Everyone who has read history textbooks knows that the Song Dynasty was a society that valued culture over military affairs. Then you must think, "Wow, the scholars in the Song Dynasty must have had a great time." I think people who think this way must not understand the life of scholars and the imperial examination system at that time. Therefore, the author decided to briefly introduce the imperial examination system of the Song Dynasty. I believe that after reading it, you will feel that it is extremely easy to take civil service exams and driver's license exams now.
If you are unfortunate or lucky enough to travel back in time to the Song Dynasty to be a scholar, then your only ambition in this life is probably to take the imperial examination and become an official. Then it is inevitable that you will have an 87% chance of taking the imperial examination in the future. "Ah, but I have never taken the imperial examination. What is the imperial examination? Is it difficult? When will it be taken? Will the registration fee be expensive?" OK, OK, don't worry, let the author explain the imperial examination system clearly first. Say it again.
1. Tributary examination and institutional examination
In fact, the so-called imperial examination does not refer to a single examination as it is now, but is divided into two systems: tribute examination and institutional examination .
· Examination time
Examination time is not fixed. It is usually held after the emperor issues an edict. It is one of the methods to select extraordinary talents. But this does not mean that there is no need for exams. Selecting talents through the system examination is more difficult and troublesome than the tribute examination.
If we compare the system examination to a modern examination, it can be said to be "special examination" . There are three steps in the examination and selection of the system:
1. Please read the detailed submissions
. To put it simply, you need to show the articles you have written to officials at all levels. You need to write a total of fifty policy papers (yes, that's a lot). From the review of the two provinces of Zhongshu Menxia to and rites , in short, it is necessary to type it up layer by layer. Of course, if you don't write well, you can't even think about entering the next stage.
2. Six Examinations
Only after passing the review of the Ministry of Etiquette can you be eligible to go to the capital to take the "Pavilion Examination" . There will be six questions in the exam, and the number of words is limited to 3,000 words, so each question should be about 500 words, and it should be in It is actually quite difficult to accurately express one's arguments within the limited number of words, not to mention that the questions from the "Cabinet Examination" are not easy to write.
For example, the examination held in the sixth year of Renzong Jiayou's "A virtuous and upright person can speak out and give advice" had the following topics: "The king should not rule the barbarians", "The theory that etiquette, righteousness and trust are enough to become a virtue" ", "Theory on which Liu Kai and Ding Hong are virtuous", "Theory on the importance of rites to nourish people", "Theory on drunkenness and five blessings", "Theory on situation is not as good as virtue".
Well, I really can’t even understand the question. Friends from the Chinese Department or History Department, you may have some reaction when you see these questions. That's right, these test questions are all from classics and history. is like "The King Does Not Rule the Barbarians and Di", which comes from the Commentary on Gongyang Zhuan of the Spring and Autumn Period: "The king does not rule the barbarians and Di, and records the Rong. Don't reject those who come, and don't chase those who go." this paragraph. Therefore, to answer these questions, you must be familiar with the Analects of Confucius, Historical Records, Nine Classics, etc., otherwise you will not even know how to write. (By the way, the sixth year of Jiayou was the year when Su Shi brothers took the examination, and the two brothers also passed the exam successfully)
3. Countermeasures
Having climbed to this point, he is already a strong man, but he still has to Facing the last hurdle, the emperor personally presided over the exam. Usually there is only one question, and only 1-2 people are admitted in the end. Those admitted to will also be divided into five ranks. The first two ranks are fictitious positions, so the real first place is the third rank.
Su Shi and his younger brother Su Che won the third and fourth prizes when they were in their 20s. That is to say, these brothers won the first and second place. Please bear with me. After reading the examination process, I can only say that this is not something a scumbag like me who studies hard can afford.
In fact, the Song Dynasty only held 22 examinations in more than 300 years, and the number of admissions was only more than 40. On average, only 2 people were admitted at a time. The admission rate is probably lower than the chance of a lottery, so most people should just take the tribute examination obediently. .
· Tribute Examination
Tribute Examination is different from the System Examination. Basically, the tribute examination is held regularly, but sometimes it is once every three years or every four years. It depends on the people in power at the time, but most of them The exam is taken every three years.
If we want to use the modern examination system to compare the tribute examination, it is a bit like the college entrance examination. There are many subjects in the college entrance examination, and this is the same in the tribute examination. The subjects of the tribute examination can be roughly divided into two categories according to their nature:
1. Jinshi subject
The Jinshi subject was a very important and popular subject in the imperial examination in the Song Dynasty. It was also a permanent subject. If you have great ambitions and want to be a prime minister, you can take the Jinshi subject. It's a good pipeline.
The main examination forms of the Jinshi subject are poetry, poetry, policy theory, classics and meanings, etc. Compared with other subjects, the examination questions are more flexible and difficult. In addition, some requirements for examination questions are actually very strict. For example, when Ouyang Xiu and were taking the exam when they were young, they failed to pass the exam that year because they did not rhyme. If you fail to rhyme even one rhyme, you will have to wait another three years to take the exam again. It was really not easy for the ancients to take the exam.
2. Zhuke
Among the Zhuke, it is divided into Nine Classics, Five Classics, Kaiyuan Rites (later changed to Kaiyuan Tongbao), Three Rites, Three Chuans, Three History, Academics, Ming Jing and Mingfake. Basically every subject here tests the familiarity with various classics. For example, the Nine Classics subjects test the Book of Rites, Chun Qiu Zuo Shi Zhuan, Chun Qiu Gu Liang Zhuan, Mao Shi, Zhou Li, Zhou Yi, Zhou Yi, Shangshu, Gongyang passes on .
