Chapter 117: The God of the Mountains and the Gods of the Sea

PS: In China, there is a long history of legends about mountain gods. The "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info written more than 2,000 years ago in the "Classic of Mountains and Seas", which has recorded various legends about the mountain gods. "Taiping Guangji" also includes the story of Dayu's imprisonment of mountain gods such as Shang Zhang's and Doulu's. The "Five Tibetan Mountain Sutra" also gives a detailed description of the appearance of the mountain gods.

1. Mountain gods

In China, there is a long history of legends about mountain gods. The Classic of Mountains and Seas, written more than 2,000 years ago, has already recorded various legends about the mountain gods. "Taiping Guangji" also includes the story of Dayu's imprisonment of mountain gods such as Shang Zhang's and Doulu's. The "Five Tibetan Mountain Sutra" also gives a detailed description of the appearance of the mountain gods.

(1) Tibetan belief in mountain gods

In Tibetan areas, both Bon believers and Tibetan Buddhists generally believe that gods and spirits live in groups, and most of them are entrenched on the top of high mountains. Therefore, the high mountains in Tibet have become the residence of the mythical mountain gods. The big mountain has a big mountain god, and the small mountain has a small mountain god. These mountain gods not only have their own origins, but also have their own images and functions. Worship it and worship it, and it will make your wishes come true: the elderly live a long and healthy life, the young men are more handsome, the girls are more beautiful, the herdsmen have herds of cattle and sheep, and the farmers live a good life.

(2) The reason for worship

An old herdsman in the pastoral area of northern Tibet said: The reason why the mountain god can be worshiped by people is because it can call for wind and rain, snow and hail, can bless us with peace and health, and can also reduce disasters and harm us. The mountain gods are as good as heaven and earth, and they are both good and bad. We honor it, we plead with it, we worship it. Mountain gods are more easily angered than any other deity. Where through the high mountains and snowy ridges, hanging rock cliffs. In places such as virgin forests, care must be taken everywhere, and it is best not to make loud noises. Make a big noise, otherwise it will anger the mountain gods, and immediately summon a violent wind, thunder and lightning, heavy rain, and flooding; In winter, it will be full of snow and wind. The world is overwhelming, and for this reason, the mountain god is revered as a god of good results. At the same time, the mountain god often parades through the mountains and valleys in the form of hunters on horseback. It is easy for people to come face to face with them, and if they do, they can get sick or die.

In the primitive nature worship of the Tibetan ancestors. The worship of the mountain gods is especially prominent. It can even be said that it is the basis of the primitive worship of the Tibetan people. The ancestors believed that any mountain peak in Tibet had a god. These gods and spirits preside over the good and bad fortune of the people. This is due to the specific geographical environment of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, where the Tibetan people have lived for generations. The plateau is mountainous, and the lofty mountains are almost everywhere, and those steep mountains are regarded as the existence of gods and spirits. We know that the object of nature worship is to worship the natural forces and natural objects that are directly perceived by people's senses, which is why the Tibetan ancestors worshiped the mountain gods in particular. Even later, when Buddhism was introduced to Tibet. During the period of theocracy in Tibet, the mountain gods were among the people in Tibet. It is still the main deity of people's faith.

In the minds of the Tibetan ancestors, the mountain god enjoyed great power, and it dominated the wind, rain, thunder, lightning, hunting, and gathering. However, this kind of empowerment is gradually expanded with the development of social life. In the period of the formation of primitive religion, due to the changeable climate of the plateau and the disaster of snow and hail, the Tibetan ancestors believed that it was formed by the mountain god spitting poisonous water in the clouds; The abundance of hunting and gathering is the punishment and gift of the mountain gods. To this day, some of the taboos of the Tibetan people are still related to the joy and anger of the mountain gods. For example, people are not allowed to shout or shout when passing through mountains and valleys, cliffs and primeval forests. In the time of the Tibetan Dynasty's Zhigong Zampu (200 B.C.), the Bon religion, which had begun to take shape, was transmitted by Zhang-zhung, and the mountain gods in the primitive nature worship of the Tibetan ancestors were absorbed as their own gods, but the difference was that Bon gave such gods greater power, and the name was also combined with the Bon "chanting gods" or was replaced. According to the Bon people's explanation, "the reason why the mountain god became the god of Nian is because the mountain is the place where the god of Nian is attached," and "Although the foundation of the god is in the air and the place of light, the main place of activity is in the mountains and valleys." At this time, the chanting of the gods has not only stopped at the abundance of wind, snow and hail and hunting and gathering in the era of the mountain gods, but also dominated the good times and places, the rise and fall of living things, the safety and death of people, and even the spread and elimination of plagues are also within its purview.

(3) The nine gods of the formation of the world

1. The four sacred mountains of Tibet

According to the traditional beliefs of the Tibetan people, it is believed that there are four sacred mountains in Tibet: Yala Champod, the sacred mountain in the Wei-Tibet region; the sacred mountain of Qiangtang in the north (i.e., Nianqing Tanggula); the southern sacred mountain Kurarije; Oriental Sacred Mountain Ward Gongjia. These four sacred mountains are the representatives of the sacred mountains in Tibet, and they are the mountain gods worshiped in the primitive beliefs of the Tibetan people before the introduction of Buddhism. The four mountain gods are combined with five other famous mountain gods to form the core of the mountain god system, known as the "Nine Gods of World Formation". The nine mountain gods are Wode Gonggyal, Yala Chambord, Nenchen Tangla, Maqing Bhamre (i.e., Anima Qingshan), Jiaoqing Dunri, Gangba Raj, Shera Jubao, Kyaw Wo Yuejia, and Siwuka Ri. In addition to this, due to the different geographical environment, each region has its own specific mountain gods. For example, the Tibetan Guoluo tribe worships the mountain god Nian Baoyu Zaiza Day, the mountain god Gangdis in the west, the longevity of the five sisters and the mountain god in the Dingri region, and so on.

2, the Dragon King of the Four Seas

The Dragon King of the East China Sea is the mythical king who rules the water tribe in the water and is in charge of the clouds and rainfall. In the east of China, the throne is honored, according to Zhou Yi, the east is yang, and the dragon king of the East China Sea holds the fire in his hand, and the dragon king is afraid of fire, so the dragon king of the East China Sea ranks first among the sea kings.

"Fengshen List": The Dragon King of the East China Sea is named Ao Guang. In the seventeenth year of Qianlong, "Taiwan County Chronicles": In the second year of Yongzheng, he enshrined the god of the dragon kings of the four seas, Xianren in the east, Zhaoming in the south, Zhengheng in the west, and Chongli in the north. As for its name, it can be seen in the Ming Dynasty Xu Dao's "Immortal Tongjian of the Past Dynasties": East China Sea, Cangningde Wang Ao Guang. In general, the name of the Dragon King of the Four Seas is said differently in Buddhism and Taoism. Buddhism is known as the Dragon King of the Four Seas. In Taoism, the Dragon King of the Middle East Sea is named Ao Guang, the Dragon King of the South China Sea is named Ao Ming, the Dragon King of the West Sea is named Ao Shun, and the Dragon King of the North Sea is named Ao Ji, also known as the Dragon King of the Four Seas.

(1) Classification criteria

There are "Dragon King Products" in the "Taishang Dongyuan Divine Mantra", which lists the "Five Emperors and Dragon Kings" distinguished by direction, the Four Seas Dragon Kings distinguished by the ocean, and the names of 54 Dragon Kings and 62 Divine Dragon Kings distinguished by all things in heaven and earth.

(2) Historical records

In "Journey to the West", the dragon kings are: Ao Guang of the East China Sea, Ao Qin of the West Sea, Ao Run of the South China Sea, and Ao Shun of the North Sea, known as the Dragon King of the Four Seas. Therefore, the duty of the dragon king is to spread the clouds and rain, eliminate the heat and troubles for people, and the dragon king to control the water has become a common belief among the people. Taoism's "Taishang Dongyuan Divine Mantra" in the "Dragon King Pin" said, "The land is hot and drought, the five grains are not harvested, and the three three and two do not know how to time", the first Tianzun came to the land by the five-colored clouds, and the dragon kings of the heavens preached the correct law, saved all sentient beings, and the heavy rain torrent was sweet at the right time. (To be continued.) )