Zhong Kui

Zhong Kui is the most familiar character in Chinese folk belief. When affixed to the door, he is the door god who suppresses ghosts and evil spirits; , appears in Nuo rituals as a fierce general who controls ghosts and slays demons, from which various Zhong Kui plays and Zhong Kui pictures are derived. Even the "Compendium of Materia Medica" includes the "secret recipe" of using Zhongkui's burnt ashes mixed with water or mixed with other medicinal powders to form pills to treat dystocia, malaria and other diseases. According to China's "Folklore" magazine, as late as the 1990s, some people even hired wizards to treat illnesses and perform the so-called "Zhong Kui" ritual to catch ghosts, drive away demons, and maintain peace in their homes ("Zhen Zhong Kui" by Shi Hanru and Yang Wenchun) Zhong Kui's "Nuo Yi Ji").

For ordinary people, stories such as "Zhong Kui fights ghosts" are almost familiar to everyone. Zhong Kui's belief has a profound and wide influence among the people. But this is only one aspect of the problem. On the other hand, the identity and origin of Zhong Kui, a god with great supernatural powers, may not be clear to ordinary people. In fact, this issue has been debated by many scholars since the Tang Dynasty. In recent years, with the rise of folk culture craze, issues such as the origin and evolution of Zhong Kui's beliefs have been raised again. Many scholars have expressed their own opinions and there are different opinions. So far, there is no conclusion.

The earliest known record of Zhong Kui’s life and events is Tang Luzhao’s "History of Tang Dynasty": During the Kaiyuan period (713-741), when Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty was ill, he dreamed that a little ghost had stolen the jade flute and the Yang dynasty. The imperial concubine's embroidered sachet. Xuanzong was furious and was about to send warriors to drive away the ghosts when he suddenly saw a big ghost running into the palace. This ghost had shaggy hair and a curly beard, a terrifying face, a horn belt on his head, a blue robe, and leather bindings on his feet. With one arm exposed, he reached out and grabbed the kid, gouged out his eyes and swallowed them in one gulp. Xuanzong was so horrified that he quickly asked who it was. The big ghost saluted Xuanzong and claimed to be Zhongkui of Zhongnan Mountain. During the Wude period of Emperor Gaozu, he failed to pass the martial arts examination in Chang'an and returned home in shame. He touched the steps in front of the palace and died. Fortunately, Emperor Gaozu gave him a green robe to bury him, so he remembered it deeply and vowed to eradicate all evil spirits for the Tang Dynasty. After Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty woke up, he suddenly recovered from his illness. Xuanzong ordered the painter Wu Daozi to paint a picture of Zhong Kui based on what he saw in his dream. After the picture was completed, Xuanzong wrote on the painting: "The spirit responds to the dream, and the disease is completely healed. A martyr eliminates the evil spirit, so he deserves to be commended. Because of the abnormal shape of the picture, it is awarded to have an official, and it should be expelled at the end of the year. It is appropriate to know it thoroughly to get rid of evil spirits." It is charming and calms the demonic atmosphere. It is still known to the world, and everyone knows it." According to the order, Wu Daozi's "Zhong Kui's Ghost Hunting Picture" was printed on the engraving board and distributed to the world, so that the world would know about Zhong Kui's power.

Lu Zhao was a Jinshi in the third year of Huichang reign of Emperor Wuzong of Tang Dynasty (843). It was more than a hundred years ago from the Kaiyuan era. What he said may not be true. However, it has indeed been a practice since the Tang Dynasty for the emperor to give a portrait of minister Zhong Kui as a New Year gift. For example, celebrities such as Zhang Shuo in the Kaiyuan Dynasty and Liu Yuxi later had works handed down to the world in which they thanked Zhong Kui for pictures and calendar tables. In addition, people also discovered the Tang Dynasty manuscript "New Year's Eve Zhong Kui Drives Nuo Wen" in the Dunhuang suicide note, which is evidence that Zhong Kui played the leading role in the Nuo ceremony. All this shows that Zhong Kui's belief has become a trend in the whole society since the late Tang Dynasty. Therefore, some people estimate that the origin of Zhong Kui's story may be earlier than the Tang Dynasty.

