What do you mean by good or bad luck on the calendar and good or bad luck in time?

What do you mean by good or bad luck on the calendar? In ancient times, the calendar, as a handbook of daily life, was a printed matter controlled by the imperial court. Because it is not only a good or bad prediction of marriage and farming, but also a guide to geomantic omen, its prophecies are very important to China's life and even threaten the security of the court. ...

There are thousands of tiny Chinese characters, tables and pictures on two pieces of yellow paper that are more than 90 centimeters long and less than 30 centimeters high. These contents are divided into three columns, and each column is divided into different areas (see the figure below). This is printed matter. China invented printing in the 8th century. By 877, the age of this article, this technology was more mature. This is a calendar, that is, a guide to daily life. It includes not only calendar, marriage, shampoo, farming and other important good or bad days, but also the guidance of geomantic omen, as well as some farming events, astronomical data, divination and so on.

We know some main reasons for this calendar day. When block printing was invented, the two groups quickly realized the potential of this technology. It is said that copying images or classics is a big deal. Act uses printing to print classics, and of course bestsellers also make them profit. Private printers are mainly interested in economic benefits, not. In China at that time, the most popular book was the calendar (it still is). Calendar days are not limited to literate people, and there is a big market. It takes time and money to copy calendars by hand, and engraving printing can produce calendars more cheaply, so the number of private printers has soared and they have seized this business opportunity.

Although calendar days are very popular, they are risky. To understand this object, we first need to understand its relationship with time.

History of Silk Road Civilization among the Top Ten Antiquities, translated by Wei Hong, Houlanghe Construction Press, March 2022.

This calendar day is an example between literature and power. The writing of calendar days is authoritative, but this authority is different from the writer or the power of the writer. It represents another kind of authority, that is, the natural order, which is stronger than the secular one. Astrology can connect heaven and earth, which is very important to China's life. Since ancient times, astrologers and astronomers who can read astrology, predict eclipses and comets in China have been under the special control of the imperial court. This is very important, because these may be used by opponents to prove that the emperor at that time was "out of place" with nature and was no longer suitable. This kind of worry is not groundless. China was repeatedly threatened by rebels who claimed to carry out "destiny" in various dynasties. Some of them have succeeded. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Yellow Scarf Army claimed the right to resist, saying that the famine and flood in the empire were the manifestations of the emperor's fate. Their success eventually led to the decline of the Han empire. Shortly thereafter, in 267, a ban was imposed on those texts that were considered heretical, including divination.

In the early days, the emperor's astronomers had calculated the calendar, or "timed" it by combining the solar calendar with the lunar calendar, to decide when an emperor's calendar would start, to determine some periodic days, or to predict astronomical events. The solar calendar with fixed seasons is the most useful for farmers, because it gives the dates of spring planting, harvest and other seasons. But China confused the solar calendar with the lunar calendar, mainly as an adjustment tool, not for agricultural life. Calendar is a symbol of imperial power. Accurate calendar shows people's perfect morality and shows that people are in harmony with events in the macro world or the whole universe. Therefore, making a new calendar without approval is a sexual act.

Traditionally, the royal calendar was published in 2265 BC, but the earliest existing calendar can be traced back to the 3rd century BC. Four calendars, 2 13 BC, 2 1 1, 2 10 BC and 2009 BC, were unearthed in A Qin's tomb in Zhoujiatai, Jingzhou, Hubei. Before the invention of paper, wooden slips were the traditional materials used for books in China. These calendars are also "Japanese books", that is, divination documents that provide good or bad references for specific activities, as well as some astrology and related content. At that time, there were such calendars in tombs from junior officials to aristocratic elites. They were used by the tomb owner before his death, and their burial showed their importance to the dead. In my opinion, they are the beginning of the integration of almanac with astrology and other divination texts, which together constitute the calendar day.

