Lead: Lantern riddle is an important part of China Lantern riddle, which is unique and spectacular in China cultural treasure house. Let's take a look at the
Lead: Lantern riddle is an important part of China Lantern riddle, which is unique and spectacular in China cultural treasure house. Let's take a look at the development history of riddles!
The history of riddles
The riddle is also called Hu Wen. Solving riddles on lanterns is also called playing tiger, playing wall lamp, changing lamp, shooting, solving and disassembling, but people are used to using the word "riddle". Lantern riddles are the crystallization of the wisdom of the working people of the Han nationality in China, and they are the comprehensive art of the traditional culture of the Han nationality.
Lantern riddles are riddles written on colorful lanterns The riddle originated from the oral riddle of Han people, and was later processed into a riddle by scholars. They have a long history in China. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, "argot" or "awkward language" appeared. Qin and Han Dynasties became a kind of writing creation. During the Three Kingdoms period, guessing boxing prevailed. Lantern riddles appeared in the Song Dynasty. People tie riddles to colorful lanterns and let people guess. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, solve riddles on the lanterns was very popular among Han people.
As early as the Xia Dynasty, there was a ballad that used hints to describe something. In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, this kind of ballad developed into "embarrassing talk", which is also commonly known as "argot". At that time, due to disputes between countries, many tourists often used argot to express their opinions when making suggestions, which inspired the king. "Guoyu Yujin" records that "when Qin Ke resigned from the DPRK, the doctor was helpless." It can be seen that these "anecdotes" and "argots" at that time were the embryonic form of China's riddle. It was not until Bao Zhao, a scholar in the Southern Song Dynasty, wrote three riddles, namely "Well", "Turtle" and "Land", which were included in the poetry collection that they were called "Mysteries".
At first, riddles were popular in oral guessing. During the Three Kingdoms period, someone wrote a riddle on paper and posted it, which made people guess correctly. In the Southern Song Dynasty, in order to show their talents, some literati often put riddles on tulle lanterns on the Lantern Festival night to attract passers-by, which gave rise to the nickname "lantern riddle". Legend of Wulin Lantern records that "writing poems with silk lanterns, sometimes mocking, sometimes depicting characters, hiding argot and old Beijing slang, teasing pedestrians."
After the middle of Qing dynasty, enigma prevailed and many enigmas appeared. After the Revolution of 1911, lantern riddles formed two styles: "Southern School" and "Northern School". In the old society, because most riddlers were literati, some literati pretended to be lofty, unilaterally emphasized elegance and rejected folk lantern riddles. After liberation, under the guidance of the party's literary policy of "letting a hundred flowers blossom", riddles have developed more vigorously, and they have become more and more perfect and rich, making great contributions to building socialist spiritual civilization and invigorating the cultural life of the masses. Chinese overseas Chinese all over the world have lantern riddle activities and lantern riddle academic exchanges. In ancient times, riddles were called "argot" and "awkward words". Now it usually refers to Han folk riddles. Liu Xie, a famous classical literary theorist in China, said in "Wen Xin Diao Long Harmony": "Since the Wei Dynasty, it has been quite embarrassing, and those who laugh at the monarch have turned into riddles. Mystery also, turn your back on each other, make a coma. Or text, or picture items, exquisite to make people think, shallow to dazzle. Righteousness and grace are positive, and words are hidden. " He made a highly theoretical summary of riddles, and made a profound analysis and incisive exposition of their development history, definition and characteristics.
The source of lantern riddle culture should be the ancient myth of human beings. The myth era is the era when human culture takes place, and all the cultures take place from human consciousness of problems.
Chinese riddles are different from lantern riddles, which belong to literal riddles, while folk riddles are all based on the characteristics of things except a few crossword puzzles. So the folk riddle belongs to the riddle of things. Folk riddles mainly focus on the shape, function, movement and other characteristics of things, and use personification, exaggeration, metaphor and other methods to describe the mystery, in order to achieve the purpose of reference. Lantern riddles mainly guess the names of objects, and mainly adopt different solutions. The answer range of folk riddles is relatively narrow. Except for a few crossword puzzles, most of them are things, such as animals, plants, objects, human organs, natural phenomena, human behavior and so on. The answers to riddles range from crossword puzzles, idioms, poems and various expressions to things and events. The riddle of folk riddle is often a four-sentence folk song, which rhymes rhythmically, catchy, vivid and easy to recite orally. Because folk riddles are easy to understand, most of them are suitable for children to guess.
This is called a children's riddle. The rules of "riddles" are stricter, more literary, more difficult to guess, and require a certain level of knowledge, so it is more interesting for adults. Since ancient times, the names of riddles have changed in different dynasties because of different riddles. In the Spring and Autumn Period, riddles were called "argot", "argot" and "embarrassing things". Han dynasty called it "shooting", "clutch" and "crossword puzzle"; In the Tang dynasty, it was called "irony" and "post-judgment"; In the Five Dynasties, it was called "repetition"; In Song Dynasty, it was called "land riddle", "poem riddle", "crime riddle", "social riddle", "Tibetan head" and "city dialect". In the Yuan Dynasty, it was called "one-legged tiger" and "mysterious rhyme"; In the Ming Dynasty, it was called "anti-scissors", "business riddle", "solve riddles on the lanterns", "wall lantern", "lantern riddle" and "spring lantern riddle". In the Qing Dynasty, they were called riddles, riddles, mouths, foot-shrinking rhymes, Hu Wen, Lantern Tiger, Spring Mysteries and Lantern riddles.
