釋氏稽古略 3.89

3.89

Dynastic Title Zhou: In the ninth month of the first year of Tianshou, Fu Youyi, Censor, led the common people of the Guanzhong region to the palace gates to present a memorial, requesting that the dynastic title be changed to Zhou and that the Emperor be bestowed the surname Wu. The Empress Dowager consented. She then ascended the Zetian Tower and granted a general amnesty throughout the realm, changing Tang to Zhou and changing the reign era. She assumed the honorable title Holy and Divine Emperor (Shengshen Huangdi). She made the Emperor the Imperial Heir, bestowing upon him the surname Wu. She erected seven ancestral temples of the Wu clan in the Divine Capital. In the eleventh month, on the *gengchen* day, the new moon and the winter solstice, the Empress Dowager made offerings at the Wanxiang Divine Palace and granted a general amnesty throughout the realm. She began to use the Zhou calendar, taking the eleventh month of the first year of Yongchang to be the first month of the first year of Zaichu, the twelfth month to be the La month, and the first month of the Xia calendar to be the 'One month'. Qin Zongke invented twelve new characters including those for heaven and earth and presented them to the throne; on the *dinghai* day they were put into practice. The Empress Dowager named herself Zhao. She changed *zhao* [imperial edict] to *zhi* [imperial decree]. In the second month, on the *xinyou* day, the Empress Dowager examined tribute scholars in the Luocheng Hall; the palace examination for tribute scholars began from this. By the tenth month of winter in the first year of the Jiushi era, an imperial decree restored the first month to be the eleventh month, and the 'One month' to be the first month. In the second month of the first year of Shenlong under Zhongzong, the dynastic title of Tang was restored. Suburban sacrifices, ancestral temples, altars of soil and grain, mausoleums, civil officials, banners, garment colors, and written characters were all restored as in the old precedents before Yongchun. The Divine Capital was again made the Eastern Capital, and the Northern Capital was made Bingzhou. The twelve newly created characters were: *zhao* became 瞾; *tian* [heaven] became 𠀑; *di* [earth] became 埊; *ri* [sun] became [○@乙]; *yue* [moon] became 囝; *xing* [star] became ○; *jun* [ruler] became 𠁈; *chen* [minister] became 𢘑; *zai* [year] became 𡕀; *nian* [year] became 𠡦; *chu* [beginning] became 𡔈; *zheng* [first month] became 𠙺. She ordered the Prime Ministers to compile the *Records of Current Administration*, submitting them monthly to the Bureau of Officials. The *Records of Current Administration* began from this (*Tang shu*).