孝武本紀（下）

The following year in winter, the Emperor declared: “In antiquity, one first reviewed the troops and purified the army, and only then performed the feng and shan sacrifices.” He then toured north to Shuofang, reviewed over one hundred thousand soldiers, returned to sacrifice at the Yellow Emperor’s tomb on Bridge Mountain, and purified the troops at Xuru. The Emperor said: “I have heard that the Yellow Emperor did not die. Why then is there a tomb?” Someone replied: “The Yellow Emperor had already become an immortal and ascended to heaven. His ministers merely buried his cap and robes.” Upon reaching Ganquan, in preparation for the ceremony at Mount Tai, the Emperor first performed a lei sacrifice to Taiyi.

Ever since the precious tripod had been obtained, the Emperor discussed the feng and shan sacrifices with his ministers and scholars. Because the feng and shan had been so rarely performed, no one knew the proper ritual. The Confucian scholars gathered references to the suburban wang sacrifice and the shooting of the sacrificial ox from the Book of Documents, the Rites of Zhou, and the Royal Regulations. A man of Qi named Master Ding, over ninety years old, said: “The feng sacrifice is connected with the name of immortality. The First Emperor of Qin was unable to ascend to perform the feng. If Your Majesty truly wishes to ascend, go up gradually — if there is no wind or rain, then proceed with the feng ceremony.”

The Emperor thereupon ordered the Confucians to practice the ox-shooting rite and draft a feng and shan ritual. After several years, the time to act arrived. Having heard from Gongsun Qing and the fangshi that all rulers from the Yellow Emperor onward who performed the feng and shan had attracted marvels and communed with the spirits, the Emperor wished to emulate the Yellow Emperor in seeking immortals and the adepts of Penglai, to transcend the age and match his virtue with the Nine Sovereigns of old — and merely to use Confucian learning to ornament the occasion. The Confucian scholars, for their part, could not clearly explain the feng and shan ceremony, and were too constrained by the Odes, the Documents, and the ancient texts to venture freely. When the Emperor displayed the sacrificial vessels he had made, some of the Confucians said: “These do not match the ancient practice.” Xu Yan further said: “The students under the Grand Master of Ceremonies perform the rites less well than those of Lu.” Zhou Ba took it upon himself to draft plans for the feng ceremony. At this, the Emperor dismissed Xu Yan and Zhou Ba and cashiered all the Confucians, refusing to employ them.

In the third month, the Emperor proceeded east to Goushi, where he performed rites and ascended Mount Taishi, the Central Peak. Attendants at the base of the mountain heard what sounded like a voice calling “Ten thousand years!” When asked, those above denied speaking; when asked, those below also denied it. Thereupon three hundred households were enfeoffed to maintain the sacrifices at Mount Taishi, and the place was named Chonggao — “Lofty Heights” — District. The Emperor then went east and ascended Mount Tai. Since the grasses and trees on the mountain had not yet put forth their leaves, he ordered men to haul a stone up and erect it at the summit of Mount Tai.

The Emperor then continued east, touring along the coast and performing sacrificial rites at the shrines of the Eight Spirits. Men of Qi who submitted memorials claiming knowledge of marvels and extraordinary techniques numbered in the tens of thousands, yet none produced any verified results. The Emperor nevertheless dispatched still more ships and ordered several thousand people who claimed knowledge of the divine mountains in the sea to search for the immortals of Penglai.

Gongsun Qing, carrying the imperial tally, constantly traveled ahead to scout the famous mountains. Arriving at Donglai, he reported that at night he had seen a figure several zhang tall, but when he approached it, it vanished — he could only see its tracks, which were very large and resembled those of a beast or bird. Some courtiers also reported seeing an old man leading a dog who said: “I wish to see the Great Lord,” and then suddenly vanished. The Emperor had seen the large tracks but was not yet convinced; when his courtiers reported the old man, however, he became firmly persuaded it was an immortal. He lingered by the sea, and the fangshi traveling by relay carriage, along with secret emissaries sent to find immortals, numbered in the thousands.

In the fourth month, the Emperor returned to Fenggao. He reflected that what the Confucians and fangshi each said about the feng and shan was inconsistent with one another, lacked canonical basis, and was difficult to put into practice.