Amid the ongoing popular belief in Zhong Kui, Shen Kuo of the Northern Song Dynasty first questioned the story of Tang Xuanzong’s dream of Zhong Kui: During the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty (1049-1054), an ancient site was discovered in Shangyuan County, Jinling. The tomb is the tomb of Mrs. Zheng, the mother of Zong Ji, the general who conquered the West in the Southern Song Dynasty. From the inscription, we know that Zong Ji had a sister named Zhong Kui. In addition, the Later Wei Dynasty had Li Zhongkui, and the Sui Dynasty generals had Qiao Zhongkui and Yang Zhongkui. Because we know that "Zhong Kui's name has always been far away, and it did not originate from the time of Kaiyuan" (Volume 3 of "Mengxi Supplementary Talk"). Ming scholars such as Lang Ying and Hu Yinglin mostly followed his theory, but their conclusions were different. Lang Ying believes that the prototype of Zhong Kui is Yao Xuan, a native of the Northern Dynasties. His real name was Zhong Kui, and his courtesy name was to ward off evil spirits. Hu Yinglin pointed out that the legend of Zhong Kui catching ghosts "has existed since before the Six Dynasties", so Yao Xuan once named Zhong Kui with the word to ward off evil spirits. There were many people named Zhong Kui in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and they may have taken this meaning.

" and other data, it is believed that the so-called Zhongkui system evolved from "Zhongkui". "Zhongkui" is a kind of sharp weapon - vertebrae. "Dagui" is the ceremonial guard of the emperor in ancient times. The upper end is shaped like a vertebra, so it is called "Dagui Zhongkui's head". The people of Qi spoke slowly, dragging the pronunciation of "vertebral column" into two syllables, which became "Zhongkui". The ancients used the vertebrae as a sharp weapon in combat, so there is a description in the "Book of the Later Han Dynasty: Ma Rong Biography" as "Hui ends with sunflowers and Yangguan ax".

"The ancients used vertebrae to drive away ghosts, just like the exorcism used as ears" ("Zhongkui", Volume 32, "Rizhilu"). During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, many people named Zhong Kui or Zhong Kui in the hope that all ghosts would be frightened like the weapon Zhong Kui (that is, sharp vertebra) used by the ancients to stab ghosts. This meaning was eventually passed down to the personified "Zhong Kui" in the Tang Dynasty. ". In recent years, as a large number of documents from the Qin and Han Dynasties have been unearthed, the fact that using vertebrae to kill ghosts was popular in ancient times has been proven. For example, the Qin Jian "Rishu·Jie Pian" says that if a person is entangled by a mourning ghost, he can "knock his heart with spines and peach handles, and he will not come back." Remember the magic of using iron vertebrae to kill ghosts and cure diseases. Therefore, some people think that Gu Yanwu's explanation of Zhong Kui's origin is credible.

Contemporary Chang Renxia and Ma Yong both wrote Zhongkui Kao, each expressing his or her own opinions, but their arguments generally did not deviate from the stereotypes of people in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Only He Xin and Wang Zhengshu came up with new ideas.

He Xin believes that Zhong Kui is originally a personal name and has nothing to do with the so-called "Zi" or "Zhong Kui". The prototype of Zhong Kui is Zhong Puppet, the shaman prime minister during the Tang Dynasty. His name is also called "Zhong Hui", "Zhong Gui" and "Zhong Lei" in "Shang Shu", "Zuo Zhuan" and "Xun Zi". Businessmen deal with ghosts, and all political officials are also shamans and ministers. A puppet is also a mask; to drive away ghosts, you must wear a mask. There are many shapes of masks, so there are legends about many puppets. Zhongguo evolved into Zhonghui with the same pronunciation. Hui is a strange snake in mythology, so Zhonghui evolved into the "Xiong Hui" of the nine-headed giant snake ("Tian Wen"), and the "Xiong Bo" of the evil-eating monster ("Book of the Later Han Dynasty"). "Book of Etiquette"), even the "Yu Lei" who leads the ghosts in the lost article of "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" (see the book "Tie Shen Gate and the Myth of Dushuo Mountain") is actually another part of the legend of Zhongpuppet and Xionghui. Deformation, Yu Lei is the changed name of Zhong Lei. Basically, Zhong Puppet, a real person who exorcises ghosts and appears as a witch, turns into Zhong Kui, a ghost-eating monster. The more complex the transformation, the further away from the truth, but there is still a trace left: the ancients often used characters to explain names, and Zhong Kui's "Kui" It is a combination of "Nine Poems", "Tian Wen": "Nine Poems of Xiong Hui", so Zhong Hui is named after "虺", and "Kui" - Jiu Poems, which may be his original name ("Wen Shi" New Examination·Zhong Kui Examination").

Now that this statement has been made, there are some who agree with it, but some people also question it, thinking that businessmen deal with ghosts but do not chase ghosts away. Moreover, I have not heard of Zhong Puppet or Zhong Hui having any achievements in driving away ghosts.

