This paper traces the changing process of China people's toilet wiping methods from the Three Kingdoms to the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Toilet toilet was introduced to China from India with Buddhism in the Three Kingdoms period, and the official record of using toilet paper was created by the Mongols in the Yuan Dynasty. Both of them were important turning points in the evolution of ancient China's custom of wiping dirt, thus confirming the open characteristics of Chinese civilization. What did the ancient China people use to wipe the filth after go to the lavatory? Hong Kong TV series "Searching for Qin" raised this question. There is such a plot in the play: Xiang Shaolong, a Hong Kong special police officer, was sent to Zhao State in the Warring States Period by a time shuttle, and spent the night in a resident's home. He was in a hurry to go to the toilet, and Xiang Shaolong asked the old man for "toilet paper". The old man was ignorant of what it was and asked, "How to wipe his ass"? The old man picked up a piece of bamboo from the toilet and said, "This is it! Please feel free to use it. " See here, can't help but make people laugh. Yes, what did the ancients use to wipe their ass? This paper traces the history of the ancient custom of wiping filth from near to far. In Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties-the coarse paper age, people used paper to wipe filth in Qing Dynasty, and there are many documents to prove it. Here is just one example. In A Dream of Red Mansions, there is a passage in which Granny Liu has loose bowels: "Granny Liu felt a burst of noise in her abdomen, so she was busy pulling a little girl and asked for two sheets of paper to undress. Everyone laughed and drank him: not here! Busy life a woman with the northeast "(1). This description shows that during Cao Xueqin's life, people in both the Grand View Garden and the countryside used toilet paper to wipe dirt. In the Ming Dynasty, there was an organization in charge of logistics, named "Si Si". "Cherish the firewood used by the salary company; The bell and drum department is in charge of the bell and drum in the dynasty, as well as various miscellaneous dramas such as inner music, legend, brocade and rice playing; Bao Chao si Zhang made thick and thin toilet paper; The matter of bathing in the mixed hall. " Among them, the treasure department is the department in charge of toilet paper So, what paper did people use at that time? Therefore, we need to know the types of ancient paper in China. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Song Yingxing's "Heavenly Creations" recorded: "Any paper that uses the bark of a linden tree, mulberry, hibiscus membrane and other things is leather paper. Bamboo paper is used for those who use bamboo hemp. The essence is extremely white, which is used for writing, printing, Cambodia and opening. The thick ones are fire paper and wrapping paper. " It is also recorded that "this paper (fire paper) is 17 for burning and 13 for daily use". It can be seen that paper is divided into "leather paper" and "bamboo paper" because of its different raw materials, but no matter what kind of paper is "fine" or "coarse", the fine one is used for writing, 7% of the coarse one is used for burning sacrifices to ghosts and gods, and 3% is used for daily necessities. Distinguish the types of paper, we also know that respecting and cherishing Chinese characters paper has a long tradition in China. Folklore says that wiping dirt with printed paper will be rewarded. In the Qing Dynasty, a large number of laws of cherishing characters were circulated in the society as sacred laws formulated by Emperor Wenchang. Today, we can still see the laws of cherishing characters, the new compilation of cherishing characters, the collection and inspection of cherishing characters, the laws of cherishing characters by Emperor Wenchang, and the laws of cherishing characters and making meritorious deeds in Wenchang. Officials even explicitly prohibit printing on paper that may be used to wipe dirt. "On March 14, 1873, the newspaper Shen Bao reported that a woman wiped the filth with writing paper, threw it into the toilet and was struck by lightning. On December 3 of the same year, Li Zongxi, Governor of Liangjiang, ordered all paper workshops to spread: it is not allowed to affix the font size stamp on the edges of papyrus and other items of paper, and it is not allowed to transform the old accounts of waste books into paper to avoid profanity [1]. The earliest record of using toilet paper was found in the Yuan Dynasty. Before the Tang and Song Dynasties, people used a kind of wood or bamboo chips called "toilet chips", probably because the rulers of the Yuan Dynasty were backward in culture and did not have the consciousness of "respecting and cherishing word paper" of the Han nationality. In the history, "Yu Zong Hui Ren Yu Sheng Empress" Bolan was also very filial to her mother-in-law "Zhao Rui Shun Sheng Empress" when she was a crown princess. She wanted to test the softness of toilet paper with her face before her mother-in-law wiped the filth: "After filial piety, good deeds are in the palace, and sai-jo called it a virtuous daughter-in-law. Shi Zhaorui obeyed the Holy Queen, never leaving the left and right, and went to the toilet to use paper, but also rubbed his face to make it soft. " In summary, people began to use toilet paper to wipe filth during the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. Most of this paper is "rough" paper without words. As for whether the toilet paper used in the palace is coarse paper or fine paper, it is impossible to test it in detail. I think the princess will not rub her delicate face with coarse paper. Tang and Song Dynasties-Toilet chips and coarse paper were used together. Toilet chips were also called toilet slips. Simply put, they were wooden strips or bamboo strips used to wipe dirt after defecation. This toilet bowl was still used in parts of China and Japan in the last century. Recently, many ancient toilets have been discovered in Japanese archaeology. In 1992, during the excavation of Fujiwara-Kyo site in Gaodiancho, Nara Prefecture, the remains known as "the oldest toilet in Japan" were discovered. The toilet remains were found on the outside of the building site of Qitiaoyifang in Fujiwara-Kyo-Kyo at the end of the 7th century, and "more than 15 pieces of wood were unearthed in the toilet pit". Similar toilet chips were also found in the toilet site of the crack house excavated in Fukuoka City from about 72 to 73 AD. In the 11th-12th century, a large number of toilet bowls were also unearthed at the site of Yusuo Liuzhi in Hiraizumi-CHO, Iwate