The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-08-05
K](|L|l|||a[la2l| < { } 3, ||!|:|i F E%@SGSSSkSk %4W 8Y CZ COZLNEQ- -ERGS.AI Il
SPIRIT AND ANCESTOR WORSHIP.
W BI CE COLLNER ER G>Ss

IS then an oHer1nS Is made to the Spir- it in the form of cake, wine, and pork. but if the man met his death by acci- dent then the flesh of a dog will take the place of the former for the offering.
 The sorceress, without whose aid no sacrifice is ever made to the spirits. dons red clothing on this occasion and while dancing fnvokes the. spirit, tell ing it that since its departure a large number of wicked spirits have come to her masters house and are givir1 2 great trouble; will not therefore the spirit of the tree deign to be so kind as to drive these ma1evo1ent spirits away.
 It is very noticeable that the spirits are not worshipped except when they are supposed to be bringing some evil upon the family and then the worship generally takes the form of exorcism which is described in the article on Witchcraft.
 In matters of religion we find a cer- tain amount of reciprocity; while Sha,- manistic worship is reIegated exclu- sfvely to women, the performance of cerem onies in honor of ancestors is
 mans prerogat1ve. Woman is not all lowed to participate further than in the preparing of the foods to be of fered in the sacrifice.
 The Bowls of Rice and a Pumpkin
 The worship of the ancestors begins from the very moment of death; so
 nents have arrived there is placed outside the door a little table on which are set three bowls Of rice and a pumpkin. By the side of these are arranged three pairs of sandals. It is supposed that as the person breathes his last, three annbassad dors from the Prince of Hades'' arrive. mi ar are refreshed by the rest, and the shoes being burnt are ready for the journey. After the rice is thrown away the pumpkin is broken as an off, fering to a high official in Hades, who lived two thousand years ago and was particularly fond of this vegetable.
 The first actual sacrifice to the de- parted is known as the Pyeng-to-chey ("the sacrifice at the 1eve1ling of the earthly, which is always performed imm edtately the grave is filled in Small tables are placed in front of the grave upon which are set offerings of wine and dried fish. The reIa-. tives as they face the offerings take part in a liturgy which proys for peace to be the portion of the spirit of the one who has just taken up his resi- dence in the grave. After five times prostrating themselves to the ground they retire a, short distance and make a like offering and similar obeisances to the Spirit of the Mountain
 The reason for praying and sacrf- fcing to the Spirit of the Mountain is that it is said to preside over the place of departed spirits, therefore this spirit being recognized as a sort of host it's protecting care over the newly arrived guest is invoked.
 After the ceremony is over the wine is poured out on the mountain side and the fish divided among any ser wants, or followers, who may happen to be present. When the mourners return home from the funeral the first offering is made to the tablet in honor of the deceased and is called the sac rifcing for the returning soul
 The offerings consist of wheaton bread, beef, cooked rice, vermtceIh soup. and wine After the relatives have made abeisance five times be- fore the tablet they retire into anoth- CT room taking the food with them and regale themselves with 1t.
 The Ancestral Tablet.
 The ancestral tablet consists of a strip of pear-tree wood upon which Is inscribed in Chinese the name and t1- ties of the deceased. The tablet is so constructed that a portion of the front part can be removed, revealing an ob- long cavity in the centre of the tablet, which is the abiding place of one of the spirits of the departed man; in gross and egress from which Is ob- tatned through a quarter-1nch dian1e- ter hole in the rear of the tablet At times when it Is not being worshipped the tablet stands in 8 specially pre- pared box. After the three years of mourning are over the tablet is re- moved from the house and. placed in a little temple adjoining it, Known as the 'Hsacrihc1al hall"
 At each new and full moon, an hour or two after midnight, amid great la mentations, bowl of rice or soup Is placed before the tablet. In addition to these fortnight1y sacrifices there is a special one on each anniversary of the death. The first being called the stsmau happiness while those offer 1ngs made subsequently year by year are known by the name dreaded day sacrifices On the occasions af the anniversary sacrifices the mourners will some time during the day pro- ceed to the grave and there perform the ceremonies to the soul in the grave and to the mountain spirit. After the days of mourning are over the sacrifices on the new and full moon cease but the anniversaries are perpet- uated; those for the father being held on the mountain side well as in the t+Sacrifcial Ha1l," though those in honor of the grandfather and great grandfather are held exclusively in the temple. III dooAt4OH Co Iho -uaCSS eA- ready referred to there are two great days reserved for the worshippers of ancestors throughout Korea They are New Years day and the fifteenth of the first month.
 Origin of Ancestral Worship.
 There can be little doubt that an cestral worship in Korea is Confucian in its origin, although we gather from the writings of this venerated person that he found the worship of ances- tors to exist among the ancients and that he passed on the custom without alteration The AnaIects set before | men a beautiful array of virtues to be | practiced, among which the most con [ spicuous is '~dlial piety." Worship of ancestors originates in the idea that the spirits of the departed need the |