Kunlun Mountain
Human beings emerged from the mountains and forests and moved towards civilization step by step. Mountain worship is a very important belief for the Chinese nation. Many ancient civilization relics in China are found in mountains and forests. The mountain culture that arose with the emergence of Chinese civilization has experienced an evolution from primitive nature worship to socialized religious beliefs and then to the appreciation of tourist aesthetics. Mountains have been widely written into various types of literary works, including novels.
Compared with other novel types such as historical novels and worldly affairs novels, the generation of supernatural novels is undoubtedly the earliest. For example, "The Classic of Mountains and Seas", "The Romance of the Gods", etc. The core of supernatural novels is the concept of gods and monsters. The high mountains, dense forests and the creatures with different shapes and habits that live in them are undoubtedly still very mysterious to the primitive ancestors who had relatively low productivity conditions and low level of understanding. This sense of mystery gave birth to the concept of gods and monsters. When they used mythological thinking to try to explain various unknowns, various imaginary gods and monsters existing in the mountains and mountain beliefs were born, and supernatural novels were naturally born. . 1. Mountains: the place where spirits are bred and raised
1. Mountain worship and mountain spirits
Mountain worship is an ancient belief. "Shi Ming" explains "mountain": "Mountains produce. They produce living things." "Han Shi Wai Zhuan" further points out that mountains are the wealth of "where grass and trees grow, where all things are planted, where birds gather, and where animals rest." source.
Due to the mysterious nature of the mountains themselves and the lack of understanding of the ancestors, the animals and plants in the mountains have gradually been transformed into gods and monsters. Various animals with weird shapes and strange functions in the "Shan Hai Jing" The plants are the concentrated expression of this kind of mythology. The records of mountain products in historical novels such as "The Book of Divine Miracles" and "Book of Natural History" not only praise and deify mountains, but also gradually highlight the status of mountains as the abyss where magical and weird things are produced. In this way, most of the spirits in fairy tales live in mountains, which is a manifestation of this kind of mountain worship.
The Classic of Mountains and Seas
2. Mountain spirits in fairy tales
For example, almost all the monsters in "Journey to the West" are animal spirits. The prototypes or entities of these animal-type spirits are mostly wild beasts in the mountains. The tiger is a typical benefactor of mountains and is known as the king of the mountains. Therefore, many tiger spirits reside in the mountains. There is no need to go into details about the dependence of apes on the mountain forest environment. The mutated monkey spirits and ape monsters also mostly use mountains as their activities.
Fox spirits can be said to be one of the most favored types of spirits by novelists and literati. In "Qiu Zhang·She Jiang", the sentence "When a bird flies back to its hometown and a fox dies, it must head on a hill" makes "a fox dies on a hill" a well-known idiom. There is a story in "The Postscript of Sou Shen": "There is a hole on the top of the hillock, which is an ancient tomb. I saw an old fox squatting in the tomb." There are also many vixens appearing in other supernatural novels. The nine-tailed vixen in Dragon Mountain and Dragon Cave in "Journey to the West", the jade-faced fox in Moyun Cave in Jilei Mountain, and the nine-tailed wild fox in Songguo Mountain who claims to be King Wuzhen in "The Interesting History of Zhaoyang", etc. 2. The origin and evolution of mountain belief
Whether you believe in mountain belief or not is not just about mountains. It also includes the mountain spirits and ghosts living in the mountains, and the mountain gods’ celestial palaces related to the mountains. For the ancients, the mountains were the home mother who gave birth to and raised them. The dependence on mountains and the fear caused by the steepness and unknowability of mountains gradually formed the concept of mountain worship. The initial mountain worship was mainly a vague respect for natural mountains. After the emergence of the concept of animism, the object of mountain worship evolved from mountains to mountain spirits. With the maturity of religious consciousness, mountain spirits have been deified and sublime, and the concept of mountain gods has emerged ("The Classic of Mountains and Seas" is a concentrated expression of this concept of mountain gods).
1. Primitive mountain belief
There are many legends and stories related to mountains in primitive society, among which Yu is the most prominent. Water control was Dayu's main achievement, and to control water, he first had to control mountains. Because mountains are the source of water: "Yu left Jiuzhou, followed the mountains and rivers, and paid tribute to the soil." "Yu spread the soil, planted trees with the mountains, and built high mountains and rivers."
The Classic of Mountains and Seas, which reflects pre-Qin mountain beliefs, has a deep connection with Yu. Regardless of what the Classic of Mountains and Seas says about Yu and Yi, it is fact that the Classic of Mountains and Seas mentions Yu or the scenery related to Yu many times, such as: "Yu said: 'The famous mountains in the world have five thousand three hundred and seventy-seven scriptures. Ten mountains, sixty-four thousand and fifty-six miles, is the place of residence. '" This passage shows us that there is an experience witness in the "Book of Mountains and Seas", and this person is Dayu.
