Burning of books and burying of scholars

Quick Facts: Who was Burning of books and burying of scholars?

Subject:

Burning of books and burying of scholars

Known for:

The alleged destruction of knowledge by Qin Shi Huang to enforce Legalist thought.

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2Day Chrono-Wiki & Primary Historical Archives

Origins & Early Life

The burning of books and burying of scholars was the purported burning of texts in 213 BCE and live burial of 460 Confucian scholars in 212 BCE ordered by Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang. The events were alleged to have destroyed philosophical treatises of the Hundred Schools of Thought, with the goal of strengthening the official Qin governing philosophy of Legalism. Modern historians doubt the details of the story, which first appeared more than a century later in the Han dynasty official Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian. As a court scholar, Sima had every reason to denigrate the earlier emperor to flatter his own, but later Confucians did not question the story. According to the historian Ulrich Neininger, their message was, "If you take our life, Heaven will take the life of your dynasty." Modern scholars agree that Qin Shi Huang gathered and destroyed many works that he regarded as incorrect or subversive.

Career & Major Achievements

He ordered two copies of each text to be preserved in imperial libraries. Some were destroyed in the fighting following the fall of the dynasty. He had scholars killed, but not by being buried alive, and the victims were not rú (Chinese: 儒; lit. 'Confucians'), since that school had not yet been formed as such. According to Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian, after Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, unified China in 221 BCE, his chancellor Li Si suggested suppressing intellectual discourse to unify thought and political opinion.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Chancellor Li Si said: "I, your servant, propose that all historians' records other than those of Qin's be burned. Except the academics whose duty includes possessing books, if anyone under heaven has copies of the Shi Jing [Classic of Poetry], the Shujing [Classic of History], or the writings of the hundred schools of philosophy, they shall deliver them (the books) to the governor or the commandant for burning. Anyone who dares to discuss the Shi Jing or the Classic of History shall be publicly executed. Anyone who uses history to criticize the present shall have his family executed. Any official who sees the violations but fails to report them is equally guilty.

Notable Quotes by Burning of books and burying of scholars

“As the smoke from burning bamboo and silk clears, the empire is weakened.”

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Burning of books and burying of scholars

True or False: “The historical record definitively proves that Qin Shi Huang ordered the live burial of 460 scholars in 212 BCE.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): Modern historians doubt the details of the story; while Qin Shi Huang did kill scholars, the specific account of mass live burial is questioned.

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