The Emperor arrived at Liangfu, where he performed rites and sacrificed to the Lord of the Earth. On the yimao day, he ordered the Palace Attendant Confucians to don leather caps and sashes and shoot the sacrificial ox to begin proceedings. The feng sacrifice was performed on the east side at the base of Mount Tai, following the rite used for the suburban sacrifice to Taiyi. The altar was twelve feet wide and nine feet high; beneath it were jade tablets inscribed with a text that was kept secret. When the rite was complete, the Emperor alone, accompanied only by his Palace Attendant and the Chariot Attendant Zihou, ascended Mount Tai, where another feng ceremony was performed. The details of this ceremony were all kept secret.

The next day, they descended by the northern path. On the bingchen day, the shan sacrifice was performed at Mount Suran, northeast of the base of Mount Tai, following the rites used for sacrifices to the Sovereign Earth. The Emperor personally performed the prostrations, wearing yellow upper garments, and music was used throughout. Three-ridged rushes from between the Yangtze and Huai rivers served as the sacred matting. Soils of five colors were added and mixed into the altar mound. Exotic beasts, flying birds, and white pheasants from distant regions were released as additional offerings to the ceremony. Rhinoceroses, yaks, and elephants were not used. All offerings were brought to Mount Tai and then released. During the night of the feng and shan sacrifices there appeared to be a luminous glow, and by day white clouds rose from within the altar mound.

When the Emperor returned from the feng and shan sacrifices, he took his seat in the Bright Hall and the assembled ministers offered their congratulations in turn. Thereupon he issued an edict to the Imperial Secretary:

“We, in Our insignificant person, have inherited the supreme position, and tremblingly fear that We are not equal to it. Our virtue is thin and meager; We lack clarity in matters of ritual and music. In performing the sacrifices to Taiyi, there appeared auspicious images and radiant light, and the omens seemed to confirm Our hopes. Drawn by these marvels and unable to hold back, We ascended to perform the feng on Mount Tai, proceeded to Liangfu, and then performed the shan at Suran. Let this mark a renewal. We are pleased to share a new beginning with all officials and scholars. Grant to the common people one ox per hundred households and ten shi of wine. To those aged eighty and above, and to orphans and widows, give two bolts of cloth and silk. Exempt Bo, Fenggao, Sheqiu, and Licheng from this year’s taxes. Let a general amnesty be proclaimed throughout All-Under-Heaven, following the yimao amnesty decree. In places We have passed through, let there be no further corvée labor. Cases from more than two years ago shall no longer be heard.”

A further edict was issued: “In antiquity, the Son of Heaven made an inspection tour once every five years and performed ceremonies at Mount Tai, and the feudal lords had lodging places for their court audiences. Let each feudal lord now build a residence at the foot of Mount Tai.”

Now that the Emperor had completed the feng and shan at Mount Tai without incident of wind, rain, or calamity, the fangshi declared anew that the divine mountains of Penglai seemed within reach. The Emperor was elated at the prospect of encountering them and traveled east once more to gaze out over the sea, hoping to reach Penglai.

The Chariot Attendant Zihou fell suddenly ill and died within a single day. The Emperor then departed, traveling along the coast northward to Jieshi, touring from Liaoxi, passing along the northern frontier to Jiuyuan. In the fifth month, he returned to Ganquan. The responsible officials proposed that since the precious tripod had appeared, the era should be called Yuanding (“Origin of the Tripod”), and that the present year should become the first year of Yuanfeng (“Origin of the Feng Sacrifice”).

That autumn, a bushy star appeared in the Eastern Well constellation. More than ten days later, another bushy star appeared in the Three Legs constellation. The qi-observer Wang Shuo said: “In my watch I alone saw a star emerge shaped like a gourd; after the space of a meal, it re-entered.” The responsible officials declared: “Your Majesty has established the feng and shan sacrifices for the house of Han. Heaven has responded with virtue-stars.”

The following year in winter, the Emperor performed the suburban sacrifice to the Five Emperors at Yong, and upon his return performed rites and prayers at the shrine of Taiyi. The hymn of offering said: “The virtue-stars shine and spread forth — these are auspicious signs. The longevity-star appears again, its deep brilliance shining bright. The faithfulness-star is clearly seen. The Emperor reverently bows in this grand offering of prayer.”

