The vixen, also known as the fox fairy, is commonly known as the Great Immortal among the people. It has high magical power and can transform into human form. "Xuanzhongji" mentioned in a serious way: "A fox can change into a woman at fifty years old, a beautiful woman at hundred years old, a witch, and can know things thousands of miles away. It is good at bewitching people and makes people confused and insane. At a thousand years old, it is in harmony with the sky. Tong, for the sky fox. "The vixen first appeared in an auspicious and positive image. In ancient times, there was fox totem worship, and the Tushan clan, Chunhu clan, Yousu clan and other tribes all belonged to the fox totem clan. The vixen also made outstanding contributions to the establishment of China's first slave dynasty, the Xia Dynasty. Legend has it that when Dayu was controlling floods, Yu was busy all day and had no intention of making a girlfriend. He looked like a promising young man who put his career first, and was about to die. Once he walked to Tushan and saw a nine-tailed white fox (nine tails means many descendants). He was moved, so he married a wife and had children here. His son Qi later became the founding king of the Xia Dynasty. Since then, China's long feudal society has unprecedentedly persecuted and suppressed the character and psychology of people, especially women. This repressive mentality has become the best breeding ground for the birth of the "Fox Fairy" culture. "Chao Ye Qian Zai" records: "The people are busy with the fox god. They offer sacrifices to the fox god in their houses to ask for favors. They eat and drink the same as in the human world. The person who does it is not the same person. There is a saying from time to time: Without fox charm, there is no village." It can be seen from this that foxes In feudal society, it was first favored by women and regarded it as a god to please their spouses. In the eyes of the ancients, the fox's beautiful fur, small and cute body and cunning temperament can only be compared with the charming woman. The fox also seems to represent some kind of mysterious spirit, especially when it comes to women’s character psychology. The fox had the most respected status in the pre-Qin and Han Dynasties, and was one of the four auspicious signs along with the dragon, unicorn and phoenix. In stone carvings and brick paintings of the Han Dynasty, nine-tailed foxes often appear alongside white rabbits, toads, and bluebirds next to the Queen Mother's throne to show auspiciousness. Some people have concluded that foxes have three virtues: their soft fur is in line with the golden mean; their body is small in front and big in the back, which is in line with the order of dignity; and when they die, they turn their heads to their own burrows, which means they do not forget their roots. It can be inferred from this that foxes lived a very prosperous life during the two thousand years between the Summer Solstice and the Han Dynasty. After the Han Dynasty, the status of vixens as auspicious signs declined sharply. All the good words about foxes are gone, and what is left are some unseemly words, such as suspicion, flirtatiousness, body odor, etc., which have almost become a base of derogatory words. Over time, the vixen has become synonymous with problematic lifestyles and has become a famous lewd beast that has yet to recover. The stories of fox fairies in the Han Dynasty are relatively primitive, rarely have positive meanings, and the magical powers of foxes are also limited. It was not until the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties that foxes began to humanize, becoming extremely powerful, and acquiring human emotions and intelligence. For example, in the book "Miscellaneous Notes of Xijing" written by Ge Hong, there is a story about the white fox from the ancient tomb turning into an old man and entering his dream. There are many works about foxes in the book "Sou Shen Ji", which shows that Jin people like to talk about fox fairies and it has become a fashion. However, the plot of the novel is simple and stylized, the ending is tragic, and there is no human touch at all. Although the fox spirit in the story has great magical powers, it has its own natural weaknesses. For example, they are afraid of dogs and will show their original shape when they encounter them; in addition, foxes are smelly and still have their tails after deformation. In the Tang Dynasty, fox fairy novels were still popular, and articles such as "Ren Shi" and "Ji Zhen" began to publicize supernatural events related to foxes. In the Song Dynasty, the "Fox King Temple" appeared among the people; in the Ming Dynasty, there were fewer and fewer works about foxes. By the Qing Dynasty, note-taking novels represented by "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" and "Notes from Yuewei Thatched Cottage" became popular again. "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is a culmination of the work of the Fox Fairy, reaching its pinnacle. The fox fairies in Pu Songling's works combine all the virtues of human beings and become good friends of human beings. They emphasize friendship and respect true love, and are actually more lovable than human beings. When talking about vixens, one must mention the demon fox. The concept of demon fox first appeared in the Han Dynasty. "Shuowen Jiezi" written by Xu Shen of the Eastern Han Dynasty said: "Foxes are demon beasts, and they can be ridden by others." Demon foxes in legends and novels have supernatural powers, and most of them transform into A beautiful woman can acquire wealth and predict people's misfortunes and fortunes. The most important feature is that it serves as a symbol of eroticism and attracts the opposite sex. Therefore, sexy and charming women are called vixens among the people, and in ancient times they were called "fox-meizi". Since she is a fox, her nature is to be charming. Being passionately in love with a poor scholar is undoubtedly a waste of the charm skills of the fox fairies, and is overkill. So Charming the Emperor becomes the vixen's best choice. As a result, vixen has become synonymous with beauty and disaster. According to the logic of patriarchal society, the reason why a foolish king is foolish is always because one or several women are bad. Therefore, the king of the subjugated country will probably have something to do with these "funny people".
