 Earlier Chinese books sometimes bore the name of the person whose teachings were collected in them, like the Mencius, or the person under whose patronage they were compiled, like the Spring and Autumn of Mr. Lü. But Sima Qian’s great Shi ji
(Records of the Grand Historian) is the earliest surviving Chinese book
in which the author acknowledges authorship and speaks directly to the
reader in the text. ... It was a massive compilation; a complete
translation into a Western language would fill two to three thousand
pages. [MOF, 62-3]
The Historian’s Sacred Duty
Sima Tan’s Dying Words to Sima Qian
 Sima Qian’s father, Sima Tan, held the office of tai shi,
usually translated as “grand historian,” at the court of
Emperor Wu. Since early Zhou times officials bearing this and related
titles also had kept records of heavenly phenomena and advised on their
interpretation; in view of the importance of these matters in Han elite
culture, a more appropriate translation of the title might be
“grand astrologer.” ... Sima Tan had been working on a great
compilation of documents relating to the duties of his office, but had
not finished it. As he lay dying, he said to his son. ... [MOF, 61-2]
|
 “Our ancestors were Grand
Historians for the House of Zhou. From the most ancient times they were
eminent and renowned when in the days of Yu
and Xia they were in charge
of astronomical affairs. In later ages our family declined. Will this
tradition end with me?  If you in turn become Grand Historian, you must
continue the work of our ancestors. ... When you become Grand Historian, you must not forget what I have desired to expound and write. Now,
filial piety begins with the serving of your parents; next, you must
serve your sovereign; and, finally, you must make something of
yourself, that your name may go down through the ages to the glory of
your father and mother. This is the most important part of filial
piety. ...
| The various feudal states have merged together, and the old
records and chronicles have become scattered and lost. Now the House of
Han has arisen and all the world is united under one rule. I have been
Grand Historian, and yet I have failed to make a record of all the
enlightened rulers and wise lords, the faithful ministers and gentlemen
who were ready to die for duty. I am fearful that the historical
material will be neglected and lost. You must remember and think of
this!” |
I bowed my head and wept, saying,
“I, your son, am ignorant and unworthy, but I shall endeavor to
set
forth in full the reports of antiquity that have come down from our
ancestors. I dare not be remiss!” [SCT, 370]
- What does Sima Tan’s dying statement tell us about the importance of filial piety ... and the role of the historian?
- How does this understanding of “history” relate to contemporary Western perspectives?
|
Sima Qian’s Castration
Weighing One Shame Against Another
Sima Qian himself was among the victims of the vicious politics of the later years of Emperor Wu’s reign. ... Li Ling
was the grandson of one of the greatest of Emperor Wu’s generals
and already had many successful battles behind him when in 99 B.C.E. he
was sent out against the Xiongnu with a force of only five thousand
infantry. ... Most of the Han soldiers died fighting, and only about four
hundred of the original five thousand got away and reached the border.
Li Ling surrendered to the Xiongnu. The emperor took no action,
regretting his failure to send the necessary reinforcements. But in 98
someone informed him that Li Ling was training the Xiongnu in the
Chinese arts of war. The emperor condemned Li to death and exterminated
his family. Li Ling later insisted that the person who had been
training the Xiongnu was not he but one Li Xu. He could have returned
after a general pardon but refused to do so, dying among the Xiongnu.
