Blood revenge is the pattern of feelings and behaviors that humans have planted in the time of clans. Because people in that era had to rely on their families and families for survival, the interests of the family were above all else. Harm to a certain person is regarded as harm to the entire family; revenge for a certain injury is not only directed against the perpetrator, but against all members of the perpetrator's family.
This is also the most primitive way of blood revenge. It is not so much righteous as it is cruel. And the concept of revenge is in our genes.
It is not unusual for ancient families to take revenge on each other with hundreds of people
After the further development of human civilization and the formation of a state by breaking through the restrictions of clans, the family and clan did not disintegrate and wither, but became the cornerstone of the country. Coupled with the early state, the organization was not strict enough, and the management of the country could not be deepened. So although the state has enacted laws to adjudicate conflicts between people, blood revenge cannot be abolished and replaced.
For example, during the Western Zhou Dynasty, the imperial court had two institutions: "courtiers" and "transferers". If one's father and brother are killed by others, after the "pilgrim" registers the name of the enemy, he can kill the enemy to avenge himself and is not guilty. In order to prevent "when it is time to repay each other for wrongs", the imperial court, through the "transfer of people", took the initiative to transfer the enemies away from each other to avoid revenge, and stopped the repeated revenge-seeking behavior of the two sides after "one revenge".
Explanation: The operation of revenge was not a formal perfunctory at that time, but a very effective measure. Because the transportation capacity in ancient times was very poor, if two families who hated each other were sent to a very distant area, they might not have the opportunity to contact each other for several generations.
In the Spring and Autumn Period, the country was fragmented, and the great prosperity of Confucianism and etiquette made people more loyal to their families and clans than to the public office. Therefore, blood revenge is not only great (but also expands the master and servant from blood relatives), but also is generally regarded as a virtue.
For example, the famous orphan of the Zhao clan, Wu Zixu attacked the corpse of King ChuPing of the Chu State to vent his anger, and so on. Moreover, Confucianism also gave the theoretical basis and principle of blood revenge.
The enemy of the father and the common heaven, the hatred of the brothers does not rebel against the soldiers, and the enemies of the travel are different countries. "Etiquette and Qu Lishang"
No revenge, non-son also. "Spring and Autumn Ram Biography"
The Father is not condemned, but the Son may take revenge. The Father is cursed, and the Son takes revenge, and this way of pushing the blade, revenge does not eliminate harm. "Spring and Autumn Ram Biography"
Prints Wu Zixu digs graves and whips corpses
Roughly speaking, the hatred of the father, the hatred of the brother, and the hatred of the friend must be revenge. Especially the father's vendetta, if you don't repay it, you are not qualified to be the Son of Man. In order to avoid indiscriminate killing in the name of revenge, Confucianism also agreed on the principle of revenge, that is, if the father (brothers and friends are the same), if he is wrongfully killed, he can take revenge; if he is not wrongfully killed, he cannot take revenge (the way of pushing the blade).
When taking revenge, it is only aimed at the enemy himself, and because he is worried that the enemy's family will retaliate against himself in the future, he cannot eliminate his son, father and brother in one fell swoop, which is "revenge does not eliminate harm.".
Leaving aside the fact that this set of Confucian rules has its own conflicts (such as "no revenge, non-son" and "the way of pushing the blade"), it is difficult to control the "revenge does not eliminate harm", first of all, the definition of the enemy is very troublesome, it is difficult to say clearly who in the enemy family has participated in the previous harm.
Secondly, people's natural avoidance psychology will also tend to deal with hidden dangers in advance. Therefore, many people will also take revenge in the name of revenge, and do the truth of "eliminating harm" to avoid future troubles.
Even if there is no such intention, it is inevitable that the mistake will occur in the process of revenge. For example, although Wu Zixu's story is inspiring, how many people who have no interest in him die in his revenge activities in the process of his cutting? Can't the descendants of these people seek revenge on Wu Zixu?
The extremely cruel and hateful concept of "cutting the grass and removing the roots" actually originated from the "blood revenge" that people respected at that time. When you take revenge, you can cut the grass happily, but when you are revenged by others, you can't escape the fate of becoming a "weed".
We can see that the Confucian concept can easily lead to mutual hatred between families, which is what we commonly call revenge for wrongs. The bloody confrontation between the families is also not conducive to the unity and cohesion of the kingdoms as a whole.
Therefore, the Dharma scholars are very disgusted with this Confucian set – "Confucianism and the Law of Confusion". In the Warring States period, the legalists flourished, and countries began to emphasize that acts of revenge must be carried out through the punishment of the state through the change of law. And severely punish private acts of revenge. The atmosphere of revenge that flourished in the Spring and Autumn Began to converge. After the Shang martingale changed the law, the Qin state "dared to fight publicly, but was afraid to fight privately" is proof of this phenomenon.
