Pengjiazhai
When a great deal of geo-features and cultural memories carried on traditional buildings have been unceremoniously erased by modern buildings made of steel and concrete, it has become difficult to judge the geographic and cultural area in which a place is located by observing its buildings as we did in the past. However, hanging footstools, this kind of ancient dry-structure, is still widely used by the minority people of Exi, including the Tujia. Architecture, as the largest carrier of human civilization, Tujia hammock is the best shortcut to understand the cultural system of a Tujia ethnic group.
"Outside the Kui Gorge, inside the mountains around the river, the road to the danger, the barbarians mixed". Since the ancient closed geographical environment has achieved such a rich ethnic characteristics of the Tujia hammock cottage --- Peng Jia Zhai.
Pengjiazhai is located in the west of Hubei, located in Xuanen County, Enshi City, bordering Xiangxi and Chongqing, Pengjiazhai is located in the village of two river mouths, by an old street and along the Longtan River of the eight earth temple cottages, covering an area of about 800 hectares. Among the permanent residents, the Tujia ethnic group accounts for eighty percent. And Pengjiazhai is one of the typical representatives of the Tujia hammock.
Pengjiazhai has beautiful mountains and rivers and peculiar terrain. The cottage is located in the "Guanyin Zaolian" right, under the Guanyin Mountain. The east side of the village is bounded by a ditch called "Fork several ditch", on which there is a hundred-year-old pavilion bridge, so the place is called Liangqiao. Longtan River in front of the village through the village, the river has more than 40 meters long wire bridge will be connected to the village and the outside world, "eighteen Luohan" is like the guardian god of Guanyin Daishi; behind the village of the rolling hills, beautiful peaks, bamboo; along the Longtan River up to the Lion Rock, Shuihong Temple contrast; downstream adjacent to the Wangjiazhai there are "two dragons playing ball" of the beauty of the name. Its topographic features include shape auxiliary potential, spectacular.
Pengjiazhai scenery is charming and colorful. Everywhere you look, you can see the green grass, lush forests, bamboo with green, and the fragrance of the group. The village before the field, rice waves undulating, from time to time, folk tunes, farming songs, the wind sends a refreshing, empty valley sound; between the river, the creek, the Tujia women picking water washing, children playing; the mountains, sheep leisurely eating grass; field, ducks and geese foraging from time to time to scramble, a faction of the idyllic atmosphere, the world of the immortal, very rich flavor.
According to legend, a long time ago, a young couple to fulfill the wishes of their forefathers, at the expense of long-distance travel, to find the old site of the ancestors. It was a spring season, they came to the northern foot of the Wuling Mountains, suddenly a large river blocked the way, can not go forward. Just see the other side of the river, the two mountains face each other, between them, the stream flows, like a colorful chain connected to the river. The left mountain peach blossom, colorful, shaped like a "pyramid", said Peach Blossom Hill; the right mountain Jia Mu Li, the beauty of the bamboo dew, the strange stone show, like the "Guanyin seat lotus", said Guanyin Hill. In front of the beauty of the world like a paradise, the Creator's ingenious work of art made the couple awakened, "This is not exactly what we are looking for the ancestors of the old site it!"
However, the river in front of the rapid, the couple can not cross the river and sad. Anxious, suddenly saw a lightning cut through the sky, the river slowly rising clouds, a small wooden bridge in the mist, the couple hand in hand in the floating bridge across the river ......
It is said that the couple is the Pengjiazhai Peng surnamed Tujia's ancestor Penghuai umbrella and his wife, Yang's. Since then, they have been here for the first time. From then on, they ploughed and wove here, prospered and created the history of Pengjiazhai. So far, Pengjiazhai also circulated such an ancient and beautiful song: "Guanyin Zailian pyramid, Huizang four dragons loaded ready to go, eighteen Luohan two-sided station, people and the spirit of the heavens and the sky created".
Peng Jiazhai is a typical blood type village, the whole village are Peng's descendants, the Qing Dynasty from Hunan moved to this, Peng's migration path is basically in line with China's "north to move to Jiangxi, Jiangxi fill the Lake Canton, Lake Canton fill the Sichuan" of the tide of immigrants. Peng's surname is a big family name of the Tujia, from Peng's origin can be seen, part of the Tujia ancestors originated from the Han nationality.
