“和合二圣”

“和合二圣”

和合是中国人民的一种美好愿望。这种愿望对于中国古代百姓来说，集中表现在对婚姻和合的期待，由此，和合神也就成为了中国人婚姻保护神。然而婚姻是男女双方的和合美满，“和合二圣”的形象由此而逐渐形成。大概从明代中期开始，“和合二圣”成为和合神的象征。成对出现的形象更加有说服力，这可以视为民众信仰生活准确化、细致化的一种表达。

在中国历史上，最具影响力的“和合二圣”形象，是来自天台山的寒山和拾得。旧时的喜庆与节日场合中往往可见和合神的身影，其形象大都为两个蓬头笑面的童子，一人持荷，一人捧盒，寓意和合美满。在江南传统的建筑中，也时常以“和合二圣”的图案呈现其中，表达出民众对于美满生活的期望。雍正十一年（公元1733年），雍正帝敕封寒山为“和圣”，拾得为“合圣”。寒山、拾得作为“和合二圣”的文化形象由此得以确立。

"The Two Immortals of Hehe"

Hehe is one of the good wishes of the Chinese people. For the ancient Chinese, it was mainly emobodied in their expectation of a happy marriage. Hence, the God of Hehe finally evolved to become the God of Marriage. In marriage, the most important thing should be the harmony and union of the couple, so the image of the Immortal of Harmony (和圣) and the Immortal of Union (合圣) gradually took shape. Around the middle of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the two immortals became a symbol of the God of Hehe, as the image of immortals in pair was more persuasive in regard of marriage. It was also a more accurate and refined expression of the Chinese people's faith.  

In Chinese history, the most influential image of the Two Immortals of Hehe should be Han Shan and Shi De (dates unknown) in the Tiantai Mountains. They were typically depicted as two smiling boys: one holding a lotus flower (meaning "harmony") and the other holding a box (meaning "union"). Depictions of them could be found during various traditional festive occasions. The ancient Chinese buildings in the south of the Yangtze River also used their paintings as decorations, manifesting the people's longing for harmony and union. In 1733, the 11th year in the reign of Emperor Yongzheng (1678-1735) of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the emperor ordered that Han Shan be canonized as the Immortal of Harmony and Shi De as the Immortal of Union, thereby establishing their official status as the Two Immortals of Hehe.