The Folk Custom of Zhong Kui Map

The story of Zhong Kui catching ghosts is widely known among Han people, which can better show that Zhong Kui is a Lingbi person, and Zhong Kui painted by Lingbi is a portrait of his original image, and there is a saying that he produces a "living Zhong Kui" every year. This statement has also been verified in ancient books. A famous scholar in the early Qing Dynasty once recorded in the book "No Down Belt": "Zhong (Ben) is a Lingbi person, and his descendants are still in Yan. Most of his ancestors painted it with cinnabar, and the goods were food. In the county seal, Ling You should cloud ".

As for Zhong Kui's statement, it was first seen in the Tang Dynasty's "Xie Ci Zhong Kui and Li Biao", which said: "China's envoy made it, told it by letter, drew Zhong Kui and the new calendar axis ... and removed the screen, and cleared the gods ...". Therefore, "Zhong Kui Map" was originally published with the calendar of Chang 'an Palace ouchi. In order to "drive away crowds", when Xuanzong arrived, Wu Daozi began to draw ghost maps, and King wuyue of Hangzhou in the Five Dynasties followed the story of the previous generation. On New Year's Eve, the painter drew a picture of Zhong Kui catching ghosts. In the Song Dynasty, Zhong Kui was no longer a gift from the royal family, and the people also "put Zhong Kui on the door at the beginning of the year". With the development of the times, people gradually personified Zhong Kui, so that his great power declined and his human feelings strengthened. For example, Zhong Kui got drunk, sent a photo of his son, married a girl and so on. And his myths and legends are becoming more and more indifferent. Even Zhong Kui is called a bearded gentleman and bearded man.