Then the question is, there was no toilet paper in ancient times. What should the ancients use to wipe their ass?
This is actually an era of scoring.
For example, in the Qin and Han Dynasties or even earlier in the pre-Qin period, there was nothing particular about wiping your ass, which was basically useful. Such as leaves, branches, tiles and even dirt. Because the toilets in those days were very simple, they basically dug a hole in the ground and built a shed on it, which didn't pay much attention. It would be nice to have a toilet. In fact, these things were still available in rural areas in the early years. "One pit, two bricks, three feet of earth wall around" is so natural and within reach.
By the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, people's daily life was gradually standardized, and people no longer robbed toilets. At this time, something similar to "toilet paper" appeared, which is a tool specially used to wipe your ass.
It is called "Toilet Toilet Toilet Toilet Toilet Toilet Toilet", and the earliest record comes from Fa Zhu Yuan Lin written by Taoist in Tang Dynasty. It tells the story that during the Three Kingdoms period, Sun Hao, the emperor of the State of Wu, got a golden statue. He had no courtesy, but put it in the toilet to take care of the discarded toilet, toilet, toilet, toilet. "Toilet piece" sounds elegant, but it is actually processed wood chips or bamboo pieces, which are scraped in the toilet, cleaned after use and put back to the next toilet user. Its texture is very smooth and it is not easy to scratch the skin; And the length is moderate, which is convenient for wiping your ass.
You can also call him a shit stick. Or "fuck shit" Fuck, interfere, offend. Pinch, that is, pin, toilet Jane. Dry shit nail, which means a nail for cleaning shit. Wipe your nails clean after defecation, then wash the nail head and use it next time. No noise, no pollution, using cracks for development.
In ancient times, the "toilet bowl" was used not only by civilians, but also by emperors. The record of toilet financing first appeared in the Wei and Jin Dynasties, which can be found in "Capital Tongzhi Jian". Gao Yang, the emperor of the Northern Qi Dynasty, asked Yang Cheng, the prime minister, to finance the construction of toilets for him.
"Although Yang Kui is the prime minister, he raises money in the toilet, whips his back and draws blood from his robe."
It was cruel of the Northern Qi Emperor to treat the Prime Minister as a cleaner and an animal.
It is said that the habit of using toilet originated from Buddhist monks. Buddhism has a special toilet code, which clearly stipulates the use of toilets.
"Start and end have, with a net to make the net. Without preparation, the wall surface is not cleaned, the toilet plate beam is not cleaned, stones are not used, grass is not used, and clods of cork and soft leaves are not used; Application, wood, bamboo and reed as preparation. Measurement method, the longest one and the shortest four fingers. Used doesn't necessarily make it dirty, and used doesn't necessarily keep it in the net. This is a way to improve the toilet. "
After Buddhism was introduced to China, it was common for people in China to raise money in toilets, so they adopted this habit.
Some people say that paper was invented by then, isn't it? Yes, but that piece of paper is not for wiping your ass. The ancients respected writing and paper. The output of ancient paper was not so high, so it was not feasible to use paper, but it was relatively simple and convenient to use wooden sticks.
The habit of using toilets to raise funds has a long history in China, which lasted from Wei and Jin Dynasties to Song Dynasty.
The Song Dynasty was an era of great leap in the living standards of the Han people. At that time, there were public toilets in the city, and the facilities and functions were no less than modern ones. At the same time, at this time, clean paper specially used to wipe your ass appeared. This has a lot to do with the improvement of productivity at that time. Paper can be used to wipe your ass, which shows that the productivity of papermaking at that time was quite good. Of course, although you can wipe your ass with paper in the Song Dynasty, you can't wipe your ass with written paper because it is degrading. This is the meaning of the so-called "respect for word paper".
Peking man Yan Zhitui once said:
"Every time I read a saint's book, I don't mean to disrespect it. Its old paper has the meaning of the five classics, and it has the name of a saint. I dare not use it. "
The "filth" here is actually wiping your ass. The Buddhist canon of the Tang Dynasty also requires monks:
"Always use the toilet to raise money, and you won't lose anything" and "Don't use words and paper".
So think about it, when I was a child, I wiped my ass with homework paper. I'm really sorry for Kong Old Master Q Q.
In the Yuan Dynasty, because the rulers became Mongolians, there was no such thing as "respecting paper" in their culture, so they didn't pay so much attention to wiping their bottoms with paper. With the popularization of Mongols, the habit of wiping one's ass with paper has gradually become popular.
In fact, if we look around the world, we China people are really ahead. After all, we started wiping our asses with paper a thousand years ago.
The ancient French used thick hemp rope, that is, a thick hemp rope hung from the roof of the toilet, and its hanging position was probably next to the pit. When people finish pulling the stink, they drag the thick hemp rope over, then cross their legs and pull it back and forth with their hands to wipe their bottoms.
From a scientific point of view, this method can clean your ass, but the estimation process is a bit uncomfortable. What's more, this rope is ordinary and magical.
The ancient Greeks used pebbles, most of which were light and thin, with smooth edges and very close to marble. The ancient Greeks also had a famous proverb:
"Three stones are enough to wipe chrysanthemums."
The ancient Romans used a stirring rod. It is worth mentioning that the ancient Roman "excrement stirring stick" is a kind of sponge inserted in the branches, which is similar to the patent "toilet preparation" in China, that is, "dry excrement". It seems that the ancients knew the truth that relying on mountains to eat water for draught. China is rich in bamboo, most of which are made of bamboo chips. Rome is near the sea, so sponges are widely used.
In ancient India, it was by hand, and this habit has been maintained to this day. Of course, this picture is not what everyone thinks. To be precise, people use their hands to pick up water and wipe their bottoms. But it still seems a little hard to accept.