◎ Kyo Gen-er
There are many famous stones in Beijing, just around, but have not been deeply understood, the author of this article visited several famous stones in the capital - the jade Buddha of Beihai Tuancheng, the iron shadow wall of ChengguanTang, the big jade sea of Dushan Mountain, the large stone surface outside chongwen gate, and the "loser stone" in front of the Leshou Hall in the Summer Palace, revealing the story behind them.
Tuancheng Jade Buddha
"Inner Nine Outer Seven Imperial Cities Four", under the guard of so many city gates, the great city of Beijing sat safely. The Forbidden City has also become a city within a city like the stars and the moon, and Beijing has the smallest city, Tuancheng. This mound, once an island in the lake, has undergone the construction, destruction, reconstruction, and transformation of the city until now it has become a "city of scenery" and "city of stories". In this small city like a pearl in the palm of the hand, a small temple and the jade Buddha statue in the temple have become a dazzling brilliance in the bright light of the pearl, and its fate is also like this city, rising and falling.
People are always accustomed to giving many dramatic stories to valuable treasures and historical antiquities, but in fact, they originally have their own "drama", their own "aura", and their own bizarre. This jade Buddha is no exception, precisely because of its delicate jade and crystalline precious materials, and because of its lifelike and peaceful craftsmanship, it will surely gather more attention and become the carrier of countless "creativity".
Some people say that it was once used as a "friendship" bridge for foreign envoys to curry favor with Lafayette Cixi, and it was specially purchased from foreign countries for the elderly and offered to the palace. Such a statement is more like a lot of old taste in Beijing, and there is no hope to rub some royal heat, such as gilding, which is famous in the market and famous in the world.
The origin of the Jade Buddha is even more historical, and it is necessary to start from a small temple called "Voldemort Temple" in the northwest corner of the capital, next to Xizhimen. The owner of this small temple traveled all over the world in his early years to raise funds and grain for the Beijing temple, and in the process of fundraising, an exquisite white jade Buddha came from afar to enter the nunnery. The jade Buddha with its own charm, the material is delicate, smooth and attractive, and the buddha top is equipped with dazzling gemstones. The Buddha's solemn and compassionate face and elegant dress also attracted the worship of believers and practitioners. Because of this, the Jade Buddha is famous. Therefore, the abbot simply dedicated the Jade Buddha to the royal family. Empress Dowager Cixi also loved the Jade Buddha and ordered it to be enshrined in the Chengguang Hall.
Although the Jade Buddha has a new home, it still leaves many traces for its hometown. Just as the names of many temples have long been replaced by their typical architecture and grand scenery in the public eye, for example, Myoying Temple has been dominated by the great craftsman Anigona Bowl White Pagoda from afar, and is famous for its "White Pagoda Temple". Just like the Zhenjue Temple, which lives with the long river, it also appears in the mouth of more people because of the rare Vajra Pagoda in the capital, and the name "Five Pagoda Temples" appears in the mouths of more people. Even Japan's Saiho-ji Temple is simply called "Moss Temple" because of the huge "appeal" brought by the small moss. "Voldemort Temple" because of the identity of the Jade Buddha's hometown, another name - the Jade Buddha Temple. The memory of the Jade Buddha Temple has extended for hundreds of years, and it is still possible to find the time tassel in the place names, and today's Yutaoyuan Community in Xinjiekou Street is the memory heritage that the Jade Buddha Temple and Taoyuan have jointly preserved for future generations.
For the origin of the Jade Buddha, there are many versions, such as the Jingxi Guandi Temple presided over the burma fundraising, originally for cixi in the palace, but due to the huge manpower and material resources paid, there was too much "noise" in the society, so it had to be temporarily stored in the Voldemort Temple. I think that although there is only one truth, it is precisely because of the transmission of information that different versions and plots add speculation and legend to the real history, and also add a lot of fun.
The Jade Buddha with a story not only added a lot of flavor to the capital because of his life, but also added some materials to the Beijing media circle "not willing to be lonely" in 1923.
"The Jade Buddha of Beihai Tuancheng is lost!" Such an explosive news began to shock the Beijing newspaper circle a hundred years ago. As soon as the message came out, there was an uproar. Some people are saddened by the loss of the Jade Buddha and lament the turmoil of the times; some people analyze the beginning and end, and even have something to do with the previous incident of the burning of the garden of the Forbidden City. For a time, big and small newspapers published articles one after another, and speculation, debate, and appeals appeared one after another.
"The Jade Buddha of Tuancheng, who was reported missing in the previous years, has not in fact left his throne. He was still sitting well in the main hall of Tuancheng, and he had not moved away. Nearly a month later, the morning newspaper's news quickly cooled down the hot spot of "jade Buddha lost". Originally, the rumored jade Buddha was lost, but it was just a small jade Buddha, which had nothing to do with the big jade Buddha of the Chengguang Hall.
Cheng Guan Tang Iron Shadow Wall
In Beijing's checkerboard urban layout, the straight street is the main component, and the diagonal street attracts attention with its special extension direction. Gulou West Street is not only a diagonal street in the hutong streets and alleys, but also because of its long history, and the development of the river channel and then into the streets and alleys has become an important case of the development of the beijing water system and traffic. Today's street has undergone several transformations and functional changes, appearing in a more beautiful figure, bringing a bright color to the protection of Beijing's old city.
Tieyingbi Hutong is located in the middle of Gulou West Street, the small alley is not wide, and curved, on the "figure" and "appearance" can not be compared with its "brothers and sisters", but from it "out" of a heavy treasure, but it makes it one of the most famous hutongs in Beijing.
Legend has it that in the Yuan Dynasty, there was an ancient temple in JiandeMen north of Desheng Gate, and whenever visitors walked through the gate, they would be attracted by the oncoming wall. This wall is red in color, 1.89 meters high, 3.56 meters wide, the top is like an ancient Chinese building, using the design of the top of the mountain, the roof ridge, tiles, dripping water... The rules are good.
The wall design is exquisite and intricately carved, and a vivid unicorn plays with three baby unicorns, full of warmth. On the other hand, the Qilin Father is majestic, and the surrounding flowers and plants are dotted with each other, setting off the identity of Heaven and Earth Xiangrui. The base design of the wall is also not sloppy, and the pegasus, lace, and traditional ornaments are interesting...
With the change of dynasties, this exquisite wall ushered in the first trough of its destiny, along with the change of urban design and planning of the Ming Dynasty, the former northern city wall moved south to the desheng gate and the and anding gate line, and it was abandoned in the wilderness outside the city. Until the Ming City Wall began to take shape, the Red Zhao Wall was placed in front of the Desheng'an Gate near the fruit city inside the Desheng Gate. The change of position from the inside out, as well as the special red color of the body, gave it a new name - the iron shadow wall.
In 1947, the fate of The Iron Shadow Wall was threatened again, and a foreign face who had crossed the ocean from Britain scanned China's rare treasures with greedy eyes, and finally focused on the Iron Shadow Wall. He repeatedly knocked on the door of tokusho-an and tried to buy it from the temple master with a whole box of gold. After being rejected, the British were so upset that they prepared to steal when the night was dark and the wind was high, and the monks found out and decided to take turns guarding the national treasure. The theft did not succeed, this person simply robbed, the robbery could not be achieved, and then painfully hit the black hand, directly smashing the hammer head against the shadow wall. After several battles, the robbers were finally beaten away, but the iron shadow wall was also injured.
The bandits' hegemony caused an overnight sensation in the capital, and people demanded that the government punish the perpetrators and find a safer place for the shadow wall. In 1947, the Engineering Department of the Beiping Cultural Relics Sorting Committee of the Executive Yuan of the Kuomintang government sent a letter to the Beihai Office and moved the iron shadow wall to the front of the Beihai Chengguan Hall. In the 1980s, the base of the Iron Shadow Wall was also moved from the depths of the hutong to Beihai Park, where the base and the Shadow Wall were reunited, and now they are not far east of the Five Dragon Pavilion, where they will meet such an exquisite national treasure.
The Great Jade Sea of The Mountains
Across the sea from the Iron Shadow Wall, there is also a stone brother who "does not believe in fate and has the courage to turn over" - the "Great Jade Sea of Dushan Mountain" located above Tuancheng. It sits firmly on the white jade lotus seat, hidden in a delicate small pavilion, quietly admiring the world.
"Height 70 cm, width 135 cm, length 182 cm, circumference 493 cm, chest depth 55 cm, weight 3.5 tons, with its shape, carved into ichthyosaurs, sea beasts haunted by the waves, vivid image ..." A document records the appearance and volume of this heavy instrument. The highlight of the Jade Sea originates from the entry of Kublai Khan into the Central Plains, the ancestor of the Yuan Dynasty, and there is a record in the Yuan Shi Shi BenJi: "In December of the second year of the Yuan Dynasty (1265), the Great Jade Sea of The Great Yu Hai cheng of the Dushan Mountains was established in the Guanghan Hall. ”
According to research, the former Guanghan Palace is about the location of the White Pagoda in Beihai Park today. As we all know, nomads have a flamboyant personality of eating meat and drinking wine in large quantities, and the birth of Yuhai is precisely for the use of fine wine when feasting on the courtiers. According to legend, in order to manufacture the jade sea, Kublai Khan used several craftsmen, and it took many years to dig out and carve a complete piece of beautiful jade, and the jade sea could hold more than thirty stones of wine, and Kublai Khan named it Dushan Great Jade Sea.
Floating like a dream, when the wine wakes up, Fang Pin creates people. The wheel of the times has long been from the Yuan Dynasty to the Ming Dynasty, and in the seventh year of the Wanli Dynasty (1579), Duanyang, the collapse of the Guanghan Palace, let the Great Jade Sea of Dushan And the memory of the Yuan Dynasty be buried deep in the dust.
Near Xihua Gate, west of Beihai Park, there is a quaint temple, the Zhenwu Temple. When Yuhai appeared in front of the world again, it had already "learned" a new skill - pickles. Fine wine turns into pickles, so who listens to the heart will be a little sour, not to mention the jade sea that once entered the house and is worth a lot, there are also times of sinking and grievances.
When the hidden dragon must have water, bmw liangju needs the opportunity to fight with Bole, and the dynasty changes into the Qing Dynasty. In the fifty years of the Kangxi Dynasty (1711), the Zhenwu Temple was rebuilt, and people discovered this "pickled chef". Yuhai was invited to the front of the Guanyin Hall, the pickles were replaced with clear water, and decorated with rockery stones, because it resembled a bowl held by a walker's hand, the Zhenwu Temple was renamed YuBao'an, and even the name of the hutong was changed to Yu Bowl Hutong. During the Qianlong period, a Hanlin discovered the Jade Sea, and after repeated scrutiny, believed that it was a relic of the Guanghan Palace in the Yuan Dynasty a hundred years ago. After he reported the matter to the Qianlong Emperor, in the tenth year of Qianlong (1745), the emperor ordered the Ministry of Internal Affairs to allocate silver to buy back the jade sea, and specially made a white jade base and placed it in front of the Chengguang Hall in the present-day Beihai Tuancheng. In the fifteenth year of Qianlong (1750), the emperor sent someone to build a jade bowl to give to the jade bowl temple and put it on the original base.
With the passage of time, the base and jade bowl of the once Jade Bowl Temple have moved into the new home of the Fayuan Temple, the base of the Yuan Dynasty, the jade bowl of the Qing Dynasty, such a combination tells the fate history of a national treasure turning over, and also witnesses the footsteps of time.
Long live Ganyue Mountain Folding Grain Stone
In the east of yong'an Temple, the south gate of Beihai Park, there is also a strange stone, which is the "folding grain stone" born in the hands of Zhao Yao of The Song Huizong.
In the seventh year of Zhenghe, a garden in the heart of Emperor Huizong began to gradually take shape in real life, initially named Banzai Mountain, and later renamed Gunyue and Shouyue. In order to create Ganyue, Emperor Huizong used thousands of ships to transport mountain stones and flowers from Jiangnan. The large amount of Taihu stone collected not only adds the femininity of Jiangnan Water Town to Shoushan Gongyue, but also adds many surprises due to its posture and change into a garden.
