There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 397 Worship at the Temple of Confucius
Nanjing Imperial Palace.

"Your Majesty, you must not! Although Zhang Zhongjing was a member of the Confucian school, he was ultimately a physician. How can he be allowed to enter the Temple of Confucius?" Gu Jingzheng earnestly advised the emperor.

Nie Yu laughed and said, "Isn't Zhang Zhongjing also a sage? Since he is one of the sages, why can't he be enshrined in the Temple of Confucius?"

Liu Jun continued, "Zhang Zhongjing is indeed a sage, but he is also a medical sage. A medical sage is not a Confucian sage, so it is inappropriate for him to be enshrined in the Confucian Temple. Your Majesty, please think it over carefully!"

Nie Yu's smile remained unchanged as he continued, "In that case, how about we allow Sun Simiao and Zu Chongzhi to be enshrined in the Confucius Temple?"

No, just because Zhang Zhongjing wasn't a Confucian sage and therefore couldn't be enshrined in the Confucian Temple doesn't mean that Daoist sages can be enshrined there!

And what are the works and achievements of Zu Chongzhi that have been passed down through the ages?

It can't possibly be the "Da Ming Calendar" (the calendar of the Northern and Southern Dynasties)!
Lü Zhihong then advised, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. Sun Simiao and Zu Chongzhi both came from the Daoist school, and therefore should not be enshrined in the Confucian Temple."

Upon hearing this, Nie Yu's smile finally faded, and he asked directly, "I remember that Confucius advocated education for all, regardless of background. Now you are so resistant to medical and Daoist students entering the Confucian Temple. Could it be that Confucius's words of wisdom are all false?"

"Of course not..."

The ministers quickly denied it.

You can't just answer that question carelessly!

The Temple of Confucius was the center of Confucianism in the world. Although the emperor of the newly established Han Dynasty imposed many restrictions on the Confucius family, forcibly divided the land for the Southern Confucius Temple, and demolished and destroyed the statues of Confucius in various places, these were all precedents.

The distribution of land was a national policy of the Han Dynasty, and the statue of Confucius in the Confucius Temple was already clearly debated during the Great Rites Controversy of the Ming Dynasty.

But no matter how the emperor restricted the Kong family, he still preserved the Temple of Confucius and the Southern Kong family, and recently bestowed upon the Southern Kong family the title of Duke Yansheng.

When the Han Dynasty launches a northern expedition and recovers Shandong, the emperor will formally replace the Northern Confucius Duke with the Southern Confucius Duke to preside over the Confucian temple sacrifices throughout the land.

At that very moment, Kong Guangbiao, the Duke of Yansheng of the new Han Dynasty, was sitting at the side, listening to the emperor and his officials discuss including Zhang Zhongjing, Sun Simiao, and other sages who did not belong to the Confucian school in the Confucian Temple.

While the prince and his ministers said they dared not, they were also quite speechless at the sight of Kong Guangbiao, the Duke of Yansheng.

The emperor is now going to move Taoist and medical sages like Zhang Zhongjing and Sun Simiao into your Southern Confucian Temple. We are here to help you Southern Confucian Temple by advising the emperor. If you don't support us, at least don't just stand there without saying a word!

However, Kong Guangbiao seemed completely oblivious to their murderous glares, remaining standing still and unblinking, serving as the backdrop for this small court meeting.

Before these Han Dynasty civil officials could make their next move, Emperor Nie Yu took the initiative and said, "Since you all say it's not true, does that mean Confucius's teaching of education for all is true and not just a deceptive statement?"

Upon hearing this, the ministers, though sensing something was amiss, still forced themselves to say, "Of course."

"it is good!"

Nie Yu first clapped his hands in praise, then his face instantly darkened, and he asked, "Since Confucius said that under the sage, there should be education for all, then I now want to elevate the sages of past dynasties such as Sun Simiao, Zhang Zhongjing, and Zu Chongzhi to be worshipped in the Confucian Temple. Does anyone object?"

How to object?

Who will object?

Putting aside the opposition, it is a rebuttal to Confucius's words, which is tantamount to a refutation of the Confucius Temple from the sidelines.

