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Superstition in China

In a broad sense, superstition means people firmly believe in something, despite there are no irrational reasons and or scientific basis, and religion should be included. The narrow sense of superstition in china refers to the human worship and belief in supernatural power, and is an illusory distortion of the objective world. It is developed under the condition that the productivity level is low and the science and technology are not developed, when people can't explain many natural phenomena for a while. They think that in addition to the world, there are still “God”, “Buddha”, “Ghost” and so on that can dominate the fate of people. The narrow sense of superstition can be considered as a manifestation of ignorance and backwardness.

The cause of superstition

• The history of traditional feudal thoughts is difficult to eradicate for a long time. The long history of Chinese feudal society is rare in the world. Although feudal ideology is a negative part of Chinese traditional culture, its influence in the masses is far-reaching and deep-rooted, especially in rural areas.

• There is a lack of rural cultural life. At present, most rural areas in china do not meet or organize collective activities, except for holding village meetings at the time of election. The tweeter also lost its original function of promoting scientific and cultural knowledge. The Yangko team, the gongs and drums team, the graphic magazine and other activities that were often seen during the Spring Festival in the past have disappeared. The filming team of the countryside has also been cancelled. The elderly activity room has also become a mahjong and poker place. Although the material life of the peasants has been greatly improved, the spiritual life has not developed at the same time. Today, with the vigorous development of agricultural mechanization, farmers spend less time doing farm work, and leisure time has increased. In addition to a small number of people working outside the home, some people work nearby or do some small businesses, the rest people do nothing. The extra time is at a loss, and the empty spiritual world cannot be enriched, and it will inevitably lead to the occupation of feudal superstitions and religions.

• There is a lack of medical institutions and medical insurance system in rural areas. Now in some rural areas, especially small rural areas, there are not any formal medical institutions. Even if there are, they can only solve some common and minor illnesses. At the same time, due to high drug prices and the proliferation of counterfeit drugs, farmers lost the trust in medical institutions. On the other hand, although the rural medical insurance system has been implemented, the amount of insurance coverage is too limited, and it is only a drop in the bucket for farmers who are seriously ill. Farmers can't afford expensive medical and surgical expenses, and can't afford good medicine.

• There is a lack of scientific knowledge. In recent years, Chinese peasants have gradually become richer, but some farmers still suffer from poverty due to illness. When they encounter difficulties, as they don't understand science, they only believe in destiny. They can only pray for the gods, in order to fight against evil and eliminate disease.
  

Types of superstition

Traditional secular superstition

Traditional secular superstitions include two aspects. One aspect is the belief that certain activities, rituals, figures, natural phenomena, dates will bring good luck. Another aspect is that certain numbers and phenomena can bring bad luck and should be avoided as much as possible. For example, many areas in china believe that there will be happy events when they hear magpie. Therefore, when people hear the magpie call in front of their houses, they will be filled with joy. However, if they hear a crow or an owl, they will think it is a precursor to evil. It is generally considered that someone may die. In some western countries, it is believed that “13” is an unlucky number, while in some regions in China, it is believed that “36” is unlucky. People think that 36 years old is a “threshold” in life, which means that there will be many setbacks in this year. Therefore, when a person is on his 36th birthday, his relatives and friends must come and celebrate to help him go through the year.

Superstition in Ghosts and Gods

This kind of superstition refers to the belief that there are gods and ghosts in the world, or that all the creatures have a "soul" that is beyond nature. They have control over natural phenomena (wind, rain, thunder, drought, etc.) and human life. For example, if someone is sick or frightened, people may think that they are possessed by the demon or something’s soul. Instead of going to the doctor, they ask the wizard to drive away the evil spirits. In addition, some people think that there are mountain gods in the mountains, river gods in the rivers. They worship these gods on a regular basis every year for the sake of good weather. Once there is a drought or disaster, it will be considered to be a punishment for people that they have offended the gods.

Superstition in foresight

A kind of tool for feng shui--Chinese numismatic

This means that people believe that some people have the ability to predict good and bad, including fortune telling, anthroposcopy, which includes physiognomy and palmistry and feng shui. These superstitious activities are widely spread in China, not only in the backward rural areas, but also in the bustling urban centers. People who engaged in such superstitious activities generally have certain common characteristics:  have mild mental or physical abnormalities, such as epilepsy, blindness, etc.; have strong judgment and resilience, and generally can more accurately touch the customer's psychology; be eloquent, expressive, attractive, persuasive; have good emotional appeal and can control the emotional activities of others.

Reasons for engaging in superstitious activities

Disaster relief

People attempt to solve problems for their families and friends by means of worshipping Buddha or god, burning incense, and exorcism.

Getting rid of the troubles

Some people have become disheartened and pessimistic after being subjected to a major spiritual attack in real life, and then want to escape from reality. For example, some people become monks after falling out of love.

Psychological comfort

Some people try to make up for some irreparable mistakes through superstitious activities, and seek spiritual comfort. Among them, one of the most typical manifestations is to mourn the deceased by doing the dojo and other means, and remorse for failing to take care of the deceased during his lifetime.

