Gourt Home::Gourt :: Yue Fei
| Names (details) | |
|---|---|
| Known in English as: | Yue Fei |
| Traditional Chinese: | 岳飛 |
| Simplified Chinese: | 岳飞 |
| Hanyu Pinyin: | Yuè Fēi |
| Courtesy name: | Pengju |
| Traditional Chinese: | 鵬舉 |
| Simplified Chinese: | 鹏举 |
| Hanyu Pinyin: | Péngjǔ |
| Posthumous name: | Wumu |
| Traditional Chinese: | 武穆 |
| Simplified Chinese: | 武穆 |
| Hanyu Pinyin: | Wǔmù |
Birth & Early Life
He was born into a poor tenant farmer's family. His family village, Yue Village, was located in Tanyin County, Anyang Prefecture, Henan province. Days after his birth, flooding of the Yellow River destroyed Yue Fei's village. His father, Yue Huo (岳和) (1054-1122 ?), drowned in the floods, but not before he had ensured the survival of his wife and son by floating them downstream in a large clay jar. Yue Fei and his mother, Lady Yao (姚夫人), settled in Hebei province.
Other sources state Yue Fei's father survived the flood and did not die until 1122. (This parallel history states 8 year old Yue Fei joined his father in the field and gained his legendary strength from vigorous farm work.) Yue Fei had to mourn his father's death for two years before he could return to the army in 1124, as per the custom of the time. *)
Martial Training
His first martial teacher was the lesser-known Chen Guang (陈广), who taught Yue Fei how to wield the chinese spear with deadly proficiency. He was hired by Yue Fei's maternal grandfather Yao Daweng (姚大翁). His second martial teacher was the better known Martial-Scholar Zhou Tong (1040–1119), who taught Yue Fei the skills of boxing, archery, and military tactics. It is said Yue Fei was "able to draw a bow of over three hundred catties (approx. 331 lbs) in strength, and to shoot with either the left or right arm."Becoming proficient in warfare at an early age, Yue Fei narrowly escaped execution after killing Cai Gui (蔡桂), the "Prince of Liang", in the martial arts tournament of the Imperial Military Exams.
Famous Tattoo
According to legend, Yue Fei's mother tattooed four characters, () which means "serve the country loyally", on his back before he left home to join the army in 1122. This served as a constant reminder to protect China at all costs.
Adult Life
Family
According to Yue Fei's biography, he had five sons and one daughter. Yue Yun (岳雲) (1119-1142), the eldest, was adopted by Yue Fei; Yue Lei (岳雷), Yue Fei's first real son, succeeded to his father's post; Yue Ting, (岳霆) was the third; Yue Lin, (岳霖) was the fourth; and Yue Zhen, (岳震) the fifth, was still young at the time of his father's death. Yue Yinping was Yue Fei's daughter. One legend says she committed suicide after her father's death and became a fairy in heaven.Yue Fei married in 1119 at the age of 16.
Military Record
Yue Fei did not join the army until 1122, but he quikcly rose through the ranks to become a general in only six years (1128). As a valiant and tactically astute general, Yue Fei led many successful campaigns against the forces of the Jin Dynasty. Taking advantage of the difficulties which his opponents' cavalry experienced in the hilly terrain of Southern China, he was able to score victories although his troops were frequently outnumbered. His forces succeeded in regaining territory south of the Yangtze and Huai Rivers. The enemies even said "撼山易，撼岳家军难", meaning it was easy to push over a mountain, but difficult to push over Yue's army. He was also known for his strict discipline of his legions, forbidding them to pillage, even when facing the harshest of conditions. In all, Yue Fei participated in 126 battles and won them all.Martial Arts
Yue Fei created his own fighting form with a spear, famously known to peasants as '岳家槍', and all soldiers trained in it. This style is sometimes confused with the Liu He Qiang' (六和) or "Six Harmonies spear".
Several other martial arts have been attributed to Yue Fei, including Yuejia quan (Yue Family Boxing), Wuji quan (Emptiness Boxing), Ying Jow Pai (Eagle Claw), Xingyiquan (Form-Will Boxing), Fanziquan (Tumbling Boxing), and Chuojiao quan (Feet-Poking Boxing), among others.
