3. 2200 to 800 BC

3.1. Keywords

  • sanwei

  • chao tsuab

  • chao xyam

  • heaven

  • dongting

  • miao

  • throne

  • shun

3.2. Events

  • San Miao nation is established after fall of Jiuli. The San Miao nation probably existed in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River [Har96]. San Miao spanned the Han rulers of Yao, Shun, and Yu–three of the 5 so called Sage Kings Wu Di. There were tremendous climatic changes during this era for all the people. Long stretches of flooding around the Yellow River lasting over a decade was one problem, in particular, that plagued the population. The Miao speaking the western dialect was the main power of San Miao [Zha96]. Yao, Shun, and Yu were not from the same family. Each ruler, except for the last, following the example set by Yao, abdicated the throne to the best candidate they could find [LS99]. This system of handing down the throne was called, shanrang. When Yu died, the throne was passed to his son, and started the shixi system of handing the throne to a family member and also dynastic rule. All three spent a great deal of their reign battling floods.

  • Yao is said to have banished people of the San Miao nation to Sanwei Shan (Sanwei Mountain) [Ame94].

  • Shun, the second sovereign of whose reign there is record (2200 B. c.), is said to have waged war with San Miao, three tribes of Miaotze or aborigines, a term still applied to the independent tribes of the southwest. Beaten in the field, or at least suffering a temporary check, he betook himself to the rites of religion, making offerings and praying to Shang-ti, the supreme ruler. “After forty days the natives submitted.” [Mar05] Shun died while engaged in a punitive expedition against San Miao [Ame94].

  • Yu the Great defeated the San-Miao Kingdom and was believed to have largely exterminated the people of San Miao. [Xio00,Jen94] After the Miao were defeated, they moved south to the Dongting Hu (Dongting Lake) region. The provinces, Hunan (South of the Lake) and Hubei (North of the Lake) are named in geographic reference to Dongting Hu. 9/12/1912: It is said there was a double sunset when the San-Miao Kingdom fell (solar eclipse) [Ans02].

  • Geographic separation of the Three Miao Groups began after the fall of San Miao [Zha96].

  • (2070-–1600) Xia Chao Xyam Tshoj

  • (1600–1046) Shang Chao Sab Tshoj Doctrine of ‘mandate of heaven’ tian.ming and ‘son of heaven’ tian.zi established [Poo07b].

  • (1122–256) Zhou Chao Tsuab Tshoj