Chen shou's reflection? In the first sentence of Guan Yu Chuan, "Guan Yu is immortal and fled to Zhuojun". In ancient China, there was a saying that "Shandong went out and Shaanxi went out". In the book, Chen Shou points out that he is a "Xie Ren in Hedong", and Hedong is now the Yuncheng area in Shanxi. The specific location is in Jiezhou Town, southwest of Yuncheng, Shanxi. The key is the last sentence, "Zhuo Jun's despair". People didn't say what he looked like. They only said that when he was young, because he was a fugitive, he escaped and went to Zhuo Jun, that is, he came to today's Zhuozhou City, Hebei Province. Later, he formed an alliance with Liu Bei and Zhang Fei and began his military career. From the beginning to the end, as well as other historical materials, we can't find the word Guan Yu as a red face. So this red face can be said to be the first mystery given to him by future generations. Guan Gong in history is not a big red face.
If it's not a big red face, how did he become a big red face? We say that a historical and cultural phenomenon, if not true, must be created by future generations. So there is a second mystery: who dyed Guan Yu's face red? Why did you dye Guan Gong red?
I think Guan Gong has become a big red face. The following points are worth noting, all because our China culture is too imaginative and creative:
The first category is folk custom. In folk stories, there are
Similarly, nosebleeds are dyed red. It is said that Guan Gong is still being hunted, but this time the girl has changed. She is an old woman. When Guan Yu came to the river, the old woman said to him, "Young man, break your nose quickly." Guan Yu broke his nose with his fist, wiped his face with a nosebleed, blushed, and then pulled his hair down and stuck it to his chin. He immediately turned into a big man with a red face and a beard. The officers and men chased him, but when they saw that he was not a white face, they continued to chase him. Guan Yu thanked the old woman and ran all the way to Zhuozhou. Who is this old woman? That is Guanyin Bodhisattva. Guanyin Bodhisattva helps people in need. It was Guanyin Bodhisattva who enlightened him. One is that chicken blood is red, and the other is that nose blood is red. Chicken blood has folk color. Guanyin Bodhisattva's suggestion of wiping his nose and bloody face already contains a very legendary fairy story.
There is also a saying that Guan Yu is not a mortal, but a reincarnation of the Dragon King in the sky. The story tells that there is a big salt lake in Xiezhou, Guan Yu's hometown, and the water in the salt lake goes straight into the South China Sea. There is a temple by the lake. There is an old monk who likes playing chess. All passers-by will play chess with him. He would rather give some food to pedestrians. Later, a great man played chess with him. You came and I went for more than a month, and they were all tied. One day, within an hour, the old monk lost three games in a row. The big fellow asked, "aren't you quite able to get off?" What happened today? Let me do it. The old monk said, "No, it hasn't rained in Xiezhou, our hometown for several months. The seedlings are all dry, and people are starving. What should we do? I am in a hurry. I don't want to play chess with you, so I lost several games in a row. " The big fellow sighed and said, "I tell you, I am the Dragon King in the sky. The Jade Emperor won't let me rain here. I have no choice, so I am depressed. I'm here to play chess with you to relieve boredom. " Hearing this, the old monk said, since you are the Dragon King, please help our people! Under the old monk's pleading, the Dragon King said, "Well, I went back and got wet. But I have a request. When the rain stops, take a big bucket to the lake. When the Red Lake comes out, put it in a bucket and take it back to the temple. "The old monk said that as long as it rains. Sure enough, it began to rain after the big man went back, and the drought in Xiezhou eased. The old monk followed the man's instructions and came to the lake. When the red lake appeared, he collected all the red lake water, put it in a bucket and took it back to the temple. 108 days later, a red child jumped out of the red water. This is the reincarnation of Guan Gong. He is the Dragon King in the sky. He offended the Jade Emperor by pouring rain on the ground without authorization and was punished by heaven. The red lake that emerged was the blood of the slain dragon king, and later reincarnated as our Guan Gong today, so his face was originally red, not dyed red later, and man was reincarnated by the dragon king in the sky.
The third category is that we literati participate in creation. Scholars in feudal times were very talented. They turned Guan Gong into a red face according to various legends and performances. The most typical is Luo Guanzhong's The Three Kingdoms. Luo Guanzhong abandoned the legend that he thought was absurd. There is only one sentence in the process of evolution. Liu Bei asked Guan Yu, "Where are you from?" What did Guan Yu say? I am a grain saver in Hedong. I killed him and fled to the Jianghu for five or six years because my place was arrogant and overbearing. You see, in a short sentence, all the stories we have told before are summarized. You can think of the details yourself. In one sentence, you can clearly explain Chen Shou's sentence "Run for Zhuo Jun".
Then we have to ask, what kind of culture and connotation does this red face contain? As we all know, Facebook is red, black, white and gorgeous. According to various types, different characters and different conduct, different characters are created. Then why not give Guan Yu a bad face? Don't you like being wronged? Don't you like being brave? A bad face is not a bad person, but a good face is also a bad person. Even the painted faces are the same, such as Zhang Fei, Dalton, Li Kui jy and Bao Gong. These people's faces can be painted. Why did Guan Gong give him a red face instead of a black face and a painted face? Is this red exquisite? Yes!
Guan Yu changed from a red face to a red face in history. There is a process. This change process is because different groups have joined in one after another. In our current words, these people are too talented. Clearly a white-faced scholar, he became a red-faced man. Why did they turn him into a red face? What's the story behind this red face?
