Studies On The Belief In King Yao In Linfen, Shanxi Province

Linfen, one of the cradles of Chinese civilization, is the territory and capital of King Yao according to Ancient Myth. Large numbers of myths and legends of King Yao have been come down and help to form the belief in King Yao. The exploration on it has shows its significance in belief of folklore study.The thesis is divided into 3 parts: first, it gives a general view on nature of belief in King Yao based on the investigation and study by fieldwork; second, the thesis studies on the distribution of the vestige of King Yao from aspect of cultural ecology to explore the connotation of belief in King Yao; the third part mainly focuses on the sacrificial ceremonies and other related activities of King Yao to probe into the heritage and acceptability of belief in King Yao and its hidden social value.The study on belief in King Yao helps us to understand the formation of worship and belief of Chinese ancestors; it helps us to carry forward the Chinese traditional culture; it helps the construction of harmonious society and coordination of economy, ecology and culture in Linfen and China; it helps to rebuild the Chinese belief when the people's value have been diverse and they are in absence of belief.