Preface
In the Mongolian steppe, the legendary story of a steppe hero is earth-shattering and shocking. He was Genghis Khan, a generation of heroes who unified Mongolia, swept across the Eurasian continent, and created a glorious empire.
His experience was full of ups and downs, but in the end, with his tenacious will and extraordinary wisdom, he achieved a unique great cause, and his story has been passed down by later generations, and there have been many classics to write a different Genghis Khan.
So, what are the differences in the image of Genghis Khan in different literary works?
And in history, is he really as ruthless as in "The Secret History of Mongolia"?
The image of Genghis Khan in a Mongolian narrative
Before the 18th century, the subject classification was not as detailed as today, and the historical texts of many countries and nations had the characteristics of literary works, the early history of the Mongolian nation was sung orally, often a combination of narrative poetry and prose, and many vivid folklore were added since the 17th and 18th centuries, and the history of Mongolia can be called historical literary works, in which the image of Genghis Khan integrates many factors such as history and legend, myth and reality, rich and wonderful.
"The Secret History of Mongolia" (hereinafter referred to as the "Secret History") is a historical book that records the deeds of the Great Khan in the court of the early Mongolian Great Khan, written by the Mongolian clerk in the Mongolian language of the Yuan Erti style, and retains the precious historical materials such as stories, legends, and deeds passed down by the Mongolian oral tradition.
During Genghis Khan's time, most Mongols believed in shamanism, believing that the greatest all-powerful god was the "eternal immortal heaven", and Mount Bhuhan was their sacred mountain.
In the Secret History, Genghis Khan's heroic deeds are often accompanied by the protection of the Immortal Heaven, implying that Genghis Khan was the chosen Mongol ruler of the Immortal Heaven, and that Genghis Khan himself maintained a reverence for the Immortal Heaven.
The Mongols advocate the theory of heaven, and the worship of heaven by the steppe peoples has something in common with the idea of "the unity of heaven and man" advocated by the Central Plains civilization to a certain extent.
"The Secret History" also shows Genghis Khan's character traits of revenge, rewarding sincerity and hating betrayal.
Verses 202 to 220 of the Secret History describe the plot of Genghis Khan's reward for meritorious service, and Genghis Khan described the exploits of these people in an affectionate tone to express his inner gratitude. It is precisely because of Genghis Khan's clear rewards and punishments that the generals and cavalry have the courage to fight and retreat, which has become the most effective guarantee for Genghis Khan's victory.
And this kind of grievances also made Genghis Khan and the founding heroes maintain a rare relationship of trust in history, even Wizeford sighed with envy, unlike Caesar Tong Poleon and others who had been betrayed or died alone, "Genghis Khan, who was nearly seventy years old, died in his bed in his tent, and relatives, friends and loyal soldiers who were ready to go to the fire for him gathered around him."
The most prominent feature of "The Secret History" is that it shows the survival state of the grassland. In the steppe, survival is the biggest issue, so the Mongols worship the strong, and the bravery and strength at the critical moment are respected by the Mongols.
In the later history books and other works, due to the influence of multiple cultural factors, there are many evasions about some of the behaviors of Genghis Khan and his ancestors, but the "Secret History" truly shows the whole picture of Genghis Khan, and some of his behaviors are faithfully restored, which are also part of his heroic image. Section 77 of the "Secret History" objectively and calmly recounts the plot of Genghis Khan's half-brother, without avoiding the venerable and not whitewashing.
Genghis Khan's forbearance has been praised in many history books and researchers, but the "Secret History" has a moment to avoid his anger, in the Central Plains culture, the wise lord often always suppresses his anger, Genghis Khan, the greatest king in Mongolian history, can do nothing in the narrative of the "Secret History", so his image is more real and vivid.
17. The 18th century was a period of great prosperity in the writing of Mongolian history, with the emergence of important works such as the anonymous "Outline of the Golden History of Mongolia", "The Origin of Mongolia" by Sahao Chechen, "The Golden History of Mongolia" (hereinafter referred to as "Luo Jinshi") by Lobsang Tenzin, and "The Fundamental Golden History of the Great Mongolian State" (hereinafter referred to as "The Golden History of Mo") by Yingri Gegen Lobsang Dan Bigyaltsen. When tracing the deeds of Genghis Khan's ancestors, the narrative often begins with the origins of Buddhism.
The "Outline of the Golden History of Mongolia" says that Genghis Khan was born in the world by the order of the Buddha to subdue the "Twelve Mojun". "Mongolian Origins" mentions the reason for the naming of "Genghis Khan": "That is, when he was in the Han position, since three days ago, on the stone in front of the house, every morning fell "a" five-colored bird like a bird, and turned his voice: Genghis, Genghis, so China and foreign countries are called Mahatma Genghis Hehan, and the world is famous in all directions." "
The story of the five-colored bird is also recorded in the "Luo Jinshi Shi", a legend with obvious Buddhist overtones that makes the image of Genghis Khan clothed in Buddhist culture.
Not only that, but Genghis Khan's experience also has stories of multiple gods protecting him, which has become a symbol of the divine right of kings to a certain extent. "Mongolian Origins" records: Genghis Khan, that is, the position of the Great Khan of Mongolia, its stone suddenly cracked, and a jade treasure seal came out of it, the length and width were in a row, there were turtle buttons on the back, and two dragons on the upper plate, engraved like a relief.
Not only that, "Outline of Mongolian Golden History" and "Mongolian Origins" both record the story of Genghis Khan drinking nectar wine, to the effect that Genghis Khan and his brothers sat in the palace, and suddenly a treasure jade bowl fell from the sky to Genghis Khan's hands, which contained sweet wine, and when Genghis Khan drank alone, the brothers were dissatisfied, and they also wanted to share some tasting, Genghis Khan gave it away, but they couldn't swallow it, and from then on, they worshipped and called Genghis Khan the lord of destiny, and did not dare to offend after that.
