From Orchids To Orchids

In ancient China the Lan included Lan Cao and Orchid,and it was different to distinguish the two plants.People in the Song dynasty first discriminated on this issue,which sparked a debate that lasted nearly a thousand years.After textual research,this paper concludes that the Orchid originated in the southern bank of the Yangtze Rive of the mid-Tang Dynasty,however,the Orchid was a new thing at that time,which was not widespread,and the relevant documents about Lan actually means Lan Cao.The Orchid was not popular until the Song dynasty.Therefore,the Lan before the Song dynasty was mainly referred to Lan Cao and on the Song dynasty as well as the afterward the Lan was specifically refered to the Orchid.So this paper includes two sections:Lan Cao section and Orchid section.The content is to clarify their respective biological properties and relevant social application performance,at the same time,comprehensive tease out and analysis the literature and cultural implication of them.Lan Cao is a kind of fragrant grass,having extensive use,which was closely related to ancient people’s life and ancient people adored it,so Lan Cao became a significant image of morals in pre-Qin period and was endowed with Confucius’s gentleman’s personality.Lan Cao also entered the field of literary expression earlier and the image of Lan Cao’s symbolic meaning had been enriched and deepened by Qu Yuan’ efforts.In the Han-Wei and the Six Dynasties,the literary creation of Lan Cao images and themes were developing rapidly and the aesthetic cognition of orchid grass began to rise.Fhe beauty and seasonal characteristics of Lan Cao became the aesthetic object and its biological characteristics were fully revealed and expressed,which began to be an independent aesthetic object.The beauty and bloom and fade of the Lan Cao could trigger people’s sensitivities in the turbulent age,so it had been the carrier of people’s emotions,and formed rich and profound symbolic significances.In the Tang dynasty,people’s aesthetic understanding of Lan Cao was more comprehensive and thorough.The Lan Cao theme and the image not only more in number than before period,but also more mature in artistic expression.The withered Lan Cao image’s beauty was discovered and which blended with the poet’s subjective feelings,this was a great progress in aesthetic cognition of Lan Cao in Tang dynasty.In the meantime,the personal symbolic meaning of the independence and freedom of Lan Cao was strengthened.The literati used Lan Cao image’s symbolic meaning to express their political ideal.Although Orchids began to appear in the middle and late tang dynasty,which was popular with the people in Song dynasty.Orchid was beautiful,fragrant and dignified,so the most literati appreciated it.With the planting of orchid and distinguishing between Lan Cao and Orchid by people of Song dynasty,the status of orchids is constantly being affirmed,thereby displaced the Lan Cao,which marked the end of the Lan Cao era and the opening of the orchid era.People’s aesthetic appreciation of orchids also gradually emerged and developed in Song dynasty,which was continuing to mature.The Orchid theme and the image’s literary creation had obtained the considerable achievement as times,which was not worse than other flowers’literary creation.The Orchid image’s beauty and character had been get the full discovered and expression,which was the symbol of the noble gentleman’s personality.From Pre-qin to Tang dynasty,the aesthetic recognition of the Lan Cao was based on its outstanding social application values,however,in the Song dynasty the social application value of Lan Cao was decreased and the the ornamental value of orchids was highlighted.Therefore under the influence of the aesthetic taste of Song people and the cultural spirit of The Times,the orchid became the only Lan in the Song people’s minds.The Song people’s aesthetic appreciation of orchid were based on its extraordinary ornamental value,which determined the difference between Lan Cao and Orchid in literary expression and cultural implication.In general,people had a simple and objective writing feature on the aesthetic image of Lan Cao,however,people described the image of Orchid included four aspects:fragrance,color,posture and aroma,and paied more attention to present spirit by form.People expressed their feelings through the image of Lan Cao were some sad,negative feelings,while the literati in Song dynasty expressed their feelings through the image of the orchid were some positive emotions.The Orchid’s symbolic meanings were inherited Lan Cao’s symbolic meanings to some extent,and the orchid was also endowed with the symbolic meaning of a gentleman’s personality,but which included many different mengnings.The Song people have discovered a variety of noble qualities such as the orchid’s constancy and independence,and likened the Orchid to the world outside expert,hermit,ardent patriot,and so on,which were all different types of gentlemen.