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卷83 列傳第48 西域

Volume 83 Biographies 48: The Western Regions

Chapter 83 of 隋書 · Book of Sui
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1
西 西 西西西
In the preface: When the Han dynasty first extended control into the Western Regions, thirty-six states were recorded; later they split into fifty-five kingdoms, and the court appointed garrison commanders and protectors-general to win them over and keep them within the fold. After Wang Mang seized the throne, ties with the Western Regions were cut off entirely. Under the Later Han, Ban Chao brought more than fifty states into contact with the court, westward as far as the Western Sea and across a span of forty thousand li east to west; all sent tribute, and the dynasty again set up protectors-general and garrison commanders to hold them under central oversight. Afterward relations were intermittent; the Han government judged the enterprise too costly for the heartland, and the frontier offices were abolished and revived again and again. After the Wei and Jin periods, the states devoured one another in turn, and the record cannot be set out in full detail.
2
滿使西 𦋺 使 西 西 西西 西 西
During the reign of Emperor Yang, Attendant Censor Wei Jie and Metropolitan Inspector's aide Du Xingman were dispatched on missions to the western realms. In Kapiśa they acquired an agate cup; at Rājagṛha, Buddhist sutras; and in the state of Shi, ten dancing girls, lions' pelts, and fire-rat fur, after which they returned home. The emperor further charged Duke of Wenxi Pei Ju to move between Wuwei and Zhangye to entice the western states to come in. Forty-four of these polities had rulers of their own. When their envoys arrived at court, Pei Ju lavished gifts on them and set them to win over the other states in succession. During the Daye reign period, more than thirty states followed one another to the capital; the emperor accordingly appointed a Western Regions garrison commander to handle their receptions. Before long the empire was convulsed by civil war, and the tribute missions stopped altogether. Much of the material has since been lost, however, and only twenty states remain in the account that follows. Tuyuhun. The Tuyuhun people were descended from Shegui of the Tufa Xianbei in Liaoxi; the founder of their line was his son Tuyuhun. Shegui had two sons: the elder, born to a secondary consort, was Tuyuhun; the younger was Ruoluohe. After Shegui's death Ruoluohe took over the tribe, and his line became the Murong clan. Tuyuhun quarreled with Ruoluohe, crossed the Long Mountains westward, and settled south of Gansong and west of the Tao River, extending south to Mount Bailan over a domain thousands of li across; in time the people took Tuyuhun's name as their national designation. During the Northern Wei and Northern Zhou periods they first assumed the title of khaghan. Their capital stood at Fuhoucheng, fifteen li west of Qinghai Lake. They maintained walled settlements but did not live in them, moving with the seasons after grass and water. Their government included ranks such as prince, vice-director, secretary, gentleman-attendant, and general. The khaghan wore a black cap, and his consort wore ornaments of gold flowers. Their arms and dress were for the most part like those of the Central States. Princes and nobles commonly wore veiled headgear; women dressed in skirts and jackets, wore their hair in braids, and trimmed them with pearls and shell ornaments. There was no regular tax system. Killing and horse theft were capital crimes; lesser offenses were settled by payment in goods as blood-price. Their customs closely resembled those of the Turks. They observed mourning dress, laying it aside once the funeral was complete. They were by nature grasping and cruel. Barley, millet, and beans grew in their lands. Qinghai Lake is more than a thousand li around; a small hill rises in its midst. Each winter the people turn brood mares loose on the hill, believing that they thereby breed horses of dragon stock. The Tuyuhun once acquired Persian steppe horses and pastured them by the lake; the foals born there could cover a thousand li in a day, and came to be famed as the Qinghai piebalds. Yaks were plentiful, and copper, iron, and cinnabar were found in quantity. Their lands embraced the regions of Shanshan and Qiemo. Several hundred li to the northwest lay drifting sands; in summer scorching winds blew that could kill travelers on the road. Before a hot wind arrived, veteran camels sensed it, raised their necks and bellowed, clustered together, and buried their mouths and nostrils in the sand. Travelers who saw the camels' behavior took warning and wrapped felt over their faces to ward off the blast.
3
西 退
Their ruler Fukak had raided the borders repeatedly under the Northern Zhou; early in the Kaihuang era he attacked Hong Province with an army. Emperor Gaozu abolished Hong Province, judging its territory too broad and its population too unruly to govern easily. He dispatched Pillar of State Yuan Xie with tens of thousands of foot and horse to strike them. The Tuyuhun called out their entire force, and armored cavalry stretched in an unbroken line from Mantou to Shudun. Their appointed Hexi commander, Prince of Dingcheng Zhong Lifang, and the heir Kebohan advanced one after another to meet the attack. Yuan Xie routed them again and again, taking many prisoners and heads. Fukak was terrified and fled into the distance with his personal guard. Thirteen subordinate kings each brought their clans in to submit. Because the Gaoning king Yizibei had long enjoyed the people's loyalty, the emperor made him Grand General and Prince of Henan to lead the surrendered tribes; the others received offices and rewards according to rank. Soon they were raiding the frontier again. Prefect Pizi Xin of Xu Province marched out to meet them, was defeated, and fell in battle. Commander Liang Yuan of Wen Prefecture hit them with picked troops, took more than a thousand heads, and drove them back in flight. Before long they crossed into Kuo Prefecture, where local troops beat them back.
