Historical study tends to be more related to the past, to the elite groups, and to the textual. Field research tends to be more connected with the present, with the common people, and with the oral. If the two subjects can have a dialogue between each other, many, if not all, questions left by the previous chapters can be answered.(note.1)
In Chapter Four, I stated that, according to my field work, the Land God of some localities is represented by a stone and/or tree. This representation is also found in
For example, a black stone (#S42; see figure 44) is enshrined in a temple of the Land God.(note.2) A worshipper told me that it was the Stone God, while the custodian of this temple assured me that it was the Land God. He said that the stone was the original stone Land God that was enshrined by the pioneers when they arrived in this area. In addition, the case in
Correspondingly, the Land God of some localities is represented by or considered as residing in a tree.(note.3) However, people sometimes confuse the tree Land God (Chhiu Tho.- ti-kong) with the Tree God (Tua-chhiu-kong) and thus these two deities are also somewhat interchangeable (cf. Liu Zhiwan 1961:163; Eberhard 1970:
Similarly, the tree representing the Tree God of Tun-ho Ward (#T14; see figure 79) was originally not worshipped as the Tree God but as the Land God. I was informed that when the pioneers of this locality started to cultivate this area, they built a humble stone altar and situated a statue of the Land God under the tree to sacrifice to the Land God. Gradually, the altar and the statue were covered by the trunk of the tree and became invisible. Nowadays, people still worship the tree and regard it as the Tree God. However, elderly residents who know the origin of the divine tree customarily sacrifice to the tree for the worship of the Land God.
In brief, the fact that the Land God is sometimes mixed up with the Stone God and the Tree God leads us to suspect that the three deities may have some connections. Unfortunately, the field research I have done for this thesis is not able on its own to answer this question. However, if the field research fails to give us indication of the connections, textual approaches would be worth attempting. In fact, textual data are often of great ethnographic value and some scholars do contribute a lot to the study of Chinese life by their studies of historical texts. The aim of the following sections is to apply the theories of the scholars whose studies are based on historical texts to answering the questions left by the field research.(note.5)
II. Bernhard Karlgren and Phallicism:
One of the most distinguished scholars on this subject is Bernhard Karlgren. Karlgren (1930:1-66), using ancient sources such as the oracle bones of He'nan area and bronzes of the Yin and Zhou Dynasties, has showed that the character ( ) which now means ancestor, was written without the later radical as ( ), and that this character on the oracle bones and bronzes has the form ( ) and, is, in fact, a plainly recognizable representation of a phallus and really a fertility cult (cf. Ling Shun-sheng
Actually, the recent works of paleographers of the ancient Chinese inscriptions on bronzes and oracle bones have shown that in ancient times the characters now found differentiated by "radicals" in the broad sense, were written without these additions, and therefore many words now definitely differentiated were anciently written with the same character (Fitzgerald 1961:47). The investigation by Karlgren serves as a good example.
In order to give more support to his phallic theory derived from the paleographic studies, Karlgren further asserts in the same paper that though the Chinese word "She" is nowadays written ( ) with the "radical" ( ), occurring in many religious characters, and ( ) "tu", the soil, the oldest form of the character "She" was simpler. It was identical with the symbol for "tu" soil, without any ( ) shi at the side. Then he points out that the character for soil "tu", originally written ( ), was in fact, a representation of the phallus (Karlgren 1930:17; cf. Fitzgerald 1961:129).
Karlgren's phallic theory is further furnished by the character mu ( ) "male animal", used as opposed to "female animal. The animal may be ox or sheep: and the element "tu", written ( ) (the "She" pole) is the essential part of the character, it indicates the male sex. Therefore, the sense is clear: the ( ) "ox" with the ( ) "penis". Here, then the "tu" "earth" pictogram, the essential part of the character, is surely a phallic symbol (Karlgren 1930:19-20; cf. Ling Shun-sheng 1959b:43).
Moreover, Karlgren (1930:9) mentions the theory fully proved by Chavannes that the "ancestral temple" ("zumiao" or "zongmiao") on the left (east) side of the king's or the feudal prince's palace, and the "gods of the Soil and the Grain" (altars of the Sheji), to the right (west) of it, were indissolubly connected." Then, he points out that:
... the technical term both for the ancestral tablet and for the pole of the she was chu ( ); then we are authorised to conclude that the symbols ( ) and ( ) are essentially the same, a pole forming a fecundity-fertility symbol: in the first case it is the ancestral tablet tsu, in the second the soil god "She", in both cases a strikingly phallic symbol (Karlgren 1930:18).
