Xiqu

Show-opening Ritual: Purging of the Stage by the Spirit Medium

Monk Mulian Rescues His Mother (Part One):
A Meat Fast Broken on Her Birthday,
Making Kowtow Penance and Her Spirit Seized by Ghosts,
Appearing in Her Son’s Dream, Trial in Purgatory

Since Dacheng Opera has its roots in ritual plays, it is customary to perform a playlet of similar functions before the core performance of each show. One of them is Purging of the Stage by the Spirit Medium. It is believed that the Spirit Medium can chase away the ghosts and spirits hovering round the stage, and so ensures that the performance will be smooth-running. Another interesting playlet is Her Spirit Seized by Ghosts. In it, the White Messenger of Death walks on stilts, and the Black Messenger of Death walks in a squat. The difference in height between the two of them and the Five-Coloured Ghosts’ adlibbing and cracking jokes make for a funny scene. Yet under the jokey front, there are didactic messages for all. In Trial in Purgatory, the ghosts’ dance is also vivid and impressive.

When Fu Luobu’s father died at a rather young age, his mother, Liu Shizhen, thinks that despite observing Buddhist vegetarianism for seven generations, the Fu family is not blessed by Buddha. Such a thought is spurred on by her younger brother, Liu Jia, and the maid, Jinnu. So on her birthday, she breaks her fast and eats meat. When Luobu hears about this, he is shocked and returns home. On the way, he kowtows every three steps as an act of penance for his mother. Liu is frightened when confronted by her son, and refuses to admit that she has broken the vegetarian vows. She even goes to the backyard to swear that if she lies, she would go to hell. The false avowal leads to the coming of the demons from Hell, who take her with them. Luobu keeps vigil by the altar, and at night, his mother comes into his dream. She asks him to save her from Hell so she can be transcended to another life. The spirit of Liu is taken for trial by the God of Hell. After some torture, she finally admits to her sins.