Liu Ji (1 July 1311 – 16 May 1375),Jiang, Yonglin. Jiang Yonglin.

005 ''005'' is a 1981 arcade game by Sega. They advertised it as the first of their RasterScan Convert-a-Game series, designed so that it could be changed into another game in minutes "at a substantial savings". It is one of the first examples of a ...

(2005). The Great Ming Code: 大明律. University of Washington Press. , 9780295984490. Page xxxv. The source is used to cover the year only.

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theob ...

Bowen, better known as Liu Bowen, was a Chinese military strategist, philosopher, and politician who lived in the late Yuan and early

Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peop ...

dynasties. He was born in

Qingtian County Qingtian (), is a county in southeastern Zhejiang Province, on the middle-lower reaches of the Ou River which flows 388 kilometers (241 mi) before finally reaching the city of Wenzhou and emptying into the East China Sea. The county is known ...

(present-day

Wencheng County Wencheng () is one of the five counties in the prefecture-level city of Wenzhou, in southern Zhejiang province, with a population of 250,000 . The county is located in the southwest of Wenzhou city proper, and borders Ruian city, Taishun County ...

Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou �y33–11 tɕiɤu33–32 ), historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province in the People's Republic of China. Wenzhou is located at the extreme south east ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , Chinese postal romanization, also romanized as Chekiang) is an East China, eastern, coastal Provinces of China, province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable citie ...

). He served as a key advisor to Zhu Yuanzhang, the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dynasty, in the latter's struggle to overthrow the Yuan dynasty and unify

China proper China proper, Inner China, or the Eighteen Provinces is a term used by some Western writers in reference to the "core" regions of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty of China. This term is used to express a distinction between the "core" regions pop ...

under his rule.Windridge, Charles.

999 999 or triple nine most often refers to: * 999 (emergency telephone number), a telephone number for the emergency services in several countries * 999 (number), an integer * AD 999, a year * 999 BC, a year Books * ''999'' (anthology) or ''999: T ...

(2003) Tong Sing The Chinese Book of Wisdom. Kyle Cathie Limited. . pg 124–125. Liu is also known for his prophecies and has been described as the "Divine Chinese

Nostradamus Michel de Nostredame (December 1503 – July 1566), usually Latinised as Nostradamus, was a French astrologer, apothecary, physician, and reputed seer, who is best known for his book '' Les Prophéties'' (published in 1555), a collection ...

". He and

Jiao Yu Jiao Yu () was a Chinese military general, philosopher, and writer of the Yuan dynasty and early Ming dynasty under Zhu Yuanzhang, who founded the dynasty and became known as the Hongwu Emperor. He was entrusted by Zhu as a leading artillery o ...

co-edited the military treatise known as the ''

Huolongjing The ''Huolongjing'' (; Wade-Giles: ''Huo Lung Ching''; rendered in English as ''Fire Drake Manual'' or ''Fire Dragon Manual''), also known as ''Huoqitu'' (“Firearm Illustrations”), is a Chinese military treatise compiled and edited by Jiao ...

'' (''Fire Dragon Manual'').

Career

Ming Bronze Gun, 1377 AD, Hongwu Reign (10129376023)

Liu served under Zhu Yuanzhang's rebellion against the

Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...

-led

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fift ...

, which had ruled all of

since the conquest of the

Southern Song The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

in 1279. He dabbled in many fields of statecraft, philosophy, scholarly works, and technology. His philosophical outlook was that of a skeptical naturalist, and he became interested in

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

, calendrical science, magnetism, and fengshui. He was known to be a friendly associate of the mathematician and alchemist Zhao Yuqin, and collaborated with the contemporary general and scholar

to edit and compile the military-technology treatise of the ''

'', which outlined the use of various

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate (saltpeter). Th ...

weapons. He was very interested in the latter, and once said that "thunder is like fire shot from a cannon".Needham, Volume 5, Part 7, 25.

Early service under the Yuan dynasty

Liu sat for the

imperial examination The imperial examination (; lit. "subject recommendation") refers to a civil-service examination system in Imperial China, administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by ...

and obtained the position of a ''

jinshi ''Jinshi'' () was the highest and final degree in the imperial examination in Imperial China. The examination was usually taken in the imperial capital in the palace, and was also called the Metropolitan Exam. Recipients are sometimes referr ...

