麋鹿和原始稻作及中华文化

麋鹿是生活在沼泽地的动物，原产中国东南沿海及长江流域。古代农民曾利用麋鹿踩踏过的烂泥地，播种水稻，受到启发，后来改用牛力踩踏，产生了踏耕技术。踏耕还传播到东南亚各国。麋鹿是唯一在冬季脱角的鹿．古代人对此用阴阳二气消长和天人感应的思想解释。雄麋魁伟高大，古代人以雄麋象征帝王，以“逐鹿中原”譬喻争夺王位。中国的汉字，许多是以麋鹿为基础演变创造出来的。说明麋鹿对于中国文化有潜在的不可低估的影响。

Relations of Elk with Primitive Rice and Chinese Culture

Elk that originated in the Southeast coast of China and the Yangtze River Basin are very large deer with big flat antlers living in marshy areas. In ancient times, peasants once made use of the muddy ground where the elk had trampled to sow paddy rice, which later inspired them to make oxen trample ground and give birth to the trampling tillage technology that spread further to the southeast countries. The elk were the only deer whose antlers came off in winter. So our ancestors viewed this phenomenon as Yin and Yang, the two opposing principles in nature, the former feminine and negative, the latter masculine and positive, and the interaction between Heaven and Human beings. Moreover, seeking for elk was likened to contend for the throne, for the big and tall male elk symbolized the emperor. And many Chinese characters were coined on the basis of the elk. The above mentioned shows that the elk are of great potential influence on Chinese culture.