Wang Zhengshu believes that Zhong Kui and the concept of exorcising ghosts and evil spirits in the past dynasties actually originated from ancient witchcraft. He was derived from Chong Li, who held the title of Zhu Rong in his ancestors. In ancient history, Chongli was called Chongli, Chonghui, Jumang, etc. In legends, Jumang was also described as a figure with a special mission and a special appearance between heaven and earth, gods and humans. One of his missions is to hold the position of witch, which can be proved by records in "Historical Records: Tianguan Shu". In the Shang Dynasty, it was Zhonghui who was named after his official duties. In fact, Zhonghui was the name of Zhonghui (Chongli). As for "Zhongkui", it originally refers to a cone-shaped body. Since the feather crown worn by Chongli when he was engaged in the shamanic function was taken from this shape, it became a symbol of shamanism in the Shang Dynasty. In the Shang Dynasty, it was common practice to use official positions as surnames, so the family line formed by Zhong Hui was also called the "Zhong Kui family". In the Zhou Dynasty, this clergy group was renamed "Fang Xiangshi". The name of the Fang Xiang clan is the same as that of the Zhong Kui clan. They are both derived from the attire on the head of the ancient shaman. The difference is that "Zhong Kui" comes from the feather crown, and "Fang Xiang" comes from the mask. This custom of exorcising ghosts, centered on Fang Xiangshi, was followed until the Tang Dynasty. In summary, from the return of the magicians in ancient times to the Zhonghui, Zhongkui and Fang Xiangshi of the Shang and Zhou dynasties, they are all the prototypes of Zhong Kui, and they are all in the same vein in terms of nature and title ("Zhong Kui's Research on Facts") 》).

This theory is consistent with He Xin's opinion, but it only traces the origin of Zhong Kui back to Zi Chongli. However, some people think that Chongli or Goumang are figures in myths and legends, and their existence may not be confirmed. What's more, if from Zhongli to Zhonghui, Zhongkui, and Fang Xiang, there is no record of "Zhongkui" in the Han and Jin Dynasties, but it was not until the Southern and Northern Dynasties that many "Zhongkui" or "Zhongkui" suddenly appeared ", "Zhong Kui". This hundreds of years of blank interruption is difficult to explain.

Looking at the opinions of ancient and modern sages, it should be said that they all have their own truths, and there is no lack of basis for the doubters. Although various theories stand side by side, the origin of Zhong Kui is still a big mystery in the history of Chinese folk culture.

At the junction of Shaanxi and Hubei, there is a legend about Xuanzang of Tang Dynasty.

According to legend, Tang Seng’s father took his family by boat to Hubei to serve. The boat sailed to the junction of Shaanxi and Hubei (today's Lantan Township).

Liu Hong, a bandit from Wujiadu, robbed his property and pushed Tang Seng's father to the Han River. Seeing that Tang Seng's mother was very beautiful, he became evil. , he snatched Tang Seng's mother to the village to be his wife. At that time, Tang Seng's mother was pregnant. For the sake of her child, his mother endured the humiliation and agreed to the bandit's request.

Half a year later, Tang Seng was born. His mother bit off one of her son's toes, wrapped the child in cloth, and found a wooden basin to put the child in. She quietly put the wooden basin in Entered the Han River.

At the same time, in a temple in Ankang, the old abbot dreamed of Guanyin Bodhisattva, saying that a holy monk was coming and that he was in great trouble and needed to be rescued. The next day, the old host asked the young monk to go outside and have a look. I saw a group of ducks crowding a wooden basin on the calm river surface. The wooden basin was quickly fished out, and there was a very beautiful boy in it. Hosting a great celebration, he adopted a boy. The boy is very smart. He has followed the host to chant sutras and recite the Buddha since he was a child, and he is very happy.

Eighteen years later, the bandit Liu Hong was killed, and Tang Seng's mother escaped. She hurriedly made a hundred pairs of shoes day and night, and came to the temple in Ankang. She wanted to give shoes to the monks, but she had a request. The monks were allowed to go barefoot, and she had to wear the shoes herself. Ninety-nine pairs of shoes were worn. When the 100th pair was worn, the little monk in front of him was missing one toe. His mother burst into tears and took out a toe and put it on the little monk's missing toe. heal,. Mother and son held each other's hands and cried...

It is said that Tang Seng's father did not drown but was rescued. He lived in Baihe, and the people surnamed Chen there are his descendants. Later, Tang Monk went to look for his father. When passing by Lantan, he was attracted by a girl from Nuer Mountain...

This story has been circulated here, and to this day, Liu Hongzhai in Lantan, Hubei, Nurshandu is located across the river from Wujiadu in Lantan, Shaanxi.