[Qin Cong] The role of local knowledge in the protection of "intangible cultural heritage" and its realization methods
[Abstract] In recent years, academic research on local knowledge has been very popular, especially to explore the existence, transformation and regeneration of local knowledge in the context of tourism.
This paper examines how local people influenced and changed the government's original decisions by adhering to their belief in dancing cannons and demonstrating the special status of old temples during the struggle between "temples" and "fields" in the process of developing the Artillery Dragon Festival in Bin County, Guangxi, and explores the role of local knowledge in the protection of "intangible cultural heritage" and its realization methods.
The case of Bin County shows that local knowledge can play a role in the protection of "intangible cultural heritage" in the context of commercialization, but it must rely on community elites and organizational forces; the reproduction of local knowledge is achieved through mutual compromise between cultural inheritance, compliance with national policies and local care; to transform folk customs into tourism resources, we must respect the wishes of local people and adhere to the development idea of "protecting through understanding and developing through identification." Although Bin County is a unique case, it can also serve as a reference for similar research on "intangible cultural heritage" protection.
[Keywords] local knowledge; intangible cultural heritage protection; temple and field dispute; role; realization method
Since Geertz's concept of Local Knowledge was introduced to China, its discussion and understanding in the academic community have gradually matured.
In terms of theoretical interpretation, some focus on text and conceptual interpretation, while some focus on explaining the disciplinary significance and universal significance of this concept from philosophy, law, anthropology and other disciplines.
Among the studies that use local knowledge as a perspective to understand a certain region or regional culture, some studies focus on the relationship between local knowledge and local social management and ecological environment protection, some focus on the relationship between local knowledge and ethnic education, and some focus on the role of local knowledge in ethnic identity or local construction, etc.
Among them, exploring the survival, transformation and regeneration of local knowledge in contemporary times, especially in the context of tourism, is one of the important branches.
In existing research, scholars have noted the profound impact of globalization, modernization and tourism development on local knowledge.
However, there is still a lack of detailed and in-depth research on the specific process of local knowledge changing in the tourism context.
Especially in the development of folk tourism, when local governments use commercial operations to develop folk tourism products, there is a conflict with local people's pursuit of protecting the "authenticity" of folk culture, how this local knowledge is adhered to, and how the "authenticity" of folk culture is characterized in the process of reproduction of local knowledge has not yet been fully discussed.
Therefore, through on-site surveys, we will examine the specific situational conditions and processes for local people to adhere to local knowledge, as well as how it responds to resistance from local government policies, tourism development and maintenance of "authenticity", and the demands and interactions of relevant groups.
The process will help the academic community to more clearly understand the role and realization methods of current local knowledge in the protection of "intangible cultural heritage" in the tourism context.
At the same time, we should more accurately grasp the characteristics and laws of the survival, transformation and regeneration of local knowledge, and provide some valuable reference for the promotion of local knowledge in the future.
In particular, the development of folk tourism faces the dilemma of "protecting first or developing first".
When choosing.
1.
The origin of the dispute between "temple" and "field" in Bin County
Bin County is located in south-central Guangxi.
It is a county composed of Han, Zhuang and Yao ethnic groups.
The Zhuang people are indigenous residents of Bin County.
Since the Qin and Han Dynasties, as Lingnan was incorporated into the territory of the Central Empire, Han people have moved in one after another.
In the Song Dynasty, after Di Qing conquered Zhigao, many army subordinates stayed behind in Bin County, gradually changing the ethnic population structure of Bin County, and the Han population began to occupy the dominant position.
Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Han officials or people have continued to move in from other provinces.
During the Republic of China, it has been said that "the largest number of county residents are from Shandong, followed by Guangdong, Fujian, Hunan, and Zhejiang." So far, among the county's 1 million people, nearly 200,000 Zhuang and other ethnic minorities have a population, and about 800,000 Han people have a population.
The continuous immigration of different groups of Han immigrants has brought rich and colorful multiculturalism to Bin County and formed some festivals with unique local characteristics.
The most famous one is the Artillo Festival on the 11th of the first day of each year.
In 2008, it was rated as a national intangible cultural heritage and classified as a folk custom.
In fact, the day before the 11th day of the first lunar month is called the Lantern Festival.
It is named after the homophonic pronunciation of "Tianding" and "Dengjiu" in Bin County dialect.
It is a festival celebrated by people in Bin County specially to celebrate and pray for "Tianding".
In the past, people in Bin County mainly had the following activities: during the day, men had dinner together, and at night, they held "lanterns" and "flower picking" activities and cannon dragon dances to celebrate the festival.
The most important one is the dragon dance.
The biggest feature of the dragon dance is "burning the dragon with cannons", which combines the custom of dragon dancing with setting off firecrackers, giving it a good wish to pray for blessings and eliminate disasters.
People in Bin County also have the saying that "the artillery shook thousands of mountains and woke up, and all industries flourished." This day started at 6:30 p.m., and the entire county, especially the Laocheng District and the main commercial streets, sounded with the flames soaring and did not stop all night long.
They believe that "as long as you dance the dragon, everything will prosper; if you don't dance the dragon, the year will decline";"Only by dancing the dragon can you finish the New Year."
