Page 334 - A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols BIG Book

A-Z 327
(xie) may live together to a ripe old age. The same sentiment can also be expressed by
means of a picture showing a shoe (xie) and a copper (tong) mirror: i.e. both (tong +
xie) should grow old together. The ‘iron shoes’ which occur in West Asian myth are
found also in Chinese legend: ‘He journeyed so far that even (his) iron shoes gave way.’
Master Mou, an adept in Shaolin techniques of boxing, wore iron shoes for five years and
developed a strange gait.
Silk Silk

si

Silk has been found in graves dating from as far back as the second millennium BC. An
old legend credits the wife of the mythical Emperor Huang-di with its invention. Chinese
silk was carried along the ‘Silk Road’ across Central Asia to India while Buddhism
was imported into China along the same route.
In ancient times, various types of caterpillar were used to produce silk, but
in modern times virtually only one type has been used – the silkworm,
which is nourished on mulberry leaves. Until modern times, again, the
whole process, from feeding the silkworms to weaving the finished
product, has been in the hands of women. There is a goddess of silk-
making, the so-called ‘third aunt’ (san gu); but more usually ‘Horsehead-
woman’ (ma tou niang) is venerated as the patron goddess of the craft. She
is said to have been a young woman who made fun of a horse’s hide
which had been left to dry in the yard: suddenly the hide came to life and
enveloped her. In this way she became a goddess.
Silkworm Silkworm

chong

Various sorts of caterpillar were used to produce silk among the non-Han minority
peoples in South China in the very earliest times; but for a very long time now the
Chinese have preferred the silkworm to all other kinds.
While the Chinese peasant concerned himself with his fields, his wife looked after the
silkworms. An ancient rule stipulated that all girls over 15 years of age should rear
silkworms. In many regions it is possible to have as many as four or five crops a year,
though this involves very intensive labour. The women have to pick the leaves of the
mulberry trees, which are best sited as close as possible to the house, and use them to