In the enlightenment reading "Young Learning Qionglin", the children can't wait to educate the children to "beware of vixens": "Three generations of country subjugation, Xia Jie used his sister to rejoice, Shang Zhou used Daji, Zhou You praised Si." According to this, Xia Jie praised his sister. Meixi, the concubine of the last emperor Jie, can be called "the best vixen in the ages". If Yu Xi can be regarded as the "number one through the ages", then Daji can be regarded as a model of vixen. Daji's crime in the "Historical Records·Yin Benji" is just that "(Zhou) only used women's words"; but in the era of "The Biography of Women", the cannons and heart-cutting were all attributed to Daji's instigation. In the Yuan dramas, Daji was assigned to do many tragic things, such as eating a basin, knocking her shins, having a caesarean section, and framing Empress Jiang. By the time Xu Zhonglin wrote "The Romance of the Gods" in the Ming Dynasty, Daji had been portrayed as a nine-tailed vixen who combined evil and beauty, deceived King Zhou according to the will of the gods, and ruined the Shang Dynasty for 600 years. Nowadays, whenever people talk about vixen, they can't help but think of Daji. Modern vixen: A "vixen" can be defined as a "coquettish", "loose" and "shameless" woman who is good at using various means to seduce men. "Vixens" can be beautiful, but unfortunately, are usually not recognized.
In the writings of the Warring States Period, mythical beasts based on foxes appeared, and foxes were endowed with the ability to cause mischief and mutate. The "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals" at that time recorded that in order to control floods, Dayu was thirty years old but not yet married. When he went to Tushan, he met a nine-tailed white fox and heard the blessing song of the Tushan people: "O big white fox, The nine tails are long and long. May you get married soon and your descendants will be prosperous. "The Spring and Autumn Annals of Wuyue in the Eastern Han Dynasty also contains the legend of Dayu marrying a Tushan girl who was transformed from a nine-tailed white fox. The magical fox can transform into a human being, which is the prototype of the fox becoming a spirit. It is said that the name "Fox Spirit" originated in the early Tang Dynasty. The article "Fox God" in "Taiping Guangji" says: "Since the early Tang Dynasty, people have worshiped the fox god. At that time, there was a proverb: 'Without fox charm, there is no village.'" The word "charm" is explained in "Shuowen" as "Old things are fine". "Fox Mei" means "fox spirit". The emergence of the term "fox spirit" reflects that "fox spirit" already exists as an independent image in people's consciousness and folk beliefs. The "vixen" transforms into a human form, visiting guests to eat and drink, or coming to ask for wives and concubines. Its emotions and behaviors are all shaped in human patterns. In the fantasy novels after the Tang Dynasty, such as "Rong Zhai Essays" by Hong Mai in the Southern Song Dynasty and "Strange Stories from a Liaozhai Studio" by Pu Songling in the Qing Dynasty, vixens with different personalities and full of human touch are active everywhere. In the Book of Songs, the hidden meaning of fox is sexual love. "Sou Shen Ji" quoted a Taoist saying: "The fox is an ancient prostitute, and her name is Azi." The ancients regarded foxes as elves and ghosts with lustful temperaments and deceiving people with their beauty. In addition, there are legends about foxes becoming spirits. The descriptions of many coquettish and passionate vixens in folk novels have led to people referring to sexy and alluring bad women or beautiful women as "vixens" in common parlance. A story in "Historical Records": In July of the first year of Qin II, the imperial court sent 900 people to garrison Yuyang, and Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were both camp commanders. When the team marched to Daze Township, it rained heavily and the road was blocked. If these people fail to arrive as scheduled, according to the laws of the Qin Dynasty, they all have to be beheaded. So Chen Sheng and Wu Guang discussed: If you rush to Yuyang, you will die, if you don't go, you will die. Let's just revolt and fight