Shi Ren of Shang
| Shi Ren 示壬 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ruler of Predynastic Shang | |||||||||
| Predecessor | Bao Ding[1] | ||||||||
| Successor | Shi Gui | ||||||||
| Spouse | Bi Geng (妣庚) [2] | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Father | Bao Ding[1] | ||||||||
| Shi Ren of Shang | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese | 示壬 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | "Spirit VIIII" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Part of a series on |
| Religion of the Shang dynasty |
|---|
Shi Ren (Chinese: 示壬; pinyin: shì rén)[a] was the thirteenth ruler of Predynastic Shang.[3] He succeeded Bao Ding[4][1] and was regarded as one of the culture's Six Spirits (六示 (lìushì)). Little was known about him until oracle bones were noticed by academia in the late 19th century, where his veneration was recorded in inscriptions.[5] However, as he was only invoked, almost nothing is known about his life or reign. He was succeeded by his son, Shi Gui.
Name and family
Shi Ren is known as Zhu Ren in Records of the Grand Historian, where Sima Qian records his father as Bao Bing.[1] This was proven incorrect by Wang Guowei in the early-20th century, on account of oracle bone evidence and comparison with Heavenly Stem ordering systems of the time.[5][6] Therefore, coupled with oracle bone evidence, the consensus is that Bao Ding was likely his predecessor.[3] However, arguments have been made that Sima Qian could be right, as the amount of sacrifices made seems to imply a ritual order of priority in the oracle bone Wang Guowei used, not a familial lineage.[7]
The ren 壬 in Shi Ren's name may describe the day in which sacrifices were to be made to him, being the 9th of the Heavenly Stems.[8]
Shi Ren is mentioned over 100 times in oracle bone inscriptions, around as many times as Wang Hai.[9] However, because Shi Ren predates the Late Shang where extant oracle bones come from,[4] no inscription took place during his reign and are thus only in the context of Shang ancestral deification. Said inscriptions were in the context of scapulimancy, heating the shells of turtles such as those of Mauremys sinensis, until cracks appear, wherein the king consults them and determines whether the omen is auspicious or not.[4] Ergo, while the inscriptions tell a lot about Shang ritual practice, they say little about Shi Ren's life.
The "Two Shis"
Alongside Shi Gui, Shi Ren is one of the "Two Shis" (二示), occasionally invoked together during divination.
癸巳卜祝貞二示祟王遣並 二告 [10]
On the Guisi day, a liturgist divinated. Charge: Are the Two Shis ailing the ruler king? Should we perform an appeasement ritual [to fix the situation]?
Sacrifices
Like all ancestral deities, Shi Ren received sacrifices, gave consultations, and protected the Shang, among other duties. Additionally, his late spouse, Bi Geng (妣庚), would also receive sacrifices.[2][b] Given the name, Shi Ren only received sacrifices on ren days, unless it was being conducted alongside Shi Gui.[8][9]
侑于示壬二牛 [11]
Perform a you-sacrifice of two oxen to Shi Ren.
壬子貞王賓示壬翌日無尤 [12]
On the renzi day, charge: Should the king perform a bin ceremony for Shi Ren, and if so, on the coming day, will there be no misfortune?
Notes
References
- ^ a b c d Sima, Qian. "殷本紀". In Sturgeon, Donald (ed.). 史記 (in Literary Chinese). Chinese Text Project.
契卒，子昭明立。昭明卒，子相土立。相土卒，子昌若立。昌若卒，子曹圉立。曹圉卒，子冥立。冥卒，子振立。振卒，子微立。微卒，子报丁立。报丁卒，子报乙立。报乙卒，子报丙立。报丙卒，子主壬立。主壬卒，子主癸立。主癸卒，子天乙立，是为成汤。
- ^ a b 甲骨文合集 Heji 36185：庚戌卜貞王賓示壬爽妣庚X 茲用
- ^ a b 王国维 (1959). 殷卜辞中所见先公先王续考. 中华书局.
- ^ a b c Keightley, David N. (1985). Sources of Shang history: The Oracle-bone inscriptions of bronze age China. Berkeley Los Angeles London: University of California press. pp. 185–187. ISBN 0-520-05455-5. Retrieved 14 February 2026.
- ^ a b Wang, Guowei (1917). 戬寿堂所藏殷虚文字考释 [Yin Ruins characters collected from Jiashou Temple] (in Literary Chinese). Shanghai: 圣倉王氏.
- ^ Wang Guowei 王國維. "《殷卜辭中所見先公先王考》存". In Xi Zhe 晞輒 (ed.). 王國維集 (in Chinese). pp. 440, 441. ISBN 9787511376015.
- ^ Lin Naifeng 侯乃峰 (2016). "《史记∙殷本纪》"三报"世系次序再议". 历史研究 (4): 174–180.
- ^ a b Wu 吳, Junde 俊德 (2016). "商王日名來源析辨" [Analysis of the Origin of the Name of the King of Shang]. 儒學研究論叢 (in Chinese). 7. Taiwan: 83–109.
- ^ a b "先秦甲骨金文簡牘詞彙庫". Academia Sinica.
- ^ 甲骨文合集 Heji 41023.2
- ^ 甲骨文合集 Heji 00776正.10
- ^ 甲骨文合集 Heji 35468