During the Yongxi period of the Western Jin Dynasty, the game of throwing pot was very popular in the palace of Luoyang, the imperial capital. At that time, there was a master of pot throwing named Feng Zhi. He was unrivaled at that time. No one in the country could beat him in the pot throwing game. Therefore, Emperor Hui of Jin Dynasty, Sima Zhong, favored him very much and kept him as an official in the palace. As his disciple, he only let him play the game of throwing pot with him every day.
Feng Jiu is better than all the pot throwers. He is so superior that he can even throw hundreds of pots back without ever failing.
Emperor Hui of Jin Dynasty greatly appreciated Feng Bai's elegance and skills. At every court banquet, Emperor Hui of Jin ordered Feng Fei to throw the pot on his behalf. As expected, Feng Zhi lived up to the holy expectations. He would win every time, and Emperor Hui of Jin gave him generous gold and silk.
It is said that Feng Zhi was particularly fond of throwing pots since he was a child. Because before the Jin Dynasty, the throwing pots needed to be shot in and did not require arrows to return, so people put a lot of adzuki beans in the pots and used this method to make the arrows fly. Will not jump out.
However, Feng Zhi came up with a new idea. He changed the original wooden arrow to a bamboo arrow, and he also poured out the adzuki beans in the pot, so that when throwing the pot, he could The arrow returned to his own hands. In other words, the arrow's reflective ability is used to allow the arrow to hit the pot and then bounce back with the help of force.
Using this technique, Feng Bai can throw an arrow many times, even hundreds of times.
Emperor Jin Hui liked to watch him throw pots, and it was precisely because of this that Feng Fei always made Emperor Jin Hui happy every time he threw pots for him. Therefore, he could always get the gold and silk given to him by Emperor Hui of Jin Dynasty.
During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, people abolished the archery ceremony, and throwing pots became an entertainment for guests. Emperor Hui of Jin Dynasty liked to throw pots, so he also loved houses and crows, so he also liked people who were good at throwing pots.
During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, people's pot-throwing skills have obviously improved, and the techniques and patterns of pot-throwing have been constantly updated. On the one hand, it shows that people attach great importance to the pot throwing game; on the other hand, it also shows that people have accumulated experience in the pot throwing game for a long time.
The Qi and Liang Dynasties in the Southern and Northern Dynasties was a period when entertainment was very popular. Due to the practice and enjoyment of it by the upper class of society, the custom of throwing pots became very popular for a while.
During the Six Dynasties, the previous game of throwing pots was carried forward, the tricks were constantly updated, and the creativity and level reached a new level. This also made the social leisure life unprecedentedly rich, diverse and colorful.
The pot throwing activities in the Qi and Liang Dynasties have become very rich due to the accumulation and inheritance of previous generations. Qi Liang's hut throwing game is very popular, and many new techniques have emerged.
Many masters of pot throwing can throw one arrow more than 40 times in a row. Some people can even set up obstacles outside the pot to throw the pot. It is said that they have never missed the pot. It can be seen that their methods are not comparable to ordinary people. .
Liu Yun, a great talent in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, was also very skilled in pot throwing. Liu Yun once shot an arrow continuously and was called the "Magic Shot" at the time. Other masters of throwing pots include Wang Huzhi, a famous scholar in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. When he threw pots, he was so skilled that he didn't need to open his eyes at all and could throw pots with his eyes closed.
The emergence of these masters shows that the various techniques of throwing pots at that time were really innovative and superb.
During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, pot throwing was not only elegant, but also very skillful, making it very interesting. At that time, people widely carried out pot throwing activities, which also led to the great development of pot throwing utensils and rules. The touhu in the Jin Dynasty also improved on the two-foot height of the Eastern Han Dynasty pot.
In order to increase the variety of Touhu in the Jin Dynasty, two ears were added on both sides of the mouth of the pot. The ear mouths were slightly smaller than the mouth of the bottle, so Touhu had the words "Yi Er", "Guan Er" and "Inverted Er". ", "Lian Zhong", "Full pot" and other techniques.
During this period, pot-throwing masters emerged in large numbers in the court and among the people. Sun Sheng, a famous writer in the Jin Dynasty, said in his book "Jin Yang Qiu" that the pot-throwing masters in the Jin Dynasty were very skilled. They even You can throw pot with your eyes closed.
The pot used for throwing pots at this time was the Guaner bottle. Guan'er here refers to a pot-throwing technique of the Jin Dynasty. Before the Jin Dynasty, there was no "Guan'er" pot-throwing technique, so the pots used for throwing before could not be called "Guan'er bottles". At best, they could only be called "Guan'er bottles". It is called a "tube-eared bottle", but the functions of these two types of ears are completely different.
