福-中華五福吉祥圖典 內容簡介

　　吉祥一詞， 始見于《易經》：“ 吉事有祥。”《左傳》有：“是何祥也？吉祥焉在？”《莊子》則有：“虛室生日，吉祥止止。”《注疏》亦云：“吉者，福善之事；祥者，嘉慶之征。”　　吉祥二字，在甲骨文中被寫作“吉羊”。上古人過著游牧生活，羊肥大成群是很“吉祥”的事，在古器物的銘文中多有“吉羊”。《說文》云：“羊，祥也。”　　吉祥，是美好、幸運的形象；吉祥，是人類*迷人的主題。藝術*終都是把理想形象化，而吉祥圖，是中華吉祥文化*璀璨的明珠。舊時有聯：“善果皆歡喜，香云普吉祥。”吉祥圖有：吉祥如意、五福吉祥等。　　五福，是吉祥的具體體現。福、祿、壽、喜、財，在民間被稱為五福；福星、祿星、壽星、喜神、財神，在仙界被尊為五福神。五福*早見于《尚書》：“五福，一曰壽，二曰富，三曰康寧，四曰攸好德，五曰考終命。”舊時有聯：“三陽臨吉地，五福萃華門。”吉祥圖有：五福捧壽、三多五福等。　　吉祥圖不僅有“五福”之內涵，而且與繪畫藝術和語言藝術珠聯璧合。在繪畫上，吉祥圖體現了中國畫主要的表現手段——線的魅力，給人以美感，令人賞心悅目。吉祥圖雖多出自民間畫工之手，卻多有顧愷之“春蠶吐絲”之韻，曹仲達“曹衣出水”之美，吳道子“吳帶當風”之妙。在語言上，吉祥圖使古代文化通俗化和普及化，吉祥圖多配有一句濃縮成四個字的吉語祥詞，給人以吉祥的祝愿，令人心馳神往。　　《中華五福吉祥圖典》，匯集了著名文化學者黃全信的數代家傳和幾十年收藏的精品吉祥圖，可謂美不勝收。其中既有明之典雅，又有清之華麗；既有皇家之富貴，又有民間之淳樸；既有北方之粗獷，又有南方之秀美……全套書按五福分成福、祿、壽、喜、財五集，每集吉祥圖119 幅，共595 幅。除同類圖案外，全套書均按筆畫順序編排，基本包括了中國傳統吉祥圖的各個方面，并對每幅圖做了考證和詮釋，力求圖文并茂，相得益彰。　　五福人人喜，吉祥家家樂。吉祥圖是中國的，也是世界的，故以漢英對照出版。《中華五福吉祥圖典》會給您帶來吉祥，給您全家帶來幸福。　　The word jíxiáng（meaning lucky, propitious, or auspicious） is used in ancient Chinese books and writings as early as the Zhou Dynasty (1100 -221BC).　　The word jíxiáng was written 吉羊（jíyáng, auspicious sheep） on oracle bones. To the ancient nomadic Chinese, large herds of well-fed sheep were prized possessions; the word jíyáng also appeared in engravings on ancient utensils.　　To have good luck is an eternal desire of all people. As art records man’s ideals, good luck pictures are the most illuminating part of Chinese spiritual culture. An old Chinese couplet says that kindness leads to happiness and good luck. Typical good luck pictures representing such include images depicting good luck and desire fulfilled to the heart’s content, good luck with five blessings, etc.　　The five blessings, good fortune, high salary and a good career, longevity, happiness, and wealth, are the major manifestations of good luck, with five different gods presiding over each. The five blessings as first mentioned in Chinese literature are not quite the same as the five which are spoken of today, though they are quite similar. A couplet says a prosperous family is granted many blessings. Typical good luck pictures representing such include: long-term enjoyment of all five blessings, more blessings, etc.　　Designs of Chinese Blessings is a compilation of selected good luck pictures passed down in the famous Chinese cultural scholar Huang Quanxin’s family for several generations as well as those which I have been collecting for dozens of years. Their beauty is beyond description. They combine the elegance of the Ming Dynasty and the magnificence of the Qing Dynasty, the nobility of the royal family and the modesty of the common people, the boldness of the north and the delicacy of the south. The series consists of five volumes: Good Fortune, High Salary and a Good Career, Longevity, Happiness and Wealth. With 119 pictures in each volume, the whole series contains 595 pictures and is a complete representation of the various aspects of traditional Chinese good luck pictures. Pictures are arranged based on the stroke number of the first character of good luck phrases accompanying the picture. As well, research has been done on each picture, and the resulting interpretations complement the visuals nicely.　　As the five blessings are the aspiration of each individual, good luck delights all households. Though the good luck pictures originate in China, their messages should benefit people all over the world. May the Designs of Chinese Blessings bring good luck to your life and happiness to your family.