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Shamanism and Chinese Goddesses ~Xi Wangmu and Nugua~

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Shamanism and Chinese Goddesses ~Xi wangmu and Nugua~ Linda Anett Lindgren Master’s Degree Thesis in East Asia Studies Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages Faculty of Humanities 60 Credits Spring 2010 1 To Juan, my loving husband 2 Contents Part one: Introduction...........................................................................................................p.5 Organization of the paper......................................................................................p.5 Definitions.............................................................................................................p.6 Pre-existing scholarship………………………………………………………….p.7 Scholars on the topic of shamanism……………………………………………..p.7 Use of methodology: the phenomenology of religion…………………………...p.9 The use of ethnological facts…………………………………………………….p.10 Shamanism……………………………………………………………….………p.12 Shamanism as a configuration of religion……………………………………….p.14 The core points of shamanism: The axis mundi and the cosmology of the shaman………………………………p.15 The ecstatic trance and use of music…………………………………………….p.16 The shaman and healing powers…………………………………….…………...p.17 Aiding spirits and the main spirit of the shaman………………………………...p.17 The costume of the shaman………………………………………………………p.19 Shamanism and divination……………………………………………………….p.20 Ancestor worship………………………………………………………………...p.21 How to look for signs of religion………………………………………………...p.21 The burial: first indication of religion……………………………………………p.22 Part two: Introduction to Nugua……………………………………………………………p.24 The translation of the name Nugua………………………………………………p.25 The directional symbol of Nugua………………………………………………..p.25 Introduction to Xi wangmu…………………………………………….………...p.26 The translation of the name Xi wangmu…………………………………………p.27 The directional symbol of Xi wangmu…………………………………….……..p.27 Main texts………………………………………………………………………...p.29 The problem of euhemerization………………………………………………….p.31 Part three: Burial in China…………………………………………………………………...p.33 Shamanism in China……………………………………………………………..p.34 Wu: the Chinese shaman…………………………………………………………p.35 Divination in China………………………………………………………………p.36 Music in China…………………………………………………………………...p.36 Ancestor worship in China……………………………………………………….p.37 Early cultures of China…………………………………………………………...p.38 The Yangshao culture…………………………………………………………….p.39 The Xinglongwa culture………………………………………………………….p.41 The Dawenkou culture…………………………………………………………...p.42 The Longshan culture…………………………………………………………….p.44 The Hongshan culture…………………………………………………………….p.45 The Xia dynasty or the Erlitou culture………………………...…………………p.48 The Shang state………………………………………………………….………..p.49 The wu during Shang……………………………………………………………..p.50 3 The role of women in the Shang state: Lady Hao……………………………..p.53 Shang and the ten suns………………………………………………………...p.54 Possible origin of Xi wangmu: Western Mother………………….…………...p.56 Nugua in Shang culture………………………………………………….…….p.57 Sanxingdui………………………………………….………………………….p.58 The Zhou state…………………………………………………………………p.59 The wu during Zhou…………………………………………………………...p.60 The Chu state…………………………………………………………………..p.62 The Warring states period………………………………………………….…..p.64 The Qin dynasty…………………………………………………………….….p.65 The Han dynasty…………………………………………………………….…p.66 Xi wangmu‟s role during the Han dynasty…………………………………….p.67 Xi wangmu and the millenarian cult…………………………………………..p.69 Nugua in the Han dynasty………………………………………………..……p.71 Part four: Texts referring to Xi wangmu…………………………………………………p.73 Xi wangmu: ecstatic trance……………………………………………………p.77 Xi wangmu: main spirit and costume…………………………………………p.77 Xi wangmu: healing powers……………………………...…………………...p.78 Xi wangmu: hunting magician………………………………………………...p.79 Xi wangmu: axis mundi……………………………………………………….p.79 Xi wangmu‟s aiding spirits……………………………………………………p.80 The three birds………………………………………………………………...p.80 The three legged crow………………………………………………………...p.81 The fox with nine tails………………………………………….……………..p.81 The toad………………………………………………………………….……p.83 The Hare………………………………………………………………………p.84 Xian and other companions…………………………………………………...p.84 Xi wangmu: music…………………………………….………………………p.85 Xi wangmu: divination………………………….…………………………….p.85 Texts referring to Nugua………………………………………………………p.86 Nugua: ecstatic trance…………………………………………………………p.90 Nugua: axis mundi……………………………………………….……………p.90 Nugua: main spirit and costume……………………………………………….p.90 Nugua: healing powers…………………………………………………...……p.92 Nugua and aiding spirits……………………………………………………….p.92 Nugua: divination………………………………………………………….…..p.93 Nugua: Music………………………………………………………………….p.94 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………..