The three wise kings and the five legendary emperors

The three wise kings and the five legendary emperors

Suiren, Fuxi and Shennong are considered the three wise kings of ancient China who made personal sacrifices to improve people's lives. They are known for one or more unique contributions to humanity.

Suiren, who is said to have lived 18,000 years ago, discovered how to make fire by drilling wood. This discovery allowed humanity to eat cooked food and use fire to keep warm and ward off wild animals.

Fuxi taught people how to domesticate animals. He also taught them to build nets to catch fish, birds and wild animals, ensuring a year-round supply of food. He was also responsible for creating the institution of marriage and a musical instrument with 35 strings. His most important contribution, however, was the Bagua, or Eight Trigram, which formed the basis for the all-important I Ching, or Book of Changes.

Shennong, also known as Yandi, invented the ancient rake, spade, plow and sickle and taught people to grow five types of grains, rice, two types of millet, wheat and beans. He also invented barter and further modified Fuxi's 35-string musical instrument into a 5-string one.

However, he was best remembered for tasting hundreds of wild herbs to find remedies to treat illnesses. He constantly suffered from poisoning and eventually died from eating one too many.

The emperors after Shennong were Huangdi, Zhuanxu, Diku, Yao and Shun and they are collectively known as the five legendary rulers.

Huangdi is credited with many achievements. He had good management skills and knows how to use capable men to govern the country and bring about innovations.

He tasked his subject with developing a written language that contributed to the growth of Chinese culture. With another he studied the art of healing and compiled “The Yellow Emperor’s Medicine Classic.” With another, he developed the 60-year calendar “Jia Zi,” which supported agriculture.

Huangdi advocated for peace and avoided war. During his reign, the people enjoyed peace and prosperity and it ushered in the age of civilization for the Chinese people.

Zhuanxu, who followed Huangdi, was not his son. He was chosen over Huangdi's many sons because of his outstanding abilities. Zhuanxu's greatest contribution was to bring law and order to the people and consolidate the power of the central authority.

After Zhuanxu comes Diku, who was a great-grandson of Huangdi. Diku was a kind king who put the welfare of the people above himself. He created new official posts and ministries with clearly defined tasks such as the Ministry of Lands, Forestry, Water, Metal Ores and Fire. And he often personally conducted inspections to ensure that the country was well run. He also further improved the calendar which contributed to agriculture.

Yao was Diku's son. He was hardworking and kind like his father. He further developed the calendar and modified the timing of planting, resulting in bumper crops.

Shun was Yao's son-in-law. Although his mother died when he was very young and his stepmother and father abused him, he remained childish towards them. His great virtue brought him fame and he was called into the service of King Yao at the age of 30. He eventually married King Yao's daughter.

Shun designed the five rules of etiquette and other rules and regulations that the dukes and princes had to follow. He also divided the country into 12 states, each with its own administrator. He continued the changes at the administrative level, establishing the Department of Rites, Music, Agriculture, Mulberry Planting, Works, Water and Land.

Shun was succeeded by Yu, who founded the Xia Dynasty. Yu was famous for his ability to control floods, but that is another story for another time.