China News Agency, Beijing, April 6th, Question: Zhou Ming: What kind of "innocence" and genes does myth embody in Eastern and Western civilizations?

　　China News Agency reporter Ma Siqi and Zhao Wengang

　　As the source of civilization and culture and the carrier of national spirit, myth has an irreplaceable and important position in any national culture.

Until today, it has profoundly affected the life of modern people either with custom or with potential consciousness.

Although there are various differences between the mythological narratives of the East and the West, and the myths of each ethnic group have their own distinct personalities, the civilization memories created by them are common to all human beings.

　　Does mythic content exist entirely in fiction and fantasy?

Why are there so many similar motifs in the ancient myths of the East and the West?

Zhou Ming, a specially-appointed researcher at the Mythology Research Institute of the Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences, recently accepted an exclusive interview with the "East and West Questions" column of China News Agency.

China News Agency reporter: The understanding of primitive myths is helpful for tracing the roots of national culture.

Then, in the different cultural contexts of the East and the West, what is a myth?

Zhou Ming:

Myth is a unique cultural form that originated in human childhood.

For a long time, due to their different positions, viewpoints, research methods, and perspectives, Chinese and foreign academic circles have had many different interpretations on the question of "what is a myth".

　　For example, in the West, the ancient Greek scholar of the school of mythology, Ohmerus, said that myth was "history in disguise"; the ancient Greek scholar of the school of mythology and metaphor, Xenophanes, said that myth was "the allegory of the ancients"; The Austrian scholar Sigmund Freud said that "myths are the deformed fragments of the imagination and aspirations of entire peoples...an ancient fantasy of naive human beings", etc. There are many sayings.

In July 2021, a projection on a building in Changsha shows Greek mythological figures.

Photo by China News Agency reporter Yang Huafeng

　　In China, there are also various definitions and definitions of what is a myth.

Mr. Lu Xun believes: "In the past, the first people saw the heaven and earth and all things, and their variations were not constant, and their phenomena were beyond the capabilities of human beings, so they created their own theories to explain them; all the explanations are now called myths." Mr. Mao Dun believes that , Myth is "a popular folk story in ancient times. The narrator is the actions of gods who are beyond human ability. Although it is absurd, the ancient people told each other and believed it to be true."

　　I personally believe that myth is a kind of comprehensive consciousness created by primitive ancestors in the process of understanding and conquering nature. It reflects and expresses the thoughts, concepts, beliefs and extensive social life of early human beings.

Myths are characterized by a high degree of fantasy and interpretation, and their manifestations are based on gods, demons and supernatural heroes.

China News Service reporter: Although there are various civilizations in the world, many ancient myths and stories have striking similarities, such as the creation of heaven and earth, the origin of human beings, and the salvation of heroes. Can you talk about this phenomenon?

Zhou Ming:

There are relatively similar types of myths in several ancient cultural systems that have the greatest impact on the development of world culture. These myth types are academically called myth motifs.

　　In terms of origin, the appearance of the same mythological motif is highly related to the similar stages of human social development. People in different regions have relatively similar economic foundations and conditions, social foundations and conditions, psychological foundations and conditions, and language foundations and conditions. , and more similar creators and inheritors (such as wizards), thus resulting in the appearance of the same mythological motifs in different regional cultures.

　　For example, Greek mythology believes that at the beginning of the universe, there was chaos. Chaos, the god of chaos, created the world and gave birth to five children. The universe has since been divided into sky, earth, hell, darkness and day.

This is exactly the same as the plot of Pangu in China.

　　Prometheus is the creator of man, he made man out of clay, Athena gave man soul, and later Zeus made woman.

This "plot" is exactly the same as our Nuwa's creation of human beings.

　　Prometheus quietly stole fire from the sun, gave it to humans, and was chained by Zeus on the Caucasus Mountains.

In Chinese mythology, there is a fire god named Yibo. According to legend, he stole fire from the sky and gave it to human beings, and was finally banished to the mortal world.

　　The same mythological motif occupies a very important position in these cultural systems, and has a profound impact on later cultures.

Classical period (ancient Greek, ancient Roman period) art treasures.

Photo by China News Agency reporter Peng Dawei

Reporter from China News Service: Comparing the ancient Chinese mythology represented by the Classic of Mountains and Seas with Western mythology, can you summarize the characteristics of Chinese mythology that are different from Western mythology?

Zhou Ming:

First of all, on the whole, the biggest feature of Western mythology is that it has undergone many revisions, supplements, and improvements in the process of spreading, forming a relatively complete narrative style, which involves many characters and stories with strong However, the myths recorded in the Qin and Han classics such as the Classic of Mountains and Seas in China have basically not changed since they were finalized. Their content is simple and fragmented, and there is no strong logical connection.

In December 2020, the large-scale indoor immersive light and shadow art exhibition "Whale Dream: The Book of Shenyin Mountains and Seas" was held in Chengdu.

Photo by China News Agency reporter An Yuan

　　Secondly, the gods recorded and represented in Western mythology tend to be highly “humanized”—that is, the world of gods and human life are integrated into one, and gods are like people.

