The Tragic Quest for Political Integration: Aristocracy and Centralization, Withdrawal, and Reconstruction from Han to Jin China

The emergence and systematic formation of the medieval Chinese aristocracy were fundamentally structural consequences of the extensive centralization of political authority under China's unified imperial regimes. The preliminary yet substantial aristocracy structure had been gradually established during the long Han periods, in close conjunction and intertwinement with the progressive consolidation of the imperial authority and governance.

The Western Han period provided the initial foundation and development for the making loosely organized structure of the aristocracy groups, while more significantly, during the Eastern Han period, these incipient aristocracy groups underwent the comprehensive and systematic process of intellectualization and Confucianization that marked the critical stage in building of their distinctive intellectual and status-based identity. The Confucianized aristocracy intellectuals served as the crucial force for the advancing political centralization and correspondingly the institutionalization of the central governance structure, ultimately driven by their profound political idealism and sense of political mission, which derived fundamentally from their full adherence and intellectual identification the Confucian doctrines. Meanwhile these aristocracy elites retained and exercised the remarkable social and cultural influences at the local societies that coherently accompanied with the relatively autonomous status and distinctive consciousness of collective intellectual identity.

The seemingly inexorable political degeneration and corruptions particularly on the central imperial political structure became increasingly pronounced during the closing decades of the Eastern Han. This deterioration was fundamentally associated with the paradoxical expansion and fragmentation of the imperial power through the alternating ascendancy of consort families and eunuch factions. Although these consort and eunuch fractions transformed to be the aristocracy groups by acquiring the considerable aristocratic privileges and political influence through their political integration into central imperial establishment, they were widely perceived as lacking the sufficiently strong Confucianism-driven political idealism and moral commitment that firmly upheld by aristocracy intellectuals, and such ideological disconnection fundamentally eroded the relationship between imperial authority and the aristocracy intellectuals, and ultimately culminating into the profound political rupture.

The intense political prosecution of the idealist aristocracy intellectuals, accompanied with their enormous pains and disillusionment, compelled them to heavily withdraw from the previously active and deeply integrated political participations. With their high consciousness on the Confucian moral idealism that deeply embedded in their distinctive identity as the group of aristocracy intellectuals, their idealism underwent the remarkable transformation from the active political participation to the preservation and cultivation of the idealized inner world, which the inner world truthfully reflecting and resonating with their already established and continuously developed aristocratic intellectual identity. Therefore, the systematic formation of the metaphysical Confucianism during the mature phase of Wei-Jin period, following the total collapse of Han empire and amid the further increasing consolidation of the aristocracy status, represented the landmarked intellectual expression of the philosophical mind and vision on identifying and pursuing the idealized inner world of the self that essentially grounded in the understanding and interpretation of the ultimate metaphysical principle underlying the universal order.

However, the pursuit of the inner idealized world of the self was hardly the purely inward action. Although its underlying political aspirations were not always explicitly articulated, the ultimate purpose of the newly forming metaphysical Confucianism, despite its critical reassessment on the traditional Confucian emphasis on the direct and heavy political engagements and interactions, ultimately sought the redefinition and reconstruction of the central political structure, and crucially through the full reintegration of the aristocracy intellectuals and officials drawn from the increasingly consolidated and systematically established aristocracy class. Within the philosophical and ideological endeavor of unifying the idealized inner world with the external political world, which represented the defining conclusion of the Medieval Chinese metaphysical Confucianism, the idealized inner world that had stood as the only authentic realm for the preservation of the true and pure idealism, was in fact dissolved and deprived of its independent philosophical significance through this very unification. Thus the transient existence of the pure idealized inner world that had only been made possible through the philosophical development the metaphysical Confucianism and fundamentally grounded in the systematic establishment of the aristocracy structure, should be understood as both the everlasting historical tragedy and enduring intellectual glory.

The early phase of the Qin-Han political centralization, owing to its beginning stage of development, had yet to build the sufficient political bureaucratization system that firmly and fundamentally supported by the well-established institutional foundation and social structures. The comprehensive adoption of the Confucian ideology, accompanying with growing stability and institutional maturity of the imperial political structure, provided the powerful intellectual and ideological conditions through which the emerging and still-forming bureaucratic elites could begin to develop their collective identity and idealism in alignment with the evolving structure of imperial central governance.

