Chen Yuanguang's origin is gugu

Text: Cheng Siming

Up to now, the academic research on the ancestral home of Chen Yuanguang, the "Kaizhang Saint King", mainly includes five theories such as Hedong, Yingchuan, Jieyang, Gushi, and Gwangju. Although the "Hedong Theory" was formed earlier, it has long been confirmed that this is where its county hope is located, which is different from the place of origin we are going to explore today, while the "Yingchuan Theory" is to compare Chen Yuanguang's place of origin with his distant ancestors hundreds of years ago, which is not convincing, and as for the "Jieyang Theory", it is only the result of Guangdong Zhishu pulling celebrities from the perspective of Yang Shansongxian's feelings [1]. Therefore, for now, the focus of debate about Chen Yuanguang's place of origin is also mainly focused on Gushi and Gwangju.

It is not difficult to find that the "Gushi Theory" is mainly recorded in local chronicles in Fujian since the Ming and Qing dynasties, such as the "Chronicle of Zhangzhou Fu" written by Luo Qingxiao, the governor of Zhangzhou during the Wanli Dynasty, volume IV of "Zhangzhou Fu Ming eunuch" that chen Yuanguang "was a person from Hedong, and then his family was in Gwangju, so he became a Gushi person." Volume 41 of the Book of Min, written by He Qiaoyuan during the Chongzhen period, records that Chen Yuanguang was "a solid founder". Qianlong's "Chronicle of Longxi County" Volume 15 "Biography of Characters" records that Chen Yuanguangzi Chen Jue "first solidified the first person".

The "Gwangju Theory" is derived from the local chronicles of Henan and Gwangju. For example, in the three surviving "Gwangju Chronicles" of Shunzhi, Qianlong, and Guangxu, there are many places that clearly indicate that their descendants returned to live in the "Old Yiyang". It is worth mentioning that in the "Henan Tongzhi Ancestral Shrine" edited by Zhang Shu and others in the thirty-fourth year of the Qing Kangxi Dynasty, it is written: "The Confucian Ancestral Hall of Mercy in Runing Province is in the west of Gwangju, and it is dedicated to Chen Hengzu. "The Chen Heng mentioned here is the ancestor of Chen Xuanli, who accompanied Emperor Xuanzong of Tang to Shu during the rebellion of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and killed Yang Guozhong at Ma Songyi and forced Yang Guifei to hang Yang Guifei, and was a close relative of Chen Yuanguang, who was from the same province of Gwangju, and was famous for his loyalty at birth, and after his death, he erected a shrine in Gwangju West [2]. The Tongzhi of Henan during the Yongzheng Dynasty records more directly that "Chen Yuanguang, the character Tingju, a native of Gwangju." In the thirteenth year of the year, the township recommended the first, and the general Zhangjian from his father led the generals to fifty-eight surnames to Shu Min".

Two very different channels laid the foundation for today's two doctrines. Although it is not possible to determine at present which of the two doctrines is right or wrong, it is certain that the "solid beginning theory" is clearly in doubt. The biggest doubt is why Chen Yuanguang's record only appears in the local local chronicles of Fujian, and the local chronicles of Gushi such as Ming Jiajing's "Gushi County Chronicle", Qing Shunzhi's "Gushi County Chronicle" and Qianlong's "Reconstruction of Gushi County Chronicle" have no traces of any traces; secondly, in the "Ming Yi Tongzhi" volume 78 "Zhangzhou Capital", the section "Mausoleum" mentions that "Chen Zheng's tomb is in Nanxin'anli, Nanjing County." The Tang general Chen Zheng led the troops to Shu Min. Died, buried here. Zheng, Gwangju people, Yuanguang father also, commonly known as the tomb of the general" can be seen, here is not mentioned Chen Yuanguang's origin of Gushi, but can see the shadow of "Gwangju said".

Relatively speaking, in the Gwangju Chronicle of the seventeenth year of Shunzhi, volume VII of the "Official Rank Kao Chen Ye" records: "Chen Ye, the character Wei Shi, a native of Longxi, Fujian. At the beginning of the Wanli Calendar, he was given the honor of Gwangju Shou by lifting people. Its ancestor Yuanguang, born in Gwangju, had meritorious service in the Tang Dynasty and was kept of Min, because of the Min people. The gentleman of the state, Li Shu, is more pro-married than the party... The scholar Felt Gongde, used Yuanguang to seal the King of Guangji, in order to build a temple Confucianism, to eat public food, and to restore the name of the eunuch"This record reflects the example of mutual exchanges between the Chen clans of Zhangzhou and Gwangju from another side.

As early as the Song Dynasty, the literary historian Zheng Qiao believed: "The Min people call the ancestors from Gwangju Gushi, in fact, by the Wang Chao brothers to the beginning of the multitude, from Wang Xu to Fujian, Wang Zhenzhi because of his many people to determine the Minzhong, to Sangzi, the only good Gushi people, so the Min people still say that the clan is known as the beginning of the Gu, in fact, it is absurd." [3] From this, it can be judged that the "Gushi Theory" has a strong emotional color of the clan and is contrary to the real situation. In addition, Chen Yuanguang's sacrifice has a long history in Gwangju, for example, during the Southern Song Dynasty, there is a record of the sealing of the Gwangju Weihui Temple:

"The edict official, a certain Tang Guo Ziyi, gong stops the tile knife, and the eight sons are all noble, and the imperial court is now the Wu father and son brothers and brothers, and will have a great contribution to Xizhou, which can not make Ru into the Shi, and the king is called the meaning of the spoils of the fallen? Xiang Zan Chaoyi, Shang Zhi Shuo, Ke Gwangju City West Wei Hui Temple, Zhongzun Cheng HuiXian Ying Hou, Jia Feng Ying Hou Of Ying Hui, Dong Wei Hui Conform to Hou, Jia Feng Wu Ge Zhao Hui Conform to Hou, Xi Wei Hui Ling Hou, Jia Feng Zhong Ge Fu Hui Ling Ying Hou, seven times in August. ”【4】

Similarly, the second volume of the "Gwangju Chronicle" compiled during the Shunzhi period records that there is the Yiyang Sangong Temple in the west gate of the northern city of Gwangju, and among the three gods there are Weihuihou, Zhaohuihou and Fuhuihou, if this is not certain to be Chen Yuanguangweihui Temple since the Song Dynasty, then the "Guangji Zhi Xiangxian Ancestral Hall and Famous Eunuch Ancestral Hall" compiled during the Shunzhi period of the Qing Dynasty contains the "Guangji Wang Ancestral Hall, in front of the Xuegong Palace, Chen Yuanguang, a qijun person." During the reign of Emperor Xiaozong of Song, he was enfeoffed as the King of Guangji who obeyed Zhao Lie, and had Si Chunqiu Worship. It clearly shows the grandeur of the Gwangju dynasty sacrifice of Chen Yuanguang.

Some people may take the evidence in the "Yingchuan Chen Clan Kaizhang Family Genealogy" that Chen Yuanguang's father Chen Zheng "lived in Gushi County, Gwangju, Henan Province" to deny the author's argument, but this is a fact that I need to state in the next argument process, that is, the floating light mentioned here is not in Gushi, but in Gwangju.

The "Book of Han and Geographical Records" records: "Yiyang County, there is Yishan Mountain, in the northwest. Northern Wei Li Daoyuan's "Notes on the Water Classics" Yun: "Shui Dong Fu Guang Shan North, also known as Fu Guang Shan, that is, Yi Shan Ye." In the Song Dynasty Music History's "Taiping Huanyu Record", there are also: "The Floating Light Mountain is in the northwest of the county eight (ten) miles." Its mountain overlooks Changhuai, and every time there is a glory, it is recorded that the name of the mountain of light" is recorded. Until the Qianlong period, the second volume of the "Records of Guangshan County" "Illustrations of Floating Light Mountain" has a detailed description of the location of Floating Light Mountain:

The mountain is well-known, and for a long time, the most famous people, the county is known as The Light Mountain, with the name of the mountain, before the Tang Dynasty, Gwangju ruled the Light Mountain, and the old state was also named after the mountain. Li Dao Yuanyun: Floating Light Mountain, that is, YiShan Also. Hanli Yiyang County, said in yishan yang also, Wei li county, naizhi Xiyang, although the west of Yiyang County, the real Yishan is also south, the mountain is on the verge of Huai, its north shore is the new breath, and the mountain faces, so the breath to floating light as the southern barrier, and the real Guangshan territory. Looking out of the Ying'en Gate to the north, the flat domain is far away, but the mountains are lonely and lonely, and the pillow stream is high. 【5】

It is clear here that Fuguang Mountain is located in the northern part of Guangshan County, not Gushi County in the eastern part of Guangshan County. Yishan Ishiyama, also known as Fuguang Mountain, is now in the territory of Xi County. Because Gwangju is located in the south of Yishan Mountain, it is also called Yiyang, which is now the area around the southern city of Huangchuan, which is in line with the local chronicle of "Chen Yuanguang, Zi Tingju, Yiyang people".

During the Yuan Dynasty, in some literature, the Floating Light Mountain was even equated with Gwangju. For example, in the Yuan Dynasty Xu Youren's Zhizheng Ji (至正集), volume 46, "Ma Wenzhen Gong Shinto Inscription", writes: "The Great Traitor fuxiang, left to Kaiping County Yin, want to slander it, retreat to the floating light." The "Zixi Manuscripts" of the same period, volume 9 Su Tianjue's "Yuan Dynasty Zide Dafu Yushi Zhongzhong Gifts Zhongzhong Zhongzhong Zhizhong Zhongzhong Zhizhong Zhizhong Zhongzhong ZhiZhongShi Zhi

The Ma Wenzhen mentioned in the above two articles is Ma Zuchang, a Gwangju native, who retired to Fuguang Mountain in his later years. And the record of "Death ho, traitor fuxiang, left moved to Kaiping County, Yin, because he wanted to slander it, so he retired to Gwangju" in volume 143 of the "History of the Yuan", let us clearly see the fact that The Floating Light Mountain specifically refers to Gwangju. In addition, judging from the description of "Gushi, Gushi County, Gwangju Nanyue Temple Stele" written by Ma Zuchang, "Gushi, the genus of Wuzhou", this shows that he took Gwangju as his hometown, and would not and is unlikely to retreat to the so-called "Floating Light Mountain" in Gushi. 【6】

So after so much discussion, where did the claim that Chen Yuanguang was a "Solid Beginning" come from? I think the answer should be answered from two aspects. First, in history, some people have insisted that Chen Menglian was the Marquis of Gushi in the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty as the place of origin of Gushi, and this question seems to be consistent with the "Yingchuan Theory", all of which regard the distant ancestors as Chen Yuanguang's place of origin. Second, the issue of the Chen clan that we first discussed, due to specific historical reasons, may be in order to obtain the rule of the Min state established by Wang Chaozhi of Gushi, in exchange for a certain degree of peace, and only then did the place of origin be entrusted to Gushi.

[1] Li Qiao, "Analysis of chen Yuanguang's Origin of the "Kaizhang Saint King"", in Journal of Xinyang Normal University: Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition, 2009

[2] Xiao Lin, "Chen Yuanguang's Origins", published in Fujian History, No. 6, 1990

[3] (Southern Song Dynasty) Zheng Qiao "Xingyang Zheng Family Genealogy Sequence"

[4] (Southern Song Dynasty) Zhou Bida's "Wenzhong Collection" volumes 94-96 "Zhencai"

[5] "Guangshan County Chronicle Qianlong Dianjian Commentary" Yang Dianzi General Revision; Guangshan County History Compilation Committee Point School 1987

[6] See Zhang Peizhi, "Research on the Family of color people in the Yuan Dynasty and Their Cultural Tendencies", 2009, Tianjin Ancient Books Publishing House, p. 208

About author:Cheng Siming, male, born in 1989, has long been committed to the study of Xinyang literature and history, and has unique views on inscriptions and rubbings.