Houji

Lord Millet (Houji), the grain-god and predynastic ancestor of the Zhou; son of Diku by the consort Jiang Yuan, who conceived him after treading in the god Di's footprint, and personally named Qi ('the Abandoned') from the thrice-exposed-infant myth of the Shijing 'Shengmin' ode. Appointed Agriculture Minister by Yao and Shun, he taught the people the grains and was enfeoffed at Tai with the surname Ji. Under the Zhou he became the grain-deity of the She-Ji (soil-and-grain) state altars — the 'Ji' that is metonym for the dynasty itself. Half-brother of Yao, Xie, and Zhi. Named in chinese_diku's notes and lifecycle ('Houji "Lord Millet," the legendary ancestor of the Zhou dynasty') until materialized here as a paternal-line son of Diku.

Parentage

• paternal: Diku

Domains

• agriculture
• grain

Powers

• Teach humankind to sow and reap the grains
• Survive abandonment under heaven's protection
• Make the hundred grains flourish

Epithets

• 后稷 chinese · Hòujì · cultLord of Millet; his title as agriculture-minister and grain-deity.Shangshu, Shun Dian; Shijing (primary)

Relations

• child of: DikuSon of Diku by the consort Jiang Yuan (with the parallel divine-conception tradition of the god's footprint). Half-brother of Yao, Xie, and Zhi.Sima Qian, Shiji Ch. 4 (Houji son of Diku by Jiang Yuan) (primary)
• half sibling: XieHalf-brother of Xie, the Shang progenitor; shared father Diku, different mothers.Sima Qian, Shiji Ch. 1 (sons of Diku by different consorts) (primary)
• half sibling: ZhiHalf-brother of Zhi, Diku's short-reigning successor; shared father Diku, different mothers.Sima Qian, Shiji Ch. 1 (sons of Diku by different consorts) (primary)
• half sibling: YaoHalf-brother of the sage-king Yao; shared father Diku, different mothers (Jiang Yuan vs. Qingdu).Sima Qian, Shiji Ch. 1 (sons of Diku by different consorts) (primary)

Sources

• existence: Shijing, 'Shengmin' (Major Court Hymns, Mao 245) (primary); Sima Qian, Shiji Ch. 4 (Zhou benji) and Ch. 1 (Wudi benji) (primary)