It is said that in the beginning of that year, the emperor was conducting sacrificial ceremonies outside the northern suburbs of Luoyang City, and places like Mingtang, Biyong, and Lingtai had not been officially used yet. The emperor relocated Empress Dowager Lu's remains to the imperial garden, posthumously bestowed upon her the title of Empress Gao, and permitted her to be honored alongside the earth god in the suburban imperial ancestral temple. This is documented in the "Annals of Emperor Guangwu."
Four li north of Luoyang City, there exists a sacrificial site in the northern suburbs, featuring a square altar surrounded by four tiers of steps. On the day of Xinyou in the second year of Yongping, the emperor officiated a grand suburban sacrifice there. In addition to sacrificing to heaven and earth, he also separately sacrificed to the earth god, with the earth god positioned to the south and west, Empress Gao accompanying the sacrifice on the north side to the west, all on the altar. The other mountain, river, and stream deities collectively received offerings beneath the altar, in accordance with the traditions established during the Yuan Shi period. Mount Song was in the south, and the other four sacred mountains were all situated in the inner precinct. The east was the sea god, and the west was the deities of the Xi River, Ji River, Huai River, and Yangtze River, all in the outer camp. The other gods of mountains and rivers were also in their respective directions, all in the outer camp. On the four tiers of steps of the altar, and on the doors of the inner and outer camps, there were altars for the deities, similar to those in the southern suburb sacrifices. Sacrifices to the earth god and Empress Gao each used a young calf, the five sacred mountains collectively offered one calf, the sea god and the four rivers shared one calf, and the other gods shared two calves. The music performed was identical to that of the southern suburb sacrifices. After the sacrifices, the sacrificial vessels were interred to the north of the altar.
After Emperor Ming ascended the throne, on the day of Xinyou in the second year of Yongping, he conducted the inaugural sacrifice to the Five Emperors at the Mingtang, with Emperor Guangwu as the accompanying deity. The seats of the Five Emperors were all in the Mingtang, each occupying a designated position. The Yellow Emperor was in the south, in the same position as during the southern suburb ceremonies. The seat of Emperor Guangwu was slightly behind the south of the Green Emperor, facing towards the west. Each deity was sacrificed with a young calf, and the music performed was consistent with that of the southern suburb sacrifices. After the sacrifices, the emperor ascended the Lingtai to survey the clouds and the sky.
In order to follow the solar terms, omens were observed for the sacrifices in the five suburbs. Starting from the Yongping era, based on the attire records for the welcoming sacrifices of the five suburbs found in the "Li Chen" and "Monthly Ordinance," imitating the practices of the Yuan Shi era, five sacrificial sites were set up around Luoyang City. The central sacrificial site was located in Wei Fang, with each altar standing three feet tall, with uniform step heights.
On the day of the beginning of spring, the arrival of spring was celebrated in the eastern suburbs, and sacrifices were made to the Green Emperor Jumang. The chariots, flags, and attire were all green. The song "Green Yang" was performed, and the "Yunqiao" dance from the Eight Yi was performed. Afterwards, the emperor rewarded civil officials, starting from the Grand Tutor and the Minister of Works, with different amounts of silk.
On the day of the beginning of summer, the Summer Festival was welcomed in the southern suburbs, and sacrifices were made to the Red Emperor Zhurong. The chariots, flags, and attire were all red. The song "Zhu Ming" was performed, and the "Yunqiao" dance from the Eight Yi was performed.
Eighteen days before the beginning of autumn, sacrifices were made to the Yellow Emperor and Hou Tu in the central and northern regions. The chariots, flags, and attire were all yellow. The song "Zhu Ming" was performed, and the "Yunqiao" and "Yuming" dances from the Eight Yi were performed.
