A Curse Lasted Three Generations

[王泥喜法介]

I heard the story from my grandmother's friend.

In the 17th century, due to the war involving Jurchen and revolters, Chinese population sharply decreased, particularly in the southwest inland area of China. As a result, many people who lived in the coastal line were forced to be relocated to the inland area, my ancestor was included. They and their family members found a good place and then stayed there, and a village appeared from then onwards.

At first, the sources in the area of the village could afford all people of the village. However, when it comes to the end 19th century, due to the increasing population, the farmland of the village became insufficient. To get more farmland, villagers had to look for more useable lands. At the same moment, some people of other villages were also looking for more farmlands for the same reason. A conflict arose.

I will finish the story later...

 

[AmStramGram]

In the 17th century, due to the war involving Jurchen and revolters, Chinese population sharply decreased, particularly in the southwest inland area of China.

Are you speaking of Zhang Xianzhong's genocide in Sichuan ? Your ancestors settled in this province ?

 

[王泥喜法介]

Are you speaking of Zhang Xianzhong's genocide in Sichuan ? Your ancestors settled in this province ?

Yes, it is.

 

[王泥喜法介]

It seems the first thread is uneditable now, so I rewrite it here.

I was told this story by my grandmother's friend, which dates back to the 17th century. Due to a war between the Jurchen and the revolters, the population of China drastically decreased, especially in the southwest inland area. Consequently, many people had no option but to be relocated to the inland area, including my ancestor who settled there with their family members, leading to the establishment of a village.

Initially, the resources around the area were sufficient for all the villagers, but as the population increased towards the end of the 19th century, the available farmland became inadequate. Thus, the villagers had to explore other lands that were usable, like some families from other villages who had the same need. Unfortunately, this led to conflicts, and I refer to my ancestor clan as the "Wang's clan" for clarity.

The seniors narrated that this disagreement lasted for many years, and both sides employed Feng Shui masters to alter the opponent's landscape. However, skipping through the physical and spiritual battles, I will explain the curse that ensued.

After multiple rounds of combats, Wang's clan emerged as the victor. One day, a stranger visited Wang's village and requested water from the daughter of the head of the village. The girl gave the stranger some water, and as a reward, the stranger gifted her a small wooden ladle. When the head returned and learned of the stranger, he examined the ladle and discovered a terrifying eye-image at its bottom.

Concerned that the ladle may have been enchanted, the head called up some occult masters to verify the claim. A villager then handed the head a letter from the stranger, which disclosed that a curse had been cast on the ladle. Since the girl accepted the ladle, the curse could not be revoked and would make six or seven family members of the village head go crazy.

The village head sought help from various renowned masters, but they were all unable to remove the powerful curse. Over time, some family members of the head inexplicably went insane, and the final victim was born in the 1930s or 1940s, the youngest great-granddaughter of the head.

As a child, I met this victim once, and in my memory, the old lady appeared normal except for being reclusive. According to the seniors' narration, the woman had been sane until her early 20s when she became unexpectedly insane.

 

[王泥喜法介]

Are you speaking of Zhang Xianzhong's genocide in Sichuan ? Your ancestors settled in this province ?

It is amazing that you know this story.

 

[AmStramGram]

It is amazing that you know this story.

Zhang Xianzhong is one of the worst mass murderers in history. What is amazing is that so few people know his story in the West. There is a decent book about him in English language, though : "On the Trail of the Yellow Tiger", by Kenneth Swope (https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/9780803249950/ )

Anyway, thanks for your sorcery stories. Although the Chinese context is different, we can see there are some common points between Eastern and Western lore, such as sending a curse through a damned object (as illustrated in your story).

 

[王泥喜法介]

Zhang Xianzhong is one of the worst mass murderers in history. What is amazing is that so few people know his story in the West. There is a decent book about him in English language, though : "On the Trail of the Yellow Tiger", by Kenneth Swope (https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/nebraska/9780803249950/ )

Anyway, thanks for your sorcery stories. Although the Chinese context is different, we can see there are some common points between Eastern and Western lore, such as sending a curse through a damned object (as illustrated in your story).

Are you a researcher in history? The book seems great.

 

[AmStramGram]

Are you a researcher in history? The book seems great.

No. I am simply fond of Chinese traditional culture and history. Unfortunately, my knowledge of Chinese is too limited to allow me a direct access to Chinese historical sources, so I must rely on this kind of Western academic books for information.

I once did try to translate some old Chinese texts on my own, but it took me so much time and energy that I gave up for the time being. The only text I fully managed to translate (into French) is the 大佛頂首楞嚴經 and it took me about four years to complete (only to realize that there was already an excellent English translation available for free online). I then tried my hands at the 后汉书 (Book of Later Han) but stopped after a few rolls, at the chapter regarding emperor Hedi 和帝 for lack of time and ressources. Without a solid grasp of the Chinese language, it is almost impossible to translate classical Chinese armed with just a dictionary a basic notions of Putonghua, especially since ancient terms have seen their meaning change over time. So I am always on the lookout for a good book on Chinese culture in English or French.

 

[王泥喜法介]

No. I am simply fond of Chinese traditional culture and history. Unfortunately, my knowledge of Chinese is too limited to allow me a direct access to Chinese historical sources, so I must rely on this kind of Western academic books for information.

I once did try to translate some old Chinese texts on my own, but it took me so much time and energy that I gave up for the time being. The only text I fully managed to translate (into French) is the 大佛頂首楞嚴經 and it took me about four years to complete (only to realize that there was already an excellent English translation available for free online). I then tried my hands at the 后汉书 (Book of Later Han) but stopped after a few rolls, at the chapter regarding emperor Hedi 和帝 for lack of time and ressources. Without a solid grasp of the Chinese language, it is almost impossible to translate classical Chinese armed with just a dictionary a basic notions of Putonghua, especially since ancient terms have seen their meaning change over time. So I am always on the lookout for a good book on Chinese culture in English or French.

That is great and admirable! It is so nice to hear your sinological studies here.

 

[Spudrick68]

Thank you for your valuable contributions..

I love learning Forteana from a culture I sadly know little of.

 

[catseye]

Thank you for your valuable contributions..

I love learning Forteana from a culture I sadly know little of.

Me too. It's so easy for us to be Western-centric and forget there's a whole breadth of stories from other cultures!