China has those auspicious beasts ah

One of the four sacred beasts of ancient China:

A green dragon

There are many legends about the dragon, the origin of the dragon there are also a lot of sayings, some say it is imported from India, some say it is the Chinese star into. India itself is in the claims of the dragon god, but the dragon in India is not high, but also has a physical object - python.

Among the deities of the four directions, according to the Shanhaijing, 'Zhu Rong in the south, with an animal body and a human face, rides two dragons.' ; 'In the west, Matsu, with a snake in his left ear, rides two dragons.' ; 'In the east there is Jumang, with a bird body and human face, riding on two dragons.' ; 'In the north there is Yujian, with a black body and hands and feet, riding on two dragons.' It is interesting to note that the dragons in the Shanhaijing are ridden, whereas the snakes of the same kind are held, manipulated, or wrapped around their necks, showing the difference between the two; however, the five gods of the five directions are not quite the same as the four gods of the four directions, so I won't go into details here. Vermilion Bird, Xuanwu (black tortoise and snake, wu is the meaning of tortoise and snake), Qinglong, White Tiger and represent the twenty-eight constellations of the four directions, the dragon is the seven constellations of the east - horn, hyper, dibutyl, room, heart, tail, minuscule, and the seven constellations of the east are extremely similar to the shape of the dragon, which is evident from the meanings of their characters, the horn is the dragon's horns, the hyper is the neck, the dibutyl is the present, but the the root of the neck, Fang is the bladder and the coercion, Xin is the heart, Mei is the tail, and Ji is the end of the tail.

In China after the ancient times, the head with horns for the male dragon; double-horned known as the dragon, single-horned called Jiao; hornless for chi dragons, ancient jade pendant often have the size of the double dragon, still known as the mother and son chi dragons; the status of the dragon is much higher than in India. Because in China the dragon is a god, is supreme, is also a symbol of the emperor. It is also the representative of the East, the five elements are wood, also because the color green is wood, so there is a left dragon, right white tiger said.

Singularity is used in the twenty-eight stars, the eastern seven hosts - angle, hyper, 氐, room, heart, tail, Kei, the ancients imagined them to be the image of the dragon, located in the east, according to the five elements of yin and yang, the five sides of the color scheme of the five said that the east of the color of the green, so the name of the 'Green Dragon'.

Two White Tigers

In the four sacred beasts of China, another often compared with the dragon is the 'White Tiger'; tiger, for the longest of the beasts, its might and the legendary ability to subdue the ghosts, making it also become a yang beasts, often followed by the dragon together, 'cloud from the dragon, wind from the tiger. Clouds from the dragon, wind from the tiger' became a pair of best partners to subdue the ghosts.

And the White Tiger is also the god of war and killing. The White Tiger has many divine powers such as avoiding evil, avoiding disasters, praying for abundance and punishing evil, promoting goodness, becoming rich and wealthy, and tying the knot of good fortune. And it is one of the Four Spirits, and of course, it is transformed by the star constellation. It is one of the 28 star constellations, the western seven constellations: Kui, Lou, Gastric, Ang, Bi, Chou, Sam. So is the representative of the West, and its white, is because it is the West, the West in the five elements of gold, the color is white. So it's called the White Tiger not because it's white, but from the five elements now.

In ancient times the 'Book of History. Book of Heavenly Palace' 'Canglong in the east palace, Zhu Bird in the south, Xianchi in the west palace, Xuanwu in the north palace.' In this case it is not the White Tiger, but the Xianchi. And Xianchi is the star of the five grains, the main autumn, because the five grains are harvested in the autumn, so it is placed in the autumn, but it is not an animal, how can it be paired with the dragon, the bird and the turtle as the four spirits? In the "justice": "Xianchi three stars in the five cars, the south of the sky, fish and birds hood also. So in the Song Dynasty has been questioned: 'Cang Long, Zhu Bird, Xuan Wu, each total seven hosts. As for the salty pool, is not a star, from the twenty-eight hosts outside. There is another explanation for Xianchi, which is the place where the sun bathes. In the "Huainanzi. The Book of Heavenly Writings: 'The sun comes out of Yanggu, bathes in Xianchi, and brushes against Fusang, which is called morning brightness'. It can be seen that the salty pool is the original Qiang people as the sunrise, salty pool is also alkaline water lake, should be the Minshan region of the taro lake, or the Qinghai Sea. This proves that the primitive people worshiped the star of the sky is not yet the concept of the Green Dragon and White Tiger. In the Book of Rites. Rites of Passage", the so-called: 'Lin, Feng, Turtle and Dragon, known as the four spirits.' Replace the Xianchi, which is not an animal, with the Qilin. Later generations have the habit of the four spirits have Lin, the four elephants have tiger.

