Three Kingdoms and Six Dynasties · Consort

Noble Consort Ding Lingguang 丁令光

Dīng Lìngguāng

c. AD 485 - AD 526

Passages: 20
Chapters: 1
Histories: 1

Overview

Noble Consort Ding Lingguang was a consort.

Other names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Posthumous name	Mu	穆	Mù

Life and dates

Death

AD 526 普通七年十一月庚辰
At Eastern Palace Cloud-Approach Hall (bier) 東宮臨雲殿
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 131

Age

14
Reckoning Sui · Context when taken by Gaozu
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 89
42
Reckoning Sui
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 131

Attested activity

AD 502 天監元年五月
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 94
AD 502 天監元年八月
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 95
AD 526 普通七年十一月庚辰
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 131
AD 498 高祖臨州
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passages 88-89

Family

Immediate relationships attested in the translated histories.

Child of Ding Zhongqian (丁仲遷)
father 父
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 181
Parent of Taizong (太宗)
mother 母
Strongly inferred · Book of Liang 7, passage 180
Parent of Crown Prince Zhaoming (昭明太子)
mother 母
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 92
Spouse of Gaozu (高祖)
noble consort 貴嬪 · Secondary marriage
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 89

Career and standing

Mu 穆
Posthumously titled
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 179
Noble Consort 貴嬪
Appointed · From Source Date: Text: 天監元年八月 · Western Year: AD 502
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 95
Empress Dowager Mu 穆太后
Posthumously granted
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 180
Honored Person 貴人
Proposed · From Source Date: Text: 天監元年五月 · Western Year: AD 502
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 94
Granted
Ritual parity with crown prince
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 123

Places and affiliations

At Qiao; family long at Xiangyang 譙國；世居襄陽
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 85
At Fancheng 樊城 · Relation Born at
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 86
At Xianyang Palace 顯陽殿 · Relation Resided at
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 95

Learning and skills

Belief Buddhism 佛教 · Relation Adherent of
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passages 126-127
Skill Buddhist sutra interpretation 經義
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 128

Works and attributed material

Vimalakirti Sutra 淨名經
Relation Studied
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 129

Events and relationships

Birth divine light and purple mist
Omen · Subject
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 86
Sweet dew at precepts
Omen · Subject
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 127
Relation Served · Person Empress Xi Hui (郗徽)
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 91

Assessments and attributes

Assessment admirable virtue filling the six palaces · Mode historian-judgment
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 204
Assessment kind, forgiving, frugal, not receiving private kin petitions · Mode historian-judgment
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passages 124-125
born with red mole on left arm that later vanished
Physical description
Directly stated · Book of Liang 7, passage 90

References in the histories

Search passages

History

20 passages

Book of Liang, Chapter 7Volume 7: Empresses · 20 passages

高祖丁貴嬪 Noble Consort Ding of Gaozu

高祖丁貴嬪，諱令光，譙國人也，世居襄陽。 Gaozu's Noble Consort Ding, taboo name Lingguang, came from Qiao and had long lived at Xiangyang.

高祖臨州，丁氏因人以聞。 When Gaozu held the province, the Ding clan sent word through others.

貴嬪時年十四，高祖納焉。 The Noble Consort was then fourteen, and Gaozu took her in.

高祖義師起，昭明太子始誕育，貴嬪與太子留在州城。 When Gaozu's righteous army rose and Crown Prince Zhaoming was newly born, the Noble Consort stayed in the provincial city with the heir.

天監元年五月，有司奏爲貴人，未拜； In the fifth month of Tianjian year 1 the relevant office memorialized to make her Honored Person, but the investiture had not yet been performed;

其年八月，又爲貴嬪，位在三夫人上，居于顯陽殿。 that same year in the eighth month she became Noble Consort, ranking above the Three Consorts and dwelling in Xianyang Palace.

王侯妃主常得通信問者，及六宮三夫人雖與貴嬪同列，並應以敬皇太子之禮敬貴嬪。 Princesses and feudal ladies who may ordinarily exchange messages, and the six palaces' three ladies of rank though equal to the honored consort—all should honor her with the same rites used for the crown prince.

貴嬪于宮臣雖非小君，其義不異，與宋泰豫朝議百官以吏敬敬帝所生，事義正同。 To palace officials the honored consort is not a lesser lord, yet the principle is the same; it matches the Song Taizong deliberation that all officials use subordinate reverence toward the emperor's mother.

貴嬪載誕元良，克固大業，禮同儲君，實惟舊典。 The honored consort bore the primary heir and secured the great enterprise; ritual equal to the heir is indeed the old canon.

尋前代始置貴嬪，位次皇后，爵無所視； Searching former ages, when the honored consort was first instituted, her place was second to the empress, with no comparable title;

此貴嬪之禮，已高朝列； Even this ritual for the honored consort already stood above the court ranks;

謂貴嬪典章，一與太子不異。 It is proposed that the honored consort's statutes and insignia be wholly without difference from the crown prince.

於是貴嬪備典章禮數，同于太子，言則稱令。 Thereupon the honored consort was equipped with statutes and ritual numbers identical to the crown prince; in speech she was addressed as "Command."

貴嬪性仁恕，及居宮內，接馭自下，皆得其歡心。 The honored consort was by nature kind and forgiving; once she dwelt within the palace, she received and guided those below and won all their hearts.

及高祖弘佛教，貴嬪奉而行之，屏絕滋腴，長進蔬膳。 When Gaozu spread Buddhism, the honored consort followed it, banishing rich foods and keeping to vegetables long term.

有司奏諡曰穆。 The responsible offices memorialized posthumous title: Mu.

太宗卽位，追崇曰穆太后。 When Emperor Taizong took the throne, she was posthumously honored as Empress Dowager Mu.

太后父仲遷，天監初，官至兗州刺史。 The empress dowager's father Zhongqian, in early Tianjian, reached office as inspector of Yan province.

至於穆貴嬪，徽華早著，誕育元良，德懋六宮，美矣。 Of Consort Mu the Precious: her merit shone early, she bore the heir apparent, and her virtue filled the six palaces—admirable indeed.