The Tang and Song eras are the classical period of Chinese art. "The Rise of the New Tang" Tang Emperors

If you trace Chinese history from the most ancient dynasties, you will see that it constantly repeats itself, as if obeying the majestic rhythm of time. From ruins and chaos, a talented ruler emerges who founds a new dynasty that revives the empire. The state reaches unprecedented heights in development, then decline begins, the empire disintegrates, again plunging into chaos. This was the case with the Tang Dynasty, founded by Li Yuan in 618.

Li Yuan went down in history under the posthumous name of Gao-zong, and ruled under the name of Wu-di. He was a talented feudal lord and commander who loved hunting, magnificent performances and horse riding. It is said that he won his beautiful wife by competing in archery and hitting the target - both eyes of a painted peacock.

Under the emperor, the capital was moved to Daxing, renamed Chang'an in honor of the nearby ancient capital of the Celestial Empire. The emperor spent about 10 years achieving peace with neighboring states and within the country. Gradually, thanks to reasonable diplomatic measures, he was able to win over the rebels and defeated enemy troops.

The restoration of currency circulation and the examination system continued; trade became tightly controlled by the central government. One of the main achievements of Emperor Gao-zong was the creation of a new code of laws, numbering 502 articles. These laws, which were based on the yin-yang philosophy, the theory of the five primary elements and, lasted until the 14th century and became a model for the legal systems of Japan, Vietnam and Korea.

Gao-zong had three sons, the eldest of them was declared heir, however, his son Li Shimin, who took an active part in actions aimed at suppressing rebellions within the country, was aiming for the throne. Having learned that the brothers were trying to turn their father against him, he took decisive action and announced their illegal relationship with concubines from the imperial harem. The brothers went to the palace to justify themselves to Gao-zong, but Li Shimin and his supporters were waiting for them at the gate. Li Shimin pierced the heir with an arrow, and the second brother was killed by his men. The emperor, having learned about what had happened, gave up his throne to his son and left to live out his life in the rural wilderness. Li Shimin ordered the execution of ten of his brothers' children to get rid of possible opponents.

So in 626, the most powerful emperor of the Tang dynasty, who received the throne name Taizong, subsequently ascended the throne. This great leader is still considered an example of the Confucian ideal of a ruler who championed the interests of the peasants, merchants, intelligentsia and landowners.

The emperor managed to surround himself with wise and devoted officials, free from corruption. Officials slept in shifts to be at the emperor's disposal at any time of the day. If history is to be believed, the emperor worked tirelessly, hanging countless reports from his subjects on the walls of his bedroom and studying them at night.

Thrift, military and local government reforms, an improved transportation system, and developed agriculture brought prosperity to the entire country. The Tang Empire became a confident and stable state, significantly ahead of other countries of this period in development. turned into a real cosmopolitan city, hosting numerous embassies. The offspring of aristocrats from nearby countries flocked here for education, and national communities were formed. The most enthusiastic people who enjoyed China's hospitality were the Japanese, who, after several years of studying and working abroad, returned to their homeland, where they formed a government structure following the example of their neighbors. It was during this period that he had a huge influence on the formation of Japanese culture.

The period of Taizong's reign is also associated by historians with an attempt to create a synthetic culture that would unite Chinese civilization with the steppe Turkic nomads. In addition to the Chinese sages, at Taizong's court there were also devoted steppe dwellers, among whom was the one-armed Uighur commander Kibi Heli.

During the reign of Taizong, the empire significantly expanded its borders: the emperor's troops retreated from the capital to a distance of 9 thousand km, conquering more than 70 cities of Central and Central Asia along the way.

In the 50th year of his life, Emperor Taizong suddenly fell ill with an unknown illness, accompanied by dizziness, loss of strength and blurred vision, and died in 649, leaving behind a powerful empire and the memory of himself as a wise, honest and great ruler.

The throne was taken by the emperor's 9th son, who took the name Gaozong. The new emperor, who had a weak character and health, actually became a puppet in the hands of his wife Wu-hou, a former maid of Emperor Taizong's concubine. With the help of her intelligence and beauty, Wu-hou was able to take the place of Gaozong's legal wife and brutally dealt with the wife and favorite concubine of the emperor: the women's arms and legs were cut off and left to die in a wine barrel.

Very soon, Wu-hou began to single-handedly rule the country, subjugating both the emperor and the government, brutally dealing with all enemies. An unusually ambitious empress, ready to do anything for the sake of power, in 674 she awarded herself and her husband the titles of Heavenly Empress and Heavenly Emperor.

After the death of her husband, Wu-hou ruled the country behind the back of her son, the puppet emperor, and in 690 she declared herself the legitimate “ruler of the Celestial Empire,” becoming the first and only female emperor. In total, Wu-hou was at the helm of power for 40 years, until at the age of 82 she was overthrown by her son Zhong-tsung, who returned from exile.

For several more years, government was actually in the hands of women - the dissolute wife of the new emperor Wei and her daughter An-lo, who had amassed a fortune through corruption. In 710, after the death of Emperor Zhongzong, both women were killed, nominally power passed to Ruizong, but in fact to his daughter, Princess Tai-ping. During the reign of Empress Wu-hou and the subsequent years of struggle for power, chaos began in the upper strata of society, the corrupt administration was completely rotten. In 712, the brother of Princess Tai-ping, Li Lung-tzu, became emperor. After the princess tried to poison him, and also after an unsuccessful military coup attempt, the emperor ordered the execution of the princess's supporters right in front of the reception hall, and Tang-ping herself was forced to commit suicide.

So power finally found itself in the hands of a reasonable ruler, who took the imperial name Xuanzong. The administration was completely replaced, new reforms began to restore the country again after the economic and military crisis.

The empire was experiencing a new round of prosperity. During this period, printing was invented in China, which played a huge role in the preservation, dissemination and development of knowledge. and reached unprecedented heights and were distinguished by luxury and sophistication. The famous jewelry, furniture decorated with paintings and mother-of-pearl inlays, and poetry of the Tang era became an example of the highest skill of Chinese artists, poets and artisans.

Agriculture, trade, and handicrafts flourished. Pottery production, shipbuilding and metallurgy also developed. A developed transport system contributed to the prosperity of trade, and close economic ties were established with Japan, India, Korea, Persia and Arabia. It was during this era that it became a key element of Chinese culture.

There is still debate about the reasons for the decline of the powerful Tang dynasty. In general, central power began to weaken in the middle of the 8th century, when China suffered a series of military defeats, and the country again began to be rocked by uprisings. The most destructive was the great uprising of An Shi, an ambitious governor, in whose veins Sogdian and Turkic blood flowed. As a result of the 7-year civil war that unfolded after the rebellion, according to official records, about 36 million people died, which was 6th of the world population at that time. This war became the largest armed conflict in human history in terms of the number of casualties before World War II and caused irreparable damage to the Tang Empire.

