Wen Bai Duiying Han Shu (Volume 1 and 2)

Author: [Han] Ban Gu / Zhang Chuanxi and others
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2004-01-01
Features: The 21st century is the century of Eastern culture, and the source of Eastern culture is traditional Chinese culture. In the future, whoever possesses resources will be the winner, and traditional Chinese culture can be described as an inexhaustible spiritual resource for humanity. In this vast and profound spiritual treasure trove, there are countless Chinese ancient classics waiting to be explored and utilized by the world. Statistics show that there are approximately 40,000 types of Chinese ancient classics. With such abundant cultural resources, it is indeed a pride of the Chinese nation. Developing and organizing Chinese ancient classics is also the responsibility of the Chinese people, and inheriting and learning these precious cultural heritage is a common aspiration of every descendant of Yan and Huang. Among Chinese ancient classics, the Three Encyclopedias—the Siku Quanshu (Complete Collection of the Four Treasuries), the Collected Works of Ancient and Modern Books, and the Yongle Dadian (Yongle Encyclopedia)—are most representative and can be regarded as invaluable treasures rare in the world. However, due to the limitations of the thoughts of the rulers and compilers at that time, as well as the constraints of the era in which they were compiled, these encyclopedias inevitably had omissions. To enable readers to gain a comprehensive understanding of Chinese ancient classics, the Wen-Bai (Wen-Bai Inheritance Library Collection) was created, taking the essence of the Three Encyclopedias while not being confined to them.
After the Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian), Ban Gu wrote the Hanshu (Book of Han). Ban Gu, styled Mengjian, was from Anling, Fufeng (now eastern Xi'an, Shaanxi Province), and was born in the eighth year of the Jianwu era (32 AD) during the Eastern Han Dynasty. His father, Ban Biao, was a historian who wrote the Houtuan (Post-Records) in 65 chapters to supplement the Shiji. The Hanshu was completed based on the Houtuan. In the first year of the Yongyuan era (89 AD), Ban Gu accompanied the cavalry general Dou Xian in an expedition against the Xiongnu and participated in the planning. Later, in the internal struggles of the ruling class, he was imprisoned and died in prison in the fourth year of the Yongyuan era (92 AD). At that time, eight tables and the Tianwen Zhi (Astronomical Treatise) of the Hanshu were still unfinished. Emperor He of Han ordered Ban Gu's sister, Ban Zhao, to complete them, with Ma Xun assisting her in writing the Tianwen Zhi. Ban Zhao's contributions to the Hanshu cannot be erased. She was a talented female historian in feudal China and the only female author in the "Twenty-Four Histories."
The Hanshu includes twelve jì (annals), eight biǎo (tables), ten zhì (treatises), and seventy lièzhuàn (biographies), totaling one hundred chapters, which were later divided into one hundred and twenty volumes. Its chronicles begin in the first year of Emperor Gaozu of Han (206 BC) and end in the fourth year of Emperor Di of Wang Mang (23 AD). Compared to the Shiji, the Hanshu has changed in format. The Shiji is a comprehensive history, while the Hanshu is a dynastic history. The Hanshu shortens the "běnji" (basic annals) of the Shiji to "jì" (annals), the "lièzhuàn" (biographies) to "lièzhuàn" (biographies), renames the "shū" (treatises) as "zhì" (treatises), and removes the "shìjiā" (hereditary houses), instead incorporating the hereditary houses of Han dynasty officials into the lièzhuàn. These changes were later adopted by other historical works.
The Hanshu covers the same period as the Shiji, with the history of Western Han before the mid-term of Emperor Wu of Han recorded in both. For this part, the Hanshu often borrows from the Shiji. However, due to differences in the authors' ideological perspectives and criteria for selecting materials, there were additions, deletions, and modifications when borrowing. For example, the Jia Yi Zhuan (Biography of Jia Yi) adds the "Zhìzhì Cè" (Peaceful Governance Strategy); the Chao Cuo Zhuan (Biography of Chao Cuo) includes the "Yan Bing Shì" (Book on Military Affairs) and the "Mù Mín Xù Sài Xià Shū" (Memorandum on Encouraging Migration to the Frontier"); and the Lu Wenshu Zhuan (Biography of Lu Wenshu) adds the "Shàng Dé Huǎn Xíng Shū" (Memorandum on Promoting Virtue and Mitigating Punishment). These provide new historical materials beyond the Shiji, showing that the Hanshu is indispensable for understanding the history of Western Han before the mid-term of Emperor Wu. As for the history of Western Han after the mid-term of Emperor Wu, the Hanshu is the most systematic and complete among the existing historical records.
The Hanshu introduces new zhì (treatises) such as the Xingfa Zhi (Treatise on Criminal Law), the Xingwu Zhi (Treatise on Five Elements), the Dili Zhi (Treatise on Geography), and the Yiwen Zhi (Treatise on Literature and Arts). The Xingfa Zhi systematically describes the evolution of the legal system and specific regulations. The Dili Zhi records the administrative divisions, historical changes, and population figures of the commanderies and kingdoms at that time, with special attention to the descriptions of local products, economic development, and customs. The Yiwen Zhi examines the origins of various schools of thought and records the existing books, making it the earliest existing catalog of books in China. The Shihuo Zhi evolved from the Pingzhun Shu (Book of Equalizing the Market), but its content is richer. It is divided into two volumes: the upper volume discusses "shí" (food), focusing on agricultural economic conditions, while the lower volume discusses "huò" (goods), covering commerce and currency, serving as a specialized economic treatise of the time.
Among the eight biǎo (tables) of the Hanshu, there is the Gujin Renbiao (Table of Ancient and Modern People), which records rulers from Taihao to Wu Guang, with "ancient" but no "modern," leading to criticism from later generations. Later generations highly praised the Ba Guan Gongqing Biǎo (Table of One Hundred Officials and Ministers), which first describes the division of officials and positions during the Qin and Han dynasties, including the authority and salaries of various positions. It then uses a concise table divided into fourteen levels and thirty-four official categories to record the promotions, demotions, and dismissals of Han dynasty officials and ministers. Despite its brevity, it clearly presents the bureaucratic system and its changes at that time.
From the perspective of ideological content, the Hanshu is inferior to the Shiji. Ban Gu once criticized Sima Qian, saying, "His discussions on right and wrong often deviate from the sage's views." This reflects the ideological divergence between the two. The "sage" refers to Confucius. Sima Qian did not entirely use Confucian thought as the standard for judging right and wrong, which is commendable. Ban Gu's understanding, however, was inferior to Sima Qian's. This change from Sima Qian to Ban Gu reflects the establishment of Confucian thought as the orthodox ideology of feudalism in the field of historiography during the Eastern Han Dynasty.
The Hanshu frequently uses archaic characters and terms, making it difficult to read. Even during the Eastern Han Dynasty, many passages were incomprehensible. The renowned scholar Ma Rong studied the Hanshu with Ban Zhao at a young age. Sun Quan sent Zhang Xiu to study the Hanshu with Zhang Zhao to familiarize Sun Deng with the recent history of the time before teaching him. This highlighted the need for annotations to the Hanshu. In the late Eastern Han Dynasty, Fu Qian and Ying Shao wrote annotations. By the Tang Dynasty, Yan Shigu compiled annotations from twenty-three previous scholars, correcting errors and filling gaps, completing a new annotation of the Hanshu. In the Qing Dynasty, Wang Xianqian wrote the Hanshu Buzhu (Supplementary Annotations to the Hanshu).