The zodiac on a calendar day. British library Or.82 10/P.6 (partial)

One of the most complete calendars is written on a more expensive writing material-silk. It was found in Mawangdui No.3 tomb in the south of China, and buried in 168 BC, during the Western Han Dynasty. After the demise of the Qin Dynasty, after several years of disputes, the Western Han Dynasty was finally won. During this period, Qin Shihuang did something that made him notorious, that is, in 2 13 BC, he ordered the burning of books outside the Qin Dynasty orthodoxy, including Confucian classics. In the Han dynasty, these classics were restored through oral communication, and the so-called "modern classics" appeared. "Bronze inscriptions" refers to their writing style, that is, the unified characters of Qin Dynasty, which people use to copy oral documents. But at this time, other documents were gradually discovered, such as the ancient books and records of China found between the walls of Confucius' former residence. These are all pre-Qin scripts, so they are called "Ancient Classics". As a result, the school of classical Chinese classics began a long debate. The latter thinks that the real Confucian classics system of ancient Chinese is to provide traditional arguments for a proposition at that time.

Another popular document at that time was the Book of Divination. The Book of Divination is an esoteric interpretation of the classics, which explains some hidden predictions in the classics, including the meaning of numbers, signs of good or bad luck, the relationship between heaven and earth, the shape of nebulae, history and the explanation of the decline and fall of dynasties. Today's debate on ancient Chinese prose is also about whether classics are prophetic or not.

In 9 AD, the Western Han Dynasty fell from power, at which time Regent Wang Mang announced the establishment of his own new dynasty. His is shorter. In AD 25, the Han royal family regained power, but was forced to move from Chang 'an to Luoyang because of rebellion, and Luoyang became the second capital of the Han Dynasty along the Yellow River. After the start of the army, the territory of the Han Dynasty was reduced, and the implementation of orthodoxy was more strict. Many popular texts, such as Japanese books, are regarded as unorthodox. Therefore, the text is divided into "inside" and "outside". The texts of foreign studies were gradually combined in the form of abstracts that were popular at that time, and since then, the contents have become more and more abundant, including Japanese books, zodiac books, divination books using different divination, and geomantic maps showing the good geomantic layout at home.

Calendar feng shui map. British library Or.82 10/P.6 (partial)

After the Yellow Scarf Army, the Han Dynasty declined, and the territory of the Han Dynasty was divided into relatively short periods. In the meantime, one of them banned these popular divination books in 267: anyone found in possession of such books will be sentenced to two years' imprisonment; Anyone who studies such books will be punished. However, it happened frequently in the following centuries, which shows that the ban is not effective and reflects the continued popularity of such books. In 375, the ban not only restricted divination and prophecy, but also introduced the documents "Zhuangzi" and ". This ban was imposed by a non-Han nationality who tried to legalize Confucianism as his orthodox thought. The Law of the Tang Dynasty promulgated in 65 1 year also has relevant provisions: "All occult objects, astronomy, books, divination books, military books, seven-year-old calendars, Taiyi and Lei formulas are not allowed to enter privately, and offenders are only sentenced to two years."

The imperial power tried to control the production and dissemination of private calendars, but in fact these words existed in large numbers. In 835, a man in Southwest China (now Sichuan Province) wrote to the emperor: "Nanchuan and Huainan were printed in the city, and no new calendar was issued every year on Sitiantai, which was printed all over the world, so there was respect for Taoism."

At that time, the Tang Dynasty promulgated it immediately, and the local government privately printed and held a calendar. From then until 1900, no privately printed calendar days were found. Although these calendars are often read, they can only be popular for a short time. They are only valid for one year. With the coming of the new year, the old calendars will be out of date and may be discarded or reused, such as insoles, repairs, or "toilet paper". But the discovery of 1900 meridian tunnel changed this. Located in the northwest of China is a town on the Silk Road, which is thousands of miles away from the capital of the Tang Dynasty. Most of the tens of thousands of documents found in caves are classics, including local books, dead private and abandoned general documents. There are also remnants of secular life, including some manuscripts and printed calendars discussed here. Many manuscripts are local. From them and other documents, we can learn more about the local astrological life. This may explain why this calendar sunrise is here and has been preserved to this day.