The ancient Chinese mythology recorded in the pre-Qin to Han Dynasty documents basically has the image characteristics of "half animal and half human".

For example, the image of Pangu in "Opening the World" is "dragon head and snake body"; the image of Nuwa in "Nuwa Creates Man" is "snake body and human head"; the image of the Eastern Wood God Jumang is "bird body and human face" "Wait.

　　Third, from the basic difference between "humanization" and "deification", it is deduced that Western mythology is more "realistic", while Chinese mythology is more inclined to "write fiction".

In comparison, Western mythology is closer to the reality of real life, while the "supernatural" attribute of ancient Chinese mythology is stronger and farther away from real life.

　　Finally, in the way of narrative, Western mythology is more delicate and complete, and the relationship between gods and gods, and between gods and people is relatively close.

Compared with Western mythology, the narrative method of ancient Chinese mythology is more simple.

This is also one of the biggest differences between ancient Chinese mythology and Western mythology.

China News Agency reporter: According to your analysis, it can be said that myths contain the ancient cultural genes of all ethnic groups in the world. Then, what profound influences does Chinese mythology have on the formation of the national spirit?

Zhou Ming:

Myths originated in distant ancient times are the root and source of national culture. The influence of ancient Chinese myths on the formation of national spirit is mainly reflected in the following points.

　　1. Active thinking and the spirit of exploring the root cause.

Various types of origin myths in ancient China show that people are full of curiosity about the surrounding world and human life. They keep asking "why" and at the same time give explanations according to their own understanding, forming a primitive world view.

　　2. Positive spirit to cope with natural challenges.

The mythical stories of "Gun Yu's control of the flood" and "Yi shot the nine days" in "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" show tortuously reflect that when the ancestors faced a series of natural disasters such as floods and droughts, they did not passively submit to nature, but through "Gun" "Yu" and "Yi" and other divine heroes fought actively, reflecting the indomitable and positive spirit.

　　3. Perseverance and perseverance.

"Kufu Zhaidai", "Jingwei Reclamation" and "Xingtian Wu Qianqi" are typical representatives.

Kuafu stretched out his legs to chase the sun, Jingwei used his own strength to hold the wood of the Western Mountains to fill the sea, Xingtian had his head cut off by the Emperor of Heaven, and still "uses the milk as his eyes, his navel as his mouth, and dances with his heart." It reflects the spirit of forging ahead with "strong ambition" (Tao Qianyu).

In September 2020, the Jiangwan Scenic Spot in Wuyuan County, Jiangxi Province described the myth and legend "Wu Nu slaying the dragon", which was handed down orally by the ancestors of Wuyuan in the ancient city, into a painting.

Photo by China News Agency

China News Service reporter: With the continuous update of archaeological discoveries, people are more and more aware that myths are not pure fantasy and fiction, but also bear the real imprint of civilization common to mankind. How to understand the connection between myths and the real world?

Zhou Ming:

In China, for a long time, the study of mythology was mainly limited to literature, especially the field of folk literature.

Since the 1980s, with the introduction of a large number of foreign mythological theories, many scholars have broken through pure literary research and turned to multi-disciplinary, multi-perspective, and multi-dimensional mythology research, ranging from anthropology, ethnology, folklore, and religion. , Philosophy, Linguistics, History and other disciplines conduct research on myth, an ancient form of world culture, in an effort to clarify various issues between myth and reality.

　　In recent years, with the development of archaeology around the world and the excavation of a large number of ancient sites, a large number of cultural relics have been unearthed, making people surprised to see that there is such an obvious connection between myth and reality.

Especially in a specific stage of human cultural development, the shapes, ornaments, patterns, symbols, etc. of unearthed artifacts around the world are supported by very similar mythological concepts, and have a high degree of consistency and commonality in a specific stage of human cultural development. This kind of commonality profoundly reveals the common memory that human beings have in the process of their cultural development.

　　Therefore, it is of great historical and practical significance for us to build a "community with a shared future for mankind" to deeply study the myths of different regions from all angles and to find the consistency and commonality of human cultural development.

(over)

Interviewee Profile:

　　Zhou Ming, born in 1957, a native of Chengdu, is a member of the Mythology Professional Committee of the Chinese Folk Writers and Artists Association, an executive director of the Sichuan Folklore Society, a special researcher of the Mythology Research Institute of the Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences, and an associate editor of the Mythology Research Collection.

Graduated from the Chinese Department of Nanchong Normal University (now Xihua Normal University) in early 1982, and entered the Institute of Mythology and Literature of Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences in early 1983. He has been an academic assistant to the mythologist Mr. Yuan Ke for a long time, assisting Mr. Yuan Ke in completing the "Chinese Myths and Legends". He has written and published academic works such as Dictionary, Chinese Myths and Legends, A Brief History of Chinese Literature, Dictionary of Chinese Ethnic Myths, History of Chinese Mythology, and Annotations of Shanhaijing (Revised Edition), mainly engaged in mythology, folklore and folk literature Research.