In ancient China, the four most powerful mythical beasts that frightened evil spirits the most were the green dragon, the white tiger, the red bird, and the black basalt. Green Dragon is the God of the East; White Tiger is the God of the West; Suzaku is the God of the South; Xuanwu is the God of the North, a combination of tortoise and snake. Therefore, "the green dragon, the white tiger, the red bird, and the basalt are the four spirits of heaven. They rectify the four directions, and the king controls the palaces, palaces, and pavilions to follow the law." The green dragon controls the power of the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder (Heavenly Thunder Tribulation). It is green in color and belongs to wood. It is the guardian beast of the East. It guards the stars in the East Palace. The White Tiger controls the power of tornadoes and storms (summoning all beasts). It is white in color and belongs to gold. It is the guardian beast of the west. Suzaku, who guards the west palace star, controls the power of burning fire (the three absolute fires of heaven and earth). It is red in color and belongs to fire. It is the guardian beast of the south. Xuanwu, who guards the south palace star, controls the power of ice, wind and snow (dark ice poison). It is black in color and belongs to water. The northern guardian beast, guarding the Beigong stars
Other mythical beasts
There are other mythical beasts, such as: Qilin, Kui, yellow bird, candle dragon, Taotie, Peng, six-eared macaque, etc.
1. Spiritual beast Qilin
Qilin, phoenix, dragon and turtle are called the "Four Spirits", and Qilin is the head of the "Four Spirits". As early as the Zhou Dynasty, there was a legend of Qilin in our country. The most detailed record is the book "Mao Shi Zhengyi" which says: "Lin has the body of an elk, a horse's feet, an ox's tail, yellow hair, round hooves, and meat at the end of its horns ---" Legend has it that the unicorn has a gentle personality and does not breed insects. Lin is a virtuous and benevolent beast with horns on its head and flesh on its horns. Therefore, emperors of all dynasties loved Lin and regarded its appearance as a national treasure to show their majesty and prominence. ---Mythical beast
The legendary unicorn mythical beast Qilin: It is originally a beast-like mythical beast. Later, he succeeded Huang Long as the leader of the central guardian beast. Guard the middle palace and control the power of the earth. The color is yellow and its attribute is earth. Qilin uses earth to make water (Xuanwu), Xuanwu uses water to make fire (Suzaku), Suzaku uses fire to make gold (White Tiger), White Tiger uses gold to make wood (Qinglong), Qinglong uses wood to make earth (Qilin)
2. The mythical beast Pixiu
Pixiu is also known as Tianlu and warding off evil spirits. It is a mythical beast in ancient Chinese myths and legends. It has a dragon head, a horse body, and lin feet. It is shaped like a lion, has gray hair, and can fly. Pixiu is a ferocious and powerful creature. It is responsible for patrolling the heavens and preventing demons, ghosts, plagues and diseases from disturbing the heavens.
Mythical beasts are divided into 4 levels: 4 spirits: Qilin, Phoenix, turtle and dragon 4 gods: Qinglong, white tiger, red bird, Xuanwu 4 evils: chaos, Qiongqi , _杌, Taotie
1. Qinglong
There are many legends about dragons, and there are many opinions about the origin of dragons. Some say they were introduced from India, and some say they were introduced from India. It is the Chinese constellations that have become. India itself is said to be about the dragon god, but the status of the dragon in India is not high, and there is also a real thing - a python. In the era when the Five Elements theory was popular, stories about the green dragon slowly began to spread; Five Elements masters assigned five colors to the southeast, northwest, and southeast according to the Yin and Yang and the Five Elements, and each color was assigned a mythical beast and a god; The east is cyan, with the dragon, the west is white, with the tiger, the south is vermilion, with the bird, the north is black, with the martial arts, and yellow is the central color. Divine beasts
Among the gods from all directions, according to the Book of Mountains and Seas, ‘Zhurong from the south has a beast body and a human face, riding two dragons. ’; ‘To the west, there is a snake in the left ear, riding on two dragons. '; 'There is Jumang in the east, with the body of a bird and the face of a human, riding on two dragons. ’; ‘In the Yu border in the north, a man with black body and limbs rides on two dragons. ', a more interesting point is that the dragons in the Classic of Mountains and Seas are all ridden, while the snakes of the same kind are held, manipulated or wrapped around the neck, showing the difference between the two; but in the Five The five gods of Fang are quite different from the four gods of Sifang, so I won’t go into details here. Suzaku, Xuanwu (black tortoise and snake, Wu means turtle and snake), Qinglong and White Tiger respectively represent the twenty-eight constellations of the four directions. The dragon represents the seven constellations of the east - Jiao, Kang, Di, Fang, Xin, Wei and Ji. And the shape of these seven constellations is very similar to the shape of a dragon. It can be seen from the meaning of their words that the horn is the horn of the dragon, the horn is the neck, the di is the root of the neck, the room is the shoulder and the side, and the heart is the base of the neck. The heart, the tail is the tail, and the Ji is the end of the tail. Also in the part of the dragon heart, some people call it the ‘big fire’, which is related to sunshine and rain, and because Qinglong belongs to wood, it is also the age of Jupiter in that year.
