Some information and legends about dragon culture

In China culture, dragons have an important position and influence. From the Neolithic Age more than 7,000 years ago, ancestors worshipped the primitive dragon totem, and today people still use idioms or allusions with the word "dragon" to describe the beautiful things in life.

For thousands of years, dragons have penetrated into all aspects of China society and become a kind of cultural cohesion and accumulation. Dragon has become a symbol of China, the Chinese nation and China culture. For every Chinese descendant, the image of the dragon is a symbol, a mood, and a feeling of flesh and blood! . The names "Descendants of the Dragon" and "Descendants of the Dragon" often make us excited, energetic and proud. Besides spreading and inheriting in China, Dragon Culture has also been brought to all parts of the world by overseas Chinese. In China residential areas or in China, dragons are still the most eye-catching decorations. Therefore, "Descendants of the Dragon" and "Dragon Country" have also been recognized by the world.

As a descendant of the dragon, you can't know nothing about the dragon culture in China. Without understanding the dragon culture, it is impossible to understand the ancient civilization of China. What is the prototype of the dragon? How did the concept of dragon come into being? How did its image and cultural meaning develop and change? What influence does the dragon have on China culture? These problems have been puzzling people in different ways since ancient times, and they have not all been solved so far, giving people a confusing feeling. Here, we will trace back to the dragon, enter the ancient history and dragon world, and understand and explore the mystery of the dragon. ...

The origin of the dragon:

Two thousand three hundred years ago, there was a scholar-bureaucrat who was both a poet and a philosopher wandering around Dongting Lake. Sometimes he bowed his head and meditated, and sometimes he sang to the sky. In the poem "tracts", he poured out the doubts accumulated in his heart:

Who handed down that ancient initial state?

Heaven and earth have not yet formed, so there is no need for textual research.

It is wet and dark day and night.

Who can say the limit?

The weather is moving and the surplus is invisible.

How can you recognize heaven and earth?

Used.

How to communicate with rivers and seas?

How did Ying Long draw land with his tail?

What is the experience of the river flowing to the sea?

Sunlight is everywhere,

How to take another photo of Candle dragon?

The sun has not yet risen,

Why does the holy tree shine brightly?

This scholar-bureaucrat is Qu Yuan, a famous poet in the Spring and Autumn Period.

The poem above is from his Tian Wen. In the poem, Qu Yuan raised more than 100 questions in one breath, from nature to society, from history to legend, and he boldly questioned them. Naturally, the "dragon" did not escape his keen eyes. Because according to legend, when Dayu was controlling water, he used his tail to delimit the land, which pointed out the route of flood diversion for Yu, so there were mighty rivers in later generations.

In the second year of Yuanfeng in the Northern Song Dynasty (1079), the great poet Su Shi was demoted to Huzhou. The reason for his demotion is that he disapproves of Wang Anshi's new law. Su Shi paid tribute to Song Shenzong as usual. He knew that he was released, and it was the hint of the new party that did something to him. He couldn't help but hold back his grievances. He couldn't help but write a slightly grumbling "knowing that he was born at a bad time, it is difficult to catch up with newcomers;" Check the suffering of the elderly, or you can raise the king. " After the dinner, the new party officials immediately sniffed out Su Shi's dissatisfaction, and they decided to find an excuse to give Su Shi some color to see.

The excuse was soon found, and this is Su Shi's poem.

The poet's nature is chanting, and whether he is happy or angry, he can enter the poem. Su Shi's younger brother, Su Zhe, knew his brother's fault, so he specifically warned him: "The north guest came to the south to ask questions. Although the West Lake is good, it doesn't recite poems. " However, Su Shi still used poetry to express his feelings and vent his chest, so he was arrested. Three months later, he was sent back to Wutai (that is, the institution that corrected officials in the Song Dynasty-Yushifu).

The poem that made Su feel unlucky was two lines praising the juniper tree: "There is no bend from the root to the grave, and only dragons are known in the world." These two poems are accused of stabbing the emperor: "The emperor is like a dragon in the sky, but Su Shi wants to find a dragon under the grave. There is nothing better than this! "

This is the famous Wutai Poetry Case in history, which is only one of the ten thousand literary inquisitions in Qian Qian in feudal society, but the reason is quite special, because of the "dragon" and the attitude of the characters towards it is problematic. Because in the feudal society of China, the dragon was also the name of the emperor, and the emperor was the "real dragon emperor".

