A ruyi () is a Chinese curved decorative object that serves as either a ceremonial scepter in Chinese Buddhism or a talisman symbolizing power and good fortune in Chinese folklore. The "ruyi" image frequently appears as a motif in Asian art.
A traditional has a long S-shaped handle and a head fashioned like a fist, cloud, or lingzhi mushroom. are constructed from diverse materials. For example, the Palace Museum in Beijing has nearly 3,000 variously made of gold, silver, iron, bamboo, wood, ivory, coral, rhinoceros horn, lacquer, crystal, jade, and precious gems.
Word The Chinese term is a compound of and .
Standard Chinese uses either as a stative verb meaning "as desired; as one wishes, as one likes; according to one's wishes; following your heart's desires", or as an adjective meaning "satisfied, pleased, happy, comfortable". The word is combined with in the expression to mean considering things only from a positive perspective; to be overly optimistic in one's plans.
Chinese was borrowed as a Buddhist loanword into other East Asian languages such as Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese, with corresponding Sino-Xenic pronunciations.
History
Chinese classic texts from the Former Han dynasty (206 BC – 24 AD) contain the earliest usages of the word . For example, the history uses it both literally for "as desired" and for the given name of Liu Ruyi () (d. 195 BC), who was the son of Emperor Gaozu of Han and Concubine Qi. The biography of the astrologer and mathematician Jing Fang (78–37 BCE) quotes him using meaning "as you wish" in an audience with Emperor Yuan of Han, "I fear that though your Majesty acts in this way you will still not obtain what accords with your wish."(tr. Edkins 1904: 238)
The anthropologist Berthold Laufer said that the Chinese accounts of the are "more unsatisfactory" than for any other object in Chinese culture.(Laufer 1912:336) Scholars have proposed two basic theories for the origin of the .Kieschnick (2003:141) The former is that originated from Sanskrit "a ceremonial scepter" used by Buddhist monks in India, who later brought it to China, transliterated as or translated as . The latter theory is that originated as a backscratcher in early China, and was amalgamated with the Buddhist symbol of authority. Davidson suggests "as desired" signifies a backscratcher owing to "its apparent ability to reach otherwise inaccessible areas of the human body".(Davidson 1950:239)
During the Later Han dynasty (25–220 AD) and Jin dynasty (266–420 AD), literati and nobles often held during conversations and other social occasions. It was called a (cf. the Native American talking stick) and was used much like the , which practitioners of the movement popularized during the Six Dynasties period (220–589 AD). Besides the , other objects used as a tanbing included the and made from the tail of a Père David's deer. Davidson says "there seems no doubt that the primary and original function of the ju-i was that of a scepter qualifying the holder to 'take the floor.'"Davidson (1950:247) Its origin was probably in India where the branch of a tree seems to have served a similar function. Any other purposes the ju-i served, such as a note tablet, honorific insignia, good luck gift, or even backscratcher, were merely later accruals."
The ca. 554 AD Weishu history records a story that when Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei (r. 471–499 AD) wanted to retire from the throne, he tested his sons by letting them choose among a number of objects, and the one who selected a bone (symbolizing political rule) became Emperor Xuanwu of Northern Wei (r. 500–515). Kieschnick concludes "that by the end of the sixth century, not only was the common at court, but it had even begun to take on emblematic significance as the mark of a ruler."(Kieschnick 2003:144) Although the symbolized imperial political power, it differed from the Western royal scepter because Chinese officials and monks commonly used it.
In Buddhist usage, holding a when teaching gave the holder the right to talk. The biography of Tiantai Buddhist patriarch Zhiyi (538–597) says that when he was teaching in place of his teacher (515–577), Huisi would sit holding a in his hand.(Davidson 1950:244)
The (c. 886) , a collection of Tang dynasty (618–907) stories, records that Emperor Wenzong presented an ivory to his tutor Li Xun () (d. 835) and said, "The may serve you as a lecture baton ()."(tr. Kieschnick 2003:145) The (945) Old Book of Tang biography of Li Xun says this occurred on a hot summer day and the emperor's present was made from "heat-repelling rhinoceros horn", which is believed to be cooling in traditional Chinese medicine.(tr. Davidson 1950:247) were both emblems of power and tools of discourse.
Herbert Giles quoted the Song dynasty archaeologist (d. 1240) that the "was originally made of iron, and was used 'for pointing the way' and also 'for guarding against the unexpected,' i.e. for self-defence. It was, in fact, a kind of blunt sword, and traces of basket-work are still to be found inside what must have been the sword-guard."(Giles 1912:185)
In the Ming dynasty (1368–1644 AD), became popular as ornaments or gifts symbolizing blessings and good luck. The ca. 1627 AD , by Ming painter Wen Zhenheng, discussed aesthetics.
