Hybridising Minjian Religion in South China: Participants, Rituals, and Architecture

Abstract

This study focuses on the ongoing hybridisation of minjian (folk or popular, literally “among the people”) religious activities in rural areas of south China. It demonstrates recent changes in religious hybridisation through extensive fieldwork in two villages. It also investigates intellectual debate on the concept of minjian religion and presents the relationship between state power and the religious revival in contemporary Chinese society. It then draws on fieldwork data to examine the hybrid nature of Chinese minjian religion from three aspects: the diversification of participants, the performative hybridisation of rituals, and the blending of spatial layouts. The main argument is that the revival of minjian religion involves the hybridisation of mystical and secular elements and of traditional and modern elements through the complex interactions between rural communities and official authorities.

Origin, development and evolution: the space construction and cultural motivations of Shi Gandang temple in Macau

“…It is evident from the overall evolution and role of Macau Shi Gandang that people intentionally internalized the Shi Gandang beliefs into their daily code of conduct and the moral code of the society to better serve the locality and unite the neighbors. This was a direct manifestation of secular education with the help of the gods (Guo et al, 2022). This adaptive relationship between folk beliefs and the traditional social neighborhood network, as a spiritual attraction, promoted fairness and justice in the community, penetrated the daily life of the community and indirectly participated in the construction of social meaning at the level of consciousness.…”

“…It is evident from the overall evolution and role of Macau Shi Gandang that people intentionally internalized the Shi Gandang beliefs into their daily code of conduct and the moral code of the society to better serve the locality and unite the neighbors. This was a direct manifestation of secular education with the help of the gods (Guo et al. , 2022).…”

Architectural Spatial Characteristics of Fujian Tubao from the Perspective of Chinese Traditional Ethical Culture

“…And this ethical culture is expressed in the corresponding architectural space as the guiding principle of traditional Chinese architecture. At the social level, it created a strict hierarchical system of the capital city and the ritual architecture of ancestor veneration; at the family level, it developed a living space that clearly separates the young and the old, inside and out; at the ecological level, it formed an environmental order of balancing Yin and Yang, and choosing suitable and comfortable living conditions [43,45,46].…”

“…The idea of a clan is to have a thriving population. To avoid clan alienation due to geographical migration and dispersal of descendants, the goal of "keeping the clan" was achieved through "ancestor worship", and ritual architectures were created [46]. The Fujian Tubao is modeled after ancient castles, which have inherited not only the architectural style but also the social and ethical concepts of the Central Plains.…”