Yimen Chen

2020-11-12

During the Tang and Song dynasties, the Chen family of Jiangzhou Yimen, located in De'an near the West Sea of Lushan Mountain, created an extraordinary family saga that spanned over 3,900 members, lasted for more than 15 generations, and endured for over 330 years. The family lived together as one large clan, sharing meals and drinking from the same pots, passing food around by drumbeat, and even allowing a hundred dogs to share the same feeding trough—all while maintaining harmonious coexistence without any division or separation. In 1996, the practice of "if one dog fails to arrive, the hundred dogs will not eat" was officially recorded in the Guinness World Records, earning the family the renowned praise: "The Chen family of Yimen is a marvel under heaven—a true wonder among wonders, with its hundred dogs sharing the same trough."

A Hundred Dogs Share the Same Feeding Trough: During one of his secret tours in disguise, Zhu Yuanzhang visited a household in Yimen Chen and noticed that the family kept many dogs. When they saw food but merely sniffed it without eating, Zhu asked the owner the reason. The owner replied, “Sir, you may not know—these dogs are waiting for an old, lame mother dog. They won’t start eating until she arrives. Every single meal is like this: none of them will touch the food before she’s here.” Zhu Yuanzhang looked up and indeed saw an old, lame mother dog limping slowly toward the feeding trough. As soon as the old dog reached the trough, the other dogs sprang to their feet, rushed over, and began eating together at once. This vividly demonstrates that the people of Yimen Chen are deeply filial and righteous—even their dogs have been influenced by their family’s fine traditions, thoroughly understanding the virtues of filial piety and righteousness. Such devotion is truly rare and admirable.

Keywords:

Li the Knife Sharpener

Huang Tingjian

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