Letter from Genghis Khan Asking for the Secret of Eternal Life // (1219) Invitation to Taoist Monk
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- Опубликовано: 4 окт 2024
- By the end of his reign, Genghis Khan was the most powerful man in history. As he oversaw his vast empire, there was one final enemy he found himself facing - his own mortality. Here we have the letter Genghis wrote to the famous Taoist monk Qiu Chuji urging him to cross the vast distance to come to his court, as the Supreme Khan wished to discover the secret of "preserving life" - immortality.
Check out the original source (and the story of the monk) at this excellent website:
depts.washingt...
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Hello folks! Hope you enjoy the video. Lots more Mongol sources coming this year - check out Jackmeister for some more great Mongol videos ruclips.net/video/mYe5uYXb5PI/видео.html
This turned out great! I am looking forward to the rest!
Ghenkis Khan is amazing. Keep it up.
look for Ibn khaldoon famous book on sociology "muqaddimah"
this is awesome man!!! thank you from Portugal and a Happy New Year 😉
You too!
"I, too, am extraordinarily humble."
I can also speak with you fully asleep.
He show off his humbleness
@@johnraina4828 Which is the opposite of humble - proud as it gets :)
The humble ones won't advertise their humbleness. They don't think about it, until others mention it. They might be surprised then.
@@timomastosalo well no shit sherlock.
Bigly humble.
Qiu Chuji is no simply a "monk" , rather a patronarch of All True school of Taoism..this letter was like inviting the Pope.
Hernando Malinche - the Dalai Lama always refers to himself as a Buddhist monk
@Hernando Malinche
Did Genghis Khan call Qiu Chuji with a title or none at all?
@@peekaboopeekaboo1165 he did
@@peekaboopeekaboo1165 he called qiu chuji .the laoshenxian something like the father gods or old gods or godlike master...
Irony is this guy comparing a enlightened Taoist monk to a "Pedophile" a.k.a Pope
Just what I need after eating and drinking too much over Christmas: an 800 year old Mongol preaching about the virtues of moderation
Everyone has virtues and vices.
Some eat more then necessary, some drink more then necessary, and some hunger for more power then is necessary.
So how moderate was he really?
Wolfgang Kranek good point! Kind of like if you say : “I’m so humble”.... Are you? 😂👍
@@andromedav.884 I have no intention in conquering and ruling the world.
But I like to eat, I give you that. ;)
Thinking that havens have chosen you to wage war and rule over the world, so humble and moderate
I wouldn't feel too bad. Homeboy was talking about moderation while raping and murdering millions of people.
His Chinese scribes are quite impressive, taking references from ancient Chinese lore like The Three and The Nine (referencing the Zhou dynasty) as well as the Journey of a Thousand Li (Guan Yu's travel to reunite with Liu Bei) and the Three Visits by the River Wei (Liu Bei's attempts to recruit Zhuge Liang). He's basically saying, I need good men to fill official posts (The Three and The Nine) and I'm sorry I can't go there in person to recruit you (like Liu Bei did for Zhuge) but the post is yours if you'd agree to make the journey (of a Thousand Li, like Guan Yu). It also implies that he'd treat the man like a brother if he'd just come (like Liu Bei did for Guan Yu).
This comment is highly underrated
Very interesting, thanks for sharing!
This gave me extreme Dynasty warrior flashbacks, god the hours I played that game, and to find out it is loosely based on the real 3 kingdoms.
I am impressed by the elegant prose in the letters of the ancients.
Even today they might still call us barbarians.
You should be, their brains were bigger than ours, and they were much stronger. We have devolved.
@Ascension_Shogun YT indeed, our brains are smaller though but that's not a genetic thing
@Ascension_Shogun YT no, I'm talking about humans in modern societies vs humans in the same place but back in time when things were less modern
For example, new guineans maintaining their hunter gatherer lifestyle have bigger brains than new guineans in rich urban areas
@Ascension_Shogun YT actually, life was far worse when we stopped hunter gathering, life expectancy dropped way down, oppressive power structures became more commonplace, people's teeth fell apart much quicker, illness became a much more pressing issue in day to day life and malnutrition was commonplace (not enough variety in diets). Hunter gathering even today has the advantage of greater pay off for much less work, granting lots of time for pursuit of hobbies.
