King Zhou
King Zhou (; ) was the pejorative posthumous name given to Di Xin of Shang () or Shou, King of Shang (), the last king of the Shang dynasty of ancient China. He is also called Zhou Xin (). In Chinese, his name Zhòu ( 紂) also refers to a horse crupper, the part of a saddle or harness that is most likely to be soiled by the horse. It is not to be confused with the name of the succeeding dynasty, which has a different character and pronunciation (). In later times, the story of King Zhou became a cautionary tale on what could befall a kingdom if its ruler gave into corruption and moral depravity. Names Di Xin is the official title given by the Shang dynasty imperial house. Di Xin was born with the family name Zi, lineage name Yin, and the given name Shou. He was called Shou, King of Shang by the kingdom of Zhou when he was alive. After his death, he was given a derogatory posthumous name, King Zhou of Shang () by the succeeding Zhou dynasty, with Zhou () meaning "horse crupper ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chinese Sovereign
The Chinese sovereign was the ruler of a particular monarchical regime in the historical periods of ancient China and imperial China. Sovereigns ruling the same regime, and descended from the same paternal line, constituted a dynasty. Several titles and naming schemes have been used throughout Chinese history. Sovereign titles Emperor The characters ''Huang'' (皇 huáng "august (ruler)") and ''Di'' (帝 dì "divine ruler") had been used separately and never consecutively (see Three August Ones and Five Emperors). The character was reserved for mythological rulers until the first emperor of Qin (Qin Shi Huang), who created a new title ''Huangdi'' (皇帝 in pinyin: huáng dì) for himself in 221 BCE, which is commonly translated as ''Emperor'' in English. This title continued in use until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912. From the Han dynasty, the title ''Huangdi'' could also be abbreviated to ''huang'' or ''di''. The former nobility titles ''Qing'' (卿), ''Da ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cautionary Tale
A cautionary tale or moral tale is a tale told in folklore to warn its listener of a Risk, danger. There are three essential parts to a cautionary tale, though they can be introduced in a large variety of ways. First, a taboo or prohibition is stated: some act, location, or thing is said to be dangerous. Then, the narrative itself is told: someone disregarded the warning and performed the forbidden act. Finally, the violator comes to an unpleasant fate, which is frequently related in expansive and grisly detail. Cautionary tales and conformity Cautionary tales are wikt:ubiquitous, ubiquitous in popular culture; many urban legends are framed as cautionary tales: from the lover's lane haunted by a hook-handed murderer to the tale of a man who shot a cactus for fun only to die when the plant toppled onto him. Like horror fiction, generally the cautionary tale exhibits an ambivalent attitude towards social taboos. The narrator of a cautionary tale is momentarily excused from the or ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bi Gan
Prince Bigan (), surnamed " Zi" (子), was a prominent Chinese figure during the Shang dynasty. He was a son of King Wen Ding, and an uncle of King Zhou, and served as the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Shang. He was later worshipped as the God of Wealth. History Prince Bigan was the prime minister of the Kingdom of Shang during the late Shang dynasty, and a member of the Shang royal family. His surname was " Zi" (子). He was the son of King Wen Ding and served his nephew, King Zhou. Zhou, the last king of the Shang dynasty, has been traditionally regarded as notoriously cruel, immoral, and wasteful. According to the account recorded by Sima Qian in his ''Records of the Grand Historian'', King Zhou's minister Prince Weizi admonished him to reform his ways several times, but his admonitions fell on deaf ears. Prince Weizi then decided to withdraw from the court, but Prince Bigan argued that to serve as minister meant doing what was right even if it meant death. Prince Biga ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ji Zi
