What is the legendary story of Qinglong, Baihu, Suzaku and Xuanwu! ?
West Palace White Tiger: Kui, Lou, Stomach, Ang, Bi, Gou and Shen;
Nangong Suzaku: well, ghost, willow, star, Zhang, wing and bird;
Bei Gong Xuanwu: fighting, ox, female, emptiness, danger, room and wall.
"Four Gods" represent four directions, east, west, north and south, and provide a scientific reference for dividing the sky and making the calendar. Later, with the popularity of the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements, people paid more attention to the patron saint function of the Four Gods, and were endowed with higher divinity. Twenty-eight lodges have also become the object of worship. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, the four gods matched with the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter, and the four colors of blue, white, red and black were systematically recorded in documents such as Huai Nan Zi and Historical Records at that time, which became a generally accepted ideological system.
the "four gods" in the pre-Qin and Han dynasties also have a wide range of uses: astronomers use the four seasons; The land home uses it to distinguish Kyushu; Military strategists use it to set the direction. "Wu Zi Zhi Bing" said when talking about the entry and exit of the three armed forces: "The line must be left with a dragon, right with a white tiger, a former Suzaku and a later Xuanwu, swaying on the top and engaging in the next." Because people were very familiar with the orientation of the "four gods" at that time, they took it as a sign on the flag to command the army to advance and retreat. Of course, the wide application of the "four gods" is directly related to people's religious concepts. In ancient times, the palace was often named after the four gods, and there were four gods tattooed tiles in the Western Han Dynasty. The gate in the north is often named after Xuanwu, and there are many examples of the Han Dynasty and the Six Dynasties in Wang Shidian's book Forbidden Tablet in the Yuan Dynasty. In the tombs of the Han, Wei and Six Dynasties, dragons and tigers, turtles and snakes, and suzaku were often portrayed or written on coffins, so as to protect the soul of the tomb owner from ascending to the ground. In 1941, the sarcophagus (made in 25) of Henry Hui Wang's tomb in the late Han Dynasty was found in Lushan County, Sichuan Province. The left wall was carved with a winged dragon and the right wall with a winged tiger. The foot of the coffin was in the shape of a snake wrapped around a turtle, with exquisite composition and beautiful shape. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, there were often sentences like "See you at the time: Zuo Qing (Qing) Dragon, Right White Tiger, Former Suzaku, and Later Xuanwu" in the clothes of Gaochang Tombs. In addition, the bronze mirror with the patterns of Eight Diagrams and Four Spirits was also popular in the Han Dynasty, on which were cast inscriptions such as "Four Gods" and "Left dragons and right tigers are ominous, and Suzaku Xuanwu follows Yin and Yang", which also has religious significance: that is, the mirror reflects the image of a person and the soul is attached to it, so it is protected by the four gods to avoid evil spirits.
In this way, the four ancient gods each guarded one side, and their rank and position should be the same. In Wudang Mountain, however, their status has changed completely. After birth, cultivation and other personification processes, Xuanwu finally became the main god of Wudang Taoism, respected as the mysterious God, and enjoyed human incense in a prominent position. Therefore, in Wudang Mountain, the most prominent position of the main (large) hall is dedicated to Xuantian Emperor. Although Qinglong and Baihu each have their own personification process, they are reduced to the "gatekeepers" who guard the mountain gates in Wudang Mountain. People can see that there are Qinglong and Baihu guarding the mountain gates around the temples (commonly known as the Dragon and Tiger Hall).
there are quite a few reasons why Xuanwu evolved into a Taoist god. In folk beliefs, Xuanwu has the following divine characteristics:
(1) The God of the North
The note in The Songs of the South: "Xuanwu is the name of the North God". The Book of Records of the Historian Tianguan says: "Bei Gong is Xuanwu, empty and dangerous". Reestablishing the Integration of Weft Books, Volume 6, River Map: "Northern Hei Di, whose name is Ye Guangji, is refined in Xuanwu".
(2) Water God
According to the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements, the north belongs to water, so the north god is the water god. Wuyi's "Nine Huai Zhang Sentences" said: "The turtle is the water god". Biography of liang wang in the Later Han Dynasty: "Xuanwu is the name of the water god". "Rebuilding the Integration of Weft Books", Volume 6, "River Map": "The abode of the seven gods in the north actually started from fighting, and the town in the north dominated the wind and rain". Rain is needed for the growth of all things, and water can put out fires, so the water god attribute of Xuanwu is quite valued and believed by the people.
(3) The God of Reproduction
In ancient China, great divine power was compared with the phenomenon of the sympathetic evolution of everything by Yin and Yang, and the divine power of reproduction was worshipped. The snake itself is a symbol of reproduction and reproduction. Xuanwu appears in the shape of tortoise and snake, which is regarded by the ancients as a symbol of male and female mating and reproduction. Wei Boyang (who lived around 121 AD) in the Eastern Han Dynasty also explained that Yin and Yang must cooperate with examples of tortoise and snake correcting mistakes: "Guan Guan Sui dove, in the river continent, is a gentle and graceful lady, the male is not alone, the female is not alone, and the Xuanwu tortoise and snake help each other to correct the plate, so as to make the house clear."
(4) The God of Life
In ancient times, the tortoise was a symbol of longevity and immortality, and it could guide the dying. The Biography of Historical Records of Tortoise says: "The old people in the south used turtles to support their beds, and when they were in their twenties, they died and moved to bed, but the tortoise was not dead. Turtles can guide qi. " "Bao Puzi" contains: Chengyang hunted when he was frugal, fell into an empty tomb, and was hungry. When he saw a big turtle in the tomb, he counted it and turned around, and his direction was impermanent, swallowing his mouth, or squatting or leaning back. Thrift is also known as the turtle can guide, but it tries to do what the turtle does, so it is no longer hungry. " Moreover, the first night of the seven nights in Xuanwu, Bei Gong, is also called Nandou. "Star Classic" says: "There are six stars in the south, and the life span of the emperor is also the position of the prime minister." Gan Bao of Jin Dynasty (who lived around 316 years) quoted Guan Lu as saying: "Southern bucket pays attention to life, while Beidou pays attention to death". Fighting in the south can prolong life. This is very attractive to emperors, bureaucrats and ordinary people who pursue immortality.
These divine features of Xuanwu not only won the faith of all social strata, but also laid the foundation for Xuanwu to evolve into a Taoist god after the Tang and Song Dynasties.
However, in Wudang Mountain, Suzaku, one of the four gods in the south, is rarely visible. According to ancient books, "... a bird and a Zhu, a feather family flies in the sky, and a set must be attached to wood, which is like a fire ...". Because Suzaku is the essence of fire and red. In ancient temples in China, which were mostly built of wood, it was really taboo to let Suzaku appear. Therefore, Suzaku can only be invisible and symbolic. In these buildings, only the wall is not afraid of fire, and Suzaku can only be located on the surface of the wall. With its striking colors, people can tell from a distance that the red wall Biwa hidden in the deep mountains and forests is a Taoist temple.