The origin of the door god

The gatekeeper's predecessor was Fu Tao, also known as "Tao Ban". The ancients believed that peach wood was the essence of five trees and could resist all kinds of ghosts. Therefore, since the Han Dynasty, peach has been used as a tool to ward off evil spirits, and peach wood has been used as a peach man, peach seal, peach board and peach symbol to ward off evil spirits.

The gatekeeper, it is said that Shen Tu and Lei Yu can catch ghosts. Huangdi Neijing is quoted from Ying Shao's Custom Pass in the Eastern Han Dynasty: In ancient times, two brothers, Shencha and Lei Yu, lived on Dushuo Mountain. There is a peach tree on the hill, with the shade as a cover. Every morning, they will review the ghosts under the tree. If an evil spirit harms the world, tie it up and feed it to the tiger.

Later, people painted the portraits of Shen Tu and Lei Yu on two mahogany boards and hung them on both sides of the door to ward off evil spirits. It is recorded in the Chronicle of Jingchu in the Southern Dynasties: On the first day of the first month, "making a peach board to touch the door is called fairy wood, and painting two gods to stick to the door, left and right, commonly known as the door god."

However, the real guardian recorded in the history books is not Shen Tu and Lei Yu, but an ancient warrior named Cheng qin. According to the biography of Han Guang written by Ban Gu, the portrait of Cheng qin, an ancient warrior, was painted on the gate of King Guang Chuan (Quping), wearing shorts and holding a sword. In the Tang dynasty, the position of the door god was replaced by Qin's harmony.

Why do people print them on paper as door gods? It is said that there is a legend that one day, Emperor Taizong dreamed that a general came to him for help. The general said, "I am the Dragon King of the East China Sea, and the Jade Emperor ordered me to rain on the ground. Alas! I went late, so that the rivers dried up, the land cracked and the country was dry. The jade emperor was furious when he learned that, and sentenced me to death. Your minister Wei Zhi will supervise the beheading at noon tomorrow. At that time, if you can find a way to prevent Wei Zheng from coming, I can live. " Emperor Taizong sympathized with the Dragon King and agreed to his request.

Early the next morning, Emperor Taizong asked Kevin·Z to play chess with him. From morning till noon, Wei Zhi was so tired that he took a nap. Who knows that he was beheaded in his dream.

From then on, the ghost of the sea dragon king came to Tang Taizong every night, complaining that he had broken his word and cried for his life outside the palace day and night. Emperor Taizong told his ministers that General Qin Baoshu was willing to stand outside the door with Wei Chijingde in uniform. Emperor Taizong agreed. There was really nothing that night. Emperor Taizong couldn't bear the hardships of the two generals, and ordered Dan Qing, a highly skilled painter, to draw the true faces of the two generals and stick them on the door. Careful observation revealed that one of them was holding Strafe and the other was holding an iron mace. The one with the whip and the one with the mace are Qin, that is.