The Mandate of Heaven

by Marshall, S. J.

• ISBN13: 9780231122993
• ISBN10: 0231122993
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-09-01
• Publisher: Columbia Univ Pr

Summary

The mysteries of the ancient Chinese text known as the I Chingcontinue to fascinate scholars and enthusiasts alike. While sinologists rely on historical criticism to explain the meaning of the work, those who use it for divination tend to accept without question the traditional account of its origin and purpose. Whereas modern scholars are generally dismissive of the book's reputed mystical significance, traditionalists often resent academic research into the oracle because it seems irreverent or iconoclastic. In The Mandate of Heaven, S. J. Marshall sets out to reconcile these opposing approaches. He plumbs the book's numerous, hidden historical references, reading them against other sources, and discovers that the oracle has far more narrative integrity and basis in historical fact than anyone has previously appreciated. The Mandate of Heavenfocuses on the story of the I Ching'sorigins. The book is attributed to King Wen, who died before he could succeed in overthrowing the tyrannical Shang dynasty. His son, King Wu, eventually triumphed over the Shang and established the Zhou dynasty as the legitimate royal house. According to the tradition, these events are in some ways alluded to in the earliest layer of commentary in the I Ching, but no sound historical basis has been discovered to substantiate this claim. Consequently, since the 1930s sinologists have discounted the value of this tradition. Marshall uncovers an account of Wu's conquest in an important, previously overlooked passage that tells of a solar eclipse believed by the King to have been an omen from Heaven to immediately march against the Shang. Marshall is able to match this account with a scientifically verified solar eclipse that took place on June 20, 1070 B.C., just one of his many historical readings that show how the earliest layer of the I Chinghas preserved a hidden history that has remained undetected for three millennia.

Author Biography

S. J. Marshall works as an editor for one of the premier medical journals. The Lancet, when he is not pursuing his interest in ancient Chinese history

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
A brief note on ancient sources	xii
Acknowledgements	xvi
Illustrations	xvii
Section I: The Mandate of Heaven
The framework of the argument	3	(9)
The title of the oracle	12	(5)
Imprisoned for a sigh	17	(18)
An overlooked solar eclipse record	35	(15)
Darkness at noon, June 20, 1070BC	50	(17)
The army carries the corpse	67	(17)
Battling in the Wilds	84	(15)
A few concluding remarks	99	(6)
Section II: Further mysteries of the Changes
The mingyi bird	105	(8)
Melons, willows, hoarfrost, and creepers	113	(5)
King Wen is fed his own son	118	(9)
The curse of the ancestors	127	(9)
Clouds follow the dragon	136	(8)
No skin on his thighs	144	(19)
Section III: Appendices
I The sinological maze of Wilhelm-Baynes	151	(4)
II Genealogical matters	155	(4)
III Chinese text of hexagram 55	159	(1)
IV The sexagenary cycle	160	(2)
V Simplified dynastic chronology	162	(1)
Notes	163	(53)
Bibliography	216	(15)
Select glossary of Chinese characters	231	(6)
Index	237