Buhu tiger originated from tiger totem worship. Primitive society, wind, thunder and lightning, the presence of ferocious beasts, the fragility of human beings, the mighty tiger is regarded as the strongest in the world.
Tiger is not only brave and invincible, but also extremely protective of its cubs. There is a folk saying that "tiger poison will not eat its cubs". Therefore, people regard the tiger as the god of protection of life and the god of reproduction. Cloth tigers, most commonly seen on double-headed tiger pillows, are the manifestation of the custom of worshiping tigers in folk customs, and contain profound cultural connotations.
The double-headed tiger pillow is a mother body that symbolizes the harmony of yin and yang, which can ward off disasters and protect the safety of the doll. The single-headed tiger, the straight-crouching tiger, etc. are the types of house totem tigers that serve as the protectors of the whole family.
Extended information:
Related legends
The main producing areas of cloth tiger are concentrated in the four provinces of Shandong, Henan, Shanxi and Shaanxi. It is spread in 17 cities in Shandong, especially Weifang, Linyi, Binzhou, Jiaozhou, Jining and Zaozhuang. There are many different versions of the legend about the origin of Buhu.
The more consistent view is that according to the "Book of Mountains and Seas", it is said that there is a large peach tree on Dushuo Mountain in the East China Sea with branches that bend for three thousand miles, stretching all the way to the ghost gate in the southeast, and the ghosts and gods in the cave. This is the way to go in and out. Under the tree were guarded by two brothers named Shen Tu and Yu Lei. They were extremely powerful and skilled.
The brothers tamed the tigers on the mountain and ordered them to take good care of the peach trees. Through their hard work, the peach tree grew luxuriantly. When the peaches were about to ripen, a group of evil spirits rushed up the mountain and tried to pick the peaches. The two brothers commanded a group of tigers to fight with a group of ghosts. The elder brother knocked down the ghosts with a peach wood stick, and the younger brother tied the ghosts with reed ropes.
Knock one over, tie another up, and the tiger will eat one! After a while, most of the evil ghosts were eliminated. The remaining evil ghosts saw that the situation was not good and fled in confusion. The battle was won, and the names of Shen Tu and Yu Lei spread throughout the world. The tiger's fame also spread, becoming the king of beasts and the nemesis of evil spirits. It is a symbol of strength and bravery and is regarded as a sacred beast by ancestors.
In addition, in folk dialects, "tiger" and "福" are homophonic, and have cultural connotations such as blessing, controlling the house, and generating wealth. Therefore, tiger-shaped objects are often used by people to ward off evil spirits.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Buhu