Tianlao (Heavenly Prison) is one of the ancient Chinese star officials, located in the Purple Forbidden Enclosure. It consists of six stars and primarily represents the health of the emperor (various interpretations). The 'Records of the Grand Historian' ('Shiji') in its chapter on celestial officials states: 「When the Red Emperor bestows virtue, the Heavenly Prison becomes empty. When the Blue Emperor bestows virtue, the Gate of Heaven opens. Moreover, there are four stars called Heavenly Principle within the Dipper, representing a prison for nobles. There are also fifteen curved stars belonging to the handle, known as the prison for commoners.」Zhu Yuanzhang, following heavenly principles, established the judiciary and named the prison 「Guancheng.」 The Guansuo (Prison Chain) belongs to the Heavenly Market Enclosure and not the Purple Forbidden Enclosure; thus, the Guancheng坊 is located outside Taiping Gate, not within the imperial city. It corresponds to the nine stars of the fifteen curved stars, known as Guansuo (also called Heavenly Prison). The four stars of Heavenly Principle, representing a prison for nobles, led Zhu Yuanzhang to set up high walls. Why there is much debate in modern times about this setup is largely due to the reluctance of successive dynasties to allow the populace to understand too much about astronomical star patterns, as well as the significant influence of Islamic astronomy and calendar systems, such as the introduction by the Muslim Astronomical Bureau and its family members like Ma Yize.
The concepts of Daolao (great prison) and Tianlao (heavenly prison) did not originally have the meaning of prisons. The 'Book of Rites' states: 「The altars for heaven and earth and the grain deities of the Son of Heaven use Daolao, while those of the feudal lords use Xiaolao.」 Here, Daolao refers to a combination of pigs, cattle, and sheep, while Xiaolao refers to sheep and pigs. The 'Zhou Li' (Rites of Zhou) in its section on Earth Officials and Stewards states: 「If there is no authorization or credentials, then they are confined within the circular earth.」 Zheng Xuan annotates: 「Circular earth refers to a prison city.」 In the Zhou Dynasty, prisons were known as Lingyu (prison) and Yuantu (circular earth), with Yuantu being closer to a labor camp.
The 'Book of Sui' ('Suishu') in its chapter on astronomy provides the earliest record of Tianlao, though there are differing views: some say it was a prison specifically for nobles, while others suggest it was for commoners.
Read more...: Six Stars of Tianlao Two Additional Stars in Tianlao Ancient Texts on Tianlao References
Six Stars of Tianlao
Two Additional Stars in Tianlao
In 1752, the Qing Astronomical Bureau compiled the 'Yixiang Kaicheng' star chart, which added two visible stars to Tianlao.
Ancient Texts on Tianlao
• The 'Book of Sui' ('Suishu') in its chapter on astronomy states: 「Tianlao has six stars, located below the Dipper's bowl.」
• The 'Book of Jin' ('Jinshu') in its chapter on astronomy states: 「Tianlao has six stars located below the Dipper's bowl, representing a prison for nobles.」
• The 'History of Song' ('Songshi') in its chapter on astronomy states: 「Tianlao has sixstars, representing a prison for nobles and responsible for punishing wrongdoers. Gan De said: 『It is a prison for commoners.'」
References
• 天牢 (Chinese)
The text above incorporates content created automatically using artifical intelligence.