爬上天梯的伏羲
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傳說，以前有一個名叫華胥國的地方，住在那兒的人快樂又長壽，生活過得簡直和神仙差不多。但是因為日子過得太幸福了，人們都懶洋洋的，不想工作，也不想創造什麼。
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華旭國裡住著一位與眾不同的年輕小夥子，他叫_伏羲，他覺得這兒的生活太平凡了，他認為沒有創造力的生活實在很無聊。有一天，他砍斷一株梧桐樹，裝上五十根弦線，作出了一種名叫瑟的樂器。這把琴彈奏起來，聲音清脆響亮，似乎能夠穿透天上，極是好聽。
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這一天，伏羲正在彈琴，遠處突然傳來打雷的聲音。他抬起頭望著天空，心想：「聽說我的父親是住在天上的雷神，我想到天上去看看，並且玩樂一番。聽說在東南方有一棵神樹，它就像一座天梯一樣，高聳直入雲霄，只要爬上去，就可以到達神仙居住的天上呢！」
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伏羲於是帶著他心愛的樂器離開華胥國，往東南方去尋找天梯。
但是一路上的風景卻越來越荒涼，他發現，原來華胥國以外的人們，都過得非常野蠻，都是弱肉強食血淋淋的畫面。
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突然，伏羲在一片廣大的草地上，他遇見了一個美麗的女子，孤獨的走來走去，像是很憂傷的樣子。原來，她正是主管都廣野的女神素女。
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「請問，你知道通往天上的神木在哪裡嗎？」伏羲問。
素女問他：「你為什麼不好好的留在地上，偏要尋找天梯神樹呢？」
伏羲說：「因為天上有美麗的宮殿、鮮花。還有，我的父親雷神也住在那兒呢。」
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「好吧，我告訴你神樹在哪裡，可是你要知道，當你爬上神樹後，可決不能回頭往下望喔！」伏羲順著素女手指的方向，在廣野的中央，果然看見一棵巨大無比的大樹，像一道筆直煙柱似的，直衝向天空！伏羲將背上的樂器，送給素女。之後就開始沿著天梯建木往上爬。
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這是一棵古怪的樹，樹幹滑溜溜的。他爬著爬著，突然聽到「丁丁咚咚」幾聲調弦的聲音，素女正為伏羲演奏著幾首送別的曲子。
當伏羲即將攀上最高峰，抵達天上的時候，素女演奏的音樂突然穿雲破空而來，那聲音絕望又悲哀，就好像剛剛一路上，那些弱肉強食動物們的哭嚎聲一樣，伏羲聽了心頭一震，忘記素女的警告，忍不住低頭望了一眼。
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這一望可糟了，他只覺得天旋地轉，手腳抱不住光滑的樹皮，頭下腳上的直摔了下去。還好他摔進了厚厚的草叢裡，才保住了一條小命。伏羲很生氣：「素女為什麼要奏這麼悲哀的樂曲，故意讓我分神呢？我一定要找她問個明白！」
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伏羲因為找不到素女，望著黑沉沉的黑水，心裡很是苦惱。這時候，忽然海浪像花瓣一樣分開了，中間還冒出了一個像龍又像馬，背上有八角圖案的神獸。野獸向伏羲開口說話了。
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牠說：「我知道你正在找素女，但是她已經走了。她讓我告訴你：「人世間苦難的人這麼多，他們沒有知識，沒有學識，正需要有智慧的人引領與幫助，你怎麼忍心一個人爬到天上享福呢？其實，你會從天上摔下來，並不是因為素女的音樂太悲傷，而是因為，你的心中還存著對人間的同情和不忍，你真正的心願，是去幫助那些苦難的人們啊！」
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伏羲聽完神獸的話，若有所悟的想：「我有的是聰明和智慧，正可以用來幫助人們改善生活啊！」
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於是，伏羲不再一心想著爬上天梯了。他走回自己的家鄉，帶領人民建立王國、創製曆法，他同時教民馴養野獸，這就是家畜的由來；教會人們利用石器製造生活所需的器具，並教會人們利用石頭鑽木取火，建立熟食的飲食習慣，人們從此再也不會因為不淨的殘忍生食法，而引發疾病，或被野獸傷害了。
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更重要的，是他受到龍馬的啟示，由龍馬背上的長短斑紋，發明了八卦。人們因此懂得自然界的基本知識和秩序，東方蠻荒的土地，最後終於成了一塊幸福的王國。
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He who climbed the stairs to Heaven – Fuxi
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According to legend, there used to be a place called Hua Xu Guo, where the people were happy and lived long lives. It was like heaven on earth. However, due to the lack of hardship, the people there were lazy – they did not have the motivation to work or to create things.
