In China, there is a special profession, that is, alchemists. They specialize in divination, astrology, etc., and can pinch and calculate, know the destiny of heaven, and predict the future. However, their ending was not very good.
Fangshi originated in the coastal areas around the Yan and Qi states during the Warring States period. At the time of King Xuan of Qiwei, the Alchemists already had their own teaching system, and the famous history book "Shi Ji" referred to them as "Fang Xian Dao". In fact, the origin of our alchemist is earlier than this. In ancient legends, people such as Qi Hao, Rong Cheng, and the Queen Mother of the West should also be alchemists. In the Qin and Han dynasties, alchemists gradually flourished. For example, Xu Fu of the Qin Dynasty, Xinyuan Pingren, who "hoped to take the crown" during the time of Emperor Wen of Han.
The pursuit of immortality is the central idea of the alchemist, and this idea coincides with the concept of the ruler wanting immortality, so there is a phenomenon of the emperor's obsession with the elixir, and there are even incidents of the dictatorship of the alchemist in history. Qin Shi Huang was also one of them, and he heard Xu Fu say that there were three immortal mountains in the sea, Penglai, Abbot, and Yingzhou, and there were gods and immortals living in them. Therefore, Qin Shi Huang sent Xu Fu to the sea with thousands of boys, girls, and necessities such as grain and clothing for three years. As a result, Xu Hai stayed there for several years and did not find the sacred mountain. But he did not dare to go back like this, fearing that Qin Shi Huang would cure his sins, and it was said that he finally died in the sea. The strange thing is that many alchemists are like Xu Fu and have no good ending.
Also in the Qin and Han dynasties, the Fangshi also fell, mainly because of the opposition and blows of the Western Han literati. Just when the Western Han Dynasty alchemists did their best to develop fangshu and invited them to visit the gates of the princes, and the limelight was in full swing, Zhang Chang wrote to Emperor Cheng of Han and advised him not to approach the fangshi, giving many alchemists a blow.
Subsequently, Gu Yong wrote to the emperor and directly criticized the hypocrisy of Fang Shu. In addition, Wang Chong, Yang Diao and others were also opposed to Fang Shi and Fang Shu. The feudal emperors were deceived by the alchemists for a long time, and most of their casting parties had no effect. Under the pressure of public opinion from many quarters, the trust of the rulers in the other side gradually faded. The alchemists' dragon climbing skills could not be used.
At the same time, huang laozhi's learning, which was homologous to Fang Xian Dao, was flourishing for a while. Coupled with the later advocacy of Empress Dou and Emperor Jing of Han, Huang Laozhi's learning further flourished. The famous ministers and scholars of the Western Han Dynasty were all people who ruled the yellow and old scholars. At that time, most of the literati loved Huang Lao and hated Fang Xian. Huang Xian denounced the Fangshi in the Four Difficulties, saying that they were not descendants of Zhuangzi and did not deserve to be compared with Laozi. Wang Chong was a zhuangzi believer who admired nature, but he also denounced fangshi and fangshu in the "On Heng And Dao Virtual Chapters".
In the book "Tai Xuan Fu", Yang Di deeply praised Lao Tzu's principle of "straight road is not good, followed by the song", saying that "holding on to tai Xuan Xi is not rigid. But he also objected to the fangshi, saying that they were "sweet and poisonous, and it is difficult to count and hide." Because of the attacks of these big men, the alchemists had to disappear in order to avoid the limelight. Since then, Fang Xian Dao has not been praised by people.