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SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONSVOLUME 142, NUMBER 2
FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA(With 28 Plates)
BvDAVID CROCKETT GRAHAM
(Publication 4457) NOV 6r
CITY OF WASHINGTONPUBLISHED BY THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIONNOVEMBER 1, 1961

SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONSVOLUME 142, NUMBER 2
FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA(With 28 Plates)
ByDAVID CROCKETT GRAHAM
CITY OF WASHINGTONPUBLISHED BY THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIONNOVEMBER 1, 1961
PORT CITY PRESS, INC.BALTIMORE, MD., U. S. A.
PREFACEIn the fall of 191 1 my wife and I, together with a number ofmissionaries bound for West China, boarded the steamship Siberiaat San Francisco and started for Shanghai. Though radiograms werereceived en route stating that China was in a state of revolution, wewent on to Shanghai, where we rented a building in the British con-cession. There we lived and studied the Chinese language until therevolution was over and the country was again peaceful. We thenjourneyed to Szechwan Province, where we spent most of our timeuntil the late spring of 1948.After being stationed for 20 years at Suifu ^M) riow I-pin, Iwas transferred to Chengtu^^, the capital of the province. AtI-pin I gradually assumed responsibility for missionary work, butcontinued to study the language, completing the 5-year course beinggiven for new missionaries. Included in this course were the Three-word Classic, the Four Books of Confucius and Mencius, the SacredEdict, and the Fortunate Union. Later I also read and studied theFive Classics of Confucius. I found in these books high moral andspiritual ideals and teachings and began to have a wholesome respectfor Chinese learning and culture.In the fall of 19 19 I entered the Divinity School of the Universityof Chicago for a year of postgraduate study. Here my studies in-cluded, besides religious education, the world's great religions, thehistory of religions, and the psychology of religion. Further coursestaken at Chicago in 1926 covered anthropology, ethnology, and thepsychology of primitive peoples and of primitive religion. My doctor'sthesis, "Religion in Szechwan Province, China," was mainly the resultof first-hand studies and research in the religions of Szechwan. Thiswas published in 1928 by the Smithsonian Institution. During thesummer of 1931 I took a course in field archeology under Fay-CooperCole of the University of Chicago, and during the following fall andwinter I took courses in archeology, ethnology, physical and culturalanthropology, and methods of research under Professors Hooten,Tozzer, and Dixon at Harvard University.During the period 1919 to 1939 I made 14 summer expeditions todifferent parts of Szechwan and the China-Tibetan border and a largenumber of shorter trips. Later, two summer vacations were spentamong the Ch'iang. My missionary work often involved traveling
IV SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL, I42from one station or city to another or to outstations or smaller townsand cities. Three times on the way to and from the United States Ipassed through Kweichow and Yunnan Provinces. In 1936 travel forthe museum of the West China Union University took me to Shanghai,Nanking, Tsi-an, K'aifeng-fu, An-yang, Si-an, Ch'ang-sha, andPeking, where I visited museums and libraries, interviewed scholarsand scientists, and visited archeological sites such as An-yang,Lung-an, and the cave of Peking Man. During all these trips I tookmany notes and pictures. Of the West China provinces, I have livedin or visited Szcchwan, Sikang, Shensi, Kweichow, and Yunnan.In 1920 the opportunity came to study the Ch'uan Miao. This re-sulted in several articles for scientific journals and in the book, "Songsand Stories of the Ch'uan Miao," published by the Smithsonian Insti-tution in 1954. Twice I visited the Lolo country and for several yearsmade a first-hand study of the Ch'iang, spending three summer vaca-tions and several shorter periods among them. One summer trip tookme through Mu-p'ing among the Chia-jung, and three times I visitedTsagunao. Three trips through Tatsienlu to parts of Sikang oreastern Tibet afforded the opportunity of visiting lamasaries, meetinglamas and Living Buddhas, and witnessing a 3-day "devil dance," or,as the Tibetans call it, the festival (or dance) of the gods.Beginning about 1930 it became increasingly evident to observersthat the great changes taking place in China were having very im-portant effects on the religious life of West China, especially evidentin the uses of the temples and the worship in them. In 1928 twoChinese teachers assisted me in making a survey of the temples ofI-pin or Suifu, the results of which were published in the ChineseRecorder, At this time few changes were evident in the temples.From 1941 to 1944, with the help of three university students, I madea careful survey of the temples of Chengtu, the capital of the province.The results were striking. In 42.4 percent of those that could be foundthere was no worship at all, and in 44.3 percent more, very littleworship. Eight and one-tenth percent were used for other purposesbut were also much used for worship. Only 5.2 percent of the templeswere used for worship only, and nearly all of these were small. Thissurvey was followed by shorter studies of the temples of Ya-an, Chia-chiang, Chia-ting or Lo-chan, Qii'ien-wei, and I-pin. It was evidentthat great and significant changes were taking place in the religionsof West China, and an attempt was made to discover the causes ofthese changes.In pursuing this study, which began in earnest in 1920, I have read
NO. 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS V
many books and articles, especially in English and in Chinese. Itshould be emphasized, however, that the main source of informationhas been the people of West China. I have endeavored to be objective,letting my opinions develop out of the information received and theobservations made, rather than starting with theories and seekingevidence to prove them. While many of the most important facts andtheories have been received from ordinary, unsophisticated people,they have also been discussed with Chinese of all classes, includingstudents, old-fashioned scholars, and scientists. The information re-ceived has been checked and rechecked many times.In this manuscript, the present tense is generally used. It shouldbe borne in mind, however, that I am describing conditions, beliefs,and practices as they existed in West China before the modern changestook place. Many of them may not obtain at the present time.China has produced one of the world's greatest cultures, in somerespects the greatest. It has produced men of outstanding ability andcharacter. It has had several of the world's greatest historians, poets,philosophers, and artists. In a number of her arts, such as lacquers,bronzes, and porcelains, she has led the world. She has had greatreligious leaders such as Confucius and Lao Tzu. All these haveinfluenced every phase of her culture and religion. Yet the greatmass of her people have been, until recent decades, illiterate farmersand laborers, whose customs and ideas were often very primitive.That these beliefs and customs have continued in China practically upto the present time is due at least in part to the fact that they haveseemed to fit the situations, to explain natural phenomena, and to offera satisfying philosophy of life.The religious beliefs and practices of the common people have beenmodified by Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism and by their sectsand the lesser religions. On the other hand, these have been profoundlyinfluenced by the beliefs and practices of the common people. Thereligion of the common people, called by some animism, has been re-ferred to as the real religion of China.ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I am indebted to many Chinese of all classes as well as to manyoccidental scholars for information that has made this manuscriptpossible. I wish especially to express my appreciation to Dr. C. T. Wu,Ph.D., a graduate of the University of Washington ; to Mr. Wayne S.Kow, a graduate of the University of Denver, for assistance in trans-lating and in writing the Chinese characters ; to Prof. Lewis Walms-
vi SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
ley, Ph.D., curator of the Department of Orientalia, Royal OntarioMuseum, Toronto, Canada, for helpful suggestions ; to Dr. Arthur W.Hummel, OrientaHst of Washington, D. C, for helpful suggestionsand criticisms ; to my daughters, Mrs. Fred Russell and Mrs. WarnerEdson, for drawing the maps and diagrams ; to the John Simon Gug-genheim Memorial Foundation for a fellowship making possible thecompletion of this work and for a financial grant for its publicationby the Smithsonian Institution ; and to the editors of the SmithsonianInstitution for helpful corrections, criticisms, and suggestions.
CONTENTS PagePreface iiiAclcnowledgments vBackground iGeography and climate iHistory 8The people 12Economic life 15Social life and customs 27The family and filial piety 27Amusements 29Some special social customs 30Birth, engagement, marriage, death, and burial 32Religious background 45Early religion of Qiina 45The great religions 48Confucianism 48Taoism 52Buddhism 56Mohammedanism 62Christianity 63The lesser religions 68Non-Chinese 68Ch'uan Miao 68The Lolos or Nosu 74The Ch'iang 89The Tibetans and Lamaism 93The Chinese 102The Ju T'an, or Altar of the Scholars 102The Wu Chiao, or Religion of Magic 104The T'ung Shan She, or Society for Cooperation in Good-ness 105The International Union of the Religions of Six Sages, orThe Mother Religion 106The popular or folk religion of southwest China 109Yin-yang and jengshui, or mysterious potency , noAncestor worship 119Demons 123Ceremonies to obtain sons 129Ceremonies to cause or to stop rain 131Divination and fortunetelling 134Incantations and charms 139The Chinese lunar festivals I44Festivals on the birthdays of the gods 153Oaths, vows, prayers, sacrifices, and offerings i55
Viii SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
PageShrines, temples, and sacred mountains 160The gods 172Karma and transmigration 180Heaven and hell 183Primary concern with practical benefits 184Changes in religion in West China 189Causes 189Effects 19sA survey and study of the temples of Chengtu I95General information 195The gods in the temples 200The numbers of the temples 203The uses of the temples 205Surveys of temples in other cities of West China 208Conclusion 215Filial piety 216Confucianism 219Taoism 220Buddhism 221Mohammedanism 222Christianity 223Bibliography 226Index 245
FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINABy DAVID CROCKETT GRAHAM *(With 28 Plates)BACKGROUNDGEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATEWest China is a land of abounding and fascinating wonders. It hasa climate varying from warm-temperate to that of perpetual snow.It has many mountain ranges, with peaks of great grandeur andbeauty, such as Wa Shan, Mount Omei, Minya Konka (over 24,000feet high), and numerous others on the China-Tibetan border that aremore than 20,000 feet in altitude. It has wide, U-shaped valleys inSikang and western Szechwan, and many beautiful and often ruggedV-shaped gorges carved through the mountains by the mighty rivers,some of which are in places over 2 miles deep, fed by hundreds ofsmaller streams. There are deserts, loess deposits, semiarid regions,rolling grasslands, plateaus, and fertile valleys, basins, and plains.Of the many great precipices, some of them overhanging, that atMount Omei is 6,000 feet high and is believed by some to be the high-est in the world. There are natural bridges, and deep funnels goingdown into the earth, often into solid rock, through which the waterdisappears, sometimes reappearing many miles away. There are water-falls, balanced rocks, and pools of blue water surrounded by naturallyformed yellow stone, like those of Yellowstone Park.West China, which comprises nearly half the territory of China,includes the provinces of Ching-hai or Kokonor, Kansu, Shensi, Si-kang or eastern Tibet, Szechwan, Kweichow, and Yunnan. It has apopulation of about 120 millions.Richardson (1940, pp. 103-105) has pointed out that West Chinacan be regarded as a series of plateaus, bounded by mountain rangesand cut by deep river valleys, which decrease in altitude from west toeast. He divides these into three zones, north, central, and south.Farthest west on the north is Ching-hai or Kokonor, with an altitudeof approximately 4,000 meters. East of Ching-hai is Kansu, with analtitude of from 1,500 to 2,000 meters. Farther east is Shensi, alti-
* Dr. Graham died at Englewood, Colo., on September 15, 1961, while thisbook was in press.
—
Editor.SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS, VOL. 142, NO. 2 I
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NO, 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM
4 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42tude 1,000 to 1,500 meters, and still farther east is the Yellow River atan altitude of 500 meters. In the central west is Sikang, with an alti-tude of 4,000 meters. Crossing the "Szechwan Alps" to the east, wearrive at the Chengtu plain and the Red Basin, with an altitude of300 to 600 meters. Across the Tapa Shan range, in the lower YangtseValley, the altitude is only a little above sea level. On the southwestwe begin with the plain west of Talifu, where the altitude is 4,000meters. East of this is the Yunnan plateau, with an altitude of 2,000to 2,500 meters. This plateau includes several lake basins, somedry and some full of water, and several river valleys. Crossing themountains on the Yunnan-Kweichow border, we reach the Kweichowplain, varying in altitude from 750 to 2,000 meters. Farther east areHunan and Kuangsi, with an average altitude of 500 meters.The climate of West China is strongly influenced by the altitude,the latitude, the oceans, and the mountain ranges. Szechwan isbounded by mountain ranges on all sides. On the west the "Szech-wan Alps" act as rainsheds, so that the land farther west is muchdryer than that of Szechwan Province. In the winter it is very coldand very dry, and but little snow falls. What does fall is evaporatedby the dry air and never causes floods by melting, even in Tibet.The floods of the Yangtse River are caused by the summer monsoonrains in the Red Basin and the Chengtu plain and on the east sideof the "Szechwan Alps."The two ranges of mountains to the north of Szechwan, the Ching-ling Shan and the Tapa Shan, completely shut off the cold winterwinds from Kansu and Shensi. That part of the Tapa Shan range onthe east and the mountains on the borders of Kweichow and YunnanProvinces on the south completely shut out the strong, tempestuouswinds from the east and the south, so that Szechwan has no cyclonesand no severe windstorms. On the other hand, these mountains arenot high enough to shut out the moisture-bearing air and clouds, sothat Szechwan enjoys a comparatively abundant rainfall. Further-more, enough moisture enters Szechwan from the outside so that,with the natural evaporation of the moisture from the soil, the skiesare cloudy nearly every day. The clouds prevent too rapid evaporationof the moisture from the soil and hold in the heat so that the wintersare not so cold as to the north, the south, and the east. There are fewsevere frosts and little snow, and ice seldom forms on the surface ofthe water.The soil of the Chengtu plain is rich alluvium deposited by theMin River—rich soil carried down in the summer from the moun-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 5
tains. The plain is irrigated by the waters of the Min River and oneor two smaller streams, divided into thousands of irrigating ditches.The water is plentiful, the soil rich, the yield is abundant, and thereis never a failure of crops. This is one of the most thickly populatedfarming districts in the world.The main part of Szechwan is the Red Basin, so called because ithas a surface of purple-red sandstone, which in some places is 4,000feet thick. The stone weathers rather easily and contains substancesthat turn into fertile soil. This new soil replaces the old which iseroded away in the heavy rains, so that the land remains continuallyproductive. The term "basin" may be misleading, as the terrain isnot flat. During the past ages foldings of the earth's surface occurred,so that there are several low, parallel mountain ranges between Chung-king and Chengtu running from northeast to southwest. The farmershave terraced the land so that a very large percentage of it is culti-vated, and with irrigation and fertilization the soil is very productive.Nearly all the mountains and hillsides that cannot be farmed arecovered with forests, which are cultivated for the wood and lumberthat they produce. Szechwan is by far the most thickly populatedpart of West China, with a population estimated at between 50 and70 millions. It is one of the most favored places on earth, and hasbeen called a Garden of Eden.In Sikang or eastern Tibet the winters are long, cold, and dry, andthe summers arc short and have little rain. Crops can be raised to analtitude of about 14,000 feet. They are all summer crops, mostly ofbarley, but also of bearded wheat, buckwheat, fruit, and vegetables.In the lower altitudes that can be farmed, the people have large stonehouses. In the summer their herds are pastured on the higher grass-lands, and in the winter they are brought back home.In Kansu the winters are a little shorter and the summers a littlelonger than in Tibet, but otherwise the weather is much the same. Themain summer crop is wheat, and there is no winter crop. The countrybecomes progressively dryer until the Gobi Desert is reached.In Shcnsi the winters are cold and dry, and the summers have mod-erate to low rainfall. Here winter wheat is grown, as it is also inSzechwan and Kweichow.Yunnan has dry winters with warm, sunshiny days and cold frostynights. In the late spring, summer, and early fall there is abundantrain, but crops must be irrigated in winter. Kweichow has a slightlvheavier rainfall and is somewhat cloudier and warmer.Captain W. Pitcairn, "the river man," who succeeded Captain Plant
6 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
as the river inspector on the Yangtse, compiled a record of the lowestand the highest water levels at the port of Ichang from 1877 to 1922.The lowest winter levels on the Yangtse River occurred in AprilI year, in December 2 years, in January 12 years, in February 15 years,and in March 15 years. The highest levels occurred in July 24 years,in August II years, and in September 11 years. He recorded thelowest and the highest water levels at Chungking from 1891 to 1922.From 1893 to 1922 the lowest water levels occurred in February 14years, in March 15 years, and in April i year. The highest levelsoccurred in July 13 years, in August 13 years, in September 2 years,and in October i year. The following are the average monthly waterlevels for Ichang and Chungking, compiled by Captain Pitcairn(1923a and b) from the records of 30 years
:
Ichang ChungkingMottth feet feetJanuary 2.6 2.2February 1.5 1.3March 2.7 1.7April 7.7 5.2May 15.4 11-4June 22.6 23.4July 30.4 382August 30.7 38.0September 29.2 26.4October 24.2 26.2November 14.0 i3-3December 6.3 6.0In the year 1923 Captain Pitcairn obtained the records of the rain-fall in numerous cities of Szechwan and noted all the rises or "floods"of the Yangtse River at Chungking of 4 feet or over, the highest being28 feet. Every one of the rises in the water level of the Yangtse wasfound to be due to monsoon rains in the Red Basin of Szechwan.Temperatures vary in every city and locality and are influencedby many circumstances, especially by the altitude and the distance fromthe Equator. It has been estimated that the temperatures on thewestern borderland of Szechwan vary about 3° F. for every thousandfeet of altitude.There is a great variety of soil in Szechwan, and the followinggeneral statement is an over-simplification. Loess is found in northernand western Szechwan, in Sikang, Kansu, and Shensi. It is a richsoil but is often in dry regions, and its fertility depends on rain andirrigation. North of Kansu and Shensi is the Gobi Desert. In north-western Szechwan, in western Sikang, and in Kokonor there are roll-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 7ing grasslands varying in altitude from 10,000 to nearly 16,000 feet,Yunnan is mountainous and has a high average altitude. It hasplateaus, river valleys, and lake beds, some dry and some full of water,while in the north are great stretches of limestone. Kweichow isfairly mountainous, with some plateaus. The main soils of Szechwanare the alluvium of the Chengtu plain and the red soil of the RedBasin. Both of these are very rich, and there is sufficient rainfall andwater for irrigation, so that these soils are very productive.Coal, salt, and mineral deposits are found in varying degree in theprovinces of West China. No coal occurs in western Sikang and littleor none in the extreme west of Szechwan, but it abounds in the re-mainder of Szechwan and in Kansu, Shensi, Kweichow, and Yunnan.There are extensive salt deposits in Szechwan, and lesser deposits insouthern Sikang and in Yunnan. Copper is found in Yunnan, Kansu,and Sinkiang, lead, iron, and zinc in Kweichow and Yunnan, tin innorthern Yunnan, silver, sulphur, and antimony in Yunnan, gold inSzechwan, Sikang, Kansu, and Sinkiang, petroleum in Kansu, andnatural gas in Szechwan, northern Kansu, and northern Shensi. Themethods of extracting these materials from the earth were until re-cently very primitive.The Ching-ling Shan range of mountains between Kansu and Shension the north and Szechwan on the south, and its continuation eastwardtoward the coast, divides Qiina into two distinct areas—north Chinaand south China. To the north the main crops are wheat, kaoliang,and millet. Animal-drawn carts and wagons are used for transporta-tion, the animals used being horses, camels, and mules. In the souththe main crops are rice, tea, mulberries, bamboo, maize, tobacco, sugar-cane, and vegetables. Transport is generally by laborers using carry-ing-poles, and the principal animal (aside from the pig, dog, and cat)is the water buffalo. Szechwan is in south China, and Kansu andShensi are in north China,In Kansu and Shensi deforestation has resulted in very seriouserosion of the soil, which it may take centuries to reforest. In otherparts of West China, mountains and hillsides are often coveredwith forests and shrubbery. In the Ch'iang and other regions wherethere is much grazing by sheep and goats, much of the lower land isdestitute of trees, though higher altitudes are covered with forests. InYunnan and Kweichow fires have burned off some of the forest land,while in several provinces overcultivation has led to deforestation.Of very great importance, of course, are the rivers and streams ofWest China, especially the great Yangtse and its tributaries, which areused for irrigation, travel, and transportation.
O SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42HISTORYThe record of man's first appearance and way of life in West Chinais lost in antiquity. The many natural caves and rock shelters for themost part show no traces of human habitation until recent centuries.The climate of much of West China, especially of Szechwan, is warm-temperate, and we may perhaps conclude that generally prehistoricman in West China constructed his own habitations and was not adweller in caves and rock shelters.In November and December of 1925 Dr, N. C. Nelson, associatecurator of archeology in the American Museum of Natural History,accompanied by Walter Granger, a paleontologist, conducted anexpedition in the Yangtse Gorges as far as Wan-hsien. They collectedmany stone artifacts and some pottery sherds, which are now depositedin the American Museum of Natural History (Nelson, 1926).Rev. J. Huston Edgar collected many chipped- and polished-stoneimplements in Szechwan and eastern Tibet, and a few red neolithicsherds at Wei-chou, nearly all of which were deposited in the museumof the West China Union University. I collected two boxes full offinely polished stone implements near Lo-piao, south of Suifu, and afew chipped- and polished-stone implements near Ch'ien-wei and else-where, which were also left in the museum of the West China UnionUniversity, In 1937 Dr, J. G. Andersson, one of the discoverers of thecave of Peking Man, headed an archeological surveying expeditioninto Sikang. Other members w^ere Mr. Chou, a geologist on the staffof vSzechwan University, Mr, Hsieh, an archeologist of the AcademiaSinica, and myself. On this expedition we found a number of sites ofprehistoric man, some of which were apparently neolithic, yieldingpottery and polished-stone implements, yet not one paleolith was recog-nized and not one chipped-stone implement was found.The theory that most archeologists and scientists have accepted, onthe evidence now available, is that prehistoric man was kept out ofWest China by dense forests until he had developed tools wath whichhe could cut down trees and the use of fire to burn them ; that he livedin dwellings of his own construction, and that he was an agriculturist.It is believed that he came to West China on rivers and streams bymeans of boats or rafts. However, very little scientific excavation hasbeen done in West China, and further excavations and discoveriesmay make necessary a revision of this theory. It has recently been re-ported that a skull of a paleolithic man was found in Szechwan.After a careful study of the stone implements from West China inthe American Museum of Natural History and in the West China
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 9Union University Museum, Dr. Cheng Te-k'un classified them asfollows
:
1. Mesolithic Period (probably 5000 to 3000 B. C.)—characterized by chipped-stone tools which were the products of either a pebble or a flake industry.2. Early Neolithic Period (3000 to 2000 B. C.)—represented by some chipped-and-polished stone tools.3. Late Neolithic Period (2000 to 1200 B. C.)—represented by some chipped-peckcd-and-polished and some polished-stone tools, which have been found to beassociated with a series of pottery.4. Aneolithic Period (1200 to 700 B. C.)—represented by some higlily finishedstone tools and the contents of the cultural stratum of the Hanchow site. (ChengTe-k'un, 1942a, pp. 1-16; 1947, PP. 46-47; I957, PP- 98-103, 130-I3S-)The pottery of Szechwan has been classified by Dr. Cheng Te-k'un(1945b, pp. 2-3) into the following stages:Stage I. Prehistoric Period (3000-1200 B. C.)—represented by the potsherdsfound at Chiang-wei Ch'eng, Wei-chou, and along the Yangtse Gorges.Stage 2, Chou Period (1200-500 B. C.)—represented by the pottery from thecultural stratum of the Hanchou site.Stage 3. Ch'in-Han Period (500-1 B. C.)—represented by the gray waresfrom the slate tombs of Li-fan,Stage 4. Han Chin Period (A. D. 1-500)—represented by the funerary objectsfrom the cave and brick tombs of the Han and Chin dynasties.Stage S. T'ang period (A. D. 501-900)—represented by a part of the vesselsfrom the Ch'iung-lai kiln site.Stage 6. Sung period (A. D. 901-1300)—represented by a part of lite potteryfound at the Liu-li-ch'ang kiln site and by the Sung grave jars.Stage 7. Ming Period (A. D. 1301-1600)—represented by the funerary potteryof the Ming tombs.Stage 8. Ch'ing Period (A. D. 1601-1900)—represented by the Sao-chiu-fangwares manufactured at Lung-chang.No bronze or metal tools were found with Stage i or Stage 2pottery, but both iron and bronze tools and weapons have been foundwith Stage 3 pottery, leading to the conclusion that West China, atleast Szechwan, did not have a bronze age, but advanced directly tothe bronze-iron age.Before the coming of the Chinese into Szechwan, most of the RedBasin and the Chengtu plain were occupied by the Shu, whose capitalwas near Chengtu, and the Pa, whose capital was near Chungking.These were Shan or Tai people, who were related. In his book,"The Shans," Cochrane (191 5, pp. 5-17) infers that the Shans in-habited the Yangtse Valley all the way from the watersheds of westernSzechwan to the coast. South and west of the Shu and of the Papeople were numerous other tribes, most of them smaller and weaker.The first historical reference we have to the Shu or the Pa people
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is in II22 B. C, when the Shu united with the Chou people and others,overthrew the Shangs, and estabhshed the Chou dynasty.In 316 B. C. Shu attacked Pa, and Pa appealed to Ch'in for help.The Ch'in armies first attacked and subdued Shu, then conquered Pa.Later Ch'in used the men, grain, and boats of Szechwan and attackedand subdued Ch'u in the east. Other Chinese leaders in later centuriesused the same strategy.In the year 311 or 310 B. C. the city of Changtu was built. Thehistories report that it had a wall 12 li in length and 70 feet high.Later, in order to make the rule over Szechwan more stable andpermanent, thousands of Chinese families were moved from the northand the east into the Chengtu plain and the Red Basin. In time amajority of the people were Chinese, and the Shans were eitherabsorbed or moved southward.Before the coming of the Chinese the culture of the Shans washigh. The Chinese people also brought their culture with them, andSzechwan became, and has generally been since, a place of learningand high culture.In 250 B. C. Li Ping was appointed governor of Szechwan. Heshowed remarkable ability and is credited with the work of perfectingthe irrigation system of the Chengtu plain. Owing to the rich alluviumand the superb irrigation, there is never a famine in this district, itbeing one of the most fertile and populous farming regions in theworld.In 206 B. C. the Ch'in dynasty fell and the Han dynasty was estab-lished. Under the Han rulers China prospered both materially andculturally, and this prosperity was shared by Szechwan. There wastrade with India through Tibet and Burma and trade with southeastChina through Kweichow. Through the Kansu corridor or "the north-west passage" there was trade with western Asia and possibly withEgypt. Chinese silks were worn by the fashionable women of Rome,and Chinese pottery was carried westward by the "ship of the desert."There was much trade with East China over the Yangtse and its tribu-taries, and a trade route led northeastward to Peking. Evidence ofthe material and cultural prosperity of Szechwan during the Hanperiod is found in the elaborate cave-tombs and graves of ornamentedbricks throughout the province. These contained miniature terra-cottahouses, towers or pavilions, vases, tables, stoves, kitchen utensils,dishes, horses, cows, sheep, pigs, dogs, chickens, ducks, pigeons, geese,and a great variety of human figures including cooks, house servants,soldiers, farmers, beautiful maidens, and elderly women. In these
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM IItombs are also found money, bronze and more rarely iron ceremonialand cooking vessels, and ornaments and other objects of gold, silver,bronze, and jade.At the end of the Han dynasty China was divided into three warringkingdoms, Wei, Shu, and Wu. Shu included Szechwan, and here thelast Han emperor took his final stand. His imperial tomb is on thegrounds of the Wu-hou-ssu, a Taoist temple outside of the GreatSouth Gate of Chengtu.The non-Chinese people of West China have generally been peace-ful and submissive when the Chinese government was strong andprosperous, but in times of turmoil and weakness they have takenadvantage of the situation to rise in revolt and to assert their inde-pendence. Near the end of the Han dynasty and during the ThreeKingdoms Period many of the aborigines revolted, and Chu-ko Liang(A. D. 181-234) and Chang Fei (d. A. D. 220), two of China's great-est military strategists, became famous for the work they did in re-ducing them to submission.After the conquest of the Shu and the Pa people by the warriorsof Ch'in during the fourth century B. C, the plains and the valleysof Szechwan were gradually occupied by the Chinese. During thefollowing centuries this migration extended into Kweichow, Yunnan,and eastern Tibet or Sikang. The non-Chinese people were pushed outof the lower valleys into the higher altitudes, where their descendantsnow live. The Shan or Tai people, called the P'o Jen (local Bei Ren),continued to occupy the region of I-pin (or Suifu) until the year 1573.In that year a war was waged against them, and they were drivensouthward. Today there are Shan people in Yunnan, Burma, andThailand.The time between the Han dynasty and the T'ang dynasty, A. D. 221to 618, was one of almost constant turmoil and short reigns. It was atime of low official morals, many civil wars, and insecurity. TheT'ang dynasty, which ended in A. D. 906, was a period of materialprosperity, extensive trade, international contacts, and high culturalattainments, and there were great poets, painters, and philosophers. Inpottery the famous tri -colored T'ang was developed, and in some moreprogressive kilns monochrome porcelains were produced. Traderscame from foreign countries, bringing with them their religions,Nestorianism, Manichaeism, and Islam. Szechwan shared in this ma-terial prosperity and cultural advance.After a brief interregnum known as the Five Dynasties, the greatSung dynasty began in 960 and lasted through several political up-
12 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42heavals until A. D. 1280. In spite of several invasions from the north,China again flourished, and in Szechwan there were three kilnsiteswhere excellent porcelains were made, the largest one being at Liu-li-ch'ang. During this dynasty Arabs carried on an extensive tradewith ports in southeast China, and a colony of Jews settled in thenorthern Sung capital, where they retained their identity until themiddle of the 19th century.The shorter Yuan dynasty (1280-1368), when China was againruled by foreign invaders, was followed by the glorious Ming dynasty(1368- 1 644), whose rulers were Chinese. At the end of this periodChang Hsien-chung led a large army into Szechwan and declaredhimself "king of the west." He adopted a policy of ruthlessly ex-terminating his opponents. Unnumbered millions are said to havebeen executed. Although most of these reports are exaggerated, it iscertain that more than one million people in Szechwan were killed byChang and his army, and that many others fled from the province,so that Szechwan was nearly depopulated (Parsons, 1957, pp. 395-396). During the Manchu dynasty West China experienced a greatmigration, especially into Szechwan, from nearly every province ofnorth, east, and south China. (Ibid., pp. 396-398.)For millennia the oceans were a barrier to Chinese trade and cul-tural contacts. During the T'ang dynasty trade developed with Indiaand other countries by means of Arabian ships which came to south-east China. During the Sung dynasty the Chinese had a navy andbegan to navigate the seas, leading to an extensive foreign commercewith many exports and imports. Chinese ships traveled to Japan, thePhilippines, Singapore, Java, and even to India and Iran. During theMing dynasty Chinese ships made expeditions to Java, Sumatra, India,Ceylon, Arabia, and Africa.Portuguese vessels arrived on the China coast in 1522. TheSpaniards took possession of the Philippines in 1565, and began totrade with the Chinese coastal cities, followed soon after by the Dutchand the English. As trade with foreign countries developed throughthe Chinese seaports, it reduced to insignificance the overland routethrough Kansu and western Asia. Western impact on the coastal citiesbecame stronger and stronger and has influenced every part of China,including the remotest regions in the west.THE PEOPLEAnthropologists have divided the yellow or Alongolian race intothree groups ; the Asiatic continental, the American Indian type, and
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I3
certain groups of the southwestern Pacific Islands. The East Asiacontinental group is described as having dark hair, straight or wavy,dark eyes, a yellow-brown or "yellow" complexion, shovel-tooth in-cisors, and a Mongolian slant or an epicanthic fold to the eyes. Thisclassification is probably oversimplified, for careful studies have showngreat variations in the three groups. The Russian physical anthropol-ogist, S. M. Shirokogoroff, made an extensive study of the Chineseof eastern China and Kwangtung Province, and on the basis of hisfindings he classified the Chinese into three main groups, the northern,the eastern (east-central), and the southern. His main conclusions(1925, pp. 55-56) are as follows:
1. The stature of the eastern Chinese is shorter than that of the northern, andthat of the southern Chinese is shorter than that of the eastern Chinese.2. The variations in each group are greater than normal, and are probablydue to the crossing of two or more racial types with different statures.3. The average stature of students is higher than that of the population as awhole.4. The Chinese of Kwangtung have a greater arm length than other Chinesegroups.5. The Chinese of eastern China have relatively short thighs and long tibias,making their legs relatively longer and thus influencing their stature.6. The trunks of eastern Chinese are shorter except those in Anwei and thosein Kwangtung. The trunks of northern Chinese are relatively long.7. The length of the head and the neck of the inhabitants decreases as onetravels from the south to the north, whereas the stature increases.8. Except in Chekiang Province, the cephalic index is higher among theeastern Chinese than among the northern and southern Chinese.9. The nasal index decreases from the north to the south.10. The skin color seems to vary with the amount of sunlight.11. The Mongolian slant of the eyes is more evident among the southern andeastern Chinese than among northern Chinese.12. There is evidence of a mixture of a darker race, probably negroid, withthe people of Kwangtung Province.Shirokogoroff further divides the Chinese into four main divisionsand two lesser divisions.No such thoroughgoing study has been made of the Chinese in WestChina. Dr. W. R. Morse collected about 3,000 measurements ofChinese and non-Chinese in West China, but all these were lost orstolen from him. With the expenditure of much time and money heagain proceeded to collect measurements of Chinese and of tribes-people, and obtained over 3,000 in all. The bare measurements werepublished in a supplement to the Journal of the West China BorderSociety, but Dr. Morse died suddenly while working to prepare the
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results and conclusions for publication; hence the work was neverfinished.The Chinese of West China, especially of Szechwan Province, arean amalgamation of peoples from north, east, and south China, fromvirtually every province and every group including the Hakkas. Out-side the north gate of Chengtu a colony was found whose ancestorshad come from Canton generations ago and who still spoke Cantonese.One of the greatest migrations to Szechwan took place after the deathof the aforementioned Chang Hsien-chung, the tyrant who killed orfrightened away most of the population of Szechwan near the end ofthe Ming dynasty. A large proportion of the people of Szechwan,when asked whence their ancestors came, reply that they came fromHu-kwang, that is, Hupeh and Hunnan, Kwangtung and Kwangsi.The tribespeople of West China are divided by Bourne and Daviesinto three groups. Bourne divides them into Mon-kmer, Shan, andMiao. Davies divides them into Mon-kmer, Shan, and Tibeto-Burman.Under the Mon-kmer Davies includes the Miao-yao, the Mon-chia,and the Wa-paloung groups. Under the Shans he places all groupsspeaking the Shan or the Tai dialects, and under the Tibeto-Burmanfamily he includes the Hsi-fan, the Lolo, and the Kachin groups.(Couling, 1917, pp. 1-2; Davies, 1909, pp. 331-347)- Dr. ChengTe-k'un (i945d, pp. 1-2) divides the non-Chinese into the Tibeto-Burman family, the Tai-shan family, and the Miao-P'u family, andeach of these he subdivides into several groups. Rev. E. C. Bridge-man, in an article which is a translation from the Chinese with annota-tions (1859, pp. 1-26), gives sketches of 82 tribes, presumably all ofthem in Kweichow Province.Rev. John B. Kuhn, a missionary of the China Inland Mission, be-gan on August 2, 1942, a 5-month journey through Yunnan Provincefor the purpose of ascertaining the number of aboriginal tribes inthat area. In a pamphlet which he published he reports that he actuallyfound 100 tribes, mentioning by name 40 tribes of Lolos, 8 of Tai, 3of Min-chia, 4 of Miao, 5 of Tibetan, 21 of Burmese, and 4 of un-classified origin (Kuhn, John B., pp. 22-26).As for Sikang, Mr. Chuang Hsiieh-pen (1940) mentions theHai-fan and the Lolos as the largest groups, and the Mo-shi(Mo-so?), the Miao, and the Tai as lesser groups. In westernSzechwan there are at least the Hsi-fan, the Chia-jung, the Ch'iang,the Wa-Ssu, the Hei-shui, the Lu-hwa, and the Bo-lo-tzu. There areother such groups in Hunan, Shensi, Kansu, and Chinghai. It is safe
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 1
5
to say that there are at least 150 tribes or ethnic groups in WestChina, with a population of about 20 million.^The following is an estimate of the population of the provinces ofWest China about 1935
:
Province millionsSzechwan and Sikang 75Kweichow 11Yunnan 12Hsinchiang or Kokonor 2JKansu 6Shensi 17Total 2 i23iIt is evident that there are approximately 120 million people inWest China, of whom about 100 million are Chinese. The populationof Szechwan is between 50 and 70 millions. Culturally it is the mostimportant part, one might even say the heart, of West China.There is no city, village, region, or ethnic group in West China towhich influences have not penetrated from East China and from therest of the world. On the other hand, owing to the meagerness of thefacilities for travel, transportation, and communications, and becauseof comparative isolation, there are many localities and groups in whichchange, material progress, and modernization have been slow.ECONOMIC LIFEWe have already stated that the first inhabitants of central WestChina probably came by river. Certain it is that travel by water inboats and on rafts has for millennia played a large role in the livesof the people of West China. Everywhere wooden boats are used,and there are places such as the Ya River between Ya-an and Lo-shanwhere there are more bamboo rafts than boats. The wooden boatsvary in size from a small canoe to a great cargo vessel requiring 20to 30 men to navigate it, and an even larger number on the rapids.Houseboats are of medium size. Then, too, there are smaller boats,one called zvti-pan because it has five boards on a side, and anothercalled san-pan because it has three boards on a side. Some of the
^ The writer has had first-hand contacts with the Wa-ssu, the Chia-jung, theBo-lo-tzu, the Hsi-fan, the Lolos, and the Tibetans, and more intimate contactswith the Ch'uan Miao and the Ch'iang. Some customs and religious practicesof the Ch'uan Miao, the Lolos, the Ch'iang, and the Tibetans will be brieflydescribed later.2 Compare Cressy, George Babcock, 1934, p. 55.
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largest cargo boats have 2 large oars, each worked by many men,while others have from 2 to 20 or more oars, each generally workedby one man, though sometimes by two men. When going upstreamand winds are favorable, sails are used ; otherwise the boats are pulledupstream by strong bamboo ropes or cables. In recent decades steamershave appeared on the Yangtse and other large rivers. During highwaters ocean steamers can travel as far as I-pin, and small steamersare able to reach that city throughout the year.Besides the large rivers, there are many small streams in WestChina that are navigable by small boats. In some places these streamsare crossed by bridges, but generally they are crossed by means offerryboats. The number of wooden boats that can be seen at Ichang,Chungking, I-pin, Lo-shan, Chengtu, and many other cities and townson the Yangtse River and its tributaries is evidence of the tremendousamount of travel and traffic on the waterways of West China.Hundreds of thousands of men find employment in this way.Overland travel began at least 3,000 years ago. The red neolithicpottery of Kansu dates from 3000 to 500 B. C, and sherds of thispottery have been found at Chiang-wei-ch'eng near Wei-chou, whichis on one of the highways going through Sung-p'an to Kansu. Thepeople of Pa and Shu probably had overland contacts with theChinese as early as 1000 B. C. There have been several main traderoutes into West China, and some lesser routes, and from these,roads and footpaths have branched out into all the country, so numer-ous that one is reminded of the arteries, veins, and capillaries of thehuman body.Over these roads men and women walked, rode, or were carriedin sedan chairs. The wheelbarrow was used in and near Chengtu, butwas not to be seen in most parts of West China. Single workmencarried loads suspended on the two ends of carrying-poles, and two ormore men carried heavier loads suspended from large poles. Somepack animals were used in the lower altitudes, and many more wereemployed in the higher altitudes where the grazing is good. In thewestern highlands where the altitudes are under 13,000 feet, laborersoften carried their loads on their backs. Tea carriers between Ya-anand Tatsienlu have been known to carry in this way as much as 400pounds. In Kansu and Shensi camels and horsecarts are used.For over 2,000 years one of the most common Giinese coins was around coin with a square hole in the middle, generally called a "cash."It was made of bronze, copper, brass, or iron, and varied from a littleover half an inch to about an inch and a half in diameter. Most
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I7
modern cash were made of brass and were nearly an inch in diameter.These cash were strung on strings supposedly with one thousand cashon a string, but almost always less, and were divided into sets of onehundred or fewer cash each. Each string of one thousand cashweighed several pounds. When making a payment, these strings werecarried on men's shoulders or in baskets on the end of carrying-poles,and often it took several men to carry enough cash to make onepayment.Money also took the form of lump silver, which was measured byweight. An ounce, called in Chinese Hang, was known in English as atael. Ten ounces, or a ting was called in English a shoe or an ingot.In the Ming dynasty silver dollars were imported from Spain andMexico, and later from France, Canada, and the United States. Latein the Manchu dynasty the Chinese made and used their own silverdollars, virtually all of them manufactured in the provincial mints.These dollars gradually replaced "lump silver" in the markets.Paper money was used in China as early as the Sung dynasty, butits use was generally limited because of its instability, cheapness, anddestructibility. Soon after the establishment of the Chinese Republic,in 1912, Chinese bank bills began to appear, and their use graduallyincreased until in 1940 they had entirely replaced lump silver andsilver dollars in the Chinese markets. At first they were issued for10 cents, 20 cents, 50 cents, $1, $2, $5, and $10. Later, owing to in-flation, they were issued for $20, $50, $100, $400, $500, $1,000, $5,000,$10,000, $50,000, and $100,000. In the late spring of 1948 i Americandollar exchanged for 2 million Chinese dollars.Although there were Chinese banks at least as early as the Sungdynasty (Kirby, 1954, p. 145), there were few banks in West Chinaduring the Manchu dynasty, and these were all in the large cities.While they were very useful, they were far too few in number. Soonafter the founding of the Republic in 191 1, some provincial bankswere established, and some of these printed their own bank bills. Thewriter has in his possession some bank bills that were issued at aboutthis time by the Bank of Kweichow, After 1927, when the NationalGovernment became more firmly established, the Bank of China(Chung Kuo Yin Hang), the Farmers' Bank of Qiina (Chung KuoNung Min Yin Hang), and the Central Bank of China (Chung YangYin Hang) opened branch banks in the larger cities all over China,and each issued its own bank bills. The government also encouragedthe opening of provincial banks without the privilege of issuing bankbills. The banking facilities were greatly improved, but were generallynot available to poor people or to people on farms and in villages.
l8 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42In cases of desperate need, people had to sell or pawn their possessions,or borrow money from loan sharks who often charged from 40 to 50percent on loans of from 3 to 5 months. Interest on loans was gen-erally very high.Rents were also high, rents on houses being generally, though notalways, paid in money. Farm rents were generally paid by giving theowner a generous share of the crop.A very important and sometimes difficult problem in West Chinawas the transfer of money or credit from one city to another in thesame or in a distant province, or to some foreign country. For aperson to carry money himself incurred the danger of being robbed.To send the money by a friend incurred the same danger, and alsothe possibility of the money being embezzled by the friend. Onemethod often used was to give the money to a reliable firm that hadbranches in distant cities. The firm would deliver the money whereand to whom it was desired. Another method was to sell a check on abank or a mission treasurer in Hankow, Shanghai, or in a foreigncountry, in which transaction the sender often received a premium.In recent years postal money orders were available, or the money couldbe transferred through a bank.In 1939 it was estimated that in the province of Szechwan therewere 8 million hogs, 2 million water buffaloes, and i million cows. Inthe highlands, especially those inhabited by non-Chinese people, thereare herds of sheep and goats, and in eastern Tibet or western Sikangherds of sheep and great herds of yak. In nearly every province thereare horses and mules. In Kansu and Shensi there are horses, camels,sheep, and goats. In Yunnan and Kweichow there are water buffaloes,donkeys, mules, and cattle, besides sheep and goats. Everywhere thereare dogs, and nearly everywhere cats and chickens. Ducks and geeseare raised where there is plenty of water.On the Chengtu plain and the Red Basin, where it seldom freezesor snows and the frosts are not severe, crops can be raised throughoutthe year. Two main crops and as many as five crops of vegetables canbe raised in one year on the same soil.Among the Tibetans the main food is tsamba (parched barleymeal),tea, mutton, milk, butter, and cottage cheese. This is supplementedby wild vegetables, and in the lower altitudes by vegetables and fruits.In the rough mountain lands at lower altitudes, such as the regions ofthe Ch'iang, the Lolos, and the Miao, the main food is generally boiledcornmeal. This is supplemented by wheat, barley, buckwheat, fruitand vegetables. Among the Chinese and others in the lower altitudes.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM IQ
rice is the principal food, supplemented by vegetables, meat, eggs, andfruit. Fish are available near the streams and are gladly eaten by anywho can obtain them.In his book "Studies in Chinese Life," Adam Grainger (1921, pp.105-125) listed the following foodstuflfs grown and used in Szechwanprovince: Grains: wheat, barley, oats, millet, maize, buckwheat,sesame, and Job's tears ; beans : broad beans, soya beans, kidney beans,knife beans, vigna beans, flat or Omi beans, and red beans ; five varie-ties of lentils, and white peas, golden peas, and speckled peas, sweetpotatoes and yams, several kinds of taros; at least five kinds ofturnips or radishes, carrots, cucumbers, marrowing gourds, melons,and six varieties of eggplant ; green vegetables : lettuce, several kindsof cabbage, beets, rape shoots, mustard, spinach, celery, smaranthus,han-ch'ai, chrysanthemums, leeks, onions, garlic, bamboo shoots, andlotus flowers and leaves ; others are water chestnuts, arrowheads,mushrooms, dried lispen, and several kinds of pepper and ginger;fruits: cherries, loquats, mulberries, apricots, several kinds of plumsand peaches, crabapples, several varieties of pears, pomegranates,quinces, several kinds of grapes, persimmons, and oranges, jujubes,olives, and wild fruits ; nuts : walnuts, chestnuts, and peanuts ; severalvarieties of sugarcane and many varieties of tea; meats: pork, beef,mutton, chicken, duck, geese, fish, crab, shrimp, snail, and the flesh ofthe silkworm pupa. Another farm product is honey.To this list should be added Irish potatoes, pumaloes, and severalkinds of squashes and pumpkins, and many varieties of beans that hedoes not mention. Also, he fails to mention the pigeon, which is quitecommon.It is evident that there is a great variety of foodstuffs in WestChina, especially in Szechwan, In some localities the meat of wildbirds and wild animals can be obtained. Meat of monkeys, tigers, orleopards is considered a delicacy. Edible species of wild bambooshoots are found in some of the high mountains, and there are wildberries, fruits, and vegetables. In the mountains, especially near andabove the timber line, many varieties of wild herbs are gathered andused or sold as medicines.Other important products of the soil in West China are wood oil,rape or mustard oil, castor oil, white wax, hemp, cotton, paint, woodand lumber, bamboo, tobacco, and opium.Wood oil is abstracted from the nuts of the wood oil or t'ung-yutree. The trees generally grow on rough hillsides where little ornothing else can be planted. After the oil is squeezed out, the husks
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are made into large, round cakes which are used as fertilizer. Theyield of oil is about 40 percent of the weight of the nuts. The oil isboiled about 2 hours to produce varnish. It is also used as an adulter-ant in lacquer-varnish and is mixed with soot to make Chinese ink.The oil is used locally in West China and is exported to East Chinaand to foreign countries.Two varieties of rape are grown in China, the ta-yu-ch'ai or big oilvegetable, and the hsiao-yu-ch'ai or little oil vegetable, both membersof the cabbage family. They are planted over vast areas, especiallyin Szechwan and eastern Sikang. They bloom in March and areharvested in April. When the plants are in blossom, whole areas arecolored a beautiful yellow. The small buds and tender leaves may beeaten, and the dry stalks are used for fuel. The oil is commonly usedfor cooking, for fuel in lamps, and in the manufacture of soap. Thedry cakes, after the oil is pressed out, make very good fertilizer.Castor oil, extracted from the nut of a small tree which grows inlower altitudes, is used for medicinal purposes.White wax is produced by a tiny insect which is raised in Chien-ch'ang Valley in northern Yunnan. The eggs are transported toSzechwan in April by carriers who travel by night. In the region ofLo-shan and Mount Omei, the eggs are placed on small green twigsof the ash or the privet tree, where they soon hatch out. The insectsdeposit the wax on the twigs, and later the twigs are cut off and im-mersed in boiling water, melting the wax. It is then molded into large,round cakes for storage and shipping, and used as a coating for candlesand pills, to make paper glossy, to polish jade, soapstone, and furni-ture, and to give luster to cloth (Couling, 1917, p. 594). Much whitewax is shipped from Szechwan to other parts of China.Several varieties of hemp are raised at an altitude of up to 7,000feet. It is made into thread, then into string or ropes, sackcloth, andclothing. The clothing generally worn by the Ch'iang people is madeof coarse, undyed hemp cloth, which is a dull w'hite in color. For-merly the Ch'uan Miao of northern Yunnan wore this kind of cloth-ing, and for this reason they were called the White Miao.Cotton is grown in the lowlands of central and south China, andeven in parts of Shensi. There are few cotton mills in West China, thecotton generally being made into thread by women in their homesand woven into cloth on hand looms. It is dyed indigo blue, made intoclothing, and worn by the Chinese and by some non-Chinese. Cottonis not raised in sufficient quantities to meet local needs, hence muchmanufactured cloth is imported into Szechwan.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 21The uses of cotton cloth are many. Most of the clothing of theChinese and of some non-Chinese is made of cotton cloth, even theirshoes, sometimes including the soles. Cotton is also used to makethread, bed coverings, curtains, and boat sails.Bamboo of many species and in great quantities is raised inSzechwan, Kwcichow, Yunnan, and in eastern Sikang. The young andtender shoots are cooked and eaten with relish. The small twigs andthe leaves are used for fuel. The large nan (locally pronounced lan)-chu is used to make rafts and long tubes or pipes for irrigation and forthe transfer of salt water to central places where the water is evapo-rated to make salt. Bamboo is made into pens, pen holders, chopsticks,cups, dippers, sifters, boxes, vases, money containers, mats, hats,chairs, couches, tables, sedan chairs, cables, the supports of strawroofs, and partitions and walls of houses with or without whitewashedcoverings of clay. Even this long list is far from complete.The silk industry originated in China. What are almost certainlysilk fibers and cocoons have been found in archeological remains ofthe 14th century B. C. In Szechwan silk production flourishes allover the province up to an altitude of 3,000 feet. The silk producedin 1903 in Szechwan was estimated by Hosie to be worth 15 milliontaels (Couling, 1917, pp. 515-516).In Szechwan the silkworms are hatched out in small, shallow bam-boo baskets called po-chi. They are fed on mulberry leaves until theyspin their cocoons, when they are thrown into boiling water, whichkills the pupas. While still in the water the silk is wound onto largespools. Later it is dried, rewound, and then woven into cloth. Thedead pupas are eaten as food. The mulberry trees are grown byfarmers, the tops being cut off so that the trees will not grow too high.The cloth is generally dyed and made into clothing, pillow slips,bed covers, curtains, and embroideries. Very beautiful embroideriesare made in Szechwan. In recent decades steam filiatures and rereel-ing houses have been established, and schools opened in the maincenters to teach and encourage the improvement of sericulture (ibid.,p. 516).Tobacco is raised in almost every province of China. It is used assnuff in Tibet and to a slight extent among the Chinese. Smoking iscommon among both men and women, Chinese and non-Chinese. Onemethod of treatment is to remove the veins, treat the leaves withground-nut oil and molasses, press the leaves into packs, cut them intosquares, then into fine shreds. Another is to hang the leaves by theirstems until they are dry, then roll them into cigars. There are two
22 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42kinds of pipes, one with a long stem and small bowl, the other a waterpipe, in which the smoke is cooled and purified by being drawnthrough water. Cigars are smoked in the long pipes, being stuck intothe small bowls before lighting (ibid., p. 559).At the close of the Manchu dynasty and in the first years of theRepublic, there was some traffic in and use of opium, but it wasplanted in out-of-the-way places and sold and used secretly. In 1916Gen. Ch'ai O, rebelling against Yuan Shih-k'ai, invaded Szechwanwith an army of Yunnanese. This army and its officers brought muchopium into Szechwan, which greatly stimulated opium planting anduse in this province. Opium was planted openly and over a large areain the province, and the number of smokers increased at least severalfold. After the National Government in Nanking, about 1930, secureda stronger hold in Szechwan, there was much less planting of opiumin the province, and its use greatly diminished. In the large citiesefforts were made to help addicts get rid of the habit.Prior to 1930 the cultivation, transportation, sale, and smokingof opium was a very important factor in the economic life of WestChina. Farmers were heavily taxed for its cultivation. Before thetime of planting, placards were often posted in towns and cities statinghow much the tax would be. Sometimes a compulsory "lazy man'scontribution" was collected from those who did not plant the poppy.This was so high that farmers were compelled to plant opium. Theplanting of opium decreased the food supply and raised the cost ofliving. Opium was also taxed during transportation, and to makesure of this source of income officials would take an interest in safedelivery, severely punishing robbers who stole the opium. Opium denswere taxed according to the number of lamps used in smoking thedrug, and if a proprietor wished to close down, he was often re-quired to find another person who would operate such a den with atleast as many lamps for smoking. The opium was very expensiveand was a heavy drain on the finances of smokers and their families,who often became bankrupt. The habit also imfitted many for usefuland gainful occupations. Those who profited from the opium tradewere the farmers who planted it, the merchants who bought and soldit, the proprietors of dens where it was smoked, and the officials whocollected the taxes.There were ethnic groups in West China, such as the Ch'uan Miaoand the Ch'iang, among whom there were practically no merchants.The Chinese, however, have long been skillful merchants, and storesexisted in every city and village for the sale of various items. Except
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 23for a few holidays, these stores are almost always open for business,thus affording employment to a large number of people. In the smallerstores all the work is done by members of the family. Only in thelargest stores are clerks, accountants, and servants hired. Certain daysare set apart for special market days, on which many people comefrom far and near to sell their products—firewood, vegetables, grains,chickens, eggs, etc. Many others come to buy, so that on these daysthe markets and streets are crowded.Farming is the main occupation in West China, about 85 percent ofthe people being employed in this way. As a consequence of goodfertilizing and irrigation, the yield per acre is large, but owing tomeager tools and lack of machinery, the yield per person is small.Some wealthy people own large farms. Some of the owners farmthe land themselves, hiring others to help them. Others rent theirland to families who work it and give the owners a goodly shareof the crop. Some families with small farms are able to do all thework themselves, while others find it necessary to hire help at plantingand at harvest times. On some farms there are slack seasons whenfarmers and their sons hire out as trackers to pull and row boats, or aslaborers to carry loads.An important occupation is that of boatman or tracker. Hundredsof thousands are employed in this way. Another is the carrying ofburdens, some using the carrying-pole with half the load suspendedon each end, others carrying the loads on their backs, and still othersusing a large pole carried by two or more men, with the load suspendedfrom the pole. Other occupations are the operating of the salt wells,coal mining, cutting down trees and making them into firewood orlumber, the white wax industry, the silk industry, spinning cotton intothread, weaving cloth, fishing, hunting, and working as servants in thehomes of others. Many are employed as carpenters, blacksmiths,masons, stone masons, bricklayers, water carriers, and in many otheroccupations.The clothing varies much among tribespeople of West China, manyof them being distinguishable from other ethnic groups by their cloth-ing. Tibetans often wear a long, thick red gown held at the waist by abelt. Lolo men often wear thick felt cloaks which can also be usedas covers when sleeping. Many Ch'iang men and women wear undyedwhite hemp garments. Ch'uan Miao men dress like the Chinese, butthe women, when they go to market and on dress-up occasions, wearembroidered dresses with short skirts.At the beginning of the 20th century Chinese women wore trousers
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and most of them had bound feet. The men wore long gowns thatresembled dresses with long skirts. Most of these and other clothingwere made of blue cotton cloth. Women generally wore hats open atthe top and nicely embroidered, and men wore skullcaps. Both menand women often wore blue or white cotton cloth wrapped aroundtheir heads. Laborers and farmers generally wore straw sandals, andboth men and women sometimes wore cotton shoes with thick soles.During the Manchu dynasty men and women of official rank wore, onfestive occasions, beautifully embroidered mandarin gowns, beadsaround their necks, finger rings and wristlets, and elaborately orna-mented hats, most of these items being discarded after the establish-ment of the Republic.Tools and implements vary with the different occupations, and onlya few will be mentioned here. Many tools are crude and simple, mostof them being made by hand. Yet some Chinese artisans workwonders with their tools.The plow consists of part of a tree crooked or curved on the largeend, and above the plowshare a stick attached for a handle. At loweraltitudes, especially in rice paddies, a plow is generally drawn by awater buffalo, and at higher altitudes, especially on dry ground, by acow, a horse, or a mule. A short, wooden-handled iron sickle is usedto cut grass to feed the domestic animals, to cut bushes, limbs, andsmall trees for fuel, and to reap the crops. The hoe has a long woodenhandle and a long, thick blade. Where land is too steep to use theplow, the only way to put it under cultivation is to use the hoe. Har-rows are made by driving large iron spikes through large pieces ofwood fastened together at right angles. The fields are sometimes har-rowed in order to level the soil and break up the clods.Carpenters use saws of different sizes, some operated by one manand some by two. They also use hammers, hatchets, planes, andchisels. Stone masons use hammers, sledges, and chisels, while othermasons use the trowel, the plummet, shovels, and hoes.Many of the houses of the poorer people have walls of poundedclay or of bamboo strips woven together, plastered over with clay, andthen whitewashed. Some of the poorest people make the walls of theirhouses of cornstalks, while the walls of the best houses are made ofwood or brick. Houses of the poorer people have thatched roofs,while those of the well-to-do are roofed with tile. On the China-Tibetan border, many houses are built of stone, with flat roofs.Others have sloping roofs covered with long shingles, each shingleheld in place by a large stone.
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I. .\ Cliint'.sf cargo boat ascending a strung rapid in tlic Yangtse gorges, West China.
2. \ K\v 111 >._ nnngktng from the Yangtse Kiver. On tlie shore arc L'liinese woodenboats; higlicr up, Chinese houses on high \vo(jden posts to keep them above the riverin high water ; and still higher are temjiles and other buildings of Chungking.
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I. A t\pical haiiil calik- or "rope'' bridge at Kuanhsieii. Similar bridges are foundat So-ch'iaii, W'en-ch'uan, Li-tan, W'ei-cbou, and Mou-cbow in western Szecluvan.
J. 'i'be Lliiiiese town of Mu-p'ing, in tbe bigblands ol Sikang, lyim.-al ol tbousandsof Cbincse towns and villages before tbe streets were widened. Tbe iioiises and storesbavc tile roofs.
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NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 2$The houses of the poor are often oblong in shape, with only one,two, or three rooms. Large famihes often build their houses with fourwings joining to make a square, with an open space in the center calleda "sky well," from which doors open into all surrounding rooms.During the lifetime of a parent, all his descendants, exceptingmarried daughters and their families, live in the same house, and theincomes of all are pooled. Each member of the family shares thebenefits of those whose incomes are large, and those with small in-comes or none at all have food, clothing, and a house to live in.Floods and droughts have caused a great deal of suffering in China.In "China: Land of Famine," by Walter Mallory, the author presentsa table showing the number of known floods in China in a thousandyears, and two others showing the number of droughts. By far thegreatest number of disastrous droughts and floods have occurred innortheastern and central China. According to one chart, the greatestnumber of droughts in West China occurred in Shensi (91), the nextgreatest in Szechwan (35), and the fewest in Yunnan (19), Kansu(4), and Kweichow (4) (Mallory, 1926, pp. 41-43). Failure of cropsfor one year, or even for part of a year, causes much distress andsometimes many deaths. During famines the price of foods becomesvery high, so that starvation or semistarvation occurs among the poorpeople. Floods have been very rare in Szechwan, Sikang, Kweichow,and Yunnan, more common in Kansu, and most common in Shensi.They are caused by monsoon rains, never by the melting snows inTibet.Centuries ago Szechwan was famous for the peppers it shipped toCanton, and walkingsticks were exported to India. Han dynastylacquer from Chengtu has been found in Korea. In recent yearsmandarin oranges have been shipped from I-pin to Chengtu, and tight-skinned oranges from the region of Chengtu down the Min and theYangtse Rivers. Salt has been mined in Wu-t'ung-ch'iao and Tzu-liu-ching and shipped all over the province, to Sikang, to northern Yini-nan, and down the Yangtse River. Coal is shipped up and down therivers and streams, and overland to near and distant places. Fromthe mountains of Sikang and western Szechwan, rafts of logs arcshipped down the rivers to East China. Silk, t'u7ig oil, pigs' bristles,medicines, and other commodities are shipped to East China and toforeign countries.The imports into West China are many, some coming overland, butmost of them by river. Among these have been seafood, kerosene,tobacco, cotton and cotton cloth, iron, copper, and a great variety ofmanufactured goods.
