200px|Chinese Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 CE) tomb guardian figure identified as a Fangxiangshi The fangxiangshi 方相氏 was a Chinese ritual exorcist, the meaning of whose name is obscure but has been translated as "one who exorcizes ", " one who cures by magic ". Ancient Chinese texts record that he wore a bearskin with four golden eyes, and carried a lance and shield to expel malevolent spirits. His primary duties were orchestrating the seasonal Nuo ritual to chase out disease-causing demons from houses and buildings, and leading a funeral procession to exorcize corpse-eating wangliang spirits away from a burial chamber. From the Han dynasty through the Tang dynasty (3rd century BCE to 10th century CE), fangxiangshi were official wu-shaman specialists in the imperially sanctioned Chinese state religion; after the Tang, they were adapted into popular folk religion and symbolized by wearing a four-eyed mask.
200px|Chinese Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 CE) tomb guardian figure identified as a Fangxiangshi The fangxiangshi 方相氏 was a Chinese ritual exorcist, the meaning of whose name is obscure but has been translated as "one who sees in all (four) directions ", " he who scrutinizes for evil in many directions", and "one who orients unwanted spirits in the direction to which they belong ". Ancient Chinese texts record that he wore a bearskin with four golden eyes, and carried a lance and shield to expel malevolent spirits. His primary duties were orchestrating the seasonal Nuo ritual to chase out disease-causing demons from houses and buildings, and leading a funeral procession to exorcize corpse-eating wangliang spirits away from a burial chamber. From the Han dynasty through the Tang dynasty (3rd century BCE to 10th century CE), fangxiangshi were official wu-shaman specialists in the imperially sanctioned Chinese state religion; after the Tang, they were adapted into popular folk religion and symbolized by wearing a four-eyed mask.
R
exorcizes
sees in all (four) directions
R
one who cures by magic
he who scrutinizes for evil in many directions", and "one who orients unwanted spirits in the direction to which they belong