Folk Beliefs and Customs

Ⅹ-85Folk CustomsYuanan, HubeiBatch 3 (2011)Extension Item

01 · Historical Records

The genealogy of the sacrifice to the First Silkworm can be traced through the official histories: the Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian), "Wudi Benji" (Basic Annals of the Five Emperors), records that the Yellow Emperor took the daughter of the Xiling clan as his wife, and she was Leizu; the Wuli Tongkao, juan 126, quoting the Tongjian Waiji, attributes to her the merit of first teaching the people to rear silkworms and reel silk cocoons to make clothing, and notes the origin of later generations sacrificing to her as the First Silkworm (xiancan). The two passages corroborate each other: Leizu moves from consort of the Yellow Emperor to mistress of agriculture and sericulture, and later ritual officials accordingly established the sacrifice to the First Silkworm, on the basis of which the sericultural countryside of Jing-Chu claims to inherit her bounty. Yuan'an has produced Yasi silk since antiquity, and the locals trace the source of their silk industry back to her; Goujiaya Town is accordingly regarded as the hometown of Leizu, and the sacrificial rites and the silk industry have been bound together here ever since, passed down without interruption.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The Leizu belief is a traditional custom of sacrificing to the First Silkworm that endures at the Leizu Temple in Yuan'an County, Hubei. The Shiji, "Wudi Benji," records: "The Yellow Emperor dwelt at Xuanyuan's Hill and took the daughter of the Xiling clan as his wife; she was Leizu. " The Qing-dynasty Wuli Tongkao, juan 126, quoting the Tongjian Waiji, records: "Leizu, the daughter of the Xiling clan, was the Emperor's primary consort; she first taught the people to rear silkworms and reel silk cocoons to make clothing, and later generations sacrificed to her as the First Silkworm. " Yuan'an has been a famous producer of "Yasi silk" since antiquity; folk legend holds that today's Goujiaya Town is the "hometown of Leizu", and the custom of sacrificing to Leizu has been passed down for generations, with the worship of the silkworm god becoming common practice. In early spring, when the mulberry trees put out buds, the First Sacrifice (chuji) is held, also called the Head Sacrifice (touji). Legend holds that the 15th of the third lunar month is Leizu's birthday; on that day the Great Sacrifice (daji) is held, and the worshippers are mostly women. Pilgrims and merchants from the Jing-Xiang region gather in crowds. Autumn is the Last Sacrifice (moji): the silkworm god is respectfully sent back to the heavenly palace, silkworm eggs are respectfully invited into the silkworm rooms to overwinter, and the harvest is celebrated with a banquet. Goujiaya Town is also a sacrificial center. In the rites the offerings are mainly silk, the chief officiant and assisting officiants are mostly silkworm women, and children serve as secondary sacrificers — a distinctive feature of the Leizu sacrifice activities of Yuan'an. This project is of great significance for carrying forward the fine traditions of the Chinese nation and strengthening community cohesion.

The first sacrifice when the mulberry buds

At the first swelling of mulberry buds the women bring a spray of leaves and fresh silk to the temple and take ash back to the roots.

The main sacrifice and its officiants

At the main sacrifice women officiate with boys assisting and silk cloth is burned as the principal offering; silk merchants gather to settle business.

Seeing the goddess off and harbouring the eggs

After the autumn harvest the goddess is sent back to heaven, silkworm eggs are placed on a reserved new nest, and the first share is set aside.

Luo Zu traced into the ritual canon

Records in the Shiji and Tongjian waiji, quoted in the Wuli tongkao, established her as the First Silkworm and gave all local sericulture a shared ancestry.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

The Leizu sacrifice of Yuan'an spreads out from Goujiaya Town as its center; the town has a Leizu Temple, each village has its own small shrine, and after the spring silkworms mount the cocoon frames farming households first go to the town temple to burn incense, then return to their own mulberry fields to make vows; today the scale of the Leizu Temple in Hehua Town is the grandest. The sacrificial seasons are divided into three grades — First Sacrifice, Great Sacrifice, and Last Sacrifice — spanning more than half the sericultural season: the First Sacrifice, also called the Head Sacrifice, is performed when the mulberry trees bud; the Great Sacrifice is performed on the 15th of the third month, with worshippers mostly women, during which pilgrims and merchants from the Jing-Xiang region gather in crowds; after autumn the Last Sacrifice is performed, sending the silkworm god back to the heavenly palace and respectfully inviting silkworm eggs into the silkworm rooms to overwinter, with a banquet celebrating the harvest. In the rites the offerings are mainly silk, the chief and assisting officiants are mostly silkworm women, and children serve as secondary sacrificers — this female-centered staffing is what distinguishes the Leizu sacrifice of Yuan'an from the First-Silkworm temple fairs elsewhere.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

At present, the Great Sacrifice at the Leizu Temple in Hehua Town is held on the grandest scale.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

Wu Jishan 05-3019
Xu Shunwei 05-3020
Huang Guanghui 05-3021
Chen Jikun 05-3022
Sinapinchu 05-3023
Liu Shimei 05-3024
Zhang Qingming 05-3025
Zheng Quanguang 05-3026
Ye Da 05-3027
Li Yaohui
Luo Shengzong

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Folk Beliefs and Customs (Yuanan, Hubei) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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