26 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42In West China there were two post offices in 1901, many morebeing estabhshed in subsequent years. S. C. Yang, who helped es-tablish many post offices in West China, arrived in Chengtu late in1901 and reported that he found there no traces of modern technologyor modern conveniences. There were only three government schoolsin the city, and a few mission schools. There were no telephones,electric lights, newspapers, motor roads, or modern factories (Yang,S. C, 1932, pp. 7-11). Apparently there were no jinrickshas.Between 1900 and 1948 there were many important changes inChina that affected the economic life of the people. Most of thechanges began in the treaty ports and spread westward, slowly atfirst, but with increasing rapidity. All the main railroads were builtafter 1900. Chambers of Commerce were established and improvedin quality. Modern banks were opened, becoming important factorsin the Chinese economy. Steamships traveled up the Yangtse River.City streets were widened and paved, motor roads built, and jin-rickshas, carts, automobiles, trucks, and busses appeared. In timeairports were built, and airplanes used. The telegraph, the telephone,and the electric light gradually came into common use. As early as192 1 modern factories in China included arsenals, canneries, brew-eries, dockyards, shipbuilding plants, flour mills, and factories forthe manufacture of cement, confectionaries, chemicals, furniture,glass, iron and steel, lace and hairnets, leather, matches, nails andneedles, ropes, silk, soap and candles, sugar, tea, tobacco, and tools(Stauffer, 1922, p. 25 ; Smith, 1916, pp. i-io ; Tchou, 1923, pp. 15-20).As regards West China, as late as 1921 there were no railroads inKokonor, Kansu, Shensi, Sikang, Szcchwan, or Kweichow. Through-out West China the city streets were very narrow and there were nomotor roads, although a survey was being made for one fromChungking to Chengtu. The largest roads were about 5 feet wide.There were no automobiles or airplanes, and few cities had jinrick-shas or electric lights. There were very few modern factories. Thencame motor roads, widened and paved city streets, automobiles, trucksand interurban busses, electric lights, telephones, radios, factories ofall kinds, modern clothing and utensils, modern stores, and manymodern inventions that greatly affected the economic and social lifeof the people.It should be emphasized that practically every phase of the economiclife of the people of West China has been intimately related withreligion. Charms, religious ceremonies, priests and shamans, and thegods were relied on to give success in the task of solving the economicproblems of individuals, families, and communities.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 2/SOCIAL LIFE AND CUSTOMSTHE FAMILY AND FILIAL PIETYChina is in the Temperate Zone. The climate is generally good, andthe soil productive. There are occasional droughts, floods, andpestilences, but on the whole life is pleasant. This may explain atleast in part why the Chinese are optimistic, regard life as worthliving, and place the highest value on life in this world.The nature of their language, their history, their customs, andtheir literature indicates that for several thousands of years theChinese have been an agricultural people. This facilitated the growthof family life, the organization of families into clans or tribes, andfinally into a great nation. The Chinese were primarily interested inthe social order, the present world in and of itself being regarded as ofsupreme value. While they believe in life after death, life in thisworld is regarded as better, more pleasant, and more important.The family is the starting point of all interests, the rights of in-dividuals being subordinated to those of the family group. Propertybelongs to the family, not to the individual members of the family,and the incomes of all are pooled. The family means so much that anisolated individual feels peculiarly alone. Kulp has called this aspectof Chinese life famihsm.Filial piety is held in high esteem, its roots extending back to thevery beginnings of Chinese history. The power of the family isfocused in its head, and filial piety is the organizing principle thatholds the family together. Reverence and obedience to the parentsis the first duty of the children. These principles vitally affect thesocial and religious worlds of the Chinese. Rehgion is a family and acommunity affair, and ethics is social.Filial piety is the cardinal virtue. One of the worst things that canbe said of a person, if not the worst, is that he is unfilial. About theworst thing a person can do is to die without leaving descendants tocontinue the family and to carry on its ceremonies of venerating andcommemorating the deceased ancestors. Filial piety requires that aperson show respect and love for his parents and elders, and for hisancestors for three generations. For millennia this has been thecement that has strengthened and bound Chinese society together.Some of the results were elaborate funeral ceremonies, expensivetombs, and ceremonies of commemoration and veneration.All this is affected by the dualistic yin-yang conception. The yin isthe female principle and is lower, weaker, and inferior to the yangprinciple, which is male and is superior, stronger, and better than the
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yin. The happiness and welfare of society depends on keeping thefemale principle under control of the yang. The husband is themaster, and it is the duty of a woman to obey her father, her father-in-law, and her husband. After the death of her husband, she mustobey her oldest son.The pattern of the family is carried over into the political organiza-tion. The sovereign is the parent of the people, and there is mutualdependence as between parents and children. Local leaders are theconnecting links btween the rulers and their subjects. The emperoris appointed by Heaven, but his tenure of office depends on the willof the people. His conduct should be exemplary, for his subjects willfollow his example, and his good conduct will bring prosperity to all.It is the duty of subjects to render perfect and respectful obedience.Most of the property belongs to the family and not to the individual.Marriages are family affairs, arranged by representatives of the twofamilies. The consent of the two young people is not necessary, andoften they do not see or meet each other until their marriage. Aftermarriage the young couple live in the same home as the parents,grandparents, brothers, and unmarried sisters of the groom, and withthe wives and children. The wife then practically ceases to be amember of the family into which she was born, and becomes a mem-ber of her husband's family. Property is inherited only by sons, anda family is divided into new families after the death of the parents.In each family the oldest male is the ruler, and the other membersof the family are under obligation to obey him. He in turn is respon-sible to the government and to society for the conduct of the membersof his family. While under obligation to obey, wives often in directand indirect ways exert much influence over their husbands.Much that has been described in the last paragraphs had beenchanged by law and social practice, or was in the process of change,by 1948. While the ideal was for a family to remain together in thesame home for several generations—sometimes as many as five,poverty and the lack of property often made it necessary for a familyto divide and to form new families in new homes.An essential element of filial piety is respect for the aged. Age andgray hairs bring high honors and good treatment, and, in the bestfamilies, love and kindness. Younger brothers are respectful andobedient to older brothers, and young women to older women.As we have said before, the Chinese are socially minded, and theirethics are social ethics. What is considered good or bad depends muchon what will be helpful or injurious to human beings and especiallyto the familv.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 29AMUSEMENTSThe Chinese are very human and, like human beings throughout theworld, desire and enjoy play, amusement, and recreation. This desirefinds satisfaction in many ways.Chinese children have many games. One is blind man's buff, re-sembling in some ways the same game as played by Western people.Another is "snake protecting her eggs." One player supports himselfon his hands and his toes. Under him are placed several stones, sup-posed to be snakes' eggs. The other players try to steal the eggs, andthe one protecting the eggs tries to kick the legs of the players w'hoare trying to steal the eggs.Another game formerly played is pitching coins against a wall.Each player pitches his coin against the wall, making it bounce backas far as possible. The one whose coin goes the farthest picks it upand tries to hit the nearest coin with it. If he succeeds, both coinsare his. If he does not, the person whose coin is next farthest picks itup and tries to hit the coin nearest to his. If he fails, the third onetakes his turn, and so on.One game enjoyed by both boys and girls and sometimes by grownpeople, is a variation of our battledore and is called by someWesterners in China "kicking the shuttlecock." A brass or a coppercoin is wrapped in fish skin, and to this is attached several chickenfeathers. When the shuttlecock is kicked up in the air, the coin willcome down first. The game is generally for one person to kick theshuttlecock as many times as possible without letting it fall to theground.Two games enjoyed by people of all ages are cards and mah jong.Many become very skillful at these games, which are generally asso-ciated with gambling.Holidays are often spent as days of recreation and amusement.This is especially true of the first five days of the new year. Boys goabout blowing horns and gangs of boys walk through the streetsbeating drums and blowing bugles. Groups of men and women standin the streets or sit in their homes playing cards, mah jong, and otherchance games, almost all of which are accompanied by gambling.The great festivals celebrating the birthdays of the gods are oc-casions for meeting friends, drinking tea or wine, talking, and some-times dining together. There is amusement also in watching the greatparades, which are parts of these festivals. Generally these are fol-lowed by theatricals in the temples, and by a feast to which loyal sup-porters of the temple and its worship are invited. The boat races at the
30 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42dragon-boat festival furnish entertainment for thousands and some-times tens of thousands of people. The Autumn Festival is a daywhen people go out on the hills, enjoy the scenery, and sometimeswrite poetry.An important kind of entertainment is the theatricals. Until morerecent years, only men were actors, and some of them became veryclever in acting the parts of women and girls. The plays generallyportray .events in the past history of China, so that in addition toproviding amusement, the plays also have an educational value.Herbert A. Giles (1911, p. 160) called the theater the national recre-ation of China.Chinese men and boys show a great deal of skill in the making andflying of kites, which are sometimes flown to great heights.At feasts two guests often play "guess-fingers." Each will displayat the same time several fingers on one hand. At the same instanteach will try to guess the total number of fingers displayed. If oneguesses right and the other does not, the one who fails has to drink acup of wine. The game is sometimes continued until one or both theplayers are drunk.Two very common forms of social entertainment and amusementin West China are feasts and tea drinking. The Chinese make a de-lightful variety of tasty foods, and thoroughly enjoy them. There arefeasts at New Year time, at Ch'ing Ming, on important birthdays, atfunerals and weddings, and at many other times. The guests weartheir best clothing, and invariably reciprocate by inviting their hoststo a feast at some later date.Tea drinking is sanitary, for the water is purified by boiling. Inthe homes tea is generally preferred to water. When guests come tovisit, they are always given tea to drink, and at feasts or parties, eachguest has his cup of tea. Every city, town, or village has its tea shopswhere guests, for a small sum, can sit around a table as long as theywish, talking and sipping tea. Often business affairs and even quar-rels are settled over the teacups in the tea shops.In recent years the Chinese have adopted many foreign games andamusements. To mention only a few, there are poker, associationfootball, track athletics, tennis, basketball, volley ball, and movingpictures. SOME SPECIAL SOCIAL CUSTOMSThere are four things about the social life of the Chinese that de-serve special mention. First, the Chinese have a good sense of humorand enjoy laughing at a good, friendly joke. It causes all who are
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 3Ipresent to be in a good humor and to like the person who tells thejoke and causes them to laugh. For this reason I told many morejokes among the Chinese than I do among Occidentals.Second, the Chinese are a very polite people. In the course of theirlong history they have developed many forms of decorum that it be-hooves the foreigner to know about. At a feast and on similar occa-sions the guest is always offered the seat of honor. It is good formfor him to decline this invitation, at least for a short time, saying "pukan tang." or "I am unworthy." When the guest leaves, the hostescorts him to the door or to the gate saying "go slowly, go slowly,"and the guest replies, "pu sung," or "do not escort me out." When afriend informs you that he is coming to your home to visit you, hewill say that he is coming to "pai wang" or to look at you very re-spectfully, meaning to visit you. If he invites you to visit him, hewill request you to come to his unworthy dwelling to play or to havea little chat.A third important characteristic of the Chinese is gratitude. Gileshas noted this and stated that gratitude is a virtue which the Chinesepossess to an eminent degree, and that a Chinese never forgets a kindact or loses a sense of obligation and gratitude to his benefactor. Ihave had many experiences that verify these statements. Sometimesone will do a Chinese a small favor and forget about it. Later theChinese may do him a big favor in return.Closely related to these characteristics is a fourth—the fact that theChinese respond favorably to and reciprocate friendship, kindness,and humane behavior. If they are convinced that you respect them,appreciate them, see good in them, and have a friendly regard forthem, they respond in kind. Here again I speak from experience, formany of my best friends have been Chinese.In 1894 Dr. Arthur H. Smith published a book, "Chinese Char-acteristics." In it are chapters dealing with face, economy, industry,politeness, the disregard of time, the disregard of accuracy, the talentof misunderstanding, the talent for indirection, flexile inflexibility,intellectual turbidity, the absence of nerves, contempt for foreigners,the absence of public spirit, conservatism, indifference to comfort andconvenience, physical vitality, patience and perseverance, contentmentand cheerfulness, filial piety, benevolence, the absence of sympathy,social typhoons, mutual responsibility and respect for law, mutual sus-picion, the absence of sincerity, polytheism, pantheism, atheism. Onecan now see that in some of his interpretations Dr. Smith was right,while in other important respects he partially or completely misunder-stood the Chinese people.
32 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 1 42BIRTH, ENGAGEMENT, MARRIAGE, DEATH, AND BURIALFor most people, irrespective of race, nationality, or religion, theoutstanding events of their lives are birth, marriage, and death. It isto be expected, therefore, that many religious rites and ceremoniesare bound up with these and related events. Although there are manyresemblances in these customs as they appear in various parts ofChina, there are also many differences. The same is true also of thedifferent localities in West China. There are both resemblances anddifferences.The social and religious customs in West China are apparently ablend of the Chinese culture with the cultures of other nations andethnic groups—India, Tibet, the Miao, the Lolos, the Ch'iang, theShan or Tai, and others. It cannot always be determined which bor-rowed from the other, but the main and strongest influence has beenChinese.A very strong and almost universal desire among the Chinesepeople is for a numerous posterity. Though daughters are generallywelcomed, the desire for sons predominates. When a daughter isborn, it is called a hsiao hsi, or a little joy, but when a son is born, itis called a ta hsi, or a great joy. The reasons for this and the methodsused to obtain sons will be described later.A woman's prestige in her family and in society is much greaterafter she has given birth to a son. Failure to give birth to sons issometimes, though rarely, a reason for divorce. More often it resultsin her husband's taking a concubine, who is called a little or lesserwife. But if the concubine gives birth to one or more sons and theprincipal wife does not, the prestige and position of the concubine inthe family may become greater than that of the principal wife. Ofcourse there are jealousies and rivalries for the affection and attentionof the husband.In China to be unfilial is one of the worst of sins. There are severalways to be unfilial, but the worst of all is not to have sons to continuethe family line and to continue to perform the ceremonies of venerat-ing and commemorating the ancestors.It has been affirmed by some and denied by others that infanticidehas been practiced in China. There is probably no better authoritythan Olga Lang. She asserts that it has long been practiced in China,mostly, if not exclusively, with girls, and that she found evidence ofit during her fieldwork in China in 1935 to 1937. Sometimes it isaccomplished through poor food, poor care, and ill treatment (Lang,1946, pp. 46-47, 150, 151, 152, 253, 332).
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 33When a child is born, the wife's mother pays a visit, bringing apresent of chickens, eggs, and other edibles (Grainger, 1921, p. 5)- Asorcerer, or titan kiing, is called to exorcise demons (ibid.), for at thistime demons are believed to be hovering about in the hope of causingthe death of the mother or the child. A midwife is called in. Shouldthe birth be delayed or attended with difficulty, firecrackers or gunsare set off to frighten the demons (ibid.). The Chui-shen-niang-niangmay be worshiped in the hope of obtaining a speedy and easy delivery.While the birth is taking place, an umbrella is hung above themother as she lies in bed. If it is made of paper and t'ung (wood) oil,it is believed to be more efficacious, for demons fear t'ung oil. Forthis reason several t'ung oil lamps, or bowls filled with t'ung oil, areplaced on the floor near the bed and lighted to keep the demons away.After the child is born, the father goes to the homes of friends andrelatives and gives them a few red-colored eggs, and announces thebirth of the child. In return the relatives and friends, during the firstmonth, give presents of food, clothing, playthings, and ornaments.Usually at the end of three days the baby is given a bath, but some-times this is delayed many days. About this time the wife's mothermakes a second visit, bringing gifts of food, clothing, or other things.After the birth of a child the mother is supposed to be unclean andill-omened or dangerous. She is therefore confined to her room forat least 30 days. If she comes out before the alloted time, somecalamity will befall the family. At the end of a month there is afeast, to which friends and relatives are invited, including all whohave given presents after the birth of the child.After 30 days a barber is called to shave the baby's head. It is be-lieved that the baby's hair is so wiry that the barber's razor cannotbe used again. The barber therefore uses an old razor which ofteninjures the head of the child. The barber is remunerated about twicethe normal charge.At the end of one year friends and relatives again bring presentsof food, clothing, playthings, or ornaments, and again they are invitedto a feast. The child is seated on the floor, and around him areplaced a book, pencils, money, and other objects. Whatever objecta son picks up indicates what his future interest will be. If hegrasps a book or a pencil, he will be a scholar. If he grasps money, hewill probably be a businessman and wealthy,A common belief is expressed in the Classic of the Bloody Basin,which is a Buddhist sacred book. At childbirth the mother shedsblood, which gets onto her clothes and into the water. This defiles the
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water in pools and streams, which later is offered to the gods andgreatly offends them. As a consequence every woman, but no man,suffers torments of hell in the bloody basin. She is ordered by thegod to drink this blood, but being unable to do so, she is beaten un-mercifully with a club. The only remedy for her predicament is toinvite a Buddhist or a Taoist priest to chant ceremonially the Classicof the Bloody Basin and pray for her release (Graham, 1928b,pp. 18-22).In the old China engagements were not made by the young manand the young woman concerned ; they were family affairs, arrangedby the parents of the two families through go-betweens. Sometimesthe engagements were made when the two children were very young.In this society, all women got married, but in some of the poorestfamilies only the oldest son got married, with the consequence thatone or more of the sons had no wife. The unmarried sons, however,were expected to help support the families of their parents.When the parents decided that it was time for their son to becomeengaged, they invited a go-between. Before the latter approached afamily having a marriageable daughter, the boy's parents resorted todivination to ascertain whether the arrangement was likely to be aus-picious. If the answer was favorable, the go-between was sent to thefamily of the maiden, taking with him presents for her parents. Ifthe girl's parents were favorable, they gave the girl's horoscope tothe go-between, who took it to the parents of the boy. Again theboy's parents resorted to divination, and if the results were againfavorable they consulted an expert on horoscopes. If the horoscopesindicated that the marriage would be fortunate, the engagement wasconsummated. More presents and sometimes money were given tothe girl's parents.Engagements were very binding and were almost never broken. Ifit should happen that the family of the young woman broke the en-gagement, it was almost impossible for her to get married to anyoneelse, for the prospective husband would fear the hatred, jealousy, andvengeance of the young man to whom she had been engaged. Thewriter knew of a girl who broke an engagement because the youngman had participated in gambling and other immoral practices. Foryears no one proposed marriage to her, although she was educated,talented, and good looking. She finally became pregnant without mar-riage to a wealthy young man, whom she compelled to marry her bythreatening to kill herself on his doorstep.Until recently the consent of the two young people to the marriage
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 35
was not asked by the parents, nor were they consulted. They werenot permitted to meet or to get acquainted until they came together atthe marriage ceremony. Here they often met and saw each other forthe first time.When the parents of the groom have decided that the time whenthe young couple should get married is approaching, generally be-tween the ages of i6 and 20, they informally consult the parents ofthe bride, and a day for the ceremony is chosen. It must be a luckyday and at a lucky hour. The date of the wedding is then formallyannounced (Grainger, 1921, p. 10). The go-between, taking withhim edibles and clothing and other presents for the bride, calls on thebride's parents and breaks the news. Relatives of the bride also as-semble in her home, and bring presents for her. Then her parentsprovide a feast for all the guests, including the go-between (ibid.).A few days before the wedding the family of the groom sendsred invitation cards in red envelopes to all the friends and rela-tives, inviting them to be present and informing them of the date ofthe wedding ceremony. Some of the invited guests arrive at thegroom's home on the afternoon or evening before the wedding andstay all night. Others arrive on the wedding day. Virtually all theguests send or bring presents— food, clothing, money, real or tinselflowers, pairs of scrolls, and other things. They amuse themselves bychatting, playing cards, gambling, and drinking tea and wine.For two or three days before the wedding, the bride is expected tobe very sad, weeping occasionally to show sorrow at leaving herparents. Her parents prepare for her gifts of bedding, furniture,bed curtains, and other things (ibid., p. 11).On the day of the wedding, the go-between leads a procession tothe home of the bride. In the procession are banners, umbrellas orcanopies, trays full of presents, musicians playing horns, beating brasstimbrels and drums, and playing flutes, and men carrying the bridalchair. Friends of the groom's parents accompany the go-between,and the musicians play wedding music both on the way to and fromthe home of the bride (ibid., p. 11).The bride comes into the guest room of her parents. Facing theouter door, she throws a pair of chopsticks over her shoulder tosignify that she will no longer eat the food of her parents. Then shebows to the tablets of her ancestors, to the house gods, then to herparents. She is then dressed in a special gown, and a red veil is puton. Then she is either led to the wedding chair by a sister-in-law, oris carried there on the back of a brother. Her mother takes a light
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and looks into the corners of the wedding chair, lest demons be hidingthere. Then the bride enters the chair, and the doors and windowsare closed. All this time and during the first part of the processionto the groom's home the bride continues to weep, but stops cryingbefore reaching her new home, lest she seem to be unwilling to come.The deep-red wedding chair, called a hua-chiao or flowery sedanchair, with some other paraphernalia used in the procession, is rentedfrom a chair shop and carried by poles on the shoulders of men. Onthe back of the chair are one or two lighted lanterns to keep awaydemons, and often for the same purpose a bronze or brass mirror, oran almanac, is hung behind or in front.On the way to her new home the bride is accompanied by herbrothers and a few other relatives. Firecrackers are set off as theprocession starts, and there is music all the way. On arrival at thedoor of the groom's home, a chicken is killed and the blood issprinkled around the bridal chair as an additional precaution againstdemons. Firecrackers are set off, and the chair is carried inside thehouse (ibid., p. 13).The door of the bridal chair is opened, and the bride is led into thehall to the side of the groom, who is waiting for her. First the brideand the groom face the front door and bow in reverence to Heavenand Earth, then to the household gods and the deceased ancestors,then to friends and relatives, and finally to each other (ibid.).According to one old custom the bride and the groom are then ledto the bridal chamber, where they sit on the edge of the bed a shorttime and are given two cups of tea and two cups of soup. The groomsips a little from both cups, but the bride abstains. Then the weddingcurtains are hung up, some jujubes and dragons' eyes are scatteredaround the room, and the bridegroom and the male relatives leavethe room while the bride is attired in her wedding clothes. Then thebride and the groom come forth, respectfully bow to the ancestorsand to the parents, and receive the congratulations of relatives andfriends (ibid., p. 14). The father of the groom congratulates them,reminds them of the many benefits received from their parents in thepast, and urges them to live in harmony and to continue to be filial totheir parents (ibid.). Then comes the wedding feast, after whichthe guests begin to depart. Later, young people are likely to enterthe bridal chamber and engage in banter and horseplay.A few days after this the bride and the groom pay a visit to thebride's home, where they are feasted, but they return to their homeon the same day. Later they pay another visit and the groom leaves
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 37the bride with her parents a few days, after which he goes and bringsher back to her new home (ibid.). There are many variations in thesecustoms.If the girl dies after engagement and before marriage, it is the dutyof the young man to marry another woman. If she dies after mar-riage, it is his duty to remarry. This is so that he can fulfill hisobligation to rear sons who will continue the family line and leavedescendants who will carry on the ceremonies of ancestral worship.If the young man dies before marriage, very often the woman willremain unmarried in order to join him in the after life. If he diesafter marriage, it is the duty of the woman to remain an unmarriedwidow and to join him as his wife in the spirit world. In ChengtuI saw the grave of an aviator who was killed during World War II.His betrothed killed herself and was buried with him in the samegrave, an act which was highly commended by many Chinese. Yearsearlier a man living in I-pin was drowned. His wife tried to killherself by taking opium so as to accompany him as his wife in theworld of spirits.Before the coming of modern medicine, the death rate in WestChina was very high. The writer has made inquiries among theCh'iang and among the Chinese as to how many children were bornin a family and how many were still living. A fair average was ii to13 born, and 2 to 4 still living.There is a serious lack of knowledge of sanitation, and the germtheory is not understood. Spitting on floors and on the streets is verycommon. In surgery, except in modern hospitals, the knives, for-ceps, and scissors are not sterilized, so that infections are frequentand often fatal. People often die from simple infections or fromboils. Epidemics spread from community to community, causingdeaths by the thousands, hundreds of thousands, and sometimesmillions. Except for smallpox, vaccine is not understood and used.All diseases are thought to be the work of demons.The theory of medicine and sickness is based on the ytn-yang phi-losophy. The human body is believed to be composed of the twoelements, yin and yang. Vang is warm, and yin is cold. Normallythe two elements are equal and balanced in the body, and the temper-ature is normal. If there is too much of the yang and too little of theyin, the person becomes ill and has a fever, or at least a high temper-ature. If there is too much of the yin and too little of the yang, thetemperature of the body is low, and the person has chills. Medicinesare also divided into yin and yang; this includes large numbers of
38 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42herbs, and also parts of living creatures, including bones of leopardsand tigers.If a person has a yang sickness, there is too much of the yang in hisbody and too little of the yin, and he must take yin medicine to bringabout a balance. Large doses of medicine are sometimes advised. Ifa person has a yin sickness, he must take yang medicine to restorethe balance. It is not surprising that in some cases the medicine killsthe patient.The yin-yang postulate may seem inconsistent with the theory thatdiseases and other calamities are caused by demons, but both theoriesare held. Consequently, resort to the exorcism of demons is also avery common practice. A tiian kiing, or sorcerer, and a Buddhist orTaoist priest are supposed to be about equally efficient in exorcisingdemons. They use charms, incantations, and chant their sacred books.Occasionally a patient, or one or more of his relatives, will go to atemple, worship the deity, pray for healing, and make a promise orvow. Sometimes the vow relates to giving the god or goddess a newcoat of paint, called new clothing. Sometimes it entails the repair ofpart or all of the temple, or the making of a gift to the god, the priest,or the temple, such as a chicken, a pig, or spirit cash or actual money.If the person recovers, the promise is fulfilled.An example of a practice that is often disastrous is the cutting ofthe umbilical cord after the birth of a child with an unsterilized knifeor pair of scissors. The cutting instrument is sometimes washedin cow manure. The result, of course, is the death of many new-bornbabies a few days after birth. The special name for this disease isch'i t'ien feng, or seven-day malady.Acapuncture is practiced in West China. The practitioner drives alarge, unsterilized metal needle deep into the flesh several times inseveral places, often to the bone. The operation is painful, and a fatalinfection may follow.Sometimes a sick person becomes convinced that he is about to dieand stops eating and drinking properly, so that death does actuallyensue. A Christian friend, ISIr. Ho Yu-i, believing that his end wasnear, called his wife and children to his side, and made a farewell talkadmonishing them to be good and highly commending Christianity.Soon afterward he died. His son informed me that it was very im-pressive. During my stay in I-pin, I went to Chi-t'ien-pa and therecalled on Mrs. Chang, a widow who was a church member. She wasill and in bed, her daughter was sitting beside her, and in her roomwas her coffin. Mrs. Chang informed me that she was about to die.
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and for that reason her coffin had been prepared. On inquiry, I wastold that her main trouble was that she was not eating or drinking.Doubting that she had any fatal disease, I suggested that if she wouldeat food and drink tea or water she would probably get well. Igave her several cans of milk, recommending that she drink it grad-ually, eat some boiled rice, and later add other food. The last newsI had of Mrs. Chang was that she was alive and well.An old man or woman who expects to die soon may put on his orher best clothing and sit in a chair, awaiting the end. This is believedto be a more dignified way to die than lying in bed (ibid., p. 19).Coffins and grave clothes are often prepared for old people by theirdescendants long before they die. This pleases the old people, forthen they can be sure that they have a good coffin and good clothingwhen they are burled.Soon after a person dies, the body is bathed and dressed in the bestclothes. Generally there are several layers of clothes, in some cases asmany as 9 or 11. It must be an odd number, because an even numberis unlucky. There must be no metal of any kind in the coffin, lest itdrag the soul downward and prevent its upward flight after death(ibid., pp. 18-19).When the deceased is encoffined (usually on the day of his death),an old custom is to place a willow stick in his right hand and a loaf ofbread in his left to keep off the spirit dogs. If the bread is insufficientor ineffective, the stick can be used (ibid.).Soon after death, firecrackers are set off to frighten away demons,and spirit money is burned to be used as travel money by the de-ceased on the way to Hades. On at least some of the packages ofspirit money that are burned, are written the name of the deceased,the date and place of his birth, how long and where he has lived, andthe date and place of his death. There is also a request that at thebarriers the deceased be allowed to pass. A road guide is providedto be used by the soul of the deceased in finding his way to Hades.The coffin is placed in the parlor or guest room. If the deceased isan official, or one of his sons has official rank, the coffin is paintedred. Otherwise it is painted black. A paper spirit tablet and astreamer are generally placed on a table near the coffin. During everymeal, food and sometimes wine are offered to the deceased.A Buddhist or Taoist priest or a iuan kung is invited to come andclose the coffin. First the lid is taken off so that everybody can seethe corpse. At this time there is much weeping and wailing. Thecoffin is searched to make sure that enemies have not thrown in any
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small pieces of iron, for these would be very injurious to the de-scendants of the deceased. The cofhn is then ceremonially closed andsealed with cement, after which it is never opened.Coffins with thick walls are preferred, for then decay will occurmore slowly. Very poor people have coffins made of boards about aninch thick, whereas wealthy people have coffins so thick that in thefuneral procession it takes many men to carry them.Buddhist and Taoist priests are called to perform the ceremony ofopening the way of the soul to Hades. During this ceremony fire-crackers are set off, sacred books are chanted, and the gods areworshiped.A few days after death a ceremony is performed called tso-tao-ch'ang. It is supposed to be performed 7 days, but actually varies inlength from 2 to 20 days. The sacred books are chanted, accompaniedby the music of timbrels, and the soul of the deceased is enticed intothe spirit tablet, which is thereafter its permanent home.Before the funeral, many friends and relatives send gifts to thefamily. These gifts include, among other things, food, money, spiritcash or paper, firecrackers, and pairs of scrolls on which are writtenstatements and sentiments complimentary to the deceased. In return,the givers are invited to the funeral feast, which is generally a bigand sumptuous occasion.An auspicious spot must be chosen for the grave. It has to be aplace where the fcngshiii is good, and generally a tuan kiing or afengshui professor chooses the site. If the fcnghsui of the burialsite is good, the descendants will prosper, but if not, they will havebad luck and suffer calamities.Penuriousness and economy in expenditures for funerals, coffins,and tombs are looked upon as being unfilial and unpleasing to theancestors. Many families therefore spend beyond their means forthese items, incurring debts which handicap them for many years.The funeral procession is generally very impressive. Many relativesand friends march in the parade, as well as the musicians who play thefuneral music, and Buddhist and Taoist priests. A live cock isperched on the coffin to keep away demons, for demons are afraid ofroosters. If a son is an official or a military officer, a group ofsoldiers with guns may be included in the procession to add dignityand numbers. The oldest son, dressed in sackcloth, walks ahead ofthe coffin supported by two friends and using a cane. Firecrackersare set off at the beginning and at the end of the procession, andspirit money is burned.
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I witnessed and marched as a sympathetic mourner in the funeralof Mrs. Lei (thunder), and the following are the notes I took on thisoccasion.This funeral took place at I-pin, Szechwan Province, China, De-cember 4, 1928. I was a friend of the oldest son and chief mourner.Captain Lei, of the Lei clan or family, the most powerful in I-pin, soI was invited to attend. It was agreed that instead of the kowtow, Icould show my sympathy and respect in ways that were agreeable tome.There was a great funeral parade through some of the main streetsof the city to the river. The principal mourners and helpers and theTaoist priest crossed in ferryboats to the opposite side of the river,where the burial ceremonies took place. This parade was half a milelong.The home of Mr. Lei, the most powerful permanent resident of thecity, was outside the west gate in the western suburb. All the guests,the friends and the mourners, including myself, wore white cottoncloths wrapped around their hats as a sign of mourning. The deceasedwas the mother of Mr. Lei. At the home, the guests and relatives allbowed and kowtowed in respect or worship to the spirit tablet of thedeceased. Her soul or spirit was believed to be in this tablet. I tippedmy hat and bowed to show my respect and sympathy. Many friendsand guests had given as presents paper scrolls on which there hadbeen written expressions of sympathy and compliments to Mrs. Leiand her family. In return they were invited to the feast and to thefuneral.First in the parade the scrolls were carried. These had been given inpairs, the second scroll completing the meaning of the first. There wasa long line of men and boys carrying these scrolls. Next theremarched about a thousand soldiers carrying rifles. About 30 policemenfollowed the soldiers. Then pavilions were carried, large and small,on which were attractive ornamental things such as vases and stuffedbirds. Then came some mourners, then the coffin. Behind the coffinwere other mourners. The sons followed the coffin dressed in sack-cloth, a dull white in color, and wearing white hats made of paper. Thesons all walked. The oldest son was led or half led and half carried bytwo men, one on each side. He also held a cane or staff in his hands,using it to support himself and conveying the impression that he wascompletely crushed by the loss of his mother. I marched in the paradewith the guests.The river was crossed in boats, and the main parade ended at theriver.
42 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42At the grave, paper or spirit money was burned in the grave pit,which was nearly 2 feet deep. The ashes of the spirit money were lefttemporarily strewn out in the pit. First the chief mourner bowed orkowtowed to his deceased ancestor in front of the grave. The coffin,painted red because the chief mourner, the oldest son Mr. Lei, was ahigh official, had been placed in the pit with more than half of itabove ground. Then there were ofifered to the deceased a pig's head,some wine (part of which was poured out on the ground), some pork,some sea slugs, and some of the muscles from the fin of a large shark.Again spirit money was burned as an offering.Then the geomancer, or professor of fengshui, very carefullychose the exact place to put down the coffin. He used the lo-p'an,which has a compass, and was extremely careful to put the coffin injust the right direction. A red string was pinned exactly in the centerof the lid, from end to end. Another red string was held in the airabove the lid, and by means of the lo-p'an aligned in exactly the rightdirection; then the coffin was moved until the lower string wasexactly under and parallel to the upper string. This process tookabout an hour, several men cooperating. It was extremely important,for the coffin and the corpse must lie in exactly the right direction tomake the fengshui the best, for that would determine the futureprosperity of the Lei family and its descendants.Two jars or jugs filled with the ashes of the spirit money wereplaced at the foot of the coffin. At the head were two jars filled withchiu mi, or rice from which wine is made, one of the best kinds.These jars are called i-shih-htian or food jars. The rice they containedwas food for the dead. Before filling in the grave, rice was thrown onand over the coffin and incantations pronounced by the professor offengshui. The incantations included the fondest wishes of the family
—may the descendants increase and multiply, become rich, have manysons, be happy, and become officials.The rice that is thrown is called fu-lung-mi, because throwing it isa means of calling the mountain dragon to come to the coffin and thegrave so that the fengshui will be good and all will prosper. The ricein the i-shih-kiian is for the dead person to eat.Some packages of unburned spirit money were placed in the coffin,some of them including lists of the clothing, jewelry, and other thingsthat were put in the coffin, so that the deceased person would knowabout it.Over a thousand strings of cash were used to pay the laborers whocarried and helped in other ways that day. During the parade and
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 43
until arriving at the grave, a live rooster rode on the coffin, a meansof keeping away demons.The two vessels containing ashes are regarded as containing moneythat the deceased person can actually use in the spirit world. If thefamily of the deceased is wealthy, the chicken may be given to thefengshui professor who performs the ceremony, but if they are pooror if they so desire, they may keep it and eat it themselves. Finally,the pig's head, the meat, and the wine are offered to the deceased.The descendants kowtow three times to the deceased, and firecrackersare set off.Three days after the burial the descendants of the deceased and aTaoist priest go back to the grave. They burn a deed as a ceremonyof purchasing the burial place and report to the rulers of Hades. TheTaoist priest urges the dead person not to get angry because he orshe has died, and not to do evil things such as turning into a demonand harming people.About the year 191 7 a relative of a deacon of the Baptist churchof I-pin, Mr. Chao Lan-t'in, died and was buried by Mr. Chao in theburial ground of the church of which I was then pastor. It was laterdisclosed that Mr. Chao, contrary to the church customs, had secretlyengaged a fengshui professor to choose a lucky spot, and at the burialto point the coffin in the right direction. After a discussion by thechurch executive committee, Mr. Chao was required to remove thedirt from the grave, slightly change the direction of the coffin, andagain cover the coffin with dirt.In West China coffins are generally not buried deep under theground. The hole is dug only about one-half or one-third the depthof the coffin ; the coffin is then placed in the hole and covered by alarge mound of dirt. Sometimes lime is placed under and around thecoffin to keep insects away. It is customary on the first three nightsafter the burial to burn at the grave three bundles of rice strawcalled 'Tire-flame packages" in the belief that it will keep the deadperson from getting cold.On March 27, 1930, I witnessed a funeral at Li-tuan-ch'ang, south-east of I-pin. The following objects and figures, all of which weremade of paper and braced by strips of wood, were burned as offeringsto the dead person : A large sedan chair with carrying poles and twolaborers to carry it, a man mounted on a horse, a manservant and amaidservant, a cook with cooking utensils, four soldiers to serve as abodyguard, a small house, a gold hill and a silver hill, gold and silverimitation ingots, spirit money, and clothing made of paper. I have
44 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42heard of other funerals in which opium pipes, rickshas, automobiles,and other modern things were burned. According to the testimonyof the participants and many others, it was believed that these thingswere transformed by burning into similar things that could be usedby the deceased persons in the spirit world.According to ancient custom, after the death of a parent or a grand-parent a three-year period of mourning is observed. During that timethe descendants avoid wearing their best clothing. At the end of ayear priests are called to conduct memorial ceremonies for a day ormore, including the chanting of their sacred books. This is also doneat the end of the second year. At the end of the third year mourningis discontinued, the relatives appear in full dress, and there is a feast.The following is my translation of a deed such as is burned atfunerals in West China. These are printed and sold in Chinese shops.The blanks are to be filled out with Chinese pen and ink before thefuneral. Burial DeedThe yin-yang department — for the issuance of a deed. Now ofthe great Chinese Republic, taking orders (from the department) to finish thelegal procedure, thankfully asks for the good luck and filialness of ,prostrating for (the dead person) . He was born in (year),in (month) on (day), and at (hour). Hegrew up in , and lived years. His living was limited, sohe died in (year), (month), (day), and
• (hour). Now having divined a lucky time, at (time) hecame to this mountain to be buried. The God of the Earth received (the de-ceased) for the amount of money nine thousand nine hundred andninety cash, and with a five-colored ribbon takes the dragon son's hill, a luckyplace. One home through the heart (right on the spot, dig a hole). The sizeof the hole is 18 steps. It is located at hill, facing direc-tion. This location is sold to for burial purposes. On the east is theheavenly green dragon, south is the heavenly red bird, west is the heavenlywhite tiger, and north is the black bird. In the center is the Kou-ch'eng star,above the sky cover. Below is the respectful earth department, and the fourtrigrams, chien, ktin, hsuen, and chut, so the eight trigrams are divided veryclearly.While living, he dwelt in the house ; now dead, he is buried in this tomb. Now,relying on this boy wearing green clothes (a heavenly messenger), we pay themoney. Afterward this will be a burial ground forever, so that the nine palaces(in paradise) will give birth to honored sons. Then the eight trigrams willprotect your children. The buried corpse cannot be expelled. No one can invadethe old tomb. If there are spooks or demons or a property owner who comesto occupy this grave, let the dead person who receives the ground with this deedreport to the goddess of heaven, and let him be examined and punished accordingto law.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 45
This deed should be given to tlie dead person to be kept forever as evidence.In the heavenly (year), (month), and (day).Witnessed by those who sold the ground,The master of the year and month, Chang Li-t'u
;
The heavenly witness, Li T'ing-hsii
;
The middleman from below. Prince Tung Wang (King of the East) ;The reception middleman, Hsi-wang-mu (Western Queen) ;The middleman who persuaded (to agree to sell), Shih Kung-t'ao;The guarantor middleman, Qiin Shang-pu;The middleman who paid the money, Pai Ho-hsien
;
The writer middleman. Yen Ho-chin;(At the top on the left in very large letters) :FOREVER TEN THOUSAND ANCIENT TIMES,TEN THOUSAND AUTUMNS,ETERNAL EVIDENCE.RELIGIOUS BACKGROUNDEARLY RELIGION OF CHINAChinese religion may be compared to a large tree which has a maintrunk, three large branches, several smaller branches, and many twigsattached to the trunk and branches. The main trunk from the groundto the top of the tree is the popular religion of China, and the threemain branches are Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. Since theT'ang dynasty, Islam has had a place, and in recent years the Chris-tian religion. Smaller branches are the Ru T'an, the Wu Chiao, andthe T'ung Shan She. The twigs are the numerous sects of Buddhismand Taoism and of the lesser religions. There is also a main root andseveral large branch roots, besides many smaller ones. The main rootis the ancestor of the popular religion of China, which can be tracedback more and more dimly through the Chou into the Shang dynasty,and into the late Neolithic times. One large branch root representsinfluences from India, chiefly through Buddhism. Other smallerroots have given China contacts with western Asia and Europe andwith ethnic groups north, east, south, and west of China.*The Chinese have from very early times been an agricultural people,and the family has been the main social unit. Filial piety has beenthe cardinal virtue and ancestor veneration the main feature ofChinese society and religion. It was believed that the souls of thedeceased ancestors continue to live after death in the spirit world.
3 In the following paragraphs nearly every statement can be supported bymany references. However, the facts are so well known to scholars that mostreferences will not be cited.
46 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42They need the same things after death as before, such as food,clothing, weapons, tools, ornaments, and later, money. These objectswere provided by the living descendants. Many of them were buriedwith the dead in their tombs, but food and wine and later spiritmoney were afterward provided through sacrifices and spiritual offer-ings. While they were living and after death, the ancestors weretreated with honor, respect, and affection. Though the deceased an-cestors were dependent on the living descendants, they in turn blessedand helped their descendants, giving them success, prosperity, andhappiness. At the memorial feasts the deceased were believed to bepresent and to partake of the food and wine. At these feasts there wasan impersonator of the dead ancestor, a male descendant of thedeceased.During the Shang dynasty the ofiferings to the dead included wine,cattle, horses, dogs, pigs, and sheep, and sometimes wild boars and wildbirds, besides chariots, weapons, dishes, cooking utensils, tools, orna-ments, bronzes, and pottery. No grains or vegetables were offered,but in the Chou dynasty these were added (Creel, 1935b, pp. 199-200,334).During the Chou period the emperor and other rulers had ancestraltemples in which ancestral spirit tablets of both husbands and theirwives were kept, watched over by a caretaker. The sacrifices, whichwere family affairs, were offered by the heads of families. Kingsand other high officials were often assisted by others of lesser rank.The ceremonies of ancestral veneration were regularly performed atcertain periods and seasons, but on special occasions also there wereofferings and worship. Among these occasions were the birth of ason, a marriage involving the coming of a new person into the family,and the coming of a son to maturity. The ancestors were often askedfor advice.An important question is, what did the ancient Chinese seek in theirreligious worship and ceremonies? From inscriptions on the oraclebones and on ceremonial bronzes we learn that a primary desire wasfor numerous descendants, so that the ancestral ceremonies and of-ferings would never cease. Other desires were for long life, pros-perity, happiness, old age with honor, protection from diseases andenemies, victory in war, and social and official status (ibid., pp. 332-333)-Divination was very common. The guidance and the advice of theancestors and of the gods were sought to learn whether or not to goto war, whether to make a journey and when to begin it, whether or
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 47
not and when to offer sacrifices, and to solve many other problems.During the Shang dynasty tortoise shells and scapulas and long bonesof cattle were used. During the Chou dynasty tortoise shells andmillet foil were used. The Book of Changes is a book of divinationenabling one to determine what is lucky or unlucky by referring tothe 64 diagrams.In the Chou dynasty there were witches and wizards who were be-lieved to have power to communicate with the deceased ancestors andwith the gods. Like modern mediums, it was thought that they ob-tained messages and advice from the celestial beings. They also per-formed magical ceremonies to heal diseases, to cause rain, to insuregood crops, and for other purposes. Dreams were used and inter-preted in divination. It seems very evident that in modern times thesorcerer, or titan kiing, of the Wu Chiao, the mediums of the Ju T'an,and many Buddhist and Taoist priests are the descendants of thewitches, wizards, sorcerers, and mediums of the Chou dynasty.In ancient China there were no official or celibate priests. Theceremonies of ancestor worship were conducted by the male heads offamilies. Persons of high rank were sometimes helped in the conductof these ceremonies by officers, servants, and even slaves, who knewthe ceremonies and how they should be conducted.In the Chou dynasty there was a moral development or reformationamong leaders and scholars in ethics, politics, and religion, whichchanged the attitude toward gods and toward human conduct. Thegods were believed to be righteous and to require good moral conducton the part of men, rewarding the good and punishing the evil. Thismoral reform led to protests against the sacrificing of human beingsat funerals and burying them alive with the dead (ibid., p. 344).This was centuries before Roman law prohibited the sacrifice ofhuman beings among the Druids of western Europe. While humansacrifice did not entirely cease, in later Chou times many Chineseinstead made wooden or straw images of human beings and buriedthem with their dead. I have seen a number of these wooden imagesthat were deposited in late Chou tombs near Changsha.There was also worship of the gods, although no images were madeof them. The ancestors, if not worshiped and regarded as deities,were nearly so. Among the Shang dynasty Chinese the chief godwas Ti ^ or Shang Ti Ji^. The word Shang Ti means rulerabove, or god above, or possibly the higher or supreme god. He wasnot the one and only god, and there is no certain evidence that Chinesereligion was ever monotheistic, a statement that can safely be made
48 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
of the non-Chinese ethnic groups of eastern, southern, and centralAsia. Other Shang dynasty Chinese gods were the Dragon Woman,the Eastern Mother, the Western Mother, the East, the West, theSouth, the Ruler of the Four Quarters, the Earth or Mother Earth,the Snake Spirit, and King Wind (ibid., pp. 180-184).Lesser deities during the Chou dynasty included the Father of War,the Father of Husbandry, the Ruler of Cold, the Father of Cookery,and the Six Honored Ones. In addition the sun, the moon, the stars,mountains, rivers, springs, and other natural features apparentlywere worshiped.As previously stated, among the Shang dynasty Chinese prior totheir conquest by the Chous, the highest god was Ti or Shang Ti.Among the Chou people of that time the chief god was T'ien ^ orHeaven. In early Chinese literature this symbol resembled the pictureof a man, but it gradually changed and was finally written in itspresent form ^. After the conquest the Qiou dynasty Chineseidentified T'ien and Shang Ti, regarding them as the same god andusing the two terms interchangeably. He was the highest god, a godof righteousness interested primarily in human beings and humansociety, and rewarding the good and punishing the evil. This was notmonotheism, for there were lesser deities, and during the followingcenturies the number of lesser deities increased until there werethousands.While the yin-yang concept cannot with certainty be traced backof the fourth century B. C, for over two thousand years it has playedsuch an important part in the life, thought, customs, and religion ofthe Chinese that we mention it again here. The explanation of thisconcept will be given later under the popular religion of West China.THE GREAT RELIGIONSCONFUCIANISMConfucius was born in 551 B. C. and died in 479. He lived at atime when China was in a state of chaos, with deplorable economic,moral, political, and social conditions. The Kingdom of Chou wasso weak that the feudal lords did almost as they pleased, and warsvv^ere numerous and frequent. Among the rulers intrigue and as-sassinations were common, and hunting, warfare, and extravagancewere their main interests. The sufferings of the common people werealmost unbearable, for they had to fight for their rulers, were veryheavily taxed, and were ruthlessly punished for failure to cooperate
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 49
and to obey their masters. The aim of govermneut was not the wel-fare of the people, but the aggrandizement of their rulers. (Creel,1949, pp. 2, 107, 112, 143.)Confucius made a sincere and lifelong attempt to reform thesociety in which he lived. He believed that the aim of governmentshould be the welfare of the people, and that rulers should be chosennot because of heredity and wealth, but on the basis of virtue andability, a very uncommon belief for his day. He sought a high officialposition for himself so that he could carry out his plans for reform,but failing in that he taught his principles and beliefs to his pupilsand disciples, endeavoring to inspire in them faith and loyalty tothe ideals and plans that were dear to him. He aimed to find andtrain for official positions men who were good, honest, and efficient,and to induce the rulers to entrust to them the powers of office (ibid.,pp. 2-3, 4, 52, 69, 119, 157, 159, 166, 171, 222).Good character was to be achieved by education and self-cultivation.Of great importance were sincerity and the willingness to correctone's faults. Loyalty, sincerity, good faith, and propriety or decorumwere strongly emphasized. To Confucius propriety or good ceremonialwas inseparable from, and the natural expression of, good character(ibid., p. 129).The ideal people who were to control government were called chiin-tsu, or gentlemen or princely men. Though they were chosen for theirvirtue and ability and trained for their work, they might come fromthe poorest and humblest of homes. These rulers should be examplesof good conduct and be devoted to the common good.Confucius was one of the noblest reformers who ever lived. Hehad sympathy for and faith in the common man, and his purposewas to reform society and make a better world. He died believingthat he had failed, but he left behind him followers who were devotedto his ideals and taught them to others. Thus his influence was passedon to future generations.Confucius did not intend to found a religion, and many assert thatConfucianism is not a religion. But the belief in Heaven and Shang Tiand in lesser deities, filial piety, and the ceremonies of ancestorveneration and to commemorate Confucius and his disciples havecaused Confucianism to be a religion to hundreds of millions of peoplein Asia. While the Confucianism in some parts, at least, of the Con-fucian Classics and that which has come down to modern times isbelieved by some scholars to be in some ways a degenerate Confucian-ism (ibid., pp. yy, 106, iio-iii), it has not lost all its original values.
50 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42In them are such high moral, social, and religious ideals and teachingsthat Confucianism has been for centuries the main source, or at leastone of the main sources, of high ideals and teachings in China, Korea,and Japan. It is also a fact that during recent centuries Confucianismhas inspired democratic movements in Europe, especially in France,and in the United States (ibid., pp. 254-278).From the beginning, Confucianism has had rivals. Among thesewere the Moists, the Taoists, and the Legalists. By the time of theHan dynasty Moism had practically disappeared, but before that andafterward the Taoists and the Legalists were very powerful and in-fluential. Confucianism influenced its rivals, and in turn was influ-enced by them. From Taoism as a religion came mysticism, divina-tion, and superstition. Through the influence of the Legalists Con-fucius and Confucianism were sometimes made out to be supportersof despotic rulers and of despotic governments. Even the popularreligion of the common people has infiltrated into Confucianism.The writer has read and studied the Confucian Classics in theChinese language and in English translations. He has also consultedsome Confucian scholars and many of the common Chinese people.It seems to him that many educated Chinese, in T'ien, Shang Ti, andother terms, had high conceptions of a supreme god, and that someof the common people had similar ideals expressed in the terms T'ien,Shang Ti, and T'ien-lao-yeh, or the Aged One in Heaven. Neverhave the Chinese made images of this deity. About the year 1916 aChinese scholar, Mr. T'ien, joined the church at I-pin of which I wasthen pastor. Mr. T'ien asserted that he first acquired the idea of aSupreme God from the study of the Confucian Classics. Rev. FrankRawlinson, D.D., for many years the editor of the Chinese Recorder,conducted researches for more than 25 years and embodied the resultsin a book, "Chinese Ideas of the Supreme Being." He found evidencethat for centuries some of the choicest souls in China have had a highconception of the Supreme Being, who is a spirit, a moral being,omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, eternal, compassionate, andloving, and is a personality. The worship of this being he found tobe both private and public. At Peking the emperors of China wor-shiped Heaven on the Altar of Heaven on behalf of the Chinesepeople (Rawlinson, 1927). Confucianism is probably the main sourceof this conception.It has already been noted that in the Confucian Classics the supremeruler is T'ien and Shang Ti. These two terms are interchangeableand refer to the highest deity. He is majestic, righteous, just, intel-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 5I
ligent, compassionate, and powerful, and controls the universe. Hisprimary interest is in humanity. This concept did not become amonotheism, for there were lesser deities whose numbers increasedduring later centuries, but it was a near approach to it. Confucianismproduced some high religious ideals and high moral ethics whichwere a refinement of the earlier moral and religious ideals and prac-tices of China. The following are a few quotations from the Con-fucian Classics (Legge, 1899b, vol. 3).It is virtue that moves Heaven ; there is no distance to which it does notreach. Pride brings loss, and humility receives increase; this is the way ofHeaven. (P. 52.)Heaven hears and sees as our people hear and see; Heaven brightly approvesand displays its terrors as our people brightly approve and would awe; suchconnection is there between the upper and lower (worlds). How reverent oughtthe masters of territories to be. (P. 56.)The way of Heaven is to bless the good and to make the bad miserable.(P. 90.)Good and evil do not wrongly befall men, but Heaven sends down miseryor happiness according to their conduct. (P. loi.)Heaven loves the people, and the sovereign should reverently carry out (thismind of) Heaven. (P. 127.)Great Heaven has no partial affections [favorites] ; it helps only the virtuous.(P. 212.)The king twice bowed (low), and then arose, and replied, "I am utterly insig-nificant and but a child, how should I be able to govern the four quarters (of thekingdom) with a corresponding reverent awe of the dread majesty of Heaven."(P. 241.)Oh vast and distant Heaven, who art called our parent. (P. 361.)The doings of high Heaven have neither sound nor smell. (Pp. 379-380.)*Great is God, beholding the lower world in majesty. (P. 389.)Great Heaven is very intelligent. (P. 416.)Great Heaven makes no mistakes. If you go on to deteriorate in your virtue,you will bring the people to great distress. (P. 417.)To see what is right and not to do it is want of courage. (Legge, 1885a,p. 23.)What I do not wish men to do to me, I also wish not to do to men. (Ibid.,P- 54-)
* Note by Legge ; "These two lines are quoted in the last paragraph of theDoctrine of the Mean, as representing the ideal of perfect virtue. They areindicative of power, operating silently, and not to be perceived by the senses, butresistless in its operation."
52 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42When you have faults, do not fear to abandon them. (Ibid., p. 119.)Now the man of distinction is solid and straightforward, and loves righteous-ness. (Ibid., p. 169.)The Master said, "The determined scholar and the man of virtue will notseek to live at the expense of injuring their virtue. They will even sacrificetheir lives to preserve their virtue complete." (Ibid., p. 223.)What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others. (Ibid., p. 229.)The Master said, "To have faults and not to reform them—this, indeed,should be pronounced having faults." (Ibid., p. 231.)The Master said, "The superior man holds righteousness to be of highestimportance." (Ibid., p. 271.)From the beginning of the Han period (206 B. C.-A. D. 221),many emperors have at least outwardly honored Confucius and haveused and patronized the Confucian scholars. For many centuriesthe high government offices were filled by an open competitive civilservice examination system in which the main qualification for at-taining office was a knowledge of the Confucian Classics. Everycounty seat had at least one Confucian temple in which there weretablets to Confucius and his main disciples, and where twice a yearceremonies were held to honor Confucius and his disciples. Twice ayear Confucius has been respectfully commemorated in the Chineseschools.Confucianism has had much influence on the common people andon the popular religion of China, and consequently nearly all the di-vinities in the Chinese temples, unlike those of Greece and Rome, arebelieved to be morally good and to require good conduct on the partof the people. While in many Tibetan temples there are copulatinggods,^ and in both Tibet and India are gods and goddesses who ap-parently glory in killing and in cutting off heads, no such gods arefound in the temples of China. Owing not a little to the influence ofConfucius and Confucianism, the moral tone of the popular religionof China is comparatively good.TAOISMAccording to the traditional interpretation, the founder of Taoismwas Lao Tzu or Li Lao Chiin, who was born in 604 B. C. and was a
6 It is said that among some philosophic Buddhists in Tibet this sexual actsymbolizes the union of subject and object, of man and God. However, all theTibetans and others with whom I talked in eastern Tibet explained that copu-lating put the god in a good humor so that he would be more likely to grantthe petitions of the worshipers.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 53
contemporary of Confucius (Hume, R. E., 1938, p. 128; Gowen andHall, 1926, p. 70). He was keeper of the government archives at LoYang and met Confucius in an interview that was not very satisfactoryto either. He later became so discouraged that he withdrew beyondthe western barrier. The keeper of the barrier persuaded him to writedown his teachings, the result being the Tao Te Ching, the Classicof Learning and Virtue, which contains only about 5,000 words. Nota few modern scholars now date Lao Tzu about the fourth centuryB. C, a century or more after the time of Confucius. Some scholarseven doubt that Lao Tzu ever lived, that he wrote the Tao Te Ching,and that he ever met Confucius. (Lataurette, 1920, pp. 21-22; Creel,1949, pp. 195,247).At the time of Confucius and Lao Tzu, because of the weakness ofthe central government, the corruption of the rulers, the wars betweenthe feudal lords, and the exorbitant taxes, China was in a deplorablecondition. Confucius endeavored to reform and save society. LaoTzu and his followers, including Chuang Tzu and Lieh Tzu, ex-pounded a philosophical teaching which they believed would bringpeace to individuals and to society. Confucius believed that manwould remain good if properly taught. The Taoists asserted thatmankind would remain good if left alone. Confucius believed in astrong government, Taoism in no government at all, or at least invery little government. A main doctrine of Lao Tzu was wu wei ornonaction. He advised people not to strive, but to get into harmonywith Tao, which is the course of nature, the way, the path, the road,the moral and physical order of the world, the basic principle of theuniverse, reason, the ultimate, God (Hume, R. E., 1938, pp. 137-139;Creel, 1949, p. 196). It is formless, unchanging, eternal, self-existent,and self-developing, the one abounding source of all things, creative,indescribable, great All-father, Mother (LIume, ibid., pp. 138-139).This is a philosophy too abstruse and mystical to be understood byor to appeal to the common people of China (Lataurette, 1920, p. 28;Edkins, 1879, p. 381), yet it has affected the conduct of the people insubtle ways and is partly responsible for their natural poise andflexibility. In addition to the doctrine of inaction, there is credited toLao Tzu and his followers some high ethical teachings, including thereturn of good for evil, humility, and sincerity (Hume, R. E., 1938,p. 130; Gowen and Hall, 1926, p. 71).The following are selections from the Tao Teh Ching as trans-lated by Lin Yutang (1942a).
54 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42Tao is all-pervading,And its use is inexhaustible
!
Fathomless
!
Like the fountain head of all things. (P. 585.)In loving the people and governing the kingdom,Can you rule without interference? (P. 587.)In his relations with others, he loves kindness
;
In his words, he loves sincerity. (P. 587.)He who holds fast to the Tao of oldIn order to manage the affairs of NowIs able to know the Primeval BeginningsWhich are the continuity of Tao. (P. 590.)Attain the utmost in humility;Hold firm to the basis of quietude. (P. 591.)Of the best rulers,The people only know that they exist. (P. 591.)Banish learning, and vexations end. (P. 593.)The marks of great virtueFollow alone from the Tao.The thing that is called TaoIs elusive, evasive,Evasive, elusive.Yet latent in it arc forms. (P. 594.)To yield is to be preserved whole.To be bent is to become straight.To be hollow is to be filled.To be tattered is to be renewed.To be in want is to possess.To have plenty is to be confused. (P. 594.)Before the Heaven and Earth existedThere was something nebulous
:
Silent, isolated.Standing alone, changing not,Eternally revolving without fail,Worthy to be Mother of All Things.I do not know its nameAnd address it as Tao. (P. 596.)Tao is absolute and has no name. (P. 601.)The great Tao flows everywhere,(like a flood) it may go left or right.The myriad things derive their life from it,And it does not deny them. (P. 602.)The Tao never does.Yet through it everything is done.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 55
If the kings and barons can keep the Tao,The world will of its own accord be reformed.When reformed and rising to action,Let it be restrained by the Nameless pristine simplicity.The Nameless pristine simplicityIs stripped of desire (for contention).By stripping of desire quiescence is achieved,And the world arrives at peace of its own accord. (P. 603.)The softest substance in the worldGoes through the hardest.That-which-is-without-form penetratesthat-which-has-no-crevice
;
Through this I know the benefit of taking no action.The teaching without wordsAnd the benefits of taking no actionAre without compare in the universe. (P. 607.)Win the world by doing nothing. (P. 613.)Therefore the sage desires to have no desire,And values not objects difficult to obtain. (P. 617.)For love is virtuous in attack.And invulnerable in defense.Heaven arms with loveThose it would not see destroyed. (P. 618.)When people are hungry,It is because their rulers eat too much tax-grain.Therefore the unrulincss of hungry peopleIs due to the interference of their rulers. (P. 6ji.)Who can have enough and to spare to give tothe entire world?Only the man of Tao. (P. 622.)During the centuries after Lao Tzu, the Taoist religion steadilydegenerated. Search for the elixir of life and longevity and evenimmortality, divination, witchcraft, and the use of magic ceremoniesto control and exorcise demons, which were believed to cause sick-ness and other calamities and to accomplish other purposes, becamethe essential features of the Taoist religion. Ch'in Shih Huang, "thefirst emperor," rejected Confucianism and favored a degenerate Tao-ism. Some of the Han dynasty emperors favored Taoism, and dur-ing the latter half of the second century A. D. Chang Tao-ling, thefirst Taoist pope, practically made Taoism identical with the popularsuperstitions of his time. The emperors of the T'ang dynasty gen-erally favored Taoism because they believed themselves to be de-scendants of Lao Tzu. From the time of Ch'in Shih Huang to theend of the Manchu dynasty (1912), some emperors favored and
56 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 1 42promoted Taoism, whereas others persecuted and sometimes tried toexterminate it.After the coming of Buddhism to China, Taoism and Buddhismbecame great rivals, and to some extent they have remained rivalsever since, although after several centuries they seemed to settledown to friendly coexistence. As is so often the case with rivals,each borrowed from the other, and each influenced the other. Throughthe influence of Buddhism, Taoism now developed a trinity, LaoTzu (now deified), P'an Ku, and the Pearly Emperor, togetherwith a great pantheon of gods ; the use of temples and monasteries
;
the employment of monks, first allowed to marry, but later gen-erally required to be celibate ; heaven and hell ; charms and incanta-tions ; more magic ceremonies to bring rain, to cause good crops, togive general prosperity, to accomplish other desired results, and toheal diseases and give protection from other calamities by the ex-orcism of demons (Lataurette, 1920, pp. 125-126). Taoist sacredbooks were written closely imitating those of the Buddhists.Philosophical Taoism, a mystical philosophy with high moral teach-ings, has always been understood by and has appealed to a limitednumber of elite scholars. Among the great mass of priests and wor-shipers, Taoism as a religion has become so degenerated that if onedesires to study the modern superstitions of the Chinese people,there is probably no better way than to study the beliefs and prac-tices of the Taoists.For many centuries religious Taoism identified itself with the super-stitions of the Chinese people and so won and held their allegiance.But what has in the past been a great asset, has in recent years be-come a decided handicap. The people of China are emerging intoa new age, characterized by an intellectual and psychological awaken-ing and enlightenment, when religions using primitive methods andpsychology and preying on the superstitions of the ignorant aredoomed to rejection. BUDDHISMBuddha, whose real name was Gautama, was born in a noble andwealthy family in northern India. Different authorities give differ-ent dates for his birth and death, but all agree that he lived to be80 years old, and modern scholars generally date his birth at 563 B. C.and his death at 483 B. C.Buddha was reared in luxury and protected from the hardshipsof life, but later he was so impressed by human sorrow and misery,caused by sickness, old age, and death, that he left his home and
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 57his wife and child to become a wanderer seeking enlightenment andsalvation. It is said that he first tried philosophical speculation andlater, failing to find a solution by that method, tried asceticism. Hefinally realized that this method also was useless, and at the age of35 attained enlightenment. He perceived the four noble truths andthe noble eightfold path. The four noble truths are: first, all exist-ence involves suffering ; second, all suffering is caused by desire ; third,all suffering will cease on the suppression of desires ; and fourth, everyperson should live according to the noble eightfold path. This pathis right belief, right aspiration, right speech, right action, right liveli-hood, right endeavor, right thought, and right concentration. Thepurpose of salvation, according to Buddha, is the attainment ofNirvana. This is interpreted as "the highest happiness." Somescholars regard this as the extinction of all consciousness and per-sonality, but this interpretation is not accepted by all Buddhists. Itwould seem to be a negative condition, "a passionless peace."Buddha rejected the gods of India, the monism of the philosophers,and the many deities in the popular religion. He did not believe inand teach about any god. He rejected caste, the numerous and elabo-rate magical ceremonies and rituals, and the idea of a permanentpersonality or soul. However, he accepted the prevailing pessimisticview of life, that it is so full of disappointments, suffering, and sor-row that it is of little value, and the belief in karma and trans-migration.Having found the way of salvation and been enlightened himself,he began to instruct disciples and to send them out to teach othersthe way of salvation. While he gave a place to laymen, he requiredcelibacy of his closest followers and organized them into a society.After his death they continued to preach his doctrines. Buddha him-self was later deified, and the gods of India were again worshipedby the Buddhists, who added many deities of their own to theirpantheon. Magic ceremonies and festivals similar to those of Indiaand the use of charms and incantations later became a vital part ofBuddhism.Buddhism spread into Ceylon, Cambodia, Burma, Siam, Tibet,China, Korea, and Japan. In the southern countries it remainedtruer to the historical doctrines and practices of Buddha and iscalled "the lesser vehicle." In Tibet, China, Korea, and Japan it haschanged greatly. Here it has a large pantheon of gods and goddesses,many heavens and hells, elaborate religious festivals and ceremonies,many temples containing images of the gods, and charms andincantations.
