nt in the history of Hua-jui Fu-jen, a name given to Lady Fei,
concubine of Meng Ch'ang, the last ruler of the Later Shu State,
A.D. 935-964. When she was brought from Shu to grace the harem of
the founder of the Sung dynasty, in A.D. 960, she is said to have
preserved secretly the portrait of her former lord, the Prince of Shu,
whose memory she passionately cherished. Jealously questioned by her
new consort respecting her devotion to this picture, she declared it
to be the representation of Chang Hsien, the divine being worshipped
by women desirous of offspring. Opinions differ as to the origin
of the worship. One account says that the Emperor Jen Tsung, of the
Sung dynasty, saw in a dream a beautiful young man with white skin
and black hair, carrying a bow in his hand. He said to the Emperor:
"The star T'ien Kou, Heavenly Dog, in the heavens is hiding the
sun and moon, and on earth devouring small children. It is only my
presence which keeps him at bay."

On waking, the Emperor at once ordered the young man's portrait to
be painted and exhibited, and from that time childless families would
write the name Chang Hsien on tablets and worship them.

Another account describes Chang Hsien as the spirit of the star
Chang. In the popular representations Chang Hsien is seen in the
form of a distinguished personage drawing a bow. The spirit of the
star Chang is supposed to preside over the kitchen of Heaven and to
arrange the banquets given by the gods.

The Sun-king

The worship of the sun is part of the State religion, and the officials
make their offerings to the sun-tablet. The moon also is worshipped. At
the harvest moon, the full moon of the eighth month, the Chinese
bow before the heavenly luminary, and each family burns incense as
an offering. Thus "100,000 classes all receive the blessings of the
icy-wheel in the Milky Way along the heavenly street, a mirror always
bright." In Chinese illustrations we see the moon-palace of Ch'ang O,
who stole the pill of immortality and flew to the moon, the fragrant
tree which one of the genii tried to cut down, and a hare pestling
medicine in a mortar. This refers to the following legend.

The sun and the moon are both included by the Chinese among the
stars, the spirit of the former being called T'ai-yang Ti-chuen,
'the Sun-king,' or Jih-kung Ch'ih-chiang, 'Ch'ih-chiang of the Solar
Palace,' that of the latter T'ai-yin Huang-chuen, 'the Moon-queen,'
or Yueeh-fu Ch'ang O, 'C