RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1979
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/2801w5938
RELIGIOUS LIFE IN PRESENT-DAY TAIWAN: A PRELIMINARY REPORT'

JULIAN F. PAS*

This report is a preliminary attempt to describe and interpret the present-day religious situation in Taiwan. It is based on my personal field work observations and data collected in Taiwan during 1977-78 (ca. 12 months); but is supplemented by a great variety of recent publications both in Chinese and in Western languages. The reason why Taiwan was chosen as the observation field is practical and has nothing to do with political viewpoints or preferences. Besides, it is my belief that the religious practices observed in Taiwan reflect, if not the whole of China, at least a large area of South China, where many of the modern Taiwan practices actually originated. We may here apply the saying that many people in Taiwan quoted to me when discussing their religions: Ta-t'ung hsiao-yi ★ identity in the main lines, with variations in detail. However, oversimplification would not do justice to the complex situation. The picture, indeed, is complex but significant: its complexity will be shortly discussed; its significance is manifest from the fact that Taiwan, although the smallest province of China, has maintained and developed religious practices which once were observed on the mainland but have probably become extinct there. Who knows, whether these practices flourishing today in Taiwan are perhaps also an “endangered species”?

For the time being, however, religious life in Taiwan is flourishing as perhaps never before. The situation is hard to describe and interpret to its full extent. This report mainly reflects my own experiences and is therefore by its very nature limited and perhaps, occasionally biased.

My report consists of three parts: first I shall point out and analyse various reasons of complexity; secondly, discuss one by one the participants on the religious scene; and in the third place attempt to pinpoint, by process of induction and by intuition, some of the major characteristics of modern Chinese religion as practised in Taiwan.

* Dr. Pas is Associate Professor, Department of Far Eastern Studies at the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1980
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/kh04md207
SYMBOLISM OF THE NEW LIGHT

Further researches into Taoist Liturgy: suggested by a comparison between the Taoist Fen-Teng Ritual and the Christian Consecration of the Easter Candle

JULIAN F. PAS*

Light symbolism in its various dimensions is like an archetype; together with water symbolism it is one of the most frequently recurring themes in religious and anthropological literature. In dualistic systems there is sometimes a sharp distinction between light and darkness. Light is seen as the emanation of the divine; it is the symbol of goodness, purity and life. Darkness is the symbol of evil, the diabolical, the impure and death. In Chinese dualism, which is not so radically polarized, light is of yang quality, while darkness is yin. Divine spirits live in the yang world, whereas the "souls" of the deceased go to the nether world of yin before they are eventually returned to the world of the living through transmigration.

Although in Taoist philosophy, yin and yang are not strictly identified with evil and good respectively, the popular belief system has made this identification: why, how and when is not easy to discover. But in the popular conception, yin represents the world of the dead, and since death is feared by people, yin has become a symbol of evil powers which threaten man's life and vitality. Yang, on the contrary, has become a symbol of goodness: yang is life and should be nourished and increased, so that both individual and society may reach fullness of life, that is a full span of life, and in the case of Taoist adepts unusual longevity or even immortality.

Although light symbolism can be discussed from many different viewpoints, I wish to isolate one particular theme, found in two apparently unrelated liturgical traditions which not only present us with an example of some broad parallelism but actually are very similar to each other, both in meaning and in their concrete ritual expression. The first example is the Fen-teng ritual of the Taoist religion; the second example consists of the consecration of the Easter Candle.

* Dr. Pas is a member of the Department of Far Eastern Studies at the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1984
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/5h73wh572
reviewed the condition of Hong Kong Island in 1841 in order to show that it was a long-settled place with thriving coastal ports. Then, Dr. Kerrie MacPherson, Lecturer in History at the University of Hong Kong, who has researched into the medical history of the international settlements in Shanghai, addressed us on 12th March about prostitution there, under the title “Caveat Emptor: an Attempt at the Control of Venereal Disease in Nineteenth Century Shanghai". Finally, on 19 April Dr. Julian Pas, Associate Professor at the University of Saskatchewan and a frequent contributor to our Journal, gave an illustrated slide lecture on “Religion in China Today" based on his observations during a four-month visit to Beijing, Shanghai and Chengtu.

There were three local tour visits during the year. On 21 July 1984, Revd Carl Smith took us to the Tao Feng Shan Ecumenical Centre. This occupies the very attractive Chinese monastic premises built on a hill above Sha Tin for the Christian Mission to Buddhists in the 1930s, and besides touring these buildings, members were able to visit the grave of Revd Carl Reichelt, its founder.

