Mingling mausoleum
In the eyes of ordinary people, Zhu Yuanzhang chose Zhongshan as his mausoleum because he took a fancy to the geomantic omen here. Later generations often use superstitious views to explain the mystery of this problem. Yesterday, Professor He from the Institute of Cultural and Natural Heritage of Nanjing University told the reporter that the site selection process of the Ming Tombs was actually an ancient environmental science and exquisite architectural planning theory.
Professor He said that in the huge area of the mausoleum, the designers included the whole Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum and part of the water surface as an important "Feng Shui" landscape in the planning and design of Chinese mausoleum architecture, and realized the architectural tradition and cultural concept of "taking mountains as the mausoleum" and "harmony between man and nature".
For example, Zhongshan was called "Longshan" in ancient times. As early as the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, it was regarded as "Dragon Pan" by politicians such as Zhuge Liang and Sun Quan. As the founding monarch of Daming, Zhu Yuanzhang chose Jinling "Long Mai" as the burial place, which fully conforms to the essence of Feng Shui. Build your own mausoleum in the south of Zhongshan, and bury the heroes on the back of Zhongshan, so that the courtiers can protect themselves after death, and the north and the south correspond to each other, with clear distinction between honor and inferiority. There are three peaks in Zhongshan: East, Middle and West. In ancient geomantic omen, it was called "Gaihua Three Peaks". According to the tradition in China, the peak is the highest. Xiaoling's Dulong House is located just below Mount Everest in the south of Zhongfeng. Professor He told reporters that the first people who regarded this place as a treasure trove of geomantic omen were Liang Gaozi and others. In the west of Xiaoling, there is a hill called "Little Tiger Mountain". Before, I didn't understand its meaning. Now, from the analysis of geomantic landforms, we know that it is in the position of "tiger sand" on the right side of Xiaoling, which is opposite to the image of "dragon sand" on the east side of Xiaoling. In the past, people thought that the Meihua Mountain, which directly faced the Xiaoling Palace, was left by Zhu Yuanzhang to let Sun Quan, the "hero" of Emperor Wu, guard the gate of his mausoleum. In fact, this is like a hill with a screen, which is the "mountain of the case" in the geomantic omen of Xiaoling, and it has very important cultural symbolic significance. Qianhu Lake in the southwest and Zhongshanpu in the south also have agile "Suzaku" feng shui characteristics. In this way, there are four geomantic images of Zuo Qinglong, You Baihu, Qian Suque and Hou Xuanwu in Xiaoling Palace and Baocheng, and the three "Royal Rivers" of Xiaoling all flow from left to right. This kind of water, known as the "crown with water" in geomantic omen, is also very rare.
Professor He believes that, in fact, this is Zhu Yuanzhang and his architects deliberately using nature. Zhu Yuanzhang took advantage of the situation and incorporated three rivers into the mausoleum, which not only preserved the flood discharge channel, but also made the rivers add color to the mausoleum. This is due to Zhu Yuanzhang's respect for the laws of nature. If Zhu Yuanzhang fills Sanjiang and builds his own tomb, the consequences can be imagined when flash floods break out! Xiaoling is located in this beautiful environment made in heaven. Among the tombs before the early Ming Dynasty in China, there are few tombs with such perfect feng shui landscape as the Ming Tombs.
To put it bluntly, in Feng Shui, any house with running water on the left is called Qinglong; There is a long road on the right, called white tiger; There is a pond in front called Suzaku. There is a hill behind it, called Xuanwu. These four conditions are the most suitable places to build a house. But as a modern person, you can imagine that there is a pond in front, a mountain behind, and a river next to it, and the environment is pleasant. Isn't living here the highest enjoyment?
Professor He said that "Feng Shui Theory" is an important part of China's ancient environmental science and architectural planning theory, which is rich in scientific ideas and cultural philosophy. Although limited by the times and mixed with some superstitious elements, it is regarded as one of the typical features of ancient China culture in contemporary academic circles.