The "破天荒(Hatenkou)" man who lived for 1,000 years: The origin of the word 破天荒(Hatenkou).

　There is a word called 破天荒(Hatenkou) in Japanese.

　The literal meaning of the word is destroying the heavens and leaving them in ruins, and it is often misused as Overbearingness. Its original meaning is the achievement of an unprecedented feat. Here is an episode about it.

　During the Tang dynasty in China, the Imperial Examinations for civil servants began in earnest. It was an extremely difficult examination, and it was said that If you pass at 50, you are still young.

　The southern part of Jingzhou(Present-day Hubei province), where no one passed the exam, was mockingly called 天荒(Tenkou) as an uncivilized area.

　In 850, Liu Tui, a man of humble origins, became the first man in southern Jingzhou to pass the imperial examination. The governor of Jingzhou praised him as A Great Man Who Broke the 天荒(Tenkou) and called him 破天荒(Hatenkou).

　A grammatical explanation of the three characters of 破天荒.

　Chinese is similar to English in that the word order is verb + object. The verb 破(Break) + obect天荒(Uncivilized area) is used, so 破天荒(Hatenkou).

　Liu Tui was praised for 破天荒(Hatenkou) and offered a reward of 700,000 money, but he refused. He is an upstanding person.

　He lived during the Late Tang period, about 50 years before the Tang dynasty fell.

　The Tang dynasty created a glittering international community, attracting people from neighboring countries, including Chang'an, the central capital of the Silk Road.

　From Japan, foreign students for Abe no Nakamaro, Kibi no Makibi, and the Buddhist monks for Kukai and Saicho all had high aspirations and risked their lives to board Japanese envoy ships to cross the ocean, making a great contribution to the development of Japanese culture.

　More than half a century has passed since then.

　To govern the vast territory that extended into Central Asia, the Tang dynasty appointed local governors called Jiedushi(Military Governor) to the border regions.

　The Jiedushi had strong military power in order to quickly suppress foreign invasions. The position of Jiedushi was passed down from parent to child, and they governed the area under their jurisdiction for generations.

　After the glory of the Japanese envoy to Tang reached its peak, the influence of the central government in the capital Chang'an declined as the eunuchs who served the emperor gained power.

　At the same time, the powers of the local governors, who had been in charge of local affairs for generations within a single family, expanded and the region became semi-independent.

　In those days, Liu Tui started his official career.

　In 863, He impeached the son of a powerful man and was demoted to the provinces. Since then, his name has not been seen anywhere. Government corruption and independence of the Jiedushi. The upright he was ostracized by the Tang dynasty.

　The Tang dynasty officially lasted until 907, but for the remaining 30 years or so, nationwide rebellions broke out. The emperor was a puppet of those in power, and was reduced to a Local Power centered in Chang'an.

　In various places, powerful people from the Jiedushi clan proclaimed themselves emperors or kings and declared independence.

　It will enter the age of war and strife during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, where five dynasties rose and fell in the central areas of Chang'an and Luoyang, and ten dynasties ruled the other areas.

　It is an era where their need someone who can put an end to the chaotic times, rather than passing the imperial examination. There is no role for the upstanding intellectual Liu Tui.

　Liu Tui's birth and death years are unknown. If he was in his 20s or 30s in 850 when he passed the imperial examination, he would have lived through the decline of the opulent Tang dynasty. If he lived longer, he would have witnessed the downfall of the dynasty.

　He devoted his entire youth to passing the imperial examinations. Ironically. he lived a life that saw the collapse of his own country, the Tang dynasty.

　He has disappeared into the waves of history. Has the public forgotten him?

　1,000 years later, in the late 19th century Qing dynasty, the birthplace of a historian from Changsha city, Hunan province, was recorded as the Former Site of Liu Tui's house.

　Liu Tui's hometown is said to be Changsha city. Despite the rise and fall of many dynasties, the remains of his house in Changsha city have been passed down for 1,000 years. The local pride, the 破天荒(Hatenkou) Liu Tui, has continued to live quietly.