There was no particularly close tie of
friendship or loyalty between Sima Qian and Li Ling, but still in 98
the grand historian took the extraordinary step of defending Li against
the accusation of treason, insisting that he must have surrendered in
order to “try to seek some future opportunity to repay his debt
to the Han.” The enraged emperor turned Sima Qian over to the
legal authorities for trial for the capital crime of defamation of the
imperial court. A conviction was a foregone conclusion. In his case,
the death sentence was reduced to the most severe of the mutilating
punishments, castration. One
does not have to be an orthodox  Freudian to suspect that fear of and revulsion at
castration is deeply built into the male psyche. In Chinese tradition
this revulsion was reinforced by the dictates of filial piety, in which
one of the child’s first duties is to preserve intact the body received
from the parents. Anyone, and especially anyone of honorable standing
in society, would be expected to commit suicide, keeping the body whole
to death, rather than submit to castration. Sima Qian shared these
beliefs and feelings, but also was deeply committed to another side of
filial piety. He had promised his father that he would complete his
great work, preserving the names and deeds of the great men of
antiquity and assuring the fame of the Sima family. And filial piety
required not the effacement of self but its fulfillment: “Establish
yourself and follow the Way, exalting your name to later generations,
in order to shed glory on your father and mother.” [MOF, 68-9]
- Why
did Sima Qian defend Li Ling against the accusation of treason? How
might this be connected to his conception of the role of an historian?
Sima Qian’s Self-Defense Before
Li Ling fell into the hands of the enemy, a messenger came with the
report [of his attack] and the lords and ministers of the Han all
raised their cups in joyous toast to the emperor. But after a few days
came word of his defeat, and because of it the emperor could find no
flavor in his food and no delight in the deliberations of the court.
The great officials were in anxiety and fear and did not know what to
do. Observing His Majesty’s grief and distress, I dared to forget my
mean and lowly position, sincerely desiring to do what I could in my
fervent ignorance. I considered that Li Ling had always shared with his
officers and men their hardships and want, and could command the
loyalty of his troops in the face of death. In this he was unsurpassed
even by the famous generals of old. And although he had fallen into
captivity, I perceived that his intention was to try to seek some
future opportunity to repay his debt to the Han. Though in the end he
found himself in an impossible situation, yet the merit he had achieved
in defeating and destroying so many of the enemy was still worthy to be
proclaimed throughout the world. This is what I had in mind to say, but
I could find no opportunity to express it. Then it happened that I was
summoned into council, and I used the chance to speak of Li Ling’s
merits in this way, hoping to broaden His Majesty’s view and put a stop
to the angry words of the other officials. But I could not make myself
fully understood. [Records of the Grand Historian: Qin Dynasty, 231-2; cf. Sima Qian’s Self-Defense]
My father had no great deeds. ... He dealt with
affairs of astronomy and the calendar, which are close to divination
and worship of the spirits. He was kept for the sport and amusement of
the emperor, treated the same as the musicians and jesters, and made
light of by the vulgar men of his day. If I fell before the law and
were executed, it would make no more difference to most people than one
hair off nine oxen, for I was nothing more than a mere ant to them. The
world would not rank me among those men who were able to die for their
ideals, but would believe simply that my wisdom was exhausted and my
crime great, that I had been unable to escape penalty and in the end
had gone to my death. Why? Because all my past actions had brought this
on me, they would say. ...
| When I have completed this work, I shall deposit it in
the Mountain of Fame, so that it can be handed down to men who will
understand it, and penetrate to the villages and great cities. Then
although I should suffer death from ten thousand cuts, what regret
should I have? ... |
I have brought upon myself the scorn and mockery even
of my native village and I have soiled and shamed my father’s
grave. With what face can I again ascend and stand before the grave
mound of my father and mother? ... Only after the day of death shall
right and wrong at last be determined. [MOF, 70-1]
- What does this testimony tell us about Sima Qian’s principles and values?
|
|
The Text’s Structure
Sima Qian divided his material into five sections: “Basic
Annals,” “Chronological Tables,”
“Treatises,” “Hereditary Houses,” and
“Memoirs.” This
arrangement, with various modifications, has been followed by almost
all later official historians. In later histories the section called
“Basic Annals” might better be referred to as
“Imperial Annals,” since it deals only with acts of the
officially reigning emperors. ... The “Chronological Tables”
needs little explanation, being tables of dates for important events.