Finally, he quotes a sentence in an important classical book Mozi (5th c. BCE.) chapter 31 (Minggei). The sentence states: "that (the state) Yin has the zhu ( ) is just the same as that Qi has the Sheji, that Song has the Sanglin and that
As a result, he cites Granet's hypothesis and concludes that the two cults (ancestral cult and earth cult) are really the result of a division and specialization of one primary cult (Karlgren 1930:10; cf. Fitzgerald 1961:47; Eberhard 1971:
The results attained by Karlgren are of considerable importance. On the one hand they furnish us with an interesting explanation of the origin of the ancestral tablet, which has played such a predominant part in Chinese culture through the ages. On the other hand, they throw a new searching light on a whole set of rites of paramount importance in ancient
III. Historical Studies of the "She" Cult:
The importance of the studies concerned with the "She" has been recognised by many modern scholars, both oriental and western. For instance, in Chinese language, there was not a specific term to signify "society". The modern term "Shehui" is borrowed from Japanese language. "Shehui" literally means "gathering for the worship of the 'She'" (cf. Hodous, 1929:58; Yang 1961:98).
1, Origin of the "She" Cult:
Based on certain Chinese classics, Ling Shun-sheng maintains that the "She" Cult had been in existence from the very beginning of Chinese history (1964:37). I select some of the quotations he cited as follows:
Vol. 32 of the Shuijingzhu: "There was the 'She' of Emperor Shennong" (qtd. in Ling Shun-sheng 1964:37).
Fengshan of the Shiji: "Beginning with the prosperous period under the rule of Emperor Yu, the sacrificial system of the 'She' began to be established" (qtd. in Ling Shun- sheng 1964:37).
The Guanzi states: "King Youyu built a mound of earth as the 'She'" (qtd. in Ling Shun-sheng 1964:37).
The Huai'nanzi: "For the sacrificial rites under the rule of King Youyu, the 'She' was made with earth" (qtd. in Ling Shun-sheng 1964:37).
Therefore, Sima Qian, a great historian comments that: "The system of the "She" has been developed through a very, very long period" (Ling Shun-sheng 1964:37).
2, Functions of the "She":
According to the paleographic study mentioned above, the "She" was originally a representation of the phallus and its cult was a fertility cult to which sacrifices were offered for abundant harvests.(note.8) Thus, according to Hodous (1929:59), the "She" altars should be set in the open air in order to represent the focal point of the fructifying forces of earth to heaven.
At least since the Zhou Dynasty, when the feudal state was also considered as a territorial entity, the "She" of state was located in the capital of each state and was given the name of the dynasty to which it belonged. For example, the "She" of the Xia Dynasty was named "Xiashe" (Ling Shun-sheng 1964:37). From that time on, the state altar of the "She" was constructed with ground obtained from the different parts of its land (Hodous 1929:59). Cited below for illustration is a record from the Liji (i.e. Book of Rites): "The domestic sacrificial services were performed under the skylight (or roof window) and the state sacrificial rites were performed at the 'She'" (Ling Shun-sheng 1964:38).
As a result, the "She" not only was the scene of fertility rites but also became in effect the locus of each state's guardian god and became in turn the symbol of the continuing power of the state (Yang 1961:98; Wright 1977:39). At the time of important occasions such as the birth of a prince, ascension to rule, sickness of the emperor or empress, solar eclipse, drought, big hunting party, and military campaigns, libations were offered to the "She" altar (Overmyer 1987:260). Moreover, when the ruler of the state went on a journey he announced the fact and made an offering for a successful outcome (cf. Ling Shun-sheng 1958:49; Hsiao Kung-chuan 1960:572).
Here the soldiers starting on a distant expedition were exhorted to be true to the "She" which gave them birth and nourished them (Hodous 1929:59). Here the armies of a state sacrificed before the start of a campaign, and here they presented captives and offered sacrifices after a victory. Before the "She" altar, the ruler took a solemn vow (Wright 1977:39). The chief carried the tablet of the "She" in his baggage when he set forth to war, before it he sacrificed the vanquished and the guilty and bestowed rewards (Granet 1930:239-40).