To complete the complete set of dragon dance, it can be roughly divided into three procedures: preparation, ritual process, and post-ceremony dinner.
There are two main preparatory tasks: one is to raise funds to make cannon dragons; the other is to organize dragon dance teams and determine the route for the cannon dragon dance.
In addition, each street must prepare eight tones, gongs and drums, torches, fire blasters, etc.
The ritual process is divided into three parts: opening the light, exploding the dragon and sending the dragon to the west.
Opening the light means inviting the dragon to descend into the mortal world and entering the dragon's body.
The opening place is usually located in a temple or community altar in a neighborhood.
After the opening master (usually a local Taoist or male elderly) watches the time, he bites the crown of the chicken with his mouth, and uses bright red chicken blood to target the dragon's longan to smear the blood.
Opening the light is actually to "paint the finishing touch" for the "cannon dragon" and wake up and revitalize this dragon.
At this time, cannon dragons with lights on everywhere prayed to heaven and earth at the same time, and people set off firecrackers at the cannon dragons.
At this time, the second part of the ceremony was entered: dragon blasting.
People took out the firecrackers they had prepared in advance and set it on the "dragon".
The dragon team danced left and right in the alleys covered with firecrackers, kowtowing to every household.
In addition, during the dragon bombing process, people can also carry out activities such as drilling dragon belly and grabbing dragon balls with the dragon team.
During the Pao Dragon Dance, people in Bin County believed that "the worse the Pao Dragon is blown, the more auspicious it is." When the dragon team danced to the end of the street, the whole dragon had long been blown to pieces, but it was a good ending.
At this time, the elders in the neighborhood commanded people to light a fire, play eight tones, throw the cannon dragon into the fire, and let it rise to the sky with the raging fire.
This is called "sending the dragon back to heaven." At this point, the entire dragon dance activity was basically over.
The main meal after the ceremony is to drink "dragon porridge", which is to use fried "cannon dragon" as fuel and use minced meat and other seasonings to make "dragon porridge" to comfort the dragon dancing warriors and neighbors.
It is said that drinking it can eliminate pain and disease, and can relieve the pain of being burned by firecrackers.
After entering the 1990s, the county party committee and county government of Bin County began to intervene in the dragon dance activities.
In 1993, the then county party committee and county government renamed the Lantern Festival to the "Artillery Festival", but its development did not go smoothly.
After entering the new century, tourism has become an important direction for local governments to adjust their industrial structure.
In 2005, the County Party Committee and County Government of Bin County believed that Bin County should adopt a tourism idea of "focusing on folk culture and supplementing with natural landscape" and proposed the development of a "Dragon Cannon Tour." Just this year, a deputy secretary who served as a deputy secretary in Laibin County, the Overseas Information Department of CCTV, quickly used his special relationship to push the Dragon Dance to CCTV, and was specially broadcast on Channel 4 with the title of "China's One Unique" around the 2006 Argon Festival.
As a result, Bin County Armored Dragon Festival suddenly became "famous." People in Bin County have also realized from the official to the private sector that Paolong is the best Bin County brand, and the development of Bin County is inseparable from Paolong.
It is against this background that the so-called "temple" and "field" dispute has arisen between local people and local governments on how to make the Artillery Dragon Festival bigger and stronger and explore Artillery Dragon culture.
As mentioned above, a very important part of the dragon dance ceremony is the opening of the light, and the most important place for the opening of the light is the "old temple".
The old temple is located at the intersection of Zhonghe, Zhixing and Zhen 'an Streets in the Laocheng District of Luzhen County.
Due to its long disrepair, only a low-rise tiled house of less than 100 square meters remained before reconstruction.
But in the minds of people in Bin County, the cannon dragon that opens in the old temple is the most "original" cannon dragon.
Over the years, many temple building activists in Bin County have been trying to rebuild the old temple to restore its former glory.
In August 2005 and March 2006, Bin County successively established the "Bin County Folk Cannon Dragon Art Association" and the "Bin County Preparatory Committee for the Restoration and Reconstruction of the Cannon Dragon Kaiguang Old Temple"(hereinafter referred to as the "Cannon Dragon Association" and the "Preparatory Committee", collectively referred to as the "Two Sessions").
The backbone of the members are a group of retired veteran cadres and current community cadres.
They began to promote Cannon Dragon culture, spread "letters of merit" for rebuilding the old temple, and raised funds.
By September 2006, the donations had reached nearly 100,000 yuan.
The person in charge of the "Two Sessions" was full of ambition and began to find someone to design drawings of the old temple, thinking that temple construction could start before the end of the year.
Just as the preparations and donations for the reconstruction of the old temple are being carried out with great fanfare, another "Paolong Cultural Square"(hereinafter referred to as Paolong Square) project is also being intensively planned within the governments at the Bin County and Town (Luzhen) levels.
It turns out that with the expansion of the scale of the "Argon Dragon Festival" in recent years, the county and town governments of Bin County believed that in the past, the Argon Dragon Dance was conducted spontaneously by the people in the Laocheng District, which limited the development of the Argon Dragon Festival.
