Ancient Chinese Deity Worship

The concept of deities is a distorted and illusory reflection of nature and society in people’s minds. Nature worship, totem worship, fertility worship, ancestor worship, and deity worship form a grand spectacle, constituting the richest and most mysterious part of traditional Chinese culture. Interpreting the origins and development of deity culture can enhance our understanding and thereby establish a scientific cultural outlook.

神灵观念是自然和社会在人们头脑中的虚幻和歪曲的反映。自然崇拜、图腾崇拜、生殖崇拜、祖先崇拜和神灵崇拜，洋洋大观，构成中国传统文化中最丰富又最神秘的部分。阐释神灵文化的源流，可以提高我们的认识，进而确立科学的文化观。

I. Nature Worship

一、自然崇拜

Nature is the original and primary object of religion. Nature worship involves the veneration of specific natural objects such as heaven and earth, the sun and moon, thunder, rain, wind, clouds, water, fire, mountains, and stones, as well as their corresponding deities. The foundation of nature worship is animism.

自然是宗教最初的、原始的对象，自然崇拜，即崇拜天地日月、雷雨风云、水火山石等具体的自然物以及相应的神灵。自然崇拜的基础是万物有灵。

Because the “azure sky” [cangtian] is above, all objects of worship in the sky take “heaven” as their stage; it is the most worthy of worship, supreme and unrivaled. The “deified” and “personified” heaven is called the “Heavenly Emperor” [tiandi], “Lord of Heaven” [tiangong], or “Grandfather Heaven” [tianlaoye]. The Mozi, in the chapter “Explaining Ghosts III” [Minggui xia], states that the Xia dynasty’s punitive expeditions against various tribes were “carrying out heaven’s punishment,” showing that “heaven” had authority and could serve as a justification for military campaigns. By the Shang dynasty, “heaven” was already referred to as “thearch” [di].

由于“苍天”在上，凡天空之中各种崇拜物均以“天”为舞台，它最值得崇拜，至高无上。“神化”、“人格化”的天，就是“天帝”、“天公”、“天老爷”。《墨子•明鬼下》认为夏征伐各部落是“行天之罚”，可见“天”是有权威的，可以成为征伐的理由。至商“天”已称“帝”。

Earth, as a physical entity beneath heaven and under people’s feet, is the source and site of human clothing, food, shelter, and transportation, and thus receives veneration. Ancient Chinese naive dialectics placed earth on a par with heaven, using the theory of yin and yang to explain nature: earth is yin, is kun, is mother, complementing the radiant yang of vast qian heaven. The underworld is mysterious, but aside from inhabiting natural caves, humans have only the ability to dig into the earth, so conditions underground are left to imagination. The underworld is dark, damp, low in oxygen, and sometimes said to have three layers; it is the realm of the underworld kingdom and the underworld [mingfu], where souls are punished. Earth is also kind and warm, with a maternal quality, called Earth Mother [dinu], whose deity is she.

地作为一个实体在天之下，在人之足下，是人类的衣食住行的源头和场所，因而受到膜拜。中国古代朴素的辩证法把地与天同列，以阴阳学说解释自然，地为阴、为坤、为母，与“阳”光普照的浩浩“乾”天相得相随。地下是神奇的，但人除了入住天然的山洞外，也不过只有掘地的本领，因而地下的情况也只有想象了。地下黑、湿、少氧或有三层，为地下之国、冥府所在，那是灵魂受罚的所在。地是慈祥温暖的，有母亲情怀，称地母，其神曰“社”。

The ancients had similar explanations for the solitary existence of the sun and moon in the sky, believing that originally there were many suns and moons in the sky, but multiple suns caused disasters, so the excess had to be eliminated. Among the Yami and Paiwan peoples of Taiwan, myths describe using pestles to knock down the extra suns. The Manchu people used a method of lassoing, like catching sheep, to remove the extra suns. Among the Han Chinese, Hou Yi was the hero who shot down the suns.

古人对天上的日月各自形单影只有相仿的解释，认为原始的天空太阳和月亮是很多的，但多日致灾，要把多的干掉。台湾的雅美、排湾族在神话中是以杵杵掉多余的日头的。满族则用套羊的方式套掉了多余的日头。汉族的后羿，则是射日的功臣。

Similarly, the Miao, Maonan, Lisu, Blang, Shui, and Gaoshan peoples of southeastern Guizhou treat the “moon” with the same view as the “sun,” believing that today’s moon is the one left after a process of “thinning seedlings.” Using the waxing and waning of the moon to establish a calendar is the most intuitive and feasible method; even today, coastal areas primarily use the “lunar calendar” [yinli] to facilitate maritime transportation and work. Women’s “menstruation” [yuejing] and “confinement after childbirth” [zuo yuezi] are both related to the “moon.” In fact, this traditional view has been influenced by “mystical numerology,” because the menstrual cycle is not exactly one month but about twenty-eight days, and prescribing a full month of “confinement” as an inviolable rule is a product of mysticism. The rest period for postpartum women should vary considerably depending on their physical condition and the season of childbirth.

同样，黔东南苗族、毛难族、傈傈族、布朗族、水族、高山族均以与“日”相同的观点待“月”，认为今天的月亮是经过“间苗”留下的。以月亮的盈虚设置历法是最直观可行的，至今沿海仍以使用“阴历”为主，以利海上交通和作业。妇女的“月经”和“坐月子”，都与“月”有关。其实，这种传统的观念受到了“神秘数学”的影响，因为妇女月经的周期并非一个月，而是二十八天左右，而把坐一个月“月子”作为金科玉律规定下来，是神秘主义的产物。产妇因身体状况和生产季节不同，其休息期应有较大的差异。

Moonlit nights are beautiful. People thus arranged a Mid-Autumn Festival in a season with few festivals. Lunar eclipses, however, are terrifying; throughout history, astrologers have regarded the “heavenly dog eating the moon” [tiangou shi yue] as a major ominous omen. Apocryphal texts [chenwei] never dared to take this matter lightly.