In China culture, dragons have an important position and influence. From the Neolithic Age more than 7,000 years ago, ancestors worshipped the primitive dragon totem, and today people still use idioms or allusions with the word "dragon" to describe the beautiful things in life.

For thousands of years, dragons have penetrated into all aspects of China society and become a kind of cultural cohesion and accumulation. Dragon has become a symbol of China, the Chinese nation and China culture. For every Chinese descendant, the image of the dragon is a symbol, a mood, and a feeling of flesh and blood! . The names "Descendants of the Dragon" and "Descendants of the Dragon" often make us excited, energetic and proud. Besides spreading and inheriting in China, Dragon Culture has also been brought to all parts of the world by overseas Chinese. In China residential areas or in China, dragons are still the most eye-catching decorations. Therefore, "Descendants of the Dragon" and "Dragon Country" have also been recognized by the world.

Origin-The Mystery of Life Experience

Two thousand three hundred years ago, there was a scholar-bureaucrat who was both a poet and a philosopher wandering around Dongting Lake. Sometimes he bowed his head and meditated, and sometimes he sang to the sky. In the poem "tracts", he poured out the doubts accumulated in his heart:

Who handed down that ancient initial state?

Heaven and earth have not yet formed, so there is no need for textual research.

It is wet and dark day and night.

Who can say the limit?

The weather is moving and the surplus is invisible.

How can you recognize heaven and earth?

Used.

How to communicate with rivers and seas?

How did Ying Long draw land with his tail?

What is the experience of the river flowing to the sea?

Sunlight is everywhere,

How to take another photo of Candle dragon?

The sun has not yet risen,

Why does the holy tree shine brightly?

This scholar-bureaucrat is Qu Yuan, a famous poet in the Spring and Autumn Period.

The poem above is from his Tian Wen. In the poem, Qu Yuan raised more than 100 questions in one breath, from nature to society, from history to legend, and he boldly questioned them. Naturally, the "dragon" did not escape his keen eyes. According to legend, when Dayu was controlling water, (a winged dragon) rowed the land with his tail, which pointed out the route of flood diversion for Yu, so it was the mighty river of later generations. ......

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The development of dragons-a myriad of weather (1);

Since the formation of Shang Dynasty, the totem image of dragon has been changing and developing with the circulation of long years. The rise and fall of politics, the change of dynasties, the vicissitudes of the world and the pulse of history have left a deep or shallow mark on the image of the dragon, which has a direct or indirect impact.

In Shang dynasty, the dragon was regarded as a strange beast. It's terrible,

Fantasy images give people a strong sense of mystery and a hideous beauty, showing the superiority of dragons.

Beyond the authority of the gods in the world. Dragons in Shang Dynasty were mainly cast and carved on bronze ritual vessels, and the lines were as follows

Emphasis and prominence, deep and vigorous development, coupled with the heavy and stable shape of bronze ritual vessels,

Dragons have great deterrent power, which embodies an indescribable religious concept.

Shang dynasty was replaced by Zhou dynasty in 1 1 century BC. In the primitive religion of the Zhou people, there was a strong humanistic color, because the Zhou people attacked and overthrew the Shang Dynasty because the Shang Dynasty had no virtue and harmed the people, and the Zhou people punished the Shang Dynasty on behalf of heaven. Because Zhou people have "virtue", they can match the sky and win the world. After defeating the merchants, Zhou people not only seized the tripod that embodied the merchants' power (in fact, the ruling power), but also highlighted their religious ideas in the newly cast ritual vessels. Legend has it that there was a huge red phoenix when the Zhou people crusaded against the Shang Dynasty, and the jade and silicon in its mouth (also recorded as the calligraphy of Dan in its mouth) fell on the Zhou people's country hall, representing that it was given to Zhou by heaven. Therefore, in the ritual vessels of the Zhou Dynasty, the image of the phoenix is more prominent, and the image of the dragon tends to weaken. Even in some designs, the crown of the phoenix is put on the dragon's head, and the dragon's posture is less flashy and ferocious.