And because the white tiger is the god of war, so there are a number of fierce generals are said to become the white tiger star hood, such as: the Tang dynasty general Luo Cheng, Xue Rengui father and son, and so on. In addition, the white tiger and Taoism absorbed put, was deified up, became the door of the temple God.

Three Vermilion Birds

The Vermilion Bird can also be described as the Phoenix or Xuan Bird. The Vermilion Bird is one of the Four Spirits, and like the other three, it is derived from the Starry Nights, which is a general term for the Seven Southern Stars: Jing, Ghost, Willow, Star, Zhang, Wing, and Square. The association is Vermilion Bird. Zhu is red, like fire, and the south is fire, hence the name Phoenix. It also has the property of rebuilding itself from fire, like the immortal bird of the West, so it is also called the Fire Phoenix.

In the ancient records of the phoenix is a beautiful bird, and with its song and grooming for the king of all birds, it can bring auspiciousness to the earth, but also has a 'non-sycamore does not perch, non-bamboo solid does not eat, non-lilac springs do not drink' of special spirituality, and because it is the 'feathered insects 's long, so and 'scale insects' long dragon in the legend gradually became a pair, a changeable, a good virtue, became a pair of complementary folklore, more because the dragon symbolizes the yang, and the original also has the yin and yang of the phoenix (phoenix for male, female phoenix) in the opposite with the dragon after the Gradually become the representative of pure Yin.

The phoenix has a variety of original forms. Such as the golden chicken, peacock, eagle vulture, swan, Xuanbird (swallow) and so on ... It is also said that it is the Buddhist roc golden-winged bird turned into. The phoenix myth says that the phoenix has the head of a chicken, the chin of a swallow, the neck of a snake, the tail of a fish, and has five-colored stripes. Also please the phoenix is five varieties, divided by color: red is the phoenix, green is the luan bird, white is the swan, another yellow and purple.

Four Xuanwu

The Xuanwu is a combination of a tortoise and a snake to form a spirit. The original meaning of Xuanwu is 玄武, and the ancient sounds of wu and meditate are connected. Wu, means black; Hei, means yin. Xuanmei was originally a description of turtle divination: the turtle's back is black, and turtle divination is to invite the turtle to go to the underworld to ask Zu Zu, and bring the answer back to the world in the form of a divination omen. Therefore, the earliest Xuanwu was a tortoise. Later on, the meaning of Xuanmei was expanded. Turtles live in rivers, lakes and seas (including sea turtles), so Xuanmei became the god of water; as turtles are long-lived, Xuanmei became the symbol of immortality; the first Hades was in the north, and the oracle bones of the Yin and Shang Dynasty were used for divination, i.e., 'their divination must be northward', so Xuanmei became the god of the north again.

It is the same as the other three spirits, Xuanwu also by the world's twenty-eight stars into the: bucket, cattle, female, virtual, dangerous, room, wall. And the people after the ancient times to Xuanwu it is explained by the following several, 'Xuanwu' that is turtle. The Book of Rites. Qu Li Shang': 'line, before the Zhu bird and after the Xuanwu ...' Xuanwu' is the tortoise and snake. Chu Ci. Hong Xingzu's supplementary note: 'Xuanwu is the turtle and snake. It is located in the north, so it is called Xuan. The body has scales and armor, so it is called Wu. Xuanwu' is the merging of snakes and the intersection of turtles and snakes.

But Xuanwu was upgraded by later generations of Taoist priests to be the great emperor of the north, "Zhenwu Da Di". It is different from the other three spirits. The others, the Green Dragon and the White Tiger, were only made into door deities of mountain temples, while the Vermilion Bird became the Xuanwu of Yaitian.

Zhenwu Da Di's life, the descendants say is in the Sui Dynasty, the Jade Emperor will be one of his three souls, incarnation of the Queen of the country of earning music, disgusted with the world, give up the position into the Wudang Mountain on the practice, successful ascension, the town of the north, the number is: Xuanwu.

Another:

Kirin, also known as the "Ti-lin", is an ancient Chinese legend of an animal, and the phoenix, tortoise, dragon **** known as the "four spirits", and the first of the four spirits.

The Qilin, according to the Chinese way of thinking composite ideas produced, created by the animal. From its external shape, the elk body, ox tail, horse hooves (historical records have said that the "wolf hooves"), fish scale skin, a horn, the horn end of the flesh, yellow. This modeling is the dismemberment of many real animals after the new combined body, it is those cherished animals have the advantages of all focused on the construction of the unicorn this fantasy beast, fully embodies the Chinese "set of beauty" idea

The unicorn is an auspicious beast, the Lord of peace, longevity. The deer itself is the tamer of the beasts, powerful, good at running, greatly beneficial to people. Legend has it that the white deer is especially divine. It is said that the unicorn brings children. The unicorn is a deer-based animal that combines the characteristics of cattle, sheep and horses. Its synthesis is not as extensive as that of the dragon and phoenix, but its fame is not small. Research on the unicorn is also not as hot as the study of the dragon and phoenix culture, it is the beginning of the author of who, how its origin, is not very clear, some scholars speculate that it may be the ancestors of the Zhou nationality, because the Zhou people originally lived in the Northwest, the Northwest at that time, the water and grass, suitable for the growth of deer.

