Shen
Shen. Chinese word for spirits. In antiquity, it refers to the spirit of the ancestor who enjoys an afterlife because of the continuing and periodical sacrifices offered to him by the members of his offspring. Shen is not immortal; it is contingent upon the continuing offering of the sacrifices. Ancient China had a composite concept of the ‘soul’ in the body composed of hun and pʾo. After death, hun becomes shen and partakes of the ancestral offerings. Pʾo, after death, becomes kuei and goes to the Yellow Spring—the underworld. But in later times, shen and kuei refer to the two alternative designations of the spirit of the deceased: it is called shen when continuing sacrifices are offered to it, and it is called kuei when such sacrifices are denied to it. Shen blesses and kuei harms the family.
More From encyclopedia.com
Spirit , Spirit
Rock band
For the Record…
Spirit Gets A Line On A Classic Song
Woodstock A Missed Opportunity
A Spirited Revival Cut Short
Selected discograph… Ghost , Ghosts
GHOSTS . In western Germanic languages words similar to the modern English ghost and the German Geist seem to be derived from roots indicating… Holy Spirit , The term Holy Spirit occurs in only two historically late texts in the Old Testament (Isa. 63:10.11; Ps. 51:13), but much can nonetheless be deduced… Ancestors , The meaning of ancestor differs among different cultures, depending on their kinship system and their beliefs regarding the deceased. Ancestor could… Umbanda , Umbanda
Umbanda is a spirit-possession religion practiced by millions of Brazilians, primarily in urban areas. It emerged in the 1920s and 1930s when… Zeitgeist , Zeitgeist The characteristic spirit (Geist) of a historical era (Zeit). Eighteenth-century philosophers like Voltaire were intrigued by the idea of ‘…
You Might Also Like
NEARBY TERMS
Shen