有月的夜晚是美丽的。人们于是在节日稀少的季节里安排了一个中秋节。而月食是恐怖的，历代占星术士均把“天狗食月”当作重大的凶兆。谶纬之书对此事从来不敢轻视。

Stars correspond to people on earth: “as many people on earth, as many stars in the sky.” This view of the correspondence between people and stars makes beliefs about stars rich and varied. The human eye can distinguish only about 4,500 stars, which is enough material for elaboration. First, stars are divided into hierarchies of nobility and baseness, wealth and poverty, and then major stars are endowed with personalities and stories. The brightest planets, which shift position over the years, are the most portentous. They are Metal (Venus), Wood (Jupiter), Water (Mercury), Fire (Mars), and Earth (Saturn). Astrologers use the special positions of these planets in the celestial palaces to predict individual fortunes and national order or chaos. When two planets move into proximity, this ominous sign is called “offending and clashing” [fanchong]. On August 18, 1999, the nine major planets, together with the sun and earth, moved into a special “cross” formation, sparking attention to the “Nostradamus prophecy”; yet that day has passed, and the world remained peaceful. In mythology, Venus is called Taibai, presiding over warfare; Jupiter is the Star of Fortune [fuxing]; and the star of the Old Man of the South Pole [nanji laoren xing] is the Star of Longevity [shouxing]. The “Three Stars” [sanxing] universally worshipped by various ethnic groups refer to “Fortune, Emolument, and Longevity” [fu, lu, shou]. The Big Dipper [beidou qixing] is also highly revered, serving as the main coordinate for identifying directions, calculating time, and predicting weather. As for meteors and comets, they are stars of thieves and disasters.

星星对应着地上的人，“地上多少人，天上多少星”，这种人星相应的观点使关于星星的信仰丰富多彩。人的肉眼能够分辨的星星只有4500颗左右，在这个数字上做文章已经足够。首先把星星分成三六九等富贵卑贱种种，然后给主要的星星附丽上性格和故事。最明亮的而且经年移位的行星是最具有异象的。它们是金、木、水、火、土。占星术士就是根据这些行星在天宫中的特殊位置来预测个人的命运和国家治乱的。某两颗行星运行到邻近的位置，这种凶兆被称为犯冲。1999年8月18日九大行星连同日、地运行到一个特殊的“十字”形位置，引起了人们对“诺查丹玛斯预言”的关注，然而那个日子已经过去，天下却很太平。在神话中，金星叫太白、主司征战，木星则是福星，南极老人星叫寿星。各民族普遍崇拜的“三星”却指“福、禄、寿”。北斗七星也倍受崇敬，是人们辨识方向、计算时辰、预知气象的主要座标。至于流星、彗星，则是盗贼和灾难之星。

Celestial phenomena worship includes thunder, rain, wind, clouds, and rainbows, with thunder being foremost. The coincidence of thunder from spring to summer with the growing season led people to believe that thunder gives life to the earth; thus, thunder is the deity that activates the revival of all things and governs their growth. At the same time, thunder is also a sign of heaven’s anger. The Book of Wei, “Biography of the Gaoche” [Weishu Gaoche zhuan], states: “Whenever thunder strikes, they shout and shoot arrows at the sky, then abandon the place and move away. When autumn comes and horses are fat, they again gather together at the site of the thunder strike, bury a ram, light a fire, draw swords, and a female shaman offers prayers… Sometimes someone is struck dead… then they pray for blessings.” To this day, northern ethnic groups still observe thunder taboos.

天象崇拜物包括雷雨风云虹等，首要是雷。从春到夏的雷声与生长季节的同一使人们相信是雷给大地以生机，因而，雷是起动万物苏生、主宰万物生长的神。同时，雷又是天怒的标志。《魏书•高车传》说“震霆每震则叫呼射天而弃之移去。至来岁秋，马肥，复相率候于震所，埋羖羊，燃火，拔刀，女巫祝说。……时有震死，……则为之祈福。”至今，北方民族仍有雷忌。

Accompanying thunder is lightning; they are two aspects of one event, and in folk tradition become a paired deity, with the saying “Lord Thunder and Mother Lightning” [leigong dianmu]. In the Classic of Mountains and Seas, “Classic of Regions Within the Seas: East” [Shanhaijing Hainei dongjing], the thunder deity has a “dragon body and human head” and is skilled at “beating his belly.” The cloud-dragon [yunlong] is likely the image of lightning.

与雷相随的是闪电，它们是一个事件的两个方面，在民间成为对偶神，有雷公电母之说，《山海经海内东经》中雷神“龙身而人头”，擅于“鼓其腹”。而云龙，当是闪电之形象。

Wind, rain, clouds, and rainbows each have their own deities; the reasons for worshipping them are much the same as for thunder and lightning. Among these, the custom of praying for rain has been very common from ancient times to the present.

风、雨、云、虹各有其神，对其崇拜的原因庶几如雷电。其中祈雨的习俗从古至今，十分普遍。

In addition, the worship of natural objects such as water, fire, mountains, and stones also falls under nature worship. The water deity is called River Lord [hegong], and each body of water has its own deity, such as the Yellow River deity, the Yangtze River deity, the Xiang Lord [Xiangjun], and the Dragon King [longwang]. Among the Han Chinese, the fire deity is called Zhu Rong, while other ethnic groups have their own fire deities.

此外，对于水、火、山、石等自然物的崇拜，亦属自然崇拜之例，水神曰河公，且各水自有其神，如黄河神、长江神、湘君、龙王等。汉族火神曰祝融，而各族另有自己的火神。

The greatest mountain deity is none other than Kunlun. The Classic of Mountains and Seas, “Classic of the Western Mountains” [Shanhaijing Xi ci zhi jing], says: “Kunlun Hill is truly the capital of thearchs,” and is “where the hundred deities reside.” It is indeed a sacred mountain. Many sacred mountains are recorded in ancient texts. Examples include the three immortal mountains of Penglai, Fangzhang, and Yingzhou in the sea, as recorded in the Records of the Grand Historian, “Basic Annals of the First Emperor of Qin” [Shiji Qin Shihuang benji]; the five sacred mountains of Penglai, Yingzhou, Daiyu, Yuanqiao, and Fanghu recorded in the Liezi, “Tang’s Questions” [Liezi Tangwen]; and Mount Buzhou, which Gong Gong struck in anger when contending with Zhuan Xu for the thearch’s throne, as recorded in the Huainanzi, “Treatise on the Patterns of Heaven” [Huainanzi Tianwen xun]. Every region has its famous mountains, and each famous mountain has a mountain deity and a local earth god [tudi] guarding it. In ancient times, the imperial court liked to hold mountain-sacrificing and mountain-sealing ceremonies, and the fengshan sacrifice on Mount Tai was regarded as a symbol of national strength and the ruler receiving the mandate of heaven.