In spring, Gongsun Qing reported that he had seen a spirit on the mountains of Donglai, and that the spirit had seemingly said: “I wish to see the Emperor.” The Emperor thereupon visited Goushi and promoted Gongsun Qing to Grand Palace Gentleman. He then proceeded to Donglai and lingered for several days, but saw nothing — only the large footprints appeared again. He once more dispatched fangshi by the thousands to seek marvels and gather magical mushrooms and drugs.

That year there was a drought. The Emperor, having come out on no specific pretext, prayed at Wanli Sands, then passed by to sacrifice at Mount Tai. Returning to Huzi, he personally oversaw the blocking of the breach in the Yellow River. He stayed for two days, performed a sinking sacrifice, and departed. He ordered two ministers to lead soldiers in closing the breach. The river was diverted into two channels, restoring the old courses of Yu the Great.

At this time, since the Nanyue kingdom had been destroyed, a Yue man named Yong Zhi declared: “The Yue people customarily believe in ghosts, and in their sacrifices they actually see ghosts — repeatedly with proven efficacy. In former times, the King of Dong’ou revered the ghosts and lived to one hundred and sixty years of age. Later generations grew lax and negligent, and thus declined.”

Thereupon the Emperor ordered Yue shamans to establish Yue-style prayer shrines. These had platforms but no earthen altars, and sacrificed to the heavenly spirits, the High God, and the hundred ghosts, using chicken-bone divination. The Emperor believed in it, and from this time the Yue sacrificial rites and chicken-bone divination came into use at court.

Gongsun Qing said: “Immortals can be seen, but Your Majesty has always been in a hurry when traveling, and this is why they have not appeared. If Your Majesty were to build an observatory, like the one at Goushi, and set out dried meats and dates, the spirit-people could surely be attracted. Moreover, immortals prefer to dwell in tall towers.”

The Emperor thereupon ordered the Feilian and Gui observatories to be built at Chang’an, and the Yiyan Longevity Observatory to be built at Ganquan. He sent Gongsun Qing with an imperial tally to set up ritual equipment and watch for spirit-people. He also built the Heaven-Reaching Terrace and placed sacrificial equipment at its base, intending to attract immortals and their kind. At Ganquan, a new front hall was added, and all the palace buildings began to be expanded.

In summer, magical mushrooms grew on the balustrade within the inner palace. Because the Emperor had blocked the river breach and raised the Heaven-Reaching Terrace, and something like a luminous cloud had appeared, he issued an edict: “Nine stalks of magical mushrooms have grown on the Ganquan balustrade. Let a general amnesty be proclaimed throughout All-Under-Heaven, and let there be no further corvée labor.”

The following year, a campaign was launched against Chaoxian. In summer, there was a drought. Gongsun Qing said: “When the Yellow Emperor performed the feng sacrifice, there was likewise a drought — the ‘dry feng’ lasted three years.” The Emperor thereupon issued an edict: “The drought — could this be the ‘dry feng’? Let All-Under-Heaven reverently sacrifice to the Spirit Star.”

The following year, the Emperor performed the suburban sacrifice at Yong, opened the Huizhong road, and toured along it. In spring, he reached Mingze and returned via Xihe.

The next year in winter, the Emperor toured the southern commanderies. He reached Jiangling and turned east. He ascended and performed rites at Mount Tianzhu of Qian, designating it the Southern Peak. He floated down the Yangtze, emerging from Xunyang to Zongyang, passing by Lake Pengli, and sacrificing at the famous mountains and rivers along the way. He went north to Langya and along the coast. In the middle of the fourth month, he arrived at Fenggao and renewed the feng sacrifice.

Originally, when the Emperor first performed the feng at Mount Tai, there was an ancient Bright Hall site at the northeast base of the mountain, but the terrain was rugged and not spacious. The Emperor wished to build a Bright Hall near Fenggao but did not know the proper design. A man from Jinan named Gongyu Dai submitted a diagram of the Bright Hall from the time of the Yellow Emperor.

