Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-08-05
THE WORSHIP OF JOSS
INTERIOR OF A CHINESE CHURCH
IN NEW YORK CITY.

| How the joss Houses Are Maintained.
Prayers Must Bc short or Else Paid for.
Joss Sticks--A Prayer Translased-The
Luck Book.
There are two houses of worship here in
New YORK They are called JOSS houses,
though what gave rise 20 the word JOS is not
known II is not Chinese word aus; is pro
tably birth OF the pigeon English dialect
The word meaning God in Chinese is Cuoas
I Hee Say Gong. In the two JOSS houses. as
in every other one all over the world. he IL
pictured as the central point Of attraction,
| hanging, as the picture does, behind the al
tar. IL IS painted with more or less ma .niI-
cence and represents n man Of ideal beauty,
according TO Chimes andards, in the prime
of life. On either side of this picture in all
JOSS houses, hang portraits of tbs great pow
ers Of the universe, one as the destructive,
represented by a hideous soldier armed 10 the
teeth. The other is the ideal productive wo-
man, bearing In her arms sack Of gold
and quantities of -four and grain In thu
two JOSS houses in New York the central
pictures are about six feet by four in dinlec-
sion and artisticaliy executed
HOW rHEY ARE MAINTAINED
To the maintenance of these JOSS houses 81
the wealthy Chinese and many u the poorer
subscribe with more or less libcrali;y. Every
one viii take flyer IN fan tan or 4 lottery
and pocket his gains or Losses without
scruple, and no ono is bound by Occidental
notions OF chastity. They arc very pious and
devoted men, according - the teIets oE their
creed. They oiiiciate a. the simple cereno-
MES which obtain IN thCse two temples with
out pay unless the worshiper protracts his
devotionS High Priest An Moy said the
other day: "A man can say all the prayers
be needs 10 say in a minute II be prolongs
the matter he Is simply what you would call
In English Phariseo and hypocritel For
Injuries of this kind We make charge. and
ST. if a man remains before the altar more
than "A minute he must pay for the privilege
One minute costs him nothing. tina second
costs him twenty-five cents. the third aity
ceats, tho fourth 81, the fifth =, and 20 on In
regular ratio"
What the worshipcr does Is interesting,
although il is so brief Entering the JOSS
house without ceremony he distributes "a
quantity OF joss STICKS which he has pur-
chased outside. There are SIX little bowls Of
sand in which he STICKS them; four are IN
frcnt Of the altar, one Is under table IN the
corner, and the sixth Is on a table or stone IN
another corner. In each he puts SIX sticks,
or multiple of six, according 20 tie ferv-
ency Of his religious notions six is a sacred
number amor.s this people. Tho FIRST bowl
represents devotion; the second the past 81
the worshipcr; the third his future; the
fourth the present for him and his relatives
and friends The one under the table goes
for luck, and the last for his d. nestle rcla-
tons. Having placed and ignited these sticks
he kneels upon the prayer cloth, which is
spread before tho altar, and there makes
twelve genufcxions.
A PRAYER TRANSLATED.
All this is done quickly As has been stated;
but the oStentatious VIII remain recstins
prayers from the books Of the Chinese
classics, humping their foreheads on the
ground ard acting ;he PharIsee's part Tue
short prayer that Is said may be freely trans
lated us follows Make me better; make mo
more courteoGs; make me kinder, bless my
parents and my grand parents; bless my
children and my wife, bless nay cousins, my
uncles, my ancestors, my country, my ser
wants and my friend: keep away from Oh Of
them any disease and give them all pros
perity. Amen"
The house itself or room deserves dcscrip-
ton, and yet il would be hard to give one
that would carry the picture 20 the reader's
eye. TInsel ornaments abound; ornamental
ton is profuse, but little or nothing Of real
value is 20 he seen The room il 81 no;
exactly as a club house, but Pleasant
place OF resort. Conversation, smoking,
games at cards and domlnoes. soIuetluies Tor
stakes, go Oh without q question, and lac
Il - 81 4
found at any hour a day or night within
me walls Is that Of jollity and social enjoy
Inent rather than that u what We ". tern
people call religion.
High Priest Ah Noy said 10 pretty net,
ross who visited his temple while studying
New York: "You think that thSs Is all II
-overcnt, and that VIC should no, pray aod
laugh and sing in the house. o. oar God DO
you not believe in letting children eujoy
themselves wherever they aref You would
not send them away from home to play ia a
bar room. We think the same We arr all
tho little children Of our 0ci. AID We eu joy
ourselves ia his house rather ran 60 away
Perhaps the most curious Institution ia the
JOSS house or temple Is the luck book, ~
called. There are standing in front of :bs
altar two vases, in zach OF which are two or
three hundred bamboo leaves. On each Of
these is inscribed the number ~ a page and
verse in the sacred book that lies "a "a tab.s
near by. The worsblper, after paying a
small fee, will either shaks the vase blniself
or get the priest 70 do j, until one Of thess
leaves il shaken up on top This Is picked
oct and the verse looked up, as Il iIdicatas
the fortanes VI the deyo;es. Yos
9rsrhic