vigorously! Wu Guang agreed and asked a fortune teller to calculate the fortune. The soothsayer told them that the project would definitely succeed, but in order to convince everyone, they would have to use ghosts and gods. Chen and Wu pretended to be magicians and wrote "King Chen Sheng" on a piece of silk and placed it in the belly of the fish. The soldiers bought fish to cook and were surprised when they found a silk book in the belly of the fish. Another night, Wu Guang hid in a nearby dilapidated temple, lit a bonfire, and then imitated the voice of a fox and shouted: "Great Chu Xing, King Chen Sheng." This is a plot of "The Family of Chen She", this article Because it was selected into middle school textbooks, it is widely known, but not many people may have paid attention to Wu Guang's learning of fox sounds. However, in the history of vixens, this detail is meaningful. Ji Xiaolan said in "Notes of Yuewei Thatched Cottage: Such I Have Heard Four": "(Fox spirits) cannot be tested for more than three generations. "Historical Records: Chen She Family" said that the bonfire made a fox cry and said: 'The great Chu is rising, Chen Sheng is the king.' It was already a monster at that time, so it was entrusted to him. "Lighting a bonfire to make foxes roar at night is certainly an act of pretending to be a ghost, but the reason why such a method was used to scare people's minds shows that people at that time already believed in the existence of such a thing. Ji Xiaolan believed that this detail indirectly proved the appearance of the vixen, but it was not clear what the vixen looked like at this time. Although the fox's cry is human language, we cannot think that the vixen has turned into a human at that time.
In the Han Dynasty, the human form of the vixen gradually appeared: Luan Shu's tomb, coffins, coffins, and utensils were all decayed. There was a white fox who ran away in fright when seeing people. Then he hit him from the left and right, but he couldn't get it and hurt his left foot. That evening, the king dreamed that a husband, whose beard and eyebrows were completely white, came to the king and said, "Why did you hurt my left foot?" He then clasped the king's foot with his stick. Wang Jue's feet were swollen, painful, and sore, and he was likely to die. ——Liu Xin of the Western Han Dynasty, "Miscellaneous Notes of Xijing" Zhi Boyi, the governor of the northern part of Xiping, was about thirty years old, a very talented man, and the grandson of Zhi Ruozhang, the prefect of Changsha. When I arrived at the pavilion at sunset, I stopped in front of the imperial edict. The recorder said, "It's still early today, so you can go to the front pavilion." He said, "If you want to write a document, I'll stay here." The officials were frightened and said they should leave. Chuan said: "The governor wants to watch upstairs and needs to clean it up urgently." He went up in a moment. Before he could calm down, there was fire again under the stirrup steps. The imperial edict said: "I think about the Tao, but I can't see the fire and put it out." The officials knew that it would change, so they used it to illuminate it, but hid it in the pot. After that day, he sat down and recited "Liu Jia", "Xiao Jing" and "Yi", and lay down. After a while, he turned to the east, tied his feet with a scarf, crowned his head, and drew his sword secretly to untie his belt. At night, there was a Zhenghei who was four or five feet taller and walked to the pillar house. Because of the defeat of Boyi. Boyi's holding was covered, and his feet fell off, almost missing. repeatedly. Hit the charm's feet with the sword belt, call down the fire and look at it. The old fox is red and slightly hairless. Burn and kill. On the first day of the Ming Dynasty, I will be sent to a building, and I will find a place with more than 100 people in buns. So it died. ——Ying Shao of the Eastern Han Dynasty, "Customs and Customs: Strange Gods" The image of human beings is still relatively vague. In the first story, the white fox just turned into an old man with all white beard and eyebrows in a dream. The vixen causing trouble in the second story only appears in the night as "a black one four or five feet tall, walking to the pillar house." Looks like a