During the initial formation of the Han Empire, the military leaders and elites who actively participated in the overthrow of the Qin Empire and the subsequent military struggles against the other rival political powers that arisen during the collapse of Qin Empire, formed the principle component of the newly established imperial political and bureaucratic order. Although the centralized political system was functionally established, it remained institutionally incomplete that particularly characterized by the lack of the full integration of the powerful social groups, who would faithfully commit to the practice of the Confucianism as both the intellectual foundation of political idealism and moral conduct. Throughout the Western Han period, the emergent formation of the local influential social clans were facilitated by increasingly substantial opportunities for development, although the structural consolidation and the systematic integration into the centralized imperial political structure remained incomplete. Both the established elite lineage that predating the imperial centralization and the newly emerging influential clans of the centralized imperial era progressively develop the extensive local social networks, the process that was in close correspondence with the continuing institutional demand of the imperial governance structure for recruitment of the political bureaucrats from the local societies. Nevertheless, the relationship between the emerging and increasingly influential local elite clans and the centralized imperial authority remained characterized by the unresolved tension throughout the Western Han period. The substantially growing influences of the local elite clans, and to the certain extent, their de-facto authority powers over the local communities, in the absence of the comprehensive and thorough Confucianization progress that would decisively and fundamentally shape their moral principles, political convictions and sense of political mission, were frequently presented and perceived by the central imperial authority as the deviations from, and potential threat to its political authority. Consequently, these local influential clans remained vulnerable to become targets of deliberate political interventions to restrict their influences and curtail their local powers.

The circumstance of the inadequately integrated social clans, and their relationship with the centralized political authority, was fundamentally transformed during the formation and consolidation of the Eastern Han Empire, which largely inherited the political ideology and conception of imperial legitimacy from Western Han Empire. The already influential local social clans progressively empowered their political standing and transformed themselves to become the central component of the centralized imperial power structure. Most crucially, this transformation extended far beyond the selected social elite clans that had played pivoted roles in the establishment of the new empire following the collapse of Western Han and the ensuing political and military turmoils. Rather, the large-scale process of political centralization and bureaucratization, and most fundamentally the systematic Confucian ideological and moral transformation, encompassed the local elite clans as the broader social stratum. The centralized political structure underwent the further substantial consolidation through the institutional and foundational supports from the Confucianized social clans, for whom the active political participations and engagements constituted the fundamental expression of their Confucian-driven political and moral idealism. Reciprocally, through their sustained and extensive political engagements into the central political affairs, the Confucianized social clans began to progressively and systematically form the collective status and identity as the aristocracy intellectuals, while simultaneously reinforcing and systematizing their authorities over the local societies. Their profound and faithful embrace of the Confucian idealism endowed them with the fundamental sense of moral responsibility and social mission to manage the local communities in accordance with the Confucian ethical principle. Moreover, the Confucianized social clans predominantly undertook the scholarly and ideological responsibilities of conducting the deep and extensive intellectual inquiry into the large-scale systematic elucidation and interpretation of the Confucian classics, thereby further strengthening the essential intellectual and ideological foundations of their collective identity. And through this process of profound intellectual immersion, their distinctive intellectual identity accordingly began to be progressively crystallized and assumed the more clearly and coherently articulated form.

However, the same pattern cannot be extended to apply to the rise of eunuch groups , which represented the later and more distorted extension of the imperial authority. The eunuch fraction ascended to the center of imperial political authority primarily through their personal relationships of trust with the emperor. Nevertheless, they were able to utilize the existing system of integration between the aristocracy structure and the centralized political structure to transform themselves into the new form of the aristocracy group, exhibiting the considerable structural similarities to both the consort-centered aristocratic elites and the Confucianism-oriented aristocratic intellectual group, but were notably characterized, from the perspective of the idealist Confucian critics, completely and fundamentally deficient in the Confucian belief and moral commitment in both their ideological orientation and political practices. The increasing political dominance of the eunuch fraction at the later Eastern Han period was correspondingly accompanied by intensifying political corruptions and abuses of powers, which influence extended greatly across the empire through their established aristocratic standing that enabled them to exercise the considerable powers to the local societies. The continuously deteriorating political and social situation was absolutely unacceptable and intolerable to the aristocracy intellectuals who firmly upheld and deeply committed to the Confucian moral idealism, and the resulting escalation of the fierce conflicts primarily between the two aristocracy groups, consequently culminated into the severe persecution of the idealized aristocracy intellectuals, as the imperial authority explicitly favored and continued to place its trust in the political dominance of the eunuch fraction.

