What is the significance of stone lions on gates and bridge pillars?

A stone lion is a lion carved out of stone and is a decorative object often used in traditional Chinese architecture. It is seen on Chinese palaces, temples, pagodas, bridges, mansions, gardens, tombs, and seal buttons. But more often than not, the term "stone lion" refers to a pair of lions placed on the left and right sides of a gate. The shape of the lions was not what we see nowadays, probably because most of the people in the Middle Kingdom had never seen the real lions in the African grasslands. However, it is also said that the Western lions and African lions have different physical appearance.

History

The stone lion in front of the Heavenly King's Hall of the Miao Ying Temple, with a long and thin body is said to have been brought from the West. It is said that during the Eastern Han Dynasty, lions were given as gifts to Chinese emperors. More as a mythical animal than a real-life one, the lion became China's spirit animal along with the unicorn. The Tang Dynasty monk Huilin said, "The mythical animal is also the lion, which came out of the West."

I don't know when the lion became a good-luck charm for guarding portals. And it gradually merged with Chinese culture. The shape of the lion in different dynasties have different characteristics, the Han and Tang Dynasty is usually strong and powerful, the Yuan Dynasty, long and thin body strong, Ming and Qing Dynasty, more docile. In the Qing Dynasty, the lion carving has been basically finalized, "Yangzhou painting boat record" (made in 1795) stipulates that: "the lion is divided into head, face, body, legs, teeth, crotch, embroidered belt, bell, spinning threads, rolling chisel embroidery beads, out of the chisel cubs."

Stone lions not only have different characteristics of the era, there are obvious regional characteristics. In general, the northern stone lion appearance of the atmosphere, carving rustic; southern stone lions are more spiritual, lively shape, carving a variety of ornaments, the lion cubs are not only in the lioness under the palm of the hand, some climbed on the back of the lion, lively and lovely.

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Use

The placement of stone lions watching the door is a rule. Generally speaking, there is a male and a female, in pairs, and usually the left male and right female, in line with the traditional Chinese philosophy of yin and yang of male left and female right. Placed in the doorway on the left side of the male lion is generally carved into the right front paw to play with the embroidered ball or between the two front paws square an embroidered ball; doorway on the right side of the female lion is carved into the left front paw caressing the lion cubs or between the two front paws lying down a lion cub.

Stone lions on both sides of the gate are placed in the direction of people coming out of the gate as a reference. When a person comes out of the gate, the male lion should be on the person's left side, and the female lion is on the person's right side. When one enters through the gate, the opposite is true. In some buildings where there is a pair of stone lions both inside and outside the gate, the male lion is on the right side and the female lion on the left side of the outside gate (i.e., the direction of entry), while the male lion is on the left side and the female lion on the right side of the inside gate (i.e., the direction of exit). In other words, if you come out of the gate, the male lion must be on the left side and the female lion on the right side of both the inside and outside of the gate.

The situation described above is universal, but there are some exceptions. For example, the stone lions in front of the Guandi Temple in the inner Jiayuguan Pass, the stone lions in front of the Confucian Mansion in Qufu, the stone lions on the north and south sides of Donghuamen Street in the Drum Tower. The shape of these lions is relatively special, there is no hydrangea and cubs under the paw, it is difficult to distinguish between male and female. In addition, on Mount Tai, "Confucius ascends to the place" of the four pillars of the three door before and after the two sides of the two pairs of stone lions, but the left female and right male, the opposite of the usual situation, the significance of which is not known.

Stone lions are usually Sumeru as the base, the base of the Jinpu (laid on the Sumeru, the four corners of the four corners hanging in the Sumeru on all sides). Lions of different shapes, and in China has been embellished and modified, the basic form is a full head of curly hair, mighty and majestic.

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Cultural meanings

The cultural meaning of stone lions has never been unified. One view is that the lion is an auspicious animal that can drive away evil. And in the "Beijing Situation Strategy" book is that: "stone is also real, the lion is also thinking, thinking of the former entrepreneurship after the people to keep the success is not easy."

Stone lions, as a kind of architectural decoration, are mostly used at the entrance of palaces, temples, government offices (ancient government offices), and the residences of high-ranking officials, aristocrats and wealthy merchants. In modern times, on the other hand, general stone lions are mostly placed at the entrance of some stores.