human but not human. Once caught by Zhi Boyi, under the firelight he would be like "an old fox with no hair on his face". Judging from the existing written materials, the first batch of fully adult vixens appeared in "Sou Shen Ji" written in the Jin Dynasty: There was a scholar in Wuzhong with a bright head, called Dr. Fox, who taught all students. Suddenly disappeared. On the 9th day of the ninth lunar month, the scholars went to the mountain to visit the mountain. When they heard the sound of a lecture, they ordered their servants to look for it. I saw a group of foxes lined up in an empty tomb, and they immediately left when they saw someone. The old fox will not go alone, but he is a brilliant scholar. ——"Sou Shen Ji" Huang Shen, a villager from Miu, Jurong County, was plowing in his field. A woman passed by his field, crossed from ( ) up, and came back down from the east. At the beginning of the trial, he said that he was a human being, and it was like this every day, which was very strange. The judge asked, "Where did the number of women come from?" The woman stayed there for a short time, but she smiled and said nothing, and then left. The more doubts come after the trial. He prepared a long sickle and waited for her to return. He did not dare to kill the woman, but he did kill the maidservant who was accompanying him. The woman turned into a raccoon and walked away. Look at the maidservant, like a coward with tail ears. The trial failed to catch up. Later generations saw this raccoon coming out of the pit and digging it out, but there was no tail left. ——"Sou Shen Ji" In addition, the chapters of "A Zi", "Wuxing Lao Li", and "Zhang Maoxian" also have distinctive images and vivid stories. An article from "Old Li" tells about the affairs of the Western Han Dynasty: Dong Zhongshu came down to lecture and recite, and a guest came to pay him a visit. Shu knew it was extraordinary. The guest said again: "I want rain." Shu Xizhi said: "You know the wind when you live in a nest, and you know the rain when you live in a cave. You are not a fox, but a mole." The guest then turned into an old raccoon. ——"Sou Shen Ji" Therefore, it can be considered that the process of fox becoming spirit and human began in the late Warring States and Qin Dynasty, developed in the Han Dynasty, and completed in the Wei and Jin Dynasties. Not only foxes, but also the adults of other animal spirits are around this time. The emergence of Vixen is a typical Chinese event. The reason why it can blossom and bear fruit is entirely because an ancient ideological seed fell into fertile cultural soil, and with appropriate humidity and temperature, it sprouted. This soil is the thought of immortality that began in the pre-Qin Dynasty and matured in the Wei and Jin Dynasties. As the ideological background of the concept of vixen, the emergence, development and formation of the thought of becoming immortal - in many cases called "the way of immortals" - is related to the generation of vixen. The time period is exactly consistent. As we said before, the first condition for a fox to become a spirit is a long life. The concept of "an old thing becomes a spirit" has been reproduced in the works of Wang Chong, Xu Shen and others. Analyzing several early vixen stories, we can also find corresponding details: the vixen who appears in the dream in "Miscellaneous Notes of Xijing" has "white beard and eyebrows" and is obviously an old man. The old fox in "The Legend of Gods and Monsters" is "slightly hairless", which means he is so old that he has almost lost all his fur. The scholar in Wuzhong in "Sou Shen Ji" is also an old fox, and he only becomes a "scholar with a bright head"; and the uninvited guest who comes to Dong Zhongshu's curtain to listen to the lecture is also an old fox. So, why does one have to be old to become a spirit? Why can old things become spirits? ——Because it comes from the concept of immortality in the thought of immortality.
Edit the reason for the title of this paragraph
Huang Donglei’s traditional Chinese painting "Fox Spirit"
1 The word fox spirit has a derogatory connotation when used on women. It refers to a woman who specializes in confusing men. 2. The allusion of vixen should come from "The Romance of the Gods".
