Chapter Nine: Conclusion

I. Introduction:

The previous chapters reflect the fact that the textual data relating to Chinese divine stones and trees are limited and thus that it is difficult to understand these three deities by studying the texts alone. On the other hand, since the worship of the divine stones and trees is rather marginal in Chinese world, it is not plausible to grasp the belief only by field research.(note.1) Consequently, in the thesis, I made efforts to study the divine stones and trees from many points of view. Hopefully, they can, together, offer a new comprehension of these deities.

In this concluding chapter, I shall first set a typology for the divine stones and trees included in study here. I shall also summarise the findings from the previous studies to explain how and why the three deities were anthropomorphised, historicised, and standardised. Then, I demonstrate that common people only partly accept the authority of the standardised written accounts and take them as one of their authorities. Besides them, they have many authorities to follow. Finally, I discuss the recent changes of the divine stones and trees in Taiwan.

II. Typology of the Deities:

So far, we realise that the Land God represented by a stone and/or tree is often mixed up with the Stone God and/or the Tree God, or even with other divine stones and trees since they are closely connected. However, these deities can be distinguished according to their legends, traits, functions, images, deification legends, the dates of birthday festivals and so on:

1, The Land God represented by a stone and/or tree:(note.2) The term "the Land God" is a title of office and not the honourific of a specific person. If loyal to his community, any person may be promoted to an office after his death. In Taiwan the Land God is usually represented by a statue, picture, stone or tree. If being represented by a statue or picture, he is depicted as a kind, local elder with a long white beard. If represented by a stone, he is called "Chio Tho.-ti- kong" ("stone Land God") or "chio kong" ("stone god"). He is called "Chhiu kong" ("tree god") if represented by a tree.

The main task of the God is to look after the piece of land he governs. He is traditionally conceived of as in charge of a specific geographically defined jurisdiction, within which his duties are usually compared by informants to those of a "local policeman" or "local junior official".

Probably because Chinese believe that souls dwell somewhere under the land, in Taiwan and generally in southeastern China, the grave site is guarded by the Land God who is called "the Earth Governor" ("Houtu"; see figure 112) in this context. Besides, he is traditionally regarded as the guardian of wandering souls, of family, of business, and of community. Indeed, he is indispensable to everything concerning the land. However, for a number of reasons noted in the previous chapters, he is not favoured as a parent for nominal adoption. Moreover, the Land God, though bound by the social ethics or morality, is sometimes connected with gambling.

In addition, since both the "She" Cult and Ancestor Worship are offshoots of the ancient Chinese fertility cult, some shrines of the Land God look like the tombs of ancestors and most stones were chosen to represent him had a human or cylindrical form.

2, The Stone God and the Tree God:(note.3) The second type of divine stones and trees are those who are treated as the Stone God and the Tree God. In Taiwan, divine trees of this type are typically called "Tua-chhiu-kong" ("the Tree God") or "Chhiu kong" ("tree god"). Divine stones of this type are usually called "Chio-thau-kong" ("the Stone God") or "chio kong" ("stone god").

In Chapter Two, we saw that Chinese divine stones and trees are commonly connected with fertilizing capability. In Taiwan, they are also traditionally regarded as the guardians of children who suffer health problems. Usually, higher-ranking deities with great protective power and goddesses with maternal nature are preferred as the nominal parents. The Stone and Tree Gods, though belonging to the lower ranks and thus having little hierarchical power, are widely favoured to be nominal parents, because people hope their unhealthy children might grow as strong as the Stone God and as big as the Tree God. This might be a functional extension of the life-giving stones described in Chapter Two.

While retaining their geological or botanical forms, most stones and trees are regarded as the Stone God or the Tree God because they evoked the sense of reverence by performing miracles, being on special locations, with unusual origins and with unusual appearances etc. Nonetheless, because they are less influenced by standardised written accounts, the deity statues and legends that anthropomorphise and historicise them share a few features in common.

These two deities, together with the Third Prince, Jigong, and so on, are not bound by the officially approved morality and are outside the orthodox interpretation. Thus, they are favoured by the Bettors as the guardians of the Lottery to reveal the winning numbers.

