One thing: Before the Tang Dynasty in Sun Mou, the door gods were immortals until these two generals became door gods.

According to traditional customs, every family will be busy on New Year's Eve. Buy new year's goods, write couplets, and choose new year pictures of door gods. On New Year's Eve, we should put up couplets and door gods to pray for the coming year. The taste of the year is much lighter now. No wonder the movie "Little Door God" at the beginning of the year attracted everyone's attention. Its story pokes people's laughter and tears: Shen Tu and Lei Yu, the famous door gods, are actually facing "laid-off" and have to come to this world to look for jobs.

The fresh perspective of this film makes people feel happy and interesting, but it is also a bit sad. With the rapid development of economy and technology, are these traditional customs doomed to fail?

In fact, the door god has a very long history. In Shang and Zhou Dynasties, door gods appeared in people's lives. For thousands of years, it has accompanied the people of China to spend every Spring Festival. Only later, the goalkeeper changed a little. The protagonist of the goalkeeper has changed from a fairy to a role in life, with a brave hero. There are loyal ministers and loyal ministers; A resourceful adviser; In the history of old Beijing, there are even "six gods at home" who are in charge of many details of life. No matter what kind of door gods, people are dedicated to wishing the new year a better life.

When the immortal guardian is carved on mahogany.

Since ancient times, China has had the custom of sticking a door god on the door during the Spring Festival. Door-keeper, originally meant as "gatekeeper", originated from ancient nature worship. At that time, people thought that everything related to daily life, such as doors, stoves and beds, were gods. At home. In the eyes of the ancients, the entrance and exit of the main entrance occupied an important position in the whole house. Therefore, in ancient times, the door was the first of the five sacrifices, and later evolved into a door god.

According to historical records, the activity of "worshipping the door" appeared in the Zhou Dynasty, which was an extremely important ceremony. From the emperor to the common people, we should respect the door gods.

In the legend of door gods, the legends of shentu and Lei Yu have been circulated among the people for a long time. It is recorded in Classic of Mountains and Seas, Custom of Yi Tong, Rebuilding the Integration of Weft Books and Searching for the Gods of Three Religions.

There was a story in 2000: "There is a big peach tree on Dushuo Mountain in the East China Sea, which bends 3,000 miles. Its humble branch is called the northeast gate of hell, which is full of ghosts. Yes, Ershen, one is called Shentu and the other is called Shentu. My master is talking about people who lead evil spirits. " It is said that there is a mountain in the East China Sea called Dushuo Mountain. There is a big peach tree on Dushuo Mountain. This big peach tree winds for three thousand miles. In the northeast direction where the branches extend outward, there is a "ghost gate", which is the gateway for ghosts to enter and exit. Two gods guard the gates of hell, one named Shen Tu and the other named Lei Yu, to prevent harmful ghosts from entering people's homes.

Besides, there are some legends that describe these two door gods in more detail: the southwest gate is called "Kaminokado" and is guarded by Shen Tu. Whenever an evil spirit steals peaches from the mountain, Shen Tu cuts its neck with a peach leather sword, passes peach branches through its cheek, and throws the evil spirit into the sea to feed the dragon. The northeast gate is called "the gate of hell" because Lei guards it. If hungry ghosts are found stealing food from trees, they are tied up with reed ropes, shot to death with peach arcs, and thrown into the mountains to feed tigers. The two door gods are assisted by ten strong men, and the evil spirits run away when they see them.

Shen Tu and Lei Yu are brothers to exorcise evil spirits, so their images are naturally unkind. There is a painting in 2000, in which there are portraits of Shencha and Lei Yu. Er Shen sat under a peach tree, shirtless, bearded, with horns on his head and a peach wooden sword in his hand. He looks fierce. This "ferocious" image is obviously imagined by people.

From the fairy tales like Shan Hai Jing, we can find that people at that time had another custom: pasting peach trees. The ancients believed that mahogany could ward off evil spirits. Writing symbols on mahogany to form spells; Grinding peach wood into a sword is a kind of peach wood sword to exorcise evil spirits and reduce evil spirits. Lost text

Later, people used to write the names of Shen Tu and Lei Yu on a mahogany board and hang them at the door. This is the "hanging peach symbol". Fu Tao changes every year. Wang Anshi, a poet in the Song Dynasty, wrote in "A Complete Book of Searching for Gods from the Origins of the Three Religions": "The firecrackers are one year old, and the spring breeze warms Tu Su. Thousands of families always trade new peaches for old ones. " The appearance of the symbol of hanging peaches is also related to the appearance of another pair of door gods in the Tang Dynasty, which will be described in detail later.

