Makara,originally a giant aquatic creature from Indian mythology,was later absorbed by Buddhism and became a common mythical beast in Buddhist texts and decorations.As Buddhism spread eastward from India,the concept of Makara was introduced into China.For a long time,scholars have identified the Twin Fish Creature in GU Kaizhi's Nymph of the Luo River as Wenyu and believed that these two fish were actually Makara,calling them the earliest Makara images in China.This article examines the differences between the Twin Fish Creature in Nymph of the Luo River and Makara from two perspectives:the Makara-related texts that GU Kaizhi might have encountered and the Makara images from both India and China.After clarifying the relationship between Makara and the Twin Fish Creature,the article applies an"intertextual"approach,comparing Nymph of the Luo River with Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River to determine the true identity of the Twin Fish Creature.Three major conclusions are drawn.Firstly,the Twin Fish Creature is not the Makara as traditionally believed by scholars.From the perspective of literature,in the Makara-related texts before the 6th century,including those GU Kaizhi might have seen,the form and meaning of Makara are different from the Twin Fish Creature.From the perspective of imagery,the Twin Fish Creature does not match Indian Makara images and cannot fit into the periodization system of Chinese Makara images.Secondly,the Twin Fish Creature is also not the Wenyu as some scholars have suggested.Its appearance differs significantly from the Wenyu in the common sense,which has features like a carp-like body,bird wings,blue markings,white head,and red beak.Thirdly,based on the depiction in Nymph of the Luo River,where it mentions"whale-like creatures jumping and surrounding the chariot",it can be confirmed that the Twin Fish Creature is actually a"whale-like creature".This article systematically and thoroughly explores the true identity of the Twin Fish Creature in Nymph of the Luo River.It carefully differentiates the characteristics of Makara,Wenyu,and whale-like creatures,ultimately confirming that the Twin Fish Creature is a whale-like creature.This corrects the long-standing scholarly misidentification of the Twin Fish Creature as"the earliest Makara in China"and raises further questions for scholars to consider:when do the earliest images of Makara in China date?
MakaraGU KaizhiNymph of the Luo Rivertwin fish creaturewhale-like creaturemyths and legends
维普
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