An Analysis of “Telling Scriptures” (Jiangjing) During Temple Festivals in Gangkou (Zhangjiagang), With Special Attention to the Status of the Performers

CHINOPERL Papers No. 30 (2011)©2011 by the Conference on Chinese Oral and Performing Literature $1$1$/LQWKHPLGGOHPRQWKRIVSULQJ@ 21 See, Che Xilun, Zhongguo baojuan yanjiu, pp. 5±7. 22 Che Xilun, Zhongguo baojuan zongmu. CHINOPERL Papers No. 30 32 the fortunate day is chosen, and orders are given to the people to sacrifice at their altars to the spirits of the ground (she ⽮ ´23 The commentary to the Book of Rites by Zheng Xuan 䝝⦴ (127±200) explains that this sacrifice was made to Houtu ਾ൏, the deity of earth.24 Thus, commoners have made important ritual observances in the spring since antiquity. The H[SUHVVLRQ ³VSULQJ VDFULILFH´ DOVR DSSHDUV LQ WKH Book of Rites in the FKDSWHU³%ULOOLDQW+DOO´ ³0LQJWDQJ´ ᰾า ³>,Q/X@WKH\RIIHUHG>DOVR@ the sacrifices of summer, autumn, and winter [in the ancestral temple]; with those at the altars of the land and grain in spring [chun she]; and that at the autumnal hunt, going on to the great sacrifice of thanksgiving at the end of the year:²all after the pattern of the sacrifices of the son of +HDYHQ´25 One expects that the ancient custom of spring sacrifice underwent a long process of transformation from its beginnings to the present day. The sources from the Tang (618±907) and Song (960±1279) dynasties already testify that the spring sacrifice became a popular festival. For example, Wang He ⦻䋰 (jinshi  LQWKHSRHP³6WD\LQJLQWKH9LOODJHGXULQJWKH 6DFULILFH'D\´ She ri cun ju ⽮ᰕᶁት) describes the spring festival as a MR\RXVRFFDVLRQ³7KHVKDGRZVRIPXOEHUU\WUHHVKDYHOHQJWKHQHGDQGWKH spring festival breaks up;/ Each family returns home supporting those who DUH GUXQN´ ẁḈᖡᯌ᱕⽮ᮓ, ᇦᇦᢦᗇ䞹Ӫ↨.26 Record of Dreams of Splendor of the Eastern Capital (Dongjing menghua lu ᶡӜདྷ㨟䤴) by Meng Yuanlao ᆏ‫ݳ‬㘱 (fl. ca. 1147), in its descriptions of the festivals of the Northern Song capital Bianliang (modern Kaifeng) and adjacent rural DUHDV EHIRUH  SRUWUD\V ³WKH DXWXPQ IHVWLYDO´ qiu she ⿻⽮) as a 23 James Legge, tr., Ch'u Chai and Winberg Chai, eds., Li chi: Book of Rites: An Encyclopedia of Ancient Ceremonial Usages, Religious Creeds, and Social Institutions, 2 vols. (New Hyde Park, N.Y.: University Books, 1967), 1: 259. 24 Liji zhushu ⿞䁈⌘⮿ (Commentary and Subcommentary to the Liji), in Shisan jing zhushu fenduan biaodian ॱ й ㏃ ⌘ ⮿ ࠶ ⇥ ⁉ 唎 (The Thirteen Classics with Commentary and Subcommentary, Paragraphed and Punctuated; Taibei: Xin wen feng, 2001), juan 15, p. 736. 25 Legge, tr., Li chi, 2: 33±34. 26 Yuding Quan Tang shi ᗑᇊ‫ޘ‬ୀ䂙 (Imperially Commissioned Complete Poetry of the Tang Dynasty), in Yingyin Wenyuan ge Siku quanshu Ჟ ঠ ᮷ ␥ 䯓 ഋ ᓛ ‫ޘ‬ ᴨ (Photoreprint of the Wenyuange Copy of the Imperial Quadripartite Library; Taibei: Taiwan Shangwu yinshu guan, 1983±1986), Ji 䳶 (Literature), Zongji lei 㐲 䳶 于 (Anthologies), vol. 1429, juan 600, p. 5. BEREZKIN, ³7HOOLQJ6FULSWXUHV´ 33 popular seasonal celebration. The passage ends by saying that the chun she and two other festivals were similar to the qiu she, which implies that the activities listed for the qiu she, such as teachers in villages putting on communal celebrations with waiters, masters of ceremonies, musicians, and singers, also applies to the chun she of the day.27 A simple survey of the gazetteers for Changshu county, to which Gangkou belonged before 1962, demonstrates that the tradition of communal celebrations of folk deities, especially magnificent in the spring, existed there since long ago. They were usually associated with the socallHG ³ELUWKGD\VRIGHLWLHV´ shen dan ⾎䃅), and, as officials reported, were organized on a large scale.28 For example, the gazetteer of 1617 mentions festivals (she ⽮) on the occasions of the birthdays of the deity known as Righteous Mr. Li (Li Lieshi ᵾ⛸༛)29 on the 18th of the first lunar month and for Guandi 䰌ᑍ (Guan she 䰌⽮)30 on the 13th of the fifth month.31 The gazetteer of 1639 mentions festivals (shehui ⽮ᴳ) on the occasions of the birthdays of Righteous Mr. Li, The Great Emperor of Mount Ci (Cishan dadi ⾐ኡབྷᑍ),32 on the 8th of the second month; and 7KH *UHDW 0DVWHU´ 'DVKL བྷ༛; Guanyin)33 on the 19th of the same month.34 7KH JD]HWWHHU RI  PHQWLRQV ³IHVWLYDOV RI WKH &LW\ *RG´ 27 Jiang Hanchun ဌ ╒ Ὧ ,tr., Dongjing menghua lu quanyi ᶡ Ӝ དྷ 㨟 䤴 ‫ޘ‬ 䆟 (Complete Translation [into Modern Chinese] of Dongjing...