“The fertile soil is suitable for planting phoenix trees.” Phoenix trees have long become garden ornamental trees and important greening trees in China. The phoenix tree, also known as Qingtong, Chinese phoenix tree, Biwu, Qingyu, and Tingwu, belongs to the deciduous tree of the Sycamonaceae family. Phoenix tree and phoenix culture and the empress culture are integrated with each other, so that the phoenix tree blends into people’s subjective sentiments and aesthetic ideals of Empress Wu, and becomes an aesthetic image to examine the empress culture. The composite image of phoenix tree and phoenix contains Empress Wu’s divinity, emperor and female humanity as a “the incarnation of dragon” and “rebirth of Maitreya Buddha with godship”, full of mystery, solemnity, humanity and historical and cultural sense. It is of profound practical significance to associate the phoenix tree and phoenix with Empress Wu, the only empress in Chinese history, and thus to study the empress culture. Phoenix tree and phoenix culture are well-known in China. Phoenix tree Phoenix Sacred tree of Chinese Buddhism Empress culture Phoenix likes to stay on phoenix tree, which symbolizes harmonious civilization of human and human’s earnest hope for good life. Ecological value of phoenix imagery: nine holy birds which perch at bronze divine trees of Sanxingdui, and Sunbird of the Jinsha Site gives an impression that golden bird carries the sun to soar in the universe in human’s mental concept, phoenix tree symbolizes habitat for humanity of ecological civilization, and phoenix symbolizes human’s dream of flying. Aesthetic cultural connotation, consisting of nobleness and hope of phoenix and misery and sad of phoenix tree, symbolized people’s comment to Empress Wu in the past one thousand and three hundred years. That falling leaves of phoenix tree shows autumn comes symbolized Empress Wu lost her Kingship and became queen for the rest of her life. Lofty imagery of phoenix tree symbolizes the only one empress in China. Love imagery of phoenix tree and phoenix symbolizes human emotion of Empress Wu. In forest culture, imagery of phoenix tree is of aesthetic culture which represents pure love subjective intention by means of phoenix tree in gardens planting of past dynasties and composition of poetry. In Buddhism, phoenix tree’s imagery being the sacred tree of Chinese Buddhism is its feature, which is formed when the tree is cultivated in religious temple. Phoenix liked to stay on phoenix tree (super sacred tree), therefore, phoenix tree represents the body of empress. From aspect of theology, phoenix stays at phoenix tree that is a myth by means of phoenix tree phoenix and dragon keep abreast, phoenix represents outstanding woman, and Empress Wu is the incarnation of phoenix (super holy bird). Empress Wu is the incarnation of dragon, rebirth of Maitreya Buddha with godship. The study indicates the historical-cultural symbolical meaning of Empress Wu of phoenix tree, and the ecological value. This paper is intended to analyze the interrelation, mutual influence and integration of phoenix tree, phoenix and empress in ecological and cultural terms.
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