The ground inside the cave was made of stone slabs and was bumpy and uneven. The tractor drove on it and vibrated violently. Suddenly, it jumped. Zhang Guifang tilted her body and leaned against Jin Huabin. Jin Huabin hurriedly stretched out his hands to support him.
People unconsciously leaned together. Although the light was dim, Master Wu had been making a living breaking rocks in the cave for a long time and was already used to it. He asked jokingly: "What's the hurry for you two to come here to see me?"
Jin Huabin hurriedly let go of Zhang Guifang and said, "We are not a young couple." But she moved closer to him. In the headlight, Master Wu smiled mysteriously. After a while, they came to the stone-cutting place at the entrance of the cave.<
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There are two semi-finished stone windows on the site. The tools for stone window carving are very simple. A stone hammer, a few steel drills and rock chisels are enough to start work. However, the craftsmanship and process of stone window carving are very complicated and require material selection.
, setting out, drawing, rough carving, shallow carving, blanking, fine carving, fine carving, polishing, waxing, glazing and more than ten processes. These two semi-finished products have completed material selection, setting out, drawing, roughing and so on.
Carving, the shallow carving is in the process of carving out the air, and the other piece is in the rough carving stage.
"Wow, this vanilla dragon is so delicately carved." Jin Huabin exclaimed when he saw the half-finished product.
"Do you know the name of this dragon?" Master Wu opened his eyes wide and stared at him in disbelief. Although he has been engaged in carving for more than 50 years, he mostly carried out staking operations according to the patterns passed down by the master. He himself only knew the names of the patterns.
But they don’t understand the significance of the carved works.
Because he works at a cultural station and is a subject that the webmaster is concerned about, Jin Huabin has been involved in this aspect a few days ago. With Zhang Guifang nearby, it is a great opportunity, so he speculates now.
Salesi showed off what he had just learned to everyone and said: "Look at the carvings. Its head is like a dragon, and its body is long and slender, like vines and grass leaves. Some of the dragons spit out a lotus, and some spit out a lotus.
Spit out a few strings of pearls. This dragon pattern is called "Vanilla Dragon" because the body of this dragon pattern is indeed painted like graceful grass leaves. However, the name "Vanilla Dragon" is only named because of the resemblance, and does not reflect why it is used.
The reason why the dragon pattern is painted like this. There is also a story about why this kind of dragon is carved in this shape."
After a pause, he saw that several people on the side were listening attentively, and he continued to preach proudly: "Once, Zhiji had an exchange with Manjushri Bodhisattva in Lingjiu Mountain. Manjushri said: I preached in the salt water sea.
Talking about the Lotus Sutra of Wonderful Dharma. There was a daughter of a Dragon King who was only eight years old, but had great "wisdom and sharpness."
The Dharma can be recited verbally, which is both subtle and vast. Zhiji had doubts about this, so he asked: Buddha Sakyamuni finally became a Buddha after going through countless hardships of practice. I don't believe in a dragon.
The woman became a Buddha in an instant. As soon as she finished speaking, the dragon girl suddenly appeared in the Dharma assembly.
So, how do we specifically express the story of "Dragon Girl Becoming a Buddha" in stone carvings? First of all, "Dragon Girl" is also a dragon, so the characteristics of a dragon must be drawn. The head and front half of the dragon's body in porcelain paintings express this.
Secondly, the "dragon girl" is a woman, and flowers and plants are most likely to remind people of the softness of women, so the artist painted the dragon's body in the shape of flowers and plants. Thirdly, how does "becoming a Buddha" appear? According to "Devada"
According to the story of "Duopin", the dragon girl is "unimpeded in eloquence" and is good at "reciting the mind or mouth" of the "wonderful Dharma" of Buddhist scriptures. Shi Chuang made lotus and pearls grow out of the dragon's mouth to represent that it is a dragon that has become a Buddha. The former
It means "speaking of lotuses", and the latter means "a stream of witty words". Both states are symbols of the exquisite sermons after becoming a Buddha."
"So there is a saying that cultural people are cultural people. I have been carving dragons for forty years, and I only understand the truth today." Master Wu suddenly realized, "No wonder Director Zhang wants you to participate in the discussion.
." Pointing to another stone window pattern, he said: "This time, I took a small order. The doors and windows of an ancestral hall in a village were broken, and they asked me to carve them again. What does this mean?"
This window lattice was only in the rough carving stage, but the prototype could still be seen. After careful observation, Jin Huabin said: "I don't know if I am right. This is called Kuilong. It was used in the decoration of bronzes in the late Shang Dynasty and the Western Zhou Dynasty.
The Kuilong pattern is one of the main patterns. The image is mostly a long strip with an open mouth and a curly tail. The shape is consistent with the structural line of the bronze veneer. It is mainly straight lines, supplemented by arcs, and has an ancient aesthetic feeling. Our
This pattern is found in history textbooks."
Master Wu told his two apprentices: "I have something to do and I have to go to the city. You should follow my instructions to open the stone slab first and stop carving." After that, he changed his clothes and took a car back to the city together.
In the car, Master Wu sighed with emotion: "I'm getting old, old man. I can't find a suitable apprentice to pass on my mantle. You see, the current third apprentice can do rough work. But when it comes to fine work, his eyes turn white.
It’s up to me, an old man, to do it myself. Even at such an old age, the stone hammer is getting heavier and heavier in my hand, and in a few years I won’t be able to swing it anymore.”
There are few successors to traditional crafts. This is the normal state of the industry. This is especially true for stone carving and other industries that require a lot of effort, make little money, and work hard. Studying and going to college is the way out for young people nowadays. Those with poor grades can even be engaged in this industry.
, with limited IQ and no eyesight, it is difficult to learn the craftsmanship of the master.
"I think back then, in the 1970s and 1980s, I had more than 20 apprentices. As long as I shouted, half the street would be shaken." Master Wu shook his head and said, "In the 1990s, all of them were
Give up your profession and do the rough work of picking bricks. We are fine workers. Do you think it's strange that rough work is more profitable than fine work?"
What caused the decline of the stone window industry was essentially the abundance of building materials. Cement pouring replaced stone slab carving. With a set of molds, it was easy to pour dozens of sets of window lattice in a day. With stone slab carving, it took several days to produce one set. This is the result of social development.
Inevitably, Master Wu's craftsmanship is indeed excellent, and the window lattice he carved is exquisite. Although Jin Huabin has some ideas about the commodity transformation that Zhang Guifang's father is thinking about, he has no idea.
As soon as the car stopped in the workshop under the big camphor tree, Master Wu shouted loudly: "Brother Zhang, I have learned a lot today." As he spoke, he pointed to the dragon carved on the tombstone and said: "There is also a vanilla dragon here.
Such a nice allusion, brother, I have been carving stone windows all my life, and I have dozens of dragon windows, but I have never heard anyone say it."
After finishing speaking, he retold the story of Vanilla Dragon and Dragon Girl becoming Buddha, patted Jin Huabin on the shoulder and said: "Brother, you have found the right son-in-law, awesome!"
It’s only been a week since they went on a blind date, and they’re already a son-in-law? These words made the two of them blush with embarrassment, but they felt very sweet in their hearts.