Why was the number nine important in ancient China?

Because the number nine has many meanings: the number 9 in ancient China is the dragon. Mainly reflected in the following aspects:

1. In ancient China, nine was the extreme number of the yang number, that is, the largest singular number. Therefore, the number nine was often used to attach to the emperor, and there were many things related to the emperor. It is related to the number nine. The position of the emperor is called "Nine Five", and the emperor is called "The Lord of Nine Five".

Chinese people also have a strong preference for "nine", which is reflected in the fact that "nine" is used as a unit of measurement in everything, and "counting nine" is an example. "Jingchu Shishiji" of the Liang Dynasty in the Southern Dynasty records: " It is customary to use the number of days of the winter solstice and Jiujiu eighty-one as Suihan." Since then, the "Jiujiu song" has begun to spread among the people.

2. It is often reflected in the design of ancient Chinese architecture. Prince Gong’s Mansion in Beijing was originally the residence of He Shen. The decorations in the corridors, window lattice, etc. are all bats. It is said that there are always bats. Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine, bats are homophonic to "福", which means long-lasting good fortune. If you add another word "福", it becomes "Ten Thousand Blessings", and that "福" is exactly the word "福" written by Emperor Kangxi hidden in the rockery.

3. As the emperor of the Nine-Five, the emperor is inseparable from the word "Nine". He wears a nine-dragon robe, and the heights of his residences in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Hall of Zhonghe and the Hall of Baohe are all nine feet and nine feet. , the door nails on the door are also nine rows horizontally, nine rows vertically, eighty-one in a row, these are symbols of eternity. Of course, the worship of "nine" in the Temple of Heaven and the Forbidden City may have a deeper meaning.

Archaeology has discovered that the F901 palace site of the late Yangshao Culture in Dadiwan had a layout of eight pillars and nine rooms, which dates back more than 5,000 years. Later palaces basically followed this architectural pattern.

4. "Nine" also has the advantage of being a homophone for "Jiu". Through the emphasis and repetition of "Nine" in quantity, it also has the meaning of "Long-lasting", which makes it even more popular among the ancients. People pursue perfection, and the number "ten" represents "fullness." However, the ancients also believed that when the moon is full, it will lose money, when things are at their extremes, they will be reversed, and when they are strong, they will decline. Relatively speaking, "nine" happens to be in an upward trend, and it has risen to an extreme point, which is a finite extreme. Therefore, "nine" is regarded as the "supreme number".

This "supreme" status is often mixed with mystery and holiness, such as the "Nine Songs" related to primitive beliefs in ancient times. In addition, both Buddhism and Taoism also regard "nine" as an important number for practice. For example, Buddhism has the "Nine Truths", "Nine Zen", "Nine Monks", etc.; Taoism has the "Nine Transformations Pill", which is said to make you become an immortal if you eat it; "Holy" and so on, all use "nine" as the number of establishment quotas.

5. There are also traces of "nine" beliefs in literature. For example, "Water Margin" says that the Nine Heavens Xuannv rescued Song Jiang, gave Song Jiang the Book of Heaven, and told him to "do justice for heaven." Taoism believes that there are thirty-six Tiangang gods and seventy-two earth evil gods in the Big Dipper cluster. "Water Margin" says that Lieutenant Hong accidentally let go of the thirty-six Tiangang stars and the seventy-two earth evil stars, and they were reincarnated into one hundred single and eight heroes. , which are all multiples of nine.

The magic spells mentioned in "Journey to the West" include "Thirty-Six Changes", "Seventy-two Changes", a somersault "a hundred and eighty thousand miles", and "Nine-nine Returns to True", " The saying "Nine Nine and Eighty-one Difficulties" is also a multiple of nine. It can be seen that "nine" occupies an important position in Buddhist and Taoist thoughts and folk beliefs.

Extended information:

The origin of the "Nine-Five Lord"

"Nine" and "Five" symbolize the authority of the emperor, which is called "Nine-Five" "Supreme". In ancient China, numbers were divided into yang numbers and yin numbers. Odd numbers were yang and even numbers were yin. Among the yang numbers, nine is the highest and five is in the middle. Therefore, "nine" and "five" are used to symbolize the authority of the emperor, which is called "nine-five supreme".

The term "Nine Five" comes from the "Book of Changes". The version of "Book of Changes" that has been handed down now is said to have been performed by King Wen of Zhou Dynasty, so it is also called "Book of Changes". The first hexagram of the sixty-four hexagrams in the "Book of Changes" is the Qian hexagram, and the "Qian" hexagram represents heaven, so it has become a hexagram representing the emperor. The Qian hexagram is composed of six yang lines, which are extremely yang and extremely prosperous. Counting from bottom to top, the fifth line is called Jiuwu, nine means that this line is Yang Yao, and five means the fifth line.

Since the transformation of yin and yang in the Book of Changes, prosperity must decline, so "Nine Five" is "Flying Dragon in the Sky", while "Shangjiu" (the sixth line of Qian Gua) is "Superior Dragon" I have regrets." In terms of hexagrams, "Shangjiu" is the most yang line. There is no room for improvement and it will inevitably decline. Therefore, it will appear fierce.

Therefore, Ninth Five is the best line in the Qian hexagram, and Qian hexagram is the first hexagram of the sixty-four hexagrams. Therefore, the ninety-five is also the best line among the three hundred and eighty-fourth lines of the sixty-four hexagrams, and it becomes the emperor. appearance.

The "nine" here is not a specific number, but a symbol that identifies the yin and yang attributes of numbers. Later, people used "nine" and "five" as specific numbers. They thought it was to fit in with the "nine-five" line representing the emperor; secondly, the two numbers "nine" and "five" were used in architecture. The use is also very consistent with aesthetic principles. The "Book of Changes" explanatory words include "Changes in the main roads, each rectifying his life, maintaining peace and harmony, is beneficial to chastity."

"The Book of Changes" is one of the oldest classics in China. It has always been respected as the first of the Six Classics and has a profound impact on all fields of the Chinese nation. Therefore, the term "Nine Five Years" comes from the "Book of Changes" "The theory should be more credible.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia-Nine

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia-Nine Five