What is the Wujinyuan in Beijing Siheyuan? Information about the Wujinyuan
The snow scene in the courtyard is unique
The courtyard is spacious and can be used to plant flowers and trees, raise birds and fish, and stack stones to create landscaping
Schematic diagram of Beijing courtyard
Text/Xu Jian
Siheyuan has a long history
Beijing is a world-famous historical and cultural city. The "Beijingers" from Zhoukoudian lit the torch of ancient human civilization. , the ancient cities of Yan and Ji were built more than 3,000 years ago, and the five dynasties of Liao, Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing were established here. The fire of civilization has never been extinguished and will last forever.
China has had its own characteristics in housing since ancient times. According to archaeological data, there were already well-laid-out courtyard houses in the Western Zhou Dynasty. The way of living in a courtyard house is closely related to the Chinese family concept and traditional social lifestyle. Wang Guowei said in the article "Mingtang Miao Sui Tong Kao": "The system of our country's clan is ancient! There are fathers and sons and brothers in a family, and fathers, sons and brothers each have their own partners. That is to say, as far as a man is concerned, his noble He has one wife and several concubines. The whole family cannot be accommodated in one room, and the hall and the house are not habitable places. Therefore, when living in a cave in the wild, I dare not know what is going on. In a palace, the rooms of the same family must be close to each other, so that they can be close to each other and have enough power to help each other. However, if the rooms are to be connected to each other, it must be a four-a house. The house is arranged so that the halls are oriented east, west, north and south, and there are four halls outside, and the four rooms at the back are also oriented east, west, north and south, and are gathered together in the atrium. "From this we can clearly see the humanistic reason for the family system to adopt the courtyard living style. , and the land of China fully provided the civil engineering, humanities and materials needed to build courtyards, creating an architectural group with Chinese characteristics.
Characteristics of Beijing Siheyuan
In the process of historical development, Chinese people particularly loved the Siheyuan architectural form. Siheyuan was not only used in palaces, temples, and government offices, but also widely used in residential buildings everywhere. However, as soon as people mention the courtyard house, they will naturally think of the Beijing courtyard house. This is because the Beijing courtyard house is very typical and regular in shape, and its popularity in the world is no less than that of many places of interest.
The central courtyard of a Beijing courtyard is basically a square in plan view, but some residential buildings in other areas are not like this. For example, in the courtyard houses in Shanxi and Shaanxi, the courtyard is a vertical rectangle that is long from north to south and narrow from east to west. In the courtyard houses in Sichuan and other places, the courtyard is mostly a horizontal rectangle that is long from east to west and narrow from north to south. In many quadrangle courtyards in the south, most of the houses on the four sides are buildings, and the houses are connected at the four corners of the courtyard. The houses on the east, west, north and south sides do not exist independently.
The houses in the east, west, south, and north directions of Beijing's quadrangle are independent of each other. The east and west wing rooms are not connected to the main house and the reverse side of the building itself, and the main house, side rooms, and reverse side rooms are not connected to each other. The houses are all one-story and there are no buildings. The only thing connecting these houses is the verandah at the corner. In this way, when viewed from the air, Beijing's courtyard houses look like four small boxes enclosing a courtyard. The courtyard houses in Beijing are famous because of their unique composition. It is not only a residential building, but also contains profound cultural connotations and is one of the carriers of traditional Chinese culture.
At the same time, Beijing's geographical location is relatively moderate. Compared with the cold Northeast and the hot South, the climate is neither cold nor hot.
Most of the residential buildings in China are inner-courtyard residences. The residential courtyards in the south are very small, and the surrounding houses are connected into one, which is called "a seal". This kind of house is suitable for southern climate conditions, and ventilation and lighting are not ideal. The courtyards of Beijing's courtyards are spacious and spacious, and the houses on all four sides are independent and connected by verandas, making living very convenient. Siheyuan is a closed residence with only one street door to the outside. When the door is closed, it can be seen from the sky and the earth. It has strong privacy and is very suitable for exclusive living. In the courtyard, the houses on all sides open to the courtyard, and the family lives harmoniously and happily inside. Because the courtyard is spacious, you can plant trees and flowers, raise birds and fish, and stack rocks to create landscaping. Residents not only enjoy comfortable housing, but also share the beautiful world bestowed by nature. The courtyard in Beijing is a true courtyard, spacious and open, with abundant sunlight and a wide view.