After the uprising, the influence of the provincial military governors, the Jiedushi, gradually began to grow, and the prestige of the central government inevitably fell. Natural disasters - floods and crop failures, which led to a terrible famine, sowed rumors among the people that the dynasty had angered the heavens and lost its right to the throne. All these events gave rise to a series of uprisings, among which the power was finally undermined by the rebellion of Huang Chao and his followers. The rebels managed to capture the ancient capitals of Chang'an and Luoyang. The suppression of the rebellion that shook the empire for 10 years, unfortunately, did not bring peace to shaken China. The capital, once a thriving multinational rich city, was destroyed: the streets were overgrown with hawthorn, foxes and hares ran along them. The last emperor of the dynasty, Li Zhu, was overthrown in 907 by the military leader Zhu Wen. The Tang Dynasty lost its Mandate of Heaven not without the participation of nature. Zhu Wen founded his Later Liang Dynasty. The country again split into several states, as has already happened several times in the history of the Celestial Empire. The period has begun.

It was during the Tang era that appointments to all administrative positions began to be made in accordance with competitive selection based on exams passed by applicants for a particular position. Those who successfully passed the examination of a special commission received the first degree, and then could try to pass the exam for the second and, if successful, for the third. From among the holders of the third degree, officials of the administrative apparatus were appointed, starting with district chiefs.

Thus, in China, unlike Western Europe, the main qualities of an administrator were not his military training and military exploits, but his education and managerial talent. Moreover, the new manager could be a representative of any social class: his business qualities and loyalty to the interests of the empire were much more important than his social origin.

To pass the exam, one had to have a good knowledge of the works of ancient sages, primarily the classical Confucian canons, be able to creatively interpret stories from history, abstractly reason on the topics of philosophical treatises and have literary taste, and be able to write poetry.

During the Tang Dynasty, the number of cities increased significantly and their wealth grew. This happened primarily due to Buddhist temples. Officials, aristocrats, monks, servants of noble people, representatives of rich rural clans, artisans and merchants, actors, doctors and fortune tellers lived in the cities. Order in the cities was monitored by special officials and the city guard subordinate to them. They were also responsible for keeping the stone-paved streets clean and for the water supply. Rich houses had baths and swimming pools; paid city baths were built for the rest of the population.

The emperors of the Tang dynasty sought to extend their power to neighboring states. Chinese troops finally subdued North Vietnam, the Turkic Khaganate and invaded Central Asia, but in 751 they were defeated by the Arabs in the battle on the river. Talas. Material from the site

Foreign policy activity required considerable expenses, which led to increased discontent among broad sections of the population. In 874, a grandiose peasant war broke out in China under the leadership of Huang Chao, who in 881 occupied the capital and proclaimed himself emperor. But Huang Chao was unable to propose any program for the reconstruction of Chinese society. He only replaced the Tang officials with his supporters. Therefore, by 884 the forces of the old aristocracy were able to restore their power. However, the power of the later emperors of the Tang dynasty was extremely fragile. In 907, the last Tang emperor was overthrown, after which a half-century period of internecine wars began. Only in the 60s. X century Representatives of the Song Dynasty managed to reunite China under their rule.

Costumes from the Tang Dynasty. Photo: The Epoch Times

The most brilliant period, the heyday of Chinese civilization, is considered to be the 7th, 8th, 9th centuries of the last millennium, the reign of the Sui and Tang dynasties.

During the reign of the Sui and Tang dynasties, China developed especially dynamically. There was a unification of nationalities, which united the country. Many philosophical schools widely disseminated their teachings. This was a time of Chinese economic strength and stability. Peace and prosperity of trade reigned in relations with other countries. In China, Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism coexisted peacefully, science, literature, and art developed.

From the mouths of the stone dragons flow the waters of the Baifu Spring, then they flow to the East of the country, flow into the Tonghui River and then into the Grand Canal. The waters of the Baifu Spring are the northernmost source feeding the two thousand kilometer Grand Canal.

The Grand Canal is one of the unique creations of the ancient Chinese. It is still in use today. The “Grand Canal” consists of four canals and stretches from Beijing to Hangzhou, connecting the Yellow, Waihu and Yangtze rivers, and goes to the South.

In 589, during the reign of the Sui dynasty, China was reunified after a long period (280 years) of its division into kingdoms.

Previously, the four emperors of the Western Han Dynasty spent 70 years of their reign to make the country prosperous. But the Sui dynasty was able to make China prosper again under its first emperor.

The chronicles record that during the reign of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, almost 2,600 hectoliters of grain and tens of millions of bolts of cloth were stored in two vaults. Archaeologists who excavated the Hanjia granaries of the Sui and Tang dynasties in 1970 discovered structures capable of storing enormous quantities of grain.

After unifying the country, the Sui Dynasty built a system of water canals to connect the North with the South. The 5,000-kilometer water system originates in Chang'an, then the capital of the country, and runs from Jezong Province in the North to Jiejiang Province in the South.

Professor of Beijing University Xin Deyong said: “The Grand Canal, built under Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, is the most brilliant project in the entire world practice of water structures in China. The canal included some parts of the waterways dug to connect the Yellow River with the Yangtze. These paths formed the basis of the entire system. The Grand Canal had a great influence on the future development of the Chinese nation and its history. He played an important role in supplying goods and food to Chang'an, the largest city at that time."

The rivers of China mainly flow from West to East, and before the Sui Dynasty, the history of China was about events that took place from West to East, but with the completion of the Grand Canal, which connected the North and South of the country, and, since the Tang Dynasty, the history of China began to describe the events that took place from the South to the North.

The Grand Canal contributed to the emergence of new cities along its route. And from the middle of the Tang Dynasty, he contributed to the inclusion of the Yangtze Valley in the country's economic turnover. China's economic center has shifted from North to South.

The Tang Dynasty was founded in 618 by Emperor Taizong (Li Shimin). The period of the Tang dynasty in China was the most prosperous, which can be explained by the high morals that reigned then. High morality of the ruler and his subjects is the path to the prosperity of the country. The Tang Dynasty improved the principles received from the Sui Dynasty.

However, the Tang Dynasty imperial court paid great attention to supporting the people, which the Sui court never did. Emperor Taizong considered respect for people to be the basis of the state.

According to Zhang Guogang, a professor at Jinghua University, China perceived the concept of treating people as the basis of the state, and Emperor Taizong effectively put this concept into practice. He discussed with the first minister the relationship between the emperor and the people. He believed that the emperor was a ship and people were water. The water could not only carry the ship, but also swallow it.