4
使 使使
Fukak ruled for a century and more than once, in fits of anger or caprice, deposed a crown prince and had him killed. Later a crown prince, dreading deposition and humiliation, plotted to seize Fukak and defect, begging frontier officials to send troops to his aid. Prince Hong of Hejian, commander of Qin Prefecture, asked to march to his support; the emperor refused. The plot was betrayed; the father executed his son and named his younger boy, Prince Kui He, as heir instead. Prefect Du Can of Die Prefecture urged a punitive expedition while their house was divided; again the emperor declined. In the sixth year Prince Kui He again feared his father would kill him. He planned to bring fifteen thousand households of his people into Sui territory and sent envoys to the capital asking for an escort. The emperor told his courtiers, "The Tuyuhun barbarians live by customs utterly unlike our norms: the father shows no kindness, and the son is no less lacking in filial duty. I teach men through virtue—how could I help them finish a wicked revolt against their own father? I must teach them the proper way of righteousness instead. Then he addressed the envoys: "Heaven gave me the mandate to cherish the four seas, and I wish every living soul under heaven to treat others with benevolence and righteousness. How much more should father and son, bound by nature itself, cherish one another! The Tuyuhun khaghan is Prince Kui He's father, and Prince Kui He is his heir: when a father errs, a son must remonstrate with him. If remonstrance fails, let close ministers, kinsmen, and all around them persuade him from within and without. If even that will not move him, let the son plead with tears in his eyes. Every man has a heart; he is bound to be moved. He must not plot treason in secret and earn the name of an unfilial son. All beneath heaven are my subjects; if each of you does what is right, you will have my approval. Prince Kui He means well in wishing to come to me, but I will only teach him how a son and subject should behave. I cannot dispatch an army from afar to help him commit a crime." With that, Prince Kui He abandoned the plan. In the eighth year the subordinate king Tuoba Mumi asked to bring more than a thousand households into allegiance. The emperor said, "All under heaven are my subjects. Even in distant wilds where men have never known our rites, I nurture them on the foundation of benevolence and filial piety. The Tuyuhun ruler has grown mad and cruel; wives and children live in terror and all wish to submit in order to save themselves from ruin. Yet a wife who rebels against her husband and a son who turns on his father cannot simply be welcomed in. Their only aim is to escape death, however, and to turn them away now would itself be unkind. If they are sincere, comfort them and let them come out on their own; there is no need to march troops out to escort them. If brothers-in-law and nephews wish to come as well, let them follow their own inclination; do not trouble yourselves to coax them. That year Prince of Henan Yizibei died, and Emperor Gaozu had his younger brother Shugui succeed to command his people. After the conquest of Chen, Fukak was terrified, withdrew into mountain strongholds, and no longer dared raid the borders.
5
使 便
In the eleventh year Fukak died, and his son Fu took the throne. He sent his nephew Wusu with a memorial acknowledging vassalage, together with tribute goods, and asked that a daughter be received into the imperial harem. The emperor told the Prince of Teng, "This is not sincere devotion, only a desperate expedient. Then he said to Wusu, "I know your master wishes to send his daughter to me. If I grant this request, other states will hear of it and do the same. To accept one and refuse another would be unjust. If I accepted them all, that would be no better a policy. My wish is to let every people live in peace according to their own ways. How could I stock the harem by gathering daughters from every quarter?" In the end he refused. In the twelfth year he sent Minister of Justice Yuwen Bi on a mission of reassurance. In the sixteenth year the Princess of Guanghua was married to Fu. Fu memorialized asking to style her Heavenly Empress; the emperor refused.
6
使使
The following year the realm erupted in turmoil; the people killed Fu and raised his younger brother Fuyun as ruler. Envoys reported the deposition and enthronement, apologized for acting without imperial sanction, and again asked that a princess be given according to their custom; the emperor agreed. Thereafter tribute arrived every year, but their envoys also kept probing court affairs, which the emperor deeply resented.