Long Shi Yu Pei

In dragon culture, another function of the dragon is to distribute water and rain. Song of the Dragon by Lu You, a poet in the Southern Song Dynasty, depicts the spectacular sight of dragons flying in the clouds and rain;

Surrounded by giant trees, they are old and useless, but sink into thousands of feet Dragon House.

The claw marks are several inches into the wood, and the musicians dare not wow.

Last year, the drought stretched for thousands of miles, and the wheat was dying.

The ghost in the forest shrine is helpless, and the old dragon owes Xu a hand.

Roaring thunder and strong wind swept the river into the void.

The fire between scales makes lightning, and the golden snake is caught in the clouds at night.

In the Ming dynasty, elders came to compete in the rain, and wizards played flutes and danced.

The word Lord scattered the moon, and the dragon returned to sleep at the bottom of the pearl.

Why is the dragon regarded as the god of sex? This is closely related to the imitation prototype of the dragon and the ancient agricultural economy. We know that although dragons are a combination of various animal shapes and artistic exaggeration, most of these animals are related to water, such as fish, crocodiles, pythons, snakes, etc. Some natural phenomena related to the origin of dragons, such as clouds, rainbows, lightning, etc., are also closely related to water or rain. In this way, the dragon is easily imagined by ancient ancestors as a kind of god beast that can dive in Yu Yuan, soar in the sky, walk in clouds and thunder, and influence the sex in Sichuan. In the Book of Changes, it is believed that the cloud follows the dragon and the phoenix follows the tiger. Wang Chong, a scholar in the Eastern Han Dynasty, said: "The dragon listens to thunder. There must be clouds in the dragon and thunderstorms in summer. Long Panyun, the cloud goes in the rain. "

Dragons have the function of distributing water and rain, and are also God's assistants. Therefore, in ancient legends, the dragon has also become a tool for the struggle between God and God. The Classic of Mountains and Seas records a story about the battle between the Yellow Emperor and Chiyou. In the story, Chiyou led an army to attack the Yellow Emperor, who ordered Ying Long to resist Chiyou's attack in Jizhou wilderness. After Ying Long was ordered, he used water control skills to accumulate water, causing water shortage in an attempt to stop the enemy. But Chiyou invited Fengbo and Rain God to rain. The Yellow Emperor sent a goddess named Yan from heaven to help stop the storm and finally defeated Chiyou. But he Hao couldn't return to heaven, so there was a great drought.

In the legend of Dayu's water control, there are also dragon activities. According to legend, before Dayu controlled the water, he drew a waterway on the ground with his tail for Yu to dredge the water. It is said that Yu dredged rivers and excavated rocks when he was controlling water, dragging his tail in front and a mysterious turtle digging mud in the back. When dredging to Wushan county, Long painted the wrong waterway and was executed. Wuxian also has two place names: Staggered Gorge and Duanlongtai.

The traditional Ying Long is a winged dragon with a thin neck, a big belly and a scaly body. He has thorns on his spine, strong limbs and likes to be alone. The ancients once wrote a poem about Ying Long: "When Ying Long didn't get up, he hid at the bottom of the abyss, and when Feiyun didn't step on it, he lifted it to the sky. Take wild bluegrass as an example. Seclusion always smells good. Seeing it spread far and wide, Wan Li looked fragrant. You can live in seclusion and you can see yourself. " As a matter of fact, this poem refers to people by Ying Long, and it is played by the topic.

As can be seen from the above legend, praying for rain is not Ying Long's unique function, because Chiyou also invited a fixed god-the master of praying for rain. But there is no doubt that Ying Long has the ability to distribute rainwater. It is said that after the Yellow Emperor defeated Chiyou, because Ying Long could no longer go to heaven, the ancestors used it to create a "earth dragon" like Ying Long, and at the same time practiced witchcraft, making rain fall from the sky. Therefore, using the "earth dragon" to pray for rain has become an essential content of praying for rain. Moreover, although there were many names of rain teachers in ancient times, with the popularity of dragon worship, the images and even names of other rain teachers were weakened and blurred, and only the image of dragons distributing rain was strengthened day by day, so dragons became rain teachers.

