CHIN A. 



217 



Seligioc. heap of earth, or of a quantity of stones thrown together 

 ~, ' in a round form. At a very early period, however, of 

 their history, we find them associating with the Shang- 

 tee, or Supreme Being, a multitude of tutelary spirits as 

 objects of worship, under the name of Shin, or Kooey- 

 shin. Around the Tan, or supreme altar, was drawn a 

 double fence called Kiao, constructed with turf and 

 branches of trees ; and in the space, which was thus in- 

 closed, two smaller altars were erected, one on each side 

 ef the Tan ; and, upon these, immediately after the sa- 

 crifice offered to the Tien, they sacrificed also to the 

 Shin, that is, to the superior spirits of every rank, and 

 to their virtuous deceased ancestors, imploring their pro- 

 tection and mediation with the Shang-tee. Their code of 

 moral*, at this period, was comprehended in two virtues, 

 Jin and Y ; the first of which expressed piety to God 

 and to parents, or good will to mankind in general ; and 

 the second signified equity or justice. The sovereign 

 alone, who was considered as the high priest >sf the em- 

 pire, had the privilege of sacrificing to the Tien ; but 

 any other person might supply his place in making of- 

 ferings to the Shin. In the earlier ages of the empire, 

 when its boundaries were not very extensive, one moun- 

 tain was sufficient for the performance of these rites; 

 but, as ita territories increased, four principal mountains, 

 lituated in the extremities of the empire, and correspond- 

 ing with the four quarters of the globe, were consecra- 

 ted by the Emperor Hoaug-tee, as the scenes of religious 

 worship to the nation ; and, in the course of every year, 

 the sovereign went to these sacred places successively to 

 offer worship, to shew himself to his people, to inform 

 himself of their requests, to reform abuses, and to esta- 

 blish good order. It was afterwards more particularly 

 ordained by the emperor Shun, that a solemn sacrifice 

 ihould be offered at the second moon, or vernal equinox, 

 on the eastern mountain, to implore a blessing on the 

 seed cast into the earth ; at the fifth moon, or summer 

 solstice, on the southern mountain, to pray for a genial 

 warmth upon the vegetating soil ; at the eighth moon, or 

 autumnal equinox, on the western mountain," for the pre- 

 servation of the ripening crop*; and at the 12th moon, 

 or winter sohtice, on the northern mountain, to give 

 thanks for the blessings received during the preceding 

 year, and to supplicate a continuance of the same favour 

 through the approaching season. A fifth mountain was 

 afterwards added in the middle of the empire ; and the 

 whole were in succeeding times called the five Yo, or 

 mountains of sacrifice. These regular journeys, however, 

 on the part of the emperor, having been found to be at- 

 tended with numerous difficulties and inconveniences, an 

 edifice was erected in the neighbourhood of the palace, 

 which represented the Tan, the Kiao, andj the hall of 

 ancestors, or space between the fences of the Kiao, as a 

 national y and universal Yo ; and here the emperor of- 

 fered the appointed sacrifices, when it would not have 

 been practicable or prudent for him to remove from his 

 capital. This edifice contained five separate apartments, 

 with four bare walls in each, without paintings or orna- 

 ment, and with nothing but windows to admit the light; 

 and it received from succeeding dynasties various addi- 

 tions, with new appellations. Under the dynasty of Hia, 

 220j before Christ, it was named Shc-shee, or the house 

 of generations and ages ; and was rebuilt by the Shang 

 17C(j years before Christ,, with the appellation of Tchoo- 

 oo, or the renewed temple. A similar structure was 

 raised by the Tcheoo, and named Ming-tang, or the 

 temple of light, 1122 years before Christ ; but future 

 dynasties, desirous to surpass their predecessors, divided 

 t>ie word ming or light into its component characters, 



Ge the sun, and Yue the mooa ; and built two temples, Religion. 

 one to each of these luminaries. Hence arose a multi- "% 

 tude of superstitions; and the wind, the rain, the thun- 

 der, diseases, &c. were all, in like manner, personified, 

 and addressed as divinities, while warriors, emperors, and 

 illustrious men, became demi-gods. The people forgot 

 the simple worship of the Shang-tee, and embraced 

 every new invention of idolatry with the utmost avidity. 



The most ancient of the religious sects, which have, at g ect of the 

 different periods, engrafted their superstitions upon the Tao-tte. 

 primitive theological system of China, is that of the 

 Tao-tse, or sons of immortals, which was founded by a 

 philosopher named Lao-kiun, or Lao-tse, who was born 

 in the province of Honan, about 600 years before Christ, 

 and concerning whose birth a multitude of strange stories 

 are circulated among his countrymen. His mother, it 

 is believed, suddenly conceived in a retired place, by the 

 united influence of heaven and earth ; continued in a 

 state of pregnancy for the space of 80 years ; and at 

 length, under the shadow of a plum-tree, brought forth 

 a son, with hair and eye-brows perfectly white. From 

 these circumstances he received the names of Ly-eul, or 

 plum-tree-ear, and of Lao-tse, or gray-haired child. In- 

 dependent of these absurdities, Lao-tse is said to have 

 held the office of librarian to one of the emperors of the 

 dynasty of Tcheoo, by whom he was afterwards raised 

 to the rank of an inferior mandarin. From his situation 

 in the midst of books, he became addicted to literary 

 pursuit:-, and acquired a profound knowledge of the an- 

 cient history and usages of his country ; but, disgusted 

 by the degeneracy of the times in which he lived, he 

 travelled into the kingdom of Thibet, where he imbibed 

 the tenets of the priests of Lama, and wrote a book en- 

 titled Tao-te-king, or the book of the power of Tao, 

 composed of 5748 characters, and consisting of detached 

 thoughts and maxims, expressed in a very concise and 

 unintelligible style. According to his doctrine, the Tao 

 is the principle of heaven and earth, the source of all 

 that exists, a highly intelligent, but, at the same time, 

 utterly incomprehensible being. He who desires to be 

 united to the Tao is named Shing, and is the only wise 

 man ; and to attain this character, he is required to be 

 free from the influence of every passion, to reject riches 

 and dignities, to employ himself in no kind of sublunary 

 pursuit, to keep silence, to censure nothing that exists, 

 to live as if be lived not, and to cherish compassion to 

 his fellow creatures. 



His followers, named Tao-tse, therefore, place the 

 supreme duty and felicity of man in a state of perfect 

 tranquillity, recommending the suppression of all violent 

 desires and passions, the utmost moderation in every pur- 

 suit or enjoyment, and an utter indifference with regard 

 to the past, the present, or the future. But as this apa- 

 thy, or tranquillity, which their master inculcated, and 

 which they laboured to attain, was necessarily disturbed 

 by the prospect of death, they adopted a notion, which 

 they are supposed to have derived from the idea of the 

 soul of the Lama passing into the person of his succes- 

 sor, and imagined, that a liquor might be compounded 

 from the tnree kingdoms of nature, which would posses* 

 the virtue of renovating the vigour of the human body, 

 and of rendering it finally immortal. In pursuit of thi 

 beverage of immortality, they addicted themselves to the 

 study of alchymy, which they mixed up with various 

 magical practices, tricks of divination, and other super- 

 stitious absurdities. The hope of avoiding death drew 

 to them a multitude of followers, especially among the 

 more opulent classes ; and several of the emperors aban- 

 doned themselves entirely to their opinions and practicei. 



