Zhao Layerfa/photo
Village carved in stone
Text/Xu Hui
Standing on the ancient and broken Buying Bridge, looking around, although the cicada noise is compact, the mood is pleasant. Looking to the north, but seeing a lush green mountain and a majestic Wenchang Pavilion, a yellowed Mushui River after the big water traveled north, with a flat expression and slow steps. And above the river to the west, a village lying quietly outside of time, as if an old man still taking a lunch break, is wandering away from a dream that has been sleeping for years, sleepy.
In the ancient village, the towering Wenchang Pavilion is an elegant and beautiful existence. But she gave me a far less impression than the row of old monasteries with dark walls around her. And this old woman who meditated cross-legged next to Wenchang Pavilion, looking a little old and a little lonely, shocked my soul indescribably. On the courtyard wall less than two people high, the wind and rain of history and the baptism of the years turned into darkness of the night, and the courtyard wall that was not high spread from top to bottom, like a black umbrella stretched out, making the ancient courtyard wall a little more mysterious and bitter.
What an ancient courtyard wall! Xu was attracted by some kind of force, and my fingers trembled a little and touched the mottled and rough courtyard wall, and my heart became unnaturally vicissitudes. The courtyard walls are thick and solid, and this resolute earth conveys to me the feeling of familiarity through my ten fingers, with a simple, warm and intimate power.
There are many ancient stones in the courtyard, which aroused my interest in stones. Although I am not Mi Qian, nor do I have his kind of worship and call stones brothers when they see stones, I have always had a deep-rooted stone complex in my heart. Stone, in Chinese culture, religion, art, calligraphy and other human history, has always played a pivotal role, interpreting the breadth and depth of Chinese civilization. The mossy stone steps, the cornices that touch the sky, the steles engraved with historical memories, the remnants of stones carved with various sacred beasts, the isolated stone lions and stone plates in the corner of the courtyard wall, and even the pillar rosette with empty bases, all became my surprise under the camera.
When I was about to walk out of the courtyard gate, looking for the exclamations of the students, I saw that a thousand-year-old cypress was leaning on the canopy behind the courtyard door, although the root of the main stem was cracked, moss was overgrown, and the top was broken, but the stubborn cypress tree produced a few poetic green leaves from the side branches, perfectly interpreting the affection of green leaves to the roots. Like a soft woman snuggled on her boyfriend's shoulder, the gray-headed and earthy courtyard wall has a little more poetic agility and green tenderness. The ancient cypress tree is shaped like a halberd, like a loyal warrior standing with a halberd and guarding the ancient village, which makes people give birth to a bit of awe for life and admiration for loyalty, and also makes the ancient Qianfang Temple have a few more bright colors of life!
To the right is the "Buying Bridge". This is a three-hole stone arch bridge built in the first year of Song Jingkang, the arch bridge adopts a semicircular thin arch, small and chic, and the solemn height of Wenchang Pavilion set off each other, the composition is a picture, and the corresponding interest. For thousands of years, the stone arch bridge has been the ancient post road that maintains the village in front of the village, and it is also the only ancient bridge of the Song Dynasty found in Hunan Province. Unfortunately, the fate of Buying Bridge and Qianfang Temple Cooper is not too similar. The south side of the bridge body has been defected, perhaps the mutilation itself is a normal state of life, but also another sense of life beauty, just like the broken arm of Venus, perfect beauty certainly makes people feel the beauty and nostalgia of things, but the mutilated beauty will make people learn to cherish and nostalgic.
Ancient stone bridge, broken quiet beauty. At this moment on the bridge, the sun is very white, white and dazzling, and there seems to be a trace of wind in the sultry air, stirring a little hot mind.
The ancient village is still peaceful, and it seems that the old man who is still in a nap does not want to wake up.
Standing at the head of the bridge, looking at the first-class blue water and the sparkling waves on the surface of the river, my thoughts also became like a river, and the waves jumped like a wave. The bridge body is not long, the longest is less than three zhang, the bridge body is not high, the highest is only six meters, but it is such an ancient stone bridge that is neither long nor high, but it carries thousands of years of wind and rain, reads the vicissitudes of the world, and crosses and connects thousands of years of time with its own incompleteness and perseverance, erecting the height of history and humanity.
I heard that there are ancient cliff stone carvings in the Yuepi Pavilion in front, which is undoubtedly full of temptation for me, a calligraphy lover and a stone fan at the same time. In an instant, the pace couldn't help but speed up a lot. The Yuepi Pavilion is not a "pavilion", it is a crescent-shaped "pavilion" constructed of natural stone walls, which is a natural depression at the foot of the stone cliff to form a passage more than 100 meters long, and the ancestors of the ancient village cleverly used its eave structure to excavate it into an ancient road that can shelter from the wind and rain and a "pavilion" for pedestrians to rest on their journey.
The stones of the Moon Pavilion are amazing. Some are detached from the old way, there are Sheng Steep who meditates peacefully, and some are eager to move, and some are even like monsters, with a hideous face and showing their long and sharp fangs. Looking at it, I was in a trance, and the unique performance of Nachuan Drama changing face came to life in front of my eyes. One will have a black face, one will be white, one will have an indifferent expression, and the other will squeeze his eyebrows and eyes, which makes people can't help but smile again.
The stones of the Yuepi Pavilion are astonishing. In the Moon Pavilion cliff stone carvings, the wise ancestors of the ancient village have deeply rooted the thousand-year development history of a family on the boulder in the form of stone carved genealogies, unfolding between heaven and earth. This perfect book of the earth is not only "a stone carved genealogy left on the stone wall by the Zhou family in Shanggantang Village", but also "a cliff stone carved by a family that specifically reflects the development history of this family for thousands of years". Standing in front of such a stone family tree, my heart is more silent than stone, but my heart is like the Xie Mu River on the side of the road, flooding with undying ripples. The years are silent. The stone is silent. The silent stone has achieved a cultural history of stone calligraphy with its tenacity and passion, and wrote a legend of stone!
The stones of the Yuepi Pavilion are even more stunning. On the ancient road, which is not too long, there are more than 20 large and small cliff stone carvings, like a stone carved corridor. The time spans the four dynasties of the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, and the content includes poetry and singing, writing scenes, remembering merits, exhortations and warnings, etc., which well preserves the cultural traditions of the countryside. And the most popular "glimpse" is undoubtedly the four big characters of Wen Tianxiang's calligraphy inscription "Loyal and filial piety and honesty festival". These four stone carved characters, engraved in the twenty-eighth year of Qianlong (1763), each character is 1.3 meters wide and 1.8 meters high, and the handwriting is vigorous and powerful. Perhaps the stone also has a human heart, and it also knows that the world is difficult, and loyalty and filial piety are difficult to achieve. "Loyal and filial piety festival" is not only a stone carving left by celebrities, but also a living inheritance of the spirit of Confucian tradition, which makes Shanggantang Village not only a historic ancient village, a quiet and beautiful paradise beauty, but also a place where Huxiang culture sustenance, a place to experience the roots of Confucian traditional spirit.
The tour guide told the poignant story behind the stone carvings in front of the "Filial Piety and Lian Festival". It was a story about Wen Tianxiang's vow to die and sacrifice his life for the country, which was very moving. While the students listened to the tour guide's introduction, they discussed the brushwork of stone carving, but I was as silent as a stone. Standing on the stone, he sighed with emotion. Cliff carvings carve time into a gesture and lyricize as an eternity. Facing the cliff carvings, I was like a beginner, reverently listening to the sermons of an enlightened monk, and my mind could only be reverence and admiration. I know that the stone is the silent wise man, and the years and the storms of the world have left on his forehead wrinkles and traces of light and darkness as time passes. I understand that the stone is a forbearant monk, and the blade of a sage and hero is deep and shallow after the baptism of thought engraved on his body.
It seems that I suddenly realized the teachings of the ancient sages from the stone, heard the call of the heart, and then discovered my true self, and my heart was clear.
Maybe it was our footsteps and chatter that woke up the good dream of the ancient village, or maybe the morning in the ancient village started at noon, or maybe the ancient village had just experienced the raging flood and labor pain, and finally got rid of the entanglement of nightmares, so I wanted to sleep beautifully! I felt that when we walked into the ancient village, the ancient village seemed to reluctantly raise its misty eyelids and struggle to wake up.
Stepping through the south slot door, he collided head-on with an old man named "Zhou's Ancestral Hall". The old man is indeed old enough, an old coarse cloth long coat, a thin and old face, like an old man from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. The old man is lucky, after thousands of years of wind and frost, he is still in good spirit and respected. But the old man is clearly unfortunate. The previous month-long torrential rain caused the old man to suffer from water, and the yellowing river was as deep as his waist. The situation inside is even more suffocating. There is a two-person deep pool in the Zhou's ancestral hall, and there was originally a stone bridge connecting the inner room on the pool, which has now been destroyed by the flood, and the bridge stone fell into the pool, and the guardrail was horizontal and vertical, which made people have to sigh that the ancient village above the river, although nourished and infiltrated by water, was more ruthless and attacked by water. Even the gentlest water can sometimes turn into a beast, and even a strong stone cannot resist!
When I walked into the first village-level museum in Hunan Province, the Shanggantang Museum, I was still surprised. There are many good objects and old objects inside, as well as many stone seats, stone plates, stone grooves and other stone tools carved with exquisite patterns, even the Wenchang Pavilion in the Ming Dynasty, the ancient residential buildings in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Yuepi Pavilion inscriptions in the Song to Yuan Dynasties and the cultural relics and monuments in the village such as iron shops, wine shops, and tofu shops were "moved" into the museum one by one, comprehensively displaying the village history and culture, folk customs and unique humanistic charm of the ancient village.
Walking forward, a stone stele entitled "Li Xi of the Zhengtang of Yongming County" deeply attracted me, although the handwriting has been obliterated by time and can only be faintly recognizable, I still learned through the tour guide that this ordinary and inconspicuous stone stele is very extraordinary. The stone tablet records the twelve statutes that Li County ordered to be implemented by the village He, perhaps this is the village rules and people's covenant and civilization convention of the ancient village! I think it is precisely because of these ideologies and cultures, such as the "Festival of Loyalty and Filial Piety," "Li Shi in the Zhengtang Church," and "Studying to join the Shishi and cultivating the rich family," the beautiful family style, and the village rules and people's covenants, that we have created a great wind in which more than 100 talented people from more than 400 households in the district, such as jiedu envoys, shangshu, Xuanzheng Dafu, Taishou, assassins, zhizhou, Tongju, county orders, Wenlin counties, and generals, have emerged in large numbers and shined with stars. The wind of civilization has been blowing for thousands of years, making today's Shanggantang Village more vibrant and full of spring.
Walking along the bluestone ancient post road that runs through the village and has been polished by countless footsteps, a sense of history comes to life. At this moment, we really walked into the interior of the ancient village and entered a story of time. On both sides of the "Xiaohe Ancient Road", which is shining with the blue light of time, are earthen houses and shops with distinctive Yongming characteristics, these buildings have green tiles, horse heads, white powder walls and doors, patios, three halls, the walls of the houses are made of large cotton bricks, a large area of clear water walls, crowned with undulating white belts, and the raised horse head walls around the houses are strange, forming a contrasting, fresh and bright style. These ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing dynasties are like a group of Miaoling women dressed in Chinese cheongsam, moving lightly with lotus steps and a variety of styles, coming to us.
When I turned into an alley next to the ancient road, just a few steps, a red, yellow, green square brick wall, glowing with the cold light of the years, deeply attracted me. Several female classmates also came to check in when they heard the news. The contrast between the ancient brick walls and seasonal costumes caused the female classmates to shout for a while, and some female classmates even recited Dai Wangshu's "Rain Alley" affectionately. I think that if it is a rainy day today, if I can meet a girl holding an oil-paper umbrella with cloves in the ancient village beautifully, what kind of feelings and hopes it will be worth savoring and nostalgic!
Several female classmates chanted poems like butterflies in the laneways of the ancient village, and where they flew, they left behind not only the rhyme of the ancient village, but also the Qingfen of poetry and the feelings of girls.
Walking in the ancient village, it seems that you can touch the stories of time everywhere and feel the legend of the village. Walking casually into an old house with typical Ming Dynasty architecture, a charitable old lady sits on a strip stone in front of the door, shaking a fan, signaling that I can look casually. I quickly smiled and thanked you. Enter the patio from the gate, and then fold into the main hall, there should be a grinded stone slab at your feet, the panes and shrines are all beautifully carved, the wind and fire wall is imposing, the tile roof is flying eaves, and the white, pink and black lines and clear water walls are clearly colored and staggered. On the walls of the patio, there are exquisite brick carvings. Living in such a stone house, warm in winter and cool in summer, comfortable and comfortable, is an excellent place to nurture the days and enjoy your old age!
The deeper I walked into the alley, the more I felt that the rhythm of time was slowing down and getting older little by little. The mottled and peeling courtyard walls, blackened wooden windows, old and dilapidated stone tools, mossy roof feet, all tell the passage of time and the fragrance of time.
When I returned to Buying Bridge, I was still looking back, just like folding willows in Baqiao and saying goodbye to my lover. The ancient village in the sun is still peaceful, but my heart has flown away. There seem to be many chaotic images in front of you, overlapping, and flying like butterflies. The blackened old monasteries, the damaged and old Buying Bridge, the tall cliff stone carvings, as well as the stone walls of the Republic of China, the gate towers of the Ming Dynasty, the ancient buildings of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the foundations and wharves destroyed by floods, etc., these stone utensils have all made the history and legend of a village.
Finally, I still have to say goodbye to the thousand-year-old master of Gucun. In the constant lookback, the ancient village gradually walked away, and little by little became blurred.
A river of yin and yang that carries the weight of life, an ancient village lying in the depths of time, meeting on a stone bridge connecting the ancient and the modern, and since then there has been a thousand-year relationship. Stone bridges, stone houses, stone temples, stone tools, stone mountains, stone carvings, and stone pagodas have injected the ancient village with the feeling of obscurity and humiliation, and created the tenacity, calmness, open-mindedness and calm character of the ancient village.
I thought maybe stones have warmth, emotion, and even faith. Otherwise, you see that the secrets of the river and the aura of the village are deeply rooted in the stone, the peace and serenity of the old people and children, the integrity and clarity of the village rules and covenants, have been cherished by the words carved in stone, and the veins and folds of history, the coldness and warmth of time, the vicissitudes and changes of the west wind of the ancient road, shine with a profound light of faith on the bluestone slabs and white stone tablets, deriving the majestic power of clans and cultures.
The years are speechless, carving life, leaving behind vicissitudes; The stone is silent, the faith is carved, and the time is amazed. Shanggantang Village on the stone is not only a beautiful flower inspired by a stone culture, but also a great book of literature and history written in stone, and an ancient village carved in stone!
I finally understood why I was so fond, so obsessed, and so adored by the stones of Shanggantang Village.