During the Sui Dynasty, many of the harsh laws of previous dynasties were repealed, and in the early years of the Tang Dynasty, Sui laws were revised.

In 637, the Tang Dynasty introduced the Zengwang Law, which affirmed the value of human life. This law was then refined by Emperor Gauzong of the Tang Dynasty, becoming the first elaborate set of laws in China. The humanitarian aspect runs through the entire law.

Tang legislation put people first. The Tang Dynasty abolished cruel corporal punishment and used the death penalty very carefully. The emperor had the final say on the use of the death penalty; every case was reported to him. Such a verdict could only be passed after three considerations of the case.

During the reign of Emperor Taizong, China became more open to everything new that was achieved outside its borders, it became more hospitable and welcoming. Nations united, tolerance of different religions was shown, talented people were encouraged.

Chang'an, the capital of the dynasty, was not only a center of international contacts, but also an attractive place for writers and artists. Before the Tang Dynasty, the capital of the Zhou, Jin, Han and Sui dynasties was the city of Chien for more than 3,000 years. The Tang Dynasty used the Sui capital city of Daxing as its own without any changes, only renaming it Chang'an (Changeng).

At that time, Chang'an occupied an area of 84 square meters. km. The city wall of Chang'an was 12 meters wide and 37 kilometers long. The city was carefully planned, with streets dividing the city into 110 districts. Queque Street on the city's central axis was 150 meters wide, twice as wide as Chang'an Street in Beijing today.

The people praised Emperor Taizong and his officials for their courage and love for the people. The Emperor was a sentimental man. He did not hide his grief after the death of his first wife. He was also sad about his horses, which served him in military campaigns. He ordered the famous artist Yen Li Ben to draw those horses from his memories. Sculptures of these horses were also created. They were later placed in the Zhaoling Mausoleum, where his first wife was buried. The Zhaoling Mausoleum was built in memory of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty.

Emperor Li Shimin or Taizong was not the only person of the Tang Dynasty who allowed himself to show special sentimentality and good feelings. Another such person was the great scholar of that time, the monk Xuanzang. In 628, Xuanzang, a monk from the White Horse Temple in Luoyang, traveled from China to the Western Paradise to obtain Buddhist sutra scriptures. His path ran along the Silk Road.

Xuanzang, however, did not pass through Tibet, since at that time it was far from safe. But in 640, the Tibetan ruler Suzengenbu asked for the hand of a princess from the Tang dynasty. Li Shimin agreed and allowed him to marry Princess Wencheng. She lived in Tibet for 40 years and was deeply loved by the Tibetans. The princess brought Buddhism with her to Tibet, and under her leadership many Buddhist temples and monasteries were built there.

When Monk Xuanzang passed by the city of Gaozhang, described in his famous "Journey to the West", he discovered that most of the inhabitants there were Han Chinese, and had lived here for generations. They settled here during the Han Dynasty, far from the center of China, fleeing wars. Since 1950 of the last century, about 500 ancient graves have been excavated in these places and tens of thousands of ancient relics have been found.

All these finds confirm the prosperity of these places during the Tang Dynasty. Meanwhile, Xuanzang returned to Chang'an, having completed the Silk Road in 17 years. A journey of 25 thousand kilometers took him through 110 countries. The Chinese classic novel [Wu Cheng'en] describes his journey to India to obtain Buddhist scriptures.

The Great Buddha Temple of Zhang in Gansu contains the Journey to the West mural. When Xuanzang returned to Chang'an, he found the country even more prosperous than when he left for the West.

Xuanzang brought 657 Buddhist texts to China and was warmly received by the imperial court. Emperor Taizong ordered Xuanzang to undertake the translation of texts in the city's Hongfu Temple. Over the next ten years, Xuanzang translated 1,330 volumes of these writings. He wrote a book, Notes on Western Countries, describing in detail the geography and local customs of the places he visited. The book is popular to this day as an important source for the study of India.

American historian Rhodes Murphy's book, A History of Asia, includes a description of Chang'an in the Tang Dynasty. It states that the capital Chang'an ruled the world's largest empire, larger than the Han Empire and Ancient Rome. On its streets one could meet residents from all over Asia. These were Turks, Hindus, Persians, Syrians, Vietnamese, Japanese, Jews, Arabs and even Europeans and Byzantines. Tang Dynasty figurines depicting black people have been found. Its streets were like an international market that never closed.

Teacher Li Hongzhi, the founder of spiritual teaching, in his writings explains the more subtle spiritual reason for both the very prosperity of the Tang dynasty and the uniqueness of the history of the Chinese nation as a whole, the longest and most continuous history in the world.

Costumes from the Tang Dynasty. Photo: The Epoch Times

The most brilliant period, the heyday of Chinese civilization, is considered to be the 7th, 8th, 9th centuries of the last millennium, the reign of the Sui and Tang dynasties.

In 589, during the reign of the Sui dynasty, China was reunified after a long period (280 years) of its division into kingdoms.

However, the Tang Dynasty imperial court paid great attention to supporting the people, which the Sui court never did. Emperor Taizong considered respect for people to be the basis of the state.

During the Sui Dynasty, many of the harsh laws of previous dynasties were repealed, and in the early years of the Tang Dynasty, Sui laws were revised.

The Great Buddha Temple of Zhang in Gansu contains the Journey to the West mural. When Xuanzang returned to Chang'an, he found the country even more prosperous than when he left for the West.

Tang Dynasty

618–907

The Tang Dynasty, which lasted for almost three centuries, marks one of the most brilliant periods in Chinese history. Both in terms of political power and cultural achievements, China was then undoubtedly the world's greatest empire.

The various Central Asian, Indian, and other foreign elements that entered China in the turbulent years preceding this period were assimilated and incorporated into the previously established Chinese culture. If during the Han Dynasty the structure of the Chinese state acquired its complete form, then the culture received its final stable appearance precisely during the Tang Dynasty.

The Tang capital Chang'an (modern Xi'an) was a bustling city, one of the largest political and cultural centers in Asia, and other large and small Chinese cities tried to follow the models of the metropolis in everything. Chan'an covered an area of about thirty square miles. The vast territory of the imperial palace with its countless chambers, halls, towers, pavilions and gardens for entertainment was located in the central part of the city. Around it there was a labyrinth of streets with several famous temples that could be easily navigated. The population was a motley crowd with a distinctly cosmopolitan character. Buddhist monks from India clashed with Nestorian priests and Taoist magicians, merchants from Samarkand faced silk traders from Suzhou. Ambitious people from all corners of the Empire flocked to the metropolis: young scholars hoping to pass the triennial exams for the degree of art, quarrelsome muscular men hoping to find a suitable occupation, poets and artists dreaming of a wealthy philanthropist, masters of political intrigue eager to gain influential patron. The city had to cater to this motley, pleasure-seeking crowd. Liquor shops and brothels prospered like never before, and morale was generally low.