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However, there was a young lad named Fuxi who was different from all the others. He felt that the life in Hua Xu Guo was too mundane and he found the lack of creativity boring. Once, he chopped down a Phoenix tree and made a musical instrument by attaching fifty strings to it. This musical instrument was called a Se (an ancient Chinese plucked zither). The sound of the Se was crisp, clear, and so heavenly that it seemed to soar through the clouds into the sky.
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One day, as Fuxi was playing the Se as usual, he heard the sound of thunder in the distance. He looked up at the sky and thought to himself: “My father is supposedly the Thunder God who lives in heaven. How I wish that I can go up there to take a look. I’ve heard that there is a magic tree south-east from here. Supposedly it rises up into the clouds, like a staircase to heaven. As long as I climb along the magic tree, I should be able to go up into heaven!”
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With that thought, Fuxi took his beloved Se and left Hua Xu Guo in search of the staircase to heaven. Along the way, he encountered chilling scenes. He quickly learned that people outside of Hua Xu Guo lived very barbaric lives. He witnessed many brutal scenes of the strong preying on and devouring the weak.
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Suddenly, Fuxi emerged into a wide, open grassland, where he saw a beautiful lady pacing sorrowfully. He found out that she was the Goddess in charge of all the wildernesses, Sunu.
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“Excuse me, do you know where I can find the magic tree that goes up into heaven?” Fuxi sked.
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“Why don’t you remain on the ground? Why do you want to search for the magic tree to heaven?”
Fuxi replied: “Because there are beautiful palaces and flowers up in heaven. And my father, the Thunder God, lives there.”
“Alright, I can tell you where the magic tree is. But you have to remember this: As you climb up the tree, you must never look downwards!”
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Fuxi looked in the direction pointed by the goddess. Right in the center of the grass plains, he saw a gigantic tree rising up into the sky like a column of smoke! He took down the Se which he had been carrying all this while, and gave it to the goddess as a gift. Then he started his climb up the huge trunk.
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As he climbed, he heard the sound of someone tuning the strings on the Se. The goddess was playing a farewell melody for Fuxi.
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As he climbed to the top of the tree, he was not far away from the heaven. Suddenly the song played by the goddess floated into his ears. The melody was hauntingly hopeless and sad, reminding him of the wails of the animals which he witnessed being devoured earlier. The haunting melody tugged at Fuxi’s heart. Forgetting the warning from the goddess, he glanced downwards.
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Immediately his hand slipped off the smooth trunk and he fell, head-first. Fortunately for him, he was saved by a thick carpet of grass which cushioned his fall. Fuxi was furious: “Why did the goddess play such a haunting melody to distract me? I must talk to her!”
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However, the goddess was nowhere to be found. Disappointed, Fuxi stared moodily into the dark waters. Without warning, the water parted, and a mythical creature that resembled a dragon and a horse at the same time emerged. There was a picture of an octagon on the back of the creature. The creature spoke: “I know that you are looking for the goddess. You won’t find her, as she has already left. She asked me to pass you a message – There are so many people who are suffering in this world. They are uneducated and uninformed. They need a wise person to lead them, to help them. How can you bear to desert them and enjoy life on your own in heaven? You did not fall because of the goddess’ sad music. You fell because you still have empathy and sympathy for the people who are suffering. Your wish is to help these people!”
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After hearing the words of the creature, Fuxi had a realization: “I am smart. I can use my wisdom to help improve the lives of these people!”
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From then on, Fuxi stopped thinking about climbing up the staircase to heaven. He returned to his hometown, where he led his countrymen to build up an empire. He also led in the creation of the calendar system, and taught his people to tame wild animals. That was the start of animal domestication. He also taught his people to create stone tools, to start fire through drilling of wood, and to start the habit of cooking food before consumption. This greatly reduced the occurrences of diseases as a result of eating unclean raw food, and also reduced the incidence of people getting hurt by wild animals.
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Most importantly, he was inspired by the prints on the mythical creature and invented the eight trigrams commonly known as Bagua. This increased mankind’s general knowledge about the world of nature and introduced order into the society. This was how a barbaric place in the east was eventually transformed into a happy kingdom.
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#Fuxi, #Bagua, #Invention, #Happiness, #FirstDayOfTheTwelveLunarMonth
#伏羲、#八卦、#開創、#幸福、#農曆十二月一日
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