The "Wutong God" is generally believed to be an evil god, and the most well-known related story comes from "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio".
Compared with many great gods who are worshiped by people, the "Wutong God" is not famous. I believe that many people realize that this god comes from the movie "Liao Zhai Wutong God".
Although there is no systematic introduction to Wutong Shen in the film, we can still get a glimpse of it. The Wutong man in the film is an adulterer, wife and daughter. He is obviously an evil god, but he is also affectionate and loyal to his lover.
Therefore, the Wutong God is an image of a deity who is both good and evil.
This movie mainly draws on "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio - Wutong". The author compares the Wutong God in the south with the vixen in the north. He believes that fox spirits can still be expelled, while the Wutong God lusts after wives. Women are difficult to eliminate, they are more evil than vixens.
The "Wutongshen" recorded in "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is actually a combination of five monsters, such as pigs, horses, etc.
The "Wutong God" should be an evolution of the "Wutong Immortal" in Buddhism. In the Indian Buddhist scriptures, the five-power sage is a sage with five magical powers: heavenly foot power, heavenly eye power, heavenly ear power, other-mind power, and destiny power. However, this kind of practice has not yet reached the highest level, and has not yet obtained the highest sixth power." They have not escaped the cycle of life and death, nor have they achieved enlightenment, so the Wutong Immortal still has shortcomings, and they will be hurt by others. Therefore, there are stories of the Wutong Immortal being seduced by prostitutes. After this story spread to the Middle Earth, it probably evolved into the legend that Wutong God liked to rape women.
After the Wutong Immortal was introduced to China, his image changed. In the Song Dynasty, he was called the "Wutong God" and "Wulang God", and many other gods appeared. Strange legend. People believe that worshiping the God of Wutong can bring benefits including money, treatment of diseases, elimination of disasters, and even success in imperial examinations. Therefore, small Wutong temples have appeared in many places in the south. Despite this, the Wutong God still has evil qualities that are criticized by people: mischief and adultery. And because people need to worship him to seek wealth and profit, they have no choice but to swallow their anger when their wives and daughters are taken away by him.
It is precisely because of the evil side of the Wutong God that it has been banned by the government many times. For example, during the Hongzhi period, Cao Feng, the prefect of Suzhou, burned the Wutong Shrine on Fangfangshan, and Tang Bin also took severe measures during the Kangxi period. It is forbidden to destroy the Wutong Temple, etc. Despite this, believers driven by interests changed the Wutong God to the "Five Manifestations God", "Five Ways of Wealth God" and so on to worship him.
In addition, there are other theories among the people about the origin of the Wutong God. For example, some people say that it is the ghost of Liuzhou in the Tang Dynasty; some people say that it is the five people who were worshiped by Zhu Yuanzhang when he paid homage to the souls of the dead. Wu, the five souls that came into being...
In short, the "Wutong God" is a god that is both good and evil. According to folk belief, he can bring wealth, but he can also lust after wives and daughters! Wutong God is a demon god and evil god worshiped by people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang in the old days. However, the origin of the name "Wutong God" and the origin of its becoming a god are completely different things.
I am Dayu who likes to explore novel, exciting and fun mysterious traditional cultures. I will talk to you about what kind of god this "Five-Tong God" is. 1. The origin of the name "Wutongshen".
The name "Wu Tong" comes from the Buddhist saying of "Five Divine Powers".
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"Five-powerful Immortal" means "immortal with five magical powers" ("Buddhist Dictionary").
Therefore, Volume 4 of the "Seven Revised Continuations" written by Lang Ying of the Ming Dynasty evaluates the "Five Links" like this:
According to Lang Ying, "The Five Links" "God" is the "Wutong Immortal". He is a good god in the first place, because the name of Wutong originally comes from Buddhism, and the evil worship of Wutong God in the market is just the act of ghosts and monsters pretending to be God's name.
The Northern Song Dynasty writer Su Shi's poem - "The Elders of Nanhua Favored Four Psalms and Only One Stanza to Pay Back the Favor" is written like this:
There is also the Northern Song Dynasty Shi Huihong's "Leng" In Volume 7 of "Zhai Ye Hua", a line from one of the poems is quoted, the last line of which is "I doubt that I am a Wutong Immortal".
This seems to prove that during the Northern Song Dynasty, the name "Wutong" was still a good name. However, when did "Wutong" start to lose its reputation? 2. The evil god appears.
A book called "Longcheng Lu" records this:
It is said that this book was written by Liu Zongyuan, a litterateur in the Tang Dynasty, but it was actually written by Wang Zhi. Apocryphally, Wang Zhi was a native of the late Northern Song Dynasty and early Southern Song Dynasty. Therefore, this book was written at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty and the beginning of the Southern Song Dynasty. This is also the first time that the notoriety of "Wutong" appeared in documents.
So what exactly is the "Wutongshen"?