Printed calendars from the capital Chang 'an. British library Or.82 10/P. 12

However, it is almost certain that the printed calendar date of this plate has not been used as a brush. At present, there are three other fragments of the calendar, one of which is tentatively scheduled for the late 9th century AD, with a column of big characters written on the left "Home Seal of Dongcheng Avenue in Shangdu". Since 762, "Shangdu" has been used to refer to Chang 'an. Dongcheng is adjacent to Chang 'an's government and rich residential areas, while merchants from the Silk Road are concentrated in Xicheng, where there are many venues, hotels, restaurants and restaurants. This calendar is printed and sold under the eyes of the producers of this script, or it may be sold to these people, their families and slaves. Then, the name of the publisher is printed, indicating that they will not be punished. The reason is not difficult to identify, and that is interest. In 936 AD, Qin Shihuang ordered Qin to edit and publish the calendar and make it public. This is undoubtedly an attempt to control the content of the calendar and a means to increase fiscal revenue.

Private printers and buyers should bear certain risks, but the repeated regulations (953,958, 107 1, 1080, 1202) and the fact that fragments exist show that the risk has little impact, and it is obvious that printers continue to produce prohibited characters. In addition to this known capital Chang 'an, as the main data of this period, its limited evidence supports the view that there is a printing industry in southwest China. Another fragmented calendar can be traced back to 882, with the words "Jiannan Jianchuan Chengdufu Fanshang Family Calendar". From the beginning, people often took the north-south route in addition to the east-west trade route, and finally they could reach Sichuan, which is today. The third fragment is unclear, but its content and structure are similar to the calendar discussed in this chapter, dating back to 834.

Sichuan printing calendar day. British library Or.82 10/P. 10

Many people may not know that these characters are forbidden, especially in the border areas of the Tang Dynasty. Since the 8th century, the control of the Tang Dynasty on this area has been intermittent and very weak. At this time, there was an Anshi rebellion in the Tang Dynasty and it was necessary to withdraw from the border, so Tubo occupied this area in 786. Tubo stayed until 848. Although the families who expelled Tubo claimed to be loyal to the Tang Dynasty, they still had occasional contacts with the capital and the imperial court. Before 1 1 became a part of Xixia kingdom in the middle of the century, it was influenced more and more. Of course, this does not mean that most people who buy and use calendars and calendar systems regard calendars as a new tool or use them with relevant intentions. For most people in most periods, the calendar is only used to assist their daily lives, and it can provide people with answers that may not be available from formal authorities.

Although most calendar days are written, we can't think that they are only used by a small number of completely literate elites. China is used to writing, which is a part of daily life, even for illiterate people. Valerie Hansen explained how contracts are widely used, that is, both parties will sign with or other numbers. These people are part of a huge "functional literacy" group. They may not be able to write, but they also use words in their daily lives, thus "creating a network with words". In a contract, words are not only used to express authority. In the words of John Molander, the text is used to "reflect and resist authority, and can also be used to create meaning and build habits in daily life". The written word also has power and meaning independent of its literal meaning. Quasi-word and harmony are potentially private expressions. The use of contracts and other texts connects users with the world above, and the use of such texts connects them with the world below, that is, the world of spirit and God. "Writing action itself" has become a ritual activity.

It is also misleading to think that there is a difference between science and science. This calendar day is the difference between astronomy and astrology. But this does not mean that the two are almost the same in China. The scholar-bureaucrat class openly opposed it, but as Edward Hetzel Schafer said: "For most early China people, even for most authoritative organizations that observe astronomical phenomena, astronomy has not been separated from astrology ... Of course, some people expressed doubts about this, but most people, even well-educated people, still believe that Jupiter's appearance indicates the coming of disaster." Another volume of literature found in the cave reveals the accuracy of astronomical observation in China and the wider scope of astrology. This volume of literature is now in the British Library, including two documents, and finally there is a strange sketch of the electric god. One kind of literature is divination according to the shape of cloud gas, that is, cloud gas divination. Based on China people, it believes that nothing is supernatural, everything is a part of the natural order, and we can predict major events through other forms of natural order (the same theory exists in astrology). The content of the forecast may be related to the family, for example:

Anyone who is as angry as a wolf and tiger prancing about crouching tiger will leave son of the general and be crowned Duke within three years.

or

Lv Buwei Cloud, near the primitive mound, is full of gas, and it rises straight into the sky. Those who are yellow are also full of qi; Those green, red, white and black have disasters. I said that every county and city is out of the public, blue in color and seriously ill; White, with soldiers; Black, there are thieves in the city.

