Starting from the ancient "meal sharing system"—— analyzing the ancient Chinese food etiquette system
I believe that when it comes to dinner, many people's first impression is that everyone sits around a table at the same time to eat together. This method of dining is actually
"Shared meal system".
In ancient China, because people paid special attention to dining etiquette, there would be no scene of a group of people gathering at the same table to eat. This actually lasted from the Shang Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty
"Meal sharing system".
According to historical records, during the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, the Chinese people sat on the ground and ate on the basis of tricks. The reason why this dining system appeared in ancient times is actually related to the overly strict feudal etiquette and class system. During the feasts of the monarchs of the ancient feudal dynasties, different tableware and meals would be arranged according to different ranks and identities. Moreover, people of different ranks or identities cannot eat at the same table, and the "meal sharing system" is derived from this premise. This is actually a relatively common form of the ancient Chinese food etiquette system.
In the pre-Qin period, Confucianism proposed
"At the beginning of the ceremony, the diet began."
The concept of "etiquette" and "respect for the elderly and the inferior" put forward by the Confucian school actually has a very important impact on the "meal sharing system". Simply put, when eating, you should pay attention to eating etiquette, and you should also arrange the seats in the way of "old and young" and "respectful and inferior". whereas
"The Son of Heaven nine ding eight gui, the princes seven ding six gui, the doctor five ding four gui, shi three ding two gui." Sixty three beans, seventy four beans, eighty five beans, ninety six beans, to ming pension also. ”
This standard of grading actually provides a reliable basis for the "meal sharing system" in ancient Chinese society. "Zhou Li Si Ji Feast" Zheng Xuan notes:
"Laying out the feast, the seat of the book"
And the Book of Verses says:
"Great place to stay"
。 In fact, they have provided strong support for the ancients' "meal sharing system".
First, the meal sharing system and ancient food etiquette
As the name suggests, whether it is relatives, friends or monarchs, they cannot eat around the table when eating. Each person will be equipped with a table, and the ingredients will be distributed according to the etiquette of "the elderly and the young". For example, the elderly in the family need to eat better than the young and the young, and as a monarch, according to the rules of the system, the food must be richer and more delicious than that of the minister. The "meal sharing system" not only reflects the ancient food etiquette, but also is a symbol of inequality between people under the feudal system.
In the pre-Qin era, due to low productivity, the grain produced every year was insufficient, and even under this premise, it was necessary to "pay tribute to the grain", so most people were "little people without the food of the year", "the doctor did not have the food of the year", "the country did not have the food of the year". Under the premise of such food scarcity, the "meal sharing system" can not only reflect fairness, but also avoid waste to a certain extent, and also make family members harmonious, which can be described as a multi-pronged thing.
In fact, there is another reason that the "meal sharing system" can reflect the "etiquette" culture advocated by Confucianism, which is also a place that people valued at that time. After the "meal sharing system" became popular, everyone could take meals or receive rations according to the amount of food, which not only saved food, but also effectively avoided everyone from turning over dishes on a plate, which was both etiquette and special hygiene.
According to the "Chronicle of Meng Tianjun", Meng Tianjun preferred to keep a doorman, and when he was entertaining a newly defected chivalrous warrior, because the attendant accidentally blocked the candlelight with his body, the chivalrous warrior thought that Meng Tianjun's food was different from his own food, and the chivalrous warrior who felt coldly treated wanted to leave the table. And Meng Tianjun stopped him and showed him his own food, and the warrior suddenly realized that what he had eaten was actually the same. It is not difficult to see from this small story that the feast of the Spring and Autumn And Warring States period has begun to implement the "meal sharing system". And it is very likely that the dietary etiquette was handed down from the pre-Qin period.
Since the establishment of the etiquette system in the Zhou Dynasty, the "Zhou Ceremony" has been respected from top to bottom, which not only stipulates the eating etiquette of the princes and nobles, but also includes the people's eating behavior into the category of "etiquette". The "meal sharing system" is an important dining etiquette that is rare in the development of ancient food culture and eats with "etiquette".
Second, the evolution of the meal sharing system to the shared meal system
According to archaeological findings, the ancients before the Song Dynasty actually always used the "meal sharing system", where everyone sat on the floor and sat at a table for each person. And depending on status and status, the meals at each table are different. Of course, although the people's homes also share meals, they will not make too many changes in food.