The consequently severe suppression of the emerging aristocracy intellectuals and bureaucrats that crucially driven by the Confucian moralism and idealism, resulting from the brutal decision of the central imperial authority, signified the beginning of the fundamental disintegration of the centralized political structure, which essential institutional principles rested on the political and ideological integration of the progressively forming aristocracy intellectual groups. The rapidly rising and competing regional military powers emerged as the direct consequence of the disintegration of the centralized imperial authority, but simultaneously these regional powers represented the continuation of the governance model founded upon the aristocracy-centered political structure. The aristocracy group as the whole significantly strengthened their authority and social controls over the local communities amid the widespread political and military turmoil. Their reinforced aristocracy served as the powerful structural support for the remarkable transformation of their Confucianism-centered moralist and idealist missions, shifting their ultimate orientations from the external political and societal order towards the idealized inner world. The construction of this inner world essentially represented the inward reflection and internalization of the Confucian idealism they had previously sought to realize through intensive external political practices. Nevertheless, the persistent pursuit of seeking and restoring the political order through the renewed integration of the aristocracy groups remained the defining and enduring concern within their intellectual and political consciousness.

The renewed engagements with the political order during the Post-Han period naturally placed the central emphasis on the preservation of the aristocracy status, and accompanied by the pronounced disposition toward the resistance to the potential re-emergence of another form of authoritarian political rule. At the early stage of the emerging northern political powers, which the northern China remained as the center for intense political and military conflicted competitions, the political attempts had been made to establish the new imperial legitimacy with the substantial supports of the continuously strengthening aristocracy groups. More critically, the political attempts had been made to maintain the balance between the extremely fragile yet nominally surviving Han imperial authority and the emerging and increasingly consolidating de-facto political power in norther China. These attempts essentially reflected the early dilemma and struggles of the idealist mind of the aristocracy intellectuals during the Post-Han transition, who pursued for the nearly impossible mission of preserving the old political system that had been fundamentally built on the faithful integration of the Confucianized aristocracy groups with the central imperial authority, while seeking its co-existence with the ascendancy of new political powers that demonstrated the strong inclination toward the autocratic rule during its initial formative stage. Such attempt to maintain the political equilibrium between the nominal Han imperial authority and the emerging de facto Northern ruling authority met with the explicit rejection by the later. The subsequent establishment of Cao-Wei regime marked the formal replacement of Han imperial legitimacy by the new dynastic authority, in alignment with its actual political dominance that had been already exercised and consolidated over the sustained period.

Subsequently, particularly among the new generation of the aristocracy intellectuals, the formal transition of the imperial legitimacy came to be accepted, but under the essential premise for the further systematic recognition of their distinctive and privileged status. The philosophical and intellectual consciousness also correspondingly inherited the established and great tradition of the distinctive identity of the former aristocracy intellectuals, and further progressively advancing the development and cultivation of the fully realized inner world, while simultaneously restoring the political order and system upon the crucial foundation of such inner idealism.

The philosophical conception of identifying and establishing the ultimate natural order that centered on the metaphysical concept of ultimate non-being as the indefinable and indeterminate principle that utterly determines the laws and orders of the entire universe, marked the unprecedented stage in the formation of the metaphysical philosophical system aimed at defining the fundamental nature of the value and belief of the aristocracy intellectuals, and correspondingly, articulating the coherent political vision for the establishment of the appropriate structure of governance and the political relations between the aristocracy intellectuals and central political authority. The idealist mind and belief of the aristocracy intellectuals, with their increasingly prevalent tendency toward the inwardness, were thoroughly understood and defined by the metaphysical conception of ultimate natural order as essential manifestation of the predetermined nature and governing principles of the absolute universal order, and therefore demanding to be upheld and practiced wholeheartedly. And the political system, accordingly, must be constructed in complete accordance with their strongly inward-oriented idealism, primarily and essentially through preserving and guaranteeing the continued political integration of the aristocracy intellectuals, while fully allowing and recognizing their substantially strengthened social status and considerable degree of local autonomy and authority. More importantly, this political arrangement was necessarily compelled to accommodate their remarkable world of inner idealism, which had fundamentally transformed and reoriented their formerly intensive engagements in external political affairs toward the cultivation of their very own distinctive philosophical and intellectual identity, rooted in the ultimate principle of the metaphysical order and spirit.

The considerable degree of detachment from the active political engagements and interactions was to be consistently maintained in order to sustain the continuity and preservation of the still-forming idealized inner world that grounded in the metaphysical principles of universal order. However, the development of the philosophical system underpinning the political vision of the inward-oriented aristocracy intellectuals had not yet developed toward the sufficiently coherent and conclusive formulation at this stage. The Post-Han aristocracy structure underwent the significant phase of political systematization under the stabilized rule of Sima family that succeeded the Cao-Wei imperial ruling and further deepened the political recognition and collaboration with the reintegrated aristocracy groups, whose intellectual mind had become profoundly and overwhelmingly influenced and consciously shaped by the idealized metaphysical order. Despite the fact that the actual practice and understanding of the idealized inner world that fundamentally supported by the belief in ultimate metaphysical order had been temporarily but considerably distorted, as the lives and culture practices of the majority of the aristocratic elites embraced the extreme hedonism and unconventional daily conduct that openly contradicted the common social and moral standards but were justified through the ideal spiritual freedom, the profound and deep embrace of the underlying philosophical system of ultimate metaphysical order among the aristocracy groups themselves created the necessary and abundant intellectual conditions for the subsequent reassessment, revision and further development.