Young scientists set the tone in this atmosphere of sensual pleasures. They studied the Confucian classics to pass exams, but of course they did not follow Confucian teachings themselves. It was a rule that every candidate who passed the exams had a party in Pinkanli, a brothel district also known as the Bailey (Northern Quarter) located just outside the southeast corner of the imperial palace. Those who failed in exams often preferred to remain in the pleasant atmosphere of the capital, rather than return to their hometown and listen to the angry reproaches of their parents and relatives. The literature of that time paints a colorful picture of this riotous world, where there are types well known in the West: the eternal student, the money lender, the freeloader, the rich village booby, the thug, the pimp and the owner of the brothel.

The girls of the “Northern Quarter” were of different categories: from illiterate prostitutes to sophisticated courtesans, versed in music and dance, and mastering the basics of the literary language. Most of them were acquired under contract from poor parents, some were simply kidnapped, while others voluntarily chose this vile profession. Once there, the girls were required to register (ru ji) and found themselves in one of the countless walled complexes into which the quarter was divided according to the categories of its inhabitants. They received rigorous training in the various techniques of their profession, and their “foster mothers” (jiamu, also known by the crude nickname bao mu - “bitches”) did not spare them the whip. Its inhabitants could leave the quarter only if they were hired to entertain guests at some official festival, or on designated days to participate in religious services at Baotansi, a nearby Buddhist temple. Famous courtesans dressed in their best clothes and went there, accompanied by their “mothers” and maids. On these days, the city’s “golden youth” also gathered there to admire the crowd in colorful clothes and make acquaintances.

In such a sophisticated environment, knowledge of the fine arts and literature, as well as good manners, were valued above all else. It was possible to gain a reputation with the help of an intricate rhyme, and an incorrectly read hieroglyph could ruin a career. Since every courtesan and prostitute dreamed of being bought by some worthy guest and taken as his wife or concubine, these girls sought to meet the high demands put forward by young scientists. It is said that many courtesans were skilled in composing verses, and many of their poems have survived. However, each of the so-called poetesses only has one or two poems signed with their name, and one suspects that their contribution was most often limited to the invention of one ingenious line or an original thought, which an enthusiastic admirer then put into a poem. Only a few of their poems appear to be authentic. Although they are not distinguished by high artistic merit, they allow us to look at this sparkling life, alternately filled with joys and sorrows, from a different perspective. Let me quote a poem sent by one courtesan, along with a lock of hair, to her lover who left her:

Since you left me, my beauty has faded,

I half love you, half hate you.

If you want to know what my hair looked like,

Take a look for me at these strands of rare fragrance.

"Quan Tang Shi", part 2, ch. 10, p. 54a

A poem by Zhao Luan-luan, a famous courtesan from the Pinkanli quarter, has been preserved:

The clouds of my curls have not yet completely faded,

The shiny strands at the temples are blacker than a raven's wing.

I stick a gold pin into them on the side,

And having done my hair, I look back with a smile at my beloved.

There, p. 60b

From time to time there are magnificent lines, as, for example, in the poem left to us by the courtesan Hsu Yue-ying (Fig. 5)

Tears on my pillow

and the rain knocking on the steps,

Separated only by a window frame.

They drip all night long.

"Quan Tang Shi", part 2, ch. 10, p. 61b

Tang courtesan Xu Yue-ying (“Wu Yu ru huabao,” an album of drawings by Wu Yu, a 19th-century artist)

Only two courtesans left behind an impressive poetic legacy. One of them, Yu Xuan-ji, was from the capital, the other, Xue Tao, lived in Chengdu, the main city of Sichuan province. The Tang Dynasty was a golden time for poetry, and famous poets created countless poems that expressed sentiments on behalf of women. However, all such poems are tediously monotonous, they express sorrowful lamentations in traditional terms, and most often they do not seem convincing. But in the case of Yu Xuanji and Xue Tao, we are dealing with talented poetesses who themselves could express their feelings. Although in previous centuries some women composed poetry, only one or two poems from each of them have reached us. About fifty poems have survived from these same two courtesans, the style and content of which indicate how different, and at the same time sincere, they were. Since their life careers and literary works serve as a good illustration of the position of women and the relationships of the sexes of their time, we will tell a little more about these two courtesans.

Yu Xuanji (c. 844–871) was born in the capital Chang'an into a poor family." She was pretty, had a natural flair for dancing and singing, had a taste for fun, and early began to associate with young students hungry for fun. Thanks to communication with them, Yu Xuan-ji became familiar with literature and began to compose poetry herself. She soon became so popular that she could live solely off her fans without being officially registered as a prostitute. At a young age, she became the concubine of a young scholar named Li Yi, who, after passing the exams for the position, took her to his hometown. However, his wife did not like her husband’s new passion, and a turbulent period began with alternating quarrels and reconciliations, separations and reunions. From the poems that must be from this period, one gets the impression that Yu Xuanji was a passionate woman with a strong character who did not easily agree to give up the man she loved. Her poetry is distinguished by strength and originality; she did not recognize the clichés established at that time for love lyrics. Here's one poem she sent to Lee during another separation:

The mountain road is steep

rocky paths are dangerous

But it’s not the road that oppresses me, but my love for you.

When I hear the ice cracking

Snow on distant peaks

reminds me of your face.

Don't listen to rude songs

and do not drink spring wine.

Don't invite careless guests

for long night games of chess.

Remember that we swore love fidelity,

which must last forever,

Even if our life together

cannot be restored.

Although this lonely path on an endless winter day oppresses me,

I hope to meet you again one day,

when the full moon shines in the sky.

When you're not near me

What can I offer you?

Is it just a poem?

watered with my pure tears.

"Quan Tang Shi", part 11, ch. 10, p. 75b

But Li Yi got tired of his overly demanding lover, and their relationship finally ended. Yu Xuanji became interested in Taoism and went to the capital Taoist monastery of Xianyiguan. At that time, many Taoist and Buddhist monasteries had a very dubious reputation. They were a welcome haven not only for pious girls, but also for widows and divorced women who had no parents to return to, as well as for dissolute women who wanted to lead a free life without being officially registered as prostitutes. With the tacit consent of the religious authorities, who received considerable income from the wine and food offered to the guests, cheerful parties and riotous feasts took place there. In the Xianyiguan Monastery, Yu Xuanji met a then famous young poet named Wen Ting-yun (the heyday of his work was in the mid-9th century), famous for his magnificent poems and riotous lifestyle. Xuan-ji fell in love with him and for some time was his inseparable companion during Ting-yun's wanderings around the country. However, she was unable to keep this wandering poet with her for too long, and he left her. Below is the first half of the poem addressed to Wen Ting-yun:

With bitterness I search for the right words,

when I write these lines under a silver lamp.