During the Tang Dynasty, due to the relatively strong national strength and many vassal states, this provided the necessary conditions for the multi-ethnic development of the Tang Dynasty, and in the multi-ethnic exchanges, the food etiquette was gradually changing. Due to the limited living conditions in ethnic minority areas, the "shared meal system" was basically adopted, and this dining culture or custom was also introduced to the Tang Dynasty.
However, this custom of "shared meal system" is also limited to ordinary people's families, and for families with better conditions or princes and nobles, in fact, the "meal sharing system" is still being implemented. Because the "meal sharing system" during the Tang Dynasty was also a symbol of status and status. Since the late Tang Dynasty, it has been more common for families to sit around a "high chair and big table". Whether it is the relatives of the emperor or the princes and nobles, they have basically recognized the "shared meal system". Especially in ordinary people's families, the phenomenon of "shared meal system" is everywhere. In fact, if you trace back to the roots, the "shared meal system" really developed during the Song Dynasty.
Because in this period, the chair or beard bed has basically become popular, and has become a must-have item in the homes of the people. This provides a very necessary physical examination for the "shared meal system", where everyone sits around the table to eat, not only the atmosphere is warmer, but also the choice of dishes is gradually increasing. Especially in the middle and late Song Dynasty, the "shared meal system" has basically become a consensus. In fact, the "shared meal system" in the Song Dynasty was also a top-down behavior, from the Song royal court to the lower class of the common people, the "shared meal system" has almost formed a habit. However, in the process of the development of the "shared meal system", the "meal sharing system" diet etiquette in people's minds has not been forgotten. In a sense, the substitution of the shared meal system instead of the meal sharing system is also a kind of progress in the development of folk culture.
Third, the meal sharing system was gradually replaced by the meal sharing system in the Ming Dynasty
According to the "History of Ming", Xuande's fifth winter, "Long snow, heavy snow in December, emperor Xie Qunchen", "Happy Snow" poem, re-gifted snow feast." The group of subjects entered the peace chapter, and the emperor chose its guard to record it, and ordered it." From this record, we can see that the Ming Dynasty still adopted the "meal sharing system" during the Xuande period, and believed that the "meal sharing system" could make the banquet more orderly, and at the same time reflect the dignity and inferiority of the emperor and his courtiers. However, with the continuous development and progress of society, people's respect and inferiority relationship shown by the "meal sharing system" has become more and more diluted.
Especially from the perspective of the ruler, the relationship between the dignity and inferiority of the imperial power and the official power can not only be divided by the "meal sharing system", but in fact, it is more formal to reflect the dignity and inferiority through the number of seats. Therefore, in the middle and late Ming Dynasty, the "shared meal system" gradually replaced the "meal sharing system". However, the etiquette and culture of eating and drinking have not been abolished, and as the imperial power continues to strengthen, more emphasis has been placed on food culture and etiquette.
According to the Feast, volume 56 of the "Great Ming Huidian": "Where the banquet of the civil and military attaches is seated in the east and west chambers of the hall, the wine and food are superior to the outside of the hall, and the seat below the five pins is second to the two corridors." From this record, it is possible to guide the ming court feast, where civil and military officials need to be divided by the number of table seats, and the level of official rank can be distinguished by the form of the inner box room of the palace and the outer corridor of the palace. In the food culture and etiquette centered on the political power of the state, in fact, whether it is "sharing meals" or "sharing meals", the principle of respect and inferiority and order has been continued.
Especially in many food cultures and rituals, there is a form that we must not forget, that is, the "food" of the ancient Chinese monarchs, and this situation can only be the emperor to the officials. The so-called "giving food" is not really to let the subordinates feast, its meaning is not in the "food" but in the honor of "giving", and the person who is "given food" must be grateful to the emperor.
bibliography
1. Cui Puquan,"People's Food for Heaven and Dining Etiquette"
2. Ma Jianying, "The Cultural Temperament of the Ancient Chinese Food Etiquette System"
3. Huang Jing, "Exploration of Ancient Food System and Culture in Zuo Zhuan"
4. Huang Xiuming, "Food Culture and Ancient Chinese Social Politics"