The original Chinese imperial legal code, that of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), was created under the aegis of the famous autocratic ruler Qin Shihuangdi, much more influenced by legalism, a philosophical school whose representative thinkers considered human nature brutal. They therefore believed that a simple, harsh and uniform law would provide a more effective mechanism for social order than Confucian morality. The Qin tried to eradicate Confucianism – by burning texts and supposedly scholars too – but without success. In fact, the Qin Code has retained elements of hierarchical treatment reminiscent of Confucianism. Most importantly, the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). He replaced the Qin and established enduring models for the Chinese imperial government, filling the ranks of the civil service with Confucian scholars, who in turn revised the law to rebuild and strengthen the five relationships. In a trial that Chinese scholar Qu Tongzi called the “Confucianization of the Law,” the Han Codex (and subsequent codes up to the end of the imperial era in 1911 CE) provided that offenses committed by juniors (e.g., sons) against their older parents (e.g., fathers) were to be punished more severely than vice versa. Although, according to Confucian thought, it would be better that morality should be respected and no punishment should be imposed. The early users of the Five Punishments are considered by some to be the Sanmiao clan (三苗氏).
Other sources claim to come from Chiyou, the legendary creator of metallurgy and weapons and leader of the ancient ethnic group of the Nine Li (九黎). During the following Xia Dynasty (c. 2070 BC – c. 1600 BC), Qi of Xia, son of Yu the Great, the founder of the dynasty, took charge of the Miao punishments: amputation of one or both feet (yuè刖), cutting of the nose (yì劓), chiseling (zhuó琢), tattooing of the face or forehead (qíng黥) and other types of punishment. Tattooing, amputation of the nose or feet, removal of reproductive organs, and death became the top five forms of punishment during this period. From the Xia Dynasty to the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC) and the Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 BC). The “Five Punishments for Slaves” were abolished during the reign of Emperor Wen of Han following a petition by a woman Chunyu Tiying (淳于緹縈) and replaced by the “Five Punishments for Serfs”. In order to ensure that the extended family deters all members from committing criminal acts, severe penalties were imposed on the entire lot. In extreme cases, the entire male family miè zú (灭族) was executed – grandfather, father, children, cousins and grandchildren. The most severe punished all relationships within the “nine degrees” of the relationship, including uncles, aunts, and sisters-in-law. Family members under the age of 16 and women would be spared, but taken as slaves, so that the whole family would effectively “disappear” from history. The worst example probably dates back to 1380, when the Ming Emperor Hongwu accused Hu Weiyong of treason.
Hu Jintao`s entire family was not only massacred, but anyone associated with him from afar, resulting in more than 30,000 executions – for one crime; Although it is more of a purge of potential dissidents than a criminal sanction. Stories of torture go back a long way to China. Perhaps the worst appeal in ancient history is the story of Da Ji, the seducer of the last emperor of the Shang dynasty 帝辛 Dì xīn (circa 1050 BC). 妲己 Dá jǐ was considered a fox demon. The emperor spoiled his taste for the macabre. She would have wondered why a man could apparently cross the frozen lake without obviously complaining, so he had his feet cut off to investigate. She did similar gruesome exams on pregnant women and how the heart works. She apparently liked to hear the screams of the tortured and invented the heated cauldron to which the victims were tied and slowly cooked them to death. Since the story was written by the Zhou who followed the Shang, such stories probably circulated to discredit the last Shang loyalists. All these horrific descriptions may give the impression of a brutal system, but it was exactly what was intended. Because the legal system is marked by fear, rumours about the horrors of torture have proven extremely effective. The Mongol invasion of China is remembered as a conquest by a particularly brutal people, and yet, under their brief rule, the severity of punishments diminished.
According to reports from Western visitors to China, the hidden threat system worked well – they saw very little crime. The Five Punishments (Chinese: 五刑; Pinyin: wǔ xíng; Cantonese Yale: ńgh yìhng) was the collective term for a series of corporal punishments imposed by the legal system of pre-modern dynastic China. [1] Over time, the nature of the five penalties varied. Before the time of the Han Emperor Wendi (r. 180-157 BC). They included tattooing, cutting the nose, amputating one or both feet, castration and death. [2] [3] After the Sui and Tang dynasties (581-907). A.D.) These were commuted to punitive slavery, banishment, death or corporal punishment in the form of flogging with bamboo bands or flogging with a stick. Although the five punishments were an important part of China`s dynastic penal system, they were not the only methods of punishment used. Perhaps the acceptance of torture is somehow related to the belief in a Buddhist hell. Similar to Dante`s visions of hell ➚, hell was full of various punishments deemed appropriate for each offense.
King Yan 阎王 Yánwáng is the god of death and ruler of hell who dispenses punishments. In Buddhism, an evildoer is punished in hell for a few years before being reborn as a kind of creature. For example, someone who steals a good book is thrown alive and someone who breaks off a marriage or engagement is impaled on spears. While the Shang 商 (17th-11th century BCE) and Zhou 周 (11th century-221 BCE) Periods The five punishments consisted of tattooing (similar to “branding”, mo 墨, also called qing 黥), cutting off the nose (yi 劓), cutting off the foot or removing the kneecap or kneecap (yue 刖, also called fei 剕, diao 𠚥 or bin 臏, supposed to replace the previous punishment of cutting off the ear, he 刵), castration (gong 宮, also called Zhuo 椓) and execution (dapi 大辟). The so-called five punishments (wuxing 五刑) were the death penalty (see also penal tools) in ancient China. According to legend, the Yellow Emperor 黃帝 or the Xia夏 Dynasty (17th – 15th century BCE) adopted them, as they were common punishments used by the southern Miao tribes. The Confucian classic Shangshu 尚書 “Book of Documents” (chapter Lüxing 呂刑) says that when Chi You 蚩尤 brought chaos to earth, the Miao tribes created the five punishments: “They made the five punishments engines of oppression and called them the laws.