According to the "Yi Jian Ding Zhi" (Volume 19) written by Hong Mai, a famous writer in the Southern Song Dynasty, there were many ghosts commonly known as "禨[jī] ghosts" in the mountains and forests of Jiangnan at that time. Monsters mostly live in rocks and trees, and have appeared in many mountain villages. They are called "Wutong" in Erzhe and Jiangdong areas, and "Kinxia Saburo" or "Mu Ke" in Jiangxi and central Fujian areas. There is also a monster. Although the names of the "one-legged and five-pronged" feet are different, they are actually the same thing. According to research on ancient books and biographies, these so-called wood and stone strange things are actually "kuí, 彔两, and mandrills."
However, judging from the development descriptions of the "Five-Tong God" in later generations, the "Five-Tong God" and the "Mandrill Wood Guest" are not the same kind of monsters. The "Five-Tong God" in later generations is not in the mountains and forests. , and inhabiting densely populated villages and towns, with the then prosperous Suzhou and Hangzhou areas as the core, it seems that the monsters on the mountains should not be involved.
Of course, the notoriety of the "Wutongshen" originated from the Southern Song Dynasty. Its prototype may be "Mu Ke", "Kinoshita Saburo" or even "Mountain Charm"... and other monsters. Moreover, at that time, the South The regional belief in Gu gods also had a certain influence on the formation of the "Wutong God". 3. The evil "Five-Tong God"
Hong Mai also mentioned the evil nature of the "Five-Tong God" in "Yi Jian Ding Zhi". The book mentioned that the "Five-Tong God" is good at change. , confuses humans, is similar to the vixen in the north, and can make people rich in a short time, so many people will worship it to pray for unexpected wealth and gain for nothing. Therefore, the "Five-Tong God" has also become the folk god of wealth. One kind is very popular among the people in Jiangnan.
However, the "Five-Tong God" is very cautious. As long as the person worshiping him is slightly inconsistent with the "Five-Tong God", or if something is not done well, it will take back the gift given. Wealth brings people back to poverty again.
Hong Mai said that the biggest characteristic of the "Wutong Shen" is that he is "particularly fond of promiscuity" and often transforms into a beautiful man, or takes the form according to people's preferences.
Well... it is written quite clearly here, so I won’t explain it in detail.
Lu Can of the Ming Dynasty wrote a book called "Geng Ji Bian". In the fifth volume of the book, "Speaking of Demons", he recorded the evil spirit of the Wutong God believed in by Wu. pressing.
In the Jiangnan area at that time, the demon gods worshiped were known as the "Five Saints", also known as the "Five Manifestations of Spirits". In some villages, they were called "Wulang Gods", and they were all "old demons from the mountains". , "Mountain Xiaomu Ke" and other monsters, these monsters and monsters. The men become princes and the women are called ladies. In the temple, men stand on the left and women on the right. Sitting in the middle is the mother of these "Wu Tong God", called "Tai Fu". ", or "Tai Ma", the people were very afraid of her, and every house set up a temple to solemnly worship her. No matter how poor she was, she still had to find someone to paint her portrait on a wooden board to worship her. This board was called a "holy board". At that time, people usually Grand sacrificial activities will be held, and sacrifices will be performed together with Guanyin, City God, Land... and other righteous gods.
Evil spirits such as the "Five-Connected Gods" are called in the book. Most of them come out to cause trouble when people's fortune is bad. He caused a catastrophe that burned down people's houses. He was sexually promiscuous and good at women.
In short, in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas at that time, the belief and fear of the "Wutong God" had reached an evil and morbid level. All matters in one's family must be prayed to the "Wutong God" for blessings. If you receive blessings and get a little gain by chance, you should attribute it to God. If things don't go well, it's because you are not honest enough. You don't dare to complain to the "God of Five Powers" until your death.
People try their best and spend all their money to worship the "Five-Tong God". What's more, when people get sick, they say they get fairy diseases because they disobey the "Five-Tong God". You are not allowed to take medicine. Many people believe this, and more of them die in the end. 4. The rise and fall of the "Wutong God"
In the old days, the belief in the "Wutong God" in the south of the Yangtze River was very popular. Starting from the Southern Song Dynasty, there was already a Wutong Temple in Kuaiji City (today's Shaoxing, Zhejiang). He was extremely tolerant. Although he did not participate in the Spring and Autumn Festival, he had a huge belief among the people. In the early Qing Dynasty, Puji Temple in Jiangning Prefecture (now Nanjing, Jiangsu Province) also enshrined the "Wutong God", and his seat was actually behind Emperor Guan Sheng. superior.
When the Wutong Temple was at its peak, Jiangnan held a grand Wutong Temple Fair every year in late spring. The number of people who came to participate could reach tens of millions, and one of the most popular ones was This activity is to gather a group of young and beautiful women, dress them up beautifully, stand on a building facing the street to show themselves, let the people present downstairs feast their eyes, and judge the "top beauty", which provokes A lot of right and wrong and accidents.
