According to archaeological findings, the image of pottery sheep appeared in Peiligang culture period about 8000 years ago, and it also appeared in the Yangtze River basin during Hemudu culture period about 7000 years ago. A large number of archaeological reports show that as early as the Neolithic age, sheep were already human partners. By studying etymology and etymology, we can further capture a lot of information about the relationship between sheep and early culture. The earliest written Oracle Bone Inscriptions showed that there were all six kinds of animals in the Shang Dynasty. Judging from the collection of words in Oracle Dictionary edited by Mr. Xu Zhongshu, the number of words with "six animals" as the root is: 45 sheep; 36 pieces of casserole department; 33 articles on dogs; 20 cattle lines; "Ma bu" or horse stance just look 2 1 text; Chicken series 3 articles. Among them, the word "Yang Bu" has obvious advantages. Sheep ranks first among the six livestock, which provides a material basis for our ancient ancestors to put emotional value on sheep. The period of Yin and Shang Dynasties was an important foundation for the birth of China traditional culture, and the special attention paid by Yin people to sheep also made sheep have a far-reaching impact on the shaping of traditional cultural concepts.
After the cultural fusion and precipitation in the Western Zhou Dynasty, the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, some cultural concepts about sheep have finally been finalized, and the great ones are listed here.
Sheep Feed —— Sheep and China Traditional Diet
The etymology of the word "raise" is "sheep". Say cloth: "raise, raise also." From the sound of eating sheep. " Xu Shen regards the word "Yang" as a pictophonetic character, but the original structure of the word "Yang" is a knowing character, an image of one person offering a sheep, and its root is a sheep. Another word closely related to the word "raise" is the word "shame", the original meaning of which is similar to that of "raise". From sheep, sheep also entered. Ugly, ugly. " Comparing the two words, they both have the image of "leading sheep to offer". But the former tends to nourish food, so it means to support; The latter tends to food itself, so "shame" is the original word of "shame" and the general term of food.
The Chinese nation has been vegetarian since ancient times, so Xu Shen said in Shuowen: "Food is one meter." But eating rice is a demand for food after all. Therefore, people in China had livestock to feed and eat in primitive times. At that time, the domestic animals in captivity were mainly sheep, tapirs (pigs), dogs, cows, horses and chickens, with sheep ranking first. The reason is that "sheep are the main food among the six livestock." Because of this, both the word "shame" for diet and the word "support" for support are rooted in sheep. Therefore, Wang Yun said: "Anyone who eats is ashamed, mainly sheep, so he does not talk from cows, dogs, etc., but from sheep."
Sheep are auspicious —— Sheep and traditional religious beliefs in China
Sheep are considered as a symbol of good luck. "Mozi Ming Ghost" says: "I am afraid that future generations will not be able to worship sheep." The word "sheep" here means "fragrance". Unearthed bronze washware of the Western Han Dynasty, the word "auspicious" is often written as "auspicious sheep". Xu Shen's "Said Wen Yang Supplement" said: "Sheep are auspicious." Under the "item" in the exhibition, it says: ". Judging from the voice of the sheep, it's good. " Wang Guowei's Guanlin also said: "Like, ancient prose is a sheep." From the generality of "sheep" and "auspiciousness" in ancient Chinese, it can be seen that "sheep" is obviously a symbol of auspiciousness in the eyes of the ancients.
Sheep are regarded as benevolent and auspicious things, the reason should be that sheep are docile and easy to domesticate, which can provide delicious and rich nutrition for people. In the era of advocating and even superstitious nature, this character of sheep can easily be deified, or placed in various beautiful imaginations, or regarded as sacred objects, or regarded as elves. This is why in ancient sacrificial activities, sheep, as a messenger of communication between man and nature, was regarded as one of the three major sacrificial animals.
Because sheep often appear as sacrifices, they actually have religious significance. In About Beauty, Japanese aesthetician Shinichi Imado pointed out that the word "sheep" in the Chinese word "beauty" must be understood in combination with the word "sheep" in the Analects of Confucius, and the sheep is a symbol of sacrifice. He said: "As the highest concept of morality, beauty is higher than goodness. Beauty is equal to the so-called sacredness in religion. Beauty is a concept with the same height as sacredness, even the highest concept that exists as morality in religion. " His point of view is not unreasonable. In his view, "beauty" is the evolution of the sacrifice of sheep, so it has certain religious significance.
