No. 105Chinese Folk Religion & Taoism

Zhong Kui

鍾馗

Fierce bearded guardian who drives harmful spirits from Chinese doorways

Zhong Kui (鍾馗), the Demon Queller, is the fierce guardian whose portrait watches over Chinese doorways. Legend tells of a gifted scholar from Mount Zhongnan, denied honour in the examinations, who rose after death to drive harmful spirits from the world. Accounts of his origin vary, and he does not appear in the official histories.

Households turn to him to guard homes, doorways and shops, and his bat companions bring the Five Blessings. Families hang his picture at New Year and at the Dragon Boat Festival. He is honoured in folk practice and in Taoism. A Taiwanese temple holds a birthday procession for him, and the masked exorcist dance is still performed in Shaanxi, Anhui and Taiwan. In Japan he is known as Shōki.

Shop Zhong KuiSee the gallery
Zhong Kui

How to recognise Zhong Kui

  1. Fierce faceLook for bulging, glaring eyes and a wrathful expression, a fearsome look meant to frighten ghosts away.
  2. Bushy black beardA big, bristling black beard is his key identifying mark, and he is never clean-shaven.
  3. Official's hatHe typically wears the black gauze cap with side wings of a government official, though one Royal Ontario Museum painting shows a blue winged veil hat.
  4. Red official's robeA wide-sleeved red robe, often with a jade belt, is the most common form, marking him as a scholar-official; blue, dark and (in Japan) green robes also appear.
  5. Demon-quelling swordA sword held upright or drawn shows his power over harmful spirits, although many paintings give him other objects or no weapon at all.
  6. BatsA flying bat, or five bats, hovers near him: bat and blessing are both pronounced fú, so five bats stand for the Five Blessings, and one painting also describes them as helpers who find hidden demons in the dark.
  7. Small demon attendantsSmall, subdued demons sometimes serve him, as in one painting where two hold a vase, coral and fungus, symbols of peace, wealth and longevity.

Names and titles

  • The Demon QuellerHis best-known title, given in legend by the emperor after he overcame the thieving demon
  • Scholar of Mount Zhongnan终南進士: the honorific that recalls his origin as an examination scholar
  • Bringer of the Five BlessingsBat and blessing share the sound fú, so the bats around him call fortune
  • Guardian of the DoorwayHis picture is hung at gates and doors to keep harmful spirits out of the house
  • Giving His Sister in MarriageThe folk tale in which he escorts his sister to marry his friend Du Ping in a procession of ghost attendants

Feast days

  • Zhong Kui's Birthday (伏魔大帝天師鍾馗聖誕)16th day of the 1st lunar month (next: 22 February 2027)
  • Zhong Kui's Birthday (鍾馗誕辰)3rd day of the 5th lunar month (next: 7 June 2027)
  • Dragon Boat Festival (端午)5th day of the 5th lunar month (next: 9 June 2027)

Zhong Kui in the shop

See all 9 Zhong Kui designs

Sources

  1. Wikipedia: Zhong Kui
  2. Wikimedia Commons: Zhong Kui the Demon Queller with Five Bats (Ashmolean Museum description)
  3. Wikipedia: Zhong Kui the Demon Queller with Five Bats
  4. Sotheby's: The Return of Zhong Kui, Demon Slayer and Vanquisher of Evil
  5. Royal Ontario Museum: Painting, Zhong Kui, Demon Queller
  6. Staatliche Museen zu Berlin: Ghostbuster Zhong Kui, the Demon Queller
  7. Long Museum: Zhong Kui exhibition
  8. ChinaKnowledge: Zhong Kui
  9. Chinese Wikipedia (zh-tw): 鍾馗
  10. China Times via Yahoo News Taiwan: Zhong Kui birthday procession
  11. Chinartown: Taiwanese god-birthday list
  12. Spurlock Museum: Zhong Kui (2017.13.0002)
  13. Gods and Monsters: Zhong Kui
  14. Mythology Chinese: Zhong Kui
  15. China Highlights: Dragon Boat Festival date
  16. OnMark Productions: Shōki
  17. The World of Chinese: Who's Afraid of the Chinese Ghostbuster?
  18. Travelking: Taiwan Dragon Boat Festival
  19. Wikipedia: Dragon Boat Festival

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