民間信仰與族群關係─以竹南頭份造橋五穀宮為例

Abstract

本文透過清同治年間重建五榖王廟之捐款碑文，回溯清初漢移民之民間信仰與族群關係。此批漢移民居住在中港溪下游，因拓墾合作的緣由以及維繫彼此和諧關係而建置五穀王廟，使得該區有神農信仰的形成。彼此在宗教力量下試圖凝聚在一起，遂讓五榖王廟成為中港溪唯一閩粵合建合祀的廟宇。 由於五榖宮的祭祀主體是粵籍，而廟宇卻在閩地，因此彼此之間存在著ㄧ種微妙的關係。人群結構的名稱從閩粵到內外庄，其中實隱含著人群區劃的意味，而這樣的區劃卻演變成在一間廟內共神信仰下，不同人群分別以不同天、不同儀式舉行主神壽誕儀式，就好像兩地不同的宗教活動。從合祀到分祀，五榖宮在兩籍人群分分合合的關係下，更加彰顯出神農大帝的重要性，同時在對立關係中形成彼此之間的差異，正是這一個族群的差異性使得五榖宮能建立使自己香火更加鼎盛的大神像。 全文共分為五章，第一章緒論，主要談研究歷程、方法與資料之使用。而理論架構建在以「族群」、「民間信仰」、「宗教儀式」、「祭祀圈」、「地方社會」、「地方菁英」等傳統漢人社會之相關研究理論為基礎，進而討論、解讀、詮釋五穀宮的神農信仰與閩、粵族群的關係。第二章談五穀宮與中港溪下游人文與地理的關係，以及祖籍人群分布的態勢，並從全國神農信仰分布進而破除神農大帝為粵籍信仰的傳說。第三章透過清同治年間的重建捐款人祖籍分析及祭祀範圍來理解早期的五穀宮實以粵籍為祭祀主體；並透過租稅之社會事件看兩籍地方頭人在地方社會之角逐，從而探討五穀宮所扮演的重要角色。第四章從五榖宮內外庄民透過對內的宗教活動與對外交陪廟之廟際聯誼來理解彼此和諧平衡的狀態。第五章結論，說明研究成果、意義及展望。

關鍵字：五穀宮、神農大帝、民間信仰、族群、大神像、竹南鎮。

This research investigated the folk beliefs and ethnic relations of the Han immigrants in the beginning of the Qing Dynasty through the epigraphs of donations in the temple of the Wu-gu Emperor rebuilt in Tongzhi years of the Qing Dynasty. These Han immigrants lived downstream of the Jhonggang River and built the Wu-gu Temple due to their cooperation in reclamation and the intention of maintaining the mutual and harmonious relationship, which contributed to the formation of the belief in Emperor Shennong. These Han immigrants tried to cooperate with one another under the influence of religious forces; hence the Wu-gu Temple became the only temple of the Jhonggang River which was co-built and co-worshiped by the Fukien people and the Cantonese. Since the principal belief worshipped in the Wu-gu Temple originated from Guangdong while the temple resided in Fukien area, there is a delicate relationship between the Fukien people and the Cantonese. The name of Neichuang and Waichuang represented the different ethnic structure of the Fukien people and the Cantonese respectively, which implies the ethnic segmentation. However, such kind of segmentation transformed into a phenomenon in which different races held different religious rites for the birth of Emperor Shennnong, their common belief, in the same temple and makes it like different religious activities from two places. The cooperation and separation in religious rites of these two races in the Wu-gu Temple further indicates the importance of Emperor Shennong and the mutual differences formed in their relation of opposition. This ethic difference indeed makes it possible for the Wu-gu Temple to build a large statue of god, which can attract more believers. This paper is organized into five chapters: Chapter 1 is the introduction, and discusses the research process, research methods, and literature review. The theoretical framework of this research is based on relevant research theories of traditional Han society, such as “races,” “folk beliefs,” “religious rites,” “circle of worship,” “local society,” and “local elites” to further discuss, interpret, and explain the belief in Emperor Shennong and the relationship between the Fukien people and the Cantonese. Chapter 2 probes into the cultural and geographical relationships between the Wu-gu Temple and the downstream side of Jhonggang River, as well as the distribution trend of ancestors. This chapter also eradicates the legend which claimed that the belief in Emperor Shennong was a belief of the Cantonese through indicating the nationwide distribution of Shennong belief. Chapter 3 verifies that the principal belief worshipped in the Wu-gu Temple indeed was from Guangdong through analyzing the original family home of donors of reconstruction and the range of worship. It also discusses the local and social competitions between these two races through social incidents of tax, and further investigates the important role that the Wu-gu Temple plays. Chapter 4 concerns the mutual harmonious equilibrium through the internal religious activities held by the villagers of both Neichuang and Waichuang, and the external sodalities among each temple. Chapter 5 presents research findings, implications, and prospects.

Keywords : Wu-gu Temple, Emperor Shennong, folk beliefs, races, large statues of god, Jhunan Township