I can't sleep for long nights,

I'm scared under these homeless covers.

And there outside, in the garden, you can hear

the sad sound of falling autumn leaves.

The moonlight flows sadly

through openwork window partitions.

"Quan Tang Shi", part 11, ch. 10, p. 76b

Yu Xuanji recalls the dissolute life in Xianyiguang, when her home was open to all the elegant young scholars and officials and when she had many love affairs. But over the years, her popularity faded, and she began to lose her influential patrons one after another. She ran into financial difficulties and was harassed by petty police officials. And to top it all off, Yu Xuanji was accused (probably unfairly) of beating her maid to death, for which she was convicted and executed.

The personality and career of the courtesan Xue Tao (768–831) (Fig. 6) was quite different. She came from a wealthy family in the capital. Her father was an official and made sure that his daughter received a good education. At the age of eight, Xue Tao began writing poetry. According to tradition, her father once told her to write a poem about a tree, and she composed the following lines: “The branches greet the birds flying from the north and south, the leaves move with every gust of wind.” The father was greatly upset, because in these lines he felt the voluptuous nature of his daughter. When he was sent to serve in Sichuan Province, he took her with him, but died untimely there, leaving his daughter without a livelihood. Because she was a beautiful girl with unusual tastes, she registered as a prostitute in Chengdu and soon gained fame for her intelligence and beauty. Many famous poets of that time, finding themselves in Sichuan, visited her. Among them were Bo Juyi (779–846) and his friend Yuan Zhen (779–831). Her relationship with the latter was especially close, and they continued to correspond long after the separation. Xue Tao became the favorite of the great Tang general Wei Gao (745–805), for many years the military ruler of Sichuan, and acted as his more or less official concubine. Apparently he took good care of her. After his death, Xue Tao retired to a villa in Huanhuasi near Chengdu and devoted herself entirely to literary and artistic pursuits, gaining fame for inventing a new type of writing paper, which to this day bears her name. Xue Tao died at an old age; towards the end of her life she was considered a recognized trendsetter in Chengdu.

Tang courtesan Xue Tao (“Wu Yu zhu huabao”, album of drawings by Wu Yu, a 19th century artist)

Xue Tao is an example of a courtesan who has succeeded in life. She undoubtedly knew how to arrange love affairs and did not allow passion to conflict with practical interests. After insulting Yuan Zhen when he was drunk, she wrote ten sentimental poems to show how sad and unhappy she was, thereby regaining his favor. Her poetry is more elegant than that of Yu Xuanji, it is replete with literary allusions that were fashionable at that time, but for all that, her writings are superficial, they lack the originality and strength that the Taoist nun possessed.

Below is a poem composed by Xue Tao while visiting Wushan Temple. She connects this picturesque place with the mountain mentioned in the poetic work of Song Yu (see p. 53).

We visited Gaotang -

gibbons screamed furiously in the forest.

The road was blocked by purple fog:

the fragrance of trees and herbs.

But a beautiful mountain landscape

still sad for the poet Song Yu,

And the babbling brooks,

Apparently they are crying for King Xiang.

Every morning and every evening

his magical love descends on the Jan terrace,

Because because of the "rain" and "clouds"

he lost his kingdom.

Sad and lost

several willows stand alone in front of the house,

In the spring their leaves try in vain

compete with arched eyebrows.

"Quan Tang Shi", part 11, ch. 10, p. 63b

The houses of courtesans turned into social institutions and became an integral part of refined life both in the capital and in the provinces. It began to be considered a rule of good manners that every prosperous official or writer, along with his wives and concubines, always have one or more dancers. While his wives and concubines remained at home, he took these girls with him everywhere, so that they would enliven the parties with dances and songs, serve wine and carry on conversation. The famous poet Li Tai-po had two girlfriends, and Bo Jui-i had several girls at different periods of his life, and even the strict Confucian scholar Han Yu (768–824) kept a dancer who was his constant companion. Countless poems have survived in which the scientist describes parties with friends under titles such as, for example, “Composed on the occasion of a trip to X., where he went, taking with him courtesans (shiji).”

These girls had the amazing ability to drink a lot of wine without getting drunk, which is why their company was considered desirable. It should be noted that during the Tang Dynasty and in previous eras, intemperance in drinking wine was a universal weakness and the attitude towards it was very tolerant. During feasts, both men and women commonly indulged in excessive drinking, and even at court and in the presence of the emperor, general intoxication was common, and drunken brawls were often seen in the streets. In this regard, the Chinese way of life changed dramatically during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Alcohol consumption dropped significantly, and appearing drunk on the street was considered a disgrace. Foreigners who found themselves in China in the 19th century were pleasantly surprised that they did not see drunks on the streets anywhere, even in port cities. However, during the Tang Dynasty the situation was completely different.

The institution of courtesans was based on social factors, which determined its long-term prosperity in subsequent centuries. In ch. 2 we said that this institution arose back in the Zhou era, when the princes kept with them troupes of nyuyue, girls trained in dance and music, and subsequently the presence of such troupes was considered a certain indicator of the social status of their owner. Further in ch. 3 we showed how the changed situation in society led to the fact that only the ruling families could afford to have private troupes, although brothels provided professional “entertainers” to anyone who could pay for it.

Although the role of courtesans varied over time, there is no doubt that it was primarily social, with sexual aspects being of secondary importance. In the literature of the Tang period, courtesans are mentioned mainly as pleasant confidantes of representatives of the “golden youth” in the capital and other large cities, who tried to copy the capital’s lifestyle. At the same time, courtesans played an important, if less visible, role in the daily life of the middle and upper classes. Social relations between officials, intellectuals, artists and merchants mainly developed outside the walls of the home: in restaurants, temples, brothels or public places of entertainment. Such gatherings not only allowed friends to relax, but were also an integral part of official and business communication. Any official who sought to maintain or improve his position had to constantly entertain his closest colleagues, and often also his immediate superiors and subordinates. Any successful merchant, before preparing or concluding an important transaction, was obliged to celebrate his commercial successes. During the Tang dynasty, with some restrictions, female family members could still take part in such gatherings, but a truly relaxed atmosphere arose only when the only women present were professional performers. An official could achieve a promotion if he introduced his boss or an influential politician to an elegant courtesan, and a merchant could receive a desired loan or an important order in the same way. Obviously, female household members were not suitable for such important tasks. There is hardly any need to develop this topic, since, mutatis mutandis, there are clear parallels with our modern Western society. When from the XIII century. Neo-Confucian teaching, combined with psychological factors introduced by the Mongol invaders, began to more insistently demand a strict separation of the sexes, the need for outside girls to entertain guests during private and public revels became even more urgent than before.

