(A) the legal thought of the Western Zhou Dynasty and its influence

"Heaven and morality should be combined, and prudence alone should be used to punish morality" was developed by the rulers of the Western Zhou Dynasty on the basis of the thought of "destiny and punishment" in Xia and Shang Dynasties. The rulers of Xia and Shang dynasties claimed to be "ordered by heaven" and cracked down on those who did not obey their own rule. The Western Zhou Dynasty overthrew the rule of Shang Dynasty, trying to find a reasonable and legal basis for its own rule. Therefore, "heaven" only gives the "destiny" of ruling the world to those who have virtue. Once the ruler loses his virtue, he will lose the protection of heaven and a new virtue ruler will take his place. This is "matching heaven with virtue". A virtuous ruler must also be "cautious about punishment", that is, first of all, he must make the people submit through moral education, and it is really impossible to impose punishment again. When using punishment, we should be lenient with others, be cautious and should not be severely punished blindly.

This thought had a far-reaching impact on all the rulers in China. After the mid-Han Dynasty, it gradually developed into the feudal orthodox legal thought of "morality dominates punishment, and courtesy and punishment are used together".

(B) the relationship between ceremony and punishment

Rite is a unique legal source in ancient China society, and it is the general name of a series of principles and norms that maintain the patriarchal blood relationship and patriarchal hierarchy. Patriarchal clan system is a rule that takes the paternal family as the center and distinguishes kinship by consanguinity. Ritual originated from the ritual of offering sacrifices to ghosts and gods in primitive society. A set of rituals that developed into a slave society. Rites have two meanings. First, the abstract principle spirit can be summarized as "kissing" and "respecting". That is, people who kiss and respect their relatives. Second, the specific etiquette rules, each dynasty has different rules, the Western Zhou Dynasty showed five etiquette rules, namely, auspicious (sacrifice), fierce (funeral), military (marching and fighting), guest (hospitality) and Jia (crown marriage).

Rites and punishments complement each other. If you give a gift, you will be punished. This ceremony is no less than that of Shu Ren, and the punishment is no more than that of a doctor.

Contract and Marriage Succession Law

Contract: In the Western Zhou Dynasty, the sales contract was called "pledge" and was written on bamboo slips. For buying and selling slaves, cattle and horses, longer bonds are called "pledges", while for buying and selling weapons and rare items, shorter bonds are called "pledges". The loan contract of the Western Zhou Dynasty is called "Fubie". "Fu" means to write the rights and obligations of both sides on bamboo slips, and "Don't" means to write the word "Zhong" in the middle of bamboo slips, and then split it into two parts, with each side holding half. This shows that the ancients have noticed the seriousness of the contract.

Marriage: "Six Rites" are the six procedures that must be followed to conclude a marriage, "Seven Outings" are the conditions to dissolve the marriage, and "Three No's" are the restrictions on the divorce between in-laws and their wives.

(4) Publication of written law

China's slavery laws are basically closed and unwritten. On the one hand, this situation is due to the low level of legislation and legal system development in early human society, and on the other hand, the ancient rulers of China pursued legal mysticism, believing that "if the punishment is unknown, the power is unpredictable" to facilitate their own rule. In the Spring and Autumn Period, this situation has undergone fundamental changes. On the one hand, the society is in a turbulent period, and the political, economic and social systems are changing. On the other hand, the original law is a tool to safeguard the privileges of slave owners and nobles, which is not in line with the interests of the emerging landlord class. Therefore, after the mid-Spring and Autumn Period, some vassal states began to formulate and publish written laws.

The first time was in 536 BC, when the ruling son of the State of Zheng cast the laws of the State of Zheng on a tripod symbolizing power, which was called "the book of punishment" in history. The second time was in 5 13 BC, when the minister of the state of Jin cast the punishment book of the state of Jin on a tripod, which was called "casting the punishment tripod" in history.

(5) The Classic of Law and Shang Yang's Reform

The National Law is the first systematic code in China feudal society. This was formulated by Li Kui of Wei during the Warring States Period. * * * Article 6: Theft Law, which is about the punishment for infringing on other people's property; Thief law is a punishment to destroy the ruling order; The clean law, also known as the prison law, is a regulation on the detention of criminals; The arrest law is a regulation about arresting criminals; Miscellaneous laws are punishment provisions for crimes other than thieves and thieves, mainly six prohibitions; There are laws to follow, which are the provisions of the principle of heavier punishment in conviction and sentencing, and are equivalent to the general principles in modern criminal law. Classic of Law occupies a high position in the history of feudal legal system in China, not only because it is the first systematic code, but also because its content was basically inherited by Qin and Han law firms, and its content was also inherited and developed by later generations.

Shang Yang's political reform was a political and legal reform of Qin during the Warring States Period. The most influential reforms in the history of legal system include: first, changing laws into laws, emphasizing the universality and unity of legal norms, and demanding that laws be balanced and unified like temperament; Second, "ruling the country according to law" and "severe punishment and misdemeanor" mean that the fundamental means of governing the country is law, not etiquette or morality, as opposed to Confucian etiquette. Legalists' so-called law is punishment, and it is a heavy punishment. Even for minor crimes, heavy sentences are used. The so-called "punishment comes and punishment goes."