How do China's God Beasts rank?

The ancient beasts in China are divided into:

1. Four spirits: Qinglong, White Tiger, Suzaku and Xuanwu.

the dragon in the east, the white tiger in the west, suzaku in the south, Xuanwu in the north, earthworm in the middle and yellow in color. Corresponding to Jin Mu's fire, water and soil. Qinglong is wood, white tiger is gold, Suzaku is fire, Xuanwu is water, and the center is earth. Astronomers of the ancient Han nationality in China divided the stars in the sky into seven star zones, namely "Three Walls" and "Four Elephants". The so-called "wall" means "city wall". "Three Walls" is "Ziwei Walls", symbolizing the palace; "Taiweiyuan" symbolizes the administrative agency; "Sky City Wall" symbolizes the bustling market. These three walls are arranged in a triangle around Polaris. There are four elephants around the Three Walls: East black dragon, West White Tiger, South Suzaku and North Xuanwu. That is to say, the stars in the east are like a dragon, the stars in the west are like a tiger, the stars in the south are like a big bird, and the stars in the north are like turtles and snakes. As the earth revolves around the sun, the stars in the sky change with the seasons. Every evening at the turn of winter and spring, black dragon appears; At the turn of spring and summer, Suzaku rises; At the turn of summer and autumn, the white tiger emerges; At the turn of autumn and winter, Xuanwu rises. Some people always call it "the four great beasts"

2. Four gods: dragon, unicorn, phoenix and tortoise.

The dragon is a miraculous animal in China's mythology, which is changeable, evocative and beneficial to all things. It is said that it can hide and show, ascend to the sky in the spring breeze and dive into the deep in the autumn wind. It can also raise clouds and cause rain. It is the leader of many scales, the head of the four spirits (dragon, phoenix, unicorn and turtle), and later became a symbol of imperial power. Emperors of all dynasties claimed to be dragons, and their utensils were decorated with dragons.

Kirin, also known as "Qilin", is called "Lin" for short. It is a kind of animal in ancient legends of China, and it is called "four spirits" with phoenix, turtle and dragon. Known as the holy beastmaster. And it is the mount of God.

Phoenix is characterized by "the head of a chicken, a swallow's jaw, a snake's neck, a turtle's back, a fish's tail, five colors, and it is six feet high". "Out of the country of gentlemen in the East, flying over the four seas, crossing Kunlun, drinking as a mainstay, smashing feathers and weak water, and seeing Mosufeng Cave, the world is at peace. 」。

Turtles are the only animals among the Four Spirits, and they have the longest life span. People not only regard the turtle as a symbol of health and longevity, but also think that it has the spirituality to predict the future. In ancient times, before major events were held, wizards burned tortoise shells, and then divined good or bad luck according to the crackling lines on the tortoise shells. Therefore, people call turtles "god turtles" and "spirit turtles". Turtles once received great respect in China. In the palaces, houses and tombs of ancient emperors, there were turtles cast in stone or bronze to symbolize the long-term national luck.

3. The Four Fierces: Yao Yao, Qiong Qi, Chaos and Gluttony

Yao Yao > A beast in ancient legend. According to legend, it is the son of Zhuan Xu, the Northern Heaven Emperor, and its name is Proud and Hard to Train. From these names, we can also roughly infer its actions. Like Qiong Qi, Yao Yao later became one of the Four Fierces. Originally, it was just a wicked person who was frightening and disgusting. According to the eighteen years of Zuozhuan, "Zhuan Xu has a genius who can't be taught. He doesn't know what to say, but he is stubborn when he tells it. He is arrogant and arrogant, and he is chaotic and the people of the world are called awkward." This incorrigible villain eventually evolved into the famous Warcraft in ancient times after his death.

Qiong Qi, according to The Classic of Mountains and Seas * The Classic of the Northern Sea, said that Qiong Qi looks like a tiger, has a pair of wings, likes to eat people, and even eats from people's heads. He is a ferocious animal. However, in Shan Hai Jing, another image of Qiong Qi is mentioned in Xishan Jing. Qiong Qi in this article looks like an ox and has hedgehog hair, which is very different from that described in Hainei Beijing. However, both of them are fierce beasts who like to eat people, and there is no difference in this respect.

The West Mountain Classic, the second volume of the Chaos Classic of Mountains and Seas, says: "It is also 35 miles west of Tianshan Mountain, which is rich in jade, green and realgar, and the English water flows out, while the southwest flows into the Tang Valley. There is a divine bird, which is shaped like a yellow sac, red as a fire, with six feet and four wings. It is ignorant of singing and dancing, but it is only Di Jiang. " Hundun is chaos, and the image of chaos is a god bird who knows singing and dancing.

a greedy monster in the gluttonous legend. In ancient Zhong Ding, the shape of the head was carved on the Yi wares for decoration. "Lu Chunqiu? First knowledge: "Zhou Ding is gluttonous, with Kubinashi's body, and cannibalism is not swallowed, which is harmful to his body." The miraculous classics? "The Famine of Southwest China": "The southwest is crowded with people, hairy, wearing a scorpion on his head, greedy as a wolf, and good at accumulating wealth, instead of eating people's valleys. The strong take the old and the weak, and fear the shackles and hit the single, which is called gluttony." Song Shaobo's Record after Hearing: Volume 26: "At the beginning of Shao Shengchu, the ancestor was an official in Chang 'an Mansion, and he sold soup and cakes in front of the Han Gaozu Temple in Xicheng. He got a white jade, which was carved with clouds and dragons, and was built as a mountain in the sea, which was enough for gluttony and was a treasure of three generations."