Because the streets in the Laocheng District are narrow, the houses are dense, and transportation is inconvenient.
Most of the houses are wooden structures or separated by wooden boards.
When firecrackers are set off, fires can easily be caused, and accidents are not easy to rescue.
Especially the old temple in Luzhen, which is the beginning and important link of the Artillery Dragon Festival.
It is located deep at the intersection of three streets and has the worst road conditions.
The old temple itself has been severely damaged, and its folk characteristics are "weak".
After many investigations and demonstrations, the county government found a large piece of land in the north of the Laocheng District of Luzhen, along the end of Zhonghe Street, Tongren Street and Taiping Street to the Nanwu Secondary Highway (Ring Road), with Lucun as the center (hereinafter referred to as Land A) and deliberately built Paolong Square here.
Some departments involved in the demonstration explained that the Cannon Square must be built into a multi-functional large-scale cultural square integrating Cannon Opening, Dragon Dance, Tourism, Commerce, Catering, and Entertainment.
It requires about 500 acres of land to meet the requirements of Bin County's future "removing the county and setting up a city", expanding the Urban area, and creating a new development environment.
Once the Cannon Dragon Square is built here, the annual Cannon Dragon Festival's safety, transportation, accommodation and other reception problems can be solved once and for all.
This will also be of great help to establish the image of Bin County and promote the Cannon Dragon Festival with high quality.
In September, relevant county departments notified the main leaders of the "Two Sessions" to temporarily stop fundraising to rebuild the old temple.
At the beginning of December, the "Two Sessions" were informed that the proposal on building a large-scale Paolong Square was finally passed at the County People's Congress, and relevant departments of the county party committee and county government had begun to work on specific work such as approval materials, funding and planning for the project land.
Some government officials are full of expectations for this future Cannon Square.
They believe that "Bin County Cannon Dragon" is a big story.
From Bin County to NanNing City, everyone is determined to turn the Cannon Dragon Festival into an Oriental carnival.
This requires planning its development future from a high starting point and with high specifications when promoting the Cannon Dragon Festival and planning the Cannon Dragon Tour.
Among them, a large-scale Cannon Dragon Cultural Square is indispensable.
At that time, a person in charge of the Bin County Tourism Bureau made a specific explanation, pointing out that more than 200,000 people come to observe the Artillo Festival every year.
Whether it is the original cultural square, the trade city stage (temporarily built), or the old temple, it cannot accommodate so many people.
Moreover, to develop the Dragon Cannon Tour, we cannot stop the Dragon Cannon Dance after the festival.
We must form a professional dragon dance team and develop the dragon dance and the Dragon Cannon Dance into a tourist event.
These can be held in the Dragon Cannon Square.
As for the "Two Sessions" and the reconstruction of the old temple, which is of greatest concern to the public, the county party committee and county government were vague.
At first, they neither said that they would continue to support nor oppose it.
They only said that they were unable to take care of it now, had no time to take care of it, and would no longer ask about it.
Later, there was news that it was possible to rebuild the old temple, but it had to be relocated and the old temple would be moved to Pao Long Square and become part of Pao Long Square.
However, the "Two Sessions" expressed opposition to the Paolong Square plan strongly advocated by the government.
They were worried that if the Paolong Square was really built, the center of the Paolong Dance would inevitably shift from the old temple to the square, and the status of the old temple would gradually decline.
As for the subsequent rumors that the government supported the relocation and reconstruction of the old temple, the "Two Sessions" and many people did not accept it, believing that the old temple must be rebuilt on the original site, otherwise the Paolong culture would lose its flavor.
2.
The "Cannon Square" meeting conflicts with the traditional belief in Cannon Dragon Dance
The dispute between "temple" and "field" in Bin County actually involves two issues.
First, why do local people oppose the local government's construction of Paolong Square; second, why do local people insist on rebuilding the old temple, and it must be rebuilt at the original place? This is because they believe that, first, there are many conflicts between the Paolong Square and the tradition of Paolong dancing; second, the old temple is a "dragon cave", and all the essence of Paolong culture is contained in the old temple.
Almost all of the people surveyed were worried that if the center of the Pao Dragon Dance activities shifted from the old temple to the Pao Dragon Square, it would conflict with the traditional Pao Dragon Dance beliefs and be "extremely harmful to the inheritance and development of Pao Dragon Dance." This kind of conflict is mainly reflected in the following three aspects:
(1) Cannon Square will break the rules that Cannon Dance has long adhered to
Dragon dancing activities are mainly held in the Laocheng District."One dragon dances one street" and "One street dragon and one street" are long-standing dragon dancing rules.
However, Pao Long Square was designed in response to the government's "creation of a new development environment".
It is a commercial district and will also be a new residential area.
Outsiders will definitely account for the vast majority.
They have no tradition of Pao Long Dance and will not understand these rules of Pao Long Dance.
At that time, a large-scale dragon dance event will be held in Paolong Square, and we can only withdraw the dragon team from the streets of the old urban area.