Just as ancient "She" altars were set in the open air in order to get the fructifying forces of heaven, in many localities, the Stone God and the Tree God are preferably left open to the sky. However, this does not necessarily show that they are the surviving examples of the "She" Cult, since they perhaps developed out of the ancient worship of natural objects or other origins. Moreover, as explained in the previous chapters, the present cults of the Stone God and the Tree God are quite unlike the "She" Cult and no worshipers I interviewed told me that their cults come from the "She" Cult.

3, Stones and trees identified with deities other than the Land God, the Stone God, and the Tree God:(note.4) There are some divine stones and trees regarded as deities other than the Land God, the Stone God, and the Tree God.

There is no specific term for this type of god, but normally these deities are called "the stone [...]" or "the tree [...]" according to their identifications. For instance, a standing stone wrapped with a red ribbon is worshipped by local gamblers on the sea shore of Ho-peng Ward as a stone deity (#S16; see figure 16). Because the appearance of the stone resembles a goddess, she is sometimes identified as Mazu (the Granny) and sometimes as Guanyin. Anyway, if identified as Mazu, she is called "the stone Mazu" and if identified as Guanyin, the stone is called "the stone Guanyin". If a stone is identified as "the Good Brothers", it is called "the stone Good Brothers" (e.g. #S22, #S24, #S26). By the same token, the stone which is identified as a divine turtle, is called "the stone Turtle" (#S56; see figure 61).

If a stone or tree belonging to this type is identified with any higher-ranking deity, it is regarded as having great protective power and thus become a guardian of children, that is, a nominal parent (e.g. #S45).

However, since they are not deified because of moral deeds, in the past several years some of them have been endowed with a new function as gambling deities. That is, they can reveal the winning numbers of the Lottery to gamblers so that they can bet and win (e.g. #S41, #S46, #S56, #S57). Furthermore, because these stones and trees are identified with various deities, their dates of birthday festivals, images, and legends also vary.

III. Anthropomorphisation, Historicisation, and Standardisation:

For the interpretation of Zong and Bi, the ancient jade symbols, Fitzgerald (1961:126) comments that:

The ancient Chinese did not make anthropomorphic images of their gods, their religious symbolism was governed by mathematical and abstract conceptions, consequently the jade symbols do not readily suggest to the modern mind the ideas which they were intended to represent.

By the same token, the "She", which consists of three essences: earth, stone, and tree, was obviously a worship of natural objects or a fertility cult and not likely to indicate anthropomorphic conceptions in ancient times. However, as I emphasised in the previous chapters, since at least the Shang or Zhou Period, most divine natural features have been anthropomorphised and identified with former kings, the cultural heroes, or deified ancestors. The Land God, being usually identical with the "She", is not an exception. Even though in some localities, he is represented by a stone and/or tree, if represented by a statue or picture, the Land God is usually depicted as a mild-faced, kind old man with a long white beard, wearing a round cap and the costume of a local elder. The Land God is usually worshipped with his wife. Beside the couple, two attendants - a boy and a girl - are also enshrined. He is sometimes even venerated with a concubine and a son.

The Land God is not only anthropomorphised, but also historicised. Through the legends I studied before, he is articulated with names, birthplaces, occupations, and deeds leading to deification. What is significant is that in the legends he is again and again attached with the time he lived in the world. Additionally, in one of the legends, he is even connected with the Mid-autumn Ethnic Revolt against the Mongol Yuan Administration and it is said that today every family worships the Land God and eats pumeloes at the Mid-Autumn Festival. This is in memory of the Revolt and the Land God. Therefore, in order to emphasise that he was a genuine human being, these legends make every effort to put him into a Chinese historical context. For Chinese people, history means authority. The conducts written into history are something real and unchangeable. With historicisation, these legends become real and unchangeable.

