江伊莉著＜異字内涵及其对商代宗教和艺术的启示＞出版

Elizabeth Childs-Johnson,The Meaning of the Graph Yi異 and Its Implications for Shang Belief and Art, Saffron Books [EAP London], London, 2008.

In this monograph, in a departure from previous analyses, Elizabeth Childs-Johnson uses a combination of written and graphic data to identify the meaning of the so-called taotie mask and the basis of Shang religion. By utilising paleographic and representational evidence Childs-Johnson puts into perspective for the first time that Shang belief was not limited to the worship of royal dead ancestor spirits. She analyses the meaning of several pivotal oracle bone graphs, in particular yi, illustrating that Shang belief was founded on the concept of spirit metamorphosis. She identifies yi as meaning ‘to undergo metamorphosis of/by a spirit.’ This fundamental belief in metamorphosis, and the power associated with it, also underlies the meaning behind Shang ritual representations, which has been extensively examined in several previous studies. The significance of these analyses is monumental in explaining that early Chinese belief embraces more than the worship of dead ancestor spirits, that the setting for the birth of Chinese civilisation is more complex in incorporating the basic belief in the power to take on the power of another in the spirit realm. Students and China watchers of all levels will benefit from reading this study, not only because it answers many questions about traditional Chinese belief but enriches our understanding of the earliest dynastic period and its art in China.

（美）江伊莉：異字的内涵及其对商代宗教和艺术的启示，Saffron Books, 伦敦，2008年第一版，96页。

江伊莉在这篇专题论文中，采取了与从前不同的分析方法，她综合利用文字与图像资料，探讨了“饕餮”纹饰的内涵及商代宗教的基础。江伊莉通过列举古文字和图像方面的证据，首次提出如下看法：即商代信仰并不局限于崇拜死去的王室祖先。她分析了几个甲骨文的含意，特别讨论了“異”字，并结合图像指出，商代宗教建立在神灵变形的基础上。她认为“異”字的内涵是，神灵正在变形。对于变形的信仰及与之联系的力量，也揭示出商代仪式活动的意义，这一点从前的几项研究已经指出。江伊莉的上述分析有着重要意义，特别是认为早期中国宗教信仰已超越了祖先崇拜，由于融合了对另一个神灵世界的力量的信仰，中国文明的形成更加复杂。这项研究对中国上古史领域的学生和学者都有参考价值，这不仅因为它回答了有关传统中国信仰的许多问题，还因为它丰富了我们对中国早期国家及其艺术的认识。