The diagram showed a single hall with no walls on any of its four sides, roofed with thatch, with water channeled around it and a circular palace wall forming a covered corridor. Above was a tower. Entry was from the southwest, and the passage was called Kunlun. The Emperor would enter through it to bow and sacrifice to the High God.

The Emperor thereupon ordered the Bright Hall to be built above the Wen River at Fenggao, following Gongyu Dai’s diagram. When the five-year renewal of the feng ceremony came, sacrifices were performed to Taiyi and the Five Emperors in the upper seats of the Bright Hall, with a spirit-seat for Emperor Gaozu placed facing them. Sacrifices to the Sovereign Earth were performed in the lower chamber, using twenty sets of the Grand Sacrifice. The Emperor entered by the Kunlun passage and first performed prostrations in the Bright Hall following the suburban sacrifice rite. When the rites were complete, offerings were burned at the base of the hall.

The Emperor then ascended Mount Tai again, where he performed a secret sacrifice at the summit. At the base of Mount Tai, the Five Emperors were worshipped, each according to his proper direction, with the Yellow Emperor sharing a place with the Red Emperor. The responsible officials attended and assisted the rites. When fire was raised at the summit of Mount Tai, all below responded in kind.

Two years later, on the jiazi day, the first day of the eleventh month, which fell on the winter solstice, the calendar experts took this as the origin of the fundamental cycle. The Emperor came in person to Mount Tai and on this jiazi first-day winter solstice sacrificed to the High God in the Bright Hall, renewing the feng and shan ceremonies as before.

The hymn of offering said: “Heaven once more bestows upon the Emperor the grand primordial divine tallies. The cycle comes full and begins anew. The Emperor reverently bows to Taiyi.”

He traveled east to the coast and examined the results of those who had gone to sea and the fangshi who had sought spirits. None had produced any verification, yet he dispatched still more, hoping to encounter them.

On the yiyou day of the eleventh month, the Bailiang Hall was destroyed by fire. On the jiawu day, the first of the twelfth month, the Emperor personally performed the shan sacrifice at Gaoli and sacrificed to the Sovereign Earth. He went to the shore of the Bohai Sea, intending to perform a distance sacrifice toward Penglai and its companion islands, hoping to reach the extraordinary courts of the immortals.

The Emperor returned, and because of the Bailiang fire, held the annual accounting audience at Ganquan instead. Gongsun Qing said: “The Yellow Emperor built the Azure Spirit Terrace; after twelve days it burned down, and the Yellow Emperor then governed from the Bright Court. The Bright Court is Ganquan.” Many fangshi also claimed that ancient emperors had made their capital at Ganquan. Thereafter the Emperor received the feudal lords’ court audiences at Ganquan as well, and residences for the feudal lords were built there.

Yong Zhi then said: “Among the Yue people, when there is a fire, the custom is to rebuild on an even grander scale, using size to overpower and subdue the calamity.” Thereupon the Jianzhang Palace was built, designed with a thousand gates and ten thousand doors. Its front hall was built to exceed the Weiyang Palace in height. To its east rose the Phoenix Gate-towers, over twenty zhang tall. To its west lay the Tangzhong grounds, with beast parks extending for dozens of li. To its north a great pool was constructed, with the Gradual Terrace rising over twenty zhang — the pool was named the Grand Liquid Pool. In it were islands called Penglai, Fangzhang, Yingzhou, and Huliang, made in the image of the divine mountains in the sea with their turtles and fish. To its south were the Jade Hall, the Jade-Disc Gate, and great bird statues. The Spirit Brilliance Terrace and the Well-Crib Tower were also erected, rising over fifty zhang, with covered carriage-roads connecting them all.

In summer, the Han reformed the calendar, making the first month the beginning of the year, and elevating yellow as the dynastic color. Official titles and seals were changed to use five-character formats. This became the first year of the Taichu era. That year, a western campaign was launched against Dayuan. A great locust plague arose. Lady Ding, Yu Chu of Luoyang, and others used ritual arts and sacrifices to cast curses against the Xiongnu and Dayuan.