Let's go back to the legend of sticking to the gods, because most of the buildings at that time were wooden doors, leaving nothing behind. We can only see the images of two gods from the tomb carvings in the Han Dynasty. But,

Cai Yong, a contemporary scholar of Zheng Xuan, also recorded the custom of pasting doors in Sou Shen Ji: "When you are old, draw a tea castle and hang a reed rope to ward off evil spirits." By the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the custom of door gods had become popular among the people. In the Southern Dynasties, Zongba's Yuan Ri said, "When he was old, Er Shen painted around the door, commonly known as the door god."

Unfortunately, due to the frequent wars in the Three Kingdoms and the Jin Dynasty after the Eastern Han Dynasty, the custom of "thick burial" was abandoned by the rulers of that dynasty in order to prevent the occurrence of grave robbery. Therefore, it is difficult to find the image of the door god in the tombs of this period. In addition, most of the buildings at that time were made of wood, and there was basically no image of the door god. Until the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the custom of door gods had new characteristics.

The founding general of the Tang Dynasty became the new goalkeeper.

In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, with the development of society, "thick burial" became popular again. Even the emperor directly "chisels mountains for tombs", and the tombs of some nobles are quite magnificent. The paintings or carvings on these tomb doors also indirectly provide us with relevant information about the door gods.

Most of the door gods in the Tang Dynasty were warriors or Buddhist statues. In the later period of development, there appeared an example of a maid-in-waiting being a door god, which showed that the image of the door god in this period was more life-oriented and personalized.

During this period, two most common images of door gods were born, Qin Qiong and Weichi Gong.

Anyone familiar with history knows that they are all generals under Li Shimin of Emperor Taizong. They have made great contributions on the battlefield and are real people. How did these two people become "door gods"? The novels The Book of Rites in Ming Dynasty and Arbitrary in Qing Dynasty tell the process of two generals "transforming" into door gods: Emperor Taizong was haunted by evil spirits because he killed too many things during his reign. Every night there are voices of throwing bricks and tiles, fooling around and crying. Emperor Taizong can't sleep at night. Weichi Gong, his general, heard about this incident and said, "The establishment of Jiangshan has killed countless people. Why are you afraid of ghosts? " Qin followed closely and said, "Your Majesty, relax. Tonight I will guard the palace gate with Jingde to see if there is invisibility. " So the two generals guarded the palace gate for the emperor that night, and it was safe all night.

The heroic deeds of the two generals are described as follows: "Long Lin wears a golden helmet and armor. The goggles are full of auspicious clouds, and the lions hug each other tightly, embroidered with rosy clouds. This phoenix eye is afraid of the stars in the sky, and that ring eye reflects the electric moonlight. He used to be a hero and an old official, but he was called a domestic servant for thousands of years.

After all, a novel is a novel. As for when the two generals became door gods, there is no specific record in the history books. In the tombs of Beiping during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, the images of Qin Qiong and Wei Chijingde were arranged as "doors". It can be speculated that in the Five Dynasties, Qin Qiong and Wei Chijingde were accepted by the nobles as door gods, and then gradually spread to the people. With the plot of the novel The Story of Jingchu Times deeply rooted in people's hearts, the joke story in this passage gradually evolved into a "fact". During the Ming and Qing dynasties, it gradually became a custom for ordinary people to stick portraits of Qin on their doors. There is an exact record in Journey to the West Lu Gu in Qing Dynasty: "Night becomes a keeper. Draw a common image of Qin and Zhi, color print it on paper, and paste it by small households. "

Interestingly, Qin Qiong and Wei Chijingde, two generals in history, were indeed painted as images by the imperial edicts of Emperor Taizong, but they were not posted at the palace gate as "Royal Guards" as in fairy tales, but were treasured in Lingyan Pavilion. Lingge is a special place for storing portraits of heroes in Tang Dynasty.

Ziguangge is an important place for the country to welcome foreign guests, and it also had the same function during the Qianlong period. At that time, Emperor Qianlong collected 280 portraits of heroes, all of whom were heroes who helped Emperor Qianlong complete his "peerless martial arts". But after Eight-Nation Alliance invaded Beijing, most of these portraits were lost. At present, the only two paintings in China are kept in Tianjin Museum, and these two paintings have become treasures of the museum.

Zhong Kui and Wei Zhi guard the back door.

In addition to the harmony of the Qin Dynasty, another image of the keeper-Zhong Kui was born in the Tang Dynasty. This guardian is also called "Ghost Catcher".

Coincidentally, Wu Daozi dreamed of Zhong Kui in his dream the day before, so Zhong Kui was painted vividly. Finally, Zhong Kui was hanged by the emperor in his palace to exorcise ghosts. And this practice has gradually become a folk custom. Of course, the legend is a legend after all, but at least this story can reflect to us that at least during the Kaiyuan period of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, Zhong Kui was deeply rooted in people's hearts as an exorcist. However, some scholars believe that Zhong Kui is the keeper of the back door, and his main duty is still to exorcise ghosts. In addition to Zhong Kui, Wei Zhi, the favorite of Emperor Taizong, was also an important back door master.

The reason why Kevin Z became the late goalkeeper is also documented. The novel Romance of Sui and Tang Dynasties says: After Wei Zhi, the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, beheaded the old dragon king of Jinghe, the ghost of the old dragon king went into the inner palace every night to beg for mercy from Taizong Li Shimin. Outside the palace gate, two men were guarding Weichi Gong. The ghost of the old dragon king turned to the back door of the palace and smashed the brick. At this time, Weichi Gong and I had already met them at the front door, so the Prime Minister had to personally hold the Dragon Sword and guard the back door at night. After a long time, the ghost of the old dragon king had to leave.

There are many "partners" of goalkeepers in history, all of whom are very familiar historical figures, such as Sun Bin and Pang Juan, Zhao Yun and Ma Chao, Xiao He and Han Xin, Meng Liang and Jiao Zan. These door gods all appear in the New Year pictures as military commanders. Of course, there are also paintings of civil servants' door gods, such as Bi Gan, the god of wealth, Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of Shu Han, and so on. Most of them have door gods praying.

Because Beijing is an ancient city, the capital of Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Scholars and businessmen from all over the country have come to Beijing. At the same time, cultures from all over the country, including the custom of door gods, also gather here. So there are many kinds of door gods on the doors of old Beijing residential buildings. It is widely circulated that "there are six gods in the family". However, because of the changes of the times, not many people know about the "Six Gods of the Family".

"Six gods in the family" are the six immortals who bless the family. Which six are they? Kitchen God, Earth God, Door God, Hu Weiwei, Jing Quan Boy, Uncle. Qin Qiong and Weichi Gong are of course two of them, but their titles are different. Of the two front doors of the house, the one on the left is called the keeper, and the one on the right is called Hu Weiwei.

The remaining four, whose "jurisdiction" is particularly specific, are closely related to the lives of ordinary people. Among them, the most familiar is the kitchen god. The Journey to the West's book was circulated in old Beijing, and clearly wrote the duties of the Kitchen God: "The Kitchen God left a scroll of scriptures to read to good men and believe in women. My surname is Zhang Zi, and the Jade Emperor asked me to be a chef. I will check good and evil in the afterlife, and I will clear it first. " Therefore, the main duty of Kitchen God is to supervise the words and deeds of people in the house and truthfully report to the Jade Emperor. Generally, every family in old Beijing will support Kitchen God. In addition, there is a "Wanwang Temple" in the flower market. Every year on the third day of the eighth lunar month and the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, there will be temple fairs here. There are all kinds of vendors outside the temple, mostly selling kitchen utensils, which can be described as "kitchen utensils street". In the temple, chefs from major hotels in Beijing burn incense to the kitchen god and pray for career development.

In ancient times, the kitchen god followed the tradition handed down from the Eastern Han Dynasty, that is, using antelope to worship the kitchen god. But in modern times, most families began to use honeydew melons for sacrificial activities. The reason is very simple, that is, I hope Kitchen God can say a few more auspicious words to the Jade Emperor after eating these honeydew melons. There is even a saying that the Kitchen God has honeydew melons in his mouth, so that he can't "report" the Jade Emperor. In order to pray for a good word from Kitchen God, people often hang couplets with his idols on both sides of the house. God speaks well, and so does the world. Of course, this couplet also places people's good hopes for the new year.

In the past, after the annual kitchen sacrifice, various firms began to send servants out to collect debts and prepare accounts for one year. People who have no money to pay their debts begin to hide their debts until they meet God on New Year's Eve. Therefore, there used to be an old saying: "Put all your eggs in one basket and save Jiao Zi." Of course, before this, there was another saying called "sending a letter to Laba porridge", which means that every household gradually began to prepare for the New Year from the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month.

Jing Quan boy's post is the well of each family. In ancient times, water was not as convenient as it is today. Everyone must rely on wells for water. As a result, the boy in charge of the well in Jing Quan became the object of worship. According to the custom, on the first day of the New Year, many people will cover the wellhead with red paper after offering sacrifices to the completion gods, which means that the well gods who have been busy for a year can have a rest.

The land god is the patron saint of one party, so he is not only the god of the family, but also a very important god in the "community". In the former Xuanwu area, there was once a "Beijing Land Temple" dedicated to the "Commander-in-Chief" of the Beijing landlord. Unfortunately, this temple doesn't exist today, and it is near xuanwu hospital now.

The last uncle, although his business is mediocre, can't do without it. This fairy is Ce Shen. She is mainly responsible for the toilet at home. This fairy is the only woman among the six gods in the family. Legend has it that this kind of Ce Shen can predict the future, and even some areas think that Ce Shen can protect women from giving birth smoothly. These "Six Gods" were responsible for protecting the daily life of ordinary people and were worshipped by ordinary people in the old society.