The vivid image of dragon's water and rain distribution is related to the development of rain-praying witchcraft. China is the first country in the world to enter agricultural civilization. In the case of backward productivity in ancient times, rain, sunny, drought, flood, rain, snow and frost had a decisive impact on agricultural production, and the quality of agricultural harvest was directly related to the fate of ancestors, so begging for rain became the most important witchcraft. In ancient times, although it was inseparable from the dragon, it was not the protagonist, because in ancient times, the dragon was a tool to communicate with gods and people, an assistant to the gods, and it was not a god itself, so in the witchcraft of praying for rain, the dragon was just a tool to distribute rainwater.

So, what was it like to pray for rain in ancient times?

According to documents, the ancient witchcraft of praying for rain mainly burned people to worship heaven. There are two kinds of people who are burned to death as sacrifices: witches and raccoons. Witches are the messengers of the gods in primitive religion, so they should be burned to death, so that they can ascend to heaven to introduce the drought to the gods and beg for rain. Raccoon is a disabled person. It is said that they are short, with high bellies, always with their backs to the sky and their nostrils facing the sky.

God has pity on such people, fearing that rain will flow into raccoon's nostrils, so he refuses to rain, causing drought. In this way, raccoons become ominous people who summon drought demons. Therefore, it is necessary to burn raccoons in witchcraft, because in the eyes of ancient ancestors, since God had pity on his illness and refused to rain, he would naturally have pity on being burned to death and rain on earth. In this ceremony, dragon-shaped sacrificial vessels and "earth dragons" are used to communicate with God and pray for rain.

By the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, due to the progress of civilization and the rise of humanistic spirit, this cruel way of asking for rain in ancient times had an important change, instead of burning people to death, it was changed to exposure. Witches as priests and raccoons as sacrifices will be exposed to the hot sun for several days. However, this practice has also been suspected and accused. According to the Book of Rites, one year during the drought, Duke Lumugong summoned the princess to discuss. Mu Gong asked, "There is no rain after a long drought. I want to prepare a ceremony to worship the sun. What do you think? " Jun Zi replied, "It doesn't rain, but you expose your disability. It is impossible to abuse them like this! " "Mu Gong added," Is it okay if I hold a ceremony to worship heaven and expose witches? " County son said:

"Isn't it your negligence to rely on a stupid woman like Wu for rain?" This conversation shows that during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, even witchcraft that exposed witches and raccoons to the rain was attacked and regarded as the art of abuse and fooling.

After the Warring States period, the ritual of praying for rain turned more to using dragons, and the contents of yin and yang and five elements were integrated into the ceremony. For example, in the Han Dynasty, when the spring drought begged for rain, local officials should choose water days to offer sacrifices to the country's mountains and rivers, instead of cutting down famous trees in the mountains and forests. Outside the east gate of the city, there is a square altar, which is eight feet square and surrounded by eight black flags, mainly composed of the gods of water officials. During the sacrifice, eight raw fish and xuan wine (a kind of clear water for sacrifice) were used to prepare sake and large pieces of bacon. A neat and eloquent witch presided over the sacrifice and fasted for three days in a row. Wizards should wear black clothes, first worship God, then read a congratulatory message, and then worship. The toast is: "In the past, food was used to support people. Now that the grain is threatened by drought, it is difficult to ripen and bear fruit. The gods enjoyed sake and bacon and invited them to rain.

When it rained and the ground was wet, we offered sacrifices and thanked them again. "Make an 8-foot-long black dragon in the water, put it in the center, and make seven 4-foot-long dragons, all leading to the East.

Eight feet apart. Choose 8 more children, take a bath in the food court for 3 days, and stand in Tsing Yi. Dig a ditch outside the "she" who sacrificed to the land god, put five toads in a pool 8 feet deep and 1 foot deep in the center of the club, and fill it with water. Then prepare sake and bacon, fast for 3 days, put on black clothes and pray to God. Three-year-old cocks and boars were roasted in the donor's room of Sitong God as a barbecue for offering sacrifices to the gods. People were ordered to close the south gate, put water containers outside the gate and open the north gate. A boar was put in the village, and a boar was put in the market outside the north gate. When the drums sounded, they roasted pig tails. If there are unburied bones around the room to be buried underground and there is vegetation in the valley, use fire to burn firewood. If the valley has been blocked by the bridge, it should be dredged. After the rain, offer a bite of pig, wine, salt and millet to the forest. To be a dragon, you must be on the water, and you must use clean ground. It is also necessary to let the husband and wife of the government and the people live together on Gengzi Day in order to reconcile Yin and Yang. In the rain-praying ceremony in Han Dynasty, the position and function of dragons were different from those in ancient times. The main reason why dragons were used to pray for rain in the Han Dynasty was not to communicate with gods for rain, but because dragons themselves could attract clouds, which naturally made it easy to rain.

