The origin of tidal water can be traced back to Shang Dynasty, and it was not abolished until Qing Dynasty, and it has existed in the history of China for more than 3,000 years.
There is an interesting story about friends in Korea:
Fan Zhongyan, a famous minister in the Northern Song Dynasty, lost his father when he was young and his mother remarried. He doesn't want to live in a temple and study hard. Later, he got ahead and became famous.
When he was appointed as the magistrate of Suzhou, his mother suddenly died of illness. In order to bury the old man well, he invited a Feng Shui gentleman to choose the cemetery. Mr. Wang chose a treasure trove of geomantic omen and told Fan Zhongyan that it was a perfect once-in-a-century cemetery. Fan Zhongyan didn't believe that there was such a wonderful thing in the world, so he asked Mr. Feng Shui to carefully investigate whether there were any defects.
Sure enough, this so-called land of feng shui is both prosperous and fierce. Those who are buried first will have no children and daughters, and those who are buried later will prosper. But seeing that the day of mother's burial is coming, how can we have time to find another geomantic treasure? Mr. Feng Shui thought of a way to let Fan Zhongyan find a condemned man without family in prison, kill him and bury him, and then bury the old lady.
This condemned man deserves it. He has no descendants. The wilderness where the body may be abandoned can now be buried, which can be said to be a very suitable candidate.
But it was midsummer, and there was still a period of time before the autumn decision. However, Fan Zhongyan decisively refused without thinking because of his own selfish desires. Since there is no one, let me be an early bird and benefit future generations. So Fan Zhongyan buried his mother the next day. As a result, it was stormy that night and the mountain was crumbling. Just like Wan Chao in the hands of officials, this is a once-in-a-lifetime auspicious sight, which indicates that the descendants of the family will be officials in North Korea, and they will be rich or expensive. In the air? .
As for why Song Chaochen took a tidal wave when he went to court, the reasons are nothing more than the following:
First of all, I want to explain a detail, that is, people who hold pilgrimages in film and television dramas are generally venerable old ministers of the DPRK. Although the science and technology in Song Dynasty was a glorious moment in China's history, it was still far behind compared with modern times, so we can't just take a recording pen or tablet.
Therefore, for those ministers who are old and have a bad memory, the words at the foot of the Emperor should be extra cautious. In the early days of the emperor's reign, ministers should not only listen, but also remember, and also conceive or remember what they want to advise. If the emperor's sudden displeasure affects the minister's psychology, his brain will be blank and the consequences will be unimaginable.
In order to deal with this potential emergency, Qian Chao came in handy:
On the one hand, it can conveniently record the important contents of the emperor's early dynasty, pave the way for the ministers' next speeches and act as a temporary notebook; On the other hand, above the ruling and opposition parties, great attention is paid to the etiquette of the monarch and his subjects. Acts such as looking directly at the emperor or looking around are blasphemies against the authority of the emperor, and a little carelessness may lead to great disaster.
In this case, the minister can attract attention with a tablet in his hand. When the emperor spoke, the minister knelt down, stared at the tablet and took notes at the same time, killing two birds with one stone.
As for why water boards were used instead of lighter paper in the Song Dynasty, there are also historical factors. In fact, as mentioned above, tidal water was originally born in Shang Dynasty, and its material is usually bamboo or wood.
With the passage of time, it was not until the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period that its true face was given in the history books. According to the Book of Rites? It's two feet six inches long and three inches wide? (about 50 cm long and about 10 cm wide).
In the Tang Dynasty, with the close contacts between China and Japan, Chao You gradually went abroad and traveled across the ocean to this island country where he had never set foot. Even in today's Japanese film and television dramas, it can still be seen. For example, in Miyazaki Hayao's anime film "Spirited Away", there is a related scene: when Chihiro enters another world, he sees the gods crossing the river by boat for dinner at night, and the object they are holding is Chaowa.
In the following hundreds of years, tides still frequently appeared in temples as official office tools. Even in the Ming Dynasty, we can get a glimpse from Wu Han's Biography of Zhu Yuanzhang. Bird ignored, Shi Lu was anxious and made a pedantic temper. He gave it back to Chao You in person and told him to go home. ? It can be seen that it is not difficult to understand that the Song Dynasty, as a transitional period, inherited the tradition of the previous generation.
In addition, apart from the identity of office supplies, the imperial court is more important as a symbol of power, and different materials of the imperial court are the embodiment of the official level.
In fact, in the early days, due to the irregular etiquette system, the monarch did not pay much attention to the form of pilgrimage. As the common object of the ruling and opposition parties, the minister is also used this time and will be changed next time.
However, with the standardization of etiquette system, Qian Chao's role is no longer limited to recording tools, but gradually incorporated into the standardization of etiquette system.
In the imperial court, officials should not only dress neatly, but also hold different materials according to the size of their official positions. In this regard, each dynasty made clear provisions on the corresponding grade of tidal materials.
For example, in the Tang Dynasty, officials at levels one to five all had a Chao Fu, which was made of ivory, also known as a jade plate, while officials at levels six and below held bamboo symbols. In the Song Dynasty, the tide followed the Tang system, and officials with more than five grades were qualified to use elephants, while officials with less than six grades could only use bamboo rafts. By the Ming Dynasty, all officials with less than five grades could go to court, but they were not established. In the Qing dynasty, because Manchu rulers were used to horseback riding, it was a bit difficult to adapt now. Moreover, in the past tradition of Manchu people, there was no habit of holding the dynasty, so when they were more inclined to stare at the emperor, they chose to abolish the dynasty. Since then, the court has withdrawn from the historical stage.
Of course, the owner of the water board is not limited to civil and military officials in the ruling and opposition parties, but also can be a folk Taoist. They use jade boards or ivory boards.
What do Taoist priests think of the jade emperor they worship? Supreme of the Three Realms? Some high-ranking Taoist priests will hold water boards at the Fa Conference, just like ancient ministers presented gifts to the emperor. For example, in today's Japan, the water board culture of our country is still used when the Fa Conference is held, and both male and female Taoist priests in their country can use water boards.
In addition, the etiquette system has also made relevant provisions on shape. For those above level 3, the front is clumsy and straight, and for those above level 5, the front is clumsy and then curved, and then changed to a circle.
However, no matter how to distinguish it, Chao can not be separated from the background of absolute monarchy and distinct hierarchy, so Chao has become an indirect symbol of identity.