Two other visits were organized by myself. On 8 December, 33 members took part in a memorable visit to Maryknoll Fathers' House, Stanley, where one of our founder members, Father Michael McKeirnan M.M., spoke to us in his own inimitable way on his experiences during the brief defence of Hong Kong in December 1941, when he had been in the house as a language student. His talk will be published in the Journal. On this visit, members also walked part of the road constructed by the incoming British in the 1840s, and benefited from Mr. Ian Diamond's work on Lieutenant (later Major-General) T.B. Collinson, R.E. who surveyed and made military sketches of Hong Kong Island at that time.

On 9 March, there was another well-attended visit to Stanley; this time to the four temples of the area, the two villages of Tai Tam and Wong Ma Kok, and the Kaifong Association's premises where we had tea. The latter are of particular interest, being undoubtedly the oldest occupied local management office on Hong Kong Island, having been repaired in 1847 according to the inscription above the doorway. On this visit, Mr. Clive Oxley, Dep-
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1984
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/5h73wh572
TEMPLE ORACLES IN A CHINESE CITY

A Study of the Use of Temple Oracles

in Taichung, Central Taiwan*

JULIAN PAS

Prelude

In the early morning of February 26, 1978, our group of over a hundred pilgrims from Taichung arrived in the city of Peikang, one of the major centres of the Matsu cult. The ch'ao-t'ien temple there was first built in 1694 and enlarged in 1775. The whole previous day had been spent in visiting temples in other places and burning incense to prepare for this solemn visit. As we arrive, the sedan chair of the goddess which we had brought from Taichung is carried toward the temple gates by ten strong men; the pilgrims follow behind, while musicians blow high-pitched trumpets and beat gongs and drums.

Soon our group disappears inside the temple gates, while the great bell and drum are beaten to welcome the visiting Matsu. All the courtyards and halls are crowded with worshippers. It is still three weeks before the deity's birthday celebration but already every day large crowds of visitors pour into the small town from all over Taiwan. Peikang is the seat of the mother temple of Matsu on the island, and hundreds of temples claim affiliation with it.

While the visiting gods and goddesses are carried into the inner shrine and seated on the altar tables to pay homage to the Peikang Matsu, the crowd of pilgrims go about their private devotions. They offer incense to all the deities enthroned here, pray to Matsu, tell her about their problems and uncertainties at home, and ask her advice. Matsu's counsels have been embodied in her temple

To prepare this survey I was greatly inspired by my learned friends Mr. Liu Chih-wan, a research scholar at the Academia Sinica in Taipei, Institute of Ethnology, and by Professor Wolfram Eberhard of the University of California at Berkeley. I am also indebted to the untiring efforts of Miss Ch'en Yu-mei in Taichung, who collected many samples of the temple oracles. I finally wish to recognize my gratefulness to the Tunghai University in Taichung: my team of anthropology students, 1977-78, contributed to the completion of the Taichung sample collection, while the Centre for Environmental Studies kindly offered me office space. (Dr. Pas is professor of Religious Studies at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada,)
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1987
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/rx919b522
Council. Mr. Gilkes' service and contribution to the work of the Society over so many years is being suitably recognised by a presentation following this report. Meantime, we are delighted that he can continue as Vice-President.

Publications

The annual Journal is our major contribution to knowledge of the Hong Kong region and further afield. Academic standards must be maintained, and each issue requires much time and effort. As I said last year, its production is dependent upon the spare time and energy of our editors. The 1984 Journal, which has been lagging behind, is with the printer, and the 1986 Journal is in an advanced stage of preparation. Both will appear shortly. We have also a book-length publication with the printer. This is an important study of religion in China today, edited by Dr. Julian Pas, one of our members and a past contributor to the Journal, who is with the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada. The book is an expensive publication by reason of its size and photographic content, and I am happy to report that, following an application by me as President, the Chinese Temples Committee has approved a grant of $50,000 which will meet half the cost. A publication on historic buildings in Hong Kong is still under consideration, together with a possible further volume of photographs of old buildings.

The Library

As members will see from the Hon. Librarian's report, our library collection has continued to increase in size through donations and purchases. We are grateful to all donors, and encourage other members to follow suit. Its value is now considerable, both in scholarly content and in monetary terms. Old books on China are in short supply and are ever increasing in cost, judging by the spiralling prices shown in specialist booksellers' catalogues.

As reported previously, it is held in the Kowloon Central Library at Homantin, Kowloon. The chief librarian reports 44 enquiries in the past year, with consultations on 100 books and 17 borrowings by members. Though an improvement on last year's figures, the collection is still under-utilised. In an attempt to...

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