Spirit Possession Skill
A practice where specialists invite Chinese deities to take control of their bodies.
via Wikipedia: Chinese spirit possession · see source
Chinese spirit possession is a practice performed by specialists across China and Taiwan, encompassing a broad category of shamanism called jitong in Taiwan, or shentong in Wenzhou. It involves the channeling of Chinese deities who are invited to take control of the specialist's body, resulting in noticeable changes in body functions and behavior. The most famous practitioners took part in the Boxer Rebellion in the 1900s, when boxers claimed to be invulnerable to the cut of a sharp knife, bullets, and cannon fire.
Quick Facts
- Primary source
- Spirits; Ghosts
Lore & Background
The State of Qi had shamans who claimed to be possessed by gods, and they were criticized as heterodox by Confucians. Movements by shamans practicing spiritual possession often led peasant rebellions against the ruling dynasty during Chinese history. The Boxer Rebellion was one of many peasant movements led by shamans who claimed to be possessed by spirits. For the Boxers, spirit possession was used for protective purposes. Larry Clinton Thompson, in his book "William Scott Ament and the Boxer Rebellion: Heroism, Hubris and the 'Ideal Missionary'," describes the spirit possession practiced by Chinese boxers: "... whirling and twirling of swords, violent prostrations, and chanting incantations to Taoist and Buddhist spirits. When the spirit possession had been achieved, the boxers would obtain invulnerability and superhuman skills with swords and lance." Spiritual possession practitioners during the Boxer Rebellion and 20th century warfare claimed that once these incantations were chanted, Chinese deities would descend to offer protection, so that cannon fire or gunshots would not harm the human body.
Reader's Guide
Particularly active in the Jiangsu region during the Song Dynasty, the employment of young boys in ritual exorcist practices was common. One account from Hong Mai's Yijian Zhi is the "Rites of the Three Altars." The ritual employs child mediums to identify and deal with malevolent spirits. In one instance, three boys are called upon to identify a water demon. The boys fall into a trance, during which they locate and capture the demon in the form of a large turtle. Another account, "At the Home of an Extended Confucian Family in Zhejiang," documents the young nephew of a possessed woman being summoned to aid with the exorcism. The exorcist Zhao Shandao burned incense, danced the yubu, and asked the children to search for demonic images in the smoke. The nephew identified the spirit to be from a corpse in the village, which consequently was instructed to be burned. He witnessed the descent of a Daoist priest who gave him instructions on how to heal the woman. In contemporary practice, spirit possession in China today is much more subdued. In Wenzhou, most shamans are women and operate in their own homes because the practices are banned at temples. At the national or urban level, shamans could be fined, or even taken to jail if found practicing in public. In Yueqing City, it was documented that village party leaders entered a contract with a shamaness where she would become possessed and communicate on behalf of people in the village. In exchange for letting her practice in the temple, she would give the equivalent of $75,000 USD to the local government out of her lucrative earnings.
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