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Li Shaojun
Li Shaojun ({{zh, c=李少君, w=Li Shao-chün, fl. 133 BCE) was a ''fangshi'' (master of esoterica), reputed ''xian'' (transcendent; immortal), retainer of Emperor Wu of Han, and the earliest known Chinese alchemist. In the early history of Chinese ''waidan'' (External Alchemy), Li is the only ''fangshi'' whose role is documented by both historical (for instance, ''Shiji'') and alchemical (''Baopuzi'') sources. Shiji The earliest record of Li Shaojun was contemporaneously written during the reign of his patron Emperor Wu (141-87 BCE): Sima Qian's c. 94 BCE ''Shiji'' (Records of the Historian) has nearly identical versions in the "Annals of Emperor Wu" (chapter 6) and "The Treatise on the Feng and Shan Sacrifices" (28, tr. Watson 1961: 3-52). In addition, the c. 111 CE ''Hanshu'' "Book of Han" (25A) has a "closely parallel" version (Campany 2006: 325). The ''Shiji'' chronicles Li Shaojun as part of a lengthy debate on whether and how Emperor Wu should perform the ''Feng'' (封) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kitchen God
The Kitchen deity – also known as the Stove God, named Zao Jun, Zao Shen, Zao kimjah, Cokimjah or Zhang Lang – is the most important of a plethora of Chinese domestic gods that protect the hearth and family. The Kitchen God is recognized in Chinese folk religion, Chinese mythology, and Taoism. Under different names, he is also celebrated in several other Asian religions. It is believed that on the twenty third day of the twelfth lunar month, just before Chinese New Year, the Kitchen deity returns to Heaven to report the activities of every household over the past year to Yu Huang Da Di (玉皇大帝), the Jade Emperor. The Jade Emperor, emperor of the heavens, either rewards or punishes a family based on Zao Jun's yearly report. Story Zhang Lang Though there are many stories on how Zao Jun became the Kitchen God, the most popular one dates back to around the 2nd Century BC. Zao Jun was originally a mortal man living on earth whose name was Zhang Lang. He eventually became ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Duke Huan Of Qi
Duke Huan of Qi (; died 643 BC), personal name Xiǎobái (小白), was the ruler of the State of Qi from 685 to 643 BC. Living during the chaotic Spring and Autumn period, as the Zhou dynasty's former vassal states fought each other for supremacy, Duke Huan and his long-time advisor Guan Zhong managed to transform Qi into China's most powerful polity. Duke Huan was eventually recognized by most of the Zhou states as well as the Zhou royal family as Hegemon of China. In this position, he fought off invasions of China by non-Zhou peoples and attempted to restore order throughout the lands. Toward the end of his more than forty-year-long reign, however, Duke Huan's power began to decline as he grew ill and Qi came to be embroiled in factional strife. Following his death in 643 BC, Qi completely lost its predominance. Early life and rise to power Xiǎobái was born as one of Duke Xi of Qi's sons, though not in line of succession for the throne as he had at least two older brothers: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Ritual Bronzes
Sets and individual examples of ritual bronzes survive from when they were made mainly during the Chinese Bronze Age. Ritual bronzes create quite an impression both due to their sophistication of design and manufacturing process, but also because of their remarkable durability. From around 1650 BCE, these elaborately decorated vessels were deposited as grave goods in the tombs of royalty and the nobility, and were evidently produced in very large numbers, with documented excavations finding over 200 pieces in a single royal tomb. They were produced for an individual or social group to use in making ritual offerings of food and drink to his or their ancestors and other deities or spirits. Such ceremonies generally took place in family temples or ceremonial halls over tombs. These ceremonies can be seen as ritual banquets in which both living and dead members of a family were supposed to participate. Details of these ritual ceremonies are preserved through early literary records ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wu'an
Wu'an is a county-level city in the southwest of Hebei Province, China, bordering Shanxi Province to the west. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Handan. History People's Republic In August 1949, Wu'an was one of three counties to be detached from Handan and attached to Pingyuan Province. In 1952, as Pingyuan dissolved, Wu'an returned to Handan. Administrative divisions As of 2005, Wu'an had a population of approximately 66,000. Towns Wu'an Town (), Kang'ercheng (), Niuji (), Cishan (), Baiyan (), Shucun (), Datong, Wu'an (), Yicheng (), Kuangshan (), Hejin Hejin () is a county-level city of Yuncheng City, in the southwest of Shanxi province, People's Republic of China, located on the east (left) bank of the Yellow River. It borders Jishan and Wanrong counties to the east and south, Linfen to the ... (), Yangyi (), Paihui (), Yetao () Townships Shangtuancheng Township (), Bei'anzhuang Township (), Bei'anle Township (), Xitushan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Empress Wang Zhi
Empress Wang of Jing (孝景王皇后, 173–126 BC), also known by her birth name Wang Zhi (王娡) and by her title Lady Wang (), was an empress during the Han Dynasty. She was the second wife of Emperor Jing and the mother of Emperor Wu. Family background and first marriage Wang Zhi was born in 173 BC to Wang Zhong (王仲) and Zang Er (臧兒), who was a granddaughter of Zang Tu, the one-time King of Yan appointed by Xiang Yu until the fifth year of Emperor Gaozu. Zang Tu rebelled against the Emperor and was defeated. He and his entire family was massacred. Zang Er, who was married to Wang Zhong, was Zang Tu's granddaughter. Wang Zhi's parents had, in addition to her, an older son, Wang Xin (王信) and a younger daughter, Wang Erxu (王兒姁). They lived in Huaili (槐里, in modern Xianyang, Shaanxi). After her father died, her mother remarried a man named Tian (田), and had two more sons, Tian Fen (田蚡) and Tian Sheng (田勝). When Wang Zhi was young, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Empress Dou (Wen)
