唐宋四大吉時的理論來源、變化及其實踐

The Theoretical Background, Development and Practice of the Four Auspicious Times during the Tang and Song Dynasties

唐宋時期的四大吉時源於六壬式，植根於陰陽五行學說，與天文觀測緊密相關。唐代的四大吉時，是指孟月（正月、四月、七月、十月）用甲、丙、庚、壬時，仲月（二月、五月、八月、十一月）用乾、坤、艮、巽時，季月（三月、六月、九月、十二月）用癸、乙、丁、辛時，月是按照月節劃分的星命月，這在很多葬時選擇中得到了踐行。宋仁宗景祐年間（1034-1038）至慶曆元年（1041），開始按照太陽運行十二次的時間來劃分各組四大吉時適用的時段。這種新方法約在重熙十四年（1045）或稍後傳播到遼，被南宋、金、元、明、清繼承，是一種被普遍接受的時間觀念與信仰，當時的喪葬禮儀、營造興工均須用之，時人身無論貴賤、地不分南北、族不講胡漢、教不別僧俗，均受其影響。這說明，六壬式對唐宋元明清中國普遍性時間觀念與信仰的養成具有重大作用。或可認爲，以六壬式爲代表的中國傳統方術和神煞觀念，儘管並非人盡皆知，卻是中國文化那一層無法抹去的底色。

The concept of the four auspicious times (四大吉時) originated from the liurenshi (六壬式) divinatory technique, and rooted in the theory of yin and yang (陰陽) and five elements (五行) as well as astronomical observation. It was one of the most significant auspicious-time-selection techniques practiced in the Tang and Song dynasties. In the Tang dynasty, the four auspicious times were the hours of jia (甲), bing (丙), geng (庚) and ren (壬) for the first months of the four seasons (namely the first, fourth, seventh and tenth month), the hours of qian (乾), kun (坤), gen (艮), xun (巽) for the second months of four seasons (namely the second, fifth, eighth, eleventh month) and the hours of gui (癸), yi (乙), ding (丁), xin (辛) for the third months of four seasons (namely the third, sixth, ninth, twelfth month). Accordingly, the month of xingming month (星命月) was derived by measuring the solar terms. However, during the years of Jingyou (1034-1038) to the first year of Qingli (1041) of Song Renzong’s reign, the concept of the four auspicious times underwent great transformation. The universe was divided into twelve regions, which were called twelve ci (十二次), and the four auspicious times were therefore chosen according to which ci the sun was at. Roughly in the fourteenth year of Chongxi (1045) or sometime later, this renewed technique was adopted by the Liao region, and then was inherited by the Southern Song, Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties afterwards and was widely practiced in social activities like funeral ritual or rituals held prior to constructions. It was a time concept and belief which widely influenced the poor and the rich, the south and the north, the Han Chinese and those of other ethnicities, Buddhists and those who are secular. This historical fact demonstrated that the liurenshi technique had profoundly shaped the general time concept and belief of the commoners from the Tang to the Qing dynasties. In other words, traditional Chinese divinatory technique and the divinity-devil belief presented by the liurenshi technique, though many people didn’t know their origin, were the foundation of the Chinese culture.