Tan Sitong

Tan Sitong (simplified Chinese: 谭嗣同; traditional Chinese: 譚嗣同; pinyin: Tán Sìtóng; Wade–Giles: T'an2 Ssu4-T'ung2, March 10, 1865 – September 28, 1898), courtesy name Fusheng (復生), pseudonym Zhuangfei (壯飛), was a well-known Chinese politician, thinker and reformist in the late Qing Dynasty (1644–1911). He was executed at the age of 33 when the Reformation Movement failed in 1898.[1] Tan Sitong was one of the "Six gentlemen of the Hundred Days' Reform" (戊戌六君子) and occupies an important place in modern Chinese history. To many contemporaries, his execution symbolized the political failure of the Qing Dynasty's reformation, helping to persuade the intellectual class to pursue violent revolution and overthrow the Qing Dynasty.

Tan Sitong
谭嗣同
Born(1865-03-10)10 March 1865
Died28 September 1898(1898-09-28) (aged 33)
EraQing Dynasty
RegionChinese Philosopher and Reformist
Tan Sitong
Traditional Chinese譚嗣同
Simplified Chinese谭嗣同

Early life

Tan Sitong was one of nine siblings and was born in Beijing, although his family originally came from Liuyang, Hunan Province. His father, Tan Jixun (谭继洵), was the governor of Hubei Province. His mother, Xu Wuyuan (徐五缘), a traditional Chinese housewife, was very strict with her children.

Tan Sitong spent his childhood in Beijing and his youth in Liuyang. He began his formal education at 5 and was tutored by a famous scholar called Ouyang Zhonggu (欧阳中鹄) when he was 10. Although he was talented at essay writing, he objected to the conventional form of the essay that was required for examinations. As a result, he only achieved the title of "student member" (shengyuan - 生員), a very low educational level.

At the age of 12, Tan Sitong lost his mother, his eldest brother, and his second eldest sister, who all died within a span of five days due to diphtheria that had spread during a visit to a cousin. Tan Sitong also fell gravely ill but recovered three days later, which many people deemed to be a miracle. After Tan Sitong lost his mother, his father’s concubine treated him badly.

In 1879, Tan Sitong studied under another scholar, Xu Qixian (徐启先), with whom he began a systematic study of representative works in Chinese, as well as natural science.

In 1884, he left his home and traveled to several different provinces of China, including Hebei, Gansu, Xinjiang, Shaanxi, Henan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, Shandong, and Shanxi. He composed more than 200 poems during the trip.

At the age of 19, Tan Sitong married a woman named Li Run (李闰) and had a son named Tan Lansheng (谭兰生), who died within a year of being born.

Reforming campaign

Background

National isolationism began (闭关锁国) in the late 18th century resulted in a wide technological gap between China and the Western world, which had exacerbated corruption among the feudal authorities. One effect of this gap was a push by Western countries to develop and invest in underdeveloped nations, including China. This led to the First Opium War（第一次鸦片战争） between China and Britain, which ushered in a period of foreign invasion and colonization in China, at the time ruled by the Qing Dynasty（清王朝）. During this time, Chinese intellectuals and officials sought ways to improve Chinese life and national prospects. In 1895, after a defeat by Japan in the First Sino-Japanese War（甲午战争）, China was forced to sign the unequal Treaty of Shimonoseki（马关条约）, under which Taiwan（台湾） was occupied and 250 million taels (两，then Chinese currency) were paid to Japan.

Astonished and indignant by the defeat, Tan Sitong began to realize the necessity of a thorough reformation in China. He and his colleagues began to search for new approaches to improve national standing. In 1896, he wrote the poem My Feelings (《有感》):

世间无物抵春愁，
合向苍冥一哭休。
四万万人齐下泪，
天涯何处是神州？

Nothing in this world can withstand the longing for Spring,
These longings join together until they reach the shadowy netherworld in tears.
The wailing 400 million people are asking the same question:
Oh Where, oh where on this earth can we find our divine China?

