Suiren ( zh, , ''Suìrén'', lit. flint person"), also known as Suihuang ( zh, , ''Suìhuáng'', lit. "Flint Emperor"), appears in

Chinese mythology Chinese mythology () is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature throughout the area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology encompasses a diverse array of myths derived from regional and cultural tradit ...

and some works which draw upon it. Although the Sui in his name is sometimes translated as Flint, Sui in Chinese refers to all firestarters. For example,

Liji The ''Book of Rites'', also known as the ''Liji'', is a collection of texts describing the social forms, administration, and ceremonial rites of the Zhou dynasty as they were understood in the Warring States and the early Han periods. The ''B ...

separates Sui into Musui ( zh, , ''Musui'', lit. "wood sui") or fire drill wood and Yangsui ( zh, , ''Yangsui'', lit. "Solar Sui"), usually bronze mirrors used to start fire by reflecting the sun).

Innovations

He is credited as a culture hero who introduced humans to the production of fire and its use for cooking. He was included on some ancient lists of the legendary Three August Ones, who lived long before

Emperor Yao Emperor Yao (; traditionally c. 2356 – 2255 BCE) was a legendary China, Chinese ruler, according to various sources, one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. Ancestry and early life Yao's ancestral name is Yi Qi () or Qi (), clan ...

Emperor Shun Emperor Shun ( zh, c=帝舜, p=Dì Shùn) was a legendary leader of ancient China, regarded by some sources as one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors being the last of the Five Emperors. Tradition holds that he lived sometime between 229 ...

, and the Xia rulers of the earliest historical

Chinese dynasty For most of its history, China was organized into various dynastic states under the rule of hereditary monarchs. Beginning with the establishment of dynastic rule by Yu the Great , and ending with the abdication of the Xuantong Emperor in A ...

, even before the

Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor, also known as the Yellow Thearch, or Huangdi ( zh, t=黃帝, s=黄帝, first=t) in Chinese, is a mythical Chinese sovereign and culture hero included among the legendary Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. He is revered as ...

and Yandi. Suiren’s innovation by tradition has been using the wooden

fire drill A fire drill is a method of practicing how a building should evacuate in the event of a fire or other emergencies. In most cases, the building's existing fire alarm system is activated and the building is evacuated by means of the nearest avail ...

to create fire. Tradition holds that he ruled over China for 110 years.

Sources

He is mentioned in ten books from the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

or before. Those crediting him with the introduction of drilling wood for fire include three

Confucian Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, religion, theory of government, or way of life. Founded by Confucius ...

works (''

Bai Hu Tong ''Bai Hu Tong'' (, also , ) is a Confucianism, Confucian text based on the held in 79 CE. History The traditional view of this text is that it was compiled by Ban Gu (32–92 CE) on the orders of the Emperor Zhang of Han (57-88 CE). The nam ...

'', ''Zhong Lun'', and ''

Fengsu Tongyi ''Fengsu Tongyi'' (), also known as ''Fengsu Tong'' (风俗通), is a book written about 195 AD by Ying Shao, who lived during the later Eastern Han period. The manuscript is similar to an almanac, which describes various strange and exotic matt ...

''), the legalist book by

Han Feizi The ''Han Feizi'' () is an ancient Chinese text attributed to the Chinese Legalism, Legalist political philosopher Han Fei. It comprises a selection of essays in the Legalist tradition, elucidating theories of state power, and synthesizing the m ...

, and the historical textbook ''Gu San Fen'' (). He is also mentioned more generally in the ''Zhuangzi'' or ''Chuang-tzu'', in two of the Confucian “Outer Chapters” ( ''Xunzi'' and ''

Qianfu Lun The ''Qianfu Lun'' ( zh, , ''Qiánfū lún'', "Comments of a Recluse"), also known by its Wade-Giles romanization ''Ch'ien-fu Lun'', is a political-metaphysical text by the Later Han philosopher Wang Fu. It contains criticisms of contemporary so ...

''), a legalist book ( ''Guanzi''), and an early etymological dictionary ''

Shuowen Jiezi The ''Shuowen Jiezi'' is a Chinese dictionary compiled by Xu Shen , during the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220 CE). While prefigured by earlier reference works for Chinese characters like the ''Erya'' (), the ''Shuowen Jiezi'' contains the ...

''.

References

* * * {{Authority control Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors