Summary of content:
1. The prototype of Tiekan Temple is Hangzhou Qiantang Temple, also known as Qianwang Temple;
2. The prototype of Shuiyue Temple is Hangzhou Gen Shuiyue Laoren Nunnery outside the mountain gate.
Wang Xifeng and Baoyu also went to the funeral, but they did not live in Tiekan Temple, but in Shuiyue Temple nearby. The book explains: Now that the Qin family is mourning, everyone in the clan has the right to stay at Tiekang Temple. Only Sister Feng found it inconvenient, so she sent people early to talk to Sister-in-law Jingxu of Mantou Temple and freed up two rooms. Make the next place. It turns out that this steamed bun nunnery is Shuiyue nunnery. Because the steamed buns made in this temple are good, it got this nickname. It is not far from Tiejian Temple. After that, there is the story of Wang Xifeng taking control of Tiekang Temple, breaking up the marriage of Zhang Jinge, and killing two people; Qin Zhong had a private tryst with nun Zhi Zhi, and got interested in Mantou Temple, but ended up dying.
From the above descriptions of Tiekan Temple and Shuiyue Temple, we can summarize the following characteristics: First, Tiekan Temple is a family temple, and it has been the place where the family’s souls have been placed since the ancestors. ; Secondly, Tiekan Temple is located outside the city, very close to Shuiyue Temple; Thirdly, Shuiyue Temple is also known as Mantou Temple because of its good steamed buns; Fourthly, the author named it this way because of his intention It expresses the thought that even if there is an iron threshold for thousands of years, it will eventually become a piece of cake.
Some red scholars have long pointed out that even if there is an iron threshold for thousands of years, there will eventually be an earthen bun. The poem comes from Fan Chengda’s poem "The Land of Chongjiujiangyingshouzang" written by Fan Chengda in the Song Dynasty. However, Fan Chengdai’s poem iron The threshold should be called the iron threshold. Although the meaning is the same, the wording is obviously different. It is doubtful whether it can be the source of the name of Tiekan Temple in "A Dream of Red Mansions". As for the saying that Mantou Nunnery originated from the steamed buns in the nunnery, it is just a cunning trick by the author. The original intention is that the earthen buns corresponding to the iron threshold are the ancients' joking name for the tomb.
If Fan Chengda’s Iron Gate cannot be the direct source of the name of Tiekuan Temple, then a limerick written by Wang Fanzhi, a poet monk in the Tang Dynasty, seems to be the direct source of the names of Tiekuan Temple and Mantou Temple. His poem goes: There is no one who is a hundred years old in the world, so he can compose a thousand-year-old tune. Forging iron as a threshold makes ghosts clap their hands and laugh. Local steamed buns are made outside the city, and the fillings are eaten in the city. Eat one for each person, don't think it's tasteless.
However, both Fan Chengda’s poems and Wang Fanzhi’s poems express the nihilistic thought that wealth and splendor cannot be relied upon. It is difficult to imagine that any noble family would name it with such nihilistic words when building a family temple. , because the scholar-bureaucrats in ancient China believed in the shadow of their ancestors and hoped for the long-term prosperity of their families. How could they name their family temples with depressing words like Tieksuan Temple and Mantou Temple? The author of "Dream of Red Mansions" often uses the technique of one song and two songs to narrate objects. For example, this steamed bun nunnery has dual meanings of soil steamed buns (grave mounds) and steamed buns in the nunnery, which makes it confusing; then, is this Tieyuan Temple? Have similar questions?
In fact, the Iron Kan Temple in the book "A Dream of Red Mansions", like the Qingxu Temple, Tianqi Temple, Narcissus Temple, and Shuiyue Temple in the book, are all based on real religious places in Hangzhou. The words mentioned in the book such as Sanshengshi Bank on the banks of the Linghe River in the West, the prosperous land of flowers and willows, and the gentle and wealthy town refer specifically to Hangzhou. The prototype of Qingxu Temple is Baopu Taoist Temple, formerly known as Chongxu Temple; the prototype of Tianqi Temple is Wushan Dongyue Temple, the prototype of Narcissus Temple is called Narcissus Temple. The author has conducted special research on these in the past. Here, I will conduct research on the true prototypes of Tiekansi Temple and Shuiyue Temple.
The prototype of the Tiekan Temple in "A Dream of Red Mansions" should be the Qianwang Temple in Hangzhou. King Qian Temple, also known as Qiantang Temple, is the temple of Qian Liu, King Wusu of Wuyue Kingdom (907-978 AD). Qian Liu (852--932) was a native of Lin'an, Hangzhou. When he was the king of Wuyue Kingdom, he was very good in all aspects of governing Hangzhou, especially in building water conservancy, dredging the West Lake, and building the Qiantang River and seawall. "History of the Song Dynasty" records: Qian Liu was the king of Wu and Yue. He built an iron threshold in the river to control the tide. When the tide came before it was completed, the king ordered thousands of crossbows to shoot it, and the tide receded. Those who build one liter of earth will be rewarded with one liter of money. It's called Qiantang. The reason why the author of "A Dream of Red Mansions" named King Qian's Temple after Iron Kan Temple is probably from the story of King Qian building the Iron Kan Temple to keep out the tide.
Qian Liu came from a humble background and made a living by selling salt in his early years. Brave and strategic. During the reign of Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty, King Xianzhi of Zhejiang Province suppressed Huang Chao and destroyed Dong Chang. In the first year of Kaiping in Liang Dynasty, Li was granted the title of King of Wuyue.
During the Jiayin period of Kangxi, the Fujian vassalage was changed, and loyalty died. People then regard the old man as someone who can predict things in advance and strive to follow them. The old man ran away, not knowing where he was going. The natives then changed their residence to Shuiyue Temple, made a statue of him like a monk, and recruited monks to worship him.
This Shuiyue Nunnery, which was renovated from Meiyuan, the residence of Shuiyue Laozu and was dedicated by monks, should be the prototype of Shuiyue Nunnery in "A Dream of Red Mansions". The author used the original name of the prototype, but it was just a pseudonym. , just another nickname for Mantou Temple.
March 1, 2007 in Changchun
Appendix 1: Su Shi's "Inscription on the Tablet of Piao Zhongguan":
Wuzi in October of the 10th year of Xining, assisted the government The great scholar of the palace, the right admonition official, and the military minister who knew Hangzhou said: Therefore, the tombs of King Qian of Yue, as well as the tombs of his father, ancestors, concubines, wives, and descendants, six out of twenty are in Qiantang, and one out of ten are in Lin'an. , all are filthy and untreatable, and the elderly suffer from it and have runny nose. Note: Therefore, King Wusu, Liu, first defeated Huangchao with his local soldiers and became famous in Jianghuai. He again sent troops from the Eight Capitals to attack Liu Hanhong, and moved across the state to serve Dong Chang, then settled in Hangzhou. When Chang and Yue rebelled, he killed Chang and merged with Yue, taking all the land east and west of Zhejiang. His son, King Wenmu, Yuan Guan was passed down. When his grandson Zhongxian Wang Renzuo defeated Li Jing's army, he captured Fuzhou. Renzuo's younger brother Zhongyi Wang Chu sent a large number of troops to attack Jingjing to meet Zhou Shizong's army. After that, he died and entered the imperial court. The Three Generations and Four Kings are the beginning and end of the Five Dynasties. The world is in chaos and heroes are emerging. At this time, there are countless people who have stolen names from several states. They have overthrown their clans and affected innocent people, leaving no survivors. However, Wu and Yue were thousands of miles away, and they carried hundreds of thousands of armors, making mountains and boiling seas. They were as rich as rhinoceros, pearls and jade in the world, but in the end they did not lose their loyalty to ministers, and they contributed to each other in the way. As a result, the people were ignorant of war and revolution until they grew old and died. They played around in all seasons and heard the sounds of singing and dancing. It has not been abolished to this day. His virtues are very rich among the people of Sri Lanka. The emperor was ordered to cause chaos in all directions and then leveled it. To the south of the Yangtze River in Western Shu, despite the dangerous distance, the troops reached the city walls, surrendered their strength and were exhausted, and then tied up their hands. However, the Liu family in Hedong fought to the death in hundreds of battles, resisting the king's army, collecting corpses as a city and spilling blood as a pond. They exhausted all the power of the world and were able to defeat it. Wu and Yue alone did not wait for orders, sealed the treasury, registered in counties and counties, invited officials to the court, and regarded leaving the country as a legacy. His contribution to the court was very great. In the past, Dou Rong returned to the Han Dynasty from Hexi. Guangwu ordered You Fufeng to build the tombs of his father and ancestors and worship Tailao. Nowadays, the merits of the Qian family are almost too harmonious, but it has not lasted for a hundred years. The tombs and temples have not been repaired, and the people are complaining while walking. This is not the meaning of exhorting loyal ministers and comforting the hearts of the people. I would like to take the ruined Buddhist temple in Longshan and call it Miaoyin Yuan as a place of worship, and make the grandson of the Qian family a Taoist and call it a natural place to live there. All tombs and temples located in Qiantang are dedicated to nature. When he was in Lin'an, he paid the monk of the Pure Land Temple in his county the name Daowei. At each age, he has only one disciple, so that the world can control him. Taking advantage of the land, he built his temple and planted the vegetation in due course. If there are those who are not cured, the county magistrate will investigate them urgently. If the situation is serious, they will be replaced, and the common people will never fall down, in order to express the court's intention to treat the Qian family. I will die to hear this. Zhi said: Yes. The Miaoyin Academy was renamed to express Zhongguan.
The inscription says: From the mountain of Tianmu, the water comes out. Dragons and phoenixes dance in Lin'an. He is a stranger and an outlier. He stood up and shouted, and there were like clouds of followers. Looking up to the sky and swearing by the river, the moon and stars are dim. A strong crossbow shoots the tide, and the river and the sea are east. He killed Hong Zhuchang and died in Wuyue. Golden coupons and jade albums, Tiger Talisman and Dragon Festival. It is a large city that encompasses mountains and rivers. The river on the left and the lake on the right control the barbarians on the island. When he was old, he retired and became the father of Yan. Ye is like a god, with a jade belt and a ball pony. Forty-one years, Yin is afraid and careful. Juezhuo looks at each other, and the big shell is south of gold. The five barbarians are in confusion and cannot support the country. The three kings inherit each other and are virtuous. Now that you have achieved your goal, there is no need to seek advice. I will carry out the ambition of the late king. Tianzuo is loyal and filial, and he has a noble title in the world. Yunwen Yunwu, his descendants are hundreds of billions. The emperor called the ministers guardian and managed their ancestral tombs. Don't be a woodcutter or a herdsman, you will be ashamed of your descendants. The sun of Longshan is the palace of Kuaiyansi. The purpose of stealing money is to persuade people to be loyal. If you are not loyal, you will have no king; if you are not filial, you will have no relatives. There are hundreds of people who can be regarded as this text.
Appendix 2: New appearance of Qianwang Temple (missing picture)
Qianwang Temple
Qianwang Tomb
Qianwang Statue in Qianwang Hall
The main entrance of Qianwang Temple (officially called the Tomb Palace)