山神之大，莫过于昆仑。《山海经•西次之经》说“昆仑之丘，是实惟常之都”，为“百神之所在”。实为神山。古籍中记录的神山很多。如《史记•秦始皇本记》中说的海中蓬莱、方丈、瀛洲三仙山，《列子•汤问》所载蓬莱、瀛洲、岱舆、员峤、方壶五神山，《淮南子•天文训》中共工与颛顼争帝时共工怒触的不周山等。每一地域都有名山，每一名山都有一位山神、土地镇守。古时皇室喜欢举行祭山封山大典，而泰山封禅被视为国力强盛、国君得于天的象征。

Stone worship likely originated from the story of Nüwa smelting five-colored stones to repair the sky. Even today, such stories are still circulated in the mythology of the Central Plains. It is said that on and around the main peak of Wangwu Mountain, Tiantan Mountain, there are five-colored mottled stones, which are the leftover materials from Nüwa’s sky-repairing, called Nüwa stones. In addition, there are Pangu stones, Dayu rocks, and others across the country. Today, when we see the Oboo of the Mongols and the Mani piles of the Tibetans, we can feel the eternal and widespread significance of stones as objects of nature worship. Mao Zedong was called “Shi San Yazi” [Stone Third Boy] in his childhood; his parents hoped he would have a solid foundation and had him worship a stone.

石头崇拜最早应出自女娲拣五色石补天的故事。直到今天，中原神话中还流传有这样的故事。据说，王屋山主峰天坛山上下都有五色斑烂的石块，这是当年女娲补天时剩余的石料，称女娲石。此外，全国各地还有盘古石、大禹岩等。今天，我们看到的蒙古人的敖包和藏族人的嘛呢堆，就会感到石头作为自然崇拜物所具有的永恒与广泛的意义。毛泽东小时叫石三伢子，父母希望他根基坚固，让他崇拜了一块石头。

II. Animal and Plant Worship

二、动植物崇拜

Monks occupy many of the world’s famous mountains. Marvelous nature has always received much attention, and nature worship has a long history. Modern qigong emphasizes integration with mountains and waters, originating in famous mountains and great rivers, which is a remnant of ancient nature worship. In the Chinese pharmacopoeia, some rare birds and animals, exotic flowers and strange grasses are considered valuable medicinal ingredients, reflecting the tradition of animal and plant worship.

天下名山僧占多。神奇的自然从来就倍受关注，自然崇拜源远流长。现代气功讲究与山水结合，在名山大川发端，就是古老自然崇拜的遗存。在中医药典中，一些珍禽异兽，奇花怪草更是名贵中药，折射出动植物崇拜的传统。

Traditional Chinese medicine [zhongyi] regards rhinoceros horn, antelope horn, monkey head, and bear paw as valuable medicinal ingredients; this view clearly bears the imprint of animal worship. As for the contemporary “development” of a miraculously effective “dog-bone wine,” this has already strayed further down the path of pseudoscience. This is not because there is any major difference between dog bone and tiger bone; on the contrary, I believe their differences are minimal. Although my claim lacks experimental analytical support, it is a matter of common sense. Tiger bone is used in medicine; the pharmacopoeia states that its nature is slightly warm, its taste pungent, and it is mainly used to treat conditions such as difficulty in bending and stretching joints, wandering pain, and weakness and atrophy of the feet and knees. Tiger bone contains calcium phosphate, protein, and other components; dog bone or other animal bones also contain these components. Why should tiger bone alone enjoy the privilege of medicinal use? We say that the use of dog bone in medicine has slid further into pseudoscience because it has opened the precedent of using ordinary animals in Chinese medicine, blatantly fabricating the medicinal magic of animals, discarding even the veil of mysticism. As for farces such as mythologizing the nutrition and medicinal effects of turtles and softshell turtles, these were staged with great fanfare in the 1980s and 1990s.

中医认为犀牛角、羚羊角、猴头、熊掌是名贵中药，这种观点显然具有动物崇拜的印痕。至于当代已有人“研制”出了疗效神奇的“狗骨酒”，则已在伪科学的道路上越走越远。这不是因为狗骨与虎骨有何重大区别，恰恰相反，我认为它们的区别是微乎其微。我的这种说法虽则缺少实验分析的依据，但却是一种常识判断。虎骨入药，药典说其性微温，味辛，主治筋骨屈伸不利，游走疼痛，足膝痿弱等症。虎骨含磷酸钙、蛋白质等成分，狗骨或其它动物骨亦含这些成分，难道独有虎骨可享入药的特权？我们说狗骨之入药已更大程度地滑向了伪科学，是因为它已开中医用普通动物入药的先河，赤裸裸地制造动物药用神奇，连神秘主义的遮拦也不要了。至于神化龟鳖之营养和药效之类的闹剧，在上个世纪八九十年代闹得轰轰烈烈。

People’s reverence for the tiger stems first from fear of it. People also fear the bear, yet they must hunt it. Thus, the worship of these two animals reflects humanity’s complex feelings toward nature. The tiger, class Mammalia, family Felidae, is distributed across vast areas of Asia, from Siberia in the north to India on the South Asian subcontinent. The tiger is the king of beasts; its authority derives from its martial power, so wild boar, deer, river deer, antelope, and the like can all serve as its fine meals. Modern research shows that when a tiger develops dental disease or other reasons leave it with concerns about its food supply, humans become its last resort. How could one not stand in awe?

人之敬虎，首先在于畏虎。人们也畏熊，却又不得不猎熊。所以对虎熊这两种动物的崇拜，反映了人们对于自然界的复杂心情。虎，哺乳纲，猫科。分布在北至西伯利亚南至南亚次大陆的印度等广大的亚洲地区。虎是兽中王者，其权威来自它的武力，故如野猪、鹿、獐、羚羊等均可作它的美餐。现代研究表明，当虎出现牙病或其它原因使它有餐饮之虞时，人便是它不得已的选择。能不敬畏吗？

Tiger worship is a tradition in areas where tigers are found. In the shamanic beliefs of northern peoples, the tiger is a sacred animal, and hunters dare not hunt it. Therefore, when hunting, hunters avoid encountering a tiger, fearing they might offend the Tiger King. If they happen upon one by chance, they kneel from a distance and pray. The Hezhe people even refrain from hunting animals that tigers like to eat, so as not to offend the “Mountain King.” The Tujia people believe their ethnic group has a kinship relationship with the tiger, thus calling themselves the Tiger Clan and taking the tiger as their ancestral god.

