Luan Da
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Luan Da (, died 112 BC;Sima Qian 1994, p. 239) was a Chinese occultist, politician, and religious leader during the early
Han Dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
from the state of Yue. He professed to know the secret to immortality and be able to communicate with spiritual beings. Possessing the gift of gab and adept at confidence tricks, Luan Da gained the favour of
Emperor Wu of Han Emperor Wu of Han (156 – 29 March 87BC), formally enshrined as Emperor Wu the Filial (), born Liu Che (劉徹) and courtesy name Tong (通), was the seventh emperor of the Han dynasty of ancient China, ruling from 141 to 87 BC. His reign la ...
. In the space of a few months, he rose from a commoner to great influence, holding titles and land, and marrying one of the emperor's daughters. However, he could not fulfill his promise to Emperor Wu, failing to produce a means to immortality. He gradually lost the emperor's favour and went on a purported visit to
immortals Immortality is the ability to live forever, or eternal life. Immortal or Immortality may also refer to: Film * ''The Immortals'' (1995 film), an American crime film * ''Immortality'', an alternate title for the 1998 British film ''The Wisdom of ...
; however, he was eventually captured and executed. At the apex of his career, many of his fellow mystics held him up as their role model and sought to emulate him. His death was a sign of the trade's fall from favour; laws were passed to restrict the practice of
mediumship Mediumship is the practice of purportedly mediating communication between familiar spirits or ghost, spirits of the dead and living human beings. Practitioners are known as "mediums" or "spirit mediums". There are different types of mediumship o ...
, even penalising those who married its practitioners.


Background


Cultural background

In
early imperial China The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding. Ancient historical texts such as the ''Book of Documents'' (early chapter ...
(the
Qin Qin may refer to: Dynasties and states * Qin (state) (秦), a major state during the Zhou Dynasty of ancient China * Qin dynasty (秦), founded by the Qin state in 221 BC and ended in 206 BC * Daqin (大秦), ancient Chinese name for the Roman Emp ...
and Han Dynasties), religion centered around the realms of '' shen'' (spirits) and ''yin'' (shadow). These realms were considered sacred, and religious figures attempted to contact their inhabitants through elaborate ceremonies in which the perceptions of the practitioner and audience were blurred through the use of smoke, incense, and music. Other practices were also employed to further manipulate the practitioner's senses. For example, a chief
priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
would fast and meditate before he performed a sacrifice. The deprivation of food was thought to make him more susceptible to perceive ''shen'', ''yin'', and other phenomena within the smoke during the ritual. During the Han Dynasty, alleged mediums would fall into trances or perform
ritual dance Ceremonial dance is a major category or classification of dance forms or dance styles, where the purpose is ceremonial or ritualistic. It is related to and overlaps with sacred dance and ecstatic dance. Definition History Description ...
s to accomplish supernatural feats. Some of these events were documented in the ''Shi jing'' (''Canon of Odes''), written in the
Zhou Dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by th ...
.Lewis 2007, p. 180


Emperor Wu of Han

Emperor Wu of Han was a superstitious man, and believed that he could attain good health and immortality through spiritual means.Peerenboom 1993, p. 255 One such method involved collecting morning dew on a platter and mixing crushed
jade Jade is a mineral used as jewellery or for ornaments. It is typically green, although may be yellow or white. Jade can refer to either of two different silicate minerals: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole group of ...
with it to form a "spiritual dew". The emperor routinely drank this "spiritual dew" and only stopped after he fell severely ill from it. The emperor employed several men who claimed to be able to produce elixirs of immortality or who could communicate with spiritual beings. Shaoweng, the court mystic who preceded Luan Da and had studied under the same teacher, performed a ritual that was exposed to be a fraud. Embarrassed that he had been tricked, the emperor ordered Shaoweng's execution and kept quiet about the affair. Shaoweng purportedly died from consuming horse liver, which was thought to be poisonous at the time. Later, Emperor Wu reconsidered Shaoweng's fraud, wondering if perhaps some of his mystical arts had been genuine. The emperor realized that his chance for immortality might have passed with Shaoweng's execution, and began to search for a new mystic.