Genghis Khan himself also lamented that there was a dragon treasure seal in front of him, and a jade bowl of nectar in the back, and he was really a monarch who was mandated by heaven.
In the Central Plains culture, there is a saying that the "Mandate of Heaven" grants the monarch's power very early, "The Book of Poetry, Shang Song Day, the Mandate of Heaven Xuanniao, descends to give birth to Shang, and the house is vast." This concept has always influenced the rulers of the Central Plains Dynasty, and every monarch will try to find evidence that he is the Son of Heaven, and the appearance of some abnormal celestial phenomena, animals, etc., is considered to be the Mandate of Heaven.
At this time, these records appeared in Mongolian history books, which shows that the writer was not only influenced by Buddhist culture, but also accepted the concept of Central Plains culture
The 17th and 18th centuries Mongolian historical and literary works are rich in content and have distinctive characteristics of the times, which are not only influenced by Buddhist culture and Han culture, but also integrate more Mongolian folk tales and legends, creating the image of Genghis Khan who is not only the reincarnation of the Dharma King blessed by God and Buddha, but also the Son of Heaven who has obtained the mandate of heaven. The stories between his subordinates are more life-oriented, and they begin to have fireworks and human touch, although there are many errors in historical records, but they have great reference significance for us in shaping the image of Genghis Khan.
Genghis Khan in "Romance of History".
In the 19th century, the Mongolian writer Yan Zhannaxi wrote the children's Hui novel "Romance of the Green History".
Yan Zhan Naxi is a direct descendant of Genghis Khan, proficient in Han, Manchu, Mongolian and Tibetan languages.
As a descendant of Mongolian nobles, he was dissatisfied with the Qing government's policy towards the Mongols, and his heart was full of nostalgia for the exploits of his ancestors, so his image of Genghis Khan was almost perfect, not only the hero of the Mongolian nation, but also the benevolent monarch and holy lord respected by Han culture for Genghis Khan's conquest. Even in ancient times, when the two saints of King Wen of Zhou and King Wu of Zhou crusaded against the monarch of the Shang Dynasty, the corpses of the soldiers of the two armies were all over the field, and the blood flowed like a river. ”
"The Romance of the Green History" refers to the "Secret History of Mongolia" and other Mongolian history books when creating the image of Genghis Khan, but it is more influenced by the "Yuan History", Genghis Khan in this novel is benevolent and wise, far-sighted, caring for the weak, brave and good at fighting, more like the 17th and 18th century history books described by the protection of the gods.
Yan Zhan Naxi made some fictions and changes to the historical facts in the book, Genghis Khan was not only born with blood in his hands, his birth has a more legendary color, and basically collects various miracles about the birth of the Son of Heaven popular in Han culture.
Such a plot setting also sets the tone of the novel, which means that Genghis Khan is a hero born from Li Tian's destiny, and his life will also be protected by invisible divine power, indicating that Genghis Khan will not only unify the steppe, but also become the holy lord of the unified Central Plains. In the novel, Genghis Khan loved his people like a son and never coveted money, "Taizu rewarded the soldiers who defended the country with tribute and other things seized from the four eastern kingdoms."
Those who followed the expedition and those who stayed behind were greatly rewarded", and they were extremely loyal to him.
The "History of the Yuan" records the story of Genghis Khan's care for the Zhaolie tribe, a small tribe attached to the Taichi Wubu, and Yan Zhan Naxi further exerts and interprets it in the novel to show Genghis Khan's generosity and love for the weak.
In Yan Zhannaxi's writing, Genghis Khan is not only a benevolent and virtuous monarch in his behavior, but also has his own unique views and Confucian cultural governance concepts.
In his confrontation with Arslang Khan of the Khaligud tribe, Genghis Khan expressed his ideals in a dialogue. When asked why so many emperors had been killed, Genghis Khan replied: "Those unscrupulous kings disturb the north and run amok, and I will settle the north and do not let it go." Immediately afterwards, he expressed his opinion on Renjun: "Life in the world should be peaceful in the world, before you can be a person."
If you have the ability, you will repay the credit to the gods, and give mercy to the people." Yan Zhan Naxi arranged these two statements for Genghis Khan, which was actually well-intentioned.
In addition to Huajun, there is no way, has always been respected by Han culture, Han culture believes that the emperor is the Son of Heaven, but when the Son of Heaven violates the way of heaven, he naturally needs someone to punish him for heaven, and the view of Renjun is more reflected in the idea of the people, Genghis Khan here is already a holy lord with the idea of independent governance.
Yan Zhannaxi over-glorified Genghis Khan, making him perfect and somewhat unreal, but considering the author's creative intentions and creative background, it is also reasonable.
Genghis Khan is the holy lord, Mao Haolai "i.e. Mu Huali) is a virtuous minister, Bilgu "i.e. Belgutai) is a collision, Zamuha is insidious, this is also the usual method of romance novels Yi Zhan Naxi is obviously affected, of course, this is also consistent with his purpose of creating a tall image of Genghis Khan.
The artistic value of this novel is very high, and its creative mode and the image of Genghis Khan also had a great influence on the creation of Genghis Khan-themed novels in the eighties and nineties of the 20th century in the mainland.
epilogue
From the perspective of the choice of literary themes, Genghis Khan's heroic stories and legendary experiences are not only a traditional source material, but also a classic theme.
The story of Genghis Khan has been interpreted by narrators from different countries, different nationalities and different cultural backgrounds, and the content is more substantial and diverseThe image of Genghis Khan is a symbol, which contains complex and profound cultural connotations, and the study of Genghis Khan's literary image is undoubtedly of academic value and practical significance.