However, the outstanding garden works could not stop the decline of the dynasty, the sound of the iron hooves of the Jin soldiers drowned out the dynasty of the Northern Song Dynasty, the Second Emperor Hui Qin became a prisoner, and the Taihu stone of Gengyue also became a trophy. When Jin Shizong was building the Daning Palace, he sent people to Beijing to transport the Taihu stone of Gunyue to Zhongdu, and hundreds of people threw themselves into this huge project for their livelihood. The Jin Dynasty stipulated that the hard labor engaged in transporting stones could be exempted from taxation, and the discounted grain allowance was calculated according to the size and quantity of the stones, and the name "folded grain stone" was born. "The stone stacked on it is towering, and the gold yuan relics are also." Or Yun: The stone of the Ben Song GongYue, the Jin people carried this stone from Bian to Yan, and each stone had a number of quasi-grains, commonly known as folded grain stones. "The Notes on the Retreat of the Golden Ao records this history.
The name of "folding grain" has carried several dynasties, and its identity in the Ming and Qing dynasties has finally changed from a "specimen" carrying the history of slavery of the toiling masses to a landscape of royal gardens. Emperor Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji's Records of the Imperial Guanghan Temple records: "Banzai Mountain is in the northwest corner of Miyagi Castle, and all the strange stones are stacked to form... In Yongle, Emperor TaizongWen of the United States served Emperor Taizong Wen for a few thousand moments, Yan traveled here, and Tianyan was happy..." Now we can see the Qianlong Emperor's imperial pen poem on the back of the Chunyin Monument on Qiongdao Island: "Gengyue moved to Shi Yuan'e, and the relics of Qianqiu are full of nostalgia." Leaning on the rock pine green dragon scales, into the basket of the new phoenix tail. Le Zhi Ji was rewarded for winning the occasion, and the pleasing end was Dejiahe. When the spring is the most ploughing, every darker song. "Once a royal garden, today's public park, people in groups of three or five, happy smiles, the stone of Ganyue has long been integrated into this joyful scene.
If Zhao Tuo is also among them at this time, will he be immersed in the past, or will he add a touch of color to the colors of life with everyone?
The large stone surface outside the Chongwen Gate
The city of Beijing is a boundary that does not lack stories, and the protagonist of the story will always preserve the history of the city, just like the story of Chongwen Gate and another big stone.
As a City Gate that experienced the city gates of the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, ChongwenMen not only used its own development to string together the veins of the evolution of the pattern of the capital, but also left many interesting legends for Beijing, a stone will lead to a period of history, but also determine your "vision" and "pattern".
Chongwen Gate during the Yuan Dynasty was known as the Gate of Civilization, appearing as one of the eleven gates of the Yuan Capital, with its other two "brothers" guarding the east of the capital. During the Ming Dynasty, the layout of the capital was changed, the eleventh gate was changed to nine gates, and although the location of Chongwen Gate did not change, it was also repaired and improved, and the Civilization Gate was renamed Chongwen Gate. The former Chongwen Gate was bustling with activity. "The willows outside the civilized city are shaded, and the hundred yellow orioles send good sounds." After passing through the royal ditch and looking back, the Phoenix Pavilion is five clouds deep. This is a verse from Ming's "Summer Sunrise At the Gate of Civilization". In the Qing Dynasty, ChongwenMen got another elegant name - Jiumen, because Chongwenmen gate has successively become a gathering place for wine-making workshops, all the way to and from this gate, the story of this big stone is also because of this scenery, this wine.
Mr. Fang Biao, an old writer who has published works such as "Beijing Dart Bureau" and "Beijing Scholars", shared such a story with me.
In the process of construction and repair, Chongwenmen not only received royal support, but also received help from people of insight. Because at that time, traders and residents gathered around Chongwenmen, everyone took the matter of repairing the city as a matter of duty, and many people donated money and materials. The emperor was so touched by the folk acts of kindness that he embedded a huge stone face on top of a city wall at Chongwen Gate, on which the names of the donors were engraved, regardless of the amount of money. The sense of honor of those on the list has been doubled, and the descendants of their families have also traveled to find the "glorious mark" because of this honor.
Therefore, seeing the big stone face marks that the footsteps of the people in the city have taken the city; if you don't see the big stone face, it means that the person's footsteps are cramped, and he only guards his own acre and three points of land. Over time, the "big stone noodles" became "big world" in the word of mouth of the people, which is the origin of the phrase "I have never seen the big world" that we often say.
But the legend is a legend after all, whether the big stone surface once existed is unknown, but the most fascinating thing is precisely the story and humanities extended by history in the process of transmission.
