Chinese folk religion is a polytheistic belief system that deifies almost every aspect of life and nature. It also includes concepts and practices from the official religions, namely Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism. As a result, the deities represented in paper god prints are great in number and variety. Chinese Woodblock New Year Picture Collection: Neiqiu Shenma put the paper gods into three main types: the gods of nature, the gods of daily life, and the gods from Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism. In Folk Apotheosis in China: Neiqiu Shenma and Folk Religion Practices, Geng Han categorizes the paper gods into the nature gods, the human gods, and the object gods. Geng defines the human gods as the deities based on real people, but origin stories of deities often vary in different regions and time period, and local people often create tales of object gods as well. As a result, it is hard to distinguish between the human gods and the object gods.For this reason, this project will follow the categorization from the Chinese Woodblock New Year Picture Collection.[1]

 

The gods of nature refer to the deities that derive from elements of nature, but over time, these deities usually incorporated other religious symbols and functions. For example, the Earth God (土神) from Neiqiu is usually represented as a figure with triangular head, two arms growing from the two sides of his nose, and an irregular around body decorated with lines and geometric shapes. According to ancient sources, the Earth God is mostly likely to be “Houtu (后土)” from ancient Chinese mythology, the supreme deity of the earth. The earliest representation of the Earth God was the image of a mound, yet later developed into the humanoid figure. Geng Han argues in his book Folk Apotheosis in China: Neiqiu Shenma and Folk Religion Practices that the triangular shape on the Earth God’s head is a reference of the mound. And in The Songs of Chu (楚辞), the Earth God is described as a figure with a sharp horn that controls the underworld. In this case, the Earth God not only reflects the worship of earth, but also represents people’s reverence of the life after death. Geng also believes that the hands on the god’s face came from Yang Ren, a character from The Investiture of the Gods (封神演义). In the story, Yang Ren was made a god called “Taisui (太岁),” which is a deity who monitors crimes on earth. Taking the placement of the paper god during the ritual into consideration, Geng further argues that the Earth God is placed as a representation of the hungry ghost in Buddhist ritual, which strengthened his argument of the Earth God being a deity of the underworld.[2]

Another deity related to earth and land is Tudi (土地), a deity who oversees the wellbeing of villiage or the household. Unlike the Earth God, which a deity unique to Neiqiu area, Tudi is a common deity in folk religion across China. The image of Tudi is very standardized in paper gods from Northern China as well: the image is framed in a rectangular frame with a panel on the top indicating the deity’s name; below it, there are decorative lines that resembles the curtain within a shrine. At the center of the frame, Tudi is represented as an elderly man with a long beard dressed in a robe and hat usually wore by elite men in ancient China.[3] Beside Tudi, there are two or four attendants, who probably represent ghosta or demons under the command of the deity.[4] The elderly elite male figure symbolizes experience and power, as in a Confucian society, the educated elderly men were often viewed as the mentors and head figures of a village. The two attendants also connect the deity with the ancient officials and elites, which emphasizes the deity’s status and power.

Bellow God. Woodblock Print, 16×8.7 cm. Before 1966. Neiqiu, Hebei Province. Neiqiu Paper God Editing Committee.

Scholars further categorize the gods of daily life into the gods of household, the gods of auspiciousness, the gods of profession, and the guardian deities. In this category, the deities do not always have humanoid forms. For example, the paper god print for the Bellow God only represents a bellow with a burning stove by its side. This image, along with the text at the top: Dafeng changyou (May there always be strong wind), provide a clear sense of the purpose of this paper god—to protect the bellow from malfunction.

Ladder God. Woodblock Print, 16×8 cm. Before 1966. Neiqiu, Hebei Province. Neiqiu Paper God Editing Committee.

