''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars'', also translated as ''The Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Piety'' (), is a classic text of
Confucian
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a Religious Confucianism, religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, ...
filial piety
In Confucianism, Chinese Buddhism, and Daoist ethics, filial piety (, ''xiào'') (Latin: pietas) is a virtue of respect for one's parents, elders, and ancestors. The Confucian ''Classic of Filial Piety'', thought to be written around the late W ...
written by Guo Jujing ()
[() Wang, Qi (). ''Xu Wenxian Tongkao'' () vol. 71.] during the
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 fifth ...
(1260–1368). The text was extremely influential in the medieval Far East and was used to teach Confucian moral values.
Authorship
The text is generally attributed to Guo Jujing ()
but other sources suggested two other possible authors or editors:
Guo Shouzheng () and
Guo Juye ().
History
Some of the stories in ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars'' were taken from other texts such as the ''Xiaozi Zhuan'' (), ''
Yiwen Leiju
The ''Yiwen Leiju'' is a Chinese ''leishu'' encyclopedia completed by Ouyang Xun in 624 under the Tang dynasty, Tang. Its other contributors included Linghu Defen and Chen Shuda.
It is divided into 47 sections and many subsections. It covers a ...
'', ''
Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era
The ''Taiping Yulan'', translated as the ''Imperial Reader'' or ''Readings of the Taiping Era'', is a massive Chinese ''leishu'' encyclopedia compiled by a team of scholars from 977 to 983. It was commissioned by the imperial court of the Song ...
'' and ''
In Search of the Supernatural
The ''Soushen Ji'', variously translated as ''In Search of the Sacred'', ''In Search of the Supernatural'', and ''Anecdotes about Spirits and Immortals'', is a Chinese compilation of legends, short stories, and hearsay concerning Chinese gods, ...
''.
There were earlier precedents of ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars''. A Buddhist ''
bianwen
''Bianwen'' () refers to a literary form that is believed to be some of the earliest examples of vernacular and prosimetric narratives in Chinese literature. These texts date back to the Tang Dynasty (618–907) and Five Dynasties (907–960) ...
'' titled ''Ershisi Xiao Yazuowen'' (), which was among the
manuscripts
A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in ...
discovered in
Dunhuang
Dunhuang () is a county-level city in Northwestern Gansu Province, Western China. According to the 2010 Chinese census, the city has a population of 186,027, though 2019 estimates put the city's population at about 191,800. Dunhuang was a major ...
's
Mogao Caves
The Mogao Caves, also known as the Thousand Buddha Grottoes or Caves of the Thousand Buddhas, form a system of 500 temples southeast of the center of Dunhuang, an oasis located at a religious and cultural crossroads on the Silk Road, in Gansu p ...
, is the oldest extant text related to ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars''. During the
Southern Song dynasty
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 ...
, the artist Zhao Zigu () drew a painting, ''Ershisi Xiao Shuhua Hebi'' (), about ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars''. During the
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 fifth ...
, the scholar
Xie Yingfang () mentioned in ''Gui Chao Ji'' () that a certain Wang Dashan () once praised ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars'' and the ''
Classic of Filial Piety
The ''Classic of Filial Piety'', also known by its Chinese name as the ''Xiaojing'', is a Confucian classic treatise giving advice on filial piety: that is, how to behave towards a senior such as a father, an elder brother, or a ruler.
The tex ...
''. During 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-speak ...
, Wu Zhengxiu () mentioned in ''Ershisi Xiao Gu Ci'' () that the Twenty-four Filial Exemplars were very well known.
After the release of ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars'', revised editions of the text and other similar works were published. Some of these include: ''Riji Gushi Daquan Ershisi Xiao'' (; ''Complete Diary Stories of the Twenty-four Filial Exemplars''), ''Nü Ershisi Xiao'' (; ''Female Twenty-four Filial Exemplars''), and ''Nan Nü Ershisi Xiao'' (; ''Male and Female Twenty-four Filial Exemplars'').
The philologist
Yang Bojun
Yang Bojun (; 1 September 1909 − 1992) was a Chinese philologist best known for his ''Chunqiu Zuozhuan Zhu'' (), an annotated commentary of the ancient Chinese historical text and Confucian classic '' Zuo Zhuan''. The work took him more than t ...
mentioned the development of ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars'' in ''Jingshu Qiantan'' (). After the book was compiled by Guo Shouzheng during the Yuan dynasty, a new illustrated edition with drawings by Wang Kexiao () was released, and this made the book even more popular. Towards the end of the Qing dynasty,
Zhang Zhidong
Zhang Zhidong () (4 September 18375 October 1909) was a Chinese politician who lived during the late Qing dynasty. Along with Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang and Zuo Zongtang, Zhang Zhidong was one of the four most famous officials of the late Qing ...
and others edited and expanded the book and released it as ''Bai Xiao Tu Shuo'' (; ''Illustrated Hundred Stories of Filial Piety'').
Evaluation
The concept of filial piety has played a strong role in Chinese culture since ancient times. There was also a tradition of
filial mourning
Filial mourning () refers to a bureaucratic norm, practiced since the Han dynasty, whereby officials of the imperial government of China were obliged to resign their posts and return to their home upon the death of a parent or grandparent.
Descri ...
, in which a person had to temporarily put aside whatever he/she was doing when his/her parent(s) died and mourn for three years. There were sayings such as "When a ruler wants a subject to die, the subject must die; when a father wants a son to die, the son must die", and "A loyal subject should be sought from a family with filial sons."
However, some stories in ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars'' are regarded as negative examples in contemporary times. These stories include the extreme example of Guo Ju deciding to kill his son so that he could free up his son's share of the family's food consumption to feed his mother. The negative examples also include stories in which the protagonist harms himself in the process of fulfilling filial piety, such as Wu Meng allowing mosquitoes to suck his blood in the hope that they would not bother his parents, and
Wang Xiang
Wang Xiang (184 – 30 April 268''wuxu'' day of the 4th month of the 4th year of the ''Taishi'' era, per Emperor Wu's biography in ''Book of Jin''. Wang Xiang's biography in the same work indicated that he died in the 5th year of the ''Taishi'' ...
lying naked on ice to thaw the ice so that he could catch fish for his mother.
Some stories have been heavily criticised and even deemed contrary to Confucian principles. One example is the story of Cai Shun being rewarded by the
Chimei
The Red Eyebrows () was one of the two major peasant rebellion movements against Wang Mang's short-lived Xin dynasty, the other being Lülin. It was so named because the rebels painted their eyebrows red.
The rebellion, initially active in the ...
rebels for his filial piety. The story paints the rebels in a positive light when they actually violated the
Confucian virtue of loyalty to one's country. Another example is the story of Laolaizi behaving childishly to amuse his parents. The modern writer
Lu Xun
Zhou Shuren (25 September 1881 – 19 October 1936), better known by his pen name Lu Xun (or Lu Sun; ; Wade–Giles: Lu Hsün), was a Chinese writer, essayist, poet, and literary critic. He was a leading figure of modern Chinese literature. W ...
said that Laolaizi's story is "an insult to the ancients, and a bad influence on future generations".
[() Lu, Xun. ''Chao Hua Xi Shi'' ().]
The Exemplars
References
External links
English translation of ''The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Twenty-Four Filial Exemplars
Confucian texts
Yuan dynasty literature
Filial piety