On the day of the beginning of autumn, the emperor celebrated the arrival of autumn in the western suburbs by sacrificing to the White Emperor Ruxi. All the flags and attire of the vehicles were white. The song "Xi Hao" was performed during the ceremony, and the dance "Yuming" from the Eight Yi was performed. First, envoys were dispatched to make a special sacrifice to Xianyu on the altar. After the sacrifice was completed, the emperor proceeded to the imperial hunting grounds to hunt the sacrificial animals, and then used these animals to sacrifice to the ancestral temple, a ritual known as "Chu Liu," as specifically documented in the "Ritual Records."
On the day of the beginning of winter, the emperor welcomed the arrival of winter in the northern suburbs and sacrificed to the Black Emperor Xuanming. All the flags and attire of the vehicles were black. The song "Xuanming" was performed during the ceremony, and the dance "Yuming" from the Eight Yi was performed.
After Emperor Zhang ascended the throne, in the first month of the second year of Yuanhe, he issued a decree saying, "Among the hundreds of spirits of mountains and rivers, not all have been properly worshiped. Let us discuss which spirits should be added to or restored for worship." In the second month, the Emperor went on an eastern hunting expedition. When he neared Mount Tai, he sent envoys with a grand offering in sacrifice to Emperor Yao at the Chengyang Lingtai in Jiyin. Upon arriving at Mount Tai, the Emperor renovated the sacrificial site at the southern altar of Guangwu Mountain. On the day of Xinyou, the customary ritual of offering sacrifices of firewood to Heaven, Earth, and the multitude of spirits was held. On the day of Renshen, the Emperor made sacrifices to the Five Emperors at the Wenshang Mingtang built by Emperor Xiaowu, with Emperor Guangwu honored as a supporting deity, following the same ritual as that of the Luoyang Mingtang. On the day of Guichou, again, a grand offering was made to the six emperors: Gaozu, Taizong, Shizong, Zhongzong, Shizu, and Xianzong. After the sacrifices, the Emperor visited the Eastern Palace Empress and hosted a banquet to reward princes and courtiers. Subsequently, the Emperor toured the commanderies and states, and upon reaching the State of Lu, he made sacrifices to the Duke of Donghai and the seventy-two disciples of Confucius. In the fourth month, the Emperor returned to the capital. On the day of Gengshen, after returning to the capital, the Emperor offered sacrifices to the Gaomiao and the Temple of Shizu, offering a special ox at each. He also composed poems for the twelve gates of the Lingtai, to be performed during the monthly sacrifices. During the reign of Emperor He, there were no changes made to these sacrificial activities.
After Emperor An ascended the throne, in the sixth year of Yuanchu, based on the interpretation of the Ouyang clan in the Book of Documents, it was believed that the "six ancestral shrines" referred to the central points of the heavens, earth, and the four directions, representing the ancestors of all directions. Emperor An believed that the practice during the Yuan Shi period, which corresponded the six ancestral shrines to the six sons in the Book of Changes, was incorrect. On the day of Gengchen in the third month, Emperor An reestablished the six ancestral shrines and held a grand sacrifice at the northwest garrison of Luoyang, following the same ritual as that of the Taishè.
In the third year of Yanguang, the Emperor went on an eastern hunting expedition and arrived at Mount Tai, where he performed the firewood sacrifice and made sacrifices at the Wenshang Mingtang, following the same ritual as in the second year of Yuanhe. After Emperor Shun ascended the throne, he continued to uphold these sacrificial activities.
Emperor Huan of Han reigned for eighteen years and was particularly superstitious about deities. In the eighth year of the Yanxi era, he sent a court eunuch to Ku County in Chen to offer sacrifices to Laozi for the first time ever. In the ninth year, Emperor Huan personally traveled to Zhaolong to make offerings to Laozi. The altar used for the sacrifices was decorated with exquisite silk fabrics, the sacrificial vessels were crafted from pure gold, and a splendid canopy was erected. The grand ceremony even included solemn music traditionally reserved for heavenly sacrifices. "The altar was made of Wenji, adorned with pure gold buttons, featuring a canopy seat, accompanied by suburban sacrificial music." The scale of this ceremony was truly remarkable!