However, in this way, who will stay in the old streets to dance the dragon, who will watch the dragon dance in the old streets of Laocheng District, what about the old streets of Laocheng District, and who will prosper? Focusing on Pao Dragon Dance in Pao Dragon Square makes it convenient for tourists and meets their needs, but it "makes outsiders prosperous and locals lose".
It is lively on the surface, but it is no longer "interesting."
(2) The streets in Laocheng District are the most suitable for the special requirements for venue space
The lack of specialized venues and lack of safety guarantees for viewing are important reasons why the government plans to build Paolong Square.
However, most people in the "Two Sessions" believe that this reason is not sufficient and ridiculous, indicating that some people in the government "do not really understand Wu Pao Long." The biggest difference between dragon dances in Bin County and dragon dances in other places is that various activities such as dragon dances, setting off firecrackers, burning dragons, grabbing dragon balls, and drilling dragon belly can be gathered at the same time.
The scene is lively, spectacular, thrilling, both beautiful and fun.
It is a mass cultural and sports activity with the participation of the whole people.
To show these characteristics and achieve these effects, there are special requirements for the venue: if the venue is too wide and large, activities will be scattered, if it is too small and narrow, and the activities will not be held for exhibitions.
The best venues for the dragon dance are old streets in the Laocheng District such as Zhonghe, Zhen 'an, and Zhixing.
The length is unlimited and the width is between 4-8 meters, which is just enough for the dragon dragon to "swing the tail." Residents on both sides live opposite each other, and firecrackers can be set off upstairs and downstairs.If dragon dances are concentrated in a large circular square, these characteristics will disappear.
Some veteran dragon dancers have complained that the roads of some newly built main streets are too wide, and the dragon dancers cannot "take care" of the residents on both sides at the same time, and their excitement is far less than that of the old streets.
In addition, many people seem not to be worried about the safety issues mentioned by the government.
They said that they have been dancing cannons in the old streets of Laocheng District for hundreds of years, and there have been burns and burns to people, but there have always been a secret treatment method and no major safety incidents have occurred.
Moreover, the firing of cannons has been banned now.
Even if there are more tourists in the future, as long as the preparations are done, there will be no major problems.
(3) The "opening" Cannon Dragon Square is not "original"
In the view of the people of Bin County, especially the people of Luzhen, the county seat, the old temple is a treasure land and the "dragon cave" of Luzhen.
This is the only place.
The Cannon Dragon Dance in Bin County started from the development of Laomiao and then continued to expand outward, forming today's grand Cannon Dragon Festival, which has sheltered generations of Luzhen people and Bin County people, but the "root" still lies in the old temple.
To this day, people still believe that only the cannon dragon that has been opened in the old temple is "original" and can be stained with the "dragon light".
It is the most spiritual and the most fulfilling.
According to their words, cannon dragons that are opened in other places are only protected by the "land master".
How can the land master be compared to the dragon master and the dragon mother? The Pao Long Square in Area A is not a "dragon cave".
If we just build a "field" instead of a "temple", it means that the treasure of the land, the temple loses its power, and the dragon loses its prestige.
No matter how the government organizes a massive Pao Long Dance in Area A, it is still a completely "degenerate" Pao Long Dance.
It can only "fool outsiders but not locals", or even "fool Yang people but not Yin people."
3.
The legend of "Longdi" revived behind the demand for rebuilding the old temple on the original site
(1) The legend of "Longdi" in Luzhen under the "landscape"
The word "landscape" appeared in the 16th century.
It was originally a technical word used by painters to refer to landscapes.
It quickly became a word in geography and architecture, and has now become interdisciplinary.
Anthropology's concern for the environment always revolves around the relationship between culture and nature.
In this context, the landscape is often regarded as a special "gaze" of local people on the environment.
It is a result of human meaningful activities, presenting the main (local) beliefs and values, which are the local people's own interpretation of their environment.
Therefore, anthropology's concern and research on the landscape is to "people colonize nature through the landscape" and to explore "how the landscape carries information."
As the "inner image" of the landscape, Feng Shui is the cause, rule, concept and narrative that cannot be ignored or even the most important of the Chinese landscape.
As a view of the universe and order, Feng Shui provides an ideology that has an impact on alleviating social differences in competition, thus consolidating the existence of communities.
At the practical level of operation, whether feng shui is a concept (in the minds of ordinary people) or a technology (the narration and performance or practices of feng shui masters), it must be presented through material, namely the landscape, such as the spatial distribution and architectural form expression of Yin and Yang houses, the design of buildings and natural environments, etc.
The concept of feng shui explains a series of cultural and social problems through landscape factors, and creates a corresponding social order.
In the simple concept of feng shui by Luzhen people, Luzhen is a "treasure land of feng shui" and the old temple is the location of the "dragon cave".
These concepts originated from a "Dragon Land" legend passed down from generation to generation in Luzhen:
A long time ago, in the deep mountains and forests at the junction of Wuming and Shanglin County in Daming Mountain, there lived two giant dragons, a male and a female.
They were powerful and had always been local protectors.
For some unknown reason, the two giant dragons rose into the sky from the abyss of Daming Mountain, flying through the clouds and mist, looking for new homes everywhere.
They first found many places in Daming Mountain, but were not satisfied, so they had to fly out of Daming Mountain and fly in the direction of Bin County.
