171
The Non-Operatic Performance of the Offering
The introduction of the present paper has already mentioned that the White Tiger ritual is often undertaken in contexts other than the initiation of a new Cantonese operatic stage. The other forms of the ritual are discussed below.
In modern Hong Kong, one of the other rituals that makes use of the White Tiger ritual is known as da siu jen (beating the petty or debased person), which is performed by a male or female religious practitioner for his or her client who suffers misfortune or bad luck. According to Chien Chiao's study, the ritual can be held for “general blessing or exorcising purposes" (Chiao 1986:213) but it is often aimed at a certain spirit or real person who brings bad luck to the practitioner's client. During the ritual, the practitioner pierces or beats with a sword or shoe a small paper figure cut in the shape of a human being, as an act to punish and defeat the petty person's harmful power. The practitioner also puts a piece of pork in the mouth of a stone statue of the White Tiger as a simple form of offering, which is supposed to be a similar exorcistic action to the more elaborate ritual involved in the initiation of an operatic stage.
When a temple is newly opened or re-opened after its renovation, its management sometimes hires priests, operatic actors or puppeteers to perform the White Tiger ritual. According to some Taoist priests, for such an occasion, an offering to the White Tiger should better be staged by puppets as the fierce spirits and evil deities surrounding the temple might harm the priests and actors if actual human beings were to perform the ritual. Sometimes the management chooses to hire a Cantonese operatic troupe to stage operas to celebrate the opening and also requires the troupe to hold the White Tiger ritual for the occasion, even though the stage may not be a "new" one. If no operatic troupe is hired, the temple management might hire a group of priests, who are often Cantonese operatic employees, or a group of Cantonese operatic actors and accompanists to stage the offering. Whether performed by puppets, priests or actors, the ritual appears in a form similar to that used for the initiation of a new stage.
Some building managements also arrange to have the White Tiger ritual staged either at the time the construction work begins or concludes. Ward has described this form of non-operatic White Tiger
171
The Non-Operatic Performance of the Offering
The introduction of the present paper has already mentioned that the White Tiger ritual is often undertaken in contexts other than the initiation of a new Cantonese operatie stage. The other forms of the ritual are discussed below.
In modern Hong Kong, one of the other rituals that makes use of the White Tiger ritual is known as da siu jen 4T4A (beating the petty or debased person), which is performed by a male or female religious practitioner for his or her client who suffers misfortune or bad luck. According to Chien Chiao's study, the ritual can be held for “general blessing or exorcising purposes" (Chiao 1986:213) but it is often aimed at a certain spirit or real person who brings bad luck to the practitioner's client. During the ritual, the practitioner pierces or beats with a sword or shoe a small paper figure cut in the shape of a human being, as an act to punish and defeat the petty person's harmful power. The practitioner also puts a piece of pork in the mouth of a stone statue of the White Tiger as a simple form of offering, which is supposed to be a similar exorcistic action to the more elaborate ritual involved in the initiation of an operatic stage.
When a temple is newly opened or re-opened after its renovation. its management sometimes hires priests, operatic actors or puppeteers to perform the White Tiger ritual. According to some Taoist priests. for such an occasion, an offering to the White Tiger should better be staged by puppets as the fierce spitits and evil deities surrounding the temple night harm the priests and actors if actual human beings were to perform the ritual. Sometimes the management chooses to hire a Cantonese operatic troupe to stage operas to celebrate the opening and also requires the troupe to hold the White Tiger ritual for the occasion, even though the stage may not be a "new" one. If no operatic troupe is hired, the temple management might hire a group of priests, who are often Cantonese operatic employees, or a group of Cantonese operatic actors and accompanists to stage the offering. Whether performed by puppets, priests or actors, the ritual appears in a form similar to that used for the initiation of a new stage.
Some building managements also arrange to have the White Tiger ritual staged either at the time the construction work begins or concludes. Ward has described this form of non-operatic White Tiger
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