58 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42In Hinayana Buddhism the salvation offered was relief from trans-migration and rebirth into a happy state of Nirvana, which was virtu-ally a state of unconsciousness with the loss of individuality. Thiscould be attained through an age-long, patient, and arduous accumu-lation of positive merit.In Mahayana Buddhism people were saved from hell into heavenand from rebirth by the help of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, and therewas the possibility of a single, sudden enlightenment. Much magicand many magic formulas were used, and people were encouragedto repeat the name of Buddha or the magic phrase Om-mani-padme-hum. Both Hinayana and Mahayana Buddhism were introduced intoChina and Tibet, but only Mahayana Buddhism endured.It is generally accepted as a fact that Buddhism entered Chinaduring the first century A. D. Translation of the Buddhist scrip-tures was soon begun, and Buddhist priests continued to come fromIndia for over 600 years. Until the time of the Western Chin dynasty,the work of translation was done primarily by monks from Indiaassisted by Chinese scholars, but from that time on it was done pri-marily by Chinese. At first the only monks were from India, butin A. D. 336 Chinese priests were ordained, and their number in-creased rapidly. Buddhism was becoming indigenous and made amaz-ing progress in northwest China, especially among nomadic peoples.Buddhism has often been opposed by Chinese scholars because ofits pessimism and other-worldliness, but many have been favorablyattracted to it by its profound philosophical ideas and the elegantliterary style in the Chinese translations of the sacred books. Bud-dhism has adapted its moral and religious teachings to those of theChinese, so that they are more appealing to the Chinese people.In China Buddhism developed a goodly number of "schools" orsects, each emphasizing certain teachings and practices which theybelieved to be especially important. Their differences no doubt meanta great deal to their founders and to the priests and leading layrrienin charge of these "schools" and their temples. Yet it is evident thatthese differences do not mean very much to the majority of theChinese people, who gladly worship in Buddist, Taoist, and Con-fucian temples and believe in the proverb, "The three religions areone." It is very likely that the differences in the various sects wereless emphasized in West China than in North, East, and SouthChina. During his 30-odd years in West China, the writer visitedmany Buddhist temples and talked with many priests. Most of thepriests were unable to explain the differences, and either assertedthat there were no sects, or that they "differed not much."
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 59During the past centuries Buddhism has won and held the loyaltyof the Chinese common people because it has adopted and accommo-dated itself to the primitive practices and superstitions to which theywere accustomed and was believed to make available magical orsuperhuman povv^er. By the worship of the gods, the chanting ofsacred books, and other religious ceremonies, and the use of charmsand incantations to protect people from demons and various calami-ties and to guarantee success and happiness and the satisfying ofhuman needs and desires in this world and in the world to come,it won the hearts of the common people of China. But in the latterpart of the 19th and the early decades of the 20th century, therewas a great intellectual awakening and enlightenment in China, to-gether with disastrous foreign wars, the weakening and final collapseof the Manchu dynasty followed by chaotic conditions, many civilwars, two world wars in which China became much involved, theCommunist uprising, and growing economic distress which causedmany families to become bankrupt and hundreds of millions to en-dure the hardships of poverty. Consequently, conditions in Chinabecame fluid and changing, and many of the people of China ques-tioned and even rejected Buddhism and Taoism because of theirmany superstitious teachings and practices.In an article, "Buddhism and Chinese Culture," and in a laterbook, "Buddhism in Chinese History," Prof. Arthur F. Wright di-vides the history of Buddhism in China into four periods (Wright,1957, 1959). The first he calls the Period of Preparation, A. D.65-3 1 7- He shows that the political, social, and intellectual events ofthese years were such as to make the people skeptical of their ownand susceptible to a foreign religion and its cultural accompaniments.The Han dynasty weakened and fell, and society was disintegrating.Former moral, social, and political ideals and customs were ques-tioned and discredited. At the same time the Buddhist sacred bookswere being translated, and Buddhist teachings and practices werebeing adapted to those of the Chinese (Wright, 1957, pp. 19-24;1959, pp. 21-41).The next period, A. D. 317-589, he calls the Period of Domesti-cation. He states that the process differed in the north and in thesouth, but everywhere Buddhism attracted all classes of society, fromthe rulers and educated aristocrats to the lowly peasants. Buddhistideas and customs were brought to the Chinese, but very many ofthem were Sinicized and adapted to those of China. This resultedin new literature, new forms of art and architecture, new laws,
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new music and musical instruments, and changes in the theory andpractice of medicine and in religious practices, doctrines, and phi-losophy (Wright, 1957, pp. 24-31; 1959, pp. 42-64).The third period, A. D. 589-900, the author calls the Period ofAcceptance and Independent Growth.We shall see that under the Sui and the T'ang those elements of Buddhismwhich had been domesticated in China were accepted—regardless of the predi-lections of individual rulers—as integral parts of social, political, economicand cultural life ; the prevalence of Buddhist belief in all classes of society madeit essential for those in power to take account of this in formulating statepolicies at all levels. Acceptance by the populace and by the state—these are theconditions that make possible the notable development of Buddhism in thisperiod of independent growth: the creation of a Buddhism by and for theChinese. (Wright, 1957, pp. 31-32.)
"In the life and culture of the upper class, Buddhism was every-where accepted." Buddhism was the dominant intellectual, spiritual,and esthetic interest of the educated. Officials and nobles were mu-nificent patrons of Buddhism. Buddhist ideas saturated Chineseliterature and pervaded the thinking of the upper classes. It wasfully accepted by the common people, even in rural districts. Thedevelopment of the different schools of Buddhism was part of theprocess of domestication, carried into this period. Before the endof this period, the decline of Buddhism began (Wright, 1957, pp. 31-38; 1959, pp. 65-85).The fourth period, A. D. 900 to the present, the author calls thePeriod of Appropriation. He mentions the fact that Buddhist andTaoist doctrines and practices have been largely amalgamated in thesecret societies, and that in the country districts Buddhism has fusedwith the folk cults, the priests often resembling the shamans of thepopular reglion. Elements of the Buddhist, the Taoist, and the folkreligion fused into the popular religion (Wright, 1957, pp. 30-40;1959, pp. 98-104). Many Buddhist words and phrases are used inthe Chinese vocabulary, Buddhist art designs have been adopted, andsome Buddhist ideas, such as karma and rebirth, have been trans-formed and accepted by the Chinese as their own (Wright, 1957,p. 40; 1959, p. 105).While the eighth century was the golden age of Buddhism in China,the ninth century saw the beginning of its decline. The empire wasseverely shaken by the rebellion of An Lu-shan. There were attacksand threats of attacks by the Uighurs and the Turks. These humili-ated the rulers and impoverished the people, weakening the confi-dence of the Chinese people in their government and in their culture.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 6lSince Buddhism was interwoven with ahnost every phase of that cul-ture, it gave attacks on Buddhism a receptive and sympathetic hear-ing. It was criticized as being a foreign rehgion, with wastefulexpenditures on temples, images, and ceremonies, an idle clergy, anda great deal of tax-free property, and because of its other-world-liness.During the ninth century there were considerable government op-position and attempts at suppression. The rulers attempted to im-pose drastic restrictions on Buddhist activities and organizations. InA. D. 842 to 845, there were decrees that Buddhism must be sup-pressed, an empire-wide destruction of temples, the confiscation ofBuddhist lands, and an attempt to secularize the clergy.At this time there was a revival of Confucianism, which continuedinto the Sung dynasty. Leading scholars reinterpreted Confucianismand enriched their philosophy by borrowing from both Buddhists andTaoists, developing what has been called neo-Confucianism. Thisappealed strongly to the educated classes and lessened among themthe influence of Buddhism.It is not certain just when Buddhism first entered the provinceof Szechwan. The first of the Buddhist caves at Tun-huang inKansu is dated A. D. 353 (Shih Yai, 1947, p. i). Some of the localhistories of West China claim that certain famous temples wereerected during the T'ang d)masty, A. D. 618-907. At Ch'iung-chou,which is southwest of Chengtu, there was a local flood about the year1947 which washed away a great deal of soil and exposed the founda-tions and many stone images of a very old Buddhist temple. Mostof the articles of scientific value were deposited and displayed in themuseum of the West China Union University. On some of thestones were inscriptions dating the temple in the T'ang dynasty. Ac-cording to the local history, there was at least one other Buddhisttemple in Ch'iung-chou in 1947 which was founded in the T'angdynasty. These were great temples, with very artistic images andcarvings ; hence Buddhism must have entered Szechwan several cen-turies earlier.In the survey of the temples of I-pin conducted by myself andothers in 1928 it was found that there were 49 Buddhist temples,25 Taoist temples, 2 temples of the Ju T'an sect, and 2 Confuciantemples. The survey of the temples of Chengtu conducted from1941 to 1944 revealed that there were still traces of 98 Buddhisttemples, 44 Taoist temples, 16 temples of the Ju T'an sect, and 3Confucian temples. This shows fairly well the comparative strengthof the Buddhist and Taoist religions in West China.
62 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42MOHAMMEDANISMIn A. D. 757, at the request of the Chinese emperor Su Tsung,4,000 Moslem troops were sent into China to help in the suppressionof a rebellion (Couling, 1917, pp. 378-379; Gowen and Hall, 1926,pp. 1 19-120; MacGowan, 1906, pp. 319-320). They remained, mar-ried Chinese wives, and their descendants were loyal Mohammedans.In the T'ang dynasty, Moslem merchants came to the seaports ofChina on Arabian vessels. Later, after the victories of Kublai Khan,they came into Kansu and also entered seaports in southeast China,where they remained to carry on trade (Couling, 1917, p. 379; Good-rich, 1959, pp. 125, 134). When Yunnan was conquered, a Moslemwas sent to govern the province, and we are told that he governed sowell that many of the people became Mohammedans. Great progresswas also made in northern China, especially in Kansu and Shensi.In western Asia, Europe, and Africa, Mohammedanism was oftenspread by the sword, but in China this method was not used. Oneway of spreading the religion is by marriage—anyone who marriesa Mohammedan must become a Mohammedan. Another way isthrough the natural increase of their children, and still another wayis to adopt orphans, or to purchase children, especially during timesof famine, and to bring them up as Mohammedans. There have alsobeen times when China has conquered Mohammedan tribes in Kansuor in central Asia, and members of these tribes have migrated intoChina and remained there. In these ways Mohammedanism has re-mained and prospered in China, and it is estimated that their presentnimiber is somewhere between 5 and 30 millions, very likely between10 and 15 millions.During the last three centuries there have been a number of Mo-hammedan rebellions, and we shall mention only the three most impor-tant. One broke out in Yunnan in 1855, lasting 18 years, during whichabout a million people lost their lives. The Tungan rebellion in Kansuand Shensi broke out in 1862 and was finally quelled in 1870. Inanother rebellion which ended in 1877, it is estimated that 10 millionlives were lost (Couling, 191 7, p. 379)-In China as elsewhere the Mohammedans are monotheists, believ-ing that there is only one god, and that Mohammed is his prophet.They practice circumcision and do not eat pork. The Koran is printedand read in the Arabic, which is the sacred language. They do notworship idols, and they practice polygamy. They have ceremonies topurify themselves before worship. They encourage almsgiving, prayfive times a day, and while pilgrimages to Mecca are encouraged, a
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worship service has been substituted for the many who are not ableto travel so far (ibid.; Mason, 1921, pp. 302-303), They give theirchildren a thorough moral and religious education, so that their chil-dren almost never give up their faith.Mohammedanism in China has been much influenced by, and hasmade many adjustments to, Chinese ideals and customs. In "TheArabian Prophet," S. M. Zwemer says, "It is of deep interest to seehow the mass of traditions has been sifted, adjusted, and even de-liberately falsified to fit in with Chinese ideas and ideals, an environ-ment which has given the familiar story an entirely new aspect. Con-fucianism has modified Islam in China." (Mason, 1921, p. ii.)Prof. Wing-tsit Chan, in "Religious Trends in Modern China,"has pointed out that in recent decades there have been some importanttrends among the Mohammedans in China, namely, a tendency to-ward liberalism, new attitudes toward the Koran, an intellectual awak-ening, a new "law-seeking" movement, and closer identification withChinese national Hfe (Chan, 1953, pp. 188-216). It is difficult, how-ever, to point out any important contribution that Mohammedanismhas made to the customs and culture of China.CHRISTIANITYThe first Christians to enter China were the Nestorians. Thefamous Nestorian tablet, which was erected in Hsi-an, Shensi, inA. D. 781, and other documents assert that Christianity was firstbrought to Ch'ang-an in A. D. 635. It prospered for a time underthe favor of the emperors, and later there were monasteries in Kansu,farther east, and in Chengtu. In A. D. 845 its leaders, along with theBuddhists, were officially ordered to renounce their faith. There isevidence of the existence of Christianity in the empire during theloth and nth centuries. Then we read of the spread of Christianityduring the 12th and 13th centuries, and its prosperity continued dur-ing the 14th century. Marco Polo found Christians and Christianleaders in different parts of the empire, for their monasteries existedin Yunnan, in Szechwan, and in many other provinces. Nevertheless,the Christians were comparatively few and of little influence, andafter the fall of the Yuan dynasty Nestorianism completely disap-peared from China.Roman Catholicism first entered China during the Yuan dynasty.In A. D. 1294 John of Montecorvino, a Franciscan, arrived in Pe-king. Under the favor and patronage of the emperors, and with thehelp of other missionaries, he established churches and baptized many
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converts in Peking, Zainton, and several other cities. After the fallof the Yuan dynasty Roman Catholicism, like Zoroastrianism, com-pletely disappeared from China,During the Ming dynasty Roman Catholic missionary work wasresumed. The first missionary to come to China was St. FrancisXavier, who died on the island of Shang-ch'uan in 1552 withoutreaching the mainland. Other missionaries reached Macao and Can-ton, but not the interior, and Matthew Ricci arrived at Macao in1582, Nan-chang in Kiangsi and Nanking in 1595. In 1596 hevisited Peking, where he settled in 1601. Many other missionariesfollowed, other organizations later entered the field, and the numberof converts increased.The Jesuits sent a number of scholars to Peking, who made im-portant contributions in astronomy, mathematics, history, geography,mechanics, and art. They brought prestige to the movement, and fora time gained the favor and patronage of the emperor. Other mis-sionaries, mainly from Italy, France, and Portugal, entered and estab-lished churches in the provinces of Chili, Shansi, Shantung, Honan,Szechwan, Hukuang, Kiangsi, Kiangan, Chekiang, Fukien, Kuang-tung, and Kuangsi.The Roman Catholic priests and nuns were zealous in spreadingtheir religion. They opened hospitals, schools, and orphanages, andestablished churches. Hospitals, by alleviating suffering, lessened op-position and won the hearts of patients and friends. Schools, whilehelping win the respect of educated Chinese, were places where re-ligion was taught every day and were a means of influencing pupilsand their parents. In the orphanages the children were given a living,a home, and an education, and were taught the Roman Catholic re-ligion. The churches were often large buildings in which to worshipwith dignity and which impressed the people with the greatness ofthis religion. After the Boxer Uprising and partly with the aid ofthe Boxer indemnity, the church came into possession of a great dealof property. By 1922 there were approximately 2 million RomanCatholic communicants in China,Protestant missions in China began in 1807 with Robert Morrison,who had been sent out by the London Missionary Society. He wasable to live in the agency of the East India Company in Canton, al-though confined within the limits of that agency. At that time, ac-cording to Chinese law, the death penalty awaited any Chinese whowould teach the Chinese language to a foreigner, Morrison had pre-viously studied medicine, astronomy, and the Chinese language. Hecompleted a Chinese grammar in 1812, a Chinese dictionary in 1814,
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and published the Bible in Chinese in 1824. His first convert wasbaptized in 1814, and jVIorrison died in 1834.In later years other missionary societies sent missionaries fromEurope and from the United States. Many missionaries retired be-cause of ill health, and many others died. Until the opening of Hong-kong in 1 84 1 and of the five treaty ports in 1843. it was not possiblefor them to enter or to live in China proper. In 1865 the numberof missionaries was 112, and of Chinese converts 3,132 (Couling,1917, p. 463). By the treaty of Tientsin in 1858 foreigners were al-lowed to travel in the interior, and by the treaty of Peking in i860they were allowed to reside, purchase property, and erect buildingsthroughout China. Since these and other concessions were obtainedby military force, it was natural for the Chinese to regard the mis-sionaries as agents of foreign governments and to resent their beingin China. The superstitions of the masses and the conservatism ofthe educated Chinese resulted in much opposition to the activities ofthe missionaries. Any natural calamity might be blamed on them andresult in riots and in persecution. They opened churches, chapels,schools, hospitals, and dispensaries, and often took a prominent partin famine relief. At the time of the third missionary conference inShanghai in 1890, there were 1,296 foreign missionaries in China,and 17,287 church members. But smoldering suspicion and opposi-tion broke out early in 1900 in the Boxer Uprising, which was en-couraged by the Manchu rulers, the object being to drive all theforeigners and their agencies out of China. Much mission propertywas destroyed, and it is estimated that 212 missionaries and 1,909Christian Chinese were killed.Prior to the Boxer Uprising, most of the contacts of the Protestantmissionaries were with uneducated Chinese and had for their pri-mary object "the saving of souls." Notable exceptions, and therewere others, were the activities of Timothy Richard and GilbertReid, who profoundly influenced the young emperor Kuang Hsit, re-sulting in his reform movement of 1898. By a coup the EmpressDowager put a stop to the proposed reforms and thus helped to bringon the Boxer Uprising.The defeat of the Boxers, the punishment of the guilty officials,and the imposing of exorbitant indemnities awakened in the Chinesea keen desire to strengthen China by the acquisition of Western learn-ing. The missionaries began to place a stronger emphasis on educa-tional and medical work and on various forms of social service. Wiseplanning there was to a degree from the time of Robert Morrison,
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with a goodly sprinkling of great Protestant missionaries, but fromthis time on, wise and careful plans and policies became a larger fac-tor in the work. A growing spirit of cooperation arose, especially ineducational and medical work, and in the creating and publishing ofChristian literature in the Chinese language. The work continued toprosper, and in 1907 there were 3,445 missionaries and 178,354Protestant church members.The revolution of 1911, resulting in the establishment of a nomi-nal republic, brought even greater opportunities to Protestant mis-sions. Many of the revolutionary leaders were at least nominal Chris-tians or had been educated in Christian schools. In establishing newlaws and new educational institutions, the help of native Christiansand Protestant missionaries was often sought and obtained. Re-ligious liberty was recognized by law, and the number of inquirersand of converts steadily increased.Chinese Christians and missionaries began to see the importance ofdeveloping indigenous churches that could in time be self-supporting,self-controlling, and self-propagating, with the development and useof strong and able native leaders. Although heated discussions some-times arose, in the long run this became the policy of the nativechurches, of missionaries, and of foreign missionary societies. Thewisdom of this policy became evident in 1949, when China becameCommunist and foreign missionary work in China came to an end.According to "The Christian Occupation of China" (Staufifer,1922), published in 1922 but with materials gathered about 1920,there were in China, in 1920, 344,974 Protestant communicants anda constituency of over 600,000. There were 5,607 Protestant Chris-tian lower primary schools with 155,779 pupils, 956 higher primaryschools with 32,829 pupils, 291 middle schools with 15,293 pupils, and14 Christian colleges and universities, the total enrollment being wellover 200,000. There were 323 hospitals and 234 dispensaries, be-sides a goodly number of medical schools and nurses' training schools.In 1949, when the bamboo curtain went down in China, there wereat least one million Protestant communicants, among them many veryable Chinese Christian leaders.In "Each with His Own Brush," Daniel Johnson Fleming statesthat art has always been a handmaid of religion, and that religion hasalways been a creator and preserver of art. He says that now thatChristianity has become ecumenical, established in all parts of theworld, one expectantly surveys the younger Christian communitiesof the world to see what uses of form and color they are making. The
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expansion of Christianity into the non-Christian world opens up anew significant period, not only in the expression of the spirit, butalso in art (Fleming, 1938, p. i). By 1948 many new Christianhymns and hymn tunes had been written and were being used bythe Chinese Christian Church, and many admirable works of art, bothby Catholic and Protestant artists, were to be found in Christianpublications, churches, and homes. This is one evidence that Chris-tianity had reached and influenced the souls of the Chinese people.The Nestorian missionaries came to Sian during the seventh cen-tury, and their work spread into Szechwan and Yunnan. By the endof the Ming dynasty, A. D. 1644, Roman Catholic churches had beenestablished in every province of China excepting Kwelchow andYunnan (Lataurette, 1920, p. 107), and we can be sure that it wasnot very much later when they were established in those provinces.In spite of a number of anti-Christian riots and of persecutions, thenumber of Roman Catholic adherents in West China has steadilyincreased.The first Protestant missionary to visit West China was GriffithJohn of the London Missionary Society, in 1868. The China InlandMission soon followed, and later, other missions from Canada,Europe, and the United States. In 1886, 1895, and 1899 anti-Chris-tian riots caused destruction of property and sometimes loss of life.Each time the missionaries were forced to leave, but later returnedand continued their work. The revolution in 1911 led to anotherevacuation, and from 1924 to 1929 a very strong anti-Christian move-ment hindered the progress of the church and again caused manymissionaries to leave.As in other parts of China, the Christian program in West Chinaincluded churchs, schools, hospitals, and much social service and re-lief of suffering. In "The Christian Occupation of China" (Stauflfer,1922), it is estimated that in 1920 there were in West China, exclu-sive of Sikang and Kokonor, 1,904 missionaries, 2,522 full-time nativeChristian leaders, 732 schools besides the West China Union Uni-versity, 24,925 pupils, 38 hospitals, 73 dispensaries, and 39,633 churchmembers. In 1940 it was estimated that the number of Protestantchurch members was about 80,000 (Wu Yi-fang, 1940, p. iii). Invast areas, especially in Sikang, western Szechwan, Yunnan, Kokonor,and Kansu, there were no churches and no church members. In WestChina as in other parts of China, the influence of Protestant Chris-tianity was far out of proportion to the number of its missionariesand native Christians.
68 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42THE LESSER RELIGIONSNON-CHINESEch'uan miaoThe Ch'uan Miao are an ethnic group living in the high mountainson the borders of Szechwan, Kweichow, and Yunnan Provinces.Here they have Hved for centuries, but their traditions say that theyformerly lived in Kwangtung or in Kiangsi Province. They assertthat in a war with the Chinese the Miao were defeated and theirland, property, and weapons confiscated. They were brought in aforced migration, with their hands tied behind their backs, and re-leased in the mountainous land where they now live (Graham, 1937b).Though the Ch'uan Miao have clung tenaciously to their own lan-guage and customs, there is evidence of cultural diffusion beforethe migration to West China, as well as in more recent times. Forinstance, after a corpse has been buried a number of years, the graveis opened, the old cofifin is thrown away or burned, a new coffm andnew clothing are provided, the bones are washed with wine and care-fully laid in order on the new clothing, the lid is laid on the coffin,and the coffin is covered with dirt. This is an old Chinese custom inFukien and in Kwangtung.Most of these people speak Qiinese as well as the Miao language,but up until recent years they had no writing of their own, and veryfew, if any, of them could read or write Chinese. Their traditionsand folktales have been made into poetry and, as songs, are sung byindividuals who have learned them ; thus they are handed down fromgeneration to generation.The language of the Chinese in southern Szechwan and in Yunnanhas five tones and is monosyllabic and tonal, whereas the languageof the Ch'uan IMiao, which is also monosyllabic and tonal, has ninetones.The Ch'uan Aliao have no tribal organization that includes thewhole group. They have local rulers called gil leo or "old clubs," andsometimes several local rulers cooperate temporarily for the goodof the people. If they are a tribe, it is only because they have a com-mon language, common customs, common ideals, and a strong senseof unity.All the Ch'uan Miao are farmers. They are on occasion carpenters,blacksmiths, masons, or priests, but all depend primarily on farm-ing for a living. Tools and farming implements are the same as
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those of the Chinese, the most important tools being the hammer,ax, hatchet, saw, plow, sickle, and hoe. Most of them are made byChinese blacksmiths and sold in Chinese markets.Travel and transportation are generally on foot. People walkthrough the fields and over mountain paths and roads to visit theirfriends, and to towns and marketplaces. Loads are carried on theirbacks or at the ends of carrying-poles. They have few horses ormules, and these are generally used for riding.The domestic animals are dogs, pigs, cattle, water buffaloes, horses,mules, sheep, goats, chickens, ducks, and geese. Every home hasone or more watchdogs, and there is a special breed of hunting dogs.Water buffaloes are generally used to plow in rice paddies, and cattleon dry land. Much of their land is so steep that it can only be culti-vated by the hoe. The sickle is used to reap crops, to cut grass, andto cut down small bushes and trees. The ax is used on large trees.The Ch'uan Miao do not have stores or markets. There is con-siderable barter, but many of their commodities are bought and soldin the Chinese markets. Going to market is both a social and a busi-ness affair.Some rice is grown on low, level ground where there is plenty ofwater for irrigation, but the main product is maize. Other farmproducts are fruit, vegetables, pork, beef, mutton, chickens, ducks,and geese. The principal food is maize ground into meal and boiled.It is eaten from bowls with chopsticks, like rice, and is generally mixedwith vegetables and meat. The more prosperous Ch'uan Miao eatrice part of the time.Many Ch'uan Miao houses have floors and walls of pounded clayand roofs that are thatched. Some are built of wood and have tileroofs. Other houses have walls of bamboo covered with plaster. Thepoorest have walls of cornstalks and roofs of straw.The family is the social unit and is patrilineal. Marriages are madenot by individuals, but by families through go-betweens. Land,houses, furniture, domestic animals, tools and utensils belong tofamilies instead of individuals. As soon as a woman marries, shebelongs to the family of her husband, for a family includes all menand their wives, their sons, and their unmarried daughters.People having the same family name cannot marry, for even ifthere is no blood relationship they are regarded as relatives. Thereis also a feeling of relatedness between all Ch'uan Miao, so that tosome extent they are all brothers and sisters.The main amusements of women and girls are gossiping, making
70 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL, I42
love, going to market, attending feasts, funerals, and memorial cere-monies, listening to a man or a woman sing folksongs, and watchingmen dance and play the liu sheng. Amusements of men and boys in-clude the above, playing blind man's buff, kicking the shuttlecock,sham battles, "snake protecting her eggs," dogs chasing wild animals,and hunting. At New Year time and at weddings all enjoy watchingthree men "playing lion." The Ch'uan Miao have no theatricals, butenjoy watching Chinese theatricals in Chinese towns and villages.There is little gambling but a great deal of lovemaking among theCh'uan Miao. Generally it is not between a man and his wife, butbetween a man and another man's wife, or a woman and anotherwoman's husband.I have found no trace of the couvade among the Ch'uan Miao.After the birth of a child a mother must remain in her home for atleast 30 days, or it is believed that calamities will ensue.The common belief is that the Ch'uan Miao inhabit the high, steepmountains because they prefer to do so. This is a mistake, for theirfolktales reveal the fact that they dread the steep paths and highmountains and live there only because they are a defeated peopleand have not been allowed to live on the more level and more fertilelowlands. Their heaven is called Ntst ni lou gou bih, or the ancientlevel land of Ntzi (god). There it is level, with no steep mountainsto climb.The Ch'uan Miao have no organized religion, no temples, nocelibate priests, and they make no images of their gods. They com-pletely reject the Chinese gods and their images, and their folktalesintimate that harm comes to the Ch'uan Miao from worshiping them.They have a supreme god called Ntzi, but there are no ceremonies toworship him. They say that he is a good god and will help them with-out gifts and ceremonies of worship. This god is sometimes calledNtzi-nyong-leo, which means god, foundation, old, and seems todesignate the ancient god who is the foundation of the universe. Hehas a daughter whom he sometimes sends to help a poor man bybecoming his wife.There is an immortal called Yei Seo, Yeh Seo, or 56 Seo. He isvery wise and kind and will always help people who are in trouble bygiving wise and kindly advice. He can make himself visible or invisi-ble and is often seen near a cloud into which he may disappear. Heis not worshiped. A female deity called Ts'i-ma-niang-tsai is verycompassionate and is merciful and helpful to unfortunate children.A warty toad called in Chinese Lai-ke-pao has supernatural power
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 7I
and sometimes causes hail. When a hailstorm occurs, the people fireoff guns to frighten the warty toad, believing that this will stop thehail from falling.In some homes there is a family god representing the ancestors. Itconsists of a string of spirit money, hung up by the tuan kung orsorcerer in the center of the rear of the front room, on which hehas sprinkled some chicken blood. It is an imitation of, and a sub-stitute for, the Chinese house god on which is written the words,
"The throne of heaven, earth, rulers, relatives, and scholars." Themain door of a house is worshiped as a god. Behind closed doorsand in secrecy a pig is killed, and offered to the door in worship. Inthis ceremony, if a single word of Chinese is uttered, the whole cere-mony must be repeated.A dragon king, who lives in a palace under a lake, causes rain. Healso has a daughter whom he sometimes marries to a poor man tohelp the man prosper. Certain evergreen trees such as the nan milthat grow on hills or mountains are worshiped as gods, but never afir or a pine. It is beheved that this worship causes the crops and thedomestic animals to prosper and sometimes heals diseases.There are three great demons or devils. One is glang gii, whocauses people to drown. A second, glang-da-lo, is so large that hecan step from one mountaintop to another, or from the earth to thesky. He can strike a person dead with one blow of his thumb.Glang-do or glang-ndo is a sky demon. In his worship a sow iskilled and offered, after which the demon is expected to disappear.The Ch'uan Miao believe that all diseases and other calamities arecaused by demons. Therefore the exorcising of demons, either driv-ing them away or controlling them, is a very important matter, andthis task is assigned to a special person—a geomancer. He is calledin Chinese a tuan kung and in Ch'uan Miao do nun. I have witnessedhis ceremonies and taken motion pictures.At times during these ceremonies the tuan kung beats a brassgong and repeats incantations. Occasionally he says "pfit" and spurtswater out of his mouth. He burns spirit money as an offering to thedemons and sits on a stool saying "duv, duv, duv, duv" for sometime as he imitates the sound of the hoofs of the horse on which herides down into hell. He uses an assistant who is called in Chinese ama chilch or horse's hoof because of his speed and vigor. This man isput under a spell, after which he leaps about with a hatchet in eachhand, striking in all directions. If he kills an angleworm or a mouse orsome other creature, this creature is regarded as a demon. After a
72 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42time the ma chileh is released from the spell, when he is normal again.The tuan kiing has ceremonies for expelling all kinds of demons andfor healing many kinds of diseases.A priest called in Ch'uan Miao a mo performs all funeral andmemorial ceremonies. He is not a celibate, but a farmer who knowsthe ceremonies so well that he can perform them whenever necessary.He is often a father or an older brother in a family.Funeral ceremonies generally last two or three days in summer-time and up to seven days in winter. Soon after a person dies, a mandances and plays the Ihi shcng for a while, accompanied by the cere-monial drum. Three times the priest calls upon the deceased to arise,taking him by the hand and trying to assist him. Then he kills arooster, and the soul of the rooster leads the soul of the deceased toparadise.Some time later there is a procession in which one man marches infront twirling a stick. Two men sounding buffalo horns follow him,then two men carrying green bamboo twigs, and finally two carryingguns. This ceremony symbolizes ancient times when these peoplelived in deep forests where there were many dangerous wild animals,and the blowing of buffalo horns frightened away the animals thatcame to attack them. Later, a bull or a male water buffalo is offeredalive to the deceased, then it is killed and the meat is cooked andeaten by friends and relatives at the funeral feasts. Generally on thenext night after the bull is killed, a ceremony of dancing and pushingis participated in by the strongest young men. It takes place insidethe house. Often the furniture is smashed, and it has sometimes hap-pened that poorly built houses have been pushed over.Twelve days after the funeral a memorial ceremony called inChinese sao ch'ieh and in Ch'uan Miao a shi or a si is performed.On this day the spirit of the deceased is supposed to return and visithis home. His relatives sprinkle ashes outside the main door of thehouse and later look at the footprints in the ashes, for it is believedthat these indicate whether the soul has been reborn as a human being,a horse, a cow, or some other creature. A rooster is killed and offeredto the spirit in the raw state ; then it is cooked, other food is added,and it is eaten by the relatives in a feast.Some time later there is a ceremony called in Chinese tso cJiai andin Ch'uan IMiao a rang. It must take place more than one year andgenerally two or three years after the sao ch'ieh ceremony. Friendsand relatives march to the grave beating the drum and gongs andplaying the liii sheng to entice the soul of the dead person back to
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I. A Ch'uan Miao family, grandparents, parents, and children. The woman tu rightof center is wearing Ch'uan Miao embroidered clothes. Their home, in the background,has a straw roof.
2. Ch'nan Mian men and Ixiys. Tlie boy- ,r .irrme right and lett are ^tiidcnt.sin Christian schools. The man in black is a grandson of a man who fought an unsuc-cessful war against the Chinese to free the Ch'uan Miao and make himself king.
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I. A Ch'uaii Miau mo or priest who performs funeral and othermemorial ceremonies, beating his ceremonial drum and assisted byanother Ch'uan Miao who plays the liii shcini and dances.
2. A Cii'uan Miao geomancer, called a do nun. aliout td l)et;in a ceremony toexorcise demons.
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1. Two Ch'iang priests at tlo-p'ing-chai, the une at theriglit in ordinary clothing, and the other dressed in hiswhite robe, wearing his ceremonial liat, and holding hisceremonial drum.
2. A Ch'iang cremation house. During cremation ceremonies it is lilted up and j)]acedat one side.
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I. Shi Fan pilgrims in woteiii Szcchwan.
Wa-.ssu Inmtcrs with guns and dogs near Wtii-c liH.ui, .Szerhvvaii.
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NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 73his home. A cow or a water buffalo, or more rarely a pig, is killed,ending in a feast shared by relatives and friends. After the death ofa woman, her soul has fastened on its back a large straw mat. In thecase of a man, his soul has fastened on its back a large, round win-nowing basket. These appendages are very inconvenient, for theymake it impossible for the souls to enter the palace and join thespirits of their deceased ancestors. By this ceremony the obstacles areremoved, and the souls happily join their ancestors in the level landof Ntzi.Still later there is a memorial ceremony called in Chinese ch'aochicn, and in Ch'uan Miao tsa mong. This is the time when the bonesare dug up and the coffin changed, the bones washed with wine, newclothing provided, and then the bones and the coffin reburied. It isassumed that the deceased ancestor has become very tired from lyingin the same position and that this ceremony brings him comfort andrelief.Another very elaborate ceremony called in Chinese hua t'an, andin Ch'uan Miao a gi bang, is participated in by all who have the samefamily name. It is performed in one of the homes once in three yearsand lasts from one day and one night to three days and three nights.A bull is killed and the skin used to cover a new or an old ceremonialdrum. Each family contributes its share of food, and the meat of thebull is cooked, ending in at least one feast and sometimes several.^The Ch'uan Miao have the same lunar calendar as the Chinese,from whom they apparently adopted it. This includes lucky and un-lucky days. Often a Ch'uan Miao simply buys a Chinese calendarand uses it. The calendar festivals correspond to those of the Chinese,except that the kitchen god, whom the Ch'uan Miao do not worship,is not ceremonially sent up to heaven on the 23d day of the 12th moonand welcomed back the night before New Year.The Chinese calendar festivals occur on the ist, 2d, 3d, and 15thdays of the ist moon, on the 3d day of the 3d moon, on the 5th dayof the 5th moon, soon after the harvest to welcome the new grain,on the 15th day of the 7th moon, on the 15th day of the 8th moon, onthe 9th day of the 9th moon, on the ist day of the loth moon, andon the 30th day of the 12th moon.In all the funeral, memorial, and calendar festivals, when there isa feast, the deceased ancestors are expected to be present and to par-take. Food and wine are offered to them. On the 15th day of the 7th
6 This account is very much abbreviated. For a full account see my article,
"The Customs of the Ch'uan Miao" (1937b).
74 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42moon burned spirit money is provided for the deceased ancestors. Itis believed that by burning paper spirit money, it is transformed intomoney that can actually be used in the world inhabited by the spiritsof the deceased ancestors.The earth is not regarded as flat, for there are too many high andsteep mountains in the country of the Ch'uan Miao. All the deceasedancestors live for at least three generations in a paradise called theancient level land of Ntzi. Below the earth is a land of dwarfs, calledbroom people because they are about as tall as a Chinese broom, orabout 2 feet tall. There is also a land of demons.It is believed that people change easily into water buffaloes, cows,tigers, foxes, monkeys, rats, snakes, fish, frogs, crabs, flowers, vines,and banana trees, and from these back into human beings. Most com-monly people change into tigers, and tigers into men. Some changeinto evil tigers, but deceased fathers sometimes change into goodtigers in order to help their sons. There is a witch called bo ntsongwho bewitches people and changes them into tigers.All inanimate objects are believed to be alive. The sky, earth, sun,moon, stars, mountains, rivers, rocks, trees, thunder, the rainbow, theecho, fields, plains, crops, swords, marriages, beds, the ceremonialdrum, the liu sheng—all these and many other things are regardedas living, intelligent creatures. For instance, rocks are male andfemale, they grow, they can speak, and they have offspring.The Ch'uan Miao find it difficult to affirm that inanimate thingshave souls, but natural and easy to say that they have lives, and thatthese lives are intelligent and active, and have eyes. They also findit easier to say that living creatures, such as cows, have lives thanthat they have souls. But the concept of the soul is well known andclosely resembles that of the Chinese, from whom they evidentlylearned it. Dreams are regarded as actual experiences, and in dreamsthe soul leaves the body. The shadow and the soul are the same,so that it is worse for a mad dog to bite a man's shadow than tobite his leg.To the Ch'uan Miao all nature is surcharged with a mysterious,superhuman potency. This is especially present in powerful humanbeings, in devils, gods, and other superhuman beings, and is manifestedin charms, incantations, and religious ceremonies.THE LOLOS OR NOSUMy first contacts with the Lolos began in 1913 when I was sta-tioned at Suifu, now called I-pin, and appointed pastor of the Suifu
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 75
Baptist Church. It was my duty to cover not only I-pin, but about15 outstations, including Hsii-chiang and Man-i-ssu, which were notfar from the Lolo region. The Lolos often came to I-pin to market,and there were Lolo hostages at P'in-shan, where I often met themand talked with them. In 1928 I was sent to Ningyuenfu and talkedwith some Lolos there, taking anthropometric measurements andobservations. Near Fu-Iin I lived a few days in the home of afriendly Lolo headman, who gave or sold me some of the Loloartifacts, together with information about their customs. With thehelp of this Lolo friend the writer translated seven short Lolosacred books. It is evident that this Lolo friend, who was a memberof the Yachow Baptist Church, added some lofty ideas that werenot in the original text. Among other things he informed me thatthe Lolos were monotheists, which certainly is not so.Before and after the trip to Ningyuenfu I read all the availablebooks and articles about the Lolos. I refrained, however, from writ-ing about them, feeling that I must have more information in orderto give a fair interpretation of their psychology, their social customs,and their religion. During World War II several Chinese whohad been trained in some of the world's best universities spentmonths and even years among these people, with the result that sev-eral important articles have been published providing me with much-needed information. Among the best sources are the Lolo people'sown sacred books.The Lolos, or Nosu, live in the southern end of Sikang, in thesouthwest tip of Szechwan in the districts of Ma-pien and O-pien,in northern and western Yunnan, in western Kweichow, and innorthern Indo-China. Their main culture center is Liang-shan, orCold Mountain, in southwest Szechwan and in Sikang. Much of theterritory inhabited by the Lolos is mountainous country, very steepand rugged, with only small footpaths for roads. Many of their
"roads" can be traveled only on foot, and some are impassable forordinary people.The early history of the Lolos is still little known. One traditionis that they were the Lu who joined the Chou people under Chou-wu-wang and overthrew the Shang dynasty in 112 1. One authorstates that in the Chou dynasty they were called Lu, in the Book ofHistory the Wu-san-lo, in the T'ang dynasty the Lulu, or the WuMan, and in the Yuan dynasty Lolo. Another tradition states thatthey are closely related to the Liao people, who were widespread innorthern and central China in past centuries. It seems evident that
y() SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42they migrated from more central parts of China westward throughnorthern Yunnan. They do not Hke to be called Man-tzu or Lolo, butprefer the name I-jen, Noso or Nosu.There are two castes of Lolos, the "blackbones" and the "white-bones." The blackbones are the purest Lolos and are the rulers andslaveholders. The whitebones, who are the slaves, are Chinese, Miao,Tibetans, and others who have been captured and enslaved. Theblackbone Lolos are tall and brown in color. Their hair is black, theireyes dark brown or black, and their noses are generally higher andthinner than those of the Chinese. They belong to the Burma-Tibetan branch of the yellow race.Their language, which is monosyllabic and tonal, with five tones,is classified with the Burma-Tibetan group. Owing to long separa-tion between different "tribes," there is considerable variation inlanguage between different ethnic groups. The language of the Lolosis said by those who have studied it to resemble that of the Moso orNashi. I have noted a number of close resemblances in the vocabu-laries of the Lolos and the Ch'iang, which is confirmed by Prof. WenChai-yu, who has studied both languages. For instance, the Ch'iangsay sei for god and the Lolos say sii. Both the Ch'iang priest and theLolo priest are called hi mu or bi mo.The walls of their houses are generally made of beaten clay, butsometimes of wood, bamboo, or stone. The roofs are often coveredwith shakes or long, thick shingles held in place by large stones. Some-times the roofs are covered with tiles or straw. There are generallythree rooms and often no windows. People sleep on mats of bambooon the ground around the fireplace, which is sometimes simply a holein the ground in the center of the room. Where Chinese influence isstrong, the stove is made of clay and stones or bricks. Generally theonly covering used when sleeping is the thick felt cloak worn by mostmen and women. Many of the houses arc on mountainsides, but someare on level places or plains. Small villages have as many as 20 or30 houses.Of almost any ethnic group in West China it can be said that theprincipal occupation is farming. Of the Lolos in the Liang Shanregion it is said that their main occupation is the pasturing of flocks,particularly of sheep. There is some cultivation of wheat, maize,buckwheat, oats, barley, rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and othervegetables, and the domestic animals are cows, sheep, horses, donkeys,water buffaloes, dogs and cats, and chickens, ducks, pigeons, andgeese. Next to pasturing and farming the main occupation is hunt-
NO, 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM ^^ing wild animals, which are fairly abundant. Nearly every Lolo manis a hunter at least on occasion. The women weave cloth and makefelt clothing, carry water, work in the fields, cook the food, and domany other kinds of hard work.Their main food consists of the grains and vegetables listed aboveand the meat of wild and domestic animals, including horse meat.All kinds of meat are often eaten raw or half raw. Their implementsare the usual plows, hoes, sickles, hammers, saws, and others. Forfighting purposes they use knives, swords, and guns. In former timesthey wore leather armor and used poison arrows when fighting andwere noted for the use of spears with long handles, which enabledthem to injure an enemy while they themselves were out of reachof the enemy's weapons. They now use modern rifles which weretraded to them for opium and other commodities.The art of the Lolos is simple and sometimes crude. There areno images of the gods, but sometimes pictures of the gods are drawnor carved on pieces of wood used as charms or in sacred books. Onehas to use his imagination to see the resemblance to a human being.Designs in black, red, and yellow are painted on wooden food bowlsand on wine jugs, and in former times they were drawn on leatherarmor, shields, and quivers. Women's clothes are sometimes decoratedwith embroidery.Society is strictly divided into the aforementioned castes, black-bones and whitebones, and the caste distinctions are very strictly en-forced. If a blackbone woman marries a whitebone man or has sexualrelations with him, the penalty is death. If a blackbone man marriesor has sexual relations with a whitebone woman, he must pay a heavyfine. This is to protect the purity of Lolo blood. There are aboutnine whitebones to one blackbone, so that the latter are comparativelyfew. Society is also divided into tribes, clans, and families, alwaysin accordance with heredity from some common ancestor and bloodrelationship. Those living in the same district may all have the samefamily name. In the Liang Shan region some live at least tem-porarily in natural caves. There are chiefs or heads of tribes, clans,and families.Among the Lolos the family and blood relationships are looked uponas very important. Generally the families are patrilineal, but some-times descent is reckoned through the mothers rather than thefathers. Marriage is commonly arranged by go-betweens, and a largegift or bride-price is paid the parents of the bride. Marriage by cap-ture is often practiced, but it is by prearrangement. The relatives
78 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
of the bride take her to the appointed field, where the groom and hisfriends come and capture her and take her away. Probably this goesback to real marriage by capture in earlier days. In case of divorcecaused by the bride and her relatives, the bride-price is returned tothe family of the groom. Women are quite precious, so that thegroom and his relatives are not likely to bring about a divorce. Thereason given is that when women are irritated they may commit sui-cide, whereupon the groom and his family must pay to the wife'smother, and generally in addition to the grandmother on her mother'sside, a sum of money or make a gift equal in value to the originalbride-price. Lolo women are well treated.Family or clan feuds and intertribal wars are very common amongthe Lolos—an injury must be revenged. Cruelty and bravery are muchadmired. Every man carries a knife or a sword if possible, and agun if he possesses one. Without weapons a man feels very unsafe.Any time of day or night his enemies may surprise and kill him. Rob-bing, and especially robbing the Chinese and taking them captive, isa respected occupation.Disposal of the dead is by cremation and takes place in one of thesacred groves. The trees of these sacred groves can be used only forcremation. The body is burned to ashes with elaborate rituals, andthen the ashes are covered with dirt, making a small mound. Duringeach funeral ceremony a cow or a sheep is killed and offered to thegods and spirits, then eaten by the mourners and guests.The bi mu or bi mo is a priest, wizard, and wise man. Among theLolos he is regarded as an educated person and an official who under-stands the sacred books and can read Lolo characters, and also under-stands religious doctrines, ceremonies, and magic. He becomes ateacher and passes on his learning to pupils who in turn becomebi inns. The word bi means doctrines, learning, moral principles, andreligion, and mu means old. The two words mean old man whounderstands moral and religious doctrines, teachings, and sacredbooks. Sometimes they are called by the Chinese Tao Ssu or MienBa, meaning Taoists, shamans, or fathers of black magic. In short,they are scholars of hidden mysteries which have been handed downfrom generation to generation.The work of the bi mu includes repeating the sacred books, teach-ing future hi mus, exorcising demons, healing diseases, bringingpeace and prosperity, divination including the determining of luckyand unlucky days and the fortune or misfortune to be expected incertain occupations or undertakings, fortunetelling, performing cere-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 79
monies to injure others by magic, repeating incantations, and per-forming ceremonies to counteract black magic.The su t'o or sii nieh or su Gnie is a magician who does not reador repeat sacred books. He is a common person and is not taughtby another su t'o. The demon of some dead su t'o takes possessionof him, or of his body, after which he sacrifices a white sheep orrooster and is healed, thereupon becoming a su t'o. Each su t'o hasa protecting god, but has also the help of many gods. He has nosacred books, and his only sacred instrument is a sheepskin drum.During his ceremonies he beats the drum and chants incantations. Hiswhole body trembles, and he turns round and round, dancing andjumping. The god possesses his body, and he speaks the words of hisgod. Another person takes a forked stick and follows him, also turn-ing round and round. Most of the su t'os are male, but some arewomen. They heal diseases by exorcising the demons that are be-lieved to be the cause of all diseases, and they break the black anddeadly magic of one's enemies. During the ceremonies they kill chick-ens, sheep, or cows as sacrifices, and beat a drum. They also some-times lick red-hot irons with their tongues and tread on red-hotplowshares with their bare feet, or dip their feet into a bowl or pot ofboiling water. After the ceremony the drum is hung up in the forestto show that the god is no longer present. One of their remarkablefeats is to ascend and descend a ladder made of 36 swords whose sharpedges are upturned, which is done barefoot after praying to the godsfor protection. First the su t'o goes over three red-hot plowshares,then over the ladder of sharp swords, and he is generally unhurt.The hsiang ssu, most of whom are women, are fortunetellers orpalmists. They look at one's palms and from the lines tell whetherone's future will be lucky or unlucky, how many children a familywill have, and many other things about the future.Among the Lolos the sacred books are very precious and must notbe permitted to lie around. They are also secret, for only the bi muscan understand them. The paper they are written on varies in differ-ent localities, and they are generally written with a pen cut out ofwood. They are generally written in short sentences, the rhythmbeing very harmonious. One writer asserts that they are written inexceedingly good verse form. Their contents may include the callingof the gods, oaths, charms, incantations, ceremonies to open the wayof the soul to Hades, sacrificial ceremonies, prayers, exorcising de-mons, and ceremonies of magic to injure people, to counteract blackmagic, to insure good crops, of thanksgiving, to pray for rain, and
80 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42Other ceremonies. Only the bi mu understands, can read, and re-peats the sacred books.Among many primitive tribes, thunder and lightning are gods orthe actions of powerful gods. The same was true in pre-Christiandays in northern Europe, when Thor, the mighty thunderer with amagic hammer, caused thunder and lightning. There was supernaturalpower in his hammer, so that when an enemy had stolen it, Thor washelpless and could not conquer his enemies. Among some ethnicgroups this mysterious power is assumed but not named, as seemsto be the case with the Ch'iang and the Miao. Among the Chineseit is yin-yang and fengshui. Among the Polynesians it is mana, andthis word has been accepted throughout the world as the scientificname for this strange, uncanny, mysterious, supernatural power.Dr. Yen of Yenching University has written an article on the re-ligion of the Lolos in which he describes this idea among them andsays that they call this power gi-lo. Among the Lolos the gods arebelieved to possess this power, as do also the demons and the priestsor shamans. It can be utilized to help or to harm people. Used rightlyit is beneficial, but if used wrongly it can do much harm to one's selfor to others. Hence there are charms, incantations, and ceremoniesto make use of this power. It can be used for almost any purpose
—
to cause rain, to insure good crops, to obtain sons, to cause the do-mestic animals to prosper, and to injure or kill one's enemies.Closely related to this concept is that of taboo, with numerousprohibitions. It is the idea and the practices growing out of it thatcertain things must not be done, for serious consequences might re-sult. There are lucky and unlucky days and years when everythingis likely to go well or wrong. It is unlucky for a person to getmarried on even years—he or she must get married on uneven years,at the age of 13, 15, 17, or the like. A Lolo is hedged about withtaboos from the day of his birth to the day of his cremation. Amongmany taboos are the following: One must not touch the knot on aman's head, which is called t'ien p'u-sa, or the shy god. Vegetablesmust not be fried in oil because demons like the smell of oil and mightbe attracted by it into the house. A saddled horse must not be led intoone's house or courtyard, or saddled inside a house. It is unlucky foran old hen to lay an egg and then eat it, for a chicken to fly or tocrow during the night, for a hen to crow, for a hunting-dog's tail towrap around a bush or a tree in the forest, for a wild bird to fly intothe house, for a crow to caw in front of or above the house, for arat to fall into a water jar, for a frog to come jumping into a house.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 8lfor a snake to come in front of or into a house, for a spider to spina web inside of a house, for a person to see a snake swallowing afrog, and many other things. A complete list of taboos would be avery long one.It is quite natural that charms should be much esteemed and usedby the Lolos. In 1929 I obtained several Lolo charms, seven of themfor exorcising demons and five for praying for or producing rain.These charms consisted not of characters or of pictures of gods orof demons, but of strange designs drawn on paper or cloth. SomeLolo charms are made of wood on which are drawn pictures of godsor demons. Charms are sometimes hung up above the front door toprevent the entrance of demons. Others are hung up beside or onthe altar, or are hung or pasted up inside the room of a sick person,or pinned on a sick person's pillow, or pinned or sewed on a person'sclothes, or burned so that the ashes fall into a bowl of water, the waterto be drunk by the patient.Incantations are a part of almost every ceremony, and are thoughtto be very potent. There are two ways for people to fight or carry ona war : One is openly, with fists or with weapons, and the other isby black magic. Incantations are a part of a magical method of at-tacking an enemy and of putting him or her to death. For instance,when two women quarrel and fight, one may tear out some of herenemy's hair or tear off a piece of her garment, and taking it home,repeat incantations over it and bury it, or stab it with a knife. As aresult her enemy dies unless she uses countermagic, in which incanta-tions also have a prominent part. In more important ceremonies ofcountermagic, cattle, dogs, sheep, or chickens may be sacrificed, andsometimes "several tens" of them. Sometimes the Lolos take the boneof a monkey, or of a horse that had scabs on his head, tie strawaround or on the bone so that it represents a person, repeat the nameof the enemy, and also repeat incantations. Then the bone is sent tothe enemy's home or buried in a field near his home, and the enemydies unless there are ceremonies of countermagic with incantations.Sometimes a musk deer or a pheasant is caught, incantations are re-peated over it, and it is released so that it will run or fly toward theenemy's home, when the enemy will die.Very important also are the ceremonies to counteract black magic.They include numerous incantations, for these are sincerely and deeplybelieved in as efficient means of making use of the mysterious super-natural power generally called mana. It is generally the bi mil, butoccasionally the sit t'o, who conducts ceremonies to counteract black
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magic, or, as the Lolos say, to break the effects. If the ceremony isnot performed, then the person against whom the black magic is di-rected will surely die. But if the effect is broken by countermagic, theperson is saved.Before each important activity and affair the Lolos divine to learnwhether the outcome will be lucky or unlucky, good or bad, and tolearn the will of the gods. Fights, wars, journeys, engagements,marriages, diseases, burials, memorial services, strange dreams andvisions—these and many other matters are occasions for divination.The methods of divination are numerous and sometimes complex.They include the use of animal bones, roasting the leg of a sheep,using wood, beating carved wood, beating chickens to death, ex-amining chickens' eggs, examining the ribs of pigs, consulting thesacred books, counting bamboo sticks, chewing rice, rubbing eggs,and the use of the yin-yang-kiia or the two halves of a bamboo root,so common among the Chinese. Sometimes the shoulderblade of asheep is used, a very old custom found among the Chinese of lateNeolithic times.The Lolos have numerous ceremonies connected with funerals ofcremation, commemoration of the dead, praying for rain, healing dis-eases by exorcising demons, cleansing homes of demons, and prepar-ing for battle.A goodly number of the authors who have written about the Loloshave asserted that they are a simple-minded people and that their psy-chology is very primitive. We find many evidences of this. The sun,the moon, rivers, mountains, and many other inanimate things areregarded as living, sentient beings that can talk, marry, and havechildren. These, along with trees, rocks, animals, and insects areoften regarded as gods. There are magical horses that in an in-credibly short time fly up into the sky or cover long distances fromone place to another. Men and gods have marvelous powers. Thun-der, rain, hail, and the wind are great beings that are regarded aspowerful gods.In northern and central Yunnan the Lolos have had much contactwith Chinese religious leaders, and this has had an effect on theirreligion. Evidence of this is found in their lists of the gods. In hisbook, "The Shamans and Sacred Books of the Yunnan Lolos," Mr.Yang Chen-tzu gives a list of 46 Lolo gods and identifies them allwith Chinese gods, such as Yii Huang, Shen Nung, and others. Otherauthors give longer or shorter lists of the more distinctly Lolo godsin the Liang Shan or Cold Mountain and nearby regions.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 83A Lolo friend who lives near Fu-lin gave me the following listof gods, which is evidently not complete. One is Mu Mi, which meansthe sky, heaven, or the sky god, like the Chinese word Heaven. Theentire name is Mu-mi-shi, the word shi meaning god. Some Lolosthink that he rules the other gods and so is supreme. Wa Se is a godof the house, or a house god, and there are many of them. Mi-er-mi-shi means god of the mountains, and there are many of them also.Another Lolo friend gave me the name of a god who, he said, wasa messenger between gods and men. Lin Kuang-tien, a local Loloruler or headman near Yiieh-sui, who has written at least two smallbooks in Chinese about the Lolos, gave me the name of a creator god,A-p'u-gga-sa, a sky god named Mong-mu, and a mountain god namedMur-mi-si.A very interesting book is "A Study of the Lolo Manuscript Sii-seo-bo-p'a, the Origin of the Gods from the Liang Mountain," by FuMao-chi (1946). The following is a quotation from it:To the mind of the Lolo people the distinction between gods and other beings(animate and inanimate) is not strictly observed. Therefore the Chinese officialChu-ko Liang of the Han dynasty and some native chiefs in olden times suchas Lo-p'u-sho-to'y have been regarded as gods. Horses, insects, plants, the sun,the moon, and the Golden Sand River have also been gods or the relatives ofgods (text, 16, 26, 127, 131, 135, 139). The Lolo word for god is Sii Zeu whichoriginally meant "the son of knowledge or of wisdom." There have been pic-tures of gods but no idols in the real Lolo religion. The divine beings are notrepresented in human form, although in time good and powerful men can developinto gods. This text states that the mother of the sun and the moon had ninefeet, nine hands, and nine eyes. The picture of the god Chih-keo-a-rl at the endof the text is somewhat like a frog.The Lolo people still think that the world is not only filled with gods, butalso with demons. The former are benevolent but the latter harmful. In orderto ward off the attacks of the demons, they have many prohibitions or taboos.These taboos control the actions of the Lolos during religious ceremonies aswell as in daily life. When they happen to violate the taboo, they think thatthe demon or demons will come to their home. For stopping or driving outthe demons they have to ask the pi mo (monk) to recite incantations or the sugnie (wizard) to charm by sorcery. This manuscript gives the names of aboutninety gods and goddesses.In an unpublished manuscript by Cheng Chung-hsiang, from whichI am permitted to quote, there is an extensive study of Lolo religionand culture, giving the mythological history of many of the Lologods and demons. These Mr. Cheng classified as follows
:
I. Nature gods. There are many mountain gods, for every moun-tain has its god. There is also the thunder god, the sun god, and themoon god, meaning that the sun and the moon are gods.