That's unrelated to having bigger brains though, even midiaeval European peasants had bigger brains (though far smaller than those of hunter-gatherers) than the average city dweller today, despite the city dwellers improved nutritional intake (though midiaeval peasants had much healthier meals outside of famine than the average person today who eats the less healthy food that kings would eat). The main reasons that our brains were bigger in hunter gatherer societies is likely because we'd use much more memory (spacial, linguistic, perhaps skill based too).
There's a reason that hunter gathering was viewed as a utopic way of life in many ancient societies
I think Genghis had an excellent PR department.
@ Spencer Taylor , he did
He didn't
And his enemies had their PR departments work overtime after his death.
@@letsomethingshine how true this is, and an excellent point!
Haha
After receiving this letter, the Taoist monk in his seventies walked all the way from eastern China to Afghanistan, met Genghis Khan and travelled back
Wow! Really!!! That's amazing!
yes he did, he even became good friends with Genghis Khan
@@nolantangcalagan6518 Genghis Khan Friendship is magic
"I, living in the northern wilderness, have not inordinate passions..."
- Your MILLIONS of descendants say otherwise.
It is pretty ordinary for the greatest conquerors in history to do crazy things.
I'm pretty sure Alexander named multiple cities after his horse.
@@Hashishin13 It was a really nice horse.
613 he named almost all cities after himself but I’m quite sure he named one after bucephalos too
It's almost 2020 and his deeds, his people and name still live on therefore he did achieve the only immortality a human can realistically attain.
Hold my beer
@Nosferatu Zodd Actually we're the only thing that matters. Everything that is not a human is a resource for human use. Who cares what happens to it after we're gone. Nothing fun.
Foolish Zodd, with out us the universe wouldn't even know it existed. The cosmos has chosen humans to be its grand admirer.
Nosferatu Zodd smh typical of you to say something like that Zodd, go back to making life miserable for Guts
Holden Void and one of the godhand himself is here too!!
This is incredibly fascinating. Imagning Genghis Khan realising his own mortality and, trough fear of death, being so humble about it, is really something to behold.
I, too, am extraordinarily humble. My humility can be judged by the fact that in this magnificently vast universe of His, all I seek is ownership of a small, little pebble called the planet Earth.
This is the best new channel on RUclips
Hurrah! Thanks friend
@@島袋誠-z6k true
@@島袋誠-z6k ok boomer
@@島袋誠-z6k Logic, reasoning, and facts are eurocentric and racist.
Makoto Shimabukuro Absolutely no chance. You’re living in a fantasy land. VOTP was RUclips’s ‘Creator on the Rise’ a few weeks ago.
Genghis Khan: *"I exercise moderation"*
Also Genghis Khan: *"I want to own ALL the lands!"*
At that time if you were not winning, you were losng
Central Asian nomads thought that that they are supposed to own the world
@B Peperkorn A similar mindset to Chinese. Mandate of Heaven is Chinese law. Central Asian tribes believed that they had the favor of Tengri, the sky god.
There is to be a single rule on land just like there's a single God in the sky
This isn't really accurate. Genghis Khan united all Mongolian (or more accurately nomadic lands) lands by force, yes, but invasions after that were the results of diplomatic outrage, political disrespect or outright declaration of war by outside forces (Persia, China etc). The Persians for instance rounded up 450 people who were on a diplomatic mission to the Persian empire and had them slaughtered.
Of course that says nothing about his descendants lol
AND all the ladies🤣
1:34 "the barbarians in the West"
we just got roasted
Neophyte he might be talking about the middle easter kingdoms, the mongol incursions in europe happen after ghengis kahns dead, but i am not sure
Well, after listening to that other vid about the Viking Rus... 8-I
@@eldavid8774 by then the mongols were just into central asia, so it's more likely these guys. remember it's still in the period of the islamic golden age, and mongols did end up getting split over believing islam or not later :/
He talked about other Turkic barbarian people live in central Asia steppe that time
@@rickville8898 nope, Turkic were always like brothers to his people. Magyars, Bolghars, Turkics, Mongols are sort of same. Calling one of them barbarian is like they would call themselves barbarians.
No he was talking about Pope and christians. While he was going west on Muslims, Muslims were going wester on Christians. And the weaker guys, meaning Christians in here, were considered barbarians. Strength i suppose was considered civilization in Genghis khan's world.
The Daoist monk Qiu Chuji actually went to Genghis Khan's court and tried his best to save commoners from Mongol invasion
depts.washington.edu/silkroad/texts/changchun.html
He did a very good job insecuring favours for Taoists, and was able to use the Khan's mandate to seize Buddhist temples and force conversions of Buddhist monks and nuns. But many thousands were able to flock to these temples and gain exemptions from taxation, labour and safety from bandits and Mongol armies. Quanzhen Taosim gained a following of something like 20% of China's population under Mongol rule.
