In ancient times, executions of death row inmates were carried out at three o'clock in the afternoon.
Some people will ask: why do you have to have this time? Is there anything special about this? The answer is yes, during the feudal society period, the time and season of execution of death row prisoners were strictly regulated.
If a death row inmate is arbitrarily executed without following the time limit, the custodian will be beaten eighty times with a rod. So, when will it take to execute a death row inmate? Dynasties are different, and the times are slightly different.
Before the Han Dynasty, the execution months were mostly between September and December of the lunar calendar; after the Tang Dynasty, it became the October to December of the lunar calendar.
This time, also known as the "Autumn Queen".
The specific time of execution is also slightly different. During the Tang and Song dynasties, it was mostly from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.; while in the Ming and Qing dynasties, it was mostly around 12:00 noon.
This is the so-called "three o'clock in the afternoon".
The season of execution is exquisite
In the Western Han Dynasty, there was a Confucian master named Dong Zhongshu. Dong Zhongshu played a very important role in the spread of Confucianism. And this
The emergence of executions in autumn and winter also has a great relationship with Dong Zhongshu.
Dong Zhongshu believes that when there are four times in heaven, the king has four governments, and celebration, reward, punishment, and punishment correspond to spring, summer, autumn, and winter. That is to say, the monarch's behavior and handling of things are naturally in accordance with the arrangements of heaven.
Since the heavens arranged for the revival of all things in spring and summer, the emperor naturally could not kill people in the spring and summer seasons; and autumn and winter were mostly the seasons of slaughter, which could be used to punish the scum of society.
Therefore, it is not so much that Dong Zhongshu carried forward the Confucian doctrine, but rather that Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty just valued the potential value of Confucianism. What emperor does not like his inheritance and is affirmed by heaven?
Proud and arrogant like Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, he naturally hoped to use ideology and culture to strengthen the management of the people.
Therefore, with the help of Dong Zhongshu, such a season of execution was fixed.
Of course, in addition to this set of feudal ideas of "divine right of kings", the autumn and winter executions also hid the careful thinking of the rulers.
Most of the people in ancient times were mainly farming.
In the spring and summer, the people are busy farming, and the thought of watching the liveliness is not so heavy. After October, the agricultural work in the field is almost done, and people will naturally be idle. And what are idlers most willing to do? Nature is just about watching the hilarity.
You know, in ancient times, the execution of death row inmates was beheaded wherever it was lively, and the grand situation of "live broadcasting" could be described as a crowded alley.
So why did the imperial court have to execute death row incisurers in a lively and open place?
This is naturally "killing the chicken to show the monkey", so as to achieve the role of alerting the world.
Since it is to warn the world, it is certainly necessary to choose a time when everyone is idle.
As a result, autumn and winter have become the season of high incidence of executions of death row inmates.
Moreover, this date of execution is also very exquisite.
The first day, the eighth, fourteenth, fifteenth, eighteenth, twenty-third, twenty-fourth, twenty-eighth, twenty-ninth, and thirty-seventh day of the first year are "forbidden killing days" and cannot be used to execute.
In addition to these days, the twenty-four solar terms, major holidays, and the birthday dates of important royal figures are also not allowed to carry out the death penalty.
It can be said that in that era of etiquette at every turn, it is not easy to find a suitable date of execution.
At least it is necessary to make up for the time and place, so that it can not only fully face the court, but also play a role in educating the people.
The timing of the execution is exquisite
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, it was basically set at nearly twelve o'clock in the afternoon. Why do you have to be at such a point in time? This has a lot to do with the feudal superstitious thinking of the ancients.
The ancients believed that killing people was not a head-to-head, but this head-to-earth was also related to had a relationship with hades. If you do "yin things", you are naturally afraid of being contaminated by dirty things. At about twelve o'clock, the shadows on the ground are the smallest, which is the so-called "heaviest yang qi".
The execution of the death penalty at such a time is naturally to protect the "personal safety" of the executioners and the beheading officers, and to prevent them from being "entangled" by the "unjust souls" of the prisoners.
Of course, protecting executioners and beheaders is one thing; on the other hand, it is naturally to put pressure on death row inmates. As we all know, most of the people who can be sentenced to death are some vicious and vicious bad people.
Therefore, choosing to execute these bad people at such a time is naturally also to let the Yang Qi "scatter" their souls, so as to achieve the purpose of never appearing again and not coming out to do evil.
It can be said that in ancient times, the death penalty was not only to punish criminals physically, but also to crack down on criminals mentally. Of course, this is the execution regulation that only appeared after the Ming and Qing dynasties.
But
During the Tang and Song dynasties, most of the executions were between 1:00 and 5:00 p.m. Executions in such a time period naturally have a certain amount of attention.
In winter, the sun generally goes down earlier. At the same time, in the eyes of the ancients, the setting of the sun naturally means that the time of "yang" is over and begins to enter the "yin time".
Choosing to execute prisoners at such a time is naturally hoping that these death row inmates can reincarnate as good people, change to good in the next life, and no longer do evil like this life.
Of course, the specific time of these executions is actually not clearly stipulated by the law, but it is just a habit that everyone acquiesces to.
At the very least, in some books, there are records of executions in the evening and after dark.
However, this kind of nature is a minority. After all, in the evening or after the execution, there are too many accidents, and there are more ways and uncertainties that are easy to get into trouble.
epilogue
At the time of the Two Han Dynasties, after Buddhism was introduced to Middle-earth, people paid more and more attention to reincarnation and future lives. The execution of death row inmates is also a reflection of this.
As the ancients said, "Good and evil will be rewarded in the end, not when the time has not yet arrived."
Since we attach so much importance to "retribution," we are naturally very concerned about the "cycle of birth and death."
Not to mention that there is much emphasis on the execution time of death row inmates, even at the beginning and end of the execution, the ancients attached great importance to it.
Like what
At the time of execution, the clothes must be worn in full, so as to avoid "evil qi entering the body"; secondly, the pen that is hooked on the name of the death row prisoner can only be used once; finally, after the execution, the whole team must go to the City God Temple to burn incense and prostrate, so that there can receive "rule". After returning to the gate, he also had to set off firecrackers to drive away evil spirits.
It can be said that after this whole set of rituals is carried out, the little fear in people's hearts can be completely removed. However, this is only a superficial phenomenon. At least, the executioner's errand in ancient times was quite disgusting.
Most people don't like to deal with such people, afraid that the evil qi in them is too heavy. Of course, now, everyone doesn't pay much attention to these. After all, people know that it is not easy for people to live for one lifetime, where do they come from with so many reincarnations?