徐天基、羅丹。〈冀東南地方社會的功果儀式：以表功師傅為中心〉。《民俗曲藝》230 (2025.12): 179–222。
Xu Tianji and Luo Dan. “The Gongguo Ritual of Contemporary Popular Sects in Southeast Hebei: A Study Centered on the Merit-delivering Masters.” Journal of Chinese Ritual, Theatre and Folklore 230 (2025.12): 179–222.
Abstract
廿世紀以來，有關「香頭」的研究在一定程度上標誌化了華北鄉村宗教的基本形貌。然而，「香頭」並不是該地區儀式專家的唯一類型。華北冀東南地區有一類稱作「表功師傅」的儀式專家，與「香頭」有着截然不同的信仰及儀式傳統。他們傳習着教門文化，是白蓮教無生老母信仰及儀式傳統在當代北方鄉村社會中的遺脈。
當地表功師傅所實踐的儀式統稱為功果儀式，是他們對於功德轉換的體現，有內功和外功之別。內功儀式直接將「功」轉換為「功果」，這是教門人士登金殿回真空家鄉的根本資糧。外功更多體現於外向性的儀式實踐，是表功師傅修持外功的重要方式。外功儀式按受眾可分為三類，分別體現在個人、家戶及村落集體儀式三個層面。看事行好、打醮和送亡是這類儀式的基本類型。
立足於冀東南田野作業所輯之民間經卷，本文對表功師傅的功果儀式進行梳理和研究，側重其外功儀式部分。外功儀式共享着一個三段式的儀式結構，即請神—迎神—送神，現存口頭經卷是對其儀式語音系統的記錄，而儀式抄本是對儀式語音系統的文字化轉錄。
Since the twentieth century, scholarship on incense heads (xiangtou
香頭) has come to delineate the basic morphology of rural religion
in North China, yet within this regional religious landscape incense heads
represent only one category of ritual specialists. In southeastern Hebei, a
distinct group of practitioners–known as merit-delivering masters (biaogong
shifu 表功師傅)–operates using belief systems and ceremonial traditions that
stand in stark contrast to those of incense heads. Rooted in the White Lotus sect’s
veneration of the Eternal Venerable Mother (Wusheng laomu 無生老母), these masters preserve a sectarian religious culture that
endures as a living legacy in contemporary northern Chinese rural society.
These masters’ rites–collectively known as the Gongguo ritual–embody
their virtue transformation framework, classified into internal and external
merit practices. Internal ceremonies directly convert gong 功 to gongguo 功果, serving as the spiritual
basis for adherents’ return to their cosmic abode, known as the Golden Hall
(Jindian 金殿). External rituals focus on outward practices that cultivate
merit across three audience tiers: individual, household, and village-level observances.
Key forms include doing good deeds, communal offerings (dajiao 打醮), and mortuary rituals (songwang 送亡).
Drawing on popular scriptures collected through fieldwork in
southeastern Hebei, this article examines the merit-achievement rituals of
these masters, focusing specifically on external ceremonies. These adhere to a
three-part structural sequence–inviting deities, welcoming deities, and sending
deities off. Surviving oral scriptures document their ritual speech systems,
while transcribed manuscripts serve as textualized records of these
performative traditions.
Also in Journal of Chinese
Ritual, Theatre and Folklore:
徐天基、羅丹。〈當代冀東南民間教派的儀式專家：以經卷為中心的研究〉。《民俗曲藝》222 (2023.12): 187-229。
Xu Tianji and Luo Dan. “The Ritual Experts of
Contemporary Popular Religious Sects in Southeast Hebei: A Study Centered on
Scriptures.” Journal of Chinese Ritual, Theatre and Folklore 222
(2023.12): 187-229.
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