After the Han Dynasty, the ritual of praying for rain became complicated. This is because Buddhism was gradually introduced into China after the Han Dynasty, and Taoism in China began to take shape. After the two religions established themselves in China, they became the main bodies of rain-praying activities, especially the folk rain-praying activities. However, the traditional way of praying for rain with dragons has not disappeared, but gradually combined with Buddhism and Taoism. However, in the national code for praying for rain, the elements of witchcraft are reduced, and even the inkstone is no longer used, but the practice of praying for rain with earth dragons is still very common. The sui dynasty's exclusive rain prayer altar, when the first rain prayer failed, the emperor ordered the slaughter to be banned and the market to be removed. Officials are not allowed to use umbrellas and fans to let residents build earth dragons. The emperor himself had to wear plain clothes and could not sit in the main hall or simply work in the open air. He also had to reduce the number of royal meals and cancel the band.

In addition to the traditional ceremony of praying for rain, a new pattern of painting dragons to pray for rain appeared in the Tang Dynasty. In the Tang Dynasty, people asked the dragon for rain almost directly, and kept some forms of witchcraft. According to "The Whole Tang Poetry", when people prayed for rain in the Tang Dynasty, they filled a big urn with soil, put wooden lizards into the soil, and then held bamboo in the hands of children wearing Tsing Yi, singing and dancing around the urn: "Lizard lizard, if it rains cats and dogs, I will let you go home." Because lizards are one of the archetypes of dragons, becoming a dragon's body double in the ceremony is like using an earth dragon. The children sang and danced, showing the charm of wizards. In the Song Dynasty, people also used this method to pray for rain, but it was slightly different. When praying for rain, the streets and alleys are filled with water in big jars, Yang Liuzhi is put in, live lizards are put in the water, and children in Tsing Yi sing around. In the Song Dynasty, there was another way for dragons and tigers to beg for rain. A tiger's skull was tied with a long rope and thrown into a pool with dragons, so people kept touching the long rope, and the tiger's skull swayed in the water, so there was the Yun Qi Pool, and then it rained. This rain-praying ceremony takes the meaning of Long Hudou, which draws the dragon out of the deep, so it rains. After the Tang and Song Dynasties, the supreme ruler often attended the ceremony of praying for rain in the countryside. Zhu Hougui, Emperor Shizong of Ming Dynasty, went to the suburban altar to pray for rain, and was given a poem after the rain:

"Misty rain pervades Lin Yuan, and the old dragon starts up Chihiro.

At this time, agriculture, rural areas and farmers are happy and beautiful. When a hundred grains are ripe, they are singing happily.

Hush and shout restored the original yang, and this shock is bound to be accompanied by a thunderstorm.

Don't say that you have six things to do, but you are happy to think that Lin is worth thousands of dollars. "

In ancient times, dragons had primitive religious significance, but with the development of history. The religious significance of the dragon is weakened and the secularization trend is strengthened. However, after the Han Dynasty, the dragon was re-injected with religious content, and the dragon changed from the original beast to a completely personalized dragon king.

This change of dragon identity stems from the introduction of Buddhism and the establishment of Taoism.

Buddhism was founded in the 5th and 6th centuries BC by Siddhartha Gautama, prince of the Indian kingdom of KarPiloff. This prince is the Buddha of Sakyamuni in Buddhism, also known as Tathagata. After the establishment of Buddhism, it was gradually introduced to Chinese mainland through the Western Regions. In the process of spreading Buddhism, in order to gain a foothold in China, China was greatly sinicized, including absorbing the traditional gods and witchcraft of China. When Buddhist scriptures were introduced into China, they also tried to be close to the traditional culture of China in terms of concepts and terminology.

