Chapter 21 Animal Division IX Unidentified Animals by Schafer

October 29, 2008 at 22:42 Edward Schaefer records an "unidentified animal" in his book "The Golden Peach of Samarkand": A country that cannot be identified now contributed a very terrible bear when Tang Gaozong succeeded to the throne.This country is called Gaviya.The name of the country may be related to the Sanskrit word gavya.This kind of bear was called "Tiantie" by the people of Tang Dynasty.Tian Tie Xiong is accustomed to preying on white elephants and lions.It is an unimaginably ferocious animal.Tian Tiexiong's ferocious character left a deep impression on Li Shizhen in the sixteenth century.He once wrote: "Tian Tie Xiong can capture the teacher's elephant, so the teacher is fierce and strong, and there is someone who can restrain him."

Schaffer thinks it could be a brown bear, or something like a Himalayan black bear.They are relatively rare in the Central Plains and have a fierce personality, so they are rumored to be giant beasts that can subdue lions and elephants.However, there is evidence that this animal was introduced to China at least during the Han, Wei and Six Dynasties, which has attracted the attention of naturalists. "Shen Yi Jing" records that Ma Yuan, a general of the Han Empire, accepted the title of "General Fubo" and stationed in Lingnan to reorganize the military deployment of southern China, preparing to launch a final attack on the rebels in the southern Yue State in accordance with the emperor's request.General Fubo approached various wild peoples in the south, incorporated the honest and brave tribes among them, and expelled the cunning and arrogant tribes among them.The general's military preparation work in the southern part of the empire alarmed the kings of the surrounding regions, and they all wrote letters to the emperor of the Han Empire, praising the general's ability and reputation.

King Siamdou in the south of Nanfangbuzhou was amazed by General Fubo's outstanding achievements, and sent envoys to present two sacred military cattle to the Han army.The hair of these two cows is as black as lacquer, and their bodies are huge, but they don't need to be raised artificially.Or, the idea of ​​actively feeding them is impractical, since the two cows only eat rocks that contain iron. According to the messenger, during the day, the two cows would go out to look for edible rocks by themselves.Breeders only need to set aside pens in the barracks for them to rest at night.The only special requirement is that a pot of coals needs to be prepared in the prison to quench their thirst.Every morning, the breeders can enter the pen to pick up their feces.Peel off the rotten dung film on the outside, and inside is the extremely hard dung heart.The dung heart of this kind of cow is considered the best of all iron blocks. After smelting and hammering, it can produce extremely sharp and strong weapons.

General Fubo ordered to raise the two cows according to the instructions of the envoy, to make weapons out of cow dung, and to arm the troops.Because of the advantage in equipment, the Han army quickly broke through the defense line of Yue State and captured the city of Panyu, the capital of Yue. In his report to the emperor, General Fubo, who returned victoriously, emphasized that King Siamdou had provided these two strange cows.When the emperor was overjoyed, he used his own power of naming, calling the cow "gnawing iron" and the cow dung heart "镔铁". Chao Jiong, a lay scholar in the Song Dynasty, analyzed the relationship between the two animals "Tian Tie" and "Ning Tie" in "Fa Zang Sui Jin".In fact, these two animals, which are classified under the two names of bull and bear, are actually the same species.It has the paws of a bear, and sometimes it can walk upright, but it has iron horns on its head, like a cow.Because of the pig iron in its dung, it is regarded as a symbol of military equipment, and the legend of fighting lions and eating elephants was born.The emperors of the Han Empire were too obsessed with the military advantages brought by the Iron Beast, and ignored the government and the concern for the people. In the end, the Empire Building, which was protected by iron and iron, was washed away by the refugees like the tide.The two sky-iron beasts in the royal garden were also covered up by the chaotic world, and gradually disappeared into obscurity.As for the Heavenly Iron Beast that was paid tribute by the Kapiya Kingdom during Emperor Gaozong of Tang Dynasty, because there was no iron-containing rock near the capital of the Tang Empire, no suitable food could be found, let alone the excretion of iron manure, and it eventually died of embarrassment.Writing here, Chao Jiong said with emotion, if those great animals could continue to this day, how could the dynasty of the Central Plains lose their military advantages and be so troubled?