Because of the location of the main road, Pengjiazhai in the past is a place of war, 1909-1912, He Long's mule and horse gangs from Sangzhi, Hunan Province, through the Pengjiazhai, to participate in the revolution, He Long many times to Shadogou Pengjiazhai area to promote the revolution, the formation of the Red Army, in the second period of the domestic revolution, the Shadogou is also the west of Hunan and Hubei one of the base areas.
The Pengjiazhai architectural complex is dominated by footstools, built on the mountain, facing south. China's ancient architecture experts, Huazhong University of Science and Technology Professor Mr. Zhang Liangtian, in the study of ancient architecture in Enshi State, wrote: "to select the Hubei Province, hanging foot building group of the 'number one seed player', quasi-determined that the Xuanen Pengjiazhai out of the horse". And to sing and marvel: "not yet Wuling this life, poor years of staff to find the peach, the world is fortunate to have Peng Jiazhai, building lofty residence immortal".
Hanging Foot Tower is an ancient building in Southwest China, the most primitive prototype is a kind of dry bar type residence. When the memory of mankind is still in the blurred primitive era, there is a nest of the creation of the foot of the building as the oldest residence on the stage of history. It stands by the water and builds by the mountain, collecting the aura of green mountains and water, and is one with nature. The footstool is a small house in the architectural complex, small and delicate, elegant and dignified, showing the great beauty of nature in the simplicity. It is a place to forget the commonplace, exuding the true purity of life, without a trace of hustle and bustle and flashy. Being there, the troubles of the world will dissipate, and the troubled mind will be released.
From the beginning of the Peng's family moved into the beginning until now, Peng Jia Zhai footbridges have been in uninterrupted construction, repair and use, there are both new footbridges being built, there are also experienced hundreds of years of history of the old building. At present, there are more than forty well-preserved houses, each of which has its own system, with an area of more than a hundred to several hundred square meters, wooden tiled roofs, pierced-dou style, and single-eaved overhanging grey tile roofs. The houses in Pengjiazhai are generally composed of main houses and footstools. The main house is built on the level ground, generally three rooms; compartment hanging layer, built on the slope, the ridge and the main house flush, the height of the hanging feet with the terrain; at the same time, the main house and the compartment, "a positive and a horizontal" or "a positive and two horizontal", and the dam surrounded by the formation of a small courtyard. The hammock is from the Southwest minority area, the three-room house is from the kiln on the Loess Plateau, and the main house and the horizontal house enclosing the trend is from the Loess Plateau's "well-yard type" kiln.
Pengjiazhai footstool is to adapt to the mountainous terrain, the bottom of the hollow, and in the corner of the sub-part of the corner to do a circle of the corridor, the corridor out of the larger, are not on the ground; from the bottom of the upward view, as hanging in mid-air, it is known as footstools, footstools are not only through the bucket structure of a kind of, but also different from the ordinary through the bucket building. Pengjiazhai's foot-hanging buildings have become a fine product because the foot-hanging buildings are lined up along the mountain, staggered in height, showing the most beautiful and characteristic parts of the building. And the top of the hermitage gable, in line with the feeling of lightness of the building overhang, the corners are slightly upward warping, such as wings like flying style, greatly vivid, rich in three-dimensional modeling, such a structure in the Tujia hammock is that is rare.
Tujia buildings often have three doors, the first for the gate. Living in the mountainous half-slope of the Tujia people, in order to divide the field or to resist banditry, often set up in front of the village cottage cottage door. Pengjiazhai because across the river and neighboring villages, the river becomes a natural barrier, the suspension bridge over the river will replace the gate, and become the only access to the outside world, but also become a "one man, one man, no way out" of the natural barrier. The second door is the courtyard door, the scale of the Tujia folk houses often in front of the courtyard of the triad compound to add a courtyard door. Door plane more made into a figure of eight, giving people a sense of hospitality, but also a symbol of the Tujia people's warm and hospitable character. But a lot of "triple water" houses in the construction, due to the terrain, terrain, the main house door direction is not ideal, feng shui that with the owner of the eight characters do not match, then it will be in the triple water in front of the courtyard dam to add a courtyard door towards the "auspicious position", also known as the "door". "Pengjiazhai is mostly an ordinary mountain people's home, and there are more simple fences around the yard, at most a simple sloping roof to form a door frame. The third door is the door of the main house, also known as the door, Tujia customs often do not have the habit of installing the door, but there are many people installed door, just usually wide open.