@Svarog yes! I am helping Voices of the Past with this project, providing all sorts of sources for him. I am very eager to see what he does with them!
By going to the Khan's court he travelled all the way from eastern China to Afghanistan. That was impressive 800 years ago.
Its interesting that most folks can't understand what it was like back so very long ago, we who only live maybe 75 years of the thousands behind history .. Genghis Khan was a brilliant man of his day, he was what all men think they are, he did more than millions together could never do..he was a king in that he became what kings should be...the same as the man who stood next to him.
Epic! I love knowing that the greatness of the letters & writings here are from actual events. Who even needs TV shows and whatnot when we'll never have enough time to learn the dramatic and true history of our planet and people?
👌🏼
And never does Hollywood tell a story straight. Embellishment being the order of the day. This is something they have in common with the msm.
@@deanpd3402 I mean it's not their jobs to give us harsh realities; they're supposed to give us feel-good stories that people of every ethnicity/race can enjoy. Can't quite capitalize on a story that makes a group of people look bad
Harald Griefbacon i would still prefer the real deal, if he died of rheumatism than there's a lesson there too, to make better insulated homes!!! fantasy is for children so they don't grow up angry! why should we see people as celebrities? that just keeps us from reaching. like Conan said "...if your gods aren't gonna help than they should stay out of my way!" 😉 Happy New Year folks
Genghis Khan: I'm a humble guy who lives humbly, I don.t ask for much, just immortality, kay thanks bye
I NOTICED THAT YOU SAW MY MESAGE BUT DID NOT REPLY! I TRIED TO BE NICE GENTLEMANS BUT I GESS IM NOT GOOD ENOGH!?!
@@qus.9617 ??
@@possum2u shit joke nvm lol
And 10 000 female slaves which would bare his children
Wow.... Just wow..... I've always been fascinated by Genghis Khan. Thank you
Glad you enjoyed it
Thank you for sharing this wonderful piece of history.
Thanks for watching 👍
I don't think he's asking about eternal life for himself or his people. He seems merely to be asking for wisdom on how to make them live long and prosperous is all.
You are obviously correct. Not sure why a history channel is using bullshit click bait schemes.
He's asking a daoist master on how to prolong life - indefinitely. It isn't rigid immortality as we understand the concept and the daoists never made the claim anyway. What the daoists of Genghis' time considered immortality was a combination of living beyond the known lifespan of man and leaving a legacy that would be remembered forever. That's why daoists were never considered fraudsters. A 95-year-old man with full control of his faculties was basically a goddamn immortal to anyone who'd seen their parents pass away enfeebled and senile at 60. Genghis himself passed away at 65. Many of his successors (and predecessors) never made it past 50. Qiu Chuji was 73 when he met Genghis Khan, which was considered holy shit ancient by Mongol standards. Bear in mind that this man also had to travel all the way from Shandong to Afghanistan. It must have been an inspiring and impressive sight to the Mongol leadership.
Andrew Suryali no he's not. He's asking him to come work with him as a member of his court so that he can apply his wisdom to working towards the preservation of life. As in his empires peoples' lives will be more more secure if he is able to give them wise leaders looking out for their interests. You forget that these people already knew that life is eternal and that reincarnation is real. They knew that it mattered not how you died, but rather what mattered is how you lived. That is the way.
@@gambit7772 That sounds awesome if true, but unfortunately you're making up alternate history.
In real history, Qiu Chuji traveled from Shandong to Afghanistan to meet the Kaghan and the first question the Kaghan asked of him was how to achieve immortality. The answer Master Qiu gave him was something like my post above. So Genghis Khan gave up on achieving immortality and made Qiu an official of his court. This all happened in 1220 and there are records of the encounter from both Mongol and Chinese sources. In particular, the interview was recorded in the imperial decree Master Qiu brought back with him, making him minister of religious affairs. Qiu later launched a persecution of Buddhists in China on the strength of this decree, but that's a story for another time.