One of the representative figures of the Dharma family, Han Feizi
But after the fall of the Qin Dynasty and the rise of HanXing, Confucianism also rose again. Blood revenge, which has been suppressed, has also reared its head and begun to develop rapidly.
Although the Western Han Dynasty did not formally promulgate laws allowing blood relatives to take revenge, local officials generally sympathized with the avengers when accepting blood relatives revenge cases, and then reduced their sentences, applied to the imperial court for exemption, and even asked the Shangshu court for recognition.
In order to promote Confucianism and deepen filial piety education, the imperial court also tolerated this behavior in disguise. He even promoted the avengers, who were widely discussed in society, to officials in the name of "praising filial piety." However, the Han court soon felt the drawbacks.
The great revival of the wind of revenge has also brought a new life to an ancient profession " Assassin " . They avenge their blood relatives for those who are "powerless". Among them, celebrities such as Guo Xie and Ju Meng are even recorded in the history. And they quickly became organized, like the famous "House of Guilds" where thousands of "assassins" gathered.
In addition to their strong influence in society, these groups also used their asymmetrical advantage of force to influence officials in the court. This has become a threat to the imperial court and the emperor.
Although they were repeatedly attacked by the imperial court, such groups grew up on the soil of "blood revenge", so the imperial court could not completely eradicate them.
The people are slowly being kidnapped by the fanatical "revenge" wind. Once a vendetta occurs, the Avenger sees revenge as the only priority in life, plotting revenge with perseverance beyond the limits of his own ability. Moreover, the means of revenge are extremely cruel, and even kill the whole family in the name of the humiliation of their parents.
"A Letter of the North" explains what it is possible to be desperate and endure everything for revenge
When we look at the biographies of the Han Dynasty now, we will find a phenomenon that many people "kill people in anger" when they were young, and many people have more than once, but it is okay to run to other places to hide. This is also a true reflection of this social phenomenon of the Han Dynasty, and many scholars believe that the "Shangwu Spirit" of the Han Dynasty also originated from this. The author does not expand on this topic here, and everyone expresses their own opinions.
Some people believe that this phenomenon of excessive retaliation was caused by the promulgation of the Insult Law by Emperor Zhangdi of Han. Rather, it was a fanatical "revenge" that forced the imperial court to introduce the "Light Humiliation Law". Because society already believed that blood revenge was extremely legitimate, once it happened, they asked the imperial court to reduce their guilt.
Note: The main provision of the "Light Insult Law" is that killing an enemy who insults his parents can be avoided from death. Officials are also punished if they sentence Avengers to death.
The portrait stone of the Wu Clan Ancestral Hall in Jiaxiang, Shandong Province, describes the story of the seven daughters of the Han Dynasty who avenged their father
Once a frenzy is formed, it is actually very difficult to restrain. Many people began to use blood relatives to take revenge, and after killing people, instead of confessing guilt, they brazenly claimed that they were avenging their parents' humiliation. Once such a court is difficult to verify, it is often exonerated with a reduced sentence.
More seriously, the imperial court could not be an obstacle to revenge. In the last year of the Western Han Dynasty, a man named Lü Yu of Lang evil Haiqu was executed by the county zai for making a small mistake, and his mother Lü Shi scattered her family wealth to recruit thousands of people, captured the county seat and beheaded the county zai in public.
This kind of behavior that seriously offended the authority of the imperial court made the Eastern Han court from the Han and the emperor, and began to attack and suppress the blood relatives in society for revenge, first of all, the abolition of the "Light Humiliation Law". At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Cao and Cao Pi's father and son further forbade personal feuds, stipulating that the private avengers were zhulian Nine Tribes.
The Jin Dynasty continued this decree, and the fanatical wind of revenge in society began to slowly cool down. But the Jin Dynasty soon collapsed, and the country fell back into chaos.
Although the Wei and Jin edicts did not eradicate blood revenge, the idea of suppressing blood revenge was inherited by subsequent dynasties. First of all, blood revenge is no longer commended by the imperial court as "filial piety", and secondly, although blood revenge will be reduced after verification, cases of exoneration are very rare.
Since there are so many drawbacks to blood revenge, for example, everyone knows that many people kill in the name of "revenge", why are the dynasties after the Han Dynasty still not completely banned?
The reason is that no policy can perfectly satisfy all situations, and wouldn't it be more absurd if only counterexamples were cited and no policy could be implemented?
The imperial dynasty valued the filial piety behind the revenge of blood relatives. Because the imperial dynasty is built on families, families. The dynasty itself is incapable of maintaining the long-term unity and stability of the dynasty. Dynasties can only obtain stability based on the stability of these families and families, and maintain unity based on the mutual recognition of these families and families.
The idea of filial piety can be accepted by all families, families (including those hostile to each other). Filial piety, in turn, can maintain the unity and cohesion of all families and families. Therefore, the imperial dynasty could not give up filial piety. (For more than 2,000 years, the dynasties have basically ruled the world with filial piety.
