Ancient people, as long as they became emperors, would vigorously reward their ancestors and crown them as emperors. The reason for this is to show that he can become an emperor because of the accumulation of yin virtue in his ancestors. And the yin virtue accumulated by the ancestors has been passed down to his own generation to be able to become an emperor, and what is expressed here is a kind of "divine right of kings" thought. With the idea of "divine right of kings", the emperor should be stable, and no one will doubt it anymore, and no one will dare to challenge the emperor's authority.
(Emperor Xuan of Han)
However, the strange thing is that after Emperor Xuan of Han came to power, he made his grandfather Liu Zhi the "Prince of Jiao". The word "戾" means sin and obedience. Before Emperor Xuan of Han was enthroned, Liu was generally called "Prince Wei", which means that he had been a prince and was the son of Wei Zifu. This is equivalent to calling Liu Rong "Prince Li" in history, because he was once the prince and was the son of Li Ji.
Whether they are called "Prince Wei" or "Prince Li", all that is indicated is who their mother is, and they have been princes, and there is no sense of praise or disparagement. Emperor Xuan of Han gave his grandfather the title of "Prince Of 戾", which was to characterize his grandfather, which was obviously a kind of derogatory.
So, all emperors praise their ancestors, why did Emperor Xuan of Han smear his ancestors? What was his purpose in doing so?
Emperor Xuan of Han was a very thoughtful man, who went from being a prisoner to eventually becoming a king of great talent and great talent, and became one of the best and most accomplished emperors in the Western Han Dynasty. Obviously, Emperor Xuan of Han's self-black grandfather Liu Zhao was not a very casual move, but a deliberate move. So, what is the deep meaning of him doing this?
(Emperor Zhao of Han)
I think that Emperor Xuan of Han did this specifically for Huo Guang.
After the death of Emperor Han Zhao, because he had no heirs, he was presided over by Huo Guang, the only powerful minister in the imperial court at that time, and Liu He was made emperor. After Liu He became emperor, he had only 27 days to be ousted by Huo Guang. Before Huo Guang ousted Liu He from power, he listed more than a thousand sins for him. But in fact, it is not that Liu He has any sins, but that Liu He is doing things in a brazen manner. As soon as he received the imperial seal sent by Huo Guang, he began to form his own ruling team. There was nothing wrong with forming a ruling team, what was wrong was that Liu He excluded Huo Guang.
Who is Huo Guang? Liu He's throne was given to him by Huo Guang. Liu He was not eligible for the throne at all, because Liu He's father's uncle Li Guangli had sought to make Liu He's father crown prince, so he was severely punished by Emperor Wu of Han, and Liu He's father was therefore called the Prince of Changyi. In other words, Liu He was actually not qualified to obtain the throne. He was given the throne by Huo Guang. Now that he had actually excluded Huo Guang, how could Huo Guang's heart bear it?
Therefore, Liu He is tragic.
Liu He was tragic, and good luck came to emperor Xuan of Han. However, although good luck reached the head of Emperor Xuan of Han, it did not mean that Emperor Xuan of Han was able to retain this good fortune. Because he may be like Liu He, slightly unsatisfactory, he was kicked down by Huo Guang.
Therefore, Emperor Xuan of Han was particularly cautious and did not decide everything himself. All the affairs of the imperial court were entrusted to Huo Guang to take care of.
However, leaving everything to Huo Guang did not indicate that Emperor Xuan of Han was a puppet. He's not. How does he show that he is not a puppet? It is to mythologize one's own ancestors.
(Emperor Wu of han)
Some people may not understand that since they are mythical ancestors, they should give his grandfather Liu Zhu a good nickname. Why did he instead name him "Prince Jiao"?
I think that Emperor Xuan of Han did this, which is actually very appropriate. He did want to mythologize his ancestors, but it was not his grandfather Liu Zhao who was mythologized. Because liu rebelled that year, it was a fact. This cannot be changed. Changing this fact, that is, changing history, is obviously not convincing.
However, not mythologizing one's own grandfather does not mean that one cannot mythologize one's own ancestors. Emperor Xuan of Han wanted to mythologize Emperor Wu of Han, Wei Zifu, and the entire Liu family. As long as the entire Liu family was a god-like being, he Huo Guang would not dare to seize power, and Jiangshan would still be the Liu family.
In fact, Emperor Xuan of Han did the same. He gave Wei Zifu the nickname "Si", making Wei Zifu the first empress in history to have an independent title. In addition, Emperor Xuan of Han also mythologized Emperor Wu of Han, gave Emperor Wu of Han a high degree of honor and temple music, and gave Emperor Wu of Han a very high evaluation.
This is where Emperor Xuan of Han was clever. If he wants to give Liu a good nickname, it will only become more and more black. And to honor Emperor Wu of Han and Wei Zifu, he Emperor Xuan of Han as their descendant, the family was revered.
Moreover, Emperor Xuan of Han also played a small trick, although "Prince Huan" had a bad nickname, but at least it was "Prince", which was crucial, which also showed that Emperor Xuan of Han was very righteous.
(References: Records of History, Book of Han)