崇拜老虎是有老虎出没的地方的传统。在北方民族的萨满教信仰中，虎是神圣动物，猎人不敢猎取。故猎人行猎时避忌遇虎，怕冲犯了虎大王，万一不期而遇，则远远跪拜，祷告。赫哲人更有连老虎喜吃的动物也不敢猎取，免得冲犯了“山大王”的习惯。土家族人认为本族与虎有亲缘关系，故自称虎族，以虎为祖神。

Unlike the tiger, people’s attitude toward the bear is: hunt it. The Oroqen, Evenki, Hezhe, and Daur peoples of the northeast are all bear-hunting peoples. They simultaneously revere the bear as grandfather, grandmother, old man, or old woman, yet they do everything possible to hunt it. This is a very peculiar phenomenon of worship, reflecting humanity’s contradiction in the face of nature: on one hand, awe, respect, sacrifice, and appeasement; on the other, the necessity of consuming it, as it is an important source of prey for hunters. The foundation of all religion is premised on survival. There is no groundless belief divorced from the purpose of survival.

与虎不同的是，人们对熊的态度是：猎取它。东北的鄂伦春、鄂温克、赫哲、达斡尔族均为猎熊族，他们既尊熊为祖父祖母、老爷子或老太太，又千方百计猎取它。这是一种十分奇特的崇拜现象，它反映出人们在自然面前的矛盾，一方面是敬畏，尊重它，祭祀它，笼络它；一方面又不得不取食它，它是猎人们的重要猎源。一切宗教的基础，均以生存为前提。没有离开生存目的的无缘无故的信仰。

After hunting a bear, northern peoples invite a shaman to perform witchcraft, and throughout the entire bear-hunting process, women are kept away. Here, women are discriminated against as unclean. Female discrimination is a result of the patriarchal politics of patrilineal clans; this bad custom persists everywhere in folk beliefs. Even in the most dark event in the history of civilization—the religious persecution of witchcraft beginning in the latter half of the 15th century in England—those subjected to all kinds of abuse and merciless slaughter were women.

北方民族猎熊后要请萨满巫师施巫术，并且整个猎熊过程中让女人走开，在这里，女人成为不洁者受到了歧视。女性歧视是父系氏族男权政治的结果，这种陋习在民间信仰中处处遗存，甚至在英国15世纪后半叶开始的宗教对巫术的镇压这一文明史上最黑暗的事件中，受到百般虐待和无情杀戳的，都是妇女。

Humanity’s worship of flying birds, swimming fish, and insects has also existed since ancient times. In the mythology of the *Classic of Mountains and Seas*, there are divine birds such as the “Blue Bird,” “Feng Bird,” “Huang Bird,” “Luan Bird,” “Yellow Bird,” and “Jingwei.” [25]25 The *Classic of Mountains and Seas* (*Shanhai Jing*) is a classic Chinese text, likely compiled from the Warring States period to the early Han dynasty, containing a vast compendium of geography, mythology, and strange creatures. The essence of the sun is the “Three-Legged Crow”; the bird that gave birth to the Shang dynasty by egg is the “Dark Bird”; [26]26 The “Dark Bird” (*xuan niao*) is the mythical bird from which the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BCE) claimed descent, according to the *Book of Songs*. the colossal bird is the “Great Roc.” Among natural birds, eagles, vultures, swans, magpies, crows, and cuckoos, and among domestic fowl, golden pheasants and white doves, are all birds subject to worship. Every year during the Qingming Festival, the Bai people in the Heqing area of Yunnan hold a “Bird Worship Festival,” giving full expression to bird worship.

人类对飞鸟、游鱼和昆虫的崇拜亦自古而然。在《山海经》神话中，就有“青鸟”、“凤鸟”、“凰鸟”、“鸾鸟”、“黄鸟”、“精卫”等神鸟。太阳精魂是“三足鸟”；卵生商的是“玄鸟”；盖世大鸟是“大鹏鸟”。在自然界鸟类中，鹰鹫、天鹅、喜鹊、乌鸦、布谷，在家禽中，金鸡、白鸽等均是受人崇拜之鸟，在每年的清明节，云南鹤庆一带的白族都要过“祭鸟节”，将鸟类崇拜发挥得淋漓尽致。

Among aquatic animals and reptiles, the snake and the turtle are the most important objects of worship. In contemporary times, the much-maligned softshell turtle has also squeezed into the ranks of the worshipped, becoming a byword for medicine and nutritional products.

水生动物和爬行动物中的崇拜物，以蛇、龟为最主要。在当代，被人臭骂的王八鳖也挤进了受人崇拜的队伍，成为药品和营养品的代名词。

We could also list a long roster, adding frogs, bees, ants, silkworms, cicadas, spiders, scorpions, centipedes, and locusts to the ranks of the worshipped. These swarming, crawling, fluttering, wriggling pets, should they one day arrive in your living room, would make Lord Ye, who professed to love dragons, tremble with fear. [27]27 “Lord Ye who professed to love dragons” refers to a Chinese idiom about a man who claimed to love dragons but fled in terror when a real dragon appeared, illustrating hypocrisy or false pretense.

我们尚可列个长单，把蛙、蜂、蚁、蚕、蝉、蜘蛛、蝎子、蜈蚣和蝗虫加入被崇拜的队伍。这些黑压压的爬行着、飞扑着、蠕动着的宠物有朝一日来到你家客厅，令好龙的叶公们心惊肉跳。

And the ranks of divine beasts and divine birds created by human thought—the dragon, phoenix, qilin, lion, suanni, tianma, haima, xiezhi, and douniu—are majestic and awe-inspiring. [28]28 The *qilin* is a mythical hooved chimerical creature; the *suanni* is a mythical lion-like beast; the *tianma* is a heavenly horse; the *haima* is a sea horse; the *xiezhi* is a mythical beast that judges right from wrong; the *douniu* is a mythical ox-like creature. These are all traditional Chinese auspicious or guardian beasts. Together with the plants worshipped—pine, cypress, bamboo, willow, locust, banyan, elm, chrysanthemum, orchid, plum, peach, pomegranate, and peony—they shine brilliantly.

而龙、凤凰、麒麟、狮、狻猊、天马、海马、獬豸，斗牛这些人类思维创造出来的神兽神禽的队伍，威风凛凛。它们与植物崇拜中的松、柏、竹、柳、槐、榕、榆、菊、兰、梅、桃、榴花和牡丹一样，光彩夺目。

Of course, the most worshipped plant might be the old locust tree in Hongtong, Shanxi. [29]29 Hongtong in Shanxi province is the site of a famous locust tree, the symbolic ancestral home for many Chinese whose ancestors were forcibly migrated during the early Ming dynasty (14th–15th centuries). Long ago, when villagers were escorted by officials to migrate to distant places, the elders told the younger generation to remember the old locust tree at the village head—it is our root.

