Sacrificial Ceremony for the Eastern Guardian Mountain Yishan

The sacrificial ceremony for the Eastern Guardian Mountain Yishan was a remote sacrificial ritual to the mountain by emperors of the past dynasties. Before the Shang and Zhou dynasties, the ceremony was held in February of the Chinese lunar calendar, and later changed to the solar term "Beginning of Spring" in the Sui and Tang dynasties. Then since the Republic of China, the emperor's remote sacrificial ritual evolved into a large-scale folk ritual on April 8 of the lunar calendar. According to the Historical Records ·Records of Fengshan (imperial mountain-top worship of Heaven and Earth), the Yellow Emperor was the first to worship Heaven and Earth on the top of the East Mount Tai (Yishan). In delineation of states and mountains, Emperor Shun designated Yishan as a guardian mountain, which was then worshipped by Emperor Yu. During the Han, Sui, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, emperors conferred new titles to the mountain from time to time, and its imperial sacrificial ceremonies never ceased. Whenever major events occurred, such as an emperor ascending the throne, "disorder of nature" or "poor land productivity", the emperor would personally lead his officials or send senior officials to offer sacrifices at the Mount Tai, the Great Eastern Mountain, Yishan, the Eastern Guardian Mountain and the East Sea successively to honor the Eastern Gods. In 2014, it was included in the fourth batch of National Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection List.