Yinjifu Legend
01 · Historical Records
The Yinjifu legend is a folk legend about Yin Jifu of the Zhou dynasty. In 828 BCE he helped King Xuan restore the Zhou dynasty and was enfeoffed as “Grand Tutor”. The legend was born in Fang county of Hubei, called Fangling in antiquity, and is widely current in the county and its surrounding areas, with a history of more than two thousand years. From the Ming and Qing on there are relevant written records in local documents, such as the Tongzhi edition of the Fang County Gazetteer. Since 1949 three main groups of bearers have gradually formed: Guchang village of Wanyuhe township near the Yin family ancestral temple, Qingfeng village of Qingfeng town, and Qixin village of Yinjifu town.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Yin Jifu was surnamed Xi, named Jia, with the courtesy name Bojifu. It is said that he could govern the state by letters and secure it by arms, that he was a statesman, strategist and man of letters, and that he was also the chief collector and compiler of the Book of Songs. Yinjifu town, Qingfeng town and other places in Fang county are his core areas of circulation. The Yinjifu legend chiefly extols Yin Jifu's spirit of loyalty and filial piety, its content including the legends of the Yin Jifu family temple, his tomb, his expedition against the Xianyun, and his giving porridge to save the people, and the legend of the shrike bird concerning his son Yin Boqi; the main ones are Baotang Temple, the Yin family threshing ground, the Heavenly Official's grave, Yin Jifu gives porridge, Yin Jifu retires to his home village, the filial son Boqi, Jifu's utter loyalty and Yin Jifu's expedition against the Xianyun. Fang county has many descendants of Yin Jifu: by statistics the county has more than three hundred Yin households with over twelve hundred people, and many of them can tell the Yinjifu legend.
Yin Jifu's Expedition against the Xianyun
The legend of Yin Jifu leading troops against the Xianyun and securing the state.
Yin Jifu Gives Porridge to Save the People
The legend of Yin Jifu setting up porridge sheds to relieve the famine-stricken.
The Filial Son Boqi and the Shrike-Bird Legend
The legend of Yin Jifu's son Yin Boqi and his transformation into the shrike bird.
The Twice-Yearly Yin Clan Sacrifices
The sacrificial activities held twice a year by the Yin clan at the Yin Jifu family temple.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The local people generally hold that the many sites, remains and objects found within Fang county are connected with the Yinjifu legend.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
The Yinjifu legend has lasted a very long time, and its early bearers can no longer be traced. It is transmitted mainly within the Yin clan; the sacrificial activities held twice a year have kept it passing by word of mouth from generation to generation down to the present. The Yinjifu legend vividly expresses the people's love for Yin Jifu and their praise of the features of Fangling, with a strong local colour; it extols the noble virtues of loyalty to the sovereign and defence of the state, punishing evil and rewarding good, and filial devotion to kin and love of the people, helps strengthen national cohesion and spread history and culture, and plays a positive role in the transmission and development of Fangling culture, with a certain historical, social, cultural and artistic value. In addition, the Yinjifu legend preserves a great deal of cultural memory connected with the collecting of the Book of Songs, the ritual and musical system of the Zhou dynasty and the local society of Fangling, and is of reference value for the study of Zhou history, the study of the Book of Songs, and the migrant society and folk beliefs of north-western Hubei. The locality has also combined the legend with a Book of Songs cultural festival and folk performances, so that it continues to be transmitted under new social conditions.
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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