The Story of the door God

 


Legend has it that Li Shimin, king of the Tang Dynasty, often had nightmares after he ascended the throne after the change of Xuanwu Gate. 

He dreamt that his brother and brother came to kill him with demons and ghosts, which made him so afraid that he couldn't sleep at night, so he let two senior generals Qin Shubao Wei Chi Gong stand guard in front of the door with weapons in hand, so he could sleep peacefully. 

The two generals later fell ill, and Li Shimin was so distressed that they worked too hard, so he ordered people to draw their images on paper and paste them on the door to deter demons. 

This is where the door god came from. 

The door god, the god of the Simen guard, is a kind of painting affixed to the door during the Lunar New year. 

As the guardian of folk beliefs, people paste their idols on the door to ward off evil spirits, defend their homes, protect peace, contribute to utilitarianism, and bring good fortune. 

According to tradition, on the eve of the Spring Festival, every household is busy writing couplets and door gods to pray for the coming year.


Extended data：

Since ancient times, Chinese people have had the custom of posting door gods on doors during the Spring Festival. 

The original meaning of the door god is "the god of Simen", which originates from the nature worship in ancient times. 

At that time, people thought that there was God in everything related to daily life, such as the door, stove, bed and so on. 

In the eyes of the ancients, the entry and exit of the doorman played an important role in the whole house. 

Therefore, in ancient times, the door was the first of the five main sacrifices (door, household, Zhongliu, stove and line), and later generations evolved into a door god. 

In some places, door gods are divided into three categories, namely, Wenmen god, martial door god, and praying door god. 

Wenmen God painted some civil servants dressed in imperial clothes, such as Tianguan, Xiantong, Liu Haichan, sending son empress, and so on.


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