seventh world of chan buddhism - Zen Buddhist Order of Hsu Yun

Consolidating new lands that had been acquired through war and pioneering presented
difficult but routine problems; the problems which confounded the Shang were those
presented by lands within their original territories.
The Yellow River basin, being annually refertilized by the rich mongolian silts that
were brought by summer flood and winter wind, was marvelously productive. In response to
this generosity, the population had increased rapidly; and in response to this increase, huge
chunks of forest land had been converted to farmland. As these farms extended into areas
that were beyond the river's capacity to water them, the Shang devised irrigation systems.
But, as more and more farms were situated farther and farther from the river, these
rudimentary irrigation systems were disastrously insufficient.
Outlying farms depended entirely upon rainfall, and the only rains that fell upon the
entire basin were the occasional tail-ends of storms in the China Sea. Hardy wild grasses,
native to the area, had adapted perfectly to the climate; but the crops introduced by the
farmers wanted a bit more in the way of pampering. The god of rain, a capricious and
miserly deity whose niggardly ways had previously been a sore but manageable irritation,
now became as wretched a troublemaker as the river god. And the river god had become
even more incorrigibly concupiscent since the destruction of the forests had worsened the
flooding problem by adding the run-off silts of soil erosion.
Fortunately, the supply of virgins, while not unlimited, was at least adequate for the
rutting river's needs. But rain presented different problems. Difficulty with the river was as
ancient as the Hua people, themselves. But rain did not become a problem until there was
already in place an enormous number of shamans.
At the Shang seat of government, at the first indications of drought, a great rain dance
was performed under the open sky. It was an appeal, not to the rain god - he had already
proved obdurate, but to the supreme being, the sky, itself.
Led by the king, the living Son of Heaven and shaman extraordinaire, the people
solemnly swayed, rhythmically imploring the great spirit to intercede on their behalf and
command the rain god to do his job.
If no rain was forthcoming, the `pity' ploy was used. The king slowly removed his
robes and exposed his delicate body to the broiling sun. And if the sight of his son's
sunburned body wasn't enough to make tears cascade down the divine cheeks and onto the
parched earth, then, clearly, the spectacle was just not pitiable enough.
A surrogate for the king was chosen and in an attempt to raise the pityquotient a great
fire was lit and the surrogate Son of Heaven was roasted.
But in the provinces, removed from the Heavenly scion's presence, the dance was
choreographed differently. The people chose a shaman whose oracular talents had clearly
CHAPTER 2 CHINA
S EVENTH W ORLD O F C HAN B UDDHISM
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