7
使 西 西 西西西 西 西西 𦍩
When Emperor Yang came to the throne, Fuyun sent his son Shun to the capital. At that time the Tiele were raiding the frontier. The emperor sent General Feng Xiaoci out from Dunhuang to meet them, and Feng was defeated. The Tiele sent envoys to apologize and submit. The emperor dispatched Attendant of the Yellow Gate Pei Ju to reassure them and hinted that they should attack Tuyuhun to prove their loyalty. The Tiele agreed, marched at once against Tuyuhun, and routed them utterly. Fuyun fled eastward and held out in the Xiping region. The emperor then sent Prince Xiong of Guan from the Jiao River and Duke Yuwen Shu of Xu from Xiping to take them in a pincer, and their army was shattered. Fuyun escaped. More than a hundred thousand of his people submitted, together with more than three hundred thousand head of livestock. Yuwen Shu pressed the pursuit hard. Terrified, Fuyun fled south into the mountain valleys. Their homeland lay empty. From Linqiang in Xiping west to Qiemo east, from the Qilian Mountains south to the Snow Mountains north—a span of four thousand li east to west and two thousand li north to south—all fell into Sui hands. The dynasty established commanderies, counties, and frontier garrisons, and resettled people from across the empire who had been convicted of minor crimes. Shun was then detained and not allowed to leave. With no resources to sustain himself, Fuyun led several thousand horsemen among his followers to take refuge with the Tangut. The emperor installed Shun as khan and sent him through the Jade Gate to govern the remnant tribes, appointing Niluozhou, Prince of Great Treasure, as his deputy. When he reached Xiping, his followers killed Luozhou. Shun never entered the territory and turned back. In the final years of the Daye reign, as the empire fell into chaos, Fuyun reclaimed his old lands and repeatedly raided the Hexi region until the local commanderies and counties could no longer hold him back. The Tangut, also called the Tangut Qiang, are said to be descendants of the Three Miao. Among their peoples are the Dangchang and Bailang, each claiming descent from the monkey totem. They border Lintao and Xiping to the east and Yehu to the west, stretching several thousand li north and south through mountain valleys. Each clan forms its own tribe—large ones field more than five thousand horsemen, small ones more than a thousand. They weave yak tails and fine wool into coverings for their homes. They dress in fur and coarse woolens, draping felt as their outer garment. They value martial prowess above all, keep no written laws, and live by separate trades—but when war comes, they assemble as one. They pay no taxes or corvée, and seldom trade visits between tribes. They raise yaks, sheep, and pigs for food and know nothing of farming. Their customs are notably licentious, including levirate unions—the most extreme among the frontier peoples. They have no written language and mark the seasons only by watching when plants flower and wither. Every three years they hold a great assembly, slaughtering cattle and sheep as offerings to Heaven. When someone dies aged eighty or more, they take it as a life fulfilled, and kin do not mourn. When the young die, they call it a grievous wrong and weep together in grief. They play pipa and transverse flutes, beating pottery jars to keep time.
8
西 西 西 使
During the transition from Northern Wei to Northern Zhou, they raided the frontier again and again. While Emperor Gaozu was still Chancellor and the Central Plains were in turmoil, the Tangut stepped up their raids accordingly. After Duke Liang Rui crushed Wang Qian's rebellion, he asked to turn his returning army against the Tangut, but Gaozu refused. In Kaihuang 4, more than a thousand households submitted to Sui rule. In Kaihuang 5, Tuoba Ningcong and others led their peoples to Xu Prefecture to submit. They were made Grand Generals, and their followers received ranks according to merit. In Kaihuang 16 they raided Huizhou again. The emperor sent Longxi troops against them and inflicted a crushing defeat. They then submitted as a group, pledging fealty and sending sons and younger brothers to court to confess their crimes. Emperor Gaozu told them: "Go back and tell your fathers and elder brothers: a man needs a settled home in which to care for the old and raise the young. Yet you flee one day and submit the next—have you no shame before your own people? From then on, they sent tribute without interruption. Gaochang—the kingdom of Gaochang—was the seat of the Han-era Front Kingdom of Cheshi, thirteen days' travel from Dunhuang. Its territory measured three hundred li east to west and five hundred li north to south, ringed on every side by tall mountains. When Emperor Wu of Han marched west, his army fell exhausted on campaign, and the most battered of his soldiers simply stayed behind. An old Han garrison fortress named Gaochang stood on the site, which gave the kingdom its name. At first the Rouran enthroned Kan Bozhou as king of Gaochang. When Bozhou died, his son Yicheng succeeded—but Shougui, a cousin's son, killed him and seized power. Shougui proclaimed himself king of Gaochang, only to be killed in turn by Avoluo of the Gök Türk confederation. They put Zhang Mengming of Dunhuang on the throne. The people killed Mengming and made Ma Ru king instead, appointing Gong Gu and Qu Jia as his chief ministers. Ma Ru then sent envoys to Northern Wei seeking incorporation into the empire. The people, unwilling to leave their homeland for an eastern resettlement, rose up and killed Ma Ru, enthroning Qu Jia in his place. Qu Jia, styled Lingfeng, came from Yuzhong in Jincheng. Once enthroned, he again submitted to the Rouran. When the Rouran khan was killed by the Gök Türks, Qu Jia transferred his allegiance to them. When the Yeda destroyed Karasahr and left its people without a ruler, they asked Qu Jia to provide one. Qu Jia sent his second son to rule Karasahr. From that point his power grew, and his own people rallied to him more firmly than ever. When Qu Jia died, his son Jian succeeded him.
9
簿 西
The capital's walls measured 1,840 paces around, and in the throne hall hung a painting of Duke Ai of Lu consulting Confucius on governance. The kingdom contained eighteen walled towns. The government included a chief minister, two senior dukes, left and right guards, eight chief secretaries, five generals, eight aides-de-camp, and a full staff of attendant gentlemen, collators, chief clerks, staff officers, and administrative aides. The king decided major matters; the crown prince and senior dukes handled minor ones. They kept no written records of proceedings. Men wore Central Asian dress; women wore skirts and jackets with their hair bound in topknots. Their customs and laws closely resembled those of China proper. Much of the land was stony desert, yet the climate was mild enough for two grain harvests a year, silkworms thrived, and fruit trees abounded. A plant called sheep-thorn bore a honey-like secretion of exceptional flavor. Its mines yielded red salt bright as vermilion and white salt clear as jade. Grape wine was plentiful. The people worshipped heavenly gods and also practiced Buddhism. Sheep and horses were pastured in hidden valleys to evade raiders—only the nobility knew where. Red Stone Mountain lay to the north; seventy li beyond it stood Mount Tanhan, still snow-capped in summer. North of that range lay Tiele territory. A shortcut ran northwest from Wuwei across more than a thousand li of desert—open emptiness in every direction, without trail or landmark. Travelers had to find their way by following the bones of men and beasts left along the route. Travelers sometimes heard phantom songs and cries along the way; those who went to investigate often vanished—work, it was said, of demons and evil spirits. For this reason merchants usually took the safer road through Yiwu.