In the Wei State during the Three Kingdoms era, the activity of throwing pots continued to develop. By the Jin Dynasty, the activity of throwing pots became more popular, and it became an activity that scholars must learn to talk about metaphysics and was highly praised by nobles. Since pot throwing activities are held frequently, there are more and more masters who are good at throwing pots.
In the Jin Dynasty, some people could throw pots through a screen. The historical book "Book of Jin" says that there was a singing girl in Shi Chong who was very good at throwing pots. She could throw pots through a screen and even throw arrows into pots with her eyes closed.
In other ancient books, there are also records about throwing pots. Especially according to the records in the history book "Southern History", King Jingling of Qi was even late for the court because he threw a pot. Being late for court was a big deal in feudal society. Emperor Wu of Qi was very angry at the time, but he heard that King Jingling came late because he was playing a game of pot throwing. Emperor Wu of Qi not only did not blame him, but gave him 20 pieces of silk. It can be seen how popular the style of throwing pots was in the Northern and Southern Dynasties.
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the famous writer Yan Zhitui wrote a book called "Yan Family Instructions". It is a work famous for cultivating one's moral integrity and regulating one's family. However, it also contains detailed records about throwing pots, and also describes the practice of throwing pots. New developments in Touhu are described in detail.
Many historical records show that during the Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties, banquets among noble families became common. This social trend played a role in the development of the pot throwing activity.
The Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties also became another prosperous period for pot throwing after the Han Dynasty. During this period, pot throwing became a universal pursuit and popular activity, which also laid a mass foundation for the integration of pot throwing into Taoist culture. .
However, the biggest change in the development of the Hu Tou activity from the Han Dynasty to the Wei and Jin Dynasties was that the Hu Tou was influenced by Taoism, and its Taoist transformation was basically completed at the end of the Jin Dynasty. Since then, the Hu Tou has become an important part of my country's Taoist culture. In fact, in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, with the emergence, emergence and development of Taoism, the activity of throwing pots has entered the perspective of Taoist culture.
Of course, throwing pots is also reflected in many poems and songs. During the Three Kingdoms period, Wang Can, one of the Seven Sons of Jian'an, mentioned the game of Touhu in his "Qi Fu". Li You, a writer of the Jin Dynasty, also wrote "Hu Tiao Ming", which also wrote about the game of throwing pot in detail. These literary works very clearly express the influence of the metaphysical trend of seeking Tao and advocating nature on Touhu.
This also marks that the activity of throwing pots has widely entered the horizons of celebrities in metaphysics. From then on, throwing pots has been associated with the ideological tendency of talking about metaphysics, learning Taoism, and even seeking immortality. This is the result of the profound influence of Taoist thought on Tou Hu. It is also a significant example of the unprecedented development of Taoist thought and Taoist culture, illustrating the strong inclusiveness of Tou Hu.
Also, accurate historical data show that at this time, the activity of throwing pots had indeed become an important way and content for learning Taoism and seeking immortality.
Ge Hong, a famous Taoist theorist in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, also said in "The Legend of Immortals": "When a jade girl throws a pot, the sky laughs." This sentence means that Jade Girl was very happy when she was playing hut. When she made the throw, even God couldn't help but smile happily.
In these documents, pot throwing is no longer just a recreational activity for ordinary people, it has also become an activity often performed by immortals, and has become a symbol of the living conditions of the immortal world. This just outlines the extent to which the pot-throwing activity has entered the realm of immortality, and the status of the pot-thrower has become immortal. At the same time, this process has become increasingly clear.
Not only is the Taoist practice of pot throwing activities widespread in the Central Plains, but there are also similar records in Dunhuang in the northwest. The manuscripts of documents unearthed from the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang include poems about asking for immortality by throwing a pot into a pot.
There is a poem in the "Poetry on Shedao" written by an anonymous person in ancient times called "Wei Shuqing does not visit Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty". This poem is based on the historical records of the Immortal family and uses the throwing pot as a theme to admonish Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. This poem reads:
The Immortal Qing of Luan Palace Dun Ziyun, Emperor Wu did not intend to minister to him.
I went back to Sanfeng Road in Taihua, not liking the spring of Wancheng in Xianyang.
The people who were involved in danger and labor were banned, and those who threw pots were mostly from the Qing Dynasty.
I still teach you to rely on alchemy to survive in the world, and don’t indulge in glitz and misguided your body.
It can be seen from this that in the ideal of conversation advocated by Taoism in the Jin Dynasty, the game of throwing pot is a game of the gods, which symbolizes the life of ascension to the immortal abode. Therefore, during the Han, Wei, and Jin dynasties, the game of Touhu was incorporated into funeral customs, and it also included the immortal family intention of the deceased leaving the world to enjoy the fairyland of Touhu.
