A Brief History of Banned Books in China

Author: Chen Zhenghong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: This book is a part of "The Grand View of Forbidden Books in China," co-edited by An Pingqiu and Zhang Peiheng. It was edited by Dai Jun and Chen Zhengheng, and co-authored by Chen Zhenghong and Tan Beifang. The book covers thousands of years, spanning literature, history, philosophy, and other fields. It outlines the history of book prohibition over millennia, reflecting the evolution of cultural policies across different dynasties. It provides a three-dimensional portrayal of an important and complex aspect of Chinese cultural development.
Excerpt: The Northern Hurricane: Overview of Book Prohibition from the Han to the Five Dynasties
Liu Bang · Xiao He · The Law of Possessing Books — Book Prohibition and Its Repeal in Early Han
The Han Dynasty, which rose after the Qin Dynasty, was regarded by later generations as a culturally prosperous era. However, few may have noticed that the cultural prohibition policy of banning private book collections, established by Qin Shi Huang, still remained as part of the Han legal code for over a decade in the early Han period. How did this come about? It all starts with Liu Bang, the founding emperor of the Han Dynasty.
Liu Bang was from Feng County, Pei Commandery. In his youth, he was not a diligent person, preferring wine and women. Later, he secured a semi-official position in his hometown, becoming the head of the Sishui Pavilion, where he oversaw local disputes. In 209 BC, when Chen Sheng and Wu Guang rebelled against Qin Ershi’s tyrannical rule, Liu Bang seized the opportunity to rally a group of followers to join the uprising. Within a few years, he had grown his forces and posed a challenge to Xiang Yu, the powerful warlord known as the "Hegemon of the West." It is said that Liu Bang was better at managing people than Xiang Yu, and eventually forced Xiang Yu to commit suicide at the banks of the Wu River, allowing Liu Bang to become the legitimate first emperor of the Han Dynasty.
However, this emperor of humble origins, though skilled in warfare and personnel management, did not particularly enjoy reading and looked down upon scholars. Legend has it that when Liu Bang first gained some fame, whenever a scholar with a Confucian hat came to meet him, he would forcibly take off the hat, urinate inside it, and use this vulgar trick to mock the scholars. Among his trusted subordinates, however, was Xiao He, his hometown friend, who was quite clever. When the Han army first entered the Qin capital, Chang’an, Xiao He, instead of seizing the treasures, focused on collecting the laws, decrees, and books stored in the Qin Chancellor’s and Censors’ offices. Later, when Liu Bang used the Guanzhong region as a base to unify the southern and northern lands, these books, which contained critical information about passes, households, and other sensitive details, proved to be invaluable. This may have also been a significant reason why, after Liu Bang ascended the throne as the King of Han, he appointed Xiao He as the Chancellor and granted him the responsibility of serving the crown prince, organizing the capital, and drafting laws.
However, despite knowing the practical value of books, Xiao He could not fully grasp the true meaning of cultural dissemination. Therefore, in the series of laws he helped establish for the early Han Dynasty, although many of the harsh punishments of the Qin era were abolished, the "Law of Possessing Books" (jiashu) remained. "Jia" means to possess or collect. We all remember the (burning of books decree) announced by Li Si in 213 BC, which included a clause stating, "All who possess the Book of Songs, Book of Documents, or the works of the Hundred Schools of Thought, except for those serving as officials in the Imperial Academy, shall be handed over to the Commandants and Prefects for collective burning." The "Law of Possessing Books" in early Han was roughly similar to this. However, whether the books were burned or confiscated and stored in the imperial library remains uncertain today due to the lack of historical records.
It is not easy to blame Xiao He, the Chancellor, too much for continuing this cultural prohibition policy. He was originally a low-level official with limited education, and besides, there was also the Emperor Liu Bang, who often took pleasure in tormenting scholars. The scholars, however, suffered greatly. With no books to read—except for the Book of Changes and a few divination texts that were not banned—and no official positions available, except for the lucky Confucian scholar Shusun Tong, who somehow gained the favor of Emperor Liu Bang and began drafting simple Han rituals.
At the same time, as a counterreaction to Qin’s harsh rule and the wars that followed, the philosophy of Huang-Lao wuwei (the Yellow Emperor and Laozi’s principle of non-action) gradually gained popularity in early Han society. The legend of the Yellow Emperor originated in the Warring States period, and whether he actually existed is still debated. Laozi, on the other hand, seems to have left some traces, as he is believed to have been a Zhou Dynasty figure whose teachings were recorded in the Tao Te Ching. The so-called "Huang-Lao" teachings essentially advocate for valuing gentleness, yielding, and ruling through non-action. The rise of this philosophy was largely driven by the practical need for rest and recovery in early Han society. However, this atmosphere of non-action inevitably had an impact on the Han government, which maintained cultural control policies, including the "Law of Possessing Books."