religions Article Symbols and Function of the Zhang Clan Han Army Sacrificial Rite † Shuyun Guo Institute of Shamanic Culture, Dalian Minzu University, Dalian 116600, China;
[email protected] † Translated by Liang Yanjun; Institute of Translation Studies on Ethnic Groups, Dalian Minzu University, Dalian 116600, China;
[email protected] Received: 6 December 2018; Accepted: 21 January 2019; Published: 1 February 2019 Abstract: The Eight Banners System is the social organizational structure of the bannerman (qiren, 旗º) from the Qing dynasty and the fundamental system of the country under Qing rule. It is divided into three types: the Manchu Eight Banners, Mongolian Eight Banners, and Han Army Eight Banners. The Han Army was a special group in the Qing dynasty between the bannerman and the commoners (minren, 民º). The sacrificial rite of the Han Army is a form of comprehensive shamanic ritual based on the traditional ancestor worship of the Han people. However, it is influenced, to some extent, by the shamanic ritual of the Manchus involving trance-dance. It finally took shape as a unique sacrificial form different from both the Manchu shamanic rite and the traditional ancestor worship of the Han minren. As a special system of symbolic rituals, the Han qiren’s sacrificial form embodies shamanic concepts and serves two functions: (1) dispelling evil and bringing in good fortune for the community; and (2) unifying the Han bannermen’s clans and strengthening the culture, identity, and tradition of the Han people, who were living under Manchu rule during the Qing dynasty. Keywords: Han Army; shamanism; Eight Banners System; wula; Manchu; bannerman Rites have a close correlation with symbols.