In Buddhist scriptures, there is a god beast called "Naga", which has no feet and is the king of water. In fact, the prototype of Naga is a python in the tropical rain forest of South Asia. Naga is the guardian of Buddha in Buddhism. According to the Buddhist scriptures, after the Buddha was born, Naga guarded the Buddha's left and right, bathed the Buddha with warm water, sang songs in the air and scattered all kinds of exotic flowers and herbs. The number of nagas in Buddhist scriptures is different, with five, seven, eight, eighty-one and one hundred and eighty-five, and each person has thousands of dependents. Naga can sow clouds and rain, break rivers and blaspheme, and turn blessings into disasters. Obviously, Naga in Buddhism has many similarities with dragons in China traditional culture. Therefore, when Buddhist scriptures are translated into Chinese, it is logical to translate Naga into Jackie Chan, and the people in China have always regarded dragons as gods, so they accepted them generously and used the dragons in China culture to understand the dragons in Buddhism.

In Buddhism, the dragon is the second protector of Ba Shen, and is called the "Dragon King". According to Buddhist scriptures, the Dragon King has a magnificent palace in the sea where he lives, and the Buddha once preached Dharma in the Dragon Palace under the sea. These contents have a great influence on the formation of China Dragon King and its legends, providing materials.

Taoism was formed in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. It was developed on the basis of ancient primitive religion in China, and absorbed the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements and the idea of immortalization in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Therefore, ancient concepts such as ghosts and gods and dragons have been absorbed by Taoism. In ancient mythology, the dragon was a beast of heaven and a mount for immortals, which Taoism said was completely inherited. Immortals in Taoism also use dragons as feet. One of the Taoist spells is "riding", that is, flying in the air with an animal body and interacting with immortals. Animals are divided into three types: dragon, tiger and deer, which are called dragon, tiger and deer respectively. Of the three, the dragon is the best, because it can go into the ground and bury the hill, which can help practitioners get along with the Tao. According to Taoist classics, the broken man in Lapras travels in heaven, and all evil spirits dare not infringe upon him. Wherever he goes, gods will rush out to meet him. In early Taoism, although the role of dragons in giving clouds and distributing rain was not denied, the basic duty of dragons was to provide Taoist immortals with control over riding and driving. Then, why did Taoism pay special attention to the water function of the dragon, so that the "god" of the dragon owner appeared later? This is mainly because of the fierce competition between Taoism and Buddhism in the early days. On the one hand, the two sides scrambled to win over the feudal monarch to gain political support, on the other hand, they tried their best to echo the public psychology and gain public recognition. Therefore, when the contents of Buddhism about the Dragon King infiltrated into China culture day by day and had social influence, Taoism also caught up and attached itself to the dragon as the king, and later came from behind, with various names surpassing Buddhism, mainly including the Dragon King of the Four Seas, Ao Guang in the East China Sea, Aoqin in the South China Sea and Aoshun in the North China Sea. Five Dragon Kings: Di Qing, Chi Di, Bai Di, Hei Di and the Yellow Emperor. In addition, there are hundreds of dragon kings with various names, such as Purity, Earth, Fahai, Sun and Moon, Stars, Tiangong and Dragon Palace. Although dragons in ancient primitive religions were gods and did not occupy one side, dragons in Taoism all had the responsibility to protect the land. There are dragons in the sky, dragons in the four seas, dragons in five directions, dragons in March 8, dragons in 24, and dragons are stationed everywhere where there is water, whether it is lakes, seas, rivers, ponds or even wells and springs.