10
In Kaihuang 10 the Turks captured four of its cities, and two thousand people fled to Sui territory. When Jian died, his son Boya succeeded him. His stepmother was a daughter of a Türk qaghan. After his father's death the Turks demanded he observe their levirate custom, but Boya refused for a long time. Under Türk pressure, he eventually gave in.
11
使使 祿 西 使 使 西 祿 西
When Emperor Yang took the throne, he courted the submission of the frontier kingdoms. In Daye 4, Gaochang sent tribute envoys, whom the emperor received with great honor. The following year Boya came to court in person. He accompanied the campaign against Goguryeo and, on his return, was given Princess Huarong, a daughter of the imperial clan, in marriage. In the winter of Daye 8 he returned home and proclaimed: "To govern a nation and nurture its people, preservation is the highest virtue; to pacify the realm and maintain good order, the welfare of all is the greatest aim. In the past our land stood at the edge of civilization, bordered by fierce nomads, and our people wore their hair loose and their robes open to the left—as customs of the frontier required. Now Great Sui holds sway over a unified world, and every land under heaven turns toward its civilization. Having myself received the dynasty's civilizing influence, I wish to share that transformation with my people. All commoners and above must undo their braids and adopt the closed-lapel dress of the Central States. The emperor was greatly pleased and issued an edict: "To honor virtue and reward the worthy is what the sages hold highest; to reward sincere loyalty and nurture excellence is a principle handed down in the classics. Boya, King of Gaochang, Grand Master for Splendid Happiness and Duke of Bianguo, has long shown far-reaching judgment, a generous heart, steadfast loyalty, and shining integrity known throughout the frontier. Though his people sprang from Chinese stock and had long ruled the western marches, repeated calamities had reduced them to barbarian dress and stripped them of civilized ceremony. Since our Sui dynasty united the world, civilization has reached the nine regions and virtue extends to the farthest borders. Boya crossed deserts and mountains to offer tribute at court, studied the rites of the ancestral canon, and came to cherish the solemn grandeur of imperial ceremony. He has put on the regalia of civilization, cut his braids, closed his robes, and turned from barbarian ways toward Chinese culture—a deed that honors his ancestors. Let him be given the full regalia of cap and gown, together with patterns by which such garments are to be made. Send envoys to deliver them and instruct his people in their use. Clad once more in brocade, he will know again the splendor of court dress and lead his kingdom back from felt and fleece to the rank of a civilized, cap-and-girdle state." Yet Boya remained a vassal of the Tiele, who kept senior officials stationed in Gaochang and levied taxes on every Sogdian merchant passing through, sending the proceeds north. For all the edict's fine words meant to please China, Boya still feared the Tiele too much to enforce the change. From then on Gaochang sent annual tribute missions bearing local goods. Kang—the state of Kang—traces its lineage to ancient Kangju. The people moved often and seldom stayed in one place for long, yet their line of kings had continued unbroken since Han times. The ruling house originally bore the surname Wen and was of Yuezhi descent. They once lived at Zhaowu, north of the Qilian Mountains, until the Xiongnu broke their power and drove them west across the Pamirs to their present domain. As cadet branches split off to rule neighboring lands, the states around Kang all took Zhaowu as their surname—a reminder that they had not forgotten their origins. The present king, styled Daishibi, was a generous man who enjoyed wide popular support. His wife was a daughter of the Türk qaghan Datu. The capital stood at Aludi on the Sabao River. The city was densely populated. Three senior ministers shared governance of the kingdom. The king wore his hair in braids, topped with a coronet of golden flowers set with the seven jewels, and dressed in gauze, silk, brocade, embroidered fabrics, and white layered cloth. His consort wore a topknot veiled with a black headcloth. The men cropped their hair short and wore brocade robes. Known as a powerful kingdom, it drew submission from many states of the Western Regions. Mi, Shi, Cao, He, An, Lesser An, Nasibo, Wunahe, and Mu all became its tributaries. They kept a body of foreign law in their fire temple and consulted it to decide punishments. The gravest offenses brought punishment on the whole clan; lesser capital crimes meant death; theft and robbery were punished by amputation of the feet.
12
𧵊
The people were deep-eyed and high-nosed, heavily bearded. They were skilled merchants, and traders from many foreign peoples flocked to their markets. Their musical instruments included large and small drums, pipa, five-string lutes, konghou harps, and flutes. Their marriage customs and funeral rites matched those of the Turks. The kingdom maintained an ancestral temple, offering sacrifices in the sixth month to which rulers from neighboring states came to participate. They observed Buddhism and wrote in Sogdian script. The climate was mild and suited to grain farming; kitchen gardens were carefully tended, and trees flourished. Local products included horses, camels, mules, donkeys, humped cattle, gold, naosha, zhe incense, asana incense, turquoise sese stones, antelope hides, qulu wool carpets, and layered brocades. Grape wine was abundant; wealthy households sometimes stored as much as a thousand shi, which kept for years without spoiling.
