing astrology, we can predict the changes of personnel.