Note 32 — Chapter XI · Tree-, Herb-, and Stone-lore

In China deities might on occasion take the form of stones or reptiles. During the Chou Dynasty (756 B.C.) “one of the feudal dukes”, says Giles, “saw a vision of a yellow serpent which descended from heaven, and laid its head on the slope of a mountain. The duke spoke of this to his astrologer, who said, ‘It is a manifestation of God; sacrifice to it’. In 747 B.C. another duke found on a mountain a being in the semblance of a stone. Sacrifices were at once offered, and the stone was deified and received regular worship from that time forward.”32