In China, the belief in the unity of heaven and humanity holds that celestial phenomena can lead to changes in a country and society as a whole. In recent months, the night sky over Beijing has seen several occurrences of fire meteors, and on the day after “National Mourning Day,” a comet with a orbital period of over sixty thousand years swept past Beijing. These events seem to forewarn of significant changes on the horizon for China.
On the night of October 1st (early in the morning of the 2nd), a rare comet was filmed passing over Beijing by CCTV, the Communist Party’s official television station. The footage shows the comet appearing near the Beijing World Trade Center, initially just a faint halo of light that gradually intensifies, with a long tail clearly visible as it swiftly traverses the night sky over Beijing, the entire process lasting just over a dozen seconds.
In Chinese divine culture, where the heavens are closely related to societal and national destiny, celestial changes are observed with great significance. Throughout Chinese history, there has always been the position of the “Imperial Observatory” (known by different names in various dynasties), dedicated to monitoring celestial phenomena for the emperor. Comets, in particular, have been viewed as ominous omens, portending celestial retribution, the passing of an emperor, or the end of a dynasty.
Comets, known as “stellar anomalies” in ancient times, have been recorded numerous times in important Chinese literary works such as the “Book of Han” and the “Book of Later Han”. These records correspond to calamities, conflicts, assassinations, and other events that occurred on earth.
For example, in the sixth year of the Yonghe reign of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 141), a comet appeared in the eastern sky, passing over barracks, tombs, and constellations, disappearing only after passing through the Xuan Yuan constellation. The celestial observation at that time predicted, “When the comet appears over barracks and tombs, within five years, a great mourning will occur throughout the world.” Shortly before the five-year mark, Emperor Shun of Han passed away.
According to the “Records of the Grand Historian,” during the time of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, several comet sightings occurred, all of which came true. For instance, “In the seventh year, a comet first appears in the east, then in the north, and in May in the west. General Ao dies… The comet reappears in the west after sixteen days. Empress Dowager Zhao dies.”
This passage describes a comet sighting in the seventh year of Qin Shi Huang’s reign (240 BC), coinciding with the death of distinguished Qin General Meng Ao during military campaigns against the Zhao kingdom. The Emperor’s grandmother, Empress Dowager Xia, also passed away that same year.
The appearance of the comet in the Beijing night sky on the early hours of October 2nd coincided with the passing of “National Mourning Day” on October 1st. Master Wang from Zhengzhou, skilled in the eight trigrams of the Book of Changes, told reporters from Epoch Times: “Generally, the descent of a comet is an ill omen, signaling impending misfortune. This is not directed at individuals but rather at the national level. It certainly foretells of impending calamity, but the specifics of this misfortune cannot be disclosed, as it would harm the national fate and not bode well for oneself.”
Independent writer Zhu Ge Mingyang believes that the appearance of these celestial signs should be related to the Communist Party’s fortunes. He stated, “Taking into account the chaos within the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) itself and the international pressure it faces, the time for its disintegration is not far off.”
The appearance of fire meteors does not follow a fixed schedule or pattern, but this year, Beijing has witnessed multiple instances of them.
Fire meteors, known for their brightness and intensity, are often much more luminous than ordinary meteors. They are created when small celestial bodies like asteroids or comet fragments enter Earth’s atmosphere at high speeds, causing friction and combustion that results in luminous displays. If a meteor or other celestial object fails to completely burn up in the atmosphere and reaches the Earth’s surface, the remaining material is known as a meteorite.
The ancient astronomer, mathematician, and prophet Li Chunfeng of the Tang Dynasty wrote in the celestial manuscript “Yi Si Zhan”: “Meteors are the envoys of the heavenly king”, “Flying through the constellations, they announce calamities and blessings. If the star is large, the event is significant; if the star is small, the event is minor. A large star signifies major events and deep harm, while a smaller star signals minor events and lesser calamities.”
