My favorite thing as a child was sitting next to the elderly after dinner in the summer and listening to them tell ghost stories. Every time the old man tells a ghost story vividly, he always scares the children away from going home. At this time, the old people will say, "There are three elephants in the house, and the gods and ghosts dare not collide with each other." Gods and ghosts are not only ghosts and gods, but also represent bad luck and bad things. But what exactly are these "three images"?
The origin of the three images
"The so-called number of heavens is the green dragon on the left, the white tiger on the right, the red bird in the front, and the Xuanwu in the back. Therefore, you can know the order of the sun and the moon when you are in the yin of the hall, and you can see The ice in the bottle can tell the heat and cold in the world. "
In ancient Chinese traditional culture, there is a saying of "four images", which refers to the east green dragon, south vermillion bird, west white tiger, and north Xuanwu, which represent the four directions of southeast, northwest and northwest. The stars in this direction control the changes of the sun and the moon and the alternation of cold and heat in the human world. Later, the "Four Symbols" were gradually mythologized as the spirits of the four heavens, and the Four Saints were about to ascend. Later, they were derived from the Bagua and were used in Feng Shui.
After the "Four Symbols", there is the theory of "Three Symbols". Compared with the miraculous "four images", the "three images" are much simpler, namely the three lights, sun, moon and stars. However, as the saying goes, "A family has three elephants, gods and ghosts dare not collide with them." The three elephants do not refer to the sun, moon and stars, but to something else. And the sayings are different in different places, and are different in cities and rural areas. Today's sayings It is also different from what was said in the past.
The theory of "three phases"
One theory is that the "three images" are the "three phases", which are three of the twelve attributes in Chinese folk. Three signs means that if three people in the family have the same zodiac signs, or as long as a family has three zodiac signs with high yang energy, gods and ghosts will avoid them.
The origin of this statement is that "xiang" and "xiang" are ancient Chinese characters. For example, in chess, the names of the chess pieces on both sides of the Chu-Han border are different, but their actual meanings are the same. For example, if the word "xiang" is in the field pattern, one side is "xiang" and the other side is "xiang".
The theory of Tongjiazi is more or less far-fetched.
The "Three Symbols" said in ancient rural areas
The "Three Symbols" generally emphasized in ancient rural areas are family harmony, farming and reading, and thrift and household management.
The first is Jiahe. As the saying goes, "Everything thrives when a family is harmonious" and "A family does not want to be bullied by outsiders." Since ancient times, China has valued family harmony and advocated governance and security. The ancient feudal ideology was serious. It was believed that at home, we should serve our father and brother, and in the country, we should serve the king. Maintaining the order of honor and inferiority in the "small family" of the family is the first step. Furthermore, we must abide by the system of the "everyone" in the country, so that the country can be peaceful and the people are safe. Happy everyone, happy little family.
The second is farming and reading. There is an ancient saying: "A solid warehouse will reveal etiquette; a well-fed and well-clothed household will recognize honor and disgrace." China was an agricultural society in ancient times, and it has been a major agricultural country until now. The working style of the ancient people was that men farmed and women weaved. In people's eyes, only by meeting the most basic survival needs can we know etiquette, honor and disgrace.
This is not unreasonable. Sima Qian described in "Historical Records: Biography of Guan Yan" that during the Spring and Autumn Period, after Guan Zhong served as the prime minister of Qi and presided over government affairs, he recuperated, circulated goods, accumulated assets, and accumulated a lot of money for Qi. With its strength, Qi State soon embarked on the road of enriching the country and strengthening its army. When the people have enough food and clothing and live a prosperous life, etiquette and education can naturally be carried forward, and government orders can of course be carried out unimpeded.
Speaking of "farming" and "reading", in ancient China, the worship of scholars was to the extent that "everything is inferior, only reading is high". There is a saying: "No one has been under the window for ten years." Ask and become famous all over the world in one fell swoop.” At that time, the life-long pursuit of scholars was to obtain the imperial title and become an official in the imperial court. If farming represents the economy, then reading represents ideas and power.
The third is to be diligent and thrifty. The so-called "wealth cannot last more than three generations" means that it is easy to conquer a country but difficult to defend it. If the wealth, fame and fortune accumulated by ancestors cannot be carried forward by the descendants, but they are obsessed with it and do not know how to make progress, the prosperity and development of a family will be difficult to continue.
If "family harmony" is the premise of everything, "farming and reading" is the way to progress, and "diligence and thrift in housekeeping" are the guarantee of everything.
If the three elephants in the family are like this, it is natural that the family fortune will be prosperous.
Modern generally accepted views
With the development of the economy and society, people have gradually accepted another version of the "three images". That is, appearance, weather and image.
China has always done a lot of research on faces and prime ministers. For example, "the sky is full and the earth is round", which indicates the appearance of a noble person at first glance, or like Liu Bei's "ears hanging down on the shoulders", he must be a lucky person. Now it seems that it is inevitable to be labeled as superstitious, but as the saying goes, "images come from the heart." Instead of blindly criticizing, it is better to pay more attention to one's own inner cultivation.
As for the weather, there is an old saying: "The sky has three lights, the sun, the moon and stars, and people have the three treasures of energy and spirit." Many times, mentality changes people's views, which also affects people's luck unknowingly.
When Wang Wei, the great poet of the Tang Dynasty, said farewell to his friends, he said sadly, "I advise you to drink another glass of wine. There will be no old friends when you leave Yangguan in the west." People can't help but be equally sad. Gao Shi, who was also bidding farewell to a friend, said boldly: "Don't worry, you will have no friends in the road ahead, and no one in the world will know you." After reading it, I felt that the worries and fog disappeared before my eyes, leaving only a bright and smooth road for everyone to run on.
The so-called abyss is a long way to go. The so-called weather is ultimately a state of mind.
The last thing is image. Image is not only personal appearance and dress, but also etiquette and culture. When it comes to image, it is actually in the same vein as the ancient rural saying that "A solid warehouse will reveal etiquette, and having enough food and clothing will reveal honor and disgrace." The difference is that with the development of the times and economic society, we no longer believe that the management of "image" must be based on economics. This is more of an internalized cultivation and a requirement for oneself anytime and anywhere.
Whether it is the theory of Tongjiazi, the ancient views in rural areas, or the views of modern people, it is not difficult for us to find that many excellent ideas and values ??have never changed, and have changed with the times. The development is constantly innovating and inheriting. Cultivate your character first, then regulate your family, and finally you can bring peace to the world.