'' (successful candidate) in the final years of the

. He spent much of his early career attempting to save the Yuan dynasty from collapse. He served the Yuan dynasty as an official for 25 years, gaining a reputation for integrity and honesty, and became known as a distinguished scholar and strategist." In 1348, he was appointed to a military position and assigned to put down a southern rebellion against the dynasty. The leader of the rebellion attempted to save himself by offering Liu a bribe. When Liu refused, the rebel went to Beijing and succeeded in bribing his way into favour there. Once the secessionist had bribed his way into the regime's favour, he was given a public office and a salary. Liu's relationship with the Yuan government deteriorated after this event. He attempted to resign twice, in 1349 and 1352. He was demoted in 1358, and finally left service to retire in his ancestral homeland. In 1360, Liu was introduced to

Zhu Yuanzhang The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328 – 24 June 1398), personal name Zhu Yuanzhang (), courtesy name Guorui (), was the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty of China, reigning from 1368 to 1398. As famine, plagues and peasant revolts i ...

, a former leader of a radical

White Lotus The White Lotus () is a syncretic religious and political movement which forecasts the imminent advent of the "King of Light" (), i.e., the future Buddha Maitreya. As White Lotus sects developed, they appealed to many Han Chinese who found sola ...

rebellion who was then the leader of a broad anti-Yuan rebellion.

Service to Zhu Yuanzhang

Liu served not only in the administration of

, but also in many battles as a commanding officer on land and water, leading the early Ming naval forces. Zhu Yuanzhang placed Liu in charge of the campaign to conquer all of

from Yuan forces.Needham, Volume 5, Part 7, 232. Liu was also responsible for military ventures against opposing Chinese rebel groups, as well as the ''

wokou ''Wokou'' (; Japanese: ''Wakō''; Korean: 왜구 ''Waegu''), which literally translates to "Japanese pirates" or "dwarf pirates", were pirates who raided the coastlines of China and Korea from the 13th century to the 16th century.

''. His forces owed much of their success to the use of the medieval Chinese firearm known as the

fire lance The fire lance () was a gunpowder weapon and the ancestor of modern firearms. It first appeared in 10th–12th century China and was used to great effect during the Jin-Song Wars. It began as a small pyrotechnic device attached to a polearm weap ...

. It was during this period that he wrote the books ''Extraordinary Strategies of a Hundred Battles'' (''百戰奇略'') and ''Eighteen Strategies and Affairs'' (''時務十八策'').Xinhuanet.com
" ''劉伯溫是被神化了嗎？. Page 1.'' Retrieved on September 19, 2008. Later in the rebellion, Zhu Yuanzhang only rarely relied on Liu to personally command his armies in the field, as he acquired other capable generals, including

Xu Da Xu Da (1332–1385), courtesy name Tiande, was a Chinese military general and politician who lived in the late Yuan dynasty and early Ming dynasty. He was a friend of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder and first ruler of the Ming dynasty, and assist ...

, Deng Yu and

Chang Yuchun Chang Yuchun (1330 – 9 August 1369), courtesy name Boren and art name Yanheng, was a Chinese military general of the Ming dynasty. He was a follower of Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty, and contributed heavily to the est ...

. Liu was most often consulted for his strategic advice during this period. In 1368, after eight years of Liu's service, Zhu Yuanzhang unified China proper. When Zhu founded the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...

and became historically known as the Hongwu Emperor, Liu was one of his most trusted advisors, but the relationship between Liu and the emperor eventually deteriorated in a manner similar to the way that Liu had become estranged from the Yuan government. In 1375, Liu rejected a man,

Hu Weiyong Hu Weiyong (; died 1380) was a Chinese politician and the last chancellor of the Ming dynasty, from 1373 to 1380. Hu was a main member of Huaixi meritorious group. He was later accused of attempting to rebel and was thus executed by the Hongwu Em ...

, for appointment to high office. Hu Weiyong later obtained an audience with the Hongwu Emperor and slandered Liu by telling the emperor that Liu was plotting to establish his own power. After convincing the emperor of Liu's treachery, Liu was ejected from office, and Hu Weiyong was promoted.

