Evolution and Variations of a Sacrifice-Less Religion in Southern Taiwan: An Example of the Consecration Customs of Ownerless Remains in Hakka Villages in Neipu

• Main Authors: Yung-Ming Chang, 張永明
• Other Authors: Chun-Chun Cheng
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2015
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/ffc52k

碩士 === 國立屏東科技大學 === 客家文化產業研究所 === 103 === Academia has conducted rich research on the “sacrifice-less religion” in the past. Most of this research has focused on the discussion of the worship of invisible orphan souls or the properties of their devils. Less attention has been given to the settlement of tangible ownerless remains, but we believe it is an area that requires further exploration based on the Chinese view of the soul that emphasizes unity of body and spirit. The aspects of the worship of ownerless remains in Hakka villages in Neipu, Pingtung County, were taken as the core of this essay. Based on two years of our field data, the results of past research were used together with the observations and interviews conducted on the occasion of the offering rituals to present local changes in folk customs and culture in Hakka villages in Neipu. That is, for similarly ownerless remains, two different forms of folk belief cognition - deified worship and ancestor-like worship – evolved due to different forms of settlement and ritual behaviors. Studies have found two major types of consecration for ownerless remains in the Hakka villages of Neipu. First, those worshipped by unspecified groups of different families and different surnames tended to be transformed to lower-level marginal gods such as “dark gods” or “wild gods” (e.g., Wan-Ying-Gong, Wan-Shan-Ye) due to people’s differing interpretations of the object of worship. In some cases these marginal gods would continue to be elevated towards the status of “proper gods”, such as “Ancient Saint” (Gulao-Shengren), “Ancient Master” (Gulao-Sianshih), or “Ancient Great Aunt” (Gulao-Gupo), etc. Secondly, those worshipped by specific groups of one family and one surname (family members or clansmen) tended to be developed into ancestor-like objects of worship despite that fact that the only tomb worship is being conducted. This is displayed in the custom of worshipping “Ancient Gentlemen” (Gulao-Daren). The evolution and variations in the forms of consecration toward ownerless remains in the Hakka villages of Neipu show how the animistic Chinese societies of Taiwan commonly elevate the diverse non-worshipped devils that they revere to the status of “non-devils”.