The history of riddles
Lantern riddle is an important part of China Lantern riddle, which is unique and spectacular in the cultural treasure house of China.
A long time ago, in order to express some thoughts, feelings and meanings that cannot be directly explained by words, people used empty words and argot to express their true meaning by indirect methods such as metonymy, metaphor and fable. This is the prototype of the riddle. According to the Book of Songs and Tang Shi, during the reign of Xia Jie, there was a figurative folk song: "Alas for the day? To you and your death. " Xia Jie is a famous tyrant in history. He once said that the world he owns is like the sun in the sky. If the sun dies, he will die. Folk songs mean the sun. When will you die? Let me disappear with you! "In this way, the people expressed their great indignation at the brutal rule through folk songs.
By the Spring and Autumn Period, metaphors and rhetoric had become very popular. The story of Shen Jian recorded in Historical Records is a good example. During the Spring and Autumn Period, Chu Zhuangwang of the State of Chu was indifferent to state affairs for three years, and indulged in debauchery all day long. Ministers were in a hurry, but they were afraid to speak out, because Chu Zhuangwang ordered those who made suggestions to die. Later, Shen Wuwei said to Zhuang Wang in code, "There is a bird blocking the south. For three years, it didn't fly, it didn't sing, it was just silent. Why is it called this? " Hearing this, Chu Zhuangwang knew that this was a metaphor for himself, but it was also reasonable, so he replied: "This bird has soared without flying; If you don't sing, it will be a blockbuster! " Later, Chu Zhuangwang changed course, experienced the state affairs, made great efforts to govern, and the State of Chu became stronger and stronger, dominating the vassals.
In the Han dynasty, there was the activity of "shooting the cover", that is, putting things under the cover for people to guess. Up to now, people still use "shooting cover" as another name for guessing puzzles. It was also in the Han Dynasty that crossword puzzles began to appear. Dong Fangshuo has a "mosquito" mystery: "sharp mouth is thin, unconscious during the day, and addicted to meat and cigarettes." This riddle can be said to be the earliest riddle. Cai Yong also left a puzzle for people. It is said that after reading the inscription on Cao E's tablet, Cai Yong wrote the eight characters "yellow silk bride, grandson mortar", and no one could understand the meaning at that time. Later, when Cao Cao walked past the Cao E Monument, he asked Yang Xiu, the main book, if he understood this meaning. Yang Xiu replied, "Cao Cao won't let me, and I won't know until I walk three miles." . It turns out that "yellow silk" is colored silk, and the word "absolutely" is added next to the color word; "Young woman" is a girl, which adds up to a "wonderful" word; "Grandson" is the daughter's son, which adds up to a word "good". "Tart" refers to spicy condiments such as ginger, garlic and leek. "mortar" refers to a tamping instrument made of stone or wood with a concave middle; "Jiu" together is a vessel used to receive "shou" and "Xin" materials. "Shou" and "Jia" are the words "Ke", and "Ke" is the archaic word of "Ci". Together, it is a "wonderful speech".
This is the earliest word riddle, namely lantern riddle. Later, Cai Yong's method of making riddles developed into a special kind of riddles, called "Cao E's injustice".
After the development of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui and Tang Dynasties, the ways and types of riddles gradually increased. Lantern riddles really appeared in the Song and Yuan Dynasties. During this period, the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day of the first month, decorating lanterns and appreciating lanterns gradually became a national folk custom. What followed was that riddles began to be put on lights to watch and guess with paintings and poems. According to the records: "Since the Song and Yuan Dynasties, Tongdu City has had a drum and music feast every night, with bright lights and a hip flask. For example, a major puzzle, a piece of paper and a book, several people in the alley. No matter how long or small, guess together. Please take a paper seat in the middle and propose a toast. Although the poor township is biased. " "There are also poems cut and written with silk lanterns, sometimes teasing, sometimes drawing people, and teasing pedestrians in old Beijing dialect." All these show that lantern riddles were very popular during the Lantern Festival in the Song and Yuan Dynasties. It is said that Su Shi, Wang Anshi, Qin Guan and other famous writers in the Northern Song Dynasty are all active advocates and participants of riddles, and they also wrote a collection of riddles, Wen Xi Collection.
In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, riddles reached a new peak, mainly manifested in the content of riddles from simple shooting words to words and sentences; In terms of production and rhetoric, it is becoming more and more perfect, and various techniques such as understanding, clutch and loss increase are emerging one after another; The quality and difficulty are also greatly increased.
After arriving in our new China, riddles are still flourishing. Throughout China, there are lantern riddles associations or groups, and solve riddles on the lanterns is an essential activity for the Spring Festival, Lantern Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival every year.
Finally, the explanation of riddles in Wen Xin Diao Long is quoted: "The riddler must answer the other person's words and make him unconscious. Or text, or image objects; Exquisite to think, shallow to dazzle words; Righteousness and grace are positive, and words are hidden. " Liu Xie's incisive exposition of riddles has not lost its meaning for thousands of years.