The following year, the responsible officials reported that at the five altars of Yong there were no proper cooked sacrificial offerings, and the aromatic preparations were incomplete. The Emperor thereupon ordered the sacrificial officials to supply the altars with calves and complete sacrifice sets, with foods of each of the five colors conquering the appropriate phase, and to replace live colts with wooden puppet-horses. Only the sacrifices to the Five Emperors used live colts, as did the Emperor’s personal suburban sacrifices. For all the various famous mountains and rivers that had previously used colts, wooden puppet-horses were substituted in every case. Only when the Emperor passed through in person were live colts used. All other rites continued as before.

The following year, the Emperor toured east along the coast and examined the results of those seeking immortals — none had produced any verification. A fangshi claimed: “In the time of the Yellow Emperor, five walled compounds with twelve towers were built to await spirit-people at the appointed time, and the structure was called ‘Welcoming the Year.’” The Emperor approved its construction according to the fangshi’s specifications, naming it Mingnian (“Next Year”). The Emperor personally performed rites and sacrificed to the High God, wearing yellow upper garments.

Gongyu Dai said: “Although the Yellow Emperor performed the feng at Mount Tai, his ministers Feng Hou, Feng Ju, and Qi Bo directed the Yellow Emperor to perform the feng at Eastern Mount Tai and the shan at Mount Fan to match the talismans — and only then did he achieve immortality.”

The Emperor ordered sacrificial equipment to be set up and went to Eastern Mount Tai. But Eastern Mount Tai was low and small, unworthy of its reputation, so the Emperor ordered the sacrificial officials to perform rites there without conducting the feng and shan. Afterward he ordered Gongyu Dai to remain and tend the sacrifices while watching for divine manifestations.

In summer, the Emperor returned to Mount Tai and renewed the five-year rites as before, adding a shan sacrifice at Stone Gate. Stone Gate was at the southern base of Mount Tai, and the fangshi widely claimed it was the gateway of the immortals. For this reason, the Emperor personally performed the shan there.

Five years later, the Emperor again came to Mount Tai to renew the feng sacrifice, and on his return passed by to sacrifice at Mount Chang.

The sacrifices currently maintained by the Emperor are as follows: Taiyi and the Sovereign Earth, at which the Emperor performs the suburban sacrifice in person every three years; the feng and shan sacrifices established for the house of Han, renewed once every five years. The Taiyi sacrifice of Bo Ji along with the Three Ones, the Dark Sheep, the Horse Procession, and the Red Star — five in number — have their seasonal rites performed by Kuan Shu’s sacrificial officials. In all, six sacrificial systems are overseen by the Grand Invocator.

As for the Eight Spirits and other deities — the Mingnian structure, Mount Fan, and the various other named shrines — when the Emperor passes through he sacrifices; when he departs, the rites cease. Sacrifices established by fangshi are each managed by the fangshi himself; when the man dies, the sacrifice ends, and the sacrificial officials do not maintain it. All other sacrifices continue as before.

Since the present Emperor performed the feng and shan, twelve years have passed, and he has made the circuit of all the Five Peaks and Four Great Rivers. Yet the fangshi who watched and prayed for spirit-people and went to sea seeking Penglai never produced any verified result. And Gongsun Qing, who was supposed to be watching for spirits, still offered the giant footprints as his excuse, with nothing to show for it.

The Emperor grew increasingly weary and disgusted with the fangshi’s bizarre and far-fetched claims. Yet in the end he could never bring himself to sever ties with them entirely, always hoping that he might encounter the genuine article. From this time on, fangshi who claimed to be able to invoke spirits through sacrifice grew ever more numerous — but their results speak for themselves.

The Grand Historian says: I personally accompanied the imperial tours to sacrifice to the gods of heaven and earth, the famous mountains and rivers, and the feng and shan ceremonies. I entered the Longevity Palace to attend upon the spirit-séances and hear the divine utterances. I thoroughly observed the claims of the fangshi and the sacrificial officials. Having done so, I withdrew and composed this ordered account of those who from antiquity to the present have dealt with ghosts and spirits, setting forth both the outward show and the inner reality of these matters. Should a discerning reader come after me, he will be able to see it all clearly here. As for the precise details of the sacrificial vessels, jade tablets, and silk offerings, and the rites of presentation and libation — these are preserved in the records of the responsible officials.