Between 1896 and 1897, he finished writing a famous book called Ren Xue (仁学, Theory of Benevolence), which was considered to be the first philosophical work of the Reform. In this book, he said absolute monarchy greatly oppressed human nature. In 1898, he founded a new academy called the South Academy, which attempted to introduce Reformation ideals in southern China, specifically the Hunan district. Later, he also created the newspaper “Hunan Reporter” (湘报) to publicize the advantage of Reformation policies.[2]

Hundred Days Reform

Early in 1898, Tan Sitong was introduced to Emperor Guangxu（光绪皇帝）, who was considering enacting Reformation policies. Tan was appointed a member of the Grand Council（军机处）, and within two months the Hundred Days' Reform began with the issuing of an Imperial order called Ming Ding Guo Shi (明定国是诏). However, some of the new policies appeared to challenge the existing interests of many government officials, which led to objections from Manchu（满族, the ethnic group ruling the Qing Dynasty）aristocrats and they reported the case to Empress Dowager Cixi（慈禧太后）, who was de facto leader of the central authority as she was holding much more political leverage than Emperor Guangxu, even though the Emperor had been in throne for more than two decades. As a result, the Reform policies did not gain wide and effective support officially.

When it came to September 1898, Tan and his counterparts thought the Dowager as well as conservative officials was planning to interfere with the Reformation campaign, for which he immediately visited general Yuan Shikai（袁世凯）, in the hope that Yuan's army could support the Reformation Movement by murdering Ronglu (a Manchu official who was in charge of the capital and its surrounding regions then) and imprisoning Cixi in the Summer Palace（颐和园）where she was relaxing in. Yuan did not decline this at the moment however, after returning to Tianjin（天津）, he immediately betrayed the Reform movement by divulging the conspiracy of overthrowing Cixi’s power. What’s more, Cixi was informed that the reformists were trying to engage Itō Hirobumi (伊藤博文，a Japanese politician and reformist who was touring in China then) as a government consultant even provide him with a certain amount of power, which worried her significantly about invulnerability of the Dynasty. Actually, when the Reform began, Cixi didn’t show much resistance while the Emperor had been empowered absolutely to deal with administrative affairs by her, until getting to know these.

As a result, Cixi swiftly returned to the Forbidden City（紫禁城）from the Summer Palace on Sep 21 and led a coup, in which she seized the throne power from Emperor Guangxu and ordered to arrest all those involved in the Reformation. The short-lived Reformation Movement tragically ended 103 days after it began and it has been known ever since as the Hundred Days' Reform（百日维新）. Emperor Guangxu was imprisoned at a place surrounded by water called Ying Tai (瀛台, a tiny isiand in the middle of a lake）in Zhongnanhai（中南海）, allowing Cixi to absolutely consolidate her public standing and authority. All the Reformation policies were abolished except for Jing Shi Da Xue Tang (京师大学堂), the first government-established tertiary educational institution in China’s history, which later on became Peking University.

Tan Sitong was arrested at the "Guild Hall of Liuyang" (浏阳会馆, a guildhall for those from Liuyang) in Beijing on September 24. He had been encouraged to escape to Japan, where the government had expressed sympathy for Reformist scholars. However, Tan refused to go with the reason that his sacrifice would serve as a catalyst for Reformation ideals among the nation. His words on this were as follows:

各国变法，无不从流血而成。今中国未闻有因变法而流血者，此国之所以不昌者也。有之，请从嗣同始。
Seen from the world, no successful reforms were made without bleeding. So far, within China, it has never been heard that anyone sacrificed his life to reform the nation, for which the country lacks prosperity. If there is anyone to be, just start from me.

After being caught, Tan Sitong was put in the Xing Bu Da Lao (刑部大牢), the jail belonging to then Ministry of Justice, and charged with treason and attempting a military coup. Unanticipatedly, The legal inquiry process was soon interrupted by an abrupt order from the Emperor (effectively made by Cixi) calling for an immediate execution due to the severity of his crimes. Consequently, Tan was escorted to the Caishikou Execution Grounds (菜市口刑场) outside Xuanwu Gate (宣武门) of Peking on the afternoon of September 28, 1898, where he was executed by beheading along with five others, Yang Shenxiu（杨深秀）, Lin Xu（林旭), Liu Guangdi（刘光第), Kang Guangren（康广仁，younger brother of Kang Youwei), and Yang Rui（杨锐). Historically, these men are called the “Wu Xu Liu Jun Zi” (戊戌六君子，Six gentlemen of the Hundred Days' Reform, “Wu Xu” (戊戌) was the term of the year 1898 within a Sexagenary cycle in Chinese traditional calendar). Originally, there were another two officials was ordered to be executed along with the six, Zhang Yinhuan（张荫桓）and Xu Zhijing（徐致靖), they survived the execution due to efficacious rescues by high-ranked officials and foreign interventions.

