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Changshu county of Jiangsu province in China (now under the jurisdiction of Suzhou city) is noteworthy for the cults of local deities that can be traced to the Song (960–1279) and Yuan (1260–1368) periods. They are still thriving in this area. The cult of Deity Zhou (Zhou shen) or Pious Son Zhou (Zhou xiaozi) is very important, as it was shared by the elite and common folk in the late imperial period (14–19th centuries). However, while the elite emphasized the role of Zhou as a paragon of filial piety in the tradition of Confucian thought, commoners worshipped him mainly as the deity-protector, known for his miraculous responses to their prayers, which was very characteristic of Chinese folk beliefs on the whole. One form of elite and commoner cooperation was various temple activities held for deity Zhou during the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties. In this article, the author compares various literary materials concerning the Zhou’s beliefs, with the aim of demonstrating differences between elite and popular interpretations of this deity, as well as to analyze the evolution and continuity of Zhou’s beliefs in Changshu over the course of several centuries. Materials used here mainly were obtained by the author during fieldwork in Changshu in 2011–2015 as well as in Shanghai libraries. Many folklore and epigraphic materials collected by the author are unique. They have not yet been published even in China and are analyzed here for the first time.

Worship of Zhou The Pious son in Changshu County of Jiangsu Province, China: Official and popular aspects