Chu people have always had profound astronomical knowledge and made outstanding achievements during the Warring States Period. In order to systematically observe the movements and positions of the sun, the moon and the five planets (water, gold, fire, wood and earth), the ancients divided the nearby stars into 28 pieces (zones), which were called 28 nights (stars). The establishment of Twenty-eight Hostels System is a significant development of astronomy in China and other ancient civilizations in the world. Among them, China and India appeared earlier. )。
The name of the Twenty-eight Hostel was first found in the book "Spring and Autumn Annals of Pinshi" written at the end of the Warring States Period: "Day and night are a week, and the Tao is also good. On the 28 th night of the month, it belongs to the horn. " Lv's Spring and Autumn Annals records the names of 28 hotels from Jiao to Ba: Jiao, Kang, Bi, Fang, Xin, Wei, Ji, Dou, Petunia, Wu, Xu, Wei, Ying, Dong, Kui, Lou, Wei and Bi. , Ginseng, Cave Sutra, Ghost, Willow, Seven Stars, Zhang, Yuanbao, Qi. According to the historical records "Tianguanshu" and "Hanshu Tianwenzhi", it was Gan Gong and Shi Shen who founded the twenty-eight lodging system in the middle of the Warring States Period. (In Records of the Historian, Tian Guanshu, Gan Gong, Shi Shenfu and Chu and Tang Dynasties were listed as "handed down from generation to generation", which shows that they were people in the middle of the Warring States Period. ) Shi Shen, Ren Wei; Gan Gong, a native of Chu, is also an astronomer engaged in astronomical research in Chu (Historical Records, Tianguanshu, Houhanshu Tianwenzhi says that Gan Gong is a neat person; Justice in Historical Records quoted Ruan Xiaoxu's Seven Records and Records of Han Dynasty as saying that Gan Gong was a native of Chu. "Historical Records" quoted Guangxu as saying that Gan Gong was originally from Shandong. Therefore, he may have originated in Shandong, and later traveled to Qi and Chu to engage in astronomical research. ) 1978, a lacquer box was unearthed from the tomb of Zeng Houyi in Suizhou, Hubei Province (early Warring States period). The name of Twenty-eight Hostels and the patterns of Qinglong and Baihu are painted on the box cover, which shows that Chu established the system of Twenty-eight Hostels as early as the early Warring States period, which fully proves that Chu people have been engaged in astronomical research for a long time. The name of Lacquer Box Twenty-eight Hostels is basically the same as that of Shishen Stars, but it is quite different from that of Ganxingsu, which reflects the similarities and differences of Xia and Chu cultures and their integration trend from one side.
According to Zhou Li's Examination of Gong Ji and Shiji Tian Guan Shu, in ancient China, 28 families were divided into four groups: east, west, north and south, represented by Qinglong, Baihu, Suzaku and Xuanwu (tortoise and snake), which were called "four elephants". The east and west sides of the lacquer box cover are painted with dragons and white tigers, which are the east and west images of the four elephants. The north-south portrait may not be drawn because of the limitation of the picture. It can be seen that the division of Twenty-eight Hostels and Four Elephants is closely related, and Chu was widely spread as early as the early Warring States period.
There is a huge word "Dou" in the center of the lacquer box, which shows that Chu people attach importance to the observation of the Big Dipper in order to "divide Yin and Yang, build the four seasons, balance the five elements, move the festival and set the discipline" (historical records, official books). At the end of the Warring States Period, the Taoist Guan Zi of Chu pointed out: "The barrel handle points to the east, and the world is spring; Bucket handle guide, the world is summer; Bucket handle refers to the west, and the world is autumn; Bucket handle refers to the north, and it is winter in the world. " ("Bird's Crown Circulation"). ) reflects the traditional achievements of Chu people in the field of astronomy
1973, the silk book "Astronomical astrology" was unearthed from the No.3 Han Tomb in Mawangdui, Changsha. According to textual research, this silk book was written by Chu people during the Warring States Period (edited by Zhang's Records of Chu Culture). There are 29 pictures of comets with different names and shapes painted on silk, which is the earliest picture in the world to describe the different shapes of comets in detail, and it is undoubtedly extremely precious astronomical research data.
