What are the "sheep genes" in Chinese culture?

Sheep are one of the earliest animals that humans began to hunt and domesticate, and they occupied a very high status in ancient times.

Chinese traditional culture has had an inseparable relationship with sheep since its birth.

In the process of Chinese civilization, the role of "sheep" even exceeds that of "dragon".

According to the latest archaeological discoveries, pottery sheep have appeared in the Peiligang Cultural Site in Xinzheng, Henan, about 8,000 years ago, and the Hemudu Cultural Site in Yuyao, Zhejiang, about 7,000 years ago... It can be said that the "sheep gene" has almost penetrated

into all aspects of traditional Chinese culture.

The behavior of sheep affects ancient Chinese folk customs. "Sheep" plays an important role in the development of the moral character and folk customs of the Chinese nation.

Among the twelve zodiac signs, "dragon" and "tiger" are particularly favored, because the "dragon and tiger spirit" inspires countless descendants of Yan and Huang; when it comes to the advantages of hard work and no regard for reward, it is attributed to the quality of "ox".

The role of "sheep" in the development of the Chinese nation's moral character and folk customs is often ignored or despised. Many people don't know that sheep are actually great.

Sheep represents auspiciousness, kindness, and beauty. In ancient times, "sheep" and "auspiciousness" were connected, and the original meanings of "goodness" and "beauty" were also related to "sheep".

Dong Zhongshu, a Confucian scholar of the Western Han Dynasty, once fully affirmed the "sheep". He said in "Spring and Autumn Fanlu·Zhi Zhi": "The lamb has horns but does not let it go, and the equipment does not use it, which is like a benevolent person; if it does not scream, it will not be killed.

"True" is like the righteous person who died; when a lamb eats from its mother, it will kneel down and accept it, like the person who knows etiquette; therefore, the sheep's words are still auspicious, so you think of Zhi. "Dong Zhongshu described the core essence of Confucian culture as "benevolence".

"Righteousness" and "propriety" are given to sheep, and sheep are called "beautiful" and "auspicious" things.

In the Taoist children's enlightenment book "Zengguang Xianwen" written in the Ming Dynasty, sheep are even set up as a model of gratitude. The sentence "crows have the meaning of feeding back, sheep have the kindness of kneeling to breast..." is still widely circulated today.

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The little crow has the feeling of feeding the mother crow with food in its mouth, and the lamb has the act of gratitude of kneeling down to receive breast milk... Using animals as metaphors for people teaches children to be filial to their parents.

Because the character of sheep is so noble, high-ranking officials in ancient times used lamb fur as court clothes to show that they have a pure character like a lamb.

Some scholars believe that if the Chinese nation's virtues of kindness, loyalty, propriety, and filial piety as well as its simple and kind folk customs can be traced back to their origins, they can be found in sheep.

In the past, there was a custom of "giving sheep to encourage filial piety", which is the most direct reflection of the influence of sheep on the character and folk customs of ancient Chinese people.

"Sending a sheep to encourage filial piety" is usually performed during the sixth and seventh lunar months every year. Grandfathers and uncles will give a sheep to their grandchildren and nephews.

Legend has it that there was a child who was not filial to his parents, so the uncle who was shepherding took his nephew to the sheep.

The nephew saw the lamb kneeling in front of the ewe to suck milk, and he immediately understood his uncle's intention: Lambs know how to be filial to their mothers, let alone people?

His uncle then gave him a lamb and asked him to take it home.

After this incident spread, "giving sheep to encourage filial piety" became a social custom to remind children to be filial to their parents.

Because sheep have so many advantages and are deeply loved by people, the ancients used sheep as gifts in a more delicate meeting event, which was called "using sheep as zhi".

"Using sheep as zhi" is a high-end greeting gift, which can only be used by people with administrative levels reaching the level of senior officials and ministers. Ordinary officials use "goose", intellectuals use "pheasant" (chicken), and ordinary people can only use cloth.

"Etiquette·Etiquette for Meeting Scholars" says this: "When the superiors meet each other, they use a lamb, decorate it with cloth, and tie it on the face in four dimensions; hold it on the left side of the head like a comb." When giving gifts with sheep, it is not

Any sheep can be used, but you must choose a lamb; it cannot be held and carried away, but the sheep must be dressed as a "gift sheep". The sheep must be wrapped in patterned floral cloth, and its four legs must be tied together.

The rope should be crossed over the sheep's back and then tied back to the sheep's chest.

When giving it to the other party, you should hold the sheep with its head facing to the left. The etiquette is the same as when meeting a scholar.

Such etiquette was called "the ritual of holding a lamb" by the ancients. This is actually a reflection of the culture of sheep worship in daily life.

The worship of "sheep" had a profound impact on the aesthetics of the ancients. The contribution of "sheep" to Chinese culture is multifaceted, and the aesthetic concepts of the ancients were also affected by sheep culture.

The concept of beauty arises directly from "sheep".

"Shuowen Jiezi" classifies the word "mei" into the "sheep" category, saying "mei, sweet. From sheep, from big. Sheep are the main animals in the six animals, and beauty and goodness are synonymous." From Xu Shen's explanation

It can be seen from the above that people's aesthetics at that time was that "sheep are beautiful because of their big size": sheep have large bodies and good meat, so they taste "beautiful".

However, Xu Shen's interpretation of "beauty" was challenged after the oracle bone inscriptions of Yin Ruins in Anyang were discovered, because the word "beauty" in the oracle bone inscriptions is not the image of "sheep", it does not look like "sheep", but a human being decorated with sheep

It has the shape of a head and is wearing a ram's horn-like ornament. The whole word "beautiful" is the image of a person wearing a totem symbol.

It can be seen that the ancients knew how to use decorations to look beautiful very early on.

The most beautiful dress at that time was "wearing sheep horns", which formed the aesthetic point of view that "sheep people are beautiful".

The late paleographer Yu Shengwu held this view.

He analyzed that Qiang and Jiang are the surnames of the sheep totem clan, and their structure is roughly the shape of a human wearing a sheep's horns.

This view is supported by modern national customs. In the birthplace of the ancient Qiang people in the Hehuang area of ??Qinghai Province, dancers must wear horned hats during the traditional "Old Sheep Song" dance during the Chinese New Year.