Spiritual Worship in the Jade Culture of Lingjiatan in Maanshan

The Lingjiatan site is located in Lingjiatan Village, Changgang Administrative Village, Tongzha Town, Hanshan County, Ma'anshan City, Anhui Province. Since its discovery in 1985, Anhui Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology has been in June, November, 1998. Five excavations were carried out in November, October 2000 and May 2007. A total of 48 burial burials, 6 ash pits, 1 altar, and thousands of jade artifacts were unearthed. Among them, the jade turtle unearthed from 87M4, the jade pig unearthed from 07M23, and the jade man unearthed from 87M21 and 98M29 are the most precious. Jade turtles, jade pigs, and jade people serve as burial rituals in the cemetery, which contain the spiritual state of the ancestors of Lingjiatan. Through the study of the jade used in the burial of the burial, we can peek into the spiritual worship of the ancestors of Lingjiatan and reproduce the social and spiritual state at that time.

玉龟

Jade turtle

Lingjiatan "87M4 unearthed a piece of jade turtle, consisting of two parts: the carapace and the plastron. The two sides of the carapace are drilled with two round holes. The two round holes are honed with grooves, and the carapace is drilled with four round holes. On the two sides of the plastron, there are two round holes drilled in each pair, and one round hole is drilled in the tail of the plastron. When the bone is unearthed, there is a rectangular jade plate sandwiched between the back of the jade turtle."

In the "One hundred Years of Oracle" co-authored by Wang Yuxin and Mr. Yang Shengnan, it is mentioned that the tortoise shell used for divination "has been cut, sawed, cut, wrong, scraped, ground, perforated, etc., has become a routine process of remediation" The unearthed jade turtle jade version has the appearance of artificial drilling, these jade turtles, jade version may be used for divination. There is also a record in the "Historical Records of the Turtles": "Slightly smelling the Xia Yin Buddhism, but taking the turtle, it has been abandoned, thinking that the turtle is not working, but for a long time, it is not God." There has been a case of using a tortoise shell for divination. Then, according to the ancestors of Lingjiatan not far from the Xia Dynasty, there is also the possibility of using tortoise shells for divination. Therefore, it can be speculated that this jade turtle jade unearthed from 87M4 is likely to be the shogun used by the ancestors of Lingjiatan.

In the middle of a jade version unearthed in 87M4, there is a perfect circle with a pattern resembling an eight-pointed star, and the eight-mans are in the same season of the year (the beginning of spring, spring equinox, summer, summer solstice, autumn, autumn, winter, winter solstice). ) Spring, summer, autumn and winter, successively, reciprocating, the ancestors attributed it to the strength of the sun, so the eight-mans that deal with the eight seasons may be the sun. There are also "four positives" (Zhengdong, Zhengnan, Zhengxi, Zhengbei) and "four-dimensional" (Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, Southwest). The eight sides can be opposite to the "eight-mansions". The ancient Tianyuan places are represented by the eight squares. It is a vast land, and Qiankun is relatively, then the "four positives" and "four dimensions" represent the sun. From this, the pattern of the eight-pointed star in the jade plate is most likely the shape of the sun.

In addition to the perfect circle around the eight-pointed star, there are eight regular branches and leaves, pointing to the north, the south, the east, the west, the northeast, the northwest, the southeast, and the southwest. The eight leaf patterns are surrounded by a positive circle, and there are four leaf patterns in the same circle as the circle, pointing to the northwest, northeast, southwest, and southeast directions. These twelve leaf-shaped patterns coincide with the number of "four positive" and "four-dimensional". Thus, these leaf-shaped patterns may represent the social gods of all directions. In Cai Yi’s "Don't Break", there is a saying: "Society God ... thinks that the local government, the world depends on its merits, and that it is a society. Anyone who wants to make the people of the tree want to be respected is also suitable for their wilderness. The wood is named after the society and its wild." It can be seen that since ancient times, people have regarded trees as the embodiment of social gods. Therefore, it is not surprising that the ancestors of Lingjiatan used the leaf-shaped pattern of eight directions to represent the practice of the Eight-Party Society. Mr. Yu Weichao believes that this piece of jade is used by the ancestors to symbolize the gods and the gods. Then, the ancestors through the divination in front of the jade version, pray, ask tribal events, convey the questions and answers to the heavens and earth and gain the revelation of the heavens and the earth, it can be seen that there has been a natural worship of the heavens and the earth.