Dayu controlled floods
In "Huainanzi·Xingxing Xun", Dayu became the creator of mountains again: "Yu filled up the floods with soil to make them famous mountains, and dug them The land below Kunlunxu contains the ninth level of Zengcheng." "Historical Records·Xia Benji" calls Yu "the god of mountains and rivers".
From the above discussion, we can see that mountains played an important role in the era of the Five Emperors. Since the relationship between mountains and people is so close, it is reasonable for people to attach great importance to and respect mountains. For example, during the time of the Yellow Emperor, "all countries were in harmony, and ghosts, gods, mountains and rivers were enshrined in Zen", and frequent sacrifices were performed on the mountains. "Shang Shu Shun Dian" also has detailed records of mountain sacrifices during the Yu and Shun period.
2. Mountain beliefs of Xia, Shang and Zhou
There is a saying in "Guoyu·Zhouyu" that "the rise of Xia also melted and descended to Chongshan"; and "Yi" There used to be three types of "Lianshan", "Gui Zang" and "Zhouyi". Xia's "Lianshan" "its hexagram is headed by Chungen". of pushback. This may be the best explanation for the prosperity of mountain belief in the Xia Dynasty.
“The people of Yin respected the gods and led the people to serve the gods, putting ghosts first and then etiquette.” During the Yin and Shang Dynasties, the trend of respecting gods and serving ghosts was very popular, and divination was necessary when encountering problems. Among these oracle bone inscriptions, there are a large number of records related to mountain beliefs. Based on the records about mountain gods in the oracle bone inscriptions listed by Chen Mengjia in "A Review of Yinxu Inscriptions", we counted the fourteen types of mountain gods involved in the oracle bone inscriptions: Shandi Yue, Ban, Yue, Zhe, Pin, Mu, Mian. Dou, two mountains, five mountains and ten goats. Among these mountain gods, Yong means "Yue" appears most frequently. According to Lin Zhiqiang's statistics, there are "nearly 450 words about Yue" in the oracle bone inscriptions. After analysis, it is believed that "Yong is the commander of the mountain gods." "So the merchants' sacrifices to Yue were very grand.
Oracle Bone Divination
Qishan is the base and place of prosperity of the Zhou people. It was highly respected by the Zhou people before the destruction of the Shang Dynasty. Zhou After the establishment of the dynasty, the Zhou people's worship of mountains went beyond their own ethnic groups, and they began to worship Mount Tianshi, which symbolizes the destiny of heaven, as the ruler of the dynasty. The worship of Songshan in the Zhou Dynasty was consistent with the worship of gods, that is, the worship of Songshan. Worship of gods. Songshan Mountain is often called Tianshi in Zhou Dynasty literature, and there are also sayings that "the sky is in the mountain" and "the mountain rises to the sky because of its famous name"
3. Mountain beliefs in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period
p>Mountain worship is an ancient and continuous belief. The mountain belief during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period has the same continuity as the Western Zhou Dynasty. However, due to the decline of the Zhou royal family after moving eastward, there were many vassal states, which were not under the control of the royal family. The relationship exists in name only. The same is true in the ideological field. The cultures are diverse and the thoughts are extremely active. Each vassal state has its own local mountain belief. Generally speaking, during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, there were both primitive mountain spirit worship. The completely personified belief in mountain gods had a profound impact on later generations. 3. The emergence of mountain gods and ghost novels
1. Mountain gods and ghosts and ghost novels during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period were rich in nature. Belief in spirits (or mountain monsters) is relatively common.
There is a chapter on "Mountain Ghosts" in Qu Yuan's "Nine Songs". Song Hongxingzu said: ""Zhuangzi" says: 'There is Kui in the mountains'. "Huainan" said: "The mountain comes out of the sun", the Chu people worship it, how can it be like this?" That is to say, the mountain ghost is Kui, that is, the mountain spirit. "Ghost" is different from God, it is a kind of spirit. This This kind of spirit is called "demon" by the ancients, and "ghost" by the people. Moreover, Zhang Taiyan believes: "Ghosts are also strange and kind, and they enter the throat through sounds, that is, evil breasts become ghosts." Gui Kui has the same pronunciation and is the same thing. "That is, the original meaning of "ghost" may refer to spirits.
These concepts are the prototypes of ghost novels.
