132 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42 



Tlie magistrate went to a temple near a lake on a high mountain and 

 prayed earnestly to the Dragon God for rain. After a time it began 

 to rain. Then he walked down the mountain toward Wen-ch'uan- 

 hsien with his hands and arms outstretched as though he were taking 

 the rain down into the valley with him. The rain actually went down 

 into the valley, ending the drought. It seemed obvious to the people 

 that his prayer caused the rain and that he brought it with him into 

 the valley. They believed that to be able to do this, he must have very 

 great virtue. The next year he tried to end a drought in the same way, 

 but he failed and thereby lost his reputation. 



One year there was a serious drought at Ch'ang-ning-hsien, south 

 of I-pin, The magistrate went to the temple called P'u-t'ao-ching or 

 Grape Well. In this temple were several dragon gods. The temple 

 was in bad condition and needed repairs and painting. The magistrate 

 reverently worshiped all the gods and prayed for rain, promising or 

 vowing that if there should be rain that night he would repair and re- 

 paint the temple and give the gods new clothing (new coats of paint). 

 That night there was a thunderstorm with torrents of rain that filled 

 the rice paddies and broke the drought. The magistrate kept his 

 promise and repaired and repainted the temple and the images of the 

 gods. 



Often, when seeking rain, the magistrate and the priests or other 

 people worship the gods in the temples and make verbal prayers. 

 Nearly always the request is accompanied by a vow or a promise to 

 give something to, or to do something for, the god or gods if the 

 prayer is answered. Often, too, the prayer is written on paper in the 

 form of a letter and burned as the accepted means of sending it to the 

 god. On March 23, 1929, at Hsu-chiang, west of I-pin, while the 

 people were praying for rain, 12 such letters were wTitten and 

 burned to 12 different gods. 



Six of the main gods that are worshiped in order to obtain rain are 

 the Dragon God ; Wang Yeh, the god of rivers and boatmen ; the water 

 god; the god of thunder; the god of agriculture; and the t'u-ti, or 

 local deity. Several other gods are often worshiped for this purpose. 



Whenever a community decides to use extraordinary means to bring 

 rain, a period of fasting is proclaimed and strictly observed. This 

 means that no birds, fish, or animals can be killed, and no meat can be 

 eaten, not even eggs. Even criminals can not be executed. Back of 

 this practice is belief in the Buddhist doctrine of Karma and transmi- 

 gration. Karma refers to the law of cause and effect, which has a 

 bearing on the transmigration of souls. What a person or a creature 



