Four palaces in the southeast and northwest
The ancient ancients divided the sky into four palaces, east, west, north and south, named after Qinglong (black dragon), white tiger, Suzaku and Xuanwu (a turtle-shaped god). In fact, the sky is divided into four parts, which are connected by seven main stars in each part and named after their shapes.
Qinglong, Baihu, Suzaku and Xuanwu have become the four gods who guard the heavenly officials, ward off evil spirits and regulate yin and yang. Among the four gods, Qinglong and Baihu are mainly regarded as spirits to ward off evil spirits, and their images mostly appear in palaces, temples, gates or tombs and their artifacts. On the last occasion, the dragon is not helping the tomb owner ascend to heaven, but deterring evil spirits and defending the soul peace of the tomb owner.
There are dragons and white tigers in all directions, Suzaku Xuanwu is in harmony with Yin and Yang, and the four spirits, black dragon and white tiger, Suzaku Xuanwu Heaven, rarely appear in European and American fantasy, but in Chinese and Japanese myths and legends, they appear as incomparable Four Holy Beasts.
Qinglong, also known as "Black Dragon", is the God of the East in ancient mythology. Dragon is the totem of the Chinese nation. Since the emperor designated it as heaven and weiser, it has become a symbol of the Chinese nation and even the whole of China. The definite shape was in the Han Dynasty. Since the Great Han Dynasty, the dragon has been identified as the symbol and representative of the emperor. In oriental legend, the dragon looks like a long snake, the head of a unicorn, the tail of a carp, a long beard, horns like deer and five claws, which is frightening. In western mythology, the dragon is more like a lizard with wings.
White tiger, the god of the west in ancient mythology. The figure is like a tiger and the white tiger is fierce, so it becomes a symbol of dignity. At the same time, the white tiger also symbolizes power and the army, so many places named after the white tiger in ancient times are related to the military, such as the white tiger flag in the ancient army and the white tiger statue on the military symbol.
Suzaku, also known as "Suzaku", looks like a phoenix, the god of the South in ancient mythology. Because it looks like a bird, it is located in the south and has the property of fire, so it often appears in the form of a phoenix in the game. But in fact, Suzaku and Phoenix are two different creatures. Phoenix is the king of birds, but Suzaku is a spirit beast in the sky, which is rarer, nobler and more destructive than Phoenix. In Japanese comics and games, Suzaku appears as a powerful summoner or monster beast, such as the comic book A Tour of Bai Shu and the game of the same name adapted from the comic book.
Xuanwu, also called "Zhenwu", commonly known as "Zhenwu Emperor", is the god worshipped by Taoism. According to legend, the prince of Gu Jing Le Wang was born fierce and traveled in the East China Sea. When he met the immortal, he gave him a sword and went to Wudang Mountain in Hubei Province to practice. After 42 years of success, it rose during the day and became the Northern Xuanwu Army of Weizhen. But in the Song Dynasty, it was renamed Zhenwu because it was forbidden to use mysterious figures. Xuanwu is also said to be a big turtle in the North Sea. This turtle was once used as a pillar to support the whole Penglai Fairy Mountain. Because of its profound spiritual awareness, after years of hearing and seeing, it finally came to fruition. Therefore, there are many tortoise-borne tablets in the imperial mausoleum, which is the secret of Xuanwu. In addition, Xuanwu is also called Xuanming, so it is also called Beiming.