当然，最受人崇拜的植物也许是山西洪洞那棵老槐树。很久很久以前，村人被官吏押解移民远方的时候，长者告诉晚辈，要记住村头的老槐树，它是我们的根。

III. Worship of Spirits

三、神灵崇拜

The content of Chinese folk spirit worship is exceptionally rich. It includes worship of imagined beings such as gods, ghosts, and spirits; worship of figures such as deities, immortals, sages, and shamans, to whom supernatural powers are attributed; and worship of imagined supernatural forces such as spiritual objects, souls, and idols.

中国民间神灵崇拜内涵异常丰富，它既包括对神灵、鬼灵、精灵这些幻想物的崇拜，也包括对神、仙、圣、巫这些被附会有超自然力的人物的崇拜，还包括幻想的超自然力如灵物、灵魂、偶像的崇拜。

The philosophical foundation of spirit worship is the theism of animism, which runs through all of human history to the present day. Theism accommodates human ignorance, naivety, and wild imagination; thus, its depiction of the world is also a rough, cartoonish sketch.

神灵崇拜的哲学基础是万物有灵的有神论，它贯穿于迄今为止的人类全部历史。有神论适应于人类的无知、幼稚和异想天开，因而，它对世界的描绘也是粗线条漫画式的。

Among Chinese spirits, there are creator gods, guardian gods, ancestral gods, and household gods. Theism holds that the world was created by gods. In Han Chinese tradition, Pangu is the creator of heaven and earth, but no god seems to be found before Pangu. *Yiwen Leiju*, volume 1, quoting the *Sanwu Liji*, says: “Heaven and earth were chaotic like a chicken’s egg, and Pangu was born within it. After 18,000 years, heaven and earth separated: the clear yang became heaven, the turbid yin became earth. Pangu was within them, changing nine times a day, more divine than heaven, more sage than earth. Heaven rose one *zhang* each day, earth thickened one *zhang* each day, and Pangu grew one *zhang* each day. Thus, after 18,000 years, Pangu reached his utmost height.” [30]30 *Yiwen Leiju* is a Tang dynasty (618–907) encyclopedia. The *Sanwu Liji* is a lost text from the Three Kingdoms period (220–280) attributed to Xu Zheng, containing the Pangu creation myth. At the beginning of the separation of heaven and earth, the world was like a chicken’s egg, later propped open by Pangu’s growth. This somewhat resembles the contemporary theory of the universe’s formation from a big bang—a coincidence, as it were.

在中国神灵中，有创世神、守护神和祖神、家神等。有神论认为，世界是神创的，汉族传统中的盘古就是天地的创造者，但盘古之前似乎找不到神了。《艺文类聚》卷一引《三五历纪》说：“天地浑沌如鸡子，盘古生其中。万八千岁，天地开辟，阳清为天，阴浊为地。盘古在其中，一日九变，神于天，圣于地。天日高一丈，地日厚一丈，盘古日长一丈，如此万八千岁，盘古极长。”开天辟地之初，世界为一鸡蛋，以后由盘古长大撑开，这与当代宇宙形成于大爆炸的理论有些相似，也算偶合。

Guardian gods, also called protective gods, include mountain gods, water gods, the village Earth God, and the city god of towns. The Earth God is also called the God of the Soil. *Shuowen Jiezi* says that *she* (soil) is the “god of the earth.” [31]31 *Shuowen Jiezi* is the first comprehensive Chinese dictionary, compiled by Xu Shen around 100 CE during the Han dynasty. The guardian gods of villages or tribes are very important; this reflects people’s pursuit of a sense of security. On Chinese maps, we find many place names in the Jinghong area of Yunnan containing the character “Meng.” “Meng” refers to a flat area between mountains, a village built on flat land, or a union of several villages. The guardian gods of these villages, the Meng gods, are all remarkable figures who sacrificed themselves to protect the village’s interests. After death, they continue to guard the village as before, living on in people’s hearts.

守护神又叫保护神，如山神、水神、乡村的土地爷和城市的城隍神。土地神又称社神，《说文解字》说社是“后土之神”。村寨或部落的守护神是十分重要的，这反映了人们对安全感的追求。在中国地图上我们发现云南景洪地区有许多带“勐”的地名，“勐”即山间平地，是平地上建起的村寨，或几个村寨的联合体，村寨的守护神即勐神都是一些神奇人物，他们是因保护村寨的利益而献身者，死后仍一如既往地守护村寨，活在人们的心中。

Ancestral god belief is the worship of one’s own clan ancestors, while household god worship targets things closely related to family life. In the home, the stove, door, well, granary, bed, and latrine all have gods. The folk practice of planchette divination may originate from legends about the latrine goddess, and the importance attached to the New Year’s Eve fire pit is clearly related to the fire pit god. The latrine goddess, commonly called “Keng San Guniang,” “San Gu,” “Qi Gu,” “Qi Gu,” or “Mao Gu,” is collectively known as “Zi Gu.” There are various accounts of this god’s origin. Liu Jingshu of the Southern Dynasties, in *Yiyuan*, says: “In the world there was a girl named Zi Gu, who from ancient times was said to be a concubine. Hated by the principal wife, she was constantly assigned dirty tasks. On the fifteenth day of the first month, she died of grief. Therefore, people make an effigy of her, and at night, by the latrine or pigpen, they welcome her, reciting: ‘Your husband is not here, and Sister Cao has also returned; Little Sister, you may come out.’ When the person holding the effigy feels it become heavy, that is the spirit arriving. They set out wine and fruit, and the effigy also seems to have a radiant complexion, then begins to jump and dance ceaselessly. It can divine various matters, predict future sericulture, and is good at guessing games. If pleased, it dances wildly; if displeased, it goes to sleep.” [32]32 *Yiyuan* is a collection of strange tales and folklore compiled by Liu Jingshu during the Liu Song dynasty (420–479). During the Southern Dynasties, the worship of Zi Gu was already popular, and using an effigy—an idol-like object—as a ritual implement had emerged. By the Tang dynasty, this practice evolved into the “sand-basket-with-brush” form of “supporting the basket,” which is the planchette divination still popular today, also known as “pen immortal.”