The “Treatises,” one of the most valuable parts of the
work, comprises essays devoted to the history and description of
important institutional matters and topical subjects. Below are listed
the eight Treatises of the Shiji together with those of the Han-shu that are based upon Shiji material.
|
Shiji Treatises
Rites
Music
The Pitch Pipes
The Calendar
Astronomy
Sacrifices of Feng and Shan
The Yellow River & Canals
Balance of Commerce
(Economics) |
HanshuTreatises
The Calendar
Rites and Music
Punishments and Laws
Food and Money (Economics)
State Sacrifices
Astronomy
Five Phases (Portents)
Geography
Land Drainage
Literature |
“Hereditary
Houses,” being largely accounts of feudal families, was not
usually included after the abolition of the enfeoffment system. The
“Memoirs” section was generally devoted to the lives of
famous persons — military leaders, politicians, philosophers, and
so on. Some chapters deal with particular groups such as famous
assassins, upright officials, tyrannical officials, wandering knights,
imperial favorites, and merchants. Others treat non-Chinese lands and
people, including those of Korea, southeast China, and Ferghana. The
concluding chapter is the biography of the historians themselves. [SCT,
369-70]
- How is this arrangement of material similar to and/or different from a typical Western approach to political history?
| [The complex way in which the Shiji
is organized] requires a good deal of time and effort to get the
maximum benefit from it. No one part of the book gives all the most
important points about a major development. For example, for the story
of the collapse of Qin and the victory of Han, the reader must read the
overlapping basic annals of Qin, Xiang Yu, and Emperor Gao, the
hereditary house chapters on the first rebel and several of the allies
of Emperor Gao who later were made kings; and several memoirs on other
important ministers of the Han founder. Thus this immensely important
transition is seen not just from the perspective of the winner but also
from those of the loser and of the great men whose advice and
assistance were essential to Emperor Gao’s victory. This is not history
for someone who wants to read a book once and get a single story, a
neat answer as to what it was all about, but is for living with, coming
back to over and over, continuing to think about and learn from, as
every educated Chinese was supposed to do down to our own century. This
way of writing history is an important source of the awareness of
multiple perspectives and the fondness for complexity that have
characterized the Chinese understanding of politics and human action
ever since. [MOF, 63-4] |
|
Lessons to be Learned?
Sima Qian’s Approach to History
| “The Classic of Documents broadens one’s information and is the practice of wisdom; the Spring and Autumn Annals passes moral judgments on events and is the symbol of trustworthiness.” |
The
function of history, as seen in this statement, is twofold: to impart
tradition and to provide edifying moral examples as embodied in the
classics. These two traditions, one recording the words and deeds of
history, the other illustrating moral principles through historical
incidents, run through all Chinese historiography. In practice, the
former tradition has dominated. The common method of the Chinese
historian has been to transmit verbatim as nearly as possible what his
sources tell him, adding only such background and connecting narrative
as may be necessary. For example, the historian does not tell us that
the emperor issued an edict to such and such an effect but reproduces
the edict whole or in part so that we may read what he said for
ourselves. Since the Chinese historian was often working in an official
capacity, he had access to government files or memorials, edicts, court
decisions, and other papers that made such a procedure possible. His
own job, then, became one of selecting the most pertinent documents and
arranging them in a way best calculated to demonstrate the cause and
effect of events. If in addition he wished to inject his own personal
opinion, he usually marked it clearly by some conventional literary
device so that the reader could readily distinguish it. [SCT, 367-8]
|
So
bleak was Sima Qian’s view of the government of his own times that his
collective biography of the reasonable officials, those who governed
wisely and treated the common people kindly, draws examples only from
the centuries before the Qin. The corresponding collective biography of
the harsh officials is entirely devoted to men who served the Han. One
who served Emperor Wen was harsh but loyal and incorruptible, very
useful in curbing the power of local wealthy families. The stories of
harsh officials who served Emperor Wu get more and more bitter as the
chronological list continues. As the officials grew harsher in enforcing
the law, the people grew more clever in evading it. [MOF, 68] |
In
the great work he was struggling to complete for the sake of family and
self, the most distinctive personal notes were condemnation of the
harsh and cynical government of his own time and nostalgia for a time
when good, brave, and clever men were not hemmed in on every side by an
all-encompassing state. [MOF, 69]
|
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