Sheep are regarded by the ancients as the benevolent and auspicious things of the ancient ancestors, as sacred objects with certain religious significance, and naturally evolved into totems of some ethnic groups. In ancient times, there was a Qiang nationality in the northwest, which was originally a people who lived a shepherd life in the northwest. "Shuo Wen Jie Zi" said: "Xirong is a strong shepherd, and the sheep follow the people, and the sheep also sound." Because sheep play an important role in the life of the Qiang people, the ancient Qiang people worshipped sheep very much and regarded them as national totems for a long time, and their customs have continued to this day. In addition, Yao, Dong, Miao and other ethnic groups also take sheep as their national totem.
Sheep are Great Beauty —— Sheep and China's Traditional Aesthetic Orientation
In the study of the formation of ancient people's aesthetic concept in China, the etymological study of "beauty" has always been a concern of scholars at home and abroad. Zang, a domestic scholar, put forward a systematic view in the book Chinese Characters and Aesthetic Psychology. The book points out that China ancient people's aesthetic value judgment activities are related to diet, self-reproduction, pursuit of rich products and early people's sacrificial activities. The etymological meaning of ancient Chinese characters with aesthetic value orientation basically comes from visual sensitivity and taste sensitivity. Zang's point of view is correct. He saw the relationship between "sheep" and "beauty" from both taste and vision, but it was not comprehensive enough. Judging from the specific situation in ancient China, the formation of China's traditional aesthetic orientation is indeed closely related to sheep. The word "beauty" comes not only from the taste and visual feeling of sheep, but also from the spiritual feeling of sheep. Taste perception and visual perception are intuitive, while psychological perception is imagery. Although they are all important conditions of "beauty", the latter seems to be more important.
What is the real meaning of "beauty"? Xu Shen's answer in Shuowen is: "Beauty is sweet. From sheep to big. Sheep are among the six animals, and the Lord gives food. " Wang Yun said, "The bigger the sheep, the fatter they get." Duan Yucai further said: "Sweet people are one of the five flavors, and the beauty of the five flavors is sweet. Sheep are big and fat. " Xu Shen, Wang Yun and Duan Yucai all tried to discuss the etymological meaning of beauty from people's taste perception of sheep.
In Song Dynasty, Xu Xuan supplemented Xu Shen's explanation of "beauty" when sorting out Shuo Wen Jie Zi. He said, "Sheep are big and beautiful, so they are big." He tried to talk about the origin of the meaning of kind words from people's visual feelings about sheep. This explanation should be a supplement to Xu Shen's statement. Judging from Duan Yucai's explanation, he seems to agree with both Xu Shen's theory of taste and Xu Xuan's theory of vision.
The value orientation of beauty also comes from the understanding of the inner characteristics of sheep, that is, people's spiritual feelings towards sheep. In traditional literature, sheep are often described as just animals with various virtues. "Shi Mao Bamboo Book Xiaoya No Sheep" said: "Your sheep will think, its horn is ringing." Zheng Xuan commented: "This person is beautiful, and the livestock are safe." Here, sheep are regarded as American livestock by Zheng Xuan. "Wyeth Yi Shuo" says: "My sheep come to think, be ashamed and do their duty, do not collapse, and promote it with their arms." Sheep are also strong and obedient images here. "Spring and Autumn Stories" said: "Lambs have horns and don't wait, but they are kind and kind; Hold it without crying, kill it without crying, and die like a righteous man; It is polite for the lamb to eat on its mother's knee. So, the word sheep is still auspicious? "That is to say, in Dong Zhongshu's eyes, sheep have untouchable horns, kill without mourning, kneel down and enjoy breast milk, know benevolence and righteousness, and combine beauty and virtue, so it is an example for a gentleman with a good heart to learn. In a word, the virtue of sheep reflects people's spiritual feelings about sheep and people's personalized generalization of sheep's nature. It is in this feeling and image generalization that "sheep" and "beauty" are linked, and finally the concept that "sheep is great beauty" is formed.
"Sheep" has become the embodiment of "beauty", so its virtue has the meaning of personality, and the meaning of "beauty" has also been expanded and extended, with the meaning of excellent quality, expensive price, perfect virtue, great achievements, noble interests and praise.
Sheep Say Yes —— Sheep and China's Traditional Moral Norms
In ancient times, goodness consisted of two words, namely "sheep" and "dog", which were written as "dog" or "goodness". Ji Ye, listen to the sheep. This is consistent with righteousness and beauty. " From the shape, "Hao" is a cognitive word, which means "fighting with the sheep" or "fighting with the sheep", but no matter from which aspect, the word "Hao" is closely related to the word "sheep". "Kindness" also has the meanings of kindness, charity and correctness, but these meanings have all evolved from the understanding of sheep.
