158 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42 



of them as manlike gods of fire, water, and thunder, and so worshiped 

 their manhke images. lie said that the sun and the moon are regarded 

 as real, Hving deities. It seems to me that fear, awe, and wonder are 

 primary elements in primitive religion, and that these same elements 

 are fundamentals in religious worship. 



Candles and incense are means of showing honor and respect. They 

 also add to one's karma because their ceremonial lighting and burn- 

 ing are meritorious acts. The smell of incense is supposed to be 

 pleasing to the ancestors and to the gods, and to put them in a good 

 humor so that they will be propitious. Thus incense and candles are 

 important in religious worship. 



In an act of worship in the home, at a wayside shrine, or in a 

 temple, the worshiper or the priest generally first lights incense and 

 candles, then bows and prostrates himself before the god. The sim- 

 plest way is to fold the hands with palms together, then move the 

 folded hands up and down three times, also generally bowing the 

 head. The more elaborate way is three bows with folded hands waved 

 up and down, three kowtows, three more bows, three more kowtows, 

 three more bows, three more kowtows, and three final bows, moving 

 the hands up and down with each bow, making a total of nine kowtows. 



More elaborate forms of worship are performed by one or more 

 priests for individuals or for families, and the priests must be paid 

 for it. The number of priests and the length and elaborateness of the 

 ceremonies depends on the amount of money that is paid. In these 

 ceremonies there is music and the chanting of sacred books. 



The great festivals on the birthdays of the -gods may be regarded 

 as worship in the broadest sense. Hundreds and often thousands of 

 people go to the temples and worship the gods, and as the images of 

 the gods are carried through the streets in gigantic parades, the 

 spectators and the people whose homes and stores are passed burn in- 

 cense and candles and bow in worship. The great crowds and the 

 parades fill the people with a sense of wonder and admiration, and 

 they naturally bow in worship. 



Near Hsiiin-chien-ssu in southern Szechwan, there was a man who 

 kept several bulls for use in grinding soya beans to make bean curd 

 and bean cakes. I visted his place and saw the bulls, one of which 

 was very large. The man's business prospered, and the value of the 

 bulls went up. Finally, according to the testimony of his neighbors, 

 he burned candles and incense to, and worshiped, the largest bull. 

 Apparently he was moved to do so by his wonder and admiration for 

 the animal (Graham, 1928b, p. ']']^. 