Thus, when one state defeated another, then the "She" altar of the defeated state had to be covered over by the victor. For instance, as recorded in Gaozu Bengji of the Shiji, when the Qin Dynasty was overthrown by the Han, the state "She" altar was ruined and covered over (Ling Shun-sheng 1964:37). This practice was based on the belief that the covering of the "She" altar of the defeated state could prevent the revival of the former state by the beneficent forces of nature (Hodous 1929:59; Chamberlayne 1966:167). Indeed, as we see in many textual references, the extinction of a state was expressed as "the interruption of ('She') sacrifice" or "the ruin of the "She" altar" (Fitzgerald 1961:38; Wright 1977:39).
In Han times (206 BCE. - 220 CE.), the "She" was universally found in counties, villages, towns, and neighbourhoods, and it became the ceremonial ground for a large variety of community activities such as the swearing of a local official into office, praying for rain, taking a public vow, or praying for blessing (Yang 1961:98).
As time went on, the "She" acquired other functions. It came into relationship with rural granaries in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and assumed the task of local famine relief, which was to be important in the sub-administrative schemes of practically all subsequent dynasties (Hsiao Kung-chuan 1960:37). Since this period, the organisation of many villages or neighbourhoods was often called "She" (Yang 1961:98).
According to some official documents, a varying number of adjacent households (between twenty and fifty) were to constitute one "She", so that the households in each division could extend "mutual assistance in farm work, in the event of death or sickness occurring in any of them during the farming season" (Hsiao Kung-chuan 1960:36).(note.9)
According to "
Because these specific gods were enshrined in the temple and the common people were excluded, I suspect it was also a "She" temple. Moreover, several records were kept in the temple. These were community compact regulations (xiangyue), lists of households, and registration documents of new immigrants who just moved into the particular "pu". A temple or "tan" was intended as a focal point of "pu" as a place. This was where disasters such as floods, fire, theft, disease, and crimes were reported to the governors and gods, publicised to the people, and resolved. It was also where local civil disputes such as those regarding marriage, land ownership, property, and exchange of goods were mediated by the governors and elders of the "pu", and where deviance and criminality was punished in front of the public. On three occasions annually, universal salvation festivals (pudu) were officially organised to exorcise diseases and hungry ghosts (Wang Mingming 1995:49).
Since 1912 when the imperial system was terminated, the official worship of the "She" has been in abeyance. However, in the rural villages as late as 1948, the "She" altars could still be found and some and certain forms of governing boards were still elected annually which took care not merely of the annual sacrifices but also of scavenging the economically valuable waste materials of the neighbourhood. This task was usually farmed out to a collector, but the administrators used the income from the waste for neighbourhood welfare work (Yang 1961:99).
According to some field researches of
3, Sacrificial Dates of the Ancient Altar:
Paying homage to the "She" has been a practice among the Chinese people for several thousand years. Shennong, a legendary hero who is said to be the inventor of the plough and the first Chinese agriculturist, is recorded to have gone with his people every year in the eleventh month to worship "She" (Werner 1977:415).
In the Shang Dynasty, the character "She" was used to mean "a year," probably because the sacrifice to it was a yearly event at that time (Chow Tse-tsung 1978:63).
In the Zhouli, an important Chinese classic, it is recorded that "sacrificial services were performed at the Zhoushe in appropriate seasons of the year". In another place, it is also said that "Sacrifice was made to the Mashe in autumn" (qtd. in Ling Shun-sheng 1964:
Before the fall of the Qing Dynasty, two State ceremonies were performed annually for the "She", the one in spring, and the other one in autumn. On other occasions, such as a triumphal return from a battle, solar eclipse, big hunting party, and so forth, rites were also performed for the "She" (Hodous 1929:60; Ling Shun-sheng 1958:49). These rites, indicative of the deep veneration for agriculture ingrained in the people, were performed in the Capital by the Emperor in person, and in the provinces by the local magistrates (Bredon & Mitrophanom 1927:129; Feuchtwang 1977:595).
On the dates of the rites, all who were engaged in worshipping the same "She" performed sacrificial rites together. Those with official authority read the imperial edict and encouraged villagers to help the poor and respect age and so on. (cf. Hsiao Kung-chuan 1960:277; Yang 1961:98; Feuchtwang 1992:65).