The was used in ancient times to give directions or to protect oneself from the unexpected. It was for this reason that it was made of iron, and not on the basis of strictly aesthetic considerations. If you can obtain an old iron inlaid with gold and silver that sparkle now and then, and if it has an ancient dull color, this is the best. As for made of natural branches or from bamboo and so on, these are all worthless.(tr. Kieschnick 2003:151)
During the Qing dynasty (1644–1912 AD), scepters became luxuriant symbols of political power regularly used in imperial ceremonies, and were highly valued as gifts to and from the Emperor of China. Since 3 and 9 are considered lucky numbers in Chinese culture, Qing craftsmen elaborated the traditional handle-and-head type into two-headed with precious stones set in both heads and the middle of the handle, and presentational sets of nine. The Qianlong Emperor presented a to the British ambassador George Macartney in 1793, and in his description, "It is a whitish, agate-looking stone, about a foot and a half long, curiously carved, and highly prized by the Chinese, but to me it does not appear in itself to be of any great value."(quoted by Kieschnick 2003:139–140) The Palace Museum in Beijing holds nearly 3,000 ruyi, reflecting the Qing court's extensive use of the object as a ceremonial gift and symbol of rank.
During the historical evolution of Chinese "as desired", they have been used as backscratchers, ritual objects in Buddhism and later Daoism, pointers for public speakers, prized icons of political power and wealth, and auspicious gifts expressing best wishes. The cloud-and-lingzhi "ruyi head" became a pervasive decorative motif in Chinese art, architecture, textiles, and ceramics, spreading along the Silk Road into Central and West Asian decorative traditions.
Art
In Chinese art, scepters often appear as attributes of Buddhist saints and Daoist xian. The god of prosperity is often depicted holding a ruyi. Stylized repetitions of the shape are incorporated as a motif in the depiction of heavenly clouds. symbolize achieving prosperity in practice. The cloudlike or lingzhi-like head of the appears as a motif in decorative knots, glazed pottery, Oriental rug patterns, folk artifacts, and even modern corporate logos. It features in the design of traditional garments such as the Chinese 'cloud collar'. Stylized often function as a kind of ante-fixae or palmette in architecture. Beyond the Sinosphere, the -head was adopted as a decorative motif in some Central and West Asian traditions thanks to the Silk Road and Mongol influence.
Two types of are seen in Chinese Buddhist art. The early was common in Buddhist sculpture and painting from the late Six dynasties (220–589) through the Tang dynasty (618–906). It was a slender stick, varying from about 15 to 24 inches, which widened and curved slightly at one end. Not only were these utensils frequently portrayed by artists and sculptors, but the Shōsōin treasure house of Tōdai-ji temple, in Nara, has preserved several 8th-century .(Davidson 1950:242) The modern , which first appeared in the art of the Song dynasty (960–1279) has two forms. The first type shows minor elaborations upon the basic slender-handled structure of the early , but the slight curve at the top was exaggerated into a decorative ornament, a medallion-like form, frequently a stylized fungus. The second type of contemporary shows a radical change, in addition to the decorated end, two other smaller inlaid plaques or medallions, with one at the middle of the handle and the other at the base. Variations occur where the center medallion becomes a rectangle, or the second is omitted.(Davidson 1950:242–243)
In early Chinese and Japanese Buddhist art, the bodhisattva Manjusri is usually depicted holding a sword (representing wisdom that cuts through ignorance), except in representations of his discussion with the layman Vimalakirti, when Manjusri holds a scepter instead.(Davidson 1950:240) This representation expanded in the 10th century, concurrent with the change in forms, and holding a became an attribute of other divinities as well as Chinese emperors.(Davidson 1950:244)
Berthold Laufer believed the first Chinese representation of a was in an 8th-century painting by Wu Daozi, which showed it held in his right hand taking the place of the usual sword.(Laufer 1912: 339) Laufer noted the artistic similarity between the curved handle of a and the long stem of a lotus blossom, which was frequently depicted in the hands of Bodhisattvas, e.g., the Longmen Grottoes. I do not mean to say that the Buddhist emblem called has developed from the lotus, though I think that the alternation of both is suggestive. But it is not necessary at all to assume that the Chinese in general is of Buddhist origin... It may very well be that the implement is Chinese in origin and even prebuddhistic, and that, as in so many other things, a kind of compromise took place, resulting in the assimilation and amalgamation of two ideas and two forms.(Laufer 1912: 339) Admitting that the "original significance of this implement has been lost long ago", Laufer hypothesized that the may have developed from a ritual jade that began as a Zhou dynasty "symbol of light, generative power and fertility".
Two of the emperors in the famous Thirteen Emperors Scroll by Yan Liben (d. 673) are holding , Emperor Wen of Chen (r. 559–566) and Emperor Xuan of Chen (r. 569–582).(Davidson 1950:247)
Japanese painters variously pictured Manjusri holding a in either hand. Sesshū Tōyō (1420–1506) showed one in his left hand and nothing in his right. Kichizan Minchō () (1352–1431) and Kanō Sanraku (1559–1635) showed the Bodhisattva with a in his right and a book-roll in his left.(Laufer 1912:338) A 12th-century Manjusri painting attributed to the Kose School shows a sword in his right and a sacred lotus-flower in his left hand.
Word usage in East Asian Buddhism With the introduction of Buddhism to China, scholars used Chinese to translate various Sanskrit terms, which Buddhism in Japan subsequently borrowed as . The primary terms and Chinese/Japanese translations are: "a ceremonial mace; a priest's staff"; "wish fulfilling tree; the manifestation of what one wishes"; "wish-fulfilling jewel; jewel that grants all desires"; or