Moreover, the emperor has already asked this question, and just by looking at his expression, you can tell that he is serious this time and really wants to put the person in the Confucian Temple for worship.

Opposition is possible, but the emperor is truly willing to take real action!
No one spoke; the courtiers remained silent.

Kong Guangbiao remained as steady as Mount Tai, as if the matters being discussed had absolutely nothing to do with him.

For Kong Guangbiao now, it really doesn't matter. It's just adding a few more non-Confucian sages to the Confucian Temple for worship. It doesn't shake the Confucian Temple's status as the foremost place of worship in the world, nor does it shake Confucius's status as the main deity.

The civil officials opposed adding people because they were Confucian disciples, and the interests of the orthodox tradition were there, so they had no choice but to oppose it rather than fight for it.

And what about Kong Guangbiao?
He is the embodiment of the Daoist lineage, and the restoration of his title of Duke Yansheng was all due to the emperor's decree.

For as long as he lived, Kong Guangbiao intended to lead the Southern Kong clan in resolutely supporting (and groveling before) the Emperor of the Han Dynasty.

As long as the Temple of Confucius is not demolished, the title of Duke Yansheng is not stripped, and the main worship of Confucius is not changed, he will never go west if the Emperor of the Han Dynasty wants him to go east!
Seeing that no one spoke, Nie Yu nodded and smiled, "Very well, since everyone agrees, then this matter is settled. I will later send the list of newly added sages to be enshrined in the Temple of Confucius to the Ministry of Rites!"

Gu Jing couldn't help but speak up. He didn't directly object, but instead said tactfully, "Your Majesty, if you want to add more sages to be worshipped, you must discuss it with the people of the world. Besides, since the sages are sages, they must have left behind some unforgettable works to carry on their scholarship!"

The former debate is a set procedure. Adding Confucian deities to the temple is not something the emperor can do at will; he must give a reasonable reason. Even removing a Confucian deity requires sufficient reasons to prove which sage cannot be enshrined in the temple.

After all, the Confucian temple sacrifices began in the Han Dynasty, and there weren't always so many people at the beginning; it all came about through continuous debates among Confucian schools of thought throughout the dynasties.

Nie Yu wasn't angry or annoyed, because today's matter was indeed quite big. He was trying to force people into the Confucius Temple, and they weren't even Confucian sages.

Not only did the emperor bear the pressure, but all the officials in the court who agreed to implement the policy also naturally bore enormous pressure.

Gu Jing, as the Minister of Rites, was the first to bear the responsibility. After all, the new Han Dynasty had just been established, and the Taichang Temple was not yet fully established. Therefore, Gu Jing was still in charge of the sacrificial affairs at the Confucius Temple.

Nie Yu said, “Let me take Zu Chongzhi as an example. The pseudo-Qing all claim that our Han Dynasty has powerful firearms, and what is the most powerful firearm? It is the cannon. And what can the cannon use to cause damage? Naturally, it is the cannonball. From the manufacture to the production, and even the firing of the cannonballs at the pseudo-Qing Tartars, all of these rely on the principles of mathematics. Zu Chongzhi proved and calculated the Zu ratio (pi) for posterity. Although the Zu ratio is now a basic mathematics course, this does not mean that his contribution is insignificant. Today, in every province under the rule of our Han Dynasty, there are people who study the Zu ratio and carry it forward. This is the merit of passing on knowledge and skills. Does this not deserve to be enshrined in the Temple of Confucius?”

It must be said that Zu Chongzhi was indeed a genius. As a mathematician during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, he was able to accurately calculate the last seven digits of pi.

The Book of Sui, Treatise on Music and Calendar states: "At the end of the Song Dynasty, Shi Zuchong, an official in Nanxu Prefecture, further developed a secret method, taking one hundred million as one zhang (丈). The circumference of the circle is 3 zhang, 1 chi, 4 cun, 1 fen, 5 li, 9 hao, 2 miao, and 7 hu (3.1415927), and the circumference of the circle is 3 zhang, 1 chi, 4 cun, 1 fen, 5 li, 9 hao, 2 miao, and 6 hu (3.1415926). The correct number is between the circumference and the circumference limit."

Gu Jing was speechless when he heard the reason given by the emperor.