Empress Dou (; died 135 BC), formally Empress Xiaowen (孝文皇后), was an empress of the Chinese Han dynasty who greatly influenced the reigns of her husband Emperor Wen and her son Emperor Jing with her adherence to Taoist philosophy; she was the main support for the Huang-Lao school.Ssu-ma Ch'ien. Shmuel N. Eisenstadt 2016 p. 262. The Grand Scribe's Records: Volume X: The Memoirs of Han China, Part 3. https://books.google.com/books?id=s3E6DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA280 She therefore contributed greatly to the ''Rule of Wen and Jing'', commonly considered one of the golden ages of Chinese history. She even continued her considerable influence in the reign of her grandson Emperor Wu, and even her influence in the reign of Emperor Wu was so great that the young emperor did not have the power to decide for himself even one day. As a result, according to her influence, the Taoist laws were in force until her death over the empire. Early life Empress Dou was born into a family in Qinghe C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 TheobaldNames of Persons and Titles of Rulers/ref> A courtesy name is not to be confused with an art name, another frequently mentioned term for an alternative name in East Asia, which is closer to the concept of a pen name or a pseudonym. Usage A courtesy name is a name traditionally given to Chinese men at the age of 20 ''sui'', marking their coming of age. It was sometimes given to women, usually upon marriage. The practice is no longer common in modern Chinese society. According to the ''Book of Rites'', after a man reached adulthood, it was disrespectful for others of the same generation to address him by his given name. Thus, the given name was reserved for oneself and one's elders, whereas the courtesy name would be used by adults of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Surname
Chinese surnames are used by Han Chinese and Sinicized ethnic groups in China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, and among overseas Chinese communities around the world such as Singapore and Malaysia. Written Chinese names begin with surnames, unlike the Western tradition in which surnames are written last. Around 2,000 Han Chinese surnames are currently in use, but the great proportion of Han Chinese people use only a relatively small number of these surnames; 19 surnames are used by around half of the Han Chinese people, while 100 surnames are used by around 87% of the population. A report in 2019 gives the most common Chinese surnames as Wang and Li, each shared by over 100 million people in China. The remaining top ten most common Chinese surnames are Zhang, Liu, Chen, Yang, Huang, Zhao, Wu and Zhou. Two distinct types of Chinese surnames existed in ancient China, namely ''xing'' () ancestral clan names and ''shi'' () branch lineage names. Later, the two terms began to be used i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Li (surname 李)
Li or Lee (; ) is a common Chinese surname, Chinese-language surname, it is the 4th name listed in the famous ''Hundred Family Surnames.'' Li is one of the most common surnames in Asia, shared by 92.76 million people in China, and more than 100 million in Asia. It is the List of common Chinese surnames, second most common surname in China as of 2018, the second most common surname in Hong Kong, and the 5th most common surname in Taiwan, where it is usually romanized as "Lee". The surname is pronounced as () in Cantonese, ''Lí'' (Pe̍h-ōe-jī, poj) in Taiwanese Hokkien, but is often spelled as "Lee" in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and many overseas Chinese communities. In Macau, it is also spelled as "Lei". In Indonesia it is commonly spelled as "Lie". The common Korean name#Family names, Korean surname, "Lee (Korean surname), Lee" (also romanized as "I", "Yi", "Ri", or "Rhee"), and the Vietnamese name#Family name, Vietnamese surname, "Lý (Vietnamese name), Lý", are both derived f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's own. Many pseudonym holders use pseudonyms because they wish to remain anonymous, but anonymity is difficult to achieve and often fraught with legal issues. Scope Pseudonyms include stage names, user names, ring names, pen names, aliases, superhero or villain identities and code names, gamer identifications, and regnal names of emperors, popes, and other monarchs. In some cases, it may also include nicknames. Historically, they have sometimes taken the form of anagrams, Graecisms, and Latinisations. Pseudonyms should not be confused with new names that replace old ones and become the individual's full-time name. Pseudonyms are "part-time" names, used only in certain contexts – to provide a more clear-cut separation between o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joseph Needham
Noel Joseph Terence Montgomery Needham (; 9 December 1900 – 24 March 1995) was a British biochemist, historian of science and sinologist known for his scientific research and writing on the history of Chinese science and technology, initiating publication of the multivolume ''Science and Civilisation in China''. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1941 and a fellow of the British Academy in 1971. In 1992, Queen Elizabeth II conferred on him the Companionship of Honour, and the Royal Society noted he was the only living person to hold these three titles. Early life Needham's father, Joseph was a doctor, and his mother, Alicia Adelaïde, née Montgomery (1863–1945), was a music composer from Oldcastle, County Meath, Ireland. His father, born in East London, then a poor section of town, rose to became a Harley Street physician, but frequently battled with Needham's mother. The young Needham often mediated. In his early teens, he was taken to hear the Sun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
