Ma Daoyou 馬道猷

Under the Southern Qi (479-502 CE) Ma Daoyou served as Director of the Department of State Affairs. In the first year Yongming (483), seated in the palace he suddenly saw spirits filling the space before him; the people around him saw nothing. Soon after, two spirits entered his ears, pulling out his ethereal soul, which fell onto his shoes. He pointed at it to show people, saying, “Gentlemen, do you see this?” None of those around him could see anything, so they asked him what his ethereal soul looked like. Daoyou said: “The ethereal soul looks exactly like a toad.” He said: “There can be no way to survive. The spirits are now in the ears. Look at how they swell up.” The following day he died. Taken from Shuyiji.

Li Fang 李昉, et al., Taiping guangji 太平廣記 (Extensive Gleanings from the Era of Great Harmony), 10 vols (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1961), vii, 327.2992

馬道猷

南齊馬道猷為尚書令史。永明元年。坐省中。忽見鬼滿前。而傍人不見。須臾兩鬼入其耳中。推出魂。魂落屐上。指以示人。諸君見否。傍人並不見。問魂形狀云何。道猷曰。魂正似蝦蟇。云。必無活理。鬼今猶在耳中。視其耳皆腫。明日便死。出述異記

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Aunty Wang’s Daigan Pole Tricks 戴竿伎王大娘

At the court of Dezong (of the Tang, r. 779-805 CE), there was a Daigan acrobat, a married woman from Sanyuan, who could balance eighteen people on top of her head and walk.

Li Rong 李冗, Du yi zhi, 獨異志 (Outstanding Fantastic Stories), 上1.4 (Tale 27):

戴竿伎王大娘

德宗朝，有戴竿三原婦人王大娘，首戴十八人而行。

Li Rong 李冗, Du yi zhi, 獨異志 (Outstanding Fantastic Stories) in Du yi zhi, Xuanshi Zhi 獨異志，宣室志 (Outstanding Fantastic Stories, Stories from the Chamber of Dissemination), edited by Zhang Yongqin 张永钦 and Hou Zhiming 侯志明 (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1983)

A Copper Coffin Descends From Heaven 天降銅棺

Zou Su, the Wine Supervisor for Zhengzou, was just and impartial in office, and respected by people for that. In Zhengzhou one day, as the sun reached noon, wind and hail descended from the heavens, mist and cloud arose from all four sides around the north gate, and a black miasma spun out of it and arose vertically, meeting the heavens without dissipating. A lidless copper coffin descended from the sky, and music came loud and clear out of the empty air. At that time all of Zhengzhou’s junior clerks below the rank of prefect, generals and officers, scholars and commoners, monks and Daoists all changed their clothes and tried to get into the coffin. It being narrow outside and wide within, however, none were able to enter. Winding his wine supervisor’s kerchief as he arrived, Su was asked by the crowd to enter the coffin, and he had not the slightest difficulty. A moment later, a copper lid descended, circled by multi-coloured clouds, and it was all then lifted among the beautiful sound of immortals and the voices of cranes, amid auspicious clouds of heavenly fragrance, and, in a cloud of enduring mist, the coffin gradually turned to the north and departed. He now serves as the judge over longevity in the distant north.

Anon., Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi, 後1.150 (Tale 263):

天降銅棺

鄭州監酒鄒宿，為官公正無私，人所推敬。一日，鄭州日方午，天降風雹，煙雲四起於北門，黑霧盤旋直上，衝天不散，降下無蓋銅棺一具，但聞空中音樂嘹喨。時鄭州自守倅以下官吏、將校、士庶、僧道，盡易衣服，欲入銅棺。而外狹內寬，皆莫能入。續監酒巾裹而來，衆請之入棺，亦無少（「少」，明刻本作「所」。）礙。少焉，復降銅蓋，綵雲繚繞，擎舉而上，仙韶鶴唳，瑞氣天香，靄靄不散，其棺冉冉向北而去。今為北極司壽限判官。

Yuan Haowen 元好問, Chang Zhenguo 常振國 (ed), Xu Yijian zhi 續夷堅志 (Continued Records of the Listener), and Anon., Jin Xin 金心 (ed.), Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi 湖海新聞夷堅續志 (Continuation of Records of the Listener with New Items from the Lakes and Seas) (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1986).