Seeing animal worship from jade pigs

Jade Pig Stone Carving

In the fifth excavation of Lingjiatan in May 2007, a large jade stone sculpture was unearthed in M23. This jade pig is about 72 cm in length, 32 cm in width and weighs 88 kg [7]. It is the largest and heaviest jade pig carving that appears in China's archaeological discoveries. The whole jade pig is made up of a whole set of tremolite. The pig's body is cylindrical, and the head of the pig is portrayed. It is engraved with a pair of standing ears and a fine dentition groove. It may have been attached with a pair of fangs. The jade pig's mouth is highlighted with a depression, and there is a nostril on the nostril, which is vivid. Through its alveolar and body characteristics, it can be concluded that the prototype of this jade pig should be a wild boar. After the stratigraphic analysis of the jade pig and the M23 tomb, it can be found that the jade pig is in the same age as the tomb, which means that the jade pig is one of the funerary objects of the M23 tomb. However, through field investigations, it was found that the position of the jade pig statue is very special, not inside the tomb, but on the upper end of the tomb and breaking the altar. The form is very similar to the sacred beast in the ancient noble tomb. The M23 tombs under the jade pigs are extremely rich in cultural relics. They contain hundreds of pieces of funerary objects including more than 200 jade articles. They are one of the most abundant tombs discovered since several excavations. It can be inferred that the tomb owner of the M23 tomb is most likely a leader or a witch in the Lingjiatan tribe. In the "15th Anniversary of Zuo Chuan Ai Gong", there is a saying that "the death of a person is like a matter of life, and the ceremony is also a gift". The jade pig is on the tomb of M23, the tomb of the tomb. It is very likely to be a guarding mausoleum. Use. However, it seems that using wild boar as a grazing beast is too shabby, but it is not. The wild boar is thick and strong, with a large head and short limbs. The average body length is 1.5 to 2 meters and weighs about 100 kilograms. Adult male wild boars have a pair of canine teeth about 10 cm long, 5 cm of which are exposed outside the mouth, forming cavities that can be used as weapons. Wild boars are aggressive, aggressive, and not afraid of tigers and wolves, eating crops and eating raw meat. It can be seen that wild boars are extremely threatening to humans. Not only that, but the breeding ability of wild boars is also very strong. Each year, wild boars can give birth to 2 to 2.5 births, with 8 to 16 piglets per litter. In other words, a sow can produce at least 16 piglets a year. This kind of creature with strong attacking power and fertility is a must for the ancestors. Wild boars are both omnivorous animals, so the food crops planted by the ancestors are often eaten by wild boars. Wild boars are extremely destructive, and often a wild boar can steal a whole piece of plantation. In fact, from the point of view of the wild boar's food intake, the crops that were cultivated by the ancestors at that time were not lost. The destructive power was that the wild boars would run back and forth in the crops while eating, and the loss of all of them came from this. . This situation is a very fatal blow to the production and life of the aborigines in the ancient times when the production materials were extremely scarce. The wild boar is larger and has a strong attacking ability. One or two people cannot expel the "invasive" wild boar. Therefore, once the local people find that wild boars are close to each other, the people will often be dispatched by the whole family, and even several people will be dispatched to expel wild boars and protect crops. Over time, the wild boar slowly formed a horrible and powerful image in the hearts of the ancestors, and was gradually magically and demonized by thought. Therefore, it is very normal to use the wild boar as a beast to protect the tomb from the tomb of M23. This kind of beast that guards the mausoleum has appeared many times in history. It is only because of the expansion of the mausoleum that the position of the guardian beast is different. For example, the guardian beast of the Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum has appeared on the Shinto. The beasts such as 豸, 麒麟, and other ceremonial beasts such as lions, elephants, camels, etc., all have one thing in common, that is, these sacred beasts have a lofty status in the society at that time, including the meaning of evil spirits. Therefore, the spiritual status of the jade pig, also used as a grazing beast, in the Lingjiatan society is self-evident. And this also reflects the factors of the animal worship in the thoughts of Lingjiatan ancestors.

