Why is the prototype of the tomb beast named Fang Xiangshi a woman?

In ancient China, there was a custom that when people were buried after death, they often buried some strange-looking and fierce-looking objects-this is the so-called "tomb-killing beast". In addition, there are many kinds of tomb animals with different functions, so Xiaobian will tell you about the most famous one today, called Fang Xiangshi, and its prototype turned out to be a woman.

First of all, it needs to be explained that Fang Xiangshi has no fixed appearance and style. It should be that every era has given him a new appearance, so there are many differences between Fang Xiangshi in past dynasties.

First of all, it is a representative of Shang and Zhou Dynasties, a bronze mask with animal face patterns. It is Fang Xiangshi unearthed in the Western Zhou Dynasty cemetery in Hengshui County, Shanxi Province. It can be seen that his eyes are protruding, revealing fierce eyes, and his mouth is open, leaking two rows of sharp teeth, which seems to bite everything. In short, it makes people feel chilling.

Then, the representative of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Fang Xiangshi's mural or lacquer painting, was found on the coffin of Zeng Houyi's tomb in Suizhou, Hubei Province. On the left is the feather man (the flying immortal) and on the right is Fang Xiangshi. Similarly, Fang Xiangshi is still very strange at this time. Although he has a complete body, there is obviously a huge difference compared with the real "person", that is, he seems to be inhuman and ghost-like.

Finally, the representative of Qin and Han Dynasties, Fang Xiangshi's terracotta figures, was found in the Hanya Tomb in Tianhui, Chengdu, Sichuan. The biggest feature of Fang Xiangshi's terracotta figures is that a tongue with a length of 56 cm is spit out from his mouth, and his eyes are glaring, which makes people feel goose bumps.

Through these three different types of Fang Xiangshi, we can see that their characteristics are very strange and fierce, which makes people feel scared, so this has played its own practical role in scaring grave robbers. In addition, from the perspective of funeral culture, it also played the purpose of exorcising evil spirits and preventing the deceased from being hurt in the "other world". So what is the prototype of Fang Xiangshi? Then look at Xiaobian to continue to reveal the secret to you.

It is recorded in Zhou Li: "Fang Xiangshi's palm is covered with bear skin, with four eyes of gold, mysterious clothes and Zhu Shang, holding a Geyang shield, being a handsome servant, and mourning for the time, so he was originally a master of ceremonies, a bit like a" wizard "in ancient mythology, in charge of related sacrificial activities. If we continue to trace back to the source, it will reach the period of three emperors and five emperors in ancient times.

According to Records of the Historian, in the period of the Yellow Emperor, the tribes at that time valued virtue over appearance, so the Yellow Emperor married a woman with great virtue, named Mo Mu. Mo Mu was not good-looking, and even ugly, but the Yellow Emperor didn't care. He also said, "Those who value beauty over virtue, are not really beautiful, and those who value virtue over color are true sages."

Therefore, the Yellow Emperor and Mo Mu, as well as his other wife, Lei Zu, lived in perfect harmony. It's a pity that something unexpected happens, and one day Lei Zu died unfortunately, so the Yellow Emperor asked Mo Mu to keep Lei Zu's tomb, and she kept it for a lifetime, not only without any complaints, but also arranged all the relevant sacrifices very properly, year after year, even year after year. Finally, the Yellow Emperor named Mo Mu Fang Xiangshi, which meant that she could ward off evil spirits and let the dead people get peace. Therefore, in the future, people made Fang Xiangshi with reference to Mo Mu's appearance, and Fang Xiangshi became a kind of tomb beast.

It can be seen that beauty has its advantages, and ugliness also has its functions. Although Mo Mu is ugly, she has a noble character and a kind heart. She is so diligent in "taking care of" the dead, not to mention the living. The Yellow Emperor is also a great man. He values virtue over appearance. As long as virtue is good, even ugliness will be appreciated and reused. What about those who are good in virtue and good-looking? Therefore, in fact, our Chinese nation has always valued virtue over appearance. Although good looks are very important, compared with noble morality, it is estimated that most people will choose the latter.

Although they look scary, they are extremely kind at heart, so as funerary objects, the "bad guys" with dark hearts are scared, while the "good guys" are not afraid.