After the rise of Taoism, these four spirits were also given human names to make it easier for humans to call them. The green dragon was called "Mengzhang", the white tiger was called "Jianbing", the red bird was called "Lingguang", and the Xuanwu was called "Zhi Ming". Among the many dynasties, some monarchs took Qinglong as their reign name, such as Emperor Wei Ming of the Three Kingdoms. In the historical records, it is also said that the Xia Dynasty was a dynasty of Mu De, so it had the auspicious title of "Qinglong was born in the suburbs". Records of trillions. Mythical beasts
In ancient China, the one with horns on its head was a male dragon; the one with two horns was called a dragon, the one with one horn was called a dragon; the one without horns was a chi. In ancient jade pendants, there were often two dragons, big and small. The mother and son are still called Chi; the dragon's status is much higher than that in India. Because in China, the dragon is a divine creature, the supreme being, and the symbol of the emperor. It is also a representative of the East. Among the five elements, it belongs to wood. Because cyan belongs to wood, it is said that it is a green dragon on the left and a white tiger on the right. Among the twenty-eight constellations, the seven constellations in the east are used - Jiao, Kang, Di, Fang, Xin, Wei and Ji. The ancients imagined them to be the image of dragons. Because they are located in the east, they color the five directions according to the yin and yang five elements. The color of the east is green, hence the name 'Qinglong'. There is also a folk saying that the dragon's nature is lustful. When you have sex with an ox, you will have a unicorn, and if you have sex with a pig, you will have an elephant. The so-called dragon gave birth to nine sons, none of whom are like dragons. The eldest son is called Prison Niu (qiúniú): he loves music, so he always stands on the head of the piano. Such as the Huqin of the Han people and the Sanxianqin of the Bai people. The Mongolian Morin Khuur may also be a variant of the Prison Niu. The second son is yázì: it loves to kill, so it is often placed on weapons to deter the enemy. At the same time, it is also used in ceremonies to appear more majestic. The third son is Chaofeng (cháofēng): it is a beast-shaped dragon, which looks a bit like a dog. It is good at observing, so it is often placed in the corner of the palace. It is said that it can deter demons and eliminate disasters. The fourth child is Pulao (púláo): it likes to roar, so people put it on the bell, mostly in the image of Pulao. It is said that it lives on the beach, but is very afraid of whales. Once a whale attacks, it will scream in fear. Therefore, people shaped the wooden pestle into the shape of a whale to make the copper bell extra loud. The fifth child is suānní: shaped like a lion. It is a foreign product that was introduced to China with Buddhism, so its personality is a bit like that of Buddha. It is so quiet and loves fireworks. Therefore, it is often placed on the Buddha's throne or on the incense burner to protect Buddhism. The sixth son is Baxia (bàxià): also known as __ (bìxì), earthworm (should be lying viper) (bāxià), and looks like a turtle. According to legend, in ancient times, it often carried three mountains and five mountains on its back to create trouble. Later, he was subdued by Xia Yu and made many great contributions to Xia Yu. After the flood control was successful, Xia Yu let it carry out its achievements. Therefore, most of China's stone monuments are carried on its back. The seventh son is Bi Fan (bì’àn): looks like a tiger. According to legend, it upholds justice and can distinguish right from wrong, so the mythical beast
is placed above and below the prison door, on both sides of the door lobby, and on top of the sign that officials quietly avoid when they go on patrol to maintain the solemn atmosphere of the court. The eighth child is negative_(fùxì): because it loves literature, it is placed on two sides of the stone tablet. The child is Chīwěn: also known as Chīwěi, a fish-shaped dragon. It is said that around the time of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the "Moji Fish" from India was introduced with Buddhism. It is the object under the seat of the rain god in Buddhist scriptures and can extinguish fire. Therefore, the chi kiss was transformed from this, so it is often placed at both ends of the roof ridge to eliminate disasters and extinguish fires.
2. White Tiger
Among the four sacred animals in China, another one that is often compared to the dragon is the 'white tiger'; the tiger is the leader of all beasts, and its power and legend The ability to subdue ghosts makes it become a yang mythical beast, and it often goes out with the dragon. "Yun follows the dragon and wind follows the tiger" becoming the best pair for subduing ghosts. The white tiger is also the god of war and killing. The white tiger has many magical powers such as avoiding evil, warding off disasters, praying for prosperity and punishing evil, promoting good deeds, making wealth, and getting married. And it is one of the four spirits, and of course it is also made of stars. Among the twenty-eight constellations, there are seven in the west: Kui, Lou, Wei, Ang, Bi, Xi, and Shen. Therefore, it is the representative of the West, and its white color is because it is the West. The West belongs to gold among the five elements, and its color is white. So it is called White Tiger not because it is white, but because of the five elements.
