Page 326 - A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols BIG Book

A-Z 319

Sceptre and persimmon: ‘May everything go according to (your) wish!’

in combination with persimmon, peach, and plum, or against the
background provided by a meander design.

ScholarScholar

shi

The scholar belongs to one of the four callings. He is symbolised by the eight
precious things. Kui-xing, the god of literature, was originally a scholar. He is portrayed
with a blue face. The old word for blue (qing) symbolises the scholar blue with
cold, bent over his studies in the light of the ‘blue lamp’ or the even more
economical glowworm.

Ever since the days of Confucius, the literati, the philosophers, and the scholars in
official posts, have ruled China; nor were they ever less than attentive to the interests of
their class. Even poor scholars were respected by ordinary people, once they had passed
their examinations. ‘As soon as they were appointed to office, many scholars allowed
themselves to be corrupted by rich merchants to whom they then extended unique
privileges and monopolies. But they never allowed the privileges of their own class to be
eroded: these were inalienable. The scholars formed a closely knit group equipped with
an education, a culture and a system of monopolies which they inherited and passed on to
their successors. Their ideology was Confucianism, and their catechism was the
Confucian Classics’ (Erwin Wickert).
As late as in 1942 Mao Ze-dong could criticise his own prejudices in
public: ‘I could wear the clothes of other intellectuals, as I assumed they
would be clean. But I was hesitant to don the garments of workers,
peasants and soldiers, as it seemed to me they must be unclean.’ Sixteen