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conducted in the New Territories, the British anthropologist ascertains that "... action in geomancy can be seen to be a form of social control, which works as long as the individuals or communities in contrast are concerned in the long run to maintain peace among themselves,”13 “It is not social,” says Stephen Feuchtwang, the author of An Anthropological Analysis of Chinese Geomancy (1974), more precisely, "but the social world is subject to it. It is not a supernatural order such as would entail the concepts of fate or predestination. A good site is where this order is unconfused. The [geomancy] manuals continually stress this in their concern with the clear recognition of patterns, with proper balance, with elegance, and in the frequent injunctions to avoid disaster, confusion and conflict,"14
The segment of fung-shui practice which perplexes a great number of foreign scholars, especially the missionary-sinologists, is the application of the principle to burial sites. They find this metaphysical aspect deceptive and superstitious — how can the fortune of the living be benefited from the proper burial of the dead? This has to do with ancestor worship, a cult which is as old as Chinese civilisation itself. The Chinese believe that after a person is dead, he does not turn into a god or deity, but becomes part of the "principles of Earth, [and] Earth is the source of amoral fortune."15 While the bones of the dead are buried underground, the spirit resides in the tablets housed in the ancestral hall. That is why the siting of graves and of the ancestral hall is of prime importance. The location of the ancestral hall should have a commanding view not impeded by any obstacle in front. Thus, such halls are never built inside walled hamlets. Despite all the rituals and rites performed in a ceremonial ancestor worship service, one has to grasp the spiritual essence of the belief. While one is paying tribute to one's ancestor, at the same time, one is teaching (very subtly) one's children to have respect and filial piety towards the aged. Having children who will take care of one at old age is the highest form of virtue in Confucian ethics. Hence, this goes back to the anthropocentric cosmic schemata of Heaven, Earth and Man, where man is in it and part of it.
Microcosm of Kam Tin's Fung-shui
The microcosm of Kam Tin's fung-shui can be traced through its topographical features. The Kam Tin village area lies in a
86
-
DAVID LUNG
conducted in the New Territories, the British anthropologist ascer- tains that "... action in geomancy can be seen to be a form of social control, which work as long as the individuals or communities in contrast are concerned in the long run to maintain peace among themselves,”13 “It is not social,” says Stephen Feuchtwang, the author of An Anthropological Analysis of Chinese Geomancy (1974), more precisely, "but the social world is subject to it. It is not a superna- tural order such as would entail the concepts of fate or predestina- tion. A good site is where this order is unconfused. The [geomancy] manuals continually stress this in their concern with the clear re- cognition of patterns, with proper balance, with elegance, and in the frequent injunctions to avoid disaster, confusion and conflict,"14
The segment of fung-shui practice which perplexes a great num- ber of foreign scholars, especially the missionary-sinologists, is the application of the principle to burial sites. They find this metaphy- sical aspect deceptive and supersitious how can the fortune of the living be benefited from the proper burial of the dead? This has to do with ancestor worship, a cult which is as old as Chinese civilisation itself. The Chinese believe that after a person is dead, he does not turn into a god or deity, but becomes part of the "principles of Earth, [and] Earth is the source of amoral fortune."15 While the bones of the dead are buried underground, the spirit resides in the tablets housed in the ancestral hall. That is why the siting of graves and of the ancestral hall is of prime importance. The location of the ancestral hall should have a commanding view not impeded by any obstacle in front. Thus, such halls are never built inside walled hamlets. Despite all the rituals and rites per- formed in a ceremonial ancestor worship service, one has to grasp the spiritual essence of the belief. While one is paying tribute to one's ancestor, at the same time, one is teaching (very subtly) one's children to have respect and filial piety towards the aged. Having children who will take care of one at old age is the highest form of virtue in Confucian ethics. Hence, this goes back to the anthro- pocentric cosmic schemata of Heaven, Earth and Man, where man is in it and part of it.
Microcosm of Kam Tin's Fung-shui
The microcosm of Kam Tin's jung-shui can be traced through its topographical features. The Kam Tin village area lies in a
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