The "Loser Stone" in front of the Summer Palace Leshou Hall
A large blue stone in the courtyard of Leshou Hall on the north shore of Kunming Lake in the Summer Palace is 8 meters long, 2 meters wide and 4 meters high, and weighs about 20,000 kilograms. It "comfortably" enjoys the sunrise and sunset in the royal garden, and the three big characters on its shoulders are "Qingzhixiu" for the Qianlong Royal Pen, and it also carries a period of difference of opinion between the royal mother and son, so it also has an "elegant number" - the Loser Stone.
"Fangshan has stones, three feet long, seven feet wide, blue and moist, the spoon garden that wants to be caused, only to reach Liangxiang, and the work is exhausted." This passage was recorded by the famous Ming Dynasty calligrapher Mi Wanzhong in the "Book of Stones", which tells the birthplace of the stone. And the late Ming dynasty poet Ge Yilong's travelogue "Guan Mi ZhongZhao Spoon Garden Moved Strange Stone Song": "The wild grass in the north of Taqing Village is barren, and the grass is abrupt and lonely. If you want to do it, you will be raining and there will be no light on the day. The clouds are chiseled out of the mountains by mijia, and a hundred steps and thousands of people move for several days. At this point, he hesitated and refused to go forward, and Qin Whip had no means to curse. The fire and wood fell across a forest, and they were pillowed for years. Or it needs to be used by the heavenly hand, or the mountain is only cute. When I spoke to him, I had to cross the muddy river at some point. Ling Di Hollow Su Yin Thunder, whale back Anchovy Strange Ghost. The master is kind enough to honor the stone gong, and the gods are also willing to cage. It is better to build a high pavilion on this tree and live in the day on the flying peak. Unveiling the "emotional entanglement" between this huge stone and Miwan bell.
The calligraphy of Mi Wan Zhong inherits the charm of Mi Fu and is known as the "Wan Zhong Xing Cao De Nangong Family Law". His family wealth and hobbies also showed strength, and at that time there was a saying of "Mi Jia Si Qi", that is, Mi Jia Jia, Mi Jia Shi, Mi Jia Lantern, and Mi Jia Tong. And his collection of strange stones has also reached a famous level. When the "stone idiot" fell in love with the boulder at first sight, he immediately decided to "marry" the stone to his private residence, the Spoon Garden.
Because of the huge size of the stones and the difficulty of transportation, Miwanzhong almost poured out his family wealth. He first customized special vehicles, purchased horses, hired labor, excavated boulders, and then gradually transported them out of the mountains. "The roof leaks in the rain", when Mi Wanzhong was fighting with the stone, Wei Zhongxian framed him, and finally the plan to move the stone failed, and the stone was only transported to the vicinity of Liangxiang and stopped. The twists and turns of Miwanzhong's fate are rumored to have been brought by this stone, and the name "Loser Stone" came from this.
The fate of the "loser stone" took a turn for the better during the Qianlong years, but its "habits of the losers" remained uncorrected. One day, the Qianlong Emperor went to Xiling to worship his ancestors and met the Spirit Stone. The more Qianlong looked at it, the more he liked it, and ordered the boulder to be moved to the front of the Qingyi Garden Leshou Hall. At that time, the main entrance of Leshoutang had just been built, and it was only possible to remove the door and move the stones. The empress dowager heard about it, but did not do it, this stone defeated the Mi family, and now come to tear down my door? Ominous, no! It doesn't matter who you are, how big you are, the mother said something, and the child's heart was no longer happy to listen, and qianlong was the same.
"Knowing the king's intentions, there is no need to say much", in the face of the dilemma of Qianlong and the stone, the courtiers said one after another: "The big stone is shaped like a lingzhi, and it will surely bring auspicious and auspicious atmosphere to the royal family!" "Life expectancy, Huangji Yonggu!" ...... The empress dowager changed her mind in the sound of a wave of "happy songs" that were higher than the waves. The "Loser Stone" was transformed into "QingzhiXiu" and was awarded the Qianlong Imperial Inscription Poem, with inscriptions on both sides: "Lotus Show" and "Yuying". University scholar Wang Youdun, close ministers Jiang Pu, Qian Chenqun and others also wrote poems and books, so that this lingxiu boulder bloomed auspicious and harmonious.
Photo courtesy of Lang Yong