Ancient China · Sage King

Emperor Yao 帝堯

Yao

Dates uncertain

Passages: 17
Chapters: 8
Histories: 7

Overview

Emperor Yao was a Sage King.

Other names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Personal name	Even Yao

Life and dates

Attested activity

legendary antiquity
Directly stated · Book of Chen 4, passage 118; Book of Han 98, passage 128; Old History of the Five Dynasties 5, passages 33, 147; Records of the Grand Historian 120, passage 30; History of Yuan 171, passage 110
legendary antiquity
Dated from the passage context · Old History of the Five Dynasties 50, passage 123; Draft History of Qing 353, passage 126; Book of Wei 27, passage 189

Key source chapters

References in the histories

Search passages

History

17 passages

Book of Chen, Chapter 4Volume 4: Emperor Fei · 2 passages

文皇知子之鑒，事甚帝堯，傳弟之懷，又符太伯。 Emperor Wen knew which son could bear the charge, as Yao did; his wish to pass the throne to his younger brother matched the Duke of Wu.

世祖知神器之重，諒難負荷，深鑒堯旨，弗傳寶祚焉。 Emperor Wen knew how heavy the throne was and that this son could not carry it; reading Yao's intent, he did not hand him the mandate.

Book of Han, Chapter 98Volume 87a: Yang Xiong 1 · 5 passages

宮外近則洪崖、旁皇、儲胥、弩阹，遠則石關、封巒、枝鵲、露寒、棠梨、師得，遊觀屈奇瑰瑋，非木摩而不雕，牆塗而不畫，周宣所考，般庚所遷，夏卑宮室，唐、虞棌椽三等之制也。 Nearby stood Hongya, Panhuang, and the rest; farther off Stone Pass, Seal Peak, and other lodges— marvels of touring architecture, yet meant to recall King Xuan's scrutiny, Pan Geng's migration, Xia's humble halls, and the three grades of unadorned rafters of Tang and Yu.

既祭，行遊介山，回安邑，顧龍門，覽鹽池，登歷觀，陟西嶽以望八荒，跡殷、周之虛，眇然以思唐、虞之風。 Afterward they toured Mount Jie, Anyi, Dragon Gate, the salt ponds, and the western peak, scanning the eight directions and pondering the vanished manners of Yao and Shun.

瞰帝唐之嵩高兮，□隆周之大寧。 They gaze upon the lofty age of Tang of Yao; they ponder the great tranquility of high Zhou.

雖頗割其三垂以贍齊民，然至羽獵、田車、戎馬、器械、儲偫、禁御所營，尚泰奢麗誇詡，非堯、舜、成湯、文王三驅之意也。 Some outer parkland was cut back for the people, yet the hunt itself—chariots, horses, gear—still swaggered in luxury, far from the restrained three-sided chase of the sages.

群公常伯楊硃、墨翟之徒喟然稱曰：「崇哉乎德，雖有唐、虞、大廈、成周之隆，何以侈茲！ The assembled lords and ministers, Yang Zhu, Mozi, and their like, sighed and said, "How lofty is this virtue! Though Yao and Shun had their glory, and though the Great Hall of Xia and flourishing Zhou rose so high, how could they surpass this!

Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 5Volume 5 Book of Later Liang 5: Taizu Annals 5 · 2 passages

師唐、虞之典，上則於乾功，挹殷、夏之源，下涵於民極。 I take Tang and Yu as my pattern above to match Heaven’s work and draw on Yin and Xia below to hold up the people’s foundation—

朕聞歷代帝王，首推堯、舜； I am told that of all emperors and kings, Yao and Shun stand first;

Old History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 50Volume 50 Book of Later Tang 26: Biographies 2: Imperial Family · 1 passage

史臣曰：昔武皇發跡於陰山，莊宗肇基於河朔，雖奄有天下，而享國日淺，眷言枝屬，空秀棣華，固未及推帝堯敦敘之恩，廣成王封建之義。 The historiographer writes: The Martial Emperor rose from the Yin Mountains and Emperor Zhuangzong founded his rule in Hebei. Though they briefly held the realm, their dynasties were short-lived. Their kinsmen bloomed like catalpa blossoms yet bore no fruit—they never attained Emperor Yao's generous ordering of kin or broadly extended King Cheng's principles of enfeoffment.

Draft History of Qing, Chapter 353Volume 353 Biographies 140: Da Chun | Son: Sa Bin Tu, Tie Bao Younger Brother: Yu Bao, He Ying, Jue Luo Gui Fang · 2 passages

昔孔子論仁至於濟眾，論敬至於安百姓，皆曰：'堯、舜其猶病諸。 Confucius, in speaking of benevolence as far as benefiting the multitude and of reverence as far as securing the people, said of each: 'Even Yao and Shun would still have found it difficult.'

'豈真以堯、舜之聖為未至哉？ Did he truly mean that Yao and Shun had not yet attained sagehood?

Records of the Grand Historian, Chapter 120Biographies of Ji and Zheng · 1 passage

天子方招文學儒者，上曰吾欲云云，黯對曰：「陛下內多欲而外施仁義，柰何欲效唐虞之治乎！」 The Emperor was at that time actively courting men of letters and Confucian scholars. When the Emperor spoke of his grand ambitions, Ji An replied: 'Your Majesty harbors boundless desires within, yet makes an outward show of benevolence and righteousness—how can you hope to emulate the governance of Yao and Shun!'

Book of Wei, Chapter 27Volume 22: Emperor Xiaowen's Five Princes · 1 passage

斯乃硃、均之性，堯、舜不能訓也。 Such was the nature of Zhu and Jun; Yao and Shun could not instruct it.

History of Yuan, Chapter 171Volume 171 Biographies 58: Liu Yin, Wu Cheng · 3 passages

弱冠時，嘗著說曰：「道之大原出於天，神聖繼之，堯、舜而上，道之元也； In his youth he once wrote a treatise, saying, "The great origin of the Way comes forth from Heaven, and the sages continue it. Above Yao and Shun lies the Origin of the Way;

堯、舜而下，其亨也； Below Yao and Shun comes its Flourishing;

分而言之，上古則羲、黃其元，堯、舜其亨，禹、湯其利，文、武、周公其貞乎！ Speaking in detail: in high antiquity Fuxi and the Yellow Emperor are the Origin, Yao and Shun the Flourishing, Yu and Tang the Advantage, and King Wen, King Wu, and the Duke of Zhou the Steadfastness!