To the slave society and feudal society, the dragon, phoenix was seized by the supreme ruler, will lose the original totem comprehensive meaning, and become the supreme ruler of the emperor, the consort of the symbol. The good nature of the unicorn, in the jockeying for power, was squeezed into the folk, the people expect it to bring a good year, good fortune, longevity and beauty.

Kui

Legend has it that there is a mountain called "Liu Bo Mountain" in the East China Sea, on which Kui resides. Kui's body and head resembled that of an ox, but he had no horns and only one leg, and his body was greenish-black in color. It is said that the kui put out as the sun and moon like light and thunder-like scream, as long as it is in and out of the water, will certainly cause a storm. In the Yellow Emperor and Chiyu war, the Yellow Emperor captured the Kui, with its skin to make drums, with its bones as drumsticks, the results of the sound of the drum can spread all over the 500-mile radius, so that the Yellow Emperor's military morale, Chiyu army was horrified.

Kui and heaven and earth with the world, there are only three above is the first one of the second is the Qin Shi Huang killed, but the Qin Shi Huang did not have the Yellow Emperor's career, so this kui's skin made of drums is not so magical.

Candle Dragon

Ancient Chinese mythological beast. Also known as Candle Yin, also written apparent dragon. With a human face and a dragon body, it holds a candle in its mouth and illuminates the darkness in the northwestern part of the country where there is no sun. Legend has it that he is very powerful, when he opens his eyes, the sky is bright, that is, the day; when he closes his eyes, the sky is dark, that is, the night. Today's cultural historians believe that the Candle Dragon is the myth of the northern dragon totem tribe, and its original face should be the male root, metamorphosed from the male genitalia. Its generation later than the female yin worship era. Chu Ci. Heavenly Questions": "Northwest open Kai, what gas through? The sun is not, the candle dragon why the light?" And "big move": "north of the cold mountain, apparent dragon pardon only." The Classic of Mountains and Seas. The Great Desert Scripture: "Beyond the Northwest Sea, north of the Red Water, there are Zhangwei Mountain. There is a god, human face, snake body and red, straight eyes are multiplied, its closure is obscure, its vision is bright. No food, no sleep, no rest, wind and rain is the visit. It is the Candle Nine Yin, which is called the Candle Dragon." And the Overseas Scriptures: "The god of Zhongshan, named Candle Yin, regarded as day, sleep as night, blow for winter, call for summer, do not drink, do not eat, do not rest, rest for the wind; body length of a thousand miles, in the east of the Wujian, which is a thing, human face, serpentine body, red, residing in the lower part of Zhongshan." Cf. Gong Wei-ying, Outline of Primitive Worship.

The Candle Dragon is a monster with a human face and a serpent's body, red in color, and lives in the north where it is extremely cold. It was so powerful that when it opened its eyes, the long dark night became day; when it closed its eyes, the day turned back to night. It blew its breath on the dark clouds, heavy snow, become winter; Breathe out and immediately red sun hot, flowing gold, become summer. It is always huddled there, not eating, not drinking, not sleeping, not breathing - for when it breathes, it becomes a long wind for miles. Its divine power can also candle the nine springs, and legend has it that it often contains a candle that shines in the northern darkness of the heavenly gate, so people also call it "Candle Yin".

Taotie

Hanyu Pinyin: tāo tiè

Taotie (Pinyin: Tāotiè), a vicious and gluttonous beast of legend, is often used to decorate ancient bronzes with the shape of its head, which is called taotie pattern. Legend has it that it is one of the nine sons of the dragon.

Taotie is a legendary beast in ancient China, whose most important characteristic is its ability to eat. Taotie is an imaginary and mysterious monster. This monster has no body, only a big head and a big mouth, very gluttonous, see what to eat, due to eat too much, and finally be stretched to death. It is a symbol of greed.

Taotie is a "legendary beast of prey," according to Dictionary. In ancient times, the shape of its head was often carved on bells, tripods and Yi vessels as decoration."

The Dictionary explains the word taotie by saying: taotie means "greed," Han Shu - Ritual and Music Zhi: 'greed taotie risk,' Yan Shigu notes: 'greed is said to be taotie.' Special reference to gluttony."

Lv's Spring and Autumn Annals - First Knowledge: 'Zhou Ding made taotie, with a head and no body.'

