What does it mean that ancient people left their shoes on the shore when they threw themselves into the river?

Peacock Flying Southeast is a famous Yuefu poem, which tells the love story of the protagonists Liu Lanzhi and Jiao Zhongqing. The story ended in tragedy. Liu Lanzhi committed suicide by jumping into the river after her divorce. Jiao Zhongqing hanged himself after hearing the news of Liu Lanzhi's death. People buried them together next to Huashan Mountain, and it is also said that they became a bird symbolizing love and loyalty-Yuanyang.

There is a sentence in this poem describing the scene when Liu Lanzhi committed suicide by jumping into the river: "Take off his silk shoes and lift himself to the pool." Obviously, Liu Lanzhi took off his shoes before jumping into the river.

According to Records of the Historian Biography of Qu Yuan and Jia Sheng, Qu Yuan, the minister of Chu in the Spring and Autumn Period, took off his shoes and jumped into the river with strong patriotic feelings after Qin Jun invaded Kyoto.

Then the question is, why did the ancients take off their shoes before jumping into the river to commit suicide? This is about traditional culture and some customs.

Before the ancients jumped into the river, they all took off their shoes and put them on the shore. The most important reason is to tell others that he jumped into the river himself, not others.

When people find a body in the water, they will report it to the government, and the government will naturally trace the cause of death of this person to see if it is related to criminal behavior. If a dead man's shoes are found on the shore, it is the best proof of his suicide, not being hurt by others.

In ancient times, burial and sacrifice after death were very important, so it is a very glorious thing for some people who have made great contributions to the royal family or the court to enjoy the ancestral temple and enjoy the same ceremony as the royal family after death.

As an ordinary person, it is also a matter of great concern to everyone whether he can enter the ancestral grave of the family after death and accept sacrifices and incense from future generations and clansmen.

Many families have taboos about people who died unexpectedly, so people who died cannot be buried in ancestral graves, nor can they accept sacrifices from future generations at four o'clock a year. This is a very painful thing for the ancients who valued the afterlife.

Therefore, if a person decides to die, before jumping into the river, he will take off his shoes and put them on the shore, which clearly tells people that he committed suicide, not because of an accident. So he can be buried in his ancestral grave after his death and enjoy the sacrifices and incense of his people.

In the life of ancient people, shoes can also play the role of divination tools. When people are hesitant about what they encounter, many people will ask for divination by throwing their shoes out to help them make a choice.

The ancients paid great attention to etiquette, and shoes were also very important in people's clothes. They are objects with a sense of ceremony. In many cases, the shoes people wear are closely related to their status. Therefore, taking off your shoes before jumping into the river is also a confirmation of the road you have chosen and a farewell to this living world.

Life is precious, as the saying goes, life is worse than death, but many times, some people have to choose to end their lives. In fact, when you encounter problems, do more. Endure it, and the sun will rise as usual tomorrow.