Folk Beliefs and Customs

Ⅹ-85Folk CustomsXian, ShaanxiBatch 4 (2014)Extension Item

01 · Historical Records

The custom of welcoming the City God in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, originated in the winter baosai thanksgiving sacrifice to the Water Moat God (Shuiyong Shen) during the Zhou dynasty, and has a history of nearly three thousand years. In the Ming dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang conferred noble titles on the City Gods of the realm on a large scale, dividing them into four ranks — king, duke, marquis, and earl — and arranged for regular sacrifices. The Xi'an Capital City God Temple was first built in the twentieth year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming dynasty (1387). Together with the relatively well-preserved ancient city wall and moat, it constitutes a fairly complete system of capital City God belief in China.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The City God is one of the nature deities of China's primitive beliefs and is recorded relatively early in the "Jiaotesheng" chapter of the Book of Rites (Li Ji). In ancient times, a water-filled moat was called a "pool" (chi), while a dry moat was called a "huang"; the term "chenghuang" referred generally to the city with its walls and moat. The Xi'an City God Temple mainly enshrines General Ji Xin, who rescued Liu Bang at the beginning of the Han dynasty. The story of Ji Xin rescuing Liu Bang is recorded in the "Biography of Xiang Yu" in the Records of the Grand Historian, the "Annals of Emperor Gaozu, Part One" in the Book of Han, and in related local materials. According to the "Wangqu City God Temple Fair" chapter of the Chang'an County Gazetteer, it is said that during the Chu-Han battle at Xingyang, the Han general Ji Xin disguised himself as the King of Han so that Liu Bang could break out of the encirclement, while Ji Xin himself was burned to death by Xiang Yu. After Liu Bang proclaimed himself emperor, he posthumously conferred on Ji Xin the title of Emperor of Earth (Dihuang). During the reigns of Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing, the title Dihuang was changed to "City God" (Chenghuang), and Ji Xin was thereby transformed from a God of Earth into a City God, with a temple established for him at Wangqu in Chang'an. Wangqu was formerly called "Yusu River" (Yusu Chuan), a place where Liu Bang hunted and rested. After the Wen-Jing period changed the title to City God, the Wangqu City God Temple accordingly became the General City God Temple of the Thirteen Provinces. During the Song and Ming dynasties, belief in the City God was entered into the state register of sacrifices. At the same time, belief in the City God spread widely through the regions surrounding Xi'an. In the Xi'an region, the City God is worshipped and welcomed or seen off in the first, second, and tenth lunar months each year; from village communities and towns to the metropolis, folk sacrificial activities with curling incense and deafening drums and gongs are joined by the clear, resonant chanting of Daoist music and scriptures ringing like bells, together forming Xi'an's grand City God belief festival, and these sacrificial activities have continued to the present day without decline. The City Gods enshrined are all heroic figures who safeguarded the state and punished evil while promoting good. Belief in the City God embodies people's beautiful hopes for a peaceful country and prosperous people, and has positive significance in rallying hearts and harmonizing communities.

The yearly order of welcome and farewell

Three fixed occasions each year - welcome in the first month, farewell in the second and sacrifice in the tenth.

Wangqu's chief temple and its spread

Wangqu became the chief temple of thirteen provinces, part of a local network of more than forty city-god shrines.

The escort and return rite at Huxian

The deity is brought out with drums and incense and returned at dusk, the two halves of one rite.

Daoist music and drums together

Outside the noise of drums and incense, the temple's chanting and bells mark the rhythm of the whole procession.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

According to statistics, more than forty City God temples are distributed in the region immediately surrounding Xi'an alone. The beliefs and cultural activities of the Xi'an Capital City God, the Wangqu General City God, and the welcoming and seeing-off of the City God in Hu County occupy an important place in the cultural life of the local people.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

The city wall and moat made remarkable contributions to protecting the safety of a city's people, and the Water Moat God was accordingly gradually elevated into the guardian deity of the city.

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 (Xian, Shaanxi) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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