4, Structures of the "She" Cult:
As far as the primitive form of the "She" is concerned, the famous Chinese classic Huai'nanzi says: "In the sacrificial rites under the rule of King Youyu, the 'She' was made with earth; under the reign of Xiahou, the 'She' was planted with the pine tree; the stone 'She' was used by the Yin people; and the 'She' of Zhou was planted with the chestnut tree" (qtd. in Ling Shun- sheng 1964:40).(note.10) There is also an account in the Shangshu: "only the pine tree was to be planted at the site of the grand 'She', the cypress at the site of east 'She'; the catalpa at north 'She'" (qtd. in Ling Shun-sheng 1964:41).
Furthermore, in the Shuowen, we find the same statement that the "She" altar had a tree (qtd. in Eberhard 1970:23). The Chapter of Minggui, Vol. 8 of Mozi states: "In the former times of Yu, Xia, Shang and Zhou, upon the founding of his empire, each sage monarch would establish his ancestral temple in the main altar (tan) of state and select a dense wood to be the 'She'" (Ling Shun-sheng 1964:41).
From the above passages, we know that the "She" structures of the four Dynasties, Yu, Xia, Shang and Zhou, were different from one another, and that the location where the cult was worshipped in ancient times was marked either with the raising of an earth mound, the erection of a stone, the planting of a tree or the selection of a wood or grove. In view of this, the primitive "She" structures may be at least divided into four types, that is, the earth "She", stone "She", tree "She", and forest "She" (cf. Granet 1930:239; Wright 1977:39).
(1) Earth "She" - The place where sacrifices were made to "She" in the ancient times was sometimes called "shan" or "tan" and both of them were made of earth. The former was made by making level and sweeping clean a piece of ground and the latter by raising a pile of earth above the ground. We can also find the descriptions of the earth "She" in Ho Xiu's commentary on the Gongyang Zhuan and Cai Yun's Tuduan (cf. Ling Shun-sheng 1964:40).
(2) Stone "She" - It appears that in certain regions and certain times the "She" was made not of earth but of stone (Granet 1930:239). The stone "She" may imply either the "She" altar or a upright tablet which was made of stone. Ling Shun- sheng suspects the ancient stone "She" altar of being just a stone Zhu - tablet or a stone pillar or a block of stone, about a foot thick and five feet high, which functioned as an image and possibly represented the ancestral god (1958:49).
Moreover, even though Wang Mingming (1995:49) does not mention by what material the representation of the local territorial patron (shi zhu) of the tan of Huian County was made, by the name "shi zhu (stone host)" I suspect that it was made of stone.
(3) Tree "She" - References to trees on the altar of the earth god are very common in ancient literature. This appears to have been a widespread practice common throughout ancient Chinese society (Eberhard 1970:23). According to the Chinese classics cited above, the planting of trees at the "She" altars was mandatory in ancient times (Ling Shun-sheng 1964:41). For further evidence, the following is extracted from Shangshu: "Only the pine tree was to be planted at the site of the Dashe (the Grand 'She'); the cypress at the site of the Dongshe (the East 'She'); the catalpa at the Beishe (the North 'She')" (cf. Ling Shun-sheng 1964:41).
(4) Forest "She" - The
It thus becomes clear that the Earth "She" was made by making level and sweeping clean a piece of ground and by raising a pile of earth above the ground. The Stone "She" may imply either the "She" altar or the tablet that was made of stone. The Tree "She" was represented either by a tree specially planted or by a natural-grown tree which could be a pine, chestnut, catalpa, or cypress tree etc. The
4, Menhirs and Dolmens:
As mentioned above, many "She" were made of stones. Ling Shun-sheng (1964:40) hypothesises that these stones were menhirs. The following texts cited by him from certain historical records can also bear this out:
The Songshi Liji (960-1279 CE.): "The object of 'She' is made of a five 'chi' long and two 'chi' wide, bell-shaped stone. The upper half is a bit hewed and the lower half is buried (into the ground)" (my translation; Ling Shun-sheng 1959b:20).(note.11)
The Yuanshi Liji (1271-1368 CE.): "The object of 'She' is made of a five 'chi' long and two 'chi' wide, white stone. ... The upper half of it is hewed into bell-shaped and the lower half is buried into the ground" (my translation; Ling Shun-sheng 1959b:20).
The Ming Liji (1368-1644): "The object of 'She' is made of a five 'chi' long and two 'chi' wide stone. The upper half of it is pointed and the lower half is (buried) in the ground" (my translation; Ling Shun-sheng 1959b:20).
