Why do Chinese people love jade?

China's jade culture has a long history of nearly seven thousand years. Seven thousand years ago, the ancestors of the Hemudu culture in the south, while selecting stones to make tools, consciously made ornaments from the beautiful stones they picked up to dress themselves up and beautify their lives, thus opening the prelude to China's jade culture.

Chinese jade not only has a long history, but also has different varieties and rich cultural connotations. This is why jade has become a favorite of officials of all dynasties and even a symbol of status.

Jade symbolizes auspiciousness and good fortune, and embodies people’s yearning for happiness and peace. In ancient Chinese mythology, most of the gods who protect mankind live in Mount Kunlun. In many ancient books, Mount Kunlun is called the "Mountain of Jade" or the "Ancestor of All Mountains." There is also a saying in "Thousand Character Classic" that "gold is born in Lishui, and jade is born in Kunlun." Therefore, jade is regarded by people as a crystal that gathers the essence of heaven and earth. Therefore, jade has been loved by many people since ancient times. People also give it some beautiful meanings of warding off evil spirits, protecting the body and auspiciousness.

In ancient times, jade was a symbol of power, identity and status. In the past, the color, size, and shape of jade symbolized different levels of identity and status. For example, there were regulations on the use of "rui" in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Officials of six different statuses used six different kinds of jade, namely "the king holds Zhengui, the duke holds Huangui, the marquis holds Xingui, the earl holds Gongui, the son holds Gubi, and the man holds Pubi"; starting from the Qin Dynasty, Qin Shihuang adopted the system of using jade as seals, which continued until the Qing Dynasty; jade became popular in the Qing Dynasty, and people with different official titles wore different jades.

In China, many of jade's good qualities are used to describe a person's character. Our nation has always had a very strong cultural belief called "behaving like jade." People use the quality of jade as a standard of their own morality. Jade, due to its natural properties and the cultural connotations it is endowed with, has always been loved by literati and scholars. They often use jade to symbolize themselves, as the saying goes, "A gentleman will not leave jade without a reason" and "It is better to be broken into pieces of jade than to live in dishonor."

It is said that a gentleman is like jade. It creates a "gentleman" with the unique aesthetic style and aesthetic emotion of the Chinese people, making him a symbol of people's pursuit of moral, spiritual and personal perfection. People's behavior, conduct, and every move are also endowed with the standards implied by jade, which is used to express people's praise, appreciation and admiration for others.

The spirit of jade is the virtue of human beings to abide by their promises and the sentiment of sacrificing one's life for justice. It symbolizes complete belief and complete personality. Chinese people love jade, love it to the core and integrate it into their blood; Chinese people love jade, it is so good that it is part of their temperament and integrated into their culture. But Chinese people love jade, not only because of its rare reserves and beautiful color, but more importantly because of the profound connotations that jade is endowed with.

Whether it is a meaning, a culture, or a noble character, they all embody people's deep feelings for jade. These specific connotations have cultivated the character of generations of the Chinese nation, given birth to China's traditional aesthetics, and its profound culture, which have continued for thousands of years and always radiate immortal brilliance.

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