Tan Sitong's last words on the execution ground are well-known in China, translated as follows:

有心杀贼，无力回天。死得其所，快哉！快哉！
Having got the intention to kill the foes though, I lacked the strength to challenge the fate. Sacrificing at the place where I should die, it is an exciting thing! Exciting thing!

Shortly before the execution, Tan asked to leave a word to Gangyi (刚毅, a Manchu official who was Minister for Defense and an strong opponent against the Reform), who supervised the execution, but Gangyi refused to hear so. This thus left unknown to all.

Death and legacy

After the execution, Tan Sitong's remains were collected and stored by some of his friends. In 1899, the remains were sent to and buried in his hometown, Liuyang (浏阳), Hunan (湖南). His father, despite his disagreement with his son's Reform efforts, was stripped of all official duties. He returned to his hometown and died three years later. Tan Sitong's wife, Li Run, became active in promoting girls’ education and also volunteered as a foster mother in Hunan in her later years. Li passed away in 1925, 14 years after the collapse of Qing Dynasty and 27 years after her husband’s death.

Shortly before his execution, Tan Sitong wrote a farewell letter to his wife, in which some of his principles and values are expressed:

闰妻如面：

结缡十五年，原约相守以死，我今背盟矣！手写此信，我尚为世间一人；君看此信，我已成阴曹一鬼。死生契阔，亦复何言，惟念此身虽去，此情不渝。小我虽灭，大我常存。生生世世，同住莲花。如比迎陵毗迦同命鸟，比翼双飞，亦可互嘲。愿君视荣华如梦幻，视死辱为常事。无喜无悲，听其自然。我与殇儿，同在西方极乐世界相偕待君，他年重逢，再聚团圆。殇儿与我，灵魂不远，与君魂梦相依，望君遣怀。

戊戌八月九日，嗣同

My love Run as you see my face here,

You see, we had promised our 15-year marriage to finish the life hand in hand but heartbreakingly, I may have to break the promise now! When I was writing this, I was still alive in the world; however, you, as the reader, are facing a ghost in the netherworld. A long separation is standing ahead, deserving no extra words. Though I am gone, our affections exist as usual. My small ego perished though, long lives my super ego. Life after life, a lotus is accommodating us, we are something like inseparable king birds there - always flying together and making jokes on each other. My last hope, here for you, is to see glory and wealth as unreal illusions while getting accustomed to sacrifice and humiliation. Better to discard extreme happiness and sorrow and, just let everything go. I, along with our dead son, am sincerely waiting for our another reunion in heaven some time after you. We will not go too far away from home, where we are still accompanying your soul and dream, for which nothing will be different for you.

Sitong
Sep 24 1898

Tan Sitong has become a symbol of courage, patriotism and anti-feudalism among Chinese people, for which he is always portrayed in a positive light in literature and film. His life and accomplishments are part of popular cultural knowledge and well known to most of the Chinese population.

See also

References
  1. http://www.dartmouth.edu/~qing/WEB/T'AN_SSU-T'UNG.html
  2. Wright, David (1994). "Tan Sitong and the Ether Reconsidered". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. 57 (3): 551–575. doi:10.1017/S0041977X00008909. ISSN 0041-977X. JSTOR 619320.

Notes
  • 仁学
  • 谭嗣同年谱
  • "T'an Ssu-t'ung," in Hummel, Arthur William, ed. Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing Period (1644-1912). (Washington: United States Government Printing Office, 1943), Vol II, pp. 701–705. Online at Qing Studies Workshop (link at left).


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