Moreover, from the previous chapters, we find that the dates of the birthday festivals of almost all stones and trees representing the Land God are the same. These birthday festivals are held on the second day of the second lunar month, on the second day of the eighth month and/or on the fifteenth day or sixteenth day of the eighth lunar month. I attribute the reason that the dates of birthday festivals for the Land God are so unified, and that the God is commonly depicted as a local elder loyal to the piece of land he governs, to be the result of standardisations.

From Watson's study, we realise that the Heavenly Empress was standardised by a mechanism constituted by local elites, state authorities, and written accounts. However, from the studies of the previous chapters, we learn that the Cult of the Land God is standardised by more than one mechanism. From the analysis of festival dates, we see that people follow only one date standardised in the Almanac and identify the other date with the autumn rite of the "She". The Almanac and local leaders who sponsor and promulgate the new versions of the Almanac serve to set the standards for the date of the Land God's birthday festival. The "She", which was also a state standardised cult since at least the Zhou Dynasty, also influenced the other date of the Land God's birthday festival. Furthermore, from the analysis of images of the Land God, we observe his statues are standardised by the "deity statue image book" in the sculpture workshop. Moreover, because he is popular enough to interest local leaders, his deification legends are standardised to some extent by local leaders.

The stones and trees treated as the second type, that is, as the Stone God and the Tree God, are also influenced by anthropomorphism. They are typically entitled as "kong" such as "Chio-thau-kong" or "Tua-chhiu-kong". The term "kong" is an appellation consisting of several meanings. It literally means "grandfather". It is also a polite term of address for men that is used in a variety of social circumstances. In late-Ming vernacular fictions, it is most commonly applied to old men (Shahar 1993:23). However, the word "kong" has religious connotations. It refers to male deities considered anthropomorphically.

In addition to the anthropomorphical title "kong", these divine stones and trees are anthropomorphised by representation in anthropomorphical deity statues. For example, the statue of the Stone God of Kim-eng Ward (#S7; see figure 7) is portrayed as a red faced, white eyebrowed, white bearded old man with a double-edged sword on his hand. The statue of the Stone Divine Grandfather of Pat-po Village (#S9; see figure 10) is depicted as an old long-bearded, red-faced general, riding a white horse with a big sabre in his hands. The statue of the Stone God of Su-Lim District (#S50; see figures 53 & 54) is engraved in the form of a literate general. It is noteworthy that none of the above images is included the "deity statue image book" mentioned in Chapter Three. The sculptor himself in deity statue workshop has to create the images of the stones and trees treated as the this type.

Many of the natural objects classified into this type have also been historicised. For instance, both the Stone God of Lai- o. District (#S43; see figure 45) and the Stone General of Tan- khe Rural-town (#S8; see figures 8 & 9) are proclaimed to be "the Grandfather of Yellow Stone" ("Ui Jio Kong"), the mysterious teacher of a famous historical hero Zhang Liang of the Han Dynasty. However, they are not standardised.

We noted that the Land God is worshipped on almost every piece of land, but the name and the dates of birthday festival for the Land God are unified. On the contrary, the names and the dates of the birthday festivals of the Stone God and the Tree God are various. Even though divine stones of this type are usually called "the Stone God", they are variously called "the Stone Grandfather", "the Stone Buddha", "the Stone General", "the Stone Divine Grandfather", "the Emperor of Six Areas", "the Literate and Militant Emperor", "the Grandfather of Yellow Stone", or "the Wind-moving Stone" due to different localities or some other reasons. Similarly, even though divine trees of this type are usually called "the Tree God", they are variously called "the Pine King", "the Banyan Grandfather", "the Beech Grandfather", "the Banyan God", "the Divine Tree", "the Banyan Tree Goddess", or "the Tree King" due to different localities or some other reasons.

