Villain hitting
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Villain hitting (Da Siu Yan, 打小人) or demon exorcising[1] is a folk sorcery popular in the Guangdong area including Hong Kong, its purpose is to curse one's enemies using magic. Since villain hitting is often considered a humble career, the ceremony often hosted by old ladies who are interested in the job.
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[edit] Villain
In general concept, "villain" is divided into two types, specified villain and generalized villain.
[edit] Specified Villain
Specified villains are some specified people cursed by the villain hitter, because of the hatred from their enemies who employ the hitter. Sometimes villain would be a famous person hated by the public such as politicians, while sometimes the curse just due to personal affairs such as the request of cursing a love rival.
[edit] Generalized Villain
In general, villain hitters may help their clients curse not only a specified enemy, but some generalized villains, a general collection of people in future potentially harmful to the clients. Since dualism was the thought in main stream in traditional Chinese world view, deriving many different kinds of folk sorcery beliefs, the concept of Villain and Gui Ren (貴人, people who will do something good to the clients) was also the result of the yin and yang world view.
[edit] Time
The period for villain hitting is different among temples, while Jingzhe is the most popular date in common. According to some folklore, Jingzhe is the date that the whole of creation is awakened by the thunder. As a result, different kinds of foul spirits including byakko and villains start becoming active. Consequently, villain hitting became the prevention of those harmful to others.
[edit] Location
Villain hitting is often done in gloomy places such as somewhere under an overpass. In Hong Kong, the Canal Road Flyover between Causeway Bay and Wan Chai is a popular place of villain hitting . There are many goodies hitting villain especially in Jingzhe.
[edit] Ceremony
Receiving orders from clients, villain hitters would require human-shaped papers with or without some information of specific people. They would beat the papers with shoes or something else to commit their commission.
The whole ceremony of villain hitting is divided into 8 parts:
- Sacrifice to divinities
- Report
- Villain hitting
- Sacrifice to Byakko
- Reconciliation
- Pray for blessings
- Treasure Burning
- Zhi Jiao (擲筊) (or so-called "cup hitting" [打杯])
[edit] Notes
- ^ *(English) "Demon-exorcising Service at 'Goose-neck Bridge' ". My Heart, My Home - 18 Districts Reach Out Together for Loveable Sights in Hong Kong. Retrieved 11 June 2006.
[edit] External links
- (Chinese) "Speaking on Jingzhi (驚螫之談)". Hong Kong Mystery Exploration Society. Retrieved June 11, 2006.
- (Chinese) Villain hitting report, by Chinese Civilization Centre, City University of Hong Kong. Retrieved June 12, 2006.
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