The Han Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty are currently at war, and firearms are of paramount importance. If the emperor links Zu Chongzhi with the Han Dynasty's firearms, then almost no one will object to Zu Chongzhi being enshrined in the Temple of Confucius.

Nie Yu continued, "Let's talk about Zhang Zhongjing. Zhang Zhongjing is the second sage and also the sage of medicine. He is the forerunner of all physicians in the world. I don't need to say more about the importance of physicians. I know that physicians have never had a good reputation since ancient times. You Confucian scholars generally look down on those who study medicine."

This is truly disdainful. Although the Cheng-Zhu school of Neo-Confucianism, which has been heavily criticized by later generations, has put forward the view that "knowing medicine is filial piety," believing that Confucian scholars must understand medicine in order to demonstrate filial piety.

Even though Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism advocated "knowing medicine is filial piety," it still held a disdainful attitude towards medicine, viewing it merely as a tool for Neo-Confucianism to promote and spread filial piety. They encouraged those who served their parents to "know medicine is filial piety," yet they also believed that Confucian scholars should not practice medicine, as this would be an insult to the dignity and civility of scholars.

Throughout history, doctors have generally had a low social status. Di Renjie of the Tang Dynasty was skilled in medicine and refused to accept payment after treating patients.

This wasn't because Judge Di was exceptionally incorruptible, but because accepting money meant he was practicing medicine, which is considered a lowly profession.

The only period when doctors enjoyed a relatively high status was during the Song and Yuan dynasties. In the Song dynasty, Fan Zhongyan's saying, "If you can't be a good prime minister, then be a good doctor," slightly eased the awkward position of doctors.

The situation was special during the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, which was also the first time in history that doctors had a higher status than Confucian scholars.

However, the Mongol Yuan dynasty existed for too short a period, less than a hundred years, and was mostly engaged in civil war, so its existence can be disregarded.

At the founding of the Ming Dynasty, doctors were relegated to the status of "medical households," ranking alongside lowly groups like "music households," and their social standing plummeted.

This practice continued into the Qing dynasty. Doctors remained the same, and because doctors had such low social status, very few were truly willing to study medicine. Most were just quacks with miscellaneous knowledge or incompetent doctors with poor skills.

These quack doctors and doctors with only a few miscellaneous skills further damaged the reputation of doctors.

The reason why Han Dynasty civil officials, including Gu Jing, opposed Zhang Zhongjing's enshrinement in the Confucian Temple was that the medical profession at that time was simply too diverse.

There are too many quacks and quacks, and very few truly renowned doctors.

Nie Yu currently has only a handful of renowned doctors under his command, and he also has to serve as the dean of the medical school, managing the development of the medical school in the new Han Dynasty.

Nie Yu said, "I understand why you look down on these doctors. There are too many quacks, and many who call themselves doctors don't even know how to diagnose or take a pulse. These charlatans and unskilled practitioners are indeed unworthy of being called doctors."

"However, precisely for this reason, I want to reinstate the medical sage Zhang Zhongjing in the Confucian Temple, to show all medical practitioners in the world that my new Han Dynasty is neither the former Ming nor the pseudo-Qing, and will not discriminate against medical practitioners."

"The medical school will soon be built and will soon be spread to all parts of the Han Dynasty, with at least one in every county. In the future, whether you are an official or a commoner, if you want to practice medicine, you must first pass the medical practitioner qualification exam at the medical school. Without a qualification certificate, you are practicing medicine illegally."

"At that time, our new Han Dynasty will have the Sage of Medicine enshrined in the Temple of Confucius, and medical professors planning medical practitioners. The medical profession will surely flourish."

"The prosperity of medicine benefits the country and its people!"

"..."

"Your subject obeys the decree!" Gu Jing was already convinced; he had no choice but to accept it, as the emperor had made his position so clear.

As a subject, one should fight for the emperor; otherwise, what kind of official are you?

There is little controversy regarding the inclusion of Sun Simiao, Zu Chongzhi, and Zhang Zhongjing in the Temple of Confucius.

Sun Simiao invented gunpowder, Zu Chongzhi studied mathematics, and Zhang Zhongjing studied medicine; none of these three had any connection with Confucianism.