A Snake Steals Wine And Drinks 蛇竊酒飲

Zhou Bixian was supervisor of the Panfeng wine store in Wuxi County, Changzhou. He used fragrant medicinal material to produce his yeast, bringing forth a dense fragrant cloud. The flavour of his wine was pure and clear, and it was produced in top, middle and lower qualities. When distilling the wine, he made offerings to deities, slaughtering a sheep and a pig, carrying out the rite of the three offerings in his official robes, and when this was complete sending the wine out to all levels of officials at the court. One day, at the autumn offering, the storehouse clerk came reporting that there were holes in the clay of the highest grade wine flasks. When he was taken to see, several hundred flasks were indeed quite empty. The clerks thought it strange that those chosen and cleaned as offerings to the spirits had not been affected, and nobody knew the cause of it all. A month later, laughing voices were suddenly heard in the wine store, and when they peeped in they saw a crowd of children sucking from the mouths of the wine jars; when the doors were opened they all vanished into the earth. He hastily ordered that the floor be excavated, and at a depth of three chi (about 1m), they found a huge serpent lying drunk, with several dozen smaller snakes wound around beside it, and they realized that those spoiling the wine were snakes. His heart weighed down with doubt and bewilderment, gloomy and without joy, [lacuna] within two months he had resigned and returned to his home region.

Anon., Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi, 後2.258 (Tale 469):

蛇竊酒飲

周必先監無常州錫縣潘封酒庫，用香藥料造麯，香氣氤氳，酒味清洌，有上中下三等。酒熟祭神，刺羊刺豕，庫官展裹行三獻之禮，事畢分送朝官監司太守以下。一日秋祭，庫吏走報，謂上等酒瓶泥皆有孔，取而視之，則數百瓶皆空空如也。官吏以為怪，擇其潔者供祀神，不之顧，亦莫知所自也。越一月，忽聞酒庫有笑語聲，潛視之，則有羣小兒口吸瓶上，開門則失入地矣。急命掘地，深三尺，有巨蛇醉卧，數十小蛇旋繞其旁，始知壞酒者此蛇也。其心疑怪，鬱鬱不樂， [ ] 踰兩月以事罷歸。

Yuan Haowen 元好問, Chang Zhenguo 常振國 (ed), Xu Yijian zhi 續夷堅志 (Continued Records of the Listener), and Anon., Jin Xin 金心 (ed.), Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi 湖海新聞夷堅續志 (Continuation of Records of the Listener with New Items from the Lakes and Seas) (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1986).

 

A Monkey Becomes A Temple Spirit 猿為廟神

The Song emperor Lizong (Zhao Yun, r. 1224-64) summoned the thirty-fifth Daoist Heavenly Master to court, and as the tide was ebbing, he passed by the side of the Liuhe Pagoda, where he noticed that there were newly built temple wings to it, so stopped his sedan chair and asked its neighbours: “To what spirit is this dedicated? To misfortune or to fortune?” The commoners said: “A spirit of prosperity. The populace have just constructed this temple.” The Heavenly Master said: “Were it to have been one of misfortune, I would have exorcised it.” The commoners asked: “What for?” The Heavenly Master replied: “This is a white ape from Longhu Peak; it has taken many things, and I had not expected to see it treated as a spirit here.” He brandished his sword and rebuked it: “If you bring fortune to the populace, my punishment will not reach you; if you do not, you will be reported and face the consequences.” The temple stands to this day.

Anon., Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi, 後2.253 (Tale 457):

猿為廟神

宋理宗朝召三十五代天師赴京，退潮，道經六和塔側，見新廟翼然，停轎問其鄰曰：「此為何神？為禍為福？」民曰：「福神也。民方創此廟。」天師曰：「苟或為禍，吾將除之。」民曰：「何如？」天師謂：「此龍虎山一白猿，失去多載，不圖今日為神於此。」仗劍叱曰：「既福民，罰乃不及，苟或反是，必將奏誅。」至今廟猶在。

Yuan Haowen 元好問, Chang Zhenguo 常振國 (ed), Xu Yijian zhi 續夷堅志 (Continued Records of the Listener), and Anon., Jin Xin 金心 (ed.), Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi 湖海新聞夷堅續志 (Continuation of Records of the Listener with New Items from the Lakes and Seas) (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1986).