In the excavation of the Lingjiatan site in June 1987, the Anhui Provincial Institute of Archaeology unearthed three statues of jade people. Among them, two pieces are broken and one piece is complete. In the subsequent third excavation, three statues of jade people were unearthed in the tomb of M29. The three jade people unearthed later were the same as those unearthed in 1987. The only difference is that the three pieces unearthed after the excavation are the leg-legged postures, and the three pieces unearthed first are straight leg standing positions.

The six jade people unearthed are all front-facing, wide-faced, wide-eyed eyes and eyebrows, the ears are long and vertical, the nose is bad nose, and the facial expression is very solemn and pious. The jade people bend back and bend their arms, and the palms are inward, showing prayers. Perhaps the jade people are shaping the image of worship and prayer. It is not difficult to see from the shape of the jade. The facial features of the jade people unearthed from Lingjiatan are not the abstract idols of giant eyes and cows in other cultures, basically the same as human faces. It can be seen that these jade people should be carved by someone who has actually existed in the Lingjiatan tribe, not a imaginary god. In the head of the jade, there is a plaid decoration. In the 87M15, the crown parts are very similar. The crown top has a herringbone style. Mr. Wang Renxiang thinks that this decoration is the stringer crown of the prehistoric Chinese people. The crown. At the waist of the jade, the wrist is also decorated, the twill of the waist may represent the belt, and the ring pattern of the wrist may represent 5 to 8 bracelets. The bracelet of this ornament is in the 87M10 and 87T11. It is unearthed, made of translucent tremolite, polished surface, and has an outer diameter of about 5 cm, which can be used for decoration. This kind of decoration, such as shackles, belts, bracelets, etc., was extremely high in the era when production materials were scarce at the time, and it was very complicated and could not be owned by ordinary civilians. The form of jade-like dressing and decoration has also been discovered in the Shang Dynasty. It is used to show the noble status of nobles and sacrifices. In Lingjiatan society, which was earlier than the Shang Dynasty for thousands of years, it can be equipped with such ornaments. Noble identity should be more than Yin Shang.

Since ancient times, there has been a case where a ancestor with great merits was engraved on the wood for sacrifice. The book "The Ancient Bamboo Book of the Year" has the words "The Yellow Emperor is the immortal, and the minister has the left-hander, the cut wood is The image of the Yellow Emperor, the handsome princes and the dynasty of the dynasty." This is used for the ancestor of the ancestor wood portrait is the "wooden master", its material is not necessarily, according to "Speaking the text field note" records "Xia Hou's pine, Xia Ren Duhedong, Hedong Yisong also. Yin people with cypress, Yin people are all 亳. 亳 柏 柏. Zhou people with chestnuts, Zhou people are rich. Feng Yi Yi Li also." Visible, what material used to engrave "wood master "It is determined by the local specialty of the ancestors." A large number of jade vessels unearthed in the Lingjiatan site can be seen that the jade in the Lingjiatan society is very rich, so it is not surprising that the ancestors used jade to replace the carved figures of wood.

Through observation, it was found that there were a horizontal perforation on the back of these six jade people, which was obviously used for wearing rope. As for the pair of perforations, there have been records in the "Arts and Literatures". "The shape of the wooden master, the square, the central, to reach the square." It can be seen that the perforation behind the wooden body is an ancient traditional custom. Not only that, but these perforations are also useful in terms of practicality. By wearing a string in the perforation, you can not only hang the jade, but also place it in the ancestral temple as a ancestor card. You can also tie it up and hang it on the altar or the neck of the sorcerer, acting as a substitute for the ancestor god to pray and Sacrifice, this reflects the ancestor worship of the ancestors of Lingjiatan.

All in all, in the Lingjiatan society more than 5,000 years ago, the ideological worship is very obvious and very complicated. It includes both the natural worship caused by the fear of heaven and earth, and the animal worship caused by the fierce animals that are hard to resist. There is an ancestor worship of the ancestors. These all reflect the complex mental state of Lingjiatan at that time. Perhaps the Lingjiatan society thousands of years ago is in a period of great confusion and great changes in thought, which will be left to be studied on the basis of cultural relics unearthed in Lingjiatan.

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