The Yin and Yang philosophy embodied in traditional Shaanxi folk paper-cutting
When we look at the traditional shapes of Shaanxi, we are amazed by the rich changes in this artistic shape. On the other hand, I am surprised that such a large folk creative group has such a unified creative ideology. As we searched hard during our wanderings, we discovered many abstract and strange symbols. Being able to unravel the mystery will open up the ideological roots of labor creators. Shaanxi can be said to be the birthplace of Chinese culture. The grand mentality of the Qin and Han Dynasties created a solid foundation. From King Qi Wei and King Qi Xuan of the Warring States Period to the First Emperor of Qin, they were all obsessed with going to Haozhou, Penglai, and Abbot of Shandong in search of the "elixir of immortality". "Exclusive respect for Confucianism" and the introduction of Buddhism after the opening of the "Silk Road" in the Western Han Dynasty. All of this, the Chinese peoples ideological system developed in a mixed way. However, the yin-yang philosophy that runs through it as a basic concept has been accompanying the development of national mentality from generation to generation. From the perspective of mythology, we understand that the ancients began to understand the world from the Bagua diagram created by Fuxi.
"Book of Changes" records: "In ancient times, Bao Xi was the king of the world. He looked up to observe the images in the sky, and when he looked down, he observed the laws on the earth. He observed the patterns of birds and beasts in harmony with the earth. Gods take things from afar, so they are like making Bagua to communicate the virtues of gods and imitate the laziness of all things. Therefore, Yi has eight poles, which give rise to two rituals, two rituals give rise to four images, and four images give rise to the Eight Diagrams." Fuxi created He came to heaven and earth and became known to the world by creating the Eight Diagrams. Use a series of symbols to represent the world. However, what drives the development of this world is the "two gods of yin and yang". "Huainanzi, Spiritual Chapter" said: "In ancient times, when there was no heaven, there were two gods who were invisible, graceful and dark, and lived in the sky, so they were divided into yin and yang, and separated into eight poles." Gao Yingzhi noted. : "Two gods, the gods of yin and yang." The "two gods of yin and yang" here are essentially the two most basic substances in the origin of the universe. They are full of vitality and gradually evolve into all things.
Because of his preliminary understanding of the world, Fuxis founding position was established. Then human beings considered their own problems around "where did humans come from?" Coincidentally, Fuxis sister appeared in the myth. After many hardships, the two finally became husband and wife, and human beings were born from the union of man and woman. It can be deduced from this that "men and women are finely constructed, and all things are transformed." The philosophical system created by our ancestors is the Yin-Yang, Bagua, and Five Elements system with the concept of "unity of nature and man" as the through line. Fuxi created the Bagua, and Nuwo created human beings. It can be said that they are ancient people’s views and generalizations of the natural world.
The above brief understanding can allow us to understand the most basic philosophical concepts behind traditional paper-cutting art and other folk arts. The concept of yin and yang has a profound influence on traditional paper-cutting in Shaanxi. The widely used visual image among the people is the Tai Chi Bagua diagram. At the same time, the philosophical concept of the interplay of yin and yang centered on the worship of reproduction and the endless transformation of all things has also formed the modeling system of traditional Shaanxi paper-cutting.
