Revealing the unsolved mystery of the Eastern Tomb of the Qing Dynasty: Is Emperor Shunzhi’s Xiaoling Tomb really empty?
Is Xiaoling really empty?
The Dongling Tomb of the Qing Dynasty, a geomantic treasure land, was designated as a royal omen as early as the Ming Dynasty, but before it could be built, the Ming Dynasty perished. After the Qing Dynasty entered the Pass, Emperor Shunzhi fell in love with this place and said, "This mountain is so lush and green that it can be my longevity palace." As the first emperor after the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, his Xiaoling Mausoleum was the first imperial mausoleum among the Eastern Tombs of the Qing Dynasty. It naturally has the best feng shui and the largest scale, covering an area of about 220,000 square meters and 11 kilometers from north to south. Huali. However, for hundreds of years, people, especially in the Dongling area, have been circulating that Xiaoling Tomb is empty and that Emperor Shunzhi was not buried in the underground palace at all.
It is indeed a bit unbelievable to spend huge sums of money to build a mausoleum but leave it empty, but the story of Shunzhi becoming a monk has to make people believe that the Xiaoling Underground Palace is empty. Legend has it that after the death of his beloved concubine Dong E, he was so sad and despairing that he suddenly saw through the world of mortals and became a monk.
Did Emperor Shunzhi really escape into Buddhism in history? According to research, he did indeed have his hair shaved at Wanshan Hall in Xiyuan at one time, and his hair was really shaved. Unexpectedly, the Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang came and threatened to burn his Buddhist brother to death, so Emperor Shunzhi had no choice but to agree to grow his hair and stay secular.
How did Emperor Shunzhi die? Whether it is the official history compiled by the Qing Dynasty, "Shizu Shilu" or "Yulin Imperial Master Chronicle" and other documents, it is unanimously confirmed that Emperor Shunzhi died of an incurable disease at the time - smallpox. His body was cremated one hundred days after his death, and his ashes were filled with Inside the altar, it was called the Treasure Palace and was buried in the Xiaoling Underground Palace in the second year of Kangxi. Buried with Shunzhi were the ashes of two empresses, Xiaokang and Xiaoxian. Therefore, the underground palace is not empty, but has three treasure palaces, which are what we often call urns.