![]() ![]() Yet as a tourist, its ubiquity drew my attention. In modern China, the cloud is thought of largely as a traditional decorative motif without meaning. The lyrics of both songs were founded on Commentary of Shang Shu, the interpretation of a classic Chinese literary work dating back to 200-100BCE. The title was recycled by Chinese composer Xiao Youmei for another anthem between 1921 to 1928. Auspicious anthemīetween 19, China adopted a provisional national anthem composed by a French musician in Beijing, entitled Song to the Auspicious Cloud. The yurt’s design is considered to reflect the shape of the universe and therefore the tents of church dignitaries and royals were often decorated with cloud collars appliquéd around their blunt peak. The traditional Mongol tents known as yurts are inverted bowl shapes with a hole at the top for releasing smoke. The neighbouring Mongol’s took the concept and ran with it all the way to Persia, where examples are readily seen in antique clothing, art and decorative objects. The cloud collar also embellished the neck of objects just as porcelain vessels. Therefore as a clothing accessory, it was worn around the neck to divide between the mortal body and the head which is considered to be the place that a person’s spirit resides. ![]() The cloud collar circles the gate, dividing the earthly realm and the heavens. At the pinnacle of the skydome was thought to be heaven’s gate, marked by the pole star. The design is a miniature depiction of the entire universe, which the Chinese believed at one time to be the Earth as a flat square, topped with a domed sky. ![]() The cloud collar is a four to eight-lobed pattern evolving from its earliest form decorating bronze mirrors of the 3rd century BC to become an actual collar for embellishing robes. (Ruyi Bridge at Shenxianju, Taizhou, Zhejiang, China) /EcctD6Dkbo- Chris Hadfield NovemLucky cloud collar Image copyright held by the International Olympic Committee Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via WikimediaĢ008 Beijing Olympic torch designed by Lenovo. The Ruyi is where you will reliably see examples of lucky cloud designs. These later ornamental Ruyi were carved out of valuable materials such as jade and decorated with carvings of auspicious symbols and precious stones. Ruyi, meaning “as one wishes,” began as a humble Buddhist monk’s back scratcher and was later elevated to a highly revered status symbol, becoming purely decorative care of the Qing dynasty royals. Buddhist back scratcherĪ cloud form melded with that of auspicious fungus known as lingzhi which often embellishes the end of a ruyi, a sceptre-like ornamental object symbolising good fortune. From here forward in history, the cloud motif and pattern adorn decorative and wearable arts such as furniture, porcelain, jewellery and clothing. Lucky clouds appear on bronze vessels from the Zhou dynasty (circa 1046-221BCE) in a pattern known as yunwen and leiwen (cloud and thunder), which is also known as a meander or key in its western forms. Their lofty seat between earth and heaven gave clouds celestial status, with stories and artwork often depicting them as the vehicle of travelling deities – think Monkey Magic! Dragons, another powerful, auspicious Chinese symbol are often pictured hiding among storm clouds or creating whirling puffs with their breath. Yun, the word for cloud, sounds like the Chinese word for luck or fortune – therefore the two became intrinsically connected. Hence, clouds became linked to abundance. As rain bearers, clouds got the glory for bringing the wet stuff. Cloud symbolism in ChinaĬhina is traditionally an agricultural nation and farmers associated downpours with plentiful harvests that would feed them and provide for their families. For more Chinese symbolism, see this post decoding Lunar New Year. So I set out to uncover the history and meaning of this natural phenomenon as a popular Chinese symbol. Having spent some time in China and surrounding nations where the Chinese have historically had a major influence, I’ve noticed a recurring motif in the swirling, stylised representation of clouds appearing everywhere from jewellery to the 2008 Beijing Olympics torch. In Chinese culture, these fluffy tufts of meteorological cotton candy have some interesting cultural significance. ![]()
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