Burning Incense and Worshiping Spirits
Chinese people have a two-sided attitude toward spirits. On the one
hand, they hold them in awe and respect, and fear offending them;
on the other hand, their motivation is strongly utilitarian, and
they pray to spirits chiefly for their own protection. Hence,
communication between men and spirits is rich in human feelings and
reciprocity. This characteristic is expressed in the common
peoples' worship of spirits. Below are a few examples:
Burning Incense is usually called Worship in Hong Kong and Taiwan.
It is the commonest way of worshiping spirits. Lighting incense and
candles, people worship spirits by bowing down on their knees
several times; the more pious kneel down and kowtow and pray
silently at the same time.
Burning incense is a custom passed down from ancient worshiping
rituals. When the ancient Chinese rendered cults to God and
ancestors, they usually burned their sacrifices or simply certain
plants to make heavy smoke, thinking that they could communicate
with spirits through the smoke. Having evolved gradually and been
popularized later, such a practice has become a way of showing
respect for spirits by burning incense. But the incense of later
ages was improved, and some fine incense produced specially for
venerating spirits appeared, including some types of incense spread
in from India and Iran, etc. The most common types at present
include single incense and winded incense
Incense is also commonly used in Daoist rituals. The earliest known
record of Daoists' using incense is mentioned in the History of Wu
in the Annals of the Three Kingdoms , which states that the Daoist
Yu Ji taught people to burn incense and read Daoist books in the
eastern reaches of the Yangtze River. Incense Burners were set up
in the Daoist temples of the Southern and Northern Dynasties,
showing that it was quite popular to use incense at the time.
However, Daoism has strict prescriptions as to how to use incense.
The procedure of offering incense is clearly instituted.
Furthermore, Daoism has its own interpretations of the religious
functions of incense. But burning incense among the people is not
so strictly prescribed. It is mainly a way to show piety. Common
people's burning incense always goes along with giving offerings.
This is called Offering. The offerings include fruits and even pig
heads, whole cocks, and the like. In fact, it is forbidden in
Daoism to give things such as pig heads as offerings. But as the
people have long been doing so, Daoism has to let things take their
own course.
There are many customs concerning the folk practice of burning
incense. One of them is the so-called Burning the First Incense
Stick The First Incense Stick refers to the first stick burnt in
the incense burner, especially in the New Year. Common folk think
the first incense stick has the greatest merits and that they can
receive the most good fortune from it, so they often try to burn
the first incense stick.
Though the first incense stick is burnt before dawn, believers
begin to wait until midnight. If it is on New Year's Day (the first
day of the first lunar month), pilgrims usually start waiting early
before midnight of the New Year's Eve.