Wanyan Xiyin
| Wanyan Xiyin |
| Personal details |
| Born |
Gushen (穀神)
Wushi (兀室/悟室)
Hushe (胡舍)
Unknown |
| Died |
1140 |
| Military service |
| Allegiance |
Jin dynasty (1115–1234) |
Gushen (died 1140), also known as Wushi or Hushe, and better known by his sinicised name Wanyan Xiyin, was a Jurchen noble and civil minister who lived in the founding and early years of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty (1115–1234), which ruled northern China between the 12th and 13th centuries. He was a chief adviser to Aguda (Emperor Taizu), the founder and first emperor of the Jin dynasty. Described by modern writers as the "Chief Shaman" of the pre-Jin Jurchen state, he became deeply interested in Han Chinese culture, and is particularly known as the creator of the first writing system for the Jurchen language.
Wanyan Xiyin's original Jurchen name is transcribed in Chinese sources as "Gushen", "Wushi" or "Hushe". He was from the Wanyan tribe, the ruling clan of the Jin dynasty, but was not in the direct imperial family line. His father was Huandu (歡都), a cousin of Aguda (Emperor Taizu), the founder of the Jin dynasty. Along with Nianhan (Wanyan Zonghan), Wanyan Xiyin was one of the chief advisers to Aguda. He helped Aguda in unifying the various Jurchen tribes under the Wanyan tribe's leadership, and overthrowing the Khitan-led Liao dynasty. After Aguda's death, Wanyan Xiyin continued to serve as a civil minister in the imperial court of Wuqimai (Emperor Taizong), Aguda's younger brother and successor. However, he fell into disgrace during the reign of Emperor Xizong, Emperor Taizong's successor, and was eventually forced to commit suicide in 1140.
According to contemporary Chinese sources, Wanyan Xiyin "was crafted and talented. It was he who personally devised laws and the script for the Jurchen, and thus shaped them into one state (guo; 國). The people of the state called him shan-man (珊蠻); shan-man in Jurchen refers to a shaman. This is because he understood changing conditions like a good. From Nianhan down, nobody was able to be his equal."
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