The wei-ch’i ghost

Overview

A retired general welcomes a ragged but courteous stranger to his gaming party in Pu Songling’s story, followed here in Giles’s1880 translation. The stranger repeatedly plays wei-ch’i, refuses wine and becomes absorbed in obtaining another opponent. During an exciting game he suddenly begs the general to protect him from the gardener Ma-ch’êng. The general learns that his gardener has been in a trance while serving as an otherworldly officer; before the matter can be resolved, the visitor sinks to the ground and disappears.

When Ma-ch’êng returns to consciousness, he identifies the guest as a dead man from Hu-hsiang whose obsessive gambling had distressed his father. According to this account, the son’s shortened life was followed by seven years as a hungry ghost. An invitation to compose an inscription for the newly completed Phoenix Tower offered learned spirits a chance of salvation, but he neglected the appointed time. Ma-ch’êng was among those sent to collect the missing candidates and says he avoided binding this one because of the general’s request.

The gardener reports that the player has become a menial in the otherworld and cannot be reborn, prompting the general’s warning about consuming passions. Giles associates the hungry-ghost term with preta in a note; the title’s devil does not make this a separate demonic species. The human gardener’s temporary employment is also distinct from the guest’s continuing dead state. This is a particular moral narrative, not a factual account of trance, afterlife sentencing or the effects of playing the game.

Origins & earliest records

Pu Songling’s literary collection in Giles’s selected translation.

Records & interpretation

Complete English account and notes where present; translator introduction and transcriber notice checked.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

1. 01

   Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio

   Pu Songling; translated and annotated by Herbert A. Giles · 1880

   Volume II, pp.268–271; CXXXI, The Wei-ch’i Devil; electronic notes604–609 and referenced180; complete account read.

Family & connections

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Primary records and illustrations

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

1. Historical literary translationStrange Stories from a Chinese Studio — II, pp.268–271; CXXXI, The Wei-ch’i Devil; electronic notes604–609 and referenced180Research access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

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