Its cultural connotation is very rich and reflects the traditional Chinese concept of living.
The courtyard houses in Beijing can be said to be famous all over the world. They are well-known far and near, and Chinese and foreign scholars have always paid close attention to them. When the late architect Yang Tingbao paid a return visit to the "Peace Hotel" in Jinyu Hutong, Beijing, which he designed, he said to the still-existing courtyard houses at that time: "Why can't a group of residential courtyard houses be renovated according to the actual situation and used as tourist hotels? You see The sunlight shines through the flower stands and trees in the courtyard, and it looks so peaceful. The atmosphere of the home is so rich, it’s a good subject for painting!” At the same time, Western reporters often call Beijing’s courtyard houses the “Pearl of the East” and “ Symbols of Eastern Civilization”.
The combination of architecture and Feng Shui
The courtyard generally has a fixed shape. As long as the site is selected, the distribution and layout will be considered according to the width and depth of the land, the owner's living requirements and financial resources. Among them, the choice of location, whether it is auspicious or unlucky, how to "break" the inauspiciousness, etc., must be determined by a Feng Shui master. Those who do not believe in this do not necessarily need a Feng Shui master. Everything is decided by the craftsmen of the big wood factory. These people They are all knowledgeable. The head carpenter used a ruler to determine the location of the main house and the depth of the bay. The Feng Shui master determined the angle of the central axis of the house based on the birth date of the building owner. After using the compass to determine the true north and south, he then adjusted it to the left or right. The angle is called the yin or yang point. This is because the owner of the house is not strong enough and cannot bear facing south. Only the palace can face south. The location and size of the main house are certain, and the remaining rooms can be reduced according to certain rules, so that the overall situation is finalized. In regular alleys that generally run east-west, the gates of the courtyards are opened at the "Xun" position in the southeast corner or the "Qian" position in the northwest corner. The layout is fixed and there is nothing negotiable. However, when the base is located in an irregular street, the location of the door is determined according to the "Bagua Qizheng Dayounian" chant and the good and bad uses of each room in the courtyard are adjusted.
Since the Song Dynasty, Feng Shui theories such as Yin-Yang, Five Elements and Bagua have become extremely popular in the north. The layout of Beijing courtyard houses is largely determined by the invisible Bagua. For example, if the topography of the house corresponds to the four gods, it will be most auspicious and bring good fortune. The so-called four gods are Suzaku in the front, Xuanwu in the back, Qinglong on the left, and White Tiger on the right. Correspondingly, the Xuanwu in the back should have higher terrain, the green dragon on the left should have water, the white tiger on the right should have roads, etc. There is a song mastered by Feng Shui masters - "Bagua Qizheng Dayou Nian". According to this song to determine the position of the main house or the door, and then count clockwise according to the song, you can know the good and bad luck of each direction. The house, stove and door must be placed in auspicious positions, and other houses in unlucky positions can also be "broken". The formula is: "In the six days of Qian, five misfortunes will be sure to prolong life; in the five days of Kan, the misfortunes will be prolonged to six; in Gen six, five will be misfortunes, and misfortunes will be prolonged to heaven; in the six days of Zhen, misfortunes will be prolonged for five; The five extremes will cause disasters in the sky; the Kuntian will cause disasters in the fifth and sixth days; the Dui will cause disasters in the sixth and fifth days."
The first character in the song is the Bagua direction of the residence, which is called Fu position or position. Fuyin is commonly known as "mountain". That is the location of the main house, or the direction of the door.
Each character in the song is the common name used by Qi Zheng for the prime minister's house. Among them: "five" represents the five ghosts' integrity, which belongs to fire, and is an unlucky position; position; "Jue" represents death and destruction of the army, belongs to metal, and is an unlucky position; "Yan" represents prolonging life and martial arts, belongs to metal, and is auspicious position; "Sheng" represents anger and greed, and belongs to wood, auspicious position; "Liu" represents six Sha Wenqu belongs to water and is in an inauspicious position; "Tian" represents the giant gate of heavenly medicine, which belongs to earth and is in auspicious position.