祖神信仰是对本族祖的崇拜，而家神崇拜则是针对与家庭生活密切相关的事物而来的，在家中，灶、门、井、仓、床、厕均有神，民间扶乩巫术的源头可能与厕神的传说有关，而对除夕火塘的重视，则明显与火塘神有关。厕神，俗称“坑三姑娘”、“三姑”“戚姑”、“七姑”、“茅姑”，统称“紫姑”。对此神由来，有各种说法，南朝刘敬叔《异苑》说“世有紫姑女，古来相传为人妾，为大家所嫉，每以秽事相次役，正月十五日感激而死。故世人以其作形，夜于厕间或猪栏边迎之，视曰：‘子婿不在，曹姑亦归，小姑可出。’捉者觉重，便是神来，奠设酒果，亦觉貌辉辉有色，即跳踱不住。能占众事，卜未来蚕桑，又善射钩，好则大舞，恶则便眠。”南朝时紫姑信仰已经流行，且有以其目作形这种类似偶像的东西作法器。此风到唐代时已演变为“沙箕插笔”的“扶箕”形式，就是至今流行的扶乩，或曰笔仙。

Chinese folk gods, ghosts, and spirits pervade every aspect of life; there is nothing without a god, and no detail is too small. A piece of land, a house site, a stove platform, a wooden bed—all have spirits protecting them. Pregnancy and childbirth, seeking medical treatment and medicine—all have specialized gods in charge. The safety, warmth, hunger, illness, birth, aging, sickness, and death of family life are all controlled by the multitude of household gods. And the Jade Emperor, Queen Mother of the West, Dragon King, and the gods of fortune, emolument, longevity, happiness, and wealth, along with various local folk gods, still enjoy a high degree of recognition in today’s era that advocates atheism.

中国民间神、鬼、精灵遍及生活的方方面面，无事无神，无微不至。一片土地、一个屋场、一垒灶台、一台木床均有神灵保护，怀胎生产、求医问药亦有专神司职。家庭生活中的安危、冷暖、饥饱、生老病死，均由众家神掌握，而玉皇大帝，王母娘娘，龙王及福、禄、寿、喜、财、各地俗神，在提倡无神论的今天，仍享有较高的知名度。

Ghosts include ghost emperors, King Yama, the Great Emperor of Mount Tai, and Kshitigarbha Bodhisattva—ghost kings at the ghost king level. Under the ghost kings are ghost officials, ghost clerks, and ghost soldiers, such as the Judge, Marshal Meng, Marshal Wen, Grand Commandant Zhang, the City God, Ox-Head, Horse-Face, White Impermanence, Black Impermanence, and little ghosts. [33]33 Ox-Head and Horse-Face are two fearsome guardians of the underworld in Chinese mythology. White Impermanence and Black Impermanence are two deities who escort the souls of the dead to the underworld. Then there are household ghosts formed from deceased ancestors and evil ghosts transformed from those who died unnatural deaths.

鬼灵有鬼帝、阎罗王、东岳大帝、地藏王等鬼王级鬼灵，鬼王属下有鬼官、鬼吏、鬼卒，如判官、孟元帅、温元帅、张太尉、城隍、牛头、马面、白无帝、黑无帝、小鬼等。再就是过世先祖形成的家鬼和非正常死亡幻化的邪鬼。

Spirits are a belief that combines the living soul of the living and the dead soul of the deceased, extending it to the idea that all natural things have their own souls. Many of the strange birds, strange beasts, and half-human, half-animal or half-bird beings with extraordinary abilities in the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* are spirits celebrated by the ancients.

精灵是一种把活人的生魂和死人的亡魂结合起来推衍到自然万物都具有各自灵魂的信仰。《山海经》中的许多异禽怪兽、半人半兽鸟的具有超凡本领者，都是古人传诵的精灵。

However, Chinese folk belief does not only worship natural objects in their primitive form or purely imagined supernatural forces, nor does it only worship ancestors, an extension of belief in the human soul. It also includes the worship of figures attributed with supernatural powers, which deserves our attention. This includes divine beings, immortals, sages, and shamans.

但是，中国民间信仰并不只崇拜那些原始状貌的大自然物或纯属幻想的超自然力，也不只崇拜那些由对人的灵魂信仰扩展开来的对祖先的崇拜，还有那些附会以超自然力的人物的崇拜值得我们注意。包括神人、仙人、圣人、巫师等。

The worship of deified human beings is far more tangible than any other form of deity worship, because it has historical figures as its prototypes. This kind of worship is merely an exaggeration of the merits, virtues, or crimes of historical figures. These figures also encompass a wide range of types. Examples include the thinker Laozi Li Er; eminent monks such as the Eighteen Arhats, the Five Hundred Arhats, the Cloth-Bag Monk (Maitreya), Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva, Ji Gong, and Wang Lingguan; the Medicine King Sun Simiao; the famous general Guan Yu; the Tide God Wu Zixu; Erlang Shen Yang Jian; the Sea Goddess Tianfei Mazu; the Earth God Du Shiyi (Du Shiyi), Chen Shiyi (Chen Shiyi); the Water Conservancy God Li Bing and his son; the Door Gods Qin Qiong and Yuchi Gong; the River God Lin Yi; the Wine God Du Kang; the Tea God Lu Yu; the Craftsman God Lu Ban; the Weaving Goddess Huang Daopo; the Art God Liu Jingting; the Pastry Industry God Emperor Xuan of Han Liu Xun; the Medical God Bian Que; the Kiln God Shun; and various local City Gods (Chenghuang).

神人崇拜比任何其它神灵崇拜都要实在得多，因为他们有历史人物作为原形。这种崇拜不过是对历史人物功德或罪恶的夸张。这些人物也包罗万象。如思想家老子李耳；高僧十八罗汉、五百罗汉、布袋和尚（弥勒佛）、地藏王菩萨、济公、王灵官；药王孙思邈，名将关羽、潮神伍子胥、二郎神杨戬；海神天妃妈祖、土地神杜拾遗（杜十姨）、陈拾遗（陈十姨）、水利神李冰父子、门神秦琼、尉迟恭、江神林毅；酒神杜康、茶神陆羽、工匠神鲁班、纺织神黄道婆、艺神柳敬亭、饼业神汉宣帝刘洵、医神扁鹊、窑神舜，以及各地城隍。

Immortal worship is a form of worship that developed under the influence of Daoism, directed toward those who have ascended to become immortals. The legend of the "Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea" is widely circulated among the people. Zhang Ling, the founder of the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice, is also an immortal revered by Daoism. He was a native of Feng County in the state of Pei during the reign of Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han dynasty. He founded the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice, also known as the Way of the Celestial Masters, hence Zhang Ling is also called Zhang the Celestial Master, or Zhang Daoling. Distinct from the Eight Immortals, the people also believe in the Upper Eight Immortals. Zhang the Celestial Master is one of the Upper Eight Immortals, along with the Star God of Emolument, the Star God of Longevity, the Immortal Zhang, Dongfang Shuo, Chen Tuan, Peng Zu, and the Old Mother of Mount Li. The Lower Eight Immortals include the "Two Immortals of Harmony and Union," Guangchengzi, Guiguzi, Li Babai, Liu Hai, Magu, and Sun Bin.