Li (602-670) in the above literature thinks that these predictions are based on observation and are also confirmed by observation. Without his own observation and verification, he didn't talk about the shape of the cloud gas. In addition, Li also referred to the observations of others, but he insisted that for all the records, "I checked them, so I recorded them." . I haven't passed the exam, and I dare not prepare this paper. "

Time angle diagram. British library Or.82 10/S.3326 (partial)

The second document in this volume is also based on observation, and both documents are probably written by the same person. It completely presents the sky observed from China, including 1339 stars and 257 stars, and depicts a series of all-sky star maps. Among them, the 12 time angle map adopts pseudo-cylindrical projection, and the 1 circumpolar star map adopts azimuth projection. Pseudo-cylindrical projection method is close to "Mercator projection" invented by Dutch cartographer Gerardus Mercator (15 12- 1594) nine centuries later, and this projection method has been used to draw global maps. These star maps are very important, not only the earliest hand-drawn star maps in all civilizations, but also with high accuracy. Like the shape of clouds, this part also refers to the works of three classical astronomers in China, Shi Shen, Gan De and Wu Xian, who were early sky observers and created reference books describing stars. The stars judged by the three astronomers are marked with different colors (red, black and white/), and their names are written next to them.

Polar map. British library Or.82 10/S.3326 (partial)

Although today we think that the second document is scientific and the words of cloud and gas divination belong to the scope, the second document was also a tool of divination at that time, and others will think that the two documents belong to the same type. Except for the equatorial belt, the rest of the sky is divided into a large number of star officials, whose names are mostly related to the actual things and people in China. These names have been used in astrology since the days of classical astronomers. The astrological achievements of three early astronomers spread throughout the Han Dynasty, and were later integrated by Chen Zhuo, an astronomer of the State of Wu in the Three Kingdoms period. For astrology, the tradition of dividing each constellation (or astrologer) into different genres has been preserved. The characters on the left side of each time angle diagram describe 12 months of China year, and give relevant astrological predictions. For example, "From female octave to dangerous fifteen degrees, joy chen is in the child, which is the mystery." Xuanzhe, black, the color of the north; People who are worried will consume. In November, the yang rises and falls, everything dies, there is no life, and heaven and earth are empty, so it is called Xuan Biao. The teacher of qi is also. "This does not prevent this document from having scientific value. Jean-Marc Bonnet-Bidaud, Francoise Praderie and I believe that "these documents are mainly used in astrology, but the scientific degree shows that they are based on astronomical observations and strive for accuracy as much as possible".

Just as many stories in ancient Greece were related to constellations, the ancient star officials in China also had many stories to tell. Many stories are widely known, and some have become the core of the festival. Therefore, although ordinary people have not received scientific training, many people can still identify some stars in the sky.

Like our printed calendars, star maps have potential. They are all controlled, and the control of astronomical knowledge is likely to be more successful than that of calendar, but the promulgation in 840 shows that this control is flawed. Comets have appeared several times before, including Halley's comet. People engaged in astronomical work and their subordinate officers are required to keep secrets and not to mention them to anyone, including other personnel. Although the calendar is an unauthorized document, we can reasonably assume that it is prepared for anyone who is willing to buy it. There are still many puzzles about the star map.

Susan whitefield, a former project director of the British Library and now a professor at the University of East Anglia, has devoted herself to the study of the history, art, materials and culture of the Silk Road for the past 30 years, and has written works such as Life on the Silk Road and Aurel Stein on the Silk Road. This article is taken from the History of Silk Road Civilization among the Top Ten Antiquities and published by Houlang Publishing Company.

The above is related to the meaning of the calendar, and it is about the sharing of history. Read the meaning of good or ill luck, I hope this will help everyone!