Daily notes are records of the words and deeds of ancient Chinese emperors. Starting from the Han Dynasty, almost every emperor has a daily note. This record was recorded by the annotator at that time. There are few modifications, so the material is better than other materials. Historical materials are more authentic and are important materials for compiling national history and have extremely high research value.
The Kangxi Dynasty began in September of the tenth year of Kangxi and ended in March of the fifty-seventh year of Kangxi. There were 982 volumes of daily annotations recorded in Japan. The languages ??were divided into Manchu and Chinese, including the original Chinese version. There are 486 volumes, 7 manuscript volumes, and the rest are all Manchu editions. These records are important historical materials for later generations to study the Kangxi Dynasty. They record many activities of Emperor Kangxi issuing imperial letters. The purpose of Emperor Kangxi's activity was to educate his subjects with Confucianism and to encourage ministers in this way. It was the epitome of the political style of Kangxi's dynasty.
When they first took over the Central Plains, the Manchus did not attach great importance to Chinese culture. The rulers of the Qing Dynasty had a repulsive attitude towards the Chinese language and Chinese characters, and regarded Manchu culture as the mainstream, which was enforced across the country and triggered political activities with strong ethnic characteristics such as hair shaving and land enclosures. In the Central Plains, which had been educated by Confucian culture for thousands of years, these policies of oppression and slavery caused intense conflicts. At the beginning of the establishment of the Qing Dynasty, when the political power was still unstable, Emperor Shunzhi felt many crises.
In the political crisis caused by the conflict between Manchu and Han, Emperor Shunzhi was forced to re-examine cultural differences and accept the traditional culture of the Central Plains. In order to strengthen political stability, he put forward the general policy of "promoting culture and education and advocating Confucianism". However, in the early Qing Dynasty, the war between all parties had not yet been assessed, and Emperor Shunzhi had no time to pay too much attention to cultural aspects, so this policy was not well implemented. The problem continued into the Kangxi dynasty, and the contradictions became more acute.
In the process of dealing with the conflict between Manchu and Han, Emperor Kangxi clearly realized that only by regaining the status of the suzerain of the traditional culture of the Central Plains could the conflict between the Manchu and Han be ended, and the people of the Central Plains would have peace in their hearts. Accept the rule of the Manchus to resolve the national crisis. Therefore, as a ruler, Emperor Kangxi took the lead in promoting and learning Chinese culture, practiced Chinese calligraphy diligently, and awarded a large number of imperial letters. Under the guidance of Emperor Kangxi, the children of the Eight Banners and the Manchu aristocrats all made it a fashion to learn Han culture. At this point, the traditional culture of the Central Plains, which has been in charge of the cultural field of the Central Plains for many years, has once again returned to its central position.
Zhang Huaiguan of the Tang Dynasty said this in "The Theory of fonts": "The person who interprets the Dian and the Tomb is the most prosperous person in the country, and nothing can be compared with the book." Xiang Mu of the Ming Dynasty wrote in "Calligraphy Ya It is further explained in "Words": "Those who are correct in calligraphy are correcting people's hearts, and those who are correcting people's hearts are also practicing the sage way." From the above remarks, it can be seen that calligraphy, a sampling art, has been in Confucian culture for thousands of years. has been deeply affected. Calligraphy expressions with practical functions have become the expression of Confucian moral norms and ethical creeds.
Calligraphy affects the human heart, and the human heart affects the holy way. This is the core part of Confucianism about calligraphy. Therefore, when the Qing rulers carefully examined Han culture, calligraphy played an important media role in the process. In particular, Emperor Kangxi's behavior of awarding a large number of imperial letters was a very practical art form to get close to and communicate with Han officials, thus safeguarding the rule of the Qing government in disguise and making the Manchu rule in the Central Plains more stable. It was more stable and promoted the development of society in the early Qing Dynasty from a unique perspective.
Emperor Kangxi once again promoted Confucian culture, which had been at the center of the cultural field of the Central Plains for thousands of years, to the supreme position by awarding imperial letters on many occasions. For example, on November 18, the 23rd year, Emperor Kangxi issued an edict in Qufu, the hometown of Confucius: "The virtues of the Holy Saint are the same as those of heaven and earth, the sun and the moon. They are so brilliant and vast that they cannot be described. I have been studying the meaning of the scriptures and thinking about it. Tao, if you want to praise him, you can't give him a famous quote. The words "Teacher of All Times" are specially written in the palace to expound the holy teachings and also to indicate the future."
