As early as the Qin and Han Dynasties, the ancients had the custom of carving peach wood branches into human forms in front of the door to drive away evil spirits and avoid harm. To this day, the custom of the god of the door has a history of at least two thousand years.
1. The origin of Chinese door god paintings;
Since the "door god" and the door god are about the door god, first of all, there must be a door as a carrier, and only then will the door god produce a special god who recruits wealth and treasure, drives away evil spirits and ensures peace.
But long ago, our ancestors did not have the concept of a door, they lived in caves or semi-crypt houses, relying on hunting and gathering for their livelihoods.
According to the mythological record, our ancestor Youchao was the first to invent the technology of "building wood for nests", compared with living in caves, building trees for nests is obviously more able to meet the needs of the group.
In this way, the group can be migrated to areas with more open access to food and water, without having to be confined to the limited space around the cave.
However, in that era when the beasts were dense, simple wooden half-cave dwelling buildings were tantamount to exposing their lives to beasts, so the wise ancestors invented the "door" to add a security line to their sleeping selves.
Different from the tribal era, the resources collected by everyone hunting and gathering should be given priority to collective distribution, and the social productive forces of the Bronze Age should be more advanced, and a small number of people have been able to live a self-sufficient life of male and female weaving.
Therefore, in this period, in addition to guarding against wild beasts, the role of the door was gradually highlighted.
In the view of our ancestors, there should be a door god, and the word door god was first seen in the "Book of Rites and Funeral Dresses": "The god of the door is also." ”
The ancients believed in "animism", that is, there are all kinds of gods in heaven and earth, who create and govern the world.
Because our ancestors did not have such a developed science and technology as we have today, their understanding of the world is still relatively simple, in this context, in order to better play the role of going out to ensure peace, so they began to worship the door god, hoping to get the blessing of the door god.
As a result, the two great gods, Shendi and Yulei, who originated from the Classic of Mountains and Seas, stepped onto the historical stage as the earliest door gods.
2. The images of the five gods commonly seen in the New Year paintings: Shendi, Yu Lei, Zhong Kui, Qin Qiong and Wei Chigong;
1. Shendi, Yulei
According to the Eastern Han Dynasty literary scholar Wang Chong quoted the ancient book "Classic of Mountains and Seas":
In the middle of the sea, there is a mountain called Dushuo Mountain (also known as Taodu Mountain), and there is a large peach tree on Dushuo Mountain, and its branches are bent for three thousand miles.
There is a ghost gate in the northeast of the big peach tree, which is the place where all the ghosts come and go, and the two gods and Yu Lei are the gods who guard this ghost gate, and once they find the evil ghost, they will use the reed rope to kill the evil ghost and maintain the balance of the world.
Therefore, the ancients relied on this story to worship the gods and Yu Lei as door gods. Every year, when the Chinese New Year's Eve, they would paint the images of the gods and the yu lei on the door, hoping to rely on them to come to the nursing home and drive away the ghosts.
This practice of the ancients posting the door god is actually similar to our modern people looking at Ultraman and Superman, and it brings more of a sense of spiritual satisfaction and security.
The images of Shen Di and Yu Lei are bearded tiger whiskers, with long horns on their heads, and they look full of majesty, and with this domineering appearance, they are firmly at the top of the most popular list in the Gate God Realm for thousands of years.
In the Sui and Tang dynasties, under the influence of the integration of aesthetics, Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism, the protagonists of the New Year paintings were no longer limited to the characters of martial artists, and even the New Year paintings with animals as the main characters also began to become popular, such as the popularity of chicken paintings on the New Year paintings in the Jiangnan area.
But despite this, among the many rookies, the only one who can really reach the level of Shendi and Yulei is Zhong Kui.
2. Zhong Kui
According to the "History of Tang Yi" and other books:
Tang Xuanzong once suffered from a serious illness, and he was bedridden for a long time. One day, he dreamed that two ghosts came to steal the purple sachet and the jade flute, and in fear, Tang Xuanzong ran away in a panic between the palaces, and just when the two ghosts were about to approach Tang Xuanzong, a man with an ugly face and a large body suddenly appeared in front of Tang Xuanzong, only to see this man grab the two ghosts and eat in front of Tang Xuanzong's noodles.
Tang Xuanzong was full of curiosity about the man who suddenly appeared and saved him, and he asked, "Who are you?" ”
The man replied, "Your Majesty, I am Zhong Kui, and I have sworn to purge Your Majesty of all demons." ”
After listening to Zhong Kui's words, Tang Xuanzong was very happy, and what surprised him even more was that after he woke up, his illness was actually better.
Therefore, Tang Xuanzong, who was overjoyed, ordered the painting of Saint Wu Daozi, drew the appearance of Zhong Kui he saw in his dream, and then at the end of the year, he gave the image of Zhong Kui to the chancellor to drive away evil spirits.
Later, the Painting of the Year of the Gate God with "Divine Judgment" Zhong Kui as the protagonist spread.
3. Qin Qiong and Wei Chigong
As of Zhong Kui, the popularity of Shendi, Yu Lei, and Zhong Kui has a certain official color, and they are often popular among dignitaries and dignitaries, and assume the function of "heaven and man" interaction.
In this link, the identity of the door god is a god, and he protects the peace of the party. Under the blessing of the doctrine of "Heaven and Man Induction", the rise of the door god culture was also the embodiment of the results of the imperial court's deliberate promotion of Guotai Min'an and the Sage of the Holy King.
Since the Song Dynasty, the culture of the gate god has changed greatly, both from the identity of the protagonist and the breadth of circulation.
As we all know, the Song Dynasty promoted the commodity economy and ruled the country with culture.
In this context, benefiting from the development of printing, at that time, the custom of sticking to the door god was no longer a high-end "enjoyment" that only dignitaries could experience, and ordinary people could also buy high-quality and inexpensive New Year paintings.
The "Tokyo Dream Record" records the lively scene of selling New Year goods in the market during the Song Dynasty: "In december, the city printed and sold the door god Zhong Kui, peach board and caimen, blunt donkey, turning back deer and horse, and Tianxing posts. ”
If there was a best-selling list of New Year paintings at that time, we would definitely find that the New Year paintings sold in the market were not only limited to the powerful gods such as Shendi, Yu Lei, and Zhong Kui, but also the Wenchenmen Divine Troupe with historical celebrities such as Bao Gong, Di Renjie, and Wei Zheng as the protagonists.
This reflects that in the hearts of ordinary people, more than the fictional immortals, the positive characters of the real existence are more able to pin their emotions.
In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the New Year painting market became more mature, and the needs of the citizens were no longer limited to driving away evil spirits, and they began to add their favorite novel characters to the New Year paintings, which played the same role as the animation posters we paste now.
The two door gods we are now familiar with, Qin Qiong and Wei Chigong, are derived from the influence of novels such as "Journey to the West" and "Sui and Tang Dynasties", in which Tang Taizong Li Shimin ordered Qin Qiong and Wei Chigong to guard the palace gate.
Third, the cultural connotation behind the customs of the door gods.
The custom of the god of the door has been passed down from the pre-Qin period to the present, and it has long been not only to drive away wild beasts and evil spirits, but also to pin our expectations for a better life.
Now there are many door god New Year paintings on the market that attract wealth and treasure, which is actually the product of the extension of the New Year painting culture.
The times are progressing, culture is developing, and now the culture of The Gate God has long become a common emotional bond in our traditional culture.
As a symbol of peace and happiness, the Door God New Year Painting not only has the function of blessing, but also reflects our brilliant and colorful culture and art.