The doors of Pengjiazhai are all different. The door of the main hall house is made into a "six-hexagonal door", which consists of six doors that you open and close to form three pairs of doors, installed with a door shaft. The two ends of each door are carved in relief or translucent "shuttle flowers", and the center is made into a variety of doors and windows. Pengjiazhai simple folk, few thieves, some households simply do not install the door, only to do a simple "cuttings door".
The door is the gate of the cottage, when people stand on the riverbank, the first sight is the whole piece of green tile roof, the Tujia people's building roof has a flow of visual effects, giving people a kind of light and romantic mood. From the longitudinal view of the external modeling of the foot-hanging buildings, the formation of "occupy the sky does not occupy the ground", "the sky is not flat" profile, the formation of these profiles are mostly used in the roof overhang, hanging layer, iterative drop and other methods of handling, so when people observe the foot-hanging buildings, will feel simply Therefore, when people observe the hanging-footed buildings, they will feel that they are simply vivid and lively, without any traces of stagnation. The roof of a single hanging-footed building itself is not complicated, generally just "a" or "L" shape, sometimes huge black roof, far-reaching eaves, plus the bottom of the suspended feet, will form a "head-heavy foot light "pattern, make people feel unstable, but when they are connected with the large roof built on the ground are echoing each other, so that the whole building is light and heavy coordination, solemn form, elasticity and sense of rhythm, giving people a kind of rude and unrestrained, simple and deep sense of artistic beauty. The huge eaves also expand the functional space under the eaves, where people can cool off, sunbathe in the sun, raise bees and feed domestic animals. In particular, the special form of the roof of the Tujia people - "drag the water", even if the seat of the back of the house, along the slope of the additional extension of the roof 2 columns, plus "Phi Eaves" formed by the expansion of space.
The most characteristic of the foot of the building is its foot, the walled corner of a variety of buildings, built according to the terrain, there is a single hanging type, also known as "a head of hanging" or "key head". It is characterized by the main house on one side of the compartment out of the overhang, the following with wooden pillars support each other.
There is a double-hung, also known as "double hanging" or "key head", which is the development of single-hung, that is, at both ends of the main house are hanging out of the compartment. Single-hung and double-hung and not to the formation of different regions, mainly depending on economic conditions and family needs, single-hung and double-hung often **** in one place.
There are four water type, this form of hammock and is based on the development of double-hanging type, which is characterized by the main house at both ends of the compartment house hammock part of the upper part of the integrated, forming a courtyard. The two compartments of the downstairs that is the gate, this courtyard into the gate must also be a few steps up the stone steps, in order to enter the main house.
There are two hanging houses, this form is in the single hanging and double hanging on the basis of the development, that is, in general on the foot of the building and then add a layer. Single and double hanging are applicable.
There is a flat hanging type, this form of hanging is also developed on the basis of single hanging, single hanging, double hanging are available. Its main feature is that it is built in the pingba, according to the terrain does not need to hang the foot, but the compartment will be lifted up, supported by wooden pillars. Support with wooden pillars fall to the ground and the ground level of the main house, so that the compartment is higher than the main house.
People and gods, the family first *** residence is an important feature of the Tujia architecture, the Tujia, Miao, Dong are in the house for the gods and ancestors set up to accept the family worship space, this space is concentrated in the hall "shrine" and the equivalent of the shrine in the house, the main content of the shrine is to enshrine The main contents of the shrine are the tablets of "Heaven, Earth, and Country (Jun) and the Master," and the hall where the ancestors of the clan are worshipped. It also posts couplets and words for seeking wealth, gods, blessings and peace. The basic writing format is: vertical strip of red paper above the ink pen with large letters "heaven and earth, country (king) parent teacher position" on both sides, inscribed with the owner of the house family clan ancestors of the hall. Pengjiazhai Peng's ancestors on the shrine, the right side of the "Longxi Hall on the generations of ancestors", the left side of the "nine days of the Secretary for Life Taiyi Fujun". The so-called "so-and-so hall" refers to the origin of the ancestors of the family name, "Longxi Hall" means that the Peng family ancestors from Longxi County.