Because Daji, the wife of King Zhou of Shang in "The Romance of the Gods", was transformed into a vixen. She deceived King Zhou of Shang and led to the demise of the Shang Dynasty. 3. Foxes are animals that like women’s items, such as scarves, panties and other decorations. Therefore, people always find these women's things after capturing foxes, and they think that the fox will turn into a woman after becoming a spirit. And they are considered to be beautiful women who specialize in bewitching and seducing men, hence the vixen. Since ancient times, people have believed that vixens are beautiful, cunning, yet charming incarnations of foxes. "Xuanzhongji" specifically explains the origin of the vixen, and it is very serious: "A fox can transform into a woman at the age of fifty, a beautiful woman at the age of a hundred, or a witch. Or it can communicate with women for its husband, and it can know the affairs of thousands of miles away." A good enchantment can make people confused and insane. A thousand-year-old is connected to the sky and becomes a celestial fox. People use vixens to express their simple and beautiful emotions. Pu Songling even gave them a kind of charm in his "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio". In the new life, one by one becomes a passionate woman crazy for love. The one who impressed me the most was the female fox named Jiao Na. Needless to say, she was beautiful. In terms of friendship alone, she could be considered the best among the foxes. Beautiful women are trouble, and beautiful foxes are no exception. The world hates and curses them more. The word "vixen" may have been a neutral word originally, but in its incarnation today, its meaning is self-evident. Have you met that vixen in your life? If not, it's because she's not beautiful enough. If you can't help yourself when you meet a beautiful girl you like, then she must be a vixen! If you are looking for her, maybe she is still waiting for you somewhere in the world. Another theory is that Nurhaci, the emperor of the Qing Dynasty, just came to power in China and did not understand the living habits of the people, so he asked Huang Taiji to investigate the people's customs, even brothels and brothels could not be ignored. One day, Huang Taiji came to a Minnan brothel in Fujian to check out. He found that the fireworks woman was very good at seducing men, which was beyond Huang Taiji's expectation. However, the customers who were looking for women kept pouting and shouting "fox spirit, vixen". Only then did Huang Taiji understand the Chinese description of the brothel. If a woman is very good at seducing a man, she would call him a "vixen". Since Huang Taiji could not understand the Hokkien dialect, he misunderstood "(Hokkien pronunciation) I will kiss you, I will kiss you" as "a vixen". Therefore, this idiom has been circulating. Until now, whenever we describe a woman as being very charming to a man, we call her a "vixen".
When we describe a woman who is very charming to a man, we usually call her a "fox spirit". Since it is a short and powerful description of a person, and has its origin and allusion, "fox spirit" can barely be regarded as an idiom. This idiom comes from Nurhachi, the emperor of the Qing Dynasty, who had just come to power in China and did not understand the living habits of the people, so he asked Huang Taiji to investigate the people's customs. Even brothels could not be ignored. On this day, Huang Taiji came to the Minnan brothel in Fujian to check. He found that the fireworks woman was very good at seducing men, which was beyond Huang Taiji's expectation. If a woman is very good at seducing a man, she would call him a "vixen". Since Huang Taiji could not understand the Hokkien dialect, he misunderstood "(Taiwanese pronunciation) I will kiss you, I will kiss you" as "vixen". Therefore, this idiom has been circulating. Until now, whenever we describe a woman as being very charming to a man, we call her a "vixen". In our Chinese culture, there is a unique name for so-called bad women when it comes to issues between men and women: "vixen". In the "Essay on Discussing the Wu Family" written by King Luo Bin of the Tang Dynasty, it was said that Wu Zetian "hides her sleeves and slanders, and her charm can confuse her master." "Fox-mei" refers to a fox-like attitude. There are many "fox spirits" in "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio", but most of these "fox spirits" are kind-hearted and cute. They have the name of "fox spirits" and have no intention of harming others. But this does not change the reputation of "vixen". If a woman is called a "vixen", people will know where her "vixen" is without any specific explanation, and her reputation will be discredited. Why are so-called bad women called "vixens"? This is due to the Chinese people's aesthetic view of women. Since ancient times, there have been two standards for women's aesthetics in terms of facial appearance. First, the face is like a full moon and the face is like a lotus flower. The beauty of the Tang Dynasty, Concubine Yang, had a face like a lotus flower. Therefore, "Song of Everlasting Regret" contains this sentence when Emperor Ming of the Tang Dynasty misses the dead Concubine Yang: "Hibiscus is like a face and willows are like eyebrows, how can you not shed tears about this?" "Furong" means lotus, describing Yang Guifei's face as beautiful as a lotus. Not only is it beautiful for a woman to have a lotus-like face, but it is also considered beautiful for a man to have a lotus-like face. Wu Zetian's male concubine (also known as "Mian Shou") Zhang Zongchang was very favored by Wu Zetian. Once when he attended a banquet, someone complimented him as having a "face like a lotus flower". People echoed in unison.
