Luo Zu

Luo Zu is the collectively venerated patron deity of the barbering profession, though his historical identity remains contested: one tradition identifies him as Luo Qing, a Ming-dynasty native of Jimo, Shandong, who founded the Wuwei (‘Non-Action’) Teaching and once shaved and groomed soldiers in military service, earning the honorific title ‘Zhenren Luo’; another tradition identifies him as Luo Yin, a Tang-dynasty scholar-official famed for having personally groomed and styled the emperor’s hair and beard. In premodern times, barbers enshrined Luo Zu’s image both in guild halls and atop their portable carrying boxes; apprenticeship initiation and graduation rites invariably began with offerings to Luo Zu, and on the 13th day of the 7th lunar month—traditionally observed as Luo Zu’s birthday—barbers across the trade suspended business to hold collective rituals. The Luo Gong Pagoda within Beijing’s Baiyun Temple is traditionally associated with Luo Zu; historically, barbers visited it annually to burn incense, praying for mastery of their craft and for the safety and sharpness of their cutting tools.