Most of the divine stones or trees belonging to the third type are also anthropomorphised and historicised. For example, The Autumn Maple of Lam-kang District (#T33; see figure 100) is identified with the God Lyu Dongbin, one of the Eight Immortal Ones (Baxian).(note.5) Moreover, the stone Granny of Ho-peng Award (#S16; see figure 16), the Grandfather of the Ancient Temple of An-lam District (#S40; see figure 42), the stone Granny of Chhim-khen Rural-town (#S45; see figure 48), the First Divine Patriarch of Chiang-chiu District of Chiam-teng Hamlet (#S49; see figure 52), and the General Chu of Sai-kang Rural-town (#T29; see figure 95), since they are identified as higher-ranking deities, are of course anthropomorphised and historicised. In addition, the natural objects which are treated as "the stone Good Brothers" (#S22, #S24, #S26, #S57) are also anthropomorphised, since the term "Good Brothers" means those who died by violence or without descendants and without virtuous deeds for the society.

Nonetheless, there are some deities of this type which, because they are not deified with moral deeds and are thus lower- ranking, are connected with gambling. They are only slightly influenced by anthropomorphism but are not historicised or standardised.

As we have discussed before, Watson says that the local elites, in order to gentrify themselves, have tried to cooperate with state authorities in the standardisation of cults such as that of the Heavenly Empress (Mazu) and so on. The elevation of the Heavenly Empress and her cult are paralleled by the gradual rise of state authority over China's southern coastal region (Watson 1985:294). The deities approved and elevated by state authority and local elites were those who were apotheosised because of their ethics or morality before or after death. Therefore, in order to have their deities elevated, those who took more than a casual interest in popular temple affairs made efforts to anthropomorphise and historicise their deities. The anthropomorphisation, historicisation, and standardisation of the Land God and higher-ranking deities provide good examples.

Even though the imperial system was terminated in 1912 and the Nationalist Government does not openly approve any cults, the situation has not changed much. The religious attitudes of the present government are reflected in the textbooks of the national compulsory education. According to the viewpoint of the textbooks, the "true" religions are those that uphold the social order, public opinion, morality and law. They all stress avoiding evil and doing good (Meyer 1987:47). Moreover, Taiwanese local leaders, defined here as traditional upper middle class such as politicians, entrepreneurs, and others are still zealous to spend money and time on local cults as a way of gaining status without imperial sponsorship.

Consequently, those deities who are not popular enough do not interest local leaders. These deities are, thus, much freer from the standardised interpretation than the Land God. People may, according to their own conceptions, provide the deities with different and new interpretations, and therefore endow them with different images, legends, functions, and dates of birthday festival. Being much freer from the standardised interpretation, these stone and tree deities can be interpreted more flexibly. Under the impact of the rapid social changes in these decades, they are interpreted as the guardian of gambling.

IV. the Mechanism and Authorities of Common People:

Based on the studies in the previous chapters, we observe that the state, local literate elites, and written accounts served as the mechanism to standardise the local religious culture in imperial times. The influence of the standardisation has been in effect even until now. However, from the studies of the deities who are not popular enough to attract local leaders' attention, we discover that, besides the mechanism dominated by elites, common people have their own mechanism to sustain their religious culture.

For example, the education in modern schools ignores the significance of turtle and crane recorded in classical Chinese mythology, but, temple and family education instructed by senior relatives serves as the mechanism to reproduce their significance. Senior relatives are the instructors from whom children can learn religious knowledge such as the proper way to carry out rituals, the legends of cultural heroes, and the bureaucratic ranking of deities. The religious knowledge in all aspects defines the turtle and crane as sacred symbols consisting of intrinsic mystery. As a result, the conception of the two mythical animals' cultural significance is shaped.

From the analysis of the birthday festival dates of the divine stones and trees, we also notice that common people have their own mechanism to identify the dates. Two birthday festival dates for the Land God are standardised in the Almanac, but common people accept only one date (the second day of the second month) and ignore the other date (the sixteenth day of the twelfth lunar month). The acceptance of yet another date (either the second day or the fifteen day of the eighth lunar month) shows the influence of the autumn rite of the "She", which was also a state fostered cult, but different from the second date standardised in the Almanac.

Moreover, without the standardised account, common people can still identify the dates by numerous ways, by the instructions of shamans, of religious specialists and others. Even without these specialists, they can identify the dates with the same birthdays of some goddesses who are also guardians of children; they can believe they are following the traditional dates of the birthdays of the Stone and Tree Gods; they can use the temple inauguration dates as birthday festival dates; or they can decide which dates are convenient for them to hold festivals.

