"Jade" is a strange and mysterious existence in the history of Chinese culture. Many exquisite jade relics were produced in distant times. Their appearance stimulates our thinking. For example, the jade dragon carved from the Hongshan Culture that was discovered in the Northeast five or six thousand years ago is dark green and full of energy. It is known as the "first dragon in China" and can also be said to be the earliest masterpiece of jade; The jade cong, a sacred artifact from the Liangzhu culture thousands of years ago, is square on the outside and round on the inside. It is carved with an animal face pattern on the outside. It is solemn and powerful. It is exquisitely crafted and gorgeously decorated. It is regarded as a masterpiece. Its rich connotation, Still consuming the minds of researchers. However, in the era when these jade articles were made, there were no metal tools. How was the hard jade stone dissected and processed, and what kind of tools were used to polish it? It's puzzling. Historians regard metals, writing, cities, etc. as signs of leaving barbarism and entering civilization. However, based on this line, the "First Dragon" and "Jade Cong" are all products of the barbaric era. Isn't this a bit funny? Can barbarians produce such delicate, radiant, and humanistic works? Therefore, I somewhat agree with what some people have advocated: when setting up markers for the stages of Chinese history, the maturity of using and making jade should be taken into consideration. Indeed, we have seen the dawn of civilization from the crystal-clear and charming "China's First Dragon". The maturity of jade not only marks the development level of production and technology, but also marks the level of spiritual civilization.
In China, jade is an important medium for the beautiful ancient ritual and music culture. At that time, the country was in its infancy. It developed from families and clans. The conflicts between the upper and lower classes were not yet sharp. Its method of regulating society was mainly the use of rituals and music. Rituals are used to distinguish between high and low, old and young, and establish political order; "yue" originally refers to musical instruments, and by extension means music, happiness, etc. Happiness comes from the heart, and music, singing and dancing are expressed externally. It is the most important means of unity and cohesion of ancient communities. In this regard, "Legends of Music" summarizes that "Music unifies and rituals distinguish differences." If there is too much "ritual", the communication between the community will be poor and it will be easy to split, which requires "fun" to coordinate; "too much happiness will flow", which will lead to the disintegration of the ritual system and disorder, which requires "ritual" to coordinate relief. Ritual and music are practiced in moderation and complement each other in time. In the eyes of Confucianists, this is a harmonious society that has both order and discipline and a happy mood. Compared with rituals and music, "music" is more purposeful because it can better reflect people-oriented pursuit.
Jade is the medium of ritual and music, and ritual is derived from sacrifice. The original glyph of the word "ritual" is two strings of jade placed in a vessel to offer sacrifice to heaven; the earliest musical instrument is undoubtedly percussion, and The jade chime is one of the important musical instruments in ancient times. Although jade is not equivalent to rituals and music, jade is inseparable from rituals and music. It is an indispensable intermediary. During sacrifices, rituals can connect gods and men, reaching up to heaven; the crisp and exciting jade chimes not only exaggerate the solemn atmosphere, but also communicate with people's souls, making people have a sense of the existence of life in the graceful bowing of rituals and music. Insights...
The status of jade in ritual and music culture is irreplaceable. Especially for nobles, jade articles run through their lives. In daily life, a gentleman must wear jade. "Book of Rites" says, "If you don't have a reason, the jade will not leave your body." This "jade" is the jade pendant. Jade pendants are even more indispensable in political activities, because jade articles of different shapes have different political functions. Xunzi once said, "When hiring people, use Gui, when asking people, use Bi, when recruiting people, use Yuan (a round jade with a large hole and a narrow edge), when recruiting people, use Jue (a semicircular jade ornament with a gap), and when recruiting people, use a ring." The jade pendant here seems to be a political symbol. Gui is used when recruiting princes, jade bi is used when visiting state affairs, Yuan is used when summoning ministers, Jue is used when banishing Jue, and a ring is used when summoning people back. These are also the embodiment of etiquette. Using utensils to express one's feelings reduces a lot of face-to-face embarrassment.
In daily life, a gentleman wears a group pendant, which consists of Yuheng (the horizontal jade in the group pendant), Yuhuang (half jade), Yuju (I-shaped jade pendant), Yuyu (bead-shaped jade pendant) It is composed of jade), punching teeth (the bottom end of the set is thick, and the other end is sharp, similar to animal tooth jade). These pendants with no political function on the surface are called "Depe", which restrict the wearer's behavior. The nobles of the Zhou Dynasty also had to abide by etiquette norms in their daily lives. Jia Yi said that "there are rules for living and articles for moving." Walking should be slow and measured, not running and jumping around. When the jade is worn on the waist, when you move around, the heng, huang, jade, jade, punching teeth, etc. on the jade collide with each other and make a tinkling sound. If you walk in time and the jade sounds are crisp, you will naturally be praised by public opinion. There are many such poems in "The Book of Songs", such as "Zhongnan", where the people of Qin praised the king of Qin: "A gentleman wears fur clothes and embroiders his clothes when he comes to the end. A general wearing jade will never forget his longevity test!" The Marquis of Qin drove up, his clothes and shoes were as beautiful as The jade jewelry is sonorous and the behavior is polite, and the onlookers express their sincere admiration. It is difficult for people today to understand that just a simple walk, the ancient aristocrats made it so complicated, because at that time people believed that through the regulation of external behavior, they could adjust their inner moral quality, so "ritual" was the right thing to do. Many small behaviors are provided with extremely specific regulations. Jade pendants can regulate people's behavior and naturally improve people's moral cultivation. This is why it is called "Depei".
Thus, jade is given moral meaning. The five virtues of "benevolence", "wisdom", "righteousness", "faith" and "loyalty" advocated by Confucianism are all reflected in jade. "Book of Rites" says that jade has five qualities of a gentleman: its texture is warm and shiny, like a gentleman's benevolence; it is careful and strong, like a gentleman's wisdom; it has honest edges and does not hurt others, like a gentleman's meaning; its texture is from the inside to the outside. Externally, it is like a gentleman's trust; not covering up each other's flaws and virtues is like a gentleman's loyalty.
For more than two thousand years, Chinese people have admired, loved and worn jade, which is the psychological basis for this.
? (Wang Xuetai? First Prize)