仙人崇拜是受道教影响而形成对飞升为仙者的崇拜，民间广为流传有“八仙过海”的传说。五斗米道创立者张陵也是道教推崇的仙人。其为东汉光武帝时沛国丰人，自创五斗米道，又称正一天师道，故张陵又称张天师，张道陵。和八仙相区别，民间又信奉上八仙。张天师为上八仙之一，另有禄星神、寿星神、张仙神、东方朔、陈抟、彭祖、骊山老母。下八仙有“和合二仙”、广成子、鬼谷子、李八百、刘海、麻姑和孙膑。

Hanshan and Shide were eccentric monks of the Tang dynasty. Hanshan practiced asceticism on Cold Mountain in the Tiantai Mountains around the Zhenguan era of the Tang dynasty. At that time, he was gaunt and haggard, dressed in tattered clothes, wearing wooden clogs, a birch-bark hat, and was always smiling. He was skilled at composing gathas, and later generations collected over three hundred of them into the *Collected Poems of Hanshan*. Shide was originally an orphan, picked up by the eminent monk Fenggan. He later became a temple cook, providing for and caring for Hanshan, and they became inseparable friends. Later they became immortals, and the people regarded them as close friends, thus calling them together as "Hanshan and Shide," honoring them as the "Two Immortals of Harmony and Union."

寒山、拾得为唐代异僧，寒山约于唐代贞观年间在天台山寒岩修行，他当时形容憔悴、衣衫褴缕，足踏木屐，头冠桦皮，笑口常开。善讨偈，后人集得300余首成《寒山子诗集》。拾得原是孤儿，被高僧封干拾得。后成为寺厨，接济关照过寒山，成为莫逆之交。后成仙，民间以之为好友，故以“寒山拾得”连呼二仙，尊为“和合二仙”。

The worship of sages who possessed great virtue, great wisdom, and great courage during their lifetimes is a type of folk worship closer to the reality of life. The sages worshipped include ancient tribal leaders, such as Shennong, Fuxi, and the Yellow Emperor; slave-state rulers Yao, Shun, Yu, Tang, Wen, and Wu; representatives of the Hundred Schools of Thought, such as Confucius, Mencius, Laozi, and Zhuangzi; the Wu lords and the Marquis of Wu [34]34 The Marquis of Wu refers to Zhuge Liang (181–234), the renowned chancellor and military strategist of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period, posthumously honored as Marquis of Wu. from the Three Kingdoms period; and successive generations of enlightened rulers, famous ministers, generals, Confucian scholars, officials, and scholars. Folk sage worship, guided by Confucian thought, promoted by the imperial court, marked by the establishment of temples and shrines, and carried out through the means of worship and offerings, has become a unique content of Chinese belief. In the actual process of worship, the original meaning of worship gradually mutated, and some sages eventually became protective deities. For example, Yue Fei was worshipped in the Song dynasty as the guardian deity of the Imperial Academy; Daoism later attached to him the role of the swift-rewarding god of karmic retribution, and even attached to him the roles of the God of Wealth and the Door God. Qu Yuan was attached to the role of the protective deity of the Yangtze River in the Ming dynasty. Guan Yu was attached to the role of a greatly efficacious divine being. Some relics were imbued with mystical colors, such as the "seedless" red lotus roots at the Temple of Lord Bao, and the "incorruptible well" water that corrupt officials dared not drink. This allows one to see the degeneration of sage worship into superstition.

对于在世时有大德、大智、大勇的圣人的崇拜，是民间崇拜中更贴近生活真实的一种，受崇拜的圣人有远古的部落首领，如神农、伏羲、黄帝，有奴隶制国君尧、舜、禹、汤、文、武，有诸子百家的代表人物孔、孟、老、庄，有三国时的吴主和武候，有历代明君名相名将名儒名臣名士。民间圣人崇拜以儒家思想为指引，以皇朝官方为倡导，以建祠立庙为标志，以崇拜祀奉为手段，成为中国信仰的独特内容。在实际崇拜过程中，原意上的崇拜被逐步变异，一些圣人最终变成了保护神，比如，岳飞在宋代被奉为太学守土之神，道教又附会成因果报应的速报之神，甚至附会为财神、门神；屈原在明代已附会成江渎保护神；关羽附会成大显神通的神人。一些遗迹，被赋予神秘色彩，如包公祠的红莲藕“无丝”，“廉井”水贪官不敢喝。这就使人看到了圣人崇拜向迷信的流变。

Shaman worship, including belief in shamanic arts, is a major category of superstition. A shaman is a type of semi-divine religious professional who claims to possess supernatural powers. The *Shuowen Jiezi* states: "Wu [shaman] is a invocator; a woman who can serve the formless and summon spirits down through dance." Male shamans are called *xi*. Chinese shamanism flourished from the Shang dynasty onward. For over 700 years, from the Zhou to the Han dynasties, from the imperial court to the common alleyways, no matter how trivial the matter, it was all controlled by shamans, and shamanic customs were everywhere.

巫师崇拜，包括对巫术的信奉，是迷信的主要品种。巫师是那种自称具有超自然力的半人半神的神职人员。《说文》认为：“巫，祝也，女能事无形，以舞降神者也。”巫也有男的，称觋。中国的巫从古代商时开始盛行。从周至汉700余年，上自宫廷，下至闾巷，事无巨细，均由巫觋掌握，遍地巫风。

