I have already written about the most beautiful mermaids and vixens, but this time the equally gorgeous and flamboyant beauty snake appears.

There is a passage in Lu Xun's article "From Baicao Garden to Sanwei Bookstore" about the beautiful snake:

"My eldest mother once told me a story: Previously, there was a scholar who lived While studying in the ancient temple at night, while enjoying the cool air in the courtyard, he suddenly heard someone calling him. When he looked around, he saw a beautiful woman's face on the wall, smiled at him, and then disappeared. I was very happy, but the old monk who came to talk at night discovered the trap and said that he had some evil spirit on his face, and he must have met the "Beautiful Snake"; this is a monster with the head of a human and the body of a snake, and it can call people's names if they agree. , will come to eat this person's flesh at night... The final lesson is: So if a strange voice calls your name, you must not answer it."

Folklorists study beautiful snakes. At that time, of course, we had to study the most famous beautiful snake in China - Bai Suzhen①, and came to the conclusion that the legend of "The Legend of the White Snake" originated from India, a country of snake charmers, and said that India in the British writer Keats's "Lamia" The story spread to Greece in the 2nd century AD, and to Western Europe and China in the 12th century. Feng Menglong’s narrative is just a variation of Keats’s “Lamia” story in China. ②

As everyone knows, China’s beautiful snakes do not need to be imported. The oldest beautiful snake is Nuwa, the ancestor of mankind. Guo Pu's note in "The Classic of Mountains and Seas: The Great Wilderness Western Classic": "Nuwa, an ancient goddess and emperor, has a human face and a snake body, and can change seventy times in one day." This image is the same as the beautiful snake Lu Xun heard about when he was a child. Lu Xun later used it in his In the novel "Mending the Sky", this beautiful snake ancestor is described in a rare and charming style:

"Yi walked to the seaside between the flesh-red sky and earth, and the curves of her whole body melted into a pale rose-like shape. In the sea of ??light, the waves were astonishingly white until the middle of her body. However, the waves splashed on Yi's body, and the pure white shadow seemed to be scattered in all directions... …”③

The birth of human beings is always related to snakes. In the Bible, humans also came to the world because of snakes, and they are always related to women. The sentence in "The Book of Songs" that "the viper is the viper and the snake is the auspiciousness of a woman" takes the appearance of a snake in a dream as a good omen for giving birth to a girl. ④

But human beings are always wary of extremely beautiful women, just as the original meaning of the word "charm" is the devil of seduction. The name of the Western beauty snake Medusa later came to mean "fatal temptation". This is why the eldest mother warned the young Lu Xun, "If a stranger calls your name, you must not answer him."

Folks believe that these charming (or magical) things are witchcraft Yes, but to perform witchcraft on someone one must know the person's name. If your name is known to the devil, it is very likely that your destiny and soul will be controlled by others⑥. For example, it is recorded in "The Postscript of Sou Shen": During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the noble son Zhou Ziwen liked to hunt and often went into the mountains. Suddenly, a giant appeared from the mountain peaks, white as frost and snow, holding a bow and arrow in his hand, and called out: "A rat! "(Zhou Ziwen's nickname) Zhou Ziwen responded unconsciously: "Here." The man pointed his bow at Zhou Ziwen, and Zhou Ziwen fell unconscious... This scene is very similar to the modern comic "Death Note".

The wariness of the beautiful snake turned into Fahai when it came to Feng Menglong in the Ming Dynasty and became a joke in the eyes of the world. Now I finally understand why historians always say that the modern era was the embryonic period of capitalism, because at that time there was already "disenchanted" modernity. At that time, people were calm about the temptation of beautiful snakes.

Modern children are more fearless. If they listen to the story of their eldest mother, they will shout: God, please give more beautiful and infatuated fairies!

[Note]

① From Lust and Caution to Love

"The Legend of the White Snake" and "The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl", "Meng Jiangnu Cries at the Great Wall", "Liang Shanbo and Zhu Together with "Yingtai", they are known as the four major folk legends. However, the story of "The Legend of White Snake" took shape the latest, and was first seen in "The White Snake Forever Guards Leifeng Pagoda" in Volume 28 of Feng Menglong's "Warning Words". In the story, the White Snake is, after all, a seducing demon with sex. After being suppressed by Fa Hai, the male protagonist Xu Xuan becomes a monk and leaves a warning verse after his death that sex is empty.