The oneness of the ultimate metaphysical order, which fundamentally and absolutely determined the nature of all things in the world, was further redefined as the ultimate principle governing each individual being, whereby each unique being was mandated to construct its own independent and complete world that determined in its entirety by its own inherent nature. To faithfully follow one’s unique and fundamental nature, fully embracing its entire course of rise and decline, and even life and death as the integral and intrinsic dimension of one’s own world, constituted the sole authentic path towards achieving the true spiritual freedom. Correspondingly, with the complete philosophical integration into one's own inherently independent and self-contained world, the definite boundary between the idealized inner world and the external world of political engagements was no longer conceived as the necessary existing. Under the essential condition of preserving and cultivating the one’s own independent and complete world, the pursuit of the inner idealism was understood as essentially equivalent to the dedication to the political missions, as both were intrinsic expressions of one’s distinctive and ultimate nature.

The series of the disastrous political decisions and implementations undertaken by the central political authority that largely driven by the intensifying political struggles with the imperial families and broader imperial clans during the middle to late stage at the unified Jin empire, miserably and ultimately precipitated the catastrophic collapse of the empire following the remarkably brief period of political unification. The brutal military struggles among the competing imperial clans not only severely weakened the central political authority and power of the central imperial structure, but more critically, the extensive military involvements and the subsequent dramatic rise of the nomadic powers further accelerated violent fragmentation and chaotic deconstruction of the established centralized political and social order. The aristocracy groups at the unified Jin empire, which had clearly begun to substantiate and systematize the process of their full reintegration into the central imperial and political structure, never truly had the opportunity to complete the transformation.

The remaining aristocracy groups in the northern China that under the nomadic-dominated political powers, which ruling authorities were remarkably characterized by the political brutality and coercion, faced the extreme difficulties in preserving their established way of life and culture that essentially built upon the philosophical and spiritual pursuit of the inner freedom and its associated idealized world. The other aristocracy groups that relocated to the southern China under the Eastern Jin empire, did successfully preserve the distinctive intellectual and cultural phenomenon of the philosophical system that centered on the inner idealism and individual spiritual freedom. However, the fundamental fragmentation of the central political structure, together with the substantial and systematic weakening of the social foundations of the exiled aristocracy groups, and furthermore, the growing influence of the nihilism as the cultural pattern within their intellectual and mental consciousness, collectively resulted in the profound inadequacy of political practice in realizing philosophical ideal of unifying the idealized inner world with the external world of political missions and commitments.

During the transitional period from the late Cao-Wei to the de facto Sima rule, the temporary yet severe political persecution of the aristocracy bureaucrats and intellectuals provoked the profoundly painful but deeply intellectual and philosophical reflection that particularly from the idealized aristocracy intellectuals, for whom the intellectual consciousness had already been shaped by the conception of the idealized metaphysical order. This intellectual phenomenon prompted the intensely critical reassessment and repudiation on the fundamental legitimacy of the external Confucian moral and political order. For them, the inner idealized world could only be preserved and cultivated through the complete denial and rejection of the any substantive moral values that embodied in the external Confucian political ideology and order, and its corresponding political practices and engagements. Such pure pursuit and immersion into the idealized inner world that was entitled with the ultimate metaphysical principle certainly could not constitute the enduring cultural and spiritual foundation for the aristocracy intellectuals, nor could it offer the guiding philosophical principle for the political reintegration that accompanied with the preservation of the inner idealized world.

However, through the recognition and contemplation of such complete and pure dedication and faithfulness onto the idealized inner world, alongside relevant conviction on its fundamental and inherent incongruity with the external system of order and discipline, the possibility emerges for the more in-depth philosophical and ideological inquiry into the long-term coherence and viability of the inner-external world unification, which encompassed both the preservation of idealized inner world and the sustained commitment to the political engagements. Such philosophical unification was never afforded the historical opportunity to be sufficiently realized, and it may also have been inherently contradictory in its own philosophical and political foundation.

*** This essay is written for Postgraduate program of World History and Philosophy at King's College London, and it is part of the series on Political Formation of Wei-Jin and Southern Dynasties that under the Medieval China series.