You are correct in that the letter was an invitation to serve. In it the Kaghan made allusions that a Chinese scholar would recognize immediately: He lacked The Three (Dukes) and The Nine (Ministers) in his court. This alludes to the idealized Zhou royal court structure, which according to Confucius was the ultimate model of virtuous government. He regretted not being able to make his Three Visits in person, alluding to Liu Bei's three visits to recruit his future chief strategist and prime minister Zhuge Liang. However the letter also conflates the visits with The Encounter on The River Wei, which alludes to the meeting between King Wen of Zhou and Jiang Ziya, the master strategist who built the foundations of the Zhou dynasty. Both Zhuge Liang and Jiang Ziya were daoists who were believed to have known the secret to immortality, with the latter supposedly having ascended to heaven as an immortal. Crucially, however, in legends Zhuge Liang tried a daoist ritual to prolong his life when he was dying of overwork but failed, passing away at 53. Thus the kaghan hinted that, while having immortality would have been preferred, he was not averse to the truth. As for the post itself, the letter hinted that the Master should make the Journey of a Thousand Li as Guan Yu did when searching for his master Liu Bei, offering implicitly to treat Qiu as a brother (as Liu Bei did to Guan Yu) if he would make the journey. He also asked for the Master's help in teaching the way to prolong a prosperous life, as the immortal Laozi taught his disciples.
So in real history Genghis Khan DID ask Qiu Chuji to share with him the secret of immortality, was then given the explanation of what Daoists meant when they spoke of immortality, accepted the explanation, and honored his promise by making Qiu an official, which the latter promptly abused to strengthen his sect.
Because eternal life doesnt make them prosperous.
It was his Chinese scribblers who turned simple words like "fetch Qiu" from the Khan, into a beautifully written edict like this..
"I...exercise moderation"...with thousands of wives.
@@imkow when he can have a thousand times more... yes
@@RangKlos ....guess moderation has no meaning then...
The thousands of wives thing was a means to an end. He was told that while he could not live forever the closest thing he could do is to have as many children as possible that way a small part of him would endure. At least according to legend/history.
@Hoàng Nguyên To be fair, that's hardly difficult. Europe's most recent common ancestor lived about 600 years ago. All modern Europeans would be direct descendents.
Metaphorically Genghis did get his immortality; he and his descendants left such an impact on the world that it would never be the same.
Interestingly, that was exactly what the recipient of this letter told him when they finally met in 1220.
And all to the worst for humanity. Everyone they and the Turks went has been total destruction. They never made anything better than when they got there.
moshak 1 I disagree; the Mongols were brutal in their warring ways but they also wiped out many brutal tyrants in their conquests, united the Silk Road trade route and significantly decreased bandit activity in his empire. All citizens rose up through merit not because of race or beliefs, and because of this the Khan’s court was made up of many companions from conquered people’s.
@@Hugh_Morris I really wished if mongols would have crushed the Delhi sultanate too
@@parveshbisht4955 You do realise that if the Delhi Sultanate didn't protect India, more Hindus than Muslims would die by the mongolians hands? Because hindus constituted the majority of the Indian population
Interesting. Talks about how humble he is, then goes on to talk about how great his accomplishments were and what a great leader he is. Can't get more humble than that!
Neil Roy He was humble in his lifestyle but ambitious in his job
Even a humble person can have great achievements. It aint bragging if it is true.
He should have known the chances of that event chain are very low, I mean you gotta do the sacrifice, catch the snake and drink the potion, its a real hassle
The one time I saw it, all I got for it was a missing hand.
Ghenkis : writes letter
Monk :new phone who dis ?
dat feeling when the Khan of Khans knows your phone number and home address.
lol
@@qus.9617 not just any adress. He known near which river you live, under which rock to do sleep.
Chinggis Khaan: Avoiding me is exercise in futility. Just look at all these dead enemies of mine who tried to run away from me half-way across the known world.
You deserve millions of subscribers!
Yayyy
not only a great conqueror but a great writer
Hopefully you do more mongol sources in the future
These voices from the past are absolutely captivating! They have opened my eyes to so much history I never knew, and have driven me to learn more about the history of the Far East -- an education we do not ordinarily get in the West. Well done!!
That was just a wondrous close-up of the beautiful Mongolian horse, thank you ! all great footage, and the perfect complement to the whole thing. loved it loved it loved it.
Notice me senpai
- Genghis Khan
What is it?
@@noticemesenpai69 its a meme
@@wilmerbesitan1200 read my name
Excellent! Thank you. If there is more of this from Khan it would be appreciated. Studying him at the moment....
Possibly not specifically from him, but definitely will be more Mongol stuff coming up
@@VoicesofthePast thank you. All is pertinent in the study of Mongolian history.
Why are you studying Mongolian history? It's pretty simple really, just think about the worst crimes in history ever committed and the mongols did it. They're not a people that are worth studying.
