The deep meaning of the candle light in the royal palace

In addition to the fact that the candle light is fragile, it also plays a very important role in the Qing Dynasty. It not only enlightens the way, but also brings a lot of meaning to spiritual culture.

In the old days, when there were no electric lights, candles and oil lamps were the light source for men to read books and women. It even affects the examination.

Picture on the left: the woman is embroidering under a candle, in a romantic setting.Painting on the right: The girl just turned off the candle in a graceful manner with 2 fingers.Two paintings of the Qing period.

Legend has it that in the Ming and Qing dynasties, there was a place called Gongyuan in Beijing that specialized in organizing elections. This exam is generally very strict, only those who are good and have good backgrounds can attend. The exam takes place on 9 nights. Each contest begins when the candle is lit. By the time the third candle had just died, the time for the lesson was over.

Candles (along with incense) are also present on ancestor altars, sacrifices and other important ceremonies of the Qing Dynasty. Including the Shaman worship ceremony - an old tradition of the Northern tribes, until the Qing Dynasty was still handed down.

Mr. Shaman of the Qing Dynasty (left) and today.

According to the Shaman religion, in the Forbidden City every day, 3 ceremonies are performed regularly on the 3 most sacred moments. It is at dawn (called chaoji), sunset (xiji) and at midnight - right after blowing off the candles (beidingji).

So, going to the altar and lighting the lamp and blowing off the light at midnight, in the ancient harem of the palace is common sense and enhanced .

Candlesticks with glass in the time of Qianlong King.At this stage, Chinese ruby ​​and glass carving techniques reached a very sophisticated level.