Shi Gan Dang （石敢当）, also known as Tai Shan Shi Gan Dang （泰山石敢当）, is a deity in ancient Chinese folk beliefs, with the symbolic meaning of driving away evil spirits and keeping people safe. This belief and custom has a long history, dating back to ancient times, and is still widely practiced in many parts of China today.
At the foot of Mount Tai, there lived a man.
His name was Shi Gan Dang, and he was very brave.
Shi Gan Dang was skilled in martial arts and liked to help those weaker than him.
He was famous around Mount Tai.
To the south of Mount Tai, there was a town called Dawenkou.
In the town lived a family surnamed Zhang.
The Zhang family had a daughter who was sixteen years old.
She was very beautiful, like a fairy.
One day, as the sun was setting, a strange demonic wind blew in.
The demonic wind blew from the southeast and blew open the Zhang family’s door.
From then on, the girl became pale and skinny, and very weak.
People sought many doctors, but the girl did not improve.
Everyone said, “This is demonic possession, and medicine cannot cure it.”
The old man of the Zhang family heard that there was a Shi Gan Dang on Mount Tai who could subdue demons.
So, he rode a horse to invite Shi Gan Dang.
The old man told Shi Gan Dang about the girl’s situation, and Shi Gan Dang immediately followed the old man to the Zhang family’s home.
Shi Gan Dang asked the Zhang family to prepare twelve boy and twelve girl children.
Each boy was given a drum, and each girl was given a gong.
They also prepared a pot and a chair.
After it got dark, Shi Gan Dang lit a sesame oil lamp.
He covered a basin with the pot and sat beside it.
He used his foot to lift the edge of the pot so that the light could not be seen from a distance.
After a while, a demonic wind blew in from the southeast.
Shi Gan Dang kicked with his foot and overturned the pot.
The light came on, and the boys and girls began to beat their drums and gongs.
The demon entered the house and, seeing the light, was scared and immediately ran out.
It ran towards the south and kept running until it reached Fujian.
A farmer in Fujian was also possessed by the demonic wind.
He heard that Shi Gan Dang could subdue demons, so he invited Shi Gan Dang over.
Shi Gan Dang used the same method, and the demon ran away again, going to Northeast China.
A girl in Northeast China also had the same illness.
They invited Shi Gan Dang again.
Shi Gan Dang came up with an idea and asked a stonemason to carve a stone.
The stone was inscribed with “Tai Shan Shi Gan Dang”.
Whenever there was demonic possession in a household, they would place this stone on the wall.
The demon, seeing the stone, was scared and immediately ran away.
This method spread.
Everyone said that demons were afraid of Shi Gan Dang.
As long as they found a stone and inscribed “Tai Shan Shi Gan Dang” on it, demons would not dare to come.
So now, when building houses or walls, people always inscribe these words to ward off evil spirits.
Last Updated on 1 month