When they flew over Luzhen, they saw a large piece of flat land here, with only high mountains in the south.
The two dragons decided to go down to the ground for on-the-spot investigation.
Dragon Gong was in front and Dragon Mother was behind.
They came down from the Nanshan Mountains, but they were very happy to see Luzhen with beautiful mountains and rivers, open terrain, lush forests, and fertile land.
When the two dragons swam to the center of today's old temple, the Dragon King turned around and said to the dragon mother,"This is really a good place.
Let's make a new home here!" So the two giant dragons were suppressed in Lu and sheltered Lu Town for generations.
Because Luzhen has dragons settled here, local people regard Luzhen as "dragon land".
Among the two dragons, because the Dragon Lord turned around and spoke, people in Luzhen (Bin County) also called this Dragon Lord the "Returning Dragon."
The geographical location of the old temple is not only the place where the legendary Dragon Duke turned around and spoke to the dragon mother, but also the later residence of the two dragons in Luzhen, namely the "Dragon Cave".
The two green dragons surrounded by the pillars in front of the Buddha Temple are the legendary "Dragon Gong and Dragon Mother" who came here from Daming Mountain.
The one higher on the left and looking back is the "Returning Dragon", and the one lower on the right is the "Dragon Mother".
In addition, the two dragons descended from the hillside of Nanshan Mountain, and after reaching the village, they sneaked under the surface to reach the Lao Temple of Luzhen.
The place they passed through formed a creek.
People in Laolu Town said that this creek is the Dragon Creek, the embodiment of the dragon.
To this day, many people in Luzhen still believe that Luzhen can develop from a small hillside overgrown with weeds to four famous towns in Guangxi in the late Qing Dynasty because Luzhen is a "dragon land" that has the protection of dragons and can gather popularity.
Therefore, the population is prosperous and the sea is full of rivers.
Precisely because the old temple is the location of the "dragon cave", it has an irreplaceable special status in the dragon dance activities.
On the 11th day of the first lunar month of every year, the dragon always relies on the power of the temple and the temple supports the dragon's power.
They climb into houses along the street, swallow dust and spit jade, and bless and send gifts.
This makes a crowd of people in the city like a tide, the sound of cannons shook the ground, and gongs and drums resounded all night long.
It is extremely lively.
With age, people are exposed to its glory and households enjoy its blessings.
The town has gained a good reputation and the county has gained its voice.
A Cannon culture with unique connotations and rich contents has been accumulated." The secret of Pao Dragon Dance and the essence of Pao Dragon Culture are almost all contained in the old temple.
(2) The old temple, which is the place of the "Dragon Cave", is the only remaining temple in Luzhen
Since the New Deal in the late Qing Dynasty, temples in China have become targets of organized destruction, and new elites who have received a modern school education system have taken hostile actions against folk religion.
According to the records of the annals of Bin County in the Republic of China, in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, there were "more than 80 temples in each township" in Bin County, with many gods and strong incense.
However,"since the Republic of China, superstitions have been eradicated and idols have been destroyed.
In addition to the demolition of temples, all existing temples have been transformed into public offices and schools, and the incense that was so prosperous in those days has never been restored." However, those monks, monks, nuns and Taoists, who "eliminated superstitions","have disappeared." Like the whole country, temples in Bin County have also experienced a process of rapid decline.
According to a survey by the person in charge of the "Two Sessions", the former main building of the old temple, including the Buddha Temple, Sanhuang Temple and Guanyin Nunnery, were connected into one and were of a brick and wood structure.
In front of the temple, there were also Pulong Kaiguang Altar, sightseeing platform, Bell and Drum Tower, covering an area of about 1300 square meters, is a four-in-one architectural structure of palace, temple, building and altar.
Many elderly people who lived in Luzhen Old Street said that before the liberation, Luzhen had good economic conditions and local gentry or wealthy businessmen supported various temple fairs, so the incense was always very strong and it was a sacrificial and entertainment center for Luzhen and surrounding villagers.
However, around 1942, the stage in front of the old temple (namely, the two floating shops of the cooked food stall and the pork store before the reconstruction) began to be used as the site of the fifth primary school in Luzhen.
In the autumn of 1948, Luzhen carried out municipal construction.
In order to open up Jing 'an and Zhongxing streets, the Sanhuang Temple was demolished.
In the mid-to-late 1950s, the temple fair organization of the old temple was banned and the old temple was left unattended.
As a result, the halls of Buddha Temple and Guanyin Nunnery were demolished.
The statues inside were seriously damaged, and six marble pillars in front of the door collapsed.
Starting from about the 1960s, the old temple began to be expropriated by the local government.
First, Guanyin Nunnery was transformed into a warehouse of a supply and marketing cooperative.
Later, the square outside the temple for worship and the adjacent Bell and Drum Tower were used as a farmers 'market.
Since the 1980s, the entire old temple has been included in the construction plan of Luzhen Zhonghe Farmers 'Market.
Deli stalls and pork shops have been built on the former sites of the worship square and the Bell and Drum Tower respectively.
Guanyin Nunnery has been occupied by the market service center for office use.
