In ancient Greek mythology, there is a very classic tragic hero: Prometheus. He stole the fire from heaven and returned it to mankind, thus angering Zeus, the king of the gods. He was imprisoned on the cliff of the Caucasus mountain and suffered the pain of being pecked by Eagles every day!
In fact, when we talk about the Greek tragedy with interest, we often forget that behind the glory of human nature, there must be a huge shadow of fate. Because this is not an equal struggle or struggle after all. At both ends of the scale, one side is the pen of the winner, and the other is the sigh of the loser.
In ancient Chinese mythology, there is also such a tragic figure, and around him, historical records are mixed. His name is Gu! His flood control method is obviously the same as that of Dayu. Why was he beheaded by the emperor of heaven?
I’m Yang sir. I’m deeply involved in archaeology. I’ve also visited mountains and seas
“When the tortoise is holding the title, how can he listen? If he wants to succeed, how can the emperor punish him?”—— Qu Yuan’s Tianwen
The owl and the tortoise offered suggestions for him to steal xirang. Why did he listen at that time? Why did Emperor Yao punish him when he was close to success? “This is Qu Yuan’s questioning and thinking. Of course, this question is not easy to answer. There are many mysteries on the surface that need to be peeled off one by one.
(I) merit or fault
The first thing we can see about this legendary figure is that some books and records have done everything possible to vilify him, and the charge is first of all that he has done nothing to prevent the blocking of all rivers. For example, it is said in Guoyu · zhouyu:
“In ancient times, the people did not fall into the mountains, worship the soups, guard against the rivers, or douze… When they were in danger, they worshipped Bo Fu and spread their lustful intentions. They said that they had worked together, and Yao used Yu mountain.”
In addition, the book of history Hong Fan also said:
“When the flood was annihilated, the five elements were revealed. The emperor was so angry that he didn’t give the flood fan nine domains, and the Yi Lun you sent them away (D ù). When the flood was annihilated, Yu died, and Yu succeeded.”
It can be seen that in these records, it is repeatedly emphasized that his water control violated the nature of water, and he fell into a high and humble position, so that his function was not achieved and he was finally killed by the emperor of heaven. What’s more, Kuo Fu Hui was regarded as a sage’s incompetent and called “Tao Wu”, one of the four evildoers:
“Zhuan Xu’s family has some talented people who can’t be taught. If they don’t know what to say, they will be stubborn. If they don’t give it up, they will clamor. They are arrogant and have a clear virtue. They will make chaos in the sky and the people in the world will be called Taowu.” – “Zuo Zhuan · the 18th year of Wen Gong”
According to this, Gu’s evil is not limited to the failure to control water, but a stubborn and unforgivable guy!
However, on the other side of the coin, people praise and complain about his grievances, such as Qu Yuan mentioned above. The most important point is that in the classic of mountains and seas – the classic of Hainei, what he did is obviously a heroic epic hymn:
“The flood is towering, and the emperor stole away his land” (Y ? n) Floods do not wait for the emperor’s life. The emperor ordered Zhu Rong to kill Yu in Yujiao. When Kuo revived Yu, the emperor ordered Yu’s death to lay the earth to rule Kyushu. “—— Shanhaijing and haineijing
At the critical moment of the flood, like Prometheus, who stole fire for mankind, he stole xirang from the emperor of heaven and solved the flood. But because he disobeyed the emperor’s order, he was killed by zhurong in Yushan. Although Kan died, his son Yu inherited his father’s ambition and finally settled Kyushu!
(II) how to treat floods
The strangeness lies in why there are two opposite legends about the same historical figure? Many people think that the father and the son, Yu, are two different models of failure and success in water control, and the difference in the results lies in the great differences in the ways of water control: the father and the son “annihilated” and the son “guided”. Is this really the case? no
First, the flood control methods of Kan and Yu are the same, both using “annihilation” and “filling”
“Yu annihilated the flood and killed the prime minister. His blood smelled so bad that he could not live in a valley. His land was full of water and he could not live in it. Yu annihilated it, and the three Rens and three juts were regarded as a pool. The emperors thought it was a platform.”—— Shanhaijing · Dahuang Beijing
The “annihilation” of “Yu annihilation” here means filling. In addition, “Huainanzi terrain training” also said: “Yu thought it was a famous mountain because he filled the flood with rest soil.” It can be seen that “annihilation” and “filling” are both methods.
As the saying goes, the soldiers will block the water and cover the earth. This is indeed the correct way for the ancient people to prevent and control floods. As for the methods of digging Longmen and dredging Jiuhe, it is almost impossible to operate them under the conditions of ancient science and technology!
Second, both Kan and Yu succeeded in controlling floods and were heroes.
As a matter of fact, in the early legend, Kan and Yu had achieved certain effects in water control, so when many ancient books and books mention the success of water control, they always mention Kan and Yu together:
“Han Yu was the first to spread the earth, and all settled in Kyushu” — Shanhaijing · haineijing
Then, in Guoyu · Wuyu, water control is also attributed to “the merit of Yu”:
“Now that the king has changed the merits of Kan Yu, he is superior and inferior, so as to stop the people from going to Gusu.”
That is to say, in these records, without exception, Kan and Yu are juxtaposed, and it is affirmed that both of them are heroes of flood control. Then, why did the saying “Yang Yu suppresses Yu” appear later, and there were other huge differences on the legend of Kan? The reason may be the fierce and sharp tribal struggle!
(III) losers in the struggle
“Yao accepted the world as a place for Shun and Kan as a vassal. He was angry with Yao and said, ‘the one who gets the way of heaven is the emperor, and the one who gets the way of the earth is the Sangong. Now I get the way of the earth without taking me as the Sangong’.”
By “the way of the earth” here, he means that he has calmed the flood, but has not been given the corresponding status. This is the first reason; In addition, the second reason mentioned in “Han Feizi · foreign reserve on the upper right” seems to be related to Gu’s opposition to Yao’s abdication system. He is very likely to support emperor Danzhu’s hereditary system to undermine the electoral system of tribal alliance chiefs.
“Yao wanted to spread the word to shun, and he admonished him:” it’s ominous. Who can spread the word from the world? “Yao didn’t listen and raised his army to kill him in the suburb of Yushan. Gonggong again admonished: “who can pass it on to the common people with the help of the world?” Yao didn’t listen, and he raised his army to kill him. He worked together in the capital of Youzhou. So the world dares not to say that there is no such thing as Shun. “
Then, was Kuo the only one who opposed Emperor Yao’s abdication system at that time? Of course not. Another person is also famous, that is, Gonggong! This passage conveys two messages: first, both Kuo and Gonggong were killed by Yao’s “army”, which shows that their own tribe is very powerful; Second, Gonggong and Gu have the same views on abdication, and even their words of persuasion are the same, which shows that they are in the same camp, and they stand on one side to oppose Emperor Yao.
Therefore, the deep-seated reason behind the different praises and criticisms of Kan Yu’s flood control is that the winners write about the losers again! Disclaimer: the above content originates from the Internet, and the copyright belongs to the original author. If your original copyright is infringed, please inform us, and we will delete the relevant content as soon as possible.