The first two verses mention the allusion of Wei Shuqing. It is said that he is an immortal and has been passed down in history books. Ge Hong, a litterateur of the Jin Dynasty, specifically described him in "The Biography of Immortals".
The poem also talks about people from the Qing Dynasty, who were also ancient immortals. In fact, Shangqing is an area in the sky. The Eight Emperors and the Immortals of the Nine Heavens all live in the Shangqing Palace. The most famous immortal among them is Taishang Laojun.
Therefore, this poem is a work of Taoist poetry of good quality, both in terms of language and sentence composition, and in terms of content and theme material. It can be seen that the activity of throwing pots was completely included in the Taoist vision during the Wei and Jin Dynasties and became a cultural symbol of the Taoist fairyland.
In short, throwing pots was originally an elegant etiquette. It belonged to the elegant culture of the aristocratic class, but it was actually only in the Wei and Jin Dynasties that it became widely spread and popularized among the people.
However, when Touhu reached its peak stage of development, a new leap also took place in the ideological level. This cannot but be attributed to the Wei and Jin Dynasties when Laozi and Zhuangzhuang were respected and metaphysics flourished, as well as to Taoist thought and The strong tolerance and continuous innovation of Taoist culture.
It is in such an atmosphere that the game of hut has gained a new religious and cultural connotation. In fact, the social custom of throwing pots also influenced each other between the Southern and Northern Dynasties.
According to the "Yan Family Instructions: Miscellaneous Arts" written by Yan Zhitui, the patterns of throwing pots in the Northern Dynasties at that time were also complicated. ", "Wolf Pot", "Leopard Tail", "Dragon Head" and many other aliases.
As long as you look at the names of Touhu at that time, you can know how many innovations and developments there were in Touhu at that time. This is very different from the Touhu in the Zhou Dynasty or even the Qin and Han Dynasties. At that time, the game of throwing pot was not only a patented game for men at banquets, but also women joined in this activity.
In the Liang Dynasty of the Southern Dynasty, there was a Yuefu folk song "Huashan Ji". The content is as follows:
I miss lovesickness at night, throwing pots and arrows, recalling the time when I was happy and coquettish.
The folk song describes a woman who cannot fall asleep for a long time while recalling the joyful scene with her lover. So she threw a pot at night to relieve her longing. It can be seen that at that time, Touhu had penetrated deeply into the boudoir and became increasingly popular and entertainment-oriented.
The Jin Dynasty portrait brick "Tossing Pots" later unearthed in Luoyang clearly depicts the scene of throwing pots at that time. In the middle of the portrait is a pot for throwing arrows and a wine bottle. There are two arrows in the pot and a spoon in the wine bottle.
In the sound of drums, the host and guest were throwing arrows into the pot. The person who throws the pot into the pot is the winner, and the person who misses the throw is the loser. The winner will have to drink as a penalty to the loser, and the judge next to him will be the judge.
In the picture, there is a burly man who seems to have always been a loser. He drank too much and sat slumped drunkenly. His facial expression was very ugly, and he was being helped out of the table. The two people in the middle are kneeling on both sides, holding several arrows in one hand and one arrow in the other. They are aiming at the mouth of the pot and are concentrating on playing pot throwing with arrows.
Therefore, gambling on wine by throwing pots to win or lose has been very popular in the Jin Dynasty. During this period, pot throwing has truly become a "drinking order" without etiquette restrictions. People use the hut game to play and drink to their heart's content. Therefore, the banquet entertainment in the Jin Dynasty must be Yage Touhu, which was the habit of people in the Jin Dynasty when drinking. Song of Songs and pot throwing were combined into one, which was an elegant activity at that time.
People in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties were obsessed with throwing pots, and even more explored the recreational and entertaining functions of throwing pots. This was also an important contribution to the activity of throwing pots during this period.
Due to the popularity of pot throwing, special writings also appeared during this period. First, Handan Chun of the Three Kingdoms period wrote a "Fu on Tou Hu". Later, Fu Xuan and Li You of Jin Dynasty also wrote "Preface to Fu on Tou Hu", "Inscription on Hu Chip", etc. There are many more, but unfortunately they were all lost later. .
During the Southern Dynasties, it was advocated by the upper class of society. In a relatively peaceful environment, people entertained their temperament through the game of Tou Hu in their leisure time. They pursued the entertainment of Tou Hu, which also brought the entertainment function of Tou Hu to its extreme. .
In the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the game of Touhu was further popularized and developed, and it began to move from the government to the private sector, and even included women living in deep residences.
