Chapter 1870: A few can carry a boat, but a large number can’t flood the crops.
According to records, the Forbidden City suffered a total of 13 lightning strikes during the Ming Dynasty, and Chiki was struck six times out of seven. The building was not damaged, and Chiki was indispensable.
There are still many of these hidden dragon-shaped stone carvings in the Forbidden City.
For example, another dragon child hidden on the roof of the Forbidden City is Suanni.
It looks like a lion and ranks fifth. It prefers quietness to movement. It likes sitting and fireworks. Therefore, the foot decorations on the Buddha's seat and the incense burner are its portraits.
The Hall of Supreme Harmony in the Forbidden City is the highest-level ancient building. There are 10 small beasts arranged on the horn ridge.
The sequence is: "One dragon, two phoenixes, three lions, seahorses, celestial horses, six fishes, nine bullfights, nine bullfights, and the last one behaves like a monkey."
These mythical beasts symbolize the supremacy of imperial power, so it is normal for them to appear here in large numbers.
There are other dragons like this, such as Chilong.
There is a chi-head in the Forbidden City, which is the patron saint of the ancient bridge.
Recently, it has been reported that the Palace Museum has a collection of "Beast Species" made by the Qing Dynasty.
"The Book of Beasts" was first painted in the fifteenth year of Qianlong's reign. Emperor Qianlong attached great importance to it and successively appointed eight military ministers, including Fu Heng and Liu Tongxun, to participate in the revision.
It was written by court painters Yu Sheng and Zhang Weibang and was completed in the 26th year of Qianlong's reign.
This animal illustration contains a total of 180 different portraits of auspicious animals, exotic animals, mythical animals and ordinary animals. It is of great value in both academic and artistic aspects.
In fact, various mythical beasts not only exist on the map, they are also hidden in the corners of the Forbidden City today.
Not every animal can find a place in the Forbidden City.
The mythical beasts that sit in different directions in the Forbidden City usually have some special meaning behind them.
Chi is a hornless dragon in ancient Chinese myths and legends.
Legend has it that it is the favorite son of the dragon. It lives near the water, is adventurous and brave, and is the patron saint of the ancient bridge.
Although the head of Chishou looks a bit like a dragon, it is flatter than a dragon's head and is closer to a beast.
It has a bit of a leopard look, with a pair of horns on its head.
The reason why there are horns is inseparable from the feudal imperial power and is the birth product of power.
In reality, Chishou can often be seen in the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven and other classic royal buildings in ancient my country.
If you can't remember the name Chishou, it has another name that's easy to remember, which is called Water-avoiding Beast.
The mount of the Bull Demon King in "Journey to the West" is called a water-avoiding golden crystal beast. Although it is not explicitly mentioned in "Journey to the West", it looks very similar to this thing.
Legend has it that a long time ago, Chi's ancestors were demoted to the earth for violating the rules of heaven and were pressed under a huge and heavy turtle shell to guard the canal for 1,000 years.
Because of its good nature and good water-loving ability, it can adjust the water volume so that "little water can carry boats and more water will not flood crops". It protects a place of peace and is highly respected by the people.
Thousands of years later, Chi's ancestors finally gained freedom and escaped from the turtle shell.
In order to commemorate and commend his family's contribution to protecting the river, later generations carved a stone statue with the shape of the supernatural creature's head and placed it on a stone grate by the river.
The ancients believed that doing this could calm the river, prevent floods, and mean peace in all directions.
Chi heads often appeared in ancient bronze decorations, on the foreheads of monuments, and in seals.
The Han Dynasty was the period when chi patterns were at their peak, and they were so numerous that they can be seen on many jades.
It is not clear when the chi head was introduced into ancient buildings.
It is generally a special component on royal buildings and is a typical representative of Chinese dragon culture.
The most numerous stone carvings in the Forbidden City are the white marble Chi heads.
Chishou has been used in architecture for more than 1,500 years.