But these subjects are not permanent subjects like Jinshi subjects. They have been ups and downs or merged with each ruler. Especially during the Shenzong period, Wang Anshi's Reform greatly changed the examination system, and the Chang Gong subjects were reduced to Jinshi and Xinke Mingfa.
What, you have to take the test three times? Interpretation test, provincial test and palace test. Okay, after reading this, I believe you probably have an idea of which exam to take and which subject to take. But you know that the imperial examination is not like the current college entrance examination, which only takes one time. It takes three times. "Can't I just take the exam once? Why do I have to take the exam so many times?" It's not impossible to take the exam only once, but if you want to be a civil servant and only take the exam once, taking the exam is actually the same as not taking the exam. If you want to be an official, you must at least To pass the second exam.
2. Interpretation test, provincial examination, palace examination
· Interpretation test
Interpretation test is simply a local examination and a preliminary test. Passing the interpretation test only gives you the qualification to participate in the next stage of the provincial examination.
In terms of time, the exam is usually held in the autumn, and the exam information is generally announced on March 1st. However, some remote places will announce it earlier, but if you live in Kaifeng or Henan Prefecture, it probably won't. This is the problem. Notes on registration for
. There is no registration fee for registration. Even so, not everyone can take the exam. To apply for the exam, you need to be guaranteed by multiple people and have a signed certificate of family guarantee, in order to ensure the candidate's moral character and whether he has a criminal record. If is found to be unqualified, the person who previously vouched for you will be punished.
The exam location, is usually held in the local Gongyuan, but a few places that do not have a Gongyuan because there are too few applicants (less than 100 people) will borrow monks' houses as examination rooms or merge the exam with neighboring states. The
exam is divided into sessions. The exam will be divided into multiple sessions because the exam content is broad and complex. The Jinshi test is usually divided into three to four tests, and the Zhuke test is six to seven tests.
test question format, Jinshi subject, poem: no limit on the number of words, there will be a question asking you to write a poem, for example, the question for Taizu's sixth year of Kaibao is "Hanging the Lord to Wait for the Scholar" . Fu: The number of words should be more than 360 words. There is also a question to write a fu. For example, the question of fu in the same year is "Unclear Qiu Yi Fu" . Strategy: There will usually be three questions, each of which should be no less than 500 words.
various subjects, Tie Jing: A certain sentence in the scripture will be filled in the blanks for candidates to fill in, which is a fill-in question. Moyi : To put it bluntly, it is a question and answer question.For example, "The Master said that there are four ways of a gentleman in Zichan. What are the four so-called ways?" (Translation: There are four ways of a gentleman. Which four are they?) We should answer: "It has been done." It is also respectful, it is respectful in its work, it is beneficial to the people, and it is righteous in its work. If you can't answer ", please leave it blank and write ". "Unreviewed" .
Tie Jing and Mo Yi were once one of the types of questions in the Jinshi exam. However, because they were mechanical memorization and lacked the application of logic, many well-educated people at that time were unwilling to take the exam. It was not until Wang Anshi reformed the imperial examination during the reign of Shenzong Xining that the Jinshi examination no longer tested the two types of questions: Tie Jing and Mo Yi.
· Provincial Examination
After passing the interpretation test, he obtained the qualification to take the provincial examination and was directly sent to the Ministry of Rites to take the examination.
exam time, due to the large number of people taking the exam, so the marking is also slower. Therefore, provincial examinations are usually held in winter.
exam location, is held in Gongyuan of the Ministry of Rites. The content and sessions of the
exam and are roughly the same as those of the exam. The arrangement of the sessions is different in each period, so I won’t go into details here.
If the test result is qualified, it is called zhengzou. Whether it is a interpretation test or a provincial test, the admission quota varies from place to place, and the ratio is not fixed. Usually large states have more admission places, so some people will sneak away to take exams in other places for this purpose. However, this practice of forging household registration is illegal, and you will be punished if caught.
· After passing the provincial examination
, basically there is no big problem in becoming a civil servant. Although there is a palace examination to pass the provincial examination, the nature of the palace examination is a re-examination of the provincial examination, and it is just based on the ranking of the examination. In the past, those who failed the imperial examination would be deposed. However, there was a tragic case in which a candidate was deposed and moved to another country in anger. Therefore, since then, the imperial examination has become a ranking examination.
exam time, is usually one month after the provincial examination results are released. For example, the provincial examination is held on 1/5, then the palace examination will be held on 3/23, and then the results will be announced on 4/11. In addition, the Jinshi and Zhuke examinations will be held The exam is held on separate days, so be careful not to mistake the time.
The examination location, is held directly in the palace. The emperor personally instructs or appoints ministers to preside over the palace examination.
exam content, exam has a total of three questions; one question each on poetry, poetry, and policy theory in the HKCEE, all of which are written tests.
After the exam, the ranking will be announced by roll call. The first place will be called the top pick; the second place will be the second place; and the third place will be called the top pick. If you are an academic master who ranks first in the interpretation test, provincial examination, and palace examination, you will be three yuan.
After you pass the palace examination, the court will grant you an official position and will also hold a banquet for you (Qionglin Banquet). By the way, famous officials such as Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, Sima Guang, Su Shi, Su Che, etc. were also strong people who passed the imperial examination.
Summary
The above is the basic examination system of the Song Dynasty. I hope it will be helpful to everyone who wants to be a civil servant in the Song Dynasty. After reading
, do you think it is even worse than the current college entrance examination? I think I would rather stay in the modern college entrance examination anyway. What do you think?
Reference:
"History of the Song Dynasty"
