Basically, the official position of the right prime minister is greater than that of the left prime minister. The right prime minister is the prime minister standing on the emperor's right hand, also called the main prime minister. The left prime minister is the prime minister standing on the emperor's left hand, also known as the deputy prime minister.
In the Han Dynasty, the right prime minister was the most powerful, in the Southern Song Dynasty, the right prime minister was the most powerful, in the Northern Song Dynasty, the left prime minister was the most powerful, and in the early Ming Dynasty, the left prime minister was the most powerful. The Qing Dynasty also respected the left. For example, the left governor's censor was greater than the right governor.
Whether it is "left" respect or "right" respect is not static. There are different regulations in different periods and eras. During the Zhou, Qin and Han Dynasties, "right" was respected in our country. Therefore, the royal relatives and nobles are called "You Qi", and the aristocratic families are called "You clan" or "You surname".
From the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Sui, Tang and Song Dynasties, our country gradually formed a system in which the left is respected and the right is humbled. During this period, the left servant was higher than the right servant, and the left prime minister was higher than the right prime minister. After the Mongols established the Yuan Dynasty, they changed the old system and stipulated that the right should be respected. At that time, the right prime minister was superior to the left prime minister. Zhu Yuanzhang established the Ming Dynasty and made changes to the left. This system was used in the Ming and Qing dynasties for more than 500 years. Nowadays, when classical plays are performed on the theater stage, guests and elders always sit on the left side of the host and juniors. This reflects the Ming Dynasty's advocating "left" etiquette.
The ancient philologist Zhao Cheng's "A Concise Dictionary of Oracle Bone Inscriptions" said: "The ancients respected the left, so they respected the left." However, he obviously simplified the cultural and linguistic phenomena. Do the Han people respect the left or the right? This is a controversial issue. This controversy has existed for a long time. "Tang Yulin" by Wang Can of the Tang Dynasty said: "Humanity advocates the right, and respects the right." (page 702, Zhonghua Book Company, 1987) "Cihai" explains "You" and says: "In ancient times, it was the right style, so it refers to a higher status. ." (Page 157) There is a short essay on "The Difference between Ancient and Modern Left and Right" in Volume 10 of Song Dynasty's "Qidong Yeyu". He said: "Which one is more important, the southerners are left-leaning, or the northerners are right-leaning, or wen?" This debate has been going on for a long time, and it has not yet been concluded. In the State of Zhao, the right is respected. When the prime minister stands in the court position, he leans to the right and the general to the left.
The cultural phenomenon of "respecting the left and respecting the right" requires detailed analysis. Qian Daxin, a native of the Qing Dynasty, pointed out in "Shi Jia Zhai Yang Xin Lu": "In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the left and right servants, left and right prime ministers, and left and right prime ministers all put the left as top. In the Yuan Dynasty, the left and right prime ministers and left and right prime ministers put the right as top. Semu is called the right list, and the Han people call it the left list, and the right is also the top. In the six departments of the Ming Dynasty, the left minister, the left censor, the left minister, and the left minister still regarded the left as the top." (Page 217, Jiangsu Ancient Books Publishing House, 2000. (year) has a difference in time between ancient and modern times. "Contemporary Chinese Dictionary" explains "right" and says: "Those with superior status (in ancient times, the right was respected)." (page 1353) ("In ancient times, the right was respected", now it has been We no longer respect the right, but should we respect the left? We respected the right in ancient times, but we still respect the right now?) The terms "leftist" and "rightist" are modern, and the term "leftist movement" is ancient. In terms of space, there is a difference between north, south and east. There is a saying that "Qin people prefer the left" and "Chu people prefer the right". There is a difference between northerners preferring the left and southerners preferring the right. There are also factors such as scenes, objects and events that also affect the changes in the concept of superiority and inferiority. Chapter 31 of "Laozi" says: "Good things happen to the left, bad things happen to the right." The dignity of the left and right changes depending on the good or bad events.
In the last two decades of the 20th century, the debate between left and right was a hot issue in academic circles. Huang Fazhong's "The Origin and Flow of Respecting the Left and Respecting the Right" ("Knowledge of Literature and History", Issue 6, 1985), Zhang Atang's "On the Sequence and Differences in the Origin of Respecting the Left and Respecting the Right" ("Knowledge of Literature and History", Issue 4, 1992) , Yao Guowang's "A Textual Research on the Official System of the Left and the Right in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods" ("Literary and Historical Knowledge", Issue 1, 1988), Zhang Naiyi's "Zong Heng Tan on "Left" and "Right" ("Dictionary Research", Issue 1, 1988) , Yang Lin's "Chinese Vocabulary and Chinese Culture" (Chinese Language Press, 2001), have discussed this issue. There is currently no consensus on this issue. Therefore, cautious scholars often emphasize concrete analysis of specific issues: "It is incomplete to generally say that the ancients advocated the right and the ancients advocated the left, or that the people of Chu advocated the left and the people of Qin advocated the right. Specific issues should be analyzed in detail.
” ("Chinese Vocabulary and Chinese Culture", page 86)