Heavenly Changes and Sufficient Fear: The Political Situation in Xining Reign and WANG Anshi’s View on Natural Disasters

WANG Anshi had different views on the connotations of natural disasters at different times, which reflects the changes of the political situation during Reign of Xining in which Emperor Shenzong of the Song Dynasty was in power. Before the Xining Reforms, WANG held traditional views on natural disasters because his views show a weak connection to politics. With the development of the forces of reform supporters, he refined theoretically the views on natural disasters. Gradually he separated heaven from humans, but maintained a macroscopic connection between heaven and humans. After the forces were consolidated, he considered natural disasters as a political appendage by selecting or emphasizing the content of views on natural disasters based on specific political events. WANG’s views on natural disasters are the product of the intertwining of politics and the value system, among which the influence of politics gradually becomes stronger with the maturity of Emperor Shenzong. The development of the views reflects the internal struggles and cooperation within the forces and the inherent trends of political situation in the Xining Reign.