It is a tree associated with the sacred bird Phoenix, and it is the place where the phoenix lands. There are many good sentences in ancient poems that mention sycamores:
The phoenix is singing, and it is in the high hill. The sycamore is born, and the sun rises in the sun. --The Book of Songs
The Fu Crane is born in the South China Sea and flies in the North Sea, not more than the sycamore, not only the practice, not the food, not the liquor spring. --Zhuangzi "Getaway"
The pine and cypress are planted in the east and west, and the sycamore is planted on the left and right. The branches are covered with each other, and the leaves and leaves are communicating. --"Peacock Flying Southeast"
Alone in the west building without a word, the moon is like a hook. Lonely Wutong deep courtyard lock Qingqiu. --Li Yu "Seeing Joy"
The lack of moon hangs dredging paulownia, and the initial tranquility of people is missing. Who sees a lonely person coming and going, ethereal and lonely. --Su Shi "Fortune Operator"
The spring breeze peach and plum blossoms bloom, and the autumn rain when the sycamore leaves fall. --Bai Juyi "Song of Long Hatred"
The sycamore is more drizzle, and at dusk, bit by bit. This time, what a sad word. --Li Qingzhao "Slow Voice"
Why did the ancients favor the sycamore so much that there are so many famous sayings about the sycamore?
The ancients liked to be lyrical, giving it rich symbolic meaning because of the characteristics of a certain plant. This is the case with Meilan Zhuju, known as the Four Gentlemen. What are the characteristics of the sycamore that people are endowed with special emotions?
Sycamore is a deciduous tree that can grow up to 16 meters high, with a tall and straight trunk and an outstanding appearance, so the phoenix is not more than a sycamore. The ancients used sycamore to make guqin, which naturally endowed the sycamore with profound cultural heritage. The leaves of the sycamore have a pleasant smell and are often planted in gardens as ornamental trees. With so many factors added up, Sycamore is naturally liked by people.
People generally regard the sycamore as a symbol of noble character, and also use it to imply parting sorrow.
When I was a child, there was a plane tree at the entrance of our village, and we used to play underneath. The boy hits the tongzi, the tongzi falls, and the boy is happy. However, my favorite is the sycamore leaves, and every time my grandmother asks us to climb up and pick the leaves, I always rush to be the first to eat because we know that grandma is going to make paulownia leaves for us to eat.
When I went home not long ago, I found that the plane tree at the entrance of the village was gone, and I could no longer smell the sycamore leaves, which made me lose it for a long time.
In my hometown now, there are no plane trees, but there are many paulownia trees.
Many people mistake Paulownia for Sycamore, but there is a big difference between the two. I've always loved Sycamore and hated Paulownia
Sycamore trees are tall, the bark is green or blue, smooth, and does not crack all year round, while the paulownia tree is shorter, the bark is gray, and often cracks.
The leaves and flowers of the sycamore and the paulownia are also different: the leaves of the sycamore resemble a heart and a wide palm, and the surface is only a thin layer of fluff, and the flowers are beautiful purple-red, while the leaves of the paulownia have a long stalk with fluff on the stalk, which is not very beautiful. The paulownia flowers are like strings of trumpets, scattered all over the ground on rainy days, giving off an unpleasant smell.
Paulownia grows fast, so people like to plant it, however, the material of the paulownia trunk is very light, overwhelmed, and the economic value is not high. However, people often plant paulownia everywhere for short-term interests, after all, paulownia grows fast.
It is said that people who make guqin today have begun to use paulownia as a material.
However, the phoenix will never go to the paulownia tree to perch.
The same should be true for man, to grow into a lonely sycamore, not a flock of paulownias.