@@moshak1455 That is not nice at all and certainly does not show any effort to actually study and understand the culture.
Kathy Wolf You're a nice person. I wish the mongols were nice and tried to understand the culture of Baghdad instead killing 1 million civilians one by one and throwing then into the river. Or how about how the mongols destroyed the house of wisdom of Baghdad and burned all the books that was filled with so much knowledge and wisdom. Or how about the fact that they created a refugee crisis and disarray which the world has never seen before. Or how about how the mongols were the first to use biological warfare against its enemies. It centuries for the areas they destroyed to recover. Even the Chinese and persians took a long time to recover. Let's not talk about the back plague that mongols also gifted the world. No no no, instead let's try to "study" and "understand" their culture.
its actually kinda amazing, u can hear the frustration in his expression as he's talking to real deal masters.
Sheesh, Genghis Khan was CENTURIES ahead in terms of sheer comic book/movie supervilliany from ambitions of world domination, to emissary of a wrathful god, to seeking Immortality itself.
Great work as always. But bear in mind that it may be Romanized as "Tao" it is in fact said "Dao".
I blame Matteo Ricci and Michele Ruggieri for that one hahaha.
Very impressive! Thank you!
Thanks!
Very interesting! Thank you. 🙏
Yayyy
What are "the three and the nine" in reference to?
The Three Dukes, which were traditionally three of the highest officials in early Chinese dynasties, and the Nine ministers were immediately subordinate to the three Dukes. It's basically saying 'we couldn't fill the top positions in government,' but referencing really old, classic government positions no longer in use.
@@TheJackmeisterMongolHistory ~ Gotcha--thanks.
Three Rings for the Elven Lords and Nine for the Kings of Men 🤣
@@geert574
"The true equation is 'democracy' = government by world financiers...The main mark of modern governments is that we do not know who governs, de facto any more than de jure. We see the politician and not his backer; still less the backer of the backer; or what is most important of all, the banker of the backer. Enthroned above all, in a manner without parallel in all past, is the veiled prophet of finance, swaying all men living by a sort of magic, and delivering oracles in a language not understanded [sic] of the people."
-Tolkien
@@sonnenrad229 Tolkien had seen the bank crisis of the land of the oh so free, and maybe it affected other countries too, that crisis in 1905 - or thereabouts. That crisis is now very much forgotten - because there was the bigger one, the Great Recession in the late 20's.
But the bankers did gain huge power in the previous bank crisis: the stars and stripes currency was set to 'float free' - it wasn't tied anymore to the amount of Gold their central bank had. Because getting gold from the people during that crisis was a tiresome mammoth of a task. They deemed the method unreliable.
After that the buck was 'an asset' for finances, given by that bank. Meaning the bank could just define what's the value of the currency - so they could base it on a bubble, hot air, if and when so wanted. Maybe they haven't done it yet… Believe who so want. Incidentally, after that, the demand of that currency increased exponentially, making it the currency number one in the World.
I sense Tolkien saw this, he jsut wented more on the industry exploiting nature - that was an open theme in his books. Yet it likely spoke of the financial games of the Big Boys, too. But more camouflaged, embedded in the other layers in his stories.
Great stuff, most people would think otherwise, but this letter is quite humble
His concern seems to be the rule of the empire. He obviosly did practice moderation and promote talent above all, opposite to China. There may of course be impulses of vanity in him, he's merely human and has achieved more than any before him. He does mention the burdens he feels on his shoulders. I'm actually impressed by his words. There's a divine justice permeating the events and he has no lack of consceousness of God above. This is the type of history one takes learning from.
Genghis Khan: "Once I have gathered all seven dragon balls I will be immortal !"
@@barbatvs8959 lmfao
@@barbatvs8959 tell me more
Considering how many people today have some of his DNA, he wasn't moderate in one way.
Paul A. It’s like with Charlemagne exponential growth means if you have 4 children and each of them have 4 and so forth and to simplify let’s say they all have them at the same time every 25 years then by the 800 hundred year mark the number of living descendants would be 18 quintillion and remember that his descendants were nobility and born into polygamous societies so 4 children per person is probably an underestimate.
If you switch the average to 2 kids and only 3 generations every century you get 16 mil the power of exponential growth should never be forgotten. The same is true for Charlemagne or the founder of the Tang dynasty if you have decent western European or East and South East asian ancestry the chance of you not being one of their descendants is astronomically low.
Most of them living in Hungary...