Poetry
He was a role model for followers of Confucian ideals and moral values, as well as being an accomplished martial artist and poet.
At the age of 30, Yue Fei wrote his most famous poem, Manjiang Hong (), or Entirely Red River). This poem reflects the raw hatred he felt towards the Jin, as well as the saddness he felt when his efforts to recoup northern lands lost to the Jin were halted by Southern Song officials of the "Peace Faction".
Death
In the middle of a long victorious campaign against the Jin, corrupt officials, the most famous being the traitor Qin Hui (1090 - 1155) (), persuaded Emperor Gaozong to recall Yue Fei to the capital. Yue Fei had been ready to attack the capital of the Jin Dynasty at the time. The emperor ordered Yue Fei to return twelve times in the form of twelve gold plaques. Instead of saving the empire by eliminating the threat from the Jin Dynasty, Yue Fei chose to submit to the conspiracy and returned to the capital, where he would be executed. He would eventually be pardoned posthumously by Emperor Xiaozong, and Yue Fei's memorial was built during his reign.
Kneeling Iron Statues
Qin Hui could not find a reason to execute the captured Yue Fei and was about to release him. However, Qin Hui's wife, Lady Wang (王氏), made the suggestion that since the emperor held absolute power, Qin Hui having the authority of the emperor, needed no reason to execute Yue Fei. He and his adopted-son, Yue Yun (） (1119-1142), were sentenced to death and executed on charges that were not proven but instead "could be true" (, lit. "could be true"). The phrase has entered the Chinese language as an expression to refer to fabricated charges. For their part in Yue Fei's death, iron statues of Qin Hui, Lady Wang, and two of Qin Hui's subordinates, Moqi Xie (万俟軼) and Zhang Jun (張俊), were made to kneel before Yue Fei's tomb (located by Hangzhou's West Lake). For centuries, these statues have been spat and urinated upon by young and old. But now, in modern times, these statues are protected as historical relics.
Modern Day
Today, he is revered as one of the great symbols of patriotism and a national hero in China (second only to General Guan Di); Manjiang Hong is well-read and is known throughout China and Chinese people around the world, and his mausoleum in Hangzhou is well-visited. There are also two heavily mutilated statues of Qin Hui and his wife, topless, kneeling outside the temple as if begging for mercy. People in the past used to spit upon and kick them, until they were protected as part of the historic temple.
Also, to instill a sense of patriotism, the Chinese government required all primary school students to read and study at least one text about Yue Fei.
Folk Legends
- Those who plotted to have Yue Fei executed were haunted by his ghost and driven to commit suicide.
- In a previous life, Yue Fei was born a Peng (Roc) and poked out the eye of a Dragon living in the Yellow River. Years later, when the Peng was reborn as Yue Fei, the dragon flooded the Yellow River in order to kill the newborn, but failed.*
- Guan Di visited Song Emperor Huizong in a dream and revealed the hero Zhang Fei was reborn as a child named "Yo Fei" (Yue Fei). This child would grow up to battle the northern barbarians.
- "Qin Hui - The Stinker". During the Ming Dynasty, the new Provincial Govenor-General of Hangzhou, who was a direct descendant of Qin Hui and Madam Wang, had both iron statues thrown into the West Lake under cover of night. The next day, the lake turned pitch-black and smelt of vomit. The townsfolk realized that the lake’s condition coincided with the statues' disappearance. When Official Qin arrived on the scene, the people questioned him about his relationship with Qin Hui. Because he knew the statues had sunk to the bottom of the lake, he boasted "If anyone can really scoop the statues out of the lake, this official is waiting to resign and ask for punishment." At that exact moment, the murky water became clear and the statues drifted ashore as if propelled by an invisible force. The cowardly official bolted for his sedan when he saw this miraculous sight. As his drivers fled the scene, his sedan was pelted with rocks from the angry towsfolk. That night, Official Qin escaped Hangzhou, never to be heard from again. Listen to this Story
Sources
External links
- The Most Famous Tattoo in Chinese History - Jing Zhong Bao Guo
"Yue Fei"