Bao Zheng ( Chinese ex. 包拯 , pinyin : Bāo Zhěng ; 999, Hefei , Anhui - 1062, Kaifeng ) - Chinese statesman and judge of the era of the Song Empire . Known as the prototype of the wise, fair and incorruptible judge Bao, the protagonist of a number of literary works.
| Bao Zheng | |
|---|---|
 Statue of Bao Zheng in Shijiazhuang , Hebei . | |
| Date of Birth | |
| Place of Birth | |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
| A country | |
| Occupation | , |
| Father | |
| Spouse | |
| Children | , , , and |
Content
Biography
Bao Zheng studied diligently and successfully passed the state exams in 1027, receiving the highest degree of dignitary - jinshi . He was appointed magistrate of Jianchang County, but preferred the growth up the career ladder the opportunity to stay caring for elderly parents (for which he was later revered as an example of filial piety ). Only after their death he was sent to a nearby town at the age of 39, where he gained fame as a just judge. Then, in 1040, he was sent to the south by the magistrate, in the Duanzhou area, where he uncovered the abuses of his predecessors.
After being appointed imperial censor in 1044, he provided Emperor Ren Zong with at least 13 memoranda with proposals for military, tax, and examination reforms. In 1045 he was sent as an envoy to the Liao Dynasty. From 1057 to 1058 he was the prefect of Kaifeng , the then capital of the Northern Song Empire. As a finance minister, he led a modest life.
During his service, rising to the highest posts of the empire, he managed to reduce taxes and pursued a socially-oriented, liberal policy. Bao was very popular among the people. He conducted many lawsuits against robber officials and corrupt civil servants, including those of aristocratic descent or even the emperor’s relatives, and he did not hesitate to sentence those especially guilty to death . He secured the dismissal of a number of incompetent officials who received their appointments on the basis of nepotism — including the uncle of the emperor’s beloved concubine .
During the floods in Kaifeng, he overcame the resistance of influential families whose illegally built gardens and pavilions near the river caused flooding, and secured their dismantling in order to overcome water. Bao Zheng was administering justice regardless of the person - when his uncle, the offender, received a complaint in court, he was sentenced to 100 sticks.
In religion
After his death, Bao Zheng was deified as Bao-gun (“Prince Bao” or “Lord of Bao”) and equated with Guan Yu . During particularly difficult investigations, sacrifices were made to his spirit, and they also pray to him with a view to passing a favorable sentence. He is portrayed with a black face (this color is considered a symbol of integrity) and some legends even mention his miraculous birth, associated with the black-faced spirit of Kui-sin.
Subsequently, legends appeared about his descents into the underworld ( Diyu ) to investigate crimes committed on earth, and he became revered as one of the judges of the underworld, punishing spirits there. Several cities in China have declared Bao Zheng their city patron god.
The main memorial temple of Bao Zheng is located in his homeland, in the center of Hefei.
In Fiction
The image of the ideal judge after his death was used in numerous literary works and adventurous medieval stories (starting from the dramas of the XIII-XIV centuries), turning into the literary image of Judge Bao .
Already the first legends tell of his ability to investigate complicated crimes , for example, in the investigation of the case of werewolf mice. They deceived a student who had met him and was going to the capital: one of them took on his appearance and appeared to his wife, after which he filed a complaint against his double, who reached the first minister. But the appearance of the latter took another mouse, after which doubles were found in the sovereign themselves, the empress and Bao. As a result, the judge decided the case, presenting himself in a wonderful dream in front of Yu-di . God sent down to the earth his Jade cat, which caught mice.
The image of Judge Bao was deduced in a number of subsequent novels (“Ping Yao Zhuang” - “Taming the Unclean”, XIV century; “Sansya yi” - “Three Brave, Five Just” Shi Yukun, XIX century) and late medieval folk tales (collection “ Louis-tu gongan "," Cases resolved by Judge Lun-tu "). The nickname Bao Lun-tu , which he wears in folklore , means “Bao from the Dragon Seal Pavilion” (the so-called chamber in the palace where Bao Zheng fell out and where Emperor Ren-zong indulged in literary pursuits).
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 China Biographical Database
Literature
- Schmoller Bernd, “Bao Zheng (999-1062) als Beamter und Staatsmann. Das historische Vorbild des ‚weisen Richters' der Volksliteratur“, Bochum, 1982, S. 8-21
- Schlommer Sabine, “Richter Bao. Der chinesische Sherlock Holmes ”in Chinathemen Band 85, Bochum 1994