[Long Teng Jiuzhou Fu Nuan Four Seasons] Two-dimensional idioms: Why does the "dragon and phoenix" in "dragon and phoenix present auspiciousness" imply a beautiful marriage?
"Dragon and Phoenix present auspiciousness" often refers to auspicious and festive events. "Phoenix" was first used as the original totem of Chu people. It has no gender. It is a symbol of truth, goodness and beauty. However, as time went by, later generations began to combine it with "phoenix" to form "phoenix", thus a new semantic meaning was created, and phoenix began to become a male bird.
With the decline and demise of the Chu State (223 BC), the north became the political center. The totem dragon revered in the north became a symbol of imperial power, and the phoenix became a subordinate. The emperor wore a dragon robe, and the queen wore a phoenix crown. This was a major change in the gender of the phoenix, which began to refer to women.
Nowadays, "dragon and phoenix present auspiciousness" are mainly used in wedding ceremonies to express the harmony of yin and yang and a happy marriage. (Mo Hong'e)
lóng fèng chéng xiáng refers to something auspicious and joyful.
Loong is the Chinese dragon, while Feng means a phoenix. As the earliest totem of the Chu State (1115 BC-223 BC), the Phoenix is inherently genderless, symbolizing the values of truth, goodness, and beauty.
However, over time, it became intertwined with Huang, a female phoenix, and started to represent a male phoenix.
With the decline and eventual collapse of the Chu State, the political center shifted to northern China.
The totem of Northern China, Chinese dragon, or Loong, became the predominant symbol of imperial power, overshadowing the Phoenix.
During the Tang and Song dynasties (618-1279), Feng began to represent women.
Emperors were dressed in robes featuring intricate Long designs, while empresses wore the phoenix crown, marking a significant shift in symbolism.
Consequently, Feng became associated with women.
Today, lóng fèng chéng xiáng is mainly used in wedding ceremonies, indicating that the couple is harmonious and the marriage is happy.
Editor in charge: [Yu Xiao]