Page 211 - Oriental Series Japan and China, Brinkly

PORCELAIN DECORATED

to be commonly used as a synonym for " Occa-

felicity."

sionally five bats are found in combination. They symbol-

ise the five blessings, namely, longevity, riches, peace, love

of virtue, and a happy death.

19. The eight trigrams, known as the Pa-kwa.
" They consist of combinations of broken and entire lines,
each differently placed. The entire lines represent the

male, strong, or celestial element in nature, and the broken,

the female, weak, or terrestrial. Each group has its own

name, and even the dishes at a feast are arranged in accord-

ance with these diagrams. They are said to have been first

published by Fuh-hi, the legendary founder of the Chinese

polity, who is stated to have lived B.C. 3852 to 2738, and

to whom they were revealed by a dragon horse. By them

the Chinese philosophers attempted to explain all the secrets

of nature and of being. The diagram shows the oldest

arrangement, in which they are supposed to be connected

with the points of the compass, the north and south being,

however, reversed, according to the Chinese system (i.e., the

south represented by three entire lines, the north by three

broken). "The circular figure in the centre is the mystical

device, the Tang and Yin, the male and female elements of

nature. This device is not infrequently employed as an

ornament in China."

Among the figures depicted on porcelain none are
so common as the Pa Sien, or Eight Immortals, legen-

dary beings of the Taoist sect, said to have lived at

various times and attained immortality. They are

found sometimes in combination especially where

the decoration consists of red and blue sous couverte,

the Pa Sien being then depicted in blue among a

diaper of red waves and sometimes they are shown
as separate figures, of which there are two sets, one

standing the other seated. In other cases they are

represented riding upon various animals among the
waves of the sea. Each figure has an emblem of its

own, and occasionally the emblem, or symbol, occurs

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