Li Yue Prays For Rain 梨岳祈雨

When Shi Yuzhi (1216-1293) was judge over Jianning Prefecture, the climate settled into a severe drought. At Li Yue the prefecture had a powerful spirit, and one day Mr Shi went to pray in the ancestral hall, saying: “The spirit is a deity who enjoys the offerings from this land; your servant is a minister upholding an order to protect this land; this prefecture has long suffered drought, the seedlings and grains will soon wilt; if the spirit does not send rain, how will our hearts be soothed? Now I will pour two cups of wine; the spirit will drink one, your servant will drink one, and if the spirit sends sweet timely rain, commendation at court will bring generous titles and rewards. If there is no rain, destruction will visit your statue and fire your temple.” Mr Shi lifted a cup of wine, and the spirit emptied the cup of wine in front of him. Just as he emerged from the temple gate, dark clouds gathered, rain fell in torrents, and duckweed covered all around, vapour rising to blanket the earth. When the rain stopped, the water of the western river had quite dried up. They thus realized that the spirit had transported that to use as rain.

Anon., Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi, 後2.223 (Tale 396):

梨岳祈雨

史宇之以大觀文殿學士判建寧府，值天時亢旱，郡有神靈於梨岳，一日禱於祠，曰：「神為血食此土之神，某奉君命守土之臣，斯郡久旱，苗稼將枯，神不降雨，我心何安？今釃酒二，神飲其一，某飲其一，若神降甘澍，保奏朝廷，厚其封贈。其或不雨，毀像焚廟。」史公舉杯一飲，而神前杯酒已竭矣。甫出門，陰雲四合，雨即霶霈，與萍俱下，水已帶土氣。雨止，西河之水已竭。乃知神運河之水以為雨也。

Yuan Haowen 元好問, Chang Zhenguo 常振國 (ed), Xu Yijian zhi 續夷堅志 (Continued Records of the Listener), and Anon., Jin Xin 金心 (ed.), Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi 湖海新聞夷堅續志 (Continuation of Records of the Listener with New Items from the Lakes and Seas) (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1986).

Hua Yue Serves As King Yama 華岳為閻王

In Luling lived an Ouyang Sheng, who enjoyed joking and teasing his entire life. On seeing that rice sold by a family was coarse and damp, he composed a poem:

‘If in the world one sold the Thunder-God,

The buyer of a Thunder-God would strike them down.’

Falling ill one day, he was escorted to the nether world, and saw the list of those released; it named Huang Niushi, Ouyang Deyu, Yi Li and Ouyang Sanying. When he had finished watching, he was taken to a hall, and asked those around him: “Who is prince of the gate?” They said: “It is now Xi, the worldly son of Hua Yue.”[1] He presently saw a person, robed in purple and belted in gold, seated over the hall, who asked: “You spoke extravagantly in life, once saying the sentence ‘The buyer of a Thunder-God would strike them down’; the Thunderer thus raised a lawsuit in heaven; how can you buy thunder?” Ou[yang] answered: “The Great Prince’s own ‘Record of a Southern Expedition to the Blue-Green Mountains’ also has the sentence ‘Lightning does not smite the emperor-deceiving traitor’, and this was exactly my meaning.” Hua laughed and said: “Free to return! Free to return!” Ou then revived, writing in secret to one called Two Ou, and told the villagers: “Our district will definitely have good news this autumn.” He entrusted the sealed slip of paper to the multitude until the examination results were announced. Afterwards, both men were indeed examination champions.

Anon., Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi, 後2.211 (Tale 375):

華岳為閻王

廬陵有歐陽生者，平生喜作謔詞，見糶米之家米粗且溼，作詩云：「世間若有雷公賣，買個雷公打殺他。」一日病，被追至冥府，見陰司放解榜，有黃牛石、歐陽德遇、義歷、歐陽三英名字。看畢，至一殿宇，問左右曰：「閭王為誰？」曰：「即世間華岳子西也。」忽見一人紫袍金帶坐殿上，問云：「汝在生有口過，嘗有『買箇雷公打殺他』之句，雷乃奉行天之威令，豈汝能買乎？」歐答云：「大王《翠微南征集》亦有『雷霆不劈欺君賊』之句，即此意也。」華笑曰：「放還！放還！」歐遂蘇，密書二歐名字告之鄉人云：「吾鄉今秋定有好事。」對衆封記片紙，俟揭榜日開。後二人果領薦。

Yuan Haowen 元好問, Chang Zhenguo 常振國 (ed), Xu Yijian zhi 續夷堅志 (Continued Records of the Listener), and Anon., Jin Xin 金心 (ed.), Huhai xinwen yijian xuzhi 湖海新聞夷堅續志 (Continuation of Records of the Listener with New Items from the Lakes and Seas) (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1986).

[1] This is Hua Yue 華岳, courtesy name Zixi 子西 (13^th century, dates unknown), also known as Cuiwei 翠微. His biography is found at Songshi 455.113375-78.