…p.95 Reference………………………………………………………………………p.97 4 I intend in my thesis to examine the shamanistic traits of the Chinese goddesses Xi wangmu and Nugua. I will base my research on the early mythological accounts of these two goddesses and in addition make use of iconography. I start from the earliest evidence of these two goddesses and end with the Han Dynasty. I will also present a historical background and early archeological findings in general to place shamanism in China. My methodology of choice is phenomenology of religion which is used to find the core points of shamanism. My theory is that Xi wangmu and Nugua are strongly rooted in the shamanistic tradition. Organization of the Paper This paper is divided into four parts. In the first part I will start with giving definitions of a few key words, then continue on to describe pre-existing scholarship on the topic of Chinese shamanism. This will be followed by an introduction of scholars who has written about shamanism in general. These scholars I will use in defining what shamanism is. I will continue with a presentation of phenomenology of religion, and then discuss the use of ethnological facts in regards to shamanism in past cultures. After which I will give a general introduction to shamanism and then deal with each element in a more detailed form. This again is followed by a general description of how to determine early religious symbols. In the second part I will give an introduction of the two goddesses in question, so as to give a general idea about their features. The next segment will be a short presentation of Chinese texts that will appear in this paper and the problem of euhemerization. The third part starts with a presentation of early burial and shamanism in China. Then I will present the wu which is most likely the equivalent of the Chinese shaman. This will be followed by a presentation of ancestor worship and divination in China. I will then go on to present early cultures in China ending with the Han dynasty. Unfortunately all cultures can not be mentioned as China is a vast country that has housed a multitude of different cultures. In this segment the wu, divination, ancestor worship, shamanistic symbols, and so on will be presented in greater depth. I will in general use the pinyin system of transcription, but the Wade-Giles system will be present in some quotations and names of scholars. 5 This segment will also contain the early appearances of Nugua and Xi wangmu. The fourth part will deal in depth with Xi wangmu and Nugua. First early texts that make mention of these goddesses are presented. I will then give an analysis of the shamanistic traits of Xi wangmu and Nugua based on the texts and iconography. Definitions Shaman: The word shaman is derived from the Tungusic term šaman. The shaman performs religious ceremonies. The shaman is someone who is thought to be capable to see what others can not, the spirits and gods of the cosmos. The type of rites practiced and the cosmological understanding are the basis for the definition of shamanism. Soul: The word soul can be interchanged with „spirit‟. The soul is believed to be a sort of disembodied energy. This energy makes up the emotional nature or sense of identity that an individual, animal, or an object has. The soul‟s existence is not threatened by the physical destruction of the entity it inhabits. On some occasions the soul is thought to leave its object and return. Especially when the term spirit is used it can also denote an energy that is not necessarily connected to a previous corporeal form. Usually in these cases the spirit is seen as something divine. Animism: The word „anima‟ comes from Greek and means „soul‟. Animism is a notion that all things have a soul. Edward Tylor described animism as a doctrine of spiritual beings (Tylor, 1958, p.1). Man, animals, plants, mountains and so on is seen to posses a spirit. Phenomenology of religion: One approach to the study of religion is the phenomenology of religion. Phenomenology of religion searches for cross-cultural religious expressions. In phenomenology of religion emphasis is put on what is perceived by senses in contrast to what is the actual reality (Morris, 1998, p.176). Mircea Eliade and Åke Hultkrantz are the most famous scholars of the phenomenological approach to the study of religion. Lee Irwin is a current scholar that makes use of phenomenology of religion in his research. 6 Pre-existing Scholarship Scholarly approaches to the study of early Chinese shamanism written in english are not numerous as far as I can tell, but there seems to be a growing interest on the topic. Sarah Milledge Nelson published recently a very interesting book about shamanism and the making of states in East Asia entitled “Shamanism and the origin of states” (2008). She puts a focus on the shaman as a community leader. Michael Loewe has written a book about the religious beliefs of the Han state called “Faith, myth and reason
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