Sacrificial custom in Manchu custom

Manchu sacrificial activities are mysterious and solemn, and they are very particular about procedures and contents. The whole process of offering sacrifices is divided into four parts: offering sacrifices to ancestors, gods, gods and stars.

Three days before the sacrifice, the whole people will begin to prepare: hang a straw at the gate of the yard, which means that from the day when the straw handle is hung until the sacrifice is finished, women who wear dog skin hats and mourning clothes and are unclean are not allowed to enter the door, and at this time, beggars are not allowed to give alms.

In addition, some sacrificial food should be prepared. The most important things here are: yellow rice and some pigs. On the day of the sacrifice, the priest invited the ancestral box temporarily stored outside to his home, put it on the table at the southern end of Xikang, and then took down the permanent ancestral box at home and put it below. Usually arranged during the day. First, the priest decorated the altar and the pedestal of the ancestors, then invited the ancestors out, and then carried a pure black pig to the house under the edge of Nankang for sacrifice. After all the preparations were completed, the priest read the eulogy. At this time, all the people attending the sacrifice should kneel down and listen in turn according to their seniority.

After reading the eulogy, kowtow and get up, and then carry the pig to the altar to kill the sacrifice. When slaughtering and sacrificing, the pig hair should be removed, the hoof horns and pig bile should be placed on the right side of the altar, and then the pig should be carried to the altar with its head facing outwards and feet facing right. There are two kinds of sacrifices during the day and at night. Japanese sacrifices are usually followed by ancestor worship. The procedure is: the pigs slaughtered during ancestor worship are broken down into 12 pieces and boiled in a pot with internal organs, without seasoning. Don't eat the meat cooked in the pot until it is served.

After the offerings are arranged neatly, please ask the priest to kneel and read the eulogy first. The people attending the sacrifice should still kneel in turn according to their generations, and then the priest will lead the people to kowtow. Sacrificing to God at night is generally divided into two steps.

First, please invite seven ancestors from the ancestor box and put them on the ancestor rack, then ask two ancestors to put them on the ancestor box cover, each with a glass of water and a plate of yellow rice, put the incense bowl and altar on the table, and then light incense and ashes.

After that, the priest tied his waist bell and skirt, and led the people to beat drums and pray. Then kill pigs in front of the shrine. Secondly, after the pig festival, the priest will also lead the people to carry out lantern festivals. At this time, the doors and windows should be closed, and no one is allowed to leave the hospital or outsiders are allowed to enter the house.

The priest blew out the lamp, held up two bronze bells, shook his waist bell and muttered something to himself. After the sacrifice, he lit the lamp again, bowed down, put the statue of his ancestors in the ancestor box, put his hands on the ancestor board of the western wall, and then opened the doors and windows to let people in and out.

It will be three days before the family can eat the meat for carrying lanterns, but it can't be eaten by outsiders. It is to invite the wooden statue of ancestors to the sacrificial tree at sunrise, facing the northeast. Hang a clean piece of paper on the tree, and then carry the sacrificial pig to the holy tree. The priest knelt on the left side of the sacrificial pig, and everyone knelt behind. Before the sacrifice, the pig's ears were filled with wine or clean water. Pigs shake their heads when they feel itchy. People think it's for God's enjoyment. If the pig doesn't respond, it's a bad omen.

After the sacrifice, the pig was divided into seven parts and boiled in a pot. Pig bile, jawbone and water were hung on the tree. The priest offered the meat, and after kowtowing, everyone divided the meat, but the bones of all parts were sent to the tree of God. In Manchu, the pole of sweeping Soren is usually held on the second day after ancestor worship.

The pigs used to sacrifice to Soren Column must be harmless pure black boars. Before killing a pig, tie it up, put it in front of the Soren pole, burn incense and pray, and then kill it.

Don't throw pig bones about. They should be buried under the Soren pole that night, and a bone in the pig's neck should be hung on the Soren pole. Pig bile, pig intestines, pig bladder and other things should be put in the bucket above Sauron pole for crows and magpies to eat. If they can be eaten within 3 days, they are considered very lucky. This was done after the moon went down. The date of offering sacrifices to the stars, whether in a certain month, should be arranged on the third or fifth day. After sunset, put a square stool in the middle of Shangfang Beikang and light incense wax.

Star worshippers dressed in yellow gauze robes, holding blood basins and sharp knives, slaughtered sacrificial pigs on the west side of the outdoor, not far from their ancestors. At this time, the lights in the room should go out. After the sacrificial star killed the sacrificial pig, he coughed, lit the indoor door, and carried the pig into the house for unhairing and decomposition. Then the pig was carried to its original place to kowtow to the stars, and then the lights in the room went out again.

After the sacrifice, I carried the pig back to the house, but I couldn't see the fire. It is said that turning off the lights can shorten the distance between man and god, not only can "express one's chest directly", but also can let the god directly perceive the pious mood of sacrificing people. Burial and cremation are the main forms of Manchu funeral with a long history. Before Manchu entered the customs, cremation was the main reason, mainly because they migrated frequently. Coupled with the death of soldiers in the Eight Banners in the early Qing Dynasty, it was inconvenient to send the bones back to their hometown, so cremation was adopted. After the Manchu entered the customs, it gradually changed, from cremation to burial. The funeral ceremony is the shroud worn by the deceased before his death, mostly robes and jackets, which are single. The spirit stays in the house, usually within 7 days. Make a Zhang Ling bed with wooden boards, with the head facing west and feet facing east. The coffin was made of red cloth about 3 feet long, decorated with black spikes, and hung on a high pole in the yard. The coffin used by Manchu people has a special shape, which is upturned, wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, and is called "flag material".

During the mourning period, the family members observed a moment of silence and held a memorial service. At the time of burial, gold and silver were put in the coffin, and the poor people used gold and silver foil ingots instead, with copper coins or jade articles in their mouths, and the coffin was placed in the Peng Ling in the courtyard. There are 16 bars, 32 bars, and 64 bars in the lunar funeral. After the funeral, thank the people who helped and invite them to dinner. After burial, burn paper in front of the grave every 7 days for 7 times in a row. Burn for a hundred days, burn for the anniversary. Manchu burning paper is to fold paper into pockets, commonly known as burning pockets. Tomb-Sweeping Day wants to go to the grave, burn his pocket and stick a Buddha in it. In the past 30 years, the funeral of Manchu has been changed to cremation. However, there are still many ancient traditions in the ceremony of paying homage to relatives, such as burning pockets, offering sacrifices by inserting Buddha, burning for seven days, burning for a hundred days, burning for the anniversary and so on in Tomb-Sweeping Day.