On the evening of January 29th at 7:40 pm, a bright fire meteor streaked across the sky over Beijing, bursting multiple times in the air before fragmenting into several pieces and disappearing. Some witnesses even claimed to hear a thunderous sound as the meteor streaked across. Various meteor observation stations documented the trajectory of this fire meteor.
According to a radio station operated by a student team from the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the meteor entered Earth’s atmosphere from the east of Beijing, underwent intense atmospheric explosions over Pinggu District, and eventually disappeared over Shunyi District. Based on calculations of its trajectory and speed, it is likely that meteorites may have fallen in the vicinity of Changping District and Shunyi District.
A video released by the Chinese astronomy popularization account “Meteor Monitoring CMMO” showed two fire meteors appearing over Beijing on March 4th. These occurrences took place at 12:34 am and 5:19 am, during which two large fire meteors fell from the sky.
At 10:29 pm on April 20th, the same account recorded the appearance of another fire meteor over Beijing.
Around 10:34 pm on September 20th, several Beijing residents captured the moment a fire meteor fell while driving using dashboard cameras. Although the entire event lasted only two to three seconds, the green luminous glow illuminated the entire night sky in an instant.
According to official reports from the Chinese Communist Party, the time of appearance of this fire meteor was brief, its speed fast, and its brightness remarkable, indicating it was most likely a natural asteroid. Many people outdoors in Hebei, Tianjin, and other regions besides Beijing also witnessed this event.
After the CCP’s usurpation of power, there were two significant meteorite showers that directly impacted top CCP leaders.
On March 8, 1976, a rare meteorite shower occurred in Jilin, northeastern China. At 3:01 pm that day, accompanied by a deafening roar, a massive fireball descended from the sky at a speed of over ten kilometers per second. Due to high-temperature and high-pressure airflow impact, the fireball continuously burst into smaller pieces as it fell, dispersing over a radius of 500 square kilometers in the suburbs of Jilin.
A total of 138 meteorite samples and over 3000 fragments weighing 2616 kilograms were collected in the aftermath. Among them, three meteorites weighed over 100 kilograms, named Jilin No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3, with the largest weighing 1770 kilograms, purportedly the heaviest in the world.
Interestingly, during that year, the three CCP leaders – Mao Zedong, Zhu De, and Zhou Enlai – all passed away. Furthermore, the Tangshan earthquake occurred that same year, causing immense loss of life and property.
On January 8, 1976, then-CCP Premier Zhou Enlai passed away.
On July 6, 1976, then-Chairman of the Standing Committee of the NPC Zhu De succumbed to illness.
On July 28, 1976, at 3:42:53.8 am Beijing time, a massive earthquake struck Tangshan, Hebei province, with devastating consequences. The earthquake, with a depth of only 6 kilometers, released energy equivalent to 400 atomic bombs of Hiroshima’s magnitude. Instantly, the entire city of Tangshan was leveled, resulting in at least 242,000 deaths and 164,000 severe injuries.
On September 9, 1976, then-CCP leader Mao Zedong passed away, followed by the decimation of Jiang Qing’s faction and the implementation of internal leadership changes by Deng Xiaoping.
Although many indoctrinated atheists in the CCP may not believe in this cosmic-human connection, Mao Zedong himself held beliefs and had perceptible responses to such associations. According to the book “The Final Years of Mao Zedong” by writer Guo Jinrong, after Mao’s attendant Meng Jinyun read him the news of the meteorite shower, Mao listened intently. “Mao was enveloped in a particular emotion; his face showed contemplation, anxiety, and excitement.” A few months later, Mao passed away.
On February 15, 1997, at 11:25 pm, a meteorite shower struck Zhancheng, Heze, Shandong, China, with a thunderous roar. Despite the late hour, the entire sky lit up like daylight. The meteorite shower led to the collection of meteorites weighing a total of 100 kilograms within a radius of over 35 square kilometers, marking the second significant meteorite shower after the CCP’s takeover. Four days later, Deng Xiaoping passed away, never managing to see his planned visit to Hong Kong on July 1.
Reporter Ning Xin contributed to this article.