Prefecture, with the specifications of "average length of 24, width of .5-.8 and thickness of .5cm" [2]. During the Tang and Song Dynasties, China and China had close contacts, and the lifestyle of Japanese people had a great influence on Japan. Therefore, these archaeological discoveries in Japan are of great reference value for inferring the tools used by Japanese people in the Tang and Song Dynasties. In addition to archaeological evidence, records of the use of toilets in the Tang and Song Dynasties are also found in historical records, such as Li Yu's story in the Southern Tang Dynasty: "The late Lord and Zhou Zhou wore sangha hats, wore robes, recited Buddhist scriptures, and bowed down to worship, which was a tumor. Pro-cutting monks toilet Jane, try it on the cheek, and if there are few thorns, then add repair "(5). According to Zi Zhi Tong Jian, Han Kun was appointed as our envoy to Zhenhai, and delivered a large amount of materials to Guanzhong, among which there was a toilet: "Then the equipment has been filled in the boat, and all the equipment has been written down to the toilet, and everything is well prepared." ⑥ The daily code of monks in the Tang Dynasty also recorded the daily norms of monks, among which the toilet-going law required monks to "always use toilets to raise money, so as not to lose money", and it was expressly stipulated that "no paper should be used in words". This record proves that monks in the Tang Dynasty used toilets to wipe filth. At the same time, it is very interesting to ban the use of "writing old paper" to wipe filth. Since it is prohibited, someone must do it in real life, otherwise, how can it be prohibited? Between the Tang and Song Dynasties, paper was not only used for writing, but also for daily use and burning sacrifices to ghosts and gods. Song people's "Ai Ri Zhai Cong Chao" records that "the Southern Qi Dynasty abolished the emperor and loved ghosts and gods, and often cut paper into money to replace silks, but there was paper money"; "The Book of the Tang Dynasty" biography of Wang Yu: "Since the Han Dynasty, all the burials have money, so praying to God and using paper money began with Wang Yu"; Records of burning paper money began to appear frequently in historical materials after the Tang Dynasty. It is also recorded in "Heavenly Creations": "In the prosperous Tang Dynasty, ghosts and gods were complicated, and paper money was used to burn silks instead. In the north, it was called paperboard by cutting strips. Therefore, the person who made this paper is called fire paper. This paper is 17 for burning and 13 for daily use. The thickest one is called wrapping paper, and the bamboo and hemp and Sutian late rice manuscripts are also made. " Since the paper for daily use has appeared, it is logical for people to use it to wipe dirt. Before the Tang Dynasty, the Three Kingdoms, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, there were records of using toilet bowls, but there was no evidence of using paper to wipe dirt. For example, Gao Yang, the emperor of the Northern Qi Dynasty, "although Yang Cheng was the prime minister, he went to the toilet to raise money, whipped his back with a whip and bled his robe." ⑧”。 Another example is Liu Ao, a famous person in the Southern Dynasties. "When I went to the toilet in Shi Chong, I saw a big bed with a crimson bedstead, which was very beautiful. Two maids were holding sachets, and they turned away. That is to say, I admired saying: I strayed into your room, and I admired saying: I was a toilet ear, and I went further, and I was a toilet maid, and I entered the kit. Pet-name ruby Tang Buddhism book "Fayuan Zhulin" records: "Wu Shi built a flat garden in the back of Ye. Get a golden statue. Discuss its origin. It is said that it was made by Yu Wang at the beginning of Zhou Dynasty. The town is in Jiangfu. How do you know? Since the Qin, Han and Wei Dynasties, there has been no Buddhism and Dharma in Nanda. There is no such thing as being buried in the ground. Sun Hao got it. Never believed it. Not very respectful. Put it in the toilet to order the screen to be raised. Attending "if this matter is true, it is evidence of the use of toilets during the Three Kingdoms period. The suspicion of using toilets to raise funds was introduced into China with Buddhism. In the early Buddhist laws, it was recorded that Sakyamuni instructed the monks to use toilets: "The Buddha was in Wangshe City, and there was a monk of Brahman caste. Clean and dirty, when you go to the toilet, you scrape the grass under the road. If you scratch it, you will be hurt and the color will be unpleasant. The monks asked,' Why do you look haggard and suffer'? That is to say,' I hate it when I go to the toilet, and I hurt myself when I scrape it with a spoon, so I'm unhappy' ". In response to this situation, Sakyamuni Buddha said: "The beginning and the end have been completed, and the net is scraped. If there is no preparation, the wall shall not be wiped clean, the toilet board beam shall not be wiped clean, stones shall not be used, grass shall not be used, and clods of cork and soft leaves shall not be used; The application, wood, bamboo and reed as a preparation. Measurement method, the longest is one finger, and the shortest is four fingers. Those who have used it may not make it dirty, and those who have used it may not be raised in the net. It's a toilet-raising method. ⑾ "Buddha Sakyamuni lived in the 6th and 7th centuries BC, and these commandments were written more than 1 years after his death, so according to the current literature, the history of using toilets in India is much earlier than that in China. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Buddhism began to be introduced into China. At first, only some classics were introduced, but the "laws" that explicitly required believers' daily life began in the Three Kingdoms, and the earliest records of China people using toilet financing began in the Three Kingdoms. Therefore, the theory that toilet financing was introduced from India is still valid at present. However, it is not excluded that China people used toilet bowls before this, but there is no evidence at present. The final answer may be given by future archaeological discoveries. The use of toilet preparation was introduced from India with Buddhism, and later the change of toilet preparation to paper was started by the Mongolian royal family in the Yuan Dynasty. From the evolution of the ancient custom of wiping filth in China, we can see the openness of Chinese culture, from small to large, and from then on, we can also see the fine tradition of the Chinese nation absorbing all the outstanding achievements of human civilization.