Jizi, Qizi, or Kizi (; Gija or Kija in Korean) was a semi-legendary * :"Although Kija may have truly existed as a historical figure, Tangun is more problematical." * :"Most orean historianstreat the angunmyth as a later creation." * :"The Tangun myth became more popular with groups that wanted Korea to be independent; the Kija myth was more useful to those who wanted to show that Korea had a strong affinity to China." * :"If a choice is to be made between them, one is faced with the fact that the Tangun, with his supernatural origin, is more clearly a mythological figure than Kija." * :"An extreme manifestation of nationalism and the family cult was the revival of interest in Tangun, the mythical founder of the first Korean state... Most textbooks and professional historians, however, treat him as a myth." Chinese sage who is said to have ruled Gija Joseon in the 11th century BCE. Early Chinese documents like the ''Book of Documents'' and the ''Bamboo Annals'' described him ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Song (state)
Song was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty with its capital at Shangqiu. The state was founded soon after King Wu of Zhou conquered the Shang dynasty to establish the Zhou dynasty in 1046 BC. It was conquered by the state of Qi in 286 BC, during the Warring States period. Confucius is traditionally considered to have been a descendant of a Song nobleman who moved to the state of Lu. Origin King Zhou of Shang, King Zhou of Shang, Di Xin was the younger brother of Jizi, Zi Qi—who was said in legends to have ruled Gija Joseon in the 11th century BCE—and Zi Yan (), later rulers of Zhou's vassal state Song, father of Wu Geng. After King Wu of Zhou overthrew King Zhou of Shang, the last ruler of Shang, marking the transition to the Zhou dynasty, the victor was honor-bound by a stricture of feudal etiquette known as to allow the defeated house of Shang dynasty, Shang to continue offering sacrifices to their ancestors. As a result, for a time Shang be ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Weizi Of Song
Weizi (), also spelled Wei Tsze, was the first ruler of Song. He was the subject of Chapter 18 of the ''Analects'' of Confucius. Weizi was the eldest son of Di Yi. He was first enfeoffed at Wei (微), hence Lord of Wei (微子). He was also a half-brother of the last Shang king, Di Xin (better known as King Zhou of Shang). Di Xin gave himself over to drinking, women and abandoned morals. Weizi tried to persuade him not to do so, but Di Xin ignored. Subsequently, Weizi resigned and withdrew from the court. When Zhou dynasty conquered the Shang kingdom, Weizi submitted and presented the ritual utensils to King Wu of Zhou. He was pardoned by King Wu. After Rebellion of the Three Guards was put down, Weizi was enfeoffed as Duke of Song and granted land at Shangqiu (商邱 'the hill of Shang'), where the capital of the new State of Song was built. After his death, he was succeeded by his younger brother Yan (衍), historically known as Weizhong (). Weizi was honored by Confuciu ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sima Qian
Sima Qian () was a Chinese historian during the early Han dynasty. He is considered the father of Chinese historiography for the ''Shiji'' (sometimes translated into English as ''Records of the Grand Historian''), a general history of China covering more than two thousand years from the rise of the legendary Yellow Emperor and formation of the first Chinese polity to the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, during which Sima wrote. As the first universal history of the world as it was known to the ancient Chinese, the ''Shiji'' served as a model for official histories for subsequent dynasties across the Sinosphere until the 20th century. Sima Qian's father, Sima Tan, first conceived of the ambitious project of writing a complete history of China, but had completed only some preparatory sketches at the time of his death. After inheriting his father's position as court historian in the imperial court, he was determined to fulfill his father's dying wish of composing and putting together th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Records Of The Grand Historian
The ''Shiji'', also known as ''Records of the Grand Historian'' or ''The Grand Scribe's Records'', is a Chinese historical text that is the first of the Twenty-Four Histories of imperial China. It was written during the late 2nd and early 1st centuries BC by the Han dynasty historian Sima Qian, building upon work begun by his father Sima Tan. The work covers a 2,500-year period from the age of the legendary Yellow Emperor to the reign of Emperor Wu of Han in the author's own time, and describes the world as it was known to the Chinese of the Western Han dynasty. The ''Shiji'' has been called a "foundational text in Chinese civilization". After Confucius and Qin Shi Huang, "Sima Qian was one of the creators of Imperial China, not least because by providing definitive biographies, he virtually created the two earlier figures." The ''Shiji'' set the model for all subsequent dynastic histories of China. In contrast to Western historiographical conventions, the ''Shiji'' does no ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |