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Zuo Ci (),
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 Theobald ...
Yuanfang, was a legendary personage of the late
Eastern 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 ...
and the
Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...
period (20 BC–280 AD) of China. Though he is known to be from Lujiang Commandery (盧江郡; around present-day
Lu'an Lu'an (), is a prefecture-level city in western Anhui province, People's Republic of China, bordering Henan to the northwest and Hubei to the southwest. As of the 2020 census, it had a total population of 4,393,699 inhabitants whom 1,752,537 liv ...
,
Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...
), the years of his birth and death are unknown. It is believed that he had existed before the collapse of the Han dynasty, and it is claimed that he lived until the age of 300. He learned his magic and path to longevity from the Taoist sage Feng Heng (), and eventually passed his arts to
Ge Xuan Ge Xuan (164–244), courtesy name Xiaoxian, was a Chinese Taoist practitioner who lived in the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220) and Three Kingdoms period (220–280) of China. He was the ancestor of Ge Hong and a resident of Danyang Commandery ...
.


In historical texts

Zuo Ci studied atop Mount Tianzhu, practiced medicinal alchemy and nourished his vital essence by controlled breathing and
Taoist sexual practices Taoist sexual practices ( zh, s=房中术, t=房中術, p=fángzhōngshù, l=arts of the bedchamber, first=t) are the ways Taoists may practice sexual activity. These practices are also known as "joining energy" or "the joining of the essences" ...
. It is said that he could live for long periods without eating. He was also learned in the
Confucian classics Chinese classic texts or canonical texts () or simply dianji (典籍) refers to the Chinese texts which originated before the imperial unification by the Qin dynasty in 221 BC, particularly the "Four Books and Five Classics" of the Neo-Confucian ...
and in
astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of Celestial o ...
. The '' Shenxian zhuan'' (Biographies of Divine Transcendents) says Zuo Ci was expert in '' fenshen'' multilocation, divination, the power of summoning the '' xingchu'' "traveling kitchen", and the practice of alchemy (Pregadio 2008: 1305). At some time before 200, the local warlord
Sun Ce Sun Ce () () (175–200), courtesy name Bofu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was the eldest child of Sun Jian, who was killed during the Battle of Xiangyang w ...
, who was a strict
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, ...
, wanted to kill Zuo Ci and chased him on horseback. Zuo Ci, unmounted, still managed to escape by seemingly walking slowly. Later, Zuo Ci went to
Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate Grand chancellor (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...
, who granted him a pension to do his magics. Cao Cao may have shown an interest in the Taoist approach to longevity by doing this, but his son
Cao Zhi Cao Zhi (; ; 192 – 27 December 232), courtesy name Zijian (), posthumously known as Prince Si of Chen (陈思王), was a prince of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China, and an accomplished poet in his time. His style o ...
wrote that the pensions are only intended to keep the magicians and their wild teachings under control. Zuo Ci performed a number of magic acts in Cao Cao's court, such as catching an exotic fish from an empty copper pan, and teleporting far away to buy ginger. Zuo Ci once fed a whole court assembly with food and wine, but Cao Cao soon found out that Zuo Ci had emptied every wine shop in the region with his magic for this purpose. Cao Cao tried to execute Zuo Ci, but Zuo escaped by walking through walls. When someone reported that Zuo Ci had been sighted in the market, everyone in the market became identical to Zuo's appearance. Another report said Zuo Ci went to the mountaintop, so Cao Cao and his men went, and realised Zuo was concealed among a flock of sheep. Knowing he could not find him, Cao Cao announced to the flock of sheep that he was merely trying to test Zuo Ci's skill, and had no intention to kill him. At the moment, a goat stood on its hind legs and spoke. Cao Cao's men rushed to the goat, only to find the rest of the flock also turned into goats and started standing and speaking like humans. Zuo Ci was never found by Cao Cao's men again. Zuo Ci eventually retired from the world to practise his arts in the mountains.


In ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''

As described in the 14th-century historical novel ''
Romance of the Three Kingdoms ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' () is a 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong. It is set in the turbulent years towards the end of the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history, starting in 184 AD and ...
'', Zuo Ci was a Taoist known under the name of Master Black Horn (). The novel describes Zuo Ci's fictional attainment of Taoist powers and his subsequent mission to persuade
Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate Grand chancellor (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...
to follow Taoism. Zuo Ci wielded amazing Taoist power and was described as a psychic. He studied on
Mount Emei Mount Emei (; ), alternately Mount Omei, is a mountain in Sichuan Province, China, and is the highest of the Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains of China. Mount Emei sits at the western rim of the Sichuan Basin. The mountains west of it are know ...
in
Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...
, where he found ''The Book of Concealing Method'' (), from which he learned to "ascend to the clouds astride the wind, to sail up into the great void itself;" and how "...to pass through mountains and penetrate rocks; ...to float light as vapor, over the seas, to become invisible at will or change isshape, to fling swords and project daggers so as to decapitate a man from a distance." Zuo Ci offered Cao Cao the books if Cao himself became a disciple of Taoism. Cao Cao responded, "Often have I reflected upon this course and struggled against my fate, but what can I do? There is no one to maintain the government," when Zuo Ci suggested
Liu Bei Liu Bei (, ; ; 161 – 10 June 223), courtesy name Xuande (), was a warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Although he was a distant relative of the H ...
and threatened Cao Cao, " I may have to send one of my flying swords after your head one day", Cao accused Zuo of being one of Liu Bei's agents, and threatened him. Zuo Ci openly mocked Cao Cao in court and Cao had him arrested; the guards beat Zuo cruelly, but the Taoist then fell asleep and slept soundly through the night. This enraged Cao Cao, who ordered Zuo Ci to be starved of food, this also failed as Zuo quite happily went seven days without food or water. After this Cao Cao could think of nothing else to punish Zuo Ci. When Zuo Ci appeared at Cao Cao's banquet, Cao tested him by asking to get, among other things, a dragon's liver, a peony, and perch from the Song River. Zuo Ci accomplished everything, which drew further suspicion from Cao Cao. Zuo Ci then offered a cup of wine to Cao Cao, who said that Zuo should taste first. Zuo Ci took a stick and divided the wine in half, and drank one half. Cao Cao was enraged. As a result, Cao Cao ordered Zuo Ci to be executed, but Zuo had disappeared. Cao Cao sent his general
Xu Chu Xu Chu () (died 230), courtesy name Zhongkang, was a Chinese military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period of China. He started his career as a bodyguard to the warlord Cao Cao and later became a g ...
to capture Zuo Ci, Xu saw Zuo walking among a flock of sheep and slew the flock, thinking Zuo had become a sheep; when Xu had left the shepherd boy who had been tending the flock heard one of the sheep's heads telling him to place the heads next to the bodies to bring them back to life, the boy did this and the sheep returned to life. After Xu Chu failed to capture Zuo Ci, Cao Cao put out posters calling for Zuo Ci's capture, and as a result hundreds of men matching the exact description of Zuo were found, and Cao ordered them all executed. When they were all executed black vapor rose from their necks where they joined to form another image of Zuo Ci. The image summoned a crane for him to sit on, and Cao Cao had archers to shoot him down. Suddenly, a gust of wind brought the decapitated corpses back to life. The reanimated corpses carried their heads and started to beat Cao Cao. Cao Cao fainted due to shock, the winds died down, and Zuo Ci disappeared along with the corpses.


In popular culture

Zuo Ci is featured as a playable character in
Koei Koei Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game publisher, developer, and distributor founded in 1978. The company is known for its ''Dynasty Warriors'' games based on the novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', as well as simulation games based on p ...
's ''
Dynasty Warriors is a series of Japanese hack and slash action video games created by Omega Force and Koei (now is Koei Tecmo). The series is a spin-off of Koei's turn-based strategy '' Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' series, based upon the Chinese novel of ...
'' and ''
Warriors Orochi is a hack and slash video game for PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360, developed by Koei and Omega Force. It is a crossover of two of Koei's popular video game series, ''Dynasty Warriors'' and ''Samurai Warriors'' (specifically ''Dynasty Warriors 5'' an ...
'' video game series. In the Shaw Brothers film ''
Five Element Ninjas ''Five Elements Ninjas'' (Chinese title: 五遁忍術) is a 1982 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Chang Cheh. The film is about a Chinese martial arts school finds itself outclassed by their rivals, they hire elite ninja from Japan to de ...
'', Zuo Ci was briefly mentioned in the film for being a founder of Ninjutsu with his Taoist arts. It was said that he used them to trick Cao Cao during his battles. This is referenced in another Shaw Brothers film, ''
The Weird Man ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'', where he tricked Cao Cao with his sorcery and he was also Yu Ji's spiritual brother.


See also

*
Lists of people of the Three Kingdoms The following are lists of people significant to the Three Kingdoms period (220–280) of Chinese history. Their names in Mandarin pinyin are sorted in alphabetical order. Fictional characters in the 14th-century historical novel ''Romance of ...
*
Longevity myths Longevity myths are traditions about long-lived people (generally supercentenarians), either as individuals or groups of people, and practices that have been believed to confer longevity, but for which current scientific evidence does not supp ...


References

* . * Fan, Ye (5th century). ''
Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Later ...
'' (''Houhanshu''), Volume 82, Part 2. * Ge, Hong ( 4th century). '' Baopuzi''. * Luo, Guanzhong (14th century). ''
Romance of the Three Kingdoms ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' () is a 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong. It is set in the turbulent years towards the end of the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history, starting in 184 AD and ...
'' (''Sanguo Yanyi''). * Pregadio, Fabrizio (2008), "Zuo Ci 左慈," in Fabrizio Pregadio, ed., ''The Encyclopedia of Taoism'', Routledge, 1304-1305. {{DEFAULTSORT:Zuo, Ci Chinese centenarians Men centenarians Han dynasty Taoists Cao Cao and associates People from Lu'an Taoist immortals 280 deaths