Huang Tujue's "Leifeng Pagoda" (Kanshange Edition) in the early Qing Dynasty, or the earliest opera script that circulated, only wrote that the White Snake was suppressed under the Leifeng Pagoda. More than twenty years later, an old Liyuan manuscript appeared (probably composed by Kunqu opera artist Chen Jiayan and his daughter, the existing score is no longer complete). It is a widely circulated manuscript, with a plot of a white snake giving birth to a son. At this point, the story of the snake spirit has changed from a seductive monster to a sentimental and righteous woman.

During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, Fang Chengpei adapted the thirty-four "Leifeng Pagoda Legend" (Shizhuju version), which is divided into four volumes. "Boat Encounter" and "Alliance", the second volume is "Duan Yang" and "Qiu Cao", the third volume includes "Ye Zen" and "Water Gate", and the fourth volume ends from "Broken Bridge" to "Pagoda Sacrifice". The main outline of the story of "The Legend of White Snake" has been basically completed since then. The play's script was presented to Emperor Qianlong during his southern tour, and it became so famous that people from all walks of life knew the story of "The Legend of the White Snake."

From the novels of the Ming Dynasty to the operas of the late Qing Dynasty, the male protagonist was originally named Xu Xuan. It was not until the Republic of China that he was renamed Xu Xian, which has been passed down to this day.

② The origin of the White Snake

Generally speaking, the origin of the story of "The Legend of the White Snake" can always be traced back to the Tang legend "The Story of the White Snake".

"White Snake" is also called "Li Huang". It was first seen in "Bo Yi Zhi" of the Tang Dynasty, and was later included in "Taiping Guang Ji" compiled by the Song Dynasty. The male protagonist, Li Huang, is from Longxi and comes from an official family. One day, I saw a woman sitting in a bullock cart on the roadside. "The lady in white is of extraordinary beauty." I was so surprised that I went to strike up a conversation with her, only to find out that the lady in white was a widow. The two exchanged glances, and Li Huang actually followed the widow to her suburban home... Of course, a good thing happened, and he returned home after three days in a row. He fell ill when he returned home, and his servants felt that his body was full of fishy odor. Soon after he died, his family lifted the quilt and saw that only his head was left, and his lower body had turned into pus... He sent people to the suburbs to find the widow in white in her yard. There was only a big acacia tree. The surrounding villagers said that there had been people living in this tree. A big white snake.

The story of "The Legend of the White Snake" is too concise and takes place in Chang'an, so the Song Dynasty script "The Story of the Three Pagodas of West Lake" is more like the source of "The Legend of the White Snake".

The male protagonist of "The Three Pagodas of West Lake" is Xi Xuanzan (Xi Xuan gradually evolved into Xu Xuan, and then evolved into today's Xu Xian). It is said that Xi Xuanzan was more than 20 years old. During the Qingming Festival during the Chunxi period (1174-1189), he rescued a lost little girl by the West Lake. His surname was Bai and his nickname was Mao Nu. Soon Mao Nu's family came to pick him up, an old woman with gray hair and chicken skin. The old woman thanked Xi Xuanzan and invited him to her home. Xi Xuanzan went to the Bai Mansion and found out that the owner of the White Mansion was a widow in white clothes. She had "green clouds in her hair and white snow on her skin. Her eyes were filled with waves of autumn water, and her brows were covered with spring mountain daisy. Her peach calyx was lightly made up and her face was red with cherry blossoms." Lightly touch the red lips. The walking shoes are lined with small lotuses, and the jade fingers reveal slender spring bamboo shoots."... Since it is a thank you, a banquet is indispensable. I saw the lady in white talking and laughing happily, holding down a young man on the table, cutting out the heart and liver with a knife, eating half and giving the other half to Xi Xuanzan, who was so frightened that Xi Xuanzan lost his mind. After the banquet, the White Lady said: "I don't have a husband now, so I would rather marry Xuan Zan."

"How dare Xi Xuanzan disobey? After living like this for half a month, Xi Xuanzan became sallow and thin... Fortunately, with the help of Mao Nu, he finally escaped successfully. But he said that Xi Xuanzan had an uncle who was practicing Taoism in Longhu Mountain and happened to come down the mountain to show off his power. , the three members of the Bai family were brought back to their original forms - the slave was a crow, the old woman was an otter, and the white lady was a white snake, and they were suppressed under the Three Pagodas of the West Lake (the Three Pools Reflecting the Moon)

But in the Tang and Song Dynasties. In the past, the most profound impact on China's Zhigui culture was the introduction of Buddhism during the Eastern Han Dynasty, which turned the ambiguity between humans and ghosts into a struggle between gods and demons, always hiding the aspect of enlightenment or enlightenment. Mr. Zhao Jingshen believes in "Tanci Textual Research: The Legend of the White Snake" (Commercial Press, 1938 edition) that "The Legend of the White Snake" has an earlier prototype, originating from the long poem "Lumeia" written by the British poet Keats based on the Greek legend. (Lamia, also translated as "Lamia", tells the story of a snake demon who turned into a human and fell in love with a beautiful man, but was exposed by a wise man), which is a variant of "The Legend of the White Snake" that was spread from India to the West. /p>

