封禪書（上）

Since antiquity, what ruler who received Heaven's mandate has not performed the Feng and Shan sacrifices? There have been those who performed them without having received the proper response, but none who witnessed auspicious signs and failed to ascend Mount Tai. Some received the mandate but their achievements fell short; some reached Liangfu but their virtue had not spread widely enough; some had spread virtue widely but daily affairs left no leisure. This is why the rites were performed so rarely. The tradition says: 'If rites are not performed for three years, rites will be ruined; if music is not performed for three years, music will decay.' In every era of flourishing, the Feng and Shan answered it; in decline, they ceased. The longest gaps were over a thousand years, the shortest several hundred — and so the ceremonial details were lost and buried, too fragmentary to be recorded.

Duke Huan of Qi, having achieved hegemony, convened the feudal lords at Kuiqiu and wished to perform the Feng and Shan. Guan Zhong said: 'In ancient times, seventy-two houses performed the Feng on Mount Tai and the Shan on Liangfu, and of these I, Yiwu, can confirm twelve.' Duke Huan said: 'I have campaigned north against the Shanrong and passed through Guzhu; west against Daxia, crossing the Flowing Sands, tying up my horses and suspending my chariots to climb Mount Bier; south as far as Zhaoling, ascending Bear's Ear Mountain to survey the Yangtze and Han. Three times I convened armed assemblies and six times peaceful ones — nine times I united the lords and brought order to the realm. None dared defy me. How does this differ from the Three Dynasties receiving the mandate?' Guan Zhong, seeing that Duke Huan could not be argued out of it with words, resorted to practical obstacles: 'The ancient Feng sacrifices used millet from the hills of Hao and grain from Beili for the offerings, and three-ridged grass from between the Yangtze and Huai for the matting. Paired fish came from the Eastern Sea and paired birds from the Western Sea, and afterward fifteen kinds of tribute appeared without being summoned. Now phoenixes and unicorns have not come, auspicious grain has not grown, yet mugwort and thistles flourish and owls come in numbers — and you wish to perform the Feng and Shan? Would that not be inappropriate?' Duke Huan then desisted.

After the First Emperor unified all under Heaven and assumed the imperial title, someone said: 'The Yellow Emperor received the Virtue of Earth — yellow dragons and earthworms appeared. The Xia received the Virtue of Wood — a green dragon alighted in the suburbs and trees flourished. The Yin received the Virtue of Metal — silver flowed from the mountains. The Zhou received the Virtue of Fire — there was the omen of the red bird. Now Qin replaces Zhou, and it is the time of the Virtue of Water.'

In the third year after assuming the imperial title, the First Emperor made an eastern tour of the commanderies and counties, sacrificed at Mount Yi in Zou, and praised Qin's achievements. He summoned seventy Confucian scholars and academicians from Qi and Lu to Mount Tai. Some of the Confucians proposed: 'In ancient times, the Feng sacrifice used rush-wrapped cart wheels to avoid damaging the mountain's soil, stones, grass, and trees. The ground was swept for the altar and straw matting was used — emphasizing simplicity.' The First Emperor heard these various proposals, found them contradictory and impractical, and dismissed the Confucians. He then cleared a chariot road, ascended from the south face of Mount Tai to the summit, and erected a stone inscribed with praise of the First Emperor's virtues, declaring his right to perform the Feng. He descended by the north path and performed the Shan at Liangfu. The ritual largely adopted the Grand Priest's ceremonies used for the Supreme God at Yong, but the sealed documents were all kept secret, and the world was not able to record them.

When the First Emperor was ascending Mount Tai, he encountered a violent storm midway up the slope and took shelter under a large tree. The Confucian scholars who had been dismissed and excluded from the Feng ceremony, hearing that the First Emperor was caught in the storm, mocked him.

When the Han arose, Emperor Gaozu in his humble days had once killed a great serpent. A voice said: 'The serpent was the son of the White Emperor; the one who killed it is the son of the Red Emperor.' When Gaozu first raised his forces, he prayed at the Fenyi Elm Altar. Marching through Pei, he became Lord of Pei, then sacrificed to Chiyou and consecrated his drums and banners with blood. In the tenth month, he reached the Ba River heights, and with the other lords pacified Xianyang, being established as King of Han. He therefore used the tenth month as the start of the year, and the color red was elevated.

In his second year, after striking east against Xiang Ji and returning through the passes, he asked: 'In the former Qin era, which gods were worshiped as the Supreme Gods?' The answer: 'Four gods — the White, Green, Yellow, and Red Emperors.' Gaozu said: 'I have heard Heaven has five gods, but there are only four here. Why?' No one could explain. Gaozu said: 'I know the reason — it was waiting for me to complete the five.' He established a shrine to the Black Emperor, calling it the Northern Altar.