Therefore, the imperial court could only compromise and find a balance in the middle. The imperial court issued specific laws to limit the revenge of blood relatives, but it would also pardon revenge in the name of filial piety in specific cases with greater impact and in special cases. The purpose is nothing more than to get the maximum benefit for yourself.
Illustrations about revenge
The phenomenon is that the result of the punishment of blood relatives revenge since the Tang Dynasty began, and there are often great differences. For example, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Zhang Xuan and zhang Xuan's brothers (one 13 years old and one 11 years old) avenged their father and killed the attendant Yang Wanqing in the street. Although the people widely supported the two brothers.
However, during the Reign of Emperor Xuanzong, the imperial dynasty was stable, and Emperor Xuanzong was more concerned about not being able to promote this wind, so as not to damage the authority of the imperial court, so he personally ordered the two to be executed by torture with a staff.
Decades later, during the reign of Emperor Xianzong of Tang, the emperor began to need to win broader support to secure his position. Therefore, Liang Yue, who avenged his father, was only sentenced to a hundred rods and then exiled.
During the Ming Dynasty, the law explicitly stipulated that blood relatives and avengers should be canned and exiled, but sometimes the imperial court would deliberately pretend to be stupid. When Chongzhen was dealing with the castration party in his early years, Huang Zongxi almost stabbed Xu Xianchun to death in front of the officials in the lobby of the Punishment Department, and later found someone to kill the two jailers who had guarded his father before.
At other times, this was a serious crime of provoking the authority of the imperial court. But didn't chongzhen and the other imperial court pretend not to know and deliberately let it go? The reason, of course, was not to appreciate Huang's behavior, but simply because Chongzhen wanted to gain broad support in order to gain an advantage in the struggle against the castration party.
Blood revenge had broken away from its original intention and had become a means for the imperial dynasty to manipulate its authority.
As the last imperial dynasty, the Manchu Qing Dynasty had a place that many people overlooked. It flaunts the legitimacy of its own self-reliance on behalf of the Ming Dynasty, based on "blood revenge", and everyone can see Nurhaci's "Seven Great Hates". This is also the highest point where blood revenge has been elevated for thousands of years.
Although everyone understands that this is just an excuse for the Manchu Qing to find for themselves, but many "blood revenge" are not essentially just an excuse for killing people?
Since the foundation of the dynasty was blood revenge, the Manchu Qing naturally could not ban blood relatives revenge. Therefore, the Manchu Qing basically continued the relevant laws of the Ming Dynasty in terms of blood revenge, which was not allowed in principle, but the sentence could be reduced, and in principle, the death penalty (cane punishment and exile) was not imposed. However, the Manchu court and imperial power were more stable in their rule than the previous dynasties, so they did not need to please the people accordingly, and tightened the "blood revenge".
It is more stringent in its specific use, such as voluntarily surrendering after revenge; if the enemy has been caught, he cannot retaliate unless he escapes from prison; and the enemy who has been disposed of by the state law must not retaliate unless he takes the initiative to provoke after his release from prison.
And there are restrictions on the time for revenge, such as the murder of one's own parents, and only those who avenged on the spot at that time may be exonerated, in addition to that, at least cane punishment.
Harsh laws have in fact cooled down blood revenge. But the Qing Dynasty was essentially no different from the previous dynasties, and naturally could not make society completely abandon the concept of blood revenge. The inertia of thinking also continued into the Republic of China after the Manchu Qing Dynasty.
Shi Jianqiao
For example, in the famous "Shi Jianqiao Case" in 1935, Shi Jianqiao, who avenged his father, was not only widely sympathized and understood by the people, but also jointly demanded amnesty from more than fifty central dignitaries. Shi Jianqiao was eventually acquitted.
Because his father Shi Congbin was tragically killed by Sun Chuanfang, Shi Jianqiao bitterly severed his father's vendetta and took the opportunity to assassinate him... On the basis of her murderous behavior, it is inherently contrary to the criminal law, and a woman who is born of filial piety and does not care about herself, her ambition is sad, and her feelings are especially excusable... Pardons are granted as a sign of mercy.
From the above amnesty decree of the National Government, it is not difficult for us to see that the concept of blood revenge is still deeply rooted in the hearts of the people in the Republic of China.
Description: In 1925, Shi Jianqiao's father Shi Congbin was captured by his direct line Sun Chuanfang in the Battle of Fengzhi, and Sun Chuanfang violated the rules of the civil war and executed Shi Congbin. At the age of twenty, Shi Jianqiao was determined to take revenge on his father by slashing his enemies. In 1935, she assassinated Sun Chuanfang in Tianjin Buddhist Jushilin.
Subsequently, China entered a period of fierce turmoil and change, and the remnants of the clan and Confucianism of blood revenge were completely abandoned by us.