③ Lu Xun's "Mending the Sky"

Lu Xun created "Buzhou Mountain" in November 1922 as the finale of the short story collection "The Scream", and later included it in "Stories" When "Newly Edited", it was renamed "Mending the Sky"

"Newly Edited Stories" is an anomaly in Lu Xun's collection of novels, with mysterious ideas, out-of-the-box thinking, and magnificent language... But Lu Xun himself seemed dissatisfied, saying that "the idea at that time was to use themes from both ancient and modern times to make short stories", but "from being serious to being slippery" is what Lu Xun couldn't help but say. Some strange words alluding to the current situation, but these strange words are still vivid today.

In the novel, the sexy and naked Nuwa created people because she was bored, feeling the novelty and the joy of the creator. But soon, she. She found that there was a little person in her crotch, muttering and complaining, saying bad things about others. Probably people like to do this kind of thing. ? Suddenly a feeling of boredom came over me, and I didn’t want to create humans anymore. But in the great disaster of the world, Nuwa still came out to save the world until she died... As soon as she died, a group of people came with a banner - Nuwa. It seems a bit funny that Nuwa is the mother of human beings, but even her dead body is the most fat place. To take advantage of it, under the guise of "direct lineage", the so-called loyal successor, the magnificent scenes and gorgeous colors at the beginning of the novel have all turned into absurdity, and there is an indescribable sadness behind it.

④ Snake Symbolism

In many religions, myths and literature, snakes often represent fertility or the power to create life. Because the snake can shed its skin, it has also become a symbol of regeneration, transformation, immortality and healing. Ouroboros is a symbol that has been passed down from ancient times to this day. Its rough image is that a snake (or dragon) is swallowing its own tail, resulting in a circle, which is a spiritual embodiment of the cyclical view of the universe. In Norse mythology, J?rmungandr is a huge ouroboros that surrounds the entire human world.

In the Abrahamic religions, snakes symbolize sexual desire. According to Jewish tradition, the snake in the Garden of Eden was indeed a symbol of sexual desire.

In Hinduism, Kundalini is a coiled snake and is considered to be a tangible life force and the source of sexual energy.

In Buddhism, snakes are regarded as the guardians of temples or sacred places. Legend has it that when the Buddha began to meditate under the Bodhi tree, it darkened for seven days and there was a heavy rain, so Mujinlinadha emerged from the ground and guarded the Buddha.

In China, snakes are regarded as the lower-level form of existence of dragons. The so-called Fuxi and Nuwa have a human head and a snake body, rather than a dragon body. Only in this way can we understand the meaning of "descendants of the dragon".

⑤ Medusa

Medusa is a complete tragedy.

Medusa was originally the priestess of Athena's temple. Athena is the only one of the Greek gods who has an ascetic temperament, so her priestesses must remain chaste throughout their lives.

Medusa had an extremely beautiful face and was spotted by Poseidon, the god of the sea. Poseidon wanted to use force, so Medusa ran into Athena's temple to pray for protection, but she was still transformed into a big bird by Poseidon and her virginity was taken away in the temple.

Athena saw her priest having sex with an animal in her temple (Athena probably didn’t realize that the bird was her uncle Poseidon)... She was very angry and went on to He cast a curse - any man who saw Medusa's face would turn to stone, and Medusa's hair would turn into wriggling snakes. Medusa, who became frightening from then on, was banished to the end of the underworld, and was finally killed and beheaded by the Greek hero Perseus.

⑥ The witchcraft of names

The essence of witchcraft is the art of association, emphasizing various connections. For example, the connection between a person's name, soul, and destiny.

Throughout ancient and modern times, at home and abroad, there have been spells related to names (such as calling souls), and the principles are similar. In the old days, children in the countryside were only given nicknames and nicknames, and their formal names were given only when they entered school or were naturalized and added to the family tree, just to make a living. Because the mortality rate of children at that time was too high, it was understood that the children were cursed by enemies or evil spirits. If the child doesn't have an official name, the curse won't work.

One of the most humorous scenes in "Journey to the West" is when King Silver Horn holds a purple, gold and red gourd and asks Sun Wukong: "I call you, do you dare to agree?" Sun Wukong made up a series of pseudonyms, Cope with ease.