From the study of the religious custom of the nominal adoption of unhealthy children, we can observe that common people have their own mechanism to choose deities. Higher-ranking deities who are elevated by the state authority and believed to have great power are suitable for being nominal parents. However, besides these powerful deities, common people also prefer their children to be nominally adopted by the Stone and Tree Gods who, although with little hierarchical power, can serve children with their intrinsic appearance physical strength which is more direct and concrete than the Higher-ranking ones.

From the analysis of Chinese wealth gods, we also find that common people have their own choice. There are various deities who serve as wealth gods. Guan'gong, for instance, is believed to be mighty in bringing wealth. But those who worship him should commit to the spirit of justice and loyalty after prosperity arrives. The Land God is also venerated as a wealth god, since prosperity and wealth depend on the quality of the crops and on the peace of the community. However, besides worshipping these two standardised deities, common people sometimes choose to worship the Good Brothers, the Stone and Tree Gods, the Third Prince, and the Crazy Monk for wealth, because these are not bound by the officially approved morality.

Therefore, we find that there are various authorities in the mechanism of the common people's decision making process. The religious specialist such as the shaman or fortune-teller, for example, is one of these authorities. S/he can instruct people what date the birthday festival should be; can declare if a child is "fundamentally weak" or not; can recommend what kind of nominal adoption one should engage in; can decide what natural objects should be deified; and can predict the winning numbers of the Lottery. The senior relative is also an authority. S/he is the instructor of popular religious culture and carrier of local tradition. S/he can judge if a child is "fundamentally weak" or not and recommend a nominal adoption. S/he can decide a local shrine should be initiated or not. S/he can even become a nominal parent. Moreover, intuition is an authority. It can decide whether an ordinary stone or tree is divine or not. It can give hints of winning numbers. Besides, local traditions, miracles, the divination instruments depicted in Chapter Seven are also held by common people as their authorities.

In sum, the previous chapters of this thesis demonstrate that common people only partly accept the authority of the standardised written accounts fostered by elites and local leaders, and take it as only one of their authorities. Besides it, they have their own mechanism to sustain their religious culture and have their own authorities to follow. The investigation of this mechanism and/or authorities can be easily overlooked if we limit our studies to the religious cultures dominated by the elites. Furthermore, the mechanism fostered by the state and elites seemed to serve as a carrier of messages such as civilization, order, and loyalty to the state, that is, "keeper" of social values. On the contrary, the authorities preferred by common people can serve as "challengers" to those who are privileged and who set social values (see also Chapter Three and Chapter Seven).

V. Recent Changes of the Divine Stones and Trees:

Since that they contain intrinsic mystery and due to the prevalence of the "Everybody Happy Lottery", many stones and trees continue to be deified and worshipped. However, I am concerned about the recent changes of the divine stones and trees included in my field work. In 1994, when I came to Tan-suan Rural-town to do research on the Emperor of Six Areas (#S10), I could not find the temple where the divine stone was located. Fortunately, I was told that the original temple had been destroyed and the Emperor of Six Areas had been moved to a temple for the God Sam-san Kok-ong (the Kings of Three Mountains). I found the temple later on but still did not find the divine stone on the altar. The custodian told me that a couple of years ago when the temple was becoming well-financed, villagers moulded a statue for the Emperor of Six Areas and the stone had been set into the statue. Today, though the cult is still popular, we can no longer see the original stone.

The two stone chambers for the worship of the stone Land God of E-kham-te Hamlet (#S25; see figure 27) and the stone Good Brothers of E-kham-te Hamlet (#S26; see figure 28) were gracefully located under an Autumn Maple tree at E-kham-te Hamlet. However, in 1996, the road beside the chambers is expected to be widened and the chambers are supposed to be moved away. People there decided to build a temple to worship the Land God and the Good Brothers. I asked them how they will deal with the stone chambers after the temple is built? They answered that they will bury the chambers under the temple. Accordingly, we might no longer see the dolmens. Similarly, the stone chamber of the stone Land God of Chhen-the Lane (#S21; see figures 21 & 22) is going to be buried under the new temple when villagers there raise enough funds to build one.