As a result, the market has become bigger and bigger, and the old temple has been occupied step by step.
In the end, only a dilapidated tiled house of less than 100 square meters-Buddha Temple remains.
However, people in Bin County still like to call it the "old temple."
Although the past glory of the old temple and its current dilapidated status are unavoidable, the people of Luzhen are sad and believe that it is a blessing despite misfortune that the old temple can protect the Buddha Temple.
According to statistics, after the end of the Cultural Revolution, only six temples in the entire Bin County were not completely destroyed.
In the county, there was only one Lao Temple.
Regarding this "miracle", many people in the "Two Sessions" also attributed this kind of luck to the protection of the Dragon Duke and the Dragon Mother, and believed that it was the existence of the Buddha Temple that the reconstruction had a mass foundation and a realistic basis.
4.
Winning the plan to rebuild the old temple
Since September 2006, the leaders of the "Two Sessions" have expressed their determination to the county party committee and county government that "the old temple must be rebuilt" through various channels.
However, their opinions did not seem to have much effect at first.
The "resolution" of the County People's Congress on the Paolong Square project was still passed, and various preliminary work such as the planning and design of the square, and land approval are also being carried out in an orderly manner.
In January 2007, the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Bin County passed a resolution stating that the Artillo Festival was transformed from a scattered non-governmental organization in the past to a government organization.
During this year's Cannon Festival, whether it was the "Cannon Dragon Gala" on the 10th day of the first month or the "Carnival Night" on the 11th day of the National Day, the county party committee and county government did not set the event venue in the Lao Temple (this is very different from 2006).
Although the opening of the Dragon Festival at the Lao Temple, the highlight of the Dragon Festival, did not reveal people's vision, it was not like in previous years, where the Lao Temple was the only center.
No one would speculate that this was the government's deliberate attempt, but it caused anxiety among people who wanted to rebuild the old temple.
In March 2007, just a few days after the Armored Dragon Festival, more than a dozen temple building activists met to come to the office to discuss the reconstruction of the old temple.
They analyzed the current "situation" and believed that whether the work of building the temple can be restarted depends on whether the land approval, planning and other work of Paolong Square are progressing smoothly.
2007 may be a "critical year".
As long as the land cannot be approved before and after the National Day, the "Two Sessions" will strive to build the temple and cannot passively wait for the results to arrive.
The meeting determined the direction of the work of the "Two Sessions" in the future: first, pay close attention to the progress of the work at Cannon Square, especially the results of land approval; second, the fundraising work will be restarted, but there is no need to make a big fuss for the time being, but the focus will be on finding a group of potential "big households"; third, continue to do a good job in publicity and education, especially to clarify the "status and role of the old temple in making the Artillon Festival bigger and stronger"; fourth, we must find a legal basis for reconstructing the old temple on the original site.
Until the end of September 2007, the land acquisition plan for Paolong Square submitted by Bin County to the municipal and district governments did not follow.
Those activists who insisted on building the temple had long been unable to bear it anymore and judged that Paolong Square had "failed to land acquisition".
They repeatedly requested the "Two Sessions" to come forward again to reflect the people's "strong demand for the temple construction" to the county party committee and county government.
A principal person in charge of the "Two Sessions" who once served as the director of the People's Congress of Bin County found the county party secretary after National Day and submitted written materials such as the policy basis, significance, and role of rebuilding the old temple.
He reported to him the strong desire of "the masses all demanding the construction of the temple." He also said that several bosses had promised that if it was to rebuild the old temple, they would not donate much, but if they wanted to move the old temple to the square for construction, they were unwilling to donate.
Due to many previous negotiations, the dispute over "temple" and "market" has become a hoot in Bin County.
After discussing with several other county leaders, the county party committee secretary stated to the person in charge that since the masses have a strong desire to build temples, the county party committee and county government should not interfere too much and "respect history and comply with public opinion."
The county party secretary's statement brought the final result to the battle between "temples" and "fields" that lasted for more than a year.
Since mid-October 2007, the enthusiasm of the people of Bin County for donations has been ignited again.
Other preparations such as the cashing of working groups, design drawings, construction teams, and large donors have also been put in place one by one.
Reconstruction officially started in early November.
By the 2008 Armored Dragon Festival, a 15-meter-high three-story building had been erected on the old site.
Although it was just in its infancy, almost all the Armored Dragon Teams in Luzhen Old Street had gone to the newly built old temple to dance.
5.
Transformation and reproduction of "Paolong Old Temple"
The rebuilt old temple in Bin County is not a simple building construction, but a new design from the name, belief space and public space, completing transformation and reproduction.
(1)"Double Name System": The Use and Wonderful Use of Old Temple Names and New Temple Names
In China, the state has established a strict supervision system for the surface.
A new existence must first exist in government documents before it falls to the surface.
It must first have a "name" before it can become "real." Otherwise, if it is confirmed first, its existence will be in danger of being denied at any time.
Of course, this "name" must be "derived from a name" and "justified".
When the reconstruction of the old temple began, the main person in charge of the "Two Sessions" always felt that the name "old temple" was too vulgar and irregular, and wanted to rename the old temple again.
