Temple Fair

Ⅹ-84Folk CustomsXuhui, ShanghaiBatch 2 (2008)Newly Added Item

01 · Historical Records

Some of the large temple fairs had already reached considerable scale in the Tang dynasty and have been passed down without interruption ever since, exerting a wide influence. In China's Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, as well as the Taiwan region, the traditional temple fairs commonly observed by devotees were all introduced from the mainland and remain inseparably tied to their origins. The Shanghai Longhua temple fair is one of the famous temple fairs of East China; its origins can be traced back to the Tang dynasty. By the Ming dynasty, the Longhua temple fair had developed from a purely Buddhist-worship fair into a comprehensive fair combining commerce and entertainment. In the Qing dynasty, the fair was further combined with the custom of viewing peach blossoms; its main day was moved from the third day of the third lunar month to the fifteenth, its scale and influence expanded further, its entertainment content increased, and the fair entered its full flourishing period. After the 1920s, the Longhua temple fair transformed from a rural fair into an urban one.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

Temple fairs, also known as "temple markets", are a type of folk-belief activity held at regular intervals at temples and in their vicinity, popular throughout the country. Every temple fair has its own prescribed session dates, most of which fall on a traditional lunar festival or on a religious or folk-belief commemorative day. Temple fairs are characterized by concentration, mass participation, and fixity. During a fair, all manner of folk activities and commercial exchanges can be fully displayed in public, and the activities are rich and colorful; processions for welcoming the gods are also one form of temple fair. Longhua Temple is traditionally regarded as the bodhimanda of the Bodhisattva Maitreya. On the anniversary of the nirvana of Maitreya's incarnation as the Cloth-Bag Monk, Longhua Temple holds a grand commemorative dharma assembly, chiefly in the form of the Water-and-Land Dharma rite for all souls. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the government participated in organizing the Longhua temple fair, bringing it out of its spontaneous state and into a new stage. The Longhua temple fair is characterized by urbanity, commerce, and entertainment. Commercial activity is an important element of the fair, owing not only to the commercial tradition and developed business background of the Yangtze River Delta region but also to the timing of the fair. The Longhua temple fair is generally held around Qingming, which is the time of spring sowing, when farm tools, seeds, and the like are needed; the fair therefore becomes the best trading venue for such agricultural goods. Entertainment is likewise an important element of the Longhua temple fair. During the fair, people merrily walk the spring greens and view peach blossoms, and watch shadow plays, flower-drum operas, dragon and lion dances, and lake-boat (danghuchuan) performances, making the Longhua temple fair the most joyous festival of the early-year season in Shanghai. In the course of its development, the Longhua temple fair produced numerous legends, poems, and proverbs; the creation of these works both shows the important role the fair played in people's lives and reflects its enormous influence and strong radiating power. The fair's development directly led to the formation of the ancient town of Longhua and promoted the formation and development of the Shanghai area.

The water-land rite for Maitreya's nirvana

The monastery keeps the memorial rite on the day Maitreya's incarnation entered nirvana, centred on a water-land ceremony for all surnames.

How the March peach-blossom term grew

After the fair merged with the custom of viewing peach blossoms in the Qing, its main day moved from the third to the fifteenth of the third lunar month.

The spring-sowing fair of tools and seed

As the fair falls just before Qingming, farmers come to buy implements and seed, which makes it a rural market as much as a temple festival.

Shadow play, flower drums and lake boats

Beyond the outings and peach blossoms, shadow plays, flower-drum opera, dragon and lion dances and bobbing boats fill the fair with entertainment.

Longhua fare at the fair

Mutton, spiced broad beans, dried tofu and vegetarian dishes line the stalls and merge with everyday Longhua cooking.

From village fair to city fair

After the 1920s the fair moved from village to city, its stalls and shows reorganised around Longhua town and offering a view of Shanghai street life.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

Food is an important aspect of the fair's commercial customs. Longhua mutton, Longhua spiced beans, Longhua dried tofu, and Longhua vegetarian dishes are all specialty foods commonly seen at the Longhua temple fair, and they are closely related to local dietary customs and ways of life.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

In overseas Chinese communities, many temple fairs brought from the homeland thrive with burning incense, transmitting the cultural lineage of the Chinese nation in a special way. As a window onto Shanghai, the Longhua temple fair plays an important reference role in the study of Shanghai's local culture.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Temple Fair (Xuhui, Shanghai) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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