The relationship between "sheep" and "goodness" also comes from people's taste, visual and spiritual feelings about sheep. Sheep are regarded as the embodiment of "goodness", not only because it is an excellent biological companion and food source for human beings, but also because its character is recognized by human beings and integrated into human values. Sheep are gentle, generous, kind, courteous, and their virtues are admirable. Therefore, they are generally respected by China's traditional moral concepts. Sheep, as people's sacrifices to heaven and ancestors, have so many excellent qualities that naturally, these qualities have become personalized moral standards. Therefore, Mr. Xu Zhongshu said, "Beggars regard sheep as delicious, so they are good at Ji Mei." Judging from the relevant literature, people have long regarded the "virtue" of "sheep" as the moral norm and example of human beings. The preface to The Book of Songs Hunan Lamb says: "Hunan is a country, a king of culture, frugal and just in its place, and virtue is like a lamb." Why do some people say "virtue is like a lamb"? Kong Ying Da explained: "Zong Bo noticed that lambs didn't lose their class with their flocks." Visiting Scholars "noticed that lambs took their flock instead of gathering. "The Biography of the Ram" He Yun Cave: If a lamb doesn't bark with a whip and is killed, its breast will kneel to accept it. If it dies, it will be the virtue of this lamb. " The sequence was formed in Han Dynasty, but sparse in Tang Dynasty. It can be seen that the morality of sheep has evolved into the moral standard of personality at the latest in the Han Dynasty. There is a similar statement in the Biography of Wang Huan in the Later Han Dynasty. It reads: "Therefore, Luo Yang ordered Wang Huan to adhere to the purity of the land, be a lamb, devote himself to the public, benefit the people, and fail in his career." The so-called "righteousness of lamb" also refers to the excellent moral quality of personified sheep.
Sheep and Me as Righteousness —— Sheep and China Traditional Etiquette Rules
Sheep are regarded as animals with benevolence, righteousness and courtesy, and their virtue is an important reference for China's traditional moral standards. However, in the traditional China society of "ruling the country by virtue", moral standards often have the meaning of "law" or "ceremony" to some extent, so "sheep" is closely related to etiquette concepts such as "righteousness" and "law" in etymology.
Regarding the meaning of "righteousness", Shuowen said: "Your own dignity is also." Zhu Xun Ding Sheng said, "Classics are based on devices." So "righteousness" actually means rules and statutes. From the analysis of glyph, "Yi" is a cognitive word composed of "sheep" and "I", which means that "I" put the "sheep" on the top of my head, and the quality of the sheep is internalized into the quality of "I", so "I" has the same rules and laws as "sheep".
Why does "I" mean "sheep" and have the meaning of rules and statutes? We can find the answer by analyzing the etymological meaning of "Fa". The original text of "Fa" is "Yun", which is a cognitive word. Shuowen said: "Hey, punishment is also. As flat as water, it ridges from the water, and those who can't reach it go away. " "Li" is a mythical sheep. It has the ability to distinguish right from wrong. Classical literature records this in detail. Erya Geng Yi says: "Geng is like a goat, a horn, a sacred sheep, a barbarian, and a beast of the Northeast. When you see people fighting, you can't touch them directly, so it's wrong to talk about people. " The Book of the Later Han Dynasty: "Be brave and brave, not straight." "Fu Zhi in Today" says: "Angry sheep can touch evil." On the other hand, "telling different stories" says: "Anecdote is a sheep in the corner. Sexual knowledge is sinful. " Because in ancient legal culture, "sheep" is a symbol of statutes and "water" means fairness, so "water" comes from water. This reflects the relationship between "sheep" and "law".
Writing is an important carrier of culture, which often conveys the most basic or primitive information of human culture. Analyzing the etymological meaning of characters is an important way to grasp the earliest pulse of culture. By studying the etymological meaning of Chinese characters, we can get a glimpse of the profound relationship between "sheep" and China traditional culture, as well as the most primitive image in the era when culture was born.
Revealing the relationship between "sheep" and China traditional culture, we can easily find that they are a two-way interactive relationship. When people look at sheep with their own values and learn the so-called excellent moral character of sheep, people are externalizing themselves as "sheep"; Conversely, "sheep" is also externalized as human beings. In this way, sheep become humanized sheep, and people become cowards. The formation process of traditional China people's thinking characteristics and behavior patterns reflects such a generative relationship.
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