The divine trees are also not in good condition. From the previous chapters we see that the original trees for the worship of the Tree God of Lam-kian West Road (#T34; see figure 101), the Tree God of Kui-sin Village (#T7; see figure 72), and the Tree God of Peng-ho Ward (#T3; see figure 68) have all died. Nowadays, they are only represented by a statue or tablet.(note.6)

We know that the Pine King of Chong-ui Rural-town (#T2; see figure 67) is located in front of the big temple of Khai-chiang- seng-ong (literally, the First Divine Patriarch of the Chiang- chiu Prefecture). In recent decades, the front yard of the big temple has been paved over with cement. Unfortunately, the pressure of the cement blocked up the channels that brought water to the roots. Since then the divine tree gradually withered. Similarly, the trunk of the Autumn Maple God of Lam-kang District (#T33; see figure 99) is surrounded by the concrete temple building. The concrete restricts the spread of branches and roots of the divine tree. For a long time this tree has had no vitality.

I was told that the divine tree for the worship of the Tree God of Thau-hun Village (#T4; see figure 69) was so large that we could see it at a far distance. However, about ten years ago the trunk of the tree was knocked down by a bolt of lightning.

In spite of the above, people of some localities are in need to protect their trees. The case of the divine tree of Kang-khau Ward (#T8; see figure 73) is a notable example. The tree located at Kang-khau Ward of Toucheng Town was virtually a symbol of the town. When you saw it from a train or car, you knew you were coming to Toucheng. When the tree sprouted new shoots, it meant that the people there could go to the sea and net a big catch of larval fish. In days past, kids would often break off a sprig and eat it as a snack (Chang Chin-ju 1993b:91).

Unfortunately, since the road beside the divine tree became the major thoroughfare between Taipei City and Yilan County several years ago, traffic on the road has gradually become heavy. Therefore, the Taiwan Highway Bureau intended to widen this road and ordered that the tree be moved away from the road. People there were so angry about this order that they shouted: "Was the road or the tree there first? If you want the tree to go, let it walk away by itself. Otherwise, we will protect where its roots grow, protect where its branches extend" (Chang Chin-ju 1993b:91). Consequently, the Taiwan Highway Bureau changed its plan and moved the widened new road west to avoid the territory where the tree is rooted.

But things did not end here. A typhoon knocked half of the trunk of the tree down and left its roots exposed to the air. Today, the residents of the Town still wait for the tree to sprout and regain its vitality (Chang Chin-ju 1993b:90). However, the present director of the Forestry Department at the Chinese Culture University who is also a teacher of the subject for many decades, says that when large trees are isolated, standing alone in fields, on flat wastes, or in urban areas, then these trees are the most exposed targets for the bolts of lightnings or strong typhoons (Chang Chin-ju 1993a:79).

Nevertheless, some divine trees are more fortunate. In order to protect them from lightning, people installed lightning rods beside some divine trees (e.g. #T19, #T39).(note.7) Moreover, some temples (e.g. #T39, #T1, #T22, #T26) where divine trees are located have become gathering places for the elderly. At any time, we can find them gathered there, whiling away the hours chatting, playing chess or practising their calligraphy. The elderly can invite their friends from outside the village into the temple to drink tea and chat, where, though their children may be off on their own, they can still find company, drink tea and chew on betel nuts. Life cannot be any more comfortable than the life there.

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(note.1)

The data collected from the field work in 1992-1994 in Taiwan reveal that many divine stones in this island are still considered as having evil-warding or fertilizing capability. However, probably due to the limitation of the field research, no divine stone is regarded as rain-making or good-geomancy-bringing as recorded in Chinese textual references reviewed in Chapter Two. Similarly, divine trees in Taiwan are still venerated as miracle trees, the Land God, or temple tree of the Land God etc. But none of them is considered as geomancy tree. I think the reason that there is not the belief of rain-making stone might be because Taiwan has abundant rainfall year-round, it is not necessary to pray for rain- making. By the same token, the lack of geomancy stone and tree might be because this island has one of the highest population densities in the world, and there is no space for the geomancy stones and trees. However, there is a need for further investigation.

