Chinese Rubbing YuRen Flying Man

Description

Yu Ren, recognized as feather man, are the people with wings. In ancient Greek and ancient Rome, the gods have wings. In China, there is a similar coincident in the Classic of Mountains and Rivers (Shan Hai Jing). In the story, there is a country whose citizens have human head and cover with feather. In the legend, Yu Ren do not eat normal food, instead of wind and dew, and they can travel in the air. In Taoism, there is a word called Yu Hua Sheng Xian, which means that people can be god while they get feather at the end of their life. It is different meaning from death. With the Buddhism coming into China, the meaning of Yu Ren was changing from the original meaning to the Apsaras based on Buddhism since 3rd century. Yu Ren and Chinese Monster with wings are the traditional product of native China, influenced by the immortal legend from east. In Chu Ci (the Song of Chu), Shan Hai Jing, Lun Heng, Bo Wu Zhi, Yu Ren is covered by feather and has wings. They can fly but still look like human. Before Han Dynasty, the gods in people’s mind were the people who are covered feather and have wings. Due to this, the stone inscription is not the product from people’s mind in Han Dynasty. It has a long period to develop like this. After careful observation, Yu Ren is started from the worship of bird totem by the ancient people.
It is the rare topic in China, which is that two Yu Ren appear at the same time (male and famale). And it is only topic found.
自古以来，渴望像鸟儿一样在天空翱翔一直是人类永恒的梦想，古希腊，古罗马人别出心裁的给神安上了翅膀，无独有偶，中国古典文献《山海经》中也有这样一个传说，讲的是我国境内有个羽民国，“其人长头，身生羽”，传说中，羽人不食五谷杂粮，而是吸风饮露，乘云气，御飞龙，游四海，能通天。羽人与道教有着某种联系从道教称谓，穿戴等可见端倪，在道教中又有“羽化升仙”一说，此与不死同义，到了魏晋南北朝时期，随着佛教的传入，佛教对道教的依附与借鉴，羽人的含义与造型也逐渐变化，先变成能升空的神仙，后来演变为飞天，飞仙和天人等佛教形象。至于羽人的形像设定孙作云先生指出：羽人和中国的有翼神兽上的羽化纹饰为中国自古就有的本土发展产物，是东夷文化中鸟图腾受到伤害神仙思想与深化传说的影响，三者相融而成。从《楚辞》，《山海经》，《论衡.无形篇》，《启筮》，《博物志.外国》等古代典籍中我们可以看出羽人的总体特征：是体身羽毛，鸟喙赤目并生有翅膀，能飞行，但不失人形，在秦汉以前人们心中“仙人”形像大抵都是身生羽毛有翅膀的人，所以汉代画像中的羽人图像也绝非汉代人神仙思想的产物，它有着一个更为久远的文化发展过程。如若稍加窥探便不难发现，羽人的形像应是发端于上古先民对鸟的图腾崇拜，经三代，越春秋，再到战国秦汉的历史演进，期间经历了各种社会思想观念的影响，但是它终究经受住了历史的变迁，飞进了秦汉，成为一个不再是原生态的却是地道的中国精灵。 下图题材极为稀少，羽人成对出现（一男一女）拔朱雀羽翼，生动细致，实属可见不可求之物，目前发现的只有此一题材。