Chongli was waiting for Wu to return to Hongzhou. During this period, under the supervision of Emperor Fangxun, Yuzai took the cattle and sheep to the edge of the river and prepared things according to the etiquette of ancient times.
It was afternoon, before dusk, which was also one of the rules.
How can we complete the ceremony when it is not in the evening?
"The Book of Rites·Jing Annotation" says: "...The son-in-law greets him when he is faint, and the wife follows accordingly. Therefore, it is said that the son-in-law is called faint, and the wife is called marriage."
This is the origin of "marriage".
In ancient times, from Fuxi Shennong, to Huangdi Chiyou, to Zhuanxu Emperor Ku, from Yao, Shunyu, Xia, Shang and Zhou... Ever since the legendary Fuxi formulated the marriage system, the most basic evening rituals have been
The etiquette system of later generations continued to improve and strengthen this etiquette system.
.......
"The Analects of Confucius·Wei Zheng": [Zizhang asked: "How can we know the ten generations?" Confucius said: "The gains and losses of the Yin Dynasty can be known because of the Xia rituals. The profits and losses of the Zhou Dynasty can be known because of the Yin rituals. They may succeed the Zhou Dynasty.
, even if it lasts for hundreds of generations, it can be known.”]
What is said here is that Zizhang asked Confucius: "Can the etiquette system of the next ten lives be known in advance?"
Confucius replied: "The Shang Dynasty inherited the ritual system of the Xia Dynasty, and the content that was reduced and added can be known; the Zhou Dynasty inherited the ritual system of the Shang Dynasty, and the content that was abolished and added can also be known.
Whoever will inherit the Zhou Dynasty in the future can know in advance what will happen even a hundred generations later."
Therefore, there is another "Tongdian" saying: "The Renhuang clan began with the way of husband and wife. The Fuxi clan organized marriages and used Ripi as a gift; during the Five Emperors' period, parents must be informed when marrying a wife; during the Xia period, the bride was welcomed in the court; during the Yin period
Welcoming the bride in the hall; the Zhou system limits the age of the man and woman, and when the marriage is decided, the six rites and rituals of the people are prepared.】
Here again it is said:
The concept of husband and wife appeared for the first time in the reign of Renhuang. In the reign of Fuxi, deer skins (two pieces) were used as betrothal gifts. In the reign of the Five Emperors, parents were required to notify their parents when marrying a wife. In the Xia Dynasty, the wife was welcomed in the main room of the house.
During the Shang Dynasty, the bride was welcomed in a tall room. In the Zhou Dynasty, when the man and woman were of suitable age, they agreed on a wedding date. This was an engagement, and then they had to go through six etiquettes from the proposal to the marriage.
........
By the time of Shun, there was already a very regular set of procedures. For example, one of the unwritten rules was that when welcoming a bride, you must come to the edge of a stream of water.
In ancient times, the rules for welcoming a bride were very simple. You only need to bring cattle, sheep and food to the edge of a stream, and the woman needs to wait at the edge of the stream early. At the agreed place, the man will meet the woman.
, then sang songs and fell into dusk on the edge of the water.
Next came the betrothal gift part, but Di Fangxun was a generous and wealthy father-in-law. Ruzai was very excited when he heard that Chonghua had obtained a bunch of reverse betrothal gifts from his father-in-law.
This is also a famous incident. When Shun married his wife, the betrothal gift was returned in full, but Emperor Yao paid part of it. Now that Azai is here, it seems that the gift has been even more severe.
Di Fangxun has prepared a bunch of things. Of course, most of his goods are in the Central Plains and it is impossible to bring them, so he has prepared a lot of wooden signs for exchange, just like food stamps and oil stamps...
When the princes came to the distant place, Di Fangxun spoke to the elderly tour group members and said that today my daughter got married on the edge of the river. This is a great joy. You must give some red envelopes this time. You can't excuse it with the breeze on your sleeves.
Already.
Yu Zai came here and saw Ehuang who had been waiting for a long time.
It's simple. There are no people asking for prizes or wrecking cars. That was the custom of the Tang Dynasty. At that time, some ministers said that this rule was not good and caused gangsters and bullies to come out to make trouble. There was no spreading beans, which appeared in the Song Dynasty.
Folklore.
Everything has been prepared for a long time. The sun began to set in the west, the light of dusk emerged faintly, the water gurgled, and the river surged to the east. The light of the setting sun fell at the end of the river, far away to the other side of the mountains.
.
The fiery red gods are about to fall from the Tianhe. In the heaven and earth of my hometown, outside the distant giant city, on the banks of the surging eastward river, from the markets and villages where smoke lingers, the sounds of cocks and dogs barking can be heard.
, the sounds of people shouting to each other, the low sounds of cattle and sheep, are like distant and hazy ancient dreams.
Therefore, both men and women should sing the songs of etiquette and agreement together.
"Qianqian, Mingqian, Laoqian,? Qian."
The voice is not very pleasant, and the lyrics are a bit unclear.
But this ballad is the oldest primitive agreement. This agreed song of faint love developed from the behavior of birds. It was observed by people, integrated into their lives, and then spread and sung.
This song is saying:
[The pheasants fly together, the male and female sing in harmony, sometimes encouraging each other, sometimes raising their wings to attract each other.]
The pheasant, Tongqian in ancient times, is the image of a flying bird, and its meaning is - "flying bird".
There are no more unnecessary steps. People face the west, the light of dusk has completely fallen, the peaceful sounds of all the spirits in the sky and the earth, and the birds are singing in harmony.
"Under the sky, the birds sing in harmony. This is because it is getting dark, and the female birds guarding the newly laid eggs in the grass nest are calling to go out to look for eggs at the end of spring.
I hope they will come back soon."
After Yuzai finished singing the song, she pointed at the birds in the sky and said this.
Many of people's behaviors were transformed from the behaviors of animals. These primitive behaviors gradually changed from barbarism to civilization, and etiquette was born... In nature, male birds woo female birds
When traveling, I will also bring some gifts, some are bugs, some are tail feathers, and some are real estate (exquisite nests).
So, on the horizon, facing the light of dusk, the male birds flew back from the mountains. They flapped their wings and descended to the other side of the mountains in the west, landing in their own grass nests.
then!
Gather all the thousands of golden lights into the down feathers and hold them in the chests of men and women, the clouds will turn red, the mountains and rivers of the earth will be reflected in a golden light, and the entire world will become resplendent. This is an era of passion and unrestrained passion.
In the ancient times, there should be enthusiastic men shooting bows and arrows, riding on cattle and horses, and snatching away the shy and beautiful women with blushing cheeks.
The dusk birds return to their nests, and it is getting late.
One of the most beautiful colors in the world, Yu Zai brought Ehuang to the ceremony here. In the witness of people, the woman's cheeks went from crimson to pink, and then gradually dimmed again.
.........
Although the dusk moment has passed, the "sun" still insists on occupying most of the "night sky". The "night sky" cannot remain dark, like soaked oil paper, wrapped by the "sun", and it is transparent.
After passing the light, it was impossible to tell them apart, so the night after the sunset faded took on a bright red color.