Zeng Shen Bites Heart Pain Brick

[Zeng Shen Biting Finger Pain Brick]

Zeng Shen Biting Finger Pain Brick, Northern Song Dynasty, 19.4 cm long, 26.5 cm wide, and 3 cm thick
The portrait brick is rectangular, and the inside is carved into a pot door. The words “Zeng Shen” are engraved on the upper part of the center. In the light relief on the left side of the picture, an old woman stands in front of the firewood door, wearing a short jacket and a skirt, holding a long staff, and bending forward slightly. She is Zeng Shen’s mother. Zeng Cangang on the right put down the firewood shoulder, bent his legs slightly, clenched his fists, and looked at his mother, as if asking the reason for the matter
Zeng Shen Bites his fingers with heartache is one of the stories of the twenty-four filial piety. It is said that when Zeng Shen goes out, his mother will bite her finger if something happens, and Zeng Shen will feel heartache. This brick sculpture shows Zeng’s mother biting her fingers, Zeng Shen hurried back, and the mother and son met at the door
To be fair, it is not too exaggerated to say that Zeng’s mother bit her finger. Even if it is all true, it is not enough to impress the filial piety of her son. Zeng Shen’s ability to step into the ranks of filial piety lies not only in his actions, but also in his words. Han Shiwai Zhuan recorded his story: “At the beginning, I was an official, but my salary was not as high as the cauldron, and I was glad to catch my relatives, not because I thought there were too many. After that, I tried to travel south in Chu, and I got to respect the officials. The hall was nine feet high, and the hub was 100 times higher, but the people who were still crying in the north, not because they were cheap, and not because they were sad to catch my relatives. Therefore, I was poor and old, and did not choose an official to be an official.” It means that “When I was in a low position, I was very happy, not because I felt that I had more money, but because my parents were still alive. When my parents died, I went to the south to become a senior official. Although I got a high salary, I still cried to the north from time to time. The reason for crying was that my parents were gone! So if the family was poor and the parents were old, you should not choose to be an official (because to be an official is to stay away from your parents and go to other places).” “The son wanted to support, but the parents did not stay.” The words came from Zeng Shen, who advised the children of the world not to wait for their parents to die before thinking of filial piety, and not to regret that their parents were not there when they wanted to be filial. He also divided filial piety into three levels: respecting parents (making their parents respected), avoiding humiliation (making their parents not humiliated), and being able to support (making their parents comfortable with food and clothing). Do it in person and tell the truth. Zeng Shen is filial.