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2. Strange-form gods. These include what he calls a chicken-clawgod, with the upper part like a man and the lower part like a chicken
;
Uncle A-pu, who has a beard 7 feet long and can cause wind by blow-ing hard ; A-ta-la-nieh, who is so tall that his head touches the skythe noise of his whistle is as loud as thunder. There is a god who isthe son of an eagle, sometimes identified with Lung-yin-hsiu-ts'ai,famous among border tribes, and said to have been born in Tzu-tsou.Miraculously born as the son of an eagle, many are the marvelousdeeds that he performed. The Lolo story says that there were ninesuns and nine moons, which so scorched the earth that all vegetationand all vegetable and animal life were threatened with extinction.With his bow and arrows he shot down eight suns and eight moons,and the ninth sun and the ninth moon retreated and hid, so that fora long time all on earth was dark and gloomy. The legend tells howlater they were persuaded to come out again, the sun by day, and themoon by night on half the days of a month. He also captured andtamed the god of thunder. Another god is Ch'u Nieh, the ancestorof the bi mus or priests. Numerous other gods are mentioned.This author also names many different demons, which he also di-vides into three different classes : First, demons who died by un-usual deaths, such as drowning, being struck by rolling stones, fromswooning, from the overturning of boats, from falling over cliffs,from pain in the abdomen, or of women who died in childbirth.Second, curious-form demons, such as demons of chickens who haddouble heads, of a man who died and turned into a leper-snake, andthe demon of a man who turned into a chicken. Third, curiouslyacting demons, among them begger demons, for the Lolos have nobeggars and regard beggars as very curious ; demons who eat humanbeings ; and demons of long-tailed chickens who can fly.The stories, myths, legends, and folktales of any people are of greatinterest because they throw much light on the social and religiousideals and customs of the group. The following are two folktales ofthe Lolos
:
I. The flood.—Two brothers were cultivating a field. Every daywith their hoes they would turn the soil over, and every morning whenthey returned to their work they found the soil turned back as it hadbeen before. They finally decided to watch during the night and seewhat was happening. About the middle of the night they saw anold man turning the soil back as it had been before. The older brotherwanted to beat the old man, but the younger brother urged that theyfirst ask him for the reason of his conduct. The old man said, "The
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 85
world will soon be flooded and every person drowned. You had bettermake a plan to save yourselves."The older brother made a boat of metal, and the younger brothermade a boat of wood. When the flood came, the older brother wasdrowned, and only the younger brother and his sister survived. Un-less they married, the human race would become extinct. But the girlwas not willing to marry him, because it was not right for a girl tomarry her brother. They resolved to divine to learn whether it wasthe will of the gods for them to marry. They therefore took twoparts of a stone grinder and rolled them down a hill. If they shouldbe together when they stopped rolling, the brother and sister shouldmarry; if apart, they should not marry. The two parts of the grind-ing-mill were rolled down the hill, and they stopped together. There-fore the brother and the sister got married, and the human race wascontinued.2. The first human ancestors of mankind.—In ancient times therewas a family named Ch'iao-mu-chia, in which were three brothers. Thename of the first was Ch'iao-mu-shih-ch'i ; of the second, Ch'iao-mu-shih-li; of the third, Ch'iao-mu-shih-ch'i or T'ao-mu-shih-liao.Their profession was farming.Once the three brothers plowed a field continuously for three days.They started work at daybreak and stopped at dusk. They workedvery hard to plow the dirt soft. Every morning they found the soilturned back again and hard as though it had not been plowed. Theywere astonished at this. On the fourtli night the three brotherswatched the field to see what would happen. At midnight there was asound as though somebody was plowing. The three brothers weresurprised and woke up. They saw an old man with a long white beard,holding a big hoe. The two older brothers thought it might be ademon. One jumped up and pulled out his sword. The other placedhis arrow on the bow. They intended to kill the old man, but theyounger brother came up and prevented them. He went to the oldman and asked the reason for what he was doing. The old man said,
"All creatures have offended the gods and the demons. Thereforeseven days after this there will be a great flood that will destroy allthe creatures on the earth." Then the younger brother knelt beforehim and entreated him to save them. The old man said to the oldestbrother, "You make an iron boat and put all your possessions in it."To the second oldest brother he said, "You make a brass boat andput your food and other possessions in it." Finally he said to theyoungest, "You make a wooden boat of the wood of the zvii-t'ong
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tree, and put all your possessions in it. Put into it a male and afemale of every kind of bird, animal, insect, or worm. On the seventhday let each of you brothers get into his own boat." Then the oldman disappeared.Each of the three brothers did as he was ordered, and preparedhis boat and his things. Seven days later there was a great flood, andin a short time the earth was a great ocean. The iron boat of theoldest brother and the brass boat of the next to the oldest, with alltheir possessions, sank to the bottom of the ocean. Only the woodenboat of the youngest brother floated on the misty and turbulent waters.The youngest brother did not know how many days and nights passed.Finally his boat stopped on the top of a mountain that had not yetbeen covered. This mountain is called Su-lo-bu in the Lolo language,which means that this is the home of the otter. (The place is be-tween Chao-gioh and Lei-po, and is called in Chinese DragonheadMountain.)Then the youngest brother got out of the boat and rested on topof the mountain. He broke an arrow and made a fire of it for smok-ing and to warm himself by. With his hands he rescued from thewater the crows, snakes, bees, frogs, and other creatures that werefloating on the surface of the water.Eighty-one days after the flood the T'ien Kung or King of theSky sent a messenger to investigate the earth. The messenger re-turned and reported that the whole world was inundated, and thatonly the top of the mountain called Su-lo-bu was visible, but that ithad a dark, smoky appearance. The King of the Sky thought, "Itis Shih-ch'i, of the Ch'iao-mu family." The Mother of the Skywanted to destroy completely the human beings, but the King ofthe Sky thought that if only one person lived it would not makemuch difference.During that time the creatures that had been rescued were danc-ing and singing, rejoicing over their rescue, on top of the mountainSu-lo-bu. Only the crows retreated to the edge and stood silently andsadly. The frog knew that the crow had eaten the ashes of the skybook, and that therefore he had foresight and cleverness. The frogtherefore jumped in front of the crow and inquired about the matter.Then the crow announced to all of them that the King of Heavenintended to make the water rise to the sky, for he planned to destroyall creatures. The Mother of the Sky would not prevent him, and theKing of the Sky intended to destroy every living thing. Thereforeall should cease rejoicing and think out a plan to save life. They
NO, 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 87discussed the matter very earnestly. Then they elected the snake toride on the goose, and the frog to ride on a bird, to follow the crowand the yellow bee and to fly up into the sky, to carry out the planthey had determined upon to save life.On the morning of that day the Sky Mother had just gone out ofthe door of her palace. There was a yellow bee which buzzed andstung her hand. Then she turned back to the water jar and stretchedout her hands to wash them. A poisonous snake came out from underthe water jar and opened its mouth and bit her. The Sky Motherimmediately fell down on the ground and fainted. Because of thepoison, her leg swelled larger and larger. Then the King of the Skyand all the people in the palace were frightened stupid. The daughterof the King of the Sky was especially very sad.Suddenly from the rear of the house the croaking of the frog washeard. The King of the Sky asked, "What is this?" An old servantanswered, "It is the frog croaking." The King of the Sky knew thatthe frog could heal the wound caused by the snake bite. He was aboutto send a person to invite the frog when the frog leaped through thewindow. He examined the Sky Mother once, then talked with theKing of the Sky about her illness. He said, "This illness is veryserious. H you want it cured, please promise me a reward." TheKing of the Sky said, "That is very easy. You may have gold, silver,and precious things as you desire." The frog shook his head andsaid, "I do not want these things at all." The King of the Sky askedhim, "What do you want?" The frog looked at the daughter of theKing of the Sky and said timidly that all he wanted was the king'sdaughter to be married to Ch'iao-mu-shih-ch'i. The King of the Skythought about it for a while and then answered, "Go ahead and treather quickly. After the disease is cured, I will urge her to marry him."The frog jumped in front of the Mother of the Sky, and was aboutto treat her. A servant girl was nauseated by the frog and scoldedhim. This made the frog very angry. He was also afraid that theKing of the Sky would not keep his word. He therefore asked theKing of the Sky, "Please answer me honestly as to whether youpromise or not." The King of the Sky answered him deceitfully.He said, "We may talk about it again after you have cured her." Thefrog then jumped back toward the King of the Sky and said that thedisease was very serious. "I am going away now," he said.Then the daughter of the King of the Sky became anxious. Shecould not endure it, for her affection for her mother was very deep.She then said bashfully, "You treat my mother's illness quickly. I am
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willing to be married to Ch'iao-mu-shih-ch'i." The King of the Skyalso said, "That is all right. I promise to give her to him." Thenthe frog ceased worrying and leaped in front of the queen to cureher disease. The crow left the palace and flew back to Su-lo-bu toreport the cheerful news.The time passed very quickly. Ch'iao-mu-shih-ch'i was marriedto the daughter of the King of the Sky. For years there wereabundant harvests, and all the people were happy. But the three sonsof the daughter of the sky could not talk. They could only eatand do mischief, like three dumb people. This made their parentssorrowful.A small yellow sparrow was anxious to reward them for savingits life. He flew here and there seeking a method to requite the youngpeople. One day he arrived at the palace of the King of the Sky. Heheard a moth say that the three boys could speak if someone wouldget and use three joints of bamboo (causing them to explode by put-ting them in a fire). The yellow sparrow was very happy. He sud-denly said out loud "I know, I know." The Sky Mother immediatelysent a person to catch the yellow sparrow. The yellow sparrow flewaway, but an angel (messenger) caught the tail of the yellow sparrowand it was broken off. Therefore sparrows now have short tails.The little sparrow returned to report the good news. They soughtout three joints of bamboo and burned them. The bamboo jointsexploded loudly, and the three dumb boys were so surprised that theycried out. The oldest boy said in the Lolo language, "This is veryhot." The second oldest shouted in the Hsi Fan language, "This isvery hot." The youngest also shouted in the Chinese language, "Thisis very hot." They became respectively the ancestors of the Lolos,the Tibetans, and the Chinese, and so of all human beings.The minds of the Lolos are so simple and primitive, comparatively,that almost anything may be taken as a god. One writer states thatafter death nearly every human being becomes a god or a demon. Hhe is good he becomes a god, and if he is bad he becomes a demon.The demons are very numerous and are greatly feared. There aremany ceremonies of exorcism. Demons and gods have supernaturalpower, as do also the priests or shamans. Gods are helpful providedthey are respected, worshiped, and sacrificed to, and the demons doharm. There are numerous ceremonies and incantations to obtainmagical results, and ceremonies to break the power of evil magic.Politically and socially the Lolos have long been a difficult prob-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 89lem for the Chinese and other neighboring ethnic groups. This ispartly because of the high and rugged mountains which make it diffi-cult for an army to penetrate, partly because of their fierce bravery,and partly because the Lolo society is founded on a system of slavery.Until this slavery is overthrown or changed, the problem will neverbe solved. When there are no longer any slaves, the Lolos may be-come a much less significant tribe or ethnic group on the borderland,for the slaves are not really Lolos, and the "blackbones," or pureLolos, comprise approximately only one-tenth of the population.THE ch'iangThe Ch'iang live in the highlands of western Szechwan on theT'o, or Tsa-ku-nao, and the Min Rivers. Their home is betweenTieh-ch'i on the north and So-ch'iao on the south, and from a fewmiles east of Wei-chou and Mao-chou on the east to P'u-ch'i-kou,20 li up the Tsa-ku-nao River from Li-fan, on the west. Their coun-try is one of steep hillsides, narrow valleys, high mountains, and rush-ing mountain streams. They number, probably, between 50,000 and100,000 people. The country is semiarid, and occasional droughts andfailures of crops bring much hardship to the people. There are alsooccasional earthquakes and floods.''References to the Ch'iang can be found in the earliest Chinese his-tories. It is stated that Shun found the San Miao so refractory thathe banished them to western China, and some recent Chinese scholarsbelieve that the San Miao were Ch'iang, There are many referencesto the Ch'iang on the oracle bones, which are dated during the Shangdynasty, 1401-1121 B. C. Under pressure from the Chinese, somemoved westward into Kansu, while others turned southward intonorthern and western Szechwan. At one time they extended beyondSungpan into Kansu on the north, and to Yueh-sui, southwest ofYaan, on the south. Now they are confined to a small district inwestern Szechwan,To their northwest are the Ile-shui and the Lu-hua tribcspeople
;
to their southwest, the Chia-jung. To their south are the Wa-ssupeople, and to the east and in the valleys, especially in the towns andcities, are the Chinese. By all these the Ch'iang have been influenced,and from them they have borrowed traits and customs.The language is monosyllabic and tonal, with four tones. Accord-
"^ Practically all the statements in this section are documented in the writer'sbook, "The Customs and Religion of the Ch'iang" (1958).
90 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42ing to Prof. Wen Yu, it is an early form of the Burma-Tibetan lan-guage. In the vocabulary many words resemble words of similarmeanings among the Lolos and the Nashis. There are some peculiarsounds, such as the Welsh double 1, the glottal g, and a consonantresembling the sound a person makes when gargling and also vocaliz-ing. There is no written language. Their language, customs, history,and physical characteristics indicate that they belong to the Burma-Tibetan branch of the yellow race.For many centuries the Ch'iang have been governed by the Chi-nese, although they have occasionally rebelled, especially when theChinese government was weak. Their final great defeat was underthe emperor Ch'ien Lung, who reigned from A. D. 1736 to 1795.They have customs and a religion of their own, having declined to beabsorbed by the Lamaism of Tibet or by the culture and religions ofthe Chinese. They have, however, been much influenced by bothcultures.Since the Ch'iang have no written language, their road to literacyand to advanced culture is through the Chinese language. They haveno modern conveniences such as the telephone or telegraph. Travelis generally on foot, more rarely by sedan chair or on horseback.There are no wheeled vehicles, and no boats on the rivers and streams.The only government is that of the Chinese, and the supreme rulerlocally is the Chinese magistrate or hsien chang. There are localheadmen, mostly Ch'iang but sometimes Chinese, who are appointedby the Chinese government. Disputes are generally settled by theheads of the families concerned, assisted by their friends, and whenthis fails, the headman may take over. In case he does not succeedin making a settlement, it may be tried in the hsien yamen, or thecourt of the local magistrate.The Ch'iang have no tribal organization. They are an ethnic groupheld together by a common language and common beliefs and prac-tices. The family is the social unit and is patrilineal. The father andhusband is the ruler of the family and is responsible to the govern-ment and to outsiders for their conduct. Property, including land,houses, furniture, and tools and implements, belongs to the family,while clothing and ornaments belong to individuals. For centuriesthe money used by the Ch'iang has been that of the Chinese.Some marketing takes place in Ch'iang villages, but most of it isdone in Chinese cities and towns, and there is some bartering. Interestis generally very high, varying from 60 to 300 percent a year. Some-times the interest is paid in maize or in some other commodity.
NO. 2 FULPC RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 9ICh'iang houses are built of unhewn stone and are generally twostories high. On the first floor is the latrine and pens for the domes-tic animals. On the second floor is a large guestroom, the kitchen,and one or more bedrooms. The windows on the sides of the housesare few and very small, and there are a few small openings throughthe roof, which is flat. Across the rear of the roof is a shed in whichwheat, barley, corn, and other things may be stored, and on top ofthis, at the rear and in the middle, is a shrine capped by a sacred whitestone. The rooms contain little furniture, and there are no pictureson the walls. As no chimney is provided, the rooms are often filledwith smoke. The houses are generally grouped together almost orquite wall-to-wall in villages called chai-tau or fortifications. Eachvillage generally has at least one watchtower, which is sometimes over100 feet high.Every Ch'iang is a farmer. He may be in addition a headman, apriest, a carpenter, or a mason, but he depends primarily on farmingfor a living. Herding the domestic animals, hunting, woodgathering,and carrying loads for Chinese are supplementary occupations.Maize is the principal product of the soil, other products beingwheat, barley, buckwheat, hemp, potatoes, turnips, cabbage, beans,walnuts, apricots, pears, apples, peppers, and other kinds of fruitand vegetables. The domestic animals and fowls are cows, horses,dogs, cats, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens, and ducks. Wild pigs, goats,mountain sheep, bears, takin, leopards, pheasants, and other game arekilled and eaten.Most Ch'iang clothing is made of undyed hemp, so that it is adull white in color. Some garments are made of Chinese blue cottoncloth, and some of animal skins.Engagements are made not by the individuals concerned, but by theirfamilies through go-betweens. Always it is necessary for the familyof the man to make presents to the family of the woman, the valueof the presents varying according to the ability of the family of theman to give. There are elaborate wedding ceremonies. When anolder brother dies, it is the custom for a younger brother to take thewidow as his wife, and any children born are regarded as the chil-dren of the older brother.Formerly all Ch'iang burials were by cremation. In recent decadesthis custom has persisted in villages more remote from the Chinese,but in many of those near the Chinese it has become the custom tocremate only those who die by unusual or violent means and thereforemight become demons, while all other people are buried in graves.
92 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42Before the coming of Christianity, all Ch'iang worshiped manygods, but they made no images of them. There are five greater gods,the highest generally being the god of heaven, although sometimes itis the mountain god ; 12 lesser gods ; and a local god for every localitywith a name. In addition to all these, there are rocks and trees thatare worshiped as gods. In his sacred chants, every priest calls manygods by name.It is believed that all diseases and other calamities are caused bydemons. When a person becomes ill, he naturally believes that thedisease is the work of one or more demons, and he generally calls ina priest who performs ceremonies to exorcise the demons. In someof these ceremonies the priest treads on a red-hot plowshare with hisbare foot, and sometimes he touches the red-hot plowshare with histongue.These people believe in a superhuman potency that is availablethrough the priest and his ceremonies, and is possessed by the gods,by the priest, and by the sacred implements. This power enables thepriests to do what ordinary individuals are unable to do.All priests marry and have families, homes, and farms. They havesacred chants which are regarded as the equivalent of the sacredbooks of the Buddhist and Taoist priests and of the Tibetan lamas.Since the Ch'iang have no written language, these chants are memo-rized and transmitted by one priest to another, from generation togeneration. In some regions the line of Ch'iang priests has died out,and there the Ch'iang often employ Chinese Buddhist or Taoistpriests.Every village has a sacred grove, the trees of which are holy andmust not be cut down. In or near the sacred grove is a shrine cappedby a sacred white stone where animals are sacrificed, and also a verysmall and plain temple or sacred shelter.On the top of each house is a shrine for the worship of the 5 greatgods and the 12 lesser gods, which is capped by a sacred white stone.Worship at this shrine is generally performed by an older memberof the family, but sometimes on important occasions a priest iscalled to perform the ceremonies.In springtime there is a ceremony in which the priest prays to thegods for a prosperous year with good crops. He promises or vowsin return to sacrifice goats or a p'icn niii (half cow and half yak)later in the year. Never is a lamb sacrificed, but always a full-grownsheep or goat or more rarely a p'ien niii, and the animal must bewithout blemish. The sacrificed animal is not burned, but is first
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTPIWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 93
killed and offered to the gods, then cooked and eaten by the wor-shipers at a feast in the temple. Any left-over food is divided andlater eaten in the homes. Worship in the sacred grove, with the sacri-fices and the feasts, is a community affair, with at least one repre-sentative present from each family. Women are regarded as soinferior to men that they are not permitted even to witness the cere-monies in the sacred groves or on the housetops. Certain religious cere-monies performed inside the homes can be witnessed by the womenfrom a respectful distance.Cultural contacts of the Ch'iang with the Chinese and with theChia-jung and other tribespeople have been many and have existedfor centuries. Many Ch'iang customs are best explained by culturaldiffusion. However, there are many social and religious customs thatthe Ch'iang regard as their own, which, with their language and theirdress, distinguish them as an ethnic group. In more isolated Ch'ianglocalities the changes have been fewer, and where the contacts with theChia-jung, the Wa-ssu, or the Chinese have been more abundant, thechanges have been many. In some localties the Ch'iang people callthemselves Chinese, speak the Chinese language, worship the Chinesegods, and freely intermarry with the Chinese. In others, such asP'u-wa, only a few very old people can speak the Ch'iang language,but the people still regard themselves as Ch'iang. At P'u-ch'i-kou,where the Chia-jung are close neighbors, the influence of Lamaismis evident. Near Li-fan a dance performed by the Ch'iang closelyresembles one of the main dances of the Chia-jung. Among theCh'iang, woven belts are used only near Li-fan and near Wen-ch'uan,where their neighbors the Chia-jung and the Wa-ssu also make anduse them.In former decades the Chinese built Buddhist and Taoist templesamong the Ch'iang as a means of cultural assimilation, but this wasonly partially successful. In more recent years the Chinese have es-tablished primary schools among the Ch'iang, and a normal schoolfor Ch'iang and Chinese at Wei-chou. These schools are a very effi-cient means of absorption. There are those who believe that it is onlya matter of time when the Ch'iang will be completely absorbed by theChinese. Whatever the final results may be, the present is a time ofrapid changes, and many old ideas and customs are passing away.THE TIBETANS AND LAMAISMTibet, the western neighbor of China, lies at a higher altitude thanany other nation on the globe and is well called "the roof of the
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world." The valleys vary from 12,000 to over 17,000 feet above sealevel, and its highest mountain peaks from 20,000 to more than24,000 feet. Some forests occur on the north and on the east, somedesert land in the north. Agriculture is carried on in the valleys below14,000 feet, but most of the territory consists of rolling grasslandsbetween 12,000 and 16,000 feet above sea level.^Tibet is completely surrounded by high mountains. To the northare the Kun Luen mountains, on the east the high mountains of theChina-Tibetan border, and on the south and west are the Himalayas.These lofty ranges act as watersheds, so that the rainfall in Tibetaverages only about 8 inches a year. The snowfall is light, and mostof the moisture falls as rain in the spring, summer, and fall. Tem-peratures vary from warm in the lower altitudes in the summer tovery cold in the winter.Physically and linguistically the people belong to the Burma-Tibetanbranch of the yellow race. In the highlands of the interior and es-pecially among the nomadic herders are found the purest Tibetans,who seem closely related in type to the inhabitants of the northernsteppes and deserts. In the valleys to the east, Chinese officials, mer-chants, and others have generally left their Chinese wives at homein China and taken as wives or concubines local Tibetan women.When later the Chinese have returned to their homes, they have lefttheir Tibetan wives and children in western China or eastern Tibet.This has changed the physical type and the customs of the localTibetan people. In the valleys in the south and the southwest therehave been similar marriages between Indian men and Tibetan women,which likewise have changed the physical type and the customs ofthe Tibetans. The population of Tibet is believed to be less than 3million.The typical Tibetans, especially on the highlands, have black hair,heads slightly round or brachycephalic, thick noses, broad nostrils,thin beards, little hair on the face, arms, and chest, and dark browneyes. Women and girls often have rosy cheeks and are goodlooking. The men are strong, and the women are believed to beamong the strongest in the world, the Amazons of modern times.The principal farm products are barley and buckwheat. In addi-
8 I have spent three summers west of Tatsienlu or K'ang-ting, which is inSikang and culturally in eastern Tibet. During several other summers I havehad contacts with Lamaism among the Chia-jung, the Hsi-fan, and the Wa-ssu.First-hand observations made on these occasions have been supplemented by thereading of books and articles on Lamaism.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 95
tion some vegetables are raised, such as cabbage, potatoes, turnips,radishes, beans, and peas, and some fruits. Plows are drawn byoxen and yak. In the winter there is much wool spinning, weaving,and knitting.There are herds of yak, horses, and sheep that graze on the grass-lands. The yak yield hair from which tents are made, hides to makeboots and other leather objects, and milk from which cheese andbutter are made. The butter is eaten with tsamba, drunk in tea, andburned in lamps.The principal food of the Tibetans is tsamba, tea, butter, and yakmeat or mutton. Tsamba is barley ground to a meal and parched.Mixed with butter, it is eaten with the fingers from small woodenbowls. Tea leaves are placed in churns full of boiling water, mixedwith butter, salt, and sometimes soda, and churned into powder. Inthe highlands, for weeks at a time, tsamba mixed with butter, andtea mixed with butter, salt, and soda, are often the only foods eaten.Meat is added when possible, and tea leaves are a substitute for vege-tables. Fruit is not available. In the lowlands vegetables and fruitare eaten when they can be obtained.In the valleys on the east and on the south, where agriculture ispossible, there are stone houses two or three stories high, generallywith flat roofs, but sometimes with sloping roofs covered with long,thick shingles. Each shingle is held in place by a large stone. In thehigh altitudes the herdsmen live in tents made of yak hair.Men and boys spend much of their time riding and hunting, andgenerally avoid hard work. They often go long distances with thecaravans of yak or mules, taking care of the animals or trading.Women do most of the hard work. They carry the water and otherheavy loads on their backs, do the weaving and most of the farm-ing. They also do most of the work of herding the flocks and milk-ing the yaks, take care of the homes, and sometimes conduct smallbusinesses and manage other affairs.Yak are the principal pack animals, but mules and even sheep arealso used. There are practically no wheeled vehicles in Tibet, andsedan chairs are very rare. Because of the high altitudes, men almostnever carry heavy burdens, and women generally only for short dis-tances. Horses, mules, and yak are ridden, and men and women some-times walk for long distances.There are a few great trade routes and many lesser ones, and agreat deal of trade. Tibetans export hides, medicines, and wool, andthey import from China tea, cotton cloth, porcelains, tobacco, and
96 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42Other commodities. From India they import mostly manufacturedgoods.The Tibetans are fond of play and amusements. This inclinationis often satisfied by horseracing, gambling, theatricals, and dancing,and by gossiping, smoking, taking snuff, and drinking tea or wine.Some of these amusements are enjoyed in the homes, but they oftencenter in the lamaseries. Sometimes there are folk dances in thehomes, when groups of men and groups of women dance alternately,singing as they dance. The great religious festivals are also socialaffairs where people meet, talk, and drink tea and wine with theirfriends. Generally the religious ceremonies are followed by at leastone day of horseracing and other games. These festivals are thegreat social events of the year.The Tibetans are fond of music. In the evenings at home or whenin the saddle, a man often plays a flute. When working in the fieldsor walking or riding on the roads, a man or a woman frequentlybursts into song. Often he or she says in the song what happens to bethought of at the moment. He or she may sing, "It is raining, and ifwe are not careful we will get wet," or, "The sun is in the sky, and theyak are eating grass." Singing and instrumental music are very im-portant in the religious ceremonies.Both men and women are fond of ornaments. These include ear-rings, finger rings, bracelets, necklaces, rosaries, buttons of coral orof silver, snuff bottles, ornamented knives and swords, purses, andtobacco bags. Ornaments are made of, or ornamented with, silver,turquoise, red coral, white bone and shell, and silver coins.Engagements are made by parents through go-betweens. Sometimesthe young man is consulted by his father, but generally the woman isnot consulted. A gift must be made to the woman's family—a yak orsomething else of value. Temporary marriages are not uncommon,and sometimes trials before marriage. A man invites a woman tospend one or more nights with him. If he does not want her, she thengoes away. If he wants her, he takes her for his wife or concubine.Monogamy, polygamy, and polyandry all exist in Tibetan society.Monogamy is the common practice, but polygamy is found amongthe wealthy, and polyandry among the nomadic herdsmen and in thehigher altitudes. Polyandry is considered useful in keeping down thepopulation and in avoiding the division of estates and other propertyamong too many descendants. In polyandry one woman is the wifeof all the brothers in the same family and has sexual relations withthem. The children are regarded as belonging to the oldest brother.
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 13
1. Mr. SliLTap, an e<lucat(.-(l Tibetan Cliri>tian, standinsin front (it tlK- ;;/(/;/; ( "iiraycr" ) wiiecls at tiie ddur of aTilietan Monastery.
2. 'J'il)ctan ornamented teapots and howl.
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 14
1. The (iu-lili-ssu lamasery near Yin-kuan-chai, in Sikong province.
iibeUin lanui,^ pLTUirniinj; a ^cll,^illll^ ceremony in llu Ciu lili .>.mi kinia>cry,
• Sikong province.
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 15
I. A livinti Bufkllia, luad uf the Gu-lih-ssu lamasery inSikoiig pruviiice.
2. In tlie center, a living Buddha, head of the Red Lama sect and the third greatestliving Tibetan. On either side are the scms of a former local Tibetan king. (Takenabout 1925.)
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 16
^/f #^-'%f'' •^'^.-yf
^:^ ^
-'i', >v
liiM
A beautiful Tihetau statue of Maitreya, Chinese Mi-lo-fo, in tin- West ChinaUnion University Aluseitni.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 97Disposal of the dead is accomplished by several methods : by cre-mation, by cutting the bodies to pieces and feeding them to the vul-tures, by leaving the bodies on the mountains for the wild animals toeat, and by cutting up the bodies and throwing them into the streamsto be eaten by the fish. Cremation is reserved almost entirely for thelamas, and graves are generally conspicuous by their absence.Before the seventh century the history of Tibet is legendary, andthe culture of the people was very simple and primitive. Traditionsays that Avalokitesvara became incarnated in a male monkey andmarried a she-devil, and that the offspring were the ancestors of theTibetans.During the seventh century Srong-tsan Gampo, at the age of 13years, became king of the Tibetans and began a long and successfulreign. He married two wives, one a princess from Nepal and the othera princess from China. Both his wives were ardent Buddhists, andthey converted him to Buddhism, A system of writing was adopted,based on the Indian Sanskrit, but adapted to the Tibetan language.Through the influence of his Chinese wife, many Chinese customsfound their way into Tibet. Tibetan histories say that at this timerice and barley wines, butter, cheese, pottery, water mills, and loomswere first introduced into the country. The king sent children of thechief Tibetan leaders to China to study in the Chinese schools, andmany Chinese customs were adopted. The art and customs of Indiaand China mingled with, but did not entirely displace, those of Tibet.Under a later reign tea was introduced from China and earrings fromIndia. Still later books on astrology, astronomy, medicine, and surgerywere translated into Tibetan from the Chinese and Indian languages.Apparently the influence of India on Tibet has been greater than thatof China.At first Buddhism met much opposition from the leaders of thenative Bon religion and did not make rapid progress. About a cen-tury later Padma Sambhava came from India and founded the RedHat sect or Red Lamaism. He brought with him Tantric Buddhism,which stressed magic and the exorcism of demons. This appealedmuch to the Tibetans, for the native Bon religion also stressed magicand the exorcism of evil spirits.During the loth century there was a revival of Bonism, and Tibetwas under a king who persecuted Buddhism. A lama assasinated theking, and Buddhism was soon reintroduced and revived.Meanwhile numerous Buddhist scriptures and rules of disciplinewere translated into the Tibetan language. These showed the need of
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reform, and this reform was introduced by Tsong-ka-pa, who wasborn in 1356. He was an eloquent preacher and writer. He enforcedceHbacy, the use of yellow dress by the monks, fortnightly meetings,confession, and repeating of rules. His sect was called the Ge-lug-pa,which means "the victorious sect." He also introduced elaboraterituals, ceremonial garments, and a hierarchical organization with dio-ceses dependent upon a central authority.In 1720 the Talai Lama, who had formerly been only a spiritualruler, was made the temporal ruler of Tibet by the Chinese. Underhim is a regent, called a king, who is also a lama, and there are othercivil officials. The Tashi Lama, whose residence is at Tashilhumpo,a monastery near Shigatse, has temporal power over one province andalso great spiritual power. The Talai Lama is believed to be the rein-carnation of Avalokitesvara, and the Tashi Lama the reincarnationof Amitabha. There are a number of other high lamas who are alsoregarded as reincarnations of gods, or "living Buddhas," and areworshiped as deities.During the Manchu dynasty Chinese influence in Tibet was strongand affected the art, architecture, and customs. In art this resulted inthe use of floral and dragon designs in paintings.Alost of the art of Tibet is religious, and since Buddhism is theonly religion, the art is also Buddhist. In India Buddhism combinedIndian architecture and painting with that of the Greeks, broughtthere by Greek invaders. From India through Nepal this art cameinto Tibet, where it profoundly influenced the art of the Tibetans. Thisprocess went on for centuries. From about the tenth century a slightlydifferent influence was brought by Buddhist monks from the north,especially through Chinese Turkestan. Since the beginning of theIVIanchu dynasty, a strong Chinese influence has affected the style ofthe paintings, the roofs, and the temples (Cheng Teh-k'un, 19456,p. 3).All Tibetan paintings are anonymous. The painters are monks whoare concerned with creating a fine product, but not with claimingauthorship or attaining notoriety. No painting is ever autographed.Though there are several schools of art, there is a remarkable uni-formity in the paintings of Tibet. They are generally on canvas or oncotton cloth, and seldom on paper. In lamaseries or in private homesthe artist is sometimes called upon to paint altars, ritual objects,images, or furniture (ibid., pp. 5-6). Mural paintings are also com-mon, and images are painted as illustrations in books. Tibetan archi-tecture has been influenced by the Chinese, but on the whole thelamaseries have a style of their own.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 99Lamaism in Tibet is a fusion of Mahayana Buddhism, with a strongmixture of Tantric Buddhism which emphasized the use of magic andthe exorcism of demons, with the native Bon reHgion. While we donot know a great deal about Bonism, it is evident that that religionalso emphasized magic and the exorcism of evil spirits.The number of priests or lamas in proportion to the laity is verylarge. It is estimated that one out of every five persons is a lama.Every family contributes at least one son to the priesthood, and onelamasery alone is said to have 10,000 priests.There are three main sects of Lamaism, and several lesser sects.The three main sects are Red Lamaism, Yellow Lamaism, and BlackLamaism. The Red Lama sect is conservative, the priests sometimesmarry, and they wear red hats during ceremonies. The Yellow Lamasect is the reformed sect ; it enforces celibacy, and the priests wearyellow hats and garments. The Black Lamas are more nearly like theoriginal Bon religion. They are regarded as heretical by the Red andYellow Lamas. They have their own sacred books, and circumambu-late in the opposite direction from the other two sects.The main characteristics of Lamaism are
—
1. A hierarchical organization of the priesthood, with local diocesesdependent on a central authority.—Scholars have compared it with theRoman Catholic hierarchy, with the assumption that the resemblancesare accidental.2. Karma and transmigration.—This is assumed and believed bythe priesthood and taught to the people. One's deeds have their re-wards in future existences and determine one's weal or woe, such aswhether one is reborn as an insect, a reptile, an animal, a bird, or ahuman being. The most religious can escape the wheel of transmi-gration and become Buddhas, enjoying eternal bliss in the Buddhistparadise. Some are reincarnated as Living Buddhas and worshiped onearth as living gods.3. Religious festivals.—Every lamasery is a center for religiousfestivals, which are often attended by thousands of worshipers, manyof whom come from long distances. These are the great religious andsocial events of the year.There are variations and resemblances in the religious ceremoniesas performed by the Red, the Yellow, and the Black Lamas. Severalfestivals occur during the first lunar month, and others during thelater months of the year. These festivals are accompanied by muchmusic, which is often beautiful and alluring. Among the instrumentsis a long base horn, sometimes 12 feet or more in length, the sound
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of which is subbase and carries for miles. A bugle is shaped like aram's horn, and a horn is made of a human thigh bone. There arebrass gongs and cymbals. A small drum is held in the hand, and alarge drum stands erect on a wooden support about 3 feet long. Asmall brass bell has as a handle a ceremonial thunderbolt. There is anoccasional chanting or singing by the lamas, large numbers of whomsing together in powerful, subbase voices.In some of these festivals past events in Buddhist history are en-acted, which entertains the onlookers and at the same time instructsthem. During almost all of the time the lamas are dancing, singly, bytwos, or in larger numbers. It has been said that the Tibetans dancetheir religion. The lay people watch, but do not participate, and whilethey watch, they often prostrate themselves in worship.A prominent part of these ceremonies is the exorcism of demons,for belief in demons and ways of exorcising them are very imoprtantin the lives of the Tibetans.4. Belief in and fear of demons.—Demons are believed to be thecause of diseases, and practically all other calamities are believed tobe caused by evil spirits. Priests and lay magicians make use of magic,charms, and incantations to exorcise these evil creatures and protectfrom them. Sacred instruments are regarded as possessing super-human power, so that they increase the priests' efficiency. The con-trolling and exorcising of demons plays a prominent part in religiousceremonies and festivals. This is not restricted to Lamaism, for it iscommon to all native religions of West China excepting Confucian-ism and Mohammedanism.5. "Prayer" flags and "prayer" wheels.—Any person who has readmuch about Tibet is familiar with the objects commonly called
"prayer" flags and "prayer" wheels, although neither the Tibetansnor the Chinese call them by these names, nor do they think of theiruse as praying. The Tibetan name for the cylinder is mani khorlo, orjewel wheel. It is so called because the magic phrase, Om mani padmehum, oh jewel in the lotus, is written on many of the strips of paperinside. The cylinders vary in size from a few inches to several feet indiameter and in height. The smallest are held in the hand and turnedby hand. Larger ones are stationary and are generally turned eitherby hand or by animal power, although some are turned by wind poweror water power.Besides the magic phrase "Om mani padme hum," quotations fromthe Tibetan sacred books are written on strips of paper and placed in-side these cylinders. Whole sacred books are placed in the larger
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 101
cylinders, and it is said that the largest contain 20,000 to 30,000 copiesof sacred books. The Tibetans believe that every time a person turnsa mani wheel around once, he has the merit or credit of repeatingonce everything that is written inside. It is believed that this resultsin many kinds of blessings and benefits in this life and in lives tocome.The flags, called by the Tibetans and the Chinese mani flags, varyfrom a few inches to more than 50 feet in length. On them areprinted the same things that are found in the cylinders. It is believedthat every time a flag flaps in the wind, the owner has the credit ofrepeating once everything that is printed on it.6. Om mani padme hum.—Ofn is a magic word, mani meansjewel, padme means in the lotus, and hum is another magic word.It is addressed to, or refers to, the god Padmapani, whose throneis in a lotus flower. The use and supposed results are similarto those of the Chinese phrase, la-mo-o-mi-t'o-fu. Some use rosariesas they repeat the phrase, in order to count and to remember the num-ber of times it is repeated.Sven Hedin, in "Trans-Himalaya," devotes a whole chapter to thisphrase (Hedin, 1909, vol. 2, pp. 200-206). It is not so much a prayeras it is a magic phrase with superhuman power to accomplish marvel-ous things. It is on the lips of the most devout Tibetans from thetime they awake until the time they fall asleep. It is written or printedon paper and placed in the mani cylinders and is printed on mani flags.It is carried in charm boxes and printed on charms. It is carved onthe sides of rocky cliffs, or on flat stones which are placed in the tem-ples, by the roadsides or on the sides of small artificial hillocks, or onmountain passes. Many marvelous results are claimed for it. Arobber often repeats this phrase while fighting or robbing, and soldiersrepeat it when fighting the robbers or when going into battle.7. Circumambulation.—Circumambulation, a religious ceremonypracticed by both lamas and laymen, consists of walking around walls,chortens and other sacred objects, or around hillocks on the sides ofwhich are flat stones. On these stones are carved Om mani padmehum, or quotations from sacred books. Walking around once givesthe worshiper the credit and merit of repeating once all that is carvedon the flat stones. The Red Lamas and the Yellow Lamas walk aroundclockwise, the Black Lamas, counterclockwise.8. The gods.—There are a great many gods, including male andfemale Buddhist deities from India, many local and many Bon gods,and numerous Tibetan saints. A few are deified animals. Some are
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fierce gods treading on the prostrate forms of their dead enemies.Some wear necklaces made of the skulls of their dead enemies. Somehave many heads, many hands, and several pairs of legs and feet, anda few have a third eye in their foreheads. What seems most strangeand shocking to many Orientals and Occidentals is the sight of greatgods embracing their saktis or spouses and actually copulating withthem in a standing position.9. Stipcrhiiman potency.—Very important is the belief in super-human potency, a strange, uncanny and superhuman power. Usedrightly, it is very beneficial, but, like electricity, when used wrongly itcan do a great deal of harm. Numerous lamas and laymen are wizardsor shamans, who know the right techniques to make it beneficial to thepeople. This power is also possessed by all the gods, by magic wordsand formulas, by sacred implements, and by charms and incantations.Religious ceremonies and festivals employ it and make it useful insatisfying the needs of mankind—food, sex, shelter, honor, long life,a happy rebirth in a future existence, or the attainment of Buddha-hood in the Buddhist paradise, and protection from diseases, enemies,and demons.While the Chinese have influenced Tibetan culture and Lamaismfrom the seventh century, this influence has increased through social,economic, and political contacts during the Manchu dynasty andthe time of the Chinese Republic. This influence has been acceleratedduring the later years of the Republic by the establishment by theChinese government of schools among the Tibetans, the Hsi-fan, theChia-jung, and the Wa-ssus, in Sikang and in western Szechwan, inwhich schools the Chinese language and Chinese culture have beentaught.Lamaism has also influenced the religions of China, especiallyChinese Buddhism, but it w^ould be very difficult to estimate howmuch. The Chinese have come into contact with Lamaism in Sikang,western Szechwan, Kansu, Kokonor, and Mongolia, and there areTibetan lamaseries in Peking and in Chengtu. Chinese officials havesometimes paid lamas to conduct religious ceremonies in Chengtu andin other cities of West China. In Chengtu and in other cities of theChina-Tibetan border Tibetan priests have occasionally given lec-tures on Buddhism to the Chinese people.THE CHINESETHE ju t'an, or altar of the scholarsWhether or not this religion spread from Szechwan into adjoiningprovinces, and when and by whom it was originated, I have never
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM IO3been able to learn. Certain it is that it grew steadily during the daysof the Republic, until it had temples in most of the cities of Szechwan.In 1928 there was one temple in I-pin, with a population of 100,000,and in 1948 there were three. A nearby city with a population of10,000 had one temple. In 1948 Chengtu, with a population of over600,000, had seven Ju T'an temples. None of the other religious sectserected temples, except the Confucian, the Buddhist, the Taoist, andthe Mohammedan, although some of them rented, borrowed, orbought places in which to meet and worship and to put up theirsigns.The word ju means Confucian or the literati. The Confucian re-ligion is often called the Ju Chiao, and thus the Ju T'an borrowed theprestige of the literati or the Confucian scholars. Many officials be-longed to this sect, but they also belonged to the Confucianists, theTaoists, or the Buddhists.The Ju T'an produced and used ceremonially its own sacred books,with the same purposes and the same expected results as among theBuddhists and the Taoists. They had charms and incantations, con-ducted funerals and memorial ceremonies, and exorcised demons, butthey did not have a celibate priesthood. Their greatest distinctionwas that they obtained messages from the gods or from deceasedrelatives and ancestors. Often they used the planchette, a table cov-ered with sand, on which two persons skillfully manipulated a pen soas to write characters that they read as messages. Sometimes theserevelations were published in books, and some of these books con-tained the words of Jesus, called the Chi-tu-chiao-chu.In some of the Ju T'an temples there were dark rooms in whichwere left pens, ink, and paper ready for writing. No one was sup-posed to be inside, but later when the door was opened, charactersappeared on the paper, supposedly written by the gods. Sometimesa man was left inside who was supposed to do the writing under theguidance of the gods. I heard of one of these men who was supposedto be very illiterate, but when the gods used him to write characters,his writing was beautiful. Most doubting Thomases were convincedduring these exhibitions, and I suspect that they were very skillfullyand cleverly arranged.Even more impressive are the works of the mediums in gettingmessages from deceased husbands, wives, and ancestors for their liv-ing friends, relatives, and descendants. These are dehvered verbally.In one instance the widow of a wealthy church member at Chi-t'ien-pa, south of I-pin, was the recipient of such a message. Shewas, of course, able to make a very sizable contribution. In due time
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the medium called her by name. "Your husband says," he began, andgave her a long message. She was thrilled, believing that her hus-band had spoken to her through the medium. I heard of another manwho received a message supposedly from his father. On hearing thewords of the medium, he knelt down and burst into tears.What are the reasons for the success and gradual growth of theJu T'an at the very time when Buddhism and Taoism were waginga life-and-death struggle for their very existence in West China?They are, first, the borrowing of the prestige of the literati throughits name; second, the uses of methods and ceremonies acceptable tomost of the people; and third, and I would say mainly, because of itssupposed ability to obtain at will messages from the gods and fromdeceased relatives and ancestors.THE WU CHIAO, OR RELIGION OF MAGICIn any village, town, or city in Szechwan one can find tuan kungs,sometimes called yin-yang hsien sheng, or professors of yin-yang.The front doors of their homes are generally wide open, as thoughto invite passersby to enter. On the two sides of the front room onewill see a great many herbs, bones, etc., which are used as medicine.In the center, on a table below the shrine, are printed or written papercharms and instruments of divination. Against the back wall, on thefloor, on the table, or on the shrine, are 30 to 50 images of variousdeities. Among these are the god of wealth, Kwanyin, the goddessof mercy, and many other of the more common gods. One of theseis Wu Ts'ang, who is an acrobat, standing on his hands on the backof a tiger, his heels in the air. When business is dull and the magicianhas not enough to do, he sometimes sends out Wu Ts'ang, who harmspeople, causing them to come to the tuan kiing and pay him for recall-ing the god or exorcising demons. Two others of the gods, a maleand a female, have heads but no bodies. When called to people'shomes to conduct ceremonies, the tuan kung takes these two gods, hasthe hosts furnish the clothing, and performs his ceremonies.At funerals and memorial ceremonies, people who are very pooroften employ a tuan kung, while others with more money call inBuddhist or Taoist priests. The priest of the Wu Chiao sect is re-garded as belonging to a hsi chiao, or heretical society of black magic.Unlike Buddhist or Taoist priests, he leaps and dances as he per-forms his ceremonies, much like the Ch'uan Miao tuan kung. In-deed, there are those who believe that the Chinese tuan kung learnedhis art from the Miao, and among the Miao he is orthodox, whileamong the Chinese he is heretical.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I05The ttmn kung prints and sells paper charms of many kinds formany purposes, exorcises demons so as to heal all manner of dis-eases and to protect individuals and families from various kinds ofcalamities, conducts funerals and opens the way of the departedsoul to Hades, conducts memorial ceremonies, chooses lucky days,divines, performs magical ceremonies to give good crops, brings hap-piness and prosperity, and chooses lucky places for graves, houses,and stores.Some priests among the Ch'iang assert that they are of the blackreligion, presumably having learned their arts from Chinese priestsof this order.This religion is found in many provinces of China, and the priestis so common among the Chinese that it is conceivable and even likelythat the Wu Chiao and its practices came down from ancient timesin Chinese religious folkways. A significant fact is that in the citiesof Szechwan, when temples of other sects were very rapidly dis-appearing, the titan kung could still be found carrying on, althoughhe doubtless suffered losses in customers and income.THE t'uNG SHAN SHE, OR SOCIETY FOR COOPERATION IN GOODNESSThis society was organized in Peking by Yao Chi-ts'ang, a man ofSzechwan Province. It was really an ofifshoot of the Tao-teh-hsiieh-she, whose aim is to unite all religions into one. It became very suc-cessful and widespread but finally died out or was driven undergroundby government prohibitions.This society also proclaimed that its main purpose was to uniteConfucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism with the other great religions,including Christianity. It was believed, however, that its real aim wasto restore the Manchu dynasty. It is conceivable that this struck asympathetic chord in the hearts of many Chinese people, for duringthe early days of the Republic, society in China was very much dis-turbed, prices rose higher and higher, and the people became poorerand poorer.The headquarters of this society was in Peking, and it had at least400 branches throughout China. It was a secret society with i6 de-grees, a person becoming a teacher after receiving 4 degrees. All in-struction was given verbally in an inner shrine, and candidates wereadvanced one degree at a time. All were under a solemn oath not toreveal the secrets.The members were all men of the gentry and official classes. Thefact that it was strictly secret and had for a main object the restora-tion of the Manchu dynasty is sufficient to explain why it was pro-
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hibited by the government and finally disappeared before WorldWar II.THE INTERNATIONAL UNION OF THE RELIGIONS OF SIX SAGES, ORTHE MOTHER RELIGIONAfter the establishment of the Chinese Republic in 191 1 SzechwanProvince was the scene of many battles and wars. It is possible thatmore turmoil and more disturbances from wars and from the ravagesof brigands existed in Szechwan than in any other part of China.In addition, through schools and schoolbooks, trade, moving pictures,newspapers, magazines, and many other agencies, there was a tre-mendous impact on the people of West China of new ideas, customs,and ideals, and these brought great changes in the lives of the people.These in turn produced great changes in religious beliefs and prac-tices, and several new religions or religious sects were founded.The founder of this new religion, T'ang Huan-chang, was a holderof a Manchu dynasty bachelor of arts degree who considered him-self to be a prophet. After receiving his bachelor of arts degree, hecame to Chengtu in search of employment. Here he attended a Chris-tian church, received Christian instruction, and was baptized. Hewas constantly arguing with his pastor that Christians should studyConfucianism, Mohammedanism, Buddhism, and Taoism, and becauseof this and irregularities in his conduct, including the smoking ofopium, he was dismissed from the church.T'ang Huan-chang asserted that a few years after the establish-ment of the Chinese Republic he received the seventh and greatestseal, which meant that he was the final and greatest prophet, to whomthe others were preparatory. He wrote at least 30 books, includingcommentaries on the other great religions.In addition to writing, he also sought disciples and messengers, andwas unusually successful. Apparently many gave him money. OneChinese official, near the beginning of his career, sought out T'angHuan-chang at his home, prostrated himself before him, and calledhim his teacher. Many others followed this example, and his dis-ciples and messengers were sent all over China.There were 13 degrees to membership, in the first of which oneswore himself to secrecy. Each person was to try to fast 40 days, andmany tested their faith by eating centipedes. T'ang planned to sendhis literature all over the world, but Chinese officials prevented hisdoing so. •
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 10/The 16 commandments, 8 positive and 8 negative, were as follows
:
A. Those to be observed:1. To strongly believe in God.2. To diligently cultivate personal virtue.3. To obey parents, respect elder brothers, love younger brothers, and to befaithful to friends.4. To speak and act honestly.5. To sincerely exhort people to be moral.6. To give to the poor as much as one can afiford.7. To abide by the laws of the country where one lives.8. To have a proper vocation.B. Those to be prohibited:1. To believe in heterodoxy, magic, or idols.2. To kill persons.3. To commit adultery.4. To steal.5. To rebel.6. To drink wine, fight or contest with others, or indulge in bad habits.7. To gamble.8. To interfere with politics,^To become a member of this new sect, one must take 13 steps, thefirst of which was to swear to keep the teachings secret except toother believers, who also swore an oath to keep them secret. Thesecond of the 13 was to attempt to fast 40 days as Jesus did. Thefasting was to be in a secluded spot, accompanied by meditation.T'ang issued at least three manifestos, in which he foretold aworldwide catastrophe to take place on September 25, 1923. Onewas published in the West China Missionary News, January 1924.It was entitled "A Thunder Clap," and foretold on that day the great-est earthquake that ever occurred, the greatest flood that ever oc-curred in the world, the greatest shock in the air that ever occurred,that many stars would fall on the earth, and that many angels andnumerous heavenly soldiers would come into the world. He issuedwarnings to kings and presidents of all nations, to ministers andofficials, to soldiers of all nations, to scientists and philosophers, tocapitalists, to laborers, to Christians, Mohammedans, Jews, Buddhists,Confucianists, and Taoists. The following is a shorter manifesto thatthe writer collected and preserved.PREPARATION FOR THE GREAT TRIBULATION
I. The general preparation is to avoid hunger, thirst, and coldness. Besidesthis, nothing could be prepared by human beings, for it is in the power of God.
° West China Missionary News, January 1924, p. 4.
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2. Those who live near rivers, lakes, or seas ought to move before the 24thof September of this year to the high hills, but not to the sides of cliffs.3. If there are no hills nearby, then the people should move onto ships, theropes of which must be fastened very strongly.4. Those who live near cliffs should move to the plains,5. Those who live in high brick buildings should move into smaller and lowerhouses.6. It will be best to live in thatched huts, if available.7. Old people and younger children should put on warmer clothes before the15th of the 8th moon of the older calendar.8. Those who usually fear cold weather should prepare some good wine andput it in a bamboo or tin tube for the purpose of keeping away cold.9. Pregnant women should prepare a good deal of milk, mixed with boilingwater, and then keep same in a bamboo or tin tube for use during the tribulation.Also, some good wine should be put into the milk in order to avoid injuriouseffects.10. Milk should be purchased for children, and the milk should be mixed withboiling water before the i6th of the 9th moon of the old calendar. When theyare hungry, the milk may be given to them. If the milk is too cold for children,their urine may be poured in to make it warmer.11. In the places where no milk is available, lotus-root flour should beobtained and mixed with boiling water before the 15th of the 8th moon. If nolotus-root flour is available, well-cooked congee may be used instead. If peoplefear the coldness causing trouble to their stomachs, some cardamon flour maybe poured in, or ginger water may be used to mix the lotus-root flour.12. The food which should be prepared varies at various places. At any rate,locally available food should be secured and made into a quality neither drynor wet. Food which can be eaten when cold is best for preparation.13. The prepared food should be sufficient for five or six days' use, and mustbe brought with the persons.14. If no water is available when one is thirsty, one may drink one's ownurine. One should also prepare some capsicum to quench one's thirst. Onlyone or two seeds of capsicum should be used at a time.15. After the great tribulation (or calamity) neither dry nor food difficult-to-digest should be eaten, but only vegetables and porridge may be taken. Withinthree or four days after the great tribulation, one should not eat too much.16. When the great tribulation comes on, each person should remain in hisown place, and should not move away during these days. Those who are out-side should not enter the houses ; those who are inside should not go out ofthe houses. Although one may have relatives at other places, one should notgo to see them. When any sound is heard, no one should look out, lest thefatal punishment of the angels and the heavenly soldiers fall on them.July 13, 1923. Published by the International Union of Six Sages,Cheng tu, Ssechwan, China.A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE COMING GREAT TRIBULATIONThe genuine doctrine of God has come down in Gaengtu, Szechwan, China.As God witnesses for his doctrine, he will show great wonders. People of all
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM IO9
nations and of all tribes should get ready. The wonders will be of six kinds
;
1. There will be severe earthquakes.2. The sun and the moon will be darkened for five days.3. Great stars will fall on the earth.4. There will be unusually great thunders, tempests, and hailstones.5. The oceans and seas will overflow their banks, and sinners will be drowned.6. Many angels and heavenly soldiers will descend to attack evil persons.N. B. Any enquiries about this doctrine may be sent to the International Unionof Religions of Six Sages, Tao Kwang Sou, Chengtu, Szechwan, China.REPRINTS ARE WELCOMEDThe day of the prophesied worldwide catastrophe arrived, butnothing unusual occurred. Food prepared in too large quantitiesmolded and rotted, and had to be thrown away. Protests to thegovernment of Chengtu and of Szechwan began to pour in from allover China, from people who had been disturbed or excited orhad been inveigled out of their money. T'ang Huan-chang was ar-rested and executed.One would naturally suppose that the death of its founder wouldbring to an end the International Union of the Religions of Six Sages.However, the descendants and followers of T'ang explained his deathby saying that he went to heaven, just as Jesus did, and they con-tinued to send messengers, publish and scatter literature, and to solicitfollowers. They further developed his doctrines, and changed thename of the religious sect to Mu-chiao, or the Mother Religion,saying that Jesus is God's son, and God must be a mother since onlya mother can bear a son. The number of followers of this sect in1948 was very few.THE POPULAR OR FOLK RELIGION OFSOUTHWEST CHINASome oriental scholars, realizing that the dominant religion ofChina is found in the beliefs and practices of the common people,have called that religion "animism." Instead of defining it in that way,I shall simply describe what I believe to be the most important traitsand customs that I have observed. Some of the beliefs and assump-tions underlying these customs are comparatively primitive, and forthat reason it may seem strange that they should persist among apeople as cultured as the Chinese,One explanation is that modern science, with its naturalistic ex-planations of phenomena, had not penetrated Chinese society. An-other is that 95 percent of the people were illiterate. This included
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virtually all the women, since formal education for girls had barelymade a beginning in China by the end of the 19th century. Womenare generally more religiously inclined than men, and they had muchto do with the education of the children. Though it is true that theideas of the scholars influenced the ordinary Chinese people, it isalso true that the beliefs and practices of the common people stronglyinfluenced the scholars and rulers of China.In my study of religion in West China, my main interest has beenthe folk religion of the Chinese. My aim has always been to be ob-jective, to find out what the people themselves believed and thought.Not only have I witnessed many ceremonies and festivals, but I havetalked about their beliefs with many hundreds of Chinese of allclasses, checking and rechecking my conclusions. What I found tobe true in southwest China may or may not be true in some otherparts of China.YIN-YANG AND FENGSHUI, MYSTERIOUS POTENCYIn the China that was, everything is either yin or yang. Womenare yin, and men are yang. The moon is yin, and the sun is yang.Some stars are yin, and others are yang. The under side of a tableor chair is yin, and the upper side is yang. The shady side of amountain or hill is yin, and the sunny side is yang. Some diseasesare yin, and others are yang, and some medicines are yin, and othersare yang. Even the weather is affected by the interaction of the yinand the yang elements. When the weather is cloudy, the yin pre-dominates, and it is likely to rain. A cloudy day is called a yin t'ien,and a bright, sunshiny day is called a yang t'ien. When the yangpredominates, the weather is fair. The four seasons are regarded asa struggle between these two elements. Half the year the yin pre-dominates and the weather is colder. The other half of the year theyang predominates and the weather is warmer.The Chinese divided all substances into five elements : metal^, wood ;^c, water 7X» fire yc, and earth i:. Each of these wassubdivided into the yin and the yang, as shown below. The significanceof this diagram is that each of the five elements can be either yinor yang. yin j^ The five elements 3£^ yay^g. ^^ Metal ^ ^2, Wood ;fc ^^ Water 7K iT Fire ^ ^g Earth ± }%
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM IIIThe most important theory in Chinese medicine is that of the yinand the yang, which are beheved to pervade the entire body. Whenthey are properly balanced, the person is well, but when there is apredominance of either one, the person is ill. If the yin predominates,he has a yin sickness, and is likely to have chills. Predominance ofthe yang produces a yang illness, usually with a fever. All medicinesare either yin or yang. For a yin sickness, a person must take yangmedicine until the yin and the yang are equally balanced, and thenhe will be well. For a yang sickness, he must take yin medicine untilthe balance between the yin and the yang in his body is restored. Theinteraction between the yin and the yang in the body produces thepulse (Morse, 1928, p. 96). Food is also divided into the yin andthe yang, and if not correlated with the medicines and the diseases,treatment of the diseases will be hindered (ibid., p. 103).The successful diagnosis and treatment of diseases depend on andare based on not only the doctrine of the yin and the yang, but alsoon their interaction with the five elements, the five planets, the fivecolors, and the five tastes (ibid., p. 95).A matter of much importance is the fact that in West China manysocial relationships and customs were permeated with and determinedby the yin-yang concept. Yin is dull, female, inferior, while yangis bright, male, superior. Women must sit on the right side of theirhusbands, for that side is inferior, and men must sit on the left, forthat side is higher, and men are superior. Women should obey theirfathers, their fathers-in-law, and their husbands, for the welfare ofsociety depends on keeping women in subjection to the men. Womenwere not educated, for that would make them harder for the men tocontrol. Sons were more valued than daughters, and the social posi-tion of a woman was higher and more secure after she had givenbirth to a son.^°The following quotation from the Encyclopaedia Sinica (Couling,1917, pp. 615-616) is illuminating:YIN and YANG, the negative and positive principles of universal life. Thesewords meant originally the dark and bright sides of a sunlit bank and occur onthe Stone Drums (6th century B. C). By the time of Confucius they had
^° I have discussed this theory many times with Chinese friends in West China.All agreed that the above statement of the theory is approximately correct.Most educated women and some men, however, asserted that the principle iswrong, and that there should be equality between the sexes. In my classes in theUnion Theological School, I sometimes brought this question up for discussion,and a lively debate would ensue. A few of the men affirmed that the old theoryis good, and the women argued for equality between the sexes.
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acquired a. philosophical significance as the two aspects of the duality which theChinese thinkers perceived in all things. Traces of the dual notion occurred inthe "Great Plan" of the Shu Ching, but the actual words Yin and Yang as usedin this sense occur first in the pseudo-Confucian commentaries of the I-Ching.In this way Yang comes to mean Heaven, Light, Vigour, Male, Penetration,the Nomad. It is symbolized by the Dragon and is associated with azure colorand oddness in numbers. The Feng Shui raised-land forms (mountains) areYang.Similarly Yin stands for Earth (the antithesis of Heaven), Darkness, Quies-cence, Female, Absorption, the Duad. It is symbolized by the Tiger and asso-ciated with orange color and even numbers. Valleys and streams possess the Yinquality.The two are represented by a whole and a broken line respectively, thus ;
—
Yang YinGroups of three such lines are known as "trigrams," groups of six as "hexi-grams," and the I-Ching is classified under the sixty-four possible hexigrams.In common with the five elements, the Yin and the Yang have been for atleast two thousand years used to interpret the processes of nature, and theyare the fundamental features in the theories which underlie Feng Shiti, Astrol-ogy, Divination, and Medicine.T'ai (Great) Yang means the Sun, T'ai Yin the Moon, Shao (lesser) Yangthe fixed stars, and Shao Yin the planets, these four being supposed to be thefour primary combinations (Hsiang) of Yin and Yang.Yin and Yang are themselves supposed to have proceeded from a "GreatUltimate."Closely related to the yin-yang concept is that of fengshiii. The factthat the tuan kung, the magician or geomancer who is the priest ofthe Wu Chiao, or Witch Society, or the Society of Black Magic, isalso often called the yin-yang hsien-sheng, or the professor of yin-yang, and also fengshui hsien-sheng, or professor of fengshui, sug-gests a very close relation between the two.Fengshui is regarded as exceedingly important. No family wouldbuild a house or a store without first engaging a fengshui professorand making sure that the fengshui of the place is good. It is believedthat if the fengshui of a store is good, the business will prosper. Ifthe fengshui of the house in which the family lives is good, the familywill prosper, having numerous descendants, becoming wealthy, andproducing scholars and officials.Of very great importance is the location of the ancestral graves.If the fengshui of the graves is good, and the coffin and the corpseare pointed in the right direction, the descendants will prosper, in-creasing in numbers and wealth and becoming scholars and officials.If the fengshui of the ancestral graves is bad, calamities will ensue
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM II3
among the descendants, and they will not prosper. People have beenknown to do things that they believed would ruin the fengshui ofthe ancestral graves of their enemies so that their enemies would notprosper.The fengshui of towns, cities, prefectures, and larger areas is alsoregarded as important. It can be improved by temples, pagodas, feng-shui stones, and fengshui trees, and can be affected for good or illby the location of city gates and by other factors. If a fengshui pro-fessor finds that the fengshui of a city gate is bad, the gate may beclosed permanently. If he finds that the fengshui of a city or regionis bad, measures will be taken to improve the fengshui. A few milesdown the river from Lo-shan, a tower with several stories was builtto improve the fengshui of the city. The natural features of a locality,the nearness, directions, and shapes of the mountains, hills, andridges, and the nearness and directions of streams, valleys, and de-pressions, determine whether or not the fengshui of a particular spotor locality is good.One way to improve the fengshui of a city or a locality is to erecta pagoda. Practically every town or city has at least one pagoda, andI-pin has three—the white pagoda, the black pagoda, and the oldpagoda. But a pagoda must be in the right place, or it can do harm.At Pai-shou-ch'i, a city west of I-pin, there was formerly a pagodaon the south side of the Yangtse River. Because some scholars liv-ing in the city died, it was decided that the pagoda was not in agood spot and was harming the fengshui of the city, so it was torndown and the city has no pagoda. About 25 miles up the Min Riverfrom Lo-shan is the village of Hsiang-pi-ssu, or Elephant's NoseMonastery. Years ago the people began to erect a pagoda to improvethe fengshui, and soon after the work was begun, some local scholarsdied. It was decided that the pagoda was wrongly located, so that itwas ruining the fengshui of the town, and the pagoda was nevercompleted.Some temples are believed to have a good influence on fengshui. Ashort distance east of An-pien is a large temple from which one canlook up the narrow valley of the Huen-chiang River, which enters theYangtse River here from the south. People believe that this templeexerts a very important influence for good on the fengshui in andaround An-pien by opposing and turning back any harmful influencesthat may come down the valley of the Huen-chiang River.There are a great many fengshui trees and fengshui stones inWest China. The fengshui tree may be a banyon, a cypress, a pine.