The 11th day of the 25th year of Kangxi's reign. On the 16th day of the lunar month, Emperor Kangxi gave the imperial inscription "Xue Da Xing Tian" to the ancestral halls of Zhou Dunyi, Zhang Zai, Cheng Yi, Zhu Xi and other representatives of Confucian culture in the Song Dynasty. They were now Bailu Cave Academy and Yuelu Academy. On June 20, 1942, Emperor Kangxi wrote a plaque with the words "Elucidating Taoism and Purifying Confucianism" and gave it to the magistrate of Jingzhou, ordering him to hang the plaque in Dong Zhongshu Temple.
There are many similar behaviors. Emperor Kangxi granted Confucian culture the supreme status through frequent activities such as issuing imperial letters and plaques.
Emperor Kangxi was an emperor with profound cultural accomplishment. He had read Confucian classics since he was a child. He was quite familiar with Confucian classics such as the "Four Books" and the "Five Classics" and had his own understanding. Many of these famous sentences were often picked up by him and quoted in the creation of imperial books. Therefore, the conferment of imperial books by Emperor Kangxi, who advocated Confucian culture, was equivalent to conferring "the way of sages."
For example, on June 15, the 33rd year of Kangxi’s reign, the imperial plaque “Bing Jian Tang” given to Kulena, the Minister of Civil Affairs, comes from “Li of Zhou. Tianguan. Lingren” "Sacrifice ***Bingjian" means a mirror as clean as ice, which means to educate Kulena. As an official in charge of personnel affairs, he should be aware of everything and use people carefully.
The imperial plaque "Nine Styles of Jingbang" given to Ma Qi, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, comes from the "Nine Styles to Save Money" in "The Rites of Zhou", which means that he hopes that the Ministry of Husband will manage the finances of the Qing Dynasty. Departments should "live within their means and save a little." The phrase "Zhang Silun" on the imperial plaque given to the minister of the Ministry of Personnel and the standing secretary of the Hanlin Academy comes from "Book of Rites. Zhenyi" "The king's words are like silk, and his words are like silk", which refers to his responsibility for drafting edicts and imperial edicts. Very important.
The daily notes have relatively detailed records of the plaques given by Emperor Kangxi. At that time, he wrote ten letters, each of which contained expectations and encouragement for officials, or clever reminders and educational significance. . This reflects that Emperor Kangxi was very familiar with Confucian culture, was quite knowledgeable in the field of Confucianism, and applied it appropriately.
Emperor Kangxi often issued imperial letters to educate, remind, or admonish officials. According to records in daily life notes, he once gave 17 ministers plaques with the words "Qing Shen Qin Qin". This sentence comes from the book "Official Admonitions" written by Lu Benzhong of the Song Dynasty. It is taken from "The law of being an official is only three things, which is purity, prudence, and diligence. Knowing these three, you can protect your position, avoid shame, and gain success." Knowledge from above can help you from below." It is full of requirements for officials, which can be described as very clear. The purpose of Emperor Kangxi's gift of this plaque is very obvious, which is to hope that the officials of the Qing Dynasty can be good officials who "please be careful and diligent", be upright, honest, cautious and diligent.
On the 16th day of the first lunar month of the 42nd year of Kangxi, Emperor Kangxi gave a piece of "Governor's Proverbs" to Governor Li Guangdi, and on the 24th, another piece of "Governor's Proverbs" was given to Governor Wang Guochang. , and on February 12th, he wrote another "Governor's Admonition" and gave it to the governor Song Luo. In less than a month, Emperor Kangxi wrote three "Admonitions to Governors" in succession and gave them to three different governors respectively. This shows the depth of Emperor Kangxi's intentions and earnestness.
