NO. 2 FOLK RELIGION IN SOUTHWEST CHINA — GRAHAM l8l 



in China, but in India, whence they were brought to China and propa- 

 gated there by the Buddhists. There is no trace of these doctrines 

 in the Vedas of ancient India, but they appear later in the Bramanas 

 and are fully developed in the Upanishads. They are accepted by 

 most of the religions of India, including Buddhism. Today they are 

 accepted without question by most of the Chinese people. 



The doctrine of karma teaches that every act has its retribution. 

 Good deeds have good consequences and evil deeds bring evil. There 

 is a proverb known throughout China, shan yu shan pao, o yu o pao, 

 ju yu pit pao, jih tsu wei tao. This means, "Good has a good recom- 

 pense, evil has an evil recompense. If there has been no recompense, 

 the time has not arrived." This theory is often very hard to recon- 

 cile with facts and events if a person has only one life. But in India 

 as well as in China karma is supplemented by the doctrine of trans- 

 migration, according to which the same person is reborn many times 

 without end, until he achieves nirvana or Buddhahood or becomes an 

 immortal. This makes it possible to explain apparently undeserved 

 sufferings or sorrow, or blessings and good fortune, as the deserved 

 rewards of conduct in previous existences. The Buddhists claim as 

 evidence that an enlightened Arhat can remember his past existences 

 and foresee the future destinies of himself and others. 



Closely allied to these doctrines is that of fate. It is true that this 

 doctrine existed in China before the coming of Buddhism, and it is 

 also true that it has been influenced by the Buddhist doctrines of 

 karma and transmigration, so that in the popular mind they are in- 

 separable. One's merit or demerit accumulates so that he is destined 

 to enjoy happiness or to suffer calamities. This applies even to the 

 animal world. For instance, if a hunter shoots at a duck and kills it, 

 the remark is likely to be made, "t'a kai ssu," whereas if the hunter 

 misses and the duck escapes, he is told, "t'a pu kai ssu," meaning 

 that because of deeds in past existences the duck was destined to die 

 or to escape with his life. The Buddhist doctrines of karma and 

 transmigration have altered and enriched the Chinese idea of fate, so 

 that it now has much more of a moral value and sense of justice than 

 it originally had. 



The Chinese name for karma is yin kuo, and for transmigration 

 lun hui. Yin means "cause," and kuo means "fruits or results," and 

 thus the expression means "the effects of causes." I have a Buddhist 

 book in Chinese called yin kuo which explains this doctrine and its 

 relation to transmigration. A person's merit or demerit because of his 