In addition to the four spirits in Taoism, including the green dragon and white tiger, when Feng Shui masters are exploring cemeteries, the terrain protruding on the left and right in front of the terrain, which can be used as tombs, has unique names, called Zuo Qinglong and Right White Tiger. , taking the meaning of protection, and there is the same decoration in the court hall. On the left and right pillars, there are blue dragons and hundreds of tigers painted to suppress evil spirits. After the rise of Taoism, dragon and tiger were borrowed as the terminology of Taoist alchemy, which refers to the synonyms of "lead, mercury, Kanli, water, fire, yin and yang, etc." Taoist alchemy is divided into internal and external (inner elixir to refine qi, outer elixir to refine elixir, The author is not very knowledgeable and I am not sure). Neidan is based on the five elements of yin and yang. Dragon yang is born from Li, and Li belongs to fire, so it is said that "dragons come out of fire". Tiger yin is born from kan, and kan belongs to water, so It is said that "Tiger grows by the water". After the two are combined, one yin and one yang harmonize each other, which is called Taoben. They are both representatives of Yuan Shen and Yuan Jing. Another saying is that nature belongs to wood and wood represents it. The east is in the hexagram Zhen, so it is compared to a green dragon; the love belongs to gold, and gold represents the west. The hexagram is in the dui, and the gold is white, so it is called a white tiger. What's terrible is that it can eat people and animals, but what's admirable is that it is extremely powerful and can ward off evil spirits. In some ancient books, such as Ying Shao's "Customs and Sacrifice" of the Eastern Han Dynasty: "Paint a tiger on the door." "Ghosts dare not enter." The tiger is the yang, the leader of all beasts. It can be used to bite ghosts and ghosts. If people encounter evil, they can burn the tiger's skin and drink it to ward off evil. This is also true. The ancients also believed that the white tiger was a kind of auspicious animal. When the bear turned into a dragon. And when the Yellow Emperor developed eastward, the dragon totem was brought to the east and merged with the "Eastern Blue Dragon Constellation", and the red bird became the new home of the phoenix totem in the kingdom of heaven when it unified the south. , due to the fusion of the two major tribes, they finally became "dragon and phoenix presenting auspiciousness". As an ancient totem, it is an east phoenix and a west dragon. , the celestial images were re-divided, and the red bird was placed in the south and worshiped together with the Zhurong Fire God. During the tribal struggle and migration, the dragon in the northwest moved to the east, the phoenix in the east moved to the south. The tiger moved northward, and the whole country showed a great conceptual movement. By the Han Dynasty, the concept of the five elements had become a unified idea, and Xuanwu was added to complete the "God of the Four Directions" in the ancient "Historical Records Tiangong Shu" "East Palace Canglong". , Zhuniao in the South, Xianchi in the West Palace, and Xuanwu in the North Palace. 'The one here is not the white tiger, but Xianchi. It is placed in autumn, but it is not an animal. How can it be matched with the dragon, bird, and turtle as the four spirits? In "Justice": "The three stars of Xianchi are in the five cars, the sky is in the south, and the fish and birds are in it." The Song Dynasty has questioned: "Canglong, Zhuniao, Xuanwu are all divided into seven places. As for Xianchi, there is another explanation for Xianchi, which is outside the twenty-eight places." "Huainanzi. Astronomy Chapter": "The sun rises in the _ Valley, bathes in the Xianchi, and brushes on the hibiscus, which is called morning light." It can be seen that Xianchi was originally the place where the Qiang people regarded the sunrise, and Xianchi is also a alkaline lake, so it should be. It is a lake in the Minshan area, or Qinghai. This proves that the star palaces and celestial phenomena worshiped by primitive people do not have the concept of green dragons and white tigers. In the "Book of Rites and Liyun", it is called "Lin, Phoenix, Turtle and Dragon." Four Spirits. 'Replace Xianchi, which is not an animal, with Qilin. In later generations, there are customary mythical beasts with four spirits including Lin and four elephants including tiger
. And because the white tiger is the god of war, there are many fierce generals who are said to be white tiger stars throughout the world, such as: Tang Dynasty generals Luo Cheng, Xue Rengui and his son. In addition, the white tiger was attracted by Taoism and deified, becoming the door god of various temples.
3. Suzaku
Suzaku can also be said to be a phoenix or a black bird. Suzaku is one of the four spirits. Like the other three spirits, it comes from the stars and is the general name of the seven stars in the south: Well, Ghost, Willow, Star, Zhang, Yi, and Zhen. When I think of it, it's Suzaku. Zhu is red, like fire, and the south belongs to fire, so it is called Phoenix. It also has the property of being reincarnated from the fire, just like the phoenix in the West, so it is also called the Fire Phoenix.
This is probably the earliest Zhenwu Temple in China. The life experience of Emperor Zhenwu is mostly said by later generations to be during the reign of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty. The Jade Emperor reincarnated one of his three souls into the Queen of Zhuole Kingdom. He hated the world, gave up his throne and went to Wudang Mountain to practice cultivation. He successfully ascended to the throne and guarded the north. The name is: Xuanwu.