@@turmunhkganba1705 What about the fact that nobles only ever married nobles and commoners only ever married comoners for centuries? That's how we ended up with lots of inbred royals before democracy replaced monarchy in most countries.
Modern translation:
Hi dude, I'm a big fan of yours, please come here. Don't worry about the distance, I'm cool man, I'm cool. Please answer me, you're so smart, I'm sure you could teach me about immortality right?
Notice me sempai!
After this message, Qiu briefly considered retiring to the mountains of Tibet to live as a goat but was convinced otherwise by his more measured acolyte.
Look upon my works ye mighty and despair
Yeah, something along those lines. Except what remains is about a million ancestors xD
Is it true that genghis khan was a humble man ? I also read somewhere that attila the hun also didnt value material goods that much and had a normal rusty sword.
Does anyone know more about this ? Is it maybe the nomadic lifestyle which prevents the accumulation of useless plunder and shit and always sharpens your mind to only carry the needed things.
We can learn so much about this, i have also minimalistic tendencies and it felt so relieving lately when i sold or throw away so many things. Almost every household in the west is full and exaggerated with unnecessary things, gadgets, furniture and what not.
Attila ate simple food off wooden plates (while serving his guests with golden plates) but his sword was supposedly the Sword of Mars*.
* which probably means the Sword of whoever the Hunnic war god was, which was then translated to Mars by the Romans.
Chinggis Khaan exercised moderation, because he knew true hardship from childhood. His descendants only knew luxury thus became decadent and many died early of alcoholism and other luxury related illnesses.
I found the original Chinese transcript
制曰：天厌中原骄华太极之性，朕居北野嗜欲莫生之情。返朴还淳，去奢从俭。每一衣一食，与牛竖马圉共弊同飨。视民如赤子，养士若弟兄。谋素和，恩素畜。练万众以身人之先，临百阵无念我之后。七载之中成大业，六合之内为一统。非朕之行有德，盖金之政无恒。是以受之天佑，获承至尊。南连蛮宋，北接回纥，东夏西夷，悉称臣佐。念我单于国①千载百世以来，未之有也。然而任大守重，治平犹惧有阙。且夫刳舟剡楫，将欲济江河也；聘贤选佐，将以安天下也。朕践祚以来，勤心庶政，而三九之位，未见其人。访闻丘师先生，体真履规，博物洽闻，探赜穷理，道冲德著，怀古君子之肃风，抱真上人之雅操。久栖岩谷，藏声隐形。阐祖师之道化，坐致有道之士，云集仙径，莫可称数。自干戈而后，伏知先生犹隐山东旧境，朕心仰怀无以。岂不闻渭水同车、茅庐三顾之事？奈何山川弘阔，有失躬迎之礼。朕但避位侧身，斋戒沐浴，遣差近侍官刘仲禄，备轻骑素车，不远数千里，谨邀先生暂屈仙步，不以沙漠游远为念，或以忧民当世之务，或以恤朕保身之术。朕亲侍仙座，钦惟先生将咳唾之余，但授一言，斯可矣。今者聊发朕之微意万一，明於诏章，诚望先生既著大道之端要，善无不庶，亦岂违众生小愿哉！故咨诏示，惟宜知悉。五月初一日。（御宝）
Doesn't matter where you're from, chances are this man is your ancestor so be proud
Centuries later, man still seeks what this Khan never obtained
"And (I) take interest in talented men as if they were my brothers" Given his history of killing at least 2 of his brothers, Im not sure this is a ringing endorsement of his own character :D
He killed one half-brother, who was vying for the leadership of the clan.
I admire him..
I loved it! Very well done!
That was beautiful and awesome!
Thanks!
Yikes, tough request. "you are a man of the greatest honor. So, you know, please don't make me kill you.
Well, the letter is actually saying "I am in need of you. I have been doing my best to find men of merit, I can make a good order and you are well equipped to serve people in my name. P. S. If you refuse, I'll disembowel you
There is a huge confusion that the mass is in. Actually, he did not ask about eternal life or how to live forever, he asked about how to make the state(his country) forever.
Swiggity Swooty with my eternal life potion I'm coming for that booty - Genghis Khan
One thing u shud know is Chinghiz Khan was tolerant and was ok. Christians was in Karakoram which was Nestorians.
Maybe a time traveller had warned him about how his sons were going to act once he died
1:39 "Barbarians in the West" - that was hurtful 😥
Thanks
Now I will have to search out and see if the monk ever went in the 8 years he had left to live.. Thank you that was very interesting.. I am a bit amazed at Genghis's vision of himself.. this needs more research.. Carry on! this is a wonderful channel..
