A Study Of The Faith In Yulin Hanshan Temple Fa

The formation and development of Temple Fair is closely related toreligious activities. In history, the prosperity of Temple Fair is due to the feudal rulers’ideological control and education of people by using Temple Fair as a religiouscongregation form. With the continuous development of Temple Fair, activities suchas arts, recreation, trade etc. gradually become part of it. In the meantime, peopleturned to the entertainment of both human being and Gods from that of Gods.Therefore, Temple Fair has become a forum for dialogue between human being andGods which make people sustenance of spirit.Yulin Hanshan Temple Fair set the Hanshan Three Saints as its belief in the deities,and the Hanshan hilltop temple and the Hanshan big temple which has a largerinfluence in Yulin as a worship place. This paper attempts to analyze HanshanTemple Fair as well as people’s belief in the deities, reveal dissemination andinfluence of Hanshan Gods among people in Yunlin and the development of Hanshanand the surrounding villages, and to ascertain how Hanshan Temple Fair will developin the new era. In this way, the author tries to make some contributions to the localeconomy and culture inYunlin.This thesis consists of five chapters. The first chapter is a general introduction to theresearch. It introduces the source of the topic and the significance of the study,presents the previous studies on Chinese Temple Fair and Hanshan Temple Fair, anddefines the methodology of this thesis as fieldwork and documentary. Chapter twointroduces the background information of Hanshan Temple Fair. In this chapter, thegeographical environment, historical background, composition of the originalpopulation and surrounding circumstances of Hanshan Temple Fair are elaboratedupon respectively. In his book, On Village Culture, Gao Zhanxiang writes,“Villageculture, with village as basis and the crowed living under the consent of productionand living as its object, social value and behavior pattern as criterion. In this respect, acultural model is formed by the laws and institutions, restraint mechanisms, lifestyle,behavioral norms and aesthetic ideas.” Only by understanding the cultural patterns associated with the Hanshan Village, can we better understand the influence andcultural significance of Hanshan Temple Fair on Hanshan Village and the surroundingvillages. Chapter three is an introduction to the historical origins of Temple Fair,including the history of Hanshan Temple and the legend of Hanshan Gods. HanshanTemple has a long history and the legend of Hanshan Gods has long been popular.The analysis will keep the reader to understand the cultural connotations of HanshanTemple. Chapter four is an analysis of Hanshan Temple Fair activities. Reward Godsand Gods Tour are two types of Hanshan Temple Fair activities. In this chapter, theauthor tries to explore the adjustments of Hanshan Temple Fair activities to thechange of people’s life in different era through the analysis of the change of activities.Chapter five is an analysis of the problem and negative aspects of Hanshan TempleFestival, this giving an understanding of the impacts on people’s daily life. In thischapter, the author also gives guidance and regulation to temple festival activitie...