A man named Yang Zaisi said loudly: "That's not right." People were shocked, and the whole place was silent for a while. Zhang Zongchang's expression also changed drastically. At this time, Yang Zaisi said: "It's not that Liulang is like a lotus, but that a lotus is like Liulang!" As soon as he finished speaking, the audience burst into warm applause. People laughed and said the metaphor was better. From this we can also see how the lotus flower is praised and touted by people. Another type of face that is considered beautiful is the so-called "melon face". The two faces each look like a melon seed with the pointed end pointing down. This kind of face shape is indeed very handsome. Most of the "ladies" in "Ladies Pictures" have "melon-seed faces". For beauties in literary works, authors often give them a "melon-seed face". "Lotus face" is a kind of rich appearance, but also a kind appearance. Most of the faces of Clay Bodhisattva are close to this face shape. The Tang Dynasty believed in Buddhism, so the women in Tang Dynasty murals usually had rich "lotus faces". Xue Baochai in "A Dream of Red Mansions" has a rich look, and I think her face is also a "lotus face". Xue Baochai is a scheming person and is not a praised character in "A Dream of Red Mansions". But on the issue of male and female styles, it is impeccable. So no matter how bad she is, she can't be called a "vixen". "Melon seed face" is different. The face shape of a fox is the most typical "melon face". Therefore, women with "oval face" shapes have a relationship with foxes - not by themselves, but by others. When they associate with men because of their beauty, it is their fault whether they seduce the men or the men tease them. Foxes also have "melon-seed faces", and they are naturally charming, so they are called "vixens" because of their "red apricots cheating". There is a saying in the West about "mermaids". This must be an invention of peoples who are closely related to the ocean, and it also reflects their different aesthetics from China. Chinese people pay more attention to faces, but they seem to pay more attention to body shape. The shape and posture of fish swimming in the water are smooth and graceful, and they use this to describe women. We use "lotus face" and "melon seed face" to describe a woman's beauty. It's a pity that when a woman with an "oval face" is called a "vixen", the "oval face" becomes a "disaster". And when a woman's body shape is said to be like a "water snake's waist", she is almost likely to be a "beautiful snake" who can cause harm to others. Vixens are usually melancholy and melancholy, because the vulgar and trivial reality always dampens their keen and delicate antennae, making them feel sharp and inexplicable pain, and the beautiful life that exists in the distance always calls faintly and seductively. Uncertain expectations spread hope and despair like poison on their wounds. As soon as he sees the scar hidden in their eyes, a man will quickly lick it with his tongue like a wolf who has found a blood stain, or a detective who has found a clue and can't wait to solve the mystery of her soul. Due to the influence of China, Japanese fox fairies are also very popular. They are even regarded as messengers of Inari God or Tantric Tajini Heaven in Japan's concept of integration of gods and Buddhas (the mount of Tajini Heaven in India was originally a jackal, but There are no jackals in Japan so they use foxes instead). The legend of foxes and other animals becoming spirits is as popular in Japan as it is in China. In addition, civet cats, which are not common in Chinese legends, are valued even more than foxes by Japanese people. In Japanese folktales, whether it is a fox or a tanuki, as long as you put a leaf on your head, you can change your shape at will. Japanese culture even has a clear classification of vixens, as follows: Fairy fox: a general name for foxes that live for about a thousand years. Sky Fox: A fox who has lived for more than three thousand years and ascended to heaven. Sky Fox: A fox that has lived for more than a thousand years and ascended to heaven. Good Fox: A general term for kind-hearted vixens. Red fox: red fox. Belongs to Shintoism. White fox: white fox. Shinto and Buddhism belong. Legend has it that Abe Seimei’s mother was the incarnation of the white fox. Golden Fox: The golden fox is a symbol of the sun. Belongs to Buddhism. Silver Fox: The silver fox is a symbol of the moon. Belongs to Buddhism. Black fox: black fox. Considered the incarnation of the Big Dipper. Belongs to Shintoism. Wild fox: The general name for evil vixens, also known as earth fox, middle fox and Zhou fox.