Dressed in slashing and holding a straight cane, living in a house, eating gruel, sleeping on a straw, and using clods of earth as a pillow, all these things were meant to show infinite sorrow, and the three-year mourning period was actually over in twenty-five months. Although the grief of the filial son is not over, and the longing for his parents still exists, the period of mourning ends here, because the remembrance of the deceased must be stopped, and the living must return to normal life.

All creatures between heaven and earth, as long as they are higher animals, must have feelings. There is no animal that has feelings that does not know how to love its own kind. It is said that if the great birds and beasts lose their companions, after a month and a season, they will turn back and patrol; When passing through the nest where they used to live, they must hover, shout, linger for a long time, and then reluctantly leave. Even small birds such as swallows and sparrows, in this case, have to chirp and wail for a while before reluctantly leaving.

Of all the higher animals, there is no more emotional than man. Therefore, people will not forget their dead parents until death. If it is done by the will of those who are stupid and ignorant, or who are dissolute, they will die in the morning and forget their parents in the evening. If we leave them alone, won't we be worse than birds and beasts, and how can we let everyone live a collective life without chaos? If it is done according to the will of those gentlemen who pay attention to etiquette, the three-year mourning dress will be over in twenty-five months, as quickly as a flick of a finger. If their wishes are fulfilled, it will be the day when grief will never end. So the king made a compromise for the wise and the villain, so that everyone felt reasonable, and then removed the mourning clothes.

So what is the basis for a one-year mourning dress? The answer is: Some relatives who are close but not supreme should be removed from mourning for one year. What is the rationale for this? The answer is: In a year, heaven and earth have been running for a week, the seasons have been cycled, and between heaven and earth, everything is renewed, so a year's mourning dress has been formulated to imitate it.

So why do some mourning periods last three years? The answer is: This is to make the mourning period more solemn, so the mourning period is doubled, so it will take two anniversaries before the mourning clothes are removed, so what is the reason for the mourning period to be below September? Because some relatives can't catch up with their relatives, the mourning period will not reach one year.

Therefore, among the five clothes, the three years of decay are the most solemn mourning clothes, the March of absolute hemp and the May of Xiaogong are the lightest mourning clothes, and the first anniversary of Qi decline and the September of Dagong are the mourning clothes between the two. This kind of stipulation is based on the law from the sky, the law from the earth, and the law from human affection in the middle, and the reason why people can live collectively and in harmony is expressed. Therefore, the three-year funeral is a kind of etiquette full of human feelings. This most solemn ritual has been followed by the Son of Heaven throughout the ages, and no one has violated it throughout the ages, and I don't know how long it has been practiced. Confucius said: A child can only leave the arms of his parents three years after he is born, so when his parents die, the child will mourn for three years, which is also a funeral ceremony that is common all over the world.

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(39) Deep coat

Shenyi belongs to Hanfu, which originated from the Yu Dynasty's ancestor Wang Youyu's family, which connected the clothes and clothes together to wrap the body, cut separately but sewn up and down, because the body was deep, so it was named. In layman's terms, it means that the top and bottom are connected together, and different colors are not used as edges. It is characterized by making the body deeply hidden and graceful and elegant. According to the "Book of Rites". Shenyi is the household dress of ancient princes, doctors and other classes, and it is also the dress of the common people. It is one of the earliest costumes in our country. In a broad sense, the concept of deep clothing refers to all the traditional clothing of the Han nationality that conforms to the characteristics of the depth of the body. In the Tang Dynasty, Ma Zhou changed his system slightly, wearing a skirt (lán) underneath, which was called a shirt. In the Song Dynasty, there were deep clothes made of antique rites, and the dresses for the sacrificial crowns of scholars. As a dress system, the deep coat has had a wide and lasting impact on traditional Chinese society with careful etiquette.

The deep clothes worn by the ancients were made of a certain size and style to meet the requirements of rules, rules, ropes, weights, and balances. No matter how short the length of the deep coat is, it cannot show the instep; No matter how long it is, it can't be dragged to the ground. There are wide margins on both sides of the dress (wǎng), which overlap before and after when worn. The width of the waist of the deep coat is half of the width of the deep coat. The height of the sleeves and the top at the armpit junction is based on the principle that the elbow can be carried freely. The length of the opening part of the sleeve is folded back just to the elbow. The position of the large belt around the waist should not press the thigh bone underneath and the rib cage on the top, but should be tied to the boneless part above the thigh bone and below the ribs.

The way of tailoring the deep garment: six pieces of cloth for the top and six pieces of cloth for the bottom, a total of 12 pieces, to symbolize the twelve months of the year. The round cuffs are used to symbolize the compass. The square collar is like a rectangular neck, which is used to symbolize the integrity of conduct. The back seam runs from the back to the heel like an ink thread, and is used to symbolize integrity. The lower part of the dress is like a weighing rod and a hammer, which is used to symbolize fairness. The reason why the cuffs symbolize the compass is that it is in line with the top hat when you raise your hands and feet; The back seam is like an ink line and the neckline is like a curved ruler, which means that the political dignitaries are upright and the conduct should be square.