Prostitution among high-class courtesans was well organized. Brothel owners were members of special associations and paid government taxes. For this, they received the same protection from the authorities as commercial enterprises. If, for example, a girl violated her contract, the authorities could bring a case against her, although, as a rule, brothel owners and their thugs knew how to successfully settle such matters themselves. At the same time, girls could denounce their cruel or unjust masters, which they usually did through the intermediaries of some influential admirer. Although among the courtesans there were also “dilettantes”, like Yu Xuan-ji described above, who was not officially listed as a prostitute and arranged her affairs independently, but this was an exception. The authorities disapproved of non-professional prostitutes because they were not subject to their control and did not pay taxes. Perhaps Yu Xuanji's sentence would not have been so harsh if she had been a properly registered prostitute.

Courtesans occupied a prestigious position in society; their profession was considered completely legitimate and did not cause any negative associations. Unlike low-class whores, they were not subject to any discrimination. - In chap. 8 we will see how, during the Song Dynasty, they, among other things, regularly took part in wedding ceremonies. Of course, every courtesan dreamed of eventually being bought by the man who loved her; those who could not find a husband themselves, as a rule, looked for one. When they were no longer able to entertain guests due to age, they continued to stay in the brothel, earning a living by giving dance and music lessons to younger people.

In the gay neighborhoods, girls were separated according to their abilities. Those who could rely solely on their physical merits usually fell into the lowest category. They were forced to live together in the same room and were closely monitored. Those with skills in music and dance and those with literary talents constituted the highest category. Most of them had their own bedroom and living room, and although they were forced to obey the owner of the establishment, they enjoyed greater freedom of movement and could look for and choose clients themselves. In turn, brothel owners were interested in gaining the favor of popular girls, since this increased their reputation and fame, which ensured higher incomes if they attended parties. In addition, as soon as a courtesan became popular, the chances increased that she would be bought out by a rich patron, and this was beneficial to both herself and her master.

The purchase of famous courtesans (even leaving aside the emotional circumstances involved) was an expensive undertaking, and such a procedure almost always turned out to be a wise investment of capital on the part of the buyer. Smart girls who did not miss anything during parties and knew how to show interest in the conversations that took place there, possessed a wealth of unofficial information about affairs in the bureaucratic and business world. If they liked the person who bought them, they could always help him with valuable advice. The one who ransomed a girl who had previously had a relationship with some high-ranking person, often acquired the favor of this person along with the courtesan. The former patron usually showed paternal guardianship, defending the interests of the girl with whom he had previously been close, and willingly provided assistance to her new master. In this case, success also brought some flattery, when, for example, the new patron said among other things that despite all his efforts to please the girl, she seemed unable to forget her former affection... Similar situations from Chinese novels are well known to us.

Of course, in addition to social factors, the satisfaction of carnal desires also contributed to the continuous flourishing of the courtesan craft, but there are serious reasons to believe that this circumstance was secondary. First of all, those who could afford to associate with courtesans must have belonged to at least the upper middle class, and therefore already had several women at home. Since, as we have already seen above, they were obliged to fully provide sexual satisfaction to their wives and concubines, one can hardly expect a normal person to be driven to communicate with strangers by sexual dissatisfaction. Of course, they had a desire for variety and a thirst for new experience, but this can only explain sporadic antics, and not almost daily communication with professional courtesans. If we turn to the literature on this issue, we will see that along with the need to comply with established social norms, men often sought communication with courtesans in order to free themselves from physical love, find relief from the sometimes unbearable atmosphere of women’s chambers, and establish friendly relations with women which do not involve sexual obligations. If a man got tired of such a relationship, he could break it off as easily as he started it. It goes without saying that in this world of “wind and flowers” sometimes violent passions also raged, which often led to tragedies, but such disturbances were rather exceptions.

The detachment that many men maintained in their relationships with courtesan acquaintances explains to us why in the lives of famous girls such attention is paid to their success in society. As a rule, their ability to sing, dance and conduct a humorous conversation is emphasized first, and only secondarily their physical advantages are mentioned. Many famous courtesans were not even particularly beautiful. In Chinese poetry and prose, the relationships of authors with courtesans are described with extreme sentimentality; one gets the impression that their relationships were often purely platonic in nature.

This explains the lengthy and complicated courtship that courtesan fans were inclined to indulge in. Obviously, their task was not to have sexual intercourse with the object of their worship (usually failure in this regard was not perceived by the admirer as something discouraging and was not considered a disgrace in the eyes of others), but simply to have fun, to experience pleasure, which at the same time allowed him to gain a reputation as a secular person.

Confirming my point of view that physical intimacy played a secondary role in the relationships between men and courtesans are also the economic factors of the existence of high-class prostitutes. During her career, the girl could receive a substantial monetary reward twice. The first time this happened after she, having entered a brothel and mastered various arts, lost her virginity. The guest who had the honor of becoming her first man was obliged to pay a large sum and arrange a gala banquet for the entire establishment. The second time this happened was when she was being bought out. However, a constant source of income for brothels was the feasts held there (due to the wine and snacks offered at these banquets), as well as the gifts that courtesans received for participating in these feasts or outside the establishments. The amount paid to spend the night with a girl (called chanipou) was only a small part of the brothel's total income. In essence, there were no obstacles for visitors interested only in sexual contact with girls. However, while it was easy to copulate with a low-ranking courtesan, doing the same with a high-ranking courtesan required a lot of effort. Preliminary courtship with the presentation of gifts was considered mandatory, and it was necessary to obtain the consent of both the owners of the establishment and the girl herself. At the same time, picky suitors in all cases first sought to make sure whether the girl they were interested in had a connection with some influential patron: whoever came into contact with her could not be sure that one fine moment she would not tell her patron everything, and although some could be appeased by flattery, others could feel insulted. It seems that neither the hosts nor the girls tended to seek direct sexual contact, since the profit from this was less than from participating in parties, but there was a danger that the girl might get sick or become pregnant.

Venereal diseases will be discussed in Chapter. 10, which says that until the 16th century. syphilis was unknown in China. However, medical writings of the time note that during the Tang Dynasty and earlier, less dangerous forms of venereal diseases existed, in particular various forms of gonorrhea. We have descriptions of chronic genital ulcers in men and women, spasms in the urethra, and symptoms resembling gonoarthritis. Although at that time it was not known that these diseases were transmitted through coitus, Tang doctors were aware that promiscuous love affairs contributed to the spread of infectious diseases.