13
使 殿 滿使西
During the Daye era they first sent tribute missions; thereafter contact lapsed. An—the state of An—was the Parthian kingdom known to the Han as Anxi. The king belonged to the Zhaowu clan, kin to the ruler of Kang, and was styled Shelideng. His consort was a daughter of the king of Kang. The capital stood south of the Namih River, in a city of five concentric walls ringed by canals. The palace buildings all had flat roofs. The king sat on a golden camel throne seven or eight chi tall. When holding court he sat facing his consort while three senior ministers deliberated on affairs of state. Their customs largely matched those of Kang, save that men married their sisters and mothers and sons successively engaged in illicit sexual relations with one another—these were the notable differences. After Emperor Yang's accession he sent Supervisory Censor aide Du Xingman to the Western Regions; reaching An, Du acquired five-colored salt and returned home.
14
西 使
Some hundred li west lay Bi, a settlement of roughly a thousand households. It had no ruler of its own and was administered by An. In the fifth year of Daye it sent a tribute mission; thereafter no further embassies came. Shi—the state of Shi—stood on the Yash River, its capital measuring roughly ten li square. The king bore the surname Shi and the personal name Nie. Southeast of the capital they built a hall with a ceremonial seat at its center. On the sixth day of the first month and the fifteenth of the seventh, the cremated remains of royal ancestors were placed in golden urns, set on a platform, and carried in procession while flowers, incense, and fruit were scattered; the king and his court then performed sacrifice. When the rites ended, the king and queen withdrew to a separate pavilion while officials took their seats in rank order for a feast before dispersing. They raised millet and wheat and bred many fine horses. They were a warlike people who had once rebelled against the Turks; Qaghan Shekui marched against them, overthrew the kingdom, and installed Tegin Dianzhi to govern in its place. It lay six hundred li south of Kapul and six thousand li southeast of Guazhou.
15
使
Dianzhi sent a tribute mission in the fifth year of Daye; no further embassies followed. The Women's Kingdom—the state of Women—lay south of the Pamirs, where rulership passed from queen to queen in every generation. The reigning queen belonged to the Subi clan, was styled Mojie, and had held the throne for twenty years. The queen's consort, titled Gold Gathering, took no part in government. The men of the kingdom concerned themselves only with warfare. Their capital stood on a mountainside, five or six li square, with a population of ten thousand households. The queen lived in a nine-story tower attended by several hundred serving women and held court every five days. A secondary queen shared in the governance of the realm.
16
駿
Women held honor while men were held lightly, yet jealousy was unknown among them. Both men and women painted their faces in bright colors, changing the design several times within a single day. They wore their hair loose, shod themselves in leather, and paid taxes on no fixed schedule. The climate was harsh and cold, and hunting was their chief livelihood. Local products included brass ore, cinnabar, musk, yaks, swift horses, and horses from Shu. Salt was especially abundant; merchants regularly carried it to India for trade at several times the usual profit. They also fought repeatedly with India and the Tangut peoples. When a queen died, the realm levied heavy contributions in gold and silver to select two worthy women from the deceased queen's clan—one as queen, the other as secondary queen. When a noble died, the skin was removed, the flesh and bones mixed with gold dust, placed in a jar, and buried. A year later the skin was placed in an iron container and buried separately. They worshipped the Asura deity and a tree spirit, offering human sacrifices—or occasionally macaques—at the year's opening. After the sacrifice they withdrew into the mountains to pray until a hen-pheasant-like bird alighted on someone's palm; they then opened its belly—millet within foretold a bountiful year, sand and gravel foretold disaster. This was called bird divination.
17
使 西 使 西西 使 西西 使 西 西 使 西 西西 使 西 使 使 西 西西 西 使 西 西 使 西 使 西 西 使 西 西 使 西 使 西西
In the sixth year of Kaihuang a tribute mission was sent; thereafter no further embassies came. Yanqi—the state of Yanqi—had its capital seventy li south of White Mountain and was an ancient kingdom already known to the Han. The king belonged to the Long clan and was styled Tuqi. The capital measured two li square. The kingdom held nine walled towns and could field a little over a thousand fighting men. The realm had no effective legal order. They followed Buddhist scripture in ways resembling Brahmanical practice. Their marriage rites resembled those of the Central States. The dead were cremated and mourners wore funeral garb for seven days. The men cropped their hair short. They profited from fisheries, salt, and reed marshes. Gaochang lay nine hundred li to the east and Kucha nine hundred li to the west, all across sandy desert. Guazhou stood two thousand two hundred li to the southeast. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Kucha—the state of Kucha—had its capital one hundred seventy li south of White Mountain and was an ancient kingdom known to the Han. The king belonged to the Bai clan and was styled Sunie. The capital measured six li square. It could field several thousand fighting men. Murderers were executed; robbers lost an arm and had a foot amputated as well. Their customs matched those of Yanqi. The king bound a colored ribbon around his head with the ends trailing behind and sat upon a golden lion throne. The land yielded rice, millet, beans, and wheat in abundance, along with copper, iron, lead, antelope hides, qulu wool carpets, naosha, salt-green minerals, orpiment, lead white powder, benzoin, fine horses, and humped cattle. Yanqi lay nine hundred li to the east, Khotan fourteen hundred li south, Kashgar fifteen hundred li west, the Türk royal camp a little over six hundred li northwest, and Guazhou three thousand one hundred li southeast. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Kashgar—the state of Shule—had its capital a little over a hundred li south of White Mountain and was an ancient kingdom known to the Han. The king was styled Amijue and was born with six fingers on each hand and foot. Infants born without six fingers were not permitted to live. The capital measured five li square. The kingdom held twelve major walled towns and several dozen smaller ones and could field two thousand fighting men. The king wore a golden lion crown. The land produced rice, millet, hemp, wheat, copper, iron, brocade, and orpiment, which were delivered annually as tribute to the Turks. The Yellow River lay to the south and the Pamirs marked its western border; Kucha stood fifteen hundred li east, Kapul a thousand li west, Zhujubo eight or nine hundred li south, the Türk royal camp over a thousand li northeast, and Guazhou forty-six hundred li southeast. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Khotan—the state of Khotan—had its capital a little over two hundred li north of the Pamirs. The king bore the surname Wang and was styled Beishibilian. The capital measured eight or nine li square. The kingdom held five major walled towns and several dozen smaller ones and could field several thousand fighting men. They were devout Buddhists with an especially large monastic community; the king himself regularly kept the fasting precepts. Fifty li south of the capital stood Zanmo Temple, said to have been founded by the arhat Piludana; on its stones were the barefoot footprints of a pratyekabuddha. Five hundred li west of Khotan stood Bimo Temple, held to be the site where Laozi transformed the barbarians and attained Buddhahood. Propriety was little observed; theft, robbery, and sexual license were common. The king wore a brocade cap and a golden rat crown; his consort wore ornaments of golden flowers. No one was permitted to see the king's hair. Popular belief held that anyone who glimpsed the king's hair would bring famine upon the year. The land yielded hemp, wheat, millet, rice, and orchard fruits; gardens were plentiful, and the mountains held fine jade. Shanshan lay fifteen hundred li to the east, the Women's Kingdom three thousand li south, Zhujubo a thousand li west, Kucha fourteen hundred li north, and Guazhou twenty-eight hundred li northeast. During the Daye era Khotan repeatedly sent tribute missions to the capital. Kapul—the state of Kapul—had its capital a little over five hundred li west of the Pamirs, on the site of the ancient kingdom of Qusou. The king belonged to the Zhaowu clan and was styled Aoliqi. The capital measured four li square. It could field several thousand fighting men. The king sat upon a golden ram throne, and his consort wore ornaments of golden flowers. The land produced cinnabar, gold, and iron in abundance. Kashgar lay a thousand li east, Suduishana five hundred li west, Shi five hundred li northwest, the Türk royal camp over two thousand li northeast, and Guazhou fifty-five hundred li east. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Tokhara—the state of Tokhara—had its capital five hundred li west of the Pamirs and lived mingled with the Yeda. The capital measured two li square. It could field a hundred thousand fighting men, all trained for war. They were devout Buddhists. Brothers shared one wife, taking turns with her; when one entered the bedchamber, he hung his garment outside the door as a sign. Any children born belonged to the eldest brother. A sacred stallion dwelt in a mountain cave there; each year mares were pastured at the cave and unfailingly bore famous foals. Kapiśa lay seventeen hundred li south, and Guazhou fifty-eight hundred li east. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions to the capital. Yeda—the state of Yeda—had its capital a little over two hundred li south of the Wuhu River and was a branch of the Great Yuezhi. It could field five or six thousand fighting men. They were skilled warriors. When the kingdom had fallen into disorder, the Turks dispatched an official of tongshe rank, styled Jieqiang, to govern it. The capital measured a little over ten li square. Monasteries and pagodas were numerous, all ornamented with gold. Brothers shared a single wife. A woman with one husband wore a single-horned cap; if her husbands were numerous among the brothers, the cap bore horns in corresponding number. Kapiśa lay fifteen hundred li south, and Guazhou sixty-five hundred li east. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Mi—the state of Mi—had its capital west of the Namih River, on former Kangju territory. It had no king of its own. Its city lord belonged to the Zhaowu clan, a cadet line of the king of Kang, and was styled Bizhuo. The capital measured two li square. It could field several hundred fighting men. Kang lay a hundred li northwest, Suduishana five hundred li east, Shi two hundred li southwest, and Guazhou sixty-four hundred li east. During the Daye era it frequently sent local goods as tribute. Shi—the state of Shi—had its capital ten li south of the Dumo River, on former Kangju territory. The king belonged to the Zhaowu clan and was styled Tizhe, likewise a cadet branch of the king of Kang. The capital measured two li square. It could field more than a thousand fighting men. Their customs largely matched those of Kang. Kang lay two hundred forty li north, Tokhara five hundred li south, Nasibo two hundred li west, Mi two hundred li northeast, and Guazhou sixty-five hundred li east. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Cao—the state of Cao—had its capital a few li south of the Namih River, on former Kangju territory. The state had no ruler of its own; the king of Kang put his son Wujian in charge of it. The capital measured three li square. It could field more than a thousand fighting men. Within the kingdom was the god Dexi, whom all states from the Western Sea eastward jointly revered. The deity had a golden image: a golden ritual vessel one zhang and five chi across, proportioned in height and breadth. Each day five camels, ten horses, and a hundred sheep were sacrificed to it, and a thousand people could not finish eating the offerings. Kang lay a hundred li southeast, He a hundred fifty li west, and Guazhou sixty-six hundred li east. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. He—the state of He—had its capital a few li south of the Namih River, on former Kangju territory. The king belonged to the Zhaowu clan, kin to the ruler of Kang, and was styled Dun. The capital measured two li square. It could field a thousand fighting men. The king sat upon a golden ram throne. Cao lay a hundred fifty li east, Lesser An three hundred li west, and Guazhou sixty-seven hundred fifty li east. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Wunahe—the state of Wunahe—had its capital west of the Wuhu River, on former Parthian territory. The king belonged to the Zhaowu clan, a branch kin to Kang, and was styled Foshi. The capital measured two li square. It could field several hundred fighting men. The king sat upon a golden ram throne. An lay four hundred li northeast, Mu over two hundred li northwest, and Guazhou seventy-five hundred li east. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Mu—the state of Mu—had its capital west of the Wuhu River, likewise on former Parthian ground and bordering Wunahe. The king belonged to the Zhaowu clan, likewise a branch of the ruler of Kang, and was styled Alanmi. The capital measured three li square. It could field two thousand fighting men. An lay five hundred li northeast, Wunahe over two hundred li east, Persia over four thousand li west, and Guazhou seventy-seven hundred li east. During the Daye era it sent tribute missions bearing local goods. Persia—the state of Persia—had its capital at Sulon west of the Dahe River, on the site known to the Han as Tiaozhi. The king was styled Kusahe. The capital measured a little over ten li square. It could field more than twenty thousand fighting men and went to war mounted on elephants. The kingdom had no death penalty; offenders might have hands or feet severed and their household goods confiscated, their beards shaved off, or wooden placards hung from the neck as marks of disgrace. Every person from the age of three upward paid an exit tax of four cash. Men married their sisters. When someone died the body was abandoned on a mountain, and mourners wore mourning dress for one month. The king wore a golden-flower crown, sat upon a golden lion throne, and dusted gold powder into his beard as ornament. He wore a brocade robe with jeweled chains added over it. The land abounded in fine horses, large donkeys, lions, white elephants, ostrich eggs, pearls, crystal, amber, coral, lapis lazuli, agate, rock crystal, turquoise sese stones, huluojie and lüteng textiles, carnelian, diamonds, gold, silver, orpiment, copper, patterned steel, tin, layered brocades, fine cloth, qulu and ta carpets, huna and yuenuo fabrics, sandalwood, gold-thread weaving, red musk-deer hides, cinnabar, mercury, frankincense, turmeric, storax, lign aloes, and other aromatics, pepper, long pepper, rock candy, half-refined honey, thousand-year jujubes, aconite, haritaki, myrobalan galls, green salt, and realgar. Even the Turks could not reach this kingdom, yet it too was held only loosely within the tributary orbit. Persia sent tribute missions repeatedly. The sea lay several hundred li west, Mu over four thousand li east, Fulin forty-five hundred li northwest, and Guazhou eleven thousand seven hundred li east.
18
使使 𦋺 使 西西 𥕘 𥕘 𥕘
Emperor Yang dispatched Cloud-Cavalry Commandant Li Yu to open relations with Persia, and soon afterward the Persians sent envoys with Li Yu bearing local goods in tribute. Caoguo—the state of Caoguo—lay north of the Pamirs and was the Han-era kingdom of Kapiśa. The king belonged to the Zhaowu clan and was styled Shunda, of the royal kindred of Kang. The capital measured four li square. It could field more than ten thousand fighting men. Its laws were stern: murder and theft were capital crimes. Their cultic practice was lavish and licentious. On Mount Pamir stood the god Shuntian, whose cult was magnificently appointed: the shrine was built of sheets of gold and silver with a silver floor, and more than a thousand worshippers came daily. Before the shrine lay a fish spine whose hollow passage was wide enough for a mounted rider to pass through. The king wore a golden fish-head crown and sat upon a golden horse throne. The land produced rice, millet, beans, and wheat; elephants were plentiful, along with horses, humped cattle, gold, silver, patterned steel, qulu carpets, cinnabar, indigo, Parthian and lign aloes aromatics, rock candy, half-refined honey, black salt, asafetida, myrrh, and white aconite. Fanyan lay seven hundred li north, Jie six hundred li east, and Guazhou sixty-six hundred li northeast. During the Daye reign, Caoguo sent envoys bearing local goods in tribute. Fu—called Fu Kingdom—lay more than two thousand li northwest of Shu commandery; in Han times it had been one of the Southwest Yi peoples. The Jialiang Yi occupied its eastern regions. Local clans lived under their own leaders, their customs matched those of Fu, though their speech differed slightly, and they were not united under a single authority. None of them used surnames. The king of Fu was styled Yizeng. The kingdom measured eight hundred li north to south and fifteen hundred li east to southeast. It had no walled towns or stockades; settlements lay along river valleys against steep mountain slopes. Because blood feuds were common, they built stone tower-dwellings to live in and escape that danger. The towers stood anywhere from five or six to more than ten zhang high, each tier rising over a zhang with wooden floors between levels. Each stood on a base three or four paces square, narrowed to two or three paces at the top, and looked like a pagoda. A small door opened at the lowest level gave internal access upward; it was always bolted at night against thieves. The kingdom contained more than twenty thousand households, and all government orders came from the king. Among the Jialiang Yi, each chieftain enforced the law locally: capital crimes merited death, lesser offenses were punished with fines paid in cattle.
