昆仑、天门、西王母与天帝——试论汉代的“西方信仰”

Kunlun,Gate of Heavenly Palace,Queen Mother of the West,and Emperor of Heaven:a Discussion of the“Western Belief”in the Han Dynasty

汉代形成了一个较有系统的关于西方的神仙信仰体系,昆仑、天门和西王母的结合成为这一信仰的主体,其核心为升天成仙。西北的昆仑为天地之中柱,其上有西王母和天门,升天之人应在西王母处取得不死之药或获得升天成仙的资格,登上天门,进入天帝统治的天界。随着西域的开辟,西域的许多奇闻异事和文化因素便附会到这一“西方信仰”中,但其观念仍是本土的升天成仙的信仰,由此汉墓中出现的许多西方文化因素可以得到较为圆满的解释。这也是西方的佛教传入中国,尤其是其能迅速被广大民众接受的一个十分值得注意的背景。早期道教也继承并发展了这种神仙信仰,将其主神置换为道教的主神。

There formed a systematic immortal faith about the West in the Han dynasty,in which the combination of Kunlun,Gate of Heavenly Palace,and Queen Mother of the West acts as the main part with the core of ascension and becoming an immortal.Kunlun in the northwest is the center pillar between heaven and earth with Queen Mother of the West and Gate of Heavenly Palace above.The man who was going up to heaven should aquire the elixir from Queen Mother of the West or qualification for becoming an immortal,walk through the Gate of Heavenly Palace,and enter the celestial kingdom governed by Emperor of Heaven.With exploitation of the Western Regions,many anecdotes and cultural factors of the region were attached to the“Western belief,”yet its idea remained as the native belief of becoming an immortal,and thus the Western cultural factors emerged in Han tombs can be satisfactorily explained.That is a notable reason why Buddhism from the West could be rapidly accepted by the people after entering China.Early Daoism also inherited and developed such immortal faith,only the Daoist chief deity was substituted for the former deities.