The Tujia shrine is generally located in the back wall of the house, the central horizontal lining a wooden board, called the God stage, put a wooden table below the God stage, put the Tujia ancestor God Nuo Nuo God grandfather and Nuo Nuo Niang Niang, set incense burners, incense, wax and straw paper, there are also some of the table put a bit of incense and candles on the bowl and bowl, for fruit.
Into a home, you will find a very distinctive room - fireplace house. Fireplace house is located in a room on the side of the main house, this room is divided into two parts, the first half of the fireplace house, the second half is divided into bedrooms. The Tujia parents usually live in this house, while their sons and daughters live in the hammock next to the main house.
The fireplace house is closely related to the life of Pengjiazhai people. It is the auxiliary room of the kitchen, the place for boiling water, heating and smoking bacon, and the place for family reunion and reception of guests. Fire can cook food and bring warmth to people, and fire occupies an important position in the minds of Tujia people. The fire in the fireplace house is honored as the God of Fire, and most of the time in a year, it is not extinguished. New Year's Eve, the Tujia people are most concerned about the fire, a few days in a row to burn the fire is very large, indicating prosperity, and that the New Year's Eve burned firewood the larger, the next year's pigs will be the stronger.
Pengjiazhai belongs to the mountainous area, the temperature difference is large. In the spring, fall and winter seasons, the villagers, in addition to working and sleeping, mostly sit by the fireplace to roast fire, drink tea, and chat with friends and relatives. Every ten winter months, the Tujia people smoke bacon. They salted the meat for half a month and hung it on the hook above the fireplace. The smoked and roasted bacon is not only colorful and delicious, but also not easy to rot and deteriorate, and can be eaten all year round. When you visit Pengjiazhai, you can eat this kind of bacon with your friends around the fireplace while chatting, if you have this experience, you will not forget it for a long time.
Pengjiazhai's Tujia people's weddings, funerals, beliefs, customs, etc. are interpreted in the hammock, a hammock is a concentrated history of Tujia folklore. As a symbol of national material culture, it fully meets the needs of the material and cultural life of the Tujia people in Pengjiazhai and the needs of spiritual and cultural life.
Now Pengjiazhai Walled 48 households in the gathering of 215 Tujia people, 80% of them will sing the mountain folk songs and a variety of minor tunes, will be able to dance the pendulum hand dance, singing grass-gathering gongs and drums, jumping juggling, playing dragon lanterns, lion dance and other national songs and dances, and they have retained most of the customs of the Tujia people. One of them, an old woman surnamed Li and Luo, and two old men surnamed Peng, can sing mountain folk songs with different contents throughout the day.
The two most special customary programs in Pengjiazhai are "Crying for Marriage" and "Mourning", Pengjiazhai daughters must "Crying for Marriage" to get married, and in the past, girls who did not cry were not allowed to get married. In the past, girls who did not cry were not allowed to get married. The bride needs to be accompanied by nine unmarried women when she gets married, called "accompanied by ten sisters". "Mourning" is also known as "sacrificing to the king", and the king is the ancestor of the Tujia people. After the death of a Tujia old man, the descendants will worship the king with songs and dances, and pay tribute to the deceased, which contrasts with the weeping and wailing of the general public in the face of death, and shows that these Tujia people in Pangjiazhai have a good view of life.
"Unsettled Wuling this life, poor years of staff to find the peach, the world is fortunate to have the Peng family cottage, the building lofty residence immortal". The historical legend hides the secret of Pengjiazhai, and the ancient footstools show the wisdom of the Tujia people. "Come again next time", a simple word out of the Pengjiazhai Tujia people's hospitality, but also the pride of their hometown.
The architectural culture of a mountainous nation, densely written on this land, like the will of a great creator. Strings of red chili peppers, twisted in the hanging feet, a pile of yellow bunting hanging in the proud pick square, a spike of golden rice ears in the field in front of the hammock dancing with the wind.
The October of the hammock, whiter cooking smoke in the evening cattle eyes is red swollen exclamation point, cattle herding cowboys ringing brass bells such as swinging hands dance drums as crisp and powerful, only in this primitive mountains in the danger, can have such a cultural phenomenon, only the nutrition of the Enshi forest and sea, in order to moisturize the sinews of the native family.