He did! I'll post the original source in the description
@@Breakfast_of_Champions By no means. Genghis was a conqueror; not a savage. Yes, he waged a series of bloody wars that conquered a vast empire, and is said by some to have immensely enjoyed it - but he was also renowned for his wisdom, positive governance, religious tolerance, and by some accounts justice. No real person is 1 sided, after all - least of all those whose names live on forever.
@@Ruby321123 Indeed; if Genghis was cruel or a savage, he was no more cruel or a savage than other rulers of other lands; If you read any book on specific kingdoms in early antiquity or middle ages it's all about power balances exerted through plunder and war, and none shunned from showing their strength.
@@VoicesofthePast thanks!
I love your work. Every night i listen.
Good to drift off to
"I consider my people my children", well, technically, probably yes.
XD
funniest bit here is he had already found immortality. his story is known to children grown men in some parts of the world still fear him. his legacy is still with the kingdom of Islam. the only thing he had left to complete his revenge was china and his heirs saw to that.
Ah he remembers "remote times of our Chanyu"
Another thing, nomads probably had a very strong oral culture.
Turkic Mythology survived very vividly until modern times when Russian scholars reconstructed it
Bilge Kağan remembers his decendant Turkish khanates
And Hyun Jim Kim claims that, there was a very rigid, well established Inner Asian steppe state structure, these people were extremely organised, and had a culture of creating large imperial structures, when theis state imperial force dwindles, they fall to disunity and such "tribes" form under military leaders.
But when they reunite, they all become one again. Mongol was not a name for these peoples until Chingiz came
Turk wasn't a thing until Bumin Kağan created the system
I have come to the conclusion that ancient history should be taken with a large grain of salt. The story of Genghis Khan and the Mongol Empire is one of those stories that strains my credulity.
Nope
With all of the land they conquered and peoples they came in contact with it would be impossible for it all to just be made up. The numbers of people killed in various areas may be over or under estimated, but the people involved existed and the events happened. If there was no Mongol invasions of all of those areas we should be able to find out what was really happening in Persia, China, Central Asia, Eastern Europe at the time. Just because something historical seems to be beyond comprehension in its magnitude doesnt mean it couldnt have happened.
that's like saying you don't believe In gravity.
this was fucking badass.
The Mongols were the coolest people that ever lived
For those who are questioning whether Chinggis Khaan himself had came up with such eloquent prose: Mongols of the time had no written language but they were master orators--as it was required for them to pass their history, messages, and proposals through oral tradition. Chinggis Khaan was also likely well versed and experienced in Chinese literature and history owning to his proximity to Jin Dynasty. Thus it is entirely conceivable that such sophistication were said by him, though perhaps not all parts. Part of Chinggis success was his charisma and speech that swayed even the hearts of his enemies to join his cause.
People have a eurocentric imagination about Inner Asian steppe peoples. Anyone who reads the Orkhon Inscriptions can easily recognise that Göktürks had a certain way with their language.
Just because there aren't written literature in extensive numbers, it doesn't mean the people themselves were primitive
Every culture had its own philosophy, it's just some were well documented
Wow, this is so interesting to listen to! It really paints a picture of who he was as a person. By the way to any Mongol-lovers out there, I hate to self-advertise, but I recently released a video about the impacts the Mongols had on Eurasian history, and and currently working on a biography of ol' Chinggis, if anyone's interested!
Given the typical Mongol mentality, him seeing himself as humble isn't terribly surprising I guess. He saw it as his sort of duty to unite the world under one banner, even if he sometimes took it further than he was initially going to. Sorta reminds me of the rogue one, "you are being rescued, do not resist"
A man who brought the world to it's knees with his brutality, brought to his knees by the unwavering power and indifference of mortality.
Who knew the secret of eternal life would be spreading the name of your seed all over the continent
I owe the monk guy
For eternal life: "I've tried fasting and potions... now I think I'll make mountains made of the human skulls of those I vanquish." Sounds legit. D.A., NYC
You can thank the Great Khan for everything that makes sense from mans brutal world. He did obtain immortality for himself and his people. We speak of them now. And yet Mongolia is still there after the Soviet Union.
Many of you have a low opinion of this great man. You do not know the context in which you lower yourselves.
To his contemporaries he is untouchable.
What was the West and the East up to at this time?
Do you know your history?