The flourishing "Wutong" belief has become a cult, making the situation increasingly difficult to deal with. Some people with bad intentions even rape women in the name of their faith, which has a very bad influence.
It was not until the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty that Tang Bin, the governor of Jiangning, destroyed prostitution temples in Jiangnan and launched a vigorous "Wutong Shrine Destruction Movement." The "Wutong God" became a key target, and the custom Only then did he restrain himself slightly.
After the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, due to the war in Jiangnan, the Wutong Temple suffered great damage, and most of them were burned down. Today, there is no trace of Wutong Temple in its core nest, Fangfang Mountain in Suzhou. However, after all, it is the "Wutong God" who once had god-level beliefs in the Jiangnan area. After many years, he still has strong vitality in some places among the people and continues to exist in the form of the God of Wealth.
The Wutong God has different sayings in different periods and regions. In the Song Dynasty, Wutong God was an important god of wealth, but he was also regarded as a one-horned mandrill. ; In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, regarding the origin of the Wutong God, some said it was the ghost of Liuzhou in the Tang Dynasty, and some said it was the soul of the war dead sacrificed by Taizu of the Ming Dynasty. This theory had the greatest influence.
Folks in the south of the Yangtze River have had the habit of worshiping the "Wutong God" since ancient times. This is one of the obscene sacrifices that the officials are dissatisfied with. There are two theories about these five people. One is that they are evil gods cultivated by the five brothers back then. It is not known whether they can bring blessings, but it is certain that they can bring disasters if they offend them. If you worship properly, you may get some blessings, and it will come faster than worshiping regular gods and Buddhas.
A long time ago, there were more than a dozen families living at the foot of Tadong Mountain on the bank of Huashui River from the south gate of Dongyang. They got up early and stayed up late at night, men farming and women weaving. With their hard-working hands, they gradually built their hometown into a decent small village. They rely on agriculture and are attacked by the drought demon almost every year. The crops that are close to the mouth are scorched by the drought demon, and the food that is close to the mouth is taken away by the drought demon. They decided to work together to build a mountain pond to irrigate farmland and resist drought. So a pond was built halfway down the mountainside (Xiatiankun) under Tadong Mountain, determined to block the mountains and rivers. However, perhaps because the location was chosen incorrectly, the mountain pond built after several years of hard work by the whole village could not hold water. In the summer and autumn, the original green seedlings were scorched by drought, and the fields were cracked, resulting in no grain harvest. .
When the villagers were sighing and unable to do anything, the "Wu Tongshen" who traveled in all directions and passed by here learned about this difficulty and wanted to make some efforts and do something good for the villagers here. So I stayed in a cave in the stone wall on the east side of Tadong Mountain. Together with the villagers, I analyzed the reasons why the "Xiatian Kun" mountain pond could not store water. They pointed out that "Xiatian Kun" had no source of water and the dam was not high. This is the main reason why water cannot be stored. It was decided to choose another dam site to rebuild the mountain pond. "Wutongshen" said to the villagers: "The pit entrance where I live is more suitable for building a dam. The water veins are long and the water source is better than that of 'Xiatiankun'. Moreover, the mountains on both sides of the pit entrance are steeper and there are stone walls. Building the dam saves labor and labor." After it was built, it was guaranteed to be able to meet the needs of farmland irrigation. "So he and the villagers picked rocks to build the dam." Wutong Shen" carried two huge rocks to the pit dam on this day and climbed dozens of meters. After taking a "long step", I came to the gentle section of "Cailing". I was about to take a rest and change my shoulders. Due to overwork, I stumbled and fell to the ground. Two huge rocks rolled down on both sides, and the "Wutong Shen" "A slap of "" happened to be printed on the mountain pond under construction, so this palm-shaped mountain pond reservoir was formed. And the two huge stones, one fell on the side of "Chang Tiabu" and the other fell on the original side of "Xiatian Kun" Due to the joint efforts of the "Wutong God" and the villagers, the mountain pond was quickly built and filled with water. In order to commemorate the "Wutong God", people called this mountain pond. The "Little Heavenly Palace" called the cave where the "Wutong God" lived "Wutong Cave". From then on, although the crops in the surrounding areas at the foot of the south mountain were drying up every time there was a drought, only the one at the foot of the mountain was dry. The rice is green, the ears are heavy, and there is a good harvest every year. The reason is that the "Little Heavenly Palace" can resist drought, and when the "Little Heavenly Palace" is about to run out of water, God will definitely stop the drought. It rained. At this time, the water in the "Little Heavenly Palace" was full again, so the reputation of this "Little Heavenly Palace" that never dried up spread further and further.
Later, people commemorated and thanked the "Wutong". "God", the simple villagers will carry "pig heads and geese" to "Wutong Cave" to worship "Wutong God" every New Year and festival. This continues to this day.