ABSTRACT
The creatures who make their homes in burrows in the ground, were credited with supernatural power, as it was believed that, during the stillness of the night, they overheard the secrets of Mother Earth. This accounts for the cult of the Wu Sheng (3i.. ), or Five Seers, whose worship was proscribed by the prudish Manchus. Snakes, badgers, weasels, and hedgehogs had to be treated with due reverence, and the respect for them increased with their age. They usually took up their residence in old and dilapidated buildings and, if their treatment failed to reach the standard to which they were accustomed, unpleasantness ensued. Doors opened and windows rattled, whilst servants gave notice rather than live in a haunted house. If a move was impracticable the only alternative was to seek the services of a Ch'ao Hsiang Ti (1ll1!f ~) who was supposed to have an influence over the spirit. Unfortunately, tnis class of person was in limited supply and the treatment was expensive. The exorcists were generally old people, who were highly specialised. The practitioner who was good for badgers was no herpetologist, and the weasel expert was powerless in the presence of hedgehog. This led to a great deal of abuse and charlatanry, so the police intervened to declare the practice illegal. Exorcisms, however, continued in secret. When the charmer visited a patient, incense was burned and the medium fell into a trance, during which the spirit was
transferred from the victim to the practitioner. As the latter was on good terms with his familiar, burning incense to him every day, he suffered no inconvenience from the operation.