In volume four of the Zhuluo Xianzhi is written:(note.12) "The object of 'She' is set at the centre of the altar and made of a stone pillar of two 'chi' five 'cun' in length and one 'chi' and one 'cun' in width. The upper half of it is pointed and bell-shaped and the lower half is buried into the ground" (my translation; Ling Shun-sheng 1959b:20).(note.13)
Additionally, Ling Shun-sheng suspects that many of the ancient stone-made "She" altars were just dolmens (1967:133). In fact, dolmen is not absent in the Chinese world. It is called "Shipeng" (Stone Shed) in
IV. Dialogue Between Historical Studies and Field Data:
In China, the Land God was commonly called by many names, such as She, Tudi, Sheshen, Tushen, Tudi Shen, Tudi Pusa, Tudi Laoye, Shegong, Tudi Gonggong, and so on (Werner 1977:414). What is noteworthy is that, according to these names, he seemed to be identified with "She". "She" was originally the theistic symbol of the feudal state and in charge of feudal fertility. The Land God, introduced in the first century BCE., was also in charge of fertility of land. Therefore, from the functional viewpoints (Yang 1961:97), the identification is quite natural.
Furthermore, in
However, according to my intensive research in
However, according to the temple stele of the
In imperial times, the officials came to make sacrifice to Shennong and Sheji only in this temple and not in the other five Shennong temples. But since 1912, when the imperial system was terminated, the official temples of the Heavenly Empress, the God of War, the Goddess of Mercy, and Shennong Sheji were all turned into sites of popular worship.
So far, by using the results of the historical studies described above, it is possible to answer some of the questions left by my field work. First of all, in the beginning of this chapter, I mentioned that the Land God of some localities is represented by a stone and/or tree and he is sometimes mixed up with the Stone God and the Tree God. Based on the historical studies above, we realise that the "She" could be constructed with a stone or tree. It is natural that the Land God, usually identical with the "She", is represented by or considered as residing in a stone or tree. Consequently, the Land God is sometimes mixed up with the Tree God and the Stone God nowadays.(note.15)
Secondly, in the field work, I found that many of the divine stones and trees are worshipped in the open air; that is, these three deities are different from other Chinese gods who are housed in temples.(note.16) Only some tiny altars or shrines are built to protect their incense pots and statues from rain.(note.17)
Actually, the fact that many divine stones and trees are worshipped in the open air has been noticed by numerous field workers (e.g. Burkhardt
When questioned as to why the divine objects are preferably left open to the sky, informants told Berkovits and others (1969:75) that it was to demonstrate the power of the objects to withstand exposure to wind, rain, or sun.(note.18) However, as we have mentioned above, the "She" altars should be set in the open air in order to get the fructifying forces of heaven. It is, more likely that the divine stones and trees are preferably left open to the sky due to the influence of the "She" Cult. (note.19)
Thirdly, among the six dolmens included in my field sample, three are used for the worship of the Land God,(note.20) two are worshipped as the stone Good Brothers,(note.21) and one is treated as the Stone God. (note.22)
According to Ling Shun-sheng, many of the ancient stone-made "She" altars were just dolmens. Therefore, the dolmens found by me are probably surviving examples of the ancient stone-made "She" altars. However, the dolmens described above as well as those found in western Europe are usually constructed from huge stones (cf. Edsman 1987:49; Mohen 1989:54). The dolmens found in
Fourthly, in field work, I encountered two shrines of the Land God which had architecture different from those of Hollo villages. The architecture of the shrines in Hollo villages looks like palaces (Cohen 1987:292). However, both the shrines of the tree Land God of -suan Street (#T11; see figure 76) and the tree Land God of the East Gate (#T12; see figure 77) look like traditional Chinese tombs in which ancestors are buried. This phenomenon drives me to the question whether there is any connection between the Land God and Ancestor Worship.
Day (1974:103) observes that in many parts of the Chinese world the corpses of ancestors deposited on the family ground near the dwelling area were considered to be equal to the Land God. Thus, the relations between ancestors and the Land God are close. From the custom of announcing the death of any individual in the community over which he presides to the Land God, much as a death in the family is ceremoniously announced to the ancestors, Bredon & Mitrophanom (1927:456) also notice that there should be a link between ancestors and the Land God. Anyway, from the paleographic studies of Karlgren reviewed above, it is clear that Ancestor Cult and the Cult of the Land God are the twins as both are offshoots of the fertility cult (cf. Fitzgerald 1961:48).