114 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
or some other kind of a tree, but it is always a large, old tree. Thefengshui stones are very often stones that are prominent in the land-scape and strange and striking in appearance. Such trees and stonesare alike in that they aflfect for good the fengshui of the family, city,or region concerned, and in that they simply must not be cut or in-jured, for that would spoil the fengshui and bring calamities insteadof good fortune to those concerned.In the rear of the Ta-o-ssu monastery on Mount Omei, inside thetemple and growing up through the roof is a great pine tree that isworshiped as a god and is also the fengshui tree of Omei-hsien. Nearthe Hsin-k'ai-ssu monastery on Mount Omei is another great pinetree that is the fengshui tree of of Ch'ien-w'ei, which city is 120 lidown the Min River from Lo-shan. Near Hsiiin-chien-ssu, very closeto the cliff in which is the sacred cave called the Chin-sha-tung, orGolden Sands Cave, is the fengshui tree of a powerful family thatlives not far away. At Kan-pai-shou on the Min River above I-pinis an old dead cypress tree that is the fengshui of that town. Theseinstances could be multiplied indefinitely.Formerly the streets of I-pin were very narrow, and in them wereseveral large fengshui stones that made it more difficult for peopleto pass up and down, especially when carrying loads or sedan chairs.No one dared to chip them down so that they would not obstructtraffic—that would certainly cause calamities among the people of thecity. In 1929 I-pin had a progressive mayor who widened andpaved the streets, and had stone masons chip away the stones. Noth-ing harmful happened to the people of I-pin, and this lessened theirfear of, and respect for, fengshui stones.Between An-pien and Lou-tung, west of I-pin on the north shoreof the Yangtse River, is a strange-looking rock that for decades hasbeen the fengshui stone of the important Lin family of Lou-tung.At Chiang-chioh-ch'i, about 20 miles up the Min River from I-pin,a large, round, pointed rock that resembles the upright piece of woodto which boatmen attach their oars is the fengshui stone of the nearbyvillage of Chiang-chioh-ch'i. A short distance below P'in-shan, whichis west of I-pin on the Yangtse River, is a strange-looking rock thatis the fengshui stone of P'in-shan.Across the Yangtse River from An-pien, in the mouth of theHuen-chiang River, is a large rock on which many boats have beenwrecked every year, with much loss of life and property. It couldeasily be broken to pieces and removed at the time of low water, butthe people are afraid to do so. It is the fengshui stone of An-pien,
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM II5
and if it should be injured or destroyed, much harm would ensue tothe people of An-pien.About halfway between I-pin and Li-chuang, on the south side ofthe Yangtse River, is a large rock that is the fengshui stone of theLo family who live on the north side of the river and who formerlywere very rich and powerful. It is said that when someone choppedwood at the home of the Lo family, the rock would move. This stonewas on the property of the Chang family, who were jealous of theprosperity of the Lo family, so they hired stone masons to cut upthe fengshui stone. The Lo family went to law about it, and thelawyers were so clever that they prolonged the expensive lawsuitseveral years without reaching a decision. The two families thereforeagreed to settle the matter out of court by throwing silver into theriver. The family that threw in the most silver would win. TheChang family threw in pewter, but the Lo family threw in a greatdeal of silver. After that both families were poor, and the peopleattributed the poverty of the Lo family largely to the fact that itsfengshui stone had been injured.What is fengshui? The following quotation from the Encyclo-paedia Sinica will throw some light on the question.FENG SHUI, j^TJC. wind and water. (The outward and visible signs of celes-tial Yang and Yin.) The art of adapting the residence of the living and the deadso as to co-operate and harmonize with the local currents of the cosmic breath(Yin and Yang, q. v.) ; often incorrectly called "geomancy."It is believed that at every place there are special topographical features(natural or artificial) which indicate or modify the universal spiritual breath(Ch'i). The forms of hills and the directions of watercourses, being the out-come of the moulding influences of wind and water, are the most important,but in addition the heights and forms of buildings and the directions of roadsand bridges are potent factors. From instant to instant the force and directionof the spiritual currents are modified by the motions of the sun and moon,(see astrology), so that at any particular time the directions of the celestialbodies from the point considered are also of great importance.The professor of Feng Shui employs a lo-pan (graduated astrolabe with com-pass) to observe directions and astrological harmonies, while at the same timehe notices the forms which the spiritual forces of nature have produced.By talismans (dragons and other symbolic figures on roofs and walls, pagodason hills, or bridges) and charms (pictures of spirits or "words of power" in-scribed on paper scrolls or stone tablets), the unpropitious character of any par-ticular topography may be amended.Artificial alteration of natural forms has good or bad effect, according to thenew forms produced. Tortuous paths are preferred by beneficent influences, sothat straight works such as railways and tunnels favour the circulation of malefi-cent breath.The dead are in particular affected by and able to use the cosmic currents forthe benefit of the living, so that it is to the interest of each family to secure
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and preserve the most auspicious environment for the grave, the ancestral temple,and the home.There is copious native literature on the subject with elaborate rules, plansand theoretical information (Couling, 1917, p. 175).To sum up, fengshui is the outworking of the yin and the yang innature. It is a mysterious power or potency that affects for good orill the welfare of families, cities, and larger regions. It is oftenlocalized in strange and awe-inspiring trees and stones. It is affectedby the natural features of the landscape, such as mountains, hills,streams and valleys and their directions, and by the sun, the moon,and the stars, and also by artificial features such as pagodas, temples,houses, towers, railways, roads, and tunnels. It is understood by theprofessor of yin-yang and fengshui, who uses a lo-p'an as an instru-ment to make his calculations. There are a number of books that ex-plain its operations, and I have been told that it requires about threeyears of study to become a professor of yin-yang and fengshui.There are many customs in West China that can be explained bythe assumption that there is a strange, mysterious, superhumanpower which can be injurious, but which also can be used for thebenefit of men. A few illustrations will be given.There is a bird in West China that migrates at night, flying inflocks north in the spring and south in the fall. The members of theflock call to each other as they fly, and their voices vary in pitch.There is a very strong belief in Szechwan that this is a nine-headedbird, with two legs and two wings. One man tells you that his fathersaw one, and another that his grandmother saw one. When theyfly over a house, the people beat on the doors and shout to frightenthe bird away. They believe that if a drop of blood or a feather orsome of the offal of this bird should fall on the family property,members of the family would become ill and possibly die.In the medicine shops, bones of leopards, tigers, and other fiercecreatures are sold as medicine. It is assumed that because these ani-mals are very powerful, their bones possess an unusual power to healdiseases.A short distance from I-pin is a large white mass of sandstonethat is worshiped as a god. A temple has been built around it, andother idols have been added. For a small sum of money the priestwill permit you to rub off a few grains of sand and take it away.It is assumed that the grains of sand possess a peculiar power, sothat if they are put in water and the water drunk, the mystic powerwill heal diseases.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM II7On Mount Omei there are bronze pagodas that are supposed tohave been erected during the Ming dynasty. Pilgrims rub brass orcopper coins on them and carry the coins away to use as charms, be-Heving that power to protect people from diseases, demons, andcalamities has been transferred to the coins by rubbing them on thesacred objects. In the Wan-nien-ssu on Mount Omei is a bronzestatue of P'uhsien riding a bronze elephant. So many of the pilgrimsrubbed coins on the statue or on the bronze elephant, in order to turnthe coins into charms, that a protecting fence was built around thestatue to keep it from being ruined. In the Green Goat temple atChengtu are two brass goats. A person who has a sickness or apain first rubs a spot on one of these goats corresponding to the lo-cation of his pain, then rubs himself in that spot, believing that thiswill heal him. It is assumed that there is a transfer of power byrubbing.The number of charms is almost endless. The almanac, mirrorsof glass or of metal, pieces of jade or of amber, charms of copper,brass, or bronze that look like large coins, and literally hundreds ofkinds of paper charms are used. The print of the seal of an officialor a similar print of the official seal of a titan kung or of a Buddhistor a Taoist priest is valued and used as a charm. Written or printedpaper charms are hung above the front doors of houses, on beds,or on other places in houses, stores, or temples in the belief that theyhave superhuman power to protect from demons or calamities. Allcharms are believed to have this superhuman power.Certain stones and trees are worshiped as gods, and other gods aremade of clay, wood, stone, and many kinds of metal. They vary inheight from a few inches to that of the great Buddha at Lo-shan,which is over 200 feet high. They all have one thing in common
—
they are believed to possess marvelous superhuman power to helpor to harm people. Sometimes an idol is believed to have lost thispower, and then he is neglected, and he and his shrine or templeare allowed to go to ruin.There is one important sentence, known by practically all Chinesein West China, which is used to sum up the philosophy underlying thepractices of medicine and healing, divination, fcngshui, geomancy,astrology, magical ceremonies, and all practices and beliefs relatedto the use of a superhuman potency. It is, "The Chaos gave birthto (or produced) the Great Extreme, the Great Extreme gave birthto the Two Powers, the Two Powers gave birth to the Four PrimaryCombinations (or Symbols), the Four Primary Combinations pro-
Il8 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42duced the Eight Trigrams, and the Eight Trigrams determine thelucky and the unlucky." The Chinese in West China affirmed with-out hesitation that this is the key to their more primitive philosophyand practices, and that the two i ^ or powers are the yin and theyang.Prof. Clifford H. Plopper, in "Chinese Religion Seen through theProverbs," gives this same proverb exactly in the form given aboveexcept in the last phrase, which he translates as follows: "Out ofNothingness was born the Great Extreme; this produced the Yinand Yang; these then produced the four Symbols; they the eightdiagrams ; and they the sixty-four hexigrams." (Plopper, 1926, p. 20.)While the word i means powers, the powers meant here are theyin and the yang, so that Dr. Plopper's rendering is correct, althoughit is not a literal translation. Williams, in his dictionary, "A SyllabicDictionary of the Chinese Language," gives "a power as in nature"as one of the meanings of i, and many Chinese in West China haveassured the writer that this is the meaning here. (Williams, S. Wells,1909, P- 393-)In 1929, after nine years of searching for a name in the Chineselanguage for this mysterious potency that pervades all things and isthe power found in fcngshui and other magical practices, I made thefollowing statements
:
One who searches in the religion of the common people of China for a singleterm denoting that mysterious potency, now designated by the word "mana" inscientific circles, will be disappointed. There is no such single term. (Graham,1929a, p. 235.)The writer is convinced, and advances as a tentative theory, that the con-ception of a mysterious potency, often more or less vague and undefined, butnone-the-less real, is a primary key to the interpretation of the popular religionof the Chinese people which has come down through the past millenniums, andthat its philosophical interpretation has been worked out in the conception anddoctrine of ym-yanri and fcngsluii. (Ibid., p. 237.)In his book, "Chinese Peasant Cults," published in 1940, Prof.Clarence Burton Day quotes these two statements. He also quotesJ. C. Archer as suggesting the word ch'i ^ or breath as a possibleword for the mana concept and adds,We wish to put forward here the equally tentative theory that we shall findin the word Ling g meaning "spirit force," "effective" or "efficacious," theterm for mana in Chinese religion for which we have been looking. As evidenceof this, we can here mention but five places where it occurs in the sense ofthis underlying and rather immanent potency. (Pp. 171-172.)The first two instances given by Professor Day refer to the twothunder and lightning charms mentioned by Dore in "Chinese Super-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM II9
stitions," about which the word ling is used as an adjective meaningefficacious. He quotes Dore as saying in a footnote, "thunder, accord-ing to the Chinese, is produced by the Yin and the Yang coming intocolHsion." (Pp. 172-173.)The next illustration given by Professor Day is the use of Hng-chu, "sepulchre of the soul." Dore and Day interpret this term asmeaning soul and, at the same time, efficacious. The use here isalmost exactly like that of ling-p'ai, or spirit tablet. It is very likelythat the Chinese here think of ling as meaning primarily the soul ofthe dead person, and only secondarily if at all as meaning efficacious.Professor Day gives two more instances in which ling is an adjectivemeaning efficacious. (Pp. 172-173.)More instances could be given. Ling-nien means efficacious, or pos-sessing this mysterious potency. Ling-tsu-ch'ao is the name of a mar-velous grass that, if eaten, enables a person to live forever withoutaging. However, ling is often used to designate a human soul, es-pecially that of a dead person, and the phrase in the Christian NewTestament, "God is a spirit," is translated "Shang-ti shih i ko ling."It seems that the word ling, or some combination of it with anotherChinese word, ought to designate the mana concept, but this is farfrom being proved.Between the years 1920 and 1948 I often talked with Chinese inWest China about the yin-yang and fcngshui concepts, and also themana concept. I discussed it in university classes and in classes inthe Union Theological School, and discussed with many Chi-nese the possible use of ling, sJicn j^, and ch'i ^, as names ofthe mana concept. The persons consulted included scholars, uni-versity and theological school students, merchants, priests, and manycommon people. Not one of them felt that either of these words wasan appropriate name for this mysterious potency. They all agreed thatthe yin-yang and fengshid concepts are the Chinese equivalent of themana concept. This leaves me in the same position that I took in1929 and quoted above. It is very likely that Chinese anthropologistswill give us the correct term, either by using old Chinese words orby transliterating the word mana.ANCESTOR WORSHIPAs we have already stated, at the very beginning of Chinese historyancestor worship was already an old and well-established custom(Addison, 1925, p. 3; Creel, 1935b, pp. 80, 126, 174). It has long
120 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42been and still is the most important Chinese social and religiouscustom.A basic idea in filial piety and ancestral veneration is that there isa mutual dependence between the living and their dead ancestors.After death the deceased need the same things as before—food, shel-ter, clothing, money, tools, weapons, etc., and it is the duty of theliving descendants to provide them. In addition, the younger gen-erations must treat their parents and all ancestors and elders withrespect, reverence, and love (Creel, 1935b, p. 175)-The deceased ancestors are actively interested in the welfare oftheir descendants. If they have been provided with the things tosupply their needs, they help and protect their living descendants, giv-ing them long life, wealth, happiness, and success. On the other hand,if the ancestors are neglected, are not shown honor and respect, andare not provided with the things they need, they become angry andresentful and inflict punishment upon their living descendants. Theybecome demons.A very important question is. Do the Chinese worship their de-ceased ancestors as gods, or merely honor and respect them as men?Addison, in his excellent booklet "Chinese Ancestor Worship," assertsthat the Chinese do not worship the deceased ancestors as deities(Addison, 1925, p. 52), but honor them as noble and exalted humanbeings. This I have found to be the belief and attitude of most of themore intelligent and enlightened Chinese in West China. For years Iinquired about ancestor worship only from the more educated Chi-nese, and always received the same reply—the ancestors after deathare human beings, highly respected, but not worshiped as gods.One day I was talking to a servant, a Chinese who had no school-ing and who was steeped in the popular ideas and beliefs of WestChina. I asked this man, "Do the Chinese worship their deceasedancestors as gods?" He replied, "Yes. We common Chinese have aproverb, 'Ho ti shih jen, shih liao shih shcn.' " This means, "livingthey are people, after death they are gods." Later the writer put thequestion to many other common Chinese people of West Chinaand always received a similar answer. Scholars have also agreed thatthe common, uneducated Chinese of West China worship their de-ceased anscestors as gods, while reaffirming that the more enlightenedChinese do not.One aspect of ancestor veneration concerns the respectful treat-ment of parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents while theyare still alive. If they are old and helpless, they are loved, fed,clothed, and sheltered.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 121The funeral is very important. From late Neolithic times manythings have been buried with the dead, including pottery, clothing,jades, ornaments, tools, weapons, bronzes beginning with the Shangdynasty, and bronze coins beginning in the late Chou dynasty. Fromearly in the Shang dynasty, cattle, horses, sheep, pigs, and evenhuman beings were buried with the dead in their tombs. During thefirst half of the Chou dynasty, living people were buried with the dead.In the first half of the Chou dynasty there was a moral developmentamong the Chinese leaders that led to protests against burying livepeople with the dead. This led to the substitution of wooden andstraw images of men and women in the tombs. By the time of theHan dynasty, clay images were substituted for men and women,horses, cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, pigeons, houses, andstoves, and with these were buried bronzes, iron vessels, jades, money,ornaments of gold and silver, weapons, tools, and pottery vases, jugs,and dishes of many varieties.Because of the great value of many of the objects buried with thedead in the tombs, the graves were very often robbed. The AcademiaSinica during World War II excavated about 300 Han dynasty tombsin Szechwan, and the Department of Archaeology of Nanking Uni-versity also excavated many, and it was found that every tomb hadbeen opened and robbed at least once, some evidently more than once.I have not heard of a single ancient tomb in Szechwan that had notbeen looted, although there may have been a few.Probably influenced by the robbery of the graves, by the time ofthe Sung dynasty people began to substitute paper or "spirit" moneyfor actual coins and for lumps of gold and silver. Similar substitu-tions were extended to nearly all other objects, so that very little ofvalue was buried in the graves. Instead, the objects were made ofpaper and wood and ceremonially burned as part of the funeral cere-monies, in the belief that burning transformed them into actual moneyand objects that could be used by the souls of the dead in Hades.This custom was still practiced in 1948, just before the iron curtainwent down. Paper images of men and women, sedan chairs, houses,gold hills and silver hills, jinrickshas, automobiles, and many otherthings were burned with heaps of spirit money.Another phase of ancestral veneration is the worship of ancestraltablets in the homes and in the ancestral temples. The Chinese believethat there are three main souls and seven lesser souls. Of the mainsouls, one remains in the coffin, one in the ancestral tablet, and thethird goes to Heaven, Hell, Hades, or is reborn in the transmigration
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of souls. It is thought that the soul of the deceased actually dwellsin the ancestral tablet, and the tablet is thought of and treated as if itwere the ancestor himself.Every large family or clan has its own ancestral temple. In thisthere is one large tablet representing the family, and one tablet foreach deceased ancestor, going back at least three generations. Gen-erally each temple has a caretaker who daily burns incense and wor-ships the ancestors before their tablets for the family.Families that are too poor to have an ancestral temple keep theirancestral tablets in their own homes. In the homes as in the temples,the tablets are worshiped daily by the burning of incense and bybowing. On the first and fifteenth days of each lunar month thereis special worship. Incense and candles are burned, and instead ofmerely bowing, the worshipers kowtow or knock their heads on theground, a more profound act of worship.Twice a year the family goes to the ancestral temple for very specialceremonies of ancestral worship. They kill a pig or a sheep, andchickens and ducks, which are first ofifered uncooked to the ancestors.The hair is cleaned off the bodies of the pig and the sheep. Holes aremade in their backs, and three sticks of incense and two candles arestuck into the holes and lighted. Then there is worship and prostra-tions. Generally these ceremonies are performed in the homes andin the ancestral temples by the oldest sons. No women can have apart in the ancestral ceremonies.Some families observe these ceremonies in the ancestral templesafter the rice is planted and after the rice harvest. Others performthem at Ch'ing Ming and at the arrival of winter or tiing chih. Thereare similar offerings in many homes at New Year and at Ch'ing Ming.After the animals and the fowls are offered to the ancestors in theancestral temples, they are cooked and eaten at a family meal sharedby the deceased ancestors and the living descendants. The ancestorsare regarded as actually present and partaking of the food. An oldmotto much used in West China is chin jit chai or chi ju chai, mean-ing "respect or worship them as actually present." A very old customstill much in use is to have a grandson of the deceased represent himat the feast.It should be emphasized that the ancestral tablet is regarded as aliving thing—the ancestor himself, and is treated as such. Beforethis is so, an official or scholar must perform a ceremony in which heuses a red pen and red ink and writes in the final strokes of the wordsshen cJiu on the ancestral tablet.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I23The veneration and offerings of the living descendants are abso-lutely necessary for the happiness and comfort of the deceased ances-tors. After death they are regarded as in a very real sense alive, andas needing food, clothing, money, and many other things that theyhad used before death. Since only male descendants can performthese ceremonies, it is essential that in each family sons be born tocontinue the family line and the ancestral worship. It is thereforeconsidered unfilial in the extreme for a son not to have sons to con-tinue the family line and the ancestral worship.It is believed that many of life's blessings are given to the livingdescendants by their deceased ancestors. These blessings includesuccess, happiness, and prosperity of every kind. If neglected, theancestors can inflict severe punishments upon unfilial descendants.For these reasons the ancestors are even more powerful after deaththan they were before. DEMONSWe have seen that if the offerings to, and worship of, the deadancestors are discontinued because the living descendants are unfilialor because there are no more descendants, then the deceased ances-tors become hungry and angry, and vengeful, and inflict much painand harm upon the descendants and on other people. In short, theybecome demons.Another kind of a demon is the soul of a person who has died aviolent or unnatural death. This includes the souls of people whohave been killed by falling over a cliff, who have been stabbed or shotso that they bleed to death, whose throats have been cut, who havebeen drowned, who died by hanging, or of women who died duringchildbirth. The only way that the demon of a person who has died aviolent death can escape the undesirable demon condition and be re-born as a human being is to cause some other person to die the sameway that he did. There are many stories of demons trying to causethe deaths of other people.A tiao chin kuei is a demon who died by hanging and who seeksto be reborn as a human being by causing some other person to dieby hanging, generally by committing suicide. A 1110 chin kuei is ademon who died by cutting his throat or having his throat cut, andwho endeavors to cause others to die a similar death. A water demonis one who drowned in a river, stream, or lake and now tries to drownother people. The rescue of a drowning person may anger the demonwho is trying to drown that person, and the demon mav then drown
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the rescuer. For this reason many Chinese and non-Chinese in WestChina are reluctant to rescue a person from drowning. There is alsothe demon of a woman who died in childbirth, who endeavors to causeother women to die in childbirth.Demons who were previously wolves, leopards, tigers and otheranimals are sometimes called yao ch'i. Among the Ch'uan Miao thereare stories of demons that are the souls of vines.Dore, in "Chinese Superstitions," vol. 5, says
—
The reader can see, as in the preceding volumes, how the Chinaman peoplesthe world with demons and spectres. These cause illness and disease, annoy,molest, and bring all kinds of misfortune on persons and families. To protecthimself from attacks on the part of these malignant beings is the great con-cern, we might say the almost exclusive religion of the Chinaman. (Pp. ii-iii.)Again he says
—
These inscriptions partake of the nature of charms, and are in reality devicesfor checking and restraining the influence of demons, ghosts, and all kinds ofspectres. According to the orthodox belief entertained by Chinese philosophers,demons and spectres perform in the universe the leading part in the distributionof evil, hence the people are haunted with a continual fear of these evil-disposedbeings. (P. 431.)Belief in and fear of demons, and methods of preventing themfrom doing harm, are exceedingly important factors in Chinese lifeand religion. This adds to the importance of filial piety and ances-tor worship, for practicing these virtues prevents many of the de-ceased ancestors from becoming harmful demons. It is also true thatany person, object, ceremony, or god that can protect people fromdemons is regarded as very important. There are ways to keep de-mons from attacking a person or entering a home, and ways of re-moving them after they have entered or attacked.People believe that saying the word demon is a dangerous thing.The demons may hear it and either regard the utterance of the wordas calling the demons, in which case they will come and do harm, orregard the saying of the word as uncomplimentary and so becomeangry and harm people. It is customary to use, instead of the wordkuei, demon, hsi mo, which is impersonal and means demoniacal orspooky, but it always means indirectly demons. There is a sayingoften used in Szechwan, "Ssu-ch'uan ssu i ko hsi mo ti ti fang," whichmeans that Szechwan is a place where there are many demons.It is believed that demons love darkness and fear and dread thelight. They are very much about at night, but when the rooster crows,announcing the coming of daylight, many of the demons disappearand seek dark corners. For this reason, among others, people at
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night light candles and make other lights in the homes or the temples,or on the streets. They carry torches or lanterns with them when theytravel about at night. Boatmen have lights on their boats, and whenashore at night visiting or pulling the boat upstream, they carry torchesor lanterns. A bride is carried by daylight to the groom's home aspart of the wedding ceremony in a beautiful "flowery sedan chair."Often, as a protection from demons, lighted lanterns are tied ontothe rear of the bridal chair. Bronze or brass mirrors and Chinesealmanacs are also tied onto the bridal chair in the belief that theywill keep away demons.When traveling, a person often goes through shady nooks or bendswhere demons are likely to be, especially at night. At frequent in-tervals along the roads or paths there are shrines containing godswhose purpose is to protect people in that locality from demons. Thegods generally found in these shrines are the local earth god calleda t'ti-H iiJSJl, Kuanyin the goddess of mercy, Amitabha, T'ai-shan-shih-kan-tang, or the T'ai Shan Stone That Dares, and Ling-kuan,the efficacious Taoist deity.The inscriptions on the shrines of these wayside gods often indi-cate that they are there to protect from demons. For instance, aninscription often appearing on the two sides of the shrine of thet'u-ti means, "He protects the region so that it is quiet and lucky(free from demons), and protects in all four directions so that thereis peace." Amitabha is supposed to be a compassionate god, but in awayside shrine he is often a fierce character with tusks and so quiteable to frighten away the demons. The T'ai-shan-shih-kan-tang seemsto be a deified stone, but he is also a fierce demon chaser, Ling-kuan is the Taoist equivalent of the Buddhist Wei-t'o, a protectorof Taoist law and temples, but he is also a fierce warrior againstdemons, often with his golden or iron war club uplifted and readyto strike.Demons need to be kept out of the homes, where they may enterand harm the inmates. They are able to fly only in a straight line, sovery often a high mud or brick wall is built in front of the maindoor to keep the demons from entering.A very common method of protecting homes from demons is topaste paper charms above and at the center of the front door. Suchcharms are written or printed on paper and sold by tuan kungs,priests of the Wu Chiao or the religion of black magic, and byBuddhist and Taoist priests. The writer has often seen several ofthese charms pasted above the same door, one over the other, each
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adding to the efficacy of the other charms. Sometimes instead of, orin addition to, these paper charms a mirror is hung above the door.It is said that demons are very bad looking, and when they see them-selves in the mirror they are frightened at their own images andquickly depart. Another addition or substitute for the paper charmsis a wooden dipper. On the convex bottom of the dipper is drawnthe picture of a frightful god holding a dagger in his mouth.Chinese front doors are in two halves and open inward. A doorgod is pasted on each half of the door, often with a club or otherweapon uplifted and ready to strike. Their purpose is to drive awaythe demons that might enter the house.Many paper charms are used inside the house to protect the in-mates from demons. Some are pasted or hung up on beds to protectthe sleepers, others are pasted to the altar in front and at the centerof the main room. Some are in sets of four to be pasted up on eachof the four sides of a room.There are charms that are sewn onto the hats or the clothes ofgrown people or children to protect them from demons. Most of theseare charms stamped or written on paper, but there are also brass orbronze charms called "happiness and long life money." Small brassmirrors are also used for the same purpose.Many written charms have to do with the exorcism of demons.The inscriptions are often very hard to read, but some have the words,
"Lei (thunder) cheh (cut off) er (ear)," or, "the god of thunderwill cut off your ears." Another phrase sometimes found is "(it isthe) orders of the most high Lao Chun." In Yunnan I have seenthe horns and skull of a goat and even hornets' nests hung up ascharms above the front door.Sometimes, to exorcise a demon who is harming a person, a papercharm will be burned to ashes, the ashes mixed with water, and thewater drunk. Charms may also be written with the fingers over thewater, and the water drunk.Incantations to exorcise demons are often found at the beginningand at the close of sacred books that are ceremonially chanted byBuddhist and Taoist priests. Incantations are generally understoodand used only by the priests, and may either be secret and pronouncedunder the breath or pronounced plainly so they can be heard andunderstood. Sometimes phrases are used that the priest himself doesnot understand ; these may be transliterations from the Sanskrit orfrom some other language.Some incantations use words and phrases that have to do directly
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with the exorcism and driving away of the demons, whereas othersseem to have no relation to the exorcism of demons but are neverthe-less regarded as efficacious. The firecrackers that are set off in nearlyall ceremonies, including weddings and funerals, not only make agood impression, but also frighten away demons.On the 13th, 14th, and 15th of the first lunar month the dragonparade is conducted. Strong young men with their bodies bare abovetheir waists and wearing broad bamboo hats carry dragons severalrods long through the streets and in the family courtyards. The mendance around in a circle counterclockwise. Powder mixed with par-ticles of iron in a bamboo tube is lighted so that fire and sparks gushout, and firecrackers are set off. This ceremony is partly for amuse-ment, but it is also believed to clear the homes and the streets ofdemons.On the 15th day of the 7th moon the evil spirits in hell are releasedand allowed to wander around the world. There is much danger thatthey will do harm. Families burn quantities of spirit money for theuse of these unfortunate "orphan spirits," so that they will be satis-fied and will do no harm. Also on this day, but sometimes a day ortwo before, a Buddhist or a Taoist priest, assisted by others, performsa ceremony, chants his sacred books, and leads a procession to anearby stream, where candles are lighted and floated down the streamon small paper boats or containers. These are lighted and releasedone at a time, making a long line of lights on the surface of the water.This is done to entice the orphan spirits or demons away from thatlocality.When requested to do so, or in times of danger, during a pestilence,or when praying for rain, the Buddhist or Taoist priests conductelaborate ceremonies. They chant their sacred books, repeat incanta-tions, and burn spirit money as a means of exorcising demons. Some-times during these and other ceremonies the priest blows a conchshell to call the demons to him so that he can then drive them away.There are said to be rabbit demons that squeal in a peculiar way.Duck demons quack on the ponds, rice paddies, or streams, but if aperson looks for them, no ducks are to be seen.In almost every funeral procession one man carries a basket fullof incense and spirit money, some of which he burns at every shrinein worship of the gods. Every few rods he throws out some spiritmoney for the demons so they will do no harm. Demons are said tobe afraid of fishermen, fearing to be caught in their nets.When a child is sick, it is believed that he is being attacked by a
128 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42demon who wishes to take his life. In an effort to save the child's life,the parents will sometimes invite a traveler who happens to be passingby to come into the home and give the child a new name. The traveleris given a meal and some tea, and he gives the child a new name. Thetraveler and the parents worship the family gods together. It is be-lieved that giving the child a new name may save its life.Demons are supposed to fear blood, and in many ceremonies ofexorcism blood is sprinkled to frighten them away. When boatmenare about to begin a journey, they kill a chicken, offer it in worshipto Wang Yeh, the boatmen's god, and sprinkle some of the blood onthe front of the boat. Blood is also sprinkled when a new business isopened, when a business is reopened after New Year, or when a newhouse or other building has been finished. All this is to exorcisedemons. Other ways to frighten away demons are to throw tsai pao,which are round biscuits, to sprinkle holy water, and to throw un-cooked rice.Sometimes when a person has a pain in his head, his chest, or hisintestines, he will take a boiled tgg and roll it back and forth on theailing spot. Then he will take the egg to a specialist who, after lookingat it, tells him which demon is causing the trouble and how to get ridof the demon. Some of the methods suggested are to burn spiritmoney, to pour water and rice on the ground in front of the house, orto call a tuan kttng, who will kill a chicken, burn spirit money, offerwine and pork, speak some good words to the demon, or possiblyscold the demon and order him to depart. The tuan kungs, as well asBuddhist and Taoist priests, earn much of their income exorcisingdemons.When a person is insane, acting and speaking in peculiar ways, itis believed that he is possessed by a demon. This is the basis of thestatement sometimes made by Chinese and by foreigners that demon-possession exists in China. It is also believed that deceased ancestorssometimes take possession of living descendants and give messagesthrough them to other living descendants.The fear of demons in West China can hardly be exaggerated, as isillustrated by the following story : Two American women were on aboat on the Min River between Lo-shan and I-pin. As there wasdanger of robbers, they stopped for the night in the vicinity of asmall town. After a time they heard a band of robbers noisily robbingother boats and gradually approaching their boat. One woman wasafraid, but the other said, "Never mind. You leave this to me." Thenshe took out her false teeth, exposing her few remaining teeth, and
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mussed up her white hair. When the rohbers approached the door ofthe boat, she took a lantern in her hand, thrust her head outside thedoor, opened her mouth wide, and held the lantern in front of herface. The frightened robbers shouted "kuei" (demon), ran away asfast as they could, and did not return. Although armed with guns,they were afraid of this foreign demon.CEREMONIES TO OBTAIN SONSFrom the dawn of history a major desire of the Chinese has beenfor numerous descendants, sons being more desired than daughters.One reason that sons are preferred is found in the yin-yang philoso-phy, which has been accepted by all. As stated above, yin is female,and is dark, dull, inferior, the source of evil and undesirable things,while yang is male, bright, intelligent, superior, the source of all goodand desirable things. Sons are also economically more valuable to thefamily than daughters. At marriage the daughter must be given anexpensive dowry, which is really a gift by her family to that of thehusband. The ancestral ceremonies of worship and commemorationmust be continued generation after generation, but only sons can per-form these ceremonies, women having no part in them. A woman'ssocial prestige rises greatly after she has given birth to a son ; there-fore sons are greatly desired and are prayed for, but families almostnever pray for daughters.One of the most common ways to obtain sons from the gods is asfollows: In most temples there are gods or goddesses who are be-lieved to give sons. Among the most common are Sung-tzu-kuan-yin,or the Kuanyin that Gives Sons, and Sung-tzu-niang-niang, or theWoman who Gives Sons. A person or persons wishing sons to beborn in the family will worship one of these deities, very likely pre-senting a gift, and request that the deity give a son to his family. Heor she also promises that if a son is given, the suppliant will give ason to the deity in return. If a son is born in the family, a woodenor a clay image of a boy is presented to the god and left on his shrine.Another person wishing to obtain a son will "steal" one of theseimages of a boy and take it home, which he believes will cause a sonto be born in that family. If a son is born, the image of the boy isreturned to the shrine of the god, to be taken later by a member ofanother family that desires a son. The more images of boys there areon the shrine of a god, the more famous the god is as a giver of sons,for these images are evidences of such gifts.Another very common method is for the suppliant to go to the
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temple, worship the god at his shrine, beseech the god to give a son,and promise that if the son is given the suppliant will make a gift tothe god or to the temple. If the son is born, the vow is fulfilled.In some Buddhist temples there is an image of a sleeping Buddha.The image is reclining on a bed or couch, clothed and covered withquilts. One who desires a son "steals" a garment or a quilt of thegod and takes it home, where the woman who wants a son sleeps underit at night. This is supposed to cause her to conceive and to bear ason. After a son is born, the property is returned to the god.On the sides of clififs or overhanging rocks in West China are oc-casionally seen small, round natural holes in the rock, from i to 2 feetin diameter. Some of these are called ta-er-o, or strike-son holes.When men who want sons to be born in their families pass by oneof these holes, they throw stones at the hole. It is believed that if aman throws a stone into one of these holes, a son will be born to hiswife. There is such a hole at the Taoist temple Tao-ssu-kuan, be-tween I-pin and Lo-shan on the Min River, one near P'in-shan onthe Yangtse River west of I-pin, and one near Sha-ho-i, south ofI-pin.Sometimes during a marriage procession people place biscuits orsmall cakes in the sedan chair of the bride. When she arrives at hernew home, they are placed on her bed. Other women pilfer them andeat them, which is supposed to enable them to give birth to sons.On one of the high hills above I-pin a small temple was built in1925, called the Yu-hsien-miao, or Meet Immortal Temple. SomeChinese men were walking near this spot and saw a beggar lying onthe ground. It was raining and the ground was wet. Later the beggarhad disappeared, and the ground where he had been lying was dry.This was regarded as evidence that the beggar was an immortal. Themen therefore caused the new temple to be built near the spot wherethe beggar had been lying. Besides the goddess who heals measlesand smallpox, nearly all the other gods who were placed in the templehad to do with the giving or the birth of sons. These included theSung-tzu-kuan-yin, the Sung-tzu-niang-niang, the Ts'uai-shen-niang-niang, the Chi'i-lin-sung-tzu or the Kirin who gives sons, the t'u-ti-sung-tzu, and the Sung-tzu-lung-wang or the Dragon King who givessons. People come at the time of the annual festival, which is in Janu-ary, and ask the gods for sons. If sons are born during the comingyear, at the next festival they bring eggs that are painted or dyed redto give to the gods. Other people who desire sons come to the festi-val, and on the way to the temple or from the shrines in front of the
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I3Igods they snatch or "steal" the red eggs and take them home. Theyare given or sold to women who desire sons, who eat the eggs, expect-ing this to cause them to become pregnant and bear sons. Thousandscome to this festival every year, in a constant stream of humanitygoing up and down the mountain, some to see the sights, and others to
"steal" eggs and to obtain sons.CEREMONIES TO CAUSE OR TO STOP RAINSome occidentals describe all ceremonies to cause rain as prayingfor rain. As an actual fact, only a fraction of such ceremonies are peti-tions ; the others are believed to have magical power to cause rain.The Chinese expression is ch'xu yw ^ ^. The word "pray" as Chris-tians use the word is generally tao kao ^-1^. The word ch'iu isbroader, and includes to ask for, to beseech, to beg for, and also toseek, to wish for, and to aim at (Giles, 1892, pp. 243-244; Williams,S. Wells, 1909, p. 170).In an agricultural country like China, in which formerly more than85 percent of the population were farmers and lived on farms, rain isexceedingly important. Without rain, crops fail, prices soar, andfamine comes. On the other hand, too much cloudy weather injuresthe crops, and too much rain causes floods and sometimes famines.The cause of the drought or flood is believed to be explained bythe yin and the yang. The yin is dark and cold, and is associated withrain. The yang is warm and bright, and is associated with dry, sun-shiny weather. Too much yang and too little yin causes drought, andtoo much yin and too little yang may cause heavy rains and floods.When a region is threatened by, or in the midst of, drought andwishes to take measures to bring rain, the leading magistrate is re-sponsible for promoting the process. He issues a proclamation order-ing a fast and directing that ceremonies to seek rain be conducted.Generally he himself goes to one or more temples, sometimes severaltimes, and prays to several of the gods that might be expected tosend rain.About the year 1940, a magistrate in Szechvvan in a region suff'er-ing from drought was requested by the people to proclaim a fast anda period of "praying for" rain. He was an enlightened man and de-clined to do so, saying that the methods used were all supersitions andthat rain would come just as soon if people simply waited for it. Amob of country people went to the yamen, almost caused a riot, andcompelled him to act.About the same year there was a drought in Wen-Ch'uan-hsien.
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Tlie magistrate went to a temple near a lake on a high mountain andprayed earnestly to the Dragon God for rain. After a time it beganto rain. Then he walked down the mountain toward Wen-ch'uan-hsien with his hands and arms outstretched as though he were takingthe rain down into the valley with him. The rain actually went downinto the valley, ending the drought. It seemed obvious to the peoplethat his prayer caused the rain and that he brought it with him intothe valley. They believed that to be able to do this, he must have verygreat virtue. The next year he tried to end a drought in the same way,but he failed and thereby lost his reputation.One year there was a serious drought at Ch'ang-ning-hsien, southof I-pin, The magistrate went to the temple called P'u-t'ao-ching orGrape Well. In this temple were several dragon gods. The templewas in bad condition and needed repairs and painting. The magistratereverently worshiped all the gods and prayed for rain, promising orvowing that if there should be rain that night he would repair and re-paint the temple and give the gods new clothing (new coats of paint).That night there was a thunderstorm with torrents of rain that filledthe rice paddies and broke the drought. The magistrate kept hispromise and repaired and repainted the temple and the images of thegods.Often, when seeking rain, the magistrate and the priests or otherpeople worship the gods in the temples and make verbal prayers.Nearly always the request is accompanied by a vow or a promise togive something to, or to do something for, the god or gods if theprayer is answered. Often, too, the prayer is written on paper in theform of a letter and burned as the accepted means of sending it to thegod. On March 23, 1929, at Hsu-chiang, west of I-pin, while thepeople were praying for rain, 12 such letters were wTitten andburned to 12 different gods.Six of the main gods that are worshiped in order to obtain rain arethe Dragon God ; Wang Yeh, the god of rivers and boatmen ; the watergod; the god of thunder; the god of agriculture; and the t'u-ti, orlocal deity. Several other gods are often worshiped for this purpose.Whenever a community decides to use extraordinary means to bringrain, a period of fasting is proclaimed and strictly observed. Thismeans that no birds, fish, or animals can be killed, and no meat can beeaten, not even eggs. Even criminals can not be executed. Back ofthis practice is belief in the Buddhist doctrine of Karma and transmi-gration. Karma refers to the law of cause and effect, which has abearing on the transmigration of souls. What a person or a creature
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is in this existence has been determined by his conduct in previousexistences. The good or evil which he does in this existence will de-termine how he is reborn after death—as an insect, a reptile, a bird,an animal, a woman, or a man, and what kind of a man—rich orpoor, high or low. This means that any creature may have been ahuman being in a previous existence, so that devout Buddhists aresometimes vegetarians, and many believe that it is nearly as bad to killany creature, even an insect, as to kill a human being. Abstainingfrom killing and from eating meat and eggs is supposed to move thegods so that they are more likely to cause rain.One method used to bring rain is to close the south gate of a cityso that the yang influences cannot enter. If there is too much rain andcloudy weather, the north gate is closed to prevent the yin influencesfrom entering. Another method is to fire guns. It is believed that thereason for the drought may be that the dragon has overslept and soforgotten to send rain. Firing ofif guns is supposed to be especiallyefficient near lakes or ponds or on high mountains, for the dragonslive in such localities. When going over high passes in West China,natives have requested me not to fire my gun lest it should cause rain.In 1928 I visited Ningyuenfu, now called Chien-ch'ang. One day Iwent out on a nearby lake with a Miao hunter and fired about 50shots with a shotgun. On our way back into the city we were caughtin a downpour of rain. The next day we again went out on the lakeand fired many times, and again were caught in a heavy shower ofrain, which continued for three days, breaking the drought and sav-ing the crops. The people in and around Ningyuenfu said that I hadbroken the drought by shooting on the lake and were glad that I hadcome.An important means of seeking rain is the ceremonial chanting ofthe sacred books. It is called nien ching, or reading the sacred books,but actually they are always chanted or sung. The books chanted aregenerally those of the Dragon King or the Water God, those of thelocal god or t'u-ti, or those of Wang Yeh, the god of boatmen andof rivers, but the sacred books of other gods may be used. In thesesacred books there are incantations to purify the body, the mind orheart, and the mouths of the priests, but there is generally very littlepraying and sometimes none at all. For a Buddhist or a Taoist priestto repeat or chant the sacred books ceremonially is regarded as a verymeritorious act that may move the gods and therefore cause rain. Itis primarily magic instead of prayer.Yet another method of seeking rain is by means of the dragon
134 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42parade, which is in some ways similar to the one described later inthe section headed "The Chinese Lunar Festivals." The men carryingthe dragon wear wreaths of green willow twigs on their heads, for itis believed that since willows grow near streams and lakes they pos-sess magic power to cause rain. As the dragon goes down the streets,it does not turn in circles counterclockwise, but undulates from oneside to the other like a snake. Firecrackers are set ofif, and men inthe procession throw water on the bystanders ; and the spectators inturn throw water on the men in the procession and on the dragon.This is imitative magic—hoping to obtain rain by throwing water inimitation of rain.Another method that the writer has seen is to have a parade inwhich a black dog and a white dog are carried, each sitting in a sedanchair and each wearing a hat and spectacles. Two beggars walk besidethe dogs, pretending that they are going to marry the dogs. As theprocession moves along, the onlookers laugh very loudly. It is be-lieved that the procession and the loud laughter will cause rain.Grainger (1921, p. 70) quotes a saying, "If you laugh at a dog, rainwill fall."It sometimes happens that a drought is so prolonged that all thesemethods fail to bring rain. Then, in desperation, the god who shouldgive rain is placed in the street or in a park where he is exposed tothe broiling hot sun, in the belief that his suffering will cause him tohave pity on the people and send rain.One year in Lo-shan the exposure of the image of the god in thesun failed to bring rain, and the priest persuaded the people that thegod was angry because he was treated badly and induced them to per-mit him to take the idol back into the temple. The priest then humblyand respectfully worshiped the god, and soon there was rain. It wasbelieved that the god first refused to send rain because he was angry,but later was persuaded to do so by courteous and respectful treat-ment.Sometimes when there is a flood, men will shoot bullets into theflooded river, believing that it will help bring an end to the flood.Other methods very widely used are the closing of the north gates ofcities and towns, and the worship of the sun god by magistrates andother people (ibid., pp. 69-70).DIVINATION AND FORTUNETELLINGAs we have seen, divination is one of the oldest customs among theChinese. With its corollary, fortunetelling, it is very commonly
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practiced among all ethnic groups in West China, including the Chi-nese. It is used on practically every important occasion and some-times merely out of curiosity.Divination is resorted to before sending a go-between to make anengagement, after receiving the horoscope of the young woman towhom a proposal has been made, in order to determine a lucky dayand hour for a wedding or a funeral, before beginning a journey, be-fore opening a store or shop to begin business, before starting toerect a building or making a sale, to learn whether a sick person willget well or not, and for many other purposes.Blind people are supposed to be able to see and know many thingswhich to ordinary people are invisible ; hence they are believed to bevery efficient in telling fortunes. The blind person sometimes worksat home, sometimes while sitting at a table on a busy street. Gen-erally he has a helper who can see, to lead him when he is walkingabout, and who by secret signs tells him whether the inquirer is oldor young, rich or poor, and other desirable information which enableshim to tell an appropriate fortune. Sometimes the fortuneteller feelsthe palms of the inquirer, sometimes he feels the bones, and some-times he merely talks.One way of divining is to throw bean sprouts into a pan of water.By noting the shadows beneath the sprouts, a person foretells comingevents.Astrology has a large part in Chinese divination. It is believed thatclimatic changes are related to the moral conduct of the people andthat the sun, moon, and stars are the means by which these changesare produced. Into this theory the principle of the yin and yang hasbeen incorporated, as well as the theory of the five elements. The sunis the t'ai yang, or the greater yang, the moon is the t'ai yin, or thegreater yin. The planets collectively are the shao yang, or the lesseryang, and the fixed stars are the shao yin. The horizon is divided into12 sectors named after the 12 branches. The 12 hours of the day cor-respond to these 12 sectors. "The ecliptic is divided into 28 lunarasterisms or constellations. Each of the azimuth and ecliptic divisionshas affinities with the elements (planets) and is yin or yang. Fromthis point the system has proceeded rather arbitrarily." (Couling,191 7, p. 38.) Attention has been concentrated on determining fortu-nate days and hours, and these are recorded in the yearly almanac.This explains, also, the use of the horoscope.One way to divine is to consult a Buddhist or a Taoist priest. In1925 there was civil war in Szechwan, and one warlord consulted a
136 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL, I42Buddhist priest, while a rival warlord consulted a Taoist priest, eachto learn whether his fortune would be good in case of war. Near theend of the Manchu dynasty, according to a Suifu tradition, a famousBuddhist priest from Suifu called Liao Ming Ho-shang became thespecial diviner of the imperial family. Yuan Shih-k'ai, then a promi-nent official, also consulted him. He was told that he might becomeEmperor of China. Yuan quickly hushed the priest up but secretlygave him much money. After the Manchu dynasty had fallen andYuan had become President of China, he again consulted Liao, whorepeated his statement that Yuan could succeed in becoming Em-peror. After Yuan had failed and died, a Chinese official in Lu-chou,Szechwan, gave Liao a public beating for his part in encouragingYuan to try to overthrow the Chinese Republic and establish an em-pire with himself as emperor. Liao went into hiding and was neverheard of afterward.A very common way of divination is by means of the yin-yang kiia,which consists of two pieces of dried and lacquered bamboo roots.One root is cut into two halves so that each half has a flat surfaceand a round surface. The flat aide is yang and the round surface isyin. The inquirer first worships the idol, with bowings or prostra-tions, and burns incense. Then the priest throws the yin-yang kuaonto the ground or the floor. If the two round sides land up, it isunlucky; if the two flat sides are up, it is lucky; and if one flat sideand one round side are up, it is neutral. If the results are unsatis-factory, the worshiper will again worship the god and make a vow,promising a gift to the god or the temple, and the priest throws again.The priest keeps throwing and the worshiper making larger vows untilthe two flat sides come up, when the divining ceases. They believethat the god has changed the fortune of the worshiper from bad togood because of his worshiping and making vows, and the vows arealways paid.In front of some images are tubes or cylinders containing lOO bam-boo sticks numbered consecutively from i to 100. Nearby are also100 sheets of paper numbered the same way. On each sheet a fortuneis printed, varying from very bad to bad, medium bad, medium,medium good, very good, and the very best. The inquirer first wor-ships the god, then kneeling in worship, he shakes the tube containingthe bamboo sticks until one falls out. The priest looks at the numberon the stick, then gives the worshiper the sheet of paper having thatnumber. The inquirer reads what is written on the sheet of paper andbelieves that it tells his fortune. Sometimes the yin-yang kua is alsoused.
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I remember an uneducated Chinese laborer who, after using thesticks, drew one of the "very best." He was much elated. Gen.Chang Ch'un, once the Governor of Szechwan and later Premier ofChina, whose whole family was Christian, went to a temple in com-pany with his wife, his son, and his son's fiancee, to consult the divin-ing-sticks. All drew excellent fortunes but the fiancee, who was thennot popular with her prospective parents-in-law. Some wondered ifthe priest had been able somehow to manipulate the divining-sticks.I have a collection of the papers which are used in temples with thebamboo sticks for divination. Below are translations of three of these,made by me with the help of Wayne Kow, a graduate of DenverUniversity. MOST LUCKY
If you walk along, dignified, toward the clouds, you belong to the first classamong ten thousand officers, at the court made of precious stones. The gods giveyou wealth, honor, glory and prosperity, happiness like the Eastern Ocean, longlife like a mountain.The holy meaning.—You will attain honor and fame. Your happiness andwealth will be complete. In litigation you will get right results. If sick, you willrecover. Your mulberries and hemp will mature. Your marriage will be round(satisfactory). Pregnancy will give you a son. Travelers will come back home.Explanation by Tung P'u.—You walk along in clouds (you will be distin-guished above others). Your name will be at the top of the list. You smilewhile you talk with honor (for you have it). You will be distinguished allof your life. All is given by Heaven. You will attain high position and youwill live very long. What you want will be fulfilled, and what you plan willbe attained.Explanation by Pi Hsicn.—You will climb the tan kuei tree (in the moon)(you will attain high honors). You will gain fame while walking in a yard ofprecious stones. What you are seeking you will get completely. There is nodoubt you will be satisfied with 10,000 things.Explanation.—This divining-stick means that the plan is complete. Businessis successful. In nothing are you a failure. But each has its own purpose. Ifan officer gets this he will have the good fortune of promotion. If a scholar gelsthis he will have the luck of reputation and honor. To a person seeking hisfortune this will bring happiness and longevity forever. To a person lookingfor success in business, this shows he will have a very good foundation. If aperson is looking for wealth, this is good only in words, not in fact, for themeaning of the words is only superficial.Illustration.—By the clouds, it means high above the clouds. "Walk lonelyand dignified" means step on the blue clouds. "A thousand officers at a courtmade of precious stones" means angels in heaven. This means the most hon-orable angel that is in the first class. "Glory, prosperity, wealth, and honor exe-cuted by heaven" means heaven has already given. It naturally means happinessand longevity without end. "Like an ocean" means the expansion and spreadof happiness. "Like a mountain" means eternity and solidarity of longevity.
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This sign, most lucky, can be applied only when man and place fit together(both most lucky).Proof.—A scholar asked about his honor and reputation and got this divining-stick. He said that he would get the first or the second place. After a long timehe passed his entrance examination. In the second test, the court test, he wasat the top of the list and therefore he was given an office in Shantung Province.From the county administrator (at the bottom) there is the Chou official,then the prefectural official, then the Ts'i official, then the Tao official (the vice-roy), but all were in Shantung Province. It came in response from the lastsentence, so altogether this divining-stick had the right response, but also hadthe opposite response, both positive and negative. The positive response meansthe highest place in the examination, advance in high position, eternity ofwealth, honor, happiness, and longevity. It is unknown in the negative response(that is, how far from the highest). The one who has divined will have toconsider his ability and spirit, and his personality, and the situation as it exists.He will know the dexterity of the positive and negative responses. At the secondexamination in the year of Ping Wu my friend from the same town, Yen Shih-p'ei, got this divining-stick. He wasn't in the list when the bulletin was posted.Early in the sixth moon he went back to Han-Sang. He died of sickness a fewdays later.Comments on another divining-stick:MOST UNLUCKY
It may seem that all good things this year are turning out very brightly;wealth, honor, glory, and prosperity will come to you, who knows the uncer-tainty of the future. Ultimately you stand alone and begin to feel sorry.Holy meaning.—Do not over desire. Fame or reputation will not come.Wealth will come about average. You will be at a disadvantage in litigation.Sickness will be fatal. Things will not turn out well. In traveling you willencounter hindrances.Explanation by Tung P'li.—Destiny will be hard to be right.NO. 90, MEDIUMThe price of crops this year is not as good as last year. But the prices ofother commodities rise 100,000 times. There is a prevailing calamity, and manyepidemics. Wait until the turn of another year and it will be all right.You will have many lawsuits and they will continue a long time. You willhave many sicknesses, and at the end you will be without injury. Wealth andhonor will be hard to get. You wait for the time to come. This divining-stickis not so good as before. Furthermore, you will have unexpected troubles.You will have quarrels ; in a long time they will clear up. Wealth is also hardto get. Do not take everything too easy. This divining-stick appears as ifthere is help. All the hungry appreciate the salvation. Although people sufferseverely from calamities, by benevolence they spread all over the kingdom.All priests and fortunetellers are paid for their services. Oftenthey are paid more generously if the fortunes they tell are good.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I39INCANTATIONS AND CHARMSIncantations are widely used in West China, both by priests andby laymen. Sometimes they are employed to wreak vengeance on anenemy. I once saw an instance of this. Someone had stolen a chickenfrom a Chinese farmer's wife, whose house was near the road. Inanger she went outside the house, looked up toward the sky, andcalled upon the god of the sky to bring harm upon the thief. Theseverity of her curse shocked the Chinese men who heard it.Among the Lolos an incantation is regarded as so powerful, espe-cially when pronounced by a priest, that it often causes death unlessit is counteracted by another priest using another incantation.Many sacred books, which are ceremonially read or chanted byBuddhist or Taoist priests, or by tuan knngs, begin with incantations.These, among other purposes, are to purify the mouth, the body, andthe mind or heart of the priest, and to pacify the local deity who iscalled the t'ti-ti, or earth god.Incantations are used in ceremonies of exorcism, of which the fol-lowing is an example. It is a Chinese incantation obtained in theChinese language from a Ch'iang priest.The t'u-ti of the east, the t'u-ti of the south, the t'u-ti of the west, the t'u-ti ofthe north, the t'u-ti of the bridge beams, the t'u-ti's at the gate of the temple,the t'u-ti of the sky lamppost, the 24 t'u-ti's beside the roads, the demons of peoplewho have died at night, the demons of people who have died at daytime, thedemons of tree stumps, the demons of people who have committed suicide bycutting their throats, the demons of people who have drowned in rivers, thedemons of those who have died violent deaths, or have bled to death, the demonsof exorcists whose souls are wandering, the demons of Taoists whose soulsare wandering, the wandering demons of carpenters, the wandering demons ofblacksmiths. Sir, I have bumped against the head of the horse that you areriding, and against the tail of the horse that you are rrding (to prevent yourdeparture). I will give you money of gold, silver, and brass. I will present youa tray of flowers. There is little water, but the money and the rice are plentiful.Come from the east and return to the east, come from the south and returnto the south, come from the west and return to the west, come from the northand return to the north, When you come, do not deceive me, this apprenticemagician, or the others who have come (to look on). I have received thestrict orders of the most high Lao Chiin, like a legal command. I, the appren-tice magician, having in my mouth 36 teeth, carrying 28 swords in my hands,can see 3,000 li distant and 800 li near. Master Nien Wang, and the OfficialRecorder in Hell, the small demons in hell, j'ou can see that my eyes are largeand bright (with fierceness) ; I, the apprentice magician, holding in my hands1,000 clubs as white as jade, first, I will not strike the sky, second, I will notstrike the earth, I will strike straight at you demoniacal spooks and demons.Let the poisonous breath of the sky return to the sky, and the poisonous airof the earth return to the earth, also the poisonous year air, the poisonous
140 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
month air, the poisonous day air and the poisonous hour air, and the evil breathof 120 fierce gods. Chiang T'ai Kung has arrived here. First, I will escort you1,000 li; second, I will escort you 2,000 li; third, I will escort you 3,000 It;fourth, I will escort you 4,000 li, and fifth, I will escort you 5,000 li. Escortingyou once, I will escort you to the nests of the sky and the earth (where you willbe caught) so you cannot return again. I am acting in accordance with theorders of the most high Lao Chiin which are like law. (Graham, 1954b, p. 65.)Dore says (1914-1931, vol. 2, pp. 157, 160) that the drawing ofcharms is one of the chief pursuits of Taoist priests, and that Bud-dhist monks imitate the Taoists. The tuan kungs also write, print, anduse many charms. In the preface of volume 2 (p. iv) it is stated that
"a charm is a device of religious magic, an instrument for reducingspectres to submission, disarming them, counteracting their evil in-fluences, and preventing them from injuring man in his present andfuture life." In volumes i, 2, and 3, Dore pictures in color manywritten and printed charms on paper, used for a variety of purposes.He also states that as an official proclamation is feared and obeyedbecause of the official seal, hence every paper charm has the seal of adeity, causing demons and spectres to fear and obey them. It isfurther stated that "The popular mind peoples the world with spirits,demons, and spectres. The struggle with this spiritual world con-stitutes chiefly the religion of the masses. The charm has been adoptedas a device to rally the gods to the assistance of man, and help himovercome the power of evil." (Vol. 2, pp. v-vi.)Most written charms, by their seals or the wording of their in-scriptions, are believed to use the power of some god or gods. Mostof them are on yellow paper, in imitation of the official proclamationduring the Manchu dynasty. A large proportion of the charms are toprotect from, or exorcise, demons, or to put an end to the harm thatthey are doing.Blood, believed to be efficacious in exorcising demons, is sometimesseen splashed on doors and charms. The most efficacious is humanblood, but, of course, it is rarely used. Next best is chicken blood,which is used a great deal, and less efficacious is duck blood.Two very important designs on charms are the pa kua or eighttrigrams and the picture of the yin-yang or the T'ai-chi-t'u. Thelatter is circular in shape, and the eight trigrams are arranged toform a hexagram. Sometimes the two are used separately, sometimescombined by placing the T'ai-chi-t'u inside the pa kua. Separately orcombined, they are believed to have superhuman potency, and theyare often used on charms. They may be a part or the whole of thecharm.
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Knives, swords, and daggers are sometimes used as charms. Theyare believed to be especially efficacious after they have been usedto execute criminals or to kill somebody. Wooden swords, knives,and daggers are sometimes made and hung up above doors as charms,to keep away demons. I have seen this done by Tibetans and byCh'uan Miao.An unusual substance used as a charm is amber. It is transparentand sparkling, and can pick up bits of paper. The amber sometimesencloses leaves, bits of grass, or insects, and is therefore assumed topossess potency through use as a charm. Often a hole is drilledthrough a small piece of amber, and it is hung around the neck by astring drawn through the hole.Red Cross emblems on flags were first used in I-pin in 1916 andin other parts of West China about the same time. Generally theywere used in connection with hospitals and dispensaries. The com-mon people got the idea that there was special power in the Red Crossemblem and began to make small red crosses of cloth and to sewthem onto the clothing of children to keep away demons.A small silver charm sometimes worn on a child's hat, in the centerabove the forehead, is a silver replica, about i^ inches in diameter,of the round, flat bamboo basket used for winnowing or for sewing.In it are tiny silver imitations of a pair of scissors, a Chinese flatiron,a ruler, an almanac, an abacus, and a small object used for ironingclothing in small and difficult places. These are among the most com-monly used objects in Chinese homes and so are assumed to havespecial potency. Here is an example of the fact that among primitivepeople the most useful objects are likely to be sacred and regarded ashaving superhuman power.When parents fear that a son may die, they sometimes call in aBuddhist or a Taoist priest who puts a chain or a wire around thechild's neck or his arm, using a lock to fasten it on. It is believedthat this may keep the child from dying.Sometimes a boy whose mother has died takes a lock of her hairand ties it around his neck in the belief that this will protect himfrom demons. Small silver images of Buddha or of the i8 arhatsare seen on the hats of boys as talismans.As jade is supposed to have potency, many charms are made ofthis substance. Jade cicadas that were placed in the mouths of thedead have been found in Han dynasty tombs throughout China.A common charm is the fu-shon-ch'ien, or "happiness and longlife charm." It is generally made of bronze, but sometimes of brass
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or copper, is round with a square hole in tlie center, and is about2 inches in diameter. On it are sometimes good-luck phrases suchas hao yiin lin sJien, or "may good luck fall on his body," and chinIII chia kiian, or "enter into fortune, advance in official rank." Atypical charm of this kind to ward off demons has on it the inscrip-tion, "The order of Lao Tzu. Use this to kill demons, subjugatespooks, behead phantoms, avoid evil influences, and forever guaranteesafety." (Graham, 1928b, pp. 40-41.) Happiness and long-life coinsare often sewed on the back of boys' hats.I have seen swords on the blades of which were seven round goldor copper dots representing the seven stars of the Big Dipper. Suchswords are thought to be good charms, for the seven stars of the BigDipper are believed to have potency. The Chinese lunar calendar issometimes used as a charm to ward off demons. As such it is used onbridal chairs in wedding processions.On occasion, a priest or some other person will write a charm withhis fingers or with a pen over water, and the water is then drunk bythe patient needing healing. Or the charm may be written in the airover a boiled egg and the tgg given to the patient to eat.Some charms are four-line verses written on red paper and pastedup in convenient places for people to see and read. These do not haveseals of gods or temples to add to their efficacy, but they are effica-cious if people read them or if the sun shines on them. The mostcommon of these is a verse to cause babies to cease crying and tosleep at night so that the older members of the family can sleep. Be-low are a few examples.The sky is bright and the earth is bright.We have a baby that cries at night.If the passerby will read this right,He'll sleep all night till broad daylight. (Ibid., p. 39.)A variation of this is.The sky is bright, the earth is green.Our small son cries easily.Please, gentlemen, read this through,(and) I'll thank you and wish you ten thousand happinesses.Another says,The sky is yellow, the earth green.Our small son cries at night.Let all gentlemen read this through.And he will sleep until the sun rises (comes out).