First of all, red represents the spirit of resistance and struggle. All the legends of Guan Gong that we have talked about before are nothing more than one theme. Guan Yu is a young man with a sense of justice. He rebelled against the government and represented the will of the lower class. So he was painted red, representing a fighting spirit of civil resistance.
Second, red represents integrity and justice. Guan can be said to be the first young man to be brave. There was no such selection at that time. If it is selected, it must be one of the top ten young people in China. Because what he does conforms to the interests of ordinary people, red embodies a kind of integrity and justice, with this spirit and connotation in it.
Third, red is the true color of a hero, as everyone knows. Our situation today is still the same. Red is orthodoxy, justice and heroism. Only heroes deserve red, which has been the case since ancient times. General theory of five virtues
"The End of Virtue" is a historical concept put forward by Zou Yan, a Yin and Yang scholar in the Warring States Period. "Five virtues" refers to the five virtues represented by the five elements of wood, fire, earth, gold and water. Jin Kemu, fire, soil and water can be water. "End to end" refers to the circular operation of "five virtues". Zou Yan often used this theory to explain the changes of history and the rise and fall of imperial dynasties. Later, the supreme ruler of the imperial dynasty often claimed to be "worshipping the emperor in heaven", and the so-called "worship" was the movement of "virtue" that the five virtues said at the end.
At first, when Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang was born, Zhang Cang thought that Qin was too short and autocratic to belong to the orthodox dynasty. The fire virtue of the Zhou dynasty should be replaced by the Han dynasty, so the zhengshuo of the Han dynasty should be the water virtue. When Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty arrived, he thought that Qin belonged to the orthodox dynasty and changed Han to Tude. It was not until Wang Mang established a new dynasty that Liu Xiang and Liu Xin and his son said that the Han Dynasty belonged to Huode. After the restoration of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Guangwu officially acknowledged this statement and established the Han Dynasty as a fire virtue. Historical books of the Eastern Han Dynasty and later, such as Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Hanshu, all adopted this statement. Therefore, the Han Dynasty was sometimes called "Han Yan", and it was also called "Yan Liu" because the emperor of the Han Dynasty was surnamed Liu.
I think it should be deepened. We should analyze the cultural connotation behind this red color from a cultural perspective. First of all, we find that it is related to the theory of "five virtues and constancy" in China's traditional Confucian culture. What are the five virtues? Five virtues have always been a traditional theory of Confucianism, which originated in the Warring States period and developed and perfected in the Han Dynasty. At that time, some people thought that heaven and earth were a society composed of five elements: wood, fire, earth, gold and water. Then, the dynasties on the earth must conform to the operation of destiny, so that the dynasties can last long, otherwise they will be short-lived. Therefore, the Shu-Han dynasty established by Liu Bei is of political significance, that is, the pursuit of fire virtue. The fire is red, and Liu Bei's son Liu Chan thinks so. During his reign, there was a title called "Yan Xing". The so-called "inflammation" means that the fire is very strong, which is of course his wishful thinking. In fact, the rise and fall of dynasties are closely related to rulers. If you don't manage well, it's no use being virtuous. Therefore, Liu Chan's "Yan Xing" was short-lived, and the Shu-Han Dynasty only existed for more than forty years before it died. But when people turn Guan Gong into a red face, it means that his face is consistent with the orthodox red in the Han Dynasty, which means that he is a great loyal minister in the Han Dynasty.
Secondly, we think it has something to do with the language habits of China's traditional culture. What do we ancient people like to say? Being honest with Chi Di means being honest with your heart. At that time, Cao Cao wrote a letter to Yang Feng, which said, "My loyalty to the general is well known, so I am honest with him." It was when Cao Cao called Yang Feng that he said, I have heard a lot about you and admire your justice. I am your heart. The heart is the heart. Guan Yu was a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty. He is a red heart, but it is impossible to show it to others. So what can I do to show his sincerity? It can only be expressed by external symbolic things, that is, a red face means that he has a red heart. So I think Guan Yu's red face is just the externalization of his red heart.
In addition, it is also related to the exorcism culture in China traditional culture. Since ancient times, people have thought that red things are mysterious. More than 20 thousand years ago, when Neanderthals buried their companions, they scattered some hematite powder, that is, red iron ore powder, next to the bodies. What is this for? Obviously, this is not a physiological response and demand, but a social symbol, or a content with witchcraft culture. Specifically, hematite powder is used to ward off evil spirits. Why choose hematite powder? Because it is red. Red is the color of blood. Blood can ward off evil spirits, which is the concept of the ancients, because only the living have blood, and when people die, blood will naturally disappear. Therefore, Guan Gong has a red face, so nothing evil can hurt him. The influence of this cultural tradition continues today. Although the feudal emperor wore yellow robes, everything in the palace was red. Red lanterns, red walls and red carpets are used to ward off evil spirits. During the boxer rebellion, I didn't know enough about guns and cannons. I thought it was the art of monsters, so I spilled some messy red things with pig blood and chicken blood, thinking that this would break people's witchcraft. Stupid! But this reaction is a primitive form. Today is our birthday, birthday, wearing red pants and wearing a red belt. What do you mean? The old man will tell him that this is a year to bless you and has the effect of ward off evil spirits.
We interpret one of Guan Gong's distinctive appearances-red one by one, and make some general explorations from its source and the cultural significance behind it. Of course, Guan Gong's distinctive appearance is not limited to these. What else is there? We'll talk later.