V. Conclusion:
From the above analyses, we find that because the "She" Cult was institutionally supported and thus powerful, many cults of the divine stones and trees were influenced by it. Under the influence that the "She" altars should be set in the open air in order to get the fructifying forces of heaven, most divine stones and trees in
It is obvious that the modern stone and tree worship is closely connected with the "She" Cult. No wonder Wang Xiaolian (qtd. in Wang Jing 1992:71) attributes the origin of this worship to the "She" Cult. It is, however, still difficult to decide whether the modern stone and tree worship are surviving examples of the "She" Cult or not, since at the time when the first surviving books were written, the middle Zhou period, the 5th century, BCE., the cult was already very old, and had undergone modifications which had almost obscured their primitive meaning (Fitzgerald 1961:47; cf. Overmyer 1987:281).
Nonetheless, the worship of stones and trees is a world-wide phenomenon and many people cannot refrain from worshipping a stone and tree of a slightly unusual colour or shape, without knowing why they do this (Franz 1990 (1964):209). The classical Chinese example is the eccentric artist Mifu who encountered a big stone, regarded it as divine, bowed down with respect, and called it "the Elder Brother Stone" (see also Chapter Two). In Chapter Five, we also observe that in modern
Concerning the origin of the "She" Cult, Ling Shun-sheng, in the earlier sections of this chapter, maintains that it had been in existence from the very beginning of Chinese history. Unfortunately, these evidences he offers are rather meager, because the persons he mentioned, such as Emperor Yu, King Youyu, and Emperor Shennong, are all mytho-historical rulers. It is unlikely that we could decide whether they really existed in the world or not. Therefore, my hypothesis is that before the feudal state was considered as a territorial entity, the cults of the stone, tree, phallus, and land had been in existence in the ancient Chinese world. They were either regarded as deities themselves or as possessed by certain supernatural beings such as mythical heroes, divine animals, or natural forces etc. Additionally, the divine stones could be worshipped with the forms of menhir, dolmen, or others.
When the system of the Chinese feudal states was established, these cults were taken to be theistic symbols of their states. Therefore, the "She" altars could be constructed with stone, tree, and/or earth. But because the cults were too widespread to be fully incorporated into the states, every locality had their own local "She" altar. Moreover, common people had their own cults of these natural objects which were not standardised by the officially fostered "She" Cult. In the first century BCE., when the Cult of the "Fude Zhengshen (Orthodox Spirit of Good Merit; the Land God)" was introduced, many local "She" gods were identified with the Land God because serve a similar function. With this hypothesis, both the phenomena that the cult of the Land God is identified with the "She" Cult and the fact that the cults of Stone and Tree Gods, though left wild, are influenced by the "She" Cult, simultaneously become more explainable.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(note.1)
I am grateful to Prof. Jack Goody for discussing these issues with me.
(note.2)
See also Chapter Four for a full description.
(note.3)
This practice is also found in
(note.4)
See also Chapter Four for a full description.
(note.5)
Maspero (1981:3), after doing research on Taoism and popular religion, observes that:
... Chinese have never had that sense of a sudden break with the past, that condemnation of earlier beliefs, which characterizes the religious evolution of the West. This has served to give them the illusion that the religion of today is still the ancient religion and that by keeping up the tradition of antiquity, they are preserving something of it.
Therefore, applying historical texts to answer the questions left by the field research, though worth trying, must proceed with caution.
(note.6)
Erkes, a prestigious sinologist, also agrees with Karlgren's theory that the word Zu was a phallic image. However, he argues that:
... the idea that the character designates a phallus is indeed not quite new. When I was a student I learned from my teacher Conrady that was the current explanation; it is mentioned by Schindler and much earlier by Gabelentz, who doubtless derived it from a Chinese source, though I have not been able to ascertain the origin of this statement. Some months before Karlgren's paper reached me, I had communicated this trace of primitive Chinese phallicism to Dr. Buschan, who has incorporated it in a work on phallic cults which he intends to publish (1931:65).
(note.7)
In fact, this sentence has not only been cited by him, but also by Guo Moruo, Granet, and Ling Shun-sheng (cf. Ling Shun-sheng
(note.8)
Chow Tse-tsung (1978:63) also agrees with this theory and thus translates the very character "She" in the poem "The birth of our people," as a "sacrifice for fertility".
