Symbolism and Cultural Meaning of the Lotus: An Analysis
The lotus has been called the "fair lady under green canopies" by scholars through the ages, not only because it possesses the natural beauty of vivid colors and graceful elegance, but also because it has the noble character of "emerging from mud unsoiled." Ancient scholars loved to use the lotus to symbolize all kinds of beautiful things. So what is the symbolic meaning of the lotus, the "gentleman among flowers"?
Purity and Holiness
The lotus has always been revered in Buddhism as a sacred flower of purity, and Buddhism vigorously promotes and advocates learning from the lotus this spirit of innocence and holiness. In addition, Zhou Dunyi in his famous essay "On the Love of the Lotus" also clearly expressed his love for the lotus: "I alone love the lotus, which emerges from mud unsoiled and is rinsed in clear ripples without being bewitching," and it has the reputation of being the "gentleman among flowers." From this, one can see that the poet is hinting that people should learn from the lotus's noble quality of keeping oneself pure. In addition, Li Bai's poetic line "A lotus rises from clear water, natural and free of adornment" also shows that the lotus possesses natural beauty.
Incorruptibility
The lotus is also called qinglian (green lotus), and qinglian is a homophone for "incorruptible." Therefore, the lotus is also used as a metaphor for being an upright official who does not go along with others in their wrongdoing, mainly referring to one's career in officialdom. For example, a painting composed of a green lotus and an egret titled "Integrity All the Way" was often placed in their studies by many scholars.
Auspiciousness and Good Fortune
The lotus is called he, which is a homophone for "harmony." In ancient times, a picture composed of lotus, crabapple, and flying swallows was called "He (lotus) Qing Hai Yan (swallow)," symbolizing peace under heaven. Among the Eight Treasures of Buddhism, the lotus ranks first. In ancient times, lotus flowers and fish were cut into paper designs and pasted up, called "abundance year after year," indicating a prosperous society. In addition, in the folk auspicious painting "The Two Immortals of Harmony and Union," one figure holds a lotus in hand and the other holds a box, to signify harmony and union. Among the Eight Immortals, He Xiangu is represented by holding a lotus flower in her hand, symbolizing her beauty and her surname He, expressing peace and good fortune.
Love
We all know that the fibers of the lotus root are very long and become entangled with one another. In real life, we often hear people say that "so-and-so and so-and-so have broken lotus roots that still cling with fibers," which actually means that a man and a woman still have ties to each other, that is, what we call love. In fact, using the lotus to symbolize love was already recorded as early as the Tang Dynasty. The famous Tang poet Wang Bo wrote in "Song of Picking Lotus": "Pulling flowers, just twin lotus heads on one stem; breaking the root, loving how the fibers remain connected," which uses twin lotuses on one stem and unbroken lotus-root fibers to express the lingering attachment of love between men and women. The lotus is most suitable as a symbol of pure and beautiful love. In addition, "ou" (lotus root) is a homophone for "ou" (couple), and broken lotus roots remain connected by fibers, while "twin lotuses bloom on one stem" are all very suitable for expressing the unbroken continuity of love.
Beauty
As early as the Book of Songs, which has been passed down through the ages, there are records comparing the lotus to a beautiful woman. In "Airs of the States, Airs of Chen, Pond on the Bank," it says: "On the waves of that pond, there are cattails and lotus. There is a beautiful person, what can I do with my longing? Awake or asleep I can do nothing; my tears and mucus pour down like rain." It describes a man comparing the lotus to a beauty he has long admired, and being deeply grieved that he has not been able to see her for a long time. Whether awake or asleep, his tears and mucus flow down uncontrollably like rain.
Friendship
In ancient China, there was already a folk tradition of breaking plum blossoms in spring to send to distant friends and picking lotus in autumn to remember absent people. From this, it can be seen that the lotus symbolizes pure friendship between people.