Jiang Shi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jiang Shi (traditional Chinese: 僵屍 or 殭屍; simplified Chinese: 僵尸; pinyin: jiāngshī; literally "stiff corpse"), sometimes called Chinese vampires by Westerners, are reanimated corpses that hop around, killing living creatures to absorb life essence (气/氣qì) from their victims. jiāngshī is pronounced geungsi in Cantonese, gangshi in Korean, and "kyonshī" in Japanese. They are said to be created when a person's soul (魄 pò) fails to leave the deceased's body, due to improper death, suicide, or just wanting to cause trouble. Generally their appearance can range from plain ordinary (as in the case of a recently deceased person) to downright horrifying (i.e. rotting flesh, stiffness, rigor mortis, the like commonly associated with corpses that have been in a state of decay over a period of time) A peculiar feature is their greenish-white furry skin; one theory is this is derived from fungus or mould growing on corpses. They are said to have long white hair all over their heads.[1] The influence of Western vampire stories brought the blood-sucking aspect to the Chinese myth in modern times. In fact, Dracula is translated to Chinese as "blood-sucking jiāngshī" where the thirst of blood is explicitly emphasized because it is not a traditional trait of a jiāngshī.[citation needed]

A supposed source of the Jiang Shi stories came from the folk practice of "Traveling a Corpse over a Thousand Li" (千里行屍), where traveling companion or family members who could not afford wagons or have very little money would hire Taoist priests to transport corpses of their friends/family members who died far away from home over long distances by teaching them to hop on their own feet back to their hometown for proper burial. This practice (湘西趕屍) was popular in Xiangxi where many people left their hometown to work elsewhere. After they died, their corpses were transported back to their rural hometown using long bamboo rods, believed they would be home-sick if buried somewhere unfamiliar. When the bamboo flexed up and down, the corpses appeared to be hopping in unison from a distance. Some people speculate that the stories about Jiang Shis was originally made up by smugglers who disguised their illegal activities as corpse transportation and wanted to scare off law enforcement officers.[citation needed]

Contents

[edit] Jiang Shi in film

Jiang Shis became a popular subject in Hong Kong films during the 1980s, primarily due to the films of Sammo Hung, including Encounters of the Spooky Kind (1980) and Mr. Vampire (1985). Some movies even featured both Jiang Shis and "Western" zombies. In the movies, Jiang Shis can be put to sleep by putting on their foreheads a piece of yellow paper with a spell written on it (Chinese talisman or 符, pinyin: fú). Generally in the movies the Jiang Shi are dressed in imperial Qing Dynasty clothes, their arms permanently outstretched due to rigor mortis. Like those depicted in Western movies, they tend to appear with an outrageously long tongues and long razor sharp black fingernails. They can be evaded by holding one's breath, as they track living creatures by detecting their breathing.[2] They're blind, and lack knowledge. Their visual depiction as horrific Qing Dynasty officials reflects a common stereotype among the Han Chinese of the foreign Manchu people, who founded the much-despised dynasty, as bloodthirsty creatures with little regard for humanity.[citation needed] It is also the conventional wisdom of feng shui in Chinese architecture that a threshold (traditional Chinese: 門檻; simplified Chinese: 门槛; pinyin: ménjiàn), a piece of wood approximately 15 cm (6 in) high, be installed along the width of the door at the bottom to prevent a Jiang Shi from entering the household.[3] When grains or rice, seeds, anything small thrown in the path of a jiang shi, the jiang shi will stop and count the grains of rice. Sticky rice is believed to draw the evil spirit of the jiang shi out.[citation needed] In the film Mr. Vampire, only sticky rice works, and mixing it with regular rice diminishes it's effectiveness. Other items used to repel jiang shi in films inlclude chicken's eggs (whereas duck's eggs are ineffective), and the blood of a black dog.[4]

[edit] Cultural references

  • A Jiang Shi was featured in the second season of Jackie Chan Adventures where the chi of almost all the main characters were sucked out and rearranged in different bodies to produce a comedic running gag in the episode.
  • A Jiang Shi (the one from the Mr. Vampire series) appeared in the novel Anno Dracula working for Fu Manchu.
  • In the manga/anime Shaman King, Tao Jun controlls Jiangshi, using them as living weapons.
  • In the animated series My Life as a Teenage Robot, during one episode, Jenny fights literally hopping vampires. As a joke, a bop on the head (Jenny even defeats one by sitting on it) is all it takes to defeat them.
  • Jiang Shi become hopping praying mantises in Sly Cooper 3.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ de Groot, JJM (1892-1910). The Religious System of China. The Hague. 
  2. ^ Newman, Kim (1996). The BFI Companion to Horror. London: Cassell, p. 175. ISBN 0-304-33216-X. 
  3. ^ Hopping Mad: A Brief Look at Chinese Vampire Movies. Penny Blood Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-12-16.
  4. ^ 'Encounters of the Spooky Kind, Bey Logan audio commentary DVD featurette) [DVD]. Hong Kong Legends, UK.