粟特飞翔神兽刍议——灵光象征抑或特定神祇的化身

Fantastic Flying Creatures in Sogdian Arts:Generic Symbols of Glory/Farn or Specific Divine Personifications?

有翼复合神兽是中古时期粟特艺术一个常见而独具特色的元素。这些神兽并非自然界实有的动物,而是幻想性的生物或各种幻想性生物的集合体。它们通常出现在粟特壁画或纳骨器图像显要人物的面前,居陪衬或补白地位;有时亦现身于金银细工器物上,或独立构成主题纹饰。由于鲜有文字记载,这些臆想生物的内涵往往呈现出歧义性和复杂性,^(①)但相关考古实证为理解这一神秘元素提供了重要信息。

Composite creatures represent a distinctive element with rich significance in medieval Sogdian art.This kind of hybrid animals appeared very often in front of important people in 7^(th)-8^(th) century Sogdian paintings from Penjikent(Tajikistan)and,occasionally,on unexcavated silver vessels.Scholars have given varied interpretations on their meaning because written sources are scarce and controversial.According to the most accepted theory,they could be symbols of an important religious concept of ancient Iranian society:glory(Sogdian farn)or protection of the gods,though some recent studies could allow better identifications.Aside from being generic symbols of glory/farn,one could assume that some composite creatures point to specific divinities of the rich Sogdian Zoroastrian pantheon.This article attempts to reexamine related texts and archaeological findings such as Penjikent paintings,newly-discovered seals,Sino-Sogdian Shi Jun funerary monument(580)and several Central Asian metal objects,in order to propose at least two associations.In fact,the triton-like creature holding a drape above his head could be associated with the Zoroastrian wind god Weshparkar(Avestan Vayu),while the winged camel with a beribboned ring in its mouth should be considered as the protection of the Zoroastrian god of war and victory Washaghn(Avestan Verethraghna).These(hypothetical)associations and new ideas would hopefully help to deepen the understanding of the individual meaning of composite creatures and allow further researches.