19
便 𮃡
The people were agile and skilled swordsmen. They wore lacquered leather armor; their bows were six chi long with bamboo strings. A man might marry his stepmothers and sisters-in-law; when a younger brother died, his father or elder brothers would take the widow. They loved song and dance, playing reed pipes and long flutes. When someone died, no mourning garb was prescribed. The body was laid on a high platform, washed and dressed, clad in armor, and covered with animal hides. The sons and grandsons did not weep. Instead they donned armor, danced with swords drawn, and shouted: "My father was seized by a ghost—I will avenge him and slay the ghost! Other relatives cried out three times and fell silent. Women mourners always covered their faces with both hands. The bereaved family slaughtered an ox; relatives exchanged gifts of pork and wine, feasted together, and then buried the body. A great funeral was held ten years after death, attended by kin and guests; dozens of horses might be slaughtered. They set up ancestral spirits of fathers and grandfathers and worshipped them. They wore round leather caps shaped like bowls, or face veils. Their clothing was chiefly felted wool and fur; boots were made entirely from the skin of cattle hooves. They wore iron chains around the neck and iron bangles on the wrists. Kings and chieftains wore gold head ornaments and hung a golden flower three cun across on the chest. The land was high and the climate cool, with frequent winds and scant rain. The soil favored wheat and highland barley. The mountains yielded gold and silver, and white pheasants were plentiful. The rivers held splendid fish four chi long with fine scales.
20
使
In the fourth year of Daye, the king sent eight envoys led by Sufu to the imperial court. The following year he sent his young kinsman Yilin at the head of sixty Jialiang Yi to pay tribute at court. They wished to offer fine horses but the route was too dangerous; they asked that a mountain road be cut so they could fulfill their tribute obligations. Emperor Yang refused, unwilling to burden the populace with such labor.
21
Jialiang had a river sixty or seventy zhang wide; Fu had one over a hundred zhang wide. Both flowed south, and people crossed in boats made of hides.
22
西
South of Fu lived the Boyuan Yi, whose customs were much the same. To the west lay the Women's Kingdom. To the northeast, mountains ran unbroken for thousands of li, reaching the Tangut lands. Scattered Qiang groups were found throughout the region—the Great and Lesser Zuofeng, Xiewei, Geyan, Baigou, Xiangren, Wangzu, Lintai, Chunsang, Lidou, Misang, Biyao, Daxia, Bailan, Chilimotu, Na'e, Dangmi, Qubu, Sangwu, and Qiandiao—all dwelling in deep mountains and remote valleys without any paramount chief. Their customs broadly resembled those of the Tangut; some served the Tuyuhun, others were attached to Fu.
23
西
During the Daye reign they came to court bearing tribute. The court placed circuit administrators-general along the southwestern frontier to oversee them at a distance.
24
西 使
The historiographer remarks: Since antiquity, reaching distant barbarians and opening routes to the farthest lands has always required a magnanimous ruler—and has always been set in motion by ministers eager for bold undertakings. Zhang Qian had pioneered the route in the Han, Ban Chao had cast aside his writing brush to follow—some were won with lavish gifts, others cowed with drawn swords. Men threw themselves into mortal danger for a single burst of glory, all because the sovereign coveted renown from afar and his servants were ready to squander their lives for the cause. This shows that whatever the ruler favors, his subjects will pursue with even greater zeal. Emperor Yang's ambitions were vast enough to overshadow Qin and Han combined. Pei Ju had just submitted his Western Regions gazetteer to inflame those ambitions, so the Son of Heaven himself marched beyond Yumen Pass, established garrisons at Yiwu and Qiemo, and the regions west of the passes as far as the shifting sands were thrown into such turmoil that ordinary people could scarcely live. Had the northern barbarians stayed quiet and the eastern tribes brought good news, the court would inevitably have restored the Luntai garrison, rebuilt Wulei fortress, demanded the luminous pearls of Rome, and fetched the ostrich eggs of Tiaozhi—with goods shuttling ceaselessly back and forth, how could the empire have endured the strain? The institutions of the sage kings of old measured five thousand li square; their aim was to secure the Central States, not to meddle in the far wastes. Was it that their power could not reach so far, or their virtue could not extend there? Rather, they refused to exhaust the Central Kingdom for the sake of the four barbarian quarters, or to sacrifice what was useful for what was worthless. That is why Qin posted troops to the Five Ridges and Han poured resources into the three frontiers—with corpses sometimes lining the roads and registered populations cut in half. The Sui dynasty, confident in its strength, likewise found itself in desperate straits on the Qinghai frontier. All of this stemmed from one man's loss of the Way—and hundreds of millions bore the cost. Had the emperor truly grasped the principle of ruling distant peoples through peaceful submission—firmly declining requests for protectorates, sending back horses offered from a thousand li away, and spurning exotic tribute like the white wolf's pelt—then the peoples of west and east would still have come bearing gifts through interpreters, wind at their backs. The court might have won no triumph in Liaodong, but would it ever have suffered catastrophe at Jiangdu?
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