Emperor Kangxi also implemented the practice of issuing imperial letters and promoting Confucian culture to deal with relations with vassal countries. For example, on August 25, the 21st year of Kangxi's reign, Emperor Kangxi ordered the Hanlin Academy to review Wang Yi's imperial letter with the four characters "Zhongshan Shitu" to Ryukyu for canonization. On the fifth day of October in the 22nd year, the Kangxi emperor's four-character imperial letter "loyalty, filial piety, and defense of the country" was awarded to King Annan. Ministers reported one after another that the overseas dependent countries felt the power of Emperor Kangxi and the strength of the Qing Empire through the Royal Letter issued by Emperor Kangxi. The Emperor Kangxi's tenderness can be seen in the Royal Letter. Although this statement was the wishful thinking of Qing Dynasty officials, it also reflected Emperor Kangxi's purpose of issuing imperial letters, hoping that all subjects in the world would respect Confucian culture.
Emperor Kangxi frequently issued imperial letters to ministers and frontier officials, hoping to promote the relationship between the monarch and his ministers and strengthen communication with ministers. For example, on the 20th day of the first lunar month of the 19th year, Emperor Kangxi gave Niu Niu an imperial letter and told him: "Although the words I wrote in my spare time are not very good, I will give them to you because you are in a few miles." Niu Niu replied. Memorial: "I am a Confucian scholar. I admire the Holy Grace and recommend him to this position. I am afraid that there are many fallacies and I am deeply frightened. I have received the favor of the emperor's family and given him a royal scroll. I feel that I can't bear the burden. I can only respect and praise Chen Han." It will be treasured with piety and passed on to future generations. It will be a treasure that will be preserved forever. "Similar to this, there is also the imperial letter on the forehead of the emperor on June 27th of the same year.
Emperor Kangxi issued imperial letters to these ministers, hoping that they would be loyal to the court. For ministers with meritorious deeds, Emperor Kangxi often rewarded and encouraged them by issuing imperial letters.
For example, on the fourth day of November in the twenty-third year of Kangxi's reign, Emperor Kangxi awarded the imperial letter to Jackie Chan. On March 16, the thirty-eighth year of Kangxi, the Emperor Kangxi granted the imperial letter to Governor Song Nao. On October 20, the twenty-third year of Kangxi's reign, Emperor Kangxi On the 8th, Emperor Kangxi granted royal letters to Jiangsu township officials. On April 15, the thirty-eighth year of Kangxi's reign, Emperor Kangxi granted royal letters to eight officials including Si Dao of Jiangning Tong Province. These ministers were all meritorious officials in the imperial court. Emperor Kangxi awarded them royal letters in order to encourage them to continue to be loyal to the imperial court.
Emperor Kangxi often issued imperial letters to the descendants of some loyal ministers and generals to express his condolences. For example, on February 20, the twenty-eighth year of Kangxi's reign, Emperor Kangxi awarded Ye Yong, the son of Ye Yingliu, the former Huguang Liang Dao, a royal letter. On March 27, the thirty-eighth year of Kangxi's reign, Emperor Kangxi awarded him a special award for his father's merits. Yushu and the magistrate of Huzhou Prefecture in Zhejiang Province. There are many records of this kind of situation in the current residence. This move of Emperor Kangxi reflected Emperor Kangxi's praise for his loyal ministers and good generals and his encouragement to their descendants, achieving the purpose of educating his ministers and becoming loyal to the Qing Dynasty.
As a human minister, no matter what the reason is, receiving the imperial letter is a matter of honoring the ancestors. Many people made the imperial letters they received into plaques or carved stones, or even wrote commemorative essays to express their feelings of the emperor's favor and commemoration. According to the records in the Living Notes, Emperor Kangxi granted more than 800 blessings in imperial letters during his administration. However, since the records in the Living Notes are not complete, the actual number should be greater than this number.
Some people think that some of these royal books were ghostwritten by the prince or other princes. In fact, in the daily notes, such royal books are specially marked, so this theory is untenable. Emperor Kangxi issued a large number of imperial letters, on the one hand to show his Confucian cultural accomplishment, and on the other hand, he also wanted to educate his subjects in this way. He leads by example and hopes to promote a culture of diligence. Emperor Kangxi improved the suzerain status of Han culture by issuing imperial letters, making the people in the Central Plains accept the Manchu rule from their hearts, thus achieving the Qing government's goal of stabilizing the political situation. The cultural conflict between the Manchu and Han Dynasties will inevitably affect the political situation. From the perspective of daily life, we can look at Emperor Kangxi's behavior of awarding imperial letters. His act of respecting Confucian culture greatly eased the conflict between the Manchu and Han Dynasties and laid the foundation for the creation of a prosperous age.