Qu Yuan
But the mountain ghosts written by Qu Yuan It only retains the name of folk belief, that is, the mountain ghost as a spirit exists as a literary prototype. The mountain ghost in later texts has become a completely literary and private literary image, becoming a sad female god. . This is obviously far from the folk mountain ghost belief, but this kind of personified mountain ghost promotes the evolution from elf worship to personified mountain gods, that is, the literary image of mountain ghosts feeds back to the folk mountain ghost belief. . Since then, the Wushan goddess in Song Yu's "Gaotang Fu" and "Goddess Fu" have become completely personified mountain gods, breaking away from the original mountain spirit belief in both form and content. In addition, "Mountain Ghost" and "Gaotang Fu" ", "Ode to the Goddess" and other works are indeed the beginning of the plots of encountering immortals in the mountains and the love between humans and gods in later novels.
2. The belief in Kunlun Mountain in novels about gods and monsters
As " Kunlun Mountain, "the home of hundreds of gods", began to have a widespread influence during the Warring States Period. Kunlun Mountain (or Kunlun Qiu, Kunlun Xu) is mentioned in eight places in "The Classic of Mountains and Seas", and at least sixteen myths and legends are related to Kunlun Mountain. "Zhuangzi" also mentions Kunlun Mountain four times. This Kunlun is "the resting place of the Yellow Emperor", which is mainly related to the myth of the Yellow Emperor. Kunlun is mentioned more frequently in "Chu Ci", such as "Tianwen" says: "Kunlun County Garden, where is its temple? Zengcheng Jiuzhong, how many miles high is it? Who can follow the gate of the four directions?" "Shejiang" says: "When you climb Kunlun, you can eat jade flowers, and you can live longer with the heaven and earth, and with the sun and the moon. Xi Qi Guang".
The Kunlun Mountains in "Chu Ci" are obviously specific, but they tend to be abstract and symbolic, seeming to refer to the most important place where the gods live and the sky. There are two points worthy of attention in the influence of Kunlun Mountain belief on later generations: First, the Kunlun Mountain myth promoted the emergence of the fairy mountain myth, and Gu Jiegang believed that the Kunlun Mountain had transformed into a fairy mountain. The construction of the Three Immortals Mountains such as Pengcai and Abbot in the novel was inspired by the myth of Kunlun Mountain. "In the legends and records of later generations, the status of Kunlun Mountain gradually increased" and became the "Middle of the Earth" in "Shui Jing". , "The Dragon Fish River Picture", "The Pillar in the Sky", "The Gathering of the Immortals", etc.
The Queen Mother of the West
The scenes and characters in the myth of Kunlun Mountain have had an impact on the construction of heaven or fairyland in later religious and literary works.
Initially, the highest deities of the Kunlun Mountains were the Yellow Emperor and the Queen Mother of the West. In the evolution of later generations, the Yellow Emperor's divinity gradually weakened, and finally settled on the role of the ancient human king: while the divinity of the Queen Mother of the West became stronger and stronger, the image of the fusion of human and god was transformed into a human form. As a loving mother, her status as a great god in heaven gradually became established, and she eventually became the Queen Mother in folklore and popular novels. At the same time, the scenes of Kunlun Mountain in the myth of Kunlun Mountain, scenery such as Xuanpu (the structure of the Nine Heavens), Yaochi, immortal trees, immortal elixirs, etc. have also been absorbed into religious beliefs, constructing a world with all things and richness. The majestic divine paradise. This kind of heavenly setting has been used by novelists for reference, and it is full of vitality in supernatural novels.
3. The importance of gods living in mountains to novels about gods and monsters
Fairy stories are a recurring theme in novels about gods and monsters. Many of these fairy stories have various connections with mountains. Relatedly, gods may be mountain dwellers, may descend to the mountains, visit the mountains, or may themselves be mountain gods. The storyline includes cultivating in the mountains to become immortals, encountering immortals in the mountains, gods appearing in the mountains or taking the initiative to guide mortals into fairyland in the mountains... The gods in various stories are related to mountains. In the eyes of the ancients, mountains tower into the clouds. , connected with the sky, is the channel for communication between gods and mortals, and this is how the gods in the mountains should appear. This is also a mountain faith.
The Immortal Story: Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea 4. Summary
“Mountains are places where beautiful things are gathered. There is no such thing as a false theory. If they are not stolen by demons, there must be traces of immortals and Buddhas. ".
From the above, the relationship between supernatural novels and mountain belief is close and special. The concept of gods and monsters is undoubtedly the core element of supernatural novels. It determines the characteristics of supernatural novels that distinguish them from other types of novels. The early concepts of gods and monsters are inseparable from the gestation of the mountain environment. At the same time, mountains and things related to mountains are also the original concept of gods and monsters. the main object of observation.