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I43
Still another,The sky is bright, the earth is bright.Our family has a crybaby.If passersby read this three times,He'll sleep until the sun comes out.Another of a different kind says,My nose is stopped up, swollen large.I have a cold.If anyone looks at this, he will carry the coldInto his own home.Another is to change an unlucky dream into a lucky omen
:
At night I had an unlucky dream,I paste this on the east wall.When the sun shines on it.It will be changed into a lucky omen.Another charm says,My night dream is unlucky.I write this (or paste it up) beside the road.When the sun shines upon it,It will be transformed to lucky and prosperous.Another says,My eye winks in an unlucky way.I paste this on the east wall.When the sun shines upon it.It will be changed into lucky.By far the largest number of charms in West China are written orprinted on paper, generally yellow in imitation of the official proclama-tion, and generally but not always containing seals of gods in imitationof official seals. In these charms there are used strange and fancifulways of writing characters or parts of characters, making them diffi-cult for an ordinary sinologist to read and to understand. Dore hasexplained some of these in volume 2 of "Chinese Superstitions"(Dore, 1914-1931, vol. 2, pp. viii-xxii).Written and printed charms vary in respect to size, inscriptions, andusage. Of those that are written with pen and ink, I have seen somethat are little more than blotches, while others are works of art inpenmanship and drawing. For those that are printed, the charms arefirst written or printed on hard wood, then the wood is carved, andthe carved wood is used to print many charms. More rarely the sealsor charms are made of metal, usually iron. The charms vary in size
144 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42from about i-| inches wide and 6 inches long, to over ij feet wideand 2 feet long. While some seem carelessly done, others are artisticand more nearly perfect.Dore, in "Chinese Superstitions," volumes i to 3, shows manycharms in color and tells of their uses, but even this work is notnearly exhaustive. While a large proportion of these charms haveto do with protecting from demons, driving them away, and re-moving their effects, there are also many other uses. One is inclinedto say that there are few situations in which a person is in distressand needing help for w hich there is not a charm to provide this help.Among many people in West China, great potency is ascribed tothat which cannot be understood, as for example the incantationstransliterated from foreign languages and charms written so strangelythat an ordinary person cannot read and understand them. Some-times the little that can be understood enhances this belief. Forinstance, I have seen charms, parts of which could be understood toread, "(the god of) thunder (will) cut off (your) ears." This is be-lieved to inspire fear in the demons, for the god of thunder is verypowerful, and nobody wants his ears cut off.In short, incantations and charms are supposed to make use ofsuperhuman potency, often by the help of the gods, to accomplishdesired results.THE CHINESE LUNAR FESTIVALSThe Chinese word for festival is chieh ch'i. Chieh means jointor node, or limit of time, and ch'i means air or breath. Prof. LewisHodous explains the words chieh ch'i as meaning "a joint or node,which marks the critical time in the breathing of nature when itpasses from one mood to another." (Hodous, 1929, p. i.) Manycenturies ago the Chinese divided the year into 12 lunar months of30 days each, and into 24 periods of 15 days each, which are called
"joints and breaths of the year." (Bredon and Mitrophanow, 1927,p. 18.) Some lunar festivals are much more important than others,and we shall describe briefly only the most important ones.The New Year is by far the most important Chinese festival. Itis a time for family reunions, and every member of the family whopossibly can comes home to kt<o nien, to pass the New Year seasonwith the rest of the family.Throughout the year the kitchen god rules over the affairs of thehome from his throne in the kitchen, keeping careful watch over theindustry, the economy, and the morals of the home. The inmates are
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I45
expected to be industrious, economical, and morally good. On the23d day of the nth moon he ascends to Heaven and gives a full andcareful account to the Jade (Pearly) Emperor. With much cere-mony his image, which is printed on paper and hung or pasted up inthe kitchen, is taken down and burned. The image is worshiped, in-cense and candles are lighted, firecrackers are set off, and a letter tothe kitchen god is written on paper and burned, requesting him tooverlook the shortcomings of the family and make a favorable re-port. Generally a package called a chao ma is burned, on which isthe image of a horse for the kitchen god to ride up to Heaven, andin which are some beans and bits of straw for the horse to eat. Some-times taffy is given to the kitchen god. One explanation is that it isto make his lips stick together so that he cannot make an unfavorablereport, and another is that it is to cause him to speak sweet words inhis report.Between the 25th day of the 12th moon and the 2d day of the1st moon, generally on the 29th or 30th of the 12th moon, there is afamily meal. The best food obtainable is provided, for the kitchengod is not present to require economy. Every member of the familyis expected to be present, those who are away going home if it is atall possible. It is also believed that the spirits of the deceased ances-tors are present and share in the feast.At a convenient time before New Year's day, the front door ofeach house is decorated by pasting above and down both sides widestrips of red paper. On these are written in large characters state-ments or mottoes expressing the fondest hopes of the family. Amongthese are nien nien fa ts'ai, or "grow richer year by year"; Shen Ihsin lung, or "may our business prosper" ; fu kuei shuang ch'uan,"may wealth and honor both be complete"; and Cheng chai shihchung, or "right in the midst (of prosperity)." Other expressionsconcern wealth, happiness, honor, long life, numerous sons and pos-terity, and official position (ibid., p. 83). It is assumed that thepasting up of these mottoes on red paper tends to cause them tocome true; in other words, that there is a magical power in theseexpressions when they are written on red paper and pasted up aboveand on the two sides of the front doors at New Year time (Hodous,1929, pp. 1-2; Bredon and Mitrophanow, 1927, pp. 82-84; Graham,1928b, p. 38).Before midnight on the last day of the year all debts are supposedto be paid. People who cannot or are unwilling to pay their debts hidefrom their creditors, who are very persistent in their attempts to col-
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lect. The creditors sometimes continue their efiforts to collect untilafter midnight, and in extreme cases after dawn the next day, whenthey sometimes carry lighted lanterns in the pretense that it is stilldark.On the day before New Year all shops are closed. Strips of redpaper are pasted over the cash box and most of the goods to indicatethat now nothing can be bought or sold. In earlier times most shopsremained closed until the 15th day of the first moon, or later, butsince the beginning of the Chinese Republic some shops have openedbefore the 15th.Between midnight and daylight on the first day of the New Year,the kitchen god is welcomed back home. Firecrackers are set oflP,candles and incense are lighted, and spirit money is burned, and hisimage is pasted or hung up in the kitchen and worshiped. From thistime until the 23d of the 12th moon, when he is ceremonially sent upto Heaven, he is always present and keeps a careful watch over themoral conduct, the industry, and the economy of the family.On New Year's day and several days afterward, many boys roamaround the streets in groups, joyfully beating drums and gongs andblowing horns. Men, women, and children go to the temples andworship the gods, kowtowing and burning candles, incense, and spiritmoney. They also visit their friends in their homes, leaving red-papercalling cards, drinking tea, and eating the sweetmeats that are pro-vided by their hosts. The guests bow respectfully wuth folded hands,and wish their hosts a happy and prosperous New Year, and the hostsreciprocate by doing the same. Generally the guests carry away withthem some of the cookies, nuts, and candy.On New Year's day or a day or two later people visit the gravesof their ancestors, set off some firecrackers, light candles and incense,and offer some food and wine to their ancestors. They put cash paperall over the mounds of the graves, each piece held in place by a clod ofdirt, as an offering to their ancestors and as evidence that the familyhas been filial and has not neglected the ancestors. The food is eatenand most of the wine drunk near the tombs.A very old custom is that on New Year's day the oldest parents sitbeside each other in chairs in the main room, and their descendants,beginning with the oldest and most direct, come and kowtow to theold people saying ying-tang, which means "I ought to." This customsymbolizes the respect and obedience of the youngest generations tothe oldest.During the first five days of the new year, the tablets of the ances-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I47
tors in the homes are worshiped twice a day, morning and evening.Incense and candles are Hghted, and there are bows and prostrations.Many also worship their ancestors in the same way in the ancestraltemples. After the fifth day, the ancestors are not worshiped dailyin many homes, but it is customary to worship them twice a day onthe 1st and 15th days of each lunar month.In many of the well-to-do homes, on the second day of the newyear or later, there is a feast called ta-ya-chi ff^^. In thisfeast there are meat, fruit, vegetables, and wine, and the servants areinvited to share the meal with the members of the family.Beginning on New Year's day, there is a great deal of gambling inthe homes and on the streets. There are places where it is difficult towalk along the streets because of the crowds of gamblers and specta-tors. On the fifth day the officials put up proclamations saying thatgambling must cease. After that there is less gambling, but it is notentirely discontinued.A favorite amusement from the 5th to the 15th day of the newyear is "playing lion." Two men carry over their heads and bodies arepresentation of a lion—head, body, and tail. The legs of the twomen are the four legs of the lion. A third man carries a sword. Asmusicians beat drums, gongs, and cymbals, the man and the lion danceabout fighting each other, and always the man is victorious. Thereare always crowds of interested spectators.At dusk on the ninth day of the first moon, lamps called pai-ko-tengare lighted in the yards of prominent temples or in places nearby.Two strings of lights are hung vertically from tall upright poles. Theyare lighted every night up to and including the 15th, and are leftburning for hours. It is believed that they cause peace and prosperityby keeping away demons, for demons love darkness and fear light.On the same nights lamps are lighted on the streets in worship ofHeaven, earth, and other gods.The dragon lantern parade begins on the 13th and continues throughthe 15th of the ist moon. It provides amusement for thousands ofpeople, and the streets are generally crowded with spectators. On the13th the parade is mostly by day, on the 14th mostly by night, and onthe 15th only at night. First the parade goes to the yamen, the stores,and the homes of wealthy people, and then on the streets. The dragonsare made of cloth and paper fastened to strong hoops and held up onupright poles by carriers, and are generally 40 or 50 feet long. Thehead is large, with its mouth wide open, and with large eyes and alarge tongue. The carriers walk or trot a few feet apart. At the rear
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end is the tail, which resembles the tail of a fish. A man walks infront carrying on a pole a paper ball in which is a light. It is calleda pao (precious), and represents the sun, the moon, or a star. Thehead of the dragon is constantly trying to swallow the ball. As thedragon proceeds, it frequently makes circles to the left, counterclock-wise.The dragon is carried by strong young men who are naked abovethe waist but wear conical hats. As they carry the dragon, they dancevigorously. As the dragon moves along, in addition to makingoccasional circles, it imitates the undulatory movements of a snake.Strings of firecrackers hanging from long poles are lighted, sometimestwo at a time. Some of the firecrackers are made so that they do notexplode, but sizzle through the air in a fiery circle. Drums, gongs,and cymbals are beaten, and handfuls of powder are lighted, so thatthey pufT fire and smoke. Large bamboo tubes open at one end arefilled with powder mixed with iron filings. When this is lighted,streams of fire, smoke, and sparks spurt over the dragon and overthe dancers. To keep from being burned by the sparks, the carriersdance vigorously.The dragon parade furnishes entertainment and amusement for agreat many people. In addition it is believed to benefit the people andthe community by exorcising the demons who might cause sicknessand other calamities.On the morning of the 15th day of the 1st lunar month, many fire-crackers are set ofif. People worship the ancestral tablets in the homesand in the ancestral temples, lighting candles and incense, burningspirit money, and generally offering food and wine. They also wor-ship the gods in the homes and in the temples.On this day most of the shops open for business, although someopen earlier and some later. The opening must take place at a luckytime, usually early. If a customer comes before a store has beenopened, or just as it is being opened, and makes a purchase, it isconsidered lucky. At the time of opening, firecrackers are set off tomake a good impression. Incense and candles are lighted, and theancestors and house gods are worshiped. If an enemy comes at thistime and creates a disturbance, knocking over furniture and someof the goods, it is considered very bad luck, and a serious loss of face,as well as a lawsuit, often ensues.The Ch'ing Ming ^^M, or Spring Festival, generally comes earlyin the third moon, but sometimes late in the second moon, just106 days after the winter solstice. It often occurs early in April
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I49(Hodous, 1929, p. 92; Bredon and Mitrophanow, 1927, p. 216;Couling, 1917, p. 176). The two words mean bright and clear. Onetradition is that in its earliest stages, it was observed with fertilitydances by young men and young women, but that later this was dis-carded (Bredon and Mitrophanow, 1927, p. 218). Hodous calls atten-tion to the fact that in the struggle between the yang, bright, and theyin, dark, the yang now becomes victorious and dominant. This vic-tory is shared not only by the living, but also by the dead (Hodous,1929, p. 92).On this day people of all ages walk to the graves of their ancestors.There they repair the graves, light incense and candles and burnspirit money, and offer food and wine to the spirits of the dead. Someof the wine is poured out on the ground. The living kowtow veryreverently before the tombs, then they eat a cold meal and drink wine.The main objects of this festival are to commemorate, honor, andgive needed offerings to the dead, but it also gives refreshment tothe living through the exercise of walking and the breathing of thefresh spring air.In I-pin, where I was a missionary pastor for nearly 20 years, thechurch owned a graveyard in which nearly all the members buriedtheir dead. On the afternoon of Easter Sunday the members andtheir friends went to the graveyard, decorated all the graves withflowers, and then held a Christian religious service of commemora-tion. After this a cold meal was eaten. Some of my Chinese friendstold me that this service did a great deal to bind the church memberstogether and to the church.On the fifth day of the fifth moon is the festival called tuan yang,or the Dragon Boat Festival. On this day salted eggs and good foodare eaten, and a special wine called hsiung-huang-chiu is used. Someof the wine is drunk, and some poured out on the floor. This is be-lieved to prevent people from having boils and some other diseases,and to keep away snakes and caterpillars. A vegetable called ta-shuanis mixed with the wine. Children rub tea on their faces and foreheadsto keep away boils. Two kinds of grass called ch'ung-p'u and ch'en-aiare hung above the doors to keep away the demons. Dogs and foxesmade of ch'en-ai are sometimes hung above the front doors and leftthere all year to help keep away demons.In the afternoon all shops are closed, and many thousands ofpeople go to a river or stream where dragon-boat races are held. Theboats race after ducks that are released by the spectators, and afterthe races the crew of each boat feasts on the ducks they have caught.
150 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42This custom commemorates the death of a Chinese ofificial who, cen-turies ago, drowned himself because the Emperor would not listento reason.On this day Buddhist and Taoist priests sell charms which arepasted up in the house to protect the inmates from demons. Othercharms are to protect people from snakes, lizards, frogs, centipedes,and mosquitoes. A "snake medicine" is sold in the belief that itwill cure snake bites. About dark some people take baths in which isa kind of grass believed to prevent boils. In more recent years clothmonkeys and a package of medicine called hsiimg-hiiang are sewedon the clothes of children as charms to protect them from demons.This is one of the three festivals during which people are sup-posed to collect and to pay their debts. It is a day when someservants are dismissed and others hired. On this day the god of pesti-lence is supposed to come down to earth. Many people visit theirfriends. People pick herbs to be used as medicine, believing that theywill be especially potent in healing diseases. Many seem to regardthis day as one which is surcharged with potency.On the 15th day of the 7th moon is a festival called by some west-erners All Souls' Day and in Chinese Yil-lan-huei. On the first dayof this month the demons or hungry ghosts are supposed to be re-leased from hell and allowed to roam over the earth. Ceremoniesoften begin on the 13th and reach their climax and come to an endon the night of the 15th.On the 13th, 14th, and 15th, Buddhist and Taoist priests chanttheir sacred books on behalf of the hungry ghosts. In some cities onthe 13th (for instance, in Ya-an) widows weep loudly for their de-ceased husbands, but widowers do not weep for their deceased wives.On the 15th there is a family meal at which the deceased ancestorsare believed to be present. Food and wine are placed on the table,with bowls, chopsticks, and spoons at their places, and left for anhour. Then the living descendants eat the food.On the 15th, before and after dark, great quantities of spirit moneyare burned. At dusk there is a procession of priests and laymen toa stream or river, where many lights are released on the water tobe carried downstream in a long line. The sight is very impressive.The idea is to give the demons and orphan spirits much money throughthe burning of spirit money, and to entice them away downstreamby means of the lights.On the 15th day of the 8th moon is the Chiing-ch'iu, or AutumnFestival. In the evening the moon is worshiped, for it is regarded as
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I5I
a god. Incense and candles are lighted and spirit money is burned,and moon-cakes, round like the moon, are offered to the moon, afterwhich they are eaten by members of the family. Quantities of thesecakes are made and sold by the candy shops, and every family buyssome to eat and some to give away. The origin of this is as follows
:
One night at the close of the Yuan dynasty, on the 15th of the 8thmoon, every family was given a round biscuit, inside of which werewritten characters instructing the people to rise and kill the Yuandynasty rulers. As a result the Yuan dynasty fell. Since then thebiscuits have contained sugar instead of written characters.On the ninth day of the ninth moon is the Ch'ung-yang-chieh. Onthis day the people who can spare the time go up on the hills andmountains where they enjoy the scenery and fresh air, drink winemade of chrysanthemum blossoms, and write poetry. It is said thatsome of the best Chinese poetry was written on this day. There is alegend that centuries ago a man was warned by a god to leave his homeon this day, for a great calamity was coming on his home. He spentthe day on a nearby mountain, and when he returned he found thatduring the day evil spirits had visited his home and killed all hischickens and pigs.On the ist day of the loth moon is a festival called sung-han-i, or
"give winter clothing." Paper clothing is made and burned as ameans of giving it to the deceased ancestors; otherwise they wouldsuffer from cold during the coming winter. The ancestors are wor-shiped, incense and candles are lighted, and spirit money is burned.To an agricultural people like the Chinese, the coming of springis very important. They have a festival called ying-ch'tin, or welcom-ing spring, which is observed near the end of the old year and thebeginning of the new. The object is to induce spring to come and tobring prosperity to the farmers.In the following words Adam Grainger (1921, p. 49) describesthis custom as he found it in Chengtu
:
The solar period known as the Beginning of Spring commences about Feb. 5.On the first day preparation is made for the ceremony. Very early next morn-ing a large paper effigy of an ox drawing a plough is exhibited on the Ox-beatingGround somewhere inside the city. The magistrate attends in person accompaniedby actors representing the Star of Literature and his monkey Sen. After somemountebank performances with the monkey the Star of Literature exclaims
—
"May the land and the people be peaceful
:
May the wind and the rain be propitious
:
May the fruits of the earth be abundant."The magistrate thereupon arises, puts his hand to the plough, and waves theox-goad. This is the signal for a general assault on the ox, which is torn to
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pieces, and the little ox efiSgies with which it had been filled are scrambled forby the crowd. Those who are fortunate enough to secure them take them towell-to-do farmers who give presents of money in return for them. These littleoxen are supposed to bring luck to the farm for the ensuing year.The following is my description of this ceremony, which I wit-nessed in I-pin:In 1925 this ceremony was performed in Suifu on the twenty-lirst and twenty-second days of the twelfth moon. In the magistrate's yamen a large paper water-buffalo, and also a paper boy called a vgao mer, had been previously prepared.Over one hundred small water-buffaloes made of clay had been placed insidethe paper water-buffalo.On the morning of the twenty-first, the magistrate first worshiped the twopaper images in the court of his yamen to the accompaniment of horns thatsound a little like Scotch bagpipes. Then the magistrate joined in the proces-sion going out of the North Gate to a special plot of ground where a plow anda live water-buffalo were waiting. In the procession the paper images werecarried in front of the magistrate. On reaching the plot of ground, the magis-trate again worshiped the two paper images, which had been brought alongin the procession, then plowed three furrows with the plow and the live water-buffalo. The magistrate and other dignitaries drank tea together, after whichthe procession returned to the yamen through the East Gate. This day's cere-mony is called welcoming spring.The next day the two paper images were again taken in the procession to theplot of ground which is called the Yin Ch'uen Ba, or the flat where spring iswelcomed. The magistrate again did obeisance to the two paper images. Therewere about 20 officers called the ch'im-kuan or spring officials. After themagistrate had worshiped or kowtowed to the two paper images, the 20spring officials fell upon the paper images with clubs and beat them to pieces.At this point the onlookers rushed up and tried to secure one of the mudimages of the water-buffalo. Those who were not successful snatched pieces ofthe paper images. I was told that these relics were taken by the lucky onesto their homes where they were supposed to protect the inmates from evilspirits. The second day's ceremony is called da che'uen or beat spring. The mainobject of the two days' ceremony is to induce spring to come so that the cropsmay grow and prosper. (Graham, 1928b, p. 43.)Qiinese friends have informed nic that during the entire year thereis no festival in which there is a feast—with the single exception ofthat on the ninth day of the ninth moon—during which the ancestors,the house gods, and Heaven, or T'ien-lao-yeh, are not regarded aspresent and worshiped with incense, candles, and spirit money, andofferings of food and wine. The deceased ancestors are an importantpart of the family and are therefore expected to be present and topartake of these family meals.Whatever values these festivals may have had. real or imaginary,they have met a real need of the Chinese people for release from the
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I53humdrum of everyday work, giving them amusement, rest, andrecreation.FESTIVALS ON THE BIRTHDAYS OF THE GODSThese festivals constitute a very interesting phase of Chinese life.While many gods are deified men, many others are nature gods. Allgods, however, are thought of as having been born and so have birth-days. The gods are many, and the birthdays of several importantgods occur in nearly every month of the year.The simplest way in which worshipers celebrate the birthdays oftheir gods is to go to a temple on the birthday, bow and kowtow tothe deity, and burn incense, candles, and usually spirit money. Oftenthey also ofifer wine and food, or money or some other commodity.The gifts are accepted and used by the priests as part of their incomeor that of the temples.At the end of the Manchu dynasty, many of the temples in WestChina had a great deal of property for which they received rentals,and worshipers also contributed very generously. This meant thatmany of the temples had very ample incomes, and usually the birth-days of the principal gods were occasions for great celebrations.Later, practically all the temple property was confiscated, as well asmany of the temples themselves, and the people did not contributenearly so generously. One of the results was that elaborate celebra-tions of the birthdays of the gods, with great parades, feasts, andtheatricals, were entirely discontinued before the "liberation" ofChina by the Communists in 1949. Before this happened I had thegood fortune to witness a number of the celebrations of the birth-days of great gods in West China.At I-pin, on the ninth of the first lunar month, the birthday of thegod Ch'eng Huang was observed. His image was in a temple onCheng-wu-shan, a mountain just outside the city. In the morningof his birthday there was a constant stream of men, women, andchildren going to the temple to worship at his shrine. Soon after10 o'clock a great parade was formed, which slowly and with dignitywended its way through the main streets of the city and back to thetemple. Many thousands of people packed the streets and the shopsto witness the procession and to worship. In the parade were theimages of several gods, including Ch'eng Huang himself. Many ac-tors painted their faces and wore silk robes, each carried in a sedanchair and each impersonating some god. There were numerous ban-ners, large umbrellas, canopies, and pavilions. Soldiers, police, priests,
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and laymen marched in the procession. It was truly a thriUing sight,which was followed by a feast in the temple for the principal leadersand worshipers.I described such a birthday festival as follows (Graham, 1935,pp. 425-427)
:
On August 2, 1930, at the town of Li-t'o, west of Yachow, the writer wit-nessed a T'u-tsn-hui (-f^|j^-^), or a festival on the birthday of the god ofearth, or the Lord of Earth. There was a procession along the city streets,which were literally packed with sightseers and worshipers. Along the waythere were many offerings of pork and beans, and much lighting of candles andincense and burning of spirit money. Many who participated in the parade hadtheir faces painted with odd streaks of gold, and black and white paint, andwore caps on which mottoes were written. People of both sexes and of allages marched in the parade, some of them carrying small sticks of decoratedwood. It is believed that the festival causes the crops to prosper, heals diseases,and wards off calamities.In the parade were two pavilions in which were hats, shoes, candles, andmany dresses and gowns. Then came a large, red-faced god, with a fan in hishand, carried in a pavilion or large sedan chair on the shoulders of coolies.Three bombs, or short guns, were occasionally set off to announce the comingof the god, and a band played typical Chinese music. Following the god werescores of common people, each carrying a wooden placard. As the god passedby, he was loudly hailed by the spectators, some of whom carried in their armsinfants whom they wished the god to bless and protect. Following those whocarried the placards were musicians with gongs, timbrels, and horns. Nextcame Ch'uan Chu, the Lord of Szechvvan, who was dressed in yellow silk em-broidered garments. In the center of his forehead he had a third eye whichenabled him to see good and evil, and such invisible creatures as demons. AsCh'uan Chu passed along, people bowed their heads to the ground in reverentworship. After the god came a squad of soldiers to preserve order.In the parade were people who were strikingly dressed ; some had their facespainted. They participated in the procession in performance of vows. When theywere sick, or were faced with some dreadful calamity, they prayed to the godfor relief, and promised that if they were helped they would participate in thisway in the procession on the birthday of the god. The number of people whothus took part in the procession each year seems to the common people toprove the efficacy of the god.A witness of this procession could see clearly that the people were emotion-ally thrilled and deeply impressed ; that emotions of reverence, awe, and wonderwere aroused ; and that unconsciously the people received a vivid impressionof the greatness of the gods, and were made more loyal to them, the priests,and the religion. The techniques used are admirable for making such impres-sions on the minds of the simple people, and are evidently the result of centuriesof experience.It is evident that financial reasons had much to do with the dis-continuance, before China became Communist, of the great festivalson the birthdays of the gods. It is also evident that the weakening
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 1 55
of the faith of the common people in their old religions was an im-portant contributing cause.OATHS, \^OWS, PRAYERS, SACRIFICES,AND OFFERINGSOaths are generally resorted to when a person is accused of acrime or when his truthfulness is in question. They are made inthe name of one of the gods. For example, if a person is accused ofstealing a pig, he may say, "If I stole that pig, may the god of thunderstrike me dead." Few guilty people will swear such an oath, for theybelieve that if they did the god would actually strike them dead. In1924 I was crossing the Ta-hsiang-lin Pass west of Ya-an andstopped at an inn to rest. The carriers with me drank some tea andproceeded to pay for it. The landlady asserted that one of the menhad not paid enough and demanded some more money. After a timethe head coolie said to the landlady, "Will you swear by a certain godthat you are telling the truth, and if not that the god may burn downthis house?" "I will not swear that oath," she replied. The carrierdid not pay the money demanded, and all believed that the womanhad been telling a lie.Vows are almost inseparable from prayers, for they arc promisesconnected with prayers. The request may be for almost any favor,or for an object, but very often it is for healing from some sort ofpain or sickness. Practically every vow is paid, for it is believedthat otherwise the god will get angry and punish the offender. Thevow may be that if the person is healed a pilgrimage will be made toMount Omei, or that the god will be given a new suit of clothes (anew coat of paint), or that the shrine or the temple will be repaired,or that the worshiper or his family will give the god a chicken ora pig, some spirit money, or something else.In An-lin-ch'iao on March 28, 1930, a woman was very ill. Therelatives prayed to a god to heal her and promised that if he did theywould give the god a wife. The sick woman recovered, and the familygave the god a straw woman with white paper marked with ears,eyes, and nose as a face, and paper as a dress. A chicken was alsopresented to the god.I have heard of many cases in which a suppliant with a sore handor foot prayed to a god for healing and promised that if he werehealed, he would present the god with a hand or a foot. After thehealing, a straw hand or a straw foot was presented to the god.Among the simplest prayers are those in which there is a request
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without a promise or vow. First incense and candles are lighted, thenthere are bows and prostrations, and the worshiper calls the godby name and makes a request. The incense and the candles may beomitted.I once traveled on the Min River between I-pin and Lo-shan whenmonsoon rains had turned the river into a muddy, roaring torrent.Boatmen were pulling the boat upstream by means of a bamboo cable,when the cable broke. Only the head boatman was on the boat toman the oars. We found ourselves in a boat that was being drivenrapidly downstream by the swift water and in danger of beingwrecked by the rocks below. The boatman was so frightened that hedid nothing but pray, "God Wang Yeh, come and save our lives."A Chinese passenger who believed less in the gods than in the efficacyof human effort said, "Stop praying to Wang Yeh and take an oarand row us to shore, or we may all be drowned." The boatman obeyed,and we were rowed safely to shore.One day we were in a ferryboat between Lo-shan and Ch'ien-wei.On the cliff above us was a shrine in which tliere was an image ofKuanyin, the goddess of mercy. In the boat a woman holding a babylooked up at the image of Kuanyin above and said, "Goddess ofMercy, protect my child."Generally a person or a family prepares for a prayer by burningincense and candles and by reverently bowing and kowtowing. Some-times spirit money is also burned and an offering is made. After theprayer there are generally more bows and prostrations, and vows ac-companying prayers are very common.The Chinese have elaborate ceremonies to obtain sons and to bringrain, and Westerners describe all these ceremonies as praying forsons and praying for rain. In so doing there may be some miscon-ception of what the Chinese are doing and what is in their minds.For instance, the Chinese do little praying when they repeat or chanttheir sacred books, for there is little prayer in the books, sometimesnone. Chanting the sacred books brings favor with the gods andmakes them propitious, it being thought by many to have a com-pelling, magical effect. In the procession of men and boys when seek-ing rain, the throwing of water and letting it fall on people and onthe ground is imitative magic. Pilfering a wooden baby from theshrine of a god or stealing clothing or bedding from the shrine of asleeping Buddha constitute the seeking of sons by magic, althoughthese acts may be accompanied by prayer.Most Chinese prayers are not devotional services for spiritual edi-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 1 57
fication. While they are very sincere, they are almost always to obtainpractical benefits—good crops, rain, happiness, sons, healing, protec-tion, and other benefits that have to do with a satisfying life. Ofcourse there are prayers and ceremonies to release the souls of de-ceased relatives from hell, or to insure a happy rebirth.Prayers to the gods are sometimes written or printed on paper,sealed in an envelope, and burned. It is believed that burning trans-fers the prayer to the god, who receives and reads it. The followingis my translation of such a letter burned to the kitchen god on the23d day of the I2th moon, when the kitchen god ascends to heavento make his report about the family to the Jade Emperor (Graham,1935, P- 50) :
I, , representing the whole family, reverently and sincerely comeand beseech you to hear us. You have great merit in saving the world andnourishing all people. You protect us with virtue and mercy. You controland judge the good and the evil deeds of our family. In our cooking and in oureating and drinking we depend on your mercy. Through all the year you carefor us. But we are uncleanly in our habits, think unclean thoughts, and troubleyou. We write you this letter hoping that you will forgive our sins, and notreport them to the Pearly Emperor, thus causing the whole family to be gratefulto you. (Date.)Worship is honoring or paying respects to the gods. It includesthe burning of candles and incense, the burning of spirit money, gen-erally prayers and vows, and bows and prostrations with folded hands.When it is more elaborate, it includes music and chanting or singingthe sacred books. Worship in the larger sense is very inclusive, in-volving pilgrimages to temples and shrines and to sacred mountains.There have been many speculations as to the beginnings of wor-ship and its root motives. Some have emphasized the fact that primi-tive man naturally feels insecure because of the dangers, often mis-understood, that he faces. Fire, flood, earthquake, lightning, diseases,enemies, and other things threaten his life and happiness. Throughmagic, religion, and worship he believes that he gets the help ofsuperhuman powers and of the gods, which gives him a much neededsense of security.A Chinese friend of little education volunteered the followingexplanation of the beginning of worship and its development intothe worship of the gods. He believed that in ancient times men sawfire, water (often in floods), lightning, and other wonders in nature,and, thinking of these as living and having supernatural power,feared and worshiped them as superhuman beings. Later he thought
158 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
of them as manlike gods of fire, water, and thunder, and so worshipedtheir manhke images. lie said that the sun and the moon are regardedas real, Hving deities. It seems to me that fear, awe, and wonder areprimary elements in primitive religion, and that these same elementsare fundamentals in religious worship.Candles and incense are means of showing honor and respect. Theyalso add to one's karma because their ceremonial lighting and burn-ing are meritorious acts. The smell of incense is supposed to bepleasing to the ancestors and to the gods, and to put them in a goodhumor so that they will be propitious. Thus incense and candles areimportant in religious worship.In an act of worship in the home, at a wayside shrine, or in atemple, the worshiper or the priest generally first lights incense andcandles, then bows and prostrates himself before the god. The sim-plest way is to fold the hands with palms together, then move thefolded hands up and down three times, also generally bowing thehead. The more elaborate way is three bows with folded hands wavedup and down, three kowtows, three more bows, three more kowtows,three more bows, three more kowtows, and three final bows, movingthe hands up and down with each bow, making a total of nine kowtows.More elaborate forms of worship are performed by one or morepriests for individuals or for families, and the priests must be paidfor it. The number of priests and the length and elaborateness of theceremonies depends on the amount of money that is paid. In theseceremonies there is music and the chanting of sacred books.The great festivals on the birthdays of the -gods may be regardedas worship in the broadest sense. Hundreds and often thousands ofpeople go to the temples and worship the gods, and as the images ofthe gods are carried through the streets in gigantic parades, thespectators and the people whose homes and stores are passed burn in-cense and candles and bow in worship. The great crowds and theparades fill the people with a sense of wonder and admiration, andthey naturally bow in worship.Near Hsiiin-chien-ssu in southern Szechwan, there was a man whokept several bulls for use in grinding soya beans to make bean curdand bean cakes. I visted his place and saw the bulls, one of whichwas very large. The man's business prospered, and the value of thebulls went up. Finally, according to the testimony of his neighbors,he burned candles and incense to, and worshiped, the largest bull.Apparently he was moved to do so by his wonder and admiration forthe animal (Graham, 1928b, p. ']']^.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I59Worship may be at any convenient time, but there are also specialtimes of worship in the homes, at the wayside shrines, and in thetemples.In the homes there is generally worship every day, sometimes twicea day, morning and evening. Incense is burned, sometimes candlesare lighted, and a male member of the family, with folded hands,bows in worship. On the ist and 15th of each lunar month there ismore elaborate worship, when food and wine may be offered. Ances-tral tablets and house gods, and sometimes other gods such as Kuanyinand the god of wealth, are worshiped in the homes. There is alsomore elaborate worship in the homes on the first days of the newyear. In fact, there is no festival during the year, excepting theninth day of the ninth moon, when there is not special worship ofthe ancestors and the house gods.In the temples, a priest goes to every idol at daylight and at dusk,lights a few sticks of incense, and bows in worship. Often he doesnot utter a word. During the day any person at any time may per-form his devotions. On the lunar festivals and on the birthdays ofthe gods the ceremonies are much more elaborate, and often severalpriests take part. The worship may include music and the chantingof the sacred books. The great festivals on the birthdays of the godsinclude a feast, a procession through the streets, and theatricals.Broadly interpreted, all these are worship, for the gods, too, are sup-posed to watch and enjoy the theatricals.Sacrifices and offerings in West China differ in purpose and mean-ing from those among the ancient Israelites. They are not generallyfor the propitiation of sins. Not even among the Ch'iang are innocentlambs offered to propitiate for the sins of worshipers—in fact, lambsare not sacrificed at all among these people, but full-grown sheep orgoats.It is believed that the deceased ancestors after death need the samethings as they do in this world, and that it is the duty of the de-scendants to provide them. This they do through offerings duringancestral worship. The gods also need sacrifices and money, and theseare provided during worship.In ancestral worship the ancestors are invited to come and sharethe family meal, and it is believed that they are actually present andeat. What they eat is the essence of the food, and what remains iseaten by the living descendants. Houses, sedan chairs, servants, goldand silver ingots, cash, dollars, and many other things are made ofpaper or of paper and strips of wood and are transformed by burn-
l60 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL, I42ing into objects that can be used by the deceased ancestors. Money isoffered to the gods by burning, but food and wine are first offeredto the ancestors and deities, then eaten or drunk by the livingdescendants.Offerings are made to the ancestors because it is beUeved that theyneed them, and with the expectation that in return the ancestors willprotect and help their descendants and grant them many favors. Someofferings are made to the gods before requests are made, with the ideathat they will cause the gods to be propitious, but many offerings aremade in the payment of vows, or promises, made when praying tothe gods for some favor.Up to recent decades Chinese officials did not receive any salaries.They were appointed as rulers in certain regions, and one of theirduties was to collect taxes. They were held responsible for the pay-ment of a certain amount to their superiors, and what they collectedbeyond that was their own. One source of an official's income was thegiving of gifts by people who desired favors. No person would thinkof asking a favor without first making a gift. In cases of litigation,both the accused and the accuser gave presents to the magistrates.Often the gifts were money. A proverb says, "The door of the yamenis opened wide. I f you are in the right but have no money, there is nouse to enter."It is customary to make gifts to important people whom you knowon their birthdays, weddings, funerals, and on many other occasions.I returned to the United States on furlough four times, and the fifthtime to remain. Each time, Chinese friends gave many presents, vary-ing from eggs, pieces of sugarcane, and chickens to beautiful and valu-able embroideries, paintings, porcelains, bronzes, and other objects.In China people give presents to friends whom they love and re-spect, and also to important people from whom they desire and ex-pect favors. These social customs go a long way toward explainingthe sacrifices and offerings of the Chinese to their ancestors and totheir gods.SHRINES, TEMPLES, AND SACRED MOUNTAINSWayside shrines may be regarded as miniature temples. They areoften found by the sides of roads and paths in the country, and inthe streets of towns and cities. In their simplest forms they haveimages of gods, but no walls or roofs. Generally they are open infront so that the gods can see and be seen by the worshipers, buthave walls and roofs to protect the images of the gods from the rain,
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l62 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
wind, and sunshine. The more elaborate wayside shrines have fromtwo to five stories, each with the image of one or two gods, thesecond less common image being the spouse of the male god. Thegods in wayside shrines are generally Kuanyin, the t'li-ti and hisspouse, Amitabha, Ling-kuan, and T'ai-shan-shih-kan-tang. A mainduty of each of these gods is to protect people from demons.The tuan kungs, priests of the Wu Chiao, the wizard society orsociety of black magic, have no temples but have shrines for theworship of many gods in the center against the back wall of the frontroom of their homes. There is a shelf about 4 feet above the floor,and above this is the usual house god, a red paper on which is writtenthe characters meaning Heaven, Earth, Rulers, Relatives, and Teach-ers. On the shelf may or may not be three or more images of gods,together with one or more bowls filled with ashes used for the burn-ing of incense and candles. Below are generally 20 or more images ofgods and more bowls for the burning of incense and candles. Oneof the gods worshiped by the tuan kung is Wu Ch'ang, who is alsoa god of hunters. Others are Kuanyin, the god of wealth, and LingKuan. The front door is usually left open, so that passersby can seethe shrine and the images.There is a Confucian temple in every fu or prefecture, and inevery hsien or township city. Since Suifu, or I-pin, is both a fu anda hsien, it has two Confucian temples. In the city of Chengtu are twohsiens, Chengtu hsien and Hwa-yang hsien ; hence there are three Con-fucian temples in Chengtu. These temples normally have no images.I have seen only one image of Confucius or of any other in a Con-fucian temple, and that was at Suifu, and I heard of another inShantung. Apparently images in Confucian temples are very rare.Instead there are many wooden tablets on which are the names ofConfucius and his most important disciples. They look like enlargedspirit tablets, and incense and candles are burned to these tablets.The walls of Confucian temples are red.In recent decades many Confucian temples have been used asschools. The Chinese think that this is an appropriate use for them,since Confucius was such an advocate of education.Buddhist and Taoist temples are houses for the gods and thepriests, and convenient places for worship. The priests must havehouses where they can live, eat, sleep, and worship, and where theycan store their sacred books, their ceremonial clothing, their sacredimplements, and other belongings. The few images of gods, gen-erally of T'ai-shan-shih-kan-tang and of Amitabha, that are in way-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 163yUEtt-rNWAN&K\(PlClK6 W <ies>
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164 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
side shrines without protecting roofs are carved out of hard stone.I have seen temples, the roofs of which have been ruined, thus ex-posing the images for a time to the elements ; in a few months mostof the images were damaged by the heavy rains.Buddhist and Taoist temples are thought of as belonging to thecommunities in which they are situated. This is why in recent yearspeople have considered that they had the right to use the temples forother purposes. On the other hand, each temple generally has a groupof priests and lay members who control the affairs of the temple. InLo-shan an organization was trying to purchase a temple. When apriest told me that it could not be sold, a lay leader whispered tome that it could be sold. At Tou-pa, a village near An-pien, the com-munity became much interested in education. They used several tem-ples for schools, and the temple incomes for the support of the schools.I have heard of other places where similar events took place.The most common name for a temple is miao, but there are severalother names such as ssu, an (West China ngan), fang, kuan, andkimg. According to the Encyclopaedia Sinica a Buddhist monasteryis called ssu, and a nunnery, an, while both may be called t'ang. ATaoist monastery or nunnery is called kuan, and a Taoist monastery
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but not a nunnery—may be called kung. Ancestral halls of privatefamilies are called t'su. In West China ancestral halls are also calledchung miao or chung t'ang (Couling, 1917, p. 553).The number of temples varies in each village, city, or locality.Chengtu, which normally had a population of 500,000, had 210 tem-ples. Suifu, with a population of 100,000, had 83 temples. In andvery near Li-chuang, whose population was 20,000, there were 20temples. Chio-ch'i, with a population of nearly 10,000, had 15 tem-ples. These numbers may be regarded as fairly typical. Noting thenumber and size of the temples built and supported by the Chinesepeople, one may wonder at the statement sometimes made that theChinese people are not very religious.Buddhist and Taoist temples look so much alike that one cannotsee any difference between them. Temples sometimes have onthe top of the roof images of gods, dragons, and other creatures, and,like most other Chinese buildings, the ends of the roof turn upward.They are generally larger and higher than the other buildings nearthem. The doors are wide and high, and their two halves open in-ward. Instead of glass windows, there are beautiful wooden lattices,some of the designs of which have come down for centuries and evenmillennia. Some of the smallest temples are square, but most temples
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM i6s
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l66 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
are oblong. The largest have several large halls and courts, the hallsalternating with the courts. On the main door of a temple two largedoor gods are painted, one on each half. In front of this door thereare sometimes two large stone lions, on.e male and one female. Themale lion has one foot on a ball, and the female often has a baby lionwith her. The names of the temples are written in large charactersaliove the main entrance, so that they can be seen from a distance.On the inside, above the main entrance of some of the largesttemples, are stages and dressing rooms for theatricals. In front ofthe stages are open courts, and on the two sides of these are balconies.From the open courts and the balconies many people view the theatri-cals, and it is believed that the gods, whose images are inside thetemples, also watch and enjoy them.Every temple has at least one cookstove, sleeping places for thepriests, and cupboards for the storage of dishes and cooking utensils.In the largest temples there are separate kitchens and bedrooms, andin some, separate dining rooms.Although a few temples in Szechwan are believed to date from theT'ang dynasty more than a thousand years ago, most of them werebuilt during the Manchu dynasty. Very few were built during theera of the Chinese Republic, and most of these are small.Every temple, in view of the fact that it is a home for gods andpriests and a place for worship, is a holy place. This sacredness oftenextends to the trees that grow in the yards or courtyards of thetemples, some of which are holy and cannot be cut down.A temple may be located at any place for the sake of convenience,but a goodly number of them have been erected in places noted forthe beauty of the scenery and which naturally arouse the emotions ofadmiration, awe, and wonder. Many illustrations could be given. Afew li down the Min River from Chengtu is a temple called Wang-chiang-lo, or "look-at-river pavilion," because of a beautiful pavilionin the temple grounds from which there is a fine view up and downthe river. Shih-pao-chai, on the Yangtse River between Chungkingand Ichang, is a temple built on the top of a great rock, flat on topand surrounded on every side by perpendicular cliffs, and reachedonly by stairs going up through the beautiful pavilion of severalstories. From the top there is a grand view of the Yangtse Riverand the surrounding tree-covered hills and mountains. Several tem-ples at Suifu are on the tops of nearby mountains whence there is afine view of forest-covered mountains and the Min and the YangtseRivers. Huang-lung-ssu, or Yellow Dragon Gorge, has several tem-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 167
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l68 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
pies. It is a place of marvelous beauty, in a canyon the sides ofwhich are covered by green forests. There are many beautiful flowers,including wild red poppies. Up the canyon is a snow-covered peak,Hsueh-pao-ting-shan, and down the canyon is a ridge with unbe-lievably beautiful foldings of the rock strata, A crystal-clear streamflows down the canyon, on the bottom and sides of which are bright-yellow stones. In the stream are dozens of pools like those of theYellowstone Park, This is a holy of holies for a very wide region,and many thousands of pilgrims of many ethnic groups come everyyear to worship.It is also true that mountains from which there are unusually fineviews are likely to be sacred and to have shrines and temples builton them. Mount Omei is thought by some to be the most beautifulmountain in the world. It has a great precipice 6,000 feet high andhundreds of beautiful scenes, with cliffs, natural caves, mountainstreams, forests, and views of the Min and the Ya Valleys and of thesnow-covered peaks of eastern Tibet. Near the summit is an inscrip-tion that expresses the feelings of the pilgrims, "One foot fromheaven." Wa Shan, apparently the highest mountain in central Szech-wan, is striking and grand in appearance, its top flat and forestcovered. On every side is a perpendicular cliff, the highest rising4,000 feet, and the top can be reached only by going over a steep andperilous path. One who approaches and climbs this mountain, as Ihave, will be almost overwhelmed by feelings of fear, wonder, andawe. Little wonder that it is a sacred mountain. Minya Konka, onthe China-Tibetan border, is the highest mountain in Sikang. It isover 24,000 feet high and from a distance looks like a great pure-white pyramid. To the Tibetans it is not only sacred, but it is a god,and at its base are temples where pilgrims come to worship.It is well known that there are four sacred mountains in Chinawhere the emperors in former times went to worship heaven andearth. On these there are now many temples where thousands ofpilgrims go to worship every year. It is not so well known that thereare many other sacred mountains in China, especially in West China.The most sacred mountain of West China is Mount Omei. On itssides and on its summit are many Buddhist temples, and to thismountain come pilgrims from all over China, from Mongolia, andfrom Tibet.Ch'ing-ch'eng-shan is the Taoist rival of Mount Omei in Szech-wan. It is a high mountain peak across the Min River fromKuanhsien, and on its sides and summit are many shrines and tern-
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 17
I. A \va\-side slirine containing theimage of Amitablia. He protects trav-elers who pass along this road. 2. An image of Amitabha nearHsiung-chien-ssu, south of Suifu,Szechwan province. It was made withfour heads and placed at a crossroadsso that the god could see in all fourdirections and protect people on all theroads.
3- ']"he white i)ag(>da at l-jiin, .Szechwan. These pagodas (tften contain images ofgods that are worshiped and are believed to improve the fcin/sliiti of a locality so as tocause financial prosperity and the success of its residents in becoming scholars andofficials.
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2. A temple at Yo-ik), up tiie .Min River from 1-pin, deserted and going to ruin.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 169
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pies. On the opposite side of the Min River from Ch'ing-ch'eng-shan, a 2- or 3-hours' journey from Kuanhsien, is another Buddhistsacred mountain on which are several temples. We have alreadymentioned Minya Konka and Wa Shan, and there are other sacredmountains in eastern Tibet or Sikang.Near Ya-an is a sacred mountain on which there are severalBuddhist temples. It resembles Mount Omei in that each has anatural cave called the Chiu-lao-tung and a precipice called theShae-shen-ai, or precipice where pilgrims sometimes leap off to sacri-fice themselves.Wa Shan is directly south from Mount Omei and is plainly visiblefrom the Golden Summit of that mountain. It is eclipsed by MountOmei, but every year there are pilgrims to Wa Shan from the sur-rounding region. Formerly there were three temples on the summit,but now there are only two.Near the Great Omei are two other sacred mountains, SecondOmei and Third Omei. There are temples on their summits, to whichpilgrims go to worship throughout the year. West of I-pin is asacred mountain called Hsiao-omei-shan, or Little Mount Omei. Onit are Buddhist temples to which every year come many worshipersfrom the Suifu district.South of I-pin on the Yunnan border is Chien-feng-shan, or SharpWindy Mountain, so named because it is higher than the surroundingmountains and hence likely to be windy. It was formerly controlledby the Taoists, now by the Buddhists. People from the surroundingregions make pilgrimages to this mountain and worship in its temples.East of I-pin, near An-lin-ch'iao, is Fu-lai-shan, or Buddha ComeMountain, so-called because of the tradition that a Buddha in oneof the temples flew there. Many pilgrims come to worship on thistree-covered mountain, the highest in the region.North of Chengtu is Bai-lu-ting, or White Deer Peak, which isa high sacred mountain. On its top are temples and forests. It ispractically surrounded by perpendicular cliffs, and from its sum-mit are marvelous views. Missionaries have bungalows on the sum-mit of this mountain and spend their summer vacations there. It is aholy mountain to which pilgrims come to worship.This list is far from complete. Mountains that are strikingly beauti-ful, and there are many such in West China, are likely to becomesacred, with temples and shrines to which pilgrims come to worshiptheir gods, seeking happiness, prosperity, and the help of the gods.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 171
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172 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42THE GODSPolytheism, the worship of many gods, is common among all thepeoples of West China. Among the Chinese, the Tibetans, and manyother ethnic groups there is also the worship of images. These be-liefs and practices seem as natural to the people of this region asmonotheism does to Jews, Christians, and Mohammedans.At Suifu a Buddhist priest came to the Christian hospital to behealed of a disease. He and I became very good friends and discussedreligious matters together. In one of these discussions I explainedthat Christians worshiped one god only. The priest replied, "Onegod is not enough for the Chinese, for there are too many people inChina." He did not believe that one god could adequately care for450 million people.Among both the Chinese and the non-Chinese of West China thereis the belief that when you have the picture or the image of a god,the deity whose image you have is actually present. It is also truethat unless there is a picture or an image of a god in a home, a shrine,or a temple, the deity is generally regarded as not present and is notworshiped in that place.One day while walking by the Min River near I-pin I drew on asandbank with a walking stick a picture of Kuanyin. A country boycame by and looked at the picture. To test him I said, "This is thegoddess Kuanyin. You ought to worship her." He looked at theimage a moment, and seeing that it was an image of Kuanyin, hefolded his hands and bowed in worship.In Shanghai in 191 1, and many times later in Szechwan and Sikang,I had an interesting experience. When I tried to take a picture ofnatives with whom I was not acquainted, they would run away asfast as they could as though their lives were in danger. The explana-tion given me by natives and by missionaries was that it is believedby many orientals that by taking one's picture you capture his soul,or at least a vital part of it, and that it enables you to shorten hislife by several years, to injure him in other ways, or even to causehis death. Many times when I was taking a picture the bystandershave said, "He is going to take you to a foreign country." Theymeant not just the person's picture, but a vital part of the person him-self. This goes a long way toward explaining image worship in China.It is assumed and believed that if one has the picture or the image ofa person or a deity, the soul, mind, or personality of the one who ispictured or imaged is present. Generally the people regard it as agreat advantage to see the image of the god whom they are worship-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I73
ing. This assures them that the deity is actually present and is payingattention to the worshiper, his acts, and his prayers.One day I had a long discussion with some boatmen about gods.Finally one boatman said, "You Christians worship a god all right,but it has no body. We make images of the gods so that we can seethem and know what the gods are like." The common people feelthat there must be something visible and tangible so that the mindis reached through the senses, in order that they may realize the like-ness and actual presence of the god. The image is thought of as hisbody.It is also assumed that sometimes the god may be asleep, or thatthe soul may temporarily leave the image and go elsewhere. Thereis therefore in front of each image a bell or a gong which is beatenby the priest to make him wake up and pay attention and to informhim that he is being worshiped. The bells or gongs generally havebeautiful tones, and to the priests and the worshipers the beating andthe resulting harmonious tones are an essential part of the worship.A few gods are worshiped when there is no image present. In thetemples there are images of the sun god and the moon god, but intheir homes the people often worship the sun and the moon as godswithout the use of any images. T'ien-lao-yeh, the aged one in heaven,is often worshiped, but I have never seen or heard of an image of thisgod. Sometimes in a shrine or in a temple the image of a god is re-moved but the people go on worshiping as though the god were stillpresent.Some of the tribespeople of West China, including the Ch'uan Miaoand the Ch'iang, have gods of their own but make no images of them.This sometimes leads to the mistaken belief that they have no godsor that they are monotheists. A Christian Lolo once convinced methat most of the Lolos are monotheists. At the time I believed itand expressed the belief in two short articles, but now I know that Iwas very badly mistaken. The Ch'iang people convinced Rev. ThomasTorrance that they were monotheists, and Mr. Torrance made thisaffirmation in every one of his articles and in his book about theCh'iang. Ch'iang friends, however, informed me that they purposelydeceived Mr. Torrance and gave me long lists of their gods—5 majorgods, 12 lesser gods, some tree gods, numerous stones worshiped asgods, and a large number of local deities. Tens of these gods arementioned by name in the sacred books (chants) of the Ch'iangpriests.Sometimes the only visible evidence of the presence of the god in
174 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42the shrine is the name of the god written in Chinese characters. Agood illustration of this is the common household god, the essentialpart of which consists of written characters meaning "The Throneof Heaven, Earth, Rulers, Relatives (ancestors), and Scholars."This is really the enlarged family of benefactors. Heaven protectsus and gives us light and rain, the earth gives us food, the rulers giveus laws and protection, the ancestors assist and protect us, and thescholars give precious instruction to our children. The word chiinmeaning rulers also includes the emperor, and after the founding ofthe republic some families in West China substituted for the wordchiin the word ktio meaning country, which is more in harmony withthe new nationalism. I have also seen kitchen gods that consisted ofa red scroll with the names of the kitchen god and his spouse downthe center. On the right is a phrase meaning "the ruler (or lord)who gives orders among men," and on the left is a phrase meaning
"the god who is ears and eyes of heaven above."Occasionally one will see in a shrine, instead of an image, the nameof the god or the goddess written on paper or wood or carved onwood or stone. In such a shrine the god is worshiped and re-garded as present. Sometimes one will see in a shrine a large,smooth river stone on which the picture of the god has been drawnor painted, and which is being worshiped. The picture of the godT'ai-shan-shih-kan-tang is sometimes painted on the convex side ofa large wooden dipper, which is hung up above the front door tokeep out demons.In West China an observer is impressed by the large number ofimages of the gods. They are frequently seen in the homes, in way-side shrines, and in the temples. Some are carved on stone cliffs be-side well-traveled roads or above rivers.The people of West China regard the images of the gods as realdeities, although a few regard them as mere statues. In the summerof 1925 a Ta-yung-fa-ssu, one of the greatest Buddhists of all China,visited Mount Omei and granted me an interview. He stated thatthere were very few Chinese in West China who regarded the imagesas mere statues, but that the number of such people was larger inEast China and in Japan. I have never met a Buddhist or a Taoistpriest who did not regard the images of gods as real, living deities.The spirit of skepticism and unbelief has increased greatly in WestChina in recent years, so that there is an increasing number who donot believe what practically everybody of all ages and walks of life be-lieved in 1900 and even later—namely, that the images of the gods areactual, living deities.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 1 75Images of the gods may be drawn, written, or printed on paper.Before the New Year people all over West China sell colored imagesof door gods and kitchen gods that have been printed on paper.During the day before the New Year the door gods are pasted upon the front doors, and between midnight and daylight on the firstday of the year the kitchen god is pasted or hung up in the kitchen.They are worshiped as real, living deities. Other such gods printedin color on paper and sold before each New Year are the t'u-ti andhis spouse and three gods printed on the same paper, the gods ofheaven, earth, and water.Occasionally I have seen other gods printed on paper, includingChang Tao-ling, Ling-kuan, Kuanyin, and the god of wealth. OnMount Omei the writer saw two food advertisements and one of anoted biscuit company that had been framed and were being wor-shiped as gods in temples because they had on them pictures ofBuddha and his worshipers. These were apparently discarded before1945 ; probably they were criticized and their meanings disclosed byChinese who could read English.When priests are invited to Chinese homes to conduct funerals,memorial ceremonies, or ceremonies to exorcise demons, they gen-erally bring with them a paper scroll on which is a pantheon of gods.The priests hang the scroll up in the home or nearby and worship it,burning incense or candles and making prostrations.Most images in China are made of clay ; a small number are carvedout of wood or stone, and a very few are made of iron, bronze, orbrass. In Sikang many small Tibetan idols are made of brass orbronze and covered with gold leaf.The innermost core of a clay idol is a stick of wood to give theimage rigidity. Straw is wrapped around this stick, then clay is addedand allowed to dry. The best idols are beautifully shaped and, insome places, then covered with gold leaf. Clay images made byspecialists are real works of art.Living creatures with flesh and blood have organs and intestines,and therefore idols have square holes through their backs into theirchests, in which are enclosed strings of thread, short pieces of straw,beans, tea leaves, bits of isinglass, gravel, and other small objects repre-senting the heart, intestines, and other organs. The beans representhearts and brains, and the bits of straw represent intestines.Priests generally perform certain ceremonies before which theimages are merely statues and after which they are living gods. Oftenas part of the ceremony a bloody feather is pasted to the head of the
176 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42image and offerings of food and wine are made to it. Also sometimesas part of the ceremony is the painting of the pupils of the eyes. Astory in the Chinese history of the three kingdoms is that of apainter who painted a picture of a dragon so well that it looked alive.Later he painted in the pupils of the eyes, and the dragon flew away.Images in the homes and in the temples vary in height from afew inches to over 100 feet. The great stone Buddha across theMin River from Lo-shan is over 200 feet high and is by far the larg-est and tallest in West China.Some of the images of the gods in the temples have three eyes,one on each side of the nose and one in the middle of the forehead.Much more rarely there are four eyes. Some of the largest imagesof Kuanyin, with a thousand arms and hands, have an eye in thepalm of each hand. It is believed that these unusual eyes enable thegods to see the good and evil in men's hearts and also the demons, allof which are generally invisible.Some of the gods whose images are worshiped are noted nationalheroes, such as Kuan-ti, Yo-fei, and Chu-ko Liang, commemorationbeing actually a motive for deification. Of course there is the ideathat they have supernatural power and that if worshiped they willuse this superhuman potency for the benefit of the worshipers.Many of the gods who are deified men are patron deities of theoccupations pursued by these men when living. Because they werevery successful in these occupations, they are supposed to have super-human wisdom and power which become available to those who wor-ship them. A few examples are Tu-k'ang, the god of brewers andthose who sell liquor; Shen-nung, the god of agriculture; Lu-pan,the god of carpenters; Chang-yeh, the god of butchers; Chang-huang the god of cooks; Wen-ch'ang, Confucius, and Ts'ang-chih,gods of scholars; and Hua-t'o, the god of surgeons.The deification of men has gone on until very recent years. Dur-ing the occupation of Szechwan by Yunnan troops, following theattempt of Yuan Shih-kai to become emperor of China, a Yunnanofficer governed so well in a certain locality that the people deifiedhim and worshiped him. I heard of a man near Ya-an who, becausehe contributed money to the temples so liberally, was deified andworshiped while he was still living. In a small shrine outside the mainentrance of the Ta-o-ssu monastery on Mount Omei was the imageof an old man who was still living in 1927. He was very devoted toBuddhism and made large contributions to the Ta-o-ssu temple. Hewas therefore deified and his image placed in this shrine and wor-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I77
shiped. About 15 years later when I again visited this temple, thepriests said that this man had died and his image was still being wor-shiped. Near I-pin, at the foot of the mountain near the blackpagoda, is a temple called T'si-hang-kuan. In this temple is the imageof one Lo Hsin-hsuen, who in 1930 still lived near I-pin. Because hehad donated the money with which the temple was built, people deifiedhim and worshiped him as a god while he was still alive. Most of thegods whose images are in the temples are deified men.Most of the people of West China regard inanimate things as alive.The sun, the earth, the moon, the stars, mountains, rivers, trees, androcks are thought of as living, animate beings. It is little wonder,therefore, that rocks and trees are sometimes worshiped as gods.West of Mu-p'ing in Sikang Province is the village of Yao-chi.Among the people of this region many white stones are actually wor-shiped as gods and are called in Chinese, pusahs or Boddhisatvas.On one mountain I saw a number of gray stones that had been stoodon end and were worshiped as gods. Between Ch'ien-wei and Lo-shan laborers working on a road came upon a large rock that theycould not easily remove. A priest suggested that it might be a kingof rocks, so the laborers burned incense to it and worshiped it as agod. Inside the city of Chengtu a large sandstone rock in a specialtemple built for it is worshiped as a deity. It is reported that therock fell from the sky, but in composition it is exactly the same asmuch of the sandstone near Chengtu. Rev. Orlando Jolliffe reportedto me that while he lived in Tseliutsing there was a stone in the yardof his compound that was worshiped as a god by the local people.West of I-pin near the Yangtse River is a large piece of white sand-stone that is worshiped as a god. When people began to worship it,a small temple was built around it and other idols were added. Itis believed that if a person takes a few grains of this sandstone, mixesthem with water, and drinks the water, it will cure diseases.A peculiar kind of stone worship in the Suifu prefecture is theworship of foundation stones used under the bases of wooden pillarsin large buildings and temples. Some such stones are called T'an-shen-teng-teng and are worshiped as lesser deities, lower than thet'u-ti. Sometimes they are seen in private homes, sometimes by thesides of roads, and sometimes in temples. It is believed that if thisgod is worshiped frequently, sincerely, and elaborately, he will helpthe family in many ways, but if the family neglects him or has to betoo economical in his worship, he becomes spiteful and injures thefamily.