One can imagine the uproar this list of sacrificial offerings will cause.

Nie Yu still felt that this was not chaotic enough, so he added: "Since we have already added three non-Confucian sages, Sun Simiao, Zu Chongzhi, and Zhang Zhongjing, then I will nominate another Confucian sage to be enshrined in the Temple of Confucius!"

Should we nominate another Confucian sage?
Upon hearing this, the ministers' expressions brightened. The emperor had already enshrined three non-Confucian sages in the ancestral temple. If he could also nominate a Confucian sage, the problem wouldn't seem so serious, and it would at least reduce the firepower of the literati in the land by half.

However, before they could celebrate too soon, Nie Yu suddenly said, "I remember that Xunzi was once enshrined in the Confucian Temple, but during the Great Rites Controversy of the Ming Dynasty, the court removed him from the ancestral worship. In that case, I hereby nominate him to be enshrined in the Confucian Temple again!"

Good heavens, they're restoring Xunzi to his position as a deity worshipped in the Confucian Temple?

The officials were completely dumbfounded.

Many people in later generations probably don't understand Xunzi, but many more know the saying "At the beginning of life, people are inherently good".

However, Xunzi did not believe in the idea that "human nature is inherently good." He held the opposite view, believing that "human nature is inherently evil at birth."

The reason given for removing Xunzi from the ancestral rites during the Jiajing Emperor's Great Rites Controversy was Xunzi's advocacy of "human nature is inherently evil." However, this did not mean that the Jiajing Emperor opposed the inherent evil of human nature; rather, it was because the teachings of Confucius and Mencius had been followed since the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties.

Mencius, one of the Confucian scholars, advocated the inherent goodness of human nature.

Mencius's status has been continuously elevated over the past thousand years, and his works were even exceptionally included in the Four Books and Five Classics during the Song Dynasty.

The Four Books and Five Classics consist of the Four Books: *The Great Learning*, *The Analects*, *Mencius*, and *The Doctrine of the Mean*. The Five Classics consist of the Five Books: *The Book of Poetry*, *The Book of Documents*, *The Book of Rites*, *The Book of Changes*, and *The Spring and Autumn Annals*.

The inclusion of Mencius in the canon came under tremendous pressure.

According to tradition, the Thirteen Classics before the Song Dynasty (the Book of Music was destroyed in the burning of books and burying of scholars) were basically the "Book of Poetry, Book of Documents, Book of Rites, Book of Changes" from the Zhou Dynasty, as well as derivative works of the Book of Rites, the Spring and Autumn Annals written by Confucius himself and its three commentaries, plus the Analects (the Erya is a dictionary).

The only exception is the Classic of Filial Piety, which was compiled by Confucius's disciples.

It can be said that, apart from Confucius, any work that carries a clear personal ideological bias is not qualified to be included in the canon.

The inclusion of Mencius in the classics is due to the connection between the status of Confucius and Mencius. Later, under immense pressure, the Song Dynasty elevated Mencius to the Thirteen Classics, which is a rare exception.

Since Mencius was already included in the classics and was used as a topic in the imperial examinations in later generations, Xunzi, whose ideas were contrary to his, could not possibly be included in the classics, and it was completely useless in the imperial examinations.

Nie Yu wanted to reinstate Xunzi in the temple because he had read Xunzi in his previous life and knew just how ahead of his time this work was.

Xunzi not only opposed the theory of the inherent goodness of human nature, but also believed that the foundation of dynasties—the theory of the interaction between Heaven and humanity—was all nonsense.

Xunzi believed that Heaven has its timing, Earth has its advantages, and Man has his governance. In other words, Man, Heaven, and Earth are indeed three entities, but this means that they do not interfere with each other. If Man abandons the essential and pursues the trivial, blindly seeking the interaction between Man and Heaven and interfering with the workings of Heaven, it is foolish.

To put it more bluntly, Xunzi believed that the rise and fall of dynasties had nothing to do with the interaction of the heavens, but rather with the rule of men. If the emperor knew what he should do to ensure the people's well-being, the dynasty would prosper; otherwise, it would decline.

Blindly worshipping the Way of Heaven is not the behavior befitting an emperor or sage.

(End of this chapter)