In cases of pregnancy of courtesans, midwives most often resorted to very cruel methods of abortion, and if the child was still born, then the owner of the establishment usually took care of him, although the murder of infants was also common.

All these factors, taken together, suggest the circumstances under which relations between courtesans and guests were reduced to a minimum.

Above we discussed only the courtesans of the highest class. Probably, during the Tang Dynasty and earlier, there were also cheap brothels that satisfied the needs of the common population. However, since such institutions lay outside the sphere of interests of writers and historians of that time, we have practically no information about them. As we will see in Chap. 8, such establishments are mentioned only in texts from the Song and Ming periods, and then very rarely.

It is possible that such low-grade brothels grew out of or were in some way connected to government-controlled brothels. In this case, they were replenished mainly by women of three categories: 1) criminals sentenced to serve in state brothels; 2) relatives of criminals whose sentence included the concept of jimo (that is, all close relatives became slaves); 3) women captured during hostilities. Such women belonged to the lower class, forming a special group whose status was determined by law and whose members were deprived of many civil rights, for example, they were forbidden to marry a person who did not belong to their caste. The social status of such prostitutes was completely different from that of courtesans, who were constrained not so much by legal norms as by commercial relations and who, after they were ransomed or if they paid the remaining debt to their previous owner, became free again. Low-class prostitutes were reserved for soldiers and sailors, as well as the lowest categories of government officials. Of course, the fate of these women was terrible. They could only get rid of their sad fate if the government proclaimed a general amnesty or if some high-ranking official showed special interest in one of them and accepted her into his family. As we will see in Chap. 8, During the Song Dynasty, officials could buy or borrow such women from the government.

However, it appears that the boundaries between private and public prostitution were not always clearly defined and fluctuated considerably at different times and places. The history of prostitution in China has so far been little studied. In Japan back in the 18th century. Several impressive and well-documented histories of Japanese prostitution appeared, and the excessive modesty of the Qing literati prevented them from carrying out similar historical analyzes of prostitution in China. All their efforts were limited to sporadic essays describing the lives of famous courtesans of past and contemporary times. One can only hope that one of the current scientists will devote special research to this complex issue.

Such a study should reflect an analysis of the relationship between private and state prostitution, as well as the principles of selection of women for the imperial palace. Typically, surviving texts only use the standard expression bei xuan ru gong, "after she was chosen, she entered the palace." One might get the impression that all the ladies of the court were exclusively girls presented as tribute: either from the provinces or from foreign and dependent countries; they could be daughters from influential families, hoping to gain the emperor's favor in this way, or women acquired by palace agents. These agents scoured the entire empire in search of beautiful and talented girls and apparently took those they liked, even from public and private brothels. When there were quite a lot of such women, eunuchs and matrons carried out the selection. The best ended up in the imperial harem, those who were good at the arts went into the jiaofang, and the rest were sent to the palace to carry out various assignments. I would like to emphasize that these considerations reflect only my personal impressions drawn from Chinese literature. In this case, they are presented with the hope that one day a special study on this issue will appear.

The way of life changed dramatically at this time. Thanks to Central Asian influence, folding chairs began to be widely used, although they also sat on low benches made of carved and varnished wood. If during the Han and Liuchao periods such furniture was only slightly raised above the floor, representing something like mats placed on a stand, now these were real benches or sofas about a meter high, on which one could sit and recline. In addition, a variety of low tables and wooden cabinets appeared. The floors were covered with reed mats and carpets, and it was customary to remove shoes at the entrance to the house. At home they wore socks with thick soles, probably reminiscent of Japanese tabi. The walls and ceilings were decorated with drawings, and on movable screens one could see examples of painting and calligraphy.

From paintings and funerary figurines of that time, we can roughly reconstruct how people dressed during the Tang Dynasty. For both men and women, the outer dress was basically the same as in previous centuries: simple in summer, lined in winter. Underneath, both men and women wore pants.

Women's dresses are similar to the kimonos of Japanese ladies, which, in essence, were created according to the Tang model. In addition, Tang women also wore something like an apron, tied to the belt with a silk ribbon. This apron was not widespread in Japan, but in Korea to this day it is an integral part of the women's toilet.

Of interest in this regard is a scroll attributed to the Tang artist Zhou Fang (the flowering of his creativity occurred around 800), who became especially famous for his portraits of women. The painting shows a lady sitting with her left leg crossed over her right to support a seven-string lute (qin) that she is tuning. With her right hand she tightens the screw on the pegs, and with her left hand she touches the strings. A maid stands nearby holding a tray. The lady is presented in home attire: she is wearing something like the aforementioned apron, obviously made of some rough material. Her hair is styled in a very primitive chignon. The maid wears a belt, wrapped several times around her waist and tied in front. This belt is the prototype of the Japanese obi. Japanese women tie it gracefully at the back, but old-fashioned geisha costumes retain the old style and tie it at the front, as was the custom in Tang China.

The same scroll shows the ladies of the court having fun. One of them is teasing a little dog with a fly chaser with a long handle. The lady is wearing a house dress made of embroidered silk; over the dress is an apron made of simple red silk, which is attached to the belt with a narrow silk ribbon. Bare shoulders are visible through a flowing overdress made of transparent brown fabric, and a brocade scarf completes the costume. For ladies in ceremonial attire, as they appear in the paintings of the Tang and early Sung times in Dunhuang, we often see very long scarves that wrap around their shoulders and often hang down to the floor. Apparently, such long scarves formed an integral part of the ceremonial attire of court ladies. Their hair is pulled up into a high chignon, secured at the top with a large flower-shaped clip, and decorated with dangling beads at the front. The hairpins are very simple, and you can even see their carved tips sticking out of the hair. We also note the impressive neckline and wide, cobalt-drawn artificial eyebrows.

Lips were painted with lipstick, and large bright spots were painted on the cheeks, right from the eyes. Red and black spots were placed on the forehead, chin and cheeks. According to one Tang author, flies were originally intended to hide traces of burns: he claims that wives, out of jealousy or as punishment for some offense, often branded the faces of concubines. Women often painted a yellow crescent-shaped tache de beaute on their foreheads. This place was called huang xing yang, “yellow star fly,” or meijian huang, “yellow place between the eyebrows.” This custom continued into the Ming Dynasty. Women in the paintings of the famous Ming artist Tang Yin (1470–1523) almost always have this spot on their forehead. However, probably during the Qing dynasty, this custom was forgotten. Ladies wore earrings, bracelets and rings as jewelry.

