Lotus has entered people's work and life with its practicality, and at the same time it has penetrated into people's spiritual world with its gorgeous colors and elegant charm. The earliest collection of poems in China, The Book of Songs, describes lotus flowers: "There are Fu Su, Ji and Lotus flowers in the mountains." "Where there is a vicious, there is a lotus." Lotus was introduced as an ornamental plant and planted in the garden pond. It was first built in 473 BC by Fu Cha, King of Wu, in his detached palace (now Lingyan Mountain in Suzhou) to pay tribute to his beloved princess. The bronze craft treasure "Lotus Crane Square Pot" in the Spring and Autumn Period (Gao 1 18 cm in the Palace Museum) reflects the important role played by lotus in the spirit of the times from the artistic aspect. This craft treasure is made of real and natural materials, and the lotus pattern summarizes the image, and the dragon and the fly leap. It can be seen that the lotus flower, like the deified dragon, mantis and crane, has become a symbol of lofty holiness in people's minds.
Before the Qin and Han Dynasties, warlords were separated, wars were frequent, and working life was in dire straits. Qin Shihuang unified China in 22 1 BC, ending the melee. In this unified empire, lotus culture has been fully developed and gradually penetrated into agriculture, economy, medicine, religion, art and other fields.
The Han Dynasty was an unprecedented period of agricultural development in China, which also played an important role in the cultivation and development of lotus. Before the Han Dynasty, all lotus varieties in China were single-petaled red lotus. During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the double petal lotus appeared.
Since the Western Han Dynasty, China's official and private businesses have developed rapidly, enriching the types of goods in various regions, which is of great significance to the spread and distribution of lotus flowers. Lotus root, a specialty of Jiangling, Hefei, Chengdu and other places, entered the north through these central markets, which fundamentally expanded the distribution area of lotus, made the people in the north know more about lotus, and thus greatly improved the cultivation technology of lotus. In the Book of Qi Yao Min written by Jia Sixie in the Northern Wei Dynasty, there is a "method of planting lotus roots": "In the early spring, lotus roots are dug and planted in the mud of fish ponds, and then there are lotus flowers." ; There is also a method of "planting lotus seeds": "On August 9th, if the lotus seeds are hard and black, grind the shower heads on the tiles to make the skin thin, and seal them with cooked mud, such as three fingers long and two inches long, so that the shower heads are sharpened, and the mud is dried and thrown under the heavy mud in the pool. The skin is naturally thin and easy to grow, and it will come out soon. If you don't grind, the skin will be hard and thick. It can be seen that the cultivation techniques of lotus on both sides of the Central Plains were quite superb at that time.
Since Qin and Han Dynasties, China medicine has started a new development. After tasting all kinds of herbs, Shennong in Han Dynasty summed up a set of good prescriptions for treating diseases, namely "Herbal Classic", also known as Shennong's "Herbal Classic", which described the medicinal and health-care functions of lotus root. Hua Tuo, a native of Qiaoxian County in the Eastern Han Dynasty, was a famous imperial doctor in the medical history of China. Before the operation, he first gave the patient Mafeisan to make him unconscious, cut the abdomen and back to sew up the wound, and finally applied a plaster made of lotus root skin, which could be cured in four or five days. Lotus has become a wonderful flower in China's medical treasure house.
During the Western Han Dynasty, Yuefu songs gradually became popular, resulting in many beautiful lotus picking songs. Among them, the Lotus Picking Song (also known as the Lotus Picker and the Lotus Picker by the Lake) is one of the most popular traditional folk songs and dances in China.
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, there were thousands of lotus petals. Zhu Ziqing once wrote
After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the cultivation techniques of lotus were further improved, and the cultural contents of lotus such as poetry, painting, sculpture and handicrafts were more colorful. In food culture, lotus has further become a valuable tonic for people's health care. At the same time, lotus has entered private gardens with its colorful and elegant appearance. For example, in the southeast corner outside Chang 'an, there was Yichun Garden in Qin and Han Dynasties, and it was renamed Furong Garden after the Sui Dynasty established Chang 'an as its capital. The Wind and Lotus in the Qu Yuan of Lin 'an (now Hangzhou), the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty. Especially after the rule of Zhenguan, the application of lotus became more and more extensive and became the source of inspiration for arts and crafts artists. For example, porcelain and bronze mirrors in the Sui and Tang Dynasties were decorated with lotus patterns. Gold and silver vessels, especially the rim, are decorated with rich lotus petals, and the overall style is gorgeous and true. The dyeing and weaving industry in Song Dynasty has a higher development than that in Tang Dynasty. The lotus silk pattern "quaint" created by Kerou Zhu, a famous female painter and silk worker, is a masterpiece. Woodblock New Year pictures in the Ming and Qing Dynasties often use auspicious lotus patterns such as "Lotus (your son)" and "Lotus (fish) over many years old" to express people's thoughts and wishes. In China's flower culture, lotus is the most interesting object of flower-chanting poems and the subject of flower-and-bird painting. It is the most beautiful and colorful dance material; It is also the most commonly used and beautiful pattern and shape in various architectural decoration, sculpture techniques and daily necessities. Lotus is a famous traditional flower in China.