In the north, the Manchu people, as the main ethnic group of the Manchu-Tungusic language family, have worshipped shamans since ancient times. This shamanic belief has a broad area of practice stretching from the Bering Strait to the Ural-Altai peoples (including the Lapps and Eskimos) at the border of Scandinavia. This kind of shamanic art, practiced by those called Shamans, attracted the attention of the British historian of Chinese science, Joseph Needham. In analyzing shamanic arts, Needham noted the phonetic similarity between the characters *wu* (shaman) and *wu* (dance), and thereby recognized a certain connection between "practicing shamanism" and "dancing." He further discovered that the lower part of the character *yi* (medical) is precisely the character *wu* (shaman). Of course, perhaps precisely because shamanism is a superstition, the words of shamans are untrue and unworthy of belief. Thus, adding the speech radical to the character *wu* (shaman) forms the character *wu* (to slander). Shamans are divided into family and wild types. The family spirits, or family shamans, when presiding over sacrifices to Heaven or ancestors, wear skirts, beat spirit drums, tie waist bells, and sing spirit songs; this is precisely a kind of "dance," and such "dancers" are the great spirits. Usually, family shamans perform the family spirit dance, inviting ancestral spirits, in a frenzy that is not chaotic; wild shamans, when performing the great spirit dance, use numerous ritual implements, bind bronze mirrors to their bodies, adorn their hats with ornaments, wield knives, forks, and whips in their hands, claim to have multiple spirits possessing their bodies, and even possess the ability to "descend to the underworld" to communicate with the souls of the dead. Shaman worship influences the worship of immortals seeking longevity and the worship of living Buddhas. It is close to secular life and is in its most natural state, thus it is also the most deceptive.

在北方，满族作为满——通古斯语族的主体民族，从远古时就崇拜萨满这种巫师。这种巫术信仰有从白令海峡到斯堪的纳维亚边界的乌拉尔河、阿尔泰民族（包括拉布兰人和爱斯基摩人）的广泛信仰区域。这种被称为Shamans的巫或方士之术曾引起英国中国科学史专家李约瑟的重视。李约瑟在分析Shamans术时，注意到了“巫”和“舞”字字音之间的近似性，进而认识了“行巫”与“舞蹈”的某种联系。他进一步发现，汉字“毉”的下部，正是一个巫字。当然，也许正因为巫是一种迷信，巫的话是不真实的，不足为信。所以，巫字加个言旁，就是“诬”。萨满有家与野之分，家神即家萨满主持祭天、祭祖时穿衣裙，击神鼓，系腰铃，唱神歌，正是一种“舞”，这种“舞”者即大神。通常家萨满跳家神，请祖灵，狂而不乱；野萨满跳大神则有众多法器，身缚铜镜，帽缀饰物，手使刀、叉、鞭，称有多种神灵附体，甚至还有“过阴”与亡魂交流的本事。巫师崇拜影响到对长生不老的仙真崇拜和对在生活佛的崇拜，它贴近世俗生活，最具自然状态，因而也最具欺骗性。

The final type of folk deity worship is the worship of talismans, souls, and idols. People believe that some small objects can help ward off evil and attract good fortune. Examples include amulets, longevity locks, neck rings, and New Year's money, all of which are talismans. The talismanic belief in swearing an oath by smearing blood on the lips is found worldwide. Blood, as a talisman, can be not only chicken blood but also one's own blood. The American writer Mark Twain, in *The Adventures of Tom Sawyer*, repeatedly describes Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, who yearn for a bandit's life, childishly imitating this shamanic custom. Today, talisman worship remains vibrant among the people, visible in the mugwort leaves and calamus newly inserted into every household's door frame during the Dragon Boat Festival in May, and the dogwood worn on the Double Ninth Festival in September.

民间神灵崇拜的最后一种类型是对灵物、灵魂和偶像的崇拜，人们相信一些小物件可以帮人祛凶趋吉。如护身符，长命锁，项圈，压岁钱，均为灵物。歃血为盟这种灵物信仰，在全世界均有市场。血作为一种灵物，不仅可用鸡血，而且也可以用人自己的血。美国作家马克•吐温在《汤姆•索亚历险记 》中多次写道向往强盗生活的汤姆•索亚和哈克贝利•芬幼稚地模仿这种巫风。今天，灵物崇拜仍然鲜活在民间，从五月端午节家家门框上新插的艾叶和菖莆，九月九日插茱萸可以看见。

Fertility worship is also a type of talisman worship. "Worship of the female vulva" and "worship of the *qie* (phallus)" respectively preserve the vestiges of matrilineal and patrilineal clan worship of sexual objects. Stone, wood, and ceramic carvings of sexual organs are talismans with reproductive magic. A stretch of water, a natural cave, or a depression can all serve as symbols of the female vulva, while stalactite pillars are naturally symbols of the male phallus (i.e., *qie*). The Miao people in southeastern Guizhou worship the pair of primordial ancestors, the brother and sister Jiang Yang. The annual ritual sacrifice to this pair, Grandfather Jiang and Grandmother Jiang, involves two people, one in front and one behind, each carrying a sculpture of a male or female sexual organ in a chase. The woman is in front, the man behind, called "chasing the woman." The male sexual organ is filled with fermented rice wine dregs; after catching up with the female vulva, the wine dregs are squirted out. The man loudly asks: "Did I hit?" The crowd answers in unison: "Hit."

生殖崇拜也是灵物崇拜的一种。“女阴崇拜”和“且崇拜”分别留下母系氏族和父系氏族对性物崇拜的遗风。石雕、木雕和陶制的性器是具有生殖魔力的灵物。一弘水，自然山洞或洼地均可作为女阴的象征物，而钟乳石柱则是当然的阳具（即且）象征物。黔东南苗族崇拜一对再生始祖姜央兄妹。每年祭祀这对央公央婆的仪式是，前后两人各背一只男女性器雕塑物追赶。女在前，男在后，称“追女”。男性器里吸注了酒糟水，追上女阴后即将酒糟水挤射出去。并大声问：“射中没有？”众人齐答“射中”。

Returning to us humans. It is said that the soul attached to the human body is called the living soul. Perhaps the living soul only likes to leave the body for a walk at night, and thus dreams occur. Sometimes, when frightened, the soul is no longer attached to the body, and family members must call it back. The soul of a person who has just died may not have gone far, so there is also the practice of calling back the soul, hoping to call the deceased back to life. If the soul finally departs far away and separates from the body, the departed one is a wandering soul. Nowadays, both in the West and in our country, a kind of pseudo-psychological research called near-death experience often describes the process of the soul leaving and returning to the body, aiming only to prove the existence of the soul independent of the body.

回到我们人类自己。据称，那种依附于人体的灵魂，叫做生魂，也许，生魂只有夜晚才喜欢离开肉体去走走，于是作梦了。有时受了惊吓，魂不附体了，就要家人把它喊回来。刚死的人也许魂魄去之不远，于是也有喊魂的，想喊活死者。如果终于远去魂体相分，远去的就是游魂。现在，不论在西方，还是在我国，一种叫做濒死体验的伪心理学研究常常描述灵魂从离体回到肉体的过程，无非是想证实灵魂独立于肉体的存在。