Death

The shock and shame of being groundlessly dismissed from office had destroyed Liu's health, and he had died soon after. Within five years of Liu's death, the man who had slandered Liu in order to hold office, Hu Weiyong, was himself suspected of plotting against the Hongwu Emperor. In the subsequent orgy of the emperor's paranoid efforts to root out conspiracy, 30,000–40,000 people were executed. The precise cause of Liu's death is considered uncertain by modern scholars. In late January of Hongwu's eighth year (1375), Liu was infected with cold. After Zhu Yuanzhang knew this, he sent Hu Weiyong to find an imperial doctor for Liu. However, after Liu had doctor's medicines, he felt as if some uneven stones were squeezed together in his stomach, which made him even more pained. Liu gently told Zhu Yuanzhang that he felt more pain after having Hu Weiyong's doctor's medicines. After Zhu Yuanzhang listened to this, he only gave some comforting words to Liu, which made Liu feel upset. In late March, Liu had already been unable to move freely. Therefore, he decided to return home. After he got home, he refused all the medicines and just tried to maintain a normal diet as much as possible. Eventually, Liu died in April. Some scholars believe that Liu was poisoned by the Hongwu Emperor himself, not because Liu failed his duty, but because the emperor was envious and even fearful of his knowledge and influence. Other sources have pointed out that the Hongwu Emperor did kill many people shortly after Liu lost his official position, but they are uncertain about whether Liu was part of this group.Xinhuanet.com
" ''劉伯溫是被神化了嗎？. Page 3.'' Retrieved on September 19, 2008.

Prophecy

Liu's most famous prophecy to Zhu Yuanzhang, written down in a lyrical style, is called the ''

Shaobing Song The ''Shaobing Song'' (), also known as ''Pancake Poem'' or ''Pancake Song'', is a poem purported to be written by Liu Bowen during the Ming dynasty. He supposedly presented the poem to the Hongwu Emperor.Windridge, Charles. 999(2003) Tong Sing T ...

'' (燒餅歌).Ji, Liu.

004 004, 0O4, O04, OO4 may refer to: * 004, fictional British 00 Agent * 0O4, Corning Municipal Airport (California) * O04, the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation * Abdul Haq Wasiq, Guantanamo detainee 004 * Junkers Jumo 004 turbojet engine * Lauda Ai ...

(2004) 燒餅歌與推背圖. Bai Shan Shu Fang Publishing Company. The poem is written in cryptic verse and is difficult to understand. Some people believe that the ''Shaobing Song'' has predicted future events in China, including the

Tumu Crisis The Crisis of the Tumu Fortress (), also known as the Tumu Crisis (; mn, Тумугийн тулалдаан), or the Jisi Incident (), was a frontier conflict between the Northern Yuan and Ming dynasties. The Oirat ruler of the Northern Yuan, ...

of 1449, and the 1911 founding of the Republic of China.

Biographical works

Liu's official biography is found in the 128th volume of the ''

History of Ming The ''History of Ming'' or the ''Ming History'' (''Míng Shǐ'') is one of the official Chinese historical works known as the ''Twenty-Four Histories''. It consists of 332 volumes and covers the history of the Ming dynasty from 1368 to 1644. It ...

'', which was written by

Zhang Tingyu Zhang Tingyu (, October 29, 1672 – May 19, 1755) was a Han Chinese politician and historian who lived in the Qing dynasty. Biography Zhang Tingyu was born in Tongcheng in Anhui province. In 1700, he obtained a ''jinshi'' position in the ...

and others in the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...

. The author Chong Tai also wrote a biography on him.

In popular culture

''Shenji Miaosuan Liu Bowen'' (), a 404 episodes long television drama about Liu, was aired in Taiwan on TTV from August 23, 2006 to March 12, 2008, starring Taiwanese actor Huang Shaoqi (黃少祺) as Liu.TTV.
Taiwan Television
" ''神機妙算劉伯溫.'' Retrieved on September 20, 2008.

Notes

References

*Cleary, Thomas. (2005). ''Mastering the Art of War''. Shambhala Publications, Inc. . *HK GeoCities. "HK geocities." ''燒餅歌''. Retrieved on 2008-09-19. *Jiang Yonglin. (2005). ''The Great Ming Code: 大明律''. University of Washington Press. . *Liu Ji.(2004) ''燒餅歌與推背圖''. Bai Shan Shu Fang Publishing Company. . *Needham, Joseph (1986). ''Science and Civilization in China: Volume 5, Part 7''. Taipei: Caves Books, Ltd. *TTV. "Taiwan Television." ''神機妙算劉伯溫''. Retrieved on 2008-09-20. *Xinhuanet.com. "Xinhuanet.com." ''劉伯溫是被神化了嗎？''. Retrieved on 2008-09-19. *Windridge, Charles. (2003). ''Tong Sing: The Chinese Book of Wisdom''. Kyle Cathie Limited. . * Zhang, Tingyu. ''

'', Volume 128.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Bowen 1311 births 1375 deaths 14th-century Chinese philosophers 14th-century writers Chinese military writers Generals from Zhejiang Military strategists Ming dynasty generals Ming dynasty philosophers Ming dynasty politicians Philosophers from Zhejiang Politicians from Wenzhou Prediction Writers from Wenzhou Yuan dynasty philosophers Yuan dynasty politicians