建筑哲学第 8 课

Just as Chinese acupuncturists did with the microcosm of the human body, 中国针灸医师将人体 视为小宇宙
and astronomers did in the macrocosm of the heavens, 星象学家研究天地大宇宙
feng shui masters attempted to identify and measure the invisible lines of energy called chi 风水师则试图找出并测量 称之为气的无形力量
to find the most auspicious place in harmony with the breaths and currents of the earth's forces. 希冀找出与气相合的吉利方位

The mapping of these chi flows, and their re-direction or enhancement are the main principles of feng shui. 风水的主要理论为勘测气的 流向，导引并予以强化
Sometimes it was necessary to correct, enhance, or deflect them. 有时必须将气加以导正增强或转向
Even today many Chinese believe that placing a small mirror called pa qua or a wind-chime precisely at the correct place can make an enormous difference in one's life
by deflecting bad influences and evil spirits. 今天中国人仍相信 在正确位置挂八卦或风铃能驱邪避凶，改变命运

Natural wandering watercourses were thought to halt and accumulate chi, 天然的蜿蜒水流可拦截并积聚气
but fast flowing straight rivers cannot hold and accumulate chi. 但湍急的直流则无此作用
So feng shui masters tried to find sites with meandering, slow moving water in front. 因而风水师主张门前要有 蜿蜒且流速缓慢的水道

Thus in the Forbidden City they constructed this artificial river 紫禁城外建有蜿蜒的人工河
to bring in a slow flow of auspicious chi to the imperial confines. 以便为皇家殿堂带来吉气

To the North should be a hill or mountain, to block the cold wind 北方应有山以抵御寒风
and stop barbarian invasions and other evil influences coming from the North. 阻挡蛮族或其他北方不祥之物
Sure enough, we find a giant artificial hill - called coal hill - behind the Forbidden City. 紫禁城后当然有巨型假山 称为煤山
It didn't prove very auspicious, however, 但煤山并不怎么吉利
as the last emperor of the Ming dynasty, facing a peasant revolt, 明朝末代皇帝在农民叛乱中
hanged himself here on this pine tree. 自缢于此松树下

These rules of feng shui go back thousands of years, 风水有数千年历史
as we can see from the orientation of the palace of the first emperor. 这点可从秦始皇的宫殿方位看出
This huge palace complex was built north of a river and south of a mountain, 巨大的阿房宫建在 河之北，山之南
and so the first emperor named his capital city Xianyang - or doubly auspicious. 因此秦始皇把首都命名为咸阳意思是双重吉利

This is all that is left of the great hall of the first emperor, near the modern city of Xian. 此宏伟宫殿位于现在的 西安附近，如今仅剩这样
What did the great palace look like? 当年的阿房宫是什么样子？
Well, maybe something... ... like this! 可能是像这样

Supposedly the grand hall constructed to face south could seat 1 0,000 people! 朝南的大殿应能容纳 1万人的坐席
The emperor melted down all the arms of the states he had defeated 秦始皇熔化所有 战败邦国的武器
and had 12 colossal bronze statues of the immortals, each weighing 30 tons, 铸成12座巨大仙人铜像 每具重30顿
to stand in the palace courtyards. 立在宫殿御菀中