Free trade, not killing the messenger, being respectful of all religions, disaster relief, a standard currency, value of skilled labor, the right to read and write, thrift of governing off of low taxes, honor to those who deserve it no matter what, and so much more.
From a slave to the greatest ruler in history that lived and died riding on the back his horse with
his Bros.
💀THAT'S FUCKING METAL!🤘
Now this is how you ask for something you clearly don't deserve.
Thank you
If instead saying all of those he said that he has always searching the Great Way since childhood, always refrain from wrong doing and hurting the innocents, reign on his anger, lust, and greed, learn from the wise, mindful of his thought, conduct, and speech, the Taoist might even made him his disciple.
He sounds like a great guy. Worryingly so.
James T. Kirk letter to Genghis: KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!!!!
Fantastic channel.
"I'm sending 1000 men to come get you. Don't be scared they are only 'escorts' and not an intimidation play."
1000 li is a distance unit, one li is 0.310 miles
Genghis Khan: "The barbarians of the west.."
Future european powers: Laughs in cannon sound
he didn't talk about europeans he was talking about Xwarezmians !!!
I think Khan would have been proud of certain Europeans. The vikings were similar to him, raiding and conquering, but building empires from the ashes. Just as the Mongols ruled China, the Northmen ruled England. And both led those nations to become empires with time.
*Using gunpowder weapons utilized first in Mongol armies from captured Chinese troops, knowledge traded and improved by Europeans*
The Mongols called gunpowder "Chinese snow"
@@weaner556 Agreed that's what I meant to say
"Remote time of...since our ShanYu" - ShanYu is referring to the khan or kings of Xiongnu empire. Knowing your ancestry from over 1300 years ago is insane 🔥.
The Monk will be really nervous to reply this letter...
He made his choice in life and that he would not leave to find his answer that was his biggest mistake and his last
Yeah idk if it lines up it lines up that is the secret.
Odd they both died in the same year. Did Qui Chuji answer the Khan's invitation? If so, did he accompany the Khan's body to it's tomb and was killed with the other
witnesses to keep it's location secret as is widely believed? Maybe he was executed on the Khan's death for failure to provide the requested immortality? Maybe none of these....
Thank you for a very interesting piece of history.
How about the letter from Kublai Khan to the Japanese?
It’s not about humility. It’s about discipline.
Imagine having to come up with an explanation to Genghis Khan of why you can't make him immortal. I think the way to go would be to convince him that dying isn't so bad. Make him not want immortality anymore.
Ryan Holland Actually in real life when the monk simply told him the khaan is said to have been so pleased by his honesty that he gave the douists a few privileges which would eventually lead to the douists taking over and attacking Buddhist temples (see Jackmeister)
First min intro felt like 8mile music should drop in
Please make a part two with the daoist monk’s reply. As a lover of daoist thought, I felt what he said exemplified a very virtuous person.
He wasn’t looking to make the khan feel as if the life he was living was any less great than his own, but still attempted to pay back some knowledge in the form of how he personally sees life.
I've got a theory to prove. 'Genghis Khan' translates as 'universal ruler'. I personally believe that his empire was based on high tech. After the empire was divided, the churches were turned into the religous venters, and his positive influence was rebranded (Christianity/Muslim/Hindu/Buddhist). His beautiful energy machines then relabeled as churches/mosques/temples. They were actually r.f. production facilities for healing, power, heating and agriculture.
When you read his writings it becomes apparent that he wasn't the bloodthirsty tyrant that we were all taught. He was just considered to be a dangerous enemy by the current bloodthirsty satanic overlords that control our societies.
A place wear "a virgin can walk the length of the silk road carrying a gold plate on her head", is a place where all needs are satisfied. Desperate people do desperate things, no matter the consequences. Add the fact that history is written by the victors and that he is the most demonised person in history.. It means his empire was the enemy of the guys in charge.
So, we have a world empire of war- wouldn't the nature enemy of such empire be an empire of peace? A lot of Mongol history is hugely distorted. Even Chinese history is really Mongol history. Tartaria/Bavaria was real. The evidence is everywhere.
Sooooo, Im doing this whole youth mentorship thing, not even a big deal, im just really into community - Genghis Kahn
this sounds like a poetry
According to the RA material, genghis Khan graduated to 4th density negative
Nice! You've gotten better at reading these things. That background music was cool - what's it called?
I wonder if the monk ever received the letter or communicated back in some way?
He actually crossed thousands of kilometers to travel to the Khan--to do otherwise would have meant sever consequences.