Career


Early life

Not much is known about Luan Da's early life, only that he was born in Yue and was the eldest child in his family.Needham 1966, p. 316 Records do not even reveal his full name; the ''Da'' (大; big) simply signified his seniority over his siblings. It was conventional at the time to omit surnames for minor figures in the annals of Chinese history, and thus this is not unusual.Xuhui 2008


Rise to power

The state of Yue was renowned for its mediums, and Luan Da was a fine example. The ''Shih ji'' (''
Records of the Grand Historian ''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese hist ...
'') described him as "tall and a brilliant speaker", who was "fertile in techniques" and a master of esoteric arts, such as
shadow play Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is an ancient form of storytelling and entertainment which uses flat articulated cut-out figures (shadow puppets) which are held between a source of light and a translucent screen or scrim. The cut-ou ...
. He was originally a mystic in the court of the emperor's brother, Liu Ji, the Prince of Jiao Dong. Liu Ji's wife had mentioned Luan Da to her brother, the
Marquess A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...
of Lecheng, Dingyi. Trying to boost his standing with Emperor Wu, Dingyi told the emperor of Shaoweng's far more capable fellow disciple, Luan Da, in 113 BC. Upon their meeting, Emperor Wu inquired into Luan Da and his teacher's powers. In response, Luan Da boasted that he had met
immortals Immortality is the ability to live forever, or eternal life. Immortal or Immortality may also refer to: Film * ''The Immortals'' (1995 film), an American crime film * ''Immortality'', an alternate title for the 1998 British film ''The Wisdom of ...
. He also claimed that with enough stature and skill, one could create gold, manufacture a means to achieve immortality, dam the
Yellow River The Yellow River or Huang He (Chinese: , Standard Beijing Mandarin, Mandarin: ''Huáng hé'' ) is the second-longest river in China, after the Yangtze River, and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system in the world at th ...
, and become an immortal. Luan Da then expressed concern at how Shaoweng had been killed, but the excited emperor assured him that the rumours of Shaoweng's execution were false. The emperor, in his enthusiasm, offered Luan Da anything if he would take Shaoweng's place and discover the secret of immortality from his allegedly immortal master.Needham 1976, p. 32 To this, Luan Da replied: Remembering his experience with Shaoweng, the emperor turned cautious and tested Luan Da; he requested the mystic to display his power. Luan Da set down a
Xiangqi ''Xiangqi'' (; ), also called Chinese chess or elephant chess, is a strategy board game for two players. It is the most popular board game in China. ''Xiangqi'' is in the same family of games as '' shogi'', '' janggi'', Western chess, '' ch ...
board and, while chanting, caused the chess pieces to charge at one another. The emperor was reassured that Luan Da truly had power. The trick was achieved by coating the pieces in a mixture of rooster's blood, iron shavings, and "magnetic dust". In ''Science and Civilisation in China'' (1986),
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, in ...
discusses the details of this feat and proposed that lodestone was likely used: powdered
magnetite Magnetite is a mineral and one of the main iron ores, with the chemical formula Fe2+Fe3+2O4. It is one of the oxides of iron, and is ferrimagnetic; it is attracted to a magnet and can be magnetized to become a permanent magnet itself. With the ...
would not have been very effective. At that time, the Yellow River was flooding, causing widespread devastation to the people and the rice harvests. As Luan Da had claimed that he could dam the river, Emperor Wu felt that it would be wise to encourage the mystic to take up the task by quickly pleasing him. The emperor granted Luan Da the title of the General of Five Boons, and almost as an afterthought, three other such titles: the General of Heavenly Practitioners, the General of the Earth Practitioners, and General Grand Communicator. Emperor Wu also lavished gifts on him; he was granted the marquisate of Letong, giving him some 2,000 households to rule over,Lewis 2007, p. 181 and the emperor also gave him a luxurious mansion, a thousand servants, opulent transportation, many decorations, a seal labelled "General of Heavenly Way", and even the hand in marriage of the Eldest Princess Wei, the emperor's eldest daughter, accompanied by a dowry estimated at 10,000 catties of gold. The emperor himself, along with envoys, members of the royal family, and high-ranking officials often invited Luan Da to dine or paid him house calls merely to ask how he was doing.Sima Qian 1994, p. 233 With his marquisate and five generalships, Luan Da had become a man of great standing only a few months after his introduction to the emperor.Sima Qian 1994, p. 234 He was no longer merely Emperor Wu's subject, but an envoy of the immortal beings with status equal to the emperor. In possession of these newly-bestowed honours, Luan Da spent every evening at home, attempting to summon spirits. According to the ''Shih ji'', no spirits appeared, but only "a multitude of ghosts who gathered around". These, the text claims, he was able to command. The ''Shih ji'''s author,
Sima Qian Sima Qian (; ; ) was a Chinese historian of the early Han dynasty (206AD220). He is considered the father of Chinese historiography for his ''Records of the Grand Historian'', a general history of China covering more than two thousand years b ...
, was scornful of Luan Da, noting that "Everyone on the seacoast of Yan and Qi began waving their arms about, declaring that they possessed secret arts and could summon spirits and immortal ones." Indeed, Luan Da's dramatic growth in reputation and stature became a great topic of discussion in the Han capital of
Chang'an Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin Shi ...
, and mystics were eager to imitate his success.