To name the "old temple", we must first understand the origin of the old temple.
After more than half a year of reviewing the county chronicles and visiting old residents, when the reconstruction of the old temple started, the secretary-general of the "Two Sessions" announced that the original name of the old temple was Sanhuang Temple and was built in the 13th year of Wanli of the Ming Dynasty (1585).
It has a history of more than 400 years.
There were differences among the members of the "Two Sessions" on what to call the old temple after the reconstruction.
The Secretary-General provided three opinions: one is to use the original customary name, namely "Lao Temple"; the other is to restore its original appearance and call it "Sanhuang Temple"; and the last is to use a new name for the temple,"Paolong Old Temple" or "Paolong Kaiguang Old Temple".
The Secretary-General himself prefers the term "Sanhuang Temple" and believes that since the original name of the temple is known and now it is rebuilt, the original name should be restored to "clean up the source." However, the vast majority of members of the "Two Sessions" agreed with the new name of the temple-"Paolong Lao Temple", believing that this temple name could not only retain the customary name of Luzhen people, but also closely connect the old temple with the Paolong culture.
Together, it would be easy to explain internally and promote externally.
If we must highlight the profound sense of history of the old temple, we can also call it the "Three Emperors Temple" to the outside world, so that the rebuilt old temple will have two names.
(2) The reshaping of belief space and the expansion of public space
Although the name of "Paolong Lao Temple" connects the old temple with Paolong culture, how to obtain and maintain its legitimacy and highlight its cultural connotation still requires repositioning the old temple.
The "Two Sessions" put a lot of effort into this regard, and the measures taken mainly involve two aspects: first, re-select and resettle the gods and statues to be worshipped in the old temple of Paolong; second, build the old temple of Paolong into a stage for promoting folk culture., a place for mass cultural events.
1.
Reselection and spatial placement of the idol
Regarding the resettlement of the original statues enshrined in the old temple, members of the "Two Sessions" believed that it was too casual and extremely irregular.
"If you want to worship a god, you just need to donate some money and find someone to make a god statue.
You can worship that god and place it inside.
Whatever you think is good will do.
There are no requirements for the placement of the statues.
Any god who comes early can occupy the center position, without distinction between primary and secondary."The secretary-general of the" Two Sessions ", responsible for the resettlement of statues in new temples that are about to be completed, insisted on highlighting the status of the three emperors.
He reviewed a large number of historical books and pictures about the Three Emperors, and believed that the Sanhuang Temple in the past in Bin County served the three ancient sages of China, Yellow Emperor, Fuxi, and Shennong.
It would be most appropriate to place the statues of these three saints in the new temple.
He explained that Fuxi was the first generation of emperors in ancient legends and the humanistic ancestor of the Chinese nation.
Legend has it that he had the body of a snake and the head of a man, and was said to be the "successor of the dragon." The new temple built in Bin County happened to be the "Old Temple of Pao Long", which could enrich Pao Long culture; the Yellow Emperor and Yan Emperor were both called the ancestors of the Chinese nation.
The statues of Shennong (Yan Emperor) and the Yellow Emperor showed that we are all descendants of the descendants of Yan Huang, and the ancestors must not be forgotten in several classics.
In early November 2007, he also sent letters to Tianshui, Gansu, Suizhou, Hubei, and Xinzheng, Henan, requesting images of the three emperors from relevant local departments.
In October 2008, after nearly a year of discussion and selection, the resettlement work of the statue of "Paolong Lao Temple" was finally completed.
In the center of the entrance to the old temple are the Yellow Emperor, Fuxi and Shennong.
There are two rows on the left.
The first row is the pharmacist master, Shijia Muni Buddha, and Amitabha.
The second row is Zhou Cang, Guan Gong, Guan Ping.
On the left side of the entrance is the statue of Confucius; There are also two rows of statues on the right side of the Three Emperors.
The first row is Jade Nv, Guanyin Bodhisattva, and Golden Boy.
The second row has two rows of statues.
The upper row is Zhonglou Fairy Sister (2), Grandma King, and Zhonglou Fairy Sister (2).
In the lower row, Du Sanniang, Zijiao Bridge, and Liu Wensong are respectively.
On the right side near the door is the statue of God of Wealth.
In this way, the statues of the Three Emperors placed in the new temple are not only tall and prominent, but also have prominent status.
They are believed to not only demonstrate the legitimacy and cultural heritage of the Paolong Old Temple, but also match the name of the "Three Emperors Temple".
2.
Multifunctional public cultural space
In October 2008, when the fully completed "Paolong Old Temple" was presented to people, the building actually became a multi-functional public cultural space integrating temples, Paolong Culture Museum and scientific and technological cultural activity centers.
The sign reading "Paolong Lao Temple" is hung horizontally in the middle on the top of the gate beam of the new temple.
There are two propaganda columns on both sides in front of the old temple of Paolong.
The propaganda columns leading directly from the left side of the temple are the so-called "Paolong Culture Museum" and the "Luzhen Science and Technology and Cultural Activity Center".
The propaganda column leading directly from the right side of the temple to the right is a merit column of a stone tablet, recording the meritorious people and various units who built the temple.