In this way, if you place the door in any direction, as long as you count clockwise according to the song, the main house and the kitchen will belong to the auspicious residence if they are in auspicious positions. A large house can be built in an auspicious position, and a minor house can be built in an unlucky position. There are also various ways to get rid of the bad luck. Most of the hutongs in Beijing run east-west. According to the calculation of the Qizheng Dayounian song, the main house is in the ridge position. If the door is in the Xun position, not only the stove is auspicious, but also the house in the inverted position is auspicious, which is very beneficial. Therefore, there is a so-called "Kan Zhai Xun Gate" that is most suitable for the situation. The proverb goes: "If the gate is in the southeast, it is not difficult to build a house." It means that in Beijing's regular alleys, as long as the gate is in the southeast corner, you can build a courtyard without asking a Feng Shui master.
The above are aspects of the design of courtyards that are influenced by the concept of Feng Shui. In fact, the design of courtyards in Beijing is based on practicality. Under the constraints of the homestead conditions, funds are invested according to the amount of housing the home owner needs. How much to wait will be weighed and decided. For example, the depth of the homestead site is limited, and if you want to build a house, you can build a living room instead of a hanging flower door at this location. If you would rather have fewer houses, but require them to fit in with the layout, then have hanging flower doors and hand-painted verandahs. If the homestead is too narrow, but you still want to have a main house and a side room, you can create a "four-to-five" plan, and build a very narrow side room on both sides of the main house, etc.
Repair and Protection of Beijing Siheyuan
However, today’s Beijing Siheyuan is not in a very good situation: many have become large courtyards, dilapidated, and are facing the reality of being demolished in large numbers. Even the courtyard houses listed as cultural relics protection objects can hardly maintain their original appearance. However, as the Beijing Municipal Government changes its policy on urban renewal, restoring the original historical and cultural appearance of the capital has been placed in an important position in urban construction. This not only requires unilateral work by the government, but also requires support from all aspects of society. Now the National Construction Commission and the Municipal Government have given certain support to individuals in protecting the historical features of the old city. Social units are also actively cooperating in this work and are working hard to save the courtyard houses in urban Beijing.
During the renovation and renovation process of the ancient capital, the existing courtyard buildings were divided one by one according to the type of courtyard, which can be divided into basic types. Only when entering the courtyard are surrounded by rooms on all sides, and the doors and windows of each room all face the courtyard. open. There is only one gate connected to the outside world, and the gate is usually opened on the left front (southeast corner). There are also vertical combination types, which are divided into two-entry courtyards and three-entry courtyards. The two courtyards are equivalent to an inverted house with one courtyard separated from the outer courtyard by a wall. The wall is usually built on the line connecting the gables on the south side behind the east and west wings, with a second door opening on the middle line. The second gate is a gorgeously decorated hanging flower gate built in the "Zhaimen" (a higher-class residence). The area inside the hanging flower gate belongs to the inner house. In ancient times, male guests had to be invited in, and ladies did not step out easily. The third-entry courtyard is to build a row of back rooms behind the main house of the two-entry courtyard. The number of back rooms is generally the same as the number of reverse rooms. Generally, the back room of a quadrangle with the main seat facing north and south has a good orientation. The back room is located deep in the courtyard, which is a good living environment.
In the vertical combination type, there are also four-entry courtyards and five-entry courtyards, but these are rarely preserved in the capital. Also, due to the limitation of the spacing of alleys, it can only be developed horizontally, with two or more multi-entry courtyards juxtaposed to form a two-way compound courtyard. The highest-level courtyard houses are palace-level residences, which we call the highest-level compound courtyard houses.
When repairing courtyard houses, we can fully write the architectural history and culture in stone and wood, including the reproduction of courtyard houses, courtyards, house doors, courtyards, verandas, etc. In the imperial era when class differences were obvious, its subtleties fully demonstrated the cultural heritage of the historical ancient capital. From the door of the residence, we can see the rich and the poor. For example, the number of rooms, decoration, color, etc. of the palace gate are all built according to the regulations. The Ruyi Gate is the most widely used among the courtyard houses in Beijing. Its roof, crown wall, etc. are similar to other house-style gates. The inner and outer screen walls and screen doors on both sides corresponding to the house door are also very particular, and the carvings on them are of various types and endlessly emerge. The development of Chinese history and culture can be seen everywhere in the entire courtyard. The atmosphere of humanistic culture, the combination of beauty and wisdom, develops simple living life into beautiful garden art, reflecting people's yearning and pursuit of a better life.