As Taoism is a local religion, the dragon of Taoism is more like China, more secular than the dragon of Buddhism, and more suitable for the psychology of China people. Taoist dragons can not only rain to eliminate drought, but also put out fires. When the dragon comes, it can also pray for rain and bring some other requirements, such as seeking happiness, longevity, official position, illness and staying in evil. , full of the spirit of the world. The dragon rain in Taoism is also more humanized and legendary. "Taiping Guangji?" I remember a man named Shi teaching in Songshan. There are three white-haired and weird-looking old people in the audience. They are never absent and listen with an open mind. One day, three old people visited Xuan Zhao and said that they were all dragons. They were very grateful to hear the news of Avenue. They didn't expect to report it, so they asked Xuan Zhao to guide them. So Zhao Xuan said:

"Today, after a long drought, if we can make the clouds rain and moisten things silently, Su Min will be trapped and have great merits." The three old men replied, "It's not difficult to rain, but it's forbidden by heaven, and it's not small to rain without authorization, for fear of being killed." However, there is a feasible method. It is said that Shaoshishan Chu Shi and Sun Simiao are highly respected and have boundless benevolence and righteousness. His "Legend of a Thousand Daughters" has benefited the world, and its name has been recorded as immortal. If you get a word from Sun, you will definitely guarantee our safety. "So he told Xuan Zhao about the method of refuge. Zhao Xuan immediately went to Shaoshi Mountain Sun Simiao and asked for shelter for the three dragons so that they could summon clouds to bring rain. Sun Simiao asked what the method was, and Zhao Xuan replied that after the rain in Sanlong, he hid in the pond behind the Muse Room. If an alien detains Sanlong, please think about it and persuade him to release Sanlong. Sun Simiao promised. So it rained day and night, and it rained for thousands of miles. The next day, Zhao Xuan went to Sun Simiao. Just then, he suddenly saw a scrawny strange man rushing to the pond behind the house and screaming loudly. Soon, three otters surfaced. The man tied the three otters with red ropes and was ready to leave. Sun Si stopped the big fellow and said:

"Death is not enough to redeem the sin of three things, but walking in the rain without authorization is out of his own heart. I still hope to let go of three things and ask God to forgive me. " Hearing this, the big fellow untied the rope and left. Afterwards, Sanlong went to Sun Simiao for a reward, but Sun Jian refused. Sanlong thanked Zhao Xuan again and invited him again and again. Zhao Xuan had no choice but to ask Sanlong to remove the mountain that stood in the way. So the three dragons broke the mountain with thunder, and their vision was suddenly enlightened, and Wan Li was even.

In the story, Sun Simiao was a famous doctor in Sui Dynasty and early Tang Dynasty, and he had a thousand gold prescriptions handed down from generation to generation. He was quite famous at that time and dabbled in Taoism, reflecting that Taoism could not only make dragons rain, but also save their lives. Long Xian's experience is full of human feelings. There is more than one story about Sun Simiao saving the dragon. "Miscellanies of Youyang" records that during the drought, Sun Simiao lived in seclusion, and the Hu monks in the western regions set up an altar in Kunming to pray for rain. Seven days later, the swimming pool shrank by several feet. The dragon in the pool turned into an old man and went to Sun Simiao for help. Sun said, "I know there are thirty kinds of prescriptions in Kunming Pool. Give them to me and I will save you. " The dragon replied that fairy tales were not allowed, but it was too urgent to take care of it, so he offered the fairy. Sun Simiao was overjoyed and told the dragon not to worry. Since then, the water in the pool has gradually increased and even overflowed the bank. Monk Hu failed to pray for rain and died of shame. Sun Simiao in this story has no color of benevolence and holiness, and has the meaning of taking advantage of others' danger and ignoring the world, but it shows the contest between Buddhism and Taoism on the dragon issue.

Buddhism and Taoism rushed to publicize the dragon, which stimulated the folk worship of the dragon, and the traditional dragon changed from a beast to a god. So the Dragon King has almost no water in the north and south of the Yangtze River. Feudal emperors were also interested in dragon gods. There was a system of offering sacrifices to the Five Dragons in the Tang Dynasty. In the second year of Daguan in Song Dynasty (1 108), Song Huizong made the Five Dragon Gods king. The emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties also established the Dragon King. The praise of the emperor raised the status of dragons in China culture.

Originally in Buddhism and Taoism, although the dragon is a god, it does not occupy a prominent position. Therefore, dragons are not worshipped in both Buddhist temples and Taoist temples. However, the decoration of religious buildings is nothing more than the mounts of buddhas and immortals. But in China, the dragon is proud and has become the most religious and independent god outside Buddhism and Taoism. Wang Long Temple is spread all over the country, and Longwang Temple, Chenghuang Temple and Tudi Temple have become temple names all over China.