Depiction of a dancer of Thai women of the Tang period, made from a funerary figurine

It should be noted that the women’s neck remained open and often a significant part of the chest was exposed. First of all, this applies to dancers. Judging by the funeral figurines, they were dressed only in a thin dress with a neckline. It was secured with a ribbon under the bust and then fell down into a wide, pleated skirt. The sleeves were unusually long, and waving them played an important role during dancing, as there are numerous references to in prose and poetry. In Fig. 7 shows a dancer with her breasts half-naked. However, judging by other funerary figurines, girls often danced with their breasts completely exposed. During the Tang Dynasty, the Chinese were completely calm about women exposing their necks or breasts. But starting from the Song Dynasty, the chest and neck began to be hidden with the folds of the dress, and then under the high, tight-fitting collar of the lower jacket. The high collar remains a distinctive feature of Chinese women's attire to this day.

At home, men wore wide, baggy trousers, and on top - a dress with long sleeves. The dress was wrapped from right to left and tied at the waist with a silk belt. Thus, the clothes of both men and women were almost the same. When leaving the house, men wore a slightly smaller outer dress, as a result of which the collar of the lower dress and the ends of its sleeves were visible. Often the lower sleeves served as wide cuffs. Long hair, tied at the top of the head in a knot and fastened with a hairpin, was often tied with a strip of stiff black brocade, and fastened at the back of the head so that the long ends of the fabric hung down, or they were so starched that they stuck out like wings. In addition, men wore black brocade caps, but of different shapes and sizes. Hats were not removed indoors, and even in the bedroom, caps were put aside only after lying down on the bed. In some erotic pictures you can see men wearing caps at the moment of copulation, although this may simply be a humorous element.

Rice. 8.

Tang time judge on horseback

On special occasions, men wore a cape made of satin or embroidered silk over their outer dress with a wide collar reaching to the chin, and a leather belt inlaid with plates of jasper or horn. The shape of the hat, the pattern on the dress and the decorations on the belt, as well as the various plaques hanging from it, were symbols of rank. High-ranking officials had hats embroidered and decorated (a Japanese copy of the work “Fu sho shi van jing”) with gold, and a piece of jasper or a precious stone was inserted into them above the forehead.

In Fig. 8, a Japanese copy of a Tang scroll depicting the ten kings of Hell, we see a judge on horseback, accompanied by two assistants. On his head is a judge's hat with stiff wings. The upper dress is tightly wrapped, but at the neck you can also see the lower dress of a lighter color peeking out from under it. Judging by the images of officials in Dunhuang, the lighter underdress always shows through the slit of the upper formal dress. We especially note the wide trousers hanging over the stirrups. The assistant referees wear shorter jackets and straw sandals. One of them holds the scepter, and the other holds the judge's sword.

Noble men and women wore shoes with turned-up toes. At that time, the custom of binding women’s feet did not yet exist. The reader can find further information about women's and men's clothing at the end of the Tang period on p. 259 et seq., which describes the costume of the early Song era, which remained essentially the same as in the last years of the Tang dynasty.

Regarding the ideals of male and female beauty of that time, it can be noted that men preferred to look courageous, even militant. They loved to wear thick beards, sideburns and long mustaches and admired bodily strength. Both civilian and military officials improved their skills in archery, horse riding, sword fighting and fist fighting, and mastery of these arts was highly valued. From paintings of the time, such as the work of Zhou Fan, we can assume that such men liked well-built women with round, plump faces, ample breasts, thin waists, but heavy hips. Tastes were similar in ancient Japan - the scrolls of the Heian era depict women almost as buxom as those in the paintings of the Tang period. However, very soon this ideal changed dramatically. Already during the Northern Song Dynasty, preference began to be given to fragile women. The great poet Su Shi (better known as Su Tung-po), having seen the paintings by Zhou Fan, wrote:

The eyes of this old scientist saw many strange things,

But I still admire fatties

in the paintings of Zhou Fan.

In ch. 10 we will see how, by the end of the Ming dynasty, the ideals of male and female beauty were replaced by the exact opposite, which they remained throughout the subsequent Qing period. Thin and fragile women with chiseled oval faces began to be considered the embodiment of beauty. Once again, the Japanese adopted this fashion during the Tokugawa era, as evidenced by the frail women in later ukiyoe prints.

The lifestyle at the Tang imperial court was of unprecedented splendor. Court ritual prescribed an endless series of celebrations and banquets with music and dancing, during which huge quantities of alcoholic beverages were consumed. To prepare the countless dancers, musicians, actors and acrobats needed for such celebrations, there were special chambers at the palace. This part of the palace was called jiaofang ("place of learning"), and in addition to Chinese actors, hundreds of Central Asian, Indian, Korean and Indo-Chinese singers and dancers lived there.

Sometimes rulers patronized Taoism, in other cases Buddhism, but religious festivals were always celebrated with particular pomp and circumstance. Confucian classics were accepted by the government as the basis for government examinations for official positions, and Confucian scholars enjoyed great authority in government matters, but in the daily life of the court and the common people their teachings were largely ignored.

The emperor's sexual relations became even more regulated than before. Due to the ever-increasing number of women in the harem, it was necessary to keep scrupulous records: the date and hour of each successful sexual union, the days of menstruation for each of the women and the appearance of the first signs of pregnancy were carefully noted. Such measures were necessary to avoid later complications when determining the future status of the infant. Zhang Bi's Zhuang lou ji (Notes from the Dressing Room) (ca. 940) states that at the beginning of the Kaiyuan era (713–741), every woman with whom the emperor had sex was given a seal on her hand with the following text: “ The wind and the moon (i.e. sexual fun) remain forever new.” This seal was rubbed with cinnamon incense, after which it was impossible to remove it (serial “Long Wei Tsongshu”, p. 7a). Not one of the hundreds of palace ladies could claim to have received the favor of the emperor without presenting this seal. The same work gives many colorful expressions for menstruation, such as “red blood” (hong chao), “peach blossom fluid” (tao hua gui shui), or “entering the period” (ru yue). Sexual mores at court were completely relaxed: the emperor loved to swim naked with his ladies in the palace ponds.

Since the emperor was in particular danger of an attack on his life while playing with women, the strictest precautions were taken. All doors through which one could enter the inner chambers were bolted and carefully guarded. So that none of the women could attack her august partner, according to ancient palace custom, the one who was to share a bed with the emperor was stripped naked, wrapped in a blanket, after which a eunuch carried her on his back to the imperial chambers. Thus, she could not carry any weapons with her. Similar practices existed during the Ming and Qing eras, although they probably date back to earlier times.

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