Three friends in cold years refer to three evergreen plants, pine, bamboo and plum, which symbolize high ambition. They are common themes in literati paintings in Yuan Dynasty, and also common decorative patterns in official kiln porcelain in Ming and Qing Dynasties. Perhaps because of the pursuit of symmetry in the picture, the three friends of Hongwu in Ming Dynasty painted a banana. This situation continued until the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and even in the Qing Dynasty, plantain became the main decoration.
As early as the Spring and Autumn Period, Confucius had a famous saying, "When the cold comes and the summer goes, you will know that the pine and cypress are withered and late" (The Analects of Confucius), which has since established the position of pine and cypress in the eyes of Confucianism, and also made future generations admire its spirit of evergreen seasons and proud resistance to snow. Xiao Yan, Emperor Wu of A Liang in the Southern Dynasties, once wrote in Song of Four Winter: "If you want to make Jin Lan, you can see Berlin. It doesn't land after the frost, and it feels the same when it is cold. "
Three friends in cold years refer to pine, bamboo and plum. These three plants are named after their tenacious vitality in the cold winter. They are symbols of noble personality in China traditional culture and metaphors of loyalty and friendship. After it was spread to Japan, it added the meaning of longevity. The pattern of "Three Friends in the Cold Year" composed of pine, bamboo and plum is a common decorative theme in ancient vessels, costumes and buildings in China. At the same time, Three Friends in Cold Year is still a common theme in Chinese painting, and it is often named after the "Three Friends Picture".
There are many painters who have shown the theme of "Three Friends in Cold Years" in past dynasties. Among them, the representative painters and works are: Three Friends in Cold Time by Zhao in Southern Song Dynasty (1 199- 1264), Three Friends in Cold Time by Zhao in Qing Dynasty (1699- 1769) and modern Wu Changshuo.
It is said that the story of "Three Friends in the Cold Year" originated from Su Shi, a writer in the Northern Song Dynasty. According to legend, in the second year of Yuanfeng (1079), Su Shi was exiled to Huanggang, Hubei Province, and asked the local government for dozens of acres of wasteland for cultivation. The place was called Dongpo, so he named himself Dongpo Jushi. He planted pine, cypress, bamboo, plum and other flowers and trees in the garden. Magistrate Xu Junyou visited and asked if it was deserted. Su Shi smiled and said, "Wind and spring are two kinds of music, and pine and bamboo are three friends." Among them, the "three friends of pine and bamboo" are "pine, bamboo and plum" According to textual research, Su Shi's poem comes from his "Visit to the West Mountain Temple of Hanxi in Wuchang", in which there are "two kinds of music, pine and bamboo, and three good friends. Xu Xingxin has something, and Zhi Zhu is in Peng Yan. " Contrary to legend.
The authenticity of the allusion of "three-year-old cold friends" is not investigated now. According to historical records, the word did appear several times in the whole Song Dynasty. Zhu Chen, a poet, once wrote fourteen poems "Er Yun and Yue Yong Drinking in Xifeng Temple", including "Red and green in spring and summer, pine and bamboo in cold years", and his four poems "Er Yun at the window" also wrote that "gathering and parting will eventually decide, and three friends will be friends in cold years". According to these data, we can infer that at least in the Song Dynasty, the name "Three Friends of Old Leng" has been used.
"Three Friends at the Age of Cold" has been widely used in painting decoration in Song Dynasty. In the whole Song Dynasty, Wang Yan (1137-1218) recorded that "Xu Shenyi painted three paintings, and three friends were cold at the age", in which he wrote: "Jade is clean and noble, and martyrs are strong. It can withstand this group and is proud of first frost. " The poet Zhang also wrote "Three Friends in the Cold Year": "Moritani, this gentleman is quite upright. There is a three-legged posture in the middle, and I am proud. " Two poems can be said to be the best proof that "three-year-old cold three friends" entered the Song painting.
Later, Song, Zhu and Li were collectively called "Three Friends of Old Cold" by the world. On the one hand, they take its noble quality of being clear and white, standing proudly in frost and snow, on the other hand, they regard it as a symbol of evergreen and vitality all the year round. The three friends of the cold world have gradually evolved into auspicious patterns that cater to both refined and popular tastes, and have been passed down to this day.
The orphan Yuan and Ming zaju lacks the title "Fisherman's Gossip" IV: "Pine, cypress and bamboo are all older than Mr. Leng. After the late autumn, all the flowers will wither, only three friends, pine, bamboo, plum and cold. " "Three Poems of Gao Qing" also said: "In the Southern Song Dynasty, Ma Yuan had a picture of three friends who were old and cold. Painted pine, bamboo and plum. Sanyoutu is in Neifu. Emperor Qianlong has poems. " Accordingly, it serves to show that pine, bamboo and plum have been regarded as three friends in the Song Dynasty. This pattern has been widely used in porcelain, clothing, furniture and architecture since the Ming and Qing Dynasties.