Fall from power and death

By the summer after his elevation, Luan Da had forgotten the emperor's request for an audience with the immortals. Emperor Wu, anxious to achieve immortality, sent an envoy to remind his court mystic of his task. Luan Da attempted to delay, but eventually realised he had to appease the emperor and allay his suspicions. The mystic decided to put on an act of journeying to meet the immortals. With a group of followers, he travelled to
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
. Emperor Wu, however, was already suspicious, and sent a spy to follow Luan Da. The spy followed the court mystic to
Mount Tai Mount Tai () is a mountain of historical and cultural significance located north of the city of Tai'an. It is the highest point in Shandong province, China. The tallest peak is the '' Jade Emperor Peak'' (), which is commonly reported as being t ...
, where he performed a ritual with his followers, although no one saw any immortals. Luan Da ordered his followers to stay behind while he went ahead to meet the immortals, telling them that the spiritual beings would not descend to meet with lowly servants. The spy tailed Luan Da as he went forth alone, but only saw the mystic walk along the beach. Luan Da returned to his group and reported that he had seen his immortal master and that they were to report back to the emperor. Angered by Luan Da's deceit, the spy rushed back to the capital before the mystic to inform Emperor Wu. The emperor, incensed at Luan Da's
confidence trick A confidence trick is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, confidence, irresponsibility, and greed. Researchers have def ...
s, decided to play along when the mystic returned to see what lies he would tell.Zhang 2006 When Luan Da returned, he told the emperor of his falsified meeting with the immortals; however, he sensed that the emperor did not believe him. Before long, the emperor broke out in a rage, ordering Luan Da to tell what he had actually done. Dumbfounded, Luan Da attempted to continue his lies; however, the emperor called for the spy to come forth and expose the lies. Lost for words, Luan Da was arrested on Emperor Wu's order, and executed by having his body chopped into two at the waist.Loewe 2005, p. 113 The emperor extended his fury to the Marquess of Lecheng for introducing Luan Da, having him beheaded and his body then defiled. Later in the Han Dynasty, mystics like Luan gradually lost their influence as the rulers passed many laws against them. Mediums were not allowed to barter their crafts alongside roads, and some were even forbidden to make a living at such a craft at all. Those married to
shamans Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...
were not even allowed to hold government office, though this law was often bypassed. Luan Da's fall signaled the beginning of the end for these mystics.


See also

*
Mysticism Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in u ...
*
Religion in China The People's Republic of China is officially an atheist state, but the government formally recognizes five religions: Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity (Catholicism and Protestantism are recognised separately), and Islam. In the early 21st c ...


Notes


References

* Retrieved on August 2, 2008. * * * * * *Sima Qian (1994).
Emperor Wu the Filial, Basic Annals 12
. in Ssu-ma Chien. ''The Grand Scribe's Records: The Basic Annals of the Han Dynasty''. Vol. 2. Indiana University Press. . Translated by David Pankenier; series edited by William H. Nienhauser, Jr. This translation uses Wade-Giles transcription (and the original Chinese) for all historic names, including Sima Qian's. Convenience link retrieved on December 20, 2008. * *


External links


Emperor Wu of Han at TravelChinaGuide.comIntimate Life of Emperor Wu of Han at Encyclopædia Britannica Online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luan, Da 112 deaths 2nd-century BC executions Chinese nobility Chinese occultists Chinese religious leaders Executed Han dynasty people Han dynasty politicians People executed by the Han dynasty Year of birth unknown