banquet, at which the living members of the family, and the
spirits who have been summoned, eat and drink together. To heighten
the illusion, the grandson was sometimes dressed in the clothes of
the departed head of the house and made the principal figure of the
celebration--

The dead cannot in form be here,
But there are those their part who bear;
We lead them to the highest seat
And beg that they will drink and eat:
So shall our sires our service own,
And deign our happiness to crown
With blessings still more bright.[4]

[Footnote 4: _Shi-king_, II. vi. 5.]

It is not only in the family that ancestors are adored. The emperor
sacrifices in a public capacity to all the ancestors of his own line,
and also to all his predecessors on the throne; a magistrate to all
who have occupied his office before him. Ancient China possessed an
elaborate ritual, and occasions of sacrifice were frequent. Every
change of season, every portent of nature, every important step
either in public or in private life, required its consecration. It is
in accordance with the genius of the people that the sacrifices are
not of the nature of propitiation, but expressions of gratitude and
devotion merely. Asceticism has no place in this religion; everything
in it is bright and sensible. He who is to offer a sacrifice prepares
himself by prayer and retirement to do so worthily; but beyond this
reasonable measure there is no afflicting of the soul, and in the
prayers belonging to the occasion self-humiliation and confession
have no place, but only thanksgivings and petitions. The petitions
are for worldly benefits and furtherance; the sacrifices are means of
procuring these from the heavenly powers. They consist chiefly of
animal victims, but fruits are also used, and with the importance of
the occasion the variety and costliness of the offerings increase.
Elaborate music also accompanies great sacrifices, and is thought to
be very acceptable to the heavenly powers. Religion is not separated
from life in China. There is no special class to take care of it;
every one has to attend himself to those sacrifices which are
incumbent on him; this is a natural, matter-of-course part of a man's
duty. As there is no Bible, there is no religious instruction, and
the doctrine is quite vague and undefined. The ritual, however, is
fixed by tradition in every detail, and if a man attends to it he
does his duty; religion is a set of