In the "Cannon Dragon Culture Museum", several window windows have been built.
One window is dedicated to placing some props dedicated to Cannon Dragon Dance, such as dragon lanterns, dragon hats, dragon trousers, dragon belts, dragon balls, eight tones, etc.; One window is placed with promotional materials for the Cannon Dragon Festival, news and video materials on relevant media reports on Cannon Dragon Dance and the Cannon Dragon Festival, especially publicity and reporting materials from major domestic and foreign media such as CCTV, Xinhua Agency, and Reuters; Another window displays copies of the Intangible Cultural Heritage List certificates, various honorary titles, etc.
of the Argon Festival, materials on China's dragon culture, etc.
The "Luzhen Science and Technology and Cultural Activity Center" is mainly a large stage.
During the Armored Dragon Festival or other major festivals, it is used to invite local troupes to sing Shigong Opera and other forms of local art performances in Bin County.
In ordinary times, it is mainly used as a propaganda column for the party's policies and a site for organizing various competitions in Luzhen to enrich and improve the cultural life standards of the people of Luzhen.
In order to avoid the possible political risks caused by the construction of the temple, the Paolong Lao Temple has realized the integration of cultural categories actively advocated by the government such as "folk (ethnic) culture","science and education culture", and "community civilization" into a public space.
Go, and wrap up "superstitious" activities such as seeking gods and worshiping Buddha, and conceal its "superstitious" color as much as possible to obtain positive support from relevant government departments.
VI.
Conclusion
Judging from the dispute between "temple" and "field" in Bin County, local people insist on rebuilding the old temple on the original site, demanding to maintain the most original flavor of the dragon dance.
In fact, they insist on the folk expression of "developing while protecting." In this process, local people adhered to local knowledge such as the belief in dancing the dragon, the legend of the dragon land in Luzhen, and the land of the dragon cave in the old temple, and used them as key reasons to oppose the official construction of "Paolong Square".
The case in Bin County has at least the following implications:
First of all, local knowledge can play a role in the protection of "intangible cultural heritage" in the tourism context.
The reason why the Bin County government abandoned the Paolong Square plan was difficult in land approval, but more importantly, a group of temple building activists persisted in explaining to the government the importance of rebuilding the old temple and the possible harm caused by the construction of the Paolong Square.
They put pressure on the government by constantly activating and emphasizing the traditional belief of Paolong Dance and the special status and cultural connotation of the old temple, and finally won the government's statement of "respecting history and complying with public opinion."
Secondly, if local knowledge wants to play a role in the protection of "intangible cultural heritage", it must rely on community elites and organizational strength.
The "Two Sessions" of Bin County and their main leaders are a group of retired veteran cadres and current community cadres.
They are very powerful and can maintain sufficient contact and communication with governments at all levels in Bin County, and can be said to be in response to the reconstruction of the old temple.
From the perspective of organizational structure, it cannot be said that the "Two Sessions" are closely organized, but at least they have a division of labor, have leaders, can act collectively, and skillfully use some strategies.
More importantly, they love the dragon dance and hope to pass on the dragon culture.
They have a heartfelt nostalgia for the old temples and old streets.
In their view, the Cannon Festival can be developed and commercialized, but the first thing to ensure that it is inherited and displayed is the original Cannon Dragon Dance, giving priority to satisfying the prayers of local residents and continuing to bring good luck to local residents.
Thirdly, local knowledge will be transformed and reproduced in the context of tourism, but this reproduction is achieved through the gap of protecting cultural inheritance, complying with national policies and taking care of the place.
On the one hand, the rebuilt old temple strives to avoid ideological conflicts with national policies and local government requirements.
On the other hand, it can inherit the "original" Paolong culture and connect the Paolong culture of Bin County with the Chinese dragon culture (through the cultural imagination of the "Three Emperors", the ancestors of the Chinese nation) by reconfirming its identity, implementing a dual-name system, strictly selecting and placing statues in the temple, and expanding cultural space.
This reproduction of local knowledge can be understood as a compromise to some extent, or as a process of innovation.
Finally, to transform folk customs into tourism resources, we must respect the wishes of local people and adhere to the development idea of "protection in understanding and development in identification".
From the design point of view, the Bin County government's "Paolong Square" plan is undoubtedly a plan of "protecting while developing." Without the "Two Sessions" and the firm persistence of a large number of temple building activists, it would be a big question whether the connotation of the canon dragon dances and so-called canon dragon culture we see today would still be expressed as related to so-called local knowledge such as old temples, dragon land legends, and dragon caves.
Fortunately, the local government finally lowered its stance,"respected history and complied with public opinion", and agreed to rebuild the old temple, allowing the dragon dance to continue the tradition, and the dragon culture thus inherited the local character and its characteristics.
The case of Bin County reminds us that folk customs can be transformed into tourism resources, but the prerequisite must be to fully understand the folk culture itself, respect the wishes of the "people" who hold the folk custom itself, and gain their recognition and support.
(This article was originally published in "Cultural Heritage", issue 03, 2016.
Notes are omitted, please refer to the original text for details)