Historical Records of Ancient Worship in China

During the reign of Yin and Shang Dynasties, ghosts and gods were most admired, and the wind of offering sacrifices to gods rose widely in society. In order to communicate with the gods, there is a wizard who specializes in this industry. The word "witch" in the divination of Yin Shang Dynasty is like holding jade in both hands, which is in the form of worshipping God. Fortune-tellers predict good and bad luck for others, and Zhouyi appeared in the Zhou Dynasty. Witchcraft, divination, medicine and divination are indispensable occupations in ancient social and religious activities. These people were all "great intellectuals" at that time, not as miserable as when they became famous later. The person who manages incense in Taoist temples in later generations is called "Temple Wish", which is still a name left over from ancient society.

Zhou ruled the world following the Shang Dynasty, unified the worship of heaven and earth with the worship of ancestors, and became a god-worshipper, and stipulated that the heirs should match the gods (not the masters of the West). At this time, offering sacrifices to ghosts and gods became a national etiquette, and officials were set up for special management, forming a system of ghosts and gods, gods and people. "Zhou Li" said: "The post of Dazhong Bo is in charge of the ceremony of the gods, ghosts and territories of the founding of the country." Belonging to God is God, the five emperors of green, yellow, red, white and black, the God of the sun, moon, stars, fighting, wind, clouds, rain, thunder and electricity; Territorial, there are gods of country, mountains and rivers, five mountains and four blasphemies; Ghosts are mainly ancestors of various surnames and sages and loyal ministers worshipped by this nation. Witchcraft has always existed since the Spring and Autumn Period, especially in Jingchu area.

In the early Han Dynasty, Liu Bang paid attention to the preservation of the traditional ritual system, increased the number of sacrifices to the five emperors, and wrote: "I pay great attention to the shrine and admire it. Today, the sacrifices of the gods and the gods of mountains and rivers are the same as when they worship the shrine. " After Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ascended the throne, he "especially admired the worship of ghosts and gods", and the temple was also a god in the southeast suburb, offering worship to the gods of the five sacred mountains and four blasphemies. Taoism polytheism worship is directly inherited from these witchcraft styles and gradually rises. The above gods are also the source of Taoism polytheism. Many gods have been absorbed by Taoism and become the gods believed by Taoism. For example, God evolved into the Jade Emperor, Raytheon evolved into the God of Popularization of Thunder, and Social God evolved into the God of Land. Others, such as Emperor wuyue, Four Seas Dragon King, Door God and Kitchen God, were folk gods at first, and later they all became Taoist gods.