A Study On The Construction Of Regime Legitimacy In The Early Western Zhou

Regime legitimacy is a key factor for the long-term existence and stable development of a regime,and its importance for state rule is self-evident.In early times,the construction of regime legitimacy was often based on the ideological level with the concept of Mandate of Heaven as the core.During the pre-Qin period,the idea of the Mandate of Heaven permeated almost all aspects of social life,and rulers therefore used the people’s worship and fear of Heaven to build the legitimacy base of the regime.At the beginning of the Western Zhou Dynasty,the rulers,after learning the lessons from the fall of the Xia and Shang dynasties and inheriting the idea of the Mandate of Heaven from the Xia and Shang dynasties,constructed a new concept of the Mandate of Heaven to explain and maintain the legitimacy of the existence and development of the Western Zhou Dynasty.The rulers of the Yin and Shang dynasties believed that "I am not born with a destiny in heaven" and were convinced of the constancy of the Mandate of Heaven.However,the reality of the fall of Yin made the Zhou people realize that "Heaven’s destiny is impermanent" and that the absolute authority of "Heaven’s destiny" had begun to waver.Although the Mandate of Heaven was impermanent,the rulers could grasp it through "virtue" and make it permanent.On this basis,the Zhou people concluded the political concept of "Heaven’s Mandate has Virtue",which further sought the legitimacy of the Shang dynasty from the theoretical perspective.In addition,the Zhou rulers also realized that they had to pay attention to public opinion and "protect the people" while "respecting virtue",so as to win the favor of the Mandate of Heaven by "protecting the people" and make the Mandate of Heaven no longer shift,so that By "protecting the people",the government was able to win the favor of Heaven,so that Heaven’s command would not be transferred again,and that "the small people would be subject to Heaven’s eternal command".Since rituals originated from the sacrificial activities to the gods and goddesses of heaven and earth,and the establishment of the supremacy of kingship also originated from the exclusive possession of the power to sacrifice to heaven,rituals,from the very beginning of their existence,were charged with the mission of justifying the legitimacy of ruling power.The early Zhou rulers restored and rebuilt the ritual system on the basis of the rituals of Xia and Shang,and confirmed the legitimacy and supremacy of their dynastic order and monarchical power through the implementation of a strict ritual system.