Tigers driving sleds, pucking tigers, curling tigers, skiing tigers... The Year of the Tiger coincides with the Winter Olympics, and just recently, a Winter Olympic-themed emoji called "Cute Little Tiger Worships the Great Year" added a popular color to the tiger before the arrival of the Year of the Tiger.
"Cute Little Tiger Worship Big Year" Winter Olympics theme emoji. Screenshots of the network
Chinese has a history of using the tiger as a totem for thousands of years, from the tiger symbols in the temple to the tiger shoes of the children in the people's homes, the image and symbol of the tiger, which runs through all aspects of traditional society.
With the development of society and the popularization of animal protection concepts, the protection of tigers has become a social consensus. Today, revisiting history and searching folklore will not only allow us to better understand the culture of Chinese over thousands of years, but also to construct a deeper concept of symbiosis between humans and animals. To this end, on the occasion of the arrival of the Year of the Tiger, the Beijing News invited Gao Wei, president of the Beijing Folklore Society and a famous folklore scholar, to talk about the tiger culture in traditional folklore.
Gao Wei, president of the Beijing Folklore Society and a famous folklore scholar. Courtesy of respondents
The king of the mountains, the tiger in the culture is not terrible
"Chinese concept, the image of the tiger is very special." Gao Wei said, "For this large predator at the top of the food chain, we do not feel that it is cruel and terrible, but give it the meaning of majesty, bravery, might, justice, fairness and so on, making the image of the tiger a common symbol in daily life." ”
Wu Qiang Tiger Year Painting. Beijing News reporter Wang Ying photographed
Chinese the history of tiger worship can be traced back thousands of years, archaeological findings, Liangzhu culture has suspected tiger stripes artifacts. There are more records of tigers in traditional texts, such as the "I Ching" that "the adult tiger changes", with the tiger as a symbol of the king and the adult. In the Spring and Autumn Period, people used the tiger charm as a proof of dispatch. In various folklore, the divine beasts and beasts with the image of the tiger appear repeatedly, such as the ten-tailed Tianwu with a human face and a tiger body, and the enlightened beast with nine heads of the tiger body.
"The ancients used the tiger as one of the zodiac signs, but the lion, which is also a feline, and the jackal, which is also a beast, are not included in the zodiac, and part of the reason is related to the image of these animals in human culture." The zodiac represents the good wishes of human beings, the tiger is the king of the mountains, symbolizing bravery, strength, in line with the wishes of people's hearts, people believe that tigers can shelter people from disasters and violations, give people courage, strength and so on. ”
Tantou Tiger Year Painting. Infographic
Tigers are also related to the twenty-four solar terms, Gao Wei introduced, twenty-four solar terms, each solar term has three signs, called seventy-two weather, of which the second weather of heavy snow, is called "tiger first delivery". This means that the tiger begins to mate at this time. Generally speaking, animals mate mostly in the spring, why is it obvious that it is snowy in winter, but tigers begin to mate? This is because the ancients believed that when the snow was in full swing, the yin qi between heaven and earth reached its peak and began to weaken, and at this time, the first movement of the yang had been perceived by the tiger, so it began to court, mate and reproduce. Gao Wei said, "In fact, in the original sense, it is also a manifestation of people's perception of nature and the combination of life and nature." ”
Tiger heads and tiger brains, tigers in folklore are very cute
Sticking couplets and sticking door gods are traditional Spring Festival customs, and the earliest door gods- Shendi and Yulei are also related to tigers. Ancient texts record, "In ancient times, there were two brothers, Shendi and Yulei, who were possessed by ghosts. The peach tree on the mountain of Dushuo is often read by a hundred ghosts. The ghosts are unreasonable, and the gods and Yu Lei hold the reed rope and insist on feeding the tiger. ”
The ancients believed that tigers had the meaning of driving away evil spirits, avoiding evil spirits, and blessings, so they would also post pictures of tigers on the gates in order to seek good fortune and wealth.
Weifang Tiger Year Wooden Board New Year Painting. Infographic
Interestingly, the tiger in folklore is often not a realistic image, Gao Wei introduced, "whether it is a New Year painting, or the tiger image in other folklore, most of them have been modified and exaggerated, removing the overly fierce part of the tiger image, while highlighting a specific feature, such as majesty, bravery and so on." There are also tiger images, after being processed by folk artists, look very cute, just like the latest memes, especially cute. ”
"Meng Tiger" is not a modern feature, but an ancient one, and the typical representative is "Cloth Tiger". Gao Wei introduced that the cloth tiger originated from the folk worship of the tiger, but after humanized treatment, it looks very cute, and at the same time has similar human expression characteristics.
Traditional handmade tiger head shoes. Screenshots of the network
Tiger head pillows, tiger head shoes, tiger head hats, embroidered tiger cloaks, etc., in the traditional era, people will prepare a lot of clothing with tiger images for newborn children, Gao Wei said, "This also represents people's good expectations for children, that is, hope that tigers can shelter them through the fragile infancy, but also hope that they grow up with the bravery and strength of tigers." ”
Tigers and tigers are angry, and the rabbits of old Beijing want to ride tigers
Rabbit ye is a traditional handicraft in old Beijing, few people know, the authentic image of the rabbit is a rabbit riding a tiger.
Gao Wei introduced, "In ancient times, people believed that rabbits belonged to the yin class, which is a symbol of fertility, and there are many rabbits in ancient books that 'look at the moon and are born' and "look at the moon and get pregnant', so people regard rabbits as representatives of fertility, and some people think that rabbits are fertility gods." In fact, there are legends abroad of rabbits as fertility gods. ”
"Riding the Tiger Rabbit Grandpa". Beijing News reporter Zhou Huaizong photographed
As a symbol of fertility, why should the rabbit ride a tiger? Gao Wei explained, "In traditional society, people think that the tiger is the representative of masculinity and the king of the hundred beasts, so the rabbit riding a tiger also has the meaning of yin and yang harmony and prosperity. ”
Gao Wei introduced that in traditional folklore, the classic image of the rabbit is to wear a red robe and ride a black tiger, "The red robe of the rabbit and the black of the tiger form a distinct yin and yang pole." At the same time, red represents life, black tiger represents death, and the ancients used a small handicraft to pin the idea of the unity of life and death. Gao Wei said.
In addition, in traditional culture, tigers also have meanings such as justice and light, and tigers and blessings are harmonious, and there are also the meanings of multi-blessing, "Whether it is a cloth tiger played by a child, or a tiger ridden by a rabbit, or a tiger New Year painting posted on the gate, it represents the simplest expectation of peace and happiness in traditional society." ”
Beijing News reporter Zhou Huaizong
Edited by Tang Zheng Proofreader Guo Li