Since Zhou Dunyi wrote the famous sentence "The lotus flower has become a" gentleman's flower ". According to historical records, more than 2,500 years ago, Fu Cha, the king of Wu, left his palace in Lingyan Mountain (now Wuxian County, Jiangsu Province) on the coast of Taihu Lake to enjoy the lotus flowers for his beloved concubine, so he specially built a "flower pond" and transplanted wild red lotus. It can be said that it is the earliest record of artificial pond planting. Today, lotus ponds abound in the north and south. Hunan is the largest lotus production base in China. Every midsummer, men and women who pick lotus swim among the lotus plants in canoes. What a wonderful scene "no one is seen in the pool until you hear the song". There are more places to visit and enjoy the lotus. For example, Daming Lake in Jinan, West Lake in Hangzhou and Qixingyan in Zhaoqing can all see the beautiful scenery of contiguous lotus flowers. Weishan Lake in Jining, Shandong Province, once the hometown of Flying Tigers, has a magnificent landscape of 65,438+10,000 mu of wild lotus, which is flourishing every year and attracts countless tourists. It can be said that "the affectionate month invites you to * * *, and the unowned lotus blossoms everywhere".
Since the Opium War, especially after the founding of New China, the working people have been masters of their own affairs. Lotus has also become a precious flower to beautify people's lives and cultivate their sentiments, and is known as one of the top ten famous flowers. Dr. Sun Yat-sen and Premier Zhou Enlai have repeatedly advocated vigorously developing Dutch culture and spreading the seeds of friendship to friendly neighbors. 19 18, Dr. Sun Yat-sen traveled to Japan and brought nine lotus seeds unearthed in Pulaidian, Liaodong Peninsula. After careful cultivation, the ancient lotus seeds were planted successfully. 1963, Yamato presented one hundred seeds of Yamato lotus to Guo Moruo, president of China Academy of Sciences. 1In April, 979, when Vice Chairman Deng visited the Nara Tang Temple, which he presided over, Elder Morimoto gave Vice Chairman Deng the lotus roots of Tang Temple Lotus, Sun Wenlian and Sino-Japanese Friendship Lotus cultivated by experts from China and Japan. 1980 In April, to celebrate the exhibition in China, a Japanese monk sent the lotus roots of Tang Si Lian, Sun Wen Lian and Sino-Japanese Friendship Lotus to daming temple in daming temple, Yangzhou, and placed them in front of the Pingyuan building next to the memorial hall.
With the development of science and technology, the cultivation technology of lotus is becoming more and more advanced and perfect. There are more than 200 varieties of lotus, which are distributed all over the country. With the popularization and development of lotus culture in major cities across the country, more and more cities take lotus as the city flower. China's excellent traditional culture has always attached importance to advocating peace and harmony. The most representative words in this respect are Confucius' two sentences. One is "harmony but difference"; One is "harmony is precious". The "harmony" in China culture is by no means a reconciliation that does not emphasize differences and contradictions. It refers to the integration of differences and diversity. This kind of integration is the most valuable. There are 56 ethnic groups and 34 administrative regions in China, and there are differences and contradictions among ethnic groups. In the face of such differences and contradictions, it is most valuable to always adhere to national unity and the reunification of the motherland and adhere to this "harmony" stance. Abandoning this position of "harmony" means abandoning the excellent traditional Chinese culture.
Because "lotus" is homophonic with "harmony" and "lotus" is homophonic with "Lian" and "Lian", in China traditional culture, lotus is often regarded as a symbol of peace, harmony, cooperation, resultant force, unity and unity. The nobility of lotus symbolizes the cause of peace and the nobility of a harmonious world. Therefore, in a sense, rewarding the lotus is also a promotion of China's "harmony" culture. Lotus varieties are rich and colorful, which means "harmony but difference", but together they form a noble lotus world, which means "harmony but difference is more precious". I sincerely hope that in the process of promoting the culture of peace and harmony, the lotus culture can be understood and familiar by more people. Carrying forward Chinese "harmony" culture is of special significance for us to promote the reunification of the motherland, safeguard world peace and build a harmonious society.
Lotus leaves the dust, clean and flawless. Therefore, the people of China and most Buddhist believers take the noble quality of lotus as their motto, encouraging themselves to lead a totally clean life. Lotus is the symbol and messenger of friendship.
In Suzhou, south of the Yangtze River, June 24th of the lunar calendar is the Lotus Festival, which is called Heshan Birthday. At that time, people will happily flock to watch the lotus flowers. Buddhists in particular respect it the most. For example, Guanyin Bodhisattva sits on a lotus flower. 1990 Indian prime minister Rajiv, who was assassinated, was named by his grandfather Nehru when he was in prison, which means "immaculate Bai Lianhua" in Hindi. 1March 3, 9931day, the Basic Law of the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, which was deliberated and adopted at the First Session of the Eighth National People's Congress, also used lotus as the pattern of Macao's regional flag and emblem, expressing the local people's special worship of lotus as a symbol of purity and nobility. As lotus is a famous family in the flower kingdom, it has been selected by the masses as one of the top ten traditional famous flowers in China. China Lotus Association was established in Beijing from 65438 to 0989, which promoted the beauty and fragrance of lotus in China.