The image of the Ladder God shows a scene in which a man with a child sitting on his shoulders is climbing a ladder to the roof. The text at the top reads “Shangxia Pingan ([Climb] up and down safely),” which indicates people’s wish and demand toward the deity—to protect family members from any accident while using a ladder. In image of adult and child, along with the house in the background, create a sense of home and family, which the deity is meant to protect. In relation to the child, the adult man is a guardian and support, which parallels with the role of the Ladder God. In this sense, the man is in fact the embodiment of the Ladder God. This marks a significant difference between Chinese folk religion and the mainstream religions: it does not have concrete doctrines or organizations or an established set of deities. The images and the functions of the deities only came from folk people’s observation of their daily life.[5]

Tiandi. Woodblock Print, 30.5×20 cm. Republic Period. Neiqiu, Hebei Province. Neiqiu Paper God Editing Committee.

The last type of paper god is the gods from Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism. This type of paper gods reflects the inclusive nature of Chinese folk religion. However, although the folk people worship deities from various religions at the same time, they reinterpret those religious concepts based on their own understanding and needs. This can be seen in image of Tiandi (All the deities of heaven and earth), one of the most important paper god in the folk practice: three Buddhas, Jade Emperor (Daoist deity), and Guan Gong (Deified historical figure, a famous general from 2nd century) are represented in the same image, along with their attendants. The placement of the figures reflects the folk understanding of the hierarchy among different religions. The three Buddhas are on the very top, which shows that the folk people believe the power of Buddha is beyond the power of heaven, which is represented by the Daoist deity Jade Emperor. Beneath the Jade Emperor is Guan Gong, who is seen as the embodiment of human virtues. In a sense, this hierarchy of the deities reflect people’s need to create an order, which shows that Chinese folk people have internalized the Confucian concept of social order.[6]

Dizang Laomu. Woodblock Print, 17×8.6 cm. Republic Period. Neiqiu, Hebei Prince. Private Collection.

The paper god Dizang Laomu (Mother Ksitigarbha) is a unique variation of the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha (地藏), who is known in Buddhism for his vow of not achieving Buddhahood until all hells are empty, and is viewed in Chinese folk religion as the judge and guardian of the deceased. In this image, the Bodhisattva is wearing a lotus-shape monk hat, sitting on a lotus blossom, and is accompanied by a young child attendant on the right. There are halos around her head and body, showing her divine status. Although in Buddhism, Ksitigarbha is a male deity, in this paper god of Neiqiu, the Bodhisattva is represented as a female figure and is addressed as Mother Ksitigarbha, since the compassionate nature of the Bodhisattva can often be associated with traditional feminine characters such as being gentle and kind.

Interestingly, although folk people in China believe in a vast number of gods and spirits, their relationship with supernatural beings is very different from many mainstream religions. Instead of viewing the deities as their superior, often times the Chinese folk believers work with the deities as equals—the people provide space and offerings to the deities in exchange for their protection and blessing. The deities are invited into the household in order to fulfill certain needs of the family. The people can choose which deities they need and have the power to reject the deities as a form of punishment if they fail the protect the family.[7] In another word, Chinese folk religion centers around the daily needs of the people, and the people, in many ways, hold power over the supernatural.

 

[1] Chinese Woodblock New Year Picture Collection: Neiqiu Shenma and Folk Apotheosis in China: Neiqiu Shenma and Folk Religion Practices are two major books on the study of Neiqiu paper god and provides important primary and secondary sources for the research on paper god.

[2] Geng Han. Folk Apotheosis in China: Neiqiu Shenma and Folk Religion Practices. Guangxi Normal University Press. 2016: 200-201.

[3] Qi Zhiwen. “Consolation of Aesthetic Imagination—Image Symbolic Study about the Land God Paper Horse in the Neiqiu Area.” Chinese National Academy of Arts. Master Thesis. 2018: 19-20.

[4] Qi Zhiwen. 45.

[5] Feng, Jicai. Chinese Woodblock New Year Picture Collection: Neiqiu Shenma. Zhonghua Book Company. 2009: 101.

[6] Geng Han. Folk Apotheosis in China: Neiqiu Shenma and Folk Religion Practices. Guangxi Normal University Press. 2016: 209.

[7] Feng Jicai. 39.