Famous Cases

Liu Zhijun, the former minister of the Ministry of Railways, was found to be engaged in superstition. On July 8, 2013, Liu Zhijun was sentenced to death in the first instance of accepting bribes and abuse of power. Liu Zhijun was sentenced to death and suspended for two years. As mentioned in the indictment, Liu Zhijun is a superstitious person, which has become an open secret in the railway system. In order to seek "peace", Liu Zhijun burned incense at home for a long time, and arranged a special stone in the office. If some projects are going to be start or completed, Liu Zhijun will ask the “masters” to choose dies faustus. At No. 10 Fuxing Road, Haidian District, Beijing, there is a pair of stone lions in front of the former Ministry of Railways. It is said that it’s Liu Zhijun who ordered his subordinates to put them at the door, and the purpose was to “exorcise the evil spirits.”

In the Spring Festival of 2014, Huang Yongyue, secretary of the Yongfu County Party Committee of Guilin City, decided to grant more than 1 million yuan to the county's deputy-level cadres and above. It is said that he used the “Book of Changes” to calculate the number of one-million.

Zhou Wenbin, the former president of Nanchang University, believed in Feng shui and made a lot of absurd things. In the name of “Teaching the Book of Changes”, Zhou Wenbin arranged a geomancer to board the forum and hired the geomancer as a school consultant in the name of the school. In September 2006, after the leadership team of Nanchang University moved from the old campus to the office building of the new campus, Zhou Wenbin invited a geomancer to watch Feng shui for him. In order to ward off evil and guarantee the smooth progress of his official career, the geomancer suggested that Zhou Wenbin should bury something in a specific location in the square in front of the administrative office building of the new campus. Zhou Wenbin followed this. Some staff members around Zhou Wenbin said that under the arrangement of the geomancer, the layout of Zhou Wenbin’s office was also very particular, and all the things are to ensure that his official business is prosperous.

On December 28, 2015, the website of the Supervision Department of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection stated that Bai Xueshan, a member of the original party group and vice chairman of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region Government, had been engaged in superstition activities for a long time. Under the guidance of Feng shui, Bai Xueshan stood a huge bronze tripod on the central axis of Shengyuan Square facing the city government building. One of the most ridiculous cases is that the fountain at Shengyuan Square has been rebuilt at least three times. The reason is that Bai Xueshan feels that the fountain is blocking the feng shui. In addition, its purpose of pushing the urban expansion is mostly to think that the mother river can help him to flourish.

Yang Shigang, former director of the Bureau of Land and Resources of Southwest Guizhou, attributed his success in the official career to the feng shui and the blessing of the gods. Followed the instructions of the geomancer, he moved the ancestral graves across the county to the “treasure land”, and also arranged the “feng shui set” in the office building. In addition, he placed a compass in his desk and downloaded a talisman from the Internet. On the business trip, he often go to the famous temple to visit the “master”, as well as burning incense, worshiping and divination.

Zhu Mingguo, the former chairman of the Guangdong Provincial Political Consultative Conference, likes to burn incense and worship. The “master” he believed in was called Wang Lin, and he always regarded Wang Lin as a benefactor. Zhu Mingguo was reported during his tenure in Hainan, making his career in great crisis. It was Wang Lin who helped him escape the danger. It is rumored that Wang Lin has continuous “cast” in the basement for two days and two nights, but actually used his network of officialdom to help Zhu Mingguo tide over the difficulty. After Zhu Mingguo successfully escaped from danger, he made a special trip to thank Wang Lin. When he saw Wang Lin at the airport, he kneeled down to Wang Lin in front of everyone. In addition, Zhu Mingguo also enshrines several statues in the villa.

legal issues

Chinese law has provisions for superstitions. The use of superstitions for criminal activities should be investigated for legal responsibility.

First, according to the “Criminal Law”, those who organize and use cult organizations or use superstition to undermine national laws and administrative regulations shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years and not more than seven years. If the circumstances are particularly serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment for more than seven years. Those who organize and use cult organizations or use superstition to deceive others and cause death are punished in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Second, according to the Law of the People's Republic of China on Public Security Administration Punishment, if one of the following acts is committed, it shall be detained for a period of ten to fifteen days, and may be imposed a fine of no more than one thousand yuan; if the circumstances are relatively light, he shall be detained for five to ten days, and may be imposed a fine of no more than five hundred yuan.

(1) Organizing, instigating, coercing, decoying, inciting others to engage in cult activities or using cults and superstitious activities to disrupt social order and harm others' physical health.

(2) Using the name of religion or qigong to disrupt social order and harm other people's physical health.

See also

Urban legend  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_legend

External links

superstition https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superstition#Superstition_and_religion

Chinese numerology https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_numerology

Feng Shui https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feng_shui

Chinese numismatic charm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_numismatic_charm

Chinese calendar https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_calendar#Lunisolar_year

Physiognomy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physiognomy

Palmistry https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmistry

dojo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dojo