After the vicissitudes of history, the shape and functional meaning of the chi head have become slightly different.
The earliest extant stone chi head is from the Southern and Northern Dynasties, which is flat and long. The whole chi head does not have many decorative patterns and looks simple and elegant.
In the Tang Dynasty, Chishou had a fierce face and a powerful expression, and was endowed with the function of exorcising ghosts and warding off evil spirits.
The chishou of the Yuan Dynasty was more solid and vigorous.
By the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Chi Shou became a symbol of the absolute authority of the feudal emperor.
The current Chishou of the Forbidden City was left over from the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
In the three main halls of the Forbidden City - Taihe Hall, Zhonghe Hall, and Baohe Hall, the Xumizuo platform is surrounded by white marble railings.
Under the pillar with dragon and phoenix cloud patterns, a stone carved dragon head sticks out. This is the Chi head.
Among the many chi heads, those located at the corners of the high platform are larger, while others are smaller.
Among them, the big Chi head is carved with forearms, showing a powerful and invincible look, like a corner pillar stone.
It has a forearm and a dragon head carved into one corner of a square base.
The muscles of the forearm are strong and the tendons of the dragon's claws are protruding.
The toes are embedded into the stone base, the elbows are half-bent, ready to go, with the potential to leap into the air;
The dragon head is more delicately carved, with bared teeth and raised jaws, and is powerful and fierce, as if it can swallow mountains and rivers once it emerges from the sky, fully demonstrating the majesty of the royal family.
The carving craftsmanship of the small Chi's head is not inferior to that of the Big Chi's head. The Chi's head is slightly raised, the dragon's horns touch the pillars, the round eyes are curled up on the nose, and there is a small hole in the mouth for drainage.
It is said that chichis have no horns, but if you look closely, you will find that they look like they have horns on their heads in the Forbidden City.
These are all in the shape of a two-horned dragon, with a slightly open mouth and exposed teeth, and are not fierce.
This is because during the Ming and Qing dynasties, Chishou, Qilin, and Zhengqi were all regarded as dragons, and the dragon was a symbol of imperial power and had horns, so they were given a new shape.
There are a total of 1,142 dragon heads on the three main halls of the Forbidden City.
Except for the faucet protruding from the corner of each platform base, the other faucets have a small hole in the middle of the teeth, and the hole behind it is larger, thus creating pressure.
When it rains heavily, thousands of dragon mouths drain water together, forming a magnificent scene of "thousands of dragons spitting water".
Not only that, the cold wind in winter is covered with snow, and a small stream of water flows out from the small hole in the mouth of the mythical beast, forming ice crystals, which is nicknamed "ambergris saliva".
It has different views throughout the year. This design not only drains the water, but also highlights the majesty of the royal family.
In addition to the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven's Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests also has a three-story platform. The drainage component on the first floor platform is the cloud head, the second floor is the phoenix head, and the third floor is the chi head.
It has thick eyebrows, round eyes, a wide nose, a big mouth, and bared teeth, giving it a powerful image.
Another famous place for hiding dragons in the Forbidden City is the famous Nine Dragon Wall.
The Nine Dragon Wall is located outside the Huangji Gate in the Ningshou Palace District of the Forbidden City, which is now the Treasure Hall of the Forbidden City.
The wall is 29.4m long, 3.5m high and 0.45m thick. It is a single-sided glazed screen wall built against the palace wall.
This nine-dragon wall was built during the reconstruction of Ningshou Palace in the 37th year of Qianlong's reign.
Among the yang numbers, nine is the extreme number, and five is the middle number.
The "Ninth Five-Year Plan" system is an important manifestation of the emperor's respect.
There is also a saying that the nine dragons on the Nine Dragon Wall represent the nine sons of the dragon.
In ancient Chinese myths and legends, a dragon has nine sons, and if the nine sons fail to become a dragon, each has its own interests.