178 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL, I42Among the Ch'iang the white stone is sacred hut generally is notworshiped as a god, although I found a number of white stones andsome not white that are w^orshiped by these people as living gods.White stones so worshiped are found at O-erh, at Ho-p'ing-chai, andat Hsiao-chai-tzu, At Chia-shan-chai there is a white stone called theWhite Stone King in a shrine in a temple that is worshiped as a localgod. In the sacred grove at Lung-ch'i-chai is a slender black stone22 inches high that is worshiped as a local deity. In the temple is awhite stone that is worshiped as a mountain god. In the upper vil-lage of K'a-ku in a shrine is a white stone worshiped by some as agrain god and by others as Ts'ang-chih, the Chinese god of scholars.Near Lo-bu-chai and Hsiao-chai-tzu a rock as large as a large houseis worshiped as a god who heals diseases. On a mountain near Li-fanis a temple called Pai (white) -kung-ssu in which are three large whitestones worshiped as gods.There are many sacred trees in West China, some of which areworshiped as gods. I have been told that tree gods are fairly com-mon among the Ch'uan Miao, Among the Ch'iang there is one 15 lifrom T'ao-tzu-p'ing, another, a great pine tree, behind the templeat Ru-ta-chai, which is near Chia-shan-chai, and at least one atHo-p'ing-chai. Near Fu-yen-ch'i, west of An-pien, is a great banyantree, believed to be centuries old, which is worshiped as a god. Abovea shrine at the foot of the tree are four characters meaning "(he)greatly manifests majesty and efficacy." On the right are five charac-ters meaning "worship me, Mr. Huang," and on the left are five char-acters meaning "(I will) protect you from calamities."At the Sen-lin-ssu, or Deep Forest Monastery, above An-pien arethree trees that are worshiped as gods. One is a banyan tree, one anorange tree, and one is called in Chinese a mung-tsu-shoii. There isa tradition that an official named Hsiao tied his horse to one of thesetrees, but the horse refused to eat. The official said, "These trees aregods," and worshiped them. After that the horse ate, which was re-garded as evidence that the trees were gods. Since then the treeshave been constantly worshiped, and the temple was erected near thetrees.On Chen-wu-shan, a mountain near I-pin, there were formerlytwo great old cypress trees that were tree gods. It is said thatthey were planted during the Ming dynasty. One died and fell on anearby temple where it remained two or three years. People did notwish to cut it up because it was a god. Then part of it was carvedinto three gods which were placed in a Suifu temple, and the rest of
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it was cut into small pieces and sold as medicine. One tree stillstanding in 1948 was still worshiped.Outside the west gate of Lo-shan is a great banyan tree that is atree god and is called Huang-ko-chiang-chun, or General Banyan.Another tree god is a great pine tree in the Ta-o-ssu, or Great GooseMonastery, on Mount Omei. Another, a banyan tree at P'ai-fang-shan, east of Pigsty Rapid, above Ch'ian-wei, is called Huang-ko-ta-hsien, or Great Immortal Banyan, and is famed for its ability toheal sore feet. In the village of Huang-lung-ch'i, near Chiang-k'ou,is a very large banyan tree that is worshiped as a god and is calledHuang-ko-cheng-jen, or Banyan Immortal. In the City God Templeof Chengtu, just inside the Great East Gate, is a very large ginkgotree that is worshiped as a divinity. Near a temple at Kuan-hsien Isaw a hardwood tree called Nan mu 5 feet in diameter and nearby alarge cypress tree, parts of which resembled human eyes, nose, mouth,and feet. Both were worshiped as divinities. No doubt there aremany other such trees in West China which I have not seen.That trees should be worshiped as gods in West China is not atall strange, for they are regarded as living, sentient creatures. Anytree of great age, like a human being that becomes an immortal andnever dies, may become a god. At Kan-pai-shou, a village on the MinRiver above I-pin, is an old dead cypress tree that is still worshiped asa deity even after it is dead.In the region between Lo-shan and Chengtu turnips sometimesgrow to a very large size. It is asserted that they sometimes weighbetween 25 and 50 pounds. Such a large turnip is regarded as a godand is called a lo-pu-wang, or turnip king. When such a turnipgrows on a man's farm it is the duty of the farmer to build a plat-form and to have ceremonies of worship performed, besides givinga feast. Such ceremonies of worship are believed to cause turnips togrow better in that locality. They are so expensive that many farmersdig the turnips up and eat or sell them before they get too large, sothat they will not have to perform the ceremonies of worship.Many Chinese gods are commonly worshiped by both Buddhistsand Taoists and so belong exclusively to neither religion. There hasalso been much mutual borrowing. Kuanyin, originally a Buddhistdeity, is as popular and common among the Taoists as among theBuddhists (Bredon and Mitrophanow, 1927, p. 52).The following is a partial list of the Buddhist gods. Some Bud-dhists regard them all as not different gods, but merely different mani-
iSo SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42festations of the "Buddha nature." Most people in West China re-gard them as different deities.Dipanhara Buddha, Buddha of fixed light, sometimes theJan-teng-fo, the god with lights who heals.Maitreya, Mi-lo-fo, the coming Buddha.Mania, Yao-shih-fo, the healing Buddha, god of medicine.Manjusri, Wen-shu, or Wen-shu-shi-li.Samantabhadra, P'uhsien.Avalokitesvara, Kuanyin, goddess of mercy.Marici, Chun-t'i, goddess of the dawn.Veda, Wei-t'o, protector of Buddhist temples and Buddhist law.Bodhidharma, Ta-mo-chu-shih, a leader in Zen Buddhism, deified.Amitabha, 0-mi-t'o-fo, god of infinite light and compassion.Kshitigarbha, Ti-tsang-p'u-sa, overlord of hell.Sakyamuni Buddha, Shih-chia-mu-ni, the founder of Buddhism.The ID rulers of hell.The 18 Arhats or Lo-hans, and the 500 Arhats or Lo-hans.The triad called in Chinese Kuei-e-fo, Kuei-e-fa, and Kuei-e-shen.The following are more distinctly Taoist gods and are generallyfound in Taoist temples: Hsi-\vang-mu, P'an-ku, Lao-tzu, Yuan-shih-t'ien-chen, the original immortal, Yii-huang-shang-ti, the JadeEmperor, Hsuan-t'ien-shang-ti, the ruler of the skies, the eight im-mortals, Chang Tao-ling, the first Taoist pope, Tou-mu, the dippermother, Heng-ha-er-chiang, the two blowing and snorting generals,and the triad T'ai-ch'in, Yii-ch'in, and Shang-ch'in.A few of the gods would not be rated high in moral character, asfor instance the chicken-footed god and Wu-er-yeh, who take thesouls of the deceased to Hades to be judged. They and their spousesoften have opium smeared on their lips, for it is believed that theylove opium. When a person has boils on his legs he may imagine thatWu-er-yeh has spanked his soul ; he thereupon puts some opium onthe lips of the god, after which he expects to get well. Then thereis a god of thieves who helps thieves and robbers steal successfully.It is my impression, however, that on the whole the Chinese gods aremuch higher morally than the gods of Tibet and India, some of whichare very lustful and cruel.Chinese gods have a superhuman wisdom and power which theymake available to their worshipers. I have seen shrines and templeswhich were allowed to go to ruin because the people thought thattheir gods had lost their superhuman power.KARMA AND TRANSMIGRATIONThe doctrines of karma and transmigration are entirely lacking inthe ancient Confucian and Taoist writings. They did not originate
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in China, but in India, whence they were brought to China and propa-gated there by the Buddhists. There is no trace of these doctrinesin the Vedas of ancient India, but they appear later in the Bramanasand are fully developed in the Upanishads. They are accepted bymost of the religions of India, including Buddhism. Today they areaccepted without question by most of the Chinese people.The doctrine of karma teaches that every act has its retribution.Good deeds have good consequences and evil deeds bring evil. Thereis a proverb known throughout China, shan yu shan pao, o yu o pao,ju yu pit pao, jih tsu wei tao. This means, "Good has a good recom-pense, evil has an evil recompense. If there has been no recompense,the time has not arrived." This theory is often very hard to recon-cile with facts and events if a person has only one life. But in Indiaas well as in China karma is supplemented by the doctrine of trans-migration, according to which the same person is reborn many timeswithout end, until he achieves nirvana or Buddhahood or becomes animmortal. This makes it possible to explain apparently undeservedsufferings or sorrow, or blessings and good fortune, as the deservedrewards of conduct in previous existences. The Buddhists claim asevidence that an enlightened Arhat can remember his past existencesand foresee the future destinies of himself and others.Closely allied to these doctrines is that of fate. It is true that thisdoctrine existed in China before the coming of Buddhism, and it isalso true that it has been influenced by the Buddhist doctrines ofkarma and transmigration, so that in the popular mind they are in-separable. One's merit or demerit accumulates so that he is destinedto enjoy happiness or to suffer calamities. This applies even to theanimal world. For instance, if a hunter shoots at a duck and kills it,the remark is likely to be made, "t'a kai ssu," whereas if the huntermisses and the duck escapes, he is told, "t'a pu kai ssu," meaningthat because of deeds in past existences the duck was destined to dieor to escape with his life. The Buddhist doctrines of karma andtransmigration have altered and enriched the Chinese idea of fate, sothat it now has much more of a moral value and sense of justice thanit originally had.The Chinese name for karma is yin kuo, and for transmigrationlun hui. Yin means "cause," and kuo means "fruits or results," andthus the expression means "the effects of causes." I have a Buddhistbook in Chinese called yin kuo which explains this doctrine and itsrelation to transmigration. A person's merit or demerit because of his
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conduct may cause him to be reborn after death as a king, a scholar, amerchant, a woman, a beggar, or as a snake, a bird, an animal, or aninsect, and any of these may be the present incarnation of one's ances-tor. Therefore, according to strict Buddhism, and this theory in gen-eral, one should not kill any living thing.There are many kinds of good deeds that will accumulate merit,improve one's karma, and insure a better fate in this Hfe and in thelives to come. A very common kind is the giving of money to beggarsor to begging priests, who often urge one to do good deeds in orderto accumulate merit. Other common methods are to contribute money,meat, rice, or some other commodity to the priests or to the temples,or to help pay for the erection of a pagoda, a shrine, or a temple, forthe construction of an idol, for giving the idol a new coat of paint,or to pay the priests to chant the sacred books.Merit can be accumulated by doing something good, and demeritby doing something evil. Building or repairing bridges, constructingor repairing roads, giving food to famine sufferers and to others whoare hungry, helping people in distress, and healing diseases—theseand many other good deeds add to one's merit. Missionary doctorshave often been told that they have great merit because of the manypeople they have healed.While returning from an expedition beyond Mu-p'ing, on whichI was collecting natural history specimens for the Smithsonian Insti-tution, I was stopped by a swollen mountain stream which had washedout a bridge. With the aid of a carpenter, I cut down some ncarljytrees, made a new bridge, and was soon on my way. Chinese in-formed me that by building this bridge I had added to my merit.The doctrines of karma and transmigration i)rovide strong motivesfor doing good and not evil, and no doubt have helped keep the con-duct of the Chinese people on a comparatively high level. These,however, are of course not the highest motives for good conduct, forthey are selfish.Today karma and transmigration are not exclusive doctrines ofthe Buddhists, for they are believed and taught by both Buddhistsand Taoists and are also basic assumptions in the popular religion ofthe Chinese and of many other ethnic groups in China. In themain they strongly influence for good the everyday living of thepeople. That this is so is a credit to the efficient teaching of Buddhistleaders for many generations.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 183HEAVEN AND HELLThe universe is divided into the land of living beings and the landof the deceased spirits, and these have different names. Everythingis yang or yin, and these are no exceptions. The world of livingbeings is yang chieh, and that of the spirits of the dead is yin chieh.The yang chieh is lighter and more desirable than the yin cliieh, whichis dark and shadowy.The Ch'uan Miao regard the land of the departed spirits as a placewhere conditions are much the same as those under which the ances-tors of the Ch'uan Miao lived during prehistoric times. There areforests, and the souls of the dead live partly on wild berries andwild fruit. The Chinese conception of yin chieh has come down frompast millennia, but during recent centuries has been modified by theBuddhist doctrines of karma, transmigration, hell, and heaven. Offer-ings to deceased ancestors must be kept up for at least three genera-tions. It is not too clear what happens to the souls of the ancestorsafter that, but one idea is that they dissolve or cease to be.The Buddhists have contributed to the religions of China the con-ception of a hell with lo courts, each court presided over by a godcalled a king, and each court subdivided into as many as i6 dungeonsor pits where sinners are punished according to the nature of theircrimes. Each god who presides over a court has as assistants lessergods, lictors, and devils. Some of these have human bodies and headsof horses or cows. The largest number appear to be devils, whoadminister punishment.The loth court is that of reincarnation. Those whose good deedsand merit outweigh the bad go directly from the ist court to theloth for a happy reincarnation, but the others must first endure pun-ishment in one or more of the other courts. All before reincarnationhave to cross a bridge where two demons try to seize thcni and throwthem into the water.Among the many punishments arc the following, often seen inBuddhist hells portrayed by lifelike images in lo hells: Being im-mersed in an icy pool of water, chewed by dogs, tied to a hollowmetal pillar inside which there is a fire, skinned alive, hung up by thefeet and tortured, having the head, the arms, and the legs cut off,falling onto sword mountain where several swords pierce one'sbody, having the scalp cut off the front part of the head, beingpierced by a trident, having the eyes gouged out, the body cut in twonear the waist, the heart torn out, the intestines pulled out, the bodysawn in two lengthwise, being pounded on the head, boiled in a
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cauldron of oil, having mouth or feet burned by fire, the abdomencut open, nails driven into the head, being bitten by snakes, groundup between two large grinding-stones, and numerous others.The idea of hell as portrayed in the Buddhist temples is not dis-puted by the Taoists. In fact, I have seen at least one Taoist temple,the Tung-yo-miao outside the west gate of Li-chuang, which has ahell very closely resembling those of the Buddhists. The hell of theBuddhists is so fully accepted and believed in by the Chinese peoplethat it is an important part of the popular religion of China.One day during World War II I was in a bus going from Chengtuto Lo-shan. As usual at that time, the roof of the bus was coveredwith baggage and with passengers sitting on the baggage. Inside, theseats were crowded, and quite a few people crawled through thewindows and literally sat on the passengers inside. A big fat womancrawled through a window and sat on two passengers nearby. For themen she was sitting on, her weight was painful. I decided to try alittle psychology on this woman. Speaking out loud in Chinese Isaid, "Won't some people suffer in hell. Nien Wang (king of hell)will look in his book and note those who have crowded in and sat onothers. Some will be thrown onto sword mountain, some will be sawnin two, and some will be thrown into the boiling cauldron of oil."The fat woman said to the other passengers, "I'm going to get out atthe next station," and she did. Hell with its dreadful punishments wasvery real to her.The Buddhists have a western heaven presided over by Amitabha(some Buddhists and some Taoists believe in many heavens and manyhells). There many become Buddhas and are free from sin, sorrow,and suffering. They may also escape transmigration. This appeals tosome very devout Buddhists, but not to the Chinese people in gen-eral. They want to enjoy the present life or to accumulate merit soas to enjoy a happy and fortunate existence after rebirth. The Chi-nese are an optimistic, life-loving people, and in spite of sorrow, hard-ships, and suffering, they prefer life in this world.PRIMARY CONCERN WITH PRACTICAL BENEFITSIn 1935 I published an article on the religion of the Chinese inSzechwan in the Chinese Recorder, which began with the statementthat the popular religion of the Chinese in Szechwan is exceedinglypractical. Many times in this present publication it has been empha-sized that the Chinese people expect practical results in their every-day lives from the practices of their religion. Prof. Wing-tsit Chan
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says, "In all its various forms, the religion of the masses aims atearthly blessings. We may dismiss this as primitive. However, wecannot be blind to the glaring fact that the Chinese masses keep theireyes on the ground so far as religion is concerned." (Chan, 1953,p. 173.) It is true that the Chinese people now believe in karma andtransmigration, and in heavens and hells, but it is also true that thefolk religion of the Chinese, in almost all its phases, is primarily con-cerned with this life and with the satisfying of human needs in thisworld.In 1930 the writer was reading with the help of a Chinese teacherthe Taoist sacred book, "The Sacred Book of the Original Vows ofthe Kitchen God." The teacher remarked, "You ought to take noticeof an important fact. Almost every phase of the religion of ourcommon people is supposed to be of some practical benefit to them."He emphasized the fact that virtually every ceremony, every prayer,and every god is supposed to be of some practical value in the every-day lives of the people.In "The Sacred Book of the Original Vows of the Kitchen God"it is asserted that the religion that it represents helps people to avoidillness and cures them of diseases so that sicknesses depart; helps theaged ; protects homes from demons ; insures rain at the proper times
;
protects people from danger and saves them from calamities ; tameswild animals so that they will do no harm ; causes worthy sons to beborn; gives an easy childbirth and saves the new-born baby and themother from illness ; and helps people escape the punishments of hell.Every occupation, great or small, important or unimportant, hasat least one patron deity, and some have several. Conversely, mostof the gods are patron deities or at least are supposed to benefit theworshipers in practical ways. In the survey of the temples of Suifu,published in the Chinese Recorder in February 1930, I noted manygt)ds that were patron deities of one or more occupations. During thesurvey of the temples of Chengtu, which was done later, a studentmade a list of 100 gods and the people or occupations they were sup-posed to benefit. There is a god for those who raise pigs, and anotherfor those who sell them. There is a god for those who make fire-crackers, and another for those who sell them. There is a god forthose who carry water from the rivers and creeks to sell, and anotherfor the men, women, and children who gather twigs, grass, and leaveson the hillsides to burn in their stoves. There is even a god of thieves,who helps them to steal successfully.The following is a very incomplete list of gods and the occupationsfor which they are patron deities
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DeityWen-ts'ai-shen, literary god ofwealth.Wu-ts'ai-shen, military god of wealth.Wang-yeh.
Kuan-ti, or Kuan-yii.Yo-wang, god of medicine.Wen-ch'ang, god of learning.Fu-hsi.Chan-huang.Ku'ei-hsing.Chang-fei.Huai-nan.Ts'ai-hou or Ts'ai-weng.
Ch'iu-tsu.Ma-wang, horse king.T'ai-tzu-p'u-sa, heir apparent.Chang-ku-lao.Wu-ch*ang.Hai-li-shen-mu.
Chu-t'ien-p'u-sa.Shan-wang, mountain god.Ta-shih-chih-p'u-sa.Hung-chiin-p'u-sa.Meng-t'ien.Ch'i-hsien-niang-niang.Shen-tsu.Hsiao-ho.Ts'ao-ts'an.Kao-hua-tzu-p'u-sa.Ch'ang-sheng-fo.Wu-weng.Fan-wang.Ho-shen, fire god.Li-lao-chiin or Lao-tzu.
Hsiian-yuen-huang-ti.Tu-k'ang.Tou-mu-niang-niang, goddess of thenorthern dipper.Ku-wang, grain god.Ko-weng.Lu-pan.Shen-nung.Ta-mo-tsu-shi, Bodhidharma.
OccupationBankers, merchants, and all who wish toprosper financially.The same.Boatmen and woodcutters in the moun-tain forests.Soldiers, officials, members of secret so-cieties.Doctors and those who sell medicines.Students, teachers, scholars,Geomancers and fortunetellers.Cooks, caterers at feasts.Students, teachers, scholars.Butchers.Makers of bean curd.Dyers and people who make or sellpaper.Makers of firecrackers.People who raise, keep, or sell horses.Actors.Those who make music on tomtoms cov-ered with snake skin.Tuan ktings (geomancers) and hunters.Those who make cloth straps or stringsfor use on straw sandals.Thieves and robbers.Hunters.Students, teachers, and scholars.Makers of wooden combs.Makers of Chinese pens.Weavers of cloth.Workers in leather.Lawyers and magistrates.Lawyers.Beggars.Cloth makers and yanien runners.Fishermen.Those who sell bowls and dishes.Those who sell firecrackers.Workers in gold, silver, copper, brass,pewter, and iron.Tailors.Brewers and owners of liquor stores.Fortunetellers.Rice growers.Dyers.Carpenters, plasterers, stonemasons,makers of tiles and bricks.Farmers and restaurant owners.Boxers and prize fighters.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 187The writer has spent parts of several summers at Hsin-k'ai-ssu onMount Omei and has talked with many of the pilgrims. When askedwhat they were seeking and what benefits they expected, they saidthat making the pilgrimage, worshiping the gods, and making offer-ings would cause the gods to be propitious and to help them in theirundertakings, enabling them to prosper, to have sons, to live long, toavoid diseases and enjoy health, and to obtain happiness. They ex-pected very practical benefits.In the first three volumes of "Chinese Superstitions," Dore showspictures in color of a large number of charms and tells of their uses.A partial list includes : To hasten delivery, to expel demons, to pro-tect from fire, to ward off epidemics, to cure cough, to stop vomit-ing, to relieve excessive throbbing of the heart, to expel typhoidfever, to cure stomach ache, to cure dropsy, to cure heart trouble,headaches, and dyspepsia, to heal sore eyes, to cure asthma, to stoppersistent perspiration, to cure fever, to dispel sadness and anxiety,to prevent delirium, to cure diarrhea, to reduce swelling of the limbsof the body, to stop bleeding of the nose, to heal breast sores of suck-ling women, to cure all kinds of diseases, to preserve from the effectsof sunstroke, to protect one at sea, to cure diseases of cattle and pigs,to give a bountiful harvest, to end drought, to protect a new build-ing, to increase one's fortune, to obtain a long and happy life, and topropitiate the lo kings of hell. Charms have primarily to do withhuman needs in this world.Fengshid trees and rocks must not be touched in such a way as toinjure them, because if let alone and respected they will, through thefengshui, affect for good the lives of the families and the communi-ties concerned. They cause financial prosperity, good crops, theavoidance of diseases and death, the advancement of scholars andofficials, and help in many other ways. If they are injured, thefengshui is ruined, and the opposite results ensue. Ceremonies to ob-tain sons are of practical value, for sons are a financial asset andprolong the family line, guaranteeing the continuation of the worshipof the ancestors. Ancestor worship is of practical value to the de-ceased ancestors, providing food, wine, clothing, money, and otherneeded articles, and in return the ancestors help their living descend-ants to prosper on earth. The exorcising of demons is a practicalnecessity, for demons cause sickness, death, and other calamities, andthey must be exorcised and controlled so that individuals, families,and communities can prosper. Ceremonies to cause and to stop rainare of great practical value, in order to obtain abundant crops.
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Divination helps people make engagements to marry, perform fu-neral and marriage ceremonies, begin journeys, start the work oferecting buildings, and to do other necessary tasks at the right timeand in the way most likely to succeed. Bad luck can often be avoidedby divination. Charms and incantations enable people to accomplishmany necessary things and to avoid calamities. The dragon lanternparade from the 13th to the 15th of the ist moon exorcises demonsthat might do harm and so helps families and communities to prosper.The Ch'ing Ming festival commemorates and honors the deceasedancestors through worship, the repair of the graves, and offerings offood and wine. The living descendants are benefited through exerciseand sunshine, and through the assistance of the ancestors which thisceremony helps to obtain. The Tuan Yang festival furnishes amuse-ment and recreation, exorcises demons, helps people avoid diseasesand other calamities, and through charms helps people avoid the fivepoisonous creatures. The ceremony of welcoming the spring inducesspring to come so that men can do their farming. Festivals on thebirthdays of the gods are generally regarded as freeing the com-munity of evil spirits and bringing better health and prosperity. InLi-t'o the people believed that the t'lt-ti festival caused crops to pros-per, healed diseases, and warded off calamities. The basic reasoningis that honoring, worshiping, and making offerings to the gods causesthem to be good humored and propitious, so that they will protect,bless, and help the people in practical ways. The folk religion ofWest China is vitally concerned with the practical, everyday needsof the people in this world.For centuries Buddhism and Taoism, in order to win the allegianceof the masses of the Chinese people, have stooped to their level. Theyhave encouraged the belief that through charms, incantations, theworship of the gods, pilgrimages to sacred mountains, contributionsto priests and to build or to maintain temples, and through magicalreligious ceremonies, practical benefits could be obtained, leading toa more successful and satisfying life in this world. During recentdecades many Chinese have learned that this is not true, and theirfaith in their religion has been greatly weakened. This does muchto explain the facts that the numbers of worshipers in the templesand of pilgrims to the sacred mountains, and the number and size ofthe contributions to priests and to temples, have been reduced to afraction of what they were before, and that many temples have beentorn down or confiscated and their images destroyed.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 189CHANGES IN RELIGION IN WEST CHINACAUSESBefore discussing the changes in the religion of West China, wewill consider briefly the causes of these changes. They are very many,and the entire picture is very complex, but the major cause is contactwith Western civilization.Following the discovery of America by Columbus in 1492, therewere other great discoveries, such as the route through the Straitof Magellan to Asia and Africa, and around Cape Horn back toEurope. This made possible commerce between the nations of Europeand those of Africa and Asia, including China. Trade developed firstby sailing vessels and later by steamships and great ocean liners. Suchtrade increased year by year and became tremendous. There werealso disastrous wars with foreign countries, including England,France, and Japan. The Boxer Indemnity was used by England andthe United States to send Chinese students to those countries to ob-tain higher education in the great universities, and these returned toQiina as apostles of modern ideas. Roman Catholic missions beganin the Yuan dynasty, and Protestant missions began in 1807. Intime there were thousands of missionaries scattered all over China.Thousands of Protestant and Catholic schools were opened in China,which enrolled hundreds of thousands of students and gave them amodern education,Essen M. Gale, in "Salt for the Dragon" (1953 p. 16), notesthat the use of the Boxer Indemnity to send students to the UnitedStates was a great cause of educational, social, and political trans-formation. He also says (p. 20) that the missionaries in China,through secular teaching, brought about the revolution in China, po-litical in only one of its aspects. He says that many modern move-ments are traceable to the missionaries. He mentions changes in thepunishment of criminals and in coinage (p. 84), in business methods(p. 120), in cleanliness, in the addition of railroads (p. 182), insocial customs (p. 194), and in transportation (p. 195). GeorgeBabcock Cressy, in "China's Geographic Foundations" (1934, pp. vii,7-8), points out that the social, economic, and political changes inChina are without parallel, and that one of the greatest changes isthat the ocean is no longer a barrier but a doorway to world contacts.E. A. Ross, in "The Changing Chinese," points out that contactsand wars with European nations did not greatly shake the confidenceof the Chinese people. The Europeans, like other "barbarians" with
190 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42whom the Chinese people had come into contact, were superior in war,but to the Chinese mind inferior in culture. With Japan it was differ-ent. She owed her culture to China and in the past had been nomatch for China, but in the war with Japan the Chinese were easilydefeated. It became evident to the Chinese that the superiority ofthe Japanese was due to their adoption of phases of Western cultureincluding education. There followed the reforms of the Emperor,the coup of the Empress Dowager, the Boxer Uprising, and finally,in 1905, the decree doing away with the old educational system ofChina and the adoption of a new system founded on W^estern educa-tion. The Chinese had become convinced that only by this meanscould they save themselves from servitude.Dr. Joseph Beech, in the report of the Chancellor of the WestChina Union University, 1932, said (p. 2) that formerly the gatewayof China was in the west, but lately the seacoast cities have been thegateways to world trade and communication. Change at first wasmore rapid on the coast and slower in West China, but in recentyears changes in West China have become marked and startling.In January 1928 I wrote in my notebook
:
Many houses and stores are modeled after foreign buildings, the main featurebeing the lack of the upturned ends of roofs. Many restaurants serve foreignfood in foreign dishes, and knives and forks instead of chopsticks. During re-cent years cabbage and other foreign vegetables have appeared on farms and inthe markets. Cabbage is no longer called "foreign white vegetable," but has alocal name meaning "vegetable with a big head."Some of the foreign influences have been brought home by Chinese travelersor students from foreign countries. Others were first in eastern cities. Stillothers were taught to Chinese by foreign missionaries and other foreigners.Carpentry, housebuilding, the making of furniture, cooking, tailoring, and manyother occupations have all changed. Some ideas are spread by pictures anddescriptions in magazines and papers.On January 23, 1928, I also made the following note:There are so many external changes in Szechwan it almost makes your headswim. Men formerly dressed in long gowns with rimless hats, but now wearforeign hats, shoes, overcoats, stockings, and even entire suits of clothes. For-eign leather shoes are now made and sold in large numbers in Szechwan. Thereare electric lights, telephones, and the telegraph. The foreign New Year isalso observed, officials taking a three-day vacation. The jinricksha is used inmany cities. Only old women wear the old-fashioned trousers. As to the middle-aged and young w^omen and girls, their clothing is much foreignized, for goodor ill. Women and girls wear skirts instead of trousers. Footbinding is dis-appearing rapidly. Houses and furniture are being modernized and foreignized.Stores have glass cases, and everywhere there are foreign chairs and tablesmade locally, and such foreign things as soap, towels, dishes, washpans, andcooking vessels.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I9IAn important influence in the changing China during the first halfof the 20th century was her pubHc schools. In 1905 the governmentof China decreed that the old educational system should be abolished,and in its stead a new system established based on Western education.The number of these modern schools, from the kindergarten to theuniversity, increased steadily and sometimes rapidly until 1949, whenthe iron curtain went down. Natural science and many other modernsubjects were taught, and through the pupils and their teachers West-ern culture reached the Chinese of all ages. In these schools manyof the former beliefs and theories were neglected and graduallyforgotten.One night I was in company with several Chinese men and womenwho were university graduates. The discussion turned to the ques-tion whether men and women are equal. The writer pretended tosupport the idea that women are inferior because they are yin andmen are yang. Then a woman who was a university graduate re-plied, 'T do not understand the yin-yang theory at all, but I believethat men and women are equal." Like this woman, many of the edu-cated Chinese were simply neglecting and forgetting many of the oldbeliefs.Another cause of change in modern China was the influence ofrepresentatives of foreign governments and of foreign businessmenand their families. There were foreign ambassadors in Peking, andforeign consuls, vice consuls, and other representatives in other citiesof China. While one of their main purposes was to foster trade withtheir mother countries, many of them were very influential. Amongother things, these men introduced into China new political ideas andnew ideas about the family. Mrs. Archibald Little, the wife of a Brit-ish representative, waged a nationwide campaign against bound feetand for a time was known as the apostle of natural feet.Foreign men were very prominent in the Salt Gabelle, in the Mari-time Customs, and in the Chinese Post Ofiice. They introduced mod-ern business methods and made these organizations more efficient.Many of the captains and other officers on Chinese steamships wereforeigners.A goodly number of businessmen brought their families and livedmany years in the treaty ports, and some of them traveled widely inChina. They established modern factories, taught more efficient busi-ness methods, sold many foreign objects, and exerted considerableinfluence on the family life of the Chinese.Another important cause of change in modern China was com-
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munism. Beginning in 1919 and 1920, it spread from East China toWest China, infiltrating the cities and villages and the schools of allgrades. Groups of young people would go about teaching, preaching,and spreading the theories of communism, and influencing people ofall ages, but especially the youth. They challenged practically every-thing that was old and asserted that communism had something better.One saying was, "Society is all bad. We will destroy it and build anew society." Capitalism was the exploitation of the common people,and religion was the opium of the people. All religion was supersti-tion and would disappear in the new scientific age.Not the least among the causes of change in every phase of Hfewas Christianity. Its missionaries, churches, schools, and hospitalswere to be found in almost every important city. From these itreached out into the villages and country through missionaries, schools,and native evangelists, preaching, teaching, and spreading Christianliterature. It opposed some phases of ancestor worship, footbinding,polytheism, image worship, the belief in yin-yang and fcngshui, theuse of charms and incantations, and many other practices, and pro-moted modern education for both boys and girls, hospitals and medi-cal schools, monotheism, and many new beliefs and practices. Whilethe aim was constructive, it is possible that greater success wasachieved in the destruction of the old than in the building up of thenew.In his book, "Religious Trends in Modern China," Prof. Wing-tsit Chan (1953, pp. 217-230) emphasizes the importance of Chineseintellectuals to the religion of modern China. They have practicallyset the pattern and determined the direction of the development ofeducation, government, and religion. In recent decades they haveshown an increasing interest in religion and have profoundly influ-enced the trend of religious events in China. An antireligious move-ment began in the early days of the Republic, was intensified in1917, and reached its climax in 1922. This was followed by a stronganti-Christian movement, the most active years being from 1922 to1927 (ibid., pp. 230-232). After 1927 the attitude of the intellectualsbecame more affirmative, sympathetic, and constructive. This wasonly one phase of what took place as a result of the renaissance amongChinese intellectuals, but through students and scholars it had a tre-mendous efifect on the Chinese people. Because of the strong anti-Christian movement, many missionaries evacuated West China in1926 and 1927. An important byproduct of this movement and ofthese events was a growing skepticism and disbelief in the gods andthe religions of the Chinese.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 1 93In the "Introduction to the Economic History of China," Kirby(1954, pp. 38-39) states that scientific archeology in the 1930'sbrought about a great change in the interpretation of early Chinesehistory. Instead of the legendary reigns of divine or semidivinerulers, a dependable chronology was established that profoundly influ-enced Chinese thought. It resulted in a widespread upsetting of old-established values. A few of these archeologists were Westerners, butmost of the work was done by Chinese, such as Dr. Li-chi of theAcademia Sinica, who were well trained for their work in greatforeign universities, or by other Chinese whom they had trained.This, and to a considerable extent the whole renaissance movement,was a byproduct of contacts with Western civilization.One of the ways in which new ideas and practices reached WestChina from East China was through newspapers, journals, and books.While there are great differences in the dialects of China, the writtenand printed language is everywhere the same and can be understoodby all who are able to read. The lunar almanac is almost a bulwarkof conservatism, but in the issue of 1928, which as usual was thesame for all China, there were suggestions for wedding ceremoniesthat included several innovations adapted from foreign customs.Many of the best foreign books were translated into Chinese, pub-lished in East China, and circulated by schools, libraries, and book-stores throughout the entire nation. Scientific and other journals andmany newspapers were published, and some of these had a widecirculation.During the last war between China and Japan and during WorldWar II, there occurred what may have been the greatest migrationin human history. It is estimated that more than 40 million peopleleft their homes in East China and migrated westward. Many ofthese millions found their way to West China, Vvhere they lived forseveral years. Many Chinese universities and business organizationsmoved west for the duration of the war. Among the migrants werepeople of all classes—farmers, laborers, students, teachers, scholars,scientists, businessmen, politicians. Christian leaders, wives, and chil-dren. This hastened the cultural diffusion, and increased the tend-encies that we have been describing. It also created a housing prob-lem that was accentuated by the Japanese bombing of Chinese citiesand resulted in the using of many temples as hotels, houses, andapartments.While there were conservative people, especially uneducated labor-ers, farmers, and old men and women, who were disappointed and
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shocked at what was happening, others were very radical. There werethose who adopted the opinion that all that was old was practicallyuseless and should be exchanged for something new. Conservativepeople were regarded by them as old fogies. A Chinese newspaper in1934 expressed such an opinion about Chinese temples and monu-ments, praising buildings of foreign style. This was answered by anarticle in the China Journal (Sowerby, 1934, pp. 1-3), which as-serted that China has a glorious past and that in many phases it hasexcelled foreign culture.The innovations and changes due to contacts with Western culturewere not all material ; even more important were ideas. In timereligion was bound to be seriously affected, and many began to noticenew tendencies and changes. For instance, in March 1928 in thetown of T'ung-chiang in eastern Szechwan, the students went to theBoard of Aldermen and asked permission to destroy the idols. Thereply was that they could, but to wait a while. The students were ina hurry and paraded the streets shouting, "Destroy the power of thegods." A few idols were carried away on the backs of their worshipersand saved, but the rest were destroyed. This occurred on the birthdayof Sen Yat Sen, on the third day of the third moon.It was about this time that the leaders of Li-tuan-ch'ang, a villagesoutheast of Suifu, decided that idols were false and useless. Theyturned temples into schools, shops, hotels, and the like, and destroyedall the idols but three. At first they intended to destroy all of them,but because some of the most ignorant people believed in these godsand refrained from crime for fear of the punishment of the gods,they decided to leave three of the gods in one temple as a moral re-straint on the believers.Religious changes became more and more evident. Not all of thesewere for the good of the Chinese people. Many beautiful memorialarches were torn down and their stone used for other purposes. First,most of the property of the temples was confiscated, then some ofthe temples were confiscated and sold, and others were occupied en-tirely or in part by soldiers, officials, schools, hospitals, police de-partments, and other organizations. Contributions to temples andworshipers gradually decreased. Door gods decreased in number untilthey entirely disappeared. Pilgrims to famous temples and to sacredmountains decreased until there were fewer than one-tenth as many asthere had been before. The great festivals on the birthdays of thegods that included gigantic parades and feasts and theatricals wereentirely discontinued because of lack of funds. Occasionally one
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I95
would hear a Chinese say, "Many of the Chinese do not beheve inthe gods any more."To me it seemed that the religious changes taking place in Chinawere very important and ought to be studied and interpreted. It alsoseemed that one of the best ways to make this study, if not the best,was to study the temples of West China. I therefore made a year'sstudy of the temples of Suifu in 1929, and two more of the templesof Suifu at later periods. During World War II I first, with thehelp of three university students, made a 3-years' study of the tem-ples of Chengtu. After this I studied for shorter periods the templesat Ya-an, Hung-ya, Chia-chiang, Lo-shan, Ch'ien-wei, and a fewsmaller places. The entire account would fill a large book, but Iwill record only what I regard as most important.EFFECTSA SURVEY AND STUDY OF THE TEMPLES OF CHENGTUGENERAL INFORMATIONWhen I returned to Szechwan very early in 1940, the religiouschanges and their effects on the temples of Szechwan were so evidentand so important that I decided to make a careful study of the tem-ples of Chengtu and of as many other towns and cities in West Chinaas possible. I planned not to make this a mere collection of statistics,however important that might be, but to supplement such studies withinquiries that would throw light on religion in general as it existedin West China.The temples of the Chinese are vitally important in the lives of thepeople, forming one of the main centers of social life. Times ofreligious worship, whether on a small or a large scale, are also timesfor meeting and talking with friends and neighbors and for drinkingtea and talking with priests and nuns. Every large city had a numberof temples named after localities outside of Szechwan. These wereconstructed and used by people who came from the localities for whichthe temples were named. In these temples the people owning themheld social gatherings, feasts, and theatricals, and often conductedbusiness transactions, and there, of course, they also worshiped. Im-portant religious festivals included feasts and were followed by the-atricals for the enjoyment of the worshipers and also of the gods.The temples are also the homes of the priests or nuns. There theywork, worship, and sleep, and there the older priests and nuns trainthe initiates. There they worship the gods, chant the sacred books,drink tea, and chat with their friends and with each other.
196 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42The temples are also the homes of the gods. They must haveshelter from the rain and the glaring sun, and they must be protectedfrom those who might harm them. The temples must be available forworshipers at any time, and they must have appropriate shrines whereworshipers can easily find and worship them. In Chengtu a few yearsago a poor woman appeared and said, "I have no house to live in."Later the people decided that the strange old woman was the goddessKuanyin and that she wanted a temple to live in. Money was raised,and a small temple was built outside the Great South Gate of Chengtu.One of the images in the temple was Kuanyin, the goddess of mercy.The temples are also the centers of religious ceremonies and wor-ship. Morning and evening the priests burn incense before the gods,ring the bells, and then bow and kowtow in worship. When requestedand paid to do so, the priests chant their sacred books and worshipthe gods to cause rain, to save a departed soul from hell, to heal thesick, and to exorcise demons. Individuals and families come to thetemples to divine and to have their fortunes told, and if at first theirluck is divined to be bad, they make a vow and pray, then divineagain in order to get their fortunes changed from bad to good. Some-times people come to pray for sons, promising some gift to the godin case the prayer is answered. At the times of the great festivals,especially the birthdays of the gods, thousands come to the temples toworship, to visit, to enjoy the parade, to partake of the feast, and towatch the theatricals.Personal inquiries and the local histories indicated that in theprovince of Szechwan a very few of the temples were erected as earlyas the T'ang dynasty, A. D. 618-907. A larger number of the tem-ples were built in the Ming dynasty, A. D. 1 368-1644, and still morewere founded in the Manchu dynasty. A, D. 1644-1911. A goodnumber of temples were built in the reign of K'ang Hsi, A. D. 1662-1723, and of Ch'ien Lung, A. D, 1736-1796.Besides furnishing homes for the priests and the gods, anotherreason for building the temples is to accumulate merit and karma,and through a good karma to obtain a happier existence in heavenor in a future reincarnation.Some of the temples were built by the government under the leader-ship of emperors, governors, or other officials. Motives for theirdoing so were to obtain the favor of the people, to help propagatethe religion in which they believed, and to accumulate merit so as toobtain a happier future existence.Sometimes people have believed that a god has manifested himself
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM I97through a dream, or in the person of a beggar, or otherwise, and thishas led them to erect a temple to contain his image. Or a memberof a family has prayed to a god to heal a sick person and the ap-parently miraculous recovery of the sick person has led to the beliefthat the god was very merciful and efficacious, with the result thata temple was built for him.Every temple has at least one important meeting of its constituentsa year, and at this meeting collections may be solicited. These con-tributions are used for various purposes—to give a new painting or
"new clothing" to the images of the gods, to repair the temples, oreven to build new temples.When a Buddhist or a Taoist society decides to erect a new tem-ple at a certain place, priests are sent out over a wide section of coun-try, sometimes soliciting millions of people, most of whom contributesomething. This is continued until the temple is built and paid for.There are many sources of temple income. Of primary importanceare lands and houses, which are often given by old people or devoutworshipers to accumulate merit and sometimes in payment of vows.Up to about 191 5 the number of properties owned by the temples ofWest China was very great. I was often told that in Suifu at thattime about half the houses and shops belonged to the temples. AtKuanhsien and other places I was told that large stretches of farm andforest lands had belonged to the temples. Temples and their propertywere sometimes confiscated and used by schools, but more often theywere confiscated and sold by the war lords, especially Liu Wen-hueiand the Twenty- fourth Army of which he was the head. In time manyindividuals and organizations were guilty of occupying temples andpaying little or no rent and of confiscating temples and their property,often simply because they could get away with it. In the case ofschools the process seemed more justifiable and had more generalpopular approval. Both the temples and the schools were thought ofas belonging to the people, so that if the people no longer wantedthe temples and temple property for the worship of idols, they be-lieved they had the right to change the use from worship of the godsto the education of the people. The great upsurge in popular educa-tion and the great demand for new schools were often at least par-tially met in this way.People praying for healing, sons, the change of luck from bad togood, or other favors, often promise or vow to make contributionsif the prayers are answered. This is a large source of income, sincenobody fails to pay a vow if the prayer is answered.
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Funerals, opening the way of souls to Hades, ferrying the soulsacross the river, praying for rain, praying souls out of purgatory orhell, and reading or chanting sacred books are some of the ceremoniesperformed by the priests in the homes or in the temples. The priestsare always paid for these services, but prices are not fixed. Poorpeople pay less and wealthy people pay more, and this income isshared by the priests and the temples. There are also voluntary con-tributions by worshipers, and during the great festivals these contri-butions amount to a great deal of money, for there are thousands ofworshipers.Sometimes priests are sent from house to house, from street tostreet, and from town to town soliciting contributions. Generally apriest does not leave one house and go to the next until a contributionhas been received. A priest taps on a bell or beats a piece of wood orbamboo while soliciting. A prolonged noise at one house means thatthe family is refusing to give, and it is so disgraceful to have theneighbors know this that few can endure it very long and finally makea contribution to get the priest to go along to the next house. Largesums of money are sometimes collected in this way.By 1940 most temples had lost their property, and in many casesthe temples themselves were confiscated or occupied. Contributionsof all kinds had dwindled to a fraction of what they had been.The number of priests in any one temple varies with the size ofthe temple and especially with the temple income, for the priests haveto be fed and clothed. It is evident that during the past half-centurythe number of priests and nuns has diminished a great deal. In Suifu1 knew a young Buddhist priest who left the priesthood and joinedthe army because no temple could or would support him. It is anamazing fact that among 210 temples of Chengtu in 1944, 64 hadnot a single priest or nun, and that in the remaining 146 temples, someof which were very large, there were only 351 Buddhist and 212Taoist priests, and 163 Buddhist and 32 Taoist nuns. These temples,including 32 caretakers, thus had a total of only 790 priests, nuns, andcaretakers to minister to the needs of 700,000 people in Chengtu and2 or 3 million people in the nearby country.Why do men and women leave their homes and become monks ornuns, with no families or descendants ? Some boys and girls are givento the temples by their families, sometimes through a sense of guiltbecause of the sins of one or more of its members or ancestors. Givinga child, especially a son, is a meritorious act that will accumulatemerit enough for the whole family to overcome demerits due to sin.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 1 99Or, the study and interpretation of the eight characters of a childmay indicate that the child's life is to be very unlucky and that it isunlikely that he or she will live long and happily. Becoming a priestor a nun may change the luck of the child so that he can live happilyto ripe old age. A family may have too many children so that onecan easily be spared, or the family may be so poor that it is very diffi-cult to support all the children, and giving one or more to the tem-ples and the gods relieves the financial burden.Some men have bad consciences because of their evil deeds. Per-haps they have robbed, or killed in war, or committed other crimes.Merchants may have used false weights and measures or false ma-terials. By becoming priests they believe that they can accumulatemerit to oflfset their sins and save them from hell, giving them agood and happy future existence. Then there are poor people whofind it difficult to earn enough to provide their food, clothing, andlodging, and they enter the temples as priests or nuns because aliving is provided and there need be no worry. Some enter the tem-ples because they are very unhappy over the death of loved ones.Some women become nuns because they have been discarded anddivorced by their husbands. It is said that in rare instances a manenters the priesthood as a means of avoiding punishment by the gov-ernment for crimes he has committed.There are some men who, approaching old age, although they havelived and enjoyed good, happy, and successful lives, enter the priest-hood because they believe that it is a wise plan to spend their lastyears as a priest, cultivating their virtue and merit so as to be sureto enjoy a more happy and prosperous future either in heaven or ina future existence. For several years the head of the department ofChinese studies in the West China Union University was Feng LaoSsu, or "Old Scholar Feng," a devout Buddhist. He finally resignedand entered the priesthood for the reasons given above.People enter the priesthood at all ages after early infancy, but mostcommonly at early manhood or womanhood. I have seen boys only6 or 7 years old in the temples, but the priests are not anxious to ac-cept them so young because they have to be fed for many years beforethey are very useful. Those given to the temples at a tender age serveas apprentices and servants of the priests until they reach maturityand can be ordained as priests. The number of people entering thepriesthood has diminished greatly in recent years.
200 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42THE GODS IN THE TEMPLESNo discussion of the temples would be complete without a studyof the gods and their images contained in them. Most of the Chinesepeople regard the images in the temples as real deities who can think,see, hear, speak, and act—the images are their bodies.Many Chinese gods are deified men or women—important personswho were efficient and attracted attention and admiration. They werebelieved to have unusual powers and have been deified and are wor-shiped by people who wish to obtain their help. Others are naturegods who have been personified and deified. The sun, the moon, con-stellations of stars, even rocks and trees are worshiped as deities, butthe fire god, the lord of thunder, the thunder god, and the goddessof lightning are anthropomorphic gods who control these phenomena.Many gods in China were first worshiped in India and have beenbrought to China by the Buddhists.In our research we endeavored to list all the gods whose imageswere in the temples of Chengtu. In this we were handicapped, forin 89 temples out of a total of 210 (42.4 percent of the whole num-ber) there was no worship at all, and all the idols had been removedor destroyed. In 93 temples (44.3 percent) there was very little wor-ship, and most of the idols were gone. In some of the temples 30 or40 idols were promiscuously placed in rooms where originally therewere only a few, and in a few instances the idols were piled on topof each other like cordwood. A comparison with the first Suifu sur-vey, made in 1928 before the destruction had begun, will indicatewhat a loss there had been in images when our later survey was made.We found 17 large temples (8.1 percent), at least partially occupiedby other organizations, in which the images of the gods were com-plete and in which there was much worship. There were 1 1 temples,(5.24 percent), mostly small, in which there was worship only.By far the most popular deity in West China, as in all China,Korea, and Japan, is Kuanyin, the goddess of mercy. In India thisis a male deity, Avalokitesvara. The Chinese have a proverb, yenfu, t'zii viii, ''strict father, compassionate mother." It is regarded ascharacteristic of the males to be strict and harsh, of the females to bekind and compassionate. Practically all the Chinese gods are malesand therefore likely to be strict and harsh and to punish. But cen-turies ago the Chinese felt the need, as they now do, of a god ofsympathy, kindness, and mercy. Kuanyin was therefore transformedinto a female, the goddess of mercy and compassion. She is believed tobe so tender hearted that she will never turn a deaf ear to one who is
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 23
I. Objects excavated by David C. Graham from a Han dynasty brick tomb at Chuns-kin^. They include earthenware bowls, dishes, models of human l)eings and pigs, a fishpond, a low table, a house, and a pavilion.
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SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 24
1. A tvpical clay image of a dug with a ring for a Icasli, fruni a Han dyna.sty tonil)in Szecliwan.
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2. A .small gray clay slovc buried with the dead in a Han dyna.sty tomjj in Szecliwan.
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 25
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SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 26
Picture from a rubbing of a stone tablet u\ the \\ cn-shu-wan monastery in Chcngtu. It is Kuanyin, the god-dess of mercv. The inscription impHes that the original,which is probably lost, was drawn ^during the 1 angdynasty by the famous Chinese artist Wu-Tao-tzu.
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 27
Picture of a Taoist painting of Shou-hsin, the god ot long lil'c. Note the grayhair, the prominent forehead, and the long fingernails and eyebrows.
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 142, NO. 2, PL. 28
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A Cliinese tliousand-arnud i^nddcss of mercy. Sh^-^ lia>manv heads, and supposedly 1,000 arms and hands. 1 hereis an' eye in the pahn of each hand. She sits on a lotus flower,worshiped hy two attendants. \ Buddha emanates from herhead, and above is a beautiful canopy.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 201in trouble and appeals to her for help. Sometimes she takes the formof a king of demons in hell to help save people who are sufferingthere—formerly there was such a god in the Taoist Green GoatMonastery at Chengtu. Sometimes she carries a baby and is theKuanyin That Gives Sons. Sometimes she has one thousand handsand arms and several heads so that she can hear and succor anybodywho is in trouble and appeals to her for help. A thousand-armedgoddess of mercy sometimes has an eye in the palm of each hand.Kuanyin was noted 49 times in the temples of Chengtu. She is alsooften found in private homes.Second in popularity in the Chengtu temples is the literary god ofwealth, found 45 times. With wealth a person or family has prestige,power, honor, social position, and leisure. One can hire servants todo the "bitter work," and all debts can be paid. The desire for wealthis very strong in West China.Third in frequency in Chengtu is Sakyamuni, found 35 times. Heis the founder of the Buddhist religion and is highly honored amongBuddhists. He is said to have rejected all gods, but his followers havedeified him and believe in and worship many gods.Fourth is Kuan-yii, a great hero and warrior and a man of virtueand high character who lived at the close of the Han dynasty andthe beginning of the Three Kingdoms. Until his death, he loyallysupported and fought for the last emperor of the Han dynasty, Liu-pi,whose grave is in the grounds of a Taoist temple outside the GreatSouth Gate of Chengtu. The image of Kuan-yii is found in the tem-ples 24 times, and he is worshiped by officials, warriors, and membersof secret societies.Fifth is Wei-t'o, protector of Buddhist law and Buddhist temples,whose image was found 21 times. Clad in ancient armor and holdinga sword, he is found near the main entrance facing the interior ofthe temple.Images of four different deities were reported as occurring 18 times.They are the fire god, who protects homes and cities from fire, thegoddess who gives sons, the goddess who helps mothers have a quickand easy delivery, and the goddess who heals measles and smallpox.Occurring 1 7 times each are the god of pestilences, who controls andcauses pestilences, and Ti-chang, the god of hell, who can save fromor condemn to the punishments of hell.Occurring 15 times each are Wen-ch'ang and Wen-shu, both ofwhom are worshiped by students and scholars, who believe that thesegods will help them attain learning and become good scholars.
202 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42Three gods occur 13 times. One is Lei-chu, the god of thunder,who is feared and worshiped because he causes the terrible thunderand lightning that are so fearful and so harmful. If he is worshipedhe will protect people from this danger. Yo-wang, the god of medi-cine, is the patron deity of doctors and those who sell medicine, andhe also helps heal those who are sick. Also found 13 times is the BigDipper goddess, who controls birth and death. It is said that eachperson has a star in the sky—great persons have large stars and littlepeople have small stars. When a "falling star" is seen, the peoplebelieve that some person has died.Ling-kuan or Ling-chu occurs 12 times. He is the protector ofTaoist law and temples, and is par excellence an exorciser of demons,for generally his mouth is wide open from wrath and with his warclub he fiercely strikes the demons and drives them away.Yii-huang, the Jade or "Pearly" Emperor, is one of the highestgods of the Taoists. Once a Chinese man, he so cultivated his re-ligious knowledge and virtue that he finally became the ruler of thesky and the Jade Emperor.Six gods occur nine times. They are, first, Li-lao-chiin, the OldGentleman Li, sometimes called Lao-tzu, or Old Boy, because of thetradition that when he was born he was already 70 years old and hadgray hair. He was the founder of Taoism and is said to have writtenonly one treatise, the Tao-te-ching, or the classic of doctrine andvirtue. The second is P'u-hsien. He is the patron deity of MountOmei and is said to have ridden a white elephant to that mountain.His statue is in many Buddhist temples, always riding a white ele-phant. Third is Ti-mu, the earth mother, who lives under theground and causes everything to grow. Day and night she watchesthe scorpion which holds the earth up on top of its body. If she didnot watch, the scorpion might turn and let the earth crash down, withdire results. Then come the three rulers—the sky ruler, the earthruler, and the ruler of water. The sky ruler controls everything thathas to do with the happiness of mankind. The earth ruler controlsthe earth, and the water ruler, the water.Five gods were found eight times each; 3, seven times; 3, sixtimes; 11, five times; 7, four times; 21, three times; 19, twice; and29, once.It should be noted that Wang-yeh, the boatmen's god, is 25th or26th in Chengtu, occurring eight times, while in Suifu he is sixth,not excluding the Buddhas and those that are merely the attendants
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 203
of Other greater gods. The military god of wealth is fourth in Suifu,and the literary god of wealth stands high in Chengtu. Wen-ch'ang,the god of learning, is fifth in Suifu, and much farther down theline in Chengtu. It is quite possible that the complete destruction asplaces of worship of 42 percent of the temples and their idols inChengtu, and the very near destruction of an additional 44 percent,has resulted in the destruction of a larger proportion of the imagesof some of the gods than of others.The frequency with which a deity occurs in the temples of anylocality is a clue to the main interests of the people of that region.For instance, in the first Suifu survey it was found that except forthe Buddhas and the attendants, the most popular god was Kuanyin.Second came the military god of wealth, and third Wen-ch'ang, thegod of literature and learning. Wang-yeh, the boatmen's god, camefourth.It has already been noted that almost every Chinese god is thepatron deity of some occupation, and every occupation, great orsmall, has at least one patron deity. Some gods are patron deities ofseveral occupations.THE NUMBERS OF THE TEMPLESTo the reader the assembling of the facts in this section may seemto be a comparatively simple task, but on the contrary, it proved tobe exceedingly difficult. Our aim was perfect accuracy, and to thisend I carried on the survey, assisted by from one to three universitystudents, during parts of four years, a total of three years actual time.We first obtained copies of the history of Hua-yang-hsien and ofChengtu-hsien and recorded their lists of temples. Nearly half thetemples mentioned in the histories could not be found. We also triedthis method with several other cities in Szechwan and in Sikang, witha similar result. Either the names of many of the temples had beenchanged, or else many temples had disappeared and others had beenerected in their places. We therefore adopted the method in Chengtuof going to every street and alley and very carefully looking and in-quiring. Sometimes this had to be repeated several times before ade-quate results were obtained.Many temples had been confiscated and sold in the past half cen-tury or had been changed and were being used for other purposes.The streets and alleys had been widened, and the gates or fronts of
204 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
some of the temples were so completely changed that they could notbe recognized. Very often the only hope of finding any trace of aformer temple was to search for and find former residents, generallyold people, who were willing to talk. Many people were afraid totalk, fearing that we might be agents of organizations looking fortemples or former temples to confiscate or even to recover old tem-ples and restore them to their former uses. It is likely that there weresome temples in Chengtu that had disappeared within the last 50 yearsof which we failed to get information, and this is undoubtedly true inevery other town and city that we studied, with the possible excep-
FiG. g.—Numbers and kinds of temples in Chengtu.
tion of Suifu. People had forgotten about them or were unwillingto talk. The destruction of the temples was even worse than our re-searches showed it to be.In Chengtu and in the near suburbs we found traces of 210 tem-ples. This did not include the Mohammedan mosques. There were120 inside the city, and 90 outside. In Chengtu-hsien there were 109,68 inside the city and 41 outside. There were loi in Hua-yang-hsien,52 inside the city and 49 outside. Of these 98 were Buddhist, 44were Taoist, 16 were Ru-t'an, 3 were Confucian, and 49 were nolonger temples, so that they could not be classified according totheir religion. Of the total, no were large, 69 medium, and 31 small
;
47 were in good repair, 73 medium, and 90 in very bad repair.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 205THE USES OF THE TEMPLESPractically all the temples of West China were built for worshiponly. But there were great changes in West China, and indeed in allChina, during the first half of the 20th century, and it came about thatby 1948 less than 10 percent of the temples were used for worshiponly, and in nearly 90 percent there was little worship or none at all.These great changes were manifestations of a political, social, psycho-logical, and religious revolution. In Chengtu the temples that wereused exclusively for worship were mostly small ones that were notuseful for other purposes, and the 17 that were used for other pur-poses but also had many worshipers were usually large, famous oldtemples that had much prestige.During the last Japanese war and World War II, the population ofChengtu increased from 500,000 to 700,000. Some houses were de-stroyed by Japanese bombs. Rooms, houses, and apartments were hardto rent, and rentals were high. This explains the fact that in oursurvey we found that more temples—56 in all—were being used asapartments than for any other purpose. Those who lived in theseapartments were generally poor people who earned their living withtheir hands. They often lived in a single room, and most familieshad several children. Rooms were separated from each other byplaster walls or by bamboo mats. Most of these temples were inpoor repair.During the years from 1927 to 1937 the national government ofChina greatly increased the number of public schools. The aim wasto make the people literate and intelligent so that they could learnto be good citizens in a democratic country, and gradually to in-crease their powers as citizens as rapidly as they learned and showedthemselves capable of using them. But school buildings and schoolproperty were very expensive. Both temples and schools were re-garded as belonging to the public. Since temples and temple prop-erty were being confiscated and used for other purposes, why notfor schools? To the people it seemed that if they were not to beused for worship, this was their most appropriate use. In Chengtuin 1944 the second largest number of temples—a total of 49—werebeing used as schools, mostly primary schools.One-sixth of the temples of Chengtu were used as barracks forsoldiers. After the fall of Yuan Shih K'ai in 191 6, war lords seizedpower. To increase their military strength they greatly augmentedtheir armies. They so overtaxed the people that the tax burden wasalmost unbearable. One war lord in Szechwan collected 32 years of
206 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
taxes in advance, but heavy taxes were also collected at least oncea year after that. Soldiers often helped themselves to the food andother possessions of the people, and were frequently billeted in homes,paying nothing for the privilege. They often took possession oftemples and used them as barracks without paying any rent, oftenremoving the idols and allowing no worship inside. The people gen-erally disapproved, but they could do nothing about it. In Chengtu34 temples were used as military barracks.Fourth in number in Chengtu were the temples occupied by chari-
FiG. 10.—Classification of Chengtu temples ac-cording to the amount of worship.
table organizations. During the war the number of orphans andlost or cast-away children increased greatly, and temples where
"warphans" were cared for were many. There were also templesoccupied by beggars and by very poor old people. A total of 32 tem-ples were used by charitable organizations.Twenty-six temples were used as police stations. The police wereglad to get possession of a temple, for the buildings and the roomswere large and convenient. They generally chose temples that werestrategically located so that they could move around the city quicklyand conveniently in an emergency.Seventh in number were the temples used by public officers. Gen-erally their offices were not very large, and the temples could alsobe used for worship or for other purposes.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 207Thirteen temples that had been confiscated or purchased had beenaltered into private residences for wealthy and powerful families.All idols and priests had been removed, and they were no longerplaces of worship.Thirteen temples, mostly large ones, were used as factories. Theywere generally in bad repair, and the machines and materials litteredup the rooms. Throughout the day there was the noise of machinesand the workers, and they were thus not suitable places of worship.In China the teashop is a popular social rendezvous. There aperson can, for the payment of a small sum, sit for an hour or moreand talk with friends while drinking tea that has been purified byboiling. Many temples were used as teashops, most of which paidrentals, but the chatting of friends did not create a suitable atmos-phere for worship.Eleventh in order were the temples occupied by stores or shops.All the stores are located in the front of the temples, near the mainentrance. Such temples often left their idols in the rear to be wor-shiped, but near the entrances the temples did not at all resembleplaces of worship.Six temples, generally small ones, were occupied by fire brigades.Five were used as rice markets ; in these the atmosphere of quiet wor-ship was changed to that of a noisy market. Three were used aslumber markets and carpenter shops, with accompanying noise andlitter. Three were occupied by river-tax ofiices, where taxes were col-lected on boats and their contents.During the years 1937 to 1948 the national government of Chinaencouraged cooperatives as a means of supplying goods that couldnot be imported because of the Japanese blockade. Three templeswere used by the cooperatives, which treated with respect the priests,the idols, and the worshipers.Three large temples were occupied by military schools; all thepriests and idols were removed, and there was no worship. Twowere used as Buddhist theological schools ; here books were translatedand written, scholars came to study and to improve their knowledgeof Buddhism, and pupils were taught. Two large temples were usedas dispensaries, two as theaters, two as hotels, two as ricksha stationsor headquarters, and two small temples had been made into publictoilets. One temple each was used by a military band, a youth organi-zation, a school for teaching Chinese medicine, a cat and dog market,a vegetable garden, and a fire lane. In many of these temples therewas no longer any worship.