So far, no ceramic through-ear vases from the Jin Dynasty to the Southern and Northern Dynasties have been unearthed. This may be because the porcelain production technology at that time was still in its infancy, and the through-ear vases used for throwing pots at that time They are generally made of copper, and the number of porcelain is still very small.
During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the palace was deep and lonely. The palace contained both splendor and wealth that ordinary people could not enjoy, but also unbearable etiquette. Unless there are special circumstances, generally no one from the palace ladies to the concubines or the emperor can leave the palace.
Anyone would get tired of spending so much time in a palace. Therefore, court games have become an indispensable part of their leisure time. In the imperial palaces of ancient my country, there were dozens of popular games, one of which was pot throwing.
Because pot throwing does not require too much physical energy, it was welcomed by the nobles in the court, so it was quite popular among the upper class nobles.
Pot throwing is also very popular in our country's palace banquets. Even if it is not a banquet party, the maids and concubines who have nothing to do will entertain themselves with pot throwing to kill time. The pots and arrows in the palace are exquisite and the craftsmanship is exquisite.
The emperor sometimes couldn't resist the temptation of the beautiful scenery, and would play pot throwing games in the palace, outdoors and in the hall. The emperor tried his best to have some fun with the game of pot throwing. Of course, most of the time, the most noble emperors and empresses would sit on dragon and phoenix chairs, sipping fine wine while watching the court officials, attendants and graceful maids throwing pots.
Touhu was an elegant activity in the Jin Dynasty, and the Confucian scholars who were well versed in classics and erudite people liked it very much. As Touhu became popular in the palace, it was gradually accepted by dignitaries and elegant and knowledgeable scholar-bureaucrats. Even military officials and generals became obsessed with Touhu.
It is said that during the Three Kingdoms period, the great prince Yuan Shao often played pot with his attendants. Even during the war, he still talked and laughed and continued to play pot throwing games with others. Yuan Shao's calmness and calmness in times of crisis won the respect of his subordinates. Ancient books record the Jin Dynasty elegant scholars' Yan drinking pot throwing game, which says:
Even a general who is on an expedition knows Confucianism very well and will definitely play the pot throwing game. When the generals are drinking and entertaining, they must play Yage and throw pots. Even if you are in the army and fighting on the front line, you cannot forget such activities because it shows respect for the royal family.
According to later records in the Tang Dynasty ancient book "Yi Wen Lei Ju Qiao Yi Bu", Handan Chun, a famous writer during the Three Kingdoms period, had a great deal of research on Tou Hu. He wrote a more than 1,000-word " "Touhu Fu", he also presented this fu to Emperor Wen of Wei. Emperor Wen of Wei also loved literature and entertainment. He felt that "Tou Hu Fu" was written very skillfully, so he rewarded Handan Chun with 1,000 pieces of cloth.
This also shows how much the monarchs at that time attached great importance to the game of throwing pots. However, the custom of throwing pots in the Wei Dynasty described in this poem is very different from the situation recorded in the "Book of Rites". Handan Chun's "Tou Hu Fu" has only 389 characters in existence, which says:
Respect cannot last long, and the ceremony is completed only after the ceremony. It is a big shot, otherwise the pot will be thrown.
It is written in the Fu that the pots made by famous craftsmen are very gorgeous and decorated with gold and silver. The pots are 6 feet high, with a round belly and a long neck. However, the "Book of Rites" says it is two and a half arrows, and Zheng Xuan, a famous writer of the Eastern Han Dynasty, said in his commentary: "The pot is two and a half feet away from its seat, which means the distance is seven feet." This also shows that the distance between throwing pots in the Wei and Jin Dynasties was the same as that in the Pre-Qin Dynasty.
As for the number of arrows when throwing a pot, "Fu on Tou Pot" says: "The number of arrows is only two or four." That means there are 8 arrows. Later, the Qing Dynasty writer Wang Wenjin explained in "The Interpretation of the Book of Rites" that "the arrows are only two and four, that is, each person has four arrows." The number is also the same, because two people are throwing pots, and in the end there are still 8 arrows.
As for the shape of the arrows, in "Tou Hu Fu", the arrows are thick at the front and thin at the back, and there are no feathers. The "Book of Rites" does not directly state it, but arrows are made of wood, do not need to be peeled, and do not have feathers, which is different from the arrows used in archery.
Although Handan Chun's Fu Wen's description of throwing pots is not as specific as "Book of Rites", the process is roughly the same. In addition, Handan Chun also talked about the function of throwing pots in his Fu, saying that it can not only achieve the purpose of invigorating the atmosphere, but also promote the purpose of national political etiquette.