MAGICAL PROTECTION OF A DWELLING IN CHINESE TRADITIONAL CULTURE
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Abstract
The article is devoted to the protection of the house and circumvention from evil forces in traditional Chinese culture. This protection was achieved through a variety of constructive techniques and magical means, which were regulated by ancient building treatises and the famous system of geomancy – the art of Feng shui. Feng Shui as a practice of symbolic development (organization) of space has always played an important role in the construction of a Chinese house and the arrangement of the yard. It had a mystical character and was aimed at achieving harmony between the building and the environment. This paper analyzes the cultural essence of Feng Shui principles and investigates the relationship between traditional geomantic divination and architectural aesthetics. China’s traditional architecture is a clear example of the need, the most striking in agrarian society, for people to deal with the mythologized forces of nature and try to understand their natural environment, adapting their needs to best meet existing conditions, eliminating imbalances and obtaining welfare. The use of traditional Feng Shui was most clearly manifested in the choice of location for the house, its arrangement and protection from possible threats to the well-being of its inhabitants. His principles often applied to the planning and organization of the whole village. Specific elements of housing design at different levels were magical means of protecting residents from evil and constructing their happy life in the house. They used the concepts of yin-yang and the Eight Trigrams, which in the imagination of the Chinese had the potential to improve the existence of people on earth. An important place in the system of magical protection of the building was occupied by its roof, on which many amulets were concentrated.
How to Cite
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house, construction, magic, charms, Feng shui, geomancy, China
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