Metaphor court stone lion
Many ethnic groups have the tradition and habit of totem worship of animals as spiritual symbols or gods. In China, the dragon is a symbol of the Chinese nation. It is no wonder that an advertisement about the dragon has caused so much controversy, because the dragon is no longer an imaginary god, but a spiritual symbol. Besides dragons, many animals, such as cattle, horses, turtles, tigers and lions, also have their corresponding symbolic meanings in people's specific consciousness. Different cultural traditions, the same animal has different meanings. In Japan, crows are auspicious animals and a symbol of wisdom and cleverness, while in China, crows are a symbol of bad luck. In India, monkeys and cows are gods. Cattle can walk up and down the street as if nothing had happened, whether it hinders traffic or not, and sometimes they go to the toilet in the street. People can only let it go.
In our country, the most stone lions we see are symbols of auspiciousness and majesty, and pairs of stone lions are usually placed on the front of buildings. Since ancient times, there have been such stone lions in court courtyards and tombs. The stone lions glared at each other, their teeth clenched and their claws were extremely sharp. People expect stone lions to ward off evil spirits with their majesty. During the Cultural Revolution, stone lions were regarded as the product of feudal consciousness and the object of revolution, and a large number of stone lions with cultural value were destroyed. After the reform and opening up, stone lions have appeared in people's lives. It is common in front of the buildings of banks, securities, insurance and other financial institutions, mainly to avoid evil spirits and disasters. For financial institutions, this is understandable. After all, the financial industry is a high-risk and unpredictable field, and people will naturally pray for the blessing of the gods. Recently, however, the author found that with the renovation of the court office building, many stone lions were placed in front of the gate of the new court building. Grinning stone lions, with red copper gates and high steps, the court buildings really look magnificent, and many court buildings have become local "landmark" buildings.
As far as the court is concerned, the stone lion is more regarded as a symbol of majesty. As a non-profit organization, the court should not consider Geely's function of making money, at least not the main metaphor symbol. As a judicial institution, the court will not use stone lions to ward off evil spirits. In this way, the stone chamber undoubtedly strengthened the deterrent power of the court. This is related to our traditional consciousness, and we think that the court is only a tool of dictatorship. It is precisely because we emphasized its dictatorial and repressive functions in the past that in our mind, the court building should be a deterrent and shocking building, and the stone lion just expressed this metaphor, which is a symbol of authority. I think this is probably the subconscious of the person who put the stone lion in front of the court building. Although the architect may not be very clear about the metaphor or symbolic function of the stone lion, in fact, the stone lion has become an interpretation of the palace function. I have noticed that many courts are decorated with Roman columns or Greek columns, which undoubtedly means inheriting the rule of law. However, can the stone lion in front of the court building be used as a symbol to interpret the function and spirit of the court?
As a judicial institution, the basic function of the court is to adjudicate and settle disputes. The court solves social contradictions by ascertaining facts and applying laws, thus ensuring the society to run on the track of rule of law. In terms of eliminating social contradictions, in fact, the role of courts and hospitals is the same. The court is also a social service organization and a dispute resolution service organization. As an applicable law, institutions that demonstrate justice should not be institutions that are high above and far away from the people. The judiciary should be close to the people, not alienated from them, and it should become an affinity institution. The court is no longer a tool of class dictatorship, but a tool for building an equal society, safeguarding property rights and safeguarding people's freedom and happiness. Repression is no longer the basic function of the court. The court is actually the third person in the lawsuit. The first thing the court should do is to treat both parties fairly, even in criminal and administrative proceedings. In litigation, the court gives both parties to the dispute an equal opportunity to confront each other. Only in this way can the fairness of the trial process and the trial result be guaranteed. The court is not the opposite of either party or both parties, and the parties are not the object of trial. The court should respect the subjectivity of the parties. Therefore, the metaphor and symbol of the stone lion in front of the court building deserve our serious reflection. I'm afraid the majesty of stone lions in court is exactly what we should abandon.
We notice that not only the stone lions convey the above awareness, but also the architectural style, internal structure design and even tables and chairs of many courts reflect and express the same metaphor as the stone lions. For example, the high steps of the court, copper doors (the doors are often closed and only play a decorative role), judges' chairs with high backs and so on. The consciousness expressed by such architectural styles and objects is actually contrary to modern judicial ideas. The authority of the court's judgment does not depend on the majesty and deterrence of the court, but on the fairness of the judgment, the rationality of ascertaining the facts and the correctness of applying the law. When the ancient yamen was promoted to the imperial court, the behavior of officials beating sticks and shouting curses highlighted the characteristics of feudal trials.
Before building a new building, Beijing High Court asked some scholars for their views on the court building. At the meeting, I suggested that the court building should be peaceful and unobtrusive, emphasizing that it is close to society and has the characteristics of public service, just like libraries, stations and hospitals, rather than high-ranking government offices. Most scholars attending the meeting also expressed the same opinion. I also particularly emphasize not to put stone lions in front of the court building. I don't know what was finally built in the building of Beijing High Court. In particular, I hope to express and convey a modern judicial concept. In the process of social transformation, our courts are also in the process of transformation, so we should pay special attention to establishing a new judicial concept that is compatible with the modern rule of law and social development, rather than simply inheriting the past traditions. Some traditional consciousness is exactly what we should abandon, and there are still many things we need to reflect on, not just the question of whether to put stone lions in front of the court building.