208 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42To summarize our findings: In 89 temples (42.4 percent of thetotal) there was absolutely no worship. In 93 temples (44.3 percentof the total) there was very little worship. These temples were ob-viously on their way out as places of worship. Only 11 temples(5.3 percent) were used for worship only, and most of these weresmall. Seventeen temples (8.1 percent) were occupied and used forother purposes, but in them there was still much worship. A totalof only 28 temples (or 13.4 percent) were used primarily for wor-ship. Something very serious had happened to the temples of Chengtu.SURVEYS OF TEMPLES IN OTHER CITIES OF WEST CHINANo exact figures can be given for the number of temples in thecities of Szechwan in 1911, at the beginning of the Chinese Republic.Every important city had at least one history or gazetteer, but wefound that the lists of temples in those gazetteers were incomplete.In the cities that we studied, we found that at least half the templeshad changed their names, or else they had ceased to exist and othertemples had been erected in their places.Suifu, in 1928, before the destruction of its temples began, had apopulation of 100,000 and 83 temples within a radius of 4 miles. Chio-ch'i, 120 li up the Min River from Suifu, with a population of 5,000and surrounded by a rich farming district, had 15 temples. Li-chuang,60 li down the Yangtse from Suifu, had a population of 20,000 and20 temples. Chengtu, with about 500,000 people, had at least 210temples. These were typical cities and towns and can be used toestimate the original number of temples. Where the proportion oftemples is considerably less, it is because a goodly number of themhave been destroyed or changed into buildings to be used for otherpurposes.Chungking, the commercial capital of Szechwan, is situated atthe juncture of the Chia-ling and the Yangtse Rivers. BeforeWorld War II it had a population of at least 500,000. During thewar with Japan the capital of free China was moved to Chungking,and in time the population was reported to be at least i million. Dur-ing the war it was bombed by Japanese airplanes nearly 300 timesand was reported to have been the most bombed city in the world.Through explosive and incendiary bombs a large part of the city wasdestroyed, including homes, shops, and temples. Many homes andshops were crudely and hastily rebuilt, but only one of the temples.Practically all the temples were confiscated and occupied and usedfor other purposes. Because of the great increase in population and
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 209
the air raids, the destruction, confiscation, and use of the temples forOther purposes was much greater than in Chengtu. When passingthrough in 1948 I could learn of only one temple, Buddhist, that wasused for worship only and was prospering. I visited this temple andtalked with the friendly priests.A little less than 40 miles west of Chengtu is the city of Kuanhsienwith about 30,000 inhabitants. It is situated just at the end of theChengtu plain and the beginning of the mountain ranges beyond.Citizens informed us that during the past 30 years war lords, espe-cially Liu Wen-huei and his Twenty-fourth Army, had confiscatedand sold practically all the property belonging to the temples andmany of the temples themselves. Even the Er-lang Miao and theHu-lung Miao, which were so important to the ceremonies connectedwith the irrigation system of the Chengtu plain that they could whennecessary obtain financial grants from the government, were glad torent rooms to guests who wished to spend their vacations in thetemples. We found that all the other temples in or near the citywere occupied and were being used for other purposes than worship.At the Yang-tzu-lin temple, a Taoist temple on top of the pass be-tween Kuanhsien and the upper ]\'Iin River valley, the priests re-ported that all the temple property from which income was derivedhad been confiscated and sold by the Twenty-fourth Army. Manytemple rooms were divided into smaller rooms by means of partitionsand rented to guests, and a restaurant and teashop were opened in thetemple. So many travelers stopped in the temple to stay overnight orto eat or to drink tea that there was a goodly income from this source,and the priests and the temple got along fairly well.Wei-chou is a city of nearly 10,000 inhabitants, situated at thejuncture of the Min and the Tsa-ku-nao Rivers. It formerly hadmore than 10 temples, but in 1944 there were only 2. In 1925 I sawjust above the city a large temple with idols made of white quartzor white marble, all of which had been broken, although we couldnot find out by whom. In 1944 only a few foundation stones wereleft of this temple. In 1941 I was informed that all the temple prop-erty and most of the temples had been confiscated by the officials andused to construct a public park. In 1944 a large temple on a hill nearthe city was used as a normal school. The idols were partitioned offby bamboo mats so that the pupils could not see them, and there wasalmost no worship. A small temple in the city was used only forworship, but it was in very bad repair.On the way from Wei-chou to Mao-chou one passes through Pai-
2IO SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
shui-ch'eng, or White Water Town. Formerly there were seven oreight temples, but the town was completely wiped out by the flood of1933. The town was rebuilt on a higher elevation, with four temples.Communists or Chinese government soldiers actually tore down two ofthem for firewood, and they were not rebuilt. In 1941 there were twotemples, one Buddhist and one Taoist, although in poor repair andwith no priests.I have actually seen Chinese temples being torn down. In 1929 alarge temple was torn down at Kung-hsien, and shops and residenceswere built in its place. In 1928 and 1929 two or three temples weremade into market places in Suifu, and four large temples were torndown to make place for a public park. In November 1942 the famousNan-t'ai-ssu temple at Chengtu, near the West China Union Uni-versity, was being torn down by soldiers to make way for a publicroad. In Chia-Chiang I noticed two stone lions on an empty plot ofground and was told that formerly there was a temple on the spot.Most temples were not torn down, for the buildings were valuable,but were altered and used for other purposes. Inside the East Gateof Lo-shan there was a very large temple of Kuan-yu. First it wasoccupied by a girls' middle school, then the images of the gods wereall removed except that of Kuan-yii. This was left because he wasa famous hero, but it was not worshiped. Finally the name of thetemple above the main entrance was removed and the name of theschool placed there in its stead. Thus was completed the transforma-tion of a large temple to a girls' middle school.Mao-chou is a large town up the Min River from Wei-chou, prob-ably once having 15 temples. The flood of 1933 and the Communistshad destroyed nearly all the houses and temples, but about half thehouses had been rebuilt when I last visited the city in 1941. The twobest temples were in a dilapidated condition. The flood had washedaway the clay on the idols, leaving a wooden core surrounded bystraw. A priest from the Chao-chio-ssu temple in Chengtu had hiredone worker to repair the idols as fast as he could raise the moneyto pay for the work, which was slow. The temples of Mao-chou hadalmost ceased to exist.Ya-an is a city of more than 25,000 people, the capital of Sikangand of the Yachou Prefecture. In the prefecture alone there are prob-ably half a million people. With the help of Chinese friends I madea survey in 1944 of the temples in the city and within a radius ofabout 30 miles. In all we found 117 temples. Forty-two of these,mostly in the country, were being used exclusively for worship, 17
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 211had ceased to be temples and were not used at all for worship, 36were in bad repair, 12 were being used for schools, 7 as soldiers' bar-racks, 4 for residences, and 2 each were being occupied by factories,poorhouses, and military arsenals. One each was in use as an agri-cultural experiment station, a secret society center, a military head-quarters, a bus depot, a beggars' home, a rice-tax office, a granary, apolice office, a horse stable, a post office, a theater, a youth organiza-tion, and tile market. Apparently all the property and some of thetemples had been confiscated, and the process of taking over tem-ples for other purposes was going on steadily, for "possession isnine points of the law."Three years later I was again in Ya-an for a short time, and acheck was made on the temples of the city. In all there were 15,which was less than half their original number. Of these templesthree were in ruins, and in at least four there was no longer any wor-ship. Every usable temple was being occupied and used for other pur-poses. In only one was there much worship, and only one was ingood repair. A total of 33 temples had been destroyed or had ceasedentirely to be temples.Hung-ya is the first large city down the river from Ya-an. In1945 I made a list of all the known temples in and around the citywithin a radius of about 10 miles. Recently there had been only fivetemples left in the city, but in three of these there was no longer anyworship, and the other two were occupied and being used for otherpurposes. Outside the city there had been in recent years 20 temples.Five were occupied, nine were used for worship only, and six werereported as having been destroyed.Chia-chiang is a large city about 70 li up the Ya River from Lo-shan. Like many other cities in Szechwan, it is a walled city sur-rounded by a fertile farming district. During a visit to Chia-chiangin December 1945 the following information was obtained.In the city and within a radius of 10 miles were 30 temples, 4 inthe city and 26 outside. Three temples in the city and two outsidewere reported to have been sold and destroyed ; the other temple inthe city was occupied by a military school. It seems a very safe guessthat at least 15 former temples in the city had ceased to be templesfor so long that they were not reported to us. Twelve temples out-side the city were used for worship only; some of these were toosmall and others too far away to be used for other purposes. Severalof these were in a poor state of repair. Twelve were occupied andbeing used by one or more organizations. Three temples were used
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as schools, two as waterpower plants, and one each by a youth organi-zation, a military center, a post office, a theater, a charity organization,and a barracks for soldiers.Between Chia-chiang and Lo-shan is the small town of Kan-chiang-p'u, with a population of about 3,000. I visited it severaltimes and in September 1944 obtained the following information.There were then left only five temples in and near the town. TheKuang-ch'eng-miao was a large temple completely occupied and usedas a granary to store rice collected as taxes and for the tax offices,except for one medium-sized room. In this room all the idols fromall over the temple had been stored, standing close together in dis-order. Occasionally, but rarely, someone would come in and worshipthese idols.A second large temple, the Yu-wang-miao, was occupied and usedby a police station and its offices. All the idols were placed in therear and fenced off, with very little worship. A third large templewas the Wang-yeh-miao, the temple of the god of boatmen. It wasbeing used as a lower primary school. It was the best temple in thetown, but all the idols had been removed and there was no worshipinside. A fourth temple was the Hsiang-kung-miao. It was beingused as a butcher shop where cattle were being cut up into beef andsold. In it there was almost no worship.Across a nearby creek was a very small new temple that had beenbuilt around a pagodalike "word-treasury." A god had revealed him-self and told a sick man how to get healed. The man got well, whichproved that the god was alive, wise, compassionate, and efficacious.The temple was then built, too small to be useful for anything butworship. In this temple are Wang-yeh, Kuanyin, and Ku'ei-hsin,the god who helps students and scholars.Lo-shan is a city of 100,000 people situated at the juncture of theMin and the Ya Rivers. During World War II it suffered severelyfrom Japanese air raids; many buildings were destroyed, and manycity blocks of buildings were burned. In this way many temples werelost, and none were rebuilt. We made a careful map of the city withthe location of the temples and obtained information about their con-dition and uses. Out of about 70 temples, we found only about 20that could still really be called temples. The only temple not occupiedand used for other purposes was one about 30 feet square, too smallto be coveted. One temple was used as a police station, and all theidols had been removed. Several large temples were used as barracksfor soldiers, and while not all the idols had been destroyed, those re-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 2I3
maining were concealed behind bamboo mats, and people were notallowed to go in and worship. Several temples were occupied byschools, and a small temple was used as a fire station. One templehad been occupied by government offices so long that most people didnot know that it had ever been a temple—we got the informationfrom an old man who had lived on that street for years. Wu HanUniversity was occupying and using several large temples for recita-tion rooms, offices, a middle school, and a library. One temple was alarge teashop, with idols worshiped in one large room. No templethat was destroyed by bombs or burned down was rebuilt, and sometemples were sold. While Lo-shan is on the way to Mount Omei andmany thousands of pilgrims pass through it every year, its templeswere in a much worse condition than those of Suifu or Chengtu.P'eng-shan is a large walled city above Kiating between Chiang-K'ou and Mei-chou. In this city we found and listed 15 temples in1945, and no doubt a larger number had already disappeared or beentransformed into buildings with no worship and housing other insti-tutions. Not one temple was being used for worship only. Four werebeing used as schools, five as military barracks, and one each as atheater, a government rice granary, the headquarters of the boardof aldermen, headquarters for the Peoples* Party or the Kuo-min-tang, a sulphur factory, and an arms factory. In all these templesthere was little or no worship.In 1944 we made a study of the temples of Ch'ien-wei, a largecity on the Min River 35 miles down the river from Lo-shan, Aconservative estimate of the number of temples in this city in 1910would be 35 or 40, but we found only 9 temples in and outside thecity. The very large Ch'eng-huang-miao was occupied and being usedby a cotton-cloth factory and a theater, and three-fourths to four-fifths of the idols had been removed and destroyed. In this templethere was very little worship. The large Confucian temple wasoccupied by a girls' school, the Buddhist temple Nan-hua-kung by aprimary school, the Ch'uan-chu-miao by the Chamber of Commerce,and most of the idols were removed. The large Buddhist templeAn-lo-miao was being used as a military barracks. The temple on ahill near the city, Cheng-wu-shan, was a regional office for receivingand transmitting air-raid alarms. The temple outside North Gatecalled Feng-lai-shan, or Phoenix Came Mountain, was a barracks forsoldiers. The Kuan-yo-miao outside North Gate was a granary tostore rice received as taxes, and a place for offices. The temple ofthe fire god, also outside the city, was a military barracks. We were
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told that at least four temples had been torn down and sold withinthe past few months. There were people in the city who wanted toworship, but most of their worship had to be performed in templestoo far away from the city to be useful for other purposes, or onMount Omei, the sacred mountain not too far away. Even amongthe distant temples, some were going to ruin, some were being torndown and the materials used elsewhere, and some were being occu-pied by schools and other organizations.The first survey of Suifu, already mentioned, made in 1928 beforeany of the temples were seriously occupied or destroyed, showed83 temples. In the 1946 survey made by Chou Hsin-jen, who as-sisted the survey at Chengtu, there were only 45 temples—38 haddisappeared, some torn down, and some used for other purposes.Of the 45 that were counted, 2 had very recently been destroyed, i byfire. Out of the total, 13 temples were in good repair, 10 in mediumcondition, and the remainder in poor repair. In 23 there was noworship at all. In 11 there was little worship, and in 14 much wor-ship, in some, however, only at special times.As to the use of the temples, 15 were being used as barracks forsoldiers; 9 were occupied by schools; 7 were used as residences orapartments ; 4, mostly small temples, were used for worship only ; 2were used as godowns ; 2 each were used as rice granaries, police sta-tions, and teashops; i each was used as a theater, a library, and apubHc office. All this means that of the 83 temples formerly in andnear Suifu, 61 had ceased completely to function as temples. All therest except four were occupied and threatened with extinction.Our studies of Chinese temples in West China began in 1921, thesurveys in 1928, and these continued until the spring of 1948, whenI finally left China. Something very serious was happening to thereligions of the Chinese, and the temples were like a thermometer bywhich this could be imperfectly measured. Between 191 1 and 1948more than half the temples of Szechwan had been destroyed or occu-pied and changed into buildings in which there was no worship. Three-fourths of the remaining temples were occupied, being used primarilyfor other purposes, and worship was a minor affair. These templeswere "gasping their last breaths," Most of the temples that wereused exclusively for worship were either too small or too far awayfrom city populations to be useful for other purposes. What wastaking place was the greatest social, psychological, and religious revo-lution in the history of the Chinese people.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 21$CONCLUSIONSome of the conclusions that we draw from our study are asfollows
:
1. Primitive ideas and types of thought were very prevalent inthe past among the uneducated and unsophisticated Chinese, so thatthe religion of the common people was very primitive. This is alsotrue of many millions of other people in Asia, Africa, and in otherparts of the world. But a new age of enlightenment is now dawning,when primitive customs and types of religion will no longer be ac-ceptable to the people. Religions such as Buddhism and Taoism inChina that have based their programs and appeals to the commonpeople on primitive ideals and practices will have to reform radicallyor lose the allegiance of the people.2. Interracial, international, intercultural, and interreligious con-tacts can be of great benefit. Practically every religion has somethingof value to contribute, and this should be appreciated, evaluated, andmade positive use of by all concerned.3. Any religious organization sending its representatives or mis-sionaries to another country should aim to send its best. There isgreat need for religious statesmen today, people who have the bestin education, who can give the fairest and best possible interpreta-tion of their own religion, who can see and appreciate the best inother religions and cultures, and who are as willing to learn fromothers as to teach. Sincere humility does much to disarm opposition.In Rangoon in 1940 I had friendly contacts with an Indian Chris-tian, from whom I learned much about Indian art and culture. Oncewhen Gandhi was mentioned I said, "My idea of Gandhi is that heis a man who does not call himself a Christian, but who in some waysis more Christian than I am." Said my Indian friend, "If more mis-sionaries had that attitude, more Indians would become Christians."4. In the preparation of religious leaders in the future who are tobe missionaries to other peoples and to other cultures, a knowledgeof the world's great religions and the history of these religions isvery important. Who were the founders? What kind of men werethey? What were they aiming at, and what did they teach? Some ofthese founders—Confucius, Buddha, Li Lao Chiin, the founder ofTaoism, and Zoroaster—were great religious leaders with high moraland religious ideas and teachings, but their later followers sometimesfailed to maintain their high moral and religious standards.5. A knowledge of the psychology of religion, including that ofprimitive religions, is very helpful. In many parts of the world there
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are still people who live in primitive conditions, and many whose be-liefs and practices are primitive. One should know what these peopleare thinking about and what they are seeking in order to be able toarrange a helpful program of moral and religious education.6. The aim should be to develop well-educated, well-trained nativereligious leaders and to give them responsible positions when they arecapable of assuming them. The history of religion emphasizes theimportance of good native leadership if a new religion is to becomewell established among a new people. The old word "devolution"sounds a little like going to the devil, but at its best it is the opposite.The training and use of worthy native leaders is of primary im-portance in the establishing of indigenous churches or religions.7. Many cultural groups have native arts, architecture, music, andmoral and religious ideals that are high and worthy. The native re-ligious groups should be encouraged to use them in order to make anew religion indigenous. What is of value in native culture and cus-toms should not be destroyed but used for the benefit of the people.This can be done without losing anything of value that the new re-ligion has to contribute, and it can enrich and greatly aid in the spreadof the new religion. FILIAL PIETYIn 1944 Bishop Soong, who was then pastor of the Chengtu Episco-pal Church, published an article in the Christian Quarterly, of whichY. T. Wu was editor, in which he said that in the past missionarieshad been very much mistaken in their attitude toward filial piety, andthat there was nothing in the Chinese practices of filial piety thatChinese Christians could not and should not approve and practice.He quoted a number of passages from the Christian Bible to supporthis position. In the next issue of the Christian Quarterly, severalChinese Christians severely criticized Bishop Soong and the ideas thathe had expressed. One writer closed with the statement, "BishopSoong, you are not fit to be a Christian Bishop. You ought to be aConfucian Bishop."Some time after this Y. T. Wu and I met and discussed the arti-cles on filial piety. I made a few remarks, based on my observationsof life in China. Said Mr. Wu, "You write that down. I want topublish it in the Christian Quarterly." I did so, and it was translatedand published in the next issue of the Christian Quarterly. TheEnglish version is given below. Strange to say, the Chinese leadersapparently accepted this article as satisfactorily settling the question,
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 217for no more discussions were published in later issues of the Chris-tian Quarterly.A few days after the article was published, I met Bishop Soongat an afternoon party. He warmly shook my hand and said, "I wantto thank you for that article. You see some good in filial piety, butthere are some Chinese who see no good in it."CHRISTIANITY AND FILIAL PIETY OR ANCESTOR WORSHIPDavid Crockett GrahamThoughtful Christian leaders throughout the world are more and more realiz-ing the importance of making Christianity indigenous. This means that thebest in native art, architecture, ethics, and religion should be employed by nativeChristian churches. Native architecture should be used in the erection ofchurches, native art in the ornamenting of church buildings and in portrayingin pictorial form Christian stories and scenes. Native tunes should be employedin Christian hymns, although not to the exclusion of the world's best Christianmusic, and native Christian hymns should be written to express the creativereligious experiences of the people. The best of native moral and religious idealsand teachings should be used where possible to enrich Christian instruction.Making Christianity indigenous in these ways would remove the handicap ofbeing a foreign religion, and at the same time a contribution would be madeto world-wide Christianity through the enriching of Christian art, ideals, andhymnology. Says Dr. Daniel Johnson Fleming, author of two books which dis-play oriental art in Christian painting and architecture:
"One of the obvious gains for the younger churches from indigenousChristian art is that it helps to remove the foreign aspects of Christian-ity. It helps to dissipate the deadly prejudice which regards the churchas an alien cult. In these days of excessive nationalism, the more ouruniversal faith can be freed from the distinctively western accessoriesthe less likely it is to be boycotted in some anti-western trend. Thatthere are western accessories is manifest when an African priest cansay that 'For a Bantu to be a Christian was to behave like a white man,'or when we are told that a madonna of the Italian type, holding herbaby in a way unknown to an African mother, remains an alien."One way of bringing about this naturalization of Christianity somuch needed and well justified is to use, in the various arts, formsand techniques which are native to any given people—to use theirartistic language just as we already use their literary language." (Flem-ing, 1938, p. 2.)In making Christianity indigenous, there is danger of lowering its standards.Such a thing happened when Constantine caused most of the Roman Empire tobecome nominal Christians. Christianity did not transform heathenism, butheathenism transformed Christianity, and this was one of the greatest calamitiesin the history of Christianity.There are high moral and religious ideals in the teachings of Lao-tzu, Con-fucius, Mencius, Mo-tzu, and others, so high that they are worthy of employ-
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ment by Christians. There will be a real loss to the Chinese if these ideals andteachings are forgotten.There is so much good in filial piety that we need not take time to discuss it.We would merely suggest that the strong emphasis on the duty of filialness onthe part of the children should be balanced by an emphasis on the duty of parents,to do the best they can for their children, physically, mentally, morally, andspiritually.Ancestor worship is closely related to filial piety. It is unfortunately namedin English, which makes it more difficult for occidentals to judge it fairly. Thereare high and noble sentiments in ancestor worship, which might better be calledthe ancestral cult. The fundamentals of the ancestral cult in China are love,reverence, gratitude, and respect for parents and other ancestors. To lose thebest in "ancestor worship" would be harmful to the Chinese and to Christianity.During the past centuries of human history the people of all races and nation-alities have had to come out of ignorance, supersition, and comparative savageryinto an age of enlightenment, and the highest stage of enlightenment, the per-fect society, is still in the future. Worse criticisms can justly be made of occi-dental customs, at least if we go back a few decades or centuries, than I nowoflfer about the Chinese practices in the ancestral cult.Enlightened Chinese do not regard the ancestors as gods, so that to them thepractice of the ancestral cult is not idolatry. But the more ignorant masses inChina do regard the deceased ancestors as deities. They have a proverb, "Livingthey are men, when dead they are gods." Christian enlightenment should enablea family to commemorate deceased ancestors with love, gratitude, and reverence,without the idea that they are gods.In China a family, to pay for a costly funeral or a very expensive grave, willsometimes go so deeply into debt that the descendants are handicapped fordecades. This should be discouraged.With the idea that the deceased ancestors need food, clothing, houses, money,etc., vast sums of money are expended on offerings and the burning of "papermoney." This is a waste, and new and better methods should be found.Many persons believe that the soul of the dead person lives in the ancestraltablet, and that the deceased ancestor is a deity. If the ancestral tablet shouldbe retained, it is important that the idealism in this custom be changed.The belief that the deceased ancestor, if not offered spirit money and food,will become a demon and harm people, will not appeal to the intelligent Chinesenow or in the future.Old customs that are good and not harmful may and should be continued. Insome cases, like the Christian Christmas festival, the old custom may well becontinued with a new and better interpretation. But if the old custom, likefootbinding, is harmful and cannot be given a new and better interpretation, thecustom should be discontinued or a better one substituted for it.The above statements are not perfect and can be improved upon,but the fact that the Chinese religious leaders were seriously facingthese problems and had invited me to participate in the discussionshould emphasize the importance, on the part of the missionary orof any other occidental living and working in the Orient, of under-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 219
standing the culture, the ideals, and the customs of the people withwhom he is working.The history of religions indicates that in the future as in the pastnew religions will arise and that some old as well as some new re-ligions will disappear. It also indicates that there will be changes inthe present religions. We can be sure that in the centuries to comethose religions that do the most for the development of character andpersonality and for the betterment of mankind will, in the long run,prosper most and have the allegiance of the largest numl^er of humanbeings.The popular religion of the Chinese people, which is unorganizedbut which influences and permeates the other religions of China, con-taining as it does many superstitions and superstitious practices, hasalready weakened a great deal during the past century and will con-tinue to weaken as the people of China become more and more en-lightened. The religions of the non-Chinese ethnic groups of Chinawill also change with enlightenment, and some may practically dis-appear. The lesser religions that have been mentioned, and otherlesser religions that have not been described, will change and probablydisappear. New religions may arise just as some of these lesser re-ligions have arisen during the past decades.As to the greater religions in China, Confucianism, Taoism, Bud-dhism, Mohammedanism, and Christianity, any prophecies must bemade with caution and with the realization that the unexpected mayhappen. CONFUCIANISMThe character and teachings of Confucius were high and noble, andthe purpose of Confucius was to reform people and society so as tobring order, peace, and prosperity to the world. While Confucianismapparently degenerated because of the influence of Taoism and ofthe religion and customs of the common people, for many centuriesit has been a benefit to the peoples of China and of other countriesof Asia.I regard as shortcomings of Confucianism the fact that in additionto the supreme being there are lesser deities ; the fact that the supremebeing could be worshiped only by the emperor and thus could not beapproached by the common people; its low estimate of women; andthe fact that the ideal age was considered to be in the past, not in
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the future, so that there was less hope and expectation of progress.Elements of strength in Confucianism are the following
:
1. Its conception of a supreme god who is just, righteous, and concerned withthe welfare of humanity.2. Its emphasis on good moral conduct, obligatory for all people.3. The teaching that people are essentially good.4. Its near approach to the golden rule.5. Its emphasis on the value of the family.6. Its emphasis on education.7. Its aim to reform and improve human society.8. Its teaching that governments should exist for the good of the people.Confucianism has practically ceased to function as an organizedreligion. It became much less influential after China changed to mod-ern education in 1905. However, it is one of the world's great re-ligions, with a philosophy of life and society that is optimistic, moral,and religious, and I believe that it will always be worthy of study.TAOISMThe original philosophical Taoism has some high moral and spiritualideals. In its conception of the Tao, there is an approach to that ofa supreme god, eternal, good, spiritual, and creator of all things. Inits ethical teachings there is emphasis on goodness and integrity ofcharacter and on the returning of good for evil. But throughout thecenturies Taoism as a religion has changed and degenerated. Its lofti-est teachings were often too abstract to be understood by commonpeople. Practically all its priests have been ignorant magicians, playingon the superstitions of the people and exploiting their ignorance. It isvery idolatrous and superstitious and has shown no ability to reform.Elements of worth in Taoism are the high moral teachings of itsfounder and its original high philosophical conception of Tao, whichincluded in its meaning that of a supreme being. Elements of weak-ness in Taoism are
:
1. The original conception of a supreme being was not sufficiently personal.2. The withdrawing of the founder from society instead of trying to reform it.3. Its emphasis on inactivity and the undervaluing of human effort.4. Its inadequate recognition of the evils of the world.5. Its lack of a program to improve and uplift society.6. Its idolatry, polytheism, magic and superstition, with a primary emphasison the exorcism of demons.By 1948 in many parts of China most of the temples, in some partsnine-tenths of them, had been destroyed or changed into buildingsfor schools, military barracks, hotels, apartment houses, shops, hospi-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 221
tals, factories, etc., and the worshipers in the temples had becomefew. Taoism as a philosophy will always be worthy of study, but itseems very likely that as a religion it will continue to weaken and intime may completely disappear.BUDDHISMBuddhism, although originally a foreign religion, has long beenindigenous. It is a missionary religion, and its missionaries zealouslyspread their religion and translated the sacred books. In due timethese tasks were taken over by Chinese. At times it enjoyed the favorof emperors and other officials, and at other times it fell into disfavorand even suffered persecution. The Buddhism of China, Tibet, Korea,and Japan is the Mahayana Buddhism.In the past many Chinese scholars have opposed Buddhism becauseof its otherworldliness. Other scholars were attracted to Buddhismby the facts that its sacred books were translated into elegant Chineseand that it also brought with it an intricate and somewhat satisfyingphilosophy. The common people were attracted to Buddhism by itscompassion for human suffering, its many gods, its magic ceremonies,and by its charms and incantations to enable people to achieve de-sired ends. It has been influenced by Taoism and by the popular re-ligion of China. It brought to China monasticism, image worship,karma and transmigration, a hell and a Western heaven.There are many schools of Buddhism in China, but at least inWest China these do not mean a great deal to the common people.During recent decades there have been attempts to reform the religionso as to bring it more into harmony with modern thought.The Buddhism of today is not the Buddhism of Buddha. It re-jected all the known gods of India and did not teach or worship anygod or gods. Its program of salvation consisted of bringing the indi-vidual to the state of nirvana, which many interpret to be practicallythe extinction of personality.Some of the shortcomings of Buddhism are
:
1. Its low estimate of human life and human society.2. Its low estimate of the family.3. Its lack of a program to improve human beings and human society.4. Its low estimate of women.5. Its pessimism.6. Its polytheism.7. Its use of charms, incantations, and magic ceremonies.
222 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42Elements of strength in Buddhism arc:
1. Its ability to adapt itself to different environnients.2. Its repudiation of caste.3. Its strong organization.4. Its missionary zeal and its sense of a world mission.5. Its moral teachings, especially the first five commandments.6. Its spirit and practice of reverent worship.7. Its compassion for human suffering.In China before the 20th century Buddhism appealed to the ordi-nary Chinese people because of its polytheism, idolatry, and the useof charms, incantations, and magical ceremonies to exorcise demons,heal diseases, and achieve desired ends. In recent decades, because ofthe enlightenment of the people, those features have become severehandicaps. Pilgrims to Mount Omei and worshipers in the templesdwindled to less than one-tenth, and nine-tenths of the temples, atleast in Szechwan, have been torn down or, more generally, used forsecular purposes. The future of Buddhism in China is at leastprecarious. MOHAMMEDANISMEstimates of the number of Mohammedans in China vary from 3to 30 millions, and the correct number is probably between 10 and15 millions. The increase from the beginning has been mainly bybirth and by the adoption of children, sometimes purchased duringtimes of famine, and bringing them up as Mohammedans. Moham-medanism in China has frequently laid claim to the power of exorcis-ing demons and of working magic.Weaknesses of Mohammedanism are:
1. The arbitrariness of God.2. Reliance on force and military power to spread its religion.3. Belief in fatalism.4. The sensuous nature of heaven and hell.5. A low estimate of women.6. Polygamy.7. Belief in demons and devils.8. Repetitious prayers.9. The imperfect moral character of its founder.
Elements of strength in ^Mohammedanism are:
1. Its strong belief in one god only, a supreme god.2. Its confidence in the sovereignty of God.3. Its belief that God is also merciful and compassionate.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 223
4. Devotion to the will of God.5. Belief in a final judgment that is just.6. The habit of pra3'ing frequently.7. Its world outlook and sense of world mission.8. Its missionary aggressiveness.9. The sense of unity among believers.ID. Its treatment of all races as equal, with no discrimination because ofrace or color.11. Its ability to pass on the faith of fathers to their children, from generationto generation.12. Its ability to adapt itself to different cultures.There is no doubt that Mohammedanism is a strong religion, andwill continue for centuries. Its ultimate usefulness to mankind de-pends upon its ability to reform and to improve.CHRISTIANITYWe have seen that Nestorian Christianity entered China duringthe T'ang dynasty, and later completely disappeared. In recent cen-turies the Russian Orthodox Church was established in China butdid not prosper greatly. Before World War II there were approxi-mately 200,000 members of the Russian Orthodox Church in China,of which a small minority were Chinese. In 1957 there were about40,000 members, of which about 20,000 were Chinese (China Bulletinof the Far Eastern Office, Division of Foreign Missions, NCCC/USA,November 11, 1957, p. 2). Roman Catholicism entered China muchearlier than Protestantism, and in spite of opposition and persecutionsspread into every province of China and into Tibet. It opened andconducted churches, schools, hospitals, and orphanages, and its pri-mary purpose was to convert people and to teach them the RomanCatholic faith. In 1922 there were approximately 2 million Chinesecommunicants.Protestant Christianity began in China in 1807 with one missionary,Robert Morrison, At first missionaries were added slowly, and Chi-nese converts were very few. With the opening later of treaty ports,and with the new treaties making it possible for foreign missionariesto live, travel, preach, own property, and establish churches in anypart of China, the number of missions and missionaries rapidly in-creased. In 1948 before the iron curtain went down there were ap-proximately I million Protestant communicants in China, many ofwhom were outstanding leaders in the church, in schools, in hospitals,and in the government.While the Protestants were interested in making Chinese Christians
224 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
and in the developing of churches, they were also interested inimproving all phases of Chinese life. Some missionaries have madeimportant contributions by interpreting the best in Chinese cultureto the rest of the world. Both missionaries and Chinese leaders havebrought the best in occidental culture to the Chinese. Other con-tributions to the welfare of the Chinese were that the laws of healthwere explained in lectures, taught in schools, and spread by the pub-lishing and distribution of literature ; important textbooks were trans-lated into Chinese; there was work for lepers; there was work forthe blind and the prevention of blindness, and schools for the bhnd;there was work for the deaf and dumb ; there were vaccination cam-paigns to prevent smallpox, cholera, and other diseases; there werecampaigns against the planting, sale, and use of opium, the curing ofopium addicts, and the spreading of information about the harm ofthe drug ; missionaries and Chinese Christians rendered great servicein famine relief ; there were efforts to improve labor conditions, andthere was opposition to footbinding, prostitution, sexual immorality,gambling, idolatry, polygamy, the abandonment of infants, early be-trothal and marriage, having slave girls in the home, and certainphases of ancestor worship.Practically speaking, the Protestants in China pioneered in modernmedicine and medical education, and they pioneered in modern edu-cation and in the education of women and girls, laying foundationson which later the Chinese modern educational system was built andenlarged. The preaching of all Christians proclaimed high ideals ofGod and of human conduct, and the character and conduct of ChineseChristians averaged higher than that of other Chinese people (Latau-rette, 1929, pp. 681-682).Early in the 20th century Protestant missionaries and missionsadopted the policy of developing indigenous churches with nativeleadership that could be self-supporting, self-governing, and self-propagating, and much progress was made toward these ends. Someof the Chinese were believed to be among the greatest Christianleaders in the world.Beginning near the close of the 19th and continuing during the20th century there was much progress in China toward cooperationand unity. There were union hospitals and educational institutions,and cooperation in relief and in social service. Most of the Protestantdenominations cooperated through the provincial and national Chris-tian councils, and several of the largest denominations united in theChurch of Christ in China.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 225
In my opinion there are weaknesses in the Christianity of todaythat hinder and lessen the vakie of its contribution to China and tothe world. They are
:
1. Overconservatism on the part of some, which prevents them from acceptingmuch new truth that humanity has learned during recent centuries. All truth isGod's truth and should be beneficial to mankind.2. The failure of some modern-minded people to be deeply and sincerelyChristian.3. The large number of divisions or denominations. This weakens the impactof Christianity upon the world.4. The fact that many fail to live up to the highest moral ideals and teachingsof Christianity and to live in fellowship with God.5. An overemphasis by some organizations on theology and obedience to thechurch instead of good moral conduct.6. Racial prejudice and discrimination because of race or color on the part ofsome Christians.7. The failure of some to follow the example and teachings of Jesus by humbleservice to their fellow men.Elements of strength in Christianity are
:
1. Its high conception of God as the righteous and loving father of all men.2. The high character of its founder,3. Its high moral teachings, including the Golden Rule, humble service toothers, loving one's neighbors, loving and forgiving one's enemies, returninggood for evil.4. The high quality of its sacred book, the Bible.5. Its high evaluation of the individual and of personality.6. Its high esteem of women.7. Its noble conception of life after death.8. Its conception of the Kingdom of God as a worldwide social order inwhich there is justice, righteousness, kindness, and good will, and where allmen are brothers and children of God.
I believe that man is by nature a religious being and needs religion,worship, and a good religious philosophy of life in order to be andto do his best in this world. I also believe that as the Chinese and allthe human race become more and more enlightened, those religionsthat take advantage of and exploit ignorance and superstitions willgradually be abandoned, and that the religions that become the strong-est will be those that contribute the most to ennoble and enrich thelives of individuals, the family, society, and the world. All religionsincluding Christianity should reform and improve where and whenpossible, so that each can make its best possible contribution for theuplift of mankind.
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234 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42Hsu I-T'ang.1943. The government-like organization of the Lolo people at Liang Shan.Bull. Chinese Stud., Univ. Nanking, Chengtu, vol. 3, September,pp. 365-387.1944. The Lolo of Hsiao Liang Shan, Lei-po, south-western Szechwan.Inst. Chinese Cultural Studies, Univ. Nanking, Chengtu, pp. 1-24.Hsu Ti-Shan.1936. Tao in today's China. Asia, December, pp. 781-784.Hubbard, George D.(?) The geographic setting of Chengtu. Bull. Geogr. Soc. Philadelphia,vol. 21, No. 4.Hudspeth, William.1922. The Cult of the Door among the Miao in Southw^est China. Folk-lore, vol. 33, No. 4, pp. 406-420.1927. Tree worship. China Journ., vol. 7, No. 4, pp. 206-208.1937. Stone gateway and the Flowery Miao. London.Hume, Edward E.1945. Doctors east and doctors west. New York.Hume, Robert Ernest.1933. Treasure-house of the living religions. New York.1938. The world's living religions. New York.Hutson, James.1915. Mythical and practical in Szechwan. National Review Office,Shanghai.Kao YiJ-LiNG.1939. A chemical analysis of Szechwan pottery glaze. Journ. West ChinaBord. Res. Soc, vol. 11, pp. 54-57.Kemp, E. C.1909. The face of China. New York.KiLBORN, Leslie G.1933. The blood pressure of a primitive race, the Nosu of West China.Suppl. China Med. Journ., March.(?) The basal metabolism of the Miao race of Kweichow. China Journ.Physiol., vol. 11, No. i, pp. 127-134.KiLBORN, O. L.1 91 4. Chinese forms of politeness. Chungking.KiRBY, E. Stuart.1954. Introduction to the economic history of China. London.KuHN, John B.(?) We found 100 tribes. China Inland Mission, Philadelphia.KuLP, Daniel Harrison, 11.1925. Country life in south China. Bur. Publications, Columbia Univ.,New York.K'uNG Yu-Fang.1945. Notes on the Han sculptures and mortuary objects in the Szechwanmuseum. Shuo Wen Yueh K'an, vol. 5, No. 3, pp. 37-46.Kuo, P. W.1915. The Chinese system of public education. Teachers' College, ColumbiaUniv., Shanghai.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 235Kuo Mo-Jo.1 94 1. On the discovery of Han tombs in Chungking. Shuo Wen Yueh K'an,vol. 3, No. 4, pp. 35-40.Lang, Olga.1946. Chinese family and society. New Haven.Lataurette, Kenneth Scott.1920. The development of China. Boston and New York.1929. A history of Christian missions in China. New York.1942. Recessions in the tide of Christian advance. Internat. Rev. Missions,vol. 31, No. 123, pp. 265-274.1948a. The Christian outlook. New York and London.1948b. Tomorrow is here. New York.Laufer, Berthold.191 1. Chinese grave sculptures. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago.1912. Jade. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago.1914. Qiinese clay figures. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago.1919. Sino-Iranica. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago.1922. The Chinese gateway. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago.1923a. Oriental theatricals. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago.1923b. Use of human skulls and bones in Tibet. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chi-cago.1924. Tobacco and its use. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago.1925. Ivory in China. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago.Legce, James.1880. The religions of China. London.18853. The Four Books, The Analects, The Great Learning, The Doctrineof the Mean, and The Works of Mcncius. Shanghai.i88sb. The Li Ki. Sacred Books of the East, vols. 27-28. Oxford.1891. The texts of Taoism. Sacred Books of the East, vols. 39-40. London.1895. The life and teachings of Confucius. London.1899a. The Book of Changes. Sacred Books of the East, vol. 16. Oxford.1899b. The Shu King, The Shih King, and the Hsiao King. Sacred Booksof the East, vol. 3. Oxford.(?) Spring and autumn. Sacred Books of the East.Levy, Howard S.1956. Yellow Turban religion at tlic end of Han. Journ. Amcr. OrientalSoc, vol. 76, No. 4, pp. 224-227.Li Cho-Ming.1943. Economic research in wartime China. Quart. Bull. Cliincsc Bibliogr.,vol. 3, Nos. 3, 4.Li Ung Bing.1914. Outlines of Chinese history. Shanghai.LiETARD, Alfred.1913. Au Yun-nan les Lo-lo P'o. Miinstcr.LiLico, Stuart.1934. The ruined temples of Jehol. China Journ., vol. 21, No. i, pp. 14-18.Lin Yueh-Hwa.1944. Social life of the aboriginal groups in and around Yunnan. WestChina Union Univ. Mus. OfTprint Ser., No. 5.
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NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 237Morse, Wuxxam R.1928. The Three Crosses and the Purple Mists. Shanghai.Morse, William R., and Yoh, Anthony.1934. Aleasurements and observations on certain aboriginal tribes of Szech-wan Province. China Med. Journ., vol. 48, pp. 1267-1281,1937. Schedule of physical anthropological measurements and observa-tions on ten groups of Szechwan Province, West China. Suppl.Journ. West China Bord. Res. Soc, vol. 8.Nelson, N. C.1926. Prehistoric man of central China. Nat. Hist., vol. 26, No. 6, pp. 570-579.Owen, Prof. G.(?) The evolution of Chinese writing. Oxford.Parsons, James B.1957' The culmination of a Chinese peasant rebellion, Chang Hsien-Chungin Szechwan, Journ. Asian Stud., vol. 16, No. 3, pp. 387-400.Pascalis, Claude.1935. La collection Tibetains. ficole Fran^aise d'Extreme Orient, Hanoi.Pereira, George E,(?) Sketch map of eastern Tibet.Phelps, Dryden Lindsley,1936. Mt. Omei, Omei Illustrated Guidebook, the Jih Shing Yin ShuaKung Yeh Se, Chengtu, Szechwan, China.Pitcairn, Capt. W. G.1923a. Highest and lowest water levels at Ichang, 1877-1922.1923b. Highest and lowest water levels at Chungking, 1891-1922.1923c. Table of rise and flood levels with their origin and cause, YangtseRiver.1928. Memorandum of the Upper Yangtse and tributaries. North-ChinaNews and Herald, April, pp. 1-17, Shanghai.Plopper, Clifford E.1926. Chinese religion seen through the proverbs. Shanghai.Pott, P, L, Hawks,1925. A sketch of Chinese history. Shanghai.Price, Frank Wilson.1948. The rural church in China. Agricultural Missions, Inc., New York.Price, Maurice T.1924. Christian missions and oriental civilizations. Shanghai.Priest, Alan.1945. Constumes from the Forbidden City. Metropolitan Mus. Art, NewYork.Raeburn, Duncan.1937. Chinese Soviet coins and notes. China Journ., vol. 26, No. 3.Ramsden, H. a.1911. Modern Chinese copper coins. Worcester, Mass.Ransome, Arthur.1927. The Chinese puzzle. Boston and New York.Rawlinson, Frank.1927. Chinese ideas of the Supreme Being. Shanghai.
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23^ SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
Read, Thomas T.1934. The early casting of iron. Geogr. Rev., vol. 24, No. 4.Reichelt, Carl Ludwig.1927. Truth and tradition in Chinese Buddhism. Shanghai.Reid, Gilbert.i89o(?). Peeps into China. Religious Tract Soc, London.Reinsch, Paul.191 1. Intellectual and political currents in the Far East. New York.Richardson, H. L.1940. Soil and man in West China. Journ. West China Bord. Res. Soc,vol. 12, ser. B, pp. 102-133.1942. Soils and agriculture in Szechwan. Nat. Agr. Res. Ministry Agr.and Forestry, No. 27, Chungking.Rock, Joseph F.1924. Banishing the devil of disease among the Nashi of Yunnan Province.Nat. Geogr. Mag., vol. 46, No. 5, November, pp. 473-499.1931. Konka Risumgongba, Holy Mountain of the outlaws. Nat. Geogr.Mag., vol. 9, No. I, July, pp. 1-65.1947. The Ancient Na Khi Kingdom of Southwest China. 2 vols. Cam-bridge, Mass.1948. The Muan Pho ceremony of the Sacrifice to Heaven as practiced bythe Na Khi. Monumenta Serica, vol. 13, pp. 7-159.Rockhill, William Woodville.1895. Notes on the ethnology of Tibet. Rep. U. S. Nat. Mus. for 1893,pt. 2, No. 7, pp. 669-747.RuD, Halmann.1948. Remarks on the Sacrifice to Heaven of the Na Khi and other tribesin southwest China. Monumenta Serica, vol. 13, pp. 395-408.RuDD, Herbert Finley.1914. Chinese moral sentiments. Shanghai.Rudolph, Richard C.1950. Han tomb reliefs from Szechwan. Arch. Chinese Art Soc. Amer.,4, pp. 29-38.Rudolph, Richard C, and Wen Yu.1951. Han tomb art of West China. Berkeley and Los Angeles, Calif.Sandburg, Graham.1906. Tibet and the Tibetans. Soc. Promotion of Christian Knowledge,London.Savina, M. F.1917. Dictionaire Miao-tseo-fran?aise. Hanoi.Schidmore, E. R.1900. China, the long-lived empire. New York.Scott, Charles Ernest.1917. China from within.Sewell, W. G., and Swei, (Miss) T. O.1939- The natural dyes of Szechwan. Journ. Soc. Dyers and Colourists, 55,pp. 412-415-
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 239Shan Chen-Tsu.1940. A brief description of the cliff sepulchres and brick sepulchres inHsin-tsing and other places in Szechwan. Nanking Journ., Univ.Nanking, vol. 10, Nos. i and 2, pp. 1-18.Shih Yai.1947. Chinese inscriptions in the caves of Tun-Huang, Inst. ComparativeCultures, Nat. Res. Inst. Tun-Huang, and the West China UnionUniv. Mus., Chengtu.Shirokogoroff, S. M.1924. Who are the northern Chinese? Journ. North-China Branch Roy.Asiatic Soc, vol. 55, pp. 60-65.1925. Anthropology of eastern China and Kwangtung Province. Journ.North-China Branch Roy. Asiatic Soc, extra vol, 4. Shanghai.Smith, Arthur H.1894. Chinese characteristics.1899. Village life in China.1914. Proverbs and common sayings from the Chinese. Shanghai.1916, Two decades of changes in China. China Mission Year Book, pp. i-io.Sooth ILL, W. E.1927, A history of China.Sorenson, Theodore.1920. Work in Tibet. China Inland Mission, Tatsienlu.SowERBY, Arthur de C,1934. China's wonderful heritage. China Journ., vol. 21, No. i, pp. 1-3.1935- The Neolithic potterj' of Kansu. China Journ., vol. 22, No, 6, pp. 300-303.Ssu, Yung-Liang.1930. Stone Age pottery from the prehistoric site at Hsi-yin tsun, Shansi,China. Amer. Anthrop. Assoc, No. Z7-Stauffer, Milton T.1922. The Christian occupation of China. China Continuation Committee,Shanghai.Stephenson, Paul H.1925. Contributions to the anthropology of eastern Asia. Trans. SixthCongr. Far Eastern Assoc. Trop. Med., Tokyo.Stewart, James Livingstone.1925. The Laughing Buddha. New York and London.1926. Chinese culture and Christianity. New York and London.Tchou, N. T.1923. The commercial, industrial, and economic development. China MissionYear Book, pp. 15-20.Ting, V. K.1935' Notes on the records of droughts and floods and the supposed desicca-tion in N. W. China. Svenska Salsk. Anthrop. och Geogr., Geogr.Annsl., pp. 453-462.Torrance, Rev. Thomas.1910. Burial customs in Szechwan, Journ. North-China Branch Roy,Asiatic Soc, vol. 41, pp. 57-75.1920. The history, customs, and religion of the Ch'iang. Shanghai.
240 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
1923. The religion of the Ch'iang. Journ. North-China Branch Roy.Asiatic Soc, vol. 54, pp. 151-152.1924. The origin and history of the irrigation work of the Chengtu plain.Journ. North-China Branch Roy. Asiatic Soc, vol. 55, pp. 60-65.1930-31. Notes on the cave tombs and burial mounds of western Szechwan.Journ. West China Bord. Res. Soc, vol. 4, pp. 88-96.1933-343. Free translation of a stone tablet in Lifan forbidding Ch'iangmen from marrying their deceased brothers' wives. Journ. WestChina Bord. Res. Soc, vol. 6, pp. 22-23.i933-34b. Basal spiritual conceptions of the religion of the Ch'iang. Journ.West China Bord. Res. Soc, vol. 6, pp. 31-38.1937. China's first missionaries. London.Vale, Joshua.1899-1900. Irrigation on the Chengtu plain. Journ. North-China BranchRoy. Asiatic Soc, vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 22-36.Ward, F. K.1 913. The Land of the Blue Poppy. Cambridge, England.Weidenreich, Franz.1935- The Sinanthropus population of Choukoutien (Locality i) with apreliminary report of new discoveries. Bull. Geol. Surv. China,vol. 14, No. 4, pp. 427-461.1936. Uber das phylogenetische Wachstum des Hominidengehirns. Kai-bogabu Zasshi, Band 9, Heft 5, August, pp. 1-14. AnatenurchesInst. Kaiserlischen Univ., Tokyo.1936-37. The new discoveries of Sinanthropus pekincnsis and their bearingon the Sinanthropus and Pithecanthropus problems. Bull. Geogr.Surv. China, vol. 16, pp. 439-470.1937' The dentition of Sinanthropus pekinensis; A comparative odontogra-phy of the Hominida. Paleontologia Sinica, n.s. D, No. I (wholeser. No. loi), pp. 1-121, Peiping.Wen Yu.1941. A tentative classification of the Ch'iang languages in Szechwan.Studia Serica, vol. 11.1942. The languages of Li Fan. Journ. West China Bord. Res. Soc,vol. 14, ser. A.1947. The origin of certain emphatic consonants in the Ch'iang language.Studia Serica, vol. 6, pp. 209-215. Chengtu.White, Wu-liam Charles.1936. Chinese Jews. Asia, January, pp. 56-61.1940. Chinese temple frescoes. Toronto.1947. Bone culture of ancient China. Toronto.WiECER, P. Leon.1922. Histoire des croyances religeses et des opinions philosophiques enChina. Hien-hien, China.Wiley, Arthur.1945. Translations from the Chinese. New York.WiLHELM, RlCHAHD,191 5. Chinesische Volkmarschen. Jena.
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 24IWilliams, Edward Thomas.1923. China yesterday and today. London.1939- Worshiping imperial ancestors in Peking. Journ. North-ChinaBranch Roy. Asiatic Soc, vol. 70, pp. 30-36.Williams, S. Wells.1883. The Middle Kingdom.1909. A syllabic dictionary of the Chinese language. North China Missionof the American Board, Peking.Wright, Arthur F.1953- Studies in Chinese thought. Amer. Anthrop. Assoc, vol. 55, No. 5,Mem. No. 75, December.1957. Buddhism and Chinese culture. Journ. Asian Studies, vol. 17, No. i,pp. 17-42.1959. Buddhism in Chinese history. Palo Alto, Calif., and Oxford, England.Wu Chin-Ding.1942. Report of the archaeological survey of the Ts'ang Erh District, Yun-nan. Mem. Nat. Centr. Mus., ser. B, No. i.Wu Yi-Fang and Price, Frank W.1940. China rediscovers her West. New York.Yang, Martin S.1945. A Chinese village. New York.Yang, S. C.1932. The begirming of the Chinese postoffice in Szechwan. West ChinaMissionary News, October, pp. 7- 11.1933-1934. The revolution in Szechwan. Journ. West China Bord. Res.Soc, vol. 6, pp. 64-90.Yang, Samuel N.1936. Guide to the Chaocho Monastery. Chengtu.Yang, Y. K.1939. The agricultural program for Szechwan. Panda (Rotary Club ofChengtu), January 28.Yang Ch'eng-Chih.(?) The Lolo magicians and sacred books.Zen, Sophia H. Ch'en.I93I. Symposium on Chinese culture. China Inst. Pacific Relations,Shanghai.
HISTORIES, GAZETTEERS, AND BOOKS IN CHINESE(In some of these, name of author, date of publication, and place of publicationare not given.)Author Unknown.1741. Kuei Chou T'ung Chi :^jHlMl^' History of Kweichow.1943. Ch'uan Hsi Tiao Ch'a Chi jIjj^^H^^fB' Report of an investiga-tion in western Szechwan.Ch'ang Ch'un '^^•(?) Hua Yang Kuo Chih ^J^^^t, History of the Hua Yang Kingdom.Ch'ang Ming'^H^.1816. Ssu Ch'uan T'ung Chih |Z9jl|Mi^' ^ history of Szechwan.Chang Shu ^|^-1876. Shu Tien ^^, A study of Szechwan.Chang T'ing-Yu 5g@^.(?) Ming Shih ^^, History of the Ming Dynasty.Cheng Te-K'un %^i^.1946. Ssu Ch'uan Ku Tai Wen Hua Shih K jlj-^f^^jlli. ^ culturalhistory of ancient Szechwan.Ho Lin ||JJ^.1896. Wei Tsang T'ung Chih '^^^^y, History of Tibet.Hua Ch'i-YOn ^^^•1934. Chung Kuo Pien Chiang 4*^^^^' China's frontier.Huang P'ei-Ch'iao ^it^^-1886. Hsi Tsang T'u K'ao gg||^^^, Atlas and studies on Tibet.Fan Yeh ^^.(?) Hou Han Shu ^^^, History of the later Han Dynasty.Fang Ch'iao ^ll^-( ?) Chin Shu ^^, History of the Chin Dynasty.Li Tao-Yuan IJJitTC-(?) Shui Chin Chu ^JCSSii' '^^e Classic of Rivers.Liu HsiJ gijpfij.(?) Chiu T'ang Shu ^^^, The old history of the T'ang Dynasty.Lu Ssu-MiEN g©^.1934. Chung Kuo Min Tsu Shih f^*^^^^, History of the Chineserace.Ou-Yang Hsiu l^^i^.(?) Hsin T'ang Shu j^^^. The new history of the T'ang Dynasty.Pan Ku ii£^.(?) Ch'ien Han Shu '^f|^f|^, History of the former Han Dynasty.Ssu-Ma Ch'ien ^j^jg.(?) Shih Chi |^f£, Historical records.Sung Wen-Ping 5^^^.1935. Chung Kuo Min Tsu Shih tJ3^|^^lfe, History of the Chineserace.T'o To ^^.(?) Sung Shih ^^, History of the Sung Dynasty.24a
NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA—GRAHAM 243Wang T'ung-Ling 3E;f^f^.1932. Chung Kiio Mill Tsu Shih tfl^l^^^' History of the Chineserace. BUDDHISTAuthor Unknown.(?) ^Hll^. The Classic of the Diamond Buddha. Place of publicationnot stated.(?) ^J^^S'dJt' Pi'^cious teaching about Boddhidharma. Published inSuifu at the Hui-chi-hsien-t'ang.(?) J^S:R/^> The True Classic of the Bloody Basin. Published inSuifu at the Tung-i-hao.HsiEH Meng Hf^-
^923. ^^^^> An outline of Buddhism. The Chung Plua Book Com-pany, Shanghai.Liang Ch'i-Ch'ao ^^^•(') "^^^iUnSi^tt^' I'lqi'iry on the origin of Mahayana Buddhism.The Commercial Press, Shanghai.Shu Yun Huang Chio ^|g^^.(') ^'^'^tft' A simple talk on repeating the name of Buddha. Yiin-hsien, Szechwan.Sun Tsu-Lieh ^,||^^1919- i^^4^^M' ^ 5"^^" dictionary of Buddhism. The Medical Book-store, Shanghai.Wu Wu-K'ai ^^§§ (Editor).(') iH^IE'ffi^' The correct doctrine of the Lien School. Publisher andplace of publication not given.YiJN Chung-Ch'eng.1924. JSSf^'ij'Pn' Evidences in the heart of becoming a Buddha. Publishedin the Chieh-yin-tien on Mount Omei.TAOISTAuthor Unknown.(?) M^^M^' The original vows of the Kitchen God. Printed inSuifu at the I-tung-t'ien Hsii-hsien-t'ang.(?) SMSI^ift' Teachings about Karma by Lii-chu. Published inSuifu at the I-tung-t'ien Hsii-hsien-t'ang.(?) ^rlM^^'fllllli. Teachings about the Seven Immortals. Published inSuifu at the I-tung-t'ien Hsii-hsien-t'ang.(?) i^jfi^^'f^. Precious teachings about becoming an Immortal. Pub-lished during the reign of Hsien-feng ; publisher and place of pub-lication not given.Chang Chen ^^.(') ^^M^^^> Complete works on the mysterious deeds ofKuan-ti. 6 vols. Published in I-pin by the K'e-fu-tien.Ch'eng Hui-Jen (J^fjlfn (Editor).(?) jll^^'(§' Precious teachings about Ch'uan-chu, Publisher andplace of publication not given.

INDEXAgriculture, 5, 7, 18, 23, 68-69, 76, 91,94-95Amusements, 29-30, 69-70, 96, 147Ancestor worship, 45-49, 1 19-123, 146-147, 148-149, 151, 152, 159-160Animals, domestic, 69, 76, 91, 95Animism, v, 109Banks, 17-18, 26Birth, 33-34Boxer uprising, 63Buddha, 56-57Buddhism, v, 45, 56-61, 97-98, 102, 103,104, 183-184, 188, 221-222Burials, 39-45, 72, 78, 91, 97, 104, 121Catholicism, Roman, 63-64, 189Ceremonies on birthdays of gods, 29,153-155Ceremonies to cause or to stop rain,131-134Ceremonies to obtain sons, 129-131See also Magic ; Memorial cere-moniesCharms, 26, 79, 80, 81, 103, 140-144Chengtu, iii, iv, 5, 9, 10, li, 25, 26, 61,195, 200-208Chia-jung, iv, 14, 15, 89, 102Ch'iang, iii, iv, 7, 14, 15, 20, 22, 89-93,105, 173, 178Christianity, 45, 63-67, 223-225Ch'uan Miao, iv, 15, 20, 22, 68-74, 104,173, 183Climate, 1-7Clothing, 20, 23-24, 26, 91Confucianism, v, 45, 48-52, 53, 61, 103.219-220Confucius, 5, 48-50, 52, 53Death, 37-39Deities. See GodsDemons, belief in, 38, 40, 55, 71, 78,79, 81, 82, 83, 84, 91, 92, 97, 99,100-103, 104, 120, 123-129, 139,140, 141, 144, 149, 150, 176, 202exorcism of, 18, 19, 71-72, 82, 92,100, 103, 104, 123-129, 139, 140,141, 144, 149, 150
Divination and fortunetelling, 46-47,55, 78, 79, 82, 134-138Dragon parade, 127, 133-134, 147-148Droughts, 25, 131-132Early religion of China, 45-48Economic life, 15-26Engagements, 34-35, 37, 9^, 9^Family, 25, 26, 27-28, 69, 77, 90, 91,122Farming. See AgricultureFengshut, 40, 42, 80, 11 2- 119, 187Festivals, dragon boat, 29-30lunar, 73, I44-I53Filial piety, 27-28, 32, 45, 49, 216-219Floods, 25, 134Folktales, 84-88Food, 18-21, 69, 77, 95Fortunetelling. See DivinationFunerals. See BurialsGeography, 1-7, 93-94Geomancers. See PriestsGods, 26, 47-48, 56, 57, 70-71, 82-84,88, 92, 98, 101-102, 150-151, 153,172-180, 186, 200-203Heaven, 47, 48, 50-51, 183-184Hell, 183-184Hinayana Buddhism, 58History, 8-12, 68, 75-76, 89-90, 97Houses, 24-25, 69, 76, 91, 95Incantations, 79, 81, 100, 103, 126-127,139, 144International Union of Six Sages, 106-109Islam. See MohammedanismJu T'an, Altar of the Scholars, 102-104Kansu, i, 4, 5, 6, 7, 14, 15, 16, 18, 2^,26, 61, 62, 63, 89, 102ICarma and transmigration, 99, 132-133, 180-182, 196Kokonor, i, 6, 14, 15, 26, 102Kweichow Province, iv, i, 4, 5, 7, 11,14, 15, 18, 25, 26, 75, 102Lamaism, 93-102Language, 68, 76, 89-90Lao Tzu, v, 52-55 245
246 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42
Lolos, 14, 15, 74-89, 173Magic, magic ceremonies, 55, 74-80,81, 82, 97, 156Mahayana Buddhism, 58, 99Mana, mysterious potency, 74, 80, 81,92, 102, 118-119, 140, 141, 144,145, 150, 180Map, 2, 3Marriage, 35-36, 77-/8, 80, 96Memorial ceremonies, 72-83Mohammedanism, 11, 45, 62-63, 103,222-223Money, 16-17, 18Monks. See PriestsMother religion, International Unionof Six Sages, 106-109Neo-Confucianism, 61Nestorianism, 11, 67Oaths, 155Occupations, 23, yG-77, 91, 95Offerings, 46, 160Opium, 22Pottery, 9, 10, 11, 12Post Office, 26, 191Practical benefits of religion, 184-188Prayer wheels and prayer flags, 100-lOIPrayers, I5S-I57Priests, monks, gcomancers, 26, 42,72, 78-79, 80, 92, 99, 100, 104-105, 127, 135-136, 142, 153, 154,159, 198-199Protestants, 64-67, 189Sacred groves, 78, 92Sacred mountains, 168-170Sacrifices, 159Schools, 26, 93, 97, 102Shan or Tai people, 9, 11, 14Shang Ti, supreme ruler, 47, 49, 50-51
Shrines, 37-38, 92, 160-162Sikang Province, iv, i, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11,14, 15, 18, 20, 25, 26, 75, 102Social customs, 27-45Soul, concept of, 74, 121Suifu, I-Pin, iii, iv, li, 16, 25, 61, 74,75, 130, 172, 214Szechwan Province, iii, iv, i, 4, 5, 6,7, 8, 9, 10, II, 14, 15, 18, 20, 25,26, 61, 75, 89, 102Taboo, 80-81Taoism, v, 45, 52-56, 103, 104, 188,220-221Temples, iv, 61, 103, 122, 159, 162-168,195-200, 203-214Theatricals, 30Tibet, I, 8, 21, Z2, 93-94Tibetans, 15, 18, 93-102T'ien, heaven, 47, 49, 50-51Tobacco, 21-22Tools, 68-69, 77Transmigration. See KarmaTransportation and travel, 15-16, 69,95T'ung Shan Slie, Society for Coopera-tion in Goodness, 105-106Vows, 38, 92, 155, 197Weddings. See MarriageWitches and wizards, 47, 55Women, 32, 93, 94, 110Worship, 47, 92-93. 157-159Wu Chiao, religion of magic, 104-105Ya-an (Yachow), iv, 15, 16, 155, 210-2X1Yin-yang, 27-28, 37-38, 48, 80, 104,110-119, 129, 131, 133, 135, 136,140, 183, 191, 192Yunnan Province, iv, i, 4, 5, 7. n.14, 15, 18, 20, 26, 75, 102