(note.2)

They are: the stone Land God of Pei-go Village (#S12; see figure 12), the stone Land God of Tua-un Village (#S13; see figure 13), the stone Land God of Chhen-the Lane (#S21; see figures 21 & 22), 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), the stone Land God of E-huan Field (#S28; see figure 30), the stone Land God of Sin-hong Ward (#S29; see figure 31), the stone Land God of Chui- bue-a Hamlet (#S30; see figure 32), the stone Land God of Ai-liau Hamlet (#S31; see figure 33), the stone Land God of Phek-chiu Ward (#S32; see figure 34), the stone Land God of Chhien-kah Ward (#S39; see figure 41), the stone Land God of Tong-an Street (#S42; see figure 44), the stone Land God of Tua-kham Village (#S51; see figure 55), the stone Land God of Tiang-ken Village (#S53; see figure 58), the stone Land God of Gien-kiu-in Road (#S54; see figure 59), the stone Land God of Chhau-o. Hamlet (#S61; see figure 65), the tree Land God of In-suan Street (#T11; see figure 76), the tree Land God of the East Gate (#T12; see figure 77), the tree Land God of Pak-li Rural-town (#T35; see figure 102), and the Elderly Tree of Pak-li Rural-town (#T36; see figure 103).

(note.3)

They are: the Stone Goddess of Pak-biau Ward (#S1; see figure 1), the Stone Goddess of Ka-seng Ward (#S2; see figure 2), the Stone Grandfather of Ka-seng Ward (#S3; see figure 3), the Stone Goddess of Lek-biau Ward (#S4; see figure 4), the Stone Buddha of Uan-lim Town (#S5; see figure 5), the Stone God of Sia-thau Rural-town (#S6; see figure 6), the Stone God of Kim-eng Ward (#S7; see figure 7), 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 Emperor of Six Areas of Tan-suan Rural-town (#S10), the Stone God of Jin-ho Village (#S11; see figure 11), the Stone God of Kang-khau Ward (#S14; see figure 14), the Stone God of Ho-peng Ward (#S15; see figure 15), the Stone God of Tek-san Town (#S17; see figure 17), the Stone God of Ka-lo Ward (#S18; see figure 18), the Stone God of Tiong-guan Ward (#S19; see figure 19), the Stone God of Tho.-sian Ward (#S20; see figure 20), the Stone God of Sin-hong Ward (#S27; see figure 29), the Stone God of Sion-lim Ward (#S33; see figure 35), the Stone God of Khe-te Hamlet (#S34; see figure 36), the Stone God of Ka-hin Ward (#S35; see figure 37), the Stone God of Ka-ho Ward (#S36; see figure 38), the Stone God of Hi-ti Rural-town (#S37; see figure 39), the Literate and Militant Emperor of Po.-ho Village (#S38; see figure 40), the Grandfather of Yellow Stone of Lai-o. District (#S43; see figure 45), the Stone God of Pe-hun Ward (#S44; see figures 46 & 47), the Stone God of Pak-tau District (#S47; see figure 50), the Wind-moving Stone of Bak-sa District (#S48; see figure 51), 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 God of Gien-kiu-in Road (#S55; see figure 60), the Stone God of Chhau-o. Hamlet (#S58; see figure 63), the Stone God of Tang-si Town (#S59), the Stone God of Hong-guan City (#S60; see figure 64), The Tree God of Uan-lim Town (#T1; see figure 66), the Pine King of Chong-ui Rural-town (#T2; see figure 67), the Tree God of Peng-ho Ward (#T3; see figure 68), the Tree God of Thau-hun Village (#T4; see figure 69), the Tree God of Siong-tek Village (#T5; see figure 70), the Tree God of Kim-bin Ward (#T6; see figure 71), the Tree God of Kui-sin Village (#T7; see figure 72), the Tree God of Kang-khau Ward (#T8; see figure 73), the Tree God of Tiong-san Ward (#T9; see figure 74), the Tree God of So.-o Urban-town (#T10; see figure 75), the Banyan Grandfather of Ka-lo Ward (#T13; see figure 78), the Tree God of Tun-ho Ward (#T14; see figure 79), the Tree God of To.-sian Ward (#T15; see figure 80), the Beech Grandfather of Pak-si Ward (#T16; see figure 81), the Tree God of Sin-hong Ward (#T17; see figure 82), the Banyan God of Sion-lim Ward (#T18; see figure 83), the Divine Tree of Pen-teng Ward (#T19; see figure 84), the Tree God of Gue-bai Hamlet (#T20; see figure 86), the Tree God of Khe-te (#T21; see figure 87), the Tree God of Cho.-su Lane (#T22; see figure 88), the Tree God of Uan-chip Road (#T23; see figure 89), the Tree God of Lo-chui Village (#T24; see figure 90), the Tree God of Chhau- lian Lane (#T25; see figure 91), the Tree God of Ho-peng Ward (#T26; see figure 92), the Banyan Tree Goddess of Thong-liang Village (#T27; see figure 93), the Tree God of Chap-ji Field (#T28; see figure 94), the Tree King of Sai-kang Rural-town (#T30; see figure 96), the Tree God of Ka-li Town (#T31; see figure 97), the Tree God of Chheng-bek Ward (#T32; see figure 98), the Tree God of Lam-kian West Road (#T34; see figure 101), the Tree God of Lam-huin Ward (#T37), the Tree God of Chhau-o. Hamlet (#T38; see figure 104), and the Tree King of Tai-li Rural-town (#T39; see figure 105).

