Bao Thanh Thien's funeral had 21 coffins, the burial date went in 7 different directions, why?

In 1062, Bao Thanh Thien died. His funeral had a special thing: there were 21 coffins instead of just one like everyone else's. This causes great curiosity. Some people think that this is a way to hide his grave from vandals.

When mentioning the most loved and respected mandarins in Chinese history, people will certainly immediately think of Bao Zheng, also known as Bao Thanh Thien, Bao Cong.

He is famous for being an honest and upright mandarin who strictly enforces the law and is not afraid of authority or respecting personal feelings. Bao Thanh Thien has extraordinary ability to judge, has solved many large and small cases, and is always on the side of the common people, which is why he is loved by the people.

According to the book Song History, Bao Cong's real name was Bao Chung (999-1062), courtesy name Hy Nhan. He is also known by many other names such as Bao Thanh Thien, Bao Thi Che, Bao Hac Tu, Bao Scholar or Bao Long Do.

Bao Cong was from Hefei, Luzhou (now Hefei city, Anhui province, China). He was born into a family with a tradition of studiousness. Since he was young, Bao Cong was famous for being a filial son and leading a disciplined life.

In 1027, he passed the doctoral exam and was sent to take office as Tri of Kien Xuong district (now in Jiangxi province). However, because his parents were old and weak, he refused to accept the job and stay home to take care of them. 10 years later, when his parents passed away, Bao Cong entered politics. At that time he was 38 years old.

When talking about Bao Cong, we often think of the image of a young mandarin with a black face and a crescent moon in the middle of his forehead. However, this is just a plot created in movies. The truth is that Bao Cong has a completely different appearance.

Bao Cong in real life is said to be white and somewhat scholarly. The appearance of a black face is due to the influence of opera and opera. Because according to these types, white faces represent those who destroy humanity; The red face represents kindness and loyalty; The black face represents seriousness, gentlemanliness, and impartiality.

Legend has it that Bao Cong was one of the 7 Northern Star Kings who descended to earth, named Van Khuc Tinh Quan. That's why Bao Cong judges the world during the day, and judges the underworld at night.

According to folklore, the moon on Bao Gong's forehead is like moonlight that illuminates justice even in dark places.

This is the basis for later films to build Bao Cong's image.

In addition, one of the most mysterious things that happened around Bao Thanh Thien's life was his funeral. In 1062, when Bao Zheng was 64 years old, Emperor Song Nhan Tong was deeply saddened, personally presided over the memorial ceremony, bestowed on him the posthumous title "Hieu Tuc" and brought his coffin to his hometown of Lu Chau for burial.

On the day of Bao Thanh Thien's funeral, many people went to Khai Phong Palace to pay their respects and express their condolences. However, they were extremely surprised and confused when this funeral appeared with 21 coffins, carried in 7 different directions from the gate. No one knows which coffin Bao Chung is in. That's why, besides the coffin bearers, there were no people following the coffin because they didn't really know where the coffin with Bao Chung's body was.

Some people explain that Bao Zheng deeply loved the people and deliberately used this way to say goodbye to the people, hoping that the people would not need to feel sad when following him to bury him.

There is also a theory that this is Bao Thanh Thien's "smudging" strategy. In fact, when Bao Thanh Thien was alive, he did a lot of good things, solved many cases, helped the common people reclaim justice, that's why he offended aristocrats and powerful mandarins many times. . At that time, he was highly respected by the emperor so no one dared to touch him.

However, when Bao Chung passed away, it was inevitable that bad people had cruel intentions and wanted to take revenge on his remains and destroy his grave. Therefore, the appearance of 21 coffins and taking them in 7 different directions is a way to distract these bad guys, avoiding them from violating Bao Chung's grave. Thanks to that, Bao Thanh Thien once again made people admire his intelligence and resourcefulness.

Bao Cong's passing also made the people inconsolably sad. At the location of these tombs, there are people who regularly worship and take turns taking care of them, but they cannot avoid being violated.

Previously, most people believed that Bao Zheng's real grave was located in Tong Lang (Cung district, Ha Nam province). This place was also regularly worshiped and repaired by people throughout the dynasties. Who would have thought that this was just one of his fake graves.

The process of finding Bao Chung's real tomb was not easy. Initially, it was believed that Bao Zheng's grave was located in the most prominent position in the complex of Bao family tombs. But in fact, to avoid fire and distract grave robbers, Bao Thanh Thien's remains were moved by descendants of the Bao family to be buried in a secret place.

Only later did archaeologists find a lonely grave on the edge of the family cemetery. This is the real burial place of Bao Chunh.

It can be seen that the burial and preservation of Bao Chung's body is very secret and complicated, but all aim at one goal: for this official to rest in peace after spending his whole life defending the cause. Right.

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