ird over to him.

The charm worked, and Ling Chen-tzu opened the cage. The bird of
golden plumage had a sonorous voice and majestic bearing. "This
bird," he said, "lays eggs which hatch out nestlings with red combs,
who answer him every morning when he starts crowing. He is usually
called the cock of heaven, and the cocks down here which crow morning
and evening are descendants of the celestial cock."

Shen I visits the Moon

Shen I, riding on the celestial bird, traversed the air and reached
the disk of the sun just at mid-day. He found himself carried into
the centre of an immense horizon, as large as the earth, and did not
perceive the rotatory movement of the sun. He then enjoyed complete
happiness without care or trouble. The thought of the happy hours
passed with his wife Heng O, however, came back to memory, and, borne
on a ray of sunlight, he flew to the moon. He saw the cinnamon-trees
and the frozen-looking horizon. Going to a secluded spot, he found
Heng O there all alone. On seeing him she was about to run away,
but Shen I took her hand and reassured her. "I am now living in the
solar palace," he said; "do not let the past annoy you." Shen I cut
down some cinnamon-trees, used them for pillars, shaped some precious
stones, and so built a palace, which he named Kuang-han Kung, 'Palace
of Great Cold.' From that time forth, on the fifteenth day of every
moon, he went to visit her in her palace. That is the conjunction of
the _yang_ and _yin_, male and female principles, which causes the
great brilliancy of the moon at that epoch.

Shen I, on returning to his solar kingdom, built a wonderful palace,
which he called the Palace of the Lonely Park.

From that time the sun and moon each had their ruling sovereign. This
_regime_ dates from the forty-ninth year (2309 B.C.) of Yao's reign.

When the old Emperor was informed that Shen I and his wife had both
gone up to Heaven he was much grieved to lose the man who had rendered
him such valuable service, and bestowed upon him the posthumous title
of Tsung Pu, 'Governor of Countries.' In the representations of this
god and goddess the former is shown holding the sun, the latter the
moon. The Chinese add the sequel that Heng O became changed into a
toad, whose outline is traceable on the moon's surface.

Star-worship

The star-deities are adored by parents on behalf of their children;
they control courtship and marriage, bring prosperity or adversity in
busine