(note.4)

They are: the stone Granny of Ho-peng Ward (#S16; see figure 16), the stone Good Brothers of Bah-tau Hamlet (#S22; see figure 23), the stone Good Brothers of San-tiau Hill (#S24; see figure 26), the stone Good Brothers of E-kham-te Hamlet (#S26; see figure 28), the Grandfather of the Ancient Temple of An-lam District (#S40; see figure 42), the Divine Stone of Giong-tek Boulevard (#S41; see figure 43), the stone Granny of Chhim-khen Rural-town (#S45; see figure 48), the White Crane Immortal of Chhim-khen Rural-town (#S46; see figure 48), the First Divine Patriarch of Chiang-chiu District of Chiam-teng Hamlet (#S49; see figure 52), the stone Turtle of Ken-ki Road (#S56; see figure 61), the Stone God of Tham- te Ward (#S57; see figure 62), the General Chu of Sai-kang Rural- town (#T29; see figure 95), and the Autumn Maple God of Lam-kang District (#T33; see figure 99).

(note.5)

According to a hagiography cited by Katz (1993), Xiangong was born on the fourteenth day of the fourth lunar month in the town of Yunluo and was the grandson of Lyu Wei. The given name of the god was Lyu Yian, but he later adopted the zi (style name) Dongbin. After becoming a Taoist he used the Taoist name Chunyang, which means "Purified Yang", and also occasionally referred to himself as Hui Daoren (Taoist Hui) in a form of wordplay on his surname (Katz 1993:6). The first sources to mention Xiankong date from the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty. Therefore, it is suspected that the cult of Xiangong had begun to take shape during the waning years of the Five Dynasties period.

At Mt. Lu (in Jiangxi Province) he encountered an anonymous "divine immortal" (Shenxian) who transmitted to him a form of sword-play and various longevity techniques which enabled Sian'gong himself to become an immortal one (Katz 1993:7).

(note.6)

The original deified tree for the worship of the Tree God of Tiong-san Ward (#T9) is also dead. However, the way in which the cult is different from the previous three localities is that the believers of the tree chose a new tree and planted it to replace the original tree when it died and continued to worship the new tree (see figure 74) as the Tree God.

(note.7)

The cost of each rod is about NT$ 700,000 (Chang Chin-ju 1993a:76).