There are three issues to note in the above paragraphs:

First, taotie is a "vicious beast", not a fish, snake, python or crocodile, and does not belong to fish or reptiles. There is also a Taotie motif on a Shang and Zhou tripod in the Dictionary. You only need to look at it to recognize who the vicious beast looks like, very much like the front of a wolf, also with round eyes and dangling eyes, fierce and vicious.

The second is that the taotie is very gluttonous. This feature clearly points out the characteristics of the wolf. "Extremely gluttonous" is one of the most prominent characteristics of the prairie wolf, we have raised wolves, we know too much about this nature of the wolf, we can cite countless examples of wolf gluttony. There is no animal in the world that is more voracious than the wolf. If you don't believe me, you can ask the old herdsmen who is the most "voracious beast" in the world. The answer is definitely the wolf. As we all know, "greed" is synonymous with the wolf's nature. When Dong Zhongshu said that Qin was "a wolf with greed", he also juxtaposed greed with wolf. The Chinese always use the term "wolf swallowing and tiger swallowing" to describe gluttony, and they also rank the wolf before the tiger, the wolf being more gluttonous than the tiger. To describe greed, they say "wolf's ambition", not "tiger's ambition".

Because Taotie has the two characteristics of wolf, "evil beast" and "very greedy", and Taotie's tattoos resemble those of a wolf, the legend says that Taotie's tattoos are not the same as those of a tiger. Therefore, the Taotie in the legend is probably a wolf, or a divine beast evolved from a wolf.

Thirdly, the taotie became the main decoration of the tripods of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, which involves a series of problems. The Baoding was the founding weapon of the Chinese nation in the Bronze Age. In the Zhou Dynasty, "a word nine tripods" "tripod", is a symbol of the supreme power of the king's sacred and ceremonial weapons, but also sacrifices to heaven and ancestors of the sacrificial vessels, tripod in the minds of the Chinese ancestors in the national "totem pole In the minds of the Chinese ancestors, the tripod was the "totem pole" of the nation. Therefore, only belongs to the national totem is qualified to ascend to such a high position, and was engraved and cast in the treasure tripod above. This phenomenon reflects two problems: First, to the Shang and Zhou, the Huaxia people may still worship the wolf totem, at least the beast totem, Yandi Huangdi ancestors of the totem worship may continue to exist, and the Zhou Dynasty period of the Huaxia people by the wolf totem influence is deeper, because the Zhou originated in the Xirong, and most of the Xirong is a nomadic worship of the wolf totem. Secondly, at that time, the "dragon" may not have been generally accepted, and had not yet become the national totem of the Huaxia people, otherwise, the treasure tripod, which symbolizes the power of the king, would have used the dragon as the main decoration. Moreover, at that time, the Zhou emperor also did not sit on the dragon seat, then also continued the nomadic legacy of Yan Huang, sitting on the ground.

The decoration on the tripod is mainly composed of taotie and cloud motifs, with the taotie as the center and the cloud motifs surrounding it. Apparently, the Taotie divine beast is in the sky, poking its head out of the clouds and looking down at the earth. Its body, on the other hand, is hidden in the clouds, and I don't know whether it has a serpent or dragon body, but if the dragon body is continued behind the Taotie's head, it would not be far from the later standard dragon. Therefore, I think that there may have been a transitional stage of Taotie totem between wolf totem and dragon totem. The taotie has both the character of the wolf and the hideous face of the later dragon.

The real name and prototype of the beasts referred to in the animal-face tattoos have long been buried in an irretrievable era, and the name Taotie was given to them by later generations because of their vicious, mysterious, and terrifying faces, and some of them had human heads in their mouths. The name Taotie was originally used in Zuo Zhuan to describe unkind and unrighteous people who are greedy for money and food. Recent scholars have pointed out that the animal face pattern named for the man-eating Taotie purely far-fetched, contrary to the social and cultural conditions of the Shang and Zhou.

Because of the ferocious and terrifying face, and the bad name of taotie, the beast in the evolution of Chinese culture and art is almost impossible to find traces. In the middle of the Western Zhou Dynasty, animal motifs, which had been prevalent for hundreds of years, suddenly withdrew from the realm of the main motifs of bronze decoration. However, several animal motifs that appeared on bronzes at the same time as the taotie motifs, such as dragons, tigers, phoenixes, and tortoises, appeared in large numbers in both official and popular circles in the subsequent cultural evolution, and became the most renowned auspicious objects in Chinese culture and an unceasing theme for artistic expression. Especially the dragon, in the Bronze Age, most of them have the same vicious face as the Taotie pattern. In terms of mystery, power and status, the dragon was far inferior to the taotie in the Bronze Age. However, the dragon later became the supreme symbol of Chinese culture and politics, and the taotie, the supreme symbol of the Bronze Age, is nowhere to be found.

If you want to know more, more detailed, then read <Shanhaijing> it!

The ancient legends of our country are very deep!