In the fourteenth year of "xianggong" in the Spring and Autumn Period, it was said that "it is like catching deer, the horn of Jin people, the ambition of Rong people, and the ambition of Jin people", which also means that the two countries compete for political power. This metaphor is gradually accepted by the world, and later generations often use this metaphor to compete for sovereignty. For example, The Legend of Li Xuan, the King of the Book of Jin, said: "So people want to compete for deer, and the family has the idea of dominating." Why do idioms mention chasing deer instead of tigers, bears and wolves?
The idiom "competing for the central plains" means that many heroes rise together to compete for the world, which means that many people compete for political power. Among them, "deer" refers to "mercy" and "state power". Why does "deer" refer to political power? This starts with Wu Ding, King of Shang Dynasty. Deer are all treasures, except that their meat can be used for food and clothing. Deer blood, velvet antler and deer bone are all extremely precious Chinese herbal medicines. For these reasons, King Wu Ding of Shang Dynasty especially liked fighting for deer. In order to compete for deer, he can run in the Central Plains for a few days without caring about state affairs. Since Wu Ding in Shang Dynasty, the activity of "fighting for deer" has been deeply loved by emperors of past dynasties. In ancient times, deer was a precious animal, and only a certain level of nobles were qualified to compete for deer, so the emperor lost his qualification to hunt deer, that is, he lost his "mercy"
"Political power" Therefore, "fighting for deer" has become synonymous with politicians fighting for political power in past dynasties. Deer are beautiful in appearance and gentle in character. They are regarded as auspicious animals and have been regarded as a symbol of friendliness since ancient times. People often entertain guests with venison, and princes often give each other deerskin as gifts. In the Book of Songs, there is an article "Luming Literature", which describes the scene of a group of guests at a big banquet in Zhou Wenwang. It says R "Hey, Luming Literature, wild apples, I have guests, playing and advocating sheng." Use "Yo Yo Luming Literature" to describe the heartfelt conversation and mutual echo between host and guest. Later, the ancients called the banquet to entertain guests "the banquet to show the way".
Some people think that the words "deer" and "Lu" are interlinked, and fighting for deer is actually chasing Lu. Although there is some truth in this explanation, we should pay attention to the special position of deer in ancient times. Deer were regarded as auspicious animals in ancient times and were very precious. They are not only the best prey in hunting, but also worshipped as totem gods. If people get deer, whether they eat it themselves or trade it, they can get unexpected surprises. Hunters are chasing wild deer, and the situation is urgent. It is really appropriate to use this scene as a metaphor for fighting for the world. In addition to the metaphor of striving for power and profit, people often use the metaphor of chasing fame and fortune, which is a new interpretation of the word.