Some chapters in the Songs of the South also leave records of the achievements of Chu people in astronomical research. For example, Qu Yuan's Tian Wen: "When is it obvious and secret?"? The combination of yin and yang, what is this? 10% off the circle, this is business? But what did you do? " "? What is the dimension? How about celestial pole? What are the eight pillars? What's the loss in the southeast? "It is said that the universe is dark and chaotic, yin and yang are two gases, and they are formed by metaplasia. The sky is like a dome, supported by eight pillars. Song Yu's Da Yan Fu: "The square is the car, and the circle is the cover." It can be seen that Chu people's view of the world is the earliest "Gaitian theory" in ancient China. Another example is Tian Wen: "What day is it today [the bow is finished]? Yanwu Xie Yu? " The crow in the sun mentioned here is the sunspot phenomenon in the sun. The knowledge of astronomy accumulated by Chu people is extremely rich, but the poet only reflects it in an artistic way.
On the original basis, the Chu people made outstanding achievements in mathematics during the Warring States period. At the beginning of 1983+0984, a large number of bamboo slips were unearthed in Zhangjiashan tomb in Jiangling, Hubei Province, among which the important content was "Shu Shu". In addition, some important cultural relics such as calculation and compilation have been unearthed (a large number of bamboo slips have been unearthed from three Han tombs in Zhangjiashan, Jiangling) (Cultural Relics 1985. 1). According to Hou Dejun's textual research, the owner of the tomb was Chu, who fell to Han in the early Han Dynasty and was at home after "illness". His Shu Shu may have been written by Chu people, which represents Chu's mathematical level (Hou Dejun's History of Chu Science and Technology). ) Arithmetic book is a set of mathematical problems, including multiplication and division, addition and subtraction, and multiplication and division. Among them, Shao Guang Jiu Zhang Arithmetic, written in the Han Dynasty, is the crystallization of mathematical research after the Western Han Dynasty. Because it was officially written in the first century AD, some scholars listed it as a mathematical work in the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty. ) the title is the same and the content is similar. So "Nine Chapters Arithmetic" contains part of the contents of "Arithmetic", which is a mathematical work earlier than "Nine Chapters Arithmetic". 1).
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The development of ancient medicine in China was very early. Some medical prescriptions unearthed from Mawangdui Han Tomb in Changsha were popular during the Warring States Period. Among them, the unearthed Chinese herbal medicines such as Flos Magnoliae, Zanthoxylum bungeanum, Du Heng and Eupatorium odoratum are also recorded in The Songs of the South. The unearthed corpse (female) holds two silk bags in her hand, which contain a variety of drugs, most of which are Xin Wen. According to the pathological examination of the ancient corpse, the deceased suffered from coronary heart disease, gallstones and other diseases before his death, so he often took such drugs. The time of the tomb was around 160 BC, shortly after the death of Chu, so the medicine was inherited from the Chu people at that time. 1975, a male corpse of the Western Han Dynasty was unearthed in the tomb of Fenghuang Mountain in Jinan City, Jiangling 168, and was buried in 167 BC, slightly earlier than the female corpse of Mawangdui. At the same time, bamboo leaves pepper, ginger and other drugs were unearthed. After dissection, the deceased suffered from gallstones, schistosomiasis and other diseases before his death, and the unearthed Chinese herbal medicines may be the drugs he took before his death. When the male corpse was unearthed, the skin, muscles and other soft tissues were still elastic, the teeth were intact and firm, and the corpse did not rot for too long. The important reason is that the inner coffin contains about 6.5438+10,000 ml of coffin liquid containing flowing mercury and other components, which was dark red when unearthed. It shows that Chu people are not only familiar with the knowledge of Chinese herbal medicine, but also master the properties of chemical drugs to a certain extent. In addition, due to the warm and humid climate in Chu, Chu people also like to wear sachets filled with medicines such as Eupatorium odoratum and vanilla, sleep on pillows filled with Flos Magnoliae and Maoxiang, and burn spices containing volatile oil, such as Zanthoxylum bungeanum, indoors for air disinfection. This is a traditional custom of Chu State. Qu Yuan chanted in "Li Chu Sao Ge": "Shanghai River is separated from Xi Zhi, thinking it can be admired." The pottery fuming stove unearthed from the Chu tomb in Yangjiawan, Changsha, and the bronze fuming cup unearthed from the Chu tomb in Yutaishan, Jiangling were used for incense disinfection. Today, in rural areas and towns in Hunan and Hubei, every household has to hang Acorus calamus and Folium Artemisiae Argyi on the Dragon Boat Festival and make them into small sachets to wear on children, thinking that they can ward off evil spirits, sterilize and resist diseases.