Jizi Kept His Promise
Integrity is one of the most important traits in traditional Chinese culture. Confucius believes that honouring one’s word, recognizing one’s faults, and keeping one’s promise are necessary for everyone to develop integrity personality.
In the Yanling Town of Danyang, east China’s Jiangsu province, there is a Jizi Temple built to honour Jizi, whose given name is Zha, the youngest son of Mengshou, the emperor of Wu during the Spring and Autumn period (770-476 B.C.).
Jizi was a man of great moral integrity and famous for the story called “Jizi of Yanling Hangs up His Sword”.
In 544 B.C., Jizi was sent to the ancient state of Lu as an envoy (使者), passing through Xucheng, the capital of the ancient state of Xu, and was hospitalized by the Lord of Xu. Jizi once made a promise to himself that after he finished his diplomatic mission in the north, he would give his sword to the Lord of Xu who admired it.
But by the time he got back, the Lord of Xu had passed away. Therefore, Jizi went to Xu’s tomb to worship (敬奉) and hung the sword on a willow tree in front of the tomb as a way to honour his vow (诺言).
For more than 2,000 years, the story of Jizi has been passed down orally by the local people. People in Danyang built a Jizi Temple to honour his great contribution to Chinese culture and have practiced his virtues from generation to generation.