(note.9)
In the Zuozhuan we find that: "In the twenty-fifth year of Zhaogong (517 B.C.) the Qi State presented 1,000 'She' to the Lu State". It was said in Liji that every twenty-five households were organised about a local altar and were called a "She" (Hodous 1929:58; (Eberhard 1970:22; Day 1974:62; Werner 1977:413). Therefore, it is clear that, from that time on, the character "She" had already meant not only a sacrificial altar, but also a residential unit (Hsiao Kung-chuan 1960:7).
During the Yuan Dynasty the "She" became an officially instituted centre of agricultural affairs. In 1270 Kublai Khan issued the Nongcan Shiqi Tiao (the Seventeen Articles of the Agricultural and Sericultural System), which called for the organisation of every fifty households in the villages into one "She", and for the appointment of an elderly person versed in agricultural matters to serve as its head, whose duty it was "to teach and supervise the planting of farm crops and mulberry trees" and to guide the general conduct of the inhabitants belonging to his organisation" (Hsiao Kung-chuan 1960:37-8).
(note.10)
In another article, Ling Shun-sheng (1967:134) cites the passage from Huai'nanzi again. However, this time his translation is somewhat different:
Under the rituals of Yu Yu, the she was made of earth; the she of Hsia Hou was made with the pine tree; stone she was used in the rituals of Yin people; and she of chestnut tree was used by the people of Chow.
(note.11)
"Chi" is an ancient Chinese measure unit which is not used nowadays. We are, therefore, not sure what size it is.
(note.12)
The gazetteer of
(note.13)
"Cun" is an ancient Chinese measure unit which is not used nowadays. We are, therefore, not sure what size it is.
(note.14)
I find that the date of Shennong's birthday is sometimes recorded in the Almanac circulated in
(note.15)
However, in
(note.16)
Chamberlayne (1966:167) argues that originally Chinese spirits were not represented by statues nor were they housed in temples before the arrival of Buddhism, which brought many new concepts and practices into Chinese worship.
(note.17)
They are: the Stone General of Tan-khe Rural-town (#S8; see figures 8 & 9), the Stone Divine Grandfather of Pat-po Village (#S9; see figure 10), the Stone God of Kang-khau Ward (#S14; see figure 14), the Stone God of Ho-peng Ward (#S15; see figure 15), the stone Granny of Ho-peng Ward (#S16; see figure 16), the Stone God of Tho.-sian Ward (#S20; see figure 20), the stone Good Brothers of Bah-tau Hamlet (#S22; see figure 23), the Stone God of Khe-te Hamlet (#S34; see figure 36), the Divine Stone of Giong-tek Boulevard (#S41; see figure 43), the Stone God of Pe-hun Ward (#S44; see figures 46 & 47), the Stone God of Su-Lim District (#S50; see figures 53 & 54), the Stone God of Pat-li Rural-town (#S52; see figures 56 & 57), the stone Land God of Tiang-ken Village (#S53; see figure 58), the Stone God of Gien-kiu-in Road (#S55; see figure 60), and the Stone God of Tang-si Town (#S59).
Moreover, most divine trees are not housed in temples as well. However, the Tree God and Goddess of Kui-sin Village (#T7; see figure 72), the Tree God of Tiong-san Ward (#T9; see figure 74), and the Tree God of
(note.18)
Nevertheless, Ling Shun-sheng (1964:39) points out that it is a survival of Zhongliu, a light-well usually made through the centre of the ceiling of a cave for getting light in. In the ancient times, sacrifices were made to deities mostly at altars without a roof.
(note.19)
In addition, the idea that the Stone Monkey was magically impregnated by the pure essences of Heaven and the fine scents of Earth, the vigor of sunshine and the grace of moonlight might also show the influence of the "She" Cult.
(note.20)
They are: the stone Land God of San-tiau Hill (#S23; see figure 25), the stone Land God of E-kham-te Hamlet (#S25; see figure 27), and the stone Land God of Chhen-the Lane (#S21; see figures 21 & 22).
(note.21)
They are: the stone Good Brothers of San-tiau Hill (#S24; see figure 26) and the stone Good Brothers of E-kham-te Hamlet (#S26; see figure 28).
(note.22)
That is the Stone God of Tiong-guan Ward (#S19; see figure 19).
(note.23)
For this discussion, please see Chapter Four for details.
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