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How Wang Mang secured general approval for his usurpation

As was pointed out previously, Wang Mang gained his honors by
espousing thoroughly the Confucian faith and utilizing its traditions.
After Emperor P'ing's death, Confucian principles were used to exalt
Wang Mang by persons who believed they would be benefited by his
elevation. Thereby they raised him to the throne.

Confucianism has had a curiously ambivalent attitude towards existing
rulers. Confucius was himself a legitimist; he tried to strengthen the
power of the ruler in his own state of Lu against the noble clans who were
usurping that power. The Spring and Autumn has been interpreted,
from ancient times, as indicating an attempt on the part of Confucius
to exalt the position of the Son of Heaven (the Chou King) against the
feudal nobles who were usurping that power. Thus Confucianism has
stood for loyalty to the titular ruler of the state and the exaltation of his
power against other claimants for power. This fact is, I think, the
ultimate reason that China has never had any successful line of nobles,
such as the Shoguns, who ruled for a succession of faineant emperors.

On the other hand, Confucianism has included the splendid doctrine
of Heaven's Mandate, by virtue of whose possession a dynasty rules, but
which may be lost by wicked or incapable rulers. This doctrine has been
of inestimable ethical benefit to China and has probably been responsible
for the generally good character of Chinese rule. The teaching that
"Heaven's mandate is not constant" (Book of Odes, III, i, i, 5; Legge,
p. 430) was dinned into the ears of Chinese heir-apparents by their Confucian
tutors and ministers, so that rulers were induced to attempt being
models for the empire, for the sake of keeping themselves on the throne
and of perpetuating their dynastic lines. In Former Han times at least,
the character of the emperors was generally higher than that of their
brothers and cousins, who were petty kings. Confucianism has both
supported existing dynasties and also, when a dynasty has shown itself
feeble, has helped to bring about its fall.

By the end of Former Han times, Confucianism had absorbed and
modified the teachings of the Yin-and-Yang school and the school of the
Five Powers. The latter school asserted that the coming of each dynasty
had been heralded by portents. This belief was accepted by Han Confucianism.
The heralding of great rulers by supernatural portents is a
widespread ancient belief; it could be justified in Han China by many
ancient myths concerning the founders of the Chou dynasty and others,
which myths were accordingly incorporated into the Confucian tradition.

Wang Mang's many portents were quite Confucian.

In Chou times, divination and magical practises were part of the state
religion, and many examples of both are to be found in the Tso-chuan,
so that the acceptance of magical performances of many sorts became
part of the Confucian imitation of ancient practises. The famous Hsün-tzu,
whose interpretation of Confucian theory dominated Han Confucianism,
had indeed attacked superstition of all sorts, even denying the
existence of any spirits whatever, but the anti-superstitious phase of his
teaching was not adopted by Han thinkers. Wang Mang's extensive use
of magic, especially in the closing phase of his reign, was quite Confucian.
His use of the divining-board when the Palace was being attacked (99 C:
27a) was copied directly from the account of the Grand Astrologer in the
Chou-li. The magical sacrifices, by which he expected to attain immortality,
were probably also considered to be Confucian. They were
suggested by Su Yo, who is entitled a magician (fang-shih; 25 B: 22b).
Magic was then probably considered a Confucian practise, for the
Chou-li includes among the imperial officials such magical offices as the
Grand Augur (Biot, II, 69), the Master of Augury (Pu-shih; ibid. 74),
Diviners (Chan-jen; ibid. 78), the Interpreter of Dreams (Chan-meng;
ibid. 82), the Grand Intercessor (T'ai-chu; ibid. 85), the Imprecator
(Tsu-chu; ibid. 101), the Chief of the Shamans (Szu-wu; ibid. 102), the
Male and Female Shamans (Nan-, Nü-wu; ibid. 103, 104), the Hereditary
Magical Chancellor (Fang-hsiang-shih; ibid. 225), and the Shaman for
Horses (Wu-ma; ibid. 259). Indeed, many practises which later became
specifically Taoist seem to have been considered Confucian in Former
Han times; Liu Hsiang4a, one of the outstanding Confucians, spent much
time and money, in his younger days, in attempting to make alchemistic
gold. Since Confucianism stressed the imitation of ancient practises,
magic, alchemy, and superstition entered this stream of thought with
little hindrance. They seem only later to have been cast out, especially
in Sung times.

Wang Mang was such a convinced Confucian that he accepted its
superstition and magic, and may never have doubted, even in his last
hours, that the careful use of Confucian magic would eventually bring
success—at least that is Ts'ui Fa's picture of him. Yet he was so worried
during the last few days that he could not eat (99 C: 27a). Confucians
could later explain the failure of this magic in the case of Wang Mang by
alleging that magic does not work for a usurper.